Chapter 32
A month later
Amina
The moment they passed into Ilgorian territory, everyone on the ship relaxed. They hadn’t seen a single other ship while traveling through Ossiso space, but everyone had been a little worried.
Unsurprisingly, the Ossisos were the most effusive in their relief. The change in them was startling. They talked, laughed, and stopped slinking from spot to spot. Well, mostly. Restic and Jul still struggled, but Amina was sure they’d become more confident over time.
Right now, they were all gathered in command, chatting about what they wanted to see at the Ugarian station they were about to visit.
They hadn’t originally planned to stop here, but they’d gotten a message from Holian demanding to meet.
Helmen agreed but named the place. Sifor Station was on a major trade path and hosted many species but was still far enough in Ilgorian Federation territory to be safe from kidnapping or coercion.
Amina could understand. They were all protective of Myrum and didn’t want him pressured or forced to go back to his old life.
They’d already filed the marriage paperwork on the way here and would be able to check on their marriage status at this station.
The moment it was finalized they'd adopt Gis and the rest of the Ossisos. No matter how many times she explained that it didn’t matter who adopted them, they all insisted it had to be her.
It was probably for the best. They’d be settling in her community on Ineeko, and she’d be there to support them as they figured out their new lives.
The ship shook as massive bots grabbed hold to guide them the rest of the way to the docking supports. It wouldn’t be long now until they’d be walking down the short corridor from Steady to Sifor.
Amina was deep in thought about what she wanted to do next when Helmen stood up and faced everyone who crowded into command to watch the very mundane process of docking on the large display.
“There are rules,” she announced. “And all of you will follow them.”
“Rules for the Ossisos, not us, right?” Teshor said.
Helmen gave Teshor a brief show of annoyed ears then lifted them back up to address everyone.
“No one goes anywhere alone. You need to at least be in pairs, but three is better. You will not leave the communal areas. No going to someone's living quarters or a back room.”
Jossulum interrupted her to address the Ossisos. “If anyone says anything mean, give them a look and say something like, peasant, then walk away.”
“That is not a rule,” Helmen said, rubbing a hand over her forehead. “Stop helping, Jossulum.”
“I know this station well,” Desur said. “I could show anyone who wants to explore around. There are a couple of shops that have stuff from all over.”
The looks of relief on most of the Ossisos were obvious. Several of them took tentative steps closer to Desur, as if worried he’d leave command and they’d lose track of him.
Helmen then turned to where Amina and Myrum were lounging against a wall. “And then there’s you two.”
Amina raised an eyebrow. “You’re coming with us, remember?”
“I know, but I don’t have to be happy about it,” Helmen said. “I still think this meeting is a bad idea. And doing it on their ship is stupid.”
Secretly, Amina agreed with her captain, but Myrum had been adamant that Holian was completely trustworthy. It had taken a lot of talking, but he’d finally gotten his way.
Myrum kept quiet because he’d already won the argument over the meeting spot.
Helmen continued speaking. “I’ve sent a message to station security so their ship isn’t allowed to leave before ours. Even if they try something, they won’t get away with it.”
Amina was impressed. She knew Helmen was friends with some of the administrators on this station, but she didn’t realize it was that strong of a friendship. It also made her feel a lot better to know this extra precaution was in place.
She didn’t have any confidence in Holian or the captain of the ship, Derani. They were both Talins, and as far as she was concerned, Talins other than Myrum weren’t to be trusted. Not after the way Myrum’s family had treated him.
Everything in Amina’s community was set up to help everyone succeed. Sometimes success was living a simple and safe life on Ineeko, and sometimes it was going off on adventures. Transition and change were expected and accepted and goals were only set by the individuals, not those around them.
She couldn’t wait to get Myrum settled on Ineeko. He’d love the wide open skies, the supportive community, and maybe they could sneak off to the grasslands for some primal fun!
A chime sounded, announcing that docking was complete. Because they were an Ugarian-registered ship, they didn’t have to go through any extra security. They were free to leave the docks and explore the station.
“Is everyone ready to go?” Desur asked, almost as excited as the Ossisos he was accompanying.
“I’ll come with you,” Teshor said.
“Me too,” Jossulum added. “This’ll be fun.”
They all spoke at the same time as they left command, except for Gis. He stayed back with Helmen, Amina, and Myrum.
“Do you want to stay on the ship?” Helmen asked Gis. “The only thing to remember is that you can’t leave on your own.”
“I’m going with you,” he said.
Amina should’ve expected that. When she and Myrum weren’t in their room, Gis was usually right by their side.
More than once while she was working, she’d ended up with two individuals carrying her tools around the ship for her.
Teshor loved to tease her about it. She’d encouraged Gis to relax but could also understand that he got a lot of comfort by being around her.
She really hoped he didn’t try to move in with them on Ineeko. She would find a place for him nearby, but she wanted an entire domicile for her and Myrum.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Helmen said.
“I don’t care,” Gis responded with a surprising amount of sass.
“You’ve been spending too much time with Amina,” Helmen grumbled. “Fine, you can come, but don’t do anything unless I give you a direct order, got it?”
Gis grunted, which was what all the Ossisos had started doing in response to orders they weren’t going to follow but didn’t want to refuse out loud.
