Chapter 1 #2
Viktor, instead, had perfect camouflage capabilities.
His skin smoothly and neatly transitioned not only between colors but also between patterns.
It was impossible for a pup, and it was nearly impossible for an adult.
No one was sure why being a hybrid made him better at camouflaging when, by all reasonable logic, his human half should have made him worse.
Just more mysteries for them to uncover. Hopefully soon. The right to study humans and their reproductive capabilities was one of the requirements for Earth being a protectorate.
Peony and Atem were, on the surface, very opposite people.
He was driven and ambitious, untrusting and commanding.
She was content being a stay-at-home mom and mate, friendly and open.
But their auras were nearly identical – sturdy, steady, and strong.
Like different colored bricks that made up the same wall, they were a stable if outwardly mismatched foundation.
Viktor had an aura too, but it wasn’t similar to human baby auras.
Whereas human babies tended to have reaching, clingy auras, Viktor’s was more sleepy.
Contented. He spent most of his time resting, usually either wrapped around Atem’s neck or cradled in Peony’s arms. That wasn’t unusual for a domini pup.
They didn't become active until they could lift their heads without help.
Adorable. A sweet family. They had another son as well.
A full-blooded domini named Temnavi but, as was typical when Atem traveled, he had remained on the domini homeworld.
They had offered to bring him, but he wanted to stay and continue his combat training.
The four of them, together, were a loving, complete family.
Were Alanna the envious type, she might covet what they had, but she had long ago learned to appreciate her own blessings.
Of which there were many. There were so many interesting things to learn as part of an alien race.
And she had the opportunity to be an important connection between domini and humanity.
Her name would go down in history, and all she had done was spend months, probably a year or more, learning whatever she liked from the domini and their culture – something she had done voluntarily with no indication it would lead to this.
She had thought about it, of course, but it wasn’t her primary purpose in studying these things. She had just wanted to learn. To explore. She had done what she always dismissed as impossible: Remain true to herself and do something that her family would consider worthwhile.
Not to say that her family didn't want her happiness, but she had come from a very driven and ambitious family, and she simply didn't seem to match their energy. A fact that had taken her a long time to stop fighting and fully embrace.
Shortly after Peony and Atem came inside, Tuvo followed.
He was First Warrior – the biggest, baddest dude on all Turv.
He was second in combat prowess only to Atem.
However, you could be forgiven for thinking otherwise just looking at him.
Tuvo was massive, muscular and tall. He was covered in scars, including a kink in his tail where it had been broken before – interesting, since alien technology should be able to heal those. Which made his scars a choice.
Tuvo’s aura was a funny thing. She compared it to a roasted marshmallow. Hard and scarred on the outside, melty and gooey on the inside. Alanna had never seen the gooey inside herself, besides in his aura, but she knew it was there. She was probably one of the few that did.
When he entered, Hattie – who had previously been smiling and playing with Viktor, having immediately claimed him from Atem – turned her head and looked away from him.
She suddenly put a lot of focus on the pup who was staring up at her with big, red eyes while Atem hovered anxiously – it went against all his instincts to let his pup out of the nest this early.
Peony, a human no longer influenced by alien pregnancy hormones, had no such compunction and was happy to show off her son to anyone who asked.
Tuvo stared at Hattie, his expression carefully controlled but the pain clear in his aura, before he turned and deliberately struck up a conversation with Haviss and Tzomei.
Alanna stared between them, grinning to herself. They were going to have to confront this sooner or later and she couldn’t wait to see it happen.
As she was grinning between the two, the door opened again. This time, it admitted two domini females who were both tapping at their datapads, chatting quickly in Domtri. She had met the both of them on this trip only a couple of times. Second Voice Yursini and Third Voice Navine.
Domini females were different from human females.
They didn't have permanent breasts and their musculature and bone structure weren’t very different compared to their males.
By domini standards, both females were attractive with fit – muscular bodies, long tails, and sleek, shiny hair.
Domini didn't have curly hair. Which wasn’t surprising.
Curls would likely interfere with their ability to camouflage.
It did make Alanna much more aware of her mass of dark, curly hair.
She usually kept it braided or straightened on Earth, but out here in space, she tended to let the mass poof up into the soft, natural afro it desired to be.
Mostly because the aliens found it fascinating in a much more innocent way than her own people did.
Second Voice had a very fluid aura. She was the type that was content to always mold herself into whatever the other person she was speaking to needed. It made her superb at her job. She nearly always had a smile on her face and preferred brighter colors to match her skin to.
Third Voice, like Tzomei, had a very ambitious, hungry sort of aura.
Quite dissimilar to Second Voice. It was the kind of aura that would never bend to match another.
She was the type that would likely prefer to be alone and only made friendships for the sake of her position.
An odd personality type to be a voice, but she must have been good at it, or she wouldn’t be third ranked.
“Where’s Survii?” Atem asked, having caught sight of the pair.
“He’s on his way,” Navine said as they took their seats. “He’s finishing up a few things.”
“He apologizes for his lack of attention thus far,” Yursini added quickly. “This trip was rather sudden, and he was in the midst of multiple different trade talks when we took off.”
“I understand,” Atem waved away her explanation. “So long as he puts his full attention onto Earth and its contact by the time we emerge in their solar system.”
