Perhaps enough to last a lifetime.
“Shall we go share the news?” Lanie asked. Her voice only broke a little, so she counted that a victory. The two crews followed her out of the cave and back down the steps. The aliens were all still milling in the Den, seemingly content to wait however long it took for answers.
Again, Lanie stopped before reaching the floor. This time, a shudder wracked her. She was looking out at her future. When Horny stepped toward her, his brakka flanking him, she swallowed back her personal thoughts and mentally repeated her mantra. The mission comes first. The mission comes first.
Lanie licked her lips and shifted from foot to foot. Her courage was burned up in agreeing to be the Guinea pig. She closed her eyes. She was doing the right thing, even if it scared her. The mission came first. Billions of people were counting on her.
“We’ve talked about your condition, and we’ve decided to offer a compromise,” she told Delloruin. “We’re intrigued by your ways of lifebonding, but we’re not sure humans are as compatible as you think. Not just physically,” she rushed to add when Horny opened his mouth to argue. “But emotionally and mentally. Human women have been equal to their male counterparts for centuries. Your society doesn’t seem as…accommodating.”
Horny didn’t argue. “What’s your compromise?”
Every alien in the Den was tense. One of them—maybe a group of them!—was going to be her mate. They seemed frozen as they waited for her answer.
She gulped and ran her hands along her thighs to wipe off nervous sweat. “To show we’re truly considering future lifebondings, we’ve decided to allow one now. If it goes well, and we think our women would benefit, we’ll allow more.”
Most of the aliens laughed and whooped at the decision, obviously joyful to have such a chance. But Horny frowned. “Who?” he asked, his rich baritone cutting through the voices of the other males. “Who will bond with us now?”
Lanie noticed Muscles threw a hopeful look at Dee.
“I have volunteered,” Lanie told the crowd. She hoped they hadn’t heard how her words wobbled.
Muscles frowned. “Have you chosen who you want to lifebond?”
“Me!” someone from the back of the Den shouted. Which, of course, set off more yelled offers. Soon, it was a loud yelling match as the aliens vied for attention. In a way, it was flattering. A really weird way, of course.
Paul snatched Lanie back and dragged her farther up the stairs. He stood in front of her like a shield, bless his heart. “Is this how you’re proving to us that you’re trustworthy? That our women would be safe with you?”
Horny still stood right at the edge of the steps, his two shadows helping to block the stairwell and protect the humans from excitable aliens. “SILENCE!” he roared. “You’re frightening the females.”
And it was true. Dee was shuddering next to Lanie, her petite frame quaking. The yelling was something the survivors knew well—the slavers had been brassy and loud, always fighting and jostling each other and their captives.
Silence fell and everyone, even the human males, looked at Sarah, Lanie, and Dee. “We’re fine,” Lanie assured them all. “Just…please, don’t get that loud again.”
The mob of aliens nodded.
“Have you chosen?” Horny asked. “And when will you bond?”
Lanie blushed. “I haven’t chosen yet, but we don’t have much time. The other aliens were chasing us, hoping to capture us again. If you’re going to help us evade them and then protect our world, we’d need to leave as soon as possible. I’ll make my choice tonight, bond, and then we’ll regroup tomorrow…if that’s agreeable?”
The aliens all nodded again.
“I have an idea to help the process along,” Paul piped up. “How about we tell them more about you, Lanie? Like, the quickest flash dating ever.” He looked out at the eager crowd. “She’ll talk a bit about herself—her job, her interests, what kind of life she wants—and if it appeals to you, stand over here,” Paul waved at the left side of the stairs. “If you think you might find a human more suited to you later, go over there,” he waved to the right side.
Muscles immediately went to the right side.
Lanie almost panicked. She had no idea what to say—she liked chocolate and long walks on the beach? These males wouldn’t know what that meant!
“Start with your job,” Paul whispered, settling his hand on her lower back. “You worked hard to learn so much.”
