END of LINE: Humanities Last Stand - part 3 (10 page)

“Talga, come here boy.” Jon called and lifted his hand for the cat to come. When Jon laid his hand, palm up, directly in Satrina's lap, Talga warily rested
his head in Jon's palm. “Good boy.” Jon soothed the cat as he gently scratched the side of its face which made the cat let its head rest directly on
Satrina's lap. She could feel it purring! “Talga, this is Rina. She is going to visit us here sometimes. Rina is going to rub you behind the ears now
aren't you my tiny tigress? Go ahead, he likes to be scratched behind his ears. Remember, he's a big strong tiger and doesn't need to be treated too
gently, a little rough is OK.”

Satrina reached out and at first just placed her hands behind his ears then as she became more comfortable with being this close to one of the deadliest
wild animals known to roam Haven, she began to scratch him.

“Talga, you must listen to me my friend.” Jon told the cat as it rolled its head in ecstasy, “You must protect her as you have aunt Gala and me. She is a
very special part of us now. Without her we are weakened. She has become my mate. Do you understand my old friend?” Talga shook his head away from his
humans. Yes, he now had two again. Taking a step back he sat and looked at Satrina before walking to a place several feet away and sitting down again with
a low drawn out growl.

“He needs to taste your scent to lock you into his mind. You should stand a few feet away from me, but not too far, he needs to know that your scent is
always mingled with mine.” Jon suggested and Satrina went to stand where he pointed. Talga allowed his lips to curl upwards exposing massive teeth and took
several long sniffs before shaking his head, sneezing, and repeating the sniffing process a second time. When he had tasted her scent enough to know it
from miles away, he stood on all four legs and padded over to her where he pressed his head into her stomach. “He wants you to get his scent on you.
Scratch him under his jaw and then on his cheeks. Go easy on the cheeks. That's his one and only tender spot.” Jon told her and she obeyed. “Speak softly
to him. Tell him what a handsome tiger he is.”

“You're such a fine male Talga. My giant is a good friend to share me with you. We are his only friends so we must work together to keep him happy and
safe. Can we be friends?” Satrina asked the huge animal as she softly stroked its cheeks. Talga had no idea what this new being was saying, but its voice
was soft and its scent was sweet. He would help his human protect this being that was so much like the one called aunt Gala. They both had the smell of
their kinds females and that of his human, but also something that wasn't his human's scent either. He had sensed this smell before and it was only on
these two females. The scent was much stronger on this one than on Gala, but it was the same. Perhaps their kind traveled in herds, for this was no
predatory pack animal. Both the one called Gala and now this Rina were too weak to hunt.

Satrina had never experienced the feelings she felt washing through her body today. She had claimed not only her mate, but also his tiger! Had any Lexonian
female ever been this happy? She bent down far enough to place its head on her shoulder, wrap her arms around the huge animal's neck and gave Talga a tight
hug. “I think I might just love you almost as much as I love my giant warrior.” She whispered in its ear, “But don't tell him. It will be our secret.”
Smiling brightly she stood away from Talga and started walking over to where Jon was still sitting.

Jon rose out of his chair as Rina turned away from Talga. He held out his arms to give the big cat the same signal he had been giving it since it was a
kitten and the animal made two quick leaps before jumping into his arms. He caught the cat in midair and hugged it tightly while rubbing his hands down its
spine. “You're such a good boy Talga. Yes. Now get down and go play in the forest.” Jon set the big cat down and it ran off into the tall trees. He turned
towards Rina holding his arms out just as he had for the cat. She ran and leapt with a wicked smile on her lips. When Jon caught her in midair she giggled,
“Am I a good boy too?”

“No. You Princess Rina, you are my tiny tigress. And yes, you are an amazingly good boy if that is what you wish to be.” Jon teased her.

“I have no desire to be anyone's boy my giant. I wish only to be your wife. Fully and properly mated, for now and for evermore.” Rina told him and the
kissing started again as he carried her back inside.

Putting her down Jon whispered, “You are going to steal my heart tiny tigress.”

“You stole mine the first day I saw you Giant.” Rina told him.

“For most of my life people have called me that to make fun of me or to shame me. Somehow when you call me that I feel special and privileged.” Jon
confessed to her.

