The Edge of it All

by Jessica Grayson

  Walking past the open doorway, a Hawkan male pulls a collared slave behind him, and my blood boils with rage. Instantly, my claws extend, and my scales darken. Rowan grabs my forearm and shakes his head. "We cannot. The station is too small to shift into your draken form."

  My nostrils flare with barely contained anger, but I nod in acknowledgment. He is right. Changing into draken form in such an enclosed space would likely injure innocent bystanders and possibly tear a hole in the outer hull of the station.

  Rowan's eyes meet mine evenly. "When the V'loryns and the Aerilon agree to enforcing the laws in these unpatrolled regions, we will be able to free the slaves that are held here."

  As much as I dislike them, the V'loryns and Aerilon are necessary. I can only hope they will accept our proposal. Surely, they realize it would benefit all of us. It is rare for slavers to dare take any from our three races because the punishment inflicted by our laws for such crimes is death. But, still...many risk it for the high price our species fetch in the illegal markets.

  Something rams into the back of my leg, triggering my warrior's training. In one swift movement, I retract the knife from my belt and spin to face my attacker.

  A wide-eyed Lacerta child stares up at me in horror before cowering to the floor. “I’m—I’m sorry." The light-green scales of her cheeks darken slightly as she curls her tail protectively in front of her. "Please, don't kill me."

  Her words break me. Sheathing my dagger, I drop to one knee. Gently placing two fingers under her trembling chin, I tip her little face up to mine. Tears roll down her cheeks as she stares at me warily. "I am a warrior of Mosaura. We do not hurt children. I would never harm you, little one. I swear to the Creator."

  She sniffs, wiping a tattered sleeve across her nose as she gives me a watery smile.

  "Now, what is your name, and where were you going in such a hurry?"

  "I'm Rella. A male stole our box of leetka fruit. Mother says we don't have enough credits to leave this station unless we can sell it. So, I was trying to get it back."

  Turning my head, I scan the room, remembering the cloaked person that rushed past us only moments before the child ran into me. I look back at her. "Where is your mother?"

  A panicked cry rips my attention away from Rella to find a Lacerta female rushing toward us with fear in her dark-yellow eyes. Her cheeks and neck are bright orange with alarm, standing out in sharp contrast to the rest of her light-green scales.

  I stand to face her. When she reaches us, she drops to her knees, bowing her head and trembling before us. "Please, great warriors of Mosaura, spare my daughter. She was just trying to get our fruit back from the male that stole it."

  Rowan and I exchange an incredulous look before I turn my attention back to the mother. "We would never hurt a child."

  "It is not our way to harm an innocent," Rowan adds.

  Her head snaps up. "Then...you are not angered?"

  I sigh heavily. I hate that this female and her child believe we would harm them. Sometimes our fierce reputation is a blessing, but right now, it feels more like a curse. "Give me your forearm."

  She gives me a wary look as she raises a quivering arm up to me. I tap my wrist comm and then touch it to hers. After a moment, it beeps, indicating the transaction is complete. "There. I've transferred enough credits to your account to buy you both passage off this station and back to your home world."

  Her jaw drops.

  "Take your child far from this place. It is not safe here."

  Tears fill her eyes. "Thank you, Mosauran warrior. Thank you," she sobs, gathering her daughter in her arms and leaving quickly. Rella gives us a small smile over her mother's shoulder as they disappear into the crowd.

  We make our way to a nearby eating establishment, and the host greets us with a nervous grin. Bowing his head, I notice the slight tremor of his hand as he motions to the nearest table. He's afraid of us, and I am glad. Perhaps that means we will be undisturbed during our meal. I detest the idea of being solicited while we're here.

  Movement catches my attention, and my gaze shifts to the far wall. Two females are chained together and being dragged behind their Anguis master to be paraded in front of the patrons—an invitation for anyone to make an offer for them.

  My jaw drops when I realize they are Aerilon and V'loryn; my blood begins to boil. Their owner is foolish indeed to have them. It is an automatic death sentence if either of their people ever found out he kept them as slaves.

