by Jade Waltz
“Selena,” he breathed. “It’s too much.”
“Nonsense, Odelm. You are the perfect role model for all the artists who want to do what they love professionally. Use this gift to create a place for them to make a living off their talents.”
He stared at the waiting crowd and sighed.
“You leave me no choice but to accept this generous gift,” he muttered, facing me. “Yes, Selena, I will accept this offer and use it for good. You are my nestqueen, and I thank the Stars every day for leading you to me. All the music I perform in this hall will be in your name because you are the greatest thing that has happened to me. I wouldn’t be here today, standing before you as the male I’ve become, if not for you.” He shot a glance at the Circuli in the crowd. “None of us would. I am thankful for the sacrifices you have made to grant my people a home.”
Instinctively, I reached for him, grabbing the back of his head and smashing our lips together. He was my gentle-spirited nestmate, who had stood at my side almost as long as Xylo. His kindness and determination to fight my battles for me, even when it wasn’t needed, made me fall for him. He was overprotective when it came to my emotions—and my wellbeing—and it both amazed and worried me that he sometimes knew how I felt before I did. Odelm deserved an audience, outside of our villa, for whom to perform his music. His experience was suited to such a performance hall, and I was glad that I had designed the space with him in mind.
Lacing my fingers in his silky anemone-like hair, I sent him all my love and appreciation through our kiss. I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders when he had accepted my token of appreciation. Our kiss didn’t need to be hard or heated, not on this occasion, and yet the single kiss was enough to make me breathless as I pulled away.
The crowd cheered, startling me enough to fall into Odelm’s arms. During our kiss, I had forgotten we were being watched, and now the whole moon had witnessed our display.
"I believe our leader has no more announcements to make, is that correct?" Vagren asked as an attempt to pull everyone's attention away from us.
Pulling my face away from Odelm's chest, I nodded, tugging my musician away. "That’s all I had to say."
I made a mental note to thank him later.
Smiling, Vagren stepped into my place behind the podium to address the crowd.
"Selena has said what she needed to say. Before we conclude, are there any questions?"
Walking into my villa's sanctuary between my Favored felt refreshing. They guided me with one of their appendages wrapped around my waist.
The speech hadn’t been the hard part. The questions afterward had challenged me, but thanks to support from Vagren and my mates, I was able to answer them.
I didn't care if that made me look weak to the Circuli nestqueens. There was a difference between leading blindly with confidence and leading intelligently and effectively. I wasn’t a leader simply because I had been born female and become the nestqueen of my clan independently, like most Circuli females.
I was leading because of my males and their support. If it weren't for my clan, I wouldn't have reached my current position, dealing with all the stress of being the center of attention. If the decision were up to me, I would stay out of the limelight and exist peacefully with my clan, but the Stars had other plans for me.
Laughter filled the air, bringing a smile to my face. In the middle of the pool, all three cubs were working together to take down Pavryn, who looked completely soaked and ridiculous. Meti clung to his back, as she attached herself to his mane, only holding on by her front paws and her teeth. My sons, Nocrez and Neazzos, were circling him, nipping at his tail and legs.
Pausing, I halted my mates’ steps, not wanting to disturb them in case they were in the middle of a lesson. It was odd that they weren’t napping since there was still some time until dinner, but I wouldn’t push them to lie down now. They would likely sleep more soundly with a full stomach later.
They had grown so much since we had arrived; it almost seemed like they doubled in size overnight. I had feared those first few weeks in a stasis-like condition in the Yaarkins escape pod could have harmed them in some way. Xylo had explained to me that the system automatically injected me with chemicals to stabilize my body. However, the system wasn’t programmed to handle pregnant females, so it kept me alive by changing my body’s metabolism, pushing me into a partial state of hibernation by reducing blood flow to my limbs and minimizing activity in the brain and heart. In response, my body worked hard to keep the cubs healthy and allowed them to grow while sacrificing some of my nutrients. That was the reason why I’d been unconscious for so long after my males discovered me; I needed to restore all the nutrients my body lost while protecting my unborn cubs.
Vikvez had assured me that their growth had normalized after their first week of life, and their development was on par with other Aldawi cubs. Since we had settled down on Destima, Pavryn had been diligently progressing with their lessons to make up for the knowledge I couldn’t teach them and give them the exercise they needed to succeed.
Did it upset me? Sometimes. I wished I could be like an Aldawi female and provide for my cubs completely. But as time passed, I had come to terms with my limits. Observing the cubs during their lessons made me feel included, like I was still a part of their lives, especially when Pavryn invited me to join in their games. Zirene had made an excellent decision hiring his half-brother; his skill working with the cubs made him invaluable. His strict lessons taught them both Aldawi and Galactic Common, above and beyond what was typical for Aldawi children.
They were still learning the basics, but every day they used more words as they tried to communicate. It was hard to believe that in just four more months, they would start going on day-long hunts. Unfortunately, my cubs were the only cubs on Destima. In fact, they were the only children on the entire moon. The specialized academy housed only Aldawi males between the ages of fifteen and one hundred.
