by Nia Mars
Tiam gives me a sympathetic smile. “We have found no trace of gas or any explosive element.”
I’m not ready to give in. “The way the pirates were killed... The explosion in my room was much bigger than the one on the pirate ship. If that power is mine, and I unleashed the same power on the pirate ship, the ship would have been blown to pieces.”
“Something happened to you between those two events,” Uthan tells me, and waits for me to figure it out on my own.
I wrack my brain. “Tib?”
He nods. “You had an...encounter with a lesser spirit. It brought your power out, so when you called it forth the second time around, the power was much stronger.”
“I didn’t call anything forth!”
“Your distress and grief did.”
I look from man to man as I try to accept this. None of them shows a single doubt on his face.
My insides turn cold. “So, today, I could have blown up the Onyx Tower?”
Uthan hesitates before he answers. “If I’m right about how powerful you are, you could have blown up the planet.”
Stunned silence in the pod. I suspect even the other kreks didn’t expect this.
“A warning would have been nice, before we went in,” Roax says in a mild tone. “In case her control slipped completely.”
Uthan shrugs. “If they took her away from us, would you have wanted to live?”
None of the others protest.
“I didn’t want to say anything until I knew more, until I was sure,” Uthan says to me, his expression apologetic. “But then I saw in Senator Wortly’s eyes that he was going to proclaim you an impostor on the spot.” Uthan turns to the others. “She would have been immediately removed for expatriation. We would never have seen her again.” He rubs his face with his free hand. “I felt her panic, and I may have panicked a little. I might have pushed her.”
He took me to his island and pushed me over the edge on purpose, made me think that all was lost, that I would lose the kreks. I don’t even know what to say, so I just glare at him.
Tiam punches him on the shoulder. “I’m glad you did what you did.”
“I’m soooo pleased that everybody’s pleased,” I snap at him. “Meanwhile, I’m a freaking freak! What if I kill everybody in a fit of anger?”
“You won’t,” Roax says in that indisputable tone. “You are going to learn how to control your power.”
“It will be easier when you’re connected to all five of us.” Uthan pats my hand. “We’ll balance you out a little.”
I’m so overwhelmed, I can’t even think about forming more connections, not in the next decade. I pull my hands away to bury my head in them. “Have other Oath Forgers had the same power in the past?”
“No,” Uthan tells me. “Not this particular power, and nothing ever this strong. Most Oath Forger’s powers were in line with the powers of her kreks.”
Dason slips to the floor of the pod to sit at my feet, and lays his head against my knee, ignoring when the other men bristle.
I should feel crowded, but instead, he makes me feel grounded.
I drop my hands onto my lap, my head against the headrest behind me, and close my eyes, shutting out The Five. I need a moment here. My brain can’t catch up with all that has happened today. Not to mention the rest of this week. Since the pirates took me from Earth, really.
I seriously need a freaking break.
When the pod stops, the men get out. Tiam reaches back to lift me out and carry me to my quarters.
I push past him. “I’ll walk.”
I need to get my feet back under me again. I need to take control, or I’m going to fall apart. And if I fall apart, I might just blow up the planet and everyone on it. No pressure.
We walk to my quarters in somber silence, together.
“Can we make my quarters bomb proof?” I ask once we’re inside and the door is closed behind us. “Then I can just stay inside and never leave.”
“It’s not going to be necessary, Ava Mine,” Roax promises.
I look at Tiam, the nerd. If anyone can come up with some technological solution, it’s him. He gives a pained smile. “I can think of nothing capable of containing your power, my Ava. You almost brought down the Onyx Tower.”
I stop in the sitting room, because beyond the fact that I’m a weapon of mass destruction, there’s still the fact that I accepted Koah this afternoon, and I know the others have strong feelings about that. We shouldn’t be in the bedroom together. God, I feel like I’m spending half my life lately steering men away from my bed.
Okay, I’m not really complaining. It’s not the worst problem a girl could have. Especially, considering the men in question.
We sit on the weird bean-bag couches. Dason sits at my feet, leaning against my leg, loosely curling his fingers around my calf. He looks up at me with complete acceptance and adoration. He throws no guilt trips, issues no demands. He has a simple, loving energy that’s a balm to my soul.
I lean forward and press a kiss to the top of his head. “Thank you, Dason.”
Uncomplicated joy lights up his handsome face. “For what, Oath Forger?”
“For being you. For being my friend.”
His smile reaches all the way to my heart. When I smile back, he lays his head on my knee, the picture of contentment.
On the couch across from mine, Roax opens his mouth, no doubt to say something scathing or mocking.
I narrow my eyes at him. “Don’t.”
He closes his mouth.
The others stare.
I ordered Roax. And Roax obeyed. Have we crossed over into an alternate universe? And if so, dare I hope that life will be a little more simple in this one?
Dason’s muscular shoulder moves against me. Is he silently laughing down there?
“Let’s talk about Ava’s safety,” Tiam steers us to business. “She is going to be confirmed as Oath Forger, perhaps as early as tomorrow. A lot of people felt the tower quake. Explanations will have to be given. A quick press release should help. And her official confirmation into her office, too, will settle nerves.”
