Science Fiction Romance: Biomechanical Hearts (Space Sci-Fi Love Triangle) (New Adult Paranormal Fantasy)

by Olivia Myers

  Argo stared, unmoving, and when I finished my tirade, I stared right back, breathing so hard that my chest rose and fell beneath his massive hand.

  “I have little power,” he whispered, drawing closer, but not moving his hand. “Rachel, I can argue this idea and possibly stop them from… raping you as you say, until you’ve at least had the child. You would have your own room and be cared for. Or I can take you to a room like I am supposed to, so that a Vendi can try to impregnate you. This process would be repeated several times a day with different Vendi until you test positive for impregnation.”

  “But the first way only delays the inevitable,” I said, my voice small.

  “It buys you time and the life of your child. We are a powerful race, Rachel.” Argo shifts uncomfortably between his feet. “Your child would not survive the first two days and if you bleed out it will be seen as weakness and we will be forced to replace you with another viable subject.”

  The quaking in my body started again, and Argo pulled me in to his arms, holding me until it subsided. “I am sorry, Rachel. I do not like it, but this is the only way for our race to continue and you are one of the few humanoid races that are compatible.”

  “You didn’t have to force yourselves on us. Look at you guys,” I said with a laugh. “You could get a million willing subjects just by walking into a bar.”

  “What’s going on in here?” A male voice asked from behind Argo.

  Argo’s expression changed from shock to cunning in seconds. He spun around, holding onto me, his hand over my heart slipping down to my breast, the other between my legs. The shock on my face must’ve been perfect because the guard’s expression changed to one of humor.

  “So the doctor wanted a turn as well?” It was Neflin. “I saw you favoring that one before. Now I know why.”

  Argo rocked forward with his hips in a rhythmic motion from behind me. “A little privacy, Neflin,” he panted.

  Neflin winked and left the room. The second he disappeared from sight, Argo let me go and I spun back around to face him, my cheeks hot. I was torn between gratitude for covering for me and anger for touching me.

  “Rachel, I am sorry, I had to think quickly and I—”

  “I understand. Thank you, Argo. Thank you for everything. I know you didn’t have to do any of this, but you did. Please know that I’m grateful.”

  Argo cleared his throat. “Very well. We had best get you back to your cell so I can speak with Representative Klemor. Do me a favor and attempt to look… ravaged.”

  His lips stretched in what I thought was a smile. I might have smiled back, if I hadn’t been so disturbed by everything else happening.

  Argo walked me back down the hall, holding my elbow. I kept my eyes down, but couldn’t help stealing glances at various rooms as we walked by. I hadn’t been in a state to notice on the way down, but each room had a clear door, allowing a perfect sight line inside.

  Each held a different Vendi male, nude. I couldn’t help but notice the rippling muscles on each one, and their oversized cocks. Under the right circumstances, Vendi could have been amazing lovers. But this…

  At least half the rooms had a human woman in them as well. I stopped looking after a two halls because it made my stomach turn. But as we neared the next turn, one of the doors opened, revealing the sound of a sobbing woman. I glanced over and the Vendi was dragging her out of the room by the leg, streaks of blood smearing along the floor from her insides.

  I stopped and Argo nearly smacked into me as the Vendi hurled the girl into the opposite wall where her head hit with a sickening thud and she slid down, leaving more blood from the crack in her skull. I threw a hand over my mouth as I heaved. The Vendi looked over and grinned, stalking toward us. Argo stiffened behind me, but even he seemed puny compared to this monster.

  “That one was defective,” he said in a gruff voice. “But yours looks sturdier.” He reached out and grabbed my hair, yanking me away from the safety of Argo.

  I bit my lip hard to prevent myself screaming, but begged Argo again with my eyes.

  “She is being returned to her unit,” Argo said, calmly. “That is the protocol after each pairing. You will be brought another in due time.”

