Growth and Lust Ch. 04 - Banished

Roke watched as the craft came into view, getting closer to them before it started its descent, he observed it pause in the air. Then just as she had said, it understood and moved to the area Gin was pointing at and began to extend the legs it would land on, slowly coming down to settle in the dirt as the blast from the jet engines whipped around them.

The sun was setting just as the shuttle touched down, the familiar sound of hydraulics hissed and the work lights came on. Roke began to walk up the ramp and Ginrar followed close by, scoping the area for any signs of something being out of place.

She walked around the interior storage area where her traveling box and his truck sat, listening and sniffing while Roke climbed into the drivers seat. She listened to him crank the starter, then the large diesel engine roaring to life, the signature whistling noise that she had grown accustomed to rang through her ears. She made sure to give him plenty of space as he shifted the truck into gear and began to drive towards the exit, passing the threshold and going down the ramp. The nobby rubber tires tearing into the earth as he cranked the wheel and drove it towards the pile of gifts.

Gins nose filled with diesel fumes as she took one final look around, still unable to shake the odd feeling she had in her gut. She walked towards her box, resting a hand on top of it as it hummed to life and levitated, then turning to exit the shuttle. It followed only a few short feet behind her, awaiting instructions from her like an obedient servant. She set it to go to Rokes truck, parking itself nearby and settling on the ground.

She turned and went to the growth shuttle they had returned from her home planet on, listening to the cargo craft lift and become airborne again. She walked up the ramp of the last shuttle and instructed it to 'return home', setting the timer to allow her to exit and get a safe distance away. Gin walked away and looked over her shoulder, seeing the ramp retract and the door close, then the engines spinning to life and beginning to lift the craft.

While she was doing this Roke began to put away items that they had pulled from the boxes, putting glass bottles in a carrying rack inside his camper. Storing perishables in the refrigerator inside his little home, then stacking clothes and miscellaneous items to the side seating area inside of it as well. When he turned to look back outside he saw Ginrar walking away from the last shuttle and the engines spooling and preparing to lift the craft. He grabbed the chest Saffee had gifted him and rested it on the seat by the door, draping a blanket over it and trying to not make it look out of place.

He finished inside and stepped back out and saw Gin checking things on her own travel box, he had figured they wouldn't be traveling for that night or maybe even the next day. So he set about on pulling out the equipment he would need so he could cook them dinner, setting up a table and removing a stove.

"Hey you wanna see about getting some firewood?" Roke asked as he started to remove ingredients from the truck.

Gin nodded her head, "I'm sure I can find something."

Roke watched as she walked into the darkness, seeing her fearless posture as she entered into the night and started to gather materials to burn. He decided on a random meat they had been gifted, letting it rest on the table as he decided what else to make with it. He gathered pasta and cooking utensils, setting about to make a warm meal for Ginrars belly, he knew she would scarf down whatever he made. But he still liked to make it with love and flavor, watching her lips form a slight smile as she enjoyed the seasonings he used.

As Ginrar was gone and he waited for the water in his cooking pot to boil, he couldn't help but think of the gift from Saffee. He leaned in the camper and pulled the box from the seat and rested it in the open door way of the camper, cracking the lid and trying to carefully open it. The hinges seemed tight as he had to put some force into lifting it, as the lid creaked under his pulling it finally gave. Tossing embarrassing items of debauchery that had made him blush before in the air and around the box. He panicked and scrambled to pick up what he could without paying too much mind to what they were, seeing harnesses and toys and shoving them back in.

He looked around and made sure Gin wasn't back, then when he was positive she was still gone he looked back inside. Now seeing another box inside, smaller and older looking, worn edges on the dark wood contrasting against the items around it. He picked it up and studied the outside, seeing the words, 'For Roke' etched on the outside. He tilted his head, holding it up and opening it, the rich smell of aged wood and flowers escaping the box, he saw a folded piece of paper on top of a bottle with a scroll next to it. He closed the box from Saffee and pushed it back onto the seat, covering it and hiding its embarrassing presence once again.

He still held the smaller box he pulled from Saffees gift, he opened the paper that was on top and read it, 'Roke, this is for you, and only for you. You are not in danger, but Ginrar is not to know, yet.'

