by Viola Grace
Mrtok came to her station after her mid-morning break. “Whelling, can you come down here?”
She put her machine into a safe position and climbed down.
Lianne smiled. “What is up, boss?”
“There is a medic who wants to look you over.”
She nodded. “Okay. Sure.”
“I will stay nearby. He seems nervous to me.”
That was different. Mrtok was normally all business. “Sure. Where is he?”
“The common area breakroom. He didn’t have his clearance with him.”
“That is weird. Why does he want to see me?”
“He mentioned an incident yesterday.”
Lianne nodded and walked with him though the security gate, and the medic was standing with his back to her.
He turned and frowned at Mrtok. “You are not needed, supervisor.”
Lianne put up her hand. “He is my proxy. If anything happens, he will make sure I get home.”
The medic’s features wavered from the standard Nool arrangement, and she threw herself to the floor as he pulled out a static gun. He fired and Mrtok shouted.
Muttering to himself, he grabbed her and hauled her up by the arm. She struck at his waist and felt the projection module. She pulled, and it tore off in her hands.
The Regiz staring at her growled and bared his teeth. “You think you are clever, Breeder. You will serve your purpose.”
She knew she couldn’t do much, but she kicked out with the techniques that Sorrok had been showing her, and he went down to one knee.
She plowed her fist into his face and slammed her knee into his jaw. He slumped forward and hands pulled her off him. His arms were pulled up and back by two hazy figures, and she identified concealed Luthin as her assistants.
Sorrok whispered, “We have him. Well done, Lianne.”
Her hand throbbed, but it didn’t feel broken. Her knee was going to have a bruise, but she was very satisfied with herself.
“Let me guess. There was one missing? Mrtok!” She turned in Sorrok’s grip and saw her supervisor being helped to his feet by one of the Luthin, now in visible form.
Mrtok raised his hand in indication that he was all right.
“He will be fine. Yes, there was one member of the group that was missing. One of them had to be masquerading as a medic to get access to the sedatives calibrated for your species.”
She glared at him. “You knew he was coming here.”
“I guessed.”
“You used me as bait.”
“No. I simply knew he would come for you, and you were determined to carry out your work.”
Lianne made a face and hugged him. “I resent that you had to be here and didn’t tell me.”
He ran his hands over her back and murmured, “I am glad I went behind your back and kept them from getting you.”
She buried her face in his chest and noted that he smelled a little odd.
“You did well with your attack. He wasn’t expecting it.”
She muttered against him, “Neither was I. All I knew was that I wasn’t going to let him take me.”
“Good. We need to speak with Iktabi now. He needs the last bit of information.”
“What is that?”
“Who was watching you. I am afraid that you are going to have to submit to a search by a Saya.”
She snorted. “I thought I wasn’t supposed to identify the Rrassic by their races.”
“The Saya are an exception.” He moved his arms and coaxed her into walking at his side with his arm around her shoulders.
She glanced back at Mrtok, but he was speaking to one of the Luthin. “Why aren’t your guys coming with us?”
“They have other things to worry about.” He hurried her toward the exit.
She touched his waist and found the module. She was too close to fight him, so she took in a deep breath and screamed, “Contamination!”
Lights flared, the riot gates came down and the male holding her looked at her in horror.
She ripped the module off and found herself facing a Saya-Rrassic. The third eye was a dead giveaway.
She ran for it, but he grabbed her braid and hauled her against him.
“Clever miss. Now, I have to do this the hard way.”
She felt pressure on her mind and kicked back at him, clawing at his arms. The pressure broke, and she continued to struggle.
She saw one of the Luthin raising his static gun, and she moved into its path as he fired. She screamed and hit the ground a moment before she heard the second shot and her captor was down.
She twitched and groaned as the bands of metal on her chest continued to fire and pull her under.
The Hunter who had shot her ran up and pulled the bands from her chest, lifting her into a sitting position and looking into her eyes. “Are you all right?”
She nodded and smiled at the man. “Thanks for shooting.”
“Thank you for taking it and getting out of his grip. A Saya. I never thought that one of them would turn.”
She was still sitting on the floor when the real Sorrok appeared. Her relief expressed itself in irritation. “You are late. You missed all the fun.”
He looked at her companion and nodded. “Thanks, Korisk.”
“No problem, Sorrok. She is quite the selection. You are going to go crazy, and I can hardly wait to see it.”
Sorrok crouched next to her, and his familiar scent washed over her. She lunged up and kissed him, wanting to double check that it was really him.
He was surprised, but he caught her and held her against him, running his hand over her back and purring softly as she caressed his neck with her fingers.
She relaxed and looked up at him. “It’s you.”
He frowned. “Who did you think it was?”
“He used one of those projection units to look like you. If he hadn’t acted and smelled wrong, I would have gone with him.”
Sorrok stroked her cheek and smiled, “You know my scent?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Don’t get a big head.”
He got to his feet and pulled her with him. “This time, I am carrying you.”
