Xell's Entrapment

by Mara Jaye

  “You should see the Chiti. They are an avian humanoid race.”

  “Jeeze, birds with legs?”

  He nodded. “They’re cute, at least I think so. It’s the small beaks and big eyes. They seem like babies of their species but they’re full grown at this high.”

  G’nar holds his hand just under my eye level. I give him a glare. “Oh yeah, so very short.” He laughs and moves on. “So have you been to many planets and are they all inhabitable?”

  “Several. Some are and some should not be.”

  “And? I don’t mind hearing more.”

  “I’m not supposed to tell you anything. There’s something called a Lesser World Order prohibiting me from interfering in a lesser world’s technological development.”

  I stop, taking his arm so he stops with me. “Wait. Does this mean I’ll get to go home when I’m cured?”

  He doesn’t need to say the words. The way his eyes don’t meet mine tells me everything. He shakes his head. “I’m sorry, but no. Even if we found a way to remove the Emol nanos, going back to Earth is impossible. You know too much.”

  “I wouldn’t tell anyone.”

  “Wouldn’t you?”

  He’s right, but no. I wouldn’t. “If it meant I wasn’t so alone, could run my bar, and eat something besides those damned gummi bricks, yes. No one would ever know I’d left Earth.”

  G’nar brushes my hair back, tucking a lock behind my ear. “I can’t give you back your bar but you’re not alone anymore. I’m here for you and even better? There are no gummie bricks in my shuttle.”

  “You suddenly got a lot better looking.” I give him a come on motion. “Show me some of that offworldly food before I starve to death.”

  “Certainly. I brought extra from the ship for you.” Before I can hug him for being so thoughtful, he asks, “Are you leaving behind any family? A husband or boyfriend probably? I mean, I can’t imagine you’re single.”

  “Stop it, you’re making me blush.” I pause and turn to swipe as if to hit him. “No, there’s no one special and barely any family. I have half-brothers and sisters back home. We’re all scattered, aged out of the foster care system.”

  His eyes cloud for a moment before he says, “I remember reading about the program while studying Earth. Your parents were unfit?”

  “Very. I don’t remember much about either of them. Blocked it out, I guess. Doesn’t matter, really. Various people took care of me until I hit eighteen and was on my own.” I don’t look at him directly, unwilling to find pity there. “The Lucky Dog’s owner hired me to clean and gave me a place to stay.”

  G’nar’s eyes flashed while he frowned. “Not with him, I hope.”

  “No, he’s not that sort of man. Jasper is decent. Retired and in a community now. He saw me as the daughter he never wanted, let me live in a storeroom at Lucky’s, and let me buy the place from him. He’s a decent guy, I promise.”

  “Ah, okay.”

  “He still comes in from time to time for a drink on the house.” Aware he might not be familiar with the saying, I add, “I mean, I let him have a beer or two for free.”

  “It’s a shame I never found your place. Free beer being the operative thing.”

  I laugh. “Yeah, line up. If I had a dollar for every good looking man trying to weasel a free drink from me? I’d be living on the beach having my own drinks delivered.”

  “Good looking, huh?”

  “Very.” The man is gorgeous when he smiles. His teeth are perfect. Okay, everything about him is. I’ve touched him several times, wanting to feel if his skin was as cool as the metallic appearance shows, but no. He’s been warm like sun-heated bronze.

  “I recognize where we are,” G’nar says as he goes on ahead. He picks up a metal box, pulling off a parachute. “Dinner is on me. I want to hear more about your bar.”

  Shaking my head, I watch as his shuttle’s door slides open. Neat trick, considering his hands were occupied and I wonder if he’ll teach me. I follow him and step up into the craft. There’s a control panel in the front with two bucket seats. The windows remind me of a cross between an airplane and the space shuttles, but smaller. The vessel is clearly meant for short trips. Like a car for space. Long padded benches flank each side. I watch as he opens the box and brings out the packages from inside. The place lacks color for the most part. The color scheme is plain, gray, white, and black with the occasional orange hued warning in a text I can’t read. The entire craft would make a decent home as long as the power stayed on.

