“How?” Lian asked.
Doc’s grin showed her teeth. “Well, when two beings love each other….”
“Ugh, please spare me. I’m being serious, Doc.” Then it struck him. “Gin’s spark! Oh Pip! He could blow up the whole ship!”
Doc’s smile fled and she nodded gravely. “I honestly didn’t know he was unaware of his ancestry. Especially since he embraces his spark as a part of everyday life. I offered to help, but he’s too troubled to think straight.”
Lian rubbed his palms along his face. “He’ll have to learn to control it. He said his rubber bands help.”
“What on Earth are you talking about?” Angie demanded. “Gin wouldn’t blow up the ship. He loves it almost as much as the captain.”
Despite the gravity of the situation, Lian almost laughed. Yes, Gin did love the Bethany. But if his spark went unchecked, he could harm her without meaning to.
“It’s possible for Valkea to build up electrical charges,” Lian explained. His background in xenology helped in dealing with so many humanoid races. Most wouldn’t know this obscure fact about the Valkea. “During adolescence they’re trained to control it. Growing up on Earth, with no one to teach him, Gin hasn’t mastered his. He calls it a spark and he claims it flares up sometimes.”
Angie’s eyes were wide and unbelieving.
Pip! This made so much sense now. Gin’s fascination with machinery came from his ability to feel the electricity inside. He was destined to be a mechanic since the day he was born. More importantly, his Valkea blood had to be what saved him when he touched those exposed wires when he was a child. A normal human would have died three times over from a shock that large.
“What can we do, Doc? Do you have pills or something that can suppress it?”
She actually glared at him. “And should I take something that dulls my innate abilities? Perhaps we should put a muzzle on Syrin?”
He held up his hands. “All right, I can see how you could take it that way, but that wasn’t what I meant.”
Pushing her hair over her shoulder, her gaze softened. “If his rubber bands help, that’s a good start. But there’s another method that comes to mind.”
“What is it? I want my ship and crew to be safe.”
“You can teach him.”
Even Angie’s draw dropped. Realizing his face likely mirrored hers, he shut his mouth quickly. “Last I checked, I’m half Quifante, not Valkea.”
“Yes, I’m well aware of that,” she replied dryly. “But there are similarities in our abilities. Shifting forms requires focused thought. The Valkea kiipina does too. It’s all about how strong your mind is. As a mix yourself, I know you have problems with shifting.”
He wanted to growl at her for saying such things in front of other crewmembers. But Angie didn’t seem surprised by Doc’s statement. Maybe that had made its way through the gossip mill, too.
Doc continued. “If you show him the meditation and focal exercises you use, he may be able to mimic them.”
“That’s ridiculous. We don’t have any scientific data to suggest this would work. On top of that, I do have a job here.”
“Offering your help to Gin won’t hurt anything,” Doc said. “You can spare an hour or two every day. You aren’t that busy.”
He stopped his teeth from grinding. Mother really had no idea what he did, or she never would have said something so flippant. He hardly found a minute to himself. To squeeze in time with Gin was unthinkable. And yet… his ship and crew were on the line. Gin seemed to be managing his spark, but that didn’t mean it wouldn’t explode on him all of a sudden.
“Fine,” Lian said, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Angie reached out and touched his elbow. “But first, you need to get him out of bed. He needs to eat.”
Lian examined Angie’s features. Her dark brows were drawn down, making her green eyes narrowed. Her cheeks held little color, as if worrying about Gin had sapped her strength too. It’d been five days since they left Earth and already Gin had made a place in this crew. Doc and Angie. What of the other mechanics? Did they share this protective streak?
Lian nodded and reached out to pat her hand. “I’ll do what I can. It must have been quite a shock finding out this way. I’ll talk to him.”
“He likes peanut butter sandwiches,” Angie added. “Maybe you should bring him one.”
“Sure. I’ll go now.”
Angie returned her fingernail to her teeth. She really was worried.
