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The Raiders

The Vega Treaty has been signed on Beta Vulpeculae. Emperor Raljesh III and the Lacertan Speaker Shivlev were present and signed the treaties on behalf of their respective Empires.

The terms of the treaty recognized the Lacertan ownership of Procyon and gave them exclusive colonial rights to Gamme Equulei. In return, the Regulians are officially recognized as protectors of the newly discovered Earth and the species that inhabit it, and by extension, has exclusive colonial rights to it.

Terraforming has already begun on Procyon to make the planet more suitable for Lacertan settlers. Millions of Procyonids are expected to be displaced but the Regulian Empire is not accepting them, citing an agreement with the Lacertans. Prime Minister Yalla of Procyon condemned the treaty, citing it as enabling genocide.

Chief Gurlen of the Silver Knives, a powerful Equuleian clan, commented that he was positive about the results and looked forward to their youths serving the Lacertan army as a rite of passage.

Prince Areth, the Minister of Public Affairs, refused to comment.

-An excerpt from The Sirian Times article, “A Costly Peace."

We stared at each other for god knows how long. Neilan's ears were erect, but still. His broad muzzle was expressionless, but that was so common among Equuleians when pressed with an unexpected situation that it meant very little. His ivory tail swished once, which also meant little.

We had broken up months ago. He wanted to get into banditry, but I didn't, I didn't like hurting people, killing people, unless I had to. I'd kill someone who tried to hurt me, no problem, but raiding and killing was a bad way to make a living and sooner or later you'd get what's coming to you. He was hurt and angry, but he promised to keep my hideout a secret.

I didn't know what he was thinking now. His earthy musk was wafting heavily in the canvas tent, taking me back to the days when I'd fall asleep in his strong arms. But I was a human and I couldn't tell what his pheromones really meant, and I smelt the same thing when he was angry and we broke up, and it faded when he left, and I almost wanted to follow.

Neilan made the first move, scooping me up in his arms and pressing his face into his snout. He inhaled slowly, taking in my scent, before exhaling sharply with a purr, hot breath buffeting my face

“I missed you, Pawel," he said, rubbing his hands against the back of my head, “I really did."

His sparse whiskers tickled as he began to nuzzle me. I missed him too, but he was still a bandit and I didn't want anything to do with that. Still, I was his prisoner and I had to go along with him.

“I missed you too," I gasped, reaching around and running my fingers through his mane. The strands felt like soft silk, not the course hairs most Equuleians had. I never found out his secret, “I should have known it was you. Place smells like a stable."

“You know you love it."

We fell back onto an unzipped sleeping bag, my fall broken by his strong chest. His flat teeth nibbled at my lip and I kissing him, letting my tongue slip into his mouth. His tongue had the spicy flavor of redweed lingering on it.

With a groan, he pushed me back, my tongue slipping away. I looked down at him, past his broad muzzle and into his chocolate brown eyes, staring back at me softly. This was the man I liked back then. It was too bad the outside had nothing but reminders of who he is now.

Still, this didn't mean I couldn't walk down memory lane for just today.

I rubbed my hand over the bridge of his muzzle, feeling the tiny hairs prick my palm and he groaned with enjoyment. My butt was poked by something, and I looked down to see a thick bulge in his pants.

“This looks familiar," I said, gently unbuttoning his trousers and pulling them down. His thick, pink cock revealed itself, nearly flying out of its sheath with its flared head being prominent.

Equuleian penises weren't nearly as large as the stories were, but they were thick and long, and you needed preparation to take it. Thankfully for Planet, there was something called slipgrass that could be mashed into an effective lubricant, perfect for a prison planet, and Neilan has some of it, as I quickly found out when a slimy finger probed my anus and quickly entered, causing me to gasp.

Running my tongue along the shaft, his taste just as earthy as his scent, and felt it quiver with delight. From the tip, where I caught the first splash of pre-cum, to the ring in the middle of his shaft, and down to the base, where I ran it across his tennis-ball sized stones, the fuzzy hairs on it causing me to gag for a second, before continuing to pleasure his cock.

“I missed this," Neilan repeated, lifting his head with clenched teeth.

