by Calista Skye
© Calista Skye (Story Dev: Lux Xe) 2015
All right reserved.
Sesh's Claim
Since her arrival on Tenta's Eastern base and crossing paths with the mysterious king of the planet's Eastern region, Genie's dreams have been overcome with images of the strange royal and messages that seem to rise up from the very planet itself and soon make it impossible to shake the beautiful alien from her mind.
When an invitation to his hovercraft arrives, she hesitates to answer it, though her heart demands she answer her impossible response to the mysterious stranger. She's heard the stories about him, knows the perils of entering his Kingdom willingly.
Can she withstand the legendary allure of the King without losing herself, and when he tells her she's the Queen of his heart, will she throw away everything and give into his claim?
A steamy, BBW Science Fiction romance
Sesh's Claim
1
“Maybe she'll find some alien romance novels in the archives.”
Striker “had jokes.” He was always poking a stick at someone. He knew the importance of her work. If Genie hadn't been the best in her field, she'd never have been asked to take a residency on Tenta's Eastern base.
“Just kidding, Genie. I'm sure you'll find some Keller-prize winning discovery in those old libraries. You're the best at what you do. We all are. Have another bottle.”
Grinning, Genie accepted the traditionally warmed brew wine from his conic fingers, ignoring the light flirtation in his eyes as she leaned back in the dim of the boxy bunker she and her mates gathered to unwind in.
He'd been “working” on her for some time, but he'd charmed his way into far too many panties for her tastes, and she just wasn't that casual. Even with his otherworldly good looks, and lithe, muscular build, she knew Striker was one temptation she didn't want to chance. He was half-Kalion, rather pre-disposed to singling out curvy women, and if the rumors were to be believed, he couldn't help but sample as many voluptuous ladies as he could lure with his wiles.
That was the human playboy in him.
He was like his father, a captain of philandering legend. He'd taken none of the Kalion mating instincts that would have him claim someone for life, and she doubted he ever would.
Flirting with him was fun, though, so long as it ended simply at that.
Genie didn't want to be anyone's “type.” If she ever settled down with someone, she wanted his love to transcend fantasy and convenience.
She'd seen far too many relationships fail because they'd only existed to fill an available slot on someone's wish fulfillment list.
Striker could laugh all he wanted, but Genie believed in romance. The real kind. The kind that existed because the lovers in their pages were born to love the other. Maybe, it was the fancy of being twenty-five and finally out of university. She could easily become married to her career, doting on a bunch of star cats if she wasn't careful.
Maybe, it was because there was actually someone out there for her. A soul mate. Someone whose intimacy would extend to the cellular level, beyond words, beyond petty squabbles, beyond life.
And while there were a myriad of Kalion men who would gladly take her hand, she would only want the one who wouldn't have another over her.
~
“Great job, Genie. Here's the first five; take your time with them. They'll help us decipher the big ones when we finally get to them.”
Kenna gave her a wink and ducked under the arch separating the rows of old tomes recently excavated with the Tentai's permission. He was always running off somewhere, as many duties as he had. There was a lot to layout to make this particular operation work.
The Tentai themselves, while friendly, refused to just hand over their secrets. Instead, they made their inter-galactic allies an offer: decipher our ancient texts, and you're worthy of knowing what's in them.
Of course, the mostly human powers-that-be couldn't pass up a challenge at discovery, and a team was quickly formed to do just that. Genie had jumped at the chance to get her hands on real alien texts. She was the first in class among her linguistics colleagues, but she'd never truly been able to sink her teeth into something as sacred as the Tentai's tomes. They were a largely mysterious race, and while mostly benevolent by all indications, they were cryptic enough to make some of the galactic powers uncomfortable. A relationship with an ally who has secrets is a limited one that can strike you with the element of surprise with extremely bad timing.
Genie struggled with the weight of the books but kept them still as a stone as she transported them to the reading booth with careful steps. Her heart pumped with excitement; she couldn't wait to crack them open. How many copied images of old scripts had she read while lusting over the thought that one day she'd find herself in this very position?
Grunting, she lowered them gently to the silver-metal surface of the fold-down table and slid the door shut, flicking the air filtration system on in the protective space. Archives were incredibly delicate, and the utmost care had to be taken with them. Paper can become extremely fragile with time.
A kind of euphoria taking her over, she slid into the seat connecting to the fold-down table, retrieving a pair of plasticell gloves from the pockets of her archive apron. That part of the protocol frustrated her a touch because she ached to feel the raised letters of the Tentai's ancient tongue under her fingers as her eyes feasted on the strange symbols holding the secrets of mysteries that could unlock a great many wonders for the galaxy at large.
The Tentai were an enchanted sort of people, like she'd always imagined the fey to be as a child. The universe built them with minds that spoke directly with the ether, allowing them to shift their shapes, change the dna of the organic and inorganic materials on their planet, and they spoke to one another telepathically. Well, telepathic might not actually be the word for it. They called it “speaking on the wind,” a process that involved filling the ether with their thoughts and sending them into the heads they had a message for.
