by Isabel Wroth
Ga’rae’s jaw clenched so hard that his flesh whitened, evidence of his rage, and activated the scan to sweep his female’s tiny form. It was almost comical, the difference in their size. The top of her head would barely come to his chest, yet she was fierce enough to climb up onto something so that she was not at a disadvantage. A fine mate for a warrior. “Holy shit, that’s a biometric quantum field generator!” Ga’rae grunted again and made notations on the female’s individual medical file. “I am pleased it meets with your approval.”
“Can I see a scan of you?”
“What?”
“Gwen is a medical science officer, Ga’rae. Like you, sort of.”
Clary’s news delighted Ga’rae, and once he was done with Gwen’s scan, he cued up a holographic rendering of a warrior, and the female was beside herself with delight. She hopped back up onto her knees and grabbed Ga’rae’s arm to look at his tablet, firing off rapid questions about their medical equipment, the procedures, and when Clary asked if Gwen was ready to go back to the barrack, and she shook her head, waving a dismissive hand their way. “No, no. You go ahead, Mountain man here will see me back, won’t you?” Ga’rae, fascinated, just nodded and he saw Clary smirk, “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I don’t care if he’s an ass, he has amazing equipment.”
Gwen only looked up when all the females started to laugh, and when she did, she realized she was halfway into Ga’rae’s arms because she had turned her back to his chest and hauled his arm around her so she could read the display and see what happened when she touched this or that on the tablet. Ga’rae was grinning stupidly and sniffing at his female, “I meant his medical, equipment.” She hissed, scarlet with embarrassment, “Never fear, little one, I assure you all of my equipment will dazzle you.” She scowled and slammed her elbow back into his chest, while her companions continued to giggle. “Go on, I can handle the moose.” Four, so far four of his warriors in so many days had been called. The Gods were indeed smiling on them.
He held that thought, and his female, close to his heart as they returned to the barracks. He watched in somewhat of an amused daze while Ohlen showed the females, the women, as Clary preferred to call them, how to operate the food simulator. It was comical, the millions of questions they asked, and how his usually tight lipped warrior had to struggle for patience with the others, when really he was doing his best to try and get close to his fearful mate. Clary remained at his side, and he could smell her discomfort even though she was outwardly calm, watching her people get comfortable with their food choices, swapping plates with one another until each of them found a dish that satisfied their tastes. “Come with me, I would like to show you something.” She looked up at him, and though she smiled he could see the sadness in her eyes.
It made him distinctly unhappy to see her upset, hiding it from him too, and he had to remind himself that she had just lost everything she knew, her home, her purpose. She walked beside him in the long corridors, her eyes searching the walls, the floor, every bit of their surroundings and it pleased him she was so attentive, amused him because he knew to her eyes there was no way to identify where they were in his ship. “Sarazens can identify heat signatures.” He told her finally, and she looked up at him with an adorable little frown, “The corridors, there are markings invisible to most eyes, to identify where we are.” She blinked and said, “Oh. I suppose that makes perfect sense on a war ship. If a miracle happened and your enemies were able to board, they would get lost in all the corridors.”
It pleased him that she was so confident of the abilities of his kind. That she was so keen and had correctly guessed why to anyone other than a Sarazen, the corridors looked all the same. “Do you study tactics of war, little one?” She shook her head, shooting him a look of surprise when he took and curled his fingers around her soft hand, needing some kind of connection with her to soothe his agitated beast. “No. Um, but my father did. Does.” She corrected, and he hummed, wondering aloud if she knew where her sire was at this time. “I don’t. No. Hopefully alive and well, aboard the Starsong.”
“But you have had no contact with your other vessels, for five of your cycles, yes?”
“Yes, that’s right.” She replied softly, sadly, and his ground his teeth in agitation.
He took her to the small temple aboard his ship, to the garden that overflowed with vegetation native to Saraz, and sighed with relief at the wonder on her beautiful face. She walked away from him to investigate the space, her palms curling as she bent to examine a flowering plant, and he was somewhat ashamed to say he couldn’t identify it. “This is all native fauna?” she asked, looking back at him for his affirmative answer. “Our planet is lush with forests and vegetation, the capital city is like any other, I assume, with many buildings all in close proximity, but the farther the outer circles go, the denser the plant life grows. This is our temple, small in comparison to some, but you will see many like it on Saraz.”
“Temple?”
“Mm, some come here before battle to speak prayers of victory to The Beast.”
He pointed through the bush to where the stone pillars stood, circled loosely around the large statue of The Beast, and Clary seemed equally fascinated by it. She circled the idol slowly, asking his permission before touching it, and he wondered if the Beast was pleased with her soft sound of awe. “It looks like a creature that once lived on my world. A Saber Tooth Tiger. Only bigger. This is a feline, a cat.” Her soft hands made a hissing noise against the cool stone, and she touched the damn piece of rock almost reverently. He found himself jealous, of an intimate object. An object which seemed to be laughing at him when he looked into its stone face.
