Not of This World

by Tracy St. John

  Those not inclined to spirits chewed on a fragrant leaf called anura. Jeannie’s CPP translated it to broadleaf, which was an apt description. It seemed a potent intoxicant to the Risnarish, making them tipsy as the brews never did. Jeannie tried it with her new friends watching in curiosity. She didn’t become silly, as the Risnarish could if they chewed too much. The effect on her was a mellowing, relaxing her so that she leaned against Kren and held his hand. She listened to the stories and music with a soft smile playing about her lips.

  Bit by bit, she learned the history between the Risnarish and Monsuda.

  “Horrendous experiments, just as they’ve done to you,” one man about Mekay’s age said to her. “That’s what the few who escaped have said, though there were seldom traces of anything left on their bodies. The Monsuda do their tests and heal the subjects so they can turn around and do it again.”

  Jeannie remembered a few of her own awful experiences. “You’d think with all the cutting and drilling into our bodies, some sign would remain. And that the agony we went through would be taken seriously. After all, those few who report such things on Earth have verified psychological trauma, according to the therapists.” Her stomach churned. More than once she’d wished to die as she lay on the Monsudan lab tables. She’d screamed for it, in fact, the horrendous pain eclipsing all but a vestige of her sanity. “The lack of evidence is why those on Earth who claim they’ve been taken are never regarded seriously,” she said. “I doubt the majority of those who remember it speak up. People don’t believe it’s really happening.”

  “If the Monsuda cover their tracks by hiding the memories, as you say has been the case with you, who knows how many they’ve harmed?” Kren said. He looked ill as he rubbed her back.

  “Or kept,” another man said ominously as he chewed his first leaf of the night. “A couple accounts of escapees claimed there were beings they’d never seen before kept in capsules. They couldn’t tell if they were dead or in suspension, but they described beings similar to you, Jeannie. Maybe they were your people.”

  She shook her head at the awful thought. “How many hives are on Risnar?”

  “Our orbiting sensors say thousands,” Nex said. “We guess the populations might be twice the typical Risnarish village given the number and sizes of chambers on scans. Those would be the upper chambers, since the lowest ones are too deep to be detected by the sensors.”

  “How many Risnarish are there to a village?” Jeannie asked.

  “Depends on the village. Hahz is a medium-sized village, with about two thousand of us. The largest village is Yitrow, where the Assembly is headquartered. It’s more than twice as large. Most villages are about the size of Hahz.”

  “Four thousand Monsuda to a hive,” Jeannie said. She shivered.

  Someone else snorted. “Far less, fortunately. Their numbers are mostly the drones. A Risnarish can take out two or three drones, no problem. As for actual Monsuda, we estimate there are fewer than one hundred per hive.”

  Kren muttered, “A hive queen in charge with maybe a dozen male attendants for her to breed with. The rest consist of workers tending the eggs, ordering the drones around, and running the labs.”

  Nex nodded. “If we knew how many more chambers lie beneath the ones closest to the surface and how the lower tunnels are set up, we could roll into each hive and finish those monsters.”

  Arga, silent during the conversation, got up and left the fire circle. The growing night swallowed him in darkness. Jeannie exchanged a look with Kren.

  * * *

  Kren’s partner was very much on her mind when they returned to the dome that night. The first thing she did was call up a screen to draw on. She found her pointed tool and sketched from memory.

  “What’s this?” Kren asked.

  “What I remember of the lower tunnels,” she said. “That’s where I came from, where the labs were located. I know you’re forbidden to attack the Monsuda, but maybe the information will do somebody good one of these days.”

  She called to mind the long, silvery tunnels she’d crept through, hiding in open doorways of various chambers when searching drones had passed. The various corridors she’d seen but not used she drew only to a point, ending their lines with question marks.

  “I know I’m forgetting some, as well as several twists and turns I made.” She sighed. “Some of what I did to escape is hazy or not there at all in my memory. The bold lines are the tunnels I’m sure of.”

  “We think the deepest part of the hive is where the queen must live,” Kren said, studying her drawing.

  “It must be deeper than the level I saw,” Jeannie guessed. “I never came across her.”

  Kren mused over her drawing. “System, show me a schematic of the surface tunnels and chambers of the local hive.”

  Another floating screen came up beside the drawing pad. It showed a brightly lined drawing of passages with hexagonal shapes butting up to them at regular intervals. Jeannie’s lab had been six-sided, telling her that the shapes were the various chambers of the hive.

  “Your level was arranged in the same pattern, but it spreads out farther than the top level,” Kren said. “You labeled the lab you were in as being close to the end of this tunnel.”

  Jeannie nodded. “There were only two chambers beyond the lab where I was kept. The corridor came to a dead end right after them.” She examined the scanned layout. “Those Monsuda are an orderly bunch, aren’t they? Everything is lined up so precise, with all the other tunnels shooting away from the main one at the entrance. Then a bunch of little chambers at regular intervals along each corridor, and two larger ones at the end. It resembles the fuzzy head of a dandelion.”

  “The fuzzy head of a what?”

