by Laynie Bynum
I didn’t have to turn around to feel his energy. His energy had turned from soft and understanding to strong and insistent.
“Yes, let’s focus on getting Miyoshi free.” I turned to him when I didn’t hear him move in front of us. “Can you free him?”
I stepped in front of them and lifted the gun and shot two shots at the lock. Placing the gun in the holster, I swung the door open.
“Elon made a deal with the Zetherians to aid them in the destruction of Teletera in exchange for assistance in his conquering the Drimteck,” said Uriah.
If Elon destroys the planets of Teletera and Drimnian, then the mages will have a significant foothold in the galaxy.
I spoke into the neurocom. “We’re headed to the third floor now.”
Both ladies turned to me with curious gazes, but their attention turned to the cell when a soft grunt escaped the man.
“Boy, am I glad to see you,” said Miyoshi. He stepped from the cell and hugged Nakatomi.
He turned around, surprise in his gaze, and dropped to his knees. “Princess Miho, I am so sorry you had to come here. I am unworthy of your taking suck a risk,” said Miyoshi.
My brows furrowed.
She’s a princess. He barely moved quickly, but he was quick enough to drop to his knees.
Her cheeks turned red. “Get up. If I want you on your knees, I will let you know.”
“She can beat the crap out of you later. We need to go to Elon’s cell,” said Nakatomi.
I ran down the hallway and up the stairs. When I reached the top of the stairs, a spray of bullets shot past my head. Ducking low, I fired several shots from my proton laser gun. One bullet hit the mage several feet away in the head, and the other hit the mage who had fired at me.
I reached behind me and pulled out a proton laser blaster, taking the safety off it before handing it over to her. “You guys need to stay down there. It’s too dangerous up here for you.”
She shook her head. “No.” She pointed the gun in front of her and moved past me. Quickly, I reached her side and shoved her behind my back.
An alarm rang out and the lights started to flash. The narrow window we had was now gone. Every guard in this building would be on us soon, and reinforcements would be called if we lingered here too long. Rushing to the end of the hallway, two mages stepped out from the dark alcove, both sending orbs of power hurling toward me.
The energy blasts hit my armor, knocking me off my feet, and I rolled backward, grabbing my throwing knife from its sheath and tossing it at the taller mage. It struck him in the forehead, and he fell to the floor. The mage sent another orb of energy past me toward Nakatomi, and Miyoshi pushed her down. Whirling his hands in a circular motion, he caught the orb and sent it back to the mage.
I shot the lock of the cell. Kicking the door open, a swift movement had me nearly dodging to the right as an orb of energy came sailing out of the cell. The cell was dark, and I couldn’t see Elon, just his eyes. He closed his eyes and everything went dark. Closing my eyes, I used my senses to determine where he was. Like a blur of light, he came at me, and I ducked, rolling forward, tossing my dagger behind me. A grunt of pain and the smell of blood were the only indications that I had hit him.
I stood and drew both of my swords. A powerful force swept over me and I was unable to move. The grip on my swords faltered as the force pried my fingers from my swords and forced me to my knees. Concentrating, I moved my swords away from me and slid them out of the cell. I heard her gasp out in the hallway, and then I felt her presence.
Run! Now! Leave this cell and run as fast as you can away from here.
She threw something at Elon and he grunted. The smell of blood scented the air once again, and then he tossed a syringe to the ground.
“What did you just inject me with?” asked Elon. He ran toward her, but she raised her hand and sent him flying. His body broke through the open metal cell doors.
She placed her hand on my chest, and the power that held me paralyzed was lifted.
We rushed out the cell doors, but Elon was nowhere in sight. I listened and heard several footsteps on the bottom level. It sounded like there was a small army heading toward us.
“We have to go. The mages have Elon and they have called for backup,” said Miyoshi.
Taking the lead, I ran toward the stairs. Bending my head, I spoke into the neurocom. “We’re on the third floor. We have a small army headed our way.”
