by SJ Sanders
With a deafening roar Vidok slammed into Ividak, sending the latter male flying into the wall.
“Vidok!” Sara called out in relief. Her mate’s head jerked around to her, his nostrils flaring. With ground-eating speed he was at her side, concern filling his eyes as he stroked her face, examining the marks ripped into her cheek. His tail curled protectively around her and he drew her up firmly against him.
Sara just wanted to sink in relief into the body of her mate as she breathed in his musk. His familiar scent was like a balm to her soul. Her eyes flickered to the side just in time to notice Ividak stumbling back onto his feet. Her heart tightened in fear at the venomous look he directed at her mate. Sara shouted out in alarm, shoving at Vidok’s arm. She tried desperately to get around him to protect her mate’s exposed back.
***
Vidok had thought A’Jular was crazy to set down directly on top of the laboratory. He not only thought it was dubious if the building would even hold the weight of the ship, it also took him away from the previous entrance that the VaDorok had carved out. How did A’Jular expect Vidok to enter from the roof without wasting a lot of time? When he voiced his opinion, the other male had just laughed and informed him that he would thank him later. With one blast from the ship’s defense weapons, Vidok was provided an entry point. He ignored the Edoka’s smirk as he dropped himself directly into it.
He landed heavily in a corridor. He worried briefly about being able to find his mate in time, that was until he drew in the musk of his female. She was close, just there in the room at the end of the hall. Vidok grudgingly recognized he was, in fact, going to have to thank A’Jular now. Clenching his bitriate lance firmly in his hand, Vidok raced to the doorway, his heart beating out need for his mate.
Vidok acted instinctively when the door slid open, and he saw the traitor Merlor near Sara. With a roar of anger, Vidok heaved his spear in deadly intent. Through the haze of his anger he was aware of when it hit its target and buried itself, with the full force of his rage, deep within the body of the other male. Part of him felt a twinge of sorrow to kill a member of his tribe, never before had he slain another VaDorok, yet he couldn’t bring himself to regret ending the life of the pitiful male before him.
Without even slowing his pace, Vidok changed course and struck the Agraak. He observed with pleasure the male striking the wall with a sharp crack. Tail whipping with his agitation, Vidok tilted his ears towards his mate, catching her pained sigh. Within steps he was by her side, his entire body tuned to hers. His tail wound around her simultaneously with his arms in attempt to guard and provide comfort as she shuddered in his grasp.
When he saw the blood dripping down her cheek from the scratches marring her skin, Vidok wanted to kill his rivals all over again. He settled instead into a rattling purr, hugging Sara tightly to him, relieved to have her again in his arms. The hand of the gods, and A’Jular’s harrowing flying skills, brought him here on time. He nuzzled her as she sobbed and clung to him.
His ear turned towards a sound behind him and his body tensed as he felt his mate stiffen and shove at him. She shouted out and tried to get around him. Vidok wouldn’t allow that. He tightened his grip on Sara and pushed her behind him as he turned to face his attacker. Vidok snarled, his ears laying back and tail stiffening, as he faced the threat to his mate.
A beam shot out, striking the Agraak male in the head. The male stumbled forward and fell, his eyes staring out sightlessly. A’Jular smirked lethally from the door, a small weapon gripped in his hand. His spines were raised in blood-lust but he otherwise appeared relaxed as he leaned against the doorway.
“I was thinking--” he began.
“Dangerous activity there,” Sara sniped playfully, quickly recovering from her shock as they walked to the door.
A’Jular grinned widely, but continued as if she had not interrupted, “--for my marvelous deed of daring and rescue that a gift of a fine alpak fur is just the thing to show gratitude and thanks.”
Sara laughed. She stood on her toes and kissed the male on the cheek. Vidok rumbled a growl at her and pulled her back against him, but he had to smirk himself as the look on the male’s face changed to one of surprise. Vidok didn’t think he had ever seen that look on the Edoka’s face before.
Vidok grinned and slapped the male on the arm, taking care that the spines were once again lowered first. “You shall have three alpak furs to take back with you to Edokora,” he laughed out. “One from me, one from my mate and one from my younglings, to thank you for what you have done for all of us.”
