Zhadra Read online

  She gulped. No frigging' way. "I'm human. From Earth."

  Thain'a yelled in his own language and two of the guards came in, stripped her, took vid images, and knocked her around a bit. The fight seemed more an exercise to gauge an opponent than a serious attempt to kick her ass.

  It was if they wanted data for a catalog entry. She held her own for a while, but by the end, Captain Thain'a knew exactly how strong she was. Which wasn't very compared to the scaly Vermians.

  They plunked her back down in the chair and threw her flight suit at her. Grace was a little surprised and a lot relieved that sexual assault didn't seem to be in the cards. For the moment, anyway.

  The Vermian Captain ignored her nudity with clinical detachment and was dictating data in his own language. He stopped and looked at her. "How many offspring?"

  Grace was surprised. "None."

  "Human," he growled, "slave price better when many young. How many? How long to have young?"

  So hopefully, she and her crew mates would be long gone before anyone tried to produce little human slaves from their bodies.

  Carefully considering her options, she looked him in the eye. SERE be damned. "Go fuck yourself."

  The guards got called back into the room and, this time, proceeded to beat the crap out of her. Before they started on her fingernails, though, she decided that perhaps spinning a tale or two about humans was a better option.

  "One baby at a time. And it takes two years." With their inoculations, it should be at least a year before any of them would ovulate.

  After a few more blows to her ribs and kidneys, they finally dragged her back through the corridor toward the cells.

  As she struggled with them to stand on her own two feet, the right answer to the SERE test finally came to her. Maintain a low profile.

  Chapter Four

  When the little female alien returned to the holding area, she was naked and carrying her clothes against her chest.

  Zhadra could see a lot of developing bruises on her back and limbs. There were also a few shallow cuts on her hands, but, thank the goddess Qala, she didn't look too injured.

  As a matter of fact, even though she had to be in pain, she stood tall and regal and her form was magnificent. Her legs looked strong and muscled and her buttocks -- by Kheanar's balls -- there was no way to see such a vision and not salivate.

  He could imagine holding those hips and plundering her until the Obosian night faded into day, and even then, a warrior might not be sated. Perplexed, he ran his tongue behind his upper teeth. There was a little swelling of his pheromone glands, but nothing he hadn't felt before with sexual attraction. Nothing he couldn't handle.

  He had moved to a sitting position, leaning against the back of the ridiculous cage in the corner nearest the female. Once in her cage next to him, she replaced her attire and he could hear her speak softly to the other female.

  He could only make out words like 'pirates' and 'slavers' and 'auction' and 'breeding'. Yes. She had the picture, all right. He also heard plenty he did not understand.

  “. . . imagine standing naked on a stage, Keri, wearing a data chip around your neck. One that blasts, 'Earthling female, eager to explore new frontiers in interspecies relations.' I swear to god it will list what I can bench press and how many baby slaves I can create. We have to . . .. "

  The conversation faded, but when he heard the next few words, he felt his horns twitch. Whispers of 'loose weapons' and 'takeover' and 'escape' were enough to make him reverse his decision about speaking.

  He waited until the guard passed and spoke. "Female."

  She turned around and lifted her eyebrows. "Moi?"

  "Come here."

  The two women exchanged glances, and his female -- his? -- sat at the back of the cage next to him.

  "You will not attempt escape."

  Her head jerked up to look at him. He could see cracking ice in those blue eyes. "Why the hell not? And who are you to tell me . . .. "

  "I am Zhadra."

  "And?"

  "And I say you will not do this."

  "Listen, Bud, ----"

  "I am not Bud. I am Zhadra."

  The woman lowered her head into her hands and sighed before she pushed her yellow hair back from her face and looked at him again. "And I am Grace. And that is Keri. And we will escape as soon as we can."

  Zhadra was getting irritated. "You will fail."

  "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Bud."

  "I am not Bud. I am ----"

  "Arrrgh." She held out both arms with the palms of her hands extended toward his face. "Yes, I get it, I get it. Zhadra." She began to move away. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, Z."