  As much as I love talking about The Lucky Dog, I’m more interested in how to live permanently in the shuttle if I have to. “Can you get signals from Earth in this thing? Like if I want to know the latest news?”

  “Yes, thanks to Alliance signal boosters.” He walked over to a solid wall and pressed twice with his fingertips. A cabinet door similar to the one on the Vahds’ ship opens. “Earth’s radio signals haven’t reached this far, yet. It’s a bit complicated and not my field of study, but I could download the specifics for you to read later.”

  “I’d rather hear a lot more about you,” I say while he’s putting things away and messing with a microwave looking thing. “Where you grew up, what sort of world you lived on, what is Ghar like? Who are your leaders, what do you all do for fun, and are there anyone who is looking for a good bartender?”

  He chuckles. “I didn’t grow up on Ghar, even though I’m Gharian.” He pulls a fresh uniform from the shelves, setting it aside. “We have several leaders who all report to the Emperor.” After finding another uniform, he holds it out to me. “In fact, I was there when he met his bondmate on Earth. She’s an Earther, too, obviously.”

  “So she can’t go home, either?”

  “No, and probably doesn’t want to.” He pulls the shirt over his head. “Empress Paxton is as in love with the Emperor as he is with her.”

  “Do all of the men look like you?”

  He grins. “Yes, although I’m rather average.”

  Good Lord, if G’nar is no big deal on his planet, I know a vast herd of women on mine who would love to migrate to the stars. “I see.”

  “Let me show you around. There’s a wash room there.” He points to a panel with a spraying symbol.

  “With a shower and everything?” I head to the door. “Is the shuttle large enough?”

  “Barely.”

  I see he’s right when I open up. Toilets are the same everywhere, I guess. No real seat, though. The sink area isn’t depressed or has a drain, but there’s a spray nozzle. I try moving it around and a blast of air rushes over me. “Hey, G’nar? Does this ship have running water?”

  “No, weighs too much. You’ll have to make do with scrubbing air.” He peeks in. “You can shower in here. Need some help undressing?”

  “I’m tempted to say yes but have a feeling we’d be here a while and I’m starving.”

  “Yeah,” he looks me up and down. “I don’t want our first time together to be in a toilet.”

  I grin at his certainty we’ll have sex and at how he wants me. “Whatever we decide, I want to be clean.”

  “Get to it, then and I’ll fix you something to eat.”

  He closes the door for me and I’m alone again. Only, now I’m not lonely for the first time in more than a month. I go to the bathroom, undressing and enjoying a working toilet. Later, I can wonder where everything is going. Right now, I want to enjoy luxury.

  I kick off my pants and underwear before removing my tank top and bra. I’ve avoided looking in the mirror until now. Seeing what Emol does to a gal without hair color and makeup was not my first priority. But now? Yeah, I have serious dark roots. An inch’s worth and I’m tan. Nice, but not when I get skin cancer a billion or so miles from home. My eyes, though, are crazy turquoise. No metal but the nanos really did change them. I almost don’t want to lose the color when I lose the infection. I open the door a crack to peek out. “G’nar? How far are we from Earth?”

  There’s
a pause before he answers. “Five hundred and forty three light years, give or take. The shuttle won’t go that far.”

  I laugh. “I never thought to take this home. But, you’re making me wonder, how long would it take in this ship?”

  He turns and saunters over to me. “Your nanos won’t tell you?”

  “I didn’t think to ask.”

  “They should do math for you.”

  “Damn, I’m in love now. Are you sure I need to get rid of them?”

  “Yes, because I want to take you home with me.” He kisses my forehead. “Get cleaned up and changed so we can eat.”

  I’m beginning to love this guy. After I close the door, I pull the sprayer out. It detaches from the wall with no cord and hoseless, I’m not sure how the cleaning is supposed to happen but trust in the process. I go over my smellier areas twice, glad I invested in laser hair removal back on Earth. Speaking of hair, I run the cleaning air over my head. It works like a blow dryer and I hope it’s enough. My roots really show, the dark fading to lighter ends giving a harsh ombre look.

