Chapter 17
Amoreth.
Lena awoke with the word ringing through her mind, and though she didn’t know the exact meaning, it had to be something important, some affectionate way to refer to the one who you’d joined with.
The thought was pleasant, not at all as frightening as she might have expected. When she was with Screl, the little voice in her head seemed to dissipate, the one telling her she wasn’t good enough or pretty enough or smart enough.
Why else would he have shared something like his personal name with her? A name that only his family knew… until today.
The act of being claimed was so primal, so visceral, so unlike anything she’d ever experienced, and yet she relished the statement it made. He wanted her, and not just for a night.
Slowly, she realized he was still inside her, his cocks hard and the tendrils clinging to her ass. When she let out a low groan, he chuckled, pulling out as sticky seed spilled down her thighs and dripped onto the moss.
“How do you feel?” he asked, watching her closely as she sat up. “I was quite vigorous with you earlier.”
There was a deep, throbbing ache in her core, but it wasn’t unpleasant. Rather, it was comforting to be able to feel his presence, to know he had filled her so thoroughly that she would remember him even when their bodies were no longer intertwined.
It was evidence that her claiming hadn’t all just been an erotic dream.
And there was something else, too. A heat settling in her chest, as if her heart had been replaced by a star burning brightly like the ones in the sky above. There’d been that strange glow earlier, like something out of a fantasy story, some magical alien bond that had formed between them.
“I feel fine,” she said with a shy smile, unable to find words for the emotions roiling within her. “How long was I asleep?”
“Not long, perhaps an hour. We can rest more if you would like.”
“I think I’m okay,” she said, standing on shaking legs and making her way to the glimmering pool.
Screl followed suit, and they both cleaned themselves in silence before dressing. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but not quite comfortable either. They had just shared something significant, but they still knew so little about each other.
Lena wasn’t sure what it all meant, the light in their chests, the sensation of tingling skin, but she sighed all the same as he pulled her close, nuzzling the top of her head with his cheek. The hug was brief, and when they parted, he kept hold of one of her hands, leading her away from the water.
It took about five minutes to walk to the other side of the isle, the iridescent mist glittering as she took in the views.
They were hovering over a large body of water, surrounded by rolling green hills.
In the distance, there was a sprawling city, like something out of the Other Worlds documentary she used to watch back on Earth.
Most of the buildings were the same shiny metallic as Screl’s ship, and the architecture was minimalist, like everything the Threns seemed to create, amorphous silvery columns and orbs.
There were very few straight edges, mostly undulating curves that reminded Lena of tentacles.
A dark gray tower flanked by two large irregular edifices was the most noticeable structure, located in the very center of the city.
“Not too close to the edge,” Screl said, interrupting her thoughts and pulling her back slightly.
She gave a quiet gasp at the view straight down. A very long fall indeed.
“That is Arysetta, our capital.”
Lena had heard that name mentioned often on Henios, by travelers and traders passing through, either coming or going to the city.
“What is that building?” she asked, pointing to the large gray tower that stood out from the rest.
Screl hummed, the noise almost imperceptible over the sounds of the gentle breeze and screeching animals.
“That is my home. I live there with my father and siblings, though I have spent much more time on my ship in the past years.”
“Do you enjoy it there? With your family?”
He pondered his answer, perhaps deciding how much truth she should hear.
“It was… not easy growing up. Training Thren children is always rigorous, but… it was even more so for myself, though I am only the fourth heir to the Sovereignty. The likelihood of me ruling is quite slim, but they trained me for it all the same.” There was definitely a touch of sadness in his deep voice, and something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.
“Arysetta is a lovely city, though. I hope I have time to show you later.”
They examined the skyline for a long while, lights blinking on and off as shuttles came and went. It was pleasant, his tight grip and substantial presence surrounding her as light glinted off the shiny buildings.
A question gnawed at her, one that she finally built up the courage to ask.
“Yavriel,” she started, cautiously using his personal name. “Did you inject me with a pheromone to make me like you? When we first met.”
He took a deep breath, as if preparing himself for a long answer. Wasn’t it a simple yes or no?
“I did not do anything. Not purposefully.”
“What does that mean?”
The prickle of fear returned, one that had been blissfully absent while they had silently observed the city beyond.
