Stardust And Shadows

by Janelle Taylor

  “There is no comparison between you two. You know I married her because Father insisted; he wanted a strong bond with the Maffei II Galaxy where her father is the ruler. Jurad thinks it is necessary in case we lose Androas as our ally. At least the bride he selected and foisted onto me isn’t totally plain. In the dark or with my eyes closed, I can pretend she is anyone I desire. Sometimes that is you, Cass. I suppose I am fortunate she was trained to obey her superiors without question; so far she has never refused any order I have given. Recently when I demanded certain acts, I saw hesitation in her gaze, but I made her too terrified to expose my treatment and epicurean preferences to anyone. If she finds the courage to defy me in the future, I have ways of forcing her to do as I wish.”

  Canissia peeled a colorful robe from his body to find him naked underneath. Her gaze sparkled as she stroked the virile chest of a man who was magnificent in bed and a strong ally out of it. They made a good team, she concluded, as the young Pyropean ruler had dark and greedy appetites to match her own. Besides, Taemin was the perfect tool to help her extract revenge on Varian and Jana while he was trying to increase the size of his empire. “Have you considered an accident to be rid of your puny bride?”

  “Of course, my sweet Cass, but it is too soon to carry out that plan.”

  She fondled his body with boldness and familiarity. “Your father will object to her loss unless she first provides you with an heir.”

  “Let that offensive creature mother my children? I am neither crazy nor desperate. I take precautions to make certain that can never happen. If Father gets in the way of my plans, he’ll follow the same path into the ground where she will go soon. But I cannot act in reckless haste; I must be certain I have no need of her or ties to her father’s empire. Tarterria is too small and poor to tempt me to slay him, so I can rule and rape it through my wife as its heir. Few things sound more distasteful than sitting on the Tarterrian throne with that stupid weakling at my side. I do not even want to fuse that offensive territory to Pyropea. I only agreed to the temporary union to make Father so content that he is blinded to my real desires and plans. When I take Father’s place, Pyropea will know a greatness and power such as she has never possessed until my glorious reign.”

  The redhead smiled in sadistic pleasure. If Jurad and Taemin’s bride were slain, Taemin would become the Supreme Ruler. If she married him, as Ruleress, she would be safe from all enemy threats and would have an elite position in which to do as she pleased. As she sank to her knees, Canissia drifted her hands and lips down his body to his most sensitive area and brought it to instant life. Because of that Earthling witch, her mind scoffed, she had lost both Varian and Ryker! But Jana would pay soon, she vowed. For now, the only thing she could do was become closer with Taemin and kill Varian, who was no doubt setting a trap for her and would spring it the moment she showed herself. She wouldn’t give the ebony-haired god the chance to ensnare her; it was he who would become her captive. Yes, she mused, the lascivious prince was the answer to her problems, but not as his mistress.

  Amidst her stirring siege, she murmured, “If you become ruler here, my lusty prince, you can conquer the Tri-Galaxy with my help. In addition to the secrets I’ve stolen from Father for your benefit, I can help you get control of Trilabs. With its powers and weapons, its takeover will be easy.’ Of course, there is a tiny price for being your ally.”

  Taemin writhed and relished as she licked, nursed, and made playful nibbles at his manhood. He groaned in bliss as her skilled tongue swirled around his throbbing manhood. “What will it cost me, you talented enchantress?”

  Canissia halted only a moment to glance at him and reveal, “I want to become Ruleress of the Tri-Galaxy we shall own.”

  The lascivious man deliberated the seriousness of her words. He knew how greedy and insatiable the woman was: for sex, for wealth, for expensive possessions, for power, for status. Until recently, that list had included Variañ Saar and Ryker Triloni, though she had tried to keep those facts from him. “That can be arranged, and will be most satisfying for us in many ways, including this one, my flaming-haired temptress.”

