Whatever or whoever it was, I knew I had to listen. I looked around again for a way to get my little Pure One warm and my eyes fell on the steaming hulk of the dead chudd’x.
I knew what I had to do.
Part Three: Uninhibited (you figure it out)
Chapter Seventeen
Zoe
“Are you all right, Lady Zoe?” a familiar voice asked. It sounded like a butler only I don’t have a butler. I have a run-down, one-bedroom apartment in Ybor city, the historic and somewhat seedy part of Tampa, and half the time I worry about being able to make rent on that. So there’s no way I can afford a butler. Yet, one was talking in my ear right now, as though he knew me.
I pried open my eyelids which seemed to be glued shut somehow, and saw a lantern with a light like an eye hovering over me. It was attached to a long, snaky silver neck which was, in turn, attached to the ceiling.
For a minute I completely freaked out…and then I remembered everything.
“Al,” I said weakly, trying to sit up and failing. My chest was really sore for some reason. “What’s going on? How did I get back on board the ship?”
“I carried you here. But not before you almost died on me.”
The new voice came from the doorway. I looked over and saw Sarden leaning against the doorframe, frowning at me. His arms and chest were smeared with some kind of black goo and streaks of the same stuff stained his shirt and trousers.
“Died on you? What are you talking about?” I demanded, my voice coming out weaker than I wanted it to. “Died from what?”
“Hypothermia. The water in the reservoir was extremely cold—I don’t think you would have survived in it for much longer.”
“Well, you’re the one who told me to jump in,” I pointed out, tartly.
“It was either that or wind up in the belly of the chudd’x, guarding the water supply. Which, as it turns out, you did anyway.”
“What?” I wanted to sit up but when I tried, my body disagreed. So I just laid there and glared at him. “What do you mean by that?”
He shrugged, his broad shoulders rolling with the motion.
“Your heart had already stopped once and it was the only way to warm you up. I had already sliced it open so I put you inside its body cavity to bring your body temperature back up to normal.”
“What?” This time I did manage to sit up even though my body protested. Looking down at myself, I realized I was covered in black goo. Not just my arms and hands, either—I was completely coated in the stuff. When I reached up to touch my cheek, I found it was even on my face—no wonder my eyelids had felt glued shut!
Also, I smelled horrendous.
“You heard me—I had to get you warmed up. This was the only way. You can say what you want about chudd’xs but at least they’re hot-blooded. That’s what’s all over you—its blood. All over me too.” He motioned at himself.
“Oh God, Sarden,” I moaned, looking down at the gooey black stuff that coated every inch of my skin. “Is there any scifi trope you’re not going to hit? First you pull out a lightsaber—”
“A what?” He frowned. “I used a blast laser to slice open the chudd’x. And a damn good thing I did too, or it would have eaten us both.”
“And then you put me in its awful guts to warm me up,” I continued, ignoring him. “I mean, what’s next? Are you going to tell me you’re my father and cut off my hand?”
“What?” He shook his head. “Zoe, are you sure you’re feeling all right? Maybe I should have left you inside the chudd’x a little longer to let your brain thaw—you’re not making any sense.”
“I’m making perfect sense,” I said grimly. “My point is, this sucks and I want a shower. A hot one. Now.”
He sighed. “You know the mister isn’t going to get this off. It’s the Cleansing Pool or nothing.”
I almost said, “nothing then” but I was coated—literally coated—from head to foot in alien monster guts. The blankets Al had laid over the silver beanbag bed would probably have to be burned, along with my clothes. “Fine,” I mumbled at last. “But…can you at least lower the uh, water level this time so it’s not over my head?”
“I am afraid the liquid level of the PPC is pre-set and we are quite unable to change it, even to suit your less than average stature, lady Zoe,” Al answered for him, sounding politely regretful.
“Great.” I looked down at my nasty, gooey hands. “But I still can’t swim.”
“I’ll go with you, of course.” Sarden’s voice got softer. “You know I won’t let you get hurt.”
I felt my stomach do a little flip but I wasn’t going to melt that easily.
“Yeah, right,” I muttered. “Where were you when Count Doloroso was trying to drag me away?”
“Count Doloroso?” He took a few steps towards me—he was limping a little for some reason. “Is he the one who lured you out of the shop with those damn nib-nibs?”
“How did you know that?” I asked. “And where are they, anyway?”
“They are quite well and safe, lady Zoe, I assure you,” Al said. “I bathed them in warming liquid and gave them a proper home.”
“A proper home? Where, in someone’s stomach?” I looked at Sarden. “I can’t believe that you guys eat them! Poor little monkeys!”
“I don’t eat them,” he protested. “And what are monkeys?”
“Cute little furry Earth animals,” I said. “And if you never ate one, why did you tell me they scratched the inside of your mouth?”
“I may have tried one once,” he muttered. “But I spit it out and let it run away—they’re disgusting.”
“Says the man who eats snake sandwiches,” I said, but I felt relieved. I didn’t want to think that Sarden was the kind of guy who would eat a living creature. Not a cute one, anyway.
“What did Doloroso say to you?” he asked.
