Dredge

by Lula Monk

  “No,” he replied. It became difficult to see suddenly, as if some fluid was obscuring his vision. “There are very few female Glims left. I am one of the last of my kind.”

  Wetness slipped down his cheeks. He took a moment to appreciate the novelty of such a sensation. So, this was crying. The longer he remained in this human form, the more precisely it began to bond with his essence, with his light. He swiped at his cheeks, the powder from his skin turning to paste under the moisture from his tears.

  “I’m sorry,” said Samantha softly. “I . . . I didn’t know.”

  Dredge nodded. “Thank you for your apology.”

  “No problem.”

  They sat for a long, quiet moment. Then Samantha spoke again, her voice gentle. “So that is why breeding with me is a necessity? Because your species is gone?”

  Dredge nodded. “We are not gone yet, only vastly reduced in number. Perhaps one hundred, maybe one hundred and ten, remain shining on Brillar. The rest have dispersed.”

  “Is that what you call it when a Glim dies?”

  Dredges body went rigid. “No,” he said. “Death is a darkening, a dulling and extinguishing of the light that lives in every Glim. The light that gives us life.”

  “So, what do you mean when you say the other Glims have dispersed?” she asked, sliding over on the floor closer to him.

  He was pleased to have her attention, and even more pleased that she was not trying to obliterate him with her tiny fists. But their topic of conversation was causing his chest to hurt.

  He held up his arm and, ignoring the way Samantha flinched at the sudden movement, pulled at the flesh there.

  “Dispersal is the cessation of this,” he said, releasing his skin. It snapped back in place, a small cloud of powder rising and then settling. “When our light fades, our corporeal form can no longer be sustained. It fragments and then shatters.”

  Samantha sucked in another sharp breath. “That sounds . . . gruesome.”

  “It is.”

  Another moment of silence, and then, “So what happened to make so many Glims . . . disperse so suddenly?”

  “A disease evolved on Brillar, in the nature that such things happen, suddenly and without warning. Our best and brightest Glims, scholars and healers and prophets, all failed to find a cure. The disease spread, progressing faster in those of our species who were already dull. The elderly, the weak, the poor. Corporeal forms would fragment at random, in public or private; there was no sense of decorum in the disease, no sense of propriety. A Glim you had known your whole life could be talking one moment and then fracturing in the next. Soon, as the disease spread and became more rampant, Glims began shattering in the streets, their forms dispersing into the air as if they’d never existed.”

  “You saw all of that happen?”

  “Repeatedly,” said Dredge. “My entire family dispersed in the span of a week.”

  He felt something cool on his hand. Looking down, he found Samantha’s hand resting on his own. “I’m so sorry, Dredge.”

  He smiled at her, liking the feel of her skin on his. “Let us talk of more pleasant things.”

  Samantha nodded, sending the smell of something sharp and pungent to Dredge’s nostrils. “Or, better yet, would you like to cleanse yourself?” he asked.

  “Like a bath?” asked Samantha, her eyes lighting up. It was a becoming look for her. “I would love to bathe!”

  Dredge nodded, pleased to have found something that animated her face in a way that did not mean she was preparing to pounce on him once more. He rose. “I will prepare the hydro chamber.”

  Samantha smiled at him, and his heart clenched.

  He needed to consult the guidebook about that.

  Chapter 5

  Samantha

  The hydro chamber ended up being nothing more than a fancy shower stall. There were loads of knobs, half of which Samantha couldn’t even begin to guess their uses. And honestly? She was a little intimidated to find out what they did. Dredge had set the water to scalding, and she decided it was best not to fiddle with anything else.

  As she washed the piss and blood from her hair, she tried to form a plan.

  There had to be some way of surviving this mess, a way that didn’t involve having Dredge’s giant alien cock spewing little Glimlings into her vagina.

