Page 24 of Her Alien Savior
But how could a human be my perfect match? It didn’t make sense. And if it was true, then I had already failed her.
Riley’s arms folded over her chest and watched Nen-Le with distrust. That was odd considering she had tasted Nen-Le’s blood, it was normal for necia blood to create a bond between tribe members, and Nen-Le reciprocated the honor when she drank Riley’s blood during the bathing.
They were blood bonded, the sneaky Hargom root. Nen-Le was used to having her choice of mates, and I should be filled with pride, and jealousy. It was wonderful that my mate was accepted by a powerful tribe member such as Nen-Le, but I had yet to be blood bonded with her myself, and something about the way Nen-Le stared at Riley made me wary that it wasn’t simply acceptance, but something more. Had Nen-Le felt what I felt? Were we both vying for the same mate?
My stomach recoiled at the thought, and every muscle around my epul strained to stay where they were instead of issuing a duel against Nen-Le to challenge any claim she may think she had with Riley. If Nen-Le had been male then the liberties she took by sharing blood the way she had without Riley’s consent would have been punishable against our laws to force a mate bond in such a way.
It wouldn’t be my place to deny Riley a bond with Nen-Le, but my chest spasmed at the thought of that bond being the barrier that prevented any claiming of my own. What were the human customs regarding mate bonds? Would she only accept Nen-Le? Necias Tribal Law allowed for females to claim however many mates they wished, but when a necia warrior claims a Pulsunne... it is the only bond we seek. I would only want for her.
My chest heaved up and down, a kind of panic attack at the very thought of not having Riley accept my bond, and when my eyes landed on Nen-Le, I glared. She lifted a challenging brow, and in that instant, I knew, she fully intended to have her for herself. Though I could trust she would do everything in her power to help Riley be rid of the nanobugs... she was not going to help me convince Riley to accept me as a mate.
And I’d seen how she used her venom to subdue my mate. Riley’s eyes were glassy, and I did my best to draw her out of the haze and focus on us, our bond, but stopping a bathing ritual wasn’t within my power without tribal consequences and Chuel and Sylve would surely make sure I never saw Riley again if I didn’t regain control of my ship. Nen-Le was cooperating for now… but at what cost?
The human at Nen-Le’s desk was fidgeting and my attention diverted. Perhaps a fellow human could help Riley understand that accepting me would benefit both of us, and that we were marked by the goddess. I wasn’t sure if humans felt the same way necia warriors did, but bonds like a Pulsunne were precious, and felt deep in our bones and hearts. I was drawn to her.
“While you’ve been bonding over there, I’ve been figuring out where King Sylve is on the ship,” the female human spoke in a manner that was authoritative, but also admonishing. Did she not approve of having both Nen-Le and myself being healed before seeking to takeover a ship’s command? “It isn’t good news. According to scans... he isn’t on the ship at all.”
“Of course he isn’t,” Nen-Le scoffed. She had already known this bit of information. “He’s left this whole mission in the hands of Chuel, which is his second mistake.”
“What was his first?” the smaller male asked, I believe his name was Bryce.
“His first mistake was deciding to use nanobugs at all, instead of trusting the tribe. All he’s done is stir discontent in hopes of controlling Direl, but he’s done us a favor. Chuel doesn’t see it yet, but I do.”
“What are you thinking?” Riley asked, intrigued with the mischievous look in Nen-Le’s eyes that stirred the desire to move closer to her, to gain her attention. I grunted, realizing this was the action of a spawnling, not of a commander deserving of being claimed. I would show my honor to her in time. Regain my command, show her that I can take care of her needs, and have her bond with me as mates do.
“The day King Sylve lost command of Necias Prime,” she began, and I froze in realization at what she was about to say, she was digging up my greatest failure, and exposing it to my mate. Would this ruin everything? I couldn’t let her continue.
“We lost quite a few warriors that day,” I interjected then paused, ruminating on the reason Chuel betrayed me, his words coming back to me as my mind cleared from my rut, “and we were lucky that most of Necias Prime accepted that we could no longer stay secluded from the rest of the galaxy. We joined in alliance with Trillume, becoming their warfleet, and protecting more than Necias, but many planets besides. All while King Sylve ran from his duties and created a new planet for himself to rule, on the outskirts of the galaxy.” I quickly explained the basics without actually going into detail. My cock was still hard, and my rut was hardly complete, but having tasted my mate’s sweet release I was in control once more.
