by Maia Starr
“It is so colorful and beautiful,” Camilla said.
“Is it the same all over the market?” I asked.
“No, the sections are different. We are in the spices and food section of the market, which is what you can smell. In the center is the sale of servants and on the east is where you find parts and mechanics,” he said.
I stopped walking. “Wait, when you say servants, do you mean slaves?”
“Yes, exactly,” he said.
“Oh, that is terrible,” Camilla said.
“Yes, almost as bad as being taken by aliens for breeding,” I said under my breath. Camilla gave me a look to knock it off.
“Come this way. We can get a quick drink over here in this place,” Roan said as he led us toward a busy building.
He stepped inside, and we followed. I recognized it instantly. It was a bar or like a tavern, but it looked medieval. Like something you would see in a movie. It was busy, with all kinds of aliens talking and drinking.
“What is this?” Camilla said. “Alexandra, look.” I followed her gaze to the alien females that were walking around seductively. I looked at Camilla with shock. It was like a brothel.
“We can gather here for food and drink anytime,” Roan said as he sat down at an empty table. We sat close to him. It was a rowdy place.
“So it’s a bar or a whorehouse?” I asked.
“A what?” Roan asked.
“Nothing,” I said. “So what is the drink of choice here? I could use a strong refreshment.”
“I will take care of that. Three Hiwa,” Roan shouted at a purple-skinned female alien walking by. She nodded.
“Hiwa?” Camilla asked.
“Yes, Hiwa. It is what we drink on my own planet. It is very strong.”
The alien female returned with three large cups of the stuff. Roan paid her in coins that I had never seen before. He seemed to be generous because she smiled in return.
Camilla picked up the cup and tasted it. She started coughing a little bit and wrinkled her nose.
I laughed a little bit and picked up the cup and smelled it. It smelled like fresh cut pineapple. I took a small sip. It was delicious but very strong. Roan watched us drink with a smile. His eyes were glued to Camilla. It sort of made me sick to watch the two love birds.
“It’s strong?” he asked her.
“Yes, like you,” she said seductively.
“Oh brother,” I said.
“What? He is!” she said to me.
“I am sure that he is,” I said.
I drank more of the drink until the cup was empty. I felt drunk. Camilla and Roan were obviously enjoying themselves too. About fifteen minutes had passed, and the two lovebirds were in their own world. I, on the other hand, was looking around taking in all the sights and sounds. There seemed to be twenty different languages being spoken. It was absolutely amazing. Then I noticed three aliens walk in. It startled me because they looked exactly like the captain and the commander. They looked like Draqua, only they were dressed differently. They wore full leather, like warriors in a medieval battle. They were tall and just as impressive, but they seemed menacing as they scanned the room. Their eyes settled on our table, and I knew that it was trouble. “Commander Roan…” I said, turning to him and Camilla.
“Yes?” he said.
“The door,” I said. He looked at the door and his smile faded.
“Aeriwana. Shit,” he said.
Then all of a sudden, I got a strange urge to join these Aeriwana at the door, and I did not know why. But I stood up.
“Yes, Alexandra. I think we should go say hello to them. I am with you,” Camilla said standing up with me.
“No, don’t. What are you doing?” Roan said as he grabbed her hand. But I was already stepping away from the table. I had no control.
“They have mind powers,” I heard Roan say in the distance, but it did not register. I walked straight up to the first Aeriwana with gleaming green eyes and just stood there, and before I knew it, Camilla was at my side with Roan chasing her. The Aeriwana turned and walked out the door into the market and Camilla and I followed without question.
“Stop this! Let go of their minds!” Roan shouted as he yanked at Camilla and me. I fell to the ground from the force.
Bam! One of them punched Roan, then the other as they ganged up on him.
“No!” Camilla shouted.
“Stop!” I shouted.
They punched and kicked him; it was not a fair fight. Then Roan burst out of the group as he shifted into Dragon form. The men were thrown from him. I heard shouting and looked down the alley near me to see more Aeriwana coming. Now he would really be outnumbered. Roan was fighting and holding his own in a fist fight, but only for a second. When the others arrived, they had him on the ground again. Camilla was screaming. Then I saw her thrown over the shoulder of an Aeriwana.
“Camilla! Let her go!” I shouted, but I lost sight of her in the crowd. My screaming caught the attention of an Aeriwana, and he came at me. Then, bam! He was knocked off his feet by something large that flew by. Then I was lifted into the air. I knew instantly that it was Captain Ineq Shun. I could tell from his hands around me and his scent. He flew straight up the building and set me on the roof.
“Don’t move,” he growled.
“But,” I began to say, but he dove straight down and hit the pile of Aeriwana on top of Roan with such force that toppled them over. He landed and fought off a few more before picking up Roan and flying back to me. He said nothing but scooped me with his other hand and flew away.
