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  “Piquaro directed me here and cut communication. I have tried to contact him, but he isn’t responding.” She felt something peculiar. It felt like a building of static.

  “What do you think he is doing?”

  “Aside from remaking his surface? I think he is up to something.” She rubbed her arms and shivered. The energy was pouring in, but it was avoiding her. That in itself was unusual. Normally, power streamed toward and through her.

  “Did he mention making you his Avatar?” Viiko touched her arms and ran his hands down them, warming her.

  Giving in to instinct, she leaned back against him and relaxed. When she smiled and looked up into his eyes, their normal colour had been replaced by vivid orange.

  “What is going on, Viiko?”

  “Viiko is not speaking at the moment, Naka. It is good to speak to you face to face.”

  She pulled away from him, but his hands tightened on her arms. “Piquaro? Why are you in Viiko? I thought I was the only one who could transport you.”

  He caressed her arms again but didn’t loosen his grip. “I have chosen him as my Avatar. I have not had one before, but I believe that we will suit each other very well. As to why he can host me, if I send my mind into you, you can contain all of me, leaving nothing in the soil of my world. Taking him as my Avatar, I can speak to you while keeping the bulk of my mind crafting my world into an ideal place for you.”

  She used all her strength to jerk herself free and backed away. “Did you ask him?” Tears started to fall, and she shrieked, “Did you ask him!”

  He jerked backward at the vehemence of her tone.

  She felt power all her own pouring into her. The source was a mystery, but the effect wasn’t. Naka advanced on Viiko’s body and pushed Piquaro out of control.

  “Viiko? Are you all right?”

  The orange faded from his eyes, and his hand cupped her jawline. “I am fine, Naka. He did ask me. He requested it when we were flying here, and the process began the moment we landed. I am sorry I did not tell you, but answer me this…why are your eyes glowing?”

  She blinked and backed up. “They are glowing?”

  Naka looked up, and the crystals were showing a dark sky with the moon glowing brightly. “I am going to release Piquaro. I need him to answer me.”

  Viiko nodded and the orange flared in his gaze again. “Where did you get that power?”

  “Were you alone in the moon?”

  He jerked as if stung. “What?”

  “Were you alone in the moon? Is the moon sentient?”

  His face looked sheepish. “Kevna was beginning the throes of life when I was imbued in its surface, why?”

  “When I forged the link with you, I took part of Kevna with me.” She shivered and stared at her hands. Her skin was glowing, and her body was no longer standing on the ground.

  He frowned, “Viiko said that you said you were clear of any traces.”

  She looked down at him as she rose into the air. “I was looking for traces of you, not a pre-verbal moon.”

  The moon was calling her. It wanted to speak directly, and there was only one way to do it. Her hands filled with power and pointed toward the ceiling of the cavern, blowing a hole in the stone that was just wide enough to let her through.

  Her body was beyond her control, and the moonlight pulled her straight toward the object of power that was yanking her strings.

  She had called the moon, now it was returning her call.

  Chapter Eleven

  Naka thanked the Sector Guard for the suit as it sealed her in a protective layer. She flew faster and faster through the atmosphere, punching through the sound barrier with a shocking suddenness.

  She was moving faster than the shuttle had, blurring through space to land on the surface of the moon, Kevna.

  Hello?

  A bright, happy tumble ran through her mind.

  Are you Kevna?

  The consciousness thought about it for a while before it replied, Yes. Kevna. Piquaro is gone. Kevna is left.

  I am pleased to meet you, Kevna.

  You are mine. I have called you, and you are mine.

  I cannot stay here, Kevna. I cannot survive here. She tried to be calm, but she was getting the feeling that Kevna wanted her to stay and that wasn’t in her plans for her future.

  Piquaro got him. I get you. Is fair.

  It is fair, but I can still be yours and live on the planet. I can be your voice as Viiko speaks for Piquaro. Will that do?

  I need to think…yes, it will do. I want peoples. I want many peoples on me. I don’t want to be alone.

  I can understand that. I will see what I can do and keep you informed. Is my coming up here once a lunar rotation acceptable?

  Yes. Is good. This is new. I like talking. Piquaro did not talk. He ignored. I not like.

  Naka drew in a deep breath through her mask. Will you accept changes to your surface? More air to breathe perhaps?

  I can do. You will see. Come back, and you will see.

  Naka felt Kevna release her, and her trajectory was reversed toward the planet’s surface once again.

  Flying was peculiar, but she would take it over a jump any day. The cavern was still lit by moonlight, but as she returned through the hole she had made on the way out, her skin brought enough light to the interior to mimic daylight.

  Viiko was pacing but he froze and watched her descend. “Well?”

  She was glowing so brightly, she could not see who was in control until she was next to him. It was Piquaro. “Kevna wants me as an Avatar since you would not talk to her while you were encased in her body. She also wants to be a star base and have people on her surface. I told her I would see what I could arrange.”

  He snorted, “Kevna is hardly sentient.”

  “The language is halting, but she is learning fast. You might want to speak to her now that you are each in your proper places. You may learn something.” Naka walked to the shuttle and found the bag containing ration bars. She started gnawing on one while taking a walking tour. Viiko joined her, and a quick glance confirmed that it was him.

