Chapter 4

Chapter 4

I paced the confines of the cabin. It was roomy and well appointed, but I couldn’t settle. Knowing Danyx was next door was too distracting. My imagination filled with images of her readying for bed.

Did she sleep naked? Did she have translucent nightclothes? What was under her utilitarian one piece suit?

I braced my arms against the door leading into the bathing area and stared at the shower. I stripped off my leathers and set my sword in the corner before stepping into the shower cock first.

I hadn’t felt the need for release this strong for many cycles. I gripped myself and stroked. I wanted to take my time and fantasize about sinking into Daynx’s tight heat, but the image was too real.

I lasted less than a minute.

I spun the dial and jumped when warm water cascaded from the wall. I didn’t expect that luxury on a ship this size. Only the Skeall warbirds had recirculating water systems robust enough to allow for the use of water to bathe.

I washed with efficient movements, not wanting to take advantage of the privilege. On board Thiljo I had a deep tub I soaked in for hours.

My dick filled again as I thought about showing Danyx the pleasure of my tub.

If I couldn’t get myself under control, this would prove to be a very long nine cycles.

The bunk was comfortable, but I may as well have been lying on a bed of ki? dhagfi?. I tossed and turned until I passed out from sheer exhaustion.

A klaxon woke me. I grabbed my pi?r and ran from the room. Xekil rushed from the end of the hallway, his eyes blurry from lack of sleep. The sound cut off when Danyx stumbled from her cabin rubbing her eyes.

Her gaze dropped to my crotch, and she blushed before tearing her eyes away.

I hadn’t bothered with pants. “What’s wrong?”

She rolled her eyes. “Nothing. This is Arella’s idea of a totally unnecessary wake up call.”

“Not unnecessary in this instance. I have reduced speed to avoid smashing myself to pieces on an asteroid belt that is in our path. I can resume course if you’d rather go back to sleep, but the damage will be extensive and repairs likely to exceed your limited funds.”

“There’s no reason to be snarky this early in the morning, Arella.”

“I beg to differ.”

I heard Danyx mutter, “You usually do.”

“What can we do?” Xekil failed at hiding his grin, giving him an odd, pained expression.

“He—” she pointed in my direction, “—can put on pants. I’m going to the bridge to see what we’re dealing with and if there’s a way to go around or through this field that won’t add too much time to the trip.”

“May I accompany you?”

Xekil’s request was innocent enough, but my body had a visceral reaction and my mouth followed suit. “No.”

Both of them turned to look at me.

“I will come to the bridge,” at Danyx’s pointed look at my crotch I added, “after I put on pants. Xekil can assist Arella in whatever way she needs.

“I do have a circuit that seems to be loose.”

I was beginning to like that A.I.

Danyx didn’t wait for me, but the bridge was located in the same place as it was on most other ships. I arrived to find her curled into the captain’s chair, her pet once again lounging on top of her head.

When I stared at it, she shrugged.

“It’s one of his favorite places to be. I think he enjoys being up high. I don’t mind now that he’s figured out to tuck his legs so they don’t get tangled in my hair.”

Anyone that defended those smaller and more vulnerable than themselves was honorable. My instincts said that Danyx was more than that. She was kind and selfless. Qualities difficult to come by in this quadrant of space.

My need to protect her kicked at my chest. I stopped rubbing at it when the movement caught her eye.

“What are we dealing with?”

She sighed. “I have no idea. There’s no asteroid belt on any map, no new ones reported, and these don’t look like any asteroids I’ve ever seen. Arella, have you analyzed the field? Can we get through?”

“You are more astute than I gave you credit for.”

“Thank you?”

“You’re welcome. These aren’t naturally occurring asteroids. It is a debris field.”

I leaned toward the view screen as if it would give me a better view. “Debris from what, exactly?”

“I can’t be one hundred percent certain, but I believe what you’re looking at was once a small planet.”

“Another one?”

I swiveled toward Danyx. “What do you mean, another one?”

“The most recent asteroid belt reported in this area turned out to be an exploded planet. Leading theory is that it wandered too close to a black hole, got chewed up and spit out, but it seems a bit too coincidental for that to happen twice in so short a period of time.” She tilted her head at me. “Unless planets have a habit of exploding around here?”

I frowned. “No. They do not.”

Potential causes whirled in my mind, but none made sense. Planets broke apart when their orbits disintegrated or they strayed too close to their sun, or collided with another astral body. Any of those scenarios took eons.

There was another possibility I didn’t want to entertain, but it was the only one that made sense.

“Arella, do you detect any plasma signatures in the area?”

“Yes. There is a high concentration of diffuse plasma near the center of the field.”

Fuck. “I need to contact the Thiljo .”

***

“What’s going on?”

