Page 22

XYREK

Rottvan was very different from what I had imagined. When I heard about the new colonization project, I expected some remote, desolate planet. Well, it was remote but not even remotely desolate—no pun intended.

The landscape before me was unlike anything I had ever seen. Nestled among winding rivers and towering rock formations, the settlement looked like it had grown organically from the land itself rather than being built. The structures were rounded, smooth, and gleamed with a metallic sheen, yet somehow, they didn’t clash with their surroundings—they blended, reflecting the golden light of the setting sun in a way that made them look almost alive.

Circular and unevenly placed windows glowed warmly from within, casting light across the water’s surface. The domed dwellings stretched across the valley, each connected by thin, winding, soft earth and vegetation paths.

It was… peaceful—a stark contrast to the worlds I was used to.

No towering metal cities, oppressive neon lights, stale recycled air, or bustling of many feet. Just water, rock, and golden-hued homes that pulsed with life.

It was strangely idyllic… a word I would have never thought to use. A small pain pierced my heart because it reminded me of… something… home? It didn't resemble the town in my dreams at all, and yet it did. Not in the looks but in the atmosphere of it. Idyllic. Again, that word.

I disembarked my ship and was welcomed by eight Imperial Forces soldiers pointing their blasters at me. Forming behind them was a small but growing group of spectators.

"State your business," one of the soldiers demanded.

"I'm looking for someone," I declared.

"Not here, Space Guardian. There are no criminals here." The same Pandraxian informed me.

"I don't want any trouble." I narrowed my eyes at him since he seemed to be the leader.

"Then be on your way." He snarled.

My hackles rose. I could have disarmed and dispatched him and his ten soldiers in less than a few ticks. The only reason he was still breathing was because he was a member of the Imperial Forces, and I was reluctant to start a war. But if he knew what was healthy for him, he would get the frygg out of my way.

"You have no jurisdiction here," he continued, oblivious to the danger he was in.

"I'm not here on business. I'm looking for a human female, Alice," I pointed out.

"Take it up with Lord Protector Garth," he recommended, stretching my already thin patience to the breaking point.

I was about to show him how easily I could break his neck when I heard a voice. Her voice. "Xyrek?"

And there she was. Looking even more beautiful than I remembered. The last rays of the sun highlighted her blonde curls, dazzling me. She wore one of the old-school Pandraxian preferred dresses, and damn, she looked hot. The material flowed around her as she walked by the Imperial Forces without giving them so much as a glance.

I did, though. "Lower your frygging blasters," I snarled, not liking how Alice walked right into their line of sight. "Before I take them from you."

"What are you doing here?" Alice asked; her green eyes sparkled, and a smile tugged around the corners of her lips.

I pushed her behind me to shield her body. "Now!" I yelled at the soldiers.

"You have no rights here. Lady Alice, please come over here."

That was it. With a snarl, I jumped forward. I heard Alice call out my name in fright but didn't allow it to distract me. Within ticks, I had all eight males disarmed and on the ground. Two had broken arms, and one had a broken leg. All of them glared at the blaster I was pointing at them.

Alice rushed forward and grabbed my arm. "Xyrek, what the hell are you doing?"

"They wouldn't let me come visit you." I shrugged as if this was the most normal thing in the universe.

Shouts rang out as more Imperial Forces ran forward, blasters drawn. But they hesitated to shoot, probably because I was holding a blaster at their friends and because I was a Space Guardian. One didn't simply shoot at a Space Guardian.

"What is the meaning of this?" An older officer walked forward toward me. Once again, I pushed Alice behind me.

"These males of yours demanded I leave before they even asked what business I had here," I explained. He seemed like a reasonable male.

"So you broke my soldiers' bones?" He asked, exasperated.

I shrugged, "They're alive."

Amusement tugged at the older male's lips. "Take them away." He jerked his chin from the newly arrived soldiers to the ones on the ground. "What business do you have here, Space Guardian?"

"I came to talk to her," I pulled Alice from behind me. Her smile had died. Instead, her eyes shot daggers at me now.

"Talk to me? This doesn’t look like talking," she indicated to the injured soldiers.

"They started it," I said. "You saw."

