3013: PRIMAL

by Laurie Roma

  “By the gods,” Lazio muttered. “There is another Dragon Warrior running around here? And one who doesn’t yet know how lovable I am? This isn’t good.”

  Darius nudged him. “You need to stop talking.”

  “Who is she?” Maddox demanded.

  “Her name is Amari Nazira.”

  “Fuck!” Maddox hands clenched into fists. “She is the wild Dragon Warrior that Orion and Morgan D’Sil warned us about. I thought we’d have more time before they got here.”

  “There’s more than one?” Jax asked. “And Morgan is with Orion? Do you mean to tell me that’s why she left X21?”

  “Keep up, brother,” Maddox growled.

  “You two are brothers?” Lazio asked. “I so did not see that coming.”

  Nash sighed and glanced at Reva. “How many conversations are going on now?”

  “Too fucking many.”

  Malik was standing so close to Reva, his arm brushed hers. He leaned down and whispered, “I have no clue what anyone is talking about.”

  “This place was destroyed during the attack, and Amari Nazira, one of two sisters who haven’t been around any of our races for hundreds of years, changed the banisters that used to be painted into real gold. She was with her sister, Eden, on X21 during the opening ceremony of the new space station. Morgan Cross was a Liaison Officer on X21, but is Orion D’Sil’s keeper, and they are now living on the D’Aire home world. Maddox, Daimon, and Tavius are mated to Jax’s sister, Mya, so that makes them brothers.”

  “Ah,” was all Malik could manage.

  When Reva looked back at the group, everyone was staring at her. “What?”

  Jax glared at her. “How the fuck do you know all of that?”

  She shrugged. “People tell me things.”

  In truth, she had developed a network of people through her travels who had also become friends. It seemed like she’d spoken to almost all of them in the last few days, and the vast amount of fascinating shit that was going on in their corner of the universe was simply amazing. It wasn’t the information she wanted, but Reva was confident that if any of those people saw Quilla, she would hear about it.

  “You haven’t even been around since…” Maddox paused. “It doesn’t matter. I need to find the Dragon Warriors. They killed someone in the sanctuary on X21…after they visited Xenthian.”

  “Wait…” Sullivan took a deep breath and raised two fingers to rub at his temple. “That hurts my head.”

  “They went to Xenthian?” Jax exploded. “Did they kill someone there, too? Are we going to be at war with the Xenon now? Fuck, this is…fuck!”

  Malik eyed Jax with amusement. “Your language skills need work, High Commander.”

  “Oh, fuck you.”

  “Very diplomatic, isn’t he?” Lazio quipped, and all of the Tarins laughed.

  “Speaking of sanctuaries,” Creed said hesitantly, “I think you might want to go down to Sanctum, because we just escorted Amari there.”

  “Shit. I have to go. Take them up to the conference room, Spartan,” Maddox called out over his shoulder as he stalked over to the glides that led to the lower levels.

  “I think we’ll go with him,” Nash stated before he and Creed hurried after Maddox.

  Jax continued to glare at everyone, then focused his ire on Reva. “We are going to have words.”

  Malik stepped forward, blocking Jax’s view of her. “No, you will not.”

  Sullivan slapped Jax on his back and said, “What we are going to do is take you to the conference room.”

  Huffing out an irritated breath, Jax grumbled, “Fine.”

  Jax and Sullivan led everyone to a bank of elevators, and each of the human males took a group up to the top floor. When the doors opened, they stepped out into a wide corridor that had a set of double doors on each end. Toward the right, one of the doors had been propped open, and the sound of voices and laughter could be heard.

  Malik had been expecting a stark space, but as they walked toward the room on the right and through the door he found an inviting space. There was a wall of windows that made up the entire length of the room, and a large triangle shaped table in the center made of a dark wood. The walls were painted a soft gold color, and the floor was made of stone in various shades from cream to the darkest brown.

