Copyright 2024 – Daemon D. Hart
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The Human Bearer
He moved quickly since he didn't want to try daddy-in-law's patience. The chances were Florent wasn't up for chatting, just like Xana, but visiting him was on his to-do list if for no other reason than to check on his new friend. In case he was awake and capable of understanding what Riordan wanted to tell him, the most important piece of info to deliver was that the asshole general was dead now. Florent had nothing to worry about him any longer.
Although he had moved with purpose up until that point, he realized that he didn't have any idea about where Florent was kept. Marn had to know things like that, but Riordan found himself walking in the direction of Kanto's quarters instead. The high commander might be the most interested in the patient's evolution. At least, Riordan hoped that was the case. With all the evidence at hand, if that guy still thought Florent was a traitor, he needed his head checked.
Lost in thought as he was, while his mind kept poring incessantly over the last events, he bumped into something just a few feet away from the high commander's door. Surprised, he raised his eyes, with every intention to apologize, but his words died on his lips when he noticed who that other was.
Jasno stared at him, lips pursed, a deep frown knitting his perfectly arched eyebrows together. It looked like he had just come out of Kanto's quarters, which, in itself, was odd, to say the least.
"Riordan," he said, his voice tense. He nodded as greeting and moved away without expecting any sort of reply.
What was the Xeno etiquette regarding such situations? Well, Riordan hardly imagined that a bearer of high standing as Jasno got slapped around by one of the big guys on a regular basis. Seeing how Xeus had intervened in time to prevent him from being the one to apply doll face that correction, things were... well, they were complicated.
Still, why had Jasno gone to see Kanto? Hopefully, to ask for another Xeno lover to replace losing Xana. It went without saying that Jasno wouldn't continue to be Xana's bearer in the light of the recent events. That meant, Riordan thought with joy, he could ask for Kyle to be sent to him since Jasno no longer had a right to him. The other Xenos willing to put their eggs into that asshole must have enough leeway to secure other bots to take care of the guy.
Well, he would have to ask Kanto about that, too. He stopped in front of the lizard guards and smiled at them. "Hey, ladies, remember me?"
Two pairs of reptilian eyes turned to him at the same time. Riordan couldn't tell, but he could bet that was a sign of surprise in those lizards' body language, even if they gave nothing away. They could be the perfect poker players.
"So," Riordan continued jovially, "I know that I don't have an audience scheduled with the high commander, but I will be in and out in a second."
"The high commander will see you now," one of the guards said in a neutral voice.
Hard to say those guards were the females of their species. Riordan bowed politely as the doors opened in front of him, granting him access to Kanto's quarters, and hopefully, his undivided attention. Even without talking to Lakni first, he needed to throw a hint or two about the sabotage that had destroyed their ship on the way to Galatea. He bet Kanto would be really interested in ferreting out that kind of threat since Tu'lek was his turf, most and foremost.
The high commander didn't appear in the least surprised to see him. He examined Riordan coolly, but by now, people who knew Kanto were well aware that the guy had a bad case of resting bitch face. The high commander meant nothing by it. It helped to encourage himself a little. These aliens could still make the blood in his veins freeze with only a look; what he had suffered at the hands of Gamni Gafilos tended to come to him uninvited, and that was a weakness Riordan wasn't interested in admitting.
"Hi," he said nervously as the doors closed behind him. It was in this room that Xana and Kanto had fucked his brains out, as he well remembered. He was suddenly overly conscious of being alone in close quarters with an alien that had proved horny for him and willing to shed his respectability for it, too.
No, no, he needed to get a hold of himself. It had all been because everyone got super horny because of the birth of Lewis's Xenolites. Otherwise, Kanto Vai was as self-possessed as a Xeno was expected to be, especially one in a position of power like him.
He must have lost himself in mind circles of self-doubt because Kanto made an impatient gesture.
"Speak, Riordan, I don't have all day."
"Yeah, right, sorry to bother you."
"You're not sorry, and you shouldn't say things you don't actually mean. It would save us all a lot of time."
"Damn, trying to act polite towards your lot is really trying for the nerves," Riordan joked. Then, he shook his head shortly. Actually, this direct approach suited him just fine. "Can you please tell me where Florent is? I'd like to pay him a visit."
"To what end? What is your purpose?"
"Well, I think he'd like to know that his tormentor is dead."
Kanto gave him a strange look.
"What?" Riordan asked, hoping that his snappy tone didn't count as crossing a line with this species.
"Florent Kasido doesn't talk to anyone."
Riordan felt cold chills running down his back. "Is that a euphemism for him being dead?"
Another odd look thrown his way. "We seldom use such elements of style in our speech."
"Right. Did he lose his voice?"
"No. He has recovered physically. He simply no longer communicates in any way."
