Reynard snorted again.
But Doctor Xon nodded sagely: "With all things and in all things, we are relatives."
Seutter, rubbing his temples, chuckled mockingly. “We are all relatives in idiocy, apparently.”
Brattain shrugged. “It is theoretically possible...”
And it would be something to keep the crew occupied, anyway.
What would the Captain have thought? He believed that Sivarek was a genius…
“Well,” Reynard replied, “it's also possible Seutter could open a wormhole right here, but I wouldn't bet my salary on it.”
Cruz leaned forward, suddenly excited. “Hell, it's worth a shot. The ship's a wreck anyway, right?”
Brattain had to smile at her enthusiasm. “Alright, Mister Sivarek, I'm inclined to let you try.”
Sivarek nodded, smiling broadly.
Xon turned to Brattain. “If the plan works... we have a moral obligation to help those Colonists.”
Seutter groaned. “Why? It's not like they're an endangered species.”
“Dammit, Graham!” Xon exclaimed. “They're stealing children from their mothers.”
“And the Colonies will produce more! The Republic sacrifices their own children to servitude to the Engineers and the Psionicists and Drones. What's a few Colonist kids for the Valorians matter?”
Now, for the first time, Brattain saw real anger in Xon’s weary eyes. “You vindictive, self-pitying—”
“Enough!” she warned. “Mister Seutter, you're dismissed.”
Seutter rose and strode out into the chill night.
Sivarek watched him go with a shocked expression...
#
As Sivarek approached him, Graham Seutter stood by the lakeside, studying a Valorian telepathic band. He flipped it over in his hand, toying with it. His breath fogged in the cold air.
He stood by the small cairn of red stones where they’d buried the Captain’s body. Sivarek tried not to look at that; it only made him feel sad and empty, and he needed to stay focused right now.
Sivarek tried to approach Seutter quietly; but his feet kicked up gravel, and the Psionicist heard him when he was still some distance away.
Don’t want to offend him… But he’s a telepath, probably sensed me coming from a hundred meters away anyway.
Seutter span around, his dark eyes like black pools in the faint light from the camp. “What do you want?”
Sivarek stopped, held up his hands in a gesture of peace. “Um, well... I was hoping to get your, uh, perspective—as a Psionicist—on my plan to refit the ship.”
Seutter shook his head dismissively. “I find the whole idea absurd.”
“But… Why did you say those things? About the kids and everything?”
“Because they're true.”
“Love, empathy, and morality aren't just human indulgences, they're the fabric of the universe,” Sivarek recited. “They're necessary for its harmonious balance and function. At the higher orders of reality, all consciousness is one. So, truly, the suffering of a single being is the suffering of us all.”
Seutter looked down at the ground, swearing under his breath.
But Sivarek knew that he had to keep going, keep trying to get through to the Psionicist. “You wrote that. You. Graham Seutter. I read ‘The Expanding Consciousness’ when I was a child. It inspired me—my theories, emotion-based interaction with machines—it all started with your ideas!”
But Seutter only shrugged. “Then you're a fool. I know I was.”
He stood and moved in on Sivarek, forcing the Engineer to take an awkward step back. The anger was gone from his face, and his expression was one of frigid calm.
He explained: “Case in point… My twin brother Griffin and I had a bond that made us stronger than any of the other Psionicists. Griffin had ways of keeping his sense of self and giving me mine. His favorite was to… torture… one of the other children and force me to feel their humiliation and pain, along with his enjoyment. Then he'd pass my shame along to his victim and feed it around and around like that. Sometimes it lasted for hours. Later, when I thought I'd finally gotten away, Griffin was executed. I felt the complete experience of his death and then I felt... everything. All my barriers, my control, all the strength I'd relied on ... were his. After all, he was the strong one. That's the universe. And it does not love us.”
Sivarek felt himself choking up. If his tear ducts hadn’t been removed to accommodate his implants, he knew that he would have been weeping. He turned to leave, and Seutter went back to his brooding-spot by the lake.
