by Juno Wells
Stacy attempts to smooth over his rejection. “We don’t want to do anything to get us excluded from these talks. They’re kind of touchy because they think we brought this on them because the symbionts are from Draconian space.”
Meric tried to turn the conversation in a different direction. “Word has reached our home world that there are little ones in need of homes. I am told there are more families eager to adopt than children in need. Your arrival will be met with much joy and celebration.”
Phan shot Kendra a spectacular smile. “They’re really adorable. I could play with them all day.”
She grudgingly muttered, “I guess we’ll take things a step at a time.”
Our mother shifted the conversation back to family. “I would love to spend some time with my daughters and maybe get to know their love interests a little better before they go off onto another exciting mission.”
“I can’t argue with that. It would be nice to have some downtime before things get crazy-busy again.” Tabor tugs me back to his chest and peers down into my face when I look up to catch his eye. His hands rub my belly, like he’s trying to send me a secret message.
I can feel his wings wrapped around my shoulders, making me feel warm and connected. It takes me a moment to realize that I won’t be participating in any crazy shenanigans anytime soon, because I might be pregnant. I stiffen as it occurs to me that if there is a possibility that I’m pregnant, his parthenogenesis must have ignited because his mating scent is gone.
I turn in his arms, and my hand drops to the lower right side of his abs, and sure enough, there are two little bumps. We’re going to have young of our own. Draping my arm around his neck, I drag him down for a chaste kiss, whispering, “All I want is to get home and nest.” I’m using his word for sleeping, but really I’m referring to my instinctive need to work on providing a home for my new family.
He runs his fingers through my hair. “I would see you safely tucked away in my home where no harm can come to us during our time of breeding.” He’s feeling the same way. My heart squeezes with emotion.
The word breeding has always rubbed me the wrong way, but right now I have to admit I’m warming right up to the word. Though it’s the wrong time and place for romance, he dips his head and ghosts his lips across mine. I’m sure no one cares if we sneak a quick kiss, so I get lost for moment, enjoying every second until he pulls back. A self-satisfied smile tugs at the corners of his mouth.
Everyone else’s conversation is background noise, as I gaze up into his handsome face. Reaching up, I trace the intricate pattern running down his cheek, trying to remember why I ever though the markings were sinister. His green skin and oversized eyes strike me as exotic and interesting. The symbols tracking down his body now seem whimsical and decorative, something that makes him unique. Even though there are some symbols that represent his clade, they are worked into an intricate design of his choosing. “I’m glad you’re mine, my takadon.”
Pressing his hand against my cheek, he whispers, “I would belong to no other.”
Standing there face-to-face, we share a moment of awareness of how fragile our lives are. We just rescued my family and bunch of other vulnerable people from Earth and had it out with two of our most fearsome enemies. We need some downtime. It’s strange how we’re both on the same page so much of the time. It makes me think that we were meant to be.
25 HOME WORLD
TABOR
I WATCH the Strovian technicians carting off the rest of the high-tech device that folds space-time. I sign off that it has all been done properly by scanning my hand across the DNA reader. The technician scans his hand as well, and we each are sent a copy of the verification.
Elder Scarn speaks out behind me. “That was a bit more trouble than I anticipated.”
I speak the only appropriate response that comes to mind. “The Strovians pride themselves on formality, uniformity, and precision. Making sure transactions are outlined in advance and executed properly seems in line with their values.”
Scarn comes up beside me. “I suppose we are lucky they agree to use the device to bring us to our home world prior to removing it, rather than us being required to go to Strovia Prime to have it removed. All that travel would have taken months.”
“It seems the Strovians value their superior programming over the loss of a single ship. They stripped out all the core programing from the ship and erased the programing from their soldiered bots.”
Scarn tosses me a lopsided smile. “I can’t say that was much of a loss. Their bots were poor fighters. We will program them for service functions, and be better off knowing they cannot harm females the moment our back is turned.”
“We have techs from our home world installing new Draconian programming, even as we speak. I agree that our new ship will be safer without Strovian programming in our database.”
“This ship is the largest in orbit. You must be proud of yourself and your queen for acquiring it.”
“I am pleased none lost their lives in the attack. This ship is a nice trophy and will serve our people well, which brings me to our next order of business. The Grayson clan are intent on digging gemstone and purchasing their own vessel. What say you to taking our old ship?”
“The one you never named?” His gentle teasing about my oversight does not sting, for both of us know there was no time for such unimportant tasks. “I never saw myself as captain material,” he says.
“You have a queen. She will wish her own space and authority over her own warriors. This you can provide by sitting in the captain’s seat with her at your side.”
Rubbing his chin, Scarn ponders my words. “I think my intended queen wishes to care for, rather than have authority over warriors. She might wish to be equal to her daughters by having her own ship.”
“Let us set the wishes of queens aside for a moment, my friend. We both have people we wish to protect. Your level of experience far outweighs that of any warrior I know. I would ask you to take command of the secondary vessel, so that together we might protect the queens and the young we make with them.”
