by Lil Gibson
Prolinc's family had served the House of Ra for centuries. He and Zorroc had been raised together, trained together, educated together and caroused together; and in three short years, he would lifemate with Zorroc's sister, Nadia. This would elevate his families' status to one of the top three families of Gattonia and in his mating with Nadia; he would be in line for the rule, as well.
His family could barely restrain their elation at this opportunity, for indeed they saw it as their opportunity, not because of any particular talent or worth Prolinc held. His brother, mother, and father all preened in anticipation of their upcoming triumph over their peers; it manifested as one of the few times Prolinc could recall sharing familial approval. Ordinarily his family tended to view him as some undesirable barnacle that had grown on them by mistake. Prolinc did not care about status. His job was to protect Zorroc with his life and he had determined that if anything happened to his friend, Prolinc would most likely perish beside him.
In addition, he harbored no illusions about the coming union; Nadia's heart did not beat for his nor his for her; still they liked one another and would do well together. In the meantime, he would inject Dee with as many babies as possible. She would be his concubine or Chosen One and he would provide for her and theirs, long after he lifemated with Nadia. Forever, if she would let him. She would be content for he would let her raise their children. Maybe motherhood would blunt her sharp edges. He would love to see a softened Dee with his offspring. He would love to see her expand with his babies. He needed to formalize their union quickly; she needed to know how she would fit into his life. It would have to be enough for her…It would have to be enough for him, as well.
"I too have had a demonstration of their defense skills," Zorroc quirked his head toward Prolinc with a bemused half smirk. "They are very effective for ones so small and delicate. Cat told me of the special training she and Angel endured from your female. The three are a formidable threat to unsuspecting males; maybe we should outlaw the training of other Earth females under our protection. We would no doubt be safer for it."
He fastened on Zorroc's last statement with dawning, nauseating clarity. Self defense not a good idea for the earth females? A concubine counted as fair game for male attention; Dee's defense skills may be essential from time to time when he was not there to protect her. His reputation would be enough to keep most of the males at a distance but not all, and not his equals in rank after they reached Gattonia. Dee was beautiful and alluring. It would be a challenge to keep her from lifemating with another peer. It was what she deserved; he just could not give it to her.
Suddenly, he knew that self-defense skills were exactly what each earth female required. Lifemated women would have less trouble but those who serviced many or chosen ones would need extra protection from not only overly aggressive males but also assorted Gattonian females. The decision to bring a contingent of earth females into the Gattonian society for the express purpose of mating with their males had not been a popular one, especially among the females. The monogamy strictures that had been in place before documented history, faced deletion; which meant their civilization faced massive disruption in the very near future. The Dargons constituted no more than a temporary glitch compared to the social storm currently hurtling toward Ganz.
"I disagree," Prolinc asserted in a deadly tone.
Zorroc, surprised and caught off guard by Prolinc's sudden change of mood, waited for him to expound. He obviously saw something that alluded Zorroc, and not for the first time. His long time friend had helped him avert disaster on more than a few occasions. He trusted him more than any other.
"The Earth females are small and vulnerable to the more domineering will of some of our males; our females too are larger, stronger and for the most part unhappy at the prospect of bringing in foreign females to produce what they are no longer capable of producing. I believe it imperative to train the earth females in self-defense tactics. I have a feeling they will need all the protection they can get. We have less than a month to equip them with what they will need to survive in our world. Education in protocol, customs and comportment will also be necessary, I believe." Prolinc glanced up to his silent friend to see him directing all of his focus into what he had proposed. For once, he was paying full attention to their situation instead of his mate.
"I see the truth in all you have said; I think you have saved us from a potentially internecine situation. Our three women will instruct the rest in self-defense, Bandoff can instruct them in our ways. He is mild, non-threatening and can be trusted not to become overly enthusiastic in his regard for the women." Then he added. "And keep Rosik away from them at all costs!"
Zorroc put his head in his hands and grumbled, "How could we have foreseen the complications we would face when we began this venture to save our race? I thought Earth females would be simple, uncomplicated and eager to please in whatever capacity we chose for them; instead they are as complex as our own females, some more so; they expect, even require love. Love! How can they expect that kind of regard after only a group of days?"
While Prolinc left to set everything into motion, Zorroc directed his gaze toward the monitor focused on his now sleeping Cat. Her tearstained cheeks yielded no answers. He would visit the aunts...again.
"You numb sculled, dweeb-headed, clueless, clumsy boy! Did you desert your finesse in Gattonia?" The aunts had picked up their share of earth slang while monitoring the progress of their American cousins, and now Marie demonstrated her verbal aptitude. "Why does it matter whether you credence the idea of love; the point is that she does. Just tell her that you love her and make her happy. You are, after all, mated and therefore celibate; what is a little terminology between mates?
