Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE

A few hours later he was as satisfied as he was going to get, given the challenges. The ship's wardroom had been converted into a dormitory for the five relatively healthy male ex-hostages. The ship had enough cabins to assign one to Daveed, which had been Maeve's intention when she bought it, but he refused the space and insisted the three women take it over. His brother had been quite attentive to the youngest of the female rescues, as he had been during the entire ordeal. Gil hoped he'd get time to talk to Daveed about the situation but for now he was satisfied the woman displayed a liking for Daveed's company and Gil had higher priority things to concern him. The two most severely injured men were in the sickbay with Dr. Shane and Tyrelle alternating shifts watching over them. Daveed was going to bunk in with Red, who was the only person on the ship without his spouse along. Gil was glad Meg had remained behind on the cruise ship. She had no military experience and although she was an exemplary crew member and calm in emergencies, she didn't need to be exposed to the dangers the team had faced here.

Maeve was hard at work repairing the ship, which Theo was flying.

Gil began his evening rounds in the control chamber, where the officer and Jayna were sitting, quietly conversing and eating a dinner of survival rations.

"Care for anything to eat, captain?" Jayna asked when he entered the space. "We've got extras."

"I'm fine—I'll eat later, thanks."

"We'd planned to have a celebratory dinner tonight," she told him. "We even brought along a bottle of the rarest vintage feelgood in the Stores on the Nebula Zephyr , but under the crowded conditions, we all decided the party had to wait."

"I think that's best," he agreed. "We've been through an ordeal and while it would have been great to let off steam, we've got quite a crowd aboard."

"Hardly the accommodations we can provide on our own ship." Theo chuckled. "Much as I like this baby and love being in command again, it'll be nice to get back to our proper places."

Clearing his throat, Gil straightened and said, "I want to express my gratitude again for the two of you dropping everything and coming on this unorthodox mission to save my ass. And my brother's as well. I can't tell you what it means to me."

"Hey," Jayna said softly, placing her plate to the side as she got up to walk to where he stood. "We're brothers and sisters in arms here, captain, you know that. We don't let anyone go it alone and we don't leave anyone behind."

"Once Maeve explained the situation we were completely on board to help out, sir," Theo added, joining them.

Gil shook hands with Jayna, who added a quick hug, which surprised him but he appreciated the gesture of comfort and solidarity. He and Theo shook hands as well and then Gil left the bridge to continue his trip through the ship.

His next stop was sickbay where Dr. Shane and Jake were in the small office, Emily sitting on her husband's lap as the couple ate off one plate and shared the unappetizing rations.

"Don't let me interrupt," Gil said hastily as they both rose as soon as he entered the area. "I'm doing my nightly rounds, checking the status of the ship and crew. Feels damn good, actually, to be back in a version of routine after all the time spent in the Main gang as a thug for hire."

"Are you sure you're not going to miss being a hard core, cutthroat mercenary?" Jake asked with a wicked grin. "Our normal cruising is going to seem tame to you now, sir."

Remembering lowlights of the awful things he'd seen and done while undercover, Gil couldn't repress a shudder. "Give me normal any day of the week." He directed his gaze to Emily. "I appreciate everyone on the team having come to help my brother and me out, but I know it must have been especially hard for you to return to a combat situation. I'm grateful and I owe you a debt I can never repay."

Emily, known as the Angel of Fantalar for her actions saving the lives of countless soldiers during the grisly battle, which had gone on for months, had shadows under her eyes tonight and looked exhausted. "I won't lie, the PTSD was intense, but I was needed. We had no idea what condition your brother or you would be in and my combat medical skills are top notch to this day, if I do say so myself. No one gets left behind and no one else dies on my watch, sir, and especially not you. We need you."

"She compartmentalized," Jake explained. "I'll be honest—I in in no way wanted her to be here but Maeve threatened to bypass me, which I'm still mad about, by the way. Once Emily heard the story about your brother, she made her own decision and I honored it."

"Maeve, as we all know from previous experience, is quite a force of nature." Gil wasn't pleased Dr. Shane had been pressured to be here but he knew if she'd refused, Jake would have made sure she wasn't aboard the Valkyrie Revenge , no matter what Maeve wanted. The man was a fierce protector by nature and his wife was his top priority.

"I'm pretty sure Tyrelle insisted on coming primarily to be here for me," Emily said. "Her empathic abilities were incredibly helpful when the memories would rise up and threaten to overwhelm me."

"I did wonder why she'd been made a part of the team with her lack of military experience but I can certainly see the value added," Gil replied. "She worked miracles earlier calming the ex-hostages while we were getting them settled."

