Chapter 9 – Larger Than Life

Even from inside the thick airport walls, Aurora could hear the loud buzz of planes taking off and landing. In a way, she was disappointed; this was the first time she’d ever been inside a real-live airport, and yet she was forced to remain inside a tiny private room, with nothing but a small window in the corner to provide her with any idea of this new world. Unfortunately, the window looked out upon a small, unused runway, giving her no view of the flying vehicles she heard roaring from somewhere outside.

The rest of her team was gathered around Zachary, who gestured grandly with his hands while he told stories of his body art shop back home. Some were truthful, but others were slightly exaggerated. Although she had not been with him throughout his entire career, she been with him long enough to know that he’d never, under any circumstance, sacrifice his “precious” time to volunteer at a homeless shelter and do finger paintings with underprivileged children.

Yet the others bought every word of it. Aurora watched as he charmed Milada and Valeria with his amusing combination of truthful dealings and outright fabrications. It made Aurora feel sick. Right now, he told a—truthful—story that, while funny to him, made Aurora’s skin crawl. It was something she remembered well; and there was nothing particularly laugh-worthy about it.

Why is he bringing this up again?

Once, Zachary had been dealing with a very wealthy Chinese businessman who wanted the words “big wealth” scarified into his back. But first, he’d wanted to see a “picture of the finished work”, so to speak, which obviously meant it had been Aurora’s task to once again become his canvas.

“So what happened?” Milada asked.

Zachary blushed, which Aurora knew to be false. She had to admit; he was a hell of a speaker when he wanted to be.

“Well, the guy asks me, ‘Can you use the girl to show me what it’ll look like when it’s done? So I say, ‘Sure, why not? Actually, I’ll do you one better. I’ll show you on my Immortalia.’”

“Oh no,” Milada said, covering her mouth as if to conceal a laugh. “Why do I have the feeling something went wrong?”

Zachary’s mouth fell open in false shock. “Well, he asked me if I’d like to see a picture of the word written in Chinese, and I said no, because I’ve studied Mandarin quite a bit and I thought I had a working grasp on the language. So I go over to Aurora, right? And I get to work.”

Both Immortalias laughed. “And what happened? Did you get it wrong?”

Zachary shrugged. “Turns out, I wasn’t as good in Chinese as I thought I was. I spent almost two-hours on Aurora, okay? And when it was done, the guy looks at me. You can see on his face he’s all confused. He said, ‘What is this?’ I didn’t get what he meant, so then it made me all confused. So I look right back at him and say, ‘It’s what you wanted, right?’

‘No, why would I want that?’

And ya gotta understand, he’s looking real mad at this point. So I told him, ‘It’s the sign for wealth, isn’t it?’

‘Wealth?’ he shouts, practically screaming at me now. ‘That is the Chinese characters for small penis!’”

Both Milada Valeria broke into laughter, and Aurora looked away from them to hide her frown.

“So I had to start the entire thing over, then give a fifty percent discount to the guy for the accidental insult.”

What Zachary didn’t mention, Aurora recalled bitterly, was that he’d blamed her for the entire mix-up. As if it could be her fault that her boss didn’t understand a language.

Not wanting to dwell on the past, she turned her attention away from Zachary. She stared at the large jet planes on the field. The memory wasn’t a pleasant one. From Zachary’s point of view, it was a crisis averted, but from hers, it was torture.

”Are you okay?” Aaron’s voice came from her right, shaking her out of her mindset. “I wish I could change the sleeping arrangements, but, for now, you’ll have to bunk with the other Immortalias.”

Aurora looked up and nodded. Sure, it hadn’t been a pleasure to find out that Zachary was a part of the expedition, but there was nothing she could do about it. Haw Tech had outdated information about the bond between Immortalias and their owners—Aaron genuinely thought she needed Zachary nearby.

Of course, that was far from the case, and Aurora would do just about anything to get rid of him. The urge to protest and tell Aaron all about him was so strong that her whole body shook.

“You look upset,” Aaron said, the slightest hint of a frown forming on his face. “I understand. Tonight, there isn’t enough room for you to be bunking together with Zachary. I understand this must be … disappointing for you. But you will be reunited soon, I promise.”

