by Lee Savino
I will paint the walls with his blood.
My Tribute walks towards me, skirting around him, her eyes fixed on mine. They are soft, like her voice as she tries to soothe me. “I missed you. This was only meant to kill time until you were free. And, as Medik said, it’s an experiment.”
“An experiment?” I test the word.
“Yes. I was wondering whether Tsenturions had a grieving process. These warriors were kind enough to share.”
I remember that we’re not alone in the room, and glare at everyone.
“But we’re done now,” my Tribute soothes. “So maybe you don’t need this?” She motions to my right arm and I realize my armor has produced a long, double-edged blade in anticipation for battle.
“Fine,” I grunt and let it melt back into my suit before drawing my Pareena close. To my relief, she tucks herself against my side and wraps her arms around my waist. I meet Arkdhem’s gaze. He’s watching my Tribute closely. When he notices my challenging look, he tilts his head and raises his brows.
I will blood you, my look says.
You will try, he tells me with his hard gaze.
“Well, that was fun,” Medik finishes fussing over the food. “But I better get back to the med bay.” He hoists the half full platter. “My patients will enjoy these,” he announces to no one.
“Our apologies for the intrusion," Corin says with a salute. "We meant only to indulge the Tributes' request."
I grunt and jerk my head toward the door in dismissal.
Corin and Borodem move past me. Their armor is still tinged with grief, but they bow their heads to my Tribute as they go, with something like affection in their expressions.
Medik thanks the Tributes and smiles at me as he leaves. I let him go even though I am angry he did not inform me of the meeting in my quarters as soon as he discovered it. There is no sense in trying to chastise him. As the elder on board, and the best physician despite training other warriors to one day take his place, Medik does as Medik pleases. Even the High Commander cannot gainsay him when he decides on something.
But I can still kill Arkdhem. It would be most satisfying. Then I would never have to see his stupid smirk again.
Pareena plasters a hand against my chest and I realize I’m growling.
“I guess I better go too,” Tribute Dawn says cheerfully, sidling toward the door. “Gavrill will probably be wondering where I am.”
Both Arkdhem and I look at her and then each other. He nods and I shake my head. Of course, he informed the High Commander where Dawn was. He is charged with her safety. Why she would think anything different is a mystery. Arkdhem might be a piece of kurdzu dung but he knows his duty.
That will not save him if he keeps behaving dishonorably with my Tribute. My gaze hardens again and his does as well, our brief moment of unity over as quickly as it began. The threat of violence hangs in the air again, and this time Medik is not there to relieve it.
But my Pareena slides her hand over my lower belly, squeezing me tighter. “I missed you,” she says again, gazing up at me.
And I decide Arkdhem will live another cycle. If only to cover the bridge while I spend time with my Tribute. Something which I am very eager to do, although my plans for our activities have changed slightly due to her 'experiment.'
“Out,” I order just as the doors to my quarters hiss open. The High Commander stands just outside.
PAREENA
The dark expression on the High Commander's face makes me cuddle up closer to Bogdan. I'm pretty sure I'm in trouble, but he's still less scary than the High Commander.
"You were supposed to remain in your quarters." The glower he levels at all of us becomes more intense when it finally lands on her.
Undeterred, Dawn runs to him, jumping up to fling her arms around him and kissing him on the mouth. The dark colors of his suit shift and it glitters, like stars on a clear night. The effect is beautiful. Even though he is clearly unhappy with her disobedience, he holds her against him and kisses her back.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Arkdhem go very still, and I turn my head slightly to see what's wrong. His suit doesn't give me any clues, but I can see the longing, the envy, on his face, his expression momentarily unguarded.
As if sensing that my attention has strayed, Bogdan's fingers slide into my hair and he turns my head to face him. Arkdhem's expression becomes tinged with anger, but then I can't see him anymore because Bogdan is kissing me. Deeply. Possessively. I realize that he is claiming me in front of Arkdhem with the kiss.
