~~Author's Notes~~As a bit of a warning I feel that I should tell you that Chapter ten gets a little steamy, well actually a lot steamy, so much so that I almost changed the rating to M. But let's just be mature he shall we? People have sex. Yeah I know sounds pretty gross but it happens, quite frequently actually. So if that bothers you I would just skip this chapter. You can flame me if you want but I don't know what good it will do because I'm not changing anything. I find it hard to believe that young adult pirates with their own ship and private island who live in a time where there are few powers to challenge them wouldn't be having sex so if that bothers you, again please just skip this chapter. It adds nothing to the plot, it's just character development and fluff, the latter of which being my forte`. For those of you who can handle it, enjoy.
Chapter 10
A storm was growing on the horizon. Of course that was Valua. The empire with which they had once had a sworn vow to bring down once again held a powerful threat to the entire world. On the Voyager sailed, straight into imminent danger as Vyse and his crew always had. The feeling Vyse now held at the pit of his stomach was similar to the one he felt when sailing head on into the Armada.
Again he chose to tell the crew as little as possible. Although he knew his were the bravest, he thought telling them there was a possibility of the world ending before the end of the week might cause a bit of a panic. So it was up to the three of them to share the burden.
Now was a time for strategy. They had decided that rather than go the predictable route of charging in from the underground passage they had used previously to retrieve the yellow crystal they would descend through the crater left in the place of the old seal, they had hoped that there would be less security around this area. Of course, they were certain of nothing.
Vyse was again alone on the bridge save for the helmsman, but Vyse was far too involved in attempting to create a last-minute plan to notice anyone else. Aika was also alone, standing on the deck watching the clouds approach. She wished for someone else to stand beside her but at the same time didn't. But whether she did or didn't matter any longer as Dean approached from the bowels.
"Hey, mind if I come stand next to you here?" He asked.
"Of course not." She replied.
"So how's the cat?" He asked, attempting to make conversation.
"He's good, last I saw he was napping on my bed, I left him a bowl of water and bit of fish."
"Name him yet?"
"I haven't really decided on anything, but I'm leaning towards Dac."
"Dac? As in short for Daccat?
"Well it only makes sense that a pirate cat would have a pirate name right?"
"Heh, I guess you're right."
There was an uncomfortable air between them for a moment's time before it was broken by Aika.
"You didn't hug him." She said.
"What? Oh you mean Samson?" He seemed to be caught off guard by this remark.
"I mean your father. You didn't even say good-bye."
"Well no I didn't. He and I aren't exactly close, not hugging close anyway. Being some kind of all powerful being doesn't change the fact that he walked out on us, without even the slightest explanation."
"But you never know if you're going to see him again. You only get one set of parents, real parents anyway." She paused, and then let out a sorrowful sigh. "I would have given anything to be able to hug my parents before they died, or even gotten to say good-bye."
The clouds waxed closer and closer, lightning could be seen in the distance and thunder heard in its wake, and the winds began to pick up as well. Aika let her hair down, allowing the wind to play with it.
"Speaking of my parents." She said as she attempted to suppress the painful memories. "Every time we come to Valua I try to overcome my fear of storms. I stand out here on the deck by myself and try to take it head on." The ship was full into Valuan skies with blue fading quickly behind them. Aika felt her strength waver and she commenced to move slowly for the door. "But I chicken out every time."
She had nearly left before Dean stopped her. "Aika wait." He shouted over the roaring thunder. She stopped just outside the door and he approached her.
"You're right." He said. "I shouldn't hold anything against him anymore. I've had my whole life to be angry at him and now it just isn't worth it anymore." Now she turned and faced him. "And you know what I'm going to do the next time I see him? I'll give him a big hug. A big one for both of us and for both of our families." Rain started to fall.
"Well good." She replied with as big of a smile as she could muster. The following blast of thunder quickly took the smile away. "I think I better go now." She said wincing at the lightning striking the nearby mountains.
"I want to try to help you with that." He said.
"And how would you do that? I think I'm a lost cause at this point." She replied.
"Come here." He said as he extended his had, which quickly found warmth in hers. The two walked slightly farther out into the deck. The rain started to fall harder getting both of them quite wet. He pulled her tight, wrapping his arms around her; one on the back of her head, the other on her lower back.
"Just hold on tight." He said.
