No Refuge (Known Universe)

by Annie Nicholas

  “They’re going to destroy every ship leaving.”

  “How can they be sure I’m not on station?”

  “They’re not. They’ll probably destroy that too.” The captain spoke into his console radio, warning the station of the imposing trouble.

  I clung to the chair, trying to find an anchor in my storm of guilt. This was my fault. All those people would die because of me, but what could I do?

  The ship lurched under me. It swung around as the captain piloted his ship to follow the cruiser.

  “What are you doing?” I whispered.

  “Lucille, while you’re on my bridge, do your best to not question every single one of my actions.”

  Lips pressed together, I kept my silence and watched as he flew his ship straight at the Ko’s fat-ass.

  “Ready the cannons.” He’d spoken the order with calm confidence.

  Since when did freighters carry a weapons system? We slipped into its exhaust trail.

  “Fire at will.”

  The walls rattled a little with the shot, but the front view screen went white with the explosion to protect our eyesight.

  “Direct hit to the main engine, captain.”

  Metal pieces flew inward. The shot hadn’t destroyed the huge ship, but it sure got their attention. I hollered and threw my hands into the air. I would kiss the captain soundly for distracting the Ko from all those innocent ships.

  “All ahead, full throttle. Let’s see if we can beat that rust bucket to jump velocity.” All ships ran on reactor cores. To make a jump to another point in space, we had to reach a certain velocity where we could use the core’s energy to punch through space. Now it was a race. If we reached jump speed first, we were free. There wasn’t any way they could trace our path once we went between.

  The captain fiddled with the dials on his console, probably adjusting the inertial dampeners so we wouldn’t be turned into pudding by gravity in the jump. For safety, we remained buckled in. Just like my life today, we never knew when something would go wrong, except in my life Brody was my safety strap.

  “Captain!” one of the crew shouted. “Scanners are showing some of the ships are dumping their cargo on the Ko. The debris is slowing them down.”

  I let out another holler and pumped my fist in the air.

  The captain’s glare softened my exuberance.

  “Sorry. It’s been a rough day.” I offered him a shy smile and stuffed my excitement back inside. We were going to make it. I’d finally get to live on a planet, with a blue sky, and have babies…

  We hit jump velocity.

  9

  The ship flashed onto the outer edges of another system. I blinked and stared at a new star in the distance drawing closer. No other freighters flew around us, and no Ko. I took my first easy breath in hours. I unbuckled my restraints, stripped my EV suit, and rose on trembling legs as the yellow star grew brighter.

  “Sit down, Lucille,” Captain Shay snapped.

  My hearing was fine, but I couldn’t comprehend what he wanted from me. Not with my eyes riveted to the screen. “Where is it? Which planet?” I scanned the system.

  The captain sighed. “It’s the third one from the sun, the blue one with the big moon.”

  “Oh.” The word came out as a long whisper. I froze. If I moved too fast or made a noise, I might wake up. A clatter of heavy boots climbing the stairs broke my trance. I spun and found Brody next to me. I pointed at the view. “It’s the blue one.” My cheeks ached, and I realized I was grinning like a fool.

  Others on the bridge smiled. The captain shook his head and ran his hand through his sandy blond hair.

  Brody reached outand touched the spot where the small blue planet shone in the black of space. “What do you call it?”

  “Home,” the captain answered.

  I turned my gaze to him. “How many people, humans, live there?”

  “One thousand three hundred and seven on the last count. Three hundred and nine with you two.”

  My stomach rolled. “Brody…”

  He grinned, his smile the broadest and sweetest thing I’d ever seen. “I know. We have a home.”

  I rushed into his waiting arms. “You were right.” I kissed him. “You were right.”

  “Okay, both of you back into the chairs and strap in. Would be tragic to have to scrape you off the walls before we land.”

  * * * *

  The shuttle from the ship had touched down outside a forest. I clutched Brody’s hand with both of mine as we stood on the ramp leading to the ground while the crew unloaded their goods. A cool night breeze tickled my scalp and I shivered. The crew had found a jumpsuit small enough to fit me. The extra protection from the elements was much appreciated.

