A Viper's Nest: Border Station Five - Trader's Market
This is the chapter 9-10 Interlude.
Yutsi stretched her arms above her head and curled her toes. John mumbled something in his sleep as Yutsi looked down and watched as he buried his face between her breasts. For the last few hours, she had slept with John within his nest, and she was loving it. It had been a long time since Yutsi had last shared a nest with a male, and she also enjoyed the fact that John was a mammal. The heat from his body allowed Yutsi to sleep comfortably, and she didn’t feel as sluggish.
An alarm went off, and John stirred. Yutsi felt his arms tighten as he hugged her torso. She looked down and noticed that he had rubbed his face into her cleavage as he pulled himself up, and his shoulders went underneath her breasts. Yutsi reached down and pulled John up, mushing his head between her breasts as she caught his legs between hers and wrapping her tail around his feet.
“Did you sleep well?” Yutsi inquired as she relaxed her grip.
“Yes,” John replied while yawning. “I’m not sure I could ever go back to Terrans,” John said as he looked up at Yutsi.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Well, I’ve realised that I like bigger females,” John replied, “your height, legs, chest, everything,” he said, and Yutsi subjected John to a very long kiss.
When she felt that he was close to running out of air, Yutsi stopped the kiss and pulled her tongue out of his mouth with a pop. A long strand of saliva connected their mouths as John panted and Yutsi smiled. She kissed him on the lips and hugged him tightly. When he tried to struggle free, Yutsi relaxed and allowed John to get comfortable.
“What was that for?” he asked.
“I liked the compliment,” Yutsi replied, “I know you meant Vipers in general, but it is nice to receive them,” she said.
“So, what are we doing for the next few hours?” John asked.
“I was thinking we might visit the Kobold Traders,” Yutsi replied.
“Kobold Traders?” John said with a confused look on his face.
“They are a member of the Draco Confederation,” Yutsi replied, “I received a security report while you were asleep,” she said.
“Oh? What did it say?” John asked.
“Nothing overly special,” Yutsi replied, “just that a Kobold trading ship had requested permission to dock, and that they would be setting up a market stall in Hangar Bay Two,” she said.
“So we’re going to say hello?” John asked, and Yutsi nodded.
“If there is anything you would like to buy, just let me know and I will get it for you,” she said.
“Huh, so what do Kobolds look like?” John inquired.
“Scales, on average four to five feet tall, short tails, claws, cold-blooded just like us, female-dominated, oh, and they enjoy mating with other races’ males,” she said with a wink.
“Even races they have never met before?” John said with a laugh.
“I suspect they will trade for access to your bioscan not long after they meet you,” Yutsi replied, “then they will notice that just like Vipers and Lupine, Terran males are sexually compatible,” she said.
“So I’ll have short horny aliens chasing after me as well?” John asked, and Yutsi laughed.
“Only if you let them,” she said with a smile.
“Hmm, well, I think it’ll be a good distraction,” John said, “either way, I’m going to have a shower before we head out,” he said while climbing out of the nest.
“I think I will join you,” Yutsi said as she watched John walk toward the bathroom.
*****
John walked behind Yutsi as she led him out of the VIP section and toward the station’s main Combat Arena. He noticed the light reflecting off Yutsi’s recently buffed scales, the glow of her bioluminescence and the spring in her step. Arriving at the Combat Arena, the nearby Vipers noticed the two of them, and John saw a few jealous looks.
“Why are we here?” John asked as he watched a group of vibrantly coloured Vipers walk past.
“I wanted to see what was on before heading to the hangar,” Yutsi replied. “Also, John,” she said, making eye contact with him, “stop looking at the other females,” Yutsi warned, as she placed her hands on her wide hips.
“Sorry,” John apologised sheepishly, “how about we fuck for a few hours afterwards?” he suggested and Yutsi laughed.
“Ha, how brazen of you,” replied Yutsi with a wink and a mischievous smile. “You have a deal, behave yourself when we are at the market, and I will show you some of my special moves,” she said. A few of the nearby Vipers overheard, and at least one of them winked at John.
“So,” he said while clearing his throat, “which way to the hangar?” John asked.
“This way,” Yutsi said as she turned to her right and headed for a nearby corridor.
Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at Hangar Bay Two. Entering through a pair of armoured doors, John looked around and noticed that the hangar was similar in size to the one he had entered when first arriving on the station. There was a familiar glow to his right where the hangar’s shield was located, and in the middle sat a spaceship. John guessed it belonged to the Kobold Traders.
The vessel was almost as long as the hangar and about half its width. The front of the ship resembled a large M, with the bridge at the front forming the V. Two sort of arms were positioned on either side and ran down most of the length of the spaceship. Each arm had a landing strut, and on the underside of the main hull were four sturdy feet. At the end of the two arms were a pair of medium-sized engines, similar in design to the four at the rear of the vessel. The Kobold’s spaceship had a dirty tan colour with streaks of oil, grime, and re-entry burns. Most of which were at the front of the ship.
