by Selina Brown
For some reason, time alone calmed them down but, as usual, before they could talk, someone would join them. They gave up trying to be on their own and headed out to the bigger park. It was here the animals were held, not restrained by fences or enclosures. Caleb rubbed his chin after Ara mentioned she’d love to see some monkeys.
“There’s none here!” Her complaint had been taken to heart by Caleb.
The group wandered around the trees trying to find some. Caleb disappeared into a jungle part of the gardens that they had just come out from.
“That’s too bad, Ara,” Terzon said, scratching his now short, brown hair. He had tried to grow it long like his brother’s after Ara had said how much she liked Caleb’s long hair. “Maybe next time.”
They walked back out to the open fields when they heard noise behind them.
Terzon frowned and turned around. “That sounds like—”
They all stared and then out from the woods Caleb came sprinting, with at least twenty angry monkeys screeching at him. Some of the party started running away, screaming or yelling. But Ara froze, staring at the spectacle. Caleb was running at her. “Ara, run!”
She turned and managed to get her legs working.
Caleb sped past her and grabbed her hand. “Hurry.”
But one jumped on her back and Caleb wrestled it off, getting his face scratched. They set off again and jumped into one of the two vehicles. They were panting. Caleb sat back and his eyes drifted to her, he looked humiliated.
“Did you—?” She looked at the monkeys jumping up and down the bonnet of their vehicle and on the roof of the other. The crazed monkeys gave up after a few minutes and left them to troll back to the forest. Their friends left the vehicle, laughing now. Two park rangers ran up and began to scold. “I think we should stay in here for a minute.”
Caleb glanced back and laughed. “I wasn’t expecting them to react like that.”
“The monkeys or the park rangers?”
Caleb turned back and grinned. “Both.”
She lifted out the medical kit, turned his face to the right and looked at the cut.
He sat very still but connected to her implant easily; they’d been doing it for years, ever since he showed her how in his tree house as kids. “This was worth it.”
Terzon walked up and said through the window, “They’re well gone. We’ll head out to the picnic place by the stream. There’s a swimming hole there.” Terzon locked gazes with her for a moment, his brown eyes warm, winked at her and left, whistling.
She applied some cream to his face. “Funny how it was only us in this vehicle.”
“Funny.”
“Anyone would think they knew we were annoyed that we were continually interrupted earlier.”
His eyes were unrepentant. “I didn’t want to scare you off.”
“With the monkeys?”
He grinned at her and said aloud, “Aside from looking like an idiot, something I seem to do a lot around you, I meant the ArT. We haven’t used it for some time.”
“It’s okay. I’m usually being an idiot around you too. Just not something I do at home either, Monkey.”
He smiled but took her hand and squeezed it. “Let’s join the others?” There was a hard look to his face but he was blocking his thoughts. She didn’t need to access his thoughts to know what he wanted, a jolt of pleasure rushed through her body. She nodded gratefully.
They walked out to the water hole without talking.
The others were already naked and hanging their clothes over branches. She tried not to compare the generous curves, full breasts, and softness of female Gens along with their inherent beauty with her own sporty figure and sharp face. Ara waved to the few who looked back at them. She slipped off her dress while walking in front of him. She turned, smiling. He was staring at her, his eyes roving over her body. She shivered and turned to watch him while a few hooted at them nearby. He took off his shirt and she loved the play of muscles under his skin. He slipped off his pants, tripped and laughed. She laughed with him, so glad that she had come. He stood before her, penis erect, and she sensed a slowing of his thought processes. A male reaction to sex. Well, they were too young. Weren’t they?
He grinned then and grabbed her hand. “Come on, PuG.”
They swam out, playing as they went. A little later, she sunned herself on a boulder, tummy down, and he splashed some cold water over her. She turned her head and saw him looking at her arse.
“Hunger has set in for this poor FiG, Baby. Come and eat.”
But now he leaked a little of what he meant by “hunger” and a whole new world opened to her. He also leaked what he’d be doing that night. His eyes held hers. She slid into the water and stood close in front of him. His hot lips caressed her ear and he pressed his erection below her navel. “I could eat you.” He ran a hand up her arm and moved in to kiss her. Their lips touched, and she felt him contract over her mound.
Shivering, the tingling that often accompanied their kissing spread over her body; her nipples were hard against his chest. For just a moment, their kissing grew urgent but he pulled away and smiled, gently tucking her almost dry hair behind her ear. He shoved her into the cool water, towards the middle, and swam back with her. They dressed, and helped sort through the food. Before they left, they both braided a message into each other’s hair.
“Monkey.”
“Baby.”
But when their eyes locked, neither was grinning.
“Any more logs, Ara? Best I ask using ArT.”
She linked to his implant and sent the data.
CARDINAL Unit 9 (CU) Cycle and Logs
Reporting on MONITOR Mobile Unit
1117317627853875
MONITOR returning to date 5.7% feasible data
COLLATE data
COMPARE data
End check
“Damn it, Ara. I wish I could help you.”
