Page 3 of Alien on the Moon (Thryal Mates #3)

Elena

“How have you addressed the temperature differential?” Elena asked, the open page on her tablet already stuffed with notes.

Stiya’s effort to hold back a groan was almost tangible.

“There isn’t a massive difference compared to some of the more remote areas of Thryal, so we’ve classed that as negligible.”

Elena could hear her patience was growing thin.

She had peppered Stiya with endless questions during the transport to Kheros between cramming in as much knowledge about terraforming and the Kheros project as her brain could possibly take.

“Look, we’re almost there,” Stiya said.

Elena almost laughed at the palpable relief in her tone. She was used to people quickly getting bored with her incessant questions, and she’d learned—mostly—not to be offended by it. It helped that Stiya had started looking at her with less annoyance and more respect. Begrudgingly.

Elena gasped as she followed Stiya’s finger and stared out of the window. Seeing the moon up close was remarkable. She let out a small, excited squeak.

“I’m going to walk on the moon!” she exclaimed with a fist pump. The texture of the surface was rough. Elena could see the tilled fields surrounding a large building. The compound. Cool . In the early morning light, the windows of the compound were brightly illuminated from inside. Elena pressed her nose to the window, trying to make out the plants. She frowned.

“How many plants have grown to full term?”

Stiya sighed. “Not many, outside. We have some plants thriving in our lab, but it’s proved difficult to replicate in the fields.”

The craft jerked as it landed at the dock. Stiya jumped up and passed an oxygen mask to Elena.

“We’ll need to unload the fresh food and new samples quickly. The team will be anxious to get started,” she warned.

Elena nodded, securing the strap underneath her bun. Stiya released the airlock and opened the craft.

A few people were already waiting to greet them outside the dock. Stiya waved a few into the cargo hold to collect the crates of fresh fruit, vegetables, and meat.

A tall, handsome Thryal male approached her. With his typical gray luminescent skin, the shimmer of his bald head was dazzling in the early sun’s rays. His emerald eyes betrayed his nervousness. Elena assumed he was a mail boy or laborer, judging by his standard-issue spacesuit and belt of tools. The oxygen mask blocked off half his face and distorted his voice when he spoke.

“Hi, you must be Princess Elena. I’m—”

“Oh, god, just Elena. Please. And great, you can help with the samples!” Elena interrupted, waving him into the craft. He started to argue but followed her.

“Here, be careful with these. They’ve been packed with the lids loose to help them breathe, so don’t tilt the crate.”

The man started speaking again, but Elena waved a hand.

“They must go straight to the incubation chambers in the lab. Try not to get too much of the compound’s air into it.”

The man frowned. Elena felt sorry for him. He seemed confused. He obviously didn’t know much about the project.

“These are the modified bral plants,” she explained patiently. “They’ve been raised in the lab down there.” She pointed more or less in the direction her ship had come. “To the exact specifications of the atmosphere here.”

She lifted a crate, carefully balancing it on her forearms. “If they’re disturbed too much, they’ll fail before they even make it to the fields.”

Elena thought she spotted a small smirk behind his oxygen mask, but she couldn’t be sure. She huffed. “Well, lead the way!”

The man lifted his crate and led her toward the compound doors. Elena noticed a few people nodding at him. That’s good, she thought. If they treat the lower staff with so much respect, maybe they’ll be nice to me.

They entered the compound, pausing to take off their masks. Elena’s eyes widened as she took in the lab. The array of machines and tech sent her blood rushing in excitement.

“Oh, wow, this thing is next level,” she said, stopping at what looked like a microscope. “It’s almost like a hybrid between a microscope and an x-ray machine, except you can set the depth and it’ll give you the microscopic image of any layer inside the subject.”

She blew a loose strand of hair out of her face. “It’s the only piece of equipment that can do that without destroying your sample.” Elena couldn’t wait to use it. “This would’ve been so useful during my masters,” she said wistfully.

“You don’t have this machine on Earth?” the guy asked.

Goosebumps erupted on her arm as he brushed against it. Elena held in a shiver.

Elena scoffed and shook her head. She was about to reply when a glass cube containing thriving plants caught her eye.

