by HC Playa
"All the more reason not to waste time."
"No. I mean it, Zane. You need rest."
Zane didn’t care if he was on death’s door. He waited seven months. He almost died. He might never have held her in his arms again. He wasn’t waiting a moment longer. He flooded their link with his pent up desire, seven months' worth of longing, of love so deep it rewrote his view of life.
"That’s not fair, Zane," Katarina said. She clung to him and whimpered as her desire ignited and matched his in fervor.
He reached out and let his hand trace a line from her neck to her thigh. "You can do all of the work." He could sense her resolve weakening. Zane moved his hand a few centimeters over and touched her center. Even through the material of both her dress and panties he felt her wetness.
Katarina sucked in a ragged breath when he touched her. "All right. I’m insane, but all right." Katarina yanked her dress over her head, tossed it aside, and then pulled the blanket over both of them. "Lie down and enjoy. Let me do everything."
***
Katarina straddled Zane and moaned when his thick shaft penetrated her flesh. She’d read that the pregnant sex could be absolutely spectacular because of the increase in blood flow. She agreed. Just the act of seating herself sent her to climax. She rode the wave of pleasure and then rocked back and forth. True to his word, Zane let her set the pace, but when she bent over him, he took her breast into his mouth. Desire pulsed through her veins, but she drew out each movement, enjoying the journey instead of letting need rule. She nuzzled his neck and he tangled his hands in her hair. She stroked his face and feathered kisses across his eyes and sampled his lips. His hands traced her spine and sides of her breasts, sending tingles of feeling all the way to her toes. Submerged in the blissful world of soft touches and lingering kisses, the tension built and exploded with shocking intensity. She screamed Zane's name and clasped his shoulders as her orgasm claimed her. His hands on her hips tightened as he joined her a heartbeat later, and they found the unity that only existed when they were buried deep in each other and cresting together.
Mindful of Zane’s weakness and her larger size, Katarina collapsed to his side instead of on top of him. Sated and content they clung to each other.
The med bay door whooshed open. "I heard a scre--," Commander Vrion's words faded into embarrassing silence. "I don’t think they covered this situation in academy training."
Katarina blushed and buried her face against Zane's bare chest. "Well, hell."
Zane had the gall to laugh, his chest shuddering with each rumble of laughter. Katarina raised her head and glared at him, but only for a minute before she started to giggle.
***
Commander Vrion turned to make a discreet exit.
"Wait," Zane called out. "Give us a minute. I’d like to speak with you."
"Yes, sir. I’ll be right outside."
As soon as Commander Vrion stepped out, Katarina snatched up her clothes and donned them. Zane started to get up, determined to find out what the commander knew.
"Where do you think you’re going?" Katarina asked.
"Up?"
"Like hell you are. Sit. I’ll reactivate that annoying droid and have him sedate you again if I have to. Hell, if I hadn't deactivated him earlier he probably would have knocked you right back out the minute you woke up." Zane raised his hands in surrender and let her tuck the blanket firmly around him and fluff his thin pillow. She stared at him for a moment. "I wasn't sure you'd come back," she whispered.
Zane met her stare and lifted on hand and cupped her cheek. He knew she didn't meant going back to Earth, but the mist that had trapped him. Without their bond he suspected he might have remained locked in his mind forever. "I'm here, thanks to you." He let his hand fall. "You can come back in now, Commander."
Commander Vrion re-entered the med bay. He saluted. "Captain."
Zane waved a hand dismissing it. "I’m not an active officer anymore. Just call me Zane."
"If you insist. My name is Re’lool Vrion."
"I’d like to thank you for getting me out of there."
Vrion's eyes widened in surprise, flicked to Katarina and then back to Zane. "You’d best thank your wife. I had very little to do with it."
Zane turned back to her. "You? How? What?" Zane jolted upright, brushing her off when she attempted to keep him horizontal. "Kraghak! What were you thinking letting a pregnant civilian lead a rescue operation in a hostile environment?"
