QSFer Or M. Bialik has a new queer sci-fi book out (gender fluid, lesbian, poly): The Regrets I Have are Not the Ones I Say.
The life of an Imperial officer is one of struggle. In power armor and gun at hand, they will see more die than say goodbye. Love is an impossible dream reserved for dark corners between missions. One mission, to a world that stopped communicating, with a foreign commanding officer who treats the laws of physics as a mere recommendation will turn the world of one of them upside down.
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Excerpt
My hearing and focus were coming back as the Main Circuit came online. “All hands equip void gear and prepare for general quarters,” her voice ringed around the ship, she was nowhere near the microphone by the Captain’s station, nor did her mouth move. She had a concentrated look on her face, not her usual half smirk. “I repeat, void gear, general quarters, this is not a drill.” The officers around me were looking at each other and at the Captain and at Minerva and not really taking any action.
So I decided to do something stupid. I grabbed Steve, mostly because he was close but also because I knew I could get away with it later. “You heard the Admiral!” I said, which probably came off a bit louder than I intended and much hoarser than I would like. “Where is the fucking void gear here?” He reached above and handed me a package and took another one for himself, with the Captain yelling at him to put that back or he will be up for court martial. I tried to ignore them and walked towards Minerva, taking the emergency void gear out of the package and trying to put it on without looking too ridiculous. “Fleet Captain…” I said, rather hesitantly. “What exactly is…” She did not look at me, she was looking straight through the wall in front of her as all the alarms started to go off. I have seen this before, but I have never been on the bridge when something like this happened. The Captain stopped yelling at Steve to put the void gear back and yelled at him to put it on and started giving orders as they were trying to get their own on.
Minerva was still looking at the wall with intensity. I put my hand on her and could feel heat coming out of her. She was not burning, but she was much hotter than before. For a moment there, I wanted her more than I ever wanted anyone in my life. I wanted to tear the void suit with my bare hand, shred my uniform and jump her naked. then I pulled off my hand and the feeling was gone, partially, she is extremely attractive. She shot me an apologetic look and I could see the data stream behind her eyes. There was more information there then I thought could be displayed. The Captain kept yelling, and Minerva kept ignoring her and then she pulled her hands from the console and hugged me.
For a fraction of a second I did not understand what was going on, and then everything turned white.
When she let go of me, after what felt like too short and forever at the same time, the heat coming off of her was so hot, I could feel it from a distance, light refracted around her as the hot air rippled. I thought for a moment it was a mirage from the heat, but it took me a minute to realize, we were not on the Conviction anymore, we were on a planet. There was a city in the distance, it looked like one of the ones on Puthiya Sthalam.
Author Bio
Or M. Bialik has spent the last decade and change crisscrossing the planet, trying to understand the effects and impacts of modern and ancient climate change. A PhD in Earth and Environmental Sciences, they have seen a thing or two that exceeds the scope of understanding by just looking at it.