Page 61 of Asmodel

His dark baritone combined with his body warmth made her shiver in pleasure.

“All right, I’ll go with you. I can hold her for now, but I don’t want to take a chance she’ll break free and attack you.” He glanced at the spider bot who jumped back to his shoulder. “JR13, you and Echo stand by with the disruptive blast if needed. Confirm?”

“No need to state the obvious, organic man,” The bot’s large eyes rolled. “We’ve got you covered.”

“And just what am I supposed to do?” Raxx put his fists on his trim hips, his stance wide. “Stand here and look pretty?”

“I’m sure with practice, someday you just might pull it off.”

Asmodel’s voice was steady, but the twinkle in his eyes made Izzy giggle.

“Instead, why don’t you make sure none of the scikvak gets close enough to interfere?”

Raxx’s arms dropped. “Whatever.” He glanced around. “That’s me. I’ll just narc around the hood and flush out any hostiles who are hiding.” He ran a thumb across Echo’s smooth surface. “Come on, baby. Let’s check things out.”

“Don’t go far.” Asmodel warned.

Raxx snorted with a hand wave. “As if.” He headed in the opposite direction, but remained visible.

Izzy might enjoy the banter between the two, but she had a job to do. Without another word, she approached the rocking form of the Krystalii.

“Prisma-Solara, we don't mean you any harm.” Izzy approached the moaning Krystalii with an open palm and spoke in a soft voice, making sure she kept her words gentle. “We only want to help you.” Ever since she could remember, people had been telling her she was too nice and someday she’d regret it. Hopefully, today wasn’t that day.

Prisma-Solara looked up, her blank gaze full of confusion and pain.

The minor tremors rolling around them faded. For a moment, the ruined city seemed to hold its breath, waiting to see what happened next.

The counter frequency JR13 hummed stayed quietly in the background.

Izzy approached Prisma-Solara with cautious steps. She frowned at the dullness of the alien's once-vibrant crystalline form. The muck covering her somehow made her appear smaller, less imposing.

Kneeling beside her, Izzy made sure she came across kind and non-threatening. “Prisma-Solara”—she kept her voice soft but clear—“can you tell me what happened to you?”

Prisma-Solara turned toward her, the facets of her crystals catching the light with a subdued shimmer. “I do not understand it myself.” The alien admitted, her voice hollow, lacking its usual resonance. “My kind are not used to what is happening to me here. We exist in a state of order and logic. But here, on this planet... I felt a flood of something overwhelming. And I couldn’t stop...” She choked out a whisper.

Izzy reached out and placed her hand over the Krystalii’s and squeezed. She gasped at the warmth in the hand she held. Oh, this wasn’t some automaton. This was an actual living creature in pain. “It sounds like you experienced emotions for the first time. This planet, CeluriaVO, might have triggered something deep inside you that’s unfamiliar to you.” She brushed off a clump of dirt on Prisma-Solara’s arm. “Especially when you immersed yourself in the ground.”

Prisma-Solara's crystals flickered weakly, as if attempting to process this information. “Emotions? Is that what these disturbances within me are called? When I woke up from my restorative sleep, chaos filled me instead of strength. It was uncontrollable and fierce.”

“Yes, emotions can feel very intense, especially if you're not used to them,” Izzy explained. “Most organic beings experience them all the time—they can be beautiful, but also very destructive if not managed.”

“Why would your kind tolerate such disturbances?” Prisma-Solara demanded. Her tone was tinged with anger.

“I’ll answer your questions if you’ll let me give you something to help you manage these new feelings you’re experiencing.” Izzy released Prisma-Solara’s hand and opened her other one where she’d held the disks. “These are called PsyShields.” She tapped her own temple. “See, I’m wearing them to protect me from unwanted psychic stuff. I believe it will help regulate the powerful emotions you’re experiencing so you can analyze what is happening inside you without foreign interference from this planet.”

Prisma-Solara’s crystalline citrine-yellow eyes focused on the round orbs in Izzy’s palm before her intense gaze studied her. With her head tilted, her eyes widened. “You are correct!” she gasped. “I cannot read or control you. How amazing.” She took the disks from Izzy’s hand. “How do I apply them?”

“Place one on each temple,” Asmodel supplied, standing a few feet behind Izzy. “You will feel disoriented at first, but that will fade. However, be prepared for your psychic sense to be muted as well.”

The dull crystal of Prisma-Solara’s mouth frowned. “For now, that will be acceptable.” She scanned the surrounding destruction. “I did not intend to do this.” Her gaze came back to Izzy. “At least not at this time.” Now her lips creased into a small grin.

Izzy breathed a sigh of relief. Oh, lookie here, the crazy, evil alien made a funny.

Keeping her gazed focused on Izzy, Prisma-Solara put the disks on. The effect was immediate. Her eyes rolled back in her head before she flopped onto her back, legs and arms spread wide.

“Oh, my gosh!” Izzy rushed to her side, putting her hand on the female’s hard crystal cheek. It was warm, so she still had to be alive. She turned to Asmodel. “Do you think she’s okay?”

Asmodel kneeled next to her, hovering an open palm over Prisma-Solara’s chest. “Yes, she’ll be fine,” he declared.

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