by Vivian Venus
That rock.
Something in her nagged at her about it, told her to go to it. He seemed attached to it, or at least that area… Maybe, somehow, she would find something that was related to him there?
She wasn’t going to wait until morning to find out.
Ryn got up and poured water over the fire, climbed into her truck, and then drove off into the desert night.
Daggen sat in the pilot’s chair and called up the holographic command board, and then punched in the thruster test diagnostic sequence. There was a low hum throughout the ship as the drives fired up in low power mode, and the dome display blinked to life. Data charts flashed up, showing the current status of the engines.
“It would seem that you did it, sir.”
“Ninety-five percent. Pretty much as good as new. Let’s get this thing fully fired up, I have someone I want to see.”
“Sir. It would appear she’s come to see you.”
“What?”
The displays blinked and showed Ryn’s truck pulling up on the top of the sand dune. The door opened and she stepped out, her mouth hanging open in awe.
“We don’t have cloaking on, do we,” Daggen said.
“No, sir. I didn’t think—,”
“No, that’s good.” He was grinning. “That’s good.”
She had come here to find him. He felt a thrill of energy well up inside him as he looked up at her face on the display, lit up by the outer glow of the ship’s hull. He turned and strode out to meet her.
The hatch materialized and opened in the side of the ship and Daggen stepped out, his hair ruffling in the desert wind. “Hey,” he shouted. “Miss me?”
Ryn found herself running down the dune hill to meet him, and then jumped and threw her arms around him. Daggen laughed and hugged her. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
“Me neither,” she said, surprised at her actions. “My God, you were telling the truth.”
He looked back at the ship. “It’s not much, but it brought me to you.”
“Who are you…? What are you?”
He took a deep breath. “Let me show you.”
Ryn walked into the ship, her eyes wide with wonder. “This is real,” she murmured to herself.
“Yes, it is. Computer, call up the star charts.”
“Yes, sir.”
They walked onto the control deck and the dome display switched to a blanket of stars. Daggen held up his hand and a holographic orb appeared beneath it. He wrapped his hand around it and as he manipulated it, the stars on the display wheeled and turned wildly.
“Here,” he said, pointing. “This is my planet.” A stunning emerald and white orb expanded into view.
“You’re an alien…” Ryn breathed. “Holy shit, you’re an alien.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you when we first met.”
“What are you doing here? On Earth?”
“Well… In a matter of speaking, I’m here because of you.”
Ryn’s heart was hammering hard in her chest. “What do you mean?”
“Maybe it’d be easier if I showed you. Would you like to see the Earth? From up there, I mean.”
She could hardly believe her ears. “Yes,” she said.
Daggen smiled. “Okay. I’ll show you.” He leapt into the pilot’s chair and hit a command on the holographic display and a second chair formed out the ground. “Take a seat.”
Ryn gingerly sat in the chair, still unsure if what she was seeing was real.
“Take us into orbit,” he commanded.
“Affirmative. Thrust sequence initializing.”
The ship hummed and shuddered as its front end lifted out of the dirt and leveled out to hover above the ground.
“Are we…flying?” Ryn asked.
Suddenly the ship jerked as it rocketed out and up towards the stars. The engines gave off no more than a low hum, and Ryn was surprised by the unexpected acceleration.
“Oh shit!”
“Now we’re flying,” Daggen laughed.
The entire domed display showed the outside of the ship, as if it were a gigantic window. Information read outs and flashed across the screen, and Daggen’s hands flew across the holographic control pad. The stars filled up the entirety of the display until the ship swung itself around and the swirling face of the Earth came into the view. They were looking at the desert from orbit, the hills and mountains and dunes all laid out in front of them.
Ryn’s mouth dropped open. “It’s Earth,” she whispered. “God, everything is so small…and so beautiful.” She was fighting back tears. It was more spectacular than anything a camera’s photograph could show. “I wish I could paint this.”
Daggen stepped out from his chair and motioned for Ryn to join him. She took his arm and they walked up to the display screen and stared out at the Earth. “I’ve spent four of your earth years up here,” he said. “Observing this desert. Geological surveillance. That was my job.”
He motioned with his hand, and a section of the desert enlarged. “I was doing tectonic analysis of this quadrant when one day… I saw this.” He waved again, and the image enlarged one more level.
Ryn squinted. It was her camper and campsite, an orbital view. “You saw me?”
Daggen nodded. “It had always been my dream to meet a human, but because of my rank and assignment it would never come true. Until the day I saw you. Out in this remote area I never thought I would see a human, much less one as stunning as you. And when I saw you create worlds with your paint brush… I couldn’t ever look away. I found myself coming back to look for you every single day. Up here in the loneliness of space, you kept me going.”
