by Kora Knight
Alec swallowed and looked away. Would Gesh still go through with selling them tomorrow? Alec couldn’t really think of a reason why he’d suddenly change his mind. Maybe because of Noah, sure, but he kind of doubted it. Gesh and his pack just didn’t seem the type who settled down with partners and shit. Yeah, Noah was attractive, and fun, and smart. And yeah, Gesh clearly was fond of him. But overall, looking at the bigger picture, Alec suspected that wouldn’t be enough.
As Miros finished his night cap and stretched out beside him, Alec turned and met his eyes.
“Miros?”
“Tah.”
“Is Gesh really going to sell us?”
Miros held his gaze for an unsettlingly long time, then exhaled a long sober breath. “Do not think about the future.” He pulled Alec closer and nuzzled his neck. “Just close your eyes and enjoy your body’s peace.”
Yeah, his body’s. Because God fucking knew, there’d be no peace in his mind tonight.
CHAPTER TEN
* * *
The next morning came faster than Alec would have liked. Probably because he’d slept like a baby. But after such shitty sleep the night before and two days of exhausting consciousness, he supposed that only made sense. Hell, he’d essentially been edged for twenty-four hours straight while hiking cross-country non-stop. Shit like that’d take its toll on a guy.
So, yeah, he must’ve been sleeping super deep, because not only did he wake up feeling totally refreshed, but in a completely different location than where he’d crashed. In fact, the only thing that remained the same was the huge Kríe pressed up against him. Different snooze spot, different fur mound, but definitely the same male. And not just any male, but the one who’d fucked Alec’s brains out, then given him his body heat to fall asleep to. The same Kríe, as it were, whose soft, snoring breaths were currently tickling Alec’s neck.
He glanced around what was presumably Miro’s sleeping cubby, impressed that he’d moved Alec without ever waking him. His lips twitched. Maybe all that cum Miros pumped up his ass had built-in sleeping agents. Because he’d certainly pumped a lot. After they’d finished, Alec’s ass had kept seeping right up until he’d fallen asleep.
Come to think of it… He shifted, curious to see if he’d stick to anything. Nope. Not stuck. But definitely nice and sore. Not painfully, just enough to make sure that he felt it every single time he moved. Did he mind that that’d prove to be a perpetual reminder of what he’d engaged in last night? Strangely, not really. After all, it’d been one hell of a pleasurable experience. In truth, the very best one of his life.
Besides, the way he saw it, what happened on Nira stayed on Nira, and he was pretty sure his teammates would concur. That shit didn’t need to go down in the log books. It was the team’s business and the team’s business alone. Their impossibly hot—albeit unexpected—kinky little out-of-this-world secret. Because no doubt about it, what they’d done in front of that fire pit was definitely pervier than shit. And fuck if every one of them hadn’t absolutely enjoyed it. Reveled in it. Embraced it, even.
Strange how, by the end, none seemed to even care about how it all began. With Gesh tricking them into eating that fruit, then keeping them as his tag-along captives. Maybe because in the end, he’d never hurt them. Never forced them to do anything they weren’t ready to do. And honestly, as ridiculous as it sounded even to Alec, at the end of the day, his team hadn’t been kept from any crucial matters anyway. They had an entire year to kill before someone came and got them. In fact, realistically speaking, Gesh finding them like he had might have been their saving grace. Their food rations would’ve only lasted for so long. And while they all were pretty versed on how to live off the land, Alec had no doubt there were way more predators around than just those ornery dragons. Ones that were just as aggressive and hungry, but lurked below the trees, on the ground. Among unsuspecting prey like Alec’s team. Sure they had guns, but guns used ammo, and their ammo would eventually run out. After that, all it’d take was one determined pack of whatevers to send their expedition downhill fast.
