by Viola Grace
He grinned and grimaced a moment later. “And I understand your reasoning for your life of solitude. We will deal with that another day.”
The sound of Darthuun clearing his throat was repeated. “My son, as much as I enjoy the thought of you finding a partner, the pheromone cloud you two are producing is distracting the other engineers.”
Ula blushed. “Sorry, Darthuun.”
“My apologies, Father.”
The master engineer was standing with his arms crossed over his chest, his wings flared out to frame him. He wore the same type of clothing that Deniir wore. A sleeveless shirt slit up the back to allow for the wings’ free movement and tight trousers that tucked into knee-high boots.
His sandy hair was caressed by silvery strands, which hinted at the changes that Deniir would eventually undergo.
“Ula has already made great strides on the portable healing unit.”
Darthuun looked sceptical. “How great?”
Ula smirked, “It is finished.”
It was hard to be smug while she was leaning against Deniir, but the moment she realised it was her own body shifting toward his on its own, she stepped back until she was leaning against her workstation.
Darthuun looked sceptical. “Really?”
Ula smirked and leaned over, grabbing the unit from where Deniir had set it down. Out of the way but within reach.
She grabbed a blade from her belt, and wincing, she placed her hand on the table and plunged the knife through her left hand, between the bones. The searing agony distracted her, and she heard Deniir shout and Darthuun gasp.
Through gritted teeth, she hissed, “Stand back. I have to do this.”
He stood back but it was reluctantly.
Her hand throbbed, but she picked up the new portable healer. She calibrated it against her forearm, and the moment it turned green, she pulled the knife out of her flesh, pressing the healing unit to the back of her hand.
The unit’s indicator light turned blue and the pain stopped. It was telling her nerves to calm down while it used the clotting and repair factors of her body to do their work in the most efficient way possible.
Once the blue light turned white, she rotated her hand to heal the interior of her palm.
When the light turned purple, the healing was done.
She raised her hand to Darthuun and flexed her palm. “I trust you will believe me now?”
He bowed low, his wings fully extended. “My apologies that my doubt caused you pain, Master Designer.”
“Testing a design on my own body is only what anyone should ask of themselves if they expect others to trust their lives to it.”
Deniir looked at her as if she was the most precious thing in the world, and Darthuun bowed lower.
“Please get up, Darthuun.” She returned to her workstation and smiled at Deniir as she started back on the tracking pod that she was working on.
The master engineer stood up again and folded his wings in. “We thank you for your help. Are the schematics in the system?”
“They are. I took images of the unit as I built it.” She sealed the casing with a few snaps, and the small rocket was complete. She would need to build more, and one per day would increase her chances of finding any traces of those first few Gaians.
“If you are done with that project, it is time for the mid-day meal.” Deniir smiled. “Would you care to join me?”
She looked across her workstation at the pieces in progress but acknowledged that her mind would be clearer if she had something to eat. “I would enjoy that.”
Ula extended her hand to him, and he took it, bringing her bloody knuckles to his lips. Meeting his gaze over her hand, she smiled. It was an interesting way to start a relationship, but how much of a future could they have, separated by space and culture?
As if performing a magic trick, he reached into his shirt and removed a small object while their server poured their drinks. She was sticking to fruit juices and plain tea. She didn’t want to take chances on getting intoxicated.
“This is your debit chit. You can use it to buy anything on the mother ship, and you can use any terminal to check your balance.” He held it between two fingers and extended it to her.
She examined it, and it was a simple piece of recording media. A small chip that could easily be concealed within clothing was sitting in her palm. She lifted it and tucked it into her work belt. That would keep it safe until she could make a wristband that would keep it in place.
She smiled brightly and was startled when a man appeared at her elbow. It was Engineer Trull. He bowed low. “Thank you for your genius. I could never have shifted the design in that direction.”
“Thank Gaia for the inspiration. My poor brain does nothing that the planet didn’t put there. I am merely a tool of her design.”
“As are we all. Well, thank you for coming to the ship to share her wisdom then. That was under your control, and it is appreciated.”
She grinned, “For that, you are welcome.”
He was going to reach for her hand but a wing stopped him, flicking out with the sudden aim of a weapon. Deniir raised an eyebrow at Trull, and the other man excused himself and left.
Ula took her cup and sipped from it. “That was rude. How long are you going to keep doing it?”
He shrugged. “Until I have a mate of my own, it seems.” He gave her an innocent smile.
She focussed on the menu and made a selection. “Focus on finding a match for your lunch. Leave your mate to the future.”
“I am an engineer, I make my own future.” He winked and gave his focus to the menu.
Chapter Eight
The next two days went by in a blur of flirting and stolen kisses. When she was able to think straight, she knew that there was only one thing to do. She had to talk to his mother.
Ula made the arrangements with Darthuun, and he left her alone in his office while she waited nervously for the connection to be made to the Light home world.
A woman finally filled the screen, her midnight hair showed streaks of white and silver. “Greetings, child.”
