The Chrysanthemum Maru broke moorings, and left the dock to head for open sea.
Luck was with her, Frederika and Mia were to share the same cabin. The synthetic girl at last could get some answers she hoped about these Falcanians. On her sleeping mat, Frederika came across an unusual flower. Its long yellow elliptical petals were splotched with vermilion and pulsed with a soft luminance. She touched the dew-covered stem only to find that it wasn't moist. It just appeared that way.
How strange, Frederika thought.
“It's a Ziral-Kheigra. It means ‘light-cat’.” Mia rolled over onto her stomach atop her futon. “The last time I came there were these most scrumptious saffron candies.”
“You speak Falcanian?”
“No, but after a while you pick things up.” Mia grinned. “Besides, the flowers grow all over the island under the large trees. The forest is interesting at night. Wait till you see the air squid.”
“An air squid? You're kidding, right?”
“They’re very real and a few other new, strange kinds of beasts.”
“I can't wait to see all these new creatures.” She placed the flower next to her and looked at Mia. “Speaking of new species, you were telling me about Falcanian biology before we boarded.”
Mia hesitated for a moment. “Falcanian biology is not a thing we should speak of. But what you wonder is, do they have wings?” Mia nodded. “Yes they do, and to see a Falcanian soar the skies is a thing I will always remember to my dying day.”
“I bet it is most awesome.”
“Your questions will all vanish at Vorkrür. I promise.” Mia confessed. “It's just that they don’t like to talk about their biology to outsiders.”
“Why?”
“It's one of the few taboos that Falcanians have.”
Frederika sighed. Clearly, either Mia did not know or she was unwilling to discuss what she knew about Falcanians and their physiology with her. To push the matter further might endanger her operation.
“Why are you here?” Frederika asked, changing tactics.
“My family was killed in a border skirmish three years ago and I have a little brother I need to care for. I earned enough last time to keep us up and running, though even that wasn't sufficient for my brother's needs.” Mia's amber eyes filled with tears. “Philip, my brother. He... he’s blind.”
Frederika's heart was moved by Mia's plight. Born in superior health and not likely to contract anything but a genetic specific disease, Frederika did not know what it was like to be sick. In this day of genetic therapy such injuries could have been corrected though it was only an option if one belonged to the middle and upper classes.
“I hope I can strike a deal with Hawk. See if he will have his genetic engineers correct Philip's vision.”
For a few minutes, the two women sat in silence. “Why are you here?” Mia finally asked.
“Me?” Frederika searched for a believable lie. “I seek knowledge.”
“Knowledge?”
“Ja! I want to learn more about this D’Har Tarik.”
“I’d have thought a tourist visa would be better for such things?”
Frederika allowed herself to laugh. The girl's logic was on target. “Well, there seemed to be more dividends in this vocation. Having the ruler of a nation shower you with gifts for a few weeks of your time isn't a bad way to learn about a culture.”
“I can understand that. But...” Mia blushed, “are you a stripper by choice?”
Frederika grinned widely. “When I think the payoff will be better for my needs, I have been known to utilize my… assets as a career choice.”
[Vanguard Island: Narshin Thryak Palace, Evening]
Nadia lounged on top of Sharr's opulent nest. An arm slung over her abundant bare breasts, she wore nothing except skimpy Persian blue panties and metal bands on her upper arms. The Queen’s nutbrown locks hung down her back, and golden earrings sparkled reflected light. Nadia smoldered a cobalt gaze in the direction of Sharr, now returned to his lair. She swished her armored tail in anticipation.
Like a predatory animal, filled with lust, his eyes narrowed at the gorgeous sight of her.
The Shotar ran a hand up the cinnamon curve of his mate’s thigh to find the place in the small of Nadia’s back where the Garuda joined to her spinal column. She exhaled at his firm caress as he worked that erogenous spot just how she liked it. The Shotar kissed her and then took hold of his wife's hips so he could roll her face forward on the nest. He moved her streamlined tail aside and hooked his thumb into her panties, slide them off her long, smooth legs. He moved his fingers over her exposed flesh. A moan escaped her lips. She turned her cheek as his mouth kissed her, her almond eyes closed completely lost to the pleasurable sensations of her own body.
