Soul Bond

by Christine Price

  Julian removed his hand, drawing another sob, and ran his tongue the length of his palm. Ellis groaned and dropped his head back. Julian smirked and freed himself of his shirt. His pants followed, and he left Ellis whimpering and waiting on the bed to move to a nearby bureau and retrieve a small bottle of lube.

  Ellis squirmed up the bed, stopping to rest against the wide headboard. “Come here, Julian. I’m not feeling very patient.”

  “Bossy little thing, aren’t you?”

  Ellis deigned not to answer. Julian palmed the bottle and as soon as he sat on the edge of the bed, Ellis crawled over to him. Throwing a leg across Julian’s thighs, he straddled his lap. Plucking the lube away, Ellis popped the cap and quickly coated his fingers. He began to reach back, but Julian grabbed his hand. “Don’t.”

  Ellis suddenly looked unsure.

  “I like to prepare my lovers.”

  Ellis smiled. “As you wish.”

  He held up his hand and Julian clasped their fingers together. Their hands slid slowly against each other, erotic in the casual dance. Drawing away, Julian reached between them. His palm brushed past Ellis’s erection and elicited a mew of pleasure before he slid the first finger into his lover’s body.

  A low whine escaped Ellis’s throat and he leaned forward, resting his forehead against Julian’s collarbone. Julian breathed in the smell of his hair. It mixed with the teasing scent of their joined arousal and made him harder. His cock throbbed in anticipation and he added a second finger, scissoring the two in Ellis’s body. His mouth found Ellis’s neck and he ran his teeth across the sensitive skin, drawing up goose bumps. Ellis’s arms looped around Julian’s shoulders.

  Finally satisfied with the preparations, Julian withdrew his fingers and gripped the other man’s hips. Lifting him, his arms strained before he found the right angle. Without warning, he plunged into Ellis’s waiting body. Ellis cried out and his face twisted in pleasure with the first few, careful jerks of his hips. Julian adjusted his position, leaning back so he could see Ellis’s face as he began to casually thrust in and out.

  Ellis seated himself on Julian’s thighs and took him even deeper. “So good.”

  Julian did not reply, but set the pace. Slow, at first, to allow Ellis to adjust. Then quicker. When he picked it up, a spreading flush crossed Ellis’s chest and neck, his cock waiting, wanting. Julian’s hands dug into Ellis’s legs and his thrusts became harder and more demanding. Ellis moved with him, their bodies easily finding a perfect rhythm.

  Julian shifted just slightly, and when he next pounded into the pliant form, he hit the small bundle of muscle inside his lover. He was rewarded with a keening cry and a small spurt of pre-come splashed against his belly. The heat surrounding his cock was almost too much to bear, but Julian managed to keep from coming.

  He wanted, needed, to see Ellis’s face twisted in orgasm first. “I want you to come for me, lover.” Ellis’s iris was almost completely swallowed by aroused black pupils. “Could you? Without me touching you?”

  Ellis barely managed to nod. Julian quickened his movements. It was impossible to concentrate on anything but the younger man atop him and the heat surrounding his cock. He jerked his hips three times in quick succession, his cock just brushing Ellis’s prostate.

  Ellis threw his head back, crying out. Come coated Julian’s stomach. The supple body tightened around him, and Julian groaned—his orgasm drawn out of him by Ellis’s. Their joined yells of completion filled the room.

  Ellis collapsed atop him, his breathing erratic. Julian draped his arm across Ellis’s back and tried to regain his lost senses. He nuzzled Ellis’s hair and placed a soft kiss against his temple.

  They lay in precious silence, the only sound in the room that of their breathing, the rise and fall of their chests strangely in sync. Roused from his half doze by Ellis shifting, the younger man began to rise.

  “You’re not leaving?” He didn’t mean for the words to come out as plaintive as they sounded.

  “No.” He placed a reassuring kiss on Julian’s lips. “But unless you want me to be a…permanent fixture, I had better clean us up.”

  Julian’s lips pulled into a generous smile. “There are worse fates.”

  “Be careful of such words, Captain Gaspar.” Ellis kissed his lover once again and rose. Half-asleep already, Julian barely understood the parting words. “They spell danger.”

