“The walls, roof, and floor can be used as view screens as needed,” Tellan informed her. He gestured to a seat. “Here, if you sit down, I’ll assist you with your restraints. They can seem a bit complicated until you get used to them.”
“Thank you,” she replied, settling down into the indicated seat. The seat moulded and subtly stretched to fit her frame. “Oh my goodness, it’s like the chair hugs you!”
“It is very good at cradling one against gravitational forces,” he replied, nodding, his hands deftly fastening the straps. Once satisfied, he took the seat next to her and strapped himself in. He’d just completed buckling himself up when the pilot entered the shuttle and took his own seat.
“We’re cleared for take off,” the pilot informed them both. Laurel gasped as ‘windows’ appeared before her and Tellan’s seating and a large view screen revealed itself in front of the pilot. “There you are, I thought since this is your first trip into space, you might enjoy the view.”
“Yes, thank you,” Laurel said. “I’ve seen pictures of Earth from space and a couple of shots of your ship up in orbit, but I bet it’s a pale imitation to seeing it in person.”
“That it is,” the pilot replied, his fingers dancing over the panel in front of him. Laurel’s eyes widened as she felt a faint vibration under her feet. A glance out of the ‘window’ showed the ground receding at a fast pace. They’d taken off and her pulse began to race. This was it. It was really happening. She was going into outer space, the first human bride to an alien from outer space, and planet Earth’s first official Trade Emissary to the Mylos.
“Are you feeling alright?” Laurel turned her head at Tellan’s softly voiced question. Her pulse kicked up yet another notch. She wasn’t sure if she should just go on ahead and panic or be sick. They’d told her her mate would have biological changes in response to finding her. A mating display, they’d said.
“Are...are those scales?” Tellan nodded, holding her gaze. “And you’re turning…yellow?” He nodded again, then cocked his head to one side, looking at her with quizzical concern. “Are you going to stay that way?” she burst out.
A genuine smile crossed his face, his gaze gentling even further. “Ah. Yes, I do look rather more alien now, don’t I?” he gave a low chuckle, the timbre of it sending a rush of warmth through her core and settling at the apex of her thighs. “This is just the mating display, a holdover from our evolutionary past. Once we mate, it shall recede. My eyes will change to look more like a human’s then, as well.”
“Oh, okay. Not that I hate it or anything. Just, you looked one way and the next you’d, uh, transformed into, I dunno, Dragon Man.” She glanced away, feeling embarrassed. That had sounded incredibly stupid to her ears. Dragon Man? Really, Laurel?
Tellan laughed once more. “Are dragons not mythical creatures that kidnap fair maidens and fly them off to their lair?” Laurel peeks at him from the side of her eyes. Yep, he was teasing her. She gave him a wry grin in response.
“Guess that kinda fits, huh? You’re flying me off and all. Though I’m no wide eyed maiden and there’s no knight gonna come charging out on his white horse after you. I suppose all that knowledge and tech is your treasure.”
“A worthy treasure, yes? Only instead of hoarding it all, we intend to share.”
She nodded, then gave a gasp as they broke through the atmosphere and the floor appeared to become transparent, revealing the planet below. “Oh my goodness! The pictures don’t do this any justice,” she whispered. “Oh, we have gravity!”
“We do. We can share that technology with you. It would be much better for your astronauts’ health, as well as be much more convenient.”
“Oh, my, yes,” she agreed. She peered at a portion of the floor. A satellite appeared to float past. She turned her head to say something to Tellan about it, to ask if he knew which one it was and who it belonged to, when she spied something else on the pilot’s view screen. “Your ship,” she whispered.
“We’ll be docking within the next ten of your minutes,” the pilot informed them both. The floor made appearance and the ‘window’ before them changed to the same view as the pilot’s. She sat entranced as it grew larger, the open docking bay a large maw that promised to swallow their smaller craft like a giant metal beast. It was beyond her wildest dreams. Her panic now long forgotten, she strained to see every detail of their docking. They entered a barely lit cavern, then hovered.
