She knew only too well what it was like to be treated so poorly. Greenhouse workers lived apart from the city dwellers and were often treated as lower class.
Making a decision, she cleared her throat. “There’s an empty seat over here.”
The alien glanced at her. Fear surged but she pushed it down. Her sister gripped her arm in a painful hold but luckily, Becky said nothing. Their parents had taught them to be polite.
He hesitated briefly then walked right toward them. Becky released her and scooted over. Darla forced a smile, making sure she kept eye contact with the big Veslor. She’d heard things about them on the news…including how they’d helped save a lot of lives on the Gorison Traveler. It had to mean they weren’t a threat to humans. At least, she hoped not.
He took the seat next to her, encroaching into her space a little. It wasn’t really his fault. He had to be close to seven feet tall and was massive in body size.
“Thank you.” He had a deeply gruff voice.
She swallowed. “I’m Darla, and this is my younger sister, Becky.”
“Hello,” Becky squeaked.
Darla was proud of her sister for remembering her manners in the face of obvious fear. She reached over and lightly patted her sister’s leg. Becky relaxed in her seat a little.
Six more people entered the shuttle over the next few minutes, and then the door closed. The engines came online seconds later. The seats under them rumbled and the noise inside muted other people’s soft talking. Everyone began to put on their belts.
Darla glanced at her sister, who appeared wary. Darla understood. She belted into her seat. “It’s going to be fine.”
Becky didn’t look convinced as she also strapped in.
“Is there a problem?”
That deep voice had her turning her head to peer up at the Veslor. “It’s our first time leaving the planet. We’ve never been on a shuttle before.”
His eyes really were striking. They were a bright blue with lots of vivid green streaks. Everything on Radison was kind of dull. It was a dust planet. The only vegetation grown inside greenhouses, and even those plants were all dingy shades of browns, dull yellows, and very pale greens.
“I’m Gnaw,” he said, introducing himself. “And shuttle travel is very safe.”
He had a weird name, but she appreciated him talking to her. It was a great distraction. “Then why the belts?”
“It can become bumpy when we transition into space. Then gravity will be gone until we dock with Defcon Red. You don’t want to float around, bumping into others or the walls.” He paused. “Also, they restore gravity quickly when we dock. It avoids injuries if you’re strapped down.”
“Thank you for telling us.” Darla meant every word. It would have been horrible if she didn’t belt in and ended up getting hurt. Their new boss would probably fire them before they even got to work their first shift. That couldn’t happen. Returning to Radison wasn’t an option.
He gave a nod, glancing around.
She did too. Most of the other humans avoided looking their way.
The shuttle vibrated hard, and then she felt it lift from the ground. Fear flooded her once again. They were going to fly from the surface into outer space. She’d watched plenty of shuttles do it in the distance, from her greenhouse home, but it was terrifying in person. Even more so when the small ship picked up speed.
The front rose until the shuttle pitched at an alarming angle.
“It’s normal,” Gnaw murmured, just loud enough for her to hear.
Becky clutched at her already aching arm, probably adding more bruises. Darla didn’t blame her. The shuttle began to rattle a bit, the entire vessel shaking.
Without thought, Darla grabbed at the male next to her. Her hand ended up on his thigh, holding on tightly. She vaguely registered his muscular leg was covered in thick material.
He surprised her by putting his much larger, warmer hand over hers, giving her a gentle pat. To see his darker skin against her overly pale flesh was quite a contrast. He might be an alien, very different from her, but she appreciated his kindness.
She lifted her chin and met his stunning eyes. He appeared amused.
“It is fine, female. I travel on shuttles all the time. It will be over soon, and then gravity will leave. It is an experience you might enjoy. Even better, it isn’t a long journey to the ship. Defcon Red sits about twenty minutes out once gravity leaves.”
“Twenty minutes? I thought we just had to fly up there and the ship would be waiting.”
He shook his head. “There are a lot of smaller vessels surrounding this planet. Defcon Red is very massive.” He smiled, showing off some sharp teeth. “They keep it farther out to avoid smaller vessels accidently crashing into it.”
That didn’t comfort her. “Does that happen often? Ships colliding?”
“No. Because they keep larger ones farther out.”
Darla had a lot to learn.
“Twenty minutes shouldn’t make you suffer much.”
“What does that mean?” Her sister sounded alarmed.
Gnaw glanced at her sister. “Humans tend to do fine without gravity but once it’s restored after long trips, I’ve seen your kind get sick and be unable to walk well. Your bodies feel too heavy. Twenty minutes isn’t long, though. On my way down, none of the humans traveling with me lost their meals or needed medics when we landed on Radison.”
No one had warned Darla about that, either. “Oh.”
He met her gaze again. “Why are you leaving your planet?”
“I’d like to know that too,” Becky piped up.
Darla shot her a warning look before returning her attention to Gnaw. “We both got jobs with the fleet.”
He looked over her head at her sister, frowning.
Becky ducked her face against Darla’s shoulder, as if she were afraid of his attention. Darla felt it was her duty to protect her. It always had been. She shifted in her seat to draw his gaze.
His gaze returned to her.
“We heard that the fleet has great benefits for civilian workers, and that they pay better than what we were earning on Radison. Both of us grew up in a greenhouse, and Defcon Red had openings for growers in their gardens. It just seemed like a great opportunity.” She decided to change the subject. “What do you do?”
“Fight.”
Her mouth dropped open, but she recovered from his surprising answer quickly. “Oh.”
“My grouping was asked to do so for humans. We eradicated a bunch of harmful alien creatures on another planet for our last mission. Your people didn’t check for lifeforms before building a settlement. Large creatures were killing the ones who lived there.”
“Holy shat,” her sister gasped.
Darla elbowed her. “What she meant to say is, that sounds dangerous.”
He shrugged his massive shoulders, attached to thickly muscled arms, which bumped her. “Veslors are good at defending weaker species.” He frowned. “No offense to your kind. We are built to fight. Humans…not so much.”
She glanced up and down his body. “You look it. I mean, tougher than us.”
He gave a nod, and then glanced around the shuttle. “We are about to lose gravity.”
She wanted to know how he knew that, but regardless, he proved to be right. The slight shaking stopped—and a sick feeling hit Darla. The lightheadedness had her clutching his thigh tighter, and holding onto Becky, too. Her body felt indescribably weird—and then gravity was gone.