The Rembrandt Legacy

"No, it's fine. Just let Cosina clean up her Type-4 and then we'll talk." He pulled a suit from the backrest of a chair and slid into it. "A drink?"

"Yeah, why not. What's good?"

He busied himself at his synthesis engine. Cosina left the bathroom, a worried look on her face. "Is Lily alright?"

"Probably. Most certainly," I grumbled between gnashed teeth. Cosina wrinkled her forehead, then her circuits gleamed. "Oh. Did the two of you argue?"

"Let me talk to the do-... Praecor first, okay?"

"Sure. But please. Don't fight."

She joined me at the cabin door. "Lily is not a bad person," she said.

I deigned not to answer. The door hissed shut behind her naked back.

"Sit. Make yourself at home," Praecor said, handing me a tiny glass with a clear liquid in it.

I took it and sat down on his desk chair.

"What is this?" I asked, sniffing suspiciously. A pungent smell assaulted my nose. Sharp, acidic, with a hint of rot underneath. Not really appetizing.

"Sconoch," he said. "A Zuthrian delicacy. Said to cure all woes."

"Let's hope it works." I tossed the drink back. A miniature star erupted in my stomach, leaving behind a numb throat and esophagus. Waves of heat poured over me.

I gasped air into my lungs, trying to complain. But then, an eerie calm washed over me. I relaxed.

"Dare I ask what this is made from?"

"Among other things, fermented scorpion venom." Praecor reached past me and tapped a sequence into his desk terminal. "Privacy mode engaged." He sat down on the end of the bed, watching me. "So. What's got you so agitated?"

"Lily."

"Oh my. What happened?"

I told him. Not every detail. But the messy result and my suspicion. Praecor listened, sometimes nodding emphatically.

"Well, that sums it up. I believe I've been fucked with. Both literally and figuratively. Or am I going completely crazy here?"

"No, you aren't," Praecor said, brushing some of his hair out of his face. "Lily is capable of altering a person's disposition, even making them do things they normally would not even think about."

"How? If she's a Mentalist, she needs to concentrate. Can you concentrate enough while having sex?"

Praecor chuckled. "There are some psionic disciplines involving sex and the linking of minds during intercourse, but under normal circumstances, the unpredictable nature of sex breaks concentration. No. Lily's 'gift' is much more insidious. And usually, she's kind enough to keep it in check around us." He paused, pondering something, then shrugged. "Normally, she should be the one to tell you, but since you are rightfully worried she might turn your head again, I'll do it."

"Thank you."

"Lily had been part of the Nor Intelligence Service from a very young age. She had been groomed to be a honey pot for Aquarian criminals, a job she reportedly had been amazingly good at."

"What does this have to do with her mindfucking me?"

"The NIS is... infamous for their unorthodox methods. Lily, to make her irresistible, had been genetically enhanced with a particular kind of pheromone gland. The pheromones have no smell of their own, they work both in water and in air, and they are potent. She can sway someone by just talking to them, the minuscule amounts of pheromones carried on her breath are often enough to do the trick. If she had been in that mood, all her glands, under her arms, between her thighs and in her mouth had to be firing hard. And she made you take a full load when you inhaled after that kiss. A trick she learned from me, I'm afraid."

"How come Padari wasn't affected? She seemed pretty normal, as far as I can tell."

"Like I said earlier. She knows how to keep her mind blanked. I didn't see any filters on her cybernetics readout."

"Now what? I have no desire to be played with, doc. This time, I only had to swallow an unwanted cum shot. Don't get me wrong. It's not the cum shot which has me so mad. I would probably have ended up with Padari sooner or later. My curiosity and all that. It's the fact she made me do it without even asking. Who can assure me the next time this happens I'm not taking a bullet for her? Or worse?"

"Lily-"

"Yeah, everyone reminds me that she's not a bad person. But having me suck off a Zuthrian without my consent isn't anything a decent person would do either!"

"For a criminal, you have an interesting definition of wrong or right," Praecor observed mildly.

"It's not like I wanted to become a ship thief," I grumbled. "When I got a loose handle on my Legacy, I applied for work with various tech companies. Allied Spaceways, Federated-SpaceX, Apple and others. But when push came to shove, my Legacy wouldn't cooperate. Either I'd do the opposite of what I had planned, or the HR people would become impatient and kick me out before it manifested. Or they'd call me a fraud, despite overwhelming evidence to the opposite. Only the criminals were desperate enough to give me a break."

