Inwardly, Elianna shuddered, not being an extroverted party person at all. Give her malfunctioning engines over a noisy assembly any day. She arranged her face in what she hoped was a pleasant expression and made herself nod agreeably.
Hoping she could sweet talk the guard into allowing her inside Kierce’s enclosure by herself, Elianna rose from her chair. This meeting was over and she couldn’t sit still another second while she fretted over what was going on with Kierce. Giving a wave, she made it outside the door before anyone could object. “I’ll see all of you later then.”
Once outside the admin building, she paused to orient herself before heading off into the more isolated portion of the valley.
“Will you need me?” MARL17 asked, floating at her elbow.
“No, thanks, I’m on personal time now,” she said, guiltily stifling a flash of pleasure at the relief of not having her sidekick monitoring her every move. The AI wasn’t intrusive once they’d agreed to parameters for his help, and she’d actually relied on him far more than she’d expected initially but a constant shadow wasn’t going to help her talk sense into Kierce if he was clinging to the animal form.
“MARL Primary remains with Jill at virtually all times,” the AI said.
“Well, I’m not Jill, and I’ve got something to do, so I’ll see you later. When we go back to the island, okay? Thanks for all your support and for showing the Alpha the schematics the way I asked you to present them.”
MARL17 dipped up and down in the air and flew off without another word. Elianna had no idea where he was going or what he was planning to do, but no one had made her the keeper of the AI. At least not to her knowledge. It did feel a bit odd not to have him constantly hovering nearby. Shaking her head, she took a few steps, trying to decide which path was the one she needed to take her to Kierce’s enclosure.
“Want company?” Walt was behind her. “I’m off duty for now, and I’d be happy to point you in the right direction for the Badari-only territory.”
“Sure, thanks.” Despite having been happy a moment ago at not having company, she found the idea of a private chat alone with the pilot appealing.
Walt fell into step beside her, and guided her to the west, taking a barely discernible path.
“Good work you did, at the Chimmer ship,” he said. “Your summary for the Alpha was impressive.”
Although pleased by the praise, she shrugged nonchalantly. “I know how to brief the higher ups. They don’t want all the gory details, just enough critical factors to base a decision on. MARL17 would have overwhelmed the Alpha and Jill with irrelevant stuff because he loves data. I like to keep things crisp.”
“And Aydarr obviously appreciates your approach. You’re off to a good start here in the valley.”
“It’s a weird situation, isn’t it?” she said. “We’re a colony whether we want to be or not, and the Badari are stuck with all of us whether they want to be or not, and we’re all at war. Occasionally I think I’m in a dream. Very different from taking care of the tech in my old ship.” Elianna eyed him. “So what’s your story? You don’t seem like a colonist.”
Walt laughed as if the mere suggestion was too farfetched to contemplate. “No, I’m active duty military in the Sectors. Got caught in a Shemdylann raid while I was undercover, woke up here and events, uh, snowballed from there. I make the best of it, help out where I’m needed.”
“You obviously know how to make a crisp summary report yourself,” she said, not fooled by his light-hearted recap. “Left out a few details here and there, didn’t you?”
He made a dismissive noise. “Details, pfft. Nothing matters right now but getting the damn ship ready for humans to take to space and making a run to the Sectors.” He gave her a sideways look. “This situation is untenable in the long run, and Aydarr knows it. He’s a smart guy, efficient commander, takes no nonsense and is a cold-eyed realist. Life in the damn Khagrish labs has that effect on a person. MARL may or may not be able to protect the valley as well as he claims, but once the Khagrish wake up and admit what a problem the escaped Badari are—and they will, eventually—all hell is going to rain down here. The chrono for the valley is ticking. No one’s ever asked MARL if he can protect against a planet buster, but I have my doubts.”
Elianna shivered, telling herself it was because she was walking through a shaded portion of the path. “You think the Khagrish have that level of offensive technology?”
