by Maven, Ella
“Please,” the alien said in a harsh whisper while a bead of his blood trickled down his neck where Zecri’s machets had poked his skin. “Please give me a few moments of your time.”
Zecri pressed harder, and the gray alien’s chest heaved. “You aren’t worth even this amount of time. You want to know how many times I’m dreamed of slicing into an Uldani neck?”
Uldani. Uldani. Why was that familiar? Then I remembered what Zecri had told me. The Uldani had done something to him and sold him to this planet.
“I don’t blame you, but—”
“You ripped my machets out of my spine. You made me—” he shook his head. “You stole my future. If it’s the last thing I do, I’ll kill every last one of you.”
“You can, but first let me—”
Zecri tossed him to the ground, where he landed in a swirl of dust. He shuffled away and for the first time, he glanced over his shoulder at me. His eyes went wide, and he held out his hand, as if that would stop the fast-approaching Zecri, who stalked toward him like a lion finishing off his meal. He crossed his wrists at his neck, and his eyes went dark as night.
“I’ll get you off this planet!” The Uldani hollered before covering his eyes with his hand.
Just as Zecri hauled the Uldani to his feet and drew back his forearm machets for a killing slash, I gasped out, “Wait!”
* * *
Zecri
The smell of his blood made me dizzy. Drops stained his coat. I imagined the sight of the fabric completely soaked through. The streets running with his blood. All Uldani blood.
But Sybil’s word stopped me. I held my arm above his bared neck and flashed my fangs. Below me, he panted, scared, like the vermin he was.
“I can get you off this planet. I can get you home.” He rushed out.
“Shut up,” I growled.
He swallowed and kept talking. “I know you want to kill me.”
“This has nothing to do with you. I want to kill all Uldani.”
“Right, yes all of us. And you have a good reason. But please hear me out.” He slowly shuffled to his knees, and I watched him warily. He placed his hands palm down on his thighs and stared up at me beseechingly. “You won the war.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What war?”
“The Drixonians. The second uprising. You invaded our city. You killed everyone responsible for what was done to you. And you left some of us alive to rebuild. We made a pact.”
No way would my fellow warriors make a pact with the Uldani. “You lie!” I snarled.
“I’m not lying.” His voice rose, and I saw a little bit of defiance enter his gaze. The flecker. “Daz Bakut and the rest of the Drixonians won the war and went home to Corin. Those of us Uldani left on Torin… we hadn’t been aware of what was done to you—”
“I don’t care about your excuses—”
“I know! I know. And if you still want to kill me after hearing me out, then you can. But please, all I ask is please let me do something to pay off the debt the Uldani owe you.” He swallowed heavily and bowed his head. “Please, Warrior Zecri. I can’t give back what we took from you, but I can get you home.”
I suddenly felt so tired I could barely stand. So many times I’d imagined an Uldani kneeling before me. I’d pictured myself spilling their blood to avenge what was done to me and my brothers, but the Uldani had always been the faces of those from the laboratory—the ones who’d treated me without care or humanity.
But this was not that Uldani. He was younger and spoke with a humble defiance. He wasn’t bowing his head in defeat but in apology.
“I don’t want your sympathy.” My tongue felt thick in my dry mouth.
“This is not about sympathy but about reparations,” he said, his head still bowed. Behind me his companions were also on their knees, heads bowed.
“Zecri,” Sybil whispered.
I lifted my head, unsure of what she’d say. My cora pounded, tugging me in all directions. I wanted to kill them just as much as I wanted off this planet. Weak with indecision, I took a stumbling step toward her.
She rushed to my side and gripped me tightly. Her small hands gave me strength.
“I can’t imagine how you’re feeling,” she said softly. “I’ll respect what you want to do. If you want to kill them now, I won’t stop you.”
“But?” I murmured.
“No buts.” She gave me a sad smile. “I also think if you want to hear them out, that’s good too. I’ll be right here at your side.” She slipped her small hand into mine. “We can listen to what they have to offer us. You can still go on a killing spree afterward.”
“I can hear you, you know,” the Uldani said wryly.
My foot lashed out and caught him in the ribs. He let out a pained grunt. “And if I decide to kill you, that’s my reparations, you scum.”
The Uldani took a deep breath and bowed his head again. “I accept that.”
I glanced up at the sky, seeking to calm my racing thoughts. If I were alone, I would have killed the Uldani on sight, even if it meant living the remainder of my life on this planet in this stinky city. But I had Sybil and Riven to think about. If there was any way the Uldani spoke the truth about getting us passage… then I had to hear him out.
With a sigh. I rubbed my forehead. “Buy us a meal. I’ll listen to what you have to say.”
The Uldani leapt to his feet so suddenly that I took a step back.
“Yes, a meal.” He nodded vigorously and gestured for his companions to get up. “I know a place we can have privacy.” With a skip in his step, he waved for Sybil and me to follow him.
She gave me a reassuring pat on my arm, and we followed him out of the alley into Gaulz.
* * *
The Uldani’s name was Haub, and his companions were Bir and Ber—twin bodyguards who I could have wiped out with one slice of my machets. Haub was visibly nervous around me, and Bir and Ber put on a brave front.