“I do not wish to frighten you.”
Why would he frighten her? If he had injected her with something, surely it was reversible. Or would wear off with time.
“What is it? Tell me!”
Her voice pitched high with anxiety, though she tried to focus, desperate to understand what was going on.
“There are pheromones that exude from my body naturally. This is true of all members of my species.”
“And? Is that why…” she trailed off, unable to finish her question.
Somehow the thought that her attraction to him was false, fabricated in some way made her ill, though it should have brought her comfort to know that there was a logical reason she was falling so quickly for someone whom she barely knew.
“My pheromones are no different from the ones that I sensed from you,” he said, squeezing her hand. “It is difficult to resist when a Thren feels the pull of a… compatible mate.”
“Mate? Threns can mate with other species?”
“It is possible, though not common.”
“Even humans?” she asked with a gulp.
“Yes. Even humans.”
She shot him a sharp glare.
“You brought me here to mate with you?”
So that’s what he’d meant by all the talk of claiming and joining. Well, he would be in for a rude awakening when he learned that her implant made her sterile.
“Of course not. It is… more complicated than that.”
A pressure weighed on her chest like a boulder. It was getting difficult to distinguish between the conflicting feelings of horror and joy, and his evasive answers weren’t helping the matter.
“How? How is it more complicated? Do you want to mate with me or not? Why am I here?”
Screl grabbed her shoulders, looking down into her eyes with a serious expression.
“Please remain calm. Just because we are compatible mates does not mean that we must reproduce. We have safe medical procedures that can terminate a pregnancy if necessary.”
“Oh, uh, I already have an implant. I don’t want kids,” she said, grateful that he didn’t seem eager to use her womb for his alien offspring.
When she was younger, she had thought she was interested in having children because that seemed to be the path everyone she knew took. Get married, buy a house, have kids. But as the first step evaded her year after year, she came to realize that none of it really attracted her all that much.
“I am not allowed to procreate at this point in time. My sister is the only heir allowed to create her own progeny, since she will rule after my father. The lesser heirs cannot reproduce until the first of us becomes Sovereign. There are many rules we must follow compared to regular Threns. Besides, you are the first compatible mate I’ve encountered. ”
Well, that last statement certainly sent a jolt through her.
“What do you mean?” Lena asked. “You… really haven’t experienced this with anyone else?”
Hope clung to her, more desperately than she’d ever felt it before.
Though she’d had her crushes, had drowned her despair in a bottle of wine more than once, this felt different in a way she couldn’t explain.
There was a passionate energy surrounding them like a whirlwind, and the thought that he felt it just as strongly bolstered her.
“Never. Mating bonds with non-Threns are quite rare.”
Lena swallowed hard, desperate to change the subject, unwilling to let herself think about what this all meant.
“Do you want offspring? When you are able to?”
Screl paused, weighing his answer.
“I do not. Growing up with my father was difficult. My mother… she passed away when I was quite young, but even so, I remember how poorly he treated her. How poorly he treated all of us. I don’t think I would be a very good father even if it were something that I wanted.”
“My parents weren’t very nice either,” she said, surprised by her own candor. “Actually, they were terrible. Our house was so chaotic all the time, so much yelling, so much fighting. I couldn’t wait to get out of there. And after a while, I decided that I didn’t want to have a kid of my own.”
Screl’s eyes glistened, and she wondered if he were about to cry, but he pulled her into a hug instead, the warmth of his body replacing the chill of hurtful memories. He nuzzled the top of her head with his chin, and a wave of calm hit her, reminding her that she was safe in his arms.
When he pulled away, his eyes were still wet, but there was a smile on his face. She was about to ask him about the strange glow from earlier when he looked off into the distance, taking a few deep breaths and composing himself, but not before she saw a flash of something… Anxiety? Fear?
“We must go. The shuttle will be returning soon, and I have urgent business to attend to.”
He turned, leading her back to the pool and the waterfalls. In the distance, she saw a gray shuttle heading their way.
“Will you drop me off on the ship?”
Tendrils of fear gripped Lena once more, though she wasn’t sure why. He was agitated. Something was definitely wrong.
“There is no time,” Screl said quietly, as the shuttle approached the floating island. “And besides, the Sovereign wishes to see you.”