by Maia Starr
"Ravinn. Glad that you came. Ephane, good work getting my son here. You are dismissed to your daily rounds. Make sure you tell me how the water systems are going first thing in the morning,” my father said.
“Yes, Callisto. I will come to you in the morning,” Ephane said as he walked back out onto the veranda and flew away.
“What is it, father? Why did you call me here? We just spoke a week ago,” I said as I made myself comfortable on the bench.
“You were with Talia again this afternoon, were you not?” he asked.
“What is that to you?” I scolded him.
“You know what it is to me. You cannot make her your lifelong mate and wife. She is not able to create offspring. It is your responsibility to reproduce,” he said in anger.
“Not this talk again. We have had this same conversation over and over again for a year now. I am sick of it. You cannot tell me who I should love. You do not control my heart. I do not care that she is not able to produce offspring. There are more than enough humans here on Kelon that will be creating offspring. It means nothing if I decide that I want to make Talia my lifelong mate and we do not reproduce,” I said to him.
“Yes, it does. I am a high official. We are looked upon as examples. If you decide not to be with a human, then others will think to do the same. Before we know it, all males will think as you do. That they can do whatever they want. It will be the decline of our race. We will become extinct. The opposition will win, and the Draqua will be no more,” my father said as he pounded his fist on the table. He was obviously very angry.
“I don't know what to tell you, father. I am not going to leave her. I love her because she is strong and she has a good heart. She is a very kind-hearted and pure Draqua. The human females are weak. They constantly need to be rescued, and they are not capable of doing the things that we are able to do, payphone females are. Because of this, I enjoy my companionship with Talia. You cannot force me otherwise,” I said as I stood up and walked toward the veranda.
“You are not going anywhere. The reason I summoned you this afternoon is because I have news for you. It has been six months since I have made a case to the king that you are ready to marry. That you are ready for a lifelong mate. He has granted it,” my father said.
I stopped in my tracks. This was truly shocking. I did not think that my father was pleading a case to the King for me to be able to have a mate.
“You mean it, father? You asked him if I could marry Talia?” I said with a slight smile.
“No. That is not what I mean, son. I asked the King to give you a human female as a mate. He has granted it. You are going to have a human female wife by order of the King. There is nothing that you can do about it.”
CHAPTER THREE
AMELIA SANDERS
I could not believe what was happening to me. I had been taken by aliens! We did not even know that aliens existed on Earth. I had just been a secretary that no one paid attention to, not even my womanizing boss. Now I was suddenly in the middle of this alien world that they called Kelon, and I was surrounded by half-dragon aliens. It was beyond belief. But what was even more surprising was the fact that I had found myself arguing with one that had rescued me from the ocean and from a crazy battle.
“The Draqua known as Ravinn was completely rude and arrogant. He was the most irritating male that I had ever met, of any species. I wanted to slap the arrogance off his face. So as I went through the process of what they called registration at a spaceport, I could not stop thinking about how angry he made me.
“What a jerk…” I said under my breath.
“What was that?” the warrior that was getting my identification down asked me.
“Oh, nothing. Why are you doing this? Why did you take us? You cannot just go to another planet and take people. It is not right,” I said as I realized that I had been very appeasing with this whole process.
“We will show you to your living quarters,” the warrior said, ignoring my questions. It seemed that all of these Draqua warriors were just as rude as Ravinn. I sighed in annoyance.
“Am I ever going to get any answers? What about my friend that was taken? Is anyone looking for her? Is anyone in charge here?” I shouted as I finally broke into a rage.
“What is it? What can I help you with?” I heard another voice say. I turned around to see another Draqua warrior. But there was something different about him. His green eyes seemed to be full of kindness. His brown hair was cut short and very well-kept. He did not have the rugged, dangerous look that Ravinn had.
“Yes, I need help,” I said as I walked over to him.
“All right human. What can I help you with? What is your name? My name is Ephane,” he said with a slight bow. It was very unusual.
“Well, Ephane, my name is Amelia. I have a million questions. I just arrived on this planet, and I was taken. I want someone to tell me why and what the hell is going on here. But most importantly, as soon as we arrived, we crashed, and my friend Michelle was taken by a red dragon. No one seems to care at all. No one seems to want to get her back. What the hell kind of place is this?” I said as I was near tears.
“I will take this human female to her home,” Ephane said as he gestured to the warrior that was registering me.
“She is in the guest tree hut living quarters. Any hut is fine,” The warrior said to Ephane.
“Come with me, Amelia. I will answer your questions, and we will see about your friend,” he said with a genuine smile. I felt relief wash over me. This Draqua named Ephane was going to answer my questions and help me get Michelle back. It was all that I could ask for at the moment. I followed him away from the ship port.
