Selas's Salvation

by Pearl Tate

  When I see the light slowly becoming brighter, my first thought is the torches. It’s far in the distance though, and I sink further into complete acceptance and mindlessness. But the light continues to grow, brightening to the point that I can’t ignore it any longer.

  Trying to focus, I realize it’s a person. The hair is the first thing that surprises me. It’s so light, almost white in color and shoulder length. It doesn’t move like our females’ either, but has curly ringlets around the fairest coloring in a face I’ve ever seen.

  Every feature on this strange female’s face is light. Light eyebrows, pale pink lips, and the lightest blue eyes that look like the sky on the brightest of days. As she closes in on me with an inviting smile, I startle, coming back to myself with a groan as all the aches and pains I’ve been avoiding start a chorus of agony in my body.

  What was that?

  If I didn’t know better, I’d say that was a vision.

  My very first one, too. During all my years of half-heartedly performing daily reflections, I’ve finally had a vision. I guess what they say is true. Pain can be used to help focus on not feeling anything.

  But the female… she was incredible.

  “Hey! What’s going on?” Jedco’s standing in front of me looking at me with a puzzled expression.

  What does he think is going on? Nothing is what’s going on.

  “Mating marks.” It’s Kene’s voice that cuts through the silence as I stare at Jedco. Twisting my neck, I see he’s doing the same and looking at me with awe.

  On me?

  Glancing down, I’m startled to realize that I’m covered in them from where I can see on my chest, all the way down around my cock and onto my upper thighs. It’d never crossed my mind before that the mating marks I’d seen on others were so… prolific. They’re everywhere.

  “What did you do?” Jedco’s voice is tinged with suspicion as he looks down my body with mistrust.

  I don’t even have the ability to answer him right now. I’m speechless. I glance up as Kene answers for me.

  “He didn’t do anything. He’s been blessed with a Nemete. His fated one—just like the others. You can’t do anything to make it happen…” His voice drops sarcastically as his head turns back to look ahead, “…that we’re aware of.”

  My mind scrambles as I consider the vision and the beautiful, fair female I just saw. Is she my mate? How is this possible? And why now?

  I’m tied up and surrounded by enemies. Never before have I been in such a dire situation. Even when Amari was tasked with locating the bombs around the facility, and we sent out teams to disarm them, I never really considered myself on death’s door.

  But this… this is the real deal. Has this just been one more taunting last laugh in my life? I get to see the female meant for me right before I die?

  “How’s this possible?” I ignore Jedco’s sneering question, still too absorbed with the designs on my body.

  A searing blow to my head has my neck snapping back to acknowledge the spear he’s brandishing over me. “Talk! Tell me how you did this.”

  His yelling begins to draw a crowd as I notice more shadows appearing at the edge of the light cast around us by the torches he’s lit. “If this is a trick, I swear to the Sacred Mother, we’ll kill you much slower than we planned.”

  A hand settles on his shoulder, tugging him to the side, and I come face to face with so many of the prisoners’ nightmare. Warden Benard—or should I say, prisoner Benard steps closer, his eyes running over the markings now decorating my body.

  “Well, well. I see that the Council continues the trickery they’ve begun. Lotuck, bring me a bucket of water. Jedco and you need to see if these wash off.” Turning back to me, his voice lowers menacingly. “Why do they persist with this game? Do they think false hope will make us run to the dome to see what they’ll offer us? Females? To lure us all into one place…” Turning around, he raises his voice, “…to kill us all?”

  Raising his arms as he finishes, he swings from his shoulder, bringing the back of his hand in a blow across the cheek still throbbing from the damage done earlier by Jedco.

  My vision cuts out briefly as consciousness flickers in and out. Raised voices are all around me while I begin to regain my senses as cold water and rough hands press roughly upon my chest. The arguing is escalating as the males discuss their progress, and Benard continues to rant about the evil Councilors and their future plans to murder them all.

  Sharp whistles cut through the chatter, and everyone freezes as I manage to lift my head.

