The warm water hitting Crath’s skin felt good. “Kelsey is mine. But she is…human.”
Cavas chuckled. “Say no more. You will convince her. I have no doubt.”
“I will.” Crath was determined.
Chapter Eleven
Kelsey woke inside a sauna. At least that was her first impression. The air was super warm. She opened her eyes to stare at what appeared to be a plastic ceiling of sorts a few feet above her head. Slowly, other details sank in. She lay on a rubbery surface—and she was completely nude.
Panic struck.
“Female, remain calm,” a robotic voice ordered. “You are on The Vorge and being treated in our medical bed. The cycle is nearly complete.”
Memories flooded back in a flash. The last thing Kelsey remembered was being on Crath’s lap, wrapped in a blanket, trying to get warm and feeling sick to her stomach.
It wasn’t a mystery to why she’d felt that way. The large blue alien had grabbed her from the water, a weird sensation, almost like being shocked, had jolted down both of her arms, and then they’d rapidly been yanked upward dozens of feet. If that hadn’t been bad enough, once they stopped, they were swung sideways. Bright lights had blinded her, and that’s when the electrified feeling had shut off. She’d dropped onto an unforgiving hard surface, ass first.
“There’s a blanket,” the blue alien had said. “Wrap up and sit in the corner, clear of the crane. You’re safe. I’m going after Crath now.”
She’d adjusted to the bright lighting enough to watch the alien being swung away and out the back of the open shuttle, disappearing quickly. It had shocked her to realize he was hooked to what appeared to be a mini crane by just a super-thin cable. The bay door was huge, wide open, and she was terrified of falling out despite it being about eight feet away. What if the shuttle suddenly pitched or moved? They’d come up a long way from the ground to reach the alien ship hovering in the air. A fall from the shuttle would kill her.
Kelsey had spotted a metallic blanket folded on the floor by the back wall and tried to get up. Dizziness hit, and she shook hard from the cold. Her body felt like ice. The wind that rushed in from the door of the alien ship hadn’t helped her situation. She’d crawled to the blanket, managed to get it open, and wrapped it around herself. The urge to puke was so strong she might have gagged if her teeth weren’t chattering too hard.
Then Crath was there, picking her up, moving. That had made her motion sickness worse.
She’d realized they were safe though, as he sat, holding her tight, and she’d heard other male voices. They seemed to be his family. That’s when she must have passed out.
“Who are you?” She had questions. “Where’s Crath?”
The robotic voice instantly responded. “I am the medical android assigned to The Vorge. Nara calls me Dobs. The males were ordered to leave.”
“Hi, Kelsey. That’s your name, right?” It was a female voice. “My name is Lilly. You’re not alone, okay? I’m from Earth. Human too, just to be clear. Mari is with me. She’s another human, but she was raised in space. Crath went to shower and change his soaked clothes. He’ll be here really soon. You’re safe. Don’t be afraid.”
Kelsey processed all of that. “Why am I in a weird pod?”
“You needed medical help.” Lilly paused. “Your clothes were removed in there by the android arms built into the bed and it cleaned you before beginning the medical cycle. You were sealed inside until your body temperature regulated. It also afforded you privacy while all that happened.”
The other woman with a softer voice spoke. “I programmed the android to close the bed for females from Earth, since it seems most of you aren’t comfortable with nudity. I’m the mechanic. I keep everything running smoothly.”
Kelsey felt some of her worries fade, now that she knew her situation. “I’m okay now.”
“You were unconscious,” Lilly reminded her. “That’s not okay.”
“I’ve been under a lot of stress and haven’t eaten in a while. Add in the cold and stuff…” She wasn’t going to expand on that more by admitting to having sex with Crath. “And that rescue was a little jarring. I felt like I was yanked out of the water and pulled straight up hundreds of feet in two seconds. It game me motion sickness. He didn’t even harness me to him.”
One of the women muttered something too low to hear but then Lilly raised her voice. “You have our apologies for that. We had to destroy a hostile alien ship when we entered the planet’s atmosphere. More could arrive at any time if they got a distress hail out to their other ships. That meant we were in a hurry.”
“The Cristos are beings that pretty much all other aliens avoid. Any warm-blooded female is at risk of being kidnapped by them and eventually killed,” Mari informed her.
“I’m aware,” Kelsey admitted. “So they really forcefully impregnant women with their babies, and birthing them kills the host?”
“Yes.” Mari paused. “But they actually lay eggs inside a womb and then they hatch weeks later. I guess they become babies at that point.”
Kelsey had a lot more questions but one pressed her the hardest. “Crath said someone from this ship went after my friend Nexis. She’s a Titan. Is she here? Can I talk to her?”
Lilly answered. “I’m sorry, but we haven’t heard from Marrow yet. She’s the one who went after the slaver who bought your friend at the auction. We’re hoping she’ll contact us soon.”
That worried Kelsey a lot. “A Parri bought her. Nexis said they wouldn’t hurt her. Was she wrong? Is he a known criminal?”
“We don’t know anything about the Parri who bought her,” Lilly admitted. “Just because he bought someone at the slave auction doesn’t necessarily mean he’s a bad guy. My Raff was also there, attempting to buy you, but only to get you to safety.”
“But it does sound worrisome.” Mari hesitated. “Some Parri kind of lost their minds after their world was destroyed. Regardless, Marrow will get your friend back from him. She’s a Sarrin.”
“I don’t know what that is.” Kelsey felt frustration.
“A female bigger than us, muscular, with thin brown fur covering her body, and she’s a major tomboy. Marrow loves to fight, and she’s good at it. She spars with York, who’s also a Parri, all the time and kicks his butt. I’m sure she’ll do the same to the guy who bought your friend if he’s a bad guy.”
“Shouldn’t you have heard from her by now if she was okay and had Nexis?” Kelsey tried to calculate how much time must have passed since she’d watched her friend being led away by the blue alien. “It’s been at least twenty-four hours, right?”
“Marrow sneaked onto his ship before it departed from that station,” Lilly shared. “If I were her, I’d check everything out first to see how many were onboard before I made my move. I’m sure Marrow is just being careful. She’s really smart. Once she has the situation under control, she’ll send us a message. We’ll be hearing from her soon. I have faith.”