  "I did not dismiss you."

  She stopped moving and her shoulders slumped. "There it is. Fourteen billion light-years from earth, and of all the pirate ships, and all the brigs in the galaxy, my cage buddy turns out to be an asshole."

  "I am not buddy. I am --

  The female shrieked loud enough that the guard returned, banging his stick against the bars of the cage. Zhadra wondered if he had erred in his estimate of her intelligence. He thought quickly, trying to find basic, simple words that might work, even for a child.

  "Please." Was that correct? "Grace. Return."

  She sat back down, though not as close as before, which was a shame, as her intoxicating aroma was much fainter.

  "This will be a lot easier," Grace said, "if you help."

  "I cannot."

  "Are you in league with the Vermians? And, Ew."

  "No. But you must -- wait."

  "For what? Excuse me, but you can't be any kind of tactical genius if you got yourself captured in the first place. I mean, look at you. You should have exterminated all those reptiles with extreme prejudice in about two minutes."

  She leaned back and studied him for a long moment. "Uh, what does it mean when your eyes start to glow?"

  "Usually it means I am very close to removing the head of my enemy."

  This time, he was the one who held his hand up before she could speak. "But occasionally it means I am ready to mount my partner. And if she has prodded my temper, it means she will beg long and hard before I do so. And before I finally take her. Long and hard."

  He could hear her swallow. And he could scent her arousal. Good. He was in sore need of relief when this was over, and gods knew she was appealing to him. More than he could remember anytime in, well, a long time.

  He ground his teeth. "Cease talking. And listen. There are extensive plans in place for attack when we reach the Vermian slave station in this sector. There is no circumstance that will convince me to allow action on this ship."

  He also wasn't sure he would allow her to leave his bed for a long while when this was over. But that would be later. He once again swirled his tongue over his glands. Were they larger?

  Before she could respond to his commands, the doors to the room opened and three Vermian guards prodded a prisoner into the room. A prisoner he recognized. Another Obosian. One from his personal guard, whom he had ordered to remain on the ship trailing behind.

  Fortunately, the Vermians placed him in the cage on his other side. He could not wait for Calrhe's explanation to come.

  When the guards were preoccupied, Calrhe finally spoke. "My Lord, a message came from Lord Khaiden's father. Lord Khaid has been moved. He is no longer in Theta sector. We must subdue this ship before docking and pilot it to the Vermian station in Gamma sector."

  Calrhe studied the nearby cages. "Do you think the other prisoners will help?"

  Zhadra wanted to bang his head on the metal bars of his cage. It would serve him right if his horns got damaged.

  Instead, he closed his eyes, rearranged his features into what he hoped passed for the human version of pleasing, and turned to the other cage beside him. He pulled back his lips to expose his serrated teeth and hoped it looked like what the humans called a smile.

  "Female?"

  Chapter Five


  “My idea," Grace said, "is to trick the guard into opening my cell door because he thinks I'm hurt."

  Zhadra did not look impressed. "And then?"

  "I'll overcome him."

  "Human. You did not appear to fare so well upon the return from your interrogation."

  Grace chewed her lip. He had a point. The Vermians were strong bastards. "I can make a garrote if I have enough time. My uniform is made of ---"

  "I have a plan."

  "Of course, you do."

  "You distract the guard with this garrote-making --"

  "Then what?"

  He held out his hand toward her and five long, black, and ever so sharp claws appeared from the tips of his fingers.

  "Those are very cool weapons." Truly, they were. "But how are they going to get through these bars?"

  "Tusniam metal is mined on my planet. It has its weaknesses." He swished his tongue around inside his cheeks and pulled a small gray pouch from his mouth.

  "Marlog acid, also from my planet." He showed his T-Rex teeth again. "Though this, we do not export."

  Grace did not get why those teeth caused her brain to ping on danger, but simultaneously caused her panties, that is, if she were wearing any, to melt. It must have been the hit to her head.