Roke jumped slightly as he heard Ginrar drop the nights firewood into a pile. Looking over his shoulder and seeing Ginrar starting to stack it to burn, dragging her claws down a piece to scrape off kindling. Looking back at the card he continued, 'This is a task that had been put onto you by the guiders of the village. Drink the bottle after the nights meal, enjoy the liquor we've given you as it makes the trip easier. When done YOU must drink the bottle in the box, then read from the scroll held by the ring. You must hold onto the ring that holds the scroll.'

Roke heard Ginrar blowing air into the fire, he looked over his shoulder at her, seeing the lips he loved locking to his forming an O shape. He watched her drop more kindling on the small fire as she exhaled onto it, letting the flame feed on her oxygen gift and grow larger. He turned his head and went back to the note.

'Roke, this is very important, hold onto the ring, grip it tightly, focus on it as you read the words. To lose it, would make the trial to come one that you may never recover from, you must offer it up right away.'

Roke thought about the words and tried to figure out what the task could be, then remembering the last elixir he had drank. His cheeks blushed as he smiled, remembering how the last one had kept them both up all night.

'This must be another one, Saffee, what are you gettin me into?' he thought as he laughed at Ginrars friend making them have a restless night.

Roke finished cooking the meal and poured their first drink into two cups, as they ate and sipped on it Roke tried not to laugh or think about the card. Not wanting to give Gin the chance to read his thoughts and see his plan for the night, he was growing to like the Tallhee traditions and potions.

Ginrar watched him chuckle as he ate his dinner and sipped the liquor from her home world, she could tell it was from her people. She was surprised he picked one of these bottles though, figuring he might be wary to grab a random bottle and would opt for a beer instead. She was about to ask when he finished his meal, then grabbing the cup he threw the rest back. Looking at her, he bounced his eyebrows while trying to look sultry and devious.

"What the fuck are you doing, Roke?" she asked in confusion and trying not to laugh.

"Oh me? Nothin darling, why don't you keep enjoying that drink while I grab another?" Roke said as he pointed at the cup.

Gin shook her head and rolled her eyes, she had finished her meal and leaned back in her chair, stretching her legs and resting one on the other, sitting like she owned the world. She swirled the cup and sipped the liquor, inspecting it and thinking about the contrast in taste with the dinner. Gin watched Roke get up and go back to the camper, leaning in for a moment and then coming back out. He rested a box just on the inside of the camper and ran his fingers along the top lid.

"Hey, Gin?" Roke asked.

"Hmm?" she answered back, sipping her drink and feeling the home cooked meal warm her body. The affection that was mixed into it had caressed her taste buds as she savored the meal he put so much effort into. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back, dragging the night air into her chest as she reveled in the full feeling. The scent of something familiar on her nose as she did, the subtle note of it almost being missed as she sat and relaxed.

"Why didn't you ever mention your home was so close?" Roke asked with a taste of concern in his voice.

"As I said before, why would I?" she replied without opening her eyes.

Roke felt a little hurt by her response, he had respected her privacy as she had respected his, but the questions still nagged at him. He thought of how happy Saffee had been to see her, how her mother seemed to accept him with just a simple look. But then he remembered the title that Ginrar had carried with her name, 'Banished' he thought.

"Are you still...um...banished?" He asked, trying to come into the subject with care and ease.

Ginrar stayed silent, cracking the lids of her eyes and letting the burning circles observe the stars above them. Lining out the constellations as she let her brain fall into neutral and stop turning, idling in silence as she avoided even mentally repeating the question. She remembered the words her mother had spoken to her over a decade ago, the twelve years before Roke. She had spent them among the vagrants and weak beings that thought they might have a chance at a fortune. Tallhee were feared by all, but with fear came anger, anger just for existing, and with anger came money, a bounty for an ivory crown.

"Roke." Ginrar finally spoke.

Roke turned his head to look at his lover, examining her figure that was blazoned with the soft light from the fire in front of her. The woman that he had fallen for on the vacant and easy planet that they both worked on. He admired her sultry figure, but saw so much more than that, the embodiment of care towards him. Strong will and determination wrapped into the person he had tied to, the one he would walk with till the end, his chest tightened seeing her face. A look of fear and remorse filling her eyes, deep in thought with pain of something still troubling her.

