Page 92 of Tempted by Celestial Bodies

Great gods above and below,did I feel like shit.

I opened my eyes and blinked a few times to bring my surroundings into focus. The room was dark except for a few faint lights, but I recognized my own quarters. I lay on my side on my bunk as I always did, facing the door.

The first odd thing I noticed—other than how much my whole body hurt—were the scents around me. My bedding smelled freshly cleaned, as did my cabin, and the distinctive odor of medical equipment hung in the air. Strangely, I also smelled something that reminded me of a jungle, but that didn’t make any sense.

I let out a groan and started to roll onto my back, only to find myself held in place by a strong hand on my hip.

“Stay still,” a man said from behind me, his voice gentle.

Fury and fear, in equal amounts, sent an icy chill down my spine. Thanks to my muddled mind and aching body, I hadn’t realized I was not alone.

“No sudden movements,” the man behind me added. “You got knocked out and all your wounds are still healing. Don’t rip anything open again.”

I had no memory of being knocked out and no reason to take this man at his word, but my entire body did hurt, especially my head and my chest.

“Who are you?” I demanded. I sounded hoarse, as though I had been unconscious for a long time. “What the hells are you doing on my ship?And in my bunk?”

“My name is Kerian Nos,” he murmured. Despite my anger, he kept his voice quiet and calm and deliberately nonthreatening.

It didn’t escape my notice that he’d put himself between me and the wall, leaving me free to get away if I wanted while allowing himself to be in the more vulnerable position. He’d done everything he could to anticipate my anger and confusion and assuage my fear.

“You found me in your cargo hold, trapped in a malfunctioning stasis pod,” he added, now with definite concern in his voice. “Then the ship was severely damaged. Do you not remember?”

The more I tried to recall details of who he was and what had happened, the fuzzier my memory became. I supposed that supported his claim of a head injury. I also had a dim recollection of trying to shoot him. Obviously I hadn’t succeeded in killing him if we were in my cabin, and in my bunk.

And speaking of which…

Under my blanket, I wore sleepwear, and my skin smelled of cleanser. “Where is my uniform?” I demanded.

“I removed your clothes, but I took no liberties. I am a trained army medic.” His gentle voice became clinical. “Once you were healed, I cleaned away the blood and changed your clothing.”

Indeed, several new scars crisscrossed my torso. More evidence of how close I’d come to death, and of how much he’d had to do to save my life. My sluggish brain had a difficult time processing this information.

“How did I get injured?” I asked.

He explained about the damage to the ship and that we were still on course for Ymar II, piloted by Mechabot.

“I knew that robot would get into the cockpit someday,” I muttered, then raised my voice. “Computer, what caused the damage to the ship?”

“Scans indicate a collision with a derelict vessel,” the computer replied.

“Ship’s status?”

“Hull breaches on the starboard side, aft section, and widespread system damage. Shipwide life support and interspace communications remain offline. You are advised to remain sequestered in your cabin until the ship reaches its destination.”

My ship. My gut contracted.

For all her moodiness and leaky conduits and sparking wires,Nebulawas mine—the only thing I’d ever had that truly belonged to me.

Floating debris posed a constant danger for deep space travelers, but usually they weren’t large enough to cause anything more than minor damage. If we’d struck a derelict vessel at hyperspeed, we were lucky to be alive, and even luckier to be able to continue to Ymar II.

“Why save my life?” I asked. I wanted my voice to be steady, but it wasn’t. I felt like my own pain reflectedNebula’s suffering too.

The bunk dipped behind me for a moment, as if he’d started to move toward me then thought better of it.

“I’d have to explain once we arrived why you were dead and I wasn’t on any manifest,” he said. “We had a disagreement about why I was aboard your ship, but youdidopen my stasis pod before I asphyxiated. And it’s almost a standard week to Ymar II. A long time to be sealed in a cabin alone.”

Well, that made sense.

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