Page 33 of Bad Beehavior

“No!” Captain says with urgency. “We still don’t know what we’ll do with you two next, but Bailiff was way out of line. He’ll be returning back to The Colony for a sabbatical.”

I can’t help the smile form on my face. Although I wanted to wring his neck and witness the life flicker out of his eyes, the news that he’s being punished suffices my revenge. TheColony isn’t known for violence like some of the other planets, but Jennessa brings out a side of me that would burn an entire planet down just to keep her safe. Bailiff is lucky Captain handled his punishment before I got my hands on him.

“You’ve caused quite a disturbance to the mission, Baryx. I must say, I never thought you were the soldier to go rouge.” He takes a seat in the chair behind his desk.

“You don’t understand, sir. Everything we thought we knew about The Blue Planet was wrong. They aren’t less evolved than us. Jennessa has shown me things our kind didn’t even know were possible.”

He eyes Jennessa up and down, and a tang of jealousy beats in my chest. I will myself to stay in my seat before making the situation any worse.

“I see that. You know you didn’t fully turn the power off of her cell. The cameras caught your two’sactivities.”

“You watched us fuck?” Jennessa asks, horror strewn upon her face.

“Yes, we saw you two mate. It seems odd that you’d be interested in such an act when it’s clear you’re unable to conceive offspring at the moment. How enjoyable the act seemed to be for you both was quite peculiar. I’ve never witnessed anything like that before.”

“You guys are sick!” Jennessa yells.

I’m confused as to why this thought bothers her so much. I grew up watching different species mate for learning purposes. The pleasure and love that comes from our mating should be documented and spread across the galaxy. I am glad that my captain and crew mates saw such a wonderful thing. I suppose the sentiment isn’t the same on Earth, and if Jennessa is unhappy with others viewing our passion, then I’m also unhappy.

“The customs are different on Earth. I believe they don’t enjoy being documented in such a way,” I say.

“Odd,” Captain says, tapping his fingers to his chin. “It was exciting to watch. It stirred something inside of me.”

“Oh my God.” Jennessa groans and places her head in her restrained hands.

My antennas sense she’s embarrassed.

“Captain, now you must see why I deviated from the mission. These females possess something far greater than even imagined. I love her, and I can’t just impregnate her and leave with our fertilized embryo. The mission can’t possibly work the way it’s designed. I believe no matter who you send to The Blue Planet, they could possibly find a mate as perfect as mine. These females aren’t less evolved. They will not be willing to be pollinated for the greater good. You should see how many of them there are. They clearly don’t have a problem repopulating. This could be the missing link—love and passion. This could be why we’re dying out, and their planet is thriving.” Captain furrows his brow. “But their planet isn’t thriving. Vegetation is becoming more and more sparse.”

“Yes, but we can fix that through our pollination. We need to extend the mission. Bring the males to Earth. Let them find their perfect mates, fall in love, and eventually conceive offspring. In the meantime, we can pollinate their crops. We all could live together.”

Captain laughs. “I don’t know if the planet’s government would agree so quickly.”

I stand to my feet, empowered by my evolving solution. “Have we ever tried to make contact? They aren’t some lesser evolved species as we imagined. They will see reason.”

“Uh, I don’t know about that.”

We both turn to Jennessa, whose eyes grow wide from our attention. “No, never mind. Keep going. This sounds like a great plan.” She gives me a thumbs-up

“Hmmm, I’m not sure.” Captain thrums his fingers across his desk.

“Please. We aren’t so desperate that we can’t behave humanely. What’s the other solution? Steal women from The Blue Planet and impregnate them against their will? Are you willing to be a slave master?”

Captain’s eyes grow wide as if realizing the gravity of the situation. He presses a button on the side of his desk, and my restraints demagnetize, letting my arms fall to my side.

Jennessa sighs, realizing her hands and feet are free.

My heart soars. He’s listening to me.

“What do you propose?” he asks.

“Send Jennessa and me back to the Blue Planet. Let us be the first to show The Colony that this could work.”

“But she can’t be pollinated.”

“No, but…”

“But maybe one day,” Jennessa says to Captain.

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