Aurora’s heart leapt. In a moment of panic, she nearly blurted out “no!” at the top of her lungs. Apparently, Aaron had seen her shaking with anger and had mistaken it for disappointment over not being able to sleep alongside Zachary.

Humans and their ignorant beliefs, she thought.

Her code of honor prevented her from telling Aaron about her thoughts. While it bugged her deep down that Zachary was here, it wouldn’t be appropriate of her to try to harm his future because of such a petty thing as feelings.

It was true that younger Immortalias evolved a manic obsession with their owners. However, Aurora wasn’t a young soul any longer. Her alliances had been spread all over the world by now, and she no longer felt remorse over leaving one owner for another.

She wasn’t afraid of Zachary, and while she didn’t feel the need to have him around, she couldn’t go around telling everybody to keep him away, either. It wouldn’t be right, and it would feel like a betrayal.

“Aurora?” Aaron said, causing her to look at him. His head was tilted, and he studied her closely. “Are you all right?”

“Yes, I’m fine with the sleeping arrangements.” She smiled and tried to look as sincere as possible.

He exhaled. “Phew. That’s good. I wouldn’t want anything to jeopardize this trip.”

Then you shouldn’t have brought Zachary, Aurora thought.

“Walk with me, please?”

Aurora frowned and looked around. There wasn’t much place to walk around in here—it was a closed waiting room. Nevertheless, she rose and followed Aaron.

“What’s up?”

His voice was low when he spoke. “Look. I know that you work for Haw Tech and that you’re used to this whole ‘let others call the shots’ thing.”

Aurora averted her eyes and stole a glance at Zachary across the room.

“But I need you”—Aaron took her hands and forced her to meet his eyes—“to promise me that you will tell me if something is bothering you. I’ll do my best to get it fixed.”

“And why’s that?”

“Because you need to be on high alert and do your best out there, and I can’t have you distracted by the little, easily fixable problems. No, not when there are much greater issues we’ll be dealing with. Getting caught up in the small stuff is simply no way to go about things.”

“I’ll do my best, Aaron. Don’t worry.” Aurora turned away from him. The lump in her throat threatened to explode, and she could feel tears welling in her eyes. Gods, get it together, Aurora.

“Oh, and Aurora?” he said. She looked back at him with a faked smile. “No distractions.”

“No distractions,” she repeated. She could do that.

For the last couple of years, she had done everything in her power to avoid anger and confrontation with Zachary—this wasn’t any different. Zachary was brought along for this trip, and she wasn’t about to let him distract her. She owed that much to Aaron.

She exhaled deeply, readying herself to join the rest of the group. They’d have to board the plane soon, and there was no time for delay. Aurora walked over to the group, just in time to hear Zachary finish another one of his stories. This one, she knew was an outright lie.

“… and who would have guessed that all this time, the true power was love?” he asked with a laugh.

Milada and Valeria laughed along with him, and Aurora figured he must have told them the made-up story—she’d heard them all before—of the wounded dove, and how after all the vets around town couldn’t nurse it back to health, only the power of his caring and nurture allowed it to fly again. She formed her expression into a pleasant smile, burying her hands deep in her pockets and joined them.

“Ah, darling…” Zachary greeted her. “Thought you might have abandoned me.”

“I would never,” she replied, keeping a firm hold of her smile while she met his eyes.

Zachary was a sore loser, and even when it came to silly small things, he couldn’t deal with losing. Which was why Aurora needed to win this staring contest. One of the great things about being an Immortalia was the fact that she could go without blinking just a fraction longer than humans could. An ability she used against him often; it gave her a small thrill to see him lose. He gritted his teeth and averted his eyes, causing Aurora to smirk.

“All right,” Aaron said. “The gates are opening, so we should get going.” He grabbed his luggage and headed towards the counter.

Aurora shrugged and followed him with the rest of the group lined up behind him. As they waited to board the aircraft, she began feeling nervous. Immortalias didn’t have passports since they weren’t considered true citizens of the world. They were little more than animals and property to humans.

This could potentially harm their departure, though Aurora was quick to find that there was no reason for her to worry. Aaron had already taken care of everything, and with a friendly smile, he gestured for all of them to get onboard.

