by Jaye Peaches
The warriors had the privilege of living around the lake, whereas workers who toiled in the factories that made weapons and uniforms for the army lived in the high-rises. What little entertainment that existed were eateries, places to indulge in decent food and drink. Quite what else the citizens did in their spare time was a mystery. Perhaps they simply worked all hours of the day.
Walking between her nestors, who seemed extra cautious of their surroundings, she spotted humanoids who were definitely not Hezara or droids. Tall, angular-looking bipeds with human features, except for their hairless heads and flattened noses. They had wide hips and breasts—females?
“Who are they?” She gestured with her head at a nearby figure.
“Gotti.” Jago shrugged. “Their world, Gott, like yours, is under our protection.”
She stared at the feline tail that stuck out from under the coat of one of the women. “That’s a woman, I think.”
“Yes,” Kriss nodded. “They gift us women, too.”
Shayla stopped, forcing her companions to step back to join her. The woman was moving off into the shadows of a high-rise. “I thought human women were the only ones that... helped you with the Hunger.”
Jago smiled. He leaned toward her ear. “They have no vaginas. They rub their... things together.”
Shayla felt the blush cover her face. “Oh.”
Kriss laughed. “You thought they were those kinds of gifts? No, Shayla. However, they make good technicians and nurses. They look after our sick and young nestors, the queens too. Their males are not much use for anything. Pathetic creatures.”
Shayla wished Kriss was more magnanimous with his opinions of alien males. She marched on past him.
The tables in the eatery were bare. No cutlery, no napkins, not even a menu.
“Don’t we get to choose?” she asked, after taking a seat between the heart twins.
“Choose?” Kriss looked at her blankly.
The place was packed. A voucher was needed and they were only given out to Hezarans. The Gotti, she noted, were waiting on them. She rather hoped they weren’t some kind of slaves. Not that Shayla wanted payment for what she did; her reward would be back on Earth one day: a big house, lots of security and adoration from the crowds. However, the thought of all Gifts working without reward for Hezarans made her uncomfortable.
The ambiance lacked music, potted plants, and pictures on the bland walls. Color, in fact, would have been welcome. It was a mausoleum. She hoped the food tasted good.
Apparently, there was no choice. However, the food resembled something other than a paste or a cube. It might once have been a plant with leaves, she couldn’t quite tell. There was a sauce, too, although she dared not ask what ingredients it contained. The taste of the dish overall was sweet, a bit crunchy, and forgettable. She remembered to appear appreciative, and not ask too many questions. They ate with their fingers, dabbing the plant thing into the sauce and using it to mop the dish.
The drink offered tasted better, similar to weak beer. After three glasses, she expected to feel drunk, but she wasn’t even tipsy. The experience was a little disappointing.
“Thank you,” she said. “That was delicious.” She smacked her lips together.
Jago raised his eyebrows. “Please don’t lie.”
She tried harder. “Honestly, compared to the stuff back at your place, this is definitely an improvement.”
“You don’t like any of our food?” Kriss clucked his tongue. “This is one of the best eateries in the city.”
She chewed her lip. She’d missed the whole point of the trip out. This was special for them, not her. It wasn’t about comparing her experiences on Earth with theirs.
“I am very grateful you brought me here. I’ve seen the city and it’s very peaceful. I did like the food, it’s very unique.” She lowered her eyes.
Jago cleared his throat. “It doesn’t matter, Shayla. I expect if we ate Earth food, we’d find it strange. The next time we get a voucher, we’ll go to a sporting event instead.”
She lifted her head. “Sport?”
“Droid annihilation. Teams of droids smash each other to bits and the team with the most working components at the end, wins.” Kriss beamed.
At least they didn’t use real people. She forced a smile onto her face, hoping it looked genuine.
She glanced around the eatery and several eyes met her gaze. All men, all beefy, hunky men seated around tables, eyeballing her. Hezara nestors with no females to keep them company. She remembered the stats—one woman for a thousand men—and she shrank into her seat.
“What?” Jago touched the back of her hand. She flinched.
“I’m the only woman, apart from the Gotti.” She cocked her head at the nearest table.
“Yes. You’re an attraction, I can see that.” Jago frowned. “Since we’ve finished, we should go.” He rose.
Kriss took her elbow. He glared at the ogling men, who hurriedly returned to their meals. “Droid fuckers. If they want a Gift, they need to earn it,” he muttered.
“Hush,” Jago said softly. “We were once them, remember, gloating over the rare sight of a human.”
They exited the eatery, taking the path back toward the lake. “There are other humans here, on this planet?” she asked.
“Of course,” Jago said. “I’ve seen one in that eatery a while back with her nestor triplets.”
“Is she still here?”
He shrugged. “Possibly. Depends if her allotted time is up. She might have stayed on.” He shot a glance at her, and she felt the blush return. Was he expecting her to say something?
His comment reminded her that she had another purpose on Odesta. She had a mission that lay waiting in the wings and she’d rather neglected it. Now the Hunger had passed, she had a few days to revisit it, a little time while Jago and Kriss were busy working and less likely to bother her with their demands.