  “They’re coming.” Jedco whispers to himself as he drops the rag into the mud at my feet.

  Benard’s eyes cut to mine and narrow into slits. “Kill them, and get to your assigned places.” He spins on his heel as another male I’ve never seen before walks toward me slowly brandishing a knife as long as my forearm.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  - Karen

  Sitting next to Rachel on the shuttle, I relax and try to let the pull I feel from deep inside my gut guide us. Holding my arm out, I point in the direction I instinctively know we need to go. Travek’s keeping an eye on me to stay on course.

  “There.” Rachel’s soft voice next to me lets me know she’s located another Quasar male below us. “Past.”

  We’re flying low over the canopy of trees, only occasionally gaining elevation to avoid mountains that are scattered along the landscape. I thought we’d go right up high like a plane and then zero back down on where I can sense Selas is located, but they’ve explained to me that getting higher could be dangerous for some of the crew that are actually prisoners—including Amari, Rachel’s mate.

  Something the Council injects the prisoners with upon intake has programmed the nanos to kill them if they leave the atmosphere of the planet, and no one knows exactly what that elevation is. Some of the prisoners claim to have watched others die just getting too high up into the mountains, although others believe that’s just urban legends. Most of them believe it’s more likely one of them killed the other, and they’re covering up murder. But we aren’t taking any chances.

  I don’t even need to really focus that hard, either. Ever since we entered the atmosphere, the pull toward someone—him—has been undeniable and all-consuming. My body’s screaming, “We’re coming! I’m coming…”

  It’s the strangest thing I’ve ever felt. The only comparison I can think of would be how you feel drawn to water when you’re dying of thirst. But really, that’s not the best analogy, because it isn’t like you know where water is without seeing it. If I didn’t know what was going on with me, I’d be worried.

  As it is, all I can think is this guy had better be fucking fantastic. I feel like I’ve changed so much mentally already, and I’m not sure how I feel about that part yet.

  Amari’s using a hand held device on the other side of Rachel to map out the locations and what Rachel believes are the intentions—good or bad that she “feels” from them below us. So far, everyone we’ve passed, she senses as benevolent. Just another guy trying to live out by himself in the wilderness. And it’s remote. Dense and green.

  From the way they’ve been talking, the greenery can be more dangerous than most of the animals. It’s the stuff of nightmares, and I can’t help thinking about Jumanji and the jungle that Robin Williams ended up living in. That’s the only comparison that comes to mind.

  “The pull is so strong now…” My voice drifts off as a wave of panic, then awe sweeps over me. Clutching my chest with my hands, I know that I’m feeling some of what this guy is experiencing. Everyone has told me I’m the first female to have this strong of an emotional bond with a mate before meeting or mating. That’s a nice way of saying before doing the dirty deed.

  “There’s a large group up ahead with lots of hostile intentions!” Rachel reaches and clutches at Amari’s arm. He immediately stops what he’s doing to wrap his arms around her.

  “How many?” His voice is soft to her, but he turns
quickly to bark at Travek who’s flying the craft. “Find a place to put us down.”

  “At least twenty-five. Wait.” I watch the tendons in her forearm flex as she squeezes Amari tightly. “No, it’s closer to thirty-five, but only half of them are evil. Damn. How are you going to be able to tell the difference?”

  “We’re only stunning them. You’ll get to sort that out later.” Amari does sound confident, and there’s acknowledging nods all around as the men squeezed around us agree.

  “Yeah, but I don’t want anyone to get hurt.” She glances at the men packed around us with concern before turning her gaze back to her mate. “Not you, of course.”

  Patting his arm, everyone’s already denying that there could be any casualties. “You don’t know what kind of weapons they might have! They could be making more bombs out here for all we know!”

  I begin to ignore them as I see the ground getting closer. Travek’s located a spot that looks like it was burned off recently. Huh. I guess they get forest fires out here too.

  We touch down with a slight jerk, and immediately I hear the doors opening and boots stomping out. Fumbling with my seat belt, I finally get it disengaged and stand in line behind the last three men waiting their turn to exit down the hall.

