Chapter 8
Survii
He had thought that, maybe, if he couldn’t see her, this new, harshly acute longing for Alanna might be eased somewhat. Domini mating was based on sight, and he could no longer see her, so, logically, it would mean the effect was lessened. Right?
It was a foolish hope.
Now, he was much more aware of everything else.
Her delectable scent – sweet and innocent like fresh berries.
The warmth of her skin, burning under his hands, urging him to melt into her so he never had to let go.
Each breath she took, he matched, though it was faster than he would normally breathe – because she was human or because she was excited?
Her hair was soft, her skin was soft, she was soft.
How could a species simultaneously be so adorable and so sensual?
Maybe that’s all this was. Maybe he was just so struck by her humanity that he was mistaking it for the feeling of seeing his mate. He had never seen his mate, after all, so how could he possibly know what that felt like?
Thinking about it that way, even as some part of his mind protested, made it easier to take another breath of her addicting scent.
He didn't realize how long he had been standing there, just luxuriating in her, but it had to have been an uncomfortably long time. Alanna hadn’t made a whisper of protest though. She leaned into his chest and seemed content to stand there as long as he liked.
“Are you ready?” He asked, whispering the question into her ear. He felt the strange, rounded lobe pressing against his lower lip and he wanted dearly to run his tongue along it.
He heard that humans had aphrodisiac blood. He wondered if it was true…
“I’m ready,” she assured him, bringing him back to the present again.
Clearing his throat, he called out, “System command: open window.”
The ship responded to him with two soft beeps, indicating the command had been heard and confirmed. Not even a second later, light, dim and distant, peeked through a small opening.
A small opening that grew and grew and grew until the massive window was fully revealed.
It was a curved surface, reaching around them to either side, and massive.
So large, it took up the entirety of their field of vision even this far back.
Their eyes, adjusted to the darkness, had no problems making out the tiny dot of light far in the distance.
“See that?” Survii pointed to it over her shoulder. “That’s your sun.”
Alanna laughed, breathless and awed, as she stepped away from him to walk closer to the window – a view so all-encompassing, it seemed possible to just step off and into the vastness of space.
And Survii couldn’t help but follow her faithfully to that edge, even as he ordered himself to stop. He didn’t until she did.
“The sun,” she breathed, reaching out her fingers, but the angled surface of the perfectly clear window was further than she expected, and her fingers met only air.
“System command: enhance and enlarge focus lens one.”
The window rippled as the holodisplay embedded inside it came to life. The sun vanished, and in its place, instead, was-
“Earth!” Alanna cried out, leaning out on her toes as though to reach it.
The small planet was being watched as they approached.
From this angle, they could only see the dark side of it.
However, even from here, it was possible to differentiate the dark blue land from the darker blue water.
More obviously, there was the abundance of bright lights that demarcated the highly populated areas that seemed to outline the continents.
Even humans weren’t exempt from the universal truth that society flourished most near water.
“System command: enhance and enlarge focus lens two,” he ordered.
The Earth still took up the majority of the view, but a smaller screen opened revealing, in its pale beauty, Earth’s singular moon.
From this side, it was half in shadow and half in light as it went along its orbit.
It was a simple moon, as moons went, about a quarter the size of its mother planet and heavily scarred on the back compared to the front.
“The moon,” Alanna laughed, clapping as she bounced on the balls of her feet.
“Do you like it?” Survii asked, hating that he found himself actually nervous about her answer. He didn’t know what humans expected on their dates. He wasn’t sure what to offer besides what he knew she desired most.
“It’s beautiful!” She declared, beaming at him. The light of her Earth and moon gleamed off her face, sparkling in her eyes, and stole his breath away. “Thank you, Survii. This is the best gift I’ve ever been given.”
He cleared his throat and turned his eyes, feeling his heart pounding in his throat and struggling to get it under control.
It was just because she was attractive. He wasn’t feeling a mating urge. The words were a mantra that he kept repeating to himself even as everything in him yearned to steal her away to his den where he could gorge and fuck her properly.
