Her Rebel Alien Warrior (Fated to the Warriors Book 1) Read online

  Of course, I realize. Loretta is like no other woman who has walked on KrysOlak. Why would I expect anything with her to be as expected, even my second growth?

  As I soar higher something calls to me from above. I look to Irisiak and the KrysOlakn moon, now creeping toward the horizon. The many moons of our planet dot the sky and I turn myself toward them.

  Another propulsive force catches my wings and I fly forward. The lucex markings on my arms begin to glow and I grunt with surprise.

  It must be starting, I think. I will blast my charges just as my ancestors did.

  And I will use this gift to destroy the Wehizx and fulfill my promise to my destined.

  I fly higher and pump my wings into the force as I near the edge of the atmosphere. I know that soon I will begin to gasp for air but before I hit that point my lucex surges. It forms a sphere around me, a dim silver glow that travels with my speed.

  I soar past the edge of the atmosphere. I can sense the change, but inside the sphere of lucex energy it as though I am breathing the clean air of the forests down below.

  I continue flying, testing my speed and agility as I look down on my moon. I can see all of it, from one edge to another, and as I spin and look upon the rest of our system, I realize I could go anywhere.

  Another forceful blast teases my wings, glowing from our sun, and several more hum quietly through space and tingle along my wings. The power knocks me into a sideways tumble and it takes a few tries to catch myself and hold steady again.

  These forces have the power to take me many places, but there is only one place I want to go.

  I turn my wings and when I do, I am surprised to catch another force, this one emanating from Irisiak. I use it to dive back down toward KrysOlak. I glide through the first thin atmosphere, spin through a smattering of blue clouds, and find the ancient towers of KrysMond, rising from their cliffs. My lucex bubble flickers away when I no longer need it and I stretch my wings, holding them against the gusting force of the moon to slow myself until I land with a thud in my dwelling.

  Loretta looks to me, her perfect pink lips spread in a gasp. I don’t say anything, I just pull her into my arms and go.

  She yells and giggles against my chest as I flap my wings and take us to the clouds. She’s slipped into the thin dress she wears in the dwelling and I pull my arms tight in case she’s cold in the elevated air.

  “This is beautiful,” she says.

  I hook my leg around hers and spin slowly, showing her the moon’s sprawling landscapes. “It is,” I agree. “One day, I will fly you all across my home and show you every beauty here.”

  Her hand closes around my wrist as she rubs her cheek to the back of my hand. “I can’t wait.”

  “There is more to show you now,” I say. “Are you comfortable? Do you feel secure?”

  “Of course,” she answers. “I’ll go anywhere with you.”

  I chuckle, certain she has no idea what I am about to do, then flap into the air. I find the propulsive force and use it to launch us above the clouds.

  I wonder what it is. Maybe some strange effect of gravity or the magnetospheres of the moons and planets. From the sun, I could imagine bursting plasma or solar winds, although each of these are only guesses.

  Something our researchers will surely love to figure out.

  I continue flapping as I call forth the shield of lucex energy. Loretta gasps and clutches my arm but I can feel that she isn’t scared. Her laughter turns into a yell of delight as I launch us into space.

  “Your lucex,” she says. “It came alive!”

  “It has fully awoken.” I tug my legs up and take her as though she is in my lap. Now that we have escaped the gravity of the moon I float in a slow spin, showing her the busy expanse around Irisiak.

  “What does this mean?” she asks. “My psychic powers. Your wings. I’m used to everything being strange in space, but I get the impression this is weird even for aliens.”

  I chuckle. “Humans are quite strange too, you know.”

  She turns to face me, her hands on my chest. “Trust me, I know.”

  I think for a moment. “These new abilities, they will mean what we make of them. They will mean the fall of the Wehizx, and I hope they will mean the return of our family and the discovery of Earth as well. But that is all up to us and our people.” I stroke my hand through her hair, the stars glittering behind.

  “I believe this means something else, too,” I continue. “I believe this means you could carry my child. And when the KrysOlakn moon next disappears into darkness, I wish to take you to the cliffs and mate with you. I wish to bring a child into the world.”

  Loretta blinks rapidly, her eyelashes fluttering. “UrTak,” she says. “You really think that is possible?”

  “My heart tells me it is. Does yours?”

  She holds my gaze. “It does,” she answers with soft breath, as though saying it to herself for the first time. “Yes, I think we could have a child.”

  “And you will allow me to take you to the cliffs?”

  Loretta lets out a shaky breath and my heart thuds in anticipation of her answer.

  “Yes,” she finally says. “I love you, UrTak, and I will be your mate.”

  I spin and take her into a kiss and Loretta laughs as I hold her against my chest. I soar through the open space for a minute, kissing and holding her body, then dive back to the moon.

  Loretta will bear my child, and she will be a mother like the universe has never known.

  I dive to the surface, throw my wings back to catch the force, and land in my dwelling. The speed of my flight forces me to stumble forward as I gain my footing and Loretta laughs as I catch the ground and place her at my feet.

  “What in the moons?”

