Page 62

This might not be a great idea.

Vince had been distant the last few days. We’d talked every night, but it had been stilted and his thoughts had obviously been elsewhere. I’d never missed my inner fire more. I needed to know what was bothering him. Perhaps nothing was. He could merely be excited to start the journey back to Earth.

I closed my eyes against the fresh wave of pain.

“Captain?” Commander Bimwoxcol asked in a low voice that would be heard by my ears alone. “Are you well? Perhaps you should visit Doctor Muznim. You’ve been looking rather strained lately.”

That was one way to put it. I’d lost weight between my churning gut and my inability to sleep. It was starting to affect my work. Concentrating was becoming difficult, and out here on the edge of Drakcon space, that was dangerous. I couldn’t in good conscience endanger my crew.

I had two options: pass temporary command to Commander Bimwoxcol, or confess to my parents and superiors who Vince was to me.

The latter presented its own issues. My parents would never allow Vince to leave, at least not without explaining exactly what it meant that he was my mate.

They would present him the information, much like if I’d sought the Crystal and it revealed Vince as mine, then allow him to make a decision.

But Vince would never choose his happiness or safety over my life.

Nevertheless, I had to do something.

“Commander, when are the support ships arriving?” I asked.

Construction on the moon base had begun, but additional ships to patrol the area had been requested.

The Immortal Planet was out of phase for the moment, but the satellite showed anomalous readings consistent with xoi technology as well as some readings consistent with the Crystal.

We couldn’t allow anything else to infect the planet.

When the planet returned to our sensors, we would find a way to extract anything that didn’t belong.

“Ten days.”

My tail flicked in acknowledgment. When they arrived, I was going home. Vince wouldn’t be there when I returned, but I was still going. I could do this no longer. I opened my mouth to say as much, when a light flashed on the main screen.

A sudden flux appeared in the sensors, originating from the planet. It wasn’t supposed to come into phase yet, and it didn’t appear to be doing so. But these readings…

“Take the ship back,” I ordered. We moved further away from the planet, but the wave kept coming. “Full speed.”

It didn’t help. Whatever this wave was, it was moving faster than we were.

“Brace for impact,” I ordered.

A charge went through the ship and raced along our systems. Sparks shot into the air and a fire erupted from one of the consoles. I gripped the arms on my stool and rode it out until the whole ship went dark.

“Report,” I barked.

Bimwoxcol said, “Most of our internal and external sensors are offline, and NAID is not responding.”

“Life support?”

“Operational.”

I allowed myself a moment to collect my thoughts, then began issuing orders. “Form a search team to look for injured crew members, then our first priority needs to be reinitializing NAID.”

“Understood.”

“And someone tell me what that was!” I snarled as I started working on my console.

Vince

“Please,” I asked again.

Seth groaned and chucked another onesie-like baby outfit into a metal container. “No, Vince. Do you know how busy I am? Do you know how much shit babies require, and how much I have to pack up to go on the ship to Earth?”

True. Babies seemed to have a lot of accessories.

Bob was currently with Kal and Fyn, who were walking through the garden; Fyn and Kal needed some time to actually hang out together.

Often they got busy with their mates and lives, but the brothers needed each other.

I thought it was sweet. Besides, Seth allowing Bob outside without him was a huge step.

“I did a tarot reading, and it even helped me decide this,” I said. Finally, I’d been able to do a reading for myself… and it had felt liberating. I was reclaiming parts of myself that I’d thought were lost, and I was no longer afraid of the future.

“I forgot you did that,” Seth commented, glancing at me.

“Want me to do one for you?”

“So it manipulates me into doing what you want?” he asked with a chuckle.

I shrugged.

He sank to the couch beside me, scrubbing a hand through his hair.

“What?” I asked.

“The Council of Seekers doesn’t want me and Kal to take Bob with us. They want us to leave him here.”

“Why?” I couldn’t picture Kal or Seth leaving their kid, who was only a few weeks old alone, for over a year.

“He’s the first hybrid. They don’t know how he’s going to age or if any genetic problems will appear. Dr. Qinlin will be on the Admiral Ven and so will Klars, but that might not be enough. I’m terrified something will happen to Bob, but I can’t leave him. But Earth needs me too.”

