MILITARY ROMANCE: The War Within Himself (Alpha Bad Boy Marine Army Seal) (Contemporary Military Suspense & Thriller Romance)

by Claire Branson

  His room looks roughly the same as when I left earlier, apart from the large table, which has appeared from somewhere and is covered in food and drink, some of which has been eaten. My alien sits in a chair at one end of the table, looking as if he’s asleep and with something which trails from the ceiling attached to his forehead. I go across and gently shake his shoulder, feeling the muscles as tight as steel cables, contract under my fingers.

  “Hello,” I say. “Hello!” I repeat when there’s no answer. It’s as if he’s unconscious, probably something to do with whatever’s attached to his head. I take a closer look and see it’s clearly part of the ship, which has dropped out of the roof.

  Great. Now what?

  ***

  I have always found it disconcerting when I merge with Acrulla. That it is a necessity makes no difference. It is still a disjointing, harrowing experience and not lost on me that becoming exactly like Acrulla might be in my future also. It becomes difficult to understand where my thoughts end and those of Acrulla begin, hard to keep the separation so my thoughts become his also. There is an awareness of being vast and ancient, something other than what I am, and the sensory input which he sends to me is almost overwhelming. I can feel people inside me, working and living deep inside my body to keep me healthy, and I know this must be coming from his thought center, but we become so closely linked it feels like they are inside me.

  “Acrulla, my old friend,” I think to him. There is enough separation between us for this at least. “There is something of which I must speak.” I can feel the vast, ponderous mind of the Sentient Ship Acrulla turn some attention to me.

  “Talacanthus.” His words are powerfully strong in my thought center. “Of what would you have me know?”

  “There is one among the alien species who entered your care, a female...” I decide upon full disclosure, but Acrulla speaks before me.

  “Is it your impression I am blind to the thoughts and feelings you emit when we bond, thus?” I sense amusement in his thoughts and wonder again what it might have been like to have known him in life, when he was still fully Intrellian. “Your actions regarding the female have echoed through the halls within the confines of my body, ere even you took her, albeit hearsay and rumor.” There is no one to blame for that than myself, I admit. Whatever power this female has, I am hooked, as if addicted to a narcotic which is wholly her. I do not even know her name, even though she chatters to me in her own language and points to herself, it is beyond my understanding.

  “Since my incarnation within this body, I have linked with more commanders than I care to recall,” Acrulla thinks into my thought center. “Each became a part of what makes my entirety and guides the personality which once was the Intrellian, Acrulla.” He continues the explanation. “Your thoughts and feelings have been added to the collective through the link we now share. Have no concern, Talacanthus. I will not betray your feelings for this female.” A massive relief washes through me, and I prepare to sever the link, drawing my thoughts back into my own being before the proboscis detaches from my head.

  My eyes open to behold a sight I will never tire of, the large female stands before me, looking me over as if she thinks I have an illness. I see the corners of her soft, inviting mouth turn up, and her eyes close in pleasure as I run my fingers through the fine strands of the substance which grows from her head.

  “Hello,” she says and I hear her laugh when I jump in shock. How has she managed to learn my language?

  “How is this possible?” I ask in wonder and look to see her shake her head then hold her fingers up, two of them a small distance apart.

  “Hello, yes, no,” the words tumble out at random coming not from her but through some kind of device, and I understand. We can only use small or individual words to speak. Hopefully, this will change.

  “Hello,” I say, not hearing it translated. A thought hits me then and I wonder what will happen. “Talacanthus,” I say and point to my torso.

  ***

  “Talacanthus” comes through the earpiece, and I watch, wide-eyed, as he points to his chest.

  I hope that’s his name and repeat it pointing at him. I hook my thumb back at me and say, “Hetty,” which he mirrors a second later.

  So now we’ve been formally introduced. What happens next, I have no idea, but I think Talacanthus might as he strokes his hands up my arms and grips my shoulders, pulling me gently in for a kiss.

