by Zara Zenia
We climb into the car and Brent ignites the engine with a push of a button. The car itself looks like a futuristic Porsche or something. It’s sleek and modern design makes it look like something you’d only find in a comic book. It has a metallic blue color that shines under the yellow sky and beams under the red earth below.
“Here we go,” I profess more to myself than to Brent.
We speed off down the highway, hovering above it slightly. I notice that many other cars are doing the same. The car we are in is the only one around fit for a king.
We pass a billboard in the sky. “That’s my cousin Michael,” Brent confesses with aggravation.
I stare at the advertisement. Michael’s skin is as black as unburnt charcoal and his eyes are the same magnificent lime green glowing color as Brent’s. His arms are in the air. I’m here to make Ethwan great again. The billboard proclaims.
“He’s so scary looking.” I wrap my arms around myself protectively.
“Just look around you, at everything he’s doing.” Brent tufts his chin out the window and I stare into a desert horizon.
Vampires roam the ground. Chains flank their hands and feet, shackling them together, bound as prisoners. Some are even caged up, like dogs.
“There must be hundreds of them.” I stare over at Brent, truly horrified.
“Those dragons are with Michael,” Brent points out to the generals maiming different clusters of vampires. “They are taking them to Michael’s barracks on his property where they will suffer a great deal.”
“It’s just terrible,” I choke back an empathetic sob.
Now I understand why Carl and Roger are terrified of coming to this planet. I look over at Brent. The pain on his face reflects genuine concern. I’m envious of the way he already has a purpose laid out for him, but the fact that he’s so passionate regarding his devotion to his people makes him suddenly much more attractive.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Brent
“Are you ready to go?” I smile as I watch Katie shuffle down the palace staircase.
“Yeah.” Katie nods as she breezily trots down the last step with a tiny jump.
We don’t stay long on Ethwan. I’m uncertain about how safe it is for Katie to be here, and I know she has obligations back at home on Earth. I fully intend to keep every promise I make to her, and that includes bringing her back to New York soil unscathed.
The goal of my trip was to just essentially show her the grave magnitude of how Michael’s tactics are taking over my beloved planet and threatening to destroy the vampires and us completely.
Katie understands exactly what is at stake here, and she seems willing to help, for the most part. She might need a scattering of a few little extra nudges to fully appease me in an encompassed and detailed plan.
My dragon advisors encircle the car as we prepare for the journey back to the intergalactic space station. The golden one screeches abruptly, wailing through the air.
Katie startles, covering her ears. “What was that?” Her eye dart left and right with paranoia as if one of the dragons is going to scoop her up in its talons and fly away with her.
I have yet to shift in front of her. I don’t want to frighten her, and I need her on my side. This includes being calculated at how I approach her from just about every angle. I yearn to be flying and soaring high above my desert planet with my friends and advisors. I know there will be ample time for that in the future, as long as everything works the way I motivate it to.
The dragon blows a puff of molten hot flame in our direction, but it’s flying at a safe enough distance to not scorch us to ashes right where we stand.
Katie screams again and crouches to a ball on the red dirt below us. “It’s going to burn me!”
“It’s not going to harm you.” I gently tug at her shoulder and with several attempts at coaxing her, she finally pulls herself back up into a standing position.
“Why is that dragon breathing fire at us then?” she asks scornfully.
“It’s simply an act of respect,” I explain.
“For you?” Katie’s eyes are wide with apprehension.
“Yes,” I say as we climb into the car, ready to speed off toward the space station.
Katie breathes a sigh of relief once we are a measured distance away from the dragons. “You can really turn into one of those things?” she quizzes.
“It’s a natural element to my species,” I admit. “I feel free and liberated when I’m in my dragon skin.”
Katie peers off into the horizon, pondering my statement. “Maybe one day I can see you shift.”
A smile curls at the edges of my lips. “Perhaps.” It’s a subtle sign in the right direction, but I’ll take what I can get.
* * *
An hour later after going through intergalactic protocol measures and settling into the ship for the long ride back to Earth, Katie glances at me.
“That wasn’t as rough as the last time we took off,” she admits.
We are coasting through the galaxy now with nothing but blackness and the faint twinkling of stars off in the distance to welcome us. “You are just getting used to space travel.”
Katie giggles and stretches her legs across the panel of her seat bay. “You really think so?”
“I think you have the potential to be a warrior princess,” I admit and croon her direction.
Katie’s face collapses with worry and anxiety, flooding her now stark white expression. “Princess?”
“I didn’t mean…I’m sorry…” I fumble, trailing off when my mind refuses to supply me with the right words to subdue Katie’s emotions.
“I know exactly what the purpose of you taking me on this trip means.” Katie sniffs and bats her eyelashes out the window as we whirl past the stars and other planets.
“No, you don’t,” I advise her.
She glances at me with tears pooling in her enormous blue eyes. A stabbing sensation knife’s me in the heart at the innocent and vulnerable way she stares right through me.
“Katie, I am going to tell you the truth now,” I confess.
