Page 4
Chapter 4
Yorix
E very word I read made her come to life within my mind, my hearts already aching to reach her, to touch her face, stare into her eyes, and to bring her home to claim. Brown hair, brown eyes, and those little dots known as freckles across her nose and a few on her cheeks. The image of her showed her in a short sleeve top, with more of the skin markings scattered on her forearms. I would kiss each and every one of them, as representations of the very stars that had led her to me. Quite literally, it seemed, as she was wishing to enroll in the Fleet’s Xeno-Astronomy and Astrophysics course. I felt a surge of pride. My mate was a highly intelligent woman with a thirst to see and understand our vast universe.
Two siblings, one juvenile male, one adult mated female. I found myself wondering if we too would have three. Or if she wanted more, or fewer. We were each other’s perfect match, so I knew she wished to have at least one young, as I too very much wished for this.
I filed those thoughts away. We would have plenty of time to discuss having young. No doubt she would wish to wait until we were more settled, perhaps even complete her degree first. I skipped down to the next section- favorite foods. Her favorite breakfast was smoked salmon on a sesame bagel with garlic and herb cream cheese. I beamed. We could already accommodate that. Not only with the replicator and fresh food stores, but there was a delicatessen aboard one of the ships. I resolved to find out which one and take her out for breakfast one morning. She listed grilled cheese with Campbell’s tomato soup as her favorite meal with a sandwich. For a light lunch, she had chosen Campbell’s chicken noodle soup and plain saltine crackers. She did not specify a brand for the crackers, which I found interesting as she hadn’t for the bagels or bread the sandwich was made with, but was very specific as to the brand of soup. I took careful note, deciding to experiment until I found which flavor profiles she preferred. As my mate, I felt driven to feed her only the best, just as I wished for her to have only the finest of everything. Within reason, of course, but given we were ideally suited, I intrinsically knew she wouldn’t be asking for sheets embroidered with threads made of rare metals and hand painted ceiling frescoes and such. Not that any of the mates had so far, and news of any such would have quickly travelled throughout the Fleet.
I decided to wait to read the rest of her preferred food choices for now, and moved onto her favorite color (teal, which was a sort of blue-green), vid series (Picard), stand alone vid (The Fifth Element), and pet animal (Tribble, which Xeranos marked as an imaginary creature from a sci fi vid series called Star Trek). I immediately tabbed off to add all the mentioned vids to my watch list.
I’d just finished adding those along with a few other vids Xeranos suggested when an incoming vid comm came in for me.
“Yorix here,” I answered, answering it with my tablet.
“Klohn from the Quartermaster's office here. I wanted to know if you would accept a uniquely modified unit for occupation, or if you wanted one of the more standard ones. “
“Uniquely modified?”
“Yes. The previous occupants moved out yesterday, and it’s been cleaned, but the modifications have not yet been removed. I’m sending you images of the space now.”
I stared at the pictures. The kitchen sold it to me on the spot. There was a human style cooking apparatus and chiller unit, in her favorite color, no less! And teal and white checkerboard flooring! Surely she would love it, and if not, we could change it ourselves. The eating and lounge areas sported an off white floor with colored flecks in it. Klohn had appended a note that it was simulated to look like something known as terrazzo. The bedrooms and hall had earthen tile, while the bathrooms had a patterned floor, the predominant color being a golden yellow, which matched square tiles on the wall. The fixtures were Mylos standard.
“It’s ready to move in now?” I queried him.
“Yes. It’s aboard the ship the Fleet decided to let the humans rename.” He grimaced.
I laughed. “Spacely Sprocket?”
“Yes,” he replied sourly. “Otherwise you’ll have to take a two bedroom instead of a three, and it’ll be aboard Blade of Rickon, which has fewer onboard facilities.”
I nodded. That was due to the fact that Rickon was a freighter, used mainly to house the ship’s stores.
“We’ll take the modified one.”
He looked relieved. “Thank you. I hated the idea of ripping all of that out after so much effort had gone into it.”
Curious, I asked, “Why did they not take the cooking apparatus and chiller?”
“They were reassigned to Tethys Station, where cooking facilities are disallowed by the station administrator, and she did not wish to store it.”
“I see. That is too bad.”
“The instructions state your bride is not bringing furnishings. Any preferences?”
“Her favorite color is teal. Perhaps ask Xeranos to choose from what we have in ship’s stores that he thinks she will like?”
“Done. I’ll do that now so it will all be ready for you in about three hours.”
I nodded. “Noted. It will be lunchtime when I arrive, so I will treat us to a meal before we go to our quarters.”
“Sounds like a plan.” He ended the comm.
“We’re coming in for a landing,” my pilot called back.
My hearts thumped erratically, and I felt a flush creep along my skin as an itch started along the side of my neck. I was mere moments away from meeting her, and already I burned for her, my plumage coming to the fore.