She closed her eyes and did so wrapping her hands around his waist and allowing herself to be temporarily affixed to him. Every crash of thunder caused her to jump a little and as a reaction to which he would squeeze her a bit tighter. They kept this system going for a verbally silent fifteen minutes. Dean felt her heart rate lower gradually over this time.
"Feeling better?" He asked.
"A lot." She replied as she nuzzled her face deeper into the warmth of his body. She noticed his heart rate began to steep considerably.
"You know Aika I've been thinking."
"I don't like the sounds of that." She replied with a jovial tone.
"I know we've only known each other for a couple of days," he started, "but I'm pretty sure I love you." He forced out. He felt her grip on him loosen somewhat. She pulled her face away and met his eyes with hers.
"You're pretty sure?"
"Well yeah, like ninety-seven percent sure."
She smiled a planted a deep kiss on his lips, one which lasted several seconds. When their lips left she kept her face close enough to his that their noses still touched.
"I'm pretty sure I love you too."
She once again met his lips with hers. The two kissed passionately on the deck, ignoring the poor weather conditions as the rain continued to fall. It wasn't until Dean attempted to run his fingers through her air that they noticed how wet they had become.
"Maybe we should continue this in my room?" Aika suggested.
"Well I certainly can't say no to that." He replied with his devilish grin.
The two nearly sprinted the short distance to Aika's quarters from the deck. The sudden commotion they made as they entered through the door caused Dac to seek shelter beneath the bed. Once their privacy was secured Aika nearly tore the shirt right off of Dean's sculpted chest. His shirt along with hers made a fairly distinct plop sound as they both landed soaking wet on the floor.
Kissing all the way, Aika helped Dean out of his pants as he aided her in removing her shorts revealing black panties to match her bra. Aika stopped suddenly and shivered a bit.
"It's freezing." She said.
"Well I think we're both dry enough we can make use of that bed over there." He replied.
Aika beat him to it. She quickly got beneath the covers and gave him a look of invitation. He joined her immediately. Again they kissed passionately, rolling around beneath the sheets. Dean soon discovered Aika preferred to be in charge and so let her. As she pinned him to bed she let his hands venture further, exploring their new playground.
His fingertips maneuvered slowly down her back as if counting every vertebra, a gesture which tickled just enough to interrupt her normal breathing pattern. His hands stopped when they discovered the slight indentations at the base of her lower back and he began to rub them ever so slightly with the tips of his fingers.
He ventured slightly beneath her back dimples and stopped once more unsure as to how she might react if he risked going any further. He played with the elastic waistline of her underwear before deciding to make his gambit. Bypassing the thin and flexible black barrier he took a firm grip on her hind quarters with both hands, ushering a loud shallow breath from Aika.
She then rose up from the covers, still straddling Dean, revealing most of her upper body. He hands then began to move towards her upper back in an attempt to reveal the rest.
"Wait." Dean said. Aika wasn't expecting those to be his next words. "Are you sure you want to do this? I don't want to feel like I'm taking advantage of you because there's a possibility of the world ending."
"Of course I want this. Remember half an hour ago when I said I love you?" She replied. "And if we didn't now I'm sure we would after the party they throw us for saving the world."
"Ha-ha yeah I guess that's true. Of course who says we can't do both?"
Aika leaned forward and imparted more kisses on and around his lips. She then sat upright again and with her nimble fingers unhooked her bra and let it slide down her shoulders casually tossing in a pile with the rest of her clothes.
Dean decided now was the time to take charge and rolled Aika onto her back. Utilizing hands, lips, and tongue, Dean soon became very well acquainted with her newly unlocked parts of Aika's body, something she very much enjoyed even more than he.
In A few minutes time the rest of their under garments had been temporarily disposed of, but before making the first big move Dean made sure to run through every bit of foreplay he knew of.
Then he had her just where he wanted her. The stage was set. On her back, legs spread just wide enough for him to work between, she prepared herself for what she knew was to come next. He pulled away from lips and hesitated for a moment, looking into her eyes for that final approval which came in the form of a very soft sensual kiss. Ever so slowly he moved inward with just enough force. Aika gasped slightly at the sudden intrusion.
The two began to move in the same slow syncopated motion of the ship rocking forward and back at an unhurried pace making sure to enjoy these moments for as long as possible. Gradually Dean began to increase the tempo of the symphony their two bodies were creating. As he did so Aika began taking a firmer grip on his back, it was his luck that she didn't prefer her nails long.