“That ship is bigger than I thought it would be,” John said as Yutsi headed for the nearby ramp.
“Were you expecting something small?” she asked.
“I suppose I shouldn’t presume anything,” John replied.
“Shall we go see what they are selling?” Yutsi asked, and John nodded. She led him down the ramp to the floor of the Hangar and over to where the Kobold Traders had set up their wares.
Looking around, John noted that if you removed the sci-fi aspects of everything he could see, it seemed very similar to an old-fashioned village market to him. There were stalls of various sizes with colourful markings and goods placed neatly into easy-to-access storage bays. John guessed that the colourful markings were letters belonging to the Kobold’s language. As he looked around the market, sidestepping past distracted Vipers, John noticed small figures darting about.
Standing at around four feet in height, the Kobolds wore toeless leather boots that covered most of the lower part of their digitigrade legs, and three claws protruded from the bottom. John noticed that they wore what looked like a mechanic's overalls, complete with fingerless gloves and a pair of goggles resting on top of their head. Each Kobold appeared to have red scales, and their emerald eyes matched the glow emanating from their mouths each time they spoke.
“Are those the Kobolds?” John asked as he watched one of them look up at a nearby Viper and talk to them. It spoke in high-pitched clicks and whistles.
“Yes,” replied Yutsi, “if my translator is working correctly, she inquired as to what the Viper was looking for,” she said.
“I’m starting to feel I should have one too,” John said.
“As I am sure you were told before,” Yutsi replied, looking at some fabric, “the implant is designed for Viper physiology.” She then picked something up, and one of the Kobold Traders appeared.
“Oh, I am just curious,” Yutsi replied as John watched the two aliens interact. “Thank you for the offer, but I am also showing a guest around, too,” she said and then gestured over to where John stood.
When the Kobold made eye contact with John, she smiled and then hurried over to him. Speaking in high-pitched clicks and whistles, the Kobold grew visibly frustrated when it became apparent to her that John didn’t understand.
“He does not have a translator,” Yutsi said, stepping forward. “You will have to speak with the Station Commander or one of the Matriarchs if you wish to purchase the Lexicon,” she pointed out.
The Kobold looked up at Yutsi, then John, and then hurried off. John watched as she headed for a taller Kobold. He guessed that she was relaying what had just happened. After around ten minutes had passed, while John was looking over the available wares, the taller Kobold approached him and Yutsi.
“Greetings, Terran Male,” the taller Kobold said, “my name is Gex, and I am the Clan Leader for this Merchant Caravan,” Gex said as she bowed. “We have purchased the Lexicon containing your language,” she stated.
“Hello, my name is John,” he replied with a smile. “This is Yutsi, by the way,” John said, gesturing to her.
“Yes, we were told by Matriarch Theka that you were accompanying this male,” Gex said.
“I thought it would be a nice distraction for him,” Yutsi replied, “I will be paying for anything John wishes to purchase,” she said.
“Are Terran males not good with currency?” asked Gex.
“I’m new here,” John replied, “a guest too,” he said.
“Terrans have not accessed the Vortex?” Gex inquired.
“No, they have not,” Yutsi replied before John could answer. “John’s presence in our space was not planned,” she said.
“Then he is not a member of The Matriarchy?” Gex asked. John noticed the other Kobolds looked in his direction as Gex spoke. They seemed to be waiting for Yutsi’s reply.
“No, he is not,” Yutsi replied.
As soon as the word ‘No’ was translated, the Kobolds hurried over to where John was standing. Each Kobold asked him a series of questions, poked and prodded his Nanosuit, and at least one of them tried to pull John toward their spaceship. John tried his best to answer as many questions as he could, resisted the pull of the Kobold trying to take him into their ship, and yelped on several occasions when a curious poke and prod got too close to a sensitive area. He looked at Yutsi for help, but she was too busy laughing.
“Enough!” Gex yelled, and the other Kobolds stopped. “I do apologise,” she said, looking up at John.
“That’s okay,” he replied, “since I first woke up, I’ve gotten used to the attention,” John said. He watched as the other Kobolds returned to selling their wares and noticed a few of the nearby Vipers were watching.
“If there is anything you would like to purchase from us,” Gex said, “let me know, and I am sure we can come to a price your Viper companion will agree to,” she then turned around and headed for the open door to their spaceship.
“Having fun?” John asked as Yutsi walked over to where he was standing.
“Yes,” she replied, “I knew something would happen, but not that,” Yutsi said. “How was the prodding?” she asked.
“It was fine until it got painful,” John replied, “at least one of them got a hand around my bits,” he said.
“Bits?” Yutsi replied with a tilt of her head.
“I’m going to have to give you a list of slang, aren’t I?” John asked. “Anyway,” he said before Yutsi could reply, “let’s see if there’s anything I might want,” he then wandered over to a nearby stand.