by Tasha Black
“I like it, too,” Rose said.
“But I’m sure you didn’t just want to eat lunch,” the ambassador continued, looking up at her dining companions.
Rose glanced at Juno, who nodded.
“You’re right,” Rose said. “It’s about Rex.”
“He was very brave in the forest,” Serena said. “Everyone on this ship owes both of you a debt of gratitude.”
Rose waited for the inevitable but.
“What can I do to help?” Serena asked.
“We’re here to ask for clemency,” Juno said. “Rex Tylarr was accused along with every other Cerulean on this ship.”
“And I suppose you know something about prejudice, being from Terra-4?” Serena suggested.
Rose bristled, but Juno put a hand on her leg.
“We do,” Juno agreed. “And we can’t condone it in either direction. Guilt has to do with actions, not with race.”
“I agree,” Serena said. “So where do I come in?”
“Can you plead with the intergalactic leaders?” Rose broke in. “Keep him out of prison.”
Serena observed Rose with something like pity. “I would love to help you,” she said. “But I’m an ambassador. I have no more sway than someone like your friend, the princess. I sympathize, but there’s nothing concrete I can do to help.”
Rose felt the air go out of her lungs.
“That’s why I called Anna here,” Serena continued.
“Anna?” Rose echoed.
Anna Nilsson was amazing, truly, but at the end of the day she was a business owner - not a politician or a royal.
As if she had been summoned, Anna appeared in the doorway of the diner.
Serena waved her over.
“Hello, ladies,” Anna said. “I’m glad you ordered, I got held up with clients in the Fantasy Suite - don’t get me started about that crowd.”
A waiter swung by and dropped a plate of jalapeño poppers in front of her with a knowing smile.
“God love you, Maurizio,” Anna called after him. “So what’s going on?”
The table was suddenly silent.
Anna looked around suspiciously. “Are you guys about to make a complaint? You know we have a forum for that, so it doesn’t have to be awkward.”
“We-we’re here about Rex,” Rose ventured.
“His back pay will be restored when we get his papers stamped on Cylonius,” Anna replied. “I’m sorry, Rose, but I can’t unlock his assets until we have that stamp. I’m glad to make a personal loan though, if that helps?”
“His… back pay?” Rose echoed stupidly.
“Well, yes,” Anna said. “I can’t expect him to save the ship while he’s on unpaid leave.”
“Won’t his assets be frozen until the trial?” Rose asked.
“You didn’t tell her,” Anna said to Serena in disbelief.
“It’s not my news to tell,” Serena said with a small smile.
“There’s not going to be a trial, Rose,” Anna said slowly. “At least not for Rex Tylarr.”
“Why not?” Rose asked.
“I dismissed all charges against him,” Anna said. “I just need the notary on Cylonius to stamp and file it.”
“You did what?” Rose asked.
“I didn’t want to make a big thing out of it, when I knew there were Terrans onboard who might find it offensive and try to take the law into their own hands,” Anna said. “That’s why he was held with the rest in the first place. That’s why you kept him captive. For his own safety. But now the whole ship is buzzing about his bravery. As Captain, this is my call. Rex is a free man.”
Rose collapsed into Juno’s arms, faint with relief.
“Now that he’s saved the day for a second time, I think everyone on the ship will be happy with my decision,” Anna said. “And if they’re not, they can deal with me.”
“Thank you,” Rose croaked, her throat tight.
“And I understand congratulations are in order?” Anna added.
But Rose was already crying too hard to answer.
“Yes,” Juno said quietly, stroking Rose’s hair. “Rex and Rose are bonded now.”
“Well, keep in mind that as ship’s captains, Leo and I can also perform wedding ceremonies,” Anna said with a smile. “There’s nothing more romantic than Cylonius in the summertime.”
“Oh, I love planning weddings,” Serena squealed in a most undignified way.
“Someone needs to tell Rex,” Juno said.
“Rex, please meet me and your mate and her friends at the Old Americana Diner,” Anna said into her wrist comm.
Suddenly the world seemed brighter, and Rose allowed herself to realize that things might just turn out fine. Better than fine, in fact. She had friends around, and a mate who was free to start a new life with her among the stars.
It was perfect.
25
Rex
Rex stood at the foot of the mossy meadow.
A small gathering of friends were collected along the low stone wall, looking fantastic in their finest clothing.
