Chapter 9: Caressa in Space

Caressa's POV

A petite young lady that stood just five feet tall with a slim waist and thick curves came to their suite. Her hair was jet black, with flashes of purple highlights against her nearly too pale complexion. Her uniform was form fitting, but for Michyle's frame of mind, she might as well have been in a shapeless sack.

"I am Chara," she introduced herself. "How may I help?"

"Just make sure that my wife rests comfortably," Michyle instructed as he led her to the bedroom. "Call me in when she wakes up."

Michyle noticed as Chara tried not to gawk at the beautiful suite, which he knew made the staff rooms shared by four crew members look like kitchen cabinets. He escorted her to their darkened bedroom where they could just make out the shape of a sleeping female in a large bed. She took a seat as he assured her that her meals would be brought to her and closed the door.

Caressa opened her eyes to a darkness that she had never experienced. On the compound, there was always light. She forced herself to remain calm as she remembered the wedding, then falling ill on Michyle's ship. She remembered the medic and his medicine. She sat up slowly, hearing a rustling close by.

"Michyle?" she asked timidly.

"No, ma'am, I am Chara. Your husband asked me to sit with you until you woke up."

"Can you turn on the lights please?" Caressa sat up holding the covers to her. She felt rested, but foggy.

"Lights!" Chara spoke and Caressa took in the new strangeness of her surroundings. "I will call your husband."

"Wait."

The strange glowing of yellow of the room surrounded Caressa. The low hum of the metal and electricity once again pulsed under her skin and vibrated in her eardrums. "How long was I asleep?" she asked, attempting to will herself to feel better.

"Twelve hours," Chara replied. "The medic came in to check on you. He said it may take several days or weeks for you to get used to the ship."

"How long will we be on this ship?" Caressa knew the answer but hoped to hear a different one.

"Two to three months."

"That's what I thought." Caressa took in a deep breath and took note of the scent of orange lilies. "Are there flowers here?" Caressa asked.

"Yes, your husband brought them on the ship to help improve the air."

Though she detected a note of repressed frustration in her companion's reply, Caressa chose not to mention it, and merely nodded. "You must be exhausted," she offered. "Do you mind just helping me wash and change?"

"Of course. Just let me run to let your husband know you are getting up."

"Okay. But, tell him I want to clean up before he comes in."

"I will tell him."

Caressa sat up and let her legs hang over the side of the bed. She took in several deep breaths and caught the fragrance of several familiar plants. She stood and braved her way towards the smell.

She extended her hand in front of herself and inched her way forward until she made contact with the wall. She followed it slowly until she ran into the branch of a small tree. She smiled in pleasure as she recognized the texture and reached for the leaves.

"He knows you are up and asked me to let him know when you were done," Chara said upon re-entering the room.

"Thank you, Chara." Caressa said, reaching a hand towards her. Chara closed the distance between them and helped Caressa into the bathroom.

"Everything is voice-activated," Chara informed her.

"Really?" Caressa was impressed.

"Your bath at home wasn't controlled by voice command?" Chara asked, surprised. "What did you do?"

"I had a caregiver's help." Caressa felt a longing for Risa.

Chara manually programmed the tub and turned to Caressa. "But ... your father was a Sovereign. You yourself are acting Sovereign."

Caressa heard the confusion in Chara's voice.

"Of a poor colony three months away from the central System." Caressa smiled weakly.

"Oh. Even so," Chara thought out loud as she helped Caressa undress and get into the tub. "I don't mean to be…rude. But, even a distant colony should have these basic things."

"Well, my father didn't see a need for them." Caressa dismissed the subject. "Where are you from, Chara?"

"Oh, nowhere."

Caressa laughed at the odd hesitation and response. "It cannot be worse than where I am from."

"You would be surprised." Chara said, her voice softening down to a pensive almost-monotone. "I'm from a colony of Venus. The colony wasn't poor. But, my family was. My father drank too much. My mother was as uneducated as a person could be." Chara paused, and Caressa heard a soft, sad sigh come from her.

"She spent her life scraping up enough to feed my siblings and me. Then she died of a disease that had been killing her for over ten years. She never said a word."

She fell silent as she began to shampoo Caressa's hair.

"What was the disease?" Caressa asked.

"Some virus that attacked her liver. It would have been easy to cure if she…"

"Had money," Caressa finished for her.

"I was going to say, if she hadn't been married to my father. But yeah, medicine could have saved her. She could have retired into an easier life once we were grown." Chara sighed.

After the bath, Chara helped Caressa dress and fix her hair. She managed the massive curls with ease, braiding it neatly down her back.

"All done," Chara announced.

"How do I look, Chara?" Caressa asked.

"Beautiful, ma'am."

"Please, call me Caressa."

"Of course." Chara agreed. "Ready to go see your husband?"

"Yes." Caressa subconsciously smiled at the turn of phrase.