POV: Lyra
Orion broke our neural connection and looked teasingly into my eyes as he noted in a husky voice, "Your pathways are pulsing, my love."
My skin shifted to deep purple—the Kaelari equivalent of blushing—and I bit my lower lip before retorting meekly, "Can you blame me, my Emperor?"
"Hmm. Wouldn't be fair if I did that, my Empress. My neural pathways were already blazing long before yours started pulsing."
"Yeah, I know." I teased him back. "At least I was decent enough to not mention it. You probably instigated your own arousal with your tendency to conjure up inappropriate thoughts, darling."
"Oh, so I'm the indecent void-beast [creature] now, my dear?"
"No," I pressed my lips to his before declaring softly, "You're MY indecent void-beast."
Optical fluid gathered in Orion's eyes—joy overwhelming his systems at my finally accepting him as mine. He pressed his lips to my forehead before promising, "Always and forever, my little freesia. Always and forever."
Orion withdrew his hand from under my bio-suit and adjusted it back to cover my thighs. He then held me against his chest and we enjoyed the silence and the freesia-scented atmosphere generators in each other's company. Orion still pressed kisses to my cranial strands from time to time because his Lyrokan consciousness kept demanding that his rational side shower me with affection, not that his rational part didn't enjoy doing it.
Across the field where we'd entered from, a figure in stealth armor could only rely on his bio-scanner to watch the Emperor and me under the synthetic tree without getting caught. The field was so vast that even enhanced Lyrokan vision wasn't enough to see what was happening at the far edge. He sat there for hours until he saw us activate our combat forms—my opalescent armor spreading across my skin while Orion's bioluminescent pathways intensified to their full power—followed by Orion carrying me across the field in large strides.
The spy was up on his feet, quickly retracing his steps, hastily spraying a signature-masking chemical to hide his psychic trace. Not his best work in covering his tracks but that would have to do. He didn't have time.
When he got out of the bio-reserve and reached his hover-vehicle, he engaged the accelerator and released a breath of relief until he realized he'd forgotten one detail of covering his tracks. He slapped his forehead in despair and only hoped that the signature-masking spray was enough to not raise any suspicions. A Kaelari wouldn't be able to detect it, he was sure of that. So he prayed that the Emperor would be too distracted by his match to pick up his uncovered tracks.
***
When Orion's enhanced form placed my armored form on the ground where we'd first entered the field, I was immediately on guard. I scanned the synthetic grass beneath my feet and found a psychic signature that didn't match with the rest of the bio-reserve's flora.
Star-heart [endearment], what is it? He noticed my stiffening as soon as he placed me down.
Do you sense that? A foreign signature?
Orion's pathways flared in alarm as he started scanning the air around him until I linked, No, Orion. There's nothing in the air. Try the ground. Whatever it was, it seemed to have been down here somewhere.
Both our consciousness probed close to the grass and we followed the trail until it led us behind one of the synthetic trees in the bio-reserve. It was just a pile of decomposing bio-matter, but the odd thing was that the signature seemed to have just disappeared at that pile.
My unwavering eyes studied the area around the leaves and I saw it. Orion's eyes locked on the same spot at about the same time. The footprints were as large as an average Lyrokan's, and it was clear that they'd tried to run on as little ground as possible, landing on the protruding roots and decomposed matter. But why didn't he cover his tracks on the soil if he didn't want to be found?
I then linked, It doesn't have a Rogue signature, and it couldn't be them either. Rogues wouldn't have left us untouched.
Orion's pathways were already black with anger. His enhanced hand reached for my armored form protectively as he linked, Whoever it was, they're going to be very sorry for doing this.
You have to admit, this person has been sloppy.
He wasn't in the mood to assess the situation. He needed me safe. Come now, Lyra. We should head back. Let me carry you. We'll get there faster.
He lifted me off the ground again before I could answer. I then muttered in mock annoyance, Show off.
His mood eased a little as he scoffed, Says the Kaelari who keeps reminding me that she'll soon take down the largest Lyrokan.
Orion wasn't kidding about getting back faster. He sped through the synthetic trees and skipped over the hydro-stream like it was second nature to him. He then dashed through the bio-reserve before emerging from the thick of it, with his dwelling coming into view. He placed me behind my concealment structure and handed me my clothes before disappearing behind the opposite structure himself.
When we deactivated our combat forms, returning to standard appearance, my sight instinctively looked back at the way we'd come from. I noticed that the footprints ended at the exact spot we'd just emerged from. We were followed.
But the tracks stopped around a nearby tree, probably where the intruder deactivated their enhancement. My eyes followed the standard prints on the short synthetic grass of the clearing between the bio-reserve and Orion's dwelling. It seemed to lead to the neighboring reserve, where I went for morning training every day.
As I continued to think, Orion's arm went protectively around my waist as he kissed my forehead. "I won't let anything happen to you, Lyra."
I was brought out from my thoughts, and met his worried and angered black orbs. With the intention to calm my match, I smiled and pulled myself up to kiss him before whispering, "I know, Orion. Thank you."
The purple shades were returning as he kissed my nose and whispered, "I love you."
He looked deep into my eyes, waiting for me to say that I know. I smiled wider and my skin shifted to deeper purple as I said, "I know, Orion. Thank you." Just when he was going to avert his gaze, thinking that I was done answering, I continued, "I love you, too."