Alien Attachments (17 page)

“Amazing. I’m actually getting the hang of this. Of course, I did send an entire wall of weapons flying at first, but hey, gotta start somewhere, right?”

“Absolutely,” Ria said. “Here, have a seat and join us.”

Ian stood, placed his palms on the table and glared at Dani. “I thought you were to be dining in the Cavacent hall?” His voice sounded low and strained.

Dani crossed her arms. “I found the company this morning to be somewhat hostile. I’ll be eating here from now on.” She caught her breath when, for a split second, their psi touched. Desire, anger, and something else whipped through her.
He wants me as much as I do him. Why is he acting this way?

A look of pain flashed across his face, only to be replaced by his usual, emotionless mask. He straightened up. “Good to know,” he said. “I’ll eat elsewhere.”

Armond stood, mumbled something about needing to go, and left after Ian.

Dani let the tension in her relax. “Sorry guys. I didn’t mean to ruin your lunch.”

“Are you kidding?” Jared asked. “Ian isn’t exactly fun to be around these days. You’re much better company.”

Gina handed Dani a menu and flagged down a waiter. “Here dear, you must be exhausted. You need food and something to drink.”

Twenty minutes later, Dani wiped her chin with a napkin. “I can’t believe I ate all that.” She’d consumed a massive cheeseburger and two different Sandarian side dishes.

“I can’t either,” Jared said, eyeing her empty plate suspiciously.

Battista leaned toward Gina and gave her a nudge. “You’re going to have to cook enough for an army with this one.”

“Welcome to the world of psi.” Marco gave Dani his signature wink.

“I bet you feel pretty good too, huh?” Ria said.

Dani thought about it. “I do. I was really tired when I got here, but now I feel like I could run a marathon.”

“Psi does that,” Ria continued. “It takes what we eat and turns it into a source of energy. That’s why our armed forces carry as much food as weaponry.”

“Armed forces?” Dani asked. It struck her there was a great deal she didn’t know about this world.

“Yep,” Ria said.

“Is that what you Earth Protectors are? Military?”

“No,” Ria explained. “We were trained at the academy—”

“Except for Armond, a.k.a Mr. Ego. We don’t know where he was trained,” Marco said.

Ria picked at the crust of a muffin-like bread. “Yeah, well, we chose to work for the Cavacent family. If not for them, I’d still be part of the fleet.”

“You mean cruising around the galaxy like interstellar cops?” Dani said.

“Yeah, pretty much.” Ria laughed. “The empire has to keep the peace and maintain order.”

“That’s one way of putting it,” Marco said, giving Ria an odd look.

“It is what it is.” Ria turned to Dani. “I love that saying. I’m going to spread it all over Sandaria. And don’t mind Marco. Our politics are complicated.”

“
Cragshit
is what they are. Crumbling
cragshit
.” Marco’s dark eyes flashed with anger. “You’d think Gordat was the bloody Emperor the way he lords it around this place.”

Dani had never seen Marco this serious, but before she could dig deeper, his phone beeped. When he disconnected, he was once again his smiling self. “Time for my checkup with Healer Kane.” Marco waved his bulbous hand and stood to go. “I’ll check you guys later.”

“Remember,” Ria called after him, “Ian wants us in the conference room at four.”

“Got it,” he called, halfway to the door.

Jared tossed his napkin onto the table and leaned back. “I talked to Ian this morning. The Papallos and I are heading home tomorrow. He said you’re staying here for more training. You good with that?”

Dani nodded. “I’m good. I have a lot to learn still. This stuff is pretty amazing. Oh, and I’m on an alien planet that I’ve yet to see much of, so yeah, I’m good.”

They spent another ten minutes discussing Sandaria before Jared and the Papallo’s excused themselves to do some exploring. Jared asked if Dani wanted to join them, but Ria had other plans.

“Sorry, but she’s coming with me.” Ria gave her an apologetic shrug. “I promised Mordo I’d help with your training.”

“Ah. All right guys, rain check.”

Dani walked with Ria out into the bright sunny day. Marveling at the clear green sky, she nearly knocked over an elderly lady. Catching the woman’s arm before she toppled over, she apologized profusely while Ria watched and tried not to laugh.

“Thanks for the help,” Dani said, once free of the older woman.

“What? I wasn’t gonna let her fall. Good catch, by the way.”

