AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"I have successfully abducted a female," I replied, keeping my voice neutral. "She's acclimatising to her new surroundings just now. I found the IGU guide very helpful."
I added the last bit to appeal to my sire's pride. It might distract him from asking questions about how I'd chosen the female.
"Good," he said. "Once she's accepted her situation, you can begin to study her interactions with the stabhorn.Why did you only abduct the one specimen?"
Internally, I cringed at his choice of words, but I knew him well enough to know that he was goading me.
"The stabhorn reacted positively towards her. I thought that would be an interesting aspect to study further, and adding more research subjects might spoil the results."
My sire looked at me with something like appreciation. Not pride, never, but it wasn't the disappointment I usually had to endure. "I agree, that is an unusual and fascinating behaviour. For now, study the Peritan as closely as possible. Record every interaction between her and the stabhorn. In the meantime, I will continue going over your existing reports and put together a list of what needs to be improved. Your style isn't academic enough, but if I have the time, I will rewrite some of them to give you an example of how they should be done in future."
I didn't tell him that there would be no future. I was doing this to pay off my debts, not to become a permanent researcher at the IGU. Once my mate had got used to living on Allopo, I'd go back to being a stabhorn tamer. Minus the groupies. From now on, no other female would ever get to see, taste or feel my cock again. Only my mate. The days of playing around were over.
"Based on your experiences on Peritus," my sire continued, "do you agree with my hypothesis that a kind of stabhorn was once present on the planet, but has since become extinct? It would be the perfect explanation for the stabhorns in their mythology."
"Maybe," I hedged. "Wouldn't there be fossil records if that was true?"
"Not necessarily. And we'd have to trust their archaeologists to find all the right fossils. They're lacking the experience and technology to build a complete fossil record."
"Then you might be right. I saw stabhorns in all sorts of places on Peritus, even on crockery and in younglings' books. They're everywhere. And in one country, Scotland, their version of the stabhorn is recognised as a national animal."
"I know, fascinating." My sire smiled, enthusiasm softening his stern features. I burned the image into my memory. My sire, smiling. That happened once every few rotations at most. Something to tell the grand-younglings.
"I better go. I don't want to leave my abductee alone for too long," I said and ended the call. Pulling up the surveillance screen again, I watched with amusement as Tara was gently brushing An'tia. That devious stabhorn had already found a new servant. I didn't know how she'd done it, but I'd find out once I watched the recordings later. For now, I wanted to be back with my mate. I'd given her some time. Ten IG minutes should be enough to calm down, right?
Lesson 6: Unicorn Care 101
Tara
The spaceship wasn't as big as I'd expected. I found several unused bedrooms, some with bunk beds like on an actual ship, until I walked down some steps and into a large hangar. I assumed this would be used for storage, but right now, it was almost empty. The only occupant was the unicorn, lying on a huge red rug in the centre of the hangar. An empty trough stood on one side, while an assortment of brushes and other instruments was laid out on a small table. For a second, I wondered where the unicorn went to the toilet, then quickly pushed that thought from my mind. Unicorns were magical and I didn't want to spoil that by thinking about practicalities.
An'tia whinnied softly when I approached. Now that I knew she was an actual unicorn and not just a horse with a stuck-on horn, I had even more respect for her.
"Did he abduct you, too?" I asked and looked up into her big, turquoise eyes. Then I remembered how I'd been sucked in the last time and quickly focused on her mane."Or did you come willingly? And are you an actual unicorn or just an alien animal that coincidentally looks like one?"
An'tia didn't respond. Not that I'd expected her to. But for some strange reason, I thought she understood what I was saying.
With a snort, she picked up one of the brushes with her perfectly white teeth and held it out to me.
"You want me to brush you?"
She snorted again, as if to say, 'obviously'.
I was still intimidated by her size - and by her being an alien animal, not just a bog-standard horse - but I didn't feel like she meant me any harm. I'd just have to stay clear of her hooves and her tail. And her horn, obviously.
I took the brush and held it out in front of me, letting An'tia decide where she wanted to be groomed. She pressed her neck against the brush, so I started with her mane. The hair was silky smooth and the brush glid over it easily.
"I wish my hair was as soft as yours," I muttered. "If you were human, I'd ask what kind of product you use. Does Bruin groom you every day? Does he wash your mane or is that unnecessary?"
An'tia huffed impatiently. I clearly wasn't working fast enough for her. I was too small to reach the top of her head, but she lowered herself onto her knees before I could even ask. Clever unicorn. When I brushed her between her ears, she whinnied happily.
"You like that, huh? Do you want me to keep the ribbons in or remove them?"
"Keep them," a voice said from behind me.
I whirled around, holding the brush like a weapon. Bruin had entered the hangar without me noticing. He slowly held up his hands, as if motioning to a frightened animal.
"I come in peace. Thanks for grooming An'tia. I haven't had time yet for her second brushing session."
