Blue and Alluring Read online

  Olwick nodded. “Plant proteins are known for screwing with adrenal processes. Up or down, if you are not used to it, it can mess with you.”

  His casual speech patterns were at odds with his appearance.

  “Do either of you wish me to alter your appearances? I can set your features back to normal if you like.”

  Both of them nodded frantically. “Yes.”

  As they worked through their meals, she changed them all back. Their organs were still Kremall, but she reformed their bodies back to normal. She offered it to them, but the truth was that she wanted out of the yellow skin. She wanted her silvery blue back. It wouldn’t be fair to change herself and leave them.

  “Now don’t get any ideas. Your internal workings are still that of the Kremall. I will need to reset your bodies when we get back to the station.”

  Jerigar moved over to a shining surface that he could see his features, in and he sighed. “Thank the stars.”

  She snorted but then realised, as she had many times over the last few years, her appearance was a matter of will, their faces were genetics. They were very attached to the way they looked.

  Olwick looked at her. “Is everything where it is supposed to be?”

  She gave his features a careful once-over. A few minor tweaks and he was nearly perfect. “There. You are back to looking disgustingly symmetrical and very rugged at the same time.”

  He grinned.

  Jerigar was still examining his features. Finally, he was satisfied. “I cannot believe you did it so quickly.”

  “The time-consuming process is the organ matching and biological reset. The rest of it is simply cosmetic.” She sipped at her tea.

  Jerigar smiled and staggered. His colour changed, and he started to seize.

  “Help me get him to the med alcove.”

  She wrapped him in mist and restrained him while he thrashed. Olwick carried him.

  “That mist is handy.”

  She moved to get the scanner over his body and snorted. “It is at that.”

  The problem was swiftly identified as a food allergy. She dialled up an injection and administered it to her patient.

  “What is wrong with him?”

  “His body doesn’t want to take in the rations. His Kremall organs are taking over his digestion. In a few weeks, he would have stabilized on his own and he would have been stuck there. Food from off world is toxic to him.”

  Olwick winced. “What will you do?”

  “Keep him sedated and get him changed over as soon as I can. Do you mind going second?”

  “No. May I watch?”

  “As long as you help me keep him stable.”

  “What do we have to do?”

  She made a face. “First thing I have to do is pump his stomach. After that, I will flush his system and keep him out until we reach the station.”

  “Right. I will keep an eye on the navigation systems.” Olwick looked a little squeamish.

  Illuma went about the necessities of keeping the Azon alive. It was gross, messy and lifesaving. He seized twice before she got him stable.

  While she was working on him, she took skin, hair and clothing samples for analysis. If there was anything on Kremall that would cause this reaction, she wanted to know if he had brought it home.

  Healers from Citadel Lowel were waiting for Jerigar as he finished his adjustment back to normal. He was going to need therapy and proper healing now that everything was back where it should be.

  Illuma confessed to a sense of relief when he was out of her care and on his way to Lowel with the healers and the samples. He was out of her hair, and she was delighted.

  When the hatch was sealed and the Citadel zip dismissed, she returned to Olwick.

  “So, are you ready to get everything back where it should be?”

  He nodded. “Please. I am not sure where my kidneys are and the fact concerns me.”

  She stared at him for a moment before she started to laugh.

  Chapter Six

  Illuma was still snickering hours later when the reversal procedure had been completed. Kidneys.

  Olwick was sleeping, his features relaxed and elegant. She stroked his cheek, and he turned his head toward her hand. Her heart tripped a little at the gesture. Specialists, agents and officers put their lives in her hands every week, but feeling the trust coming from his unconscious body was enough to bring her to tears.

  She stroked his cheek again and straightened, pulling her hand away. She would miss him when he was off doing whatever it was that the Citadel wanted him to do next.

  Olwick would be out for another few hours while the biological restart was going on. Illuma supposed that she should be filing her field report.

  She turned and headed for her terminal. She could watch over him while she worked. It made her feel less alone for the moment, which was odd; she didn’t remember feeling alone before.

  She heard someone clear his throat, and she jumped. “Specialist Luring, you surprised me.”

  He was standing in front of her in a lightly armoured body suit covered by the flare of his robes.

  “It was not my intent to startle you, Specialist Ambrehar.” He matched her formality for formality.

  She blinked. “Are you ready to return to the Citadel?”

  “Not quite yet. I am being dispatched again on another mission. I am being allowed to go as myself, so I will not require your services.”

  “Oh. How are you...”

  “A shuttle is coming to pick me up. It will bring me back when I have completed the assessment.”

  She frowned. “Back? Is your next mission already lined up?”

  He quirked his lips. “Something like that. I will be back soon. There is one thing I need to tell you.”

  Illuma looked at the hand he was extending to her, and she got to her feet, sliding her palm along his. He pressed a kiss to the inside of her wrist and followed it up with one to her lips.

  He exhaled against her mouth, and she returned the favour, but in her case, she sent a column of mist into him. If he was travelling without her, he was going to be safe.

