As soon as the realization came to her, she had an awful thought. Maybe I’m the one who smells. She tried to recall the last time she’d had a bath. The space pirates had grudgingly allowed her and her fellow prisoners on the Luna to wash from time to time. Their leader Magnus kept them fed and bathed to protect his potential profit.
Fatar hadn’t shown any sign of disgust when he came near enough to support her so she could drink from the flask, but she still ducked her head and sniffed in the direction of her armpit. She wrinkled her nose. I smell like I’ve just jogged five parseps, but it’s not the same as that horrid odor. It’s definitely coming from the beast carrying us.
Her companion was giving her an odd look, and she hastily handed the flask back to him. “How long have you worked for Lord Axum?”
“I have been in service to my lord since he took the throne. Before that, I served his father until his untimely death.”
“So you know Lord Axum well.”
Fatar nodded. “Since he was born.”
Delta paused, trying to decide how to frame her next question. It wasn’t unusual for an alien species to collect specimens from other worlds and cage them as exhibits in an interstellar zoo. “Did you purchase me to be a… companion to Lord Axum? Or for him to display me as a novelty?”
Fatar raised an eyebrow. “I would have thought that even a world as distant as yours would be familiar with Lord Axum’s reputation. My master – and now yours – has the largest harem in the galaxy. Its fame is legendary. He owns females from every known alien race. Currently, several thousand of them. So, to answer your question – you will be both companion, as you put it, and novelty. If you please your master, you will enjoy a life of unparalleled luxury, your every whim satisfied. If you do not, you will be punished severely then most likely given as a token of his wealth and power to a visitor from another world.”
Thousands of females from different worlds, all vying to be the favorite. Delta was silent as she processed the information. She was about to compete in an arena far more dangerous than the ones faced by ancient gladiators on Earth. Males fought with testosterone-laden brawn. Females were far more dangerous. They could be the most compassionate, peace-loving creatures in the Universe. Or they could be cunning, ruthless foes, especially if the well-being of their offspring was involved.
All things considered, she’d have preferred facing the ancient gladiators.
Chapter Three
After a few more hours of travel, a shape began forming in the distance. As they drew nearer, she saw it was a huge stone wall, blinding white, stretching across the horizon for what looked like miles. Delta had seen the Great Wall of China from space. This structure looked much more substantial, like a high cliff rather than a manmade structure.
“This wall surrounds the citadel of Borsai.” Fatar waved a hand. “Lord Axum’s palace is the largest structure ever built on any world in this sector. The rulers of Borvaan have been adding to it for over ten millennia, each one determined to make his legacy stand out.”
“Ten millennia? Your culture is far older than any in existence on Earth.”
Fatar nodded. “Older than any in this vector of the Universe. Lord Axum’s roots are deep, and his control over Borvaan is absolute. All who dwell here do his bidding – or suffer his wrath.” The old man’s shrewd eyes pierced her. “You would do well to keep that in mind.”
“May I ask why we’re traveling in this manner?” She waved a hand at the wall ahead. “Your world possesses the technology to travel across vast distances between galaxies and build structures far grander than anything I’ve ever seen. Why are we lumbering across the desert in this crippling heat, when you could have whisked us straight to the doors of his palace?”
“My master uses such conveniences when dealing with other worlds, but here at home, he prefers to honor the wisdom of his forefathers and maintain the old way of life, as the lords of Borvaan have done for millennia. Those ways have allowed our ancient civilization to survive and thrive, unlike those of other worlds, long forgotten.”
As they drew closer, she caught sight of an enormous doorway. It had to be sixty feet tall, but the height of the wall dwarfed it. Sentries above must have been expecting them because the massive wooden doors slowly creaked open, giving Delta her first peek at the citadel of Borsai. She gasped. It was like entering another world. High overhead, a white canopy like the one over the traveling platform she rode on covered the entire city, blocking the harsh rays of the sun. Under the canopy, the temperature was pleasantly warm rather than unbearable. A wide avenue lined with giant ferns stretched out before them. Soft green fronds far overhead grew out of the tops of brown stalks as tall and thick as tree trunks.
Everywhere she looked, she saw a riot of color. Multistoried stone buildings painted in vivid shades of scarlet and Caribbean-blue and bright purple lined the avenue, each one with vines growing up the sides or trailing down from balconies high above. Some vines were bursting with blooms. Others bore strange fruits and berries.
The avenue teemed with Borvaani. Like their homes, their dress was colorful. Bright patterns featuring gaily colored flowers and exotic creatures adorned their clothes. The males wore loose trousers slung low around their hips and sleeveless vests with no shirts, showing off lean, deep-bronze bodies. The females were all slender as well, the younger ones in sarong-type garments tied around their hips, leaving their pert breasts exposed. Older females wore elaborate beaded bodices. Couples strolled along arm in arm under the shade of the giant ferns. Small groups conducted business in open-air market stalls or sat in cafes lining the avenue.