“We’re waiting for the doors behind us to close, then this area will repressurise and the airlock doors in front of us will open so that we may land in the shuttle bay.” As he spoke, a light above the doors before them began to flash, then suddenly stopped, staying lit. The airlock doors parted and their craft glided slowly into a bay where she could see Mylos in jumpsuits doing what appeared to be maintenance on other craft. The view screens darkened and she heard and felt a small clang as they settled onto the deck. They’d arrived.
Chapter Eight
Tellan tried to see the ship through his new mate’s eyes. The tech crews doing maintenance on the other three shuttles, the not quite familiar technology, the outright unfamiliar. No, alien, he reminded himself. She’d be viewing this all as alien and comparing it to all she knew. He reached for her hand as they crossed the shuttle bay. She gave him a tremulous smile, her courage at facing the unknown filling him with admiration.
He led her down the corridor and into the lift. She gave a small snort. He quirked an eyebrow at her in query. “No ‘Beam Me Up Scotty’ stuff, huh?” she tried to explain. He gave her an uncomprehending look. “You know, Star Trek… no, you don’t know, do you?” They reached their floor and the door slid open to reveal the corridor. He gave her hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze as he stepped out of the lift and led her to their quarters.
“I do not know indeed, but I am eager to learn.” He palmed their door open and she got her first glimpse of a Mylos living quarters. He hoped she wasn’t disappointed.
“Oh, wow, this really is Star Trek.,” she said, letting go of his hand and turning around in circle. “More Next Generation than classic, though.” He felt his anxiety loosen. He had no idea what her words meant but she appeared to be pleased. “Oh! Pip and Pop!” she suddenly cried out, her hands going t her face. “I was so wrapped up in geeking out that I forgot my babies!”
“Our pilot will see them unloaded, along with the rest of your belongings. They will be brought here shortly,” he reassured her. “Everything will first have to be checked for contaminants and your avians…Pip and Pop, rather, will be looked over to make sure they have made the trip safe and healthy.”
She dropped her hands. “Of course,” she said, relief lighting her features and relaxing her posture. “Duh, I don’t know what I was thinking. It’s kind of like going through Customs back on Earth, at the airport, right?”
Tellan had heard this comparison before, when negotiating locally sourced foods to supplement the crew’s diets and explaining the after landing screening. Anything that failed the screening was destroyed and a careful log kept, as they refused to pay, even in barter, for goods that were not usable. “Yes, it is similar, I am told.”
“So, your mess hall chefs, they cook some human food? Or will I have to get permission to use their kitchen?”
“They will prepare it for you, yes, once a request is made. They have learned to prepare many of your Earth dishes using locally sourced foods. We have already arranged to barter for the foods.”
“Oh, yeah, I remember hearing something about that. You guys are helping clean up the oceans and lakes and stuff in exchange, right?”
Tellan nodded. “Yes. When negotiations are complete and the Bride Fleet arrives, they will bring scientists who will help yours solve the pollution of your waters.”
She took a step towards him, searching his eyes. “So much is riding on our mating. I am furious at how my government tricked me into this, but, and I don’t know why, I am not unhappy to be here with you. I feel drawn to
you. “ She looked suspicious. “Is it pheromones? You giving me the love hoodoo?”
“No, just the physical display. Though during our joining, there will be some pheromones, but I assure you it is not whatever this hoodoo is. Is this a Star Trek thing?”
She threw her head back and gave a throaty laugh. “No, it is not a Star Trek thing at all. We really need to find out about getting that for you to watch. It’s a cultural touchstone. You watch that and you’ll understand what people , well, humans anyway, imagine an alien council to be like.” Tellan lifted his wrist and tapped a request for the ship’s AI to locate this Star Trek and bring the files to the ship for him to peruse. The ship’s AI acknowledged receipt and began to source it. “That’s an interesting watch,” Laurel said, watching him. “It’s under your skin and goes up your arm a bit, huh?”
