“That makes no sense,” I said.
“Hurt you, hurt Princess Evie. It is the same thing.”
And the sabotage happened while Glin went to the planet surface to fetch my selfish behind. “I’m sorry I did not keep my word,” I said. “This is my fault.”
“No,” he said, grabbing my hand and turning my body towards him, “this is not your fault. I should have never left the shuttle unattended. I should have check more closely for tampering.”
“You could have bribed the station security to keep a close eye on the shuttle.”
He nodded. “I did not anticipate. I failed in my duty.”
“We landed in one piece. That’s something.”
“Failure to prevent disaster is not success.”
“You’re like a ray of sunshine, you know that?”
I shivered. I wore a lightweight shirt and trousers. It was summer on Juno. “What season is it here?”
Glin moved to the shuttle door and manually opened it, lifting the heavy panel on the tracks and sliding it to the side. Fresh air flooded the cabin. I didn’t realize how stuffy and stale it was in here.
Thick snow drifts covered the ground outside. That answered one question. Glin closed the door with a heave.
I wrapped myself in a emergency blanket but it wasn’t much warmer. Glin took out the small supply of self heating tubes. He cracked one in the middle and shook the tube vigorously before handing to me. Already warm, I clutched the tube to my chest. “Thank you.”
We searched through the storage compartments on the ship. There was no equipment to repair a damaged battery. There should have been. The compartment was empty.
Glin shouted in Fremm and slammed his hand against the walls, making the shuttle shake. “They wanted us to lose power and sit adrift like helpless kits.”
“And do what?”
“Hold you hostage,” he said, looking away from me. “My prince would pay any price to secure the return of his kompli’s sister.”
Pirates. Bandits. The Interstellar Union was a big place and the law was difficult to enforce on the fringes. Juno was definitely on the fringe. “Will they come for us?” And here we are, sitting helpless like kits on Blackborn.
Glin shook his head. “No. The solar storm damaged us prematurely. We did not make it to their ambush point.”
“So that’s a good thing.”
“I sent a distress signal. It will be easy to intercept and decode. They will find us.”
Fantastic. “So we need to repair the battery as quickly as possible,” I said.
“Tomorrow. The sun is near setting.”
Dinner was ration bars and water.
“How far are we from the settlement?” I asked, chewing the garlic flavored bar slowly. Ration bars certainly were an acquired taste.
“Sixty four kilometers,” he said. “I calculate two days on foot if we do not run into obstacles.”
That was a long journey and “obstacles” sounded like trouble. “You mean like a river or blocked path?”
He said nothing but continued to chew the ration bar.
We slept in the shuttle. I folded down a seat and crawled into it, under layers of blankets and curled around a heating stick. The wind howled outside the shuttle. Without power, it was very cold indeed. My nose grew numb and I shivered. My breath hung in the air but eventually I fell asleep.
At some point in the night, I was moved to another bed with a giant warm blanket wrapped around me. Finally, I was comfortable. Happily, I snuggled in, letting the blanket wrap itself around me.
Chapter Five
Glin
There was no sunshine when I woke but the human woman was in my arms. My traitorous heart sang. My chest rumbled with contentment. In the middle of the night, I could no longer listen to Vera shiver, so I moved her to my bed. Short, soft fur covered my arms. This is an adaptation to the cold environment. My senses were heightened, alert to the sounds outside the shuttle.
Vera stirred, face buried into my chest. Her breathing was the sweetest sound. And then I realized my senses were not the only part of my anatomy on alert. My entire body was a traitor.
She pulled away. “Did you sleep?”
“Enough,” I said. I shifted but there was nothing I could do to hide the erection tenting the front of my trousers.
She tore her eyes away, skin flushed an intriguing pink. I grinned. “What the hell is that on your skin?” she asked.
“It is my winter coat,” I said matter of factly.
“Wait, what? I never heard of Fremmians growing fur for the cold.”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said.
