The Refugee (The Korvali Chronicles Book 1)

by C. A. Hartman

  Eshel placed his hand between her legs. She froze, until he began exploring the area with his fingers. He touched softly, again almost as if afraid of harming her, his smooth nail-less fingers stroking her. She felt lightheaded suddenly and almost backed away, but realized the tree they’d sat under was right behind her. Eshel saw her expression and stopped. She put her hand on his and guided it back to her, leaning against the tree for support. He continued until she was so overwhelmed by the sensation that she grabbed Eshel’s other arm to steady herself.

  After, she sank down onto her mat as she tried to recapture her breath. Eshel kneeled down next to her. She glanced up at him, and his face showed raised eyebrows and another expression she’d never seen before. Not knowing what to say, she sat there, the lightheadedness passing but her sense of nervousness returning.

  Before she could make any move, Eshel took her hand and placed it on his chest, palm down. She looked back up at him, and when he saw she didn’t protest, he slowly moved her hand across his chest, down to his abdominal area, then back up. He let go of her hand.

  She rearranged herself closer to him so she could comfortably touch him, not daring to look up at his face. She felt her hand grow a little shaky, but kept stroking him. Despite its smooth, hairless appearance, his skin wasn’t soft. It felt tougher, thicker, than human skin. Not knowing if she were doing it right, she kept going. She finally peeked up at him, wondering if he’d still be gazing at her. But to her surprise, his eyes were closed, his face expressionless. For the first time, Catherine took a quick glance around, hoping they were still alone. They seemed to be. She felt a bit foolish; but with no sign of resistance from Eshel, she continued stroking him.

  Suddenly, Eshel shoved her hand away, a slight scowl on his face. It was the most unpleasant expression she’d ever seen on him, worse than even his disgust at the small sip he’d once taken of Snow’s coffee. His eyes opened.

  “I hurt you,” she said, feeling guilty for whatever offense she’d given.

  “No,” he said, looking down.

  She looked down as well, but saw nothing. Then, she looked more closely—there, near the top of his swim shorts, was a small bit of brownish liquid. Catherine stared at it, wanting to touch it. But before she could, Eshel stood up.

  “I will be gone only a brief time.” And he headed toward the water, light reflecting off of Suna’s rings and shining on his pale skin. He dove in, disappeared, and then reappeared, standing up where the water reached his torso. Catherine watched Eshel bend over and fumble with something; he’d removed his shorts to rinse them in the sea. He disappeared under the water again, only to reemerge closer to the shore, swim shorts on.

  “You are cold again,” he said when he returned.

  She nodded, realizing she’d developed goose bumps. She turned away to retrieve her clothing, and began dressing herself.

  “Catherine.”

  She looked up, Eshel’s tone making her apprehensive.

  “Never speak of this. With anyone.”

  It was the first time Eshel had ever repeated himself. “I won’t,” she reassured him. “But people will suspect, Eshel. They already do. Commander Yamamoto asked if we were… involved. I told him we weren’t,” she added quickly. As awkward as the conversation was, it was a welcome relief from their previous interaction.

  Eshel’s eyes narrowed. “Why did you lie?”

  “It wasn’t a lie,” she replied, baffled.

  “Wasn’t it?”

  She looked aside, considering what he’d said. Was it?

  Eshel continued. “I refer not to our… involvement, but to our… sexual activity. That can never be shared.”

  “What can’t? The specifics, or the fact that we did… what we did… at all?”

  “Neither.”

  “Why?”

  “You said you would not speak of it,” he said, his tone colder.

  “And I won’t. But if I’m going to lie, to contradict everyone’s assumptions, it would help if I understood why you want me to be so secretive.” The moment she said it, she knew why. He was secretive about everything, but especially about anything having to do with sex. No one knew about the mating habits of the Korvali, about their procreative ability, about their reproductive morphology. Eshel never discussed it, and he would remain silent if Tom or someone else asked a question of that nature or made a drunken, inappropriate quip. And Eshel’s response only confirmed the conclusion she came to.

