by L P Peace
‘You’re not a virgin,’ Rhona said. She stepped towards him and studied his face. ‘But you’ve never been in an orgy. You need love.’ She went further. ‘You need to be in love with a person, and they need to love you before you give yourself to them.’ She saw the truth of her words on his face.
Devorak’s eyes widened with surprise, and for a moment, Rhona could see the true man inside, not the affectation. She saw someone of deep love, longing and loss. Someone who wanted to protect, cherish and heal. Then it was gone, and the affectation was back.
‘Lovely idea. Far from the truth.’ Devorak swallowed.
‘Yeah, right.’ Rhona winked at him. ‘Just don’t forget who you are when the time finally comes,’ she warned him. She turned away, then turned back, catching a serious look on his face, though he covered it quickly.
‘You coming to the bridge? We’re arriving at Caras.’
‘Ah, a space station of criminals. Yes, let’s have a look.’
‘I want to make one thing clear, Rhona,’ Makios said as soon as he saw her enter the bridge. ‘You can’t be seen by anyone on Caras. So when we comm in, you can’t be in here.’
Rhona nodded.
He reached out to her. He was standing in the middle of the deck, Deyuul in the pilot’s seat. Vanoor in the co-pilot’s seat.
‘What are we doing here exactly?’ Devorak asked.
‘Finally getting on with our mission,’ Makios said. ‘We have a contact here to point us in the right direction.’
She crossed to him, and he extended an arm, tucking her into his side. ‘What’s the mission?’ Rhona asked.
Makios shifted uncomfortably. ‘We’ve been hired to rescue some Todaal scientists who were kidnapped by a group of Goedan. They’re hiding out somewhere in Goedan space, and there’s a contact here that can give us the coordinates.’
There was something off about Makios, but Rhona dismissed it. ‘So you’re being a big fucking hero then?’
Makios grinned at her. ‘Every day.’
Rhona laughed and squeezed him.
Out of the viewscreen, the ship banked, and an asteroid field came into view. Makios pointed at an asteroid. It was one of the bigger ones and had lights coming from inside it. ‘Caras,’ he said.
‘Oh, we have asteroids we do that with in our system too.’ She smiled. It was so familiar to her she could almost be at home. She did a mental count, estimating Earth days in space, and figured she’d be in the asteroid belt around now if she hadn’t been taken. A feeling of acute loss overwhelmed her. For a moment, she was caught between what she’d left behind and what she’d gained in its place.
‘Are you well?’ Makios squeezed her tighter to him. Rhona looked at him. Other than the way they had met and Drexan Thalos, she wouldn’t change a thing.
‘I am, Captain Blackhorn.’ She grinned when Makios closed his eyes and groaned.
‘Captain Blackhorn?’ Devorak asked.
‘It’s his pirate name,’ she smiled. ‘All the best pirates have fearsome names.’
‘I’m a smuggler,’ he said. ‘Not a pirate.’
‘Tomaytoe, tomahto,’ she said, deliberately exaggerating the words.
Makios’s brows drew together. ‘What?’ he said.
‘Boss,’ Vanoor said.
Makios went to see to Vanoor while Rhona studied the station.
Devorak walked up beside her. ‘He’s utterly under your sway,’ he whispered so low Rhona only just heard him.
Rhona looked at him. ‘Wait until there’s any chance of me being in danger and then tell me that,’ she whispered back.
Devorak smiled, and a little of the man she had seen in the hallway appeared. ‘I can imagine.’
Rhona turned her attention to the station. From their approach, most of it was rock. But she could see a small ship bay with structures around it. It reminded her of the asteroid colony of Pallas. Then the ship rounded the asteroid and she spotted another two openings, these ones much larger than the first. One contained what looked like shipping containers and small pods were going in, loading them up and tugging them out. One of them flew off and went back in the direction Tala had come from, and she saw it disappear inside the smaller bay before it disappeared from view.
‘This used to be a rich source of amot,’ Devorak explained.
‘The metal used to build ships?’ Rhona said.
Devorak nodded. ‘Yes. They pulled apart asteroids, and Caras was where they processed the metal.’
