Victorious Star (27 page)

“Yes.” Seht pulled a card key from inside his robes and slid it across the reader at the base of the controls. “I needed a good excuse to stay on the lift.” He raised a brow. “Do you want to fight about it?”

Victoria turned away from his hot stare.
You could have warned me.

“This is the stationmaster, what do you want?” The voice over the intercom was bored, sarcastic, and electronic.

“Hello, Stationmaster, this is Seht. Captain Ravnos sends his greetings. Can I come down for a chat?”

“Seht? Hey, how are you? I detect two bodies. Is that misbegotten reprobate with you?”

Seht shook his head. “Sorry, Stationmaster, you know he can’t visit with Moribund present.”

An electronic sigh sounded over the intercom. “Yeah, I know. So who’s the other guy?”

“Someone I’d like you meet.” Seht smiled at Victoria. “I think you’ll find her very interesting.”

“Her?” The stationmaster’s interest traveled though the intercom.

Victoria frowned at Seht.
What are you up to now?

Seht ignored her. “Can we come down for a chat?”

“With a ‘her’? Are you going to get freaky for me?”

Victoria’s brows shot up.
Get freaky?
What the hell did that mean?

Seht grinned. “Maybe.”

“Oh, hell yeah, come on down!”

The back wall of the elevator abruptly slid to the side. Victoria jumped away from the yawning black tunnel that was revealed. A strong wind swirled into the lift, blowing their robes and beaded hair.

The stationmaster’s voice crackled over the intercom. “You know the routine.”

Seht clenched his jaw. “I do indeed. Thank you.”

The stationmaster released an electronic cackle. “I’ll be waiting for you.”

Seht moved to the open door and held out his arms. “Come to me.”

Victoria moved through the strong wind and was caught by Seht.

He unsnapped her lead, and shoved it in his belt. “You won’t be needing this where we’re going.” He closed his arms around her in a vise grip.

She could feel his heart hammering in his chest. She stared up at him.
Now what?

Seht smiled grimly. “We jump.”

Victoria gasped.
What?

Seht leaped into the yawning pit, carrying Victoria with him.

Victoria wrapped her arm and legs around Seht, holding on with every ounce of strength in her augmented limbs, her face pressed into his whipping robes. He held her just as tightly, his face pressed into her throat. His heart pounded against her cheek. He was clearly not thrilled about the fall either.

And they fell.

And they continued to fall.

Victoria’s panicked fear receded to a low state of alarm.
We’re falling a really long way.
She drew careful breaths; the wind was incredible.
Is there a bottom to this thing?

Updraft?
Victoria wiggled into a more comfortable position.
Couldn’t we have used the lift?

A spike of amusement shimmered through the link.
If we wanted to be on it for a few hours, yes. This is the fastest way down. The stationmaster is located at the very heart of the city, level zero.

And we were at the top of the tallest tower?
Victoria accessed her files on the station and calculated the distance they had to cover to go from that height to the station’s heart. It was measured in miles.
Bloody Fate…

According to Victoria’s files, the mercenaries had bought the station a very long time ago, and built upon what they had found, but the station was old when they got it. Once upon a time, this airlock had opened onto space.

Victoria’s feet hit the floor and her knees wobbled.
That was one scary ride. Let’s not do that again.

But you like to be scared.
Seht tugged his and Victoria’s robes back into order.
And we still have to leave.

Victoria winced.
The same way?
She dug her fingers into her windblown hair.
I’ll live with the hours in the lift!

Seht tugged at his own tangled mane.
It’s an hour’s walk up through the station’s sub-basements just to get to the closest cargo lift.

Victoria groaned.

Seht snorted.
Exactly.
He waved a finger at her. “Be good, and be nice.” His eyes narrowed.
The stationmaster has the codes to get your
Arcane
and allow our ship to escape. Do nothing to upset him.

Victoria nodded.
Yes,
‘Syr.

Seht shook back his mane and hit the glowing green button by the interior blast door. “Knock, knock, Stationmaster. Can we come in?” He smiled at Victoria.
Oh, and he’s a pervert.

Victoria jolted.
A what?

The antique blast door rolled open into the wall on the right. The interior yawned black with millions of tiny winking lights, like the reflected eyes of vermin.

The intercom crackled. “Hi, Seht! Welcome to my humble abode.”

A crackling hum started and antique lighting bloomed. The room was small and cramped with massive state-of-the-art servers and aged databanks jammed cheek to jowl. Hoses, wires and conduits snaked across the low ceiling, through the walls, through the servers and across the floor. Rust, scrapes and watermarks stained the cheaply tiled floor.

There was not one speck of dust.

The wall on the far right was entirely opaque glass. Framed in winking lights was the shadow of someone reclining in an antique pilot’s chair surrounded and snarled among coils of tubing and wires. The sound of mechanical breathing whispered from behind the glass. The figure did not move.

Victoria peered at it.
Who’s that?

That is the stationmaster’s body.
Seht nodded at the glass.
The stationmaster dates back to when they hardwired living minds directly into the ships, when sentience drives were first made.

That was a really long time ago.
Victoria frowned.
That can’t be his original body; he’s far too old to still be alive!

