by Nia K. Foxx
Claimed
Claimed: Unchartered Territory
By
Nia K. Foxx
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Claimed: Unchartered Territory
Nia K. Foxx
This e-book is a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Published by After Dark Press, LLC
Copyright ©2013 by Nia K. Foxx
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Printed in the Unites States of America
As an orphan, astronaut, Dallas Mann learned the value of self-reliance and preservation at an early age. As an adult she’s determined to live her life on her own terms, just as soon as she can get from under the pesky Orphanage contract. Only one more mission stood between her and freedom.
What she isn’t prepared for is being lost, light years from home and claimed.
1
Nia K. Foxx
Dedication
I know I’ve been quiet for a long time and I want to thank everyone for being patient with me. We all deal with many challenges in life that can sometimes take us off course but strength comes from finding a way to come back from life’s adversities. I hope this book is a start to a new beginning.
Chapter One
Planet Chezar
“Remar I think it is time your mistress was reminded of her station in this household. She continues to over step her bounds,” Khimar complained upon entering the private offices of the High Commander of Sector Two.
Obviously the irony over her own indiscretion by seeking his counsel without authorization was lost on her. But he would not be the one to correct the aging woman, who was like a second mother to him.
Her position as nurse mother to both he and his siblings had granted her certain privileges in his family’s domicile but it still should not excuse the additional liberties she took. His youngest sibling was well past the age of needing a nurse mother but neither she nor he could muster the heart to redact her. Undoubtedly, the woman would probably die from boredom were she to join her peers in one of the cessation communities.
“What complaint do you have with her now that requires me to drop all I am doing? Honestly, I believe you think I just sit here and await your next tirade woman,” Remar tried his best to sound irritated at the intrusion but knew he failed miserably. His stopping to give her his undivided attention probably did little to aid his rebuttal.
Khimar fixed him with a completely unconcerned look before continuing with her rant. “She thinks to take over the blue room for her atrocious paintings. She says the room inspires her. There is not enough inspiration on the entire planet which would infuse her with talent.”
Ultimately, Remar was in agreement. His concubine, Kala, hardly possessed the eye or skills she thought she did in the area of painting, but then again he hadn’t taken her as his mistress for her abilities with a feather brush, at least not outside of the bed chamber anyway.
“And I take it you have some personal use for this room?” he inquired.
“I do,” she added simply without explanation.
He’d learned long ago not to question his former nurse mother’s intention less she actually provide him with details he would later wish to unhear.
“There is no way the two of you could share the space?”
Khimar looked completely stricken with the notion. “And have me surrounded by her monstrous creations.”
He understood her point having personally chosen not to make direct eye contact with any of Kala’s drawings. “I will have a talk with her this eve if it will keep the peace.”
“It will, so long as you do not get too distracted with what is betwixt her legs before addressing my issue.”
“You overstep again,” he gently reprimanded.
“My apologies,” Khimar offered without sincerity as she made her retreat from his offices as hastily as she had entered.
Anyone else would not have dared to talk to him in that fashion but then she was unlike anyone he knew. His father acquired Khimar through the spoils of war years before his birth. It was a different time then. The sectors were in constant conflict with one another over border issues. Khimar’s status as conquest was quickly removed when his mother, Leila Raghn, became fast friends with the much younger woman. When given a choice to return to her own sector or remain in the service of their household she opted to stay and thus had been a thorn in Remar’s side upon his entrance into the world. Even after his parent’s passing she maintained her posting indicating no desire to leave the house of Falak.
Regardless of his feigned indignation Remar knew he would continue to indulge her. Pushing the brief conversation from his mind he turned his attention back to the missive at hand.
…further study of the sphere has been completed and a full briefing will be scheduled provided all leaders are able to agree upon a viewing time. My staff will be in communication to make the necessary arrangements.
In the Spirit of Global Assurance,
Remar
With his communiqué complete and sent to his Under Commander for handling Remar returned his attention to the image of the silver sphere retrieved from Chezar’s orbit so many moon risings ago. The small orb was but one of twenty such objects that had found its way through the aperture just beyond their planet’s sky. And like the others this too held information about the E’rth home world, he knew because he’d seen its contents on more occasions than could be counted.
