Human Surrender: Five Dark Sci-Fi Alien Romance Novellas

by Renee Rose

  Hungry, exhausted, and in pain, she decided to find something to eat then sleep for a while. She needed to be in top form when they returned if she had to fight both of them with her bare hands.

  She rummaged through the supplies again, found a basket filled with tubers. She broke one apart. White and fleshy inside, it was firm to the touch. At least it didn’t smell nasty like some of the other things. Cass shrugged and took a bite. She was likely to die here anyway.

  It had a satisfying crunch but not much taste. Bland, like an uncooked potato. She finished it off and ate another one. Eating reminded her of how thirsty she was. Her only options seemed to be oil or liquor. Cass opted for the liquor.

  She tipped one of the heavy jars toward her and took a tiny sip. Whoa! Thick and sweet, like honey mixed with crushed fruit, it went down easy. It was only after swallowing that she became aware of the trail of warmth it left in her throat. She took another sip. The warmth hit her stomach and spread through her limbs, lessening the pain she was in.

  “Just a little more,” she cautioned herself out loud. “Enough to help me sleep.”

  She dug through the crates of animal skins, piled the softest ones on the stone floor, and gave in to exhaustion.

  Cass awoke with a start. It was impossible to tell how much time had passed. The rocks still glowed with that blue-white light. She got up and made another pass around the room. Tried to haul the wooden bench up the stairs to batter her way out the door. It was impossible. She could barely budge it. The wood was so much heavier than any found on Earth. If everything on their planet had this density, no wonder the twins had been able to carry her such a long distance without showing any fatigue. She refused to think about what their incredible strength meant for her chances of overpowering them to get away.

  She worked out until her muscles screamed for mercy, pushing herself as hard as she dared with the injury to her ribs. Working out required focus and kept her from worrying about the fate of her crew. She ate, drank, slept again.

  She’d been running up and down the stairs sometime after her fourth sleep cycle when she heard sounds from above. Cass hurried to the other end of the room, next to the shelves. She’d decided her best bet would be to heave the clay jars at them then dash upstairs and out the door. Her plan hadn’t gone far beyond that, since she had no idea how she’d get off the planet. She hoped to hide somewhere, try to hook up with the crew of an alien merchant ship. The brothers hadn’t been completely shocked to see her, so she guessed they had some familiarity with beings from other worlds. With any luck, she’d find that Cephaia had an established interplanetary trading system.

  Her heart was pounding as the door opened. The brothers headed down the stairs, dressed in long pants and loose tunics with sleeves to the wrist. She gave a sigh of relief. It was going to be hard enough to fight them, given their size and strength. At least she wouldn’t have to battle the effect of the pheromones when their bare skin touched hers. Being near them, trying to ignore their seductive attraction, was challenge enough.

  They were in a somber mood. Heavy. She could feel it. Their scent dulled, without the sharp edge to it that made her pulse race.

  Rom stopped at the foot of the stairs. She could tell them apart already, just from the short time she’d spent skin to skin with both of them. She didn’t know if all males on their planet had the same distinctive odor, only that Rom’s was a shade more potent than his brother’s. It made sense, since his personality seemed more forceful than his twin’s.

  He looked her over, took in the nest she’d made of furs. Raised the ridge where his eyebrow would have been if he had any hair.

  “I hope you spent as much time recalling the information about your comrades as you did making yourself at home here.”

  He stepped to one side, started coming closer. Ryn did the same, advancing from the other side. Just as they’d done in the swamp. Just as the creatures who hunted her did. She took her time, backed away slowly. Then she whirled, grabbed a jar of oil, and launched it at Rom.

  It shattered at his feet. He sidestepped the slippery puddle and kept coming. She yanked another one off the shelf but, before she could throw it, Ryn reached her and snatched it out of her hands.

  “Apparently your time alone hasn’t quelled your defiance.”

  He dragged her over to the wooden bench, holding her arms behind her back. Rom stepped in front of her and she tensed, ready for a blow. Instead, he grabbed the cloth she’d wrapped around her body and stripped it off, leaving her naked again.

