E:A Vol 1 Ch 8—March 8, 2116

“Dr. McKenna and his team have started testing the cure for that epidemic,” Victoria reported to the First Science Commander after another two months on the ship. “We’ll be able to tell if it helps the humans, but we won’t know if it’ll keep Rayth from becoming infected.”

“I believe we may have come up with a way to test that without risking one of our lives to do so. I could use your help with some simulations,” the First replied.

Victoria nodded, “Show me what you need me to do.”

She lost track of time while working on her new assignment from her Rayth boss, and though there wasn’t a set time for her “workout” as she called her combat training sessions, it was generally after her lunch break. So when the Supreme Commander entered the science lab early and called for her, she startled at his voice. After a deep breath, and apologizing to him for jumping at the sound of his voice, she followed him to the sparring arena.

Zy’nayth never wasted time. Once inside the room, the training started, often the moment she crossed the threshold. Though she’d learned a lot mentally, she was still rather inept physically, but she worked hard at each session. After feebly attempting to block a few of his attacks, his hands grabbed her shoulders and pushed her against a wall.

“You must try harder,” he growled at her.

She nodded but the Supreme Commander didn’t move, he simply stared into her eyes. Then suddenly he backed away, “Go back to the science lab. I do not have time for this today.”

Victoria gave him a bow and made her way back to the lab. She tried to focus on her work, but she was worried about the Commander and found herself checking her watch frequently the rest of the afternoon. Finally, when her workday was complete, she made her way to their quarters. She went about her normal routine of a shower and dinner, then went to the main room to await Zy’nayth’s arrival.

As soon as the door opened, she jumped up out of the chair. She waited for the door to shut, in case someone was behind him, before she ran up to him, “I’m sorry I’m not learning as fast as I probably should. I know after two months of training I should be able to block at least one attack and…”

Zy’nayth shook his head, “It is not that.”

“Well, in any case, I’m still sorry. I just wasn’t made for combat.” She reached out to help him with his jacket.

“Victoria…”

“Hmm?” she asked, finishing up the unbuttoning of his long jacket.

“Are your feelings for me still complicated?” It had been two months since he kissed her and until this moment, the subject had not been brought up again, nor had anything else happened.

She stopped and looked up into his silver eyes. “I…I don’t know.”

His hands enveloped her head as he pulled her into his kiss. After only the briefest of moments, he released her. “Forgive me,” he said, “…thoughts of you have filled my head today…and my heart.”

“It’s okay. I…” she groaned as she sat on the bed, “I just wish I could sort through these feelings. When you look at me like that, when we’re that close, I…I don’t know. But…”

“I am Rayth.”

“It’s not that,” she said with a wave of her hand. “You’re human, just…different. We’ve proven that much. It’s Jason. I was put through hell by him and…I know you’re not like him, but I still…I’m still haunted by what he did to me.” She sighed, “And then there’s Becket.”

Zy’nayth sat beside her, “I am fairly confident I could take him in a fight.”

Victoria looked at him, his head bowed, slightly tilted toward her, his hair just far enough out of the way to reveal a twinkle in his eye and a sly smile on his face that caused her to laugh.

Then a loud screeching sound vibrated through the ship. “What’s that?” she asked, slapping her hands to her ears out of reflex.

“An attack,” he replied, “stay here.” He was already buttoning up his jacket and running out of the quarters.

Victoria changed back into her daily wear in case she had to move to a different location. She could feel a slight shake in the ship as it was bombarded. But there were no big explosions, nothing big enough to shake her off of her feet.

She paced the room, wondering what it was like on the bridge of the ship and wondering who had the technology in this galaxy to go up against a Rayth ship—their flagship. Nearly all of the villages and towns they had encountered were pre-industrial. Those that were more advanced hadn’t achieved any sort of space program. As far as she knew, only the Mythicans, now long gone, and the Rayth were capable of space travel in Andromeda.

