by Marly Chance
It would be like stepping into nothingness. She watched the other portal as Shimerians coming to Earth stepped through unharmed. They didn’t appear to be missing any appendages.
Liken, remembering his awe and momentary fear when seeing the portal the first time, waited for her to begin walking again. In this situation at least, he would give her time.
Reminding herself logically that Liken had obviously survived it, she started walking. At the edge of the portal he stopped and looked down at her. “Sharon, we cannot go at the same time. Unpledged females such as yourself must arrive on Shimeria alone to signify you are coming of your own free will. I will go first. Once I disappear, step through.”
She pulled her eyes away from the portal to look up at him.“You trust me to step through after you?” she said with some surprise.
“Of course,” he said with a smile. “You have courage and will not break your oath. Besides, my mind brushed yours. I have some sense of what you feel. You have been through much today, but you are curious, too. I will be waiting on the other side,sherree. Once there, I will satisfy your curiosity. I will satisfy you in any way you desire.” With a wink and a quick kiss, he stepped through. With one step, he was gone and Sharon was left staring into the dense blackness of the portal.
For about ten seconds, she considered proving him wrong. With a sigh, and a muttered “Idesire to stay here, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Know-It-All” under her breath, she stepped through. She had made her choice. What the hell.
Chapter 3
For a moment, time stood still. Sharon felt a numbing blackness pressing in all around her. Her lungs seized, she couldn’t breath. Her body felt as if she was falling, but she couldn’t see or hear anything. Then, before true panic could take hold, light blinded her and she felt air rush into her lungs.
She was standing on the other side of the gate. Liken quickly gathered her close, whispering softly, “Well done,sherree. The disorientation will pass in just a second. It is a little overwhelming at first. Just concentrate on your breathing. In, out, deep breaths…”
Sharon looked up at him and said, “I…don’t…like…portals. I’ve just…decided.” She gave him a weak smile. “That sucked.” His arms felt warm and the weight of them around her felt comforting.
He laughed. “You will be fine.” Gesturing with one arm to the room around them, he said more seriously, “Welcome to my world, Sharon.” His voice was quiet, rather solemn.
Sharon looked around her. She didn’t really know what she expected, but the room around her looked pretty much like the room they had just left. Even the bored customs officer looked the same, only his sheer size and that vague power the Shimerians seemed to have in common gave him away. He was gesturing with one arm for her to proceed. His voice carried strained politeness, although the undertone of impatience was clear. “Progress forward,Isshal. More passengers await.”
Sharon’s mouth dropped open. What an insulting planet! She heard herself say with quiet dignity, “No problem, asshole.”
Liken gave a choked laugh. “He did not call you an asshole. You insult him,sherree. He was merely addressing you formally.Isshal is the Shimerian equivalent of “ma’am”.”
The transport officer was looking at her with a combination of anger and shock. His face had gone red.
Sharon felt her own color rise along with her embarrassment. “I’m so sorry. Really. I’m new here and I thought…”
Liken laughed and said, “It is okay, Sharon. Let us move along.”
She let him pull her through the room. She definitely wasn’t on Earth anymore, no matter how familiar everything looked. Of course, she had expected something totally different for her first experience of another planet. Feeling somewhat disappointed, she followed Liken up two flights of stairs and into a large lobby area.
Liken, sensing her disappointment, said, “It is a way to help with the disorientation. Making both buildings look essentially the same makes the drama of the voyage a little more mundane. It is supposed to be calming. Being on a new world for the first time can be somewhat overwhelming. If you will notice, the signs in this building are in various languages. The top is Shimerian, but underneath are several Earth languages as well as other planetary tongues. There are differences here, but after the shock of the trip, it is best absorbed slowly.”
Understanding the common sense of his remarks, Sharon remained silent as they walked through the lobby. There were no windows, just the bland walls of an office building, although they looked pink. She knew other people had to have left the building before them, but she couldn’t see any exit doors. She let Liken guide her toward one of the walls. As they moved, she thought to ask, “What time is it here?”It had been late afternoon when they left Earth.
