Sasha had only woken up about an hour ago, and she was already so done with everything. The bridge was filled with an eerie blue light, which she assumed was coming from the strange ship. Sasha made to activate the warp drive but as she did, she found out that the ship wouldn’t budge. She tried again and again until she realized it was futile; they seemed to be trapped in some kind of tractor beam. And the more she attempted escape, the more energy she would waste, which would undoubtedly cause more problems later. She buried her face in her hands, and fought back tears of frustration.
She felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked up, ignoring the familiar warmth that spread through her. Ludrien sat still in the copilot’s seat, a small smile on his face, as if the large black ship didn’t pose a threat.
“Why are you smiling?”
“It’s okay. I don’t think they want to kill us.”
She glanced out of the window again, and then she turned back to him with a glare.
“Your friends are awfully shady.”
“No, I promise they’re great, non-shady people.”
“Whatever.”
She went to put on her space suit, and helmet. After that, she went to find her jacket, which was in the same spot as she left it. It gave her a little comfort as she went back up to the bridge. It wouldn’t protect her from third degree burns, that was the suit’s job, but it reminded her of home.
When she came back, she couldn’t see the sun anymore. They must have been pulled closer to the other ship when she had been gone. Ludrien was still in the chair, as calm as could be, eating another pastry. She didn’t care enough to get upset; she was too busy trying not to panic as they were pulled completely into the ship’s lower decks.
Sasha took the opportunity to activate her helmet, which formed around her head, and plasma phasers built into her suit’s gloves.
Ellen’s voice came in over the small speakers in her helmet.
“Are you going off to meet your lover’s friends?” she asked.
“He’s not my lover.”
Why was everyone else okay with all of this except for her?
She would have said something else, but they were completely inside of the ship now, in what looked like a hangar. They were inside a large room, which also contained many fighter vessels. Lots of them were brightly colored, and clashed with the black walls of the room. They obviously didn’t belong there, and Sasha wondered where they came from.
What if they were stolen? Was Ludrien friends with space pirates? Was Ludrien a space pirate?
The hangar doors shut with a low thud. Sasha was afraid that she’d never see them open again. And in any time of peril, she did what any other human being would do; find someone to blame. That person was Ludrien, who still seemed perfectly fine with being in the bowels of a pirate ship. But that was probably because he was a pirate himself.
She advanced upon him with murderous intent but before she could even say a word, the dash lit up with warning.
MAIN HATCH OPEN
Sasha’s plasma blasters began to pulsate in the gloves of her suit like two mini beating hearts. She had no idea what she would do when the intruders showed up in the bridge; she had done some self defense training in her classes, but that might not be much help.
I wish that I took that class more seriously, she thought.
She felt Ludrien’s hand on her wrist.
“They mean us no harm.”
“Yeah, that’s why they captured my ship, isn’t it?” she hissed.
“Sasha,” he said.
"What."
Suddenly her helmet was being lifted off her head and a pair of fingers were on her temples.
“Relax, alright?”
It was almost like Ludrien’s words had a calming effect, or maybe it was the weight of his fingers on her face or the way he looked into her eyes. Whatever it was, it was doing the trick. Warm tendrils of something spread through Sasha’s body, starting at the crown of her head and ending at the soles of her feet. It felt as if she was on a higher plane of existence and she wasn’t quite ready for it to end.
But all good things must. His hands lifted from her face, but not before lingering slightly as if he didn’t want to let go.
Her trance was broken with a high pitched squeal that seemed to penetrate Sasha’s eardrums and cause her to go temporarily deaf.
“Ludrien!”
A little purple-skinned girl burst into the bridge, bright green eyes alight with joy. She barreled into Ludrien, knocking the breath out of him.
“I missed you so much! Mother has been so worried about you! I’ve been worried about you too!”
“I missed you too,” Ludrien said once he recovered. He pulled the girl into a less crushing hug. “But you don’t have to worry anymore, because I’m safe now.”
The girl let out a bright grin and Ludrien held her tighter. Sasha felt like she was intruding on something. So, she decided to back down in the pilot’s chair.
At this moment the little girl seemed to realize that there was another person in the room. She dashed over to Sasha with wide, curious eyes.
“Who’re you?” she asked.
“Um, I’m Sasha.”
“I’m Cresta!” She held up a palm. “Nice to meet you!”
Sasha smiled a little and placed her palm against Cresta’s. At least she wasn’t completely socially inept.
Cresta turned back to Ludrien so fast that it was amazing she didn’t hurt herself.
“Is Sasha your wife, Ludrien?”
“No,” Sasha and Ludrien said at once.
“Yes,” Ellen said.
“Who said you could start talking?”
“I decided since I am a sentient being capable of abstract thought.”
“I made you. I’m your god."
“Whatever makes you feel secure, Sasha.”
Another voice cut in.
“Cresta, love, what have I told you about running off?”
The owner of the voice stepped in. She was also purple-skinned, but she was quite tall, a bit taller than Ludrien, and slender. Her face was long and elegant, with dark green eyes that seemed gave off the impression that she could figure out one’s secrets with one look. It was framed by glossy dark hair that ran down her back. She also carried herself gracefully, like a queen. Her look was only accentuated by the thick robes she wore. Sasha suddenly became aware of all of her shortcomings. She noticed Ludrien give her a look, as if he was reading her mind.
“Mother! Ludrien’s back! And he has a wife now!”
Sasha never thought she’d see him blush. She tried to stop the giggle that threatened to escape, but failed. It only made him blush more. His face erupted in blue. Interesting, Sasha thought, he has blue blood.
“Does he now?”
“Yeah! Her name’s Sasha. Isn’t she pretty, Mother?”
She laughed. It almost reminded Sasha of soft music.
“I am Leytiri. I suppose I should thank you for bringing Ludrien home safely. He’s come back many times with a vast array of injuries. I’m worried that we’ll have to lock him up for his own good,” she said, giving Sasha a pointed look. She held out her palm also, and Sasha repeated the greeting.
Sasha wasn’t expecting the praise. After all, she hadn’t done much. At a loss for words, all she nodded.
“Your wife is quite shy, Ludrien.” Sasha sputtered and Ludrien’s face turned a deeper shade of of blue. “Come.”
“We’re not married,” he said, though it was in vain.
She turned. Cresta latched onto Sasha’s hand and pulled her along as they exited the ship. As she stepped outside, Sasha realized that the black vessel was much larger than expected. She looked up, and immediately felt like an ant. The hangar itself must have been at more than twenty stories tall. Dotted along the black walls were many openings, which Sasha assumed to lead further into the ship.
Cresta’s mother led them on, nodding at a few guards, and led them to a lift which would take them to the very top level of the ship. Sasha felt a little dread as the doors closed, blocking her ship from view.
“Do not worry,” Leytiri said. “Your ship will be well cared for.”
“Thank you,” Sasha replied, finding her voice again.
The ride was mostly quiet, save for Cresta’s many questions.
“Are you made out of chocolate?” Cresta asked.
“No,” Sasha said. “Why do you ask?”
“Because your skin looks like chocolate, so that means it must be chocolate.”
“Um?”
The lift stopped when Sasha was in the middle of trying to explain that she didn’t naturally taste like chocolate and that Cresta could not have a taste of her arm. Ludrien looked sorry for her and Leytiri looked amused at her expense.
The door finally opened, and Sasha was gladly the first to get off the lift, which was a bad idea. Because she was met with angry face and a phaser to her head.
“The hell are you?”
ns 15.158.61.20da2
