"We got everything we needed though?"

Kihyun nods to Shownu, face sombre. Really, it's incredibly lucky that the crew wasn't forced to endure the same situation that Minhyuk had foisted upon them before because Kihyun isn't sure that Jooheon would be quite as easily forgiven. As it is, after the pyrokinetic unexpectedly exploded at Changkyun, everyone's been a little too on edge to approach him.

The telepath has been taking it the hardest, Jooheon's sudden outburst. He'd assumed that his friend was just pulling a mischievous prank, and that his thoughtlessness was the problem. But, apparently, Jooheon's little stunt was about something deeper, something excessively traumatizing by the telepath's reckoning.

"Do you want me to scold Jooheon?"

Shownu waves Kihyun's question away.

"No. I don't think that'll be necessary." He replies. "After all, Changkyun already did that for us."

"So, " Tori speaks up, "where to next?"

The crew of the Denali is gathered once more around the CNC's table, each silent and withdrawn. By now, everyone has heard of Jooheon's stunt, and the resulting spat between the pyrokinetic and Changkyun. The air is tense, and it feels like everyone is walking on eggshells. It makes Tori feel uneasy, seeing the group like this.

"Actually, " Minhyuk meekly raises his hand, "I might have an idea about that."

Several pairs of eyes settle upon the technopath as he explains.

"While we were on Nasqui, I picked up a little bit of info from one of my old contacts. He claimed that he's seen strange symbols in a wreckage that he raided near a planet not too far from Nasqui."

"Did he tell you the name of this planet by any chance?" Shownu questions warily.

P'taraen's are well known scavengers, so it is possible that the creature might have been telling the truth. However, the tiny bat-like creatures are also well known for their greed and dishonesty. Normally, for the right amount of credits, a P'taraen might be convinced to be a little more honest. But Shownu doesn't understand why any of the creatures would so willingly sell such information, and risk someone else finding their precious salvage.

"Apparently, " Minhyuk elaborates, "the planet doesn't have a name. But he did mention that it's the only nearby planet, so it shouldn't be hard to find."

Rising from her seat, Tori rounds the table and comes to a halt before the navigational console. With ease, she pulls up the holo-map and zooms in on their current position. There, displayed for all to see, is the artificial planet Nasqui. They've drifted just out of reach of Nasqui's orbit. Considering that the black market world doesn't have a space fleet, Shownu had deemed it relatively safe to hover nearby.

Surprisingly enough, Minhyuk's informant's words ring true. When Tori adjusts the map, zooming out just a tad, the holo-map displays another planet. It is unnamed, and apparently uncharted, but it is there. The ship's radar system also seems to sense a few scattered wreckages just outside the planet's gravitational pull, lending a small amount of credence to Minhyuk's information.

"Can you get any data on the planet?" Shownu questions Tori.

The cosmologist bites nervously at her lip, and fumbles about a bit. This is the first time she has stood at the console, her first time performing the job for which she was recruited. And she is incredibly nervous.

Changkyun, who can sense her distress even without the ability to read her thoughts, gives her an encouraging smile. Her nerves die down just a little at this, and her fingers stop shaking quite so much. This enables her to finish her task, and after she's typed in the code for a system scan, the information pops up on the screen for all to see.

"That can't be right, " Tori murmurs in disappointment.

The readings state that the planet is made up entirely of crystal. For a moment, Tori assumes that she must have made a mistake. Maybe she pressed the wrong button, or input the wrong code? The scan also shows no signs of life. While that would make sense if the readings on the planet itself is correct, it doesn't explain why there would be so many wrecks just outside of the planet's orbit.

"I can try again, " Tori speaks, voice wavering with embarrassment. "I must have made a mistake."

Her fingers fly to the holographic display with intent, but she is halted by Minhyuk, who shakes his head resolutely.

"I don't think you made a mistake." He insists. "The navigational console doesn't really work like that. It's pretty much impossible to make a mistake, and still get a reading. At worst, you would have gotten nothing but an error report."

"But-"

"He's right, " Shownu speaks up. "You did a good job. Thank you."

