by Becca Colton
Returning to the kitchen, Corsar glanced at Chloe, still asleep, a content smile on her face. He finished slicing the fruit on the tray and frowned. He should’ve gone hunting for meat the other day. He would have to do a better job of taking care of his mate in the future. In the meantime, he would hope the fruit was enough.
Chapter Ten
The first thing Chloe felt when she woke up was an ache between her thighs. A delicious ache that put a smile on her face. She yawned, stretched, and finally opened her eyes, surprised to see Corsar lying in bed looking at her. She wasn’t usually the cuddling type, preferring to send the guy home after they shared a little bump-and-grind, not wanting to blur the line between sex and intimacy. But Corsar was more than sex. She’d known that the first time he held her in his arms. They fit together like two puzzle pieces, completing a picture she hadn’t even known was incomplete.
As she thought these things, his intense gaze never wavered.
“What are you looking at,” she asked, his attention making her feel uncharacteristically shy.
“My precious flame,” he replied. “My fiery angel that burns brighter than the twin suns of Kriath.”
She blushed, the warmth of her cheeks embarrassing her. She was sure her cheeks shined bright enough to glow in the dark. The curse of pale-skinned redheads.
Corsar smiled and grabbed a tray covered with fruit over from the tiny desk next to the bed. He set it on his blanket-covered lap and plucked something that looked a little like a strawberry off the tray and fed it to her.
“Mmm,” she moaned, flavor exploding on her tongue. “That’s delicious.”
Corsar’s smile widened. “I’m glad you like it. It’s called aarbeie. This”—he pointed at a peach-looking fruit—“is perskes, and this”—he gestured toward something about a foot long and yellow—“is piesang.”
After sampling all the offered fruit, Chloe pointed at a small yellowish-orange globe on the tray. “What’s that?”
Corsar shrugged, suddenly looking unsure of himself. “It’s something I stocked here, but I’m not sure you would like it now that I think about it. The flavor is very sharp. Not everyone likes it. It’s called kaas.”
Chloe shrugged. “I’m willing to try it.”
Corsar grabbed a glass filled with golden liquid off the table near the bed and handed it to her. “It’s best when paired with nectar.”
Chloe nodded, picking up one of the small globes. It reminded her of a small apple, but it was much softer. She took a sip of the nectar, which was delicious, and then took a bite out of the kass. Her eyes widened.
“Oh my god! It tastes like cheese. I love cheese.”
Corsar’s smile could’ve lit up a dark room. “It grows abundantly from many trees in the forest.”
Chloe laughed as she took another bite. “Cheese from trees. I love this place.” She glanced around. “I . . . ummm . . . is there a bathroom in this place?”
Corsar gestured behind him. “Past the kitchen area. First door on the left in the corridor.”
Chloe nodded, slid out of bed, and reached for the sheet, planning to wrap it around herself. But then she saw Corsar’s gaze on her, a hungry look on his face as his eyes wandered up and down her nakedness. The fruit tray shifted on his lap without him touching it.
That’s his cock. It moved the tray because he’s getting hard just looking at me.
Holding back a smile, Chloe left the sheet where it was. She liked exciting Corsar, liked having him look at her. She didn’t care about being modest now. She just wanted to pee and get back here to put that hard cock to use.
The bathroom was easy to find, and it was thankfully very similar to the ones on Earth. Since this was her first time to use the bathroom on Kriath, she had worried things might be a little different.
Looking forward to climbing Corsar like a tree, Chloe started back to where her winged warrior waited. A scraping sound from behind her made her jump. She looked over her shoulder, expecting to see more of the Struun, but there was nothing but a doorway leading into shadows. The sound was coming from that room.
I should go get Corsar. That’s the smart thing to do.
She frowned. Was she a damsel in distress? A helpless little flower that would wilt if someone said boo? Fuck no.
