by Juno Wells
“Solar... system? Like a few planets that orbit a star? No, this is another galaxy. The closest to Spiral Galaxy A549. ‘The Milky Way,’ I think you might call it.” Nadia’s head spun. That would take years... a century. Multiple centuries. She’d be dead and gone... or everyone she knew would be.
“That’s not possible. Take me back now. I can’t travel with you. Everyone I know will be gone. The time... How in the hell... How does this ship travel?” The alien laughed again.
“It’s a network of wormholes, and hyperdrives. You humans are thousands of years away from discovering how to use space travel. We would arrive back in whatever time you wished. Even seconds before my ship passed by the space station, if you desire. You Terrans have such a paltry understanding of time.” He waved his hand, and the ship seemed to respond, speeding up so that stars hurtled by in a flash. Nadia crossed her arms and scowled. Her mind leapt and bubbled with the information... how could she refuse? Well, it didn’t seem she could actually refuse. The ship was speeding towards Mars and the asteroid belt at an unprecedented speed, a speed she’d never seen. And it was gaining speed.
“Is that... is that Mars?” Nadia swiveled the chair around to look out of the window. The alien stepped up beside her. Sure enough, a red planet whipped by them, and the ship continued to blast forward, defying all of-of Nadia’s education on space travel. She gasped, and she felt the alien man watching her.
“Yes, that is the planet you call Mars.” Mars shifted behind them, disappearing beyond the horizon.
“And the asteroid belt. It’s like flying on an airplane. It’s all shifting by us in an instant.”
“Absolutely. Still, it will take several days to fly out to Astria, and we will make our landing on Gemna. It’s the first friendly planet, the planet of my ancestral people. Though I was raised on Delma and in the harsh mines of the Lanids, the people of Gemna will welcome me as heir apparent to their mining colonies. Unless the Nebulans have again attacked.”
“Sure.” Nadia leaned back in the chair, her eyes glued to the thin window that separated her from the only star system she’d known. Her heart beat fast, her mind swirling with the rapid intake of information. There was intelligent alien life in a galaxy not far from her own. They had mastered interstellar travel. “What Nebulans? I... Don’t understand. There’s more life beyond your galaxy?”
“Certainly. There is life in every galaxy, but some not as advanced as ours. Life in Astria is very much like life on Terra, I think. Even if the Terrans are woefully behind in their technologies.”
“I guess it would seem that way.” Though Nadia wanted to defend her blue planet, it was clear that Astrian technology was far more advanced than anything humans could build. Her mind drifted to the space station and the incredible technology there -- she practically worshiped what it could do. But it was nothing compared to this ship. The ship seemed to respond to her thoughts, whipping faster and faster, as if shifting into a different gear. “Why did you... why did you even come here?” She looked at Kester, her eyes roaming over his muscular body.
“I will need to explain that another time.” His eyes shifted away from Nadia as he spoke. “For now, little woman, I need to get you into one of the sleeping bays. Your body has suffered a great trauma, and we’re soon to enter the first of a series of wormholes. The first time passing through is difficult even for Astrian bodies. I don’t want to see what it would do to your body... or your psyche. It’s much safer for you to be restrained and sleeping.”
“Restrained?” Nadia arched an eyebrow, gripping the arms of the chair. “I don’t think so.” The alien prince laughed, placing his hand over the chiseled muscles of his torso.
“It’s a restraint you can break when you wake up. It’s invisible. Come, let me show you. It is a technology that might interest you. You’re curious aren’t you?” Kester paused and held out a hand to Nadia. His eyes sparkled. Nadia sighed and rose from the chair. He knew he had her. As she stood, the ship shook, increasing its speed. Nadia tripped and fell forward as she tried to grip Kester’s hand. Instead of just taking his hand, she had fallen face first into his body. The alien prince was at least eighteen inches taller than Nadia, and her head barely reached his chest. His skin was warmer than that of a human, and his muscles as hard as steel. Something about his scent was nearly intoxicating. The ship shook again, and Nadia swayed against Kester, her hands clutching at the diaphanous material of his shirt. Her eyelids began to flutter closed, and she pressed her body weight against his. There was something comforting... something sensual... about being so close to this unknown creature.
“I’m so sorry,” she said, forcing her eyelids open and pushing herself away from him. Kester chuckled and reached out to touch her hair, lifting one curl away from her face before tucking it behind her ear. “I’m just so sleepy,” she mumbled.
“It’s the ship shifting into hyperdrive. And perhaps my musk. It’s supposed to be soothing for females, but it seems to have made you a bit... loopy.” In one swift motion, Kester stepped forward and lifted Nadia into his arms, carrying her like a child to the bed where she’d lain before.
“You don’t have to carry me,” she protested. But she nuzzled into him, taking in the heady scent and warmth of his skin. Her entire body relaxed, and she yawned.
