Worth Fighting For (Little Blue Book 1) Read online

  “They appear to be taking enjoyment from some of those events. I don’t know what many of the others mean.” Tasid was more intrigued than frustrated.

  “Look!” Errim exclaimed excitedly. “No matter what planet you’re from, or what you call it, that’s recreational free-falling. These people love the air.” His wings behind him shook with his excitement.

  “They love the water, too,” Yebiri pointed out. “Look at that one. They are wearing suits with tanks on their backs, swimming deep under the water. How peculiar. They look like they are each some kind of subspecies to each other. Their skin is many different variations, as well as the color of their hair and body types.”

  “Uh, Yebiri, you might want to take a look at this one.” Sharrow pointed to a specific event playing out over a monitor near him.

  Tasid followed Yebiri over to their weapons and tactical specialist. Leaning over his shoulder, Tasid looked at what had caught his attention. The scene playing out startled him at first glance. “Oh! A mating ritual.”

  A female was on her hands and knees in a forest with a male holding her hips behind her, pounding his shaft into her. Her head was thrown back allowing the light to shine on her pleasure-filled face, and her breasts flopped forwards and back.

  “Incredible,” Yebiri breathed out.

  Errim lightly called for his attention. “Captain.”

  Tasid turned, and headed back to his chair. Errim pointed to another display. “See those large furry brown creatures catching some kind of fish in a river? Don’t they resemble Torpas? I wonder if that is some kind of educational image.”

  “Wow, I wonder how big that thing is, and if they are peaceful or aggressive. Look at that one, it’s white,” Tasid pointed out.

  The crew engrossed themselves in watching the pictures that danced across their screens. They had seen videos before, but these were a new people. What they saw was confusing, but captivating. Battles and ceremonies, births and sports. Though some things were similar, everything was new. Tasid was starting to feel uneasy. These were truly the most diverse culture anyone had ever encountered, which meant they were more-than-likely incredibly complex. That made his job a lot more complicated, and all with his father breathing down his neck.

  ****

  Juno flopped down on her bed. I am so glad today is over. She lay there for a few minutes before her cell rang. She only glanced at the screen before she answered.

  “Hi, Jeri.”

  “Are you all right? Ronnie just called, and told me some suit pushed you down, and didn’t even bother to slow down or utter an apology. He’d better hope I never find out who he is or I’ll show him a smack down!”

  Juno’s spirits lifted, and she let a giggle escape. “It was some douche that came in for a meeting with one of the bigwigs. Doubt I’ll see him again, or at least not soon. That was sweet of Ronnie to call you. She’s a good friend.”

  “She said the fall scraped your hands and knees. Are you ok? Anything broken?”

  “Nothing broken, and the blood has all scabbed over.” Juno groaned. “It’s going to be torture pulling the nylons off. The blood glued it to my scrapes. It was a sucky day. I’m so glad it’s over.”

  “Well it’s only Tuesday, so toughen up, buttercup. As long as nothing’s broken, you’ll be fine. Take a long, hot shower with those nylons on. My mom had to do that once when she fell and scraped her knee. It won’t be painless, but it might help.”

  “I’ll be more than happy to do that. Thanks, Jeri. Ya gonna be home soon?”

  “Yeah, I’m clocking out now.”

  The girls said their goodbyes and disconnected. Now that Juno had some time to sit still and relax, her body began to feel the pain from the fall. She slowly made her way to the bathroom with a change of clothes, and proceeded to do just what Jeri had told her.

  Once she got under the spray, she yelped and hissed. The water ran over her scrapes, causing the entire area to sting like nothing else. Her limbs felt like they were on fire, and she saw the rusty hue of blood tint the water as it covered the floor of the tub, and disappeared down the drain.

  Yikes, I didn’t think they were that bad. Guess I was in too much of a hurry not to miss my bus, to notice.

