by Jen Robyn
She still thinks of me? he’d mused, oddly pleased.
And then she seemed to stare directly at him, mentioning his name again. As if she’d known that he wasn’t a star at all, although that was surely impossible.
When she’d returned to her bed, he dimmed his light so she couldn’t see him, and followed her to glance at the book she was reading. The people on the cover dressed differently than what he’d seen of her world lately, but if the history lessons he’d overheard on Earth were of any consequence, this story took place in another era. Unseen, he moved in back of her to read what she did, grinning at the rather interesting segment she was fascinated by. So she liked romance, did she? Well, perhaps he should oblige her then.
Hence followed their meeting in her dream.
He’d been interested to find more than just beauty or passion in her. She was also intelligent and amusing when she’d overcome her initial hesitancy towards a stranger. And then when she told him of Roger, he’d found yet another side to her. One that seemed to crave comforting as he’d once noticed before.
Far be it from Dominick to resist lending his own assistance there!
Tonight, he noticed her science fiction novel with its spaceship on the cover, wondering briefly if Earth might one day use one to find Chavernos. Highly unlikely, due to its mist obscured appearance and its parallel position on the other side of the sun. Yet if it could be made possible... perhaps he might one day receive the chance of meeting Julianna while they were both awake.
But for the time being, a dream rendezvous would have to suffice. Science fiction scenes, his mind thought quickly. Perhaps Julianna would prefer that background instead this time, nodding once to the idea.
In the next moment, his astral form vanished and his dreamphasing ability took over.
Chapter Four
Julianna’s boots echoed as she walked across the spaceship floor to the nearby viewing deck. As before, she had no knowledge of how she’d gotten here, but it felt real enough. This time she was garbed in a skintight suit made of a shiny white material, with green and blue stripes across the shoulders. The outfit was also adorned with a gold belt. Her feet were encased in black boots, which reached halfway to her knees and fit against her like a second skin.
Hearing laughter, she backed closer to the observation port. A small group approached, a few women and a few men, wearing similar outfits. All of them passed by her obliviously, with the exception of one man who turned to smile at her. His eyes were a familiar striking blue. Slowly remembering the evening before, confusion surfaced.
Before she could react, he’d turned the corner with the others.
Deciding to follow, she’d only gotten a few steps when her hand brushed against something cold, startling her. Looking down, she saw it was a silver gun attached to her belt.
Removing the weapon swiftly to examine it, she ran shaky fingers over its metal surface. Several blinking red lights upon it only unnerved her further. She’d never seen anything like this before on Earth. And for that matter, if she was in space, just where was Earth? Was this ship hovering above it, or was it halfway across the galaxy?
With her luck, probably the second.
She gasped sharply as warm hands eased the gun from her shaking grasp.
“Careful, my lady,” came a familiar gentle voice. “You don’t want to accidentally blast a hole in the wall and send us hurtling into the vacuum of space, do you?”
Julianna looked up in shock. “You!” she exclaimed.
The man grinned back at her. He was dressed similarly, except that his outfit catered to his male form instead. And while she was certainly surprised to find him here, she couldn’t help but notice how well the suit fit him.
Still, she was unnerved by this strange coincidence. Could this be the same Dominick that she’d met the day before?
Sensing her confusion, the man spread his hands. “Aren’t you glad to see me, Julianna?” he asked, his voice expressing a touch of sadness.
“You know me?” she inquired cautiously.
He could only laugh. By Chaos, how long would it take her to catch on to the repeated coincidences of their meetings, and realize that he was the same person returning each night?
Still, he was a dreamphaser and used to such things.
His fair companion was not.
“Of course I know you,” he replied patiently. “I’m Dominick Westbrooke, remember? We met at a fancy ball yesterday, wherein some mirrored rooms you pursued me most successfully.”
“I thought we agreed not to mention that again!” she snapped, even as she put her hand to her mouth in renewed surprise. The realization was clear. This was the same Dominick.
“Ah, I must have forgotten,” he said quietly, strangely subdued. “I’m sorry, my lady. I won’t trouble you again.”
Julianna stared after him in disbelief.
He was just leaving without another word?
For a moment, she remained where she stood as he continued down the unfamiliar corridor, disappearing from view. Surely he’ll change his mind and come back, she thought. But he didn’t. And here she was, stuck on a strange spaceship, heaven only knew where in space, all alone.
She couldn’t run fast enough to catch up with her departed companion, although she assured herself she was only doing so because there was safety in numbers. As she rounded the corner, she kept going until a voice suddenly halted her from behind.
“Looking for me?”
Gasping for breath, she turned to see Dominick staring at her knowingly with a grin, arms folded. Oh, the nerve of him! Expecting her to come running after him, as he undoubtedly knew she would. If she weren’t stuck in the middle of nowhere, she’d certainly burst that bubble of his and continue running as far away from him as she could get!
“Only because I was curious as to why we’re here,” she assured him. “Care to enlighten me?”
“Why we’re here in space?” he asked. “Or why we’re together again?”
