My jaw drops as Tarak does something and his nano-armor just melts away, dissolving back into his skin. What the hell? The nanites can go inside him?

But that freakiness isn’t what astounds me the most.

Underneath the armor, he’s completely butt naked. And he’s walking around as if it doesn’t bother him in the least.

Oh, sweet Jupiter. I should look away. But I can’t. The General is a sight to behold.

He’s totally ripped. Defined. Chiseled. His broad chest tapers down to a perfectly formed six-pack. His arms ripple and bulge as he moves. And as I look down, catching sight of what’s between his legs, oh mercy, I can’t go on. Kordolians are so similar in appearance to Humans, and yet so different.

This is unfair.

I’m injured. This is totally inappropriate. This shouldn’t be happening.

He comes up to the side of the giant fishbowl, getting up onto a raised platform. Then he hauls himself up to the top. His muscles bunch up as he suspends himself effortlessly at the side of the tank.

Holy hell. It’s a magnificent sight. And it affects me in the most primal of ways.

“Wh-what the hell are you doing?” I gasp. He’s not going to get in with me, is he?

“Making you warm,” he replies. “If you wish.”

My mouth forms a silent ‘O’, but I can’t bring myself to protest. The sheer sight of him has caught me off-guard. I should be telling him to get the hell out of here. This is impossible. There’s a naked, aroused male jumping into the fishbowl with me, and he’s acting as if nothing’s wrong with it. He’s not bothered at all by his lack of clothes. But of course, the arrogant bastard would be like that, wouldn’t he?

Tell him to get the fuck out of here, Abbey.

But even though my brain is thinking it, the signal that goes to my mouth isn’t working. I’m too busy staring at his incredible physique, at the way his smooth, silver skin is marred by scars, some of them vicious looking.

He’s fought some battles, this one. His body has a story to tell.

It’s the body of a warrior. It’s magnificent.

And then he’s in, dropping into the tank, and of course, I can’t move because my legs are wrapped up in that weird alien stuff. Not to mention they’re broken in a hundred places.

The truth is, I can’t say shit because I’m aroused as hell just looking at him. Warmth pools in my lower belly, spreading to my core, right down into my pussy.

I stare at him through my clear visor, afraid and at the same time aroused.

The lack of air to breathe doesn’t seem to bother him. He comes up behind me, his movements fluid and graceful. Strong arms surround me, and all of a sudden the cold is gone.

I take a deep breath, shuddering as my bare skin comes into contact with his. Unable to help myself, I lean into him, savoring his warmth.

What the hell am I thinking? I should tell him to get out.

But I can’t. It feels too good.

A monitor starts flashing. I’ll bet it’s from my heart rate going through the roof. Moments later Zyara rushes in, takes one look at us and promptly runs out, not saying a word. In other circumstances, I might have called the expression on her face ‘hilarious’. I might have laughed out loud.

In other circumstances.

My body doesn’t lie. The monitors don’t lie.

As if this couldn’t get any more embarrassing, even though it’s amazing.

Why does it feel so good? Damn it.

Tarak isn’t moving. He simply holds on to me, the warmth from his body seeping into me, taking away the terrible chill. Being totally submerged doesn’t seem to bother him. The lack of air doesn’t bother him. How long can he hold his breath?

His large hands are curled around my upper arms, his fingers tracing my skin.

Seriously, if it’s going to be like this, maybe I don’t need the sedation. I could stay floating in a stasis tank with a big, warm, muscular alien for weeks.

This one just happens to be a General, a hardened fighter, a warrior from a fearsome alien empire. I don’t even know that much about him or his culture.

This is madness.

He pulls me into him, and the hard length of his cock brushes against my ass. Sweet Jupiter, it’s as impressive as the rest of him. No disappointment there. And there are some interesting, er, variations down there.

Despite his arousal, he’s incredibly careful, skillfully avoiding the various lines and objects attached to my body. He’s gentle, making sure he doesn’t hurt me in my injured state.

He doesn’t do anything else. He simply holds me in his arms.

Talk about surreal. “This is unfair, General,” I protest, not sure whether he can actually hear me while he’s submerged. But the truth is, I’m enjoying the feeling of his hard body against me. I bask in the heat radiating from him.

My teeth have stopped chattering. That terrible, bone-deep sensation of coldness is gone.

And I’m worlds away from Earth, speeding towards a foreign planet, my fate taken out of my hands. Has a Human even set foot on Kythia before?

What if they fix me up, only to sell me into slavery? Or what if they’re going to dissect me like a lab specimen?

I don’t really know what the General’s true motivations are. What if he’s just toying with me?

Yes, he’s attractive, in an exotic, alien way. But I can’t afford to let that turn my brain to mush.

I start to push him away, resisting his embrace. At first, he’s immovable, but after a while, he responds to my movement by disengaging, swimming slowly up to the edge of the tank, pulling himself out in a single, powerful movement.

I turn away, on purpose. I don’t want to look at him.