"Okay, here's what we'll do," Praecor said after a thoughtful pause. "You and I will go visit Lily. I'll manifest a Thought Shield around you, to ensure you'll keep your wits about you. And then you and Lily will settle your differences like adults. She isn't unreasonable and neither are you. Communication is the key to victory."

"If this goes the wrong way, I'll hijack an escape pod," I threatened.

"It won't."

* * * *

Lily wasn't in the lounge, so Praecor showed me her cabin. Or at least the entrance to it. Lily's personal sanctuary was, in essence, a spaceworthy water tank, which could also double as her own escape pod. It was mounted near the 'keel' of the Lumia, so it could simply drop free if the ship ever was in jeopardy.

"Rebreather masks are in the locker to the left," Praecor explained.

"And bathing trunks?"

He chuckled. "Those who enter her domain usually don't care about their modesty."

"Aren't you coming?"

"The Thought Shield will persist for an hour. More than enough time to settle things with her. Incidentially, that's also the size of the air tank. Hold still for a moment."

Praecor touched my forehead with his extended index finger and closed his eyes. The gem on his forehead began to glow, barely noticable at first, but gaining brightness with every moment. A low, deep thrum seemed to emanate from his fingertip which rattled my skull. He withdrew his finger.

I blinked. "And?"

"That's it," he said. "Your mind is your own for the next hour, guaranteed."

I raised my comm and looked at the reflection in the smooth screen surface. No glowy special effects. "How do I know it will work?"

"I think I can help with that," Padari's smoky voice said. The Marked Zuthrian joined us, wearing shorts and a long, loose shirt. She smiled at me. "Rem, when you're done, come talk to me. Please. I think we got off on the wrong foot earlier."

"Now I'm curious," Praecor said. "What can you do?"

Instead of answering, Padari lifted her shirt and pulled something from a makeshift belt she had wrapped around her curvy hips. It was the scepter the Grey had used in the club to turn everyone into murderous lunatics. Praecor whistled between his teeth.

"A Desire-Ray. Where did you find that?"

"A certain religious zealot dropped it in a bar fight. I happened to find it before the cops did."

"You don't plan to turn me into a raging lunatic, do you?" I asked, taking a careful step back.

"No." She pointed the scepter at Praecor. The light at the end flared up. Eyes wide in surprise, the Nor Mentalist did a graceful handstand. "These things can do more than just turn you violent. See?"

Praecor wrinkled his forehead and the light faded. He returned to his feet. "Nasty."

"Only the Grey can build an item which allows even people without psionics such power," Padari said. "Only in their hands, it works in an area. I have to pick and choose my targets." She levelled the scepter at me. "Dance, Rem." The tip flared up.

Nothing happened. I didn't feel the urge to boogie, or do the merengue or even tap my foot.

"Okay. Your thought shield seems to work."

"Better than my own mental defenses," Praecor grumbled. "You and I, dear Padari, need to talk."

"That's mine," Padari said, shaking the scepter. "But you may lend it on occasion. For the right price."

I entered the airlock and stripped down, placing my clothes in one of the watertight cubicles around it. I saw several of Lily's wet suits in them, along with a blistering array of weapons and gadgets. My fingertips itched as my eyes took in all of the unfamiliar items, but I had more important things to do than snoop around in Lily's drawers. I claimed a breathing mask and put it on. The clear plastic bubble covered my whole face and the tank hung from straps I could tie to my arm.

Gritting my teeth, I slapped the 'cycle' button. Warm water poured into the airlock at an alarming pace, going to my waist in mere moments. The worst came when the water rushed over my head, but I fought down the claustrophobia. I hit the glowing button which opened the inner door and dove into Lily's inner sanctum. The water had the same, pleasant temperature as the water in the airlock. Maybe that's how the oceans were on Aquarius?

At first I thought I had entered a shallow body of water. It was rather bright, a calming azure radiance like open sky above my head. And it was quite spacious, at least a hundred feet long and almost as wide, with room above and below. The room was shaped like a flattened cylinder, with planters housing large, colorful underwater plants and corals on the bottom and the sides compartmentalizing it. Too late I remembered that I should have asked if she kept any pets. The last thing I needed were carnivorous fish.

