by Luna Hunter
That’s not like me at all.
I guess it is.
Maybe Ciara was right. My body yearns for him, obviously. My knees still grow weak when I recall how good his tongue felt. No man has ever made me feel that way. Hell, I’ve never been able to make myself feel that way.
And that was only the beginning. Knowing what I do about Aegir and their stamina, I’m sure he could go on all night if he wanted to. But he didn’t. He didn’t take me.
Why?
I’m equally relieved as I’m disappointed. Does he not really want me? And just now, when he said we should ‘get through the day’. I was half-hoping and half-fearing he was going to declare his love for me right there and then.
It’s too late to do anything about it now. The captain awaits, another day of telling the human council-members something that they don’t want to hear. As soon as I step out of this shower, I have to keep all these confusing feelings bottled up inside.
A good reason to stay under the warm rays for a moment longer… and to relive last night, while it’s still fresh.
Kozus
Sasha returns with her cheeks flushed and her breathing heavier than a casual shower should make it. I slip my dun armor back on as she fishes her panties out of the corner of the room and puts them back on. I pretend not to watch her naked body jiggle oh so perfectly as she wrestles with her tunic.
When she’s properly dressed she knocks on the door, and the guard opens a little window.
“What?” He barks.
“We are ready to meet the captain,” she say. “And we could use some breakfast as well.”
I don’t like the glare on the guard’s face. He wouldn’t dare to act so tough without this metal barrier between us. Little does he know it means absolutely nothing to me. All I need to do is breathe against this thing and it’ll flatten him.
“You stay where you are until the captain is ready,” he says. The window is slammed shut, and we sit down on our beds.
“Sorry about… all of humanity,” Sasha says, gesturing vaguely. “You didn’t have to come here, or welcome us to your world for that matter, and all the captain is doing is being, well, an asshat. I’m ashamed.”
“It is not your fault or your doing, so do not feel… anything,” I say. “I came here out of my own free will… and I can leave anytime I like.”
“But.. what about the guards?”
I raise an eyebrow. “You think they could stop me?”
“No, not really,” she laughs. “Not now that I think about it.”
“They want to think they hold all the power. I let them. That human captain was right about one thing: don’t tell your opponents more than they need to know.”
After an hour we are brought a small breakfast. Completely inadequate for my caloric needs, but luckily my body can sustain itself for up to two weeks without food or water — another gift from our days as alpha predators. I give my portion to Sasha, despite her many and incessant protests.
Half an hour later the guards take us back through the myriad of hallways to return to the Presidium.
I wonder if today will go better than yesterday.
I doubt it.
Sasha
The circular room is completely packed, all the seats around the large, round table filled with every senior official that you can find on the Banks. Empty coffee cups and discarded foot packets litter the table. Ciara waves at me from the crowd, and I quickly wave back. The room is filled with excited mumbling, and I try to dry my sweaty palms on my tunic.
Captain Haas clears his throat and the chattering stops in an instant.
“The council has deliberated all throughout the night, and we have come to a conclusion. We will consider settling on the Aegir planet, but we have several demands we want you to convey to their leaders, miss Rashford.”
Demands?
I turn to Kozus. “Permission to speak freely?” I whisper to him.
He lowers his horns. “Speak away. I trust and value your judgement.”
I face the crowd, scanning every single face in the room. My heart is racing like mad, but someone has to tell these guys the truth. And that someone is me.
“I don’t think any of you understand the gravity of the situation,” I start. “You’re not in the position to make demands of the Aegir. At all. They are giving us a gift: the chance to settle on their planet. We can’t ask for anything more!”
My protests fall on deaf ears. First Officer Willow is the first one to cut in. “We will not surrender ourselves to these alien warlords, just because it is convenient, miss Rashford!”
I cross my arms in anger. Kozus just looks amused, like he’s watching children bicker over toys.
“We have several demands. First of all, we demand our own location — separate from the aliens. We will trade with the beasts, but it will be on our terms!” Willow says.
“What do you mean by that?” I ask. “Your own location? It’s an alien world! We need their knowledge on the flora and the fauna! We need them, whether you like it or not, officer.”
“We won’t live under their thumb!” First Officer Willow thunders. “We will found a human colony. Human! We won’t be their serfs!”
The council members nod vigorously. I anticipated some pushback, but I didn’t anticipate the entire council to be this xenophobic.
“What?” I say. “The Aegir have been nothing but kind to us! They saved my life, saved Ciara’s, saved Emma’s and Olivia’s too! You should ask them. They are on Aegon right now, with their partners, and they are happier than ever. Hell, Emma is like, the queen.”
There is a buzz of excitement around the table. I match their stares with my chin held high, feeling a little but smug about myself. I’ll talk down these xenophobes yet!
First Officer Willow slams his fist down on the table suddenly.
“These MONSTERS are BREEDING with HUMANS?!” He shouts.
I have seriously misjudged the buzz. It wasn’t one of excitement, but one of disgust. All around me are angry, scowling faces. I look at Kozus for help. He no longer seems amused.
