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  “You were so frightened of us—of Calix, who is one of the kindest of our faction—that you made a rash decision with the other little alien Emery. You were afraid of me.”

  The last bit he spits out like food that doesn’t quite taste right. His words shame me and my gaze drops to the emblems in alien language I can’t quite read.

  “I’ve done my best to understand your ways. To make you as comfortable in our world as I can,” he continues, then lifts my chin with a finger, “but if it’s not enough, mortania, if you are still afraid, I won’t keep you prisoner.”

  I pull out the first words my throat will allow me to say, “What about the other girls?”

  “We’ll figure out a way and they will all go home, if that’s what you think is best.”

  The tears dry up and despite whatever mechanism there is in the suit that allows me to breathe, I’m having trouble drawing in oxygen. “But that would mean—that would mean your people…Breccan you wouldn’t survive.”

  At this he brings my gaze back to his. “I want you to understand that your well-being means as much to me as my own morts. We’re one now and your aliens are just as much a part of our faction as any other member. If going home is in their best interest, I will facilitate it.”

  “You can’t do that.” I think back to my conversation with Avrell. “Breccan you’d die. You’d all die.” I press a hand to my stomach. What would happen to our child?

  “I used to think so,” he admits. “But you taught me different.”

  “Me?” I say incredulously.

  “Who else? You taught me strength when I thought I had none left. You taught me to care again when I wanted nothing more than to let myself burn up with this planet. For that I owe you the world. I owe you whatever life you want for yourself, for those aliens in cryo.”

  “I don’t know what to say,” I tell him. “After the way I treated you, the things I did, why would you even want me to stay?”

  “I’ll always want you, Aria. Always. I want you to be my mate, my wife as you say. I want you to take my name in truth and lead by my side—for both morts and aliens. But only if that’s what you want as well.”

  I don’t have to think about it. My throat closes and I choke out, “Breccan. I want you. I want us.”

  He rests his mask against mine, his eyes glued to mine. His forked tongue flicks out like he wants to lick away the salt of my tears if the masks weren’t in the way. “You are more important than my own life. Than anything. No solar is worth living without you in it. You are more addicting than any sun, and without you, my world is dark. Come on. We’ve been out here far too long.”

  We walk back inside where he takes me through a rigorous cleansing in the decontamination bay. It’s a reminder of how toxic their world is out there and how safe it is inside. Once we’re clean and our zu-gear has long been removed, he pins me against a wall, his strong hips against mine. His fingers twist in my hair as he regards me with a pained expression.

  “Please come back to me, my Aria,” he murmurs, “and light up my life again.”

  15

  Breccan

  Back in the facility, her scent overwhelms me. Heady and seductive. She practically drips with something I am desperate to taste. Avrell explained to me that the female hormones and secretions were more potent once successful implantation has occurred. He told me that it’s supposed to increase each solar as she grows to accommodate our mortling. If she smells this good already, I can’t even begin to imagine how she’ll smell many solars from now.

  “Breccan,” Aria murmurs, her nose turning pink. “I’m nervous.”

  Now that she’s in my grip again, I’m afraid to let her go. I want to clutch on to her forever. And I will hold her until she pushes me away. I’ll always hold her. “Why, mortania?”

  She smiles, not wide enough to show her useless teeth, but enough to let me know she’s missed my compliments. “What if I’m not a good mom to our baby? I made so many mistakes. I don’t want to make anymore.”

  I furrow my brows as I pluck words out and try to place the meanings—words she’s used in the past. Mom means mother. Baby means mortling. “You will be the best mother. Look how fiercely protective you are over the awoken one.”

  I’m worried about the awoken one because there are nine other morts who’d love to have their chance at claiming a mate. I am not sure how long I can keep them in line before their baser instincts take over. Mine certainly did with Aria, and once that happens, there’s no stopping it. Consequences mean nothing when the possibility of having a mate filling your lonely world is within reach.