Bowing her head ever so slightly to hide the blush that arises upon her cheeks at the captain's praise, she then makes her way back to her seat. Beside her, Changkyun frowns. He knows that she isn't blushing out of attraction, but rather embarrassment. Even so, he doesn't like the idea of anyone seeing her bashful face aside from himself.

Nevertheless, he places an encouraging hand upon her thigh, and squeezes.

"You did great, " he whispers into her ear.

"Thank you, " she beams up at him.

The crew sits in silence for a moment, each weighing the possibilities that this planet might hold. Something about it feels wrong, between the lack of life-forms and the wreckage surrounding the planet. And, not to mention, Jupiter is still fresh on everyone's mind. No one wants a repeat of that. Getting caught with their metaphorical pants down had been an absolute nightmare.

"If we do this, we need to be careful. We need to be prepared." Kihyun suddenly points out.

"How do we prepare for a situation we know nothing about? Listen, last time, those robots? They were completely immune to bullets, and my flames barely even slowed them down."

"Didn't Minhyuk's little robots work pretty efficiently though?" Tori returns.

"His drones, you mean?" Jooheon scratches thoughtfully at his chin, and then nods. "They did work pretty well, for a short time."

"Unfortunately my drones aren't really very durable. They're not meant to withstand a significant amount of damage." Minhyuk argues. "While I can take three or four of them down, it wouldn't be wise to count too heavily on my tech."

"What about electric rounds?" Changkyun suggests. "If it was the electricity that did the trick, wouldn't electric rounds like the ones you made for me work?"

Minhyuk bites thoughtfully at the tip of his thumb, eyes distant as he contemplates. Then, nodding, he concedes.

"They just might, but I don't think I can make enough for a full team."

"Then why don't you make enough for one person, and have that person cover the exploration team?" Kihyun suggests.

"I could, " Minhyuk agrees, "but it boils down to efficiency. Jooheon usually utilizes the kind of guns that rapid fire. He'd run out of what little I could make with the materials I have on hand fairly quickly."

"How many can you make?" Shownu jumps in.

"Maybe eighty, " Minhyuk estimates.

"So little?" The captain's voice is tinged with disbelief.

Eighty might sound like a lot, but in the grand scheme of things, it's really not. Especially if, like Jooheon, one uses an SMG.

"So what we need is someone who can shoot precisely?" Tori queries softly.

"That's exactly what we need." Kihyun agrees. "If we had a well-trained sniper, they could easily cover the team's retreat once the facility is online."

"You're all assuming that there is a facility on this planet, " Changkyun protests. "What if there isn't one?"

"And what if there is?" Shownu remarks calmly. "Can we afford to miss a piece of the puzzle? Chances are, we won't know exactly what's down there until we explore."

Hesitantly, Tori clears her throat. This catches everyone's attention, and as each set of eyes fall upon her, she speaks.

"I don't know about well-trained, " she says modestly, "but I'm a fairly decent shot with a rifle."

To the other side of Changkyun, Jooheon breaks into hysterical laughter.

"Decent?" He exclaims. "Decent is not how I would describe your skills with a gun!"

Tori blushes brightly, but smiles nonetheless. It feels good to have someone acknowledge her skill, if she's being honest.

"My dad taught me, " Tori replies cheerfully.

A sudden pang of hurt crosses through her heart at her own mention of her father. She misses him, and she hadn't really thought about it much lately, but she wonders how her parents are holding up, or whether or not they are still alive. She's in a whole other galaxy now, one that humanity has no idea even exists. It could be possible that travelling here has already expended too many human years for her father to still be kicking, her mother either for that matter.

Changkyun squeezes her leg once more, for once unsure of what to say or do. While he can hear her thoughts loud and clear, he can't say that he's sorry. If she hadn't come with them, he wouldn't have bonded with her. And as much as he regrets her pain, he's glad that she left earth.

"I heard about that, " Shownu murmurs thoughtfully. "You saved everyone's ass the other day, didn't you?"

"You bet she did!" Minhyuk exclaims excitedly. "You should have seen the way she took those beasties out!"

"I was surprised, " Jooheon admits, turning to Tori as he speaks. "I didn't know you had any combat experience."

"I don't, " she confesses, "what I have is hunting experience."

Several surprised faces greet her as a result of her statement, to which she merely shrugs and elaborates, "I grew up in Alaska."

