by Erin Raegan
Ignyt nuzzled my belly and I wrapped my hand around his neck. He would be attending the meeting but for different reasons. The last few days there had been a pretty extensive discussion on how to handle Josyd. She was a traitor and we had known that for a while, but Uthyf had believed she had no longer been a threat. But after the Bour, he wasn’t so sure anymore.
He and the other kings would be discussing how to handle her interrogation.
Unfortunately, Ignyt and his brothers were a possible option.
I didn’t know how to feel about that. On the one hand, Josyd had done very bad things. She could still do very bad things. And she knew so much. So much that she refused to tell Uthyf. I understood his need to get that information from her. I understood what may need to happen to her to gain it.
But on the other hand, I wasn’t a violent person. I didn’t condone mistreatment in our human penal system. I didn’t condone torture. But I wasn’t on Earth and the Dahk weren’t human. And even if I was back home, I didn’t doubt the government could do all they had to do to stop something like the Bour attacking. Had we known we would be invaded and had a prisoner that knew vital information before the Vitat devastated Earth, what would the human government have done? What would they have been willing to do to prevent that?
Everything. They would have done whatever they had to do. No matter what the public thought. They would have done everything possible.
Still, I hoped it didn’t come down to Ignyt and his brothers. I hoped they were a last resort. And I knew Ignyt felt the same.
He wasn’t comfortable interrogating Josyd and I knew he planned to have kept it from me entirely, but Mona had already shared what Uthyf was planning and Ignyt had no choice but to talk to me about it. It was as uncomfortable a conversation as him telling me the meetings he had about Liytheniyr’s imprisonment and interrogation.
I had done what I could to reassure him, but I couldn’t miss the fear in his eyes. He was worried I wouldn’t want him the same way if I knew the specifics of his job. He was afraid they would scare me away.
But that would never happen. I may not like what he did. I may not agree with the Dahk’s laws of interrogation, but I was safe with him. He was everything to me and his role in Uthyf’s kingdom couldn’t change that.
“When do you need to go?” I asked him as he pushed up my night dress.
He nuzzled between my breasts. “Soon.”
“They’re here already?”
Ignyt nodded against my nipple, sucking it into his mouth. I squirmed. “How long are they staying?”
Ignyt froze and then crawled up my body, resting his hands into the bed beside my head. He searched my face. “The Guhuvin and Xixin may be our allies, but my king will not let them roam freely. You are safe.”
I nodded, still anxious. I’d never seen a Xixin or Guhuvin but Bailey and Vivian had. They were just as alien as the Dahk had been to them at first. Were they good and kind like the Dahk? Or were they monstrous and merciless like the Juldo? The Juldo had been allies of the Dahk. Just because the Xixin and Guhuvin were their allies now, did not mean they were good. It did not mean they were safe.
Ever since the Bour’s attack, Uthyf had completely locked down the planet. No one was allowed to leave. There had not been any interstellar travel. The Dahk had the ability to deny access to their planet but had rarely erected the barrier for as long as Uthyf had. He was only allowing them now because he trusted the new visitors. But I had a feeling it would be a long, long time before the ban was lifted again. Uthyf had been burned one too many times. First from the Juldo and now from the Bour.
It would keep the Dahk planet safe from invasion, but that also meant it would be a long, long time before I was able to go home. What did that mean for Earth? Uthyf wasn’t sending any more aid and those of the Dahk that were currently aiding Earth and the Kilbus’ Lord wouldn’t be coming home for a long time either.
You would think some of the Dahk would even fight back against Uthyf’s decision to close their borders. There were traders that travelled regularly, but they hadn’t. They fully supported their king. The Dahk were coming together in a way that they hadn’t been for a while. Peyton and Sym were still hidden away, but Tahk had returned to the castle to help Uthyf rebuild and meet about the Bour.
As did hundreds of other Dahk from all over. The castle still needed a lot of work, but the Dahk were determined to return their king’s castle to its former glory. Ignyt still didn’t let me move in the castle without one or more of his brothers and several guards, but the threat hanging over me and the other human’s heads seemed to have nearly completely dissipated.
