“We have warriors from each delegation on the ship but a majority of the Skrammon congregate in the rec area and spar during their free time. If you have no plans today, I could take you around the ship,” he suggested as he moved from the kitchen area.
“Ummmm…sure. I’m assuming Wheaton will be in meetings all day and I can’t keep hiding in here so yeah, let’s do this.” She clapped her hands together and followed him to the door.
Walking side by side down the corridor, she paused slightly when they reached the apartment she’d shared with Wheaton. Wondering where Hannah was if Wheaton was at a meeting made her completely stop in her tracks.
“Dath, if Wheaton got called to a meeting then why didn’t Hannah answer my call this morning?”
“Hannah accompanied Wheaton to the Council meetings this morning,” he replied.
“Wait—she went with him to a meeting? The same type of meeting that I’m not able to even hear about, much less go to? I realize Demascus gave her permission, but I just can’t believe Wheaton went along with it.” Apparently her anger was starting to come out in her tone of voice, because Dathrow turned to face her.
“She has a background in politics, and I assume that Wheaton would rather have her occupied during the day where he can keep an eye on her. I do not believe he trusts either Hannah or Demascus.” Frowning at Poppy, he realized she was really upset.
“So, it was okay for me to sit by myself when I got here? I wanted to bang my head against a wall from boredom it was so bad. Yet Hannah gets to follow him around and be a part of his daily life?” Poppy took a moment from her hissy fit and noticed the frightened look on Dathrow’s face.
It wasn’t fair to take out her anger on the poor guy. She wasn’t even that angry at Wheaton when she thought about it. It was the entire fucked-up situation that had her wanting to spit nails. Keeping Hannah under a watchful eye made sense but she still felt left out. Considering he refused to even talk to her about his work, it was like a stab to the chest. One day on the ship and Hannah was able to see how the Council worked. Clenching her jaw, she tried to smile through her anger at the poor warrior in front of her.
“Sorry, Dath. I’m not mad at you. I’m not even mad at Wheaton. I just need to talk to him about some things. It isn’t fair for me to take out my frustration on the messenger,” she admitted.
“I appreciate that, Poppy,” he heaved out on a relieved sigh.
“Come on and show me this ship. Wheaton gave me the bare bones tour, then more in-depth tours after a week or so. I watched him spar in the rec room with Thorne but we never spent much time around any of the common areas. I would like to meet some other warriors and maybe see if there’s anything I can do around here. Do you know if anyone needs help with paperwork or odd jobs?” Glancing over at her new buddy, she went on, “I wouldn’t even expect to be paid. I’m just bored when Wheaton isn’t around and I can only watch Sixteen Candles so many times before I set fire to something.”
When she mentioned “fire” his eyes got wide. Almost laughing at his expression, she quickly said, “Well not really, but it’s better not to let me get bored.” He would need to get used to her joking if he was going to hang around and keep her company. Looping her arm through his, she bumped his side as they turned the corner to the common area.
“We can check with the med center and see if the healers need any help. They are always receiving new supplies, and with the men sparring daily, they rarely have time to check the stock and catalog them,” he suggested.
“That would be great. I actually worked in a doctor’s office on Earth,” she replied with a happy smile.
Deciding to show her the med center first, Dathrow suggested that they take the lift to another floor of the ship. Poppy realized that every floor appeared identical, and if he hadn’t been guiding her around, she would be hopelessly lost. When she had toured with Wheaton, she must have been paying more attention to his fine ass as he walked than her surroundings. Making sure to pay attention, she kept her eyes peeled walking with Dathrow.
Pointing out the doors that led to the common area bathrooms, he explained that there were specific ones designated for the new brides who would eventually live on the ship. Poppy had a mental image of going to each floor and slapping a sticky note on the gleaming walls to help her remember which were the men’s and which were the women’s. Walking into the men’s room while a warrior was doing his business did not seem like a good way to learn which was which.