She daren’t touch their oracle again. But having seen the overtly masculine makeup of the city, she didn’t fancy coming here without their escort—too many lonely Hezara and crazy droids. Her only option remained finding another oracle, one that might respond to her thoughts but not recognize her as belonging to her nestors.
Jago slipped his arm across her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. “I enjoyed that,” he said. “Not cold?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“It’s just, you look like you’re shivering.”
“Am I?”
With a gasp, Kriss spun on his feet to face her. “She’s pale. Is she sick? Has the food made her sick?”
The nausea in the pit of her belly had nothing to do with the food. She was nervous about her mission. She patted her stomach and smiled. “I’m fine. Tired. Yesterday was a tough day, you know?”
Kriss took her hand. “Not too tough. You can do it again?” He looked unusually apprehensive.
“Sure. I’ll be ready for you two.” She squeezed his fingers.
Now that took her by surprise. Not Jago’s concern, but Kriss’s. Was he softening to her?
Over the next couple of days, there were changes in the routine. Other than the occasional kiss or caress, Kriss and Jago left her alone. She was grateful as the break from their demands was welcome and it gave her a chance to recuperate her energy. She was allowed to remain clothed, even indoors, and they ordered more dresses with color and patterns, similar in style to what the Gotti wore. The Gotti continued to fascinate her. Maybe they could help her?
She ruled out going to another habitat and using a different oracle. The sensors would set off an alarm the moment she set foot in the dwelling. So she had to find an oracle that was accessible, and since her nestors didn’t mix with others, it meant finding a friendly Gotti.
“Do they live by the lake?” she asked Jago one evening. He was sprawled across the cushions watching the fish swimming past.
“No,” he said. “They stay in the city, where they work.”
Kriss was on the other side
of the room, lifting huge weights. His biceps bulged, the size of footballs. She really wanted to touch them, feel the rock-hard muscle, but for the time being, she had to keep her eyes off him and focus on teasing information out of Jago.
“You said the Gotti are nurses?” she asked.
“Yeah. Excellent medics. The droids can do standard procedures, but the Gotti have incredible eyesight, long fingers, and are intelligent, too.” Jago tapped the glass. A bright yellow fish followed his digit.
“So, they work in the hospital.”
“Sure.”
“What if there is something wrong with me, just supposing, and I needed medical advice. Would the Gotti know how to help me?”
Jago ignored the school of fish and pivoted to face her. “Are you ill?” The concern sounded genuine.
“Oh, no,” she said hurriedly. “But, on Earth, I had regular checkups.”
He pursed his lips. “Well, the oracle will tell them everything they need.”
“They have access to their own oracle?”
“They do. Rather essential. As well as the Gotti, there are a few other species living on the planet. Specialists in other things. Their oracle provides all the knowledge on the inhabitants of Odesta. All medics have access to the data.”
She lay back on the cushions and tucked her hands behind her head. If she needed an oracle that was open to multiple users, then one in a hospital had to be the easiest to use. She’d have to be alone with it. But now she knew how to use it, she’d be quick. The advantage of telepathy was that it communicated things faster than speaking or reading.
What would be the best approach...?
Kriss dropped the weights on the floor. The vibrations shot across the room. She jumped.
In a blink of an eye, he moved to stand over her, perspiration trickling down his forehead. All over his body, veins stood out, pulsating with the heat of his blood. He stuck his thumbs under the waistband of his pants, which barely covered his hips. The outline of his erection was visible, pushing the material out into a tent and signifying her break was over. Slowly, he eased the band down and the rosy tip of his cock poked out. Enormous, again, and starting to glow purple.
“Fuck,” she said under her breath. Her pussy clenched, its drenching instantaneous, like a triggered switch inside her belly. She stuck out her tongue expectantly.
“Nah,” Kriss drawled, his lazy hips swaggering as he walked away from her. “In here.” He pointed at the door. “I need a shower. And you know the kind of shower I mean.”
She snapped her jaw shut. Plans would have to wait.
Jago laughed and the fish darted away. “Need my help?”
Kriss shook his head. “I’ll just let the ull run all over her.”
“Send her to me when you’re done. I’m getting hungry again.”
She rolled her eyes at Jago. “Oh, please, I’m not a dish. I have feelings, guys.”
The smile dropped off Jago’s face. He leaned down, his nose brushing the tip of hers. The kiss propelled her to the next level of arousal, and by the time he’d finished, her lips ached and her dress was slipping off her shoulders.
“Felt that, didn’t you?”
She nodded.
“There’s more of that after Kriss has woken you up.” He lifted his head. “Take your time, Kriss. No hurry. But make sure she can walk out, I need her legs good and steady for what I have in mind.” He winked.
By the time Shayla reached the door, she was naked.
* * *
She woke in the middle of the night. Her thirst was intense. She crept across the room and helped herself to a glass of water. The heart twins slept on, undisturbed.