  She drove him wild by running her tongue around the pleading tip of his fiery shaft, then paused to grin and say in a merry tone, “I thought you might agree.” She worked on him again for a few minutes before halting her tantalizing task to talk, but her moisture-slick hand continued to stroke the ravenous prince. “I had Father check on the marriage registration between Ryker and Jana; it’s legal and binding. I’m certain it shocked Varian to discover his lost puss was bound to his worst enemy. Since he had freed her, there was nothing poor Varian could do about the matter, not even about my part in it. Jana believed that little tale Ryker and I told her about being given to him. She hasn’t and will never deny the claim that she escaped with my help. Allegedly I took her to Ryker’s because she felt that was the only place she would be safe from Varian’s clutches. As a scientist, she supposedly went there to work for and with him in Trilabs. But they fell in love and got married. How sweet and romantic and deceitful,” she scoffed, then returned to her task.

  Taemin licked his lips as he envisioned the exquisite Earthling charl his father had attempted to purchase to become his wife. It would be sheer heaven to be training Jana to serve him instead of the repugnant creature his father had chosen for him after Varian and the Supreme Council had denied their matrimonial request: a decision “controlled by Maffei law.”

  As he had done many times since meeting Jana, the debauched prince closed his eyes and pretended the woman giving him pleasure was that golden-haired goddess. He groaned in achingly sweet torment. He writhed and squirmed as his urgency for release mounted. His hands gripped Canissia’s head and held it tightly as his hips made forceful thrusts. Within minutes he pumped his climactic nectar into the redhead’s mouth. He praised Canissia’s talents as he helped her from her knees, then the merry couple collapsed to the bed to relax and talk.

  “Do you think Ryker takes her to bed?” he asked. “You know he never seemed to care much for most women. But then, Jana Greyson Triloni is not most women. She is unique and highly desirable. I would love to ravish her from head to foot.”

  Miffed by Jana’s appeal to her new target, Canissia retorted, “Possibly he raped her or used his sex drugs on her before he died.”

  Taemin propped up to stare at her. “What do you mean, before he died?” he asked. “I have not heard that shocking news. How? When?”

  Canissia related her discovery. “From the date on the marriage registration,” she added, “Varian isn’t the one who wed her in the cunning disguise he’s using these days, but that doesn’t matter to us. What matters is that she’s Ryker’s widow, or will be as soon as news of his death is revealed. That means our little alien puss owns Trilabs. I have the feeling she doesn’t know Varian is impersonating Ryker, which fits perfectly into our scheme. As soon as he finishes playing his half brother, I’m sure he intends to woo the rich and powerful widow and win her back to get Trilabs for the Alliance. I have no doubt Jana will fall into his arms the first moment he curls his finger at her. But he won’t get the opportunity, my tasty treat. Once we get our hands on her, Trilabs is ours.”

  “You think she is going to hand it over to us even as our prisoner? She is not dumb. Nor did she strike me as being a coward or a weakling.”

  “With the little treasures in my possession, she won’t be able to say no to us about anything. I’ll even let you have her to use for a while, as many times as you please, in any way you please; and I know what pleases you most. I can see her in chains, your lash striking her body all over, you red and slick with her blood from mounting her from every direction. Imagine the fun you can have with her at your mercy, especially with her drugged into compliance.” Canissia painted erotic sadistic word pictures to tempt Taemin into aiding the brazen and dangerous trap she would suggest soon. Before she had finished creating the clever perverted images, she witnessed his eagerness to join her
side.

  “Pain is a potent stimulant, Cass. I look forward to many hours of titillation and satisfaction with her as my obedient and helpless slave. I am sure you will enjoy watching me with her as much as you will enjoy taking sweet revenge on your ex-lover. Even without your drugs, I am sure either of them will do anything we say to keep the other alive and safe; that lie will serve us well with them.”

  The deviant Canissia trembled with excitement. “I can hardly wait to get them in our clutches. What can anyone do to stop us? Nothing. Tirol and the others involved in this ruse can’t expose the fact Varian is impersonating Ryker. They can’t find an excuse to justify a rescue or attack here if they even suspect we set a trap for those two. After we have our fun and extract the complex code from them, we’ll arrange an accident to cover our sweet success. We’ll blow up the ship supposedly taking your guests home. You won’t mind sacrificing one ship, captain, and crew for our protection?”

