The walkway wound towards the centre of the station with a gentle slope and wouldn’t normally pose a challenge. This time he had to pause after just a couple of minutes, leaning against the cold wall, waiting for a sudden attack of vertigo to disappear. His shirt suddenly seemed too tight and he opened the top button. He was feverish and his heart pounded hard.
“What the hell?”
Besides the occasional hangover he hadn’t been sick a day in his life.
I know I haven’t been drinking since she came on the ship. Eh, some scotch will kill off whatever it is.
Taking a deep breath, he urged his feet forward, and made his way to the pub without even knowing he walked there. Sitting by the counter, he slammed down drink after drink. The alcohol made him feel better physically, but did nothing to elevate his dark mood.
Now I’m drunk, sick, and miserable. What a fucking great day.
He wanted to be back out in deep space alone with his Goddess, but they would be stuck here for days at best, or weeks at worst. The dizzier he became, drinking even to forget all his worries seemed an even better idea. A part of him knew it didn’t make any sense, and that little voice of reason annoyed him. Maybe some more booze would make it shut up.
*****
On the ship, Maria worked on saving her world.
He doesn’t look happy. I need to hurry up.
Despite her best intentions time slipped away, and it took a good couple of hours before she roamed over to the wardrobe.
He probably knows people here, maybe other women. I need to look gorgeous. Should I have my hair up or down? What should I wear? Red? Black?
When finally dressed and ready, she didn’t know where to leave the ship. She teleported onto it and never left. Looking for the exit would take time, and she teleported into the corridor on the other side of the hull. An old man swept the floor and almost fell over with surprise when she appeared in thin air. She gave a little wave and pretended that she had indeed come through the door.
The corridor had pale grey walls filled with colourful posters encouraging visitors to buy, buy, and buy.
Funny. Currencies might differ, but the base sentiment is the same. You should have less so I can have more. Tedious.
Many of her relatives slept for centuries at a time, bored with the world. The approach made more sense the older she became.
I won’t do that, though. I’m in love. Who would have thought? Guess there’s a first time for everything. It’s my human side, it’s gone all emotional on me. I might just as well enjoy the ride, right?
She took an undignified skip-step, making two blue little aliens turn their many eyes in her direction.
“I’m in love.”
Deeming from their snorts and the ripples shivering through their thick skin, they either congratulated her or pitied her. She preferred to believe in the former.
Few people were this close to the docking bays, and she only passed a few shops before arriving at the bar. It had to be the right place; it was the first room with people in it.
“Not bad.”
She didn’t mean to say that aloud and started at the sound of her own voice.
The contrast between the pub and the corridor was as big as the one between Stephan’s kitchen and the rest of the ship. Overhead lights dimly lighted the room, and the walls were covered with wooden panels, books, old shields, and various other knick-knacks. Furniture made from dark wood and leather complemented a thick, dark green carpet.
Humans never cease to surprise me.
Stephan hunched over the bar, and she felt a sting of bad conscience when she realized how long she’d made him wait. It disappeared quickly when a pretty girl sauntered over to him. She took a couple of steps closer, both jealous and curious. If her human part was in love, the Goddess portion claimed he would have to be hers, all hers, and nothing but hers.
*****
Stephan didn’t even notice the person approaching until a female voice said his name.
He turned to squint at the face belonging to the voice, and someone slapped him.
Dammit all to hell, I forgot all about her.
He felt his jaw humorously, as if checking it was still in the right place, raised his glass in greeting, and mumbled, “Charlene.”
She was pretty in a way, and he spent many a night in her bed when visiting the station. It was good entertainment, but this day he just wanted her to leave him alone. After meeting his Goddess, Charlene held as much appeal to him as a brick wall.
“My lucky day.”
Please leave me alone.
She yelled, “Why didn’t you tell me you were here? I have to stumble over you by accident? Hey, how many other times have you been here without telling me? You have another girl here, don’t you?”
He shrugged and hoped indifference would make her disappear. He probably owed her an explanation, but wasn’t up to it.
Before he could react, she threw her arms around him, squealing.
“It’s okay sugar-bunny, I love you. You probably just forgot and I won’t be mad anymore.”
“What are you doing?”
She almost tipped his drink over, kissing his face and trying to get to his lips.
Great. The way this day is going, Maria will come in right now and see this fiasco. If she isn’t planning to dump me already, this will do it.
He tried to push the woman away. He took her wrists in his hands and tried to shove her arms off him, but he didn’t want to hurt her and didn’t do well with freeing himself.
“Look, Charlene, we’ve had good times in the past, but I’m with someone now. I love her; she’s my life. Charlene, you have to stop this.”
The more he tried, the harder she clung to him.
“No, no, no, I love you, no one else can love you like I do. Dump her, baby, and stay here with me. I’ll take care of you. You know you want to.”
