Mate: Level 8

by Heather Karn

  “Starting with Yulaki, your punishment is overseeing the study and development of this new cure. Your new office will be at the university. You begin the second that ship lands.”

  Yulaki’s jaw dropped and a few people clapped. Maltak even managed to lean over far enough to clap the young scientist on the back in congratulations, a very un-Lutharian type of move except in this moment of pure joy. The rest of us weren’t close enough so our congrats were murmured as Roosha prepared the next announcement.

  “For Maltak, your punishment is to gain the added duties of a ship by becoming the Captain of our newest vessel. Her first assignment is to study and explore the forty-fifth quadrant. She leaves in two weeks after your return.”

  Maltak’s reaction was much like Yulaki’s as his jaw hit the ground. More congratulations echoed around the room, and after a few seconds of shock, Maltak was once again in tears. Roosha continued, reining us all in again. Apparently these weren’t true punishments, but were more like promotions.

  “Mortan, your time aboard a ship has come to an end, and your application to teach at the university has been approved.”

  More cheers resounded until Roosha spoke again and a hush fell over the room.

  “Kilani, due to your ability to commandeer a vessel and fly it across multiple galaxies due to only the great respect that crew has for you, your position as Captain is being reinstated, as has your Mate Level to match.”

  Cheers resounded and I squeezed my mate as his tears fell. But Roosha wasn’t finished.

  “Cammie.”

  “Me?” I squeaked and clapped a hand over my mouth, making Roosha smirk.

  “Yes, you. As a mate to Kilani, you are now considered a member of our people and fall under the same rules as everyone else.”

  “But I don’t know your rules,” I argued, not daring to believe that whatever was coming down the pike for me could be good.

  “Kilani will be expected to teach them to you,” Roosha admonished. “Now quiet while I give you your punishment. Inasmuch as you are stubborn, opinionated, vocal, and relentless, much more than any woman among our people, you are being assigned as the first female second-in-command any fleet vessel has ever had. You will serve on the ship captained by Kilani and will answer to him.”

  In the next second I was engulfed by so many bodies I could barely breathe. Whatever my assignment meant, it was huge, and the men were more than ecstatic about it. They couldn’t even be reined in for Roosha to finish, so the council ended the video on their end while the celebration continued on the ship. Finally, they each backed up, giving me space. It had to be a big deal if they were all willing to touch multiple people in their celebration.

  “Okay, what just happened?” I asked, and Ki chuckled.

  “I’ll explain it later. For now, let’s spread the word. I want the whole ship to know what we’ve found and that the council has acknowledged our hard work. Maltak, how far out of the way would it be for us to stop by Leertus on the way back?”

  Maltak’s grin grew far wider than it ever had. “Just a few days, Sir. Should we tell them we’re stopping there as well?”

  “Yes, and tell them that the food is on me. They deserve it.”

  “What’s Leertus?” I asked Ki as the others almost fled the room.

  He chuckled and rubbed my back while Mortan pulled Mom after him to help spread the word in the mess hall. “Leertus is a planet renowned for their foods and how they prepare them. We rarely have an opportunity or reason to stop there, so what better reason than to celebrate?”

  “I love to celebrate with food.” Biting my lip, I nudged Ki in the ribs. “I also love to celebrate by making out with my mate. Our quarter’s door does have a lock on it, right?”

  Ki’s eyes burned. “Yes, it does.”

  “Good. Then once we’re done making out you can explain to me why everyone was so over enthused about my new assignment.”

  “Oh, that’s easy. We’ve been pushing to allow women in more leadership roles beyond the two councils. There are no women in any leadership positions in any other parts of the government or education, or the ships. By promoting you to my second-in-command, they’re stating that it’s time we change, and you’re it. You’re the role model our young women will look to. You will be the first woman to ever hold a position on a ship, and others will follow, I have no doubt.” Before I could become truly terrified about what this meant and how I was totally not fit for the role, Ki’s lips crashed into mine as he boxed me in against the table behind me. When he’d thoroughly explored my mouth, he once again hoisted me into his arms, laughing as I held on. “But first, I need to teach my new second-in-command how to use her quarter’s door lock.”