"Yes, Ginrar?" he answered.

"...Would you still... Love me...If-"

"Yes." Roke said solemnly, cutting off her sentence, his hearts resolve forged in steel as he knew he could never turn his back on her.

Ginrar smiled but couldn't lock eyes with him, she blinked and looked away, hoping the light of the gentle flame in front of her wouldn't glimmer off the water forming in her eyes.

"I fear you may not."

"I can assure you Gin, my feelings for you won't change, I love the Gin you are now. I'll love the Gin you'll grow into when we're together, everyone looks back on their past and feels what you're feeling now. Could you really say you've grown as a person if you didn't look back with some form of remorse?" Roke said with care. He opened the lid of the small box, hoping the treat instore for them would ease her mind and ensure she knew he would be with her always.

Ginrar mulled over his words, her inner demons wrestling as she dreaded answering the questions he had asked. 'Banished.' the word spun in her mind, forming a pit in her stomach as she tried to clear it away, 'Not tonight.' she thought to herself.

"But tonight!" Roke said with enthusiasm, "We're gonna have some fun!"

Ginrar raised her eyebrows in surprise, she wondered if he could read her thoughts as she could read his. Or maybe he had just fell in sync with her in a way no one else ever could, she smiled at the thought, watching the joyful man reach into a box on the back of his camper. The smell hitting her nose and causing her brain to halt in its tracks.

Roke picked up the bottle and opened it, he looked at it and inspected the odd colored contents. Green and cloudy as bits of powder swirled about inside, he shrugged his shoulders and tipped the liquor back, finishing the bottle and immediately turning to hide his disgusted face.

*Bleh!* "What the fuck is this shit?!" Roke said quietly.

Ginrar watched his shoulders shake and a feeling of disgust ooze out of him, "Roke what're you doing?" She drug in a deep breath, letting the scent fill her nose as it did and reminding her of something.

"Nothing!" he shouted.

Ginrar was confused and wanted to see what mischief he might be starting, she stood and started walking towards him. 'I've smelled this before.'

Roke saw her coming and quickly looked in the box, seeing the scroll with the ring around it, he snatched it up and stepped away.

"What is this, is it from my home?" Gin asked as she looked at the box, her eyes forming water as she put a finger on its edge. 'Is this...Home?'

Roke laughed, happy with his ability to hide the nights surprise, he slid the ring down and inspected it for a moment. Seeing the zig zag pattern and dull glow of the campfire reflecting off the gold band, he pushed it onto his pointer finger, sure he would inspect it soon again. He opened the paper and read the words as his head started to get foggy 'Oh here it comes!' he thought. The words swam on the page in front of him, he blinked and felt his body sway while wondering if he was always gonna be a lightweight to Tallhee drinks.

Ginrar looked at the box as her heart began to pound, a feeling of nostalgia filled her chest, but was soon followed by fear. She had smelled this scent before, she had grown up with it, lived in it. This was from the home she had lived in, the smell of a family's love, before it was yanked away from her, 'Teloo'. She spun around, her body feeling heavy as the icy fingers of dread and fear creeped into her chest and gripped her heart.

"I'm sorry to do this, but I must put you through this." Roke read aloud, "heh, she's a poet, didn't even know it huh?" he said as he looked at the page again.

"Do not grin, come within, the night is long so hear her song, her scarlet dance while in a trance."

Ginrars eyes began to let loose her tears, her lips trembled as she tried to speak, 'It's tonight' she thought.

"Threw the grove, follow the flow, they took her away but fell as her prey, no longer a man crushed in her hand. He felt no scorn, as his heart was torn, run to the stars, banished the brutal Ginrar."

Ginrars face twisted in anger, springing toward him and catching his hands to spread them open tearing the paper in two and letting it slip from his fingers. She watched his legs buckle and his body collapse, staring into Rokes eyes as he went to the ground. Crying out to him, begging him to listen to her call before he slipped into the dream.

"Roke!" she screamed with tears, "Don't-"

......

