Chapter 32
Maybe this will help?
Me, Urgg, and Wyn were sequestered at a table away from the hustle and bustle of the marketplace. They both enjoyed writhing worm creatures while I ate some spicy stew.
“We’re coming up on Vx-93,” Urgg said before belching.
“Vx-93?” I asked, mouth on fire.
“Yep,” Urgg answered.
“And it's called that, why?”
Wyn said, “From the person who discovered it, Vynlmq Xvmy.” I blinked at the name, not grasping how to pronounce it, but he continued before I had a chance to ask him torepeat it. “She was a scientist with the Sidlis. As the planet was uninhabited, they staked a claim with the Coalition, which granted them temporary ownership status, allowing them to build a colony.
“But the Vvmp government also staked a claim, as the discoverer was a vvmp. The temporary name is Vx-93 for the discoverer’s name and it’s the ninety-third uninhabited planet or moon the Coalition has claimed. The claim about the planet is still in dispute. It has been for cycles.”
“All boring shit no one cares about,” Urgg grunted. “More interestingly, there’s a tavern on the planet.”
“Tavern?”
Wyn said, tail flicking, “It’s the most famous one in the region.”
Urgg grinned. “We should go.”
“All three of us?” I asked.
“It’ll only be fun if you come too,” Wyn said.
Something gentle blossomed in my stomach. “Yeah, we should do that.”
I strolled from lunch with a spring in my step. Seeing another planet would be fun. Sure, the first one hadn’t been the best, yet it had been amazing to see. I pushed through the crowd, trying to ignore the mass of people pressing against me and their words buzzing in my ears, when I spotted someone familiar—Captain Talvax. She was supposed to be meeting with Kal this afternoon. Why was she here? Where was Kal?
I pushed through the crowd. “Captain.”
“Seth,” she said, gesturing to a less busy section. “Did you finish lunch with Urgg and Wyn?”
“I did. I thought Kal was meeting with you?”
“He did. Prince is with Pimtimzol, and I’m on my way to see Urgg.”
I cast a longing glance at the elevator. I was ready to retreat to my room for the afternoon, and then spend a quiet evening with Kal, but Talvax was a wealth of information. He was reluctant to share anything, and I’d promised to give him time, but I needed something to help bury my insecurities.
“When we had dinner together, you said Kal was entrusted to you.”
“That’s between you and Kalvoxrencol.”
“He won’t talk to me.”
Talvax crossed her arms. “I will not break his confidence.”
“I'm not asking you to. Point me in a direction. If he won’t let me in, then this is never going to work.”
Honestly, I’d begun to grasp what Analise meant when she’d said she didn't want to date a ghost. Kal wasn’t like I was, hiding every part of his personality, but he wouldn’t let me in. However, at the same time, I balked about forcing myself in. Kal was entitled to his secrets, nor was he obligated to reveal them to me.
She fluffed her short pumpkin-orange hair. “His soul type bothers him.”
“I know that.”