I draped an arm over his shoulders. “Bob is fine.”

While I couldn’t promise the future, that kid was happy and active—way more so than a human baby after only a few weeks. The kid was aging like a drakcol so far, which was probably a good thing. Human newborns didn’t do much other than sleep, shit, and cry.

“I’m not going to tell you not to worry. Of course you’re scared, but I think you and Kal are right. He should go with you, and you do need to go, Seth. We have to protect Earth and keep anyone else from getting abducted.”

“Thanks.” He pushed a hand through his hair. “I think I needed to hear that.” He started to pack again. The ship was leaving sooner rather than later. Earth needed to be protected and the Vvekian Authority was sending ships to travel with the Admiral Ven —they would meet part way.

“So,” I started, “can you take me to the Grand Sanctuary?”

He sighed. “Why do I have to take you?”

“I can visit without you, but the Ranks won’t let us humans appeal to the Crystal whenever we want anymore.”

At first, any human could appeal at any time, but a huge population of drakcol complained.

They couldn’t appeal willy nilly—no one could, besides royalty.

The general populace had to wait for one of four days per year when they could be presented to the Crystal.

The Cohort ruled humans would have to do the same as any other citizen.

But if Seth went, as a prince consort and beloved of the Ranks and Cohort alike, they would grant me permission.

It was weird how much people catered to Seth.

He would never take advantage of it, being far too kind, but I was more than happy to.

“So you want to skirt the rules?”

“This shocks you?” I asked, smirking.

“Not really.” He chuckled. “Why do you have to do it now? Why not wait?”

“Kal said he thinks it will help Don calm down if we’re bound.”

“So wait until he comes back,” Seth commented, chucking even more baby crap, including several adorable teddy bears, into a metal crate. Really, how much shit did one kid need? This seemed excessive, but I supposed my nephew deserved anything and everything. He was Seth’s kid after all.

“What if he’s not my mate?”

Holding a blanket to his chest, he asked, “Do you think that’s possible?”

“I don’t know.” I really didn’t, but I had shit-tastic luck. “If he’s not, I want to break the human or drakcol’s heart before he comes home.”

“And if they're not on this planet?”

“Then I’ll tell Don, and I still break the fucker’s heart. As far as I’m concerned, no one but Don will ever touch or see my ass again. He’s it.”

“Not how I would put it,” Seth remarked, blushing.

“It’s how I say it.” It was the truth. Don was it.

He was the only person I would ever want.

I didn’t care if the Crystal chose someone else, I would not accept them.

For the rest of my life, I would have one person, so if I had another soulmate they were fuck out of luck. Don was mine, and I was Don’s.

Seth glanced at me, lips pursed. He had an inordinate need to please people.

I didn’t want to take advantage of it. Seth was far too important for me to use like a common household appliance.

Yet… I needed him to take me. I wouldn’t have access any other way.

Don could seek the Crystal when he returned, but he wouldn’t, because he wouldn’t want to trap me.

My Dontilvynsan was exceedingly self-sacrificing.

No. I had to do this. I had to be the one who chose him.

He shoved a hand through his hair, making the brown strands stick up. “Fine. I will go, even though they’ll want to talk to me.” His face scrunched like he couldn’t think of anything worse. In his defense, I didn’t want to talk to anyone from the Ranks either.

“Thanks.”

With a small smile, he said, “I would do anything for you, Vince.”

I impulsively wrapped my arms around him, not flinching too hard when he returned the hug. I planted a kiss on his cheek with a loud smack before I said, “Thank you. I would do anything for you too.”

We headed out of the palace to the Grand Sanctuary, which was on the grounds.

I’d never been inside the towering glass structure, which almost looked like a church with its steep roof, nor had I seen the Crystal.

When I’d been soul tested after our arrival, along with all of the other new humans except Teddy, who’d plain refused, a priest had merely held a square piece of glowing glass for us to touch.

There had been no need to see the Crystal.

Some of the other humans had gone for curiosity’s sake—it was a giant floating rock—but I hadn’t cared.

Now, I wanted it to link Don and me together forever.