“When you put it like that, I can hardly think of a worthy reason to reject your offer.”
Slapping him on the shoulder, I speak my heart. “It is my honor to have you in my family and at my side in battle, Elder Scarn.”
“I live to serve, Commander Tabor.”
“As do all warriors, my friend. You are in good company.”
We part, with my duties for the day finished and Elder Scarn’s just beginning. Excitement strums through my body so strongly, that I can barely refrain from flying back to our new quarters. I know my sweet queen is there, unpacking and sorting through the multitude of purchases I made on Earth for our new home. She will create a spacious suite for us to nest in upon this vessel, and another, more elaborate nest on the planet below. I would have my beautiful queen and young be comfortable in whatever environment commands our attention.
She is just ushering some of the warriors away with the items she intends to use on our new home world. They have multiple hover boards loaded with our belongings, and their heads dip respectfully as they pass by me to get to the door. Their softly murmured greetings cause my queen to look up. The moment her soft blue eyes meet mine, a brilliant smile lights up her face. “It pleases me that you always seem so happy to see me, my queen.”
“What’s not to like? I spent way too long denying myself your company.” Her voice is sincere and admiring. She honestly likes me, not my pretty face or all the things I do to serve her. She likes me as a male. When other warriors tried to explain to me about love and bonding with a human queen, I did not understand. It is something I believe one must experience to truly comprehend. Since I am lost in my own thought and not responding to her fast enough, my queen rises from the box she is going through and closes the distance between us quickly. “What’s wrong? Did your meeting with the Strovian technicians not go according to plan?”
I reach out an
d draw her into my arms. I do not wish to talk about work. “Yes, it all went according the plan we outlined with them. Nothing is wrong. I sometimes get lost in my own thoughts. It is an old and troublesome habit. I never thought to be selected by a queen, and yet here I am with the most desirable queen on the planet as my mate. It seems so impossible to believe, that I worry this is all just a dream.”
She relaxes in my arms and cuddles herself close with her cheek on my chest. I know she likes this position because she can hear my hearts beating.
“I know exactly what you mean. I used to have nightmares of waking up back on Earth with all my family lying around dead on the ground. Sometimes my dreams were filled with images of us being forced to do awful things to survive.”
Cupping her under the chin with one hand, I gently tilt her head up so I can look into her eyes. “Tell me you no longer have such terrible dreams.”
“I rarely have those types of dreams anymore, especially since you’ve been my bed warmer.”
I can’t help but smile that she uses her mother’s teasing descriptor for Scarn to refer to me. I squeeze one of her hands, and then bring it down to the palm-sized swell where our twins are growing. I know it is bragging to point out so boldly that I am growing young for her, but she seems to love being reminded. Her soft hand slides over my tender flesh, reminding me how different we are in that regard. I am hard muscle and thick skin, whereas she is delicate and sensual. My roughness turns her on, and so does my ability to breed young for her. I know my new queen is fertile, and soon her belly will swell with our child as well. The thought of having three healthy young fills me with pride and anticipation.
When my queen drops to her knees in front of me, my heart nearly stops. I have never even once in my lifetime seen a queen kneeling before a warrior. It simply is not done. Before I can beg her to rise, her hands are on my uniform, pulling it open. The magnetic seams around my shoulders give, and it falls down from around my wings. I have some idea of what she is doing, because it is something warriors sometimes pay for in brothels. I believe she intends to put her mouth upon me, and when she pulls the uniform down to reveal my eager cock, I decide I wish for this more than anything.
My wings unfurl, and in my moment of weakness, I do not care. Every thought is burned from my mind when her hand wraps around my stiff cock. I cannot stop looking down at her. The skin around my groin is slightly darker, and seeing my dark green flesh sliding in and out of her fist makes my knees weak.
“You’re really a handful. Hold still, okay babe?”
“All will be as you wish, my queen.”
“Oh no, this is about you having all that you wish.” With that pronouncement, she leans forward and licks the head of my cock. Seeing her pink tongue moving over me that way makes it impossible to breathe. She sucks me inside her mouth. With no hope of taking all of me, she begins to suck. The warriors describe this act as the pinnacle of sexual pleasure, next to being inside a female, of course. I must agree that this is amazing, particularly because it is a gift straight from the heart of my very own queen, and not something I paid a stranger to do.
She takes one of my hands and tangles it in her hair. Shock rolls through me when takes her hand away and becomes still. What she is offering seems to be too good to be true, yet I know my queen would never lead me astray. Pulling her head by her hair, I look down into her eyes. Her submission is unmistakable. I crave control, and my queen enjoys submitting. I loosen my hold and rock myself gently against her tongue. She begins to swirl her tongue around my tip each time I pull back. When my pace quickens, her hands come up to caress all the sensitive places on my body that she can reach. She’s making tiny sounds of pleasure, and I am careful not to abuse the power she has given me. The idea of choking a queen on my cock is revolting. Everything else about this situation is pure pleasure.
