Chapter 12
GISELLE MUST HAVE FALLEN asleep, because she awoke with a start, squished between the two aliens. She pressed her palms against a solid chest, looking up to see Thase gazing at her.
“How are you feeling, dear one?”
Her throat still burned, her head dizzy and aching. Vrix gripped her from behind, her back flush to his chest, prickling her skin with anxiety.
“I need some air,” she said, trying to shrug out of his grasp, though he refused to let go.
“Vrix. Release her,” Thase ordered.
There was a deep sigh from behind her, but after a moment, Vrix obeyed.
Thase got out of the bed, reaching out a hand, which she reluctantly took. When her shaky legs were on the floor, he pulled her to him, nuzzling his cheek to the top of her head.
The gesture was sweet, but Giselle was numb, beads of sweat forming on her brow even though the room wasn’t hot.
A cloud hovered over her despite their promises and reassurances, a cloud of impending doom.
She was out of touch with her body, with reality, floating in a fog of gray, though what was reality anyway?
“Please…” she said, the beating in her chest growing painful.
Thase gave her a final squeeze then released her.
“Air, yes, let’s get you some air.”
Vrix was trembling on the bed.
“Can I come too?”
“Can you behave yourself?” Thase asked, eyes narrowed to a glare.
“Yes, of course,” Vrix huffed, his gaze bouncing between the two of them.
Thase turned to her with a vicious sneer, one that she remembered well, one that sent butterflies fluttering in her stomach and made her breath catch in her throat.
“I will put the collar on him to make sure he behaves.”
Giselle nodded, eyeing Vrix, who wore a smile that was a bit too eager for what she thought was supposed to be a punishment.
Thase went to a metal trunk at the foot of the bed, rifling through various objects until he lifted two into the air.
There was a collar alright, sleek and silver, small prongs dotted along the interior. The other item looked like a watch, which Thase swiftly secured around his wrist. He beckoned with a finger, and Vrix obeyed immediately.
“I expect you to be on your best behavior,” Thase said, clipping the collar so it fit snugly around his neck.
“I will be,” Vrix assured, though the glimmer in his hooded eyes said otherwise.
A sick smile curled Thase’s mouth as he pressed a button on the watch.
Vrix’s body vibrated, a whimper rumbling in his throat. But it was over a moment later as Thase released the button and extended his arm to Giselle once more.
“Come, little human, I have something to show you.”
Giselle took in the fresh air as they walked through the sparse trees, the suns peeking through the foliage. Strange whispers echoed through the forest, a background hum of melodies.
Thase held her hand, Vrix following them like a puppy, smiling every time she peeked over her shoulder at him. It was an endearing look, so different from the deranged one that twisted his face when he was choking her.
What disturbed her even more was how much she had enjoyed it, up until the moment she thought she was going to die. Her body still hummed with the intensity of the release, of the emotions that had bubbled over afterwards.
And now here she was, walking calmly through the woods with the alien who had just tried to kill her. In her old life, she would have been a sobbing mess, overwhelmed by the anxiety and fear. But something had changed her since she arrived on the Starlet.
Was it for the worse? Or better?
“What is that noise?” she asked, the buzzing sound intensifying as they traveled further into the forest.
“It is the trees. They sing for us,” Thase answered with a smile.
“A beautiful song for our beautiful human,” Vrix added, and her face heated.
She wanted to hate him for what he’d done, but she simply didn’t have it in her.
The bright light was slowly blinking out, the forest dimming with each step she took as the trees grew denser.
“How long was I asleep for?” she asked, disoriented by the suns still trying to penetrate the canopy.
“Not long,” Thase said, giving her hand a squeeze.
“When does it get dark?”
He chuckled, glancing her way.
“A day on Occaro X7 lasts 29.3 Earth hours. It will be a while until darkness is upon us.”
Another thing she’d have to get accustomed to, she supposed. There was still so little she knew about this planet, and the two aliens that resided here.
“Are there other… Dalgurs around?”
Thase shook his head.
“Not very near, but there are some in this area. Other deviants. There is a small town that we visit occasionally, but we prefer the peace of our home.”
A funny thought, either of these two being associated with the word peace in any way.
It wasn’t long before she heard a rush of running water over the drone of the trees, the forest clearing slightly to reveal a small cascade.
Gushes spilled over smooth boulders before collecting in a pool.
Lights twinkled from bioluminescent vines that wrapped around branches and trunks, blinking faintly in the dimness.