  She caught the flicker of surprise in his eyes when he saw her body. The bruises from Magnus’s beating showed up as huge purple and blue splotches on her torso.

  “So they treat their own women cruelly as well. You must like it or you wouldn’t be so loyal to them. Now—tell us where your comrades have gone,” he repeated.

  “I told you, I’m not one of them. I’m Commander Cassidy B. Randall of the Interstellar Federation. The pirates you’re seeking tricked us and captured my ship—”

  Rom interrupted her, his tone harsh. “It’s too late to make up stories. You confessed to helping them the day we found you.”

  “I entered the landing protocol only because they threatened to kill my first mate,” she protested.

  From behind her, Ryn spoke up. His words hit her harder than the blow she’d been expecting. “You saved your mate—and killed ours.”

  “I’m sorry. I tried to get to a settlement, warn your people.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “I didn’t make it in time.”

  “Enough of your lies and excuses.” Rom reached into a pocket, pulled out a handful of rope. “Hold her down, Brother. We’ll see if her story changes with a little persuasion.”

  Ryn wrestled her facedown over the waist-high wooden bench. Rom grabbed one ankle then the other, spreading them wide apart to tie them to the legs of the bench. Then he did the same to her wrists, leaving her spread-eagled with her head down and her bottom high in the air.

  “Get the vela. And the harness.”

  Cass was lost. Apparently there was no English word for one of the items he wanted. Ryn disappeared up the stairs. When he came back, he walked around the bench to face her.

  “This is a vela,” he said, holding out one hand. He held what looked like the tail of an animal. Instead of hair, each strand was a thick strip of hide. “And this is the harness.”

  He showed her what was in the other hand. Leather straps with buckles surrounded an unmistakable phallus. The object, sheathed in a sleek, dark material she couldn’t identify, was eight or nine inches long and as big around as two of his fingers. Cass felt a wave of hot lust pour over her at the sight of it. Even though their scent wasn’t as strong as before, her level of arousal was doubled by having both of them so near. In spite of her vulnerable position, her pussy clenched in anticipation.

  “We will insert this and buckle the straps around you. Then we will ask you again to tell us where your comrades have gone. If you persist in your lies, we’ll whip your ass with the vela, then leave you here tied to the bench until you’re ready to talk.”

  Whip her? Cass shook her head frantically. “It’s no use,” she pleaded. “I can’t tell you anything because I don’t know where they’ve gone.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rom pick up a piece of the broken clay pot that still had a pool of oil in it. He bent down in front of her and rubbed the oil onto the phallus.

  “This oil is infused, but it seems a shame to waste it.”

  She didn’t understand until he walked around behind her and pulled the cheeks of her bottom apart. She gasped as his finger came in contact with the tight puckered entrance to her rear opening. His pheromones reacted instantly with the sensitive skin there, sending a hot rush through her core, followed by a stab of fear. Apparently they weren’t planning on using the phallus in her pussy.

  He pressed the head of the thing against her sphincter, and she tensed. Then she let out a hiss. The oil
, warm at first, created a burning sensation. He rubbed it around then worked the tip of the phallus inside her. She squirmed frantically but, tied down as she was, there was no way to avoid it.

  “Struggle all you want.” Rom slid the phallus farther in and then picked up the vela. She heard it whistle through the air. When it cracked against her bottom, every strand left a separate stinging lash of fire on her tender skin. She clenched her teeth, vowing not to cry out.

  Rom twisted the phallus back and forth, driving it past her tight opening. She shuddered at the combination of stinging bottom and hot, hard object penetrating her rear passage. She’d never been taken there, never even fantasized about it. She was horribly embarrassed, but at the same time, their mastery sent a wicked thrill rocketing through her. Cass fought her arousal. She was being forced to submit to this, but becoming excited by it went against everything she believed in. It was wrong.

  He kept going, inserting it deeper, taking the wild heat with it. The burning sensation grew, becoming nearly unbearable. At the same time, the effect of the pheromones given off by both brothers intensified. Her hormone-drugged brain registered shocking pleasure instead of pain. She let a moan escape as he penetrated her with the object.

