Interrupting Starlight Read online

  How long had it been since she’d just sat on the edge of a bed? How long had it been since she’d been in a bed?

  Of course, she’d slept there the night before, but now that her skin didn’t feel like it would crisp off at any moment, the time in the healing vat rejuvenating her body, she was feeling better than she had in a very long time. And now that she was clean, the water shower rejuvenating her soul, she could think more clearly. She no longer felt the crippling fear that had been dogging her since the unfortunate crash.

  The shipwreck—

  Head bowing, Tessa closed her eyes. Her crew was gone. She was exhausted. She just couldn’t bring herself to care about the war anymore. What was to become of her if the Korthans did return her to the Human Colony Alliance? Would she be expected to return to her position? All she wanted was to see Rod again—

  Shaking herself, Tessa’s head snapped up. She wasn’t ready to hope yet. For all she knew, the ruse was about to drop and the reality of life as a Korthan prisoner would be hitting soon.

  But she was a guest, they said. Even with a clear head, that part was hard to believe, even if they hadn’t treated her as anything less so far—

  A’RCH SNIFFED AT THE edge of the door to the human’s quarters.

  The human female is back in her quarters. Now is a good time to pay her a visit, he said to his alpha.

  I don’t have time to chase your ghosts, L’Den’s voice came back.

  I’m not chasing ghosts. I’m telling you something is going on. You said you’d let me check it out when the human got back. A’rch could feel his alpha relenting. I promise I won’t ask again.

  Fine. On my way, L’Den said.

  Sitting on his haunches, A’rch waited in smug triumph. He’d show his alpha the error of bringing a human onboard.

  Footsteps sounding down the corridor, the mogha’s antennae twirled in anticipation. They drooped a little when T’ym came into view. Oh, it was just the escort.

  L’Den wasn’t far behind and A’rch jumped to his feet, tail and antennae twirling. The two Korthans exchanged words the mogha couldn’t understand, T’ym handing L’Den some sort of container and a stack of blankets. The younger Korthan looked a little addled.

  The escort knows something is up, doesn’t he? A’rch said once T’ym had made his leave.

  L’Den’s eyebrows knitted. What? No. He’s upset because he thought my presence indicated he was doing an inadequate job.

  He is doing an inadequate job, A’rch said. He should already know what the problem is and reported it.

  There is not a problem, A’rch. The alpha’s tone was admonishing. He’s doing exactly what I want him to do.

  Though he didn’t need to, L’Den used his diamond gemkey to access the human’s quarters. Confident he’d expose the truth quickly, A’rch trotted right on in—

  “T’YM, DON’T YOU KNOW how to knock?” the sound of Tessa’s voice sang to L’Den as he walked through the door after his mogha.

  The next sound the woman made was one of startlement as her eyes grew wide upon seeing A’rch. Snatching her feet off the floor, she crawled to the middle of the bed, wrapped in all the coverings as if she were in a protective forcefield.

  “L’Den,” she said, eyes darting.

  Why did he feel like he’d broken some etiquette?

  He held up the food container in his right hand. “I brought your evening meal.” A full two seconds passed. Clearing his throat, he held up the blankets in his left hand. “And the doctor said you may not be adjusted to the climate on this ship, so here are some blankets.”

  Three more seconds passed. Was she going to say anything? Was there something on his face? Because she stared at him as if something untoward sprouted from his face.

  Meanwhile, A’rch sniffed around the room with a purpose. Coming here was a bad idea—

  Seemingly snapping out of it, Tessa said, “Thank you. You can put them on the desk.”

  T’ym had said that the doctor hadn’t observed her eating, to make sure she was. Tessa had to be hungry. The human was literally starving to death. But L’Den wasn’t going to push that at this moment. Things were awkward enough. He wanted to give her some space, make her feel comfortable.

  Fumbling with the row of gemkeys over his right breast pocket, L’Den removed the gold one.

  What are you doing? his ever observant mogha said. You’re giving her free reign of the ship?