Wanting to do my best to soothe the savage beast—and maybe get myself out of some of the trouble I'm in—I kiss him back just as passionately. I press myself against him, sinking into the kiss, wanting him to know there is no reason to be possessive. There is no reason to doubt that I want anyone but him.
I hear the door slide and I pull away, turning my head. I catch a glimpse of Arkdhem's back before the door closes again.
There is a part of me that feels a little guilty over the blatant display between Bogdan and me. From talking with the three Tsenturion warriors, I now know how much each of them long for a Tribute of their own, for a family. I also understand Dawn's mixed feelings on the subject. If this is real, then I won't be the last woman abducted from her home. On the other hand, if the women are dying like I was, and they are given a choice...
Yet, is it really an informed choice? I'm still questioning whether or not this is even real, because the whole idea is so fantastical. Who could really believe that they're signing up to be an alien's mate?
"Did your shift go well?" Dawn asks Gavrill, her voice innocent.
I lean into Bogdan as the alien leader growls under his breath. He still looks displeased with her.
"Did you find the Vgotha?" I ask, hoping to distract both of the warriors. If Gavrill punishes Dawn the way Bogdan punishes me, I have a feeling we're both going to be sore soon. Might as well try to put that moment off for as long as possible. Plus, I'm curious.
"We are still searching," Bogdan says, his voice tight. "They have disappeared again. Possibly on planet, possibly deeper into space."
"Do not worry," Gavrill says, almost right on top of Bogdan. His arms tighten around Dawn even as his expression darkens even more. "They will not take you again."
I feel Bogdan's arms pulling me in even closer to him, as if he can't bear the thought of me being taken. I'm not too fond of the idea either.
"I still want to know more about that," I say, feeling a little put out that I'm the only one who doesn't know what happened. The amount of things Dawn has left out of our conversations is a little shocking. Then again, I suppose it's not exactly easy to know what to prioritize when you've been abducted by aliens and a new friend shows up. We both put alien peen pretty high on the list, but I would think a kidnapping by and escape from the enemy should be up there too.
Dawn just rolls her eyes. "I'm not that worried," she says, shaking her head. "I told you, Tor wasn't that bad. Just super sexist and a little bit of a jerk." She looks at me. "Obviously I escaped. Their ship even helped me."
"It helped you?" How... Why... What? That made no sense to me.
"It was a trick," Bogdan says immediately, his voice tight with anger.
"Some trick, sending me back unharmed and without getting what they wanted," Dawn mutters, rolling her eyes at him. I immediately get the sense that this is an argument they've had more than once. As much as I want to soothe my warrior, I have to admit, I'm inclined to agree with Dawn. She tilts her head at Gavrill. "So, what's this about a planet?"
The two warriors exchange glances and then Gavrill nods. Letting Dawn slide down the front of his body, he ushers her over to a screen on the wall, Bogdan and I following.
Bogdan makes a gesture at the console, and a giant hologram of a planet appears. With all the blue and green and white wispy clouds, for a moment I think its Earth... but then I blink and realize that the land masses are wrong. But it's so close that it hurts.
“They approached this planet and then disappeared behind it," Gavrill says. "We are uncertain if they continued on, using the planet to mask their flight, or if they landed."
“Oh, how beautiful!” Dawn exclaims, the longing clear in her voice. I feel that same longing, deep in my bones. “Can we visit?”
Excitement threads through me at her question and I look up at Bogdan. The expression on his face is not encouraging.
16
Bogdan
Visit? Both Tributes on the same planet where Vgotha might be? The very thought makes me want to stab something. My chest tightens and I can feel something like a scream bubbling up inside of me.
“What? No!” The High Commander barks out the words, thankfully able to speak, unlike myself. “It is not safe.”
“But if you scan the planet for Vgotha and they’re not there... wouldn’t it be safe for us to visit?” Tribute Dawn asks, pouting. I recognize the look she gives him. It is the one she often gets on her face right before he gives in to whatever insane idea she's come up with.
