They turned toward her and Torque stepped closer then he sat on the bed. “It must be the chemicals. I’ve known him for years. He’s a wildcard but he’s never been that much of an ass.”
“He didn’t touch the chemicals,” Jaeda told him.
“He touched you. On the inside. He was exposed.”
“Are we all going to change?” Kirk asked. “Start acting differently?”
“Doubtful, otherwise we probably already would be. Though without Leila here to confirm, there’s no way to really tell what’s going on.” He looked up at Kirk. “It’s just you and I now.” He turned. “Are you all right to continue?” he asked her.
“What happens when he wakes up?” she asked.
“He’s not going to be happy. I think I broke his jaw or at least severely injured it.” He checked his sensor. “I can’t tell by these readings. It’s too close to call. But hopefully he’ll be back to his old self.”
“He’ll self-heal, right?” Kirk asked.
“Yeah. He’ll be fine.” He looked down at Grady. “Maybe he has some sort of genetic make-up that isn’t compatible with the serum. Once we get out of here, if we get out of here, I’ll have our med people look into it.”
Jaeda began squirming on the bed. She felt the fire reigniting inside her.
The sensor on Torque’s wrist beeped. He looked at the readout. “We need to continue.”
* * * * *
Nav-Control Ship FSMF-36, Earth’s Orbit
As she made her way down the corridor of the ship, Halah checked the weapon she’d confiscated. Fucking pain masters. They all had their brains in their balls. She hadn’t fought them when they’d led her away from Frost and into a private room. She’d simply waited. Then she’d floored them and left a message that would have the rest thinking twice about going up against her. She’d singed off their cocks and didn’t feel a moment of regret. Her electrical abilities remained strong enough to pull her out of a lot of shit when necessary.
She hadn’t been able to get in contact with anyone on Earth. Daegal must have taken out their satellite system. She needed to get down to the planet and try to find the others. She checked a layout of the ship posted on one of the walls. Their freight transportation area was down two floors. As she moved, she heard someone approaching. She froze then quickly ducked around a corner. They passed her by and disappeared into one of the lifts.
She needed to find a service ladder. It was the safest way to go. There should be one at the end of the corridor.
Maybe Earth and Xylon would get lucky and Frost and Daegal would end up destroying each other. A long shot but a compelling thought. The Egesa would be easily defeated without a strong and knowledgeable leader. She’d briefly thought about trying to find Frost and taking her out. But that would be a suicide mission and she wasn’t ready to die. Yet.
Kam was on his way. She knew he was. She felt it. Frost’s voice echoed in her head, “He’s coming to me, not you.” She pushed aside the words. He’d never serve Frost. He loved Xylon. He loved her. She intended to be alive when he got here.
“Frost’s lost her fucking mind.” The male voice grew louder as a group of people approached.
Halah crouched behind a service pod. The black structure should blend with her black uniform and hide her as long as they didn’t get too close.
“I never know who we’re supposed to be fighting,” another in the group said.
“It makes perfect sense to me,” a female piped in. “First she was fucked by the Xylons, then she was fucked by the Egesa and Daegal. It’s about time a woman took a place of command and—”
“But why did she help Earth and shoot down those d-orbs?” the second man asked. “How does that aid her cause?”
The question grabbed Halah’s attention as the three hesitated in the corridor. Frost was the one who shot down those orbs? Interesting.
“She was trying to shake up Daegal. That would be my guess,” the first man answered.
The woman responded, her voice fading as they moved on. “I heard that she might be trying to get back in good with Xylon’s leader.”
“Laszlo?” one of the men asked.
“No, Braden Koll.”
They continued down the corridor and soon Halah couldn’t hear them any longer. Interesting information if true. She emerged from hiding and headed toward the service ladder. She glanced around, then entered the tube and began the descent. With luck, she’d be able to go the entire way without encountering anyone.
