Alutia Rising

by Craig Gerttula

  "...system made a mistake about where the personal shuttle landed...now we need to search all 200 bays...it's going to take..." The voice faded as the group quickly passed their hiding spot. Trent continued to hold her and Sasha found she'd started lightly caressing his back.

  Suddenly Trent, with notable reluctance, pulled himself away, keeping one arm around her as they exited their hiding spot between the roughly stacked crates. Sasha looked up at his face...it was flush, with a light covering of perspiration. Surprise filled her as she closely studied his dust covered features for the first time, noticing he looked slightly different then she remembered. His curly, dirty brown hair appeared fuller, and the age lines, less pronounced. His hand suddenly slid from around her back, down her arm, to grasp her hand, causing her heart to skip a beat...followed by an unexpected feeling, or one she told herself was unexpected. The sensation of his touch lingered around her waist and sent shivers through her spine.

  Trent started running again and Sasha held on tight, matching his speed. They moved across the gigantic hanger bay, careful not to be seen as they ran between the scattered crates. After about 30 minutes, they finally reached the last set of crates before the door, which Sasha assumed led to the transport tubes. As Trent peered through a crack in-between two crates, Sasha unconsciously slipped her arm around his waist, pushing her cheek into his. The warmth struck her, and her ears filled with her rushing heartbeat. Trent tensed at her side, but her light caress on his back seemed to put him at ease while he put his own arm around her in response. She let her mind linger on the touch, ignoring the ever rising feelings, before turning back to the task at hand.

  Sasha couldn't see anyone, but she had a feeling someone was on the other side of the door. She didn't know exactly how, but the feeling seemed to emanate from the Arm of the Emperor. Trent pulled away, signaling that he was going first. A feeling of loss suddenly struck her as he moved around the crates, but he ended up stopping, coming back, and grabbing her hand once again, signaling for her to follow. She didn't complain, and felt an enormous sense of relief when he grabbed her hand once again. They ran to the wall next to the double doors and Trent gradually leaned forward, peering through the open side.

  *********

  There were two ex-TSB personnel lounging with their backs to the hanger bay door, looking at the transport tubes. Trent turned to the woman at his side, clenching his teeth to help hold back the urge to embrace her, and made a gesture that there were two people and he would take them out with his laser arc. She nodded, fear evident in her caring eyes, then, as he was about to rush in, she pulled him back, causing him to muffle a grunt.

  She made a few strange gestures with her hands that Trent couldn't understand, but thought she wanted to try something. He looked into her eyes, seeing that look...the look he would follow knowingly to his death...and nodded, trusting his life to this strange beauty. She pointed at his laser arc, then to his holster. After a second, he complied, putting away the weapon.

  This time he followed her, still holding her hand, which she squeezed tightly. She walked straight at the men, while Trent tried to keep his face natural...hiding his rising concern. The two men turned as one when they heard the approaching footsteps and casual surprise showed on their faces.

  "Shift change boys......my man and I will take it from here." said the woman in a very carefree voice. The two men looked at each other as there expressions changed from surprise to concern.

  "Shift change ain't for another hour or so." the older of the two men said, scratching a large scar on his left cheek. Trent was about to go for his laser arc when he felt the woman squeeze hard on his hand.

  "I talked to the captain and me and my man here wanted to get some time to ourselves....if you know what I mean." She winked at the two men and Trent suddenly felt very angry, clenching his teeth.

  "Easy boy, I'm not done with you yet." She put her arm around his waist and leaned in close, placing her other hand on his chest. The anger drained out of him, lust taking its place. He fought with himself to keep control and was barely successful. The two men's expressions quickly changed to smiles of understanding.

  "Ah, My Lady, I had no idea. If you ever want a real man, come find me, Maintenance Engineer James." He winked at her, laughing lightly. The woman at Trent's side returned a wicked smile and the two men exited through the door to the hanger bay. She pulled the still dazed Trent forward into the transport tube, which started moving before either of them could say a word.

