by Lucy Snow
So he does know how to smile after all.
Intriguing didn’t even do him justice.
CHAPTER 04 - ARK
For the first time in my life, I woke up with more than one purpose. Before that day I had dedicated my life to the empire, traveling throughout its vast reaches and doing the High Command’s bidding without a second question, relishing in my ability to get the job done and further empire’s interests.
That ache to lead my men, that need to serve my people still burned within me this morning as I lay on the slab in my room at the station. But alongside it was a new purpose, a new goal.
I had known from the moment I had laid eyes on her that this Melissa Crane of Earth was to be my mate for the rest of my life. And now, for the first time, I was no longer able to push down the weight in my chest that called out to me when I saw mated pairs together. The voice inside told me that I should find the same thing, but I had always quelled that voice, and moved on with my life, toward the next lonely place the empire needed my services.
This was different, though. Melissa Crane of Earth was different. Of course, she was human - never in my wildest fever dreams had I thought that a non-Kreossian woman would capture the huge heart that beat in my chest.
It had taken all of my will to be able to control myself around her. The turmoil that had coursed through my veins had threatened to derail the control I had so meticulously tried to cultivate, under Admiral Kaalax’ tutelage. It had not been an easy process.
On the one hand, I thought as I stared up at the ceiling, it was a relief to know that I wasn’t some sort of aberration - a Kreossian unable to love, unable to feel the power that love could create in a warrior of my species. I had almost begun to believe that I was different from all the rest, that my dedication to my people had meant that I would never be able to find love, that I would be doomed to roam the empire, traveling from battle to battle, gathering glory and conquest but not being able to share it with anyone.
Now that had all changed. I knew for a definite fact that my love did exist, that I had somewhere to place all the emotions and feelings that welled up inside me. That was a relief.
But at the same time, she was a…human woman! How could this have happened? I knew better by now than to question my instincts, but at the same time, this was almost intolerable.
Still, I mused as I turned over to my side and looked out the giant porthole into the vast reaches of space, stars shining their unblinking light back at me, messages from eons ago, she was beautiful. She was definitely fit and healthy or the humans would not have let her accompany Ambassador Fuller on a trip like this, but even so I knew that next to me she was positively frail.
That quality had never appealed to me in a potential mate before, but now after seeing Melissa, after feeling her touch, I could understand how my pulse quickened when she drew close, how my mouth dried up when she looked at me. I felt an overwhelming need to protect her, and I couldn’t explain why.
Of course, I laughed mirthlessly to myself in the empty room, it was because she was to be my mate, even if she didn’t know it yet. I could already feel my body changing, accommodating the discovery of my mate, the need to keep her close growing.
Of course, I would have to tell her soon. She would no doubt be wary of the entire idea, especially given the rather lax culture of love that had grown on her planet since they found out they were not alone in the universe. I was sure that Melissa Crane of Earth would warm up to the notion soon enough. Despite the tale she had woven about the short term relationships on Earth, Melissa did not seem like the type to just flit from man to man.
And though I had enjoyed the company of women of many species across the empire, it had never been meaningful. Not like I could already anticipate coupling with Melissa to be. The hardness I had woken up with pulsed as I thought of touching her again, of making her my mate.
I shook my head, trying to clear the thoughts away. The Kreossian Empire’s most fearsome warrior laid low by a human woman? Reduced to this lack of strength? This wouldn’t do at all.
At the same time, though, a voice in the back of my head made it clear to me that while I could fight this development, or, rather, this revelation of fate, in the long run this would not be a war I could win.
Still, though, I needed to retain my focus as long as possible and make sure I was still equipped to handle this and any other mission.
I sat up on the slab in my room, pulling my knees in closer and hooking my arms around them while looking out the window into the blackness of space. I was not cold or uncomfortable - the questions that jump into one’s thoughts when staring out at the emptiness beyond, questions of mortality and meaning and relevance and significance, didn’t cross my path.
If anything, I was comfortable with who I was - I had fought long and hard to get to this point and that kind of survival and success didn’t come to one who questioned himself.
The voice in the back of my head didn’t speak of such questions, such thoughts. The voice spoke of Melissa Crane of Earth, and I knew better than to try and silence it. Hopefully, it would recede into the fog and I could ignore it until this mission was over, and I could find a new battle to fight, a new war to win, far, far away from Earth, instead of child-rearing jobs like this.
