Page 14 of Experimental Voyage
“Our clan has one of the ships, but it’s more of a cargo freighter that can happen to carry a few passengers,” Waldren admitted. “My ship is slower, but she’s reliable. Visitation will not be an issue.”
“It’s only two weeks each way? But we’re on the fringe of explored space,” my father stated, his eyes narrowing.
“The one gate requires a high-end shiftgem drive to utilize,” Waldren explained. “My ship has the appropriate drive. Otherwise, it’s closer to four to six months of hopping around the other gates and traveling through empty space to reach here.”
“So, she could be back home in a week, if the conditions are right and she can book with a fast ship?” my mother asked.
I admired Waldren’s patience, as my parents were beginning to get on my nerves with their incredulous responses. “That’s correct. Her worst-case scenario is a six month voyage, as very few ships coming out this way do so on a direct path.”
“It could be worse,” my father decided. “Can you introduce us to Palta?”
Waldren headed off, and I followed him through the ship. The spacious corridors amused me, but I assumed they needed to be larger to accommodate moving equipment through the ship. He guided me to an area of the ship I hadn’t been in yet, poked his head through an open doorway, and a moment later, Palta hissed.
The rattling of the jar ended the vocalized complaints, and I peeked inside to discover the feline on the bed. An amusing assortment of cat toys and scratching posts took up most of thespace with a desk tucked into a corner. Shelving units likely held his clothes and other property with all free space dedicated to Palta and her empire.
One lower shelf, located near the desk, contained a litter box. The neighboring cabinet, with a little door she could hop through, contained food and water dishes along with a cat bed.
After devouring her treat, Palta hissed at Waldren for waking her, took a fake swipe at him, and jumped off the man’s bed before coming to me.
Accepting the risk of disfigurement or potentially death, I set the tablet aside, scooped the cat up, placed her front paws on my shoulder, and made sure to support her hind paws. “Did that mean owner of yours wake you up?”
Palta rewarded me with a purr and nuzzled my face.
“I see nothing has changed,” my mother said with laughter in her voice. “Ever since she was little, if there was an animal she could pet, she would pet it. Don’t worry, Waldren. She recovers from the heartbreak of not being able to keep the latest animal to cross her path after five minutes or so. Use her love of animals against her. If she can’t pet your cat until she has finished all her tasks, you will find them finished to perfection on an advanced schedule.”
Careful not to dislodge Palta, I shrugged. “It’s true. Palta is an Earth bred species, Mom.”
Herserael chuckled. “Palta is bonded to Waldren, but we’ll see about acquiring a companion for you, as it would be a good partnership. Palta is a very social animal, and she will shower everyone in the crew with her affection, much to the dismay of her owner, who would like to be the one and only in his cat’s eyes.”
Waldren shrugged. “I’ve had her since she was a kitten.”
I cuddled with his cat, smiled, and said, “Don’t worry. I’m not going to steal her. I will pet her at every opportunity, however.”
“It is clear we will have to go on a search for her to have a pet of her own,” Herserael stated, and he whistled and trilled at Waldren. After a few moments, the man replied with a series of whistles, a growl, and an odd half-hoot.
Huh. I hadn’t knownhomo sapienscould learn how to speak the Veloc’s language. “Can you teach me how to do that?”
My parents laughed. “If you teach her, you’ll never get rid of her,” my mother warned.
I wouldn’t protest the truth. That I was going into space at all might be the reason they wouldn’t be able to get rid of me, but I wouldn’t admit that to anyone.
In the blink of an eye, I’d gone from fearing the destruction of my hopes and dreams to living them. Without the crash, I would have made it into space eventually, but because of it, I dove headlong into the sort of voyage I’d only dreamed about before everything had gotten twisted around on me.
No matter what, I would make the most of the opportunity. “I think they’ll manage just fine, Mom. You don’t need to try to warn them off.”
“It’s always polite to warn others of what they are getting themselves into,” she countered.
I foresaw a great deal of trouble in my immediate future in the form of my parents educating everyone on my tendencies. Rather than fight it, I focused on showing the cat affection and prepared to endure.
SIX
“That thingy makes oxygen for the ship?”
I metthree other Veloc during the tour of the ship, all members of the Emerald Crests. Within three minutes, my parents enthralled the giant feathered murder machines. If left to their devices, I feared my parents would take over the Veloc clan’s entire planet. They charmed my hosts, and it didn’t take long for my hosts to retaliate and charm my parents. It took me an hour or two to accept the reality of the situation.
I would be returning to my home fairly often with feathered murder machines in tow, else my parents might wilt away from grief over having their newfound joy taken from them. The tour ended up taking seven exhausting hours, which Herserael finally brought to a close when I failed to contain my yawns.
He promised future communications, terminated the connection, and showed me to one of the unclaimed quarters, of which they had five. I would get to choose the one I wanted after I was rested, fed again, and went through my basic tests.
