Miragin knew nothing of that. He asked, “You deserve to be with those who care for you. Do you know where your family ended up?”
Elisa shrugged. “My mother died years ago. As for the rest, we weren’t very close in the end. I doubt they’ve bothered to look for me if they survived Armageddon.”
To her delight, the Imdiko took her hand in his, holding it gently. “Elisa, no one should be as alone as you are. No wonder you have such a skewed vision of yourself and your worth.”
She had nothing to say to that. A small part of her mind wished it could believe what this man said. The rest, locked in the Kalquorian venom’s spell, centered on how warm and strong Miragin’s touch was and how delicious it would feel on places other than her hand.
Chapter 8
Several minutes passed, during which Oret tapped at the computer keyboard with seemingly unending patience. Zemos leaned over the Nobek, murmuring in their guttural language from time to time. Whether he offered advice or mere encouragement as Oret tried to insinuate his way into the system, Elisa didn’t know.
She was much more aware of Miragin. The handsome Imdiko still held her hand, easing closer so that his body and thigh touched hers. His warmth seeped into her, making her acutely conscious of everything about him: the strength of his body, his musky scent that consisted of a delicious mix of primal male and animal, and the way his big hand swallowed hers. If he suddenly pushed Elisa down onto the couch and tried to have sex with her, would she have the ability to resist? The thought she might not spurred equal parts terror and delight.
A loud burst of alien speech from Oret claimed her attention. Zemos responded to him, a grim smile lighting his almost-cute features. Elisa might not have spoken Kalquorian, but she didn’t need to. Oret had broken into the computer’s programs. He now had access to the ship’s data.
Tapping faster than before, he made the vid floating over the computer shimmer and divide into two. Zemos bent to look closely at whatever information the Nobek brought up. A moment later, both men grunted with satisfaction.
Oret spoke in English. “All right, I’ve got the schematics for the entire ship.”
Zemos clapped his clanmate hard on the shoulder. “Excellent start. We can at least find our way around now. Can you access any control or security codes from here?”
Oret went back to tapping. Elisa noted how tightly Miragin clutched her hand as he watched his Nobek attempt to worm his way into the more secretive workings of the ship. She caught herself cheering Oret on in her own head and put a stop to it.
Damned Kalquorian poison in my system. Focus, Elisa, focus! You need to figure out some way to stop them.
The thought of resistance was so clear for a brief instant that she thought she had finally thrown the effects of the bite off. Then the billowy clouds of contentment rolled back in, muffling her concerns. She returned to contemplating Miragin’s hand on hers and the enthralling intensity on Zemos and Oret’s faces.
After a few moments, Oret sat back in the too-small chair with a grimace. “We’d have to be on the bridge or in the engineering department to break into the main controls, including off-ship communications.”
“What about secondary systems?” Zemos asked.
“I can enact some commands from this unit. I’ve got access into the monitoring program that can keep track of all personnel. Right now, it’s disabled.”
Zemos considered. “That’s the first bit of good news. They must have switched it off because of the power rationing Elisa spoke of.”
“That’s what I’m thinking. I can bring it back up and make it so only I control it. We’ll be able to tell if anyone is in our vicinity.”
“Will the Earthers be able to trace it back to our location?”
Oret tapped the keyboard and looked at the readouts that scrolled up. “They’ll be able to detect the power drain and trace it back to the monitoring system itself. However, I can keep them from figuring out where the operating command has come from. I can also lock them out so they can’t access the monitoring or shut it down.”
Zemos straightened. He paced back and forth a few times, considering. Elisa watched him, as enthralled as if she was at the zoo before a tiger striding about its cage. Zemos’ muscles, visible beneath his body-hugging formsuit, moved in the most hypnotic way.
The Dramok said, “They’ll know someone is using it. They’ll know we’re in the computer banks.”
