by Nia K. Foxx
“You mean you need time to steal its secrets and leave us with only the carcass to pick at like shea scavengers,” Keltar accused.
“If that’s the way you choose to see it Keltar nothing I say will change your mind. Although I am certain if your sector had managed to retrieve the ship or spheres they would all have been conveniently destroyed allowing no one access. My sector is well within our agreement rights.” Remar replied.
As Keltar sputtered over a rebuttal, which was sure to be nothing but denials and further accusation, Remar muted the other leader’s com. Keltar’s animated holo image looked comical without the accompanying sound.
“It is rumored that an E’rth woman manned the vessel. Is this true?” Voren asked quietly.
“Aye,” Remar confirmed holding his annoyance in check for what was surely to come next.
“What of her?” Voren followed up.
Remar was not fooled by the polite inquiry. Of all the leaders Voren was the most cunning and ruthless. Remar long suspected he had spies within sector two but had been unsuccessful in determining their identities.
“The rumors are true. An E’rth woman was taken into custody and by treaty rites will remain under the protection and control of sector two,” he advised.
“Odd that you would mention protection. Will our dignitaries have access to the alien during their visit?”
“I’m afraid that will not be possible at this time.”
“Are we to understand that this alien creature poses no threat then?” Nelo of sector one asked.
If only they knew the half of it.
“No. There is nothing to be feared from her. In fact we have had much success in translating her ships data logs and have concluded she arrived here of folly not purpose.”
“Good – good to hear,” Nelo sounded and looked genuinely pleased with the answer.
The viewer showed an animated Keltar spewing what was most likely threats at the screen. Nothing new there.
But it was Voren’s one word comment that struck a chord with Remar.
“Indeed.”
Chapter Five
Until the moment on the alien’s vessel he never contemplated taking a mate, his mistress Kala knew it, and was content in the knowledge that one day he would request an heir from her perhaps more if possible. As the mother of his children she would enjoy all the rights and privileges of a bond mate. For the past three creons he and Kala shared an easy co-existence, with them each basking in the long, hot nights of their lovemaking and her reaping the rewards her status brought in the light of day. At least it was so until the sphere that brought the image of the E’rth woman. It heralded the beginning of the end for them.
Remar sighed heavily at the confrontation he knew was in store, but he did not disillusion himself. Kala would be more hurt over losing her current position than him. He considered himself fair and was prepared to offer her a more than generous settlement for their time together. At thirty-two creons she was a very lovely creature with bright white hair, and luminous eyes which most males hoped to have directed at them. Before becoming his mistress she’d had many suitors but with no family to speak of there was no possibility of a claim challenge in her future. As far as he knew the matter never concerned her. Kala’s beauty and talents had some of the wealthiest men offering her the position of mate.
He knew what needed to be done and was certain Kala would do well for herself.
Remar relaxed in the soothing interior of his seat, closing his eyes only to fall victim to images of the alien woman resting in his home. If there was some guilt he should be feeling over his thoughts they would not surface.
The universe had spoken and who was he to argue with the gods.
***
Dallas felt as if she were floating.
She opened one eye, then the next. All around her was a white gauzy material.
So this was heaven. Hmmph?
It wasn’t exactly what she was expecting.
Her years in the Orphanage were her first real exposure to religious teachings and no matter which she’d studied they all seemed to have a common consensus about heaven being a grandiose place. She’d chosen to think of it as a higher plane of consciousness but didn’t balk at the idea of a beautiful, ethereal palace beyond the known cosmos.
Boy were they all wrong.
She bolted upright causing whatever she was laying on to roll and sway. Dallas held her position until the movement subsided to manageable ripples.
Absent the fire and damned souls she could certainly rule out hell too.
Dallas scooted towards the edge of what appeared to be a bed until her bare feet came in contact with a step. She looked through the sheer fabric to the room around her. Okay, it was a little grandiose. Peering over the side she noted three steps leading from the elevated bed.
So she wasn’t dead, and she obviously wasn’t on Juno, so where in the universe was she?
I must be part cat because it looks like I’ve escaped another brush with death, she couldn’t help but think as memories of her unexpected journey through the wormhole and her encounter with the giant, grunting men on her ship rushed back to her.
The aliens must have brought her to their planet. She took a deep breath of precious oxygen and smiled. So it was habitable. She counted herself lucky for that but her mind quickly jumped to the next thought. Was she a prisoner and this room some sort of holding cell?
Parting the guazy white material she made her way down the steps into a room that rivaled any she’d ever seen. She might not have spent any time in prison but this certainly didn’t look like one she’d ever seen in movies. The walls were the color of burnt sienna and seemed to be adorned with a myriad of art work. Curiously, she wandered the room taking in the alien artistry. As strange as it seemed Dallas was certain some pieces looked familiar. She paused longer in front of one very recognizable painting.
Starry Nights, Vincent van Gogh, her mind made the instant connection with the piece of art.