Back at the arena, Ria set up a corner of the massive space for their practice. Like she’d seen the day before, large and small shapes surrounded them. Some sat stationary on the ground and others hovered in mid-air. Unlike the previous day, one- and two-story obstacles dotted the landscape. The tops of the structures were connected together with various types of bridges. Some appeared solid, but others were nothing more than ropes. Zip-lining, without the zip. Red spheres the size of basketballs floated steadily around the arena as well.

“Okay.” Ria punched the side of a tall rectangle positioned beside her. Its cushy surface gave way. “This is a good way to start. These obstacles will block an opponent’s psi, but they’re soft if you crash into them. These guys”—she pointed to the multi-storied structures—“we get to climb on. They’re all connected, but some are easier to get across than others. We’ll get a great workout here while you hone your skills.”

“Ria, I don’t know if I’m ready for this. I have to concentrate on what I’m doing. I could hurt us both.”

“Don’t worry. This is a protective sim-mode. You can’t get hurt in here. Watch.” Ria took off and climbed up the small one-story structure. She walked over to the edge and belted out a horrid rendition of Mick Jagger’s “Dancing in the Street.” She pranced about, flailing her arms up and down.

Dani laughed until Ria misstepped and went sideways over the edge. A piercing buzz sounded and Ria’s body stopped falling, righted itself and lowered to the ground. “See? This’ll be good for you. Don’t worry about control, just let it flow and have some fun. Oh, and don’t let the red spheres touch you.”

“What happens if they touch you?”

“It hurts. Now move.” Ria flicked her hand and sent the nearest ball smashing into Dani’s shoulder. An electric shock zapped her arm.

“Ow,” Dani laughed. “Game on.” She took off after Ria, who was already halfway up the smallest structure. Without the need to concentrate and make precise movements, Dani let go. A sense of joy and power flowed through her as she recklessly blasted objects. She couldn’t help but laugh when her imprecise attempts at control had unexpected results. The arena’s safety functions were working overtime today. Twice, Ria was laid horizontal in the air and sent spinning like a frisbee. The second time, Dani laughed so hard she cried. The tears blurred her vision and she tripped over an orange square, tumbling head first over the edge of a two-story building.

“Stop,” she cried as she came to a gentle landing on the floor. “I have to stop laughing.” She wiped her face and tried to clear her eyes.

Ria peered over the edge above her, wiping her own tears. “I haven’t laughed this hard or had this much fun in years. What is up with that flying disc move?” Ria stepped off the ledge and made a graceful landing next to Dani. She reached out and gave her a hand up.

Dani shook her head. “No idea. I’m trying to push you but something happens. I can feel my psi splitting. The top half pushes your torso and the bottom kind of sucks at your feet.” She lifted her hands up. “Not trying to do it, I swear.”

Ria nodded. “No, it’s good. You’ll get different results depending upon what your opponent is doing. I was using a small, targeted beam. You must be broadcasting a larger area that my psi basically sliced in half.” Ria crossed her arms. “Still, I’ve never seen that result before. Try narrowing your psi. Should give you more control and use less energy.”

Dani nodded agreement and grinned. “Probably won’t be as entertaining.”

Ria’s suggestion helped a great deal. Forty minutes later, she spun around and dealt a psi blow to Ria’s back.

“Damn girl, you are amazing. Seriously, I can’t believe how much better you’ve gotten.” Ria dodged, then blocked the next of Dani’s attacks.

“Thanks. It’s weird. When I started this morning, I had to focus on everything, but not now. Like when you first learn to drive. In the beginning, everything scares you, and you have to think about every move, but after a few months, you don’t even realize what you’re doing half the time.”

“You are going to be a force.” Ria signaled for a stop and they both used the time to catch their breath. Ria performed some stretches and Dani followed suit.

“Do you mind if I ask you something?” Ria said.

“Of course not. What’s up?”

Ria rubbed her neck. “If I’m out of line say so, but I can’t help but wonder what’s up with you and Ian. You saved the man’s life. What exactly, is going on?”

“I wish I knew.” Dani sighed and kicked a nearby circle, sending mild shock thru her boot as it careened over a large purple square. “Stuff happened, Ria. Stuff I don’t understand.”

“Maybe I can help,” Ria said.

“I’d like to tell you, but it would put you in an awkward position.”

“What do you mean, awkward?” Ria frowned.

“He’s your boss. You know, awkward.” Dani stressed the last word.

“Mother Goddess. You slept with Ian?”

