by Nina Silver
Six
Cove
I approached the woman, Dr. Panou, who looked surprisingly young for all her expertise and prestige, but with all the cosmetic surgery and all the med advances, she might as well be much older than what she looked. She was quite pretty, pale clear skin and light colored green eyes, her hair which looked a frizzy mess of vibrant red curls was pulled back in a messy bun.
I noticed how flushed and sweaty she looked, and took in the rest of her appearance – she was slight of height, with a curvy shape to her that was accentuated by her white form fitting clothes. I frowned at her choice of clothes – they seemed way too warm for here. Where was her temp suit?
My attention was drawn back to her face. She seemed frazzled, and her eyes kept blinking rapidly. She looked like she was having difficulty with the heat. I extended my arm to greet her, and she looked at it for a few minutes until in slow motion she raised her arm with what seemed great difficulty.
“Dr. Panou, thank you for coming to New Hope.” I said as I made to grab her hand, but I saw her eyes rolling in the back of her head, and within moments her shaking legs gave way under her. I hastily grabbed her waist and hoisted her up. She passed out from the heat. Many clonies who visited New Earth for the first time had this kind of reaction.
I secured my arms around her waist and turned to look at Haze, and the other two men.
“I think the heat was too much for her.” I exclaimed as I looked down at her slack face.
Haze looked down on her face as well. “I think her clothes are too warm for here too. It doesn’t seem like she was prepared appropriately for the trip.”
“She said it was her first time.” The blue-eyed man who introduced himself as Cain commented. “I can hold her if you want.”
I looked down at her in my arms. “I’m okay, she’s not heavy, and better none of you exert yourselves too much so soon after landing here.” I braced myself and lifted the woman higher in my arms, holding her more securely. “The transport is this way.” I nodded to a few feet away, where the transport was running and led the way. I made it there, placed the woman on one of the seats and strapped her in securely. By the time I was done the other three were strapped in, and the last member of their team Captain Kodaline approached after securing their ship under the hangar.
“Greetings, I’m Chief Magnum, but call me Cove.”
“Locke. Thanks for having us over.”
“Strap in, and we’ll head to New Hope.” I took my seat and promptly piloted us to New Hope. Within minutes we approached the transport hangar, and I landed. “Hope you have built an appetite, we have prepared a meal for you tonight as a welcome.” I indicated the big building that was directly built next to the hangar. The Commons where the mess hall was located.
“What about the good doctor?” Haze asked as he jumped up and turned back to look at the woman. I went to the woman’s seat and carefully unstrapped her. She was still unconscious. The men looked at her curiously. They knew she’d be okay. They all had been on the planet as part of their training and knew that passing out was a typical reaction to the heat. “I’ll see to her, you can go through the door. My assistant will be waiting for you. As soon as she’s up, I’ll bring her in.”
“Need help? I’m a medic so I can tend to her.” Cain said waiting behind even as the other three headed inside the Commons.
“No need, I’m just going to take her in there and pop a capsule for her. This happens very often, it’s no big deal. Go and start having some food, and we’ll be just in.” I lifted her in my arms again, the sweet smell of her perfume wafting over to me. Cain looked at her, then me and hesitantly turned and walked towards the building. I followed, and instead of entering the door Cain went through, I went to one on the side that led to a smaller room that was often used as an infirmary.
I laid the woman down on the examination table carefully, placing a gel pack under her head for support. I looked at her face, oddly felt drawn to her. She was more than pretty, I’d say. Almond shaped eyes, long dark eyelashes, and the slopes of her curved cheeks just accentuated how pretty she was. I gently ran the pad of my finger over her nose and then over her lips – her skin felt incredibly soft and supple – and I wondered what it would feel to kiss her and have her full rosy lips against mine.
Feeling myself get aroused, I turned around and walked over to the medical supplies cabinets. It had been a long time since I felt this attracted to a woman and I wasn’t sure that this particular would be the best choice right now. I threw another look at her, my eyes following the luscious curves of her body – especially since she was a clonie and an outsider whom I hadn’t spoken to as of yet.
