Fading Stars Ch. 01

"I'm sure he'd tell you the same I just did, but..." Denek's voice trailed off. "Maybe we could come to some kind of understanding?" His gaze slithered over her curves and he pictured Deeva naked, legs spread invitingly in all her azure glory before him, ready to be fucked.

"I'm sure we can," Deeva said. She opened her briefcase and placed a data chip in front of him.

"I wasn't talking about credits," Denek whispered.

"There are no credits on this chip," Deeva replied, her smile widening. She turned her open briefcase so he could look inside. Deeva leaned in and pointed out a double-ended phallus, nearly a foot long. "Me. This little fellow here. Two hours," she whispered conspiratorially.

Denek's eyes went wide. "On that chip?"

Deeva purred acknowledgment. "A high-quality full body recording. It's all yours. Just get me someone who can fast-track my enrollment."

Denek palmed the chip, trying -- and failing -- not to appear greedy. Then he tapped his desktop comms unit. "Excuse me for interrupting you, commander, but I think you should come into the lobby."

* * * *

Deeva patiently waited until a green-haired man entered the lobby. He wore the uniform of a naval commander, with glinting silver stars on his black epaulets and the name "Quintus" on his name tag.

"Ensign Denek, what's the meaning of this?" the newcomer asked. His steely gaze flickered to Deeva. Instead of Denek, she answered him.

"Sorry for the unconventional means of introduction, sir. My designation is Div/A F03 and I would like to join the Nor navy. I wasn't aware of any deadlines prior to my arrival here. Is there any way for me to fulfill the entrance requirements for this semester? I don't have the funds or the time to wait half a local year for the next chance to enroll."

"We have deadlines for a reason," Quintus said. "Why should I break protocol just to accommodate you?"

Deeva placed her hand on top of the console embedded into the receptionist's desk. Both men watched in surprise as her hand dissolved into a mass of fine blue filaments swarming over the glossy case of the machine, seeking any seams or openings to slither through. Within moments, her mind had connected with the expansive campus network and she was frantically searching for anything to impress the commander with. To her delight, she did indeed find not one but multiple anomalies. Some virus-infected emails had managed to create weak spots in the otherwise impressive mil-spec computer network, weaknesses some ruthless individuals had exploited. There were obvious signs of data manipulation, especially in the directory containing applicant's credentials and qualification papers. There were numerous hidden folders containing porn and other seedy materials. With her free hand, Deeva fished a blank chip from her suitcase, slotted it into the data jack behind her ear and copied records of her findings onto it. She logged off and handed the chip to Quintus. The whole operation took her less than sixty seconds.

"On this chip you will find records of illegal activities occurring in the academy network. You really should upgrade your security. Sir."

Grumbling, Quintus slotted the chip into his wrist-mounted communicator. His brow furrowed as the log files scrolled past. His expression darkened with every new record popping up. With a snarl, he turned off his comms and fixed Denek with a long, hard stare.

"Denek, get me someone from IT up here on the double. As for you, Deeva. Let's bend the rules just this once. Seems like everyone else is doing it already. You can take the test this afternoon and I'll have it graded along with all the others. Will that be a problem for you?"

"No sir. I can begin whenever you want me to."

"Splendid. Welcome to the Nor Naval Academy. "

* * * *

Two days later, Deeva moved into the academy dormitory. She had passed the entrance exam with flying colors, effortlessly scoring a perfect hundred percent on trivial questions of Nor military doctrine, history and astronomy, things she had prepared for on her long flight to Norwan anyway.

Her home for the coming three years was a small cube of a room, large enough for a fold-away bunk, a wall-mounted desk with a built-in terminal and some storage space for her essentials. It was more than enough for her few possessions. She speculated that she wouldn't be here that often anyway, with a strict ten-hour schedule which would leave little time for extracurricular activities.

After settling in, Deeva sat back on her bunk and activated her network connection. She was the only Silician on campus but there were others in the surrounding city, working as IT specialists or, in one case, as a commercial pilot. She encoded her recent exploits into a tight package and broadcast it to the others, asking them to forward it until it would reach her captain. After exchanging pleasantries over the network for a few minutes, Deeva decided to start exploring her surroundings. If she was to become a successful academy graduate, she would need to do more than just excel in tests. She needed to network with other students. Her social skills were woefully lacking beyond basic Silician etiquette and the sooner she was able to integrate with other species, the better. The purple-haired Nor from before seemed a likely candidate for exploration. Deeva exchanged her black body plating for something less dramatic and accessed her terminal. Ensign Denek was easy enough to find.

