by Lee Savino
When Medik finally speaks again, it’s the last thing I expect him to say.
“If I could prove to you Gavrill cared for you? Then, would you stay?”
I start to shake my head. “I don’t... how would you prove it?” Stupid heart. Stupid hope blooming in my chest. Stupid me for asking.
“Let’s just say I could. Do you care enough about him to stay?”
I blink a few times, but I can’t stop a few tears leaking out.
“Yes,” I whisper. “I would stay. I want him... but only if he wants me. Me. Dawn. Not just a Tribute, but me as myself.”
Medik nods with a satisfied smile. “In that case, I have something to show you.”
19
Gavrill
On the bridge, I stare at the picture of empty space where the Vgotha ship once sat and baited us. Around me the warriors are running scans to try to find it again.
It’s no use. The enemy has disappeared again, taking their scuttled ship. Maybe even that had been a ruse, maybe there had been nothing wrong with it in the first place. We’ve lost this skirmish, just as we failed to protect our flank and the most precious person on board. I should be angry, channeling all my energy into hunting the enemy down. Instead, I can hardly bring myself to focus on anything except Dawn’s voice echoing in my head.
My Tribute. The thought is mournful. Wishful. Because she no longer wants to be mine.
She wants to leave. Even if she can’t, she never wants to see me again. I didn’t think you’d come for me. Have I failed so much as her Master?
I rub at an itchy patch on my arm, which feels like it’s throbbing in time with my heartbeat. The edges sting, as the nanotech tries to heal the strange wound. Every so often, I feel a sharp pain, like needles pricking into it.
Kalexston’s panel beeps as it finishes scanning. “No sign of the Vgotha, Commander,” he reports.
“I knew it,” Bogdan mutters. I barely notice him glancing at me, but I can’t think of anything to say. Clearing his throat, he speaks louder. “What about the Vgotha pod the Tribute stole?”
“My crew is still running preliminary tests. It seems to be a living organism,” Miths says. My interest is stirred, in a very distant kind of way.
“Sentient?” Kalexston asks, intrigued.
“Undetermined. It does seem to have some shielding capabilities that bypass our scanners,” Miths continues. “Commander, permission to modify our scanners to sense this, ah, organism.”
I wave a hand. To my left, Bogdan huffs. He’s been cheated out of a battle, he’s not going to get to destroy the pod, and he’s upset. I should feel the same, but it’s like I’m numb.
Perhaps I should step down and give command over to him, for the sake of the mission while I’m in this mindset, but... I can’t bring myself to do so. Without Dawn, I will have nothing to live for but endless cycles of patrol.
Pain stabs through me like a shot to the chest and I grimace. If I had known I would gain a Tribute just to lose her, I would never have agreed to the program.
No, that is a lie. Because any amount of pain is worth the few cycles I held Dawn in my arms.
“Commander, have you asked your Tribute about the Vgotha?” Bogdan turns to look at me. He almost looks regretful, but also determined. I don’t answer, but he can tell from my expression what the answer is. He sighs. “Permission to question her. Or perhaps Miths can, since his crew is working on the pod?”
“No,” I order, my need to protect her rousing. “Leave her alone.”
“Commander, I must protest, the Tribute—”
“I said no. I will question her myself. Later.” Much later. When I can actually face being in her presence again while knowing she is no longer mine. My pain in my chest is growing and my armor flashes before I can control my emotions.
Bogdan turns away, mumbling something that sounds like “grown too attached to a breeder.”
“She is not a breeder. She is leaving the Tribute program and returning to her home planet,” I announce to the bridge. I will have to tell them eventually and I do not think I can feel any more pain than I currently do, so I might as well now.
“What?” Kalexston gasps, ugly streaks of yellow shooting through his grey suit.
“You allowed this?” Miths asks.
“It was her choice,” I say above my crew’s disturbed muttering.
“But what about—” Kalexston bites off his question, obviously wanting to ask whether the program will continue.