More to distract himself than anything else, he found him telling her of his homeworld, eager to see her reactions and hear her questions. To gain her attention once more. “There are smaller such creatures on Saraz. They are beautiful, but deadly. If their claws do not kill you, the poison in their bite certainly will. They live in the high mountains and come down in the winter months when food is scarce. It is unlikely you will ever see one.”
“Why?”
“I would not allow such danger to come within sight of you.”
She glanced at him then, her cheeks turning a soft pink as her scent mixed with the flowers and vines growing around them. Desire. Curiosity. Sadness. Still sad, Beast’s Teeth! He didn’t know what to do to alleviate her sadness. “I did not bring you here to cause you more sadness,” He told her finally, not knowing what to say, and she hummed, her fingers dropping from the stone statue, moving on to view the carvings behind it. “It’s starting to hit me now, the reality that my home is gone. I am grateful, beyond grateful, that I am alive, that some of my ship mates are alive, even more grateful that so far you and your warriors have been so generous, so kind and patient when we must be so frustrating to have to deal with.”
He followed along behind her, and assured her that in no way did he find her frustrating, or anything akin to a chore to be done. “I guess too, I’m sad that as far as anyone else, the other ships, if they’re even still intact, they won’t ever know what happened to us.”
“Would it bring you comfort, to know without doubt that there are more of your people left?”
“Yes.”
“Would you wish to return to them, if they are?”
“I don’t know. I was born on a starship, I’ve traveled space my whole life. I don’t know anything else, not really. I like the idea of going home, because it is, was, familiar. But at the same time I’m terrified, knowing how quickly, how easily one of our ships can be destroyed. That makes me a coward, doesn’t it?”
“Of course not. It is rational. Logical even. In comparison to many species, yours is still quite primitive in technological standing. Evident by how quickly the Na’ah were able to breech your defenses.”
“You are being kind, again.”
“I am not. If I had the choice between an inferior ship filled with delicate creatures, or a w
arship full to bursting with the most feared warriors in the galaxy, and the most advanced weaponry this side of the galaxy, my choice would be quite simple. Would it please you, if I could locate your other ships?”
“Could you do that?”
“It is not difficult to identify the frequency of your people’s communication’s array. And your ships are made of a unique material. I would not be able to venture beyond the borders of our territory without council approval, but it is possible that eventually they could be located.”
The look she gave him was soft, shy, uncertain, but her appreciation was seen. She nodded, and for a time they walked together in the temple garden, and instead of tears on her cheeks there was a soft smile on her lips.
Eight
She had spent an uncomfortable night in the barracks with the other women, apparently having gotten used to sleeping in Tarek's massive bed, now she felt cramped and uncomfortable even though the bunks were three times the size of what she had slept on her entire life. When he had brought her back after having taken her to the temple, she had asked to stay with the women. Needing some space, needing to be with her own, though she didn't know any of them any better than she did the warriors that roamed the ship. They were mostly medical and engineering crew, and a lot of what they talked about made no sense to her. Made her nervous. And as she lay there staring up at the underside of the bunk above her, she admitted to herself that she'd needed time away from Tarek's penetrating stare. Time to think about everything that was happening.
But all she'd done was think about Tarek.
He hadn't been happy to leave her with her crew, he had in fact growled when she asked. But after a tense moment, he had inclined his head and pulled a thin, clear bracelet like thing from his arm and slipped it over her wrist. It had been warm from his skin, almost uncomfortably warm, but like her dress, as soon as it had touched her skin, it shrank to more comfortably fit her and Tarek had explained that it was a communicator. She'd been startled when he had lifted his massive hand and cupped her jaw, his thumb sweeping over her cheekbone while he looked intensely down at her, "You may remain here for one rev," A revolution, she had learned, was the rising and setting of their sun. "Tomorrow, we will speak of how you have called my beast. If you have need of me, I will come." He had tilted her chin up, and for a breathless moment she thought he was going to kiss her, but he hadn't. He had made that soft, rumbling purring noise and rubbed his nose alongside hers.
All night long, she'd wondered why he hadn't kissed her, and had fitfully slept, hearing that rumbling purr still.
She got up because the simulated daylight on the ship was starting to slowly come online, like the sun rising, and she had no sooner set her feet down on the cool deck floor, when the doors whooshed open and Gwen came running in with a wildly gleeful look on her face. "Ga'rae's equipment measure up, Gwen?" She teased, and the little medic turned almost purple with embarrassment. "As a matter of fact, it did. They're shifters!" She squealed, her embarrassment forgotten as she rushed over and started chattering at her about all the things she'd learned while with Ga'rae, all night. "You'll never believe what they're capable of! Aside from the rapid healing-"
"Black claws that retract into their nail beds, fangs, vertical pupil dilation?"
"Well, yes, how did you-"
"Tarek grabbed Ethan and lifted him five feet in the air, with one hand. I was watching him very closely."
"Oh. Well, they can do more than that!" And off she went about all she'd learned about Sarazen biology.