When we’d walked into a private establishment, the owner had taken one look at Haub and quickly ushered us outside the back door to a small roofless structure where a table sat with a few stringed solar lights. After supplying us with a large amount of hot food and some strong spirits, she took her leave with a deep bow.
I sat on one side of the table while Haub sat on the other with his bodyguards standing behind him. When Sybil sat down at my side, she shoved her hood off her face. All three Uldani sucked in sharp breaths at the sight of her golden hair.
Haub waved his hand at the food. “Please eat.” He spoke to Sybil first, which made my spine snap straight. As soon as I caught Haub looking at her, his gaze dropped to the table. “I’m sorry. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a human.”
“You’ve met other humans?” Sybil said, her voice muffled as she was mid-chew. Guilt hit me. I’d led her all over the city and hadn’t taken the time to get her food.
Haub nodded. “Several Drixonians have human mates. One was instrumental in helping her mate take over our city in fact.”
She carefully picked up a piece of fruit. “Why do you talk about losing the war without any sadness?”
Haub leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Because I’m not sad about it. We’re better off now.”
“I don’t believe you,” I snapped.
Haub met my gaze square on, that slight defiance back in his eyes. “The Uldani elite who experimented and sold you are no more. We didn’t know the extent of their misdeeds and when we started to learn, those of us who disagreed had no power to fight back. The Drixonians stormed our city and killed those responsible. That was when we found out the full extent of what they’d done. Gram, our leader, has tasked several of us with making reparations for what our race has done, and one of those involved bringing home as many stolen warriors as we could find. We got word from Rexor that a warrior named Zecri was still on Vixlicin.”
It’d been too long since I’d heard his name spoke out loud by anyone else. “What do you know of Rexor?�
�
“He’s home on Corin with his brothers and the rest of the Drixonians.” He watched me carefully. “That includes two warriors named Mikko and Fenix. I heard you’d have an interest in them too.”
I was glad I still sat because I would have definitely fallen to my knees in relief. “They’re home? Safe? What about their mates?”
“Their human mates are safe with them. They are rebuilding there. We’ve provided some materials. We’re not quite allies. Daz doesn’t want much to do with us, which we respect, but Gram feels strongly about reparations.”
“Reparations.” The word felt weird in my mouth. I’d wanted revenge and chaos. I hadn’t expected the enemy I’d hated all my life to feel indebted to me.
“How do I know you’re telling the truth?”
“How do I know you won’t slice my guts open right now?” He said with a small laugh.
“I still might.”
He nodded. “And I came here knowing that was a risk.”
Sybil’s hand rested on my arm, and she squeezed her fingers. The touch comforted me. I reached for a piece of meat and bit off a hunk. “So, you’re telling me you came here to bring me home?”
He nodded. “I’ve been here for about a cycle. Today, I heard about a Drixonian asking for passage off planet. I had hoped it was you…” He swallowed and his gaze dipped to my neck for a beat. “And when I realized who you were and that you had a human mate with you, I knew I had to approach you. Tajarie is blocking anyone from taking you. You know that, right?”
“I thought no one ruled Gaulz,” I grumbled.
“Czens and strength rule Gaulz. Tajarie has both.”
“I have czens and strength too. More than Tajarie.”
“Yes, but Tajarie is an evil they know, and he has no plans on leaving. They’d prefer not to draw his ire.”
I felt like pouting. “They should be more scared of me.”
Haub smiled. “I agree. I’ve seen what Drixonians can do. More so when they have mates.”
Sybil shifted next to me and I wrapped my arm around her to press her against my side. She leaned her head on my chest and the smell of her hair calmed my irritation. “So, how are you going to get me off-planet?”
“We have to get you out of Gaulz. Our cruiser is at a nearby dock, and we’ve paid the guards. We get there and we’re free.”
“When?”
“Tomorrow night. Meet here and we’ll exit the city by the back gates. We have a few buzzers.”
I studied him for a while, but his body language was completely open. I didn’t sense any secrecy. But I still didn’t like it. “Don’t think that any of this will make me like a single living Uldani.”
“Hate us until you die,” he said. “I wouldn’t blame you. But hate us when you’re home safe with your mate and your brothers.” His gaze shifted to Sybil. “What do you think?”
She slowly straightened her spine. “What do I think? I don’t even know all you’ve done to him, but it doesn’t matter. I’m on his side. All I asked him to do was let you plead your case, but if he did decide to separate your head from your body right now, I wouldn’t stop him.”
Haub threw back his head and laughed, a squeaky sound that grated on my nerves. He took a sip of his spirits and let out a satisfied gasp once he swallowed. “Human females are a loyal, fearless bunch. One escaped our lab with Sax Bakut, and another overthrew our entire network with her mate.”
Sybil tried to hide it, but I could see how she nearly vibrated with energy at the knowledge of more humans. That was what solidified my position. Getting Sybil and Riven to a place they could be safe, happy, and surrounded by more humans was worth more than my pride. Let the Uldani think they were making their stupid reparations. All I cared about were my females.
