3013: SALVATION (3013: The Series Book 5) (11 page)

It was a world comprised almost
all of water, making it an unlikely place for humans to try to colonize once
space travel to distant planets had begun. In the last few years, it had been
by accident that visitors on Avox realized that the combination of the
brilliant blue water and the bright, white sun created an almost curative atmosphere
for humans, making this once insignificant planet a destination of interest.

The creatures that lived within
the waters of Avox were asexual beings that resembled mermaids of legend, with
no hair and blue-gray-tinted skin. It had been thought that the creatures on
Avox didn’t care who visited their world, until more and more people started to
arrive.

The Avox lashed out at the
visitors that tried to take over their world, using deadly claws and razor-sharp
fins to fight, but the real worry was the lethal venom of their bite that could
kill a man within seconds. The strange thing was, the Avox only attacked the
men...never women. They seemed to have a fondness for the companionship of
women, making Avox the perfect sanctuary for females of all races.

When it was discovered that the
Avox communicated telepathically to one another, a complex system had been
created to communicate with the creatures using a converted translation unit.
The Avox could swim into a special underwater docking station, where they were
able to speak telepathically into the translation system that allowed humans to
hear them. Through this complicated communication platform, a truce had been
reached between the Alliance and the Avox.

There were now three floating
stations that housed those who called Avox home. Two were mainly used as
laboratories for scientists to work on classified projects with little
interference, while the primary station was set up as luxurious resort run by
the women who had sought sanctuary on the planet. The men brave enough to stay
on the world remained indoors as much as possible, but for the women, it was
like living in the heart of the fountain of youth.

The few men allowed on the planet
had to be presented to the Avox as belonging to one of the women to be granted
permission to stay. Because they functioned with a collective mind, all of the
creatures knew who was allowed to be there and who wasn’t. The Avox weren’t
seen often, but they were fierce in their protection of the females they
granted sanctuary to, and would attack any man they saw who didn’t belong
there. Despite the fact the Avox lived underwater, there was no mistaking they
had complete control of their planet.

When the shuttle launched from
the
Stargazer
and started its descent to the surface, Skylar forced
herself to focus on the mission instead of the male sitting next to her holding
her hand. It was such a small gesture, but it was an intimate one she had never
done before. She had been worried about how Arik would react to seeing that Dom
had claimed her the previous night, but he had simply smiled. He’d stroked a
gentle finger over the mark that graced the left side of her face near her eye
and she’d heard the emotion in his voice when he’d spoken.

“My love, I am so proud to see
our mark on you, and humbled that Dom included me in this declaration.”

“We’re a trio,” Skylar had said,
pleasing him.

“Not yet, but we will be. Soon.”

He had leaned down and pressed
his lips to hers, then they’d had to put their personal matters aside and get
ready for their trip down to the planet surface.

After their shuttle set down on
the landing pad, the doors opened and Skylar had to shield her eyes against the
bright sun. She inhaled the salty air, realizing that the air on Avox was
thicker than what she was used to, but after a few deep breaths she was able to
acclimate to the change quite easily. The sky was a light blue, but the
bright-white sun made it almost impossible to see as it shone down on the
brilliant blue water, making it sparkle like a million jewels.

A female elite officer met their
party as they walked down the walkway, and frowned when she realized there were
five people embarking instead of the three that had been previously cleared.

“Stop. There are only three of
you cleared to land.”

Commander Matt Malloy, the head
of the Strike Force Team stationed on the
Stargazer
stepped forward.
“And as I informed your commander here on the base an hour ago, there is no way
in hell I’m going to let the chosen of High Commander Spartan and Archer, and
the chosen of Ambassador V’Dir and Director Stryker go anywhere without
personal guards. Me and Officer Perez go where they go. Deal with it.”

The female officer backed up from
the ferocity in his voice, not knowing how to proceed.

“People skills...get some,”
Skylar whispered. Serra, Arik and the other Strike Force Team member chuckled
while Malloy glared at her.

