Shattered Stars (6 page)

She put the
drying cloths in the receptacle and returned to the bedroom.

Mero was
sitting in the lounge area, making notes and reading reports.

Hannah accepted
that she was probably a disruption to his schedule, and she crawled
into bed, leaving his preferred spot open.

She thought
about what she had learned, and her mind turned it over and over
until it made sense. She was gaining an understanding of the
Hmrain. She just hadn’t counted on it being such a painful
process.

Mero was out of bed
when Hannah woke up. It was only the dented pillow that showed her
he had been there at all.

The clothing at
the foot of the bed was a bodysuit of a sort. It looked like
spandex met a spider web in a rich blue.

It took her
five minutes to get it on properly, and Mero watched her the entire
time.

“If I have to
get out of here in a hurry, we are screwed.” The blunt words came
out of her mouth before she realized that they were
disrespectful.

“Why are you
wincing?”

“I am preparing
to be ordered into a position to be whipped.” She opened her
eyes.

“I will not
whip you. Come here.” He put his screens aside and beckoned her
close.

She walked to
him and stood in front of him, her hands folded at her waist.

He reached out
and moved his fingers until she stepped into the vee of his legs.
“Straddle my thigh.”

She swung her
right leg over his left and did as he asked.

“Sit.”

She sat.

“Now, touch me
as you rock yourself to completion.”

Hannah blinked
and placed her hand over the thick erection in his trousers. She
rubbed him while she rocked her hips against his thigh, and in a
few minutes, her tension snapped and she bucked against him with
low moans marking each inner spasm.

When the
intensity of the inner flutters eased, she sighed and relaxed.

“Good, Hannah.
Now, your instructor is waiting outside, and he will take you to
the entertainment complex where you will train. You have your
charm?”

She held up her
wrist with the small stone.

“Excellent. I
will be involved in trade matters for the morning, but I have
ordered you to have a massage here in our quarters after every
fight session. We cannot have you tensing up at the wrong
moment.”

She licked her
lips. “Shall I go then?”

“Yes. I will
see you for lunch.”

“Yes, sir.”

She got off his
lap and wobbled her way to the door. When she opened it, the guards
were there, and across the hall, there was a Pliok with rich purple
skin.

He did not look
impressed. “So, you are to be my student?”

“I am.”

“This is going
to be quick. Come with me.”

She walked with
him through the halls and to the entertainment complex. The gym was
a large space with plenty of sparring areas.

When they faced
off against one another, he asked, “What do you do when you are
attacked?”

“If I can, I
run. If I can’t, I fight to disable.”

He looked
surprised. “Why is Lord Mero wanting you trained?”

“I am at most
risk from my own people. Intimate bondservants are not looked upon
with respect.”

“So, there has
already been an attack.”

“Yes. The man
thought that since my body was paid for, he could take what he
wanted. I have not been out of my society long, so I was unsure how
to respond.”

“Ah, so that
was the fuss that Lord Mero attended.”

She nodded.
“So, I would like to know what to do when I am attacked, step by
step, please.”

He nodded,
rushed at her and caught her in his embrace. She pulled up her
knee, elbowed him in the throat and bit at the arm he wrapped
around her neck.

One of her
techniques made him drop her, and with the baseline drawn, the
training began in earnest.

Pressure points
were discussed and pursued. She learned that no species liked
getting its eyes gouged and the biting was definitely a plus.

The hours flew
by, but soon, her instructor was calling a halt and leading her
back to her quarters. A young woman in a domestic shift was there,
as was a wide table suitable for the massage.

The young woman
was human. This was not going to be fun.

“Hello, I am
Hannah.”

“I am Lisa. I
will be working on you today.”

Hannah nodded.
“Would you like me to undress here or in the bathroom?”

“Wherever you
are most comfortable, miss.”

Hannah nodded.
“I will be right back.”

Inside the
bathing room, she pried the suit off her body, and it fought her
every inch of the way. When she had finally got her stiffening
muscles to cooperate, she shoved the suit to the floor.

She wrapped a
drying cloth around her and returned to the main living area.

The massage
went fairly well for the first half until Lisa got to her bracelet.
That seemed to trigger something in her.

“These quarters
are very large for just you.” The accusation was obvious, but she
backed it up by saying, “We are all crammed into bunk rooms with
eight people per room.”

Hannah sighed
as her relaxation went out the window. “These aren’t my quarters. I
don’t have quarters. These are Lord Mero’s quarters.”

Lisa paused.
“Then, what are you doing here?”

“I am his
intimate bondservant. You know that last test that they give
us?”

Lisa made a
sound of agreement. “Yes.”

“Well, I scored
high as did three other humans, and we were taken away and sent to
a prepping facility. After you were put up at the bond auction, it
was our turn.”

“How many years
do you have to do?”

Hannah sighed.
“As far as I can tell, life.”

Lisa paused.
“What?”

“There is no
way I can pay off the bond.”

“What about
your time off?”

“He has to be
asleep or out on business. If he is awake, I am on duty.”

“Oh. Wow. Why
are you bruised?”

Hannah cleared
her throat. “It is part of the job.”

The brusque
massage changed to something a little more soothing.

When Lisa had
loosened all of Hannah’s muscles, she returned with a cream that
she rubbed into the sore spots where Hannah had hit the mat.

“This cream is
amazing. When they told me to apply it to your bruising, I wasn’t
sure, but it is definitely working.”

“What is it
doing?”

“Reducing the
swelling and colouring. It breaks up the blood pooling in the skin
and flushes it away.”

The rest of the
treatment was completed in five minutes, and then, Lisa pulled
away. “You are done. Would you care to remain there or would you
like help to go to the shower?”

