by Renee Bond
But… after a time… I decided to speak up anyway.
“I’m sure I’ll love you someday too,” I said, giving voice to what I honestly felt.
“I know.”
And that was it. That felt comfortable. That was plenty.
My eyes decided that they’d been open more than long enough, thank you very damn much.
Like a child, I slept.
Chapter 29
Karkan
Humans are so very, very strange.
Our woman, our precious mate, our singular reason for being on this odd little backward planet... a vessel of the very salvation of our very species… did not awaken as we gently lifted her off of Lenth and set her down upon our bed.
Lenth rolled away, to one side of the big bed, which I and my honor guard had always shared, and which we would now share with a fourth. He always preferred as much space for his big frame as possible. Sandora found a place to one side of our woman, and I to the other side.
She slept with a fierce determination, as if nothing in the universe could ever wake her.
Good. We had done our job, then.
And that was no understatement. I had many responsibilities. To my superiors. To my crew. To my ship. But I had a new responsibility now. One that outweighed all the others.
Mating.
I considered this new responsibility, for a time, as I lay awake, my mate and my honor guard issuing the even breathing of sleep.
It was a weighty thing. Not complex. In fact, quite simple.
Just thinking about it made me want to wake our mate up, to take her once again.
But I didn’t.
She very clearly needed her sleep.
Keeping her healthy was part of the responsibility of mating. As was keeping her safe. Keeping her happy. Not indulging her, certainly. Humans needed a firm hand, to be sure. They had shown the Domann that time and time again.
It felt good, this new responsibility. This new duty. The goodness of a person is ever measured by the responsibilities they shoulder, after all.
And so I welcomed this new responsibility into my heart.
Just as I did with our new mate.
Liza Strong.
She had come a long way in a very short amount of time. From resistance fighter, to the beginning stages of accepting her place as our mate. Such was fairly typical of humanity, really. They can so easily become so very, very lost. Yet, they are just as easily redeemed. It was as if each one is quite stupid, yet quite smart, all at once.
And that was something I’d as yet been unable to wrap my head around.
I put the matter of the nature of humanity aside.
Content, happy, to fall asleep next to my woman.
Chapter 30
Liza
I awoke alone.
Sat up.
Yawned.
Wondered where the hell I was.
Wherever it was, it was damn nice! I certainly wasn’t in the musty, dirty headquarters-
The events of the last few days caught up to me all at once.
Oh.
I’m a Domann mate now.
I was on their ship. In the personal quarters of the captain, and his honor guard.
Where I… had just mated with all three of them.
That particular memory brought a lazy, satisfied smile to my lips.
I was still naked. But a fresh kilt and a shirt - plain white - were laid out on one side of the huge bed.
I waited. It felt like I was a guest, here… even though I suppose this was technically my home too. Still, I felt somewhat out of place.
Nothing happened.
Eventually, I got up. Got dressed.
Wandered around the room.
There were a few doors scattered about. One led to what was clearly a wardrobe. Another contained what I thought might be a small eating area. Another led to a washroom. Which didn’t contain anything that resembled a toilet. But, there was a hole in the floor that I guessed - hoped - was the Domann equivalent.
I sat down on one of the plush couches. It was firmer than it looked. Probably because it was made for a body that was twice my weight.
I ran my fingers across one of the desks. It was actually made of a brown, wood-like stone. There were a few drawers, but, though curiosity poked at my ribs, I left them alone.
I was just wandering back toward the center of the room, wondering what the hell I was supposed to do now, when the big door opened.
Karkan, Lenth and Sandora strode through.
All three were wearing full combat exoskeletons, sans helmet. I had to remind myself that they didn’t actually pose any threat to me.
“Glad to see you’re awake,” said Karkan. “I trust you slept well?”
“Like a log,” I said. “And I think I have you three to thank for that.”
Three confused faces stared back at me.
“Do trees sleep?” asked Sandora.
“Logs are dead trees,” replied Karkan, “so you’re saying-”
“Oh, nevermind!” I said. “I’m going to have to watch the human expressions with you three.”
“Indeed, they never make any sense,” said Sandora matter-of-factly.
“They’re certainly... creative,” offered Lenth. As if he were trying to spare me any hurt feelings. As if I were personally responsible for the countless human idioms that I and everyone I knew used on a daily basis.
“In any case,” Karkan said, “I regret that we could not be here to greet your awakening. But, a captain's duties are never finished. And while I’d love nothing more than to spend a bit more quality time with you - or, rather, a lot more - I’m afraid there is something we must discuss.”
“Oh?” I asked, suddenly feeling a hair nervous. “What about? You going to capture me again?”
Karkan grinned.
“A bit later tonight,” he said. “No, what we need to discuss is… somewhat delicate. It concerns the human resistance in the city of Atlanta.”
Sudden emotion tugged at me.
