Her Alien Abductor (Aegarian Saga) (7 page)

Besh had taken great pride in destroying many of the Ha Ni Shin battleships in the various battles that had erupted over the few years after, until the Great Olum Naucht of the Ha Ni Shin had come before the Emperor and bowed at his feet. Olum Naucht had begged for forgiveness in the initial attacks and asked if the Aegarians would protect them from the Bel Tak.

The Emperor entered into an unstable agreement with Olum Naucht and his people in a rush to prove to the Senate he could be diplomatic in light of the consensus he was a warmonger. In the agreement, the Ha Ni Shin had become a full-fledged member world in the Senate and been given full diplomatic rights. Most worlds waited a decade or more to achieve full member status, and he wondered if the Ha Ni Shin had given the Emperor more than was contained in the agreement.

He loved the Emperor, more so than many, and he was more loyal to him than anyone else in the Empire. But unlike most, Besh knew the Emperor was a man as well as a leader, and men had faults. A man could make mistakes. The accord with the Ha Ni Shin was a mistake, and he hoped it would not eventually put the whole Empire in jeopardy. Because of this loyalty and respect, the Emperor had shown great respect in return for Besh. It also helped that Besh was honest to a fault and would say what he thought, instead of what those around him wished to hear.

But sometimes his mouth got him into trouble.

As he stepped directly in front of the Emperor, the crowd of various delegates from each of the one hundred and fifty-seven worlds hushed, awaiting what was so important the Emperor would pull the General of the Aegarian East back to Hara D’Noll in the middle of the peaceful invasion of Earth.

“So, the mighty General has found himself a mate?”

A murmur rippled through the crowd at the Emperor’s announcement. Besh was well over the age of Daya N’goul, and many thought he would never find his mate. Most Aegarian men found their mates by the time they reached the age of consensus, the year they entered the military for their mandatory two years of service. Some did not find their mate until they had concluded their service.

But none had ever waited twelve years after his military service began. Every Aegarian man in their entire history had found a mate by the age of twenty-five, most earlier, so at thirty-two, Besh had become something of a freak on his home world. Thankfully, he was a superior warrior and had insured many Aegarian victories, allowing that the populace left his unattached status alone for the most part. If not for this, he may have been truly labeled an outcast and forced into exile.

“Yes, your Highness, I believe I have found my Daya N’goul. She was brought to the palace at Tok N’gaul in the Inoc galaxy, the closest planet in our Empire to Earth.”

“Don’t you think the invasion of Earth is a priority? Especially for my top general?”

“Regent Ca’Heel led this invasion and has run it with unerring wisdom and judgment. I have been at his side since it began and only left him a few days ago. We just completed the final scouting of the planet, and posts have been set up.”

“But I expected you to be highly visible on the planet for good reason. We are in the middle of a war. You need to be there.”

“This has not been a war from day one, even though perhaps some were
hoping
for bloodshed. The Earth governments have all
chosen
to lay down their swords and allow us to include them into our Empire.”

“
Boy
, I am not as bloodthirsty as you seem to think me. I thought we respected each other enough for you to know this by now. I have no problem that my brother, the Regent, chose to use diplomacy in this mission. It is so like him, I had practically expected him to walk up to the Earth world leaders and beg them to join the Empire. But that does not change the fact I had wanted my best general at his side. Nonetheless, my eldest brother is not a young man, and I need an able man to fill his shoes as Regent. You are the best candidate for the job, as was your brother before we lost him.”

Besh looked upon the Emperor and saw a mirror to the sadness he felt at the thought of his lost brother, Taroth. “I appreciate your faith in me and my abilities, but the ceremony of Daya N’goul is a part of who we are as a people. Are you asking me to turn away from this female? Taking the time to complete this will not affect my abilities to fill the role of Regent when the time comes.”

“Most of the member worlds which make up our Empire were invaded thousands of years ago. The few more recent invasions still happened before I was even born. We have become so powerful that worlds now come to us asking for member status, and world invasion is becoming less and less necessary. I wanted you to have this experience.”

“Using Brox Catha, I can be back on the planet in less than twenty minutes Earth time. I am able to oversee the entire operation from the system in my rooms in the palace and have been in full communication with the Regent since leaving for Dsh’Attar, ready to return at his call. I have been there since day one and have continued to serve our Empire. Am I supposed to ignore the rules of Daya N’goul?”

“No. I suppose not, but this is horrible timing.”

“An understatement if I say so myself. If I could have chosen another time, believe me, I would have. But, Your Highness, if I may add…”

“Of course.”

“I thought you would have less issue with me leaving at this point versus the fact she is of Earth.”

A gasp shuddered through the crowd at Besh’s words. Voices raised, and soon the crowd was in an uproar.

“Silence!” The Emperor was on his feet, red faced and fully enraged, glaring at his court members.

“The General cannot ignore the rules of Daya N’goul, as all of you well know. If this is the woman who is his mate, then she will Join with him, regardless of what you in the court think. Our laws state no Aegarian man can deny his Daya N’goul, and he must claim her after the proper period of Si’ ni mon. Besh deserves his woman, especially considering we thought for some time he would have none.”

“But your Highness,” a voice raised from the mass below, “no Aegarian man has ever Joined with a woman from another world, not even worlds which have been members of the Empire for thousands of years. How can he Join with this
Earthling
?” The obvious distaste for the word Earthling dripped from the male’s voice.

“Aegarian genetics run through the human bloodline, meaning they are a sister race. I think it is highly probable more of our men will find their mates on Earth.”