  “You need to speak to the Citadel as well as the Sector Guard.”

  “And tell them what? I moved a planet and then got the moon lodged in my brain and body?”

  He chuckled, “It sounds silly when you say it like that.”

  “It feels silly.”

  “Still, you need to explain it. I am sure that the Alliance will be delighted to have the base on the moon instead of the planet. The lesser gravity makes it easier for landing and take-offs.” He made it sound most reasonable.

  “Fine. When do you want the communication?”

  “Now is good. The alignment is perfect for the optimum signal.” He wrapped an arm around her waist and escorted her back to the shuttle.

  “Do they know about you?”

  “Yes. I filed the Avatar report while you were out.” His voice was grim.

  She nodded and remained quiet until he activated the com unit and a split image was in front of her. A cowled figure was on one side, and a woman in a strange face-framing halo was on the other.

  “Citadel Master Norf is on the left, Relay of the Sector Guard Base Morganti is on the right. Please explain who you are and what is going on.” Viiko nodded encouragingly to her, and she took a deep breath.

  “My name is Naka Gwyn of Resicor. I was a talent who apparently was brainwashed into exposing my power to the people of my world, and I was arrested and sentenced to live in a restrictor suit within the dome. I was checked out of the dome by Citadel personnel and taken to Teklan for the alteration of my suit. Once my body was my own again, I accompanied Biological Assessment Specialist Viiko Carolian to Piq. After arriving, I determined that the disturbances in the surface were due to power being broadcast from the moon, and upon making contact, it happened that the planet’s sentient mind had been encased in its orbiting body.”

  She breathed deeply and continued. “I spoke to the plane
t’s mind, Piquaro, and he informed me that my talent for seeing energy lines and affecting small earthquakes was due to my status as a planet carrier. Viiko checked, and there was indeed a record of a talent of that nature. Piquaro walked me through the transport from the moon back to the planet, and we enacted it.

  “Unknown to me at the time, the moon is also sentient, though still maturing. Kevna attached to me during the transport process.

  “Piquaro took Viiko as his Avatar, and while we were speaking, Kevna called me to her surface. We spoke and the result is that Kevna would like to have occupants and is willing to enrich her atmosphere to bring folks to her. She wants to be surrounded by people, have them crawling all over her.”

  Naka sat up straight and tried to put some of Kevna’s power in her gaze. “It is my request that if a base or station is set on Piq, that they choose the large moon as landing site. She is desperate for company.”

  Relay smiled, but there was a distant look in her eyes. “Thank you for the offer, Naka. I will have one of the bases send an assessment team to see what kind of facility is possible.”

  The cowled figure nodded. “You have done excellently well for a new recruit, Naka Gwyn, though we had hoped to use your talent as a planet carrier. Your position as an Avatar now sets you in place. Your income will reflect your personal sacrifice.”

  She blinked in surprise. “Income?”

  The figure looked sharply at the snickering Viiko. “You didn’t tell her?”

  “Master, there has not been time. Based on the initial contract, she is a ward of the Citadel. There was no reason to tell her, because there was no opportunity for her to shop anywhere.”

  Relay rolled her eyes in exasperation. “It figures that a man would not find shopping important. Call me anytime if you need something, Naka. I will have it there within a few days.”

  “Thank you. Some food that is more attractive than the rations I have would be nice if you can find something. I understand that my people have a delicate digestion.”

  Relay raised a brow. “Snacks? You could have anything, and you want snacks? It is a pity you haven’t met Fixer. You would get along very well.”

  Naka was about to reply when the Master spoke. “She is ours, not yours, Relay. Do not lure her into service.”

  Naka drummed her nails on the table. “Technically, since the Alliance does not allow slavery and I have not signed a contract, I am a free agent or a consultant at this moment. I am working on behalf of the Citadel but that can change at any moment.”

  Relay laughed. “I will be in touch. I have your suit’s frequencies, so don’t freak out if your collar starts talking to you.”

  The Master was staring at her, and then, his head turned toward Viiko. “You didn’t get her to sign the contract?”

  “I do apologize, Master. But there was really no time. We had to evacuate our base due to flooding. The contract is there. If you had not made your claim in such an accusatory manner, she might have signed it. Oh, and as I have been taken as an Avatar, my contract with the Citadel is null and void. If you wish any further information or documentation on Piq, you will have to negotiate for it.”

  Citadel Master Norf nodded tightly. “You are correct. You are no longer available as an operative and that must be taken into account. We will speak again on this matter after I have discussed the situation with our operatives in the area.”

  Viiko nodded. “Discuss all you will. No one is landing here without clearance.”

  The Master looked as if he would argue, but Viiko cut off communication with him.

  “Now, Relay, we are open for assessments, visits, and negotiations for use of property. Can you pass the word?”

  The woman grinned and inclined her elaborately dressed head. “It is already done. Three shipping companies are bidding for space on Kevna, and I am having our legal expert work on a contract that will act in your favour and give you right of dismissal for anyone who breaks the regulations you set in place.”