“Are these the bral crops? They look great.” She studied the control panel. “Oh, the atmosphere is set to match Thryal’s atmosphere. I wonder what the process is for transitioning them…”

The man seemed amused but didn’t offer a response. Of course, he wouldn’t know. He led her further into the long room.

Elena gasped as she passed the biggest centrifuge she’d ever seen, the machine taking up almost the size of a king-size bed. She placed her crate down.

“This is amazing! How did you even get this here without messing with the balance?” She ran a hand over the curve of the machine. “This is a centrifuge,” she explained. “If the mechanisms are a nanometer off, the whole thing breaks. They have to be built to exact specifications.”

“The engineers had the parts sent separately. They built it here,” the man replied, also placing his crate down. “It took six months to build.”

“That’s amazing,” Elena breathed.

Before she could ask more, Stiya rushed into the room, her eyes wild. “Oh, there you are! I’ve been looking for you everywhere. Good, you’ve met Rylan.”

Elena’s heart stopped.

Her jaw fell to the floor.

Embarrassment heated her cheeks to nuclear degrees.

This… this was Rylan? The freaking head of the research project? And she’d been talking to him like he knew nothing. She buried her face in her hands.

“I’m so sorry,” she mumbled. A soft laugh made her peek between her fingers.

Rylan shrugged, still smiling. “It happens. Don’t worry about it.”

Stiya looked between them with a frown creasing her eyebrows. “Wait, what happened?”

Elena groaned.

“Nothing happened. Elena and I were just getting acquainted.” He picked up his crate again, a sly grin tugging at his lips. “Shall we?”

Elena bit her lip and followed his lead. Her breath still felt stunted, her cheeks burning. Besides his obvious amusement at her embarrassment, Rylan didn’t seem bothered by her oversight. She would have expected a man in his position to be pissed that she didn’t know who he was.

Elena groaned internally. Why did he let her go on for so long? Because you didn’t give him much chance to speak, genius.

It wasn’t the first time she’d cursed her rambling tendencies, and it probably wouldn’t be the last.

Rylan led her to an incubation room further down the lab. This time, he was explaining things as they went along.

“This is where the soil experts conduct their research and experiments. We passed the atmospheric science area—with the centrifuge—and yes, those were the bral crops.”

He smirked at her over his shoulder, making her cheeks heat for a different reason. If she hadn’t met so many Thryals back on the planet, she would be questioning whether every Thryal man was impossibly handsome. Her brothers-in-law definitely set a high standard. Though she thought Rylan surpassed even them.

“We transition them slowly from Thryal’s air to Kheros’s, to see if they can naturally adjust their biology. It hasn’t worked so far,” he said, his face growing serious. Elena could see a slight indent between his eyebrows, revealing his worry.

She bit her tongue. She would have time for in-depth questions later. They placed their crates down, and Rylan held out a hand for her to shake.

“I’m pleased to officially meet you, Elena,” he said with a smile. Elena bit her lip, shaking his hand.

“And you, Rylan. I really am sorry about before.”

He laughed and shrugged. “I did try to correct you, but then you saw the lab. It’s nice to see someone else so excited about a bunch of machines.”

Elena gasped in mock outrage. “Bunch of machines? How dare you! This is some of the most advanced and coveted technical equipment I’ve ever seen!” They both laughed, and Elena was grateful for Rylan breaking the ice.

They walked to the end of the lab, Elena still eyeing the equipment excitedly.

“This is where I work. We’ve cleared a desk for you over here,” he said, leading her to an empty desk. “You can shadow me for a few days to see how everything works.”

“Thank you, that’s really great,” Elena said. She tried to hide her surprise at his openness.

“Is something wrong? Did you want to be in a separate section?”

“No, no, it’s just…” Elena laughed sheepishly. “I feel like I’m getting the royal treatment. I mean, I guess I am a royal now or whatever, but back on Thryal, they sort of just let me tinker about without involving me in any serious projects.”

Rylan frowned. “I see. Well, that won’t be the case here. We need all hands on deck, and I look forward to hearing your ideas. I looked up your qualifications,” he added a bit guiltily.