Sharr kissed his way over his mate’s tan form and paid special attention to a mole on her right shoulder. He continued to enjoy her warm flesh which left an aftertaste of mocha and sweet almonds on his mouth. He teased her with his every touch. At last Sharr reached the aerodynamic Garuda that embraced the contours of Nadia’s luscious body. Designed to give a Falcanian the power of flight the Garuda in fact was a biorobotic 'jet pack' coupled to the body by a molecular bond. Fine metallic purple feathers covered Nadia’s own Garuda. Mid-back two retractable compact thrusters lay hidden for aid in launch. The ailerons were rooted to the body in the upper most triangular mass and powerful, artificial muscles were used to flap the great wings. The Garuda tapered downward to meet the tail bone and became a dangerous plated tail.
Fingering Nadia’s tight sheath to make her ready, Sharr found that already Nadia had become warm. Moist. Hot. And he wanted to make her even wetter. She jerked and sighed while he teased her slit. Engorged, Sharr penetrated her. In a spasm of pleasure Nadia cried out, her translucent glassy rose-colored wings twitched with each thrust. Sharr slid in and out, pushed his hardened member into her, driving on her pleasure. Beneath him she bucked and clawed at the silk bed sheets. Her back arched and pulled him in deeper as her pussy tightened on his rod. Sharr pressed more aggressively and growled as he and his mate climaxed together. He explosively spent himself as her orgasm milked him dry.
He pulled out of her with a pop and gathered her in his arms. Sharr kissed the top of her head. Nadia enjoyed his warmth and closeness. Just the two of them sharing this one quiet moment together.
“I want you to restart your cycle.”
“You... want another child?”
“Yes,” Sharr said. “Its time to move past Krada's death.”
After the traumatic gestation of her twin girls the Maharani had halted her own reproductive cycle. Falcanian females produced ovum in a similar fashion as a male manufactured sperm which made them forever fertile. They could, at will start and stop their generative turns.
Typical male! Having had his fill, and expressing his request, Sharr promptly dozed off.
Nadia watched Sharr as he slept. She touched his cheek. It was one of the few times that the worries of the world did not show on his fierce face. He kept a protective hand around her waist, even as he snored, lost to his labors. However Nadia's sleep did not come so peacefully; she sensed change off on the horizon.
Among bright stars Nadia stood. The lights were those many minds joined together in the Falcanian over-soul. A single green egg formed in front of her. She reached out for it, felt the life throb inside the large ovum. The Queen knew she could not be pregnant, for she had yet to restart her cycle. But the Lords of Char were clear – She must bear a new child for her Shotar.
The egg cracked and a bright green light blinded Nadia. When the light diminished, a girl stood before her. A blonde. And definitely not a Falcanian. Rather 'normal' human waited with her in the cybernetic world of Char. Nadia examined the young woman's features, a picture of beauty. Her heart shaped face marred only by a single freckle under her right eye. Emerald eyes burned with determination. The girl carried herself as if she were a princess, born of the highest blood. “Who
are you?” Nadia asked.
Pulled abruptly from the primal core of the Falcanian group mind, Nadia woke with a shock to see that Sol lifted and now cast an early morning light across the ocean. Sharr still snored beside her. Nadia reached out a hand toward a nearby table, a stainless steel cup slid into her fingers. She swallowed the water in a single gulp, refreshed by its icy coolness.
Finally Nadia pushed the covers aside, stretched, and got out of the silken nest. Her tail swished behind her as she strode naked across the room. She stepped up to the elliptical window, and gazed downward on the port below. The picture of the cracking egg remained in her mind. Nadia glanced back at her mate. Sharr wanted another child, a son no doubt. She wanted to give him that, but dare she risk another pregnancy?