Oret frowned then shook his head. “I think they might not, at least not right away. It’s a drop in the ocean of programs that run this ship. It’s more likely they’ll believe it’s a glitch in the system.”
Elisa was caught up once more in their plans, and she couldn’t help but add, “You’re right about that. Most of the engineering staff have abandoned the ship, including the chief engineer and his senior staff. There have been a lot of malfunctions lately.”
Oret smiled at her. He seemed pleased she’d entered the conversation. “There are few places a ship like this can be repaired in space dock, especially since Captain Walker is trying to stay out of sight. If you don’t have the personnel to keep up with breakdowns, that makes it even more unlikely the change will be noted right away. Even if someone notices, they might not consider it strange.”
Elisa was delighted that he found her input important. “Maintaining stuff has become a huge headache. If something fails that the ship doesn’t absolutely need to get by, no one bothers. A quarter of the kitchen no longer works properly.”
Zemos also smiled at her and exchanged a look with Oret. “Do it, then. Also track down where we can find weapons and where we can hide all our shipmates once we get them out. Once you’ve done that, maybe I’ll have a plan as to how we can seize control of this ship.”
A tendril of worry wormed its way into Elisa’s gut. Intoxication loosened its hold enough for her to think clearer. Had she just helped her captors? She sucked in her lower lip and tried to think.
What had she told them? First of all, that the ship’s complement had been cut down dramatically, right down to the fact that most of the engineering staff had left. However, with Oret enabling the monitoring system, he’d be able to get a head count of how many were still on board anyway.
Elisa knew for a fact that a crew roster was still maintained in the computer banks for the purposes of assigning shifts. It could be the Nobek would have discovered who was left to go on duty. He might even be able to break into personnel records to discover the rank and experience those now tasked with engineering maintenance.
So the worst she’d done was give the Kalquorians information sooner than they would have found it on their own. What else had she told them? Oh yeah, that there had been malfunctions. But Elisa hadn’t told them what wasn’t working and wouldn’t be able to. She had no idea how bad off the battlecruiser was, apart from the trouble the galley crew had been having in the kitchen.
She still had plenty to worry about, especially if Zemos freed the rest of his crew. The Kalquorian prisoners were less than one hundred, only about a third of the Earthers left. Surely that wasn’t enough to overcome the remaining men of the battlecruiser, but who knew? Elisa was convinced Oret alone could take out two or three men, and Zemos was no one to take lightly either. Were the rest of the Kalquorians so dangerous?
She thought about the prisoners being held in the general population brig. Most of them were Nobeks, Kalquor’s warrior breed. Skilled fighters, in other words.
Maybe they could take over the vessel. The thought managed to drive out the drugging mists from Elisa’s mind.
She asked, “What happens to us Earthers if you succeed in getting control of the cruiser?”
Miragin’s hand tightened on hers again, as if to comfort her. Zemos and Oret faced her, their expressions careful.
The captain approached her, coming close and sinking to his knees at her feet. His hand lifted to her hair. He stroked, as if to soothe her.
Zemos’ voice was quiet as he said, “The d
isposition of this crew will be up to our courts to decide.”
Elisa couldn’t help the shudder that ran through her. Kalquorian justice was notorious for its brutality, almost matching Earth’s. “The case couldn’t be remanded to the Galactic Council’s jurisdiction? I thought all Earther matters were ultimately up to them. Is it because the crew’s crimes were committed against a Kalquorian destroyer?”
Zemos pursed his lips. “That’s exactly the issue. Your ship carried out an attack on my destroyer, killed much of my crew, and took the rest of us prisoner in Empire space.” His gaze abruptly sharpened and he looked over his shoulder. “Oret—”
The Nobek nodded and resumed tapping on the computer keyboard. “I know, Captain. I’m checking our position and heading to confirm we’re on our way to Bi’is space to be sold off as slaves.”
Zemos turned back to Elisa. “These are great crimes that have been made against the people of Kalquor. I doubt you yourself have anything to fear, however. Those like you will most likely be released.”
