by Viola Grace
“She is a popular girl for someone that no one knows is out yet.” She smiled slightly and typed in the information. His identity popped up on her screen, and Hunter Sorrok was in the system with a number of commendations for off-world actions. She added him to the alert list for Lianne’s social requests. “There. You will be alerted when she is in a common area and when she is socializing.”
He paused. “Is there a way to be alerted when she is at the gym?”
Isabella smiled slowly. Lianne loved the gym. “Well, you are paying attention, I will give you that. Yes, the alert is filed. Your account will notify you when she is heading to the gym. The escort she has with her is required to file the plans.”
“Thank you—”
“Isabella.”
He looked to Iktabi’s closed door and back to her. “I see.”
She shrugged and smiled. “Yes.”
Sorrok left, and she checked the personnel lists for all of Imrahl. It seemed that with the cuffs had come a truly frightening amount of access to information. It was the strangest idea of punishment she had ever heard of. She was getting exactly what she wanted.
Chapter Four
She ordered a security team to her quarters to move her clothing and possessions to Iktabi’s quarters. He was the overseer of the outpost, and he had a spare room. All her stuff would fit in there nicely.
Working with those folks who had been newly decanted and convinced they were abducted had taken its toll on her. Calling them arrivals was too much of a stretch.
When the necessities of being under house arrest were taken care of, she started to see what her security clearance could actually do.
Bits of administration requests popped up, and she dealt with them as they appeared. The details of the humans and their controlled development was on the record. Each new arrival had become a hybrid, and they had no clue.
Her stomach growled, and she glanced at the door to Iktabi’s office. He was silent.
Across the reception office, there was a beverage dispenser. She rose from her desk and walked around it, heading for the unit.
Her wrists felt heavy when she was five feet from the unit. By the time she was dialling up her protein tea, her body was made of lead and it was taking all of her focus to stand upright.
She collected her tea and slowly walked back to her desk. As she got closer to Iktabi’s location, the pressure eased until she felt nearly normal again.
“Well, that explains how it works.” She snorted and sipped at the protein tea. It wasn’t a great flavour, but it did a good job as a meal supplement.
“You could have just asked me.”
Isabella looked up to see Iktabi leaning in the doorway, the silver bands bright against his wrists.
“I didn’t want to disturb you. I know you were on calls to other outposts.” It was a guess.
“You really wanted to test out the boundaries of the cuffs.”
She shrugged. “That was a component. What did it feel like on your end?”
“Like you were trying to push through a wall.”
“That is what it felt like.” She cocked her head. “So, can I have an extra ten feet so I can reach the toilets?”
His expression of shock was followed by what she could only read as embarrassment. “Oh, of course. I should have thought of it.”
He lifted his left arm and used his right to do something on his cuff. “You now have an additional ten metres.”
She rose to her feet, passed him and headed down the hall to the restroom.
When she had finished what she needed to do and splashed water on her face, she returned to her desk. Iktabi was still standing in the doorway.
“Do you require an additional meal?”
Isabella looked up and smiled. “No. The protein tea will serve me until dinner. I know that you eat. I can wait until then.”
“Good. I have a few matters to tie up in regards to the collapse of the balcony at the concert. When that is over, we shall retire to my quarters and we can privately plan out how this situation is going to work.”
She nodded and checked the requests that were streaming in on her pad. Most of them were easy enough to sort out, and the ones she didn’t want to fix, she sent off to Iktabi’s file.
It was weirdly serene to be working at the same job she had done on Earth, with a man in the same kind of rank. Of course, her other self was still doing that job, but she wasn’t allowed to tell anyone. Keeping secrets just seemed to come naturally.
Iktabi cleared his throat in the doorway. Isabella looked up with what she knew was a slightly dazed look. “Yes?”
“It is time to leave the office for the day. We will have to take ground transport as you cannot fly.”
“Uh, yeah, that makes sense, or we could just walk.”
“Walk?”
“Yes. Walk. It is a traditional means of exercise and transportation.”
“Ah. Well, yes. Let’s walk then.”
She got to her feet and took her tablet with her.
“You don’t need that.”
She shrugged. “I got used to it at my previous job. Carrying it around is a habit. It gives me something to do with my hands.”
She stood up and approached him, noting that he looked her over.
“Well, if you are going to be stuck at my side, we will have to make some alterations to your wardrobe.”
They walked out and left the office. His wing extended out behind her in a scooping position. She felt like she was trailing an umbrella.
“What is wrong with my wardrobe?” She smoothed one hand down the fabric of her tunic.
“It is appropriate if you are acting as a cataloguer or assessor, but if you are to act as my assistant, there is an upgrade in the uniform.” He chuckled.
She looked at him in surprise as he expressed amusement. They passed the guards at the doors to the admin building, and he nodded to them and the guards outside.
