Creature Worlds: Solar Slick (3 page)

“Think we can pull this off?” I asked Tigg. He seemed relaxed and unconcerned while I was a bundle of nerves.

“If I hear him threaten you again, the only thing getting stuffed in that bag will be him.”

Yep, he was pissed.

Since it was the weekend, and the work week on Treox was only four days long, and the weekend three, we wouldn’t be missed. As long as we made it back on schedule.

There was a lineup to exit the dome, mostly other Lizords and a couple of blue guys who didn’t seem bothered much by the heat. It was a short line and we were soon outside. The hot air hit me in the face as soon as I stepped out and I sighed in misery. Tigg immediately took the lead. My thick hair was drenched and pasted to my head after just a few minutes.

“How far do we have to go?” I asked, walking quickly to keep up with his long strides.

“The first mine is only a few hours away. But it’s heavily guarded. The second one would be better.”

“How far is that one?”

“About a day’s walk.”

The thought of spending three whole days and nights in this bug-infested sauna were almost enough to push me over the edge.

“But we’re not going to either,” he said.

I stopped dead. “What?”

Tigg turned around and took my hand, urging me onward. “I have a ship. If we hurry we can make it to Earth, clear your name, and make it back before Clay suspects anything.”

“Wait!” I said, digging in my heels, bringing us to a stop. “If we by some crazy chance ever cleared my name on Earth, why the hell would I come back here?”

Tigg looked like the idea had never crossed his mind.

“Besides, if we do come back, Clay is expecting a bag of menite.”

“Has Clay actually ever
seen
menite in its base form?” Tigg asked.

I shrugged. “I dunno. And I really don’t want to take that chance. You don’t know him like I do. I’m afraid to cross him.”

“I’m not.” He gave me a determined look and then started walking again. I followed.

“You don’t even know what it is I’m accused of doing on Earth,” I reminded him.

“Whatever it is I’m sure you’re innocent. Or else you were coerced into doing it.”

He was right, but that still didn’t mean I could get out of it. I had gone along with Clay’s schemes and in the eyes of the law I was guilty. “If you have a ship why don’t we go someplace else?”

“This is my home. It will be our offspring’s home as well.”

Oh yeah, I’d forgotten he’d supposedly knocked me up. “The baby would be fine growing up someplace else.”

“No. Lizords must be reared on Treox. Our young feed on the jineg bugs native to this planet.”

Gross.

“But you’re forgetting he’s half human. Maybe he won’t want to eat bugs.” Was I really having this conversation? Tigg stopped suddenly and swung me up into his arms. “What’re you doing?” I asked.

“We need to hurry.” He began to jog and then sprint, then run. The scenery flew by me in a rush while I clung to his neck. It was several minutes later when he finally slowed down. He stopped and set me gently on the ground. “We’re here,” he said, walking over to a tall bunch of bushes. He began grabbing at the branches and tossing them aside revealing a spacecraft hidden beneath.

“Cool,” I said, wandering forward. The craft was small and sleek, one of the newest and fastest models. “How’d you get it?”

“Hard earned money,” he said.

If he had a craft like this then he was definitely not thinking of spending his every waking moment on Treox. This was a craft built to leave the planet, not zoom around on it.

“You’re full of surprises, Tigg,” I said, impressed.

He began feeling around the crevices of the craft. “Damn.”

“What’s the matter?” I asked.

“Teneg, my brother, was the last to drive it. He borrowed it and I told him to replace the key where he got it. He hasn’t.”

“Well, it’s gotta be here some place.”

We spent the next several minutes searching the outside of the craft and the area around it. Tigg shook his fist in frustration. “That imbecile probably locked the keys inside.”

“You think?”

“He’s done it before. I have a second set but they’re at my apartment. Now I’ll have to go all the way back and retrieve them.” He looked at me regretfully. “I’m sorry, Minka, I can get there faster without you.” He came forward and kissed the top of my head. “I’ll be back soon. You’ll be safe here.”

“Wait,” I said as he crouched down, preparing to take off.

“Yes, my love?”

I sighed. Tigg was willing to risk everything for me. Despite me being wanted on Earth, he was prepared to leave his home and go there to help me clear my name. We hardly even knew each other, and yet, he would do it for me.