I did too, but this was just a visit, nothing more. I hoped he didn't see it further.

Giving his cock one final lick, I began to lift myself up, placing my rear above his tip, before he stopped me.

“On your fours," he ordered, baring his teeth, “You always liked that more."

That was not true, in fact, I was more of a top and he knew this, but he was larger, stronger, and was the bandit chief, so I obeyed for now, leaning forward onto my arms as he crawled behind me.

His flared tip brushed against my cheeks. It had been a long time since I took anyone this large. Red, being a Vulpeculan, had a knot, but it was a small one, not nearly as big as Neilan's shaft. Sensing my hesitation, he pulled back and inserted two fingers into my anus, probing and stretching.

“Let me know if it hurts."

Lubricant smeared across my chest as he gripped it. The cock tip was once against between my cheeks and I felt it slowly enter.

“Urgh!" I grunted, aching as the flare got inside.

The shaft gradually entered, easier than the flare, until it reached the ring at the center of his shaft. Not unlike the knot, it was meant to keep the cock inside, but right now it was just another obstacle before Neilan joined with me. I gritted my teeth as I prepared for one last painful ache, which was followed by an ache of pleasure, as his tip reached my prostate.

I gasped, nearly falling over were it not for Neilan's strong grip on my chest. Whiskers tickled my ear and I soon felt his snout nuzzle against my cheek.

“I love you," he whispered.

I didn't have a chance to lie, instead gasping as his shaft pulled back and then pushed forward, stabbing my prostate with expert accuracy.

His thrusts grew faster, his snorts and groans grew louder, and his grip tightened on my chest.

“Oh god!" I moaned with his thrusts.

“Yeah, you like that?"

“Yes! Yes!"

I didn't lie.

My arms were turning to quivering jelly, but I felt Neilan began to shudder and I knew this was coming to an end.

I nearly screamed as he yanked his cock out, spun me onto my back, and I was soon faced with his long muzzle, and the single eye of his glistening, flared cock staring down at me. His hand furiously stroked his shaft.

“I want my scent all over you," he grunted, “I want everyone to know you're mi..."

Neilan moaned loudly as his seed shot out onto my chest, the warmth soaking over me, nearly pinning me down. I sighed in relief, leaning back and closing my eyes.

When the barrage stopped, I opened my eyes to see Neilan's nose hovering over my chest, nostrils flaring as he breathed in.

“Everyone will know you're my mate again," he said with a chuckle. Withdrawing a towel from the other side of the tent, he began to wipe me down, “I'm glad we met again, Pawel."

“I'm glad too. This was great."

My chest nearly dry, Neilan tossed the towel away and flopped down next to me, wrapping his arms against me from behind and spooning against my back. I sighed. This was a pleasant memory made reality once again, but it wouldn't last.

“I did have ulterior motives though. Business," Neilan whispered, a finger running over my nipple.

I waited for him to continue.

“I heard about you and that Vulpeculan Princess."

I blinked in shock, thank god he couldn't see my face then.

“Don't try and deny it. We heard about you and her at the bar. We want her."

Nervously laughing, I said, trying my best to be seductive, “I thought you wanted me?"

Neilan laughed heartily, “Not for that! Not me, nor my men!"

“Then what?"

“Ransom," he said with a snort, “An off-worlder posted a heavy reward for her return, unharmed and unmolested. The dealers have all gotten word and they're anxious to have her found."

“Who?"

“A relative? Perhaps she ran away from a betrothal, perhaps she's rebelling against daddy, or perhaps her family just don't want her lounging around a planet full of dangerous prisoners?"

“What about the Regulians? Are they looking for her too?"

“The dealer I talked with said they haven't been informed yet. The details have passed through third party contacts," Neilan said, “Naturally, they'll have to find out eventually. When we find her, we'll take her to the dealer and he'll deliver her to the Regulians for shipment. We'll then collect a fat paycheck, enough to make a fortress if we wanted. We could hire the strongest men, buy the fairest concubines, and you'd be there, at my side as my number one and lover."