“Dath, is there a reason why nothing is labeled? How do you know which doors are for the bathrooms and which is for the rec room? Will I just need to count my way down the corridor and try to remember each time?”
“There are small symbols illuminated on the side of the door that tell you where we are.” Pointing to the small symbols, he explained which one was female and which was male. “I know you haven’t had a chance to learn to read our language yet and the translator only works with the spoken word so maybe I can go over the most common symbols to help you learn them,” he replied.
“That would be great. I hate taking up so much of your time. If I’m keeping you from a job, please don’t feel you need to entertain me,” she said when they approached the med center.
“I have been assigned as one of your escorts so it is not a problem, Poppy. I enjoy talking to you. Let’s see if you can get a job here so you can avoid setting fires.” He smiled as he let her enter the gleaming doors ahead.
* * * * *
On the other side of the ship, Wheaton was having an awful morning. Trying to extricate himself from a clinging Hannah had proven harder than he had expected. Last night, he’d answered endless questions while she sat staring at him with wide, adoring eyes. In the past, he would have been flattered by the attention of a beautiful female. Instead of feeling any type of attraction to his newly assigned bride, he had instead kept comparing her to Poppy the entire evening. It had been exhausting to try to keep as much physical distance between them as possible. She had chosen to sit as closely as possible to him no matter how far he tried to maneuver away.
He had been relieved when a few key Council members had come by the apartment to meet his new “bride” later in the evening. The addition of the Council members in his apartment had seemed to distract Hannah’s efforts to get close to him. Unfortunately they had stayed so long it had been too late to visit Poppy when they left.
Hoping to have some reprieve from Hannah’s company today had proved fruitless as well. The Council had instructed him to bring Hannah with him today to his meetings. Her constant chatter was making his head ache. Gritting his teeth, it took everything in him to not yell at her to be quiet. Shaking his head in frustration while rubbing his temple, he knew one thing. He missed his Poppy.
Chapter Eighteen
The med center visit was a success. Meeting Tamin and Rodin, two of the Brakken warriors, had been very interesting. Both men were just as tall as Wheaton and Dathrow but they had shorter hair and small tattoos on their upper temples that ran up their foreheads and traced their hairlines. Noticing that their tattoos were identical, Poppy figured they were a warrior designation. The pair wore leather pants similar to what Wheaton had in his closet but they wore tops shaped like a tunic or loose-fitting sets of hospital scrubs. Each was equally muscled so she assumed that in addition to patching up those banged up from sparring, they spent just as much time on the mat.
Apparently the men had wanted to meet the human brides on the ship but none of the husbands had brought them by so far. As doctors they were curious regarding any physical differences—even though their research had shown that everything was compatible, they wanted to see it firsthand. Declining a physical exam, she did try to answer all the questions they had. When they started asking questions about her monthly cycle, Dathrow made a point to excuse himself for a couple minutes and check on a message waiting for him in the system. The questions they asked her about her period did make her realize she was going to be need
ing “supplies” fairly soon and wondered how she could go about asking that.
“Tamin, are you technically my doctor or will a human doctor be brought up from Earth if I need one?” Poppy asked curiously.
Rodin chose that time to pop into the conversation that had been led by the other doctor until then.
“We will be your doctors while on Squadron One if you need medical assistance. As of right now, we are too far from Earth to get a human doctor even in an emergency,” he said.
Not wanting to be left out, Tamin spoke next. “Also, the Council decided that any Phaeton children will need to be monitored by our own race so all pregnancies would be seen to by either Rodin or myself while you are here.”
“Why? Are you feeling unwell? Do we need to summon Wheaton for you?” Rodin asked.
“Ummmm…no. I just wasn’t sure who I should talk to about getting supplies when I need them—to deal with feminine issues,” she said while trying not to feel embarrassed. Talking to these two hunks about her period had not been on her mental to-do list today. Poppy had a male doctor at home but Dr. Stevens was about sixty years old with twenty grandchildren. He wasn’t anything like these two babes in front of her and she wasn’t quite sure how much they knew about periods or the supplies that were needed when they came.