I rummaged through the shelves until I found a packet of capsules and grabbed one. The door to the room opened and in stepped Jo. She was wearing a short tan dress made up of temp fabric, her red hair was up in a sleek ponytail as usual, and she was even wearing a bit of makeup that women so much loved. I pursed my lips as I realized how similar in looks she was to the good doctor. Except I didn’t feel as drawn to Jo as I did to the other one. I ignored my thought and looked expectantly at my assistant.
“I heard the woman passed out from the heat?” Jo looked at me quizzically, her pretty face set in a grin.
“Yeah.” I tipped my chin towards the woman on the table and Jo approached looking at her curiously.
“This is the snooty Saturnian?” Surprise colored her tone. “I thought it would be an older lady, this one is barely an adult.” She crinkled her nose in dislike. “They sent us a dupe expert?”
I took the capsule out of its packaging and walked over to the unconscious woman. “Who knows? Let’s bring her back up, and we’ll see what she has to say.” I leaned over her, the enticingly sweet smell of her enveloping me once more. Her face seemed relax, the delicate bone structure of her cheekbones, upturned nose, and full lips giving her an otherworldly appearance. Most of the women I had been used to seeing the past few years were tan but her skin had gone back to a pale creamy complexion instead of the flushed red when I had first seen her.
I broke the capsule under her nose and placed it close for her to inhale. The capsule contained some adrenaline particles that would help revive her. A few seconds passed and nothing happened, but then she started stirring. A soft moan came out of her lips, and she raised an arm and placed it on her head. Her tongue peeked out and she licked her lips, another surprising jolt of arousal hit me and I pushed it aside as I involuntarily leaned over her.
Suddenly she jumped up and taken aback by her move I had no time to remove myself from her proximity. Her head connected to mine and a dull throb started where her head hit mine.
“Oh…” She looked at me and frowned confusedly, then she swayed. I reached out and held her steady to avoid her falling on the floor and hurting herself even further. “Hello?” She tentatively asked and licked her lips again.
I grinned at her. “Hello Doc, you passed out from the heat after you landed – fell right into my arms too.” I winked and watched her blush with satisfaction.
“I – I did?” Her voice came out scratchy and she cleared her throat.
“I’m Cove, Chief of New Hope.” Her green eyes focused on mine and no longer hazy. I instantly felt connected to her, her gaze holding me a prisoner, my body responding to her involuntarily. I heard Jo clear her throat behind us, and the moment went away. “This is Joahna, she goes by Jo.” I let go of her arm and pointed towards my assistant. “Resident of New Hope, and my assistant.” Jo tipped her chin in greeting and looked between me and the doctor, an odd narrowed look on her face.
“Hello, my name is Iolee.” She smiled shyly looking at Jo and then at me, her cheeks slightly flushing. She pronounced her name as Ee-o-lee and on her lips, it sounded exotic and unique. “Dr. Iolee Panou. But please call me Iolee.”
“Welcome to New Hope, Iolee.” I grinned again. “How about we go get some food now that you're up?”
She nodded again shyly, and
looked down at her hands avoiding my gaze. I helped her down from the exam table, and held her arm until I was sure she was steady on her feet,
“Your clothes are too warm for here, you got any temp clothes?” Jo asked as she gave her a look up and down, Jo’s face still set in displeasure. For some reason, Jo didn’t like this other woman, which was surprising as Jo was always pleasant to everyone.
I looked down at Iolee, she was slight, only reaching about my shoulder, even Jo who was the shortest woman on the res surpassed her by at least a few inches. Iolee blushed at Jo’s words and shook her head no.
“I didn’t, this is my first trip on Earth, and I only found I was coming a few hours before we departed. I didn’t prepare at all… Just brought what I thought was necessary – and actually, clothes didn’t even cross my mind.” She anxiously bit her lip, and avoided making eye contact with either of us. Poor woman, she was embarrassed. My gut clenched and a feeling of protectiveness came over me.