I hadn’t been on the receiving end of a scornful look since before my crash. It was now the opposite. Dahk came as close to me as Ignyt would let them to praise me for taking down Liytheniyr. As if I had entered into battle with the Bour and defeated him. It took everything inside me not to shout every time that I hadn’t been brave or fierce as they liked to say. I had been terrified and pure luck had saved my life.
But the attention was hard to ignore. They whispered about how I had led the enemy away to save the commander’s son. How I had attacked the Bour and crashed the ship, sacrificing my own life.
Ignyt proudly held me through every second of it, but the attention just made me nervous. I didn’t want to be seen that way. I was proud of myself. I had helped save Sym. I had knocked Liytheniyr upside the head and freaking crashed the ship I was on. But I was still the same quiet, fearful girl and I didn’t like the pressure of changing myself from all the attention I was receiving.
I just wanted to live a quiet life with Ignyt. I wanted babies and love and maybe one day I wanted to visit my old home and share that life with my parents. I just hoped that they were still there and alive to see how much my life had changed and meet this alien male that I had fallen so deeply in love with.
Ignyt nipped at my lips. “Where did you go, my song?”
I smiled softly and wrapped my arms around his neck. “I’m right here.”
“So you are,” Ignyt growled and dropped back down beneath my gown.
Several hours later I was eating with Ohta and Roxy when Bailey and Vivian came to join us.
I immediately grabbed Prin from Vivian and nuzzled the baby against my cheek. She giggled happily and stuffed one of my braids in her mouth.
“Have you seen them?” Vivian asked excitedly.
I shook my head and Roxy looked away.
“Ferhen’s here with his king so I already knew what they looked like but the Xixin King?” she made a groaning sound in the back of her throat. “They look like sexy lions.”
Bailey snorted and then paled and bent in half, breathing heavily into her lap. Vivian rubbed her back absently. “They’re huge,” Vivian breathed. “Like taller than the Dahk and muscles for days.”
“You okay?” I asked Bailey quietly.
She held up a thumb. Her morning sickness had gotten worse and she’d been following Vivian around more than I knew she ever would have before, demanding a remedy. But unfortunately, there was nothing that could be done beside offer her some herbal tea. It would pass, but Bailey was impatient and her mates were no different.
“And their hair,” Vivian continued.
Yilt snorted from behind her. “Is Vyr aware of your interest in the Xixin King?”
Vivian scowled at him. “I’m not interested.” She looked at all of us. “I’m not! I can look!”
“No, then.” Yilt grinned.
“No, you ass. He doesn’t know, and you better not say anything. It’s harmless ogling.” Vivian pointed at him threateningly.
Ferhen marched up behind her and rested his hand on top of Prin’s head. I tried to cover my flinch but he just smiled softly at me. Ferhen was a Guhuvin. He had feathers and talons and if Vivian said the Xixin looked like lions after describing Ferhen as a bird man, I would take her word for it and stay far away. There was no other way of describing Ferhen other than very bird-l
ike. I didn’t need to see what the alien version of a lion looked like.
Though no alien ever struck me as stranger than the purring beast at Vivian’s side. Ferhen clucked his tongue at Gus and the big fluffy beast swung his spiked tail in a lazy circle, eyeing him.
“The Xixin King will not survive the Juldo’s wrath, my friend,” Ferhen said to Yilt. “Best to keep his mate’s straying eyes a secret.”
Vivian groaned long and loud. “It was an observation,” she said hotly as she flushed. “It means nothing. My eyes are not straying.”
Ferhen grinned sharp teeth at her.
“Ass,” she grumbled and stood, lifting Prin from my arms.
Ferhen winked at me and followed her from the room. “If the Xixin impresses you little human, I must keep your eyes from my king. Vyr will not be mated long once you are blinded by his glorious stature.”
Vivian cursed him and stomped out the door, Yilt and Gus on their heels.
Bailey looked back at them longingly and then to the food spread out on the table. She paled again and covered her mouth before hustling after them.
