by Celeste Raye
Alexis looked to Destiney for help. With all the wailing, there was no way they would be able to hear her. Destiney was the only one who could grab their attention. Destiney placed her fingers in her mouth as if she was going to hail a cab and whistled. Silence fell over the crowd, and they turned to look at the two women. “Listen up, ladies! We cannot just lose our minds here. We need to know what we are getting into, and my friend Alexis here can tell us that. So, can you just calm down and listen for a moment?”
Alexis tried not to laugh at her friend’s spunk and the way everyone was nodding, ready to follow her instructions. She would have made a great leader of some kind back on Earth had those around her let her be herself without fear. Alexis wasn’t sure how she would fare on Milisaria. If she were a man, she would surely be a commander, but women were most certainly lesser beings on the planet, though, Alexis didn’t know enough about that part of their culture to say for sure. She could only hope that their liking of human women would keep the women aboard as safe as they could be in such a situation.
“The Knights of Milisaria have a lot of dealings with humans. I have met one once, when I was trying to work for NASA. They are a warrior race that is always trying to make themselves better in some way, and I suspect that they believe breeding with humans would make them better because they are not the sharpest tools in the shed. We are much more intelligent than they are,” Alexis explained, hoping the women would understand and not go into a complete panic again. At least they would still be getting what they wanted, sort of. The Arkani would have been much kinder to the women and given them a choice. That was something Alexis doubted the Milisarians even had the emotional capacity to do. However, they would be much better looking than Arkani. Someone like Destiney might appreciate that over the veiny, thin creatures with wings they would be married off to if they made it all the way to the Arkani’s planet.
“Are you saying they want to use us to have their children?” one woman said, a woman named Stacia who was one of the women who came from jail for a second chance.
“More than likely, yes. That is what they will want us for,” Alexis responded, preparing for more chaotic chatter and squeals as their ship was almost entirely swallowed up in the larger Milisarian one.
“But what about the Arkani? Won’t they be angry and come for us? There must be some hope. Can we fight?” one of the other women asked. Alexis felt herself getting a headache, trying to explain this to them. She knew she should be patient and be aware that these women had hardly come in contact with an alien beyond what they saw on the news, but it was hard. It was why she wished to be around like-minded peoples, but that dream was long gone by now. The Arkani would never have them.
“The Arkani are not a strong, warring people. They will be saddened, but they do not have the resources to come for us,” Alexis said softly, just as the final lurch told them they were fully on the Milisarian vessel. The ship felt dark without the view of all the planets and stars, and Alexis longed to just get this over with.
The women huddled together as the door to the ship was forcefully opened and in marched several Milisarian knights, ready to put them in shackles and bring them onto the ship. “Cooperate, or you will be bound,” one of them warned, gesturing for the women to come to them. Alexis nodded to them, trying to get them to do as the knights said. Resistance was pointless. A bunch of scared women were not going to overpower warrior aliens with two sets of arms. It just wasn’t realistic. They would all become the mates of these harsh men and forced to have their children. Still, as much as Alexis told the others not to resist, she felt she could at least make things go more her way. She wasn’t just going to lie down and take it from any man. He was going to respect her first.
“Good luck, lady. I love you,” Destiney said as she strutted over to the knights, giving herself over willingly. Alexis just hoped whoever chose her would not stifle that spunk of hers. Alexis could not imagine what would happen to her friend if she lost that amazing part of herself.
Watching as the other women filed into the arms of the knights to be taken onto their ship, some by force and others cooperatively, Alexis decided it was time to give herself up as well. She took one more look at the ship that had been taking her to a new life, which she had been sure would have made her happy, before turning around and surrendering into the arms of one of the four-armed, muscular men with dark hair.
Milisarians were not the worst-looking creatures in the universe, though the harshness of their frame would take a bit of getting used to. They were all pale, like a human who had not seen the sunlight in a long time. It made their veins more visible, and she had heard, that you could sometimes see their beating heart through their translucent skin. None of the warriors had their chests completely uncovered for her to tell if that was true or not.
They all had tribal-like markings on their skin. They had slightly pointed ears, protruding out from their long hair. They were also much taller than the women, making their presence that much more intimidating. Most Milisarian knights stood at least six feet tall.
Once all the women were on the Milisarian vessel, the hatch to their ship closed, and they watched as it was released out into space again, on autopilot to its original destination, but empty now. The Arkani were going to be devastated and confused when the empty ship landed on their planet.
Some of the women began to cry as the hold on them was tightened. Alexis stood there stoically, promising herself that she would not react until she had a moment alone. Showing weakness would not get her anywhere with these tough men.
Alexis looked around and saw that they were in some kind of meeting area inside the ship. She had no way of knowing just yet exactly how large the ship was or how many of the knights it held. She got the feeling that the ones who came on their ship to get the women were only a small fraction. They had yet to see the ship’s commander.