It somehow made sense on the alien planet but still begged the question, how did aliens have replica of human artwork? Her mind tried to reconcile everything experienced or seen since her first contact with the aliens. They were obviously a civilized race, to some degree, and had spared her life. No complaints there. But what was their purpose, was she guest, prisoner or something else? She shook off the latter thought, refusing to let her mind to dwell on an ancient Twilight Zone episode where humans were being harvested as a food supply for aliens.
One thing was for certain the outfit she wore felt more harem girl, circa Star Trek, and less prison bitch. Dallas tried not to think about who or what had changed her out of her uniform and into the skimpy outfit absent her undergarments. The material, criss-crossed over her breasts and was secured at her lower back. A second garment wrapped low on her hips exposing her flat midriff. Thankfully the semi-sheer material flowed to her ankles swirling around her as she walked but surprisingly not tripping her up.
“Beautiful?” she muttered to herself fingering the distraction that took her attention away from her skimpy attire to something that resembled giant wings hanging on a wall. The material was soft to the touch and she couldn’t help but wonder if they had once adorned the back of some type of animal. She contemplated it a little longer before her attention was easily diverted to what appeared to be a large shuttered door flanked by two windows with the same coverings.
Eager to see the world beyond she practically ran to the openings. Her excitement was short lived. She searched for a handle or some other means of opening but found nothing useful. Nudging the door didn’t seem to work either. It didn’t even have the decency to budge from her efforts. She got the same results from the coverings over both windows.
It might not look like a traditional prison but she got the sinking feeling her movements would be limited.
A noise behind her caused Dallas to jump suddenly, turning in time to see as two women entered the room followed by a man w
ho made the tall pair look like children. She tensed as she assessed the large male figure, broad, muscular shoulders and chest exposed save the wide blue band that crossed his torso. An intricate array of tattoos wound around onside of his torso and adjacent arm. She would have taken more time to look at the design pattern if not for being distracted by the familiar weapon holstered on his hip. The women didn’t seem like much of a threat but the guard on the other hand, was a different story entirely. Her fingers itched for the protection of her metal rod.
The woman who looked to be the older of the two cleared her throat or maybe she spoke, either way it forced Dallas to focus on the females. While the women possessed similar coloring and both had the intimidating looking ridges in the middle of their foreheads they didn’t have the same sharp edges carved in their faces as the males. Dallas found their appearance to be softer. The expression ‘the gentler sex’ was never truer than within this alien species.
Silence ensued as the female trio stared at each other for several long seconds.
Now what? Dallas couldn’t help but think.
The younger woman approached her first, holding what looked like a thin gold bracelet in her outstretched hand. She spoke slowly as she came closer. Dallas could tell by her tentative movements and gentle tone she was trying to appear reassuring. She could only assume the offering was meant as a gift.
“Thank you,” she bowed slightly accepting the offered jewelry.
The girl giggled, at least that’s what it sounded like, and returned her bow awkwardly before resuming her position next to the other woman.
Dallas felt a little simple as she stood staring at the bracelet for so long the girl signaled for her to put it on her wrist.
“Of course you want me to wear this.” She smiled, slipping the metal on and holding it up for inspection. It was an intricate, thin band width - “What the hell?”
Her arm flinched in response to several sharp needle pricks drilling into her skin where the metal touched. The sensation was over in seconds. Dallas made a move to jerk the band off her arm. Diplomacy be damned.
In response the bracelet tightened around her.
The two women shook their heads simultaneously while repeating a noise which sounded more like chittering and grunting than and actual language, but Dallas caught their meaning.
“Alright, so hands off the bracelet, but I have to say as gifts goes this one really bites, literally.”
She dropped her arm to her side and was grateful when the band loosened.
Her arm tingled at the insertion points and at first she thought it was in reaction to the blood flow returning to the area but as the sensitivity crawled its way up her arm she knew there was a very different reason. The feeling wove its way up her shoulder and neck. A wave of vertigo assailed her. She could only assume she wobbled because in an instant the women were at her side holding her elbows to steady her. Dallas was happy for the support and even more grateful when they settled her on the high standing round cushion poised in the center of the room. Her head buzzed, as if a swarm of bees had been set free inside it.
She was going to be sick. Or at least she thought so until the buzzing suddenly stopped and the room recovered from swaying around her.
“Better?” A feminine voice asked.
“Hell yes, I thought my head was about to….” Dallas trailed off but turned her head in the direction of the woman who’d asked.
For several moments she could only blink at the older woman. “Wait a minute. I can understand you?”
“That is of course the idea behind the translator,” the woman replied.
“How does it feel?” The younger woman asked eagerly on her opposite side.
“Now that I’m not about to pass out it actually feels fine,” She said holding her arm out to make sure it was still attached.
“I was afraid it would not work,” the older woman explained. “These devices have only ever been used on Chezarians for instructional learning of your language. Those who have mastered your speech do not wear them. Those who are still in the learning stages wear them.”
Dallas confirmed that the two females wore matching bracelets, while the guard wore a simple single manacle.
“The male’s look different,” the older woman commented after following the direction of her gaze.
