The Ta'e'sha Chronicles 2: Shards of the Mind Read online

  Ruri straightened slowly, her eyes locked with his. She did not speak.

  Daeshen studied her, taking in her features again, curious about her reaction. Long, straight black hair swung to the middle of her back and slanted dark eyes marked her of Asian descent. Her slender body stood very still. He tilted his head. “My wife has a necklace similar to that. She doesn’t like us to touch it either. Is it a sacred object?”

  She relaxed marginally. “Your wife, you say? I would like to meet her, please. This necklace is shaped as a pentagram, a symbol of witches. She could tell you more if you ask her.” She blinked slowly. “It would be nice to have another witch to spend time with.” Changing the subject, she pointed at the holoreader again. “Please go over this list, and if you have any ideas how we can get living samples of things that have been dead a long time, let me know.” She walked away, returning to her workstation, tucking the necklace back into her shirt.

  She was very difficult to get along with most of the time. Daeshen had found her to be much angrier about being taken than most of the women. She rarely spoke to anyone and was very curt when she did.

  Brow furrowed in confusion, he watched her leave. What is a witch? he wondered silently. Deciding to put the matter aside until he got home that evening and could talk to his wife about it, he reached for another sheaf of papers the Gods had given him. The human women had the lists from the first sheets and were moving much faster than his people in cataloging where to find the items. He was going to see if he could identify the contents of the next list since he had barely glanced at it yet.

  After perusing the list for a few minutes he let out a heartfelt groan. The others in the room looked up. He held up the list and grimaced. “It’s all from Arkaa, people. We need to contact the Council.” His head thunked onto the table. Groans sounded around him.

  The Arkaana were a race his people had briefly studied before deciding not to contact them. Their culture was matriarchal to an extreme. They had no interest in expanding their few sciences into space travel and were fiercely territorial, yet, not warlike. However, the initial team could not gather very much cultural information, as they were unable to enter the cave systems the Arkaana made their homes in.

  The project had been abandoned because of that lack of information. They had managed to get some basic cultural information and the spoken languages, but that was all.

  Daeshen sighed again, hoping his ship wouldn’t be required for first contact. Then he wondered why the Gods wanted to make a near perfect replica of Arkaa. He sent the information to the head of the science department for review.

  * * * * *

  Thea flopped backward onto the bed and stared at the ceiling pensively. She had just returned from a session with Reba, her counselor. They had spent more time discussing her new life than the attack. She wondered if Reba was talking to one of the other counselors about the same things. Did all of the women feel the way she did?

  Daeshen came into the room. She watched as he eyed her for a moment before sprawling on his back next to her.

  They stared at the ceiling in silence.

  After a few minutes, he turned his head and looked at her. “How was your day?” he inquired softly.

  She shrugged. “Okay, I guess. I worked for a few hours, pondered how Perry Mason never defends a guilty person for an hour or so, then went to see Reba.” Her hand stretched across the bed and she laced her fingers through his. She had introduced Daeshen to old Perry Mason reruns a few days ago. He was completely fascinated by them.

  He rubbed his thumb along the back of her hand before releasing it and rolling onto his side, propping his head up on his hand. “What do you want to do tonight?”

  “I dunno. I’m not really in the mood for a movie. We could go swimming. I wouldn’t mind getting some exercise. Or I could see if Sya’tia wants to go jogging instead of swimming. We could pick up dinner in the galley. I don’t feel like cooking. Reba says I need to force myself to go out in public. I don’t think it would be so bad if you guys were with me.” She toyed with a strand of Daeshen’s hair; it curled around her fingers, squeezing gently.

  He leered at her comically. “Well, I know one way to get some exercise…”

  She giggled and pushed him over. “You always want to exercise that way, ya perv.” She rolled over and rested her arms and chin on his chest.

  He rubbed her back. “It’s part of my charm.” He smirked.