  Her shoulders, which were slouched forward, go back and she bravely lifts her chin, revealing to me her strength. The alien females don’t have sub-bones or ears that move. They don’t even growl. Their signs of strength are different. A raising of the chin. A flaming in their eyes. A flare of their nostrils. My alien is always displaying how brave and strong she is. This is exactly why she is best suited for the position I have created for her.

  “We will have a ceremony. One where you will be officially named Madam Commander and Alien Liaison.”

  She wraps her arms around my body and presses her breasts against my chest. Her body heat penetrates through our minnasuits. The suit Calix designed for her speaks to carnal parts of me. I want to puncture the material with my claw and tear through it until her swollen breasts have escaped their captivity.

  “Breccan,” Aria says sharply. “You’re growling.”

  I blink away my daze. “You just…”

  “Smell freaking amazing?” she offers, her lips quirking up on one side.

  “Precisely. Avrell explained that during implantation, your scent would become…”

  “How does that explain you smelling better, then?” she asks in confusion.

  “I don’t know, but I need you to come back home. With me. Please, Aria.” I cradle her delicate face with my massive hands. She’s so tiny and fragile, yet she is unbreakable. It’s a madness for my mind to compute. A paradox. “I need my mate.” In ways that I can’t explain right now.

  She gives me a slight nod and before she can suck in her next breath, I have her scooped in my arms as I stride from the sub-faction. She struggles from my grasp as we pass the other female’s quarters. Not wanting to harm her or our mortling, I release her to her feet.

  “What is it?”

  “I promised Emery I wouldn’t leave her alone.” She glances over her shoulder at the door. “Give me a second to check on her. I don’t want to abandon her on her first few days. I’ve already messed up so many things, I don’t want to break my promise, too.”

  As much as I want to drag her back into my arms, pride glows in my chest. Pride for my mate. I nod to her and she flashes a brilliant smile. My mate is pleased.

  She turns and enters the room with me close behind. As I go to enter, she waves a hand and widens her eyes, motioning for me to stay. I bare my teeth at her in jest, but stay out of sight of the other alien.

  “How is she?” I hear her ask Avrell, who has been by each day to run his tests and take his samples.

  “Her breathing is still labored, but she’s in good spirits,” Avrell replies. “She’s resting now as I gave her a dose of the microbots in an attempt to heal whatever ails her lungs.”

  “How long will it take?” Aria asks.

  “We’ll know soon if they are effective, but she’s been weak so she may rest for some time yet.”

  At that, I peer around the corner and catch Aria’s eyes with mine. Her cheeks flush with color.

  “Will you call if there are any changes?” she asks. Her feet inch toward me and my cock hardens. So close.

  “Of course,” he says. I ignore the playful humor in his voice.

  She speeds into my arms like a shot from a zonnoblaster and I lift her and turn. The doors all flash by as I practically run toward our chambers.

  Our chambers. She may have moved her things but she never left, for she l
ives inside my heart. Always there with me no matter what. When I carry her over the threshold, she lets out a giggle.

  “Where I come from, when the husband carries his wife into their home, they are officially married and ready to start their life,” she says, her fingers stroking through my long black hair.

  “We are officially everything,” I tell her. “And we’ve already started. Here, we belong to each other the moment we mutually claim it as so. You’ve been mine for a while now, Aria.”

  She grins at me as I set her on her feet. With sure movements, she unfastens her suit. The moment her breasts are free, she lets out a sigh of relief. I think we need to work on some new clothes. Those are a snug fit and with all the growing I’ll soon do, I’ll need something I can breathe in.”

  I peel away my own minnasuit, my eyes never leaving her naked flesh. I cannot see any swells indicating my baby, but Avrell assures me it lives inside of her. I’m eager to watch her grow as her body accommodates the mortling.

  “You’re growling again,” she says, her brown eyes darkening with hunger.

  “I see something I would love to taste,” I rumble. My cock is hard and aching. As I step forward, toward my mate, my heavy erection bobs with my movement.

  Her eyes travel down and then she bites on her bottom lip. Someone else is hungry too, it would seem.

