Chapter 25
"Captain, your heart rate is elevated," Lily stated, glancing up from her captain stress-o-meter as I returned to my quarters—although my quarters had essentially become our quarters.
Lily still hadn’t gotten pillows in her room, and I was almost certain at this point it was a ploy to then put some of her things in here because ‘this is where I always sleep’.
Lily did not sleep; instead, she just lay in the bed and watched me all night.
"Were you listening to what Melgara said?" I asked as I pulled the door closed behind me. These things were heavy, and I was ready for us to get power back on the ship. At least Lily had set up some bioluminescence throughout the ship so it wasn’t pitch black.
Lily shook her head. "No. Much of my senses have been pointed outside the ship for security purposes." She scowled briefly off into the distance.
"Don't worry, they won't be a problem," I said.
Lily turned her pink orbs on me, sparkling with curiosity. "How can you be so sure?"
"Instinct. Finnegan spoke truthfully, so he at least believed what he said. And he seemed well enough informed,” I answered.
"Just because he believed it doesn't mean he couldn't be false." Lily looked distracted again. "So what did Melgara say that has you so concerned?"
I smiled, relaxing a little now that I knew that she hadn't heard the conversation.
"An interesting question was posed. I know it's somewhat common for humans to have multiple partners, and so the question came up if I was going to entertain that same dynamic.
" I said it carefully, then followed up quickly.
"However that would be… it's something I would need to discuss with you first." I stumbled over my words.
Lily was patient through the whole exchange. However, there was a momentary sense of danger that came from her as I finished.
"Am I not enough? Am I not filling your needs?" she asked, leaning back on my bed and dragging a finger down her chest, parting the black suit she wore.
Despite the gesture, I didn’t feel an ounce of lust with the palpable danger rolling off of her.
"Of course you are." I chuckled, putting as much warmth into assuring her as I could. "The question just arose, and I realized we had never had that conversation as a couple. It's a question that has to be asked and answered together as part of building our engine," I explained.
"Oh." Lily's eyes went wide, her lips parting just a little before shifting into a wide smile.
That sense of danger evaporated. "I understand.
Her question didn't spark a desire. It sparked a realization that we had missed a step in the engine.
" Lily nodded to herself. "And of course, if you wish to have more than one, I'm certain I could make a second body, or alter this one for any variety you might desire. "
I returned the smile tenfold, mostly because I had avoided what I thought could have been a disastrous outcome.
I wasn't in any way afraid of Lily. However, I'd had at least one breakup in my past that had affected my life in unfortunate ways.
Adding someone to your life and then breaking up with them didn't just remove them from it, it removed everything they had become a part of as well.
In this case, I worried a breakup with Lily would take my ship with it.
After all, she was at this point incredibly integrated with it.
That, or Lily would eat everyone else on this ship, trap me on it, and prevent me from exploring the universe.
"I do feel much better." Lily grinned. "This building of our engine for love is fantastic. Truly something everyone should do, though I can understand how it would be difficult to build with too many people." She continued nodding to herself as she spoke.
"I will say, Violet was unhappy with my request," I said, only for Lily to tilt her head sideways.
"Violet? I thought you were with Melgara when you had this conversation."
"No, Melgara invited Violet in. Ambushed me with her, really. Some conversation to try and make modifications to me. You know, to make me more durable for the conflicts to come." I continued but saw Lily's face shift into a scowl.
"Don't tell me Violet was the one who asked the question as a part of her… participation," Lily said, growing increasingly agitated.
"Something about sharing being acceptable with a commitment, and without, it would be hard to justify?" I shrugged, admittedly somewhat understanding her concerns. It was one thing to help someone who was in a relationship with you and another to do it for your employer.
“Unacceptable!” Lily growled as the room shook.
"It's fine," I said, patting the air. Occasionally, my girlfriend just got angry enough that her approximately eight-ton secondary body thrashed enough to rock a spaceship. Not that I’d ever bring up her weight.
"I will simply have to change her mind or do it without her consent," Lily added after a moment of thought.
The last remark made me narrow my eyes at her. "Please don't do it without her consent."
"But if she won't assist us, what am I supposed to do?" Lily pouted.
"You aren't supposed to jump straight to doing it without her consent." I sat down on the bed with her and put a hand on her thigh.
Lily wiggled her nose and grimaced. "Fine."
"Good." At least she listened to me.
I was still a little worried about what Lily might do in the end. However, that would have to be a conversation for another time. I felt I'd already pushed her far enough with the thought of sharing, even if it was to reject it. There would be a better moment for the rest of it.
“What now?” Lily asked with a grin.
I pulled her down with me onto the bed and kissed her sweet lips.
"Now?" I chuckled. "I'm sure there are other activities we could spend our energy on rather than talking about this. After all, I think you’re right. Building our engine requires a little physical effort." I lifted a playful eyebrow, and she matched it with a massive grin.
Lily hummed, kissing me quickly. Then returning, as if one kiss simply wasn't enough to satisfy her, becoming voracious for my lips.
I didn’t want her to set the pace, rolling her over so that she was on her back, her silver hair splayed out on the bed while her living black suit was tearing open, inviting me to peel part of it off.
"Hush," she murmured, sliding her hands quickly into my clothes. "I think I need to prove to you that you only need one woman." The grin on her face was a decadent promise, certainly not one I was going to say no to.
“I’m sure you have a great argument for it.” I chuckled and took my shirt off. It was a favorite, and I didn’t want her to rip it. Lily could get… aggressive. Then again, so could I.
***
Brick smoothed back the fur on the top of his head as he stepped up to Tiri's door, two of his hands rising to knock in a simple pattern. The move was unique among others with only two hands, he’d come to realize. Most of the others knocked with a single fist.