Admiral Kaalax, for all the glory and conquest he had achieved, had grown soft in his old age. He thought more of diplomacy and high-minded notions of togetherness, when I knew the truth, the truth Kaalax seemed to have forgotten: the galaxy was a cold and unflinching expanse that would destroy all inside it without the blink of an eye given the half the chance.
Survival was a constant struggle, and making friends with insignificant weakling races didn’t make the Kreossians any more able to stand the terrors that waited in the infinite night.
Of course, I didn’t have to agree with Admiral Kaalax, I just had to follow the man’s orders, which I would do without question. Still, as I looked out into the darkness and tried to focus on individual stars, I wondered which of them held battles that would excite me.
I sighed as I turned to look back at the bare and drab room. Until this mission was over and I could make my way to those battles, I would have to settle for the excitement that came from peaceful negotiations. I laughed again to the empty room, but the laughter rang hollow.
Of course, Melissa Crane of Earth did offer a different kind of excitement. But as soon as the thought came to mind, I tried to banish it - it would do no good to indulge these fantasies. Melissa was not my mate and would never be. I would not let myself be consumed by her.
I swung my feet off the slab and stood up, raising my arms and moving them about while squatting down as low as I could go, beginning the traditional Kreossian warrior’s morning calisthenics routine. Some warriors in the empire thought themselves too advanced and powerful for such rituals, but I had learned through experience that relying on the old ways took the guesswork out of things - routines like this became routines for a reason.
I completed the ritual, feeling the muscles that coursed all over my body stretch and wake up, ready for whatever the day would bring. Even if all I would do was sit and listen to Ambassador Fuller and Admiral Kaalax talk while trying not to stare at Melissa Crane, it felt good to have the muscles move around a little bit, keep them on edge for the future. A warrior was only as good as he kept his body lean and ready.
I looked at the chronometer on the wall, the only adornment in the entire room. It was early - the day’s meeting was not scheduled to begin for a while. I liked to wake up early; I liked to think it gave me an advantage over the rest of the day.
I hadn’t been on one of these stations before. The Kreossians had many designs for them, based on the biology of the species they were interacting with, but this was the first time I had been assigned for a first contact mission. It was bare and functional - the way all things created by the Kreossians were - the way I liked it.
I had time before the conference was
set to resume for the day, and now that morning calisthenics were done, I might as well explore the station. I knew it wasn’t large, but there were probably some interesting rooms I hadn’t yet seen.
Just as I finished getting dressed, my stomach began to rumble. It had been hours since I had eaten - not since I had been with Melissa.
Just thinking back to that meal brought a rush of feelings back to wash over me. I knew that I needed to resist her, no matter what my body was telling me, but at the same time I recognized the futility of doing so. Whether I accepted it or not, Melissa Crane of Earth was my mate, and I had to deal with that.
I sighed and finished getting dressed in my customary dress uniform, not nearly as comfortable as my well-worn battle fatigues, but necessary when dealing with diplomatic situations. The word ‘diplomatic’ rolled through my mind as I shook my head.
I didn’t like it one bit, and I couldn’t wait till this mission was over. As I left my quarters and walked down the low-lit corridor toward the dining room, I wondered where the Kreossian empire would send me next. Hopefully somewhere far, far away.
I expected the dining room to be empty, the lights down low as they were by default when no one was around. The lights were indeed dim, but my deep eyes, well adjusted after years of low-light battles, could easily tell when I walked in that the room wasn’t empty.
Melissa Crane sat at the same table we had used for dinner a few hours earlier. Her back was to me, but I knew it was her from the curves of her body, barely hidden under her uniform. My breath caught in my lungs; I didn’t expect to see her here, alone, not this early. What defenses I had were down.
I had half a mind to turn and leave the room before she noticed me, but as I stood there, silent as I could be, momentarily trying to decide, Melissa turned and looked back at me with those large eyes of hers, almost glowing in the stark light.
“Oh!” She exclaimed, putting her hand to her mouth in surprise. “Ark! I didn’t notice you there.”
“I just got here.” Now I had no choice, so I stepped into the room. “Do not let me disturb you.”
I walked around the room, avoiding her at the center, trying to look out the portholes instead of focusing on her. I did glance over to see her as I crossed the circular room and saw that Melissa had a plate of half-eaten food in front of her.
On the opposite side of the room were the food generation machines. I stood in front of them, mulling over which nutritional supplement to choose from the ones I enjoyed early in the morning.