  Viiko inclined his head in return. “Thank you, Relay. I knew I could count on the Guard.”

  At the word Guard, Naka flinched, but she fought the reflex from Resicor and pasted a smile on her face.

  “Thank you, Relay. I look forward to additional communication with you.”

  The woman smiled, “I will have Fixer send you a manual for that suit. It does a lot more than you would imagine.”

  They chatted for a few minutes, and then, the call was over.

  Looking to Viiko, Naka raised her brows, “So, where are we going to sleep?”

  He looked at the back of the shuttle. “There is only one bunk.”

  “I suppose we will have to share.”

  A happy glow that had nothing to do with the planet’s consciousness filled his eyes, and he escorted her to the bed they would share.

  Naka watched as he discarded his robe and slipped between the sheets. Her motions were careful and slow when she lay down on him. The feel of his rock-hard body under her made her smile against his chest. His hands stroked her spine over and over, soothing her into sleep.

  Naka enjoyed the thought that whether he had planned it or not, they were bound for life now, and it was going to be a very, very long one.

  Chapter Twelve

  Two months later.

  His hands rubbed her back slowly. Naka fought her way back to awareness with the gentle caresses. “Good morning, sweet.”

  Two months had passed since their first negotiation with Relay, meaning that the construction on Kevna was underway. The moon was delighted with the contact.

  Naka groaned and pushed away from the naked warmth of her mate. Her hair caressed the still-sore mating marks that he had left on her neck, but she was smiling. “That was quite the wedding night.”

  He chuckled and sat up. “According to Dhemon tradition, it is not official until there is a witness.”

  “I am going to say the Piquaro qualifies. He was definitely there. So was Kevna. Her curiosity almost drove me onto you weeks ago.” Naka sat up and flicked her hair over her shoulders, staring down at him as he watched her with one arm propping his head up and the sheet barely covering him from the hips down.

  “I am glad that we waited until there was an official here to record it. It makes the rest of our hundreds of years together that much more special.” He winked at her as she wrinkled her nose.

  “You make it sound so appealing.” She snickered and flicked one of his horns.

  “I believe I have a certain amount of appeal for you or at least that is what you whispered last night.”

  She blushed to the roots of her hair, and her suit slithered up her body, wrapping her in a new style of clothing that Viiko seemed to enjoy.

  A tight bodice that was fitted but rigid at the same time had a front-opened skirt, and she had contrasting leggings beneath. It had taken some practice to get it working properly, but Fixer had sent her some tips as well as engaged in a videoconference, and now, Naka could change her clothing at will.

  She got out of bed before Viiko could haul her back, and she waggled her finger at him. “We have to check the plants today, and as you said, we have hundreds of years together to look forward to.”

  He got to his feet, his anklet surging up his body to create a suit of similar structure to hers without the skirt. A faux vest covered him from shoulder to ankle with a body suit thickened to armour width under it.

  She had to admit that he took her breath away.

  They exited their chambers in the cavern and took flight.

  Piquaro had given Viiko the power of atmospheric flight when he had bemoaned that Naka was always flitting away. Now, when she flitted, he followed her.

  The ability to fly made the commute to the base so much easier. Relay’s negotiator managed to get the base included in exchange for botanical and horticultural research reports being sent to the Alliance on a quarterly basis.

  Naka flew rings around Viiko, touching him randomly to see if she could
shake his concentration. “You are getting better at this.”

  He sighed, reached out lazily and snagged her to his side. He turned her and kissed her as he flew them both to the base. “You are too tempting by half, wife.”

  Her blush flared brightly before it faded. “I could say the same about you.” Her memories of their wedding night caused her to flush pink randomly throughout the day.

  They took samples from the greenhouse, ran tests and made plenty of notations. Viiko could do it on his own, but if she worked with him, it went faster.

  Today, she had to visit Kevna and check in on the contractors working to build the spaceport and orbital-repair extension.

  It would take a little longer today as the moon had shifted, and Naka would have to depart from the far side of the planet. Compensating for orbit was tricky, but Naka was getting the hang of it.

  “Okay, I am off to visit Kevna.” She stood next to Viiko and inhaled his scent.

  “I have a surprise planned for you when you return. Don’t be too late.” He turned and smiled, caressing the riot of hair from her forehead.

  Her hair was growing madly, curls tumbling nearly to her waist now. Kevna was doing research and altering Naka as she went.

  Naka lifted off, flew down the hall, out of the greenhouse and toward the ocean. Once clear of the danger zone, she put on the speed and powered to her launch vector.

  As she left the atmosphere, she could hear Kevna purring in her mind. Kevna loved having people on her. It made her feel useful, and Naka could sympathize. Out of all of her motivations, being useful had always been something that she craved. Now, she was the voice of a moon that no one had known was alive, married to a Dhemon who was the Avatar of a planet that no one knew was conscious. She may not be useful, but she had a purpose, and that purpose was to turn Kevna into an amazing facility that welcomed everyone.

  The air is here. I have thawed out my ice and made breathable atmosphere. Kevna’s pride was unmistakable.

  Naka grinned as she flew to the site that Kevna had declared was for her Avatar’s use only.