And let the emotional roller-coaster begin...


Chapter 6: The Big Question

The only coherent thought she could form was what just happened? It was magical. It was visceral. It completely freaked her out. She hugged herself, desperate for something solid to cling to. No man, ever, had affected her the way this inhuman one just had. With a simple touch he'd owned her, body and soul. While she may project an aura of nonchalance, her sense of self, her freedom of choice, meant everything, and in an instant he's stripped that away. It terrified her. The reasons for her fears were buried deep, and she felt them bubbling to the surface. Unwilling to go down that road, she slammed the memories back into the abyss.

Across from her, Ri'al was struggling to rein himself in. Certainly he'd been aroused into a frenzy by females before, but there was something undeniably, uncontrollably different about this; something beneath the surface that had no name. He'd felt as though he were loosing himself, drowning in her, and it frightened him, which was an emotion he had next to no experience with. He was losing control of the situation and was anxious to find solid ground again. The female, his female, Ly'a, looked panicked, eyes wide and frantic, body tensed to flee. I must fix this. I've worked too hard to loose her now. He started to purr, but stuttered to a stop when her heartbeat rose exponentially. Instead, he took a few steps back and crouched, trying to appear as nonthreatening as possible.

That purr. That purr did things to her. It put him in the drivers seat and she not ok with it. "I – I think I need to go back to my house now."

She slowly walked past him, skirting his crouched form. Ri'al felt a spike of disappointment. "Will you come again?" She paused, not looking at him. Perhaps all was not lost. He could still salvage this. He'd simply pushed her too soon.

"Sei-i." She nodded and walked away.

The next morning, Lia was awoken by a tapping at her bedroom window. Maybelle, half deaf as she was, didn't even wake. Some guard dog you are. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and saw Ri'al on the far side of the glass, clinging to the side of her house. She waved him away, yelling that she'd be down in a minute, before crawling out of bed. A few minutes later she was greeting him at her door in hastily donned jeans and tee, hair still tousled from bed. She'd slept very little, spending most of the night tossing and turning, replaying the previous day's events over and over. She honestly wasn't sure that she wanted to see Ri'al today.

"Come," he trilled.

"Good morning to you too." Could he not see she was half awake and hadn't had coffee yet?

"Come," he repeated. Man, he can't take a hint.

"Where?" Going anywhere with him right now didn't seem like a wise idea. She wasn't sure how much she trusted him around herself, and she certainly didn't trust herself around him.

"I take you… place," he seemed to struggle to find the right word. As it so happened, Ri'al had also had a sleepless night. He'd spent time in the kehrite, attempting to cool and contain the unfamiliar emotions he had no frame of reference for. Only at dawn did he decide on a corrective course of action. He needed only for Ly'a to be cooperative. He was certain, if he could convince her to come with him, that he would be redeemed in her eyes and his suit could continue without difficulty or delay.

"A place on Earth?"

"Sei-i. Place. Is…gift."

"Can you tell me where?" Curiosity had been known to lead her astray before.

"H'ko. When arrive."

"So it's a surprise," she stated. He nodded, dreadlocks falling over his shoulder. "And you'll promise to bring me back here?"

"Sei-i. Promise."

She mulled over his offer. What's the worst that could happen? I could die, I suppose. Or maybe forced to have sex with the most attractive creature I've ever met. The former seemed highly unlikely and the latter just wasn't enough if a deterrent to get her to slam the door in his face like any reasonable person would. This was such a bad idea. "Ok."

He led her out across the pasture and into the woods. While still a bit uneasy, Lia just couldn't keep herself from glowing with excitement. Where could he possibly take her as a surprise? "Are we walking the whole way there, because I can't think of anything terribly interesting within walking distance of my house?"

"H'ko. Take ship." Her unease dissipated instantly and she had to suppress a squeal of delight. His ship! A real space ship! A scarily sexy alien is taking me somewhere special on his spaceship. Oh. My. God!

They followed a trail she rode on regularly for nearly forty minutes before Ri'al turned into the trees. Five minutes later they entered a clearing. Lia looked around inquiringly, wondering why they'd stopped, while her companion tapped at the computer in his gauntlet. She let loose a startled yelp and grabbed his arm when, with an electric crackle, a huge gray ship appeared. It was a couple hundred feet long and at least 40 feet tall. Unlike the cold, purely functional design of most human mechanical construction, this ship was beautiful, with graceful lines and designs similar to those on Ri'al's armor decorating its hull.

