ChapterOne
Amellia loved her job at the Beneficio Two spaceport, working as the office manager for the Sectors consolidated agencies station.The planet was a Sector Hub, true enough, but the Sector was sparsely populated and not on most major shipping routes, so the various government agencies each had only one or two agents located there and shared a facility.She enjoyed the exposure to interstellar commerce and activities, while remaining safely planted on her own planet.She had no desire to go off traveling all over the galaxy but the nature of her job provided welcome glimpses of the wider world.
She’d enjoyed her job even more for the last few months, ever since Agent Hagan was assigned to the Sectors Criminal Investigation Agency Field Office.He was ex-military and made her feel safer somehow just by being in the office, when he wasn’t out in the field on a case.The fact he wasn’t human but a Zackmarune was an added bonus.Amellia found she didn’t mind his green skin, the glimmer of scales, or his elegant, prehensile tail.
Glancing at the door to his currently empty office, Amellia repressed a sigh.He’d been gone all week, on the trail of smugglers or so she’d gleaned from the limited files available to her as office manager.He’d requisitioned a few odd items which she’d located for him on short notice and thanked her profusely before he departed.
He’d also lingered in her workspace for what seemed like a long time, asking her questions about the planet and she’d hoped maybe he was going to ask her out.He was so handsome and his scent, which was barely discernible, was like a fresh breeze, Amellia thought, carrying a hint of exotic spices.Usually she avoided any personal entanglements at the office, after several disastrous relationship mistakes early in her career, as she’d been working her way up the ladder in the Sectors Administrative Support Agency.
But Hagan was different than anyone she’d ever met and she might take a risk with him.But do I want to ask him out, if he never makes a move?What if he has a mate or a significant other on his home planet.Awkward!
As if conjured from thin air by her thoughts, the man walked into the office, tall and commanding as always, headed for her desk.
Amellia sat up straighter and wished she’d worn her new tunic but at least she’d tried a cute hairstyle today.“Welcome back,” she said as he got closer.“I hope the mission went well?”
His smile was more of a grimace.“About as expected but it’s a pure pleasure to come back here and see you, Ms.Taneek.”
“I did give you permission to call me Amellia,” she said demurely.
“I brought you something.”As she stared, heart beating faster, he fumbled with unsealing one of the many pockets on his cargo pants and brought out a small wooden box, which he set on the counter in front of her workstation.
Wondering what he might have picked out for her, hoping she wouldn’t have to refuse the item, Amellia made quick work of opening the container and pulled out a tiny stone statue of a pombatt, which was an adorable fluffy local wild animal.She set it on her palm and moved the carving this way and that, admiring the skill with which the artist used the natural veins in the stone to highlight the body of the creature and suggest the patterns in its fur.There were flakes of glittery quartz in the shiny purple and white stone which caught the lights and sparkled.
“I love it,” she said with genuine enthusiasm.“It’ll go perfectly with my collection.”Doing a half spin with her chair, she gestured at the modest wooden curio cabinet on the wall behind her, where a dozen other small animal figurines were arranged, along with other keepsakes and her various awards.Amellia liked personalizing her official workspace to make the area feel more like home in the rather stark Sectors office architecture.“Thank you!”
“I noticed you collected these and when I saw the pombatt, I knew it was for you,” he said with a grin.
“You didn’t have to do that,” she said, although there was a warm flush of satisfaction and a bit of tingling at her core, knowing he’d been thinking of her.
Head tilted, he studied her briefly.“Oh yes, I think I did.I like your hair by the way.”
Amellia patted the flippant curl.“My cousin persuaded me to try a new stylist.”
He squared his shoulders and straightened his back.Socializing time was clearly over.The pleasant interlude was concluded as clearly as if he’d said so and yet again he hadn’t asked her out.“Was anything delivered for me while I was gone?”