Then it hit me. I tapped on the screen till the last request showed up and I ordered that. The machine whirred for a few seconds and then I removed the plate from the dispenser, holding it up, my back turned to Melissa so she couldn’t see.
According to the readout, this was…scrambled eggs, sausage, and hash browns, whatever those were. I was happy to see the machine had used the traditional first meal nutritional supplements - even if the taste didn’t appeal to me I knew I would get the right sustenance.
I gathered utensils then turned around and walked to the table. Melissa was focused on her plate and I didn’t make a sound till I sat down. She started again, surprised I was so close, and I smiled at my stealthy capabilities.
Melissa looked down at my plate as I set it on the table and her eyes grew wide before she smiled at me. “I didn’t know you went in for such traditional farmer’s breakfasts.”
I glanced back at her. “I decided to sample the local breakfast cuisine and see for myself. I thought it might give me some insight as to why Admiral Kaalax is so fond of Earth.”
“Is he?”
“Yes, he is. He has been looking forward to this mission for years. He is very fond of your Ambassador Fuller.”
Melissa smiled, and I could see the deep reverence she held for her boss. “Ambassador Fuller is the same way. He’s been talking my ear off about Kaalax since I first started working for him. Last year he was ill and it looked like he wouldn’t be able to go on this mission, but I swear Fuller willed himself to get better just so he could be here.”
Her words hung in the sterile air of the station for a few moments. It hadn’t occurred to me that the races the Kreossians introduced to the galaxy would be so excited by the idea.
My food still sat in front of me. I lifted the utensil and looked down at it, suddenly ravenously hungry but unsure how to approach it. I didn’t know what anything was.
Melissa must have been watching me, because she laughed out loud. “Having a little trouble there?” She said while covering her mouth, the laughter coming in waves.
“I do not see what is so funny. Your food is too complicated.” One part was yellow and almost gelatinous, another flaky, and the third in long curved tubes. None of it made any sense.
“I agree,” Melissa said, nodding her head sagely, which was difficult to pull off because she was still laughing. “Much too complicated. We should start serving it in powdered cube form.”
I opened my mouth to agree and begin telling her all the reasons why that was a good idea when I realized that the look on her face suggested she didn’t mean quite what she said. “You are making fun of me.”
“What? Me? Noooooo,” she began. “Perish the thought, Ark. I would never think of such a thing.”
“And well you should not,” I said, assuming she was being genuine as I looked back at my plate. “I am not a man to be trifled with.”
“Clearly, given the way you’re attacking that food.”
“I have not yet taken a bite, Melissa Crane of Earth.”
“I can see that, Ark of Kreoss. Your reputation as a culinary strategist clearly has gone unappreciated till now.”
I narrowed my gaze at her. She was incredibly beautiful, but what most attracted me to her was the spark behind her eyes. She would challenge me in ways that I had not yet considered, and I found myself intrigued by the possibilities of mating with her.
Melissa must have caught my change in tone because she grew quiet and stopped laughing, pulling her hair back away from her face and tucking it behind her ear.
“You are unafraid of me.”
“On the contrary, I’m petrified of you.”
“You do not show it.”
“And that’s taking all the courage I can muster.” She looked around. “Plus, it’s 5am, and I have a rule about being scared.”
“What rule is that?”
“I never get scared between the hours of 4am and 12pm.”
The way she said it so matter-of-factly made me bellow with laughter, and soon she broke out laughing with me too. “I can tell, Melissa, that you would be a formidable opponent at any hour of the day.”
“Not just an opponent,” Melissa whispered before turning bright red and looking down, picking at the remnants of her food.
My stomach took the opportunity to remind the that I was getting hungrier by the moment, most likely because a steaming plate of food sat in front of me yet I refused to eat any of it, because a human woman sitting in front of me had captivated me so.
I picked up the utensil again and randomly stuck it into the yellow gelatinous substance, gathering part of it and taking a bite. The texture was pleasing, but the flavor lacked bite.
Melissa must have read my mind, because she piped up. “The eggs by themselves need seasoning. But you don’t want too much, so try eating them with the hash browns.”
When I did not move, she reached over and pointed out the flakey brown filings on the right side. “Try both of those at the same time.” I did, and the two foods worked together very well.
“Why not just eat the…hash browns, then, since they contain all the flavor?”
Melissa leaned back and waved at the food generators. “Given that we’re eating the same stuff no matter what we order, there’s not reason not to, but back on Earth, we have made cooking into an art.”
