Baket blinked.
“Oh, I think one of the orcs knows what that is.Baket?”
“Heart of my soul.Body outside of my own.Treasure of life.The explanations get more florid the more they drink.”Baket blushed.“I am half Mathor.”
“Wow.Since you are Zowoth, I am guessing your mom is tall.”
He nodded.“About my height.My father is always so proud when they are together.She is where I get my rank from.I look Zowoth, so I trained as one.”
“Aw.Now I won’t give you such a hard time about honorifics.”
He grinned.“So, it takes knowing that you got it from my mother to make it worthy?”
“Absolutely.So, based on the expression that made all of you look like you swallowed your own testicles, you know who is looking for Geri.”
The guys looked at her, and Baket said, “We know who he is.He goes to the arenas and challenges high-tier fighters.It’s a hobby of his.He hired the Zowoth to find hisLikuska.We found you instead.Not a match for our target, but Aken-Var was fascinated.”
She looked at him.“But, despite my ranking, it wasn’t socially acceptable for me to be as I was, so he tucked me into a repair unit and had me restored to factory settings.That qualified me for the women’s quarters.”
They all winced.
That was answer enough.
“Right.I am going to get whatever passes for coffee on this thing.Arven, you have the com.Geri, you are actually driving.”
There was a chuckle.“Yes, pilot.”
Margo got up and left the room.She needed some not-coffee and maybe a pastry of some kind.
It was unsurprising to see the other Terrans in the food court.She waved.“Hey, room for one more?”
Isolde grinned.“Margo?You are really Geri’s friend?”
“I am.We knew each other at the arena.”
“Did you know the guy that she was modified for?”
“I didn’t meet him, but yes, I saw him.I couldn’t believe that he didn’t kill her in the fight.”
Cori frowned.“What?”
Margo stood by the food machine and ordered her drink and snack.“Narrow it down.What, what?”
“Why would he have killed her?”
“Because she was five eight and a human, and he was eight feet and not a human.The fight was ten minutes long, and in a few spots, she climbed him like a monkey.When he picked her up and slammed her to the ground, that was it.Fight over.She eventually got breathing again, and they hauled her off.That was the last time I saw her.”
Skylar blinked.“So, Isolde says that she’s seven feet tall now.”
Margo nodded.“Yeah, she told me about that.It was a side effect of the bet.If she had won, she would have gotten off-world, and if he won, there was one night in his bed at stake, but he didn’t want to kill her, so the arena used some sketchy machinery and reprogrammed her DNA, so now she’s tall.”She smirked.“Apparently, they weren’t counting on her adapting fast, and she broke out of the arena and stole a ship that eventually picked you up, Isolde.Once you were safe, she finished her transformation.”
Isolde smiled.“This baby is going to have a lot of aunties.”
Margo smiled.“You are halfway through?”
Isolde frowned.“Seven months.”
“Hmrain baby, you are still in for another five months.”