She could do that. Easy. “I’m an environmental engineer. On Paradise I mostly worked with food supply, making sure irrigation and waste-disposal systems for high-yield crops were functioning—but I also specialized in long-term research during my free time. Mostly I studied the impact humans had on the environment, specifically Earthen transplants to our colony. My mother, a bioengineer by trade but an avid botanist at heart, kept several greenhouses, and one of my most rewarding studies involved how—”
A light tap on Lanie’s shoulder drew her out of the speech. “I think you’ve demonstrated a good dose of your enthusiasm,” Paul said. He waved his hand at the audience.
Lanie flushed a little when she realized that a good number of the aliens had moved to the right side of the room. Oops.
Horny still stood at the base of stairs, a smile pulling his lips back enough to expose his fangs. “I bet you’re a large part of how humans stole themselves a pirate ship,” he mused.
Lanie shrugged. “It’s been a pretty easy system to understand, except that it’s meant to be monitored by more than one person. So far, I’m the only human fully comfortable adjusting your programs when problems arise.”
“Amazing,” another alien muttered. He was one of the scaly ones, a Gkiven. “I was an engineer aboard the ships before being marooned. It took a team of twelve to keep us running!”
Lanie thought back to all the times she’d felt like a frantic chicken with its head cut off. “It would have been nice to have the help.”
“What about your interests?” Horny’s question cut her conversation with the engineer off, and she suspected that he’d done it on purpose.
“Do you want a family?” this from one of Horny’s brakka, who was slighter in frame than his alpha. “You’re not mated—married—nor do you have children. Did your job prevent you? Were you waiting for another reason?”
Lanie cringed. Flash dating officially sucked. “There’s only one child amongst the survivors. I recommend not asking anyone else about their children…others have lost their families. I only lost my mother to the virus.” The door to those memories shuddered, but the lock held. “As to why I’m not married…well, I’m young. On Paradise, there was no reason to settle down until I’d found love.”
Another of the scaly Gkivens stepped forward. “What is love?”
“Aaaaand now I regret suggesting this,” Paul interrupted. “How about you go and mingle for a minute, Lanie? See if there are any sparks?”
She was going to kill him. First the Q&A, now rubbing elbows? Her glare must have been something fierce, because Paul flashed an apologetic smile before scampering back to the other crewmembers.
Horny shooed his brakka back a few steps. “You’re safe, Lanie. You can come down.”
The engineering Gkiven also beckoned, smiling. “Please, I’d love to talk to you more.”
They looked so hopeful, so sincere, that Lanie allowed herself to be coaxed. Before long, she was surrounded by about ten males, the remaining suitors she hadn’t scared off. Horny and his two buddies, two Gkivens, several Abbaleers, and another brakka, though it only contained two Lu’O.
“Just to be clear,” she told them, “I won’t give up my work. I love engineering.”
The two-male brakka silently slipped away to the right side of the Den.
“What about when you have children?” Horny asked. “Surely then?”
Lanie rolled her eyes. “Human females work long after having children. Young babies can be carried in slings wherever the mother goes,
and older children are often watched by a caretaker who enjoys that kind of work. I will not give up my engineering,” she repeated.
All of them appeared dubious, but no one argued. No one else left, either.
“Do you mind if I talk with you individually?” she asked. “I’m not actually comfortable with being the center of attention this way.”
“Me!” the Gkiven engineer said, bouncing forward exuberantly. “I have so many more questions!”
Lanie’s smile was strained. “Okay,” she agreed, a bit flustered at the thought of answering the enthusiastic male’s questions.
“Let’s walk and talk!” He grabbed her hand and hauled her towards the tunnels. “What did you think of—”
The rapid-fire spew of questions as the Gkiven—he forgot to introduce himself, so Lanie had no idea what his name was—led her through the cave’s tunnels eventually ended with an in-depth conversation about regulating agricultural environs, deep space versus planet-based. It was fascinating…but it didn’t rev Lanie’s personal engines. There was no spark, no desire to do more than talk. As they were walking back into the Den, she decided to friendzone the chatty engineer; she liked him, thought he was sweet and intelligent, but she instinctively knew her feelings would never progress past friendship.
He grinned at her, obviously pleased with their talk. “Will you be my Charm?” he asked bluntly, moving to stand a bit closer to her side.