“Amelia, I am sorry for what you have been through so far on your arrival to Kelon. It seems like it has been a lot,” Ephane said as he walked beside me.
“Thank you,” I said surprised by his empathy.
“Now you have questions. That is understandable. All of the human females that come here do and I will try to answer yours if I can,” he said as we walked out of the port and into the tall trees jetting out from the ground.
“Yes. Why am I here? I was taken from Earth. That is not all right. I want to go back home. When can I return?” I asked.
“Yes, the taking of females. That is not something I have been proud of. But it is a necessity for our race to survive,” he said.
“What do you mean?”
“The females of our own Draqua race are not able to produce offspring anymore. Therefore it is a necessity for us to reproduce with other females of other races. That is why we had started to mate with humans long ago,” Ephane sad.
I was silent as I realized what he was telling me. They needed us in order to procreate.
"So that is why I am here? I am supposed to mate and produce offspring?”
“Yes. I know it is shocking. But you will find that the majority of the human females that are here are very happy here. They have made a life here. You will see when you meet them,” he said as he continued to lead me towards a giant tree.
“Yes, I would like to talk to other humans. I just can't believe this is happening. You must know that I am in complete shock.” I said.
“This way. I will show you to your home,” he said as he walked into an arch cut into a giant tree. I followed him inside, where there was a giant spiral staircase. It was absolutely stunning. There were lots and lots of steps to climb. He climbed, and I followed him.
“And tell me about your friend,” he said.
“ Michelle. Her name is Michelle. When we crashed during the battle, a large red dragon took her from the ocean. It flew off with her. She is out there somewhere. She needs to be rescued. No one seems to care that she was taken. I don't understand why,” I said to him as I climb the stairs.
“I understand. We can fill out a report about her, and I will make sure that it gets to the king. It sounds like she was taken by the opposition. It could be hard to find her, but we must let our warriors know t
hat she is out there. If they come across the opposition, they can make it a point to look for her and bring her back,” he said.
“Yes, that is all I can ask. Finally, someone is listening to me. Thank you, Ephane,” I said to him.
We made it to the top of the staircase. Walking out into the bright sunlight, I could see that we were high up in the tree and a veranda. There were various bridges off the side of it.
“This way, Amelia,” Ephane said as he led the way down a bridge.
I followed him, and as I looked over the side of the bridge, I did get a bit dizzy. It was a very long way down. I looked away and looked straight ahead, following him to another veranda where there were a couple of thatched-roof huts. They were beautiful and looked like a luxury hotel on a tropical island.
“This will be your home for now,” Ephane said as he opened the door and walked in. I followed him in and was pleasantly surprised by what I saw. The vaulted ceiling was beautiful, and there was a picturesque window that overlooked the ocean and village below. There was a nice plush bed with mosquito netting surrounding it. There was a small kitchen area with food laid out on a large leaf. I walk to the back of the hut and saw a large tub, and behind it was a private washroom area.
“This was not what I was expecting,” I said as I walked around.
“Here, sit and eat something. There is plenty of water as well. I am sure that you have had a harrowing day. While you eat I can take your report on the appearance and any identifying traits of the human female that is missing,” he said as he sat in a chair. There was something very comforting about this Draqua named Ephane. He seemed very on top of things, and well organized. Since I came from a secretary background, I could identify with that, and I found it to be progress. It was such a 180 from the way I was treated by Ravinn.
I sat down and poured myself some water. I nibbled at the fruit and began to tell him everything that I knew about Michelle. It brought tears to my eyes to imagine her being held by the dragons that hated humans. At least here in the village, humans were welcome, for the most part. They were a necessity to keep the race going.
“That will be enough for today. I will report this to the scouts as well as my superior. It will make its way to the king; I promise you that, Amelia,” he said with a kind smile.
“Thank you, Ephane. Thank you for everything. You have been the only kind Draqua so far during my hours here,” I said to him.
He gave me a bow before turning toward the door.
“Sleep well. I know that is easier said than done since you have been taken from your home. But try if you can because we will have a full day tomorrow. I can show you around the village and have you meet with a few human females if you'd like,” he said.
“Yes. I would like that very much. I will see you in the morning,” I said with a smile. He walked out, and I closed and locked the door behind him. I moved over to the window and stared out over this strange land. I shook my hand back-and-forth.
“Are you sure that you are not dreaming, Amelia?” I said as a pinched my arm.
“Nope. I am definitely awake. This is the most bizarre thing that could ever possibly happen to you, and it has only just begun,” I said to myself.