  The Vendi did not let me go. He lifted me by my hair and squeezed one of my breasts until I thought it might pop like a balloon. I cried out in pain. “I like the sounds they make,” he said. “Screw protocol. The idea is to fuck them until they give us young, so fuck I will.”

  “You will return the subject to me. I have authority here and if you do not comply, I will have you removed from the study.” Argo stepped in his path as he attempted to carry me back to his room.

  “And what are you going to do about it if I fuck her first?” he asked, pushing past Argo. The blood soaked room bounced in my vision as he carried me toward it. I tore at his arms and anything else within reach. Then I was flying through the air, and all I could do was throw out my hands to help break my fall. My whole body was jarred and then I was lifted again from behind and tossed on my stomach on the cot in the room.

  “No!” I screamed, pushing myself over to see what was coming at me. Now I understood why Argo expected me to miscarry within the first forty-eight hours. That was if I didn’t die outright.

  The Vendi stalked toward me, holding his erect cock like a weapon. But he stopped halfway into the room. His eyes rolled up into his head and he fell to his knees then with a huge thump onto his face on the floor.

  Behind him stood Argo, already pocketing a large syringe. He stepped over the Vendi’s unconscious body and offered me a hand. “Are you all right, Rachel?”

  “I think so,” I said, taking his hand. “Are you going to get in trouble?”

  Argo smiled again. “He was not following protocol.”

  We walked back to the room with all of the women’s cells, and Argo deposited me in my own space again. Then he hesitated, splaying his hand across the invisible wall. “Do not be afraid. I will go speak to the powers and I will come back for you before the next round reaches you.”

  I nodded, understanding, and slid down to the floor to rest. Argo’s presence did make me feel safer, I realized when he left. So I curled into a ball as best I could and watched as others paraded from cell to hall and back again in a sick sort of dance, wondering how many of the Vendi in the rooms were like the one who’d tried to steal me, and how many were more like Argo.

  ***

  I must have fallen asleep on the ground because the next thing I knew, Argo was shaking me awake. “Rachel, good news. The experiment was approved. Come with me.”

  He helped me to my feet and led me back down the halls to an empty room. All evidence of the Vendi he’d drugged and the woman he’d brutally murdered was gone. Not a speck of blood remained.

  The room was only about double the size of the small cell, but it was slightly more private. I sagged against the wall in relief. I was being spared any more sexual assaults at least for the next six months.

  The only things inside the room were a cot and a smooth metal panel with a touch screen. Argo showed me which button opened a panel on the bottom, where a chamber pot slid out, and which opened a panel above that dropped down a thin tent. Apparently if I stepped inside, it would automatically cleanse my body.

  “I could use a shower,” I said. “I’m also hungry and thirsty.”

  I was getting used to Argo’s strange, flat grin as he pushed yet another button which opened a waist level panel that delivered a tray with some sort of sandwich looking thing and a bowl of clear liquid which I assumed was water.

  “I have to go check on the process, but I will return tonight when I am off duty.” Argo reached out, hesitated, and then smoothed a section of my hair back. “Fare well, Rachel.”

  I nodded my thanks, already downing the water and sandwich.

  Life was boring in that room. I found another button that made a treadmill slide out from the wall, so I spent a lot of time exercising. I reasoned it wa
s better for the baby than a stagnant life in a cell.

  I became used to Vendi walking by with curious or lascivious glances, but I didn’t think I’d ever get used to seeing human girls being dragged around like toys. Guilt threatened to drown me whenever I saw someone like that. What made me so special that I deserved this reprieve? But then I felt the baby move and I knew I’d done the right thing. She deserved a good life. A free life. Even if it was as a Vendi.

  That illusion shattered one evening during a visit from Argo. He’d brought with him a bottle of the Vendi equivalent of wine. I explained that I couldn’t partake while I was with child. Argo passed a hand over my bulging stomach in a now familiar gesture and the baby kicked at his hand in response. I enjoyed seeing his violet eyes light up when he felt the child. It was the way I’d dreamed Neil would look someday.

