[pre-story]So, I've been mulling over this idea for a long time. I wasn't sure if I should actually write it, because I'm not sure how sexy it'd be in the end, but I ran a twitter poll and the results convinced me to go for it. The idea is interesting to me, even if it's not super hot. It's a romance set in the universe of the game FTL: Faster Than Light, one of my recent gaming obsessions, and it features a very alien sort of alien as the love interest. It was supposed to just be some very short snippets setting up a larger relationship but I just wrote and wrote and now I'm like 4k words deep and nobody's even naked yet. I decided I had to cut it off here for the month, even though I haven't gotten to the action yet, because it's probably only about half-done at this point, if that, and I don't think I should keep my current commission waiting for however long it would take me to actually finish it.[/pre-story]
Love Bug: Part 1
“K’tikikaak.”
The captain paused, looking up from his datapad to take in the figure standing before him. The insectoid creature had a long abdomen with folded wing-cases on its back, held parallel to the deck on four spindly legs covered in jagged serrations. It had a thorax, held upright, that almost looked like a slender humanoid torso. It had two arms, long, folding limbs, ending in serrated, scythe-like blades, each almost half a meter long, flanked by spindly ‘fingers’ that invariably reminded him of spider legs. It had a head that was entirely alien, a wide, flat, triangular thing, with glittering multifaceted eyes set into the sides and chittering mandibles at the front, perched on a skinny stick of a neck. All told, the creature was perhaps a half-meter taller than him, but it compact form likely only outweighed him by a few kilos. The whole creature was covered in segmented carapace, a bright, vibrant red color, banded with tiger stripes of a darker shade.
He hadn’t had much interaction with the mantis as captain. They weren’t part of the federation, and while what passed for their government wasn’t officially at war with it either, that didn’t stop their ships from raiding federation systems for slaves, ships, or simply for the thrill of the hunt. Of the four mantis he’d interacted with personally, one had tried to sell him some slaves, one had tried to buy one of his crew, one had attacked his ship outright, and the last had teleported onto the bridge and ripped off one of his arms before the rest of the bridge crew could intervene and eventually force the intruder to teleport back to their own ship, which exploded soon after. Unconsciously, the captain flexed the fingers of his cybernetic arm. Ultimately, the incident had led him to conclude it would be prudent to have a mantis of their own on the ship, in case of further boarding.
“...I’m sorry, what was that?” The captain asked, shaking his head to dismiss the train of thought.
“K’tikikaak, sir. My name. I was told it is polite to tell humans one’s name and clan upon the first meeting, as they cannot smell one’s blood. Since I no longer have a clan, I am simply K’tikikaak.” The creature replied, repeated the rapid series of clicking sounds. Translator implants had their limits, proper nouns being one of them.
The captain blinked, shaking his head again. “Ah, I see. Well, my name is Oliver, of… clan Quincy, I suppose. But I am your commanding officer while you are aboard my ship, so you should address me as Captain, or Sir.” He clarified.
The mantis’ mandibles folded in an unreadable fashion, but upon being instructed to call him captain, they settled back into their relaxed position. “It is good to meet you face-to-face, captain. I am eager to see the ship I will be working on, and the weapons I will be working with. I am well-experienced with most forms of conventional ship weaponry, and human-standard controls should require only minimal modification for my use. I assure you, you will not regret my purchase.” The creature assured.
The captain looked slightly confused for a moment, before suddenly furrowing his brow and stiffening up. “I, uh… Hold on, just to be perfectly clear, you were not bought, you were hired. You are not a slave, and if you were, you aren’t anymore. I will not tolerate the buying and selling of sentient beings on my ship, and if you choose to leave, for any reason, you are free to do so, and you’ll be dropped off at the first suitable beacon.” He explained. “I do not want a crewman who is only here because they must be, I want dedicated, motivated crew, who are willing to fight for the cause, or at least for the money.”
The mantis paused for a long moment, its gleaming, multifaceted eyes unreadable. “I… I understand, captain, and am very grateful.”
The captain nodded, firmly. “Good.” He replied. A strained silence fell over the pair standing in the loading bay. “...Let me show you the ship.” The captain offered, breaking the silence, turning, slightly and gesturing the mantis to come along, not quite turning his back on the creature.
The mantis nodded. “Yes, captain.” it replied, spindly legs clicking on the deck. After another moment of silence, the mantis spoke up. “I am glad I may call you ‘captain’. I do not believe I could pronounce your name properly.” The creature explained.
The captain offered a strained smile in reply. “I, uh, I admit, I’m kinda in the same boat, there.”
The mantis tilted its head. “...We are on the same ship, yes.”
“Sorry, idioms.” The captain offered in explanation. “I mean, I’m in the same situation. I don’t think I could pronounce your name, either. Is there something else I can call you by?” he asked.
“I understand.” The mantis said, nodding. “...Well, I have sometimes been referred to by my color. It is uncommon in my former clan.” It explained, pausing again. “My translator tells me you do not have an exact word for it. It is like blood, but… more shiny? Like a crystal.” It struggled to explain.