“The Chimmer sure do. Once they find out their Khagrish lackeys have been lying to them about the Badari and probably pulling a few other shenanigans too, the Chimmer will be ruthless. We only got our hands on the Nicolle in the first place as a result of a double-cross the Khagrish were trying to pull on the Chimmer. Nicolle and her mate Darik were in the wrong place at the wrong time, but made the situation work for us and lived to tell the tale.”
So much going on behind the scenes of the peaceful valley. “Do people here realize all this?”
Walt shook his head. “By and large the civilians probably don’t—most are happy to have been rescued from the labs and to have a safe place to recover. Those of us who are military know the score, but there’s no need to panic people. At least not yet. MARL’s protections do seem to be holding. You’re on the inside track now since you’re working on our ship.”
“Well, I’ll do my part,” she said, realizing for the first time she was actually glad to have found herself in the situation, precarious though it was. Fixing the captured Chimmer ship so Walt and Gabe could take it in search of the Sectors was much more important than keeping the enviro controls aligned to keep the demanding passengers happy and get the crew fatter tips on her old cruise ship.
“You’re the right person in the wrong place for you but at the right time for us,” Walt said.
She laughed at his assessment and got an answering grin from the soldier. “Nice logic. What about Gabe? Is he active duty too?”
“Retired. Had his own ship and a small crew. He doesn’t talk much about what exactly he did. Mercenaries, I’m guessing. We never ran across each other before winding up here—the Sectors is a big place.”
“Nothing wrong with taking the hired gun route. I had an offer from a big mercenary firm myself, when I left the military, to work on their tech side,” she said. “But I wanted to make my own choices. And then I ended up here with no choice.”
“Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot to recommend this valley, especially versus the Khagrish labs. The Badari are good people. Hell, Gabe even found a mate.” He scratched his chin. “Never thought I’d see him want to settle down. Bad timing with us on call for the spaceship mission, but he says his lady understands his prior commitment to the task.”
Elianna pondered the subject as she walked. In her time with Gabe, he’d acted like the stereotypical carefree daredevil pilot rather than someone planning to get married, or “mated” as people referred to the arrangement here in the valley. But the men like him she’d known in the military tended to hide their deepest personal feelings beneath such a façade. The attitude didn’t mean he didn’t care.
Speculating about getting married or even having a long time partner was a foreign concept to her, before meeting Kierce. The kind of life she led wasn’t conducive to settling down with one person. The life I was leading anyway, until I ended up here. Her thoughts swirled around Kierce and she walked faster, impatient to see him and evaluate for herself how he was doing.
Kierce awoke from a nap full of vague dreams of hunting smaller furry creatures and began a thorough bath. The effects of the Alpha’s mental command to sleep yesterday had been long lasting, and he was still a bit drowsy. He’d begun to wash his face with his paw when a faint scent trail came on the breeze. Abandoning the bath, Kierce sat on his haunches and drew in huge quantities of air, fully expanding his lungs, seeking more of Elianna’s scent, which by itself improved his mood and outlook. She’s back.
He prowled closer to the force barrier, realizing from the
She came into view at the bend in the path, looking well rested and calm, not projecting any distress or unease at her surroundings.
Next moment he crouched in the grass, fangs bared, growling at the human male walking with her, standing too close to her. Is this person special to her? Does he want to be? Why are he and Elianna so friendly? Is he from her ship’s crew?
Kierce tried to tamp down the jealousy, reminding himself the Khagrish drug intensified all his higher sentient emotions. Why wouldn’t Elianna have friends among the humans? She was a wonderful person, a good friend, as he himself could testify. She’d told him in so many words there was no one special in her life. No rival for him. Deep in his heart he knew the problem was that, as a man, Kierce wanted Elianna to be more than his friend.
She was his mate.
The idea was so blindingly obvious he lost all the aggression boiling in his veins at the sight of the other male with Elianna and sank on his haunches, blinking. He shook his head. Why would the Great Mother send him a mate when he was locked into an animal form, held there by the need to survive the Khagrish drug? Which he feared the humanoid side of him couldn’t accomplish.