But I can’t just leave like this.
It’s not his fault. He’s suffering and… I wanted to tell him…
He turned back to Seutter. “C—can I just say something before—”
“What?” Seutter asked, not bothering to turn around again.
“Your ideas changed my life... because I felt the truth of them. So... thank you.”
Seutter was silent, and Sivarek walked slowly away, trying to control his own sense of disappointment.
31
The crew was settling down for the night. Space in the emergency shelters was scarce, and many slept in pairs.
Brattain slipped into a light sleeping bag and closed her eyes.
Despite the thermoreactive material, she still felt very cold…
Alone.
But that’s the burden of command, isn’t it? Loneliness?
Except Captain Kane never seemed to isolate himself…
After a moment, she sensed something—a slight stirring in the air, a smell of sweat and perfume, the shuffle of feet…
A husky female voice asked: “Mind if I join you?”
Brattain had to turn her head to get a look with her good eye…
Cruz.
The last thing I need right now… Here in the cold and dark when I’m not prepared to fend her off again.
She was kneeling down by Brattain’s sleeping bag, wearing a mischievous grin. Despite the cold, the front of Cruz’s nanosuit was open, exposing the shadowed slope of one small breast.
“I really need my sleep, Ensign,” she told the pilot, hoping that she sounded convincingly groggy.
Cruz rolled her eyes. “Ohhh so now it’s ‘Ensign?’ You realize you called me Xue earlier, eh?”
“Probably because Captain Kane used to.”
“C'mon. You could definitely use a little tension-reliever. If it's about the eye, don't worry—I can deal with the rugged warrior look.”
“Look, it's not... Why don't you try Reynard instead? Isn’t he your usual partner?”
Cruz chuckled. “Already occupied.”
She pointed to the other side of the shelter, where Reynard and a male sensor tech shared a bag.
Brattain sighed and closes her eyes.
Cruz gently kissed her.
Her lips were surprisingly soft… And then her mouth slipped down, her breath tickling and warm on Brattain’s neck.
Brattain moaned despite herself.
The sensations were torture… So long since she’d been touched, and indeed so much tension to be relieved.
Cruz bent down and whispered: “Open your suit up. I need, like, a warm place to put my hands.”
Brattain rolled onto her back, responding to Cruz’s attentions… Her head thrown back in an involuntary gesture of need.
But suddenly, she jerked away.
Can’t lose myself in the moment like this.
“Dammit, Cruz, I said no.”
“What about just giving me a try? Relationships are organic, they've got a life of their own.”
“Relationships? I thought you were all about the casual. Live for the moment, you said.”
“I could go beyond casual for you. Seriously.”
“Why? The thrill of being the Commander’s pet?”
“Well I would be proud, yeah,” she grinned. “But more than that. You know I never chased anyone before? Not like this.”
“Never?”
/>
“No, I, like, have my pride, you know?”
Brattain still couldn’t understand. Aside from rank, why was she so special?
“Why me?” she asked.
Cruz shrugged. “Dunno. Why are you so into me? You answer that?”
Into her.
To put it crudely, but…
Yeah, I suppose I am “into her.” I guess I have been, at least since that first shuttle ride.
And now I do know why.
“You’re so small but feisty,” Brattain said. “Like I could hold you, but you’re strong enough to hold me. You laugh easily and feel everything intensely and you’re a damn good pilot. But you really need someone to give a damn about you.”
“Really?” Cruz gasped, covering her mouth. She laughed softly, but she seemed sincerely moved. “All that? And I thought it was just about my tight little ass.”
“That too,” Brattain said… And found herself laughing as well.
Cruz swooped in at that moment. Her mouth met Brattain’s again, and this time, the pilot was more aggressive. Cruz’s hand moved to the back of her head, tangling in her hair, and she pressed her lips to Brattain’s firmly.
I could struggle, try to bite her tongue or something…
But she didn’t.
