Tracy St. John's Blog, page 189

Weekend Wake-up Call – Unholy Union

Despite the many months of unwanted celibacy and his better-than-average size, he slid into her with ease.  Her body accepted his invasion as if welcoming an old friend.  Elaine groaned as Ash filled her aching emptiness, filling her to her very end.  Oh, it was so much better than she remembered sex being.  Her intimate sleeve clutched at him, trying to pull him ever deeper into its starving maw.
He kissed her deeply while he thrust in and out, swallowing her cries of bliss.  Their coupling made soft, wet sounds as he plunged into her core.  She tightened her legs in rhythm with his thrusts, driving him deeper, almost to the point of pain.
He broke the kiss to stare into her eyes.  “I wanted to fuck you the instant I saw you,” he gasped.  “All I could think about was being inside you, feeling you warm all around me.  Do I feel good to you, Elaine?”
“Wonderful,” she moaned.  “It’s been so long.”
“I can feel you need this as badly as I do,” he gasped, pounding harder so that she rose and fell against the wall at her back.  He shifted slightly, making his shaft rub harder against the front of her sheath, finding the cluster of nerves that felt best.  She cried out at the explosion of pleasure.
“Oh yes Ash, right there!” 
He worked her, hitting the spot over and over.  His groin slapped against hers with the report of shotgun blasts, driving her without mercy.  She screamed as the heavenly pressure built huge in her belly.  She heard him rumble a growl more beastlike than human.  
Despite the animal sound, his voice coaxed her gently.  “Come for me, Elaine.  Come for me.  Let go.  Surrender yourself.”
It was happening at his urging, the explosion starting in slow motion.  First a small spark of intense brightness.  Then came the expanding burn of ignition, swelling out from her loins to fill her entire lower belly, mushrooming up into her chest, throat and head, detonating every cell in her body.  The sound of her cries was lost in the thunderclap of passion’s eruption.
Available from Amazon Kindle, Amazon UK, Nook, Kobo, and Smashwords

Shalia's Diary Thursday Post

So what's a little bondage between friends?  http://shaliasdiary.blogspot.com/

WIP Wednesday – Nuns of Europa: Sister Katherine

Sister Katherine has a secret:
Katherine staggered to her bedside and sank to her knees.  Tears coursed down her cheeks as she clasped her hands together, leaning her elbows on the surface of her narrow bed.  She listened to the continuing cries, growing fewer by the second.  She thought of the girls, her little ones, especially the youngest.  Darci and Marci Soames, sisters sent to the convent by a devout grandmother no longer physically capable of caring for them, were only twelve and nine years old.  They must have been frightened to see the Kalquorians coming at them, absolutely terrorized as the aliens sedated them.
Had she actually wanted to meet these creatures, these gargantuan Kalquorians who made helpless women and girls scream?  Were these the men she’d gotten herself in so much trouble for, the reason she’d been exiled to Europa?
You wanted to meet with them.  Talk to them.  Reason with them.  Remember the adage ‘be careful what you wish for’?  Well, your wish has come true.  You will now come face to face with the Kalquorians.  
Sobs shook Katherine’s slender frame as she began to pray.  “Heavenly Father, I am heartily sorry for whatever I may have done to offend you, especially if this punishment was brought on by me.  Please take me, give me to these Kalquorians, but let the children stay safe.  Keep these young girls and women safe, give them strength, take me God, please.”
She knew she jabbered in her rising panic.  Hearing the sound of barking-like voices outside her door only fed the terror.  They’d come in any moment and take her like the others...
The girls.  What would they do to her girls?
“Please, God, please, don’t let the innocent be harmed, I beg of you...”
Her tears poured as she pleaded with all her might, thinking only of the young girls in her care that she could not save from whatever was happening to them.
Releasing Summer 2013

Shalia's Diary Monday Post

Back on Shalia's 'eternal seesaw'.  http://shaliasdiary.blogspot.com/

Sunday’s Serving – Clan Beginnings: Clan and Conviction (WIP)

            The Imdiko sighed.  Once again, his lack of social graces had tripped him up.  He should have been more sensitive to the investigator’s loss.  That wouldn’t have been the only possible reason Gelan had been such a jerk, in any case.  Like Jomik said, the investigators and enforcers were not exactly open to the insights of the psych department.  They hated to admit the objective opinion of someone not completely immersed in the case might be helpful once in awhile. They didn’t like to share the glory of solving the crimes either.            Maybe in a few days Dramok Gelan would be more approachable.  If Krijero could get the guts up to ask for another meeting, perhaps he could try to get in his good graces.  He really wanted to be on Delir.  It was the kind of case that could challenge his abilities.            “I’ll give it another go in a few days.  Maybe a week,” he told Jomik.            “There you go.”  The Dramok moved back to his desk.  “Gelan’s new partner is hot, huh?  Don’t tell my Nobek I said that.”            Krijero shrugged and pretended to study the notes he’d been making on the Delir case when Gelan and Wynhod had shown up.  “I didn’t notice.”            Actually, he had.  Both men were handsome.  Big and uber masculine, with almost identical auras of power.  Exactly the kind of men he gravitated to.  Not that he would be trying to interest them in him, oh hell no.  Krijero preferred anonymous encounters, the ones that had no chance of ending up with strings attached.  And he absolutely did not get involved with Dramoks.            He’d learned his lesson well with Pertak.  He would not set himself to be hurt again by anyone.  Especially not by a couple of smug jerks like Dramok Gelan and Nobek Wynhod.
Releasing May 2013

Krijero, Krijero, Krijero...