Stephan gave up, leaned his elbows on the counter and buried his face in his hands.
I’m not up to this. What am I going to do?
“Don’t make me shoot you. Hey, I need another drink.”
*****
Maria watched with a lifted eyebrow and her arms crossed.
It’s not really his fault; he’s trying to get rid of her. Persistent little thing, though.
His not entirely sober but sweet explanation about her put a goofy smile on her face that rhymed poorly with her dress and look.
He loves me. Good thing he doesn’t know how close I’ve been to prying to find out… Okay, enough of this. This might be your bar, lady, but I’m the queen bee around here.
She touched her hair, just to make sure it was perfect, straightened her back and walked the few steps to the counter. All eyes were on her, except for Stephan’s and Charlene’s.
He slumped over his drink, whispering, “Why didn’t I stay on the ship?”
Charlene clung to him, murmuring, “You know I’ll treat you better than whatever slut you picked up. Throw her out, I’ll come with ya if you want company.”
Maria rolled her eyes.
“That’s enough, he gets the point. Get off him and leave with a little dignity, if you have any.”
Her voice rang deceivingly soft, and she put a hand on Stephan’s shoulder, giving it a little squeeze. He was the only man in the room who hadn’t noticed her already, but now he raised his eyes and smiled.
“Babe.”
Charlene looked uncertain, but didn’t move.
Wow, she’s standing her ground. Against me? Really? I guess she does love him.
“Scoot. If you stick around I’ll turn you into something unnatural, and you’re probably a nice girl who wouldn’t deserve that.”
The other woman still didn’t move. Worse; she held a hand on him.
He’s mine, back off. How ‘bout I set fire to you and this wicked place? I could level it to dust with a thought.
It took an effort to fight down the impulse; the part of her that belonged to her father’
s people was a dangerous predator on the verge of waking up. Stephan had to be hers and nothing but hers.
The fire inside must have shown in her eyes. Charlene backed up a few steps, spun around, and ran for her life.
Everyone’s watching you. Keep it together, do not set her on fire!
Stephan touched her cheek and pulled her back to the present. Everyone watched them, watched her, and she could not afford to lose control.
Glancing into his calm eyes soothed her.
~ 8 ~
Stephan had an eerie feeling of being lost until Maria touched his shoulder, and the sound of her voice was like coming home after a long time lost in the wilderness.
He thought drunkenly she wasn’t just the most beautiful woman in the room or on the station. She was easily the most wonderful being in the universe.
He had always valued his independence, but didn’t even find it strange to have grown so devoted to her so quickly. He couldn’t see it himself, but he was bewitched. A couple of weeks with this woman had done what seven years of heavy drinking failed to do; he was obsessed, helplessly addicted.
She pressed her lips against his and the kiss filled his entire universe, washing away every trace of doubt. Nothing mattered, besides making her happy. When she broke free, she brushed away the lock of hair that always seemed to fall into his eyes, and he put the glass down on the counter, no longer the least bit interested in it.
“Come on, babe, let’s get out of here.”
“Okay.”
She nodded and took his hand, but slowed down and stopped just a few steps outside the door. Just as well; the world swayed around him.
Why did I drink so much? Stupid thing to do.
She put her hands on his shoulders, stood on her toes, and pressed her lips against his.
“I’m sorry I’m so late. I just... I couldn’t leave them all to die you know. They’re sort of my responsibility. I’ll make it up to you, I promise.”
He pulled her close and enjoyed the feeling of her warm body through their clothes.
“It’s okay, I unnerschtan.”
Dammit, I can’t even talk straight. At least she’s not laughing, or yelling...
He muttered, “Ugh,” before repeating the last word, “understand,” getting it right this time.
“Are you okay, love?”
I don’t know. Am I?
He took a moment to think about it, and besides being too drunk he felt fine. All the physical discomfort from earlier was gone, either drowned at the bar or chased away by her.
Who cares, maybe I was really coming down with something and the booze killed it.
“I’m fine. I just need to clear my head.”
He held her tighter and murmured, “I’m sorry.”
There might not be something specific to apologize for, but doing it made him feel better. He had been so sure she was leaving, and she shouldn’t have to find him plastered with another woman all over him.
She nuzzled her head against his chest.
“Mmmm, don’t worry about it... Want me to help you with the head-clearing thing?”
Standing up and standing still was increasingly difficult, and her help usually involved her touching him, so he nodded.
“Close your eyes.”
He did, and exhaled when she rubbed his temples. It truly was the touch of a God, leaving him sober but euphoric, without a care in the world. His hands were no longer satisfied with just resting on her hips; he brushed them up her back, wanting to squeeze her butt and her breasts, and he moaned as he kissed her.
This won’t do, I can’t rip her dress off right here.
He glanced around the hallway, found what he was looking for, and breathed in her ear, “Come on, sexy, I have an idea.”