When the scent of her pheromones fills the air, I can no longer control myself. I pull out, lift her into the air and splay her legs across my face. My tongue seeks out what I crave and both her hands land on my horns to steady her position. It is a good thing they are as stiff as my cock right now. I let myself go wild, teasing and sucking her tender bud until she screams my name. Then I slide her right down my body and onto my cock.
She’s totally lost in the pleasure looping back and forth between us. Her eyes are closed, and she’s whispering compliments and words of encouragement. This queen was made just for me. I shove her down onto the nearby sleeping platform and come down hard on top of her. Rather than complaint, I get a wide-eyed stare of absolute passion.
When I begin using her roughly, her hands come up to rub up and down my back, teasing my wing base with each down stroke. This lovely queen knows all the spots that arouse my passion the most, and she is not afraid to use them. It is one of the things I like best about her.
I shift my body to rub all the right places and she detonates beneath me. As always when she locks down around me, it drags me over the edge with her. I empty my seed deep inside her soft, quivering body and pray one hits the mark. That is assuming that one hasn’t already done so during one of our previous lovemaking sessions. My queen has not had much time for such pursuits in her life. It is my honor and pleasure to make up for that oversight.
I curl around her, and we look into each other’s eyes. “Are you well, my sensual and dedicated queen?”
Barely able to get her breath, she responds, “I’m better than well, my energetic and always-ready Takadon.”
I chuckle, still a bit breathless as well. “I am honored and pleased by your gift, my queen.”
Rolling over to face me, she gives me an exhausted smile. “That wasn’t a gift. It was just a normal part of having sexy time.”
“I appreciate every single moment of time you choose to spend in my arms. Before we escaped the rule of the queens, no warrior had any hope of experiencing a loving touch from a female. You can’t know the hardship we endured.”
“I can well imagine how it must have been. The hardship is written in the scars that cover Scarn and Meric, as well as in your own reluctance to accept advances from a woman.”
Pulling her to my chest, I muse out loud. “I wonder what the warriors still trapped under the rule of Draconian queens are doing. Queen Hope educated them about the symbionts before we left. They either instigated a full-scale revolt, or were killed before they could pass the information on.”
“Let’s appreciate the joy and happiness we’ve fought so hard to secure and think on your brethren another day. I have a feeling war with the queens of old is brewing. If that is the case, Meric will see that all the member worlds of the Intergalactic Council of Planets fight in one unified block.”
Rubbing her back, I realize for the first time our people have a real chance of throwing off the control of the symbionts. “There are millions of warriors aching to be free.”
My queen looks over her shoulder at me, and I can see the love in her eyes, right alongside a fierce loyalty to my kind. “My world has millions of females with no hope of ever finding love. We’ve got to have faith. That isn’t some strange coincidence. It means that like you and me, they are fated to one another.”
“Is this what you really think? I thought you believe in making one’s destiny.”
Snuggling back down beside me, her voice floats to my ears. “I believe the gods guide us, but we must make our own choices and live with the consequences. I risked everything to rescue my family and was rewarded with a fine mate. Perhaps it will be the same with your brethren and my fellow humans.”
I think over my queen’s words, and determine that she is likely right. I operated in good faith and ended up with a kind and generous queen. Why should it be any different for the other warriors?
Relaxing into the moment, my head swirls with memories of my life before and my life now. Before there was only darkness, pain, deprivation and the misery of watching our queens destroy innocent planets. Draconian queens never gave a care for the loss of a wa
rrior. There were no special words or commemorations of the male’s sacrifice.
On our new home world, the queens treat us as equals. They seem as dedicated to our needs as we are to theirs. My queen sensed my desire was to wield control, so she puts me in command of her ship and our lovemaking. Was ever a warrior so honored by his queen? I vow in this moment to wield such control benevolently, just as the human queens do over all the warriors. My glorious queen leads the way, and I am honored to follow.
Lifting her leg gently, I nudge her opening with my cock. Thinking of my queen’s many fine qualities has aroused my interest in mating again. I hear a small, playful laugh and she pushes back, impaling herself on my cock. I waste no time taking what my queen has offered, knowing that her warm body and scent are all I ever want. Sliding into her body equals sliding home for me. Having this small human queen in my arms is all in the ‘verse I will ever need to find true peace and happiness.
GLOSSARY
Akes – Draconian god of hunting, war and violence. He is the consort to Entares, the benevolent goddess worshiped by Draconian males.
Antar – Right (Lutar is left.)
Avada – Small carrot-like vegetable that is seasoned and wrapped in a dry leaf.
Challenge–Draconian queens settle disagreements and property disputes by challenging one another in single combat. It is usually a battle to the death.
Clade – Group of Draconians who are descended from a common set of genetic code.
Dark Star – Another term for black hole.
Doma – Type of Draconian flatbread.
Dracon Two – The name the second wave of Draconian warriors nicknamed Onello, which is their new home world in the Naxis sector of space.
Draconian - Species created by mixing dragon DNA with humanoid DNA. There are many family lines with unique strengths and weaknesses.