"Yeah, Owen's not a happy man about his wife having been along for this wild ride," Jake said. "But fortunately the outcome is all good."

As he had on the bridge a few minutes ago, Gil stuck his hand out. "You took command of this ragtag bunch and ran an exemplary search and extract mission, Jake. The height of professionalism and while I'd expect no less from you, I'm grateful to have been the objective of the effort." They shook hands and then he repeated the gesture with the doctor and left the sickbay after checking briefly on both of the patients. The injured men were doing well under Emily's care and he proceeded to his next stop considerably less worried about losing any of the ex-hostages before they could be transferred to the Sectors authorities for repatriation.

Owen and Tyrelle were relaxing in their small cabin when he arrived, with Midorri curled up on the bed. "I won't stay long," Gil promised, having the distinct impression he'd interrupted something. "I wanted to thank you both for your part in rescuing my brother and assisting me." He nodded to the watching pet. "And my gratitude to you too, Midorri, of course."

"Yeah, she's a smart one," Owen agreed. "She understood right where to place the explosives. I wish we knew more about her but at least we've given her a good home."

Midorri weighed in with a loud chirrup and waddled to the end of the bunk so Gil could stroke her fur a few times and scratch her eyebrow ridges.

"It was my honor to help," Tyrelle said. "You and your crew saved me from the Amarotu Combine when the mob had me enslaved and made me a stowaway and I finally feel as if I've repaid the debt."

"There was no debt," Gil hastened to assure her. "We were proud to help although Owen deserves 99% of the credit."

"You supported him," she said. Changing the subject, she added, "Your brother is doing quite well, all things considered. His aura is quite peaceful at the moment. I expect he'll have his episodes of PTSD in days to come but I think confronting and killing Baxtir at the end gave him necessary immediate closure on his ordeal." A smile came over her face and Gil thought she was blushing a bit, although with the green tint of her skin it was hard to tell. "Daveed is also quite intrigued with Sofillia, the youngest woman hostage. I believe the interest is mutual."

"I may not be an empath with your powers of observation," Gil said with a laugh, "But I did pick up on that." He headed for the door. "Enjoy the rest of your evening."

He had one last stop to make, knocking at the portal to the cabin Red and Gil's brother were sharing. The two men were playing a card game, with bottles of feelgood at their elbows, and laid down the cards when Gil entered. "Doing my rounds," he said. "And letting the team know how much I appreciate their help rescuing us. Red, I'll do everything in my power to make sure this excursion doesn't affect your transition to head of security on the new cruise liner."

"I'd be grateful, captain. Maeve said the Mellureans would speak to the CLC Line too but it didn't matter what the cost was, Meg and I agreed it was my duty to sign up and ride out on this job. Not going to leave you behind, sir, nor your brother." Red looked at Daveed. "You got a raw deal, brother, and that's a fact. We all wanted to rectify the situation." He folded his cards and rose. "I'm due to relieve Theo on the bridge soon, not much to do with Maeve running the ship, but someone should be there. I'll leave you two alone—I'm sure you have a lot to talk about." He shook hands with Gil before leaving the cabin.

"You have a great team there," Daveed said. "Loyal to you. Lucky for me."

Gil pulled his brother into a hug and they pounded each other's backs a few times before moving apart. "You doing okay?" Gil asked.

Daveed went to the stasis keeper and pulled out an unopened feelgood, which he offered to Gil. "It's a bit unreal right now, honestly. Don't get me wrong, I'm intensely grateful for all you did and what your people did, but it sucks to know my own government, my own military brothers and sisters left me to be tortured and killed. Yeah, I knew what I signed up for and was proud to do my duty for the Sectors but especially once the negotiations for my release broke off, I nearly lost it. I was in a scary dark place, I won't lie."

Gil didn't sense his brother wanted comments so he held his tongue and drank a deep swallow of the feelgood, which slid down his throat in a cool wave.

"Then the terrorists brought Sofillia and her colleagues in. She gave me incentive to live although I raged at being helpless to protect her from the things they did to her and the others. Their cages were next to mine for a while and we'd talk at night, try to keep our minds off the hell we were in. She's a good woman."

"She was impressive," Gil agreed, remembering how she'd fought for medical care for her older companion on the transport ship. "Are you going to pursue the connection now you're all free?"

"I don't know. After being a prisoner for so long I can't get my mind to concentrate on planning anything." Daveed's voice was full of frustration. "Focus is eluding me right now."

"Give it time," was Gil's advice, thinking of how long he and Maeve had been waiting for their love to be given a path to existing in the real world. "If you two are right for each other, it'll work out."

