by Anna Carven
He would accept whatever punishment the General deemed appropriate.
“You castrated a human,” Akkadian said mildly, almost appearing… amused. “I assume your action was justifiable.”
A flash of white-hot rage surged through Iskar as he remembered what that human bastard had done to Mari. “That man imprisoned my mate against her will. He tortured her. He put his hands on her. If I hadn’t intervened, he would have…” Iskar clenched his fists in anger. “Put yourself in my shoes, Sir. I had to teach him a lesson.”
“Do you know who he is?”
“No idea.”
“Christopher Stern, younger brother to Lucretius. The Stern clan is a very old and powerful dynasty on Earth.”
“The human equivalent of a Noble House?”
“The human equivalent, yes. A shadow of the real thing.” Akkadian’s lips twisted into a grim smile. “My sources tell me your unique form of justice has incensed the Sterns.”
“He got what was coming to him,” Iskar muttered, unable to feel the slightest shred of remorse. “I almost killed him when he begged for his life, but then I changed my mind. Death would have been the easy way out.”
“I don’t dispute your actions in the slightest, Commander. Fortunately for us, the family are in a bind. Reporting the incident to the authorities would expose the younger Stern’s penchant for keeping sex slaves.”
“Slaves? There are more of them?” Like the General, Iskar despised the notion of slavery.
“I will arrange to facilitate their release. Do not be so tense, Iskar. In your position, I would have done the same, or worse.” His expression darkened. “When one is mated, all reason disappears.”
“Hm.” Iskar remembered the madness of Mating Fever. The sheer intensity of his feelings for Mari had caught him by surprise. “It was… unexpected.” But good. The best thing that has ever happened to me.
The headaches were gone now—they’d abated as soon as he’d made love to Mari—but he was still filled with simmering tension.
He wondered if that feeling would ever go away.
“The Stern clan has always been opposed to our presence on Earth. Apparently, we have competing interests. I believe we have already encountered—and fought—the various arms of their operations on Earth. I have no doubt they will attempt some sort of retaliation in future.” The General seemed completely unfazed. “Irritating, but manageable. Some humans tend to overestimate their capabilities.”
“My actions were reckless,” Iskar admitted. In hindsight, he realized he’d committed an outrageous breach of protocol. It was so out of character; he always did things by the book. “I should have consulted you on how to proceed. I should have approached the situation with better planning, more discretion… I will accept any disciplinary measu—”
The General waved his hand dismissively. “Iskar, relax.”
Relax? Once again, Akkadian proved that he was an impossible man to predict.
“Who am I to deny you your most fundamental needs? You went after your mate.” He shrugged. “It is impossible for me to stand in the way of that. Having said that, I would rather avoid such chaos in future. I want you to streamline this process for our men.”
“Sir?” Iskar blinked, not quite understanding the General’s intentions.
“You are not the first to fall, Commander, and it is inevitable that there will be others. I want you to put together a team. Consult with the human women and set up a program.”
“A program…”
“We will help our men to find their mates, on our terms. Controlled chaos, if you will. It will minimize the potential for such incidents in future.”
“That is reasonable.” The part of Iskar that craved law and order jumped on the idea. “In truth, it is necessary if we are to exist in this place.”
“Indeed.” The General looked up.
On a high walkway above, two women appeared. One was the General’s wife, Abbey.
Iskar’s gaze was instantly drawn to the other.
His mate.
She wore a deep red kashkan; it was a gift from Iskar, and to his delight, she loved it. As he’d predicted, it suited her perfectly. Her long, talented fingers peeked out from voluminous sleeves, and her narrow waist was highlighted by a wide cream-colored sash. The fine silken material draped beautifully over her curves, accentuating all the right places.
Iskar’s cock stirred. He couldn’t wait to undress her and claim her again and again.
The women looked down. Abbey was pointing to something and talking animatedly. Mari smiled. They couldn’t see Iskar and the General, who were both concealed beneath a thick canopy of foliage.
General Akkadian followed the direction of Iskar’s gaze. As his eyes landed on his mate, his face did an incredible thing.
It softened.
For Iskar, who had only known the General as a hard, ruthless, and enigmatic leader, it was a revelation.
“Finding and claiming a mate is essential to the future of our bloodline,” Akkadian said quietly, never once taking his eyes off his mate. “We could simply abduct humans and institute mass-breeding, but that would go against our very nature. I believe the intense protectiveness we feel towards our mates and offspring is no coincidence. It is key to our survival in the Universe.”
“And that is why Kythia had to fall.” Another piece of the puzzle fell into place. “The old Imperial ways were killing our true nature.” His father had told him as much. Wise old man. At the time, a much younger Iskar had dismissed his words as the ravings of a bitter old military grunt.
Now, it was all starting to make sense.
As Iskar observed his mate from the shadows, a strange emotion overcame him. She is mine. Where Mari was concerned, he would never be entirely rational.
Madness.
And it was glorious.
“How the hell do you do it, General? How do you keep sane when there is so much at stake?”
The General gave him a knowing look. “Our very existence is a balancing act between order and chaos, Iskar. The trick is to indulge in a little of both, never letting one consume the other.”
“A difficult feat.”
“Indeed.” Akkadian’s expression turned wry. “Just wait until you have offspring, Commander. Everything you have accomplished will pale in comparison.”
Above them, the clouds parted, revealing Earth’s brilliant silver moon. Mari was almost above him now, and as Iskar stepped out from beneath his leafy cover, revealing himself, she grinned.
Goddess, she was beautiful.
Temptress. He gave her his best mock-stern Dread High Commander look. I’ll sort you out later.
She stuck out her tongue at him, her nose crinkling.
Iskar couldn’t help it; he laughed.
And all was well in their Universe.
Dear readers, thank you for reading my book! I hope you enjoyed it.
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Also by Anna Carven
Dark Planet Warriors
(in order of publication)
Dark Planet Warriors (Book 1)
Dark Planet Falling (Book 2)
Into the Light (Book 3)
Out of Darkness (Book 4)
Darkside Blues (Book 4.5)
Forged in Shadow (Book 5)
Infinity’s Embrace (Book 6)
Electric Heart (Book 7)
Brilliant Starlight (Book 8)
Hidden Planet
Destroyer (Book 1)
Catalyst (Book 2) - coming 2018
Darkstar Mercenaries
A Darkside Interlude (Book 0.5)
Taming Chaos (Book 1) - coming 2018
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Anna Carven, A Darkside Interlude: Darkstar Mercenaries Book 0.5
