Tempted by Celestial Bodies

Chapter 1

chapter one

Everyone this side of the galaxy knew that the best destination for a good time was the Golden Sphere, which was why Aivey and her two best friends didn’t even consider another party station when planning their girls’ week getaway during their last break before graduation.

The Sphere had not disappointed—not yet, anyway. After days of gaming, lounging in the manufactured sunlight of the dome crafted to mimic the pristine beaches of Traquila, dancing to hypnotic music, and tasting delicacies that left Aivey groaning in pleasure, there was only one way they could think of to cap off their vacation: a trip to the infamous and renowned sex club, Incandescence.

A shiver ran down the length of Aivey’s spine as she stepped out of the cleansing enclosure. She should be used to it by now. After all, they had a similar one at the academy which all students were required to pass through when returning from off campus. But the woosh of air, sprinkle of tiny particles across her clothing and skin, and strangely mossy scent never failed to make her feel momentarily unsettled. Such things were necessary when citizens of various planets and systems mingled. Nobody wanted an accidental plague or anything.

“Woohoo!” Vesta raised her hands in the air as if making it through the cleansing was some big test. “Three for three!” The neon blue lights that illuminated the inner lobby of Incandescence—which was otherwise sleek and black like obsidian—caught on Vesta’s pale hair which swayed from side as she gave a little celebratory dance.

“I can’t believe we’re almost in.” Rima let out a little squeal and bounced in her spikey, golden heels.

A few other groups stood around, chatting excitedly. The distant thud of pounding music mingled with the hum of the nearby conversations.

The enthusiasm emanating from every pore of her friends—and seemingly everyone else—left Aivey even more unsettled than the cleansing chamber. The hard knot of anticipation sitting low in Aivey’s stomach twisted tighter. Oh, she wanted to go to Incandescence. She’d perked right up the moment Rima suggested it. But now that they were actually here, about to walk into a club filled with people looking for their next fuck, she couldn’t help but be nervous. Vesta and Rima seemed to have no such reservations, though, and Aivey wasn’t about to be that friend and back out at the last minute.

It was just that sometimes a casual fling left her feeling… empty? Was that it? Unsettled? She could never quite pinpoint the exact feeling. All she knew is that sometimes, well, like one time, it was great, and most of the time it really wasn’t. Though admitting that to her friends, close as they were, seemed impossible. Especially since that’s what they were all about to do—go have a little fun without attachments.

No attachments, no chance of bumping into their hookup around the academy, and hopefully no regrets. Aivey glanced down at her pointer finger. Moments ago, she’d pressed it against a panel, had her blood sampled, been injected with a temporary fertility suppressant. Another club requirement, and one she was grateful for. After all, the club’s slogan of “What happens at Incandescence stays at Incandescence” couldn’t be true if there was the risk of getting knocked up. Thanks goodness she didn’t have to worry about any of that thanks to the club’s strict safety protocols.

“I’ve been looking forward to this for ages!” Rima’s exclamation drew Aivey’s attention back to her friend. With the shimmering gold of her skin-tight dress against her bronzed skin and wavey pink hair, she’d stand out in any crowd, even as one as diverse as those in the Golden Sphere. Which, Rima had proclaimed earlier that night, was just the point. “Seriously. Ever since I learned about this place, it’s been top of my dream board.”

Aivey sucked in a deep breath and shoved her worries to the back of her mind. “I know,” she replied, attempting to sound way more relaxed and excited than she actually was. She wasn’t about to dampen her friend’s joy. “You’ve only told us about a million times.”

Rima sauntered closer and booped Aivey on the nose. “Then one more won’t hurt.”

This was their last night of vacation. Rima and Vesta were determined to finish off the trip with the biggest indulgence of all: seeking to play out their inner fantasies with a stranger or two…preferably not of the Earthean variety. After all, their academy was mostly Earthean, so why not hook up with a different type of humanoid while they had the chance? This was a chance to break free, to indulge without judgment or consequence. After all, only the three of them would know about this little excursion and they’d already kept each other’s secrets for years.