  Olwick backed up and licked his lips. “Did you just do something?”

  “Insurance. No matter what you are doing, you are going to be safe. Apologies for not warning you.”

  He closed his eyes as if taking stock. “What does it do, exactly?”

  “It will let me help if you need it. I hope I do not have to, but you are one of the only friends I have, so I intend to keep you whole.”

  He smiled and stroked her cheek. “I intend to remain whole as well.”

  “Good. We are on the same page.”

  They went to the dining room and sat at the table, having tea and waiting for his ride.

  He asked her questions about her upbringing, and she asked him about puberty. She couldn’t figure out which one of them was more shocked.

  The shuttle arrived and docked at slip B. Olwick gave her another kiss before he left, and she ran to the observation tower to watch the shuttle leave. Her heart went with it.

  Her com chimed. “Specialist Ambrehar, we have another alteration for you. Can you fit her in?”

  She lifted her head and spoke clearly. “My calendar is clear. Can you bring her up?”

  “Of course.”

  Illuma watched the shuttle as it became a tiny speck against the stars. She could feel him, but her visual was gone.

  She went to her lab and set everything for a sterilization run. If she was getting guests, she wanted them to have a nice, clean reception.

  Iara didn’t bring her Yaluthu or her family, but she did bring a young, frightened woman with her.

  “Yimeera, this is our alteration specialist, Illuma. Illuma, Yimeera is a political refugee. We need to hide her, and the best place to do it is in the middle of a mixed colony.”

  Yimeera was a soft lavender with beautiful, sparkling wings. She was shy and kept her eyes to the ground for the most part, but when she fina
lly looked up at Illuma, the brilliant rainbow eyes took her breath away.

  “Do you want to become something with or without wings?” Illuma took her hand and led her to the design station. She rarely used it, but as she was creating a place to hide, it was best that Yimeera make a few critical choices.

  The voice was weak, but it rang like tiny bells. “I would like wings, but not these wings.”

  Iara was sitting nearby and simply watching the proceedings. She didn’t involve herself.

  “Well, little soul, I think you will do well at an Enjel colony, so we will give you Enjel wings.”

  They started with the wings, moved on to height, skin tone and eye colour. The hair colour was fun, as Yimeera chose a variegated blend of colours over deep grey skin.

  Everything was accounted for, down to teeth and fingernails.

  “This is not a simple procedure. We are building you from the ground up, changing everything. You are going to sleep now, and you will wake up when it is done. There will be a week where you won’t recognize yourself in a mirror and you will still have flashes of memory of how you used to look. A Minder can help with those, but as the Enjel don’t have a lot of psychics, you will be safer with them and their social structure than in another colony.”

  Yimeera swallowed. “I don’t want to be hunted anymore.”

  Illuma nodded. “In that case, we will just change everything about you except that.”

  Yimeera looked to Iara. “I don’t want them hunting me anymore.”

  “Listen to Illuma, pet. She will help you.”

  Illuma took a deep breath, sent the design to the business side of the lab to have the bots gather the materials needed, and she called for a tank.

  “I am going to walk you through the procedure, little soul.” Illuma gave Yimeera a tour while her mind grappled with doing surgery on an elemental Vorwing. It was the first time that one had come forward to escape.

  While Yimeera was on the exam bed getting scanned, she asked, “Why do you call me little soul?”

  “It is what Yimeera means in Breethin. Are you ready to rest?”

  Yimeera nodded.

  “Good, when you wake, you will be in a tank. Don’t panic. Someone will be with you. Someone will always be with you.” Illuma smiled, and she meant that smile.

  Yimeera clung to her hand for a moment, and then, she lay relaxed on the table. The sedative was administered and the machines went to work.

  Iara watched the machines through the window in the sealed lab. “How long will it take?”

  “My lab will be busy for nine days. After that, Yimeera goes in a tank and we will watch as the changes and grafts take hold.”

  “Who will watch her when you sleep?”

  “Bot nineteen. His name is Werker.”

  Iara chuckled. “You name them?”

  “I spend a lot of time up here on my own. If it moves here, it has a name.” Illuma shrugged.

  “I should send up a Yaluthu for you.”

  Illuma summoned one of the bots and gave it instructions to watch closely and call if there was a problem.

  “Come for tea?”

  Iara smiled. “I would love to.”

  “I know very well that the Yaluthu choose their partners carefully. I have never come up in one of their minds, so I am content to find entertainment and companionship where I can.”

  They walked to the observation deck and had tea under the stars. The bright spinning of the planets wasn’t visible, but the distant nebula cast a pink and yellow glow. It was lovely.

  “Do you enjoy your work, Illuma?” Iara’s question came out of nowhere.

  “I do. The people I change for assignments come back with the most marvellous tales. I am of use to those who need me, and no one can beat my skins.”

  “That is true. The Sector Guard marvels at your success rate in creating stealth agents.”