Everyone—literally everyone—turned to stare at Lanie. She gulped back nerves and tried not to hunch away from the attention. Her traitorous shoulders rounded anyway, and her cheeks heated under the press of expectant gawkers.
“I…uh…it was a very nice walk,” she managed, trying to be gentle with the letdown. “But I think we’re more of a professional match than a personal one.” The Gkiven wilted at her answer, seeming to shrink in the silence following. Lanie felt so bad, so guilty, that she touched his shoulder. “I’m sorry, it’s not a reflection on you or your appeal. It’s me…”
“Wow, this is the best use of ‘it’s me, not you’ that I’ve ever heard,” Paul whispered. Unfortunately, since everyone else was silent, his voice carried loudly.
The Gkiven’s milky skin flushed, his cheeks mottling with hints of blue. “Best of luck,” he said to Lanie, then turned walked to the other side of the cavern.
“Our brakka will go next,” Horny announced. He gestured toward the tables in the center of the Den, but that would keep Lanie smack-dab in the middle of a figurative fishbowl. No thanks.
“I’d like to keep walking around, if you don’t mind.” She looked at the other waiting males, all hoping for a chance to lifebond her. “By the time I’m finished talking to you all, I won’t feel so stiff from sleeping on the ground.”
Horny huffed. “By the time we’re back, you’ll have decided on us.”
Lanie rolled her eyes. He was sexy—his entire brakka made her mouth water—but the arrogance was a definite notch against him. “I’d need to know everyone’s names, first.”
The shadow on Horny’s left stepped up to her as they walked, and Horny fell back to give the guy room. “My name is Hilom.”
Hilom had a softer face than Horny and looked younger. Sweeter, somehow. His pale skin and impressive musculature set him apart from even the most buff of humans, but he was leaner than both other brakka members. His horns were different, too. Curvy like an antelopes’, and swirled near the tips.
“Hello, Hilom. It’s nice to meet you.” She glanced at the other two aliens. “How does this work, exactly? The trio, I mean.”
“Delloruin’s our leader. The strongest, most aggressive,” Hilom explained. “All brakka have a hierarchy.”
“That would be hard to adjust to,” she murmured.
“Are human females really as strong as males?” Hilom asked. His eyes were huge and excited, further lending to his air of youth.
Lanie chuckled. “As strong? That’s a yes and a no. Physically, men usually have superior strength. Discounting childbirth, of course. Our equality comes from mental and emotional acuity.”
“If females are weaker, how can they be equal?” the other, unnamed shadow asked.
“What’s your name?” Lanie wanted to know.
“Fennotinn, but my brakka calls me Fen.” Unlike Hilom, Fen was built. He wasn’t quite as big as Horny, but he was still an impressive powerhouse. With thick horns and an intense, intelligent gaze, the guy was enough to make any self-aware woman wet. Total yum.
“Thank God for nicknames,” Lanie said, a bit breathless after perusing the handsome alien. Fen’s continuing, steady stare made her nervous, so she kept babbling like an idiot. “I’ve dubbed Delloruin ‘Horny’, you know. Now you’re Fen, and Hilom…well, Hilom is pretty easy to remember.”
“My full name is Hilomettin.”
Lanie nodded. “Of course it is. “Horny, Hilom, and Fen.”
Horny made a rude noise. “If you must shorten my name, use Ruin.”
Bossy and arrogant. Horny was on a roll. Lanie decided to ignore him. “Well, Fen, to answer your question, strength hasn’t been a deciding factor in equality for a long time. At least with humans. Once we conquered gender equality, we moved on to race, sexual orientation, and religious differences…now humans live under a code called the Civil Constitution of Rights, Privileges, and Responsibilities. Basically, all adults are responsible for their own behavior and conduct according to human law, and serve their community in some meaningful way—with a job, or as a public servant. In return, every individual is granted rights and privileges, including the freedom to enjoy any activity that does not break the law, or harm another citizen.”
The three Lu’O stopped walking, staring at her as if she’d grown a second head.
“What?” she asked.