  “Never mind.” Jeannie frowned at her incomplete drawing. Given the little she’d been able to supply, it certainly looked as if the lab level followed the same configuration as the upper one. Longer corridors and more chambers...but the similarity was there.

  “This chamber seemed important,” she noted, circling a room she’d drawn near where she’d come out on the surface. It was one of the clearest memories of the hive she possessed. “It had stacks of machines on shelves, similar to old stereo components they had on Earth way back when. Banks of flashing lights, buttons, and switches in the walls. Maybe this room is where they get their power from? It smelled oily, kind of like how the drones stink.”

  “It’s something to add on to our knowledge,” Kren said. “I’ll put this in the system and send the information on to the temple and Elders Council for their consideration.” He paused a moment before adding, “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell Arga of this. Not yet, anyway.”

  “Do you think he’d go to the hive to rescue his guardian?”

  “I’m sure of it.”

  A throb of dread filled Jeannie’s gut. “He’d never get through all those drones on his own. I won’t tell him.”

  Jeannie yawned. The cup of ale she’d drunk and the leaf she’d chewed were doing their work to make her tired enough to sleep. Yet as she went to the bed she shared with Kren, all thoughts of slumber disappeared.

  “Tonight?” she asked hopefully.

  “Not yet,” he said, though his face lit in a naughty smile. He lifted her dress off over her head, baring her for their nightly round of pleasuring without penetration. “Soon.”

  “Kren,” she complained, pushing him away rather than letting him kiss her into mindless compliance. “I’m ready for more.”

  “I know you want more,” he said, shoving her onto the bed and covering her like a big, muscular blanket. “But I have to learn everything about you first. All your needs must be discovered.”

  She struggled against him, wanting to feel him inside her this time. “What I need is for you to stop driving me insane with waiting. I’m going crazy here!”

  “Silly girl. D
o this right, or I’ll make you.”

  Jeannie squealed in her frustration and re-doubled her efforts to fend him off. Kren sighed and shook his head at her. He reached for his belt and took his flex-strap out of its pouch.

  “Hey!” Jeannie shouted when the strap bound her wrists together. Kren attached it to the head railings, leaving her helpless.

  “Now, this has possibilities,” he said softly, his starburst pupils growing large with hunger as he watched her struggle. “Many, many possibilities.”

  “Kren, wait.” Jeannie’s heart thundered with sudden terror. Though bondage had been an occasional enjoyment on Earth, this time there was no delight. Discussing the Monsuda and her time in the labs had sapped that particular thrill.

  Kren halted. “What’s wrong? Tell me.”

  “The drones tied me down. Or strapped me to the table. I’m not sure. I remember not being able to move, though.”

  “Does this feel the same to you? Shall I take the strap away?”

  With Kren’s gentle face filling her sight, the panic began to ebb. As her mind repeated his offer to release her, putting her in control of the situation, Jeannie’s gasps calmed. No, this was not the same at all. With Kren, there was only pleasure, no pain.

  Life had taken more than enough from her. Family, trust, security. She refused to lose anything more. Especially not to the Monsuda.

  “I’m okay. Just take it slow, in case I start freaking out again.”

  “I will.” His tender kiss reassured her.

  She had another thought, one that spoke of giving her what she wanted most from him at that moment. “You could also skip all this ‘getting to know you’ crap and move straight to the main event.”

  Kren fooled her for all of a second with a thoughtful look, as if he actually contemplated going through with her suggestion. Then his eyes twinkled with mischief. “Not yet. But I will still ‘take it slow’ as you asked. Prolonging your pleasure will be my goal.”

  “Wait! Kren, I didn’t mean—”

  Her arguments, broken by his delicious kisses, went unheard. As for the momentary spark of fear that had come when he’d bound her, that was left no room to raise its head again. Kren saw to that.

  Jeannie was powerless to stop him as he took his time with her that night. When she wriggled and he told her to stop, she felt safe under his control. Exalted in it, even, letting herself slip into the joy of letting go to another. Kren was safe. Kren was good. Oh yes, he was so good. His fingers and tail combined to tease her flesh until she convulsed with pleasure.

  The dark hours slipped past, punctuated by her cries of release. Only after she pleaded with Kren for mercy did he rub his rigid cock against her, bringing them to bliss before they fell into satisfied sleep.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Arga was descending into the same black hole his friends had pulled him from months before. Quick to snap at the others. Sometimes even hostile. Kren wasn’t sure what to do about it.

  Two weeks after the Elders Council of Hahz had departed to meet with the Assembly, Kren reported to work as usual. He arrived just in time to see Arga cramming his frame into a dartwing. He landed his own vehicle next to his partner’s and noted Arga tried to ignore him, powering up his vessel in a rush.

  “Hey! What’s going on? What’s happened?” Kren called.

  “Nothing. I need to go somewhere.”

  “Where? Do we have another drone sighting?”

  Kren’s partner raised his gaze to meet his and scowled. Kren stifled a frown. Arga had become a handful since Kren told him about the new training schedule. This time he looked guilty as well as angry.

