Kenan's Mate: A Dark Sci-Fi Alien Romance (Kleaxian Warriors Book 1)

by Sue Lyndon

  My stomach roils. I can’t be sure, but I think it’s one of the warships that attacked the Stargazer. I return my gaze to the houses, not wanting to dwell on the attack.

  Most of the roofs reflect the sun, and I speculate the town runs on solar power. The roofs that don’t reflect the sun are green.

  It could be a town on Earth, in fact. My father installed two large solar panels on our roof last summer, while many of our neighbors have green roofs. It was a growing trend and the last I’d heard before leaving Earth, politicians were discussing making it law that at least fifty percent of a homeowner’s roof must be a green roof, with a well-tended garden during the growing seasons, or be covered with solar panels.

  But the sun, significantly larger than that of my homeworld, and the twin moons, visible but faded to white in the daytime, hover in the light blue sky, taunting me with the reminder that I’m far from home.

  My gaze drops to the gardens surrounding the house. Flowers in every color gleam with morning dew. Large, oval red fruit clings to the shorter trees below. A stone path weaves through the gardens, and several servants tend to the plants. I wonder if the force field is deactivated during the day, partly because I long to go exploring and partly because I’m contemplating running away.

  A huge figure emerges from the forest and my heart thumps faster.

  It’s Kenan.

  He must be returning from his early morning duties. From what Heggal has told me, he takes care of his people. How long has he lived on this mountain? Why are none of his family members with him? Perhaps I should ask Heggal.

  Before Kenan can look up and glimpse me standing naked in the window, I turn and rush to the bathroom to prepare for our trip to town. As I shower, I contemplate all Kenan said to me before bed last night. Everything from his declaration that most human females likely had it worse on Tallia than me, in regard to how harshly their Kleaxian mates would treat them, to his announcement he preferred I share his bed rather than make me sleep in the cage.

  At least he kept his word last night and didn’t hurt or fuck me again. He kept an arm draped over me, and at several points I awoke to find him spooning me against his chest, but he otherwise left me untouched.

  The warm water sprays over my sore breasts as I work a lather of soap on my stomach then reach between my thighs to cleanse any of his remaining seed from my privates. Though I’d showered after he claimed me yesterday, I’d still felt the trickle of his semen escaping down my thighs for hours afterward.

  Though my pussy is tender—the numbing salve has worn off—I rub soap between my legs in hopes of preventing pregnancy. It’s a futile attempt, I know, being so many hours since he pumped me full of his seed, but I don’t wish to conceive a child on this strange world. I should have cleansed myself more thoroughly last night, but thoughts of pregnancy hadn’t entered my mind then.

  If the opportunity to escape ever arises, I want to leave without any hindrances or second thoughts. A baby would complicate that, not to mention the fact I don’t want to bear a man as cruel as Kenan a child in the first place.

  Besides, I’m eighteen years old. Even if circumstances were optimal and I had a kind, loving boyfriend or husband back on Earth, I still wouldn’t be prepared to become a mother. Watching Sheila struggle with an unexpected pregnancy had only reinforced my desire to practice safe sex, after I eventually lost what she humorously referred to as my V card. I miss her jokes and her laughter, and I mourn the inability to call her or pay her a visit.

  A sigh escapes me. I’m probably testing Kenan’s patience by taking so long getting ready, so I hurry to finish in the shower and don the elegant gown. It feels odd getting dressed with no undergarments—none have been provided—but, to my delight, the hem falls several inches above my ankles. At least I’ll be able to walk easily wearing it, without it dragging along the ground like the black robe. After towel drying my hair to the best of my ability, I tuck the damp locks behind my ears and depart the bedroom in search of Kenan.

  He’s sipping a steaming mug of something that smells suspiciously like coffee on the front patio. As I approach, he frowns at me as if he doesn’t approve of my appearance. I swallow the sudden lump that forms in my throat and resist the impulse to smooth my hair down. I stare at his feet, noticing he’s wearing black boots, but I’m still barefoot. Heggal didn’t provide me with any sort of shoes.