She walked toward the door. As she drew closer, she could see some recessed lights in the ceiling and walls providing a little light. The room was dim but not completely dark. Taking a deep breath, Chloe stepped into the room, looking around. Judging from all the equipment laying around, the room was some type of workstation. A pedestal with a huge stone ring on top of it dominated the center of the room. The scraping sound came from it as the ring turned on the pedestal. She knew she hadn’t heard that sound when she went into the bathroom so it must’ve started recently.
This is some weird alien shit going on here. I really need to get Corsar.
This time she listened to that little voice in her head and opened her mouth to call him.
The ring stopped turning.
Well that was boring.
A light exploded out of the center of the ring, slamming Chloe back against the wall, knocking the breath out of her.
Fuck.
A blinding white light now shone from the ring, forcing Chloe to squint. She inhaled to make another attempt at calling Corsar when a large gray alien stepped out of the glowing ring. It had a large bulbous, wrinkly chin that made her think of an old man’s ball sack, and the thought almost made her laugh, but there was nothing funny about the creature’s eyes when it looked at her. They were completely black, like a shark right before it attacked. It was wearing armor that covered its whole body and a cape. The alien’s lip curled up as it snarled at her and Chloe started for the door, but the thing was fast—much faster than something that huge should be—and it lunged at her, grabbing her and squeezing the breath from her as its arm tightened like a steel band around her waist. It ran toward the ring, and Chloe knew she’d never be heard from again if the thing managed to get her through it. She forced as much air as she could into her constricted lungs and screamed, and then the creature dragged her into the light and she felt like her stomach was being ripped out.
Chapter Eleven
Chloe’s scream tore through Corsar like an enemy’s talons. He bolted from the bed, grabbed his LazerMace, and rushed naked down the hall and into the lab just in time to see a large gray foot disappear into the bright light within the stone ring.
Father Sky! It’s some type of teleporter.
Cursing himself for not realizing it sooner, Corsar activated his mace and jumped into the light. As the teleporter ripped apart his molecules and reassembled them . . . wherever, he felt the momentary burst of nausea that was associated with solid matter teleportation. Kriathians themselves didn’t have teleporter tech but he was familiar with it, having used the technology occasionally when interacting with other races.
From the green tint of her skin, Chloe disliked teleporting just as much as he did. Still, she was a fighter and she obviously wasn’t going to go down without a fight, nauseous or not. She punched at the gray alien but her tiny fists had no effect, then she curled her fingers and clawed at its eyes, screaming words that his translator processed but he still didn’t understand. He would have to ask her at a later date what “motherfucker” and “sonofabitch” meant.
The creature yowled in pain, dropping Chloe and clutching at its face. Its pain soon turned to anger, however, and it glared at Chloe, baring sharp teeth. It was obvious the gray giant meant her harm. Corsar didn’t feel bad that the creature’s life would end before accomplishing its goal. He swung the LazerMace against the creature’s head and it fell to the ground, its skull caved in.
Chloe looked at him, her eyes roaming up and down his body. She smirked at him. “You know, I’m sick and tired of getting kidnapped but seeing you fight naked almost makes it worth it.”
Corsar grinned, but it was immediately followed by a frown. “I, on
the other hand, would prefer that no others see your naked beauty.”
He kicked the body of the dead alien over on its stomach and ripped the cape from its armor. He draped it over Chloe’s shoulders as she smiled up at him nervously.
“Thank you for rescuing me . . . again. You seem to have to do that a lot.”
He smiled at her. “It is an honor to protect you, my precious flame.” He glanced back at the teleporter ring, similar to the one back at the bunker. No light glowed within the stone’s empty center. He headed toward a panel on the wall near the teleporter.
“I’ll see about activating this and sending you back. Then I need to explore and see what evil lurks in the shadows of Kriath.”
“No,” Chloe said. “I’m not leaving you.”
Corsar shook his head. “I’m not asking.”
Chloe glared at him. “That’s good, because I’m not fucking asking either.”
He looked at her, ready to say more, when she pointed her finger at his face.
