Mortal Flames_The Magical

by Averi Hope

  The Great Mother entered the chambers. “Have you cleaned yourself?”

  Saura pulled her slightly off-colored leg back into the pool, feeling self-conscious for the first time in more years than she could count. “I have.”

  “Then, step out, my child.”

  Folding her arms over her chest, she slowly shook her head. “Mother, there is something wrong.”

  The old woman walked softly across the grass and stepped to the table made from a massive fallen tree. In the mirror, Saura could see her unfolding a leather package, but she couldn’t quite see what she’d unwrapped.

  “What could be wrong on such a joyous day?” She picked up a soft, white blanket and held it out.

  Saura’s embarrassment rose. “My skin…it seems to be changing color.”

  The old woman laughed kindly. “That is one of the effects of your mating frenzy…of not taking the blue pill. It’s perfectly natural.”

  She felt a little better as she slowly climbed out of the pool. “Why is it that I didn’t know to expect this?”

  “Because,” she said, draping the large blanket around her shoulders. “We explain only what’s absolutely necessary for our girls to know.”

  “Is there more?” Saura turned toward her, her uncertain emotions blossoming into an unusual sense of irritation.

  The Great Mother raised one brow. “I’d think that would be obvious…”

  Saura frowned. “It isn’t.”

  A smirk twisted her thin lips. “When was the last time you felt the kind of frustration you feel now?”

  She opened her mouth, then closed it. “Not since I first came here…my gods, the blue pill does more than hold off our mating frenzy. Doesn’t it?”

  The old woman didn’t look the least bit guilty. “It keeps all of you calm and easy to manage.”

  Is she joking? Then we’re just like livestock in a pen! Saura tossed the blanket to the ground. “That’s awful. Shouldn’t we even get a say about being drugged?”

  “Oh, child,” she said, turning back to the table, “can you even imagine trying to keep a female as rebellious as you here all these years? No, the drugs are necessary. They keep all the females patient until it’s their time to leave.”

  It shouldn’t be allowed. “When I’m Khara, I will change this.” Saura clenched her fists, making the promise to the Mother as much as to herself.

  “If we reach our new home soon, you may not need to.”

  Her words were softly spoken, but Saura found anger rising. “There are other options than the blue planet.”

  “Of course,” she whispered soothingly. “Now, time to fit you for your Xoater.”

  Saura barely had time to think when the Mother was pressing the mechanical device to her flat stomach. Instantly, the metal spiderlike contraption crawled down her belly and slid into the entrance of her womanhood, stretching itself across the opening.

  “Gods!” she gasped, reaching and trying to pry it out of her, but she felt it nestle deeper in retaliation. She pulled, but the device didn’t move. Instead, she felt something enter her core, the pain stinging then stretching.

  She cried out, crossing her legs, her hands covering the mound of her womanhood. “Make it stop!”

  “Steady now!” the Mother said, draping a robe over her shoulders. “It is all part of the tradition.”

  Saura tried to close her legs, but the slight penetration only rubbed harder. “What is this?”

  “It is to prepare you to take your mate. Our males are too large to enter their females without preparation…so the Xoater will prepare you.”

  “Get—it— out,” Saura ordered, clenching her teeth.

  “If I did that, your mate would be too much for you.” The Great Mother tried to stroke her cheek, but Saura jerked away. “It also has another benefit. You will have protection from any other male but your chosen male taking you when you enter the mother ship. Even still, it is dangerous to have a female in her mating frenzy aboard a ship with unmated males. This will prevent them from…losing control with you.”

  Saura’s stomach flipped. Was the old woman actually suggesting what she thought?

  “Not to worry,” the old woman reassured. “You will be brought on board surrounded by guards, have your ceremony, and then you will be confined to his bedroom for several weeks. Or more…depending on how long it takes to complete your bond.”

  Weeks? Her cheeks flamed. I’d thought my male would need me for a few nights to sate his fires. I never imagined it might take weeks.

