by Jen Greyson
End of 2 (end of date)
“Look, I don’t know who you slept with on Samaria to get this whole thing set up.” I stood and waved my arm over the table and the situation. “But let’s—“ I wanted to scream. “Let's just be done here. I'm not going to pick you.”
He smacked his lips together and raked me with his gaze, disdain dripping from his features. Please. What right did he have judge me? “Suit yourself. I certainly have better things to do than hang out with a princess like you. I did this as a favor.”
“Ha. Well consider it cashed. We’re done here.” I pushed in the chair and marched away. Princess… I was far more than a princess. I was The Pearl. He didn’t even know the difference.
He rose and followed a few paces behind me. I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I wanted off this ship. I'd announce my choice. The Hamperklu really was the best one. We had engaging conversations, he certainly new a Pax from a Smithi. We’d already joked about four new patents/inventions/holistic ideas (heal the world something. what does an alliance like on that dimension they’re taking science/love/touch all of that into the toltechian wisdom—t so whatever that looks like. Take some really big world problem there Galaxy problem something that exists
He and I were a good alliance, we made a good team, he could certainly hold his own over dinner. I had a feeling Dirk Battleship was one territorial jerk. I doubted he'd be fine with me sitting down to dinner with the Calspar Emperor to discuss trade routes through the belt without getting stupidly jealous. Dirk was from a bygone time. He needed to go back to being a mechanic.
Mechanics have their place but they still have to follow manuals, which he hates and that’s what makes him a rogue and rebel.
He cuts the presentation short??
She’s walking out. Can’t wait to leave. He’s so not what the human race needs. She’s spent her life training for this. Smart. Perfectly designed. Perfectly proportioned. Knows how to discuss important space/universe/race talks.
Aren’t you forgetting something?” He called after me.
“Nope.” I didn’t slow my stride one bit. The gown tangled around my legs and tears burned my eyes that we’d wasted it on him. Fransín had even gone to the extra length to ensure that it would come undone with the tug of a single string for the final presentation.
Oh. My. God.
I jerked to a halt and spun around. “Not on your life!” I screamed it across the expanse. I didn’t care who saw me. I was not absolutely NOT getting naked in front of him. He didn’t deserve it.
“You’re required, Lility.”
He leaned against the wall of the space walk and crossed his ankles. “I don’t make the rules.”
He didn’t say anything.
“You cannot be serious.” My voice trembled.
“Part of the deal, love.”
“Don’t call me that.”
He waited, staring, one eyebrow cocked, daring me to defy the universe, to insult the Samarians by not going through with the entire presentation. It didn’t matter that they’d insulted me by sending this yahoo. There were rules.
I hated him.
I hated him so much.
Chapter
She starts undressing. He grabs her wrist as she pulls the tie. “Don’t.”
I glanced up sharply, hatred burning through the confusion. “I have to.” I spit the words at him. I’d never, ever, in my whole life felt more ashamed or unattractive than I did right now. Not even the first time I’d disrobed in front of the Mother Divine, not the first time a male Bevi had seen me naked, not the first presentation. My cheeks were aflame with mortification.
“Please don’t,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry.” (He marches away to make the call. She goes to make the announcement. She’s rattled.)
(From book 1) She dusted my breasts and nipples with a silver glitter. I stood and she painted fuchsia hearts dripping from my nipples, across my belly and into my bejeweled arrow of pubic hair. The Samarian would get to see me naked,
She agrees to unite with the Hemperklu male. Announces it to the universe. (Reader sees him for the first time when they flash a picture of him up on the screen. She bows (geisha-like, because she’s been trained for this.) He’s GROSS. But talks nice, treats her good—all the things she’s supposed to be checking off the list)
Compliments her. Tells her what he’s been doing to get ready in the hopes that she’d pick him. Oh, and I researched that xxx that we talked about. You were right, it helped tremendously.
Eats gold coins. Always eating. Terrible manners.
Burps. Picks his nose.
Gramattcially incorrect.
Kind and sweet and funny.
I hadn’t noticed his features before, but now that I’d scrutinized Dirk’s shortcomings, I found myself evaluating the Hemperklu’s. (Wouldn’t he have a name?????) In great shape?? (Opposite of dirk) Or fat??
