by Aubrey Ross
Zylott Wars 3: Rescue
Aubrey Ross
All rights reserved.
Copyright ©2005 Aubrey Ross
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Prologue
Setti Realm
Odele stood at the observation window, her reluctant admiration growing as the Terran hybrid continued his frantic resistance. His well defined muscles bunched and flexed with each attempt to avoid the stimulation of his handlers. Alloy shackles bound his wrists and ankles, reducing his rebellion to violent twists and infuriated jerks away from the unwanted attention.
He’s magnificent. Isn’t he?
Glancing at the transparent being hovering at her side, Odele smiled. “Indeed.” She paused. Most of the inhabitants of the Setti realm were intimidated by Cef, but Odele had no reason to fear the wraith’s unusual abilities. They wanted the same thing, and she’d figured out how they were going to get it. “I’ll miss these demonstrations once Hakon has him destroyed.”
Cef flared, his essence brightening from turquoise to sapphire. Hakon has no right to order his destruction. We captured the Terran! He is ours to do with as we please.
“Explain that to your brother. Hakon seems to think being Supreme Midox gives him the right to do as he pleases.” Odele kept her gaze fixed on the captive. Cef’s empathic abilities were staggering, but so were her mental shields.
Destroying the Terran would be foolish. Why are you provoking me?
She took a moment to respond, allowing the tension to build. Light gleamed off the captive’s blue-black hair. He turned his head toward the observation window and snarled. All the training chambers featured large windows. The Setti wanted their captives to know they supervised each session, gauged the effectiveness of each technique. Incandescent blue erupted within the Terran’s gaze, the same shade as Cef’s essence.
“Have you verified his identity?” She shot Cef a sidelong glance.
Yes.
“Have you told Hakon what you learned?”
You know I haven’t. What are you plotting? I tire of your games.
“Hakon is a fool.” She clasped her hands behind her back, widening her stance. “I have despised him —”
Since he gave you to Gibrath?
Odele glared at Cef. Her resentment of Hakon began long before he discovered she was barren and disregarded her. She was the result of a lifetime of experimentation, a coveted Keeper/Setti hybrid, powerful beyond all others. But her inability to conceive had rendered her useless in the eyes of the Supreme Midox. The subsequent years of degradation at the hands of his brutish son only reinforced her hatred of Hakon. Well, Gibrath was dead and she was tired of waiting for one of Hakon’s numerous enemies to solve her problem for her.
“Gibrath was popular with the hybrids.” Her narrowed gaze remained on the captive. “Hakon is not.”
I’m listening.
Meticulously guarding her thoughts, she lowered her voice to barely a whisper. “If we establish a claim to the throne in Gibrath’s name, the hybrids will support us. If we attempt to overthrow Hakon outright, they will likely side with him.”
I thought you were barren.
“I am!” She reined in her emotions and shielded her thoughts before she spoke again. “I know Hakon told you to bring Gibrath’s daughter to him. If he cannot control her, he will not hesitate to destroy her.”
What do you propose? She is my niece, I cannot impregnate her.
“No, but he can.” She nodded toward the Terran. Wicked laughter filled her mind and Odele smiled. “We need only convince Hakon we’re trying to convert her long enough for the Terran to get her with child.”
And once she carries Gibrath’s heir, we move against Hakon…
Chapter One
Kinson Palace
Kingdom of Zylott
“Our attendants are Drahbin. Did Tye explain what that means?” Felise paused outside the bathing chamber, her hands tucked into the pockets of her simple robe. Elita, her brother’s newly bonded mate, was from the Mystic Keeper dimension, so many Zylott customs were unfamiliar to her.
“The Fahroni and the Drahbin were the two warring clans your father united into the Kingdom of Zylott.” Elita seemed pleased with her answer.
Felise exchanged a conspiratorial smile with her younger sister Adara. Elita obviously had no idea what delights awaited them in the bathing chamber. “True, but do you understand the primary difference between the Fahroni and the Drahbin?”
“Only Fahroni males have mystic abilities.” Elita tugged on the belt securing her robe. “I know very little about the Drahbin.”
Adara stepped up beside Felise. Golden flecks sparkled in her green eyes. “The Drahbin were bred to be empathic.”
“It’s actually more complicated than basic empathy.” Felise leaned against the door to the bathing chamber. “The Drahbin can only experience certain emotions vicariously through others.”
“The entire race is incapable of feeling emotions?” A frown knitted Elita’s smooth brow.
“Not all emotions. They feel joy and sadness, anger and frustration, but passion and physical desire have been suppressed within them. Their empathic sensitivity is the only thing that keeps them from being — impotent.” She whispered the last word.
“You said ‘bred.’ This was done to them intentionally?”
“Let’s go inside. We can explain while we soak.” Adara tried to reach past her and unlatch the door.
Felise staved her off with an upraised hand. “Elita wasn’t raised with bathing attendants. She may find this uncomfortable.”
“Let Lecith attend her. He can put anyone at ease.”
