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"What are you playing with, little man?"

Tyr Anasazi, the tall, well-built Kodiak Neitzchean, walked into Harper's work room, catfooted and silent.

"Uh, nothing, nothing, just something I found. It's a relic and I was trying to see if it worked."

Maybe it was Harper's elaborately casual air of dismissal that caused every one of Tyr's alarms to jangle.

"Show me!" The command was soft but the open hand impelled the engineer to obey.

Not without protest, though - Harper tried to forestall the inevitable. "Tyr, it's nothing. I bought it off an old trader at Shereman's Drift. You know how touchy Rommie gets about me messing with her systems. So playing with this lets me avoid that."

"Little man, I would believe you if you did not have a sheen of perspiration on your face. Your pupils just contracted and you are flushed - all signs that you're lying. So, I ask you again - Show me."

Reluctantly, Seamus Harper pulled out a flat rectangular case.

"It's called a laptop and a few centuries ago, people used..." the engineer babbled until a single raised finger from Tyr caused him to stop speaking.

It was interesting how fast the Neitzchean learned. Within seconds, Tyr had the laptop opened, having found the locking mechanism. His eyes roamed over the keyboard and then he pressed a few keys. A soft hum came from the machine, then the image of a well-built naked man appeared on the screen.

"What do we have here? I might have to re-evaluate what I said, Harper."

Seamus gulped and did not speak for all of three seconds before he burst into a spate of nervous chatter. "It's not what you think, Tyr. That stuff was there. I didn't put it there."

"Grrrr." The muted rumble might have been either approval or disapproval.

Tapping the keys quickly, Tyr watched as a stream of pictures flew across the screen, their single commonality being that they were all naked, muscular men in various poses.

"It appears I have unearthed a mystery, little man."

"Huh?" Seamus' response was highpitched.

"Either the previous owner admired men with superior physiques or you do. Now which is it?"

"I swear Tyr, I like...uh, it was like that when I got it."

Tyr took a deliberate step towards him.

"Harper, a lot of those men could pass as Neitzchean. They don't have the wrist barbs of course, but some of them could be my brothers. Why were you trying to hide that from me?"

The tenor of the question was light, almost as if the skyrocketing tension in the room between the two men remained unnoticed.

"Uhh," was the only response Harper could give voice to.

Another deliberate step brought Tyr flush against Harper's body. "Little man, this will be your only chance to stop me. Say something...." Tyr invited.

Harper tilted his head up and took in the hungry expression on the Neitzchean's face. Casting all his hope into one word, he murmured, "Yes," and bounced up onto the balls of his feet to close the distance between the two men.

"I say yes," he whispered against the well-shaped mouth.

"Grrrrrrrrr." The answering muted rumble was definitely one of approval.

The End.

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