“You can’t do that,” Bogdan protests, an abrupt reversal of his previous position. I am so numb to emotions that I do not even feel shock, although the rest of the bridge is looking at him as though he’s grown a second head. “The continuation of our race…”
A small rushing sound signals the arrival of the lift and the doors opening to allow someone to enter the bridge. I can’t even find the energy to look and see if it’s Corin, arriving for his shift.
“I thought you wanted us to focus on our duty,” I say to him, my bitter words almost taunting. I didn’t expect my second to look so shaken at the end of the Tribute program. “You thought Dawn was a distraction. You thought I should spend less time with her. You thought she didn’t matter and that any female would be acceptable as my Tribute. You were wrong. Dawn gave me purpose. She made my life better, made me better, she is the only Tribute I want, ever... and I failed her.”
My hand is over my arm, where the stinging patch of skin is under my armor, and it feels like the nanotech is finally working, because it is starting to feel warm and tingly rather than painful. I look around to see the warriors are all staring in the direction of the lift. Turning, shock slams into me as Dawn steps on to the bridge, a wide-eyed, intent expression on her face, Medik behind her on the lift.
Dawn
“Dawn?” Gavrill rises from his command chair. His face looks like it’s carved from granite. If I hadn’t heard his words with my own ears, I would have never known he’d just been talking about me. That he’d just been confirming everything I’d heard on the video. His expression flickers to something closer to alarm. “Is something wrong?”
“High Commander, I apologize,” Medik calls from the lift, sounding way too happy for anyone to think that he’s serious about his apology. “I could not stop her—she demanded to come.”
I take a step towards Gavrill, my eyes trained on him. No one else matters.
“You were going to trade yourself for me?” My voice is husky. I already know the answer, but it feels like a dream. I want to hear him say it, to me. Purposefully and meaningfully. The words from the video the doctor showed me still ring in my head: Dawn is more than just a Tribute.
His suit glitters as he nods.
“Me. And not just any Tribute. You wanted me.”
“Yes.”
I would give my life a thousand times to spare her harm.
“I didn’t think you cared for me,” I croak. My face is wet. I swipe at my cheeks as I walk to Gavrill. The rest of the bridge has faded to nothing.
As I near him, Gavrill reaches for me, then checks himself. His hands hover between us, wanting, but not daring to touch.
“Dawn,” his voice is husky, “I cannot... I will not live without you. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you. If I lose you... there will be no other.”
She is my mate.
“You love me,” I whisper. “Not just your Tribute. Me.”
His brow wrinkles in confusion. “You are—were—my Tribute. I don’t understand.”
That, right there, is the crux of our miscommunication I realize. His voice practically caresses the words ‘my Tribute’ and he doesn’t even realize that being called that makes me feel as though I’m not valued as an individual. To him, it’s the most loving endearment he could call me.
I just didn’t realize it.
“I love you, too,” I choke out the words. “I want to stay and be your Tribute.”
His eyes widen, his armor flashing to a pure, brill
iant gold.
I gasp as the mark on my shoulder flares—the sensation is so intense that I can’t tell if it’s painful or pleasurable and I cry out. I cover the spot with my hand as the pressure turns to heat, shudders wracking me. Facing me, Gavrill mirrors my movement, his large hand covering a spot on his forearm. I stare at him as the sorrow and tension of the past cycle melts away, leaving a warm, liquid pleasure flowing through my body. I lurch towards him, suddenly unwilling to go a second without his hands on me. He reaches out to catch me, my hands falling into his and his armor slides back, up to his elbows. I stare down at the dark gold symbol on his forearm, darker than the rest of his skin. If he were human, it would be like he had gotten henna done or something.
“Dawn.” Awe fills his voice. Awe, shock, and utter delight. I can practically feel it pulsing through me… no, no I really can feel it—his emotions. They are separate from my own, utterly foreign to me and yet somehow it feels right too. His hand slides to frame the marked spot on my shoulder and I scrunch my neck to see. The itchy red mark is gone. In its place is a bright gold brand, a circle filled with delicate angles, like the cut of a jewel.