  Although he hasn’t got any lips to speak of, his mouth is soft, the skin on his face is baby-smooth and warm against mine. I feel the same rush of desire course up through me, heating my blood and igniting my want. I feel the twin prongs of his forked tongue tickle across my lips and open my mouth a little letting him in. Talacanthus’ tongue is a joy and wonder to me on so many levels, and I hope I can find out one day how it has developed in the way it has. For now, I just enjoy the sensations as he probes my mouth with his tongue, both tips running across my own independently.

  I wrap my hands around his head, scratching the back of his skull, which makes him hum in pleasure. I move my hands down to his shoulders and squeeze the firm muscles there. His fingers trail up and down my back, dragging his claws gently across me through the material of my coveralls.

  I pull my head back and look at him, my nerves from earlier disappearing as I stare into the blue pools of his eyes. I take hold of the zipper at my throat and start to pull it down. Talacanthus stops me and takes over, pushing his long fingered hands down over my skin, gently stroking the top of my sensitive breasts. I feel a smile cross my face as he finds my nipples with graceful strokes of his strong fingers, making them harden and ache. I shrug out of the top half of my coveralls and shove my tits into his hands hard. For a species who doesn’t have nipples, he’s a quick learner.

  My fingers scrabble at the fastenings holding his clothes shut. The need to touch his skin, to feel his muscles writhe and flex under my palms is almost painful, and I end up ripping some of them off. It’s always been like this between us, from the first time we touched. We go wildly at each other. I lean forward and lick his neck, tasting and smelling the masculine aroma which pours from his skin. I bite the edge of the first muscle mass my mouth comes to, grazing my teeth over the twitching hardness beneath me.

  I can feel the hard length of his cock swelling and pressing against my leg, so I jump off his lap and rake my nails down its length, drawing a moan from his throat. I drag the zipper fully down and wriggle my hips, making sure his eyes are on me the whole time as I strip down to nothing but my little boots. Talacanthus stands up, and my eyes fall to the impressively thick outline in his leggings. I make my way over to him, completely nude and turn to press my ass into his cock. His arms fold around me, one hand toying with my nipples while the other rubs across my tummy and hips, lighting a fire wherever he touches, even though his body temperature is lower than mine. His delving fingers dip lower as he bends to lap at my neck, fluttering little kisses across my flesh with his strange tongue, and my breathing increases with every skim over my wanting flesh.

  ***

  My urge to grab her plentiful flesh, and bury myself as deep as I can, is almost more than I can control, yet control it I must. Her teeth on my thorax inflamed my desire, and her claws, scoring along my member, well, she knows what that does to me. I concentrate on not throwing her to the floor as she strips completely naked before me. The wanton invitation of her glistening lower lips is like a singularity, drawing my swollen member towards it. My throat feels dry, and I swallow as she rubs her ample buttocks against the swollen hardness of my cock. I reach around, pulling on the rubbery little cylinders, which jut from the big, round mounds of flesh gracing her chest, listening to her hiss her pleasure as I do so. My other hand delves deeper, scratching over her abdomen, which looks swollen and round, she would be fertile, this female, and bear me many offspring if we were compatible. My fingers find the opening at the apex of her thighs, feeling the boiling wetness there. Her body is always hot,
yet hottest of all is here, and the flesh on my hands needs to touch her here. My tongue flicks over the pulse points in her throat, feeling her heart beat speed up as the pad of my first finger brushes over the hard little bud, which brings her so much pleasure.

  ***

  I gasp as his fingertip brushes across my clit, sending a shock up through me, making me jump. I moan as he rasps the length of his finger across it, my stomach clenching in pleasure. I rub my ass against the throbbing hardness in his leggings, making him sing with need and lust as he pleasures me with his hand.

  Abruptly, he spins me round and pushes me back on the table, which is a little warm under my back, he pulls my knees apart and glazes down at my completely open body before leaning forward and laying his tongue on the inside of my knee.