Instead, when Cruz’s seeking tongue probed into her mouth, she met it with her own. Cruz’s tongue seemed to tease her, poking at the tip of her own tongue, then dancing around it, under it. She licked the roof of Brattain’s mouth, traced the inside of her teeth.
Meanwhile, Cruz’s other hand… the one that wasn’t on the back of her head… massaged her neck, then slipped down and unfastened the front of her suit. The pilot’s tiny, deft fingers traced over her shoulder blades and down the beginning of her spine.
Cruz held her down on the soft surface of the sleeping bag, one of her little hands latching around her right wrist, while the other slid over Brattain’s breasts.
The pressure of Cruz’s touch there caused her to jerk slightly, and moan. At the same time, an electric thrill of anticipation ran through Brattain’s body, shooting down her spine and tingling between her legs.
She wasn’t holding back anymore… She would give her lust, her affection, fully to her lover.
I’ve never felt like this before. Not with Wesley…
I never imagined…
It still frightened her, deep down, to realize the degree to which Cruz had affected her. But she was done denying her desire and the needs of her body.
Now, Cruz ran her hand through Brattain’s coppery hair, pulling and twisting it so hard that her scalp felt on fire.
Cruz’s mouth moved to Brattain’s right ear; she felt the hot breath blowing inside her ear canal. Cruz’s tongue stretched out, tickling the opening, while the sharpness of her canine teeth grazed her earlobe.
“That’s just a tease,” Cruz whispered. “Take off that suit if you wanna see what else my tongue can do.”
Brattain complied with her request, unfastening her suit inside of the sleeping bag, then pulling it out of the bag and tossing it aside. Her nerve endings were on fire with need, further aroused by the feel of the soft material of the sleeping bag on her naked flesh.
Cruz got up for a moment, and quickly skimmed her own suit off her slim body. Then, she was shimmying inside of the sleeping bag with Brattain…
“People will see,” Brattain said.
Cruz stroked her cheek and giggled. “So? It’s the Republic. Voyeurism is, like, the patriotic thing, huh? If we become war heroes, they’ll probably ‘cast us screwing each other all the time, millions will watch us.”
“Ensign… Xue… You should know that Sivarek’s plan probably won’t work. They’ll probably send another ship to Earth… And we could all be re-assigned.”
“Then you better pull rank to keep me with you. Promise? I can be Commander’s pet?”
“But that would be unprofessional.”
“Screw professional, you need me. I need you. You can keep me in line, ‘kay?”
Their mouths met again. This time, Brattain took the offensive, gently biting Cruz’s lips and tonguing her face. The little Ensign tasted like sweat and faint perfume; yet it was somehow incredibly fulfilling for Brattain to let herself go like this.
Meanwhile, inside the sleeping bag, Cruz got her leg between Brattain’s knees. She began to move and squirm—and the pressure made Brattain gasp.
“That’s just my knee, Commander. Hmm, my knee’s getting damp… Hey, wonder where that’s coming from?”
Cruz slithered around again, moving down, her head disappearing as she slipped deeper into the sleeping bag. Fortunately, it was big enough to accommodate her…
“What are you doing?” Brattain asked.
“I was a fighter pilot for a long time, Commander. I’m comfortable maneuvering in tight spaces.”
Then, the tip of Cruz’s tongue tickled around her knee. Brattain felt her lover’s warm, half-open lips trailing up her thigh… towards their inevitable destination.
Instead of feeling self-conscious about possibly being seen, and her vulnerability… It felt so right.
Freeing, and exciting.
She was shocked by her own lust and boldness…
But Cruz’s hands slid under Brattain’s ass without missing a beat, as if she’d wanted her to do this, intended for this to happen all along.
Cruz’s tongue probed deeper…
Inside the sleeping bag, Brattain roughly grabbed Cruz’s head, fingers knotting in her hair…
Every muscle in Brattain’s abdominal region seemed to clench along with her inner core—
As Cruz pushed her to the edge of the climax that she had needed for a very, very long time.
