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The voice emanating from the yellow creature walking toward them sent chills down Lacey’s spine. It was as if he was speaking directly into her body with every quivering syllable. Her mind went to Korun and Blaen immediately, suddenly wondering what they were doing. Their touch was the most prominent feeling rippling through her body. It was as if they were there. Her breathing hitched as she watched the creature get closer and closer. The closer he got the closer Lacey came to orgasm. She hadn’t any idea what was wrong with her, or why it was happening. The look on her face must have told him that because he began to explain himself.
“My name is Safa,” his eyes lacked pupils and appeared to have grey vapors swirling around inside of them. He towered over them at an astonishing eight feet tall. His limbs were muscular but his body was lean. His yellow skin had flecks of gold that twinkled in the light and his face had aquatic features. The three fingers and toes he had were connected with gold flaps and his groin area was simply covered with a dark brown leather type kilt. He was an amazing being to behold.
There was an empty space where a nose would be, but his mouth was small even though the voice that came from it felt and sounded larger than life. “I am of the planet Tummet. What you are feeling is quite normal. It takes a while to get used to my effect on your aura and rhythm.”
“What is that? Why do I feel so...so...” Lacey couldn’t find the words to describe the feeling.
“Horny,” Emily laughed. “One of his tricks for disarming humans. Something about dopamine manipulation along with flexing the reticular activation system of the brain. He makes us sexually euphoric around him so that he can assess our threat level. Amazing isn’t it?”
Lacey stared at the creature in disgust wishing whatever switch he’d activated, he’d shut it off. “I must say that as fascinating as that mechanism is, can you please not use it on me. It’s making my sync go a little haywire.”
“Your rhythm is synced with Prince Korun of Ubos?” Safa asked her with his eyes widening. It was more frightening to see than Clek with his wide toothy grin.
“I am synced indeed,” Lacey agreed quietly.
“What does that mean?” Emily’s eyes darted back and forth between Safa and Lacey.
Safa grinned as if he were holding a secret. “Would you like to tell her, or shall I?”
Lacey narrowed her gaze, furrowed her brows, and turned to Emily. “I don’t want you to freak out, but I know you will. And don’t get all preachy on me about how I have to give my marriage a chance to die. It’s dead. Long gone! Beaten into the earth by a seven-foot intergalactic glamazon of a model masquerading as a Geylarian.”
“Spit it out,” Emily demanded.
“It turns out that when you have a connection with an Ubosian, and apparently other terrestrials like this one, there’s an energy that flows through you. That energy is what they refer to as a rhythm and the stronger that connection between you and the other is, the stronger that rhythm is in your body. It’s kind of like love on steroids,” Lacey told her in an anxious tone. But, before Emily even had a chance to reply, Lacey spoke to Safa. “You just said you could help me get to some kind of communicator or phone. How?”
Safa looked to Emily, who seemed to still be in shock over Lacey’s revelation. “I have the keys to some of the doors.”
“How?” Lacey asked him again with a raised eyebrow.
“I was getting off my shift when Terra 5 was attacked. They got a hold of me on my way home and never checked my pockets or anything. I work with the welcoming committee of the space station. So, I typically go room to room answering questions for guests. I’m like an intergalactic concierge. My unique effect on others makes me a wonderful face and asset to customer service apparently,” he smiled.
Lacey was convinced that she could trust Safa, even though Emily was still speechless. They came up with a plan to get to the nearest room where they could call the Celestial Jade. It was a long shot, but Lacey hoped that Blaen and Korun were still there.
It didn’t take long for Safa and Lacey to reach their destination as it was only a few rooms down the hall. They ended up in some sort of medical office. Safa kept his eyes and ears on the door while Lacey fumbled around with the machine trying to type in a destination for her to call. It only took her a minute or two to get it working and when she finally did, the first voice she heard was a familiar one she was certain as he began speaking in his native tongue. Lacey interrupted him. “Hello? Hello? This is Lacey Stern. Please, is someone there who speaks Human, American dialect.”
“Oh, Miss Stern! How wonderful to hear from you! There has been much news surrounding your sentencing and the abduction of the hostages on Terra 5. What can I do to help you?”
“Equa, thank goodness it’s you. I need to get a message to Prince Korun and his security guard Blaen.”
Equa cleared his throat and dropped his voice to barely above a whisper, “I’m sorry to tell you Miss that Prince Korun and his personnel have vacated his suite. There was something of a disconnect between him and his Imperial Lord. But I know they haven’t left Varcadia. I just thought you should be aware.”
“Thank you, but I need you to do your best and get them a message. Please tell the Prince that I’m on Terra 5. I never made it to Radiance Magnus and I can be found in...” she paused turning to Safa.