‘But it’s all gone now?’
‘Yes,’ Devorak said. ‘This is the place my father bought metal to build our first real fleet,’ he said. ‘After the Enhari left, they left a ship behind. My father and a few others took it and came here. They gave almost all of the wealth of my people to buy enough metal. We built ships and used them to move from Cealda, our original homeworld, to Cealis.’
‘When did it become a criminal stronghold?’ Rhona asked.
The outside of the station was covered in an irregular latticework of what looked like scaffolding.
‘Around a hundred solars ago,’ Devorak said. ‘The amot dried up, the miners moved out and the criminals moved in.’
‘How come no one’s arrested them?’ she asked.
‘That’s up to the Ledaan, and the Ledaan are happy to leave them here.’
‘Right.’ Makios walked up and gave Rhona a kiss on the head. ‘We’ve got a comm coming through. You have to go.’
Rhona gave him a quick peck on the chin—the only spot she could reach—and turned on her heel.
‘I’ll go with you,’ Devorak called. ‘I don’t think it’s a good idea if I’m seen here.’
Devorak led the way to the tables in the galley. They were still pushed together from last night’s meal. Rhona thought they should make crew dinner a regular thing. Her family always made the time to eat together in the galley. Three meals, or at least one on a bad day. Her dad always demanded it. They’d only ever missed it a handful of times, and then only when it was absolutely necessary.
‘He is yours, isn’t he?’
Rhona nodded. ‘And I’m his.’
‘I thought when I first came aboard that it might just be sex. But it’s not.’
Rhona shook her head.
‘Ah well, there goes my chance for sex with a human,’ he said, his voice laced with false disappointment.
‘You can play the cad all you like,’ Rhona said. ‘I’m not fooled. I know who you are, Crown Prince Devorak. You can pretend all you like, but you can’t hide who you are around me.’
Devorak watched her with a smirk before it faded. ‘And what would not pretending get me from you, Rhona?’
‘You’ve never had a friend you could just be yourself around, have you?’
Devorak stayed silent, watching her.
‘Well, that’s what you’d get,’ Rhona said. ‘One person you could just be yourself around. No lies. No Prince nonsense. No affectation. Just Devorak.’
Devorak’s eyes dropped and a wistful look came over his face. ‘That would be nice,’ he admitted. He stayed silent for a minute, thinking. Even before he spoke, Rhona knew what he was going to say. ‘It can never happen.’ He looked up at her.
‘Why not? You need someone, Devorak. You must have a friend to remind you who you are when you’re the big Cealin king, in charge of that army and those people.’
‘No,’ he said. ‘I must win back my throne from those who would usurp it. I must win the support of my council and my people. I must turn us from the people we have become and show us who we can be. I must marry a Cealin female of impeccable breeding to cement my bloodline, which means I must put up with the machinations of the court and those related to and allied with her. There are many things I must do, Rhona. My feelings, my freedom to be me, my happiness are the least important of these things.’
‘You can’t be a good leader if you’re unhappy, Devorak,’ Rhona said. ‘You need a true north to point you towards what is right and to remi
nd you of what it is that made you, somehow, the exception of your ruling class.’
‘What do you know of ruling, Rhona?’ Devorak snapped. ‘I’m sorry.’ He sighed. ‘That came out harsher than I intended.’
‘It’s okay.’ Rhona held out a hand to him and smiled. ‘It’s not the same thing,’ she admitted. ‘But my family have represented the traders of Mars for one hundred and fifty years.’
‘Represented?’
Rhona nodded. ‘Yeah,’ She sighed. ‘We don’t rule over anyone. My father always said his job is to listen to our people and be their voice. He said you have to shout real loud to make the ruling classes hear you because they remove themselves from the people. Make themselves high up so they don’t have to hear or see the people they’re supposed to represent, the ones who need them most.’
‘Ha.’ Devorak stared at the table before sitting back in his seat, a stunned look on his face.
‘You okay?’
Devorak looked up at her. ‘I believe you may have just given me the key to regaining my throne, Rhona,’ he said. His eyes were ablaze now.
