Chapter 10
Ysathea
You know what? Why did a machine always act perfectly within parameters when you called in the experts?
It was awfully suspicious, if you asked me, and also a little terrifying.
What if the entity had known to lay low when we arrived at Strewn and the engineers showed up?
Had it made itself impossible to find on purpose?
Was it really capable of that kind of tactical thinking?
I paced around my engine room as I considered that, the computer running simulations for me in the background with a gentle hum.
Thatcher wasn’t here, and I was beginning to realize just how much I missed his presence when he was gone.
First, he’d been in briefings and meetings for much of the time the Strewn engineers had been here.
I had fully expected him to come back after he’d escorted Da’vi to the airlock, but he hadn’t.
As much as I’d chafed at the constant shadow, I’d also learned that Thatcher did it because he cared about me, for some crazy reason.
If he wasn’t human, I’d assume he was feeling the pull of a mating bond, but he was.
Sort of. He healed too fast to be truly human, and he was strong too, way too strong.
The kind of strong that made me feel safe, and with that entity outsmarting even the smartest engineers in the galaxy…
I needed to feel safe. Thatcher believed it was out to get me, and when my console flickered once, I believed it too.
That was a warning. That was the entity telling me it was still here, and whatever I was doing, it wasn’t going to work.
With a hiss, I pounced on the workstation and pulled up the diagnostics program.
Too late, whatever had caused that brief power surge, it was gone now.
It was always gone, without leaving a trace.
My simulations were done too, indicating that Bio-thermal was not going to make a difference with the changed parameters.
I didn’t trust that answer, so I restarted the simulation.
That thing had been in there; it could have changed the answer. It was making me paranoid.
My comm buzzed against my skin, and I tapped it to answer the call without checking who it was.
My eyes locked on the screen as if tracking its progress would prevent it from being tampered with.
“Is this Ysathea Zylmaris?” a male voice asked.
The voice was familiar, but I couldn’t place it.
I hadn’t wanted to look away, but it was automatic to raise my wrist and look at the screen.
A small holographic projection above the device showed a blue face and sharp, pointed ears much like mine.
Except this face was masculine, and only azure stubble covered his slightly darker blue skin.
Ariel, the chief engineer who had been part of Strewn’s inspection crew a few hours ago.
“Ah, it is,” he drawled, and his craggy, rugged face softened, mirth dancing in his bright blue eyes.
“Your communications officer patched me through; I hope you don’t mind?
” He left those words hanging there, clearly waiting for an answer.
I was still struggling with my surprise, and also a little, I had to admit, with my unease at seeing a Ulinial male without his long hair.
“Ah, uh—Ariel, was it? I don’t mind. What can I do for you?
” I said. I was pretty sure Thatcher was going to throw a fit if he discovered this guy had called me.
Especially since there was a light of flirty interest in his blue eyes.
He probably felt safe when not aboard the Varakartoom and out of reach of Thatcher’s fists.
Perhaps he thought he could throw me a line, see if I was receptive enough that he’d brave the furious shadow at my back.
Not that Thatcher had been present for much of Ariel’s visit to my engine room, but he’d definitely made an impression.
“I wanted to apologize, to start with. At Strewn, we pride ourselves on always fixing the problem, and we left without solving anything, didn’t we?
” Ariel’s voice had a gritty quality to it that reminded me of my father; too much Elram leaf after dinner.
It was a little hint of a home that no longer existed, and I felt a pang of melancholy.
“Don’t worry about it. This thing has eluded me for months; I doubt you could have found it in a day,” I said.
Behind me, Ivo snorted in amusement, and Grunn raised his head, dark eyes twinkling.
Him, I could win from when I shot him a rude gesture, so I did.
They were laughing because I was acting so polite now, and they both knew I’d been a hot mess for days leading up to the Strewn inspection.
I’d been utterly convinced they’d crack the case when I couldn’t, and I shouldn’t feel so damn victorious about it now, not when the ship was still in danger.