A’Jular’s cocky grin returned, though his dark eyes seemed to soften as he momentarily looked back at Sara, “Sounds like a fair exchange then. Be careful not to loose her again Vidok, Edokora is far away to travel for a rescue mission and I may not be nearby next time. I have taken the liberty of informing the Intergalactic Council of what has happened and they are sending a team to deal with the mess and investigate further. They had already selected a team to come tear the lab apart but this just accelerated things for them.”
Vidok snorted and glared at the male. With a shake of his head, he turned his attention back to Sara just as she gripped his arm.
“Vidok, Ita--” she rasped.
“Has been taken care,” he interjected smoothly. “A’Jular heard everything from the communications between the laboratory and Agraadax. That female has been banished from our tribe and will never hurt you again ulukska.”
“And the babies?” Sara worried at her bottom lip with her teeth.
“Our younglings are safe with Nadar, waiting for their mother to be returned with them.” he reassured his mate.
“Thank the gods,” Sara’s shoulders sagged in relief.
Vidok lifted her off her feet and hugged her to him as they headed back to the ship.
“You know, I can walk,” she observed, her eyebrow arching at him.
“You certainly are able,” Vidok agreed. “But it seems that I won’t be comfortable letting you out of my sight for at least the next moon cycle...maybe a sun cycle.”
Sara rolled her eyes, “Vidok that is entirely impractical. I am not having you wrap me up like a--”
Vidok leaned forward and snagged his mate’s lips with his own, his tongue probing the sweetness of her mouth. It was, in fact, the best way to silence his mate. Her argument forgotten, Sara wound her arms around his neck and enthusiastically returned the kiss. A’Jular reminded them of his presence with an entertained chuckle.
***
Sara smiled in contentment as she snuggled VaAbora to her shoulder. She had worried that her babies would not recognize her after a week absent, but it turned out that Vidok was right--she worried for no reason. The minute her babies smelled the scent of her body and the mother’s milk that had painfully filled her breasts all week--only relieved by embarrassing sessions of squeezing in front of Merlor--they began to wiggle and mewl for her. Days later it seemed like they were all back to their comfortable usual routine, with frequent visits with Borax and Nadar, and their younglings.
A’Jular had long gone, with a pile of alpak furs that Vidok had unpacked from a large chest and generously bestowed upon the male. It was more than the three he had offered, but A’Jular didn’t complain. In fact, he beamed and said that the nicest of them he would keep for his own nest for when he eventually found a mate of his own for his clannid. Sara wished him well. Earth wasn’t going to make it easy on species such as the Edoka. Though, in all fairness, Earth wasn’t bound to be particular generous in any of their dealings with the other species. The Mating Index just went live over the Intergalactic Intraweb and from what Sara saw of it she was not particularly happy with it. The fees they were charging were extortion.
Her ability to browse the Intergalactic Intraweb was all thanks to A’Jular. Before he left, A’Jular set her up not with a writing tablet to record her observations of life with the VaDorok as she wanted, but he also installed a comm system in their living area. For ‘ju
“I don’t like this,” she scowled at the comm screen as she planted a kiss on her babies spiky brow.
“What is wrong ulukska?” Vidok queried as he came up behind her holding VaUdol.
Sara threw her hand toward the screen where she had pulled up the Mating Index homepage. “Just look at all these terms and conditions. And the fees! Thousands of credits to buy a mate. That is what it is. This isn’t a modest processing fee and transportation. Especially since mates will be put on trade vessels leaving Earth and not private charters. No, this is ridiculously expensive. How is this going to help any except the richest among the species out there?”
Vidok frowned, “Is the Intergalactic Council aware of this?”
“I don’t know how they could not be,” she huffed. “But they did pretty much gave Earth a free pass to run things the way they wanted on their own planet without restriction. All this is going to do is piss off other species and make them desperate enough to try to steal mates from the planet surface. All I can see is this causing huge problems for the future.”
Sara’s attention was caught be a tiny box light up for an incoming comm. With a touch on the screen the box opened up and filled the screen with the cheerful face of a light blue Edoka.
“E’budar! How are you? Have you seen the monstrosity that is the Mating Index Earth put out?”
E’budar wiggled his claws at VaAbora and then refocused on Sara with an amused smile. “Hello dear little Sara! I was just looking at it now. Sha’melor, in fact, was just here giving me his low opinion on it.”
