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  She slurped and sucked at the spoon until the bowl was empty. By the time she had finished eating, her hands had reduced their trembling and the monstrous headache she had woken with was receding. She was able to hold the cup of water in both hands and drink carefully.

  Kaia leaned back and sighed with her eyes half closed. “That is much better. Thank you.”

  “You are welcome. It is the smallest thing that I can offer you right now. Sustenance and protection.”

  Kaia yawned. “I am so sorry. It seems I am tired.”

  “Gathika put a sedative in the soup. You should be slightly more energetic when you wake up. Take a nap and relax. I will be here when you wake.”

  The room was going grey and fuzzy, but she felt a final kiss on her lips before she slipped into the safety of sleep.

  A human woman was sitting on the edge of her bed when she woke up. “Hello, Kaia Whynot. I am Lillibeth Hislar, and we are both stuck on Ikanni.”

  “You were Base Command.”

  “I still am. And you were orbital defence, but that is now over. You are officially ground bound for the foreseeable future. There is even talk of you getting a Heshi of your own.”

  “A what?”

  “A Heshi. They are hard to explain, but the nuts and bolts are that an alien race evolved into an energy form, floated around the universe for an undisclosed amount of time and then got bored and returned to Ikanni. The Admaryn were already here building a new settlement, and the Heshi jumped into their bodies to live a life and have a natural death after all that time. They give you interesting talents, like the transporting. Some get healing, but I got the voice of command.”

  “You have one of those in you?”

  Lillibeth shrugged. “I do. They are not invasive, they simply want to ride our lives, and they offer their skills and power in return.”

  “How does this happen? Do they just jump us when we aren’t looking?”

  “No. You are taken to the place where the Heshi simply live in a giant ball of fire. They will assess you and give you the best Heshi for your needs. You can give them a request if you like.”

  “You aren’t really wearing a lot of clothing. Is that normal?” Kaia had to know.

  “It is within my clan. These armbands mark me as Bael, it was a title that came with my Heshi.”

  “What is a Bael?”

  “Leader, protector, counsellor, a Bael is also warrior, strategist and organizer for their people.”

  “That is a tough list.”

  “I organized space bases. The Ikanni are a piece of cake.” She grinned and patted Kaia’s foot.

  “So, when do I get my freedom?”

  “Are you willing to take a Heshi?”

  “Does it hurt?”

  “No. Not really.”

  “Will I hear it think?”

  “No, but it might sway your emotions unexpectedly. Mine holds me back and let’s Orriko get away with far more public displays of affection than I would normally allow.”

  “So, it changes your personality?” Kaia was worried.

  “No, it gives you confidence to act on your impulses. My sex life has definitely gotten more adventurous since the Heshi moved in.”

  Kaia watched the blush climb up Lillibeth’s cheeks. She was embarrassed, but there was a pleased gleam in her eyes that was not something Kaia saw often.

  “Okay, I will accept a Heshi. How does it work?”

  Lillibeth wrapped her in the sheet and lifted her with only a slight grunt. “Heshi also make you stronger.”

  “So, how do you go and transport someone?”

  Before the sentence was complete, they were no longer in Bael Norwen’s bedroom but standing on a cliff over a huge chasm of darkness. A light began to emerge from the deep black. It swirled and twisted and writhed, a thousand tongues of flame all together in one huge mass.

  Kaia muttered, “Oh, this is going to be fun.”

  Chapter Three

  “Kaia, stand here and wait. Speak with the Heshi if you like, they will return the favour.” Lillibeth backed away and left Kaia swaying on her own two feet.

  If not for the small bit of energy she had gained from the soup, Kaia would have tipped right into the chasm, but as it was, she looked into the swirling globe of flame as she stood on her own two feet.

  “Hello.”

  The ball of flame pulsed and twisted. “Greetings. We wish to know what you want from your Heshi.”

  “I want to still be me.”