“Come on! I’m so ready to get in there already.” Vesta looped her arms through Aivey and Rima’s and marched them toward a sleek desk of shimmering black glass.

An exceedingly tall woman stood behind it. Two twisting white horns speared up through her violet hair that had been tied in little braids and fell down past her shoulders. Her attire, much like her skin tone, was nearly as black as the desk she stood behind—and just about everything else Aivey had spied in the club so far. They really took the dark tones and neon lights aesthetic and ran with it.

“Welcome to Incandescence,” the woman behind the desk said as they approached. The silken tones of her voice made Aivey shiver with the way they slid over her senses and beckoned her closer. “Come forward and submit your cards to get your bands.”

Before the cleansing chamber, they’d each filled out a card detailing their desired match, or matches, for the night. The questionnaire included their preferences on genders, species, number of partners, particular kinks they desired, and so forth. The list of choices was so exhaustive there was one gender and at least three species that Aivey didn’t recognize, which was truly saying something since she had at least a cursory knowledge of the galaxy’s primary intelligent races.

One by one, they inserted their cards in the illuminated slot and stuck their arm into the round opening. Aivey held her breath as the machine light up and then circled her wrist with a silver band almost an inch thick. Lights illuminated as words scrolled in galactic common across the smooth black panel screen in the center. The scrolling text confirmed Aivey’s choices. Her band was silver for one desired partner. An orange light indicated she wished for a humanoid, and green represented the gender she wanted—in this case, male.

“Excellent. This is your whole party?”

Aivey glanced back at the woman, just as Rima answered her question. The hostess looked from one of them to the next, and it was impossible not to get caught up in the woman’s dark eyes that sparkled with bits of violet. They certainly picked the right hostess for such a club.

“A quick reminder,” the woman began. “If you wish to pair up with one or more individuals, you can tap your bracelet to theirs to see if you are a match. You’ll both glow blue, if so. If not, your differences will be displayed on the band.”

Rima and Vesta both nodded along silently, as if they were as entranced by the woman as Aivey.

“However, your bands are only your preferences,” she continued. “You are free to choose outside of those if you wish and your selected counterpart agrees. The only exceptions are certain restricted kinks, but it doesn’t look like any of you have chosen those.” Her slow, knowing grin made Aivey’s insides twist up, her pulse escalating and blood running hotter.

The woman clapped once and the feeling vanished. Aivey took a step back from the desk, standing a little straighter, her brows knotting.

“Any questions?” the woman asked, the hypnotic tone gone from her voice.

The three friends all looked between one another, blinking rapidly as if coming back to their senses.

“I am here if you do. If not, feel free to choose a starting room.” The hostess gestured to three sets of double doors, each manned by an animatronic attendant. A few other groups stood around, possibly making their choice or just taking a breather before moving on to a new section of the club.

They all stepped away from the desk, making way for another group waiting to get their bands and likely listen to a similarly entrancing speech from the horned woman. There was something unique about her voice, perhaps a compulsion to make sure patrons paid attention.

“Are we ready?” Rima beamed as she turned toward Aivey and Vesta.

No. But Aivey never let the word leave her tongue. “As I’ll ever be,” she replied instead. That much was true. The first step was the hardest sometimes, and if she could just get inside, hopefully her worries would slip away. Until then, Aivey let her mind drift to her beloved Crathian mountains. With its soaring peaks dusted in pale purple snow, crisp air, verdant trees, and unique wildlife, there was no more peaceful and beautiful place in all of the galaxy. Which is why she’d made the mountains and their conservation the focus of her studies at the academy. Just the thought of it settled her.

“Which door do we want?” Vesta tossed her blond hair and drummed her black nails against one cheek. She’d gone simple and elegant with her look, sporting a sleeveless and short black dress in a similar style to Aivey’s shimmering silver one that highlighted all of Vesta’s generous curves.

“Actually…” Rima pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and wouldn’t quite look at her two friends.

