CALLEY (RIBUS 7 Book 3) (13 page)

“The marker is in already in you. Stose would have done it on a previous exam. It has a very long half-life. It would only need to be boosted approximately every twenty of your Earth years.”

Chelan nodded and then straightened slightly as he approached. He reached for her face and held her firmly as he looked into her eyes, then tenderly felt along her jaw and neck. “The scanners would normally do all of your exam, my Lady, but your physiology is a little different from ours. I am afraid I must become accustomed to you in more primitive ways. Some of the analysis produced by the scanner that I will use shortly will compare you to Iceanean standards. Therefore, some results may indicate abnormalities when in fact there are none.”

Chelan nodded again but quailed at his touch. She then diverted her attention to his hands. She did not know if she liked his gloves or not. The ebony material shielded her from his touch in a way, yet it made him just that much more inaccessible and cold. But his ungloved hands would make his touch even more intimate, and
that
she did not need. However, she did not have much time to analyze her feelings.

“Okay, I need you to lie down on your back. The scanner will pass over you and provide the computer your body readouts. Hopefully, Stose will have normalized as many of the parameters as possible to your own standards.”

Chelan felt as though she was about to faint, and lying down became almost a necessity. “If you have such sophisticated scanners, surely they can penetrate our uniforms.”

“They can with ease, and in the battlefield, removing a uniform only would waste valuable time. However, this scanner also has an optical eye that searches the surface of the skin for anomalies, physiological or foreign.”

Chelan’s nervousness lessened significantly, her fretfulness replaced by her genuine interest in the technology. “What images will it supply?”

Whelan smiled. “Oh, it is wondrous indeed! It penetrates and scans everything without radiation. Then it feeds all the information into the medical computers, which can separate out all the body systems for individual analysis. I can call up just the muscular system, the vascular, the nervous, the lymphatic—you name it. Then I can superimpose any number of systems as indicated by the exam, the injury, or the illness. The computers can also manipulate the images into any 3-D perspective I may require.”

“So, you don’t need to do individual scans for different areas of the body? This is a one-scan deal?”

“Exactly. And all the data on everyone is stored for comparative purposes. Another scan done on you ten years from now could be superimposed over this scan and results compared. Degenerative issues are picked up that way. And if we are ever in need of measurements for a surgical procedure—say, a joint decimated by ordnance—we can reconstruct the joint to the specifications of the individual from their previous scan.”

“Wow…” was all Chelan could say. Then a conversation she had had with Shan drifted into her thoughts. “A warrior I once knew told me that your people have two femoral arteries feeding each lower extremity. You will then be able to see that I only have one per side?”

“Oh, easily, and the computers will alert me to that anomaly, even though it is not one for your kind. This is where any standardizations done by Stose will be most valuable.”

Chelan’s head filled with questions. Then another thought sliced through her mind. Her wide eyes skated to Whelan’s. “Oh god. I bet there is virtually nothing the scanners will tell you concerning those comparisons between us.”

Whelan’s eyes narrowed. “Why do you say that?”

“All the exams Stose ever did on me were back during Ticees’ reign. Because of the Guild, Stose never recorded anything. He used his own computer and then destroyed the files. All information was given to Korba verbally. As a result, I never knew what parts of my anatomy matched the Iceaneans and what did not.”

Whelan frowned. “Well, then, I have my work cut out for me.”

Chelan felt panicked. “What happens if the scans do not compare well?”

“Then I have to rely on what my hands and eyes tell me, along with information supplied by you. We will sort it all out. And for anything truly nebulous, I will do additional tests.”

“More tests,” she whispered with dread. Chelan released her legs with a start and crumpled to the table. She turned her face from him and closed her eyes. “Just my luck,” she mumbled.

Whelan himself felt strangely queasy. Things had suddenly gone from bad to worse. And the worst was yet to come. Her sudden full exposure sent a bolt of electricity through him that struck him to the core. His first impulse was to reach out and touch her, his second to retreat from the room. He had always heard of the woman’s beauty, but he had never experienced it. He ran his hand through his long hair. Today was not going to be a good day.

