Serena's POV:

I sat on Darien's lap and leaned against him. I had no desire to move. It was peaceful, quiet, and relaxing. No one was irritated by my mere presence. Darien had also relaxed, although he was still vigilant and alert. The Dranek had managed to locate him after all, which surprised me. I wondered how they had managed that.

I was so glad that he was back with me. The Dranek had scattered to give us as much privacy as they could on the edge of their camp. I knew that there were dozens of guards further out just in case. With Darien here, that was a pretty pointless precaution, although I wasn't sure if they were aware of his super strength. I couldn't see a single patch of blue skin, although I knew that at least a dozen were within hearing range if we called out.

It surprised me that Darien trusted them as much as he did. He normally didn't trust anyone, and this was a race he had never met before. Something in Saphira's mind must have convinced him when he was reading her.

Despite the war between the Tarulk and the Dranek, the Dranek had no problem with Darien and Darien had more tolerance for them than for most people. It baffled me. As much as I could figure it out, they welcomed Darien because he was my soulmate. Darien was more laid back because he knew that I was safe around the Dranek.

A low whistle to the side made me glance over. Saphira was walking over with a large tray. She had whistled to ensure we were aware of her presence. Darien glanced over, but wasn't surprised to see her. He would have heard her approach.

She set the tray down in front of us, "Here is some supper. The red bowls contain things that Serena would be wise to purify before trying."

Darien watched her, although his gaze wasn't overly sharp, "Would you care to remain? I have some questions I am hoping you have leave to answer."

If it wasn't for the bond and its side effects, I would have wondered if this was actually Darien. I had never heard him use such a polite or courteous tone with anyone other than myself. He was often sharp with Alex and almost hostile towards others.

Saphira nodded and took a seat on the grass. Darien had opted to sit on the soft grass earlier as he leaned against a tree trunk. I glanced at the tray and did a double take. Darien glanced down and also examined the food. About half of the dishes were things from Earth.

Rice, fish, corn on the cob, diced up veggies and more. Some was food I had seen the Tarulk eat, and most of that was in red bowls, although some wasn't.

I looked at Saphira in surprise, "Thank you. How did you get this?"

She smiled, "It is not easy for our kind to move around on Earth, but we know of certain humans who will keep our secret as they buy things we might need."

Darien passed me a plate and I took a bit of everything. I hummed before eating any of it though, and I noticed Saphira relax as I hummed. Darien turned his attention to Saphira, "I heard that the waygates aren't working reliably. I cannot see every Dranek camp having Earth food on hand."

She wasn't bothered by his slightly suspicious tone. "We rarely travel to Earth unless it is needed. A trip was made once we found Serena. There are a couple of gatemasters among our people. The problems with the waygates are our doing, although our waygates work just fine."

"Why did you tamper with the waygates and make it impossible for people to leave?"

Saphira sighed, "We were trying to locate a singer and from the way the Council reacted, if there had been a singer on this planet, they would have removed them just to spite us. Our actions are not something we are proud of, but we felt compelled to keep trying."

Darien tilted his head, "So why exactly are you fighting? Although I must admit that this is the oddest war I have ever heard of."

Saphira focused her gaze on him, "We do not kill needlessly, and we give all a chance to leave unharmed. Our tactics allow us to look for a singer. Had we not found one by the time we controlled half of the land, we would have opened up the southern quarter and invited all non-combatants to travel there to help with the crowding."

Darien blinked in realization, "And as they travelled, you would have been able to recognize any singer that passed through."

Saphira nodded in confirmation, "Yes."

This entire decade-long advance was just to find a singer? I was having a hard time wrapping my head around them putting that much effort into locating one person. Darien seemed curious, "So that is what you were looking for. What made you think a singer was on this planet?"

"It is hard to put into words. Singers tend to appear in situations where they are required. The moment we set foot on this planet, we could feel that it was unbalanced. Our planet is also in need, and those there have been watching for a singer for several centuries, but we hoped to find a singer here since this place obviously needed one as well. We have checked numerous planets over the past century to no avail, although other Dranek are still travelling to more planets to search."

Darien kept one arm wrapped around my waist as we both ate. They had been looking for a singer long before I was born. I found it strange that I had been the first one they had found when they could travel between planets. Darien was thinking about what she had said. Saphira was endlessly patient as she waited for his next question.

Darien said, "You have put a lot of effort into finding a singer. I noticed that every Dranek I have seen is very protective of Serena. Some of it I can attribute to the difficulty you went through in locating her, but I feel that there is more to it than that."

Saphira blinked slowly in surprise, "Singers are unable to defend themselves. It is simply impossible for them to learn to fight."

I snorted lightly in amusement, gaining the attention of both of them as I finally joined the conversation, "I guess that self-defense trainer was correct. My inability to learn had her confused."

Saphira smiled sadly, "It isn't something singers can learn. That is why every Dranek is taught from their youth to defend a singer at all costs."

Darien once more watched Saphira like a hawk, but relaxed at whatever he picked out of her mind. "Serena once told me of her attempts to learn, but I was not aware it was because of her magic."

Saphira nodded, although she hesitated before continuing, "Some of our scouts snuck back into the camp after you left. The things they overheard disturb them. Most there wished her dead. Serena will not be safe in that camp. We are hoping you will remain with us. This camp is not set up the best, but there are buildings and towns further south. The elders did mention that they would prefer it if you would consider settling near a waygate. That way, if trouble threatens, we can gate you two to safety swiftly."

Darien stilled behind me and I leaned back against him in case his anger made a reappearance. The bond remained quiet though, so he was not agitated. He did wrap his one arm a bit tighter around my waist.

Saphira waited as Darien thought. I wondered which scenarios were running through his mind. Darien looked down at me for a long moment. I once more marveled at his glowing eyes.

He spoke quietly to me, "If we return to Earth, those scientists will likely still try to track us since I know some escaped. Other than a couple of individuals, I do not trust any Tarulk in the least. I have not yet seen a single Dranek that has been anything but protective."

It didn't seem fair to me that Darien had to be parted from his people just because of me. Yet I knew that Darien would not be happy if I was in constant danger of being killed by his people. I also didn't want to be constantly worried about one of them trying to kidnap me again either.

Something occurred to me, "I do not really care where I go, as long as you are with me. I thought your hometown was somewhere south of here?"

That had been the first place we had planned to go, so it must have held good memories for him. The comment piqued his interest, "Yes, it is. I think you would enjoy it there."

It was a good starting point, and we could always move later on. "I am curious to see where you grew up. We had planned to go there when we originally escaped the lab."

Saphira looked startled at that comment before a look of anger changed her expression. It looked like the thought of us having to escape from somewhere didn't sit well with her. Darien glanced at her, but seemed satisfied by whatever he sensed.

Saphira composed herself before turning to Darien, "Where is this town?"

"South, on the edge of the mountains. Not far from the coast actually. There is a waygate not that far away, but it has been deactivated as long as anyone can remember and no one knows the codes for it."

Saphira shrugged in dismissal, "A gatemaster can reactivate it in under a day. They can also detect the codes. We will happily accompany you wherever you choose to go. Simply let us know if you need anything. We will ready a cart and camping supplies for whenever you choose to travel."

From her tone, I suspected that the Dranek would follow us regardless if we wanted them to or not. At least they weren't trying to hold us prisoner. Darien tilted his head in consideration, "I do not like having Serena this close to the battlefront. Would it be possible to leave tomorrow?"

Saphira perked up with determination as her hair seemed to fluff up, "Consider it done."

I had a feeling that she wasn't about to let anything stop her in her quest.