Aria's Ascension (Taken Book 2)

by Stacy Jones

  He could feel the heat of her cunt against the sensitive frills of his cockhead and, for a moment, the idea of killing Tirox for interrupting them seemed perfectly reasonable.

  It was that cold willingness to murder a friend—more than a friend, Tirox was one of his aessa’s cajasiira—that broke through the mating haze clouding his thoughts.

  Tirox must have read that flash of deadly intent, because he rumbled a low, menacing laugh and threatened, “It would be a shame to kill you when Aria seems to enjoy you so much, so instead I will cut off your cock if you do not hand over my mate, bright one.”

  Kix ignored the warning for a moment in favor of scanning Aria’s face. Was she upset he’d lost control? Did she know he’d considered, even if only for a moment, killing her mate rather than give her up?

  Does she know I would cut out my own hearts for her?

  She gazed up at him, her green eyes dark with lust, her lips wet and swollen, but past the arousal was shrewdness. Through their bond, she could sense what he felt, so her perception didn’t surprise him. There was no hiding anything from her, and even if he could, he did not want to. What did surprise him was the understanding he saw on her face. It wasn’t approval, but neither was it condemnation.

  She simply understood, and that allowed him to release the breath he was holding. The worry she would find him deficient, that she would finally become aware of just how much darkness he was hiding, eased.

  Kix went to her readily when she tugged on his neck, taking the gentle kiss she gifted him with a fanatical kind of gratitude.

  She pulled back and glanced at Tirox, signaling her desire to greet him. Kix forced his hand to relax its tight grip in her hair so Tirox could take her. And when she went to him with a smile, Kix was not jealous.

  She’d seen the feral side he hid and hadn’t looked upon him as if he were damaged.

  That was more than he’d ever dared hope for.

  Chapter 4

  Aria took her time kissing Tirox, not to be fair in her affections, though that was probably something she needed to think about if this unconventional relationship of theirs had any chance of working. She took her time because she needed to feel him just as much as she needed to feel Kix.

  She had to touch them, taste them, to be certain they were real.

  The fear she might’ve lost them was still riding her hard, and the devastation she’d experienced at that possibility made a few things painfully clear.

  She realized it didn’t matter if their chances of having a happily ever after were about as good as an owl delivering her a letter. Hell, that was even more reason to embrace this weird-ass relationship wholeheartedly, to say fuck it and just go for it. It didn’t matter that they were different or that she had no clue how to be in love with more than one man. They’d figure it out as they went.

  She’d been seriously thrown off-kilter when she woke up in this place, and the knowledge that she wasn’t in control of her life here previous to that forced her guard up, but she’d always prided herself on being adaptable and unafraid of taking risks. It was time to remember that.

  Life was fleeting, and happiness was in short supply, so she was going to show them what they meant to her, tell them how much she loved them… and fuck them at every opportunity.

  Just as soon as the chances of us dying are slightly less likely.

  Aria teased Tirox with her lips and tongue until he was making a constant low, rumbling purr in the back of his throat. His hands flexed on her ass, intentionally, rhythmically bumping her bare pussy against his stomach.

  She’d already guessed he wasn’t familiar with kissing. Whether he just hadn’t had the opportunity to do so, or it wasn’t a custom his people practiced, she didn’t know. Whatever the reason, the effect was overwhelming. The contrast of his inexperienced kiss, combined with his confident hands rolling her hips against the hard ridges of his abs and mercilessly teasing her clit, was almost unbearably arousing.

  By the time she finally forced herself to pull away, they were both panting. She could feel the hard length of his cock—cocks?—bumping against her ass and knew his abs were wet with her need.

  Tirox nuzzled his nose to hers and rumbled softly against her lips, “I do not know why he was so worried about you feasting on us. I enjoy it greatly.”

  Aria pulled back and looked at his swirling, heated eyes, giving him a bemused look. “Feasting? What are you talking about?”

