Stars Apart - Stowaway: (Sci-Fi Alien Romance Part One)

by Calista Skye

  “Okay”, said Helen, “If…um Lanek doesn’t mind; I don’t want to intrude”.

  “He won’t” said Eyanis, “Why would he?”

  “He doesn’t seem to like me all that much”.

  “That’s just how he is. Once you get to know him, you’ll see that he’s a really great guy”.

  Helen thought about what Eyanis had just said. It was clear he saw a side to Lanek that Helen with her day-old acquaintance was not permitted to see. But Eyanis was so easy going. She couldn’t imagine Lanek being like that, even in private. He seemed like he’d never laughed in his life.

  In the end, Helen decided to have dinner with them. She wanted to try out alien food with people who could tell her what was what, though she wasn’t beyond feeling a bit apprehensive about the experience, especially the Meflu technique, or whatever it was called. Lanek had been very quick to point out how unappetising it was. It could even be fatal to humans.

  * * *

  Lanek was sitting at the table, taking a leisurely sip of some sort of red liquid when she entered the kitchen. He looked at her as she came in.

  “Hi” she said.

  “Hello” he replied.

  “Oh, Helen”, said Eyanis from the far side of the kitchen, “Nice of you to join us”.

  He brought over an assortment of pots and dishes. They all contained cubes of different colours – colours so bright and vibrant Helen was sure they must be made of pure E numbers.

  “Is this the Meflu thing?”

  “Yep”, said Eyanis “It’s the most efficient way to get all the nutrients you need whilst travelling space. You just need to make sure you have equal amounts of all the colours”.

  The orange cubes tasted vaguely of something that was almost like fish and the pink ones had a nuttiness to them accompanied by something else, both familiar yet unknown.

  As Lanek had informed, her, it wasn’t gourmet-level cuisine but it wasn’t as bad as she’d anticipated.

  “Wait until you’ve been eating it for a few cycles” said Lanek.

  “Yeah”, agreed Eyanis, “I apologise that we’ve uprooted you from your planet to eat this”.

  “That’s okay”. She supposed. At least they were going to make sure she got back.

  “So, you must have seen Lanek kill the d’gorran”.

  “The what?” asked Helen.

  “The creature that came down to your planet”, said Eyanis, “So, what happened?”

  Helen found herself having to give a blow by blow account, including gory details which discussed over dinner only helped to make the Meflu technique less appealing. Even so, as she shared her eye-witness account, she was forced to relive the moment. She remembered Lanek’s confidence and control of the situation and couldn’t help but find him just a little bit impressive.

  Chapter 9

  Over the next few days, Helen had to admit that the Meflu Space Technique did start to lose its charm. Meals became a bland affair taste-wise. However, meal times still provided the best way for her to find out about her companions.

  She learnt interesting things, like how Lanek and Eyanis had been friends since their childhood and that the Asithians were a warrior race and that the currency on Asiroth was the velun.

  With his easy-going nature, she’d felt comfortable around Eyanis pretty much from the first day. Lanek, was taking a bit more time, seeing as he didn’t talk much or betray what he was thinking. However, she felt they had got used to each other somewhat. His hostility towards her had mostly disappeared and he seemed, at worst indifferent to her. She had yet to see proof of Eyanis’s rave reviews on his character, but she had to admit that the fact that he had hidden depths kind of intrigued her.

  “Welcome back Helen” the computer said as she entered the gym. She picked up the gun.

  “Anod Yos Vingu Shan’an” she said in Asiraan, the Asithian language. Eyanis had taught her that phrase. There was no English language patch installed on the computer so she could only interact with the interface through the touch screen, or speaking Asiraan. Of course, she could neither read nor speak Asiraan but learning to say a few phrases was theoretically easier. She had to stress ‘theoretically’ because it had taken her several attempts to memorise that one phrase and several more to say it in a way that the computer understood. She hoped she was saying ‘Load Target Game 3’ but she had trouble with the intonation.