  It felt weird being in the shower with her nylons still on, which also meant her undies were still on, but she appreciated the hot water when she tentatively pulled the delicate fabric away from the sticky messes. Wow, I have more than one scrape. What an asshole that guy was. I get being in a rush and all, but even a simple “sorry”, or “excuse me” would have been nice. She hissed and grunted with pain until the ruined nylons were completely free of her.

  She was still drying off when she heard Jeri knocking on her door. “How you doin’, girl?”

  “I hurt. Do we have any ibuprofen?”

  “Yeah, it’s in a cupboard in the kitchen. I’ll get you some, and some of that hot peppermint tea you like.”

  In her suddenly emotional state, Juno’s eyes welled up. She let out a quick cough to clear her throat. “Thanks, Jeri.”

  Juno had grabbed shorts to change in to. It wasn’t warm out as it was still the tail end of winter, but she didn’t want the fabric rubbing on her scrapes. After dressing, and grabbing the first aid kit, she slowly limped into the living room and carefully sat down on the old couch, which sat in front of an older TV. The girls didn’t have enough money for anything new.

  Jeri gave her an accusatory look as she brought in the pills and water. “I thought you said you were fine.”

  “I was, until I tried getting back up after our call. Guess all that adrenaline wore off. I hurt. A lot.” She popped the pills into her mouth, and chased them down with the entire glass of water.

  “I didn’t even know I had more than one scrape on my legs, or that it bled that much.” She leaned back and let Jeri patch her up.

  “That lousy piece of shit better hope I don’t get a hold of him, and don’t even think of stopping me.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it. I wouldn’t mind you teaching him some manners. Wish I was better able to take care of myself. I hate relying on others. I mean, I love you and the girls. I just…”

  “It’s all right, Juno. We all play a role in our de facto family. That’s what I love about you girls so much. I don’t mind being the chivalrous hero.” Jeri flexed her arms up and gave her a wink, causing Juno to laugh out loud.

  “So if you’re the protector, what are the rest of us?”

  “Kaycee’s the flirt and jokester. You know she’s going to pick on you to make you laugh. Benny is the Care Bear. In spite of her long day with toilets and screaming toddlers, she’s going to fuss over you until you go to bed. Then she’ll tuck you in and get you a glass of water.”

  Juno laughed. “I’d say that will be accurate. So what am I?”

  Jeri gave her a sincere look of unconditional love. All four girls were close, and considered each other sisters. “You are our gravitational center. The common link that binds us. And our anchor. We know we can rely on you to give us order when there is chaos.”

  Tears filled Juno’s eyes as she leaned forward, throwing her arms around her friend in a tight hug. “Thank you, Jeri.”

  “All right, all right, stop getting mushy.” In spite of her protests, Jeri squeezed back. They sat on the couch together, sharing a blanket, and flicked on the TV. That was where they were still when Benny returned.

  “Unbelievable day I had. Some stupid parent decided it would be all right for their child to eat a bunch of candy before dropping him off. He was bouncing off the walls, and puking all over the place. And before that, at the hotel, in my one of my assigned rooms, someone plugged up the toilet and let it overflow. How’d your all’s day go?” She dropped her stuff on the card table they used as a dining room table, and plopped herself down next to Juno, placing her head on her shoulder.

  “Some ass-wipe pushed Juno down pretty hard, scraping her up.” Jeri’s tone was surly.

  Benny gasp
ed, and her head shot up. “Oh no, are you all right?” She looked Juno over.

  “I’ve got some scrapes on my legs and hands, but Jeri patched them up. I’m just in a lot of pain. I took some ibuprofen, and they’re starting to kick in.”

  Benny jumped up. “I bet you haven’t eaten. You shouldn’t take that stuff on an empty stomach. I’ll go make you something to eat.”

  Their apartment was pretty open, so Juno and Jeri shared a silly grin as they watched their short friend flutter around the kitchen.

  “Where’s Kaycee?” Benny asked.