“But Camilla. They took Camilla. We have to get her!” I shouted, but he did not respond.
He flew directly to the door of his ship. The door opened, and he set me down beside it. He carried the unconscious Roan inside and laid him on the floor. As I stood by the door, I heard shouts. I looked out toward the village and saw a group of Aeriwana cutting through the market crowd toward us.
“They’re coming! Ineq!” I shouted. He came to the door and looked in the direction.
“Shit. Get in,” he said grabbing me. He closed the door and ran to the flight deck. I ran and sat in the chair next to him. He turned on the engine, and the ship hovered above the base, then it flew across the land. He flew far and fast and then stopped the ship and let it hover.
“Help me,” he said as he got out of his seat. I followed him to the back.
“How bad is he?” I asked.
“Bad. Open the door to the sleeping room,” he said. I did as he asked and he carried him in. He lay him down on the bed and strapped him to the bed.
“That’s going to do for now. Come on; strap in,” he said. I followed him to the front and strapped into my seat. Then the ship shot straight upward.
“Up? What are you doing?”
“Leaving. Going back to Kelon. He needs a healer now,” he said.
“But Camilla. They have her. We cannot leave,” I said.
“We cannot go back for her with just us. There are too many of them,” he said.
“But—”
“No buts!” he shouted at me. “If you had stayed on the ship, this would not have happened! You are the reason your friend is gone, and the commander is on the brink of death!” he shouted.
I wanted to shout back, but he was not wrong. I did do this. I was to blame. The sky outside the ship went from blue to black as we entered space.
I watched the commander as he pressed buttons and did his work. I felt so guilty. Poor Camilla; she must be terrified. I hoped that they did not hurt her. When would we be able to get her? I wanted to ask all these questions, but the hard scowl on Ineq’s face let me know that I should not speak at all. I was fighting back tears.
CHAPTER EIGHT
CAPTAIN INEQ SHUN
After my encounter with Alexandra, I was completely distracted. I could not think about anything else but her. When I closed my eyes, I would replay the incident in my mind over and over. I would see her pinned against the wall as my to
ngue explored her sweet center. I could still taste her in my mouth. I could still hear her moaning and groaning as I made her explode in pleasure. Thinking about it made me hard all over again.
When I saw her walking back and forth in the hallway, I smiled at her. As soon as I saw her delicious body, it all came back to me again. I was thinking about what I wanted to do to her next. But she seemed to still be against the experience. As soon as she saw me, she gave me an angry look and disappeared back into the room. Did she hate me now? Did she think I had taken advantage of her? Maybe I had? I did not think that trying to mate with the human would be taking advantage of her if she was screaming and moaning in pleasure. Besides, it was our duty to mate. That was the whole purpose of all of it. It was why I took the dangerous mission to go to Earth and steal her. I needed to create offspring to keep my race alive. Why could she not see that? Why would she not give in to it?
Her friend with the blonde hair seemed to understand it and was accepting of it. I heard her and the commander. It was easy for him; why not for me? Though I had to admit the longer I had to wait to experience all that Alexandra had to offer, the more I wanted her. It was just like one of the dangerous missions that I went on. Now, Alexandra was my new dangerous mission. I liked the idea of that. She would be worth it; I knew it after sampling her.
Now, I had to shift my focus. We had landed on the planet of Tiok. It was dangerous here for one reason: I was a Draqua, and our enemy was here, the opposition. Now it seemed that the opposition had dumped a bunch of Aeriwana on this planet. I at least was immune to one of their tools. But no one knew that about me; it was best to keep it a secret. It was a tool that I used only when I needed to. And today would be a day that I would have to use it, but no one would know. Only those trying to invade my mind space would know, but then I would have the upper hand before they could tell anyone else.
When I left the landing port, and the ship with the two human females and the commander, I knew that I had to be very careful. Our mission concerned our enemy. I was only supposed to find out if they indeed were on this planet, and how many there were. I walked out of the landing through the gates and into the market.
As soon as I entered the market, the scent of spices hit me. It was always good to be back on this planet. The smells made me very aware of my environment and just how dangerous it was. It was somewhat of an outlaw planet and trading post. Many criminals came there to disappear in the swarms and various races in the markets. One could hire them for muscle if needed to. But cross them, and they would kill you. It was my kind of planet.
Even though I was loyal to my Draqua, I could easily make a living as a hired outlaw. I had the skills for it, and I liked danger. It was all the things you needed to be on this planet. I always thought that I fit in well with this rough crowd. But today I needed to be invisible and not stand out. A part of me did wish that I could bring Alexandra out into the market and show her around. I knew that she would be pleased, and I wanted to please her. Plus, I wanted her to see me in action. I was an arrogant warrior, and I knew that my skills would impress her. But that would all have to wait for another time because right now, the mission was all that mattered. I would just have to trust the commander to watch over the humans while I went to get the count of the possible Aeriwana on Tiok.
