CHAPTER THREE
REENA RHODES
It could have been a dream, and for a moment, I thought it was. It was still hard to understand, but after the one that was the most attractive of all of them kissed me and pressed his body against mine, I had no choice but to know that it was truly real.
I was ashamed of that moment. When it first happened I went with it. I had no choice because my body wanted him. I melted into his arms and enjoyed the feeling of his strong chest against my breasts. I enjoyed the scent he emanated and the way his tongue softly played with mine. I wanted him to pick me up and take me against the wall. Then my logic came back to me and I realized that I was allowing this stranger to dominate me! That was when I slapped him and moved away. I couldn’t let that happen again. I was a scientist, and I had hit the gold mine: true alien beings. I needed to follow my new path to discover as much as I could about them. I could not be distracted by how attractive and bold this Dekario was.
So as I made my way back to their ship with him and Nalox, I did not let his presence distract me from taking in the sights and sounds of the village of Pacu. It looked like a painting of an ancient Roman market. There were colorful cloths hanging from market tables with all kinds of wares and the scent of heavy spices filled the air.
“What’s the protocol?” Commander Triq’s voice seemed to come out of nowhere. I turned to see him standing in front of the gate to the port. He looked pissed and was staring down Dekario.
“Patrols are to be done together while the commander remains with the ship,” Dekario said standing at attention like a soldier.
“Yes, that is the protocol. Yet here you are disobeying it,” he said. Then he turned to Nalox and said, “Take her inside with the others.”
“Yes, Commander.”
I looked at Dekario who stood motionless. I didn’t realize that he was defying his Commander by taking me out into the market. I was impressed by this action. Though it was probably very stupid on his part. I did like that he was willing to get in trouble to do something for me.
“This way,” Nalox said as he urged me inside the port. I walked through the gates, giving a glance back at the Commander shouting at Dekario. I felt a bit guilty.
A few moments later I was back in the large room that the Draqua had given us aboard the ship. It was ample and clean, with a couple of places to sleep and a table. Luka and Phoenix were sitting at the table when I walked in.
“That was fast,” Phoenix said.
“How was it? What did you see?” Luka said excitedly.
“It was amazing. It is very vibrant out there, and there are many, many, races of alien. These Draqua are not the only aliens out in the universe. I just can’t believe all of this,” I said as I sat down with them.
“That is unbelievable. To think this whole time we have never ever seen an alien or knew if they really existed, then we get stuck in space and drift into the jackpot of aliens. I just can’t believe it,” Luka said.
“Did they hurt you?” Phoenix asked.
“What? No. The Draqua were pleasant, but the other races out in the market, well,1 they looked very dangerous. I learned that there is a slave market of sorts, so it’s not exactly a safe place,” I said.
“A slave market! That’s just wrong!” Luka shouted.
“Yeah, I agree,” I said.
“There’s not much we can do about it. We just have to keep a low profile and figure out what’s next,” Phoenix said.
“Do you mean figure out how to get back to Earth?” Luka asked.
“Yeah, if that will ever be possible. I don’t see how it is without a ship,” Phoenix said.
“Or without anything to trade for a ship. This is a market so they must have money of some kind or trade. So it is possible to buy a ship, but we have nothing. Everything we had sank with our ship in that strange lake. We are stranded out here,” Luka said.
“Well, we were already stranded, remember? We were drifting aimlessly in space running out of food and whatever. At least now we have access to food, water, and shelter, but I am just really upset we had to lose our crewmates in the process,” I said.
“Yes,” Luka said as she stood up. She raised her glass of water as tears formed in her eyes, “To Captain Wallace, Marcy, and Jason – the brave souls that will never be forgotten. They are loved. To the crew…”
“To the crew…” Phoenix and I said as we raised glasses of water with her. Then we sat in silence mourning the death of our friends and thinking about an uncertain and unknown future.
“I’m going to lay down for a bit,” Luka said.
“Sounds like a good idea,” Phoenix said as they both moved to the sleeping benches. As soon as they said it, I felt my body grow tired. It had been almost forty-eight hours since we’d slept. I took a sleep bench in the corner and laid down, staring at the strange ceiling above me. The ship’s material was glossy and unlike anything that I had ever seen before. It was almost as if it was made of liquid glass.
While I stared at the ceiling, one image kept popping into my mind: Dekario. I could not stop thinking about that kiss and his sideways grin. Before I knew it, that image was circulating in my mind. Dekario’s full lips were on mine. He was brushing them softly back and forth over my own trembling lips. Then he moved them down over my neck going lower and lower until Dekario’s mouth was on my cleavage. His tongue played there with my skin, making me feel a burning sensation as though his mouth were fire.