Ryn felt the warmth of Daggen’s strong arm against her body. She slid her hand down it until she found his, and she intertwined her fingers with his. Daggen looked down at her.
His heart was beating the fastest it ever had. “I came to earth to find you, Ryn Tilley,” he said.
“And you crashed your ship,” she teased him.
“Yes, I did. And broke strict protocol too. But it was worth it. It was worth it to meet you.”
He turned to her and took her other hand. Ryn looked up in his eyes. With the glowing surface of the earth behind them, the clouds swirling over the desert sands, the girl from earth and the man from a distant planet came together. Their lips touched in a kiss that was gentle at first, then as the barriers broke, became passionate.
Ryn could hardly believe the force with which she kissed him, and the more her lips crashed against his the more she realized this was what she had been looking for. Her fingers grabbed the back of his shirt and she pulled her body tightly against his. She felt small against him, his powerful arms enveloping her and holding her close. Their tongues explored each other’s mouths and intertwined, and Ryn couldn’t help but let out a little moan of relief. She wanted him, oh God, she wanted him so bad.
She was incredibly wet. Her panties were soaked through, and she was aching for his touch but wondered if Daggen would know. He was an alien after all…
Then his hand moved from the curve of her waist and drew up to her breast, and he grasped it and squeezed it while his other hand moved lower and lower. She shivered as she felt his fingers brush against her bare belly and slip between the fabric of her jeans and then her panties.
Touch me…
His strong fingers moved down, down and then curled up. She gasped and sighed, her legs almost giving out from the welcome intensity of his touch.
“You’re so wet,” he whispered. “This must mean you’re excited, right?”
She laughed and hit his chest. “You idiot. Ah!”
He touched her spot again, his fingers dipping in and out and circling around her clit. Daggen’s cock was throbbing and rock hard – the hardest he had ever felt it. He wanted her. He had never felt this intensity of desire before. He undid the clasp of her jeans and helped her shimmy out of them while Ryn tugged off her shirt and threw it aside. She was in nothing but her bra and p
anties, her body lit softly by the light of the earth. She moved to undo his pants, and Daggen impatiently ripped open his shirt, the buttons flying off.
“We’re going to have to get you a new shirt,” she smiled.
She tugged down his pants and dropped to her knees in front of him, admiring the hard bulge that was tenting his underwear. She could smell his manly scent through the fabric, and it made her even wetter. Without any further hesitation she curled her fingers under the fabric and yanked them down.
Daggen’s cock was huge. It stood hard and tall in front of her face, a little bead of pre-come building on its tip. She wrapped her fingers around it, and Daggen let out a little sigh.
He had never felt anyone touch him there before. Her hand was warm, and she began to stroke his length. He groaned with pleasure and watched as Ryn opened her mouth and took him inside.
“Ah,” he grunted. “That feels amazing.”
She pleasured him that way until Daggen’s desire for her grew too strong, and he pulled himself out of her mouth and lifted her to her feet. He then picked her up as if she weighed nothing, dropped her down into the pilot’s chair and then lifted her legs so they rested on the arms of the chair.
Ryn’s face was flushed hot as she anticipated what he was going to do. He bent down to one knee in front of her, bringing his face in front of her spot. It was just the thin strip of fabric between him and her, and he quickly drew her panties down her thighs and tossed them aside. He looked at her, admiring her bare gorgeousness, and then spread her open with his thumbs. She gasped as his tongue flicked across her, and she was so wet that a thin trail of her lust connected to his tongue.
Then he wrapped his lips around her and circled his tongue around her spot, tasting her and pleasuring her. Her body shook with the movement of his tongue, it felt incredible. “How are you so…good…” she moaned.
Daggen’s cock throbbed intensely as he tasted her and felt her twitching and pulsing around his tongue. He wanted to enter her, and feel her around him, and when Ryn softly begged him to fuck her he didn’t hesitate.
He entered her, and Ryn felt like universe had set itself right. She looked up into the eyes of magnificent alien man who had crash landed into her life, and realized that she was in love with him. He filled her up deep as he slammed hard into her, and she grabbed onto his arms and moaned with explosive ecstasy.
They came together, Ryn’s body shivering with the intensity of her orgasm as she felt Daggen swell up inside her. He leaned down and kissed her, and when their throws of pleasure had passed he picked her up in his arms and carried her back to his bunk where they laid in each other’s arms.
They kissed again.
