Ajos: The Restitution - A Sci-fi Alien Romance, Book 1

by A. G. Wilde

  For a few moments, no one said anything.

  “What does this mean?” she finally asked.

  “It means,” Ajos answered, “the Restitution and all that it protects is in grave danger.” He paused. “We are all in grave danger.”

  “And all vulnerable worlds within the Tasqals’ reach,” V’Alen answered.

  Kerena stared at her bowl.

  She didn’t feel like eating anymore.

  Back on Earth, when she’d wished for a great new year with new horizons, she hadn’t been speaking literally. She certainly hadn’t been asking the universe to place her in the middle of an intergalactic war.

  This is why you have to be specific with your manifestations, Kerena, because apparently, that shit works.

  The silence between them continued even as Ajos popped the food into his mouth and continued eating. Taking up her spoon, Kerena ate more slowly than she had started, a bunch of thoughts swirling in her head.

  This wasn’t a war the humans could escape from. They were in this now, and it was something they were going to have to face.

  “How do we help?” She chewed the last spoonful and put down the utensil. “How can I help?”

  “What?” Ajos turned, his words a growl and his eyes flashing what she was sure was liquid fire.

  That made her lean away from him a little.

  Gathering her wits, she continued. “I want to help. I can’t fight. I don’t know how to use a gun. But there must be some way I can help.” Those golden eyes of his studied her with an intensity that almost made her squirm.

  “I’m a botanist. That might mean nothing in this world, but on Earth, it meant that I had at least something going on up here to have passed those exams.” She pointed to her head. “I want to help in any way I can.”

  Ajos glanced at V’Alen before his gaze settled back on her. “We did not expect any of you humans to wish to join the fight so quickly.”

  “Well, it beats sitting on my ass doing nothing when we all are in danger of being killed.”

  Neither he nor V’Alen said anything.

  Instead, Ajos’ golden gaze held hers in its grasp for such a long moment, she forgot to breathe.

  There was that tingle again—a tingle like something was fluttering deep, deep within her because of the intensity of that gaze, and she wasn’t sure what it was…

  It felt like, if she allowed it to grow, it would consume her.

  Just then, there was a sound from what she’d thought was a watch on Ajos’ hand.

  “Commander, do you read?”

  Ajos pressed something on the “watch.”

  “Speak, Iceon.”

  “Please come to Sky Tower 2,” the transmission crackled. “There is something I wish for you to see.”

  Ajos was still holding her gaze, and Kerena licked her lips as she waited for his decision.

  Would he let her help or what?

  Slipping off the seat in a movement that was much too graceful for such a large man, Ajos adjusted his hood over his head.

  “Okay,” he said. “Keh-reh-nah…”

  A moment passed before he continued.

  “Welcome to the Restitution. Let’s go.”

  11

  It turned out that although she’d have to attain some more clothing, the dress that she wore was perfectly suited to Murn GZ.

  It was a favorable temperature outside. Not hot but not cold and the air was dry but not uncomfortably so.

  The whiteness of the sun still rubbed against her senses, that and the hardened dirt everywhere. Back on Earth, she’d spent so much time indoors, so much time at work, she’d hardly gone outside just for the sake of it.

  She’d been missing out.

  There was so much more than sterile laboratories and white walls.

  She glanced around as they walked, trying to familiarize herself with where she was.

  It had been dark when Ajos had taken her to his home the night before, and along with her tiredness, she hadn’t been able to see much around her.

  Now, though, she could see everything.

  The first thing she tried to pinpoint was the blast zone, but they were either too far away from it or the rebels had done a good job of cleaning everything up.

  As far as she could see, the buildings looked intact.

  “I must know,” V’Alen suddenly spoke. “How is it that you know of hyperspace—of jumping?”

  She was walking between them, him and Ajos, and she turned her head to glance up at the robot by her side.

  “Your planet is…a Class Four planet,” V’Alen continued. “You have not yet discovered such technology, neither have you created it. Records concerning your planet state you have not yet fully discovered your planetary system. Even the closest body to you, the satellite, you have yet to explore one side of it—the side you call the dark side.”

  Kerena's eyebrows rose and she smiled. It surprised her that he knew so much about Earth.

  “How is it that a civilization that is so…primitive…knows of such advanced science?” He tilted his head as he spoke as if he was trying to figure out some difficult puzzle.

  “We have sci-fi movies. There’s Star Trek, Star Wars, and a host of others. That’s where I learned about hyperspace jumps from. Like, in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, they had to save the Resistance by jumping to hyperspace straight through…” Kerena caught herself and a sheepish smile came over her features but V’Alen only cocked his head some more.

  He didn’t frown, she noticed. His facial muscles seemed mostly unaffected by emotion, but the way he cocked his head said he was still confused.

  "It was just a movie." She couldn't help but chuckle.

  "A movie?"

  “You know, movies. Like…wait, you don’t have movies?”