“I’ll explain the technology another time.” He placed her into the bay, and it suddenly seemed as if she were floating, her body held still by invisible restraints. The restraints didn’t feel constricting, but comforting instead, like a tight warm sleeping bag next to the fire. As she drifted off, she realized that there was one thing missing. A man, tucked in beside her... She had a fading thought of Kester and his unusual, hard body. What would it feel like against hers? How different would it be? She fell into a deep sleep, enveloped in the warm bonds of the sleeping bay. Her dreams were scattered with thoughts of Kester and the haunting, delicious scent of his body.
Kester
Damn that Terran woman, and damn my father, Kester thought, pacing as the ship sped and turned toward the wormhole near Europa. It was too bad that the sea creatures of Jupiter’s moons weren’t sentient. He’d rather be stuck caring for one of them than this little female Terran. She’d awakened something in him dark and ancient, a mating instinct that he’d never felt before. With the other females he’d had, it was simple fun. A relief of a physical need. With this woman, it was closer to madness itself. He knew that if she were awake during their voyage to Astria, he would grow worse and worse until he had to have her. If tales of the mating urge were true, he might even take her by force during her time of ovulation. Though the thought had its merits -- he imagined himself buried deep inside of her tiny body, encapsulated by her tight, dark wetness -- he wouldn’t do that to a woman. And certainly not to one who had awakened such a deep sense of protection in his soul.
It was true. He didn’t need to take this woman to Gemna. Of that he was sure. Her arm would heal on its own with the limited medical help he’d already provided. But there was something in him that warmed at the thought of showing her his ancestral home, showing her the place where his father and forefathers had grown from boys into men.
“It’s crazy that you’ve taken this Terran woman anywhere. She should be back at her home, with her people. You shouldn’t have tempted the thing with seeing a galaxy she’s never before seen.” Kester spoke to himself in a chiding tone as he paced through the ship. It was old, but it would deliver his guest to a healing medical port. After that, he would get her back to her metal sky tube. He had to. He had never wanted to mate permanently, let alone with a Terran woman. He’d only come on this mission to appease his father. He was fully planning to return to Delma empty-handed, claiming that he couldn’t find a fertile female willing to go with him. After all, Terrans were too weak and stupid to be proper members of Astrian society. Like cattle farmers or worse... Weren’t they?
The ship shot into the first of the wormholes, propelled forward as light and time
shifted around them. Kester looked back to the Terran woman. She was sleeping, her small, pert breasts rising and falling in time with her breaths. And in her dreams... it was Kester. He closed his eyes and could see that she envisioned making love to him, letting him split her apart and enter her. Her dreams were fractured, due perhaps to her extreme exhaustion. But still, he savored her visions nonetheless. It was flattering.
“Even if it’s just because of your scent.” The mating urge had released something in him, something primal. His typical soothing scent has shifted into something greater, something far more effective. If the Terran woman wanted to mate with him when she woke -- or even in his dreams -- it was because of what she’d awakened inside of him. Was that love? Legitimately? Or was it a lie? All of the other women he’d taken had come to him honestly. This unexpected mating urge would muddy things. It wouldn’t even be clear if she wanted him... it might only be his mating aura pulling her along. And he didn’t want that. Not with this particular female.
“This particular female,” he repeated to himself. He laughed, thinking of her trying to attack him, her soft body against his. There was nothing special about her, not really. Why had she activated this ancient response? One that he’d never had? His father had told him that it never happened for some Astrian males. But when it did happen, the man could do nothing but obey.
Kester shook off a wave of nausea as the ship warped through time. Even though he’d made this and similar journeys many times, his body still responded with unease. Perhaps if he slept in the bay next to that of the Terran woman, he could subdue his body’s response. His response to the ship... and to her. The computer could manage the ship for him, and he wouldn’t have to suffer the effects of the wormholes. Not only that... he wouldn’t have to suffer his thoughts about the Terran woman and her tiny body wrapped around his. If he could get her to the Gemnian healing port, perhaps he could get her right back home. And she would never know. It would be better that she didn’t... better if she never fell into his arms... better if she never fully activated the animal need within him. In his soul, he knew that if he ever truly possessed her, he would never take her back to her home.
CHAPTER THREE
Nadia
Nadia awoke to a maddening rumble. Her eyes shot open, ripping her away from the dream world where she’d lived for the past twenty-four hours. She struggled against the restraints. With a click, everything holding her in place released, and she tumbled to the shaking floor. Breathing heavily, she pulled herself to her feet. Nadia groaned, putting her hand to her head. She felt like she’d been on a four-day drinking binge, except that the headache was in both her head and in her arm. She moved her shoulder joint slightly, trying to stretch. Whatever medical business the alien had done did keep the arm in place, but it was damn frustrating that she didn’t have access to her full range of motion. She would kill to be able to give her arm a good stretch, even if it would probably send her to the floor in agony.
“Ah, fuck,” she groaned, attempting to stretch again. “How the hell did I get myself into this?” She should never have agreed to fly through God-knows-where with the sexy alien guy. It was certainly too much on her body, and she shouldn’t have been lured in by his promises of galactic travel and alien technology. It would be hard for any astronaut to refuse, come to think of it, but Nadia should have. Even if she didn’t have anyone at all waiting for back home... She still couldn’t tell if he was from a friendly species. For all she knew, it could be these Nebulan people who she wanted on her side. She hoisted herself up, gripping the side of the sleeping bay. She looked toward the window. What she saw there made her draw her breath in sharply. “What the everloving fuck.”