"So, not even telepathically?" Riordan asked, feeling his gut churning at the thought. This sounded bad.
"No. Any attempt to get him out of the state he's in has failed so far."
"Then let me try," Riordan said quickly. "Is he in a coma? Or he's simply not fond of your pretty face?"
"You shouldn't throw words around so casually. I could easily interpret them as you making yourself available to me for mating." Kanto's nostrils flared as he said those words.
Riordan took one unconscious step back. "Sorry, I was just joking. I'm not making myself available for... mating. And I have Xana, remember?"
Kanto moved fast, forcing himself to press himself against the closed doors. He towered above him and brought their faces close. Riordan could smell his skin. Kanto didn't have the same scent as Xana who was all sugar and spice, or heady like Xeus. Not even light and woody like Lewis's young lovers. Yeah, lately, his nose had begun to pick up the strangest things.
Kanto smelled of... want. Terrible, deep, desperate want. Fuck. Coming here had been a bit of an uncalculated risk, and he hadn't even thought about it until now. The usually cool and collected – even prissy and arrogant – Xeno was, Riordan could tell, a bundle of conflicting emotions.
"Xana is in no state to take care of you," Kanto said, his voice low and full of meaning. It was a sexy voice, too, a rasp tickling Riordan's ear, as the high commander moved his head to one side, blowing warm air over his skin.
He turned his face the other way. "It doesn't matter. I have daddy-in-law to take care of me until Xana comes to it."
"I could challenge Xeus Lei to release you from your bond to his family. Unless he wants you for himself. Unless he wants," Kanto's voice dropped another notch, "for you to carry another egg for him."
"Damn, man, this is crazy talk," Riordan replied quickly. "And come on, I've been to hell and back. Could you lay off a little? Also, there are other, more attractive guys around here. Like Jasno earlier. He just paid you a visit, right? Xana has no use for him now, so, basically, he has an opening."
He bit his bottom lips and the words stumbled out of his mouth as he tried to convince Kanto to move away by means of pushing slightly against his chest.
"And you know, Florent could also be just the guy for you. I mean, once I convince him he's no longer in mortal danger from that asshole general. You could work a little on your courtship approach, mind you, but I think the two of you would make a wonderful couple. Plus, he's not taken, so that's a big plus."
"You appear to be mistaken about a series of things. It is quite astonishing, given your propensity for sticking your nose everywhere. Jasno was here to confirm that his position as Xana's bearer is uncontested."
"What the fuck?" Riordan forgot about his decision not to risk looking into the high commander's horny eyes and stared at the guy. "No way. Xana's mine!"
Kanto moved away a smidge and then he caught Riordan's throat. "Your possessiveness of your former master only adds to your appeal."
"Man, chill," Riordan said as he felt the grip getting tighter. "I mean, for some reason, you're a bit horny, and trust me, I'm not the guy to put it in. Also, stop it with the bullshit. I've never stopped belonging to Xana. It was all, you know, just a case of going to die and all. We survived, so I believe we're entitled to be left alone, don't you think?"
He ground his teeth and looked into Kanto's eyes, daring him to say otherwise. He had come back from the dead, so he should quit being scared by these guys. Also, Xana was the one who needed protecting now. And he had to stand on his own two feet.
"I will tell you where Florent Kasido is," Kanto said abruptly and moved away. "If there's anything else, speak now. Your presence here is torture for me."
"Okay," Riordan said quickly. "I hope you're looking into the sabotage that destroyed our ship on our way to Galatea. That's all. And I'm out of your hair."
Kanto communicated him the details of where to find Florent telepathically. And then,
Keep out of my way, Riordan. Or Xeus Lei will receive my challenge.
Fuck, that had been incredibly weird. Okay, so maybe Kanto had kept it in his pants too long and once he'd had sex, he had come to realize what he'd been missing. Still, it could be anyone else, it didn't have to be him, right?
And what was all that crazy talk about challenging his father-in-law? Was that even a thing? Note to self, Riordan thought, whenever he had anything he needed to find out, it was better to pay Marn a visit. Kanto was dangerous and horny; the Xeno definitely needed to get laid.
He took one last deep breath to shake off the nerves from earlier and asked the single guard at the door for permission to see Florent. This time, he didn't waste time joking around. Things were seriously wrong if the high commander was still after his ass. Damn, he never got a moment of peace, did he?
Florent was in bed, lying on his back, and he didn't react when Riordan came in. He remained just as impassive even as Riordan walked across the room to reach him. But, once he got close enough, Florent suddenly jolted from his state and threw him a wild look. His eyes were wide, his pupils dilated, and his breathing came in shallow.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Riordan called and moved quickly to grab Florent, who stumbled out of bed and was about to meet the floor face first.
