Sold To The Dragon Princes: The Novel

by Daniella Wright

  “You need rest, Katie. I will show you to our chamber.”

  She turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow. “Our chamber? What fucking planet are you on?”

  She caught the irony of her own question too late. He smiled. “We are not on a planet, Katie. We are in deep space. That is why there is no object in your fighting us. There is nowhere for you to go.”

  She didn’t answer. She put on the robe and stood. Now she could see that they were in a circular room that had the look and feel of an operating theatre. The walls were metallic and to her right there was a set of sliding double doors. They hissed open and she followed Tsor-Vaal into a long gallery. Along the left-hand side there was a line of maybe two-dozen gurneys, each with a body stretched out on it, covered in a sheet. Without thinking she spoke with her mind.

  “Who are these people?”

  “They are men and women of your species. We have harvested their DNA and we have tested them. We use those gray androids you described as pumpkins to do that. Unlike you, these humans have been found wanting. They are sheep. They will be returned to the Earth. They will remember nothing.”

  A further set of doors hissed open as they approached and they stepped out into a long, spacious corridor. It was, Katie thought in surprise, the sort of thing you would expect to find on a cruise ship, or in a modern, five star hotel. The floor was carpeted, the walls were cream and the lighting was diffused. He said, “We have more contact with you than you may think.”

  After a few moment he stopped in front of a door and it slid open. They stepped through into a luxurious, ultra-modern apartment. A large, oval window to the left looked out over a vast starscape. By the window there was a an obsidian dining table with four chairs. To the right a large sofa stood with two inviting armchairs around a coffee table. He gestured with his hand beyond the sofa and a door opened onto a bedroom with a large bed that seemed to be draped with satin sheets. His voice in her mind said, “Within, there is a room where you may bathe or shower.”

  She said, “I don’t want to bathe. I want to go home.”

  “This is now your home.”

  “Think again, buster. My home. I decide where it is, not you. And it is not aboard this bullshit poor imitation of the Enterprise.”

  He frowned, as though he didn’t really understand what she was saying.

  “You decide?”

  She stared at him. “Who the hell are you, anyway?”

  He stepped over to the window looking out at the stars. She felt his voice in her mind. It was quiet and melodic. She felt she could have listened to it for hours, for years.

  “I am Tsor-Vaal, commander of this ship, the Milky Way. We are Valhaans.” He turned and smiled at her with real humor. “We are much like you, Katie. We cruise this sector of the galaxy as predators, preying on those who prey on others. We harvest DNA and sell it on the open market. We raid ships from various empires, especially the Naga. We steal booty and where we find slaves, we either liberate them, or, if they do not know how to be free, we sell them to good masters.”

  She frowned. “How is that like that me?”

  He gave a small shrug. “You cruised from San Francisco to Baja, preying on men who tried to prey on you. We cruise the Milky Way, preying on imperial ships that prey on defenseless worlds. Not so different.”

  She nodded. “Fascinating. So what are your plans for me? I don’t qualify as ‘knowing how to be free’?”

  He became serious. “Your species is different, Katie. We have been connected with you for many centuries. Many of you carry Valhaan DNA. In a very few it burns brightly, but in most it is dormant, or a mere glimmer of the Valhaan fire.” He turned back to the great window and gave his silver head a small shake. “Your world is a rare gem, but your species is brutish and simple. You are herded and harvested, and consumed, and you do not even know it.”

  “Don’t underestimate us, Tsor-Vaal, the Klingons made that mistake and look where it got them.” She felt him wince mentally at her joke. He turned. “You are odd.”

  She spoke aloud, “That’s primitive, brutish humans for you. We’re all odd. It’s what makes us so lovable. You didn’t answer my question. What are your plans for me?”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Some of your species are extraordinary. In some of you the Valhan blood is strong. It is so in you. You are a warrior and a predator. So I have chosen you for myself. I will keep you. You will pleasure me, and I shall pleasure you, and in time perhaps we will create life.”

  “Say what? You did what? You chose me? For yourself? You will keep me? You will pleasure me and I will pleasure you?”

