by Sadie Marks
"Yes. If it's any consolation, you have been one of the top entertainment programs on many planets for decades. It's been very exciting watching you grow," he said with a smile that she was sure was meant to be encouraging.
Suddenly, she started to laugh. She didn't even understand why she was laughing at first. It was just so—so comical. While they sat in their apartments watching reality vids about famous humans, aliens were watching them. It was like a cosmic joke, and pretty soon, she was completely hysterical. The laughter poured out of her until she was coughing and wheezing, trying to catch her breath, and by the time she was finally able to get ahold of herself, he was looking at her like she'd lost her mind.
Well, maybe she had, but it was still hilarious. She waved a hand at him as she climbed out of his lap and went to get a fresh drink. The howls of laughter had dried her out. By the time she returned, she was feeling calmer though still smiling. The laughter had helped, and she was relaxed, despite Trev eying her warily like she was a strange creature that might attack or spontaneously explode.
"I've watched enough for now, and I could use a break from all of the chaos." As she spoke, she could see riots happening on several of the screens, and she couldn't say it surprised her. She didn't want to put too much thought into how she would have reacted if she'd been back on Earth for the arrival. "I'm sure we can find something more entertaining to do until everything settles?"
Her voice was pitched to sound low and sultry, and she ran the tip of her tongue over her bottom lip just in case he missed the point she was making.
He didn't.
It was amazing the amount of time they could kill with sex and kinky activities on a spaceship. In her defense, it was a small ship and the novelty of new buttons to push and knobs to pull quickly wore off. Hours of footage about the arrival on Earth was good for filling a few hours a day before it started to blur together. He had entertainment shows by the thousands, all stored in the ship's databanks, but even with the language, she didn't understand most of it. Social and cultural context apparently mattered quite a lot in things like that.
And the shows that were based around her home planet—well, those were something else entirely. She'd made it through a few, mostly by sheer stubbornness before she gave it up. It was all so patronizing. Humanity seemed to be the silly younger sibling that people loved but also found really annoying. They weren't wrong, but it was still difficult and embarrassing to watch.
She spent countless hours in their version of a shower, but it was nothing like she was used to back home. It could provide, grudgingly, water for cleaning, but mostly seemed to work with sonics. The sonics could be tuned for cleaning, massage, or pulsing, a vibrating experience that bordered on orgasmic, and then tipped right over into flat out mind-blowing pleasure once she figured out how to fine tune it.
But eventually, she lost interest even in that, and she began to pace the ship, feeling cooped up. The only thing that took the edge off was playing with Trev, and to keep things exciting, she'd agreed to try things that she'd never thought she'd have an interest in. Some of them, she even ended up liking, so that was one for the plus column, but there were only so many times a day two people could have sex before even that began to get old.
Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. "Trev, what are we doing?"
He stopped, staring down at her in confusion. Maybe it hadn't been the best timing since she was currently spread-eagled and tied to the bed while he teased her. The alternating sensations of being tickled and stroked should have had all her attention, but it didn't. "I'm not sure there's a word for it. Playing? Foreplay?"
"No, not this. Not now, I mean, what are we doing out here in space!" She jerked against the bonds as she tried to gesture.
"We're traveling," he said. He sat back, cocking his head to look at her, and then he leaned over to shut off the magnetic field so she could move again. "What's wrong?"
"I just…is this all there is? We're just floating here. I mean, the sex is great. The BDSM scenes are fantastic—and I never thought I'd say this but, is this it? Did we leave Earth just to float around in your ship and fuck all day?" She sounded exasperated and frustrated because she was.
She sat up so she could pull her knees up to her chest and wrap her arms around them. She struggled to find the words to express what she was feeling. It was a lot to sort through. She'd been through fear, shock, surprise, excitement—all of that in the space of a few days, and then all of that had eased off and left her with what? Complacency? Routine?
He was so still, barely seeming to breathe as he contemplated her. "You're bored?"
"No. I mean, yes, but it's not just boredom. It's a lack of purpose. You said you traveled for work. You buy, sell, trade? But you haven't done any of that since I've been here. I can't even tell if we're moving or just parked here all the time. Everything looks the same." Blackness and stars were what she saw every time she looked outside. Inside, there was only him, and as beautiful as he was, the view was getting old.
"I—" He stopped, looking uncomfortable, but now he had her attention and she waited, looking expectant until he continued. "You're right. It's time to get back to work. I wanted to give you time to acclimatize, but we can't stay here forever. But you have to understand that a lot of the places I go won't be safe for a human to get off the ship."
"Then take me some place where it will be safe, because now that you've opened up the universe to me, I want to see it! In person, not just pictures or vids." There was something he wasn't telling her, and by now, she could read his expression well enough to know it, but she didn't push for answers; she just straightened and gave him a determined look that made it clear she wasn't going to be hidden away.
Eventually, he folded and agreed to take her. They began to plan, together, where they would go first. Since it would be work, it seemed reasonable that he presented her with a list of places they could visit, based on the cargo he had to sell or trade. In her excitement, she never did get around to probing for the reason he was so reluctant to take her any place, why he'd parked them in the void like they were smugglers or something.