"Dr. Shane promised to help me get a rejuve resonator treatment and I know the arrangements will take time. My superiors are going to want endless debriefings on what I saw and heard while I was a prisoner. It's going to be a long damn time before I'm free to pursue anything." Daveed straightened and stared at Gil. "I'm resigning my commission, I do know that. I can't serve another day—I'm too bitter and jaded. I wouldn't impose myself on my fellow active duty soldiers. I wouldn't be any good in any kind of operation now."

"You did fine while my team was getting us out," Gil protested mildly. "Don't make any rash decisions but you know I'll stand behind you no matter what. You can always join the CLC Line and sail with us."

"Can't quite see myself on a cruise ship," Daveed said with a genuinely amused expression on his battered face.

"Hey, I couldn't either at first but my bosses are good people, ex-military, and you'd be surprised how much variety of experience there is on a cruise ship." Gil finished his drink. "But no pressure intended, little brother. Just want you to know you have a place to go with me."

"And Maeve?" Daveed said with a wink. "Your lady is really something else. Red was telling me a few tales about life on the Nebula Zephyr . How does she manage to be an AI and a woman at the same time and how do you keep her under the government's sensors?"

"Short answer is we had Mellurean help," Gil said. "Speaking of her, I need to get back to my own cabin and check on her, see how she's doing after all this. She's relatively new to having an actual body and the temple collapse sent her stress levels into overload. We touched base briefly when the shuttle arrived but I'm anxious to spend time with her tonight."

"Don't let me keep you," his brother said without a trace of sarcasm. "I'm surprised you're out and about doing the officer thing rather than holed up with her."

"Maeve understands why I do the things I do," Gil said with gratitude for the fact. "We've been together a long time now, starting with the battleship where we met. Take it easy on yourself, all right? And remember I'm here—we're all here—if you need any help from any of us. Even Midorri. She's part of the team too."

"Yeah, I gathered she's quite the accomplished four-footed saboteur. Actually I'm thinking I'll go check on Sofillia and her colleagues, make sure they're doing ok."

"I looked in on them and the guys in the wardroom earlier. They all seem to be settled in, as much as anyone can be after what they endured. Lucky it's only a short hop to Zebulon Six with all the power Maeve is pouring on. I'm anxious to hand the former hostages over to people who know what they're doing with freed prisoners and also get them reunited with their families if possible. Not to mention medical care. Emily is the best but her resources are limited here on the Valkyrie Revenge ."

Gil and Daveed walked together through the corridor, separating at the door to the cabin the women were sharing. As he continued on his way toward his own cabin, Gil savored the glow of success at having saved his brother, with the help of his team, not to mention rescuing the other hostages as well with no loss of life on their side of the equation. He couldn't remember a time he'd been happier or felt more triumphant, not even after any of the major battles he'd fought in as commander of the battleship Galatea . This victory was personal and as he walked, he sent the Lords of Space a thank you in his heart. This operation had had such a small chance of succeeding and yet the team had brought it off, thanks to Jake, Red and the others.

And Maeve had set the whole thing in motion after he left on his own undercover operation. She was a hell of a woman and he was about to render his thanks to her.

Gil walked faster.

Maeve was waiting inside their cabin and threw herself into his arms the minute he came through the door. "Finally! Time to ourselves now."

Emotion and desire rising, Gil hugged her, seeking her lips for a kiss, which he immediately deepened. He took possession of her mouth in a desperate caress, savoring the warmth and taste of her. Maeve responded eagerly, her tongue meeting his in a dance of passion, even as she ground her hips against his, the pressure causing his cock to lengthen and pulse. She was truly his best friend, ideal woman and love of his life, all wrapped up—now—in a beautiful body. All Gil wanted was to be inside her silken heat, driving them both to climax. He picked her up and carried her to the bunk, which he noticed with appreciation was extra wide. No detail was too tiny for Maeve when she was modifying a ship to suit her tastes.

Exchanging frantic kisses, their hands roaming over each other's bodies with anxious abandon, he and Maeve managed to undress each other and then tumbled naked onto the crisp sheets. "I want to be gentle and take my time with you," he said, smoothing her tousled hair off her face as she gazed up at him, "But I don't think I can do gentle right now."

Maeve shifted her position, to bring the weeping tip of his shaft into alignment with the entrance to her body and realizing how ready she was for him made Gil even more aroused, if such a thing was possible. "Hot and hard is what I want right now," she said. "After everything we went through today, all the close calls and scary events, I need this. I need you."