He looked back up at her. “Oh. It is not a timekeeping piece. That is to say, it does do that, if asked, but it actually a communications device. I tap it and it activates the neural connection. I am then able to indicate if I wish to connect to the ship’s AI or use the neural interface to send a message. I can also read reports and messages that way.”
“Read reports…what, it like beams them into your brain?” she asked, looking aghast.
“Something like that,” he said, unsure of how to explain it to someone who had no experience of anything even remotely similar.
“I don’t have to get one of those things, do I? Because that is a big hell no.”
He shook his head. “These are only for government officials and military personnel. It is a very invasive procedure and it takes a lot of training to be able to use one. In fact, compatibility is not guaranteed. One must pass tests to not only join their chosen service field, but to see if they will be able to make use of the kunnarskyn.”
“So, what? If you can’t, you don’t get to to have a government job or join your military?”
“That is correct.”
“Ugh, I can’t even imagine. Gives me the willies. It’s not, like, I dunno, take over your brain and make you go all cyborg on me is it? Not gonna become a dragon man Terminator thing, right?” She took note of the look of confusion he wore once more . “Were you asking that thing to get you Star Trek episodes?”
“Yes,” he said, relieved to be able to answer her without risking more dismay.
“You best tell it to get you the Terminator movies, too. And Star Wars. You guys have a military so I’m guessing you have enemies out somewhere and do space battles or whatever. Best see what people will be imagining when you discuss that sort of thing so you can work around it.” She watched him apprehensively as he tapped on his wrist once more.
A chiming sound prevented them from continuing their conversation any further. “That will be your belongings, including the Pip and Pop avians,” he informed her, turning to answer it. She squealed in delight at the sight of the young Mylos crewman on the other side of the door, holding Pip and Pop’s covered cage aloft. She dashed forward.
“Thank you, thank you so much!” she gushed, relieving him of his burden. She stepped further into the room once more, quickly finding a side table to pace the aviary on and lifting the cover off. She made kissing noises at the pair. “There’s my little feathered babies. Mama was worried about you, yes she was. This is our new home. You’re the first birdies to live in space. Well, at least on a Mylos vessel, anyways, I think.” She looked up, feeling eyes watching her and found Tellan watching her, a bemused expression crossing his features.
“Everything is indeed well?” he asked her, worried that the containment officer might have overlooked something.
She beamed at him. “Yes, it is,” she replied.
Chapter Nine
It was true, everything was well with Pip and Pop and all of her other things appeared to have made the journey safe and sound. It wasn’t until she’d uttered those words that she realised just how that may have come across. What if he thought she meant she was ready to do…things? She hesitated to label those things in her mind. She wasn’t a virgin by any stretch of the imagination, but she also wasn’t the sort of woman who was ready to hop into bed with a relative stranger. She licked her lips and pointed to the sleep alcove’s narrow bed.
“There’s just the one bed,” she pointed out, hoping he’d catch her drift.
Tellan frowned. “I am sorry, my mate. I did not even think of such a basic necessity as getting a big enough bed for the both of us.”
She bit her bottom lip. “One of us could sleep on your sofa. I’m not as large as you, so I’d fit well enough. I’m, um, not ready to just sleep right here with you, yet, having only just met you and all.” She looked at him from head to toe as if measuring his large frame.
He looked affronted. “That would make me a poor mate to you! I shall request a new bed immediately and use my spare blankets to sleep on the floor. ”
She stared at him. “There’s no need for that, honestly. The sofa looks plenty comfortable enough for a night or two. Besides, I’d feel terrible and not sleep very well at all, my head full of how you’re on the hard floor without a mattress and just a couple of blankets.”
He regarded her steadily, searching her eyes. His shoulders slumped in defeat. “Very well, I will concede for this sleep period. You should have adequate rest, not lie awake worrying over my comfort.”
Laurel nodded in satisfaction. “Quite. And for that same reason, your tall ass with muscles, that have muscles, will take the bed while my dainty self takes the sofa.”