One hundred years. It felt odd to be the youngest adult in my clan. My mates were all over a century old and still young by their species’ standards.
I felt like a child sometimes, having been grown in a test tube, my childhood stripped from me. Only Zirene’s lessons in our dreamscape world had kept me both sane and educated.
My past wasn’t my fault—I knew that—but between having to adapt to the world around me while battling postpartum hormones, being a new mother without any role models, and the leadership of a moon shoved onto my lap, I just wanted some space to breathe and grow. And that didn’t even include my adaptive capabilities, which had collected me a lot of new abilities.
But the Fates had given me this life, so I must make the best of it.
There had to be a reason why I was here, but no matter how much I tried, I couldn’t shake Kaede’s premonition.
Was I a star waiting to complete my constellation? Or a black hole, pulling all my loved ones into danger?
The owner of the mysterious voice was still out there, somewhere. I hoped our brief contact was a fluke, but I just couldn’t make myself believe that lie.
Deep down in my gut, I knew he would contact me again. The combination of the furious tone of his voice and the accusations about me taking his brother convinced me he wouldn't forget our encounter anytime soon. The fact that I didn't know what he was talking about only made him angrier.
What he had done to me was insane and unforgivable.
“Is something wrong?” Zirene whispered into my ear from behind me. “You have nothing to worry about. They are learning how to take down larger prey as a team.”
“She is just observing her cubs,” Z’fir replied softly behind me, putting my thoughts into words. “And waiting to see how long it would take them to notice us.”
Meti spat out his mane and snapped her head in our direction. Instantly, she released her mentor and splashed into the water with almost perfect feline grace as she made her way to us.
As soon as she reached the wate
r’s edge, she tried to walk on her hind legs like an adult Aldawi, only to stumble and fall, almost hitting her head onto the grass face-first. With her feline instincts, she caught herself just in time, bouncing back onto her hind legs.
Meti was growing into a sleek, long, athletic build, whereas her brothers were built similar to their male relatives, broad and burly. While I had never seen a female Aldawi in the flesh, I’d studied enough records to know that she was developing the typical attributes of her kind, minus the feminine mane. Just like her brothers, Meti was too young to grow a full mane on her upper chest. Once Aldawi adolescents hit puberty, they grew their gender-specific mane pattern as a sign of transitioning to young adulthood.
“Ma! Want to help us take Mentor Pavryn down?” Meti asked, her voice too sweet to resist. “He said if we win, he will take us fishing! With our paws!”
“Fishing where?” I asked, raising my eyebrow toward the male in question.
“At the waterfall!” Meti cheered. “He promised to take us out to the waterfall pond near our wing!”
I crossed my arms. “Oh?”
“Yeah, Ma! Mentor Pavryn said we could catch you dinner!”
“Is this true, Pavryn?”
My twin boys took advantage of their mentor’s distraction. Neazzos bit down on Pavyrn’s tail, earning a loud hiss.
“What did I say about biting tails?” Pavryn growled as he tried to snap his tail away, to no avail.
Neazzos held on tight as Pavryn spun in circles, trying to drag the young cub off. Nocrez playfully chased after them, his laughter filling the air.
"It looks like your brothers need a little help," I chuckled, removing my dress cape. "How about we win you a fishing trip?"
"I will catch you lots of fish, Ma!"
Smiling, I tossed my cape to Xylo, who caught it, looking stunned.
"What are you doing?"
“I’m going to help Meti.” Kicking off my boots, I turned my back on Odelm and looked over my shoulder. "Can you untie my dress, please?”
“Is this safe?” I could feel his cold hands graze against my skin as he worked my ties.
“My brother knows how to restrain his strength,” Zirene scoffed. “Or he wouldn’t be mentoring our cubs.”
“They are cubs, Odelm,” I deadpanned, rolling my eyes. “I can take him.”
Slowly, Odelm dragged his hands along my sides, teasing my skin beneath the seams of my dress. Gripping my straps, he kissed the skin along my shoulder to my neck as he disrobed me.
Closing my eyes, I exposed my neck to him as he wrapped his arms around my bare stomach, pulling me against his chest. “Promise me you will be careful,” he murmured when his mouth reached my ear.
“You have nothing to worry about.” I opened my eyes and glanced at my concerned mates. “Instead of worrying about me, how about you dedicate your time to planning our dates?”
Dragging his hands against my sides, Odelm released me reluctantly.
“If that is what you want us to do,” V’dim replied, stepping closer to Zirene. “Are you sure she will be fine? I know how Aldawi . . . ”
Studying the scene in the pool, Zirene crossed his arms with narrowed eyes. “Selena will be fine,” he promised, his tail loosely twitching. “Stop worrying about her and let her have her fun with her cubs.”
Screeching, I wrapped my arms around my dreamscape male and gave him a quick kiss. “Thank you!”
His amethyst eyes widened in shock. I didn’t miss the amusement that flooded his face as I turned away.
“Let’s go, Meti!”
My silver daughter took off on all fours, and I ran after her, giggling.
This was precisely what I needed after my stressful speech: to have fun with my cubs. It didn’t matter if my mates watched or not, because this was my time to be free.
