by Lisa Lace
Beoli balanced the ball for her team, and Culip did it for hers. Culip was excellent, but Beoli came close to matching her. The two of them ran around, shouting instructions and bumping their heads against their team’s in response to minor movements of the invisible ball that only they could feel.
Bethany wasn’t the only one to collapse with laughter every few minutes. Culip had great success helping Ruth lift Anna up to kick the ball off Beoli’s head, but Beoli soon had this strategy beaten by having Bethany, the tallest, leap in front of her whenever they tried it. Bethany got kicked in the head a few times, but she couldn’t remember ever having more fun.
Snia was terrible and mostly stayed in the back, but under Beoli’s direction, Lizzy, the smallest, sat on Trili’s shoulders and flailed her legs at Culip; she managed to win them a few rounds this way. Klowix watched them, looking inscrutable, but Bethany was sure she saw a smile flicker across his face once or twice.
Finally, after a few hours, they all collapsed, exhausted and still chuckling. Culip’s team had won, but only by two points, thanks to Beoli.
“Evions are so weird!” Bethany gasped and clutched her sides.
“You’re telling me!” Snia was still breathless.
Beoli teased her. “You’re just jealous because your parents didn’t teach you how to play.”
“And I wondered where you got your sense of humor.”
“If your current entertainment is complete, would you wish me to turn on the levaitor?
There were squeals of excitement all around at Klowix’s question.
“Now that’s more like it. Come on, Bethany, I can lend you something.”
Following Snia, Bethany soon found herself in a bright blue bikini. She clutched her towel to herself shyly, but Snia snatched it away from her. “Let’s go!”
The levaitor, it turned out, was a swimming pool, but it wasn’t like any swimming pool Bethany had ever laid eyes on. It was a sphere of water floating in mid-air. There were no walls, only a black stretch of something beneath it.
Bethany eyed the water holding itself up. “How does it do that?”
“Ask Culip – or actually, don’t. The explanation will probably take all day. Follow me.”
Snia hopped into the black thing, which bounced under her weight. She bounced higher and higher until the top half of her body was immersed in the water at the top of her jump. From there, she swam to the top of the huge sphere.
Bethany gaped in amazement.
Trili took her hand. “I’ll help you. It does take some practice getting in.”
“Allow me.”
Bethany’s breath caught in her throat when she saw Klowix. He wore a pair dark blue swimming shorts that matched almost perfectly with the bikini Snia had lent her.
“Come here.”
Bethany stepped onto the black thing, which seemed to be some type of fabric. Klowix put his powerful arms around her and held her tightly. “Hold your breath.”
Unlike Snia, his muscles needed only one leap to span the distance. Bethany expected cold, but when her head and torso were thrust into the water, it felt pleasantly warm. She knew how to swim, and she let go of Klowix to strike for the surface. She didn’t think she could concentrate on swimming with his skin so close to hers.
When her head broke the surface, she saw that the top of the levaitor was flat, like a normal swimming pool. There were several floating silver objects; Snia was on her back on one of them, and Lizzy was holding onto another. The others swam around, looking like fish through the shimmering water.
Klowix called to them. “Everyone ready?”
The others said they were; Bethany didn’t know what for, but Klowix didn’t wait. He pressed a button on some kind of remote around his neck, and the water multiplied.
Within a few blinks, there were seventeen spheres of water all around them – above, below, next to them, and all around. Bethany squinted through the water to see that the floor had changed, too. Just above it was a thick rectangle of water, and everything beneath seemed to be that same bouncy black fabric.
Ruth explained. “It’s so that if we fall we don’t hurt ourselves. The water slows you down, no matter how high you were, and then you just bounce.”
“Fall?”
Ruth grinned. “You’ll see.” She gestured to Culip, who was standing on one of the floating silver contraptions. As Bethany watched, she gave a great leap, reached up, and disappeared into the bubble of water above them.
