by Mikayla Lane
“Yeah, I’m still a little tired, but I feel great. Are you doing OK? You look so tired. Want to take a quick nap,” Deanna asked as she scooted over on the bed to make room for him.
Haruki chuckled and shook his head.
“If I lay down now, we’ll both sleep for days,” he admitted, smothering a yawn.
“Mike and his men are still locked up, aren’t they? I really did see your brothers and that Alderic guy?” Deanna whispered.
“Yeah, honey, that was all real. You aren’t crazy,” Haruki assured her.
“Why does he keep calling me your mate?” Deanna asked, hating the blush that stained her cheeks as she kept her eyes anywhere but on him.
“Among our species, we are able to recognize our spouse, and you are mine. I was hoping to explain things to you in a better way, but we really haven’t done anything in a traditional fashion yet, so why start now,” Haruki said with a snort, hoping he hadn’t just frightened her off.
“Is that what I felt when I first saw you? And why I can’t stay away from you? Are you making me feel this way?” she whispered, looking at the blanket seam she was worrying between her fingers.
Haruki saw her concern and placed a gentle hand over hers.
“It is nothing that can be forced or manipulated and is just as intense for us. But I’m not going to lie and say I’m not thrilled that you feel something for me,” Haruki admitted with a smile.
“So all your mates go through this too?” Deanna asked, looking up at him.
Haruki nodded.
“I have several brothers and a sister who are mated, so I got to watch it happen to them first. We’re going through exactly the same thing. Drama included,” he said with a laugh.
“You’re kidding right?” Deanna asked incredulously. “How much weirder could their meetings have been?”
Haruki burst out laughing thinking of Angel, Chris, Mikal, and Liam.
“Dranovians seem to draw drama. I know this is a lot to take in, and there’s so much to explain. I’m sorry for that. I promise that as soon as everything is under control, I’ll answer all of your questions,” Haruki promised.
“It’ll take weeks to get through all my questions,” Deanna threatened.
Haruki snorted and gently squeezed her hand.
“When this is over, I’ll have time to answer all of them,” he assured her.
“What is over?” Deanna asked. “I mean for all of this? What happens to Dog, Harry, and the others? Or Mike and his men? What happens to this site? Where do I go?”
The last was barely spoken, and Haruki was sure he wouldn’t have heard it without his exceptional hearing. He could feel her fear and uncertainty and couldn’t help but pull her to his chest and hold her tight. He smiled as her hands snaked around his waist and held him back.
“You will come with me. You can meet my daughter and my other crazy siblings,” Haruki said with a laugh. “You’re going to love Lara, Chance, Angel, Dree, and Quinn. Angel is my sister. The others are all mates to my family. You can stay with us while we get to know one another. There’s no pressure, and we have more than enough room.”
“Thank you, I’d love to meet them. But what about everyone else?” she asked, scared for her friends.
Haruki sighed heavily.
“I honestly don’t know, but I can promise you that we aren’t going to hurt them. Mike and his men, I can’t promise anything on them, but the others won’t be harmed,” he assured her.
He knew his brothers would never allow the innocent humans to be harmed any more than he would.
“Thank you,” Deanna whispered.
Haruki held her, feeling her fear ebb as her exhaustion began to take over again. He gently laid her back on her bed and kissed her forehead, his lips lingering on her soft skin before he pulled back and looked into her blue eyes.
“Try to rest. I’ll be in the mess hall or the pyramid if you wake up and need me,” he said with a gentle smile.
“You promise?” she asked and wished she hadn’t sounded so scared.
“I promise you that I will be here for you. If you can’t find me, ask any of my brothers, and they will bring you to me. They’re good men, and they’ll protect you like you were their own. As far as they are concerned, you’re already family,” Haruki said, squeezing her hand as he stood.
“Please, be careful,” Deanna whispered as her eyes grew too heavy to keep open.
