Viola grace terran tim.., p.1
Viola Grace - Terran Times 13 - Encode, page 1
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Honey Barrow serves the Alliance as an Encoded Courier, putting biologicals into her own body to keep them viable during transport. This job has kept her flying for years, but that is about to come to a screeching halt when she accepts an assignment to transport the semen of an Alpha multi-shifter to the High Prefect of Shoshan.
Honey has to prepare for her job by intaking a series of hormones, throwing her into a simulated heat, a heat strong enough to gain the attention of the Alpha she needs to gain the co-operation from.
Raddik pursues her with single minded intensity, guaranteeing her return to him via devious methodologies with no twinges of conscience.
When her life hangs in the balance, a ripple of events takes her life and her job beyond her control and leaves her at the mercy of the Alpha.
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Copyright © 2010 Viola Grace ISBN: 978-1-55487-731-7
Cover art by Martine Jardin All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
Published by eXtasy Books
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A Terran Times Novella
By
Viola Grace
Chapter One
oney Andrea Borrow blinked and asked her client, “You want me to transport what?”
H“The sperm of the Oefric alpha. Raddik Norfim.
He has agreed to father my child, but I can’t leave Shoshan right now and he is at a summit for the Alliance near the Nyal border. You are my only hope, Courier Barrow.”
The elegant High Prefect of Shoshan smiled.
“Come now. You have certainly had harder assignments?”
“Yes. But none so…personal.” She was having trouble keeping a straight face. “You need an Encoded Courier for this?”
“You have passes through space that no other couriers have, as well as the experimental jump engines created by the Sector Guard.”
The High Prefect poured Honey a cup of tea and herself a cup of wine. “You have to obtain a fresh sample, place it inside storage and get back here before it is inert.”
“Is he aware of what is required?”
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The High Prefect blushed lightly. Her yellowish skin turning orange across her throat. “Yes. We have had some frank discussions and he has agreed to anything that you ask of him.”
“What kind of container will you provide?”
Honey had a suspicion.
The High Prefect cleared her throat. “I was given to understand that you had a special container for this sort of transport.”
“Ah. That explains asking for me by name.”
Honey rubbed her forehead. “Yes, I have a means to transport it in a safe biological environment, but that will cost a great deal extra.”
“The money is already on its way to your account. I ovulate in five days. Please be here by then.”
A servant cleared the tea tray and Honey took the hint. She got the data pad with the coordinates on it and headed out to her shuttle.
Launch clearance came and she flipped the toggles and set the halo to control her ship. Time to go to work.
She grinned as she confirmed her accounts, transferred the money to a secured account and lifted off. She was being paid as sperm transport, she had better get ready. This was going to require some medical intervention, which she would hopefully have time for before the jump and before she made contact.
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The skies of Shoshan were clear weather-wise, but full of transports. She lifted directly through the open channel she had been given and still almost got pegged by traffic. Muttering to herself about tech-savvy planets and morons behind the steering situations, she headed for open space.
The nearest jump beacon was four hours away.
Honey got her special medical kit ready and stripped down to her underwear. She started her rounds of hypo sprays to open the pouch she had had installed in her vagina. It was a bizarre experiment by Alliance medical staff that led her through a round of treatments which boggled the mind and left her able to attach any living matter to her own body as a passive graft.
She opened her kit and assessed the vials that she had available. The graft took more easily if she primed it first.
Honey looked out the view screen and checked her time. The meds were making her twitchy, but she still had an hour before the jump coordinates were achieved.
She checked for ambient traffic before stripping completely. Getting hostile messages from irate or interested crews of nearby vessels was irritating.
Honey reached between her thighs and parted her labia. The medication was working, she was lubricating slightly and as she eased the tube in, it went with only slight back and forth motion. It 3
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was small and flexible, she could move with only a little restriction to her gait and comfort.
As soon as her fingers assured her that it was inside the pouch on one side of her vagina, she withdrew them, wiped her hands, closed her kit and got dressed.
It was jump time.
“This is the encoded courier shuttle, Baldur’s Heart. I am requesting landing permits and a private meeting with Alpha Raddik Norfim.”
The voice on the station was wry, “This is Station 13. Please come aboard, Encoded Courier Borrow.”
She hadn’t given her name. “You know who I am?”
“Of course. The Alpha is waiting for you.
Proceed to the docking area.”