Forcing himself back to the task at hand, he hit a button and a scanner began to descend from the ceiling. A roving optical eye and beam emitter equipped with numerous highly sensitive receptors then began to traverse the length of her body, its lowest point only centimeters from its subject. With the initial pass complete, it returned to its previous spot.

Whelan dared to look back down at her, feeling slightly more in control. But the sight of her heaving breasts caused his muscles to tighten. “To your left side, my Lady,” he ordered as benignly as possible. “Watch, as the table is narrow.”

She rolled away from him and then held very still.

Whelan hit the button again and the scanner repeated its motion. Whelan’s eyes followed over her shapely hips to her firm round buttocks, and once again he warmed. Suddenly he was struck with the salacious vision of the beautiful alien under him as he entered her. He shook his head. “Over to your stomach,” he ordered, almost harshly.

Chelan complied, relieved to be on her stomach, and she pressed her arms tightly to her sides.

Whelan took a moment and looked down at the floor. Finally he smiled to himself. This exam would certainly go down in his history books. Though he knew it was hard on her, only a few other select men would know how hard it was on
him
, and he shook his head again. “Okay,” he whispered. “Other side.”

Chelan turned toward him but did not open her eyes. Whelan waited for the scanner to complete its pass and then allowed it to return to its elevated home. With relief, the young warrior stepped over to the computer console and began searching through the data.

Chelan let out the breath she had been holding but then froze at the sound of his voice as he approached her. “Okay, my Lady, onto your back once again.”

Chelan groaned and fought the urge to cover herself, but she willed her hands to remain at her sides. Finally she looked up into his azure eyes. They were soft and warm, his gaze almost tranquilizing.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“I think so,” she whispered.

Whelan took her arm and raised it up by her head. He pressed into the underside of her arm and then allowed his fingers to traverse down to her underarm. There he pressed firmly. He looked into her eyes. “Tell me if I hurt you in any manner.”

Chelan nodded and continued to stare at him. Whelan repeated his motions with the other arm. Then his fingers moved to her abdomen. He pressed gently under her ribs and then moved slowly downward. He smiled. “You have to relax, my Lady. You are in superb condition. My knowing touch cannot tell me anything if I cannot get past the fortress your muscles present.”

Chelan finally smiled at his lighthearted request and she relaxed for the first time since setting foot in his domain.

Whelan nodded to her and then continued with his exam. Feeling all was well, he removed his hands from her body. He looked up into her now peaceful face, her eyes shut, and he hesitated. He spoke softly. “My Lady?”

Her eyes opened to him. “You must excuse me for but a moment,” he said. “You may sit up.”

Chelan almost jumped for glee, and she accepted his hand as he aided her up. “May I get dressed?” she asked hopefully.

“Uh, I would prefer that you wait a moment. I require some test results first.”

Chelan’s face registered mild disappointment, but she nodded her understanding.

Whelan smiled and then exited the examining room, entering his own private suite. He slumped into his chair and ran both hands through his thick hair. “Hell,” he mumbled to the air. Her alien shyness combined with her exotic beauty made a normally routine exam a trial beyond his imagination. And to make matters worse, he dreaded looking at the results of the scanner.

But he had no choice. His eyes narrowed as he watched the data on his own console. “Damn,” he muttered. He hit a switch and straightened himself.

“Bridge.”

“It is Whelan. I need to talk to Commander Fremma.”

“One moment, sir. I will locate him.”

“Fremma,” came the reply almost instantly.

“My Lord, it is Whelan.” He hesitated. “How thorough should our Lady’s exam be?”

There was a lull before Fremma’s response. “Why, is there something wrong?”

Whelan let his head fall into his hands. “Not exactly, my Lord,” he mumbled. “I just didn’t expect her exam to be quite so complicated.”

Fremma couldn’t help chuckling. “Just a moment. I will be right there.”

Whelan hit the switch off and swiveled back and forth in his chair. He glanced back at the scanner results and contemplated looking in on his charge, but quickly dismissed the thought.

Within moments, the Warlord stepped in through his doors. Fremma hesitated. “So, what is the problem?”