Sure enough, the door slid open, revealing a hallway of sorts, which had several more Milisarians filing in, much too many for the women they captured. It was going to be a fight to decide who was able to get women. One Milisarian broke through the crowd, and she could tell by his demeanor and his gold staff and armor that he was the commander. “I am Shene,” he announced, looking perpetually angry. His chest was mostly bare, below the armor, revealing his ripped stomach. His black hair came down to his lower back, and he was larger than many of the other men by far. Even they looked scared of him as he walked around, forming the crowd into a perfect circle. “I am the King of the Milisarian Knights,” he announced, staring down at each and every person in that room. Alexis was surprised that the king was commanding the ship and not on the planet. They must have truly been desperate for women if he headed the mission to snatch women out of space and bring them onto a ship. “My men will get to choose the women they would like to have. You are going to be Milisarians now.”
He stared down all the women again, and Alexis noticed some of them whimpering and shaking. She caught Destiney’s gaze and saw that she had her eyes locked on one of the men there. Hopefully, he would be the one to pick her so she could be happy. If anyone there deserved it, she did.
The men began to come out and pick the women, taking them away to who knows where. Alexis was so busy paying attention to what was happening to the other women that it surprised her when a hand landed on her shoulder. “This one is for me,” a familiar voice said, and Alexis looked up in horror as she saw Shene himself was taking her by the arm and leading her out of the room. Alexis looked around feeling helpless as she realized Destiney had already been taken. All she could do was allow herself to be dragged out of the room and down the maze of white hallways that led to what seemed like thousands of living quarters and other rooms that she doubted she would get to explore anytime soon. It was probably not a good thing to be the mate of the king. He would not be kind. He would only be in it to make an heir to lead as well, if not better, than himself.
The ship was even more expansive than she
had imagined, and she realized that she would never find her way back to the room she was just in, much less be able to find Destiney if she was ever given the chance. After many dizzyingly fast turns, she was taken through a pair of large double doors and into the suite that belonged to the king while he was on the ship. It was luxurious, but that gave her little comfort as he threw her on the bed and locked the doors, leaving her in there by herself. She had nothing to occupy her but her thoughts, and those were not comforting at all.
Chapter 3
Nabvan watched as many of his comrades chose one of the human women that they had pulled in from an auto-piloted ship. Apparently, it had been headed to the Arkani so that the women could marry and breed with them. He had remembered hearing that the Arkani were in some sort of crisis with the females of their species. They were dying off from an unknown disease. Nabvan did not really care. The two races were not enemies, but they were not friends either. The Arkani did not value strength the way the Milisarian knights did.
Nabvan scoffed at the thought of what they were called now. They had taken the name from human history, after men that walked around in metal suits, poking each other with swords. The Milisarians had become obsessed with humans ever since their dealings on Earth began. Earth was an excellent trade partner for both resources and weapons. They were also a great intergalactic ally if the Milisarians ever needed help in a large battle, but beyond that, Nabvan did not understand the appeal. Yet, all of his fellow men were lining up like kids at a candy store in order to pick a mate. They all had talked about how beautiful they were before the women were officially on board. Nabvan did not necessarily agree.
Human females were slightly more attractive than their own, he would give that to them. But human women were loud and stubborn, and they certainly didn’t seem to be as smart as King Shene claimed they were. Maybe it was the fact that Nabvan had not had the honor of stepping foot on Earth yet and that he was young that made him so indifferent to the women’s presence on the ship. Perhaps, it was also the fact that he had given up his chance to choose a woman for himself. He had to keep himself disinterested.
Nabvan was young, especially for as high ranking as he was in the army. He was the ship’s commander when the king was not available and trained the young men to prepare them to become the best Milisarian knights they could be.
He had turned down the women for more than one reason. The first was that it seemed to be his duty to allow the king and some of the other higher-ranking men to find a mate. There were only enough women for a third of the men contained on the ship right now, so a lot of them had to step aside. Nabvan also knew that he was young enough that he had time. He had time to find the right woman of any race he wanted. They traveled to conquer, so many colonies. There was no reason he could not find the right woman for him later on.
Nabvan smoothed back his red hair behind his head as he saw that King Shene had finally picked himself a woman out of the crowd. While it was not his place to question the moves of the king, he had to make note of the fact that the king already had many lovers. It was something that used to be unacceptable among Milisarians. They were meant to mate for life unless there was a crisis that demanded the expansive spreading of their seed. Other than a want for a better race, there was really no need for so many women. What was worse was that he kept all these women locked up in separate rooms and saw them only when he felt like it. He would get a new one, have fun with her for a while, and then do the same. These human women were meant to be lifetime mates to marry and have children with. He could not help but feel sorry for the woman King Shene had chosen.
