by Kate Rudolph
“My appointment is later,” he answered. “I wasn’t sure what time it was there and wanted to make sure I caught you.” The trip to Oscavia had taken more than a week and due to gamma radiation and interference he’d been unable to get a call out to Honora Station. He’d never gone so long without talking to his brothers, and he never wanted to again. They were all each other had in this galaxy and he would do anything for them.
“Have fun while you’re there,” Dekon encouraged him. “How many times do you get to go someplace like Oscavia? I wish you’d let me come with you.” Beside him Brax was nodding
When he told them of his idea to offer himself for testing, both of his brothers wanted to come. But Shayn didn’t know what it would entail. It could be painful, it could be debilitating, and he was more than happy to risk himself. But he wouldn’t let his brothers sacrifice the lives that they’d carved out on Honora Station when he could do it himself.
“I’ll take plenty of vids, I promise. And I’ll be back before you know it. But I have to go now, they’re expecting me.”
His brothers bid him farewell after demanding gifts upon his return. Shayn smiled as he put his comm away and looked across the street at the towering building that would be his home for the next month or so. The outside shined as the sun hit it, metal and glass as tall as a mountain. From pictures that Shayn had seen of big Oscavian cities, he had expected dozens of similar buildings, but this edifice stood alone, surrounded by flowering gardens for blocks on either side. It was a little strange, the mix of technology and nature, but he liked it. He hoped he was allowed to soak up the heat in those gardens, he could see himself lazing there when he wasn’t busy with whatever tests they would want him to undertake.
Shayn crossed the street and entered a brightly lit lobby where he greeted the android at the front desk and gave his name. He was directed through another set of doors, following glowing lines on the floor until he made his way to an office with a placard on the door that said Dr. Pitner.
He knocked on the door and it slid open. A short Oscavian woman sat behind her desk and rose when she saw him. She waved at him. “Come in, come in. I’ve been expecting you. Shayn NaZade, the Detyen. There was a lot of excitement when your application came through. Please have a seat.”
Two plush chairs sat opposite her desk and Shayn sank into the closest one while Dr. Pitner took her seat again.
“Excitement?” Sure, Detyens were rare, but Shayn was about as ordinary as it came.
“A Detyen hybrid? I’ve never heard of it. And with so few of your species left it’s quite a treat.” She winced and shot him a guilty look. “I’m sorry, that was incredibly callous. What happened to your people was a tragedy. And while we do look forward studying you, you are much more than just a specimen. We’ve made great advances at Sola and the more people we can help, the more people we can study, the better we can do.”
It sounded like she was reading from a marketing statement. And not for the first time Shayn wondered if he was doing the right thing. Sola was the only corporation he had found that was doing this kind of research, but Dr. Pitner had already stumbled and talked about the genocide of his people as if it were a mere inconvenience.
A hundred years ago his people had flourished on the planet of Detya. Though his father had never seen it, he’d had plenty of stories that he had passed down to his sons as they had been passed on to him. But the story that Shayn knew best was about the planet’s destruction. No one knew who had perpetrated the crime or why, but one day the planet went up in flames and billions of people died. The only survivors were those close enough to ships to escape in time, or those already off planet. Their numbers had dwindled over the years and now their population numbered in the thousands. There was no accurate count, the survivors all scattered to every corner of the galaxy. From time to time Shayn heard rumors, the most outlandish about a legion of warriors looking for those who had destroyed the planet.
But his father was the only full-blooded Detyen he’d ever met. And all he had to share with his brothers about their people was the stories his father had told him.
“So you think you can figure out if I will need to pay the denya price?” That was the poetic term they used to discuss the death sentence. The price for a fated mate. Too high a cost as far as Shayn was concerned.
“We’ll be able to do more than that,” Dr. Pitner promised. “Our gene research is years, if not decades, ahead of anything you’ll find in the empire or outside of it. We’ve done some amazing things with gene manipulation and life extension. I’m sure we can help you and your brothers if that’s what we need to do.”
“Really?” There was a legend of Detyens escaping the denya price, but their fate was even worse than death. Could science really circumvent all that?
“I don’t want us to get ahead of ourselves.” Dr. Pitner looked down at her desk before waving her hand at the side and bringing up a holographic display. A picture of a Detyen hovered before him, one that Shayn didn’t recognize. He didn’t know if it was a regular person, or just a model. “We’ve done several studies of the Detyen genome and more than we can count of Oscavians. Now, no two people are alike, so until I get a direct look at what’s inside you I can’t say what you are for sure. But we can make some predictions, and ever since you agreed to your stay we’ve been playing around with the data we have. I must say, you look much more Detyen than Oscavian.”
It was true. Oscavians were pretty much all variations of purple with electric blue eyes. Shayn and his brothers were all blue like their father with clan markings and dark Detyen eyes. But unlike their father, whose eyes had turned red when he felt strong emotions, Shayn and his brothers had eyes that went blue.
“And your main concern is the shortened lifespan? The so-called denya price?”