“Of course, of course,” Rodin answered with a nod, understanding what she was asking.
“We had planned on having a human nurse here to assist the brides when the time came but our ship was called away before we could finish the interviews. We did get enough ‘supplies’ though, for your stay to be comfortable, if needed. I can show you the supply closet next where those items are kept. You can choose what you need and let us know if there is something specific you would like. We can make notes for future orders regarding your preferences,” Tamin finished.
Following Tamin down the small hall that led to the exam rooms, Poppy peeked around the rest of the small medical center. Walking past the open exam rooms, she glanced around in awe. Instead of normal hospital beds they had long pod-like structures in the center of the room. Pausing outside one of the doors, she was bumped by Rodin, who was following close behind.
“Oomph. I’m so sorry, Rodin,” she said as she was jostled by the big body behind hers.
“No, I am sorry, Poppy. I admit, I am anxious to hear your questions and hopefully have you explain some of the supplies that we received. After studying the packaging we were able to understand what the purpose of some of them were but we are confused about an item that has wings. It does not make sense to us why wings would help during your menstrual cycle,” Rodin said as he backed up a few paces.
Oh great. Poppy was not looking forward to explaining tampons or pads with wings to this big guy. His expression became similar to that of a kid in a candy store the more he spoke to her. He seemed as if he were soaking up every word she said. She had a flashback to her sixth-grade health class, when all the girls were separated from the boys and had “the talk” about menstruation. Picturing herself standing in front of a white board holding up various objects and explaining how they were used caused her to grimace. Deciding now was a good time to distract the doctors, she gestured to the open room.
“What are those?” Poppy asked, pointing at the weird pod objects that were where she expected exam tables to be.
Gesturing for Poppy to enter the room, Tamin and Rodin followed and walked to the center of the room.
“This is your standard regen bed,” Rodin explained with a sweeping motion of his hand.
“Sugar, nothing you guys have up here is ‘standard’ to me. A regen bed? As in, regeneration?” she asked, walking up to the white pod with bright blue buttons. It appeared as though someone would lie on it and the sides and top would close when it was turned on. The result was something that resembled a space-age coffin.
“Exactly. When a warrior seeks our services, this is the quickest way to diagnose the problem. It takes vitals, searches for injuries and can provide a diagnosis within minutes as to what the problem is. When we have medical screenings, we use it to generate information for medical records.” Tamin hit a button so the pod closed in a hum.
“It can also heal broken bones and most internal injuries. The duration it takes to heal different injuries varies depending on what it needs to fix or regenerate. The more complicated the injury the more time it may require.” Rodin was leaning against a cabinet that held medical instruments more familiar to Poppy than the sci-fi bed in front of her.
“I would actually like to get a baseline on you if we could, Poppy. That way we will have your stats on file in case you need future care,” Rodin said, nodding toward the pod.
“Ummm sure, but how long does that thing stay closed? It seems a little claustrophobic. As in a coffin type of claustrophobic.” Poppy was apprehensive and braced herself. She was being silly. At some point she would need to get over using their medical devices.
Tamin hit a button that opened the pod up, and motioned for Poppy to lie down.
“It should only take thirty seconds for it to gather the readings and then it will open automatically. After opening it will give us the information within five minutes of a standard exam. When we have to heal bones or injuries, it can take hours to finish a treatment. The patient will fall asleep shortly after they enter depending on the diagnosis and wake as if they had been taking a nap. There really is nothing to be frightened of.”
Poppy hopped up onto the bed after slipping off her shoes. It was actually quite comfy. Since the warriors were bigger than her by quite a bit and by default would need more space, it seemed much roomier than she’d expected once she stretched out. Judging the size to be similar to a twin bed but longer, she held her breath as Tamin hit the button for it to close. Cocooned in the pod, she appreciated the calming blue glow that lined the inside of the white tube. She lay wide-eyed inside, listening to the tones the machine was making. Was she supposed to stay absolutely still? Would it zap her if she moved? Crazy thoughts flew through her head as she stiffened her body, freaking out a bit. Before she knew it, the door and sides slid open on a hum. Well, that was anticlimactic.
