by Celeste Raye
Nabvan found himself in the king’s quarters on the ship, guarding her once again. The king didn’t like to be bothered on most of his political missions. The fact that Alexis was there was mostly for show once they made it to Earth, he was certain. King Shene would show off his conquest to them as intimidation. He doubted the king had any intentions of putting in a good word for the women, and he had kept that to himself to try and appease Alexis. It clearly had not worked.
He went into the room cautiously to find her waiting for him, looking regal as always. She was always the bright spot, so much so that he was afraid to look at her at times. “What have you done?” he asked her, which sent her into a fit of tears he wasn’t expecting.
Nabvan went straight to her, sitting down and pulling her into his arms like she was a child. He cradled her there and sniffed that musky scent of her hair he loved so much. “Oh, god, Nabvan, I knew you would hate me, but I couldn’t let them go back to Earth.” Nabvan felt himself holding back his own tears. Whatever she had set in motion, it was going to change everything. “I contacted the Arkani. They’re coming to get them. And if they don’t, we fight. We fight and win or we die.”
Nabvan let out a sigh. He could not feel anything but anguish and love. He knew this woman, deep down to her soul. He should have realized the moment she pulled away back in Milisaria that she would continue with her plan anyway. This was the woman he loved, and he couldn’t be angry because it was exactly what she was meant to do. She changed worlds. She had changed his so completely.
Nabvan began to kiss away her tears as they each fell, not having anything comforting to say. He was so afraid for her. He could not watch her get tortured and killed over this. He knew what he would do to prevent it and what that would do to her too. There was no happy ending now.
“When this is all over, no matter what happens, I want to be with you forever. I want this to end with us together in my own personal Heaven or me in your arms because we got out of this. And I know you don’t want the same, but I just have to tell you, it’s killing me, the way I have to touch him and look at him as if he is you.” Nabvan caressed her face as she confessed this. If only she understood. It was all he wanted as well.
He pulled her back onto the bed, sliding her dress off of her so easily, like water flowing through a stream. His body called for hers and always would, even if this was the last time they could feel each other this way. He pulled his clothes off quickly, wanting to savor this moment before it was taken away from them. The ship took off, flying into the stratosphere as he began to kiss her with every ounce of passion he had for her. He was letting go this time, letting her have it all in case he never got to touch her again. He knew that the events that were coming could rip them apart for good.
He placed himself over her body, feeling her heat against him. His lips dragged across hers and then down to her chin, tasting every inch of her skin. Then, he slid down her body, tasting her navel and sliding his tongue down to that sweet spot that gave him so much pleasure. He felt himself growing in response as she arched her back into his lapping motions.
Alexis squirmed under his touch, and he loved that he knew he could get her going like that. He had no confidence the first time they had done anything like this, having never mated before. Of course, it was instinct. Milisarians had even more instinct for such things than humans where they were lacking in scientific and creative thought processes. So, he knew he would know what to do, but he didn’t know how much she would love it. It was her reactions that really drove him, making everything that much more intense. He could not imagine feeling anything better with anyone else. The king must have been insane to be with Alexis and then be able to still be with another woman.
Not able to wait any longer to have her, he slid back up her body, planting the head of his shaft right at the entrance to her warm, wet center. He slid inside of her with a sigh that let out all of his beautiful relief to finally be inside of her again. He pumped into her at a steady rhythm as she moaned into his mouth, reaching for it with her lips. Their tongues danced with each other as he moved his whole body over her, writhing with all his strength as he meant to pleasure her even more than the last time they were able to be together.
He felt her nails raking up against him just the way he liked, leaving her mark on him, just as he began to feel that pulsing sensation he knew meant she was climaxing. He loved how her body squeezed and worked his member to completion, making him moan so loud. He released into her, leaving his own kind of mark. He wanted to fill her with pieces of himself. Maybe she would have his child instead of the king’s.
Just as he was going to continue for round two, the door opened abruptly, revealing the two of them there together, him still inside of her. The king saw all, and the look on his face was one of shock, disappointment, and embarrassment. It didn’t matter what plan Alexis had come up with. It would all be over now.
The king called for the guards as Nabvan was promptly made to cover up and dragged away with Alexis screaming and crying for him the whole time. He knew what his punishment would be, but his heart and soul went out to his love. Would she survive what was coming for her?
Chapter 22
Alexis’s lungs and heart hurt the more she called out to and cried for the love of her life. He was long gone, taken away by the king’s guards while the king waited for her to stop wailing so he could dole out whatever punishment he had for her. All was lost, and she knew it. She would never be able to help the women now. She would never get to be with Nabvan. So, she hoped that her punishment would be a death that would lead her to a place where she could be with his soul. She did not want to live the life that would be ahead of her if the king kept her around.