“In the asteroid crevasse, starboard side of the station. In the conference room row,” he whispered to her hurriedly.
“Did you hear that Equa?”
“Yes Miss. I shall do my best,” he promised her.
“Wonderful, and please keep this quiet; only to Prince Korun and his guard Blaen. For everyone else involved in this matter, especially as it relates to the Ubosian crown, it has to remain known that I’ve been banished to Radiance Magnus.”
“I will. Take care of yourself and I’ll pass this coordinate onto the Prince or Blaen. They shall try to make contact with you on this device,” he told her before hanging up the call.
Safa poked his head out of the room. Without a guard in sight, he motioned for Lacey to follow him back to where they were being held. As they entered the room, the others looked to them eagerly for a report.
“I sent a message to the Prince and hopefully he gets it soon. As long as I’m aboard this space station, he’ll do everything in his power to keep it from being blown out of the stars,” Lacey smiled a half smile.
Emily scoffed in the corner, “Just because your rhythms are in sync, or whatever it is you call it, doesn’t mean that he’s coming to save you or any of us for that matter.”
“He’d prepared a private shuttle for you and I to return to Earth,” Lacey told her. “Before I decided to open up my big mouth and get sentenced to Radiance Magnus, Korun was going to send one of his pods here to get you, with me on board, and take us home. He was only waiting for information to confirm that you were still alive. I wish that I’d taken that phone from the office.”
“It’s better that you left it,” Safa told her. “The guards would notice if there was an incessant amount of calls going in and out of this section.”
“Do you think we were seen?” Lacey asked him.
“I don’t think so. The guards are running pretty thin here. It was only a few of them who took Arganock’s side to stand with Briegrot,” Safa sighed. “The rest were slaughtered.”
Emily, still unconvinced of Lacey’s connection with the Prince, decided to chime in. “I don’t understand why you’re trying to reach out to them anyway. One, I overheard the guards talking, Korun isn’t even in charge of this situation anymore. Briegrot is barely in charge, from what I can tell. He takes suggestions, that sound a whole lot like commands from the big blue guy with the white scars. And two, if you have that so called connection, or sync, then why do you need a phone to begin with? Why can’t you just send them a message with your body?”
“You don’t have to be an asshole, Em. This is exactly why we’re stuck here. If you weren’t being such a bitch in Varcadia—”
Emily cut her off. “If you weren’t getting your mind and body opened by Ubosian royalty, then I wouldn’t have felt that way to begin with. We came to get away! To go on vacation and you ditched me for some one night stand!”
“It’s not a one night stand!” Lacey defended herself. “Korun and Blaen are more than a one night stand!”
“You slept with both of them?!” Emily’s eyes grew wide.
“Ladies, I don’t think this is the time or place,” Safa tried to interject.
“SHUT UP, SAFA!” they both scolded him simultaneously.
“You’re such a slut,” Emily snarled.
“And you’re a closed minded prude who needs to get her back blown out by an alien or two to loosen up!” Lacey shot back.
“No, my back is fine. And if yours was so good then why aren’t they here?! Where’s the cavalry Lacey?!?”
“I don’t know!” she blurted out. “Everything happened so fast but I know that they will come for me. All you have to do is say the word and I will leave you here. I will leave you alone forever. You don’t have to talk to me. We never have to be friends.”
The room was silent. The terrestrials looked on waiting for Emily to make her decision. While Lacey knew that Emily was closed minded, she hoped that her time aboard this place with others, not so human, she’d have a change of heart. However, the look in her eyes was worrisome. Lacey knew that was a hard belief to shake. Earth had been battling the idea of interracial dating for eons and still didn’t have everyone in acceptance, let alone cross species relationships. It was a lot to ask of her friend, especially after what her ex-husband put her through.
Emily, while the others watched on anxiously, was surprisingly accepting. “I never said that you shouldn’t be with Korun. I just said I believed you were doing it to get back at Brady. But if you’re telling me your connection with the two of them is stronger than what we feel as love then I have no choice but to believe you and drop it. It’s your life and quite obviously, you’re done listening to me about how to move forward. I’ll try my best to accept this, but I don’t want to lose you as a friend. I’m sorry I called you a slut. I know you better than that.”
“Apology accepted,” Lacey sighed and brought her in for a hug. The two continued to talk things out until sleepiness washed over them. As they all gathered around each other for warmth and comfort, Lacey’s mind couldn’t help but wander to Korun and Blaen. Their intimate moments were replaying over and over again in her mind. The more she thought of them, the stronger and closer she felt. She wondered if that had anything to do with Safa or if it was her own body reacting to the distance between her and her lovers. She could only hope that she’d see them soon and that the last time they’d been together wouldn’t be their last time together.