"I would prefer this place to be cleared of sand entirely," Proteus said, his rumbling making the water vibrate around her.
"Unfortunately, that is unlikely. There is nothing to patch the walls with, and I've already identified multiple areas where the structure of this building is compromised. Unfortunately, even if we fixed the major damage in the wall, sand would still get in."
Proteus grunted, clearly in disapproval.
Ellie tested moving one hand off of the wall and using it to scrub at her torso. That seemed to work to remove all the spiky granules. So she leaned down a little farther and instantly lost her grip.
Her head dunked underneath the water, and she waved her arms like she'd seen others do. Kicked her legs. She even wiggled her body the way it was supposed to so she would float to the surface, but nothing seemed to work.
Then, a massive arm hooked around her waist and hauled her back up to the surface. Spluttering, she leaned back against the massive wall of muscle that was Proteus and trusted him to hold her up while she shoved her hair back from her face.
"Try not to die," he said, although his voice sounded strained.
"I still don't know how to swim."
"I will teach you soon enough."
She thought he would bring her back to the wall and allow her to cling to it. Instead, he moved her in his arms, and then his tail was between her legs. Thick and muscular, it made something deep inside her chest awaken in a way she hadn't realized it could. Her entire body felt hot. Her breathing was a little more rapid. Her heart felt like it was trying to beat its way out of her chest and between her legs...
Heat.
Indescribable heat.
Proteus sounded almost pained as he said, "I will keep you afloat. Finish your bathing, Sisu."
How was she supposed to finish bathing with a sinuous tail undulating between her legs? She hadn't even realized her body could feel like this! It was glorious, terrifying, aching, everything she had not realized a human could feel.
Pilot was still prattling on about the holograms, and she was supposed to be scrubbing herself. So that's what she did. Robotically. Trying not to move at all because she was so terrified that the feeling would get worse. Or better.
It was best not to encourage a rebellious body.
"Perhaps you should turn the hologram on," Proteus said. There was still an odd edge to his voice. Clipped and different from normal, as though he were straining himself.
Was she that heavy? She didn't think it would be a struggle for him to keep her afloat with his tail, but she really had no idea how much effort he was exerting. Maybe it wasn't easy to use his tail like this, although it sure seemed like there was enough of it.
It was his damned fluke, she realized. It was flicking in the water and that was what kept her afloat, but it was also what was twitching the thick muscles of his tail against a very sensitive part of her body.
"All done!" she announced, as if anyone cared that she was finished.
Stupidly, she jolted herself off his tail. Pushing until she was clinging onto a few of his scales and desperately grappling for the lip of the floor. She hadn't even noticed the icy temperature as she hauled herself out. All she wanted was to put that suit back on, and to ignore the feelings that had been building inside of her body.
If she ignored them, they weren't real. If she pretended that he didn't make her feel that way, then it wasn't serious.
"Oh good!" Pilot said, completely oblivious to what had just occurred. "Allow me."
She yanked her suit on while the droid clanked around wherever he was. She didn't know if Proteus was looking and shouldn't have cared. But something had awakened in her, and she almost wanted him to look. She wanted to feel the weight of his eyes on her limbs, to know if he liked what he saw.
These were beastly feelings, and they had no place in her mind. She was a clone, nothing more, nothing less. A tool to be used. She had seen the other clones servicing people before. Many of Malcolm’s friends, and Malcolm himself, had their way with clones that looked identical to her. Ellie had seen them many times.
But she had one purpose. And it wasn't this.
A hologram of a woman burst to life right in front of her as she pulled the last sleeve up and over her shoulder. Letting out a little shriek, she would have fallen back into the water if Proteus hadn't planted his hand firmly on her back and shoved her through the hologram.
She staggered forward, catching herself before she fell on her face, and then reeled around to see him staring at the hologram with clear recognition in his eyes. As if that wasn't enough, the hologram appeared to be speaking directly to him.
"Proteus, if you're seeing this, I'm likely long dead." The woman was looking at the water, as though expecting that waswhere he would be. "The equipment is being prepped to see how long it can last, but I know your own people would never let you come back without a fight."
The hologram turned, walking straight through Ellie and toward the back corner of the facility. "This is the weakest area. We assume the storms will affect this wall first. We've moved everything to the opposite side and built as many structures behind this place as we could to strengthen the wall. It's the best we can do on such short notice."
