Chapter 14: Loosening Up

They ordered another round of drinks, Maza and Jaeger trying to steer the conversation in a more lighthearted direction as the night went on. The group discussed everything from exopolitics, to the presence of bathrooms inside human dwellings, their jokes increasing in volume and decreasing in complexity the more alcohol that they consumed. Ayau engaged Baker in a long conversation about the Krell, the pilot telling her everything that he knew on the subject, fascinating her with stories about the giant specimens that were said to exist in remote regions of their homeworld. She let him stroke her feathers again too, Baker laughing with his tiny beverage in hand as he ran his fingers through the downy covering on her tail. Xico, as it turned out, had some experience in the field of engineering. She finally took the opportunity to pick Jaeger’s brain about the finer aspects of UNN ship designs, marveling at the footage of battleships that he had on his phone. Even Tacka chimed in now and then, the drink loosening her scaly lips.

To his surprise, he was actually beginning to relax and have some fun, the aliens buying the two humans as many drinks as they required to feel the effects. It reminded him of spending an evening with a group of close friends, then he realized that these were his friends. They had spent enough time together, been through so much, that he felt comfortable describing them as such.

After a while, the table was littered with empty glasses, the bowl of tobacco almost used up as the aliens took their last puffs. Jaeger was pleasantly tipsy, while Baker was as wasted as it was possible to get on such small quantities of drink and herb, already beginning to drift off to sleep on the pile of cushions. The aliens were still very much alert and awake, on the other hand, giving Jaeger the impression that their night had only just begun.

Coza and Maza seemed to discuss something for a minute, there were lots of flashes of colored feathers that Jaeger couldn’t follow, Maza glancing in his direction every so often as the two argued. The other aliens chimed in too, but they seemed less invested. Coza pulled her communicator out of her pocket and began to tap at the touch screen. She was quite drunk, and she still seemed surly, her eyes fixed intently on the phone as she typed.

“What’s going on?” Jaeger asked, looking between the two aliens. He had never seen them disagree like this before.

“If this really is my last night alive, then I want some company,” Coza muttered. “I’m calling Yaotl’mal’atzi.”

Jaeger looked to Maza for an explanation, unable to remember the complicated name.

“He’s the nurse that you met at the hospital,” she explained. “I’m of the opinion that we already have company, but this is what Coza’ma’lotl wants...”

It was interesting to see that disagreements could happen within the tightly-knit flocks, though the alcohol was certainly playing a part. Jaeger had gotten the impression that Coza had meant something quite different by ‘company’, or perhaps Maza saw him as ... that kind of company?

“He’s on his way,” Coza said, returning the phone to her pocket. “I think ... I think I need someone tonight...”

She leaned her head on Maza’s shoulder, her friend resting an arm around her. Jaeger wanted to tell her that everything was going to be alright, that they were going to prevail against the Bugs, but there was nothing that he could say to her that he hadn’t said already.

“Let’s get one more round,” Maza said, whistling for the waiter.

Due to the exemplary transit system, it didn’t take the nurse more than fifteen minutes to arrive, and Jaeger saw him descend the steps at the entrance to the lounge. He seemed out of his element, looking around nervously as he searched for Coza. His vibrant plumes puffed up in shades of pink and yellow when he laid eyes on Jaeger, who was impossible to miss due to his size and alien appearance, the display drawing the attention of the other patrons. Jaeger had to keep in mind that from a Valbaran perspective, a beautiful woman in a red dress had just stepped into their dingy bar.

His green scales shone under the red glow of the lounge’s lighting, buffed or waxed perhaps, and he was sporting jewelry of the same kind that Jaeger had seen the receptionist at the hospital wearing. He could see the glint of the necklace and the headband from across the room. His clothing was a little more revealing than that worn by the females, his tunic cut low to expose his shoulders, and his tight shorts leaving little to the imagination. Jaeger had to remind himself that this wasn’t a female, despite the distinctly feminine shape of his hips. The male was dolled up in a sense, perhaps Coza would have her companion for the night after all.

She warbled to him, and he a made a beeline to their booth, Maza stepping out to let him sit beside Coza. She took a seat beside him, sandwiching him between the two females, Coza immediately draping an arm about his shoulders. His feathers were so large that they were downright unwieldy, he couldn’t even turn his head in such a tight space when he emoted, which was something that he did frequently due to Coza’s clumsy advances. She was drunk, coming on strong, whispering things in his ear in their native tongue. They must be salacious indeed, judging by the shades of his fluttering headdress.

Maza seemed less interested, more annoyed by his presence than anything, but Coza soon passed him over her lap and sat him between her and Ayau. The feathery Valbaran was more enthusiastic, placing a hand on his thigh as she joined the whispered conversation. Yaotl glanced at Jaeger every so often, always blinking rapidly and averting his gaze whenever the human met it, just as he had in the examination room.

“Is this how Valbaran courtship usually goes?” Jaeger asked Maza. Not wanting to be overheard by the male perhaps, she got up from her seat on the cushions and walked around the table to his side, sliding in beside him.

“Coza’ma’lotl is a little ... emotional right now,” she explained. “She’s also very drunk. You asked us how we would spend this night if it was our last, and I can’t really fault her for wanting some male company.”

“And ... how about you?” Jaeger asked. She shrugged her feathers, not really giving him much of an answer. “Is uh ... Yaotl alright?” he continued, watching as Coza began to nibble delicately at his slim neck.

“He wouldn’t have come if he didn’t like her.”

“So what happens now? Supposing that Coza takes him home, do you guys all ... together?”

“It’s a little more voluntary than that,” she explained. “Under normal circumstances, we’d probably all join in, have a go at him, see if we all share the same chemistry. He’s pretty cute, and he clearly has that outcome in mind, judging by that top that he’s wearing, and the way that he’s polished his scales. He probably did the same all down his torso, I bet his stomach is as smooth as glass,” she muttered as she glanced across the table at him.

Jaeger was a little shocked. The aliens were usually prudish when it came to such matters, but perhaps this was the alcohol and the weed talking. In any case, he kind of liked her new directness...

“But these aren’t normal circumstances?”

She leaned forward, making sure that Baker was soundly asleep before reaching across the table to pick up Jaeger’s near-empty glass, downing what was left. She hissed, her plumes flaring in yellow and purple, then set it back down on the varnished surface.

“Yaotl would make an admirable bed warmer, but I kind of had someone else in mind.”