Project: Adapt - Failure: A Space Fantasy Alien Romance (Book 4) Page 8
“Are you sure?” He glanced at Tori. “It can be a deeply personal experience. Sometimes, I can’t control what I see.”
“I understand.” I licked my lips, feeling a spike of adrenaline as my nerves flared. “I need to hear one of my mates tell me they’re okay. Now that I know this is an option, I don’t know how I could go on without trying.”
“All right. We need to sit across from each other and hold hands.” He looked at his clan brothers. “Can you get my prayer mat and place it in the middle of the floor?”
“I can do that,” Luwyn offered. “Auro can finish cleaning off the table.”
The three Swynemi males stood from the couch and went to do their designated tasks. It was odd to see them using their fluttering wings to hover instead of walk around their home.
“Are you sure this is okay with you, Tori?” I whispered, leaning closer to her ear so the others wouldn’t overhear. “I don’t want to come between you and—”
“Selena.” She silenced me, shaking her head. Grabbing my hands, she squeezed them. “When you’ve spent over one hundred and twenty years with your mates, you learn the difference between a mate genuinely wanting to help someone in need and trying to go after someone new. I may have been wild when I was young, but I’ve never been a jealous person. Ever since I was thrust into this reality, I’ve learned that I can’t take tomorrow for granted. I have a comfortable relationship with my mates and know that they love me. Celyze is a Cosmic Soul; he was born to help others. I can’t prevent him from doing what he loves and I can’t change what he is. Instead, I’ve grown to accept and trust him because, at the end of the day, he’s in my bed.”
“That’s how I feel about my mates. Each has his role, and their jobs are important to them. While I sometimes wish I could spend more time with them, I know every evening we will be together as a family.”
“Exactly!” She beamed. “That’s all that matters! Besides, if anyone doubts my relationships with my mates, I can show them my hair.” She pulled her hair out of the updo and finger-combed the strands, allowing them to fan out in display. “Each one of these highlights came from my mates, and they match the streaks in their long white hair—golden for Auro, green for Luwyn, and teal for Celyze.”
“They’re beautiful.”
“Thank you.” She blushed and continued to comb her hair as her attention fell on my arms. “I hope you don’t take offense at this question, but why do your spots change color?”
“My spots?” Raising my arm between us, I glanced down at the worried orange and nervous brown splotches all over my skin. I must have stopped noticing their changes over time, especially while my mind was elsewhere, wondering about my mates. “I’ve always had them, but after I sealed the bond with one of my mates, they began changing colors depending on my mood.”
“Oh!” Her eyes lit with excitement. “Like a mood ring!”
“A mood ring?” I searched her hands and saw no such jewelry. There was nothing in the texts about humans making mood-reading technology. Other than the biological triggers of certain CEG alien species like the Ulax, I didn’t know of any who possessed a device of reading emotions. “What’s that?”
“It was a trinket that we placed around our fingers to determine the wearer’s current mood.” Tori flicked her hair over her shoulder and raised a hand above my forearm with a few fingers extended. Biting her lip, she brought her bright-green eyes to mine. “Can I touch them?”
“If you want.” I shrugged. “But could you tell me how your mood rings worked?”
“Thank you.” Shooting me a smile, she slowly pressed her fingers against my splotches then quickly retracted them. Her brows pinched as curiosity flooded her face. “These are so cool! Do they feel different when I touch them?”
“Not really.” I shrugged again. “They feel like the rest of my skin.”
“Your mood spots are amazing,” she muttered, peering at me as she pulled her hand away. “They’re permanent, and they actually work.”
“What do you mean?”
“We may have called them mood rings, but they were just cheap liquid crystal thermometers designed to read the temperature of the wearer’s skin. The designers claimed certain colors displayed by a thin range of temperatures were linked to emotions. In reality, the rings were no more than a fun novelty. While some of the more expensive versions looked gorgeous, the cheaper ones were basic and didn’t last.”
“Why would anyone want to wear such a thing?”
“We believed unexplainable things.” She shrugged. “But I guess we weren’t far off about astrology since a lot of species follow some belief about the Fates and Stars.”
“I can’t believe you came from Earth.”
“That was quite a long time ago, but yes,” she murmured. The mirth in her eyes dimmed. “Earth is no more and only a few humans are left now.”
“How many?”
She looked toward her mates, who were rearranging the space, and sighed. I wasn’t sure if she sought guidance on how to answer or comfort to ease her trauma, since I knew she had been abducted and may not have trusted me enough yet to answer.
“Only seventy-two humans live on this base and all but seventeen are in Cryopods until we find a permanent location to settle. The less resistance when moving, the better, and we don’t have the resources to feed all of the mouths in stasis at the moment.”
“When do you think you will find a new home? Or craft this base into a suitable long-term settlement?”
She looked over her shoulder. “When Commander Ryzen wakes up.”
“It’s ready,” Celyze announced.
Giving me a reassuring smile, Tori reached out and squeezed my shoulder. “Go talk to one of your mates.”