“We have more scans to run. Many more,” I say quickly, before he can be swayed by her big, pleading eyes. I have to avoid my own Tribute's gaze as well.
Before, I had thought the High Commander had grown soft with how often he allows his Tribute to do as she pleases, but now I understand better. They are not Tsenturions, they have their own culture and way of doing things. Sometimes they must bow to our way but sometimes, every so often, we should bend to theirs as well. Because we want them to smile and be happy.
“Yes,” agrees the Commander immediately. “And they will take a long time.”
My Tribute reaches up to cup my face in her hands, so that I can no longer look away from her wide, dark, pleading eyes.
“Please?” she asks. The hopefulness in her voice, the longing, is almost more than I can bear.
As if sensing weakness, Tribute Dawn chimes in. “Please? If you don't find any Vgotha on it? Just for an hour, I miss being on a planet so much... please, Gavrill, I rarely ask for anything..."
The sincerity in her voice is too much for the High Commander to bear. I know it as soon as I hear her plea. She is also correct that she rarely asks for anything. Which is why she so often receives whatever she asks for.
Drakk.
"Please, Master," my Tribute whispers, pressing herself against me. "I'll do anything you want."
I do my best to harden myself against her pleas. "You will do whatever I want anyway."
A little smile curves her lips. "That's true, but wouldn't you like to see what I could offer that you don't know to ask for?" She licks her lips, reminding me that she has already shown me something new. The little marks my seela left on her cheeks are already faded. The idea intrigues me.
But...
"I will not risk your safety for pleasure," I say roughly.
"But if the Vgotha aren't there, then we'll be safe," Tribute Dawn says, still pleading. "And we won't go without you. You're great warriors, strong enough to protect two tiny females.”
The High Commander sighs. Even though he sees through his Tribute's tactics, he is not immune to them. "I will think on it." Then his gaze sharpens, and he picks his Tribute up, hefting her over his shoulder as she squeals. "Excuse me, Bogdan. Tribute Pareena. My Tribute and I need to have a discussion about obeying orders, which she has already delayed for long enough."
"Understood," I say, putting my hand on the back of my Tribute's neck. "I believe I will be having a similar discussion with my own Tribute right now."
Pareena
The firm hold of Bogdan's fingers on my neck is somehow both comforting and threatening. Watching Gavrill cart Dawn off over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and her just hanging there rather than talking back, convinces me that she's probably about to get her butt blistered too. And that, like me, she doesn't want to make her punishment any worse than it's already going to be because she doesn't even put up a token protest.
Although she does raise her head and wave to me as they exit, a rueful, resigned, and yet somehow excited expression on her face.
I know exactly how she feels.
I know what's coming. I know I'm in trouble. I know the Wall of Pain is in my future. But I'm not scared. At least, that's not my only emotion. I am a little scared, a little anxious, but I'm also turned on. Bogdan's finger is stroking the pulse on my throat and my nipples harden as he turns to me, looming over me, looking down at me.
It's strange how he can make me feel so safe and at the same time, so vulnerable.
"What did I tell you about Arkdhem?" It sounds less like a question and more like a whispered threat, his lips close to my ear, his body moving to press into me from behind. Goosebumps crawl over my skin and my bottom tingles in anticipation of punishment.
"I—" Before I can say a second word, the Bride Trainer comes to life between my legs, humming against my clit and pushing against my anus. I groan as the nanotech pushes into me like a plug, thick and punishing with how fast it stretches the tight ring of my sphincter. My knees tremble and I cry out at the sudden invasion, the shocking fullness... all while my pussy throbs emptily.
Using his hold on my neck to spin me around, Bogdan puts his forehead against mine. His eyes seethe with emotion that he somehow manages to keep from showing in his armor. Possessive anger. Hot jealousy.