  I spin, my hands still around Loretta’s shoulders, and see that Grov is standing there, a glass of twomka dangling loosely in his hand. His wide jaw hangs open as he stares at my wings.

  “Grov,” I say. I extend and flap my wings, feeling the stretch of the muscles one more time, then fold them against my back. “I guess I have some information to share with you.”

  He shakes his head and grunts. “Every damn day. It’s something new with you every damn day.” He throws back the twomka, looks between me and Loretta, then nods.

  “Come on. Tell me about it on the ride. The Alliance has summoned us.”

  The Resistance Stellar Alliance includes sentient life from many star systems, all united through the Grand Parliament in our fight against the Wehizx and the Pohilkans. Because of the great distance between the many star systems, the Grand Parliament meets almost entirely by digital projection and advanced communications technology.

  I’m surprised, then, when I walk into the interstellar communications hub with Loretta by my side and Grov and Mokrov trailing behind. Located outside of the city, the open-air hub sits atop a plateau in the mountainside. A lake stretches toward the horizon beneath us and several large communications projectors hover in the air above, blasting the meeting to the stars.

  But in addition to the flickering screens, there aren’t only KrysOlakns here. Diplomats and military officials from at least ten different star systems have joined in the flesh, all perched around the communications hub in their ornate ceremonial outfits.

  “Damn, UrTak,” Grov growls as he walks by. “You got us in trouble with the whole damn Alliance this time.”

  “We’re in trouble?” Loretta asks.

  I shoot Grov a glare. “Let’s not jump to conclusions.”

  The KrysOlakn member of the Grand Parliament stands, his eyes as wide as the moons as he stares at my wings. I flex them and hold his gaze, and when I do, awe fills his expression.

  I pull Loretta to my side. Whatever this ruling body decides, they can’t take her and our destined connection away from me. The High Council can strip me of my title as a warrior and the Grand Parliament can ridicule me in front of all the stars, but they can’t deny who we are together.

 
; They can’t deny what our joining means.

  “The Grand Parliament is in session,” a Gildenz official announces as he stands. His golden skin catches the light of the KrysOlakn sky as wind whips through the open space of the communications hub. “Live through unity, in fracture we fall.”

  The rest of the Grand Parliament repeats the rallying cry that first brought us all together.

  An Aveliton stands. He stretches his powerful feathered wings as he looks at me, half-smiling, and I extend my wings once in response.

  “This is a time of great change,” the Aveliton announces, his voice echoing in translation through the countless digital projections. “A time we will only begin to understand later. It is also a time when each species in the RSA holds an ancient duty. As such, the Grand Parliament requests honest and forthright answers to several urgent questions from your squad.”

  I turn to my small group and curse the fact that PryZor is not there. As a descendant of our ancient warrior kings, he was always more gifted at this kind of thing than I am.

  “We will answer with honesty and integrity,” I say. “For the sake of the Alliance.”

  A three-dimensional projection of the large Wehizx ship currently stationed at the edge of our border pops into existence above us. “UrTak,” the Aveliton begins. “This is the same ship that our alliance has faced many times, and many times, we have failed to destroy it. Do you believe that this time will be any different?”

  I grit my teeth. I do believe this, but the sheer force of will I feel is not proof that our victory will come. I turn to my squad again, searching for an answer.

  “If I may,” Mokrov says as he steps forward. “We have never taken this ship down, but we came close during the invasion of KrysOlak.”

  “With the defensive strength of the KrysOlakn stellar blades,” the Triovian representative announces. “Powerful machines, but totally incapable of travelling more than a short distance.”

  “In the past, yes,” Mokrov answers, then pulls his communications device out. “But if I may?”

  A new video appears, broadcast out over the stars. In it, KrysOlakn mechanics float through space as they work on the stellar blades. As the video moves in, we see the main controls, salvaged from the old Wehizx ships and now attached to the wide metal fins that edge the massive weapons. The image flickers, zooming in, and the main controls glow bright as the booster engines installed on the arrows burn with a bright blue light, launching the weapons forward.

  “You have mobilized the stellar blades?” the KrysOlakn representative announces with disbelief. All of the other representatives begin to talk quietly into their communications devices, clearly checking in with their home star systems.

  “With recovered Wehizx technology. We believe we have the capacity to mobilize three of them, yes,” Mokrov answers. “They should be ready for deployment in a matter of hours.”

  “And tell us, UrTak,” the Triovian representative announces. “We see Pohilkans circling the region now. You have more experience battling these armies than any other living being in the RSA. Is it your belief that our forces could defeat them while also facing the Wehizx?”

  I swallow and straighten my back. “I believe it is not only possible, but necessary. So long as no other war ships arrive, I am confident we will achieve victory.”

  Loretta strokes my bicep. When I look down, her smile tells me everything I need to know. She believes in me, and that belief calls me to my highest self.

  All the floating projections become active. I see the video of the stellar blades playing in repeat for star systems across the RSA. After a moment of hurried discussion, the Gildenz representative stands again.

  “UrTak, our intelligence has brought new, reliable information. It is our belief that this is the same war ship that we have battled for generations. The Wehizx have used this to crush civilization after civilization. It is their greatest weapon, but its power relies on an energy source they cannot replicate, an alloy of several metals infused with a biological material once harvested from a planet that now lays as a dead husk.”