Huge lumbering beasts like the one she rode on were everywhere, along with scores of other life forms. Young lads rode on the backs of sleek horned animals that reminded her of antelopes. Children giggled and chased furry orange rat-sized creatures that scampered away up into the tangled vines. They passed a stall where a row of three foot long, gray-green scaled bodies hung by the neck from a gaily striped awning, waiting to be taken home in market baskets.
Fatar saw her wrinkle her nose at them. “Cojee. A desert-dwelling delicacy. They are quite delicious stuffed with ti nuts and roasted.”
The avenue stretched on in the distance, as far as she could see. Other roads branched off, all teeming with people. The farther they went into the center of Borsai, the larger and more grand the buildings became. The colorful structures gave way to ancient stone walls in mellow hues. She glimpsed stately mansions surrounded by lush gardens beyond the walls, fountains flowing in every courtyard.
As they traveled, the locals cleared the street for them, often bowing and touching their fingers to their foreheads. Fatar explained. “The Borvaani recognize this yamila as one from Lord Axum’s stable by the traveling platform we’re riding on. They may not know who it carries, but they are expressing their homage to their lord and master.”
“So Axum is master of everyone in the city?”
“He is master of all that exists on Borvaan.”
Something in his tone of voice sent a shiver down Delta’s back. Her apprehension deepened when she caught sight of the palace. Lord Axum’s home towered over every other building in the city. She’d never seen such an enormous structure. Every step closer revealed more details – elaborate carved columns and niches filled with statues, countless balconies overlooking the city. The contrast between Borsai and what she’d seen of the rest of the planet stunned her.
More sentries met them at the entrance to the palace. They hoisted a wooden ladder, and Fatar motioned for her to climb down from the back of the beast. He bowed slightly and stretched out both hands, palms up, finally returning her Andromedan greeting.
“Blessings and peace be to you First Mate Delta and to all sentient beings in the Universe. Remember – it is essential for your safety and well-being that you please Lord Axum in every way.”
He disappeared around a corner before she could respond.
; Four robed figures waited inside the vast stone entry. Unlike the citizens she’d seen outside, they were dressed in somber dark colors. Three held back while the fourth stepped forward. “You will accompany us for your cleansing and medical examination before we escort you to the harem.”
Delta thought they were females but the shapeless robes covered every inch of their bodies and she realized she wasn’t capable of distinguishing male voices from female ones in this species, even with the translator chip. They all had the same high whining pitch as Fatar’s.
Two of the figures headed down a long passageway leading deep into the citadel. The one who had spoken motioned for her to follow them then fell in behind her, along with the fourth member of her welcoming party.
She took note of her surroundings as they headed into a tunnel carved from solid rock. It was blessedly cool, and the flickering lanterns lighting their way were soothing to the eye after hours spent under the glare of the sun. The tunnel wound deep into the bowels of the citadel, and though she tried to keep track of their route, it didn’t take long before she was hopelessly lost.
Her escorts never spoke. It was just as well, since the pace they set was rapid enough to keep her short of breath. She hadn’t walked so far in months, and she was shocked at how out of shape she’d become.
She’d been confined in small spaces for so long. Garez kept her and the rest of his female merchandise in cages in the cargo hold of his vessel. Before she was traded away to him, she and the other crew members on the Luna had tried to exercise while Magnus had them locked up, even sparring with each other to stay in condition. But they were crammed together with his alien captives in the hold of the ship, leaving very little space for sparring matches. Delta vowed she’d use every opportunity that came along to get back in shape now that she had room to move around.
The two in front stopped before a heavy wooden door. The Borvaani who’d spoken to her stepped forward and opened the door, once again wordlessly motioning her to enter. Delta took two steps into the room and stopped dead.
Unlike the rest of the palace’s interior, this room could have come straight out of a science lab back on Earth. Bright lighting illuminated every corner of the stark white room, bouncing off shiny metal surfaces. Machines along the walls buzzed and hummed. She breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, a place that felt like home.
Relief disappeared when five more figures stepped forward from behind a bank of machines. Unlike the Borvaani she’d seen so far, they were only about four feet tall, dressed from head to toe in silver metallic one-piece garments complete with opaque panels over their faces, like hazmat suits. They wore sterile white gloves. Her mind registered three fingers and a thumb on each hand rather than four, and she tried to recall how many fingers Fatar had.
“Prepare her.”
The language was different from Borvaani, and it took a moment for her Tellex chip to translate the words. The aliens pulled sharp knives from pockets in their robes and came toward her.
“No!”
Before she could stop them, they slashed at her robe. It fell in tatters to the floor, leaving her naked. Two of the aliens grabbed her arms, two others took her legs. They hoisted her onto a gleaming metal table and began strapping her down.
Delta fought, but the creatures were surprisingly strong, despite their size. They pulled her hands over her head and secured her wrists together on the table. She tried to squirm away, but they buckled a strap around her waist. She kicked one of them but two others spread her feet wide apart, and locked her ankles into stirrups.
The Borvaani escort who had spoken to her waited silently until she was strapped down on the table, then bowed to one of the smaller beings. She and the others backed out of the room.
They left just as tubes descended from the ceiling. Four of the aliens each took hold of one and began spraying her body down with a dark-green foam. She closed her eyes and clamped her mouth shut as the nasty-smelling substance flowed over her.