Hearing those words, there was a definite change in energy amongst the humans. Alanna wasn’t exempt from it either.
They were almost back in their solar system. A place that seemed so incomprehensibly vast when they had been trapped on their planet now seemed so incredibly small even just thinking about orbiting around Jupiter. They were lightyears away and still almost home.
“Let’s get to work then,” Atem said, noticing the change and smiling at his mate, causing everyone to grab a seat at the table, putting away datapads and floating combots.
Alanna closed hers down as Tuvo sat on her left. No one took her right, leaving that seat open between her and Haviss. Alanna couldn’t help but notice that Tuvo had chosen the seat furthest from Hattie – though he tried very hard to make it look natural.
“Did you sleep well?” He asked her, his deep, growly voice trying for pleasant.
“Very well,” she smiled back at him, setting her combot free to flit around behind her head like a bright purple, electronic insect. “Yourself?”
He grunted in a way that was probably meant to signify yes. She could only grin.
Her friends were hilarious. She could understand the need to try to control your emotions, but they really were taking it entirely too far. The sooner Tuvo fulfilled Peony’s request to just talk to Hattie, the better off they would all be.
“All right. Let’s begin,” Atem started from the head of the table. “We’ll start from the top. Romival, how long until we arrive?”
First Scholar, who was in charge of navigation, had his answer ready without even looking.
“We will drop out of the swing in exactly one and half marks. We will emerge in orbit around the gas giant known as Jupiter. We will orbit there while connecting with Earth satellites for three Earth days. We will then begin our approach towards orbit beyond their moon, traveling out of subspace. That journey should take approximately one tenday. I will know better once we’re in the solar system and I can measure the distances more accurately.
“Perfect. Alanna?”
She smiled, taking over. “Once in orbit beyond the moon, we’ll contact my uncle again and begin negotiations to allow the contact team down to the planet where we can begin talks for accepting Earth as a protectorate.”
“Exactly. Tuvo?” Atem looked to him.
“Members of the surface team are to include all humans, Atem, Romival, Havali, Survii, and myself. Elder Haviss and Tzomei shall remain on the Jutiron Stor. No higher technology is to be taken to the surface. All combots, datapads, and clothing seals must remain on the ship. Clothing must be fastened using only manual methods – buttons, ties, zips, etc. All parties will be searched and their clothing pre-approved before entering the landing shuttle. The shuttle shall not remain on Earth. There will be only two pieces of technology allowed off the ship – and those are the two basic comms that can connect to the Stor. These will remain with Atem and myself unless otherwise stated.”
“That is very important. No one overlook that rule. Now, Yursini-”
The door slid open before he could finish turning to her and another male quickly entered. One that Alanna had not really paid attention to before, though she had seen him once from a distance.
“Forgive my tardiness,” he declared to the room at large, but more specifically to Atem who he had locked eyes with the moment he stepped inside.
Alanna cocked her head curiously, staring at the male.
His aura was interesting. Fun and vibrant, almost erratic. It was the kind of aura that wouldn’t sit still or be content with anything. But there was no greed in it. Just an almost childlike innocence that swirled with a streak of mischievousness and…
Loneliness? No, that wasn’t quite right. Unease? Maybe.
He had shorter hair than most domini, only reaching his shoulders in an artful, almost wavy fall that must be artificial since domini hair was always straight.
His eyes were red, but not burning, demonic red like Atem.
Instead, it was a deep, domini-blood red that sparkled with an inherent amusement and playfulness that seemed completely genuine.
His tail flicked constantly, like he couldn’t keep it still, and his upper eye, the eye of truth, roamed eagerly around the room like he just couldn’t help but want to look at everything at once.
He was more flamboyantly dressed than the other males as well. Romival always wore robes, while Tuvo wore military style camocloth. Havali looked regal and handsome in plain, bright, neutral tones, while Atem crossed his style between a pirate and military officer.
This male wore a beautiful, shimmering purple outfit with a surprisingly complex, but stunning diamond ombre pattern along the puffy pants before they tucked into jeweled boots.
His tunic was sheer and sparkling, tight against his chest, high on the neck, but without sleeves.
His arms were covered in silver bands encrusted with a rainbow of gems.
All of it was unusual. Domini tended to prefer plain, solid colors and liked their jewelry to be clear crystal so as not to overly strain their color changing abilities.
This one didn’t seem to care. His skin was taking on the colors without concern for how it might exhaust the cells or turn him prematurely gray.
The entire outfit was vibrant, flamboyant, and didn’t even appear to be domini in style.
A thought that was confirmed when Atem asked, “What are those pants?”
“Like them?” He grinned, striking a pose. “They’re the latest fashion amongst the undi’ee. Except the boots. They’re usually not worn with footwear, but I think they look better like this, don’t you?”
“I suppose,” Atem said, arms crossed over his chest, looking supremely uninterested.
Survii wasn’t bothered at all as he tossed back his hair. “I’m looking forward to adding human fashions to my collection on this trip.”
As he spoke, he looked out amongst the humans in question with a wide smile.
His eyes almost roamed past her.
Almost.
The third eye snapped back first, then locked on. The other two followed quickly after.
Then, it was almost like his aura changed. Flared up. Became agitated as he stared in slack-jawed disbelief.