And that had been a thought that crossed her mind. The way he'd insisted they rush off Earth immediately could have just been because he'd overstayed his time limit. Or it could be something very different, but somehow it didn't come up and it wasn't until later that she'd regret not ferreting it out of her dominant lover.
Space travel was apparently not quite as instantaneous as fiction had led her to believe it would be for aliens, but it was unbelievably faster than humans had been able to manage on their own. They had never even penetrated space beyond their solar system yet. The trip was too long, too expensive, and when things began falling apart on Earth, the funds had been redirected to fixing the planet.
She was learning slowly that, as a race, they knew almost nothing. What would have taken lifetimes for her people would take them a matter of weeks. She'd always thought she was good at science and math, but watching the complicated calculations made by the ship's computer made her dizzy. She couldn't begin to figure out how it worked.
There were no fancy hyper drives zipping them from one planet to the next. Instead, they were apparently playing a strange game of hopscotch with the theme being 'You can't get there from here', at least not directly. Trev brought them to the nearest jumping point, and then they leaped from there to a new location, and when it happened, she didn't feel a thing. She expected…something. Nausea maybe, or dizziness, something dramatic, but no, the transition was completely smooth.
"That's it? We're there?" she asked, confused.
"Yes, and in twelve hours, we'll be at the next point."
"But I didn't even feel anything!" She could hear the complaint in her voice and almost laughed. Imagine being mad because you hadn't gotten sick to your stomach.
It was his turn to look confused. "What were you expecting to feel? It's just a—" He paused, searching for the word, and she realize
d that there wasn't a direct translation to her language.
"Like a wormhole?" Tentative about exposing her ignorance by suggesting it, but curious. It was something scientists had been excited about for a long time but had never really been able to study.
He shook his head and then stopped, considering. "Maybe. I'm not sure what a wormhole is. It doesn't translate."
"How do you choose where you end up when you jump?"
The look of confusion increased, and he started to say something but then didn't for a minute or two. She felt stupid and was sure he was trying to find a child's version she could understand. "There is only one place to end up. It's like a tunnel. You enter at one end and come out the other side. Except, in this case, the tunnel accelerates your travel so that you arrive at the other end at the same time, or sometimes just a few seconds before you entered."
She thought she grasped it, barely, and was pretty sure it was a wormhole, but the last part had her brain twisting all over. "Wait—what do you mean, you arrive before you enter. Isn't that—wouldn't that be time travel?"
He shrugged, completely unconcerned about the logistics. "Yes, sometimes, but not enough to be noticeable. It's only a few seconds."
The conversation became very frustrating after that, and she eventually gave up because no matter how he tried to explain, she couldn't understand how it was possible to occasionally travel back in time by changing locations. She just didn't have the education to sort it out and it put her in a bad mood for the rest of the day.
While she knew logically that it wasn't his fault, she was confused. This new life made her feel incredibly backwards at times, and it was hard to take. There was also the embarrassment of knowing that she'd treated him like a bumpkin back home when she'd thought he was just a country boy from the rurals. She'd been far less tolerant of his gaps in education than he was being with her.
It didn't stop her from getting pissy with him and going to bed early, alone. For a change, she wasn't in the mood for their usual bedtime games. She just wanted to get some sleep, and maybe there was a small part of her that was punishing him for understanding things she couldn't—not that she'd ever admit it.
A sound woke her, hours later, and she reached out for Trev automatically, hands fumbling across his side of the bed to find it cold and empty. She sat up yawning and wondered what had woken her until the intercom crackled again. "Sam?" It was Trev's voice but so soft she could barely hear it.
"Trev? I was asleep," she complained in a hoarse voice.
"Sam, listen to me. You need to hide. Now, and don't make any noise. There's a safe place under the bed. Just get on the floor and pull at the panel in front and then slide in."
"What? Why?" She was so used to him giving orders by then that she was already sliding out of bed to feel for the panel, even though she had no idea why she was doing it.
"Sam, I don't have the time. Just do it." There was a snap in his voice, and then the intercom went dead. She was tempted to storm out there and tell him off, except that there had been actual concern and worry in his voice. Whatever was happening wasn't a joke, so she obeyed in spite of her normal inclinations.
The metal panel came off easily, but the space underneath was tight, and she was halfway under when the frame scraped across her skin painfully and she realized she was still naked. She snatched one of the furs off the bed and pulled it in with her so at least she could wrap up in something warm.
Getting the panel back in place wasn't easy. There were no handles on in the inside, but with some maneuvering, she was able to wedge it in place, though she had no idea if it looked right from the outside or not.
With no idea of what was happening, she huddled there and tried to be quiet in the dark. It took some careful shifting to get the fur wrapped around her body, and while that helped, it still wasn't the most comfortable place to be stuck in. She couldn't help wondering what was going on and the wait seemed endless, with no way to tell how much time was passing.
She tried to go back to sleep, but there was too much adrenaline surging through her system for that. Various scenarios raced through her brain, but only one made sense. Ordering her to hide meant that their ship was being boarded and possibly searched. But by whom, and why, she couldn't begin to guess.