  He cocked his head slightly as if confused that she was confused. “The bright one was worried you would eat us. That is what his females do.”

  Glancing over at Kix, wide-eyed, she gaped at him. He grimaced slightly and shook his head.

  “It is slightly more complicated than that,” he protested.

  “Ookay. Well, you don’t need to worry about me turning into a cannibal, er, whatever the term is for eating other sentient beings. I like a good steak as much as the next person, but not enough to start carving into my… mates.”

  Both men jerked their heads toward her, staring at her intently with almost identical expressions of shock.

  Aria laughed lightly, leaned in to press a quick kiss to Tirox’s full, red lips, then hopped off of him, landing nimbly on her feet despite their sizable height difference.

  “Don’t look so surprised. You didn’t think I’d be able to resist all of that forever, did you?” she asked with a mischievous smile, waving at their very muscular, very naked bodies, but her gaze stayed on theirs.

  She let her eyes go soft, showing them that, while she was being playful, what she felt for them was real, and she was ready to accept it.

  Kix got a hungry look on his face and made to step toward her. She knew if he got his hands on her, they’d finish what they started a few minutes ago. As tempting as that was, especially after Tirox’s teasing, they had shit to do, and now wasn’t the time to consummate their… mating? Engagement?

  Do their people even have marriage? Something to talk about later.

  Wait. Am I seriously already contemplating marriage?

  She thought about it for all of one second before deciding, yes, yes she was.

  Aria shook her head to halt Kix’s approach but softened the denial with a smile. “Later,” she promised, making pointed eye contact with both of them before turning to pick up her throwing knife off the floor. “Tirox, do you still have the bag?”

  She wanted to get dressed and a scan of the room hadn’t shown any of the little spray tubes or their duffle bag. Hopefully, he’d just left it wherever they’d come from, and they could make a quick stop to pick it up.

  He winced, guilt quickly overtaking the lust still present on his expressive face, and said, “I lost it during the fight in the valley.”

  Aria shoulders dropped. “Shit.”

  “Apologies, my heart.”

  “It’s okay.” Reaching out, she laid a hand on his chest, partly to reassure him and partly because she just wanted to touch him. “Maybe we can find a supply room and restock. We need to find weapons, too. This knife isn’t going to stop much. Either of you happen to know where they keep that stuff? Or know how to operate the cylinders?” she asked, tipping her head at the tube they’d somehow gotten her out of.

  Tirox shook his head, but Kix paused for a moment and closed his eyes. He seemed to be trying to remember something, but when he opened them, he sighed and frowned.

  “I cannot find the code to initiate arming and clothing. It feels fluid, as if it changes often. If I can find a data console, I could possibly access that information, as well as where to find supplies.”

  Aria squinted at him. “I don’t understand. What do you mean it feels fluid?”

  His expression flickered somewhere between excitement and quiet apprehension. “My empathic abilities are evolving now that I have Harmonized to you. They were already enhanced in this body, but I am developing telepathy now. It is rudimentary and draining, but useful.”

  “Oh. That’s badass. ‘Unappealing r
ump.’”

  Aria’s eye twitched at the translator’s unfortunate literalness, but let it go and ignored her mens’ startled grunts.

  The potential applications of such a talent were vast and he was right, that was most definitely useful, but something else occurred to her very quickly.

  Narrowing her gaze suspiciously, she asked, “Have you been reading my mind this whole time?”

  A smile flirted at the edges of his wide, full lips before a soft chuckle escaped him. He gave her a half shrug, half hand wave and purred, “Only a little, my aessa. Enough to find you here, and to ensure you weren’t prone to cannibalism upon my waking, but not so much as to discover your secrets. I shall have to… probe deeper to hunt down those delicacies.”