  “I want to lick inside every part of your mouth,” I murmur.

  She snorts. “That shouldn’t sound so romantic but I know what your licking leads to…” Her gaze finds mine and fire blazes within it.

  My hands find her hips and I haul her to me. A twitch of my cock between us alerts her to my eagerness to mate.

  “Make love to me,” she murmurs, her fingers sliding up my chest. She stands on her toes and offers her sweet mouth to me.

  I tangle my clawed fingers in her glossy hair and angle her nog so that I may have the best access to her pouty lips. She parts her pink, plump lips. Another growl escapes me as my mouth captures hers. The moment my forked tongue dives into her, I’m blissed out. She intoxicates me like the UV rays I’d become addicted to but she doesn’t harm me. No, my little alien nourishes me. She fills voids that were hollow for so long. She brings life to parts I had long thought dead.

  My tongue slides along her dulled teeth and dances with her short stubby tongue. Her eagerness matches my own. Each of us so desperately needs the other. Between us, my cock seeps at the crown, my seed useless now that she is with child. But I still crave to fill her up with it. I love watching the milky essence leak out of her red, swollen cunt after we’ve mated. It’s fascinating and fulfilling.

  “I need you right now, Brec,” she whimpers. “Right now.”

  I grab a handful of her round rump with one hand and lift her. She wraps her legs around my waist as she all but climbs me. Her fingers latch around the back of my neck, her lips never breaking from mine. With my free hand, I rub the crown of my dripping cock against her soaked center. She cries out, the sound unlike any I’ve ever heard. So filled with need and longing.

  I walk with her to the nearest wall and press her back against it. Slowly, I push into her tight heat, relishing the way she throws her nog back, breaks our kiss, and bellows my name. With a growl, I slam into her. Pleasure explodes around me. Having her seated on my cock is the best feeling in this dead and broken world. She brings life to this planet. She brings life to me.

  A sharp metallic scent fills the air, and it’s then I realize my claws have punctured her fleshy bottom. Panic ripples through me but she finds her orgasm with an intense shudder. Her cunt grips my cock so hard, I forget about everything aside from claiming my female. My seed spills from me, hot and violent, as I thrust wildly into her. I can sense the toxica rendering her useless because she relaxes completely in my arms.

  “Brecccaaannnn,” she whispers, drawing out my name.

  “I have you, little alien. You’re protected. I will not hurt you.” I cringe knowing I’ve drawn her blood, but I don’t speak of these things since she seems satisfied.

  Carrying her over to our bed, I make sure to lick and suck on her tongue along the way. She lets out a pleased groan when I sit on the bed and then pull her against me as I lie down. I’ve learned she prefers to be the one on top after our lovemaking moments, as she calls them.

  “My heart aches for you nonstop, mortania,” I tell her, my voice low and full of emotion for this female. “Nonstop.”

  A tear leaks from the corner of her eyes and I crave to lick it. Perhaps later.

  “Love,” she croaks.

  I stroke her hair. “Love?”

  “That is love,” she murmurs. I can feel her tiny palm that’s splayed on my chest begin to lift.

  “This is love,” I agree, sliding my hand beneath hers.

  She curls her dainty fingers between mine and sighs. “Mine. You’re mine.”

  I inhale her scent, which is no longer so potent, and I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that we’ve finally given in to what we’ve been fighting the past few solars. “Yours,” I agree. “You’re mine too.”

  “Always.”

  * * *

  I stand at the podium with Draven to my left and Aria to my right. As lieutenant commander, it’s Draven’s duty to assist in the ceremonies when we promote our morts to positions they are best suited for. This is something that didn’t come from any manuals that existed before us or stories passed down from our parents. This is something I created to improve morale among my morts. It gives them a sense of purpose and pride. In our decimated world, we need all the help we can get, finding something to look forward to each solar.