“I have skills...they just don’t
include putting up with bullshit.”

“Well, I guess we should go
inside while we get this sorted out,” the female officer said nervously.

“Let’s do that,” Commander Malloy
said, leading their party off the deck behind the officer.

Once inside, Skylar was surprised
when she looked around. It didn’t look like any other Alliance station she had
ever seen. Although the structure had been built for defense, it was still a
tropical paradise that was every bit the resort it was praised for being.

Her perusal was cut short when a
woman wearing commander’s bars strode over to them. “Welcome to Avox.”

“Commander Jessup, they were only
cleared to have three in their party—”

Commander Rachel Jessup’s head
snapped to the side to glare at her officer. “If you had bothered to check the
updated report, their security detail was cleared by me personally.”

“But Commander, Director Whitmer
said—”

“I don’t care what the Director
said. Serra Spartan-Archer is a friend to the Avox, and when I spoke to their
representative they agreed to allow her security detail to accompany her.”
Commander Jessup’s eyes narrowed. “I will deal with you later. Now, go away.”

The officer scurried off, and
Commander Jessup’s attention returned to the group. “I’m sorry about that.
Officer Marciano is new at this outpost.”

“I’d send her back wherever she
came from,” Malloy remarked dryly, making the Commander grin.

“I just might. Again, I’m sorry I
wasn’t here to welcome you myself. I just spoke to one of the lab techs and she
informed me that Dr. Whitmer-Fields and her two assistants are conducting a
time-sensitive experiment right now in one of the labs. They will be available for
you to speak to in a few hours. Until then, Serra, the Avox wish for you to
enjoy the amenities of the resort. While the ladies take advantage of the spa
in the area that is off limits to men, perhaps the rest of you would like to
join me in my office. Your message was pretty cryptic as for your reasoning for
being here, and I would like to know if something is going on at my station.”

“Why don’t I join you for that?”
Skylar said, feeling slightly panicked at the thought of going to the spa with
Serra.

“Nonsense, it would be rude to pass
on such a kind gesture by the Avox,” Serra said with a mischievous twinkle in
her eye.

Skylar glared at her then turned
it on Arik as he added, “I think you should enjoy the spa as well, Skylar.
Since you didn’t have the opportunity to on New Vega. We can fill the Commander
in on the situation.”

The traitor!

Before she could blast Arik with
a response, Commander Jessup called a woman forward. “I’ve arranged for Deidre,
the resort manager here, to show you around.”

Dressed in a flowing gown the
color of lilacs, Deidre was a beautiful woman with long flowing black hair and
golden skin that seemed to glow in the light. Skylar could tell immediately by
Deidre’s pure black eyes that she was a Tarin female, but they were warm with
welcome as she spoke.

“Greetings,” Deidre said to
Skylar and Serra, ignoring the men completely. “It would be my pleasure to
attend to you ladies while you visit. Please follow me and I will show you the
way to our spa facilities. I apologize, but it is for females only.”

With a sigh of resignation,
Skylar cast once last glance at Arik and saw the humor shimmering in his
iridescent blue eyes. Promising to make him pay for that later, she followed the
Tarin woman across the room where she entered a code into the keypad by the
secured door. Serra took Skylar’s arm, pulling her through the entrance after
the doors slid open.

“Don’t worry. I won’t try and
make a run for it,” Skylar said dryly.

Serra’s bright laughter echoed in
the hallway they were walking through, making it sound like tiny bells. “I
didn’t think you would.” She tapped the claiming mark near Skylar’s eye with
her fingertip. “I believe congratulations are in order. What better way to celebrate
than a day at the spa?”

“Can’t we just have a drink or
something instead?” Skylar complained as they were led into another wide open
reception room at the front of the spa area.

Serra chuckled again. “We can do
that, too. I’m so happy for you, Sky. Dom and Arik are good men. I know you
will be happy with them.”

“Really, shouldn’t we just go
with the others for the meeting?”