“He’ll be fine.” He gave her his best smile. It seemed to do the trick.
“Thank you, sir. I’ll head back to the engine room, then. I hated to leave Syrin alone down there, but we decided someone had to talk to Doc.”
“I’m glad you did,” Doc said. “We don’t want him getting seriously ill.”
Lian nodded. He’d find a way to fix this.
Chapter 13
GIN SHUT his eyes when the door opened. Was Angela back to check on him? He’d pretended to be asleep before. He could do so again.
“Gin?” Captain Lian said softly. His footsteps entered the room, but didn’t come closer than the doorway.
Gin curled up tighter.
“Doc just told me about your situation. I’m here to help you.”
Shame filled Gin to bursting. He must look so pathetic, hiding under the blanket, afraid to face himself. “I don’t need help.”
The captain’s heavy steps thudded on the metal floor as he walked toward the bed. “I understand this is a bit of a shock. And I’m sure Doc didn’t break the news to you gently.”
With a snort Gin said, “She didn’t. But it wasn’t her fault. She didn’t know.”
“I brought you a sandwich. You need to eat something.”
“I’m not hungry.” His stomach rumbled, giving away his lie.
Captain Lian sighed and took another few steps forward. “There’s no easy way to deal with this. I know. I’m sure you’ve already heard that I’m a mix. I knew it, growing up, and it still didn’t help with adapting to a body not quite human and not quite Quifante.”
Gin sat up, draping the blanket around his shoulder as he peered at the captain. “You’re part Quifante?”
Holding out the plate with a sandwich on it, Captain Lian nodded. “My mother was human, my biological father Quifante. My mother never hid it from me, but she couldn’t help me once I started to display Quifante habits. I had to figure out how to do it all on my own.”
Gin accepted the plate and lifted the sandwich. He took a bite, chewed slowly, and swallowed. “Your father couldn’t show you?”
“He was stationed on a Quifante colony planet at the time and didn’t have permission to stay with me or my mother. I grew up barely seeing him. Maybe once every few years. Quifante males don’t have anything to do with raising offspring. He couldn’t have stayed with me even if he’d wanted to.” The captain’s eyes hardened as he said it, as if he didn’t quite believe the words he spoke.
“What kind of Quifante habits? Shapeshifting?”
“To a certain degree. Doc, a full-blooded Quifante, can mimic any being she’s seen. Since half my blood is human, I can only shift between my two forms.”
Gin perked up more. Thinking of the captain’s Quifante form intrigued him.
“Doc’s recommendation is that I try to help you get control of your spark through mindful meditation.”
Gin slumped again. “Oh.”
“I’ve studied xenology and xenosociology for many years. I know much about humanoid cultures and anatomy. Did Doc get a chance to explain about the Valkea?”
“She might have tried. Honestly, I can’t remember. It was like my brain couldn’t process anything she said after showing me that DNA.”
“Well, we can start there. Humans and Valkea have similar genomes. As do Quifante, Toltec, Resallin, and Olsylic, to name a few.”
“Doc said that’s why she believes in Pip, because so many of the races are
similar in their DNA.”
Surprisingly, Lian scoffed. It made his face pinched, but gave emotion to his features. Gin liked it. “Doc does not believe in Pip. She’s just spouting why I believe in Pip.” He shook his head. “But we’re getting off topic. The Valkean adolescents—around the time of puberty—begin to develop control over their raikko, a sort of bladder filled with an electrical discharge.”
Gin wrinkled his nose. This sounded gross. Did that mean he had one of these raikko inside him? The thought made him want to throw up.
“As children, the reflexes of the raikko are automatic. If the child feels threatened, the body will dispel the stored electricity. As adults, they can release it as they will. You seem to be stuck somewhere in the middle. You do have some control since you’re not currently blowing up the ship. But you also can’t summon it on command.”
“And you’re going to help me how?”
“Doc theorizes that talking you through the meditations I use to switch forms may help you with the needed focus to access your kiipina, your spark.”