“It’s okay, I’m sure we can find some for you if you need them depending on how long you are staying here.” I gave a meaningful look at Jo, telling her to be nice, but she glared at me and crossed her arms.
“Yes, I’m sure we will.” Jo finally said slowly and mechanically – I’m certain just to appease me.
“Let’s go have some food then.” I smiled and still holding her arm for support led us through the door to the Commons with the rest of her team and the New Hope residents attending the event.
Seven
Iolee
After the dinner meal, I felt much better and not as weak as when I woke up in the infirmary with Cove leaning over me. I shivered, as even thinking about Cove gave me chills. That man was making me have an unusual reaction. He was very handsome, tall - very tall and muscular and fit, he reminded me a bit of the men from Neptune, and I wondered whether he had been in the military before.
He wasn’t much older than me, at least he didn’t seem much older than me, maybe late 20s early 30s. He had the golden tan that was something of a common feature of everyone in New Hope, probably from the sun exposure. He had closely cropped black hair, and his eyes were a brilliant clear gray color. What held my attention, however, and if I were honest gave me flutters, was the jagged scar that ran down from his left temple just below his sculpted cheekbone. It gave him this wild look, that apparently I appreciated if I judged by the butterflies in my tummy anytime I looked at it. In a few words, he was magnificent.
All throughout the meal, I’d steal glances at him. He was wearing black pants, and a dark shirt made of the temp fabric, the clothes significantly showed his bulging muscles which my eyes couldn’t stop latching on. I fanned myself as I kept thinking about his closeness to me when I woke up, after passing out apparently in his arms. I avoided him all night because I was quite embarrassed by the fool I made of myself by passing out. Instead, I focused on making small talk with the other men on my team, and then some of the residents of New Hope. Despite ignoring Cove, I’d still feel him looking at me sometimes. I knew it was him because my body would get this weird tingling sensation and I just knew he was staring at me for whatever reason.
“You are okay to go out in the heat again?” Jo asked giving me a side glance. I would be sharing her unit apparently since she had a spare room.
“Is it far?” I did not wish to have a repeat of me being weak and passing out again.
“Not a lot. Just a minute or so.” Jo said with a shrug.
“I think I’ll be fine.”
Jo gave me a doubtful look and then shrugged as if she didn’t care. She exited the building, and I followed the unbearable heat hitting me head-on. Oh lord, please don’t let me faint again! Jo marched ahead of me, and I followed hastily, every step a struggle. As the heat seemed to be getting to me again and making me dizzy, we finally reached a tall building, something that in old the old world was called a high-rise.
“This is one of our housing unit buildings.” Jo explained as we stepped through the automatic glass doors. With a sigh of relief, the doors closed behind us protecting us from the brunt of the heat. Jo approached one of the elevation plates and stepped on it. I followed looking around and taking everything in from the light colored walls to the thick glass, and the simple decorations with pictures from old Earth.
“Room 56” Jo stated, the plate turned on and with a gentle sway rose up. I gave Jo a side look, taking in her appearance. Her skin a golden color, she had long pin-straight red hair, the color a bit deeper than my own, and light hazel eyes. We were similar in looks, but she was at least three inches taller than me, and she was also thinner, much fitter than I was. She was wearing a dress made from tan temp fabric, and I admired her courage to go out in such heat dressed in only that.
The levitation plate gently stopped on one of the higher floors, and Jo stepped out of it. It was interesting to see how people here lived. I wondered if their rooms and houses were the same as in the Colonies. The food had definitely been different. We had been served some local vegetables and portions of different animal meat that I had preferred not ask what they were. They had tasted good, but also very different since I had not been used to such foods. At Saturn, we were served mostly nutrient shakes and packs, with the meats and other foods cooked so much that they hardly felt solid. Dinner tonight was a good change, and I had immensely enjoyed it.
Jo opened her door and shooed me in. “I’m sure it’s nothing like your home up in the Colonies, but it’s the only thing available.” Jo stated sarcastically, and I frowned at her. Why didn’t she like me? I had just met her - there’s no way I did something to her already.
