“Hi doll,” Kat said. “Charlie here is asking for volunteers to go on a top secret mission given to her by the Goddess.”
“She what?” Lauren looked confused.
“Just hush and you’ll find out. Thanks for the goodies.” Kat snagged a donut.
“And you’ve been having these visions for how long?” Sylvan asked sternly, frowning at Charlie and Stav.
Stavros cleared his throat uncomfortably.
“For some time now, Commander Sylvan. But it was my distinct impression that there was nothing we could do for either Thrace or Trin.”
“Thrace and Trin? Who are they?” Charlie heard Lauren ask Kat.
“The people Charlie and Stavros have been keeping tabs on. Apparently they’ve been seeing them off and on in these trances. Mostly while they, uh…you know.”
“No, I don’t know. What are you talking about?”
“Never mind,” Charlie said quickly. “The point is, they’re people the Goddess has claimed as her own and they’re destiny is tied to the future of the Kindred race. Also, they need our help.”
Rapidly she outlined the situation, catching the assembled group up on the salient points of the relationship she and Stavros had seen.
“And now she’s going back to Zetta Prime to undergo some kind of punishment—a purification ritual—just because she had sex with the man she loves,” she ended. “It’s so sad because Trin loves him desperately—she’s just freaked out about the idea of being with a man, er, a male since her people don’t do that.”
“They certainly don’t,” Far, Becca’s Light Twin mate murmured.
“Explain,” Sylvan said to him. “I know you’ve made an in depth study of the other sentient races our people have encountered, Far—what do you know about the inhabitants of Zetta Prime?”
“Are they man haters like the women on Yonnie Six?” Kat asked, looking interested.
“It’s more like they have no use for males at all. They see them as a kind of domesticated animal which they don’t care to keep,” Far explained.
“Huh. Like why would you keep a cow if you’re lactose intolerant,” Liv remarked.
Far nodded. “Exactly. The females of the planet form life commitments to each other only. When they wish to have children, they go to a Conception Center where they can choose from the seed of almost any race of compatible male in the universe. They have far ranging scout ships notorious for abducting lone males and extracting their seed before releasing them again.”
“Wow,” Lauren murmured. “So all those ‘I was probed by an alien stories’…”
“Are likely true,” Far said. “At least in some cases. But their seed is the only part of a male they consider in any way necessary or useful. For a Daughter of Zetta Prime to allow herself to love a male is barely a step above bestiality in their estimation.”
Liv gave a long, low whistle.
“Whew—not so good. No wonder this Trin girl’s mother was so upset!”
“She wasn’t just upset—she told Trin it would’ve been better if she died rather than letting herself be with Thrace,” Charlie said.
“Wow, doll.” Kat shook her head. “That’s some private soap opera you and Stavros have going on in your heads. I’m kind of jealous.”
“Do not be,” Stavros said heavily. “Parts of it have been very difficult to watch.”
“But that’s the point—we’re done watching now,” Charlie stood up from the low stool where she’d been seated and looked around. “The Goddess has asked for volunteers to go with us. I’m going, obviously—I’ve been watching Trin so long I feel like I know her. But we need some other girls too, to pretend to be priestesses so we can get to her.”
Becca was talking softly to her two mates and now she looked up.
“I’ll go,” she said, nodding at Charlie. “It sounds like the poor girl is dealing with a boatload of guilt. Being a former almost-nun, I know a little about that.”
Truth, her Dark Twin mate snorted. “Just a little?”
“Okay, a lot,” Becca admitted with a wry laugh. “Anyway, it sounds like my input might be useful.”
“Perfect.” Charlie nodded. “Welcome aboard. Anyone else?”
“I would…” Mei-Li hesitated. “But, well…I don’t know if I should risk folding space right now.” She blushed bright pink and Six, her mate, looked at her with surprise.
“Mei-Li?” he rumbled, sounding shocked. “Are you…?”
“I don’t know yet.” Mei-Li blushed even harder. “But, well, I might be and I’m just not sure—”
“It’s all right,” Charlie said quickly. “The Goddess said we should only take women who have no children and who definitely aren’t expecting.”
“Well, I guess that rules us out,” Kat remarked, looked at Liv and Sophie and Lauren.
Liv sighed. “Too bad—I wouldn’t mind a little adventure right about now.”
“Going to Zetta Prime is no lighthearted adventure,” Far said grimly. “The Zettites are deadly serious about their religion. If they thought anyone was profaning their rituals or disrespecting their deity in any way…it could be bad. Very bad.”
Charlie looked at Becca.
“Still want to come?”
“Absolutely,” Becca said firmly. “Let’s do it.”
“And Truth and I will come with Charlotte and Stavros to offer support in any way we can,” Far said.
“And also because we’re not letting our female go into danger alone,” Truth growled.
“Then it’s settled.” Sylvan clapped his hands together. “We’ll outfit a large shuttle for you and prepare to fold space. And, as the Goddess has commanded you to do this, I will commend you into her care. Go but be careful. We hope to see you back here with both Trin and Thrace safely in hand before too long.”
Charlie nodded her agreement and murmured thanks but she couldn’t help wondering exactly what they were getting themselves into. And even after risking everything to sneak down onto Zetta Prime, would they be able to convince Trin to leave her guilt behind and come with them?
I hope so, she thought grimly. Or we’re going to be going a hell of a long way for nothing.
* * * * *
Thrace stared in frustration at the star charts displayed on the viewscreen of his little life pod. The nearest stable wormhole was almost a light year away—not far with a hydrogen scoop propulsion system like the one on The Alacrity or on his own ship, The Empress—but over a standard cycle’s travel in the short range pod. And a cycle was too damn long to wait to get back to Trin. He kept seeing the cold anger in her mother’s eyes and thinking about the purification ritual she was so determined to undergo.
Painful and disfiguring…what the hell does that mean? What are they going to do to her? Damn it, Trin—why did you have to go and leave me here where I can’t protect you?
His heart ached with the thought of her being abused or hurt in any way. He wished he could reach out to her and he had tried to—tried reaching her numerous times through their bond. But Trin had put up some kind of block against him—one he couldn’t get through. Or at least, that was what it felt like before she left. Now he was pretty sure she was out of range. Or maybe she had just found a better way to block him?
“Who the hell knows?” Thrace sighed and ran a hand through his hair. And who could blame her if she was blocking him? Now that she knew what had happened—what his old Master had done—she might not want anything to do with him. Maybe that was the real reason she had chosen to leave him behind.
If that was true, Thrace told himself, he would set her free and not bother her any more. After all, he couldn’t blame her if she felt disgusted now that she knew his past. But before he could do that—before he could cut ties with her completely—he had to be certain she was safe.