Gin shook his head. “This is all too weird, Captain. I can’t get my head around it all.”
“That’s understandable. I have a book that you can read. It’s a human’s view of Valkea, so it’s not one hundred percent accurate. But it’s a start.” He untucked a small book from his arm and handed it to Gin.
“Thank you.”
“Now that we’re through the wormhole, I’ll need to be in communication with the Dalmin First. I won’t be available very often, but we can meet for an hour tomorrow and see what we can figure out. After second shift?”
“Sounds good, Captain.”
“Come to my quarters. We can practice there.”
Gin’s heartbeat sped up. “Your room?”
The captain lifted his eyebrow. “You have a problem with that?”
“No, it’s just I didn’t think you’d want any of the crewmembers in your private rooms.”
“There’s nowhere else to meet. The mess hall would be too busy. We couldn’t concentrate. The gym too small. We could try sickbay, but Doc would interfere and that would get us nowhere. That leaves my room.”
Swallowing past a lump in his throat, Gin said, “Yeah, sure.”
Lian took a step backward, toward the door. “Try to read that book before we meet. And make sure you get at least two meals a day. We don’t want you to get sick.”
Then, he was out the door. When it closed behind him, Gin let out a long breath. Could the captain really help him understand this new side of himself? He sure hoped so. The possibility of getting his spark under control filled him with longing. He’d be normal. At least as far as appearances went.
They were through the wormhole, huh? That meant another call to Temmy was in order. Was his sister aware of their humanoid heritage? Probably not, or she would have been more understanding about Gin’s spark. Would she believe him when he told her? Again, probably not. Their last conversation—a brief call to let her know he wasn’t going to jail, for the time being—had not been warm or friendly. But two months had passed for her. Surely that was long enough for her to calm down.
Gin set the book beside his pillow and let his eyes shut. Doc had called him to sickbay to scold him for being selfish. And now he behaved even worse: skipping his shifts, refusing to eat, not being able to sleep. The worry that wormed into his mind eased somewhat. At least now he had an idea of where to find answers.
He fell asleep and dreamed he was in the garage back home.
Chapter 14
AFTER A shower and plate of pancakes dripping in maple syrup, Gin felt like a new man. He was halfway through the meal when Angie and Sy sat down opposite him.
“Morning,” he greeted in between bites.
“Feeling better?” Angie asked, eyeing his plate.
He swallowed and gulped half his milk. “Much. I’m sorry I worried you both. It was a sort of mental breakdown and I wish you hadn’t seen me like that.”
Angie waved a hand. “We’ve all had similar breakdowns, Gin. In your case, I think it was deserved. Not every day do you learn you have humanoid blood in your veins.”
Sy shook his shaggy head. “I still find it hard to believe you didn’t realize. I could smell it on you, the first day we met.”
Gin almost dropped his fork. “You could?”
“Yes, I’ve met several Valkea and I am familiar with their scent. It’s similar to metal, with a hint of oil.”
Gin wanted to sniff his own skin, but knew it would be pointless. Sy’s Toltec abilities far outstripped his own. “Each race has a smell?”
Sy nodded. “Take Tesseen, for example. They smell of sunshine, and heat, and sand. It’s in their blood, just as much as their skin color. And Doc, and the captain to a lesser extent, has the scent of salt water.”
“The Quifante homeworld is mostly water, isn’t it?” Gin asked. He thought he remembered learning that in school.
“It is,” Angie answered. “It’s like a ginormous ocean. We visited once, a few years ago. That was when Doc joined our crew.”
“So you knew I was part Valkea from the start?” Gin let out a soft laugh. “I wish you would have told me.”
Sy raised one side of his lip, the equivalent of lifting an eyebrow. “I did. I asked if you were attracted to machines.”
Narrowing his eyes, Gin thought back to that first encounter. The Toltec had asked if Gin liked machines—implying a sexual desire. He chuckled. “I guess you did. Is that the normal way of the Valkean?”