Haruki waited until he knew she was asleep before he slipped quietly from the pod. He had an energy katana at the throat of the man behind him before he saw it was Alderic.
“It’s never wise to sneak up behind a Dranovian. I would think you’d know that,” Haruki said as he absorbed the weapon and started off towards the mess hall.
Alderic’s chuckle only irritated Haruki.
“I know more about your limits and power than you do right now so I was in no danger,” Alderic said, coming up to walk beside Haruki.
“Like you were going to keep Deanna asleep until she recovered?” Haruki shot back as he entered the mess hall.
His brothers went silent as they entered the room.
“I allowed her to awaken when I saw you go inside. I assumed you wanted to speak to her and ensure she was all right,” Alderic said with a laugh.
Haruki stopped and spun on Alderic.
“Stay the fuck away from my mate,” he growled at the taller and larger man.
Alderic threw his head back and laughed heartily for a moment before pounding Haruki on the shoulder.
“You are a funny guy. Where are the refreshments? I find I am not familiar with any of this,” Alderic admitted as he gestured to the kitchen equipment.
“There’s a little room back there with two white ceramic bowls in it. One is square, and waist level and the other is smaller and oval with a lid . . .” Shane began before Mikal visibly kicked him under the table.
Haruki was tempted to ask Shane to finish. He was curious if his brother was going to direct Alderic to drink from the round sink or the oval toilet.
“Come, I’ll introduce you to coffee. I have a feeling this is going to take a while,” Mikal said as he stood, gesturing to the coffee pots.
Haruki headed to the other pot and poured himself a cup, throwing some sugar in before he stormed over to the two tables his brothers were sitting at.
“Bro, let me congratulate you on your beautiful mate,” Elias said with a grin. “When we get back home, I’m going to kick your fucking ass for finding this place.”
“Get in line,” Shane growled.
“It’s a long line,” Grant added.
Haruki sighed and stared into his cup of coffee, wishing he’d taken Deanna up on crawling in bed beside her.
What the fuck else can go wrong, he thought.
Chapter Fourteen
Haruki shook his head at the argument that had broken out quickly after Alderic sat down at the table. As his brothers tried to shout down the growling Sotier, he sat back in his chair and looked over at Mikal who was rubbing his hands over his face.
Catching Mikal’s eye, Haruki looked at him with questioning eyes. When Mikal just shook his head, Haruki remained in his chair and waited for the fireworks. He didn’t have to wait long. Mikal disappeared and reappeared in the center of the table keeping his brother’s from Alderic.
“Enough!” Mikal roared, shaking the walls with the sound.
He turned to his siblings.
“Sit the fuck down and shut up!”
When Alderic snickered, Mikal rounded on him and punched him in the face. Blood poured from Alderic’s nose, and the man looked stunned by the blow as Mikal glared down at him.
“You! You son of a bitch! You’ve been a bastard since you got here! You’ve instigated, offended, threatened, and generally been a pain in the ass! I don’t know what your problem is, but you better fix it because we’re not going to be your whipping boys. You fuck with one of my brothers again, and you will find out just how stupid and weak we
are. Do you understand me? Or do you need a demonstration?” Mikal snarled.
Alderic’s eyes glowed blue before they widened at the feel of the blade at his throat.
“Play fair, you fuck. No powers,” Haruki snapped, flipping the katana blade under Alderic’s chin just enough to draw a drop of blood.
Alderic looked up to see that all of the brothers were displaying their power and weapons in one form or another and he smiled broadly. His movements were a blur until he stood next to Haruki.
“You are Dranovians!” Alderic shouted in happiness. “I was beginning to wonder if there was any hope for you at all! Other than the smart mouth over there, who I was starting to think was mentally defective, none of you displayed any willingness to defend yourselves!”
Haruki stormed over to him with his fists clenched.
“If I’d known you wanted your ass kicked the moment you walked in the door I would have gladly done it! Let me correct that,” he snapped and drew back his fist.