“Finally,” she sniffs and wipes her nose with a tissue she retrieves from her jeans pocket.
“It’s not my intention to hurt you,” I tell her.
“You keep saying that.” Katie’s tone remains unconvinced.
“Well that’s because it’s true,” I state defensively.
“Then what is going on, Brent?” Katie places a warm and petite hand on my knee.
Her touch jolts me and makes my insides turn to jelly. Her perfectly round fingernails are painted a cool aqua blue, a tranquil color to lure me in.
Her gesture of kindness is not lost on me. She is equipped with the perfect demeanor and peaceful patience that I need to save my planet and those who dwell there.
“You are the key,” I begin. “You are the only one who will bring peace. You are the missing link, the element in order for us to be able to stop the wars and the fighting.”
“How?” Katie furrows her brow in confusion, shaking her head. Then her eyes narrow and a darkness shades her otherwise bright and pretty face. “I know. By having a baby, right?” Her voice drips of sullen sarcasm.
“No.” I shake my head in denial. “By being a part of our world.”
“What happened to you, Brent?” Her question surprises me, but her expression is inquisitive. “How did you get to Earth in the first place?”
I take a deep breath. I’m ready to go back to the beginning, starting as far back as my childhood. It takes a while to get through the galaxy from one planet to the next.
Even though the spaceship can morph and warp from various speeds, we are coasting now. I leave the throttle engaged as it is. I need to have time to enlighten Katie and clarify any rough patches of information.
“Part of the reason I wanted to go back to Ethwan and then leave quickly was to throw Michael off,” I admit.
“How so?” Katie glances over at me.
“Simply really.” I shrug and lean back in my docking chair. Katie and I both remain harnessed in to our seats so that we won’t float around the console when we are trying to have a conversation.
“Michael now thinks I’ve fled the planet,” I tell her.
“You mean your home planet of Ethwan?” Katie asks.
“Right.” I nod to confirm. “He thinks I’m fleeing because I’m being overthrown.” I use air quotes here and roll my eyes at the ridiculous assumption that anyone would think I would just roll over and allow myself to be sieged.
“He seems vile.” Katie scrunches up her nose in disgust.
“He’s the worst kind,” I agree. “He views me as a coward.”
“How does the throne inheritance work on your planet?” Katie asks. I note how finely spry she is at absorbing new information.
“It gets passed down to the children of the king or queen,” I mention. “Not the siblings.”
“It works pretty much that same way on Earth,” Katie says.
“Well, since it gets passed down to the children and not the siblings or cousins, that means Michael has no claim to the throne,” I say.
“You haven’t been on the throne long, have you?” Katie asks with a somber expression softening her features.
“No,” I admit with a sign. “My father has not been dead very long.”
“Do you suspect that Michael may have had something to do with it?” Katie asks.
“Yes.” I’m quick to answer. “In fact, I think Michael is the one who may have killed my father.”
Chapter Thirty
Katie
I notice the pain and suffering in Brent’s eyes. Ever since I laid eyes on him back in the vampire den, I’ve felt a pull and connection to him that I can’t really explain. Brent’s green eyes are on me, burning my insides with a tantalizing stare.
The moment between us is intense, intoxicating. My cheeks are hot, blushing. My heart pounds and my hands shake with the rattling pulse of desire.
“I know how tortured you are by all of this.” I place my hand on his arm and stroke it gently. My fingertips scorch like fire and lust as they graze over his olive toned skin.
“Nobody seems to understand the pressure I’m under as the king.” Brent’s eyes are downcast, staring at the control panel of the ship.
“Let me help you.” I console him and rub the side of his cheek.
He peers at me with an adorable grin laced with wonderment and that same dimple pops and emerges from his cheek.
“You are one of a kind.” His eyes sparkle. I know I can trust him, and he’s being genuine.
“It feels weird being the chosen one.” I giggle and tuck my feet up under me.
“You are special.” Brent’s eyes flash with seriousness, reminding me of just how monumental the situation is.
My heart continues to drum in my chest with subtle attraction for Brent. I know he feels it too, the way he’s gazing at me as if he’s hungry with impulsive desire. I don’t know if I should throw all caution to the wind and kiss him. He seems broken and in need of some tender attention.
I open my mouth. I want to know if he is experiencing the same raw connection and chemistry to me as I am to him in this moment, but I end up getting cold feet. I close my mouth again and stare out the window at the blackness of the galaxy blurring past the spaceship.
“It’s funny…” I trail off abstractly.
“What’s that?” Brent looks curious.
“I am just thinking about how fate carries us through life like an ocean current trying to reach the tide.”
“That’s a very poetic way of referring to this situation.” Brent chuckles, but his expression is pensive.
“I’m just trying to string some lights of hope to illuminate across the darkness,” I state simply.
“Which is why you keep proving your point.” Brent raises his green finger as if it’s a lightbulb switching on.
“That I’m the only one who can end the wars?” I ask, but it’s more like I’m finishing his sentence for him.
“Yes.” His gaze is reflective and somber as he stares out the window.
