12 Vitus

I keep my distance. Still, I follow Cylene to her room and watch from the end of the hallway until she's safely inside before I even consider looking the other way.

Messaging Lanos, I request they keep an eye on her. I don't feel as though I'm a target here. Few would want to mess with me. And those who do will find out quickly I am not in the mood.

"Still playing hard to get?" a red-violet skinned Klaphos asks from where he leans against the wall outside of another female's door. "Saw the race replay. Insane climber, that one you picked."

"She is a silver."

"So you like them hardheaded?" he asks.

"Independent," I reply. "She will need to be in order to survive my world. Shadow soldiers have broken into our vaults. I am gone a lot to war."

The female's door blinks with a green light and clicks.

"I don't envy you," he says. "I grew up in a—how do humans say it—a castle on a hill? And I have no desire to let go of my lifestyle."

The male pauses when he reaches the door. "But I was not always this way. My family believes in an image, a symbol that can lead others, not fighting among them." His gaze darts to my rank. "You are more honorable than I."

The male pushes inside the door, and the bubbly voice of what I assume is a pink-banded female greets him.

"What do you think?" she asks with a giggle. "Like it?"

He growls in lust as the door shuts.

I am the one who is jealous because I wish Cylene wanted me that way.

Lanos replies that they're watching Cylene's door for trouble, so I make my way back up to my room.

Couples are spread throughout the Abr complex, chatting closely, kissing and grinding. A rare few argue. I tune it all out and focus only on movement so I can avoid all of them.

A raised fist catches my attention and makes me push a male back against a wall. It's instinct.

The wall dents from my angry force. It was too much, but I am burning inside with frustration.

"She's mine! He took her!" The Jorbiun soldier remarks.

I glance at the female who slinks back beside a dark green Retherwan in Abr race armor. He's not a soldier, or he would wear his uniform. She clearly feels safer with him.

I look back at the male I've crushed to the wall. "You need to step down."

"I caught her," he defends. His red uniform with gold and black badges stitched into it tells me he's seen a lot of shit.

"Mine rejected me, too," I offer. "But getting violent is only going to prove to her why she needs to be with someone else."

"I wasn't going to hit her," he snorts. "He pushed me away before I knew she'd chosen otherwise."

I draw in a deep breath and sigh. "Does he look like he could take a hit? No. So exercise some self-control before you start a war between your planets. Get your shit together and go mingle."

I release him back onto his feet and shove him toward the elevators. He jerks away and swats at my arm, glares at the other male, then gives her one last disappointed glance and storms off.

When I'm finally in my room for the night, I lie back on the bed, now scented with Cylene's skin. I get hard just thinking of her and smelling her in my space.

I don't want to fall asleep because I don't want to stop thinking about her. But it's programmed into me from training to sleep when I have the chance.

All night, I dream of her. It is a clash of desperate memories: catching her, holding her, suckling her delicate flesh.

I made her feel good. I know I did, but I cannot seem to let go of my own need for her.

Normally, I can rationalize any necessary torture or struggle. But with her, my wits are scattered, and my body seems to have its own agenda.

The alarm rouses me on the first beep. I'm up, bathed, and dressed in another clean uniform in minutes.

I don't see Cylene at breakfast. I scour the tables and buffet lines, but she isn't in sight.

Jalut messages me.

She took food back to her room. Lanos and I did a patrol last night. Lots of personal ships this round made it easier to do a fly-by. She mostly sits by the window and looks out at Earth.

I eat and stare at the picture he sends me of her looking through her window. She's quiet, contemplative, and burdened by her mistakes and the unexpected path her life has taken. I feel like it's my fault.

Perhaps it is because she doesn't know what constitutes enjoyment these days.

I think about it and realize I don't really either. I've always found purpose in my leadership position. I rarely take time off, even when I'm sick. I don't vacation.

A message comes through from Rhynin.

I'm not surprised you caught the fastest one. But a silver though—is she giving you the chase?

I message him as the participants filter out into the yard for the first event of the day.

You should be resting, not worrying about me.

Rhynin: I'm not worried.

You are.

Rhynin: Can you blame me? I just want to see my best friend smile for a change.

I'm starting to feel like this was all a setup.

Rhynin doesn't reply.

That's what I thought. Someone planned this.

I follow the others out and group up with the males. The field has a fenced off area with a jungle of ropes and posts, ladders and swinging trellises. A set of ten males are already in the first race to the bell at the top of the tallest tower.

"Winner of each round get bonuses at the end of the races, awarded on Day Seven," the announcer says over the speakers.

A male rings the bell and rides the nearby pole to the ground. The Abr announcer directs ten females up next. Among them is a head of frizzy hair that catches my attention. Cylene braces herself at the railing. When it flashes green, she bolts over the rail and charges toward the nearest ladder.

I push through the crowd to get a front-row spot. The way she launches herself up the ladder to a nearby knotted rope has me in awe. The females on my planet do not have the strength she does.

Cylene charges across a rope bridge, climbs the rope net, and grabs the swinging trellis, taking it to the other landing. Then she climbs the tiered platform and slaps the bell. My heart races as she slides down the pole and grins.

She sees me as she leaves the course.

"Impressive." That's it? That's all I've got for her? "And you didn't need me or anyone else to help."

Now I sound depressed.

She pants and rests her hands on her hips. "Yeah. Let's just say I kicked ass in Outdoor School."

"I don't know what that is."

She waves dismissively. "Don't worry about it. Not important. What is important, is that you beat my time."