  He blinked at her but didn’t answer.

  Kerena gawked at him. “You know, like imaginary worlds that people create and turn into moving pictures for entertainment?”

  V’Alen blinked again and Ajos grumbled something.

  “What was that?” She turned her attention to the tall alien.

  “V’Alen does not imagine. He cannot understand the concept.”

  Her mouth formed an ‘O’.

  That was something she couldn’t wrap her mind around.

  “Oh. Well…” she glanced at the robot man, “that’s how I know about that stuff. But I don’t know how to explain it to you now that I know you have no idea what I mean.”

  V’Alen jerked his head almost imperceptibly and she assumed the conversation was finished.

  They were walking for maybe five minutes now and the farther they walked, the more aliens she saw.

  Most were going about their daily lives, walking down the streets pushing carts or carrying loads in their arms. Some were walking in groups and were heavily kitted out with weapons.

  There were so many types of aliens, she couldn’t keep track.

  There were tall man-beasts that looked like yetis…small beings dressed in little brown robes who didn’t even pass her knee in height…she was sure she saw an octopus man and there was even an alien that had hard scales like chitin all over his body.

  It felt like walking down any street, except she was walking among beings that were so different from her in many ways.

  However, despite that the beings around them were so different, she noticed one distinct similarity—most, if not all of them, were looking directly at her.

  At first, she thought they were looking at the three of them collectively.

  They were quite the trio—a robot, a human, and a tall minty-teal guy—only, it soon became clear that the onlookers were paying no attention to Ajos and V’Alen.

  They were looking at her…and she knew she wasn’t imagining this second part, but the looks there were giving her sent distinct shivers down her spine.

  It made the hairs at the back of her neck stand on end as if there was some kind of threat in her midst and when Ajos brushed against her, she
was sure it was because he sensed it too and had moved closer to her.

  There was a growl in his throat again, one that made his body vibrate and she could feel that vibration each time he brushed against her bare arm.

  Just what the hell was going on?

  “We’re here,” he said, breaking the musings in her head and she realized they were walking up to a strangely shaped building.

  It looked like a brown cone with the top chopped off.

  The door slid open and an armed alien was standing there. He was purple with four arms and as soon as Ajos saw the alien, a rumbling sound began in his throat.

  “Krinnnnnqrid.” The word came from Ajos’ lips in a drawn-out growl.

  “Com-Commander.” She was sure the alien lost some of his color. He looked utterly terrified and when his eyes settled on her, they widened even more.

  V’Alen moved forward, blocking them both from the quivering alien’s view. “We are heading to Sky Tower 2.”

  “Y-yes,” the male said, inching backward a little. “Iceon already sent the approval.” His eyes were on Ajos. “Please board.”

  V’Alen moved forward and Kerena followed him, her brows furrowing.

  A lot was happening that she didn’t understand, and that was to be expected. She’d just arrived. But the strange woman in the hospital, the strange looks she’d gotten as they’d walked down the street, and Ajos’ change in attitude were making her feel unsettled.

  V’Alen walked toward a set of four seats with the backs facing each other in a circle. As he sat, he secured the seatbelts around himself and Kerena attempted to do the same. Only, she couldn’t figure out how to do it.

  It wasn’t like the seatbelts on Earth that had a simple clasp that you could slip in and hear it click. This one didn’t have any connections that looked like they went together.

  Minty-teal hands grasped hers and for a second, both of them paused.

  She was sure she heard Ajos inhale sharply but as soon as the moment came, it went. Ajos secured the restraints before sitting on her other side.

  He refused to meet her gaze.

  Instead, he pulled the hooded garment he wore even farther over himself, almost obscuring his face completely.

  Kerena pursed her lips.

  Men.

  There were two types: the ones who got sick and behaved like the world was ending and those who could walk through a minefield and pretend that losing an arm was just a regular occurrence.

  She didn’t have to guess which one Ajos was.

  “Pod launching,” the purple alien said, and a metallic cover came over the three of them.

  The top of it was see-through, and it took her a moment to realize what was about to happen.

  “Launching?”

  There was no other indication that she was going to be shot upward with a force that made it feel like her brain was trying to escape from the top of her skull.

  A scream lodged in her throat as she gripped the seat beneath her and watched, wide-eyed, as everything on the ground below quickly became smaller.

  When they’d said “sky tower”, she’d been thinking something like a huge radio tower. She hadn’t thought it was actually in the sky.

  God help her, it seemed to be even farther than that, for the pod slowed down and something that sounded like thrusters began working as it spun about ten degrees and began heading into SPACE.

  “I apologize,” Ajos said. “We should have warned you. I forgot what it was like my first time.”

  Kerena stared at him wide-eyed.

  Ya think?

  But her initial fear soon gave way to the wonder that was before her.

  For the next few minutes, she tried to keep her entrails within her as she gripped the seat. The transport changed trajectory once more, spinning a little as it headed to a structure floating above the planet.