Then he moved lower still as his massive hand cupped my breast. He squeezed and rolled my nipple between his fingers. I sighed. I wanted him to keep going, lower and lower. Then, as though he knew what I was begging for, Dekario moved lower over my belly. He kissed me softly. His tongue traced a line down from breasts to my already wet and pulsating center. Dekario’s face pushed between my thighs and he pressed against my slit. I cried out in ecstasy as I opened my thighs wider for him to explore. Dekario groaned in pleasure, happy to be able to please me. His tongue flicked against me and before I knew it, I was in a deep orgasm that built within me and burst. I felt my whole body vibrate and jolt.
My eyes shot open. “What the hell?” I whispered to myself. The room was dark. I sat up and remembered where I was. I was in the living quarters inside the Draqua ship. I must have fallen asleep, and the dream I was having was just a sex dream. But it felt so very real, and I could feel the wetness between my legs in my spandex space suit.
I took a few deep breaths. Get a hold of yourself, Reena. It was just a dream, I told myself. In the dim room, I looked over at a sleeping Luka in the opposite corner. She was curled up with a blanket over her. Phoenix was on the other side of the room, asleep as well. He was so tired he was snoring. We had all been through a lot and rest was much needed. Then my body jolted again, just like in the dream. “What?” I whispered. I realized then that it wasn’t the jolt of orgasm in my dream that had moved me: it was the ship. The damn ship was moving.
“What in the name?” I said as I got up and ran out of the living quarters. I made my way down the long narrow hall and found Dekario alone on the flight deck. He was facing the windshield.
“Oh my god! Are you kidding me!” I shouted as I walked in and looked out the windshield. It was the blackness of space.
“Did you sleep well? I thought I heard you say something when I checked on you?” he said as he turned to me and grinned. I froze. Had he heard me moaning and groaning in my sleep? I quickly searched my memory to see if I had called out his name in my dream. I was so embarrassed that I chose not to answer his question. Instead, I was going full fury.
“What the hell is going on here? Where are we going? Didn’t you think it was necessary to tell us that we were leaving Tiok? We are not your prisoners, you know! We had the right to choose if we wanted to stay there!” I said as I got right in his face. I could feel my face flushed red and my chest was heaving up and down as I breathed heavily in anger.
“We are going to my home planet of Kelon. You will be safer there. Tiok is a very dangerous place. Not good for humans. My planet is beautiful and safe for your kind. Your kind is very, very welcome on Kelon,” he smiled.
“That is great! That is just wonderful!” I shouted at him sarcastically. “But didn’t you think you should have informed us? This is not right. This is complete bullshit. You cannot do this to us. You are freaking infuriating! You know that?” I said as I stomped out into the hallway. “The nerve of these damn dragons,” I muttered under my breath. I opened the door to the living quarters and turned on the lights.
“Wake up! Luka! Phoenix! Wake up!” I shouted as I shoved each of them to wake up. They sleepily woke and sat up in bed.
“What is it, Reena?” Luka asked.
“We’re in freaking space, that’s what!”
“What?!” Phoenix said as he stood up.
“Yeah, I woke up a few minutes ago and realized the ship was moving so I went to the flight deck and there it was outside the windshield: SPACE!” I said.
“No,” Luka said as she and Phoenix walked out into the hall and onto the flight deck.
This time Dekario was not alone. Commander Triq was on deck as well.
“What is going on here? Where are you taking us?” Phoenix asked he stood defensively in front of us.
“Oh, good to see that you all are awake. Did you rest well?” Commander Triq asked.
“Where are you taking us?” Phoenix asked again with a stern tone.
“We are going home, and we are taking you with us. I thought that it was best. This way we can guarantee your safety,” Commander Triq answered.
“Why were we not consulted on this? We thank you for your help but leaving Tiok is a decision we should have made for ourselves,” Phoenix said.
“Because you are not informed. If you were informed that Tiok is a hostile place for humans and Kelon is a hospitable place for humans then you would no doubt make the decision to come with us. If we would have left you on Tiok, you would be dead by now, and the females would be slaves,” Commander Triq said.
“Wait. What do you mean by that?” I asked.
“Slaves?” he said.
“No, not that. You said Kelon is a hospitable place for humans. What do you mean by that? How would you know that if there are not humans already there?” I asked.
Dekario and the Commander exchanged looks as they became quiet. I got a chill up my spine as I realized that we weren’t the only humans that these Draqua knew. But how? How could that be possible?
“Perhaps you should wait and see with your own eyes. You will see that it was the best decision. Now if you will return to your quarter's food will be brought to you,” the Commander said.
“How long? How long before we arrive on your planet?” Phoenix asked.
“Another twenty hours or so,” Commander Triq answered.
“We want to go back to Earth. If Kelon is a friend to us humans as you say, then it sounds like it could be arranged. We would need transport of some kind or our own ship,” Phoenix said.
“When we arrive, you may see the king. King Hydros makes those decisions and will be able to assist you,” Commander Triq said.