“Shh. Keep it down.” Dani looked around frantically. “Yes, okay? Twice. Kind of.”

“Twice? Mother Goddess.” Ria leaned against a yellow prism.

“Please stop saying that.”

“Okay, tell me what happened. I don’t mean the details of course, but what do you mean, ‘Twice, kind of’?”

“Well, the first time was the night in Como.”

“You did it at my house?” Ria put her hands on her hips.

“Yeah. It was incredible.”

“I bet it was. So, what next?”

“I don’t know. The next morning Armond checked something in me. He didn’t seem happy with the result. After that, Ian changed. Remember the cave? He was being a real jerk by that time.”

“What did Armond do?” Ria asked.

“Nothing as far as I could tell. He took my hand and closed his eyes a few seconds, then sent me on my way.”

“He tried to erase your memory.”

“Of what?” Dani said. “Oh. That. Well, it didn’t work. Then, something happened when we moved the portal. That was intense, because he talked to me in my head.”

Ria started pacing and shook her head. “Okay, that was an extraordinary circumstance. You guys were going to die if it didn’t work. Ian’s strong enough to be able to communicate telepathically. Nothing unusual so far. Aside from the fact he slept with you, which seems way out of character for him. And what about the ‘kind of’ part? What do you mean by that?”

“The night before last, when I healed him. I went to his room. I had this overwhelming feeling that if I didn’t, he’d die. Mara said it’s because I have healing abilities, and knew, somehow, that I’d be able to help him. Anyway”—Dani glanced around, and lowered her voice—“I got into bed with him and basically wrapped myself around his body.” The memory rippled through her psi. She had to turn away from Ria, so she studied the far wall instead. “Nothing physical happened, Ria, but something else did—with our psi. It was the most amazing pleasure I’ve ever had, but again, it didn’t involve our bodies. Which for a human is pretty weird.”

Ria stopped pacing and stared at her.

Dani decided someone needed to pace so she took up the task. “When it started, his psi was only barely attached to his body. I figured out a way to re-anchor him. It was unbelievable. Our psi wove in and out together. And then the pleasure, oh man. It just took over.” Dani wrapped her arms around herself. “That’s the last thing I remember. The next morning, Rucon came in and—he was so mad when he saw me. But then Ian woke up, and you should have seen him. He was enraged. You know the old saying, ‘If looks could kill’?”

Ria shook her head.

Dani dropped her arms to her sides. “It’s an Earth thing. ‘If looks could kill, I’d be dead.’ I mean, what the hell? I’d just saved his life and the sensation was so good it was scary. You’d think at least a thank you would be in order, but no. Both those guys treat me like dirt. Does any of this make sense to you?”

Ria’s eyes were wide and her mouth partially open.

“What?”

“I might be wrong. I mean, what with you being human and having psi and all. That’s huge enough, but now…” Ria exhaled.

“Ria, please. Now what?”

“I… It…um…. How do I explain this to a human? You have nothing like it. Okay so, you kind of know how the psi thing works right?”

“I’m learning.”

“Well, there are other aspects of psi. One of the most amazing is called a psi-bond, or just bonding. It doesn’t happen to everyone Dani, but everyone wants it. Probably less than fifty-percent ever find a psi-mate. You just described bonding, or at least partial bonding. With Ian. Oh, Mother Goddess.”

Dani threw her an annoyed look.

Ria took up pacing again. “No wonder he’s a mess. Bonding with a human. That’s just not, I don’t know— I mean it shouldn’t be possible. Oh Mo—”

“Please, stop saying that.”

“Right. Sorry. This is so unbelievable. And you’re human, so there’s no way this can happen, not in our society. This is bad on so many levels. And he knew it, which is why he tried to make you stop.”

“Hey, he’s the one that got me in bed on Como. I experienced this bond thing then, but it didn’t last.”

Ria shook her head. “You said he healed you in a pool, right?”

“Yeah, on Cat Island. That must have been when he figured out I had psi. The first time it happened to me.”

“I’d be willing to bet you guys started bonding in the pool. Ian’s been fighting it ever since. Which is crazy, but it makes sense. He’d have to fight it. But how can you?” Ria stopped pacing. “So the question is, are you or are you not fully bonded? If you were, surely you’d be together. Human or not. I think you guys are, somehow, only partially bonded. I’ve never heard of anyone resisting a bond before. I mean, who would want to, right? It feels incredible, doesn’t it?”