Imdiko, you are one red-hot mess.  When I embarked on writing the back story of Clan Gelan, Clan and Conviction, I knew it would be complicated due to the time span involved.  That stretch of 13 years loomed big and scary before me when I sat down to wrestle with it.  Especially the three years that Gelan and Wynhod did everything in their power to get you to join their clan.  I did not look forward to dealing with it.
In actuality, the time span hasn’t been the issue.  Like any life, there are parts you can kind of skim over because they consist of only the everyday things.  Get up, go to work, have a few laughs, go to bed, get up the next morning and do it again.  Sure, there are events that give life its sparkle or the occasional unwanted kick in the pants, but those moments are more personal in nature most of the time.  Not really noteworthy.  So it turned out the spread of time wasn’t such a hard thing to deal with after all.
No, the problems came with you, Krijero.  All that hurt and fear make it difficult to take this ride.  As the person who is writing you, I have to live and hurt as you did.  It’s not easy. 
You could say, “Well, you didn’t have to write me this way.”  Yeah, I did.  You demanded it.  You wouldn’t have it any other way.  You may be one of the sweetest men I’ve ever created, but you are also the most stubborn.  Either I do it the way you want or you’ll run off and hide.  Like Gelan and Wynhod, sometimes I just want to shake you.  You are so frustrating!
Shake you, hug you, kick you, scream at you, rock you in my arms and tell you it’s all going to be all right ... this is what it’s been like living with you the last few weeks.  I thought Clan Erybet in Alien Redemption was a difficult bunch.  But you, Krijero?  You are so much harder to cope with.  And what happens in the end – well, that just about did it.  The only thing that got me to sit down and write those scenes was knowing that things would ultimately turn out okay.  After all, you got to Alien Slave and ‘Sins of the Past’, so it had to.  But this journey ... damn, you really took it out of me.
Yet for all you put me through, I still think of you and smile.  I could cheerfully choke you sometimes, I really could.  But in the end, I mostly want to take your hand and sit next to you, snuggled up against your shoulder.  We’ve been through a lot together in the last few weeks, and in a weird, perverse way, that makes me adore you all the more.  No wonder Gelan and Wynhod wouldn’t let you go.  You make us all crazy, but we know life would be so much less without Imdiko Krijero in it.
The first draft is done, and it’s time to edit, edit, edit, and then edit some more.  That means you and I have to go through it all over again a few more times.  I look at the coming weeks with a mix of anticipation and dread.  I know you do too, but we’ve gotten through this once already.  I suppose we can do it again.  I worry you’ll add to it, though.  It would be just like you to pile on the suffering.  You refuse to make this easy on anyone, including yourself.  Krijero, what am I going to do with you?
It’s a good thing you’re worth it, like Gelan and Wynhod keep saying.  And I’ll keep going, no matter how much you put me through the wringer.  But come on, big guy.  At some point, you gotta say “Enough.”  Let’s get this thing done already, okay?