  The smile was in his eyes again, but the fury was building in her belly. She crossed the room, pointing at him.

  “You know what, Tsor-Vaal? Go fuck yourself. Because this kid ain’t nobody’s sex toy. So screw you!”

  With a shriek like a crazed banshee she leapt into a flying sidekick. Tsor-Vaal side-stepped easily. She landed and delivered two devastating blows to his belly but he was already out of range. She spun into a back kick but he was to her side. A roundhouse and a spinning back kick found her staring into empty space.

  He was behind her. She charged and launched a devastating volley of kicks and punches. He parried sidestepped and avoided each one with ease.

  She stopped, panting. He placed the thought in her mind: “I am reading your mind, Katie. I can anticipate your every move. Stop fighting me.”

  She screamed at him, “I am not your fucking slave!”

  He gave a small frown.

  “The captain is calling me to the bridge. We will continue later. I will send you maidens to bathe you and feed you.” He walked to the door and it hissed open for him. He stopped and turned to her. “You are not my slave, Katie. You belong to me. It is different. Try to understand that.”

  Captain Votan-Vaal was a full seven feet tall. His shoulders were massive and his head was leonine in look and in majesty. His nose was straight and his eye a deep blue, even like Tsor-Vaal’s, but his platinum hair was thicker and he had a long, red beard which hung to his waist.

  He turned his great head as Tsor-Vaal entered. He spoke aloud, and his voice was deep and resonant. “What is this human female you have taken to your chamber?”

  “I will have her as a mate.”

  Votan-Vaal’s lip curled. “A human?”

  “The blood is strong in her.”

  “We cannot take passengers and freeloaders.”

  “She is my mate. She will serve me.”

  Votan-Vaal grunted. “We are about to rendezvous with a Krakkan trading vessel. They will take the EM plasma cannons that we liberated from the Naga supply ship yesterday.”

  “What will they give us?”

  Votan-Vaal grinned and when he spoke it was a growl. “Six volumes of wealth into the Galactic Wealth Storage Bank, so we can spend a couple of moons whoring and drinking on Proxima B.”

  Tsor-Vaal smiled. “Six volumes! That is a good price. The men will be pleased. They have earned a couple of moons of pleasure.”

  Votan-Vaal nodded. “Go and see to the docking and the transfer. Inform me when it is done.”

  “Yes, Captain.”

  As Tsor-Vaal turned to leave the captain stopped him. “This human female… Have you bonded?”

  “We have.”

  “Was it deep, like a Valhaan?”

  Tsor-Vaal nodded. “Deeper than I have experienced before. She is unique.”

  The captain grunted, “All right, you may go.”

  Three

  She stood staring at the door, his last words – or rather thoughts – echoing in her mind.

  You belong to me… Try to understand that…

  She clenched her fists and snarled, “I belong to no one!” But even as she said it, tears sprang to her eyes. She began to tremble and sob. The last thing she remembered she was in southern California, earning her daily bread by kicking some guy’s ass who’d thought he could rape a defenseless girl in the
desert. Next thing she was strapped, helpless to an operating table, surrounded by aliens, being possessed by some cosmic Viking - on a spaceship!

  It was insane, but it was real, and Katie had always believed in facing reality square on, and ready to kick it in the balls. She had always believed in UFOs – The Truth Is Out There, right? So here it was. Now she had to deal with it, kick some ass and find a way home.

  Crying would not help.

  There was a gentle ‘ping’ from the door and a sweet, submissive voice entered her mind and said, “Mistress Katie, may we come in?”

  She hesitated, then said, “Yeah…, come in.”

  The doors slid back. There were three girls, a little younger than her perhaps. Like Tsor-Vaal they were slim, athletic and had long, platinum hair, but they were smaller than him, delicate and feminine. They had pixy faces and gentle movements. They were beautiful. Really beautiful. They gave her a little curtsey and spoke with their minds, “Master Tsor-Vaal has told us to bathe you, Mistress, and then bring you food.”

  Katie grinned at them. “Mistress? Really?” She shrugged. “OK, cool.”

  The closest one had brilliant emerald eyes which she now lowered. “I am Eika, and these are Fiana and Sorka. May we take you to the bath, mistress?”

