Desert planet ship, p.1
Desert Planet Ship, page 1
Desert Planet Ship
Sam Verraco
Copyright © 2024 Sam Verraco
All rights reserved
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
ISBN: 9798867369255
ASIN: B0CN55KH9J
Cover art by: Pedro "Reis"
Cover design by: GetCovers
Printed in the United States of America
ssverraco@gmail.com
For my Angel. Without you, I'd be dead now. May you ever live on.
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Some Vocabulary
Content Warnings
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Part 2
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Epilogue
Kiilaran Ratsa
Some Vocabulary
Don't worry, I'm not going to give you a super long list of words to remember. Here are the words from the Kiilaran language that come up most frequently.
-Ketu - the firstborn child of the Imperator. Usually the firstborn of the whole generation among the Imperator’s siblings, since inheritance works a bit differently.
-Kerin – a child that is too young to have chosen their gender yet, which usually happens at or some time after puberty. The pronouns of a child vary by the parent, and do not affect which sex a child will choose.
-Sonin – a mutation in Kiilarans that comes from a certain species the aliens intermarried with, many years ago. These Kiilarans do not choose thier gender, and are instead locked into whichever way thier body developed before birth. They are very rare, and often studied for a glimpse into that long-lost race.
-Tonu – a small protrusion much like a clit. In these aliens, it is not sex differentiated, and all have one.
-Aani – the mental network that connects every Kiilaran. Represented by all the bonds between the various Kiilarans, but they all lead back to their center, the Kiilaran that creates the network – the Imperator.
-Plowmant – a very unassuming fruit with a thick, leathery skin. When cut open, it is all the colors. Very spicy, and not for the faint of heart. Around the same heat level as a ghost pepper.
-Uanin – small purple gourd-like fruits. They taste different based on their climate, care during growing, and there’s also some random chance influencing the taste. It can’t always be anticipated. Many attempts have been made to grow them in particular ways and standardize the taste, but the fruit eludes both human and Kiilaran comprehension.
-Tyrrati – a rather sweet and tasty fruit.
-Skrillox – a half tame dog like species. The skrillox have bony plates over their bodies and need to run hundreds of miles a day to maintain their health. Most planets they are placed on have a long enough day/night cycle to accommodate them.
Content Warnings
This story has themes that may bother some readers. Please read with care.
- Abandonment by a significant other.
- Sex with a character that is not the main character.
- Stalking of a significant other (light, but it is there.)
- Isolation from one’s family (no contact).
- Alien therapy and mental health practices -- please do not try this at home. Aliens are different than humans!
- Erectile disfunction due to trauma.
Prologue
Kanala
December 1st, 2636
My son’s face was so perfect. I traced the shape of his small, slitted nose, his contented mouth, and last of all, over his eyelids that moved occasionally with his dreams. He was such a good child. And yet, in the six years since he had been born, I hadn’t been able to bring myself to see him like this. He was the best part of me, and of him, but I didn’t know if that was enough. I couldn’t know if it was enough, until he was far older than me. And so I had left him in a stasis chamber where he would not age, or know the loneliness and fear of having a father that feared what he could become. I was far too close to this situation to be able to raise him as he needed. But there was someone who would. Several someones, in fact.
They would care for my son as he deserved to be treated, like any other Kiilaran child. As I had been cared for, by my mother and father. And if they couldn’t care for him, I would put him into his small chamber again, and find someone else to raise him to be a better Kiilaran than his father was. Than I was, even. But I hoped I would never have to do that. I wanted to see my son grow, not stay ever the same in stasis. He couldn’t be in there for a decade. Two decades. It would be too unfair to my son. He should be in school now, learning with others of his age. If not for me, he would be there, as happy and active as a boy his age was meant to be. Not here, still in my arms.
I tried to steel my sense of purpose to the sneaking that I would have to do to make my way to their home. It was inevitable, and yet I was unequipped for it, being a Kiilaran that had not used many of the lessons of my teachers in that regard. But it was luckily a quiet night, and the artificial lights were kept low at night now.
It was enough to make my way to their home without being spotted. There was no one outside, anyway. Only the beast, Lucas's strange idea of a pet. It stared at me balefully, as if wanting to kill me for approaching its human's home. It approached me, and I stayed still, scared to move. Scared that even my breaths would bring the wrath of this creature upon me. If it did, I would move too quickly, and my son would wake. He was a good child, but one that was easily disturbed.