  Scanning the command center, I’m pleased to see the members of our faction dressed in their fanciest attire. Minnasuits adorned with precious stones pulled from the depths of the underground wells, and zuta-metals stamped and molded by Oz. Beautiful, shiny pieces sewn onto the suits to make them more attractive. The only one we’re missing is Hadrian, and another thump of pride thunders in my chest. He is no longer an apprentice. For now, he will serve as Madam Commander’s Hand. His strength and knowledge of this world will be useful to her as she makes decisions regarding her people. It is a great honor for him, and soon we will have a ceremony naming him as well.

  Calix is broody this solar but he sits up straight and alert. He is the most immaculate, of course, with not a stray fiber on his clothing. His zuta-metals are the shiniest and I know his rocks are the cleanest. I’m glad to see him more like his usual self. For a few solars, I’d been worried we’d have to lock him up in a reform cell until he could get a handle on his abrupt insanity over the awoken one.

  Quickly, I scan my morts, giving them all nods of respect, ending with Draven. Then, I flash Aria an encouraging smile and try not to let my gaze linger too long on her swollen breasts that nearly spill from the top of her suit.

  “Our planet, Mortuus, is lost and dying. A desolate place where a few lone survivors dwell. We had lost hope. Our future was bleak. Longevity was a luxury we couldn’t afford. The most we could hope for was survival. We’d all but given up,” I say, my voice hoarse and husky.

  I reach for Aria’s hand and she gifts it to me, her fingers linking with mine in a display of unity. “But our future has been restored. A seed planted and hope delivered to us like a savory treat. We are no longer lonely. We are no longer without prospect. Aria Aloisius, my mate and wife, has come to us bearing contributions to our world that only she and her people can offer. It will not come without struggle. It will not come without consequence. But, together,” I squeeze her hand, “together, we can once again grow and inhabit this lonely planet. We can rebuild our people and have families.”

  I face my men and crack the sub-bones in my neck. My ears flatten and a growl rumbles through me. They all bow their nogs in submission, including my sweet alien. It prides me to know they trust in my leadership. I will never let them down.

  “I am Breccan Aloisius, the forgotten commander. My people will
have the future they deserve. I’ll make sure of it. But it will not be at the expense of the aliens. With Aria Aloisius’s help, we will create an atmosphere where morts and the aliens can coexist. Reproduction and societal growth will always be of extreme importance. However, it won’t rank over true relationships. The aliens are to be respected, and all morts will honor Madam Commander’s laws regarding the females. When it comes to breeding, it will be by their choice and timeline. They’ll be educated on the importance, but never coerced. All implantation of aliens in cryosleep will cease, for they cannot make their own decisions in that state. They will not be forced into anything they do not want to do, for we are not Kevins.”

  While the other morts exchange confused glances, Aria lets out a small snort. “No, you’re not.”

  “On this solar, let it be known that Aria Aloisius is hereby deemed Madam Commander and Alien Liaison. Where it regards the aliens, she makes all decisions. I will be her council and together we’ll make this work. All those in favor,” I bark, my eyes darting to each one.

  “Aye,” they all bark back at once, a unified front.

  “All those not in favor?” I ask. The silence warms me. “Very well.”

  Draven’s deep, rumbly voice delivers the final decree. “Our faction of this facility, the only living morts on Mortuus, deem Aria Aloisius as Madam Commander and Alien Liaison. It is done.”

  And it is.

  As everyone begins to stand, the ceremony over, Aria holds up a hand.

  “Please,” she says firmly. “Stay seated for a moment.” Her eyes dart my way and happiness dances in her brown-eyed gaze. “We humans have our own ceremony. Between two married people. Oz?”

  Oz, grinning like a rogstud eager to rut, stands and pulls something from the pocket of his minnasuit. He hands it to Aria.

  “Thank you.” She nods, dismissing him. Once he’s seated, she turns to me. “Breccan, when I woke up that day, I was terrified. All these big scary guys staring at me as if I were their only hope. Not only was it intimidating, it was overwhelming. The responsibility that came with your hope was so intense. Me, one woman, was to help pave a way for your people. I was frightened and unsure, but as time passed and I fell in love with you, life began to feel right here.