She followed without objections, and smiled when they entered a supplies closet filled with towels and clean, soft rags.
“Ah, privacy. I like your way of thinking.”
Stephan grinned and locked the door behind them.
“I thought you might.”
Running his hands over her arms, he urged her to follow him further in where he took a seat on a pile of clean towels. Maria kissed him eagerly, already working her way inside his clothes.
I might have a one track mind, but she’s not much better.
*****
When they left the closet, a woman with four arms stood outside, struggling to get the door open. Stephan grinned like a contented cat, and Maria flashed a dazzling smile. The woman stared at them and peeked into the closet, clearly wondering where they came from, but reluctant to make a scene.
Maria wrapped her hands around his arm and they strolled into the station. She stopped when they reached a bustling hallway with people from a multitude of species hurrying past each other in organized chaos.
“Wow, those women remind me of butterflies.”
How can someone like you also seem so innocent? I wouldn’t think there’d be anything left to discover after four thousand years.
The base was built in 65 levels, each one with corridors like the spokes of a wheel, leading towards a large centre area. It would take days, if not weeks, to go through it all.
Where should we go? Oh, I know…
“C’mon, let’s go over here.”
He led her towards the casino. With any luck at all, she’d find all the people and games amusing. On a normal visit he would spend hours there, but the games had lost whatever allure they once held.
The place didn’t disappoint him. There were rows upon rows with brightly coloured slot machines playing merry melodies, and the people in front of them reminded him of robots performing the same motion repeatedly, afraid to move away from their machine, certain it would pay out any second.
There were roulette tables and card games, multicoloured lights and mirrors, and Maria’s eyes became round and wide as she took in all the sights and sounds.
“You’ve never been in a casino, have you?”
She shook her head, gripping his arm tighter.
Besides the croupiers and inevitable security, there were girls dressed in only roller skates, miniskirts, and minimal bras serving drinks and snacks, and he bought champagne and some tokens from one of them, winking at Maria as he handed her a tall glass of the bubbly beverage.
She took a sip and glanced after the girl.
“I hope she gets paid well.”
He shrugged.
“They get a fortune in tips from the winners. It’s one of the best paid jobs on the station.”
More than once he tried to get whatever little thing they wore off, but the servers maintained a high level of integrity and he never managed to get even one of them into bed. Even knowing the futility, the old him would have ogled them and tried to cop a feel. The new him couldn’t possibly care less. He tugged her towards a row of slot machines.
“Come here, pick one you like.”
She bit her lip and pointed towards one in the row.
“Okay, you put a token in there, pull the lever and keep your fingers crossed.”
Maria took the token and looked at the shiny surface, clearly curious. She frowned a little and glanced around, and she had to stand on her toes to reach to whisper in his ear.
“Okay, but why?”
Stephan smiled and marvelled over the warm, fuzzy feeling that spread through his chest.
You’re just too precious.
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pressed his lips against her temple.
“Because you can win money. That’s what all these people are hoping for.”
Frowning, she glanced down the row where representatives from at least 20 different species sat feeding the machines tokens, pulling the levers over and over again.
“Why? Don’t they have any?”
“Well, maybe they did, before they came here.”
It was clear to see the place puzzled her, and the people in it even more so. It was pretty with all the colours and lights, but also held an aur
a of desperation beneath the glitter. She glanced up at him, shrugged, and did what he told her to.
The machine spun, and she pouted.
“I don’t think I won.”
“You can always try again.”
He handed her another token, and she fed it to the machine and pulled the lever. It spun for a long time before the first wheel came to rest, then the next, and the one after that...
A light on top of it came on, a siren wailed, and Maria jumped as the thing spewed out tokens with a deafening noise.
“Did I win?”
He grinned and clinked his champagne glass against hers.
“Yes, babe, you won.”
People gathered around the lucky machine, and he tipped one of the girls to collect their winnings for them.
*****
The casino was shiny and fascinating, but all the people crowding in on them made Maria uncomfortable. There were so many different species, many telepathic, and everyone’s heightened emotions made it difficult to shut out the barrage of thoughts and impressions. She tugged at Stephan’s hand and went towards one of the green card tables where there was more room.
He rubbed her shoulders.
“Here, the object of the game is to get twenty-one, but not over.”
“Oh, Frank used to play that all the time. He cheated, of course.”
“They’re playing baccarat. Want to try?”
“No… You go ahead if you want to. I’ll watch.”
“Well, if I’m ever to win it would be today, accompanied by my super-sexy lucky charm.”
All these people are so obsessed with winning. Could I be? Would I want to be? Probably not...
She watched him play for a little while, but was soon bored with it. Looking around, her eyes fell on another game with a huge and colourful board filled with animals.
No one played, and the girl sitting there smiled when Maria moseyed over.
“So, how’s this work?”
The girl’s smile widened.
Goddess's Saga 1: Touch of the Goddess Page 5