Page 44 of Her Alien Cyborgs
The breeze stiffened, whirling around them with enough strength to push the debris on the ground around their feet. An idea came to him, and he seized it immediately.
“Today we’ve walked on real dirt and breathed unfiltered air for the first time. Now I think it’s time that you experienced something new.”
With that, he pulled her closer and then scooped her into his arms.
“What thefraxxare you doing?” she demanded. “Put me down!”
“You said we could fly once we left the port.” He sent a mental image of his plan to Kalan, who whooped in response.
“I said you can fly. You two. The ones with wings!”
“You don’t need wings,zana. You just need to hold on to me.”
He tightened his grip and bent his knees as his wings unfurled behind him.
Hezza swore softly and threw her arms around his neck. “If you drop me, I’m leaving you to rot on this moon,” she warned.
“I won’t drop you,” he promised.
And then he took to the air.
Kalan launched at the same time, the wind from their wings making the detritus and dust on the ground scatter.
They cleared the buildings in seconds and then began to circle as they rose higher into the infinite blue of the sky.
“Which way?” he called to her once they were high enough to see the entire colony.
“Now you ask me that?” Hezza lifted her head, and he realized she’d been hiding her eyes all this time.
When she saw how far up they were, she tightened her hold on his neck. “Fraxx! This is very different from flying a ship!”
They had to shout to be heard over the wind, but he understood her well enough, and there was no missing the note of exhilaration in her voice.
He felt it too, from the tips of his wings to the bottom of his soul.Thiswas freedom. From up here he could see every part of the small colony, including a square of packed dirt near the center. Brightly colored tents were set up without any discernible pattern to the layout. Some were clumped together while others stood alone, and one group made a sort of triangle if you squinted and looked at it sideways.
Avian in cages squawked loudly in front of one tent while a vendor in an open area stood over baskets and crates full of harvested plant matter. The smell of roasted meat and other savory things made his stomach grumble. It was time to find this diner and learn why Hezza kept talking about something called pizza.
It took only a few minutes to reach the diner. From above, it looked like every other building in the area—a two-story, weathered structure with “Flek’s Diner” painted on the roof in large yellow letters.
“The paint was cheap, and he wanted every pilot that flew over his place to know it was there,” Hezza explained when asked.
The diner didn’t look any better once they went inside. The furnishings looked battered, some of the floor tiles were cracked, and the whole place looked faded, save for a single mural on one wall that had never been finished.
“Don’t worry about how it looks. The pizza is to die for, and they brew their own beer. I’m partial to their ale myself, but you’re welcome to try anything that piques your interest.”
“Is that you, Hezza?” someone called from behind a closed door. When it opened, Fyr’enth got his first look at a living Jeskyran. He was almost as tall as they were, but far more slender. Long thorns jutted out from his shoulders with shorter clusters distributed over the rest of his body. His skin was orange mottled with yellow, and he wore nothing but a loincloth that hung halfway to his knees.
“Hey, Flek. You’re looking good.” Hezza raised her hand in greeting. “Still enjoying your own cooking too much?”
The male patted his naked stomach, carefully avoiding the thorns. “You know it.”
“Flek, before we get down to the serious business of pizza and beer, I want to introduce you to someone. This is Kalan and Fyr’enth.” She paused and then said, “They’re mymahoyen. My mates.”
The Jeskyran beamed and threw his hands in the air. “Wonderful news! Congratulations!” As he spoke, he shook his hands and fingers rapidly. “Your drinks I buy. The pizza you buy.”
Hezza raised her own hands and briefly shook them in Flek’s direction. “Thank you. I’ll have an ale. Since these two are new, why don’t you set them up with two flights of your best?”
“We’ll take a seat while you make dinner. Then we can talk.”
