Page 25 of Fallen from the Stars

She nodded.

“How?” he asked.

“They have these big machines. You set up the design you want and step into the chamber, and all these little lasers turn on and basically burn it into your skin.” She lifted her right hand and settled it on her left forearm, slowly sliding her palm down. “It’s like a hundred thousand needles stabbing you all at once, and it hurts like a mother fucker while it’s happening, but the pain mostly stops once it’s done. It itches for a day or two, but you have a brand-new tattoo to show off.”

“Is it worth the pain?”

She looked down at the markings. “Yeah, I guess so. I can’t really remember the pain, but I’ll always have this kick-ass tattoo.” Her eyes met his again, and she smirked. “Anyway, I’m all finished here.”

She stepped away from him, breaking their contact, and bent down to gather her belongings from the ground. Straightening briefly, she fastened her belt around her waist, pistol and knife already in place, and then collected her outer suit — or rather thepiecesof her outer suit. He’d thought it a single garment, like the diving suits from the Facility, but she held at least four separate parts now.

He tilted his head as he noticed the frayed edge of one of her sleeves; realization came to him a moment later. She’dcutthe suit into pieces.

With the suit tucked under one arm, she turned toward a pair of containers standing on the bank. Vasil hurried forward and grabbed them both. She reeled back at his sudden movement.

“I have plenty of limbs to help you,” he said quickly. “I am here. I might as well share the load.”

Theo smiled. “Thanks.”

He turned and moved through the thick foliage bordering the stream bank, heading toward the beach. Theo’s footsteps — the soft crunching of leaves and branches — sounded immediately behind him.

The liquid in the containers — water, undoubtedly — sloshed as he moved. He forced himself to keep his eyes on his surroundings, to remain vigilant, but the urge to twist around and look at her only strengthened as they traveled. The short journey shouldn’t have been any different from any he’d made with kraken hunting parties in the past, during which he’d always needed to remain observant for everyone’s safety. It wasn’t so long ago that he’d relieved a distracted Kronus — who’d been interested in a woman of his own — from watch duty to ensure the job was adequately done.

Arkon’s word for Vasil’s current behavior would’ve beenhypocritical.

Words leapt out of his mouth before he even realized his intention to speak. “Do you have a mate?”

“You mean like a life partner or a fuck buddy?” Theo asked.

Vasil halted and spun around to face her. Eyes wide, she jerked and skidded to a sudden stop, nearly colliding with him.

“Awhat?” he demanded.

Her brows lowered. “A…fuck buddy?”

“Afuck buddy,” he repeated.

“That’s what she said,” Kane interjected.

Theo cleared her throat. “Um, fucking is when—”

“I know whatfuckingis,” Vasil said.

She frowned and scratched behind her ear before dropping her hands to her waist and holding them to either side, palms up. “Not sure what answer you’re looking for, then.”

“I do not understand what the termfuck buddymeans. It is not used by the humans on this world. Explain.”

“Oh. Well, it’s when you have a friend that you casually have sex with. No strings attached.”

His brow furrowed. “How would you have sex with strings?”

Theo laughed, shaking her head. “Boy, you really are sheltered out here, aren’t you? Notliteralstrings. It means you have no other obligation or commitment to one another. It’s just about mutual pleasure. You can move on whenever you want to or see someone else.”

In some ways, the concept reminded him of the way kraken pairings had been — females selected males to mate with and kept them as long as they chose. Thoserelationshipsended on a whim. In Vasil’s experience, those pairings had been devoid of love or affection despite the physical attraction and mutual respect they often began with.

But kraken couplings weren’t about pleasure. They had an explicit purpose — reproduction. Kraken came together for the survival of their species, and any male who wanted to keep a female made sure to provide for her as best he could.

“You did not answer my initial question,” Vasil said.

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