Space Dragon Allepexxis

by C. K. Pershing

  Paress whirled around to see a small ghost-white girl with gigantic green eyes staring at him and Casten. She smiled her wide mouth, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth. Her hair was a blue that was so light it was almost white too. Some light freckles on her cheeks were the only visible blemishes on her poreless skin.

  “Paress Handrel? Casten?” the girl said, green eyes unblinking. Her smile widened revealing even more sharp teeth.

  “Yes…?” Paress said.

  “You don’t seem so sure about that,” she said.

  “What? Oh! Yes, I’m Paress Handrel and this is Casten,” Paress stammered. For as odd as the girl looked— some would even say she was a monster— Paress found her oddly attractive. He tried his best not to look at her very thin body and small breasts that seemed to be squeezed into an even smaller uniform.

  “That’s good,” she said and giggled. “I’m Elexcine Ohnette. I’m supposed to show you around.”

  “Okay,” Paress said. “We were kinda wondering…”

  “Yeah, they do that here,” Elexcine said. “Just kinda drop you in and let things go from there. Everybody’s so busy doing their own thing here that they cant be bothered to help.”

  “I just thought they were mostly rude,” Casten said.

  Elexcine giggled, “Oh, there’s plenty of that too. You have to remember that everybody here has been told they’re super special. And they pretty much are. But a lot of it goes to their heads. Some guy gets the Blessing, an Academy rep shows up and suddenly he thinks he’s some kind of hero.”

  “Or golden boy,” Casten said looking at Paress, who rolled his eyes.

  “Yep,” Elexcine agreed.

  “I’m sorry,” Paress said, “This is gonna sound rude…”

  “But what am I?” Elexcine finished. “Don’t worry, it’s not rude. My people are pretty rare. I’m an Elise Empyreahn.”

  “You mean, you were actually born here?” Paress asked.

  “Well, yeah. But what I mean is that my people are native to this planet. We’re not ‘invaders’ like you guys.”

  “Oh! Well…I’m sorry?” Paress didn’t know how to answer the part about being an invader.

  “I’m kidding,” Elexcine said. “You guys aren’t invaders. You’re honored guests. Elise Empyreah welcomes the Space Knight Academy and the Francescan Star Empire. We’re glad to have you.”

  “And I’m glad to hear it,” Paress said and then wanted to punch himself for sounding so stupid.

  “There are only about ten thousand of us on this planet,” Elexcine continued. “And we’re tied to the planet’s life force so if we leave, we die. That’s why you’ll never see us anywhere else.”

  Paress thought back to Behlen’s comment about not wanting to destroy Elise Empyreah because of the “special features” the world contained. It was safe to say that Elexcine’s people were likely one of those “features”.

  “I’m sorry to hear that you can’t leave,” Paress said.

  “Yeah, especially when I see everybody who comes through and hear some of the stories they tell of the places they’re from and where they’ve been. It’s a bit of a drag.” For the first time, Elexcine averted her eyes before they quickly came back to Paress. “But I’m not worried. The Academy’s trying to figure out a way for people like me to get off-planet. I’m looking forward to it.”

  “Well that’s good to hear then,” Casten said. “So, are you Blessed? Even though the Blessing is something that mostly happens to humans, the nanites occasionally migrate and Bless somebody from the other races like elves or whoever. Did that happen to you?”

  “No, I’m just a normal girl,” Elexcine said. “You’ll see that there are a lot of regular people here too to keep the place running. But don’t be fooled. I may not be Blessed, but I can take care of myself. I’m tied to the planet.”

  “What does that mean?” Paress asked. “If you get angry, you’ll cause an earthquake or something?”

  Elexcine grinned. “Don’t make me mad and you won’t find out.”

  “I won’t make you mad,” Casten said. “I think you’re awesome.”

  Paress glared at Casten. Was he actually trying to flirt with Elexcine? But I wanted to maybe take her out! He tried to think of something to say but couldn’t come up with anything. Elexcine stared at him, seemingly waiting for him and giving him a chance to take a shot. But when the only thing he could do was grunt and nod, her eyes flickered disappointment and they swung over to Casten.