  A young woman entered the room, a fiery red cloth draped over her arm. “Mother,” she held it out, bowing low. Next, she bowed lower to Saura. “My Khara, I am honored to bring your ceremonial gown.”

  Saura smiled at the young girl. “I’m not your Khara yet.”

  The Mother took the gown from her, and the woman bowed again and left.

  “This color will suit your dark hair and eyes well.” She held it out, and Saura put her arms in the sleeves. The Mother wrapped it around to the front, crisscrossed it, and tied it behind the younger woman at her waist. “Look,” she whispered, turning her to the mirror.

  Just the slight shifting of the silky fabric against Saura’s naked breasts made her nipples harden into two visible peaks. She stared in shock at the gown, finding that it was more like a second skin than actual clothing. It draped down between her breasts to reveal a wide V, and the slit on both legs crept up to her waist. She feared if she took too wide a step her womanhood would be visible for all to see. Yes, it was true that she had worn nothing but her white gown with no undergarments for years, but this felt different. Sexual. And I will be in front of other males. Then my mate. “This is too much.”

  Standing behind her, she could see the Mother shaking her head in the mirror. “Today every man will envy your mate, and your mate will not be able to control himself. It is the way of our people.”

  She thought of the moment she would see Raiden for the first time. Will he still look the way I imagine?

  Over the years, she’d received only one photo from him, smuggled on board. But it was enough. Hidden beneath her mattress, she’d taken it out night after night. It reminded her that he was no longer the boy she’d been best friends with, but had grown into a man.

  A ridiculously handsome man at that.

  Closing her eyes, she pictured the soft curves of his mouth as he smiled in the photo. A flash of heat crackled through her body like lightning. Closing her legs, warmth uncoiled in her blood. The man was perfection. Hard, strong muscles, eyes that darkened with need. He would not be gentle with her, he would take her with force. The way you want to be taken.

  The Xoater between her legs suddenly shifted, and she felt another small object rising from it to breach her entrance. Like two fingers inside your core. The sensation was uncomfortable. But…it also left her wanting more. She allowed her muscles to slowly relax.

  Over the next hour, The Great Mother brushed her long hair until it gleamed, then laid it across her shoulders. Then the woman added makeup to her face, a soft glittering of gold across her eyelids, and crimson lipstick across her lips. At last, she stepped back.“You’re finished, and the ship is waiting.”

  Just as Saura was about to stand, the Xoater slid another invasive fingerlike object into her body. She cried out, gripping the handle of the chair as waves crashed over her.

  “What’s—happening—to me?”

  The Mother smiled. “Your mating frenzy is drawing closer. Soon, your body will need his manhood inside you, more than you need to breathe. The desire for him will be so great, so all-consuming, that it will be painful. But fear not, the closer you get to him, the more the Xoater will prepare you for his entrance. And when it is ready, it will drop from you, making room for him.”

  Perhaps I can accept this awful thing has a purpose…but what about everything else…?

  “Why is my skin changing color? Why does my body ache like this?” She shifted uncomfortably, feeli
ng violated and embarrassed.

  “Because the fire within you is burning hotter and hotter to match his, so you can join without pain, and enter the mating frenzy as two dancing flames.”

  Saura shook her head. “But we are ice and they are fire. He should burn for me! Not me for him!”

  “Oh, child.” She brushed her hair back from her face. “A female’s mating frenzy is the one time she burns as fiercely as her mate. And trust me, you want to burn for him, too. Do not be afraid. There is no pleasure better than this.”

  Saura closed her eyes as she felt her inner muscles clenching around the Xoater. The last thing she wanted was to lose control. To finally see Raiden and need him inside her so fiercely that she couldn’t think. Never in her life had she considered she might feel like this.

  I hope he’s ready for me when I arrive.

  And that he wants me just as much.

  Chapter Four

  Raiden finished wiping the glass and set it on the marred surface of the bar countertop. His moves were practiced and he played the part well. But I still don’t completely fit in here.