Amellia had been a bit tongue tied, tempted to ask him for a date and yet reluctant, so it was a relief to slide into the normal, routine office chitchat.“Yes actually there was.I accepted the delivery and put the container in your office, on the desk.”
Blinking, he did seem startled.“Container?I was expecting a document, not a box.”
“No documents, no letters, just the one item.”She realized she was rubbing her fingers on the edge of her jacket and made herself stop.The package had been quite odd and she’d actually been queasy for a few minutes after handling it.Of course the box had been fully screened at the spaceport before the office robo took it for delivery so more likely she’d been noticing the effects of the unusually greasy fast food she’d had for lunch.
“I’d better go deal with it then.”He gave her a nod and headed for his office, stopping along the way to exchange greetings with one or two of the other Sectors agents who had offices here.
Forcing herself to stop watching him, lest he catch her in the act, Amellia shuffled a pile of input disks on her desk and checked the time on her chrono.She was supposed to meet several of her cousins and other friends for dinner after work and then catch a show in the entertainment district, so she hastily grabbed her purse and rushed out, eager for the evening’s events.
Hagan Raljarr studiedthe package sitting so innocently on his desk, foreboding roiling his gut.His tail twitched and he could feel his talons preparing to emerge.Taking a deep breath, he got himself under control again.Surely Sharshanna wouldn’t have done anything rash after getting his message.She should have been pleased at what he’d communicated.
Yet he couldn’t quite make himself believe the comforting assumption.When had anything he’d done made her happy?
Stalling for time, he removed his shoulder holster and stowed his weapon in the gun safe, rubbing his aching muscles where a near miss from a blaster had left a long sear.The operation to take down the interstellar antiquities smugglers had ultimately been a success but not without a hell of a firefight.He’d been lucky to only receive a glancing wound, already healing.He glanced at the office door, now closed, and wished he’d given into temptation and asked Amellia out to dinner.But this strange box from his home world might be what he needed to go forward on an attempt to build more than a casually friendly relationship with her.
Flicking out his longest talon, he unsealed the outer container and assessed the inner wrappings.Moglal leaves woven tightly together and secured by a twisted red thorn vine enclosed the contents.He crossed the office in four steps and closed the door tight before returning to the desk and reluctantly bending over the package.Taking a careful sniff, he nudged the box with the tip of his tail and nothing happened.Uneasy, he slashed the thorn vine, which came loose in a convulsive motion, spooling itself up on the desk and rolling onto the floor.Transfixed by the contents now revealed, Hagan made no move to catch the vine because the leaves were unfurling one by one, their dark maroon veins gleaming in the office lights.He heard the sound of ceremonial drums and a shiver ran through his body as the lid of the plain wooden box inside began to rise.
A shower of sparks spiraled into the air, glittering jet black, red and orange and he recoiled, deploying his tail to slam the box shut but the move was too late.The cloud of motes encircled him and he knew he was breathing them in, although there was no scent or taste.Desperately he batted his arms seeking to dispel the miasma and sank into his chair as weakness overcame him and his legs failed.His body went numb from the ankles up, as if he was being encased in ice.The last thing he saw before passing out was a small stream of the sparkling droplets floating out through the vents, seeking another target.Dread squeezed icy fingers around his heart and he prayed to the Ancestor of All to protect their intended victim.
An indeterminate timelater he came to, groggy and with a headache.Gingerly he sat up and checked to make sure he was in one piece and recognizably a Zackmarune.With a spell as powerful as the one contained in the damn box, anything could happen.His heart rate was elevated but otherwise he seemed fine.Maybe she only meant to scare me.There could be no more humiliating situation than for a proud Zackmarune warrior like himself to lose self-control and consciousness.Luckily there was no audience present.He’d have to either kill them or become a total hermit on a holy mountain on his home planet to erase the shame.
Checking the door, which was still closed and the window at the top, he noticed the outer office had gone dark while he was unconscious, which meant everyone else was gone for the day, which was a relief in the present situation.