The fifth alien gave a command she couldn’t make out, since her ears were full of the foam. Jets of a different substance, this one liquid, poured out of the tubes. They hosed her down thoroughly then stepped back.
“Open your eyes.”
When she didn’t comply, the fifth alien, who seemed to be in charge, leaned over the table and used his gloved fingers to pry her eyelids open. She stared up into his opaque mask, but all she could see was her own reflection. Soggy strands of hair around a pale face, deep-brown eyes wide with fear she tried to hide.
“We have cleansed your outer layer to remove all biological contaminants. We will perform the internal cleansing next, before your medical examination. If you comply and obey orders, the cleansing will go smoothly. If you resist, as you did when my assistants placed you on the table, the process will be unpleasant for you.”
He held her eyelids open, and one of the assistants poured a thick liquid over her eyes then rinsed them with a stream of water from one of the tubes. They did the same thing with her ears then held her head immobile while they swabbed her nose.
The boss alien took a step back and waved his hand. The lower half of the table dropped away, leaving her hips supported and her legs dangling in the air, feet held up by the stirrups. He stepped between her legs.
She froze.
The boss alien shook his head. “This will be much easier if you relax your body.”
“I’m supposed to make it easy for you to do Goddess knows what to me?”
He let out a noise that sounded like a laugh. “Not easy for me. For you.” A moment later, she felt his gloved fingers spreading apart her labial folds.
“No! Stop it!” She squirmed and twisted, trying to swing a knee at his head. He waved a hand, and her feet were suddenly drawn higher into the air, legs spread wider apart. Delta let out a shriek.
“You have chosen to resist. A pity.” He motioned to one of his assistants. “Bring the tools.”
One of the faceless creatures disappeared behind her head and came back with several shiny metallic objects. He handed one to the boss man. A moment later, she drew in her breath as a cold hard object probed the entrance to her vagina. The alien worked it in inch by inch, watching her face the whole time. She stared back at him impassively, swearing she wouldn’t let him see her rage and humiliation.
She couldn’t hold back a shocked cry when the object began bathing the walls of her vagina with jets of warm liquid. To her shame, her pussy involuntarily clenched around it.
The boss alien turned to his assistants. “Normally I do not gauge responsiveness so early in the examination, but the subject shows high sensitivity in this portal.”
The alien waved his hand again, and a holographic screen appeared alongside the table, with lights flashing on and off.
Great. Not only am I going to be publicly humiliated, I’m apparently being used to train his assistants. She gritted her teeth, determined not to make another sound.
He leaned forward, made an adjustment of some sort to the object inside her, and it began shooting the jets of water in rhythmic pulses. Delta squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately to ignore the sensation, but she could still make out the lights on his holographic screen, flashing in hotter colors. First yellow then orange.
She sensed other bodies drawing closer and opened her eyes just as two sets of fingers began running over her outer labial folds, on up to her clitoris. She shivered as the slick cold fingertip of the alien on her left slid over the tiny nub. The probe inside her pulsed faster, and she saw a burst of red light up the screen.
The aliens all began muttering at once, so she couldn’t make out what they were saying The cold finger massaged her clit, and suddenly she didn’t care. Sensations she’d never felt before poured through her. Her body began shaking uncontrollably.
“Sweet Goddess! What are you doing to me?”
“Stimulating your pleasure centers,” the boss man said. He leaned forward. “Have
you not had this procedure performed before?”
Delta turned her head away. She’d be damned if she’d discuss her sex life with this disgusting creature. She’d had enough humiliation from Lloyd. Making love with him had never been enjoyable. She did it only to make him happy and in the end, it still wasn’t enough. When he left, he told her it was because she was a lousy lover. And he was right. She’d never felt anything with him except a desperate desire to have it over with.
But these aliens had her wildly aroused, despite the humiliating circumstances she was in. Or maybe because of the circumstances, whispered a tiny voice in her head. You’re always in control, keeping your emotions buried. Maybe you like being tied up, having your private parts exposed and your pussy fondled. Being touched everywhere while you’re helpless to resist.
The other two assistants moved to her breasts. Cupping them with slick-gloved hands, tweaking her nipples until they stood out in tight little peaks. It was as if the boss alien had read her mind. One of them took a nipple between two fingers and pinched hard. A jolt of heat shot through her, straight to her clit, now throbbing as another assistant kept on stroking it. She let out a moan. Her pussy clenched around the probe, and lights flashed wildly on the screen.
“Another pleasure center mapped,” the boss man declared. “Now let us see how she responds when the rear portal is stimulated.”
“No. Oh nonono...”
Delta knew she was babbling, but she couldn’t stop herself when another probe pressed against her bottom hole. Shame warred with arousal as the head alien relentlessly slid it past the tightly puckered opening. She tossed her head from side to side.
“Please, stop. It’s too big. You’re hurting me!”
He ignored her and kept on, inserting the cold, hard object deeper. Delta panted wildly. She’d never had her rear passage penetrated before. When the probe began pulsing like the one in her pussy, she cried out.
Claiming Their Mate Page 2