  “Of course not. As long as the last Saar dies and we get what we want from Jana, I will do whatever is necessary to make our plan work. We must not let anything or anyone stand in our way.”

  “Right now, my greedy prince, our desires need sating in another way. It’s my turn to experience rapture beneath your talented hands and lips. Reward me generously for what I shall soon give to you: the Tri-Galaxy to rule and myself at your side as your new wife.”

  In his secret haven, Taemin appeased her rampant urges many times and in many ways. He knew how far to go in his pain-and-pleasure games to give her supreme and enthralling satisfaction yet make her beg for more. He savored how easy it was to drive her wild with his skills and with his knowledge of her deepest and darkest desires. He would let the conceited bitch serve him in and out of bed and let her believe they were partners. After he had taken all he needed or wanted from her, he would rid himself of the valueless and untrustworthy Cass and his sickening wife, then lay claim to Ryker’s matchless and captive widow and take possession of his father’s federation.

  At ten the next morning in the Milky Way Galaxy, the stress point of the potato-shaped rogue gave way and it parted into two uneven ends. Four ships bombarded one piece to reduce it into smaller chunks to be chased and disintegrated, while five ships worked on the other section. Whenever a large fragment was carved away by laser knife, a ship left the group to pursue and destroy it, then returned for another piece.

  Jana eyed a fragment before it began to drift off in the vast space that surrounded them. It was dark brown with an olivelike exterior similar to the meteorites she had seen on display and on videotape at Meteor Crater in Arizona: a huge hole created long ago when an enormous body impacted with Earth at forty-three thousand miles per hour. The inner surface exposed mostly a black interior with green, tan, white, and silver bits. In a few places she saw silvery white with blue to greenish blue speckling. Ryker told her the body was made up of stone, iron, a little nickel and cobalt, a few amino acids, and scattered space debris.

  For a while, she observed the difficult work at her husband’s side.

  At night, in bed alone, Jana was awakened by blasts of the lasers as they were fired down the area between the sides of the U-shaped vessel and bounced off the reflector mounted nearby. Varian’s quarters were located at the top rear of one side, while the Stardust Room and botanical garden were positioned in the same place in the other side. With three decks, the Wanderlust was gigantic and magnificent. It had everything required to sustain life, to carry out their assignments, and to provide needed amusements. This time, their assignment was critical to Jana.

  Each time the noises disturbed her slumber, she would remind herself of what they were trying to do and would pray again for success. During lulls of the noise when chemicals were being added and the lasers were cooling, she would nap in spurts and dream of Ryker.

  Four days of nerve-wracking and body-wearying work were required until the last largest fragment was shattered into harmless chunks. For many, including Varian, it was days and nights of short naps, swift or no shaves, quick meals, no lovemaking, and rapid changes of clothes.

  When the shouts of victory sounded in the Wanderlust and over the communications system from other ships, he was exhausted. Yet, he was ecstatic to know that Jana’s world was safe from catastrophe. Surely when she discovered he and not Ryker was the one who had led this Earth-saving mission, she would be grateful to him, and perhaps lenient toward him for his critical ruse. At present, she hugged him and praised him.

  Varian leaned over to the communications panel and said to all the men: “Together we accomplished a great deed. On behalf of me and my wife, thank you for your hard work and cooperation. To the families, friends, and loved ones of the four men and one woman who died on this glorious mission, we extend our sympathies. I think everyone should relax tomorrow before heading to Rigel with victory flags flying high. A celebration would be in order and, I’m sure, appreciated by your crews. Thank you and good night. Ryker Triloni out.”

  Varian turned and looked at the officers and crewmembers on the bridge of his ship. He wished his friends, especially Nigel and Tris, were here to celebrate with him and Jana. He smiled and asked, “Well, is everyone too tired to party tonight?”

