by Viola Grace
He murmured, “My wound would not have widened if I hadn’t gone to find my mate. As it was, I am glad I did. No one else was going to do it.”
“Did you meet Sarah?”
“The woman in the car? Yes. She tracked you.”
“She’s a telepath.”
“I did get that impression.” He nuzzled her ear.
The medic finished his fussing and took one final scan before he wheeled the kit out of the room.
Niiva yawned. “Are you sure you are all right?”
“I will heal. I am glad that he didn’t take you anywhere.”
“Why didn’t he?”
Argo cleared his throat. “Because you were always meant to be a target. You are a fantastic specimen, and the colonists are all over your genetic pattern. They want women like you, even more than we do. You are a glowing jewel of genetic triumph.”
“Cut the manure. What was going on?”
“To get you off world they needed a portal. Because we knew their target, we just had to watch for the power surge of an opening portal. They sent the Hunters there to close the portal and arrest the colonists, and then, we faced off against the remainder in the park. The men had no idea we had closed the portal, and their taking of Sarah made things awkward.”
“You used me as bait.”
“The overseer used you as bait. I figured things out when they suggested that I take you to the concert.”
“You could have told me.”
“I was having too nice a time.” He rubbed his chin against her head.
She chuckled. “I am going to make you pay for that.”
“I don’t mind. Now, rest and recover. I want you back to your feisty self tomorrow.”
“Nothing like a deadline to health.” She inhaled deeply and then exhaled slowly. Argo’s arm was around her, and they cuddled together on the med bed.
She could kick his butt for not warning her later, for now, she was just glad that he was alive and safe. Niiva had the feeling that they had come very close to losing each other, and it was not a great sensation. She could be outraged when her heart wasn’t aching over the near miss.
Having breakfast in the overseer’s boardroom was not the way that Niiva had planned her day. Mind you, she hadn’t thought of much beyond another nap in her own bed with Argo next to her.
Argo was holding her hand, but the gathering of other Rrassic and their mates was a little odd for first thing in the morning. In the corner was the Saya, but he wasn’t speaking, he was observing.
Iktabi cleared his throat. “So, last evening, there was another attempt to gain humans for the colonists. The attempt was foiled due to a psychic leak.”
Niiva nodded with a grimace.
Iktabi inclined his head. “I apologize for using you as bait, Niiva, but you are by far the most noticeable of the new Breeders.”
“I grudgingly accept your apology, but if it happens again, let me know so that I can arm myself or, at least, have an antidote for that drug.” Niiva blinked. “I am still shaking it off.”
She felt a cool touch on her mind and looked over to Lehkor. He was giving her a quick mental assessment.
Argo squeezed her hand. “You are fine.”
“You got sliced open and then nearly bled out chasing me.”
The others around the table looked concerned.
Iktabi got their attention again. “It was regrettable, but we now have several of the colonists to interrogate as to the whereabouts of their worlds and what kind of step-down or step-up protocols are needed.”
Bree leaned forward. “Are the babies in danger?”
Iktabi shook his head. “No. We have high security on the gestation centre. That is the one place I am not worried about. Our protocols have been stepped up since your canister was added. That is a child worth stealing.”
Bree exhaled and clutched her mate’s hand. “What do we do when she is out?”
“That is what we are here for. Our intent was for you and your mates to remain with the population at the Breeder compound, but now, it is becoming clear that the humans on Imrahl are developing secondary talents.”
Lianne frowned as did Bree.
Isabella smiled and explained, “Because of the food, the environment, and the stimuli, things become apparent that weren’t apparent before. Lianne, you became more aggressive. Bree, your genes kicked into high gear when you mated with Arix, and your children will continue to develop at double the standard rate.”
Niiva nodded. “I got stronger. Much, much stronger.”
Isabella continued. “And I got access to a lot of information, which makes me a security risk. A Saya could peel me open in seconds.”
Niiva nodded, unsure if she was supposed to mention Sarah.
“Do not mention Sarah. She is under guard until I can assist her in closing her mind at will.”
She didn’t stare at Lekorh, but she wanted to.
Bree cleared her throat. “Right. So, as we all have children in the gestation centre, this is the best time to ask where do we want them raised?”
Niiva blinked and asked, “Is it okay if I don’t want to raise my own?”
Two out of the three women looked shocked, but Isabella smiled. “It is fine. I have done extensive research on the creche system that the Rrassic have in place, and you would be able to communicate with your children without raising them. They will be made to understand the situation.”
Bree frowned. “What if I want to raise my child?”
Lianne nodded. “Me too.”
Their Rrassic looked to Iktabi. He smiled. “I was hoping that you would decide that. It will get to the heart of what I am about to say.”
Everyone was paying attention.
Iktabi looked around. “Most of you are aware that Imrahl is a world accessed through portals, but what the Rrassic have done is to create dozens of worlds that are out of step with this one, worlds where we can raise and train our next generation. We have created worlds where time marches quickly, so if you go to raise your child, years will pass for you but only weeks will pass here.”