Alec’s blood chilled at the thought. Because getting eaten—or worse, eaten alive—wasn’t exactly a happy visual. So, yeah, overall, despite his unorthodox behavior, Gesh’s coming along was probably for the best. He’d provided food and water, shelter and protection, knowledge and insight to the land. Who fucking cared if the dude had wanted to screw them. Again, he hadn’t forced himself on anyone. Kríe were just intrinsically sexual creatures, a fact that’d been clear from the start. And a fact they’d never once tried to hide. So the pack liked sex, and Alec’s species aroused them. Big deal. Who cared. Human males liked sex, too. Lots of it. And all the damn time. So really, they weren’t too different after all.
And if Alec was being honest, he’d have to admit that he was kind of glad Gesh put him in that position. Because all it ultimately did was give Alec a valid excuse to finally get some quality action. God knew it’d been way too fucking long. And while, sure, this was tossing things onto a whole new level of fetish—breaching out not only to sex with other males, but with a completely different species, too—Alec just couldn’t find it in him to care. He was an explorer, for fuck’s sake. Down to his bones. Driven to discover new worlds, new things, which logically involved experiencing them, too. Which he’d done last night in fucking spades, and honestly, would love to do again.
He sighed and glanced out of the sleeping unit’s opening, where a couple of Kríe were building a fresh fire. After breakfast they’d undoubtedly be on their way again. To Alec’s team’s “final destination.” This “homeland” the Kríe spoke of. What awaited them there? Would they be forced into servitude? Made to do only God knew what? His stomach clenched as he looked at his bound wrists, feeling another powerful urge to run. No doubt, his self-preservation instincts blaring for him to do something. But he was tied up and naked, locked inside a compound. What the flying fuck could he do?
Pray that Gesh would change his mind, and that was pretty much it.
And there it was, come full circle. The big, fat, bottom-line, glaring reason why meeting Gesh had not been good. The Kríe who could’ve been their biggest ally, but instead was choosing to be their biggest foe.
* * *
Fortunately, breakfast lifted Alec’s spirits a little. As soon as Miros roused, he fetched Alec’s clothes, then brought Alec to the fire pit for food. Most of the others were already gathered, including Noah and Gesh. Alec had eyed the two hopefully, looking for signs that the Kríe had changed his mind. Sadly, he hadn’t found anything encouraging. Unless Gesh hand-feeding Noah as Noah sat on his lap meant something Alec wasn’t aware of. Typically, one might say it did, but knowing this pack? Well… Even humans hand-fed their pets. Pets that often times ended up in animal shelters as, for lack of a better word, unwanted.
Way too strong a parallel as far as Alec was concerned.
So, no, it wasn’t Gesh and Noah’s cute-but-meaningless-fun that had Alec’s brain on brighter things. It was the myriad of fruit wedges, stacked high on a skewer, that Miros had cooked over the fire. Holy shit, how they melted like butter in Alec’s mouth. There was something about the fruits’ denser flesh that made it a kind of meat in itself. Grilled to perfection, their juices didn’t just caramelize, but turned almost savory, too.
Alec moaned, chewing blissfully, not thinking about anything else.
Miros sat down beside him. “You like.” He smiled.
Alec nodded and smiled back. “I love.”
“Good.” Miros’ big eyes dropped to Alec’s lips. “Esh. You eat like an animal.”
Alec paused, brows lifting. “I… I do?”
“Tah.” Miros swiped the corner of Alec’s mouth, his thumb coming away glossed with syrup. His full lips quirked as he licked it clean. Alec chuckled and shook his head.
Zaden strode over a minute later while Naydo went and parked it by the fire.
“Z. My man. Have you had a kabob? No joke, this shit’s straight fr
om the gods.”
Zaden chuckled and sat down, holding a tin mug. “Nope. Not yet. But I’m on my second one of these.” He showed Alec his drink and smiled wide. “Best cup of joe in the cosmos.”
Alec’s brows shot up again. “Coffee? Are you serious?”
“No,” Z laughed, shaking his head. “But in my opinion, way fucking better.”
Alec drew in a slow, deep breath through his nose, getting a nice good whiff. “Ah, God. Yeah. Smells like hazelnut.”
“Or at least something comparable. Naydo calls its kahtcha.”
Alec eyed it longingly, then looked at Miros. Miros grunted and rose to his feet.
Zaden watched as the Kríe went to get Alec some, too. “He’s cool. I like him.”
