Free Negative by Viola Grace Page B

danger, Aster had to come through quickly. Proximity was important.
    It was a strange sort of situation, a deadly sleepover. When the guards finished rifling through her robes and took up posts outside the doors, Abrieth smiled wistfully. “I suppose we need to get the other thing over.”
    Aster got her med kit and opened it, setting the unit to extract through the lady’s skin.
    A quick shot from Abrieth’s inner arm was all it took. The blood rinsed in the unit and when it was ready, Aster injected it into herself.
    “How long will that last?”
    “Five days. I will warn you when it wears off.”
    It had been a matter of trial and error on the Luna Base. Finally, they found that if she carried someone else’s genetics inside her, she would defend them as she did her own body.
    Lady Abrieth was now part of her for the next five days.
    Aster sighed and sat back, taking in the ramifications of the situation she was in. Oh, goody.
     

Chapter Two
     
     
    The first attempt came on the way to a negotiation for supplies to fuel nineteen colonies for six months.
    Aster was walking next to the lady when she felt shadows move around her. The shadows were the hostile intent aimed at Lady Abrieth, and Aster quickly pinpointed the source.
    A male was walking toward them, and instead of moving to avoid their rather bulky gathering, he aimed directly for their center. Lady Abrieth.
    Aster waited until he was only a few paces away, and she cut him off, blocking his attack and giving the guards time to get their lady to safety.
    He looked at his disappearing prey, and he snarled, striking at Aster over and over until she forced him to his knees and handed him over to local peacekeepers.
    Her veils gave him a soft aspect, but he was a chalky grey with the look of a man who killed for a living. Aster left him with the law, and she followed her group into the offices where the negotiations would be carried out.
    After she passed through security, she rejoined her group and resumed her place at the lady’s side. Lady Abrieth winked at her with one violet eye, and there was a glow to her lavender skin. “I think you may have been the best investment that the Imperium has engaged in.”
    “All they did was pay for me to be here.”
    “And your training, Aster. They footed the bill for that and all the medical scans and experiments that were performed on you. How did you know he was going to attack?”
    “He was coming toward us, looking right at us. Everyone else here looks and then looks aside. It was an unusual behaviour.”
    “Are you injured?”
    “No, but thank you for asking.”
    They continued into the area of boardrooms and offices. Aster kept to her lady’s side until they were shown into the room where Lady Abrieth was going to do her magic with the negotiations.
    Aster remained behind Abrieth’s chair until the recess was called, and she escorted her to the lav.
    While Lady Abrieth was primping at the mirror, Aster asked her, “Why do you wear such skimpy clothing? Wouldn’t you be treated with more respect if you dressed more conservatively?”
    “Probably, but I would not get the amazing deals that I am currently gaining during the negotiations. Have you noticed that the men stare? Have you noticed that I have gotten eight months’ rations for the price of four? Offering the view of my body is a distraction tactic, just as your concealment is. I know what you look like under those drapes, and all that they do is provide you with a psychological advantage.”
    Aster shrugged. “It is true. I had to take more training to move in the robes than I did for anything else.”
    The lady smiled at her in the mirror. “So, we both dress for the job we have, not the job we want.”
    “May I ask one question before we return to the hall?”
    “Sure.” Abrieth grinned at her in the mirror.
    “Why did you sleep with the Presku?”
    Abrieth’s face softened and her smile was filled with sweet memories. “Because I