Homestead
After Ara returned and showered, she played with Meg, who was now eleven. Caleb had been distressed for her regarding the matter levels rising and how she hated being used but neither really understood what it meant. At dinner, Ara ate heartily with her mind replaying Caleb undressing.
“Someone’s appetite is up.”
Somehow, many of the sly comments in the past made sense now. She had stepped over some barrier, understanding the subtlety of the language. She considered what Caleb was going to do. She eyed off Marc. “More energy to play with myself later on, hey Marc?”
Mum choked but Dad laughed. Marc turned red.
Ersen sighed with exaggeration. “Touché. But her innocence has gone.”
After Meg left, Ara turned to Dad. “I don’t understand. If Virgo isn’t for another three hundred and seventy years for me, what do I do before that?”
It was Dad’s turn to choke out his drink. Ash and Henry sniggered as he used a cloth to mop up. Mum’s head leaned on her hand and she groaned.
Marc snorted. “Three hundred and seventy years?”
“Give or take a few.” She winked at Ersen.
“Can you tell on others?”
“Yes, but I realize sometimes things are better left to the mysteries of life. But as to my question, please don’t say ‘mysteries of life’.” The way she moaned made Pen and Terance smile. “I mean aside from the self-gratification.” She slyly looked at Marc who reddened again.
“Pen, would you like to answer your daughter?”
“No, no. You take this one.”
He grinned at his wife and turned back to her. “Ara, Virgo is about the tradition and final … um … penetration.”
“So some play is allowed before that?”
“Yes. There is the Al’kalay, the Fyr’Lahlia, and the Ph’bashra.”
“What the hell are those?” Ara’s mind boggled and her spoon hovered close to her open mouth. Why hadn’t Tricia or Sacha mentioned those on the girly day? Oh, she had phased out a few times with utter boredom.
Ash an
d Henry’s eyes were wide.
“Ara.” Dad’s voice was stern, but amused too.
“Sorry, Dad. Caleb better not try those on me.” She spooned in some stew, chewing while thinking about what they could be.
Marc laughed while Ersen shook his head sadly at her. “Not listening at school again?”
Mum and dad looked at each other. Pen asked, “You’re still too young for the last two. But, that’s it?”
She swallowed and shrugged. “Well, from where I am now, to Virgo, determining everything in between isn’t that hard. Why did they have to name those … things?”
Marc threw a carrot stick at her. “You don’t even know what they are!”
Tricia must have had him on a raw vegetable diet again, since his plate was full of colorful, uncooked vegetable matter. She shook her head at him. He looked at his next green stick with distaste, shoved the plate away and grabbed a bowl to ladle the thick stew.
“It doesn’t take a genius to figure out one has something to do with masturbation, and one … licking ice cream, um, not sure about the last one.”
They laughed at her.
“Well, I’m glad I can be endlessly amusing to my family.”
“And we love you.”
She smiled then. “I know.”
“And you love us,” Pen said with a smile.
“If you insist.” Ara exaggerated a sigh. Afterwards, as she walked down the steps to her room, Ash and Henry ambushed her. She told them what she thought they meant. They laughed, whispering to each other, and ran out to play ball. Males! Always playing with their balls. Ara’s face burned seeing her face bright red in a hall mirror. Where had that thought come from? She remembered one of her school friends saying it, and all the girls giggling over something she hadn’t understood then.
Ara mused a little. Mum and Dad said she was too young for the last two. She stared out the window. Below she could see Mum and Dad holding hands, going for an evening walk. Marc was backing out from the carport.
It was still light.
She walked into her room and called Caleb on her Voice.
“Have you heard of a thing called, Al’kalay?”
There was a pause and then a rush. “I have, I haven’t tried it yet. Do you want to try it?”
“Sure.”
“Meet me by the ponds in an hour?”
“I’ll see you then.”
What should she wear? What did one wear to Al’kalay?
King Delario’s Palace Grounds
Her alert system was in the blue so she rode to Caleb’s along the back horse trails and left Jester with the stable master at the Delario palace. She strode out to the ponds, feeling nervous. She saw him as he waited. He had a blanket under his arm and a bag. Maybe she should tell him she didn’t actually know what Al’kalay was. He stopped in a place that was private with a number of bushes that blocked out views except to the pond.
Ara stood and faced him as he laid out the blanket and began to undress. Hesitating for just a moment, she slid off her pants and sleeveless top. They were soon both naked and he was already excited. She was wet between her legs just thinking of when Caleb’s body was close to hers in the water.
He took her hand and led her to the blanket. He carefully pushed her down, onto her back, and eased apart her legs. He rolled his jeans and put them under her head. He took her hands and placed one with her finger on her clitoris. He seemed unsure what to do with the other hand so he laid it on her stomach but she thought he wanted to place it on her breast. She tried not to laugh; evidently he’d been studying up on Al’kalay. He stayed kneeling, his penis contracting, and began to masturbate. He paused. “Ara?”
“I feel a little … shy about this.”
He smiled. “I can see how wet you are. Try? If not, I’ll finish without you.”
She laughed at his matter-of-fact tones, and his grin, and relaxed.
“Just look at me, Ara.”