  He turned to see two females standing with two males by a long table laden with trays of food and drinks at the far end of the room. The two males looked like Maddox Adaro, so it was safe to assume they were his brothers, while the female that stood between them had inky black hair and storm gray eyes. The other female turned, and Malik recognized Serra Spartan-Archer. The Krytos present had on a black leather pants with different colored tunics, while Serra had on a shimmering pale-green dress that allowed ample room for her baby bump that was just starting to show.

  She smiled warmly as she started toward them. “It’s nice to see you again, Malik.”

  “You are looking lovely, Serra. I heard that congratulations are in order,” he said with a small bow of his head. “Allow me to introduce my warriors.”

  Darius, Iolas, Pharon, and Lazio each nodded to the group as Malik spoke their names, then Daimon and Tavius Adaro introduced themselves and their mate, Mya. As Jax, Sullivan, and Serra spoke to the Tarins, the small, newly-made Krytos female rushed over and threw her arms around Reva’s waist so tight that her breath wheezed out.

  “You’re here! We’ve been so worried about you,” Mya gushed, then pulled back just far enough to study Reva’s face. “How are you?”

  Reva patted Mya’s back. “I’m fine. Can you ease up a little? I can’t breathe.”

  Daimon walked over and pulled his reluctant mate back. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, as if to hold her in place. “It’s good to see you, Reva.”

  After Reva nodded, Tavius grabbed her arm. “You need to eat.”

  “Gods, when did all of you become such nags?”

  As the youngest of the brothers, Tavius was usually the most easy-going and patient Adaro, but the way he glared at her wasn’t at all calm. “Fucking eat something.”

  “Why don’t you—”

  “That sounds like an excellent idea,” Malik said, pulling her toward the table of food. His warriors fell in line behind him after he gave them a nod. In other situations, he wouldn’t touch any food or drink given to him by strangers, but he wanted to show the other Tarins that they would be safe here. Malik had no doubt that if a threat came, the people in the room wouldn’t use subterfuge.

  “Speaking of the food…this isn’t supposed to be a damn party.” Jax let out a yelp as Serra reached up and jerked on his earlobe. “Ouch! What the hell is that for?”

  “Behave.”

  “Damn it, I am!”

  Mya smirked at him. “Serra and I agreed that males, no matter the race, are more agreeable when they’re eating.”

  “That’s not fair,” Jax argued. “You can’t say that for all males.”

  A few seconds later, Commander Matt Malloy and Lieutenant Dean Caporele entered the room. Both of their eyes widened with glee. “Is that food for us?” Malloy asked as he hurried toward the table. “I’m hungry.”

  Caporele just said, “Sweet!”

  Jax threw his hands up in the air as both Serra and Mya started to laugh.

  Malloy and Caporele introduced themselves to the Tarins as they waited in line to get to the food. All of the human men were wearing the standard Alliance uniform. All elites wore a steel-gray jacket with an off-center zipper and black sleeves, and regulation black pants and boots. Malloy rubbed his hands together before picking up one of the plates, then he started explaining what everything was to the tentative Tarins.

  Reva finished piling food on a plate, debated between water and ahava wine, then decided on the wine. She poured some into a glass, then she walked over to the table and sat down. It had been days since she’d really had an appetite, so it was surprising to find that she really was hungry. Malik sat down a few
seats away from her on the adjacent side of the table, but she could still feel his eyes on her.

  When she lifted her head, his intense black gaze was studying her. “What?”

  “You’ve lost weight since I saw you last.” When she didn’t say anything, he asked, “Who was that male to you?”

  Giving him her full attention, she didn’t bother to act like she didn’t understand. “You mean Nash.”

  “You have…been with him.”

  Since it came out like an accusation, she tilted her head to the side. “How did you know?”

  “Your energy,” he explained, almost too casually.

  “That’s…really weird. He’s a friend.” When that didn’t seem to satisfy him, she sighed and said, “Nash and I, we were together once, a long time ago. Now, we’re just friends.”

  “Hmm.”

  She saw the disapproval on his face, and stiffened with insult. “You know, neither of us were pure when we met.”

  “This is true,” he murmured before he began to eat.

