Page 10
I have to read the announcement several times before its meaning sinks in.
The kruul’s triad and their mate have been overthrown by a cricka, which is sort of like the alligators down on earth, except they’re bipedal, can talk, and they're about three times bigger. Capable of intelligent thought, they're not only colonizers, but known for forcing their captives to perform for them incessantly until they collapse. At which point they are usually eaten.
By them, of course.
Owiin comes barging in the door carrying our mate, and we all fall into emergency protocol. We don't need to communicate what needs to be done, we simply follow behind Owiin into the hidden door each residence unit is equipped with, dropping into an escape pod.
We’re in, buckled, and departing before the danger gets too close to us, but I don't think any of us actually breathe until the space station is far in the distance and we're able to cloak ourselves.
“What the actual fuck is happening?”
Now that we can no longer be tracked, I’m able to hold my mate and assure myself that she is safe. I embrace her immediately, relief filling me that we got her out in time. “Change of leadership on the space station,” I offer. “It would have been too dangerous to stay.” Our escape pod isn't much more than a vaguely oval-shaped vehicle with only the barest of necessities.
A closet of a facility room for processing and destroying the waste our bodies might emit, emergency food rations to last us a week, a small computer system, and a bed to lay comfortably in while traveling.
“I must be cursed. That's what's happening, isn't it? Somebody cursed me on earth, and I've brought that bad luck up here with me. If I had known, I might have tried to spare you. I bet you it was that barista at the corner coffee shop. I swear to you she purposely messed up my order, so I’d be inconvenienced and have to go back in in order to get it fixed. She always had this stink eye thing going on when I walked in.”
Kass is wrapped around her leg like some sort of clingy animal, shaking slightly. He doesn't do well with loud noises.
I watch with affection as our mate mindlessly pats him on the head, maybe treating him more like a pet than a mate, but it seems to be working, nonetheless.
“You are not cursed, Margaret,” Owiin says gruffly. “We must believe that fate has a reason for bringing you into our lives when they did, and I firmly believe there's a reason we had to go through all the confusion of the last few days. It's going to teach us something valuable, we just have to be patient to figure out what.”
She takes a deep, calming breath. “Okay, so how long are we stuck in this thing? Do we have a plan? Where are we even going?”
“We could simply go where we were already planning on going before,” Owiin suggests. “If it doesn't work out, we can try somewhere else. Might be better to have a destination in mind before any sort of search parties exit the space station.”
“I think I'm beginning to see why your race has such problems finding mates that they needed to recruit from my planet. This is crazy; you know that, right?”
I'm not sure if anybody else is thinking it or not, but it's definitely on my mind, so it's likely on theirs as well. “I guess halting the bond completion isn't as important anymore. Unfortunately, now that we have no obstacles to being intimate, there's no one here to teach her what to do. And our molds!” I whine in exasperation. “We lost them! Now what will we do?”
My triad partners look glum about this news as well, and this is likely going to set us back even more with our Margaret.
“If only we had an expert on board about how your bodies work, and an expert on board about how women's bodies from earth work. Then we wouldn't need a third party at all to talk to us about how to put tab A into slot B.” Our eyes fall to our feisty mate as she taps her chin, looking out through the window at the top of the vehicle.
“But humans have always gone through a course. It's important!”
Owiin points at me in agreement. “If it was easy to figure out, the kruul would never would have instated the classes. We'll try our best, but it's likely to be a poor substitute for what you could have learned. There's going to be a lot of fumbling, and a lot of frustration. But is right that it's only in our best interest now to strengthen our bond as fast as we wish. The tighter we are as a unit, the safer you'll be wherever we go, Margaret.”
She rolls over, pulling Kass up to her level so she can wrap around him. She buries her face in his chest and then pulls the blankets over them both, forcing Owiin and I to scramble backwards as much as the space will allow.
“Whatever. Personally, I think it's all bullshit and that I could figure out quite well on my own what to do with all of your golden dicks, and saying we needed help was just stupid propaganda by your kruul to make you think your equipment needed extra special care. You are vastly underestimating the determination a human has when we want to be dicked down. There's too much happening out there,” she says, waving her hand around the outside, meaning space and everything else. “I'm going to sleep, and I would prefer to do it without any more air sirens. If you could make that happen, I would be grateful. If you need me or Kass in the next few hours, no you don't. I'm claiming him as my sleep partner.”
I try to hold back my laughter, I really do. The problem is that the tone of voice she uses to say all this in makes it all so unintentionally funny that I fail greatly.
Her head peeks out over the top of the blanket and she stares at me with a significant amount of aggression, which only makes my shoulders shake more. The tension that has been rising within me over the last rotation or so begins to lessen. We're out in the middle of space, unsupervised with our beautiful mate. We’re safe, we have a course of travel, and nothing but time to waste until we get there.