“It is early moonstime. Ahhh, I believe about eight o’clockin the evening, byyour time. I should probably remind you that Shimerian moonslight is different.” Liken pushed a large button on the wall. She watched in amazement as part of the wall opened and slid inside itself.
“Different how…” the words had no sooner left her mouth than she could tell he had opened a sliding door. Outside the building was a city street, similar to the streets where they had left. There were no vehicles or modes of transportation visible. There were offices made of rocklike materials similar to brick, but they were glowing in the moonlight. The light was pure silver. Looking up, she saw two large silvery moons overhead right next to each other.
Liken saw where she was looking in the evening sky.“Those are Tilus and Noman,”he explained.
Stepping out into the light, she noticed her skin glimmering as if she had been dusted in mother of pearl. It was strange. Liken’s skin remained the same color. “Why am I shiny?” It was bizarre, but kind of neat.
He said, “I do not know. I am sure there is a scientific reason, but all humans experience the same thing in moonslight. It is very attractive. Some Shimerian women even try to emulate it by applying glittering powder. It never looks the same.”He could feel his body harden at the sight of her glowing in the moonslight. She looked delicate and beautiful.
“So, there are native Shimerian women here?” she asked. She had seen women travelers paired with some of the Shimerian men back in the portal room. The women had the same dark hair and intense charisma of their male counterparts.
“Yes, but very few.” He sounded a little sad. Then, his mouth lifted in a smile, “Of course, if there were more, I might never have met you,sherree.”
Visions of him kissing another woman as he had kissed her in the empty office came to mind. She didn’t like the thought.She didn’t like the feeling of jealousy that accompanied it, either.Resolutely pushing those thoughts aside, she asked, “How do we get to your home?”
Liken watched the changing expressions on her face. That brief flash of jealousy pleased him immensely. His little librarian was feeling possessive already. Things were progressing nicely. Not wanting her to guess at his happiness, hepointed to a sign saying “shimvehi.” There was a staircase leading downward next to it. “It is like your subway. We will be using it to get toour home, Sharon.”
Shrugging her shoulders, she followed him down the staircase. Each step seemed to be difficult. Feeling strangely lethargic, she wondered about interplanetary jetlag. At the bottom of the stairs, there was something resembling a subway train. People, some native Shimerian, some obviously from other planets, were gathering in lines to get into what looked like subway cars. The individual cars had seats like benches inside where people sat.
There were no lone, unescorted females, although she did notice some women together in groups of two or three. The women were all dressed in outfits similar to the one she was wearing, although the colors were different. Some of the blouses were halter-tops and some of the skirts were much shorter. There were some women who looked like they were probably human, although she was having more and more trouble focusing on her surroundings. Fatigue was weighing down her body more with each step.
The cars formed a train that was pointed toward the gateway of a portal. Noting each side of the room had a portal, she assumed one was for coming and one for going. Looking at the portal the train was facing, she noticed it was smaller than the one back at the pactbuilding, but the eerie darkness was the same.
“Train ride to oblivion,” she muttered to herself. “Great, just what I wanted, another portalto travel.”Already exhausted, she wasn’t looking forward to another trip through that blackness. As they entered theshimvehi and took their seats on a bench-like area, she found herself slumping.
Feeling her weight sagging against him, Liken put his arm around her and drew her close to his chest. “Sherree, you are crashing. Your body is adjusting to this planet’s gravity and atmosphere. Your first trip through the interplanetary portal adds more stress. This portal merely takes us to a different city. Do not worry. Just relax. We will be home soon. You will sleep many hours. It is to be expected.”
Before he finished the last word, he saw that she was sound asleep. Feeling her soft weight against him, he sighed. Finally, she was here. Touching her hair with a soothing motion, he felt theshimvehi start to move.As his mind filled with images of the pleasures they would bring each other, he smiled. Seduction had never promised to be so sweet.