“Fine,” she said, wrapping a blanket around herself. “We’ll just add it to the list of other things you don’t want to talk about. You know, the list of what you do want to talk about would be much shorter.”
“Do you ever stop your prattling?” I asked. I tried to sound unpleasant but I liked listening to her prattle. It was comforting in a way.
I tossed her a ration bar and ate my own.
The engine to the shuttle was behind a panel at the back. Once I removed the access panel, the sabotage was obvious. The circuits and conduits to the main engine were neatly severed. The smaller backup engine had more subtle signs of sabotage. I removed the battery, four dull metal rods. They, at least, were intact.
“Can we fix it?” Vera asked.
I’m not an engineer. I know enough to pilot and little more. I scanned the battery with the comm unit on my wrist. “Yes, but they are depleted.”
“Those four little things can’t power a shuttle, can they?”
Barely. The auxiliary batteries had just enough power for our journey, if nothing went wrong. If we needed shields or needed to evade bandits, we would be stranded again. “Perhaps it is possible to repair the main engine.”
A scan produced a list of replacement parts. If we could find the items at the colony, we could fully functional.
“Do you think Blackborn has anything like that? I mean, the colony is one hundred years old. Wouldn’t the tech be too old?”
I looked over the list of wires and circuits. “Wires are wires.” Then I looked at Vera. She shivered with the blanket wrapped around her. Terrans were not made for the cold and had no adaptation. “You should wear something else for the journey.”
“I don’t have anything else,” she said. “You forget, it was summer on Juno and summer on Fremm. I wasn’t expecting a layover in the tundra.”
I reviewed our location on the wrist comm and the journey to the abandoned colony. We were in the hills and the colony was at the head of a valley. We needed to descend and then travel the length of the valley. “The climate should become more agreeable when we descend but you should put on as many layers as possible.”
Vera did not argue and dug through the luggage. I averted my eyes while she added a second shirt and second pair of socks. I focused on tearing one of the blankets into fabric strips. When she was ready, I presented her with a scarf and instructed her to wrap the fabric strips around her hands and at the cuffs and sleeves of her garments. I fashioned another blanket into a cloak.
“Don’t you need one?” she asked.
“Fremm is much colder than this. I will be fine.” The short fur covering my limbs would provide more warmth than cloth.
I added the emergency food stuffs, water purification tablets, blankets and other supplies into a knapsack. The battery rods were in their own bag. I carried both. On my back I also carried my battle axe and a collapsible spear. It can extend and hum with power in a thought. We were ready less than an hour after waking.
Snow lightly fell as we began our journey. Initially I wanted Vera to be behind me, to walk in my footsteps in the snow. I soon grew nervous listening to her slip and slide in the snow. I desired her to be in my sight at all times. She moved stiffly from her injuries but she did not complain. Her human body may be fragile but her spirit is strong. I can see that in the determination in her strides. Then
, walking behind her, I became too transfixed at the motion of her hips. I wanted greatly to sink my teeth into the roundness of her bottom. The wind shifted and her scent of wildflowers and sunshine hit me. I breathed deeply before I realized what I did.
This was no good. I ordered her to follow me again and meet with complaints about making up my mind.
My mind was made. My body rebelled.
When the sun is at its zenith, we rest and eat more protein ration bars. It is nutrition but I am not fond of the chewy, sweet substance. Vera makes a face as she eats.
“Are you cold?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Just tired and wishing I had a hamburger.”
Tonight I should find a beast or fish for the fire. That should return a smile to her face. I did not question my desire to please her. Protecting Vera was my duty. Keeping her safe and well feed was an extension of that protection.
We continued our descent to the valley floor. The snow stopped and the sun shone brightly. This planet could be pleasant. The air grew warmer and Vera removed the scarf and cloak, stuffing them into a rucksack. She prattled on about her home on Earth and old Terran movies. She asked me if I had seen a film. I had not. She told me the story. Vera liked stories about strong men who triumph over the villains and women who clash with the hero because they are attracted.