  She thought of all the other creatures they had passed on the way to this room. She shuddered, remembering the tentacled creatures Dredge had referred to as ‘Cephs.’ Then there were the green blobs. The tall spindly aliens that looked like spiders. The short squatty ones with hundreds of legs, like round, flat millipedes.

  Maybe she was lucky that Dredge had bought her. The prospect of mating with Dredge was much more appealing than being mounted by any of those other things.

  Gross. Had she just used the word mounted? All this talk of breeding and babies was scrambling her brain.

  When she stepped from the hydro chamber, feeling refreshed and gloriously clean, she found a towel hanging from a metal hook just outside the door. The fabric felt odd against her skin, not scratchy but not soft either. It didn’t matter, though. She was just so damn happy to be clean.

  She wrapped the towel around her torso, securing it under her arm.

  “Dredge,” she called out as she rounded the chamber to walk back into the primary room. “Do you think you could get me some clean clo– Jesus Christ! What are you doing!”

  Samantha squealed and raised her hands to block her eyes.

  Dredge was standing by the bed working vigorously at his shaft.

  “I’m readying my body for mating,” he said proudly, as if he had just learned a new trick.

  “Why?” squeaked Samantha

  “Don’t worry. I read the guidebook while you cleansed, and I understand now.”

  Samantha peeked between her fingers and saw that Dredge’s dick was stiff and pointed straight towards his bellybutton. She gulped. No way. No way was she letting that thing near her. She felt a twinge between her legs and squirmed. No freaking way.

  Dredge continued. “The guidebook said female humans required moisture to mate. The guidebook also said moisture is a good sign that the female is aroused and ready.”

  “What?”

  “You are obviously wet, Samantha. I can see your glistening body from here.”

  “That’s not what the guidebook meant, Dredge.”

  The rhythmic sound of Dredge stroking himself stopped. When Samantha lowered her hands, she was pleased to see that his erection was softening. Damn. That was quick.

  “You are not ready to mate?” asked Dredge.

  “Uh, no. Cover your junk already!”

  Dredge looked offended. “I’ll have you know this is the finest specimen of male human anatomy in existence. I triple checked my research.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Okay, so your dick is lovely, Dredge. Just put it away.”

  He stared down at his penis. “Where do you want me to put it?”

  “Away!” Samantha screamed.

  And then, just like that, Dredge made an odd face. His penis went completely flaccid and began to retreat into his body.

  “What the actual fuck…,” whispered Samantha. She blinked. Nope, it was still gone.

  Dredge frowned. “I am trying to be accommodating to your needs, Samantha. Please do not curse.”

  Samantha looked down, embarrassed. “Sorry.”

  “I accept your apology.”

  “Can you bring it back?” She asked. “You somehow look creepier as a Ken doll than you do when your dick is swinging all over the place.”

  As suddenly as it had disappeared, Dredge's member reemerged, once again hard. “Are you ready for mating now?”

  “No! Just . . . just put on some clothes or something. Okay?”

  “Very well.” Dredge said. He went to a wall near the hydro chamber and ran his hands over the smooth metal. A small door appeared. He opened the door and extracted a simple grey jumpsuit for himself.

 
“Anything in there for me?” Samantha asked.

  Dredge rummaged around for a moment and then selected some skimpy stripper-looking getup. He held it up for her inspection.

  “Not on your life,” said Samantha. How did this spaceship or whatever it was even have such impractical clothing?

  After a few more tries, Dredge pulled out a simple sundress.

  “That will work,” said Samantha.

  When they were both dressed, everyone’s genitals safely hidden behind several layers of clothing, Samantha asked about food.

  “Ah yes. You will need caloric energy for our mating.”

  “There will be no mating, Dredge.”

  His body went rigid. “I explained to you the gravity of my species’ situation.”

  “You did.”

  “And still you do not want to mate with me? To be the life giver of my Glimlings?”

  “No.”

  “I do not understand.”

  “Look, Dredge. You have been nice to me. Kind of weird, but nice. But that doesn’t mean I want to jump into bed with you.”

