Ark: A Scifi Alien Romance by Lucy Snow Page B

felt good to be doing something with my hands, something whose success I could measure, even if it was only a growing pile of dirt. After 30 minutes I had a hole big enough for Admiral Kaalax’ body, and after consecrating it in the way of my people, I went back inside to retrieve him.

    The Admiral looked at peace, his features softened and relaxed in the rigors of death. I said the warrior’s death ritual as I carried him out to the grave, chanting loudly and solemnly the chants that my people had used for untold millennia when a warrior of stature had moved on from this existence.

    I had never performed the funeral rituals by myself before and I was briefly worried that I wouldn’t be able to do a warrior like Kaalax justice. Again I was reminded of how strange he was - despite his legendary status as a warrior, I knew that he would never have wanted the huge funeral he had earned.

    The ritual was short and to the point. After it was done, I lay Admiral Kaalax in the ground and lit him on fire. Despite our natural resistance to fire in life, in death, we were just as susceptible as any other being would be to its effects, and Admiral Kaalax burned long and bright, a fire that warmed me as the light from the sun fell away and night came on, with all its pronounced sounds and movements in the deep brush of the jungle.

    I heard Melissa come outside and watch as the fire burned, and when it was out I used the shovel to cover up the body and lock him out of sight. I didn’t leave any marker in its place - the Kreossian Empire would undoubtedly designate this entire planet a fitting grave site for its most celebrated warrior, and an actual memorial site would be built right here in time. She did not say a word, and I appreciated that.

    This was a ceremony just for Kreossian warriors.

    Afterward, remembering Kaalax’ fire, I made another fire next to the ship and sat beside it. Melissa sat next to me, and we both stared into the flames. My people had a casual and easy relationship with fire - we were born of it, and though it pained us to be inside it, we could not burn in our natural form.

    I tossed Melissa her emergency ration brick and took a bite from mine, slowly chewing and making the flavor last. It was a strange thing to have all one’s nutrition compressed into such a small volume of matter - even though it was enough to keep me nourished and energetic for the next day, I still felt like I should be eating more.

    Melissa opened her container and broke off a tiny piece of the supplement inside, ruminating as she chewed. After sealing and putting the container down, she looked at me. “I can’t believe he’s gone.”

    I knew of whom she spoke. “Your Ambassador Fuller.”

    Melissa nodded, the flame catching her eyes again. “I keep expecting him to step out of the ship and ask me what’s going on and why haven’t we left yet. I worked for him for a long time.”

    “I know the feeling.”

    “This was his life’s work, you know? This meeting with Admiral Kaalax - this was all Fuller lived for, ever since they met the first time.”

    “I understand that first contact can be…difficult and tumultuous on the lesser species.”

    “Lesser? Is that what you think we are?”

    I set aside my own container. “Is that not the truth?”

    “No, Ark,” Melissa said, sadness in her yes. “Of course not. We’re not lesser just because you’ve been out here in the galaxy conquering worlds before us. You’ve got a head start on us, that’s all.”

    “That may be the case, but if the Kreossian Empire had less benevolent motives, or if you had made contact with another species first…”

    “You’re right on that point. We’re lucky you found us before anyone else did. But don’t make the mistake in thinking that makes you better than us.”

    After that, we sat in silence for a few minutes while I thought over her words. Admiral Kaalax had said similar words to me on many an occasion and I had