  “You kept me waiting quite a while, Laylah.” His scowl deepens and he steps closer.

  I eye the dark contents of his mug and take a long inhale. The strong coffee-like aroma momentarily distracts me from his displeasure at my tardiness. I finally return my gaze to his. “I wanted to look nice for our trip to town,” I say in a placating tone. “I’m sorry to have kept you waiting, Kenan.”

  “How do you know we’re headed to town?”

  “Well, I assumed we were headed to town, since a servant arrived with this beautiful dress,” I reply quickly, chiding myself for the slip of tongue. My heart races.

  He glares at me for a lingering moment then finishes the contents of his mug and sets it down on a table. I take a few steps around him in the direction of a stone path winding through the trees, eager to set off on our short journey, but he grabs my arm and growls. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  I lift my chin and glare at him. “Well, since I cannot fly over the trees, I thought I’d walk to town.”

  My attempt at a joke falls flat.

  His eyes narrow to dark-purple slits, and he retrieves something from his pocket. It’s a chain with a leather length attached to it. Oh my God. After several seconds pass, I gasp and start backing away from him.

  It’s a leash.

  A fucking leash.

  If he thinks I’ll consent to being walked through town like a dog, he might as well leave me at home. I have no desire to endure such callous humiliation. Even my curiosity and longing to glimpse the town up close doesn’t tempt me to oblige him.

  “A claimed female does not walk ahead of her mate.” He holds the leash up. “A claimed female wears the leather collar around her neck in public and humbly submits to the guidance of her mate. Once a claimed female bears her mate a child, she doesn’t wear the leash anymore, but she still must walk behind her mate as a show of respect. It is the Kleaxian way.”

  I shudder and cross my arms. From my interactions with Kenan thus far, I understand there are many rules on this planet that subjugate females, however I never expected him to lead me through town by a chain.

  Shaking my head, I lift my chin higher. I’ll not be intimidated into wearing that thing. No matter what.

  “I’m not wearing a leash. Absolutely not. I’ll walk behind you, that’s fine, but I’m not putting that thing around my neck.” Glancing through the trees, I wonder if I’m faster on my feet than Kenan. But as they did the last time I considered running from my so-called mate, the fading welts on my breasts tingle, reminding me of how angry he gets when I try to escape him.

  Tears prick my eyes and I blink hard, refusing to cry in front of him. I need to stop crying like a fucking baby in his presence. I must learn to hold my tears until the nighttime hours, when I can cry quietly into my pillow after he falls asleep. I’ll never forget the gratifying moan that sounded in his throat when he tasted my tears yesterday. If I can deprive him of one thing he takes pleasure in, I’ll consider it a small victory.

  “Laylah, do you want me to treat you the way most Kleaxian males treat disobedient females?”

  “Are you threatening to beat me bloody?”

  “Trust me, little human, it would only take one such beating to make you forever compliant.” He places the leash next to his empty mug and grasps my chin hard. “Are you going to wear the collar?”

  Sunlight glints off the intricate loops of the chain. The breeze picks up and stirs my hair around my shoulders as I stare at the object of my scorn. If I relent and offer my neck for the leash, I’ll lose what’s left of my self-respect.

  After
the somewhat pleasant night spent wrapped in his arms, I’m hurt by his expectation I wear a leash in public, even if it is the custom of his people. I’m not a Kleaxian female and I wish he could be more understanding of my culture, a culture we happen to share, since his human father raised him.

  “No, Kenan, I am not going to wear the leash. However, if you’d like to wear it, I have no problem leading you around town like a dog.” The angry, taunting words escape my mouth before I give them much thought. But the moment his red face pales slightly and his large eyes widen, I’m drenched in ice cold fear.

  This is it.

  He isn’t only going to beat me bloody. He’s probably going to kill me, even if it is forbidden for a Kleaxian male to kill a female.

  Maybe it’s better this way.

  I can’t imagine spending the rest of my life being constantly threatened and led around by a chain. I’m young and inexperienced and I never had a serious boyfriend on Earth, but I thought one day when I finally met the right person, I would mean something to that man.

