by Zoey Draven
His training kicked in. He grew impatient to take his mate.
He let the Instinct take over, let it guide his movements and make him quicker, fiercer, deadlier. He dodged, he lashed out, he weakened his opponent like he’d been trained to do, waiting for the opportune moment to strike. Every movement was calculated.
The Nusseer knew the moment his life was forfeit. The realization flickered in its dark eyes right before Vaxa’an thrust his arm out and embedded his claws deep inside the thick hide of its belly, where its heart was. He squeezed his fist, popping the organ, and the Nusseer dropped at his feet, rattling the ground like a quake.
The deafening roar of the crowd met his ears as he wiped his opponent’s blood across his chest, a sign of respect for its life and of his victory. It was an honor to wear the creature’s blood. His gaze sought out his mate’s and the Instinct rumbled in his chest, his need increasing tenfold.
- Mate. Fuck. Possess. -
Never breaking his gaze off her, he strode to the stand where she stood with the others. Up close, he studied her. His mouth watered, his eyes traveling over her curves, her exposed cunt, her full breasts. Her lips were an oddly enticing shade of pink, but she looked paler than she had a few moments before. Her eyes were strange as well. Black in the center, and then green, and then white. Different. And she was small. She stood in the stand off the ground and she still only came up to his chest.
He saw her eyes focus on the smear of black blood on his chest and his spine straightened proudly. She should know that he would kill for her, that he would protect her from harm, that he would be the one to provide for her until the end of their lives.
It didn’t matter that she was human, he decided in that moment. She was his. His people would accept it over time. He had to set the example that this was the only way their race would survive, by continuing the line through inter-species breeding.
To the Krevorag nearing him with its scaled skin and dark eyes, he said in its language, “I want her. Release the chains.”
The Krevorag had started the Pit. He hadn’t known that only human females were being offered and he thought it odd that other species were absent. Some females, specifically Wrillonians, volunteered for the Pit, reveling in the ferocity of males fighting for their right to breed with them. Some, however, did not come willing. Vaxa’an ignored the moral implications of his participation. He told himself it was necessary, that he needed an eligible species as a Breeder. The moment his Instinct had picked her, he knew that humans would be compatible.
The Krevorag approached the female and she swung her eyes towards him, stepping back, trying to avoid him. Roughly, the Krevorag pulled her forward, hissing, but a low growl from Vaxa’an stilled his arm immediately.
“You mark her and I will savor your death,” Vaxa’an warned, tone deadly. He saw his female shudder and the Krevorag made quick work of her chains, unhooking her, before reattaching the links to the other females.
Vaxa’an reached forward to take his mate but he only had a brief moment to enjoy the feel of her warm skin against his own before…she bit him.
Her blunt little teeth did little to cause pain. He was more shocked than anything, giving her the opportunity she no doubt desired. She struggled against his hold, scraping at his chest with her claws. But upon closer realization, he realized she had no claws, just nails as dull as her teeth.
The crowd was amused, no doubt drunk on Krevoragian Brew, which only added to their hysterics. According to rumor, it wasn’t anything new. A female had bitten a warrior before and a few had tried to escape. Unfortunately, Vaxa’an’s original fears about humans were correct. They were weak. He subdued her easily, sweeping her up in his arms, the blood of his opponent wetting her side.
She struggled against him, making mews of anger and frustration and fear. In time, she would realize she had nothing to fear of him. He’d turn her anger into need and her frustration into desire. He’d fuck it right out of her. Feeling her luscious form pressed into him, he decided that three heirs wouldn’t be enough. He’d sire many, many more with this female. His attraction to her should scare him, but all he felt was relief and wicked anticipation.
“Enough, female,” he growled out, feeling her struggles vibrate straight to his cock. Fighting already made his blood run hot. There was a reason why Luxirians, in addition to being a warrior race, were also known for their more carnal needs. “Unless you want me to lay you down and fuck you here.”
Of course, she wouldn’t understand him so she didn’t respond to his bluff. Vaxa’an needed to get her to his ship, so they could take leave of this planet and return to his own. The journey would only take three spans, but he was needful. If he could take her within the next moment, it wouldn’t be soon enough.
She was yelling something in his ear, which sounded like, “Laytmigao, laytmigao!” Vaxa’an would need to implant her language as soon as he reached his ship. It had been many, many lunar cycles since he’d needed the language implanter, so he prayed to the Fates that it worked. The female continued to struggle in his hold. He tightened his grip, but decided to throw her over his shoulder to subdue her best. She screeched against his bare back and he winced, his ears sensitive.
Her ample rump was on display for the entire arena and he ignored the possessiveness that ate at him. To further motivate her to cease her struggle, he brought his hand down on her rump, not hard, but he left it on her right cheek as warning, his Instinct purring contently at the feel of her.
The female finally stilled, frozen, and he strode back down the tunnel towards the ship bay. Species from all over the universe came to the Pit, to watch the fights or to try to win a female for themselves. As the Prime Leader of Luxiria, he’d been given the first fight of the night and the Krevorags had been thrilled by his sudden appearance. As far as he knew, he was the first Luxirian warrior to want a turn in the Pit.