I’m unnerved by the effect he has on me. Maybe it’s better to be sedated.

“You play dirty, General,” I complain as the liquid’s temperature drops again. He’s taken all the warmth with him. “The odds aren’t even.”

“Odds?” He’s returned to the front of the tank, and he raises an eyebrow. He’s still naked, as if it’s the most natural thing in the universe. Well, I guess it is.

He’s standing there in all of his infuriating, unselfconscious glory, his dripping wet body glistening under the muted glow of tiny blue lights. I’d call him arrogant, narcissistic, a show-off, except he’s not trying to impress anybody. He just is.

Are all Kordolians like this? Or is it just him?

“I’m at a bit of an unfair disadvantage right now, don’t you think?” I glance down at my mangled legs. The pain has left me again, courtesy of whatever drug Zyara is pumping into me through those twisted cables. My body looks as if it’s been through hell.

“Then I shall wait until the ‘odds’ have balanced out.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. And will you please put some pants on? Do you even have pants, or do you just wear that freaky nano armor all the time?”

Tarak looks at me in genuine surprise. “Does my current state somehow offend you? Does it not please you?”

“It’s indecent.”

“You weren’t thinking such things when I was in there with you.”

“You didn’t give me much of a choice.” I let out an incredulous snort. “And you were trying to lecture me about decorum?”

“There is nothing unbecoming about my state of undress.”

I shake my head in exasperation. This must be a Kordolian thing, because I really don’t get it.

He’s still aroused. I’m stuck in a giant fish tank while a very attractive, very naked alien debates with me over his lack of attire. Said alien was only recently wrapping his warm arms around me.

What was he thinking?

What was I thinking?

“Zyara,” I yell, hoping she can hear me. “I need drugs. Can you please tell this big silver jerk to leave me alone?”

This situation is spiraling out of control, and it’s starting to freak me out. I get the feeling nothing good will come from whatever is happening between us. A sudden thought occurs to me.

“General,” I say, “you’re not going to, uh, try anything while I’m under, are you?”

He stiffens. “You think I’m capable of something so dishonorable?”

I answer with a pointed stare. “You tell me.”

He seems genuinely offended. After what he just did, I’m surprised it’s such a big deal. I sigh. Kordolians. I don’t understand them at all.

At least he seems to actually be offended by the alien equivalent of date rape. That’s reassuring, I guess.

“I cannot take pleasure if the other is unwilling.” He leans close to the tank, and all of a sudden, his seamless black attire is back, the nanites or whatever they are forming millions of tiny black dots on his skin that seem to mesh together in an instant. The armor stretches along his arms, extending down his torso and legs. Once again, he’s fully clothed.

And the liquid that was on him sluices to the floor, forming a blue puddle around him.

“Neat trick.” I try not to gape like an idiot. I really need to find out how he does that. It looks like the nanites have been implanted into his body. He appears to control them at will. It’s unthinkable technology, light years beyond what Humans are capable of.

I shudder. What else are these Kordolians capable of?

And what the hell are they going to do to me?

I’ve never been this helpless before. “General,” I whisper, feeling lost. “You’re going to make sure I get fixed, aren’t you?”

He stands rigidly, his jaw set in a hard line. “I don’t go back on my word.” Then his voice softens. “Get some rest, Abbey. I’ll get Zyara to attend to you.”

I nod in thanks, still disbelieving of the whole situation. He leaves me alone, merging with the shadows of this strange alien ship.

* * *

I encounter Zyara in the corridor. She regards me with a silent look, her purple eyebrows raised.

“Not a word,” I snap, annoyed that she witnessed my moment of weakness.

Her incredulous expression doesn’t change. “What’s gotten into you, Tarak?” She breaks the formality by using my first name, something she rarely ever does.

She’s one of the few who would dare, but then again, she’s been with the First Division since the beginning. She’s witnessed everything we’ve done in the name of the Empire, both good and bad.

“What I do with the Human is none of your business, medic.”

“It is when she’s my patient.” Zyara steps forward, her orange eyes glowing in the dimly lit passageway. “The only reason I let it slide was because I knew you wouldn’t harm her.” She averts her eyes for a moment, in embarrassment.

“It’s heartwarming to see that you have such faith in me.”

“What are your plans for the Human, General?”

“I will see her fully restored,” I reply. “It’s my responsibility.” Behind Zyara’s intelligent gaze, a thousand questions burn, but she doesn’t ask me anything further. I owe her half an explanation, at least. “We’ll be in communication range with Kythia soon. I will be sending backup to Fortuna Tau.” I know what she’s worried about. I’ve left the entire First Division on the Human station to deal with the Xargek.

She should know better.

“It will take much longer to reach the Station now that the wormhole’s collapsed, but I’ve calculated that the main concentrator we left on Fortuna Tau has plenty of reserve. The Humans should have fixed their supply by then. I’ve changed my mind, Zyara. I have plans for that little outpost.”