Alien Refuge Now Available

The official release day of Alien Refuge has arrived!  I’d like to welcome our latest addition, Clan Ospar, to the fold.  You can get your copy at Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords.  It is also available in print.  Without further ado:
All Iris Jenson wants is a safe place to raise her autistic six-year-old son Thomas.  She thinks she’s found it on Haven, an Earther colony located within the Kalquorian Empire’s borders.  Making a fresh start under the watchful eyes of Earth’s former enemy has its challenges, but it also possesses opportunities to live free of fear, something Iris hasn’t had in a long time.  Love is an added surprise when Haven’s governor Dramok Ospar and his clanmates Nobek Jol and Imdiko Rivek enter the young widow and child’s lives.
Trouble is brewing on Haven Colony, however.  Insurgent Earthers want to free themselves of Kalquor’s influence, and Kalquor itself is on the brink of a revolt, led by the shadowy figure known only as the Basma.  Then a violent ghost from Iris’ past reappears and threatens to snatch Thomas from those who love him.  Ospar’s clan races against time to save Haven from a bloody rebellion and an innocent child from the grasp of a monster.
Mild BDSM, including anal play/intercourse, bondage, Dom/sub play, forced seduction, and multiple sexual partners (m/f/m/m). 
Chapter 1
The snow blower vibrated hard in Iris Jenson’s gloved hands.  Despite the quaking, it had been doing an efficient job of clearing a path from the snow crawler’s shed to her home’s front door.  She was halfway there when it suddenly made a horrible ratcheting sound.  It sounded like an iron monster chewing on metal screws, a racket fit to make her ears bleed.  Iris immediately shut it off.
As fast as she quieted it, she was still too late.  Her six-year-old son Thomas was already screaming, his hands clapped to the sides of his head.  He bounded through the knee-high snow, running away from her and straight for the travel lane that ran in front of their dome-shaped house.
Iris dropped the blower and waded through last night’s snowfall after him.  “Thomas, it’s okay!  The noise is gone!”
He was too panicked to hear.  His blue hand-knitted cap came off as he ran, sending his shaggy dark blond hair to bounce about his head.  He sobbed as if his heart might break.  “It’s broken!  Hurry!  Hurry!”
Under his terrified shrieks, Iris heard another sound, one that made her heart speed up.  It was the low hum of an oncoming shuttle, heading down the travel lane Thomas blindly galloped for.  The quickly growing throb of the vehicle’s engines warned her it was coming faster than the speed laws dictated.She started running, moving as fast as the impeding snow and her heavy boots would allow.  “Thomas!  Stop!”
But Thomas almost never stopped on command.  The horrific sound of the snow blower breaking down had pained and terrified him, sending his senses into overload.  All the boy knew at this moment was that he had to put as much distance between himself and the source of the hideous noise that had hurt his hypersensitive ears.  The deep snow should have slowed him down, but he was a strong boy and he was a fast boy.  His boots also had traction soles, unlike Iris’.  With funds so low, she’d opted this winter to get by with her old, worn boots.  
Iris shot a panicked glance down the lane as she fought through the snow to get to her son.  The sky over Haven Colony was bright following last night’s storm, and it glinted off a metal surface racing ever closer.  The oncoming shuttle was a cargo hauler, flying close to the ground as colony regulations dictated for a vehicle that size. The glance told her all she needed to know:  she’d never get to Thomas before it was on him.  He was already in its path, his bulky tan coat not nearly enough contrast against the blinding snow.  The speeding shuttle pilot would not see him in time to stop.
She screamed desperately, “Thomas!  Danger!  Danger!  Get out of the lane!”  
He knew the word danger, but her shout had been a deadly mistake.  Iris had drilled that word in his head, trying to head off the lack of impulse control that often had him running right into travel lanes, exactly as he’d done this time.  Instead of getting out of the lane, he halted immediately.  He turned around and looked at her with wide eyes.
Iris had a moment of perfect clarity as Thomas stood still and waited to get run down.  Every detail stood out in that instant:  his wild, flyaway hair, rarely cut because he was too sensitive to cope with the sound of clippers.  His perfectly almond-shaped brown eyes.  A cherubic Rafael-esque round face, a face so beautiful that it made people pause and comment.  His sturdy little boy’s body made thick by layers of thermal pants, jeans, snowpants, shirt, sweater, and coat.  A perfect, angelic boy lit in the light of snow-reflected sun.
Iris screamed as the speeding shuttle bore down on Thomas, who was only now realizing something was coming at him.  Then there was a lightning flash of white and darkness that swept her child from the travel lane in a blur.  The stream of movement halted at the side of the lane, resolving itself into a tall, ebony-haired Kalquorian in a white snowsuit.  Thomas dangled from the bend of one of the alien’s arms while the other raised a battle-grade percussion blaster.  The Kalquorian fired on the shuttle, and the blaster’s shoo-whupmade the air shiver.
The shuttle squalled to a halt, dipping and rocking violently as it did so.  Then it dropped, falling a couple of feet to the ground with an earthshaking thud.
Iris was barely interested in the shuttle.  Her eyes were all for her son, who goggled up at the Kalquorian who held him. 
“Thomas.  Thomas,” she choked, sobbing his name.  He was alive.  Unhurt.  Completely secure in the grip of the man who held him.  It was nothing short of a miracle.
The Kalquorian turned towards her and watched her stagger to them as he holstered his weapon on his belt.  A part of Iris’ stunned brain registered the man’s long black hair, his large purple eyes, the dimple in his curved chin.  His handsome face had the fierce set of the warrior Nobek breed.  His body, hugely muscled like all his kind, was clad in a form-fitting armored snowsuit that blended well with its surroundings.  His matching boots reached to just below his knees.  He seemed somehow familiar, though he shouldn’t.  Iris didn’t socialize with the alien race.
Iris held out her arms.  “Please.  Let me have him.”
The Kalquorian looked at her, then down at Thomas who still stared up at him.  The little boy plucked at the arm holding him and imperiously demanded in his musical voice, “Here, Mommy.  Give Thomas to Mommy.”
The alien man’s brows drew together.  One end of his mouth twisted slightly up.  Iris could understand his confusion.  Usually, Earther children on Haven ran and hid from Kalquorians.  Most of them were frightened as much by their parents’ stories of their former enemies as by the massive size of the aliens.  Any other little boy held by one would probably be screaming his head off right now.
But then, Thomas Jenson wasn’t like most children.
The Kalquorian gently set Thomas on his feet and gave him a little push towards Iris.  “Go to your mother, boy.”
Iris shivered at the deep, slightly accented voice.  It was the voice of quiet thunder, full of command and strength.  Thomas seemed just as impressed.  He sloshed a single step awkwardly through the snow towards her, still staring over his shoulder at his rescuer.
Iris dismissed the Kalquorian for the moment, darting forward to snatch her child close.  “Oh dear God, Thomas.  Oh my baby, are you all right?”  She patted over his body, not quite daring to trust her eyes that told her he hadn’t been smashed by the shuttle.