Alec looked at his friend. “You saying he gives you good vibes?”
Zaden nodded. “Yeah. I guess. I mean, they all kind of do.” His dark eyes slid over to Noah and Gesh. “But just like us, they’ve got their demons.”
“Demons? What do you mean?”
Zaden shrugged. “You know, vices. Things that make them weak. Or affect their better judgement.” He tilted his head in Gesh’s direction. “His, for example, is greed.”
Alec’s jaw clenched tight in understanding. Gesh’s “demon” was the thing selling them out.
Chet, Bailey and Jamis ambled over, steaming skewers of food in their hands.
“Hey, guys,” Bailey greeted, having a seat.
“Morning.” Jamis sat down beside him.
Chet, however, joined them with a grunt, gesturing with his chin to Noah. “What the fuck is up with them?” Never one to beat around the bush.
The five peered over at the cozy couple.
“Don’t really know.” Alec shrugged. “Guess Noah likes him.”
“Huh.” Chet watched them. “I mean, I knew Noah was into guys, but…”
Bailey chuckled and shook his head. “At this stage in the game, I think one’s orientation is pretty relative. If I’m not mistaken, every single one of us came harder than shit last night.” He smirked and lifted a challenging brow. “And not one by a fucking female.”
They all swapped sheepish looks, glancing this way and that.
Finally, Alec cleared his throat and motioned to Noah and Gesh. “Well, those two obviously have the strongest connection, but unfortunately it’s kind of a moot point. As you know, after breakfast, we’re heading back out.”
His teammates sobered.
Chet murmured in Noah’s direction. “Come on, pretty boy. Crank up your magic. Time’s ticking and you’re our last ace.”
* * *
Back on the leash with wrists snuggly bound, and rope ever weaved between their legs, Alec and his teammates headed west, led by their bedmates-slash-captors. Talk about a head-fuck of epic proportions. Miros and Naydo, Roni and the twins? They acted like they genuinely liked the team. So against all odds, Alec had let himself hope that maybe the Kríe considered them closer to equals. Not just mere playthings, or merchandise to sell. But as the pack continued to pull them along, Alec reluctantly accepted he’d been wrong. These males were fundamentally just way too arrogant, set in their arrogant Kríe ways. Only an idiot would believe that after two days and a fuck, these nomads would suddenly change their thinking. Or in the pack’s case, their order of operations. Which, as scavengers living off the land, meant selling or trading anything of value.
So it was up to Alec and his team to get themselves out of this mess. These Kríe weren’t their allies. They were dubious and cunning antagonists. Living, breathing obstacles amidst the adventure.
Alec forced himself to swallow that pill, as jagged and bitter as it was. And then he forced himself to focus, because it was definitely time to start plotting. Who knew how long they had until they reached the imminent “homeland.”
Shoving one of his bound hands into his right pocket, he dug out that shard of rock he’d stowed. The one Naydo hadn’t seen him conceal when he’d returned from helping his pack slay those dragons. Discreetly, Alec snapped the thin stone in half and handed a piece to Zaden. No words were spoken as they walked side by side. Both men knew what they needed to do. Too bad Chet was at the front of the line. If they ever got their binds free, any backup would be a plus. Because it wasn’t like the other three could offer much help. They were scientists, after all, not soldiers.
As they trudged along, quietly sawing at their ropes, Alec took in the changing landscape. They’d been heading around the mountain Gesh’s compound was built into, tromping through more never-ending jungle. But now their path was definitely climbing higher, leaving all that rainforest behind. From what he could see, they were headed through a passage, a raised ravine of sorts between two mountains.
Soon they were completely free of woodland—with no protective tree cover overhead. Alec realized this was the first time since the day they crashed that they didn’t have a canopy shielding them from flyers. He eyed the steep sides of the waterless gorge, wondering what other dangers lurked. On Earth, these parts would be crawling with mountain lions. It occurred to him then that while traveling with the Kríe, they’d never once come across other land predators. Only dragons had threatened, and they’d come from the sky.