I stopped at the first booth.
“Draqua, what can I do for you?” the old Hitima merchant asked. The Hitima were from the Echelok Galaxy, and they lived in lush forests that were inhabited by a special kind of silk worm. Therefore they were the best cloth merchants in the galaxy. His table was filled with fabrics of various colors. But I did not need silk. I needed to be invisible.
“Do you have any rough cloth? I need a cloak, a black one. I need to be invisible,” I said to the merchant as I handed him some coin.
“Yes, I have just what you need, Draqua. You are taller than the Hitima, but I have a long one just for your type,” he said as he turned to a large trunk behind him. He rummaged through to the bottom of the trunk and pulled out a black folded cloth. He unfolded it and held it up.
“Will this do?”
It was black and a rough fabric. It was hooded and large and would hide my massive figure well.
“Yes, that is exactly what I need,” I said.
“Here you are,” he said, handing me the black cloak. I unfolded it and draped it across my shoulders and put on the hood. I did not need my presence to be known.
“There is something else I need, but it is not cloth,” I said, leaning in.
“That will cost the same as the cloak,” he said understanding that I wanted information and dealing in information was dangerous. It was also costly. I handed him the same amount of coin I paid for the cloak. He nodded and listened.
“I am looking for more that look like me, but they are not like me,” I said in my best riddle in case others were listening to our conversation.
“Yes, I understand. The Aeriwana. They have been here to buy from me.”
“Where would I find them now if I would like to speak to them?” I said.
“I have seen them at the bar near here, but also in a tall yellow building then blocks east of it. You cannot miss it. You did not get the information from me,” he said as he turned his back to me and began to put his materials back in the trunk. I looked toward the market, ready to begin the mission.
I ventured further into the crowded sea of merchants. I knew exactly where I should start: the center area of the market village where the watering hole was. This was where the slaves were sold, and our enemy, the opposition, had been dealing in slavery as of late. But it would also be where they kept a base with the Aeriwana.
The Aeriwana were fairly new. We had discovered them a few decades ago. It seemed that the opposition was crossbreeding aliens, and this was a result of one of them. They were very dangerous because they looked a lot like us, but they could not shift into Dragon form. But they did have something that we had, and that was certain powers, particularly mind control. It wasn't a certain fact, but a few of the warriors had come across the certain powers. Therefore, I had to be very careful. I was to find out their numbers and then give that information to the king; that was all.
I moved carefully through the market, keeping my eyes and ears awake to every single sight and sound. Then I found them; it was easy because they looked like us Draqua. There was a gang of about ten of them lingering in a back alley courtyard in front of a tall building. I went around to the other side. I shifted and flew to the rooftop, staying very low. I sat there and waited and listened. I could hear the conversation. I heard two of them talking in the courtyard about preparing for the main plan. I did not know what this plan was. The information drifted on the air in segments. I could only make out a few things here and there. I waited patiently.
Then I heard silence. I thought it was odd so I peeked out over the edge of the building down into the courtyard. They were all lined up as though waiting for inspection. Then a very large Aeriwana came out of the building. He was dressed in all black and walked up and down the line of Aeriwanas.
“Any news from Kelon?” he said.
“No, Commander Harkin. No news to speak of.”
“Good, that means that they do not know about our presence here. Let us keep it that way. If you see any Draqua here, you will kill them on the spot. We can't let the news of our numbers here get to Kelon. It will mess up my plans. Now go out on patrol. You waste your time here doing nothing.”
“Commander Harkin! We just heard a few of our Aeriwanas are engaged in a fight at the watering hole. They tried to take to humans from a male Draqua.”
The commander growled. He was pissed. “Go now! You idiots!”
As soon as I heard the news, I knew that it had to be Commander Vrerkin and the two humans we took from Earth. I quietly crawled across the roof to the back of the building. I flew in the direction that the Aeriwanas were running. I was pissed. I told them to stay on this ship. They deliberate
ly disobeyed me, and now they would be in danger. Now Alexandra would be in danger. My heart dropped to my stomach as I thought about her in peril. I would not have it; she was mine.
When I arrived, it was a full-scale fight, but not a fair one. I could see a pile on top of Commander Vrerkin. Then I heard Alexandra screaming. She was laid out on the ground and rage hit me. It was like a flood through my entire body. Whoever pushed her to the ground, I would kill them.
Then I saw an Aeriwana going straight for her. No. Over my dead body. I flew straight for him and took him out, hitting him hard. I knocked him out instantly. Then I flew straight for her and picked her up. I set her on the roof of the building and then went back to get the commander. I had to fight them off, but I was successful and getting both of them back to the ship.