Whelan stood. “Nothing, my Lord.” He faltered. “And everything.”

Fremma remained silent, his piercing eyes urging the doctor on.

“It is just that the scanners are calibrated for our people. Stose was never allowed to enter anything pertaining to her into the mainframe.”

Fremma nodded but remained mute, the Warlord’s silence further unnerving the young man. “Her reproductive status, according to the computer, is… well… unclear. I should, I mean… but…”

Fremma smiled inwardly. “But what?”

Whelan cleared his throat. “Uh, the status of her uterus and her hormones indicate that she is receptive but… the data also indicates that her menses was over but a week ago. Therefore, to assess this anomaly, I must examine her…” He cleared his throat again, trying to read his Commander. “Uh, examine her… manually,” he added as his voice cracked. “Uh, ideally I should do a biopsy of her uterine lining, but even as it is, I am not so sure she will appreciate my intrusion, even the more benign sort.”

Fremma had never seen the young doctor so flustered, yet he had seen that response before. It seemed to be contagious among all men in the lady’s presence. “Do you worry about examining other women?”

Whelan flinched. “No, my Lord, but I do not have to tell you that she is not other women.”

“No, she is not, but she knows that the exam is to be thorough.” He could barely suppress his amusement as he witnessed the normally unshakable doctor’s composure erode just that much more.

Whelan nodded. “Uh… yes… Well, then, I have your permission to proceed? I need to find out why she is in…”

Fremma finally allowed his smile. “I understand your dilemma, Whelan. For your information, she did bleed last week, and yes, she is in estrous right now, and for her that is normal. She ovulates every twenty-one Iceanean days or so, not once a year.”

Whelan’s breath caught. “That is how Ticees planned to—” His words broke off when he saw a shadow of darkness descend upon the Warlord’s features. “I am sorry, my Lord.”

Fremma nodded to him. “It is okay. It is over.”

Whelan looked at the ceiling momentarily and then he studied his Commander. “She is not an easy subject. Her responses are unpredictable and she renders me uncomfortable. The volatility of the interplay is compounded by her strong aversions.” Whelan paused, trying to ground himself. “I must admit to you, my Lord, that my manipulations of her, because of the feelings evoked, become ones of violation rather than examination. I confess to you, Sire, that I am not familiar with these alien feelings.”

Fremma looked at him sharply. “Would you act on these feelings?”

Whelan was taken aback. “Oh no, my Lord! Never!”

Fremma nodded and gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. Then he sat down. “Oh, my good man. You too are not immune to her spell.” Fremma paused as the doctor sat. Then the Warlord became serious. “The exam must be done because of her alien physiology. I do not know what issues may be present that we do not expect. Diseases and conditions long lost to our people may still plague her. However, I know her cycles are normal, so you can exclude the biopsy unless you require it for other reasons. But I cannot assess anything else. Therefore, you need to cover everything. Calley technology is primitive. I do not want her in the hands of Calley doctors if we can help it.”

Fremma watched as Whelan finally managed to compose himself. Then he continued. “But all that is not an order. I will leave it up to your professional judgment. And, of course, the final decision is up to my Lady. Just remember that the more you do for her in the long run, the more she will trust you. And believe me, if you win my Lady over, her presence and company will do more for you than you could ever have thought possible. She is truly one of a kind.”

Whelan finally smiled back at the Warlord. “Thank you, my Lord. It is nice to know I am not going crazy.”

Fremma chuckled. “Far from it, my good man. You merely confirm your normalcy. Nothing is straightforward where the Lady Chelan is concerned. Everything about her innocently entices.”

Whelan looked down momentarily. “I am surprised that Korba did not take her with him.”

Fremma stood and raised his brows. “No more surprised than me. But I am not going to question my good fortune.” Fremma moved to the doors and glanced slyly back at the doctor. “Good luck, my man. Take good care of her for me, and send her back in one piece.”

Whelan bid Fremma good-bye, and then rehearsed in his mind what he needed to do. He took a deep breath. “Here we go,” he whispered to himself. Then he strode into the examining room and halted at the door, surprised to see the table empty.