Roke looked around as he was now standing in a forest he had never seen before, he remembered being dizzy. Then he blinked and was transported to a new place and his head was clear of the fog that had been plaguing him after drinking the bottle. He looked around and tried to find Ginrar, he remembered hearing her voice and feeling her grip, but now he couldn't sense her around him.

'Run to the stars, banished the brutal Ginrar.' he thought as he remembered the writing on the paper.

"What the fuck is up with the Tallhee drinks?" Roke whispered to himself as he squinted in confusion and rubbed his eyes.

He could feel the dull ache in his eyeballs as he pressed firmly into them, assessing that he still could feel in this new place. He took in a deep breath and could smell the leaves and grass around him, 'I can smell and touch.' he thought to himself. He flexed his toes and felt the blades of grass springing up between them, he looked down and saw that his shoes were gone. Then assessing he found he still had on pants and a t-shirt, 'Tallhee don't wear shoes most of the time.' he said to himself.

He guessed his mind was alright with losing the shoes, but his subconscious hesitation about showing bare chest or legs had kept his clothing on. He tugged at the fabric of the shirt, rubbing it between his finger and thumb, he knew it was his own shirt and it felt so real.

Looking down and breathing casually he wondered what was going on, and why he was suddenly in a new place. The note Saffee had left him and the bottle he had drank seemed like a quirky gift, so what did it mean? He looked at his hand and saw the ring still on it, loose on his small digit but able to hang on and not fall off.

'Hmm, I need this, and I have to offer it-' he thought, then wincing in pain he flinched and looked down. As his head drooped he saw a red hand in front of him, dark brown claws pointed forward away from him, long lines on the palm that was facing upwards. He traced the forearm, seeing strong veins pumping blood underneath the red skin, seeing lines of scarlet that was slightly darker running up it. He kept looking down and found the source of the pain, as the forearm was jutting through his stomach, slightly to the right of his navel.

He glared and grit his teeth as his mouth twisted in disapproval of the attack, 'This won't kill me.' he thought to himself.

"You'll wish it did." a deep voice spoke from behind, the growl in it sounding like a predator as it raised the hair on the back of Rokes neck.

Roke raised his head to see another arm come around his left side, claws adorning the tips of diligent red fingers as they dug into the right side of his chest. Easily gaining entry into his rib cage, then clenching flesh and bone into its fist he felt him grip and pull. Tearing his body open and sending every bit of what resided in his torso, out and to the scenery below.

Roke opened his eyes to see he was standing in the same grass as before, his body in one piece and unpunctured. His eyes opened wide as he felt fear creeping up his neck, wondering how he was still standing and breathing as he felt every bit of the attack. Finally shuddering and feeling his body beginning to unclench and signal his being to move, he nervously searched the area.

He looked to the tree line, his vision catching two burning circles in the darkness, the piercing gaze of a Tallhee about to pounce. He gulped and felt goosebumps run through his body, he didn't falter, trying to figure out what to do before the end came again. His feet stayed planted and he clenched his fist, the eyes vanished but he could sense them watching him. Roke felt the next attack coming, he prepared himself for the next onslaught of Tallhee ferocity and felt it again. This time coming up through his side from a downward position, heading upwards and diagonally.

Rokes mouth opened in a breathless spew of blood splatter, he could feel the burley intruder of a predators hand writhing around in his ribcage. His feet off the ground and his breathing stopped, 'lungs. gone.' he thought to himself. He saw the visage of red death in front of him, examining him as he twitched and spasumed, unrelenting burning eyes capturing him in the ominous gaze of what felt like a god.

Roke swung his right hand forward with all his might, dealing a haymaker to the side of his face. He felt his hand bouncing off him like he had just punched a steel plate, one last dying attempt he tried the Tallhee way. Swinging his left arm around and digging the brown claws he had been gifted into the attackers face. Feeling himself actually puncturing his skin and taking muscle and flesh in his grip.

Rokes mind flashed with images his attacker carried inside, a younger man smiling as he stroked the hair of a woman in his arms. Grasping his Tallhee lover as they sat lazily in the grass, he rested his head in between her horns and drug her scent into his nose. Closing his eyes and relishing the aura of his partner, he dropped his hand to her swollen belly. Making a circle on her tummy, feeling the baby inside kick and move. The golden ring running along the fabric that covered her.