"How do you guys do that?" She honestly didn't expect an answer and she didn't get one. Ri'al had thus far proven tight-lipped about anything to do with his species or their technology. Another tap on the wrist guard and a wide doorway opened in the side of the ship with a hiss, ramp sliding out to touch the ground.

"Come," he beckoned. Lia was agog. She followed him up the ramp into a large dim space, which, based on her limited knowledge of space ships gleaned from scifi movies, she guessed was the loading bay.

"Is this whole thing yours?"

"Sei-i. Am Blooded Warrior. Have own ship." He puffed up a bit in pride.

"It's huge! And it's only you in it? Wow, you must be rich." They were still standing in the loading bay while Ri'al messed with some sort of computer mounted on the wall. Lia peeked around his shoulder and got a glimpse of strange red glyphs which she figured must be the Yaut'ja's written language. A fine white mist swirled around their knees, and the air was very hot and humid. She could already feel beads of sweat running down her spine. Ri'al finished whatever it he was doing and turned to face her.

"Change atmosphere. Better for ooman."

"You don't breathe the same air we do? But you've been around me plenty without your mask!"

"Breathe same air. Different mix. Can breathe ooman air for five cycles before problem. Also make cooler."

"Oh. Ok. Thank you." He set off down a corridor and she hurried to follow. They were in a long hallway that seemed to run the length of the ship. The walls were made of metal and heavily decorated in the same tribal style she'd come to associate with him. There were no visible lights, only a dim, red tinted glow. What she could see of the floor, through the fog, appeared to be metal grate. Ri'al said something she completely missed, too caught up in trying to inspect everything at once.

"What was that?"

"Yaut'ja not rich like ooman. No money. Have status in clan. Earn honor. Trade for what need."

"So you have a high… status?"

"Sei-i. Sire is Elder. Bearer was Elder. Strong blood."

"Your bearer, uh, mother, is she dead?"

"U'sl-kwe many seasons past." They'd reached a door at the end of the corridor, which slid open with an almost inaudible hiss. Clearly, from the elaborate electronics, this was some sort of cockpit. Ri'al motioned for her to sit in an oversized chair off to the side while he went about whatever it was he needed to do to get the ship in the air. Minutes later he motioned her over. Above the control panel, which was a long, arced counter covered in buttons, toggles and touchscreens, was a screen where a windshield would have been in a human plane. As she watched, it flickered to life and showed a 3D image of the ground falling away. She hadn't even felt the ship take off! Lia had a whole new appreciation for the vast technology gap between humans and Yaut'ja.

Ri'al, instead of watching the screen, watched his female's reaction. She showed no fear, nor did he scent it. Her eyes were wide, absorbing the minutiae of the experience. He wanted to touch her again but restrained himself. She had been frightened, as much as she'd been aroused, and he did not want her scared. It had come as a shock that ooman n'dui'se was so similar to that of a female Yaut'ja, and it fired the same primal instincts in him. Had he not pushed her away, he might have dishonored himself and taken her against her will. Perhaps it was good oomans wore so many coverings, for if he'd had easier access things would certainly have progressed too far. Her body may have been ready, but it was clear her mind was not… yet. He hoped his gift would replace any residual fear she had of him, and prove to her that she could not possibly do better in a mate.

It was beautiful, watching the land recede. Taking off in an airplane had always made her a bit nervous, but this, this was simply amazing. There, in the distance was New York, and then the open ocean. She felt Ri'al's hand land softly on her shoulder; at least softly for him. He ushered her toward the door. She gave a longing look at the view screen, before following back into the heart of the ship.

"That was… I don't even know what that was. How does it take off so smoothly? I didn't feel a thing."

"Yaut'ja technology superior."

"No shit. So, are you going to tell me where we're going?"

"H'ko."

"Fine, be that way," she huffed. Walking through another door revealed a lounge. There was a large, bowl-shaped depression in the floor filled with furred pillows and skin blankets, none of which looked remotely terrestrial. Along the wall opposite the door was another viewing screen. Ri'al bypassed the lounge and walked up to, what to all appearances, was a flat metal wall with more of the alien etchings. He tapped a spot and a panel slid open to reveal what looked suspiciously like a bar. Moments later Lia was curled up with a purple spotted pillow, sipping a very strong mixed drink.

"What's in this?"