Thase pulled her along, stepping up to one of the trees as Vrix followed. Giselle’s eyes widened as she noticed the small fruits dangling from the vines. They were about the size of a plum, deep blue with tiny, glowing specks, like stars in the night sky.
When she looked at Thase, he grinned.
“They’re edible,” he said, plucking one from the vine and handing it to her.
“You’re sure?” she asked, eyeing the fruit eagerly.
The neogel had filled her, provided the nutrients Vrix had promised, but there was no pleasure in eating the tasteless gelatin.
“I’m sure. I had our computer analyze it compared to the human digestive tract.”
How romantic.
Giselle nodded, then took a bite, the sweetness immediately shocking her senses after days of flavorless neogel.
The flesh was jelly-like—a delicate blend of tart and sweet—and cooled her mouth as she chewed.
She couldn’t stop herself, letting the juice drip down her chin as she devoured the fruit, her eyes practically rolling in her head.
When she was done, she dropped the pit to the ground, licking the remnants from her lips as she eyed Thase hopefully.
“Would you like another?” he asked.
She nodded, already craving more.
Vrix quickly plucked one, offering it to her with a hopeful grin. She paused for just a moment before grabbing it and taking another blissful bite, trying to savor the sweetness.
“Do Dalgurs ever eat food?” she asked between nibbles.
She’d never seen them consume anything, and though basking in the sun for energy seemed nice, there was something about chewing and swallowing that was so satisfying.
“We can eat small amounts,” Thase answered. “Though mainly algae. It contains chloroplasts we can turn into energy.”
“Have you tried this?”
Giselle held her hand out, offering a bite of the half-finished fruit.
His eyes narrowed, though a smirk curled his lips, and then he grabbed her wrist, lowering his head. His tongue extended like a slithering snake, plunging into the flesh of the fruit before curling and returning to his mouth.
Heat flushed her cheeks as she wondered what else that tongue could do. She didn’t have to wonder long, because Vrix extended his, dragging the tip through the tender jelly and flicking with an inhuman speed.
She didn’t think they knew what they were doing, but she swallowed hard, trying to ignore the arousal stirring between her thighs.
“It is very good,” Thase said, and Vrix nodded in agreement.
Giselle wolfed down the rest of the fruit and discarded the pit.
“What’s it called?” she asked, trying to dispel the images of the long, rubbery tongues that were floating through her mind.
No matter what her body said, she wasn’t ready for another romp with either of them, not after what happened with Vrix.
“The name is slearo. They grow year-round in dense groves such as this one.”
“Well, I like it.”
Some of her anxiety was calming, though was that because it was being replaced with lust? Or was it impossible to be nervous in such a beautiful place?
“We will collect more for you to bring back to our home,” Thase said, then took her hand—now sticky with slearo juice. “Let’s get you washed up.”
He spoke to her like she was a child, though a part of her enjoyed it, being doted on, cared for, letting him take control as he led her to the pool.
Her body flushed with heat as if remembering the time on Umuna, Thase repeating his actions on the refueling planetoid as he stepped into the pool and lifted her into his arms.
Déjà vu, alright.
He walked them deep into the warm water, waves rippling around their bodies until she was up to her neck. It was deeper than she expected, but his grip under her thighs comforted her, his eyes glimmering.
Vrix observed from the bank. He stepped a foot into the water, but a moment later he was frozen, his body convulsing and his eyes rolling in his head. He swiftly retreated, Thase chuckling heartily.
“I told you to behave,” he said, shaking his head.
“Please. I would like to come in.”
Vrix’s voice was so sad, so pathetic, her chest clenching ever so slightly.
“No. Giselle is mine right now.”
The words sent a shiver up her spine, as did Thase’s tongue as it curled out of his mouth and brushed across her lips. She parted them on instinct, pressing herself closer to him as her arms circled his neck.
“You taste so sweet, dear one,” he growled.
Giselle smiled into the kiss, his tongue exploring her mouth in a way so foreign and erotic.
He was relentless, as he was with all things, brushing over tongue and teeth and rocking her against his hard abs.
Relentless, yet gentle, careful not to prick her with his claws or bite her with his sharp teeth.
And then there was a prodding between her thighs, a moan escaping her as she pulled away. Thase wore a devious smile, and it was clear what he wanted. God, she wanted it too, that grin coiling tension in her stomach, her body begging for him as warm water surrounded them.
“No,” she breathed.
“No?”