I moved over to the tub and ran the water. It was surprisingly steaming hot, and I was excited to take a bath and wash the sand and ocean off of me. I sunk into the hot water and relaxed. When I slept, I could hear the ocean waves crashing on the sand, and the village was peaceful and quiet except for the noise of the nighttime birds and bugs. It was almost magical. I slept deep and very well because I was so exhausted.
The next morning, I awoke and waited for Ephane. Finally, he arrived at the door.
“Did you eat?” he asked.
“I ate some of the fruit,” I said.
“No, you need to eat a substantial morning meal. Let me take you to the village. We can go to the communal kitchens. There is plenty of food to go around, and there will be human females for you to speak with,” he said.
“Yes, I would like that very much,” I said as I closed the door behind me and followed him across the bridge and down to the forest floor and the village. We walk through a maze of pathways and the village it was beginning to wake up. I saw a couple of Draqua, including females and a few hybrid children. It was a very startling thing to realize, but I was enjoying every moment of this extreme adventure. I soaked it all in as I passed through and we merged onto the beach. The sand was a glittering white, and the water was crystal clear. It was a gorgeous day.
“The kitchens are this way, Amelia. Everyone pitches in to make the meal when they can. You can learn as much or as little as you want to,” he said, leading the way to an area further back from the beach. There were several huts and in the middle were outdoor hearths. There were large tables where Draqua and human females were cutting fruit, fish, and other sea bounty. It was lively, and there was a happy energy to it. No one seemed to notice or care about my presence. I guess having a new human female on the planet was not an unusual thing. Ephane showed me how to serve myself from the various tables. Then we sat down at a table facing the ocean.
“Tell me about your life on Earth, Amelia,” he said with a polite smile.
“Well. I lived in a big city called New York. I worked as a secretary, which is an administrative position. I went to work every day and came home every day; that is about it,” I said, realizing just how boring it was to say it out loud.
“So you did not have a lover or a husband?” he asked.
"No. I did not,” I said, embarrassed to admit that I was single. But why did I care what this alien thought of me?
“Good,” he said. I looked at him strangely. He seemed to almost to blush in embarrassment. Then he cleared his throat and changed the subject.
“There is plenty of fulfilling work here in the village. If you wish, I can show you around and see if anything interests you. I find work to be very fulfilling; perhaps you will too,” he said.
“Yes, thank you. I would like to see how the village works and how I could be of service. I have to admit lounging on the beach and swimming is a great way to spend my time, but after a while, I think I would start to feel useless,” I said digging into the freshly caught steaming hot fish. It was absolutely delicious with a side of fruit that reminded me of coconut.
“I understand,” Ephane said.
“You are very easy to talk to,” I said complementing him.
“Thank you. Now, why don't I see if any of these human females are free to come sit with you? Are you ready for that?” he asked.
“Yes, I would love that,” I said.
“I will return,” he said as he stood up and walked away from the table.
A few moments later, three human females walked over to me and sat at the table. One of them had an infant hybrid child in her arms. She seemed very happy, with a bright smile.
“Hello, Amelia. My name is Teresa. Ephane has said you just arrived yesterday,” she said to me.
“Arrived? I think you mean taken against my will,” I said as politely as I could. The women are all looked at each other and giggled a bit.
“I am sorry. I don't see what is funny about that,” I said looking at them.
“It is funny to us because we have all been there. We all felt the same way when we first arrived. My name is Jamie. Nice to meet you, Amelia. I totally understand how you feel right now. I felt the same way when I was brought here two years ago,” she said.
“And my name is Rachel,” another woman said as she put her hand out for me to shake it. I shook her hand and then look at the three women, hoping they had all the answers for me.
“I don't understand why the three of you seem so happy. Do you not want to go back to Earth? Do you not hate these phones for taking you and making you create their offspring?” I asked and confusion.
“At first, yes, as could be expected. But after being here for several months, I was appointed to a Draqua warrior, and I fell in love wi
th him. He is now of my husband and the father of the child here in my arms. I could not be happier. If I were to be taken back to Earth, I would be extremely depressed and would beg to come back here. This is my life now. This is my family,” Teresa said.
“Plus, do you not find this alien world and life extremely fascinating? Why would I want to go back to Earth when I already know what Earth is like and I know the people? But here, everything is new to me, and how lucky are we that we know that aliens do exist?” Rachel said.
“I guess you have a point there,” I said.
We spoke for an hour or so as I asked them questions and each of them told me how they arrived and their life story after arriving on the planet Kelon. Each one had a different story to tell, but all of them had happiness and joy once they fell in love. I could not see myself falling in love with an alien dragon shifter. It just was not possible for me. I knew that I would be a fish out of water here and if I could go back to Earth and then I should.