  The Aerilon trembles, fluttering her wings at her side, and I inhale sharply when I see that although she has not been pinioned, they are broken. Badly. I'm shocked to see the V'loryn wrap her arms around her, whispering in her ear as if trying to soothe her. V'loryns, as a general rule of their nature as touch telepaths, dislike touching others. It appears this one is not that way. Their race is known for their lack of emotions, yet she openly displays kindness as she tries to comfort the Aerilon female. I did not know V'loryns were even capable of empathy.

  There is something strange about her appearance, and as she looks down at the Aerilon, I realize that while her eyes are green, they do not glow like they are supposed to. All V'loryns have glowing green eyes. As she turns in the light, I notice her brown hair has a slight reddish tint—a shade I have never seen among her people.

  But that is not all that's strange about her appearance. The top of her ear is a curved shell instead of the usual pointed tip. And she lacks the three slight cranial ridges that should be on her forehead. She is so small for her race. Anger churns in my gut. What have they done to her?

  An A'kai approaches the Anguis, eyeing the two females, and my muscles tense when I realize who he is. Distantly related to the V'loryns, all A'kai have varying green shades of skin, stark-white hair, glowing green eyes, cranial ridges, and pointed ears. But only Talel, brother of the First Prime of A'kaina, has a long, jagged scar that spans the entire length of the left side of his face.

  Subconsciously, I reach up and run my fingers over my own deep scar that runs from just above my right brow and down to the sharp ridge of my cheek. I almost lost my eye when we fought each other. But his scar is worse than mine because it is a mark of dishonor.

  He challenged me to a fight in the arena, paying my master handsomely to make sure I would lose. Although a gladiator, I still had my honor. A Mosauran warrior never gives up. I fought him, and I beat him, slicing his face with his own silic-tipped blade. No medical repair unit (MRU) can heal wounds laced with this acid. He was so enraged he had his men hold me down as he scarred my face in return.

  My betrothed turned her back on me because of this disfigurement. Although our relationship was based on mutual respect and friendship instead of love, it was an honor to have been chosen by such a strong female. The pain of her rejection took many moons to heal.

  The Anguis motions for the females to step forward and display themselves to Talel. The Aerilon remains frozen in fear as the V'loryn tries to comfort her. Their Anguis master jabs his shock stick into the Aerilon's back to urge her forward, and she collapses to the floor.

  I stare in shock as the V'loryn lunges at him, kicking out and making contact with his monstrous face, causing him to stumble backward. Taking advantage of his imbalance, she rushes behind him, wrapping the thick slave chain around his neck and pulling with all her might to strangle him.

  She is as fierce as she is brave. A communal gasp comes from the crowded restaurant as all eyes are locked on her.

  The Anguis reaches back and pulls at the chain, pitching her forward as he hisses in anger. When she charges him again, he jabs her with the shock stick. I watch in horror as a silent scream forms on her face before she drops to the floor, writhing in pain beside her friend.

  The Aerilon gathers the V'loryn in her arms, tears streaming down her face. Quickly regaining her footing, the V'loryn steps in front of her friend to shield her as the Anguis stalks forward. Fire burns in her eyes as she glares up at him.

  A tight smirk p
lays on Talel's lips as he watches. Known for his immense cruelty, he will break them of their fighting spirit. Of this, I am certain. And I do not want that for either of them.

  I turn to my brother and drop my voice to a low whisper. "We must help them."

  His wide eyes meet mine. "Do you not recognize who is purchasing them?" he hisses under his breath, staring daggers at Talel. "We wouldn't make it out of this sector before A'kai Centurions descended upon us, shredding us and our glider to pieces. We would be fortunate to even make it off this station alive." He shakes his head. "We must contact their people first. If they have a ship nearby, they will come for them."

  I start to protest, but he raises a hand between us to silence me. "And—more importantly—they will bring reinforcements. We do not know how many A'kai he travels with. He is the First Prime's brother. I'm certain he must have an entire contingent of soldiers somewhere nearby. We will both surely fall in battle if we attack him now, Soran."