Another small murmur and then a hush fell as the Emperor eyed his court. “I decree it is legal for an Aegarian male to mate with an Earth woman if she is his Daya N’goul. As Emperor, my word is law.”

****

Lord Fatel had not come to her the day before for some reason. She assumed he would visit her every day to
teach
her about the society she was expected to become a part of. For some reason, she was disappointed he had not come, even though she told herself she did not want to see him at all and only wanted to be back home where she belonged.

She was lying to herself.

He was driving her mind and body past the point of distraction. And now she had bachelor number two invading her dreams. Like she needed that. Her body was sore and ached in all the wrong places. Her B’itakke had slipped out sometime in the night and was on the floor. So stiff she could barely sit up, she gave up and floated back to the bed in a huff.

Kaya was confused. Nothing seemed to make sense. Abducted by the invaders of her planet and told she was the mate of a general, whom she couldn’t even meet for a month. Held in a beautiful prison, pleasure ripped from her body by her teacher and now her dream man. She felt like it was
all
a dream and wondered if she would ever awaken from it.

After Kaya had been lying motionless for nearly an hour watching the sunlight slowly shift through the room as the sun grew higher and higher in the sky, J’Halle walked into the room bearing the large tray of breakfast foods. Her stomach growled and betrayed her, so she sat up, smelling the wonderful aroma of the food. She stood, wobbly at first, and gained her footing and walked to the balcony to eat.

Sitting nude at the table, she enjoyed the warm sun on her skin, ready to dig in. It was amazing how easily she was becoming accustomed to nudity in front of her lady’s maids. Only having one dress, her maids had washed it the night before so she could wear it today on her trip to the dressmaker. It was either nude or the sheet, and she did not have the energy to wrap the sheet around her like a toga, not when her stomach was screaming for food. She had been eating with stamina since her arrival here, given all the foods they served her were like ambrosia, unlike anything she had ever tasted before. She just hoped she would not see her waist and hips spread from all this wonderful food, especially after they had already
fixed
her once before.

Kaya was just starting on the delicious, foreign fruits when Lord Fatel walked onto the balcony. She covered herself with her hands and dropped her gaze from his.

“Aegarian women are not as conscious of their nudity as you. You are a beautiful creature, why should you be ashamed? You will need to become more at peace with your body.”

Kaya looked up at the arched eyebrow on Lord Fatel’s face, knowing he was right. She dropped her hands hesitantly. After years of having the media tell her that her body wasn’t perfect, she was going to struggle with the lack of modesty these people seemed to have. And no matter what they’d done to her shape, she still felt the overwhelming consciousness she’d felt from being plump.

She continued eating the delicious fruits that were quickly becoming her favorite of anything she had tasted thus far. He smiled as he watched her enjoy the foods and reached over to grab a piece of fruit which resembled an orange but was pale green and blue. He slowly suckled the juice from the fruit, while one drop slid down his chin. She was mesmerized, watching his lips and mouth on the fruit, and felt the suckle all the way down to her clit. He smiled, seeming to know where her mind had led her.

“Ready to be outfitted today? I, myself, prefer you completely nude all the time, but I am sure you would like at least a few dresses for your beautiful body.”

“I’m more than ready. I was hoping we would go yesterday, but since you did not show up, I had to wait.”

“Oh … are we pouting, my princess? Did you miss me?”

“Stop it. I just want something besides the one dress and a sheet to wear. All I care about is one more dress so I can wear something while the other is being washed.”

“Your General is a very important man in our world, and he means to see you outfitted properly. We have orders to purchase fifteen gowns for you as well as proper dresses for sleeping and special attire for the ceremony.”

“I have made no promises, so the clothes for the ceremony can wait. As can the others. All I need is one, maybe two dresses at most.” The thought of fifteen dresses excited her, and it thrilled her to be doted on in such a way. She had grown up with a single mother who worked hard to make ends meet, and she was not used to such luxury. But accepting his fifteen dresses might tell the General she had accepted him. She was not willing to send that particular message.

“You will get what the General desires. He wants you to feel as beautiful as you are. He wants you to know he adores you even now, before he has ever claimed you as his own. It is hard for a man who has no way of spending time with you to actively court you. This is his way.”

“Well, he can’t buy me.”

“It is but a fraction of the dresses he will buy you after you are mated.”

“I don’t want them. And again, I have agreed to nothing.”

“Regardless, the dresses will be made for you, whether you wear them or not. Whether you allow him to dote on you or not.”

“Whatever. As long as he knows by taking the dresses I’ve not made any decision in his favor.”

“I am sure he understands that, Princess.”

“Why do you keep calling me Princess?”

“Because it fits. You should be adored and treated like a princess.”

She blushed and tried to hurriedly change the subject.  “Why am I not allowed to see my mate for a month?”

Lord Fatel looked stunned. He stared at her and then looked around bewilderedly. “Princess, I don’t know the answer. It has always been the custom of our people to wait Si’ ni mon without seeing each other before they Join, as part of the ceremony. There was never a question as to why, it just
is
. ”

“You expect a woman to accept a lot, don’t you?”

“I am sure there are parts of your culture which are just accepted as is, without thought, as it is just the way things are done. In the meantime, we need to get your beautiful body to the dressmaker. I am in no rush to cover you, but if we do not show up this time, Meet Sook Nu may have my head on a platter.”

“Who is Meet Sook Nu?”

“Only the most talented dressmaker on this planet, and probably any other planet. She is blind, which only makes her talent that much more amazing. She creates beautiful dresses for only the most treasured women, and her skills have her in high demand. Such high demand that if we do not leave soon, she will not make any dresses for you. We already missed your appointment yesterday. Much more and she will refuse us.”