  Aria bit her lip at the suggestiveness in his voice and, for just a moment, reconsidered her plan of rescuing slaves now and sex later. Being probed had never sounded so damned appealing as it did in that moment. With lust still burning bright, she regarded him for a moment longer. She decided to try something—something that, if she were thinking straight, she would’ve known better than to attempt.

  Instead of passively broadcasting her emotions, she intentionally sent him her desire, her hunger for him, and the achy feeling between her legs.

  Kix’s eyes widened for a moment before they fluttered shut and a tremor shook his broad shoulders. Opening them to slits, he pinned her with his stare, letting her see the sparkles flickering madly in his pupils.

  Aria gasped softly and squeezed her thighs together. He looked feral. His features instantly became sharper. His body tensed, poised to pounce. In the span of a heartbeat, his mask of civility was stripped away, letting her see the deliciously dark wildness he tried so hard to hide.

  He closed the distance between them until they were standing chest to chest, the movement so quick she hadn’t been able to track him. Lifting his hand, he pried her lips apart and pushed a finger into her mouth, lightly sliding it over her tongue.

  Aria was frozen, feeling very much like prey, except she wanted to be caught and eaten by the predator slicking his finger in and out of her mouth and staring at her as if he’d like to pin her down and fuck her until she screamed.

  Leaning down until they were a breath apart, he opened his mouth and flicked his tongue against her upper lip, then hissed as if her taste pushed his restraint to the breaking point, giving her a glimpse of sharp, white fangs she could’ve sworn weren’t there moments ago.

  He pulled back slightly and withdrew his finger, groaning as he roughly smeared the wet tip over her lips until she could feel them glisten.

  “Careful, my song,” he growled softly. “My control is brittle, and I would not have our first mating be a quick thing.” He lowered his voice even more, holding her captive with his gaze, and rasped, “I would take you over and over, then watch your red mate fuck you before I take you again.” At that, Tirox pressed himself to her back, pinning her between them so she could feel their hardness against her. “I would pass you between us until your throat is hoarse from singing and your thighs are dripping with our essence.” Something dark slithered through his eyes, and his lip pulled back slightly in a snarl. “We will fuck you until you cannot imagine life without us, until your need for your mates is such that even death could not convince you to part from us.”

  Fuck me.

  Aria had never been so turned on in her life. Her heart was pounding, her nipples were hard points, her clit was throbbing with need, and her thighs were slick as she stared up at him wide-eyed. Her quiet Kix was showing her that intensity she’d sensed under the surface, and she loved it. She’d never considered she might enjoy a little dominance in a man, having always been the aggressor, but Kix was quickly convincing her otherwise.

  But, he was right. Now wasn’t the time to let her lust make the decisions, and she didn’t want her first time with them to be rushed.

  They stepped away, and Aria released a shuddering breath. Licking her lips, she closed her eyes and took a second to get herself under control so she could concentrate on the mission.

  When she opened them again, Kix had locked down his own expression into the calm, controlled one she was accustomed to seeing. While she didn’t love the mask he wore, she appreciated his restraint and let it bolster her own.

  Glancing between them, she found both looking at her, waiting for her direction. Nodding sharply, she announced, “Let’s go find a data console. Maybe we can find some information on where Zhrovni lives and what kind of defenses we’re looking at. Patrols, guards, surveillance… killer robots with lasers.”

  With that, she turned and made her way to the door with them on her heels. Pressing her back to it, she asked, “Ready?” At their nod, she braced herself and jerked her chin at the keypad, wordlessly telling one of them to enter the code.

  “Let’s go take this fucking place down.”

  Chapter 5

  The door slid open with a hiss. Holding her throwing knife at the ready, Aria scanned both sides of the hallway. Finding it empty, she eyed the doors lining the walls to either side.

  None of them had a sign conveniently saying ‘Enter Here for Data Console,’ so she asked the guys behind her which direction they’d come from. Tirox tipped his head to the right, so she headed that way.