“That’s it?” she asked, not wanting to move in case it hadn’t had a chance to do its futuristic mojo on her.
“Yes,” Rodin said with a smile, helping her sit up. He brought her shoes over so she could slip them back on before stepping down onto the cool white floor. “Let us show you the supplies we acquired while we wait for the regen bed to make a report.”
Dathrow chose that moment to walk into the exam room.
“Poppy, we need to head back to your quarters. Wheaton contacted me and he has a break in meetings so he is free for a small amount of time. He would like to speak to you.” Dathrow nodded at the two doctors.
Poppy noticed the disappointment on their faces and felt bad that their time was cut short. On the other hand, she was grateful that she was able to successfully dodge the wings conversation.
“It was so nice to meet you both.”
“Likewise, Poppy. Please come back when you can. We could use your assistance, if you have the time to spare,” Tamin said, and held his hand out to shake.
“Yes, please come back. We would greatly appreciate your input on what other items we may need to acquire for your comfort, and would love to have your help here,” Rodin agreed when it was his turn to shake hands.
“Oh wait, my regen report… Is it done yet?” She gestured back to the room she had just left.
“Not yet. It is still working on the report. I can contact you if we have concerns regarding your vitals once it is finished. We have the standard chart for where humans should be reading at so we will know if something is a concern as soon as it is printed out.”
Poppy grimaced. Hopefully their charts didn’t include the BMI portion. She knew for sure that result wouldn’t be within the “standard” reading for a woman her height. Maybe she should make use of the rec room that she had toured earlier. Follo
wing a fast-moving Dathrow drove that point home. Poppy breathed heavily as she hurried to catch up. The speed he was moving showed her that maybe a little jogging wouldn’t be out of the question also. Apparently, he was as anxious for her to see Wheaton as she was.
Walking down the gleaming halls, she again tried to pay attention to the doors and where the elevator was located. The sliding doors to the lift and the doors to the other rooms were all the same size and shape. She was going to make it a priority to learn the standard symbols for the areas she wanted to visit. She asked Dathrow if he could make her a guide for the symbols she needed, including the symbols for numbers. At least she assumed the strange hieroglyphics in the elevator were supposed to be numbers.
Reaching her apartments, Dathrow turned to her.
“Wheaton messaged that he should be here shortly. He will be able to lunch with you instead of the Council, but I am unsure how much time he will have before his meetings continue,” Dathrow said before he bowed and turned to walk away.
“Dath?”
When he turned back and looked at her, she continued, “Thank you so much for keeping me company this morning and showing me around. I truly appreciate it.” She reached up to give him a hug.
Hugging Dathrow was like hugging a tree. She must have startled him, because he stood stock-still with his arms hanging at his sides. She wasn’t giving up on him, she decided. His cheeks had turned a little red. Smiling at him, she waved and turned to go into her quarters.
Deciding not to waste any time, she prepared a quick lunch. As she moved around the kitchen to get their food ready, she saw the notification light on the door blinking. Dreading that it was Wheaton calling to cancel her lunch, she jogged over to listen to the message.
“Poppy, this is Tamin. We received your readouts from the regen bed and we need to speak to you about the results. Please come back to the med center as soon as you are able.”
Well crap. Maybe the regen bed wasn’t as familiar with human bodies as the doctors had expected. Or maybe they had questions about her dental fillings. Did aliens have fillings? A tone at the door sounded. She was so anxious to see Wheaton that she practically ran to the opening, tripping over her shoes on the way. Knowing that her smile was gigantic, but not caring, she signaled for the entry to open—and felt her smile fall.
Brida Pact Page 16