“He? Your bathing attendants are male?”
Felise laughed. “You sound horrified. Father resisted many of these customs when he first arrived from your dimension, but Mother helped him understand that pleasure is not shameful.”
“Will Tye be attended by Drahbin females?”
“Of course.”
Elita’s frown deepened to a scowl. Pressing her lips together, Felise fought back a grin and opened the door. Jealousy was natural when one wasn’t used to their ways. Elita would soon learn she had nothing to fear. Attendants stimulated release with their hands, their mouths, and slender wands. They weren’t allowed to remove their garments.
A lavish bathing chamber spread before them. Colorful tiles fit together in an intricate mosaic, covering the floor and walls. Highly arched, the transparent ceiling offered a delightful view of the afternoon sky.
Directly across from the door four Drahbin men stood in a neat row. Adorned in white linen trousers, their swarthy skin gleamed smooth and hairless, and anticipation shone in their dark eyes.
“Are they… slaves?”
Felise shook her head. Her brothers often complained about the misconceptions Mystic Keepers harbor
ed regarding the Kingdom of Zylott. “There are no slaves in this dimension. Attendant to the royal bath is a highly sought after position. Not only are they compensated monetarily —”
“They can only feel pleasure by giving pleasure, so the better they please you, the more they enjoy it,” Adara explained with an impish grin. “Drahbin consorts are revered, cherished.”
“You make them sound like pets.” Elita glanced at the four attendants, then back at Adara. “You said they are bred to be this way. Who did this to them?”
“Is there a problem, Your Highness?” The tallest of the four men approached with loose-limbed assurance.
“No, Lecith. Our guest is just apprehensive. She fears you and your men are being exploited.”
“With your permission, perhaps I can put her fears to rest.”
Easing tension was Lecith’s specialty. His charming smile and gentle hands were hard to resist. “Please proceed.”
He bowed low in front of Elita. “I am Lecith, Chief Attendant to the Royal House of Kinson. I would be honored to care for you this afternoon. I’ll answer your questions and do everything within my power to help you relax.”
Felise grinned as he led Elita toward the opaque shower stalls. As Adara had said, Elita was in good hands.
“Are you ready, Your Highness?” Felise smiled at Merset, her favorite attendant. His hairless scalp accented the pleasing symmetry of his handsome features. Dark eyebrows and thick, long lashes framed his night black eyes. He took her hand and led her toward the showers. They would soak in the heated pool once their bodies had been scrubbed clean. She shrugged out of her robe and handed it to Merset. The spray activated as she stepped into the stall.
“Are you looking forward to tonight’s festivities?” He waited as the water saturated her long hair.
“I’m thrilled Sef and Dori will finally bond. She had nearly given up hope.” A king must have heirs. It was simply a fact of life. If Dori hadn’t been able to conceive, Sef would have been forced to bond with another and keep Dori as his consort.
Merset drew Felise’s hair over her shoulders and lathered the thick mass with fragrant shampoo. His strong fingers massaged her scalp and combed through the sudsy strands. Felise rested her hands on the stall in front of her, relaxing as he worked.
“I think it admirable that he didn’t set her aside. Many would have long ago.”
“My brother loves Dori with his whole heart. Even if he’d been forced to turn to another for children, Dori would have remained his true mate.”
Warm and slick, Merset’s hands rubbed her shoulders and caressed her arms. “King Sef is an honorable man. Zylott is fortunate to have such a leader.” He stepped into the stall with her, his hands cupping her breasts. “Shall I prepare a wand?”
Desire curled through Felise, erupting between her thighs with a distinct throb. Merset had introduced her to the pleasure of the wands, wielding them with such skill she trembled just thinking about them. “Elita would never recover from the shock. We better wait until tomorrow.”
“Then shall I pleasure you with my fingers or my mouth?”
Felise loved the firm stroke of his tongue against her clit. He’d brought her to countless orgasms with his masterful kiss. Again she feared Elita’s reaction to such a blatantly sexual act. “We’ll have to make do with your fingers until my guest departs.”
One of his hands continued to stroke her breast, while the other descended along her torso. Felise pressed her back against his chest, enjoying the warm water raining down on them. His mouth opened against the side of her neck, sucking hard enough to send tingles down her spine without marking her skin.
His pants abraded her bottom, a teasing reminder of all they were forbidden. He could bring her to orgasm, sharing her pleasure empathically, by whatever means he chose so long as her maidenhead remained intact. She shifted restlessly, imagining the rhythmic slide of the wand. Resting her head against his shoulder, she clutched his forearm, steadying herself as he slipped his hand between her thighs.
A sensual moan reached Felise’s ears and she smiled. Adara was obviously enjoying the ministrations of the two remaining attendants. Merset parted Felise’s folds and slid his middle finger across her clit. She pressed her lips together, determined not to embarrass their guest with cries of release.
“Don’t hold back, Your Highness,” Merset pleaded in a throaty whisper. “I need this badly.”
