The Captain's Heart CH 67 (Patreon)

“We have arrived at the coordinates,” Hargarin Felrorter Doskimar said, the pilot looking over her screens. “Momentum is now null.” “Nothing

“We have arrived at the coordinates,” Hargarin Felrorter Doskimar said, the pilot looking over her screens. “Momentum is now null.”

“Nothing out of the ordinary on Sensor,” Lelgrimderisik sel Syntarikim said. “Waiting on order for active scan.”

Gralgiran looked toward Murosutori Dilakatarinatiren, and the comm officer shook her head.

Of course, his prey wouldn’t be stupid enough to broadcast comm on the open bands. But completely hiding was impossible if the ships’ communication array was advanced enough, and, as with all hunter ships, the Bane had the best the leadership gave them access to. Even the animosity of the current leaders toward him hadn’t kept him from retrofitting the array the last time he’d been at Kelser, while they’d, again, attempted to take the ship from him.

His ship also had as good decryption programs as his experts could write.

Of course, his prey might be light years away. The sector was vast, and passive scans were limited to the speed of light and active scans to not much more than that and both came with their own sets of complications.

If active scans detected his prey, anyone at their sensors would know. If they shut down most of their systems, the Bane would have to be on them to detect the energy traces.

Still, other than knowing this sector was where he should search, he had other information to guide the hunt.

He brought up the projection of the sector, then overlaid the courses of the three missing ships. The Wings was the closest to their position. And the most likely place to start was where the three courses almost intersected. He sent the course information and destination.

“Get on Thonderile Wings’s course, with that destination. Lelgrimderisik scans remain passive, set them to pick up anything a battle would leave behind. This hunt will carry over many shifts and days, Hunters. Remain alert when you are active, rest and live when you are not. There is no telling when the gods will call us to be on the front line.”

“We die, so others live,” they responded.

“Not this hunt,” he replied. The usual reminder not to throw their lives away needlessly.

    *

“Oh, I so don’t know if I’m ready for this, Gral,” Jeremy said as they approached the reservoir’s archway.

“We can return to our apartments, Jer.”

“No. You have no idea how long it’s been since I’ve been swimming. The pool on Einstein was in so much demand I was lucky if I could get a half hour slot once a month. It’s just that…”

He’d explained what going swimming would entail; the fact that every Kelsirian there would be nude. He’d also reassured him there would be no sex there. The reservoir wasn’t designated as a leisure area.

He’d brought up the idea both because after three days without results, he’d needed to go out and do something that wouldn’t also come with the risk of being offered sex, and in an attempt to expose Jeremy to more Kelsirian culture. He would respect him and Earther customs, but he hoped that in getting comfortable with how Kelsirians were, he’d grow to understand that love wasn’t dependent on sex.

Jeremy had been more receptive to the idea of swimming than expected, but the nudity had put him off. He’d made it clear he wouldn’t do that and had cut a pair of pants just above the knee and called them the swimming trunks he was already wearing.

Then had been the surprise over the swimming taking place at the reservoir.

They entered the undressing room, and Jeremy was already blushing, trying to look away from everyone there. Gralgiran scanned his bracelet over a locker, then urged his Heart to do the same with his.

“Jer, we can come back—”

“I’m okay.” He took off the jacket, then his shirt and Gralgiran undressed, storing everything except his bracelet and collar. As much as he wanted this to be pure relaxation with his Heart, there was a hunt happening and he needed to remain accessible at all times.

“I don’t know how you do it,” Jeremy whispered, furtively glancing at the others. Only the males, he noted.

“I’ve seen plenty of naked males. I expect they don’t hold the same exotic appeal to me as to you.”

“I’m not—” He looked at Gralgiran. “You know I wouldn’t—” He took a slow breath. “This is harder than I thought.”

“You can look,” he said. “No one will mind. No one will think you are inviting them. We don’t have the same relationship to clothing, and lack thereof, as Earthers do.”

Jeremy squared his shoulders and headed for the other side of the undressing room. “Except you don’t allow nakedness everywhere. That implies it’s not as ‘natural’ as you’re saying.”

Gralgiran chuckled. “It is natural, but then, so are males and females using the opportunity to put themselves on display, and that is distracting, even if you’re not the intended recipient.”