I pushed myself off the small ledge by the door and paddled forwards and upwards. Swimming was much like zero-G movement, only with more buoyancy. My head crested the waves. The upper fourth of the tank had air and some semi-dry spaces, shaped to keep the water out. A large swath of ceiling glowed in that azure light.

Lily's head bobbed up next to me. I had been so captivated by her 'cabin', I didn't notice her approaching.

"You could have called," she said softly. "I would have met you in the lobby."

"Too late for that," I said, realizing too late that the rebreather didn't have any communication systems.

"Just follow me," she said, paddling towards one of the spots of dry land. She pulled herself out of the water, offering me a spectacular view of her backside. Despite all my misgivings, I found it hard not to notice. I blushed furiously as I joined her, my semi-hard cock all too obvious. The air above the water was even warmer than the water itself, gently caressing my skin. Lily strode past a pair of comfy-looking, water-resistant couches and tossed me a towel. I caught it and wrapped it around myself before shutting off the air tank and pulling off the mask.

Lily sat down on one of the couches, indicating the one opposite for me. I took the seat.

"What's so important you couldn't call me?" she asked, fixing me with a serious stare.

"Do I really have to tell you?"

"I'm no telepath, Rem."

"You do like to fuck with other's minds though." I tried to be calm, but the memory, not that old to begin with, flared up. I balled my fists. "I know about your pheromones. And you used them to make me have sex with you and Padari."

She broke eye contact, looked down. Lily brushed hair back, much like someone caught with a hand in the cookie jar.

"Yes."

"Why?"

She inhaled, fixing me with a hard stare. Then something seemed to dawn on her. She shook her head. "I wanted it. After the battle, I needed it. To calm down."

"What? The sex? Or the feeling of power?"

She was quiet for a long time, chewing on her lower lip. I was actually a little surprised. I had thought she'd toss me out for confronting her like that.

"Both, I guess. When that Gravon choked me, I felt so... powerless. Nothing I tried worked. And... well, I was horny and I hate to let things end half-finished."

"You know, where I come from, what you did would be called 'rape'."

"Huh? Don't you want to fuck me? Or Padari?"

My turn to blush. "Yes. To both. I wouldn't mind sharing my bed with any of the crew, maybe except Praecor and Crush. I have my limits. But it has to happen on my own terms. I've never had sex with a Marked One before. I wasn't ready for her cum in my mouth. You used me, Lily. Is that the way you deal with your crew?"

"Of course not! You're my family. The only people I can trust."

"Then I'm the red-headed step child." I gnashed my teeth, took a deep breath and tried to calm down. "I'm thinking of quitting this ship, just so you know."

She shook her head, emphatically. "No Rem. I fucked up. I'm sorry. When I picked you up and offered you a spot on my crew, I meant it." She switched seats and took my hands. "Please stay. I wasn't lying when I said 'I need you'."

"Me? Or someone with my skills?" I withdrew my hands.

"Honestly? When Cosina found your file, you were a shiny trophy. A must-have. But having you around has changed that. You fit in with the misfits. We work well together. I'd hate to see you go." A quick pause, then she added: "And you felt awfully nice inside me."

Now it was me looking away. Her hand on my arm yanked my attention back to her. "Listen, Rem. I made a mistake. Shit happens. But if you can't trust me, here's an idea. Ask Praecor for a filter implant. It will add cells in your nose and mouth able to counteract airborne pathogens, including my pheromones. Good enough for you?"

I closed my eyes and slid away from her. What were my options anyway? Going back to Sol was out of the question. I dimly remembered the words "Terran jurisdiction" from during my first conversation with Lily. If I'd go back to Sol, they'll haul my ass back to Titan. And five years on that icy rock were more than enough.

Trying to start fresh on one of the Waystations? I still had close to a hundred grand to my name, but who knew how quickly that could vaporize, with Cosina knowing my file inside and out? And I had to admit -- I did like being aboard the Lumia, not only for the female company, but for the feeling of being treated as an equal for once. Here, I wasn't "the freak" or "the mutant" or "the criminal", here I was just Rem.

I would be a fucking hypocrite if I didn't allow Lily a second chance, much as she gave me one by taking me aboard.

Lily studied me, tried to read my emotions. There was a look of genuine apprehension on her face. In the end, the decision, my decision was surprisingly easy.

"Sounds reasonable. I think I'll do that."

Lily hugged herself against me and rested her head against my shoulder. "I'm really sorry, Rem. And I'm so happy you'll stay." She breathed a kiss on my nose, her eyes sparkling mischievously. "And the next time we're having sex, it will be you asking me."