When she reached the transport level, she jumped down from the ladder. The level looked deserted but she knew guards would be on duty as well as engineers. She unlocked the weapon she’d stolen from one of the pain masters.
“Hold up!” a harsh voice ordered from behind her.
Shit. She’d almost made it. Slowly she turned around. A guard eyed her suspiciously. She glanced around. Only one.
“Who are you? Let me see your authorization.”
At that moment an alarm sounded. They must have discovered her escape. The guard glanced toward a video panel on the wall. When he did, Halah brought the weapon up and shot him right in the chest. He’d be out for several hours.
She rushed toward the freight transport. There would be fewer guards and engineers since they’d expect her to try for the general transport area. She entered quickly and shot the two men on duty.
When she approached the control panel, she saw immediately that the engineering was a cross between Xylon, Egesa and Sunevian technology. Luckily she was skilled in all three and set the coordinates. She hopped into the chamber, slid the door closed and tried to calm her racing heart.
Chapter Eight
Planet Earth, State of Colorado, U.S.A.
Underground Tracking Facility
Torque firmly held his ground as Jaeda lunged, practically attacking him—her need was so great. He kissed her deeply as he massaged her warm flesh, touching her everywhere he could. He broke the kiss and twirled her around, pushing her down onto all fours on the bed. Even though she normally had the ability to shift to accommodate her circumstances, he still worried about taking her anally while her brainwaves were affected. But the act needed to be completed—the last required step of the initiation rite. And he couldn’t bring himself to allow Kirk to do it. “Give me the lubricant.”
Kirk handed him a tube with some sort of jelly-like substance inside that he’d said he found in a bag belonging to one of the women who worked there. Convenient. He’d never been a big believer in things that came about too easily but he wasn’t about to question this one.
Jaeda squirmed. “Please.”
Torque squeezed out some of the substance. He coated his cock and inserted some into Jaeda with his finger. Kirk paced behind him.
“What is wrong with you?” Torque asked. “You’re as antsy as a taccat surrounded by a pack of lefows.”
Kirk stopped and stared at him. “I have no idea what that means. But I am antsy. Do you think I’m being affected by the serum? I don’t feel right.”
“You’re fine.” Torque felt a jolt of concern and glanced down. Nothing registered on his wrist monitor. If something wasn’t right with the serum, everyone who’d been injected could be in danger. No point in letting Kirk think anything might be wrong though. It was too late to do anything about it, especially since they had no access to medical care. “Can you fuck her if I need you to?”
“I guess.”
That did not sound good. First Grady, now Kirk. Was he next? He needed to make sure Jaeda was protected and her brainwaves were not only stable, but permanently aligned, while he could. He grabbed her hips and slowly pushed the head of his cock into her ass. She moaned and pushed back against him, taking him just as easily as she had the first time. Even in her affected state, her body compensated for his size.
He groaned. He hadn’t been able to take a woman anally in years. This felt so fucking great, just like the first time he’d taken her this way. Torque glanced over his
shoulder at Kirk. The man’s heavy breathing was distracting. “Don’t stand behind me. It’s creepy.”
“Sorry.” He came around to the other side of the bed. His cock looked rock hard. Apparently whatever effects he was suffering hadn’t killed his sex drive. He began stroking himself as he stared at Jaeda.
Torque slid his cock deeper. He closed his eyes, reveling in the exquisite feeling. He began to move slowly, prolonging the pleasure. A groan from Kirk drew him out of the moment and he glanced to the side.
The man was stroking himself faster. Kirk stepped close to the bed and looked as if he wanted to touch Jaeda, but didn’t dare.
Jaeda whimpered. “I need to come. I’m on fire.”
Torque got up on the bed, kneeling behind her. He gradually pushed her down onto her stomach, going down with her and keeping his cock in her ass the entire time. Slowly he rolled them over and his cock plunged deep. They both groaned. His arm circled her waist, holding them together. He’d never been able to do this with a woman. His cock was too long and too thick. “Lick her clit,” he told Kirk, barely able to get the words out.