Meti leaped onto Pavryn’s chest, gripping his bushy black mane. Her growl brought laughter to my lips, the sound like a cuter version of my own.
She bit down onto his mane as she held on tight. Nocrez jumped into action and attached himself to one of Pavryn’s hind legs, impeding the mentor’s movement.
Splashing through the shallow water, I vaulted onto Pavryn’s back with a roar, latching onto his mane. Wrapping my legs around his torso, I put Pavryn into a loose headlock while grappling to get a good grip around his neck from his thick mane.
“Surrender!”
“Or what?” Pavryn challenged, as he tried to thrash us off.
“Or you will have to declare to everyone that mere cubs defeated you,” I grinned, staring at my secret weapon. “I know your weakness!”
“I have no weakness!”
That was where he was wrong.
All Aldawi had one weakness: their ears. The fragile triangular cups on their heads were sensitive to all kinds of touch.
I had learned this one afternoon when Zirene had tried to pin me down, declaring that I couldn’t get out of his grasp. The twitching movement of his ears caught my attention. The next thing I’d known, I had been pinching them, instantly eliciting an extreme reaction that I wasn’t expecting.
Pulling myself higher on his crouched back, I secured my grip around his neck and snaked my hand to one of his ears.
Swiftly, I pinched his ear, earning myself a roar. Growling, Pavryn thrashed around as he tried to free himself from my torture.
One by one, my cubs fell off as I held on tight. They sat along the side, cheering for me as I refused to let him win.
“Yield!”
“Never!”
Smirking, I unhooked one of my legs, feeling his tail trying to grab hold. Then I kicked the back of his knee.
He fell hard, onto all fours, panting.
The water only came up to his elbow, but at this position, it seemed deeper. Nevertheless, I worked my way along his back. Hooking my legs around his shoulders, I sat on his shoulder blades, gripping his neck between my thighs as I pinched both of his ears.
Pavryn lowered his body as he let loose a massive sigh.
“You win, Selena,” he drawled, defeated.
Raising my arms, I let out my best attempt at an Aldawi victory roar to the sky. The sun’s light welcomed me, beaming through the sanctuary’s plexiglass dome.
A shadowy figure caught my eye.
In the corner of the second-floor overhang, Kaede watched me, leaning against the railing with his black-gloved hands clasped before him.
The moment our gazes met, his neon-green eyes locked onto mine.
Nodding, he smirked as he teleported away.
Chapter Six
Xylo
Nervous couldn’t begin to describe how he felt at that exact moment.
All night, all he could do was to stare at the night sky with his nestqueen in his arms and wonder about the next day. By the time he was able to fall asleep, Selena had woken him up, excited for the day.
Why had he decided to go first?
Even though all of his nestbrothers agreed not to make this a competition, he had a feeling it would still become one, even if friendly. Odelm was too determined to be Selena’s best mate; he’d already gone out of his way to contact Vagren about arranging a surprise for his date.
Whatever it was, it kept Odelm’s mind busy. Every passing thought was a what-if or a should-I, making it hard for Xylo to focus on his plans.
He was growing worse than Selena when it came to worrying about the future, which was ironic because he was always the first one to calm their nestqueen down.
Xylo didn’t know what the princes were planning, or if they were even going to take part in any dates. Those two had been dealing with nestqueens and their demands since the Circuli crew settled on Destima. Xylo hoped that with time, their work would dwindle as the new population started to mix with the old, and Destima’s citizens settled into a daily routine and home on the moon.
There was no reason why Selena’s dream for Destima couldn’t be realized. Its citizens needed to come to terms with their newly designed
future and stop causing problems over minor issues. There were plenty of other refugees within the CEG who would love the opportunity to live in the paradise Selena was planning here. He wasn’t going to allow a few malcontent citizens to ruin her chance of fulfilling her dream—even if that meant assisting the princes with their daily jobs until tensions settled.
It was hard for him to believe Selena had declared him as one of her Favored just two nights ago. He could never have fathomed she would officially announce her decision to the universe yesterday.
Xylo was content as a simple member of Selena’s clan and didn’t need to be her Favored or chosen to provide her offspring. That was something he kept reminding her of—and what he wanted to address with her tonight.
“Why do women take so long to get dressed?” Kaede grumbled as he leaned against his personal shuttle with his arms crossed. “My sisters take forever to get dressed whenever they have their nights off. I have never understood why. It’s not like they can be in a relationship.”
Xylo decided not to comment.
He was smart enough not to question the reason why the females in Kaede’s life were worried about their appearances. When members of certain species were mature enough, they could attempt to attract a mate if they wanted; to that end, they put a lot of effort into their appearance.
It was clear his sisters were looking for a mate. But why would Selena be taking her time? Did she want more mates now that she had claimed her Favored?
Xylo’s vines twitched nervously as he fought the urge to dive into her deep thoughts, to see what she was doing and why she was late. He refused to do so. Selena had the right to her privacy, and he wasn’t going to abuse their connection in hopes of easing his doubts.
“Why does it matter how long your sisters take?” Xylo eyed the broody male. “It’s not like you go with them.”
