“Take it back,” Janet threatened. A familiar pounding began in her ears, the beginnings of a rage so bottomless it knew no end. She usually managed to keep down this anger concerning the roles New Earth boxed her into, but she was finding this situation more difficult than most. There was nothing wrong with a woman working from home to raise her children and create a nice environment for her family. This was admirable. But what was wrong with a woman having the choice of whether to stay at home or not? Maybe some women sucked at cooking and organizing.
“Why would I take it back? There’s science and data that prove there’s a difference in brain development between the genders. Women are not as smart as men. And the written word of god proclaims men should be the head of the household. I’m not making any of this up, it’s fact.”
Her nostrils flared. “Well, I’m sure your science is laughable trash. And the ancient text you’re referring to also says men should have ten wives and two goats, each. We don’t even have goats on New Earth. Are you kidding me with this shit? I’m just as smart as any man at this table. And I’m going to work my ass off my whole life, taking care of business and my family. I don’t need a man to take care of me, I can take care of myself.”
Maksim crossed his arms. “You’re a disgusting freak of nature. Not even a real woman.”
Oh hell, no.
“Okay, that’s it,” Daniel hissed. “Maksim, you’re…”
Rage erupted and her vison blurred, narrowing into a crimson mist.
She stood, breaths bursting from her chest. “You are such a fucking asshole,” she exclaimed. She’d taken so much crap from Maksim this last week. All the snide comments and rolling of eyes. All the times he’d acted like she was a complete imbecile. The innumerable times he’d stared pointedly at her chest and ass, and this was compounded on every cutting or sexist remark some of the males back home had made to her since puberty.
Today…today she’d had enough.
Janet leapt from her seat, reached across the table and grabbed Maksim by the neck. He gurgled as she dragged him down to the table, her fingers digging into his throat. Dishes, cups and utensils crashed to the floor. She got on top of him and dug a knee into his chest.
“Take it back,” she snarled into his face. “Take. It. Back.”
2
Zhoryan found himself staring unnecessarily at a human. Normally, primitive species were beneath his notice, but something was happening across the room at the human table.
“We’re passing by it now. It’s a mystery,” Uryan remarked.
“Huh…what are we passing by?” Zhoryan asked, trying to keep up with the conversation swirling around him.
“We’re passing by some planet no one’s ever heard of.” Lysista, his second-in-command shrugged, picking at the food on her plate. “The crew dread this part of space, they wanted to chart a longer course around, but I forced them to overcome their fears and keep our bearing. There’s absolutely no need to waste time and power on ‘superstitions.’ We’re already behind schedule. We need to get the humans to Kolothan, and this ship to its scheduled maintenance on Omega Nine.”
Zhoryan grunted his agreement. “Does this place have a name?”
“The old space charts call it ‘Ship-Trap Planet,’” Uryan replied. “It’s a good name, isn’t it? Tells us all we need to know.”
“I heard that too. This planet supposedly traps space ships? Come on, how is that even possible?” Lysista chuckled, then lowered her voice, “But even Captain Hyzel, that tough old Margol, told me this place has an evil name among spacefaring crew.”
Zyoryan glanced back across the room in time to see a female stand, grab a human by the throat, and slam him onto the table. He chuckled. This morning had finally turned interesting. He watched as she pulled back a fist, ready to plow it into the male’s face. This female was fierce. Who was she? She looked familiar. “Who is that human?” he asked.
Uryan blinked with surprise. “Human? What human?” He twisted and glanced over his shoulder. “Oh, the female who sits with the humans?” He shrugged and went back to eating. “I keep forgetting we have humans on board. I don’t remember her name, but I was told her father is a Gravian Priest of ancient lineage. Must be why she’s dominating that weak male.”
“Why is a Gravian of such high standing sitting with humans?” Lysista asked. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“I guess she likes humans?” Uryan deadpanned.