He drove deep into her with one thrust, knowing she was telling the truth, grateful they were of the same mind right now. Maeve was tight around him and Gil thought he might finish immediately, before he'd even truly begun, like an untried cadet. Moving in and out, Maeve's body in perfect sync with his, Gil forced himself to do space astronavigation tables in his head to hang onto his composure long enough to reach his goal, deep in her core and ensure she was right there with him when he climaxed. A wary part of his mind watched for the telltale tremors of overload in his partner's body, but there were none. Maeve screamed his name and arched into her climax, obviously in the height of erotic pleasure. With a sigh of gratitude Gil unleashed his own passion, abandoned his iron control and allowed himself the release he'd craved.

They lay together, hot and sweaty but sated for the moment and he moved her so she could use his shoulder as a pillow. He couldn't believe she hadn't transitioned to her AI state after the intensity of what they'd shared. "You okay?" he asked, kissing her lightly on the forehead. "Now we've taken the edge off, next time I won't be so quick off the mark." He trailed a fingertip over one of her tightly furled nipples and chuckled as she shivered at the sensation. "I intend to pay attention to all of you next time."

"Same," she replied, drifting her hand over his already semi erect cock. "By all indications you'll be ready to play again soon."

He rolled over to come on top of her and stared into her eyes. "Always, with you." Gil hadn't planned to say what came out of his mouth next but the words felt right. "Marry me."

Maeve's icy blue eyes opened wide and she recoiled a bit on the pillow. "Are you serious? Is that even legal? How would we?—"

"Theo is officially the captain of the Valkyrie Revenge so he can legally perform marriages here in space. I asked him earlier and he's willing. Delighted even."

"But I'm not human," Maeve reminded him.

"You're a citizen of Mellure and the Sectors recognizes marriages between humans and sentients from other allied planets." Gil hadn't realized how much he wanted to claim her as his wife until she began asking questions whether the ceremony could be done. Had he missed an important clue? Why was she hesitant? Heart full of trepidation, he asked, "Don't you want to be my wife?"

"More than anything," she answered promptly. Despite her reassurance, she moved away from him, sitting cross legged on the bed and taking a deep breath. "But there's something you need to know. I can't remain in this form all the time. I've gotten much better at handling stimulus." She smiled and gestured at him with an amused expression. "I mean, obviously. But I—I need to return to an AI environment periodically. The Mellureans told me it's not a physical requirement but a mental one, all on me and I've tried and tried and I'm doing much better but?—"

She was getting all wound up. Distressed for her, Gil took her in his arms and on his lap, which made his cock all too happy but he got control of himself. This was a discussion they badly needed to have. "Are Jake and Emily together twenty-four hours a day?"

"No, of course not."

Gil kept making his case. "Are Owen and Tyrelle? Or is he down in his cargo holds, happy as a clam, most of the day, while she tends the ship's hydroponics and does special projects for me?"

Tilting her head, Maeve raised one eyebrow. "Where are you going with this?"

"Indulge me. Are you and I together all day, every day on the Nebula Zephyr ? Physically?"

"You know we're not."

"Exactly. Even people who love each other as much as we do don't spend every single day in bed, or even together doing other activities. You can be in your AI form when you need to be and you can be in this form as my loving wife and companion at times which work for both of us. And the rest of the time we'll be in communication no matter what." He took a deep breath and added, "You've told me re-entering the AI form is like slipping into the ocean, right?"

Maeve nodded. Her expression was much happier now, which relieved his anxious heart.

"I think of you as an enchanted mermaid, coming to me on land—in the physical life—when and how you choose, and returning to your natural environment when you need to do so to replenish yourself. It's all win/win. I'm grateful for every second we share in reality and I also treasure the relationship we have as captain and ship. I want us to be married to formalize our bond, now you're able to join me in my world. If I could move into yours, I would but I don't think even the Mellureans can accomplish that feat."

She laughed but he could tell his declaration moved her. She probably enjoyed his unexpected whimsical streak too, which had surprised even him. "Yes, I'll be your wife and proud to have the title and the commitment."

Gil kissed her hard and folded her into his arms. "There should be a ring but I've screwed that part up and I'm sorry."

"We can pick one out when we get back to the ship," she said. "I've acquired a taste for jewelry oddly enough and I noticed a tray of gorgeous rings in one store on the A Level. For the wedding rings there's no problem—I can manifest those. The Mellureans taught me how to bring certain of my skills at manipulating my environment into the ‘real' world."

"I guess we'll never go broke then, if you can spin gold from thin air. One less thing to worry about," he said, rubbing his nose against hers. "What a wife I've caught for myself!"

