“Same.”Drafe chuckled.“A vasquva would be a more helpful addition.”
Vaen snorted then slapped Drafe on the shoulder.“Have Nenn see to your implant.I will ensure the ship is prepped.”He paused, tossing a glance over his shoulder.“May Osnir bless your symbiote transfer with the uz, Drafe.Let us pray the servant survives it.”
Nenn winced.Killing an uz, though only of servant class, would be frowned upon, especially after the day’s events.
When he’d first arrived, he’d toured his new home as much as he was allowed to.Deep in the belly of the council spire was the transfer chamber.Venai stones cast flickering lights across the floor, showing the way.The walls were carved but without inlay to distract from the seriousness of the act—the sharing of symbiotes between Ivoyan and Qaldreth.Nenn tried not to focus on the fact that he would never have such an honor.Maeds served a different purpose.
Inside the chamber were two S-shaped stone tables, one for the Ivoyan, the other for the Qaldreth.A Jakar, or priest, with black markings on his temple, would oversee the procedure.He’d wound each male whose arms would be extended, almost touching.Two streams of blood, the Qaldreth’s clear, the Ivoyan’s blue, would travel toward each other and merge into the other’s veins.Some mentioned how painful the process was; hence, Vaen’s hope the uz survived.If the transfer didn’t take, that wouldn’t bode well for the mission.
The Jakar would wrap a strip of garak leather around their wrists, binding them together.A chant would follow, low, droning on, vibrating through the stone.Almost like Tugo singing at the base of their cavern.
If successful, the bond aligned their thoughts and memories and would remain until one of them died.In silence, Nenn led the way along the wide, story-filled passages of the Q.C.C.and passed the steps to the chamber.Weak lilac sunlight filtered through the stained windows.Still, it caught the gold inlay in the stone walls, telling great tales of defeated monsters worthy of any legend.
He chose an empty ward and gestured to a chair.
Without a word, Drafe lowered himself.
Nenn sprayed anesthetic across the warrior’s neck and waited four seconds for it to take effect.
He grinned.“I am excited to see other stars and species.There is much I can learn.”He leaned closer and plied out the temp-device and its damaged counterpart, leaving a gaping hole in the muscle.With a delicate touch, he embedded a new one into the same spot.A quick scan of the med-dev healed the skin around the circular device.He dabbed to remove the blood smears, then shifted back, with the old nodule and the temp-device in his palm.“Whore.”
Drafe growled and leaped to his feet.
Sensing danger, Nenn’s symbiotes activated his armor.He threw out a hand.“My apologies, Drafe.That is the only word I know in Ivoyan.”
Drafe relaxed and offered a tentative smile.“Then the new nodule works.”
“Good.I assume the uz is awaiting your presence in the transfer chamber?”Nenn nudged his head at the door.
“I assume the same.Until we depart.”Drafe strode out.
Nenn hadn’t lied when he’d said he was excited.What awaited him was adventure and a chance to climb other mountains and cliffs across the universe.Despite the benefits he could imagine of this unexpected adventure, he didn’t want to be in Drafe’s shoes if they failed.
Chapter Seven
Year: 2218
Mula Pesada
Tinyrockedonherheels, her excitement too much to contain for her to remain still.Dieter, however, was all calmness, his presence pressing in on her from the side.
“You’re a doctor?”Captain Themba asked, his voice rough over what sounded like a paperback being paged through.She had to be wrong, but no, the scrape of a page turning said it all.
“Yes, sir.I lost my eyesight about three years ago.”She winced at the lingering memories and the bitterness coating them.
“Saving up for implants?”He licked something.She prayed it wasn’t his fingertip to flick a page like a book wasn’t worth thousands of tokens.
“No, sir.”She clasped her hands in front of her.“Sure, augmentation has its pros.I’m just not comfortable having them in my skull.One of my previous jobs was in Carne Corp.The augments complaints department.Eyes… They’re the most defective.”
Oh, the stories she could tell: an arm just fell off, a knee bent backward for no reason, a heart stopped beating, and the usual my-fake-limb-killed-my-spouse.
Captain chuckled.“Fair enough.You get a percentage of the haul if you do your part.Nikko’s your line of command.And no sex between employees.It’s my ship, my rules.”
She gaped then snapped her mouth shut.
“Someone as pretty as you?”Captain lowered his voice as if he shared a secret.“Don’t let Dieter or Trent sweet talk you into anything.And if you’re uncomfortable for whatever reason, see Nikko.”
Dieter shuffled on his feet, maybe nervous about the implication.
