by Ashley West
Every person in the room was watching them in shock as Danielle struggled to subdue the girl beneath her. She was all arms and legs, screaming curses in language she couldn’t even begin to understand as she brandished her makeshift weapon. Blood dripped down Danielle’s forearm as she caught the girl’s hands in both of hers, trying to calm her.
“Let it go! Calm down, please! It’s not worth it!”
The little thing head-butted her – brought her cranium up against Danielle’s with a solid crack that sent her reeling. Disoriented, Danielle fell to the side, shaking her head to try and clear it. Before her gaze, she watched the girl rise to her feet to lunge at the foreigners once more. Their leader caught her effortlessly by both of her wrists, squeezing until she dropped her weapon to the floor with a metallic clink.
For a moment, he merely stared down into her eyes, completely oblivious to her struggling. Then, in a smooth motion, he twisted the wrist that had held the killing implement until it snapped and the girl screamed. Immediately, the room was thrust into pandemonium. Every woman present rushed for the door, their terrified yells echoing about the room. Danielle, however, remained on the floor, still slightly dazed, droplets of her blood falling onto the concrete floor.
As her vision slid slowly back into focus, she realized that she was staring at a pair of gold armored feet. Her eyes wide, she looked up, craning her neck until her gaze finally locked with that of the alien prince. He was staring down at her with an unreadable expression. For a moment, she feared she would be the next to face his wrath; that was, until he uttered a single word.
“You.”
His eyes flashed from red, to gold, to an eerie, icy blue. “You are mine.”
Chapter Three: Engagement
Kael oversaw the loading of the humans into the massive ship that they had brought with them from Garinia. He had never relished the idea of returning home with it empty, but now, he needn’t be concerned any longer. The humans had agreed – what choice had they? And now, it was time to get their protesting numbers into the cold sleep chambers for the long trip back to their sector. They had provided the human leaders with all they needed to maintain communications, but for the rest of the human population to remain in the dark.
Informing them of their impending demise would do nothing but create mass panic. It was cold, Kael knew, but he’d made many such decisions in his forty seven moons, and he would continue to make decisions concerning the greater good for as long as he was in power. He had already informed his sister, who was ruling in his absence, that they were preparing to return. He could sense her relief. As she was now mother to an infant, she would want nothing more than to spend time with her child – his nephew and heir to the throne until he produced children of his own.
The thought was…somewhat unsettling.
As Kael watched his fellow Garinians herd thousands of humans up the ramps, his mind turned to the one waiting for him in his quarters. He hadn’t even noticed her at first. Of all the women in the room, she had not done anything in particular to catch his attention – no screaming, fainting or hysterics – at least not until the girl next to her had attempted to harm her. That one had spirit, he was willing to admit. If she didn’t clearly despise him, he might have chosen her. She was comely enough. Instead, he’d had to punish her – as he would anyone so bold.
And it was his rescuer that he was to wed.
She was a slender, unassuming thing, with a delicate beauty that could very easily be overlooked if one didn’t examine her closely. Large, cornflower blue eyes with long lashes, honey colored skin and tousled blonde waves that were unkempt and short, framing her angular, narrow face. She was clad in regulation hospital wear and she needed to be fattened up a bit, but there was nothing particularly wrong with her.
Her form was pleasing enough to the eye, and more than that, for some reason, she had placed herself between him and danger. An unnecessary gesture, to be sure, but intriguing, none the less. He should be interested to see what sort of person she was.
After all, one day, she would be Queen of Garinia- no small title. All of this, he would have to explain to her. It wasn’t a task he relished, and more than anything, he simply wanted to slip into his cold sleep without facing the female he knew awaited him.
As a prince, however, he couldn’t afford such luxuries. Just as he would now have to contend with the fact that, were he to die in combat, he would now leave behind a wife, and soon, perhaps a child. He, however, would not let such things soften him. He was, after all, a prince and the foremost Garinian warrior. To die in battle would be an honor for him – as long as he left an heir behind.
A single moon ago, he wouldn’t have been able to contemplate starting a family before his sixtieth moon. But now, he had to serve as an example – though part of him believed the sacrifice was hardly needed. Already, some of his soldiers were eying the human females with more than a passing interest. If they wanted to take the women as brides, however, they would have to woo them – and they knew woefully little about how human men courted human women.
This would be interesting, to say the least. And as soon as the repopulation commenced, there would be the next campaign to begin planning. According to Kaia, there had already been some skirmishes concerning their new Reman colony – tussles that suggested that a firmer hand might be needed.
He would deal with those matters when he returned. For now, he needed to have a long talk with his bride to be. He checked with Yasin, his second in command, to ensure that they were having no unmanageable problems in getting the humans into cold sleep, before he slipped into the ship.