The morning mist had cleared to reveal the bright red rings of Cylonius which formed comforting bands around the small planet. They cast a rosy light on the meadow.
The notary who had stamped his release papers earlier that morning sat on the stone wall sliding the dials of a metal machine with her slender tentacles.
When she learned that the official release she was issuing was going to a being who was about to be wed, the notary had offered her services providing music.
Rex had never seen an instrument like this one before, but whatever noise came out of it would be music to his ears.
Rose was marrying him today.
She would be there any minute.
He smiled at the thought. These last few days had been bliss, knowing that they had forever together, knowing that things would be okay.
The only question was what they would do with their newfound freedom. Now that they knew they would have a life together, they had to decide how to spend it.
Suddenly, strange music issued from the notary’s instrument. It sounded like an old-fashioned phono-player crackling out the notes of a flute and an oboe at once. The music was quiet at first, then rose like a symphony, so beautiful Rex thought his heart would break.
And then his bride appeared on the hill above the meadow.
Rose was exquisite in a light blue dress, her hair flowing long and loose around her shoulders.
Her best friend, Juno, walked beside her. But even the glittering of her royal crown was no match for the radiance of Rex’s beautiful mate.
She smiled down at him and his breath caught in his throat. For a moment, he wondered if he could possibly be worthy of the trust he saw in her eyes.
I will be worthy, he told himself. I will be whatever she needs.
Her promenade seemed to take forever, but at last she was beside him. Juno winked and went back to her own husband, Crown Prince Zane, who was in his place by the wall.
Anna and Leo stepped forward and the ceremony began.
The words washed over Rex, but he remembered his lines and even pulled a small box from his breast pocket with shaking fingers.
In it, a tiny stone glimmered.
Rose’s mouth dropped open as he slipped it on her finger.
He hadn’t been able to buy her an engagement ring until his assets were released this morning. He hoped she would like this one that he had snuck off at dawn to purchase with Juno’s guidance. It was so small and simple, but Juno had insisted it was exactly what Rose would want.
Rose smiled up at him and his heart throbbed.
“You may now kiss the bride,” Anna announced warmly.
Rose went up on her toes to meet him and he kissed her like there was no one in the clearing but the two of them, no one in the universe.
The small crowd cheered, and Rose pulled away, looking a little embarrassed.
“Are you ashamed of kissing me?” Rex tea
sed.
“No,” she said quickly, her eyes sparkling.
“Are you sure you’re not embarrassed to be kissing a snobby Cerulean?”
“As long as you don’t mind kissing a dirty Terran,” she quipped.
Oh.
“There’s nothing dirty about you,” he retorted, hoping he hadn’t upset her.
“Oh, there’s something dirty about me,” she whispered.
Her little hand grabbed his ass hard.
His whole body was instantly awash in lust.
“Take it easy or I’ll have to drag you back to our rooms,” he cautioned her.
“I’ll race you there,” Rose offered.
Rex threw his head back and laughed.
“After we greet our guests and eat some cake,” Rose amended. “Even you can’t stand between me and that gorgeous dessert.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, my beautiful wife. You’re going to need your strength later,” he told her.
“That sounds promising,” she said, arching an eyebrow.
He pulled her in close and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I love you so much, Rose Mendez,” he told her. “Don’t you ever forget that.”
“I love you too, Rex Tylarr,” she murmured into his chest.
Their friends were headed over, arms outstretched and smiling.
Rex stopped worrying about what the future held for the two of them. Whatever they decided to do next, Rex knew they were going to have a wonderful life, as long as they spent it together.
***
Thanks for reading Conquered Mate!
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Tolstoy (Sample)
1
Anna
In a forgotten corner of the galaxy, far from the established trade routes, and even farther from where it was supposed to be, floated a long-forgotten ship, one among many.
And at the center of that abandoned ship grew a forest.
Anna Nilsson froze in place, wishing there were someone to share the unusual sight with her. But she was alone, the only sound the hiss of the air pump in her spacesuit.
She stepped closer, mesmerized.
After the endless burnished aluminum of the Stargazer, the lush greenery before her almost hurt to look at.
Anna stood in a derelict luxury star cruiser the size of a shopping mall. She’d already made her way through winding corridors of threadbare rugs and corroded, flickering chandeliers, using her tagger to mark items of interest along the way. The passageways circled rings of rooms that extended along the sides of the ship as far as she could see. She almost felt as if she were in a Scooby Doo episode, or visiting the sunken Titanic, until she opened the latest door.