“Cryptic as always, General.”

“You should know by now that I will never abandon my troops.”

“Yes, and of the thousands you command, the First Division holds special meaning for you, doesn’t it?”

I choose not to answer, turning my gaze towards the entrance of the medical bay. “Your patient needs your attention, medic.”

Again she tries to pin me with that questioning stare. “The authorities on Kythia aren’t going to accept her, you know. Without your protection, she’ll be in danger.”

“You let me worry about that.” On Kythia, lesser species do not have rights. They’re assigned to the servant classes. The High Council will challenge me, and I will fight back. These days, I’ve come to relish my battles with the ruling class. I have nothing but disdain for those pampered, self-indulgent fools.

“From what I’ve seen, she’s not going to be happy about it when she realizes how things are.”

“Again, let me worry about that.” She’s right. Abbey won’t be pleased at all. She’s stubborn. Obstinate. She will argue and complain and fight. She has no filter and speaks her mind at will. Without fear.

I find it strangely refreshing.

The very thought causes my erection to return.

She won’t be happy at all. But if that’s the price to pay for her to be healed, then so be it.

I will deal with the aftermath when it comes.

* * *

Drifting in and out of sleep, I hear faint voices outside. It sounds like the General’s debriefing Zyara on the little situation she just walked in on.

It all feels very awkward right about now.

My heart’s still racing even though I’m dead tired. The injuries and events of the past few hours are taking their toll, and a bone-deep weariness creeps through me.

I might not need that sedative after all. I could drop off to sleep right about now.

But movement catches my attention, and I realize that Zyara’s back, looking at me through the thick glass.

This feeling of being stared at like an exotic creature is quickly becoming old. I remember going to an orbit-zoo with my dad when I was a kid. They had aliens there, strange looking creatures with oddly shaped limbs and wild coloring. They were put in glass-walled pens, and we gaped at them and took pictures, watching as they shuffled around with a resigned sort of apathy.

I wonder of any of them were intelligent lifeforms.

Now I get an idea of how they would have felt. Thank Mars the orbit-zoos were shut down a few years ago.

“Forget you saw that just now,” I blurt, fighting my rising embarrassment. Why should I feel embarrassed? It wasn’t my fault that a certain oversized, grey musclehead just happened to drop in beside me.

But deep down, I know why I feel this way. It’s because I liked it. His body felt good against mine, sending a gooey warm feeling all though me.

I hope I’m not blushing right now.

Zyara shrugs, trying to hide her curiosity. If she’s anything like a Human chick, she’ll be burning with questions and dying to get gossip out of me. But she looks like the cool, composed, collected type and we don’t really know each other all that well yet. So of course, she’s not going to ask.

“Your relationship with the General is none of my business,” she says stiffly, and I wonder if she’s got a secret thing for the big guy.

“There’s no relationship,” I respond without thinking. “He just, uh,” I shake my head, “never mind. You seem to have worked pretty closely with him. Can I ask you one thing?”

“What’s that?”

“Can I trust him?”

“Of course,” she snaps, in an instant. “General Tarak is well respected on Kythia. He’s served the Empire with honor.”

It’s an automatic, almost scripted response. Interesting. Who is this Tarak guy, really, that he can inspire such loyalty in his subordinates?

And there’s no way I can blindly trust him. Not when I’m Human, and he’s Kordolian. He said it himself. Apparently, I’m inferior.

And now, for reasons I don’t yet fully understand, I’m the subject of my own crazy space-opera fantasy, hurtling towards an unknown planet that’s too far away for Humans to have ever set foot on.

Our space cruisers just don’t travel that far.

I’m out of reach of my people, unable to run, and stuck with aliens I don’t trust.

Why would he bring me so many millions of light years just to patch me up? Me? I’m not a valuable asset. I’m just a simple scientist, trying to get a promotion so I can get back to Earth.

And now I’m impossibly far away from Earth, with no way of getting back on my own.

Suddenly, the liquid in the cryo-tank feels super cold, and I feel very, very small.

I try not to think about what might greet me when we reach Kythia, the Kordolian home planet. I don’t want to know. For now, it might just be better to escape to the only place I can go.

“Zyara,” I say, as she fiddles with various machines and monitors, “what are you waiting for? Knock me out. This cold is killing me. Can’t you make it warmer?”

“That’s not possible, I’m afraid. The low temperature slows cellular damage. If you’re not tolerating it well, I’ll sedate you.”

I nod, closing my eyes, resigned to my temporary state.

I’m not looking forward to what happens when we get to Kythia. With my jittery nerves threatening to take over and cause a minor meltdown, I’d rather just sleep.

Tarak had better be as good as his word and get me fixed. And once I can walk again, I’m figuring out how to return to Earth, even if I have to hijack a Kordolian battle cruiser to get there.

Sounds preposterous, huh? But in these outrageous, terrifying circumstances, a girl needs to cling onto hope—even if hope is just a thought.