The long, white corridors were his brother’s handiwork – Jalil was one of the empire’s leading engineers and had created their current generation starcraft with fairly little effort on his part. Garinian scientists called him a genius, but Kael was used to his antics. He’d always excelled in all his studies – which was why he’d rather remain at home in a laboratory than to see what lie beyond his home planet. Marc, in similar fashion, preferred his work in the citadel’s libraries to anything that would take him far from home. At seventy moons, he was the eldest in their family, and should have been king when their father died, rest his soul.
But Marc did not have the disposition to be king. His heart was kind, he didn’t understand that, sometimes, there was a necessity for war. The repercussions of the decisions he might have made haunted him even before he took the throne, and so, he had passed power to Kael.
He would never pretend that it was easy – and he had not even yet been crowned. At the very least, he had Kaia at his side to advise him, she tempered him when he most needed it. He only wished he had her guidance now, to help him deal with the woman with whom he was supposed to share his body and his bed.
He made his way into the bowels of the ship, past the numerous rooms in which technicians and soldiers were helping humans prepare for cold sleep. In his own quarters, now, there would be a medical officer helping the golden haired woman ready herself to sleep two of her own years away –a concept that would seem as foreign to her as the idea of interstellar flight. Sure enough, when he entered his private quarters, two medical officers had cornered the young woman in a corner of the room, where she was eyeing them both as if frightened that they meant to disembowel her where she stood.
“Stop.” He barked the command in their tongue. “You’re frightening her. If she panics, she will never allow the cold sleep procedure.” Immediately, both of the medics bowed, scurrying from the room rather than risk his continuing wrath – leaving him alone with her.
At birth, every Garinian was implanted with a translation chip which could lend understanding to a language and provide complete mastery of it after only registering a few key words. It was this that had allowed him to learn the most common human tongue – something they called English. He used it to speak to her now. “What is your name?”
For a moment, the woman simply stared at him, her blue eyes wide, li
ps slightly parted in surprise. When he arched a dark brow, however, she quickly found the power of speech. “I’m – I’m Danielle. Danielle Bowery.” She swallowed visibly, pressing herself against the opposite wall as he advanced on her. “Who…who are you?”
The corner of his mouth kicked up in amused smirk at her statement. Her impudence would only be allowed because she had questions that needed answering. Usually, the punishment for such a brash question would be quite dire. “I am Kael Al’Hazzar, Crown Prince of Garinia, and your future husband.”
Danielle gaped at him for a moment. He took the opportunity to look her over. She was still wearing her plain medical shift, which covered her to mid-thigh, exposing legs that were long and shapely – without a single scar. He felt himself stir in response to her slightly open mouth and flushed face.
At least there would be no difficulties copulating with her. “My…my what?” She finally managed.
“Your husband.” He replied seamlessly, reaching for the fastenings on his armor to release the torso covering before tossing it onto the sleeping bed that floated in mid-air next to them. The plates on his thighs, shins, and buttocks followed, leaving him clad in only his gleaming black under armor. “I’m sure you have questions, and I will answer a few of them now. Most will have to wait until our return to Garinia.” He eyed her carefully, observing that she still seemed ready to climb the wall at any moment. “Do you understand?”
Slowly, she shook her head. “No.” The word escaped her on a breath. “I don’t understand. Why us? Why are you taking us from Earth and leaving everyone else? What do you want from us? And why am I going to be your wife? I’m absolutely no one! Do I get any say in this?”
Well, she certainly got straight to the point.
Undoing the fastenings on the front of his suit, he proceeded to answer her questions in order. “You happen to be a race that is genetically compatible with my own, with a few generic alterations, of course. You are being taken from the Earth because you are immune to the disease that currently ravages your race. The others are being left because there is nothing we can do to save them, save provide immune children that will forge a future for humanity. As for why you are going to be my wife? You have genetic attributes that will provide me with a strong heir…and interest me for reasons I cannot fully comprehend. You may say anything you wish, though you might like to keep in mind that you are bound for my home world, the entirety of which adheres to my laws. If I want you, there is no corner of the universe to which you could run to escape me.” He shed the upper half of his suit in a smooth movement, taking in the human woman’s sharp inhalation.
He was aware of the fact that he was not unpleasing to the eye of most women, but this entire process would be eased if she was attracted to him.
There was now no question of that.
“W-what are you doing?” She inquired as he began to slip from the rest of his suit. Kael gave a long-suffering sigh.
“I am preparing for cold sleep, as you should as well. The two medical officers were trying to help you. Shall I call them back?”
By now, he was completely naked before her, and her eyes were wider than they’d ever been before. She took him in from head to foot, and he could fairly hear her heart pounding against her ribs. When he took a step forward, she attempted to retreat further into her corner, only to be greeted by the solid wall behind her.
Reaching forward, Kael took her chin in his hand, gazing into her uncertain eyes. “I’m going to call the medical officers, and you will prepare for cold sleep. Is that understood?” When she failed to respond, her gaze fixed on his, he jerked her forward, to shock her from her reverie. The slide of her smaller form against his was surprisingly alluring, and when the whim came to him, he reached for the hem of her gown.