  Every time they passed a door, Tirox would pause to try and pick up vibrations signaling someone was moving around within. If he deemed it empty, Kix would input the code, and they’d peek inside. Checking each room was time consuming, but there wasn’t a way around it, not with the lack of any kind of designation or sign as to the room’s purpose.

  So far, they’d only found more labs, holding more sedated gladiators. Aria wanted to wake them all up, but she knew that wasn’t wise, not until she had some way of knowing if one of them was a serial killer who’d try to murder them at the first opportunity. They had enough enemies without adding more because she wasn’t cautious enough.

  A dozen labs later, and too many gladiators to count, Aria was beginning to get frustrated. And worried.

  How long could they expect to creep around here without being discovered? The sense that they were rapidly running out of luck prodded her to move faster, but she controlled it, forcing herself to stay slow and careful.

  It wasn’t until they turned a corner into what appeared to be a different section of the underground labyrinth that they found anything useful. The doors looked exactly the same, but the lighting was different here, and the floor was made of expensive-looking polished stone instead of the same light grey plastic-metal as the walls.

  About twenty feet down the new hallway, Tirox stopped in front of the first doors, paused for a second, then nodded to signal it was empty. Aria input the code, having seen the sequence Kix was using, and opened it cautiously, wary of what she’d find on the other side.

  Instead of another lab, she saw a floating platform, lit up with a soft, red glow, taking up most of the small room. Around it, lining the walls were shiny metal canisters about five feet tall and six inches wide, taking up the rest of the room.

  Aria was about to back out when Kix made a sound of excitement and pressed her forward. Following his urging, she stepped in. There was barely room for all of them to squeeze inside and close the door behind them.

  “What is it?” she whispered, glancing at Kix pressed up behind her.

  “I believe it is a fabricator,” he whispered back, his eyes bright with interest. “It looks to be a few models newer than the one I used at work, but I believe I can operate it. This must be why we have yet to find a supply room. They do not keep things ready-made. They fabricate them as required.”

  Aria looked back at the floating platform with new appreciation and pressed herself against Tirox’s chest so Kix could slide past her.

  It took him a moment to figure it out, but once he did, he made short work of producing weapons for them. Thankfully, the machine was almost soundless as it worked.

  At Kix’s tapping, me
chanical arms loaded a canister into the back of the futuristic 3-D printer before red lasers flickered back and forth rapidly across the top of the platform, constructing a thin sword for her, an ax for Tirox, and Kix’s scythe blade.

  Watching it work, Aria had a surreal moment where it really hit home that she was on an alien planet, with alien technology so far beyond what she knew it appeared more like magic than anything made by people.

  Glancing up at Tirox, she found him staring wide-eyed at the fabricator. He was even more awed than she, his expression halfway between wonder and suspicion. Aria smiled slightly.

  Thank fuck Kix is here to show us barbarians how to work the tech in this place.

  An idea sparked. Looking back at Kix and the machine, she asked, “Can it make a gun?” At his confused look, she rephrased. “A projectile weapon.”

  Enlightenment dawned, and he turned back to the keypad. A few taps later and he shook his head apologetically. Aria sighed. That was damned disappointing.

  A gun would’ve been a hell of a lot more advantageous than a sword. No matter how good she’d gotten with it after who knew how long fighting here, it still required close proximity when she’d prefer distance. And if there were robots with lasers, she couldn’t imagine her little sword would do much. With that in mind, she asked him to make some of her exploding throwing stars. Those, at least, might cause some actual damage.

  “What about a clothes sprayer?” she asked hopefully a minute later, hesitating before strapping on the new weapons and holsters cradled in her arms.

  If she had the option to not fight bare-assed, she was going to take it. It was hard to feel like a badass savior of aliens when her breasts were bouncing around and her hairless pussy was on display.

  Kix made a contemplative murmur and tapped on the display a few more times before he sighed and turned back to her with a frown.

  “I am sorry, aessa, this appears to only produce weapons and the like.”