Chapter 4
Where the hell was she? Sharon looked at her surroundings and found nothing familiar. This wasn’t her bed. This wasn’t even her bedroom. Coming fully awake, she assessed the situation. She was lying in some sort of bed, although it was huge. The covers were quite soft but she couldn’t place the material. It had the comfortable feel of cotton, but felt soft as silk. The walls were a light blue color. There were no windows and no doorway.
Was this a prison? If so, it was a comfortable one. There were pictures of strangely alien, but beautiful landscapes on three of the walls. Alien. With that thought, the events of the previous day came back to her. Startled, she sat up. Realizing she was stark naked, she immediately yanked the covers up around her. Oh, boy. Today was the first day of the rest of this farce.
Feeling energized, she looked around for some kind of clothing to put on. Her clothes had better be close by. As the wall slid open and Liken walked through, she had the mortifying realization that he must have undressed her. Oath or no oath, she didn’t appreciate it.
Liken entered the room to discover Sharon sitting up in bed, bedclothes barely covering that naked body, cheeks rosy, eyes shining with outrage. In an instant, he was hard. He wanted to climb onto the bed and make her beg. Voice gruff, he asked “How are you feeling, sherree?”
It was hard to be angry and maintain your dignity while stark naked under the thin cover of bedsheets. “Fine. Where are my clothes?”
“You will find garments in there,” he replied with cautious gravity, although his amusement leaked through. She was shy, but he would change that inhibition. If he had his way, she would spend the rest of her knowing period naked and eager for him
Sharon noticed the large bulge in the front of his pants. She knew if she didn’t hurry, he would be joining her on the bed.Following his pointed finger, she saw a button off to the right. She assumed it opened a closet. “I’ll meet you in a minute after I’m dressed.” Her stomach growled.
Liken could hear the soft noise from the doorway.He smiled. “We will eat and then I will show you our home.” He headed back out of the room. At the last second, he paused and turned back to her. “Regardless of what you choose to wear,sherree, you could not look more beautiful than at this moment.” With that, he walked away and the wall slid shut behind him.
He was charming; she’d give him that. Smooth. She had the feeling that the charm was only one layer though. Underneath it, she sensed a hard resolve. His desire was obvious and barely held in check. He would try to get something by charm, but if charm didn’t work? She shivered a little at the thought.
Carefully crossing the room with a sheet wrapped around her, she pushed the button on the wall and watched as it slid open. It was a closet, just as she had thought. She examined the clothes hanging there. There were numerous blouses and skirts. All were quite beautiful. They were made of a thin, silky material in different hues of colors. Some colors were like nothing she had seen on Earth. Blues and greens were more vibrant. The silver was especially lovely. There were even tiny panties with string ties. Looking everywhere, she couldn’t find any bras. Just great. That silky material was going to outline everything.
Resigned, she selected a blouse and skirt of shimmering silver with tiny panties of the same color. There were strappy sandals to match. Putting everything on,she looked down at herself. The thin fabric of the blouse outlined the thrust of her nipples. The skirt was loose but hit just above the knee. Reluctantly, shewandered out into the hall.
Seeing a button on her right in the hall, she pushed it to reveal what was obviously a bathroom. It had a recognizable toilet, which she used gratefully. Seeing a stall to the side, she opened that door and discovered a shower with one handle. Feeling grubby, she decided to give it a shot. Removing her clothes and shoes, she sat them on the floor and then turned the knob.
She was expecting water. She gave a little yelp of surprise as bright red liquid flooded from the nozzle high up on the wall. She reached out with one cautious hand and touched it. The temperature was hot, but not overly so. It felt more slippery than water, a little heavier. Weighing her grubbiness against the unknown, she decided to try.