"C'ntlip and naxa juice. Make weak for you."

"This is weak?!" she croaked, eyes watering and throat burning. Lia could pound shots with the guys any day, but over the last few years she'd gotten away from hard liquor, generally preferring wine or beer. This was equal to the hardest stuff she'd ever drunk. Ri'al relaxed in the lounge across from her, giant clawed feet propped up on the edge, cup in hand. He was watching her again, as he so often did. His face was almost as inscrutable as his mask.

"Tell more about you life."

And so she did. She told him about her childhood, about growing up on the farm. She told him about her love of art and her forestalled dreams of college and a career beyond. She told him about her parents divorce and how much it hurt. Before she knew it, an hour had passed and Ri'al got up to go land the ship, indicating she should stay where she was. Lying in the bowl, Lia was overcome with the surreal nature of the entire situation. It made her burst into a fit of giggles that quickly had her rolling in the pillows, unable to shake the hilarious thought that she was on a date with an alien; having a first date get-to-know-you conversation while drinking alien booze on an alien space ship. No, not a date. Just hanging with a friend. That's all this can be. The acute disappointment she felt at that thought sobered her instantly. Before she had a chance to examine her feelings though, Ri'al returned.

"Come. At place." Lia scrambled out of the lounge and followed him back to the loading bay. She noticed he'd added more armor, including what looked like it might be a gun on his shoulder. In his hand he held an odd metal pole about two feet long, etched like everything else. About to ask what it was, and why he was suddenly armed for battle, the words never made it out of her throat as the wide bay door opened and she was confronted with a strange, and yet equally familiar, vista. Her jaw hung open. It was Africa! He'd brought her to Africa! Lia let loose that squeal of delight she'd been holding in for the last couple hours, jumping up and down and clapping her hands for good measure.

Ri'al wasn't prepared for Lia to tackle him. One moment she was bouncing, making presumably happy ooman sounds and the next her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist and she was mumbling something unintelligible into his stomach. Not at all sure what she was doing or why, he fell back on that tried and true method of calming females; he purred. This time her body did not tense up. Eventually she looked up, chin resting on his abdomen, to meet his eyes, hers brimming with unshed tears.

"Thank you. Just, thank you. You have no idea what this means to me." He nodded slowly, much more interested in the full body contact of his female than her exclamations of gratitude. Yaut'ja had no comparative phrase to "thank you" in their language. Appreciation was shown through actions not words. He reached up with a clawed hand and tucked a wayward copper strand behind Lia's ear. She didn't flinch away.

"Go. See. I protect." With a grin that was positively radiant, Lia walked off the ship, Ri'al on her heels. And he did. Together they explored the verdant savanna, watching herds of zebra, wildebeest and giraffe; even once in the distance a family group of elephants. Ri'al made some comment about them making worthy prey and Lia smacked his arm, telling him in no uncertain terms that she forbid him from hunting such majestic, and endangered, animals. He grunted, surprised at her forwardness in scolding him. He found it difficult to categorize his reaction, or lack thereof. He'd spent his entire life being submissive to females. Oomans, were a lesser species, though, and despite Ly'a being female, she was still ooman. Such an insult should not go unanswered. It was difficult to reconcile.

"Humans are such stupid creatures," she was rambling. "We've put so much effort into destroying everything beautiful and special in our world. And for what? Money? Power? Having a bigger house and a Mercedes in the garage? It disgusts me. What's that compared to this?" She swept her arm out, indicating the panorama before them. Ri'al was astonished and pleased with her beliefs. They was very much in line with those of the Yaut'ja.

They climbed up a rock outcrop, Ri'al helping her in difficult spots, and sat side by side at the top to watch the sun set. "So much gone that we can never get back," she sighed wistfully. "Rhinos, tigers, elephants; all nearly extinct. Did you know that humans hunt them, sometimes for trophies like you, but mostly for one body part, like their horns or tusks? They shoot entire herds, even the babies, with machine guns and hack off what they want while the poor things are still alive. It makes me want to cry just to think of the suffering. And then they grind up the horns and eat it because men think it will give them bigger dicks."

"Oomans have no honor," Ri'al stated with conviction. What she had just described was u'darahje, an abomination of the hunt. Any who committed such atrocities were bad bloods and deserved to die and be forgotten. His female was sad now, staring at the fading colors of the sky, unseeing. He was oddly moved, desiring only to return her happy mood. "Not extinct. These animals."

