The Awakening: Imortum

by JK Stone

  Alise stared at him, with a look likened to astonishment and said, “That makes sense.”

  *****

  A little while later an alarm chirped and Alise looked up and said, “It is almost meal time. After we are traveling again you may want to convert the rest of the rations in storage into base mineral storage. It will clear out some more room for our other guest.”

  Jason let out a moan. “Ugh. I forgot about him for a moment, when will we be departing?”

  “The charging has just completed and we can depart whenever you wish it. Actually, let’s leave now!” Alise barked out.

  Jason felt the ship rumble and saw the blurring effect he knew to be the time displacement. He looked at Alise and she said, “They are a determined lot. The Toralin’s have returned with over fifty ships. They dropped out of high speed travel almost on top of us. I guess they were going to try to take us out with superior numbers, but we are out of their reach now. I’m setting a course for the—

  Alise was interrupted when the ship was rocked by a blast.

  “What was that?” Jason asked.

  Alise analyzed her monitor a moment and said, “That was a TPE or time phased explosive. That is far beyond the Toralin’s technology level. I think we are going to have to look into where they obtained that weaponry. I guess we will have to put it on our ‘to do’ list as well.” She paused as she put in a command to the computer, then she said, “There. We are out of their range and just for safety’s sake…we will jump back a hundred years in time as well.”

  Jason looked at her and asked, “Why go back in time and not forward?”

  Alise replied, “As I said before the Toralin’s seem to be able to sense when events have been changed. If we went forward in time they may be able to track us. By going back in time first, we will arrive in a time before they were looking for us and that should make it harder for them to track us. I think we should continue to use Elgon’s travel protocol and jump through several phases and times until we get to our destination, then we can time jump to the temporal location we want to drop your family off.”

  “That sounds good to me,” Jason said with a chuckle. “I think I’ll go get the food stored away. Would you like to help?” He asked with a smirk already knowing what her answer would be.

  Alise started a fake stammer. “Ah…um… Walk the dog, water the lawn… Sorry, I am swamped at the moment.” As Jason was leaving she chuckled. “Have fun.”

  Jason laughed and said, “Sure, leave me with the tedious work.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Jason’s feet touched down on the floor of the second level, and a moment later he was inundated with questions from his family members regarding all of the banging and shaking of the ship. Not wanting to go into details and panic everyone in the room he said, “While we were charging our systems, a meteorite storm passed by and struck the hull. After we set off, we hit a piece of the space junk surrounding the planet. Everything’s fine and we’re on our way again.”

  Only Jerren and Justin seemed to know that all was not right. Jason gave them his, I’ll explain it to you later look and they seemed mollified. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to sort out the storage room over here so we can create another room and expand all of your bedrooms to make you more comfortable.” That got them to quiet down fast. As a matter of fact, Jason felt like they gave him the bum’s rush into the storage room.

  Alise spoke to him in mind. Well played, working on their desire for more room to get them to leave you be.

  Jason replied, I use whatever tools I can find.

  Jason looked around the room and muttered to himself, “Now where did I put that knife?” He finally located it in the utility pouch on his belt atop of one of the stacked boxes. “Okay, where to begin… Let’s start with the beans. There are only seven hundred pounds, all in one-cup serving size vacuum sealed pouches…” He looked at the stacks in the storage bins and shook his head. “Man, this is going to take forever,” he said as he cut open the first pouch.

  “Why couldn’t I have chosen to pack dehydrated potatoes? Those are much lighter… Oh, wait that’s right I have those too, only three hundred pounds of them though. Man, I was paranoid… Good thing too or we’d be going hungry,” he said as he continued with his task.

  *****

  After two hours, Jason was almost finished with the beans. He cut open the final pouch and a few beans spilled onto the floor. He poured the remaining beans into the raw materials container and bent down to pick up the ones that had fallen. He was just about to drop them into the container as well when he felt something wriggling in the palm of his hand. He turned his hand over and opened it, and he found the beans were sprouting and growing with his touch. Quite startled by this he shouted, “Alise, you’ve got to see this!”

  Alise materialized in front of him and looked down at his hand, “That is extraordinary. It germinated and is growing at your touch. Usually, you would need water and sunlight to start that process. It would appear those zaps you received did more than we thought to your body. That is very interesting.”

  Jason looked at her with a hint of mischief. “As long as you’re here…do you want to give me a hand?”

  “Whoops, look at the time… Got to go…bye.” With a laugh, Alise vanished but said in mind, By the way, why are you doing it the hard way?

  “W-what…hard way? What?” Jason stammered.

  Just put the pouches into the raw materials container and tell the computer to remove the non-biological from the sample… I could have sworn I told you that.

  “Why didn’t I think of that?” Jason muttered.

  The process went a great deal faster now that he knew that little secret.

  Jason finished storing the last can of emergency rations and then took inventory. He stared at the readout in disbelief. There should have been only around fifteen thousand pounds of food, but the readings showed forty-six thousand pounds and he still hadn’t put in the everyday food from his pantry yet. I didn’t think I had near this much food. Well, I guess my paranoia was a good thing, He thought.