  “Talacanthus...” I whisper. “Yes.” My hiss of delight trails off as he licks and kisses his way down my quivering thigh, straight to my pussy. His tongue, that amazing tongue, finds and scissors across the top of my clit, rasping and rubbing, bringing me to the edge of orgasm within minutes. Delightful pleasure builds up inside me to the point where I can’t hang on any more, and I cry out with the waves of pleasure coursing through me.

  My breathing evens out, and I see his hands go to his leggings, delving inside for his thick cock. Freed from the confines of his clothes, his penis looks like an evil thing, but I know it feels unbelievable inside me. Talacanthus leans forward, and I feel the tip of his thickness touch me. It’s more pointed than a human penis and slips into me with ease, a combination of the shape and my wetness.

  I feel stretched, filled to capacity with his hardness, which is so thick it’s almost painful, but such a sweet pain. My eyes open to see his entire body shuddering while he forces himself deeper inside me. This has happened every time we’ve made love. His cock seems to be so sensitive. My tightness is almost more than he can bear. With a moan of desire I rock my pelvis, stroking the length of him with my insides. His breathing comes in hard gasps as he grabs my hips and begins driving himself home inside me.

  Pressure starts building almost immediately as his fat cock rakes over my G-spot, the intensity of the sensations exploding from it making me squeal and writhe on the table. Talacanthus wraps his arms around my legs, closing them so I’m in a sitting position but on my back, then starts hammering his cock inside me, panting and grunting, singing and humming. The translator in my ear is telling me some of the things he’s saying, but I couldn’t care less. All I can concentrate on are the intense waves of delight exploding from where our bodies meet.

  Pressure, painful, pleasurable pressure swells inside me fast, and it’s as if I’m floating on a white haze of ecstasy. My breathing stops and my second orgasm explodes through me, my muscles clamping tightly around Talacanthus’ cock. With my pussy milking him, my alien can’t hold back and his orgasm tears though him, making him slam his hips forward as his body jerks inside mine.

  He leans down and covers my body with his, laying his head on the swell of my breasts, and I hold him close, trying to prolong the moment. Which is when the whole ship lurches sideways, throwing us both to the floor.

  “What...?” I screech in panic as Talacanthus tries to get up and put his clothes back on, he looks at me in understanding but can’t tell me anything. He grabs my coverall and hands it to me,

  “Wear” comes through my earpiece, and I struggle into the cumbersome garment while he waits. He grabs my hand as soon as my arms are in, and I have to struggle to close the zipper as he pulls me towards the door.

  ***

  Whatever has befallen Acrulla has thrown his walkways into chaos. Intrellians struggle to move past each other as I drag Hetty toward the command section, and I shove a few of them aside to get through.

  “Report!” I yell as soon as I get through the door and a pair of heads turns to see me bring Hetty in too. Her eyes are wide with fright and wonder at the sight of my crew all hooked into Acrulla.

  “An explosion has destabilized Acrulla’s port side engines, sir,” my brother, Talacrus tells me.

  “Prepare to return fire!” I bellow. Rage swells through me at the audacity of whoever this is. We will crush them and demolish their puny ship, leaving their corpses to float in the vacuum of space for all eternity.

  “I cannot, sir,” Shaktee tells me from the weapons control area. “I detect no ships within range.” My thought center races through the possibilities, and my eyes flicker to the engineer’s station, where Jonober should be, despite my earlier reprimand. Seated there, however, is the second in command of that particular section and my blood goes cold.

  “Internal scan!” I yell. “I believe this is mutiny!” Everyone in the command section pauses as the implication hits them, a couple even turn to look at me as if I am insane, quickly returning their attention to what they should be doing as I glare at them.

  “Commander,” Shaktee grunts. “Acrulla reports major internal damage and outer skin breaches along his port side. Fuel transfer relays have also been severed...”

  “Get engineers to the starboard side engine and relays immediately!” I yell. “Search for any kind of explosive device. Locate and detain engineer Jonober. I will deal with him later.”

