Perfect Read online

  “For many women, not for me. As I said, I just got my body back, and I don’t want to lose control of it.”

  The elders looked confused by that.

  Ty took a deep breath. “Finally, I want a voice on the council. The women here need a voice, and they are not represented in the council’s makeup. I have just come from a society where women make up more than fifty percent of the population, but they are less than five percent of the voting positions. It isn’t right. We serve a different purpose in society, but it cannot move forward without us.”

  The elders looked disturbed. They talked amongst themselves for a few minutes while Ty leaned back against Brex.

  They waited, and finally, Hrakin nodded. “It is sound thinking if we are to make strides forward. We will have the contracts drawn up before you return for your next harvest.”

  She inclined her head. “One last thing. As you have already crafted my replacements, I want to be allowed to learn the flight suits and how to fly and drive all vehicles on Lrrko.”

  Hrakin scowled. “If your Familiar is willing to teach you, you can do whatever you like, but if you die, he will bear the burden of your death.”

  Ty turned to Brex. “What does that mean?”

  “They will kill me and destroy all traces of my genetic material.”

  She stared at him for a moment before cocking her head. “You had better do a good job as an instructor then.”

  Brex rolled his eyes and faced the council. “Do you have any questions for Tyanni?”

  Hrakin stared at her. “Are all Terran women as aggressive as you are?”

  Ty slipped her arm in Brex’s. “Well, in my family, I am the quiet one. Consider yourself lucky that I got here before Lynni did.”

  Chapter Nine

  This was what Ty had wanted. She slipped off the edge of the building and soared through the air in a combination of jetpack and thermal currents.

  Brex was near her, but he let her fly on her own for the first time since she had started her course. Five days of training and buddy flights had finally born fruit. She was up and on her own, flying through the sky above the Lrrko city with her Familiar at her side.

  Today, Lynni was arriving, and Ty was going to be at the tarmac when she arrived. This exercise was just to take the edge off the tension she was feeling. Lynni had changed, and Ty was hoping that the changes were just cosmetic.

  Her own changes had been happening while she was trapped in her burned body. She had known what she wanted to be when she came out of that gel bed. She had had quite a lot of time to plan.

  Ty opened her arms wide and twisted toward the suns, welcoming them with her entire body.

  She arced back and slowly began to circle toward the courtyard where an entire graduating class of Lrrko was waiting to meet her. The flight suits that fit her were located at the school, so that is where Brex had taken her. The agreement had been that she could use the suit as long as she agreed to meet and greet the graduating class.

  The wings of the suit folded under her arms as she stood from her landing and walked across the yard with Brex behind her.

  The flight-suit instructor looked a little dazed when she smiled at him. “Thank you, Instructor Maknoth. Your tips on how to move in the suit were impeccable.”

  Brex put his hands on her shoulders. “Well, students, do any of you have any questions for Bride Tyanni?”

  Hands shot up. Ty smiled and selected one at random. “Yes?”

  “Why were your people lost? Why couldn’t you call for help?”

  Ty nodded. “Ah, well, the ship apparently was destroyed upon landing, and there was no available technology on my home world to use for communications. By the time I came along, the only trace of the Lrrko in me was in my genes.”

  “Why are you the only one here?”

  She knew the answer. “The others are arriving soon. They had difficulty either in leaving Terra or in their transitions. Your physicians did some tinkering with our bodies, and it is a little hard to deal with.”

  Another one raised his hand. “If you have been genetically altered, how can you be Lrrko?”

  Ty put her hands on her hips. “How can you? Each and every one of you was grown from a previous generation. To stop degradation, they have had to engage in some major alterations.”

  The boys looked at each other and obviously saw the sense in her statement.

  Another one gave her a shy look. “Will your daughters be available to take on Familiars?”

  “When they are decanted, yes. For now, we will have to wait until my next cycle before the clock can begin on their journey to the world.”

  One of the young men put his hand up. “I have a question for Familiar Brex?”

  Brex moved forward and put his hands on Ty’s shoulders. “Yes?”

  “Now that you have met your Bride, would you still have gone through it all on the off chance that she would pick you?”

  Brex chuckled. “The Familiar training is difficult, the sacrifices are great, but the reward of being with Bride Tyanni is worth it. In two weeks, she has gone from being an invalid to being a seventh-class fighter. If I had not gotten in early, I would have had no chance to keep up with her.”

  The boys murmured in surprise at the mention of seventh level.

  Ty muttered, “Is that when I can throw a knife from any angle?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, good. I thought it was the other thing that I did in your lap.”