“I can manage
it. This is light discomfort.” She sat up and wrapped the drying
cloth around her. “Thank you, Lisa.”

“Have a good
day, miss.”

Hannah headed
in for a shower to remove the oil from her skin, and when she
emerged, all traces of Lisa were gone.

A new dress was
laid at the edge of the bed.

Hannah slipped
the dress on over her head, and then, she went in search of a
reading screen so she could enjoy herself.

She settled on
the couch and smoothed the skirt so that she could tuck her feet in
and get comfy.

By the time
Mero came through the door, she was learning about the education
centre and how it operated. There was no true wrongdoing, but they
were scavengers. They listened to industrial societies, and when
they went silent, they swooped in and assessed the world, taking
off members of the population and educating them to be
servants.

She paused at
the point in the file where it described the pains taken to remove
all indigenous bacteria from the skin as well as alter the biology
of the students.

She glanced up
as a shadow fell across her screen.

“Hello,
Mero.”

“Hello, Hannah.
Come with me; it is time for lunch.”

She set the
screen down and got to her feet, stepping in beside him. They
returned to the dining hall, and when they were sitting across from
each other, she came to a realization that she hadn’t made before.
He didn’t eat.

She picked at
her food, and she felt her brow furrow.

“What is your
question, Hannah?”

She looked at
him, and his hands were folded neatly with his chin resting on
them. His elbows were braced against the table.

“You don’t
eat.”

He smiled. “I
can. I usually don’t.”

“Because you
get your sustenance elsewhere.”

He shrugged his
agreement.

“So, why are we
here?”

Mero looked
around at the crew that filled the hall. “Social interaction. You
require it.”

She smirked. “I
am really fine without it for the most part. If I can just get a
stack of rations, I could remain in your quarters and you wouldn’t
have to take time out of your day.”

“I do not
mind.” He smiled slightly.

“So, why did we
go to dinner last night?”

“So that you
could meet others of similar social standing to you and interact.”
His grin widened. “I had to check on your social behaviours. You
did very well with the exception of stealing Ryno’s dessert.”

She blushed.
She hadn’t realized he was watching that closely. “Ryno doesn’t
like it, so he readily agreed to swap it out when I offered.”

“You were very
stealthy. But it will not be acceptable for you to do that kind of
thing when other Hmrain and their bondservants come visiting.”

“I understand.
So, just to recap, you can digest foods.”

“I can, and
when I am home, I do. The food on ships never tastes right.”

She nodded. It
made a certain sense when his sustenance came from the living
beings around him. Being in a free and open space would help him
relax. Also, the wings might have something to do with it.

If he weren’t
flying, he wouldn’t burn a lot of calories on a ship.

She finished
her meal, and a crewman came by to retrieve it, not looking her in
the eye.

“Is there a
reason that none of the men we have seen will make eye contact with
me?”

“Grem-sah may
have clarified your status or possibly told his crew that I will
dismember any man who touches you.”

“What about my
instructor?”

“He has been
given a dispensation to look at you and touch you. How did you
enjoy your lesson?”

Hannah told him
about the techniques she was learning and how many times she had
hit the mat.

“Were you
injured?”

“Nothing major.
Lisa took care of the bruising.”

“She did a
satisfactory job?”

“Yes.”

“She was
respectful?”

Hannah twisted
her lips. “She was curious. I didn’t tell her that I was in combat
training in the morning. She assumed you had made the bruises, and
I didn’t dissuade her.”

He blinked and
laughed. “Is that what your species requires? Sex by force?”

“It is what is
socially demanded if a permanent mating or courtship is not taking
place. There has to be some element of force involved. Sex for the
sake of pleasure in a female is not welcomed as normal.”

He nodded. “It
does explain much. As you may have noted, the crew does not have a
problem with your status.”

“I am aware of
that. My instructor was matter of fact about it. That was nice.”
She smiled slightly. “How much longer will we be on the ship?”

“Four days. I
will arrange another instructor for you when we walk on my world.”
He smiled.

“That would be
nice. I am guessing that is when the blade work will begin?”

“Correct.
Finish your tea. You will be with me in the office for the rest of
the day.”

She nodded.
“What are you doing in there?”

“Arranging the
distribution of the minerals and crops of my home as well as the
surrounding territories. No one goes hungry in a Hmrain
protectorate.”

“Oh. That is a
good thing.”

He chuckled. “I
believe so. The representatives that will visit us are from the
nations and colonies that are under my wing.”

“Are they all
indigenous populations?”

“Where
possible, yes. But when it isn’t, we go to the bond auction and
bolster the population.”

She blinked in
surprise. “Do the bondservants breed with the locals?”

“We choose them
for compatibility to the largest section of the population to
increase the odds of the inter-breeding occurring.”

Suddenly,
Hannah was very glad to be in a position where she was not expected
to get knocked up and have an infant with an unknown species. Even
if it wasn’t expected, it was the desired result, and Mero was very
good at getting what he wanted.

Two hours
later, when she was astride him, fully clothed with his hands
holding her hips while his cock gyrated inside her, she concluded
that he was better than good at getting what he wanted.

Kiiba was a beautiful
world, and watching it from Mero’s luxurious shuttle, Hannah had an
excellent view of the purple and green that made up the landscape.
The oceans were a rich plum, and she wondered what atmospheric
gases were altering the spectrum down below.

Sitting next to
Mero, she could feel his excitement. He was glad to be home again,
but there was an undertone to it that was a little familiar. He
wanted sex.

Since he was
content to hold back on his demands, she was able to watch the
world get bigger and bigger before they finally entered the
atmosphere.

She was excited
to walk on soil again. She hadn’t felt grass under her feet since
the impact.