“Define ‘those like me’,” she said.
“Crewmembers who weren’t in any command capacity of the ship during its illegal activities. Especially those who were unable to find an alternative to staying on board. You are little more than an innocent bystander, Elisa.”
Miragin added, “There is no reason for the Empire to hold you, a dietician, accountable for what happened to us. You are no more than a victim of circumstance.”
Elisa felt a little better about her situation, but her guts churned to think of Captain Walker standing trial in a Kalquorian court. Or of him going to a Kalquorian prison, which were rumored to be the height of cruelty. If, horror of horrors, he was to be sentenced to execution – well, the Kalquorians had a firm belief that the punishment should fit the crime. Elisa couldn’t imagine the torment Walker would face before finally being allowed to die.
And what of men like Ensign Larsen who guarded the prisoners in general detention? That poor youngster felt sorry for his charges and hated that he was a part of their situation. Would he stand trial too, or would he be regarded as innocent as Elisa?
Elisa knew Zemos had no answers for her, at least not the kind that would quell her worries. She decided to keep her concerns limited to her own future. “I guess I’ll end up on one of our colonies then.”
Miragin’s hand left hers. He shifted so that his arm crept around her waist. “There are other options. You could go to Kalquor.”
Elisa tried to not think too much about how it felt to be embraced by the Imdiko. She attempted to ignore the delight of Zemos’ continued petting. She pretended not to notice how her entire body seemed to flame to life at their touches.
Focus, focus, focus.
She told them, “We’ve already established I’m not able to have children. I am of no use to Kalquor.”
Zemos’ hand left Elisa’s hair. His calloused thumb rubbed her cheek, inciting a whole new wave of molten energy inside. It took all she had to not lean into his touch.
The Dramok said, “The Empire allows aliens who wish to live and work among us to stay within our borders. You wouldn’t receive a government allowance, but if you can earn your keep, you are more than welcome to live among our people.”
Miragin added, “You might also attract one of those clans not interested in siring children. If they made you their Matara, they would be responsible for your well-being.”
Elisa snorted even as her heart gave a wistful pang. “I can’t imagine three men who would be so desperate as to want me.”
Zemos’ look went dark. A delicious thrill of fear rolled through Elisa at that fierce expression. For heaven’s sake, even his anger was arousing in her state.
The Dramok said, “You infuriate me with these frequent outbursts of self-loathing. I don’t like it, Elisa. You are pissing me off, and that is something you do not want to do.”
The forceful display only made things more exciting in her strange state of mind, but instinct told Elisa she needed to calm the big man down.
She pointed out in her most reasonable tone, “It’s not loathing. I don’t hate myself. I just know my place in the scheme of things, that’s all. I’m not the kind of woman men look twice at when there are others to see.”
“Then that is their loss.”
It was a couple of seconds after Zemos’ statement that Elisa’s mind finally registered his mouth was on hers. Zemos was kissing her. His big hands, hands capable of crushing a coconut, cupped her face, holding it tilted to one side so he could get the perfect angle. His lips were soft and warm and moving over hers with a tenderness that made the melted feelings inside stronger than before.
He was kissing her.
Elisa was too shocked to move. All she could do was sit there as the Kalquorian’s mouth took hers. She felt the moist tip of his tongue slide along where her lips joined and she gasped, her mouth parting open.
Zemos’ tongue slid inside. He tasted her. She could taste him. Musky, almost smoky in flavor, he was what she had always thought a man should taste like. No, better. And the feeling...
She moaned as his raspy tongue stroked hers. The warm feelings she’d had since being bitten by the Dramok changed. They grew more demanding. Deep in her belly, Elisa ached. She knew a wanting so fierce that it almost hurt.