* * * *

Three years flew by in what seemed to be mere moments and before she knew it, Deeva had reached the final exams. She had mastered the academy curriculum, from basic weapon drills to taxing theoretical subjects like AI programming, sensor operations and ship system engineering. Despite the grueling pace, she even managed to make friends. Vecora, a pink-haired Nor woman with a naturally tanned skin and an infectious, bubbly personality was the first. They met in Engineering Basics and Vecora asked her about a tricky question concerning plasma dynamics in gravitational anomalies. Soon they became more than classmates, more than friends.

When year three rolled around, students had been placed into potential bridge shifts and Deeva's circle of acquaintances expanded rapidly. There was Gaia, a hot-headed, green-haired Nor pilot. Zamos was a laid-back Zuthrian, an anomaly in a species known for their wild streak and passionate way of living. Black-skinned and white-haired, he was as exotic as Deeva. His calmness belied a sharp tactical mind and he specialized to become the ship's gunner. Thanks to a manually created bit of digital confusion, Vecora had ended up in that same group as an engineer. Together they trained in a VR simulation of a Class-3 battleship, the same vessel they would be flying should they pass the final exam.

The final test was a three-day marathon of theoretical and practical tests, from simple questionnaires to mock battle situations in the simulation. Individual and team performance would be graded and the instructors were ruthless in pointing out any and all slip-ups.

Wrung-out and drained, Vecora and Deeva stumbled into the campus mess hall, grabbed trays with food and found a small table. Around them, the mess hall was abuzz with other students moaning and boasting about their exploits during the tests.

"I can't believe we managed to blow up that Zuthrian frigate with only our point-defense system," Vecora laughed. "I thought one more torpedo and we're done for."

"Well, you had the idea to overcharge the starboard turrets and Zamos nailed that one-in-a-million shot at the opening torpedo tube." Deeva speared the last of her bright green Aquarian sea-bulbs onto her fork and popped the vegetable into her mouth, chewing happily. Even after three years among the Nor, eating their food, relishing the textures, tastes and especially the juices, still felt exciting and fresh. And with her soon transferring onto one of the training ships, the whole galaxy's array of exotic foods were in reach.

Vecora's purple eyes sparkled mischievously. "And you're sure you didn't 'help' him out by futzing with the fire-control systems?"

Deeva laughed merrily. "Would I jeopardize both his and my chances of graduating should anyone discover I cheated?" Under the table, her hand caressed Vecora's thigh. Her friend scooted closer, offering more of her leg.

"I'm sure you covered your tracks pretty well, as always," Vecora murmured. She inhaled sharply when Deeva's fingers slid ever higher on the inside of her thigh, insistent fingertips brushing her nether lips through the fabric of her campus uniform. Vecora placed a hand on Deeva's. "If you keep that up I'll have no other choice than to fuck you right here and now. We'll both get a citation for public misconduct and, much more importantly, we'll miss the graduation test results. As much as I would love you in me... we'd better stop."

"Reason, coming from you," Deeva laughed. "Accepted. But after we've received our results, we're going to celebrate!"

Vecora dropped her napkin onto her plate, rose and beamed brightly. "Oh, you can bet your azure butt on that!"

* * * *

"Ugh, look at all these people," Vecora complained. "It will take ages to find out on which ship we'll serve." The slender Nor woman undid her pink ponytail and redid it. She managed to infuse these few hand movements with a whole lot of exasperation.

Deeva smiled at her friend. "It has been two weeks since the term finals and now you complain about a few more minutes of waiting?" She cast her pale blue optics over the throng milling in front of the holo displays announcing test results and ship names. There were whoops of excitement and heads hanging low in equal measure. Norwan's space academy was infamous for its harsh selection process. Those in attendance already were the best of the best, drafted from colleges and naval academies from all corners of the Republic, and still only about 25 percent managed to land a coveted spot on the training ships, with a promotion to actual fleet duty virtually guaranteed.

In her disguise as a humble Silician exchange student, Deeva didn't worry about her chances. She had aced all her tests and her particular skills were a sought-after commodity. There were only a few people able to directly interface with electronics and her species was uniquely gifted in that regard.

