by Juno Wells
"If we go..." Vrix straightened and met Pyix's gaze dead on. "Make sure the girl gets off this planet if anything happens to me. She's my nixtava. I can die with honor if I know that she will be safe. Take her back to the Galaxos or contact Vaant or the rest of my clan, and they will make sure she is safe."
"I swear, brother." Pyix shook his arm in the warrior's way, hand to forearm, and put his left hand on his dagger. "We will see her safely off Caihiri. And in case you need some help, take this."
He handed over a small trigger, tiny enough for Vrix to hide in his hair, and nodded grimly at the other Xaravians in the bar. "We'll come if you hit this. Not just because you're our brother, but because we'd love an opportunity to rid this planet of those fucking Slasu. Call us if there's a good chance of damaging their little enterprise."
Vrix smiled as he took the trigger and hooked it on one of his braids, next to the bones he earned in one of his first battles. "Thank you. I will call so we can share battle once more, brother."
Pyix slapped the bar with his palm, downed a shot of liquor, and waited for Vrix to finish his drink as well. They grumbled about the good old days and the call of battle, but all the while, Vrix thought of Griggs upstairs. He didn't think he could ask her to go to the club, knowing the price she would have to pay.
Griggs
The Slasu club took up a large chunk of a city block not too far from the warehouse where Heidi transmitted her call for help. The neighborhood was even danker and more unnerving in the dark. Creatures came out of nowhere and appeared in the dim pools of fog cast by the flickering street lights. Griggs shivered in the thin outfit and robe she wore, though at least it was one of the scanty outfits with a place for her to tuck a knife the size of her index finger.
It was plenty long enough for Griggs to do serious damage if anyone tried to grab her again.
Vrix remained silent as they walked, though he kept a slow pace so Griggs didn't slide and stumble in those ridiculous flimsy shoes that matched her equally flimsy clothes.
She still couldn't believe she agreed to do this. The morning was bad enough, meeting the creepy Tyluk and being attacked outside the costume shop. She wouldn't admit it to Vrix, but the attack shook her up more than any other fight she'd been in. The feeling of the hood closing in over her, the darkness and stifling fabric, unable to get her footing...
She shuddered again and Vrix paused, his hand warm on her arm. He dropped his voice as he scanned the street. "We don't have to do this. You don't have to do this."
"I do," she said. Griggs straightened her shoulders and started walking. "This is the fastest way to find Heidi. That's all that matters. The rest of this is just a short-term inconvenience."
She hoped she sounded more confident than she felt. When Vrix dragged himself upstairs after his conversation with Pyix, he brought up the price of admission to the Slasu club. Something she would have to do in order to convince the Slasu that she was actually the kind of slave they traded in, so Vrix could convincingly present himself a viable customer. Her skin crawled at just the thought of performing anything for those craven bastard Slasu, but Griggs focused on Heidi. Her friend was going through far worse. Far, far worse. The least Griggs could do was grit her teeth for an evening and figure it the fuck out. She survived a lot worse during security officer training.
Although, in security officer training she never wanted to pee herself from nerves. Her whole stomach was tied in knots. At least with fighting she didn't mind being half-naked, because it helped flexibility and reach for kicking everyone's asses. Being half-naked for the sake of entertaining a bunch of males just felt... vulnerable. Exposed. Alone.
Vrix's hand settled on the nape of her neck as they approached the address of the club, and she cast her eyes down in her best impression of a meek slave. Griggs practiced the look in the mirror before they left the hotel, but Vrix just snorted and said she'd have a better chance growing spikes and scales than she did looking like anything but a bad-ass Earther a heartbeat away from fucking someone up.
It was the nicest compliment anyone ever paid her.
But Griggs tried to be beaten down and afraid as Vrix sauntered up to the door. Before he could knock or shout for admission, though, a short Slasu guard appeared. He was heavily armed and not nearly as scrawny as the two who attacked her earlier in the day. The Slasu motioned for Vrix to speak.
The Xaravian's upper lip curled as he looked down at the guard. "There's a Tyboli I want to speak to. Violi."