Sara snorted, “E’budar, what they are doing is extortion.”
“Hey, that’s what he said,” E’budar chuckled.
“Something has to be done about it though,” she said with a scowl. Really that male could never be serious.
The Edoka shrugged unconcerned. “Well the Index doesn’t really technically affect us, though Sha’melor hit the roof--I said that right yes?--when I told him what the hunt fees are for finding one’s mate the natural way on Earth. Did you get to that part?”
“Wait a minute,” Sara typed ‘hunt’ in the search box and her jaw dropped. “This is just..I can’t believe...how are they getting away with that?”
E’budar laughed at the gaping fury on her face “Easily I’m afraid. But no worries little human. Sha’melor, after letting loose a string of profanities, that I frankly did not think he had in him, left to make an official complaint to the Intergalactic Council.”
He leaned forward, frowning slightly before his expression cleared and turned into a smirk. “I will have to talk to you later Sara. I have a comm coming through from A’Jular. Sha’melor must have commed him to tell him he was not, under any terms, to pay such exorbitant fees for a hunt.” He snickered and the comm box disappeared from the screen.
Vidok grunted, not enthused his mate was talking to other males through comms, which made Sara giggled and kissed her sulky mate.
“Let’s get the little ones to bed ulukski, and I will demonstrate the depth of my love and passion for you.” she whispered huskily into his ear.
Vidok visibly perked, his tail curling up around her, and his ears leaning towards her with interest. He may not enjoy her chats with the Edoka brothers, but he knew to whom her heart and devotion belonged. She knew very well that his growls and grumbles were largely for show.
Sara gently tugged his tail and she kissed him again, her tongue gliding playfully against his as his purr stuttered into a growl of need. Yes, that was the sound she much preferred over his grumpy growls, despite how entertaining the latter were. He gripped her tightly with his free hand to deepen the kiss when VaUdol,--who had started into what Sara called his monkey phase of the VaDorok’s natural accelerated development, and was currently perched clinging to Vidok’s shoulder-- chose that moment to spit up all down his father’s chest as his little tail thwacked him in the face.
Sara laughed as she broke away from the kiss, bouncing a sleepy VaAbora and watched her mate pry his son from his fur as he searched for a cloth to clean himself up. She grinned at her family. Being bought by the Agraak had ultimately done her a huge favor. Who knew? She should write a thank you letter. This was all hers now.
Authors Note
Thank you so much for reading Sara and Vidok’s story. I had played around for some time with an idea of a future, after alien contact, where Earth used genetic compatibility of their citizens to turn it into an economic drive for the planet. I started one story but set it aside, deciding to start at the beginning of how it all began with “The VaDorok.” Although my vision of alien species does include more humanoid ones, I really wanted to play with the idea of species that were somewhat humanoid, but a significant departure. From there I came up with the species VaDorok, the Agraak, the Vori and the Edoka. As well as making sideline mentioning of other species that may come up in later books.
While some series focus on a particular species or place, I wanted to focus more on the experience of the human species “out there” in the cosmos. So rather than make ten books about Sara and her friends on Dorok, I will likely not revisit Dorok, except perhaps to write a short story at some point about Trish and Ladox, just because they were such a fun pair to write.
Although I was tempted to go high tech alien species in this book, I decided to make a sweeter, slower paced story with the VaDorok species. The brutal climate of Dorok just gradually revealed the VaDorok people to me as a very large and elemental people. Not adverse to technology but not really a part of that world socially or it terms of their day to day survival. I alluded to how they fitted into a more intergalactic picture, but really didn’t want to spend too much time on that. It does give the possibility of making cameo appearance of the species as warriors in other books down the line.
As you can probably tell, the next book up will be “The Edoka.” The brothers will find their unexpected mate in a pretty unorthodox situation. In direct contrast to the more simple lifestyles of the VaDorok, the Edoka are a more “civilized” (despite being a generally over protective and aggressive people) and high tech species. For them I decided to throw a curve ball among them with a stow-away female who is barely tech-literate, compassionate and artistic.
I hope you stay tuned and enjoy the books to come!
You can contact me by email at [email protected]
Or follow me on facebook at www.facebook.com/authorsjsanders
Thanks for Reading!
S.J. Sanders
-->