  The Bathroom was luxurious. It was made entirely of rich, polished stone that resembled tiger’s eye. The bath, which was more like a small swimming pool, was sunken into a dais which was reached by way of three tiers of four steps. Thick, white suds shrouded it, and hot water gushed in from a channel at one end.

  Eika and her companions surrounded Katie. They smiled but avoided eye contact. With small, gentle hands they removed her robe. She found herself watching Eika and thinking, “She is like a snowflake. If I were a guy she would definitely turn me on…”

  Eika flashed her a look, her cheeks colored and she smiled. Katie heard Sorka and Fiana giggle. Katie flushed with embarrassment, realizing her thoughts had been heard. She was disturbed to realize that she felt, mixed in with the embarrassment, a strange thrill of excitement. An excitement that grew as Eika, Sorka and Fiana all dropped their robes to reveal exquisite, delicate bodies, with perfect, full breasts and smooth, rounded hips.

  Sorka and Eika took her hands and led her down into the water and, as she sank down into its warmth, she felt it penetrate her muscles and ease away the strain and the fear of the last hour.

  Fear was not something Katie ever acknowledged, either to other people or to herself. Fear was a weakness. It was something that happened to others. She didn’t do fear. But now, as she closed her eyes and felt the tension seeping out of her, she admitted to herself that she had been afraid. She had experienced terror like she had never felt before in her life. Eika’s voice, as gentle as a whisper, came into her mind.

  “You do not need to be afraid, Mistress. We mean you no harm. We love you.”

  She opened her eyes. The beautiful, pixy-like creatures was watching her. They made eye contact for the first time. It was for only a moment, but that moment unleashed a storm of powerful feelings that made Katie’s heart pound in her chest. Desires, hungers and passions stirred in her belly. She spoke aloud and heard her breath trembling.

  “What is happening to me…?”

  Her heart, her mind, her soul and her skin all craved the experience. She longed for their hands to caress her, and as she thought it Eika said, “We will stroke you, Mistress.”

  She wanted to fight the feeling. She wanted to hurl them from the bath, find her jeans, her sweatshirt and her boots and escape back to California, to what was familiar and real and normal. But a stronger, deeper desire made her close her eyes and lie back. Their hands, as gentle and sweet, she thought, as snowflakes on a breeze, caressed her skin and soothed away all her fears. After a time she opened her eyes again to look at Eika. She thought, “You are beautiful.” The three of them smiled. Katie said, “Look at me. Make eye contact.”

  Eika met her gaze. Katie said, “Why do you serve? Why don’t you rebel?”

  The answer came immediately, “Because we enjoy it, Mistress. Not everyone is a warrior.” They all giggled at a shared thought and Eika explained, “Imagine on your planet if there were no sheep, and only pumas. It is in the order of the universe that there must be all things. Also, Tsor-Vaal is kind to us. We enjoy serving him, and now you.”

  She watched them a while, smiling. Then she asked, “Do you hear all my thoughts?”

  Eika said, “Only your conscious thoughts, Mistress. The thoughts that are in the darkness cannot be heard.”

  Katie frowned. “Why don’t you speak? Have you lost your vocal chords?”

  Their eyes opened wide and they laughed and giggled like she’d said something hilarious. Eika explained, “No, Mistress! We can speak, but it is not polite! Only men speak, in business, or in fights or war, when secrets are kept. But among friends, there is no need to hide thoughts, so our minds are open.”

  Katie made a big ‘O’ face and nodded. “I get it,” she thought. “That is very cool, and also very interesting.” They looked at her uncertainly. She smiled. Several ideas were taking shape in her mind which she didn’t want them to hear. So she said, “OK, girls, what am I thinking now?”

  She focused her mind on a plain steel wall. It was hard to hold the image, but she found that by observing the gleam, the texture and the various qualities of the metal, she could sustain it for a short while. They looked disconcerted, like she had farted at a cocktail party. She laughed out loud.

  “So?”

  They glanced at each other. Eika thought, “It was shiny, smooth, hard and cold.”