  Music played from an old jukebox in one corner of the large room, a specific style the humans called country. After two years working as a bartender at Old Rusty’s, Raiden had heard every song on the damned contraption at least fifty times. Somedays he actually enjoyed the simple melodies, but other days, like today, every note seemed to pluck at his throbbing head.

  He hid his irritation well, his mask firmly in place. He’d dived into his life as a human the same way he’d dived into the role of being next in line to be Khar of his people. He spoke, ate, drank, and thought the way he needed to in order to become what was necessary. But becoming a human was a hell of a lot more fun than having the weight of an entire people on my shoulders.

  “Another round of shots!” a drunk female college student shouted, followed by a round of giggles from her companions, and a quieter, “Mr. Sexy Bartender.”

  Of course. That’s what I’m here for.

  Every one of the girls was smoking. The damn fumes always made his temples ache. Humans. Why would a species do something so toxic to itself? I would never allow it for my people.

  Grabbing bottles without thought, he poured four more shots of a beverage known as a Lemon Drop, and strode to the other end of the bar. The girls watched his every move with a hunger he’d grown to recognize.

  He set the shot glasses down in front of them. “That’ll be another twenty.”

  The girl in front of him, a tall blonde with a shirt so low one nipple was actually hanging out, grinned as she slid him a fifty. “Keep the change.”

  He raised a brow and nodded in thanks, but said nothing as he took it off the well-worn countertop.

  But as he turned to go, her voice stopped him. “Your name is Raiden, right?”

  Looking back at her, he knew exactly where the conversation was going, but had to walk the steps of the dance anyway. “Yes, ma’am.”

  She smiled, leaning over farther. “You know on campus they call you the Sexy Bartender?”

  “I know,” he said, shifting his weight, waiting patiently.

  Old Rusty’s was on the outskirts of the college town surrounded by tree-covered mountains. The people in his area were nice, mostly older, and treated each other as family. A short five-minute drive through the city, however, brought them to the crowding of shops, restaurants, and other business that surrounded the university. This bar never really attracted college kids, according to Rusty himself…that was until Raiden had come to work for him.

  “You’re a little on the odd side,” Rusty had said those two long years ago, “but I think you’ll bring girls like a steak luring a goddamned mountain lion.

  And he was right.

  So now, even though Raiden was an alien far from home, he’d found a job on the little blue planet. One that paid him enough to have a place of his own, food to eat, and a beat-up truck that got him from point A to point B. It was better than he could’ve hoped for when his ship had been sabotaged. But I still need to get back. Before it’s too late.

  “Sexy dark hair, sexy dark eyes…every girl on campus would probably do anything for you.”

  He forced himself to focus his attention on her. She was probably what a human would call beautiful, her youthful vibrancy and curvy body a beacon to any man. Except me.

  Even if he never got off this planet, none of these young girls were for him. The simple truth was, they weren’t her. Saura. His mate.

  The college girl was too bold, but her smile was genuine and after all his experience he knew it was just the liquor talking. Let her down easy.

  “Do you want to go for a drive or something?” the blonde asked.

  One of her friends raised a glass, and suddenly they were all distracted as they slammed their shots. The blonde stroked his hand. “How about that drive?”

  He wanted to just tell her no, but that wasn’t what he was paid for. Remember, it’s an act. Play the part. Instead, he leaned in and trailed a finger down her jaw. “Sorry, beautiful, but I’ve got to work late.”

  “I can wait,” she said, her rapid, alcohol-laced breath puffing against his face.

  “Maybe another night.” He flashed her a smile that seemed to melt her right into her chair, then turned to focus on cleaning up. It was almost closing time, after all.

  “Good work,” Rusty said, leaning back in his favorite seat at the other end of the bar. “They’ll be sure to come back for their chance to have a go at you.”

  “Shut up, asshat,” he said to his friend, topping off the other man’s ale.

