“What?” she mutters, attempting to push her arm away.
Vraik takes the female and holds her tight. She groans, but quits fighting.
“We need to keep you hidden,” Rekker says.
Everything I have set out to do has been tested and fought against. Now, we are back in the place I loathe the most. Home.
If we’re caught with her, we will be publicly executed, shamed for the rest of time.
Rekker has given her the upper hand, but it’s a thin thread before it snaps.
I pull him aside. “This is idiotic,” I growl. “It was supposed to be an easy extraction job.”
Rekker adjusts his cape. “Don’t let your nerves get the best of you. We have discussed this already.”
I lean my head closer, venom pumping in my blood. “We cannot let her dictate the terms of our fate. Where will the ceremony occur now?”
Emma butts in. “Ceremony?”
The ceremony of marriage and impregnation. A holy moment where seed breaks egg.
There are ancient rules to follow, dating back to a time when females were plentiful.
The fact is we need a surrogate, another alpha willing to report our mating as suitable. As antiquated as it is, this is the law.
We need a witness. Someone willing to put their ass on the line for us. It’s not going to be an easy sell.
Rekker will get nowhere with diplomacy. Sentinel police, hunters of the Empire, roam these streets, especially in the poorer districts. They look for females and mine defectors like us.
This is not a game.
Without warning, the automatic doors open. The radiant, pink light from the moon shines through the entrance of the garage.
I smell the rotten air and exhale, staring at Emma. “Welcome to the planet we will all die on,” I say, the first to walk into the landing bay.
I hand each of the alphas a pistol. It’s not much against the sentinels, but it might just save our lives.
“We need to get some clothes on her,” I say. “If someone notices we have brought a female with us, they will turn us in.”
“Or take her for themselves,” Vraik growls.
Rekker lunges a bag off the entrance hatch. He pulls out some common alpha garb. “Here,” he says, handing it to her. “You’ll need some clothes.”
“And don’t speak,” Vraik warns.
“What will happen to me if I do?” she asks.
My heart races. “You will be sent to the breeding facilities.”
“Why happens there?”
I sigh. “No one knows.”
Through a door, I lead them to a small hole in the gate that surrounds the old airfields. We duck through and continue walking into a dark alley. It’s been so long, but it still feels like yesterday.
Nothing has changed. The outer sector buildings are still run-down, half demolished by the Empire. The authoritarian regime has allowed automation to exceed the limits of poverty. Here, aliens lie dying on the streets.
On the other side, the grass is greener.
Yes, in the far distance, the center quadrants are full of new skyscrapers. The empire’s insignia shines above, the biggest hologram ever built.
I swallow, mouth dry. Now that I’m here, I can only hope to promise myself one thing. I will never enter that quadrant. Not even for the female.
We’ll find another way out of here.
A mile ahead of us is the Bounty District. We know an alpha with a bar there. If everything goes to plan, he’ll take us in for the night.
It’s the only place we can find safety before sunrise. After that, we’re out in the open at a time when facial recognition scanners will easily identify us.
“Akron’s spot shouldn’t be too far off,” I say, pointing at the neon haze in the distance.
“How do you know he’s still alive?” Vraik asks.
I tap against my forearm. A metal plate activates a screen. Red lights scroll before displaying Akron’s information.
“He’s still in the database,” I say.
“We’re all thinking the same thing, right?” Rekker asks.
Emma looks worried, but Vraik holds her wrists tightly.
“Do the ritual there,” I say.
Rekker nods.
Emma drags her heels.
Vraik laughs, nervously. “Think he’ll agree to it?”
“It’s the only way we get out of this predicament,” I say.
Emma nudges away from Vraik, running toward Rekker. “Hey, you—”
Vraik is too slow to catch her, and Rekker has already hoisted her around his shoulders.
He grins and winks at us.
He may have led us into danger, but he has somehow found a way into her heart, while my own sinks.
I am an alpha. That means, I do what I have to do. I invade, I conquer, and I take what I need to make mine. My will determines my future. Yet, I see a future with no value.
Even with the Earth’s Resnyx, with the power of the world in our hands, I see no point.
I stare at Emma’s rounded shoulder blades, oxytocin flowing through my blood. I observe the light reflect from her silky hair.
She turns her head, eyes filled with malice.
My heart seems to shatter in pieces, but I’m not sure why. I am an alpha. I am not supposed to feel these things.
Her lips part. Rekker lifts her thick waist, sturdy ass bouncing below. For the first time, my urges aren’t purely primal. They are guided by something that feels like unparalleled potentiality.
She is beautiful. No – she is the most perfect creature I have ever laid eyes on.
Suddenly, I understand why I’m feeling this way. We stand to gain so much more by understanding her.
“What the fuck are you looking at?” she curses.
I snap out of it, frowning. She can stay angry as long as she wants. This is what she wanted.
“Nothing,” I mutter. “I was just thinking.”
We have spent too much time appeasing her moods.
The sound of gunfire echoes nearby. Sharing glances, we run into the dark recesses of the walkway, near the outside marketplace.
Heavy boots clammer in lockstep rhythm. Low, chanting voices bring clanking robotic figures, dragging weaponry alongside their pack.
