Rai

by Maia Starr

  “What fields? Where are we going?” I asked Amelia.

  “The flower and herb fields. That is what these baskets are for. We will fill them with edible flowers and herbs for the kitchens. It sounds like work, but it is so beautiful it is actually a luxury. I think it is the perfect meditation,” she said.

  “I love gardening, I bet I will absolutely love it,” I said to her. As we walked along, Brenda, Stephanie, and Michelle walked ahead of us, talking to each other. While Amelia and I lagged behind. I looked ahead at the women.

  “I assume that they have their own stories as well, their stories about coming here,” I said.

  She laughed. “Yes, of course. But I will let them tell. Feel free to ask them whenever; no one here is a shame to speak of it.”

  “I will keep that in mind,” I said.

  “Amelia, may I ask you a question?” I said.

  “Of course,” she said.

  “How did you know that Ravinn was the one for you? The absolute one,” I whispered to her.

  “Good question. I didn't know right away. But it was a feeling. We fought a lot when we first met, but it was fiery and explosive. There was a lot of chemistry there; it was almost animalistic. Before I knew it, I could not be apart from him, and being apart made me feel sick to my stomach. I knew then that I loved him.”

  “Why do you ask?”

  “I think you know,” I said.

  “Oh yes, the commander. He is much sought-after as a mate,” she said. “Before you arrived of course.”

  “Really? I did not know that. He is something else. But it is more about being taken from Earth to be a mate. It still feels a little weird to me.”

  “Yes, I want to say that will go away but it never really does. It is a strange fact, and it is a brutal one. These warriors are very dominant, and they want what they want. They want us, so they take us; there's something very pure about that but also very wrong. Lucky for most of us, we have fallen in love with our mates. Not to mention that the king is very good about making sure the female also wants the Draqua.”

  “Really? So if I chose to not want Cerik?”

  “Then you would not be forced to marry him. You would be able to live here and find a new mate. There are plenty to choose from, and almost all of them are incredibly sexy.”

  I giggled at her remark. “I did not know that I would be able to choose.”

  “Yes, I was told it was not always like that. But the queen has a lot to do with it. She is a human too, if you do not know.”

  “I have heard that. But I wasn't exactly sure.”

  “Yes, she keeps the king in line as far as the human females are concerned. No one is to be treated badly, and that is something that she requires of him. He is very much in love with her and does whatever she says.”

  “She must be a very strong person,” I said.

  “Yes, and very kind. You will meet her. Eventually, everyone does. Look, we are here,” she said as she skipped ahead of me.

  I looked to see the jungle path giving way to a large field. I stopped in my tracks in gasped. It was absolutely beautiful. There were very tall flowers, some of them towering above us. The smell that the colorful field gave off was heavenly. There were blue flowers, purple, yellow, green, white, and on and on. There was a large variety, and as soon as the women entered the field, they began to skip around and frolic. I joined them. I ran into the field, jumping and dancing around. There were massive butterflies flying around landing on the large flowers. It felt like the entire meadow was alive and vibrating. I was astounded by just how magical it was.

  “Come I will show you what to pick,” the woman named Michelle beckoned me to her.

  “Thank you,” I said as I followed her. She showed me how to identify the various herbs and flowers. It was a beautiful lesson, and I was enjoying it immensely. Before long, I was identifying the edible herbs myself on my own. I had Michelle go through my basket before we were done to make sure that everything I had was the right ones. She was very impressed that everything I had was right. It felt good. I felt useful, and I was enjoying that feeling. If this was work on this island, then I was very lucky to be a part of this alien planet. Everything felt like a luxury vacation, from the tree houses to the crystal-clear water of the beaches. Before we left the meadow, we all laid down in the tall grass and looked up at the sky. We took a good thirty-minute rest, and Stephanie dozed off a little. It was a very relaxing afternoon. It was a reward for having done the work. I laid on my back and looked up at the sky and felt more relaxed than I ever had on Earth. Not even a getaway in the desert made me feel this relaxed. I wondered if it was the potent fragrance of the flowers that was making us feel so calm and peaceful. After half an hour, our time was up. We started to make our way back from the fields.

  We walked through the jungle back to the village. But as we walked, we decided to take a different path.

  “This one goes by the barracks,” Stephanie said, moving her eyebrows up and down. We all laughed. As soon as we were close to the military installation, I could smell the manly musk. I was becoming aroused by all the testosterone and wished that I were with the commander. I was suddenly very turned on and wanted that release. The girls giggled as we watched the Draqua in training. Some of them were training by fighting each other, and it was very interesting to watch. It was a mix of flying and ground fighting. I had never seen anything like it.

  “Come on, we should get going we need to help with dinner,” Amelia said pulling us away from the fun. Some of the girls groaned in annoyance.