The Slasu's already narrow eyes narrowed still further, and he disappeared behind an enormous metal door for a few long moments. Griggs's heartbeat raced in her ears, and she had to focus on counting to ten to keep herself from flying apart from sheer nerves. She'd much rather Vrix just kicked the door down and they both fought their way through the club to find Heidi.
After an eternity there on the muddy street, the door creaked open and a Tyboli merchant appeared. He arched an aristocratic eyebrow at them. "Yes?"
Vrix pretended indifference and irritation. "I was told you can help me add to my harem." He tilted his head in Griggs's direction, and it took most of her willpower to keep her eyes downcast and her posture slouched and her shoulders curled in.
The Tyboli frowned, eyeing her, then turned his attention back to Vrix. "I don't know about that, but I'll buy this one from you right here."
The bile rose in Griggs's throat. What an unbelievable bastard.
Vrix's fingers tapped against his ceremonial dagger. "Like I said, I'm interested in adding to my property, not selling. It took forever to get this one trained properly. Earthers have a lot of fight in them."
"Yes, they do." The Tyboli sneered, then turned and held the door open. "Step inside so we can discuss business."
Vrix went in after him, Griggs on his heels, and for a moment, she was totally overwhelmed by the sudden change from the dark, silent street. Music pounded through the club, accompanied by flashing lights, and various figures moved through the smoke and fog generated around the stages. By the time she could hear again, Griggs picked up halfway through his conversation with the Tyboli.
Vrix's eyes gleamed eerie silver in the strange lights. "An Earther. Like this one. And quickly. I have an appointment to keep elsewhere and I need to leave Caihiri soon."
"Before we discuss whether my clients might have any merchandise that suits your needs, you have to pay the price." The Tyboli smiled in a greasy grimace that made Griggs want to puke. "There's been a lot of interest in Earthers lately, and you barbarians aren't known for keeping large harems. I wouldn't want to sell something to you under false pretenses."
Griggs forced herself not to react, knowing there were dozens of armed guards roving through the club and frowning at the various customers who watched the blank-eyed women dancing on the stages. The Tyboli would just be looking for an excuse to shoot Vrix and try to capture her. She thought of the comforting weight of the knife in the waist of her minuscule shorts. They would be fine. Vrix could play the part and she just had to keep her head down and her mouth shut.
"There's no false pretenses," Vrix said, a growl in his voice carrying even through the throbbing bass. "What do you want? More money? A finder's fee?"
The alien's long, thin fingers tapped at his narrow chin. "The girl performs. A dance. Then we might consider your request."
Vrix's scales rattled. "She only dances for me. I don't share my things."
"Perhaps not here," the Tyboli said, waving at the large room and multiple stages behind him. He glided along the perimeter of the main room to a hall in the corner, hiding a few unmarked doors. "I can understand your reticence. Even a terrible performance from that one would still generate a great deal of interest. We wouldn't want you to be attacked on your way out and your property stolen."
The oily smile made Griggs's skin crawl and Vrix's spikes rise, since that exact thing happened earlier in the day from some of the alien's Slasu friends.
The Tyboli opened one of the
doors and revealed a rectangular room with a small raised stage at one end and an enormous couch on the other, with enough room for a couple of Xaravians to sprawl to their heart's content. Griggs's heart jumped to her throat. Holy shit. Performing for Vrix? Just Vrix? That was even more terrifying that shaking her goodies in front of a room of strangers.
Vrix went into the room and looked around, then growled and pointed toward a few visible cameras in the ceiling. "Not just a private performance, then?"
"Oh my, no. The owners might observe, just to verify that the girl can perform." The Tyboli picked up a lock of Griggs's long hair, twining it around his creepy-ass fingers, and eyed Vrix. "Trust but verify, barbarian. If she does not actually dance, we will have to assume the worst of you both."
Griggs ground her teeth to keep from jerking away and decking the son of a bitch, but luckily Vrix still had her back—his eyes narrowed as he leaned to remove her hair from the Tyboli's grip, spikes raised in a threat. "Like I said. I don't share. Give her music and she'll dance. Get out."
