Page 17 of My Alien Pirate

Taking a deep breath, I pressed my hand to the door panel. It spiraled open, revealing Nova sitting at the desk, her slender arms covered in markings. She jumped up as I entered, those fascinating blue eyes wide with surprise.

"What do you want?" Her eyes skipped from me to Grixxa and Daz who had come in behind me, her voice carrying that musical quality that seemed unique to her species.

And I understood her. My body stiffened in surprise. The translator worked! The words appeared in my mind as clearly as if she'd spoken my own language. I felt my ridges pulse with excitement before I could control them. Suddenly, I wished I had not commanded Daz and Grixxa to come with me. My body thrummed with the need to be alone with her.

"Jorixx has added your language to a universal translator." I held up the small round piece of metal, understanding that she had no idea what it was but needing to do something to try toalleviate the sudden fear in her eyes. "Soon you will be able to understand us."

I handed the small piece of metal to Daz who took a step toward her, but she scrambled from her chair and up against the wall. Kraxing hells! I really didn't want to have to force her compliance but this was too important.

"Grixxa, hold her so Daz can place the translator."

My first mate hesitated only a moment before covering the small space in two long strides, pulling Nova from the wall, and wrapped her in arms and tentacles, completely immobilizing her upper body against her chest. Nova's small feet dangled off the floor so she had no leverage to get away. This didn't stop her from yelling and struggling futilely against my first mate's strong hold.

I handed the disc to Daz and took a step back trying to give the male a little bit of room to work. Had I taken a click to think, I would have had the little alien taken to the med bay where it would have been easier to subdue her.

"Oww!" Grixxa gave a yelp. "Hurry up, Daz! Her feet are small but she just kicked me in the shin with those boots!"

I bit down on my bottom lip stifling a smile as Daz hurried over to the pair. My little zixxit was feisty. I liked it. My amusement vanished, however, as Nova screamed "No, no, no!" My chest clenched at her distress, but it couldn't be helped. Suddenly, a sharp cry left her lips. Water leaked from her beautiful blue eyes and my hearts almost stopped at the pain I felt there.

"It is done, Captain," Daz stated, stepping back from the female.

"Thank you, Daz. You may go." The old Centari nodded once then squeezed around me and left, opening up at least a small amount of room in the small quarters.

Then I noticed the little alien had stopped struggling; her eyes wide with wonder. "I understood that," she whispered, amazement in her voice.

I nodded to Grixxa who slowly placed her back on her feet and unwrapped her arms. She remained watchful standing behind the tiny human just in case.

"Welcome to the Nebula Stryker. I am the captain, Zharrox. And this is my first mate, Grixxa," I intoned formally. "You are able to understand now, yes?"

Her eyes widened even further, if that was possible. "Yes! Yes, I can understand you!" She took a step forward, then seemed to catch herself, wariness replacing her initial excitement. "Why am I here? What are you going to do with me?"

The direct questions caught me off guard. It was easier when we couldn't communicate other than with our bodies. Her words brought into sharp focus how she had come to be here. "You're... safe," I said lamely, avoiding the second question entirely.

"Safe?" She let out a sharp bark of sound that the translator identified as laughter, though it held no humor. "I'm locked in a room on an alien ship with no idea where I am or what happened to my crew. That's not exactly my definition of safe."

I felt my scales flush with... was that shame? Impossible. I was a pirate captain. I didn't feel shame. "We rescued you," I reminded her, my voice coming out more defensive than I'd intended. And you're my mate, I added silently.

"And I'm grateful for that," she said, her voice softening slightly but her arms coming up to cross over her chest. "But rescue usually doesn't involve imprisonment."

She had a point, damn her. I found myself staring at the markings on her arms, trying to avoid those penetrating eyes. "What are those?" I asked, gesturing to the drawings.

She glanced down at her arms, and I saw color flood her cheeks. "Notes," she admitted. "I'm a scientist - a xenobiologist.I study alien life forms." Her small hands came up and pulled at the long black filaments pulled up on the top of her head. "I couldn't help myself. You and your crew, this place, you're fascinating."

"Fascinating?" I repeated, caught off guard by her candor. "We're nothing but simple traders."

"Yes," she agreed, meeting my gaze steadily. "But you're also the first extraterrestrial species I've ever encountered. Everything about you is remarkable. The way your scales change color, your bioluminescent ridges, the neural control you have over your tentacles..." She gestured to the drawings on her arms. "I've been trying to document everything I've observed. I didn't see anything that resembled paper, but I had a pen in my pocket and didn't want to..."

I found myself moving closer, drawn by her enthusiasm as she continued to ramble on. The markings on her arms were crude but recognizable sketches of myself and Grixxa, her bed, the chair she was sitting on when we arrived, all accompanied by neat rows of alien script.

"You've been studying us?" The thought was both amusing and somewhat unsettling.

"Of course," she said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "It's what I do. Even in a situation like this, I can't turn off my curiosity." She paused, then added more quietly, "It helps keep the fear at bay."

Her honesty struck me like a physical blow. Of course she was afraid. How could she not be? Yet here she was, maintaining her scientific objectivity, treating her captivity as an opportunity for research. Her resilience was... admirable.

An expression I couldn't identify rippled across her face like water. "What about my crew? There were two other people with me in my lab, and the rest of the ship..."

My throat suddenly grew tight, but I coughed and forced the truth out of my mouth. "We found no other survivors. I'm sorry."

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