She did. His red hair flowed over his pale shoulders, his nipples were hard. His face was—
“Do you really want to look at my face? Not that I mind.” He allowed his eyes to travel along her body and then to her finger, which she began to move. She bent her legs and spread them a little more. His face hardened and he moaned.
Touching his mind, she saw he wasn’t thinking anymore. Pleasure was sweeping his body and he couldn’t stop looking at what her finger was doing. Her eyes moved to his hand sliding … the most wonderful sensations swept her body, her mind was ablaze, and from him gushed a milky fluid that landed with a plop on her belly and rug. They both laughed at that. Afterwards he cleaned up and kissed her.
He blushed. “I should have started with that.”
Laughing at him, she picked up her clothes. “Next time with some heavy petting please.”
He laughed then too and held her hand. “I promise.”
As Ara rode home, she sensed the heartbeat of her guard from when she was a baby. It was a reminder that many were protecting her, but a sharp pain in her heart made her think that it might also be that her guards were ready to prevent her from hurting others. She stared at her hands gripping the leather bridle and slowly relaxed her fingers. Unexpectedly, her guard was now soothing her mind and heart so Ara tuned her noisy inner voice down and listened to the birds singing overhead along with the gentle wind rustling the leaves. This was the here and now. Clip clop. There might come a day when she would have to move forward and she had a feeling that she would not have much of her childhood left to enjoy. Clip clop. So Ara made a promise that she would try to enjoy what she had now. She used her knee to pull slightly on the rein to guide Jester to the right to walk over the grassy plains and hills.
Jamie rode well behind her thinking of the special moments in Ara’s life. Special moments included when she and Caleb became friends and her first kiss with Caleb, who Jamie liked a lot for her. Now they explored each other slowly. She was booked in to learn to drive—officially. As a farm girl, Ara knew how to drive a range of vehicles, cars, trucks, tractors, and bikes. She was also learning to climb properly. Each time Ara went somewhere or did something they had to adapt her security detail.
He had felt her distress and, against his better judgment, reached out to soothe her. Marc had been distressed after he discovered how Ara had been so upset when she thought she was too dangerous to be around. It was a perilous time for Ara who might become introverted or extend her extrovert traits and allow fear to drive her to become aggressive. No one wanted to see Ara hurting that way, and they talked with her family of ways to temper her upbringing and experiences. It was Sacha, who was of the Sawol, who reminded them that Ara’s younger siblings were instrumental in Ara controlling her fears and loving them unconditionally revealed her gentle nature. Dad added that Ara had an ability with animals too, gentle and cherishing. Jamie suggested that he might use that somehow.
Jamie reached out, caressing Ninja on the head. For a horse, she was quite stealthy. While the consensus was that love would act as the tempering agent to Ara’s unrest and fears, it was Ersen who identified that Ara was already doing things to ensure people were safe and often at the expense of her own comfort or values.
To Jamie that was a major worry.
Ara was just cresting a hill, and he veered off to his mountain trail. There were enough guards but he just tapped in randomly to keep everyone at their best. He had ways of punishing that many didn’t like. In fact, most didn’t even like the stories so he rarely found anyone slacking off. His nickname, “Spook”, had followed him to Saratoga. That gave him an idea but he’d have to get it approved by Simon first. Yes, a test to see if Ara was in fact going down a dangerous route, but whether it was better or worse than becoming an introvert or aggressive he wasn’t sure yet.
Sub-Log XIV
Saratoga City
Ten years later, Jamie waited for Ara to come visit.
His office was large, and full of furniture he had made. A large desk, which he was currently
sitting behind, faced most of the room. He didn’t like doors or even windows behind him. His comfortable chairs down the other end were in a loose circle surrounding a low, wooden table. He had decent bookshelves that reached all the way down the right side of the wall and a weapons display directly to his right. The shelving system was only broken for the door to the reception office.
Terance and Pen made the appointment for the morning so that while Ara was visiting schools she might apply her new knowledge. But he wasn’t hopeful. Over the years, Ara seemed to be determined to enjoy each day as it came, and kept up with her wild activities. He felt her to be a little irresponsible especially when he thought back to his own problems and decisions to take charge of his life. Ara just wanted to forget the outside world and pretend everything was wonderful. Pen told him Ara always walked out from the lounge when the news was on, especially if it was about the Avatara war brewing. When Terance approached her about fighting lessons, she had said, “But I don’t want to hurt anyone.”
To make matters worse, Marc was off doing his own thing after an argument with Diane. He needed someone close to her again. A knock on the door brought him out of his reverie. The door cracked open.
“Jesran here to see you, Jamie.”
“Thanks, Marla.”
She opened the door wider and let the tall male in and then closed the door quietly behind him. Jesran was six foot two, broad shouldered, lean, and had lovely, forest-green eyes. He was an Avatara Modernus, one without wings. His eyes momentarily glanced towards the weapons display.
“Sit down, Jesran.”
“Thank you for seeing me.”
Jamie leaned back and smiled. “You passed all your training I see and come highly recommended.”
“I’m looking forward to my first mission.”