“Listen, you can boss me around in bed,” she said. “It’s different for me . . . and hot as hell. But you are not going to order me around in regular life. I’m not some dainty little flower that needs to be tucked away somewhere safe. I’ve seen some shit in my life and I know how to handle myself in a fight. I can help you.” She flashed him a mischievous smile. “Besides, I’ve already been abducted from that bunker once. Want to risk it happening again?”
Corsar growled. She had a good point. About everything.
“You’re right, but stay behind me and stay close.”
“Are you okay like that?” she asked.
He raised a feathery eyebrow. “Like what?”
She gestured at his body. “Like that. You’re naked.”
“I don’t have a problem with it.” He tilted his head. “Do you have a problem with it?” He grinned. “Because you didn’t seem to mind me naked earlier.”
Her cheeks turned that shade of pink he loved so much. “I . . . I just thought . . . well, I didn’t know if you’d be able to fight naked. You know, if you have to do more than bash a skull in with that mace.”
“Why would being naked affect my ability to fight?”
Chloe sighed and rolled her eyes. “Never mind.”
Deciding Earth men must be lacking in many ways if they were unable to fight unclothed, Corsar began to slowly make his way down the corridor, Chloe close behind him. There were several open doors along either side of the long corridor. Corsar peered carefully into each room before passing it, keeping an eye out for more of the large gray aliens or other possible threats. They hadn’t made it even halfway down the long corridor when Corsar glanced into one of the rooms and gasped, his eyes going wide.
“Thal!”
The large man being held prisoner in the center of the room raised his head when he heard his name. His golden eyes fixed on Corsar. “Get out.” His voice was barely a whisper, sounding harsh, ragged. “Get out now, Corsar. Run!”
Corsar stepped into the room, ignoring his friend. Thal was suspended in the air, his lower legs and hands encased within a metal containment system that held his body in an “X” shape. But the strangest thing was that Corsar couldn’t see Thal’s wings.
Chloe gasped behind him and Corsar turned, raising his LazerMace, prepared for battle. The weapon fell from his hand, crashing to the floor, as he stared at the atrocity that had shocked Chloe. Hanging on the wall facing Thal were a pair of bloody wings.
“Kraksen!” Corsar swore.
“Get out now, you fool,” Thal rasped, his shout barely above a whisper. “Before they do the same thing to you.”
Corsar understood now why Thal’s voice sounded so harsh. The removal of a Kriathian’s wings was said to be more painful than one could imagine. He had heard of warriors dying when forced to endure this particular form of torture. The man must have screamed for days.
“How did you end up here? I thought—” Corsar shook his head. It didn’t matter. Now wasn’t the time to worry about how. He picked up his mace and went for a control panel on the wall near Thal’s strange prison. The enemy obviously didn’t expect any outsiders to make it this far because there were no security protocols in place on the controls. He tapped a couple of buttons on the panel and heard a hissing sound as the containment system’s bindings released. Thal fell to the floor.
“Kraksen!” Corsar ran to his friend and helped him to his feet. “Sorry.”
Thal offered a weak smile. “Compared to what these bastards put me through, that was like a light massage.” He glanced at his wings on the wall. “Trust me. I’d fall to the floor and land on my face a thousand times to be free of this place.”
“We came through a teleporter,” Corsar said. “Is there another way out? A way to the surface?”
Thal looked at him, a look of dismay on his face. “Surface? Teleporter? Father Sky! You don’t know where we are, do you?” Before Corsar could answer, Thal continued. “There is no surface. We’re not on Kriath. We’re in a space station, hidden behind our second sun.”
Chapter Twelve
I’m on a space station? Holy shit. I’ve done more space travel than most astronauts.
That didn’t change anything, though. They still needed to get out of here.
Chloe looked closely at Corsar’s friend. The man was huge. Corsar had to be at least seven feet tall, and Thal was still taller than him. His brown hair—or head feathers, or whatever they called it—had a few streaks of gray, but the man looked like he could still hold his own in a fight. If he hadn’t just spent who knew how long as a prisoner being tortured on a regular basis. As it was now, though, Thal was leaning heavily on Corsar, and Chloe doubted the man could stand on his own.