He simply blinked at the Kalquorian looming over them.  He stared up at the Nobek, unafraid.  The alien stared back, seemingly transfixed by Thomas’ blatant wide-eyed curiosity.
There was no sign of injury on the boy, and Iris managed a trembling smile for the man who had snatched him away from certain death.  “Thank you.  Thank you so much for saving him.”
Before the Kalquorian could answer, the hatch of the downed shuttle slid open.  Blaine Middleton, a local that lived only a few miles from Iris’ tiny homestead, emerged and stormed towards them.  His open coat flapped around his gaunt frame.  Iris tried hard to ignore the gossip that said Blaine drank most of his calories, but she’d heard plenty despite all her good intentions.  She could believe it, looking at his bloodshot eyes and unkempt appearance.  
The scarecrow man who made most of his living transporting goods for other colonists was shouting before he’d taken half a dozen steps in their direction.  “What the hell is wrong with you, Kalquorian?  You fouled up my forward vision vid feed and my navigation is offline!  You coulda got me killed!”
The alien turned towards Blaine.  He pulled a small handheld computer off his belt and spoke commands to it, seemingly ignoring the irate man.    
Thomas brightened to see the portable computer device.  “Thomas’ handheld,” he declared, reaching towards the Kalquorian.  “Here, Thomas.”
Iris held him back and whispered in his ear.  “No baby, that’s his handheld.  He’s doing work on it.  You can’t have it.”
Meanwhile Blaine had drawn near, and he halted a few feet away.  His fists went to his hips and he stood spraddle-legged, as if bracing himself to remain upright.  He kept yelling at the Kalquorian.  “Hey, you damned oversized ape!  I’m talking to you!”
The Nobek regarded him coldly.  His rolling thunder voice filled the air despite the low tone.  “This vehicle is registered to Blaine Middleton.  Is that you?”
Blaine glared back with bloodshot eyes.  “Yeah.  So?”
“This is your third piloting offense in six months.  I am confiscating your shuttle.”
“My offense?” Blaine screeched.  “My offense?  You’re the one firing percussion blasters at innocent Earthers!”
“You were flying at an excessive speed on a travel lane in a dwelling area.  A dwelling area that is also clearly designated as having a child with a disability on premises.”  The Kalquorian glanced at Iris and Thomas.  His gaze lingered a moment, then he marched past Blaine to the shuttle.  He boarded it while its owner stared after him in shock.
Finally the Earther spluttered in furious indignation.  “Hey!  You’ve got no right.  That’s my property!”  He plowed towards his craft.
The Kalquorian came back out before Blaine got there.  He typed on his handheld.  “The vessel’s warning mechanism that indicates the need for slower operation on this lane has been disabled.  I’m assuming that was done by you.  That’s another offense.  Your pilot’s permit is hereby suspended pending review.  I have locked out all your pass codes that enable you to use this vehicle.”  He looked at Blaine.  There was no threat on his expression, but it was cold enough to make Iris cringe.  She felt glad that stare wasn’t directed at her.  
The Kalquorian continued, “You may return home now, Mr. Middleton.  You will be contacted later with information on how to file any challenge you wish to make and final judgment on your case.”Blaine stood there for a few moments, his mouth hanging open.  It took at least ten seconds before he found the sense to respond.  When he did, it was in a shriek.
“And how the hell do you propose I get home without my shuttle, you stupid shit?”
Iris’ grip on Thomas tightened.  She waited for the alien to crush Blaine.
Instead, the Kalquorian only lifted an eyebrow.  “You can walk.  As it is less than an hour until dark and your address indicates it will take you about that length of time to reach your address, I suggest you start now.”
Blaine was shaking with fury.  Iris was afraid he’d say something else to anger the alien titan, or even worse, attack him.  However, it turned out Blaine had a little bit of self preservation, at least enough not to tangle with a big, muscled Kalquorian twice his weight.  The Earther turned away from him and leveled a black look at Iris instead.
“When are you going to teach that damned kid of yours to be normal, Iris?  Or at least put him on a leash!  You and your retard son—”  
There was that blurring motion again, and the Kalquorian suddenly stood right in front of Blaine.  His voice came out in a growl.  “You are in the wrong here.  You will speak with respect to the woman or I will pull your filthy tongue from your mouth.”
Iris gasped and Thomas laughed, no doubt delighted by the alien’s amazing feat of speed and not his words.  Blaine stumbled back in shock.  His gloved hands came up in a defensive posture.  When the Kalquorian only stood there, not increasing his threat, the Earther walked around him, giving him a wide berth.
He still couldn’t resist running his mouth.  His voice a grating whine, Blaine said, “You’d better believe I’m talking to Governor Hoover.  You can’t threaten me like that!”
The Kalquorian simply watched as Blaine stomped away, muttering under his breath.  When the man had gotten several yards up the lane, the alien turned his attention to Iris and Thomas.  He approached them carefully, as if concerned he might frighten them.
“Go fast!” Thomas encouraged.  He watched the nearing alien with a big smile.
The man offered his own slight smile at the boy, then bowed slightly to Iris.  “Your child is unharmed, Matara?”
Iris swallowed to see those cat-slitted eyes trained on her.  “I – I think so.”  Mostly to get away from that intense gaze, she gave her attention to her son.  “Thomas, are you hurt?”
“All better,” he said.  Since the Kalquorian was apparently not going to run fast again, the boy’s attention turned to the inoperable vehicle resting on the lane.  “Shuttle broken.  Fix shuttle, Mommy.”Iris buried her face in Thomas’ overlong hair, smelling the sweet shampoo scent of it.  “Don’t worry.  Someone will fix the shuttle,” she whispered.  
The Kalquorian still stood there, watching them.  Iris slowly straightened to her full height.  Heavens, she only came up to the man’s chest.  A throb that felt more like anticipation than fear spilled in her stomach.  “I’m sorry you had to rescue him.  My snow blower broke down and made an awful noise.  It scared him and he ran and I couldn’t catch him.”
All at once, the vision of the shuttle bearing down on Thomas assaulted Iris.  She remembered the terrible knowledge that she was about to lose him and there was nothing she could do to stop it.  Caught by surprise, she sobbed.
Thomas looked at her, his expression startled.  Then his little face crumpled, and he began to wail.  “Don’t cry, Mommy!  Don’t cry!”
Iris tried to get herself under control.  Thomas couldn’t handle it when she cried, becoming so upset that sometimes he vomited from the stress.  But the realization that he’d been within a second of dying, her baby had almost beenkilled, was too much.  She shook all over, hot tears cascading down her frozen cheeks, burning trails that dripped off her chin.
A band of iron wrapped around her waist and gently turned her towards her home.  Through tears that trebled her vision, Iris saw the Kalquorian pick up Thomas in the crook of his other arm, simultaneously guiding her to her front door.
That voice of gentle thunder accompanied the strong arms holding them.  “You both need to go inside and warm up.  Come.”
Iris didn’t question the order.  It never even occurred to her to resist letting the Kalquorian push her and Thomas into their tiny home.