  “Come on, Arga, what’s going on? You wouldn’t be in a hurry if it wasn’t something important.”

  The other man’s shoulders sagged. He slapped his control panel, shutting down his dartwing’s engines. He yanked himself free of the vessel. Kren followed suit.

  As soon as he stood in front of his longtime friend, Arga raised his CPP and switched on the viewscreen. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

  Kren’s hearts dropped to his stomachs as he looked at the depiction of the hive layout he and Jeannie had worked on. It took him a moment to catch his breath. Then a flash of anger blazed through his skull. “You were not going there! Not alone. Arga, have you lost your senses?”

  Arga’s fury was a match for his, fed by betrayal. “No, I lost my guardian. Now I have the means to search for him. You tried to keep that from me!”

  “Because I knew you’d do something like what you’re planning now. You go in alone, you have no hope. Don’t you see that?” Frustration warred with Kren’s sympathy for his friend’s anguish.

  “You noted here a room that’s believed to control the hive’s power. I might make it that far with a boom cannon. If I do and shut it down, it will confuse the Monsuda and drones. Maybe enough for me to take advantage and find Retav.”

  “That’s a big maybe.” Kren raked his fingers through his forelock. “It’s been two years, Arga.”

  The slighter man’s determination didn’t waver. “Two years, two months, three days. I don’t care. Without a body, there is a chance.”

  He meant to do it, and Kren didn’t think he could stop him. Only the truth and a bargain had the chance to sway Arga from his fatal course. “Listen to me. If the Assembly decides Jeannie is made by the Monsuda, I have to get her back to Earth. Since that means we take on the hive, then I’ll fight for not just her, but to find Retav as well.”

  “Is that what the training and preparing is all about? Because you think they won’t find Jeannie of the Spirit? Because you believe they’d—” He stopped, but Kren knew what he’d been unable to say. Execute Jeannie.

  “It’s a possibility, isn’t it? I need you if that happens. You and the rest of the warriors I’ve vetted, if it comes to that.”

  Arga stared at him for a long moment. “You can’t leave Jeannie to such a fate. You must see it’s the same for me. I can’t abandon Retav to that hive if there’s the slightest chance I can pull him out.”

  Kren looked at his lifelong friend in anguish. He didn’t want to lose Arga, but the man’s cause was every bit as valid as his own. “I can’t tell you not to go. But I’m begging for you to wait until we find out what the Assembly’s answer is.”

  Arga groaned and swiped his hand over his face. He paced back and forth, his expression tormented. His grief had returned, as overwhelming as it had been the day Retav had not come home.

  At last, he faced Kren again. “You swear that if we have to hit the hive to save Jeannie, we’ll try for Retav too.”

  “By the All-Spirit, my friend. I will fight at your side to find him once I’ve gotten her to safety.” Kren pressed his hand to his chest and then thumped it in solemn vow. He tried to ignore the hurt his next statement brought. “Even if Jeannie is recognized as a viable person, the Assembly may decide we attack the hive to send her to Earth.”

  “What if the Assembly says there is no need to take the hive right away? They are too cautious. I will not wait to search for my guardian. I have already let too much time slip by.”

  “I will not stop you from going if it comes to that.” Kren began to breathe easier now that it looked as if he had bought more time. “Nor will I stop any who join our mission to find Retav.”

  “In such a case, no one else will go. Including you.” Arga shook his head. “I will not have anyone’s blood on my hands if the attempt fails. As it most likely will. I will go alone.” He smiled at Kren, all angst gone now that he had hope. Though he spoke of walking to his own probable death, he beamed with unadulterated joy. He would save Retav or die trying. He’d never asked for anything more.

  As for Kren, he suddenly wondered what right he had to expect other warriors to fight to save Jeannie’s life. Arga’s selfless readiness to sacrifice only himself prey
ed on Kren’s conscience.

  He had a lot of thinking to do before the Elders Council returned with their answer.

  * * *

  Jeannie sipped a hot cup of what she thought of as tea. It was a drink made from the herbal blends Gurnal kept in containers in his kitchen. And by far, the most exciting thing going on at the moment. She lounged in the visiting partition in Mekay’s overstuffed chair while a projection of Risnarish writing floated before her. The translator highlighted the complicated characters as it read to her about animal husbandry.

  Jeannie yawned, bored with the lesson. Ranching and farming were integral to the Risnarish men, and she’d thought it important to learn what she could of it as well. Good intentions were no match for coma-inducing reality, however.

  “System.” She sighed, giving up the lost cause. “Let’s switch subjects.”

  “What subject would you like?” the smooth, disembodied voice queried.

  “I don’t know.” Jeannie stretched lazily. “Let’s try Risnarish relations with aliens.” Maybe it would be interesting to learn about the other beings Kren had referred to: the Dhun, Thall, and Hiseans who lived within the same solar system as Risnar.

  “Current relations and treaties or a historical perspective?” the system prodded.

  “Hmm.” Treaties sounded like another dry subject. History might have more interesting bits. Maybe she’d learn something about how the Risnarish had dealt with first contacts in the past. “Let’s do historical, specifically first encounters.”