“She’s going to have public appearances,” Koah says. “She’s going to have office hours. She’ll be traveling with us. She’ll be seeing a lot of people. We need to increase her security accordingly.”
Roax watches me. “At least one of us should always be with her.”
“I don’t need a baby sitter.”
“It wasn’t a request.”
Great. Lord-of-all-he-surveys Roax is back.
“So the explosion in the bedroom wasn’t an escalation,” Uthan reminds us. “However, the palace’s system was hacked. Then Taly was poisoned along with a second system hack. That’s why one of us will always be with you, my Ava.”
Dason lifts his head. His fingers tighten on my leg. “There will be more. They couldn’t scare her away from us, and they couldn’t take her away by force, by declaring her an impostor. Now they’ll try something else.”
“Not immediately,” Uthan puts in. “Until now, they weren’t aware of her power. It’ll take them a while to figure out what to do with that.”
I try to pin down some of the thoughts that are stampeding through my head. “But if I’m confirmed tomorrow, isn’t it too late to do anything about me?”
I see a small ray of hope here.
“Somebody tried to remove you because you’re in their way,” Koah says.
“Yes?”
His expression darkens. “You can’t be in someone’s way if you’re dead. They can still kill you, Oath Forger.”
His words throw a pall over my optimism.
“We will find whoever it is.” Roax’s voice holds no doubt.
After a few seconds of somber silence, Uthan turns toward me. “So now that the security issue has been discussed, let’s talk about the news that you accepted Koah.”
If this is his attempt at chasing some of the heaviness from the room, he fails. If anything, the level
of tension increases.
“Your connection has been consummated?” Tiam asks, not quite able to disguise the hurt in his voice.
“Yes.” Koah’s voice rings clear. To his credit, at least he doesn’t gloat.
Roax pushes to his feet, strides to the farthest point in the room from me, shoves his hands into his pockets, and turns toward the wall. His back is stiff. He’s holding his body in rigid control.
“I know I’m not handling the whole acceptance thing right,” I say to the room at large. “I don’t know how to do it better. All I can do is promise that I’ll do my best. I’m new at sex, dammit, okay?”
Uthan stands and paces a few feet away from us, then turns to face me. “We are the ones who are not handling this right. Forgive us, Oath Forger.”
THAT NIGHT, WE ARE ALL IN MY BED. Once again, I’m in the middle, and the men are all around me in a protective circle.
Moonlight fills the room.
Koah’s muscled arm is under my head. Uthan is pressed to my back. Roax lies on his side above my head. My feet are in Dason’s lap. Tiam’s thumb is drawing soothing circles on my hip.
I am soothed.
Until my mind flashes back to Koah and me in the garden, our bodies locked together in pleasure. And then to Uthan, Tiam, and Roax with me in the garden before that. I can’t believe I had three men touching me at the same time. And I had an orgasm with them! I’m not sure if I could handle a foursome again, handle more. Just the memory of the four of us like that has the power to completely overwhelm me. And Koah and Dason weren’t even there.
“How are we ever going to make this work?”
“You are the Oath Forger,” Roax responds, and nobody can naysay Roax.
I feel the truth in his words. I feel this new power inside me. I feel my connection to the kreks.
I draw a shuddering breath as I look at my men in the silver light. Yes. I smile a true smile for the first time in what feels like days, then I draw a deep breath.
“Yes, I am the Oath Forger.”
Holy shit. I’m the Oath Forger!
There is no ‘real’ Oath Forger coming. I’m it.
Maybe, subconsciously, I knew it at some point before my power manifested at the hearing. I had accepted Koah in the Oath Forger’s name, hours earlier.
And now I’ll have to accept the other four. They’re really mine. For better or worse.
My nerves spark, and the sparks race through me like stray comets through the universe.
---
--THANK YOU so much for reading the latest installment of the OATH FORGER series!!! If you’re enjoying Ava’s story, would you please consider writing an online review? Authors live or die by their reviews, and reviews are especially important for a new series.
If you purchased this book as soon as it came out, double thank you! You don’t have long to wait long to find out what happens with Ava next, I promise. All 5 OATH FORGER books are written, and I’ll be releasing them one week apart. I’m a binge reader, and I hate to wait months (or years) between books in a series, so I’m not going to do that to you.
In the meanwhile, please come and friend me on Facebook. facebook.com/niamarsauthor I’d love to hear how you liked my story.
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--Nia
ABOUT ME:
Books. Reading. Writing. Playing with the dog. That’s my life, in a nutshell. I love discovering new authors and new trends. Hello Reverse Harem novels!!!! Where have you been all my life? I love everything sci-fi, paranormal, and fantasy. I eat enough chocolate that at this point, I’m probably made of chocolate. OK, chocolate and coffee.
WHAT’S NEW: I’ve just published OATH FORGER, a soon-to-be bestselling, post-apocalyptic, reverse harem, sci-fi romance serial. Ha! Say that three times fast.