  I leaned in and kissed his mouth hard. “That’s a good idea, and I’m sure it’ll take a while. Then you can teach me everything else I need to know about running a spaceship.”

  Author’s Note

  This book is the only one I’ve written that was spawned by a dream. That’s right, the idea of different levels of Mates came from a dream. While most of the dream was discarded, that aspect stayed, and fueled the idea of my first Alien Romance. So, I hope you enjoyed it. There’s room for expansion in this world, and I’m already playing with ideas, so let me know if it’s one I should take the time to explore!

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  For a full list of my books, check out the listing at the front of this book. Continue for a sneak peek of “First Blood” and “Gargoyle’s Kiss”.

  Sneak Peek at First Blood by Heather Karn

  Chapter One

  Ten years ago, life as humans knew it had been normal. Only humans existed, and the fairy tales, myths, and legends parents told their children were just that. Stories. Or so we’d thought. Those beliefs ended the day the President of the United States had called a special press conference to be shared worldwide. He’d announced that he was a lion shifter, the Alpha of the lion shifter pride in his home state of New Mexico, and explained how every creature out of stories was indeed real. Okay, most were real. The more popular ones anyway. Then he proceeded to shift on screen. I’d been almost eleven at the time, and though I didn’t understand the significance of the event then, I did as time passed.

  Everything changed overnight. Humans soon found themselves in the minority to supernatural creatures. There were several different categories created, with every species placed under a specific one. There were Shifters, Magic Users, Blood Drinkers, and Others. Others consisted of creatures who didn’t necessarily fit into a category of their own because they were so different. Vampires, werewolves, and other creatures classified as the Threats went on a killing spree, and they didn’t limit their victims exclusively to humans. In a matter of days, martial law was in place with a curfew to keep innocent civilians safe, and the Elite squads were put in place.

  The Elite were the best of the best. The best fighters, thinkers, and blenders. Basically, the best spies, assassins, and bodyguards the government could hire. And everyone in my class at school wanted to join the Elite program a year later when it was created. Now, every high school graduate was required to enroll in college so they could not only continue their advanced education to find jobs, but also to learn all about the supernatural and gain fighting skills. At the end of the final semester of their Junior year, they took their Interview, which decided whether they could join the Elite as a trainee or if they finished college as usual. Failing the interview was easy. Passing was nearly impossible.

  My forehead smacked against the wooden desk I sat at, emitting a dull thud that echoed around the cl
assroom. I wasn’t the only one to react in such a way. Several sighs and muffled groans, with a few other heads colliding with desktops, were the communal response to our professor’s announcement seconds before. Even with my eyes closed, I was sure I heard soft sobbing from the Koala shifter in the back row. Her family had moved to the United States three weeks ago, right on time for Elite Interviews, which Professor Heldon had just announced were moving from two weeks away to tomorrow morning.

  “At least now you have less time to worry over the Interviews,” Professor Heldon, a warlock, chuckled after giving up trying to call the class back to order. His statement earned him a few glares from myself and several fellow students. “Unless of course you’ve procrastinated studying. I’ve warned you all year not to put off studying for the Interview. It’s too late now to cram if you have procrastinated, and I urge you all not to pull an all-nighter to make up for the time you’ve missed. Study what you can. Leave the rest to fate. Maybe this will be a lesson to you. Now get out of here. Oh, and I want you all in your seats at ten minutes before eight tomorrow morning.”

  He had to yell the last part as students ducked out of the classroom as quick as they could and nearly ran down the hall to the cafeteria, library, or training rooms. Since I didn’t feel like being mowed over by the rest of my classmates, I stayed seated until the majority had filed out. Only Lee, my twin brother, and our friend Oscar, and a girl named Kellie remained.