“I don’t know a lot about them, but I’ve met several. They said they often put their discharge into machinery.”
Gin’s laugh morphed into something deeper. Did Sy really think the electrical discharge the Valkea experienced was the same as a sexual climax? His chuckles cut off abruptly. Was it the same as a sexual climax? His spark never felt good, like when he had sex. Maybe he was doing it wrong.
“Well,” Gin said, getting back on topic. “Thanks for helping me get through it. And I hope Captain Lian will help me get it under control.”
“I’m sure he will,” Angie said. “There’s nothing the captain can’t accomplish. And you’ll do just fine, Gin.”
He smiled at them, touched that he could already count them as friends. “I’m going to go call my sister before shift starts. I’ll see you guys down there.”
They both nodded. He took his plate, empty now, and put it in the wash bin. One of the trainees would be by shortly to gather up the dirty dishes. He was still surprised the captain hadn’t assigned him to that duty for lying.
Down the hall from the mess hall, the com room was full. The relaxed feeling of the space made it a popular hangout, even for those not wanting to call home. A few lifted hands in greeting to Gin. He recognized some faces, but didn’t know all their names. He waved back, but quickly went to one of the communication devices. He only had a few minutes before he had to report to the engine room.
He hesitated before dialing Temmy’s number. It was about noon her time, so she’d be ready for a break. Inconveniencing her wasn’t what stilled his fingers. Did she really know about their mixed blood? If so, why had she never told him? If not, would she believe him when he explained?
Only one way to find out.
The screen flashed with a bright light before Temmy’s face appeared.
“Hey, Sis.”
She smiled. “Gin. How are you doing?”
“I’m okay. You?”
“Good. You’ll never guess what I’ve got it the garage right now.”
He relaxed a bit, realizing she meant to start with small talk. At least it wasn’t a lecture. “What?”
“A Petersburg Swimmer.”
Gin’s mouth dropped. “Seriously? How’d you manage that?”
“Rich couple came down for vacation and hit a bird. Need to repair a dent in the hull.”
“Amazing! Though, not for the bird, I guess.”
She chuckled. “I guess. Things
still going good up in space?”
“It’s only been two days since I talked to you last. Not much can change in that time.” That was a lie, but he wasn’t ready to jump into that topic yet. “Business going well?”
“Yeah. Actually, I want your advice. I’ve been having a problem with a chaser. A Bucharest model. The engine won’t calibrate no matter what I do. I rerouted the power, thinking one of the cells was faulty, but it’s still not working.”
“Why do you want my help?”
“Gin, you were always someone I could talk to, bounce ideas off of. Nothing’s changed with that. You know your stuff. It’s your carelessness that I could do without.”
He let the dig slide. “Have you tried switching the magnetic poles? Maybe the north and south got mixed up.”
“That’s a good idea. I’ll give it a try.”
“What else are you working on?”
“That’s it. Been a slow week, but that’s fine. I’m appreciating the break.”
They fell into silence. Shit. He had to bring it up.
“Hey, Temmy, what do you remember about Dad’s parents?”
“Gramma Liv and Grampa Tyler? Not much. They died when I was little. You were only two.”
“They both died together?” He couldn’t bring up any details about this side of the family.
“Yeah, it was an accident. A crash with their chaser.”
“What about their parents? Do you know about them?”
She shook her head, frowning. “No. They lived in Atlanta most of Dad’s life. They moved there from Oslo, I think. Why do you want to know?”
He nibbled his lip.
“Gin? What’s the matter?”
“Temmy, the doctor on the ship did some bloodwork on me. The results came back a little shocking.”
Her eyes grew wide and she moved in closer to the screen. “Are you sick?”
“No, not sick. We’re mixes, Temmy. Somewhere in our past, we had a relative who was a Valkean.”
Slowly, her forehead creased and wrinkles appeared at the corners of her mouth from a frown. “Valkean? That’s not possible.”
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