In the ship bay, he spotted his vessel, a Luxirian emerging as he approached. It was Lihvan.
“Prime Leader,” his war general greeted him with a respectful nod, his dark eyes straying to the human female slung over his shoulder. Even though Vaxa’an and Lihvan were as close as blood brothers, his general knew the customs and abided by them among the public. “I see you were victorious.”
“Yes.” His chest swelled with smug pride. He held Lihvan’s gaze. “My luxiva.” His mate. Or, at least, she would be. Very soon.
“The Instinct chose her for you?”
“Yes.”
Back when there was an abundance of female Luxirians, the Instinct chose a female most compatible for breeding purposes. His race were monogamous and Luxirians’ were infamously possessive over their females. They didn’t share, but it hadn’t been uncommon for breeding partners to mutually end their union once young were brought into the world. If it did happen, the Instinct chose another female and the breeding cycle would begin anew.
But a luxiva was different. Vaxa’an felt it, deep in his bones. The Instinct knew. He would ask the Fates to bless their union and if they did, Vaxa’an and his human female would be mated for life. The deepest bond. A fated bond. The strongest of connections. There would be no others for them during their lifetime.
His general inclined his head. “I congratulate you on the highest of honors, Prime Leader.”
Lihvan averted his gaze, but Vaxa’an had seen the envy in his eyes. His oldest friend had wanted to find a luxiva as long as any Luxirian had. But after the sickness that had spread through the females like a blaze, many males had given up hope. The fact that Vaxa’an had found a human luxiva…it opened up a realm of possibilities, for him and his men.
“Shall we depart?” Lihvan asked, casting another glance at his mate.
His crew and Lihvan’s presence were cautionary ones. If their enemies knew the Prime Leader was traveling alone to the Pit…they might have made an opportunity out of it.
Vaxa’an gave a curt nod. “Immediately.”
He was eager to get his
female home.
THREE
Kate stared at the scarred back of the golden alien torn between fear and disbelief. He’d carried her out of the arena like a sack of potatoes thrown over his shoulder, her bare ass on display, everything on display. And that was after watching him thrust his hand inside an alien’s body and squeeze its heart until it dropped dead to the ground. She shuddered, thinking about his powerful form, the way he’d struck out at the brown alien in the blink of an eye. He was lethal, dangerous.
She should be afraid. But as Kate listened to the guttural vibrations of his voice as he spoke to someone unseen—an alien language, something she was still trying to wrap her head around—she felt the tell-tale signs of arousal.
What the hell is wrong with me? she thought, almost in dismay. Sticky black blood was smeared on her side from where the golden alien had painted himself in it and yet she couldn’t bring herself to be completely disgusted. She must be losing her mind. Going into shock, or something. There was no reason why she would be attracted to him.
His skin felt oddly cold against her body. And even though she’d seen him fight just moments before, she didn’t see a glimmer of sweat. His scent, though…his scent struck at her very core. On a chemical level, she was more attracted to him than any human man she’d ever encountered.
Does an alien even emit pheromones? she thought wildly and then she almost laughed. She was losing it.
Kate weighed her options. She strained her neck, bringing her head up so she could see where she was, feeling a painful arch in her spine. They were in some sort of dock, but for ships. Spaceships. Aliens of different species milled around, reminiscent of a scene straight out of Star Wars. She blew out a steady breath, trying to calm the racing of her heart.
Her alien moved, his muscles flexing and pulling as he strode forward, onto a metal ramp. As Kate wondered what the hell she was going to do next, she stared at the alien’s bare back. Suddenly, she realized he wasn’t quite as golden as she originally thought. His skin was like a tough hide, cool to the touch. The texture of his skin was scale-like, but it had an iridescent quality to it that had looked gold in the light of the arena. Now, in the ship dock, his skin glinted silver, light bouncing off.
She was really losing her mind because for a brief moment, Kate thought that his skin was beautiful.
They were boarding a ship, she realized, straining her neck up to see the ramp they’d just walked up. It was retracting into itself as the doors of the ship silently and smoothly closed together.
Brilliant light illuminated the spaceship. She heard her alien speak, but to whom she couldn’t see. His feet never stopped for a moment. She heard other voices and she wondered, with a burning face, how many strange aliens were seeing her like this.
His strong, muscular legs ate up the ship. Just how big was this thing? She felt like he’d walked over a quarter mile by now, twisting and turning down narrow hallways without once breaking stride. Every new voice that she heard, she always heard the same thing, a word that sounded like ix-ravax-on. Was that the alien’s name?
Finally they came to a stop. His hand came off her ass—she’d somehow forgotten it was even there—and then she heard a series of beeps before a door whirred open. The alien stepped through and she heard it shut behind them.
Suddenly, she was hauled off his shoulder and Kate cried out in surprise, only to find herself cradled in his arms again. He frowned down at her as he placed her, surprisingly gentle, on something soft. She looked down, seeing it was a large bed covered in furs and she shot up off it, backing away from the hulking, impossibly large alien, fear building. They were in a large, darkened bedroom.