‘Well, don’t forget me when you make your victory speech.’
‘Absolutely.’ He nodded.
‘And for God’s sake, Devorak, fuck the impeccably bred woman. Go for the girl you can hold at night and always tell the truth to.’
Devorak looked at the table again. This time, there was regret in his eyes. ‘I shall think on what you have said,’ he promised.
Rhona considered challenging him but decided against it. Devorak was a thinker and Rhona would give him that time to think about it. She considered this a great moment of growth for her.
‘That’s all I can ask,’ she said.
Makios appeared in the hall leading to the bridge.
‘We’re here.’ He smiled at her, and her heart began to race. ‘Want to see?’
Rhona and Devorak followed Makios onto the bridge. They were entering the gaping maw of the station. Inside, there were a series of airlocks. Lines of ships queued before them, one or two going through at a time before the airlock closed.
‘You get the approach path?’ Makios asked Vanoor.
‘Straight ahead,’ the Fenion answered.
Rhona looked back out of the view screen.
Makios held his hand out and reached towards her. ‘Come here,’ he said.
Rhona walked towards him until the viewscreen filled her vision. She stepped back when a ship passed close enough to see inside.
‘It’s not a window, Rhona,’ Makios whispered in her ear. There are no windows on the Tala, just cameras and sensors that feed data to the viewscreens.’
‘Yeah.’ Rhona closed her eyes, feeling like an idiot. ‘Instinct.’
‘Good instinct,’ he said, his lips brushing her ear. ‘Unnecessary in this case.’
The airlock in front of them opened, and the Tala passed inside. The outer airlock closed, and a few moments passed before the inner airlock opened.
Rhona gasped at the sight before the ship reoriented and most of the what she had seen disappeared from view.
‘Was that balconies and shops?’
‘Yes.’ Makios smiled.
The ship had reoriented to the station’s artificial gravity. As it rose, Rhona saw levels of shops, walkways, seemingly legitimate businesses in a criminal place. She guessed even criminals needed engine parts and legal services.
The ship passed one level filled with mostly undressed males and females of several races, including human and Aavani. They stood outside of one establishment that seemed to take the whole floor. They flashed more intimate body parts as the ship went by. Rhona closed her eyes, realisation filling her with sick bile. Slaves forced to prostitute.
They rose over several more levels until she saw docks come into view at the upper level. Vanoor manoeuvred the ship onto one of the levels and landed on a cleared bay.
Rhona saw Vanoor frown. ‘We have new instructions coming through,’ he said, looking up at Makios. ‘We’ve been selected for a spot check. They’re demanding everybody disembark.’
Rhona looked at Makios. His face was grim when he looked at her.
‘Ideas?’ he barked.
‘Hide her,’ Vanoor said.
‘Alone on the ship, so if she’s found no one’s there to protect her.’ He shook his head. ‘No. Next?’
‘We put her in an environment suit and tell people she’s a stuck Aldaar. They’re about that height.’ Vella looked down at Rhona. ‘Aren’t they?’
‘They could offer to remove it, and we haven’t a reason to deny them.’ Makios looked at Deyuul. ‘Can you—’
‘Not with this many people,’ he said. ‘There are too many minds out there. Too many people. I can’t do it.’
‘Can’t do what?’ Rhona asked.
‘Might I suggest,’ Devorak’s voice cut through the din, ‘that we put one of my cloaks over her and I pay a huge sum of money for the inspector to look the other way?’
Makios looked at Devorak, hope on his face, and then at Deyuul.
‘It’s not as if we’re dealing with honourable people here,’ Devorak said. ‘Or people who can’t appreciate those who want to go unseen.’ He looked out of the viewscreen at aliens approaching. ‘If we keep a tight group around her, I will walk in the centre. People might assume she’s Cealin young and we’re keeping her safe from the criminals.’
Rhona looked at Makios. ‘That’s actually an excellent plan,’ he said.
‘I’ll get a cloak.’ He left the bridge.
