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He certainly doesn’t look like his usual self. Gone are the glasses that belonged to Phalix—the only thing Calix recovered from father’s decimated body. The stylus for his zenotablet that is always perched behind his ear is absent. His short, cropped hair is messy.
“Calix,” Avrell says softly. “Let’s get you down to the lab so I can run some tests. You’re not at all acting like—”
“They took her!” Calix roars, his sub-bones cracking and popping in his neck as he fully assumes his battle stance.
“Who took who?” I demand.
He hisses at me, his eyes wild with fury. “Hadrian and your mate. They took my lilapetal.”
I blink at him in confusion and shoot Galen a troubled look. He’s growing lilabushes and they’re flowering at the moment. The pink, velvety flowers aren’t edible, we’ve discovered, but he’s found other uses for the petals that fall from the flowers. They’re fragrant, and Galen has been making “soaps”, as Aria calls it, with the petals.
“I don’t understand,” Galen says, holding up his palms.
“He’s having hallucinations,” Avrell grits out beside me. “I need him in the lab.”
Calix shakes his nog and yanks at his hair. “No. No! You all rekking misunderstand.” He shoots me a look of utter desperation. “They took my alien.”
“Your alien?” I challenge.
He glowers at me. “When I touch her, her velvety skin turns pink. The alien’s flesh reacts to my touch. She is meant to be my mate!”
“So, we’re just walking in and claiming the ones we want?” Theron asks, a slight bite to his voice. “Had I known that was an option, I’d have claimed one the moment we landed the Mayvina.”
“Calix!” I bellow. “Focus and tell me what happened.” I shoot a hard glare Theron’s way. “Nobody will be claiming any of the aliens.”
Theron lets out a huff but backs down.
“I went to check on her. To lick away the tears that sometimes leak from her eyes. She likes when I straighten the unusual arm zuta-metal she wears.” His eyes turn into round, black orbs and his ears release from his nog as he thinks of her. “She likes it when I rake my fingers through her locks of hair. The wrinkles that often form between her brows disappear. I know that in cryosleep they are supposed to be unaware, but with me, she responds physically to my touch and nearness.”
He’s infected all right.
But not by The Rades.
He’s infected by the beautiful aliens who sing to our lonely hearts. Once they’ve gotten inside you, there is no getting them out. I think of my brave Aria. Standing up to the commander of the faction. Her body was weak and yet she was every bit as fierce as Draven.
And now, my mate has stolen one of the other aliens.
The alien, Calix’s obsession, has been given a choice. Aria made that happen. Recklessly. She could put the alien at risk pulling her out of cryo without Avrell’s help. Worry niggles at me but I have to trust in my mate’s decision making.
I close my eyes…because the news I’m about to deliver won’t sit well with any of them.
“Was the alien asleep or did my mate wake her?” I ask, needing to be sure.
Calix’s black brows furrow together as he rambles out his explanation. “T-They woke her. Wrapped her in a blanket and walked her out of the cryochamber. I saw her between Aria and Hadrian as they took her to the navigation wing. I wanted to see what they were doing before I intervened, so I followed them to the wing. When I attempted to enter, Hadrian stood in the doorway and told me I was not to enter per Madam Commander’s command.” Calix’s eyes narrow in anger. “Madam Commander? Since when?”
I rise to my full height and let the sub-bones in my neck crack loudly. My ears flatten against my skull as I growl. My battle stance is a fierce one, and the men under my command all lower their nogs in respect. Even desperate, lonely, sad Calix.
I hate this for them but there must be order, and if we are to have some sort of happiness in the long run, I’ll need to establish some new rules until then.
“She is their leader. Aria Aloisius,” I say, claiming her with my last name, “is Madam Commander of this faction and Alien Liaison. When it regards the aliens and their well-being, you seek council through myself or Madam Commander. This is the rule. A ceremony will soon make my words binding. Any mort disagree? I didn’t think so.”
Calix opens his mouth but I stop him with a wave of my hand. “Trust in Aria. She is wise and knows what is best for the aliens. They have different customs and needs than our race. I will meet with her to discuss the future of the others but at this time, she is in command of the newly awoken alien. I’ll also advise her of the danger of waking them without Avrell’s assistance. Make haste, Avrell,” I tell him. “Please assist Aria and Hadrian with anything they should need.” He rises and nods, his face paler than usual, no doubt worrying over the newly awoken one. I drag my gaze from his that probably matches my own and regard the other morts. “The navigation wing will become the female sub-faction. Morts aren’t allowed to enter unless Madam Commander wills it.”