  “Well, what’s the plan?” Oscar asked in his usual loud voice, securing his backpack over his shoulder. “I vote lunch. I’m starving.”

  “You’re always starving.” Lee rolled his eyes, which were a stunning shade of emerald green that always seemed to sparkle, and motioned to the bag our friend carried. “We all know that bag is pretty much all food anyway.”

  Oscar shrugged, his long, wavy dark blond hair swaying with the movement. “Yeah, but that’s my emergency stash. Come on, let’s grab some real food.”

  Wiping my hands up and down my face, I moaned and settled back in my seat. “You guys go ahead. I’ll catch you later.”

  “Let me guess, you’re heading to the training rooms,” Lee snickered, guessing accurately as he slid into the desk next to me. I glared at him in return.

  “We both know I still can’t fight well enough to even beat a racoon shifter, and that’s when they aren’t being shady critters. Being the smartest person in the whole class doesn’t mean anything if I can’t defend myself against an enemy. There’s no way they’ll accept anyone into the Elite program who can’t fight, especially a human.”

  “You really think you can learn the skills needed to kill a werewolf, vampire, or other monster equally as powerful and deadly in the next twelve hours when you haven’t been able to learn them in the last nine months? The last nine years even?” Oscar asked, a hint of annoyance touching his voice. It was the same old argument between us. We’d spent hours in the training rooms, him trying to teach me all he could about hand to hand combat. The lean, muscular build and fighting instincts from his panther shifter genes made fighting come easy and natural to him. Being human, I had no instincts like that to rely on. Neither did Lee, but even he excelled in physical training. I was the one who excelled in the classroom. And only the classroom.

  “I’m going to try,” I growled at Oscar between clenched teeth, grabbing my purse and phone before marching toward the door, following Kellie out into the hallway. She was a tiny girl, a rabbit shifter. Unlike most rabbits, she was an only child, her mother and siblings having been killed by a fox shifter when Kellie was young. Only she and her father had managed to escape the attack.

  “Hey, Koda,” Lee called from behind me, his trotting footfalls growing louder as he approached. “Koda, slow down.”

  “What?” I snapped, glaring over my shoulder at him.

  “Easy, killer,” he warned, raising his hands in surrender as he slowed to a walk beside me. “I was going to ask if you wanted some company. I could use the extra training time, just like you.”

  “No, you want to help me because you know I can’t fight.”

  “Yes, and training helps me de-stress. Let’s go.”

  Lee led the way out of the classroom building toward the much larger training grounds. The grounds held several fields that were sectioned off with fencing so that different classes could meet outside at once. Some were open areas while others were specifically made for certain weapons, like the archery range. A large building sat off to one side, and it was filled with various sized rooms for class and individual practicing. These were mostly used during the winter months since we had snow on the ground at least half of the year. I liked the private rooms over the smaller fenced in areas. There were fewer people to watch me be thrown around like a rag doll or crushed into the floor. I’d faced a young troll once my freshman year, and I hadn’t been able to walk right for a week without tipping over from my dizziness. It was my lucky day that only my classmates had witnessed that disaster since the troll couldn’t go outside into the sun.

  “Some birthday we’re going to have tomorrow,” Lee snorted, closing the training room door behind us while I flipped the lights on. A window set high in the opposite wall allowed the sun inside to give us a bit more light to fill the large room.

  After tossing my purse, phone, and jacket into a corner, I took my place on the practice mat, facing Lee. “The morning will be crappy, but I’m sure we’ll have a great afternoon celebrating your success as an Elite trainee.”

  We both lifted our fists in a defensive stance, ready for the other to attack while he shook his head at me. “You’ll be celebrating too. Once they figure out how much information you have stored up in that brain of yours, they’ll want you. You’re worth the extra physical training they’ll need to put you through just for that.”

  “I wish.” I feinted a strike at him, which he dodged with a counterstrike, and a second later I found myself flat on my back, staring up at the ceiling as a disappointed Lee stepped into view.