Then they both burst out laughing. Zhoryan’s lips twitched too, because it was true, the idea of liking humans was comical. There was no order in their species; their range of pigment options was nonsensical. And they pleasure mated, which was disgusting. But Zhoryan was determined to keep humans safe from the Hurlians, because no matter how primitive they were, no species deserved to be caged and experimented on by those assholes.
He glanced back at the female again and a memory finally surfaced. “Aaah.” Now he remembered. She was Kayzon’s sister-in-law. Damn. He’d promised his friend he’d personally check on her safety. He needed to get on that.
“Zhoryan?” Uryan asked, wiping tears from his face. “Do you realize we’re only two diurnals out from Kolothan? Soon we can get rid of those humans and start our vacation.”
Zhoryan grinned. “Sounds great.” Hunting was his favorite sport. And lately it seemed he was becoming more of a diplomat than a Warlord, and a break from managing threats among warring factions of Margol on mining colonies sounded terrific. A good hunt would do well to take his mind off the minutiae.
“I’ve seen you pick off a marmal moving in the bush at four hundred nanco with nothing but a primitive bow and arrow,” Uryan, his cousin and partner in hunting, remarked. “I am planning on besting that score.”
“Zhoryan is the best hunter in the four sectors,” Lysista said, her tone laced with admiration.
Zhoryan frowned at her random statement. Lysista was a highly capable warrior and an excellent second, but she was often far too complimentary, and he did not suffer sycophants. Although he liked the fact that she never seemed to want to test compatibility with him and treated him simply as a mentor-warrior, which was a rarity.
“Zhoryan’s not the best hunter,” Uryan snorted. “I am easily his equal. And there are about ten others of varying species who are also his equal. And speaking of hunters, why didn’t Kayzon come hunting with us?” he asked. “He could’ve monitored the humans during this voyage and then continued on with us to the range. That would’ve been convenient.”
“Apparently his Bride is about to give birth to their second offspring.”
Uryan grimaced. “Mated pairings. Must be awful to be tied to another being so absolutely.”
“Right?” Lysista agreed, lifting her claws, so they could all examine her latest pair of brightly colored gloves of the unmated. She enjoyed collecting new pairs, which she bought while shopping at every station they passed through. “These stay on my claws at all times when I’m out and about. What if I were to accidentally brush claws with an unmated male and he turns out to be my mate? Hell no. I’d be tied to that warrior for life and instantly pregnant. No thank you! I know that moment is the dream of most females, but not me. My freedom is important.”
Zhoryan nodded in agreement. “I keep sets of gloves stored in my office, in my shuttle…wherever I might need to grab another pair. I’m thirty-five years old and I still have zero yearning for a Bride and offspring. I suspect I never will.”
“Oh, old warrior,” Uryan laughed as he stood from the table and picked up his tablet. “Who would want you as a mate anyway?”
Zhoryan snorted. “Didn’t you hear? I’m the most eligible bachelor in all the four sectors. Just check the celebrity vid channels, you’ll see. I don’t have a Bride for lack of offers, it’s because I’ve never wanted a mate. I’ve never asked a female to test with me, and I’ve never said yes to an offer.”
“Not once? I mean, I’ve even tried compatibility testing a few times out of cu
riosity…let the Manager of my line talk me into it before I finally put a stop to all that nonsense…”
Zhoryan shook his head. “No. I don’t want a Bride. I never want to let someone else have that kind of control over me.”
“Then you’ll never have offspring, ever.” Uryan reminded him. “And that’s okay with you?”
“Children are snot-nosed and bothersome. Raising children sounds like the lowest level of hell. I’ll leave the bearing of young to others who enjoy that kind of torture.”
Lysista shivered with exaggerated disgust. “Offspring… No thank you.”
Uryan shrugged. “Well, I admire you both for not inflicting your apathy on an unsuspecting mate. If you don’t want offspring, then don’t have any.”
Lysista gathered her things and stood next to Uryan. “But Zhoryan, here’s a thought. What if your Bride turns out to be human?” she remarked. “I’ve heard we’re mating compatible with that species.”
