Vanguard Word Update

2k words

***

-xXx-

Cadell felt sunshine glare into his closed eyelids, blinking his way out of a satisfying dream that immediately became half-remembered. Light was shining through the blinds in tight slivers, and it took him a moment to remember that there wasn’t sunshine on the Hub, the light was probably sourced from the giant fluorescents dotting the streets of the station.

The muscles in his arms and legs ached, but it was a good kind of ache, the kind one gets after ten or so hours of constant sleep…. or after laying with a woman for just as long, Cadell thought, recalling the limitless libido his alien partner had subjected him to. They had literally gone at it until exhaustion, falling asleep in each other’s arms with him still inside her, which resulted in a few half-hearted attempts which were oddly dreamlike. Samiha hadn’t been lying when she wanted to make the most of the time they had left on the Hub.

He sat up with his back against the wooden headboard, stretching his arms out and up as he yawned. He saw Samiha was already awake, sitting on the right side of the bed, her rusty feathers sparkling as they shone under the slivers of the light outside. She was staring at the ground with her chin in her hand, as nude as he was, her fluffy body and brandished wings giving her an exotic look that complemented her curves.

“Mornin’,” Cadell chimed, turning to cough into his hand. “Hot dog, that herb of yours is givin’ me a killer headache.”

He reached over the mattress, fumbling with his discarded clothes, producing his phone after a moment, hoping on hope that Alliance command wasn’t looking for them. Trying to explain to Marek that he had been fraternising with an alien instead of being present for rolecall wasn’t a situation he looked forward to experiencing.

No messages, fortunately, Cadell setting his phone on the nightstand with a sigh.

“Don’t get me wrong, it was worth every second,” Cadell added, pushing away the sheets. He knew that the station was always set to an ambient temperature, but he found it was a little warmer than usual. Maybe the Balokarids preferred it hotter.

He crossed the enormous bed on his knees, sidling up beside Samiha. He placed his palms on her shoulders, her rubbery muscles flinching as he began to rub them, her feathers stalking into the air around his digits. She gave him the barest flick of her yellow eye on this side before staring between her knees again.

“You hungry? We still got time before we gotta head back to the quadrant, what say you and me catch us some breakfast? Samiha?”

She reached over and grabbed him by the hand, stopping his impromptu massage. She turned to face him, her beak grazing his nose as she gave him a serious look and muttered seven words.

“I am going to request a transfer.”

Cadell’s heart had been elated, but now it sank deep into his stomach upon hearing those seven words. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

“Not right away, it is too late for that,” Samiha added. “But when the mission is done, when the shooting stops, if it stops, I will speak with the Shaliyya and find a new place in the Alliance.”

“I… I don’t understand,” Cadell said, shaking his head. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No!” Samiha quickly answered. “It is I who has done the wrong thing, Cadell, not you. The blame is mine alone.”

“What blame? What are you talkin’ about?”

Samiha looked away, but before she did he saw tears in her eyes. “You were right, what you said last night,” Samiha whispered. “The two of us mating has complicated things for the worse. I was a fool to let my emotions get the better of me, and for swindling you into the same line of thought.”

“You didn’t swindle me,” Cadell replied. “I wanted this… and I thought you did too? The way you came onto me back at the steakhouse…”

“The herb clouds the thoughts,” Samiha said. “And all of us smoked enough leaf to keep a whole Clan pacified. You are my Kith’sla, we… we cannot go on like this. The chain of command will not work…”

“Who gives two shits about the chain of command?” Cadell snapped. “We agreed to figure this out as we went, remember? I wasn’t high enough to forget about that, and you weren’t either, so what’s the matter? Was I… Didn’t you like it?”

He didn’t have to point out what he was talking about for Samiha to understand. Without warning she closed the gap between his mouth and her beak, her tongue coiling into his mouth to deliver a salacious kiss. She’d had a lot of practice, and she stole his breath away as she leaned into him, Cadell groaning into her mouth as their tongues wrestled.

“Of course I liked it,” Samiha said after pulling away, Cadell taking a moment to recover. A sudden flare of anger rose up in him, the mixed-signals making him frustrated.

“So what’s the problem?” he demanded. “Just what has gotten into you, Samiha? Tell me, and I can help you fix it.”

“I cannot fall in love with you,” Samiha stammered. The tears were streaming down her face, but she pushed her confession out anyway. “I have already lost someone I care for to this war, if I were to lose another… I would die.”

Cadell reached up to hold her shoulder, but she pulled away, holding up a hand as he went to speak.

“I know what you are going to say,” she said, cutting him off. “You think it will not happen, that is will all be fine, but you are an innocent, caring thing, you do not yet know what war is capable of doing to a person. And when you do… you will know that this is the right decision. You’ll even thank me one day.”