Stumbling into the domed dwelling was like entering safety.  As soon as they crossed the threshold, Thomas wriggled from the Kalquorian’s arm and ran through the den to the kitchen.  It was all one big open space, shared with a small dining area.  Closed doors led to Iris and Thomas’ bedrooms and the bath facility.
The Kalquorian guided Iris to the main room’s battered lounger, a long sofa-like seating piece.  Iris had picked it up in the warehouse when she’d first gotten to Haven a year prior.  It had been donated, along with other furnishings, by the planet Plasius to be used by Earthers displaced by Armageddon.  At the time it had appeared brand new, its velvety chocolate brown surface showing no signs of wear at all.  Nothing stayed new looking in the Jenson household, however.  Iris felt the habitual flush of embarrassment over her belongings’ shabby appearance and how it must look to a stranger.  Thomas was rough on furniture, climbing and bouncing all over it with neverending energy.
Her brain was still mostly focused on the close call they’d had.  She would have fallen to the lounger if Thomas’ rescuer hadn’t carefully lowered her onto it instead.  Her whole body continued to shake, and her knees were wobbliest of all.
Thomas shoved past the Kalquorian with a dish towel in his hand.  He scrubbed at Iris’ cheeks, his lower lip protruding out and tears streaming down his own face.  “All better.  Wipe eyes.  Mommy all better,” he sobbed.  
Iris forced herself to stop crying though she felt an ocean of terror waiting to flood from her eyes.  She stretched a weak smile across her face.  “Yes, sweetie.  Thank you.  I’m all better now. See?  Mommy’s smiling.  All better.”
Thomas wiped his own eyes dry with the towel and then dropped it on the floor.  His expression abruptly placid, he walked off.  His gaze darted over the room as if seeing it for the first time in his life.  He worked at the fasteners of his coat.
Iris lifted her gaze to the silent Kalquorian who watched her.  She couldn’t even imagine what he thought of them, of the whole situation.  She said, “I’m sorry.”
He raised an eyebrow at her.  “I do not believe you have anything to apologize for, Matara.”  He took his handheld off his belt again and consulted it.  “You are Ear-is Jenson?”
“Iris,” she absently corrected, noticing what her son was busy doing.  “Thomas, please leave your clothes on.  We have a guest.”
Thomas had dropped his coat and sweater on the floor, and was working to add his shirt to the pile.  Ignoring Iris, he let that drift down too.  He sat down and yanked his boots off.   Iris took a breath.  This was Thomas’ home, his sanctuary where she let him relax and be himself.  She offered the Kalquorian an apologetic smile.  “He won’t wear anything more than his underwear in the house.  Clothes are uncomfortable for him.  He’s very sensitive to touch.”
The alien’s face betrayed no emotion as Thomas peeled off socks and snowpants.  The boy began fumbling with the snaps of his jeans.  
His tone as noncommittal as his expression, the Kalquorian said, “This is the child with the difficulties?”
Iris nodded.  “Autism.  It’s why the noise of the snow blower made him run from me and put him in the path of that shuttle.  Did I thank you for saving him?”
The alien looked at her.  He smiled, and Iris forgot to breathe for a moment.  The man’s ferocity didn’t disappear, but it was tremendously lessened.  He looked approachable.  Warm.  Even friendly.  And damned handsome.
He dipped a nod.  “You did thank me.  You are most certainly welcome, Matara Iris.” 
Thomas had finally stripped down to his underpants.  He ran to one side of the room where his toys were, contained to one area for a change rather than scattered all over the floor.  He picked up a small vehicle, a toy train.  Trains were long gone, of course, a form of Earth conveyance that had disappeared before Iris had been born.  Thomas loved them, however.  He had been obsessed with trains since he first saw one in a museum.  Unfortunately for the little boy, Earther train museums were gone too, thanks to Armageddon.
Thomas set the toy on a track and began pushing it around.  “Train rolls down the hill.  Train rolls down the hill.  Train rolls down the hill,” he chanted.
The Kalquorian watched the child, seemingly fascinated.  Iris rushed to explain, “He’s not slow, intelligence-wise.  He’s actually above average intelligence.  His speech, social, and sensory issues hold him back.  And he has no impulse control.”
Even as she babbled, Iris wondered why she was explaining so much to the daunting Kalquorian.  Surely he didn’t care about an Earther child’s problems.  And why should she care what he thought about Thomas?  Her son was wonderful, and those who didn’t take the time to get to know him and understand him were not important anyway.  It was something she reminded herself of every time people edged away from Thomas, when they got those uncomfortable looks on their faces.
The Kalquorian didn’t seem uncomfortable in the least.  Instead, he gave Iris that transforming smile again.  “What a fascinating child.  May I sit down?”  He waved his hand at a scarred chair with a sagging seat.
Iris blinked at him, startled by the request.  Why would the alien want to stay for a visit?  Unless ... oh heavens, he didn’t think she was looking to join a clan, did he?
Not quite sure how to handle the situation, she stammered, “Um, sure.  Can I get you anything, uh...?”
“Nobek Jol.  I am head of Kalquorian security here on Haven.”  He bowed his head to her as he settled carefully on the chair.  It creaked alarmingly, but somehow managed not to break under his large frame.  “Thank you for the offer, but I require no refreshment, Matara Iris.”
Iris regarded him with wide eyes.  Nobek Jol was not just the head of Haven’s Kalquorian security.  He was also clanmate to the Kalquorian governor of the colony, Dramok Ospar.  
She blinked.  “I’ve heard your name before.”
The Earther colony of Haven had been founded on a once uninhabitied planet within the Kalquorian Empire’s space.  That meant it had two governors, Dramok Ospar and Earther George Hoover.  Most Earther refugees, still hurting from the war with Kalquor and the resulting destruction of Earth, did not opt to live on Haven.  Other colonies held the majority of survivors, many going to the older settlements from when Earth was still a viable planet.  A large number had also settled on the colonies the Galactic Council of Planets had established after Armageddon.
The destruction of Earth’s major cities and the resulting death of the planet itself had come about through both Earth and Kalquorian actions.  The Kalquorians’ part in it had been an accident, even though the two species had been at war.  Horrified and remorseful, the Empire had created Haven for the Earthers who wanted a fresh start.  They had set up the colony and offered healthcare, land, and homes for any who wished to farm the verdant planet.  Haven was different from other colonies in that no one who came to live there was expected to pay back their benefactors in any way.  One simply applied to Kalquor for a homestead, agreed to abide by the laws of the Empire, and got to work.     
Iris and Thomas had come to the colony only a year before with nothing but a few changes of clothes.  It had represented a fresh start.  A new life with none of the horrors of the old.  Iris had left behind everything without a qualm, even though the work on Haven was difficult.  She welcomed it.Freedom from fear and pain was worth every ounce of hard work that greeted her from the moment she got up in the morning until she collapsed into bed at night.  Her life before Armageddon, lived in a fine home with every material comfort she could wish for, had been a nightmare.  One she was grateful to have awakened from.