Daggen hugged her close. His mind was reeling from what had happened. He hadn’t expected this to have happened between them, and now he knew that letting her go would be impossible for him.
What would he do when Keln came to wipe all existence of him from her mind? If he ran with her now, they would be caught eventually.
CHAPTER SIX
Back on Earth, Ryn pulled on her shirt and fastened her jeans and slipped out of the bed in her trailer. She looked out the window and saw that Daggen was standing outside, looking out at the desert. She walked outside and put her arm around his waist, and seemed surprised like he had been lost in his thoughts.
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
He took her hand and squeezed it tightly. Daggen knew that their time together was nearing an end, and he couldn’t think of any way to stop it. How would he tell her?
He looked into her eyes and kissed her softly. He considered not telling her altogether – after all, it would be his burden to carry in the end. She would go on with her life never even remembering his existence, and he would return to gazing at her from the stars. Perhaps it was more selfish for him to want to tell her, but he couldn’t hold it inside.
“Ryn, I need to tell you something.”
“What?”
“I… You’re going to forget about me.”
She laughed. “What are you talking about?”
“I’ve broken one of the rules of my assignment by coming down to earth and meeting you. That man that picked me up yesterday, he was one of my kind. His job is to enforce the protocols given to those who observe your planet. I was never meant to meet you and because I did… He’ll be here soon to fix that.”
She frowned. “I don’t know understand, Daggen. What’s going to happen?”
“I’ll return to my post in orbit above the planet and you… Your memory of me, of us, will be erased.”
She took a step back. “H-how? No…”
Daggen hung his head. “I’m sorry that I’m only telling you this now.”
She grabbed his hand. She wasn’t upset with him. “There has to be something we can do,” she said urgently. “Right?”
He shook his head. “The first strike notice has been served to me. Keln will be here to finish his part of the job, and unless that’s done there will be a warrant put out for my arrest.”
Tears formed in Ryn’s eyes. How could this happen? They were only just together… And Daggen… She hugged him tightly. “There has to be something…”
Daggen kissed her head. “I’m sorry, my love. The most we can do is enjoy the time we have together now before it’s lost forever. There won’t be any pain. You’ll wake up and not remember a thing. You’ll go back to your work, and continue painting those beautiful pictures.”
“No,” she pleaded. They had just found happiness and it was already being torn away from them. Sadness and anger flooded her, but mostly at the thought of Daggen living alone with the memory of what they shared while she lived on in blissful ignorance.
“I don’t have any regrets,” Daggen said. “I would rather live my life having met you and lost you than always wondering what could’ve been.”
“There was always something missing from my life until you,” Ryn said. “If you’re gone I…”
“You’ll survive,” Daggen said, smiling. “You’ll paint, and you’ll find someone new.”
She shook her head. “You’re different, Daggen.” She knew it was true. She had never felt this way about anyone before. If she couldn’t be with him, she knew she would live with an emptiness in her forever.
He kissed her again. “Let’s make the most of our time together today.”
“Let me paint you,” she said. “Please, so that I’ll never forget you.”
She got out her easel and went to get a fresh canvas, but she realized that she had no more. She went inside her camper and searched around to try and find a blank board, but found nothing. She turned, her eyes settling on a canvas in a black frame hat had been turned to face the wall. She turned it around and held it up. It was the painting she had made after Greg cheated on her and burned her work. There was no hesitation as she removed the frame, took the painting outside and placed it on her easel. Her brush worked quickly and passionately, with each stroke bearing the memory of their romance.
Afterwards, they made love again and then sat together outside to watch the sunset in each other’s arms, speaking softly to each other about themselves. They spoke with the ease and connection of a couple deeply in love, as if they had been together for much longer than just a single night. They told each other's about their childhoods, their lives on their respective planets. Ryn spoke about her heartbreak, why she had decided to come out to the desert. That all seemed so long ago now. He encouraged her to settle down here, to integrate with the community and sell her work more seriously here. She promised she would.
As the day came to a close they both silently hoped that maybe they were off the hook, that Keln wasn’t coming after all and that somehow Ryn’s memory would be spared, but when Daggen felt the air tingling around him he knew that the time had come.
An orb of light appeared and hovered in the air, and a sudden flash enveloped them. When it had faded, Keln stood silently before them.
“I’m
here to finish my assignment,” he announced officially. “Daggen Trys, you will be returned to your ship to carry out the rest of your assignment. The human female’s memory of your encounter will be wiped in order to maintain our non-interference except by trained personnel ordinance.”
Ryn found she couldn’t fight back her tears, and they rolled heavily down her face. “Daggen,” she said. “Please don’t go.”