  She had to admit that his plan was better. And he had suitably groveled and promised all kinds of rewards from his planet to get their cooperation.

  "All right, all right. We'll do it your way," Grace said. "But you owe me. You owe us."

  Grace and Keri conferred while Zhadra spread the acid low on five of the vertical bars, then passed the remainder to Calrhe.

  Upon his signal, Grace sat in the middle of her cage and tore two strips from her flight suit, then extracted a long thin strand of Flamelinen fiber from the material.

  She tied each end of the fiber around the strips, then wrapped the strips around her palms so that the fiber stretched between her hands. Though the fibers made up a bland, fireproof uniform material, the individual Flamelinen fibers were razor sharp.

  Standing up, Grace flaunted the weapon and taunted the guards to come get it from her. It worked. Grace was very good at taunting. As the guard walked toward her, she saw Zhadra and Calrhe prone, faking sleep, but stealthily using their claws on the weakened parts of the bars.

  The Vermian guard opened her door, swung his shock stick to his back and sneered. Then he entered her cell, bare handed, prepared to disarm her.

  "Come on, you slimy bastard." Grace quickly made three moves so that he would expose his back for the tiniest second. Then she was on him with the garrote. It was over in sixty seconds. His neck was now a pulpy mess of strands.

  She heard a simultaneous commotion outside her cage, but by the time she finished with the Vermian and let him drop, it was quiet. She looked up to see the other guard on the floor, and Keri, Zhadra and Calrhe staring at her. "What?"

  "Female, you were only to distract him," Zhadra said.

  "I did." Grace wiped her hands, coated with green blood, onto the lizard's body. She stood up and smiled at her crew. "All he could think about was breathing."

  Zhadra's eyes glowed, and then he reached in and bodily lifted her out of her cage. He bent his head to her ear and said, "I will have you, little warrior."

  By the flush of heat she felt between her legs, she suspected he could. Before she could respond, he pulled the other guard into Grace's cage and locked it.

  Zhadra held up the two laser pistols and shock sticks questioningly. After a silent communication, Grace took a pistol and Keri the stick.

  "She's a better shot," Keri said.

  "Of course, she is," Zhadra mumbled.

  Once they exited the holding cell and made their way through the ship, the four of them countered little resistance in the six remaining Vermians. The Captain was the strongest, but Zhadra made short work of him when he swept his claws across the creature's throat and nearly decapitated him.

  Calrhe and Zhadra moved the bodies of the unconscious and the dead and locked them in two different cages. Grace and Keri released their injured science officer and escorted her to one of the crew's cabins.

  Tina was drowsy but managed to stumble into the bunk. "Where are we?"

  Keri forced her to drink a water capsule. "I really hate to say this, but we were captured by alien slavers."

  Tina sputtered on the water. "Did you just say --"

  Grace grinned. "Sounds like a porn vid, doesn't it?"

  Keri raised an eyebrow. "Well, if it is, you and the big silver guy have the starring roles."

  "Shut up," Grace mumbled and could feel herself blush. "And an interspecies, long distance romance is so not in the cards." Maybe a quick fling. "Anyway, we've taken over the ship alongside friendly-for-the-moment alien prisoners."

  "Alien prisoners?" Tina looked confused.

  "Here's the short version," Keri said. "We're no longer in a Planetary Union sector, but it's unclear how far out we've traveled. And -- this is a bonus feature -- we are now going to travel even further with said friendly-for-the-moment aliens to another Vermian slave station to rescue yet another alien."

  "That's too many bloody aliens to keep straight." Tina put her head back on the pillow. "I know I should be excited and cataloging every moment for posterity, but I'm more concerned with the very real possibility of vomiting right now."

  "Wow," Grace said. "Her head really must be injured. I never thought the professor would pass up a shot at the Planetary Nobel prize."

  "I heard that." Tina was grumbling as they left her cabin.