  Behind her, Rom growled. “Did you moan like that when they beat you? Did you beg them to do it harder?”

  “No!” She couldn’t help wiggling her hips when he slid the phallus out partway.

  “Liar.”

  Rom rammed it deep inside, and she let out a wild cry. He fastened the harness around her waist. When he brought up the strap that went between the cheeks of her bottom and over her pussy in front, his hand brushed the folds around her slit. Rockets exploded inside her.

  Stunned, Cass battled to regain control. She’d never let go like this before. These alien creatures were her enemies, not her lovers. She had to keep that uppermost in her mind, no matter how shamefully her body reacted.

  Rom picked up the vela flogger again and lashed her rear cheeks with it. She tightened involuntarily around the hard object in her bottom. Another wave of heat poured through her rear channel. Her fingernails raked the wooden legs of the bench, and she squeezed her eyes shut, panting for breath. He thrashed her again. This time it was the white-hot flash of pain that had her clenching her cheeks. Two more strokes and she was struggling to hold back tears.

  “Who is your leader?”

  “He’s not my leader!”

  The vela cracked down again. She jerked against her restraints. The movement shifted the leather strap between her legs, and it rubbed across her clit. Her pussy spasmed, rocking the hard phallus lodged in her back passage and setting off a fresh wave of forbidden desire. The fire searing her bottom melded with the heat inside her, pain and pleasure becoming indistinguishable from one another. She shuddered and gritted her teeth.

  Another lash. “Who is your leader?”

  “His name is Magnus but he’s not… my leader,” she gasped. “I’m commander of the Luna.”

  “So it was you who ordered the raid?” Ryn broke in.

  “No! I told you, the pirates captured my ship. They took my crew hostage, locked them in the hold.”

  Rom struck her again. “Why did they let you stay free if you weren’t working with them?”

  “They needed…” She groaned as the flogger’s bite registered. “They needed me to show them how to run the ship.”

  Rom threw down the vela in disgust. “Maybe you didn’t order the raid, but you conspired with them to earn your freedom. You made it possible for them to pilot your ship, use it to attack innocent worlds. Take innocent lives. You’re as guilty as the others.”

  “We’ll get nothing useful from her, Ryn. Not yet.” He reached down, tightened the strap between her legs holding the phallus in place. “We’ll leave her like this for now, Brother, and make our plans.”

  He headed for the stairs. Ryn followed his twin without a word, and she heard the door slam.

  One by one, she tested the strength of her bonds then strained against them with all her might. They wouldn’t give. But the slightest motion made the strap between her legs press against her clit, already swollen and pulsing. When that happened, her pussy spasmed and her bottom contracted around the thick phallus inside it, turning her need for release into a frantic hunger.

  Cass sagged against the hard wooden bench in defeat and let the tears flow.

  Chapter Six

  CASS

  The brothers left her there for what seemed like hours, bound to the wooden bench with the harness keeping the cock-shaped object lodged deep in her bottom. When they finally returned,, they untied the ropes and marched her up the stairs and outside, still wearing the leather device. Rom walked ahead and Ryn behind her, delivering sharp slaps to her naked bottom if she didn’t move fast enough to suit him.

  The swaying motion of her hips when she walked rocked the strap over her clit. Every step shifted the hard phallus inside her bottom, putting it in contact with another spot packed with sensitive nerve endings. The burning heat of the oil had faded, but this fresh torment set off new waves of arousal.

  By the time Rom opened the outside door, she was biting her lip, trying desperately not to climax. Her ardor vanished and she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw what lay in the meadow.

  An enormous spacecraft took up nearly all of the clearing. She was unfamiliar with the design, although from the size of the craft it looked like it was built for distance rather than speed. Admiral Graystone back at the Academy would have described her ship, the Luna, as a panther, capable of lightning-quick maneuvers, needing regular rest stops to reboot its energy system. This vessel was more like a camel, he’d say, capable of traversing the vast, desolate stretches of the Universe as it relentlessly tracked its prey.