  G’nar seems to like me just fine. If I had to be trapped on a planet with someone until I die, I could have done much worse than him. He’s kind, coming down here to rescue me. If this room had suds and water, I’d be all over thinking dirty thoughts about him in here. He’d be terrific all hot and soapy. I sniff, and from what I’m smelling? He’s also cooking me food. Double that lust thing, please. The man is talented with a microwave.

  I go over my feet. Does the shuttle have one a real microwave, or is it a better tech than anything we have at home? There’s so much to ask him about the universe. I hope he’ll forget this Lesser World nonsense and tell me everything about what’s out there. The sprayer goes back into its place with a click. I dress, wondering if I could use the sprayer on my Earth clothes. Maybe skin washes differently than textiles, so I settle on the usual scrubbing in the creek. The uniform isn’t quite my color. The grey suits G’nar’s complexion much better.

  Stepping out of the bathroom, I ask, “So is this what the women on Ghar wear? And what’s with all of the “g” names, anyway? Is it a rule or something?”

  His eyes are happy and he chuckles. “Just women working for the Alliance. Civilian wear is a lot more colorful and flowing.” He shrugs as I come over for the food. “As for the “g” sound in everything, it’s luck that you’ve met me and my homeworld is Ghar. Deek, Tira, the Emperor, his entire family, all have names not starting with a g.”

  The pilot and co-pilot consoles are flat against the wall. Trays from each side of the seats are down and holding our food. The smell hits me and I wander closer to the bucket seats. “I’m starving.”

  “I’ll bet. Feel free to start,” he says. I do so, grabbing the spork. As I take my first bite of something resembling mashed peas, he adds, “The uniform does you well. You’re absolutely beautiful.”

  I swallow, the mush tasting like the best mashed potatoes I’ve ever had. “Thank you. I had a prince made of shining armor here to help me.”

  “Made of, huh?” He took a bite. “I understand the reference but can assure you I’m flesh and blood.”

  “Hmm.” I dig into something a little more meaty. His whole fleshy thing sends my mind on a tangent. He certainly is a hunk of beef. He’s lean but muscular. Even in his plain uniform, he’s handsome. I like his casual demeanor and how his mood changes to affection when he looks at me.

  A chime rings out through the shuttle and G’nar nods. The windows in front of us are blackening, shutting out the light entirely. A man and a woman appear in split screen like two news anchors. G’nar puts down his spork and crosses his arms. “Hello. A pleasure to see you.”

  The woman narrows her eyes while the man glances down. She speaks first. “The results are in. The Emol antidote isn’t a cure. Since it isn’t, the planet and everything on the surface is still under quarantine.”

  “You’ve asked for updated information, I assume?” G’nar says. “In case new technology has solved this particular problem?”

  “What do you think? Of course, I have.” She glances at me before refocusing on G’nar. “I insisted they rerun the tests, and no, there’s nothing new.”

  The male Gharian gives me a wan smile. “They’ll keep working on a cure, I’m sure, since you’re both down there.”

  After a snort, the woman shakes her head. “Not that you’ll live long enough to see the cure. In the meantime, make yourselves comfortable down there. Enforcer BaKrell is due at the Pon system, scheduled to leave in an hour. Your ship has the coordinates, BaKrell.”

  Deek shook his head. “I don’t want to go so soon. There are more supplies I could send to them both.

  The woman’s lips thinned. “Fine. Do whatever you can. I’ll alter the time to two hours and even that’s too long. The Vahdmoshi have set up yet another situation with Sixth world citizens. At this rate, we’ll need to round up all of the Lesser Worlders and dump them here.”

  I looked at G’nar in horror. His jaw tense, he said, “You don’t mean that, Tira. You’d be giving them a death sentence.”

  Her chin quivered. “No, I don’t.” Blinking a few times, she added. “So, the research is ongoing, BaKrell will drop more supplies, and I hope you fare well in this new life you’ve chosen.” She nodded. “Earther. He’s a good person. He may be the last man on Emol, but I still expect you to treat him well.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I reply. Those two have history and I intend to rake G’nar over the coals for all the details later. Both screens go blank. The glass becomes clear again, letting in the light. I squeeze G’nar’s hand. “Did you know you’d be stranded here for good before you left? That whatever you had planned might not work?”