  It was like a small disk with a series of antennae above it.

  The sky tower.

  And space…space was beautiful!

  It was black, empty, vast, but oh so beautiful.

  Below them, the planet they’d just left came into view and it was the most wondrous thing she’d ever seen in her life.

  It looked nothing like Earth.

  From above, it looked like a brownish-red ball, like pictures she’d seen of Mars.

  There was no green for foliage and no blue for oceans.

  Kerena leaned forward as her eyes widened, taking in the sight.

  This was the type of view the astronauts on the International Space Station saw every day.

  How did they ever return to their lives on the surface after witnessing something so profound?

  Her awe must have been present on her face because she noticed Ajos was watching her with interest.

  “I’ve never seen anything like this before,” she whispered.

  He averted his gaze to the outside of the pod before looking back at her.

  His gaze traveled over her face so slowly, it felt as if he was memorizing the moment.

  “I think,” her gaze moved over the planet below, “I think it’s one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.”

  There was a pause, and she thought he wasn’t going to respond, before he said, “I am beginning to think so too.”

  There was a note in his voice that made her gaze snap to his and her breath stopped in her nostrils at that one look.

  As she blinked, he seemed to snap out of whatever trance was holding them in stasis and his throat moved. The moment was gone, and he bent just enough that she couldn’t see his face underneath the hooded clothing anymore.

  Ajos adjusted the hood he was wearing as soon as the small pod landed.

  His skin felt warm underneath the thing, uncomfortable, but he had to wear it for as long as they were on the base.

  He couldn’t allow anyone else seeing the blatant redness of his nefre and figuring out what was happening.

  Slipping out of the seat, he moved over to Keh-reh-nah, steeling himself on this occasion in case their skin touched again.

  The last time he’d helped her with the restraints, he’d touched her and it had caused his nefre to pulse so hard, he was sure it had sent all his life blood straight to his genital pouch.

  And then he’d had to sit with his seed sack aching for the entire flight.

  He was beginning to think him being this close to her might not have been the best idea.

  Whatever was happening to him, this heat, was escalating too quickly.

  Taking a deep breath, he grit his teeth as he disengaged the female’s seat restraints.

  Bad. Qeffing. Idea.

  Leaning over her like this, her scent floated upward toward his nostrils.

  She hadn’t used any fragrances to wash last night.

  He could tell because he could scent her—fresh…natural…earthly…

  She smelled good.

  So good.

  His throat moved as he tried to control the sudden groan that developed within him, and he thought he’d done a good job of hiding it too, but when he looked at her, those brown eyes were searching his gaze.

  Ajos turned away.

  He was a commander and she was a refugee—someone he’d sworn to protect, if even from himself.

  He needed to control this…problem he was having, but his will was as weak as V’Alen’s ability to control his mouth.

  His friend could not keep his mouth shut, and the last thing he wanted was for this small human to find out she had a male in her presence that was having trouble controlling his urges.

  She’d just been rescued from sick beasts that had wanted her solely for her body.

  He did not want to remind her of that.

  Further, he was nothing like the sick beasts called the Tasqals.

  He shot a glare at V’Alen, willing his friend to keep his mouth shut.

  He knew the cyborg could hear every groan he made when he tried to keep himself in check.

  He had to push through it
.

  At least, until he could find a way to fix the problem.

  But qef…she smelled good.

  Inhaling one last time, Ajos held his breath and eased back to allow Keh-reh-nah to exit her seat.

  “This way,” he mumbled. It was his best effort at keeping his voice sounding normal.

  As they walked from the dock into the Sky Tower, Keh-reh-nah’s steps were confident alongside his and V’Alen’s.

  He was a little impressed that she’d even considered offering assistance in this fight.

  She’d just survived a bombing recently. He’d thought she’d be cowering in his bed.

  A pulse in his nefre went right to his cock at that thought.

  His bed.

  She’d been sleeping in his bed.

  When he’d brought in her clothes the night before, she’d laid curled up in his space, her strange filaments covering most of her face, and the strangest sound coming from her nostrils as she slept.

  It had sounded like a baby pherzah. It should have been a horrible sound, but he’d found himself pausing a little too long as he’d listened to it.

  It had sounded…cute.

  Endearing.

  The qef was wrong with him?

  The doors that led from the dock into the sky tower slid open and Ajos led them down the corridor to the control room.

  There was hardly anyone working in the Sky Tower, most of the refugees and rebels wanted to live on the surface, so those that volunteered to do the job of guarding the planet often led a lonely life.

  Only those who didn’t have any family or much of anything to look forward to on the surface took such jobs.

  He wondered briefly which category their host belonged to.

  As the door to the control room slid open, Iceon turned from the many screens in front of him to glance their way.

  “Commander,” he said before turning back to his instruments. Then he spun around again and did a double-take.

  Ajos grunted.

  He guessed it was the hooded garment he wore.

  “Commander?” Iceon asked.