“Uriah and I are handling them now. We’ve got you covered. Come on down,” said Zvika.
Looking back at them, I passed one fallen mage and grabbed his two plasma guns. I handed one to the girl and the other to the guy.
I glanced at her and noticed she had her gun in her hand. “Point, aim, and fire. Stay behind me if you can.”
She nodded briefly, and I rushed ahead, taking the stairs two at a time. Jumping down the rest of the way to the second floor, I saw that Zvika and Uriah were engaged in a gunfight. Grabbing the two women, I pushed them ahead of me while I fired on the mages who were rushing up from the basement level.
Turning around, I spotted her. She had frozen in place and ushered her friend and the guy in front of her. He looked like he was arguing with her, but she pushed him in front of her anyway. My breath caught as her eyes grew as large as dinner plates as she stared past me.
“There are too many. We need to retreat.” I fired several blasts from my proton laser gun, covering Uriah and Zvika as they caught up to me. They ran past me as I turned to fire several more shots killing two more mages.
The remaining ten mages formed a circle and started chanting something in a monotone. Elon flew up from the basement and landed in the middle of the circle. In his hands, he whirled a gigantic silver orb of energy, its power emitting scorching heat.
Firing several shots, I turned to run up the stairs, but my body wouldn’t move. Elon was controlling my body again. He turned me to face him. My heart slammed in my chest as I realized that I was about to die and I didn’t know if she would make it out alive.
I spoke into the neurocom. “Get them out at all cost. Now.”
He brought me to my knees. His gaze shot to the staircase, and then the woman screamed as he made a fist, crumbling the stairs. I heard them falling. Focusing on them, I allowed my energy to wrap around them. I sent Zvika and Uriah up to the door to the mountain. I latched on to the guy and sent him up next while I still held on tightly to the woman.
Blood squirted from my mouth as I felt the mages applying pressure to my chest, and then they cut off my air. Nakatomi had reached the door that led outside the mountain. I lifted the woman up to the door outside the mountain.
“No, he is killing him. Let me go,” she said.
I faintly heard her struggling against my men. Her worry for me was beautiful. My vision started to blur, and my chest ached as my lungs felt like they would burst like balloons.
Go with them. I will meet you. Go now.
Elon separated from the mages. His right hand still balled into a fist, he walked toward me.
I never got her name. I wonder what her name is.
Wham. She jumped down and landed in front of me.
My name is Koyama Miho.
She touched my cheek. Raw power radiated through me, and I was able to stand. She narrowed her eyes at Elon and the group of mages. Her eyes turned from blue to a stormy emerald green, and she arched her back and screamed. The walls started to cave. Elon ran toward us.
She lifted her hand toward me, and I was lifted off the ground. I grabbed her hand, taking her with me. She tried to get out of my grasp.
“I’m not leaving you here, just like you didn’t leave me.” I held tightly to her arm, wrapping her body against mine and trying to shield her from Elon’s attack.
“That is not your decision to make.”
When we reached the outside door, I placed her on her feet.
Her face was flushed and her fists were balled up at her sides. “Do you know what yo
u’ve done? I came here for him, and you let him get away.”
She was magnificent in her anger. Her pale skin vibrated with color and she radiated vitality.
“Koyama, I couldn’t just leave you there. It was eleven against one and they are very powerful mages. I’m not sure what Elon is, but he isn’t to be underestimated.”
Miyoshi stepped forward, pushing Azrael and Uriah out of his way. “She is Queen Miho to you. Who do you think you are, addressing the queen so personally?” asked Miyoshi.
My eyes narrowed at him. “I am her Ocilian, and I’ll address her any damn way I want to.” I stepped toward this man, intending to beat the crap out of him, when I felt her hand on my arm.
“You will not touch him.” She turned away from me to look at him.
“Miyoshi, I am not ready to be addressed as queen just yet. Please stop antagonizing him. I can sense that he wants to tear you limb from limb.”