Since the aperture first appeared over three hundred years ago many secrets of other worlds had been revealed. In the early years any off-world debris was considered valuable and each sector wanted to lay claim to finding the trinkets. The few pieces that made it onto the planet’s surface in tact were a priceless commodity. As information from the various alien tech was uncovered sector leaders were even more determined to possess undamaged items. Developing ways to detect and retrieve the apertures offerings before they made it to the planet’s surface became a quest for most.
Sector two excelled far beyond the others in their retrieval methods.
The information gathered was studied and incorporated in all aspects of their society, advancing them even further than others. The innovations gave them an unprecedented advantage which put Remar’s father in a position of power to end the long standing border disputes. The Spirit of Global Assurance was enacted under his sire and allowed representatives from other sectors’ scientific community mutual access to the objects discovered.
It was surprising the variety of species who called some distant planet home, but by far E’rth seemed to hold the fascination of the Chezarian people. The receipt of the E’rth’s spheres became a near celebratory event on Chezar. Embedded in the hardware were data chips containing an assortment of images and vocalizations.
What a curious speci
es they were to provide such detail about their home world and send that information out into the unknown universe. Either they were a very foolhardy race or possessed a military might of such superiority they did not worry about invasion.
Over time schools of study were developed around the E’rth inhabitants and their curious societies, which didn’t seem so unlike their own. Their crude languages were studied, translated and made available to anyone wishing to tackle them. The Chezarian interest with the alien species only seemed to grow with the receipt of new spheres. Scientist even speculated there might be a far off genealogical link between Chezarians and the E’rth aliens based on genetic samplings they were able to extract from the spheres contents.
As much as Remar would have liked to consider himself immune to enthrallment with the E’rth world he was secretly drawn to the innards of the spheres. Of late his interest border lined more towards obsession than mere curiosity.
He waved his hand over the holoboard to begin the recording.
“Greetings of E’rth.” The translator played over the pre-recorded disembodied voice. A picture erupted on the screen of a rotating blue green planet. Images of odd vegetation, and peculiar animals of land and sea flashed by for most of the commentary. Remar found himself zipping through many sections of the visuals. Having viewed the latest alien images enough to be familiar with specific points of interest he was drawn to the portion containing pictures of the aliens of E’rth.
They called themselves humans, and while their overall build was much like people of his world, scientist speculated the species was smaller in stature. Unlike Chezarians there were no discernible ridges to the alien’s brow, at least not on any of the images Remar had seen. He was always curious about the absence. Could it be that although the species looked similar to his own race they’d all actually been born without kikens? Their physical dissimilarities didn’t end there. The E’rth alien’s auditory lobes were shorter and lacked the pronounced angular tip of his people. Also peculiar was the way the color of their eyes, and skin hues seemed to vary so significantly. Even their body dimensions took on a multitude of forms.
Such variety.
Intriguing.
Chezarians, for the most part, carried similar genetic traits accounting for their white hair and pale grey skin tones which only ranged from an iridescent heather to a more ashen shade. By comparison Chezarian physical characteristics held subtle deviations. The number and length of kikens could vary by gender. On average females were born with two, while males could have as many as four. All Chezarians shared a magenta optical coloring ranging from lighter to darker shades. Remar’s own coloring was the darkest he’d ever seen even among his kin, but certainly nothing as drastically different as with the variety of the humans.
Were they the product of interspecies matings?
He leaned forward in anticipation of the final image to be displayed.
Twenty-six E’rth aliens were captured in the single unmoving image but only one stood out to him. She wore a uniform similar to the others but on her the snug material affected him differently. His body reacted instantly to the teasing enticement of curves as he allowed his gaze to roam her form freely.
Her dark hair was unlike anything he’d ever seen. Thick, bountiful, and springing all around her smooth, ridge less, face. His first sight of the alien woman had stolen the breath from his body. Truth be told the effect was the same each time he viewed it. A faint smile graced her full lips and intelligent eyes stared from the screen as if honing in on him. It was an impossible thought, but Remar liked to believe she was posing for him alone. He enhanced the picture to bring the desired object in focus.
His hearts quickened.
Body tightened.
Vision tunneled.
The symptoms were a herald for something he would not have thought possible with an alien. The premonition caught him off less off guard this time. He saw the two of them locked in a carnal embrace, limbs tangled, and skin glistening with perspiration. He embraced the vision, letting it fill every crevice of his mind.
So real.
He could feel the warmth of her body. Taste her.
Intoxication.
Much too quickly the mind trip faded. Mentally he reached for the apparition again wanting to play out the scene over and over in his head.
It was gone. And he felt…empty.
