Page 13 of Alien Abduction for Professionals
She made it sound as if we should be grateful that she took the time for us. Urgh. What a bitch.
I breathed a sigh of relief when the screen went black. The only good thing about this conversation was that she'd distracted me from my fear.
Xil pressed a kiss on my shoulder. His lips were softer than ever. Yummy.
"We'll figure it out," he said soothingly. "I won't forget what she did to you. We'll make her pay for it."
The other two nodded.
"I don't care about that certificate," Matar growled. "She harmed our mate. There's no way I'm letting her get away with that."
"We," Havel corrected. "Wewill punish her."
Relief flooded me. I'd know they'd put me first, but it was good to hear how they were no longer motivated to complete their alien abduction course.
"Are you really going to build me a nest?" I asked them. "Humans don't have nests. Chickens, yes. Humans, no."
"Yes, we shall make you a nest, my little chicken," Xil laughed. "Whatever that may be."
I groaned. "A chicken is a bird, not a term of endearment."
"I think it sounds cute," Havel said, and I knew I'd made a mistake. From now on, I was going to be their chicken.
"Do Kardarians have nests?" I asked.
"We do. Males build them for their females as proof of their love and devotion," Matar explained. "They can take many shapes and forms. It's mostly a space for the couple - or multiple mates - to withdraw to. Somewhere to feel safe and at home. Unlike for egg-laying species, a nest isn't for incubating younglings. We use it to increase the bond between mates."
"And to breed," Xil added with another laugh. "That's why she suggested a better mattress."
I had to admit, I had no issue with more sex. After what we'd been through, I wanted them to hold me. To merge with me. To become one. It was the ultimate feeling of safety when I was in their arms. Nothing could harm us while we were together.
"I still find it weird," I admitted. "Nest sounds so... alien."
Matar snorted. "Glad you're only now noticing how you're an alien."
"You're the aliens," I shot back. "Humans are the centre of the universe."
"Of course they are," Havel said mildly. "Now you stay here with Xil or Matar while I start making that nest for you. We can order materials from the station without having to go outside again. They'll be delivered straight to the Jade."
"Can't I help?"
"No. Nest building is a task for us to do to honour our mate. But if you want, you can watch Katila's lesson about it and tell us the gist of it, just in case she asks us questions." I could hear him rolling his eyes without turning my head. "Every Kardarian male knows how to make a nest for their female. It's preposterous that she even sent us a presentation on it."
"I'll need snacks. Have the piki cakes arrived yet?"
The guys laughed. The sound dispelled all remaining anxiety, and I finally felt warm again. I was ready to forget about today's nightmare and move on to new, strange things. Like a nest.
In the end,all three of them disappeared, leaving me on the bridge with a piki cake and something resembling a smoothie. As much as I liked popcorn when watching films, this was even better. The cake dissolved in my mouth, letting flavours explode with every bite. I no longer cared what it was made of. All I cared about was knowing that we had lots of them stashed in the galley kitchen.
Instead of Professor Katila, another alien appeared on the screen when I started the pre-recorded lesson. I thought I'd seen some of his kind on the space station, but I didn't know the name of his species. He reminded me of a red frog with bulbous eyes, an enormous mouth and something like gills on his neck. His teeth were sharp, turning him from a harmless frog into a predator. He wore a toga-like robe, hiding most of his body. Only one arm was visible, making me curious how many limbs he was hiding beneath the toga.
"Welcome to this lesson," he said with a surprisingly soft voice. "Today we'll be discussing the traditional art of nest building. While all species have their own techniques, many share a common basic concept that we'll look at in detail. We will also examine why nests are the way to your female's heart or hearts and how you can use them to strengthen your bond. In the final part of the lesson, we will cover incubating eggs. If you belong to a species who doesn't lay eggs, you're allowed to skip that.”
I was grateful for that. Although it might be fun to find out more about aliens who laid eggs. I couldn't imagine having an egg inside of me... but as the guys continuously pointed out, humans were just one of many species in the universe. The aliens I'd seen on the shopping platform had mostly been bipedal and breathed oxygen, but that's because we hadn't been on any of the other platforms. Xil had explained that there were various platforms depending on customers' needs, whether they needed water to swim in, nitrogen to breathe, lower gravity or other requirements. It would have been fun to take a look at some of those, but then, I wouldn't have been able to survive there without some sort of spacesuit.
I focused on the teacher again. I realised he'd never introduced himself. Maybe he'd done other lessons before and assumed students would know his name. For now, I decided to call him Professor Frog. Was that speciest?
"A nest is the ultimate expression of safety and comfort. It's the centre of your home, where you and your mates will be intimate. I don't just mean physical intimacy. In a nest, it is a common rule to be completely honest with each other. A space of truth and love." He smiled and I despite his teeth, he looked happy and benign.
