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Chloe’s mental world was a genuine cosmos, an ode to astrological wonders. It was a vast, sprawling universe extending far beyond the common limitations of the mind. It seemed endless, as if there was no horizon. A plethora of planets filled the gaps, and thousands upon millions of small, twinkling stars decorated the jet black dimensions. Asteroids and comets sailed with long, blazing tails of burning ice, blasting across the forefront of the spaceship as Chloe guided them through the belt.
In the sleek control room, Lili was a tad overwhelmed by the array of buttons and panels. She hadn’t tried touching any of them, not wanting to risk a power failure or inadvertently launching a laser. They were neatly labeled, with certain levers activating the ship’s defenses or keypads to initiate a security lockdown in case of contamination. It almost seemed too much for an individual, and yet, the captain sitting with her legs crossed worked dual holograms without breaking a sweat.
“We’re ahead of schedule,” she noted, deep green eyes flicking over the map. The star system presented itself in topography that seemed incomprehensible to Lili, and Chloe read it with ease. “No present or incoming anomalies. Good.”
Lili rounded to her side, arms wrapping behind her back. The looping sensor pulsed across the map, reminding Lili of a sonar. The other hologram presented scrawlings appearing more like ciphers. Chloe scrolled them, tapped rapidly on her adjacent monitor, and fired off a response, the holograph dispersing at once.
Concentration set Chloe’s expression. She did not acknowledge Lili when she leaned against the padded arm rest. While she sniffed at the scent of Lili’s perfume wafting from her neck, Chloe focused on the map, then steered her attention to the spanning windowpane coated in a translucent, overly dense material Lili couldn’t easily name due to its alien origins.
Not one to be ignored, Lili cupped her cheek, rested her elbow by Chloe’s arm, and recalled, “So, you didn’t exactly mention why we’re in this part of the intergalactic neighborhood.”
“One moment,” Chloe flatly replied, gaze trained on the map. “We’re ahead of schedule. My contact in Fath 703 will have it sent over shortly.”
“And what exactly is ‘it?’”
Chloe’s fingers darted along a small console built into the opposite arm rest. At once, a similar, smaller chair rose from the floor. As the mechanical tiles parted, then closed around the thin, pneumatic piston, Lili was charmed by the tiny, plush pillows resting against the slim, leather backing. She pivoted into the seat, kicking up her legs on an ottoman that shot up from the floor.
“Pretty fancy, Chloe,” she remarked, her elbow again resting by Chloe.
“You’d be surprised by how much thought I put into every mechanism.”
“Trust me. I wouldn’t. You think ten steps ahead when you should slow your roll to five.”
A hint of a smile pushed into Chloe’s cheeks. She glanced at Lili, stealing a look that Lili snatched. With the close proximity of their seats, it was easy for Lili to lean closer, loosely wrapping her arm over Chloe’s shoulder. In the past, such a gesture would have been an invasion of Chloe’s personal bubble. The refutation would have been as blitzing at lightning, striking before anyone could have touched her.
Instead, she arched into Lili’s arm, still focusing on the map. Lili felt Chloe relax, losing the tension in her posture. Her swipes became long sweeps, though her stare was still fixed.
A dot suddenly illuminated, a deep azure glow among the soft green screen. Chloe straightened, nearly knocking Lili aside. Like the surrounding stars, her eyes shone.
“We’ve arrived at the drop-off point. Prepare to be amazed.”
When I’m around you, Lili thought, recovering, when aren’t I?
A podium enclosed in a translucent tube quivered on the far side of the room. Chloe sprung to her feet, hurrying over with Lili in tow. The laser above glowed, quivering slightly, and then, it fired, the electrical flurry like a plethora of sparks striking concrete. Chloe admitted the transfer system needed work; Lili commented that they could’ve used a pair of goggles, thinking of Raz.
As the light faded, and the laser retracted into the ceiling, the tube sank into the floor. Without dust to settle, Lili gasped, reaching instinctively. Chloe didn’t object, watching as Lili gripped the vase. Clear water shifted around the smog gray stems. As Lili’s gaze trailed, the full, open petals were as black as the vast universe, with frayed edges like the red hills of Mars, and smelled like warm, rich honey.
“My partner residing in Fath 703 prepared these,” Chloe stated, heels tapping. “Throughout his galaxy, zynothiums are commonly used for poisons with catastrophically explosive results. However, the venom is stored in the thorns. Once plucked, they’re beautiful like roses and you.”
Soft pink dusted Lili’s chest, warmth blossoming in her chest. She shared a smile with Chloe, peering at someone more marvelous than any moon. Words as smooth as silk invited her, coupling well with the zynothium’s dark charm. For Chloe to bring her to her mind, then revealing flowers she had never witnessed, her heart unfurled like the petals.
And as she examined the zynothiums, the comparison was not lost on her.
“Don’t tell me they reminded you of me,” Lili pondered, her smirk toothy.
Chloe nodded, affirming Lili without wasting a second. She drew a breath, Lili sensing the incoming explanation, and slipped her free hand around Chloe’s hand before she could start. Lili didn’t require any further information, the zynothiums enough to explain. She guided Chloe back to her captain’s chair, cradling the vase with one arm and massaging a circle into Chloe’s palm with her thumb.
“Next time,” she said, sharing in Chloe’s seat, “I’ll bring you a plant from our planet.”
Chloe beamed, nudging aside the lingering hologram. “Care to commune?”
“Don’t mind if I do,” Lili murmured, and breathing in the candied scent, she was reminded solely of Chloe.