Page 9 of Pandora: Alien Games

Paan-doh–rah snored softly while I weighed my options. The Caliph was known for his taste for everything alien. I sold him junk I found in the desert and he paid for it with a huge amount of silver and gold merely because it appeared strange. If the Caliph wants her, he won’t take a no for an answer. Would it be possible for me to convey to him that she’s not mine to sell? All possibilities lead to horrible outcomes, some in which I’m dead and she’s a prisoner of the Caliph.

Banoo snored in tune with Pan-door-hah. At least they could rest. I not only felt painfully aroused but also seriously concerned for Pan-door-hah’s existence here on Sphinx.

I could not stop myself from watching her small face. Her eyes looked so delicate when closed, and her mouth. I wanted to touch her small, pouty lips with my claws, but what if she gets scared. The last thing that I wanted was to scare the sweet, adorable Pan-door-hah. How much I wished that I could understand her. She seemed in distress. If I could only make more sense of her speech, maybe, just maybe, I could find a way to keep her safe.

Before closing my eyes, I checked on her shoulder again. The plasma spider had done a decent job. Her wound was healing and the skin closing the opening.

* * *

I woke up startled at the first ray of the three sons of Ra. Fear nagged at the edges of my consciousness. What will happen when my brothers meet her? Will they react kindly?

I already could picture Ramy’s reaction. He would call me a fool for picking up strays from the desert and bringing them to our oasis. Our pack has maintained its independence for so long and having her with us could paint a target on us. Ashok and Eray will try to charm her. I don’t know if this small female could take it. And Hassym? Gods, I don’t even want to start thinking about my brother Hassym and his rugged ways. They will not accept her. I’m only the beta, the second son. My brother Ramy is the only one who can decide to keep her. And would she even want that? There are other packs who travel with one or two females and the males share them, but they are strong, tough, Anubis females and I don’t see the same power in Pan-door-hah. She’s soft, sweet, and delicate. She looks as if she needed protection all the time rather than being able to pick up a weapon and fight her way through a horde of Rash. For the first time in my life, I wish I could hide her away, keep her just for me, get drunk on her scent and beauty, and shield her from the eyes of the world.

A plan took root inside of my mind. What if I could smuggle her into town? Karah was large and a vast number of species coexisted there. If I cover her up, she could pass as a Bastet female and no one would ask questions. I could hide her there and visit now and then. The plan was ridiculous, but it made my heart beat faster.

I woke Banoo and jumped on his back. The heads of the Rash still chomped at the air. My destination was the Oasis of the Caliph. I would get my bounty and trade for some elegant female clothes that would cover her body. The leg clothes she wore looked ridiculous and were covered in blood, a scent that was too easy to be picked up by the creatures of the desert. She’d be a walking target like this. I would leave her here and come back for her soon.

Before I left, I was tempted to bite her neck, a sign that she belonged to me, that a pack had claimed her. If bitten, no one except me and my brothers could touch her without us having the right to kill the offender. My mouth leaned close to her neck, so close that I could taste the sweet scent of her beauty, the delight of her nectar. My hard cock pushed my cloth to the side. Drool dripped all over her. But I couldn’t. It would be wrong. My culture was to claim a female. We would fight, scratch, and bite, and the moment a male proved his power the female would succumb to it. No questions asked. Yet I wanted to ask Pan-door-hah and not claim her as a prize. She woke another type of desire besides the carnal lust and need inside me.

A softer desire. A wish to push the warrior aside and allow her to see my soft side. These thoughts still plagued me when I was on Banoo’s back, riding hard toward the Oasis of the Caliph. I hope she won’t leave.

Please, don’t let her leave.

6

Pandora

Morning came sooner than I expected. My body hurt but it wasn’t a throbbing pain. It was the pain caused by exhaustion.

As I opened my eyes, I expected to see Edoo, but he was gone. I was alone on the blanket and he had covered me with, a soft sheet that kept my body warm. The fire was out and the only light came from the entrance to the cave. A pale light reached the back of the cave.

I sat up, but my movement was too fast. It made me dizzy. Why did my shoulder not hurt anymore? All I could feel was a dull pain, more as if I made a wrong move and not as if I had a hole in it. Using only my index finger, I touched the spot where the gasping hole was just a few hours ago. The pain was gone and my shoulder healed.

The smell was weird. I couldn’t define it.

Edoo was gone too, and he took Banoo with him. What a shame. I had hoped to see the creature in daylight.

Well, it’s not as if he owed me anything. He healed my shoulder, and I’m grateful for that.

There was a small box with some of the fruits I ate last night. He left me breakfast. How sweet. Did he leave me a note too? The fruit tasted good and juicy. As I started eating, I realized I was much hungrier than I thought. I devoured them all.

Mmmm. Good.

Now that my stomach no longer grumbled, even though I was still seriously hungry, I walked toward the exist of the cave. There it was—the place I had landed. The three suns were up and the sky shone blue like a baby’s eyes. All around me I saw sand.

Just sand.

Dunes.

Golden, beautiful, bare, hot sand.

Great. Now what?

I wished Edoo would have at least taken me to the next town. If they had towns.

Thirst burned my throat so I returned to the cave. Next to the blanket was a smaller skin that looked full. Nice of him to leave me some water. I took the skin and gulped down a long sip of lukewarm water that still tasted like the best drink ever.

This planet looks like a place where you must use all resources.

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