"Lady Alice, do you know this male? Do you wish to speak to him?" The Pandraxian asked, changing my opinion about him being a rational male. Nobody would stop me from talking to her.

"Yes, it's alright, Commander." Alice nodded at him.

"I don't want any trouble here," the Commander told me. "But I will not allow a member of our colony to be mistreated."

"He won't harm me," Alice told him, raising my ire anew. What was it between the two of them?

"Alice?" another woman called.

"I'm alright, Daisy. No worries," Alice yelled back with typical exasperation, telling me the other woman had attached herself to my mate without her being too happy about it. I nearly laughed at how similar we were.

"Come," I took her elbow and led her up the gangway into my ship, away from the other people's prying eyes.

Without speaking, we made our way to the breakroom, where we both sat down.

"Wow," Alice remarked, looking around, "I had no idea this room could be this peaceful."

"It was nice having it back to myself," I agreed.

"So why are you here?" She came straight to the point.

Because I missed you . "Because… it was getting too lonely."

She tilted her head, not fully believing me. "You could have bought a pet if you were lonely."

I don't want a pet. I want you . “I could use an experienced engineer."

She folded her arms across her chest. "Hmm?"

I let out a slow breath, watching her. The way she refused to meet my gaze directly, the way she braced herself as if expecting another fight, or… it could be defensive. Did I dare hope that she didn’t want me to know how much she had missed me too?

I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the table, closing some of the distance between us. "Come with me to Darlam."

She blinked, taken aback. I hadn’t expected her to agree immediately, and the fact that she didn’t shut me down instantly meant I had a chance.

"Darlam?" Her brow furrowed, that engineer’s mind of hers already working, trying to piece together why I would want her there. "What is Darlam, and why?"

Because I need you with me . "Like I said, I could use your talents."

She studied me, arms still crossed. "I'm calling bullshit. You have repair drones for that."

I closed my eyes for a moment. Drew in a breath. Let it out slowly, like it might hold back the part of me that had been unraveling since I left her on Astrionis.

“I don’t want drones,” I said. “I want you .”

Her brow lifted. Still skeptical.

“I left you there because I thought it was the right thing to do,” I said, voice low. “Because I thought I was protecting you. Giving you space. Letting you have the life you deserved.”

I looked away because her eyes made the words harder and because I felt like she was seeing straight through me, through the lies. The truth was, I left her because I hadn't known any better.

“But I couldn’t move on. I haven’t slept. I haven’t... felt right. My routines are off. The bridge is too quiet. I tried to convince myself it was just logistics, or guilt, or habit.” I met her eyes again. “But it’s you. It’s always you. You’re the variable I can’t control. And I don’t want to.”

She still wasn't convinced.

“You make me feel things I’ve never let myself feel before. Irritation. Curiosity. Peace. Chaos. Desire. And... care—real, inconvenient, impossible care. I didn't know how much I’d changed until you weren’t there to argue with me. The drones didn’t stop glitching, and you know what? It's boring when they work like they're supposed to.”

Still nothing. Her silence was merciless. I thought that last bit was funny. Obviously, she didn't.

With a deep sigh, I laid my soul bare for her, “I need you on Darlam because I’m better when you’re with me. Not just as an engineer. As a person. I want you to be there when we discover what these mating marks are all about. I know I don’t deserve to ask, but I am. I’m asking.”

Alice, being Alice, drew her brows together. "That’s a lot of words for I missed you ."

I huffed a quiet laugh, shaking my head. She wasn’t wrong, but I would be damned before I admitted that. "I’m not asking you to stay with me forever, Alice. Just to come with me to Darlam. Help me figure out what’s really going on. Why we’ve got these mating marks."

She moved the chair back and stood. "I need a really good reason to come with you, something more than I need an engin?—"

That was as far as my self-control lasted. She was so frygging close. Those damn kissable lips of hers were calling to me, tempting me. I jumped up so fast that the chair I had been sitting on toppled over with a loud bang, but I didn't care. I reached my arm out, clasped her back, and pulled her against my chest. Her fingers threaded into the top of my uniform, her eyes widened, her pupils dilated with desire, her lips parted, and I slammed mine down on hers.

She tugged on my shirt and balled the material into her fists while our tongues dueled, and my cock turned so hard I worried I would come right there.