  “She texted me, and said she was going to stay to help with closing up,” Juno answered. “She’s hoping the few extra hours will cushion the loss of income, so she won’t get home until sometime after eleven. Good thing she doesn’t have to get up before the crack of dawn anymore.”

  “Yikes, that’s harsh. At least she knows no matter how tight things get, we are all a team, right?” Benny placed the sandwich in the pan and the sizzling sound filled the room as she spoke over her shoulder.

  “Girl, any man who wants to be with any of us is going to have to learn to live with all of us, ‘cause we’re a family,” Juno replied.

  “Maybe we can find a duplex or something.” Benny turned slightly and tilted her head up. “Do they make quadplexes?” she asked, seeming more to herself than anything.

  Jeri laughed. “Not likely. But sounds ideal, girl. I think it would be a great idea to stay super close even when we get married. We’ll need to help each other with the kids, or when we get into a fight with our super sexy husbands.”

  “Oh! Yes! Lots of kids. I love kids.” Benny bounced up and down on her toes.

  Juno rolled her head to give Benny a muddled look. “Figures you would miss the ‘super sexy husbands’ part, and go straight to the kids. I have no idea how you can work with so many kids, and still want so many yourself.”

  “When you have kids, you’ll see. It isn’t just about the drool and snot and smelly diapers. It’s the unconditional love and happy surprises and precious moments you are blessed with, that make it so wonderful.”

  Later, when Juno headed for bed, sure enough, Benny tucked her in, and even though she didn’t bring a glass of water, she did offer. It made Juno smile. She was loved and cared for. My family.

  Chapter Three

  Tasid noticed Burren rub his blue and green feathered temples. Their day had been long and exhausting. Making his way over to the Nanstrahi male, Tasid kept his voice low. “It’s been a long day. Why don’t you go rest? You haven’t left your seat all day. I would be more concerned if I had not seen you eat when I ordered food to be brought up for us, on deck.”

  Burren sighed, and rolled his head on his shoulders. “I haven’t been able to crack their language, and I could not figure out why until a few minutes ago. Then I realized they have more than one. And not just two, or three even, but several.”

  “Several?” Tasid asked, surprised. “One race having several? That’s insane. How do they communicate with each other?”

  “I think they have translators. I don’t know, but that makes it difficult to decipher which language is which, and then figuring out what it means.”

  Tasid put one of his hands on Burren’s shoulder. “Figuring out they have several is a big step in the right direction. Excellent work. Go get some rest, and let another shift carry on. Maybe they might find something you can work with tomorrow, and you will have a fresh outlook.”

  Burren nodded. “Yes, sir.” He stood up and stretched, stretching out his feathered wings before closing them once more. The shiny bright greens, blues, and purples beautifully shimmered on the ten, wide feather “spikes”. They were more in the shape of flames than feathers. The white “eyes” that adorned the middle of them were dim, lit only to assist with flight. Tasid envied the beautiful colors and grace Burren’s race, the Nanstrahi, possessed.

  Errim approached him. “I’ve spent the entire day today studying this new race. I see similarities in several of our own races. This can help with the first contact. It will give them something to relate to.”

  Tasid tilted his head slightly, in thought. “With such an adaptable and varied race, I would think they wouldn’t see us that strange.” He shrugged both of his right shoulders. “Sure, a little bit, and shocked perhaps, that there are other life forms beyond their solar system, but they shouldn’t need that much time adjusting, you think?”

  “There’s no telling. You should prepare for the worst. On meeting them, I think we should try to supply a representative from each of the races we have on board, to introduce to them. You will be representing the Zori, of course, but since this race likes science, I think you should consider using Qurriq. Their positive experience with what they can learn from him, or even relate with, will give a positive representation for the Malastants.”

  Tasid nodded his understanding. “Mm, and Yebiri could represent the Larent. Sounds like a great idea. I might consider having Burren represent the Nanstrahi, but I’ll need to think about who to represent the only other two races I have on this ship.”