There was silence in the cramped compartment. No sign of anything terrible happening, and after a while, her body began to stiffen. She did her best to ease the discomfort by stretching in sections, but it got progressively worse until she was ready to climb out no matter what was going on.
She reached for the panel to push it open, and that's when she heard the sound of footsteps on the deck. Slow, steady steps getting closer to her hiding spot. She froze, one hand still outstretched, and then she let it drop as time passed. Trev knew where she was, and if it had been him, he would have freed her from the dark crawlspace already. This was someone else. She could hear the sounds of them moving around the room, shifting things, and opening cabinets. She wiggled carefully, pushing herself back until she was pressed against the wall, and then she stayed as still as possible, scarcely daring to breathe. Her body, already annoyed from being crammed in there to begin with, began to act out with a muscle cramp in the back of one leg.
Keeping silent through the agony was nearly impossible, but she managed to muffle the groans by burying her face in the furs as she slowly extended her leg as far as she could to ease the cramp. When the muscle finally began to unlock, she almost cried with relief, but it had taken all of her focus to manage, blocking out the outside world for those intense few minutes. It was only then that she realized she was no longer hearing any noise.
She tilted her head and held her breath as she listened.
Nothing.
It was completely silent. The tension slowly drained out of her body and she relaxed. She desperately wanted to get out and see what was going on, but she had no intention of opening the panel until Trev came for her. She'd do what she was told, for once, and wait. It did occur to her briefly that this could have been some test of obedience, but if so, she was going to pass it and then her revenge would be something Trev would never forget.
Once the idea that it was all a game entered her head, it was hard to push out, but after she'd turned it over in her mind a few times, she discarded it. Trev was playful, but scaring her wasn't his style. She almost wished she could believe it was him, because that would mean they were safe and nothing bad was happening—but it just didn't fit.
She sighed and shifted positions, wishing Trev would come, and that's when it happened. Her foot accidentally nudged the panel, and it toppled over and slapped the deck with a loud clanging sound that sent terror rushing through her. She reached for it, desperate to pull it back in place before whoever was out there saw the gaping hole under the bed and realized she was under there.
A strong hand closed around her wrist, and she struggled with all the strength in her body to fight against it as she was slowly dragged her out of her hidey hole and into the light. Once she was completely exposed, she was released and left to sprawl there while someone big stood over her. Her eyes had gotten used to the darkness, and now she squinted as she looked up, trying to see who had found her—for a split second, she thought it was Trev after all.
The honey-colored skin with the small silvery flecks came into sight first, and she stopped fighting. But as her eyes adjusted, she caught sight of the hair and realized in an instant that it was far too long for Trev. Though it was the same uniform black color, Trev had cut his short for his trip on Earth. And even if it had been the same length, she knew her lover far too well not to be able to tell them apart despite the similarities which became more obvious, the longer she looked.
"Who the hell are you?" she demanded. She pushed both hands down against the cold floor and shoved herself backwards, away from the stranger.
He looked down at her with interest and something that felt like hunger. Without taking his eyes off her, he shouted, "I found someth
ing!" and then he reached down and hauled her to her feet.
She was tempted to pull free and dive back under the bed, but it was pointless, he'd only drag her out again. Instead, she ducked down fast and grabbed the fur that had been pulled into sight with her, wrapping it around her body like a towel. She still felt vulnerable and half-naked, but it was better than nothing.
Her narrowed eyes settled on him, brows lowered until they nearly met at the bridge of her nose. Her lips were pinched shut and every bit of her expression screamed resentment, none of which seemed to bother him at all. When a minute or two passed without anyone coming to see what he'd found, he grabbed her arm again and hustled her out of the room.
She fought it, pulling at his hand and dragging her feet as she berated him with a series of demands. "Let me go! At least let me put on clothes! Stop pulling at me; I don't even know who you are!" She knew damn well he could understand her since she was speaking his language, but he chose not to reply, simply dragging her along against her will.
She gave up trying to slow him down when she realized she was only hurting herself by dragging her bare feet across the deck. Keeping the wrap in place with one hand while he held her other arm in an unbreakable grip, didn't leave her many other options for fighting, but she tried. The only result was that she looked like a feral animal when she was yanked onto the bridge.
Red in the face, with her hair wild, she knew she had to look half-crazed. But she was so furious, she was practically snarling and ready to tell off whoever was in charge. All that changed when she realized that the control room of the ship was crowded with half a dozen Sadecs, mostly male, of which her lover was one. Trev winced visibly when she was dragged in and she saw his shoulders slump in defeat.
Her stomach sank, and she felt dread's icy fingers creeping over her. Whatever was happening was obviously bad, and she'd never felt more helpless in her life. She took a deep breath and turned to the coping mechanisms that had gotten her through bad spots in the past. She yanked her arm free. It was possible only because her captor was no longer invested in holding onto her, but it still felt impressive. She straightened to her full height, which was still much shorter than everyone in the room. "What is going on here?" she demanded.