“I feel like I'm there already," I said, letting myself get lost in his words a little bit, but my thoughts secretly turned towards finding his intentions. Neilan wasn't dumb, but he was ambitious and wasn't easily swayed from his goals. Putting on a laugh, I asked, “Maybe if we get paid enough we could bribe the Regulians to ship us off Planet."

Snorting, Neilan spoke, “I wouldn't want that even if it was possible. This place is rich."

“Rich? It's a prison."

“Ah, you humans view richness differently. You see it in stable homes, regular food, and authority breathing down your neck," he rubbed his nose against my cheek, whispering gently along, trying to entice me, “We see richness in freedom, roaming the world, and the glory of subjugating lesser clans. Planet is rich in strange, new locations, and unlike Gamma Equulei, there are plenty of species smaller than us."

“You don't have to be large to fire a gun."

“But we have guns too, of course!" Neilan exclaimed, “What I'm trying to say is that we could form a horde, not a gang, and carve out our own territory here. True freedom."

There was no persuading him. I knew him well enough that he would never divert from this plan. Perhaps he was blind to the spiraling tower full of Regulians that looked over the land, perhaps he forgot that Planet was owned by them, and not the prisoners. It didn't matter, because he had convinced himself that his ambitions were right.

But I had ambitions too. And although I didn't consider myself to be overly ambitious, I still had dreams and right now, out of all of those dreams, I wanted two things:

My memories and a way off the planet.

Perhaps Yaleen was full of shit, but she was offering me something I wanted, something that Neilan could and would not offer.

Buried in his chest, I took a deep breath of his musk one last time before I closed my eyes and turned my thoughts towards betrayal.

We emerged from the tent a few hours later, the sun now blazing down on the ramshackle tents just a few degrees west of noon. Off and below us, the stones of Fool's Field glittered, and far off, I saw a shrouded figure poking around the rocks, oblivious to the raiders I was with. Luckily for them, we had other things to concern ourselves with.

“Where are his weapons?" Neilan barked, scanning the campgrounds before finally training on the brown Equuleian with the white stripe running down his muzzle, the one I thought was the leader before I met Neilan, “Why is he unarmed? Get his weapons!"

The brown and white one shouted something in Equuleian and the black one hastily thumped into view, kicking up dirt behind his hooves. He gave orders to the black one, who motioned for Neilan to follow him, which he did, leaving me with White Stripe's stoic, brown eyes staring at me.

“Who are you to him?" He said, exhaling a vicious snort.

Sensing a bit of tension and a chance to spread some discord, I replied, “His number one."

He snorted sharply, followed by an angry grunt as he stood up and stepped towards me, thumping his chest with his fist. Despite the anger, his voice was calm, “I'm the number one."

“Really now?"

His hand balled up into a fist.

“Try it. See how long you live."

He poked his thumb towards his chest and repeated himself, “I'm his number one."

“Not according to him."

With a heavy stomp, kicking up a clump of dirt into the wall of Neilan's tent, he stormed off in the direction of Neilan with a final grunt.

I followed a fair distance behind, not willing to press my luck too much. He turned around a tent and a growling argument in Equuleian rumbled out from behind. I stepped around, finding him and Neilan just about to come to blows.

“Pawel!" He shouted upon seeing me, “Guns in the tent!"

White Stripe didn't like seeing me and the argument intensified. I swung the flap open and bent over, stepping inside.

There was only just enough room to stand up and I nearly brained myself on the gas lantern hanging from the ceiling, but the glimmer of ammunition and greased barrels in boxes caught my attention.

Instantly, I grabbed my shotgun, holstered my Beretta, and sheathed my knife. They were all over the place, but I knew what to look for and I had to do it now, just in case a fight broke out and Neilan lost. I slid two shells into the shotgun's barrels just to be safe and swing the bandolier across my chest, still rattling with shells.

Their yelling did not abate. I had some time to cause some more trouble and I spotted something interesting lying in a box opposite the entrance.