“Both.”
Dominick smiled, unwilling to give away the tricks of his trade so easily. “As to the space issue, it must have to do with the local alien threats to the galaxy. As to why we’re both here, I can only assume Fate conspired to bring us together.”
“Hmmm, remind me to have a long talk with Fate when I get back home to Earth,” she murmured. “Or should I say a long argument over messing around with a person’s life?”
“Don’t look at me,” he laughed, gesturing innocence. “I’m sure I know as much as you do as to why we’re here. Too many sci-fi novels I suppose.”
Julianna quirked one eyebrow at that. Sci-fi novels... for some reason that triggered a chord. But what would they have to do with why she was suddenly on a spaceship now, let alone stuck with this most infuriating man?
“Cheer up,” he said brightly. “At least you’re not alone anymore.”
“Except for you,” she retorted. “I’m not so sure that’s much safer. I’d probably be better off captured by aliens.” Her words trailed off as she walked to sit beside the observation port to gaze at the stars.
An apt choice of words, thought Dominick, considering that we are both aliens from different worlds. Although of course she didn’t know of his real identity on Chavernos. As to the capturing part, he might not mind doing so with this particular auburn-haired alien!
With her attention distracted, he was free to appraise her new attire, and it was a change he certainly approved of. If the gown she’d worn yesterday enhanced her surface beauty, this new spacesuit she wore emphasized what the gown had hidden. Presenting a problem all its own, since the damned outfit left relatively nothing to the imagination as far as her shapely body was concerned. One he’d like to be holding right now, and kissing, and caressing, and…
Shaking his head as he remembered Chaolyn’s words, Dominick moved to sit beside her. “Julianna, I didn’t follow you here to upset you. I merely wanted the opportunity to get to know you better.”
&nb
sp; Her warm brown eyes looked up at that. “Why?”
“Why?” he exclaimed. “Why not? You’re a beautiful, intriguing woman who haunts my waking hours. I couldn’t stop thinking about you all day today.”
Her brow wrinkled, and she was about to ask where he’d been earlier.
“You there!” boomed an unfamiliar voice, earning the attention of both instantly.
A man walked up, followed by a few others, all dressed in similar attire to their own, albeit with different colored stripes, no doubt to signify rank or job assignments. The one who’d spoken was tall, apparently in charge, and wore an outfit with unique symbols along with corresponding black and silver stripes.
“What are you doing just sitting there?” he demanded. “You should be at your posts. We need all hands to help speed our departure to get as far away from the Warp Zone as possible.”
For some strange reason, the words sounded familiar, yet Julianna couldn’t place them. “What’s the Warp Zone?”
The man sighed. “A place our scientists should never have felt the need to study, since now we’re being pulled towards it.”
“As in a black hole?” inquired Dominick.
“Seemingly yes, but our scientists don’t believe that’s what it is. They feel the Warp Zone is a safe conduit to another location, akin to bypassing light years in a quick jump. But their information is all theoretical, and they didn’t count on it having a similar gravitational pull to a black hole or a planet. They were going to study it first.” The last he sneered.
“Scientific leaps cannot be made without such attempts,” said a small voice, capturing the attention of all. He was a man slighter of build, holding a foreign device.
“No offense, Landers, but this from someone who’s convinced himself he’s found a way to deal with the Rengar. Last I checked, those weapon prototypes of yours still shoot sparks more than doing anything useful.”
“Scoff if you must, Kyron, but one day you’ll see just how useful these weapons are.”
The leader clearly wasn’t impressed, returning his attention to Dominick and Julianna. “As I was saying, if that wasn’t enough, we’ve been pulled into a territory that’s under the control of the Rengar.”
“And who are the Rengar?” asked Julianna.
Kyron shook his head with a forced laugh. “A group of space renegades whose only goal is to capture space crafts, enslave crewmen, and destroy anything they don’t deem useful to their cause. How have you gotten this far into the fleet without at least being briefed on them?”
“She was transferred from a different system,” Dominick supplied, which surprisingly enough mollified the man.
“In any case, our monitors have just located one of their ships in our vicinity. You’d best get to your posts, and Landers, you have other duties to attend to.”
The other man nodded reluctantly, walking away, while the leader continued down the hall with his group.
Julianna was about to follow, but Dominick’s hand on her arm stopped her. “What are you doing?” she asked.
“The question is, what are you doing? You’re no more familiar with the workings of this ship than I am.” She couldn’t argue that, having no knowledge of how she got here to begin with. “So what are we waiting for? Let’s explore this place.”
Gesturing towards another branch of the hallway, he led the way and she followed beside him. This corridor was better lit and surprisingly devoid of other people. The quietude renewed Julianna’s former curiosity.
“Dominick, you never really answered my question earlier. How is it that we’re on a spaceship, and I have no knowledge of arriving here?”
“Space travel can be disorienting.” At the dubious glare she shot him, he shrugged. “All right, maybe there is a more logical explanation.” Waving his hand, a door slid open up ahead to their right, and he turned to her with a smile. “Something which is best demonstrated. Come with me.”
