Chapter 55
CASSIE
“Ah, it’s so lovely to meet the three of you! I am so very pleased to be working with you on such a complex and interesting problem,” Dr. Verityx chirped.
There was really no other word for the language of Cherubin Three.
Also, Doctor V looked rather like a great horned owl—at least, his head did.
He had a beak and huge golden eyes and pointed ears.
His body was covered in feathers but he seemed to have arms instead of wings and he was wearing a green lab coat—which seemed to be the color of science here, since most of the assistants in the lab were also wearing them.
The lab itself was sleek and modern, filled with pale green light and long curved counters made of some glossy white material that reminded Cassie of marble.
There were no sharp corners anywhere—everything was rounded and smooth, from the diagnostic stations to the tall cabinets with transparent doors that held rows of glowing vials.
The air smelled faintly herbal, with an antiseptic undertone that made her think of a hospital trying very hard not to smell like one.
Everywhere she looked, bird-like people in green lab coats were moving around with brisk, fluttery efficiency.
Some looked owlish like Dr. Verityx, with round faces and huge golden or amber eyes, while others had longer beaks and brighter feathers in shades of blue, red, gray, and silver.
One assistant had a long crest of emerald feathers that bobbed every time he bent over a display, while another had speckled brown wings tucked close to her body under a modified lab coat with slits in the back.
They chirped, trilled, and whistled to each other as they worked.
The sounds were musical, but also somehow very businesslike, as though a flock of songbirds had gone to medical school and developed strong opinions about viral loads and endocrine pathways.
Several of them glanced over at Cassie and the two Kindred males flanking her, but none of them stared for too long.
Which was honestly more than she could say for herself because Cassie was staring at everything.
There were floating trays that glided silently through the air, carrying sealed samples in glowing tubes.
There were spherical scanners hovering over examination platforms—their green beams sweeping back and forth like curious fireflies.
Along one wall, a huge transparent display showed a rotating model of the Hunger Virus—black and red and ugly, with curling tendrils that made Cassie’s skin crawl.
Then she saw the table.
It was positioned in the center of the largest examination chamber, under a ring of soft green lights. At first glance, it looked like a padded medical bed, but the longer Cassie looked, the more nervous she got.
It had adjustable supports for arms and legs, a raised center cushion, and two curved transparent cups attached to flexible tubes that ran into a sealed collection unit.
There were also smaller instruments tucked into compartments along the sides, including what looked like a wand, several smooth applicators, and a little silver device with a rounded head that made Cassie immediately decide she was not going to ask what it was.
Her breasts gave a faint, nervous ache as she realized that the table must be for her. The suction cups would be attached to collect the nectar she was supposed to start making. As for the other instruments, she didn’t know their uses and she was afraid to ask.
Ravik must have sensed her reaction because he moved closer on her side, his big body radiating heat and tension.
Severin stood on her other side, controlled and quiet, but she could feel the alertness in him.
Neither one touched her directly, but both males were close enough that she could take comfort from their presence.
“Is that the, uh…” Cassie cleared her throat and pointed toward the table with the nipple cups. “Is that the nectar collection setup?”
“Indeed!” Dr. Verityx chirped happily. “A very advanced mammary extraction and analysis table, designed for comfort, stability, and immediate biochemical testing. It will allow us to collect your nectar while measuring hormone levels, immune-marker density, anti-viral potency, and vaccine stability in real time.”
Cassie stared at him.
“That sounds like a very fancy milking table.”
Dr. Verityx blinked his enormous golden eyes.
“That is also accurate. Of course, you will not being making nectar until I give you the medication which causes your breasts to fill, so you don’t have to worry about it just yet.”
Cassie nodded nervously.
“Can you tell us more about that?” she asked. “About the whole, uh, process I’m going to go through?”
“Yes, yes—of course.” Dr. Verityx bobbed his feathered head and motioned them toward a seating area near the main diagnostic display. “Please sit. I find patients are calmer when they understand the procedure.”
Cassie sat because her legs suddenly felt less steady than she would have liked.