"Oh, for heaven's sake, Zane, there was no rescue op. Just me, okay? If I hadn’t taken a risk, you’d be dead right now instead of sitting comfortably in bed acting all macho." She gestured toward the commander. "It’s not like he could have stopped me even if he wanted to."
Vrion winced, but nodded at her declaration. "A wise individual doesn’t countermand a person with as much power as your wife."
Zane ran a hand through the short bristle of hair on his head. For half a second the lack of long hair confused him. His mind flashed back to that room and the smell of burnt hair filled his nostrils. He shook his head to get rid of the image. "What exactly happened, Katarina?"
"I located you, shifted space, disabled your guard, and got you out. That’s all there was to it."
Vrion snorted. Zane heaved a sigh. "What's the unedited version, Commander?"
"Your wife traversed light-years of space using nothing more than her mind. She disabled and stopped just short of killing the Goloth soldier torturing you, and she never even touched him. She blew up all of the equipment in the room as well. Her hand acted exactly like a phaser. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. Then, she transported us all back here. She stood at your side for three hours while the droid treated your wounds."
With every word that came out of Vrion's mouth, Zane felt Katarina pulling away and into herself. Zane reached out and grabbed her hand. He waited for her eyes to meet his. "I thought we got passed this. I love every magnificent inch of you, phaser hands and all," he said in English and tacked on the grin he knew rattled her thoughts.
She melted against him. "It's just so hard to believe. I keep thinking I'll wake up and realize I dreamed all of this."
"I'm no dream. As you pointed out, I have what you called a macho streak that I won't erase no matter how much you may want me to. You're mine to cherish and protect. That's how it works and I make no apologies."
"I won't be coddled."
"Cherish. There's a difference."
She brushed a kiss against his lips. "At least you don't snore."
Zane grinned as the tension between them melted away. They were getting better at working through their issues. I'm almost domesticated. Katarina's amusement echoed in his head and he wanted to just lie down next to her and forget about the rest of the universe.
A discreet cough reminded he needed to finish assessing the situation before giving in to the exhaustion that crept in out of nowhere and made his eyelids heavy. He rested his head on the top of Katarina's head. At least that way it didn't appear to Vrion that he no longer had the energy to hold up his own damn head. "What did you put in your report?"
The commander addressed Katarina rather than Zane. "I just got General Xu’s response. You were right. He said nothing about extracting the captain. A fleet is being sent to Earth to intercept the Goloths, but he was most adamant that I bring you in."
"That little green shit," Zane growled. Anger and adrenaline provided a brief surge of energy.
"Your wife asked me not to mention your rescue." Awkward silence lingered as Vrion failed to say anything else.
"Because I broke half a dozen laws by planning to return to Earth," Zane stated the truth that no one else wanted to say.
Vrion fiddled with his uniform. "Yes, sir."
"If I go back to Yopmar they'll execute me. Never mind that Earth isn't a pristine civilization."
"What do you mean?" Vrion asked.
"Me." Katarina said.
"Not just you, love. Me as well. Humans l
ike me, and even you, Commander, all trace our lineage to Earth. Katarina is only half human, which means someone other than IGC has visited in recent years, so in my opinion that makes the damned laws null and void. IGC laws do not apply to non-affiliated worlds."
"That may be, but you are an IGC citizen."
"I'm Braag. Since when have the Braag ever been claimed by IGC?"
Vrion frowned. "I understand your logic, but it may not protect you or her." He looked at Katarina and then messed with the lower portion of his uniform again and Zane notice something that at first fueled that macho male temper Katarina didn't like. Then rational thought reminded him that the man in front of him likely felt far more discombobulated than the average male. He took mercy on the man and ignored his semi-aroused state.
"I'm very sorry for both of you."
"Thanks for the sentiment, but I'm not ready to surrender. Kat and I will think of something."
