Celestial Ascension (Splintered Galaxy Book 1)

by Eddie R. Hicks

  “Naturally,” Y’lin said, clapping her hands.

  Servants emerged from the pitch-black edges of the room, appetizers in hand. They presented to each guest at the table three skewers with lightly seared meat sitting in a pool of yellow liquid on the plate.

  “Total devotion and obedience,” Y’lin said. “It’s all I require of them.”

  “It’s Gah-aij, quickly seared with Gah-aij egg-yolk sauce,” Akeia explained as the servants vanished from sight into the dark corners of the room. “It’s quite hard to find this, as Gah-aij only flock on Talsyk, the Rabuabin home world.”

  “We haven’t had ships deployed that far into Radiance Union space for years,” Himton said. “The hunter who brought that back must have had a death wish.”

  Y’lin ate a piece of the meat before speaking. “As I said, Admiral, total devotion and obedience.”

  Himton smiled and said, “Speaking of which, we will get just that out of ‘them’ as well.”

  The six consumed the meal, tearing the flesh away with their sharp fangs. Noylarlie particularly enjoyed the sweet thick sauce that accompanied this dish, which paired nicely with the tangy taste of her wine.

  “Kejnora wine,” Kroshka interjected. “It takes about ten solar years to ferment, well worth the wait.”

  A team of servants stepped forward to clear the table and refill drinks. The servant removing Kroshka’s plate lost his grip, causing the plate to spiral toward the floor…but it didn’t hit the floor. Kroshka held her hand just above the plate, causing it to hover for a moment before raising it back up into the hands of the servant.

  The royal family are psionics who didn’t have to attend the training facilities—how convenient for them. Noylarlie glared at Kroshka during her display of power. Noylarlie noticed she did not have any cybernetic implants, and neither did Akeia…nor Y’lin for that matter. The servants all retreated back. Kroshka’s servant’s face grew incredibly pale as Y’lin directed her glowing orange eyes at him.

  Noylarlie took another sip of her drink and then asked, “So who exactly is ‘them’?”

  “Well,” Himton replied, “it’s classified right now.”

  “A species known as humans,” Y’lin cut in, again clapping her hands.

  There was silence for a moment as the servants brought out the main course—Vauni steak cooked rare.

  “My favorite dish—it has been awhile since we had this mother,” said Kroshka.

  They all ate, savoring the red, juicy, perfectly seasoned meat.

  “By all means,” said Noylarlie, “please tell me more about these humans.”

  “They live on a world that exists in an unexplored region of space between the Radiance Union and Hashmadei Empire,” said Y’lin. “A Linl star system close to it discovered them many years ago and started to study them.”

  “I thought the Radiance always jumped at the chance to upraise an intelligent race,” Noylarlie said.

  “They are far from intelligent,” said Jerut. “When our explorers discovered them, they had just launched two nuclear weapons at their own kind.”

  Noylarlie said, “Primitive species with nuclear power sounds quite intelligent to me.”

  Y’lin continued after finishing another piece of her steak. “We declared them a threat after seeing how fast they continued to develop their arsenal and aim it at their own. The Radiance did the same. However, they continued to study them while we ended all studies.”

  Himton weighed in with his knowledge on the subject. “Findings from Radiance research found their way to us via our agents within their worlds and were leaked on the knowledge network. We have reason to believe it’s only a matter of time before they change their stance and uplift the human race, making them the sixth member of the Radiance Union.” Himton continued on. “So I came up with a plan that could make humanity, as her majesty put it…give us their total devotion and obedience.”

  “Effectively cutting them off from the Radiance Union,” added Y’lin.

  Not much was said afterward—food needed to be finished after all. The servants came back to clear the table again, but the one who had been attending to Kroshka was nowhere to be seen. Must be getting the beating of his life, Noylarlie concluded.

  Akeia turned to Noylarlie and asked, “Care to know what the plan is?”

  “You got me this far, might as well,” Noylarlie said.