  “I didn’t understand your request. Please try again”. This was what she usually heard. Today, however, Target Game 3 loaded first time.

  “Go Helen!” she said to herself.

  It was a weird sort of 3-D game where she would walk into a building with a lot of alien people and shoot a designated amount of them in the given timeframe. Points were awarded for accuracy and range. It started off quite laid back with people sitting fairly still in what looked like restaurants and libraries and concert halls but as the levels progressed, they were moving around more and more and, according to Eyanis, at the more advanced levels, there was a sniper mode where a few people were trying to shoot you back at the same time.

  It was actually quite addictive.

  Today, she walked into the restaurant. Her mission was to shoot five people before the timer stopped. At first, she kept missing but then, she hit one in the arm. Green blood oozed from the wound. His companion, sitting opposite him, got up quickly and rushed to his aid.

  “Darling, you’ve been shot!” she heard her exclaim but a few misses later, Helen succeeded in shooting her in the back. She then got the four sitting on the table in front of them, but they were closer and were not worth as many points. Still, she’d more than filled her quota now.

  However, standing directly in front of her, on the far side of the restaurant, as always, was the waiter. He was a pale yellow hominid with a third eye closed on his forehead and two pairs of arms holding four dishes. She always missed him but she still had time to try.

  She fired the gun and still only succeeded in missing him multiple times. Oh well. Better luck next time.

  She got him. On her last shot, she got him, right in his third eye. She stood there, incredulous.

  “Not bad”.

  She turned around quickly. Lanek was leaning against the wall of gym, his arms folded, watching her. In the dimness of the room, his skin glowed slightly blue.

  “You scared me” she said.

  “That wasn’t my intention”, he replied.

  “Then… what was your intention?”

  “Message bearer”, he said, “You didn’t respond to the call. Eyanis wants to know if you’d like to have a picnic”.

  “Um, yeah. Okay” she said.

  She must have been so engrossed in the game that she didn’t hear when Eyanis called her.

  Lanek pressed the intercom button on the wall.

  “She says ‘yes’” he said.

  “Fantastic” said Eyanis.

  Chapter 10

  “But in the gym?” asked Helen. What a place for a picnic. She’d been in there earlier killing holographic aliens and when it wasn’t running a program, it was just a large, vacant box.

  “Of course” said Eyanis as they went inside, laden with cutlery, crockery and the dreaded Meflu technique. He was smiling like he knew something she didn’t. She looked up at Lanek. He looked back at her, his face impassive as usual. Perhaps he wasn’t in on whatever Eyanis was planning.

  The computer welcomed them.

  “Load Asiroth 1 Dungren” said Lanek. Or perhaps he was.

  “Loading” said the computer.

  “Oh, that’s a good choice” said Eyanis.

  “What’s ‘Dungren’?” asked Helen.

  “Just watch” said Eyanis, gesturing to the gym.

  Instantly, the room began to change. The floor rippled and undulated, creating rolling hills and valleys. Grass bristled over it all, swaying in a breeze that even Helen was beginning to feel.

  Above them, a mauve sky started to form from which a white sun radiated a g
entle light. Helen watched in awe. Before her, a beautiful landscape was blossoming into being.

  “Wow”, said Helen, “I didn’t know the gym could do this”.

  “Normally they don’t” said Lanek, “But I had this feature added. It was a modelling technique developed by the grofen but Serl-Vogad were the first to use it for landscaping”.

  “Serl-Vogad…” Helen murmured. She’d heard them mention it before.

  “It’s the name of the company that designed this ship”, said Eyanis, “They specialise in luxury cruisers. If you ever want to buy a ship, I recommend them”.

  Helen envisaged herself returning to earth with her very own space ship. That would go down well with the neighbours.

  “Come on” said Lanek. They picked up their picnic items and started walking up the newly completed hill.

  “So this is Dungren?” she asked.

  “Yes” said Lanek, “It’s a hill on Asiroth that overlooks Caraia, the palatial city”.

  “It’s where the royalty of Asiroth live” added Eyanis.