  A low chuckle rippled from the centre. “You will be yourself. We will come to you and merely watch your life unfold, enriching it as we can. Our minds are linked to the whole. We do not need to challenge control of your body.”

  “Comforting thought. What are my options?”

  She waited, and images flickered through her thoughts. One image caught her attention, and it began to flick more consistently in her mind until a lick of flame parted from the whole and it dove into her chest. Kaia gasped and staggered back as the heat spread through her.

  “You have chosen well, Kaia. She will be a good mix. She was one of our greatest warriors.” The ball was cheery, spinning happily.

  Kaia fell to her backside and watched the hypnotic motions of the mass of Heshi as one began to settle inside her.

  Lillibeth came to her side. “How do you feel?”

  “I am getting stronger. Is that right?” She got to her feet and the sheet dropped.

  An Ikanni male appeared, and he was scowling. “Bael Hislar, what are you doing here?”

  “I am answering a call by the Heshi, Orvar. What are you doing here?”

  He blinked. “I felt activity here. This is my purview if you will recall.”

  “I do recall. Reel your eyes back into your sockets. This one is not for you.”

  Kaia realized that the male’s red eyes were blazing and had taken on a heavy-lidded look. A distinct bulge was swelling in his trousers.

  Kaia’s blood rose in outrage, and she frowned at the stranger. “Stop staring.”

  “You are very lovely, child. So perfect.”

  Kaia stepped out of Lillibeth’s embrace and advanced on the male. His scent was hypnotic, but she was perturbed that he would ruin this very private moment for her.

  She heard Lillibeth gasp, and Orvar backed away, disappearing as suddenly as he had arrived.

  “Wow. That is a new one. I have been researching the talents that the Heshi bring to the Admar, and I will swear that I have never seen anything like that.”

  Lillibeth gestured to her arms, and Kaia looked down to see two large energy spikes coming from the back of her wrists and extending a foot and a half beyond. Kaia clenched her fists and the spikes extended.

  “Oh, wow. This is something that I didn’t imagine.”

  Lillibeth chuckled. “What did you wish for?”

  “I wanted to remain a fighter.”

  “It seems that that is what the Heshi gave you.”

  Kaia stared at her hands, and the energy blades slowly retracted. “Interesting. Now, how do we get home?”

  Lillibeth smiled. “Put the sheet on again, and I will have you back to Bael Norwen before he notices you are gone.”

  Kaia had her doubts, but she wrapped herself in the fabric, and the other Terran wrapped an arm around her. Together, they shifted from the cavern to the bedroom where a furious Bael Norwen was waiting.

  “Bael Hislar, I should have known it would have been you.” Thunder crackled in the distance.

  “Bael Norwen, I had hoped to have her back before you noticed she was gone.” Lillibeth helped settle Kaia back in the bed.

  “I noticed the moment that you transported out of my bedroom with Kaia, I just had no idea where you went.” The sound of rain on the windows was impressive.

  “Calm down, Bael Norwen.” There was something in Lillibeth’s tone that had not been there before.

  “Leave my home, Bael Hislar, and do not return without an invitation.” He crossed his arm
s over his chest, but the rain ceased as suddenly as it started.

  Lillibeth smiled and inclined her head. She grinned at Kaia. “Have a good rest. I hope you feel better in the morning.”

  She disappeared just like the Admaryn that Kaia had been exposed to. “Is it the Heshi that lets you come and go like that?”

  Bael Norwen ran a hand through his snow-white hair, “You know about the Heshi?”

  Kaia couldn’t stop herself, she rubbed at her sternum. “I am learning.”

  He was at her side in an instant, running his hands over her arms and looking into her eyes. “You have one? How?”

  “Lillibeth took me. A huge ball rose up and rifled through my thoughts until it presented me with a match for my instincts.” She rubbed between her breasts again. “It feels strange.”

  “She knows where the Heshi cavern is?”

  “Well, I have a Heshi with a very interesting talent inside me, so I guess she does.”