Alderic chuckled and was suddenly on the other side of the table.
“I think I’ve already been convinced to change my opinion of you,” Alderic said as his face glowed for a moment and his nose stopped bleeding.
Alderic grabbed a napkin off the table and wiped the remaining blood from his face before facing the brothers.
“From my perspective, it was a little disconcerting to show up and see your brother near death while guns were pointed at his mate and the Talunaha overrun with humans. When the rest of you arrived, it was hard to determine if you were terrified or stupid!” Alderic said with a grin.
“Why the hell does it matter so much to you?” Shane demanded, not convinced they shouldn’t beat the hell out of the guy anyway.
“What occurred on Terra, Mars and Phaeton is a legend among the joined beast worlds. Although I was not alive when it happened, I and the other Sotier’s are taught about it in training to ensure nothing like it ever happens again,” Alderic admitted.
“What joined beast worlds?” Grant asked.
“The other 11 worlds that remain,” Alderic said.
“You mean like Valendra and Tezaria?” Mikal asked.
“Of course,” Alderic said with a nod as he casually sipped his cup. “My mate has told me for years about this coffee drink. She swore there was nothing to compare it to from any other world and that it was heaven in a cup. She was right. May I have more, please?”
Stunned by the suddenly friendly and casual attitude of the Sotier, Elias got up and brought him another cup.
“We know the former High Councilor of Valendra. You knocked out two Tezarians that we’ve been working with side by side for years, and we’ve never heard of any of this!” Shane snapped.
“Your Tezarian friends are not Dranovians, and I would guess that the Valendrans you’ve met aren’t either. What you hear and know is only for Dranovian ears. How do you defend the weak and vulnerable if a potential anomalous one knows your power and your weakness?” Alderic explained in a friendlier tone than he’d used with them before.
“You talk to the Dranovians on those worlds?” Shane asked with a snort of disbelief.
“I know them well. You can meet them at the next Consecration,” Alderic said, downing his coffee.
“What is a Consecration?” Mikal asked, not liking the sound of it.
“It is the most prestigious ceremony a Dranovian can partake in. Every seven years, the beast worlds align, and the Talunaha’s are able to join their power once again with the remnants of the dying Prime sun,” Alderic explained. “During this time, the Dranovian’s gather at their Talunaha’s and the full power of the first Prime world is bestowed upon us. The portals between all of the worlds are opened, and you can see and speak to the Dranovians gathered from the other worlds.”
“When is this next consecration?” Shane asked.
“In four days. You will need to bring all of the Dranovians that you can, including the young ones,” Alderic suggested then saw their suspicious looks. “It is a time of celebration among the Dranovians and our families. The energy shared among our people centers and strengthens us. For those on worlds where they are few, it gives a sense of brotherhood. Like Zendar, where there is but one Dranovian left.”
“It sounds like some crazy secret society shit,” Shane mumbled.
When he saw the looks thrown at him by his brothers he turned to Alderic.
“Can women be Dranovians?” he asked.
“Some of the meanest, toughest and most courageous Dranovians are females. In fact, I believe there are several on this world. You must check with Tarona on that, she will have the list,” Alderic admitted with a grin. “You’d do well to show respect at the onset of meeting one. There are generally very powerful with energy to make up for their lack of physical strength.”
“Why haven’t we found these other Dranovians?” Elias asked. “We’ve been all over this world and have never met another like us.”
“Perhaps they were also taken in and cared for by someone. I do not know the why, but you can find them through Tarona. She would also know how many other Talunaha’s on this world have been entered,” Alderic explained then stood. “We should go back. There is much more to learn.”
“I need to contact our other brothers. If I don’t they will show up here,” Mikal said, staring defiantly at Alderic.
“We also need to figure out what we’re going to do with the humans and Mike’s crew. Sooner or later, his company will send more mercenaries to reclaim this place,” Haruki added, standing beside Mikal in a show of solidarity.