  “We can mate standing, if you prefer. I read about such a thing in the guidebook.”

  Samantha’s cheeks grew hot. No point in mentioning that that was her favorite position. “I would prefer not to mate with you at all.”

  Dredge’s face fell. “I need you, Samantha. My people need you.”

  “What happened to your species is tragic, Dredge, and I’m sorry that you had to experience that. But your problems are not mine, and I shouldn’t be expected to sacrifice myself to save a species I didn’t even know about until a few hours ago.”

  “It is not a sacrifice. It is a duty,” he said sharply. Samantha flinched. “I purchased you, and you are mine to do with as I see fit. And the only reason I paid for you, the only purpose you now have, is to breed with me and bear my offspring.”

  “Dredge, I…”

  “No! There have been enough empty words spoken between us. I demand that we mate. Now.”

  “That’s not how it works,” Samantha said, her mind struggling to come up with a good enough reason to dissuade him. “I’m not ready.”

  “I can make you ready,” said Dredge, stepping toward her. He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her body close to his. His lips crashed into hers, roughly at first and then softer, tamer, as if every movement of his mouth against hers was planned, calculated.

  Despite her fear and reservations, Samantha found herself returning Dredge’s kiss.

  The sensation of kissing Dredge was . . . different. His lips were firm and slightly powdery, and as he separated her mouth with his tongue, she was surprised to find that he tasted sweet.

  She closed her eyes and succumbed to the kiss, her arms snaking around his waist, her hands reaching up to stroke his powerful, muscular back. The jumpsuit did nothing to obscure the contours of his body. His erection had returned, its firmness poking into her belly.

  What the fuck was she doing?

  Samantha pulled away from Dredge’s mouth, her heart hammering so wildly in her chest that it felt as if her whole body was vibrating. Tears sprang to her eyes unbidden. “Please don’t make me do this.”

  Dredge opened his eyes and smiled. “Did you enjoy kissing me, Earth woman?”

  Samantha looked away from him, trying to ignore the wetness in her underwear. “No.”

  “I think you are lying.”

  “I think you should leave me the hell alone.”

  Dredge chuckled. “A kiss is enough. For now.”

  Samantha turned back to him, her mouth slack with shock. “Really? You aren’t going to . . . force me to mate?”

  “Of course not. I told you, you will be the bearer of my Glimlings, the creature who saves my species from extinction. You are to be worshiped, Samantha. I would not abuse you in any way.”

  “But you said you would make me ready. That you wanted to mate now.”

  “And I do want to mate with you now. The sooner we join to make a Glimling, the better. But I would never force you.”

  “What makes you so sure I will ever want to have sex with you? “

  Dredge’s smile was confident. “I am in the process of reading the guidebook in its entirety. The human section, at least. I will make you want to mate with me, Samantha the Earth woman.”

  Samantha rolled her eyes, but as she watched Dredge walk to the slick, smooth metal panel they’d used to enter the room, she wondered if he might be right.

  Chapter 6

  Dredge

  Dredge left Samantha the Earth woman alone in their room, careful to press his palm to the access pad and lock her in. Even if she escaped, she wouldn’t get far. But why risk such a thing?

  Though he hated crowds, journeying to the food courts felt less like a chore and more like a sacred task. His human demanded sustenance, and he was in a position to provide.

  The guidebook had a small chapter on human nutrition. He assessed the various stalls and markets, finally deciding on produce. There were no black and white creatures here whose mammary glands could be expressed for consumable fluids or fermented into secondary nutritious products. Nor were there feathered bipeds whose ovum Samantha could prepare in a variety of ways. The meats available in the food court made Dredge’s own stomach turn; he would not bring such things back to his human.

  He began selecting red produce, rich fat berries and long skinny vegetables that had been grown in hydroponic cambers free from dirt. He smiled at the bounty he had chosen, but then on further reflection frowned. He remembered something from the nutrition chapter suddenly.