Vrion nodded. "I hope you do. In any case I’ve managed to keep your presence hidden from Private Driglok so I don’t want him wandering back here looking for me. He’s a quizark, but even he might take notice of an extra passenger." Vrion turned and left Zane and Kat alone.
As soon as the commander left, Zane slumped back onto the bed. Katarina brushed his cheek and ran a soothing hand down his arm as his eyes drifted shut.
"You came and got me, right?"
"Yes." Katarina answered him out loud.
"While I pass out again, consider using that handy skill to get us off this ship."
***
Vrion fled to his quarters, silently giving thanks that neither Katarina nor Zane noticed anything amiss. Warm heat flushed his entire body, especially his genitalia. The unaccustomed stretch of tissue caused a burning ache he had to relieve. Seeing them like that and catching that small glimpse of Katarina's naked back and full breasts succeeded triggering human genes he didn't even realize worked. Embarrassed and in pain, he gave thanks when Zane finally wrapped up the conversation. He climbed into his bunk and latched the privacy curtain. He stripped off his uniform, hitting his elbow on the wall in the tight confines. The rough material aggravated the condition and irritated the sensitive skin. The close association with humans and other species provided him with the knowledge of what was wrong with his, something he never would have known on his home planet. Hell, as far as he knew, full-blooded Goulals didn't even have random hard-ons. From what he understood, they only became aroused with their biochemically compatible partner, and only when she was fertile, and sometimes it took a hit of medicinal aids to accomplish even that. Yeah, because having sex in a lab is oh so romantic, which of course is why most Goulals look at me like I'm insane. Romance isn't even something they comprehend.
He lay down and grasped his engorged phallus. He tried not to think of Katarina, but she was the only female yet to stir his blood. It didn't take much friction to send him into his first orgasm. He moaned and he bucked into his hands, gained new understanding of humans and the vast majority of species that took pleasure in the act of creation. In that moment he realized he planned to assist Katarina and Zane in any possible way they asked. Zane did not deserve to die because he fell in love. Vrion held Katarina in awe, and for that alone he was willing to set aside his oath to IGCF. He could well imagine the lengths to which Zane might go. He didn't know what Xu had planned for the Gratigs, but regulations suggested, but if he went by regulations, an entire family would die. Vrion could not stomach that possibility.
***
Swirling in a fog that laid somewhere between sleep and consciousness, something called to Katarina. It reverberated through her being, touching her in every imaginable sense: physically, emotionally, and psychically all at once, but not entirely on any one level. The fog lifted and images flashed through her mind. She saw stone monoliths from the Celtic land of her ancestors, the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge, Mayan and Incan ruins, and other ancient sites she recognized as ritual places of power. The images repeated themselves over and over, faster and faster. Voices in tongues she did not recognize whispered in the background. Her blood sang with the power in those voices. The voices merged into one voice of many layers.
"The time for awakening is here. The ancient blood of the Sidhe, Celts, Druids, and Mage flows through your veins. You will be the light of guidance through the darkness to come. Behold, a new era is dawning for humankind and Tuatha De' Dannan!"
When the vision ended Katarina's eyes snapped open and she stared at the smooth gray duratanium ceiling. She laid still, her heart racing and her mind replaying the images and message. The power she normally had to summon now flowed freely, not as if it wanted release, but as if a damn burst allowing free circulation. She repeated part of the message aloud. "You will be the light of guidance through the darkness to come." A sick feeling grew in her gut. "Great, just fucking great."
Chapter 17
Naia and Robert stepped out of a helicopter into blistering desert heat. "Do you think this is the infamous Area 51?" Robert asked.
Naia looked around. A low metal building covered in camouflage stood in the middle of a vast desert as far as she could see. "They wouldn’t be that cliché, would they?"
"It could just as well be a normal base, Hon."
Naia said a silent prayer of thanks that the roar of the helicopter rotors covered most of Robert's comment. Several hours back, the agents handed them off to a silent hulking guard who watched over them during the helicopter ride.