“I cannot believe the betrayal that I have seen with my own two eyes. I cannot believe after all you have scolded me for that I have found my human mate, the woman I have chosen to be my queen, in bed with a man I count as my second. I cannot believe you have taken on another lover. Do I not please you when I thrust myself into you? Do I not make you shake and shiver with madness when I touch you in your special places?” he asked, his voice rising into a fever pitch over her now softening cries. She was losing her voice and losing her will to scream. For all she knew, the one she loved was dead already. If he wasn’t, could she ask for him to be spared?
“Please, before we get into this, I beg of you to save his life. Spare him. He has betrayed no one. He loves me dearly, and that is his only crime. He has no other mate, nobody else to answer to. I will die in his stead if a punishment must come down. Or send him away from this planet, somewhere else, anywhere. But please, do not hurt him. I will do anything.” Alexis pleaded through her tears, falling to the ground and begging at the king’s feet. It was the lowest moment in her life that led her down there, offering her life or anything the king commanded to save the love of her life.
She looked up at the king as he cocked his head to the side, not unlike a confused dog. He did not laugh, but he did not give her the answer she was looking for either. Alexis could feel her heart shattering inside her chest. She was certain it could never be whole again. “You would die for this Milisarian knight that has betrayed his king: this young, inexperienced man who took you just the way I wanted to?” the king asked as if it surprised him. The king would probably never give his life for anyone. No wonder he survived every battle. He probably used the rest of the knights as meat shields. It was sickening.
“Have you not ever heard of anyone willing to die for the one they love?” she asked, winning her a slap across her face that stung. His nails had raked her skin as well, leaving bloody claw marks that she grabbed and held, holding back her tears this time. Nothing hurt like the loss of Nabvan.
“Love? You have allowed yourself to fall in love with a man when I have chosen you? I have chosen you for a worthy position: to be the queen of all of Milisaria. I have had you in my bed and given you all the freedom you have asked for. I have not forced the women and men t
ogether. Instead, I am sending them home. All of this I have done because your wit and beauty had bewitched me in a way I never thought possible. And still you tell me you love another: a keeper that I gave to you to care for you?” he asked, clearly enraged. He did not understand. He would never understand.
“I am flattered that you find me so wonderful, but love is not a choice. If you had ever felt it yourself, you would know that,” she cried, hitting him where it hurt: that stone-cold heart of his.
“I want you to know before I do what I must do that I have felt something for you from the moment you stepped foot on this ship. It was why I chose you. Your beauty is an eye-catching thing, but your mind and your strength are something I have never seen here on Milisaria. It was something I wanted my people to have. You were a precious gift to my people and to myself. You may be right that I have never loved, but with you, I was certain I could have if you had only let me. I would have given up all of those women just to keep you, even in all of your stubbornness.” She didn’t know if she should believe him or not, but she couldn’t feel any worse than she already did. It was just more blood from an open wound at that point.
“And what is it you must do?” she asked as she watched the guards that had taken Nabvan away come back in. She found her eyes searching them for signs of blood but saw none. She didn’t know if she should hope for anything good, though. She doubted they would be allowed to so much as say goodbye.
“What I must do is follow Milisarian law which dictates a certain punishment for such matters. Nabvan is a Milisarian knight, and he will have to face the suffering that pays for the level of betrayal he has committed. I cannot stop that no matter what you say or what I want. Believe it or not, his service meant something to me. He was an amazing warrior.”
Alexis did not like his use of the past tense. Nabvan was already dead to the king. She bent over herself crying with no will left in her to speak or fight. She just wanted it to be over. “Will you kill me?” she asked him in an almost whisper before she felt the guards lifting her off the floor as if she weighed nothing.
She floated down the hall with the king following behind them. She didn’t know where they were going or who was seeing her being carried away like that. She didn’t really care anymore. She just wanted to know when it would end. “No, I will not kill you. You have not technically committed a crime. Though, your time with the Milisarians is over,” King Shene announced as she heard the clanging of bars. She looked up for the first time and saw that they were in the prisoners’ quarters, and the other women were locked up there as well. It seemed to be a formality only, with no guards around other than the ones who had carried her in. It was more of a symbol rather than a deterrent to anything. Wherever Nabvan had been taken to, it wasn’t there. “You will go back to Earth with the rest of them.”
The cell door closed behind her after she was thrown into the room, and she curled up in a little ball to cry. She did not get to end it yet, even when the happy ending would not come.
Chapter 23
Nabvan was ready to fight for his life and for Alexis’s. There was nothing left to lose after all. His punishment would be swift. He looked around the room and counted how many men were there. The king was there and had left one person to fly the ship while they took care of him: the betrayer. That was what they would call him even after his death. He had mated with the mate of the king, though technically, his claim would come first. If Nabvan had not been with a woman who was meant to be queen, the claim would be his and the dispute over.