“Oh yeah.” Kirk released his cock. He pushed Jaeda’s thighs apart, until her legs draped widely over the top of Torque’s. He dropped to his knees at the end of the bed and ducked his head.
Jaeda moaned and Torque knew that’s when Kirk’s tongue touched her. She began undulating between them. Her breathing became rapid and she made a sound between a whimper and a moan as she came.
“Ah, ah, ah!”
She bucked atop his cock and reached for Kirk’s head. Her muscles tightened around his cock, causing him to come hard right along with her. “Fuck yeah!” Torque then heard a sound from Kirk and assumed that he came by his own hand.
“Argh!”
In that instant, all three of them coming together seemed to energize the room. Torque actually felt renewed and his thinking became more clear. Yes. He knew what they needed to do.
After they all collapsed, Torque shifted, extracting himself from Jaeda. He sat up on the side of the bed and a few moments passed before he stood and walked into the bathroom to clean himself up. The small towels were rough and uncomfortable on his skin. He wished for something softer for Jaeda.
He heard her and Kirk talking in soft tones. Kirk was a decent human being as far as he could tell. Still, he wanted the man gone. He felt strangely disconnected and needed some time alone with Jaeda to re-center himself. When he came out of the bathroom, he nudged Grady. Still out cold. He crouched down to make sure the man was breathing.
“Is he alive?” Jaeda asked.
“Yeah. He should have come to by now. I don’t know what the problem is.” Torque sat on the bed. He checked the brainwave sensor and nodded. “We won’t need you anymore, Kirk. How are you feeling?”
“I’m all right. Whatever was bothering me passed. I’ll just clean up and then give you two some privacy. I’ll check on communications and video to see if I can get anything. I’ll give you a report later.”
Jaeda touched Kirk’s arm. “Thanks.” She graced him with a small smile.
They both watched him enter the bathroom. When he shut the door behind him, Torque turned toward her. “How are you feeling?”
“Better. My brain doesn’t feel so scrambled anymore. Is the rite done?”
“Not quite. I still need to fuck you once more to make certain your brainwaves realign properly. But you’re stabilized now for the most part so we won’t need Kirk anymore.”
“I really wish you wouldn’t call it that.”
“What?”
“Fucking.”
He simply stared at her. Women confused the hell out of him sometimes. “You even called it that. What do you want me to call it?”
“I don’t know. I guess I’m just feeling like all of this is a bit impersonal.”
“I know you enjoyed it. You came. Several times.”
“Yes.” She let out a heavy sigh. “And Grady and Kirk barely needed to participate.”
“They did their parts. Sexual intensity and release have a big effect on the success of the ceremony and keep hormonal production from reaching levels that would cause the brain to overload. Or some such shit.”
“Well, what happens now?”
Torque moved beside her on the bed and reached his arm around her to draw her close. Maybe it would give her the comfort she apparently needed. “While we were fuck—” He shook his head. “Enjoying each other’s pussy and cock, I came up with a plan.”
“You were thinking of a plan while we were having sex? Torque!”
“What?” Why was she staring at him as if he was crazy? “I can multi-task.”
“Fuck.”
Torque pulled away and raised his hands in surrender. “I’m not even going to try to understand you. But I need you to listen to me.”
“Fine. What’s this plan?”
“We’ll need to work out the details later, but rescue isn’t coming anytime soon, it seems—especially since we can’t communicate with anyone—so we’re going to need to shift the balance of power. I hadn’t wanted to put you and Kirk in additional danger by implementing plans on our own but too much time has passed. We’re out of choices.”
“Kirk and I are ready to do whatever has to be done. You can count on that.” She waited but he didn’t elaborate. Finally she asked, “What do you think is happening on the outside? Do you really believe there’s hope?”