  “Do they want to hire me?” She chuckled. Mirth was coming easier.

  “Yes.”

  That word hung in the air between them as the galaxy spun above.

  Two days later, Yimeera was coming along and the distant warning alarm went off. Something was approaching the station.

  Illuma headed for the command deck and opened up the scanners. “Approaching vessel, identify yourself.”

  There was silence for a moment, and then, a gravelly voice came through the coms. “You have what is ours.”

  “This station is under the protection of the Sector Guard and Citadel. You are not authorized to approach.”

  “We will take what is ours.” The harsh voice was barely understandable.

  Illuma sent a distress call to Udell and Lowel before activating the incursion protocol.

  The lab locked and the machines kept working; their power supply was separate from the main systems of the station.

  Illuma forced her Nishan form to emerge and fill the station in a thin layer.

  The bulk of the station lost its heat and power. If they were forcing themselves in, they would be attacking a dead station.

  With everything ready, she waited. Citadel or Sector Guard staff would have overrides that would turn everything on. Until that happened, Illuma was guarding her station and her patient.

  In the vacuum of space, she floated through her station and kept her senses alert to possibilities.

  They attacked shuttle slip B and pried the doors open. The moment they opened the door, they reeled back and had to get breathers.

  She waited with the patience of her mother’s people. When they ran, they had pulled a portion of her mist with them. She counted the men on the ship, and her mind filled with laughter. Two men on the ship and four men were in her station.

  She thickened and blinded them, cutting off their com units as they blundered about in the station. One man tried to burn her, but she just moved away from the flames.

  One by one, she dragged them to the ground and pried their masks off. They asphyxiated and stilled in the cool of her hallways.

  When there was no answer to their calls, the men in the ship came into the station and found the roiling mass of fog.

  “We have come for what is ours. Surrender her and you can keep the men.”

  She moved around them, examining their bodies, clothing and appearances. She might need to make a Raider one day or a Vorwing. One never knew.

  Lightning shot through her, and she pulled back. The Vorwing was wielding lighting on her station. That would never do.

  She pulled his feet out from under him and pulled off his mask. Without hesitating, she plunged tendrils of mist into him and stopped his lungs from filling or holding air.

  He twitched and thrashed violently, his companion staring in horror. Finally, he was still. His pulse slowed and stopped. When his body began to cool in the freezing station, she removed her mist from him. His companion ran for the ship, but she stopped him, holding him down and removing his mask.

  No one could threaten her patient and live. Yimeera didn’t want to be hunted, and Illuma hoped that she never knew what had transpired while she was out.

  With care and finality, Illuma lifted the bodies and equipment and put them back on their ship. She didn’t want them dirtying her halls.

  For the next two hours, she watched over the station until the Sector Guard arrived in time to pull the Raider ship off her dock and repair the station entry.

  When all was complete and the Guard had checked her halls for intruders, she set about gathering herself in. It was going to take a while.

  * * * *

  The shuttled arrived, and Olwick emerged from the airlock with a smile and a few bags on his shoulder.

  “Hello, Illuma.”

  She smiled and ran a hand through her hair, self-conscious about the tendrils of mist that followed her like wings and a halo. “Hello, Olwick.”

  He walked to her and dropped the bags at her feet. “I have missed you.”

  “It has been less than a week.”

  “Every
day away from you, I miss you.”

  She chuckled, and her tendrils picked up his bags. “You said you had another assignment?”

  “I do. I am now the only other permanent inhabitant of Incognito Station.”

  “What?”

  “Citadel Lowel feels that you would benefit from another warm body here, and I concur. I feel that you definitely need me at your side, and I need you.”

  She blushed. She touched her cheek; it was definitely hot.

  “As a fellow Breethin, you know that it isn’t proper.”

  “Which is why I have come from a meeting with your parents with a cohabiting contract. If you agree, we are betrothed in the eyes of the Breethin government.”

  She smiled shyly. “Why would you want that?”

  “You are my sister’s champion and my hero. Why would I not want that?”

  She hugged him tight and lifted them a few inches off the ground, moving them through the station, showing him his quarters, across from hers.

  “The station is busy with a recreation for the next week. No more visitors. Would you care to play dice?”

  He grinned. “Where would a respectable girl like you learn dice?”

  “The very respectable servants’ quarters. I may have looked five years old, but I was twenty. Folk tended to forget that.”

  They spent the next few days learning about childhood mischief and favourite assignments. Olwick was fascinated by Yimeera and her transformation as well as her origin.

  “Aren’t you curious where she came from?”

  Illuma looked at the medical reports and smiled. “I looked into her eyes and saw haunted pain. I don’t care where she came from; I just want to help her get where she wants to go. Her past isn’t my concern. We all have a past; it is what we are now that matters.”

  He nodded and looked over at the patient under the slow ministrations of the machines. “Her soul is steady. She has been bent but never broken. She will do well on the next phase of her life.”

  Illuma linked arms with Olwick and whispered, “You read her personality and now her future?”