  Finally, we arrived at the outdoor kitchens. It was nothing but a few outdoor stoves and pits, like barbecue pits. I liked that it was outdoors because the weather was always beautiful and it would not be so hot. I took the herbs and flowers I picked, and the women showed me how to clean and hang them. We had a lot of fun talking and working. We sometimes talked about things from Earth that we missed, like shopping and makeup. It was fun to have people that understood me around.

  Then a friendly Draqua female named Ashleen showed me how to prepare fish and crab, as well as cook it. I was learning a lot, more than I would ever learn on Earth. I was hardly a cook on Earth. Here I was learning to prepare and make healthy meals, and I was enjoying it.

  The next morning I stayed in bed a little longer. I was feeling tired and thought that perhaps it was just from overdoing it the day before. I got up from the bed and ate a snack; then I fell back to sleep. I had not done that in a long time, not since my partying days back on Earth.

  When I finally woke up, I decided to take a walk. I needed some alone time. I did enjoy the company of Amelia and the other human females. But sometimes you just want to be alone. I took a few winding paths that I had never taken before and found myself in a place I had never seen. I looked up the rocky mountainside and saw the beautiful palace that I had only seen from a distance before. Now that I was getting a closer look I saw the exquisite stonework carved into the mountain. It was beautiful, better than any castle you would see in England. I looked up at the palace remembering what Amelia had said; the queen was human. She was the reason we were treated so well. I wondered what her story was, like how did she come to be on this planet anyway? I hoped that one day I would be able to ask her. I walked back toward the village. I thought I would make myself useful and went straight to the kitchens, mostly because I was hungry, but also to offer any help. I helped prepare a late breakfast and ate while I prepared.

  But while I was working in the village kitchens, I saw Hekan gesturing at me from afar. I excused myself from the kitchens with a promise to return for breakfast the next day as well. I quietly made my way over to Hekan.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “Jrarka has asked for you,” he said.

  My heart stopped. “Do you think he has results for me?” I asked.

  “It is possible,” he said. “Come, I will take you.”

  I held my breath and followed him.

  Momen
ts later, we were in the familiar hut of the healer. I had an enormous amount of anxiety inside of me. It was fluttering around like a massive butterfly in my stomach.

  “Maria, how are you feeling today?” Jrarka asked.

  “I am feeling fine. I am feeling more like myself now that I have had a lot of rest and eat properly. Why? Should I not be feeling good?” I wrung my hands together.

  “I have looked over the viral recipe that the king gave me. I did not detect any of the abnormalities that should show up in your blood if you have it. So far, I think you are fine. Unless this virus has a very long gestation. I still need to play with it a little longer, and my colleagues are working on a vaccination. There is a whole team behind it. But for now, I can positively say that it is not in your blood.”

  I sighed in relief. “ So you are saying that I am cleared?”

  “Yes, Maria, you are in the clear. You are all cleared,” Jrarka said.

  “That is great news!” Hekan said. I was so excited that I turned to him and hugged him.

  “Cleared of what? What the hell is going on here?” I heard a deep voice growl.

  I turned to see Cerik standing in the doorway. He had a look of murder on his face, and I thought that he would kill Hekan, the way he was looking at him.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  COMMANDER CERIK HADE

  The next day, I was busy with my commander responsibilities and was glad for the distraction. I had to restrain myself from going to see Maria at every break that I had. But I knew that she was spending the day with Amelia, the wife of Ravinn, and that gave me some comfort. It was necessary for me to give her her space. It was what she needed; she needed time. But when I saw her with Hekan, the jealousy raged inside of me again. I was on the village ground walking by when I happened to look up and see Maria and Hekan walking into the healer hut once again. What the hell was going on?

  “Commander, I need you to sign off on these,” a warrior interrupted me. I was about to shift into Dragon form and fly up to confront Maria and Hekan.

  “Can it wait?”

  “No, sorry, sir. The captain is requesting these right now. It is important for the new structure being implemented around the water tanks. It is of utmost importance,” he said.

  “Very well, quickly,” I said. I quickly looked over the projections and approved the twenty guards that would be standing watch at all times at the water tanks.

  “Thank you, Commander,” he said as I handed them back to him. I quickly moved away and shifted into Dragon form. I flew straight up the tree and onto the platform. I quietly walked in when I overheard the conversation and saw Maria in Hekan’s arms. I wanted to tear his face off.

  “Cleared of what? What the hell is going on here?” I growled.

  “Cerik?” Maria said as she pulled away from Hekan.

  “What are you doing here? This is a private meeting,” she said.

  “Then what is he doing here?”

  “I think it is time that you told him, Maria,” Hekan said. “I will be leaving you now.” Hekan gave me an angry look and then stepped out.

  “What is it? What have you been doing with Hekan? What is all this secrecy for? And why the hell are you here with Jrarka?”

  She sighed and looked at the healer.