On deck Frederika was pleased to see that the sun had begun to rise warm over the ocean. It promised to be a fiery sunrise, glorious and exhilarating to behold. She glanced around. Only a few crewmen were on the deck. But Ch'Kran was there. He did not stand, rather he perched on a crossbar in the center of the deck. The manner in which he sat reminded Frederika very much of some kind of hunting creature that scanned a field for a small animal to swoop down upon. She walked over to the Falcanian, yet remained a few feet out of his reach.
Ch'Kran continued to silently scan, his face hidden in a gray cowl.
“Morning,” Frederika said. She looked with interest at the perched Falcanian. He had removed his cloak and his translucent burnt-orange wings were on display. Barely extended, they caught the first light of the sun which cast a diffused orange halo on the deck.
She noticed the tri-claw boots to be very functional and articulate in construction, true talons. The boots, similar in style to Japanese tabi, clutched the crossbar and split into two parts. They reached up the knee, with forward talons mounted on each toe section, the longer inner-claw joined to the boot at the big toe. The rear talon, flexible and tactile like the front claws grasped the wood and added fresh scars to the worn mahogany T-bar.
Frederika resisted her urge to reach out and touch the Falcanian. She was not sure he would respond well to such a violation of his boundaries. Besides, Ch’Kran sat there as if he were prepared to spring forward in attack which made Frederika maintain her distance. Was this typical of his kind? Frederika hoped not for he seemed aloof and untouchable.
“How long before we reach Vanguard Island?”
“Not long.”
She nodded. She knew he wouldn't give her any specific time for he understood that much could be extrapolated from such information. The vessel did not take the straight route to his homeland due to security reasons.
Under the cowl, Frederika could see Ch'Kran had long hair, a metallic silver-blue. Humans did not have such shades of locks, not naturally at least. It must have been a genetic upgrade worked into his DNA, this bird like plumage. If Ch'Kran were in fact a typical representative of his kind, then she could not help but think them to be a most magnificent and beautiful people.
Ch'Kran knew the girl sized him up, sought out clues about himself and his species. They always wondered such things. These females without fail gaped with awe when they stepped foot upon the island of his birth, for Vanguard was not like any other place on Earth.
Once more Frederika discovered herself caught up in the magnetism of Ch'Kran's gaze. She stared nearly awestruck at him while he looked at her. Her twenty-twenty vision held his own perfect sight, though the Falcanian did not look at her as a man does upon a beautiful woman, rather he regarded her as some kind of toy and that notion rather displeased her. “What…” Frederika cleared her throat, shook by his magnetic presence. “I have heard of your religion, D’Har Tarik. Exactly what is it?”
To Frederika's shock, Ch'Kran laughed, an ironic bellow.
“D’Har Tarik.” The Falcanian's laughter almost died away, yet he could not help himself. This trinket dared go where few should tread. “To be Tarik, is to embrace tairlock -- instinct. All those dark primal things the Budjah fear, which fuels their hatred of Tantric Priestesses. The D’Har Tarik takes darkness and finds in it starlight to guide him while he walks on the long road over the abyss. In one simple and dangerous mantra: 'OM Geihva, Geihvat, Geihvar OM' lays the understanding of D’Har Tarik. Those who speak this shibboleth are never again the same. It is, my pretty one, something that you should be fearful of.”
Ch'Kran's sapphire eyes flashed an otherworldly green. A rush of wind blew her blonde curls and a sound of jets fired in her ears. The Falcanian glared down at her from the ships upper deck, his tail behind him whipped about and burnt-orange wings were now safely folded out of his way. It happened so fast that even Frederika's enhanced senses could not make reason of what occurred.
She looked up and gasped. One moment she was staring at the Falcanian and in the next breath, he swooped up to the upper level of the boat. She didn't even seen him fly. The notion chilled her. What could cadres of winged shock troops do for her Dukedom against her enemies?