“Hello, Maurikan. I am Ularica of Gaia, and I want to ask you something.”
The woman’s clear features smiled, “So my husband has said. What do you wish to know?”
“Do all of the People of the Light separate when they have children? Darthuun has no answer for me.”
Maurikan grimaced. “I did not marry him for his tact. No, our choice was so that Deniir could get his position on the mother ship. There was no other way for Deniir to leave home as we always travel with family until we are mated, and he had to leave. There was nothing for him here.”
“No woman with big wings begging to be his?” She grinned.
She laughed and then sobered. “Not one that made his heart beat faster. When you can’t find your mate at home, it is time to take to the stars.”
“Oh. I see.”
“No, I don’t think you do. You must understand that the Nine do not find their mates via casual contact. Our very souls cry out to us when we meet the one we are destined to be with. In the case of the Light, our minds reach out first and determine if we are like-minded. Once that is out of the way, our bodies follow suit. When Darthuun asked me to let him travel with Deniir to the stars, I said yes, because we were of the same mind. Our daughters grow and flourish in his absence, and it hurts him, but he is doing it for our son, which enriches us both.”
“So, if Deniir gets married, Darthuun can go home?”
Maurikan nodded. “Yes, Deniir will have his new family to start. So, if you say yes, there will be more than two hearts involved.”
Ula blushed, “What do you mean, if I say yes? He hasn’t asked me anything.”
“Really? Close your eyes and listen for a moment to what your soul is hearing. Listen to the question that you have been avoiding.” Deniir’s mother widened her snow-white wings and raised them high until they framed her completely in the screen.
Ula closed her eyes and heard the question she had avoided. Will you be mine?
It echoed in every corner of her thoughts, and she couldn’t believe that she had missed it.
Blushing, she opened her eyes. “I didn’t hear it.”
Maurikan smiled. “I know. I ignored Darthuun for two months before I gave in.”
“Does it bother you that I don’t have wings?” She blurted it out.
“No. I have known that he was going to find a wingless woman for his mate. It was a logical direction. Now, while I have enjoyed this conversation, Darthuun is waiting restlessly outside the door and talking to both of you is giving me a bit of a brain ache.”
“Well, it was nice meeting you.”
“The same here, also your grasp of our language is quite impressive. Your bond is quite strong.”
Ula snorted. “So I have been told. Have a good day, Maurikan.”
Maurikan inclined her head and disconnected the call.
Ula straightened and headed back to her workstation. She opened the cabinet she had ordered and checked on her private project. The wings were almost complete, she just needed two more components, and when she checked her inbox, they were waiting for her. The energy cell was amazing and could power more than her simple construction.
The wings were her first truly personal project in years, and she wasn’t sure that she would get the help she needed to test it.
“Excuse me, are you Ularica?”
Ula turned her head and smiled at the woman that she knew by reputation only. “Signy?”
“Call me Ziggy. I got your message, and I was surprised that they have managed to sneak another Gaian on board.” She came forward and embraced Ula. “Belated welcome to the ship.”
Ula returned the hug. “Thank you. Now, will you help me with my project?”
“Right to the point, huh? Well, if you don’t want to use one of the People of the Light as backup, I suppose I can ask Tonos. He can probably manage a catch if he has to. Well, if Tiera lets him.”
Ula smiled. “Do you want to see them?”
“Of course. Would you like to come for dinner?” Ziggy looked hopeful.
“If I survive, I would love to as long as Deniir is also invited.”
“I will have Rothaway extend the invitation. Give me a moment to make the arrangements and I will have Tonos meet us at the central hub.”
“I will finish the wings. My com unit is available to you.” With her heart humming, she put in the final components before she slipped the wings on her back. The straps held them snugly to her body, and she moved into an open space to do the first extension tests.
The wings flared at her movements, and they flapped twice before tucking up and out of the way.
A wry voice said, “I hope you aren’t thinking of flying without me.”
She blinked. “Ah, Deniir. Yeah, I was going to take these for a maiden flight with someone else for backup.”
He was immediately in front of her, bristling with jealousy. “Who?”
“A friend of Ziggy’s. Tonos, I think she said. He is the husband of another Gaian.”
Air slowly left him. “Oh. The Prince of the Air. Of course. He’s a good choice, but I am going to be there anyway. Wait, where am I going to be?”
“We are going to the central hub. It’s the least gravity and the longest fall. If I can even get these to stick out enough to glide, that is definitely something.”
He nodded. “Sensible. You can have Tonos there as backup, but I am going to be there as his backup. You are not plummeting into the unknown with a piece of flapping metal at your back if I am not there.”
Ziggy returned and smiled. “All set. He can meet us there now if you like.”
Ula shifted with her wings on her back. They were surprisingly light, but that was the point. These were not for serious flight; they were purely recreational.
Deniir disappeared and came back with one of his cloaks. “No sense gathering more attention than is necessary.”
He settled it over her shoulders and gave her a quick kiss. She could feel his question hammering at her, but now was not the time. If she didn’t splat in the arboretum, it would be time to answer him.