Her resistance deprived Merset of his pleasure. She eased her legs apart, making room for his hand. Closing her eyes, she pictured herself as she’d been three days before, lying upon one of the padded massage tables. Merset had stimulated her breasts, teasing her nipples with firm suction and careful pinches. Lecith knelt at the foot of the table, her legs draped over his broad shoulders. He’d filled her bottom over and over with a slender wand, while he feasted on her creamy slit.
“Yes.” Merset pulled her closer, rimming her aching core. “Remember the pleasure we shared, how you came for us again and again.”
Sliding his finger between her folds, he rubbed her clit with his thumb. Heat cascaded through her, swirling deep in her abdomen. Each teasing stroke pushed her higher, wound the tension tighter. Her nails dug into his forearm, her eyes tightly closed. He caught her clit between his finger and thumb, rolling it slowly until she cried out, shaking in his arms as pleasure coursed through her.
Merset dragged every last shudder from her body before he turned her around. “Allow me to taste you now. Your cream is always so sweet and it gives us both such pleasure.”
Breathless and unsteady, Felise motioned beyond him. “I’m neglecting my guest. She’s already in the pool.”
“Perhaps she would enjoy watching me pleasure you.”
“Somehow I doubt it.” Felise chuckled. “Lecith is still dry. She didn’t even let him in the shower with her.”
Felise crossed to the pool and sank chin deep into the gently churning water. Elita kept her gaze averted until Felise’s naked body was submerged.
“Foreplay is part of your bathing routine every day?”
The tension in Elita’s tone made Felise smile. “Orgasms are healthy and harmless. Why does this upset you?”
The Mystic Keeper’s wide blue gaze locked with hers. “Because Tye is… We are not having attendants at our house!”
Felise didn’t argue. It wasn’t her place to interfere. She relaxed in the contoured bathing tub and surrendered to the water’s soothing warmth. Adara joined them a short time later, her cheeks flushed, eyes bright with passion’s afterglow.
“Tye said the festivities will last three days.” The attendants returned to their station against the wall and Elita relaxed.
“Our brother is king,” Felise said. “The people of Zylott would be disappointed if his bonding ceremony weren’t elaborate.”
“Do either of you have mates?”
Felise shook her head, uncertainty unwinding within her.
“Sef has been hinting that Felise needs to prepare herself for an important announcement,” Adara volunteered with a mischievous smile.
“You won’t be allowed to choose your mate?”
“If the match Sef arranges is completely intolerable, I’m allowed to refuse. Being royalty changes the dynamics of personal relationships. It’s impossible to separate our individual needs from what is best for Zylott.”
“I understand what you’re saying. I’m just not sure I agree.” Elita splashed water onto her face, smoothing her hair back from her brow. “Do you know who your brother is considering?”
“No, but you might be able to help me figure it out.”
“Me?”
Felise managed a smile. “Since Nyx took a Keeper mate and Tye bonded with you, Sef is convinced Adara and I should follow suit. Each bonding strengthens the alliance forming between our people.”
“What is the ruling body called in the Keeper dimension?” Adara asked.
“The Steering Committee,” Elita replied. “Master J
arek and Master Tilden are the only two males on the Committee not already bonded.”
“Tell me about them.”
“Jarek is younger. He’s the Shadow Master. I don’t know either man well. Tilden’s bonded mate died many years ago. He has a daughter about your age.”
Felise sighed. Age wasn’t always a consideration in these matters. If he was young enough to father more children… “Which order does Tilden lead?”
Elita fidgeted. “He is technically part of the Order of Shadow.”
“Technically? Is he subordinate to Jarek?”
“No.” Elita’s reluctance amplified Felise’s unease. “Tilden is the Death Master. He trains and supervises a highly specialized unit of informants and — assassins.”
Felise averted her face, hiding her shock. Jarek sounded better with each word Elita spoke.
*
“They still don’t realize you’re an imposter?”
Jarek met Tilden’s gaze in the mirror and grinned. “I intend to tell Lord Nyx in the next day or two. I’m amazed how much we think alike. He had Tye infiltrate the Keeper Academy within days of my first appearance as Ambassador Tork.”
“All the more reason to be leery if you ask me.” The Death Master laughed. “Anyone as sneaky as you bears watching.”
“You know Nyx better than anyone in our dimension; do you have reason to mistrust him?”
“He has many secrets, but I trust him with my life.”
Jarek nodded, turning to face his friend. “How do I look?” He adjusted the elaborate collar attached to his formal tunic of purple, green, and gold.
“Like a preening leensta bird.” Tilden scoffed. “Does Ambassador Tork always dress like that?”
Most Shadow Keepers couldn’t manifest illusions. Jarek had inherited the ability from his Light Keeper mother. He could drastically change his appearance for short periods of time. By keeping his illusions subtle, he was able to extend their duration dramatically. He reinforced his disguise with an extravagant wardrobe and flamboyant mannerisms. No one in the Kingdom of Zylott had guessed Ambassador Tork was really Jarek Severn, Master of the Order of Shadow.