Page 19 of Hunted By Khor (Alien Mate Hunt #1)

T hey enter together. All four. No strategy, no coordination, just arrogance. They think numbers alone make them unstoppable. Think a human female will cower and submit faced with four hunters.

Vek leads, his green scales dull with exhaustion and poor feeding.

Days of watching and waiting have worn him down, but his desperation makes him dangerous.

Behind him, the yellow-scaled one from the volcanic fields, fully healed but wary.

His eyes dart around the den, looking for traps.

Two others I recognize from glimpses: one brown with copper undertones, one blue-green like deep water.

Vek stops just inside the entrance, nostrils flaring as he takes in the den's scents. “No screaming.” His tail sweeps the ground, aggressive display. “No calling for your hunter.” He steps closer, claws clicking on stone. “He cannot hear you.”

I shift my weight, hand drifting toward my left pocket. “Wasn't planning on screaming.”

They spread out, trying to surround me. The den is large enough for it, carved from natural cave systems Khor expanded over years. Multiple chambers, but only one exit. They're between me and it now.

The brown one edges along the left wall, his movements jerky with nerves. “Four of us.” His voice cracks slightly. Young. Maybe his first hunt. He keeps glancing at the others for reassurance. “You cannot fight us all.”

I back toward the rear wall, letting them think they're herding me. My fingers brush against the wrapped spines in my pocket. “Don't need to fight you all.” I count their positions, calculate distances. “Just need to survive until Khor returns.”

Vek laughs, the sound harsh in the enclosed space.

He's moving closer, each step deliberate.

“He won't return in time.” His breeding cock is starting to emerge, responding to my scent.

“Checkpoint is full day journey.” Another step.

His pupils are dilating. “Even running, he cannot make it back before we've claimed you.”

The yellow one laughs, the sound like grinding glass.

He's rubbing his wrists together, a nervous habit that makes his scales rasp.

“We'll take turns.” He licks his lips, forked tongue tasting the air.

“See who can make you respond best.” His weight shifts from foot to foot. “Body will choose its favorite.”

My hand finds my left pocket. The paralytic spines are wrapped in cloth, arranged so I can grab them safely by the base. Three spines. Four hunters. Need to be smart about this. I pull the first spine free, keeping it hidden behind my thigh.

Vek's spines partially extend, aggression display. “You could make this easy.” He gestures to the furs behind me. “Submit now.” His tail coils and uncoils. “We'll be gentle.”

I adjust my grip on the spine. “Like you were gentle when you marked our territory with your piss?”

His scales flush darker. Anger. Good. Angry makes mistakes. His claws extend fully, clicking against each other.

He tilts his head, that alien movement that usually means calculation. But now it's just rage. “That was challenge.” His muscles coil, preparing to move. “This is claiming.” He bares his teeth. “Different things.”

I shift my stance, ready. “This is neither.” The blue-green one is closest, edging around to my left. He thinks he's being subtle. He's not. His breathing has gotten heavy, and he keeps wiping his palms on his thighs.

Vek raises his hand, claws spread. “Grab her.”

They move at once.

The blue-green reaches me first. I let him grab my arm, let him think he's won. His grip is strong but shaking slightly. Then I drive the paralytic spine into his shoulder. Deep, through scales into muscle. The spine snaps off at the base, staying embedded.

His eyes widen in shock before the paralysis hits. His grip loosens, arm dropping. “What...” His left side goes dead instantly. He staggers, tries to compensate, but his balance is gone. His left leg buckles. He hits the den wall and slides down, left arm and leg useless.

The brown one jumps back, nearly tripping over his own tail. “She has weapons!” He's pressed against the far wall now, eyes wild. “You didn't say she'd have weapons!”

Vek snarls, the sound echoing off stone. “She's human.” He's crouched now, reassessing. “What weapons could she have?”

The yellow one is smarter. He's watching my hands now, tracking my movements. Sees me reach for my right pocket. He starts to dodge, turning his head away. Most of the crystals miss, but some catch his face. The impact is wet, immediate.

He hisses, pawing at his eyes as they start to burn. Tears stream down his face, mixing with the sulfur residue. “Bitch!” He's stumbling backward, clawing at his face. “Violent bitch!”

Two down, sort of. Two still fully functional.

The brown one is terrified now. This wasn't what he signed up for. His scales have gone pale, fear response. He backs toward the entrance, tail between his legs. His hands are up, placating.