“I never want to shame you. I will never shame you. I will always make you proud of your tiny tigress.” she assured him with a gentle smile.

“If you are truly going to be my mate, there are things that need to be done. Come.” Jon went down to the basement level and along the hall to the last
room on the right. “This room was what my uncle called his den. He had it added and put in a secert security system to keep unwanted visitors out.”

Entering the room with Rina right behind him, Jon walked over to one of the bookcases that lined the walls and pulled down a book. Inside the book was a
small palm panel that Jon pressed once, then twice, then finally four times before closing the book and putting it back in its place on the shelf. “I am
going to adjust the house security systems to recognize you. When we are done here today, you will be able to come and go as you please anytime, day or
night.” Soon after Jon placed the book back on its shelf a latch was heard opening and an entire panel of shelves moved in and back to reveal a hidden
door. Jon pushed the door opened and held it to allow Rina to walk through ahead of him into a room that appeared to be twice the size of all the others on
the lower level.

What she saw held her in awe and locked her in place just a few steps inside the room. Here were all the treasures of the ancient Umin race spoken of in
her Lexonian Royal histories. The living paintings, the silver and Black armor worn by their males, the multicolored gowns of their females, even the
magical Fire Breathing Dragon Swords! “OH Goddess, Jon. Your family has had all this here for all these cycles?” She walked over to several paintings that
hung on one wall stopping to stare at the one behind the massive wooden desk. Looking up at it she was surprised by how much the tiny female in the picture
looked like her own portrait at the Royal Palace on Lexon II. The huge male beside the female in the painting looked a lot like her Jon. The pair looked
like a King and Queen standing together. He in his silver and black armor with a Fire Breathing Dragon Sword held out to protect the female and child, and
she in her multicolored gown lovingly holding the infant. Behind them stood what Satrina thought had to have been the very house she was in now. Something
hung in the air above them, but whatever it was the image wasn't clear.

“That my tiny tigress is my ancestor,
Jon Connell,
and his Lexonian mate Leadora. The child she is holding is the offspring of the first
Connell
and Jill Saunders, the human female who was his first mate. He and Leadora raised the boy together besides having a set of twins
themselves. Apparently, when Human/Umin males mate with pure Lexon females they produce twins. Never two boys or two girls. Always one of each, a boy and a
girl. That baby is my great, great grandfather. Jon Patrick Connell Jr.

She next walked over to the rack of multicolored gowns sitting in one corner. Every gown used the same colors, but in different random patterns that
created mazes and spirals and several other designs. Rina recognized the gowns as the same ones worn by the beautiful females shown in the paintings in the
room and ran her hand along them until one stuck to her and refused to be removed. “Jon, I'm sorry, I should not have touched it.” she pleaded with him
while trying to shake her hand free of the delicate garment.

“That's OK Rina. You have been selected it would seem. Take that gown and go into the little room just over there.” Jon pointed. “Remove all your coverings
and put on that gown. It will adjust to you perfectly.”

Without a word, Rina took the beautiful gown and went into the small changing room Jon had pointed to. While she was out of the room he decided to have
some fun with her. He pulled down one set of the silver and black armor and quickly pulled it on, then reaching up to take down one of the Dragon's Breath
swords he waited for her to return. He'd been coming back here often and trying on the armor while making the sword blaze with the plasma flames. It was
only during these last two cycles as his body grew that the armor had actually fit.

“I'm coming out Jon,” Rina called. “The gown made itself fit my frame perfectly...” she stopped in her tracks when she saw her Jon standing in the middle
of the room wearing the silver and black armor of his birthright holding one of the Dragon's Breath swords, its long blade covered by the plasma fire that
gave the sword its name. By the Goddess, her mate was glorious!

Jon nearly wept when he saw Rina step out of the changing room in one of the Umin gowns his ancestors had once used to clothe their wives in the Connell
family colors. If he thought she was beautiful in her Royal crimson gown, this multicolored gown, with its spiral maze of colors and silver background,
turned her into a goddess, shimmering in the low lights of the room!

