Chapter 1 #2
JR14 hovered before resting on Azazel’s thigh.
“Designation: We are on a ship owned by an alien race called the Ozevroc, who are galactic criminals wanted in the civilized galaxy.” The bot plopped onto his belly with his legs folded underneath him as he continued his narrative.
“I have compared their readings with the ones on FiPan and determined they are a match. Further analysis has determined these are the beings that absconded with the human women from that planet.”
Azazel raised his eyebrows.
“I didn’t sense a being like that on this ship. The one I sensed has the same outliers that my brother, Abalim, brought back to share with us concerning the Krystalii.”
“Affirmative.” JR14 nodded. The steady, pale-blue light in his eyes dimmed.
“I have determined that a Krystalii has commandeered this ship that formerly belonged to an Ozevroc. We are now proceeding to the Krystalii mothership called the Nyrlith, which, in the Krystalii language, means soul-prison.”
That, as his brother Arakiba would say, didn’t inspire any warm fuzzies.
Sucking in a sharp breath, Azazel said, “Then I’d best not use my psychic abilities to read the Krystalii here.
So, I have two questions.” Azazel rubbed his chin.
“First, is the Krystalii aware we are here? And second, is the human woman on this ship? If so, where?” If he got to her before they docked with the Krystalii mothership, he’d be able to teleport the three of them from this ship back to FiPan.
From there, he’d figure out a way to get back to Earth.
“Inconsistent.” JR14’s back wings came out and flicked before being covered again. “Instead of two questions, that was three. You must refrain from misrepresenting the number of your queries.”
Azazel pressed his lips together to keep from grinning. Darn bot was so literal.
“My apologies.” He put a hand over his heart. “But I tend to ask questions as thoughts occur to me. Please overlook that propensity and answer my questions to the best of your abilities.”
JR14’s front claws clicked.
Azazel understood the sound as a sign the bot was either irritated or considering the request.
“I understand your limitations.”
At least the bot’s tone wasn’t condescending.
“I agree to respond to your illogical way of conversing.” JR14’s front claws were silent.
“Firstly, the Krystalii is unaware we are on board this ship. He is focused on approaching the Nyrlith to land this vessel. Secondly, the human woman is here and is unconscious in a stasis pod. Thirdly, her stasis pod is just through that doorway.” JR14’s front claw pointed to an obvious open doorway Azazel hadn’t noticed.
He swallowed a sigh. It wouldn’t do any good to chastise the bot for not telling him that in the first place. After all, the little droid had only been online for less than a month. “All right, let’s get out of this corridor and go get her.”
“Affirmative. Optimal decision to recover the human woman first minimizes detection from the Krystalii by 42%. Let us proceed.”
Toni led a glamorous and fulfilling life.
Ask anyone.
Those looking at her life from the outside would tell you she led one of the most fascinating, exciting lifestyles imaginable.
Professionally, she was a woman in great demand as an assistant film producer, who lived in one of the most exciting cities on the planet.
She surrounded herself with dozens of friends and thrived in a tight-knit, like-minded community nestled in the heart of Koreatown, Los Angeles.
She’d bought a small condo on her own (at the express disapproval from her eomeoni—mother), and she dated occasionally with intelligent, handsome men who respected and admired her.
Yep, she should be happier than a teenager discovering Wi-Fi in a blackout.
But… she wasn’t.
Instead, she hid from everyone how lonely and bored she was.
Most days were filled with mindless tasks and useless things those above her pay grade demanded she do.
Day in and day out. And, in those rare flashes of honesty, especially in the middle of the chaos, she admitted her life sucked and she’d better change it before it was too late.
To add to that pile of self-loathing, from an early age, she wrestled with the gnawing sense that something essential was missing from her life.
And nothing she did came close to filling that void.
Searching for meaning in a life partner was spotty at best. It didn’t take her long to relegate most of the men she dated to the “friend zone”—that is, if she let any of those men stay in her life at all.
Most of them only got close because they thought she held sway in the film industry.