  She wanted to say more, but Matt sat down between them. He was closely followed by Dean Caporele and the other Tarins. When they were all seated, Matt smiled as he lifted his drink. “Good to see you, Reva. You, too, Lord Rego. Shitty circumstances and all, but we’ll find her soon.”

  Malik eyed him. “You sound confident.”

  “With reason,” Caporele said. “We got word that an unknown ship was spotted at X13. They only stopped there for a few hours, and we don’t know if it was her, but it might be something.”

  “There was no record of the ship,” Matt added. “We have to check it out. It could be a good lead.”

  “Interesting,” Malik said, his expression going to stone. His gaze turned back to Reva. “Are you sure about your information?”

  “Positive.”

  Matt and Caporele both looked as they were about to say something, but they were cut off as Jaden and Katra Tor suddenly appeared in the room with Isak Marques, one of the Tor warriors, and a Krytos security officer who looked extremely ill. Katra had the glowing silver eyes of a Dragon Warrior, and her long black hair was pulled back in a braid. Beside her was her mate, former Tarin, Lord Jaden Tor. Since he’d been converted to Dragon Warrior, his eerie eyes swirled like mercury, ever changing black and silver.

  Katra’s smile was brilliant. “Hello, everyone.”

  “What…the…fuck?” The Krytos security officer’s face looked pale as he hunched over and put his hands on his knees.

  Daimon Adaro stood and hurried over. “Argos, what is wrong with you?”

  Jaden looked sympathetic as he slapped a hand on the security officer’s back. “I know how you feel. Transporting like this takes some getting used to.”

  “It still sucks no matter how many times I’ve done it,” Isak muttered.

  Argos shook his head before standing up again. “Holy nova, that was like taking a trip on a meteor crash landing onto land. It would have been cool if it didn’t feel like I was going to throw up everything inside of me.”

  Jaden walked over to Malik, who had stood, and they gripped one another’s shoulder in greeting. “Good to see you well, my friend.”

  Malik grinned. “You certainly know how to make an entrance.”

  Isak walked over to join the other Tarins as Katra joined Jaden, who gripped her around the waist and pulled her to his side before she could kiss Malik on the cheek.

  Katra frowned at him. “He is our friend, mate.”

  “I know, but you still don’t need to touch any other males…even friends.”

  “You know you are the only one for me.”

  “My love for you knows no bounds, my lady,” Jaden whispered before he leaned down to brush a kiss over Katra’s lips.

  Sullivan groaned. “They’re doing the talking so we can’t hear them thing again.”

  “They do it a lot back home,” Isak said dryly. “It’s strange being in a room with them when they are silent for hours.”

  “I know, it’s annoying,” Matt complained.

  Jaden laughed. “You sound jealous, Malloy.”

  Matt held up his hands. “Oh, no. I don’t want any female running around in my head. That would be too weird for me.”

  “Then you are missing out on a great joy,” Jaden responded with a great deal of pity.

  Jax walked over to join them. “Glad you could join us, Jaden, Katra.”

  “We’re sorry we are late,” Jaden said.

  “However, it seems as if we were not needed after all,” Katra added. “We saw that the lobby was completely fixed already.”

  Tavius blinked. “How is that possible?”

  “Yeah, about that…” Sullivan’s lips curved in a rueful grin. “I guess there is another Dragon Warrior on board New Vega.”

  Katra’s eyes went wide. “Another one? Who?”

  “That would be me.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Everyone looked toward the doorway.

  Maddox Adaro stood right inside the entrance of the room with Kahla, one of his cousins who owned the sanctuary on one of the lower levels. Next to them was a beautiful female with long, black hair and glowing gold eyes. She was just as tall as Kahla, but the coiled power inside of her made everyone realize that she was the most dangerous being in the room, despite it being filled with predators.

  “We have a new addition to this party. This is Amari Nazira. She is visiting New Vega, and was kind enough to fix our lobby for us,” Maddox told his family.

  “I do not care for disorder, so I did not like seeing the lobby broken,” Amari announced in a seductive voice that seemed husky from disuse.