Only the slightest sound of protest escaped the young woman as he removed the garment, sliding it up over her head to drop it errantly to the floor. She was bare beneath, and for the first time, he looked upon the woman he’d chosen with no barriers between them.
She was thin – her waist tiny in comparison to the ample swell of her hips and breasts. Her stomach was flat, her legs long and sinuous, and between rested a thatch of blonde curls that matched the color of the waves atop her head. Her breasts were topped with peach colored peaks – something unique to her race, but oddly arousing; and as she looked up at him, her cheeks flushing a deep red as she hurried to cover herself, he found himself wishing there was more time before they left – if not to discern her personality, then at least to become familiar with the body that now belonged to him. When his thumb brushed over the plumpness of her lips, she shivered beneath his touch, her eyes sliding closed. “Please…” The word escaped her on a breathy whisper.
He had no idea what she was begging him for, escape, or quick penetration, but unfortunately, he hadn’t the time to address either. He took a step back from her, tearing his gaze from her slender form as he pressed a button on the console to his left to call back the medical officers. “You must prepare for cold sleep.” His tone was firm, even if he was battling an almost irrepressible desire to make her his in that very moment. “Will you cooperate?”
At that moment, the two medical personnel re-entered, one male and one female, this time eying their quarry with decidedly more caution. With a small, affronted sound, Danielle snatched up her gown to cover herself. He might have told her that she could take nothing with her into the cold sleep capsule, but she would discover that fact soon enough. She looked from him to the doctors before giving a minute nod.
In an instant, they were at her side, snatching her gown from her to begin examining her. She would be given a drug that would alter her chemical and genetic makeup slowly, over the next moon cycle, so that by the time they arrived in Garinia, she would be able to withstand both the increased gravity and hotter temperatures. And when they arrived, she would be assessed for how easily she could bear his heir.
Then, they would be wed.
Though the date was one full moon in the future, the time would pass quickly, and he could only hope that by the time the event occurred, she was prepared for what would be expected of her. He would expect no less.
Kael stood by, watching with no small amount of amusement as the medical officers fitted her with the cold sleep nodules before administering the injections that would work on her DNA while she slept. She seemed incredibly uncomfortable with her own nakedness, though he could see nothing she might be ashamed of.
Indeed, it was difficult for him to look away from her nude form. She would need to gain weight if she were to withstand his brand of loving, and he would see that it was seen to the moment he returned home. When they had finished with her, the doctors fitted him with the same apparatus they had his bride to be before folding the cold sleep modules down from the ceiling above.
When Danielle gazed upon the machine, fear glowed in her eyes. Taking her wrist, Kael led her firmly over to the cold sleep capsule, turning her head gently so she met his gaze. “All will be well. You will sleep without dreams, and when you wake, everything will be different.” With that, he handed her off once more to the doctors, who somehow managed to ease her trembling form into the capsule. Then, within minutes, she was asleep, all her fears and insecurities erased from her mind by the drug coursing through her system.
For a brief moment before he entered his own chamber, Kael stared through the glass at her. Such a small, weak little thing. How would she ever rise to rule an empire as vast as Garinia? She would require no small amount of grooming – and she would have to learn to trust him. At the very least, to obey him.
Her people would look to her for guidance, and she would have to deliver – or else risk being crushed beneath the weight of the world to which she’d been spirited away.
**
It was a struggle.
Trying to swim out of the peaceful darkness in which she’d been entombed. Surprisingly, Danielle felt not the slightest iota of panic or unease. She
drifted, slowly, back into consciousness, as if stepping from the depths of a chasm in which time and space had no meaning.
She felt stiff.
When she blinked, light pierced her lids, making her wince as she tried to adjust. It felt like an eternity since she’d opened her eyes.
And then, it hit her.
It had been an eternity.
Two whole years. As her vision slowly swam into focus, she realized that she was still inside the cold sleep capsule in which she’d spent the past two years of her life unconscious. Her first instinct was to panic. She had never been a fan of closed spaces – but before the urge could overtake her, she was entranced by the sight just beyond the glass panel.
Prince Kael Al’Hazzar. Her…intended? She was still trying to wrap her head around what he’d told her. She was supposed to be providing him with children? Something about preserving the future of humanity by creating some kind of hybrid with his own race…and she was supposed to marry him. Would that make her queen? Some sort of weird concubine? She had no idea how the customs of this society worked – he’d explained desperately little to her before she’d been put to sleep.
All she knew was that her fate was now somehow intertwined with a man who frightened her as much as he aroused her.
Absolutely transfixed, she stared through the window of the capsule at the naked man before her. He was immense – a tall column of well-muscled flesh from pale, broad shoulders to slim waist, each abdominal muscle chiseled precisely into his frame. When it came to anatomy, there were very little differences between their races – the man had a very familiar sexual organ, even if the size was enough to make her light-headed.