“Since humans come and go out of these doors, why do you keep such high security?”
“It is a topic for private discussion.”
“Like personal hygiene?”
He stumbled. “What?”
“Every time I asked a bold question during the early days, I was told by the techs that it was a topic for private discussion. The Nool assigned to me had to fill in the blanks without any of your guys watching.”
“We can be reserved.”
“I think it was when I had questions about the genitals being compatible that they started making me take individual briefings. I didn’t learn much but had some fascinating conversations.”
He blinked slowly. “Are you intent on asking me awkward questions?”
“Of course. There has to be some entertainment value in this situation.”
She was smirking as they walked through the lanes and pathways that took them from the building where the new arrivals were introduced and over to the structure where those who escorted them in were housed.
“I have always wondered why the Rrassic are housed in the same building that we are.”
“It is for your protection. In the early days, before we implanted the suggestion of acquiescence, some of the arrivals could become aggressive.”
“That is unlikely.”
“Private conversation.”
She snorted, and they walked the rest of the mile in silence.
He looked at the building before the entered it. “I haven’t seen it much from this angle.”
Isabella cocked her head. “Why not?”
“I usually use the commute time to fly in and out. Stretch my wings.”
“Oh, so we are taking the lift.”
“No. It is the stairs for us. Dorbin-Rrassic don’t like confined spaces.”
“Ah. Right. Okay, I need the exercise.”
She let the beam take her ocular scan, and he did the same. The doors swung open, and they entered, turning for
the stairs at the same time.
It was strange to pass the third floor and keep walking, but she kept pace with him, realizing early on that he was slowing his step for her shorter legs.
“This would have to be the tallest building in Imrahl, wouldn’t it?”
“It is quite low if you approach it from the air.”
She snorted with all available breath. Sprinting up five flights of stairs was definitely something that would take getting used to.
She could feel the sweat on her skin when he escorted her to the only door on the fifth floor.
“I set up your clearance earlier. Anywhere I can go, you can go.”
“Lovely.”
He frowned. “Sarcasm?”
“A bit.”
His door opened, and she stepped into open-concept space with low couches and only two chairs next to a small table. It was enough empty space for him to fly through if he wanted it.
He stepped away from her and gave her the tour. The lav, toilet and, then, his pride and joy, the kitchen. The chiller was filled with fresh veg and an assortment of meats.
“Do you do your own shopping?”
He snorted. “I don’t have the time. I make a list and it shows up.”
“Convenient but boring.”
“That is your judgment. Now, here is your room.”
She sighed and opened what she was expecting to be a small cubicle similar to the one she had just surrendered. The huge expanse caught her by surprise. “Your quarters are the entire top of the building.”
“Correct.”
“This is about a third of that space.”
He shrugged. “Is it not enough?”
“This is huge. Is that exercise equipment?” She wandered into the space and noted that her few possessions were tucked here and there around the room.
“It is. I do not fit most equipment, so this used to be my gym. It was necessary that it remain until we can get another wall and door installed.”
She nodded. “This is fine as long as I can use it, too. If I can’t get to the gym because of the tether, I can at least work out.”
“You won’t mind me in this space?”
She chuckled and called out over her shoulder. “With the amount of data you have let me access, I doubt that I will even notice you are there.”
She examined the equipment and found at least four machines that could easily be setup for her.
He stepped up behind her. “Why are you so fascinated with data?”
“I love to learn, and this has presented me with an entirely new civilization to study.” She chuckled and checked some of the magnetic weight units.
“You are studying us?”
“As you are studying my people. It is a fair trade, I think.” She gave him a wry look over her shoulder.
She had never seen a Rrassic appalled before. It was a good look on him.
Chapter Five
Isabella tried to shake herself out of the feeling of disbelief that covered every new discovery. She really was wearing cuffs filled with enough micro tech to make any human researcher drool, she was living in the guest room of an alien overlord and he was making dinner. This day couldn’t get any weirder.
“Do you remember the meetings that we engaged in a few months ago?”
“Of course.”
“I have implemented your suggestions and included the familiar music and entertainment selections. You were right. Morale has improved, and the social interactions are coming more easily.” He sliced meat, diced veg and heated water for noodles.
“I have noticed the changes, but I wasn’t sure that they were organic or a reaction to the suggestions. Glad to know that the conversations weren’t wasted. Well, the interrogations, really.”
Iktabi laughed. “They were not that bad.”
“You handed me a list of questions and demanded answers that were concise and within a thirty-word span.”
He shrugged, and the sizzling commenced in earnest. “It was effectively done.”
Isabella made a face. “I am nothing if not professional.”
“I have admired your history at placement.”
She snorted. “You looked it up this afternoon.”
