Page 20 of Mazorium Buys a Human

“That was it,” I said, beginning to feel defeated. “I’ve done everything the same and you aren’t responding. Please, Nadia, help me a little.”

I reached up to put the cup back. That movement made me realize there was one part of my actions I’d missed. I went through the whole thing again but this time I added the jerk I’d done in reaction to the tea before spitting it out.

Nadia went silent. I looked down and she was staring up at me with wide, pretty human eyes full of interest.

“It was the movement of my body!” I said with a rumble of amusement. She must’ve liked that sound because her tiny arms waved a little at the rumble.

I continued to sound a rumble of amusement and simulated the little jerky movement. It was awkward and I wasn’t used tosounding a continuous rumble of amusement, but it made Nadia happy, so I was willing to do it for as long as necessary.

As I did a jerky walk around the room, Nadia made another burble and didn’t start crying. Elation filled me!

“I figured it out!” I told the empty room. “I’m the best human owner that’s ever been!”

Mika

I woke feeling more rested than I had in, well, forever! Sitting up, I yawned and stretched. It felt good to not only get enough sleep but to also wake up without pain. There was tightness and a little discomfort, and my breasts were full of milk, but none of the intense pain that would make me break out in sweat and my vision waver.

My brain still felt a little dull, but that could be due to being groggy.

Running fingers through my tangled hair, I looked around the room. It took my sleepy brain a while to figure out I was all alone. Concern chased away the last of my haze as I scrambled to my feet.

Where was Nadia?

My first step was unsteady and I ended up going down on my knees in the nest. Soft padding made my landing painless, but I got tangled and ended up tossing pillows around as I stumbled back up to my feet.

Once I reached the door of the room, I was steady again. I sprinted down one hall, then another. As with most ships, each corridor looked the same, and at one point I got myself turned around and ended up back in Mazorium’s quarters.

“I need to calm the fuck down,” I panted. I had a stitch in my side and was leaning against a wall. My body didn’t want to run anymore and was telling me in all kinds of ways that it was unhappy.

So much for not being in pain!

The moment I could straighten up again, I looked around and took note of a few distinguishing features in this corridor, then walked to the end and turned left instead of right. I did better this time. I found the galley and noticed a mess on one wall. Had he flung a cup of something?

Was it because Nadia was being irritating?

Fear for my baby made me start running again. I found the control room, several storage rooms, and a large bay full of different kinds of survey bots. With every empty space my fear got worse.

Finally I heard him. He was making a sound that reminded me of glass marbles clinking around in a cloth bag, and he was talking. I couldn’t make out the words, but it sounded like he was explaining something. Had someone else boarded while I’d been asleep?

Unsure what I’d find, I slowed my pace and approached an open door where the noise was coming from. As much as I wanted to charge in there and snatch my baby back, I knew better than to rush into an unknown situation. That was never a good idea!

I peeked around a corner and didn’t understand what I was seeing at first.

Mazorium was standing under some tall equipment, walking in a small circle with a strange, jerking gait. The equipment overhead was lit up and soft lights in various colors were sparkling down on him, but nothing was activated. There was no one else here; he was talking to Nadia as if she could understand.

Nadia was in his arms, awake and staring up at the lights. Seeing my baby safe and content made my legs go weak. I slumped against the wall to catch my breath.

“We only pick planets with strong magnetic fields,” he told Nadia. “That doesn’t mean they are automatically inhabitable, but it’s a better place to start. Then we do atmospheric testing. If those are favorable the owners of the planet will order a survey to be done. There are several kinds of planet surveys, but my kind are the best. I’m on the planet for three solars and I do a comprehensive analysis of every aspect of the planet including fault lines and plate tectonics.”

His words weren’t being spoken smoothly. He was going up and down in pitch with every sentence, as if he was a malfunctioning announcement unit.

“I’m in high demand and have assignments lined up for the next nine solars. Early in my career I worked exclusively for the Colonial Advancement Committee. I told them not to colonize Yulom. They did it against my advice, but five solars later the planet had to be abandoned due to volcanic activity. After that no one went against my advice and everyone wanted me to assess their planets.”

I never considered what went into colonizing planets. I’d spent my adult life working on stations. I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d been planet-side.

What would it even feel like to have sunlight on my skin and a real breeze tugging at my hair?

Suddenly I realized Mazorium could give my daughter access to life outside of a station. Something I couldn’t possibly do even if we hadn’t been sold. Traveling was expensive and jobs on planets could be hard to get. There was no future where I could give her any of the experiences I’d had growing up with the small human community on Wimol.