  “Tell me about my planet,” I said as he drank directly from the bottle, settled back on the cot, one leg crooked so his knee was up in the air.

  “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “Is it still there? Are you benevolent overlords now?” To hide my sorrow at the thought of losing my beloved Earth, I shoved at his leg with mine.

  He considered me and took another sip. “We have control of New York and most of the Eastern seaboard. The west is hostile territory and the site of much hostility between our peoples. We could take it easily of course, but we have no need to. The military simply enjoys the practice.”

  My stomach lurched. “Why don’t you just finish us off?” I asked, staring at my hands.

  “Because it isn’t necessary unless the project proves a success. And despite the sampling you’ve witnessed, we’re not all monsters. We just breed more males than females and we needed to do something or die out in a matter of generations.” Argo downed more wine and swished the remainder of the bottle. “The project was funded by our government and our scientists did some preliminary research. They found human females to be the best genetic match and most probable to withstand our relative size and stature.” He waggled his bronze eyebrows.

  “You mean your enormous dick.”

  “I’m not bragging. Just stating the facts, ma’am.”

  We both laughed. If it weren’t for Argo’s visits, I would’ve gone insane by now. The thought of how his race had so blithely come to my planet and started stealing us made me sick, but at least they weren’t all, one hundred percent awful.

  At least I had a friend.

  The thought made me sad, but I bit my lip to hide it.

  “I suppose I should go,” he said, sliding off the cot.

  “Wait.” I pressed my hands against his chest to stop him. He waited, looking down at me, patient and curious. “Tell me what will happen to her when she’s born. You said the other day that I could have her as soon as ten weeks from now.”

  He peered down at my round belly and the stretched skin over it. “I’ll likely do a C-section as soon as she’s viable. The Councilate is anxious to meet her.” He put his hand on me again and once again she moved to meet him. “The plan is to raise her as one of our own. See if she takes on more Vendi or more human characteristics. Hopefully she’ll grow to be a thriving and willing participant in our culture.”

  He smiled and turned to go.

  “What if she’s not?” I asked.

  He stopped, facing the other way.

  “Argo?” I pressed.

  “She’ll be placed in the program when she’s old enough.” He turned to see my reaction.

  My head shook back and forth in a silent “no.”

  “It won’t come to that,” he said putting his hands on my arms. “She’ll thrive. She’ll be a queen among our people.”

  “How do you know?” I asked, eyes watering.

  “Because she’s part of you, Rachel.” Argo’s eyes were hazy from the wine and he leaned in. “She’s special because her mother’s special.”

  “Argo…”

  His full lips pressed against mine, and he gathered me in his strong arms as we kissed. It was both urgent and gentle, careful and passionate, and I found myself swept up in all the emotions swimming through me.

  He was kind. He was real. He was safe.

  His hands skimmed the skin of my bare back, making me shudder with the sensation. Warm and light, his practiced fingers traced the curves of my body, trailing over my stomach to my ribs and beneath the bottom of my breasts.

  I pulled back with a gasp and Argo backed away, frightened. “I’m sorry. Rachel, I’m so sorry.” He ran out the door and down the corridor before I could respond, his kiss still hot on my swollen lips.

  Argo didn’t come the next few days and I spent my time in a fog, bouncing from one state to another. Finally I decided that I had to do something. I’d become too complacent because Argo made me feel safe. But I would never be safe as long as I was here. In ten weeks or less, I’d be fodder for their breeding experiments. But Argo… my mind kept coming back to the kiss we’d shared. He’d been drunk, but was it possible he had real feelings for me? If he did, maybe I could use that. If he felt this bad about a kiss, what would he do for me if he had sex with me? Would he feel guilty and devoted enough to let me go? I could escape into the unoccupied part of the Earth. Somewhere the Vendi weren’t practicing or had already captured.

  I could save my baby and myself.

  Maybe all I had to do was seduce Argo.

  That night he came to me again, carrying a box of candy he’d smuggled as an apology. “Can you ever forgive me? Rachel I never meant to take advantage. Please believe me. I swear I will never drink near you again.”