“Do you know, girl?” Ch'Kran shouted, a hint of humor to his words. “Aside from bats, Falcanians are the only other mammals to have achieved powered flight. Mankind has dreamed of it for a lifetime and we have accomplished it. Much awaits you at Vanguard Island, my radiant falcon.”
Nadia entered her office, pleased to come upon bouquets of her favorite flowers in every open corner of the room. Her workplace had become a small garden, each vase arranged in the most artistic manner possible. Nadia bent over a bunch of red hybrid-roses, and relished their rich scent. Clearly Sharr had ordered the floral arrangements to be brought here as a surprise. For her. She loved him so much. Sharr had known he would ask her to restart her reproductive cycle, and these flowers were intended to make her more inclined to do so.
On her desk she discovered a package. Nadia unwrapped it and let out a giggle.
“Perfect!”
Sharr had obtained for her a copy of Huntress XLR: Demolition. Always the geek girl, she had soothed her childhood loneliness with video games which Nadia observed to be quite a needed stimulation for her always overwrought brain. She sat on the edge of her desk and broadly grinned.
“T'Saar Maharani,” Priyanka, her aide greeted, bent to smell an arrangement of fire lilies. “Our Padishah's work I assume?”
“Just Sharr being his sweet self,” Nadia said. “You know, he wants another child.”
Concerned Priyanka opened her mouth, and then stopped herself not sure if she should speak her mind.
The Queen frowned. “What troubles you Priya?”
“Isn’t that dangerous?” asked the aide. “Weren’t there complications when your daughters were conceived?”
Nadia sat in her chair. “Yes. And it's one of the reasons I stopped my cycle. I wasn’t sure I could handle another pregnancy. Twins weren’t expected, or even thought possible for our species. In my case, there were other difficulties that have made me cautious about once more giving conception a try.” Nadia smiled at her aide. “But how can I deny him a child? Especially a son?”
Priyanka nodded. She should have expected this to arise sooner or later between Sharr and Nadia given the Shotar’s recent loss of his male heir. “May I speak openly?”
“Of course.”
“We all grieved our Shotar and his Kajra Re’s loss,” the girl said carefully. “I understand why you prefer to birth his heir and not another woman –”
Nadia narrowed her eyes. Certainly her aide hadn’t meant to say she had been glad Sharr’s son had died?
“What do you mean, Priyanka?”
“What I mean, my Lady, is I know you also grieved with Shalimar as well...” She hesitated. “Only... Please be careful in what you choose to do. Don’t risk your health just to give him a son. Do you have any reason to think this time a pregnancy will be different?”
“Our faith in the Telchar will guide us. In the end, that’s all any of us have. If it’s meant to be, it will.” Nadia touched the girl's arm. “Don’t worry Priya, I won’t do anyth
ing that will put me in danger. In fact I’m going for a physical later today and shall abide by what the doctor recommends before I restart my cycle.” Nadia understood her own unique physiology far better than any doctor, Falcanian, or human. “I'll even confab with my mother to hear what she thinks about it.”
That appeared to be sufficient to sooth the younger woman’s worries.
“What's on the agenda for the day?” asked the Queen as she booted up her computer.
“Later you’re expected at the hatchery.” There appeared a glint of pleasure in the young woman's brown eyes. “You’re needed to bless the new mothers and their children.” This caused Nadia much delight; she enjoyed her role as the Grand Brood mother. With luck and faith, she hoped she would soon also welcome a hatchling.
The acidic smell of bergamot and smoke from a pot of Imperial blend tea hung in the air. Sharr tapped a button on his desk which activated the holoviewer set into a far wall. He switched the viewer to FKZ, a network established by an enterprising Guilthari on the subcontinent. Sounds from the holoviewer became background noise as Sharr looked at the pictures on his desk. Framed images of his mate and daughters gazed back at him. One picture stood out, a human girl smiled at him. The lighting in the picture highlighted the girl's brown hair. Her pretty, girl next door Italian face aglow with a big smile.
The Shotar's reminisces were interrupted by shouts from the courtyard. Sharr got up and pulled back the maroon curtain.
Starblade Page 4