There were four guards, two negotiators, the king, and himself. It had been a light load on the ship because the king had cockily believed the women would give him no trouble. How wrong he was considering the women were planning a takeover. And if the women had weapons, they could have very well overtaken that amount of men. He was wondering if his skill would allow him to take over those men. Though, Nabvan hated the idea of taking out his friend Siefer, who was on the ship as head negotiator. It was his last voyage until after his child was born. But Nabvan would do anything to ensure that his love could survive without the kind of punishment she might endure for his recklessness. He should not have had her on that ship.
He stood there, looking down at his feet with the reverence of a prisoner ashamed of what they had done, but he was testing his bonds right then, seeing if he would have the strength to break them. It would be tough, but he believed in himself to do it. He had been training others for moments like these with other races his whole adult life. Certainty, he could practice what he preached.
The execution was prepared. There would be torture, pointless other than as entertainment, and then the final blow. He would then be released into space and saluted as a past Milisarian knight, redeemed for his crime in his death. At least that was how everyone in the room with him expected it to go. But Nabvan was not going to let it get that far, not until he pulled one last crazy stunt. Hopefully, the women would still go through with their plan and help him out.
Nabvan put his thoughts on the only thing that would get him through as the guards walked towards him to order him onto his knees for the lashings. It was going to be now or never. He yanked free of the bonds with all his might, a loud growl coming from deep within his chest. Alexis was the fuel for everything as he began to swing at the men, taking the whips and other weapons off of them. Everyone fell in line to protect the king as always. He had to get through them. He lashed out with everything he had and ignored the pain as he got nicked with weapons and hit with fists.
Then, he heard a beautiful sound: the sound of angry women. They stormed the room, coming after the men with their bare hands. Their anger was plain on their faces, and they resembled feral animals as they helped him beat through the crowd. Alexis might have been with them; he didn’t know where she had been taken. But his focus was on getting through to the king. All would follow his orders once the king was dead.
“Injure them so they cannot escape and lock them up!” Nabvan ordered to the women who looked stunned before finally obeying him, hurting them and leading the men out of the room. He noticed that Siefer was helping the women as well. He couldn’t believe it, but this was a true friend until the end, and he would owe him if he made out of this mess alive. He caught one side glimpse of Alexis as she went with Siefer out of the room. He would have to thank Siefer for that as well. She did not need to be involved in this. It was just him and the king.
For the first time since serving him, Nabvan saw fear in King Shene’s eyes as they began to circle around each other, sizing each other up. The king was not an experienced opponent, but he was big and strong. Nabvan would normally have agility and experience on his side, but he was slowed down by his injuries, which were much more than he had sensed before, in the middle of battle.
The fight with the king was a slow dance, each going for the other and missing. His only hope was that the king, with his hard blows, would exhaust first and make a mistake.
That was just what happened, just the move he needed to make. With a crack of the whip, he pulled the king close and ran him through with the sword for good measure. The king fell to the ground just as Alexis came into the room, running from Siefer who had tried to stop her. But he should have known nothing would keep her away.
Nabvan went to her, trying to get to her to embrace her, but he fell just short, almost collapsing to his knees until the other two caught him. “Just get me to the command room, and then you can see if you can figure out some of the medicines and things,” he told Alexis, knowing those things would only buy him time.
“Where are you taking us?” she asked him as they dragged him back to where he could command the ship, telling the current commander to step aside. He was young and afraid. He did what they said.
“I am taking those women to the Arkani,” he breathed, slumping down in the chair to put in the coordinates. The ship could be felt jerking around and going back the way it came. Hopefully, it wasn’t too late.
> Chapter 24
Nabvan could feel himself trying to hold on as the ship sped towards Milisaria. The Arkani had to have made it at least that far already. If not, he wasn’t sure he would make it all the way there. He didn’t want to say it out loud because he knew that Alexis would lose it while she was trying to dress his wounds to the best of her ability and stop his bleeding. He had to make sure she had a will to keep going because she would never forgive herself if these women never made it to the Arkani now.
Siefer had come into the room to help steer the ship where Nabvan could not. He was so grateful for his friend who was risking it all with the fact that his wife and child were back on Milisaria. Would he be allowed to get back to them after aiding in the betrayal of the guards and the king? There was a chance he would not.
“We are getting close to Milisaria,” he announced, looking back at Alexis who was clinging to his shoulder like she was unable to let go. And maybe that was the case.
It was just the three of them. The rest of the women had gone to guard the guards in the cells and make sure they could not escape. The plan was to release them out into space on the small getaway ship that was always onboard for emergencies. They would float away, unable to tell the whole truth of what happened to the king. Nabvan hated they would have to suffer in such a way, but the king was dead, lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood still. That would not bode well if, by some miracle, they did ever make it back to Milisaria safely. That was a slim possibility at this point, though.