Trili and Lizzy were playing around and splashing each other at the edge. As Bethany watched, Lizzy squealed and tried to get away, lunging for the next water bubble. She didn’t make it far enough in to pull her whole body into the water and fell. She plunged right into a bubble below and spread her arms and legs to halt her fall. Soon, she popped up at the top, laughing.
“They’re savages, Bethany, this is what levaitors are really for.” Snia laughed and beckoned Bethany to her. Bethany scrambled up on the silver thing and Snia pressed a button on its side. The floating device rushed smoothly forward, literally flying over two bubbles and landing smoothly on a third. Bethany promptly fell off, and came up sputtering, but smiling. Levaitors were officially the best thing ever created.
“Do they have these on earth?”
Ruth pulled her off her silver floater in an attempt to stop falling. “Oh yes, but only in the very rich households.” She watched as Anna pushed a floater down to the bottom of a bubble so that Beoli could grab it from the one below and get pulled up.
“I am so getting one of these someday.” Bethany suddenly realized that she could.
The first time she fell, she got a shock, but she wasn’t hurt; the system was designed well. Klowix saw her sitting on the floor watching, and came down to get her.
“You wouldn’t know this, but I don’t fire up the levaitor often. You should not waste this chance.”
Bethany was glad for the excuse to take his hand. She expected him to help her up, but first, Klowix gripped her hand tightly, pulling more of her essence out. Bethany’s legs suddenly went limp, but he didn’t wait. With a great leap, he pulled her back up into the water.
Bethany panicked. Her limbs were still weak with pleasure and didn’t want to move. Her head was underwater. Perhaps Klowix didn’t realize how much he was draining her. His hand was still in hers, and within a few moments he had pulled her up to the top.
Bethany brushed off the moment, but couldn’t help wondering how many moments there would be before something irreversible happened to her. Even that thought couldn’t convince herself to say the words, to tell Klowix she wanted to go home. She truly was crazy.
After a while, she found herself resting with Trili, who was on a silver floater. Bethany rested her arms on the side of the floater, enjoying the time to talk.
Trili confided something vital to Bethany. “I’ve never seen Klowix like this. He seems… different.”
“He does?” She looked over at Klowix, who was reclining on a silver floater, looking as though the water should be steaming off his abs.
“He seems lighter, even.”
“If you say so.”
Klowix turned his eyes to Bethany, making her knees weak. Trili grabbed her as her arms slipped off the floater and she sputtered out water. This man was going to be the death of her.
Chapter Seven
“So, what do you want to do today?”
“It’s Monday. Don’t you need to go to work today?”
Klowix shrugged. “They will get along fine without me for one day.”
Bethany raised her eyebrows. That was unlike Klowix. She wondered what he was thinking.
She looked at him. “Let’s go for a walk.”
“A walk?”
“Yes. I’ve been on Telion for weeks and I feel like I haven’t seen anything of the planet yet.”
“Of course, I should have realized, humans do have a curious thirst for knowledge. Yes, I will take you for a walk, but you’ll need to be dressed
properly first.”
Bethany glanced down at the loose green silk dress she was wearing. “What’s wrong with this?”
“The girls will explain. Go get dressed, I’m going to call a car.”
“A car? I thought we were going for a walk.”
Klowix winked at her. “This will be better. You’ll see.”
Before she went to get changed, Bethany hesitantly leaned up, stretching her head towards his.
Klowix leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. “Go on.”
Bethany went.
Most of the girls were still asleep, but she knew Anna was always up early, so she tiptoed over and knocked on her door.
“Bethany! Hey, I’m surprised you aren’t with Klowix.”
She shrugged. “He wants me to get dressed. What’s wrong with this?”
“He wants… oh, you’re going outside? Wow, lucky you! He’s never taken any of us out before.”
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing, though? Back on earth these clothes were formal, but perfectly acceptable.”
Anna tried to hide a smile. “Not on Telion. Silk is considered lingerie; you don’t want to go wearing it in public.”