  “It is difficult to explain, Catherine. It is… how I am.”

  Before she could say more, she heard a chirp. She looked around before realizing it was her contactor, and reached for her bag. There was another chirp; Eshel reached into his bag.

  “They’re worried about you,” Catherine said.

  Eshel checked his contactor. He spoke Yamamoto’s name and waited until he heard the XO’s voice. “Yes, Commander. I am fine. Catherine is with me. We are returning to the ship now.”

  Yamamoto had contacted her as well. We’re on our way back, Sir, she replied.

  Catherine and Eshel packed up their things. They walked toward the narrow stairway and climbed it, carefully ascending the ladder portions of the climb, with only Suna’s ring shine to illuminate their journey. Once reaching the top, they waited for the train to arrive and take them back to Cornelia.

  Catherine arrived at Yamamoto’s office and sat down for their scheduled meeting, feeling more nervous than usual. A lot had happened recently. Yamamoto knew all that transpired on the ship, and it was difficult to predict how he’d react to any of it.

  “You look uncomfortable today,” Yamamoto said.

  She shrugged. “I guess I’m nervous about what you thought of the fight… and its encore.”

  “You fought well. To result in a draw is a good outcome for anyone in the CCFs, particularly a female.”

  “Thank you, Sir.” She paused, sensing that a “however” was to follow.

  “However…” he began.

  Her heart began to pound.

  “You should have won the match. If you choose to take the rematch, you will need to train with me to prepare.”

  Catherine sat there for several moments. Won the match? “I… I wasn’t planning on taking the rematch.”

  “You aren’t required to. But if you do, you will need to prepare properly next time. You had inadequate endurance from inadequate training. With proper training, you will overtake your opponent in the final round.” Yamamoto’s contactor chirped. He glanced at it. “And you were too passive, Catherine. As we’ve discussed before, you should not wait for your opponent to make a move; he will see your hesitation and exploit it.”

  “Yes, Sir,” she replied, nodding. “What about what happened afterward?”

  He sat back in his chair. “I imagine you will guard yourself more carefully if you choose to compete again.”

  Despite his criticisms, Catherine felt relief that Yamamoto didn’t chastise her for her retaliation against the Calyyt. However, she still felt nervous. And she knew exactly why.

  “You were right,” she blurted out. “About Eshel.”

  Yamamoto gave a slight nod.

  “I didn’t see it before. But we are now… involved. I… I don’t know what it is. I don’t know anything.” She paused, overwhelmed with self-consciousness. “We don’t talk about genetics,” she added. “I just… I don’t know what to say. Eshel is very private. But I wanted you to know.” She finally stopped talking and looked down, too embarrassed to say more.

  “You seem happy, when you’re with him. So does he.”

  Catherine looked up again. “You approve of this?”

  “I understand it.” He paused. “As I told you before, be cautious. You will be scrutinized even more now.”

  She nodded. “Yes, Sir.”

  “You are aware that Eshel was attacked again.”

  Catherine nodded, grateful for the change in topic. “It was pretty crowded in the arena courtyard. When I turned around, he was
gone. He does that sometimes… just disappears.”

  “I want you to concentrate more on Sunai defense techniques with Eshel,” he said. “This has happened twice, and may occur again. Since he is comfortable with you now, I encourage you to teach him full contact methods, including the more aggressive ones.” He stood up, indicating that their time was up.

  She did the same. “Yes, Sir. Thank you.” She bowed and left.

  Yamamoto glanced at his schedule, then at the time. The Captain had called a meeting. Once he saw it was in the bridge ready room, he knew the meeting would involve the rest of the command team. He had a very good idea of what was on the agenda and he prepared himself for more than the usual amount of questions.

  He arrived at the ready room a few minutes early and nodded at Ov’Raa, who was the only attendee present. Commanders Marks and O’Leary came in a minute later, Marks talking in his usual loud voice about the CCFs. Commander Steele followed the two men and sat down, acknowledging no one. Finally, Ferguson walked in with Dr. Vargas.