A few minutes later, Rhona was standing in the hold surrounded by the crew. Devorak was at her side. She was wearing a cloak and matching scarf that covered the lower half of her face. The cloak was drawn close so that only the strip of skin around her eyes showed. The cloak was an icy blue with snow fractal designs on it.
‘Deyuul,’ Makios called. ‘Take the back. If anything happens—’
‘I have her,’ Deyuul said, moving to take a spot directly behind Rhona.
‘Get back to the ship and get out of here,’ Makios finished. ‘Rendezvous back at the gate. We’ll catch up with you.’
‘We can’t leave without you,’ Rhona said.
The airlock opened, beyond, the ramp was lowering.
‘Can and will,’ Makios said. ‘I’m not asking, Rhona.’ He looked over his shoulder at her. ‘I need you safe.’ The look on Makios’s face was barely contained desperation. This situation was already too dangerous, and it was scaring him, she realised. She held her tongue, held her retorts. If her going back to the ship was what he needed to function, she would agree to it. She looked into a Devorak’s eyes, giving him a ‘see what I mean’ look. The Cealin smiled.
Beside her, Kenian began to shake. Rhona looked at him and he at her. She slipped her hand into his, feeling the two fingers and thumb of a very alien hand. She squeezed it reassuringly. He nodded at her and let out a shaking breath. When their hands parted, some of Kenian’s shaking had transferred to her. Steeling herself, Rhona swallowed and followed Makios out onto the deck.
‘Come, little one,’ Devorak said in a voice that was both loud enough for the newcomers to hear, but intimate enough to be spoken only to her. He took her hand, and Rhona let him guide her onto Caras.
As they cleared the hold, Rhona looked around at the new environment. It reminded her a little of the spaceport in Valles Marineris. The decks were huge, the ceiling high to allow for the take-off and manoeuvring of ships. The metal plate floor was covered in crates and containers as well as large barrels filled with trash.
Before them stood a massive alien with digitigrade feet and two sets of horns, one set growing from his forehead, the other set an inch or two behind. They were kinked in several places, giving the horns a flourish that seemed mostly decorative in nature. He stepped forward, his muzzle-like mouth open. He had two sets of arms and long hair that fell down his head, some loose, some dreaded. His suede-like skin was a light brown with rosettes. He looked like a
six-limbed dog made humanoid, especially with the pointed ears that were placed more like human ears but looked like they were a softer suede than the rest of his skin.
He looked at each face in turn.
‘Uncover.’ He nodded at Rhona. Her breath caught, and she fought a sudden urge to run.
Devorak stepped out of the ring of the crew and approached the creature with a smile. ‘That won’t be necessary.’ He reached out and offered a hand to the alien.
She looked down at the male in front of her and saw that his foot was hand-like. His little toe was halfway up his foot, but there was definitely a thumb-like big toe, and it spread as he stepped on the spot, like a hand pressed down flat.
‘Ajnia,’ Kenian whispered beside her.
An Ajnia had been the dirty fighter who took out Makios’s knee. So this was what one looked like. She had been thinking of some twelve-foot giant with a huge belly and squashed face. This creature’s chest rippled with muscle as he folded the top set of arms.
With one of his bottom arms, he took Devorak’s hand. Rhona saw something black slip between them. The Ajnia looked down at it, his satisfied grin showed a series of sharp teeth and huge canines.
He secured the credit chit with one hand, lifted a pad with the other and tapped into it with another hand while the fourth absentmindedly scratched at his chin. How did he manage to be so dexterous with so many limbs?
‘And one Cealin youth.’ He grinned at Devorak as he entered the data.
Devorak nodded his thanks and slipped back into the group, taking Rhona’s hand once more.
‘Business?’
‘Shopping,’ Devorak said.
‘And business,’ Makios added.
The Ajnia nodded. ‘We’ll be done by the time you get back.’
‘Anything is taken from my ship, and I come back for you, Ajnia.’ Makios growled.
The Ajnia huffed a laugh and stepped back, allowing them to move farther into the station.
Makios led the way to the back of the dock. Unlike Persephone, there was no promenade. No crowds, no crush. They walked over to a lone lift. Makios touched the call button, and they waited for it to appear.