When the sun is low in the sky, we make camp. I stoked a fire. It is easy enough. Vera takes another dose of the medication and rests by the fire.
“Wait here,” I said. She did not argue, happy to sit near the warmth. The camp is near the river. Tomorrow we will follow it to the colony settlement. Game should be easy to find on this world but I do not wish to leave Vera alone for long. Any manner of creature may be drawn by the fire and she has no defenses, only the stun gun I left with her, which weak and will not stop a decided tauter.
On my own, I am finally in fresh air free from her scent. It is everywhere and clings to my clothes. It is so appetizing. I wash my hands and face in the cold water of the river, to clear my head. Twenty hours confined in the shuttle was hard enough but being stranded for an intermittent amount of time is unbearable. I must retain control over myself.
Fish are plentiful in the river. It is nothing to lance one with my spear. I cleaned them before returning to the camp, being sure to wash my hands of fish guts. Terrans were squeamish about such things.
I return to the campfire with four fishes. I give the bounty to Vera but she looked at me with wide, confused eyes. “What the hell is that?”
“I brought food.” I spoke simply, because it was obvious what the fish were. “Do you not prepare food?”
“Is it because my sister’s a cook that you think I can cook? Or just because that’s a woman’s job?”
“My princess is well known for her culinary skills. Are you not the same?”
“She’s a professional, you idiot. I can barely boil water.”
Grunting, I crouched down and placed the fish on a rock near the fire. She rolled her eyes at me and called me names. I knew I should not be amused by her disrespect but I could barely suppress the grin. I am beginning to think I affected her the way she affected me. Before long, the aroma of the meal filled the air.
I moved the rock away from the fire and picked at the flesh with my fingers. Vera narrowed her eyes but followed my example. I resisted the urge to hand feed her the best morsels, to let my fingers brush against her lip and hope her tongue would lick the juices away. It was not my right to feed Vera like she was my mate. Instead, I ate the bony bits and left the best on the rock.
Belly full, she reclined onto her elbows and stared upwards. “I never look at the stars back home. Well, on Earth there was too much light pollution to see the stars but I never bothered on Juno. It’s lovely.”
I made a noncommittal grunt.
“That one there could be the Big Dipper. Ursa Major. It has a myth but I don’t know it. Something about a bear.” She pointed to a section of the sky. I could see no bear shaped constellations. She continued, “The easiest constellation to spot is Orion’s belt. Well, Orion. Three stars in a straight line make up his belt.”
“Does he have a myth?” I asked.
“He’s a hunter, I think,” she says.
I lean forward, interested. Terrans shy away from violent confrontation but they revel in it in their myths and entertainment. “Tell me more.”
“That’s all I know.”
I snorted, dissatisfied.
“Well, since you have so many opinions about stars, tell me a story about Fremmian constellations.”
I thought for a time. “Do you know that story of Hvil and Marja?”
She nods. “I think I saw a film about them.”
“It is a famous story but worth retelling. Listen, in the dark days constant conflict tore Fremm asunder. A wise warlord, Markas, sought to forge a new peace. Markas was to marry Marja, the beloved daughter of his worst enemy. Knowing he needed to protect his bride on her journey, Markas sent his boldest warrior, his nephew Hvil, who he loved as a son. Hvil was daring and cunning and had recently bested a considerable foe in battle. There was no one better to bring Marja to the safety of Markas’s homestead.
“Frightened of marrying a man sight unseen, Marja asked a wise woman for a love potion. She wanted assurance that her new husband would be kind and treat her well. Markas was all those things but Marja was greedy. She wanted to be loved as well.
“I think I saw this film,” Vera said. “There was a lot of blue skin, if you know what I mean.”
“It is a classic story. It has been filmed many time,” I said. “Do you want to hear the story?”
Vera nodded. “Please continue.”