It was a miraculous piece of engineering, a Regulian rifle from their equivalent of World War 1 that was still very popular for hobbyists. The long, thin metal barrel was greased to a sheen, despite heavy signs of wear at the tip. The stock was a replacement, a plastic model with a wood patterned veneer. The other addition was a scope mounted on the top of it. This was, translated of course, known as a Long Kick. It was accurate, long-ranged, had a straight-pull bolt, and the damned things could be a thousand years old and they'd fire as if they were made yesterday.

So long as it was kept clean. Thankfully for these bandits, someone among them kept it pristine. I couldn't find a single speck of dirt on or inside it, even in hard to clean locations. This would be a fearsome sniper's weapon in the right hands

But such a wonderful gun had a flaw. If it got even the slightest bit of dirt inside it, it could jam or misfire. I heard stories of even worse things happening to careless users of the Long Kick around the campfire on Planet, but they sounded like tall tales.

Still, I wondered if such a clean freak would notice a few specks of dust on the inside of the bolt-action. It would have been a shame if his good job was tainted by this one mistake. I flaked off some dirt from my boots, crumbled it up in my fingers, pulled the action back, and sprinkled it in. Whether this would do anything, I didn't know, but it took very little effort.

A crack like an ax splitting wood rang out outside the tent and I placed the rifle down, drew my shotgun and flew out of the tent.

From the end of my barrel I saw Neilan standing over White Stripe, who was clutching at his leg. The leg joint bulged unnaturally. It was broken.

“What happened?" I said, lowering my gun.

Snorting, Neilan cast a bitter gaze down at his underling, “Had to put someone in their place."

White Stripe screamed in agony.

“Pipe down!" Neilan shouted.

“That looks bad," I said, staring at the broken leg, “Should we delay the job?"

“No," he said, shaking his long face, “It's just one Vulpeculan girl. Not much of a threat."

“She's inside Flint's bar. We can't..."

“We're not going to tarnish neutral ground, no, no," Neilan said, swishing his brush of a tail, “You'll lure her out and...you still have the hauler, right?"

I nodded.

“Still owe Sirth?"

I nodded again.

“We'll get that paid off as soon as we're done," he said, pulling me into a bear hug.

That was tempting. He was finally speaking towards my ambitions and for a moment I considered going along with him. But I knew there would not be another chance like Yaleen coming along anytime soon and Sirth couldn't get me if I was off Planet.

Whispering lowly, Neilan continued, “You drive her a mile north, towards your hideout," Neilan paused, “I never told anyone about it either. I promise," he cleared his throat and continued, “Stop when those twin hills show up on the western horizon, the ones we watched the stars on when we first met?"

I remembered. The chill gust in the wind. The thunk of my shovel and the spray of dirt. Someone at the bar claimed he found a working, antique radio there and I thought I'd find something similar but only found dirt. Then I heard the rack of a bolt, and Neilan was behind me, white mane blowing in the wind, gun trained on me. He lowered it pretty quickly, whether he was instantly taken with me or just realized I had nothing of value on me, and we talked as the sun set.

A lump formed in my throat. I still liked him. Love might have been strong, but I still liked him and I hated what I had to do to him, but it was necessary. Dead or alive, I had to betray him.

But for now, I could pretend we were together again.

“Yes, I remember."

“We'll surround the hauler and hold her up," he moaned as my palm brushed against the bulge in his pants, “Once we secure her, perhaps we can watch the stars together."

“That would be nice."

If only it would happen.

Neilan motioned towards White Stripe, “I should probably set his bone. Maybe it'd be best if you lay low in my tent."

I nodded and plodded away just in time for a bloodcurdling scream not far behind me. I kept on walking.

Betrayal was hard to stomach. Especially towards someone you cared about. I mulled about, imaging what my life with Neilan would have been like. I didn't like the banditry, but I liked Neilan, he was assertive but kind to me, and he was strong and sexy. Living with him would have been a good life.

Lounging near the outside of Neilan's dome tent was the solid brown Equuleian, scraping a dried clot of mud off of his hooves with a brush. He looked up at me, flashing a grin.

“We're gonna get rich off this one. Richer than anyone on the whole fucking planet!"

And it was good to see that not all of Neilan's horde hated my guts. He was kind of cute too, with his shortly shaved mane and his little brown, pointed beard hanging from the bottom of his chin. It'd be a shame to betray him too.