Her legs wouldn’t hold her, so she let him. The static gun made sure you stayed in one place. It shorted the nervous system, focusing on the lower limbs. She had another ten minutes before her legs were under her complete control.
“Where are you taking me?”
“We are being taken to the med centre. Your hand looks swollen.”
She chuckled, and they got into a transport driven by a human. “Med centre, please.”
He nodded and eased them away from the riot of officials and medical personnel who were swarming around the port.
She kept herself calm, and to her relief, they actually pulled up at the med centre. She exhaled in relief, and Sorrok paid the driver before he carried her out of the transport and into the centre.
The Nool were moving around as if preparing for a disaster, and one came to assist them. “Can I help you?”
Sorrok explained that she had been hit by a static gun and had a hand injury.
She was scanned; her hand was given a regenerative ray treatment, as was her knee. She lay back and sighed. “This is an exceptionally sucky day.”
A feminine voice answered her from the doorway. “Oh, I would say it is about normal. How are you doing, Lianne?” Bella entered the treatment room and scooted to sit next to Lianne on the bed.
“I am pretty good. How are you, and why are you here?”
“Oh, Iktabi wanted to quiz you, and where he goes, I go.” Bella made a face.
The Dorbin-Rrassic came through her doorway, and he smiled. “Precisely. So, Ms. Whelling, what the hell happened today?”
Sorrok and Bella listened as Lianne told Iktabi everything she knew. She may as well; she had another hour under the rays to heal the cracked bones she had created.
Chapter Twelve<
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The overlord declared her sentence for being such a tempting target. “Ms. Whelling, I would like you to engage in Hunter training and become a peacekeeper in our community. Oh, and you have to reside with Sorrok for safety.”
Lianne laughed until she realized that he wasn’t kidding. “You are joking.”
Bella was silently shaking her head.
“I am not joking. You are responsive to him; he is responsive to you; it is your obligation to consummate your union and to create a natural offspring.”
Sorrok looked like he wanted to speak, but Iktabi lifted his hand.
“I know that this is not what you want to hear, but you are compatible and attracted to each other. You have similar interests and would probably already have mated if this series of attacks had not occurred.”
“Iktabi, you are not helping. They have to live together, and there is no birth control here. I think they get it,” Bella muttered.
“She is in his custody, as you are in mine, Bella. Don’t forget about that,” Iktabi chided her.
Bella made a face at him.
He chuckled.
Lianne stared at them with wide eyes. They were flirting.
Sorrok smiled. “I believe that it would be easier for Lianne if I joined her in her quarters. It is just across the courtyard after all.”
“Done. Bella, file the authorization.”
Bella smiled and pulled out a small tablet from the cross-body purse she wore. She tapped on it for a few minutes and nodded. “It is done. The ladies won’t like it, but they can use a little shakeup.” Bella grinned evilly. “They will go out of their trees when Sorrok moves in.”
Lianne chuckled. “Easy, Bella. I know they are a little stuck up, but they are still our people.”
“Yeah, but they can bully some of the new discoveries. It isn’t cool. They also keep themselves so apart from the guys that the chance of actually breeding isn’t possible.”
“Wait, this is something that can turn on?”
“Sure. All of the ladies here have the potential to be Breeders, but for a lot of them, it requires exposure.”
“Wow.” She was stuck with the rays stimulating her body into healing, but she really wanted to cover her eyes as she thought about it.
A Saya came through the door and said, “Excuse me. I wish to examine Ms. Whelling’s memory to determine who tipped off the colonists.”
He smiled at her, his pearly skin bright and his third eye closed. She recognized the vibe around him from her first time in Iktabi’s office. “Sure. Prod away.”
Bella stood aside, but Sorrok stayed at her side, on guard against anything the Saya would do.
Lianne smiled, and the third eye opened, a brilliant rainbow gleam that spun outward until it was all that she could see.
She blinked rapidly and the third eye was closed. “What happened?”
Iktabi and Bella were gone. “Where did they go?”
“He is leaving to solve part of the problem. He found out who tipped off the kidnappers.”
She used her left hand to pinch the bridge of her nose. “Who?”
“The woman who came by last night. Missy. She was the only one who knew that you would be at work today. Your memories also outlined that her hand was at an odd angle, and the reflection in the window of the hallway showed a med gun. Things that you didn’t notice at the time but registered in your mind.” The Saya nodded. “Thank you.”
She smiled. “You are welcome. What is your name, sir?”
“Lekorh.” His lips quirked. “Few folk ask.”
“I am not few. I am me. Thanks for the light touch on the mind, Lekorh.”
“I get a lot of practice around here. Have a better day, and for the record, Iktabi isn’t wrong. You and Sorrok vibrate on the same frequency. It is not a common thing.”
With that, Lekorh left them alone.
Sorrok sat next to her and took her left hand. “So, do you mind moving in with me?”
She chuckled. “If I heard correctly, you are moving in with me.”
“Semantics.”
“No. It will make things easier and make things simpler when you do the dishes. You can just make the beds afterward.” She snickered.
