Wrapped in Starlight (6 page)

When the shuttle landed across the valley at the base, she held her breath. Her suit did not give her any messages, so she sat in the courtyard, ostensibly absorbing more light.

She shifted in her chair when the tumble of mist crossed the valley toward the Citadel. He was on his way, and she was nervous.

“A kiss. A simple kiss, and we will know.” She said it once out loud and chanted it in her mind over and over.

The cloud roiled closer, and when it reached the edge of the courtyard, it tightened into a shifting column that moved to her and waited.

She could feel him inside that cloud, and she smiled, getting to her feet. “Hello, Harken. How was your trip?”

He formed his body first, and she grabbed at his shoulders, pressing tight and kissing him the moment he shaped his lips. She kept her eyes closed as she kissed him and welcomed the surge of warmth deep inside her. As his arms came around her and he returned her kiss, she sighed happily before backing away.

His face shocked her so much, she pushed at his shoulders, but he wasn’t letting her leave. Where basically formed features had been, finely chiselled lips smiled at her, bright blue eyes sparkled, black hair waved from his forehead and high cheekbones highlighted the almond-shaped tilt that his eyes now wore.

“What did you do?” She blinked and examined his ears. Even they had not escaped the change. Instead of barely formed cups, they were now elegantly pointed and held back the silk of his hair.

“I wanted to make myself more attractive for you, but I was unsure as to the features that would appeal. I sought the expert guidance at the Morganti base, and Hyder told me what I looked like when I was with you. From there, I only needed to craft my features and remember the template. It didn’t hurt, and I can resume my other face for assignments when I need to blend in.”

She stroked his face, the strong line of his jaw. “Why?”

“So that you would touch me like that. The fact that you kissed me before you knew of the changes confirms what I knew. You and I are meant to be more than partners on assignment.” The new Harken kissed her, and she felt her eyes cross as she tried to watch him coming toward her. Eventually, she closed her eyes and relaxed while his hands moved slowly over her spine.

A feminine throat cleared nearby.

Blushing, Kiiki pulled back and turned around, Harken’s arms still holding her. “Roha, this is Harken.”

Harken inclined his head. “I am Decaro Rono, Psyche. It is nice to meet you in person.”

Kiiki blinked and looked up at him over her shoulder. “Your name is Decaro?”

“It is. Harken is my call sign, as Psyche is Roha’s.”

“Well, I have just come out to confirm your match, but it seems that you took matters into your own hands. Well done, Kiiki.” Roha winked and sashayed over to her shuttle, removing a skimmer that she used to transport herself toward the Guard base.

As the matchmaker disappeared, Kiiki turned slowly back to face Decaro. “So, were you going to tell me your name before I kissed you?”

He pulled her tightly against him and whispered against her hair. “When the time was right.”

She smiled and enjoyed the feel of him—warmth, strength, and infinite capability to change shape. “Would you like to go in for tea?”

He chuckled. “I would rather see your quarters. From what I recall, the physician decided that you needed full sun exposure here on Balen for ten days. Your hair has regained some colour, but your eyes are far too pale. I think you need some rest, and I have been assigned to you on a permanent basis. The state of your body is now my primary concern.”

Her eyes widened. “Did someone give you a bit of a pep talk while you were on Morganti?”

He chuckled and increased his grip, lifting her off her feet. He shifted her until he was carrying her in his arms, but his smooth gait confused her until she looked and saw that from the waist down he was nothing but mist.

The few folk that were around laughed at the image they presented, him carrying her up and up and up until they were at her room and passing through the door.

“I was afraid it would offend Shivak to have me on the upper floor, but he took it in stride when he learned the nature of my talent.”

He closed the door and set her on her feet, immediately pressing kisses to her neck that had two effects. One, her body shivered and her skin ached for more of his touch, but the second effect was that her Masuo disappeared into an anklet and left her exposed to his lips.

He whispered against her skin as he kissed and touched all of her in turn. “Nishans don’t have the same drive that other species have. We mate by combining our forms with that of our partner, creating a little puff that floats and grows on its own. For one of mine to meet with one of yours, there are sacrifices to be made—one of those is remaining solid.”