Zhoryan’s eyes widened with horror.
Lysista laughed out loud.
“No fear,” Uryan responsed with a twinkle in his eyes. “I’m sure you’ll remain pleasantly unmated until the day your body is reclaimed by the fires of eternity.”
Then they both left, chuckling at his discomfort.
And Zhoryan was alone.
He glanced across the room. The female was gone. He frowned, displeased with the idea of her being out of his visual range. He stood and left the mess hall, determined to complete his vow to Kayzon and finally check on her safety.
3
Janet started the walk of shame back to her quarters.
She rolled her shoulders and shook her fingers out. Okay, she’d totally lost her cool back there. Maybe…maybe she shouldn’t have attacked Maksim in the mess hall? After all, she’d been the one so intent on putting on a good show of decorum for the Xylan. And then she’d started a fight with Maksim, the one most likely to blow up.
A heavy sigh escaped her lips. Dammit, she hated it when her parents were right. Dad was worried this exact type of thing would happen, that she’d blurt out something outrageous and not keep her cool…
And he didn’t even know about the strength she’d been acquiring these last few months. She’d done her best to keep that hidden because if any of her family knew about her new-found power, there was no way they would’ve let her leave. She would’ve been stuck in some sort of boring Gravian training program, instead of here, on this mission to learn the exact type of science she was interested in. This mission to the University at Kolothan was a once in a lifetime opportunity and she had to take it.
Ugh. And yet she was messing it up and this mission might already be slipping through her fingers. Even Daniel had thrown her an accusing stare. Daniel, who she suspected had a bit of a crush on her.
“Leave,” he’d ordered, with a huff of disappointment. “Go to your room and cool down. We’ll talk later.”
“How did she do that? I can’t believe she took Maksim down,” Arnav whispered as she’d left. “She’s so small…”
Grr. She’d been so tired of Maksim’s shit she’d basically lost her mind. He’d been poking at her since their team met on Singapore.
As she’d left the mess hall, the Xylan in the vicinity had made eye contact with her, offering genuine smiles of encouragement. Not a frown anywhere to be seen. A few had even stood and given her a standing ovation, which was weird considering she thought she’d technically made a fool of herself, tossing Maksim to the table and knocking dishes to the floor.
Being half Gravian, she’d always felt different than her human peers, and Maksim had confirmed her worst fears, announcing she was a freak of nature and not even a real woman. And the next thing she knew she was on him, digging her fingers into his throat. And the moment he realized he couldn’t get her off, that she was actually much stronger than him…
“Help!” Maksim had screamed, clawing at her arm.
“Dude, stop playing around,” Arnav grumbled, obviously annoyed with his friend’s wimpy response. “Get her off of you.”
“I can’t,” Maksim gurgled.
“What’s going on?” Haruto questioned, his eyes flying between both Janet and the struggling former police officer—the six-foot-tall muscular male nearly double her weight who should’ve been able to easily throw her off.
She was the weak girl. The petite academic with her nose in her tablet, reading. Her eyes on an ecosystem. Head in the clouds. But instead she had the strongest of them pinned to the table. And she pulled back a fist…
“No,” Daniel shouted. He grabbed her arm. “Stop it, Janet. Let him go.”
She’d looked up and around the room, realizing where she was. Oh shit. What was she thinking?
She let go and Maksim rolled to his side, coughing and gasping for breath. Arnav and Haruto helped him stand on shaky legs. And Maksim’s final threat rang in her ears. “I’m sending back a complaint to New Earth Government,” he rasped. “I don’t care who your father is, you can’t just attack me. How can you possibly be that strong? There’s something wrong with you and I’m going to get you kicked off this mission if it’s the last thing I do.”
Oh hell. Her parents hadn’t wanted her to go, afraid for her safety so far away. This incident would be the only excuse they’d need to pull her back home. And going back was the last thing she wanted. Her older sister Kia was married to the Xylan Ambassador of New Earth and the model older sibling. Harmony was the youngest and cherished. Janet was the thorny rose people walked up to, pricked a finger on, and left behind.