Maybe it was the lack of sleep since she’d found out she would be running her first salvage mission completely solo, or maybe the oxygen mix in her suit was a little high, but Anna couldn’t shake the feeling she’d stepped into a dream. She blinked to clear her head, but nothing changed.
She stood before a huge wall of glass, or something like glass, anyway. Beyond the wall, trees - real, honest to god trees - stretched upward, their lumpy branches bristling with bright green leaves. They had to be hundreds of years old.
As a child, Anna had visited the indoor rain forest exhibit at the Baltimore Aquarium on Earth. Clutching her big brother’s hand, she’d dashed up the wooden platforms, trying to catch a glimpse of the sloth or the toucan. The trees there had been spread out, the bustling city always looming just outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.
What stood before her now was not an engineered approximation. It was a real forest, branches growing thick enough to block out the light source above. The surreal scene was made complete by a pair of ancient looking lamp posts glowing faintly at the edge of the tree line, their light barely penetrating a few steps into the wooded area.
The ship was as good as dead, but the forest was very much alive. Tendrils of ivy burst through the crevices between the corroded metal panels that held the glass in place, refusing to bend to the will of the man-made structure.
Hot tears sprung to her eyes and Anna had to lean over and rest her hands on her knees to steady herself in the wake of sudden emotion.
She hadn’t seen a tree in six months.
Well, technically it had been far, far longer. But she tried not to think about that part.
Light from above filtered down into the woods, dappling the soil and stones beneath the trees.
For a moment Anna was back at the cafe in Tarker’s Hollow, gazing out the window at the park as her mother scolded her to bus the lunch tables. She could smell the almond croissants baking, hear the mindless chatter of the patrons as they discussed whatever it was people with real lives discussed. It had been her entire existence, and now it was just… gone.
A light breeze sent a shiver of motion through the leaves in front of her. It must have been manufactured weather, still operating on reserve energy. The movement highlighted what she hadn’t noticed before.
The plant life had run riot, but there were no birds, no squirrels, not even insects on the forest floor. Besides Anna, the forest was the only living thing on the ship.
She stepped closer, placed her gloved hand against the nearest pane in solidarity, and holstered her tagger. She couldn’t imagine needing it in here.
A tremendous sycamore towered over her head just inside the glass.
She gazed up into its branches. The light seemed to be brightening above.
No. That wasn’t right.
The tree was brightening.
Before her eyes, the green leaves faded then burst into flaming orange.
All around the sycamore the other trees erupted into a symphony of yellow, peach, pink and scarlet.
Anna was watching summer turn to fall, as if someone had pressed a button on the remote that controlled the speed of the world.
A tone sounded in her helmet.
She looked down at her wrist.
Her origami drone unfolded from its dock and then refolded itself into something resembling a bird, before fluttering up to her.
“The atmosphere is breathable,” BFF19 sang out.
Anna released her helmet and pulled it off.
2
Leo
Leo watched from the shadows, his pulse racing.
The whole ship had been sleeping.
He had awoken hours ago, alone, with no memory of what happened.
Now the ship was waking too.
And he knew why.
They had a guest.
He crept closer, sticking to the shadows so as to avoid its notice, and watched as the strange creature placed an appendage against the glass wall of the forest.
It was covered from head to toe in suit and helmet, but it was bipedal and it moved in much the same manner as the former residents of the ship.
Something detached itself from the visitor’s wrist, folded itself into a bird-like shape and hovered near its head.
A moment later, the creature unlatched its helmet and lifted it off.
It was female.
She shook out a curtain of flame colored hair, brighter than the blush of the changing trees in the forest between them.
He had just enough time to take in her expression, tender, wondrous, maybe just a little lonely.
Then something stirred in Leo’s chest and hot lust washed over him. His skin prickled, ready to change for her, to join her.
It seemed impossible. But he knew it to his bones.
This was the call of his blood mate.
Stronger than the strongest will, more ancient than the s
tars, the grip of his blood mate held him in her thrall. He gasped for breath, his eyes trained on the hall that separated them, searching for the fastest way to get to her.
Before he could decide, another zap of awareness electrified him.
Darkness pulled at him this time, incinerating him from within with pulsing red anger. He struggled against it, but the world went scarlet behind his eyes and the Other took over.
***
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