As if that is supposed to explain it all. Most of the crew knows next to nothing about earth aside from Hyungwon, who has studied the books Tori brought him and materials that he downloaded for himself, and Changkyun, who has seen flashes of that wild and cold place within her mind.

"Do you think you could successfully cover the exploration team?" Shownu questions, a hopeful look in his eyes.

He hadn't counted on accidentally picking up a half-decent sniper, or a great one if Minhyuk and Jooheon are to be believed. Having a sniper on the crew would be an immense boon, one that he is certainly not above grasping if it is within his reach.

"Yes, " Tori replies, "I should be able to-"

"Absolutely not!" Changkyun exclaims, heart racing within his chest.

Tori is amazing with a rifle, he'll admit that, but he doesn't like the idea of her putting herself into danger. No matter how much she wants to join the exploration team. He knows that she would like nothing more than to be able to see everything first hand. But he also knows, because of being friends with Jooheon for such a long time, just how traumatizing actual combat could be. 

Changkyun still remembers how shaken Jooheon was after the first time he shot and killed a sentient being. During his first deployment, he'd been sent off-world to join the fight on LT307, a small and previously uncolonized planet just outside Dhee'li space. A group of Prism deserters had made a home there, and if there is anything the Dhee'li despise it is a failure to do one's duty. It's something that every Dhee'li is taught from the time they are young, community first, and then your family.

There isn't really any space in Dhee'li society for self, everything must contribute to the good of the whole.

Which is why, after being forced to shoot a Dhee'li that would not back down, Jooheon had called Changkyun rather than his father. He'd known that his father, who has been military since he was a young man, would not understand. Maybe Lee senior might have understood, once upon a time, but war changes people.

The sound of Jooheon's shaken voice, and the tears that he'd shed, are still fresh in the telepath's mind.

He doesn't doubt that Tori could do it. He has every belief in her ability. But he doesn't want her to have to experience the life altering event of taking another person's life. His brain oh-so-helpfully reminds him that she already has, back on Nasqui. But the incident doesn't seem to have really stuck with her. Who can guarantee, however, that she'll be quite as lucky the next time? What happens if she's eventually forced to pull the trigger on something far more human in appearance?

"I understand why you don't want her to participate in combat, " Shownu reprimands the telepath gently, "but we need every edge we can get. If she can keep you and Minhyuk safe, then it behooves us to use that to our advantage."

"Well I don't understand it, " Tori asserts, agitated. "So since you seem to know something I don't, maybe you could explain it for me?"

Everyone around the table grows stiff and awkward, Changkyun is no exception.

"I just…" he fumbles, faltering as he tries to think of something to say that is neither dishonest, nor entirely revealing. "I really care about you. I don't want to see you in harm's way."

Frowning, Tori removes his hand from her thigh. The action feels like a slap across the face to Changkyun, who's mouth twitches, itching to frown as well.

"Whatever this is between us, " Tori asserts, eyes livid, "doesn't allow you to control me or what I do. Believe it or not, I care about you too. And if I can keep you safe, why shouldn't I?"

Changkyun can hear all of her unspoken thoughts, and recoils. The things that she is thinking of him right now aren't exactly flattering, and panic begins to rise within him as he realizes that she has massively misunderstood the situation between them. He'd known that she was confused as to where the two of them stood, but he'd also thought things were going well. She was receptive to his affections, and happy with him until just recently. Just now, really.

"It's not like that, " Changkyun pleads earnestly, referring to the thoughts bouncing around in her skull, "you mean more to me than I can express. Please believe that. If you want a label, then know that you are mine, and I am yours. And I just want to keep my woman safe, is that so bad?"

The rest of the crew shifts awkwardly in their seats, uncomfortable with witnessing the lover's spat between the two. However, they also know it would be foolish to interrupt, especially since the look on Tori's face simply screams "volatile".

But, to Changkyun's immense relief, both her eyes and her thoughts soften after his declaration.

" I understand that, " she murmurs softly, this time placing her hand upon his leg, "because I feel the same way. Why can't I want to keep you safe?"

The telepath tries to ignore the rush of giddy relief that floods through his veins at the touch of her hand. He isn't sure what to say in response. There are a thousand different reasons that he can think of to refute her, but both she and Shownu are correct. There are a thousand more reasons to desist his protestations.