“What—” I let go of his hand to touch the symbol with a hesitant finger. It doesn’t hurt or itch or anything anymore. The smooth design feels like it’s been there forever, like an old tattoo. And Gavrill’s forearm bears an identical one.
Gavrill reaches out to trace the gold circle on my shoulder, his touch raising goosebumps all over my body. Okay, when he touches it, it feels totally different and a rush of pleasure spreads through my body.
“The bond,” he says softly. My eyes widen; his meet mine. Suddenly, an emotion floods through me, a tidal wave stealing my breath. I hang on to Gavrill, shaking a little as I make sense of the feelings inside me. A curious lightness has replaced the stark ache. Instead of a hollow pain, there’s a strong glow, pulsing like a heartbeat, leading straight to…
I stare up at Gavrill. He’s there on the edge of my senses like a fifth limb, only more—bigger, stronger, and full of a warmth. The pain in my chest is gone, filled with a presence, a second heartbeat, a perfect peace.
“Holy hell.” My voice is thick. “Does this mean what I think it does?”
“We share a mark.” Gavrill strokes my shoulder with reverent fingers. His face reflects my own awe.
“It’s a heli crystal,” Medik breathes, “symbolizing eternal union.” He and the rest of the officers on deck are all staring at us.
“The bond is complete,” Gavrill murmurs, and draws me close to him. I feel a thread of concern through his emotions. “You are sure now, you want to stay with me?”
“Yes.” I press my fingertips against his chest, looking up at him so he can see the sincerity in my eyes, willing that he’ll be able to feel me as easily as I can feel him. “I never wanted to go. I only wanted to be yours.”
“You are mine,” he says, smiling down at me. No one sighs, but I swear the entire bridge crew is practically humming with satisfaction at the romance of the moment, totally enthralled by the drama playing out between Gavrill and myself. “My captive. As I am yours. The bond binds me to you as much it does you to me.”
“What about your duty?”
“You’re my Tsenturion mate. We will figure it out. Together.” The bond between us hums a little, filling my heart with happy music. I step back a moment, hand on my chest, as warmth rushes over me. Gavrill lets me go, as if he understands I need a moment to catch my breath. To find my footing in this awesome flood of love. The screen stretched over my head shows nothing but black, empty space. My heart beats against my palm as I find myself in the new current that flows between us. I am still me and he is still himself, but if we give ourselves over, we are also one. It’s enough to overcome a lifetime of loneliness.
I turn back to face Gavrill. My eyes meet his and a new surge of warmth fills me. One prick and it could pour out from my skin, filling the bridge, the ship, the black velvet expanse to the nearest star and beyond.
I open my mouth to tell him all this, but he already knows. Anything I say would sound maudlin. There aren’t words to describe it.
Perhaps I will invent some. I have a thousand cycles to do it.
Around me, golden light flashes from the warriors’ suits, making the bridge look as though we’re bathed in golden sunlight. Everyone, even Bogdan’s. The entire race benefits from knowing our bond is complete.
It’s still a little embarrassing that such an intimate thing happened in front of everyone.
“I, uh, interrupted your shift.” I blush and start to edge away as everyone’s eyes on me starts to make me feel a little shy.
“Yes,” Gavrill matches my bland tone. “But the interruption had merit.”
“I’m not in trouble for coming onto the bridge without permission?”
Mischief glimmers in his eyes and he steps towards me. Aw crap. I don’t need to be in tune with his emotions to know what his intentions are.
“I didn’t say that. After all,” he continues in a louder tone, “We warriors cannot allow our Tributes to trample over protocol. When we return to the room, you will be chastised.”
I raise my chin, about to say something defiant, when the lift swooshes open behind me. I turn to see if Medik has left but no, he is standing beside the door. Corin is disembarking from the lift. Uh oh.
“Fortunately,” Gavrill says as I whip my head back around to look at him. “I am officially off duty now.” The wicked smile he gives me makes me press my thighs together even as my hands move behind me to cover my bottom. Pointing to a spot in front of him, Gavrill commands softly, “Come here.”