The captain paused, considering. “...a shiny red color, but also a name...” He muttered, pondering, before raising one eyebrow. “...Ruby might work. It’s a kind of red gemstone. But it’s… rather feminine.” He commented, looking uncertain.
The mantis looked at the captain, making a soft, rhythmic hissing noise. “I appear to have overestimated the human capacity for scent. ‘Ruby’ sounds like a very suitable nickname.” She replied.
The captain blinked, momentarily confused, before a look of realization flickered across his face, followed by a soft blush as Ruby continued to hiss softly. “...Are you laughing at your captain, Ruby?” He asked after a moment.
“Never, sir, that would be rude.” She replied, the translation betraying no emotion as the captain led her into the corridors of the ship.
-----
The captain fell face-first onto his bed with a heavy flop, groaning softly into the sheets. He had to admit, actual sleep, in a real bed, sounded REALLY nice, even if he didn’t have time for it. The rebels were still hot on their trail, and if it hadn’t been for the medbay AI cutting him off from stimulants, he’d still be up there, on his (fourth? fifth?) shift. He crawled under the sheets and settled into place on the mattress, relaxing for the first time in countless hours and realizing just how tense his muscles had been.
Then, there was a knock on the door.
He thought, for a moment, to ignore it, but a second knock and a call translated to ‘captain’ through the door stirred him to rise. “Coming.” He grumbled, shuffling over to the door and pulling it open just a crack. He was surprised to see Ruby standing there in the hallway.
“Captain.” she repeated, head swiveling unnervingly from side to side for a moment before turning toward him once again. “May I come in? I wish to speak with you.”
The captain blinked away the bleariness in his eyes and straightened up, switching back into ‘captain’ mode before opening the door all the way and gesturing her inside. “Come in.”
Ruby crawled in through the open door and he kicked the door closed behind her. Her head swiveling this way and that, taking in the new space before turning to face the captain again and paused there, staring. He looked down and realized he was out of uniform in the extreme, wearing only a pair of boxers printed with smiley faces. A flush appeared on his cheeks as he grabbed the top sheet of his bed, holding it in front of himself for a sliver of modestly. He looked to Ruby once more, only to realize she wasn’t staring at his boxers, but rather, at his surgical-plasteel-capped stump of a left arm, where his cybernetic limb mounted. “A-hem… What was it you wanted to talk about, Ruby?” he asked, breaking the silence.
Ruby didn’t respond for a moment. “I… I just wanted to… to make sure we picked up more explosives at the next opportunity. We are relying more and more on our missiles, and while our supplies are not yet critical, we will need more than we can salvage.” She explained, succinctly. “Thank you for listening captain, I do not want to take any more of your time than necessary, please excuse me…” She added, moving for the door briskly.
The captain sighed. “Thank you for bringing this to my attention, I will take it under consideration.” He replied. Just as ruby reached for the handle, he spoke up again. “Now why don’t you tell me why you really wanted to talk to me?” He asked.
Ruby froze in place for a moment before pulling her hand back from the door. “I am… concerned, about how the crew thinks of me.” She admitted. “I am isolated in the weapons bay. Numbers comes to help make repairs, sometimes, but… I do not think he is fond of me, and I rarely have the chance to speak with the others. When I go to the mess, the others finish their food quickly and then leave. I do not think any of them are fond of me.” She continued.
The captain bit back a comment about her tendency to eat raw organs. “I understand your concern, but I don’t think any of them dislike you. I think they’re just… not used to you.”
Ruby paused. “...I believe it is worse than you are aware, captain. I know they are afraid of me. I can smell it.” She explained, shaking her head and looking at him again. “Even you are afraid of me. You have good reason to be, I know. I have seen the logs, I know you have had… unpleasant dealings with my people in the past. I know that it was a mantis that took your arm. The mantis are dangerous. I am dangerous. But I do not want to hurt this crew! I cannot work if he crew does not trust me, and I do not know what I can do to prove that I am not a threat...”
The captain flinched at the accusation of fear. As much as he hated to admit it, it was true, there was still a moment of panic whenever he saw her in the corridors. What kind of captain was afraid of his crew? He shook his head, shoulders sagging. “I… I’m sorry, Ruby. You’re a member of my crew, and you’ve done nothing to deserve the fear and suspicion even I’ve been guilty of. I’ll speak to the crew about their behavior towards you, and I’ll try to improve my own. I can’t promise much will change, but I’ll do what I can.” He assured her.
The mantis looked at him, the expression in her gleaming black multifaceted eyes still unreadable to him, but her posture seemed to relax, her forearms sinking slightly. “I appreciate it, captain. I hope I can prove your faith is well-placed soon.” She replied, before swiftly skittering out of the room.
The captain fell back to the bed with a heavy thump, eyes closing almost immediately as he tried to get some sleep, his capped-off stump burning..