  It’s not ‘free reign,’ L’Den said with a sigh. Not like I’m giving her access to the bridge or the engine room. Besides, I don’t sense anything sinister from her.

  You are not bonded. You can’t possibly know that. A’rch was indignant.

  The mogha’s antennae suddenly shot straight up. There. Did you see that?

  See what? L’Den said. He was starting to get tired of A’rch’s suspicious nature.

  Movement under the bed covering.

  A’rch growled and lunged at the bed before L’Den realized he was even about to do it. Grabbing the back of the mogha’s neck, he hauled him back.

  “What has gotten into you?” he yelled out loud, pulling the mogha towards the door. “Get out.”

  But— A’rch whimpered, clearly frustrated, but attacking a guest, no matter how suspicious, was where L’Den drew the line.

  AS THE HELLHOUND BARKED and pointed with his snout, Tessa gingerly covered the lump Squeak’s little body made under the covers.

  “Out,” the Korthan commanded. “I said, out!”

  The Hellhound let out a pitiful whimper, but eventually complied. Tessa shut her eyes for a moment. That was a close one.

  “Did he harm you?” L’Den said and her eyes snapped open at the closeness of his voice.

  “No. I’m fine,” she said quickly. The last thing she wanted was the Korthan to be checking her over for injuries. Getting a glimpse of his strong hands, a thrill zipped through her. Maybe it wasn’t exactly the last thing she wanted—

  Tessa’s eyes went wide. Back up, just back up, she thought to herself.

  When the Korthan did back up, she blinked. Did he finally realize she was naked under the covers? Did Korthans even care about modesty?

  L’Den cleared his throat, an endearing awkwardness about him.

  Are you naked? That inner voice again.

  Tessa was getting used to the voice and she felt strangely mischievous in answering. Quite.

  “You may move about the ship as you wish,” L’Den said, placing a gold button like the silver one she already had next to the food and blankets. Another gemkey. “I don’t believe you are a hostile human, but you will be under surveillance.”

  He had to have realized her state of undress. Voice clipped, movements jerky, the Korthan looked ready to flee the room.

  Did Korthan males get uncomfortable around naked females?

  She could hear Britt now. “Have you ever noticed how handsome Korthans are? They bulge in all the right places.”

  Eyes darting to his crotch, another thrill zipped through her at the bulge there.

  Tessa felt scandalized by the notion at the time, but sitting naked with L’Den standing there, she wished she could tell her friend that she did, indeed, notice.

  She also realized what he just said. Did he really just give her a gemkey that would allow access outside of this habitation area? Did ‘move about the ship as you wish’ mean she didn’t have to call T’ym? She doubted she’d ever be comfortable enough, but he was putting a lot of trust in her— Why?

  “I will be on my best behavior,” she said.

  “Well, thank you.” His awkwardness couldn’t have been cuter. “I’m going then.”

  “Please knock next time,” Tessa said.

  His eyebrows knitted. “Knock?”

  “Yes,” she said. “Like this—” Tessa wrapped her knuckles against the wall. Although, T’ym had used a chime, so there was a doorbell.

  L’DEN SAT AT HIS DESK, console alive with one of Tessa’s recorded logs.

 
Someone walked behind her.

  “I’m recording,” she said, turning slightly.

  “Oh. Right. Sorry.” L’Den could now recognize all the voices. He couldn’t see her face, but this was Britt.

  The other woman sat on something behind Tessa, form blurry as the camera was focused on Tessa’s face. When she looked back at the camera, there was a mischievous smile in place that vanished as she cleared her throat.

  L’Den’s heart jumped. He’d just seen that same smile in her quarters—

  “There might be some water under a rock outcropping three hundred kilometers south of here. We’re going to investigate tomorrow,” Tessa continued her daily report.

  There was movement in the corner of the room that must have caught Tessa’s eye.

  “Now what?” she said to the air in flustered irritation. “I just need ten minutes to get this report done.”