It had freaked the human factions right the hell out, but overtime, given the highly diplomatic structure of the race's inter-galactic communications, the Tentai were accepted as allies against the unmistakable dangers of the universe.
When you were dealing with threats like those acquisitioners posed, secretive, friendly, and usually extremely hot aliens, didn't make it on the avoidance radar.
Genie ran gloved fingers over the strange alien characters on the cover of the first coppery-skinned book, her heart chugging with anticipation as she reached to open its cover. The craftsmanship was gorgeous. Unparalled. Nipping her lip, her pupils dilated at the sight of the luminous pages inside of it. Whatever the material was made of, it glowed enough to cast it own light upon the walls. Swallowing her nerves with reverence, she touched a gloved finger to it ever so carefully, testing its fragility before daring to turn a page.
Breathtaking.
And the letters... A deep, orchid, purple that pulsed with a life of its own – like the words themselves were alive. Whatever they actually meant. Setting her mouth with determination, she set her mind to figuring out just that. She wasn't here to play games.
Shivering with a passing chill, Genie's brow creased, and she drew a breath, momentarily disconnecting herself with the contents of the book.
Her eyes fluttered up then, goosebumps prickling her skin. She felt eyes on her, still, otherworldly eyes – the kind that didn't belong to a human, or even a half human. Turning to find them, her heart nearly burst through her chest to lock eyes with her watcher.
Stars, he was infinitely beautiful. Calling him a hottie just wouldn't cover it. His eyes were a dark, almost smoky purple, bordering on bla
ck, and the way he looked at Genie enflamed her with a desire she'd never felt the likes of. It was... invasive, but not unwanted. Like he was probing her, but only as far as he sensed she would allow.
Quickly looking away from the demi-god of an alien, she tried to force herself to focus on the book – even though she was making no headway, whatsoever, yet.
Her brow creased.
It was pretty unusual that she couldn't make heads or tails of it; was the mystery man throwing her off? Playing tricks with the ether? With her mind? Genie sighed and forced herself to snap out of whatever daze he'd just laid on her. She didn't have time for this. There was a clock on her translation, and she had a reputation to protect that she'd worked too long and too hard for.
She forced away the lingering thoughts of him, and the way he'd made her feel, and carefully turned the page, looking for repeat symbols and the patterns in which they were laid out.
Maybe her Tentai observer was making sure she handled the books with the reverence they'd been promised. It was reasonable enough. If some strange woman was pawing her ancient artifacts, she'd want to make sure they handled it with the utmost respect.
Relaxing a little into that line of thought, Genie was soon sucked back into the process, a smile crossing her face when she found a pattern that matched a more modern set of symbols in the Tentai scripts. Nodding to herself, she tapped her fingers against the tabletop's surface, laser focused on the task at hand.
But that focus wavered when her Tentai observer crossed her mind again, and turning to steal another glance at him, she saw him rise from the pillar seat by the hall and make his way to the exit.
2
“You met the fucking King? Holy Stars, Genie! What was he like?”
Jana's jewel eyes sparkled with that quality they always took on at the prospect of juicy gossip. She was the type to take a secret to the grave with her, though. She wasn't the kind of girl to ever repeat the gossip she heard. She just liked to listen. Jana also tended to devour reality TV, unsurprisingly, especially that which involved the more hunky aliens in the galaxy who participated in the social exercise.
“I couldn't tell you. We didn't exchange a word.”
Jana practically deflated.
“Oh. Well, then. How...”
“He was watching me.”
“Watching you?! Get the hell out of dodge, Genie. Did you say he was watching you? Holy stars, woman, the fucking King?”
Genie grinned, amused enough with the digger to let her over-run her self-appointed lunch break limit. She typically took shorter breaks than the rest of the team to claim any edge that could be had. Her job was high stakes, and if she didn't come up with anything viable in a dazzingly short time, she might not be asked back for a second residency.
And she wanted that renewal of her stay badly.
They'd found tons of books. Enough that it would take years to translate them. Seriously groundbreaking shit could be waiting in the pages of those glorious tomes, and she wanted her name inked in the history books that announced who helped discover them.
Jana lowered her eyes to her plate, chasing a batch of greasy noodles and Railon sauce with her silver-metal spork. When she bit her lip in that tell-tale way that said she had a little nugget of her own to share, she lifted her eyes again.
“I met someone, too.”
“Stars Jana, I didn't 'meet' him. He was watching me. Probably because he wanted to be sure I handled his sacred tomes with care.”
Jana shook her head, twirling a string of the glistening pasta onto the small teeth of her spork.
“He could send anyone for that. He's watching you for a reason.”
Genie took a swig from her Zeb's Energy tin, setting it down with a sigh.
“So who'd you meet? What's he like?”
Jana flushed.
So he was super hot then.
“He's overseeing the dig.”
“A Tentai?”
“A glorious Tentai. I think I'm in love.”
“Not that you'll let on.”