  She wiggled up and kissed his chin. Their sex life had suffered because of the attack. She occasionally panicked when the men leaned over her. It had caused several aborted seduction attempts on their part. Kyrin had ended up with a black eye once when he had tried one of the bondage games they had all enjoyed before the attack. Thea was still mortified she had struck him.

  Daeshen threaded his fingers through her hair and gently massaged her scalp. He pulled her closer for a deeper kiss, nibbling gently on her lips.

  She pulled away slowly and nuzzled his neck. His hands slid down to rub her lower back. Thea smiled against the skin of his throat and rocked her hips against his. He hardened against her hip eagerly. She slid down his body and opened his suit. His cock pulsed in her hand when she gently freed it from the cloth.

  Her tongue flickered quickly across the crown. She pursed her lips and slowly sucked him inside her mouth. His moan of obvious enjoyment was music to her ears and she took more of him. She hummed softly and peeked up at him. His eyes were glazed and his hands fisted in the blanket covering their bed. Her tongue rubbed up and down the firm muscle in her mouth. She drew upward slowly, sucking strongly until she reached the tip.

  Her hand slid back inside his clothing and cupped the heavy weight of his jewels. She squeezed them gently as her tongue explored under the sensitive frills spiraling down his glans. They fluttered anxiously against her tongue. Daeshen moved under her, leaning up on his elbows to watch her. He murmured encouragingly. She took him back into her mouth in a smooth motion until he touched the back of her throat.

  Thea began to move her lips slowly up and down, letting her teeth graze his sensitive flesh every so often. He moaned and fell back, arching his hips. She felt his balls tighten in her palm. She knew he would not last long. Daeshen loved watching her suck him. She took him as deeply as she could and sucked hard, sealing him in her mouth. Then, she began to hum again, low and deep in her throat. She felt his frills tremble.

  With a hoarse shout, he pulled her mouth off of him. His frills popped open and hot, sweet liquid splattered her mouth and cheeks. Thea quickly curled her fingers around him and stroked him as he continued to shoot stream after stream. He shuddered under her and relaxed, the last of his sap flowed sluggishly over her hand. She smiled with pleasure, petting his cock and the frills that still stood out from the tip. He shivered under her caresses. Thea lapped him clean, carefully working her tongue under the rigid frills. He tasted sweet and faintly of licorice.

  She rested her chin on his thigh as his frills folded and he panted.

  Daeshen looked down at her and laughed softly. “You have cum in your hair again.” He laughed again when she just grinned at him. He sat up and pulled her up beside him. “Let’s go take a shower and go swimming. I’ll com Kyrin and Sya’tia to join us when their shifts end. You could even leave off wearing that flimsy excuse for modesty you call a bikini,” he added with a teasing leer.

  * * * * *

  Sya’tia watched as Thea lolled on her back in the warm water. “I still say it would be damned uncomfortable! So, it had to have been a man’s idea that women wore them!” She rolled onto her back and floated next to her friend.

  “Of course it was a man’s idea. You honestly think any woman would stick a couple of seashells on her tits and say, ‘Hey, this really pinches! I think I’ll start a fashion statement!’? Like bras aren’t bad enough!”

  Sya’tia laughed and exchanged a grin with Kyrin. She looked back at her friend, who now had her eyes closed as she enjoyed the quiet of the re
creation area. The place was close to deserted since the galley had just started serving dinner.

  She admired the bikini Thea was wearing. It was a pale cream with bright blue swirls. Thea had told her she had “crocheted” it and Sya’tia was thinking about asking her friend to make her one. Although she’d only need the top since her legs became a tail when she was in the water.

  Which was where the subject of tonight’s discussion had come from. The Ta’e’sha closely resembled the merfolk of human myth and Sya’tia had asked why so many of the pictures featured well-endowed women wearing seashell tops. Thea had muttered something about religious prudes being ashamed of their own bodies.

  Sya’tia had pointed out that Thea still wore clothing and was uncomfortable being naked around strangers.