  Clenching my jaw in frustration, I look back at the females. He is right, but we cannot wait. "There is no time to contact their people. Do what you will, but I cannot leave them with him a moment longer." Dark memories flash through my mind, and I give Rowan a grave look. "You know what he does to his slaves."

  Rowan grits his teeth, but I recognize the look in his eyes. My brother agrees with me. "I cannot bear the thought of leaving them in his hands either. We will have to free them diplomatically. We will be killed if we openly challenge him here."

  There should be nothing diplomatic about this. Talel knows slavery is illegal. We should kill him where he stands. But my brother is right. If we charge him, we'll likely end up dead, and that certainly won't help the females. Balling my hands into fists, I reluctantly nod in agreement.

  His eyes drift down to my hands before he lifts his gaze back to mine and gives me a pointed look. "We do this my way. We cannot rush into this without careful preparation. Understood?"

  "Fine," I grumble.

  The V'loryn female's fierce cry draws my attention back to her as she attacks Talel. Lightning quick, he wraps one hand around her throat, lifting her into the air as if she weighs nothing.

  Clawing at his hand around her neck, her legs kick wildly before she goes still.

  Worried that she's unconscious, I start toward her, but Rowan's hand clamps down on my shoulder, stopping me. "R'ugol," he whispers in shock.

  I clench my jaw as unbridled rage floods my veins. R'ugol—a forced mind link—is the most heinous of crimes. The equivalent of force-mating, except it involves the mind instead of the body. He will die for this. I swear it to the Creator. And I don't care if he's the First Prime's brother. I will not wait for her people to render their justice; I will kill him myself.

  A silent tear slides down her cheek as she stares at him in wide-eyed fear. After a moment, he slings her over his shoulder. She dangles limply over his back as he drags the crying Aerilon by her chain behind them.

  Fire licks at the back of my throat as anger courses through me. It takes all my control not to shift into draken form and burn him to ash. We trail him through the station, making sure to stay back just far enough that he does not notice us following.

  Chapter 3

  Liana

  His hand tightens around my throat in a vise-like grip, constricting the air from my lungs. I wrestle against his hold as the edges of my vision begin to go dark.

  Blood rushes through my ears, drowning out all other sounds as pressure grows in the back of my mind like a giant wave building behind a dam. Without warning, the barrier crumbles, and I instantly feel him inside me. I want to scream as the full force of his consciousness invades and expands in my mind, but my body won't respond. A heavy fog envelops me, and I'm drowning in darkness as the crushing weight of his consciousness bears down upon my own. Searing pain rips through me as the sharp blade of his thoughts cut through mine, forcing them into submission as he asserts his will.

  Panic fills me and I struggle to break free only to feel the unyielding brutality of his command over my body. The razor-sharp lash of his thoughts whips at my mind, and I collapse before it.

  He is A'kai. A race spoken of in scared and hushed whispers among other slaves. As I stare at the cruel lines of his face, his glowing green eyes turning into obsidian orbs, I understand now why his people are so feared.

  A tear slips down my cheek as his dark desires flood my mind, whispering all the things he will do, the ways he will break me and make me his. With overwhelming panic, my consciousness cries out to the void a moment before it's silenced and forced to retreat.

  Throwing me over his shoulder, he releases the hold on my mind, and a small whimper escapes my lips as the suffocating pressure lifts away from my consciousness. I'm too weak to move or do anything more than breathe, and I've never felt more helpless.

  Despair washes through me. Is this how I will die?

  Vaguely aware of Tr'lani's cries of terror behind me, I want to call out to her. To try to comfort her somehow, but I cannot push words past my lips. I want to scream and rage against what he's done. But he grips my thigh, forcing open another telepathic connection. His mind holds mine in an iron vise, and I can do nothing but hang limply over his shoulder, praying for a miracle that I doubt will ever come.