(Change this. Can’t have anyone else on the ship. They’re holos — but why would they be there and how does their presence affect the story??)
Change this so it isn’t the captain, it’s the Ambassador. Lots of pomp and pretense for the official announcement.
“Is this your official announcement.”
I looked at Dirk, my eyes narrowing at his casual posture propped against the wall, finger in his mouth digging at leftovers from our meal.
I marched to the bridge, anger and frustration and the waste of tonight fueling every step. Dirk followed. I didn’t know why. Why, why, why? Wasn't there something to fix or do or mechanic?
I entered the bridge, bowing to the holo of the Captain. He returned this show of respect and asked if he could do anything for me.
My earpiece translated. I still wasn't quite fluent in Buscav but I picked up most of it and tasted a few of the letters on my tongue, sounds my human body still hadn’t mastered, so when I replied, it was rusty and sounded remedial. “I was wondering if I could make an announcement over the intercommunicator. If you have a channel and it won’t interrupt any of the flight patterns.”
“Of course, of course,” he said, bowing gently.
Dirk burst through the doors like a Lamian bull. He bowed, which surprised me, then stood off to the side waving away the the Commander’s offer for further assistance. “I’m with her.”
“He’s not with me.” I shot him a glance. “We're done.”
The female Sape running the communicator stood and offered me her chair, her long green tentacles flowing like satin across her shoulders and back (describe every one as needed in the simplest terms possible maybe go back through Harry Potter because the she had an amazing ability give us imagery that made sense when describing these people)
I nodded my head in thanks and sat, leaning forward into the mic and waiting for the record button to turn green.
“You'll be on all stations if you just push that button.” she pointed toward the large circle in the center of her console.
I took a deep breath and inhaled, held it in my belly. The communiqué would go directly to the geisha house and they would be able to edit it and upload it as needed across the galaxies when everyone woke up at their normal time, which was different everywhere based on the predominant race population. I'm not sure who figured out engineering on that, but it was one of my favorite tributes of respect that nothing I had to say was important enough to interrupt someone's sleep, dinner, or meditation. There was no way really to broadcasting things live anyway. There were time delays and black holes and solar interruption from all the suns across all the galaxies. Simply too many things to account for, so the engineers hadn’t. They’d simply figured out the ultimate galaxian dropbox—a place where Associated Press news clippings went, announcements like mine, injuries, triumphs, heroic deeds for the day. There were so many and each galaxy got what they knew would matter to their society. It was a cool symbiotic in a way that also respected who we were as individual societies too. We all operated on the very take it or leave it philosophy now. At th
eir core they were probably the four agreements: don't take stuff personally, police your own shit, act in kindness, be love, don’t be a dick. Super simple rules; the rules of life. The same rules I guess, humans had tried to teach their little kids. when they were little it took a long time to teach adults that, a lot of it came to late. Thankfully there are Hemperklus, And me.
I’m it. I’m the last one, well, and Dirk. Oh my word. Lord save the earthlings. But that was okay. Compared to the rest of the galaxy humans were pretty childish and barbaric. I’d read all the history books. They were awful to each other I mean even my mom killing all those zixxby's (they haven’t been here yet— give another example here)
I left home when I was 11, like all the girls did that had been chosen for pearls.
The Sape tapped me on the shoulder. “Whenever you’re ready” She jostled me out of my daydreams and I pressed the button. “I'm pleased to announce I have chosen the Hemperklu as my mate for the 642nd Union. I look forward to a long and prosperous Union as we continue the work he and I have begun on our previous talks and look forward to examining next year's representatives and her female/female union. Greetings, good night, and love.” I pushed the button to end the call and exhaled loudly, my shoulders dropping.
Behind me, Dirk made a disgusted grunt, spun on his heels, and shoved his way off the bridge.
I stood, expressed my thanks, gave the girl back her chair and bowed to the Captain.
On my way out, “A Hemperklu.” he said, smiling. “Wise choice”
“I think so.” I felt lighter, no longer weighed down by the decision of who to choose. The Hemperklu had been an obvious choice for over a month which was why we’d snuck in so many extra dates, enjoying each other's company.
I exited the bridge and turned left, meaning to head to the spacewatch until the Hemperklu ship arrived in four hours. I'd make the transition onto their ship and drop into hypersleep for the 12-year journey to their star system, waking rested and no more older than an evening.