Torque didn’t know what to say to that. No one had come for them, which didn’t set well with him. Grady had come in alone, which meant his warriors were still out there. When he didn’t return, they should have come looking for him. Brianna and Sam should have heard about the facility being overrun and should have come looking for them. When he didn’t check in with Halah, she should have come looking for them. “I don’t know but I don’t intend to give up. As long as we’re alive, yes, I believe there’s hope.”
“You said that we need to shift the balance of power but you didn’t explain. How?”
“First we need to make certain that you’re completely out of danger. Then after Grady wakes up and we’re all together, we’ll discuss details.” He leaned forward and covered her mouth with his, kissing her as if for the last time.
* * * * *
Earth’s Orbit
Leila stood before Daegal. From the foot traffic going in and out of his quarters, it was obvious that he no longer cared about who saw him. To her, that meant he expected victory. His resemblance to Laszlo was remarkable. But then, they were brothers. Part of a triad. Like Alexa’s children. She was amazed at how long they’d all been able to keep the secret. She understood why Laszlo had kept the relationship a secret. She wasn’t as certain of Daegal’s motives. Trying to understand a madman seemed futile at best.
“You are Xylon’s senior healer,” he said to her.
An odd statement. “You know that.”
“Yes.” His eyes narrowed. “But why is their senior healer on Earth? How long have you been here?”
So he didn’t know that their group had just arrived. Was that possible or was he simply baiting her, trying to uncover more information? She remained silent.
“Your lone support ship has been destroyed. Did you know that?”
Her heart clenched. A lie. It had to be. She fought hard not to outwardly react. She clutched her hands together to prevent him from seeing her fingers tremble.
“Whoever else was with you in the tracking facility will soon be dead. What was your mission?”
“What do you care?” she finally asked. “You have taken the planet by force. All must comply to your wishes now. Correct?” She didn’t intend to give this monster any information. But he’d given her some. Her friends were still alive.
“Yes.” He smiled. “You are right.” He studied her for several moments. “I think I will make a present of you to my brother. He’s always been fascinated with you. Of course, so have I. Maybe we will share you.” He stepped forward
and reached out to touch her cheek.
Leila pulled back.
He chuckled then motioned a guard forward. “Take her to the holding facility. Strip her down.” His gaze locked with hers. “We will break you. And then, you will turn to our side, like so many others.”
An officer entered and whispered something in his ear. Daegal’s eyes narrowed. “Take her away,” he ordered then he turned toward the officer.
Before she could figure out what they were conversing about, she was dragged from the room. There was no way that she was going to allow herself to be Daegal’s prisoner. She’d die first. At least she’d accomplished her mission. There was still a chance to defeat the Egesa.
If Daegal was telling the truth, Halah was dead. She felt for Kam and Josella. They loved her. Not many trusted her. A time existed when even she didn’t care for Halah. Or trust her. But they’d made peace and Halah would be an asset missed in this war and beyond.
The guard pulled her down the corridor. He wasn’t a highbred assassin, only a lowly Egesa. Not even a soldier. Better for her. Strong, but of low intelligence. She just needed an opportunity. As they got closer to the holding area, her tension rose. Once locked away, her chance of escaping dropped dramatically. Her heart pounded in her chest as she tried to think.
Erik’s words came back to her. Don’t overthink the situation. She’d heard him say that numerous times to WAITs—warriors in training. She breathed deeply, slowing her heartbeat. Then she simply stopped, planting her feet apart for balance.
The Egesa stopped beside her and looked down at her curiously. He grunted and tugged her forward.
His strength was too much for her to counter, so she sagged to her knees, dropping her body weight. It was just enough to get him off balance. When he leaned over her, she shifted to her back and kicked his knee hard. He howled and started to tumble, first backward then toward her as he tried to rebalance. Using his forward momentum, she reached for his belt and flipped him over onto his back. She scrambled for the disruptor on his side and swung the weapon toward him. They’d confiscated her scatter ray when they’d captured her. Armed again, her confidence rose. When she saw that the guard had hit his head and was out cold, she refrained from shooting him. The noise would bring others.
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