  “Well, that’s nice of you to say!” she said with a small curtsy that accentuated the curve of her small bottom. “What a gentleman.”

  Casten looked over at Paress with an expression that said, Wow, can you believe this? and Paress could only offer a half-hearted smile and nod. He knew he shouldn’t be mad at Casten— it wasn’t his fault that Paress choked.

  “Okay, so, should we get on with the tour?” Elexcine asked.

  “Yes, please do,” Paress said.

  They spent the next few hours walking around the campus and grounds, Elexcine pointing out various features of interest. They looked in on some classes and got the keys to their room in one of the dormitories. Paress was relieved that he and Casten didn’r have to share their room with anybody else.

  “It’s because each room is uniquely suited to its occupants,” Elexcine explained. “Your room has a psychic damper around it in case something weird happens with your powers. A telekinetic blast during a nightmare or something. You never know. So the Academy has always made sure people with high-level Blessings get their own room.”

  “That’s cool,” Paress said. “I mean, I don’t think I’m gonna ever have telekinetic blasts from nightmares, but hey, I won’t argue.”

  After continuing with the tour and sitting in on some more classes for a few minutes, Paress asked when they would see the Hyper Battle Machines.

  “Oh, that’s out of my league,” Elexcine said. “Somebody with a higher rank than me will take you there tomorrow.”

  “Argh, the suspense is killing me!” Paress exclaimed. “All I’ve heard is how I’m supposed to pilot #25, but now I have to wait even longer before I even get to see what #25 looks like!” He turned to Elexcine. “Do you know what it looks like? Allepexxis?”

  Elexcine shook her head, “Sorry, if I told you, Dr. Behlen would have me thrown out— and I’m deadly serious when I say that. But don’t worry. Some pretty important people want to see what happens with you and Allepexxis, so you’ll probably be taken there at the crack of dawn tomorrow.”

  After touring one of the armories and watching some students practice their laser pistol aim at a shooting range, the tour ended at a hand to hand combat training area. Paress cringed as he watched the cadets punch, block, and throw each other.

  Two things stood out about the place that made him uncomfortable. The first was that it seemed older students and younger students were training together. Seeing teenagers and even some adults facing off against kids his age was frankly terrifying. What was worse, they were actually throwing real punches and some of the smallest kids were getting beaten to a pulp.

  “Uh, I don’t know about this,” Paress said.

  “Yeah, me either,” Casten agreed.

  “This is an advanced class,” Elexcine said. “For older students, it’s mandatory. Space Knights have to know how to fight, of course. But for younger students, it’s optional.”

  “Those kids getting the crap beaten out of them volunteered for this?” Paress nearly shouted.

  “Yep. You have to remember, there are all kinds of different Blessings. Yours is in telekinesis, but you’ve also gotten stronger and tougher. Well, for some, it’s all physical. Those young students down there getting all bloody…it might just be surface wounds. They’re probably all built like tanks internally and barely feel any pain.”

  The more Paress watched, the more he could see Elexcine’s point. Those bruised and battered children weren’t giving up and just kept coming back f
or more. Some were even smiling through bloodied lips. Paress decided he could do without meeting those cadets.

  “You’ll have to complete all combat training courses too,” Elexcine said. “A Space Knight has to be ready for all possible enemies. But your training will also be a bit different since it would be a waste for a Space Knight with ESPer gifts to get into a slugging match with some kind of space rhinoceros or something.”

  “Here’s hoping I never have to face a space rhinoceros unless I’m sitting in a Hyper Battle Machine,” Paress said.

  With the tour ended, Elexcine offered to take them back to their dorm room. It had been a long day and the sun was setting as they walked across a quiet field toward the dormitories. With it just being the three of them, Paress decided to take a shot during one of the moments where nobody was talking.

  “Elexcine, you’ve been a great tour guide,” Paress said.

  “Yeah definitely,” Casten agreed.