  *********

  The idea had come to her when she thought what might happen if Trent wasn't able to take them both out before they turned on him. She couldn't believe she'd pulled it off and looked excitedly to Trent. He was looking at her with an expression that shifted between confusion, anger, and another feeling that Sasha decided to ignore...like she'd been doing with her own.

  "What just happened?" The question wasn't unexpected. Sasha had sensed Trent never once thought about using deception.

  "I was concerned about taking them both on at once and since they were both petty crewman, I had a feeling they had not been introduced to all the nobles currently within the base." Trent's facial expression had settled on a look of confusion.

  "Single noble ladies have a reputation of dallying with men and throwing their weight around to get what they want. I just provided the two of them the impression that you are my toy and I had requested a favor from the captain to get you alone." Trent's face suddenly turned to understanding, then quickly became dubious. Sasha suddenly panicked, not knowing what would have caused the unexpected change.

  "Is this something you do normally?" Sasha felt her heart throb when she heard the question. He'd misunderstood and she was horrified by that fact.

  "No, of course not! I do not dally with any man!" The ferociousness of her words caused him to shrink back, while the look of dubiousness turned to concern, with a little bit of hurt.

  "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to offend you." His look caused her heart to ache, but for a different reason. She suddenly found herself embracing him, then tried to pull back, but found he was embracing her as well.

  "How do you know me and why do I feel like I've met you before?" he whispered and she felt it penetrate her very soul.

  "My name is Sasha and I know you from the enlistment trial." He suddenly pulled back, releasing her, causing the feeling of loss to return, but she controlled the urge to reach out for his hand.

  "Grand Duchess Sasha?" So he had heard of her! The idea made her happy. She nodded in response and his face seemed to lose color.

  "How am I supposed to refer to you?" he asked without emotion. She responded immediately.

  "You will call me Sasha...always!" as she spoke she stamped her foot. A sudden urge to punch him filled her as fresh anger began to erupt. The color returned to his face that quickly shifted to stone, as if something more horrible had come to his mind.

  "Are you responsible for the enlistment trial?" His words sounded of begging more than asking, like he wanted her to say no.

  "No, I did not know of its existence until a few days ago. Knight Captain Quinn wanted me to look into the matter with Sir Simwa and I needed the record." Trent sighed as he heard her words, sinking his head into his hands.

  "I'm sorry, so much has happened...I don't really know who I can trust or what is going on, I just don't know what to do anymore..." Sasha quickly closed the short distance between them and put her hands on his cheeks, turning him to face her. She could see tears in his eyes...and pain...both being held back.

  "You can trust me, I will never betray you." Her words came without thought, but she knew them to be true. Trent reached up and placed a hand on her cheek, looking deep into her eyes.

  "I promised myself I would never trust again, but I will trust you." A barely visible smile crossed his lips as he spoke. Sasha embraced him fiercely and he returned it.

  Chapter 14

  His head spun as the absurdity of the unexpected pr
edicament he found himself sunk into his muddled mind. This woman who had attracted him so was none other than Grand Duchess Sasha, the leader of the Alutia Duchy...someone very important according to Taku and Sir Simwa.

  The memory of how he, less then honorably, handled her as they made their way through the hanger bay, then basically asked her if she was a whore, made him squirm. He knew it was a ridiculous thought, since she seemed not to mind, being more annoyed by his question in regards to how to address her, but it continued to bother him.

  As the embrace continued, Trent became acutely aware of her body pressed up against him, and its shape. Reluctantly, he freed himself, but kept hold of her hand. He knew that his behavior would probably be a breach of some noble protocol, but she didn't seem to mind, and he found that he felt much calmer, his mind clear, when he felt her touch. It was very strange and he planned to explore the phenomenon further when he had a chance. But for now, he had to fill her in on the situation. He looked into her caring, emerald green eyes, staring at him with veiled fascination...such beautiful eyes.