  The human language has its moments.

  Raiden was one of the few people who knew that this Rusty was actually the third “Rusty” to own the bar. He was middle-aged for human years, with a slight belly and too much gray hair for his age. Gray whiskers grew wildly on his face, and his white T-shirt was stained. Probably from his chicken wings at lunch.

  But Rusty was what they called…good people. Raiden used to say “a good person” instead, but that was just the kind of formal talk the locals raised a brow at. But it didn’t really matter what Raiden called it, Rusty was loyal, honest, and hardworking. Raiden was glad to call him a friend.

  A couple of regulars came up from their table, and he poured them another round of beers before giving last call. Just a short time later, he flashed the lights on and off as the drunks inside slowly made their way to the door. He took the keys from his regulars and left them to stumble the short distance to their houses. Then, he pointed out the cab he’d already called for the college girls. When he finally locked the door, he stared at the handle for a moment, feeling for a moment strangely weary.

  “Want to talk about it?” Rusty asked, clapping him on the shoulder.

  Raiden almost shook his head, but instead walked to the bar and sat down next to his closest friend, stealing the rest of his ale. Rusty was the only one who knew his secret, a fact that he’d gone from being terrified about to being grateful for. “Not really.”

  “Yeah, right.” Rusty had the nerve to laugh.

  Humans laughed a lot. That was one thing Raiden loved about them. Even simple things could bring the pleasant sound bubbling from their lips. My own people show their emotions…but not quite so freely.

  “Missing home?” his friend said, sounding a little more serious.

  Raiden sipped the ale, wincing at the sharpness to it. “Not exactly.”

  “Well, come on, old man, out with it,” he barked, reaching around the bar to pour himself another ale. “You can’t just sit there with that damn sour look on your face.”

  “I don’t have a sour look on my face!” Raiden said, glaring.

  “Please, you damn fool. That blonde was begging you to plow her all night, and you couldn’t even stop worrying long enough to notice.” It was his turn to glare. “If she’d have thrown herself at me, I’d have taken her sweet little nipples and…”

  “All right
, all right!” Raiden smiled, and stared down at the amber liquid in his mug. “Everything seemed so clear when I left…but the closer it gets to their arrival, the more worried I become.”

  It was true. When he’d left his people two years before, he’d planned to use their brand-new, one-of-a-kind ship to visit Earth, prove the humans were worth saving, and head home. But when his ship had crashed, everything changed.

  Yet, everything will change again when they arrive here…in what, two weeks?

  Rusty cocked his head. “You worry they won’t find you before blowing us all to kingdom come?”

  Yes.

  “No,” he lied, taking a deep breath, then prepared a half-truth. “Someone sabotaged my ship. Someone close to me. Only a handful of people knew about it and my mission. You’d think by now I’d have figured out who it was, but I haven’t.”

  “Well,” Rusty said, taking another sip of his ale. “You’ll catch the damn son of a bitch once they get here, I’m sure. The bastard will show himself eventually.”

  “That he will,” Raiden said, a cold fury coming over him. “But it isn’t just the traitor. I worry that without me there to influence my father and the council these years, they won’t give me enough of a chance to argue in favor of saving humanity.”

  Rusty glanced at him, raising one untamed brow. “You’re a stubborn jackass. I have no doubt you won’t let them kill us off.”

  He nodded. And then there’s my other fear.

  “Are you thinking about her again?” Rusty’s voice held a note of satisfaction.

  “No!”

  But he was. Saura haunted his thoughts more and more lately. When she’d left for the Garden of Virtue, they’d just reached their teens. If we hadn’t kissed that day, maybe she could’ve remained by my side longer. Yet, he could never bring himself to regret their stolen moment together.

  Receiving pictures of her was not allowed, so his image of her should still be that of a young woman. But for some reason, he could picture her as a woman grown…his brain seemed to freeze at just the thought of her.

  She was so beautiful. Tough. Headstrong. Intelligent.