“Why you’re so good to me. I have nothing to offer apart from difficulty. I can’t even keep to the original terms of our agreement now.” At her blank look, he added, “I was supposed to serve as your suitor, pacify your mothers with my presence.”

“All biological beings change,” Qalu said. “I can’t say I was expecting our current situation, and I am a bit sad that I’ll never present my work to the scientific coalition on Tiralan, but you’re so much more to me than a project.”

“Am I?”

Qalu didn’t respond to that. Her look shifted, becoming more severe. Her head tendrils swayed, underscoring her mood. “Don’t mention what you told me about Gravas Station. I believe you didn’t have bad intentions. I’m sure you had a good reason, but they don’t know you yet. It’s better not to instill doubt at this juncture.”

She’d keep secrets from our saviors? For me. A complicated mix of emotions swelled within him, and he couldn’t manage them at all. Footfalls announced the Barathi’s arrival before the hatch slid open. “We’re docking with the main ship now. Hope the departure wasn’t too rough. Relax and prepare to meet the rest of the crew.”

Helix had taken over Gravas Station.

Though what Qalu had said was true, she did believe there must have been a reason, the revelation of what he’d done still circled in her head, leaving shades of doubt. How much do I know about him? Probably she was simply unsettled because the last seven darktides had been fearful and chaotic, upending her life utterly. Aevi dashed back to her and bounded into her arms, tucking her face against Qalu’s neck.

“There’s nothing bad here,” she said. “Nothing good either. But they wouldn’t let me on the big ship without you. So rude! I asked politely, I did, but they still said no. They’re wrong, I would not go all over the floor.”

“They don’t know how clever you are,” she said, an automatic reassurance with her mind elsewhere. “They’ll soon learn.”

“You have a Pherzul,” Praxys said. He had been chasing Aevi and doubled back when she passed him. “Their bites are quite venomous.”

The Barathi gave Aevi a wide berth, edging farther away when she bared her little fangs. She lashed her tail, a sure sign that she was angry, probably offended by the lack of hospitality. Aevi hated feeling lesser than her bipedal counterparts, justifiably so.

“A bite wouldn’t kill you,” Aevi told Praxys. “But it will hurt a lot, so you should tell your friends to learn manners.”

“My friends?” The Barathi glanced at Qalu as if she could explain.

“I believe she tried to board on her own and was rebuffed.”