One hand left her face, and the steel beam of Zemos’ arm circled her waist, pulling her close to him. Now his unyielding body was against hers, forcing her to mold to the muscular length of his torso. Every cell in Elisa’s body heightened to acute awareness, feeling him as she’d never felt anything before. Her nipples throbbed to be pressed to his massive chest. Her pulse thundered in her ears. She was dimly aware she clung helplessly to his shoulders, holding on to keep from fainting from the beautiful assault that left her weak and shaking.
When Zemos’ mouth left hers, he looked down on her with an expression she could not read. Triumph, perhaps? She certainly felt conquered. One corner of his mouth lifted in a knowing smile.
“Yes, failing to notice you would be any man’s loss.”
Miragin’s voice sounded both right there in Elisa’s ear and a million miles away. “That looked delicious.”
She thought she felt him stroking her upper back as Zemos continued to stare down at her. She couldn’t be sure of anything right now, including her own senses. Her body was shaking, her mind wispy.
The Dramok said, “She is quite delicious, my Imdiko. I would be glad to do that again and again until she begged me to stop. I’d have to be desperate to want you, Elisa? I’d have to be stupid to not.” He scowled and inhaled deeply, forcing his anger to smooth away.
His arm remained locked around Elisa, holding her so close she imagined she felt his heartbeat. His chest moved against her with every breath, keeping that excruciating awareness of being smashed up against him foremost in her mind.
She felt as much as heard Zemos’ next words. “I don’t believe for an instant anyone has resisted the chance to enjoy a woman like you. Tell me, how many have been so lucky as to kiss you, my sweet?”
For a wonder, she remembered how to talk. “Only one. A long time ago when I was still a girl.”
She remembered that one kiss that had ruined everything, turning the greatest summer of her life into the most nightmarish. Elisa remembered the kiss, remembered the teenage boy who had gifted her with it at music camp. That sweet, heavenly moment that had been the culmination of the one time she’d escaped home and responsibility. Until the yelling and accusations and recriminations started, she’d felt then as she did now: alive with joy.
No, this was more powerful. Somehow, being held in Zemos’ arms with Miragin right there too gave Elisa the feeling of safety and security. Wasn’t that funny, considering she was their prisoner?
Zemos caressed her cheek. “Someone got to kiss you and he let you go? What kind of fool was he?”
Elisa sighed. The spell was lifting with the onslaught of memories. “We were caught. He h
ad no choice but to never see me again.”
“Caught? You make it sound like kissing was a punishable offense.”
“It was, because it was romantic and sinful. I was a minor and it was only a misdemeanor, so the court let me off easy. I was spared a criminal record, but I was publicly shamed for my crime and made to work for the community. My father had just left for the last time, and my mother was livid because I wasn’t around to take care of my siblings for six months.”
It had been a light sentence, yet it hadn’t felt that way. Backbreaking labor of cleaning up public places, forced to face the jeers of people who passed Elisa as she sweated in the bright yellow vest with the word LUST emblazoned on it ... it had been an awful nightmare. Sometimes when Elisa returned home at the end of the day with her body sore and aching, the tears of humiliation still wetting her cheeks, her overwrought mother had beaten her for not being available to watch the younger ones. She’d been forced to pay for a babysitter they couldn’t afford.
One little kiss on a warm, happy summer night, marking the grand climax to the most beautiful time Elisa had ever known. One little kiss, the ending of which ushered in years of shame and the neverending attempt to make up for girlish fancies of love.
Miragin’s hand had tightened on her shoulder. “A kiss as a crime?” he whispered. When Elisa looked at him, his expression was filled with pain.
A huge, dark figure came to stand over them. Oret’s fists were clenched and his voice came out shaking. “Please make her stop talking. There is no one here for me to punch.”
Zemos’ grave expression lifted as he considered Elisa. A tight smile curled his mouth, making him look excitingly wicked.
He told them all, “I will gladly quiet her words. We all will. Let her body speak to us instead, since there is no one left to harm her for such things.”
Alien Caged Page 11