“Come, let’s get back to the room,” Phoenix said as he turned to us and stared at Commander Triq suspiciously over his shoulder. He didn’t trust him, and neither did I. There was something tricky about him, but I didn’t know exactly what that was.
We moved into the hall and toward the room. “I’ll be right there. I just want to check out the view from that port window over there,” I said, pointing down the other end of the hall.
“Hurry. I don’t trust these Draqua. There’s something going on here, and we shouldn’t be apart too long,” Phoenix whispered to me. I nodded my head.
I was pissed. These Draqua were taking advantage of us. But that anger quickly turned to awe as I saw the view from the window. It was spectacular. In the distance, I could see the orange and white planet of Tiok, but what held my gaze were giant pillars of green and purple gasses that seemed to stand still. “Nebula,” I whispered to myself. “This is incredible.”
I was moved to tears as I saw something that I never thought I would. I had no idea where we were in space. Phoenix wanted a ship to return, but even if we had a ship, it would be an alien ship. We wouldn’t know how to work it, and we definitely wouldn’t know which direction to go in order to get to Earth. It was all impossible. I knew then that returning to Earth would not be in our future and I would have to embrace this new path. But could I really?
“It’s beautiful,” a voice said. I turned to see Commander Triq walking toward me. He was looking at me up and down, and it made me uncomfortable. He was obviously older, and if he were a human man, I would place him in his early fifties. He was not elderly; he was a very formidable warrior still, but definitely older than the other Draqua on the ship.
“Yes, it is. What is it called?” I asked turning my gaze out the window.
“I wasn’t talking about the view outside the window. I was speaking of my own view,” he said as he ran a finger down my cheek. It startled me. I was not expecting this from him.
“Um… oh, um…” I said as I took a step backward removing my face from his touch.
“Don’t be frightened, Reena. I could make you happy. I could protect you. If you agree to be my mate then your future is a very happy, safe, and bright one,” he said as he ran the back of his hand down my arm. It again was shocking to me.
I didn’t know what to say. “That is an…interesting offer, but I have no plans to be anyone’s mate,” I said sternly narrowing my eyes at him.
He grinned. It wasn’t a delicious, adorable grin like Dekario’s grin. This was different. It was a dark grin of defiance, as though to say, oh yes you will. It made me gulp even though I was trying not to show that I was scared.
“Excuse me,” a voice said from behind me. I turned to see Kavik standing behind me carrying a large tray with food and drink.
“I was just taking this to your quarters,” he said, implying that we were in the way.
“Thank you. I’m famished,” I said as I quickly moved away from Commander Triq and down the hall, walking in front of Kavik to the quarters. I was glad for the interruption.
“What the hell is going on, Reena? This is fucked, I don’t like it,” Phoenix said as I walked in, not knowing that Kavik was behind me.
“Phoenix,” I said widening my eyes toward the door just as Kavik walked in.
“I brought some food and drink for you. Commander Triq’s orders. This is all from our home planet and is safe for human consumption,” he said as he set the tray on the table. I watched Luka as she watched the muscular alien move. He did have very strong, toned muscles, and the loincloth and calf high boots left little the imagination. Luka’s mouth opened slightly as she watched him and I knew immediately what she was thinking.
“Kavik, you have to tell us more about what is going on,” I said to him.
“I don’t know what you are referring to,” he said in a charming way as he walked toward the door.
“She means being taken against our will. Are we prisoners?” Phoenix said bluntly.
“No, not prisoners. Guests,” Kavik said as he looked directly at Luka. She blushed in return. “Eat, rest. You will need your energy for arriving on Kelon. It is a sight to see. I promise that,” he smiled and closed the door behind him as he left.
“Shit. We’re screwed,” Phoenix said.
“I don’t know. Maybe not. Maybe they are being truthful and they are helping us. They did save us, remember?” Luka said.
“Yes, they did, but it is not normal to just take off like that from Tiok and not tell us. Who knows what waits for us on this planet of theirs. It could be enslavement, or death,” I said as I sat at the table and dug into the food. As I did so, I remembered something. “Why did he say that?”
“Say what?” Luka asked.
“He said this food was safe for human consumption. How would he know that unless humans have eaten it before?” I said.
“What are you getting at, scientist?” Phoenix said.
“The way they talk, they have said several times certain things about humans. I think we are not the first that they have encountered. I think they know humans. I think there are humans on Kelon,” I said.
“But how?” Luka said.
“She’s right,” Phoenix said. “They have mentioned humans quite a bit. It is a good observation, Reena. I guess we will know in twenty hours when we land on this planet. A part of me hopes they don’t have humans enslaved there, but at the same time it will be a relief to know that we are not the only humans there.”
“And if there are humans there, then perhaps it will be a good thing because it means we will have a chance of going home to Earth,” Luka said.