  He frowned and stroked her hair. “Don’t leave like that again.”

  “I don’t think I can. Oddly enough, I can’t pass through space like you can.”

  He sat back and took one of her hands. “Give it time. I will show you the first steps of it once you are feeling better.”

  Kaia blinked in shock. “Wait, you mean I will be able to pop in and out like that?”

  He stroked the blue and green strands of her hair idly. “Of course. The Heshi take us apart and put us together where we want to go. There are distance restrictions, of course, but we can move freely on Ikanni.”

  “Nice.”

  “Of course, the inclusion of a Heshi into your body now makes you a member of an endangered species. Leaving Ikanni is no longer an option.”

  She leaned back against the headboard. “Why?”

  “All the Heshi in the known universe are here with us. They live within us, and they die when we die. We are their gateway to the next world. You cannot be put in a position that will have you die off world.”

  Kaia’s mind whirled. “You knew that when you brought me here.”

  He nodded. “You would have died on that station. They were gathered around you to destroy you completely.”

  “How did you know?”

  “I felt it. Something in you called to me across space.” He caressed her cheek. “How did your skin get so pale? Gathika said something about an experiment.”

  If she could have blushed, she would have. “It wasn’t an experiment. It was an accident on one of my first assignments.”

  “Tell me.”

  Kaia leaned back and closed her eyes. “I was guarding a relay in transition. He had been the transfer point for some very sensitive information, and many folk do not believe that a relay cannot retain knowledge of their transferred data. We were walking him to his physiotherapy appointment when five men surrounded us and stunned the relay.

  “He dropped instantly, and I was left for the viciously fatal portion of the attack. Three stunners struck me, blades sliced into me, and though I managed to take down three of them with the weapons I was allowed, I was dying.”

  She inhaled sharply at the memory. “The relay I was escorting woke up and dragged me to medical.”

  Bael Norwen stroked her palm with his thumb as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and oddly enough, it was.

  “They didn’t have blood that would match my species, so the relay offered his. His system was still mostly full of injected nutrients, and when they transfused me with his blood, I bleached out completely.”

  “Did the relay survive?”

  She opened her eyes and smiled. “Yes. He currently has three little ones and five mates. Relays are fairly wealthy when they leave service.”

  “What species was he?”

  Kaia shrugged. “It was classified. He didn’t say, and I never asked, but he sends me updates on his family every few months.”

  “What about your hair?”

  She laughed. “After about a year, I got tired of being solid white. I paid a hefty price and got nanites implanted in my scalp that alter the colour of the hair growing based on my mood. I like the blue and green.”

  “I am beginning to believe it suits you.”

  She smiled and wished that she could blush. His eyes were intent on the colours of the strands he rubbed through his fingers.

  He slowly let the lock of hair he was caressing slip across his skin.

  She shivered and he smiled.

  “I believe that you have had enough exercise for one day. Sleep, and I will bring you something else to eat and drink in an hour or so.” He got to his feet and left her alone, using the door instead of just popping out.

  Kaia looked at the door with longing, but she decided that a little nap might not be out of the question. It had been quite a day, and more folks had seen her naked in one day than in her entire lifetime to date. It was a sobering thought that she carried with her into sleep.

  Chapter Four

  She sat up when he came back into the room. “Bael Norwen.”

  It may have been the healing or it may have been the Heshi but she was feeling remarkably better.

  He grinned. “You look well rested.”

  She stretched and quickly reached for the sheet to cover her breasts again. “I am well rested. It is amazing what an hour’s nap can do for you.”

  “You were asleep for two days. It is common when a Heshi is introduced, but an infant is an easier patient than you were.” He chuckled and put a tray of food across her legs.

  “Two days?”

  “Yes, the Heshi needs time to bond with your nervous system, but it keeps you alive and healthy while it does its work. Now, have something to eat, and call me Thaxis.”

  “Thaxis?”