“What does ‘putting themselves on display’ mean?” the doors slid open and Jeremy gasped, raising a hand to shield his eyes. “Fuck, I didn’t think it would be this hot or bright.”

Gralgiran’s eyesight adjusted after a few seconds of glare blindness. “I told you it would be warmer than the rest of the ship. We enjoy sunning ourselves.”

“You didn’t mention that last part. Not that I’d have expected this, anyway. I’m going to have to print sunglasses for the next time.”

“Your eyesight isn’t adjusting?”

Jeremy chuckled. “You have a wider range in what frequencies you hear, as well as light adaptability? I wonder if there’s something we humans are more adept at than you are.”

Gralgiran kept his response to himself. Making Jeremy blush by pointing out just how much more sensitized his skin was wouldn’t serve to make him at ease with the situation.

He’d demonstrate once they were back in their apartments.

He looked around. “Sand too.” He sunk his toes in it. “This is like an actual beach. I was expected something more like the pool on Einstein.”

“Are you okay to go to the water or is the light too much?”

“I’ll be fine.” He walked. “How do you keep the sand people drag into the water from clogging the system?”

“The same way we keep the fur we shed from clogging it. Good filtration.”

As expected, they attracted looks, and Gralgiran remained alert for anyone approaching with lewdness on their face, or an erection. This wouldn’t be a time when his Heart had to deal with exotic seekers.

“Okay, that’s excessive.”

He snapped his attention in the direction Jeremy looked away from, thinking he’d missed someone approaching. Instead, the male was parading himself, his ash fur neatly groomed and shimmering in the light. On top of having the fur trimmed around his groin to draw the eye there, he’d added a ring of sparkling rocks in what looked like eritin wood at the base of his cock, and two on top of his balls. A show of wealth, along with displaying his impressive endowment.

“You asked what someone putting themselves on display looks like?”

“And that’s allowed here?”

“It’s…tolerated. There’s always a few warnings given when putting on display turns into demonstrating what they’re capable of, but it’s been a while since a report of someone arrested for inappropriate behavior has crossed my desk.”

“That,” Jeremy said, without motioning to who he meant, “would get someone arrested pretty much anywhere in Earth. Well, there are nudist beaches and colonies, but I have no idea how that works, and I doubt they’d be okay with something that blatant.”

They stopped at the edge of the water.

Jeremy peered into the distance. “Just how large is this?”

“Five hundred meters in that direction, a hundred across.”

“How deep?”

“Two hundred meters at the deepest, but only twenty can be swum in.”

“And the waves?” He motioned to the people bobbing on the surface of low waves.

“They’re set to vary from still water to about twice what’s happening now at random intervals.”

“Nothing bigger? Nothing we can surf on?”

Gralgiran chuckled. “Not on a ship, or at least this ship. Surf is a planet side activity. I can take you when we visit Kelser.”

“Another planet,” Jeremy said in awe. “Never thought I’d do that.”

“Aren’t there other colonies in Earther territories?”

“A handful, but it’s not like I’d ever get approval to go.”

“Not even for a visit?”

“It’s not like I really looked into them, but as far as I know, they’re working settlements, not touristic ones.”

He hesitated. “Earthers don’t seem to be strong on making sure they enjoy the life they live.”

Jeremy laughed. “I’d like to think we are, but I’ll grant you we don’t do it to Kelsirian levels. I think the ‘drive to advance’ is genetic for us. So, how does this work? Do I just go in?”

“Unless you feel you need my assistance, then yes you—”

Jeremy ran into the water, then threw himself in, resurfacing further. Gralgiran ran after his Heart, then they chased each other among the swimmers, starting a splashing war at some point.

Outline section 

no Outline

Addition 

Arrival in the sector, scans and working out where they need to go.

This was all I had plans for, and it turned out to be even shorter than I expected because I kind of forgot travel isn’t instantaneous. And I don’t want to just have time jumps. Kelsirians actually live, and I really want to show that.

And so, I get to take Jeremy to the ‘beach’ and start adapting him to Kelsirian’s lack of clothing. Talking about water treatment wasn’t exactly planned, but I figured it might come up.

Talking about Earth colonies, kind of blindsided me. As the fact that Jeremy is a bit of a surfer.