“Thank you?” he echoed. “We’ve gone through all this shit together, and now you cut ties with me, and I’m supposed to thank you? How is that fair?”

“You do not understand,” Samiha muttered. “Every time I look at you, all I can think about is my sister. You and Takeela are so alike. She thought everything would be alright to, that nothing would happen. I already have the death of one loved one on my conscience, I cannot take another, Cadell.”

“So you’re just gonna leave?” Cadell asked, barely on the brink of weeping himself. “How’s that gonna change anythin’?”

“Maybe it won’t,” Samiha said. “but if I stay, if things keep developing between us, and you were die on my watch… I could not live with myself.”

“You said that Balokarids mate for life,” he pointed out. “You can’t just walk away from that.”

“You are human,” Samiha said. “That makes it… different. Complicated.”

“No,” Cadell said, shaking his head. “No. You’re the one makin’ things complicated, Samiha. If you’d just stopped trying to carry all this weight on your own, you’d see how wrong you are. I’ve never seen you so happy since we passed the simulation, and last night it was like you were a completely different person. Now you just want to go back and be miserable all over again? You think your sister would want you to throw away all this just because of some past mistake?”

“She died on my watch,” Samiha growled, clicking her beak in anger,

“And now you have your chance to make up for her death,” Cadell continued. “If you’re scared of me dying, then be the shield you’ve trained to be. The team needs you to protect us. I need you. You can’t give up on us when we haven’t even seen our first mission through yet.”

“I have not given up on you or anyone, I just…” Samiha closed her eyes, then opened them after a moment of silence. “I am just scared.”

“You’re scared? I’m the one who hasn’t seen combat before, how’d you think I feel?”

“At least you hide it well,” Samiha said, letting slip a small smile despite how upset she was. She sniffled, folding her arms over her bare chest. “You have a point, Cadell,” she added. “Who else would protect you if I left? Still, I w-”

She was interrupted by a sudden beeping noise, the two of them looking towards the nightstand. The screen on Cadell’s phone had blinked, and he reached over to grab it, flipping it open to the message screen.

“Damn it…” Cadell said.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s a call to the whole platoon,” he explained. “The Endeavor is fuelled and ready, and we’re to report to hangar deck fifteen in a couple hours with our gear.”

“Talk about bad timing,” Samiha said, leaning over to read off the screen.

“Yeah. This is it,” he said. “We should start heading back to the quadrant.”

He made to stand up, but Samiha wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him into her lap. She hugged him from behind, the meat of her breasts squashing against his shoulders, the distinct shape of her loins pressing into one of his cheeks, the texture sending a twitch through his member.

“Before we go, let me say this so we can clear the air,” Samiha whispered into his ear. “Whatever happens, whether I transfer or… or not, know I do not regret a thing, Cadell. Nobody has ever made me feel so wonderful before, like you have.”

He relished the feeling of being held for a moment, her soft feathers cocooning him from all directions, Cadell gripping her forearm as he shut his eyes. As much as he could have stayed like that forever, the message had only added to the tension their conversation had created, and the urgency couldn’t be denied.

“We’ll talk about this later,” Cadell said, Samiha nodding. She took that as her cue to let him go, and he left her soft embrace, chucking over her singlet as he reached for his clothes. “Let’s get dressed. We’ll have breakfast in the mess, then grab our gear.”

-xXx-

After eating their morning portions, Cadell and Samiha made their way to the bunks, Cadell checking his phone to make sure they were making good time. They weren’t the only ones hurrying about. Groups of troopers and engineers were rushing down the corridors, the former slinging duffle bags and backpacks over their shoulders, coilguns secured to the side straps. It wasn’t just Cadell’s platoon that was being deployed on this mission, he’d heard from someone that carriers like the Endeavor could carry thousands of troops at a time.

As they stepped through into their assigned quarters, Cadell paused. Somebody was inside, and as they turned around, he recognised it as Kurtis. He had a bag in one hand and his automatic coilgun in the other, and he kicked his locker closed as he addressed the pair.

“Morning,” he chimed. “You guys up and disappeared last night. Where’d you go off to?”

Cadell glanced at Samiha, who was equally speechless. The alien was hastily dressed, her fatigues rolled in awkward places, and Cadell wasn’t better off. His hir was messy, his uniform wasn’t tucked in, and they both reeked of their lovemaking, not having the chance to shower yet.

“It’s about time you two made up,” Kurtis chuckled, having seen right through them. “Looks like Hunter owes me a drink. He thought you’d never take it to next base.”

“Where is he, by the way?” Cadell asked, changing the subject.

“With Kaz at the armoury, which is where you two should be. Command’s given us clearance to transfer our guns to the hangar.”

“Do we have enough time for a shower?” Samiha added. “I could use a wash.”

“A shower sounds nice. Any room for me?” Cadell asked, Samiha smirking at him.