  L’Den squinted at the source of the movement. What was he looking at?

  Watching along with Tessa, a large dead spider, all eight legs sticking up in the air, was carried upside down on the back of a creature that was only half its size. Was that the molk?

  “Squeak, the hunter,” Tessa said in an announcing tone. “I don’t know how he hasn’t been killed by one of these things.”

  She leaned towards the camera conspiratorially. “You know what’s even more crazy, though? We’re about to eat the damn thing.”

  The scaly creature climbed the edge of the table, hauling the giant spider with him, dumping it right in front of Tessa. The thorax of the spider shined in mottled blues, reds, and greens.

  “Dinner is served, I guess,” she said, voice flat, eyes focused directly on the camera lens, seemingly making eye contact with him.

  Then her stomach growled loudly, that smile curving her lips again. “Can’t argue with that.”

  Pause playback.

  L’Den stared at her smiling face, so beautiful even with damaged skin and hair. His heart was filled with such longing it hurt to look at her.

  End playback.

  Chapter 7

  TESSA AWOKE WITH A start. Still disoriented when she woke up in the mornings, it was taking less and less time to remember where she was each day—

  No longer on the desert planet. In her quarters on the Korthan galaxy-ship. Body no longer in pain. Belly full.

  The next thing on her mind was Squeak. Feeling beneath the covers, she finally located him, gently tugging his tail.

  There were no answering playful swipes. Tessa’s brow furrowed. That was weird. Pulling the covers back so she could see him, Tessa’s heart stopped.

  The little creature was limp, eyes rolled back in his head. Several of his scales lay on the bed next to him. Oh no—

  What happened? Was it the food?

  Tessa’s eyes darted to the empty food container next to the bed. As soon as L’Den left the room the night before, she devoured the nutrition cube. But she felt just fine, more than fine.

  Having finally figured out where the clothes were, she jumped from the bed, throwing on a one-piece that kept her nice and warm, still unused to the cooler climate of the ship.

  Placing Squeak’s limp form in her bag, she searched for the silver gemkey. She wasn’t sure if she could get out of this apartment without it. Where did it get off to this time? Checking the shower, every surface in the rooms, even the floor, she couldn’t find it anywhere.

  The gold one L’Den gave her shined from a shelf above the bed. Right, the silver gemkey probably wouldn’t have allowed access to the doctor anyway, but would the gold one work to get out of her apartment?

  Rushing out the door, she was pleased to find that the gold gemkey unlocked every access point up to the promenade. When she got lost, she touched it to the wall and a map appeared, showing her the way.

  Outside the hospital door, she touched the gemkey to the panel and the door whooshed open. Thanking the stars there were no patients in sight, Tessa made a beeline straight to the doctor, who stood next to an open wall-panel, datapad in hand.

  “Doctor, I have an emergency,” Tessa said, short of breath.

  A’yla quickly put down the datapad, picking up a scanner wand, swiping it around her body from head to toe.

  “Everything appears to be in working order,” she said. “Tell me where it hurts.”

  “Not me,” Tessa said, placing her bag on an exam table, scooping Squeak out, several of his scales falling to the floor.

  The Korthan doctor jumped back with a scream. “That is a molk!”

  “A what?” Tessa said. “This is Squeak. Can you help him?”

  “Help him? Those things carry diseases. We have to exterminate it.”

  Tessa grabbed Squeak from the exam table, hugging him to her shoulder protectively. “I brought him here for you to help him, not kill him.”

  The doctor’s mouth literally dropped open. “Are you keeping it as a pet? It’s vermin.”

  “Squeak is not vermin,” Tessa said, indignant. It was a mistake bringing him here. “Can you help him or not?”

  “First of all, where did you find it?” A’yla said. “An infestation requires a ship-wide alert.”

  “I am alive because of this little guy—”

  “So, you got him from the surface of the planet? That explains the scales. Are there any others?” The doctor was demanding.