“You mean as far as Evion customs are concerned, we’ve all been walking around in our underwear?”
Anna laughed. “Relax, it’s fine. It’s normal for Evions to dress like this at home, just not going out. Come on, I can lend you something. If you’re going to be going out more often, we’ll need to get you a bigger variety of clothes. Culip will be happy.”
Bethany groaned. Culip’s passion for shopping knew no bounds.
Anna soon had her in a long red dress that hugged her curves. It was made from a fine-grained fabric Bethany didn’t recognize – nothing like the silk she usually wore nowadays.
“Ok, you’re set, off you go!”
Bethany thanked Anna before rushing back to Klowix. He was waiting for her.
When Klowix had said “car,” it turned out he’d meant a fancy levitating pod with no roof, which offered a perfect view of the city around them.
“Are you afraid of heights?”
“Um, I’m not sure. I guess there weren’t any high places where I grew up, it was all flat.”
“Let’s see, then.”
Klowix did something with the controls, and the pod rose sharply upwards. Bethany screamed and grabbed the sides, but the strap across her waist held her firmly in place.
Klowix pointed. “Look.”
Bethany looked, and it was beautiful. The city was just waking up, lights coming on, movement in the otherwise still streets. Her stomach flipped. “Um, Klowix? I think I am afraid of heights.”
He just laughed and put an arm across her shoulder, pulling yet more essence out of her. Bethany wanted to protest, but her mouth didn’t seem to be working. She fell back against the seat.
“You want to see what this thing can really do?” Klowix had a glint in his eyes that Bethany had never seen before. He didn’t wait for an answer. The pod plunged towards the ground, blowing Bethany’s hair back from her face.
Bethany screamed and closed her eyes. At any moment, she imagined she would be meeting the hard ground that would be her end. Klowix laughed
She couldn’t decide whether to scream or laugh. Klowix turned the pod sideways and they skimmed over the surface before rising again and shooting off across the city.
An hour later, Bethany was carried home by Klowix. She was still shaking from the insane pod ride, but she wasn’t sure she hadn’t enjoyed it.
“I thought for sure we were going to die. I never knew you could fly like that.”
“It’s part of my training – no one gets through the army without a proficiency in aircraft piloting.”
Bethany grinned. Klowix pulled her to him so that their bodies were pressed together and kissed her. He pulled back for a moment, but when Bethany made no noise of protest, he kissed her again, and this time, his lips were harder, more insistent. Bethany moaned into his mouth.
She reached for his shirt, pulling it off and discarding it. Her fingers played across the muscles of his chest. Klowix broke off from the kiss, moving instead to kiss his way down her neck and to her chest. His mouth latched onto one of her nipples, sucking hard. Bethany wound her fingers in his hair, holding his head as he sucked her.
His pants were still on and she didn’t like it. She moved to take them off, but Klowix grabbed her hands. “Getting a little too excited, are we?” The effect was somewhat ruined by the way he was panting. “If you want them off, ask nicely.”
“Please, may I take your pants off?”
Klowix leaned close and whispered in her ear. “Go ahead.”
Bethany fumbled with the zipper, yanking it down to finally get to what she wanted, what she needed. Klowix’s cock was bulging out from his underpants. She reached for it, but then Klowix moved so fast that everything blurred, and the next moment she was on top of him.
Klowix smiled. “That’s better.” He gestured for Bethany to continue. When she got her hand on his cock, he made an appreciative noise deep in his throat and closed his eyes. Bethany hadn’t done this before, but the girls had described it to her.
Hesitantly, she enveloped Klowix’s cock between her lips. It was huge in her mouth, hard and weeping. She tickled the shaft with her tongue, enjoying the taste of him. Encouraged by the noises Klowix was making, Bethany took him deeper, feeling the tip of his cock bump against the back of her throat.
He took her head and pulled her off him, his face flushed and his pupils blown wide. “Come here.”
Bethany was only too happy to obey.