"So you finally get to join the exploration team!" Minhyuk exclaims, breaking the tense atmosphere with his enthusiastic words and a smile worthy of a fool. 

A lovable fool, sure, but a fool nonetheless. Especially if the minor glare that Changkyun gives him is any indication.

"Alright, alright, " Shownu commands, "settle down."

He sends a pointed look to Changkyun, who then tries his best to school his aggravated look.

"We have no idea what to expect down there, " the captain speaks frankly, "so we'll need to be prepared for anything. The members of the exploration team, aside from the addition of Tori as a sniper, will not change. Make sure you get a good night's sleep everyone, because tomorrow, we land."

Tori can tell, as Changkyun walks with her to her quarters, that there is something eating at her telepathic lover. She's sure it has everything to do with her appointment to the exploration team. In the end, he'd stopped resisting the idea vocally, but she's certain that he still isn't fond of the decision.

"Stop worrying so much, " she murmurs, clasping his hand within her own and smiling in a manner that she hopes is encouraging. "I'll be fine. I'm tougher than I look."

"I know, " he replies, but the tone of his voice doesn't really have Tori convinced.

Of course, Changkyun doesn't mention just how less durable she is than a Dhee'li, or the fact that this alone scares him senseless. Right now, she wants him to believe in her. And as her bond-mate, whether she knows it or not, it is his duty to try.

Upon arriving to her room, and placing her palm against the panel just outside it, the door slides open. Tori drags him inside with a smile, she's trying to remain positive and uplifting. Truthfully, she understands just how he must feel. After all, hadn't she worried endlessly about him when he'd stepped foot onto Nasqui? If smiling for him can help make things a little easier, then she'll smile like a lunatic.

And if not, well, she knows that there are other ways to take his mind off of things.

"Dhee'li or human, it doesn't really matter," she thinks. "A man is still a man."

And as Changkyun's mind is flooded with images of her lips around his cock, and his naked body thrusting into hers from above, she is proven correct.

Changkyun growls, and slams his lips to her with bruising force. The little minx is going to be the death of him, he thinks. The images flashing through her mind are enough to have him hardening in his pants, if he doesn't have a heart attack first. The taste of her lips is intoxicating, and the way that she eagerly participates, utterly enchanting.

As she fumbles with the buttons on his pants, he groans and buries his fingers within her hair. Her fingers skim against the exposed flesh of his groin as she sharply tugs, bringing both his pants and his boxers down in one go. The cool air against his heated cock is nearly agonizing, but is also nothing compared to the sensation of her fingers wrapping around him, or the way it feels when she begins to lazily pump her hand.

Changkyun moans into the kiss, long and low, voice raspy with need and muffled by the weight of her lips. His fingers tighten their grasp within her hair as his hips begin to move, seemingly of their own free will. And as he thrusts shamelessly into her hand, Tori keens with satisfaction. It makes her happy, to know that she can affect him like this.

Of course, Changkyun thinks that she really doesn't know the half of it, but he's pleased that she enjoys his body's response all the same.

It is with great effort that he tears his lips from hers and with a husky, desire ridden voice that he commands, "bed, now!"

Smiling mischievously, a look that does little to hide her intentions from him, she shakes her head.

"I don't think so, " she replies, "not yet."

The telepath nearly growls, but the sound is strangled within his throat as Tori drops to her knees before him, and takes his throbbing cock into her mouth.

Once more his hands find purchase within her silken tresses, and he moans wantonly as she works his length in earnest. The way she looks right now, head bobbing on his cock and fingers splayed against his thighs, is the very epitome of sensual. Sinful, even. His legs tremble against the onslaught of pleasure that she is giving him, and he resists the urge to thrust, to fuck that pretty mouth of hers just like he would her cunt.

"Shit!" He curses, balls already tightening and begging for release. "Da'vitan, da'vitan! I'm gonna-"

He attempts to pull at her hair, but is foiled as she instead takes him all the way into her mouth. Her nose touches his pubic bone, and her throat swallows the tip of his cock as he explodes, and pours his seed down her throat. His limbs feel heavy, weighted down by the intensity of his release. And yet, as she swallows his semen, and licks his softening cock clean, the desire to feel her come undone around him still surfaces.