  The two women made their way to what passed for the bridge on the clunker ship. They weren't reassured by the frustrated looks on the faces of the two silver aliens.

  "What?" Grace asked.

  "This ship is much more primitive than our technology," Zhadra said. "It will take a few moments to reconfigure before we can move."

  The women shared a look and went to two different sets of controls.

  After a minute, Keri spoke. "If you know the coordinates, I can get us there." She folded her arms. "But first, I have some conditions."

  "How unexpected." Zhadra stood and folded his arms across his chest, too.

  "When this is over, I want a guarantee that we will be returned to one of our ships or stations."

  "When this is over, that may not be possible." He glanced at Grace. " And, even if it is, you may not wish to return."

  "That will be our decision," said Keri.

  "I guarantee that I will do all in my power to act as you decide. But I have not heard of your galaxy. And I am not in charge of my nation."

  Calrhe coughed.

  Zhadra shot him a glare, then continued. "Is that all? We must proceed to the Vermian station."

  Grace hesitated, then spoke. "We are free, but under your protection? We are not your slaves or anything?"

  Zhadra smiled. "Only when you wish it to be so, my warrior."

  Chapter Six

  “Free, my ass," Grace said.

  Zhadra pulled the rope attached to her tied wrists, and she hissed at him. He had tied Grace's bonds loosely for a quick release, but he did understand her concern. She was naked.

  He let himself smile, which was a foreign expression for an Obosian warrior. An Obosian's teeth were generally the last thing seen by an enemy before death.

  He was not surprised by the quick shift of the crowd as it cleared a wide path in front of him. "Female," he said. "We agreed this is the best way to get us into the station so we may search."

  "We did not agree. You decreed. There is a big difference."

  "It is an excellent plan." He felt his lips twitch. "Besides, you have a very fine ass. Better than any slave on this station."

  "After this, if you think there is any way you are getting close to it, think again." She sniffed.

  "Oh, female. Your scent does not lie. We will be together." He checked and the glands behind his upper teeth were tender today. It worried him sligh
tly.

  "It will not work, Zhadra."

  "Why not?" He felt a spike of determination.

  "We are different species." After a pause, she added, "We live in different galaxies."

  "This has not been a problem for me in the past."

  "Charming. I've found my very own galactic man whore."

  Her very own? As warm as that made him feel, he had to be fair. "It would only be for a time, Grace."

  "Strike two. Commitment issues."

  "You worry overly about such things."

  "And strike three. You're dismissive as hell."

  "Zahtia is god of hell, not this Dismissive."

  "You make my brain hurt, Zhadra."

  "And you, my Grace, make my blood sing. By the Goddess, Zuudite, you are a feisty little female."

  She was quiet for a moment and her voice became softer. "Who is the Goddess Zuudite?"

  "She is the mighty goddess of war, little one. Like you."

  "Oh."

  "Now, in order to pass as a slave, you must be silent." He put just the smallest amount of pull on the rope.

  He thought he heard her mumble jerk, so he pulled the rope again.

  She let go with one of those arrrgh sounds he decided must convey aggravation.

  Zhadra understood that it required a tremendous degree of trust for Grace to allow this. And he respected her even more.

  Her captain, Keri, was in a priestess robe they had found in a locker on the ship, but there had only been the one robe. The Vermian attire had mostly been armor and was not suitable.

  Calrhe and Keri were checking the opposite side of the station, near the slave gladiator arena. He hoped his friend, Khaid, was fighting there and had not been sold. But he had to check the auction house first.

  As they entered the auction arena, Zhadra declined to register his 'slave' for auction.

  "I want to see what prices you are getting before I make my decision."

  "You must still pay a fee to enter, Obosian." The Vermian gatekeeper eyed Grace without interest.

  They were such a strange asexual species. However, it would not be the same with others in the room. Zhadra prayed to Qala, Goddess of Tranquility, that the human would keep her eyes lowered and not gut any of the buyers with the knife she had sequestered beneath the coils of rope.