As he started to move with more ferocity the beautiful opus they had been making earlier now became more of a cacophony of sweaty pleasure filled moans. Her back arching in the sexual bliss Aika released one last cry of satisfaction before the two reached their final ecstasy together.
Dean was still positioned over Aika breathing heavily. He left a lingering kiss on her lips and rolled slightly to the right keeping a hand lying across her bare stomach with one fingertip finding solace in her navel. She turned to face him and smiled imparting another kiss.
"I love you." She whispered.
"I love you too."
The room and its occupants became very silent and still. Aika shivered with delight as Dean traced his hands across her outer curves. She buried her face in his chest, letting the thin hairs tickle her slightly. The rumbles of thunder could still be heard, if somewhat muffled, which reminded the lovers of the task at hand shaking them from their warm romantic fantasy.
"I think we ought to get some sleep." Dean said. "We'll be outside of the maw in just a few hours and it would be better if we were well rested for what's to come."
"You're probably right." She said placing a kiss on the ridge of his clavicle. She let out a soft sigh. "Why don't you get the lights?"
Dean nodded, left the bed, and flicked the switch at the far end of the room, Aika watching him all the way. When he returned to the soft white sheets Aika turned on her side, making herself more comfortable. Dean slid in close placing a hand across her stomach and pulled her tight until they were like two perfect circles entwined. Spooning was something Aika wished happened far more often.
Warmth radiated from Dean and passed through Aika providing a comfort she had not known for quite some time. His hands still caressed her slightly and everyone now and then he would place a soft warm kiss at the nape of her neck. It wasn't long before Aika entered into the sweet embrace of sleep.
Dean however spent very little time sleeping over the next two hours. He had woken upon before her and decided he would rather cherish the moment at hand rather than worry about the possibility of a global cataclysm. He used the time to memorize every curve, every bump, and every beautiful imperfection on Aika's body. Her skin was much softer than he had imagined, and her hair was very silky and smooth, although she was quite the warrior it appeared that she still liked to take care of herself.
He set his hand once again across her stomach, letting it rise and fall in the slow steady pace of her breathing. He traced the lines around her stomach slowing circling inward and settling in her navel. This generated a soft sigh from Aika.
"Keep going that feels good." She said.
Dean made a sound like a whispered laughed and let his hand continue its small voyage. As it did so he began to pepper the back of her neck and shoulders with small kisses. Aika could only giggle in response. Enjoying the sounds she made when tickled, Dean had a hard time stopping.
"Dean you're going to make it hard for me to get any rest if you keep tickling me like that." She said, giggling the entire time.
"When did I say I was going to let you get any rest?" He retorted, now laughing a bit himself.
"How about two hours ago when you said we should get some sleep?"
"I don't know what you're talking about; it's a shame someone didn't get that in writing."
"Fine, but you asked for it." As she said this she turned to face him and in no time at all the two were half wrestling half tickling under the covers.
The battle was brief but no less epic. Several times one would think themselves victorious only to be flipped onto their back and falling victim to the vicious strikes of the other's fingertips. However, Dean soon found himself to be triumphant and once again found himself positioned above Aika, this time in a less aroused manner. The two held eye contact for several moments.
"Moons you're beautiful." He said as he ran his fingers through her hair.
She smiled. "You're not too bad looking yourself." She stretched her arms out behind his neck letting her wrists cross over one another allowing her to pull him closer. She left him a long kiss.
"Boy you're good at that. I hope you haven't had too much practice." He said, heavy on the sarcasm.
She laughed. "Only if you count my hand." She replied.
"Well that's no fun; a hand can't kiss you back like I can."
"So you think you're a better kisser than my hand?"
"You think I'm not?"
"Well I don't know, me and my hand haven't been on good terms ever since I burned it on the stove on accident."
"Oh, well I'm very sorry to hear that."
"It's okay, I'm sure he'll get over it, plus I've got you in the meantime."
A light chuckle escaped from Dean. "How does a girl like you manage to stay so unnoticed for so long?"
"I've been asking myself that for a long time. I guess there's just always been someone better looking."
He placed a light kiss on the tip of her nose and another below her right earlobe. "I don't think there's anyone better looking." He whispered.
"Where do you pick up all this shmoozy stuff?" She whispered back.
