Chapter 12: Hunters
Tom
"Please calm down, sir. We will seat you on this side. Far away. You see? Very far away."
"I don't want to be in the same building as those things!"
Tom leaned closer to John as the man continued to yell at the small hostess who'd been so kind to them on their arrival. Why was he so angry? Was he so very afraid of Zen? How did he know?
John moved his hand in slow circles on Tom's back and he found himself breathing slower, calming even more when the man stormed out with his companions.
"Don't worry about him," Ryan encouraged, "We used to get complaints when we held hands in public. People choose how they react to anyone different. That guy? Total bigot. He's probably terrified you're going to turn him into a frog or eat him."
Brian nodded his agreement while Ryan rolled his eyes expansively; Tom found he was smiling once more.
Wer
Chapter 13: The CouncilJohn"Which of you would like to answer to our council first?"John stepped in front of Tom as he realized the Council Guard had vocalized his request to be certain Tom understood the gravity of the situation.Zen rarely acknowledged the weaknesses of any bloodline; Records were revered enough for hints at their weak mind voices to be considered beyond crass."I will speak to them. I made the choice during our registration."Neither of them needed to be able to read the Council Guard's mind voice to know he was bringing them before the council in regards to their 'marriage.'Tom nearly vibrated with anxiety beside him. John took his hand in the fashion the humans had displayed and felt his anxiety lessen almost immediately. Zen tradition to keep themselves physically separate meant they received a few stares, but John was willing to risk any disapproval to help Tom.Why hadn't he con
Chapter 14: NegotiationTom"I made the choice to sign in agreement with John of my own free will. For all Security wishes to spare me any burden of responsibility, the truth remains neither of us thought of our people. We thought only of ourselves. Our choice was selfish, yes, but it was not one designed to harm the Zen people."Zen were a forgiving species. Theirs was not the kind of culture to punish innocent mistakes.Their marriage might be a problem for their people---but they had not entered into it with any thoughts to harm their brethren.Tom had no doubt the council would see their actions as they had been: hasty yet honest.Silence returned to the council hall as they deliberated with their mind voices rather than aloud.Tom would have been worried except he knew the history of their councils. None of their people had ever been sentenced unfairly. Punishments were rare among Zen. Most
Chapter 15: UnifiedJohnHuman bodies were too sensitive.John couldn't catch his breath as he kissed Tom in the lift. His emotions sizzled along his skin, shocking him as much as Tom with their intensity; John couldn't hold back his desperate need to get closer to Tom.'I don't want to stop kissing you.'Tom groaned against his mouth as John captured Tom's posterior in his hand -grateful his human form had large, wide palms to cover as much area as possible- and he squeezed while they continued to move their lips together.Had he ever wanted to kiss someone so badly? Had any kiss ever felt so good? Was there any other species in the universe for whom kissing was such an amazing experience?Humans were the luckiest of species."Don't stop," Tom begged against his lips, kissing him in short bursts, sucking at his lips and tongue, "I don't care if anyone sees."John didn't care if
Chapter 16:TomSticky remnants of their passion were spread between their bodies; Tom couldn't resist the urge to touch them. The fluid felt hot and viscous to the touch. He had the sudden urge to taste it and brought his fingers up to his lips to kiss the tips."Stop! What are you thinking?"Tom was startled as John pulled his hand away from his face."I wasn't."He hadn't been thinking anything."What?""I wasn't thinking. I wanted to know how we taste. It can't be harmful, can it? It's a natural product of this body. I doubt humans poison themselves when they copulate. Besides. I think it smells of the great waters. I loved being a water creature."John looked at him as if he were someone entirely new. There was a wide wonder to his eyes Tom could not remember seeing before. It made his friend look younger, less hardened by a life among the ranks of Security."We taste of
Chapter 17: BrothersJohnWaking felt similar to steering too close to a solar flare: an unbearable brightness coupled with too much for one's eyes and ears to take in. John wasted several minutes only breathing before he could orient himself enough to release the security lashes holding him in his berth.Only a little dexterity was needed to hold Tom in his space inside the berth before re-engaging the lashes to allow him to continue to rest.John wanted to kiss his lover, but the desire was outweighed with a need to let him rest while he could. Who knew if they were going to be able to get any decent sleep in coming days?Their council wanted them to speak for Zen regarding their 'unnatural union.' The human recordkeepers -reporters, John remembered their human friends calling them- showed no problems intruding on the personal space of others to get their questions answered. John would have taken Tom and run if th
Chapter 18: ScienceTomWaking alone gave Tom a shock. His heart skipped several beats in his chest as he tried to find any indication of where John could have gone.They had spent almost no time alone since waking from stasis. There were many duties which fell on John as a dominant member of Security. With his weak mind voice, Tom had no chance of being able to locate him among their brethren by traditional Zen methods.Tom couldn't hear John---but could he feel him?Empathy was a skill for Zen as much as their mind voice. Some had more abilities with it than others; Tom had learned to use his to his advantage from a very young age as he'd inherited the weak mind voice of his bloodline.No one had ever been able to tell Tom why Records were weak with their mind voice yet flawless with their mind skills. One would think they'd be linked. Why could he forget nothing yet he couldn't so much as se
Chapter 19: FamilyJohnSecurity was in chaos regarding the guard schedules for the council. None of the council members were particularly young -their sole female member was twice the age of a Zen who could cease their work days- yet all of them seemed fascinated with the human world.John listened to Clark tell him about the logistical nightmares of having four Councillors off-ship at the same time. All of them had gone to separate destinations at differing departure times with different return times; no one had been able to coordinate any parties to join together.He was beginning to get pain in his skull from hearing about it.Clark could keep the reins for the council. John would continue to handle Security details for the rest of their people. Zen were ordinarily much more courteous.Looking over the list of names Clark had given him, John realized how few members of Security had chosen to leave Zon.
Chapter 20: BloodlinesTomScience felt too far away as Tom boarded the lift and scanned himself in to his destination. It felt as if he were waiting hours for the lift to begin moving; Tom couldn't sense any other Zen near when the doors closed or opened. Was everyone on task for the benefit of their people? Were they still going through their individual registrations? How long would it take the Zen to be given clearance from the humans to leave their landing site?Questions tumbled over each other in Tom's head as he was locked away from his brethren. He wished he could hear the sounds of his people. If Records were such an asset to the Zen, why were they the least like their kind?No one was in the hall as the lift opened onto Science.Tom waited long enough for the lift doors to begin to make a questioning sound -was he remaining aboard or did he intend to disembark?- before stepping out. He relied on his regular sense of h