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Lora’s voice was quiet. “You know, you could just ask him. He would be more than happy to let you practice on him instead of a pillow.”

  “I am guessing that I have no privacy here.”

  “You don’t, but why are you holding back? It is perfectly acceptable for someone from Resicor to pursue a relationship if both parties are interested.”

  “I don’t think he is interested. I think I am just a new flavour for him.” Skiria mumbled it into the pillow.

  “He has been off Salass before. I am fairly sure that he has sewn his wild oats or wild kelp before this point. If you don’t make a move, you are depending on him to do it, and he won’t come near you while you are on a mission. I think it would be a good idea for you to have someone to cuddle up with when the mental fatigue becomes overwhelming.”

  “There is more to it than cuddling.”

  “Fine, so get some physical fatigue in there and sleep better. He is in the observatory if you are interested. Your robe is on the hook next to the door. Nine hours to the next world. I am pacing myself.”

  The suggestion was too tempting. Fighting her fatigue, Skiria got to her feet and slid into the robe while the ship gently rocked under her feet. She tied it around her and left her quarters, heading for the observatory. The upper deck with the glass enclosure was an excellent way to see a new world for the first time. Skiria hoped that she would have a chance to see one on this journey.

  Tyvor was standing in the centre of the room and staring straight ahead as they lifted through layers of clouds with only a slight tremor in the hull.

  She crept up on him and slowly circled him until she was standing between him and the view. “If I am misreading the signs, please tell me before I do something stupid. There will be no obligation on your part and no mention of it again.”

  He didn’t say anything. His black eyes watched her approach, and when she put her hands on his still-bare shoulders, he didn’t move aside from tilting his head so his lips met hers halfway.

  They travelled from daylight to night as they kissed. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her until their kiss was a meeting of equals.

  Tyvor leaned back for a moment. “Are you too tired for this?”

  “We have nine hours. I will be tired later.” She locked her arms around his neck and pressed her cheek to his before sliding back and stroking her lips over his in a slow and repetitive motion.

  He nipped her lip and paused for a moment. “You have done your research.”

  “I had a week or more to do my homework, just in case.”

  The cheek-to-lips move was textbook Salass courtship from a female to a male. It was the only sexual protocol she had been interested in. There were some details she couldn’t manage, like sex underwater without a suit, but she could engage in quite a few as well as variations on the theme.

  As he held her, she heard the fins on his arms expanding and contracting. It was a good sign.

  He shivered when she ran her hands through his hair, and when she felt tugging at the sash of her robe, she knew he was answering her invitation.

  When her skin touched his, she felt a psychic sizzle as their senses tangled, and then, she stopped analyzing and just felt.

  It became confusing when she tried to sort out whose body belonged to whom, but when they locked together, it didn’t matter. Her pleasure fed his and his hers; their climaxes were so close that the cascade of sensation built into another crest without warning.

  Skiria woke up when she felt a slow and delicate licking on her shoulder and breast.

  “Um…what are you doing?”

  “You secrete salt water when you exert yourself.” He hummed happily and continued licking.

  “It is called sweat.” Her skin heated as he searched out every bit that had not yet evaporated. “It cools me.”

  His tone was low as he burrowed into her navel. “Really? You don’t feel cool.”

  “Sweating cools me. You are warming me up.”

  Lora’s voice broke their moment. “You know, you two have perfectly well-appointed bedrooms you could be using. You are getting stains all over my nice observatory and the bots are going to be fixing those cushions for weeks.”

  Tyvor sighed and lifted his head. “Understood, Lora.”

  Skiria sat up on the wreck of her robe. “I would be embarrassed if she hadn’t coaxed me into putting aside my hesitation and told me where you were.”

  Tyvor got to his feet and held his hand to hers. “Then anything done here is definitely her fault.”

  She let him help her to her feet, and with her robe tucked around her, she pattered back to her room with the slickness between her thighs turning sticky with every step.

  She yawned and Tyvor sighed.

  “I was hoping that you would have more energy than that.”

  She giggled. “To be honest, so was I.” Another yawn punctuated her sentence.

  “Then, it is sleep for you in my room, and I believe we have seven hours left to get you back into fully rested mode.”

  “Why your room?” she yawned again.

  He coaxed her against him and led the way to his quarters. “My bed is bigger.”

  A few minutes later, she determined that he wasn’t wrong. It was definitely built for two, and as she snuggled against him, he moved his spines to stay out of her way. It wasn’t the most comfortable night’s sleep she had ever had, but in many ways, it was the best.

  Chapter Eight

  The first trip after they had become lovers was a bit of a challenge. It seemed that Tyvor liked her in leather even more than he liked her in silk.

  Of course, the leather he was wearing didn’t do much to cool her interest. The contrasts of tight and creased, as well as the feel of the slick surface under her fingers, made her itch to touch all of him and slowly peel the uniform off him an inch at a time.

  Kayakka Prime was technologically advanced, and their Avatar was bored and businesslike. He lazily sat up from the throne where he was holding court. “Ambassador of Resicor, you look pale.”