Jana grinned, sliding more gathered noodles off of the spork with her teeth and slurping them down before chugging a Zeb's Energy Zero. Genie bristled at the low-cal drink, hating how Jana went overboard with the weight-watching. She was beautiful. A voluptuous goddess of a woman who should value every inch of herself.
“A man should earn his way into the graces of woman.”
“Hear-hear,” Genie agreed, raising her tin to clink against Jana's.
“Besides, I don't think I'll be renewing a second residency, so why do any more than fantasize about wrapping my legs around that hunky Tenta bod of his?”
She was talking herself into the notion. Genie knew that tone. It meant Jana wanted to investigate the prospect of the Tentai, but she wasn't sure she wanted to invest herself in a relationship that probably wouldn't last. There weren't a hell of a lot of stories of happy endings with the Tentai. Mostly they kept to themselves, with only a random inter-species marriage every so often that usually took itself offworld.
Genie's thoughts turned to the Tentai King.
A mystery she'd never realized was a royal until she'd described him to Jana. The magnitude of being watched by such a major power on the planet kind of shook her. There were very few Kings on tenta, and they were two steps away from gods in the eyes of their kind.
To have a King watching her like he was... Easily lent itself to a busying of her thoughts, the kind she couldn't really afford right now.
~
Trudging through her door with an exhausted sigh, Genie pressed the lock button, sliding the entry doors closed. Bunk, sweet, bunk. Feeling like she didn't want to do anything but collapse on the lounger in her small studio dwelling unit, she pushed into her reserves and peeled off her clothes, letting them pool around her feet in front of the shower.
Flicking the water release, she sunk her head into the heavy water spray and let her eyes slip closed. She'd maybe had a breakthrough, but it wasn't a large enough one to become excited over. What she needed was a set of regularly used words, something she could anchor the ancient tongue to. With that, she'd make an impressive enough mark to ensure her superiors asked her to stay on.
And then she could get into the meat of things.
Sudsing up with high foam lemon gel, Genie's mind brought back the image of the ancient Tentai script, and she found herself attempting to decipher it. They were beautiful letters, very round in shape, but elegant – like they'd been formed in the minds of warm, but learned people.
Dipping her head deeper into the water spray, she rinsed the suds from her skin and watched them rush down over her ample curves to circle the drain. A flare of heat filled her belly as her thoughts returned to the King.
King Sesh. The Wise.
That was the title they gave him: wise. It made her wonder what kind of mind he had, and what he was thinking when he laid eyes to her. He could have only been there observing her session, but the desire she'd felt heat her skin when she'd looked into those eyes....
He'd looked at her like he knew her to the depths.
And they hadn't even met.
Not officially.
She'd be lying to herself if she tried to say she didn't want to meet him. But she knew such an event might be more than she could handle. She'd made a pact with herself that she would do everything she could do to avoid distractions. Her entire career was riding on this set of translations. Success or failure. The latter could break her. Sitting her behind the desk in some dusty old library on a remote, boring planet, or an equally prosaic academic ship.
Nipping her lips, she turned off the knob and stilled the spray.
She needed to sleep. She'd be fine in the morning if she just slept all of these thoughts off.
Pulling her fuzzy yellow robe off of its hook, she wrapped it around her and padded to her bed, resolving to throw her clothes in the hamper in the morning. She barely had the strength to keep her eyes open, let alone worry about hous
ekeeping right now.
A flare of heat fevered through her as her thoughts returned to the King, and she began to wonder, if they were even her own. Sliding under her covers, she bat the thought away quickly. Why would a King take the time to put thoughts in her head? She was letting the old lores get to her, and it was completely unnecessary.
She could resolve this errant perspective with one point.
If he'd been that intent on her, he'd have introduced herself.
There.
Mystery solved.
Time to sleep.
She willed her body to follow suit, but soon found enough difficulty in it that frustration began to burn in her gut. It was hot in the room. She should cut on the fans.
Grudgingly rising from her bed, she did just that and quickly returned to it, kicking off the heavier coverlet so only the sheet would cover her. She was usually chilly in her dwelling unit, but right now, she was dizzy with heat.
Tucking a pillow between her thighs, she turned on her side and looked over the purple sky speckled with bursting stars outside of her unit's window panel. Tenta was a gorgeous planet, mostly water in the uninhabited regions and lush with forests and rock quarries with extremely special crystals and ores that exceeded most technologies and eluded discovery like most things of the Tentai.
After a few minutes, Genie rolled onto her back and kicked her legs out with frustration at how steadfastly her sleep was eluding her. She'd have to take a trank if she couldn't get there naturally. She had to be alert tomorrow. First thing.
Her skin fevering further, she stopped her hand when her fingers took into a roaming over her belly, inching down toward the true source of heat keeping her from her very much needed REM cycles.
But her fingers continued on after a moment, and she completely lost the battle where keeping the Tentai King from her mind was concerned. She sighed recalling the mesmerizing purple-black pools of his eyes. They were large and intent, focused. He was a sure alpha. A man to be reckoned with.