As he spoke, his hands changed from solid to a column of gas that stroked her more effectively than fingers ever could.

Kiiki lost her train of thought, held onto him for dear life, and when he met her body with his own, she was more than ready to try a little bit of bonding with her partner. Power sparked from her skin and went through him and around him, creating the effect of a violent lightning storm. It was surreal with the sun blazing above them, but as she reached a plateau of arousal and fell into release, the energy flared wildly for a moment before settling into a low, humming pulse through her body and his shifting form.

Kiiki shivered as the blanket of cloud settled over her, between her thighs and under her arms, sheathing her in her partner in a way she had never imagined was possible.

She yawned and enjoyed the bright light of Saru that was still falling on every inch of her body through Decaro’s form.

“Well, I think that settles it for me. I don’t want another partner. I want Harken with me on assignment and Decaro with me here.” She bit her lip and mused out loud. “So, do we date or something? I haven’t actually done this before.”

He swirled and shifted until arms wrapped around her and a naked body was pressed against her back. “Didn’t I mention it? I have been allowed lodgings in the Citadel as long as each assignment results in a complete debriefing at the base. As long as I check in, I can live where I like.”

She sighed happily. “That’s nice.”

He chuckled. “Rest now, there will be time to plan our next move when you have recovered.”

“From Feliancour or from you?”

He chuckled and pressed kisses along her shoulder and up her neck. “Both. Now, go to sleep.”

He was senior to her in the matter of the assignments, so she slept. Why not give in to him just this once?

Kiiki nodded. “That explains the lack of whole light, but why did they try to grab me?”

Starbreaker looked surprised, “From what they told us when they were interrogated, they wanted you as an unlimited power source. If you could take over for a few weeks, they could institute some of the more advanced power systems that they have designed. They don’t have a chance to turn the new systems without damaging the old feeds, according to them.”

“Stupid. That light would have killed me in a week or two. I am fairly certain of it.”

“They didn’t know that. They just knew you were a solar-to-electric power source. They didn’t really think of you as having feelings.”

Kiiki snorted. “That figures. Well, I am glad I am out of there. Is there anything to be done for their sun?”

“Not unless they stop harvesting it.” Starbreaker shook her head. “They are their own worst enemies.”

They sat around and discussed the Feliancourans for a few hours, involving Relay of Morganti Base, Guardian of Udell Base, Haunt of Station 13, and Might of Teklan Base.

Folk killing their own sun was an uncommon thing for a race to do, so it required some of the greatest minds in the Alliance.

Kiiki leaned against Harken, and he wrapped an arm around her, pulling her against him slowly. When she was settled against his chest, she watched, with tired eyes, the decisions, conversations and new information that Relay pulled from the data stream to interject into the conversation.

A whisper in her ear asked, “What are you thinking about?”

She turned her head and whispered back, “I hope that I can get this kind of cooperation when it comes time to enter Resicor. It isn’t going to be a one-woman event, but there has to be a reason for this shift in public policy. Hundreds of years ago, the physical talents could mix at will. No one thought anything of it.”

“When the time is here, we will know it. Be ready and try to glean what information you can from neutral sources. When you have a theory, we will act. Don’t doubt it. It is your Citadel’s primary function, to rescue abused talents.”

“And I am going to hold them to their credo when the time comes. I want my people free, and I am not the only one. There is a growing list of folk who want to help their sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles and grandmothers to be free once again. We will have them free, and it will be within my lifetime.”

Harken squeezed her arms in agreement and left her leaning silently against him as she pondered the ways she could use to get information on Resicor and the Kozue as a starting place. Her free time at the Citadel was going to be full of research, but they wanted her to have a hobby, they just hadn’t been specific. Freeing her people was a helluva hobby, and Decaro had just volunteered to help her on her path to knowledge. It was good to be a couple who shared their free time—whether tangling their bodies or gathering data or designing ships, they shared enough points of interest that the next few months were going to be downright educational.

They met in the middle. Not a bad place to be.