Chapter 2 #2
Bubby presses the button for the internal comm system.
“Good afternoon, this is your captain speaking. This shuttle is bound for Fluxx. If this is not your intended destination, please speak up now.” He pauses.
When no one does, he continues. “Please ensure you are strapped in at all times unless you need to use the restrooms. Cerise will be bringing around refreshments once we leave Skarrian orbit. The flight is expected to take three hours. Your inflight entertainment system is loaded with some of the newest releases from Skarr and Fluxx to help you pass your time. We hope you enjoy your flight, and if you have any problems, don’t hesitate to press the button, and Cerise will see to your needs. ”
He turns off the internal comm system and presses the button for the outgoing one.
“Control tower, this is Captain Broderick Potter. Skarr shuttle sixty-nine requesting clearance for takeoff. We are bound for Fluxx, and have twenty-three passengers aboard today.” He releases the button, and there’s a moment of silence.
“Roger that, Captain Potter. Skarr shuttle sixty-nine is cleared for takeoff. Please sound your warning to alert anyone nearby in the shuttle bay. You may proceed to the launch track. Wishing you a safe flight.”
“Thank you, control,” Bubby responds, and then he pushes another button. Outside the window, I can see red flashing lights on the front of the shuttle.
“The ship is covered in red warning lights, and although we can’t hear it in here, there is a warning siren giving three blasts for people to clear our space.
” I watch as a couple of people wearing blue jumpsuits with high visibility stripes on them rush out of the way.
Broderick moves the control throttle forward, and I watch as he lightly pushes down on the accelerator and guides the ship through the hangar.
I can see crowds of people on the sides of the hangar, but no one is close enough or distinctive enough to trigger my mimic abilities.
The hangar opens, and beyond the opening is the darkness of space.
“Okay, here we go,” he says to me. The shuttle speeds up as we get closer to the large opening, and then suddenly, we’re out, and I gasp as lights disappear and we are once again moving through the immense, never-ending expanse of space.
My mouth drops open, and I’m sure I am the picture of wide-eyed wonder, but I swear I’ll never get used to this.
“Okay, Lila, this is the navigation system. All we need to do now that we’ve left the hangar is input our destination into it.
” I watch as he types Fluxx into the destination section.
“Once we’ve done that, it will work out the quickest route, avoiding any known space hazards like asteroid fields or black holes, and when that’s locked in, we just hit this button here.
” He points to yet another button. I need to take a photo of the console with my phone and then label everything as a reminder.
“That is the autopilot. We will jump into hyperspeed and then sit back and relax while the shuttle does most of the work. It’s only once we reach Fluxx’s orbit and leave hyperspeed that I need to take over again. ”
“That seems simple enough,” I lie prettily, and he just chuckles and pats my hand.
“Okay, let’s make the jump. Hold on tight.”
The jump to hyperspeed was smooth and uneventful, unlike the big ship. Bubby explained it has to do with the size of the ship. This one is small and streamlined, so it’s easier.
The space hostess brings around refreshments, and after that, I get up and swap seats with Silac so I can snuggle with Cas for a little while.
“What are your parents’ names?” I ask him, wanting to know more about the couple I’m about to meet.
“My mother is Mira, and my father is Murphy.”
“Okay, cool, that will be easy to remember.” I sigh with relief.
“And you’ll probably meet some of my siblings. My sisters are Naia and Marin, and my brothers are Morgan and Malic. All live close by with their families.”
I freeze. Four siblings and their families? Holy crap! “How many siblings do you have?” I ask, lifting my hand to nibble on my fingernail now that my nerves have kicked into overdrive.
“Um, last count, there were ten of us. My brothers Neptune and Fisher are the youngest. Our oldest sisters, Ocean, Neri, and Marilla, all moved to an ocean on the other side of Fluxx to find mates over there, so we probably won’t see them when we’re home.”
“But the rest?”
Cas must feel how tense I am all of a sudden. “Oh, baby, what’s wrong?”
“Cas, I’ve never had family until recently, so I don’t know how to do the family thing.
Shit, I’ve barely had friends except for Susie.
All of this is so new to me, and I guarantee I’m going to screw it up and your mother is going to want to eat me, not to mention all the other krakens in your family. They are all krakens, right?”
He nods. “Yes. There aren’t many pure kraken families on Fluxx.
Kraken females are so irritable that most males don’t want to mate with them.
All but two of my siblings have mates of other species.
They are going to love you, and not only that, but you’re carrying my young, so there is no way they would try to hurt you while you are pregnant.
They would wait until after, and we will be long gone from Fluxx by then. ”
I think he’s trying to be reassuring, but it’s totally not working.
Before I can say anything else, Bubby interrupts us.
“Lila, we’re close to dropping out of light speed. How about you jump up here and get a feel for flying this thing manually?”
I jump at the distraction Bubby just handed me.
“Yes, that would be awesome, thanks.”
Silac and I swap seats once more. We have to brush against each other to get past one another, and a fresh wave of fuck me hormones rolls over my body at the feel of his chest against mine.
I gasp and look him in the eye. His eyes flick between normal and snake eyes, and he hisses slightly before leaning in.
His breath brushes across my ear, and I shiver from the sensation.
He clears his throat before whispering, “Lila, Tirrian gets space sick when the flight is bumpy, so if you were to maybe get the feel of this by doing a few rolls and climbs and drops, well, he may have an adverse reaction to it.” He steps back and finishes swapping with me without another word, but a smile creeps across my face as I climb back into the co-pilot’s seat, holding tightly onto the little tidbit of information he just gifted to me. This is going to be fun.