“Mostly that I was special and a ‘unique specimen’. Of course, this was in between nearly pulling my hair out by the roots and calling me a ‘bitch.’” I shivered when I remembered what a close call I’d had.
“He tried to pull your hair out?” Sarden growled, looking angry.
I shrugged. “Basically he was just trying to grab hold of me anyway he could so he could drag me back to his ship. You know, you’d better be nice to my nib-nibs—they saved my life. If they hadn’t bitten his hand, he never would have let me go. I’d be…be on his ship right now.” My throat was suddenly tight with the thought.
“Did he say anything else?” Sarden asked in a low, dangerous voice.
“It’s all kind of a blur.” I shook my head. “He shouted something about The Last Day, whatever that means. And he said…said that…” I had to swallow hard before I could continue. “He said he wanted to put me back into the sensitivity tank and…and finish the test.”
I shuddered again—I couldn’t help it. The memory of being dragged into the yellow slime by the long, shiny black tentacles was still fresh in my mind. I would be there right now if I hadn’t somehow unlocked the locked door and gotten inside the water storage building. How had I done that?
Sarden’s face was dark. “I should have known he would want you—the way he was looking at you, it was pretty fucking obvious. Zoe…” He took my hand. “I’m so damn sorry—I should never have left you alone in the first place.”
“I…I called for you.” My throat was still tight and I couldn’t seem to summon up even an ounce of snark or sarcasm to lighten up the situation. “I called and called but you…you didn’t come.”
“I’m so sorry—I was wearing ear shields to protect my hearing while the mechanic and his fucking assistant showed me the properties of the new panels.” His golden eyes glowed with fury. “In fact, it turns out the assistant was in on your kidnapping—or almost kidnapping.”
“The little Oompa-Loompa looking guy?” I couldn’t believe it. “He seemed so nice and so concerned that I wasn’t being treated right.?
??
“Which was exactly how Doloroso convinced him that you rightfully belonged to him and that he needed to steal you away from me,” Sarden said grimly. “I’m sure the fight we were having as we walked in the shop just made up his mind for him. So he suggested a lot of very loud tests and gave me the ear shields to wear—by the time I heard you calling, it was almost too late.”
“So he confessed?” I asked. “The mechanic’s assistant, I mean?”
Sarden nodded. “The mechanic was mortified—he’s replacing all the panels for free.”
“Wow,” I said. “Well, I guess some good came of all this then.”
“You nearly died, Zoe. I…I almost lost you.” His voice went rough and he looked down at our joined hands—both still covered in the black chudd’x blood. “There’s nothing good about that. The Goddess of Mercy knows I deserve to be skinned alive for leaving you alone in danger like that.”
“You didn’t know that Count Creepy would come after me,” I said, for once not feeling the need to be snarky to defend myself.
“I should’ve,” he said fiercely. “And I swear to you, it won’t happen again. I’m going to protect you and stay by your side every minute from now until I can see you safely home.”
“You mean safely to Giedi Prime,” I said. “Right?”
“No.” He shook his head. “No, I’m not going to trade you. I can’t. I realized that when I thought I’d lost you for good.”
“But…but what about your sister? You have to get her back and trading me is the only way.”
This seemed wrong. Was I actually arguing that he should trade me? But it didn’t matter because Sarden was shaking his head.
“I’ll find another way,” he said grimly. “You’ll still have to come with me to Giedi Prime. I have to get there before the auction Tazaxx holds every cycle to get rid of the exhibits he doesn’t want so he can make room for new ones. But after that, I’ll take you…take you back to Earth.” He cleared his throat. “And then you’ll never have to see me again.”
“What?” I could hardly believe him. Was he actually being serious? Also, why did the idea of never seeing the big alien again make me feel so sad?
“You heard me.” Sarden did something to the bronze metal band he’d had the Commercians put on my wrist when he first got me. All this time it had remained in place, blinking quietly—my Alien Fitbit which he had called an “inhibitor.” Now it popped off and lay in my lap. Where it had been was the only clean place on my body—a thin white band in the middle of the black chudd’x blood.
I looked up at Sarden and shook my head.
“I don’t understand.”
“You’re free,” he said quietly. “You’re no longer my prisoner, Zoe. I hope you can forgive me for taking you in the first place.”
“Why are you doing this?” I asked.
“Because I nearly lost you. You nearly died—Hell, you did die.” He turned to me, his eyes flashing. “I can’t have that on my soul—as stained as it is, I can’t add murder of an innocent to the list.”
“I didn’t die,” I said, and then I remembered the sensation of my heart stilling in my chest and the pinpoint of light that had grown to a tunnel. Okay, so maybe I had died, a little. “I’m okay now,” I said lamely, trying to get out of the silver beanbag bed.
“Like hell you are,” he growled. “Here, don’t—you’ll fall.”
He reached me just as I toppled over and caught me in his arms.
I gasped as an electrical jolt went through me—a tingling sensation that seemed to start at the top of my head and travel all the way down to my toes.
“What in the—”
Sarden took a deep breath, as though he was trying to steady himself.
“The inhibitor’s gone,” he said in a low voice, cradling me in his arms. “Give it a moment. We should get used to each other soon.”