“The woman gave Marja a draught guaranteed to forge a bond so strong between those who shared the potion that they would be bound mates for a lifetime, kompli and komplan.
“No one knows if the fated pair were tricked into drinking the potion or if Marja liked the look of the young warrior and gave him the potion but everyone agrees the pair shared the potion. They were tied together with the bonds of mates, kompli and komplan, and nothing could separate them.
“Ill weather and bandits stalled the journey back to Markas’s stronghold. Hvil fought the thieves bravely and protected Marja from all ill. Unable to resist the call of the bonds, they became lovers. Every delay of their journey that kept them away from their lord was another day the bond grew stronger. Marja knew that she would not be able to live without her warrior’s touch.
“Hvil, some honor still in his heart, knew they were wrong to act as they did. He insisted they kept the affair secret, to hide it from his uncle and lord. He was right to act in this manner, I think. Marja was not intended for him and they were unwillingly puppets to a potion.”
“A love potion,” Vera said.
“This is how the kompli-komplan bonds work. They descend upon you like manacles and make you their prisoner.”
Vera snorted with laughter. “You’re such a romantic. What happens next?”
“Hvil delivered Marja to his uncle and they married. Markas was kind and thoughtful to his new bride and she appreciated his gentle nature with her, but she longed for Hvil’s touch. Markings on her body branded her an adulteress but she lied with a smile, telling her husband the marks were for him, a manifestation of her love for him. Seeing Hvil in the stronghold everyday was too much. The lovers could not avoid temptation.”
I paused in my retelling. The pressure of resisting temptation was something I could appreciate. I do not know how long we will wait until our distress call is answered. Everyday Vera grows more irresistible.
“Markas suspected,” I continued. “He was a wise man and not a fool. He tried many times to catch his bride and his nephew but the lovers were lucky. One day their luck ran out and Markas trapped them. There could be no denying their affair, no way to talk themselves out of the situation.
“Markas was enraged, his heart crushed by the betrayal of his young br
ide and the nephew he loved as a son. His grief was ready to tear him in two. Should he forgive them and let the lovers live in exile? The warlord could not appear weak to his enemies. More than his pride was at state. The people he protected needed their warlord to be strong, without vulnerability. And Hvil and Marja were a vulnerability. With a heavy heart, he sentences the lovers to death.
“Hvil was taken to a prison to await his execution. Marja was taken to the town square to be flogged. Some say she was to be burned. No one agrees on her punishment but all agree it was to be a spectacle, to punish those who would prey upon the warlord’s most tender emotions.”
“Wait...he was going to burn his wife alive? Because she hurt his feelings?”
“Hvil escaped his prison. He arrived just as the flames licked at Marja’s feet. In some versions, Hvil escapes to the southern lands and rebuilds his life without his kompli. They pine for the rest of their days, unfulfilled and yearning for their mates. Others say that Markas slew his nephew to free his wife from the cruel kompli-komplan bonds. Yet another say that Hvil and Marja fled together and had many children and lives to an old age, but everyone agrees that is a lie.”
We sat in silence, the fire crackling between us.
“It would have been easier if Hvil didn’t pretend not to love Marja,” Vera said.
“That’s not the point of the story.”
“No, I think it is. He made himself, Marja and her husband miserable and dragged it out for years. Where’s the glory in that? He was a coward.” She nodded, agreeing with her own sentiment.
“They were not for each other.”
“But they were.”
“No, they were prisoners to a biological imperative. It was not right and barely civilized.”
“So the kompli-komplan bond is just primitive biology? Isn’t it supposed to be spiritual and all that?”
I shook my head. “Maybe. I’m not a philosopher. I just punch things for a living.”
“He loved her,” she said. “He should have done the brave thing and told her, even though she was rich and engaged to his boss. Instead Hvil hid his emotions away. As a result, they were miserable and then very dead.”
Alien Warrior's Mate: Alpha Alien Romance (Alpha Aliens of Fremm Book 3) Page 3
