Page 26 of Into Orbit
She opened her mouth to say something, then promptly snapped it shut and looked away. ‘Fuck nuggets,’ she said, matter-of-factly. She jumped down from the bench. ‘I think I’ve had enough of your clinic for today, doctor.’
I inclined my head, trying to push down my disappointment.
‘But will you show me the other parts of the ship?’ she went on. ‘Elswyth was very excited about the Forest – for obvious reasons – but, if it’s allowed, I’d like to see the rest of it.’
I pressed a button, stopping my recording. ‘Of course. I’ll show you everything I can.’
Maeve was curious, and showing her the main parts of the ship – the parts the Captain had approved, anyway – took long enough for Ashton to finish his morning shift and join us. She looked around with interest at the main dining hall; she choked out an incredulous laugh at the central screen library; her mouth fell open at the simulation rooms; her eyes lit with fire at the guards’ gym and training rooms. She met the fascinated stares of the other Tirians with stares of her own. Being looked at didn’t cow her; she simply looked back. Ashton shadowed us both, his glower enough to deter anyone who might have desired more thanlookingat the alien female.
There wasn’t a soul on board – other than the Captain herself – who would test their will against his.
Except Maeve, of course, who seemed not to care at all that Ashton was a head and shoulders taller than she was, and twice as wide. When she veered deliberately down a restricted hallway and he bared his teeth at her, shelaughed.
And I had to push aside some very vivid fantasies about Ash’s growl and Maeve’s laugh combining in a variety of different ways.
‘It really is just like a world of its own,’ Maeve murmured, as I led her onto a viewing platform that looked over the control bridge on one side, the Forest on the other, and straight out into space at the end.
‘As you know, we can be on the ship for years. The effects of long-term travel in low gravity aren’t just physical; there can be severe emotional and psychological repercussions. Designing ships that function as small cities has been shown to minimise those reactions across multiple cultures. The effects will never be entirely overcome – there is still a sense of isolation, of disconnection from home and from loved ones, and we are still susceptible to deep-space madness – but the complexity and the size helps. And the Forest, of course. None of this would be possible without the Hamadryad and her Forest.’
She shook her head. ‘We’ve barely been to our moon, and you’re doing this.’
‘Your species has had other things to think about,’ I said. ‘Tir has never had a world war, for instance.’
‘Yes, except thosehelpedus forward, technologically speaking,’ Maeve said, pursing her lips disapprovingly. ‘Our knowledge took huge leaps because people were desperate to come up with new ways to kill each other.’
‘Maybe you’ll make time for new things now. Something less violent, perhaps.’
‘Perhaps,’ she said, but she didn’t sound confident.
Ashton was on the opposite side of the platform, looking out into the black. It was something I tried to avoid thinking about wherever possible – logically, I knew that the universe stretched forever, but it was another thing to try tocomprehendwhat that really meant, and the notion tended to make me nervous – but Ashlikedit. Evidently, Maeve didn’t mind so much, either, crossing the small space to stand beside the ship’s First Guard and stare out at the stars.
Ashton gestured at the small screen between them. ‘This is for mapping and close viewing,’ he murmured, his voice taking on the deeper tones he usually saved for me and the privacy of my clinic. ‘You can look, if you like.’
Maeve worked out how to use it swiftly, despite the instructions being in a script she couldn’t read, and she spent some time enlarging stars and galaxy clusters, exclaiming at their colours and shapes. Ashton and I exchanged a glance over her head; Ash’s eyes were unusually heavy, his grip on his staff tight enough to make his knuckles green.
She wouldn’t have to be Tirian to claim us for her own.
He gave me a slight nod, as if he knew what I was thinking. ‘If you need something to do,’ he said slowly, his gravelly tone sweeping down my spines, ‘I could spar with you later.’
Maeve looked up instantly, not bothering to hide her interest, her eyes bright. ‘Spar? In the gym?’
Ashton nodded, then trailed his fingers over his cheek, where the bruise left by Maeve’s fist had long faded. ‘Judging by the day we met, you’re well-schooled.’
Maeve grinned. ‘My trainer will be glad to hear it.’ She studied him closely. ‘I’d be happy to get sweaty with you later, elf-boy.’
I inhaled before I could stop myself, a vision of them twisted together swimming in my mind’s eye.They’d be so beautiful, I thought, imagining Maeve’s strong thighs tight around Ash’s hips, his hands gripping her waist.
Ash gave a soft growl, noticing as my spines went straight. ‘I won’t go easy on you,’ he warned.
Maeve’s grin widened. ‘Good,’ she crooned. ‘That’s the way I like it.’
Green gods. I turned away before I could betray myself.
A low alarm began to blare over the ship’s communications system.
I turned back. ‘What –’
‘Fuck,’ Ashton swore. ‘That’s not the drill tone.’ He grabbed Maeve by the waist, then gestured at me with his free hand. ‘Go, Will.’