I hesitate, my head turning back towards the door and the lift...
“Dawn,” Gavrill warns. A second before I decide to dash, he strides forward, dipping at the last moment to plant his shoulder in my belly. He lifts me easily in a fireman’s hold as I squawk.
“Corin, you have command, as my Tribute requires my attention,” he announces. Cheers erupt around the bridge, along with several ribald suggestions that make me blush furiously. One hand grips the cheek of my ass, holding me in place as he points to Bogdan.
“You’re next,” Garvill tells him, and I get the satisfaction of seeing the surly warrior’s suit whiten. Balancing on Gavrill’s hard shoulder, I laugh. He claps his hand against my bottom and I yelp.
“I am not finished with you, naughty one,” the High Commander growls as he carries me to the lift, his hard fingers firmly pressing into the soft cheek of my ass. “It is time you learned to respect your Master.”
My muscles clench in eager anticipation.
Gavrill
The door to our quarters barely slides shut before I toss Dawn on the bed. Catching the hem of her dress, I rip it from her body, directly up the middle as I direct the nanotech of her belt to recede, baring her body to me. My cock stands at a stiff angle from my body, my seela quivering and waving in the air, reaching for her. Instead of grasping Dawn’s hips and plunging inside her primed body, I stretch out over her, my body atop hers but not inside of her yet.
“You belong to me,” I say, bracing myself on my forearms and tracing the golden edge of her mark. A true, full Tsenturion bonding. I can feel her inside of my head—happy, warm, loving... She fills a void that I hadn’t even known was there. Sharing my emotions with her is strange but it also feels right.
“Yes,” she breathes, lifting her face for a kiss. I bow my head to claim her lips, but stop just short, brushing mine against hers as I reach up to pinch her nipple. She squeals at the little burst of pain, but I can also feel her excitement and arousal despite the noise of protest she makes.
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, Master,” she giggles. I roll us both and rise to settle her over my broad thighs her bottom turned up for my palm.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
The sound reverberates from the walls, interspersed with her breathy cries. I paint her cheeks pink with my hard hand, spanking her
quickly but not harshly. The excitement I feel pulsing off of her is growing and my cock is aching to be inside of her. I pause long enough to command her Trainer to trickle down the crease between her cheeks and fill her bottom hole.
Shifting her further forward on her lap, my seela brush against her clit and wet folds, teasing her sensitive bits as I begin to spank her again. This time my hand comes down harder, on already pink cheeks.
Smack!
“Gavrill! Please!”
Smack!
She shudders as my prime seela circles her clit, even as my hand smacks against her tender bottom. The sight of her trainer bisecting her red cheeks, burrowing into her ass, urges me on to greater heights.
Smack!
Dawn
“Master, please…. I need you!”
I feel like I’m about to explode from all the sensations filling me. The pain, the pleasure… my desire, his passion…
Smack!
“Master!” A sob rises in my throat. My ass clenches around the trainer as it thickens inside of me, buzzing slightly like a vibrator.
When he suddenly picks me up, putting me back on my back, I cry out as the trainer feels like it’s pushing even deeper while my sore bottom flares with the impact of my weight on the bed. Then he’s on top of me, his cock thrusting inside of me, his hands pushing mine above my head and pinning them there as his mouth lowers to mine.
Thigh to thigh, hip to hip, chest to chest. Mark to mark. Pleasure pulses from my mark to his.
He thrusts hard, fast. My legs wrap around him as his tongue slides against mine. I can feel him inside of me, stretching me, filling me. The nanotech in my ass buzzes faster, swelling larger as I clench around his cock. My clit pulses against his prime seela as it strokes me each time he sheathes himself.
I arch, my breasts rubbing against his chest as his hands tighten around my wrists. As our passion rises, I feel his seela latch on to my pussy. The tendrils pull us closer, sealing us together as we both cry out in ecstasy. The rise and fall of our shared orgasm crests and flows between us, pleasure upon pleasure, his and mine together until the intensity amplifies a hundred, a thousand times.