I shook my head, losing patience. “You sense it. Can you not see it?”
Miyoshi huffed. “There must be some mistake. He can’t be your Ocilian. Qiaris the goddess wouldn’t be so cruel. He’s supposed to be your one-in-a-billion soulmate. He doesn’t even know.”
My eyes narrowed. “Disrespect me again and we will fight to the death.”
She shrugged. “He’s Drokninian, so he doesn’t know. I’m sure I don’t know everything there is to know about him.”
“What don’t I know?” I growled.
“I am blind. I do see, but not through the gift of sight. I see energy, shades, and vibrations.”
We boarded the ship. We were away from the prison but we still hadn’t left the planet. We were hovering over the city of Frantuch, where we were supposed to meet Aarav, to supply the fuel we needed to make the long trip. Everyone was quiet and so was I. I didn’t like the fact that Koyama was quiet. She was seething with anger. I could feel how turbulent her emotions were, and I didn’t want the bond begun that way.
I guess there’s no time like the present to talk with Uriah.
Getting up from my seat, I set my glass of water down. “Uriah, meet me in the command room.”
I headed toward the command room. I could feel Koyama’s anger, and I didn’t want to see the hurt that would be in her eyes, so I passed her without looking at her. Entering the command room, I sank down in my leather reclining chair behind my desk.
Koyama looks human, but she possesses the power of the goddess Qiaris. She was blind since birth, and she’s my Ocilian. She must be a Kravonesh from Teletera.
Closing my eyes, I leaned back and searched through my memories for what I knew about the planet of Teletera. It was a planet that depended on the strongest Kravonesh to protect them and their planet, even if they had to die doing so.
My eyes popped open.
Koyama had made a stand back there when she faced off with Elon. She’d attempted to send me to safety while she made her final stand. Had she known that the mages were powerful?
The bond between two Ocilians was the strongest bond one could have. The bond was for life, as ordained by the goddess herself. As with any normal relationship, through each interaction, touch, sharing of the minds, and the passage of time, the bond would grow stronger and stronger. It was a once in a lifetime gift from the goddess, something to be cherished until death. With the Drokninian race dying out from our females being infertile or only reproducing male offspring, a family was something I had never considered.
There were some drawbacks to the Ocilian bond. Having a mate was a weakness that any enemy would seek to exploit. Someone had tried to kill my men and me on the planet of Wondark. It was now more critical than ever that I get to the bottom of what happened.
Uriah walked inside the command room, shutting the door behind him. He sat down in the chair.
“Uriah, your true mate was here all along right in front of you. Why do you fight it? You love Jaliyah.”
“I don’t deserve her. Loving her will weaken us both. It’s for the best that she never knows how I feel.”
Chapter Five
Koyama
I
felt Amitai pass me. I was still upset that Elon was right there in my grasp and that he made me run away from him. I had good reason not to let him die. He doesn’t know what I am capable of and feared for my life. The combined strength of those mages with Elon might have been just as powerful as I was. Elon seemed to be very resourceful and cunning. He was proving to be a hard man to kill.
We still hadn’t left Nisiea, which was a good thing. If I could find Elon and finish him, all might not be lost. I wasn’t sure how I would find him now. Elon had allies on this planet and fighting him on his turf wasn’t a good idea. My temples started aching and I massaged them, making small circles, trying to relieve a bit of the pressure.
Miyoshi sat across from Nakatomi, sipping some Gugoro drink. “Are we going to address the elephant in the room? You are the only person I know who goes to prison and meets their soulmate.”
Nakatomi burst out laughing. Her loud voice echoed off the ship’s walls. “Koya, he does have a point. You met him in prison, of all places. We can’t take you anywhere.” She doubled over, laughing harder.
A fruity smell drifted to my nose, causing my mouth to water. I needed sustenance. A hard knot formed in my lower belly.