  “Kroshka and I will travel to their world, posing as one of their kind. Humans have a lot of sickness and injuries they cannot heal with their level of medical science,” he explained.

  “The sick will get better, the injured will be mended, and the elderly will live longer and become strong and youthful as they once were,” Kroshka said with a smile and closed eyes. “It will be a truly wonderful age for them. They will worship us.”

  “Then we reveal that we are Hashmedai and offer those who are loyal a place in the empire and the ability to travel to the stars,” Akeia finished.

  “This happens after the recon team checks everything out, of course,” Y’lin added. “It’s a risky situation, sending you two there when Radiance have easy access to that world.”

  “And it’s the only way to do it,” Jerut said. "Humans will become more attached when they discover a prince and princess from across the stars came to help them. They won’t be if they discover we sent a fake prince and princess. Humans are cunning. They will find out.”

  Noylarlie sat back in her chair, trying to process all that was just said. So many things could go wrong with this plan, but the empress was clearly on board with it. Presumably, Noylarlie figured, they had an exit plan if things went sideways, since the two siblings were the only heirs to the throne, due to the Radiance and their sneak attacks.

  Dessert was brought out, featuring a piece of protein on crushed ice with sugar sprinkled around it.

  “Tuli liver from Taxah—now this is a treat,” said Akeia.

  “I’m from Taxah,” said Noylarlie.

  “I know.” Akeia looked at her and grinned. “That’s why I chose it. I hope you enjoy it. A little taste from home.” As they all ate their sweet dish, Akeia added, “I admit, I have never traveled to Taxah.”

  “Maybe one day I will show it to you,” Noylarlie said, smiling back at him.

  Several hours had passed since dinner, and everyone except Noylarlie and Akeia had left the dining area. The two remained to share a bottle of Kejnora wine. Intoxication was taking over as the two laughed and spoke loudly. Walking back to their suites would have taken a great extent longer than it should, so Akeia summoned for an escort.

  As they waited, they passed the time with some flirting, more laughter, and random touching of each other. Akeia sat in his chair while Noylarlie stood and ran her fingers down his exposed chest. He took a long glance at her chest, which was now in his face. His hand reached up to stroke her hair, only to be interrupted by the sound of someone else clearing her throat. The sound caused Noylarlie to back off and fall backward.

  Akeia laughed and then looked behind him to see who was there—probably the escort he had called for. It was a guardian in full heavy combat armor, with creamy skin and dark-purple hair tied back.

  “Onatiasha!” he yelled in a drunken manner. “Thanks for…uh, coming!” His sights returned to Noylarlie, who was struggling to get to her feet. Her laughter prevented it from going smoothly. “Yeah, she fell and stuff—you scared her good! That’s why you’re my personal guardian! You spooked an Archmage!”

  Noylarlie took notice of Onatiasha’s plasma sword holstered to her side and kinetic shield generator strapped to her arm. She then said something completely unrelated. “Hey, is she your mate? Are you two copulating?”

  “No!”Akeia yelled.

  “Good!” shouted Noylarlie. “Not that it matters if she is!”

  Onatiasha rolled her eyes and said, “Let’s go, milord. I will escort you two back to your suites.”

  The sliding doors to Noylarlie’s suite opened, and she
and Akeia entered by falling over and rolling on the floor for a bit as the doors shut. Akeia had requested to be left here for the rest of the night, and Onatiasha was glad to follow this order. His suite was several floors up, so the thought of taking his drunkenness up all that way made her cringe.

  The duo lay on the floor for a few minutes before mustering the strength to move again. Noylarlie eventually got up but remained sitting on the floor. She felt the cold yet firm hands of Akeia stroke her hair.

  “I think this is where we left off.” She smiled and rolled her body on top of his.

  “I don’t think we got to this part, however!” he said, fixing his glowing red eyes on hers.

  “Who cares? You know what I want.”

  “More wine?”

  “Shut up!”