Amina chuckled, and Helmen shot her a sour look and grumbled, “Such a bad influence.”
Giving up, Helmen turned on her heels and walked out of command. They fell in step behind the irritated captain.
The dock was a typically busy place with foot traffic, cargo bots of all sizes, repair crews, and maintenance staff filling the area with noise and motion. Amina noticed that Gis hesitated for a moment but then shook it off and took the spot at her right. She was holding Myrum’s hand in her left.
“You don’t have to do this,” Amina said.
“You’re wrong,” Gis answered. “I promised everyone I’d stay at your side. We aren’t trained like Lorse’s guards, but we’ve all been practicing.”
“I know,” Amina said. “I was there helping sometimes, remember?”
“And you know that none of us are very good yet,” Gis said. “But we have enough skills to more effectively get in the way. That would allow you time to escape.”
It was more likely that she and Myrum would handle any physical confrontation, but it was sweet how much Gis and the others wanted to protect her.
“I’m sure things will be fine; just don’t start any fights,” she said.
She heard Helmen grunt, probably fighting off a laugh. She shouldn’t be so amused. Helmen was the worst fighter of the crew.
It didn’t take them long to reach a ship named Bountiful. They all paused at the corridor leading to the ship. Helmen stepped back to stand on Myrum’s other side.
“You don’t have to do this. You’re going to be an Ilgorian citizen soon, and even if they try to take you from us, you and Amina are already married. She accepted your traditional proposal. We all witnessed it, and that’s proof enough for any Ilgorian court.”
“I’m not worried that they’ll take me by force,” he murmured.
“If they try to guilt you into anything, I’ll poke their eyes out,” Amina said. “But Helmen is right, we can turn around and leave.”
“I should give them my report,” he murmured.
He was wavering, so Amina pressed. “You don’t have to do it in person. You could dictate it and send them a data packet.”
They all waited quietly while Myrum thought about it. She was sure he was about to turn around when a human appeared at the opening of the corridor. She was wearing a short wrap dress with baggy pants underneath and had a Talin-style belt with a miniature version of a standard Ident cube.
The most startling part of her appearance was the shiny collar around her neck.
“Myrum!” she shouted cheerfully with a huge smile on her face. “I’m so glad to see you!”
A red-brown Talin chased after her. “Nalia, stop right now!”
Amina didn’t like the way the Talin yelled orders at Nalia, and she really hated the way he wrapped his arms around her to stop her progress. Nalia turned around in his arms and they were talking quietly, but the fuse of Amina’s temper was lit.
“Let go of that human!” she said, charging up the corridor.
“Amina, Derani would never hurt Nalia,” Myrum said, rushing to follow her.
She ignored him and flexed her hands to reveal her claws as she stopped an arm's length from the two. “Let her go right now!”
Nalia pulled free of Derani and faced her with a curious expression.
“Oh, hi! I’m not in trouble or anything, Derani is overprotective and worries I’ll be stolen any time I leave the ship.
I mean, I can’t blame him because I was abducted on a Delorta station and some of them saw it and didn’t do anything.
It made him a little paranoid. I probably should be more careful, I tend to… ”
The longer Nalia talked in such an easy, happy manner, the more Amina relaxed. Seeing the collar was still bothering her though. If she could get Nalia off the ship, Amina could “disappear” her on the station. From there it would be easy to adopt her and take her back to Ineeko.
A plan was already forming.
“...and I was so worried about Myrum. I didn’t think he should’ve left Kalor, but then I can see that he looks good and that makes me happy!”
By the time Nalia ran out of breath, Helmen and Gis were standing behind Amina along with Myrum. Relaxing her hands to sheathe her claws, Amina forced a smile on her face.
“We should all move onto the ship,” someone behind Derani and Nalia said. He faced Amina. “If you’re comfortable coming on board.”
She was surprised he was addressing her as if she was in charge of their group. No stranger ever did that.
Another human wearing a collar stepped around the new Talin and spoke up.
“I can assure you that you’re safe,” she said. “My name’s Jinna, and you probably already figured out that this is Nalia and Derani. This quiet guy is Holian.”
Oh, so this was the infamous Holian who sent Myrum into a situation he wasn’t prepared for and where he was almost trapped as Lorse’s plaything.
Her smoldering temper pushed her to step around Nalia and Derani. “I want to talk to you.”
“Commandant Holian is not the enemy,” Myrum said, wrapping his arms around her and purring.
“But he is the ringleader and spymaster,” Jinna said, drawing Amina’s attention. “Let’s go inside and talk. You can give him a dressing down for sending Myrum on a mission none of us wanted him to go on.”
Amina gave Jinna a real smile. “That sounds like exactly what I want to do.”
Jinna chuckled, took Holian’s hand, and pulled him back toward the ship. “Come on, everyone, it’s time to talk and maybe do a little yelling.”
“I don’t like the idea of yelling,” Holian grumbled, following Jinna as if he was the one wearing the collar.
Amina didn’t expect that, or for Derani to pick Nalia up and cradle her against his chest and carry her away.
“I bet you didn’t expect that,” Helmen murmured as she and Gis walked past Amina to follow them.
“Nope,” Amina agreed and took the hand Myrum held out.
Myrum held her back. “I don’t blame Holian, and you shouldn’t either.”
“We’ll see.”