- Ava -

“Perhaps I should.”

She was still seething. That situation back there had been tense, absolutely. But she had handled it perfectly, diverting their attention and curiosity to something that they wanted. She had felt that the Solp had been slightly more tense than she'd expected, but now she knew why – Xark'ion had been standing behind her almost the whole time, making a mockery of her honest attempt to deal with the Solp in a calm, friendly way.

At least he seemed to get the point now. But he was clearly not convinced that being friendly to aliens was the right approach.

Finally he gave her a glance. “That crystal was very valuable?”

“Not at all. It's synthetic. I can get as many of them as I want. But of course now I probably won't need any more. I think the Solp will be very difficult to deal with after this. Now the only information we have is that the King's name is probably Bulpot and that he lives in a citadel up high. Not a great result for this long trip and the risk. Let's circle the planet once more and look for anywhere else the king might be. Buildings or mountains, maybe. Somewhere high up.”

An hour later, it was clear that the gathering around the fire they had left was the only place on the planet that stood out.

Ava sighed. “Let's just go back to the Friendship. I have to think about how to continue.”

Xark'ion banked the shuttle to the escape vector and engaged the main drive. “We both have to think.”

- - -

“Please hold her for a moment? I have to fix something.”

Charlotte handed little Elerea Blaze over to Ava and unceremoniously adjusted her bra under her thin sweater. “Never had boobs this big. And of course there isn't a decent maternity shop this side of Saturn. You'd think space wouldn't have enough gravity for this to be an issue. It was certainly never mention in our orientations. I'll develop a major back issue, just you wait.”

Ava felt the compact weight of the infant in her arms. The girl was moving her little fingers in her sleep.

“There's a business idea. I mean, since everyone who marries a warrior seems to get pregnant immediately.”

“They're fertile, the Acerex,” Charlotte agreed and leaned back. “And you look good with a kid in your arms.”

“I think this little beauty makes anyone who holds her look good,” Ava said and gently nuzzled Elerea's head, enjoying the fresh scent of new baby. “The halo effect, they call it.”

Charlotte stretched her legs under the table in the little coffee shop on the Friendship. “M-hm. In this case I think maybe the beauty is in the holder. So. Your first mission with an Acerex warrior.”

Ava sighed and settled back in her chair. “First mission. Not a major success.” She quickly told Charlotte about the Solp.

Charlotte chuckled. “Right. Yeah, I can only imagine how antsy a warrior would be in that situation. Without his sword, even. I'm surprised he didn't just put you over his shoulder, truss you up with string and bring you straight home. And that's just after that first encounter where they wanted to gnaw on you. He must be remarkably patient. You got yourself a thinker there.”

“I'm not so sure. He pretty much screwed up the mission.”

“Uh-huh. Sounds like it got really tense there for a moment. You sure he wasn't right? I mean, a million excited aliens just feet away, all wanting something you held in your hand? Heck, I'd toss you into the shuttle myself.”

Ava had given it a lot of thought, and she had come to the conclusion that Xark'ion had a point. “Of course I can't be sure about what they were thinking. And of course there was a risk. There's always a risk when you meet aliens to talk to them. But my interpreter device is much better than his, and I had information that he didn't have. Anyway, he was standing behind me the whole time. Ready to pounce. The Acerex are as alien to the Solp as the Solp are to us. He looks like a monster to them. So do I, probably. Still they didn't attack me. Maybe I'm just so used to working alone that anything new just doesn't sit well with me.”

“So now you want to get rid of him?”

Hell no. “I've been thinking about it. But he's probably as good a warrior as I can find for this. If I get a new one, I have to start all over with explaining how diplomacy works. I think you're right that most of them would not have been as patient as he was. I think he gets it now. It's good to not have to pilot the shuttle myself, too. Heck, he did make me feel safe. Maybe it made me a little reckless. Actually, scratch that 'maybe'.”

“And he's drop-dead gorgeous. That has to count for something, right?”

Ava couldn't keep a wry smile off her face. “He's nice to look at. And he's insanely strong. He lifted me like I was a ball of cotton. If the Solp really wanted to attack me, he would have handled it fine. Even without his sword.”

“Nice to look at,” Charlotte repeated thoughtfully. “That's one way of putting it. You know, I'm married and a mom and everything. Cori'ax is the fucking love of my life, and nothing is getting between me and him. Ever. He says he wants to knock me up again pretty soon, and I'm more than fine with that. But it's not like I'm dead. And when it comes to Xark'ion, let me just make this official statement, once and for all, on behalf of all straight women everywhere: raaaaawr." She clawed one hand theatrically through the air.

Ava laughed softly to not disturb the sleeping baby on her chest. “Yes, fine. He's a dreamboat. Totally.”

Charlotte grinned. “And he's smart. Obviously. Can you blame him for needing a little adjustment to the Earth way of thinking? You just hang on to him. He'll be sipping champagne and negotiating trade agreements in no time. Wearing one of those monkey suits.”

“Now there's an image. Yeah, we'll see. If he still wants to. I doubt he'll want to go on another mission with me. He still thinks I'm crazy. And I guess I did go off on him a little. Hey, you. You want your mama?”

Little Elerea Blaze gave off a little mewling sound and stirred, blinking her eyes and scrunching up her face.

Charlotte leaned over to accept her baby back in her arms. “Feeding time, I guess. Hey, I'm sure he's willing to try again. You know how dedicated they can be once they promise to do something. Damn it, Ava, you're playing it so cool. But you have to be a little attracted to this guy?”

“How could I not be? Of fucking course I am. Oh, I'm sorry. Elerea, don't listen to silly Auntie Ava. Never use that word, okay, sweetie? Yeah, I'm attracted. But I'm trying to suppress it. In that direction there's only heartache for me. I'm not his Mahan, and that's it.”