  Chapter Four

  Deep Space Shipping Route “Endoria”

  Coalition Standard Date 108-251.7

  Barth remained concealed among the long yards of bound cable. He didn’t know how much he liked Julian’s new toy hanging around engineering. The captain was sweet on him and had spent too much time secreted away with Ellis since he’d boarded the ship a little over a month past. The captain was escorting the young human across the gangways overlooking the ion thrusters. Orifian followed, more sour than usual, and Barth allowed himself a reluctant smirk. Anyone who ruffled the Coalition officer’s feathers was usually worth knowing.

  The other engineers had made themselves scarce for the visit. It wasn’t unusual for Smews; the avian-like aliens were generally uninterested in chatting. It left Barth to navigate the social niceties when the bridge crew came to call and the irony still made him laugh. His people had a reputation for senseless violence and ugly tempers that they endeavored to uphold. His planet did not like visitors.

  He stepped out from behind the heavy wire. The hunting talon on his right foot clicked audibly on the metal gangway and announced his presence long before he came into view. Orifian regarded him with the usual captious disdain that Julian tolerated with an annoyed tic in his left eye. Barth was used to it. It was Ellis he watched. He’d avoided the young man, partially out of deference to Julian. People usually reacted with revulsion and fear. Bastard that he was, the captain occasionally used him to gauge the merit of prospective crew members. One man had fainted at the sight of his high ridges of cartilage and the sharp upturn of his nose. Another had drawn a pocket-sized blaster he’d managed to smuggle aboard.

  Ellis meant something. Barth could tell from Julian’s cow-eyed soppiness, so he’d avoided an introduction. Just in case Ellis ended up being one of the narrow-minded assholes who too often tried to throw themselves on the mercy of Julian’s good graces. On the plus side, he’d finally gotten around to a few of the long-term repairs that were taking up all of his damn time.

  Ellis stared at him with obvious surprise and then grinned. “Your captain becomes more interesting all the time.”

  Barth stopped in his place, surprised that such human lips could speak his native tongue. He sniffed and chuckled. “Ballsy.” The translation in Cembrian was anatomically correct, so he switched to Coalition Standard.

  “You’ll have to excuse my limited grasp of the language.”

  Barth’s nose twitched at the same time Julian’s eyebrow rose.

  “I picked up bits and pieces last time I was in the system. It’s really only good for party tricks and shocking people.” Despite his words, Ellis seemed unaccountably nervous.

  Barth was reminded of the last time he and Julian had played poker and he’d tipped his hand. “That explains your accent.” Ellis smiled in relief. “What brings you all down here?”

  Julian shrugged. “I got your request for a replacement output coupler and wanted to come and see what the fuss was about. Ellis wanted to see the engines.”

  Barth gestured to Orifian. “And him?”

  “He’s here to watch me,” Ellis said. There was a bitter edge to the lighthearted words. “Orifian thinks I’ll stick a blade between Julian’s ribs as soon as I get him alone.”

  The first mate didn’t deny it.

  Barth waved a clawed hand for them to follow him. Though he kept his talons trimmed, they still hit the metal walkways at an uncomfortable angle and made for slow going. Julian knew him well enough to walk ahead, but Ellis paced him easily. Engineering took up more than half the ship, and the sight of the
engines, even when still, was impressive. The glow put out by the power cells lit everything in a ghostly yellow-green light and made Ellis’s eyes shine emerald.

  “Thank you for not giving me away,” Ellis murmured in Cembrian when Julian pulled farther ahead. “Knowing Cembrian is not a common trick.”

  “You don’t have to tell me that.”

  Ellis inclined his head. They continued forward in silence until the human grew bored of the quiet. “This is very impressive.”

  Barth was accustomed to the human need to fill empty air, but there were few things of which he was prouder than the pristine conditions kept on his deck. “Thanks.”

  The output-coupler problem had come to light when Barth began his upgrades to the weapons relay. The one they had was incompatible with some of their newly acquired equipment, and without it they risked weapon malfunction. As it stood, they wouldn’t be able to take on any Frenze ship, even one with weapons as paltry as the Halygast’s, without risking a meltdown.