Rima uncomfortable? Aivey closed her mouth before she gaped too long at her friend. She was never shy, not from the moment they’d met at orientation day when she’d marched straight up to Aivey, wrapped her in a hug, and proclaimed that she just knew they were going to be the best of friends. She had been right, after all.

“Do either of you mind if I pick a different one from you all and go on my own?” Rima continued. “It’s just, it’s hard to explain, but in all my dreams I’ve come alone, and I feel like I need to do this, you know? Live it out just like in my imaginings?” She continued to ramble, the words spilling out so fast Aivey nearly lost track.

“Rima…” Vesta whined, her shoulders drooping.

Splitting up, at least at the start, was not part of their plan. But now that Aivey looked closer, Rima had her hand tucked behind her back, her Incandescence bracelet out of sight. There was something about her selections she didn’t want her friends to see, even with their promise to uphold the club slogan once they got back home.

“Yes, of course that’s fine,” Aivey said, interrupting Vesta’s complaints. “We’re good.” She looped her arm through Vesta’s and started to turn her away.

“But—” Vesta began.

Aivey cut her off and kept them moving. For once, Aivey wasn’t the only one nervous, and from her extensive knowledge of the sensation, she knew there was nothing worse than other’s pointing it out or lingering over it. Her friend wanted privacy and space to sort out her desires? She could give that to her. With a wave back at Rima, she said, “Have fun! We’ll see you tomorrow!”

All trace of apprehension slipped away from Rima to be replaced by a blinding smile. “Tomorrow. Be back to the room by mid-morning or I’m going to worry. And we don’t want to miss our check-out!” She bounced on her toes and waved before hurrying off toward the far door.

“Seriously, what was that about?” Vesta asked as soon as they passed through their door. A long hallway stretched out before them, colorful dancing lights and thumping music flooding in from the other end ahead.

Aivey shrugged and released her friend. “If she wants to do this on her own, let her. It’s a safe environment. Besides, it’s not like we’re aiming to share.”

“Speak for yourself.” Vesta held up her bracelet with its golden band. “I’m hoping for at least a threesome. I mean, if we’re gonna do this, let’s go all-out, right?”

Aivey rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. I don’t think you want me in the room when you enjoy,”—she gestured around—“all that.”

A wicked smile stretched across Vesta’s face. “I plan to be so full of cock that I won’t know or care who’s there.”

The beat of the music grew as they neared the end of the hallway, pulsing through Aivey’s chest and easing some of her nerves. This was just a club. She’d been to dozens of those. No big deal. And if she found some male to enjoy the evening with, great. Aivey sucked in a deep breath of the strangely crisp air that, in a way, almost reminded her of the mountains. She could do this.

The hallway ended in a massive room with multi-hued lights illuminating a number of figures dancing just before them. That was normal enough, but it was the raised platforms jutting up amid the dancefloor that Aivey couldn’t tear her gaze away from. People engaged in varied forms of public play for all to see. A blue-scaled Angrosian took an Earthean man from behind while he pleasured another with his hands. To the left, a female Taren rode both cocks of the massive figure lying on the platform below her. In the dancing lights, even more couples and groups played beyond them.

Nope. She was wrong. This was unlike any club she’d ever been to, and she’d only gotten her first glimpse of it.

Aivey’s mouth gaped open as she caught sight of the ceiling, or lack thereof. Spanning the width of the room was a clear floor atop of which others played in a separate area a level above.

“Wow!” Vesta exclaimed above the music. “And I thought I was bold.”

With effort, Aivey tore her gaze away from the spectacle and glanced at her friend. It wasn’t shock or surprise glittering in Vesta’s eyes, but something much closer to envy. Stars. Thank goodness Aivey hadn’t mentioned being nervous, even though she had a right to be. Vesta probably would have laughed until her sides hurt.

“Well, should we grab a drink first?” Vesta suggested.

That was something familiar, something she could do. “Yes. A drink. Let’s do that.”