“No. This part of the resort is
for women only and is protected by the Avox. We’re safe here, and we have to
wait for the doctors to finish what they’re doing anyway.” Serra rolled her
eyes. “Think of it as doing recon if it helps you relax.”

Strangely enough, it did help.

“Excuse me for a moment. Please,
have a seat and I will be back momentarily.”

As Deidre left them, Skylar and
Serra entered the relaxation lounge to wait for her. The room was filled with
several women, some at tables together chatting, while others were sitting
quietly reading or just enjoying the breeze coming in through the wide open
windows. While most of the females were Tarin, there were a few that were
obviously human. Conversations stopped as the all the females eyed Serra and
Skylar curiously, but they soon lost interest and went back to what they were
doing.

Skylar and Serra sat down on
chairs made of a gel-like material that fit to their bodies as they sat. It
made Skylar feel like the damn chair was trying to eat her. To distract
herself, she glanced around, then had to fight back a shudder. She thought the
room had some sort of strange underwater feel to it. Unlike the main reception
area, this time the decor had a purely feminine feel to it. The soft pastel
colors that she imagined were supposed to be calming, but left her feeling
completely out of place.

“So, tell me what happened last
night.”

“No.”

Serra laughed. “Not that
part...unless you want to, of course.”

“I really don’t.” Skylar gave in
as Serra’s eyes bore into her. “I let Dom claim me last night, I mean, we
claimed each other. But I still haven’t...you know, with Arik yet.”

Serra blinked in surprise. “That
man has amazing control. To know you slept with Dom and yet be able to hold
back enough to come here today? Wow. I’d think he would be even more impatient
to claim you since he’s never had sex before. Still, I’m glad that you and
Dominic have finally taken care of your sexual release—”

“Seriously? Can we please not
talk about my sex life in front of random strangers?” Skylar hissed, looking
around to make sure none of the other women were paying attention to their
conversation.

Deidre joined them again, smiling
brightly. “I have arranged for both of you to enjoy our sensual package since I
understand you have both been claimed recently. Please, follow me.”

Resigned, Skylar stood and joined
Deidre and Serra as they made their way into the changing area. She noticed
that Deidre kept sending covert glances her way. She’d finally had enough and
asked, “Is something wrong?”

Deidre blushed. “No. I
apologize.”

“No problem. If you want to ask
me something, go ahead.”

“It’s just...you are an elite, but
I sense Tarin energy from you. But that doesn’t make sense because your eyes
are such a beautiful blue.”

Skylar wanted to tell the woman
to mind her own damn business, but she couldn’t bring herself to verbally lash
out at the woman. It was odd, but simply standing next to the woman Skylar was
able to tell that Deidre was sweet and gentle. She’d always had the ability to
pick up on strong waves of energy from people before, but this took no effort
to sense at all.

It simply was...and this new
change worried her slightly.

“I’m half Tarin,” Skylar
explained. “My eyes, that I have no explanation for.”

“My son is a hybrid, but he has
eyes like mine,” Deidre said. “But his energy feels a little like yours...harder
to get a read on. My consort and I worried our son would not be accepted by
humans because he is so obviously part Tarin now that he is in the Academy.”

Skylar knew exactly what she
meant. “Is your consort an elite?”

“Yes, Martin is one of the
security team here. I met him after I was granted sanctuary.”

Before Skylar realized what she
was doing she said, “Send me your son’s information. I’ll look him up when I
get back to Earth and see how he’s doing.”

Tears glistened in Deidre’s dark
eyes, making them look like shimmering pools of liquid mercury. “You would do
that?”

Skylar fidgeted uncomfortably.
“Sure. It’s really not a big deal.”

“But it is to me and my man. Blessings
to you,” Deidre said fervently. She surprised Skylar by taking her hand and
holding it up to her forehead as she bowed. The gesture stirred something in
Skylar’s memories, but it faded like a wisp of smoke before she could catch it.

“Well done.” Serra’s pale-green
eyes were filled with approval as she looked at Skylar when Deidre stepped away
to give them a few minutes of privacy to change.