  Something tugs at my arm, and I turn to see Hetty is trying to pull her hand from mine, her face twisted in pain. I let her go as soon as I realize I am hurting her, my grip tightening with the rage boiling through me.

  ***

  It’s big, whatever’s going on. Talacanthus beautiful song-like voice has changed, becoming harsh and savage. His grip is getting tighter, and I can feel my fingers squashing together. He’s going to break the bones soon, and he’s not even aware he’s hurting me. I’m tugging and pulling, punching his arm as hard as I can to get him off me, when he turns and lets go. The shock on his face telling me this was an accident. I cradle my fingers and watch as he comes to wrap an arm round me.

  “Sorry for hurt.” His words come through the translator. Deakins’ program has been analyzing everything the aliens have been saying to each other and begun to extrapolate more of their language, “Follow me,” Talacanthus states, so I go with him.

  He leads me through the passages and corridors, keeping me close to him as we move. When we reach a long downward slope, he turns and takes my hand, bringing it to his mouth and kissing the pain away. He draws me in and covers my mouth with his, kissing me like he’s never going to see me again. He pulls away and looks into my eyes with his deep blue orbs,

  “Love Hetty.” This comes through clearly, and I can feel a silly grin spread across my face. Something in my chest feels tight and warm and excited at the same time, and I’m just about to tell him I love him too when the wall to our right explodes.

  Hot liquid sprays out of the wall, covering us both in whatever blood flows through this ship. Thick and dark, it tastes vile, and I spit, trying to get the taste out, but it’s like some kind of oil and coats my mouth. Talacanthus is trying to stem the flow by pushing the sections of the wall back in, to seal the hole, and I join him, shoving the thick skin of the ship back into place.

  Abruptly, the flow stops, and Talacanthus glances about. “We go now,” he tells me and grabs my hand again.

  He drags me down the ramp to a deeper level, where there are more of his people, all of them racing around and shouting at each other in their language. The translator in my ear gabbles madly as it tries to make sense of the multitude of voices all talking over each other. Talacanthus brays orders out as we weave in and out between aliens and the structure of the ship. We finally arrive at a large chamber, which is filled with a low, rhythmic, thumping noise. I can’t explain the confusion as I study this room, as it appears to have some kind of fusion reactor sitting in the middle. Yet, above and to either side of that are two vast, pulsating hearts. I look at Talacanthus, covered in the blood of his ship, and wonder how this thing could have possibly evolved hearts and a nuclear reactor – clearly, of course it couldn’t have – when it hits me.
This species must have somehow enslaved a creature which could live in the vacuum of space and altered it for their own ends.

  I wrench my hand from his and shake my hand as I back away from him. The hope that he didn’t have anything to do with making this poor thing a slave dies almost as soon as it blooms. Even if he wasn’t directly responsible, Talacanthus must have known. I feel stupid, even in the middle of this crisis, because I assumed this was a symbiotic relationship. I though these aliens were helping the ship, this living ship, to stay alive. They’re not. They can’t be if they’ve installed a nuclear reactor inside the poor thing.

  Pain wells in my chest as deep and powerful as anything I’ve ever felt before, and I nearly collapse because it’s nearly too much to bear. This revelation has changed my view of Talacanthus utterly, and that hurts. Is this what it feels like to have your heart broken? If it is, I think I’d rather have died on Erenius’ third moon.

  He comes towards me, obviously puzzled at my reaction and probably concerned by the tears running down my cheeks, but it feels like I’ve been utterly betrayed.

  “No,” I tell him firmly, and he stops, his head tilting to one side.

  “What wrong?” How can I even begin to make him understand?

  “This,” I say pointing to the reactor. “Wrong, bad.” He looks from the reactor back to me.

  “Acrulla die if not here. Come.” He holds his hand out, and I shake my head, crossing my arms over my chest. A loud popping sound comes from the far end of the room, and one of the elephant-sized hearts above us skips a few beats, its rhythm becoming unsteady.

  “Talacanthus!” Someone bellows from the gloom behind the reactor. “Give up.”