  “Avatar of Kayakka Prime, you look sinister.” She bowed her head but only slightly.

  He grinned, and his pointed teeth flashed in his mahogany features. His own black leather creaked as he leaned forward. “Thank you, little one. You also look very tasty.”

  Tyvor shifted at her back, and she could feel the psychic snarl in his mind.

  “Thank you, Avatar. Are you ready for the contact that Resicor requested so long ago?”

  He got to his feet and swept down the stairs with the long leather cape sweeping on the steps. “She will hold to her promise?”

  Skiria blinked and began to catch on to what her world had done. “She will hold to her promise if you hold to yours.”

  He extended his hand and caressed the air above her cheek. “Two dozen of your kind is well worth the portal. Give me your hands.”

  He was handsome, and when the pain and power struck him, he simply shuddered and smiled. It was not a friendly smile. “You have what you need, Ambassador. Speed off so that the agreement may take hold.”

  She fought the shiver as she turned her back and walked with Tyvor out of the audience hall. The inhabitants of the city were mainly local, and the UV shielding protected them from the bright rays of the damaging sun.

  “I did not like the way he was looking at you.” Tyvor spoke softly.

  Skiria looked around at the semi-hostile locals. “I was not fond of it either. It is the same way I look at desserts. I know they are not good for me, but I want them anyway.”

  A few of the males looked at her and gnashed their teeth in her direction. It was Kayakka Prime flirting.

  They made it through the capitol city and to the spaceport with only a few confrontations. Apparently, Resicorians smelled exceptionally tasty to the blood-drinking locals.

  They had just stepped onto the entry plank when Skiria felt a hand on her shoulder that wasn’t familiar.

  “Come here, tasty.”


  She was spun around, and a stranger pressed his mouth to hers, his lips and teeth pressing in until she tasted blood. She heard Tyvor shout and more voices, but since he could not help her, she helped herself. A spear of agony shot through her shields and into the mind of the man who was kissing her. He dropped to the ground in a moment.

  Bodies went flying, and Tyvor caught her in his arms, carrying her into the ship. The ship moved and began liftoff procedure.

  He carried her to the medical bay and settled her while he worked on her lips.

  “Why did you let him kiss you?”

  She blinked. “He grabbed me and spun me around. Letting him wasn’t precisely what happened. I couldn’t believe what was going on until I tasted blood, and then, I blasted him.”

  He sighed and paused as he dabbed at her lips. “I was sluggish in responding as well. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, and then, they grabbed me, and I pressed outward to stop them and free you, but you were already free.”

  Lora came on and spoke in a tense tone. “I have informed the Avatar, and he has told me that his people were injured, two critically, in their little attack. They will be punished according to their traditions.”

  Skiria winced. “That was quick.”

  “The Avatar followed you back to the spaceport. He wanted to watch you move. He saw the attack but didn’t land before you had taken care of it.”

  Tyvor’s attention was on his careful ministrations to her mouth, but he said, “It should not have happened.”

  Lora chuckled. “It was part of Resicor’s insistence that there be no guards to escort you when you travelled. You have Tyvor and that is all.”

  Skiria smiled and took his hand. “It is more than enough. Next time, we will be on our guard and not locked in private irritations.”

  His fingers curled against hers. “No, we won’t. When we leave this ship, I will be your guard and not your lover. On the ship, you are mine, but out there, you belong to Resicor.”

  She tried to scowl, but her lips were still sore. “I am not sure I like that idea, but we only have twenty-six worlds to go, right?”

  He sighed and softly kissed her. “Right.”

  The deal was struck.

  Five weeks later, Skiria was flipping through the costumes she had worn on the different worlds, and she sorted them into a keep pile and a bury pile.

  Her mind was heavy, the coloured bands were completely lit and they were flying back to finish her task. It took all of her effort just to keep her hands moving from one garment to the next, but she needed to keep busy now that she was back in the bland pressure suit again.

  Tyvor smiled from the doorway. “That is quite the pile of clothing.”

  “Thank you. Lora said I could keep them.”

  “We are approaching Resicor in stealth mode. We should be near the surface in a matter of hours.”

  “Resicor?” She paused and stared at him.

  “Of course. The links have been made and you must deliver them. This is your task, and once it is complete, you can decide what to do with the rest of your life.” He grinned. “I hope it is me as often as possible.”

  Skiria snorted and continued sorting while she went through the thought that she could go home once more, even for a moment.

  “Have you given thought to Raygar-Salass’s offer to have you made into a Salass completely?”

  She laughed. “It has run through my mind a time or two while I was thinking about all the sex positions possible when both of us can breathe water.”

  He let out a low growl. “So have I, but as Lora does not have a deep tank, I put those thoughts aside.”

  She smiled and finished her sort. Both of them were using her bedroom as wardrobe storage. Lora offered to hang them back up, but Skiria preferred to use the remaining costumes as a form of countdown to completion.

  Now, they were on their way home and she was depending on Lora to tell her where and what she needed to do. Later that day, when Skiria was lying in Tyvor’s arms and nearing sleep, she did.