I didn’t want to admit that Chuel had reason to be upset with me, even if it was foolish for any warrior to deny change was upon us. It didn’t take much imagination to understand there were many of the tribe who shared his beliefs regarding that day. And I couldn’t say my opinion might not have been swayed if my own blood was taken from me as his was. I was close with Seira-El, his sister, and it was a shock to me that she took it upon herself to reclaim control of Necias Prime by herself.
She had come to me first, and I thought I had convinced her to stand down. I’d seen the duel between King Sylve and Queen Roknir of Trillume. Her skin was a deep green that sparkled when the light reflected from her dewy pores, with scales along the sides of her scalp that flared like a crown of sharp leaves, giving her a fierce and regal air. It was the cold agility, and the poisonous sap that perspired from her that made for a warrior few would challenge.
Even with our epul capable of stabbing our opponents, and our fighting spirit, King Sylve didn’t stand a chance to win against Queen Roknir without prior knowledge of her abilities. She would not offer her antidote without King Sylve admitting defeat. The poison from a trill was very specific to the individual trill, and they produce their own anti-venom. Though, we did not know this at the time.
Seira-El, as powerful as she was, refused to submit... and was used as an example to other warriors who didn’t approve of the new command structure that even a necia would fall to trill poison. She had thought our glands, which helped us heal, would counteract the poison, and the necia would not be bested by an outsider. It was a horrible death... the poison struck straight to her glands, and she felt every excruciating moment of her body shutting down. I was meant to mate with Seira-El, and I thought of Chuel like my own brother, but he was right.... I should have done more to stop her.
Should have done more to convince her to accept the anti-venom and the trill.
My only solace was her death saved many lives.
It was because of her that any other warrior against an outsider taking command of the tribe of Necias Prime took a knee and integrated into the new structure. We were able to negotiate our own laws be followed above those of the Trillume Galactic Empire. So far, they’ve respected our alliance, and we’ve served in their forces, though we have no seat on their council.
But many warriors are just as likely to blame me as they are to honor me. I played a role in not only Seira-El’s death, but many others that day. Nen-Le kept her thoughts on the matter to herself, and simply shook her head at my decision to downplay my involvement, or my connection with Chuel’s sister. Nen-Le wasn’t close to Siera-El, but there wasn’t a warrior on Necias Prime that didn’t know of her.
“What I was going to say,” Nen-Le regained control of the conversation, narrowing her eyes at me not to interrupt again. “King Sylve lost the duel before he even battled. The Trillume Queen already touched him with her poison, and he decided to step down for the anti-venom without even trying to convince her to submit to the tribe. He worried the anti-venom would not be possible should he kill her, and he placed his duty to duel onto other warriors. He was a warrior for himself, not the tribe. The new command of Necias Prime was due to his fear of death, and not that of other warriors deciding to take another route to save lives.” Her words were markedly pointed at guilt I held for myself.
“This history lesson does us no good.” I grunted, not wishing to be absolved of my role within the whole thing. I may not have been bonded with Siera-El, but I was honored to have been chosen by her, and it was my fault she was not here today. It was also on my shoulders that I did not step up and attempt to duel the queen myself. I had thought I was doing what was best for Necias, but now I wasn’t so sure.
“You feel guilty for Trillume aligning with Necias Prime?” My mate was uncomfortably aware of the nuances of the conversation, following along with a keen mind. It was both pleasant for her to care enough to see the pain I held, but also unsettling that she should be burdened with the knowledge I tried to keep from her.
“Among other things. Like most male warriors, he likes to take credit for things that are not his doing,” Nen-Le mocked, and I made an effort to keep my face neutral to ignore her prods. She was trying to rile me, and if she continued it would work. I had more reasons to be irritated with her besides her blatant attempt at smearing my honor in front of Riley. She was purposefully trying to place a wedge between me and my mate, and I wasn’t going to let that happen so easily.
Riley surprised me when she too ignored Nen-Le’s scorned tone to turn to me, a gentle hand reaching out before she withdrew with a shy smile. She wanted to touch me, but she stopped herself. I could work with that. It showed she could feel the draw of our bond.
The desire was there, I could see it in those beautiful, pity-filled blue eyes of hers. I didn’t like the concern there, because I wished to be seen as reliable, and strong for her, but I could prove my worth to her over time.
“What are you keeping from me?” Riley whispered, knowing there was more to the story than what was being said. My heart ached, and everything in me begged to tell her that this was all my fault that she was even in this mess. If I had been less trusting of King Sylve on Necias Delta Fal, he never would have taken over the ship.