  “I think maybe, if they won’t take offense, we should hold off on the other two, for the first contact,” Errim said cautiously. “Especially with the Morm’baree. They resemble too much some creatures that I’ve seen this race panic over, and those were many times smaller. I don’t think we should go too different on first contact.”

  Tasid grunted affirmatively. “Start small, and more relatable in their own appearance, then work up to what they might consider more extreme in difference. That is a reasonable plan, and it will allow me more time to consider who will be the first to represent them. But I don’t think the Craigor are more extreme than the Morm’baree. They have a more recognizable form to these people.”

  “Just be cautious with their size and build, as they can easily be just as, if not more, intimidating.”

  “Understood.” Tasid raised his voice and addressed everyone on the bridge. “It’s been a long day, everyone. I want all of you to head to your quarters and rest. Let the night crew have some fun.”

  Officers left their posts, replaced by others for the duration of the resting cycle. Tasid gave his final orders to the ranking officer for the night watch, Horo, before heading to bed himself. He knew he was going to need his rest to be clear and responsive, to handle the weight he had resting on his shoulders.

  Over the next two days, he spent all of his time sifting through the constant incoming data they were obtaining not only on Little Blue, but on the other global bodies as they passed. He kept a steady report sent to his father, including on the other planets, and asteroids.

  A beeping indicated an incoming private call. Knowing exactly who it was, Tasid sighed heavily before pushing the button. His father’s face filled the floating monitor.

  “Ambassador Jurresh, what can I do for you?”

  “You can stop sending me irrelevant data about useless planets and dead floating rocks.”

  “We cannot rule out that the other planets and asteroids in this system could have a direct impact, or effect on this race, whether it be natural or cultural. Everything from this solar system is relevant.” Tasid struggled to keep his voice neutral, and pain began to build up behind his eyes.

  His father was silent for a moment before conceding. “Fine. Have you broken their language code yet?”

  Tasid knew the answer to that would make him look weak. To keep himself at least equal to his father, he asked, “Have you?”

  His father sent him a sharp look and harrumphed. Tasid bit back a triumphant smile as he listened to his father answer.

  “No. My specialists concur with your communications officer that they have multiple languages, and many different accents to them. They are constantly impressed with Burren’s skills.”

  Tasid felt pride in his friend warm his chest when he heard that.

  His father continued. “The diplomatic fleet should be ready to leave by tonight. My t
eam and I are to travel with them. We’ll hopefully see you in sometime over a week.” Jurresh abruptly disconnected the call.

  The pain that had been building behind Tasid’s eyes had lessened with the compliment to Burren, but quickly came back with a vengeance with his father’s parting words. Tasid began to rub his temples. He heard Errim chuckling next to him.

  “What’s so funny?” he gruffly asked.

  “Your father. You know why he disconnected so quickly, don’t you?”

  Tasid glared at his second. “No, enlighten me.”

  “Because he’s tired of losing these little verbal battles with you. Our species hates any kind of defeat, and you have been constantly defeating him.”

  “It doesn’t feel like it’s a victory. Every victory I’ve ever had, never felt this miserable.”

  Errim laughed out loud. “But it is a victory against your father. He hung up to keep up the façade that he’s still in control.”

  “Sir?”

  Tasid looked up to see Yebiri next to him. “What is it, Yebiri?”

  Holding up an injector, he motioned to Tasid’s head. “I can get rid of that headache for you.”

  Tasid nodded. After receiving the injection, Tasid rolled his head on his shoulders as the pain instantly dissipated. He let out a sigh. “Keep that stuff handy, Yebiri. From the sounds of it, I’ll be needing a whole lot more.”

  ****

  “Juno! Benny! Jeri! Come quick!”

  Juno nearly fell out of bed when she heard Kaycee’s shrieking call for them. The girls crowded the hall as they all rushed out of their rooms. They poured into the living room, and saw Kaycee standing on the couch, nearly running in place, pointing at the TV. They all ran to her, and looked at the old television set as Kaycee turned the volume up so they could all listen to the anchorman’s report.