“Your room is over there, and wash unit there.” She pointed respectively to a couple of doors. “Water allowance is 8 minutes per day so use it wisely. Morning meal starts sharply at 6, and it’s over by 8, lunch 12-2 and dinner meal 6-8. Don’t skip them because you won’t find food anywhere else other than the mess hall at the Commons. There’s a curfew after 11:00 at night, it’s more for the safety of the kids, but adults can go out as long as they are appropriately dressed to handle the heat and only around New Hope, so do that at your own danger. Got it?” I shook my head, filing the info away in my mind. I guess life on Earth wasn’t that much different than in the Colonies. “Cove said you’ll be heading out to the coast first thing in the morning so make sure you are ready by 6:30. Any questions?”
“No – no, got it all. Thanks for allowing me the use of your spare room and your hospitality,” I gave her a friendly smile.
She pursed her lips and gave a tiny nod. She made to leave but turned and gave me another look. “Don’t go out in those clothes, unless you want a repeat performance of tonight. I’ll leave some temp clothes for you in the wash unit if you want.”
“You will?” I asked surprised. So Jo didn’t particularly like me, but at least she didn’t want me to die of the heat either. I’d consider that progress in my book.
“Yeah sure, don’t know how well they’ll fit…” She gave a look at my hips and then my breasts her judgment clearly evident on her face “…but they’ll have to do for now. Temp clothes are not easy to come by here in the res.” Without another word from her, she turned and went in one of the doors that I assumed was her bedroom.
With a shrug and a frown, I decided to enter my room and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was a bit smaller than the one in my unit back in Saturn but much more welcoming and cozy. The walls were a warm yellow, and the gel pad mattress was covered by a light blue sheet. There was even a small desk and chair in the corner, overlooking a circular window. Someone had already delivered my bag, and it was placed next to what I assumed was a cubby for my clothes.
For the next hour, I preoccupied myself by unpacking, and then getting ready for bed. I hastily took a three-minute shower and then prepared my tools for tomorrow. I had brought several measuring tools, some testing tools for metals, and also some excavation tools as well. Everything was set for the morning, and I laid in bed se
tting my alarm looking forward to tomorrow.
Eight
Iolee
“This is amazing!” I gushed once more, as I looked up from my position, where I was kneeling inside the cave. I hadn’t actually stopped gushing about the sphere ever since we got to the cave half an hour earlier. Not even the excitement of seeing the Pink Ocean and hear its waves for the first time beat the excitement of actually getting my hands on real genuine untouched Ourupta tech.
“I can’t believe this.” I whispered to myself again, as I traced the symbols with my fingers. I bit my lip and looked at two members of my team looked on at me in amusement. “Can you believe this? This is…”
“We know amazing.” Haze, who had insisted I call him that all morning long grinned playfully at me,
“I guess I’ve been saying that a bit much huh?”
“I don’t think you’ve said anything else.” Locke drily commented. Behind them, Arlo, Cain and the swoon-worthy Cove looked on with an equal amount of amusement.
I had set up lamps inside the shallow, short cave but the light was still not enough. I gave a grumpy look to the cavernous walls and tapped my chin. How could I get this sphere out of this cave?
“Could we move the sphere? After my initial examination, I do not believe this is an active weapon.” I looked at the men in turn, and Cove was the one that took a few steps and leaned down. He looked me straight in the eyes and that breathless feeling I had yesterday came over me again. “I’m afraid we can’t, I tried all day yesterday – even tied it to a transport, and it wouldn’t budge.”
My focus changed from his chiseled face to the sphere, and my thoughts went running. Why wouldn’t it budge? Ourupta metal was one of the lightest metals, even a sphere its size wouldn’t weigh more than a kilo. I wondered if this was a different type of Ourupta metal that we had never seen before. If so, then maybe the sphere wasn’t even a bomb but something else. It had great similarities with the explosive devices we had found in the remaining destroyed Ourupta ships, but they were light and easy to lift, and there was a vertical and horizontal line that split them into quadrants.