“I don’t know if you’d call it that,” I stammer, “but, uhm, well. I don’t see the problem.”
Willow’s eyes are narrowed and laser focused on me. Captain Haas has been silent all this time, his hands resting on his chin pensively.
“Would you betray the human bloodline, Sasha Rashford?” Willow hisses.
Now it’s my turn to slam my open palms down on the table and rise up in anger.
“I don’t have to defend myself,” I shout, my voice shaking with fury now. “The Aegir are our friends. They are helping us. If you hadn’t noticed, humanity is fucked. It seems you are all too proud and too speciest to accept that sobering fact. Yes, humanity is NOT the center of the galaxy. We’re not alone out here. And, for the first time in ten thousand years, we’re not at the top of the food chain either. I’ve seen more of the galaxy than all you old farts put together, and trust me, it’s not pretty out there. It’s not all rainbows and sunshine. Siding with the Aegir is humanity’s best bet — or you’ll all end up on the plate of a Vrek sooner or later. And you don’t even know what teams, so that threat might not hold much weight, but when it happens… think of me, and know I was right, and know it was your own damn stubbornness and foolishness that got you there.”
I suck in a deep breath, my heart racing like mad. Under the table, Kozus gently squeezes my thigh — a quick but meaningful gesture.
“The Council will not be threatened!” Willow belts out in anger. “Away, away with them!”
I’m already ahead of him, storming out the Presidium with steam practically blowing out my ears, Kozus in step with me. As I pass Ciara, I whisper ‘strawberries sundaes in an hour’ to her.
This is a waste of time and effort. If I want to save everyone on this ship from alien pirates…
We’ll have to do something radical.
Chapter 9
Sasha
I ca
n’t believe what I just heard. How disconnected from reality can these old men be?!
I storm back to the only place on this damn ship I seem to be welcome at — our own little prison cell. Kozus can break us out anytime he likes, so I don’t feel claustrophobic in the slightest in there.
I just need a moment to think, to get my thoughts in order.
I understand that the old men fear Kozus at first glance. Yes, he’s a towering mass of muscle. He’s got horns bigger than most men’s forearms. His eyes seem to peer right into your very soul.
When faced with an Aegir, you’re coming face to face with your own mortality. No, your own insignificance. Humanity are not the top dog, not the center of it all. We’ve screwed up the only planet that we had, and now we’re rudderless and adrift in a universe that doesn’t seem to care about us.
So, I can understand the impulse to be scared of the Aegir. But if you rub two braincells together, you can look past that, and see that they are actually the kindest beings in existence.
And personally, Kozus makes me feel like the most significant person in the entire universe. No man has ever looked at me like he does. Like I’m drop-dead gorgeous. Like I’m the strongest woman in the world.
I can’t believe those old farts would reject the Aegir, would reject Emma and Olivia. They called them traitors. Traitors. The only traitors here are them, who reject humanity’s salvation because they’re scared.
All of these thoughts are racing through my mind like a maelstrom as Kozus studies my facial features.
“What are you thinking?” He asks.
“Two things,” I say. “First of all, we’ve got to reach Ciara somehow. These geezers would rather pilot this ship into the sun than settle somewhere where they are not lord and master. I’m sure there’s plenty of people who are tired of the tyranny of Ship Sec.”
“You’re speaking of rebellion,” Kozus says. There is no hint of judgement in his tone.
“Arguments don’t seem to work. If that’s what it takes to save the thousands of innocent people on this ship, then yes, I’m speaking of rebellion.”
“You do not cease to amaze me, Sasha,” he says.
“That brings me to the second thing I’ve been thinking,” I say. “You should kiss me right now.”
Kozus arches his eyebrow. “What?”
“You heard me,” I say. “Shut up and kiss me.”
I don’t have to tell him again. He grabs me and lifts me up, kissing me deeply, his wonderful tongue entering my mouth.
I return the kiss as I shake off my clothes as best I can. I fumble with his armor.
He smirks and reaches into his collar. The slick, black armor drips down his chiseled body and forms into a little black pebble on the floor.
“I like how easy that is,” I say as my hands rest on his big, blue chest.
It’s us two against the world. I won’t let anyone badmouth the Aegir, and Kozus in particular. Before we try to overthrow Ship Sec and risk it all, I want to experience what I’ve been missing out on.
I want to throw all my fears into the wind and just live fully and freely.
He kisses me deeply, his two hands resting possessively on my ass. I love the way he holds me up. I’m weightless. I’m his. I return the passionate kiss as his cock rests between us, squished between our bodies, resting against my stomach, but I can feel the powerful pulses and throbs all the way down in my clit.
I want him inside of me.
Kozus
I shouldn’t.
But I want to. Every fiber in my being screams for me to take Sasha here and now, to rip her panties off and to bury my face into her musk before sliding my throbbing hard cock into her and claiming her with my seed.
And yet, in the back of my mind, I am reminded of my duty. My father has arranged a mate for me, as has been the custom for our family for generations. The Princess of the Scourge of Egos is waiting for me in Kar. I have never met the woman, but I’m sure he’s made a suitable choice. I have never doubted that choice, never doubted my path. Not seriously.