“Maybe, maybe not. Sure, don't fall for him. But come on, duty isn't everything. Allow yourself some fun if the opportunity comes along. Or even make it happen. Would he really be opposed to a fun fling with a hot alien woman? Would any guy? Captain Kirk sure went through them like there was no tomorrow. And you're not that alien to him. You're not even green.”

Ava chuckled and stifled a yawn. She'd been up for well over a day. “Turns out that green aliens are pretty rare. They're mostly a dirty brown.”

“Truth is stranger than fiction. Hey, you know what I read the other day? You know the British royal family? They have to have bodyguards everywhere they go. And sometimes they have to give those bodyguards messages, like, when they're out in public. So they have a really discreet system of signs they can use. Like, old Queen Elizabeth would always carry a purse, right? So the bodyguards would always keep an eye on how she was holding it when she was out in public. If she held the purse in one position, it would mean 'everything is fine'. But if she held it in a different way, or switched hands, it could mean 'I want to end this conversation' or 'I'm done here, let's go' or 'I need a bathroom' or anything else she'd need them to know. All depending on how she was holding her purse. And if she started twisting her wedding ring, it meant 'get me the hell away from this person'. So her staff could always react to her wishes without anyone else being the wiser. And I'm thinking, in my soldierly way, that you and Xark'ion need a system like that. He'll understand what you mean. All the squads have silent sign systems for use in battles. Doesn't even have to be discreet. Just a way for you to tell him when you need his help and when you don't. Might help you avoid situations like the one you told me about.”

“But Xark'ion doesn't carry a purse,” Ava deadpanned. Her mood had picked up a lot, which was one reason she had wanted to talk to Charlotte and nobody else. The unusually down-to-earth pilot saw things the way they were and didn't sugarcoat anything. “No, I understand what you mean. It's a good idea. I'll think of something. If I ever see him again.”

Charlotte smiled innocently. “I have a feeling you will. If you don't, I'll make it happen. I need some drama to be nosy about, even if I have to make it myself.”

Ava slowly got to her feet. “You know, I don't think I'd mind a little drama sometimes. Well, it's bedtime for us silly aunties. Thanks for listening, Charlotte. I just needed to vent a little.”

“You vent all you want, girl. Despite my best efforts, I'm on motherhood leave for many weeks yet. So if you have nothing to vent to me about, please just make something up. I'm bored as fuck. Oops. Close your ears, Elerea. Gods, in a few months she'll be the most foul-mouthed toddler ever.”

Ava gently stroked the infant's soft head. “And the cutest one. The contrast will be unbearably charming. See you later, girls.”

- - -

She slept fitfully, tossing and turning despite the exhaustion. All she could think about was Xark'ion.

He was a soldier. Of course he and his squad had a system of signs that they would use in combat. And of course that was what he had wanted to suggest before they even got to the Solp planet. The means of communication he had mentioned. But she had shut him down before he could even say anything. She had been so damn intent on showing him how wrong he was about how to handle aliens and how right she was.

First he had been called before his own queen and been asked to volunteer. He had done as he was asked, as any Acerex warrior would. Then he had been dragged before his king to be told how worthless his warrior ways were and how much he just had to obey. Obey an alien woman he barely knew, except that she was one of his queen's friends.

All along he had done exactly what he had been told, protecting Ava as well as he could with the information available to him. Leaving his sword behind, something that must have been pretty humiliating for a warrior.

And to top it all off, she had then blamed him for the mission not going perfectly. A mission with a result she would otherwise have been mostly happy with. A mission where she had been much more reckless than she ever had before, taking insane risks that now sent icy shivers down her spine. She would never have gone right up to unknown aliens like the Solp if he hadn't been there. Sure, his presence had made her feel safe. But mostly she'd wanted to show off, to hit him over the head with how great her diplomacy skills were.

If anyone had ruined the mission, it was her.

“Fuck,” Ava said into the darkness in her quarters, feeling tears burning in the corners of her eyes. “I've been a total bitch to him.”

She couldn't sleep. She got up and pulled on a new utility suit. No, he probably didn't want anything to do with her ever again. And she wouldn't blame him at all.

But still, she had to talk to him. He deserved a sincere apology.

And, she realized, she really wanted to see him again.

No, that wasn't it.

“Not weird at all, this chick,” she muttered as she fastened her shipboard shoes. “Just fucking longing for the presence of a guy I've known for less than a day.”

- - -

The Acerex had their own section of the Friendship. There were usually several of them visiting the Earth ship. Two warriors with swords guarded the entrance. Not because they feared that any Earthlings would do anything wrong in their part of the ship, but because it was tradition to always guard any offworld camp.

Ava went up to them. “Greetings. I seek Captain Xark'ion.”

The two guards exchanged glances. Humans wanting to meet specific Acerex was probably not common.

“Captain Xark'ion gave up his quarters,” one of the guards said. “Our section is always slightly too crowded when King Vrax'ton is aboard this ship.”

Shit. “Do you happen to know where Xark'ion is?”

“I believe,” the other guard said, “that he was going to the hangar bay.”

Fuck. He'd left the ship already. “Thank you.”

“Only about an hour ago,” the guard said helpfully. “He might still be onboard.”

She turned and walked fast towards the elevators, which were pretty far away. It wouldn't take him an hour to get to the hangar bay and then board a shuttle to go down to his own planet. But maybe there was still hope. Some shuttles had to be prepped before they could fly. Or maybe he had to wait for one. Or maybe there was a lot of traffic and he had to wait for clearance to leave.

It was a slim hope. But it was possible.

She started running.