The door to the quarters opened, she recognized the Rayth as the second in command of the ship, with the title of First Commander. “You are to come with me,” he said. She nodded and followed him to the bridge. He pointed her to a vacant console. She sat and watched as Zy’nayth gave orders while scanning the various screens around him.

She wasn’t feeling any more shaking of the ship, but she wasn’t sure what that meant. Her eyes went from Zy’nayth to the giant viewscreen then back to Zy’nayth.

“Bring him to me!” he bellowed in Raythian. “Keep searching for the others.”

Victoria sat still and quiet. The members of the bridge crew ignored her. Then a Rayth was shoved into the area by four others. The Supreme Commander of the Raythian fleet turned, and with one blow sent the traitorous Rayth flying back against the far wall.

“Who are you working for?” Zy’nayth growled, but didn’t get a reply. Victoria swallowed hard as the smaller Rayth was picked up and shoved against the wall again, “Tell me!” When there still was no answer forthcoming she watched as Zy’nayth put his hand on the man’s forehead and closed his eyes.

The smaller Rayth screamed. Victoria clamped her hand over her mouth. Blood was running from the ears and eyes of the prisoner. Then Zy’nayth’s eyes opened. He seemed to be telling the guards who the other intruders were since she didn’t recognize the Raythian words. Then his hand went to the Rayth’s chest and Victoria shrunk back in her seat as she watched the life being sucked out of the prisoner. The tenderness Zy’nayth had shown her had almost made her forget of his lethality. Of his Rayth-ness. This reminded her that he was not to be trifled with.

“Kill them,” Zy’nayth roared in words unmistakable to Victoria even with her limited knowledge of the language. Then from the hallway leading towards the Supreme Commander’s quarters came three Rayth, armed with stunners and firing. Zy’nayth was able to duck aside as Victoria tried to hide under the control station behind her. Two guards came up behind the three traiters and were able to take two of them down. The third was caught in the chest by Zy’nayth’s hand which lifted him in an arc and thrust him down to the floor. He took his life as he had the other traitor’s.

Over the comm-system she heard that the final two remaining traitors had been killed. Zy’nayth walked over to the two Rayth that had been stunned, he reached down, took their heads into his hands and broke their necks.

“Get them off of my bridge!” he ordered and the guards immediately obeyed. It was as he was turning back to the command center that his eyes fell on Victoria.

He turned to two other guards and ordered them to escort her back to his quarters now that the traitors had all been apprehended. They were to remain on guard until he relieved them.

Victoria stumbled to her feet, the Supreme Commander ignoring her. Once she was back in their quarters, she curled up on the bed and cried herself to sleep. The horror of seeing the life literally sucked out of a man was bad enough, but by the man who said he loved her and was her husband was almost too much to bear.

Zy’nayth didn’t return until early the next morning as Victoria readied herself for work, even though she wasn’t sure if there would be work that day. But when he entered the quarters, she ran up to him and hugged him, despite the dreadfulness of the day before. “What happened? What did they do?”

“They tried to sabotage my ship. All of the conspirators have been dealt with.”

She backed away from him and looked up into his eyes, “Are you okay?”

He gave her a nod. “I wish you did not have to witness that last night. I do not like you to see that side of me, but I wanted you on the bridge in case they came after you. As long as you were within my view, I could know you were safe.”

She nodded, “I figured it out. Why did they come after you?”

“There are some who do not like the fact that I have a human helping us find a cure for this epidemic.”

“But…” she stopped and sighed, “I guess we all have our own civil wars. You should get some rest.”

“I must return back to work, I just wanted to see you before you went to the lab. I will be fine, do not worry.” He left the chambers and a couple minutes later, she went to the science lab.

Later that afternoon, to her surprise, he summoned her for her defense training. He didn’t summon her himself, he sent a guard for her and when they entered the sparring arena, the Supreme Commander was already in the middle of his own workout. There were no holds barred. Rayth, she had noticed early on in her training, always went full out. Of course, having the ability to quickly self-heal helped.

After flooring all six of his underlings, the Supreme Commander looked up and motioned for Victoria to him. He immediately began and she did as best as she could. She took heart that six of his soldiers were all laying on the floor groaning in pain. Even they couldn’t stop his attacks.