Roxy and I exchanged baffled smiles.
“Have you seen them?” I asked her quietly. I noticed her blush as she looked away from Vivian when she asked the same question.
Roxy blinked a few times and fiddled with her cup. “The Guhuvin King asked for tea this morning.”
“You took it to him?” I asked her, surprised. I was shocked she hadn’t refused.
She shook her head. “Tahk brought him to the kitchen while showing him around.”
“Oh,” I studied her closer. “Well, what was he like?”
Her face reddened again. “Scary, polite,” she shook her head. “Feathered.”
“That’s it?” Was that bad or good?
She abruptly stood. “Yeah that’s it.”
I gaped at her as she fled the great hall.
I looked at Ohta as he shoved food in his mouth. “What do you think of him and the Xixin King?”
Ohta looked at me in the quiet watchful way of his and shrugged his shoulder.
I sighed. I was curious, but not enough to go looking for the visiting kings.
I finished my meal and aimlessly wandered the castle for a few hours. Normally I would be watching Prin but Vivian was busy with her visiting friend. My job in the kitchen had been filled the moment I started helping with the babies, and until Ignyt and I talked about my plans to nanny Prin, I had nothing to do at the castle.
I knew Ignyt’s life was here. He was needed close at the king’s side. But maybe there was a way to compromise. Vivian didn’t live too far and she traveled constantly before Uthyf had banned her. Now that things were settling and the Dahk accepted us more and more, she would be traveling again. We had talked about me coming to her home and watching Prin but maybe I could stay on at the castle. It wouldn’t take much for Vyr to just bring Prin to me every day, but was it good for the baby to travel that way every day? In some strange misty smoke?
Suddenly I needed to know. I needed to know what my future looked like. I needed some kind of plan. I needed it so bad I didn’t care what other aliens I would run into. So I marched right to where I knew Ignyt would be and entered the crowded throne room.
Ohta followed me silently through the crowd. All of Uthyf’s council was in the throne room along with Gryo and several healers. But the mix of Guhuvin and Xixin aliens were hard to miss. The Guhuvin guards looked a lot like Ferhen but with a mix of brightly colored feathered wings and silver hair. As strange as they were, the Xixin took my breath away. They were massive.
They towered over everyone and had muscles on top of muscles. Their manes were golden and long, reaching their lower backs and their claws were dark and stark against their golden skin. Their faces were flat, and their eyes were eerie with their feline-esque pupils. One of them looked at me as I passed him and my eyes snagged on the two long, sharp fangs jutting out from his top lip.
He purred and stepped closer to me. Ohta’s hand shot out and pressed against the alien male’s chest, pushing him back. The Xixin rumbled a growl deep in his chest and something long and furry wrapped around my bare ankle. I squeaked and my eyes shot down, bugging on the furry tail there.
Ohta snarled and shoved the male harder and then the male was pulled from behind. The crowd quieted and all eyes fell on Ignyt as he faced off against the Xixin male.
The male sniffed the air around Ignyt and backed away with his thick hands in the air. “My apologies.”
Ignyt bared his fangs at the male and turned his back, grabbing my hand and pulling me to the back of the room. My eyes followed the long line of Xixin standing against the wall. On the opposite were a long line of Guhuvin and on the wall by the door were dozens of Dahk guards. But in the center of the room held all three kings, the healers, and Uthyf’s council. They spoke quietly but it looked tense and the whispers were angry.
“What is it, Lydya?” Ignyt snagged my attention, and with reluctance I looked away from the Guhuvin King’s bright silver and emerald feathered wings.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I just wanted to see you.”
Ignyt searched my eyes and looked back at the group whispering heatedly. Mona caught sight of me and waved me to her but I looked back at Ignyt.
“It can wait.”
“What is it?” Ignyt asked, pulling me against him.
I took a breath, feeling ridiculous for marching into this important meeting for something that could have waited. But I was here and Ignyt looked like nothing in the room mattered but me. “Where will we live?” I suddenly blurted a little too loudly.