  Jason paused a moment looking around, and asked Alise, Where’s all the water I had? I know it wasn’t near enough for this many people. Where will we get it restocked?

  Alise replied, I had the water dematerialized when I transported it aboard. It is all in base storage, along with the rest I stored while we were over Daregon. When we are near abundant natural resources I try to restock so we do not run out. Aside from drinking the water, we use it to create the oxygen in the ship. As it was, I had to remove a lot of impurities from your water before storing it. We will also pick up ice as we travel through space as needed.

  Well, that sounds good. You do think of everything, don’t you? Jason asked.

  I try my best, Alise said with a laugh.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Alise had been trying to limit her contact with Jason as much as possible, to no avail it would seem. Her emotional state was out of control whenever she was near him and they still did not lessen with increased time or distance apart. Ever since the attack that had ejected her from his mind, she had been unable to see his thoughts or memories. She could still feel some of his emotions and hear him speaking in mind if he was directing it at her, but she seemed to hit a wall when trying to delve into his memories, and she was now thoroughly regretting not looking into his thoughts right after he broke the very intense kiss they had shared.

  Alise decided it was time to see how he felt, even if it crushed her spirit…if she had one that is. Something had to be done. The only problem was that she had no reference material on how to proceed. So, she used the only thing she could and scanned the female guest’s thoughts to see how they would have proceeded, and she was surprised at the possible solution.

  She felt it might be too forward, but with a plan of action in mind, she materialized in his bedroom, carefully disrobed and crawled into bed with Jason.

  Alise hoped he would wake up
soon. She was getting aroused caressing his chest and abdomen. She was placing light kisses along his neck and ear, whispering his name. When he whispered her name in response, her heart jumped.

  *****

  Jason was having a very good dream. Alise was beside him lightly caressing his abdomen while tracing kisses along his neck and ear. Her hand had been steadily caressing his chest and he felt her warm lips on his neck.

  In his dream he was attempting to kiss her, but every time he got close, she’d pull away and his frustration would mount. The anticipation of the pleasure he would feel with her was palpable, and he was really beginning to wish this wasn’t a dream.

  His mind drifted briefly to the reason for his torment. Alise hadn’t shown any outward signs of attraction for him and even seemed to go out of her way to avoid being near him after he had kissed her in observation. She had told him he would have full access to her memories when the bonding was complete, but he really didn’t want to invade her thoughts to see where he would stand if he made another pass at her. To him, it felt like an assault or an invasion of privacy at the very least.

  His dream was getting more intense and drew his full attention. Jason could hear Alise whispering his name in his ear. Jason loved the sound of her voice, it put him in mind of a long-lost lover calling out. He moaned her name in response and he awoke only to realize it wasn’t a dream at all.

  Alise was there in bed with him. He turned to her and with a heaviness to his voice he said, “Well, hello.” He reached over and caressed her cheek as he placed a much-desired kiss upon her lips.

  *****

  Jason broke the kiss a minute later, and Alise whispered, “Please do not stop.”

  “A pack of angry Albatron couldn’t stop me now,” Jason said with a heaviness in his voice.

  When Jason said that, Alise’s heart began racing and she felt her body tingle in anticipation. Jason rolled her onto her back and began placing kisses along her neck. Gently gliding his tongue along her neck and collarbone causing goose flesh to rise.

  The sensations Alise was experiencing from Jason’s touch were exhilarating but those were quashed a moment later by a sharp pain. She wanted to halt everything right there, But Jason’s gentle ministrations and soothing words helped to rekindle the emotions she was experiencing.

  Jason touched her in all the right places and the passion was building to a fevered pitch and she cried out in pleasure. A while later the emotional rush took Alise by surprise and through gasps, she said, “Oh…my!”

  Jason couldn’t agree more as he replied, “That…was amazing.” He placed a kiss on her head then said, “You should have told me you were a virgin though.”

  “I did not know. Is that important?” Alise asked.

  “No, but if I’d known, I would’ve been more gentle, and it might not have hurt as much. I would’ve thought with as long as you have been around, you would have…well you know.”

  Alise looked a little pained as she said, “Actually, this is the first time I have been in a humanoid form with a gender. But I must say I am really enjoying it so far.”

  Jason laughed. “I would say so. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if everyone on the ship knows it by now. Not that I care what they know.”

  As Jason moved in to give her another kiss Alise asked, “Are we going to do that again?”

  Jason let out a chuckle. “You’re a vixen, but not right now. We should let you recover.”

  Jason looked into her bright blue eyes and asked, “So…what changed your mind about me?”

  “What do you mean?” Alise asked.

  “After I kissed you in the observation room you seemed distant and uninterested.”

  Alise nodded and said, “As I said, this is my first time with a gender, and I…I was not sure what I was feeling. When you apologized after you kissed me and said you shouldn’t have done that, it confused me. I thought you felt it was a mistake because I am an AI.”