As if lured by his thoughts, flyers screeched in the distance. Alec’s team tensed instantly, grinding to a stop, but their leash holders just grunted and tugged them on.
A couple yards ahead, where Gesh walked beside Noah, the blond scientist nervously spoke up. “Aren’t you worried that they’re gonna attack us? Shouldn’t we seek shelter or something?”
“Mah.” No. Gesh pointed to several locations above. “Look carefully. Do you see those small, concealed stations?”
Noah nodded. “Yeah, I see them now.”
“Our king has hundreds of sentries atop the mountains, ready to protect the region at all costs. Those stations above us, like countless others, are specifically equipped to ward off flyers.”
Alec’s team peered warily up at the sky, while Gesh’s pack barely batted a lash. Evidently, the competence of those sentries preceded them.
“How do they ward them off?” Bailey asked, stumbling into Jamis. Someone needed to watch where he was going.
“Wait and see.” Gesh grinned. “I am certain you will like this.”
Not two seconds later, the flyers flew into view, a trio of them, just like before. Guess dragons on Nira liked to travel in threes. Alec tensed, their keening cries sending goosebumps down his spine. But just as they twisted, readying to dive, sleek projectiles nailed them in the side. Shrieking, they jerked, then plummeted out of sight somewhere behind the mountain’s steep horizon.
“Damn,” Chet muttered. “What kind of shots were those?”
Jamis eyed the sky. “Yeah. Didn’t see any blood.”
“Electric-charged darts,” Roni answered, walking over. “Effective and very powerful.”
“Electric?” Alec couldn’t help sounding surprised. These Kríe were more advanced that he’d thought.
“Tah. Harnessed from the province’s windways and waterfalls.”
“Of course,” Alec murmured. “Kinetic energy.”
Roni nodded. “It is useful for many things, including the defense against invaders.”
“Invaders?” Chet asked, back to scanning the sky. Having a military background a lot like Alec, it was no wonder civil conflict piqued his interest.
It definitely piqued Alec’s. Made him wonder what kind of fighting took place there on Nira.
“Tah.” Roni nodded again. “But few get in. All who enter must do so through this passage. Which, as you can see, is quite easy to defend. The rest of the realm is protected by mountains.”
“Manned by sentinels,” Zaden muttered grimly. “Packing some serious firepower.”
“Tah.” Roni grinned.
“Which means escaping would be just as hard as getting in.”
The Kríe’s smirk faded to a solemn frown, clearing understanding Z’s meaning. “T
ah,” he confirmed, glancing briefly at Chet. “Tah. That is correct.”
Conversation pretty much died after that. Probably because everyone was thinking the same thing. The team was about to enter a domain that they might never come back out of. Alec looked at Zaden. Zaden held his worried gaze. Then both men got back to sawing.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
* * *
Unfortunately, those damn rocks fell apart before the ropes did. Stupid things only held up for an hour. To be fair, Alec had been working his rather furiously. But damn it, they were running out of time. Already he could see the huge gates approaching, the narrow gorge filling with more travelers.
Bailey exhaled loudly a few feet ahead. “Well I guess this is it, Jamis. End of the line.”
He looked at his friend. Jamis held his dispirited gaze. But then a smile tugged at Jamis’ lips.
“It was really nice knowing you, Bailey. And for what it’s worth, your dick felt really good in my ass.”
Bailey blinked. Then flushed. Then boyishly grinned. “Yeah, well, your ass felt really good around my dick. And truth be told, you give awesome head.”
Fighting back grins, they playfully bumped shoulders, but just as quickly, sobered back up.
“We’re gonna get through this, Bailey. Our journey doesn’t end here. As long as we manage to stick together, we’ll find a way to survive.” Jamis gave his friend another small smile. “We’re smart like that. Can work the system. Even if things get rough.” His eyes slid back to the nearing gates. “Besides, just think about all the shit we’ll learn. As long as they’re not torturing us or harvesting our parts, this could be an incredible opportunity. To be imbedded so deeply in an alien culture?” He nudged Bailey’s shoulder a second time. “Talk about an explorer’s wet dream.”