Gwen's excitement had just started to gather the other women as they woke, when the door slid open and Tarek walked in. He had eyes only for her, despite how some of the other girls squealed and dove for their bunks to cover their half-dressed state, but she just stared back at him in total fascination. Even when Gwen darted in front of him to get out of the way, his gaze never wavered, "It is time to break your fast, little one." He told her firmly, and her stomach erupted with ripples and zings of attraction. No denying it, he was one sexy alien. "Come," He didn't wait for her to greet him, or to answer, he just commanded her in that deep voice to obey, "What about the others?"
"They will be cared for."
He looked different, and it took her a moment to realize he looked...tired. His hair wasn't as sleek as it had been yesterday, and in fact it appeared he'd just pulled it back into a low tail and not bothered to brush it. He wore the same tunic and pants from yesterday, and she wondered if he'd had as fitful a night as she had. She nodded and turned back to give Gwen a look, then Cassie, "I'll be back for lunch." Cassie was next on the tier of command, and she seemed to be coping well enough to handle anything that went awry. "We'll be fine," She took a deep breath and approached the massive alien waiting for her, shivering at the heat of his palm settling on her waist to guide her out.
She waited until they were alone in the corridor to ask him if everything was alright, and he glanced down at her with a slight frown. "Everything?" He queried, and she supposed that was a rather large question, "You. Are you, alright?" His frown eased and his lips actually twitched as though he wanted to smile at her in amusement, "You worry I am not?" She swallowed, not sure why she was suddenly so nervous, or why he sounded so pleased about the prospect that she might be worried for him. "I'm um, not the most observant, or socially stable person, but I notice you look tired. Like you had a difficult night or something."
He made a sound, deep in his chest. A thoughtful hum, maybe, and she shivered at the way his fingers spread on her back to take up as much space, touch as much he could with that one hand on her. "As you were not with me, I had opportunity to complete reports to my council and attend to other duties that might later limit our time together." he pulled her closer to his side when they stepped into the lift, that was occupied by several other warriors, shifting so that his massive body was between her and the others, glaring at them when they stared at her curiously. It made her duck her head and smile, because she'd never been so blatantly ogled before. "Does it please you, to be so admired?" Tarek asked, and though his tone was casual, there was a tightness to it that made her blush. "I wouldn't say it pleases me. I've just never been...admired."
She peeked out from under her lashes and saw that a few of the big warriors were grinning, and the rest seemed baffled. "It makes you smile," The warriors who were grinning, quit suddenly, and stepped slightly away as though making her smile, was going to get them punished. "I'm smiling because for once in my life, I feel short." Tarek glanced down at her, his expression confused, as though he was trying to figure her out. "That, pleases you? Feeling smaller of stature?" She shrugged, twisting her fingers around in the material of her skirt as age old self-consciousness washed over her. "I've always been the tallest, biggest woman among the crew I socialized with, and even as a child I was taller than most of the men. It made me an oddity,"
"You were called, odd?" Tarek asked it like he was affronted, baffled by the idea that someone would call her odd.
"Among other things, yes." Often the butt of jokes, ridiculed, teased because she'd been gangly and had such frizzy red hair. In fact, whatever was in the enzyme wash had her crazy hair for the first time in her life, feeling soft, smooth and silky. It wasn't all over the place like normal, didn't feel so heavy because she'd opted this morning not to braid it back out of her face.
He looked down at her sideways, his nostrils flaring for a moment before he grunted and swept his thumb up and down against her spine. "Your kind are strange, my one. But I see how they would have cause to be jealous of your beauty." He didn't say it as though he was complimenting her, he said it as though it was a factual observance, and a few of the warriors in the lift grunted in agreement. The doors slid open and Tarek gently urged her forward, sweeping her down the corridor that looked all the same and directed her to wave her hand across the small round port beside the door. "Your communicator has been programmed to access all levels," He told her, but it didn't really matter much, since
she didn't know how to navigate the warship.
She had thought he would take her back to his quarters, but the room they were in now appeared to be some kind of observation deck, or a common room with comfortable lounges and low tables all facing a massive open bay window that showed the streaming color of the stars as the ship cut through space. She hadn't seen anything like it before, not having quarters high enough on the Aria to have gotten a porthole to look out, and her lab was in the heart of the ship, so her view of the universe had been steel grey walls. The only colors she saw, the only marvels, had been through her microscope and the rare times she had been allowed to join a surface crew to gather samples from alien planets. Or the rare times when she was allowed access to the library database.
She walked forward with her mouth probably hanging open, and turned her hands over to see how the lights flashed over her body, the blue and silver streaks of light beautifully making the room seem like it was underwater. "It's beautiful," She heard herself murmur, and suddenly her curiosity was overwhelming. "How big is your ship, Tarek?" She turned to find him watching her, his arms moving from where he'd crossed them over his chest, to move his fingers over the cuff like tablet on his forearm. Their technology baffled her, delighted her, and she gawked when a hologram appeared between them of a massive looking vessel shaped like an arrowhead. "In comparison, my vessel is five times greater in mass than your Aria. There are twenty thousand warriors on board."