He reminds me of a soldier who has just been told they have to go out into the war zone for their first battle. I feel sorry for him. He’s in the infantry, being thrown out there against his will but he’s too noble and brave to protest.
He hasn’t been king long enough to learn the tricks of the trade. Now I feel as if the roles are shifting. Maybe it’s time for me to protect him. Or perhaps the duties can blend into one unit to where we are all encircling each other with hope, revitalized spirit and peace of mind.
“You must feel betrayed by Michael,” I whisper softly.
Brent looks at me. “Your family is not supposed to pull a fast one on you. They are supposed to be the ones you can run to in turmoil, not the ones causing the uproar.”
“He is basically pulling the rug out from under you,” I mention.
“The rug being that of Ethwan,” Brent states the actual metaphor.
“Well for what it’s worth, I’m happy to be on this spaceship with you.” I give him a warm smile and stroke his thigh again.
He glances down at my hand with a mischievous smile. I’m feeling naughty with him and sexually charged.
“I’m having a great time getting to know you too,” he offers.
A tingling builds between my legs, prickling my senses. I’m flushed and warm through all the layers of clothing I have to wear for the journey. My mouth feels dry and my belly rolls and flips with lust.
Brent gazing at me with a cloudy, lust struck expression. We are alone, secluded as we travel through space. There’s no one around except for the vast and endless amount of darkness. We are in a private setting, where we can reveal anything to each other in confidence, including our physical desires.
My attraction to Brent is coming out of nowhere. When we first embarked on this journey, I was scared and anxious about what would happen. Now I surrender to my passionate internal needs. The gates of trust are wide open and flooding me with desire for Brent.
“I’m glad we have this special time to be together without interruptions or other people,” I whisper faintly as the words drip from my tongue like honey.
“It’s really helping me calm down,” he admits.
I know he wants me in the same way I want him. His eyes glaze over and his mouth droops, slightly opening at the lips as if he’s under a lust drenched spell. I want to run my hands all over his body, exploring him and inspecting ever one of his chiseled, sculpted muscles.
I notice just how perfect his body is in comparison to mine. I’m cute and I have a nice figure, but I’m not nearly in the same Greek god status of fitness that he’s displaying in front of me right now.
I’m desperate to kiss him. My lips tingle with electric pulses of yearning. It’s only a matter of time. Who will make the first move? Will he subtly lean in? Will I smell the fire and flame on his skin meant for a dragon?
The excitement surges through me like a million volts of super charged electricity. “You are really good looking,” I croon.
“I was just thinking the same thing about you.” His lips curl into a pleasure filled grin. His eyes mentally undress me, a serenade that sings to my heart like a mariachi band.
I swallow hard and take a deep breath. I need extra air in this passion driven moment of erotica. He could take me, right here, right now. We are all alone in the middle of the universe, traveling through time and space.
I reach over and take his hand. It’s warm as he cradles it over mine. I feel so petite when I’m next to him, vulnerable yet sexy at the same time. We are both in desperate need of comforting each other in a pleasurable way.
Brent leans in. This is it. The kiss I’ve been waiting for is on the horizon and I’m running toward the sunrise of our blooming relationship. There is only an inch or two separating us. I feel his breath on my neck, tickling my skin. If he doesn’t kiss me soon, I�
��m going to explode.
Chapter Thirty-One
Brent
Katie’s blue eyes pierce through mine as our gazes lock in on one another. I know she wants me. My heart pounds with desire. I touch Katie’s soft arm. She’s trembling. My cock throbs in my pants.
I lean in close to her. The heat from our bodies scorches the air. Her hand rests on my thigh and gives me a tingling sensation. Her beautiful wisps of blonde hair cascade gently across her cheek lines. She’s grinning at me with anticipation as I watch her lips part ever so slightly.
“You are gorgeous,” I tell her in a shaky voice, surprising myself at how nervous I am too.
“Thank you.” Katie glances down at her knees.
I gently pull her chin up with my thumb. Her porcelain white skin resembles delectable cream.
“Hey,” I whisper softly. “If you think this is going to fast…”
“I don’t,” Katie cuts me off. Her voice is steady now, even as if she knows exactly what she wants.
“Okay.” I grin and chuckle, watching the heat from her face blush her cheeks a beautiful rosy color.
“Just let me know if you are ever uncomfortable,” I tell her. I never want her to feel like she’s being forced into anything. I know she already has issues with how she thinks her little sister was taken away to be a shifter bride on Desergan, but much like us, I’m sure things were more complicated than that.
“I want you to kiss me,” Katie says and meets my gaze.
“You do?” I ask while my heart continues to pound. My fingertips go numb with anticipation.
Katie nods. “Yes.” Her voice is a mere whisper floating through the spaceship.
“Well I have good news for you then,” I tell her and gently stroke her cheek.
“What’s that?” she asks and grins.
“I want to kiss you too.”
“Then what are you waiting for?” She giggles. Her laugh is like a wind chime tinkling in the breeze.