Elena grinned.

“Same. Impressive history,” she teased. She wanted to face-palm for not looking at any of his photos.

“How about a tour?”

“That sounds great. I wouldn’t mind freshening up, too.”

“I’ll show you the common areas and your room. Then we can grab some breakfast and head out to the fields. Does that sound good?”

At Elena’s nod, Rylan led her through the compound. He described each part of the facility and how they all worked together. Elena couldn’t help but steal little glances at him as they walked.

He was serious, a small frown on his brows, but a glint of mischief in his eyes hinted at something more. The way everyone they passed smiled or nodded went a long way to showing his leadership.

“This is your room. It’s not the royal palace, but I hope it’ll do.” Rylan pushed a door open and led her inside. The room was small, with a plush-looking bed and a desk. A built-in wardrobe was already stocked with the standard work-suit, and a few bookshelves stood ready for her to fill them. Her pack had been delivered and sat waiting on the bed.

“Your private bathroom is just through here.” Rylan pulled open one of the wardrobe doors, exposing a hidden ensuite behind. Elena peeked in.

“What is this, a bathroom for ants?” she said in her best Zoolander impression. She couldn’t help but snort at the expression on Rylan’s face. Somewhere between confused and offended, his mouth opened and closed as he tried to figure out what to say.

“I’m just kidding. It’s a thing from a movie back home, where this guy…” Elena waved a hand. “Never mind. This is perfect, thank you.”

Rylan shook his head, a small smile tugging at his lips. “I have a feeling there will be many of these moments,” he said.

Elena grinned.

He wasn’t wrong. A few hours later, they were crouched down, fingers deep inside the Kheros soil.

Elena grinned at him through her oxygen mask. “So, come here often?”

Rylan laughed. “What does that one mean?”

“It’s a really dumb pick-up line. You have pick-up lines. Right?”

As he pulled the stalk of a wilting plant from the ground, Rylan snuck her a look. “Are you trying to pick me up?”

Elena’s face reddened. “No, I mean, it was…”

She narrowed her eyes as Rylan burst out laughing. “Oh, now you’re making fun of me?” She shoved his shoulder playfully. It didn’t escape her notice that he barely budged, his lean frame strong and solid.

Rylan’s laughter tapered off as he inspected the root of the plant he’d upended. Elena sobered, scooting closer to him to inspect it.

“See this blue bit?” Rylan asked, pointing to an area of pocked marks filled with indigo sludge. Elena grabbed a sample jar, holding it open for Rylan.

“We haven’t been able to figure out what causes this, and we haven’t collected a viable sample. I think you brought good luck with you.” He smiled at Elena, though it was strained.

“You’re worried about what it means,” Elena said, studying his face. He nodded, his eyes downcast. “Well, let’s get it back to the lab. What do you start with?”

“What would you recommend?” Rylan asked, seeming genuinely interested. He placed the sample carefully in the glass jar Elena held out.

Elena stared at the sample, her mind running through the various tests they could do, cross-referencing them with the equipment she’d been admiring in the lab.

“I would start with a microscopic analysis of the secretion, the surface of the root, and where the two interact,” she replied slowly. “A chemical analysis next, and—do you have DNA samples and testing equipment?”

She pushed her glasses up her nose as Rylan nodded. “Finally, checking for fungi or other microorganisms. Longer term, we could do stress testing on this sample and some healthy ones under different conditions.”

Rylan studied her thoughtfully. Elena thought she saw a flicker of something pass through his eyes, but it was there and gone before she could make it out. Admiration? Annoyance? She wasn’t sure.

“All right then. Let’s get this back to the lab and start testing,” Rylan said, placing the sample in a sealed container along with the other samples they’d been collecting.

Elena’s eyes felt heavy, and she rubbed an ache in her back. “Caffeine first. Please tell me you have caffeine?” She looked up at him with big, pleading eyes, making him huff a laugh.

“We have caffeine,” he confirmed. “We should probably grab something to eat, too. We’ve been out here for hours.” He gestured to the darkening sky.

Elena gaped. She hadn’t noticed how much time had passed.

Time flies when you’re having fun with an alien scientist.