As she walked down the ramp, Aurora listened to the sound of their footsteps tapping on the steel gate. A stewardess smiled at her, gesturing to the aisle to the right, where another steward led them to their seats.

“Is this a public flight?” Zachary asked.

Aurora rolled her eyes. The man was a work in progress: she knew that much. It was painfully obvious that this wasn’t a normal flight, but somehow the lack of other people, and the general décor didn’t get through to Zachary. This was her first time flying—or even seeing an airplane—and she had deduced this much, so it was amazing that Zachary couldn’t.

Nevertheless, Aaron smiled at him. “Of course not.” He gestured to the group. “We’ll have to discuss private Haw Tech business in here … we can’t have citizens listening in on that.”

The look on Zachary’s face was priceless, and Aurora wished she had a camera to capture the moment. Like a small child, his mouth formed into an O-shape, and his eyes seemed to twinkle. But it was only when he said “really?” that Aurora had to cover her mouth to hide the grin on her face. Zachary looked at her, and she saw him narrow his eyes.

“Don’t judge me,” he said, half growling. “I’m an artist, not a corporate VIP chairman director.”

Aurora felt a presence brush into her side. She realized it was Aaron. “He doesn’t know the meaning of the words he’s using,” he whispered into her ear, mirth in his voice. “But I won’t bother correcting him if you won’t.”

Aurora was simply glad that she and Zachary were not alone together. That meant, if she accidentally offended him, he wouldn’t have an outlet to vent his frustration on her. Aurora didn’t mind that fact, and she’d do her best to keep close to her group in order to prevent him from having a chance at retaliation.

Aurora took a window seat in the strangely decorated airplane, strapped herself in, and then let her mind wander, tuning out the rest of the group. The soft hum of the engines followed shortly, and it didn’t take long before the force of taking off the ground pushed her body back into the seat; her ears popped from the air pressure as the plane ascended into the air.

Not long after Aurora’s ears returned to normal, a man entered the passenger cabin and said that, if they chose, it was now safe for them to unfasten their seatbelts. Aurora was glad; she didn’t enjoy the feeling of being strapped in so tightly. Making herself more comfortable, she returned to her thoughts.

Back at the debriefing, Aaron had explained the purpose of this trip. They would land in the less inhabited town of Manaus, where they’d transfer to a smaller aircraft capable of landing in the rainforest. The way Aaron spoke about it was odd. He’d always speak with a certain edge in his voice. When Milada had asked about this, he’d said that it was because he never intended to lead this mission.

“How are you holding up?” Valeria shook Aurora out of her thoughts as she plopped down in the seat beside Aurora, uninvited.

Aurora shrugged. “I’m okay, I guess.”

“You guess?” Valeria raised an eyebrow. “Damn, girl. Good thing you’re not in charge of us.”

Aurora ignored the rude comment. It wasn’t any of Valeria’s business anyway. “How about you?” Aurora was perfectly entitled to keep her emotions to herself if it didn’t involve another team member—she’d read that in the official notice for this trip.

“I’m good.” Valeria stretched, making a horrid sound while she cracked her neck. “In fact, being out here is even more amazing than being at Haw Tech.”

“How so?”

The short-haired woman shrugged. “Change of air, I guess.”

Aurora wanted to comment on her uncertainty, but she figured it’d be a low blow. It wasn’t any of her concern either, and furthermore, she could relate to the doubt.

Being out here was great for her too. She couldn’t deny the obvious. These past weeks, where she’d served Haw Tech, had been the best time of her entire life.

And that’s saying something…

“So,” Valeria said. “What do you think?”

Aurora hadn’t been paying attention. “About what?”

Valeria crooked a finger at Aaron, who was sitting on the opposite side of the plane. “Who do you think was his predecessor?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well,” she began, “you know how he says he never intended to lead this mission?”

“Yeah?” Aurora sat up straighter.

“I’ve checked the records,” Valeria said, suddenly dropping her voice into a whisper. “There was another team that travelled to the Sacred Land a few years back.”

“Really?” Aurora could feel something rattle in the back of her mind. Then reality kicked in, and she frowned at Valeria. “Wait—you checked the records? That’s illegal!”