“Thank you,” I mumbled, rubbing my hands on my knees, hoping to dry my sweaty palms. Praying that the Stars guided me and did not give me false hope, I joined Celyze on the floor. I noted the prayer mat’s silver-speckled, sapphire coloring matched his, and both stuck out against the stone flooring. Sighing, I sat down across from him, ready to attempt speaking to one of my clanmates. “What do I do?”
“Place your hands in mine and look into my eyes.” Nervously, I followed his directions, flinching when his thumbs pressed against the back of my hand. Watching our enclosed hands, I gasped when a tingling sensation coursed through my palms and along my arms.
“It’s okay, Selena. I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Vowels?”
I didn’t care what Celyze claimed; too many people had promised not to harm me and lied. I needed to make sure I was in safe hands. Taking a chance with this clan and allowing them to fly me to their nest had been a gamble. If this were a trap, I wouldn’t have a way to escape. Trusting them would pay off only if Celyze could help me contact one of my mates and Auro offered to fly me off this base.
“He is trying to access your mental shields but failing. If you grant him permission, he may have a better chance at reaching your mates. We don’t know how distant they are. If we are outside the Euph galaxy, then we may be out of their range.”
“Oeta did say that she and her father could only reach people within the galaxy. If we are unable to reach one of my mates, then I worry about how we will be able to make it back in time.”
“Have faith in the Stars, Selena.”
“It’s becoming harder to do so.”
“Even so, you have me here with you, and this clan is willing to help you,” he advised, his voice like a gentle caress along my mental shields. “Do you trust him enough to let him in?”
“You promise to be there if I need you?”
“Always.”
Closing my eyes, I released a deep breath as I tried to calm my nerves. Sacrificing my privacy and allowing Celyze to enter my mental shields was necessary to reach my mates as soon as possible. Though I was uncomfortable with allowing anyone other than my mates—and now, Vowels—into my mind, that was no excuse when my clan’s lives were on the line.
“No, I’m fine,” I muttered, but my voice lacked the confidence I wanted to project. “This needs to be done.”
“I am ready when you are.”
Opening my eyes, I locked my gaze with his.
His ice-blue eyes froze me in place, capturing me in a trance-like state. My body refused to move. He tightened his grip on my hands as the tingling sensation returned, only this time, my veins felt on fire. I tried in vain to pull my gaze away when I caught a flicker of movement in the shimmering sapphire-and-white wings extending behind him. His swirling pupils mesmerized me, growing in intensity until they were too bright for me to handle. My eyelids refused to close; instead, the white glow of his eyes drew me in, dimming the rest of the world.
My senses dulled until I was nothing but a golden sphere stuck inside my void, but the enclosure that was no longer mine to control. An icy blue orb floated amid the blinding white world as if checking the perimeters.
“All is well, Selena.” The sapphire male’s tenor voice vibrated all around. “This took more force than I expected. I am afraid I may not have the energy needed to reach the distances you may need me to.”
“I didn’t mean to resist.”
“Don’t worry,” he comforted. “Your mind is stronger than my StarPyre’s. It is only natural for you to close off your mind, even unconsciously. Your mental shields are the strongest I’ve ever encountered outside of the commanders.”
“There are others stronger than me.”
“That may be true, but you’ve certainly presented a challenge,” he countered. “To proceed, I need to find your mates then use the Stars’ guidance to reach out to them.”
“Can’t you use the golden bond threads connected to my nestmates?”
“Those are yours only to follow. I can’t use a connection that is rooted in your mental shields, especially ones so faint. I fear if I attempt to travel along them, I might somehow damage them. Spiritual bonds are nothing to tamper with, especially as an outsider.”
“Just do what you need to reach my mates—or anyone I know, for that matter.”
“Will do,” Celyze confirmed. “This will get personal.”
“That never stopped Xenak,” I countered. “Though you are the better male by far. I appreciate that you’re being cautious and asking for permission.”
“I hope you don’t think less of me when this is over.”
The white void around me morphed into a million floating images as if a seamless sphere of screened recordings surrounded us. Unease filled me at the familiarity of the displayed clips. Things I didn’t want to see or experience ever again flashed before me, out of my control. The torture. The loneliness I’d had to endure, with nothing but my tablet and dreamscape to provide me an escape. Focusing on each image in turn, I noticed they all showed me at different stages of my life.
Waking up for the first time on a medical bed, strapped down and gasping for air.
Being poked and prodded with injections and nanobots.
Meeting Zirene for the first time in our dreamscape world.
Escaping the Yaarkins’ experimental ship.
Meeting the Circuli.
Defending myself at the Assembly.
Witnessing Zirene’s sire attacking Xylo and Odelm.
The scenes rapidly changed as if Celyze was searching for something or trying to solve a mystery revolving around me. I suspected he was trying to piece together who I was—or perhaps what I was—using all the evidence laid out before us, and the answer stood out, clear as day.
I wasn’t human like Tori. I was something more.
A product of the Yaarkins’ experiments. The prototype of their ultimate breeder, capable of bearing an army engineered with traits of the species they wished to conquer.
A collector of abilities to evolve the Yaarkins with each new generation.
Faces of my mates filled the screens, flying by one by one as if Celyze was searching for someone.
