by Aline Ash
He claimed me, he marked me, and I am his now.
And somehow, I feel a release. I feel more powerful now than I was back then when I was chasing criminals, holding men’s life at gunpoint. I am still that strong, independent woman, as I’ve always been, but there is another side of me. Kon unleashed my sexuality. He showed me that I can enjoy giving myself over, letting myself be pleased in so many ways, and letting my body be used to please holds a different sort of power. Such obedience to Kon and his wants doesn’t mean that I’m surrendering who I am as a person, it simply means I’m comfortable enough in my own skin to surrender to my desires.
Kon unlocked pieces of me I never knew existed, showed me parts of myself I didn’t know resided within me. He helped me realize my darkest fantasies and desires. So fuck all the teachings and the social norms that define us. I know better. I know letting Kon master my body the way he did, letting him treat me so roughly, letting him “tame” me, was the most mind-blowing and releasing experience I have ever had. And it’s because he made me feel that I can trust him.
He proved he’s keen to protect me, and he would never force himself on me. He could have done it several times already, given that we share the same cell and sleep in the same bed or that I was bound and stripped and left to his mercy on our first night. If he wanted to, he could hurt me when he spanked me for punishment or fight me to death on the arena. But instead, he saved me, helped me to heal, and treated me with respect and gentleness, despite my small size, relative physical weakness, or just me being a different species than his. All of which are despised in this prison.
So yeah, I do trust him.
That trust I have in him is only reinforced when I look up at him, look deeply into his eyes. I can see the respect he has for me. I can see that what we did was with a sense of care. He pushed my boundaries to the brink, but he did not force me to cross them.
“Are you alright?” he asks.
Unable to form coherent words at the moment, I simply nod. I try to get to my feet but end up on my ass again, my legs too weak at the moment. I watch as the cam-droids disappear through a hatch in the ceiling that then closes behind them, leaving Kon and me alone. Honestly, I had been so caught up in what we were doing, in reveling in the sensations rocking my entire body, I had forgotten about the cam-droids completely.
A chime is followed by the voice of Administrator X’yr. “Your performance was outstanding,” he crows. “The viewers enjoyed your show. Perhaps as much as watching the human die. Well done.”
Kon and I exchange a glance, and a small smile touches his lips.
Ratings. Killing and fucking for viewership. It’s disturbing, but I can’t say it’s entirely different from television programming back on Earth. It’s maybe not as graphic back home, but sex and death have always driven big ratings.
“You will be taken back to the showers to clean up,” X’yr says. “After that, get some rest. I have a feeling you both will be called on to perform again soon.”
Another chime sounds as X’yr signs off, leaving us in silence. The tingling in my body finally starts to fade, and the aches and pains begin to become a bit more pronounced. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a real bitch.
Kon reaches down and scoops me up as if I weigh nothing at all. I hang limply in his arms, feeling wrung out. Entirely spent. But amazing all the same. Despite the aches and pains, my body is still reveling in just how hard Kon had gotten me off and how good he made me feel. I give him a smile and lean my head on his shoulder as he carries me out of the chamber and toward the showers.
“That was…I don’t even have the words to describe it,” I say.
Kon smiles. “I was thinking the same thing,” he replies. “I have not enjoyed coupling so much in a very long time.”
I feel my cheeks flush. “I have never coupled that way with anybody before.”
He looks down at me, and I see no surprise in his eyes. “I know.”
He knew it? Was I that desperate? He looks down at me and gives me an uncertain smile.
“You were an exemplary partner,” he says quietly. “Your performance was impressive.”
It’s such a strange thing to say, I can’t help but laugh. I’ve already realized that Kon is not one for feelings. He is not somebody who can express his emotions openly. He’s stoic and earnest. But all of those things combine to make him somebody that is wholly intriguing.
I can feel he’s more than that, though. Kon projects an image of ferocity as well as strength—he is the Beast after all—but he has another side to him. I guess not many can see it, but after what we’ve been through today, I can. He is kind. Compassionate. He’s desperate to love. He might not want to look weak and to show it to me, but he cares for me for some reason. It is like we connect on some other level, deeper than I’ve ever been connected with someone.
For so long, I’ve felt alone. Even as a cop, I felt distanced from my fellow officers. I know that traces back to how I grew up—my father in and out of prison for the horrible shit he and his gang got up to, and my mother, a junkie who was too high to care about anything but her next fix. My older brother Tommy was my best friend. My protector. He made sure I had food to eat and clothes to wear. He did the job my parents should have been doing in raising me.
But once my father got out of prison the final time, he dragged Tommy into the gang. I watched my brother devolve. Where he was once so bright and lively, he became angry and vicious. He became our father. He died in some fight over drugs.
Tommy’s death absolutely devastated me. My upbringing is why I despise criminals so much. It’s why I don’t open up and let people within my walls and hold everybody at an arm’s length. It’s also why I became a cop. I feel the job allows me to make a difference, and I try to save the kids in my community from suffering the same heartbreak I did. I know I can’t save them all, but that’s not going to stop me from trying.