Vek's voice cracks like a whip. “Where are you going?”

The brown one keeps backing away, shaking his head. “This is wrong.” His voice is high, panicked. “She's fighting.” He gestures wildly at the blue-green still struggling to move. “Females aren't supposed to fight like this.”

“Get back here!” Vek lunges toward him, but the brown one is already running. Gone. Can't blame him. Smart choice, actually.

Now it's just Vek and the partially blinded yellow one. Better odds, but Vek is desperate. Desperate makes him dangerous.

I back against the wall, hand going to my waist. “Just you and me now.” The obsidian blade's handle is warm from my body heat. “Still want to try?”

He charges.

No finesse, just rage and weight. He hits me hard enough to drive the air from my lungs, slams me into the wall. The impact makes my vision spark. His hands pin my wrists, claws digging in enough to draw blood. I feel the warm trickle down my arms.

His face is inches from mine. “Should have taken bond from Khor when you had chance.” His breath is hot, sour with the scent of rotted fruit. Saliva drips from his exposed teeth. “Now you'll take mine.”

I try to pull away but he presses closer, his weight crushing. “Bond requires consent.”

His grip tightens, and I feel bones grind. “Body gives consent.” He inhales deeply at my neck. “Can smell how ready you are.” His breeding cock presses against my stomach through my torn clothes. “Tonic makes you need breeding.” His hips push forward. “Any male's breeding.”

He's not wrong. Even now, terrified and furious, my body responds to his proximity. The tonic doesn't care about my preferences. It just recognizes compatible male and floods me with need. My body trembles, and I hate that he can feel it.

But need isn't consent. And I still have weapons.

The obsidian blade is at my waist. I can't reach it with my hands pinned, but I don't need to. I bring my knee up hard between his legs. Even alien anatomy has sensitive spots.

He doubles over, gasping. His grip loosens, hands going to cup himself. A keening sound escapes his throat. I grab the obsidian, slash across his chest. Not deep enough to kill, but enough to make him stagger back. The blade parts scales like they're paper.

Green blood wells from the cut. He stares at it, one hand pressed to the wound, blood seeping between his fingers. His expression shifts from rage to disbelief. “You cut me.” His voice is small, confused. “You actually cut me.”

I hold the blade steady despite my shaking hands. “I'll do worse if you don't leave.”

The yellow one has recovered enough to see, tears streaming from burned eyes. He looks at Vek's blood, at the blue-green still paralyzed against the wall, at me holding a blade that gleams like frozen night. His hands are still pressed to his face, but I can see him calculating through the pain.

He takes a step back. “This isn't worth it.” His voice is rough from screaming. “She's insane.”

Vek presses harder against his wound, blood flowing faster. “She's one female!” The words come out wet, pained. “We can still...”

I pull out the secretion vial. Hold it where they can see it. The crystal catches the light, throwing rainbow patterns on the walls.

Both their faces change. They know what this is. What it does. The yellow one's pupils dilate just from seeing it.

Vek's hand drops from his chest, blood forgotten. “You wouldn't.” His voice has gone high, afraid. “That's worth more than...”

I uncap the vial. The scent hits immediately, musky and wrong. Both males' pupils dilate slightly just from proximity. Their breathing changes, becomes faster. I tilt the vial slightly, threatening.

The yellow one is already backing away, hands out in surrender. “I'm leaving.” He stumbles toward the entrance, bouncing off walls. “This is madness.”

But Vek doesn't move. Won't give up. Can't. He's invested too much in this plan. His whole body is tense, ready to lunge.

“You won't throw it.” He takes a step closer despite the blood running down his chest. “You're bluffing.”

The blue-green is trying to crawl toward the entrance, paralyzed side dragging. He's almost at the opening when Vek moves toward me again, desperate and reckless. His claws are fully extended, scales flushed dark with rage and arousal.

I throw the vial.

Not at Vek directly. At the space between him and the blue-green. The crystal shatters against the stone floor, exploding in a cloud of glittering dust that engulfs them both. The sound is sharp, final.

The effect is instantaneous.

Both males' pupils blow completely black.

Their breathing becomes ragged gasps, chests heaving.

Both cocks emerge violently, fully engorged in seconds.

The transformation is horrible to watch.

They're not themselves anymore, just biology driven to its extreme.

The mating frenzy hits like a physical force, overriding everything else.

They turn toward each other.