Ignyt jolted and backed his head away, looking me over. “Where do you wish to live?”
“Well, before us, I was going to live with Vivian.” I watched him closely. “I was going to help her with Prin.”
“Is that still what you wish?” He asked.
I nodded hesitantly.
“Then that is where we will live,” he said simply.
I looked down. “But what about your place here?”
Ignyt used his hand to lift my chin. “My skills are mostly utilized by the commander,” he said cautiously. “I am not bound to the castle grounds.”
“So, you traveled a lot before?” Tahk commanded the king’s army. Before he returned with Peyton that meant he traveled all over the universe. When Aryx was king he would send Tahk frequently to his allies’ worlds, offering aid and often warring with their enemies. But that all changed after Earth was invaded and he brought Peyton and the others here.
Ignyt nodded. “I serve my king and his commander in any way that is needed.”
I looked back at the group discussing the Bour and the Galactic Council. The Dahk were now at war with the Council. With the Bour. Maybe even the Juldo still. Did that mean Ignyt would be leaving?
Ignyt seemed to read the worry on my face and pulled me deeper into the back of the room. “My mate, I may leave this world for a brief time, but I will always return to you.”
I nodded with a tight throat against his chest.
“If I am needed off world I cannot bring you with me. It is far too dangerous.”
“I know,” I choked. And truthfully, I didn’t want to leave. I knew what I could handle and boarding Tahk’s war ship to fight a slew of aliens was not something I could handle. I wanted to build a life here with Ignyt, and that meant building a life with a Dahk warrior that may have to leave. “But you’ll come back.”
Ignyt nodded, nuzzling my neck. “Nothing,” he said fiercely. “Nothing could keep me from you.”
He turned my face to his and licked at my lips. “If Veeveen and her babe are where you wish to be, then I will speak to my brothers about settling into a home of our own close by.”
“They won’t mind?”
Ignyt smiled and looked at Ohta who I realized was listening to every word of our hushed conversation.
“Hylg and I would be honored to become a member of your House
brother.”
I smiled at Ohta, my feet anxiously wanting to dance. We were going to move into our own home. We were going to build a family. It was so much more than I could have ever wanted. Ignyt hadn’t offered to live with Vivian and Vyr but maybe that was for the best. Vyr didn’t strike me as the type to build a crowded House. He seemed content to live with just Vivian and Prin and Gus and occasionally Yilt. But if we lived by them, it would be so much easier to help with Prin. Maybe one day I would be watching Prin with my own child. The idea of it filled me with so much excitement and love it was difficult to hold back from jumping in joy.
I could see the best life laid out before me but looking at the arguing kings, I knew that life was going to be hard to keep safe with everything going on right now. Ignyt was going to have to leave to make it possible and that meant leaving me behind. But I wouldn’t be alone. I had Roxy, and Vivian, and Peyton, and Linda, and Star. Even Bailey. We would all be left behind while our mates fought for our safety. We would all be making that sacrifice together.
But I knew it would be possible. As Ignyt grinned at my obvious excitement, kissing the smile right off my lips, I knew the Dahk would best their enemies. I knew not long in the future I would be living that dream in a safe world, a safe universe.
I knew Ignyt would do everything in his power to ensure I felt nothing but love and safety for the rest of our very long lives together.
The End. For Now.
Home World
Tahk
I itched to leave this room and check on my Pehytohn and our son.
Leaving them had caused me great pain but my mate said I was hovering. And maybe so, but after all we had been through, I felt I needed them by my side at all times.
I had never felt such fear as when my own Dahk had come looking to harm my son. Though, now we knew they had not come for him. Instead they had been manipulated. And that manipulation had cost their lives and the lives of other innocents.
I had underestimated my Dahk and their ability to accept Sym into their hearts. After his birth, he had been showered in their affection and I had truly begun to believe my Pehytohn would be accepted and able to live a safe and happy life by my side. That hope had been shattered by the Bour and his sedition. But now, my hope was growing once more. Our kingdom had not been so united since before Uthyf became king.