  Kenan sees me for my sex and nothing more. I’m the female he carried off the Stargazer, which makes me his possession.

  The spoils of war.

  Sure, he claims there’s a bond between us and because he claimed me, I’m surrounded by a faint glow that marks his ownership of me, but I can’t share in the bond and I certainly can’t glimpse that blue aura.

  Fuck. I’m crying now. He’s still holding my chin, and tears are streaming down my face. Despite the brave front I tried to put on, I really, really don’t want to die right now.

  He pushes me down to my knees and withdraws his huge, erect cock from his pants. “You have a smart mouth, Laylah.” A dark smile creeps across his equally dark features. “But I know the perfect way to keep you quiet for a while, and perhaps teach you a lesson in the most merciful way I know how.”

  Grabbing my hair, he forces his cock into my mouth.

  I try to resist, but his brute strength surpasses mine. When I think of biting down and allow my teeth to tentatively scrape his shaft, he winds a hand around my throat, momentarily cutting off my air.

  “I wouldn’t recommend biting.”

  I struggle in his firm grip, but in the end I surrender as he repeatedly shoves his cock in and out of my mouth, hitting the back of my throat and making me gag.

  Punishing me.

  It’s too difficult to breath when I’m fighting him. Tears coat my face.

  All I can do is stay on my knees as he claims this part of me. Eventually, he hits a steady rhythm easier on my gag reflex. When I can anticipate a thrust, I can at least handle it better.

  Is this better than a beating? As used as I feel, I honestly don’t know. We’re outside in broad daylight. Any of his servants could glance out a window and witness my humiliation. Anyone could walk up the path from town and glimpse me on my knees with a cock in my mouth, being chastised.

  With each thrust, his heavy balls slap against my chin. The same chin I’d raised proudly as I’d defied him moments ago.

  I don’t feel so proud anymore.

  Only stupid and like I’d brought this on myself. I want to turn back time and allow him to put the blasted leash around my neck. If he doesn’t stop soon, I’m going to suffocate. I can barely inhale through my nose before his lower stomach blocks my breaths.

  He releases my hair and holds the sides of my face, his pace increasing. His cock swells larger and he half-grunts, half-growls. His hot, salty essence shoots into my mouth as he continues pumping in and out.

  I have no choice but swallow.

  It’s that or choke, and I sob around his length as I gulp every last spurt of his seed down. Finally, he pulls out and releases me entirely.

  I collapse on the stone floor of the patio, gasping for air as I clutch my neck. My lungs are screaming, as they were during the attack on the Stargazer, when I had no choice but to inhale the increasingly thick smoke filling my quarters. Slowly, my breathing starts to regulate and my chest no longer aches from lack of oxygen.

  Kenan’s boots disappear from my vision, but when he returns, he props me up against him and presses a cup to my lips.

  I’m too tired to fight, and I welcome the cool water down my hurting throat.

  After I’ve had my fill, he sets the glass aside and strokes my hair from my face. He also rubs my back. It takes me several seconds to notice the slight pressure of the leather around my neck.

  Touching it, I gasp. He must have slipped it on while I was drinking. There’s a metallic square in the center with a thumb-shaped imprint. The only way I’ll get this blasted thing off my neck, is if he decides to remove it.

  My spirits sink, but then he gently wipes away my tears with a soft cloth, and I once again can’t reconcile his harshness with his comforting touches.

  He helps me to my feet with the semblance of a gentleman, as if he hadn’t just been punishing me by shoving his cock down my throat.

  I can’t quite meet his eyes, so I stare at the colorful stone design in the center of the patio. It forms a swirling pattern, but most of the stones are orange and red. I study the artistic depiction of the sun until Kenan tugs on my leash.

  With no choice, I follow him down the sloping stone path, feeling exceedingly chastised.

  The walkway twists through the trees, and our surroundings remind me of a lush rainforest. Exotic birds caw above us and happily flit from branch to branch. Small, furry creatures scamper through the underbrush upon our approach, their glowing eyes occasionally blinking at us from dark hiding places.