She ducked and dodged, knowing he wasn’t going full out on her, for which she was thankful, but knowing he probably wished she was faster and more anticipatory. He corrected her moves without stopping his attacks.

When their session was over, she was soaked with sweat, which she hated because her training happened during work hours, and in her work clothes. As Zy’nayth explained, in the real world, you don’t have time to change into a more appropriate outfit if you come under attack. She had once asked the First Science Commander if she should take the time to shower and change before returning to work. He gave her a negative response. Since the Supreme Commander always escorted her back to the lab and not to their quarters, that signified to the First Science Commander that she was to continue her work, not take a break for a shower.

After her shift, she entered their personal chambers and was surprised to find her husband already there, in his pajamas, sitting on the bed. Then she remembered he had probably been awake for well over thirty-six hours.

“Let me take a quick shower,” she said, “you can quiz me while I fix my dinner.”

He replied with a nod and continued flipping through screens on his tablet while she pulled her pajamas out of the dresser and headed to the bathroom. When she was ready for her quiz, he walked into the tiny kitchen, her tablet in hand and set it on the counter. “Begin,” he instructed.

She looked at the words on the screen and began pronouncing them as she cooked her rice. Then she felt his lips on her neck, causing her to close her eyes. He stopped and corrected her. “Try again. From the top.” She went back to fixing her dinner and reciting her words.

“You’re distracting me,” she said, “and I don’t want to burn my dinner. I’m starving.”

“You must learn to ignore distractions,” he said as he again kissed the back of her neck. “You do not mind the kisses?” he asked.

“No…but…I’m not sure…”

“I know your feelings for me are…complicated,” he said, “but as part of your combat training, you must learn to ignore distractions of all types.”

“So,” she said with a smile, “you want me to ignore you?”

“Go through your list, Victoria,” he said and sat down at the table.

Zy’nayth quizzed her on definitions, every once in a while, causing some sort of distraction, whether banging his fist on the table, dropping the silverware she’d set out for herself, or getting up and kissing her cheek or neck. It carried on even as she sat to eat. When she finished with the last word on her list, answering his questions correctly, Zy’nayth ceased his distractions and went back to the main room. Victoria finished her dinner then cleaned up the dishes.

She wasn’t sure what to do. She was attracted to him, there was no doubt of that. But being the wife, a true wife, to a Rayth, to anyone after her experience with Jason, was something she still wasn’t sure about. She put the last of her dishes away, clearing her mind of the encounter and walked back into the main room. “I didn’t know you could feed on other Rayth,” she said, finding him already in bed, though sitting up and working on his tablet.

“We can.” He looked up at her, “Odd question after your dinner and your lesson. I would have expected something else.”

“Ah, well, it popped in my head. And I…the lesson…” she sighed, and waved her hand. “How old are you?”

“Old.”

“You promised me an hour of Q and A each night. This is a question. You have to give me an answer.”

“I gave you an answer.”

She groaned. “I want a number. How old are you?”

“Does the number have to be accurate?” he asked, not looking up from his tablet, but grinning.

“Yes,” she replied.

“I am 10,437 years old.”

“Rayth years? Is there a difference from my…”

“Your years,” he answered, “I told you that I was old.”

Victoria frowned, “Then your feeding not only sustains and heals you, it extends your life.”

“So it would seem.”

“Wait, this changes a lot,” she said, “even if we can get your digestive system back to working order, if you don’t feed on humans, will it shorten your life expectancy?”

He set the tablet on the nightstand and looked at her, “I do not know. We do not even know if we will be able to regenerate, self-heal.”

Victoria bowed her head, “And you still want us to find a way to do this, to allow you to eat food?”

“Yes.”

“Ten thousand years. I can’t even comprehend that.”

“You wanted a number.”

“So I did.”

“Next question.”

“Have you ever been married?”

“Yes. Once.”

“Once? In ten thousand years?”

“If I were to count you, that would be twice.”