Nabvan could see why he had chosen her, though. She was one of the only women who was standing there without making a sound. She was not asserting herself to find one of the men, but she was not crying and wailing like she was about to be killed either. It was only natural that their leader would want someone strong by his side, for however long he meant to keep her there.
She also resembled a Milisarian the least, with her thin frame and light-colored hair. No one on Milisaria had light colored hair or eyes. Even he, with his dark red locks, was often considered an anomaly.
Nabvan waited until the room had emptied of the women and the men that had chosen them before he began to make his way to the command center of the ship. He had no idea if the king would take some time to get to know this human woman first, or if he would come up to the command center himself. Either way, he would expect Nabvan to keep things running. They had a date with fate, so to speak. They were about to travel to check on one of the colonies they had taken over before then taking over yet another one. That was their main purpose: to conquer as many places as they could before other war-like races did. Power was everything now that almost the entire galaxy was aware they were not the only life forms around.
As soon as he made it to the command center, King Shene came in behind him, looking like he was on a mission. “Nabvan,” he said in his thick voice.
“Yes, King?” he asked, bowing his head in reverence.
“I have an important assignment for you, and it will be yours until I say otherwise,” he announced. Nabvan nodded in respect but was unsure what this new assignment could be. A lot of the older knights would love to see him take a demotion because of his age, but what would he have done to deserve such a thing? “I need you to be by my new human mate’s side at all times. You will guard her and care for her when I am not around. Most importantly, you will make sure that she does not escape or cause any trouble for me or for the others. Is that clear? You are her keeper when I am not on this ship and when I am caring for my duties as king. You should see this as an honor. It is the most important job besides mine.”
Nabvan did not know that he agreed with that. He was about to play babysitter to a human woman that the king meant to breed with for an indefinite amount of time. He would much rather be training and commanding a ship. He could see it in the eyes of some of his comrades that they thought it was a joke. Nabvan was not happy, but he knew what could happen to him if he defied the king.
“I see,” he said to the king. “I will take my new assignment seriously.”
“Do this right, and I can promise that all of these new children will be yours to train and command,” the king offered, upping the ante. Nabvan could not help but feel a push to do a good job despite his qualms about watching over the human woman. He would get a whole slew of new warriors in just a few years that could learn new techniques and abilities unlike any of the other knights right now. It would be the most challenging and rewarding job he could think of.
“It would be an honor.” Nabvan bowed and made his way to the king’s quarters on the ship as he heard the king give the order to fly on to the colony planet they needed to check on. It irked him that he would no longer be up there and a part of those commands, but he had to think of it as an opportunity.
He made it to the double doors and put in the code to enter, finding the woman looking much more scared than when he first saw her coming off of her ship. She was lying on the bed, looking startled at his entrance and scooting away from him, as if that would do her any good.
“Unfortunately, or fortunately, however you want to look at it, I have been assigned to be your keeper of sorts for the time being. The king has many important matters to tend to. And please, don’t try and escape. It will make this easier on the both of us.” That was as much as he was willing to say before taking a guard like stance at the door and focusing his eyes on a singular spot in the room. It was going to be a long few years waiting for those new knights to grow up and come to him, especially if he had to guard her the whole time.
Chapter 4
Alexis was devastated, to say the least. She was locked up in the king’s quarters with no idea what was going on outside of it. Were the other women, all right? Was Destiney happy, or was she struggling to not have her dignity taken away? She wanted to ask the guard that had been assigned to her a million questions, but beyond an
nouncing his post, he had said nothing else. Alexis got the feeling that he was not into the assignment or excited about her. He could easily be bitter about the fact that he was not one of the men who was afforded a woman. Many of the men did not get one.
The sheer amount of Milisarian knights on the ship had surprised her. What surprised her even more was the fact that they had not promptly landed on the surface of the planet like she had expected. They had gone in the opposite direction. So, whatever the king had planned, the women would all be along for the ride. It was not a good sign for their future, as Alexis knew that the Milisarians were often in battle. What if something happened to the women because of an enemy attack?
Alexis thought back to her time on Earth, and the moment she made the decision to get on that ship to go to the Arkani. She was still a glorified secretary at NASA, knowing that they were never going to allow her to get anywhere in the company, no matter how much she proved herself. She remembered how she had studied women of the past that had done great things and given a presentation. Those who had bothered to pay attention laughed at her. It wasn’t like that anymore: that was basically what they had voiced.
So, the moment she was passing out coffee at a meeting and heard that they needed to put a team of women together for the Arkani, she had volunteered, not just to be one of the women, but also to find the right kind of women that would go willingly. As much as she had disliked many of the women on the flight, she had been involved in hand picking each and every one that was now in danger of being captured by the Milisarians. It made her feel responsible, and it made her wonder if it had been the right decision or just a rash one based on her current unhappiness.