Zirene. Xylo. Odelm.
Z’fir. V’dim.
Mwe. Oeta.
Kaede.
Suddenly, something changed. The screens fell away as the white sphere surrounding us disintegrated into darkness. Instantly, I felt myself spiraling into oblivion beyond my control.
Chapter Eleven
Kaede
An invisible force gripped him and wrapped its mental thread around his shield, demanding its presence be known.
The golden strand wasn’t Oeta’s or her father’s, though its odd sapphire tint reminded him of theirs.
Annoyed, Kaede answered, knowing REI would be able to cut any contact if needed.
“What is it?”
“Kaede?”
His mind was playing tricks on him. There was no way the voice that had haunted him for so long was now speaking to him.
Selena didn’t have the range—nor did her Oetsae.
“Who is this?” he demanded, in no mood to deal with another telepath on this mission. “Speak now or I will forcibly remove you and make sure you never even attempt to reach out to me again.”
“Kaede! It’s me, Selena!”
There was nothing he wanted more than to believe what she claimed, but he had dealt with too many liars and tricksters. He couldn’t blindly trust whoever had reached out to him, especially when he longed to speak to her and bring her home.
“You can’t be Selena.”
The mental thread flared, gold overtaking the sapphire tint.
“This is Euouae, Selena’s Oetsae companion, wishing to confirm our identity with your symbiont,” snapped a male voice he didn’t recognize. “We don’t have the energy or time for you to deny the truth.”
Before he had a chance to absorb what was happening, REI stepped in to handle the situation.
< EUOUAE SPEAKS THE TRUTH. HE’S WITH SELENA AND ONE OTHER. >
< DO YOU KNOW WHO? >
< NEGATIVE. >
“Who has you, Selena? What frax do I have to kill to rescue you?”
The gold faded, returning to its original color.
“Xenak arranged help to kidnap me. He currently has me in some asteroid base and is demanding that I heal his brother like I’m some miracle healer or somehow responsible for his condition. I don’t know what to do, Kaede. I’m scared—and I fear for my clan. If this clan hadn’t taken me in and offered me their help, I would be completely lost.”
Fire coursed through his veins at her plea. He had to control his reply so he didn’t take out his anger at the cyan frax who had started it all on her. The vulnerability in her mental voice triggered his protective instincts.
He needed to get to her now.
“Don’t you worry, Selena. I am coming,” he soothed. “Hold on a little longer and I’ll be there to return you where you belong. Do you happen to know where you are?”
“No idea. There aren’t any windows, and I haven’t been able to roam without an escort.”
“It won’t matter,” REI interjected. “Now that I know her mental signature and the one she’s tethered to, I will be able to find her easily, even without your body’s blood compass.”
“Blood compass?”
“Don’t worry about that, Selena. I will explain another time,” he muttered, not wanting to delve into a matter he wasn’t prepared to discuss at the moment. He was alarmed that she had allowed another inside her mental walls so willingly. Was this another mate? Or someone of concern? He didn’t trust anyone outside her clan and his family. Not after what had happened with the late Sovereign and Q’s crew. “Who’s with you?”
“I am Celyze, a Swynemi Cosmic Soul,” an unfamiliar tenor mental voice explained. His species and title didn’t register with him either, which concerned Kaede. “My StarPyre, Tori, showed interest in aiding Selena in her dire need. If I couldn’t find anyone familiar to Selena, then my
clan brother was willing to try to sneak her off the base.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Kaede hissed. “I will make sure no one even attempts to harm her again—Selena or any other poor soul in the universe. Xenak will pay for what he’s done.”
“You can’t punish the base’s citizens for one of their commander’s actions,” Selena pleaded. “This base is full of refugees looking for a place to call their own. They are innocent in my kidnapping and don’t deserve to be killed for their association with Xenak. Kaede, there are humans here… pure, unaltered humans abducted from Earth before the Yaarkins could touch the planet. You can’t erase what little history we have left in the universe.”
“Humans?” Kaede repeated, dumbfounded. “You must be mistaken.”
“She is not,” Celyze replied. “My mate, Tori, was one of the last humans abducted before the Yaarkins conquered Earth. We have a total of seventy-two humans—pure, unlike Selena—on this base, plus many other refugees.
“Most are Swynemi here, but a variety of other species were abducted from your galaxy and mine, who now reside on this base. Do not punish the rest of us for our leader’s poor judgment. We just want to live in peace.”
“Give me your coordinates and I will spare you and your clan. I can’t make any promises about the others. Their lives mean nothing to me on this mission. If they want to blame someone, then blame your ishing frax of a commander.”
Celyze rattled off the coordinates, along with the location of a hidden hangar on the base. REI filed all the information in her system to share with the crew.
“I’m approximately three days away,” Kaede announced to whoever was listening. “Selena, can you stay out of trouble until I get to you? Once I arrive, I don’t care what you must do to get to me—just do it. As soon as I have you aboard my ship, we are leaving.”
“I believe I can, Kaede, but…” Her mental voice sounded strained. He could almost feel her swirling emotions cascading through their connection. “Have you heard any word from Destima? My mates…”