The heater clicked on, rumbling like an angry beast deep within the home’s guts beneath the floor.  Jol frowned for a moment before turning his attention to Iris’ son.
“Your child is named Thomas?”  He consulted his handheld again.
“Yes,” Iris confirmed.
“The difficulties he has, they cannot be corrected through medical means?” Jol’s question seemed merely interested, not judgmental.  Not rife with the usual rabid curiosity masked as sappy concern.  It was a nice change.
Iris answered easily.  “His brain works differently from most others.  He’s not neural-typical.  He could take drugs to calm some of his behaviors, but I don’t like for him to.  Medications make him feel tired and out of it.  His thinking becomes sluggish.”  She added defensively, “I think he’s perfect.”
Jol kept his gaze on the playing boy.  “He is certainly empathetic.  Your tears worried him greatly.  It is good for someone so young to feel concern for others.”
Thomas was locked in his own world at the moment, not noticing them.  “Train climbs up the hill.  Train climbs up the hill,” he singsonged, pushing his toy.  
Jol looked at the scattered blocks and building toys.  He seemed particularly fascinated by the myriad of trains; some were only rudimentary assemblies, but quite a few were intricate pieces that had been put together from all sorts of materials.  One vision of a steam engine had the tines of a fork as its cowcatcher.  Everything Thomas came across was fair game to be converted into his passion.
The Kalquorian gave the little boy an appraising stare.  “How old is he?”
“Six.”
Jol’s eyebrows shot high.  “He built those toy conveyances himself?”
Iris snorted.  “Don’t look at me.  I can barely put together a jigsaw puzzle.  Thomas?”
Thomas kept playing, completely submerged in his own world.  Whatever universe had been conjured in his head didn’t include Iris, Jol, or anything else.  It consisted of just his train and the hill it endlessly climbed and descended.
Iris spoke a little louder with more firmness, working to yank the boy back into an often unkind reality.  “Thomas?  Thomas, look at me.”
Her voice broke through.  He came out of his happy fantasy to look at her expectantly.
She smiled at him and motioned to the large man sitting across from her.  “Thomas, this is Nobek Jol.  Say, ‘hello Nobek Jol’.”
Mimicking her tone exactly, Thomas looked down at his train.  “Hello, Nobek Jol.”
“Hello, Thomas.  What are you playing with?”  Jol leaned slightly forward, as if interested.
Thomas held up the locomotive made of castoff bits of wood, screws, and metal pieces.  His eyes never left the piece.  “Train.  Train rolls down the hill.”
Jol cocked his head to one side, peering at the toy.  “I saw it roll down the hill.  Will you let me hold your train?”
When the boy hesitated, Iris urged, “Thomas, give Nobek Jol your train.  Let him see it.”
She half-expected him to tell her no and return to his play.  Instead, he stood and walked over to Jol.  When the Kalquorian held out his hand, Thomas carefully placed the train in his grip.  His gaze never left the toy.
Iris looked at how tiny her son looked next to the mammoth alien.  Thomas was tall for his age, his body strong and sturdy.  Yet he looked too vulnerable at Jol’s side.  A momentary stab of panic went through her heart.  It subsided almost immediately, washed away by a sudden, instinctual knowledge that there was nothing to fear from Jol.
Iris frowned.  She didn’t know the Kalquorian.  There was no reason to trust him.  Yet as the boy and alien studied the locomotive, their heads close together, the feeling that Thomas was utterly safe with the Nobek persisted.
Jol turned the locomotive over in his hands, inspecting the homemade toy.  It was one of Thomas’ better constructions, his most recent.
The child pointed at the pieces jutting from the metal tube that made up the main body of the engine.  “Funnel,” he informed Jol.
“Funnel.  What does it do?”
“Smoke.”  Thomas pointed to a screw that stuck up.  “Whistle.”
“What does the whistle sound like?”
“Woo-woo!”
Jol chuckled.  “Did you build this train, Thomas?”
Thomas at last looked into the big man’s face.  “Yes.  Thomas builds toy trains!”  He smiled, pleased with himself.
Jol nodded, returning the smile.  “It is a well-built train. You did an excellent job. Thank you for letting me see it.”
He handed the engine back.  Thomas took it back to his little track and started pushing it, going back to his ‘train rolls down the hill’ chant.
Jol gazed at the boy with open admiration before turning his cat-pupil eyes to Iris.  “A brilliant mind for engineering is in there.”
Iris couldn’t help the pride that swelled in her voice.  “He reads, too.  I started teaching him letters and sounds when he was three, though he didn’t speak until he was four.  When he did speak, he could already read his story vids.”  She knew she bragged, but it wasn’t often people looked beneath Thomas’ behavior issues to appreciate the feats he was capable of.
“You have been blessed, Matara.”  Jol frowned then.  “But his lack of impulse control worries me greatly.  My biggest concern is how he ended up in the middle of the travel lane.  That would not have ended well for him if I hadn’t happened by, doing a routine check on the area.”  
Iris swallowed.  Thomas could have so easily died only minutes ago.  The miracle of Jol’s rescue brought fresh tears to her eyes, which she resolutely blinked back.  
She told the Nobek, “He doesn’t understand danger.  He simply has no concept of it.  I try to keep him close when we’re outside.  This time when he panicked, he got away from me.”  She shuddered.  “I can usually catch him, but it only takes once to be too late, doesn’t it?”
Jol nodded, watching her carefully.  “You need a boundary shield between your land and the lane.”
Iris bowed her head.  “I’m only a homesteader, Nobek Jol.  Because Thomas requires so much of my time, I farm just enough to keep us fed and clothed.  I can’t take him to the community fields and work for extra funds because keeping after him doesn’t allow me to.”  Not to mention Thomas had a bad habit of crashing through and wrecking crops.  She’d end up owing Haven’s Earther government money rather than earning any.
“I see.”  Jol glanced at Thomas and pursed his lips.  The line between his eyebrows deepened.  He nodded his head and stood.  
Iris stood too.  Jol eased his stern expression to offer her a small smile.  “The safety and security of Haven and its colonists ultimately falls on my shoulders.  I will see to getting you a boundary shield.”
Iris stared at him.  She couldn’t afford it, but Thomas always came first.  She’d find a way.  “Do I make payments or is there work I can do to offset the cost?”
Jol shook his head.  “That will not be required, Matara Iris.  Should you leave this property or not need the shield any longer for whatever reason, simply give it back to us.  This way, you will not have to worry about Thomas running into the lane anymore.”
He was giving them the shield?  For free?  Iris gaped at him and finally managed to blurt, “Thank you, Nobek Jol.”
The Kalquorian bowed to her and looked over at Thomas.  “Goodbye, Thomas.”
Thomas didn’t look up, but he responded without any coaching from Iris.  “Goodbye.  Woo-woo!”
Jol’s smile trembled as if he held back laughter.  He bowed to Iris again.  “Good day, Matara.”
He left, and Iris stared at the door long after it had closed behind him.  It took several minutes for her stunned consciousness to kick in.  When it did, she realized two things:  that she had not come close to expressing enough appreciation to Jol, and that she had worn her coat and hat the entire time he’d been there.
Shaking her head, still trying to wrap it around the events of the last hour, Iris finally took her outerwear off. 