“Very well,” he sighed.
“Married Mylos share a bed just like most humans, then,” she mused.
“Yes, we do. It calms our instincts to know that our mate is near and safe while we rest. I will not sleep as deeply as a human, part of me will always be alert for danger. It is an evolutionary holdover,” he explained.
“And sex? I know we need to do the deed pretty soon because of the, uh, mating display and fever thing,” the words rushed out, “but does it have to be today and how often do Mylos usually have sex?” Laurel closed her eyes in embarrassment. The moment drew out interminably as Tellan did not immediately reply. She opened her eyes to see him looking at her in mild dismay. “It’s not that I don’t think you’re attractive and that I don’t feel this sort of pull from you,” she hastened to reassure him. “I’m just a bit on the tired side and this was a huge surprise.”
“We can get to know each other a bit better over the next day or two. After that, it is normal for Mylos to mate as often as the couple wish to.” He didn’t elaborate further.
She decided it best to not push any further, for the moment. “Ah, okay.” She smiled brightly at him. “Getting to know each other better sounds good.”
He nodded. “While you put your belongings away, I shall make up the sofa. Would you like a shower after? I can show you how to use the controls.”
“That would be lovely, thank you. I probably should have asked before grabbing all my shampoo and stuff, but do you guys use water to bathe up here?”
“We do, but this is only a small vessel, so water bathing is limited to twice a week. If you use a water ration today, you may not use another again for at least 3 more days. We use the sonic fresher in between,” he informed her.
“Sonic fresher? Okay, that sounds interesting. And yes, I’d love a water shower, as long as I’m not depriving you of yours.”
“You are not. The ship’s AI keeps a record of who has accessed the water controls so that each person gets the correct number of rations.”
Laurel began to feel overwhelmed as the enormity of it all crashed down hard upon her, more forcefully than before. She felt herself grow distant, everything receding to a pinpoint. Gentle hands grasped her arms and led her several steps before encouraging her to sit down.
“It will be alright,’ she heard the gentle masculine voice from before say. My mate, her brain supplied. “Just sit here and breathe. In…now out. In…now out. That’s it,” the voic
e continued. She tried to focus on it, her eyes now screwed tight as she closed the confusion of the world from her and tried to concentrate only on the task of obeying his voice. “In…now out.” She heard the rustling sounds of someone moving away. “And back in again…now out,” it was further away now. She heard him address someone else, her mind ignoring it as it processed that it wasn’t meant for her ears. Moments later, she felt him back besides her. “Good, good, now, can you open your eyes? I have some tea for you.”
She forced her eyelids apart. She nodded numbly in reply and curled her hands over where his held the mug. He allowed her to lift it with his hand still trapped beneath his. She took a tentative sip. It was good and the familiar taste of warm, sweet tea flooded her senses. “You with me again?” he asked her, worry etched across his features. She nodded and took another sip.He tilted his head to one side. “You’re certain?”
“Tellan,” she whispered. “I married you today and came to live on your space ship.” She removed her hands. “I can hold it on my own now.” He turned the mug so that the handle faced her and she gripped it easily. She was pleased to note it only wobbled a tiny bit. She took another fortifying sip. Tea really did make things better, she decided. “Twenty-eight years old and I flip out like that,” she chided herself.
“Given the circumstances, it is understandable,” Tellan reassured her. He stood. “You sit there and drink that. You tell me where you’d like me to place the aviary stand.” Laurel glanced about the room. “How about over there?” she pointed to a section of wall where the living room met the kitchenette. Tellan moved to comply, then hung the cage upon the stand. “Yes, there is perfect,” she breathed. Tellan smiled and reached for one of the shopping bags. He peered inside. “This has Arctic Mint Fresh Breath Tartar Control Save-a-Lot Mouth Rinse, Nefertitti Coconut and Shea Butter-”
“That goes in the bathroom,” Laurel interrupted, making as if to rise.
Tellan: Brides of the Mylos Page 3