  “Why didn’t you just look into my head? You would’ve seen how I feel about you.” Jason stated.

  Tears filled Alise’s eyes. “At first I was afraid to. And ever since the attack that ejected me from your mind, I have been unable to do more than speak with you in mind and feel some emotions. I was unfamiliar with my new emotions and did not know what they meant.”

  Jason propped himself up, caressed Alise’s cheek and looking her in the eyes he said, “When I told my family you are the love of my life, I don’t know where that came from, but the moment I said it I knew it was true. I thought you didn’t feel the same about me, so I didn’t pursue it any further even though it was killing me not to.”

  Jason could see she was about to ask why he had not looked into her mind and he told her, “I didn’t want to look into your mind. It felt like it would be an invasion of your privacy. I don’t ever want you to fear that I don’t love you though.” He punctuated his statement with a very sensual kiss. Breaking away awhile later he said, “Understand?”

  Alise nodded with a smile and snuggled into his chest.

  Chapter Nineteen

  After making love, they had talked into the wee hours of what could have been the morning…somewhere. When Alise had informed Jason it was time for round two, he laughed and tried unsuccessfully to persuade her to wait. She wanted to see if the explosion of emotions was an anomaly, and she marveled at the sensations that she had experienced as he brought her to her release again. Afterward, she lay there watching Jason as he fell into slumber.

  Hours later, Alise watched in concern as Jason appeared to be having some sort of nightmare. It began with muttering inaudibly and flinching at first, then he progressed to thrashing violently around and yelling. Her concern was mounting for Jason, and she attempted to wake him, but he appeared to be stuck in his torment.

  Alise was getting worried that his thrashing about was going to cause him injury, so grasping his arm firmly she shook him and shouted out loud as well as in mind, “Jason wake up!”

  Jason shot upright, yelled “Bias” and his eyes flew open. For the briefest of moments, Alise could have sworn his eyes had swirling blue smoke in them and were crackling with energy. Within seconds his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell unconscious once again.

  After seeing that Jason was settled back in slumber, Alise snuggled close to him and kept a close eye on him over the next few hours, but his sleep was undisturbed this time.

  Having seen some of what Jason had experienced during his captivity, she was not surprised that he would be tormented by the memories. Seeing him in such a relaxed state now made her wish she could be like that as well. She never slept or even had a need to sleep. Her ship-made body always seemed to have enough energy, so she had no need to rejuvenate.

  *****

  Alise was still wrapped in Jason’s arms when he awoke and began nibbling and kissing the side of her neck.

  “Morning, sleepy head,” Jason used her words from before with a smile that warmed Alise’s body.

  Alise grinned, but didn’t bother telling him that he was the only one who had slept. She was about to ask if he remembered the nightmare, and what it was about when he asked his question first.

  “So, what’s on the agenda for today?”

  Figuring she would broach the nightmare topic later, she stroked his chest and said with a grin, “I have a few ideas.”

  “I bet you do, but is there anything we need to do outside of the bedroom?” Jason asked.

  To that question, Alise chortled and said, “Oh I have plans for outside of the bedroom as well. However, we need to settle our guests in their new home first. I do not want an audience for what I am planning.”

  Jason let out a booming laugh and said, “You, sweetness, are insatiable.” Then he gave her a lingering kiss.

  When the kiss ended, Alise said, “Actually, we do have plans for the day. In about six hours we will be arriving at the new planet your family has chosen.”

  Jason looked at he
r in apparent disbelief. “I thought you said it would take months to get to the planet.”

  “Actually, I said at our current speed it would take that long. We had depleted our power and were limping along. We have full power now and the speed we are currently at cut the travel time significantly.

  “I know your brothers do not want to be separated from you, but for now I think it is the best plan to keep them safe. Once we have offloaded our passengers, I think we should start looking for who is hunting down your family, and once we have that settled, we can focus on the event that killed Elgon. Do you agree?”

  “Yes, that sounds like a plan. I’ll have to speak with my brothers away from the rest of the family so they don’t make a fuss in front of the others though. Do you think you could bring them up here?” Jason asked.

  “When do you want to see them?” Alise asked.

  “In an hour or two. I have a plan or two of my own I need to put into motion, and one of them involves the ion shower and your sweet body,” Jason said with a waggle of his eyebrows.

  Alise considered broaching the subject of his nightmare but felt that the timing was not right, so she decided to wait until later, and she followed him into the bathroom to see what he had planned.

  Chapter Twenty

  Jason had to repress a laugh when he saw his brothers’ expressions at being led into the room by Alise, who had escorted Jerren and Justin to the bedroom in her robot guise.

  Partially for shock value but mostly as a sign of affection, Jason bent down and planted a nice smooch on Alise’s tin lips and gave her a smack on her tin-can of an ass. Then he said with a chuckle, “Wait ’til later.”

  Jason watched in amusement as Alise set off for the lower level, mumbling in a robotic voice, “Promises…promises.”