The guy motioned with his automatic rifle and Robert and Naia hurried toward the building as the helio rotors slowed to a stop. "Hey, Rambo." Robert dodged the elbow Naia aimed at him and continued, "What’s this base called? Where are we?"
"That information is classified."
Robert parroted the soldier, "That information is classified." He whispered to Naia, "Should I rattle off my classification status?"
"No. Stop pissing off the people with guns."
Robert just laughed and draped an arm over her shoulder. As they entered a large hangar with another helicopter parked inside. The guard motioned with his gun toward the bank of elevators. Naia halted in her tracks, jerking Robert to a stop as a wave of energy flowed through her, leaving a lingering hum even after it passed. The breath that Robert sucked in told her he felt it as well. Naia glanced at their escort. He paused for only a fraction of a second and then continued on as if nothing happened.
Robert nudged her with his arm and they resumed walking. He whispered, "What in hell was that, and why do I feel like I’ve just gotten plugged into a light socket?"
Naia whispered back, "I have no idea. Mister Drone here seems to have shrugged it off. Some secret government force field maybe?"
"Hmm."
They stepped inside the elevator with the guard following up the rear. Naia silently seconded Robert's doubt. The guard swiped a card and keyed in a floor and the elevator dropped so fast her feet left the floor for half a second. The elevator doors opened on a bustling hive of activity. A general with stars on his uniform stood on a metal balcony above the workstations and called out orders as quickly as reports were voiced.
"As far as we can tell, it wasn’t the Goloths, sir," a young private at a computer terminal announced.
"Nothing registered on any of the normal electromagnetic frequencies. I’m checking the other bands now."
Naia caught fragments of various reports, which all had the same thing to say. No one could identify the mysterious energy wave. People scurried from one station to the next, checking and double-checking their results.
Their escort strolled briskly into the crowded chaos, plowing through the melee. Naia couldn’t figure out how a giant like him could breeze through the room while lightweights like Robert and she kept colliding into people. Beside her, Robert let out a frustrated grunt as he narrowly missed slamming into a young officer who darted right in front of him. He made a shooing motion with his hand. Naia stared in shock as a ripple of energy emanated from Robert and a path
opened up before them. The individuals in their way now stood displaced to either side. Plenty of people stared about in confusion, yet what baffled her most, some people appeared oblivious.
A voice boomed down from above, "Who in hell are you and what did you just do?" Naia looked up at the man with the stars. He scowled down at them. The man's short cropped hair was the color of steel, and he held himself with a spine made of the same material.
Robert took her hand in his, gave it a gentle squeeze, and then stepped forward. "I’m Dr. Robert Sheffield. Sorry about the--" He broke off and waved his hand vaguely, "--that. It was completely unintentional."
"Ever done anything like that before?"
"Absolutely not."
"Did you feel something odd a few minutes ago?"
"Yes."
"Do you think the two events are connected?"
Robert glanced back at her and she offered a nod of encouragement. Robert said to the man in brass, "I think it’s a reasonable extrapolation. Maybe an EEG or MRI might give us some clue as to what we’re dealing with." He glanced at her again and she nodded her agreement with his guess.
"Well, at last someone has come up with an idea. Get on it people!" He turned to a young woman in a crisp uniform standing behind him. "You’re in charge of selecting people for testing. I want results ASAP."
He shifted his attention back down to Robert. "I'm General Westing. We’ve been expecting you. Come on up here."
"Bossy isn’t he." Robert said in a low voice only Naia could hear.
"He’s supposed to be," Naia whispered back.
Naia trailed behind Robert, content to let him take the lead for the moment. They crossed the room and climbed a metal flight of stairs to the balcony. Their escort repeatedly glanced over his shoulder. Fear tainted his expression and his hand rested all too close to the trigger on his gun. Naia swallowed a lump in her throat. What was he afraid of? He was the one with the gun.