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Shalia's Diary Thursday Post

Wrestling with demons.  http://shaliasdiary.blogspot.com/

Countdown to Alien Refuge - 1 Day

The Dramok chuckled too.  He took her in his arms and Iris sank into the shelter of him.  His kiss was a gentle thing, warming her from head to toe as the other two stroked up and down her back.
I think I could get used to this, Iris thought as she sucked delicately on the tongue stroking the inside of her mouth.
When Ospar moved back, that dark promise shadowed his eyes once again.  “Now, my lovely little lifebringer.  Are you ready to test a few more sexual limits tonight?”
Just like that, Iris’ insides turned to jelly.  Her stomach tumbled, both with nervousness and excitement.  “Um.  Like what?”
One side of Ospar’s mouth curled in a slow, dangerous smile that made her knees shake.  “Telling you ahead of time wouldn’t be any fun, would it?”  He stared at her, as if he would discover all the thoughts in her head.  “Iris, I want your trust.  The instant I ask you for something, I want you to be able to give it to me without questioning my motives.  I want us to build a level of confidence so unshakeable that it never occurs to you to wonder if I have your best interests at heart.”
“Do you?”  She couldn’t help but ask.
He nodded slowly, his expression now serious.  “I do.  We all do.  Perhaps we will make you nervous from time to time, especially here when we do private things.  Perhaps we will test your faith in us.  Maybe we will even push you farther than you can stand to go on a given day, and you will have to tell us to stop.  But you never have to fear we will let you come to harm, that your welfare is not the most important thing to us.  I want you to know that deep in your soul.”
Iris bit her lip.  She wanted it too.  To know that no matter what, she didn’t have to fear men ever again.  That she could put her heart in another’s hands with absolute faith that it wouldn’t be trampled.
Were these the men who could rescue her hopes?  Iris didn’t know, but she wanted to find out.“All right,” she said, her voice not nearly as strong as she wanted it to be.  “I’ll – I’ll try whatever you like.”
“Good girl.”  Ospar bent to kiss her lips, and Iris clung to him for reassurance.  She really was afraid, though every instinct swore that the clan would take care of her.
The Dramok released the kiss and stepped back so that they no longer touched.  The other two also made room.
“Take your clothes off, Iris.  Slowly, so that we may enjoy seeing your body revealed to us.”Iris nodded.  Her mouth was suddenly dry, however.  The way they stared made her feel almost as if she was already naked.  Not just her body, but her very soul.  Vulnerability crashed over her, making her hesitate before beginning to unbutton her blouse.
What is with me?  They’ve already seen me naked.  Why does this feel so much more ... more?
It made no sense, but Iris felt exposed to her very core, even before she finished unbuttoning the blouse.
Trembling all over, she made it slide down her shoulders and arms, finally draping from her wrists.  She slipped the shirt off to let it fall to the floor.
“Lovely,” Ospar told her.  “Now stand still for a moment while we enjoy this gift.”
They closed in on her, and three pairs of hands caressed the skin she’d bared.  They did not touch her breasts, still encased in her soft cotton bra.  Yet the warm touches made arousal thick in her belly, and her breath came faster.  
“Her skin is so soft,” Jol said, his thunder voice deeper than ever. 
“Look how her stomach quivers when I touch it,” Rivek said.
“Can I touch back?” Iris asked.  It felt so strange to stand there doing nothing.  Yet she couldn’t shake the notion that she had to have permission to do anything.
“No,” Ospar told her.  “You will be still and allow us to enjoy you as we will.”
Jol added, “You have nothing to do but surrender and enjoy.”  He grinned.  “Or suffer, as the case may be when the enjoyment grows beyond comfort.”
Iris wasn’t sure how something like pleasure could be distressing, except for this bit which was both awkward and exciting.  
At last the men were satisfied with their explorations.  They stepped back once more and Ospar said, “Now the pants.  Remember, slowly.”
Iris opened the resealable seam that went from her waist to her crotch.  She peeled the pants down her legs, acutely aware that Jol was behind her as she bent way over to take the trousers off.  She wondered if he could see from his position how wet the crotch of her panties had become.  She took the pants all the way down to her ankles, then slowly straightened back up.  Stepping out of them made her once again aware of how wobbly her legs had gone.
“Your bra,” Ospar said.  
Iris reached behind to find the snaps.  As she did so, she thought about how the men loomed over her.  She wasn’t small for a woman by any means, not at slightly over five feet eight inches.  But the Kalquorians were so damned big, exuding strength and power with not just that phenomenal height but also their muscular bodies.  She couldn’t escape a feeling of helplessness as she stood in the middle of them, slowly disrobing.
The bra closure came free, and Iris moved her hands so that they covered the cups over her breasts.  One shoulder strap fell down her upper arm.  Using the other hand and arm to keep the bra cups in place, Iris shrugged the strap free.  Then she switched arms, doing the same with the other strap.She peeked up at Ospar in front of her, and Rivek to her right.  Their eyes were intent on her chest where she remained concealed from their sight.  The scent that made her think of cinnamon spice, which she had learned was the aroma of their arousal, had grown thick in the air.
Iris slowly drew her hands down, taking the bra with them.  Her breasts were revealed a bit at a time.  At last, the rosy tips appeared, tight and flushed with blatant arousal.
“Yes,” Rivek sighed.  
The men moved towards her again.  “You will remain still for our pleasure,” Ospar told her as he reached for one mound.
They rubbed, pinched, and fondled, making Iris’ respiration quicken.  Wetness pooled thickly in her panties as her body responded to the jolts of pleasure from the men’s caresses.  Iris stood there shaking as the clan played, taking turns testing the weight of her breasts and moistening their fingertips in her mouth to rub her nipples into hard, pebbled nubs.
Jol tightened his fingers around one until it ached.  Iris drew in a hard breath and looked up at him.“Does it hurt?” he asked.
“A little.”
“Do you find pleasure in it?  Or in giving me the power to inflict a slight bit of pain, if I wish?”
Iris swallowed.  The small twinge hadn’t been much.  Giving into it for Jol’s sake made something inside her within pulse agreeably.  As if his pleasure meant more to her than her own.
“I, I guess...” she faltered, unable to verbalized such things.  Like the words they’d made her say the night before, speaking of intimacies was taboo.
Jol grasped her chin with one hand, making her look him in the face.  His fingers closed like a soft vise around her nipple once more, and she groaned at the small spasm that wasn’t quite bad.  In fact, it twisted into something pleasurable, creeping down to her lower gut.
“Tell me how it feels when I take a harsher enjoyment with your body, Iris,” the Nobek demanded.
Iris cringed.  “It – it feels – um...”
He bent down, putting his face only inches away from hers, filling her vision.  His thundery voice was intense.  “You do not think.  You answer.  How does it feel when I do with you as I please, including a small amount of discomfort?”
“It feels right,” she said, the words popping out under the weight of his fierce stare.  “It feels wonderful to belong to you this way.”
“In what way?”  When she hesitated, Jol ordered, “Answer now.”
“Sexually.”  The admission flew from her lips.
Ospar’s tone was approving.  “Once more, words have not brought punishment raining down on you.”
Jol released her chin so that Iris could look at the Dramok.  “They used to.”  She shuddered.