  “Thanks guys,” Elexcine smiled her wide smile full of sharp teeth. “It’s been my pleasure. You’ve both been so wonderful. A couple of great guys and probably the best two people I’ve ever given a tour to.”

  “Do you have a boyfriend?” Paress blurted out.

  Elexcine glanced at both of them and then looked up at the early evening sky. “No, I’m afraid not. I just haven’t had the time. It’s been a busy few years here…”

  Something occurred to Paress as Elexcine spoke. “Years? Um, how old are you? You look like you’re kind of our age, maybe even younger. But you’ve been at the Academy for years and are giving tours and know about the training and stuff, so…”

  “I’m 19,” Elexcine said.

  “Ohh,” Paress and Casten both chorused, crestfallen.

  Elexcine leaned in closer. “I know. You’re both really cute, and it’s pretty much anything goes here when it comes to relationships. But they’re not so hot on adults getting it on with kids.”

  Paress sighed. “Yeah…”

  “Most Imperial worlds, adulthood is recognized at sixteen,” Elexcine said.

  “Yeah, that’s how it is on Wystra,” Paress said.

  “And so maybe if you were like fifteen and a half or something like that, they’d let it slide with a couple of frowns and words of caution. But you’re way too young.”

  She seemed to know how bad she was making the boys feel and said, “I’m really sorry. You guys are so cool. They may not act like it, but everybody here knows what you did for those people on that space liner. Dating a guy, or couple of guys like that, would be awesome. But…well, you know.”

  “Yeah,” Paress said.

  Casten looked hopeful. “But I’m a Mechanism. Does that count?”

  Elexcine’s smile was gracious. “Your date of creation was still twelve years ago right? What’s your soul age?”

  “Twelve….”

  “Yeah, so…” she began. “Mechanisms with older souls can get by with younger bodies, but we have to count the current soul age because that’s who you really are. Yours is too young.”

  Casten sighed dejectedly and Paress couldn’t help but feel that it was poetic that this conversation where he and Casten were getting their hopes dashed was happening after watching a bunch of people get physically hurt and bloody in hand to hand training.

  “Ah dammit,” Elexcine said. “They wanted me to be your guide because they figured it’d be best if someone who kinda looked your age showed you around instead of someone who looked older. Maybe put you more at ease.” She looked down for a moment, “I think they also thought I’d look…different enough…that you wouldn’t be attracted to me.”

  “‘Different’?” Paress asked. “You mean like we’d think you were weird or something?”

  “Well…yeah! I saw you guys jump when you first saw me. You’ve never seen anything like me before. Weren’t you scared? My eyes? My teeth?”

  “It’s just because you’re so interesting,” Paress said. “But honestly, I think you’re really beautiful!” And inside, he congratulated himself for finally saying the right thing…even if it was for the wrong situation.

  “Me too!” Casten chimed in.

  Elexcine’s huge eyes softened. “You guys… Thanks.” She hugged them both and said, “But you know, there are girls here your age. You’ll be fine, you’ll see.”

  “That’s what everybody says,” Paress grumbled. “It’s what Dr. Behlen told me when he brought this guy along to be my Companion instead of a girl. No offense.”

  “None taken,” Casten said. “You know I thought I was getting a girl Space Knight.”

  Elexcine laughed. “I get it. You’re just a couple of horny boys just getting into girls. It happens to everybody. I’m not lying though. You will find girls here. Trust me. The Academy doesn’t want their Space Knights to get too frustrated— if you know what I mean.”

  “Really?” Paress asked, hopeful.

  Elexcine laughed even harder. “See? You’ve already forgotten about me! As soon as you get a chance with a girl more your age, you’ll look back on me and laugh at how silly you were to consider me.”

  “No I won’t!” Paress almost shouted and his earnestness made Elexcine shake her head and hug him again.

  “Guys, we barely know each other. One day, a few hours on a campus tour and you think you love me. Come on…”

  “Earlier when we first met,” Paresss began. “When Casten said you were awesome. You looked at me like maybe I had a chance to say something and have a shot. Why’d you do that if you knew I was too young and you weren’t interested?”