  Thea had replied that she was “a product of her environment.” Whatever that meant. Sya’tia had changed the subject back to seashells.

  With a quiet splash both men dove under the water and disappeared. She felt them pass under her body. She grinned when Thea squeaked and sank under the water. Her friend came back up sputtering and yelling at her husbands.

  Sya’tia rolled back over and watched Daeshen swim by. He was a blue streak waving a cream and blue flag.

  Thea’s bikini bottom.

  Thea set off after him. She yelled a few more curses when she couldn’t catch him. Humans are so clumsy in the water, Sya’tia thought to herself as she watched their antics. Daeshen passed the scrap to Kyrin and tweaked his wife’s ass, making her squeak in outrage.

  A bit of white in one of the trees caught her gaze. What is that? She squinted. A small blue patch floated through the air and landed in the tree as well. It hung up on a branch and waved gently in the breeze. More dots of color floated around. “Uhhhh…Kyrin?” she murmured softly as he passed her.

  He paused and looked at her inquiringly.

  She nodded toward the tree.

  He glanced up and frowned. “What is that?”

  “I don’t know, but whatever they are they’re floating on their own,” she replied.

  Kyrin swam to the edge and levered himself out of the water, tossing the bikini back to Daeshen absently.

  Daeshen stopped to see what Kyrin was doing and Thea snatched her bikini bottom away from him.

  Sya’tia levered herself out of the water and murmured the chant to change her tail to legs. Once she was finished she walked to the tree. She snagged a piece of cloth and pulled it free of the branch it hung from.

  “What is it?” Kyrin called.

  She unfolded the cloth and started to laugh. It was one of the lacy bits of nothing the human women liked to wear under their clothing. “Panties. White lace too. Very sexy.” She laughed harder. All the bits of color she had seen were underwear. “I don’t know how they got here, but someone seems to have raided the laundry.”

  Kyrin sighed and commed maintenance. He asked them to come retrieve the clothing and take it back to the laundry before it became common knowledge it was waving from the trees. He fell back on the grass and stared up at the ceiling with its artificial sky. First the substance on the heating cores, now this. He would really like to know who was behind these pranks. So he could strangle them.

  A shadow fell over him. He looked back and saw his second in command, Tria. “Hello, Tria, what can I do for you?” he asked neutrally.

  She was a stern-faced woman with pale yellow coloring and a stockier build than was common among his people. She sat down next to him and cleared her throat nervously. “I’m sorry to bother you off duty, Kyrin, but I wanted to speak with you about something.”

  Kyrin sat up and waited. His relationship with his second was strained. They worked well together, but personal beliefs had prevented them from becoming friends. They had decided to not exceed the bounds of their working relationship. As it was they clashed in private on a fairly regular basis over the running of the ship.

  Tria smoothed the front of her uniform. “I would like to be transferred planet-side after we return, Kyrin.”

  Kyrin blinked in shock. He was aware of Daeshen drawing Thea deeper into the lake and of Sya’tia rejoining them. He was grateful for their discreet bid to give them privacy. “Why do you wish to transfer, Tria?”

  The woman at his side drew herself up. “I have been offered marriage. But the family does not wish to leave Ta’e.”

  “I see. I will prepare the papers tomorrow. I will miss having you as my second. For all our differences, you are excellent at your job.” He smiled at her. “I wish you joy, and I hope you find the happiness I have.”

  She gave him a relieved smile. “Thank you.” She stood and left quietly.

  He was beginning to get many requests like this one. Fertile women were in high demand as mates since the virus’s devastating effects. He only hoped the women were careful about accepting offers and that they were being asked for more than their ability to carry children.

  * * * * *

  Myst cawed happily as she watched the maintenance crew swarm over the trees, pulling down panties and dropping them to the ground. Condezl would be pleased with this bit of work.

  It also looked as if their efforts were beginning to bear fruit. The maintenance crew was very irritated. She was sure they were still trying to figure out what the urine was. The twins had almost made themselves sick laughing as they watched the tests.