Remar marked it as the fifth time in a fortnight the premonition had taken hold of him. It was happening with far more frequency now.
Under different circumstances he would look on it as a pivotal moment. To a Chezarian the foreshadowing of finding one’s soul companion was a rare and treasured happenstance. But to have a vision about the E’rth alien only caused confusion, and left him with an unquenched physical need. To add to Remar’s aggravation was his inability to even bed his mistress to ease his pains. On more than one occasion he’d tried. His manhood, stiff with eagerness, would deflate as soon as Kala fell into his arms. He knew it could only be one thing, but even the answer was too farfetched to comprehend.
Chezarian’s referred to the experience as the calling, a way for two souls to recognize one another. The few who experienced it were all but guaranteed a mate who would be pleasing to them in every way. But as far as he’d known Chezarians could only experience the connection when in the presence of their soul companion. Because callings were so scarce and Chezarian males outnumbered females if the calling hadn’t taken place for a female by an appointed age the woman’s family could enter her for claiming and possibly make a match for her well above her station.
He searched his mind for other alternatives. Maybe this was really a sign he spent far too much time viewing the alien’s image? Was he obsessed? How could the mere viewing of a female, on a far off world manifest the effects of a calling? Of more importance how could he counter the effects before he went mad from needing a woman he could never possess?
Chapter Two
2177 Somewhere around Jupiter’s orbit
Magnificent.
No matter how many times she made a trek into space the wonder of it all still took Dallas’ breath away. Three months out and her reaction was the same.
“Juno XI you should be approaching the coordinates mapped out,” mission control announced through the receiver of Dallas’ earpiece.
“Roger that,” she responded checking her control panel to verify the coordinates synched.
Everything was a go.
“Going to zero gravity for a visual confirmation of the anomaly.”
“Proceed Juno.”
Dallas released the gravity filter and unstrapped herself. It was purely for her own pleasure. She loved the weightless sensation of being able to float around the roomy cabin which could have easily accommodated a crew compliment of ten or more if not for the added fuel weighing the craft down. Although Juno’s primary propulsion for navigating Jupiter’s orbit relied on solar sails the warp function utilized to reach the planet’s orbit consumed a great deal of fuel and couldn’t support additional members, at least not currently.
She initiated the sequence to raise the outer metal shielding from the radiation protected windows.
“Good morning Dallas.”
She smiled in recognition of the familiar voice coming through from mission control.
“Bobby is that you? I thought you were sitting this one out to be with the family?”
There was a responding chuckle. “And miss this historic mission, not likely. It’s standing room only in here.”
“I bet.” Butterflies had been dancing in her belly for the last three days and now they were having a full on Mardi gras. “I’m holding steady with the coordinates and looking for visual confirmation of the singularity.”
“So I heard.”
Dallas knew radio silence would remain until she could confirm or deny a sighting. She was part way done in her circumnavigation of the command section when she caught a glimpse of something. Actually it was nothing. But the
absence of objects in space was definitely something. Where there should be distant stars and constellations there was only blackness.
“It can’t be,” she mumbled under her breath. Her heart raced at the nearness of the singularity.
The coordinates should have put Juno XI at a more observational distance.
“Mission control visual confirmation has been established,” she confirmed.
There was a brief silence followed by a collection of loud cheers which reached through her ear piece. “Roger that Dallas, can you bring Juno around for the control deck cameras?”
“Will do.”
She pushed off in the direction of her command chair, not able to stop herself from staring at the opaque anomaly sitting just outside the crafts starboard windows.
“Re-establishing gravity,” she advised after harnessing herself. “And bringing Juno around for visual recordings.”
“Now, that’s something, or rather nothing,” Bobby let out.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought when I saw it too. The coordinates seem to be off so I’ll need to move to a safer distance.”
“Copy that Dallas.”
Reverse thrusters engaged Dallas watched the singularity grow smaller with her retreat. Still its yawning blackness was daunting.
“One thing is for certain it’s not a black hole at least not like any we’ve observed. There doesn’t seem to be any gravitational pull and at my previous proximity I should have been close enough to the event horizon to cause concern.”
“Can you provide the new coordinates for the singularity?”
“Already transmitting. How is the image coming through on your end?”
“Amazing. It’s like being right there with you. Your radiation levels are transmitting within mission specifications.”
“Copy that Bobby, everything is checking out normal here. The only hiccup was with the coordinates.”
