Maverick dommer's Arc

Chapter 4 of 8

The trail widened, and the village came into view. Cob homes rose under giant mushroom caps, ringed by a wooden fence. Racks of dried herbs hung by the gate. Maverick slowed and dropped his four hands low, open and empty. Mylonin walked beside him, humming to the plants along the path. As they neared the gate, Mylonin stopped short and stared at him. "You want a mate," Mylonin said. Its voice was flat, certain. "The ground told me. The roots feel your want. It runs deep in you." Maverick stiffened. He had not spoken of this to anyone. "I do," he said. "I built a home. I want a family to fill it." Mylonin stepped closer. It touched a vine of its braided hair and studied his four arms, his broad chest, the whole size of him. "My people bond by strength. When two of us choose each other, the weaker kneels and submits to the stronger. It is our way." It tilted its head. "You knelt to me in the herb rows. But your body is strong. This puzzles me." Maverick met its eyes. He saw the question there, and something warmer under it. He weighed his answer. He could stand tall and claim to be the stronger. Or he could kneel again and let Mylonin choose. "I knelt to show I meant no harm," he said. "Not because I am weak. But I will kneel to the one I want." He lowered himself slow, all four palms flat on the dirt, head bowed. "I want you, Mylonin. If your way is to submit, then I submit." Mylonin went still. The plants around them lifted their leaves toward him. A moth drifted down and landed on his bent shoulder. Mylonin watched it fan its wings. "A strong one who kneels," Mylonin murmured. "I have never met such a thing." It knelt too, until they faced each other on the ground. It reached to a pouch at its hip, marked with pale glowing signs, and drew out a fresh leaf salve. It pressed the salve to the healing wound on his ribs. "Rise. You are welcome here. And you are chosen." Maverick stood, his heart loud. He had come to trade herbs and hide his wild look. Instead a Mycelonite had claimed him as a mate. His arc had turned in a way he never planned. But as they passed through the gate, other Mycelonites looked up from their work. They saw Mylonin kneeling before Maverick moments ago, saw the four-armed giant accepted. Whispers spread down the lane. One elder Mycelonite stepped into the path and blocked the way, arms crossed. "Mylonin chose an outsider," the elder said. "A creature not of our world. The village must judge if this bond is allowed." Mylonin took Maverick's lower hand. "Then we face their judgment together." The gate closed behind them, and the crowd pressed in.