  Sorka and Fiana agreed. Katie bit her lip and observed the water in the bath. The stuff coming in was a clear, delicate green color. All the suds were gradually being drained out. She watched the flow of liquid and thought of the ocean. The mind, she thought, was like the ocean. The surface was clear and transparent. The depths were dark and secret. And there was a middle layer, where thoughts could be held in semi-consciousness. The Valhaans could read that surface, transparent layer. The rest of it, if you had the skill, could be kept from them.

  These thoughts swam, like sharks, in that middle layer of her consciousness, while on the surface she babbled in her mind about how pretty and sweet and charming Eika and her friends were. And she saw them smile with pleasure.

  Then she spoke aloud. “So, you have to do what I tell you?”

  Again that look of uncertainty. Eika said, “We want to, Mistress. It is our pleasure.”

  A flash of rebellious devilry made her ask, “What if I don’t want you to enjoy it?”

  They looked stunned and lowered their eyes. “We would still do it, Mistress…” But she caught a flcker of a thought, a glimpse of something. The Captain?

  With her mind she said, “Sorka, Fiana, dry yourselves and go get me some food. Eika, you stay and give me a massage.”

  Sorka and Fiana thought in unison, “Yes, Mistress,” and rose.

  “Wait,” she said aloud, “What are you going to bring me? I don’t want some Elorian enk-fish bladder shit…”

  They looked upset and Katie almost felt sorry for them, except that she was enjoying herself too much. Eika said, “We do not know what Elorian enk-fish bladder is, Mistress.”

  “I made it up.”

  “Oh... We sense that what you hunger for is beef burger and fries, and a cold beer.”

  “That will do nicely.”

  Sorka and Fiana dried themselves and left. Katie stretched herself on the bed face down and Eika began, a deep gentle massage, starting at her feet.

  Katie thought, “Eika, you and me are going to be friends, right?”

  “Yes, Mistress, I would like that.”

  “Cool. So tell me, what’s the deal with the Captain?

  She sensed a moment of mental darkness. She snapped, “Don’t you shield your thoughts from me, Eika! You don’t want to get me mad. You understand?”

  “Yes, Mistress. Captain V
otan-Vaal is not like Master Tsor-Vaal. He is cruel. He enjoys pain when it is another’s pain.”

  “I know the type.” A flash in her mind of the trucker she had dispatched just before she was abducted, the blood running from his busted nose, the crunch of his elbow and the smash of her boot as she kicked him in the head. She heard Eika gasp. It was a real sound. The sound of her voice.

  Katie got up on her elbows and turned to face her. Their eyes locked. She was astonished again by the green depth of Eika’s gaze. She was suddenly acutely aware of their nakedness. She said, “Talk to me.” Eika swallowed. Katie could feel a trembling inside the small, delicate maiden. She realized what she was asking her to do, in Eika’s mind, was an obscenity. She smiled. Eika smiled back, a tremulous, uncertain smile, yet an excited one too. Katie said, “Talk to me, with your voice.”

  Eika licked her lips with a small, pink tongue. She lowered her gaze. Katie swung her legs off the bed and moved close to her, so their bare legs were touching. She took her hand and held it in both of hers. She said, “Talk to me, Eika, with your real voice. I want to hear it.”

  Eika’s breath was shaky. Her gaze darted about the room, but eventually it came to rest on Katie’s face, and then her eyes. She made three attempts before finally speaking in a gentle whisper, “It is so intimate, Mistress…”

  Katie reached out and touched her face. “You have such a pretty voice, Eika.”

  There was a noise from the door. Eika said, “It is Sorka and Fiana, Mistress, they have returned with your food.”

  Katie hesitated a moment, then she reached out with her mind, tentatively at first, but then with more confidence. She could sense them, feel their minds. She thought, “Come in.”

  The doors hissed and the two girls entered, bearing a tray of food and a bottle of cold beer, which they placed on the dining table. Eika rose, “I will get your robe, Mistress.”

  Katie stood and spoke out loud. “Don’t bother. I’m not going to wear a damned robe. I want my jeans, my sweatshirt and my boots. And I want them now.”