I shouldn't have tried to comfort Arkdhem physically.
It had just felt so natural in the moment. He'd been upset, talking about his longing for a Tribute, for a family, and I had responded in a wholly human, if not entirely professional way. In that moment, I hadn't been thinking about Bogdan's orders or who Arkdhem was, I'd just reacted.
"I'm sorry, Master," I say simply, rather than trying to make an excuse. "It will not happen again."
I messed up and I know it.
Something flashes in Bogdan's eyes.
"I am pleased to hear you understand your transgression, my Tribute." His voice remains hard, grating. "That will not be enough to save you from punishment though."
To be honest, I hadn't really expected it would be.
Bogdan
The submissive acceptance I see in my Tribute's expression startles me. Tribute Dawn fights against the High Commander's dominance constantly and part of me expects my Tribute to do so as well. But she not only understands what she did wrong, she is willing to accept my discipline.
"I accept my punishment, Master," she says, her pupils dilating, her voice calm. There is a sense of serenity to her, one that I am coming to recognize.
My Tribute enjoys my dominance over her. She wants to submit. Unlike Tribute Dawn, who would aggravate me to death with her constant rebellion, my Pareena enjoys being taken in hand. No wonder the Jabol felt we would be well matched. She is perfect for me, in every way.
The calm that washes over me matches hers, my anger sliding away. I understand that it is me she desires, me she wants to submit to, not Arkdhem. I will still punish her for disobeying an order, but I am no longer choking on possessive fury.
My cock aches, my seela beginning to writhe in anticipation. Dropping my gaze to her pouty lips, I decide to work off the edge of my lust before punishing her. It will leave me more clear-minded and keep me from rushing through the process just to relieve myself.
"On your knees, my Pareena," I order.
I feel the responding heat of her arousal just before she obeys, her nanotech informing me that her bottom has clenched around the belt invading her there. Yes, I will make that part of her discipline as well. I remember what the manuals said about 'naughty girl sex' and my Tribute has been very naughty indeed.
Reaching down, I knock the straps of her gown away from her shoulders, baring her beautiful breasts to me. Hefting one in my hand, I pinch the nipple tightly, making her moan as she stares up at me. The lust in her eyes is echoed in my body.
My armor retracts and my cock undulates before her, my seela reaching for her, eager to latch onto
her skin and leave their marks. I will ensure that no warrior will be able to look at what is mine without seeing the clear signs of my possession of her.
"Take me in your mouth." I cannot disguise the eagerness in my voice for this strange, human custom.
The touch of her tongue on my cock is just as heavenly as before, the warm suction igniting a storm of pleasure inside of me. Seeing her on her knees before me, one hand on her breast, the other entwined in her hair, my cock sliding between her lips while my seela pull at her skin, is highly arousing. Because of her belt, I know that I am not the only one so affected.
Still, this is supposed to be punishment. I pinch her nipple harder, twisting it slightly, while directing the belt to slide up her front, taking the place of my fingers. She whimpers, first at my fingers, and then at the way I have the belt tighten around her budded nipples. Now both of my hands are free to play with her hair while I use the belt to torment her body.
Thickening the portion of the belt filling her ass, I groan at the sensation of her crying out around my cock, pushing it in deeper until I hit the back of her throat. She rocks slightly, her hands coming up to press against my thighs and steady herself, but she does not protest or try to pull away. If anything, she sucks me harder, intent on pleasing me. This is how a human Tribute apologizes to her Master.
My cock stiffens, my need pounding through me. There is no reason to withhold my ecstasy and I climax with a loud cry, my fingers curving over the back of her head as I force her mouth down on my length. She submits willingly, her tongue and throat muscles working to pull every drop of my seed from my body.
I shudder and relax, panting slightly from the exertion of passion. When I open my eyes and look down at her, her skin is flushed, her eyes glazed with her own pleasure, and her cheeks are again speckled with the dark marks of my seela.
