Chapter Two The Lizardgirl

Ilia entered the family sub pen looking for Telis, the lizardgirl she had brought back. Telis was kind of cute in an alien sort of way and tall for a girl. Telis looked to be about 155 centimeters tall. Her body was covered with light red scales, she seemed lithe and slender. Albeit poorly built for swimming. Instead of webbing on her hands and feet, she had claws. Her long tail forced her body to lean forward a bit. Her breasts might have helped balance it a bit, but not much. Telis had a decent pair, bigger than most Renkethi. Although that might just be average for a Vikari.

She found Telis in the sub pen examining a work suit, one of her mother’s spares. She stared at her for a moment and then stepped closer. Asking her a question, “I see you found the sub pen. Something fascinating about a work suit?

Telis turned, showing her an interesting face while asking, “Work suit?”

She nodded, “Yes that's a work suit. Protective gear for working in the water. Bleeding is always bad news when working, and that is meant to minimize the risk of getting cut. Your culture seems to have the same concept judging by your suit.”

Telis dropped the sleeve she was holding, “Speaking of clothes, I was wondering where you put mine. The only clothes I have found were these work suits.”

Ilia glanced at the rack, and said, “I didn’t put it on this rack. I brought you in from the other entrance, and I hung it on the foyer rack. Anyway, I placed a few calls, and Podsec is sending a team to search the wreck. With any luck, you will have news about your mother, by this afternoon.”

She seemed happy to hear that, and thanked her for the update. Then she asked, “Could you show me to my suit?”

Ilia tilted her head, “Why? You're not going out anytime soon. Mom said it was best you stay here for a while. She’s also coming to pick up your suit, so that someone can take a look at it.”

“What! Why?”

Ilia gave her a look, and changed tones. She wasn’t sure why there was an outburst, but answered honestly, “You can’t exactly leave the house without a suit, and if we were to take you anywhere we want to make sure you aren’t going to run out of air at an inconvenient moment.”

Her face changed expressions a few dozen times, and after an awkward silence, she said quietly, “At least leave me something to wear. I’m not comfortable naked.”

Ilia blinked suddenly connecting a few behaviors she had observed. The fidgeting and the trying to cover herself. She sighed, “Sorry, we don’t exactly like to wear things unless we have to. I didn’t think you would be different. I’m afraid I don’t have anything to give you.”

Telis slumped, “Nothing?”

Ilia nodded, “We don’t really wear clothing unless we have to. Anyway, I can give you a tour, show you the areas you haven’t seen yet or we can get started on those language lessons.

Telis shifted awkwardly a few times before finally giving her answer. “I’d like to get started on those lessons.”

A few hours later they were in the living room, but the conversation had shifted from covering basic Renkethi to deep-sea life. Telis had grown bored with the lessons and decided to ask about the deep sea creatures.

“... Well, one of the more dangerous creatures that can be found in the middle depths is the Krakis. They are massive, armored, and possess powerful tentacles that can crush pretty much anything. The average adult typically grows to be about fifty meters long, but some can grow bigger. Especially its cousins from the lower depths. Its main body is covered with a unique carapace that protects it quite well. It has a long body with a maw at the front, nearly a hundred tentacles sprout from its underside, and several more surround the maw. Along its back and rear it has massive fins that it uses to swim. When injured it secretes a fluid that quickly fills the wound and hardens into a new layer of carapace. This makes them quite hard to kill. Not to mention it also has a fairly rapid regeneration factor that allows it to regrow lost limbs in a matter of hours. These traits led a few industrious Renkethi to try and tame these beasts.”

Telis giggled, “Let me guess, they failed.”

She shook her head, “No. They succeeded in taming a few. Wasn’t easy given they can be quite aggressive, but juveniles proved tamable. We learned quite a bit about the Krakis from that endeavor as well.”

Such as the fact that they are genetically engineered, but she wasn’t going to tell Telis that. It was not important to this discussion, and she didn’t feel Telis needed to know. Not to mention things could get complicated with that discussion. Not only were the Krakis genetically engineered but they were ancient. Not to mention the Renkethi people did not know for sure who created them but they had an idea on why. The ruins in the depths had given them clues. Telis gave her a wide-eyed look, “You actually tamed a few?!”

She nodded, “We have, they have their uses. Anyway, the Krakis isn’t the only large creature in the middle depths. Not to mention there are more dangerous sea creatures in the lower depths. Another large creature in the middle depths is the Stolvari. It is smaller than the Krakis, typically growing no more than half the size. Its body is heavily armored, it has massive side fins that stretch out like the wings of birds. The creature has evolved a rather unusual weapon. It can emit a powerful focused sonic pulse from its mouth.”

Telis gave her a look, “You know with creatures like that, I wonder how you Renkethi survive down here.”

Shifting her posture, “We survive by being smart. School teaches us about the life around us, their behaviors, their traits, their weapons, and most importantly the best ways to avoid them. We Renkethi have very good senses, and I’m quite good with illusions. Every species down here has a survival strategy that works, some better than others.”

Telis settled back in her seat and was about to say something when the door opened and a familiar figure walked in. Ilia looked up and smiled. It was her mother, she looked a lot like her. Only a little taller, her figure a little more full, and her presence was stronger. “Hey, Mom I left it in the foyer.”

She came over, and settled into an empty seat, “So what are you girls talking about?”

Ilia shifted and answered, “I was just telling her about deep-sea life, mostly talking about large predators at the moment.”

Mom smiled, nodded, and then after a moment said, “Good she will need to know about the local dangers. I have been talking with my superiors, and their coworkers. We all agree it is best if we get the young lady home, but there aren’t any subs available. The Aquarius will be coming off patrol in about a month, but she is old and scheduled for a two week refit that can’t be postponed. There are other concerns as well, not related to transportation. We have a rough timetable now, and our guest will be staying with us for a couple months at the minimum.

Ilia glanced at Telis, who had so far been silent, and who she knew didn’t understand what was being said. A single day was not enough to teach her the language. Ilia translated it for her. Telis frowned, “What does she mean by two months at the minimum?”

Ilia looked at her mother, who took the sphere. Then her mom answered the question directly. “Politics young lady. The many pods have different views on the surface, and it will take time for them to come to an agreement. We have known about your kind since you arrived, but there is a reason we never made contact.”

Telis gave a thoughtful look for a moment, and then sighed, “I should have known. A pre-hyperlight civilization would be fractured.”

Mom gave her a look, “I think you have the wrong impression of us. Then again I doubt my daughter had reason to share our history.”

Telis’s eyes went wide, and she said, “You mean you actually have the ability to travel between stars? Then why haven’t I heard about encounters with Renkethi ships or Renkethi for that matter?”

Mom chuckled, “I’m sure my daughter told you, we stick to ourselves. It has been a long time since we had reason to travel beyond our oceans, but the keepers of knowledge still retain the secrets to the old stardrive technology. I’d love to sit here and talk more about it. Unfortunately I have things to do like retrieving that suit, and organizing a crew to set up a guest room for you.”

With that mom left, handing the orb back to her, and leaving a rather speechless Telis behind.