“Your quarters are now livable again, Barix,” a clipped voice said from the entrance behind Aiden. “Fix has completed all possible repairs on them, at least until we're able to get to a spaceport.”
Lana lit up with what could only be called joy, further confirming that the gunner had arrived. Aiden couldn't help but tense as the young man made his way to his workstation, looking every bit as emotionless and professional as usual, almost like an automaton.
As if he hadn't spent the night engaging in a very human activity.
In stark contrast to Lana's confrontational attitude, the gunner seemed to have no interest in doing anything but his duty while on shift. Aiden couldn't help but be relieved like that. Now if only the man's lover would do the same.
He looked up at the young woman, who'd turned her attention back to him. Or more accurately her glare. “I'm not hearing a response, Captain,” she said. “Can you assure me you won't punch my boyfriend again like some kind of jealous thug?”
Aiden flinched, fighting a new surge of shame. “You have my assurance,” he said through gritted teeth.
For a moment he wasn't sure that satisfied her. She continued to glare at him, and he had to call on a lifetime of practice keeping his face composed as he stared back. Finally, he noticed her doing her best not to fidget and nodded stiffly. “You've made your point, Miss, um, Lana.” She really needed to pick out a surname. “Thank you. If that's all, then I expect you and the gunner to behave with all professionalism while on duty, and with appropriate decorum in public during your off duty hours.”
Lana's face showed her relief. But also, for some strange reason . . . disappointment? “Yes, sir.”
Aiden turned back to his display, trying to make it clear the discussion was over. “I trust at least one of you has taken the necessary measures for birth control?”
The question obviously embarrassed the young woman, especially when Barix snickered. “We have.”
He grunted. It might not have been appropriate to broach that in a public setting; he probably should've had Ali address it in her capacity as the ship's medical officer. Maybe he wasn't as cool and composed as he tried to convince himself he was.
Still, he kept his tone even as he continued. “Good. In that case, no offense, the less I hear of this the happier I'll be.”
Lana once again did an impressive job of mimicking her lover's rigid discipline, standing ramrod straight and saluting crisply. “Sir.” Turning on one heel, she made her way to her terminal by the gunner's station.
Biting back a sigh of relief that that unpleasantness was over, Aiden got back to his analysis of yesterday's battle. As he did, he tilted his head to engage his communicator to Ali's frequency. “Ali, please report to the bridge for your shift.”
That was the closest he'd come to telling his adult companion that he was remanding his order to keep her distance, while he sorted out his feelings about Lana's relationship with the gunner. Apparently his feelings were sorted, and he was kind of missing Ali's familiar presence.
Especially since she was all he had, unfair as it probably was to her to think of it like that considering her immense value. Not to mention the great amount of satisfaction she'd provided him since he'd stolen her over a year ago.
Ali's voice came back, warm and full of relief. “On my way, my love.”
* * * * *
Lana had to admit there were perks to being a Blank Slate, with only a few weeks' worth of knowledge under her belt. For one thing, it meant that in order to earn her place on the crew, she had to work full time learning how to operate the ship's systems so she could be useful.
The current perk of that was that she had an excuse to leave the excruciating awkwardness on the bridge, between Aiden's sullen silence, Barix's malicious sniping, Dax's stoic focus as he carried out his duties, and Ali's somewhat fluttery attempts to ease the tension and raise everyone's spirits. Especially her human's.
So Lana quietly excused herself, staring longingly at Dax for a few seconds in lieu of any more intimate, unprofessional gestures, and prepared to make her way down to the engine room to get training from the engines officer, Barix's twin sister Belix.
Speaking of the slight man, as she turned away from her boyfriend she noticed that Barix was smirking at her. “What?” she demanded.
The Ishivi shrugged casually, half an eye on his display. “Nothing. I just think it's cute that you're treating the Construct as if he's human.”
Lana stiffened in outrage, on the verge of screaming at the smug little man. She took a steadying breath, shot him a look of the most withering scorn she could manage, and strode from the bridge.
They could all say what they liked. They'd been around Dax for five years, and after just a few weeks she already knew him better than any of them. Knew that he was the best person on this ship.
She made her way down a short corridor lined with escape pods for the crew, through the galley, and down another corridor to the engine room. Just past the door, she nearly shrieked in surprise when Belix practically ambushed her, throwing her arms around her eagerly and practically jumping up and down.
“Barix told me!” she squealed. “You're with the gunner? Why didn't you say anything?”
Lana stared down at her friend, momentarily at a loss for words. Belix was several inches shorter than her, elfin but with definite curves, her platinum blond hair in a pixie cut and pale blue eyes ranging from icy to haughty, with only rare flashes of warmth like she showed at the moment. As an Ishivi, she'd been bred with the most superior genes humans could boast, with a sharp, sculpted aristocratic beauty, incredible reflexes, superior eyesight, hearing, and other senses, and a daunting intelligence.
And that