  Sunlight splinters through the trees in various spots along the way, but the stones on the path in these particular areas aren’t too hot to walk upon. I suppose females aren’t allowed to have shoes, either.

  Probably as a deterrent to running away.

  If I manage to escape my leash and take off through the forest, the underbrush will likely cut up my unprotected feet and prevent me from getting very far. And then what will I get for my troubles? A cock shoved down my throat?

  Kenan says nothing as we approach the town, and I welcome the silence.

  The houses are similar in style to his, constructed with large gray stones reminiscent of medieval castles, but smaller, of course, than Kenan’s massive estate. I suppose being a prince has its benefits.

  As I already know from glimpsing the town from the bedroom window, all the roofs have solar panels or gardens covering them. Though I’m sure the Kleaxians are much more technologically advanced than humans, the town possesses an antiquated feel. Perhaps it’s the lack of cars.

  “What do you think of the town, Laylah?”

  I open my mouth to tell Kenan it’s beautiful, and though my lips move, my throat doesn’t vibrate and no sound issues forth. Eyes wide, I stop walking and try to speak once more. My heart speeds up.

  No matter how many times I try to talk, I’m unable utter a single syllable.

  “If swallowed, a Kleaxian male’s seed renders a female physically speechless for several days. It’s considered a merciful punishment among my people.” His gaze darkens and he tugs on the leash. “Come along, little human. I think once you witness how other females are treated, you will agree that breast whipping and face fucking are in fact lenient punishments.”

  Chapter Eight

  To say I’m shocked would be an understatement.

  Everywhere I glance, Kleaxian males are leading naked or scantily clad females around by leashes similar to the one around my neck. The females who aren’t wearing a collar still follow close behind their mates. I deduce the males dressed in black, like Kenan, are his soldiers—the very warriors who helped vanquish the human males from Tallia, attacked the Stargazer, and closed the wormhole.

  Most of the females have flawless skin, but a few have bruises and angry red markings. I stumble past a woman who recently endured a whipping that left her back covered in thin, welted cuts. My legs weaken, and it’s all I can do to follow Kenan into the bustling market
place.

  Vaguely, I’m surprised by how much he looks like a full blooded Kleaxian, and he’s even the tallest in the crowd. I wonder if it’s due to his royal blood. Maybe the Kleaxians of the highest class who also possess royal blood are always taller than their subjects.

  My gaze scans the crowd further. The females don’t speak often, only if their mates turn around and converse with them briefly. The Kleaxian language sounds so strange to my ears, I wonder if I’ll ever understand Kenan’s tongue. At least he speaks English. I can only imagine what the other human women are going through, being unable to communicate easily with their new mates.

  The Kleaxian females aren’t much larger than me. Their skin is a lighter red than the males. All the Kleaxians, both males and females, have black hair. I carefully scan the throng and spot five human women. They’re on the far edge of the crowd, though, and I’m unable to determine if they have bruises or marks from a recent whipping.

  All the males we pass incline their head to Kenan and say the same thing. Huloon ruhosta. Maybe it means “Good morning, Your Highness.”

  I’ve never felt more like an outsider.

  I don’t belong here, not in this town and not on this planet among this frightening alien race.

  Please let our visit here be short.

  Kenan leads me into a stall containing items of clothing. Pretty, feminine dresses and male Kleaxian apparel hang on racks and on the walls. He speaks with the owner and it soon becomes apparent he’s shopping for me. The owner, similar in appearance to Kenan, but shorter and with only six fingers, an indication that he belongs to the lower class of Kleaxians, scans me with a device that aims tiny green lines as it passes up and down my body.

  When the owner steps too close to me, Kenan grabs my arm and growls. The shorter man backs away and bows his head in regret, his hands trembling at his sides.

  If I had use of my voice, I would tell the shop owner not to worry and thank him for his help. But I can only give him a brief apologetic look. I wonder if he suspects the shameful reason for my silence.