He had no experience with the idea of mating, although the ancestral memory suggested such a bond was possible with the goddess’s blessing. But he’d have to stand beside Elianna as a man in order to court her and transforming into his natural state would mean sacrificing his sanity and possibly his life, at least the way things stood right now. The black thoughts and terrifying nightmares were constantly at the edge of his mind, growing in persistence and power the closer he came to his real form. I would have died at the lab, if not for Elianna. She gave me a reason to fight the drug, to grasp at life.
But what if I can only live as this feline?
Impatient for her to enter the enclosure, Kierce watched Elianna and her companion exchange friendly words with the Badari guard. Once she entered the fenced in area he could nudge her to go further up the slope, under the trees and, while he wouldn’t risk leaving the tiger’s form, perhaps they could communicate better than they had the other day, with the Alpha standing right behind her. He needed to know more about the overall situation.
But the guard was shaking his head. Now Elianna was standing with her hands on her hips, frowning and pointing at the access gate in the forcefield.
Maybe the keepers weren’t going to let her inside. His behavior yesterday must have alarmed them and made whoever held him prisoner wary of allowing her to get close. He’d gladly let the authorities paralyze him or restrain him or whatever it took to make them comfortable with letting Elianna sit next to him and talk. If the Alpha was here Kierce would try to communicate his compliance to the man, but in his tiger form he couldn’t reach any of the less dominant Badari. He’d tried with the guards, and the men didn’t hear him.
He was tempted to get it over with and change into the man and to hell with the consequences. He released a bit of his tight grip on the feline form and the lights of the change sparkled. Kierce staggered and nearly fell as the Khagrish drug flooded his brain cells with their poison. Nauseous, he abandoned the transformation and slumped to the ground, crushing the flowers. Their sweet scent drifted to his nostrils and he inhaled with gratitude, steadying his nerves with the help of the natural perfume. No Khagrish taint there.
He resisted the tiger’s sudden urge to chase a pair of yellow winged insects wafting away from the crumpled flower stalks.
When was he ever going to be able to be himself again? Despairing, he prayed to the Great Mother for help as he loosened his grip on reality and became more animal.
“I’m sure the Alpha is okay with me going inside,” Elianna said, trying to keep her voice friendly. “I did it before. Seven hells, the cat and I shared a cell for over a week. He knows me and he won’t hurt me.” She knew she was right but the guard was adamant.
“I checked with Aydarr just now and he said no.” The soldier’s voice was polite but not conducive to further argument.
Kierce had told her the Badari could communicate mind to mind. Right now that attribute was unfortunate, since the person standing in her way had gotten his answer in real time. From the stern expression on the soldier’s face, there was no use continuing the discussion. Since the Alpha was the decider, she silently vowed to have a serious discussion with him later today or tomorrow, before she deployed to the island a second time, and demand to be given time one on one with Kierce before flying off to carry out the repair work. Maybe she could get Jill on her side.
Gazing through the barrier at the waiting tiger, she decided to break her promise about not revealing his full story. The Alpha would be more co-operative if he understood the stakes. If it meant Kierce could get help and not have to be in a cage, she’d take the risk. Worry about what lay behind Kierce’s choice not to transform gnawed at her gut. Surely by now if the issue was only his deciding whether these Badari were to be trusted, he’d have announced himself to them as a man, one of them. Could there be a delayed reaction or problem from the torture the Khagrish put him through? And what could she, or the Badari, do about that? She was good with tech, not medical.
Feeling her heart beat louder, she took a deep breath to calm herself. There were resources here and Kierce had her as his champion. No way was she jetting off to the island on the Alpha’s orders in two days if he wasn’t okay and communicating. He mattered more to her than the damn Chimmer ship. Now she had to brush suspicious moisture away before a flood of frustrated tears showed her weakness.
Get a grip, girl. None of this will help Kierce.