Panic set in as the Tyboli just smiled more and retreated, dimming the lights and turning up the music before he closed the door behind him. Vrix glanced once more at the cameras, shook himself in irritation, and went to flop onto the couch. Griggs didn't want to touch a single thing in the room, imagining how many private shows went on there—and how most of them probably ended.
Vrix remained standing next to her, his warmth reassuring, then he reached for the belt of her robes. His fingers grazed her skin and Griggs almost jumped, holding her breath as the rough scales drifted across her stomach to her waist. Vrix took his time removing the robe, uncovering her like she was a secret, and tossed it over the back of the couch. His eyes drank her in as he ran the tips of his fingers across her collarbone and down her arms, and Griggs's breath came faster. Holy shit. Holy fucking shit. She'd dreamed of being looked at with such desire and worship. She'd always wanted that, but feared it too much.
And there she stood, half-naked and completely vulnerable. Bare to his gaze, open to his touch. It felt like a dream, a misty haze of needing and wanting.
Vrix grumbled as his skin went blue and purple, and his hands slid into her hair to tilt her face to his. His lips, softer than she imagined, brushed hers. Griggs closed her eyes. Fear melted away. She was safe. Vrix was there and he'd protect her. Everything would work out. He kissed her again, a deeper exploration, and his hands moved boldly down her sides to her hips, pulling her to him.
Griggs looked up at him, embarrassed to see her hands gripping the front of his robes to hold him close. Vrix smiled and touched her lips, then he shooed her toward the stage. Griggs stumbled, a little drunk from the feel of his hands, and clambered onto the small stage. The flashing lights and overwhelming music crashed back around her, even more disorienting, and Griggs struggled to find an anchor in the chaos. She wasn't ready for this kind of performance.
Sympathy made Vrix's eyes even more like quicksilver as he spread his arms along the back of the couch. He pointed at the stage. "Entertain me."
Normally she would have responded to such an order with one hell of a backlash, but instead the controlled power in his voice thrilled through her. He said it because of the mission, but part of her knew that he saw her as an equal. The heated gaze wasn't some insecure asshole's attempt to objectify her to save his own ego—it was the appreciation of someone who shared a dangerous mission and wanted them both to succeed.
The bass parted the air around her until Griggs moved, a slow and sensual hip bump that reminded her of practicing side-kicks for hours on end. She didn't know what to do with her arms, and eventually tried to move them in some slow kung fu blocks, gesturing and pushing the air. A spark of amusement twinkled in Vrix's eyes as he caught on that her dance was more martial arts demonstration, and he had to wipe at his mouth to hide a smile. Griggs's cheeks burned. Okay, so that wasn't working out quite as sexily as she planned.
Luckily one of her street fighting instructors recommended she take ballet and even belly dancing to strengthen her core and increase flexibility, though it was years and years ago. She'd sworn never to actually attempt the dances for real, since she didn't want to look like a wooden marionette with its strings cut being dragged around by a kid. But Griggs figured there wasn't any better time to resurrect some of those moves, since she'd learned it all to save her life in a fight— she was in the middle of a different kind of fight, but they could save her life nonetheless.
Griggs closed her eyes and listened to the music and the beats, and started shifting her weight in time with the heavy bass line, her hips rocking. Her abs rolled as she lifted her arms gracefully over her head and shuffled in a slow circle, giving Vrix a good view of her shimmying ass. The ballet movements helped her stretch her leg up and around, combining the moves, and then she saw Vrix again and everything got all slow and heavy.
His eyes practically glowed. Not a hint of amusement or mocking remained on his face, and a sudden tension filled his body on the comfortable couch. His fingers bit into the plush cushions until the fabric tore. She almost tripped when she saw all of the spikes standing up on his shoulders and head, and the wide stance he took, legs spread. His scales flashed purple with hints of gold lightning, and Griggs needed to do another rotation, rolling her hips as she did so. She didn't know what those colors meant, but she'd never seen such an intense look on his face, even when they were fighting.
Grigg's heart sped up, and not from the exertion of the dance, though she started to grow overheated the longer she stood on the damn stage. She loved the thrill of knowing she caused Vrix to ignore everything else in the world. Her dancing pushed him into such a reaction that he lost control of his spikes and turned a brilliant color she'd never seen before. It felt amazing. The powerful, self-assured alien barbarian was putty in her hands.