The resistance. They were still, even after everything I’d been through, my people. They were still down in the city, fighting for human freedom… while I was up here, mating with the enemy, safe and sound and surrounded by luxury.
I couldn’t help but feel guilty at that.
“I think it will come as no surprise to you,” said Karkan, as he slowly paced back and forth, “when I say that it is our mission to neutralize said resistance.”
“You don’t say,” I said wryly. “I seem to remember something about you capturing thousands of us, and me, a few days ago. That what you’re referring to?”
“Quite,” he said. “Recent… decisions, reached by my superiors, have impressed upon me a certain urgency in ending the resistance. And I believe that you could help us with that.”
“We need to find the remaining resistance bases,” said Sandora. “We’re not at liberty to tell you exactly why our search has become so urgent. It’s classified information, unfortunately, and you haven’t been formally recognized as our mate quite yet. Until then, we ask you to trust us when we say that ending the resistance in Atlanta is the best outcome for everyone in the entire city.”
At that, my bullshit detector sprang into high alert.
“What, so it’s not just so you Domann can even more effectively rule our every waking moment?” I asked. “I know I’m trapped on this ship, but don’t think one night of good dick will turn me against my species quite so thoroughly!”
“This… is not how I hoped this conversation would go,” said Karkan darkly.
Which made me nervous, as I remembered the spankings I’d endured at his hands.
“Why don’t you just bring that torture drone in here to ask your questions for you?” I spat, unable to help myself. “This is clearly a fucking interrogation, after all!”
“I would never allow you to be tortured!” Karkan spat back. “And for your information, that drone’s programming makes it impossible for it t
o actually use its implements on anyone!”
“Our species has had a long enough history with torture to know that, beyond being unethical, it’s simply counterproductive," Sandora said. “It leads to far more misinformation than intel.”
“That being said, the fear of torture can work wonders,” Lenth finished.
“Oh, so you have a drone specifically for torturing people, but you never use it cause’ you’re such great guys!” I laughed, more for emphasis than humor.
Karkan heaved an exasperated sigh.
“Despite your childish sarcasm, yes, that’s precisely correct. Look. Certain conservative factions among the Domann rulers, factions whose members are old enough to remember conquering planets other than Earth, are growing impatient with the tenacity of the human resistance. The methods these factions are advocating are… extreme. Far worse than sending a few commandos into a base to capture everyone alive. Far worse than anything that’s ever happened between our species. Far worse than our initial invasion. It’s no exaggeration to say that if you can tell us anything that will help us end the resistance, you might very well be saving millions of human lives!”
“Bullshit!” I spat. “You might already have me, but I won't help you send any more people to your damn labor camps!”
How the hell could I think that I’d fallen for Karkan, or his damn honor guard? They were fucking Domann. Their boots were on humanities' neck. Sure, they were unbelievable in bed. And these three clearly cared about me, in their own alien way. But that didn’t change anything about their goals of ruling humanity.
“So you don’t deny that you have information that would lead to that very outcome?” Karkan asked.
That’s when I made my big mistake.
I hesitated.
I had always intended to keep what I knew, who I knew, to myself. To play dumb.
But Karkan’s assertion just plain caught me off guard.
For a split second, my mouth hanging open, I said nothing.
“If I did, I’d take it to the grave!” I said.
“I seem to remember hearing such assertions before,” Karkan replied. “And that my belt proved an effective counter-argument.”
“Humans, as a species, aren’t particularly good at lying,” Sandora said. “And, in my eyes, you’re only a little better than average.”
I stood up from the bed. Stalked across the room.
But, there was nowhere for me to go.
This room was certainly a much nicer prison than the one I’d been in before. But a prison it remained.
“None of you ever cared about me,” I said quietly. “All you ever wanted from me is cooperation. Well, you’re not getting it! Not this time!”
Karkan heaved a sign.
“I really don’t want to punish you for refusing to act in the best interests of your own people,” he said. “And, despite your disobedience and impertinence, I really can see how this conversation must look from your perspective. With that in mind, I - we - are going to give you some time to cool down. To think about whether or not resisting us is really a path you want to walk down. To remember what happened the last time you tried to resist me.”
A small shiver stole up my spine, thinking about Karkan’s belt. I certainly wasn’t eager to repeat my encounter with it.
Not under these circumstances, anyways.
“Wait all you like,” I said sullenly. “I’m fucking trapped here, aren’t I? But I promise you this: I’ll never betray my people. Not even for the three of you.”
“This is stupid,” Lenth said suddenly. “We should just tell her.”
“No,” said Karkan sternly. “She hasn’t been formally recognized and registered as our mate. Therefore informing her of anything said before the sitting council is strictly forbidden.”
“Tell me what?” I demanded.
Was this some new trick? Pretending there was something that would make me change my mind, only they couldn’t tell me what it was?