"Brick," Tiri said, already knowing it was him as she opened the door with a smile that grew despite her otherwise weary expression.
“I just wanted to check in and see how you were.” He was happy to use any excuse. It wasn't until she was about to leave that he was forced to admit his feelings for the green-haired kikai.
"Oh, come in," she said, stepping back inside. "How are things? Sorry I've been distant." She moved over to her bed and settled on the edge while she picked up some brushes and began to groom herself.
Her hair was untamed, and her tails were flat in a few parts. She wore a simple robe that might have been a dress. Brick wasn’t exactly an expert when it came to fashion.
Tiri looked a little messy, but if Brick was honest, it only made her seem more approachable.
He liked her every way, but at times, she dressed so nicely that it made him aware of the grease stains that always seemed to linger under his fingernails, no matter how hard he scrubbed.
It was as if the grease had almost soaked into his skin and become a part of him.
Until recently, that was just the way of things, but now it felt like it marked him as a notch lower than the well-put-together merchant.
“Lily, Violet, and the captain hit the quarry successfully. They brought back a few goodies. Violet has some special sword,” Brick explained what he remembered, between listening and cataloging parts in his head.
“That doesn’t sound so bad, but does it mean that those people who attacked us before are going to come again?” Tiri’s eyes were hollow as she brushed her hair.
"Well, the good news is that we're going to get a reprieve, at least for a time," he said. "Bad news is, it sounds like someone dangerous is going to come pick a fight with Violet. I guess we all know now that she's a divine, and one of those is going to come fight her."
“Yeah. I guess that tail is soaked through.” Tiri was unsurprised.
Brick tilted his head. “When did you know?”
"The first time I saw her. She wasn't wearing anything to hide her markings." Tiri tapped at her own cute face. "It's sort of a legend, but at the same time, it was obvious. She wasn't wearing makeup over them, and she wasn't the type to pretend to be something she wasn't."
Brick nodded, not entirely understanding what she was talking about, but agreeing with the woman seemed always the best option.
"The captain might be mad you didn't say anything before," Brick offered.
Tiri shrugged. "It wasn't my secret to tell.
He'll understand that." She paused in her grooming.
"Thanks for coming to visit me these past couple of days.
" She shook her head slowly. "I suppose our fate will be decided when this other divine gets here.
I don't know if Violet is really up for that fight. "
Brick tilted his head in curiosity, and Tiri continued, "She's afraid to kill." Tiri shook her head. "I have no idea why, but that's a fairly troublesome disposition, especially if she's fighting another divine. It's not as if their kind die easily."
She paused. "I mean, Violet is Akari's disciple, but that doesn't mean she can get away with what she's doing. If my father's warning is anything to go by, this group has the kind of influence that will ignore any rules." Tiri shook her head, and a small sound escaped her throat.
Brick wanted desperately to snatch Tiri up and wrap her in a crushing hug, one he was certain would solve everything, or at least hoped it would.
She caught his look out of the corner of her eye.
"It's fine." Tiri smiled. "I'm a merchant.
Nobody wants to upset the merchants too much.
If my father thought they would hurt me, he would have done more than give me money to run away.
" She reasserted herself. "It's just a pain to be told to abandon something I worked so hard on because political winds had shifted to the point that my business was targeted. "
Brick had been quiet, letting her talk. Usually, it was lighter fare, but it felt like she needed to get this out.
“I just don’t know why.” She sniffled.
"The captain said that with Akari's death, the divine leadership has shifted," he offered.
Tiri nodded. "That makes sense. She was a very influential figure, very big on cooperation and peace." She shook her head. "I really hope this doesn't result in some form of war."
"If it did, what would you do?" Brick asked. The question was more hypothetical than anything. He was just trying to keep her talking rather than watch her close everyone off again.
"The only thing you can do in a war, Brick. You have to pick a side, and as a merchant, you hope to pick the winning side and supply them with what you can."
“You don't have to fight in a war." Brick shook his head.
"You would be mistaken," Tiri said, her face growing hard.
"Not fighting in a war is far worse than picking a side.
It's going to happen whether I endorse it or not.
By the time a war has started, the momentum to keep it going has been set loose.
The effort to stop it needs to come before it ever starts.
Once it begins, it's already a lost cause. "
Brick disagreed, and the scowl on his face made it clear enough, but picking a fight over it now was unlikely to help either of them.
“Then it’s about picking the right side and helping how you can. Even if that means being a merchant,” Tiri said.
"Fine. Then just do me a favor and don't start any." Brick forced a chuckle.
"Oh?" Tiri smirked. Looking up at Brick, he noticed that her eyes were watering. She hadn’t cried, but it was a near thing. "I was hoping to start my own kind of war."
Brick narrowed his eyes, and Tiri just chuckled before she leaned in and planted a kiss on his lips. The move left him stunned as he stared back at her incredulously.
"Help me forget some of my troubles?" she asked, batting her lashes at him.
“What?” Brick fumbled.
Tiri smiled warmly at him. “Pick me up, lay me on the bed, and take off my clothes, you big lug.”
“Date?” Brick said, struggling to form sentences.
“Sitting in my room for several nights talking doesn’t count?” Tiri pulled his head down and kissed him again. “I like you, Brick, and listening to the ship rattle every night makes me frustrated that we have spent so many nights just talking. So I’m taking matters into my own hands.”
Brick grabbed her and laid her gently back on the bed like she’d asked. His brain was catching up to reality.
“I’m not made of glass.” Tiri giggled and picked at his shirt. “Let’s get this off you. And get under the covers. The ship gets cold at night, and I’d bet we can get the bed nice and warm.”