“I really don’t think…”
“Please. Trust me, Julianna.”
Without further protest, he took her hand gently and led her inside.
The room was moderately lit and large, but oddly vacant. For long moments, they walked about, their footsteps echoing from the emptiness.
Julianna turned to Dominick with a smile. “Mm-hmm,” she said finally. “Let me guess. You emptied this room by magic.”
“No,” he laughed. “This room never existed before now.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“It’s very true. We’re the only ones who know about it. Even that door wasn’t there until I conjured it. Its sudden appearance was only obscured because we weren’t standing directly beside it. And before you question this, I ask you to suspend your disbelief, and simply watch.”
Waving his free hand in a slow arc, flowers literally bloomed in the empty room. Not just one type, but an infinite variety with a rainbow assortment of colors. Julianna was too stunned to speak, left gaping at additions to the scene. Acorns appeared, sprouting into small trees that in seconds grew to be full and lush.
As the garden continued to expand, in the center of the room a small disk of water grew into a very large circular pool, with stone around the edges to encapsulate it.
After Dominick completed his sweep of the room, he turned to his wide-eyed companion. “Julianna, are you all right?”
“Yes,” she replied finally. “I’m just a bit overwhelmed.”
He breathed a sigh of relief.
“Good. By the look on your face, I was afraid you were about to tell me you’re allergic to flowers.”
A laugh burst from her before she thought, and he joined in.
The sound of birds chirping captured their attention. Several were flying around the room, including robins, bluebirds, and white doves. Not missing the possible romantic symbolism of the last type, confirmed by Dominick’s knowing smile, Julianna found herself blushing.
“What do you think?” he asked.
“It’s beyond amazing.” She took a step closer towards the pool, but he prevented this gently.
“Wait half a moment longer, my lady. I have one more surprise for you.”
Raising his hand forward, a fountain of water sprang up, extending out to fill the large pool. As the water cascaded, it sparkled and shimmered with brilliant colors, unlike anything Julianna had seen before. It even began emitting a lulling, musical hum. At her questioning look, Dominick nodded, and she took a step closer, reaching a hand towards it herself. The flowing water felt completely normal, in spite of its magical appearance.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Much like you,” he replied.
Feeling her cheeks flush, she turned to her companion, shaking her head. “That’s flattering, but how did you do all this?”
“Magic.”
She sighed heavily. “Dominick, we’re both adults, and magic doesn’t exist. So seriously, how did you really do this?”
He reached forward to take her hands in his, his mesmerizing blue eyes locking with hers. “There’s something you need to accept first before all else. I wouldn’t lie to you, Julianna.”
“But magic doesn’t exist on Earth.”
“Ah, but we’re not on Earth, are we?”
“No,” she agreed, though her mind remained confused.
Squeezing her hands, he smiled warmly. “The truth is, magic helped me to find you here. It was the only way I could see you again.”
“But you barely know me.”
“Something I’d like to remedy, if you’ll allow me, my lady.” Brushing one of her auburn curls from her forehead, his touch sent a shiver through her.
Feeling her heart race at his closeness, she knew she should back away, but something within wouldn’t let her. Tentatively, she reached up to touch his hand, feeling only gentleness and warmth. Slowly, their fingers intertwined, chaste and yet intimate at the same time.
“I barely know you either,” she whispered.
“I can remedy that to
o,” he replied with a smile. “And what better place than a secluded paradise that’s ours?”
Hands still clasped, they leaned closer, seeming to melt against each other as they kissed. Each seemed to be seeking what the other felt, and like the fountain, their kisses expanded, becoming warmer and deeper. All the while, the magic of the room surrounded them with its bower of music and serenity, enhancing every moment they shared.
Slowly, an eternity later, Dominick pulled back, his forehead still resting against hers with closed eyes as he smiled.
“My dear Julianna,” he murmured, “It’s true I know more about you than you of me. And there is so much I want to tell you.”
She echoed his smile. “I’d like to know.”
“Where to begin? I…”
A loud bang interrupted the reverie, causing both to turn towards the door.
“Where the hell did this door come from?” a familiar voice yelled from the other side. “This isn’t even on the system’s directory!” A swift pounding ensued. “Get this open immediately!”
At the muffled sound of others approaching swiftly, Julianna turned to Dominick worriedly.
“Relax, my lady,” he whispered, smiling confidently as he made a casual gesture towards the room.
Taking far less time than its earlier transformation, the paradise vanished, instantly replaced by the original empty ship room.
Abruptly, the door was pried open by two officers. Kyron stood in the middle, his expression shocked and angry.
“What are you two doing here?” he demanded. “I told you to get to your posts!”
Dominick squeezed Julianna’s hand. “My apologies. As I mentioned earlier, my companion is newly transferred to this ship and unfamiliar with the protocols. I was merely showing her around the ship.”
“Under ordinary circumstances maybe, but with the Rengar threat looming nearby, this is no time for a scenic tour! Now get back to your posts before…”