Florent shivered in his arms, and his eyes searched Riordan's face, as if there was something their owner needed and needed badly. His mouth opened and closed, his chest heaving, while tears pooled at the corners of his eyes.
They both knelt on the floor, and Riordan held Florent tightly. "It's okay," he whispered and caressed the blond head, his moves maybe unfamiliar even to him, but needed nonetheless. "You're okay. That asshole is dead. He can't hurt you anymore."
Florent pressed his forehead against Riordan's chest and cried and cried. It was something so desperate and final in how he cried that it made no sense. It wasn't a cry of relief; and had no one told him about Gamni's demise? Well, they were aliens. They probably didn't realize how common sense it would be to let a victim know they no longer had to worry about the asshole that tried to kill them.
"Talk to me," he whispered as he continued to hold his friend. "What's wrong?" He was like a broken record, but he had no idea what else to do. The streets had taught him little about caring.
I can't...
He could hear Florent's thoughts, he realized. So, maybe he could communicate still, but he didn't want to do that with just anyone. It made sense seeing how Xenos could be assholes on a regular basis. "It's me, Riordan. You can tell me everything."
I can't... breathe... need...
"You can't breathe?" Riordan looked around, alarmed. This wasn't a med bay, just a regular room. "We need to take you to a doctor then."
No... need... touch...
"Okay, okay, I'm touching you, see?" To make a point, Riordan rubbed Florent's back vigorously, having no idea how much that would help.
Florent began shaking uncontrollably.
Need... bond... my mind... is broken...
"Fuck," Riordan whispered under his breath. "What do you mean? Because Gamni's dead... is that why you're like this?"
The shivering intensified. Florent's crying was gut wrenching. No words came out of him, verbally or otherwise. Riordan made up his mind. "Come on," he said, pulling Florent up. "I know this isn't ideal, but we need to walk, okay?"
It was clear to him that Florent needed to bond with another Xeno. The special and strange connection Florent had had with his former master had carved out a part of the guy's mind, without a doubt. His suffering was beyond words, and was it that why he couldn't talk?
Riordan had no time for second-guessing himself. Maybe Florent would come to hate him later, and he was giving him no choice, but he needed to reach Marn and explain the problem. There had to be at least one Xeno willing to take the bearer for himself.
And there was always Xeus. He was an older Xeno, but that didn't mean that he didn't need a partner at all. Maybe it would help him get rid of his obsession to examine Riordan at the lengths he did so.
He wouldn't think of Kanto now. He didn't want to get close to the guy, because the high commander had stated clearly that he needed to stay clear of him if he cared about his ass. Not in those words, obviously, but that was the gist of it.
He didn't have time for taking more than two steps towards the door, as Florent was heavy and unresponsive in his arms. The door opened and Kanto moved in, the same strange expression on his face as before.
"I heard his voice," Kanto said curtly.
Riordan set his eyes on the proud Xeno's face. "He's in a bad shape. There's no one taking care of him, only a guard at the door. I need to take him to Marn."
"You will do no such thing," Kanto said in the same domineering voice that made him so insufferable. "The patient is not to leave this room."
"Patient, is he now?" Riordan retorted. "He's touch-starved. His bond with Gamni's broken, and he's a mess. And what have you done to make it better?"
Kanto growled suddenly and grabbed his arm. Shocked by the force of that grip, Riordan let Florent slip from his arms. He didn't have time to do anything else, because Kanto threw him to the side and moved fast. He caught Florent just as he was about to hit his head in the fall.
Riordan pushed himself up, determined to pull Kanto away from Florent. The high commander had murder written all over his face, but then, Florent opened his eyes and grabbed the Xeno by the front of his coat. Even Kanto seemed taken by surprise as Florent pressed his mouth against his.
After that, things began moving very fast. Kanto was all over Florent, tearing his clothes off his lithe body, kissing him and making animal-like sounds. There was a flurry of words, too, feverish exchanges of which Riordan made little sense, as they moved between those two like electricity.
Florent cried out as Kanto impaled into him and threw his head back. Riordan moved slowly towards the door. He had a feeling that his friend would be just fine. And just standing around, watching him and Kanto going at it was too weird a thing to do.
He got out of Florent's quarters, his mind and heart both full. What a day.
Ah, damn, he thought as he recalled that he hadn't had the chance to bring up Kyle. He so had to see Marn about that. And the whole Jasno situation, of course.
Riordan, the boy needs to feed. Return immediately.
Yes, sir.
Apparently, daddy-in-law was just as capable as Xana to communicate his thoughts even if they weren't facing each other or in the same room. Kyle had to wait, as much as Riordan wanted his old friend back. Without another moment of hesitation, he broke into a sprint, ignoring the strange looks thrown his way.
tbc
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