Chapter One
Regi was sorting reports when Vk slipped into his office. “You need to talk to Dante,” she said without preamble.
“Why? Is he annoying Ter again?” Dante took perverse pleasure in provoking the engineer. Given how many setbacks they’d encountered while doing repairs, the foul-mouthed engineer had less patience than ever. Since they were trapped on a Kowri world where the lingering fear of execution haunted the ship, his foul mood had been exacerbated. Ter’s profanities grew more creative every time his staff or their Kowri assistants identified yet another problem. At this point, a wounded freio would be safer than Ter.
Vk honked in amusement. “Like the rest of us, Dante has decided to avoid Ter until the current run of bad luck ends. Do you have an estimate for when your gods might stop blessing us with bad luck?”
Having the crew ask him to interpret the will of Kowri gods was a new experience for Regi. In the twelve years he had served on Coalition ships, crew members had either ignored any possibility of Regi having religious beliefs or deriding him for the possibility. In fact, the rest of the universe regarded belief in the gods as a sign that a culture was primitive and superstitious. defined a god as a myth written by superstitious primitives. For the Kowri, however, gods were the powerful, invisible neighbors who brought their twin blessings of disaster and opportunity in order to guide the Empire. Kowri who failed to listen sufferedsuch an excess of bad luck that they died. They were dangerous neighbors.
Regi leaned back in his chair. “I cannot control or predict Ter. Why do you believe I could predict Kowri gods who are so massive that the Kowri appear as insignificant as gibuks crawling in the dirt?”
“I thought your goddess loved you.”
“The Lady Divashi blesses me with bad luck and opportunity so that I will do her work. That is not love. Or if it is your definition of love, you should speak to Ean about your questionable emotional responses. I understand that she hopes to address the psychological impact on individual crew members after having been trapped in hostile territory for so long.”
Vk cleared her nose with a huff. “You have a point. I do not envy you the attention of your gods. I am concerned about a disclosure from Bevit,” she announced in an abrupt change of topic.
“I haven't seen a report.”
“She was attempting to avoid anything official because she understands that you are sensitive about Dante's reputation.”
Regi’s fur rose in alarm. “What did she hope to avoid saying publicly?”
Her nose wrinkled. “Until Dante joined us, it never occurred to me how difficult it must be to have one's actions be judged as the standard by which an entire species is evaluated. I know that few of my species leave our planets, but outsiders visit and there are enough of us in service to various ships that if one looks up my species’ name in the database, my skills and shortcomings are not used as the standard for all of Heor.” Vk gave Regi a sharp and insightful look. She was his second-in-command in the security division, so if anyone would realize the isolating nature of having been the only Kowri in all of Coalition space, it would be her.
“I came to terms with it long ago,” Regi said.
Vk straightened her nose out again, a gesture of agreement. “Maybe you are used to it, but I suspect Dante isn't, which is why the doctor did not want to put it into the record that he is currently imbibing fluid Merbol gave him with the intent of lowering his own inhibitions and disconnecting from personal concerns.”
That was the most technical description of inebriation Regi had ever heard. “Dante is a medically fragile species. If he has been given illicit substances to alter his function, he should be in Medical.” He swiped his desk to disconnect access and stood.
Vk moved to block his exit. “As Dr. Bevit pointed out, if he is in Medical, then she must generate a report. Since there are so few reports on the biological function of huumans, then his choice to become inebriated may be interpreted as a species trait.”
They knew how difficult it was for some individuals to obtain work on Coalition stations or ships because they were from species perceived as irresponsible due to species traits. Dante's behavior now could define his people's relationship with the universe for the next several centuries.
“What does Bevit want me to do?”
“She wants you to stay with him and ensure that if there is a medical emergency, you call her.”
As much as Regi feared the idea of Dante being alone while intoxicated, he was even more fearful of spending too much time alone with him. “Dante is a rather hearty individual considering that he comes from a medically fragile species. I'm sure he is fine,” Regi said. He ignored the burning panic in the base of his throat that urged him to rush to Dante’s side.
Ever since they had been lost in the wilderness together, Regi had developed an inappropriate fondness for the man. Dante had been stolen from his own world and his own people whenhe was still too young to be an adult by his own definition. He had never given in to self-death, even though his species’ had a word for it,suicide, implying huumans used it regularly enough to require a unique term. And his loyalty had challenged Regi’s own beliefs about those who were not fully adult.
No, Regi was not to be trusted around an inebriated Dante. Regi did not trust himself. He did not want to take advantage, but the desire was present and he could not ignore it. Therefore, he would rather shave his fur than place himself in the way of such temptation.
Instead of being impressed by Regi's self-control, Vk narrowed her eyes and studied him the way one might an edvidas that had crawled into one's quarters, leaving a trail of violently yellow slime behind.
“He requires monitoring,” Vk said deliberately, so much so that the translator in Regi's head tingled in distress as it attempted to overcome the unfamiliar pronunciation.
Regi tried to keep his ears forward, but it was a battle. “If that is true, perhaps you should sit with him.”
Vk was a good choice. She had left her world because she did not fit into the cultural expectations of her people, including the expectation to find a mate. Even if she grew to admire Dante as much as Regi did, she would never overstep that boundary due to her innate asexual nature. It made her the perfect companion for an inebriated Dante.
Vk huffed, expelling tiny bits of mucus lining. She didn't even apologize for spewing bodily fluids. She leaned into Regi's space, her hands braced on his desk. “If something is happening that requires him to escape reality to such an extent that he would use chemical means, then he requires a friend. I assumed you were his friend. If you are not, tell me and I shall be sure to fill that role and express my displeasure with your duplicitous nature as a duty of friendship.”
Regi held his hands low in supplication. “It's not a good idea for me to be around him when his inhibitions are lowered.”
“Why?”