Or… was there really something I needed know?
I really wanted to trust them. Especially after last night.
But I couldn’t think just about myself. I had to think about the resistance. About everyone who was still free from Domann rule, and who wanted to stay that way. Everyone who would be sent to some labor camp if they were captured.
“We will not speak of it,” said Karkan.
“Like I could believe anything you said anyway!” I said.
The look Karkan gave me then was genuinely hurt. Sandora looked quietly furious. Lenth rolled his eyes, wearing a look of exasperation.
“When have these humans ever responded well to simple authority?” he asked. “If we tell her, she’ll see-”
“No!” barked Karkan. “That is the last time I will hear of it!”
“Formal recognition could take months,” Lenth said. “Maybe nothing will happen before then. Or maybe the sitting council gets tired of waiting.”
“Hold. Your. Tongue!” Karkan ordered.
“You’re not being fair to her,” Lenth said, gesturing at me. Then he put up his hands, in a gesture of obvious acquiescence.
Karkan glared.
“Do you think I don’t know that?” he hissed. “Regardless of what is or isn’t fair, I am duty-bound to observe the protocols governing information about sitting council deliberations. If I could tell her, I would have. This conversation would be far easier. But I cannot tell her, and that is the end of it. And if I hear one more word out of you, I’ll report this insubordination for inclusion into your service record. Is that understood?”
“Yes Captain,” Lenth said formally.
For all my suspicions, earned during a lifetime with the human resistance, I couldn’t help but think that there really was something more going on here. That there was something real, something big, that Karkan would not speak of, being the good captain he was.
“My answer is still no,” I said.
Karkan turned back to me.
“As I said, I intend to give us all some time to cool down. After that, I am going to change your mind for you, whether you like it or not!”
With that, he stalked from the room. Sandora wasn’t far behind him.
Lenth stayed behind.
“You will learn, very quickly, that such displays of disobedience won’t work for long,” he said sternly. “But… I’m not sure I would cooperate either, if I were you.”
“Gee, thanks,” I said bitterly.
“In time, you will learn to trust us,” he said.
The door opened once again, and a small drone floated through it.
“In the meantime, if you need to contact us for any reason, you can speak to this drone, and it will hail us over our communications network.”
“Don’t hold your breath,” I said.
“I… don’t see why I would do that,” he replied. “In any case, let the drone know if you get hungry, or need anything else. You will, as I’m sure you’ve already guessed, be confined to our quarters.”
He turned to leave.
“This was your plan all along, wasn’t it?” I called after him. “This is why you began trying to tame me, even before you knew that I could bear Domann children. This is all I really am to you. Just a human with some information you want, and you’ll do anything to get it!”
Now it was Lenth’s turn to look at me with a hurt expression on his face.
“That is why we approached you before we discovered that you were our mate,” he said softly. “In fact, we’d discussed trying to recruit you as a spy. Of course, that plan failed spectacularly, once we got to know you even a little. Once we all started to develop feelings for you - which also happened before we knew you were our mate.”
Parts of that answer stung.
Other parts of it eased that sting.
In short, it was a thoroughly conflicting answer.
“Just stay close to that drone,” he said.
Then he left.
Leaving me alone in
my luxurious prison. To stew, imagining what punishment awaited me.
Chapter 31
Liza
I paced for a while.
Then I stopped.
Then I flipped over a few chairs, scattered papers from desks, broke two lighting fixtures, and managed to rip a hole in whatever material the bed was made out of.
I… may have been upset.
“Please refrain from causing damage to your environment,” said the drone, once again, as it followed me around the room.
“Please refrain from not exploding!” I snarled back.
“Alas, I cannot honor your request,” it said.
I heaved a sigh.
This wasn’t helping.
And my ass was not going to enjoy paying for this little temper tantrum.
“Fine,” I said. It felt strange to be talking to a robot. But, when in Rome… or in this case, a Domann warship. “Then open the door and let me out.”
“I’m afraid…” it said, before trailing off.
It hadn’t really been an answer.
But it also hadn’t been a no.
Curious.
I rounded on the thing.
It was a silvery chrome, almost perfectly smooth, and it hovered in the air without any visible way of being able to do so.
I pretended it had eyes, then glared straight into them.
“Open the door. NOW.”
“I… at once,” it replied.
The door at the front of the living quarters slid open.
A moment later, my mouth slid open, then hung there.
What the holy hell?
That had actually fucking worked? There’s no way that should have worked!
“Shut it!” I said quickly.
“At once.”
The door slid shut.
Well, fuck me.
Maybe my status on the ship had been elevated, somehow? Or, maybe this drone had a screw loose?
Whatever the root cause of my newfound authority over doors, this was no time to rush blindly off. If this was some kind of mistake, and I was caught doing… whatever I was about to do... I might not get the chance to try again.