Ravik remained standing behind and slightly to her right, arms crossed over his broad chest and jaw set like he was already looking for a reason to hate every word out of the doctor’s beak.
Severin sat on her other side, leaning forward slightly, all scientific focus now, despite the tension between him and Ravik which really hadn’t eased much, even though they’d allowed her to drink from them in the shuttle.
Dr. Verityx tapped one taloned finger against a green panel and the display shifted.
The rotating Hunger Virus moved to one side and a holographic model of Cassie’s body appeared beside it, outlined in soft gold.
Pathways lit up through the mouth, throat, bloodstream, reproductive organs, and breasts, which was just wonderful because apparently her anatomy was now a public science exhibit.
Cassie folded her arms over her chest.
“That’s me, I’m guessing?”
“Yes,” Dr. Verityx said brightly. “Or rather, a simplified model of your current viral and endocrine interactions. Thanks to the research already done by Dr. Severin, we know that the Hunger Virus attempted to enter your system through the usual inflammatory pathway after the bite. However, your perimenopausal hormone fluctuations prevented it from settling in the expected appetite centers.”
“So instead of turning me into a flesh-hungry zombie, it turned me into…” Cassie stopped and glanced at the assistants nearby, several of whom were pretending not to listen. “Into something else.”
“A reproductive-hunger host,” Dr. Verityx said, sounding pleased with the term. “Rare, fascinating, and in your case, potentially life-saving for many millions of people.”
Cassie rubbed her forehead.
“I liked my phrasing better.”
“I didn’t,” Ravik growled.
“No, I imagine you didn’t.” Dr. Verityx turned his enormous eyes on the Beast Kindred without a flicker of fear. “However, Commander Ravik, your discomfort does not change the biological facts.”
Ravik’s jaw tightened, but he said nothing and Cassie wondered how the alien doctor had sensed the big Beast Kindred wasn’t happy about being here. Maybe it had to do with the way he was glaring at everyone like a freaking storm cloud about to break.
However, Dr. Verityx didn’t seem too bothered. He tapped the display again, and the pathway through Cassie’s mouth and throat glowed brighter.
“The first route we must discuss is oral mucosal absorption,” Dr. Verityx continued.
“When you take seminal cream into your mouth, the active Kindred markers are absorbed through the mucous membranes of the tongue, cheeks, gums, and throat. These tissues are rich in blood vessels and immune receptors, which means they carry the markers rapidly into the bloodstream.”
Cassie felt her face getting hot as she remembered how much cream she’d swallowed on the way over to Cherubin Three.
“Right,” she said, trying to sound calm and adult. “Oral absorption, through the mucous membranes. Sounds very scientific.”
“Exactly, because it is.” Dr. Verityx chirped.
“Everything the three of you are going to do together in order to form this vaccine is in the name of science. Now please attend and I’ll tell you why…
Commander Ravik’s cream contains Beast Kindred immune-aggression markers and altered anti-Hunger recognition proteins, especially now that he has survived both infection and cure.
Commander Severin’s cream contains Blood Kindred healing precursors and carrier enzymes, though not as potent as his essence.
Taken orally, both sets of markers prime your bloodstream and teach your immune system what to recognize. ”
Cassie glanced at Severin.
“Is that why I felt better after…you know?”
“Yes,” Severin said quietly. “It would explain the immediate drop in your symptoms after you drank from both of us. Your bloodstream was being primed.”
Ravik shifted behind her, and Cassie didn’t have to look back to know he was uncomfortable.
She wondered if he was remembering what had just happened between the three of them in the shuttle.
Was he regretting it? Regretting letting her kneel between them as they pressed their shafts together so she could take both of them in her mouth at once?
The memory made her cheeks burn hotter and sent a little pulse of longing through her that she couldn’t deny. God, was she already wanting more?
No! she scolded herself. You just drank from both of them—you don’t need anymore right now. Stop thinking about sex and pay attention to the science, damn it!
Dr. Verityx, apparently unaware that he was making all three of them relive an incredibly intimate scene, tapped the display again. Now the pathway through the lower part of the holographic body lit up in green-gold.