  Ferguson looked down at her electronic pad before setting it down and glancing around the table to see that everyone had arrived. “Let’s have the updates,” she said.

  Marks informed them of a couple of minor changes to their itinerary. O’Leary discussed the engine efficiency estimates and their maintenance work on the FTL drive. Ov’Raa briefed them on who was up for review or promotion. Vargas gave a longer synopsis of sick bay activity, the shortage of scanners, and the intermittent warming of the cold chamber. And Steele offered a brief summary of the scientific activities on the ship, most of which was focused on molecular biology and astrophysics.

  Ferguson nodded, pulling her electronic pad closer to her. Yamamoto saw this as a promising sign that she would adjourn the meeting. Instead, she paused and sat back in her chair. A wary look crossed her face.

  “There are a couple of issues with our newest crewmember,” she said. “Eshel has had two confrontations with Sunai gumiia in Ronia. In both cases, they attacked him; the first time he was protected by the geneticist, who happens to be one of Suko’s students,” she nodded at Yamamoto, “and the second time he managed to defend himself. I’ve spoken to Gronoi Sansuai about this, but even he has limited reach on Derovia. I’ve warned Eshel more than once about staying close to the others.” She glanced over at Ov’Raa.

  Ov’Raa took his cue. “Yes, Captain, the gumiia can be troublesome at times, especially with otherworld males.”

  “Yes,” Steele said. “But why did they target Eshel on two occasions, when there have been no other attacks on our human crew?”

  Before Ov’Raa could respond, Marks jumped in. “It’s because he’s Korvali. The Sunai don’t like them because of what happened when they breached the Korvali border years ago. Wait until we go to Suna,” he added with a smirk.

  Ov’Raa shook his head. “I do not believe the attacks are related to Eshel’s race. The gumiia often display such behavior, and Eshel is a novelty for them.”

  “What if they’re more serious than that?” Yamamoto said. “Eshel said Catherine Finnegan saw two Korvali on the train, staring at her. This was just hours before he was attacked.”

  Ferguson shook her head. “The Korvali are allowed on Derovia. And they stare at everyone. It’s probably a coincidence. Just be aware, all of you. He’s enough trouble as it is without creating more friction with the Sunai over him. Which leads me to my final agenda item,” she said, looking over at Yamamoto. “Eshel and the geneticist, Lieutenant Finnegan, have developed some sort of romantic relationship.”

  After a moment of silence, they looked around at one another, their expressions a mix of surprise, amusement, and disapproval.

  “Wait… what are we talking about here, Captain?” Commander Marks asked, his expression half displeasure, half puerile fascination. “Are they in love or are they just nailing each other?” His smile got larger. Once O’Leary began to laugh, Marks joined in.

  Ferguson gave him a stern look. “Stow it, Commander.”

  Yamamoto was somewhat grateful for Marks’s gaffe, since it would take some of the heat off of him.

  Ferguson looked at him. “What is this?”

  “I don’t know the intimate details of their connection,” Yamamoto replied. “Nor is it our business. I am of the understanding that it’s a recent development and that their relationship is tentative.”

  “I don’t know what shocks me more,” Vargas chimed in. “That she’d put up with him, or that he’s capable of any kind of relationship.” More laughter ensued.

  “This is not a situation that exists for our amusement!” Steele said, his voice raised. The laughter ceased. “Eshel is a refugee from a planet that has very strict rules about protecting their genetic expertise, and he is intimately involved with a human geneticist! This must stop, and it must stop immediately! Lieutenant Finnegan has already broken my strict code regarding talking about genetics with Eshel, which I still believe wasn’t taken nearly as seriously as it ought to have been. Do you believe they will obey the order now, considering that they’ve already broken it, that they’ve been having a secret affair? Do you have any idea how dangerous such knowledge is?”

  “Their relationship isn’t secret, James,” Yamamoto said. “Catherine told me about it herself. And she made it clear they do not discuss genetics.”

  “And you believe her,” Steele said, “despite her already having breached the rules.”