  "I overheard Sir Simwa about 30 minutes before you arrived...he said since the assassination failed he was going to force you to marry him, then..." he suddenly grew angry as the memory returned.

  "...kill you. He mentioned it was all because some Duke was upset that his land had been taken?" Sasha's eyes turned cold as she squeezed Trent's hand, unconsciously transferring her anxiety through the touch. Something suddenly grew within him, a seed of emotion that caused words to appear without thought.

  "But I will never let that happen! I will protect you." Sasha's expression changed to surprise at his unexpected declaration. She smiled in return...an honest, trusting smile, as her look became distant. A minute passed and Trent continued to study her intently, memorizing every millimeter of her perfect face until it returned to normal. She spoke immediately, having noticed his look turn inquisitive.

  "I was using my BC node. It appears there really is no way to get a message out." Trent nodded his head in understanding.

  "I'm still getting use to mine. It's a strange feeling and it takes me awhile to do anything with it." Sasha looked at him with a small smirk as her face suddenly went distant. Trent felt the now familiar sensation of something accessing his BC node and suddenly he was not only looking at Sasha through his eyes, but also with his mind, similar to what happened a few hours earlier. The image lasted a few seconds before fading. Sasha's face turned quizzical.

  "That's new...usually it is possible to communicate with each other through our BC nodes, but when I tried to link to you...it felt...strange....like you were pulling me in...." her voice trembled and her face flushed.

  "Have you felt it before? I mean...the feeling of being pulled in? I swear that this happened a few times earlier...the last time you were..." he let his voice fade as the memory caused him to blush. A concerned look crossed her face, and her eyes told him to continue. When he didn't, she squeezed his hands further, tilting her head while raising her thin eyebrows. He thought of staying silent, but the look in her eyes caused him to quickly fold.

  "I think I saw you a couple days ago...in my mind...and you calmed me down... stopped me from doing something stupid, something I'd regret. Then I saw you twice a couple hours ago. The first time it felt like you were there, and I thought I could even feel your touch..." Pausing, he tried to keep his embarrassment hidden. "...and then, about 30 minutes later, you showed up again...but this time as a misty full body...." The vivid, ghostly image of her naked form returned and his gaze wandered. She noticed immediately and flushed before covering her exposed cleavage with one arm, appearing reluctant to remove the other from his grasp. She seemed to want to respond, but the transport tube stopped and the door slid open. The monotone voice sounded from her wrist.

  "Proceed through the main hallway. After 2 kilometers you will find a door with the seal of the King." Trent looked at the sphere, then at Sasha, who quickly looked away. He shrugged, saddened, knowing he'd said too much. But instead of brooding he decided to listen to the monotone voice and started down the hallway, the blushing Sasha in tow.

  *********

  Sasha was terrified. Not of Trent, but the memories that had flooded into her as he mentioned seeing her misty full body image and exactly what that meant. His lustful gaze didn't help, reminding her of the noble boys of her youth, who laughed merrily while taking scans of her as she lay pinned to the bed...naked. The pain was still fresh, never healing, having clung to her over the past eight years. She'd even sent Knight Captain Seb'Losh away for the selfish fact that she didn't want him to know of her fear of being seen naked by men. But even with taking every precaution, she'd been seen...and couldn't understand how that was possible.

  When she first tested the Arm of the Emperor on Tiana, her friend had been unaware of Sasha's vision floating directly in front of her. But Trent had seen her...all of her. Somehow they were connected and she figured it must have something to do with the Program that had taken an unnatural interest in her life.

  Sasha continued to follow behind Trent, pulling her gaze from the floor to look at the back of his head, unable to hold onto the comforting, familiar fear, as a new, warm emotion took its place. Sighing to herself, not wanting Trent to look at her quite yet, thinking she may burst if he did, she turned to their surroundings.