Frantic, I look around. On the other end of the street is a manhole. “We’ll hide there,” I hiss.
Their footsteps are coming closer. Their chants grow loudly, low incantations of pain and punishment.
Masks hide their viciously scarred faces, remnants of systematic torture by the Empire’s hand. Their past makes them unworthy of normal citizenship, so they are given free rein to commit terror.
As the death brutes round the corner, we lower inside and force the cover back in place.
Cupping my hand over her mouth, I whisper, “Don’t say a word. They’ll skin you alive.”
Their boots step over our heads, unaware of the threat below. When the line ends, I see a flashing sign loom above:
Avoid persecution. Sign up for the yearly lottery today!
I hang my head. “Listen, Emma,” I say. “This place is a thousand times worse than Earth. Keep your eyes glued to the ground, and avoid the sentinels at all costs.”
She cowers away from me, standing with tears. “What is the ceremony?” she asks. “Tell me, or I will scream.”
This time, Rekker does what he should. Taking her wrists with one hand, he motions me forward.
I reach into my satchel and grab a small wooden plank with a tight leather strap. Just before she can scream, I force it around her head. I push until she bites the stick of wood.
“The only thing you need to know is that we’re meeting someone,” he says.
Tears ruin her pretty face, but what does she expect? Up until now, we have given her plenty of freedom. Too much freedom.
She is on the most brutal alien planet known to this galaxy. She better shut the fuck up and learn how to behave, or I’m going to give her the biggest spank
ing of her life.
After waiting brings silence, we exit the manhole and continue through the markets. Staring at Emma, I can only imagine what she is thinking.
All around us, neon lights flash. Aliens of all kinds enjoy psychotropic drinks. A few fights break out, giving us a clear path toward a second street.
On the corner is a sign, but it’s no longer flashing. I try the door, but it’s locked from the inside.
Vraik grunts. “I thought you said he was still in the database.”
I grimace and bang on the door. “He is,” I say.
When no one answers, I put my ear against the door. I think I hear something, the sound of glass shifting against a table, but I can’t tell.
“If this doesn’t work, where we will we go?” Rekker asks.
“It’s going to work,” I say.
I knock again. Harder, this time. “Akron, open the fuck up. It’s Lök.”
Glass breaks inside. The sound of someone’s boots scraping grows louder. Finally, the door unlatches and slides open.
Akron, a veteran of the first rebellion stands before us, beard speckled with grey. His eyes are weary, and a deep scar runs down his cheek. “Lök? But that’s impossible...”
I grab his hand and hug him. “What in the hell happened to you?”
He groans and pulls back, shaking his head. “I’d rather not talk about it.”
Rekker steps forward. “It’s good to see you again, Akron,” he says.
Vraik’s eyes crease. Ever since the rebellion keeled off and split, Vraik resented the alpha for settling down. I guess he had high hopes he would have joined us.
Vraik gives a small acknowledgment, nodding at him. “Akron.”
At first, I expect him to move aside, but when his giant body doesn’t budge from the entrance, I grow concerned.
“Who’s the other one?” he asks, eyes trailing down Emma’s cloaked body.
“Prisoner from the mines of Ferän. Request from Slain to bring him back,” I lie.
“Nobody comes back from the mines, Lök,” he says. “It’s like I’m looking at three ghosts.”
Akron doesn’t move an inch, but I can see over his shoulder. There are others inside, sitting at various tables.
I exhale and lower my voice. “Look, we need to talk. We’ve found something you’re going to want to take part in,” I say.
His eyes widen, a nefarious look. He turns, eyeing the customers.
Anxiously, he cracks his knuckles. “Fine,” he says. “Keep your heads down. I lock this place for a reason. There are sentinels everywhere. Unfortunately, one got in a little earlier, but he doesn’t seem to be trouble. ”
He’s wrong. All sentinels are trouble.
Out of the corner of my eyes, I examine the alphas inside the bar. Most are the same destitute aliens I remember seeing decades ago. But there’s one alien that catches my eye.
A lonely sentinel in a booth. He turns his head, but we quickly turn the corner and enter into a backroom of the bar.
Akron bolts the inside, sweat beating down his neck.
“What’s the matter, Akron? Not happy to see us?” I ask, sarcastically.
He groans. “Don’t give me that shit, Lök. Whenever I see your face, trouble seems to follow. Whatever it is you want, make it quick.”
“Good. Now that we can talk freely, we might as well put it all on the table,” I sneer.
Vraik nudges Emma forward, stopping her near Akron’s reach.
“Who is he?” he asks, lips quivering.
“See for yourself.”
Akron slowly reaches out, nostrils flaring. He first removes her hood. Entranced, he takes her cloak and slides it down to her shoulders, revealing her porcelain skin.
Her beauty, the splendor of a thousand suns shines before my very eyes.
She stands in front of him, the first female he has seen in decades.
With her near, we are in heaven.
Eight
Emma
I am in an absolute nightmare.
This world, their world, is full of disgusting creatures. Monsters of all sizes. Unimaginable danger.
I try to back away from them, but the aliens keep me front and center.