Stepping under the pouring liquid, she was surprised to discover it was like quicksilver. She hoped she didn’t get dyed lobster red. The liquid poured over her skin, but when she stepped out, she was nearly dry. Grateful her skin hadn’t turned the same hideous color, she put her clothes back on. Walking out into the hall, she kept going until she spotted open archways to the right and left. She could hear movement in the room to the right and turned toward it.
Entering the kitchen, she was surprised at the similarities to Earth kitchens. There was a long counter running along one side of the room. There were cabinets above it, although they had buttons she assumed would open each one. One wall was completely bare except for what looked like a small computer panel. It had a lot of buttons that presumably opened the wall or provided food transport maybe.
There was a mural carving of some kind on one wall that showed a waterfall. It was quite beautiful. In the center of the room, was a square table with four chairs. They could have come from any Earth kitchen. She was surprised to see that the table was already set. There were two settings, one on each side of the table. She saw plates and cups along with napkins, but no eating utensils.
In the center of the table sat a couple of bowls filled with oddly shaped fruits or vegetables, she guessed. There were some oblong dark green things, small orange shiny things that looked like berries, some larger purple things that were lumpy-looking, and even some bright yellow things that were almost square. She figured her first experience of exotic cuisine was about to start. Oh, joy.
Liken sat the last bowl onto the table and turned to smile at her. “Please do not assume I can cook. I am a guardian by profession. This is merely fruit.” He moved and held out a chair for her to sit.
Pleased with his manners, she took it, watching as he sat down opposite her. “A guardian? What does that mean?”
Casually gathering an assortment from the various bowls, he began to put things on her plate. “A guardian is similar to your police officer. What do you call them? Cops? We protect those in need and prevent loss of life and property,”Liken responded easily. It was nice to know that she was curious about him and his work.
Staring at him, she could see it. He did look like a cop. He could be gentle, but that underlying ruthlessness was there, too. “So, are you going to work today?”she asked hopefully. She shifted uncomfortably as she saw his eyes wander over her in appreciation. This outfit was no protection. She wanted as much distance between him and her tiny panties as possible. He couldn’t seduce her if
he wasn’t around.
Looking amused, he shook his head. “I would not get assigned during my knowing period. I do not report back until after we have pledged.” Breaking open a light purple fruit, he handed her half.
Eyeing it skeptically, but willing, she took a small, cautious bite. The sweetness burst in her mouth and she smiled with pleasure. She relaxed and continued to sample the different fruits. Making a face at the sour taste of the yellow one, she made a note to avoid it in the future. Very casually she said, “Yeah, I guess they’ve taken care of my job, too. I’m a librarian. After the noncomp papers are filed, I’ll probably have a ton of stuff to catch up on.” She waited for his reaction.
He had been eating his way through the fruit on his plate while she spoke. He paused. His face was still amused, but reproving. “There will be no noncomp papers,sherree.” Reaching across the table, he took her chin in his hands, gently. Using his thumb to wipe the juice from her lips, he brought it slowly to his mouth. “We are very compatible. You will understand this quite soon.”
Feeling the trail of heat left behind by his thumb, she swallowed the piece of fruit. She watched as he licked the juice from his thumb with sensual pleasure. Her appetite for the fruit died and she looked away. Visibly gathering her composure, she tried reason. “Look, it doesn’t have anything to do with you, okay? I like Earth. I have friends. I don’t want to be a planet away from them. I have a job, an apartment, and responsibilities. A life. Mine. I’ve heard about this place. I don’t remember much, but I do know that there are no unattached females over twenty. It’s very male-dominated. Very old-style warrior mentality. I’m too independent to suit you or this place. I need different things. Trust me.” She didn’t hear the unconscious plea that had crept into her voice.
Liken studied her face during her oh-so-reasonable speech. Her eyes were sincere. She honestly believed she could not be happy here. “Maybe I can change your mind about what you need,sherree. Maybe I should start now.” Rising, he came around the table and squatted next to her.