“What about…did you…were there other…uh…”

“Female companions?” he finished her question. “No.”

“Really? For all of these years? You must have really loved your wife and mourned her loss.”

“I did. And that is why when I tell you that I love you, it is very precious to me. It is not something I have ever said lightly.”

“Nor should you,” she replied quietly as she pulled her knees to her chest. “Is this something all Rayth believe? I mean, do they all…are they as committed to their spouses…I mean…are all so…?” She sighed again. “I’m having trouble finding words tonight. Sorry.”

Zy’nayth nodded. “Like humans, not all Rayth mourn in the same way or for the same length of time, nor do they limit themselves to their marriage partner. I, more than you may believe, know how precious love and life are. I take lives in order to live. I do not like to do it, but if I want to survive, I must. My wife and my son were taken from me in the war with the Mythicans.

“I wanted nothing more than to wipe all humans from this galaxy for taking my beloved from me. But over the centuries I have learned something very valuable: that this war with humans will never end as long as they are our only food source. The people I leave behind motherless, fatherless, without their spouses, they feel the hatred and vengeance I felt when my wife and son were killed. But if we can find a way to live off the land as you do, then this war can end, and children can grow old and die naturally. People will not have to live in fear. Humans will not have to fear Rayth and Rayth will not have to fear being hunted by vengeful humans. This is why I have offered to let you run some tests on me so that I can to help you and Dr. McKenna find a way to change things. You and I, Victoria, were brought together to do this.”

Victoria was wiping the tears from her eyes. “We’ll figure it out, I’ll die trying.”

“I hope it does not come to that. I do not wish to lose you. It has been a very long time since my heart was so joyful…regardless of your feelings for me, I will always treasure you as a friend.”

“How old were you when you married?” she asked as she wiped away her tears. “What was she like? Tell me about your family. I want to know who could have held your heart for all of these years.”

He reached up and caressed her cheek, “It is in the past.”

“I would like to know. All I know about you is that you command an army. I want to know more about you. Where you grew up, things you like, who you loved…everything.”

“You are a very inquisitive person, Victoria.”

“If you don’t wish to talk about her, I understand.”

Zy’nayth shook his head. “It is not that. I just did not expect you to…care. It must be difficult to care for someone who does what I do. Especially after what you witnessed yesterday.”

“I do care about you, Commander, very much.”

“Then I shall tell you about Gal’lara,” he replied. “We grew up together. Her eyes were green, like yours, a genetic abnormality for Rayth. She was intelligent, vivid, full of life. We married when I got my first commission. I was only twenty-five—young for a Rayth in the army. I loved flying and was determined to command a ship, so I was not at home as often as I would have liked, but I rose up quickly in the ranks. At the age of fifty-seven, I was given the rank of First Commander and Gal’lara gave birth to Gal’nayth, my son. He grew into a strong young man and a strong warrior.

“For 312 years, I had a wonderful life. I loved working on a spaceship, being the combat commander. I had a wife who I loved with all of my heart, and a son any father would be proud of. Then one afternoon as we were gathering a small village on Pro’vosta, my home town of Braskan was attacked. Gal’lara and Gal’nayth were killed. The town was burned to the ground and I lost everything—the two most precious things in my life.”

“Did you only have the one son?”

“Rayth can only have two children. I do not know why. Our second son was stillborn.”

Victoria was in tears, but she tended to his. “I’m so very sorry,” she said.

Zy’nayth relished her tender touch, “You have her eyes. That is why I healed you that day. I thought you were her, at least for one brief moment. The curly hair was a bit of a surprise.” He grinned. “That and the fact that you are a human.”

“Do you love me just because I remind you of her?”

His hands gently caressed her cheek, “I love you because of who you are, Victoria, not because you remind me of someone long ago. Very long ago.”

Victoria’s smile widened as she rested her head on his shoulder. “You’re tired. I’m tired. Let’s call it a night.”

“Will you ever love me, Victoria Carson?”

She let out a long sigh. “I don’t know. But I can’t deny that I’m attracted to you.”

 

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