“Yeah, you should know we have two new Dranovian nephews that need care and protection, so leaving them vulnerable while their Dads come looking for us wouldn’t be real nice to do to your own,” Shane added, standing in front of Mikal and Haruki.
Alderic shook his head at the stubborn brothers as they stood to face him.
“All right. Let’s deal with one problem at a time,” he suggested.
Haruki nodded in agreement.
“The human scientists. The ones innocent of anything but curiosity about this place. What do you intend for them?” Haruki asked, knowing the man had something in mind.
“We receive hundreds of humans a year, through the portals when they’re activated. Some years even thousands. I had thought it would be prudent to take them with me to Dakken and on to foster families,” Alderic said, crossing his own arms over his chest as his eyes dared them to defy him.
“What the fuck does that mean? How the hell are you getting humans?” Shane demanded, wondering if Alderic was kidnapping people from Earth.
“You idiot, we’re not stealing people!” Alderic snapped, pissed they would assume such a thing. “As Terra goes through the conversion, the planet produces massive energy spikes. When the atmospheric conditions are right, those who resonate strongly with the energy are caught in its pull and are taken through the portal to the closest world.”
“The cities seen in our skies . . .” Siggy whispered. “We see your worlds don’t we?”
“Yes, you should be seeing them as we see yours. It’s how we know where the humans will be sent. Whichever of our cities sees your world in our skies, we begin the search for whoever was sent. We have no control over it and until the conversion is complete, neither do you,” Alderic explained, sympathizing with the shock he could feel from the brothers.
“So, what do you do with the humans?” Elias asked, still trying to wrap his mind around it all.
“The Dranovian Order takes responsibility to protect the weaker species from being preyed upon. It is an honor on the Tri-worlds to foster a human in our ways and culture. Many have mates, but all lead happy and productive lives in the jobs and cities of their choosing. They even have elected representatives who meet with the order on a regular basis to discuss any problems or suggestions,” Alderic explained with pride.
He was extremely proud of the changes that he’d made regarding the care of the humans since
he’d found his Helena.
“So you guys don’t eat them or hunt them for sport or anything?” Shane asked.
Elias punched him in the arm.
“What? It’s a valid question!” Shane snapped.
“I can’t even believe your mind could conjure such a thing,” Alderic said with disgust. “No, we do not harm them in any way. Only the best families are even allowed to foster, and it’s only through extensive interviews with the humans that one is chosen for them.”
“What do you mean? How does that work?” Haruki asked, knowing Deanna would want to know the specifics if her friends were going there.
“These are men of science, so we’d choose only foster families that were in scientific fields. It makes the transition easier for the humans if they’re placed in an atmosphere that challenges their minds and peaks their interests,” Alderic explained with a grin.
“They will be given a choice,” Mikal ordered, daring Alderic to argue. “We will provide them with an option of going to your world or staying here with safe houses provided by our father.”
“They cannot remain here knowing your place of power. Especially not among other beast bound where they can possibly reveal something! You put my worlds in danger with your carelessness, and I won’t allow that!” Alderic barked back.
“Whoa! Wait a damn minute!” Haruki growled. “What about Dread and Trick then? What did you plan for them? Or Deanna? She’s a human too.”
Alderic visibly sighed and rolled his neck as if to relieve the tension building there.
“The Tezarians would have their memory of this place erased. Your mate would also,” Alderic gritted out.
“You’re not touching Deanna’s mind. Fuck you, buddy,” Haruki snarled as he started to storm over to Alderic before Mikal grabbed him.
“One thing at a time!” Mikal growled to his brothers before turning back to Alderic. “So we wake Deanna and the humans and ask them one by one.”
“Why would you awaken her?” Alderic challenged.
“So she can say goodbye to her friends!” Haruki shot back.
“Fine! Let’s get this done. Speak to your brothers while I notify my second in command that I am sending humans through the portal,” Alderic said before storming outside of the mess hall.