I had to trust him.

“I can get inside the craft. I’ll open the door and you can look for the keys,” I said.

“That’s impossible. You can’t get in without the key.”

“I can. Just don’t freak out, okay? Promise me.”

He looked at me funny, but then gave a quick nod of his head. “Promise.”

I closed my eyes and concentrated, just for a second or two. And then it happened.

I began to change. Slowly, and painlessly, I turned from a beautiful young woman, into a small, disgusting spider.

It was my secret. My curse.

The reason Clay wanted me so much.

When no one else could get inside those locked places, I was there doing his evil bidding. Shrinking down and sneaking in, only to grow big again and open the door for him.

The craft was suddenly enormous—almost overwhelming when viewed through my several eyes. I got my bearings and began to climb, finding my way inside through a tiny opening. Quickly I moved, in fear that Tigg would forget his promise and smash me with his fist. Once on the other side, I changed back and went to open the door. This time, it was for a man who cared about me—for real. Not a lying jackass.

I pressed a button and the door swished up revealing Tigg’s stunned face. I stared at him with trepidation.

It seemed like a lifetime before he finally smiled. “Neat trick,” was all he said.

I smiled in relief.

Chapter 5

Tigg found the keys inside the spacecraft, just as he had expected. Since time was of the essence, it was only a few minutes later that we were strapping into our seats and blasting off. Soon the atmosphere of planet Treox gave way to the black, star-filled vacuum of outer space. Taking off my seat belt, I turned to stare at my companion. He’d yet to say anything to me about the spider thing.

He must have felt my eyes on him since he turned his head and regarded me thoughtfully. “Does it hurt?” he asked.

I knew what he meant. “No. Not anymore. It did the first few times.”

“How…how come you’re not naked?”

I laughed. “It’s actually a pretty neat trick. There’s like this force field around me, anything I’m wearing, or holding, will shrink down with me. When I grow big again everything else returns to its original size.”

“That’s the reason Clay wants you so bad? Cause you can get into places he can’t? And carry things out?”

“Yes.” I no longer deluded myself with thoughts that Clay loved me.

Tigg was silent for a moment as he concentrated on steering the craft. A few minutes later he pushed a few buttons and took off his seat belt so he could rise to his feet. “It’s on autopilot,” he told me. “A signal will sound when we’ve reached Earth’s atmosphere. Probably be a while yet.”

I knew the distance between Treox and Earth was about two hours at this speed.

He came up to stand before me. “I thought you were native to Earth,” he said.

Since he knew my little secret there was no need to lie to him. “When my parents arrived on Earth my mom was pregnant with me. Both my parents were scientists working on Zenet. That’s how they met. She’s from Earth originally, but my dad is from Ventillia.”

“Ah,” Tigg exclaimed, as though that explained everything. “Spider planet.” He reached out to take my hand and slowly pulled me to my feet. “Where are your parents now?”

“Dead. Killed on Earth five years ago.” It was illegal for anyone from Ventillia to be on Earth thanks to a terrible war between them over twenty years ago. “I escaped. Been on my own since I was fifteen.”

“That’s terrible.”

“It’s not so bad. I mean, yeah, what happened to my parents was awful, but Earth is still my home.”

“So no one knows your true identity?”

“Not as long as Clay keeps his mouth shut. Right now, I’m only wanted for break and enter. They don’t know I’m an illegal like my dad.”

“That’s what Clay’s threatening you with.”

I nodded my head.

Tigg frowned. “People’s ignorance angers me. You are innocent, despite one of your parents being from Ventillia. You had nothing to do with a war that happened before you were born.”

“People don’t see it that way.”

He ran his hand over my hair and down my back, stopping to linger on my ass. “You look so human.”

I shrugged. “I mostly take after my mom. My dad looked human, like most Ventillians, but he had little control over his shifting. We lived a pretty isolated life, keeping to ourselves, but eventually my dad blew his cover. Earth Authority chased him and when they shot, my mom jumped in front of him. The shot killed them both. I saw what happened from a distance. There was nothing I could do, so I ran.”

