Baffle Read Free

woman, they were looking for Lady Seekua, but all that came out was a low moan.
    She saw the sleek shuttle a moment before darkness claimed her and couldn’t help but think, Their ship is bigger than mine. I wonder if they are compensating for something.

Chapter Three
    The taste in her mouth was not minty fresh. Sinder rolled out of the comfortable bed she was in and stumbled to the open door on the far side of the room.
    She scrubbed her teeth, gargled and used the facilities before tidying her dark locks and returning to the bedroom. There was nothing in the room aside from the comfortable bed.
    Sinder was still wearing the gown that had been on her for two days now, her shoes where tucked near the head of the bed. Idly, she sat on the edge of the bed and slipped the shoes on.
    In addition to the lav, there was one other door, and the mechanism moved slowly as she gently eased it open. Another bedroom lay on the other side of her door and beyond it, another door.
    She crossed the room as quietly as she could, unsure of whether or not there was an occupant in the deeply shadowed bed. The other door was tempting, and she crept up on it as silently as she could manage with her skirt rustling.
    Voices spoke softly on the other side of the door, so she eased it open. The group of men wearing cowls were standing and having a soft conversation. One of the men was seated behind a desk and the others were ranged and speaking urgently to him.
    “She is the one, my lord. I am sure of it.” One man bowed low.
    Another whispered, “Exactly as she was described, my lord.”
    The male leaned back in his chair and the shadows in his hood showed gleaming red eyes in the darkness. “Why don’t we just ask her if she is the one? She is standing behind you, Alif.”
    The inhabitants of the room pivoted together. “Lady, we did not expect you to wake.”
    She sighed and stepped forward. “I am not Lady Seekua.”
    They turned to each other and shrugged, the man named Alif chuckled. “We did not think you were, Lady. You were the one that we were sent for. Our lord was very precise, and you have all of the requirements for the lady he requested.”
    Sinder raised a brow. “Your lord requested a woman?”
    The man in the chair waved off the men grouped around him. “Wait outside.”
    The group of six men filed out, leaving her alone with the figure behind the desk. “Lady, I regret the method of your arrival here, but it was a necessary evil. Please, have a seat.”
    Sinder slipped into the chair in front of the desk, settling the gown around her. “May I have some tea or water?”
    He leaned forward, “Of course.” He ran his fingers over a portion of his desk and nodded. “It will be here shortly. Now, would you like to know why you are here?”
    She fought a giggle and breathed deeply. “Yes, please.”
    He lifted the edges of his hood and slowly pushed the fabric off his head.
    Sinder blinked in surprise as she faced a creature with whispers of similarity to the Nalu, but only hints. Elegant horns swept back from above his temples, arcing around and down to end at the midpoint of his neck. Pointed ears were just below those horns, and a second set of horns emerged to sweep back along the skull, ending at the base of his neck. His nose was slightly flattened, his eyes deep red with square pupils and framed by sooty lashes.
    His skin was a soft, smooth midnight blue, his lips a darker black and his hair a peculiar royal blue woven with black strands. He had massive shoulders and wore silver jewellery on his wrists and biceps as well as several piercings in his pointed ears.
    “What are you?” She cocked her head.
    He smiled, “One of the last of the High Nalu, as are my court.”
    “High Nalu?”
    “My race divided into the High and Low Nalu. The Low Nalu are thriving because they will breed with anything. Unfortunately, we are slightly more selective, and as such, have retired to our own world to separate away from their