WHAT ELSE: If you’d rather try a standalone sci-fi romance from me, grab WARLORD (see preview in the back of this book.) And make sure you don’t sit near anything flammable while reading it. Because it’s HOT. Whatever level of heat you’re thinking right now? Double it. (Not recommended if you don’t have AC, or at least a ceiling fan.) You’ve been warned.
MY WISH LIST: (In case my fairy grandmother is reading this.)
For the OATH FORGER series to find readers who love these stories as much as I do.
Finishing my Master’s Degree in (what else) Writing Creative Fiction. (When I’m not writing books, I’m doing homework.)
WARRANTY: Your satisfaction is very important to me. If you have a complaint, please write it on a box of 50-piece Assorted Godiva Chocolate Truffles, and mail it to my office. I promise to personally see to all complaints.
And...if you’re up for more reading, here is a little taste of WARLORD, my super steamy, standalone sci-fi romance. (Available now.) Enjoy!
WARLORD
By Nia Mars
Another day, another planet conquered. Except this time, instead of sending intergalactic warlord Lukar Xon off to the next war, the Emperor gifts him with a governorship and a princess.
Meela is the heir to a fallen kingdom. She is the conqueror's prize. But she will bow to no one. Certainly not to a barbarian! She might have to surrender her body to the beast, but she will not surrender her heart.
WARNING: This book contains a variety of explicit sexual situations. The hero is an intergalactic warlord, and he takes what he wants. If that kind of fantasy doesn’t appeal to you, you might not enjoy this story.
Chapter One
The three things intergalactic warlord Lukar Xon most liked about winning a war were:
Winning.
The break he and his men would get at the nearest waystation before the Emperor sent them into the next war.
The camp women he would get to fuck at the waystation.
They were the rough and tough type, and so was he. He liked camp women just fine.
Half-asleep, he sat sprawled in his commander chair and let pleasant images of past encounters fill his mind, hoping they would lead to interesting dreams.
“Incoming communications from the Emperor in one minute.”
Lukar opened his eyes as he groaned at Selep, the fighter ship’s captain. “What does a man have to do to get some shut-eye around here?”
He should have gone back to his quarters and gone to bed. Then again, Selep would wake him for the Emperor, no matter where Lukar was.
Take the planet, subjugate the king, the Emperor had said. So Lukar had taken the planet. Tembria wasn’t much more than a ball of red rock with one large cerium mine and the city state built on top of the wealth. Lukar had killed the king in the final battle. That was as subjugated as a guy can get. If the Emperor had any complaints, Lukar didn’t want to hear them.
“On screen in five seconds,” Captain Selep called out, and the dozen crew members on the spaceship’s command deck quieted.
The captain was lean and mean, looked more like a pirate than a proper military man; his nose nearly flat, it’d been broken so many times. He’d had rough beginnings, but he hadn’t let that stop him. “Four. Three. Two. One.”
Lukar swallowed a groan as the Emperor’s face filled the screen. No one should have to wake up to that.
Emperor Walestran had been a warrior himself once. Now he had a pasty double chin and girth to prove he’d hit the good times a few decades back. He wore the dark green uniform of his elite forces, because he thought it made him look more badass. In reality, he looked like a blob of tofu wrapped in seaweed.
Lukar sat up straight as his side of the video connected. “Your Highness.”
“I have a job for you, warlord.”
No ‘well done,’ no ‘how bad are the casualties.’
“I am looking forward to it.”
Lukar was a warrior. He didn’t require a pat on the back. His men, however... “The troops will need a month to rest and recover before the next deployment. They are owed leave. Any damage to our ships can be repaired at the same time. We are headed right now to the Sector Nine waystation.”
“No need for that.” The man on the screen brushed Lukar’s words aside with an imperial flick of his wrist.
It wasn’t as if Lukar had expected better. He could and would figure out how to get his men some rest, and his ships repaired, on the way to the next engagement. If their new target was on the other side of the galaxy, he could steal at least a day or two here and there.
“Destination planet, Your Highness?”
“Tembria.”
“We just took Tembria.” It’d be nice if the Emperor could at least keep track.
Irritation flashed through Lukar, followed by a sense of foreboding. He didn’t like the glint of childish excitement in the Emperor’s beady brown eyes. That look usually meant the man had a ‘great’ idea. Like changing military strategy at the last second because he had a dream. Or taking out the life support system of an entire planet because on his last visit he’d gotten a bad vibe and thought they were planning a rebellion against the empire.
The Emperor was convinced he had a sixth sense about these things. He’d lived longer than any of the Nulean Emperors before him, which he took as proof of his uncanny abilities. True, he had unmasked a number of assassins in the past couple of years, but Lukar contributed that to the fact that the man, through sheer dumb luck, had managed to assemble a competent team of people around himself.
“You are staying on Tembria.” The Emperor’s regal smile said he thought he was being magnanimous. “You served me well, warlord. You deserve a break. You deserve a prize.”
Lukar gritted his teeth and hoped it wouldn’t come through on the vid feed. “Thank you, Your Highness. I’m honored. For how long?”