  Invisible and silent, they glided to the surface, and Skiria was waiting to run to the open cavern that Tyvor had used to take her away. The night was firmly entrenched around them and Skiria was holding onto the straps next to the door in order to make a quick run the moment she was freed.

  The heavy pull of the mind of the planet was throbbing in her veins. She would go where she was called, and hopefully, she would survive to come out on the other side.

  “I can’t go with you.” Tyvor was next to her.

  “I know. It is all right. I will find my way, and if I can’t find you afterward, I will call for help.”

  He stroked the nape of her neck like he did before he fell asleep. “I will be there as quickly as I can in one way or another.”

  She leaned into his touch and nodded. In the past weeks, he had defended her from bloodsuckers, grabby tentacles and pheromone-based seduction. She trusted him to get her out.

  They settled and the door opened. She released the straps and ran for the dark hole in the side of the cliff face. Out of all the worlds she had set foot on, her own was by far the most dangerous. Other worlds wanted to investigate her for her strangeness, but the government of Resicor wanted her dead.

  The open space between the hidden ship and the cliff was the most dangerous, so she used her energy to pass between them before the patrol ships spotted her. Lora was standing by with her weapons hot, but the moment she fired, her location would be identified. With luck, Skiria could get in and out without any trouble.

  The weight of thirty worlds was a ball of tension in her mind as she made it into the relative cover of the cavern. The pathway was outlined in bright tendrils of rainbows, and when she could see nothing else, she could still see that path.

  She could feel the heat and energy that she was stumbling toward, and while she arrived with scrapes and bruises, she made it to the outcropping over the heart of Resicor in one piece.

  I am glad to see you again, daughter. The others are on their way.

  Others?

  The light and the darkness. They are essential to saving my people.

  You mean our people.

  Light laughter ran through their link. No, my people. You now belong to Salass. To save millions and generations past and future, I had to trade my people, the talents that need sanctuary. They are my envoys and will solidify the links that we lock in today.

  You could have told me.

  It would have made you hesitate, and there is no room for hesitation at this time. They are here.

  Skiria looked over and watched the caretakers that had wired her life support. The blonde and the brunette smiled with relief when they saw her.

  No words were spoken. The other two knew exactly what to do. They nudged Skiria until her hands were open and each of them touched one of her shoulders.

  A ball of light emerged from the depths of the lava and darkness.

  Her companions extended their free hands and the orb rested in Skiria’s palms with each of the others pressing a palm to the surface.

  Now. There was no other word or warning. Skiria’s outer shielding was torn apart and distributed across the three others. They all dropped to their knees and the orb hovered as the energy deposited by the other worlds was evenly distributed.

  Thank you, Skiria. Your duty is done. The ship is waiting for you to take you to safety. Our plans may now move on to the next phase.

  May I know what they are?

  It is best that you do not. Your mind needs to focus on starting over on a new world. We will take care of our next phase from here.

  After all this, I just get dismissed?

  You get set free with my blessings. Take on the form of a Salass and live your life. I have never wanted more than the survival of my dearest children. Survive and thrive, Skiria.

  The warm contact between them went silent, and when the light and dark females stepped aside, Skiria was left alone.

  She
wobbled to her feet and staggered back the way she had come. She blindly shoved her mind out to find Tyvor, and he gripped her thoughts tightly, lifting her off her feet and carrying her through the tunnels and out into the creeping dawn where a riot of weapons was going off in the skies above.

  She was yanked into Lora just before the door sealed. With Tyvor holding her with his mind, she felt the shuddering of the ship as it rose and defended itself in the same motion.

  They rocked, twisted and spun as Lora clawed her way into orbit.

  Tyvor settled Skiria into her seat and buckled her in from his own chair. He extended his hand to hers and she reached out and held it.

  As they fought free of the inbound attacks, music filled the command deck. Skiria exhaled in relief. If Lora was playing music, the worst was over.

  Tyvor cursed in a low tone, and they were both staring at a huge ship that darkened the path to the stars around them.

  Lora snarled, “Eat me.” They disappeared, and a moment later, they were over the purple-blue glow of Salass.

  They had made it home.

  Chapter Nine

  Lora put them back on Skiria’s island and retreated to the sea to heal. She had taken a few hits but had arrived in one very cranky piece. She would be in touch; there was no doubt about that.

  Skiria sighed and leaned against Tyvor. “She has my wardrobe.”

  “She will send it to you, I am sure.” He turned and caught her when she stumbled.

  Raygar rose out of the water and approached them. “Congratulations. What is your verdict?”

  Skiria knew that he was asking for an answer to the only true question he had ever asked her. “Yes. I will take the change. Resicor told me there is no place for me with my people, so I was given to Salass. That does not leave me an option.”

  He grinned. “Good, because your bed has been replaced with a tank. We have a series of injections to give you, and then, we will wire you up and drop you in.”

  She sighed. “I was so looking forward to a quiet evening.”

  Tyvor gave her a squeeze. “I will stay with you and forego my normal return to the water until you can join me.”