Both of Tigg’s arms went around me and he pulled me close. It felt good to be held by him. When Clay had first discovered what I was, he’d been repulsed, not wanting to touch me for a long time. I became attractive to him again once he figured out he could use me for nefarious purposes.

“Zenet is a refuge planet for several species. It’s beautiful, I’ve heard. Why didn’t your parents stay there?”

I shrugged. It was something I’d asked myself a million times.

“Clay has a video of me that he swiped off of a security camera. It clearly shows me changing and then opening up the door for him and his gang. Of course, their faces are masked, but my identity wasn’t concealed. I was careless.”
And a fool to believe that Clay wouldn’t seize such an opportunity to get something on me.

“This is what he threatens to give to Earth Authority.” It wasn’t a question. “We need to get that tape.”

“He probably has copies everywhere. I don’t see any way around giving in to him and his demands.”

“There has to be a way.”

“If there is I haven’t discovered it yet. I’ve been trying to get out from under Clay’s control for a long time. That’s why I ran. I didn’t know what else to do. I was hoping everything would just eventually blow over and I could go home.”

“You have me to help you now.” He ducked his head and kissed me on the lips. The slight flick of his tongue encouraged me to open my mouth for him. It felt a little strange French kissing a Lizord. Not bad, just different.

“I want to love you again, Minka,” he said, and led me to the back of the craft where there was a bunk folded down from the wall. Blankets lay out on the bed as though someone had been sleeping there recently. I sat down and watched as Tigg began peeling off his clothes.

“You said your brother Teneg was using the craft last?” I asked.

“Yes.” Tigg stood naked before me and reached out to pull my shirt over my head.

“Does all your family live on Treox?”

“I have three brothers, all of whom live there.

“Your parents?” I ventured.

“Dead, like yours, though from sickness.” From the way he said it I knew he didn’t want to talk about it. Although, now that he’d begun tugging on my pants, I knew he had other things on his mind. The sight of those two giant green cocks stirred up memories of the pleasure he gave me last time. I licked my lips in anticipation, knowing that very soon I would once again be writhing beneath him. I lay back on the bed and let Tigg pull my pants right off. When he bent over me and pushed my thighs apart with his knee I froze.

“You’re not gonna bite me again, are you?”

I could see the flash of his smile in the dim light. “Come now, it wasn’t so bad, was it?”

“Does that mean you’re gonna do it?” I wasn’t sure whether the thought of those fangs sinking into my neck frightened me, or turned me on. He was right though, it hadn’t been
that
bad. I suppose I had to take the bad with the good. And considering Tigg was willing to overlook my little quirk, I suppose I could overlook his.

“The bite marks you as mine,” he explained. “It emits a harmless venom into your blood stream only detectable by other Lizords. If another found you, he could tell by your scent you belong to me.”

“So you were marking your territory?” I wasn’t sure I liked that. Still, I had to admit deep down inside of me in the place I crammed all my secrets, I kind of liked belonging to someone.

“Yes, you could say that. You did agree to be mine,” he reminded me.

“How long does it last?”

“Several months. I won’t need to repeat the process for a while.” He nestled his body between my open thighs and I felt the tips of both his rods push up against my openings. I tilted my hips slightly, allowing him easier entry. Leisurely, but determinedly, he pushed inside of me making me gasp aloud as my body stretched to accommodate him. Would I ever get used to this? Webbed hands splayed the sides of my face; his eyes watched my expression closely. Fully penetrated, he began to move, stroking in and out with deliberate slowness.

Tightly reining in his desire, he drove me mad with wanting. I wiggled my ass and arched my back in attempt to break his control, all to no avail. Begging would do no good; he’d not be moved by words.

“Please!” A vain attempt to incite pity.

He ceased his movements completely.

“What’re you doing?” I cried, my fingers gripping his shoulders in frantic need.

“You would have the moment over before it begins,” he chastised.

“I won’t move. I promise.”

With a great sigh, as though he would continue on despite his resolve to delay our climax, he again rocked inside of me. I bit down on my bottom lip to keep from urging him to hurry.

“The hunger you feel will be better satisfied if you prolong the feast.” His breath blew hot against my ear.