  They reached the top. Dungren fell away quite steeply and below, she could see a cluster of gleaming white and powder blue buildings with domed rooves and arches. In some of them, large, red jewels gleamed in the sunlight.

  “So this is Caraia?” she asked.

  “Yes” said Lanek.

  “It’s beautiful”.

  She looked out at it all, unable to look away. She hadn’t imagined that Lanek would be a prince of somewhere like this. Knowing he was a warrior, seeing him kill and being threatened by him on her first day aboard, she had expected something less tranquil and elegant and more harsh and barbaric. But there it was – a replica of his resplendent city.

  “You see the ones with the red jewels?” said Eyanis.

  Helen nodded.

  “That’s where we live. The one in the centre is Pri Caraia Asin. That’s where the Queen lives. The two on the left are Rom Caraia Asin and Trell Caraia Asin”.

  “So you really are a prince, then?” asked Helen.

  Eyanis chuckled.

  “No”, he said, “Trell technically belongs to Lanek but he created some strange law that says it’s leased to me for life”.

  “That’s nice” said Helen.

  “Yes” agreed Eyanis, “Because when he wants it back, it means all he has to do is kill me”.

  He looked at Lanek and smiled.

  “That would never happen” Lanek said.

  They set out the picnic on a collapsible low green table and sat lounging on the grass. Helen loved it; it felt more relaxed and peaceful. Even Eyanis and Lanek appeared to be more laid back.

  Halfway through their picnic, the computer bleeped into action.

  “Upcoming space toll” it said. Lanek went to stand up.

  “No, it’s okay”, said Eyanis, “I’ll go”. He got up, walked down the hill and disappeared through the gym door, back to reality. Helen wondered how he intended to pay it. She knew he couldn’t just wind down the window of the ship to open space and hand the money through like they did on her planet.

  A silence fell between her and Lanek. He was lying on the grass, propped up by an elbow and picking little bits of the green blades. When they fell to the ground, however, they simply reattached themselves.

  He must have felt her eyes on him.

  “What is it?” he asked, turning to her. The breeze ruffled his hair. Some strands flew across his face, but they couldn’t extinguish the way his eyes seemed to glow brightly in the sunlight, like a plate of sapphire lit from within, illuminated, but still hiding much more beneath.

  “Nothing”, she said, “I just didn’t imagine Asiroth to look like this”.

  “What were you expecting?”

  “I don’t know”.

  The silence again. He turned back to the grass.

  “Do you go to this Dungren program often?” she asked.

  “Sometimes”.

  “You must be eager to get back to Asiroth”.

  “I suppose” he said.

  Helen sighed. It might be easier to get blood out of a stone than make small talk with Lanek.

  She looked out over Caraia. There must be a lot of royalty on Asiroth for them all to take up a whole city, unless normal people were able to live there too.

  “Who lives in the other houses around the Queen’s one?” she asked.

  “My rivals” said Lanek. The matter-of-factness in his voice startled her.

  “Rivals?”

  “Yes”, said Lanek, “Relatives who are also entitled to inherit the throne”.

  “But I thought you were the heir”.

  “I am the first in line as my mother is the Queen but if I don’t get married this year, then they’re free to challenge me”.

  “Are you not worried about marrying someone you’ve never met before?”

  “No”, said Lanek, “It is something which has been planned since I was young. It will be beneficial to Asiroth to form an alliance with the Reyathid. The best way is through marriage”.

  “What if you’d fallen in love someone else?” Helen asked.

  Though she had initially thought he was really imposing once she knew a little bit more about him she was beginning to see that he appeared to be a figurehead whose life was meted out to him. Even though he didn’t seem to protest against his lot in life, she still felt slightly sorry for him.

  “Love? Do you mean the evanedth, the Asithian love-bond? Then I’d have to choose between losing the throne and losing my life”.

  “What do you mean?” asked Helen but she never got to find out.

  “Right, so that’s sorted, then”, Eyanis said as he came back up the hill, “And look what I’ve brought”.