Bemused, she followed the course aligning her to settle the Heart in the portion of the bay that the crew directed her to.
There were several diplomatic shuttles denoting the variety of species that were attending this event. The world, Balen, slowly rotated beneath them, writhing in its reviving throes as it returned to life.
She checked her ship suit and the code that the High Prefect gave her. She prepared for the artificial gravity of the station and opened her 4
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hatch.
The face waiting for her was welcome, if somewhat of a surprise. “Kaylee?”
“Hey, Honey, you’re home.” The woman was wearing a Sector Guard uniform and an evil grin.
“That joke just doesn’t stop being funny.”
Honey walked forward to hug her fellow Terran and was relieved when Kaylee stayed solid.
Kaylee hugged her back with matching enthusiasm. “How have you been?”
“Eh, some assignments are worse than others.”
She laughed. “This one is a doozy.”
They walked the halls of Station 13 arm-in-arm, discussing the state of Terrans in their positions within the Alliance. For the most part, Terrans were thriving, only a few dozen had died in the line of duty. With the humans born of Earth entering the Sector Guard, the death toll was bound to increase, but neither woman said it.
“You are here as an active courier or I would ask you to hang around, but if you are on the clock, it can’t be today.”
“Sadly, that’s true. But I can stay overnight. Is there room?”
Kaylee chuckled. “This is a space station. Of course there is room.”
They passed several crewmembers and staffers who nodded politely to Kaylee as they passed.
“The Alpha is in a meeting, but you can wait for 5
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him here. I will have him sent over as soon as he is finished with the debate. Balen’s new avatar is taking all of these leaders to school.” Kaylee’s glee was unmistakable.
“She is the one born of two avatars, right?”
“Yes. Tears of the Star. She has very rigid ideas for the treatment and upkeep of avatars, as well as any offspring they might have.”
“I thought most planets provided for their avatars.”
“Some of the more developed governments are taking up a more aggressive stance toward the planet that they live on. They feel it is owed to them and if they don’t agree with the avatar, they ignore it. They also ignore the needs of the avatar or the avatar’s family.”
Honey let out a low whistle. “Don’t they realize that a displeased avatar can freeze them out?
Literally?”
Kaylee laughed. “I don’t think that it occurs to them. If those governments do not get themselves under control soon, they will find themselves facing floods or ice ages.”
“Well…that will get their attention.”
Her host waved her into a viewing lounge and smiled. “Let’s hope that that is not what it take s.”
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Chapter Two
aylee and Honey had a nice, long conversation that covere
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d all topics of interest to them with the exception of Honey’s assignment. Classified was classified.
A quintet of men came into the observation area and made a straight line for the ladies.
“Is that him?”
“Oh yeah.” She whispered, “If Dirven wouldn’t smell him on me, I would take a run at him.
Maybe just peep in on him in a shower.”
Honey laughed and elbowed her friend, falling over as Kaylee turned into Haunt and went intangible. It wasn’t the most dignified of meetings as the guards stood aside and she was facing two seconds.
“Alpha Norfim, this is your Encoded Courier, Honey Borrow. Honey, the man behind the thugs is Alpha Raddik Norfim. The thugs are his daily guard and his advisors and seconds, Morin and Lefflik.”
Kaylee was standing and Honey slowly got to 7
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her feet. She nodded to all the men and bowed as a sign of respect to the Alpha. “The High Prefect of Shoshan sends her greetings.”
The Alpha had been raking her over with an assessing gaze and when the words came from her mouth, he physically jerked.
His nostrils flared as he scented her. His eyes were the darkest purple, his hair and eyebrows deep black. His skin was the lightest thing about him and it was a mahogany bronze. His guards were wearing similar skin tones with a slight differential in tone.
Honey had to swallow as she took in the impressiveness of his physique. His shoulders were huge. The muscles that banded his chest were enormous and visible through the skin-tight grey fabric under the open robes of state.
She wasn’t able to see much of his thighs and calves, but staring at his crotch was also out of the question. Her training kicked in and she kept her face polite and bland as he gave her the same perusal.
“You are the secured courier?”
“I am. Pleased to meet you, Alpha.”
“Raddik, please. A woman with your obvious charm and beauty should never stand on ceremony.” He reached out and took her hand, bringing it to his lips with a smile.
“And a man of your wit and power should 8
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never stand on bullshit.”