“Are you sure?"

“Yeah! That bitch is going to be worth enough to buy a whole continent!"

“Physical wealth. Enough crates of smokes to crush a mountain, but where's the social wealth?"

“Social what?"

“Well…" I said with a slight frown, “Suppose we ship her off to whoever put the ransom on her? Whoever put the ransom up, probably some off-world Vulpeculan noble, will pay us and we'll be done with him. He won't give us a second thought. On the other hand, Sirth has been wanting her for his bar, I think you can imagine why. Now, he probably won't pay as much, but we'll have his respect and who knows what kind of benefits that would give us?"

The brown Equuleian stared at me, his light brown eyes blinking dumbly.

Sighing, I said, “He might let you have a free round with her too."

He continued to stare blankly at me, but his eyes lit up silently. I was finally speaking his language.

I couldn't help it. I couldn't turn back. I already committed to betrayal and I had no choice. I couldn't stop until Neilan's horde fell apart for good. I could only hope they killed themselves before I had to.

A splash of orange stained the early dusk sky as I approached Flint's bar, the brown wood turning a murky black as the light dimmed. Silhouettes of a small crowd paced the room through the windows, illuminated by flickering kerosene lanterns.

The Equuleians trusted me, or at least Neilan did, and they split without even leaving someone to keep an eye on me. I knew I could trust him if I were to betray Yaleen, but he should not trust me.

My hauler was missing. Panic rose in my chest. This was the last thing I needed right now.

I flung open the bar doors and found myself in chaos. Flint was minding the bar as usual, but his heavy eyes overlooked the fact that there was a fight about to break out in the corner between two snarling, brown Lupiads, and a scrawny, pale human was carving his initials on his table. No one was breaking the no guns rules though, except for me, but Flint didn't even seem to care.

Planting my palm on the bar, I stared back at Flint. His nostrils flared silently.

“You smell like my kind," Flint snorted, shakily pouring a beer which missed the mug at first, running down the side.

“You smell like a fox," I said, catching the slightest hint of Yaleen's sweet musk.

“What the hell is a fox?"

“Nevermind," I sighed, shaking my head, “Where the hell is my hauler?"

Flint's brown eyes went wide and his mouth hung open, “You-know-who took it. Said that they were going to go looking for you."

“What!?"

“And that she'd meet you back at the hideout if she didn't find you."

I slammed my gloved fist on the counter, causing Flint to nearly drop a mug on the floor. He'd have decked me any other day, “What the fuck were you thinking, Flint!?"

“I tried to stop her but, uh, I got worn out."

“Worn out!?"

Flint stared at the ground blankly, “Been awhile, you know. Look, she's probably heading back home now. The fresh air and exercise will do you good."

You drive her a mile north, towards your hideout.

Shit!

Tackling the door and nearly tripping down the doorstep, I barreled down the trail leading north. Chest heaving heavily as my feet pounded on the ground. I had to make it there in time.

The dusk sky began to dim slightly, turning a pale crimson. Without missing a beat in my step, I flicked on the flashlight poking out of my chest pocket, its dull beam shaking madly as I sprinted. I'd need it.

Gunfire off on the horizon made me quicken my pace and soon I saw it: the hauler, lying still in a bank on the road. Twin flashes of gunfire erupted from one side of it, followed by an exchange from the trees partway on on the way to the hills.

This is bad. This is bad.

Lowering my head, I show forward in one final burst of energy. Catching a glimpse of red fur, I leaped face-first, sliding in the mud by the hauler and nearly tackling Yaleen.

“Ah, my old bodyguard came to my rescue," Yaleen cast a green eye at me, before raising my Mosin Nagant and firing past the truck.

A heavy crack screamed from Yaleen's side. I almost didn't see him, his chestnut brown hair blended in perfectly with the mud road, but that young Equuleian from Neilan's camp was there, and his gun, a rifle with a round barrel that looked more like a cannon, was trained on the enemy.

“I had a change of heart," he said, motioning his head towards Yaleen with a wink.