  Barth could practically feel Orifian’s glare digging holes into Ellis’s back, but Julian was determined to ignore the obvious friction between them. Barth laid odds on another week before something gave. Judging from Ellis’s determined expression, Barth doubted it would be the first officer.

  “So tell me about this coupler…” Julian stopped in mid-step, his head cocking to the side. “Did you hear that?”

  Barth frowned and listened to the thrum of the deck. There was something…off. Over the hum of the engines, he could just make out the barely discernable chattering of agitated Smews. He and Julian took off down the gangway, not bothering to check for Ellis and Orifian, and ran quickly to reach the area that housed their main arming equipment.

  Stepping onto the steep ladder, Julian spotted Ellis charging to his side. “Stay there,” he shouted.

  Ignoring Ellis’s reply, Julian pressed his hard-soled boots against the sides of the ladder and slid down to the lower deck. Narrowly avoiding the edge that would send him straight into the electron blasters, he maneuvered around the weapons relay.

  A group of Smews huddled around one of their own, a fallen comrade who lay unnaturally still on the cold metal deck. Agitated quack-like chirps spilled forth and Julian forced his way through thick, feather-covered limbs to get a look. The engineer lay prone, burns blistering his arms and torso.

  Julian called back to the upper deck. “Call the medic. Get her down here.”

  Barth sprinted towards the nearest communicator.

  “What happened?”

  Pidgin squawking spilled forth, half-deafening. Julian had limited knowledge of their language, but they managed to draw his attention to the weapons system and the underside of the cylindrical casing. Several wires hung precariously outside of the tubing, naked and dripping with the viscous fluid that cased the torpedoes.

  He cursed. “Get him out of here.”

  The Smews jumped to comply, lifting their injured comrade and pulling him towards the nearest ladder. Julian grabbed one of the aliens in passing and pulled off his tool belt. After looping it around his own waist, he pulled out a laser spanner and went to work on the casing. He was soon covered in the mucous-like fluid and every inch of bare skin began tingling in response.

  Opening more of the bare hatch, he located the leak and cursed again. One of the low-running cylinders was draining out through a jagged slice in the siding. He grabbed one of the tools and tried to pin the ripped tubing. He pulled an electron welder.

  “Julian!”

  He hit the ignition on the welder.

  Seconds later, Ellis collided into his side and tackled him to the ground. He slapped the welder out of his hand and sent it skating across the fluid-slicked deck. The sound of igniting fluid drowned out Julian’s shout of surprise.

  Fire raced towards them. Hands grabbed his broad shoulders and forced him to his feet, pushing him towards the nearby ladder. Julian’s body reacted on instinct, and he threw himself up the first few rungs. His feet moved automatically after that until he was pulling himself onto the upper gangway. The fire had spread across the deck. Ellis was mounting the final few steps, and Julian grabbed the younger man’s shoulders to haul him up.

  Ellis slapped his hands away, his face twisted with anger. “You idiot! Don’t you know how flammable yttrium phosphate is?”

  Julian prepared to respond but paused when he saw Ellis’s left hand curled protectively against his side. Reaching out, he ignored Ellis’s recoil and pulled the arm forward. The same burns that had covered the Smew blistered his bare skin.

  “Why, Ellis? Why?”

  “Did you expect me to let you die?” The venom in his voice lessened, and he appeared uncertain.

  Julian wrapped his arms around Ellis’s slight frame and carefully pulled him close. Ellis stiffened in his embrace, but slowly relaxed.

  “As you keep reminding me, Ellis, I’m the captain of this ship. If someone is going to get hurt, it should be me.”

  “Not if I can help it.”

  Julian glowered.

  Ellis forced a laugh. “Your first mate would introduce me to that airlock I’ve been so desperate to avoid.”

  The clicking of Barth’s feet pulled their attention away, leaving an unconvinced Julian speechless in his place. Barth seemed torn between them and the fire on the deck below. A noxious-looking gas was creeping upwards, though the fire looked to be contained within the still-spreading pool of fluid.