"I had a lot of time before and after my shifts back in the Armada. I filled up as much of that time reading harlequin romance novels as I possibly could."
Aika let out a short burst of laughter. "And the other guys let you get away with that?"
"Where do you think I got the books from? Admiral Vigoro was a big collector."
Aika wasn't sure whether Dean was still kidding or not but she allowed herself to laugh anyway. Laughter wasn't something she was fortunate to have very often lately.
"So Galcian had tie-dye undies, and Vigoro was a romance novel buff, do any of the other admirals have any interesting secrets?"
"Well you wouldn't know by looking at him, but Admiral Gregorio had an angelic tenor singing voice, and De Loco could cut a rug like nobodies business once you got a few drinks in him."
"And what about Belleza?" She said, getting a bit more serious. "You served under her for a little while too right?"
"As a matter of fact I did. Most men in Armada wanted to work for her, for obvious reasons. But she wasn't just something to look at; she was the first and only Lady Admiral for a reason. She nearly got you guys a couple of times."
"Yeah, but I think she did the right thing in the end. There was another woman who was pretty than me, along with several others."
"Like who? Fina?"
"Do you think she's prettier than me?"
"Well she's certainly attractive, and blondes are nice and all but I've always found that redder is better when it comes to women." He said, again stroking her hair.
She smiled again, one of the many she'd had ever since Dean arrived. "It's really more orange than it is red you know."
"Oh technicalities, can't you just let me compliment you already?"
At that she laughed again. "Thank you." She said as she pulled him into a kiss."
"So then, would you say you're over Vyse now?"
Her smile faded for a moment, her heart beat stumbling. "What do you mean?" She said, trying her best to be coy.
Looking deep into her eyes, he smiled. "You don't have to pretend, I mean it's pretty obvious you've got, or you had feelings for the guy. Heck I practically fell in love with his boyish charms the first time I met him, I don't know how you couldn't love the guy after knowing him your entire life."
Aika's smile returned. "Yeah I sort of had a thing for him I guess. But who needs him when I've got you?" This sentence was ended with a kiss. "Plus your boyish charms are slightly more boyish than his; in a good way of course."
"Well I'm glad to hear that. Maybe I need a cool scar like his too, to accent my facial features."
"It couldn't hurt."
"Actually I think it would hurt a lot." He finished this sentence by mimicking the sound of a snare drum and high hat.
"I walked right into that one."
"That you did."
Dean allowed himself to lie back on her bed again rather than support himself on his elbows as he had been doing. Aika took this opportunity to cling to him once more using his pectorals as pillows. Dean took in a deep breath through his nose; the room was filled with a strange smell that mixed lilac shampoo, rain, and fresh sex. It was overall a pleasant smell.
The two enjoyed their shared warmth for a while longer. The room was tranquil and calm. However the peace was soon disturbed by a very unromantic stomach growl from deep within Aika.
"Maybe some food is in order?" Dean suggested.
"I think I'd like that right about now, that Valuan chef isn't so bad. Of course he's no Emily."
"Well maybe we ought to get out of this bed here and get us some dinner, or lunch, whatever meal is appropriate right now."
Aika let out a sigh. "But that would mean we'd have to get up and get dressed. Sounds like sort of a hassle."
"Heh, yeah but you'll have to get up sometime right? And it's not like I want to see you putting clothes back on anyway."
Dean stood from the bed and found his boxers, quickly slipping them on. Once they were well adjusted he added his pants. He reached for his shirt but stopped before he got it over his head.
"Damn, it's still wet; my pants are pretty damp too. Hey I'm going to run down to my room and get some fresh clothes. I'll meet you down there in a few minutes alright?"
"Okay." She replied. "I'll see you in a few minutes."
Dean left his red haired beauty and began walking the short distance from Aika's bedroom to the crew quarters. Doing this shirtless earned him a few smiles from the female crew members he passed. When he entered the small room that he, Kori, and Foster shared, he found Kori lying on his bed staring up at the ceiling.
"Uh hey, is this a good time? You look pretty busy there." Dean said, shutting the door behind him.
"Oh hey, yeah I'm just sort of bored here. Not much work to do and since Foster's back at the base and you're out doing whatever I'm not left with a lot of options."
"Well what about Kjera? I mean couldn't you two have been in here doing the deed while I was out? I know how much you guys like to." He said as he pulled a fresh shirt over his head.