Until I met Sasha. She is a whirlwind of energy, a strong woman who speaks her mind, who defends the weak, who is prepared to fight for what she believes in. She makes me want to be a better ruler, a better Xeer, a better man. And I feel I am already, just by knowing her and soaking up her boundless energy.
And here she is, this beautiful, mesmerizingly gorgeous woman, and she’s in my hands, her ass resting in my palms, and she’s looking up at me with those killer brown eyes of hers, and her beautiful, full lips part, and she whispers the sexiest thing I’ve ever heard in my life, her voice hoarse with arousal.
“Fuck me, Kozus,” she says. “Claim me.”
The path that has been chosen for me seems dull and bleak in comparison to a lifetime with Sasha. This woman is my yali, my fated mate, I am sure of it. My heart pounds when I look at her, my hands yearn to touch her, my lips ache to kiss her. I cannot throw that sacred bond away in the name of duty.
Sasha is mine.
I lift her up.
Sasha yelps, her hands resting on the ceiling as I level her sex with my face. She does not need my tongue for lubrication, for her panties are drenched with her delicious juices — but truth be told, I am doing this as much for my own pleasure as for hers.
I trace my tongue up the length of her panties, enjoying her scent, her feel, her taste, as Sasha moans and trembles in my hands.
I could do this all day. Teasing her until she yearns for release.
With one hand I yank her panties off and then I dive between her legs, burying my face in her most sacred place. I lick and kiss and suck until her body trembles with release, until her toes curl and her hands squeeze my horns and she begs for me to stop because she is too sensitive to endure another powerful lick.
With her muffled screams still ringing in my ears I lower her down, resting her back against the door of our cell as I place my hard, throbbing member at her entrance.
I have fought fate as hard as I can, but fate always wins. True love wins in the end.
And true love is all I feel as I push my hips and enter her, as my veiny cock finds its true home, as it slides inch by inch into the place where it belongs.
I silence her cries with a kiss, our tongues intertwining as I enter her deeper and deeper, until I am inside of her completely.
After giving her a moment to adjust to my size, I pull out a few inches before slamming my hips back into her. She bounces on my hardness, her arms around my neck as I give her the mating of a lifetime.
I’ve never felt more at home than between her legs.
Sasha
Kozus brings me to a place I didn’t know existed. Every thrust of his powerful hips sends a tidal wave of pleasure coursing through every vein, fiber and synapse in my body.
I might just lose my mind. I might abandon all plans I ever had in my life, and just ride this orgasmic spear of his for all eternity.
That sounds like pure bliss.
Sweat trickles down his big blue chest, a look of pure concentration and pure sex on his gorgeous face as he makes me his, over and over again.
His cock grows harder and bigger inside of me, and I know that can mean only one thing. Those big spurts of his powerful seed — they’re going right where they belong. Inside of me.
This time I don’t have to beg for it. This time he knows, and he gives me exactly what I want.
Kozus kisses me hard as he pounds into me, the sounds of our sex filling the entire room as he grows harder and bigger still.
He roars into my mouth as he orgasms, releasing all of his potent, Aegir seed inside of me. My toes curl up and my legs tremble as I gratefully receive it all, our eyes locked as we’re truly connected in that moment.
Kozus sits down on the bed with my still trembling body straddling him, and I just sit there, savoring the feeling of him inside of me for as long as it lasts.
My hands roam his big, blue chest.
“You’re g
orgeous,” he says as his hands travel my naked, sweaty body, all the while smirking at me with a totally satisfied look that makes me oddly proud.
“No, you’re gorgeous,” I say. “Just freaking look at you. You’re perfect. I could sit here and just touch your chest all day.”
“What’s stopping you?”
“Life,” I say. “But the moment I get life under control, I’m throwing you on the nearest bed and we’re going to continue right where we left off.”
“You can bet your sweet ass on it,” Kozus growls, giving mine a swat for good measure.
I don’t want to get off this wild ride, but I must, for the life of everyone on this ship depends on it. But the moment that’s done… nothing will be able to stop me from hopping back on Kozus’s lap.
Nothing.
Chapter 10
Sasha
Duty calls.
As hard as it is to get up from Kozus’s perfect cock, I finally muster the strength to do just that. I take a quick shower and then fling my tunic back on.
“I’m going to find Ciara and get this ball rolling,” I say.
Kozus is still laying on the bed, looking like a god, totally nude, hands resting behind his head, his perfect body on full display.
I turn and face the door. Another moment and I might drop down to my knees and service him. And we simply don’t have time for that.
Something to look forward to.
I knock rapidly on the door. “Open up.”
The young guard slides the window open. Luckily, he can’t see Kozus from his position. I pray I look somewhat presentable as I touch my curls.
“What?” The guard mutters.
“Open the door,” I say calmly.
“My orders are—”
“Captain Haas is waiting for me a the Presidium — are you going to let the captain himself wait?”
I know just how to play these Ship Sec types. This one is still wet behind the ears. All you’ve got to do is dangle some authority in front of them and they’ll click their heels and say aye aye.