I stayed as still as I could as the creature examined my feet, using its nose as it had when it had last seen me, in my brother's home. When it had enough of the scent, it then decided to do something peculiar, and rub its whole body against my feet. I shuddered. I couldn't help it. This animal was only doing this to unnerve me. I knew it. And I was unnerved. Unnerved enough to step back. The cat looked up at me and then cut across the distance between us again, making a rather peculiar sound that sounded oddly enough like my brother's rumbling. It was strange that such an aggressive creature would do that to me.
I looked down at my son in my arms. I had to leave him and get Lucas or my brother or Tana to come to the door. He needed to be found, and I... I needed to see. I was certain that they were the ones who could raise him, but if they weren't, I would spirit him away, and they would never see him again. I would have to leave as well, but that was all right. Even though I liked this planet, and enjoyed seeing my brother return to something of the boy he had been, I could leave. I wouldn't get the water elementals unless I chose to. And even that was no longer a barrier now that the ketu had his own water elementals. I could leave and find another home for my son. And I would watch those parents just as much as I would Lucas and my brother. Because no other Grox hybrid could be allowed to leave my people. Especially not my son.
With a thump, the cat dropped itself to the ground, half on my feet, and showed me its golden underbelly. It was striped with blackness, and its fur looked so silky and soft that an odd part of me longed to touch it. But I had no idea of this animal's intentions. In one movement, I withdrew my feet from the cat, and ran to the door. I placed my son at the bottom of the door, where they could not miss him. Before I could bang on their door as I planned, the cat, likely fuming at its ejection from the uncomfortable surface of my hard shoes, approached. I was frozen, half wanting to spirit away my son before those claws that had scored Lucas's skin on many an occasion met my son's unprotected flesh, and the other half freezing where I was.
But the animal only sniffed at my son for a moment before licking him with an absurdly colored pink tongue. And my son, never one to make a fuss, made a sound that melted my heart. I knelt, fitting my finger into his tiny hand. He gripped it, and I couldn't help but kiss him. His eyes opened, and I could see so much of his father in him. Him and me, mixed together in my son. The pain in my heart was inconceivable as I drew away. "I have found a good home for you, my little son," I told him, barely able to say the words. "I will find you the best people I can, even if these will not treat you well. I will be here. Never worry." But my son just waved his hands, as if to get me to pick him up now that he was awake. I longed to. But I could not.
I paused, my attention caught by the cat. She passed my son with only a glance at me and passed through the small door that Lucas had ordered to be created, to let his beloved cat pass in and out as she pleased. I heard her high pitched yelling before the door closed, and ran to hide in the shadows. When I was suitably concealed, I turned on my invisibility device, and watched.
Watched as my brother and his bondmates came out of their home, exclaiming over the child they found there. My child. My son. They looked at him with such love in their eyes already, and they had not even known him for a fraction of an hour. I almost couldn't bear it, but eventually they went inside, and I was free from seeing what I had done. I wanted to raise my son, of course I did. But I had not been enough to keep Sele from leaving. I wouldn't do that to my son. He needed strong anchors to keep him here, in the Empire. And I had to do what I could to make sure he stayed. I wouldn't be able to handle him leaving as his father had.
Lucas's cat emerged from his home after a few minutes and approached me again. She made a rather odd sound, remarkably self-satisfied. I turned off the invisibility device since it seemed useless around this animal and sat on the cold stone floor. She had helped my son. I was immeasurably grateful to this animal. If I could be of service to her, I would. I offered her my hand, and she threw herself on it. I found myself shaking as I caressed and petted this... cat. Perhaps I could soften my heart to the animals.
The only sign that my son was inside Axa's home was the small machine that opened his door, and left shortly before returning with things that my son would need.
Chapter 1
Kanala
March 18th, 2637
I could not avoid them. The cats had invaded Amartius Prime and showed no sign of leaving anytime soon. Some of them had even invaded my rooms, as hard as I tried to dissuade them. I was not the sort of person that cats liked. Or at least, I shouldn't be. But they flocked to me, still. And they were becoming inconvenient. It was the fifth time this day that they had interrupted me in my lessons with Ina. The fifth time.
He loved the animals, and they loved him in return. And they seemed to love me as well, even though I tried my best to lock them outside. They always made it into my rooms, and I had given up weeks ago. Resistance was futile when it came to these animals. Lucas's cat was one of many now, and these were apparently all her children, created in the fertility center as experiments. But they had expected some casualties, and it had been a surprise to all when there had only been a negligible amount of embryos that passed. The rest had survived and created a crisis throughout the Empire. And so many planets had been designated for the cats. Ones where the cats could not get outside were the only ones who could house them, since there was some question about their hunting efficiency.