She was hot, burning up. A fever? She doubted it was an illness, but maybe the symptom would be useful. What heated her up was a yearning, a fire in her belly that refused to extinguish itself. Unbelievable! One long ass fuck followed by a longer spell on her knees sucking Jago’s cock, and she wasn’t tired or drained of energy. If only they understood that the more they desired her, the more she felt connected to them. Every time they touched her or sent her spiraling into an orgasm, her feelings toward the nestors shifted from a simple physical need to an emotional one. What would make them feel the same way?
Lying back down, she tried to sleep. It took time to fall into the abyss, and when she did, she dreamt. The fantasy that her unconscious mind concocted involved hundreds of naked Hezara and just her. She was like the queen, but instead of sitting on a throne, she was spread on a table, and one by one, they came by and... she jerked awake. Something was inside her pussy, it tickled. She was so very wet down there.
She propped herself up on her elbows. Her legs were parted and between them was Kriss’s head. His tongue was lashing her sex in long, glorious strokes. She sighed and settled back. She dozed, drifting in and out of the same dream, imagining those hungry men taking her one after the other, and all the time, Kriss teased her, skating his tongue along the groove of her folds and now and again, darting it into her hole. She came in a gentle wave of spasms while still half awake, half asleep. She loved the subtle orgasms of gentle sex, but she also liked the Kriss who claimed her in the shower, the man who pummeled her ass with his mammoth cock, pulled on her locks of hair and smacked her ass when she begged to come. That man was fun, too.
Jago yawned and stretched his arms above his head. He grinned. “You started early on breakfast.”
Shayla wriggled away from Kriss. Sex wasn’t on her mind any longer. The dream was starting to fade.
“I’m not hungry.” She was in fact starving, but the only way she could feign sickness was by not eating.
“She’s very flushed.” Jago touched her forehead with the back of his hand. “What did you do to her?”
Kriss shrugged. “I ate her pussy.”
“Seriously, you did something to her.”
“She came.”
“I’m fine,” she said weakly. “I had a weird dream.”
“She’s not fine,” Jago insisted. “Your tongue isn’t sharp. So what else did you do?”
“I might have... nipped her with my teeth.” Kriss scratched the back of his head. “Not on purpose.”
“I don’t remember,” Shayla said, pressing her hands to her stomach. She was sure he hadn’t.
“I can take a look,” Jago said.
“Oo,” she wailed. “Maybe it’s just a bug.”
“Bug?” Jago glanced around the room.
“Like a micro-thingy,” she said, doubling over. “On the tip of his tongue.” She pointed a damning finger at Kriss. Poor Kriss, she felt sorry for accusing him. He was fastidiously clean and last night he’d helped her bathe before handing her over to Jago.
Jago grabbed the formal jacket he wore when on duty. “We’ll carry her to the clinic.”
Kriss scooped her into his arms. “I didn’t do anything I’ve not done before with her.”
Shayla snuggled her face into his chest. “It’s not your fault, sir. I’m just a weak human. I’ve failed you.”
Jago covered her with something that resembled a cloak. “Nonsense. It might be something you’re allergic to on this planet. We have to keep you in good health or they’ll take you from us.” The pair of them wore anxious expressions.
As they passed close to the exit, Jago hit the sensor panel. “Strange,” he murmured.
“What?” Kriss asked.
“She’s got a normal temperature and only slightly raised pulse.”
Shayla had forgotten about the damn sensors. “It’s just the pain that’s bothering me.”
“What pain?”
“In my tummy.”
“Let’s go,” Kriss said, hurrying through the doorway.
The hospital was in the valley. By the time they reached there, she’d been carried by both men and received plenty of stares from the inhabitants. Every few minutes, she moaned and squirmed, just enough to keep up the pretense.
They deposited her on a hover bed, which zoomed along a co
rridor to an examination room. Her nestors ran alongside, never leaving her alone. She needed to be alone at some point though.
The Gotti who was on duty was as tall as Jago, thin and had really long fingers—six on each hand. Her tail coiled around her thin leg.
“Human?” she said, eyes widening into bright oval shapes. “I’ve not treated a human before.”
“She’s in pain.” Jago gestured to his stomach. Shayla rolled into a ball and whimpered.
“So I can see.”
“We had sex with her a few hours ago. Kriss had his tongue in her vagina.”
Shayla wanted to die of embarrassment. She was used to people talking about her in that context on Earth, but she rather wished her nestors weren’t the ones saying those things. They should be equally uncomfortable if they knew what she felt about the intimacy they shared.
“Then, I shall examine her,” said the Gotti.
Things were going too far. Shayla stopped whimpering and straightened her legs. “It’s probably indigestion.”
Jago patted her shoulder. “Let the Gotti check.”
“I’ll be fine soon.” She attempted to sit up, but Kriss eased her back.
“Please undress. I’ll need a moment to research.” The Gotti pointed to the corner of the room.
An oracle!
It was like the others, round and glowing. The medic spread her spidery fingers around the globe and communed with it in silence. How would Shayla get over there alone?
“Clothes, Shayla.” Kriss picked at her sleeves.
“I don’t need—”
“Yes, you do.”