  “Where are you going?” Travek’s standing just behind me as I move closer to the exit.

  “With them.” Haven’t we discussed this? I know I’ve talked about it. How are they going to find exactly where their being held out there? “They need me.”

  “No.” Shaking his head, he moves closer to the door, effectively stepping between me and the massive guy in front of me. “No, you get to sit with me, Lisa, Jo-Anne, and Rachel. Here.” Pointing back to the front where we just left, I can’t help but argue.

  “How’re they going to find him? Aren’t they worried about locating the group?”

  “No, because we just went over the area and circled it. They’ve all got it marked and can figure it out. It’s safer and trust me… there’s no way that Selas would be okay with you going out there. Don’t you want to make your mate happy?”

  That’s the absolute wrong thing to say to me, but how would he know that? He doesn’t really know me that well yet. They’ve spent more time with their mates than interacting with me, and all my spare time I’ve spent in the hold.

  Biting my tongue, I realize I’m not winning this way. Instead, I’ll have to be sneaky. The faster I cave, the quicker I can get out of here.

  “Fine,” I grit out between clenched teeth as I walk ahead of him back toward the front. “Although, if you’re not going to let me go with them, I’m going to get something to eat. Rachel? Lisa? Jo-Anne?”

  Rachel wrings her hands. “I don’t know. I don’t think I can eat anything. I mean, I know Amari’s capable and pretty much indestructible, but I still worry.”

  “I’m worried about Remus too, but he’s supposed to be hanging back for me. Why are men so stubborn? He’s not a fighter! This is kind of crazy…” Jo-Anne shakes her head slowly as her voice trails off.

  “I’ll get something with you.” Lisa gives Travek a quick kiss on the way by as Rachel and Jo-Anne follow us down to the food prep area. The last man has already left, and I hear the hatch auto closing.

  “I really can’t believe they aren’t going to let me go. I mean, it’s my mate and everything!” Pretending like I’m hungry, I pull out my favorite snack from the tiny, prepackaged meals I’ve gotten so sick of.

  “You have to understand how precious we are to them.” Rachel sits down to watch us work, still wringing her hands nervously. “Keep in mind that all of these guys never thought they’d have a chance at a family. They won’t risk us doing anything that could endanger that.”

  “Well, I don’t think this is going to work for me. I’m independent and very capable of taking care of myself. I didn’t travel to another planet to get put up on a shelf and taken down to fuck and pop out babies.”

  Lisa’s nodding her head in agreement, but I know she’s patronizing me. Whatever. “Yeah, I really do understand, but I’m sure they’ll mellow out over time, right?”

  “Sure. Will you hold that thought for a minute? I’m going to pee. Two seconds.” I don’t wait for them to agree. This is the only opportunity I’m going to get, because if Travek tries to stop me, I don’t want to hurt him in an effort to get my own way.

  They nod as Rachel starts talking about the food availability on Dactyles. Something about the native species and what can and can’t grow due to the seasons.

  Sprinting down the hall as quietly as I can, I reach the cargo area within seconds. Grabbing my metal jo from where I stashed it in the netting after practicing earlier with Rachel, I head to the door. I don’t plan to run into anyone, but it just might come in handy.

  The door seal has an override button for manual operation right next to it. Pressing it does exactly what I suspected. The door has a manual lever that only takes all my weight to turn, but whatever.

  No one notices me or heads my way until I crack the door. Like any typical thriller, a squeal pierces the air as I push it open. As soon as the noise starts, I squeeze through the opening and take off at a run.

  Yeah, I’ve no idea what’s out there, but thanks to this insane and inexplicable mating pull, I know exactly where I’m going. The Top Pick is in the middle of the clearing sitting fifty feet from the tree line. By the time I hit the edge, I can hear Travek’s heavy weight crashing across the crunchy, burnt undergrowth behind me.

  Once I hit the trees though, there’s no way! It’s evening and the sun’s definitely setting, but the clearing we landed in was still bright. As soon as I enter the trees, I throw myself behind some coverage and watch Travek stop short at the edge, still fifty feet or so away.