"You call it desire and she calls it love; it still is what binds you, if not the mating ritual itself. You implied that her only value lay in her bloodline. I have watched you handle all your other females with the perfection of a master manipulator, what is so different about this one." Marie hmphed, frustrated at her nephew's inability to improvise. "First you complain that she is unsuitable for joining, which obviously you have overcome, and now you complain that she requires an emotional bond that you cannot reciprocate. All you have to do is say the words and she will be putty in your hands. The word love is very important to her because of the way she was raised. She needs security and the surety of a permanent union and you are giving her mixed signals of reluctance, duty to your race and vague reassurances of protection. It will not do for her. You have to be there—all there for her or you are courting disaster for you both."
Helen took over. "Have you no feelings for the girl, no care for her physical or emotional well-being?" She paused and riveted her nephew with knowing purpose. "Tell me Rocky, do you withhold the words she needs for lack of love or because of your depth of it?" She then picked up the remote control and began surfing channels on the console, seemingly ready to drop the subject, until she muttered. "Not that it matters in the long run; she is your responsibility now. I have often thought that too much responsibility was placed on you at too early an age. Seventeen cycles is impossibly young to run such a large province as Gattonia, but with both your parents lost, well, there remained no one else of choice."
Helen sighed and seemed to deflate a little but then resumed her plea. "Talk to her. Confide in her and she may surprise you with her council, she is bright. I think she could be of great value if you would but give her the opportunity. It would also give her a definitive place in your life. She would feel needed for herself instead of her bloodline. In truth, that has worried me the most in this genetic gamble for survival—the fallout of how she would translate this union. How it would affect her self-esteem and her already strained relationship with her parents. She is a beautiful young woman. Nancia and Rowan don't deserve her; they never have; but that can't be helped at this late date, we can only go forward." She fixed him with a look that told him he would be held accountable for mending Cat's world.
&nb
sp; He suffocated under their advice, under his many obligations. He could not do it, any of it. He may be a ruler, but he was not a God. Why did they have to bring up his parents? They were dead and no longer of importance in any way that mattered. He made his way toward the main level to confer with Rosik.
Zorroc had adored his mother and worshiped his father, but in the end, neither emotion had been enough to save them. He had not been enough. He flew back into the gyre of his youth. His upbringing had been practically idyllic. He was the treasured son of the ruling family in the powerful House of Ra. His aunts and the staff doted on him and looked after his every need. His parents loved him, though were primarily attuned to one another. In the end, the devotion and love they shared caused his father’s demise and in a way his own. Alternatively, maybe the end marked the beginning of the male he would become. His father had always preached on the balance of life. His balance had been his mate on one side and his leadership responsibilities on the other. When at the age of thirteen, Zorroc’s mother died, their family axis skewed irreparably. His father, who had always been an indomitable force, became a weak and ineffectual leader with the loss of his wife. He watched his father go slowly down hill; not caring that his people suffered, not caring that his son grieved along with him, not caring about anything, ever again. He slowly faded away and died when Zorroc reached the age seventeen.
By that time, he had been running the empire for over two years. He had to grow up very quickly, too quickly some said, but he had no regrets; it had made him strong. Love emerged the weakness and he would be damned before he succumbed to its ravages. It had ruined his father more completely than any disease or sickness.
Love destroyed his father and almost toppled an empire.
He had to make Cat understand that the fantasy of love posed a dangerous threat better left to fools who could delude themselves; neither of them could afford the cost. Already it had begun tearing her apart.
* * * *
After Prolinc completed his instructions to Bandoff, he headed toward the X-center where Dee was toning both her defense skills and her delectable body. He knew she would be pleased with his directive to train the women. He just hoped she would be equally amenable to his other proposal. Somehow, he did not think it would be that easy. Nothing came easy when it involved his woman. He would take her first and talk later. He pressed his wristband and issued orders for COM blackout of the X-center until further notice. Satisfied, he almost grinned.
As he entered, Dee was busy throwing one of his junior officers around. She did not understand that they would not lay a combative hand on her for fear of her safety—and theirs—if Prolinc found her injured in any way. "I see Abzu is assisting you with your workout today, banshee, why not let me take over and give him a chance to live and train another day.”
Dee lit up at the sound of his voice and decided it would be as good an excuse as any to touch him.
"I would love to train with you, Prolinc," she replied, giving him a somewhat confused look. What had he called her, it had sounded suspiciously like banshee, but surely, she must have just misheard and had addressed her with his usual 'my Dee'.
Prolinc dismissed a very grateful Abzu and secured the panel into the lock position before turning to face his blond goddess. Sweat glistened and glowing, he would soon stake his right of possession on her. Prolinc opted for no protective gear and approached.
She moved very quickly with an agility and deliberation that almost challenged him. She was magnificent. His warrior took herself very seriously, he had come to realize, and when her loyalty was given, it endured unshakable. But how to gain it? She had many barriers to her heart—trust, only one of them.
So caught up in his musings, he was flabbergasted when one moment his feet were planted firmly on the ground and the next he was flying through the air. The wind was knocked out of him several seconds later as he hit the floor with a loud resounding boom. He studied the ceiling and waited.