She took a peek at him again and bit back a laugh when she caught sight of the massive erection he couldn't conceal even in the robes. Maybe a lot harder than putty, but still hopefully in her hands.
Griggs stepped carefully off the stage, still moving her hips and stomping her feet and twirling, gesturing with her hands as if to draw him closer, and sauntered closer to Vrix. He reached for her and she retreated, teasing a little to pay him back for the earlier shenanigans, then Griggs sidled just a little closer, shaking that ridiculous sequined bikini thing in his face.
He growled and lurched forward, grabbing her waist, and Griggs went breathless at the strength of his hands and the rough texture of his scales against her skin. Then Vrix's lips crushed to hers once more, but not in the seductive teasing from before—no, this was a demanding kiss, a hungry devouring of her lips and tongue until her knees went weak and she melted in his arms.
Vrix dragged her across his lap, almost engulfing her in the robes, and Griggs let him. She let him take over. It wasn't a fight. It didn't need to be a fight. He appreciated her strength and acknowledged her skills, and he respected her. Just as she did him. So there wasn't any defeat in surrendering to his kiss and the strength of his arms as Vrix squeezed her side and left gentle bite marks all down her throat.
Griggs came back to herself just in time to wonder if they were going to get to fucking right there on the couch, but the door opened and the damn Tyboli interrupted. Griggs got that sick feeling in her stomach as soon as she saw him, and all desire for anyone, even Vrix, evaporated as she remembered where they were.
But Vrix didn't notice. At least, he didn't stop kissing her or trying to undo the hooks of her glittery top.
The Tyboli cleared his throat quite loudly. "Very well done, barbarian. You are certain you do not want to sell this one? We can offer you a very generous price."
The Xaravian snarled, his whole body tense, and Griggs held her breath. They would never find Heidi if Vrix killed that idiot. So she tugged gently on a lock of Vrix's hair, and whispered, "Focus."
He still grumbled and growled, glaring at the Tyboli and not releasing her even a l
ittle. Griggs looked at the open door behind the Tyboli, where a bunch of Slasu guards loitered, and wondered what the hell they were going to do if Vrix couldn't get his shit together.
Vrix
Vrix would have destroyed half the building if anyone tried to keep him from touching Griggs. He thought he would have been able to remain immune to her charms, particularly when her dancing started out as mostly an ass-kicking for the air, but something changed between them and a heat sparked from her eyes and set him aflame. Vrix couldn't control the surge of desire that raced through him every time she moved her hips in an unbelievably suggestive dance, the likes of which he'd never seen.
When he finally kissed her, he felt completely intoxicated by her taste, her warmth, the soft give of her delicate skin. He grabbed her more roughly than he intended, but Griggs relaxed against him and surrendered her mouth to his. Vrix didn't even hear the door open when the Tyboli returned, at least until Griggs whispered something against his cheek and caused the mating haze to retreat a little from Vrix's eyes.
His arms tightened around her the moment he saw the threat, though, and his spikes rattled in warning. He wanted to take his mate back to his den and protect her there. Being at the dirty club on a spotted couch wasn't good enough for her. He growled at the Tyboli. "Well?"
"Very well done," the alien repeated. A smirk turned him even uglier as he pretended not to notice Vrix's reaction to having Griggs in his lap. "Perhaps we can talk after you... relieve yourself."
"You don't have enough sound-proofing," Vrix said. "Let's get to business. Fast."
The Tyboli half-bowed from the waist, suddenly obsequious in his mannerisms, and handed over a small viewing screen. "Our catalogue of available merchandise."
Vrix's scales rattled at calling the women merchandise, but at least he could conceal his fury and disgust in the remnants of the mating lust. His arms tightened around Griggs and pulled her back against his chest, so she sprawled across his lap, and allowed her to see the screen as he flipped through the images of dazed females. He hated seeing so many females of so many species subjected to the horrible attentions of the Slasu and their customers. He wondered if there was a way for them to free all the women, not just Heidi. He'd find a way.