* * * *

Receiving the implant was much less of an adventure than I had initially dreaded. I had expected a visit to the multi-armed and scary-looking operating table, with anesthesia, deep cuts and the like. Instead, Praecor simply injected a dose of nanomachines into the roof of my mouth which would, over a few days' time, alter the cells in my nose and throat to filter out hostile pathogens. After that, my fatigue, held at bay only by my quickly vanishing adrenaline, crashed over me full force and I collapsed onto my bed.

Hours later, I was roused by the gentle humming of the door bell to my cabin. That was actually a nice surprise. Instead of guards yelling my name, someone had the courtesy to actually ring. Wearing only a pair of briefs, I slouched to the door and opened it.

"Hey, sleepyhead," Padari purred. She had a tray with her. The mouth-watering smell of ham and eggs and toast and coffee wafted my way. On cue, my stomach rumbled. She had her long hair braided and no make-up on. Nevertheless, she looked stunning. Her eyes gleamed and a warm smile played around her lips. She wore another one of her colorful long shirts, going almost to her knees, and low sneakers.

"You shouldn't have," I said, waving her in. "I know how to use a synthesis engine."

She chuckled and placed the tray on my desk. "You're an awfully difficult man to catch, considering we're stuck on the same ship. I thought bearing gifts and a smile would make this easier. Dig in."

"You don't have to apologize. It was basically Lily's fault." I claimed the bowl of ham 'n' eggs and a spoon. Sitting down on the foot of my bed, I ate. That was no synth food. Much too spicy for that. I made an appreciative sound.

"No, not entirely. I should have seen that you were not quite yourself and maybe not fucked your mouth like I did." She smiled ruefully. "My cock got the better of me."

"No kidding." Her honesty was disarming and I found myself smiling at her instead of blushing or looking away. "Don't get me wrong. I've entertained the thought of maybe getting to know you better."

"Oh?"

"Well, in my former crew, there was a Marked pilot, Degeera. She and I were rather close. She wasn't shy about letting me know she wanted to, but I was too chicken to try anything, and when I had finally drummed up my courage, we settled on 'after the job'."

"The one which landed you in jail?"

"Yes. When we were on that battleship, Deg was my cover while I tried to get past the locked bridge systems. The alarms went off and the Navy guys stormed the bridge. I didn't even see her die, only her perforated corpse when they slapped me out of my trance. She must have tried to fight back."

Padari finished the toast, a thoughtful expression on her face. I poured a cup of coffee and took a sip, watching her.

"I've talked to Lily about the job you... we're on," Padari said. "Stealing a Faceless ship and all that. Must feel like coming full circle for you."

"Now that you mention it, it does. So much happened in the last few days, I didn't have much time to actually sit down and think through it all."

"But this time, many of the variables have changed." She placed her hand on my knee. "You won't need to worry about me."

"Well, yeah. I've seen you fight."

"It's not only knowing when to fight, but when to not fight, that's important," Padari said, smiling cryptically.

"You sound like a warrior-monk right now. Who... what are you, exactly?"

"I am a dancer. Also a fighter. My brothers and sisters live in secret, hidden deep inside the deserts of Zuthras, maintaining the ancient arts of mastering the song, the fist and the pillow. More I am not allowed to say, even though I am no longer welcome among them."

"Why? If I may ask, that is."

Instead of answering, Padari stood up and pulled off her shirt. Underneath, she wore the tiniest g-string, barely able to contain her phallus. Even flaccid, it was a sight to behold.

"You might want to look here, handsome," Padari said, placing two fingers under my chin and raising it so I could look up her stomach. A fine, jagged scar ran under her breasts, slanting downwards. I hadn't noticed it the past few times, but now, in the warm light of my cabin and my nose less than a hand away from her night-black skin, it was there.

"The scar?"

"Yes. One of my marks fought back and caught me with her vibro-blade. I managed to kill her, but the rules of my order are strict and allow for no leeway. If you show scars, you are no longer welcome."

"Isn't that a bit unreasonable? I mean... working as an assassin does tend to involve getting hit, doesn't it?"

Padari sat down again and grinned. "According to Master Zalx, no. Besides, scars are telling. Even if you alter your hair, your face and your eyes, the scars remain, making you recognizable."

"You could have them removed. Plastic surgery and-"