Something was very wrong. If the exploded planet didn’t clue me in, the tension vibrating through Khanet’s body would.

“I can’t be sure.”

“Fuck that answer! You know something and you need to share. My ship is at risk and you’re freaking me out.”

He stormed from the bridge, but I was hot on his heels, which means when he stopped mid-stride I ran into him.

Even with panic simmering under my skin I noticed how hot his back was and how his muscles were like satin over steel. He didn’t budge, didn’t absorb my impact even a little. I bounced off of him.

I stumbled and my butt would have had a close encounter with the deck had he not caught me.

His mouth was set in a hard line. “I promise to share my theory as soon as I can.”

My mouth dropped open to argue but he put a finger over my lips.

“It’s the best I can offer.”

He shook his head and released me. Then he disappeared, leaving me standing in the middle of the hallway like a scolded toddler.

My tantrum would have made a toddler proud. “Arella, broadcast Khanet’s conversation with his ship.”

“Shall I broadcast it ship wide, or only in here?”

“Don’t be a bitch, Arella. I’m worried about us both.”

“This is a breach of privacy.”

“Says the Intelligence that listens to everything all the time.”

“I simply wanted to point that out.”

Khanet’s voice flooded the bridge, low and clipped.

“Research the Volnu project. I want to know how far along in development it was when the khumtu scuttled it.”

Silence followed until Arella spoke. “He has ended the transmission.”

“Do you know what the Volnu project is?”

“No. There is nothing in my database with that name.”

“Well, shit. That was entirely unhelpful.”

“May I enter?” Xekil called from the hall.

“Sure, come on in.”

He walked a slow circle around the space, his eyes lit with awe. “She is remarkable, isn’t she?”

I snorted. “Again, no need to feed her ego.”

“Perhaps I would like you more if you behaved with the respect I deserve, as Xekil understands.”

I snorted again. “No, you wouldn’t. You’d get bored if I kissed your ass all the time.”

Arella chirped her version of a chuckle but stayed silent for once.

“Have you found a way through the debris?” Xekil trailed his fingers over a secondary console and Arella’s lights trailed after them.

“No. The remnants are still shifting outward from the force of whatever destroyed the planet. The movement makes any direct path too unstable to be safe.” I sighed. “We’ll have to go around, or under. Arella, it’s your choice. Find the shortest path that is also safe and change course, please.”

“Since you asked so nicely.”

I shook my head and went toward my cabin, setting Skitter down. He kept pace with me, rolling near my feet. I watched him as I shuffled along. Every so often his tail would pop out and give him another push to keep his forward momentum.

I didn’t bother to close the door. I fell face first onto my bunk and sighed happily as Skitter burrowed into my side. I tucked my hand into his soft belly and was almost asleep when a low voice sent me scrambling upright.

“May I join you?”

“Here? Now?” Way to go Danyx. Squeaking was so mature.

Khanet’s lips tipped up. “Yes. I’d like to hold you, if I may.”

“You want to … snuggle?” Dogs on Earth heard that.

He dipped his chin. Probably didn’t want to speak in fear I might say something at an inaudible decibel.

I cleared my throat. “Um, okay.”

I scooted to the far side of the bunk, trapping Skitter against the wall. The bed dipped violently as Khanet slid behind me and I rolled into him. His chuckle reverberated through my back and went straight to my clit.

Whoo boy. I was in trouble.

I’m not sure what I expected, but it wasn’t him gently righting me with a hand and then tugging on my braid. It took a minute for my brain to understand he’d pulled the tie free and was undoing the strands.

When the length of my hair was free, he combed it with his fingers. Over and over again he speared his fingers onto my scalp and drew them down the length of my hair until the ends fell free.

I couldn’t remember a single person playing with my hair. Not even once.

It was glorious.

I never wanted it to end. He could lay behind me forever. I’d happily waste away to nothing if he just kept running his fingers through my hair.

I’m not sure how long we laid like that, because I fell asleep. I must have slept like the dead because he was gone when I woke up. I didn’t examine the keen disappointment I felt that he had simply left.

I could not fall for this alien. Been there, done that, never wanted the t-shirt. Giving your heart to someone gave them too much power over you and I wasn’t stupid enough to make that mistake twice.

Sure, he seemed kind, and courteous, and had been nothing but gentle with me, but all that could change on a dime. I knew that from experience.

My gut was telling me something altogether different. It was saying I could trust that what I saw was what I would get. My heart was thumping hard for him, and my libido was fired up like a cheerleader on prom night.

I couldn’t trust any of those bitches, though. I had to lean on my brain this time. I couldn’t get swept up in the butterflies and throw caution to the wind. I needed to hold on to that caution with a tight fist.

I just had to hope it didn’t leak out around my fingers.