She leaned into their kiss, letting her tongue slide around with his; it was a warm, wet, delicious dance. Klowix’s hands ran down her back and clasped her ass, squeezing tightly. She could feel his cock pushing against her panties and impatiently tried to pull them off, but Klowix held her tightly, not allowing her to move.
“Allow me.”
She didn’t know what he did; there was that heady sensation of movement, and suddenly her panties were on the floor.
“That ability is growing on me.” She was a little surprised to admit that, but she wasn’t concentrating on talking. His cock was only inches from her pussy, and she wanted it. She tried to move onto it, but Klowix grabbed her hips, pulling her up on his chest, so that he could reach her clit with his tongue.
Bethany’s head fell back as she reveled in the sensation. He circled her clit with his tongue, slipping it down inside her briefly before coming back up. When he finally turned his attention fully to her clit, she was so wet that she had already soaked his chest.
She clutched his hair as his tongue took control of her, sending sensations roaring through her body, throbbing and humming. Bethany knew she was about to come and pulled back.
“I need you inside of me.”
He seemed to have been waiting for her to ask. “Turn around.”
He let her do it, scrambling awkwardly onto her hands and knees, quivering in anticipation. He positioned himself behind her, then in one swift movement thrust inside her, down to the hilt.
His cock filled her completely, and the new angle made her cry out in pleasure. Klowix took her waist firmly in his hands and started to move.
Bethany waited, knowing it would be worth the wait.
His hand settled on the back of her neck, and she could feel the essence being drawn out of her even as Klowix glided in and out of her, his Evion speed taking over. She wanted it to last, but she couldn’t help herself. She could already feel her muscles tensing. Klowix’s other hand came down and grabbed her breast, and that pushed her over the edge.
She cried out as she came, pushing back onto his cock, her back arched, every nerve ending in her body screaming with release. So great was her pleasure that she didn’t even notice Klowix coming with her. After a few eternal moments, he collapsed sideways on the bed, pulling her with him. Snuggled in his arms, catching her breath, Bethany
felt like there was nowhere she’d rather be.
She was still catching her breath. A flare of panic lit up inside her as she gasped for air.
No, not again!
Klowix had her turned around and facing him in a second. “Ah, the doctor said this might happen. There’s nothing wrong with you. You are letting your fear get away with you.”
Slowly, Bethany’s breathing began to ease. She realized he was right; this was not the tight obstruction in her throat that she so feared. This was just her fear tricking her. Relief washed through her. “I’m sorry.”
“It happens to soldiers all the time, if you have one bad experience, your mind and body almost expect to have it again. It takes effort to shut down the panic. This is good; it is a good skill to have.”
“Will… will this happen every time?”
He shook his head. “I doubt it. Now that you know what to expect, if you feel like you can’t breathe, you can remind yourself that it’s just your mind playing a trick on you.”
Bethany closed her eyes. “Just a trick. Just a stupid trick.”
She lay back, stretching out, sneaking glances at Klowix out of the corner of her eye. “Commander, will you tell me more about the sharing?”
“What do you want to know?”
“Well, what made people think to do it? What made them realize it could even be done?”
“Surprisingly, it wasn’t originally an act of pleasure, but one of necessity.”
“What do you mean?”
“It originated many millennia ago, in a time of war. This was before women were allowed in the army; the men would go to fight, leaving their wives at home. Before they left, they would take some of their wife’s essence to give them strength.
“Women have a unique kind of strength. Added to the strength of a warrior, it made the fighters virtually unstoppable. They were faster, stronger, more resistant to damage, better in every way. They even fought smarter, rather than just by brawn – definitely a woman’s brain in there somewhere.”
“It was a two-way thing, though. Sometimes, forces would get past them. If that happened, they would kill every living soul they could find. Soldiers would come home to find their wives murdered. If they had partaken in the sharing, they would be able to use a bit of her essence to put back into her, to help heal her, at least enough to get her to a doctor.