Vecora pulled her along, her tanned fingers wrapped tightly around the dark blue skin of Deeva's wrist. "There's a spot. Let's go already!" Deeva failed to make out which spot her friend exactly referred to but Vecora nudged and prodded until they stood, shoulder to shoulder with a huge Gravon, in front of a terminal.

Making sure no one watched her too closely, Deeva placed her hand on the terminal's case and concentrated. Her fingertips unraveled into hundreds of filaments, penetrating the case and seeking the circuits beneath. In the time it took for Vecora to wait until their names scrolled past on the display, Deeva had accessed the network directly and downloaded the same info, easily bypassing campus security.

"We're both on the Novitar!" Vecora exclaimed. "Congratulations, acting Science Officer Div/A F03!" She flung her arms around Deeva's neck and kissed her wildly. The Gravon next to them turned away, grumbling "Get a damn room, you two."

Deeva broke the kiss and threw him a playful look. "Wanna join, Thexus?" She eyed his seven-foot, three-hundred-something pound frame and wondered if everything on him was as well-developed as his chiseled musculature, barely concealed by his campus uniform. His long hair was white with streaks of silver and his skin a warm earthen tone with what looked like golden metallic sprinkles dusted onto it.

He raised a snowy eyebrow. "You know me?" His broad chest turned the simple question into a bass-heavy rumble. Not unfriendly but quite impressive nonetheless.

"I remember your name from the basic combat classes we had together in year one," Deeva smoothly lied. He was the only Gravon on campus, which made him as exotic as Deeva but she had lost sight of him once their courses diverged. Telling him she had read his name in illegally downloaded test results would probably be a bad conversation gambit. "Maybe we can re-acquaint ourselves later?" She shot him an inviting smile.

"Oh, and here I thought I'd have you all to myself tonight," Vecora purred, nibbling on Deeva's earlobe. Exuberantly, she flicked her tongue against the interface jack next to it.

"I'm sure there will be enough time to socialize later. I need to get my bags from my quarters. Don't be late for boarding." Shaking his butt-length white braid, Thexus left, his uniform unable to hide the play of his back and butt muscles as he walked.

"It's never too late to expand our xenobiological studies." Deeva grinned wickedly and caressed Vecora's curvy butt through her uniform. "And he would make quite the specimen. I know you Nor inside and out by now, even had fun with a Marked Zuthrian when we visited that strip club. But I never had someone like him."

"Ooh, I remember that night," Vecora giggled. "My pussy and ass were raw for days after. You two did quite the number on me."

Deeva laughed. "You didn't complain when we had you, right? Thexus has a point though. Are you packed yet?"

"All taken care of. Those damn project management lessons actually did pay off in the end. All bags are packed, quarters cleaned -- except for fresh sheets and towels, which can be de-synthesized in about a minute when we're done. Let's. Go. Already. Your hand on my ass is turning me into a willing xenobio specimen too!"

* * * *

With a soft hiss, the door slid shut behind them. Since they'd become friends, and later lovers, the young engineer's quarters had been a well-lived in mess of half-finished projects, Hoverball paraphernalia, plush Felinoids and chip-vid posters. Nothing remained of the chaos though. Two neatly packed boxes waited next to the door while a fresh sheet covered the small bunk. Walls, floor and ceiling almost sparkled.

"I'm impressed," Deeva said, turning to face her friend.

"Just a matter of getting my priorities in order. Truth be told I didn't sleep much last night but now I have all the time in the world for you and your Type-5. You didn't forget it, did you?" Vecora pulled down the vac-zip holding her uniform closed and shrugged out of the white-and-blue coveralls. She wore a lacy dark red set of bra and panties underneath.

"Even after three years, I still discover new facets," Deeva purred, closing the distance. She raised her arms to embrace Vecora.

She stopped Deeva with a palm to her chest. "Aren't we forgetting something?" Her fingertips wandered up onto Deeva's shoulder. "Let's get you out of that plastic first."

A hidden pressure point clicked under her questing index finger and she pulled the front half of Deeva's campus chest plating off her. The white plastic slid off blue skin and firm curves. Deeva shrugged the back half off and removed the arm sheaths, dropping them onto the growing pile of bright bio-plastic on the floor. Vecora went to her knees, breathing hot kisses onto Deeva's exposed skin, causing the Silician to throw her head back and moan in pleasure. With practiced ease, Vecora split the thigh plating and tossed it to the other pieces.

