Chapter 4 Rotten
I step onboard the rescue pod and scan the soot-smeared faces of the survivors. They look curious and distrustful, except for the human in a gold dress and glasses. She’s watching me with gleaming, hungry eyes. Ahh, she has good taste. I like her already.
Alas, now I have to shepherd the rest of these poor souls onto my ship. I turn away from the cute human to address the passengers all at once.
“Greetings everyone! Thank you for allowing me to extend my offer of hospitality to you. I want to personally welcome you aboard The Defiant. Today is your lucky day.”
“We got attacked and narrowly escaped with our lives. That doesn’t feel lucky to me.”
I turn to the severe-looking Xanxian who just spoke. He must be some kind of authority figure here. Authority figures always hate me.
“Well, yes, of course. The lucky day begins when you board my ship.” I smile sardonically.
“Thank you, Mr. Rotten,” the friendly human in gold says.
“You can just call me Rotten.” I wink at her and her cheeks turn red. I definitely like this one. I turn to the other passengers. “Now if you’ll all follow me, I’ll escort you to The Defiant.”
“I think I’ll stay here and make sure the pod is returned to the proper owners,” the Xanxian man says.
I stifle the spike of irritation that runs through me.
“You’re free to do as you wish.”
The other passengers seem to waver.
“I’ve got a hot meal waiting for anyone who comes aboard now,” I say, turning towards the exit.
That should seal the deal for the rest of them. It’s hard to argue with good food. I turn and head for the portal, crossing my fingers that they’re following me. The more people I rescue, the better.
I feel a tap on my wrist. I turn and see the pretty woman with glasses. My hearts skip a beat. I’m so glad she came. Not that I doubted she would, but still. I’m happy she’s here.
“C-can you give me a tour of the ship? Once everyone’s all settled, I mean. I’ve always wanted to see a pirate ship. And yours is certainly…something.” She waves at the surrounding walls.
When outfitting The Defiant, I wanted to take traditional Xanxian bio-decor up a notch.
Instead of gently glimmering bioluminescent plants and mossy walls, I brought in shining, iridescent.
glow blooms and thick vegetation for the ceilings.
This place feels more than organic. It feels like a giant traveling space jungle.
I smile at her. It looks like it took all her courage to ask me, and she clearly appreciates my artistic vision.
There’s no question I’ll indulge her. I think about taking her arm to lead her through the green, gleaming corridors of my ship, but I hesitate.
She’s a human and I’m not sure she’s open to touch yet.
“Of course, my dear. What’s your name?” I ask.
“I’m Elana Silver. I’m one of the, uh, stars of The Lady Scientists of Earth TV show. I don’t know if you’ve heard of it. But we were filming on The Adventure before it, uh… I guess we were attacked. Have you heard anything about what happened?”
“I haven’t heard anything besides the distress signals and the general warning to avoid the area.”
“But you came anyway?” Her brown eyes widen behind the black-framed glasses.
“Well, yeah. If I can help, I’ve got to do it, right?” It’s partially true, at least.
I hazard a glance behind us. Two Xanxian women and another human follow us. We’ve entered the main cabin of the ship. While the other survivors are gawking at the hanging vines, Elana is focused on me. The annoying Xanxian man and the remaining human must have stayed behind. Their loss.
Elana is still talking, her voice wavers like she’s nervous, but too eager to hold back.
“How does the rest of your crew feel about doing something that won’t benefit you?” she asks
I shrug, reaching out to rub some leaves between my fingers.
“They’re good people, so they’re happy to help.” Again, it’s not totally untrue.
“Amazing. I guess the galaxy is a better place than I thought. Well, except for whoever attacked us. They’re still out there and–”
“Let’s try not to think about that right now,” I interrupt, sensing her mood shifting.
“Yes!” she immediately brightens. “There are better things to think about now.” She looks up at me and bites her lip. “Much better.” The words come out breathy like she’s thinking of…oh wow. I scent a spike of desire from her.
I glance back again. No one is paying close attention to our conversation.
The Xanxian women would also be able to detect Elana’s interest in me, but they’re too busy poking the toadstools.
The other human woman seems dazed. That’s fine.
I don’t want to share this moment with anyone else. I lean in closer.
“Come to my quarters when you’ve settled in. I can give you a tour, just the two of us. I promise you won’t forget it.”
Elana laughs brightly and I fear I’ve overplayed my hand. But wait, she’s not laughing at my cheesy line. She’s grabbing my hand and squeezing it. I guess touching is alright.
“That sounds absolutely perfect. Maybe I’ll have something memorable for you as well.” She releases my hand and gives me a sultry look.
At least I think it’s sultry. If a Xanxian sent me a mating signal like the ones Elana did, it would be absolutely acceptable for me to push her against the wall and kiss her within an inch of her life. Her body literally said, “come and get it.”
But with humans, it’s less clear. Sometimes a human’s body is willing, but their brain isn’t.
You need to wait for them to say the words.
Still, I think there’s a high likelihood we’ll end the evening naked and tangled in each other’s arms. Probably.
Maybe. Well, I guess we’ll see where we end up after dinner.
“My quarters are down the hall to the left. There’s a rose engraved on the door.”
“Of course there is!” She chuckles.
“So, you’ll come visit after dinner?” I inch closer to her.
“I can’t think of anything I’d rather do.” She raises her eyebrows at me.
Holy stars, I really hope I’m reading her right.
It seems like she’s totally into me and I’m totally going to get lucky.
I feel like pumping my fist in the air. Things like this don’t happen as often as you may think.
I spend most nights alone on my ship doing boring things like planning our next raid or balancing the books.
This is what I thought it would be like when I became a pirate. I’m about to suggest we skip dinner, when I hear someone clearing their throat. It’s Wyn.
“Ah, Captain? You’re needed on the bridge. I can lead our guests to their quarters.”
I look up at Wyn and scowl. I’m on the larger side, but Wyn makes me look like a young sprout, especially with his towering shoulder ridges. I hope Elana isn’t too impressed by him. I sigh. Wyn undoubtedly has a good reason for interrupting my conquest, but it annoys me all the same.
“Are you sure I’m needed right this minute?” I ask him pointedly.
“Very sure, sir.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose and turn back to Elana.
“It looks like I must say my goodbyes for now. Until tonight?”
I incline my head, attempting to seem gallant.
“I can’t wait.” She smiles nervously.
My hearts give an eager thump. Whatever is waiting for me on the bridge had better be good, otherwise, heads will roll.