They might look like unassuming balls of fur, but there were sharp claws and tough teeth and eyes that gleamed with intelligence under their relatively unassuming bodies. And their claws would only appear when they were of a mind to hunt, nothing like the warriors and other ratsa that also had claws to fight. They were delightful creatures, but rather terrifying. It had been enough to make me fear sleep after they had come here, but I hadn’t awoken to feline teeth and claws buried in my throat yet. And so I gradually became more familiar with them. But Lucas's cat was the only one that I sought out.
I sighed as another cat joined the one that had interrupted Ina's concentration on his folded legs. Perhaps we should have sat on chairs. But these animals could jump, so I wasn't sure if that would be any use. They could just jump on top of us if they wished. The boy was clearly enchanted by the creatures and ran his small hands over each of them as they voiced their pleasure at his touch by their rather peculiar rumbling. It was strange to see a creature with the same ability as a Kiilaran, but it was all right. They could be honorary Kiilarans for now, and when they evolved a little, they could join us as full fledged Kiilarans.
I tried to assess Ina. He was utterly enchanted by them, and I could sense that we would get no more work done today. At least the cats had waited to approach until an hour before I would have dismissed him to his teacher. "We are done today, Ina. Tomorrow, we will go up to the surface to find a place where the cats cannot follow us. Before you sleep tonight, practice the exercises I showed you today. You need to practice your mind." The boy smiled, an expression so much like his uncle, the Ketu, that I was momentarily sure that I was staring into Jartha's face. But I was brought back to the boy when he enthusiastically agreed, and then looked at the two cats on his legs, unable to decide which to take with him.
"I will take the other," I told him, his face clearing of his anxiety. He would have more than enough cats in his rooms if he left his door the slightest bit ajar. I had no doubt of that. The cat made a particularly aggressive sound when I slid my hands under its body and lifted it up to fit against my body, but it settled well enough after it had something to rest on. I tried to think of how Lucas held his cat, and slowly slid my arm underneath its legs, so it had something to rest on, and it stopped quickly enough. Unfortunately, its claws came out and pierced the sleeves of my shirt. I grimaced, already expecting that I would have to recreate this piece of clothing. At least it had not created holes in a piece of clothing that was more precious. I had some that had been created by my mother's hands, and I had no doubt that these animals would ruin them as easily. I would need to lock them away, and never wear them until I left this planet.
When Ina had his cat happily rumbling in his arms, we walked the short way to his teacher's rooms. I had very little idea of why we had brought the cats here, since there were more here, sitting on Eedu and the other children of the colony as well as the furniture items and every bit of free space in the room. If I had this many cats in my rooms, I would go insane.
Ona ran up to me, exclaiming over the cat I was carrying, and I gratefully gave it to her. He was happier to be in her arms, likely because the child actually liked him. She patted him happily as she returned to her spot, shooing away the two cats that had taken her space among the four of them. I nodded at Eedu in greeting and told him. "We will have to go to the surface tomorrow. The animals leave us no other choice." He nodded, blue eyes steady. "Will you join us for this lesson? We are learning about Imperator Karnus, and the Grox first contact." I hesitated, tempted beyond belief. I liked Eedu, I did. But I needed to return to my rooms, and perhaps go and see my son with Lucas. Perhaps he saw my hesitation, since he moved a cat to the side to make enough room for me. I saw the need for my company in his eyes, and I hesitated.
I dismissed my thoughts, and sat among them, listening to Eedu's calm and measured voice as he spoke to his students. This was a subject I knew well, and yet... there was a comfort in hearing it from Eedu, as well. I knew far too much about the Grox from Sele, and yet, he had gone to his other parents. He had abandoned me, abandoned our son, and abandoned the oath he had sworn to become a citizen of our Empire when we had passed out of our schooling days. I still could not understand why he had done it.
Why he would go to his parents' people when they were the ones that locked sentient creatures on slave planets, using them as we did machines, but without the slightest bit of compassion or care for them? We kept the machines that farmed for us, mined for us, did everything for us in good condition. Many Kiilarans had chosen to only be mechanics, repairing and maintaining our machines. That was a job that was honest work, and always in demand.
The Grox were a cruel race, and I could not understand. Would never understand. I had felt his soul through the aani when we had been close as lovers. He, at least, had the connection that many of our hybrids with the Grox lacked. That had not been his issue. At least with those hybrids, it was understandable why they would not want to stay with us. But he had been as connected to the aani as I was. And that, I could never understand.
