Page 38 of Bred by the Alien Prince

“Oh, I must hear this,” I said, filled with sarcasm.

“I’m a man who delivers precious intel, I prefer to remain hidden and I have a network of spies that spans our entire piece of the galaxy, I even have a team traveling beyond. How do you think I knew what these aliens call themselves? I even know about their Earth; my spies have been there. I have no desire to be a King. I wouldn’t make an exquisite one as I don’t have a pretty face like yours. I am a businessman, I make money, and there is money in war. The ships, the weapons, the machines, and the soldiers all cost something, and you are a warrior born and bred for a battlefield, not left to die in some fancy palace breeding bitches until you croak in a vain effort to save your species. You want your war with humans over the men and women you can impregnate to unite your own people, but you can’t just be the King of your own kind; you would need to be the future King of every alien in the galaxy.”

“And we will use the threat of this AI to unite the organics against them. Uniting every race would make a far greater impression and be the key to the change my father seeks. Bravo.” I had to admit his offer was tempting.

“I try.”

“And so, you need just one to breed our enemy.”

“I knew you were the intelligent one of your siblings.”

“I’m the one with the most to lose.”

“Very true. But by working together, we can get what we want. I can control the darkness and become wealthier beyond my imagination, and you can be the King of a new future.”

“Where is my fucking human?” I asked, done with this shit. What the hell did he take me for? Apparently, some desperate dumbass he could manipulate. As if I would risk the galaxy by giving him an army of AI to breed. But I at least needed to remain cordial until I could gather as much information as I needed and find Caspian.

However, I had no interest in a fake war and false glory. If my father was correct and the days of war were behind us, then a man like me could only make the galaxy worse. I could see it now as plain as the stars themselves. My Damma once told me that he refused to fight over my father's affections because doing so would have ruined me. He knew when to back away and remove himself from a potentially bad situation.

“Give him to me as a sign of your goodwill, and I’ll consider it.”

He slammed the table, and I laughed at the spectacle of items flying up and off the desk.

“You are being extremely short-sighted, prince!”

“No, I understand what you want perfectly well enough.”

“You think your brothers Regis or Zantos would turn me down? Perhaps I should have met with one of them since you have no balls.”

“Do that then, but I have a pretty good idea who and what you are. A beast I would probably ride into a battle and die at my command. Who knew you could actually speak? I thought you were only good for shitting in a stable full of straw.”

The screen went dark. I was right. He was an Oshura, a creature my kind had tamed and used to carry us into battle a thousand years ago, long before we discovered space flight. They are large flying beasts with scales so hard I don’t even think a modern-day blaster could penetrate. I’ve heard stories about them, but I also heard that their kind died out after we discovered advanced machinery. Perhaps they had gone somewhere and remained hidden to recover? I didn’t care; all I knew was that I was prepared to tear this place apart just for the hell of it.

CHAPTER 15

Caspian

Whatever this green fantasy dwarf-looking bastard was, he gripped my arm so tightly that he cut off the circulation! The pressure in my head was almost unbearable, and when he released me, the blood flowed and rushed to the places that had been closed off before. I wanted to enjoy the relief, but there were more significant problems to worry about. That fight happened so fast! One moment, I was admiring the beautiful jewel Lorvian placed around my neck, and the next moment, I was hiding under a table until a rough, cracked hand gripped my ankle and dragged me across the wooden floor.

I wanted to call for Lorvian, but he had so many of those aliens on him that I didn’t want to distract him or burden him. Such a dumb move! I struggled and beat against the thick, rock-like skin.

They stuffed me in the back of a hovering vehicle and only let me out once we were inside the safety of an enclosure before cutting the blood flow to my arm as they led me down a massive red hall and tossed me inside this room.

“You fuckers!” I scrambled to my feet, ready to give them a piece of my mind. “You’re gonna regret this! When Lorvian finds me, he’ll kill you!” He gestured something toward me, perhaps their version of ‘go fuck yourself,’ and slammed the door shut. “I hope.”

I looked around the room, and it looked like some fancy bohemian area, something you’d see in a movie about a sultan and his harem of concubines. They adorned the place in red, and whoever decorated it sure loved the color. Sheer red and gold fabrics hung from the high ceilings, forming multiple canopies around the circular floor beds. A table with trays of food lined the walls, and I remember one drink as the one I had shared with Lorvian back on his ship.

A woman approached, dressed in a red gown, split up the sides that left nothing to the imagination. Someone tied her blonde hair back in a unique style with red pins and decorative beads fashioned like a geisha.

Every step her bare feet made on the plush red carpet was timid. But when she pulled back one of the sheer drapes and saw me, her dull eyes lit up enthusiastically.

“Oh my God! Another human!” She approached like she wanted to hug me but thought the better of it. “It’s another human!” She swallowed. “My name is Sarah!”

Someone else came over from the back room, a guy, handsome, with a damn near perfect jawline and rich black hair that seemed to have gotten longer since the last time I saw this scumbag!

“Looks—”

“You!” I sneered and pointed an accusatory finger in his direction. Cormac, I didn’t think I would ever see him again since he ditched me.

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