Lianne nodded. “It is how you have Rrassic that are compatible with our race, right? You built them.”
Iktabi nodded. “And others built me. I grew up in a pocket dimension, just as your mates did. The Voboth, or Yoboth, if you prefer, are not kind, do not care for beings that walk instead of glide, and outnumber the Rrassic vastly. In order to gain our numbers, we had to use all the tools at our disposal. Hiding in pockets where time moves more quickly or slowly is our weapon in this war.”
Niiva cocked her head. “Will they come back here as Nools?”
Iktabi smiled. “They will complete their training with their families, but they will come back as warriors. Do not doubt that. They are our key to survival.”
Arix asked, “What if we have another child while we are at the creche?”
“Medical facilities will be available to you. Your children will be safe, and you can continue your reproduction.”
Arix sighed in relief and squeezed Bree’s hand. He looked over to Niiva, and he grinned with pride. “Our daughter will be decanted this week. The first human-Rrassic child.”
Niiva bit her lip and said, “Well done, Bree and Arix. Bree, I bet you never saw him coming.”
Bree paused, and then, she burst into giggles.
Arix flickered slightly as he fought the urge to go invisible when he caught onto the joke.
Chuckles ran through the meeting, and they determined that Bree and Arix would go first, followed by Lianne and Sorrok when their children were ready for decanting.
Volunteers would be taken from the other pairings that were currently trying to get a set of embryos of their own.
Iktabi followed up with, “Bree and Arix, if you reach your maximum offspring, please take steps to freeze any additional embryos.”
Bree wrinkled her nose. “Twenty seems like a lot.”
Lianne nodded. “Unless you have multiples; then
, it will be over with you very quickly.”
Bree nodded. “Fair point. Right. I am going to pack. I just have one question.”
Iktabi smiled and raised his brows. “Yes?”
“Is there a beach? I do long for a beach.”
He chuckled. “There is a beach. It is an island city with the portal above a very deep ocean. If you don’t have a reception waiting for you or if you don’t come through with a flying transport, I hope that you can swim.”
The ladies looked at each other and smiled. Niiva imagined Argo lying out in the sun and relaxing, all of his muscle groups gleaming in the light and on display.
Argo cuddled her against him, and he stated, “I believe Niiva needs some rest.”
Iktabi looked at him. “I need to speak with you two in the morning.”
Niiva smiled blandly. “As long as it is in the morning, we will be here.”
Isabella’s shoulders were shaking, and the other ladies were grinning. The lust of the newly mated was something that was whispered about in the atrium of the Breeder compound.
The gossip was familiar, all they needed back at the compound was a stripper pole for dance practice, and it would feel like home.
Niiva said her goodbyes, and she and Argo headed off to the Breeder compound under guard.
“I am sorry that I didn’t tell you about the operation.”
She patted his thigh. “You got stabbed for it, so I think we learned from this experience.”
He laughed the entire ride, and the smile on his face turned to bliss when she sprawled him on the bed and did all the work for a change.
Chapter Eleven
Niiva looked at her wardrobe and glanced back at Argo on the bed. “I thought you said that the uniform came today.”
He grinned. “It did. It is to your left. Isabella did some of the design work on it so that it is more appropriate for you.”
She frowned and pulled out what was a black dress at first glance. “Holy heck.”
“I believe there are leggings in with it.”
Niiva turned back to the bed and stalked over to him. “How do you know so much about it?”
He chuckled and rolled to his back, stretching luxuriously. “I don’t sleep as much as you do, and Isabella wished for feedback on her designs. I am not an excellent arbiter when it comes to fashion, but the designs looked easy to move in. You are going to be the test case for the uniforms of the female peacekeepers.”
Niiva scowled. “I am the guinea pig?”
“I am not precisely sure what that is, but I will say yes.”
She grinned. “I haven’t tested anything to destruction before. This is going to be fun.”
Argo sat up. “You might want to contact Isabella to make sure that that is what she had in mind.”
“I will.” She sprinted to the com centre and dialled up Isabella’s desk code.
Isabella’s face came into view, and she blinked. “Uh, hello, Niiva.”
“Hiya. There is a uniform in my size in my closet. Is there a reason for it?”
“Oh, yes. You are to test it to check its durability and range of motion. The guys don’t really design around breasts that much. They don’t know what they do in combat situations.”
Niiva laughed.
“Speaking of which, what size are you, double D?”
Niiva looked down and then she jerked the fabric of the uniform over her chest. “Sorry.”
“Not a problem. I have seen a lot more. Well, not more but additional nudity.” Isabella grinned. “When you have finished working out in the uniform, send it back to our office with any notes you care to add.”
“Excellent. I will get to it.”
“Good. I expect tattered clothing in our office by the end of the day.” She winked and closed the call.
Niiva looked at the fabric that was covering her. “My friend, you have met your match.”
She got up and returned to the bedroom. “Okay. I have free rein to destroy this if it is necessary.”
“So, shall we head to the gym?”
“I think that is a splendid idea.”