  Her tongue extended out, licking the side of his neck, while her cybernetic fingers passed through his hair and caressed the side of his head. He moaned for a bit before sliding his hands around her waist. Her body trembled with excitement, as she grinded herself on his crotch. He continued to embrace her waist as she slowly glided her hands across his chest. So strong, so fit.

  “I need this,” she said softly.

  He removed his shoes. “Bed is over there, yeah?”

  “I said, shut up!” Noylarlie yelled, striping his top off. He was right though—the floor wasn’t very comfortable to lie on.

  Moments later she pushed his shirtless body onto the bed. He landed chest first, perfect for her. She leaped onto his back, lowering her mouth and tongue to continue her licking play. Her tongue traversed down the back of his neck, slowly moving toward his shoulders and then his whole back. She spun his body over and without hesitation ripped off his slacks, tossing them far back into the pool behind them.

  Their tongues engaged in a passionate dance together in their mouths, while her hand wrapped around his hard shaft, moving it up and down in rapid motion. Her gown and shoes were still on, so she kicked off the footwear and peeled off the gown. Her cybernetic-augmented body hovered above him briefly before resuming her hand play.

  She continued moving her hand along his shaft, stopping only to replace her hand with her tongue to continue the act of making it dripping wet—and to think he hadn’t even gotten inside her yet. Her hands went back to work, relieving her tongue, which now crossed his muscular chest. Her grip around his hardness tightened and the speed increased while her tongue returned to its previous dance partner. She pressed her breasts against his damp chest. Shortly afterward he let out a loud roar while his body twitched thanks to the aid of her pleasing hand.

  “How many can you do?” she asked.

  “Two or three,” he said, gasping for a little bit of air.

  Hashmedai males, like all male life forms from this world, had an evolutionary history of seeking out and impregnating multiple females at the same time. Most life forms on Paryo were carnivores, and as such every living thing had a high chance of being eaten by another creature, so spreading seed to as many partners as possible was the evolutionary key.

  Being able to release several times in one session was quite common, despite one-on-one encounters becoming the norm as their civilization advanced and moved out into space. The more a man could release, the more masculine he was considered in the eyes of a woman, and he quickly became a good catch from her perspective.

  Noylarlie got on top and rode him, keeping him lubricated with her wetness. His hands slid along her waist as she moved up and down on him. Moving her hips from side to side, she closed her eyes. Moments later she briefly stopped riding as her whole body trembled. She resumed moving up and down, feeling his firm hands holding on hard to bouncing breasts and then later the warmth of his second seed release entering her body. The roar that bellowed out from his mouth was louder than before. She kept riding him and then grabbed his left index finger, forcing it in her mouth to gently lick it.

  ………

  The next morning Noylarlie struggled to make her way to the palace’s docking bay; the drinking and all-nighter of fun had her slightly disorientated. Jerut had summoned her there a short while ago, and at the most inconvenient time as she and Akeia were about to have a morning romp when the transmission came in. She scratched the top of her right shoulder, which was itchy from injecting herself with anti pregnancy chems. As much as the royals needed future heirs, she had no plans to be the one to provide them.

  She wore a sleeveless black-and-red crop top with a matching skirt and black high boots—psionic wear. She had a feeling she was going to be leaving the planet soon.

  She was right.

  Jerut stood next to a transport ship with its engines fired up ready for takeoff. They were missing only Noylarlie. She entered the docking bay, and Jerut waved his hand in a “hurry up and board the ship” motion. She entered, and the doors to the transport closed up as it took off into the dusky sky.

  The two adjusted their seat belts shortly before the lone pilot navigated the transport into the vacuum of space. She felt her hair become light and drift directionless.

  “I’m sorry for the short notice, Archmage,” said Jerut. “We got word of important information, which you might be interested in as well.”

  “Such as?” she said. His arm conjured a holographic image of an old friend, Whigli. Her eyes opened wide at the unexpected sight.

  “I believe you two knew each other,” Jerut said.

  “Yeah, we did.”