I snatched a plate of food and rose to my feet. “Tomorrow night. Right here.”
Surprised, Haub leapt to his feet. “Y-yes, tomorrow night. Here.”
I pointed a claw at him. “If anything feels off to me, I start slicing. Got it?”
Haub nodded with a smile. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
I grabbed another plate, took Sybil’s hand, and left Haub to stew about his possible near-future death.
Nine
Sybil
Riven lay in the cleanser on a bundle of furs, asleep. I had always worried about how much she slept, but Zecri told me that was common for Drixonian chits. They matured within about ten cycles, and their bodies were working hard to grow. They needed lots of rest.
I combed the hair off her forehead and listened to her small snores before closing the door to the small room. I didn’t bother waking her, and I had to admit, I liked knowing she was safe in the small room.
Zecri lay on the other side of the bed padding on his back with his hands folded behind his head, staring at the ceiling. He hadn’t spoken much since we arrived back to our lodging room.
We’d told Riven she only had another day stuck in this room and she’d been ecstatic. She’d made a mess of the place—furs and furniture were everywhere as she said she’d made herself an obstacle course. After we gave her some of the food, we’d taken from our meal with the Uldani, she’d fallen asleep.
I settled on the bed padding next to Zecri.
“What’s an obstacle course?” Zecri said suddenly.
“What?” I shifted to my other side to face him.
He rolled his head to the side. The flame from our small lantern created flickering light across his blue skin. “She said she made an obstacle course.”
“Oh, well, it’s like a way to exercise. She made small physical challenges for herself.”
“She’s smart,” he said, almost to himself.
“I think so too.” I reached over and lightly touched the inside of his elbow. “How do you feel about the meeting?”
“I would like to hear you threaten the Uldani more. That was my favorite part.”
I blinked at him. “Are you… teasing me?”
The deep grooves in his cheeks creased as he grinned. “You’re very cute when you’re fierce.”
“Cute? That is, by definition, not fierce.”
He ignored me. “But you are only allowed to threaten when I’m around to back you up. Don’t go threatening anyone on your own.”
“I’ll threaten anyone I want to if it’s to stick up for you.”
He stretched out his arm from behind his head and brushed the backs of his fingers along my temple. “Where did you learn to be fierce?”
“I haven’t been vocally fierce for a long time. With Kilzer, it was best to not be seen or heard. But around you…” I shrugged. “I feel fierce.”
“And I feel hopeful,” he said in a near whisper.
My heart pounded as
Riven’s snores drifted through the closed door.
Zecri hadn’t taken those mesmerizing purple eyes off me.
“Zecri?”
“Yes.”
“What… What did the Uldani do to you?”
His eyes closed as pain streaked across his face.
I cursed myself for making him look like that. “I’m sorry. You don’t have to answer—”
“They wanted me to be a breeder.” His gaze returned to the ceiling, where he stared blankly with stiff muscles.
“A … breeder?”
He swallowed. “When our females died, so did our desires. But the Uldani wanted to breed us and raise a new generation of devoted soldiers for their own purposes. I was taken during the first Uprising. In order to…” he made a strangled sound in his throat. “In order to lay on my back for prolonged periods of time, they pulled out my head, neck and back machets.”
I jerked up to one hip so fast that my head spun. “They what?”
“Shhh, Riven’s sleeping.”
“They did what?”
His long lashes fluttered. “Drixonians have forearm machets. We also have them on top of our heads, down our neck and backs to the base of our tails.”
“Z,” I whispered.
“They pulled them out. So, I could lay on my back and breed.”
I covered my mouth with my hand to muffle my sobs. Tears fell from my eyes, hitting his chest with dull thumps.
“But I could not perform with the female species they provided. So, they injected me with various medicines until I lost the exact purpose they wanted me for.”
A tide of dread rose before my eyes. “What… what did you lose?”
He spoke in an emotionless monotone. “I’m sterile.” His eyelids fluttered once. “I can’t complete the one duty my race needs. I cannot produce offspring. I was sold to Wargo and forced to perform a mockery of everything the Drixonians hold sacred.”
My tears continued to fall. I remembered how he’d fallen to his knees when he’d seen Riven. I thought about Graven explaining the desperate need for any living Drixonians to find a way to reproduce.
I wanted to tell him he had more purpose to his life than to make a child, but I also had to respect the history of his race which placed so much importance on procreating. They were a dying breed, and here was a healthy male who couldn’t contribute to the population growth because of some evil aliens who treated his body like a lab rat.
And that was when I started to get angry. I swiped at my tears with a vicious wipe of my hand. “Those fuckers,” I spat.
Zecri immediately sat up in alarm. “Are you all right?”
I scrambled off the bed, tripping on the edge of a fur before righting myself. I spun on Zecri as I felt my skin flush beet red from my chest, up my neck, to my face. “No, I’m not all right! How could I be all right after you just told me what they did to you?”
He blinked at me in alarm. “Sybil, keep your voice down. You’re going to wake—”
“I should have let you kill them.” I began to pace back and forth, my bare feet slapping the floor. “I should have let you! Why did you let me stop you?”