"Hmm?" She turned her attention back to him.

"Yaut'ja hunt also. Worthy prey. See oomans destroy. Move many to reserve planet."

It took her a moment to grasp what he was saying. "Are you telling me that you've taken elephants and rhinos and other animals to another planet to save them?" He nodded. "That's wonderful! Now you guys really have my respect." She turned back to the sunset, a smile once more on her face. As she watched the colors fade, she leaned her head against his arm, taking comfort in his solid presence.

They returned to the ship soon after, Ri'al able to see perfectly in the dark with his mask, making sure Lia suffered no mishaps. When they were airborne, he once again settled in the lounge with her. This time though, Lia was less interested in talking, still too absorbed in the sudden realization of a childhood dream. Ri'al was taken aback when she crawled across the pillows to his side. Tucking herself under his arm, she laid her head on his chest. He was once again at a loss for how to react. No female had ever done such a thing with him. Males and females had little physical contact aside from the act of mating, which was generally violent, and females expected males to make themselves scarce shortly thereafter. Finally, he relaxed and draped an arm around her.

Lia smiled when the tension left the body beneath her and a comforting weight wrapped around her. She knew she should feel guilty, but couldn't muster the wherewithal. "Your heartbeat is strange," she whispered. She felt, more than heard, the rumble of his reply.

"Two hearts."

"Oh," she stifled a yawn. "That's neat," and she slipped into sleep.

Sometime later she awoke to a gentle nudge from Ri'al. Her head was still on his chest, arm laying across his stomach and fingers gripping the mesh of his suit.

"I'm sorry," she said, sitting up, instantly missing his warmth. "I didn't mean to turn you into my personal pillow. Didn't mean to fall asleep either. I guess our little trip wore me out."

"Not problem." It had been the furthest thing from a problem. He'd taken the opportunity to observe her uninterrupted. Ooman features were still so foreign, but the symmetry and shape of hers were growing on him. He'd examined the fur that covered nearly all her skin, so fine and pale as to be almost invisible except under close scrutiny. Her eyelids twitched and flicked as she slept, and he postulated theories as to why. His fingers found their way again into her hair and he marveled anew at the softness and unique color. He'd been loath to wake her up, but they'd been back in the clearing near her home for some time and there was necessary business to attend to.

As they walked down the ramp, the sky only just past another sunset, Ly'a thanked him again. He found the sentiment unnecessary, but humored her. "I take you to dwelling now. Collect things. Then we leave." He had been briefed by the experts on oomans that his chosen female would be more tractable if allowed to bring a few mementos with her.

"What are you talking about?" She looked confused.

"We go to clanship now. I claim you as mate."

Lia felt all happy feelings recede and less pleasant ones supplant them. "Ri'al, I have a husband. You can't just take me home with you. I live here. Belong here."

"H'ko. Belong to me. Mate not matter. My mate now."

She was backing away from him, that sense of panic, of loosing control was returning full force. "Don't I get a say in this? I like you Ri'al, but this thing between us is not meant for reality. What could you possibly want me as a "mate" for? How would that even work?"

"Need you to breed pups. You strong, healthy, worthy. Healers make possible. Is honor."

She stood up straight, anger flaring. "Breed pups? That's what you want me for, to be your broodmare? Absolutely not! Mate? That's what you call a mate? I will not go with you to become an alien baby making machine. No one owns me." Her rage was epic.

Ri'al could see the heat and fury rolling off her in waves. Well that wasn't the reaction I expected. He stood stock still; unable to comprehend where it had all gone wrong. Just moments before, she had been relaxed and content in his presence. She had proven more than once that her body reacted favorably to him. She'd slept in his arms for Paya's sake! And now she's leaving!

Lia had made it half a dozen steps when she felt a heavy hand grasp her shoulder. No. She would not be cowed into submission. She would not fall prey to his diversionary tactics. She spun around, smacking his arm away. "How dare you. Don't you dare touch me again. Has this been you're plan all along? Have you been playing me just steal me away?" Her voice had risen into the spectrum of shrill. "No, you'd have done it already if it was that easy. I have to come willingly, don't I? You can't just kidnap me in the night. Is this what all the women have been taken for? Well, I'll have none of it. Leave Ri'al. Go back to where you came from, because I will never be your mate," she sneered. A moment later she'd disappeared into the darkness. This time it was Ri'al frozen in place.