I quickly lock in our new coordinates, set the ship to autopilot, and crawl in behind Margaret. The space is awfully tight with the four of us in here, but it's comfortable enough.
I'm on the edge of sleep when her soft hand reaches behind her and grabs onto my dick, petting it like she was petting Kass’ head earlier. “Just making sure he knows he's being a good boy,” she says sleepily. She starts to breathe deeper shortly after, and I know she's fallen asleep.
“I suppose we should have known when we first met her over that video call that she was going to keep us from ever getting restless or unable to find entertainment,” Owiin whispers.
I yawn and add my own musings. “It’s true. She has a gift for turning mundane occurrences into memories. Thanks be to the fates for giving us exactly what we needed.”
Maybe there isn’t much that’s mundane about everything we’ve had to endure since meeting Margaret, but it is wonderful, nonetheless, to have a partner that can be exposed to just about anything and still find a way to be adorable and make us smile.
Getting your home station taken over is something every Violetian knows is a possibility, because unfortunately it is somewhat common. We are raised not to panic if things unexpectedly change, but to focus on where we need to get to, and to keep our mate protected while we do. This wasn’t the first time we’ve had to flee the station for safety, only to return later when things were calmer.
So no, my triad and I aren’t too stressed out about our current situation, and Margaret’s mild attitude about it all only makes it easier to stay relatively calm. There will be many uncertainties in the days to follow but knowing we're going somewhere with more of our kind makes the transition easier.
It's not as if we had lots of belongings on the station that we will miss until we can potentially return, our race is one of little material attachment. For us, it's having a place where our triad is safe that is most important.
???
A subtle vibration pulls me from sleep, alerting me that we are approaching our destination. It's been many earth hours since our departure, but Margaret is still asleep. Her body will require more rest as it begins to change, so we don't wake her.
I put up my headset on, knowing the planet we're approaching will be contacting us shortly to ask for our identification. It seems the intel we received about the station so far is accurate, because explaining our situation is short work, and they are quick to grant us access to their main port.
We land smoothly, and Owiin wakes up the sleep tousled Margaret with kisses spread all over her face. He kisses each of her little freckles, something that makes her smile.
“Are we there?”
“Yes, but we don't know exactly what to expect here,” Kass tells her in a soothing tone. “They gave us permission to land, but we need you to keep it in the back of your mind that there's a possibility we might need to come right back to this escape pod if the station is not as safe as we're hoping it is.”
She yawns, covering her mouth “I'm just going to assume I have no idea what's happening, and then I should be good no matter what. Does that work?”
I make sure to hold her as she wakes further, just because none of us have any reasonable idea about what comes next.
As we step out of our escape pod, there are many strange noises echoing throughout the underfloor parking garage; what sounds like laughter, possibly animals, and other, unidentifiable noises that echo.
The first group of beings to greet us are made up of four human women and one Violetian male. Margaret perks up immediately, her demeanor changing as one of the human women approaches and goes straight for a hug.
“Welcome to Trial Two,” the one that looks older than the others tells us. “I am Charlotte, one of the leaders here.”
“I have one question,” Margaret asks, wasting no time. “Do I get to keep my tits? Gotta be honest, that's gonna be your highest selling feature for us.”
A look of understanding passes across Charlotte's face. “You are not the first refugees we've accepted here. Rest assured, we have no need or desire to change your bodies. We run this station kind of like a co-op. Everybody pitches in for everything, and things generally run pretty smooth. Is that something you can abide by?”
Owiin steps forward and nods, giving the traditional Violetian bow. “Of course. Simply show us what to do, and we will ensure it is done. We can be good contributing members of the station if you can keep us safe.”
The group of women gesture to have us follow them, and I can already see that our mate is somewhat comfortable here.
“We have a high concentration of humans here compared to other such settlements, which I'm sure you're aware of. We're getting close to capacity, so we are currently working on expansions; however, we do have a room available if you choose to stay.”
Charlotte starts to detail the minutia of day-to-day life here, explaining some of the various jobs they need filled, some of the many requirements of daily life to keep the station functioning well. All in all, it sounds almost too good to be true for us. We are led through halls that maybe are not brand new, but well-loved and in decent shape.
“We do have Violetian leaders as well, and we are chosen democratically to best serve the will of the people here. My mate is currently attending business elsewhere, but should you have any questions or concerns about any Violetian needs, she would be the one to ask.”
“Pardon, you are mated to a female?”
Charlotte does not miss a beat. “You'll find we do not hold to some of the more rigid aspects of Violetian society that you might have experienced elsewhere. One of our goals is to combat misinformation and to be accepting of anybody who needs a home here. So, before you go and spout off how having a female Violetian mated to a human woman isn't helpful for the progression of your species, understand that that is not the goal of our relationship. There are things you will learn about your own species I believe that you might have been unaware of when it comes to procreating. You can figure that out on your own time, though. So now let's get you checked in to a suite, shall we?”