Kon steps into the chamber with the shower and sets me down on my feet as the door slides closed behind us. Though my knees are still weak, and I almost feel too unsteady to remain standing, Kon watches me carefully. I gather every ounce of strength left inside me and manage to remain upright .
The water begins pouring down from overhead and fills the chamber with its thick, billowing steam. The look on Kon’s face is beatific. It’s one of peace and satisfaction. When he looks into my eyes, I can see the emotions churning within them, though he holds himself stoically on the outside.
He doesn’t say a word as he begins to gently wash me from head to toe. I feel him cleaning his seed from my body and from my face. The stickiness is simply being washed away. It doesn’t change the fact that he marked me though. He claimed me.
I feel it in the heat between us.
We are bonded now.
It is entirely mind-boggling to me, but I am okay with Kon making me his.
Because I find that I want him to be mine.
Chapter Fifteen
Marissa
I wake and stretch languidly, feeling so good that not even the hard stone surface of our sleeping pod bothers me. I gnaw on my bottom lip, unable to suppress the smile that touches my lips as I think about last night. There are aches and pains everywhere in my body, but they’re dull and delicious. The mere thought of how I came to those aches and pains fills me with a sense of longing and desire all over again.
The smile on my face slips, and I feel a twinge of disappointment when I roll over and see that Kon is not in the sleeping pod with me. I look around the cell, but he’s not here. I slip out of the pod and get dressed. Just before I leave the cell, I notice the screen on the wall beside the door. It shows a running tally of our astrat. It looks like Kon has an astronomical amount judging by bands and dots, but I grin when I see that after last night’s performance, my total has shot up quite a lot. Apparently, the viewers enjoyed my performance.
I leave our room in search of Kon. Following the corridor, I step through a doorway and into a massi
ve chamber. It’s circular, fifty feet wide at its widest point. It’s twenty-five feet high or so and shafts of sunlight stream through the half dozen holes cut into the ceiling I assume are there to let some fresh air into it too.
The walls of this chamber are also all rough-hewn rock, and in the walls, long hollows have been scooped out, I assume for sitting.
The chamber feels humid, thanks in some part to the small waterfall trickling down the opposite wall, but the air is heavy and smelly. Along the wall to my right, I see a set of bars roughly ten feet high and a doorway built into it.
There are clusters of Gargolians and other species’ prisoners around the chamber, and when I walk in, I see many of them turn and glare at me. I try to ignore them, but the weight of their hostile stares is oppressive. Keeping my head down but watching them out of the corner of my eye, I find a cutout in the wall as far away from the Gargolians as I can get and sit down on the edge of it, wondering if I should just go back to Kon’s cell and wait for him there. I wish he would have woken me before he left and told me where he was going. But he’s a big boy who is more than capable of looking out for himself. I need to learn to take care of myself in this prison as well. I can’t become dependent on Kon’s strength solely; I need to reveal my own.
Feeling restless and aiming to prove to myself that I am stronger than I actually feel, I get to my feet and start to pace the chamber. At first, I stick to the periphery to avoid attracting too much attention. For their part, although they continue casting baleful glances my way, the Gargolians seem to be ignoring me. Or at least, seem to not want to engage with me, which is a good thing. Maybe the fact that I took out their fiercest fighter has earned me some respect. Or perhaps that’s just because I am Kon’s pet. Or maybe both…
As I walk, I notice what looks like a bright red berry sitting atop a large stone. It’s an odd bit of color in this place, and I’m curious, so I walk over to it and squat down to look at it closely.
“You should not touch that.”
I whip my head around and stand up straight, taking a couple of steps backward, my body tensing for a fight. I see a Tabiean female standing before me, her head cocked, an expression of curiosity on her face. The silky fur that covers her body is lighter in color than Kon’s, but still has that same crushed velvet quality to it, and she also has the same feline features.
She holds her hands up with her palms to me, showing me that she’s not a threat or there to hurt me. I slowly let myself relax and let out a loud breath.
“Sorry, this place…”
I let my voice taper off as she nods along with my words. I’m sure she knows what this place does to you. Judging by the unnatural bend to her leg and how she’s limping around, grimacing in pain, she seems to know it even more than I do.
“I was just saying that Nogost Berry belongs to one of the Gargolians,” she explains. “I did not want you to find yourself in trouble for taking it.”
“Oh, I wasn’t going to take it. I was curious about it,” I say, and grin ruefully, realizing just how much I sound like a lot of the perps I busted back home.
She gives me a gentle smile and inclines her head in a solicitous manner that all but screams, “I don’t believe you.”
“Anyway, thanks for trying to keep me out of trouble,” I say.
I turn to walk away, but the Tabiean woman falls into step beside me. Or at least, as best as she’s able to. I slow my pace so that she can keep up with me, her limp obviously hindering her. I find a place near the pool and waterfall in the corner, away from the groups of Gargolians and other aliens milling about and sit down. The Tabiean woman gently lowers herself down onto the ledge next to me, a grimace of pain etched upon her face.
“What happened to your leg?” I ask, though I have a decent idea.