  “She didn’t breach the rules,” Yamamoto argued. “Her mother died of cancer despite numerous attempts at genetic treatment, and she told Eshel the details. That breaks no rule.”

  “You’re missing the point,” Steele said angrily. “I instructed her to not discuss genetics of any kind. It’s a slippery slope to more involved conversations. I have found Lieutenant Finnegan to be untrustworthy, and if sensitive information gets into her hands, it could be disseminated in ways that will cause significant problems with the Korvali. You’re in charge of beds and heads—it’s your job to put an end to this relationship.”

  “You do not tell me what my job is,” Yamamoto said, his voice raised. “I will handle this the way I believe it should be handled. And if you question my authority again, Commander, you will find yourself on your way back to Headquarters by the end of the week.”

  The room quieted. Steele’s gaunt, angry face paled. “You don’t have the authority to make that decision.”

  “I will get it.”

  Steele glanced at Ferguson, who returned his look in silence. Steele gave Yamamoto a withering look, but said nothing.

  Ferguson spoke, aiming her comment at Yamamoto. “You have to admit that, given our relationship with the Korvali and the Alliance’s rule, those two getting involved does create complications.”

  “It may,” Yamamoto said. “But it is my opinion, and I believe Niri would agree,” he glanced at Ov’Raa, “that we have no grounds to prevent their involvement. She is not his commanding officer. We have no edicts preventing relations with otherworlders, with the exception of human males involving themselves with Sunai females, and that rule only came about to mollify the Sunai. All we can do is make it very clear that breach of our rules about the discussion of genetics will have severe consequences.”

  The others nodded, while Steele didn’t respond.

  “We have no formal rules about interspecies relationships, other than no hitting on Sunai females?” Marks asked in disbelief. He was about to continue, but instead glanced at Ov’Raa and kept quiet.

  “It is acceptable for Space Corps enlistees to involve themselves with members of other species, and even to inter-mate,” Ov’Raa replied somewhat defensively. He flushed a brief shade of blue. “Such interactions are good for interplanetary relations.”

  “Times have changed.” Vargas smiled and stroked his mustache. “They weren’t so liberal back in my day.”

  O’Leary nodded. “I think the Alliance had a lot to do with that. They’re very… idealistic.” He too
glanced at Ov’Raa, and said nothing else.

  Yamamoto understood O’Leary’s hesitance to speak more on the subject. He knew what they were all thinking, save Ov’Raa. Despite being permitted to involve oneself with otherworlders, it was still considered strange, perhaps even deviant, to do so.

  “Alright,” Ferguson said, eager to wrap up the discussion. “Keep your eye on those two,” she said to Yamamoto. “If you find out there’s been a breach of classified information, or anything that puts Eshel or any of us in jeopardy, I will separate them and send the geneticist home,” she added, glancing at Steele. “Dismissed.”

  July 7th

  Hi Dad,

  How are you? Did you get up to the high country to fish last week? The wildflowers must be gorgeous by now. Did you see any gentians? Those were Mom’s favorite.

  Yes, the rumors are true about Eshel and me. It’s been going on for a few months now. I was going to tell you but didn’t want to speak too soon. You don’t need to be concerned. He’s really not all that different from us, you know, and it would be nice if you soldiers would back off about the Korvali for once. He’s been nothing but good to me. I think you’d find him interesting if you actually met him. And if you don’t trust me, trust Tom, who treats Eshel like he’s one of us now.

  Work is about the same. Steele still hates me, perhaps more than ever. I went to Anka’s lab to see if she wanted to get a drink, and she was talking with Steele. He was a different man with her—he spoke more softly, and was almost smiling. Anyway, I still do my own research in my quarters when I can. Did you ever read those papers I sent? I feel strongly that we can do so much more with epigenetics, Dad. If Eshel can alter his epigenome to survive weeks without water or food, we can find a way to regulate the expression of the necessary genes to prevent tumor formation. If only I could get even a little data to work with, I could run a few simulations and answer some questions…