Ariel could not see what I was up to because my hand was out of range of the comm’s recorder, but he could see my expression.
I wondered if he’d ducked into the privacy of his own quarters to make this call, or if he was in an office, doing it on behalf of his boss.
The mysterious, elusive Master of Strewn.
In any case, he appeared entirely alone, with nothing of his background visible, so I couldn’t tell where he was.
He laughed, the sound husky, and his expression told me his interest had only grown.
“So it’s both our prides at stake here, is it?
” he said. I smirked, because I liked this normal interaction, and I liked how it made me feel more like myself.
Sure, he had a past more scarred than mine, but it was still a past with overlapping parts.
He must have grown up on one of the many scattered Ulinial colony ships that traveled through the Zeta Quadrant in search of a true home.
That meant he had memories very similar to mine.
“Is it true you think this is a sentient entity?” he asked next.
I liked the safer topic and saw no harm in sharing what I knew at this point.
We were already scheduled to leave Strewn; there was no way he’d come back aboard to have another look.
His time was probably so carefully planned, down to each pee break, that ducking out to have this call with me was probably all he could do.
“It is. A few days ago, it actually attacked me in the c-corridor directly after a blackout. We managed to secure a sample then but have been unable to detect anything with our biosensors or otherwise. That’s actually what I’m trying now: alter the biosensor parameters to see if I can’t locate it that way.
” I had been a little embarrassed that the idea had come from Da’vi; that it had not crossed my mind to continue fine-tuning the sensor parameters to get results.
I blamed the exhaustion for that. Now that I had an idea to work with, though, I was itching to figure it out, solve the puzzle.
Ariel’s eyes sparked, and for the first time in ages, I found myself talking engineer to engineer on a level Ivo or Grunn just couldn’t offer.
Ariel was brilliant, perhaps better at what he did than I was; not that I’d admit that out loud.
We went through options together, and before long I was sending him data so he could see what I saw and adjust his thinking.
We were closing in on something; I could sense it, even if the sensors weren’t quite there yet.
Setting them so finely meant way too much data came back, and it was impossible to sift through it all right now.
I didn’t think he’d have the time to talk with me for this long, but there was no hint of impatience.
In fact, I could tell he enjoyed every minute.
When a silence fell while I waited for a simulation to run, he cleared his throat.
“So, I know you appear to have a rather, ah… angry shadow hanging around, but I’m willing to brave that if you are.
How about we grab some drinks at Rikki’s next time you’re in? ”
My head jerked up, and on the other side of the engine room I heard a thump and then Grunn’s heavy bass as he swore.
This was not a private conversation, but I was pretty sure Ariel knew that; he just didn’t care.
I wasn’t unused to these kinds of propositions.
When you were young—at least somewhat decent-looking—female on a pretty male-dominated ship, it happened pretty much all the time.
It was the first time in a few months, though, because all that had stopped after Thatcher had beaten up that poor, flirty Tarkan grunt.
I’d thought I’d leap at the chance to date someone not from the ship, someone surprisingly normal.
Someone smart and handsome, and my own species to boot.
The word no hovered on my lips almost instantly, however.
My mind filled with Thatcher’s bunk, that cold, empty cot.
No pillow, no blanket, not so much as a hint of personality.
Like he had absolutely nothing of sentimental value to hold onto, just a cold, hard blade to protect himself with.
Thatcher was such an asshole, and he’d driven me utterly crazy for months on end, but…
damn it, I was starting to think of him as mine.
I was that sentimental thing, that anchor, and rather than fight that, I was starting to want it.
Ariel’s laugh was friendly and light. “I see. So it’s a mutual thing, is it?
Good for you, Ysa. Very good. We all need that special someone.
Come see me for that drink anyway, yeah?
Once you’re mated and settled in, we’ll reminisce.
I might even be brave enough to face him, should you bring him, Ashany.
” He ended the call after that and left me sitting in front of the console, staring into space.