  I’d been planet side a few times, but always in well populated areas with lights and noise. The dark woods loomed ahead and seemed ready to swallow me alive.

  Distant lights flared between the trees and I leaned against Brody, clutching him close. “Look.” I pointed.

  Brody crouched low, dragging me down with him, and scanned the area. “Get under the ramp. If trouble is coming, we need a hidey hole.”

  “Take it easy, kids,” the captain shouted from where he conducted the unloading of cargo on the ground. “We’re expecting them. They’re your ride.”

  I glanced at my man, breaths coming in short gasps. “Brody?”

  “I expect they can’t land near the settlement, so we’ll need to ride something there.” We stood once more, and he hugged me close. “It’ll be fine.”

  Leaning my head against his chest, I stared at the trees with their clawed branches swaying in the wind. “I don’t know what I was thinking this place would look like, but I never imagined this.”

  Captain Shay strode up the ramp toward us. “The living is rough, but we ship medical supplies and equipment to the colony on a regular basis. There’s electricity and hot water, and you’ll learn about the land. How to grow things and hunt for meat.” He slapped Brody on the shoulder and gave me a nod. “It’s hard at first, but your kids will grow up safe and free.”

  Kids…

  Flutters in my stomach increased the closer the lights came. There was so much change. What if they didn’t like me? What if the other girls were prettier and lured Brody away?

  Brody’s light touch on my hands drew my attention. I’d been wringing them without knowing. Sticking them in my pockets, I faced the night and oncoming colonists.

  “Lucy?” He moved behind me and hugged me close. “Are you changing your mind?”

  “No…”

  Three trucks rambled out of the woods and parked close to the ship. People poured from the vehicle, calling out and laughing.

  “Look at ’em all.” I leaned forward to get a better view, but Brody didn’t release his hold. None of them wore costumes and they walked out in the open. “We should have taken our disguises off. We look silly.” Another crewmember, dressed as a Kandarian, had given me a special cream to take the body paint off, but it hadn’t seemed important to clean up at the time.

  “I thought about it.” Brody kissed my cheek. “But I want the first person to see me without all the prostheses to be you.”

  I blinked, my eyes filling with tears. “That sounds right.” Then I laughed. “I don’t even know what color your eyes are.”

  An older man climbed the ramp with sure steps. “Come on, kids. Let’s get you both settled in for the night. The next few days will be busy with all the women folk fussing over you.” He grinned and drew us into an unexpected hug. “Welcome home.”

  Brody carried his backpack and tossed it into the vehicle. He took the passenger side and I lay on the backseat. A blanket was waiting for me as if someone who’d made this journey before knew how exhausted I’d be. Wrapping it around my shoulders, I allowed the rocking motion of the drive to lull me.

  I never fell asleep; my mind wouldn’t let me. I wished we had landed during the day so I could see outside the window. Glimpses of branch
es passed the window. However, the world beyond was dark. Not like space, where emptiness reigned. This darkness was filled with things. They pressed on the outside of the vehicle, all the matter and organisms of a world.

  Give me a ship or a station, something made of metal that could be scrubbed. This would take some getting used to. I’d dreamed so long to be among our kind. To be safe. I sighed and snuggled deeper into the blanket. Was this what safe felt like? If yes, then I liked it.

  The truck slowed and came to a stop.

  I sat up and blinked at the flood of flashlights around us. My door opened and I scrambled back. “Brody!”

  “Easy, honey. We ain’t going to hurt you.” A wrinkle-faced woman with gray frizzy hair came into view. “My, but what a wee thing you are. We need to put some meat on your bones.” She sat on the bench and set a coat on my lap. “The nights are getting colder.”

  Brody stared with wide eyes out the windshield. “You built cabins.”

  “Yes, we’ve got one for the two of you to stay in until you build your own.”

  “How?” My voice rose. We’d never built anything in our life. I wouldn’t know the back end of a hammer, let alone a saw.