  His eyes closed slightly with pleasure. “It is nice to hear my name on your lips. I look forward to it being repeated.”

  Kaia could feel her eyes widen, and he kissed her quickly before nudging her into eating her meal.

  She found that most of the foods were quite pleasant, and the wine that she had with the meal was pleasant, fruity and just a little on the dry side.

  The moment that she was done, he took the tray away and walked out through the door that she was so curious about.

  He returned and took her by the hands. “Come along. Time for a shower, and then, we will get you dressed.” He sighed regretfully.

  She was embarrassed as she staggered to get her balance. Her hair swung around her in a bright tangle, and she couldn’t meet Thaxis’s eyes while she was vulnerable.

  The shower relaxed muscles in her neck and back that she had been tensing. With her hair limp and straggling down her back, she wrapped herself in a linen sheet, sighing in relief at her clothing.

  “Your friend, Bael Hislar, wears clothing that suits her location. We are in a slightly cooler climate and sadly, you will be covered a little more thoroughly for day-to-day wear.” Thaxis was watching her, leaning against the wall. He straightened and walked to the wardrobe in the bedroom.

  She followed, and he pulled clothing out that was unrelieved black in colour, but definitely smaller than anything else in the wardrobe.

  He handed her a pair of boots, and she pulled them on. Curiosity ran through her. “How can these fit?”

  “You were measured while the Heshi did its work.”

  She stood, and he handed her a black leather dress that fell to her ankles. It had slits up the sides that met the top of her knee-high boots.

  “The lacings should improve the fit. May I?” he moved behind her and tugged at the leather ties, drawing the bodice of the dress tight across her breasts.

  The neckline was wide and showed off her chalky cleavage to advantage. When the laces up the back and sides had been properly tightened, she took a deep breath, confirming that she could still move in the gown.

  He held out a small shrug that would cover her from shoulder to wrist, and when she was dressed, he led her to a dressing table that she hadn�
�t remembered seeing the first time she was awake. He pressed her down onto the chair and lifted a brush. “I am definitely getting used to this hair of yours.”

  She sat while he expertly divided her locks and ran the brush through her tangles until her hair lay in a smooth blue-green curtain. She looked at herself in the mirror and winced at the contrast between his inky darkness and her paper-white skin.

  He placed his hands on her shoulders and smiled at her in the mirror. “I want nothing more than to throw you back onto that bed and slake my thirst in you, but for now, I believe you should be introduced to your new home.”

  She took the hand that he extended to her and let him tuck it around his arm. His skin was warm under her hand, and she took in the feel of velvet and muscle against her palm. “Why don’t you need to wear a jacket?”

  “Being Ikanni means that I am a little more robust than you are. Bael Hislar recommended that you be encouraged to wear more insulating clothing.”

  They walked out of the bedroom and into a living room that was well organized and snug. “I thought your house would be bigger.”

  “It suits my needs. I do not require more.”

  She looked around. “Where did the food come from?”

  “Gathika. She still considers you a patient.”

  He opened the door to the outside, and a blast of autumn air struck her in the face. “Oh, wow.”

  The village was made of stone and wood. The streets were paved, and all roads appeared to lead to a marketplace.

  “Where do you normally get your meals?”

  “There is a small kitchen off the back of the house. I cook when I need to.” He chuckled.

  “Interesting. Can I try my hand at cooking? I used to enjoy it.” They walked to the market, and with the crispness of autumn came the salty tang of the sea. She couldn’t see anything because of the compression of houses, but she could definitely smell it.

  The amount of fish in the market proved their proximity to a large body of water. The fish were peculiar looking, but they had a familiar body shape that she could deal with if necessary.

  “Can you really cook?”

  “Well, I will have to learn what these fruits and vegetables are, as well as the taste of the fish, but I should be able to manage.” She sniffed, touched and squeezed her way through the displays. The vendors were helpful, but Kaia knew it had something to do with the presence of their leader immediately behind her.