“How long until we get there?” She asked, eyes forward again. Completely consumed with her approaching planet.
“We’re trying to move slow enough that your people can keep track of us as we approach. At these speeds? I’d say a day or two.”
“Did we already pass the asteroid belt?”
“Yes. We left it sometime this morning. System command: Enhance and enlarge focus lens six.”
Another window opened. This one displayed a planet predominantly burnt orange and red in color, with a small circle of white at its uppermost pole.
“Mars.” Alanna identified it immediately, clapping her hands as though he had performed some great trick. “It looks so amazing like this!”
“We’ll be passing that planet soon,” he said.
“Have the people on Earth seen us already? Do you know?” She was looking at him now. He could feel her eyes, but he very deliberately didn’t turn his head. He couldn’t be captured in their mesmerizing glow again.
“Romival has been monitoring their communication. They spotted us about a mark… Excuse me, a couple hours after we emerged near Jupiter.” The human word felt odd on his tongue, but that wasn’t unusual for words in languages he had never really heard.
“What are they saying?” She leaned in closer to him. Eager to know.
“Well, there was some shock. Disbelief. Incredulousness. No outright panic. They had been warned and they knew to watch the sky for us. So, there is some unease, but the signs look good. The world leaders have been in conference and they’re discussing how best to approach us.”
Alanna snickering behind her hand finally broke his will and he looked at her.
Krik. How was she more beautiful the second time?
“Funny?”
She giggled, lowering her hands. “It’s just, they would probably be surprised if they knew you could hear their private conversations. And I’m happy. I’m glad my uncle warned everyone like I asked. I was afraid he would keep it a secret.”
“That would have made him a poor leader indeed.” Survii crossed his arms, staring at the planet that he had been told was blue and green.
He had only seen it from the dark side thus far.
Though, soon enough, that would change. “Some of the world leaders aren’t quite pleased with our appearance.
They consider us a threat. But there are those that are eager to be on good terms with us.
They’re planning where best to meet us if we come to the planet. ”
“Will we?” She asked quickly, grabbing onto his arm. “Come down to the planet, I mean?”
“Yes,” he said immediately. Eager to give her anything she requested. But he coughed to clear his throat as he focused back on reality. “So long as the initial contact goes well. It would be easier to negotiate in person, but if it is not safe, we cannot risk it.”
The caveat didn't diminish her smile in the slightest. She moved in closer, resting her head down against his shoulder without releasing her grip on his arm.
And that was nice…
“You wished for a meal?” He stepped back from her quickly, gesturing to the table that she had walked right past in her eagerness to get to the window.
She beamed and moved to it. He had chosen a rectangular table and put lounge cushions on one side so they could both get an unobstructed view of her planet as they ate.
He knew by the warm, pleased look she gave him, that he had done this right.
That knowledge sat light and comfortable in his belly as he came around and took his seat. She did the same, focusing on the food he had chosen.
Everything in him had demanded, even in the impossibility of it, that he hunt her fresh meat. Like he was gorging her during the claiming.
That impulse he had managed to resist. Instead, he offered-
“It’s a traditional farasie bonding meal,” he explained. “They’re a peaceful, vegetarian species. When a male begins his courtship, he offers his female a selection of elaborately cut and carved fruits and vegetables.”
“I love it!” Alanna looked eagerly over the selection.
The food on offer was all domini in origin, but in the tradition of the farasie, they were served raw and had been carefully carved into elaborate, beautiful shapes.
Survii didn't have the skill of professional farasie carvers, but he had done his best. The results were a series of stars, flowers, and triangles that were all resting, artfully piled, in a shallow bowl of chilled water.
She reached for the first one and he realized how dumb he was.
He had thought it not being raw meat would lessen the power of feeding his female.
He was absolutely wrong. Alanna took a bite of one of the cut stars and let out a soft moan of enjoyment as it crunched between her teeth and his entire body was wracked with longing.
“Try this one,” he said, picking up a random flower vegetable and offering it.