  “Oh, Argo. I know you would never hurt me on purpose.” I opened the box and tasted a purple treat, which was similar to chocolate. It melted in my mouth. I bit the corner suggestively and licked all my fingers slowly, murmuring, “Mmmm.” When I checked, he was staring, mouth ajar. So I stepped up close and fed him the final bite, letting my touch linger on his lips.

  “Rachel,” he sounded anguished. “What are you doing?”

  “What do you mean?” I asked, stepping up to him sideways so that my breast touched his tight leather bodysuit.

  He swallowed and took a step away from me. “Rachel,” he breathed.

  “I know you want me, Argo.” My throat grew tight. I didn’t like making him feel uncomfortable, but I would do anything to help my baby. “You’ve protected me at every step. You saved my life and my baby’s life.” I fought against the tears that threatened and stepped close again, backing him right into the wall where I reached up and clasped my hands behind his neck, letting my fingers slide through his silky bronze hair.

  “You don’t owe me anything,” he said, looking down at me, caught between fear and anticipation.

  “I know.” I tugged his head down and reached up on my tiptoes to meet his mouth. This time, our kiss didn’t start out tentative or careful. I explored his mouth with my tongue as he gripped me closer, splaying his hands across my bare skin and lifting me against him until I no longer touched the ground.

  I threw my legs around him, straddling his hips. I had to lean back to make room for my growing girth, but he was strong enough to hold me like that. He carried me to the cot, where he sat me down and brought his hands around to my chest, his thumbs sliding over my nipples. I threw my head back, breathing hard as he kissed the skin of my throat and down to my breasts. By the time he passed my round stomach, I was gripping the edge of the cot in anticipation, barely able to control myself. Argo knew how to touch me in a way unlike Neil ever had.

  I spread my legs apart, eager to welcome his warm mouth and tongue, and my body exploded with passion. “Oh, Argo,” I moaned, gripping his head.

  He stood, leaving me in an intense state of desire, while he removed his leather suit. His body was perfect and his erect cock was huge, but it didn’t frighten me like Rythe, which I’d later learned was the name of the Vendi who’d attacked me. I trusted Argo and I knew he’d take his time. I just hoped not too much or I might b
urst.

  “You are so beautiful, Rachel,” he said, stroking my face as he positioned himself, pressed against my stomach.

  “So are you,” I said.

  “Are you sure about this?” he whispered.

  I nodded, unable to speak, but thrusting my hips up toward him, encouraging him to enter me. And he did, pressing slowly inside of me. I groaned with the delicious torture of it and gripped his shoulders tight.

  “I can’t resist you,” he murmured, lifting me and thrusting inside, further than I’d ever imagined. My body arched against him and I gripped his waist with my legs. He turned and pressed me against the wall, continuing to thrust inside of me as he watched my face. Wave after wave of ecstasy shook my body and I cried out, no longer in control of myself. But he kept going, making me cry out again and again as he sated his own desires.

  When we finished, he held me close, caressing my hair and kissing my head tenderly. “Are you all right?” he asked finally.

  I nodded against his chest, now glistening with sweat. “That was amazing.”

  “Thank you,” he said, tilting my chin up so he could see my flushed face. “You’re not bad, either.”

  I smacked his pecs playfully.

  “The truth is,” he said, pulling his suit back on, “I never made love before.”

  “Wait,” I said, stopping in my tracks. “You were a virgin?”

  “Was it terribly obvious?” he asked.

  “No. I mean it’s not like I have a ton of experience, but that was amazing.” I wasn’t lying. “I think you rocked the baby to sleep,” I said, rubbing a hand over my stomach.

  Argo came over to lay his hand over my own and we stood there for a minute, just smiling at each other.

  “Argo?” I asked, picking another sweet from the box he’d brought me.

  “Hmm?” he asked, leaning back against the wall, looking quite satisfied.

  “How’s the project going so far?”