  “I’ll take care of the fire.” Barth reached out to close a clawed hand around Ellis’s arm. “You’d best have that looked at. It’s nasty stuff.” He moved to retrieve the chemical extinguisher.

  The Smews had gathered in a small flock down the gangway and Julian made his way towards the crowd, Ellis tucked closely against his side.

  Chapter Five

  Deep Space Shipping Route “Endoria”

  Coalition Standard Date 108-264.0

  “You’ve been avoiding me since the accident in engineering.”

  The voice broke through Julian’s thoughts. This late at night, he preferred to be alone on the bridge. The solitude allowed him to collect his thoughts and write the numerous and insufferable reports the Coalition required. Few dared impose upon it, and before now he hadn’t needed to remind his newest “crew member” of that fact. He fixed Ellis with a half-annoyed glance before returning his attention to the datapad in front of him.

  “Yes. And apparently you don’t quite ken what that implies.” A pregnant silence followed and Julian wondered if this would be when Ellis would take the hint and let himself be chased away. The depth of feeling he was beginning to see in Ellis’s eyes terrified him.

  “Oh, I ken. Believe me. I ken. I just don’t agree with it.” Ellis crossed the bridge to his seat. Julian wondered if Ellis would slip into his lap, but the other man chose to lean against the high back of his chair, gazing through the viewscreen to the stars beyond. “Why avoid such a perfectly good thing?”

  “My chief mate will mutiny.” He meant it to come out hard and unforgiving. Instead, his words came off as more of a whine and he mentally cursed. Orifian was distinctly unhappy about Ellis’s presence and made that plain every time he cornered the captain. Julian had tried everything short of ordering the man to silence—a tactic he would have considered if he didn’t so loathe the man’s accusatory glares whenever he employed such a strategy.

  Ellis sighed and leaned in close. The warmth of his breath tickled against Julian’s ear. “Are you saying that the great Captain Julian Gaspar is being cowed by his subordinate? I find that hard to believe. Why don’t you just admit you’re avoiding me because I represent too much temptation?”

  “I’ve never had a problem resisting temptation.” He didn’t tell the younger man that his stunt in engineering had scared the wits out of him. He couldn’t even name whatever it had been that had motivated Ellis to jump into danger to save him. All they had was fantastic sex. He hadn’t been prepared for the confusing emotions accompa
nying it.

  “That I happily believe. But you’ve never been faced with temptation like me.”

  True.

  Ellis looked practically inhuman in the dim light cast by the stars. Julian was reminded how hot Ellis’s mouth was when wrapped around his cock, and he couldn’t help the shiver that ran up his spine. He stood. Ellis danced backwards with lithe steps.

  “Do you want to remain on the Maligned Kestrel?”

  Ellis nodded.

  “Well, you don’t have to favor me in exchange.”

  Ellis smirked. “Is that what you’re telling yourself? Well, Captain, though I can’t say that I would have done the same had you been a woman, I can tell you that I didn’t do what I did as a payment for safe passage.”

  “No?”

  “Oh, no.” Ellis moved into Julian’s space and pressed his body against him. “I did it out of sheer masochism.” His lips hovered a hairsbreadth away.

  Julian could practically taste him. His cock stirred. Ellis smiled and pressed their bodies together, the strain of his own erection a demanding presence against Julian’s hip.

  “Masochism?” Julian repeated hoarsely. He thought about pulling away but remained still. The masochism went both ways.

  Ellis’s hand snuck out and flitted against the cloth outline of Julian’s crotch. Julian’s breath caught in his throat. Ellis leaned into him and placed a soft kiss against his neck.

  “Pure…” Ellis reached for the clasp at the front of Julian’s pants and undid it with quick fingers. “Unadulterated…” He slid the zipper down slowly, each inch perfectly audible. “Masochism.” Ellis freed his erection. Soft and slightly cool fingers wrapped around the hot length. “You see, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time, but I don’t think you’re very good for me.” He sank to his knees, leaning on Julian’s muscled build to steady himself as he slid down his body.

  “I could say the same.” Julian tried to make the words come out smooth, but they were choked with arousal.

  “Don’t be ridiculous.” He moved his mouth over Julian’s cock, taking the entire length into his throat without choking or whispering in complaint.