I didn't expect my subtle suggestion to have made him go this far. I really just hoped he might have had a moment of hesitation or die trying to usurp control over Neilan's camp. I was glad to have the extra gun, but it meant I had someone with a gun by my side that I didn't trust in the slightest.

“They're moving to flank," Yaleen said, “Two and ten o'clock."

“I'll take ten," I said.

I swung my shotgun up and aimed at the trees. A black figure darted between one and I sprayed shot from both barrels. There was a scream of pain as I went back under cover, cracking the barrel out and letting the steaming hulls fall into the mud. I slapped two more shells in to replace them.

“HOLD FIRE!"

It was Neilan and from the direction of his shout, he was the one my shot hit, but it didn't sound like he was anywhere near done.

“Pawel, what are you doing!?"

“Hold your fire," I whispered to my team.

Yaleen's eyes narrowed and her lips peeled into a snarl, “Are you insane!?"

“Trust me."

I peeked out from the side of the hauler and saw him peering back at me from the tree. He was shrouded in the dimming light of the dusk sky, but if I focused, I could make out his cloudy white coat.

“Neilan, we can stop this right now!" I called out

“What are you talking about!?"

I had to try. It was only fair to him. I knew it wouldn't work, but I had to try.

“The Vulpeculan, she..."

“Don't whisper a word of it," Yaleen hissed, her paw twitching on the grip of the rifle. She could swing it around and fire in a second.

“Look, Neilan, we can go back to how it used to be. None of this bandit crap. Just you and me wandering the planet, slinging scrap and artifacts. I've got a deal too, a really big one, I can't..."

“He's not coming with us," said Yaleen calmly, staring down the barrel of her rifle, “The black one is hiding at two o'clock. He has a sniper rifle."

“Neilan! I don't want to have to do this!"

The battlefield was dead silent, were it not for the tension screaming out. My heart pounding, my head throbbing, my lungs slowly breathing in and out, waiting for the response. Maybe, just maybe…

“What's the deal?" Neilan called back.

The brown Equuleian cast an intimidating grimace at me this time. There was no way she told him any of the details, but I guess he felt he had to stick up for her. Dumb horse thought he was in control.

“I can't tell you...I'm sorry, but I can't tell you yet, I have to..."

“Why not!?"

“You're just going to have to trust me, okay?"

Silence reigned over once again. I gripped my shotgun tight, hoping, praying that this would work. That things could go back to the way they were way back when.

But you can't go back.

“I trusted you..." Neilan muttered. His hand reached out from the tree with a wave, and then gripped his gun as he swung out.

An explosion burst out from the right, followed by a blood-curdling scream.

Neilan turned his head to source of the scream, hesitating for a split-second.

It was the second I needed.

His body hit the ground before I heard my gun fire. I lowered my head and closed my eyes.

“That's all of them," Yaleen said bluntly, “Did you get the black one?"

“No," the brown Equuleian said.

“He's on the ground," she said, “We should make sure he's dead."

“I'll carry you."

Yaleen's giggles broke me out of my trance. Peering back, I saw the Equuleian scoop her up in his arms, letting the Mosin fall to the ground along with his heavy rifle. Yaleen scratched at his pointed beard, drawing his chin close to her lips until he was close enough for her to give him a single lick on the lip.

“By the way, have you seen this man?"

She passed him the datapad with the picture of her brother. The Equuleian stared at it, glaring at it with annoyance before dropping it, “Your boyfriend?"

Yaleen snatched the datapad deftly and handed it back to the Equuleian, “Brother. Take another look, would you? After that, I'll let you do all sorts of things with me..."

He took another look at it, this time seeming to actually ponder the picture before shaking his head.

“Nah, I ain't..."

Click. Click. Click.

The gentle report of her ornate needler whispered and the Equuleian stumbled back. Yaleen leaped from his arms just in time for him to clutch at his abdomen. His breath was rasping painfully and blood foamed at his lips.

Yaleen's green eyes met my gaze and she shrugged, “He reeks with ill-intent. I can't let him jeopardize us."

Sighing, I shook my head slowly, “Yeah..." I said, pausing as rattled, pathetic attempts at screams shook my train of thought, “Just finish him off."