It sends blood rushing to his dick once more, and it isn't long at all before he is hardening again within her hands.

"I didn't realize you could be such a tease, " he growls.

Though Tori knows there is no threat behind the tone of his voice, she can't deny the way it sends shivers down her spine. It settles in the pit of her stomach, and curls about in tempting tendrils. Rubbing her thighs together as her cunt begins to throb, Tori thinks about just how much she loves his voice, especially when it sounds like this.

And, of course, Changkyun hears every thought.

With a self-satisfied smirk, the telepath grasps Tori by the arms and pulls her up.

"You like the way I sound Da'vitan?" He croons, enjoying the way she blushes and the turning of tables that now places him squarely in control.

He leans forward, lips only about a centimeter from her ear as he continues.

"Would you like me to talk dirty to you?"

Groaning, Tori frantically nods her head.

Changkyun already knew what her answer would be, but that doesn't change the thrill that rushes through him at her eager affirmation. It's heady, and irresistible, being desired like this by her. The effect that he has over her makes him feel like a God, makes him feel as if he is the most powerful man in the world. And, furthermore, every drop of desire that she feels, he feels too.

He sees himself through her mind's eye as he slowly backs her towards the bed. His eyes, to her, look like those of a predator. He looks at her with a gaze that says he wants to devour her whole, and he relishes in the anticipation this makes her feel.

"Do you want me to fuck you?" He asks, eyes dark with sensual promise and barely restrained desire. "Want me to pound you into the mattress and fill you up?"

The backs of Tori's knees hit the mattress, and she collapses upon the bed with a rather undignified squeak. For a moment, she expects Changkyun to laugh at her. But no such thing comes to pass. Instead, he is gazing at her expectantly, awaiting her reply.

Tori squirms beneath his heated gaze.

"I asked you a question, " Changkyun growls, "are you not going to answer me?"

As he sinks into a kneeling position at the foot of the bed, he trails his eyes hungrily over her form. Every instinct within him is screaming at him to shred her pants to pieces, and bury his cock so deep inside of her that she will never be free of him. And she wants it too, if the images flooding through his mind are any indication. Nevertheless, he needs her to say it, needs her to take responsibility for the things he is about to do to her. So, rather than ripping her clothes away, he hooks his fingers into the waistband of her pants and pulls them away at an agonizing pace.

For her, sure, but for him as well.

"Changkyun!" She whines needily. "Don't tease me!"

With a throaty chuckle, he brushes his knuckles tantalizingly across her aching slit.

"You still haven't answered my question, " he reminds her cheekily. "You're going to have to tell me what you want, Da'vitan."

"You are so evil!" Tori exclaims. "You know what I-unnh!"

The feeling of his fingers circling her clit interrupts her, and causes Tori to cry out. Her back arches off the bed, and the sight is one that Changkyun doesn't know if he could ever get enough of.

"Changkyun, please!" She cries, tears of desperation pricking at the corners of her eyes.

How is it possible that he can have her so needy with just a small touch, with just the look in his eyes and the sound of his deep voice?

Changkyun can feel her pleasure, her need. And it is almost enough to overwhelm him as well. If she doesn't open her mouth and tell him what he wants to hear soon, he's afraid that he just might snap. Already his erection has become a suffocatingly painful bulge in his pants.

"It must be the bond." He realizes.

The thing that has her mewling for him so desperately with just the simplest of touches. But that would mean that she is capable of feeling the bond as well, an idea that makes joy swell within his breast and his heart pump loudly in his ears.

She feels it too.

And Changkyun has never been happier.

"Tell me what you want Da'vitan, " he groans lewdly. "Tell me what you want so I can fuck you into oblivion…"

A wordless cry of unadulterated need rises from her throat as he slips two fingers inside of her sopping cunt, knuckles deep. Changkyun allows her broken and jumbled thoughts to guide him, to help him find the spot that has her writhing upon his fingers like a woman possessed. But it isn't enough, and Changkyun knows it. Instead, it only serves to deepen her ache, to intensify her need for more.