“But…violence is part of nature, even in society,” Hilom ventured. “How do you defend yourself? Who protects your ‘rights’?”
It was then that Lanie realized how drastically different their cultures were. “Violence was not a factor in my life until your people invaded our colony. Before that, I’d never experienced abuse of any kind.” They looked shocked—Hilom especially, which intrigued Lanie.
“No wonder you haven’t taken a mate,” Fen said.
According to the chat they’d had about their species, the Lu’O believed their women didn’t have horns because nature was prodding the females to search out mates for protection. Lanie couldn’t imagine living that way, feeling so helpless and having to search out protection in exchange for her body.
Of course, then it hit her: she was doing exactly that.
The sickening realization made her heart hurt. She couldn’t change her mind, though. The mission came first, no matter how horribly distasteful it was…no matter how dirty it made her feel. Prostitution had long been outlawed, a precursor to eradicating all skin trade and slavery. She was the first human to willingly delve back into the ‘oldest profession’ in hundreds of years, her time with the invading alien slavers notwithstanding.
Nope. Those thoughts went behind the locked door in her mind, the one with memories she couldn’t handle. She had only hours to make a decision, so she had no time to dwell on things out of her control. She’d made the choice to volunteer…she’d pull on her Big Girl Panties, as Paul called it, and suck it up.
Her time crunch in mind, she decided to be really, really honest with the brakka. “This whole lifebonding situation…it’s a little scary to me. I don’t have a lot of time, and it’s a big decision. I wanted a chance to talk to the interested males because I wanted to see if there’s attraction, you know? A spark.” When Horny, Hilom, and Fen nodded, she continued. “I think you three are incredibly sexy—you’re gorgeous males.”
Horny and Fen grinned like idiots, adding an air of lighthearted charm to their harshly masculine features. But it was Hilom’s blush that Lanie found particularly adorable. Which, of course, made the rest of her statement all the harder to say…
“But I don’t think we’re a good fit for each other.”
It was hard to watch their smiles fall away. Especially when Hilom’s hopeful expression turned sad. She just wanted to give the guy a hug—big buff alien or not, he was too cute to leave so dejected. She reigned that urge in, though. Making the situation harder was not in her game plan.
“Why?” Horny asked. “You just said you found us pleasing.”
“Physically, yes,” Lanie agreed. “You’re all incredible males…but I’m afraid you’d try to control me. Not maliciously,” she explained. “I’m sure you’ll be great mates to a woman who wants to be dominated, but I’m pretty independent. I like working—love it, actually. I like being an equal partner in relationships. With your hierarchy, that doesn’t seem possible for me.”
“We are not on the homeworld,” Horny said, edging toward her and lowering his voice seductively. “Such things can be worked out. Between the three of us, you’d find yourself quite…satisfied.”
Lanie let out a gusty sigh. He had an incredible effect on her hormones—her lady bits had perked up with every raspy word, every inch he moved closer. She both loved and hated it. “I’m sure the sex would be great,” she said, “but it would take more than that to make me happy.”
“The hierarchy…it’s not something to fear,” Hilom said, surprising Lanie. “I’m obviously not on the top, like Ruin. I’m the youngest, the least aggressive until provoked, but that doesn’t mean they don’t value me. Is that what you’re afraid of?”
Lanie shrugged. “In a way. I’m not comfortable with the idea of my relationship having that type of dynamic. I’ve been making my own choices for most of my life, and I’ve done a good job taking care of myself.”
“Dynamic…you mean, Horny being leader? Or you not being leader?” Fen asked. His intense gaze seemed to go straight down into Lanie’s soul.
“A brakka isn’t formed with the intention of dominating a female,” Horny added. “In fact, I have no interest in a fully submissive mate. None of us do. We would have walked to the other side of the room if you weren’t suited to us—your intelligence and independence included.” He inched forward again, Hilom and Fen edging up on the sides so they bracketed her, caging her smaller body against the cave wall. It didn’t feel aggressive, or intimidating. In fact, her body found the experience downright exciting. “The real purpose of a brakka is protection.”
Lanie's Choice: Survivors of Paradise Book 1 Page 5