The Immortalia shrugged, a smug grin on her lips. “What they don’t know can’t hurt them, right?”

Aurora still didn’t like it. They weren’t supposed to know more than what Haw Tech told them. If it were discovered that they knew more, it could compromise their contracts. The thought made her shiver. “I don’t want to know about it,” she said, crossing her arms. She wasn’t about to do anything to breach her contract—she was never going back to work for Zachary as his personal drawing board.

“Suit yourself,” Valeria said. “Just thought you might be interested since you always look at him with those sappy, love-struck puppy eyes.”

“I do not!” Aurora shouted, surprising herself with the heat in her voice. She balled her fists, her nails digging into the palm of her hands.

Relax, Aurora. Relax, goddammit, she chanted inside her head. She couldn’t lose control of her powers in here—they’d end up crashing.

“Whatever you say, cute cheeks.” Valeria winked. “Hey, what’s that on your seat?”

“What?”

“There’s something on your seat.”

Aurora stood up, then widened her eyes as she felt Valeria’s hand slap across her bottom. “Just your ass,” she said with another wink. “Cute cheeks.”

“Don’t call me that,” Aurora said, frowning. She sat back down in a hurry.

“Why not? Your cheeks are cute,” she mocked.

“Stop it.” Aurora couldn’t stop the pout from forming on her face. “I’m not cute.”

The other Immortalia started to laugh violently, causing the others to send them confused looks. Aurora was so embarrassed. Heat flared to her cheeks … all four of them, and she half contemplated making her hand into frost to cool down her temper.

“Please, stop,” Aurora begged when Valeria still hadn’t stopped laughing. “It’s not funny.”

Valeria complied, and not long after, she calmed down, only the odd chuckle escaping now and then.

“Thank you.”

Valeria waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. I apologize for losing it.” She grabbed a human magazine and flipped through it before stopping to glance around.

“What?” Aurora asked. “What’s wrong?”

“Don’t you think it’s weird that Daniel Hawkins isn’t with us?” Valeria widened her eyes. “Shouldn’t he be?”

“Not that I’m aware of. Aaron didn’t mention it at the debriefing.” Aurora leaned back in her seat, relaxing her muscles. “Why do you ask?”

“He was on the earlier mission.” Valeria shrugged. “Just figured he was the kind of person to keep up with his work.”

Aurora’s mouth dropped. “I can’t believe you just told me!” she whispered. “That is such a lack of respect for my wishes. I don’t want to compromise my position.”

The short-haired Immortalia yawned. “Relax. It’s not like they can throw us off the plane—we’re too valuable to them.” She tilted her head. “Especially you. You have less to fear than any of us—you’re extraordinary, remember?”

God, she hated that word. The last thing Aurora wanted was to feel even more like a freak than she already did. It was one thing to be considered odd by another species, but it hurt when it came from her own.

She turned away and stared out of the window. It was too much. She was about to embark on a journey through the amazon rainforest in order to find the Sacred Land—a place that most believe to be a myth—so she could help unite humans and Immortalias under Aaron’s command. Her entire team seemed to believe it was doable, and some even considered it an easy task.

However, for Aurora it was different. She had her doubts about this, but she didn’t know how to voice her concerns. Now, she had one more to add to her list.

What makes a union between Immortalias and humans possible, if the prejudice amongst them precedes their common sense?

No. Aurora didn’t think this would be easy at all. It was fitting that Haw Tech had thought of ensuring their own asses by adding willing Immortalias to the mission. If they’d stopped there, this might even have been possible. But as things were, this mission would most likely fail, and it was for one reason and one reason alone: Zachary.

She turned her head to glance towards him. He was sitting beside Milada, an arm behind her back, and a pleasant smile on his face. His mouth moved, but Aurora couldn’t hear what he was saying.

Yes, Haw Tech made one colossal mistake in all of this.

They chose to invite the most despicable of all humans to represent them. Aurora could taste bile in the back of her mouth. And once the free Immortalias saw how downright evil the human race could be, they’d never agree to a union.

Zachary. I bet deep down you act the way you do because you really do have a very 小陰莖.

A/N: Please vote.