Good thing it didn’t take long to see through those charmers.
Damn asses were so predictable. And the ones who ended up in that friend zone?
If she was honest, she couldn’t care less if she ever saw them again.
None of them lit that spark of passion she’d read or made movies about.
As for her personal life—raised as an only child, she didn’t have any siblings to bond with.
And, since her parents migrated alone to the United States in the early 1970s, she didn’t have other family to connect with.
Any aunts, uncles, cousins or grandparents she had were all in Korea, a place Toni never had the chance to visit.
But one unexpected night, that all changed.
She was given a chance to do something so crazy, so outlandish, so irresistible, she couldn’t bear to turn it down.
When an alien race called Zerin contacted…
er, abducted her, they presented her with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to leave Earth and find a meaningful relationship with an alien who would love and adore her for the rest of her life.
Unlike most of the science-fiction romances she’d read, these aliens gave her a choice—join their exchange, or they’d return her home none the wiser, with the reassurance they’d erase her memories of the encounter with no harm done to her.
After she heard their tempting offer, she felt an underlying sense of fate aligned within her for the first time.
This… this was what she’d been waiting for.
She’d always adored anything with a sci-fi twist combined with a hint of romance. How could she resist?
Toni, by nature, wasn’t impulsive. She took her time and contemplated their offer, especially since she couldn’t return to Earth if she went with them.
Before she gave them an answer, she relived her life, piece by piece.
Her job, which she adored at first, had been exciting; she was part of producing movies and TV shows that she’d felt were worthwhile.
But as time went by, the fierce competition turned into something she loathed, forcing her to choose between backstabbing a good friend to get the job done or losing any credibility she had in the industry.
And lately, the projects she’d worked on weren’t worth the effort.
They were flat and uninspiring. It was the same old grind.
Like a bad rerun. Disgust couldn’t describe how mind-numbing and soul-sucking the entire industry had turned out for her.
The only regret she had was leaving her eomeoni behind. Although not estranged, Toni’s refusal to live as her mother decreed forced her to move out and reject her mother’s traditional lifestyle. Lately, whenever they got together, her mother became increasingly demanding.
“Toni-ah, look at you! You’re not young anymore. When I was your age, I already had you. Do you want to be alone forever? No husband, no children! How can you live like this?”
As if Toni being in her early thirties counted as old age. Then her mother would spout this gem:
“How will I get to hold grandchildren at my advanced age?”
Toni was smart enough not to point out her mother was barely in her sixties. Then her favorite would follow:
“You don’t think about me at all! Do you want me to grow old and feeble with no one to call me halmoni? You don’t want to have han in my heart, do you?”
Her mother had the emotional blackmail trope down to a science.
As if Toni was responsible for all her mother’s unresolved sorrow, resentment, and longing for how her life turned out.
While she loved her eomeoni with all her heart, her mother had developed her own interests after Toni’s father died several years ago.
She’d joined a group of widows from their community and traveled all over the world.
If Toni saw her mom twice a year, that was considered a lot.
She shuddered. The only question was, how to tell her mother she was going away for a long time without starting in a guilt-ridden argument?
Which turned out to be a no-brainer. Her only choice was to leave a note explaining she’d be unavailable for a year because of a remote job.
After all, it was normal for either of them to be out of touch for long periods before.
Besides, if she found a mate on an advanced world that had space travel, who’s to say he wouldn’t bring her back for a visit occasionally?
The final decision came down to this. Was she willing to take a risk of going to the ends of the galaxy for something as bold as a fulfilling life filled with love?
Could there be anything nobler? Here was an opportunity to uncover parts of herself she never dared to understand—one with no outside influences.
A chance to reclaim her identity away from the roles and expectations placed on her.
And wasn’t that what being alive was all about?
Of course, fate loves nothing more than to slap you upside the head with your own stupidity the second you dare to chase something better. Just a little reminder to let you know what a complete idiot you were for even thinking you had the right to change your life.
Or that you even had a chance.