She straightened her spine, hoping neither the guard nor Walt had noticed her fleeting weakness.
One thing at a time. First try to persuade the Alpha to let her sit with the tiger without anyone hovering over her shoulder.
To the guard, she said, “I’ll talk to him myself later, clear up the misunderstanding. No problem.” Elianna walked south along the force field, leaving the soldier behind at his assigned post. Kierce rose and paced with her, keeping close to his side of the energy wall, static charge lifting the tips of his plush fur into the air. She repressed a grin. He probably wouldn’t appreciate being told how adorably fluffy he was at the moment.
A growl from the cat startled her until she realized he was staring past her. Pausing, she turned to find Walt a few steps behind. “If you don’t mind, I want to be alone with my friend. As much as I can be with the guard there and this force fence, of course.”
Walt took the rebuff good naturedly. “No problem. I wasn’t sure if you were planning on staying since the sentry won’t let you inside. I’ll see you at the mixer tonight.”
Elianna stared at him, her stomach tensing in dread as she remembered the virtually mandatory social gathering for the new arrivals decreed by the Alpha. “I forgot about it. Maybe I’ll stay in my dorm room, rest a bit for our next trip to the island.”
Walt smiled but shook his head. “Aydarr’s serious about all hands being present and accounted for when he throws these events. I get it if big parties aren’t your thing, but you need to at least make an appearance. There’s music, food, a Badari version of a ball game, friendly people. No feelgoods other than a mildly fermented juice because the Badari don’t indulge, but the gatherings are usually pretty convivial anyway. Tell you what, I’ll meet you at the women’s dorm, and we can walk over together. Always easier to walk into a party with someone you know. Gabe and his mate will be there, Nicolle and Darik too, your surviving shipmates, the two techs who worked with you. So it’s not a party of complete strangers. Let the Alpha see you and then, if you’re too tired or overwhelmed, you can slip out again.” He leaned closer as if to share a secret, his shoulder brushing hers. “I’ve done the same thing a time or two.”
He was giving good advice, and she appreciated his offer to accompany her. “All right, it’s a deal.”
“Whatever your issue is, I wouldn’t tangle with Aydarr on the subject of this animal tonight, though,” Walt said. “Make an appointment for tomorrow, during his office hours. I can tell there’s more to this than the Khagrish keeping a zoo of exotic creatures, but one more day won’t make a difference. And the Alpha will want to be focused on being accessible to the valley residents in a social setting.” He winked. “Aydarr’s not one for big parties either, from what I’ve seen, nor is his mate, but they do their duty.”
Rather than argue with the man, Elianna merely nodded. She wasn’t going to make Kierce wait another night, not if she could corner the Alpha, party or no party. “All right, see you later then.”
“It’s a date.” The pilot walked away whistling before she could dispute his use of the word.
Elianna watched, hoping he was merely going out of his way to be friendly and wasn’t going to make a pass. I might have to cool his jets a bit, tactfully. Walt was a nice guy, pleasant and easy on the eyes but there was only one man on the planet who interested her and right now he was locked into the form of a tiger. Going to her knees in the grass beside the force barrier. She asked, “How are you? I wish I could get in there—your ears probably need scratching, huh?”
Kierce eyed her then lay on his side of the barrier, making his version of a purring sound. He blinked and his whiskers twitched.
Frustrated, she ripped up a few stalks of the grass and began shredding them to keep her hands busy. The urge to reach out and touch the cat was so strong and impossible to gratify with the forcefield between them. “We need to talk, person to person. I don’t know how much of what I say you’re getting when you’re the tiger.” She glanced over her shoulder at the guard, who was quite a distance away and the man waved at her. She pondered how acute the Badari hearing was. Probably enhanced like so many other physical attributes so she’d have to pick her words carefully. Turning her attention to Kierce, she sighed and said, “Listen, I think it’s safe for you to transform into your normal self. These people may not be your Badari brothers, but they’re good guys, trustworthy.”
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