Free Colliding Worlds Trilogy 01 - Collision by Berinn Rae

rice-sized microchip did she make a small slice and pushed it out. Immediately, she unwrapped her bandana and tied it over the bleeding wound.
    Sienna gave the wrapped wound a light pat. “I really am sorry about that, but you have to give me the bandana back when the bleeding stops. It’s my favorite.” Then she walked away, nudging between Lea and Legian on the way to the ship.
    “What happened?” Nalea asked as she handed Sienna a pair of drades, the goggles that allowed night vision.
    “Don’t ask. By the way, this is Jax. He’s coming, too. He needs drades,” she called out over her shoulder as she stepped into the ship. Sienna went straight for a cube-shaped compartment in the back and opened it. She pulled out a smooth blanket and wrapped it around her. Instant luxury enveloped her, and she ran her fingers over the silky black material.
    Sienna never understood why the Sephians were so in love with dark colors. Maybe it was because they were a nocturnal race. They had no sun near their planet and three moons, which meant they had amazing night vision but could see less than a one-eyed shrew during the day without corrective glasses. With oversensitive eyes, they kept everything insanely dim, even their computers. No wonder their skin sparkled.
    If it weren’t for the drades she wore to see in the ultra-dim lighting maintained at the base, she would have gone blind before she turned thirty-six living in their gloomy dungeon-like conditions.
    A solid thump and a grunt behind her interrupted her thoughts. She turned to see Jax wince as Legian “escorted” him into the ship.
    “Hey, Lea. Drades?”
    “He doesn’t need them,” Legian grumbled while he strapped into a seat across from her and close enough to keep a close eye on Jax.
    Sienna preserved her dignity by not responding.
    “Hold your hollies.” Nalea brushed past her on the way to the front of the ship. “I have an extra pair up here.”
    “It’s horses,” Sienna replied with a smirk to her best friend. Nalea had been a superstar at learning English, but for some unknown reason, clichés and jargon threw her off every time.
    Nalea rubbed her head. “Horses? Son of a bitch. I always mess that one up. Hold your damn horses, Sienna.”
    Sienna grinned and shook her head. And for some other unknown reason, Nalea picked up profanity and slang faster than a sailor finding a whore at port.
    After a minute or so of opening and closing compartments, Nalea handed back a pair.
    “Thanks.” Sienna grabbed them from the pilot and slid them onto Jax. It took a couple attempts to get them straight and around his ears. “There. Cool, aren’t they?” she asked before strapping him in.
    Jax said nothing, instead taking in the high-tech cabin. She had to admit the first few times she had been in a Sephian ship, she had also been inquisitive. Everything was so different from planes she’d flown. There were no keyboards of any kind. Every unused space was covered by smooth panels of dim screens. Sienna wouldn’t have been able to read them, let alone know they were computer screens versus just panels, without the drades. The ship was controlled by mental commands made through a band worn around the pilot’s neck. Legian swore the technology was simple, but when he tried to explain it to her, it sounded anything but.
    Sienna stepped back with a sigh, dropping the blanket. She threw Legian a glare. “Fastening his shoulder harness is a pain in the butt with his hands tied. It’s not like he’s going anywhere.”
    “Then don’t buckle him in.”
    She brushed Legian off with a wave of her hands. “With Lea’s flying? Don’t think so.” After several more seconds of fumbling, she finally got the belt hooked.
    Jax glanced down at his belt, as if he were brainstorming ways to get out of it, before his eyes turned back to the cockpit.
    “Pretty impressive, isn’t it? The first time I was in one of these I didn’t get the chance to browse around much. I