“It is,” Shayn confirmed. “My parents were not mates. My father died when he turned thirty and my mother and I watched it happen. My brothers deserve more than that. And chances of any of us finding a mate are slim to none. There just aren’t that many Detyen women left.” That’s what his father had said. A slew of tragedies in the wake of the destruction of Detya had seen the number of female Detyens dwindle, and for some reason more males than females were born in the century since then.
“Clearly, Detyens are genetically compatible with more than just other Detyens,” Dr. Pitner noted. “I do wonder if you would even be able to sense a denya given your status. Or if your denya would even need to be Detyen. Something to think about.”
Shayn jolted his seat. Not be able to sense a denya? Was that even possible? He had never met another Detyen female, but he had assumed if he ever did and if she was his mate he would know it. If he didn’t, did that mean he would survive beyond his thirtieth year? It was called the denya price, after all. And if he had no denya, would he have to pay it?
Dr. Pitner stood up from her desk. “It looks like you have a lot to think about. We’ll start tomorrow with some initial tests. Nothing invasive. We just need to get a baseline, figure out what you are, what you need. There’s an excellent staff here and by the end of the month there won’t be any question that we can’t answer about your genetic makeup.”
That was a little terrifying, but Shayn kept that thought to himself.
He followed Dr. Pitner out of the office as she led him to an elevator and up several stories to the dormitory. They passed a red door with a giant X on it and Shayn couldn’t help but stare. “What’s that?”
“Restricted section,” Pitner responded. “We do have some... fragile patients that we don’t want to disturb. Only authorized personnel. Anytime you see a red door or an X, please keep away. It’s for your own safety as well as that of our other residents. There is an entertainment block on the third floor and you are free to roam the garden as much as you want. Just please allow enough time for your appointments. You may have food delivered to your room or you may join the other patients in the dining room. We do have you on a specific meal pla
n for now just to make sure that nothing interferes with our initial testing. I promise the food doesn’t taste too horrible, I usually eat it myself.” She stopped in front of a room with a plaque bearing Shayn’s name. “The sensor outside will respond to your hand print. The other patients do not have access, though certain staff and security members do.” She pressed her hand to the sensor and the door opened.
Shayn’s bags were already sitting on a small table. The room was at least three times the size of his quarters at Honora Station, but that was to be expected in a terrestrial building. Bright sunlight came in through the window and he could see buildings in the distance. His room back home didn’t have any windows, merely a viewer that simulated whatever he wanted to look out on. He’d grown up on planet, but in the years since he’d left he’d gotten used to the limitations of living in space. The feel of real gravity rather than artificial was something of an unexpected adjustment.
“I have enough time to take you on a short tour,” said Dr. Pitner. “But I understand if you would like to postpone it.”
The room was huge, but he didn’t want to be behind closed doors at the moment. “A tour sounds wonderful.”
They left his room as it was and headed back to the elevator. Dr. Pitner showed him the entertainment block and Shayn was sure he would find something in the library or the vid player to keep him entertained. But when she led him out to the garden he felt like he could finally breathe. His mother had grown flowers on the barren patch of dirt outside their house. The sweet scent reminded him of his past, of home. The memory was bittersweet. He couldn’t go back there, and she had refused to leave with her sons. He missed her every day and hoped that all was well.
Dr. Pitner seemed oblivious to the emotions swirling in Shayn’s heart. “If you continue on the stone path there’s a small pool where several of our residents love to swim.” She checked the watch on her wrist and grimaced. “I have a call I have to make. There are some more things I would like to show you. Shall I meet you back here in an hour or so?”
Shayn nodded, not quite able to speak as he imagined what his mother would think of the greenery all around.
Pitner didn’t see anything wrong with his response and left.
Shayn wandered around, running his fingers over delicate petals and breathing deep of the sweet air. Something deep within him tugged him deeper in the garden and down the path to the pool. He didn’t know where he was going or what he would find when he got there, but he had to move. The path split and Shayn followed his instincts, heading right and further into the greenery. He came to an abrupt stop when he saw the woman walking back towards the building.
Human, with brown skin and brown hair and a serious expression on her face. Recognition tore his insides to shreds as everything he thought he knew about himself was remade. She was impossible, just as impossible as him. And yet he knew what she was without a doubt.
And in that moment his hopes and fears for himself and his brothers and their futures grew tenfold. He had come to Oscavia for answers, and the sight of her changed everything.
Denya.
CHAPTER TWO
THE TEAL ALIEN WAS here and he was looking at her like she had discovered every secret of the universe. Naomi paused, unable to move forward, unable to move away. What was he doing here? Her visions were rarely about her own future, and the fact that she had seen him in her mind only a few hours ago made her wary.
Another vision slammed into her and she stumbled, reaching out and placing her hand on the side of the building to keep from falling over.
Sunshine. Warm skin. Lips. Smiles. They walked together hand-in-hand, sharing intimate glances and kisses when the distance between them became too much. Trees like she’d seen in her previous vision sprang up in the distance, and the blue sky overhead reminded her of something she’d seen in her childhood before Morgyn had taken her in.