  His shoulders began to shake, and he squeezed her shoulders.

  The instructor nodded. “We have begun to integrate history of the female Lrrko in preparation for the new generation.”

  Ty grinned. That had been one of the non-negotiable parts of her agreement with the elders. The ancient women had to come into public awareness again. They had been impressive and frightening, but the new generation was going to be dealing with a whole lot of pushy and physically trained ladies. Knowing that it was the way things were supposed to be was going to make it easier on them.

  “Well, Instructor, I hate to answer and run, but my sister is arriving today, and I need to meet her at her ship.”

  One more hand went up. “Yes?”

  “How can you have a sister if your world was technologically disadvantaged?” The earnest expression on the boy’s face was almost enough to make her smile. He was taller than her by over a head and twice as broad already. They grew up fast here.

  “Direct reproduction, no canisters or artificial wombs. It is messy and dangerous, but there are benefits to it.” Ty took a few steps and another hand went up.

  “Will you use that method?”

  Ty smiled, “Not for my heir. She will be born the same way you were, just with two genetic donors instead of one.”

  Brex put his hand on her shoulder, and they made their way to the flight-prep area to strip off their suits.

  “You handled that well.” Brex helped her pin her cloak on after she finished dressing.

  “Thank you. So did you.”

  She grinned and pulled him down for a kiss. “Are you confident enough to let me drive the runner?”

  He paused, closed his eyes and appeared to be counting to ten. When he opened his eyes, his smile was bright. “Of course.”

  She laughed all the way out to the vehicle and continued as she throttled up and got them airborne. She flew with speed and an aim to the landing site where her sister was expected.

  As she set down, Lynni’s shuttle appeared in the sky.

  Ty leaned against Brex. “You are feeling confident at having two Nikkelson women on Lrrko?”

  He looked down at her with a smile. “I am not worried. Leko is the one who is going to have a problem.”

  Ty gasped and put her hand over her mouth. “Damn. She doesn’t know that he isn’t made of metal yet.”

  Brex was grinning. “No, she doesn’t. This is going to be good.”

  Ty lo
oked at the good-natured but evil delight in her Familiar’s eyes, and she grinned. It was going to be fun to watch.

  Lynni walked out of the ship, and Ty was there to greet her. They shrieked and collided in a hug that had them taking turns hugging and lifting the other.

  They talked together, and Ty led Lynni away from the shuttle until Lynni’s Familiar stopped them.

  “Bride Tyanni, I know that you have missed your sibling and she has missed you, but we need to get her to medical for a check.”

  The metal face with the blank aspect and mounted cameras swivelled toward her. “Fine, Familiar Leko. Take care of her.”

  “It is my duty and my will.”

  Brex had his hood pulled up, and he escorted Ty away as Lynni and Leko took off.

  “I think she is going to kick my ass when she finds out I didn’t tell her.”

  “I think you have a few weeks of combat practice over her.”

  Ty grinned. “Yeah, but she was always more of a scrapper. Come on. I need to work out.”

  Brex chortled, and on the way back to their home, he mused over the effective nature of sibling rivalry.

  “You have no idea. Don’t forget, they want to unleash thirteen of me at the same time. This is going to be fascinating. I am competitive if there is only one of me. Thirteen is going to be disruptive in the extreme.”

  “I look forward to it. The Lrrko need change. I think thirteen of you is just what we have been waiting for.” He patted her hand on his chest. “The fourteenth I am keeping for myself.”

  “Good thing, because you aren’t getting out of my sight.” She pressed her forehead against his shoulder and held on until they were home once again.

  She had fight practice to attend to.

  Author’s Note

  So, Perfect was the first of five women who are descended from an ancient and deadly race. Panacea will be Lynni’s story, and we will find out what has been going on in her genetic code.

  The other ladies are a little less eager to head to the stars, so there has had to be some convincing on the part of the Recruiter. Not everyone with these genes wants to leave home.

  Oh, and blame my sister. She spent the summer looking up the ancestry of the family and I thought it would be funny if there was an alien in the mix.

  Thanks for reading,

  Viola Grace

  http://www.violagrace.com

  About the Author

  Viola Grace (aka Zenina Masters) is a Canadian sci-fi/paranormal romance writer with ambitions to keep writing for the rest of her life. She specializes in short stories because the thrill of discovery, of all those firsts, is what keeps her writing.

  An artist who enjoys a story that catches you up, whirls you around and sets you down with a smile on your face is all she endeavours to be. She prefers to leave the drama to those who are better suited to it, she always goes for the cheap laugh.