His control wanes as she fucks herself onto his fingers unabashedly, hair spread out upon the pillow like a halo around her head. There is a sheen of sweat upon her brow, and a feverish look in her eyes. The fact that he is responsible for this is almost more than he can bear.

"Changkyun!" She shouts in frustration, teeth clenched and eyes wild. "Please! Just fuck me already!"

With a dry, husky chuckle, Changkyun replies.

"That's all you had to say Da'vitan."

With all the patience of a frustrated and hormonal teen, Changkyun fumbles clumsily with his pants. Every second that he is not inside of her is a travesty, a sin. One that he intends to rectify, and now.

He doesn't even manage to get his pants and boxers past his knees, too eager is he to bury himself to the hilt within her wet and welcoming heat. And as he sinks his dick into her slickened cunt, the both of them gasp. It's too much, too good, and neither is immune to the feeling of glorious completion that their joining brings.

Changkyun drives a brutal, frenzied pace, balls smacking against Tori's ass with every thrust. The various sounds that fill the room, the moans, the garbled pleas for more, the sound of skin on skin, and the wet, squelching sounds that Tori's pussy makes every time he thrusts inside; they are all filthy and lewd. But the most pleasing sound of all, in Changkyun's opinion, is the way she repeatedly shouts his name like a broken mantra.

"You like this Da'vitan?" He grunts, fingers digging into the sheets at each side of her head.

She wraps her legs around his waist, and splays her fingers against the smooth expanse of his chest.

"You like it when I fuck you like this?"

"Yes!" Tori cries feverishly. "Yes! So good!"

"You're such a filthy girl Da'vitan, " Changkyun groans, "so filthy for me. I bet you're already addicted to my cock, aren't you?"

"Yes!"

"Are you my filthy girl?"

"Yes!" She shouts, ecstasy filling her voice and causing it to break. "All yours! So filthy, just for you!"

As he pounds into her, Tori's back rises off the mattress. Every thrust has him rubbing, sliding against that sweet spot. And it has her seeing stars, has her dying, drowning in pure pleasure.

"Damn right, " Changkyun growls possessively, "you're mine. All mine. You belong to me!"

His pace becomes all but savage as he drives her into the mattress, face hanging above hers as he drops onto his elbows. All of the nerve endings in his body are on fire, aching and longing for her touch. So when he feels her fingernails, scrabbling for purchase in the flesh of his biceps, he groans. When her arms wrap around his neck, and she squeezes herself close to him, he responds by wrapping his left arm firmly around Tori's lifted back.

Like this, every inch of her torso is held to his. Every stuttered moan and every fervent chant of his name in broken syllables, tickles against the nape of his neck. Tori has coiled herself around him, and clings to him desperately, as if he were her only lifeline. As her muscles grow taut, and her fervid moans reach a desperate fever pitch, Changkyun realizes how close his lover is to that euphoric edge.

She's going to come soon, and he's not far behind.

"Who do you belong to Da'vitan?" He demands, voice strained with need. "Who's cock makes you feel so good?"

"Yours! Only yours!"

"That's right, " Changkyun grunts, "mine, this pretty little pussy is all mine. Cum for me Da'vitan, cum on this cock and let me fill you up."

Stubbornly, Tori shakes her head. She doesn't want this to be over just yet, wants to hold onto this feeling and savor it for just a little longer. But she's also riding a dangerously thin line, and Changkyun knows it. So when she refuses to let it go, let herself fall over that edge, he releases her back to thread his fingers through her hair. With a firm jerk, he pulls her head down, and exposes her neck to his hungry gaze.

Growling, he gives into the urge to take a bite, to taste her skin. His teeth upon the delicate skin of the column of her neck breaks the dam, and like a rushing rapid; her orgasm washes over her. She writhes and trembles beneath him as he continues to fuck her mercilessly, and eventually, her arms fall slack and she drops to the mattress.

But Changkyun doesn't stop, nor does he release her hair. He follows her down, and chases her lips with his own. His thrusts become sporadic, tempo failing as the stimulation becomes too much. Her skin is upon his, his tongue in her mouth. And by the Prime she tastes so good. 

He empties himself inside, semen splashing within as his hips come to a stuttered and eventual stop; with a cry of her name upon his lips muffled by the silk of hers.