The vision shifted and reformed. Overhead, the sky darkened, and the teal alien dissolved, blowing away like dust in the wind. A hook sank into Naomi’s chest like her insides were being ripped out as she screamed for him. Whoever he was. She ran after the wind but he was gone. And when she turned around, Morgyn was there with a laser scalpel in her hand and a glint in her eye. “It’s minimally invasive. You won’t feel a thing.”
Hands on her shoulder snapped her out of the dueling visions but Naomi could still feel the darkness clinging to her. She opened her eyes and was unsurprised to find the teal alien standing beside her, his hands rubbing gently over the fabric of her shirt as if he could make her feel better by his touch alone.
Strangely, it was kind of working.
Normally she didn’t like anyone touching her after she had a vision. Her skin always felt too tight, like everything inside of her was bursting to get out, and she was extra sensitive when she was seeing. But the light touches of the teal alien grounded her in the moment and reminded her that whatever she’d seen had not yet come to pass and possibly never would. Visions happened like that sometimes, two possible futures coming in pairs. She wanted the first more than she’d ever wanted anything in her life. Safety, companionship, family, love. Who would reject that? She wanted to cling to the alien in front of her and beg him to make that happen. The desperation of that emotion was too much and she forced herself to straighten up, backing away from him just enough so that they were no longer touching.
He didn’t seem to expect her to say anything, so she took her time looking at him and that was no hardship. He was tall, nearly a whole head taller than her, and the breadth of his shoulders was enough to make her shiver. He could lift her up and over his head with little effort, protect her and make her feel precious. And while Naomi was fine with the way she looked, no one would ever call her dainty. His eyes glowed blue like an Oscavian’s, but the rest of him was something else. Dark markings peeked out of the sleeve of one of his arms and she wondered if they covered the rest of his body. She wanted to explore with her fingers and her tongue. Her stomach clenched and her cheeks heated at that thought. She hadn’t been around many people who made her feel anything like this. No, she hadn’t been around anyone who made her feel like this from a single glance.
“What’s your name?” she managed to ask with a steady voice. Any trembling she was feeling now had nothing to do with her vision and everything to do with the masculine presence in front of her. She wanted to reach out and touch him, wanted to run her fingers along the sharp line of his jaw and trace her thumb over his full lips. They looked soft in contrast to all his hard muscles, and she didn’t need to be psychic to know that tasting him would be better than the finest meal.
His eyes were locked on her face, and he looked just as entranced as she felt. He reached up slowly and tucked an errant strand of her hair behind one ear. “I’m Shayn. Who are you, denya?”
Denya? She shivered at the foreign word. Her subdermal translator should have been able to handle it, but the devices weren’t perfect and when concepts were too complicated they sometimes failed. She liked the sound of it and hoped it was good. She stored it away in the back corner of her mind and promised to find out more.
“Naomi,” she answered. She wanted to know more about him and how he could possibly make her feel like this with nothing but a glance. But the words were caught in her throat. She just wanted to bask in his presence, to soak up the heat of him so that it would keep her warm for the cold days to come.
Was he a patient here? She didn’t normally meet the other residents at the facility. She wasn’t forbidden from interacting, that would be ridiculous, but schedules were strict and her free time didn’t often overlap with theirs. That, combined with the fact that she took most of her meals with Morgyn or one of the other doctors, meant she spent most of her time with staff or alone.
Her fingers rose without conscious thought and she traced his jaw just as she had wanted to a few minutes before. Shayn’s eyes closed and he leaned into her touch, letting out a breath and relaxing against her. “Denya,
he breathed. “Impossible.” It was a denial, but not rejection.
That word again. “Why?” Nothing about this felt impossible.
Shayn’s eyes locked onto hers and the intensity should have scared her, but all she felt was that same tightening in her stomach that made her want more. She leaned up and sealed her lips against his, stealing a kiss and taking that taste of him that she craved. It was more than she could have imagined, not that she’d had much time to think of what it could be like. Her arms wrapped around him and her tongue brushed against his lips, asking for entrance, begging for more.
Her isolated life meant she didn’t have much experience when it came to kissing or anything more. She’d flirted with Oscavians and humans, but never with whatever Shayn was, and she could already feel the differences. His tongue had a strange texture with ridges on the sides that she wanted to explore some more. What would they feel like against her skin? Against something more intimate? She shivered in his embrace and wanted to push closer.
His fingers stroked through her hair, cradling her head as if she were something precious, something he could only touch reverently. She wanted to sink into this moment forever, to feel Shayn’s lips against hers morning, noon, and night for the rest of her days. It should have scared her to feel so much so soon, but she couldn’t feel anything but joyful and horny when he was touching her.
Go. Now.
Her instincts screamed at her to lurch back, and though it was the last thing she wanted to do, Naomi was too accustomed to listening to do anything but obey. She separated from Shayn with great reluctance and stared at him for a long moment, touching her fingers to her lips.
“Someone’s coming. I need to go.” She backed up until she found the door in the wall and ducked into the building before Shayn could stop her. If he said anything she’d stay, and her senses were telling her they couldn’t be caught. Not yet. Not by Morgyn.