  Elexcine sighed. “I’m sorry. I was stupid. I was so delighted that you two liked me right away and didn’t need an ‘adjustment period’ for my appearance…I immediately went into flirting mode without thinking. I shouldn’t have done that. I really am sorry for leading you on. Please try to understand.”

  “You know what?” Paress said. “Fine. We’ll be okay. Thanks for your time. I can see the dorm— we can get there ourselves. Please leave us alone.” He knew he was being petulant and stopped himself before he said something extremely childish.

  Paress foolishly hoped against all hope that Elexcine would suddenly see the error in her ways, burst into tears and apologize for hurting him before agreeing to be his girlfriend. But the reality of the situation brought him crashing back to reality hard when she instead looked relieved that he was telling her to go.

  “Okay,” Elexcine said, almost matter-of-factly. “And hey, if either of you are still interested after you turn sixteen, look me up.” She gave a brief salute that turned into a small wave and confidently walked off across the field, leaving the two boys alone.

  “Jesus,” Paress said. “Can life be any more stupid? Can I be anymore stupid?”

  “Can we be anymore stupid, you mean,” Casten corrected.

  “The really lame thing is that she’s right— we’re just a couple of loser kids trying to get with girls,” Paress said. “Ugh, real cool Space Knight stuff.”

  “I keep thinking about how she said she’d be okay dating a couple of guys like us,” Casten said. “What does that mean? Like, she’d have sex with both of us or something?”

  “Who knows?” Paress said, and he hated himself for his quickened pulse as he watched her lithe body disappear into the twilight of early evening. “For all we know she might have a bunch of weird tentacles in her crotch or something scary like that.”

  “I dunno, she acted like our parts would match up…” Casten ventured.

  “I don’t care,” Paress said. “I’m gonna go with the idea that she has a bunch of scary tentacle things in her crotch that will eat me alive.”

  Casten rolled his eyes. “Oh geez, whatever helps you forget her.”

  “We’ve barely known this girl for a couple hours and I’m falling head over heels,” Paress said. “What an idiot!”

  “I guess that maybe you should just keep thinking of crotch tentacles then…”

  “Yes. I will.”
Paress shook his head. “Dammit.”

  They walked in silence and reached the light of the dormitories. Like everywhere else on campus, they had the look of classic stone architecture that looked both strong and inviting. A couple of older guys were kicking a small leather ball back and forth to each other under one of the lights. Two elven girls were making out in the darkness under a tree and Paress studiously avoided looking at them considering his state of mind about girls just then.

  As they neared the door, another older guy was sitting on a nearby bench, reading. They were almost past him when he looked up from his book and said, “Back from the tour? So what did you think of the place?”

  Paress was astonished that another student had not only acknowledged his existence, but was actually talking to him. “Oh! Uh, it was really cool. The armory was cool.”

  “Looking forward to seeing the Hyper Battle Machines,” Casten put in.

  “Glad to hear it,” the guy responded. “Good luck with everything. We’re glad to have you.”

  “Uh, thanks,” Paress said.

  The guy gave a short, friendly wave and went back to reading his book. Paress could almost cry in joy. After being ignored by practically everyone on the planet and having his heart broken by Elexcine, this guy’s acknowledgment and friendly words were what Paress needed more than anything just then.

  He looked at Casten and smiled. Casten also seemed to understand the importance of the moment with the friendly guy. Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad here after all.

  Chapter Seven

  The following morning, there was a light tapping on the door to Paress and Casten’s room. Paress hadn’t been able to sleep because he was excited, with a good deal of nervousness thrown in, about the upcoming day’s possibilities. He found it annoying that Casten, a Mechanism, was able to sleep soundly and without problem, while an organic like himself had such a hard time.

  So when the knock on the door came at around 7 a.m., Paress had already been well awake, while Casten had only been up for about twenty minutes. Paress jumped up off his bed and threw open the door. He looked out into the hallway to see nothing at first, then realized that the caller was a bit lower to the ground than what he was expecting.