“He needs to suffer."

“Just do it!" I shouted, tears welling up in the corner of my eye as I snarled at Yaleen.

There was one last plink of the needler and then a heavy thump.

We made our rounds, taking tabs on the casualties. It was necessary, even though I really didn't feel like it. If you got into a fight like this on Planet and someone lived, that meant someone, somewhere out there wanted you dead.

There were two Equuleians with massive chest wounds, probably from the brown one's heavy rifle, and one with a round hole straight through his forehead. I didn't really get a chance to interact with these ones.

We found the black one behind the tree to the right of the hauler. The rumors were true: a dirty Long Kick's bolt, if dirty, could sometimes fire and break loose. It was now lodged into the Equuleian's eye. He was still quivering when we found him and we had to finish him off.

Lastly, we went to the trees to the left of the hauler.

Neilan was there, leaning against a tree trunk, hand pressed against his chest, failing to stop the crimson flow from staining his white coat.

“H-how bad is it?" He rasped, showing off his teeth.

His hand withdrew from his chest, exposing for a brief second, a pulped mess of blood. My shot aimed true. I shot my hand forward, placing his palm back over it.

“It's fine."

“Liar."

He chuckled and I laughed. I couldn't help myself. It was the end. My throat was sore and my eyes were watering. Either I laugh or I cry.

“Who was the brains between us? Who was always right?"

“I was," he said with a laugh.

“See? You're wrong again!"

Neilan laughed once more before hunching over into a labored cough.

“Fuck," he said, nodding his head at Yaleen behind me, “What was the deal?"

I closed my eyes, thinking back and wondering if there was some other way I could have convinced him. There was no point now, but I couldn't help but think of what could have been.

“A way off Planet in exchange for finding her brother," I felt the datapad nudge against my back, and I reached back, grabbing it from Yaleen. I showed Neilan the picture of her brother.

“And you wanted that?"

“Yeah."

Neilan's head pressed back into the tree, “I wouldn't have. I like it here."

“I..."

“It's like home," Neilan whispered, “I dream of the endless steppes of Gamma Equulei. Of the clans fighting in the fields. Of signing up with the Lacertans and becoming a man, a warrior. But it's all so..." Neilan paused, curling his head into his chest silently. I put my hand on his shoulder and he lurched back to life, his eyes glazed over, “Don't you hear them? The drums of the shamans...the wind-chimes hanging from the yurts...rattling in the breeze..."

I didn't say anything.

“I hear it all the time. This is home."

“Neilan..."

“I've seen him before," he interrupted suddenly, pointing a quivering finger at the datapad, “You don't forget eyes like that."

“Where?" Yaleen asked.

“Captured him with my first crew near Rust," he grunted, shifting his chest, “He's trouble. Turned all my men against me and left. Probably still working there, looking for that big haul in the Catacombs..."

Yaleen took the datapad and padded back silently, leaving us alone together.

“I never knew you tried the Catacombs."

“Hah! Guess you didn't learn everything about me," Neilan coughed, clutching at his chest, “I still have my map at the tent. The little bushy tailed prick didn't get that from me! Wish I could have..." Neilan's head leaned over, still.

I slapped his shoulder lightly and he awoke startled, quickly shaking his head. As if reminded about his fate, his energy soon faded and he leaned back into the tree silently

Sighing with a rattle, Neilan looked past me wistfully, “Do you think we can go to the hills one last time?"

I peered back at the hills, barely visible in the growing darkness. The same hills where I met him for the first time. And then I looked back at him, my former love. Even with his white coat of fur, I could see him paling and his hand grew cold. He wouldn't make it there. Not even halfway.

“We'll go tomorrow. I promise."

“Sure," he whispered, his head bobbing to the side limply, “I hope you get out of here one day."

Cupping his head in my palms, I leaned forward, shaking all the while, and gently kissed him one last time on the tip of his broad muzzle. Cool air weakly shot out from his nose against my face. He took one last breath and whispered, “Maybe I'll come visit you one day."

His head went limp in my hands.

I wrapped my arms around him. Holding him tight.

One last time.