Before her expanded stars and planets she had never before seen. The broad windshield of the ship looked out onto a dual star system, where blue and red planets rotated. In the distance, she could see an asteroid belt… perhaps the Lanids that Kester had spoken of with such affection. The ship seemed to be stationed next to the moon of a green and blue planet, not terribly unlike Earth. Perhaps it was Gemnia. Kester would know. Where the hell was Kester? She whipped around, scanning the small interior of the ship. Her eyes fell on a long, slim body in the sleep bay next to hers. In there lay the alien with the deep golden eyes, the ones that watched her like a cat. She watched him, her eyes scanning over his body. The thin material of the shirt he was wearing clung to his muscles, seeming to define his beauty even more clearly. What drew her to him? What made her feel and think these things that she never had before? She thought back to her dreams, wondering if he could read them. She hoped not. Her thoughts had been filled with him, the beautiful man -- no, alien -- who she had just met. Just then, the ship rumbled and shook, lurching to one side. Nadia’s body was thrown against the wall, knocking the wind out of her. She crumpled to the floor. The ship shook again, and a dark shadow passed over the window.
“Kester,” Nadia yelled. “Kester! Something’s happening.” She felt the ship shake again in a way that reminded her of the airlock opening back at the International Space Station. A deep, strange panic overtook Nadia. Somehow, she managed to rise and move to Kester’s sleeping bay. She reached in and shook him, watching his leonine eyes as they opened. They flickered to her face, and he smiled, brighter and more beautiful than any man who had ever laid eyes on her. The ship shook again, and Kester’s eyes cut across the room. Coming free from the bonds that held him, he slid down more gracefully from the sleeping bay -- far more gracefully than Nadia had. He stood immediately and gripped Nadia’s good arm, pushing her behind him.
“Get down, Nadia.” It was the first time he had used her real name. Despite her terror at the rumbling of the ship, she almost smiled at the sound of her name on Kester’s lips. She crouched down behind him, gripping his muscular arm. From his touch, she could feel something like a warning. It was like the image he’d shown her before, but it was much less intense, a gentle telepathic message. It was serious in nature, but easier on her mind.
Okay, she thought. We’ll be okay. He looked back at her, nodding to let her know that he had received her message in kind. There was a look of slight surprise, as if he couldn’t quite believe their exchange.
At that moment, what had appeared to be a huge wall ripped open. Nadia gasped. Before them stood a humanoid being, but one with a lizard-like face of black and blue. His eyes radiated pure evil. Just from touching Kester’s skin, she could tell that this was a Nebulan, a member of a race who had been plaguing Kester’s people and their allies for centuries. A being that would easily slit Nadia’s throat from ear to ear... or worse yet, take her to his home planet to be breeding material. Nadia shuddered, clutching Kester’s arm.
“Prince Kester of Delma and the Lanids,” the creature said, his voice gravely and foreign even through the language chip in Nadia’s ear. “We’ve heard tell that you procured a Terran woman for the purpose of mating.”
“The woman is none of your concern.” Kester’s voice boomed, holding none of that sweetness or light sarcasm Nadia had heard before.
Procured for mating? That’s not the story Kester told me. Nadia’s eyes flickered between the two aliens. Even if she was less certain of her relationship to Kester, it was clear that he was the lesser of two evils.
“She is. Terran women are pliant and fertile.” The alien took a deep inhale of the air, stepping forward and staring at Nadia with unbridled lust. “They can also be trained to serve the Nebulan race. Once you break them, they make excellent slaves. And one this little... well I’d take her straight to my chambers and make her mine.” The Nebulan growled, putting one hand to his cock and gripping it. He was clearly growing hard already.
“The Terran female is mine. I’ve already claimed her,” Kester growled. “She’s mine to mate with until the end of days.” His voice sounded more animal than alien... like a wolf forming the syllables of a man. The Nebulan laughed.
“You’re just a weak prince. You clearly couldn’t please this wom
an.” The Nebulan threw his head back. In a flash quicker and fiercer than lightning, Kester had pulled a barely visible weapon from his side. He stepped forward and slit the monster’s throat. The Nebulan clutched at his throat, his black blood spilling over the ship. Kester pulled Nadia up and thrust her back into the sleeping bay. He pressed a button she couldn’t see, and the restraints covered her, but this time she was unable to break free.
“Kester... what... what are you doing?”
“Taking you to Gemnia. And disposing of this garbage.” With one powerful stride, Kester stepped forward to the controls and closed the ripped apart panel. “We’ll have to fly with the Nebulan pod attached to the ship, but we’ll make landing on Gemna and get you to a sick bay. And I’ll get you away from this fucking place as soon as possible.” The ship rumbled to life and sped down toward to the planet, shaking and off balance from the pod that had mounted the ship’s airlock.