He squeezed her hand. “You like to live on the edge of disaster.”
“I don’t like it, I am just getting used to it; now, tell me about Hunter training.”
He spent the next hour telling her about what was needed. She needed to learn physical defense and attacks, tracking, technology and have a working knowledge of all species in her area.
“So, I get to learn about the other three races of the Rrassic?”
He chuckled. “Maybe. Let’s see if you can increase your clearance level.”
“I get the feeling that I am going to need badges to mark my progress.”
“I will see if the fabricator can manage something.”
She sighed and lay back, waiting for the moment she could start her next phase.
Back at the Breeder’s quarters, things were in an uproar. Lianne just wanted to lie down, but women who wanted answers surrounded her. Since Lianne went into the working community, they wanted to know what it was like.
Missy was gone.
As Lianne spoke with the ladies, Sorrok went to get his things to move in to her place, and she was stuck with the earnest faces.
“Where did they take her? What happened? Did she disappear like the others?”
Lianne sat in the atrium, and she answered the questions. “They took her for questioning as to her involvement with kidnapping and exporting Breeders. She’s been snagging likely candidates and helping the Rrassic send them off world.”
The girls were shocked. One spoke up, “Why does it matter where we go?”
Lianne looked at her. “We have emotional support here. Other women from our own world. The known is always preferable to the unknown. Now, how many ladies here have mates?”
The women looked at each other, and one cleared her throat. “Missy said that it wasn’t allowed.”
Lianne fought the urge to cover her eyes. “That was to keep you aroused and giving off signals to the guys who wanted to kidnap you. It made you bigger targets.”
The women wanted to know more about sex with the Rrassic, and Lianne couldn’t answer. “Hang on, let me consult an expert.”
She headed to the public com and called Lisa at work. “Lisa, I need your help.”
Her friend was worried. “What do you need?”
“I need you to come to the Breeder compound and explain sex with the Rrassic to the humans.”
Lisa snorted. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“They have been fed misinformation. It is a mess, and you are my favourite source of uncomfortable details about the Rrassic.”
“I will be over after work.”
“I think we need you now. Stay there; I will see what I can do.”
A quick call to Bella later and Lisa was on her way.
The crowd was still waiting when Lisa’s escort helped her out of her vehicle. She smiled brightly at her companions before heading for the building.
Lianne came out to meet her.
Lianne hugged her and grinned. “I am so glad you are here. This place has been turned into a teasing convent.”
Lisa chuckled. “Get me some tea, water and snacks. Also, some della fruit. I think I will need a visual aid.”
Lianne grinned. “On it. Back in a minute.”
Sorrok and a group of other Rrassic came toward her, carrying armloads of items. There were Luthin, Regiz and other Zjin, all marching toward her.
Lianne grinned and led the way back to her quarters. She propped the door open and let them come in while she prepared a tray for Lisa.
Sorrok dropped off his burden in the bedroom and came to her. “How are things going?”
“Missy was keeping the ladies from intimacy with the guys, so I brought in an
expert on Rrassic-human intimacy to answer the ladies’ questions.” She snapped her fingers and got the fruit from the fridge.
The tea was ready; she put a pitcher of water and a set of glasses on the tray.
She grabbed some snack packs from the chiller and put the whole thing on the tray with the della fruit.
“I will help you with that.” He took the tray, and his assistants followed them out of her apartment with the last one closing the door and making sure it latched.
Lianne grinned. “You might not want to stay for the lecture. She might use you as a visual aid.”
The men behind them chuckled, and she didn’t say anything else. They would learn soon enough.
The ladies had gotten cushions and were seated around the centre of the atrium where Lisa was speaking.
Sorrok brought her the tray and set it down on the edge of the bench she was sitting on.
Lianne grinned and took a seat.
Sorrok raised his brows. “I can tell you what you need to know.”
She grinned. “Yeah, but this will be funny.”
He went to the others, and they all spoke quietly and then took a seat.
Lisa chuckled. “Oh, goody. Well, I am going to treat this like you have never seen a Rrassic before. There are a few races we don’t see here, but the main six are around.”
Sorrok moved in close to Lianne, and she leaned against him, using him as support. She ached from top to toe.
Over the course of the hour, she laughed more than she had in weeks and saw a Luthin and Regiz shirtless. The Zjin was a bad sport and didn’t want to demonstrate that the stripes went all the way down.
Sorrok leaned in to her and whispered, “They do.”
Lianne’s shoulders shook as Lisa continued her frank discussion of Rrassic anatomy as well as their orgasm behaviours.
“That is enough for you. You are tired.” Sorrok stroked her arm.
She sighed. “Yeah, besides there are somethings that are more fun to find out on your own. Can you make sure that Lisa gets home okay?”
He gestured to the Regiz, and the man came over, crouching next to them. Sorrok spoke quietly, and the man nodded and grinned. “Yes, she will be home safe.”
Sorrok looked to Lianne, “Good enough?”