  “I think it is alright for you to tell him now. But I have a lot of work to do; you must excuse me,” he said.

  “Fine,” I said in anger. I scooped her up into my arms.

  “What? Cerik, what are you doing?” she said. But I ignored her. I moved out onto the platform and took a running start. I jumped off the edge and spread my wings wide, flying into the trees.

  “What do you think you are doing? Where are we going?”

  “To my hut. It is where you rightfully belong anyway,” I said in a moment of my heated rage. Then she was quiet. She pressed her cheek against my chest. I could feel her body relax in my arms. I wanted to kiss her lips. I had missed those lips. Just feeling her luscious body in my arms was enough to make me forget that I was angry. I just wanted to lay her on my bed and push my fat cock inside of her. I wanted to claim her. She was mine, damn it.

  Moments later, I flew into my home. I set her down on her feet. I looked into her beautiful big eyes.

  “Now tell me what all this secrecy is about. I won't take more of your lies,” I said. “What did Jrarka mean you are cleared?”

  “I thought I had the virus.”

  “What?”

  “Yes, I thought that when I was on the ship and Ephane experimented on me, I thought that's what he was doing. I didn't know about it until you mentioned the virus when we were on the moon. I have worried since then that perhaps they injected me with the virus when I was asleep. I thought that was what they were experimenting with. But I had no way of knowing for sure.”

  I gasped. I could not believe it. She had been hiding this from me ever since the moon. No wonder she had shut down. She was worrying about it for very long. With no one to confide in. It hurt my heart to know that she was in such distress and all alone. “Why did you not tell me? We could have worked on it together. You did not have to do it alone? Why did you confide in Hekan and not me? Do you love him?”

  “What? Hekan? No. It is not like that. I confided in him because I did not want you to know that I might have it. If you knew, then that would mean that you would not want me ever again.”

  “What? What makes you say that?” I said as I put my hands on her delicate shoulders and forced her to look at me.

  “You told me that the entire reason you took me from Earth was so that I could be your mate. So that I could provide you with offspring to keep your race going. If I had the virus, I would be barren and not able to do that for you. You would dump me in an instant and find another human female,” she said as she cried.

  I pulled her into my arms and rubbed her back up and down. “No, I would never do that. We would get through it together. If you have the virus, it will make no difference. I would still want to be with you, Maria. There would be hope eventually with a vaccine, and even if it was never ever cured, I would just do without offspring. We would make it work no matter what.”

  “You only say that now because I do not have it. Or at least Jrarka says it is too early to tell, but that he does not see any signs of it. I am still not completely sure yet.”

  “It does not matter. It does not matter at all. I want you, Maria. I don't want anyone else. Seeing you with Hekan set off such a rage inside of me that I know now that it is because I love you. I am in love with you. I cannot see you with anyone else. My mind will not allow it. I have wanted you ever since I saw you. These last few days of you rejecting my advances has been torture. I need you.”

  “I need you too Cerik,” she said.

  “Then, let me in. Do not deny me any longer, Maria. I have apologized so many times about the mission and taking you along. I have so much guilt about it. But can we not move past it? I need to be with you. It is torture being apart.”

  “Yes, I feel tortured to not being able to touch you,” she said laying her small hands flat on my chest. She looked up at me and said, “I do not hate you. Now that I have seen Amelia with her child, I see how important the mission was to everyone here. In fact, now that I am all right, I am glad that I was part of it. If I had been living here before the mission began, I would have volunteered for it. I would have volunteered to be the bait and the distraction that you needed in order for Ephane to believe you were on a mission to fetch a female from Earth. I see why it was such an important mission. The entire planet here relies on that one mission. I do not hate you for it. In fact, I think you are very brave and full of courage for being the one to do it, all by yourself. You are a Draqua hero, Commander Cerik Hade,” she said. Then she got up on her toes and reached for me.

  I leaned down and pressed my lips against hers. I'm moaned in relief from feeling her again. But I was also extremely aroused that she had called me a hero. My ego loved hearing that from t
he woman that I desired and loved. I allowed my hands to move down her small back over the sheer fabric until they were scooping her plump bottom. She let out a soft whimper as I kissed her and fondled her. I pulled the sheer dress up higher and higher. She stepped away from me and put her hands over her head. I pulled the dress off of her.

  “You have taken to dressing in the Draqua way very well. You look damn good in it; good enough to eat.”

  “I am glad that you think so,” she playfully said. I threw the sheer dress on the ground and scooped her up into my arms. I walked her over to my bed and laid her down on the soft mattress. Then I stepped away from her for a few steps.

  “What are you doing? Where are you going?” she said sitting up.

  “I am going to shift out of dragon form,” I said.

  “No, don't. I want you to stay that way, please,” she said looking very embarrassed that she was requesting such a thing. I liked it.