  “Abraxin had him shipped to a space bridge even though he was deemed too good for it.” Jerut’s head turned toward the cockpit’s window. They were getting closer to the space bridge in orbit. “The plan was for Whigli to become a combat psionic, and he was to be placed in my command. Abraxin betrayed me, so I had his crimes within the facility revealed to the—”

  “So you knew this whole time what he was doing?” The rage in her voice caused Jerut to flinch backward.

  “Yes, he’s not the only one to do that,” explained Jerut. “A great many of the staff there, both male and female, make playthings of their pupils.”

  Anger drove Noylarlie’s fist into the wall. All those years of abuse, and he knew and didn’t say anything until he didn’t get what he wanted in the end. Her fist impacted the wall three more times after she processed that thought. “Why didn’t you just put an end to it when you first knew?” she asked in a raised voice.

  “I’m not here to talk about the past but the present, and at the present Whigli is being held there.” He loaded a new holographic imagine of a space bridge in orbit around a green gas giant. “We’re heading there now, and you’re going to convince the administrators there to release him.”

  “Just like that?”

  “You are an Archmage. You can do what you want if they deny your request.” The hologram vanished. “Kill them and take him anyway.”

  “I’ll be going in alone, I assume?”

  “I have a ship just outside the bridge. I can have some troops come with you, but you will be in a zero-g environment. Swords aren’t very good under those conditions.”

  “I take it you don’t have any rifle personnel?”

  “Not on board, no. Our military specializes in close-quarters combat, not cowardly range attacks like the Radiance Union.”

  She gave him a dejected stare and said, "Psionic combat isn’t close quarters.”

  “Of course, psionics is a totally different situation!” Jerut concluded.

  The transport came to a stop outside the Paryo space bridge. After a few minutes, the pilot got the all-clear from the bridge staff to use it. The transport flew to the middle of the ring-shaped station, and seconds later blinding blue light consumed the transport and vanished.

  Since the transport was small, it took only a few hours for it to reappear at their destination, which was outside a space bridge in orbit around Hayin, the green gas giant Noylarlie saw in the hologram. The planet was located at the edge of the system, orbiting a white dwarf star. On the opposite of the planet was a
medium-size Hashmedai destroyer class warship waiting for the transport ship to dock after it finished its mission.

  The transport’s pilot spoke. “The bridge is receiving us now. Your orders, sir?”

  Jerut turned his head to Noylarlie. “Well, Archmage, this is now your operation. Do this right, and your friend will be free from a life he wasn’t supposed to be a part of.”

  My operation now? Perfect way to cast blame on someone else if things go sideways. Noylarlie removed her seat belt, allowing her weightless body to float free.

  “Put me through,” she requested, and a holographic projection of a man with orange-yellow eyes appeared before her. He was an older man, who had clearly been at this location far too long as he looked directly at Noylarlie like he’d never seen a woman before.

  “I am Archmage Noylarlie Atonement. I am coming aboard to dock and talk about the release of a psionic you have.”

  “You can board, but I must remind you we need all psionics on board for this bridge to remain operational,” said the man in the hologram.

  “I am not interested in how your bridge works. Just let me aboard, and we can talk more about my demands,” Noylarlie retorted.

  “Of course, Archmage. Docking port eight is opening for you now.” The hologram vanished.

  “Should be easy from here if he’s letting you aboard. Only a fool would try to fight an Archmage anyway,” said Jerut.

  Noylarlie stayed silent, still filled with rage after her recent discovery and now having to deal with this questionable operation, which now had her name stamped on it. But at the same time she couldn’t bring herself to turn it down. She felt somewhat responsible for Whigli being here in the first place. After all she was the one that bedded him that night in attempt to keep him motivated and happy. A nice sensual thrusting always made men happier in the long run; at least it always did for Lord Hasiv and a few of his associates. In any case, Whigli being inside of Noylarlie got him placed inside of a space bridge by a jealous Abraxin as punishment. Punishment he didn’t deserve, Whigli should be serving on board a ship like Chidorli.