“Get used to each other? I don’t understand.” I felt like I was saying that a lot lately but really, I didn’t. “Does this have to do with me being a, uh, La-ti, um, La-ti-da?”
“A La-ti-zal.” He frowned. “At some point you really should learn the name for what you are.”
“But I still don’t know what a La-ti-zal is,” I protested, finally getting it right. “Or how it’s supposed to make me special.”
“I’d say you’re special in a lot of ways,” he remarked. “For instance, how did you open the lock on the Force-Locks which were cued only for those of Vorn descent? Or the door to the water reservoir on Gallana which shouldn’t have opened to anyone without Majoran DNA?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. They just…opened for me.”
He gave me a look. “And that was with the inhibitor on. Gods, I don’t know what you’ll be capable of now. When I touch your skin, I see such colors…” He shook his head. “Spectrums and rainbows like I’ve never seen.”
“Are you saying skin contact with me is like taking some kind of drug?” I demanded. “Some kind of magic mushrooms or LSD or something?”
“No.” He held me close to his chest and headed for the bathroom area. “Nothing like that. It’s just that males with Vorn DNA don’t normally see in color.”
“You don’t? You’re all color-blind?” I was surprised but then I thought back on the first time he’d touched me. When he talked about how red my hair was and how blue my eyes were.
“Not color-blind exactly,” he said. “It’s more like…things are washed out. We see in shades of gray and tan and black and white with just a few pastel tints here and there. We don’t see true color until…”
“Until what?” I asked, prompting him. Maybe I was just trying to keep him talking, trying to avoid the inevitable dunking in the Cleansing Pool. Although God knew I ought to be used to going into tanks full of liquid by now—I had certainly been doing enough of it lately.
“Never mind.” Sarden’s face took on a guarded expression. “Sufficient to say, I have never seen anything remotely like what I see when I have skin-to skin contact with you. But it’s probably just a manifestation of your La-ti-zal powers—nothing more.”
“So glad I could brighten your day,” I muttered. “Literally, I guess.” We were standing right in front of the vertical bathtub with its pale purple liquid and I was feeling nervous and squirmy.
“It’s more than that,” Sarden murmured. “There’s something about you, Zoe. Something I can’t put a name to.” He shook his head. “Never mind—it’s time to get in. Will you be all right?”
“As long…as long as you don’t let me go,” I whispered, the words squeezed out of my too-tight throat.
“Never,” he rumbled and opening the door, he took me with him into the pool.
Sarden
She did well in the Cleansing Pool—much better than the first time. I was almost tempted to think she was getting used to it but her white lips and wide eyes told a different story. So she wasn’t getting used to being submerged after all—she was just determined not to show her fear this time.
Her bravery impressed me but more than ever, I wanted to know the reason for her fear. What had happened to make taking a simple dip in the Cleansing Pool such a traumatic experience for her?
And what was happening to me as I held her? Without the inhibitor to block her power, the world around me was brilliant—vivid in a way I’d never seen before. It was amazing and I wondered what she might be capable of in the future if her abilities came to full fruition.
Of course, I was taking her back to Earth so it was possible nothing would happen at all. On her home planet she would just be a latent La-ti-zal with no one the wiser. No one to know how incredibly special she was.
I knew but I couldn’t say. Couldn’t risk letting her know the truth about my people. Zoe’s other latent abilities were impressive—her ability to somehow open locks which were keyed to others and the electrical tingle I felt when we first touched was amazing but it was the colors I saw when I t
ouched her that troubled me the most.
Males with Vorn DNA never saw in color until they met a female they could mate. A female they could bond with.
You can’t mate her—you promised to bring her home. And you can’t bond with any female—you’re a half-breed, remember? It’s impossible.
It should be—but what about the colors I saw? Colors I had never expected to see with any female. Could they really be attributed to her powers as a La-ti-zal? Or was there some other reason…something more?
Doesn’t matter if there is, the little voice in my head whispered. She probably wants nothing to do with you. And who could blame her after you left her alone and let her get nearly kidnapped by fucking Doloroso, eaten by the damn chudd’x, and drowned in the reservoir?
About one thing Doloroso was right—Zoe was incredibly unique and special.
And I didn’t deserve her one damn bit.
Zoe
We stayed in the pool long enough to rinse all the black, stinking chudd’x blood away and then Sarden finally took us out. I was so glad to get out of the drowning tank—as I still thought of it to myself—that I didn’t even mind that the filmy Majoran dress he’d had Al synthesize for me had melted completely away while we were inside it.
Yup, I was naked again. It seemed to be my lot in life ever since I was abducted. I would say I was getting used to it—only I wasn’t. I still kept my arms firmly in place over my cash and prizes while Sarden stood in front of the mister, which was set to dry us off.
At last I was all dry and toasty warm—which was nice—and Sarden was about to set me on my feet when he appeared to remember something.
“Hey—what’s going on?” I protested as he swung me back up in his arms when my soles were a scant inch from the floor. “I thought you were going to put me down.”
“I was—but I forgot about your feet.”
“What? What about them?” I asked uneasily as he sat me carefully on the edge of the silver hoverbed.