  “Don’t you worry. We’re here to help.” She patted my knee. “We’re family now. First, you need to rest. Are you ready to meet some of the others? Newcomers are rare and they’re all excited.”

  I nodded as a knot in my chest tightened. Family was a good word. I crept out and stood facing a group of strangers. “I—I’m Lucille and this is Brody.” My man hung his arm around my shoulders. His silence worried me. He usually did all the talking when we met others.

  There were about ten people, both male and female, checking us out. They seemed more foreign to me than the aliens we’d hid among. I knew how Jurranians greeted each other and how to read Metax body language. I didn’t know how to be human. The male in front of the group stretched out a hand. “I’m Terrence, the leader of the colony.”

  We stared at his hand then Brody took it and they shook.

  Terrence gestured to the others behind him. “Most of us know how tired you must be. We’ve some blankets and food in the cabin for tonight. In the morning we’ll finish settling you in.”

  “Do many make it here?” Brody asked.

  “No, we’ve learned to hide so well that we can’t even find each other. You’re the first in a year.” Terrence’s declaration sank in. We’d made it against the odds, Ko not withstanding.

  My gaze traveled up to the night sky and the stars blanketing the world. More of us hid out there. This small colony was the only beacon of hope, but we couldn’t put on the light to lead them home. “That’s so sad,” I whispered to nobody in particular.

  “Well, why don’t you follow me.” Terrence led us not far from the truck to a small wooden building. He let us in then shut the door behind us.

  I took a deep breath. “We’re not dreaming.”

  “No.” Brody wandered around the one room cabin. It was bigger than any place we’d shared.

  He leaned into a doorway on the other side. “This is the bathroom, if you want to clean off the purple.” He continued to a stone structure placed in the wall where a fire burned for heat.

  My skin didn’t fit right; it seemed too tight. “Do you want me to?”

  He crouched next to the fire and stirred it with a long metal stick. “Yes.” He glanced over his shoulder at me. “I want to meet the human Lucille.”

  “I do too.” I hurried in the bathroom, rubbed the cream to remove the paint onto my skin, and jumped into the sonic shower only to screech like I’d been tossed in an airlock without a suit. Cold water poured over me. Who used water to wash? I shut it off as Brody crashed into the room with his poker swinging.

  He stared at me. “You’re wet.”

  I spit out the water that had filled my open mouth. “It’s not sonic.” Fresh water was an expensive commodity in space. I drank it, but never had it poured over my head until now. It was more of a shock than a discomfort.

  “Some of the richer folk use water on planets to bathe. Maybe it’s more available here.” He turned the knob and adjusted the temperature. “Nice. I like it. Your skin paint is running off too.”

  I watched it swirl down the drain then stood directly under the spray with my eyes closed rubbing the color off my skin.

  Brody waited with an absorbent blanket, wrapped me tight once I was done. He then leaned close, his fingertips brushing my eyelashes. “Can I take out the contacts?”

  Leaning my head back to give him better access, I opened my eyes wide and let him pluck out the pink colored lenses. He didn’t hurt me, his touch careful and gentle. I blinked until my eyesight cleared. “Hi.”

  A small shy smile spread across his lips. “Hi. Nice to meet you at last.” He set the contacts in a glass container he found on the shelf over the sink.

  “Now, your turn.” I pushed him toward the large bed in the center of the room and had him sit on the edge.

  He moved to remove the prostheses.

  Setting my fingertips over his wrists, I stopped him. “Let me do it.” After all this time, I’d never dared to dream of what he’d look like under the false appearance. I ran my fingers over his ears, searching for the trigger that would release the prosthesis’ hold on his flesh. With a sucking noise, it slipped into my hand. I repeated it on his other ear. The contacts were more difficult to remove. “When was the last time you took these out?”

  He shrugged. “Careful, don’t tear off my corneas. I need those.”