  For being an alien, he sure has the same mannerisms as an Earth guy. Gripping his head, he spins in a circle before bellowing, “Karen!” He only waits a moment before turning to sprint back to The Top Pick.

  Yep. Just as I figured. He doesn’t want to leave the others unguarded and alone on the craft.

  Perfect.

  I’ve heard some about this planet from Rachel on the way over. There are man-eating plants! My best bet is to stick to any animal trails I can find, but I don’t want to get caught—not that I’m not highly confident I could incapacitate any attackers. I’m more worried about the plant life.

  More than once, I freeze as I work my way towards Selas. Occasional screams and grunts reach me as altercations happen between the different groups. I’m tempted to head toward them, but they aren’t in the direction I feel Selas. Now, not only do I feel where he is, I can feel his sheer panic. Things are not good for him.

  As the feeling escalates, I notice a lighter patch in the distance and recognize it for what it is. A clearing with bright torches, and the illumination is right where I feel like he is. Knowing I can’t rush in blindly, I slow to assess the situation.

  The first thing I notice is that none of Amari’s men are in the clearing. In fact, it’s just one man brandishing a knife. Three men are tied with what looks like makeshift vines being used as rope to large tree branches lashed together and planted into the ground in large X shapes.

  The torches light up the area clearly as I crouch down to look for any others around the perimeter. I can hear grunts and blows happening around me but mostly, I just hear crashing through the undergrowth out in the distance. Probably running away, the cowards.

  The man with the knife is large, probably seven feet tall but obviously suffering from malnutrition, because his body’s not well developed. They’re talking, but all it sounds like it’s a combination of guttural grunts and growls. The men tied to the trees are all facing out to the tree line, but I know instantly which one is Selas. His back is to me, and I can’t see his face. But the undeniable pull to him has just ramped up to a thousand times stronger than it was before.

  They’re arguing, that much is clear as the tormentor circles them. Before I real
ize what he intends, he darts forward and slices the throat of the man tied up facing me! Dark blood gushes from the wound in his neck as his eyes widen in surprise—the same shocked surprise I feel. He may be toying with them, but he intends to kill them all!

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  - Karen

  Time’s up.

  I can’t hold back or hesitate. Leaping forward, I use the element of surprise to my advantage as I attack the much larger man still standing in front of his victim. I’m facing the dying man whose eyes are drooping as he watches with surprise as I close the distance between his attacker and me.

  With a practiced move, for the first time, I use my skills to bring down a murderer. I’ve never seen anyone die, and I don’t intend to today. The blow up side the head has him out cold. He crumples into the mud, sinking inches into it’s wet surface. There’s a chance if I don’t turn his head in the next couple minutes he’ll suffocate, but he’s the least of my worries.

  They’re all naked! I don’t know how I missed that, but as I look for something—anything to staunch the brownish blood flow now coating his chest, I ignore the shocked look from the other man who can see me over his shoulder. Even the bad guy is only wearing a loincloth made out of a piece of an old uniform like I’m wearing…

  Snatching his knife, I bring it to my shoulder and tear my sleeve off, springing forward to wrap it around the neck of the man bleeding out in front of me. Both men are talking, but I still don’t understand them. Cutting them off, I curtly hiss, “Selas?”

  The man with his back to me finally answers in English, “Yes, that’s me.” Moving behind the other man closer to me, I cut him loose easily. The knife is sharp as it splits the vines, releasing him to drop into the mud where he scrambles over to his friend and applies pressure on the sleeve I tied firmly, but hopefully not too tightly. I didn’t want to strangle him.

  Cutting Selas free only takes seconds. Feet first, then arms and he instantly spins around to brace himself on the tree branches I freed him from. We’re left standing face to face as a powerful surge of energy shoots through my body. Every hair stands on end as a shiver makes my hands shake around the knife and jo. It’s as if looking at him sent an electrical vibration straight through me, lighting up my insides.