  Her mind being elsewhere at the time, she didn't notice anything in particular as they exited the transport tube. But she quickly discerned they were in a noble, or command barracks, based on the beautiful paintings covering the walls and the immaculate wooden floors. A sign over an intersecting hallway confirmed her suspicion...they were in the command barracks.

  Finding nothing else of interest, Sasha went back to studying the back of Trent's head, listening to their muffled footfalls as she tried to organize her thoughts. She had to get this grating feeling off her chest or they would never be able to work together. Taking a deep breath, she stopped, forcing Trent to stop with her. He tried to turn, but she placed both her hands on his back, forcing him to continue to look away.

  "Did you see me naked?" her voice was tense and Trent went stiff. Silence stood between them and he finally answered.

  "The misty figure was naked...I'm sorry, it must have been my mind playing tricks on me, I really didn't mean to..." His words were honest and Sasha felt a little better, but she knew that if she didn't get this off her chest early, then she would always hold him at a distance...and for some reason, that idea scared her most.

  "In my last relationship, around eight years ago, the noble boy I was dating brought me into a dark room, undressed me, held me down, then turned on the light. A group of his noble friends were there and they took image scans of me as I struggled to escape..." She paused, trying to hold back the tears that always came when she remembered this particular incident. "...Ever since I have been terrified of being seen naked by a man...or even talking about being naked to a man." She stared at Trent's back, feeling relief that she'd been able to tell him about her scar, but scared about how he would react.

  He suddenly turned and embraced her with his entire body before she could stop him. A fresh weariness took her as she felt his warmth, burying her head in his neck...breathing in his calming scent. A weight on her shoulders lightened as she stood silent, melting into his embrace, knowing that she'd taken a step in the path of healing, in the healing of an old scar. She would have to apologize to Sir Seb'Losh when she saw him next.

  Before she could react further, Trent pulled back and kissed her lightly on the forehead, grabbing her hand once again as he turned towards their destination. Terra, who'd been quiet for most of the trip, squealed in delight, running from her bosom, down her arm and up Trent's, to rest on his shoulder. He stumbled in surprise, noticing the small weight of the furry animal that suddenly appeared on his shoulder, but smiled as his eyes caught the catillian's happy little face.

  "It's a catillian...I named him Terra. They are a type of rare animal th
at bonds with its owner. It must like you." Sasha's voice was a little unsteady at first, but recovered as she finished. From what she'd read, catillians would only make contact with their bonded partner and other catillians. But Terra had climbed up on Trent's shoulder, seeming to squeak and squawk into his ear....a rather funny sight, since Trent would nod his head after every few sounds, like he understood what Terra was saying.

  They finally reached the end of the hall and a large double door rose before them. On the outside surface was carved the crest of the TSB, a blue planet with the letters TSB inscribed in the center, intermingled with the King's crest, a red sun encircled by a platinum crown, while a strange round device protruded from the middle.

  Trent walked up to the door, running his fingers over its smooth surface, then lightly touched the device. Three gems emerged, setting into its outer surface as it appeared to liquefy, one red, one blue, and one green. Sasha was suddenly reminded of the black box and thought to tell Trent when he reached out, placing a hand on the blue stone, which glowed at his touch. Terra ran down his arm and touched the green stone, which started to glow as well. Sasha, amazed at the sight, walked over and touched the red stone, causing it to light before the device spun inwards as the door folded into tiny blocks that vanished into the surrounding walls. Sasha stared at Trent with wonder.

  "I don't know how I knew...." His voice trailed off as Sasha grabbed his left hand and Terra hoped back up her arm, climbing into her bosom, his job apparently done. Trent looked over as Terra curled up and Sasha noticed his gaze lingered. She squeezed his hand and put the other over her exposed cleavage. He shook his head, like he didn't realize what he was doing, then quietly apologized, causing her to smile, not actually minding...which in itself, surprised her.