  “Yes, he came from the desert. He’s been with us for just about two years. What do you mean ‘explains the scales?’ Do you know why they are falling off?” Tessa just wanted someone to make Squeak better.

  “Molks are a highly adaptable species. That’s why they are so insidious.” The doctor couldn’t have sounded more disgusted, lip curled to match her tone. “It’s molting. There’s nothing wrong with it.”

  Molting?

  “Are there any others? I have to know.” Was the doctor serious about activating a ship-wide alert?

  “I’ve never seen any others,” Tessa said.

  The initial reason they didn’t eat the creature was because he was bringing in the giant edible spiders. No one wanted to eat the provider of their main food supply. They never saw another one. Was it possible he was just as stranded on the planet as they were?

  “Oh, they’re out there.” A’yla visibly relaxed. “As long as they’re not in here, everything is fine.”

  Tessa’s stomach felt queasy as she watched Squeak’s eyes roll around.

  “Are you sure nothing’s wrong with him?” she said.

  The doctor pursed her lips, looking at Tessa and then Squeak. Giving a relenting sigh, she scanned the little creature.

  “He might not be feeling very well, but nothing is wrong with him,” A’yla said. “He’s just shedding his scales to make way for his fur to thicken in this colder environment. They are adaptable to any environment and can eat just about anything. They live on most Korthan planets.”

  The doctor paused, looking over the scans. “And he’s disease free, so you can probably hold onto him for a while.”

  “Of course, he’s disease-free.” Tessa’s little Squeak was not vermin. And woe unto any being that tried to take him from her.

  TESSA ENJOYED WALKING around the promenade. What struck her the most about it was how ordinary it was. Korthans walked past her in both directions, minding to their own tasks without so much as a glance in her direction anymore. They had become used to her presence, some even nodding their heads at her in quiet acknowledgment. No one seemed concerned there was a human amongst them and she found she was no longer concerned she was among Korthans.

  Hearing giggling and shushing behind her, Tessa turned to see three small Korthans scatter, ducking behind several supply containers on either side of the hallway. She blinked. Were there children on board this ship?

  A small face appeared from behind one of the containers, quickly disappearing after making eye contact with her.

  Approaching the crates, another face peeked out at her. Then a small child, no more than six human years
old, stepped out from behind one of the boxes. She was holding something furry, curled up in a tight ball of white fuzziness.

  “Is it true that humans eat mogha?” the child said.

  First, Tessa was amazed this child was speaking Standard. Second, what kind of a question was that? “No, we don’t eat Hell—moghas.”

  “C’yna doesn’t believe you.” The child hugged the ball of fur.

  “And who is C’yna?” Tessa suspected she already knew.

  The child gathered the furball between her tiny hands and held it up, unfurling to reveal what had to be a very young mogha. Tessa resisted the urge to pet the adorable pup.

  Kneeling to be on the same level as the child, she smiled. “And how do you know C’yna doesn’t believe me?”

  “Because she told me.” The child buried her face in the mogha’s fur before hugging it against her chest.

  Tessa did a double take. She thought the child was ascribing her own feelings to the mogha. This was something different—

  “She speaks to you?” Tessa watched as the mogha’s long antennae caressed the child’s face.

  “Yup,” the little girl said. “She’s talking to me now.”

  Tessa paused to listen. “I don’t hear her.”

  “That’s because she’s my companion, not yours.” The child’s tone suggested Tessa should already know that.

  Could A’rch speak with L’Den? They were always together. Perhaps they were ‘companions’ as well.

  “Is it true that humans burn entire worlds?” the child said next.

  Burn worlds? Tessa wondered if the child was referring to the terraforming process. “We change the environments of uninhabitable worlds so we can live there.”

  “But the mogha world was inhabited,” one of the other children, the oldest, said. Did all Korthan children know Standard?

  And what was she talking about, the mogha world? The child was mistaken.

  “C’yna says you ate the moghas before you burned their world,” the first little girl said.