“I don’t see what’s so funny. Besides, I can’t wait for the day when you fall head over heels for someone, Naka.” I leaned back in my seat. I could feel my face heating, and I ignored the blush that crept over it.
“Elon was very powerful. I didn’t think he would be a challenge, but he seems to have friends in high places,” said Miyoshi.
A door opened and heavy footsteps headed toward us. Nakatomi and Miyoshi grew quiet, and butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
Wham! The warcraft lurched to the side and an alarm went off.
He bent toward me, and then his hands were caressing my face. “Are you all right? Stay down.”
My mouth fell open. His touch sent warmth traveling through all of my nerve endings. I felt that I would combust internally. “I’m fine.”
“You sure are.” He rushed toward the control room. “Talk to me, Jaliyah.”
Bending my head, I relived the memory of his hands on my face. It was the most sensual thing that had ever happened to me. I had never felt energy like that before.
When Chalen touched me, it was nice, but it never felt like this. I’ve never felt like this. Whatever was going on between us, I could still feel him in my mind.
“Are Drokninians always so blunt?” asked Nakatomi.
The warrior who had slain most of the prison guards sat down. “We are not a race that wastes words. We mean what we say and say what we mean,” he said.
Nakatomi stared at him. “What is your name?”
The dark warrior lifted his eyebrow. “My name is Zvika.”
“Just Zvika. You don’t have a last name?”
He shrugged. “Do you have a last name? You don’t have a need to know my last name.”
Miyoshi chuckled then coughed to cover it up.
Nakatomi jumped to her feet and bent low so her face was close to his. “Zvika, do you presume to know what I need?”
He moved like the wind. One minute, she was towering over him with her face inches from his, and the next, Nakatomi was up against the wall, her back pressed against the side of the cargo containment.
Zvika pressed his lean, muscular body against hers. “Kravoneshian, before you issue a challenge, make sure you can back it up.”
The energy radiating from Zvika was full of passion, curiosity, and admiration. He held her for a few minutes more, then he stepped aside and resumed sitting.
Nakatomi walked back to her seat muttering something underneath her breath. “Dang Drokninian. Arrogant aliens.”
Drokninian aliens were stubborn and accustomed to getting their way. Nakatomi had better be careful flying so close to that flame.
He walked out o
f the command room. I could feel his presence and he came and sat next to me. “We are flying into the city to meet with Declan. He has some information he swears I will be interested in, and he can locate Elon.”
Nakatomi frowned. “Koya, I thought you shot him with the TraceBio. If so, why can’t we track him ourselves?”
“I did, but we don’t have the equipment at our disposal to track him right now.”
He turned to me and grabbed my hand. “TraceBio is old technology. I have the capability to track it on the ship.”
He stood up and held out his hand. “Come with me. We will track him now.”
I placed my hand in his and followed him. We entered another room, probably the command room, which was a bit chilly to keep the various equipment temperatures controlled.
I heard him walk over to the left-hand side, and I angled my body to the left. “What is your name?”
“My name is Amitai Palacheck. Would you like to feel me?”
I stopped breathing. My heart hammered in my chest as a wave of hot arousal washed over me. His thoughts were scandalous.
“What?”
He stood and crossed toward me in two strides and put his hands around my waist. He lifted me into a chair. It was surprisingly comfortable and wide. His passionate aura washed over me, and I felt his feelings mingling with my own. Closing my eyes, I tried to take a steady breath.
He placed my hands on his face. “I want you to see me. Explore me and know what I look like.”
Getting to my feet, my head bumped his pectoral muscle. He stood so close to me. My fingertips grazed his forehead and traced the hard lines of his jaw, the wide depth of his nose, and his full lips. I ran my fingers through his long hair. When I touched the top of his head, I felt thick horns.
My hands drifted lower over his thick neck muscles and down his chest. His chest felt like muscles carved in bone. I could feel the strength he had swelling and moving under my hands.
My lips curved. “Is your skin blue? It feels soft like satin and thick like velvet.”
“My skin is pale blue in color.”