She got dressed in the uniform and did a few squats. The skirt was too long. She would trip on it. The shoulders were too tight, and her boobs were going to pop out if she reached up over her head.
“This is fascinating to watch.”
She gave him a dark look and reached down to touch her toes. “Keep staring. It is going to get weirder.”
She pulled on boots that matched the uniform, and she turned side to side to look in the mirror. The suit was baggy at the waist and too tight on her hips. It looked fine until she moved; then, fabric bunched everywhere.
“This is bizarre. Your tailors are normally so accurate.” She frowned.
“Your body has different points of rotation. Your curves hold the fabric in a way that my body won’t.”
She did a few jumping jacks and sighed. The fabric wasn’t going to break, but it didn’t play nicely either.
“Right. Let’s go.” She finished gawking at herself and looked at Argo. He could get dressed in a hurry, and she envied the ease and fit of his clothing right then.
They left her quarters, and she walked at his side. It wouldn’t do to hang onto him with her uniform on.
The security officer that drove them to the gym made her frown. She asked Argo, “How is this going to work when I am actually employed as an officer? I can’t run around with a bodyguard.”
“It will be worked out. This peacekeeper setup is Isabella’s brainchild, or so Iktabi has said.”
“Wow, you really get a lot of inside information.”
“Iktabi has been a source of calm and reason while I have been trying to figure out this situation. The Rrassic dream of finding a mate, but few folks tell us what to do once we find them.” He sighed, and the driver laughed.
She shook her head. “And men say that women gossip.”
“Human men, maybe. Our Rrassic brethren are the only ones who understand what we are going through. We counsel each other the same way that you speak to the human women around you. They will come to you with questions, and you will use your experience with me and the others to fill in the parts of the dance that they are missing.”
“The dance?”
“It is the only way we have to describe the courting of females from other species. We see what they will and will not tolerate and what they respond to.”
“Wow. Okay. Sure. That makes a certain kind of sense.”
The vehicle pulled up outside the gym, and she spoke to the driver. “This isn’t going to take long.”
He grinned and nodded. He was a Nool with a cheerful demeanour, and she saw a sparkle in his black eyes.
She and Argo got out and entered the gym. Argo explained their purpose, and the Nool manning the counter nodded in amused understanding. Normally, no one brought in outside clothing.
The combat simulator was rough on her clothing, but it didn’t tear. It did trip her, twist around her, and give her opponent handholds, and she and Argo got it all on the vid.
The recording was sent to the overseer’s office. Niiva would send the clothing together with notes when she got back to the Breeder compound.
Argo was grinning when she leaned against him in the ride home.
“That was interesting. I have never seen anyone assaulted by their own clothing before.”
She punched him lightly. “Is there a gym at the Breeder compound?”
“Yes, but it doesn’t provide the audience that you need.”
“I don’t need an audience, I need the clothing to work with me, not against me.”
He grinned. “I look forward to the evolution.”
She grunted and tugged at the twisted fabric. “So do I.”
He put his arm around her and held her during their drive back to the Breeder compound.
They were scanned through and taken to the front door of the complex.
The guard at the door grinned whe
n he saw her. “You have a delivery, Niiva Dollard.”
She blinked. “A what?”
“It was installed in the atrium. I confess as to a certain curiosity as to what you do with it.”
Argo gave her a look and shrugged. “I didn’t send it.”
Curious herself, she wrestled with her clothing as she walked, stopping short when she saw the tall metallic pole on the wide platform. She stopped short. “Ohmygod.”
Argo stared at it. “What is it?”
Several of the ladies were circling it and giggling, but no one made a move.
She wanted to cover her face, but instead, she held up a hand. “Does anyone have any music?”
Some of the authorized males from the bachelor quarters were gathering, but the women shooed them away.
Argo stood back, and she winked.
With a flourish, she unbuttoned the tunic and pulled it over her head, wearing the sports bra and tights with her boots.
She pushed at the pole, and it was delightfully sturdy. Niiva pulled herself up toward the top of the pole, and she looped her leg around it, spinning slowly as a song with a heavy beat thudded through the air.
She landed on her hands and flicked her legs free, standing straight and playing in a slow rotation before she spun and rocketed herself around the pole to the amusement of her fellow humans.
Bree was applauding with the others when the music stopped, and Niiva took a bow, laughing.
Bree grinned. “Were you a pro?”
“No, just an enthusiastic student. I liked to use my strength on something that I couldn’t hurt.”
She leaned down and scooped up her tunic. The ladies were clamouring for lessons.
“Let me get changed and we can arrange something. I am going to have to call the overseer’s office to get a few more if I am going to teach a class though.”
Argo blinked. “The overseer?”
She tapped the centre of her forehead. His eyes widened. “Oh.”
They headed up to her quarters, and she sighed. Technically, men didn’t live in the Breeder quarters. They were the guests of the women, and that was all.
Once inside her quarters, she folded up the tunic, made some drawings on her tablet, and sent the file to Isabella, along with notes on why the current design was not acceptable.