It’s not; it’s his current body.
Seht shook his head.
He replaces it when they become too old to function properly.

Victoria frowned.
But with the advances in sentience and replication, why does he need a body at all?

Seht shrugged.
He doesn’t, but he’s so used to having one, he keeps replacing it.

Victoria looked up at Seht.
Where does he get his replacement bodies?

Seht snorted.
Let me put it this way: never, ever visit the stationmaster alone.

Victoria shuddered.

“What have we here?” The stationmaster’s masculine voice purred from all around. “Oh look, a little girl.”

A powerful electronic presence pressed insinuating fingers at Victoria’s accesses. Her piloting array activated. Alarm raced through her system. Someone was trying to hack in to her controls. She slammed up her firewall defenses and wrapped her access codes in encryption. She grabbed Seht around the waist and shook.
Get me out of here!

Seht caught her arms and pulled her back to look at her.
What’s wrong?

Victoria shivered.
Someone is trying to break into my mind! I have my defenses up, but it’s really, really strong.

The presence increased in power. It slithered around her firewalls looking for a chink in her protection, poking at her with virus-laden breaker codes.

She trembled, clutching at him.
Seht, please, get me out of here?

Seht pulled her close then lifted his head to stare at the chair behind the glass. “Shame on you, Stationmaster! You’ve frightened her. I bring you a gift and you try to take it before I’ve even had a chance to show it to you?”

“A gift?”

The presence eased back from Victoria’s mind. She panted in relief. It was still there, ready to invade the moment she let her guard down, but it wasn’t actively grabbing for her.

Seht turned back toward the airlock. “If this is how you treat your guests and their gifts, I may as well go…”

“No! Don’t go! Please?” Agitated static crackled around them. “Look, I’m sorry! I won’t do it again. I’ll be good, I swear!”

Seht turned back to the glass wall. “Do I have your word that you’ll be good? Do I have your word that you won’t take more than I am willing to give?”

“Is she pretty? Will you show her to me?”

“I want your word, Stationmaster.”

“You have my word. I won’t try to hack in.” A sigh traveled through the intercom. “Can I see her now? Really see her? Is she sexy?”

“Thank you.” Seht nodded. “And she’s a
skeldhi rehkyt.
Absolutely stunning, and genetically designed to sexual performance.”

“Sexual performance…” The stationmaster rolled the words around the room. “Really? Show me?”

Victoria lifted her head from Seht’s chest.
Seht, what are you up to now?

Don’t fight; just obey.
Seht gently turned her around to face the databanks. “Can you see her?”

Holographic and video monitors lit up everywhere. Victoria’s image bloomed across them from hundreds of different angles. “Wow, she’s really, really pretty… sexy, sexy, sexy girl…”

“Would you like to see more of her?”

“Yes please! Show me the goods!”

“Very well…” Seht reached around Victoria and unknotted her sash.

Victoria grabbed his hands.
What are you doing?

Do you want to save the
Arcane? Seht twisted from her hold and continued to unravel her sash.

Victoria turned to look up at him.
Yes, of course.

Then don’t fight me.
He pulled the sash free. His hands slid into her robe and pushed it from her shoulders, revealing her golden breasts, her gently curving belly and her hairless mons. He draped the robe over his arm. “What do you think?”

“Wow, oh wow…” Enthusiastic sounds of appreciation traveled though dozens of hidden speakers. “That hair, those eyes, those tits, a completely hairless pussy… Incredible!”

Victoria bit her lip. She was still trembling with fear, but his appreciation seemed sincere.

“Are her nipples and her hair really that red?”

“They are exactly as red as they look.” Seht cupped her breasts and tugged on her nipples.
I think he likes you.

Sharp, fear-edged pleasure stabbed into her core. Victoria arched under his fingers. Lust uncoiled and simmered. She leaned back against him and sucked in a breath. Moisture slithered down her thighs.

“Turn her around! I want to see her ass!”

Seht gently turned Victoria around. “Bend over pet, and spread; let him see the rest of you.”

Victoria’s cheeks warmed ferociously, but she did as asked.

“Red, red, red… Holy Mother of God! Her pussy is red too! And she’s really real?”

“She’s real.” Seht grinned ferally. “And she’s equipped with nav-pilot augmentation.”

Static crackled though the intercom. “Is that so?”

Seht nodded. “I seem to remember you being interested in Ravnos’s array.”

“Yeah, I do too… What exactly are you offering, Seht?”

Seht smiled in the direction of the body behind the glass. “Tell me, Stationmaster, when was the last time you were well and truly fucked? Or are you still making do with stale movies and old memories?”

Victoria jerked upright and stared. He was not offering what she thought he was offering… was he?

“Are you offering me a ride?”

Seht nodded. “With her nav-piloting array you should be able to feel everything she feels, and I’m very good.”

The stationmaster’s databanks hummed. “Let me get this straight. You’re going to fuck her, and I get to ride her while you do it?”

Seht nodded firmly. “Yes.”

Victoria’s mouth popped open. He was offering him access to her brain, while he fucked her? She shook her head and headed for the door. Oh hell no, she was not playing this game.

Seht grabbed her by the arm.
Where are you going?

Victoria turned on him.
I am not, absolutely not fucking you with that… thing riding my brain!