“Well, let’s eat and get as much energy reserves and as much rest as we can. We need to all be on our game when we land,” Phoenix said. He was forever thinking like a Navy SEAL, and it was a good thing.
After we ate, we all washed up in the washroom and then quietly went to bed. I was ready for a very long sleep. I needed it. I was able to rest easy knowing that there wasn’t much worse that could happen now that we were in space. I slept soundly until I felt something on my leg.
I was in a deep sleep with lots of hallucination-like dreams when I felt a hand rest on my calf. At first, I thought I was dreaming, another sex dream that I was going to welcome in if it was about Dekario. But then I felt the hand grow tight around my leg. I stirred and shifted from one side to another, but as I did so, I woke up. I felt a presence in the room. The light from the hallway came in through the cracked open door. There Commander Triq stood, staring at me. I gasped as I sat up quickly. He smiled and just stood there. He stared at me quietly, letting his eyes move up and down the length of my body. I felt very exposed.
“Soon, my mate. Soon…” he whispered. Then he left and closed the door. I was left breathing heavily in fear. I didn’t like the sound of that.
“Luka… Phoenix…?” I whispered. But there was no answer, only the soft breathing of their sleeping rhythms. I laid down again, staring wide awake at the ceiling. I was scared to go back to sleep because he might return. Why the hell did he want me? What did I do to set his sights on me? Then I remembered how he had berated Dekario when we went into Pacu. I understood now that he was yelling at him because he was jealous of Dekario’s attention toward me and not because Dekario was disobeying orders. This could not be good for me.
The next day, we landed on Kelon.
“Holy shit,” Phoenix said as we stepped out of the ship.
“You can say that again,” Luka whispered.
“Holy shit,” I repeated.
We had stepped out of space and into paradise, literally. The planet of Kelon was like a tropical paradise on Earth,1 like Hawaii or an exotic place in the Caribbean. The waters were crystal clear, and the beaches were pristine. We were high up in the trees on a landing pad, and we could see for miles.
“This looks like a fairy tale. They live in the trees,” Luka said as we looked at all the thatched roofed huts in the trees connected by bridges. It was beautiful.
“I guess it makes sense if you can fly,” Phoenix said.
“This way. I’ll show you to your huts,” Nalox said as he stepped in front of us.
“Huts?” Luka said.
“I thought we were to meet with the king?” Phoenix said.
“Yes. Commander Triq will meet with him to tell him about you and then you will be summoned. Come this way,” he said.
We all looked at each other. What choice did we have? So we followed. We took in all the sights as we followed him to a very large tree.
“Look at that,” Luka whispered. We all looked at one bridge over from us where a few female Draqua were passing. They looked very much like human females, but they were tall, at almost eight feet. They were not shifted with wings, and I wondered if the females could shift at all. They wore small cloths covering their breasts and loin cloths.
“Yes, I see,” Phoenix said, amused.
“Calm down now. You don’t want to get one of these dragon men after you for messing with his woman,” I whispered to him. Luka laughed. Soon we were at the edge of the bridge where there was a large platform built all the way around the tree. It was mid-way up the tree. There were plenty of huts high above us, and the center of the village was below on the beach. The platform had four small huts evenly spaced from each other.
“Take your pick. These are empty. They are guests’ quarters. If you are going to roam the village, just always return here. Make note of the tree,” Nalox said.
“We are free to roam around?” Phoenix said surprised.
“It is an island. Where would you go?” Nalox said as he turned and left us.
We all looked at each other, confused by this freedom.
“Well at least we don’t have to fear giant spider creatures,” Luka said.
“Maybe we shouldn’t separate though,” Phoenix said, looking at the huts on the platform.
“They’re not separate; we’re in the same tree,” I said playfully. They both laughed. We knew that this was absolutely absurd and we didn’t know what would happen next. But for now, we might as well make ourselves at home.
“I think I’ll take the one that faces the ocean,” I said as I quickly walked toward it. Luka and Phoenix both went off in the other direction to check out the other huts.
I opened the thick wooden door to the hut expecting to find very primitive dwellings, but I was wrong.
“I can’t believe it,” I whispered as I walked in. The vaulted ceiling of the hut met at a point, and it was beautiful. There was a very large bed area with a plush bed and fine, sheer curtains surrounding it. I ran across the room to the view of the ocean outside the window. It was stunning, and the sea breeze caressed my skin. Then I moved to the other side where there was a large tub and a private washroom. I was surprised by how luxurious it was and the fact that there was running water. I grabbed a cup of water and sat on the bed. I could not wait to explore this village and learn all that I could about the race known as the Draqua, but two things stood out in my mind. One was that there were humans somewhere on this island, but I didn’t know where. The other was that Commander Triq wanted me and I didn’t know if I would be able to fight him off.