  “Girl, if you do this tomorrow, I will personally smack you upside the head. You’re better than this, even for a warm up.” He held his hand out and helped me back up to my feet. We took our positions again, and this time I focused harder.

  “Then let’s not talk about our birthday.”

  He gave a sharp nod. “Deal. Focus.”

  It was often hard to remember the two of us, though we called ourselves twins, weren’t even related by blood. My mom and his mom had delivered us on the same day, at the same hospital. Mine had died that day, but in some fluke had managed to arrange with Lee’s parents that they would adopt me and raise me with Lee. I couldn’t thank any of them enough, even my late mother, for allowing me to grow up with a family. I wouldn’t have made it this far without Lee at my side.

  Two hundred and forty pounds of muscle slammed into me, knocking me to the floor. Before Lee could deliver the kick he aimed at my ribs, I focused. That kick would drive the air from my lungs and make me useless for the next ten minutes. That wasn’t going to happen today. I swept my leg around, knocking his feet out from under him. He regained his footing before me, but he didn’t take advantage of my defenselessness like others would have, like whoever tested me tomorrow.

  The moment I was back on two legs, he attacked. Some protective instinct buried deep inside had me blocking his right hook before I even thought about what I was doing. However, it failed to offer any defense against the left uppercut Lee aimed at my jaw, and as my teeth clacked together, I kicked out, missing my target. A flailing fish would cause more damage than I was as I found myself laying on my back again, this time of my own doing. Unlike last time, Lee didn’t let me stand before attacking, and I barely rolled out of the way of the punch meant to knock my lights out.

  We practiced for hours on hand to hand combat, knives, swords, and other weapons. Both of us were proficient enough with guns so we didn’t bother with them, and the college president preferred we use other weapons. Most Elite didn’t
use guns anyway since several species of Threats had to have body parts removed to kill them. By the time Lee announced we needed to head home, we were both covered in sweat, and my skin was littered with bruises.

  The cool air of the approaching evening chilled my sweaty skin and I regretted my decision to not put on my jacket, but only for a second. There was no way I would be tugging my coat over my sweat soaked clothes. Just the thought of that grossness made me cringe. I hadn’t planned on training when I left the house this morning or I would have brought clean clothes to change into. Neither had my brother, but that didn’t stop him from being comfortable. Lee had removed his shirt during our training session, and now he carried it in his hand so every female we passed had a clear view of his toned chest and abs. He wasn’t as fit as most of the shifter males, but he was built well enough for a human to turn a female head his way.

  Me, on the other hand, I was invisible in his shadow, and that was where I liked to be. For now, anyway. One day I’d make a name for myself. If I couldn’t make the Elite, there were still several other programs I could apply for my Senior year. My detailed brain and impeccable memory would land me a good job…somewhere.

  Before our Freshman year of college, our parents had bought a house near campus so that Lee and I could save money on housing. Plus, with our four younger siblings all planning to attend this university, they’d get their money out of the place. Oscar lived with us, as did another Junior, Clara, a petite hedge witch whose magic to grow plants was as weak as the healing potions she concocted. Even my bruises would be too much for her potions to heal. She was the most peaceful person I’d ever met. There was no way she’d be chosen as an Elite, and she was happy with that.

  Both Oscar and Clara were home by the time we arrived. It was easy to tell. Oscar had the TV volume cranked up watching a sports game and the scent of dinner cooking told where Clara was hiding. Instead of heading to the kitchen to say hi as I usually did, I jogged up the stairs to the bathroom and locked myself inside. Without bothering to check on my bruised body, I stripped and showered. The warm water did wonders to loosen my sore and achy muscles. I should’ve thought about how I’d be feeling tomorrow before agreeing to spar with Lee. Maybe I’d ask Clara for some of her muscle relaxing creams tonight in hopes they’d work their limited wonders so I could move properly in the morning. Clean and smelling fresh, I ventured downstairs just as Clara was setting a pot of soup on the table. Lee followed close behind me, also fresh and clean.