“What do you want with me?” she asked, her voice sounding panicked. “Why—why…”
She trailed off, too many questions swarming in her mind, making it difficult to form a coherent sentence, not that he understood her anyway. Why was she here? Why did he take her? Did he expect her to have sex with him?
Not gonna happen, she thought, determined, eyeing the alien.
His features were just as strange as she remembered, slightly human and yet…not. Something about him screamed predator. And she was his prey.
He seemed even more massive in the room. His broadness sucked out all the space. Kate’s eyes caught on his dark horns, which seemed to be straighter than she previously remembered, and then trailed down to his pierced nipples, and the strange scars marring his skin.
His eyes were unlike human eyes. He had black pupils, but the rest was all iris, no whites whatsoever. His irises were like his skin. They reflected light. Right now, they shone silver and she’d be lying if she said it wasn’t eerie as hell.
His pupils moved down to her still naked body and with a gasp, Kate yanked the fur covering off the bed and used it to shield her own nudity. She glared, even though her hands shook. When she tried to tell him off, her tongue glued itself to the roof of her mouth.
The alien studied her, his surprisingly full lips still pulled down into a frown.
Then he spoke, his deep, guttural voice washing over her like a wave. Kate understood nothing. He kept repeating a word—frixavir?—and gesturing towards the bed. He wanted her to lay down? Over her dead body. She would not become his whore.
“I—I don’t know what you’re saying! But I’m not having sex with you!” Kate finally cried out, frustrated, tired, and scared. Her entire world had just completely flipped itself on its head. Everything she knew didn’t make sense anymore. She was on the verge of tears as she wondered what she was going to do.
When a tear dripped down her face, his speech halted abruptly and his huge form strode forward. Her first reaction was to cower away from him, but she stood her ground, holding her breath.
The alien’s touch jolted her. His fingertips were cool, as was his skin, and they were gentle as he traced the path of her tear before dashing it away. He inspected the liquid on his fingertip and she wondered if he could cry, if he thought that it was as alien to him as he was to her.
Seeking her eyes once more, he stepped closer, breaking into her personal space like a wrecking ball. He pressed her into the wall of the room, his bloodied chest flush against the furs she clutched around her body, but his unexpected presence wasn’t meant to intimidate. At least she thought so. The expression on his face could mean anything—what did she know about an alien’s body language?—but she felt her limbs relax, just slightly. She blew out the breath she’d been holding.
“Luxiva…ta rix l’an.”
The unknown words sounded lyrical to her ears. She didn’t know why, but she felt comforted by them, as if some part of her knew exactly what he was trying to say. Or maybe she was just grasping at straws, her mind finally submitting to exhaustion.
His hand smoothed through her hair, rubbing the strands between his fingertips. Kate’s scalp tingled, her eyes fluttering shut for a brief moment.
His head cocked to the side. His chest rumbled and then he said, “Krav.” He backed away, holding his hands out like he didn’t want her to move. He gestured to the bed again and then he was by the door. It whooshed open, his eyes glowing. “Krav luxiva.”
He turned from her…and then he was gone.
She stared at the spot that he’d just occupied, at the closed steel-like door of the room, and she wondered if she was a prisoner there. With tentative steps, she approached it. There was a keypad above her head and she reached out, pressing her fingers against the strange buttons and symbols. There was a jolt and she pulled her hand back, hissing in surprise. The keypad made a harsh noise and then it was quiet once more. The door didn’t open.
She tried another button, only to have the same results. Then another. Then another. After she tried them all, her stomach dropped with dread.
Kate spun back to the room, looking for another door. There was one on the far side of the left wall. That one actually opened when she touched her hand to it, but it revealed a bathroom of sorts, complete with something that loo
ked like a toilet straight from Japan and a cylindrical stall that she guessed was a shower. Turning back to the room, she discovered a small window next to the bed of furs and she rushed over to it.
Her heart skipped a beat in her chest.
“Oh man,” Kate whispered, eyes wide, as she gazed out into open space, a sight she’d once known with one hundred percent certainty that she’d never see in her lifetime. The ship was moving now, humming, practically silent, but when she placed a palm on the cool metal of the walls, she felt a subtle vibration. The stars were bright against the dark backdrop and her hand shook when she reached out to touch the glass.
Kate sunk down onto the bed, sitting gingerly on its edge, clutching the furs to her bare breast, as she looked out the window. She wanted to cry, she realized. But it wouldn’t solve her problems; it never had. She had to think about this logically and in order to do that, she needed a plan. She always had a plan. They helped center her, focus her.
Kate made a list in her head. She needed to find out who these aliens were, why the silver/golden alien with the strange eyes and beautiful skin had taken her, what he planned to do with her, and most importantly, how she was going to get back to Earth. She needed to find out where they were going, to figure out how to communicate with them—since they obviously didn’t speak English—and whether she could convince them to take her home.
A simple plan formed in her mind: she would try to communicate with her alien—and try not to freak out in the process—and then she would figure out her purpose. Baby steps. Once she accomplished those two things, she’d reevaluate her position. Simple.