Ziggy stood next to her friend Tiera and held her hand. Tonos was grinning and flexing his fairy wings.
“I will head out and keep out of your way as you launch. I will be ready when you are.” His tone was calm and encouraging.
Deniir removed her cloak and said, “When you first jump, you want to scoop the air. Once you have slowed, use the wings to flap for height and control your descent.”
She nodded and touched the head-based controls as well as the emergency devices on her harness. The harness controls were a last resort.
The walkway that they stood on was half a kilometre from the floor of the central hub. If she couldn’t figure it out, she would know soon enough.
Ula nodded to Tonos, and he flitted up and over the safety railing.
Deniir lifted her chin. “I can’t move as fast as Tonos can, but I will be there before anything bad can happen, all right?”
She nodded and breathed in. “All right. Now, shoo. I need to get into the air before I lose my nerve.”
He kissed her again before climbing to the railing and falling backward. His wings opened with ease, and huge sweeps kept him airborne twenty metres away.
The ladies gave her thumbs up, and it was now or never. Before anyone could stop her, including herself, Ula climbed the railing, extended her wings and jumped.
The wings beat slowly, and it was fifty metres before she got the rhythm. Tonos was on one side of her and Deniir the other as she changed direction and began to scoop her way through the air current being pushed up from the vents far below.
She climbed up and up, past Ziggy and Tiera and toward the observation bubble crafted in the centre of the ship. Deniir kept pace with her, beat by beat. Tonos zipped around and switched from side to side far more rapidly than she could.
The wings were a success, though she would definitely advise users to get some ground practice before jumping into the air and hoping for the best.
She heard Deniir call out. “Time to land, Ula!”
She nodded, and together, they started a slow spiral descent, controlled and careful. It took five minutes for her to touch down in the gardens, and by the time Deniir was next to her, a crowd was applauding wildly.
He put his arm around her and kissed her in full view of all the watching men and women. A gasp of surprise was the first sound, but soon, the applause returned.
“We have been asked to dinner by Councillor Rothaway and Ziggy. I think we should get ready.” Deniir kept his arm around her as they made their way through the crowd, his wings out and curled around her protectively.
She was heady with triumph as they made their way back to the VIP quarters, and once inside, she unbuckled her wings and casually said, “My answer is yes, by the way.”
Before he could respond, she dove into her quarters and locked the door a moment before a thud marked Deniir’s moment of impact.
Dinner was going to be entertaining.
Chapter Nine
Ula tried to stay calm, but next to her, Deniir was humming with tension. He wanted to be alone with her, and there was no doubt about it.
Rothaway had lovely manners and very sharp teeth. Ziggy dealt with him as if he wasn’t almost twice her size and could snap her in half, and he treated her as if she was a delicate flower he was afraid of crushing.
“So, you really built wings that enabled you to launch and fly immediately?” Rothaway leaned back in his chair and shook his head.
“Apparently. I got the idea the first time I saw Deniir, and it has been humming around in my thoughts since.” Ula sipped her wine.
Ziggy smiled, “Your grasp of the Wilder language is fairly exact.”
Ula looked at Deniir. “It is his fault. His languages are embedded in my mind, and apparently, he knows Wilder.”
>
Deniir grinned.
“So, when are you two going to formalize it?” Ziggy nibbled at a vegetable stalk.
Deniir turned his glass between thumb and forefinger. “After dinner. She agreed this afternoon after she survived her flight attempt.”
Ula looked at him. “After dinner?”
He shrugged. “It is either that or I go to medical again for a suppressor shot.”
She cocked her head, and Ziggy filled her in.
“When a male of the Nine is—thwarted—in love, he needs to get a shot or go a little feral. I have never seen one of the People of the Light go feral, but I am guessing that it can be a little violent. I know Tonos was.”
“Feral? What constitutes feral in the Light?”
Deniir took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. “Sharper teeth, our light glows through our skin and our feathers become coated with a light sedative.”
Rothaway snorted. “They also give off a sedating pheromone that knocks out all males in the area, giving them full access to the female of their choice. The light they emit blinds pursuers for half an hour, and they fly away with the female, hopefully gaining her agreement at some point.”
“What if she doesn’t agree?”
Deniir answered, “If his mind is linked with hers and he has gone feral and she rejects him, he goes insane and crashes into a large body of water.”
Ula flinched. “So, finding a match is important to you.”
He kissed her hand again. “It is everything once we find a compatible female.”
Rothaway changed the conversation to the designs that Ula had improved on and Deniir proudly listed them. Ula blinked as the list went on and on. She had been busy, but it had felt so much like playing that it had zipped past in a joyful blur.
Ziggy whistled softly. “Impressive, Ula.”
“Thank you. It has been fun. I just have one question.”
The table at large turned to her as she looked to Deniir. “What happens next?”
He blinked and blushed.
Ziggy laughed and filled in. “She means where will you two live? Here or on Gaia?”