“I apologize if I offended you, Charlotte,” I say honestly. “It just surprised me, that's all. It’s not a paring I've come across before. I wish you health and happiness. If you are well suited, then all the better.”
Charlotte spins and gives me a smile. “Thank you. It is nice to meet somebody who doesn’t have their own ideas about what me or my mate should be doing. I think you'll fit in well here.”
After being given a brief tour and information on how to find maps of the station, we are brought to an office that deals with housing. We must sign forms and agreements to pull our weight if we wish to remain housed and fed, and we check the wording carefully to ensure nothing extraordinary is asked of us. Everything seems pretty straightforward though, pretty simple.
The station’s goal is simply to exist in peace, to live out their lives without any sort of political ambition, which is sort of refreshing. The station gives the air of attaining to be one big, happy triad, and I have a good feeling about it.
“Considering all the upheaval I've been through, what are the chances of this station being overtaken like the last one was?” Margaret asks.
Charlotte takes her time thinking about this, the other females having had peeled away when we got to the office to assist in getting our room ready. “Many of the residents here are refugees of some sort or another, as I mentioned,” she explains. “Being as such, you'll find we have more than just Violetians and humans here. I believe it is the combination of thinking styles on the board that keeps this place the safest.
“We have multiple types of technology and abilities of other species that wish to remain safe here protecting us. It is pretty unlikely anybody could get close enough to cause us harm, and the only reason you all were able to approach us so swiftly is because of the scans we did on your ship. You can sleep easy here without a threat hanging over your head. I believe we can keep you and everybody else here safe, and that is not my ego talking. If you wish to know more, we have town hall meetings every other week. Anybody is welcome to attend.”
Yes, too good to be true.
Finding information about this place before arriving here is not easy to do, and we only know of its existence because of happenstance, but running into the triad that fled here was most likely a stroke of fate guiding us.
“Because there are four of you, you will be getting one of the larger suites we have left, but please know this is a privilege that can be revoked. We want you to be happy here, but if you cause harm to other citizens of the station, or take us for granted, you will find yourselves evicted immediately. There is no grace period, no warnings. We take the safety and well-being of our citizens very seriously. We have zero tolerance for intentional harm done to others here.
“That being said, there is basic information about the station in the eating area of your new residence, including a directory of services. We have a community clothing closet with others’ cast offs, which you are free to access. We only ask that you take simply what you need and get in the habit of doing laundry frequently. If you would like more than those basics, you can start shifts to accumulate trade credit. This you may exchange for luxuries, such as clothing and specialty food items. Meals are served at the times listed in the directory, in the dining hall. Once you get settled in, we’ll get you matched up with jobs to suit you.”
“I beg your pardon, Charlotte,” Owiin says, looking uncomfortable. “We've only just retrieved our mate a few days ago, and we are in dire need of safe time together. Is sequestering something that is done here, or will we need to accommodate your schedule immediately? Also, we had a fair number of credits saved up at our previous station. Are they worth anything here?”
Charlotte takes us in again, scanning our mate, who's looking around the room very rigidly. “If you stored those credits at one of the intergalactic alliance banks, then yes, of course you can spend them here.” Then Charlotte approaches Margaret, unwinding her arms from her body and holding her hands. “How are you doing, dear?”
“Overwhelmed.”
“I see.” Then she turns to us. “Every triad has different needs when they arrive here. Mental health is just as important as physical health. I did not realize this was a brand-new triad mating, and of course we can accommodate that. There's no rush to fully integrate with us as long as it is done in a somewhat timely manner.
“You're going to take the time to settle in, find your footing here and explore. We do have counselors available should you find their services necessary, but I will check in in a few days to see how you are doing.”
“One more thing,” I ask as she starts to head out. “Back on the station we left, female humans were required to take training classes so that we could complete our bond. What is the situation here in regard to that?”
Charlotte snorts and immediately turns to our human mate. “Are you concerned, dear, about how to have sex with your mates? Would you like me to send in a size queen coach?”
“I'm very unfamiliar with basically anything at this point,” Margaret responds, rubbing her face. “Is it necessary? In your human opinion, as someone who has been interacting with the Violetians for however long, do I actually need someone to coach my body into taking really big dick? Or has the concern been completely blown out of proportion?”
Charlotte points at her. “Mostly that one. Listen to your instincts, take it slow. It will likely take quite some time for everything to fully fit together, but that is completely normal. It really does help to exchange as many fluids as possible. Maybe it feels unpleasant to do so, but that is the best method for helping your body to stretch. If you need healing, you can look up in the directory where to go. I'll leave you to it to it.”