  Chapter Five

  Two months later…

  “Captain, we have a problem.”

  Kyrin cringed. He had quickly come to hate that phrase. It was usually followed by a report of an irate passenger or maintenance worker. “Yes, what is it?” He turned to face his second in command.

  Tria’s lips were compressed in a grim line. “There seems to be bird excrement on all the statuary in the recreation areas. The head of maintenance would like to speak to you privately.”

  “Send him to my office and com security again. I want to know if they’ve made any progress finding the cats and birds that seem to be roaming freely on my ship!” Kyrin ground his teeth as he moved toward his office.

  His crew had no idea how specimens escaped from the science labs to cause so much havoc! Just a few nights ago he had been awakened by horrible retching noises. It had ended with a very wet sound that made his stomach heave just thinking about it. He had quickly turned on the light to locate the source of the sound, but hadn’t found anything.

  The next morning he’d “discovered” the cause. In his boot. With his foot. A slimy wet mound of hair and vomit. Several other people had reported the same discovery in various places. Although the most popular place seemed to be beside beds, where the occupants would put their feet when they got up.

  The science department was still swearing that all of the jaguar specimens they had collected were in stasis and accounted for. So, how then did a jaguar hairball end up stuck to his foot?

  His wife seemed to find the whole thing very amusing.

  The door opened and the head of maintenance strode in with an aggrieved expression.

  Kyrin sighed inwardly.

  Two hours later he fell into the sitting area with a sigh of pure exhaustion. His wife turned from her film to regard him with bright eyes.

  She grinned impishly. “Any more hairballs?”

  He glowered at her. “No. Today’s fun was bird shit. The asana are pissed because it seems to be on their statues as well as the ones in recreation.”

  Thea fell back laughing hysterically.

  Kyrin growled a curse and stood to leave. “I think you know more than you are saying, wife.”

  Thea smirked. “How could I possibly know more about this than you do?” She stood and swayed out of the room teasingly.

  She stopped at the door and turned to give him a bland smile. “Perhaps you should ask the asana to pray for enlightenment. Maybe your Lithen have an idea.” She disappeared into the next room.

  The asana? What would… His eyes narrowed as he stared at the empty doorway. She doe
s know more than she’s telling. He followed her, determined to get it out of her. He paused when he saw her in the doorway to her workroom. She blew him a kiss just before she shut the door and locked it. Damn it!

  He glowered at the door for a full minute and considered overriding the lock. Finally, he turned on his heel and marched to the cabin entrance. Fine, I’ll go talk to the asana. Who knows what she thinks that will accomplish?

  * * * * *

  Later that night Thea carefully wiggled her way free of her husbands’ arms. She didn’t want to wake them. Finally, she was standing beside the bed. She crept into the bathroom and silently dressed. Then, she snagged the bag she had stashed there earlier before sneaking out of the cabin.

  She and Ruri were going to try and cast a circle. They had decided to try a small one before the next scheduled full moon on Earth.

  Meeting Ruri had done more for her peace of mind than anything else. Knowing she wasn’t alone, that there was another witch onboard helped her feel more balanced. Thea was a bit apprehensive by the other woman’s caustic personality, though. They had quickly become friends after Daeshen had introduced them, but occasionally Thea left Ruri’s company feeling like she’d been rubbed raw with sandpaper.

  She paused in the entrance to the recreation area and looked around the darkened area cautiously. It appeared to be deserted. She looked up at the ceiling where the image of two moons glowed gently. How she missed the familiar glow of her home’s moon. However, she was coming to appreciate the beauty of new things around her.

  A dark shadow popped out from behind a tree and she screeched softly in surprise.

  Ruri grinned at her from the shadows. “Gotcha!”

  Thea laughed. “Witch!”

  “You got it, baby!” The other woman winked and fell into step beside Thea. “I found a great place; it has a ring of trees that kind of remind me of oaks. We should do it there. Did you bring the stuff?”