Fuck!
She looked around the room, trying to ignore the bloody wings on the wall. She tried hard not to imagine what it felt like to have those forcibly removed.
Laying on the floor below the wings, dumped in a haphazard pile, was Thal’s armor. Even his weapon, a beast of a blaster compared to Corsar’s, was there. The people who had done this to Thal wanted to rub his face in his helplessness, leaving his weapon and armor right there for him to see as they tortured him. She walked over to the pile and grabbed the blaster.
Fuck! This thing is heavy . . . and huge. Fuck it. I’ll use it like a rifle.
Corsar watched her and smirked. “That’s a TalonRazr. Much more powerful than my own Razr. Please don’t shoot yourself in the back of the neck with it.”
Chloe stuck her tongue out at him, then laughed at the confused look on Thal’s face. “Long story. I’m Chloe, by the way.”
Thal nodded at her. “An honor to meet you, though I wish the circumstances were better.”
“Escaping through the teleporter is probably our best option,” Corsar said. “I’ve already killed one of the aliens here. It’s only a matter of time before the body is discovered.” He started to lead Thal to the door, but his friend hesitated, holding him back.
“Can you put something on for Father Sky’s sake?” Thal said. “Maybe the girl doesn’t mind looking but I’d prefer the story of my rescue not include your cock waving about for any and all to see.”
Corsar rolled his eyes. “Can you stand on your own for a moment?”
Thal nodded, and Corsar turned to Chloe, shielding her from view with his broad back. Thal looked down at the floor.
“This thing is too long on you, anyway,” Corsar said. He took the long cape from around her shoulders and tore a strip from it. He wrapped half of it around Chloe, tying a knot in the fabric that looped over her shoulder, creating something similar to a toga that covered her from just above her breasts down to mid-thigh. He took the second half and wrapped it around his waist, making a makeshift kilt.
“Happy?” Corsar asked.
“Very,” Thal replied.
Corsar looked at Chloe. “I have to assist Thal. Our defense is up to you.”
Chloe nodded and tightened her grip on T
hal’s blaster. She glanced out the door, then led Corsar and Thal out into the corridor and back toward the teleporter.
“What happened?” Corsar said. “You were headed to Triuq R8H4 a couple of weeks ago to train with the Cyborgladiators.”
Thal shook his head. “Didn’t even make it out of our system. Soon as I flew past the sun, the space station appeared on my scanners. Unfortunately, they already knew I was coming and they were waiting. They jammed my comms and grabbed my ship with a tractor beam.” He shrugged. “You don’t want to know about the rest.”
Chloe shivered. He was probably right. Thal had two gaping wounds on his back where his wings had been, but there were other cuts and bruises all over his body, and he was covered in dirt, blood, and sweat.
Movement at the end of the corridor caught Chloe’s attention. “Fuck,” she muttered under breath. A tall gray alien was rising from examining the one Corsar had killed. It noticed them and slapped something on its chest. Alarms started blaring and the corridor lights started flashing. Then it raised its arm toward them. Chloe couldn’t see any type of weapon it was holding but she wasn’t taking any chances. She raised the TalonRazr, braced herself, and pulled the trigger. She rocked back as a pulse of pure energy launched from the blaster, roaring toward her target. The alien’s entire chest and stomach disappeared in an explosion of light.
“Fuck me,” Chloe said. “I want one of these.”
Thal chuckled. “I like her.”
“She’s mine,” Corsar growled.
For just a second, Chloe considered telling Corsar she’s wasn’t property to be claimed, but then she realized she didn’t really mind what he said. She actually kind of liked the possessive attitude, the idea of being his. She smiled and shook her head as the trio began running toward the teleporter. It was amazing how a little alien abduction could change a girl’s view on things . . . or maybe it was just that she’d finally found the right guy.