“Are you really from E’rth?” the younger female piped in excitedly.
Dallas smiled at her exuberance.
“Rabika-,” the older woman silenced.
“It’s quite alright, I don’t mind,” Dallas interrupted the scolding. “Yes, I’m from Earth but how do you know of it?”
“We have received your spheres for many generations.” The older woman answered.
“Spheres?”
“Aye, the round metal devices carrying information about your home world.”
It took Dallas nearly a full minute to catch their meaning. “You mean the probes?”
It was the women’s turn to look confused.
“I’m pretty sure we’re talking about the same thing. Our planet has launched hundreds into the solar system in the hopes of learning more about the universe. They have always included information about our planet on the off chance a probe falls into the hands of intelligent life forms. A lot of them went offline.”
“We have received many of these devices in fact they are very popular on our planet.” Rabika informed.
“But I do not believe anyone thought an actual E’rther would come. Especially not a female.” The younger one added.
“It was quite by accident I assure you,” Dallas provided.
“Nevertheless you are here now and we will be your initiators. My name is Khimar and this is Rabika,” The older woman introduced.
“I’m Dallas. Um, but before we begin this initiation you mentioned I’d really like to talk with someone about my ship,” she replied.
“The High Commander would be the authority to grant such an approval,” Rabika answered.
“All right, where can I find him?” Dallas asked standing up again with no residual side effects.
“Presently, he is preparing for the claiming challenge, but you are a guest in his home,” Khimar answered.
“Okay, maybe I can meet with him after. When will he be finished?”
“That remains to be seen. The challenge is scheduled to take place in one sun rising but the number of participants may make it extend to two,” Khimar answered.
Two more days. She didn’t like the sound of that. Who knew what state her ship would be in by then? If an alien craft came to earth the government and plenty of other organizations like the IAC would be chomping at the bit to tear the thing apart and discover its secrets. Somehow she didn’t think it would be much different on this planet.
“Is that standard?” Dallas asked hoping for a way to get in to see him sooner.
“Not usually.” The older woman replied. “Claim challenges are usually no more than a few hours, however, this is a unique situation.”
“Unique how?” Dallas asked.
“It is of no consequence at this moment.” Khimar replied effectively cutting off her companion’s answer which only made Dallas curious about what the younger woman would have said.
“You said one sun rising, so perhaps he can see me tonight?”
“I am sorry but the preparation round is scheduled to go very late. Now, it is time we began. There is much to be done,” Khimar insisted.
She didn’t argue the point with the older woman, choosing instead to see if she could discover a way to meet with their High Commander before her ship was reduced to a series of metals and bolts.
***
If Dallas had known initiation would mean a near room by room tour of what could only be described as a palace and a crash course lesson about the Chezarian home world she would have asked for the cleft notes version. Khimar was like a super charged instructor switching from their origin story to culinary habits. The latter, unfortunately, went int
o great detail about how to prepare various meals with ingredients that held absolutely no meaning to Dallas. She’d never been much for cooking on Earth. Her motto was if it couldn’t be ordered, delivered or graphed it didn’t belong in her mouth.
Dallas found herself tuning most of what the older woman said out since she really had no need to know how to properly prepare Ody stew.
What the hell was an Ody anyway? Obviously there was no earth equivalent since the device on her wrist failed to translate it for her.
Instead she focused on the tour beyond the tour. Chezarians were a technologically advanced race and it was present in everything. She made mental notes on ways to open and close doors, communication links which could be accessed from holopads and anything she thought relevant which could make her introduction with the High Commander happen sooner rather than later.
By the time her guides brought her back to her room Dallas was grateful for the time alone. Part of her just wanted a break from the dynamic duo while she was also eager to try out some of the things she’d gleaned from the day’s unofficial lessons. She started with what she thought were windows and balcony openings. A wave of her hand over an obscured wall panel revealed a holopad with markings she knew had to be Chezarian script. Too bad her translator didn’t help with the written word. No matter. A little trial an error demonstrated exactly how the pad operated the windows and balcony door. She watched with satisfaction as the openings folded onto themselves to reveal the world beyond her room.
Score one for the earth girl, she thought stepping out onto the thick stoned balcony that over looked a lush garden below and waterfall in the distance. The sprawling property might not show much about life outside of the manor but it sure provided a spectacular view. Dallas stared up at the contrast of the twin moons lighting the night sky, one orange and the other white. It all looked so surreal.
Gorgeous.
She took her time enjoying the scenery wanting to wait until the house was settled for the night before executing her plan. When Dallas had her fill of the outside she moved about the room and revisited all of the amenities shown to her by her guides before their departure. A wardrobe rack glided from one wall displaying an assortment of multicolored outfits similar to the one she wore. A holographic wall gave her access to any part of the sector she wished to see. But to Dallas the best feature was the bathing room with its spacious shower that poured continuous streams of steaming water from three, ceiling height wall dispensers like mini waterfalls. It looked decadent but someone would definitely need to be advised about the importance of water conservation.