  With some tender coaxing, they came off and I stared into the most brilliant set of blue eyes. “Oh, Brody.” I caressed his cheek. “You’re so handsome. I can’t help but worry you’ll leave me now that you’ll have more choices.”

  Throwing his head back, he laughed. The sound was the freest thing I’d ever heard him make. He pulled me into his arms and held me tight. “I was worried about you leaving me.”

  I chuckled. “Sounds silly now that I said it.”

  “We mate for life. I mean it and I don’t lie to you.”

  I lay limp against his chest and let him lay us down. “I know you don’t.”

  He tore the blanket from my body and ran a possessive hand over my stomach and hip. “No interruptions this time.”

  Lying bare before him, as I’d done a thousand other times, I suddenly wasn’t sure what to do. My cheeks burned with a blush. Nothing hid my humanity. He saw all of me for the first time. No ear prostheses, contacts, or body paints. The real Lucille, in the same manner that I’d come into this world. I couldn’t pull my eyes from his intense blue gaze. In fifty years, I still wouldn’t have the courage to look away in fear he may cover them again. “I love you.”

  His hands stilled. “That’s the first time you’ve ever said that to me.”

  “No, it ain’t.” I traced with my fingers along his jaw. “You just were sleeping every time I told you, is all.”

  He chuckled. “It don’t count if I don’t hear it.”

  I couldn’t imagine life without Brody, could barely remember my past without him in it. “I was afraid to say it. Everyone I loved died and I didn’t want to jinx you.”

  “You’re not afraid anymore?”

  “No.” I unzipped his dirty jumpsuit and assisted him in slipping out of it.

  “Me either.” The first touch of his lips over mine was a mere whisper. “I love you, Lucy.”

  I’d always known he did. A person wouldn’t put up with my shit unless they did, but hearing it eased a tight knot in my throat. To my horror, I sobbed.

  Brody leaned away, his eyes wide. “We can wait if you’re not ready. I didn’t mean to force you.”

  I slapped his shoulder and laughed between sobs. “Don’t you make me wait any longer.” I wiped a tear from the corner of my eye. “It felt like a spring went off inside me. I never realized how wound up I was until now.”

  He supported his head on his hand, leaning his elbow next to me, his
face somber. “I understand.” And he would, being that he’d experienced almost everything I had. “I’m still waiting for my spring to unwind.”

  “Let’s see if I can help you with that.” I rose slightly and brushed his mouth with mine. With slow satisfaction, I sucked on his upper lip before releasing it to run my tongue over the lower.

  His chest rose and fell under my hands in an uneven rhythm. Something feminine curled in satisfaction low in my abdomen. The response, I knew, was all for me.

  “Lucy.” Closing his hands over my upper arms, he tugged me against his chest. “I want you.”

  My body trembled and I whispered, “Yes.”

  Kissing the soft curve of my neck in the exact spot I craved, Brody pushed his aroused body against mine, running his lips over my skin. “I don’t want to hurt you.” I knew he’d rather tear out his own heart than cause me pain.

  With slow, easy strokes, I rubbed his back and moaned deep in my throat the way he loved. “I want to make you mine.” Husky words as I pushed myself against him.

  He shuddered. Cupping my breast with a possessive hand, he found my mouth once more and claimed it.

  My skin burned with his touch, yet he was the only one who could put out this needy fire. I clawed his hips, trying without much luck to bring him closer. No matter what our future held, I’d always know that at this moment in time Brody belonged to me.

  I was so wet for him. “Don’t make me suffer. Take me.”

  In response, he released my mouth and traveled lower, leaving a trail of light kisses between my breasts and stomach until he reached the apex of my thighs.

  Clutching the sheets, I didn’t stop him when he parted the delicate flesh of my folds to kiss me with a slow, intent ferocity.

  I squirmed under his intense care until the pleasure had me screaming and tugging at his hair with frantic hands.

  He didn’t stop. Instead, he found the little nub that sent me into such ecstasy and sucked, continuing the torment until I came once more. Slipping a finger inside my pussy, he gazed at me under hooded eyes. “I think you’re ready.”