Countdown to Alien Refuge - 2 Days

Father Stephen leaned towards her as she sat on the opposite end of the lounger.  “Iris, we understand there was a bit of trouble out here yesterday.  Blaine Middleton’s shuttle was impounded by the Kalquorian security force and his piloting license revoked.”
Iris managed to keep her voice even.  “After he nearly ran down Thomas.”
Hoover’s bushy brows squished down over his eyes.  “Wasn’t your son at fault?  After all, he was standing in the middle of the road.”
Iris didn’t spare the man a smile, though she maintained a polite demeanor.  “He panicked when my snow blower broke down and made a noise that frightened him.  He’s extremely sensitive to loud sounds and can’t control his reactions.  That’s why there are warning beacons on this lane and why the limit is slower here than anywhere else on the colony.”  
“I see you have a containment border.”
“It was just installed today.  The Kalquorian security head loaned it to me since I couldn’t afford one myself.”
Hoover scowled.  “This is a very big problem, Mrs. Jenson.  Blaine is a hardworking man with large loads of supplies and cargo to transport.  He needs his license and shuttle to take care of a family larger than yours.”
Iris’ temper rose.  Hoover’s intimation that Middleton’s family was more important than her son had her ready to swing again.  “And I need my son to be safe.  If Blaine is determined to hurt people by disabling his warning indicators so he can run over a small child, then I don’t want him to have his damned shuttle.”
Hoover’s eyes widened.  Women had not been allowed to use profanity on Earth, and it was obvious he was affronted by her utterance.
Father Stephen remained cool and diplomatic.  “Blaine Middleton is most definitely in the wrong here, but we don’t want Kalquorians in our business.  We are trying to govern ourselves, to rebuild our lives after Armageddon.  We want independence, not alien masters who have no idea what it means to be Earther.”
Iris forced herself to be calm.  “So what do you want from me?”
Hoover drew himself up.  “We need you to testify to Governor Ospar that what happened was not entirely Blaine’s fault.  That you do not hold him liable for an injury that did not even happen.”
“But I do hold him accountable.  Thomas wouldn’t have been merely injured; he would have been killed.  The only thing that saved him was that Governor Ospar’s own Nobek came to his rescue.  I can’t lie against the head of security.  Not when he put his life on the line for a small boy he didn’t even know.”
Hoover’s jaw clenched, making him more bulldoggish than ever.  “You are putting the Kalquorians ahead of your own people?”  His voice rose angrily, and Thomas looked up from his toys.
Iris gazed right in the man’s eyes and did not waver.  “I am putting my son’s welfare ahead of Blaine’s stupidity and disregard for the wellbeing of others.  If you can get his piloting license re-instated and his shuttle back, more power to you.  But I will not help.”
The governor stood.  He didn’t try to hide his anger.  “You cannot turn your back on your own.  It is unconscionable.  There are people on this colony who won’t stand for collusion with the Kalquorians.”
Iris stood as well.  “This has nothing to do with turning my back on anyone or siding with the aliens.   I am my son’s sole protector.  It doesn’t matter if it’s Kalquorian or Earther; if anyone endangers Thomas, I become their worst enemy.”
Even her husband Conrad, with his ready fists and kicks, knew better than to challenge Iris’ instincts when it came to Thomas.  He must have; he had never raised a hand to the boy.  Iris had been the sole receiver of her husband’s abuse.
Father Stephen rose.  His tone was placating, gentle enough that Thomas went back to his toys and was quickly re-absorbed in his make-believe world.  “I think emotions are running too high right now for us to accomplish anything productive.  Iris is a conscientious parent, and she had a bad scare yesterday.  Governor Hoover only wants the best for all Earthers on Haven.  These are not matters in opposition to each other.”
Hoover’s forehead smoothed, and he managed a conciliatory smile.  “Of course not.  I apologize if I seem less than sympathetic to the fright you had.  It’s just I have so much pressure with the Kalquorians always trying to enforce their rule over us.  They do not trust us to govern ourselves, and many chafe under their dictatorship.”
Iris had never seen any evidence of a dictatorship.  Even if the Kalquorians had been more controlling, Haven was within their empire’s borders.  Who were the Earthers to challenge that?  However, it was probably best to meet the temperamental governor halfway.