  He sighed. “Yes. I knew helping you leave would be a very bad bet but I couldn’t leave you here to die alone. I’d become infatuated the first time I saw your face and heard your voice. You’re my bondmate and I couldn’t resist you.”

  “Bondmate,” I whisper. He loved me before we’d even met? Romantic, if highly unlikely.

  Before I can ask if he’s insane, G’nar shuts his eyes, wincing as if in pain. I open my mouth to ask what’s wrong when he says, “Xell? This is bad,” before slumping unconscious in the captain’s chair.

  Chapter Eight

  G’nar

  The first thing I’m aware of is how Xell’s voice sounds as she’s talking to me. From what I can tell, she has my head on her lap and probably her overshirt on me as a blanket. She’s caressing my forehead, smoothing my hair back in a motion I’m sure is as comforting to her as it is to me. I can’t discern distinct words she’s saying at first. Then, as I come to, I understand more.

  “…and then I felt like college was useless. I was happy at the bar and Jasper treated me well there. I probably lived in the storeroom a little too long, but couldn’t pass up the savings in rent. I mean, free is free, right? When I bought the bar, I thought about expanding my home into the bathrooms, but bar patrons have this thing about needing to pee when drinking beer. Or maybe peeing because of drinking beer. Anyway, I feel like if I don’t keep talking about nonsense, you’ll slip away and I’ll be all alone again. So you’d better wake up before too much longer or my legs will be permanently asleep.”

  I smile. “But I’m so comfortable here.”

  “Oh thank God!” She hugs me, pressing her breasts into my face. “You’re awake. I was terrified.” She puts her fingers in my hair again and pulls slightly. “Don’t ever do that again, understand? You scared me.”

  “Sorry.” I open my eyes. “I deserve to be punished by your smothering me with your chest again.”

  “What?” She puts a hand over my face. “No, it’s not a punishment if you ask for it, mister.” She slid out from under me, taking off her uniform shirt to put under my head like a pillow. Her bra is serviceable. Not pretty but I’m betting she didn’t have a chance to dress for the occasion when the Vahdmoshi rounded her up. “How much of my story did you hea
r, anyway?”

  I turn to my side and watch as she retrieves another shirt. It’ll be too big for her. A lot bigger than the smallest size the craft carries. Sure enough, she’s wearing a tunic of a top now. “Not much. Was the storeroom very small? Did you have a bed?”

  “More like a cot with an air mattress.” She gives me a smile and comes back to sit on the floor beside me. “Sounds worse than what it was. I had a place that was clean, dry, warm, and my own while I slept. I didn’t have to share anything or compromise with anyone.”

  “Bars close pretty late, don’t they?”

  “I went to sleep at 4 in the morning and woke up at noon every day.” She went back to running her fingers through my hair, looking around at the shuttle while she did so. “One thing I do enjoy about Emol is getting to see the sunrises. It seems like the days are really short and there are a lot of them.”

  “You’re right, far more than you’re used to.” When her palm is close enough to my mouth, I take the chance to nip at her hand with my teeth. I grin when she laughs. Beginning a system check, I add, “We have eighteen hour days here.”

  “How often are you going to pass out? I need to know so I’m not as alarmed next time.”

  “I hope I’m done for a long while.” My system check comes back clean, so I sit up, my head spinning a little. “My own nanos shut down everything except my vital functions while they tried to clear out the Emols. A futile task, since every time I breathe, more come into my body.”

  “Scary.”

  She backs away so I can stand. “I agree.” I take her hand, letting her help me up. “Now, we just need to eliminate our Emol nanos and get back to civilization.”

  “Sure. We’ll be done by this evening, I’m sure.”

  Her sarcasm amuses me. “This might take a couple of days, considering.” I sit on one of the padded benches lining the craft. Sunset’s golden light fills the space, reflected by the clouds. I send a message to the shuttle, turning on the lights.

  “Neat trick.” Xell sits beside me, looking out at the alien landscape, too.