Planet Athion: The Complete Series by Angel Lawson
6
Mercy
Dr. Kane would behappy to know that on our walk back to the dormitory that night, Kai is quiet. There seems to be a slow boil under the surface, one that I find both curious and scary, so I don’t ask. It’s none of my business but there’s a nagging worry about his mention of the breach the day before. Surely, if it’s something that is a widespread concern, we would be notified.
I’m about to walk into my building when he calls my name, “Ms. Ladd.”
“Yes?”
“Promise me you’ll stay in the building at night—please don’t wander around.”
I frown. “Is there something wrong?”
“Just adhere to the curfew.”
“I will.”
Later that night I’m sitting with my roommate, a woman from South Dakota who is also about a month away from processing into society. She has lovely long, silky, dark hair and dark eyes. She’s a school teacher who plans on teaching in the Athion educational system. Her mother is full-blooded Native American and she wanted to be one of the first to colonize another planet.
“Rose,” I ask her, while stretched out on my bed, “have you heard anything about the Athions being different for one reason or the other?”
She puts down her book. “Like how?”
“Dr. Kane just mentioned the men from the Southern Tip as being different.”
A small smile twisted on her lips. “I did hear a rumor.”
“What kind of rumor?” My curiosity is piqued.
“That those men have two, you know.” She points between her legs. I almost sigh. Rose is young and even though she’s finished college, the difference in our ages is obvious sometimes.
“Penises?” It comes out with exasperation before realizing exactly what I’ve just said. “Wait. They have two penises? You’re…oh my god.”
Dimka has—or may have—two penises. I didn’t even understand how that would work.
She shrugs. “That’s what a girl in Athion history class told me. I think she’s been seeing one of the instructors on the side.”
Seeing one of the instructors? It’s not exactly a surprise, we do have a few pregnant women in the facility.
Since Rose seems to be privy to gossip, I decide to ask her one other thing. “Have you heard about a breach in the border of the transition center? Something about a woman getting taken?”
She nods. “I did hear something. A few of my instructors were talking about it. A girl over in the agricultural school hasn’t been seen since yesterday. We’ve been walking to and from class in a group with a Custo.”
“What do you think about them? The Custo?”
“I don’t, really. I mean, they’re okay. Professional. I’ve never really spoken to any.”
I find this interesting. Maybe Dr. Kane was right. Maybe I am distracting my officers with personal conversation. “Are there any theories about the girl and where she went?”
She leans against her pillow. “I heard two rumors. One was that she ran off with a friend—tired of being in quarantine.”
“And the other?”
“That a Trad took her.”
A Tradrych.
I shiver at the word. These were the beings that invaded Earth, kidnapping women and impregnating them. They too have a limit in female companionship and a lack of fertility. Their population is declining—like the Athion, but unlike the Athion, they take what they want and are deceitful about it. They can easily morph into human men, cloaking their own features. It’s also imperative for the Trads to impregnate women on Earth before kidnapping them back to their own planet. It’s the only way. Their atmosphere is not compatible for human procreation.
When the Trads first invaded Earth, it was confusing. The aliens look like men—handsome, attractive, and appealing men. They seduced women, coerced or forced them into sex with the sheer goal of procreation. I’d personally lived in fear until the government made a deal with Athion, offering women safety and protection. My skills as a midwife made me an attractive prospect and my application was fast-tracked. I’d never felt as safe as I did once I arrived on Athion. After living in fear for so long—the concern about being manipulated or tricked made me a little neurotic. Here that wasn’t an issue. Or it hadn’t been. The idea of there being a Trad in our midst?
“Do you think it’s true?” I ask, trying to keep my fear in check.
“I really don’t know. It’s possible, I guess; they’re tricky bastards.” Rose touches the button next to the bed, dousing the room of light. We both had to get up early and quickly she fell asleep. I didn’t go so easily, laying in my bed for hours, feeling my heartrate quicken every time I thought of a Trad in our midst.