***

I’d kept my message to the Thiljo brief. It was hard to forget this ship had ears everywhere and was always listening. I also suspected the curious little zhuvof would be listening from the bridge.

The subterfuge grated on me, but the last thing I wanted to reveal was my people’s plans to build a planet killing weapon.

The khumtu put a stop to it, but I had to wonder how far along the project developed before they shut it down. The evidence through the view screen was undeniable.

If it wasn’t us, who was it?

A return message, sent via text only per my request, stated that research indicated the program was stopped before any real fabrication began. Scrun also said that the file was heavily redacted.

I knew he was curious about why I’d asked, but I couldn’t reveal what I’d seen while on board this ship.

I was once again pacing my cabin in frustration.

“May I suggest you go to Danyx? I believe she would welcome some comfort.”

I considered the AI. “Why would you help me?”

“I’m not. I’m helping Danyx. Despite outward appearances, I’ve grown to like her. It would be a great inconvenience should something happen to her.”

I snorted but turned to take her advice.

“Don’t mistake my suggestion, warrior.”

I looked at the ceiling in question.

“I will protect her from all threats. Even you.”

“I’d expect nothing less.”

The walk next door was too brief to second guess. She was splayed face down on her bunk, the creature pressed against her far side. She’d left the door open, which irritated me. She had so little care for her own safety.

I startled her with my request to join her, and again when I assured her I only wanted to lie next to her.

Running my fingers through her hair mollified the need coursing through my veins, but I knew it was getting stronger.

I wanted my little zhuvof. I wanted to taste her, push inside her, feel her shatter on my cock.

More than that, I wanted her to want those things, too. Which meant I would have to further test my patience. Like the small but feisty animal on my home planet I’d taken to calling her, she was flighty and nervous. Apt to bolt at the slightest provocation.

It wasn’t in my nature to linger when I made a decision. I wanted, I took. It was that simple.

I knew she desired me. I could see it in her eyes, in the soft sounds she made when we touched. I could sway her if I wanted.

Something held me back. Told me that waiting for her would yield the bigger prize.

I wish I had access to the Skeall archives, but my small communicator wasn’t meant to hold information. Scrun was on the Thiljo and could locate any information I wanted, but with Arella I had to tread carefully.

If I asked him to look up odd physical responses in males, it would raise all sorts of red flags. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if I wanted confirmation that something real caused these strange feelings happening to my body, or if it would be better to stay in ignorant bliss.

My chest tightened as if to say knowledge was better. It didn’t matter, the archives were out of my reach until we crossed the far border and I left Danyx.

My fingers stuttered where they were combing through her hair. The pain in my chest so intense, had I been standing it would have sent me to my knees.

I disentangled myself from her sleeping form and crept from her cabin, closing the door firmly behind me. The pain dulled from a sharp point to a dull, throbbing ache. I made my way to the small medical bay and closed myself into the diagnostic pod.

Arella would know, of course, but I felt like my chest might crack open.

Light pulsed over me, and I steadied my breathing.

The pod automatically opened when it completed its scans. I searched the screen for a medical reason causing my pain. The diagnosis stated I was perfectly healthy. My heart rate and respiration a bit elevated, but nothing far outside normal parameters.

I shook my head and read it again. The conclusion remained that there was nothing wrong with me.

“Would you like to hear my theory?”

I’d hoped Arella would allow me the illusion of privacy. I should have known better.

“What is your theory, Arella?”

“Given your physiology and what brief history of your people exists in my databases, I suspect you share a common ancestor with the Ka’atari. Not a recent one, even in evolutionary terms, but enough to pass down certain biological imperatives.”

I shook my head. “Ka’atari rhun is a recent development, spurred on by Scozid tampering.”

“Yes, but far into the reaches of their history are tales of males experiencing symptoms of a mating fever.”

I rubbed at the center of my chest. “Do these tales include a cure for this ailment?”

Tinny clicking bounced off the walls and I realized she was laughing at me.

“It isn’t an ailment, warrior. It’s an indicator that you have found your mate. From the moment you stepped on board your vitals have been haywire. Your pheromone and hormone levels off the charts.”

My head spun and I sat down hard on the edge of the pod.

“Danyx is your mate.”

“The Skeall don’t have biological mates. We choose our partners.”

“Clearly that’s not entirely accurate.”

My knuckles went white where they clutched the edge of the pod.

“Have you never heard of another male experiencing these symptoms?”

I shook my head.

“I respectfully doubt that you are the first among your people in eons to fall victim to a mating fever. Would your governance keep something like this from its populous?”

“To what end?”

“I don’t know, warrior. I’m not familiar enough with your societal structure to form even a wild guess.”

My stomach sank. I already suspected the khumtu had concealed details about the depth of the Volnu project.

What else were they hiding from us?