The behemoth touches my cheeks with his monstrous fingers. Closing my eyes, I hold my breath and endure this test. I asked to come to this planet, but I had no idea this is what it would be like.
I don’t know what I expected. Flying cars? A giant web that connected the world together? Peace and fucking harmony?
No, I’m not in Chicago anymore.
Trembling, the alien steps back and panics. With his back against the door, he rolls his fists closed and flexes, veins popping against his neck.
“What have you done?” he hisses. “A female? Are you out of your mind?”
Rekker grabs his forearm, thumb pressed firmly against the pressure point in his wrist. That’s when I notice Rekker’s other hand.
He places the barrel of his pistol against Akron’s stomach. “Keep your voice down, I warn you.”
“You see?” he cries. “Every time I see your faces, trouble follows.”
Vraik comes to his right side. “We fought together, remember? You owe me one.”
Akron clears his throat, composing himself. “You don’t understand. The laws are worse now. Every establishment is bugged. If their security teams scan this data and see any irregularities, they will take me away. I’ll have to work in a rogue mine like you fools.”
“Is that so bad?” Lök asks, grinding his teeth.
A chill runs through my body as Rekker scans the room.
“I remember regulations becoming more restrictive,” he says. “He’s right. Everything feels on the verge of entropic collapse, as if Slain knows the breaking point is near.”
Akron gives up. “Look, what do you want from me? Money? If it’s a transport contact, you’d be surprised to know my guy got taken down long ago,” he says.
Rekker pulls his gun away and turns, scratching the barrel against the side of his head. “We don’t plan to stay long. Just a few days,” he says.
Akron cracks his neck and calms. He can’t stop staring at me.
“Why?”
“Why what?” Vraik asks.
“Why risk bringing her here?” Akron asks.
I swallow and inhale, scared half to death, but ready to speak for myself. “Because I told them to,” I say. “Because they’re my mates, and I demanded it.”
To my surprise, none of my alpha captors say anything. But Rekker has his eye firmly rooted on me.
Mates? I can’t believe I’m saying this.
Akron can’t hold back his laughter. “You command them?”
Every nerve is strained, but I continue to justify myself. Cautiously, I step forward, close enough to smell his putrid breath.
“Yes,” I say, simply enough.
“How is this possible?” he croaks.
“Because I gave them access to our Resnyx.”
The brute hunches, eyes narrowing. “Where?”
“My home planet,” I say. “Earth.”
All of my memories flash before my very eyes, but I keep standing there, using them as a bargaining chip for who knows what? At the end of this, I don’t know what I hope to gain.
For now, I’m just trying to buy as much time as I can.
Akron turns to my captors, mystified, yet disbelieving. “Is this true?”
Lök pulls me back. “I need you to help me store it,” he says.
“Keep your voice down,” Akron warns.
Lök doesn’t lower his voice. “You’re the only one who can help me, Akron,” he says.
Akron sighs, but he isn’t saying no. “Why me? There are plenty of rogue planets for you to use.”
“Not without detection,” Lök says.
Akron paces. “Ferän is in good geography. You could hide it there for weeks if you had to,” Akron says.
He stops and stares at Lök, face revealing diss
atisfaction. “There’s more you want from me. Isn’t there?” he asks.
“I need you to manage our workers, and make sure the Resnyx is extracted properly. It should be sent to Ferän when the process is completed. It has been forty-eight hours since we have left them to our own devices,” Lök says.
“You think I’m stupid?” he asks. “I’ll die out there.”
“If we go back, Slain will wonder where we went,” Vraik says.
Akron chuckles. “Not my problem.”
Lök reaches into his pocket, pulling out a hologram tablet. It illuminates from the center of his palm.
The wavering picture is a deed of some sort. Though it is written in crude alien language, I can actually understand most of it.
I rub the back of my neck. The thin indent of a chip forms against my flesh.
“You can take our newly acquired planet, Ferän. There is more gold in those shafts than your business will ever be worth,” Lök says.
Akron’s body solidifies. “I want the Resnyx,” he growls.
“No can do,” Rekker says, edging forward.
He folds his massive arms. “Then you can leave my bar and find someone else to help,” he says.
Lök hesitates. I wait for one of them to give in to the silence, but the aliens are locked, inert.
Akron pushes past the three and sits near the table, sighing. Sweat drips from his head to his neck. It’s hot in this room, but it’s not that hot.
He seems to be making up his mind.
“You are going against Slain,” he says, lost in thought. “That’s your plan, right? Force the Empire’s hand?”
Lök straightens his back, pridefully. “We would be the only ones in the known universe to control the Resnyx.”
Rekker nods, grinning. “Slain has used the last of the element like a fool. He is desperate. If there is any time to strike, it’s now.”
The beast rests his face in his palms. “It is not like the old days. If you fail—”
“We won’t fail,” I interrupt.
This time, it looks like the alien is actually listening to me.
Reluctantly, he shifts and eases his back against the chair. “It’s a tempting offer,” he says.
“It’s the offer of a lifetime,” Rekker reiterates.
Alien Bride: A Dark Alien Sci-Fi Romance Page 6