And then it happened.
Brattain completely lost control…
She could feel spasms of ecstasy rippling deep through her belly, then shooting out to radiate pleasure to her entire body.
“Xue!” she gasped.
Finally, as her spasms died down, she let her lover’s hair go and relaxed, resting for a moment.
When she finally opened her eyes, Cruz had slipped back up and stared at her adoringly.
They shared a tender, wet kiss…
“I… uh… whew!” Brattain panted. “I never knew it could feel so…”
“Oh it’s only the beginning,” Cruz cooed. “Wait till I really get your thrusters working, Commander. I can’t wait to explore every inch of you.”
“But…” Brattain was suddenly embarrassed by her inexperience. “I want to do something for you, too. Xue… what can I—”
Cruz bit her lip. “Hmm… Well… You have big hands for a girl, Commander. Big, strong hands, with nice long, flexible fingers.”
The Ensign took Brattain’s wrist… Then guided her Commander’s hand down to the apex of her own slender thighs.
“I’m not delicate, ‘kay? So show me the firm hand of leadership, Commander…”
#
When they were finished—and Cruz’s own moans had died down—there was no talking. They held each other for a long while…
Is that what Captain Kane meant by the Void? A place of peace and certainty?
Probably not… But I feel peaceful now, and I wish this could last forever.
When they finally slipped into sleep, it was in a spooning position, with Cruz’s back pressed tightly against Brattain, and the Commander’s arms wrapped tightly around the pilot’s slim body.
32
Sitting by the lake as the morning sun rose behind them, Xon and Sivarek discussed the images on Sivarek's holodisplay. Jeremy sat on the ground nearby, rocking back and forth.
Xon was intrigued by the young Engineer’s plan. It was audacious beyond belief. Xon himself was no Engineer—but from what he knew of nanos, he thought it just might work.
That is, if Sivarek could attain the level of empathic control of the nanos that he’d promised.
Sivarek explained: “They must be un-imprinted nan
os with surgical capability. Umm, what would you use for bone fusing?”
Xon thought for a moment, nodded. “Type 8 is standard. I can give you plenty, but just be careful you—”
They were interrupted when Jeremy cried out, thrashing and moaning.
“Excuse me,” Xon said.
He picked up a pad and crayons from nearby, and handed them to the boy.
But Jeremy, uninterested, smacked them away.
“Zoom,” he said.
Xon was puzzled. He’d thought he’d made a lot of progress in communicating with the boy, in understanding his needs… But what did zoom mean to him?
“Don't you want to draw?” he asked.
“Zoom!” the boy shouted, now quite insistent.
He’s getting distressed. But what can I…?
Xon shook his head. “I don't understand.”
He turned back to Sivarek. “I'm sorry. You must know that the nanos will reproduce rapidly and any dangerous flaws will also—”
Jeremy screamed. It was a shrill cry, which from a neuro-typical child would have sounded like a scream of pure terror.
Very distressed now.
Reynard and Cruz were nearby, stacking supply crates which had been retrieved from the ship’s damaged cargo bay. Reynard turned to look at the screaming boy with an irritated scowl on his face.
But Cruz approached tentatively. The pilot bent down and scrutinized Jeremy… Then stuck out her tongue and rolled her eyes around, trying to amuse him.
The boy stopped screaming, but again demanded “Zoom!”
“Hey, Doc, want me to take him?” she asked.
“Oh, I don't want to burden you, Ensign,” Xon replied.
“Nah, we're almost done, anyway. Besides, I have two little brothers… I can be a fun big sister if I have to. That surprise you?”
Xon shook his head and laughed. “Xue, you never fooled me with all the flash and attitude. I always knew you were a softie at heart.”
“Ha! Not as much as you, Doc.” She turned to Jeremy. “Hey, wanna go play in the ship?”
Space Cruiser Musashi: a space opera novel Page 16