The guards all suffered from a sudden rush of asthma. It took them several seconds to get themselves back under control.
He didn’t release her hand, but he smiled against her skin. “Wit is not my sole purview, it seems.”
Honey almost jerked her hand back as she felt the light flick of his tongue. He was tasting her.
“The Oefric are known for their prowess in battle, not in wordsmithing. I commend you on your ability.” She inclined her head and the moment he relaxed his grip, she let her hand drift back to her side.
Kaylee stepped in, her eyes wide but amused.
“I believe that you have business to discuss, Alpha. May I offer my private office for the purpose?”
His companions looked curious, but he nodded.
“Thank you, Haunt. Your graciousness as a hostess knows no bounds.”
She inclined her head and took his words as acceptance. Kaylee led them through the halls and showed Alpha Norfim and Honey to the office. “It is a secured office as per protocols. No listening or transmitting devices will work in there. Take as long as you wish.” The mistress of Station 13
closed the door behind them and a privacy lock engaged.
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Honey took up a stance beside one of the chairs.
“Shall we discuss the particulars of this assignment?”
The alpha started pacing on the far side of the room like a trapped animal. “I am aware of it. You need a sample of my breeding semen. You will seal it into yourself and transport it to the High Prefect.”
She nodded. “Will tomorrow morning be soon enough?”
He stopped and levelled one of those dark purple gazes at her, “You don’t want to buy me a drink first?”
She bit her lip to stifle her laugh. “No, I think that our interactions had best stay on the professional level. May I ask a personal question?”
He turned to face her and slowly approached.
“By all means.”
“Why is it specified as breeding semen?”
He continued his approach and she sat heavily in the chair while he leaned down. “Like many shifters, the Oefric have a developed sense of smell which means that when we find a suitable mate, we produce active breeding cells. Only under the circumstance of deliberate will do we create those cells.”
When Raddik inhaled again, Honey ran through what he could be scenting and mentally cursed when she found the answer. The meds that 10
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she used to activate her seals were mimicking or possibly throwing her into oestrus. She was in heat and he could smell it.
“Back off, fluff and stuff. I may smell good, but I am not for you.” She raised her foot, pressed it to his chest and pushed him back.
He stumbled back in surprise. “You would deny me?”
“I only just met you. I don’t let strangers sniff me.” A roaring was starting behind her ears. Her hormones were going from mild to wild. If he didn’t back away, she was going to get aggressive.
He took a step toward her and she snarled as her brain told her he was a threat.
He backed off and held his hands up. “Easy, Honey. I am not going to injure you.”
She stood and started pacing. His scent was coming to her nostrils and assaulting her sensibilities. He was too close. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to attack or to embrace and the confusion was getting to her.
Mood swings they had told her when she implanted her device. She could expect mood swings. This was way more than that. The chemistry of the Oefric alpha was driving her to an intensity that she couldn’t stop. Rage was her default—it was the easiest emotion to access.
She tried to speak normally, but with her pacing and her teeth clenched, it was difficult. “So, 11
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you will trigger your breeding reaction, produce a sample and I will place it into living storage so that the High Prefect can use it.”
“Something to that effect. I have sent samples to a few females in the past, but none have ever resulted in offspring. Did the High Prefect mention why she needed a special courier?”
“Because I transfer living tissue. I keep it alive and viable within my own body until the code from the recipient unlocks it.”
Raddik leaned back against the wall. “Where exactly do you keep the transported bio-containment?”
She scowled, “None of your business.”
“I believe that it is my business. I am entrusting you with my genetic material, after all.”
“It is in a very personal place.”
“Excellent. Show me. I want proof that you are not simply using your wiles to obtain my prime genetic stock.”
She was getting more and more irritated, “Fine.
But you stay on your side of the room. It is your right to see the storage area, but not to touch.”
Honey peeled open her jumpsuit and as Alpha Raddik stared at her in astonishment, she shimmied out of it, including kicking off her boots. In her bright floral bra and panties, she stood for a moment before sliding the panties to the floor. Honey hopped up on the edge of the 12
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desk and parted her labia while Raddik’s eyes took on a throbbing heat. Her fingers dipped inside and opened the pouch on the wall of her vaginal canal. The container was pulled out with a flourish. “Are you satisfied that it will be safe?”
He swallowed several times before he nodded.