  They turned around.

  “Asithian d’ul wine!”

  He was carrying a large, white bottle with a transparent glass strip down the side displaying a green, slightly fluorescent liquid.

  “That would mess with the effectiveness of the Meflu” said Lanek.

  “Just a little bit once in a while won’t hurt”.

  He sat down at the table.

  “What’s d’ul?” asked Helen

  “It’s a plant that’s native to Asiroth” said Lanek.

  Eyanis opened the bottle. Green vapours curled from within and up into the air. It had a sharp, potent smell, like inhaling hot chilli sauce. Helen coughed and her eyes began to water slightly.

  “Would you like to try some, Helen? Beware, it’s quite strong” Eyanis said.

  “Um… okay”, said Helen, “Just a little bit”.

  Eyanis poured a small amount into her cup. It was quite thick – almost like a glowing kiwi smoothie. Perhaps that was why, despite its piquant fragrance she was still up for trying it.

  Eyanis poured some into his and Lanek’s cups. He took a sip.

  “Ah, this is good, this” he said. Lanek drank some too.

  “Yes”, he agreed, “It’s been a while”.

  “We’ll be reaching the Rigna galaxy in a day or two”, said Eyanis. He turned to Helen.

  “I don’t suppose you’ve seen another galaxy before” he continued.

  “No, I haven’t” said Helen, “But I’d really love to”.

  “Well, Lanek or I will call you when it’s visible; they’re really pretty”.

  Helen looked forward to it. She didn’t doubt it would be quite something.

  She watched as Lanek took another sip of d’ul wine and realised she hadn’t even tried it yet. She took a sip. Oh, it’s actually quite sweet, she thought before she passed out.

  “Helen!” cried Eyanis.

  Lanek got to her first. He put his ear near her face.

  “She’s still breathing” he said.

  “I suppose it was too strong for her” Eyanis said.

  “Seems so” said Lanek. He scooped her up his arms and carried her down the hill, through the gym door and to her own room. The computer recognised her, even though she was with Lanek. The do
or opened and he took her inside. He lowered her gently onto the bed. His fingers brushed the side of her face as he reached for the nyaki and put it on the ledge behind the bed.

  He looked at her for a second. One sip of d’ul had been enough to knock her out. She was a lot weaker than he had initially thought.

  Suddenly, he felt protective over her. It was only for a brief moment but it had been there.

  Dismissing the feeling, he left her room.

  Chapter 11

  “Hi Helen”, said Eyanis over the intercom the next day, “Just seeing how you are”.

  Helen sat up and groaned.

  “I’m alive”, she said, “I think…”

  She felt awful. No, worse than awful. She wanted to curl up and die. She reached for her phone. Oh dear. She’d been asleep for nearly half a day by Earth’s standards.

  “If I’d known you were going to react like that, I would never have let you have any” said Eyanis.

  “Don’t worry about it”, she said, “But I can’t believe you lot can drink that”.

  “It does take some getting used to” said Eyanis.

  “But I bet neither of you passed out after one sip”.

  “True”, said Eyanis, “But the first time, we did pass out after two cups. We were in early adolescence then. The steward found us unconscious in the wardrobe and we had to bribe him to keep quiet”.

  “No way” said Helen, trying to imagine how their younger versions might have looked.

  “Anyway, we’ve left some dinner for you in the kitchen. I know it’s late and you probably don’t feel like it but you should at least try to eat something”.

  “I will”.

  Helen had absolutely no appetite at all but she thought she’d try and make the effort.

  She woke up the next morning in exactly the same place, having gone absolutely nowhere. Clearly, she hadn’t tried hard enough.

  This time, when she sat up, however, she felt well-rested and back to her normal self. She was never drinking d’ul wine again. And it wasn’t the kind of ‘never again’ declared after a particularly bad hangover, the sort of abstinence that only lasted until the next party. This was serious, the real deal: she was never going to touch d’ul wine – or, to be on the safe side, any other kind of alien wine – again.