Holding the striking pendant which he'd noticed before and wondered about, Maeve said, "When we eventually leave the Nebula Zephyr , this tiny warp device the Mellureans gave me can operate as my base of support if there's no suitable AI environment nearby for me to jump to."

Gil opened his mouth and she held up a hand so he swallowed his intended words. Maeve finished her thought. "I know neither of us wants to leave the ship any time in the foreseeable future but I wanted to let you know I had it covered in case you were worried."

"I wasn't. I trust you to think of everything." He brought one hand up to cup her breast and fondled the sensitive peak. "Enough conversation? Have we settled all the open issues? Because I'm more of a man of action by nature and my nature is calling to me." His manhood was pushing against her bottom, hard and ready for the next round of love making. Gil kissed the sensitive spot on her neck and Maeve raised her head to accommodate him. "I can't resist you."

"There were a few things we did in the dreams I want to try in real life," she said as he continued to place tiny caresses on her body. She wriggled a little while he explored.

"Only a few?" Raising his head, Gil teased her. "I'm disappointed."

"A few to start with," she amended with a flirtatious smile.

"Show me your favorite one." He spread his arms wide. "I'm all yours and nothing is off limits." He remembered their shared dreams as being quite steamy and erotic on occasion. He was sure Maeve had done her usual thorough research into the subject at hand, which was mutually pleasing sexual relations. There were definite advantages to being in a relationship with a woman who had the capabilities of an AI.

She pushed him onto his back, which he allowed, and immediately grasped his jutting erection in one hand while fondling his balls with the other.

"Promising," he managed to say, as the sight spooled up his arousal. Maeve's lips were an object of fascination with him, to the point he'd dreamt more than once of her sucking him off.

Without commenting, Maeve licked the big vein underneath from root to tip, her tongue massaging the sensitive area before she switched to swirling it over the head, all while watching his face. Then she acted on his unspoken fantasy and took him as deeply into her mouth as she could, applying suction and working him into a nearly unbearable level of arousal.

"This will be over in a minute if you keep doing what you're doing," he managed to say.

Her grin was wicked as she deep throated him and Gil lost all control. His climax was epic and he fell against the pillows when he was done. Maeve curled up to him with a satisfied sigh. "You live up to my soap opera fueled fantasies quite nicely, Captain Fleming."

"I'm glad to meet your expectations." He had to laugh and she joined his mirth with her own. "I think it's my turn to act on a fantasy now."

Raising her eyebrows she studied his face. "Which would be?"

Gil relocated to the foot of the bunk, pulling her to him by the ankles as she giggled. Running his hands firmly up her thighs, he parted her folds and applied himself and his tongue to pleasing her, laving the sensitive area, using the tip of his tongue to stimulate the hidden pearl of nerves and then penetrating her. She tasted sweet to him and he grew hard again, ready to plunge into her core. Being skin to skin with Maeve gave him the stamina he'd had as a raw cadet but he could apply himself much more skillfully to pleasing a lady now and he did his best to use everything he knew to make her happy. Judging by her moans and the way she clutched at his shoulders and pulled his longer than usual hair, he was accomplishing his goals.

They spent most of the night engaged in their private games, trading long held fantasies and making each other wildly happy and not once did Maeve suffer from the need to flee to the safety of the AI environment, which Gil counted as a major victory. He'd meant every word he said on the subject of her dual nature but on the whole he preferred to have the woman in his arms as opposed to the sultry voice on the subaural com. He loved and cherished both but the long night with Maeve was an excellent harbinger of good things to come in their lives together.

As he was finally drifting off to sleep, Maeve in his arms snoring gently, Gil reflected on how much his life had changed since he'd been given command of the old Galatea battleship and had first ‘met' Maeve, who wasn't even known by the name at that point. The two of them had grown together and bonded tightly and it was sweet indeed to now have her as his in all ways. He wouldn't have been able to rescue Daveed without her help and the allies she'd made into a team for his benefit.

Was ever a man so blessed? Probably not and he wasn't sure what he'd done to deserve the happy outcome but he wasn't about to question the good results. Life would never be boring with Maeve and together they'd explore the stars, anchored by each other and their love rather than in a home on a planet somewhere, which exactly suited his spacefaring nature. She was a perfect match for him and vice versa, or so he hoped but all indications were positive. A chuckle escaped his lips at the concept.

"Go to sleep," she murmured, stroking his chest affectionately. "You're thinking too much and it's keeping me awake."

"Yes, dear." He stifled a chuckle and closed his eyes. He didn't have to wish for the good dreams tonight —she was in his arms and real, and a man could ask for nothing more.