  “So what,” Grov growls. “You’re saying they only have one of these things?”

  The Gildenz representative stands taller. “The Grand Parliament of the RSA believes that this is a historic and rare opportunity. We have for generations lived as a political body, relying on the militaries of our member species for defense only. But in light of this unprecedented time and the threat at our door, we realize that offense is necessary for our survival.” He turns and stares straight at me. “UrTak, we ask you to lead our forces into this battle. Destroy the Wehizx ship once and for all. It is time for the RSA to name our own warriors, with an oath to defend not a single planet, but all planets.”

  I stand tall, my heart thudding in my chest. “For KrysOlak, for the RSA, for Earth,” I say. “For every species in our galaxy, known and unknown. I swear on the ancestors, my squad will lead us all to victory.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Loretta

  Heavily armed aliens of every imaginable species rush about the spacecraft as we depart from KrysOlak. I stand in the control room with UrTak, Grov, Mokrov, and a small group of warriors whose names I can’t keep straight. In the stars before us I can see Irisiak and its moons as well as the familiar yellow sun, but as I hear the roar of the rockets outside the ship, they all begin to slip into the distance.

  UrTak wears the same uniform as always. The harness across his chest, the heavy black boots, the sheathed knives and high-tech guns—all of it reassures me. I’ve seen him take down monsters and aliens that were many times his size, and I have no doubt he’ll lead us all to victory today as well.

  He turns from the controls and joins me. His brow furrows as he swipes his thumb across my cheek. “Loretta, you give me so much strength, but I have to say, I wish that you were safe in my dwelling.”

  I wrap my arms around his shoulders and press my face to his chest. “My destined,” I answer, “your home will only be safe when the Wehizx ship is destroyed.”

  He grunts, pleased by my answer. I know he would have rather insisted I stay at home, but a stellar blade flanks us on either side and one follows from behind. Once switched on, the main controls continue to generate power without requiring anything of me, but considering I am the only one able to exert any control over the technology, leaving me back on the moon would be too risky.

  “You ready to kick alien ass?” I ask.

  He gives me a confused smile. “I will most likely stab them in the head. The Wehizx posterior is heavily armored by their mollusqia.”

  I laugh, warmed by his sincerity. “It’s an Earth expression. It just means to totally destroy them.”

  “Ah.” He nods and takes me under his arm. “On KrysOlak we say, free their blood.”

  I shudder a little at the image, although I’m not nearly as bothered by the frank violence of the warrior culture as I once was. Considering they only direct it at beings who are harming them, it actually seems preferable, in comparison to the violence I know from Earth.

  We stand in silence for some time, looking out over the stars as they blur by. Now that we are on the move I know the ships won’t be slowing. Other warriors occasionally rush forward, then wait with respect until UrTak addresses them and answers their questions about strategy. The honor they all show him makes me happy, especially after the government of his own moon doubted him.

  I close my eyes and feel the presence of my psychic senses. When I reach out, I can sense UrTak. It’s less like seeing him and more like a very strong memory of the heat of his body flickers into existence. As I trace my psychic awareness over his energy, he tugs me into his arms.

  I sense something, a subtle sadness that I didn’t expect. UrTak’s lucex flickers as he holds me. “Were you in my head?”

  “Sorry,” I say as I step back. “I guess I was. I’ve never done that before.”

  He nods. “I am glad your powers are getting stronger
.”

  “I couldn’t read your thoughts or anything. I just felt…” I look up to him and stare into his eyes and I see it there, too. “Are you sad?”

  He chuckles softly. “I cannot keep anything from you.” He strokes his arm, trailing his fingers across the silver markings. “I am so proud to have the gifts that our second growth has brought to me, but a part of me will always be sad that my charge did not rise. I hope you do not think this means that I am disappointed. It is simply that a part of our species that once was, a part of me, will never be again.”

  I lift my hand and press it to his chest and he takes my wrist and hold it there. “I understand,” I say, my voice shaky. The words come out fast as I truly admit my feelings to myself for the first time. “Being with you, it means that if we do find Earth, I’ll have to choose. I’ll have to leave a part of myself behind to be with you. My heart hurts whenever I remember that. It’s so sad I can’t handle it.”

  He presses my hand against his chest and I feel the beat of his heart, fast and strong.

  “But the truth is, UrTak, I couldn’t leave you because I love you,” I say. His eyes grow wider and he stares me. My heart jumps to tell him. “I don’t know what that means on KrysOlak, but on Earth, it means everything.”

  “Loretta,” UrTak growls my name. “Love is the force that holds our moon together. It is the strongest force. The stars offer endless mysteries, but the love we share for our fellow KrysOlakns, for our moon, and for all the galaxy, that is what makes us strong.” A low rumble sounds from his chest, like a purr against my hand, and he nods. “And as I will swear again, I love you too, Loretta.”

  I lean up and UrTak presses his lips against mine. I’m so glad to have told him this truth before the battle. We kiss long and deep, and when our lips part, another presence pings against my awareness.