“It does not change the fact that I do admire how accurate your placements have been.”
“Thank you. I do do my homework, or rather, I read all of the reports.”
“Well, that is your job, but you do it excellently.” He tossed the noodles into the pot, and the blast of steam shot upward.
Isabella watched the ballet as the meal came together. There was something about watching someone else in the kitchen that was tremendously satisfying. For one thing, she knew that the food wouldn’t be burned. She tended to get distracted while cooking. Eating takeout or items from a food dispenser were a lot easier on the digestion.
“Do you cook in your quarters?”
His question caught her by surprise.
“Oh, uh, no. I am not one for cooking. I just grab food when I need it and get back to my work.”
He grabbed a platter from a shelf she would never be able to reach, and with a few easy moves, he put together all the ingredients and tossed them lightly. It was a stir-fry with weird veggies and meat, all grown on Imrahl.
Iktabi carried the platter to the table. “Grab the sticks, will you?”
She nodded and did as he asked, searching until she found the eating sticks with the prong ends in a shallow drawer. She grabbed four and headed for the table.
In a burst of uncharacteristic domesticity, she set his sticks down next to him before she took the only other chair in the room.
The platter was long, but she would still have to lean forward to reach it.
“Do you mind if I scoot around?”
He was settling the eating implements in his fingers. “No. Do what you need to do.”
She got up, shoved the chair next to his and turned the platter sideways. With everything accessible to both of them, she prepared to dig in. “Thank you for making the meal.”
“You are welcome. It is as easy to cook for two as for one.” He seemed to be waiting for something.
“Shall I go first?”
“Please.”
She picked up the purple veg that tasted like a beet and sweet potato, as well as some noodles. Everything was hot and very tasty.
Isabella had to pick up the speed of her eating to keep up with Iktabi. Before she knew it, the platter was gone and she was defending the honour of the last strip of meat with her eating spikes.
The meat flew upward, and she lunged, snapping her teeth shut on it. She mumbled as she chewed, “I win.”
Iktabi was staring at her in blatant surprise. “Are there predators in your bloodline?”
She finished and swallowed. “Not that I am aware of, but I take eating very seriously.”
“I can see that. I will remember to make more the next time.”
Isabella rose to her feet and took the dish and prongs to the sink. The bands on her wrists were water resistant, that was certain. She couldn’t even feel them anymore. It was as if they had bonded to her skin.
“So, why were there cuffs in my size just waiting for this?”
“Ah, well, we have used them in the past for other species. We always keep some on hand for the smaller races, just in case.”
She wrinkled her nose. “We are not smaller.”
His laugh echoed in the large room. When his voice stopped booming, he leaned forward and looked her over. “The Yamacour are smaller, I will give you that. But you are not of the same gravity as the Rrassic, so why would you be the same stature?”
“Gravity? Seriously?” She washed the platter and the prongs, locating the drying unit with only a few false starts.
“Indeed, for all of the alterations to your folk in the tanks, the men stationed here have been through something similar to adapt to the increase in gravity.”
“Indeed. If I hadn’t gone through the training, I would never have been able to fly on Imrahl. As the only flying Rrassic here, I needed to be able to take to the skies.”
“Why was it important?”
“We are a people at war. There are more entrances on Imrahl than the port, and I have to make sure that they are monitored.”
She dried her hands on her tunic and turned to him, raising her wrists. “How is this going to work? Are you going to hand me over to another keeper while you do your rounds?”
He chuckled and got to his feet. “I thought I would take you with me. I will have to increase my workout load though. You humans are not light.”
She wanted to get offended, but if he was planning on flying with her, she definitely wanted him as strong as he could be.
“Why not just trust that I will keep my mouth shut and let me go back to my normal job?” She walked toward him and tried not to stare at the exposed muscle of his chest.
It hadn’t escaped her notice that his clothing was all parted to allow for his wings and the exaggerated back muscles that supported them.
The silvery grey of his skin was smooth with barely a pore showing. Though his hair was long, he kept it neat with two braids on each side of his temples, keeping it out of his face. The dark expanse of his eyes showed a surprising range of emotion when coupled with the twist of his firm lips.
The darker hair was a Rrassic feature that seemed to be common to every variation with the exception of the Saya. They were pale and moved like spectres. Tall, muscular spectres with three eyes.
If all Dorbin-Rrassic were built like Iktabi and they stood side by side, it would have looked like a rippling wall.
He looked down at her and quirked his lips. “I have been needing an assistant, and since it has been made clear that you are willing to break the rules on behalf of your own kind; I believe your duties are better carried out at my side.”
She wrinkled her nose. “I am only delaying the breeder program for a few women.”
“Those women may produce the next warriors that will help us turn the tide of this war.”
“In eighteen or twenty years.”