She longed to be somewhere, with other beings where she could explore this strength that had been growing inside of her, bit by bit, these last few months, and especially the last two weeks. A place where she could be herself with no one telling her to whisper or calm down. She hadn’t even admitted her strength to her father and Kia yet. They thought of her as the daughter who was all human with no Gravian traits.
She stopped for a moment. Maybe she should try to talk to Daniel alone? Apologize. He’d been nothing but nice to her and then she blew up and embarrassed him in front of the others. Guilt washed through her mind. She paced in the hall back and forth, anxiety making her jittery and impatient. Would he want to see her, or would he be mad that she hadn’t gone to her room as he’d asked? Was he alone, or was Daniel chatting with the others? Were they all together talking about her, about how she had to be removed?
She turned around and swiftly started back towards the mess hall, determined to peek inside and see if Daniel had left yet. Time for some damage control.
And then she whipped around a corner and bumped into a wide chest. “Umph.” Janet tripped backwards and almost fell on her ass except at the last second two gloved claws gripped her upper arms and lifted her up.
“Oh wow, thanks, I almost…” Then she caught two familiar hazel eyes.
Holy crap.
Zhoryan of Eighty-Two. The Imperial Warlord of Sector One was holding her in the hallway. “Watch where you’re going,” he rumbled.
“I…”
He was so unbelievably handsome. Up close and in real life, he looked even better than he did on all the celebrity gossip vid channels. She couldn’t stop remembering how, two years ago, he’d swooped down to New Earth with the Imperial Fleet and kicked out the Hurlians. Zhoryan stood next to Kayzon’s Bounty Hunter ship and announced that her planet was free.
She lifted her chin to gaze at his full lips and that peek of sexy fang. He was so tall the top of her head barely reached his shoulders. Silky black and caramel braids swept back from his perfect face and hung down his back, almost to his waist. His proud features were accented by deep ridges that lined his forehead, embedded with threads of silver that glinted in the ambient light. His royal pigment was the darkest of any Xylan she’d ever seen.
Zhoryan was the best and brightest his species had to offer, and it was extremely intimidating.
He stared back, waiting for a response, but she w
as shocked into silence. She’d never been this close to him before, with all his attention focused on her. It was stunning. He was stunning.
The warlord finally let go and stepped back. “I am here to check on your health and safety,” he said. “I promised Kayzon…”
“Oh,” she swallowed. “Yeah, Kayzon.” He wasn’t there for her, he wanted to do right by his friend. Of course. Well, at least Zhoryan finally noticed she was on the ship. This was an improvement. It was just the worst possible moment for him to decide to check in.
“Are the humans bothering you?” he asked.
Oh jeez. “No…”
He crooked an eyebrow.
There was no way in hell she was going to discuss this with him. Someone as arrogant and powerful as Zhoryan would never understand her troubles. He’d run off to alert Kayzon, who would immediately tell her dad. And within one diurnal she’d be sent home.
Although Maksim was probably in the med bay right now getting his injury documented in order to expedite his report to New Earth government. Haruto and Arnav would be eager to bear witness. She might be going home anyway.
She shifted on her feet.
“I saw you in the mess hall. You attacked that—”
She bit back a groan. “You don’t even remember my name, do you?” she blurted out, deliberately changing the subject.
He stared at her unblinking, not even trying to deny her statement.
“Do you at least remember meeting me before?” she prodded.
A muscle ticked in his jaw.
Oh gods, not even that. He thought they were strangers and he was meeting her for the first time. Why was she digging herself deeper? She’d thought this man was the epitome of hero for saving her planet. And she wasn’t the only one. He was basically considered the most eligible bachelor in the four sectors. Females from a variety of species desired Xylan warriors because they didn’t rape and once a Xylan male bonded with his mate, that was it—no cheating, ever. And they were virgins up until the moment of their claiming. Lots and lots of females found this devotion appealing.
Zhoryan's Game Page 2