Page 70 of When Eden Falls

She whispered, “I have no underwear on.”

“Neither do I.” I pulled my skirt slightly open, exposing my legs.

“Why aren’t we allowed underwear?” Zamya peered down at Bibska.

“Underwear is an unnecessary human antic,” Yuska voiced her opinion from behind me.

“I don’t think unnecessary is the correct term,” Zamya’s tone pitched, using both hands to gesture towards her groin.

Yuska rolled her eyes. “The underskirt isn’t that short.”

I laughed. “I’ve told you before, Zam, no dancing on the tables and you’ll be fine.” I heard Zamya growl as I continued through to the main room.

Cora sat quietly in an armchair, her gaze distant and perturbed. She was dressed in a neon turquoise two piece, fashioning thin straps and a straight neckline. The skirt wasflowing and fell to the floor, but the colour didn’t suit her. It made her skin look ghostly white. And her blonde hair was pulled back so tightly it made her face look older, harsher.

As I approached, her gaze shifted, and she gave me a small, laboured smile.

“Is everything okay?” I asked, sitting down next to her.

She dropped her eyes and said, “I miss Troy. I haven’t spoken to him for weeks. Rooke says I’m still not allowed to.”

My heart pained at the lie we’d fed her. Other than Kobe, the rest of the crew still didn’t know about Troy’s loss of contact. We still didn’t know if Troy was dead or alive. I reached for her hand and squeezed her delicate fingers. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t suppose you’d ask Rooke if there’s a chance I could…”

“Cora…”

“Please. I really need to speak to him.” There was an intense pain in her eyes. One that shouldn’t be possessed by someone so young. Nux, I felt terrible for lying to her. But what could I say?

Stupidly, I nodded and said, “I’ll see what I can do.”

In response, she gave me a genuine smile that lit up her face.

“Come along,” Yuska’s curt voice cut through the moment. “Only Havav is allowed to be late, and myself and Bibska still need to get ready.”

As we followed her out of the door, Zamya fell in step with me, shaking her golden bracelet. “I’m not sure about this thing,” she said in an undertone.

“It’s for decoration.”

“Then why do I feel like we’re going to be placed on display? A meat market or slave auction comes to mind.”

I huffed a laugh. “You and your dramatic thoughts.”

She groaned. “Why are you so calm?”

“I have to be, Zam. Doesn’t mean I am inside.” And I certainly wasn’t.

There were no guards stationed at the entrance of the stairwell today. It looked as though everyone would be joining in with the season festivities. As Zamya presumed, this truly could be amating frenzy. I prayed the ball itself was as innocent as it sounded. But the whole situation had me thinking. With so few females, and for it to be the females’ choice of who they mate with, it was no wonder the males went crazy outside of the mating season. Especially those rejected during the season. Tektrasc? I wouldn’t be surprised if it translated to sexually deprived.

We emerged from the stairwell in the main part of the fortress. As we neared the western side, a distant sound of tranquil music filled the air, and the hubbub of voices began to grow louder. The corridor led to a huge open doorway, flanked by two towering pillars, decorated with vines of blue and pink flowers. Passing over the threshold, a wide staircase of shallow steps stood before us. At the bottom, a crowd of Akquarians thronged, filling the vast area. From where I stood, the crowd consisted of only males. All were fully clothed in a wide variety of Akquarian-coloured jackets. All laughing and speaking with their neighbour, drinking, and toasting. It was uncanny how humanly civilised this felt.

Dominating the far side of the room loomed three large, decorated arches leading to an outdoor veranda. The gentile music seemed to be filtering in from out there.

Yuska led us down the steps. I kept my eyes averted, avoiding the occasional stare. We must’ve looked an oddity to any normal Akquarian. Strange human females gate-crashing their sacred mating festival.

As we reached the bottom, the Akquarians parted for us, and I noted a few females standing in amongst the males. They were so petite in comparison, and stunningly elegant. Dressed in flowing fabrics, accentuating their slim, attractive bodies, their blonde hair intricately braided with an array of pearls, gems, or shells. They were dressed to impress. Dressed to allure the mates they intended to be claimed by.

We walked through one of the arches into the evening sun. It was beginning to set on the horizon, softening the colour of the rustic stone making up the walls, floor, and balcony. The veranda itself was as vast as the room we’d just exited. Both areas werelarge enough to hold a party of hundreds, perhaps thousands. To the left, a quartet sat to one side of a stone staircase, which accessed another veranda twenty metres up. More Akquarians ambled about up there behind a balcony wall of flowers.