  When humans were a young species and began foraging for sustenance, red foods were a sign of danger, poison. Perhaps the Earth woman would think he was trying to harm her with these foods.

  He put them all back, selecting in their stead a nice variety of green and blue items. Yes. Green meant health on her world. This was good.

  When Dredge returned to their chamber, Samantha was already in the bed. He felt his sex harden, thinking perhaps she had changed her mind and was prepared to mate. He set the food stuffs on a table in the corner of the room and called out to her.

  “Samantha?”

  No response.

  He stepped across the room, already unbuttoning the top of his jumpsuit. He steeled himself. This was duty after all, not pleasure. The experience might be just as bad for him as she seemed to think it would be for her.

  Dredge took a deep breath and let the jumpsuit fall to the floor. He pulled back the blankets, saying her name again. “Samantha.”

  The woman did not move.

  Dredge panicked for a moment, thinking the creature had taken her own life. He turned her over, exposing her facial orifices. She grumbled and then settled back into sleep. He breathed a sigh of relief. He bent down low and observed her chest, ensuring that her internal air sacks were filling and releasing rhythmically in the way they should. They were. All was well.

  Dredge lay prostrate beside Samantha’s warm body and pulled his blanket over himself. Of course she was tired. Exhausted, most likely. He wondered what her experience had been like, traveling to the Hub. Probably not a pleasant one. The Cephs were renowned for their abilities to efficiently control prisoners. Their entire species had been galactic pirates in annums past, before they had scored a generational contract with Galactic Continuity. Now, all Cephs worked solely for GC and made good credits from the work.

  Dredge sighed, looking at the sleeping Earthling beside him. She’d not asked to come to the Hub, he knew. Had not asked to be sold as a breeder.

  He felt shame then, for all creatures desired freedom. Such a thing was paramount to the Glim Code of Being. But he also knew some codes were meant to be broken, if the reason was noble enough.

  And saving his species, forgoing matters of the heart and putting his own selfish desire aside, was the noblest act Dredge could imagine.

  Still, he did not want to cause the woman lying beside him pain, nor did he want
her to be in terror. He’d meant what he said to her earlier; he intended to make her want to mate with him, to want his Glimlings inside of her.

  But how to do such a thing without emotional connection on his part . . . that part of his plan remained a mystery to him.

  “Good night, Samantha.”

  Chapter 7

  Samantha

  A bright, intense glow pulled Samantha from sleep. She blinked in its intensity, thinking for one horrifying moment that she was back in her cage on the transport vessel. That she had somehow began this horrifying experience anew, like her own personal Groundhog Day hell.

  She reached out a hand. “Debra?”

  Suddenly, the light . . . rolled? She lifted the blanket and promptly dropped it again.

  She wasn’t back in the cage, which was great. But she did have a very large, very naked alien lying in bed beside her. And unlike the last time she’d seen him, Dredge was glowing.

  Squinting her eyes, she marveled at the light radiating from his body. Huh. Glim. It made sense to her now.

  She surveyed the landscape of his body, his broad, strong back shimmering like thousands of microscopic points of light were embedded beneath his skin. She wondered if she should wake him but thought better against it. If she woke him now, in his half-sleeping state, he would probably proposition her for ‘mating’ again. She was weary of the word already. Let alone the prospect of actually mating with an alien.

  Samantha slipped from the bed quietly, stretching as she stood. A bit of bright green caught her attention from the corner of her eyes. Her heart swelled with gratitude. Dredge had in fact gone to get her something to eat.

  She rushed to the table on silent feet, her mouth already watering. But as took in the sight of the strange shapes before her, her heart sank. It was promptly followed by the grumbling of her stomach, which was not helpful.

  The strange shapes before her looked . . . intimidating, she supposed. Sure, they were shaped in forms like vegetables and fruits she’d had before, back on Earth. But these had strange swirls and bumps and some even had hairs covering their surfaces. She wondered if anything was even edible for a human. Let alone palatable.