Chapter Twelve
Dee rushed to his side, horrified; he wasn't moving, oh, what had she done? She’d surprised him somehow, and with his size and momentum, had flown nearly ten feet before colliding with the floor flat on his back. These Gattonians were not nearly as tough as they seemed. Size wasn't everything, after all. She straddled him with her legs on either side of his hips then placed a hand on one side of his head while her other gently brushed back his hair to get a better look at any damage she may have caused. He groaned. "Linc, sweetheart, tell me you're alright, that I haven't hurt you, please Linc, do I need to go for help?"
Nothing she could have said would have motivated him more to assure her of his recuperative powers. She would not get away from him this time. She let out a surprised whoop as he flipped her onto her back and pinned her with his body. He looked deep into her eyes, debating his plan of attack. Better to join first and talk later as she lie sated and yielding by his side. She had barriers that needed to be loved away before imparting his plans for them. He would love her slow with deliberation. He would make her blaze for him. Dee's eyes had gotten huge in her perfectly heart shaped face. She comprised the sexiest, most physically appealing, most mentally exasperating, female he had ever encountered and he would make her his, really his, no more trancing, he wanted her soul.
The Hell with going slow, they would go slow later.
He attacked all of her senses at once, giving her no quarter, no opportunity to think or question his sudden turn toward passion. How could he be stone one moment and molten lava the next?
Only she was the one melting.
He assaulted her body with hands grazing every inch of her, his tongue plunging deeply into her mouth, his lips ravishing her lips with sucks and nips and grinding pressure. He parted her legs with a strong muscular thigh and kneaded it into her mound. As she erupted into flames, Dee realized they were still fully clothed. Deciding to rectify the situation, she put her hands on each of his huge shoulders and pulled his suit fastenings apart with an efficiency born of desperation.
Prolinc tore his mouth from hers and focused on her eyes, now heavy lidded and dilated with almost no gray showing. "There will be no going back," he warned, rasping out a threat he had every intention of enforcing.
She only nodded and continued on her quest to get them both naked. He thrust himself off her and stripped, then grabbed her uniform and shed it off her in one movement. He looked down on her, eating her slowly with his eyes. Enough foreplay, he wanted in. He covered her, spread her legs wide with both of his, and entered her in one smooth, hard motion with his hands tilting her buttocks for deeper penetration. She stretched fully to accommodate him, causing his dick to swell even further. Prolinc felt her withdrawal and stilled. "Have I hurt you, banshee, I fear it is too late for me to stop no matter the answer."
"You’re so big, I feel it butting against my womb," she admitted self-consciously. Prolinc propped himself up on his elbows and stared at her for what seemed like a full minute before responding. Then he flashed her a most sensual, confident, mind bending smile. It lit his eyes to an almost iridescent mossy glow and gifted her with the first glimmer into his soul; he was letting her see him, truly see him. She gazed back in dazed wonder; he was inviting her in.
She relaxed and found that the too full sensation no longer proved unpleasant. She moved her hips slightly to confirm the feeling. She began to throb, she wanted him deeper, wanted him to move. Looking up at him once again, she silently pleaded for more. The response was immediate.
"I will find my way to your center, Dee. You will take all of me, I promise; now relax and let me work you."
This last, a spoken purr, and then she began to feel it; his whole body seemed to vibrate, as his purring grew louder and stronger. She hummed and vibrated everywhere, her breasts, her stomach, her buttocks, and deep inside of her. He began to move within her as well. He pumped into her slowly but firmly, at first, then harder and faster with an unrelenting rhythm that quickly took her to that marvelou
s precipice. He moved like a jackhammer and she flew apart like so much concrete. She burst into a million pieces calling his name repeatedly. He let out a long satisfied answering growl.
He rolled onto his back bringing her with him in order to cushion her from the semi-hard surface of the floor. She engulfed his senses both physically and emotionally. How had this earth woman captured him so neatly? He needed more research; he would explore further. He had had many females of various races and had pleasured them, as well as being pleasured himself but pleasure did not touch the way this female made him feel.
He had always been number two. Number two son, number two in rank, number two in life's offerings, but Dee took him beyond numbers to a magical private world designed just for them. Could he bind her into the role of Chosen One by sex alone? He did not think so but he would do anything for her compliance, anything.
As she roused from her groggy and sated stupor, she focused on him with a look of wonder, awe, and just a touch of apprehension. She swallowed hard, at a loss as to how to proceed from here. She had a few questions as to his technique and wanted to know if this would happen every time, if it had happened at all; because, if so, she didn't think she'd survive much past the coming week. Talk about a mind flyer, his lovemaking reined as the most exhilarating, fulfilling, frightening experience of her life. It felt like the dreams she had on Zeba II. She feared she had just become a Prolinc addict with a zero possible cure-rate. He probably believed his special talent alone intoxicated and enthralled her and she’d probably let him believe that for a time, but the truth of the matter proved much more alarming. Prolinc himself formed the secret ingredient that made her fire. Anyone else would just be a very large vibrator. Prolinc had become her found key that unlocked her soul and freed her to the possibility of love. Still peaked on emotional overload she glanced to Prolinc for guidance. He seemed to understand because he gently brought them to their feet and proceeded to carefully dress her like a treasured doll. When they both were clothed, he led her down the hall to their quarters. She liked his mindset. They weren't done yet.