  As she moved closer, Reva could see that Amari’s glowing eyes weren’t just gold. They had a strange, thin swirl of black in them, marking her as more than just a Dragon Warrior. Amari was wearing a black vest and matching pants that looked like liquid midnight poured over her amazingly fit body, and both of her arms and her torso were covered in dark gold tattoos that shimmered every time she moved.

  Her gaze swept around the room, taking in everything at a glance, then settled on Jaden and Katra. Her glowing eyes brightened with interest, and she walked over with Kahla as Maddox moved toward his family.

  Katra held out her arm to Amari. “Greetings. I am Katra Tor, Princess of the Palace on the Isle of Mist, and Lady of Tor Palace on Tartarus.”

  Amari reached up and clasped her hand around Katra’s forearm in the greeting of warriors. “Greetings, Katra. I am Amari Nazira. My fathers were warriors from the Palace in the Clouds before they made their home in the stars.” Her gaze shifted to Jaden. “Your mate was Tarin.”

  “I am Lord Jaden Tor, and yes, I was Tarin.” Jaden took Katra’s hand in his and pulled her back to his side, then he reached out his own arm to grip Amari’s in greeting. “Welcome, Amari.”

  Amari squeezed Jaden’s forearm, then stepped back. “My sister, Eden, is on her way to visit your palace. She will be disappointed that she missed meeting you.”

  “My brothers and their mate are still on Tor land,” Katra told her. “They will be pleased to meet her. And we will be returning home soon.”

  “That is good to hear.” Amari’s gaze shifted down. “Aye, you have time before you need to be home since you have younglings on the way.”

  Katra and Jaden shared a smile before he said, “We still have a few months.”

  “Holy nova, you’re pregnant? That’s wonderful!” Kahla exclaimed.

  Malik slapped Jaden on the back. “Congratulations.”

  “Thank you.” Jaden looked a little dazed as he smiled. “We just found out the day after you left. We will have twin males to take over our lands once they come of age.”

  After everyone else standing by them gave their felicitations, Jaden gestured Malik a few feet away as Katra, Amari, Reva, Kahla, and the other Tarins continued to speak. When there was a semblance of privacy, Jaden said, “It is why we cannot go with you. I will not risk my mate or my children. Not a
gain. Never again.”

  “I understand. I am truly happy for you, my friend. Have you told Skylar yet?”

  Years ago, Jaden had lost his daughter, Skylar, when she was taken by slavers, then shipped off planet without his knowledge. He had thought her dead until they had been reunited recently. Now, Jaden constantly worried about his family, but Malik didn’t blame him. He couldn’t imagine how he would feel if he ever lost a child. Malik had been very careful not to let himself have any children. He wouldn’t risk it, not after the number his father had sired, and how horribly all of them had been treated.

  Still, to have a child was a dream of his…but only with the right female.

  “I told Skylar as soon as we found out,” Jaden told him. “She was very happy, and said she wants to be there for the birth. Now, it is imperative that we make all of Tartarus safe for our children.”

  “Your children will be Dragon Warriors, you fool. I believe they will be able to save galaxies as soon as they come into their magic.”

  “True, and when that happens, may the gods help me. How can I have two children who have magic and are immortal? I mean, we can be killed a few ways, but I’m not about to let anyone cut off my head or blow me up…hopefully. I haven’t even figured out all the magic stuff yet, so I’m not sure how I can teach them anything.”

  That made Malik laugh. “You will make sure they are ready for anything that comes their way. And if that fails, Katra will know what to do. I believe she will not let you fail.”

  “Thank the gods for my mate. And I’m not the only one who worships her. All of the females we’ve rescued adore and admire her.”

  “I can understand why. I didn’t get to ask earlier, are the females back home well?”

  “As well as they can be.” Jaden sighed. “Those males had them for years. The group was on the move, thinking to avoid us. There are many that haven’t heard that my mate and I are Dragon Warriors, and they do not know we can find them from the sky. We put the females in the new holding we built closer to the mountains for added protection. Since it was what Katra’s people did to protect their females years ago, we thought the females would feel better if they were separated from all the males in our palace.”