Pulled out description of spacewalk. Fix this transition
This was what made Dirk's comments so infuriating! Why would I give up the possibility of creating something this amazing to shoot a baby out of my body when there were people with the capability. Well, not humans per se—but other races—better races—who generated life far better than I ever could have.
CHAPTER 13
FLIP TO HIS POV (before he steps onto the spacewalk from her pov). He gets a call from the Samarian emperor. She’s giddy, loves Lility—spent time with her when she was here. Blurting all this out. Took a breath and stared intently at me. “How did it go, Dirk? Did you woo her, win her?”
Damn it. I held her gaze. “I’m afraid not.”
Shock slid the smile from her face. “What? But… Lility. You’re… perfect for her. I—” She cocked her head and grinned. “You’re teasing me, aren’t you? Did you and Lility cook this up? She always was one for the practical jokes.”
That didn’t jive with what I’d seen tonight. Pulling laughs out of her tonight was tougher than rewiring the safety harness on a Yeppi. Clearly the Empress had misjudged who Lility had become since they’d been apart. “I did my best.”
The laughter evaporated from her body and voice. I’d known this was coming; known it from the moment I’d made the deal. We’d both been confident that it wouldn’t need to come to this. “You leave me with no choice, Dirk.”
“I know.” My guts iced over and I clenched my fists. “Do what you have to.”
“I’m sorry.” To her credit, the apology rang true.
I gave her a curt nod and stood there long after she disconnected the call. I had decisions to make, unexpected ones, now, in the wake of Lility’s decision.
Goes to say goodbye.
Freighter coming for him??
CHAPTER 14
DOORS SEALED BEHIND him and the bridge filled with oxygen, surrounding the two of us in a cocoon of life. I didn’t want to breathe his air.
“I’m taking off.”
I didn’t answer him.
He took a step closer.
I stiffened.
Explosion.
Lility! Are you okay!
Ending/conflict for 2:
if the two ships are attached, it would be easier for something to go wrong.
M breaks Dirk’s ship. Bangs into it, gets the ships stuck together. He has to call dirk and tell him what happened. (Or an astroid smashes them together.
“I was moving closer and I didn’t see the asteroid.”
“—I did,” Fransín shouted.
“Yes, Fransín saw it but was unable to alert me in time. It deflected off our ship and into Dirk’s. The explosion melted our xxx together.
Um, there’s been a problem. In attempting to acquire parts for Mr. Dirk’s ship, I may have… unified our vehicles.
Unified?”
i rubbed a hand across my temple. “I think he means that my ship was attached to yours when it was hit.”
“What!” He pressed the button. “Is that what she means! Did you bust my ship!”
Dead air stretched between us and I could picture M tapping the silver ends of his dreads together in his nervous tic. “Sir, I—”
Dead air again. Dirk clenched his fist and I took a step back, remembering the human tendency for rapid violence in the face of challenge.
“I am afraid there has been a severe malfunction. i will return both ships to our galaxy for repairs. you will remain with Lility and—“
“No!” I scrambled across the counter, reaching for the unit. “M! Don’t leave me. Pull me over! I’m going with you.”
“No,” Fransín said. “The transporter was disabled. And we’re losing power. We ran all the scenarios. You’re fine. Stay there. We’ll be back for you.” I could hear her fingers tapping on a console—she must be in the bridge, or still in the transporter room. If they were both running consoles, the situation was worse than they were letting on.
Now I was worried and guilt washed over me that I’d been more concerned about my own situation instead of theirs. “Are you guys okay?”
“We’re fine. I can’t get you though. Stay on the date. We’ll be back before you’re done.”
I closed my eyes. this was not happening. Had Dirk been an actual Samarian, I would have looked forward to spending two days with him. But he wasn’t. He so wasn’t.
CHAPTER 15
HYSTERICALLY FUN EVENING. She’s attracted to him. Writes it off. Just never been around a human man. They’re…. Funny, in a stupidly space dog way. No such thing as a deep conversation. She tries. He cracks jokes. Too bad about the broad shoulders and sparkling eyes, and that stupidly asymmetrical dimple thing in his cheek. His freckles are uneven, and his sideburns need a trim. His hair curls at his collar. UGCH.
Cliffhanger