"Believe me, if I had known you were going to be so long we would have."
"Like that would stop you."
"Where have you been anyway?"
"Oh you know, I've been around doing this and that."
"No, I've been around doing this and that, and if you had been too I think I would have seen you, this ship is big and all but I don't think it's big enough that I could go several hours without seeing you unless one of us was trying not to be seen. You were Aika weren't you?"
Dean remained silent, but couldn't help smiling.
"Ah-ha, I knew it! Dean you scoundrel! And after only a couple days too, I've got to hand it to you that's pretty impressive. So let's hear it bud, details give me some details."
"I'm afraid not."
"Oh come on, we're best buds. This is the sort of thing we talk about."
"Yeah well this wasn't just some kind of one night stand that I could go bragging to all of my friends about. This was something a lot more meaningful."
"Oh Deanie, you and all your "respect for women"."
"Yeah, you should try it sometime."
"Hey are you implying that I don't respect Kjera? Because I do, I respect how attractive she is."
Dean laughed. "I'm not sure that's entirely the same thing."
"Eh tomayto tomawto."
"Anyway, I'm going to go meet her in the mess hall. Care to join us?"
"I don't know, all this shmoozy talk is making me a bit sick."
Dean threw a pillow at a high velocity across the room at Kori. "Ha-ha alright, alright I'll come. Just try to keeping the schmoozing to a minimum."
"What is it with everyone and that word lately? Aika had said it too."
"Oh well the captain had sent around this memo about it before you joined the ship, said it was going to be the word of the month."
"God I hate you sometimes."
Sometime during the duration of their conversation Aika had dressed herself and found her way to the mess hall, which she found was partially full of crew members with little else to do at this point in the voyage. She helped herself to a plateful of food and looked for a spot to enjoy it. At the same time as being hungry, she found she also had a strong desire to tell someone about what had just happened in the past few hours. Normally this was the sort of thing for Fina's ears but of course she wasn't likely going to be able to do that for several more hours so instead needed a back up. She quickly spotted Kjera, who was always good for listening, sitting alone at a table playing with some food and made her way over to her.
"Hey Kjera, mind if I join you?" She said sitting regardless of what the answer was going to be.
"Of course not." The well tanned Ixa'Takan girl replied.
Aika inhaled enough food to keep the growling in her stomach at bay for a while. "So how have you been Kjera?"
"I've been pretty good, yourself?"
"Good, good." Aika wasn't exactly sure how to progress the conversation. Luckily she didn't have to.
"You and Dean, you slept together just now didn't you?"
Aika was a bit shocked that she had been able to pick up on that so easily. "How did you know?"
"An Ixa'ness always knows." She replied with a smile. "So how was it?"
"I don't really have much to compare it to, well almost nothing really, but I think fantastic would be a good word."
"That doesn't surprise me."
"Why do you say that?"
"Dean seems to be very capable with his hands. Usually men who can play instruments and are skilled with weapons can apply that dexterity in the bedroom. Plus I've always gotten the feeling he was pretty well endowed." She said with a wink.
"Ha well I've only seen two full grown men naked in my whole life, including him."
"Oh? And who was the other?"
"Somehow I get the feeling you already know."
Kjera smiled. "So it was the captain? And how might I ask did that happen?"
"It was sort of an accident, I mean I've pretty much lived with the guy for the past twenty or so years of my life, it was bound to happen eventually."
"Well you should consider yourself lucky then, not many women get to see that."
"Ha-ha yeah I guess not. You know Kjera I can't help but notice that for someone who was born and raised in Ixa'Taka, you don't seem to have any trouble with our language like most of the others do."
"Oh here come our boys now." Kjera said pointing behind Aika.
Aika spotted Dean and Kori heading their direction, both with fairly large amounts of food on their plates. As their eyes met Aika couldn't help but smile, a gesture which was returned by her man. Each man took their seat next to their respective woman.
"So what were you two talking about?" Dean asked.
"Probably the same thing you to were talking about." Kjera replied.
The table suddenly fell very quiet. Kori pursed his lips and slowly gazed around the table looking at the other three.
"Awkward…" He said in a falsetto tone before digging into his food. Dean and Aika did the same. Kjera let out a heavy sigh.
"I'll never understand why the people of the east are always so uncomfortable when talking about sex."