“It was broken by a Gargolian who tried to rape me. I fought back and he snapped my leg,” she replies.
“And they did nothing to fix it?” I gasp.
She shrugs. “The healers were more interested in my breeding capability than tending to my wound,” she said with a note of understandable bitterness in her voice. “I am Tara.”
I give her a small smile. “I’m Marissa.”
“Forgive me for being so blunt, but what are you exactly?”
“What am I?”
She nods. “Your species,” she presses. “Where are your people from?”
“I’m from Earth,” I reply. “I’m a human. A human woman.”
She looks at me in surprise. “Earth. Human,” she says, as if forming the words in her mouth for the first time. “Never heard about it.”
“Yeah, well, Gargolians and Tabieans are pretty new to me too,” I chuckle. “I had no idea there were other species out there until I found myself in this shitshow.”
“Shitshow.” She flashes me a grin. “I like that.”
Unlike Kon, Tara is thin, far too thin. She’s practically skeletal, and I can tell it’s been a while since she’s had anything to eat. Recalling that I missed my breakfast and am currently flush with astrat, I get to my feet. Tara looks up at me curiously.
“Come,” I tell her. “Let’s get us some food.”
Tara shakes her head. “No, I can’t let you do that.”
“You’re not letting me do anything. I want to do it,” I tell her. “C’mon. I can use something to eat too.”
A bashful smile on her face, Tara directs me to a strange-looking machine and teaches me how to spend my astrat. First, I insert my hand, where a chip was implanted. It brings up the number of credits I have, and then there is a display of food and other items. I buy a ton of food, and it materializes in the dispenser section. I can feel the eyes on me as I pile a bunch of things into Tara’s arms, and at the same time, I watch as I start losing astrat.
“What the hell?” I ask as I bang on the machine.
Tara frowns. “It is considered a weakness to show the sort of kindness you are showing me,” she said. “I assume the viewers are downvoting you. I am sorry, Marissa…”
I wave her off. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault,” I say. “Kindness is not a weakness. Fuck them.”
Tara gives me a small smile, and when we’re done loading up, she and I take our feast back to our private corner and dig in. Tara eats like a woman who hasn’t tasted food in days. And judging by her appearance, I can believe it. I nibble on a few things but let her have the lion’s share of the food. She needs it far more than I.
“I saw another like you,” she says between bites. “A human. Woman.”
“Did you? Where?”
“In the healers’ bay where I was taken to be tested,” she said. “The woman was not conscious, so I did not get to speak with her.”
I think about it for a moment and wonder if the woman Tara saw was one of those taken when I was. I remember seeing other women on board the ship that abducted me and on Gargole in the facility where we were held. But it was always only briefly and from a distance. After being serially probed, prodded, and tested, I was sent here, and I don’t know why. I have no idea what happened to the others. Knowing they’re testing all of the women, though, is an interesting fact. And it makes me more than a little curious.
“What were they testing you for exactly?” I ask. “You said they were testing to see if you were pregnant?”
She nods. “Yes. They test all females of all species to determine our viability for their breeding program.”
“Breeding program?”
The very idea that Gargolians are conducting a breeding program sends shivers through me. And it makes me morbidly curious. Tara swallows her bite of food and looks over at me.
“Some time ago, the Gargolians were expanding their empire and thought using advanced biological weaponry would be more efficient,” she said. “But rebels got onto Gargole and blew up the plant where the work was being done. The virus they were developing was set loose on the Gargolian homeworld, and as a result, the female population ended up sterile be
cause of it.”
Tara takes another big bite of her food, chewing quickly, wolfing down as much as she can. It makes me feel bad for her. But it does give me a moment to process what she said. She turns to me as she chews and swallows again, gratitude shining brightly in her eyes.
“Anyway, ever since then, the Gargolians have been abducting women of other species from all over the galaxy, even going into far-off worlds,” she says. “They’re looking for species that are compatible with their own for purposes of breeding and repopulating their own dying world.”
I shake my head as my stomach churns. “That’s monstrous.”
Tara shrugs again. “That’s the Gargolians,” she says. “I’m not compatible with Gargolian physiology. I cannot breed for them. And I suspect that’s why you’re in this prison too.”
I sit back and think about it. I guess it makes sense. It explains why there were only young women on the spaceship that abducted us. So where are the rest of the women who were abducted with me? And if they are not here because they were found compatible, what was wrong with me? But then it hits me. The birth control I was prescribed not long before I was abducted. It affected my period, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s why I was considered incompatible. Gargolians had found no use in me other than to amuse the bloodthirsty masses. But given those two choices, I’d rather have to fight for my life than submit to letting those things impregnate me.
“You are Kon’s pet, yes?”
I nod with a grin, my body growing warm as I think about him. “Yes,” I say softly. “I suppose I am.”
“He is kind,” Tara says. “But he is very sad.”
I cock my head. “Why is he sad?”
“Do you not know how he came to be here?”
I shake my head. “He doesn’t talk about his life before very much.”
Tara purses her lips and nods. “It is understandable. It is a tragic story.”