  Kurtz was put in control of navigation of the ship while almost everyone headed to the appropriate areas for celebration. The officers and two guests entered the Stardust Room, while crewmembers partied in the crew mess hall and rec room. Varian wished everyone could have fun together tonight, but rank was never cast aside for any reason. And in his disguise, he had no authority to change the situation.

  Jana liked the elegant setting and allowed her gaze to take in its beauty. The decor was intended to give one the feeling of dining on an open terrace beneath the stars and moonlight. There were scenic outdoor murals on two of the side walls, while the remaining two were of a transparent glasslike material. The ceiling was a retractable panel that could be moved aside to reveal the heavens. Small pin-size bulbs were mounted in such a fashion as to blend unnoticeably with twinkling stars overhead. The remaining fixtures, furniture, and decorations were a careful harmonizing of amber, sky blue, and forest green. Soft music seemed to come from every direction at the same time. Muted laughter and quiet chatter filtered between the dreamy strains. The room was filled with gaiety, excitement, and tranquility—all of which Jana was feeling at that moment in her husband’s arms as they swayed to romantic music.

  “It’s over, it’s really over,” Jana murmured. “Earth is safe. And it’s because of you, my husband. How can I ever reward you properly?”

  Varian, his wits dulled by fatigue and her nearness, grinned and said, “I’m sure I can think of a way you can thank me properly, Moonbeam.”

  Jana wished he wouldn’t call her by Varian’s pet name for her, but she didn’t chide him, not tonight of all nights. Later, she would ask him to check on what would happen to her people on Anais. “It’s like an early Christmas present for everyone on Earth, a miracle, the miracle of life. Do you know how wonderful you are and how lucky I am?”

  “I can say the same thing about you, woman.”

  After a few dances and delicious meal, he said, “If you’ve partied enough, can we leave? I’m too tired to hold my eyes open another minute.”

  Over three weeks later, Jana and the blond alien were standing in the planetarium bubble atop the ship and gazing into space. After several days of rest and recuperation, Varian had been so relaxed and jubilant that this ruse would be over soon that he had been much too romantically attentive to Jana. Yet, he had promised himself he would not take heragain as his half brother and, hard as it had been, he had kept his word.

  Despite that physical denial, Jana had been drawn closer and closer to “Ryker” and had finally begun to feel as if she had conquered her past with Varian. She leaned against the clear transascreen and gave a dreamy sigh. “I believe we’ve come to trust each other enough to say anything within our hearts and minds. Am I right, my husband?” “
Of course you are, love.”

  “The past is finally over, Ryker, for both of us. I’m free of Varian, and you said you’ve taken your last revenge on him. All that stands ahead of us is a happy future. I love you and want you, only you. I believe you feel the same way about me. From this day forth, it’s just the two of us.”

  Varian’s heart almost stopped beating as he heard those alarming words. A sensation akin to sheer terror washed over him when he realized he had carried his Ryker ruse too far. He had planned one last visit to Maal’s before arranging Ryker’s “death,” confessing all to Jana, and starting over with her. He realized he could either let her join in on the remaining task or he could go see Maal alone. Either way, he had to tell her the truth before it was too late, if it wasn’t already.

  “Jana, there’s something important I must tell you.” She turned to face him fully and smiled. “What is it, my love?”

  He decided to blurt it out then explain. “I’m—”

  “Prince Ryker, there’s an urgent call for you, sir.”

  “Urgent?” Varian murmured, then stepped to the panel and said, “This is Ryker. An urgent message about what and from whom?”

  “From Prince Taemin Tabriz,” Chem replied.’ “He says it’s important.”

  Varian glanced at Jana in confusion as he asked, “He asked for me?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “How did he know I was aboard?”

  “I don’t know, sir. Shall I put him through?”

  “I’ll take it in Commander Saar’s quarters. Tell him to stand by until I get there,” Varian told him, as the line on his desk was protected in case Chem thought he should listen in on the odd communication.