-----
“GET OUT OF THERE, RUBY!” The captain commanded, yelling into a microphone over the blaring of the alarm and the horrible scraping, tearing noise of another flak barrage ripping ragged tears in the ship’s hull. The enemy ship on-screen was in almost as bad shape as they were, with a half-dozen holes blown in its hull and one of its many forward-swept wings hanging on by only a handful of struts. Unfortunately, the metallic crew of the lanius ship had the added advantage of not needing oxygen to work, or they would have been in much worse shape.
“Neg-tive, cap-n!” Came the garbled reply over the intercom. “Nex- hit w-ll rip us ap--t! If w- lose th- Glaive n-w, w- --ll be scrap b-f-re it charges ag--n!”
“Sensors say that whole bay is up in flames! Get out NOW and let the computer take the shot! That’s an ORDER, RUBY!”
“S--ry, s-r. Th- ship -s -ore im---tant. T-king t-- sh--. G--db--.” Came the response before the line went dead. The darkness of space was suddenly lit up by a blindingly bright red beam, the screen darkening automatically to compensate for the glare as it reached across the void to touch the opposing ship, the enemy hull melting as the beam dragged across it. The was a moment of eerie stillness on the bridge as the beam died out, the enemy ship slowly drifting apart on the monitor, separating into two distinct halves before the ruptured reactor went critical, their own ship’s shields coming back online just in time to deflect the shrapnel that was the enemy ship as it exploded silently.
The stillness was broken when something exploded on board, rocking the entire ship. The captain leapt into action, startled from his stunned silence. “All crew to weapons for damage control! We’ve got fires and a downed crewmember! Numbers, prep the medbay!” He barked, leaping from his chair and pointing to the engi officer and bolting from the bridge, the rest of the bridge crew following close on his heels as they rushed through the corridor to the weapons bay.
The blast doors slid open as the captain slid to a stop in front of them, his hands automatically coming up to shield his face as the wave of heat struck him like he’d opened a blast furnace. The room was an inferno, an almost impenetrable wall of fire and smoke. He pushed toward it only to be repelled as something else exploded inside the room. Suddenly, a massive figure roughly shoved him aside, Emily’s hulking stone form fearlessly disappearing into the roaring flames. The rest of the bridge crew took up positions in the doorframe, extinguishers in hand as they slowly pushed back the wall of flames, holding it at bay. The roar of flames and the whoosh of extinguishers was deafening, but to the captain, everything seemed quiet, muted, slow as he watched the doorframe with fearful anticipation.
As suddenly as she’d arrived, Emily came barreling back out of the flames, Ruby’s limp form slung over one shoulder, her stone body unharmed by the heat. “Get her to medbay!” He barked, the rock already doing as commanded. The captain smacked a hand down over the button to seal the blast doors once more. “Computer, open weapons bay airlock! Full vent!” He shouted, and there was a distant hiss as the air left the weapons bay, the crackling flames slowly dying down until there was only silence on the other side of the door. Heaving a sigh of relief, he stepped away from the door. “Computer, close airlock, then open weapons bay interior doors. Route weapons power to life support and medbay.” He added, before turning to the crew again. “You guys know the drill. Once there’s o2, head on in there and get it back in working order. We’ll start salvage efforts once we’re back in fighting shape. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go check on Ruby.” He concluded finally, before starting off down the corridor.
When he arrived at the medbay, he found Emily standing between one of the nanite beds and the door. Faintly glowing particles hung over the bed, the healing nanites busily at work as Numbers leaned over the bed from the far side. The captain stepped forward, craning his neck around Emily’s bulk only to find a blunt, stony limb blocking his path. He looked up, seeing Emily’s stony brow furrowed slightly. “Stop.” She said, simply, the sound of stone-on-stone translated into the word in his brain.
“Why, is she…?” HE began, only to be cut off.
“She is alive. Stabilizing. Healing will take some time.” Emily informed him, factually. “You may not look.” She added, gravely.
“...Why not?”
“She would not wish you to see her like this.” Emily explained.
“...Huh?” The captain inquired, thoughtfully.
Numbers spoke up from the far side of the table, never looking up from his task as tapered silver limbs darted this way and that, poking at Ruby’s limp form with various ever-shifting tools. “Captain, Crewman: Ruby is in the care of excellent manipulators. Prognosis: 71% Positive. Addition: Xenoetiquette files suggest individuals of many races display concern about how they are perceived by potential mates.”
The captain blinked, as stunned as he might have been if Numbers had simply clocked him between the eyes with a mallet. Before he could even process what was said, Emily was firmly ushering him back out of the medbay. “We will take care of her, captain. There is still much for you to do.” She commented simply before tapping the panel beside the door, slamming the blast doors shut behind him with a hiss.
Well… She wasn’t wrong. There was still all the salvage to take care of… He would have to talk to the whole crew about appropriate respect for the position of captain, he reassured himself as he slunk off with slightly wounded pride.
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