Cylene takes a spot as a spectator and winks at me.

My heart surges to life in my chest. She's challenged me, talked to me. But the wink makes my cock jump.

Perhaps there is still hope.

I volunteer for the next round.

The ten of us are good competition. Several of us are soldiers, most my size or bigger. But I know by their species they're not familiar with the same jagged terrain that I am.

When the railing blinks green, I leap over it and charge toward a nearby platform. Most of the others take the ladders or ramps. I plant a foot and launch myself up to the rope bridge. I haul my body onto the railing, climb to the top of the swinging trellis, and jump for the tower. My hands catch the tiered platform like I hoped, and I pull myself up, then ding the bell.

I look down to see if Cylene's still watching, and she is.

The smile on her face is invigorating. I don't bother with the pole. I simply walk to the edge and step off. The landing is hard from three stories up, but I need the touch of pain to quell the brewing desire to scoop her up and make her mine.

It isn't our way, and yet it is a persistent thought.

We watch the other participants, remarking on tactics and cringing when the few fall into the foam pit below the swinging trellis.

Cylene likes this sort of thing. I can tell just by the way her eyes dart over every player.

"Grab the railing," she mutters.

The woman reaches for the rope net's top rung instead and falls.

Cylene sighs and shakes her head. "Told you."

She has an analytical mind and a bit of sass that might be a good influence to lighten up my kind.

Lunch's buffet is more enjoyable with Cylene. She actually eats worth a damn, an impressive amount. It makes me happy to know she doesn't starve herself to fit a figure. She is deliciously curvy and thick in a way that stirs me. I don't have to worry about breaking her if I am lucky enough to hold her again.

She tells me about her family, how horrible they were to her, and how amazed she is by the realm beyond Earth.

As we join the others for the afternoon creatures tour to explore the different animals and natural habitats of various planets in the federation, I hope she likes what she sees when we reach the Nytheralian segment.

Several women hunker inside other males' arms. Part of me wishes Cylene found such comfort in me. But as we pass the tanks and cages behind glass, she seems more in awe than fearful.

"Is that a sugar glider?" Cylene lowers herself to the tank and takes a closer look. The small rodent-like animal swoops down from an upper branch to a lower one closer to her. It lands and hisses.

"Ooh," she chuckles. "You're a pissy little thing. Sadly extinct on Earth. But I see you've adapted well to—" she reads the information on the screen. "Anlatom?"

The king from the transport saunters by with his female under his arm. "My planet. Those teeth are like little poisonous barbs. They come off in the skin."

"Joy." Cylene straightens, looking impressed. "Never going to hate you for a successful adaptation or for defending your territory. But I respectfully decline to ever touch you."

I admire her acceptance and hope it is enough. My planet's creatures are near the end.

We pass Ginarigon three-tailed ridgehawks, Ethariol spiked shifters that launch poisoned quills, and Novarek pointed screechers. Their squawking rattles the glass of their cage.

Cylene brushes my side when we reach my planet's wildlife. "How many of these have you seen?"

"A few in battle, more on missions of peace," I admit. "It is part of the treaty process that we are clear about the potentials of our forces as well as the dangers of uniting."

She studies the cliff-dwelling birds with veined wings and large talons, then moves around another female to look at the scuttle bugs. Their iridescent scales shine green under the warming lights.

"They'll latch onto your skin and eat you," From the inside out.

Cylene nods. "Like leaches then or chiggers. Tapeworms too. Not unfamiliar. At least yours are pretty to look at."

"Pretty deadly if you don't get them off of you within the hour. Problem is, their saliva has a numbing agent. So you don't always know when they've latched on," I offer.

She shudders. "Creates a paranoia, I bet."

"Yes. So we have to check each other often when we go on hikes."

She waggles her brows at me. "Bet that's fun with a bunch of dudes."

"Not really."

"I was being sarcastic."

"Oh." I feel like an idiot.

"I might be okay with it though." She crouches down beside a scaled creature with spots.

Her suggestion turns me on.

"Be careful with those," I warn. "Cephlachromes will do serious damage to scales. Flesh is likely much worse."

Cylene cocks her head. "Spits acid?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

"The spots." Her eyes show pain, and I think she's familiar with something similar. "Your planet seems interesting, a few similarities to Earth, a few challenges. But I might like to see it someday."

When the tour is complete, we join the others for dinner.

Cylene is quiet as she eats. I don't feel like pushing her to talk until she's ready. I can tell she's processing what she's seen and the potential of what she might find wherever she goes.

I don't mind the silence because it is just a relief not to eat by myself.

"Have you been to Earth?" she finally asks as we finish our meal.

"I have."

"Do you like it?"

"I think it is as you said, some familiar things, some different. That's just how it is throughout the galaxy. I'd be happy to show you more of it if you'd like." I'm desperate to find a way to keep her close, even after the race is over. "Don't want you to wander the universe alone."

"Maybe." But her eyes give away her interest.

After dinner, she lets me walk her to her room. At her door, she touches my chest. "Healing okay?"

I take her hand in mine and press it against me, wishing I could feel her like I did before, with nothing between us. "In time."

She reaches up, kisses my chin, and then slips into her room for the night.

As the door shuts between us, I hang my head and breathe a sigh of relief. Even if she hasn't accepted me yet, I feel like I'm making progress in the direction I want. I just wish I had a solid answer so I could crush the agony of the emptiness when she isn't around.

I guess I'll just have to try again in the morning.