"My, you're eager," Deeva breathed, writhing under Vecora's caressing hands. "Aren't you afraid I might climax too soon if you keep this up?"

"I know how well you can manage your arousal levels," Vecora mumbled between kisses to Deeva's pelvis. "This should be nothing to you." Her tongue slithered out, parting Deeva's nether lips. The Silician groaned appreciatively and rolled her hips forward, seeking more of Vecora's tongue.

The calf and foot pieces rattled to the floor, leaving Deeva gloriously naked. The warm glow of the quarter's illumination flowed over spotless skin, dark blue in color and accented by faint traces of brightness where veins would be in a being with blood vessels instead of superconductors.

Vecora used both hands to caress the insides of Deeva's thighs while hungrily devouring the soft, smooth folds, stabbing her tongue deep into Deeva's love tunnel. Deeva's hands grabbed two fistfuls of pink mane, pressing Vecora's face to her crotch, her breath coming in quick, ragged gasps then a desperate moan.

"Don't stop, please!" Deeva whined, releasing Vecora's head. "I'm so close!"

"I know," Vecora purred, licking her lips. Today, Deeva's juices tasted like Aquarian sunfruit. "But it's not nice to cum alone. I want it. Now."

"Well, you certainly earned it today," Deeva said with a wicked grin. Her eyes went dark for a heartbeat then she pushed a certain spot on the inside of her right thigh. A subcutaneous pouch opened with a soft hiss and she reached inside, feeling Vecora's hungry stare on her fingers.

At that exact moment, an alarm klaxon went off and the PA system crackled to life.

"Attention all graduates! This is a general mobilization order. All students about to serve on the NTS Novitar, assemble at Gate 2 for immediate departure. All students about to serve on the NTS Celerus, assemble at Gate 3 for immediate departure. This is not a drill. I repeat..."

Both girls groaned.

"So much for victory celebrations," Deeva sighed. "Wanna help me get dressed again?"

* * * *

The Novitar was an older Class-3 battlecruiser, phased out of active duty sixty-three years ago. Like its sister ship, the Celerus, the academy staff used it to teach everything, from shipboard duty to damage control. As such, both ships were in top condition, the current white-and-blue color scheme pristine. Like a blocky, twelve-hundred feet long tuning fork, the forward hull was split into two sub-assemblies housing the heavy Mass Driver cannons which made up almost half the length of the ship. Despite their impressive performance, able to vaporize anything within fifty thousand range units, their dependence on ammunition contributed to their eventual replacement with the Class-5 battleships and their fully energy-based armament.

Beyond the point where the forward hulls joined, tiered decks slanted backwards, giving the long vessel a relatively sleek look. Midships and center, a beak-like nose jutted above and between the cannons, containing the main bridge and senior officer's quarters. The rear of the vessel housed the huge Ion drives, able to accelerate the massive ship to a respectable fraction of light speed before it had to engage the TransNet systems or the ancient FTL drive. Point defense turrets dotted the top and bottom of the ship, while a containment field shielded hangar bay loomed larger and larger as the shuttle approached.

Deeva disconnected herself from the camera system and switched back to her own optics. Watching the final approach was just the thing she needed to escape the crowded interior. The shuttle she was in was stuffed to bursting with nervous graduates. She, Vecora and Thexus were there, along with the designated tactical officer for Alpha shift, Zamos. The black-skinned desert dweller seemed to be the only one not bothered by the stuffing heat inside the cramped passenger space. Or he was simply much too distracted. Alpha shift's pilot, Gaia, writhed on his lap.

The Nor woman brushed strands of her short, green hair out of her face and shot Vecora a worried look. "I wonder what could have happened. The last general mobilization was about a century ago, when the Faceless attacked. Are they back?"

"Quiet please," Captain Orix barked. Even the distinguished Nor officer was sweating freely, his ocean-blue flat top glistening. "There will be a full briefing once we've cleared the port. Until then, keep it down."

Everywhere Deeva looked, she saw nervous faces. Especially the securities and marines crowded in with them fidgeted, their fingers closing around the grips of their plasma pistols and shock rods. Those who didn't looked like they had been tossed right out of bed. Or wherever they happened to celebrate their graduation.