  Rom headed straight for the ship.

  “Deliver access.” He delivered the sharp command in Cephaian. An opening appeared in the seamless exterior surface, and he stepped in.

  Behind her, Ryn prodded her into action. Despite the harness, the phallus had worked itself partway out as she walked along. His firm smack on her behind, directly over the spot where it attached to the apparatus she wore, rammed it back in. A bolt of lust tore through her body and she let out a little cry.

  “Inside.” He smacked her again.

  Shaking with a mixture of nervousness and arousal, Cass stepped inside the vessel.

  Instead of the shiny metal surfaces on the interior of the Luna, this ship had walls and ceiling clad in a textured coating. Pale blue on the walls and a soft shade of cream overhead. A thick charcoal-gray matting covered the floor, soft enough to cushion her bare feet.

  Thick enough to absorb sound as well. Cass whirled around at the voice behind her. She’d never heard anyone coming. She flushed, embarrassed at the thought that someone else would see her naked, strapped into the harness.

  “We are prepared to leave on your command, sirs.”

  Cass gave a sigh of relief. The speaker was an android. A machine, incapable of emotional response. It would not react with shock or derision at her lack of clothing or the shameful device they made her wear.

  She took a closer look at the android. Built to resemble the Cephaians, it was roughly the same size, with an exterior covering similar in color to their skin tone. Despite its appearance, she knew the moment she’d taken a breath near it that this was a robot. Her heart didn’t pound. Her pussy didn’t dampen with arousal. It didn’t give off those bewitching pheromones.

  Ryn nodded. “Excellent. Take us to the bridge.”

  The android inclined its head and headed down a wide passageway.

  Her mind raced. She didn’t have to scheme and plot to get off the planet. The twins were taking her away. All she had to do was keep her wits about her. Sooner or later, they’d slip up. She’d be ready. Seize the opportunity to escape.

  “Follow the droid.” Ryn prodded her again, this time pressing the flat of his hand against her lower back. A delicious s
hiver ran through her. The simple touch of his pheromone-laden palm was more erotic than any caress she’d ever received. She took off after the robot, passing several doors along the way carved from the same dark wood as the bench she’d been tied to. This looked nothing like a ship from the InterStellar Federation. Instead, it reminded her of the building they’d taken her to.

  Her Academy training kicked in, and she began analyzing the Cephaian race. A species capable of creating lifelike androids and a vessel designed for long-range interplanetary travel was far more advanced than she’d given them credit for. Perhaps they found that transporting their people in ships designed to feel like home eased the tension on long voyages.

  Cass thought it was a great idea. She’d smuggled a few personal possessions onboard the Luna to remind her of her quarters back on Earth. A small pillow covered in soft peach silk and a handful of shells she picked up at the beach on her last leave before deployment. Treasures she turned to in times of stress, turning the shells over and over in her hands like the set of worry beads she found in an antique shop.

  It was a side of the Cephaians she hadn’t seen before. Cass tucked the knowledge away. Maybe if she couldn’t overpower or outwit them, she’d be able to appeal to their softer, more human side to gain her freedom.

  They reached the bridge at the bow of the ship, where Rom was already seated on a raised platform overlooking an enormous window. It wrapped around the entire room, giving a 180 degree view. Below the platform, three more androids sat in front of control panels, monitoring the ship’s navigation, propulsion, and life support systems. Cass glanced around. She didn’t see any other live crew members. A Federation ship this size would require at least a dozen people to run it, even with a sizeable android population.

  “The Consolis Sector has picked up a transmission we believe is from your ship,” Rom announced. “We are going in pursuit of it. Your purpose here is to identify your ship. When we find it, you will access the command module and allow us to board. Your comrades will be taken prisoner and hauled before the Cephaian Tribunal to pay for their crimes. The Luna will be destroyed.” He gave her a cold stare. “Thanks to my brother, if you cooperate, the Tribunal has decreed that your life will be spared.”