Satrina's eyes wondered to Jon standing in the Connell silver and black armor and she gasped at how strong and powerful he appeared. Slowly walking to him
she took in every inch of her male from his raven black hair, past his intense blue eyes and strong square chin. Down past his broad shoulders to his slim
waist and beyond. Not even her own brother, who had always prided himself on keeping his body in top physical condition, looked this magnificent! Thank you
my Goddess for allowing the hopes of a foolish young girl to come true, she thought as she pressed herself tightly against her giant and hugged him with
all of her strength.

Jon held Rina with one arm, his other arm still holding the Dragon Sword, and just let himself enjoy the heat of her body pressed against his. How that
heat managed to set him ablaze even through the Umin armor was a mystery for another day. Glancing around the walls he caught a movement out of the corner
of his eye and spun in that direction, activating the sword and pushing Rina behind him.

“What's wrong Jon?” Rina asked.

“The painting... look at the painting.” Jon told her with confusion in his voice. “Somehow its changed.”

Rina stepped to Jon's side and now she saw the changed painting. The picture on the wall behind the desk still showed the house beyond the crystal lake,
but now it showed her and Jon. Not just people who happened to look like them. It actually was them! They were in the same pose with her by his side
with the Dragon Sword drawn for protection. The infant child was gone, but at Satrina's side sat a massive solid black saber-tooth tiger!

“How is that even possible?” she asked.

“I don't know. It never happened when my father brought his wife, my mother, down here to adjust the house security and to pick her gown. It never changed
for my uncle when he brought my aunt. It hasn't changed from that scene of the original
Jon Connell
and his Lexonian wife until now.” Jon searched
his memories of the lessons his uncle had spent hours teaching him in this very room. “The painting changed before though. Now I remember. When Jon
brought it from the Umin cavern to this house it showed a sparkling city behind the King and Queen of the Umin civilization. I think the city was a place
called Tilmusi or something like that. It’s in the archives at the library downtown and there is a copy somewhere in a vault in this room. Anyway, the
night it changed was the same night that the baby had been brought to
Jon
and Leadora. Its never changed after that until now.”

“What can it mean Jon?” she asked him.

“My uncle taught me that its a reminder Rina.” Jon told her. “A reminder to always fight for what you love. When that painting changed the last time,
Jon
and
Leadora
had just returned to the house after ending the ancient Umin war. The baby had only just been dropped off. Once the job
was done and the machine race was destroyed,
Jon
brought his crew back here and got them all safely down to the planet. He is said to have hidden
the warship out in space somewhere it shouldn't be able to be found. There is a security system onboard that will blow up any ship that gets near it
without the entry codes. No one knows what those codes are. He believed that the ship was far too powerful to belong to any one planet. He was afraid that
in the wrong hands it would be used for evil instead of good. It held many secrets and one of them was a different kind of FTL travel that took only
seconds to move between the stars not days or weeks. It was called a jump drive. Another was that an entire flight wing of five of the Dragon Ships your
legends talk about were onboard, but only those humans who had the Umin genes could fly them.
Jon
never told the codes to awaken the ship to
anyone.

The painting was telling both of them to hold on to hope. You see, some evil men really did try to convert Leadora to a pleasure female, but
Jon
prevented that. He thought she had abandoned him because of the deformities on his body. She ended up here after months of being held like a slave. He
really did go up to the Palace to rescue her. They both had exactly what they wanted most, but neither one knew it. They had to fight to hold onto their
dreams. That painting is a reminder to hang on with all your worth and never let go.”

“But, that story is so sad. He is a great hero to our people. Almost a God.” Rina told him.

Taking her gently by her shoulders Jon leaned down to look her in the eyes. “Rina, promise me that you will never tell anyone what I have told you here
today. It’s our family duty to let the people have their hero. We have our ancestor. That is enough for us.” He pleaded with her. “Besides, I am the last
living human in the universe aside from some of Haven's older citizens. All the secrets of our family will die with me. This house and all the land around
it will be turned over to the state for a nature preserve. There will be no one to hand it down to. Even if we have a liter of fifty offspring, not a
single one of them will be a pureblooded human being. Only pureblooded humans can operate the security systems and without one of us to adjust them for our
spouses or friends, no one will ever find any of this or some of the other things I'll teach you if we decide to live here.”