  After what feels like an eternity, we reach a ship. Two pairs of boots the same as his step aside as we enter. When the airlock seals behind us, we're plunged into darkness.

  The interior is dimly lit as if to simulate night. Muted glowing green light reflects off the dark metal panels of the walls and floor, but it's so weak I cannot make out any details. We travel down a long hallway and through another set of doors.

  When he throws me down onto something soft, my heart stops when I realize it's a bed. He forces Tr'lani into a cage nearby. Her head slams against the bars, and she goes limp. He turns back to me, crossing the room so quickly I gasp. How am I supposed to escape a monster who can move so fast?

  I close my eyes and concentrate on trying to force my limbs to move, but it's no use. He sits on the edge of the bed and pulls me into his lap, straddling his hips to face him. He wraps an arm around my waist while he gathers my hair in his other hand and roughly jerks my head back. Tilting my chin up, he forces me to stare directly into his eyes as a cruel grin crosses his green-tinged face.

  The heavy press of his mind enters mine; invading tendrils snake and wrap through my consciousness. Something sharp twists deep inside my skull, the pain excruciating as he tears through my thoughts, asserting his dominance and forcing me again into submission.

  The hard length of him presses insistently against my center, and a tear slips down my cheek. I'm a virgin, and the moment this enters my thoughts, his consciousness wraps thickly around it. A perverse feeling of satisfaction spears my mind, and I realize it's his. He derives sick pleasure from knowing he will be my first...and my last. An angry sob rises in my throat, but he chokes it from my lungs.

  "I will not be gentle," his mind whispers to mine.

  An involuntary tremor moves through me at his words before he forces me to still.

  Bright light flashes in the corner of my vision. He turns toward it, releasing his hold on my mind as he focuses on a large screen against the wall. Strange symbols scroll across the display and he groans. He pulls me off his lap and throws a blanket over my body.

  His glowing green eyes burn with anger as a low and menacing growl rumbles deep in his chest. "Remain silent and still or I will kill your friend first and make you watch."

  Too weak to do anything else I somehow manage to nod, and he covers my head. His vise-like grip clamps around my forearm, tightening until the bones feel like they'll snap beneath the pressure. Despite the pain, I stay quiet, remembering his threat about Tr'lani.

  "Greetings, my beloved. Is it done?" he asks. "Is that why you've contacted me?"

  A woman's voice fills the room. "No. I simply wished to talk to you. It has been too long." She pauses. "Unfortunatel
y, Marek still lives."

  "He should already be dead." A hint of irritation seeps into his tone. "What is taking so long?"

  "He is off-world, working on a translation program for a new species we made contact with."

  "How are we supposed to move forward if you are not bonded to him?"

  "Do not worry. It will be done soon. After that, I will make sure he and Kalvar meet an untimely end."

  "Excellent," he replies. "The sooner, the better. Our bonding will unite our two races, and together, we will form an Empire to rival even that of the Mosaurans."

  "Yes, my cherished one."

  A male voice calls out faintly, "Princess, a transmission from the Embassy in Seattle is coming through for you."

  "I must go," she says. "It is probably Menov calling with an update."

  My heart stops. The voice said "Seattle." She has to be talking about Terra.

  A low purr rumbles deep in his chest. "I ache for you, my beloved."

  "And I for you," she replies in a seductive hiss.

  "Perhaps we can arrange to meet off-world again for a few days, like we did on Romlin 3?"

  "That would be most agreeable," she purrs. "Until then."

  "Until then," he replies.

  When he finally turns his attention back to me, he rips the blanket away. "Until I can be with my beloved again, you will have to do." His glowing green eyes turn into raven black orbs as they rake over my form. "I believe you will make a delicious pleasure slave." His lips turn up in a sinister grin and I watch in horror as his canines extend into long, sharp fangs.

  Vampire! The word flashes through my mind. Fear gives strength to my weakened limbs, and I scramble back. I cry out as he lunges forward, pinning me roughly beneath him. He invades my consciousness, forcing me to still.