Date: 2018-09-18 07:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Romance
Description: Bobbie Flemming was having one of those terrible, no good kind of days. Her boss yelled at her because of something a co-worker did, her sometimes boyfriend was getting engaged to another woman, and she wore two different shoes to work. To make matters worse, she agreed to be in a charitable “most eligible” auction for her friend Chuck, who won’t speak to her if she doesn’t show up. Bobbie doesn’t feel most eligible, and she definitely doesn’t feel like going on a date with someone so desperate they have to win her in an auction. But when two of the hottest men on the planet, who happen to be
Publisher: Parajunkee Publishing
Rights: Copyright 2018 Gillian Zane. All rights reserved.

CHARGED

An Otherworldly Reverse Harem

Gillian Zane

Contents

ABOUT THE BOOK

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Epilogue

Glossary of Terms:

Characters:

Polaridi words:

Thank you

About the Author

Books by Gillian Zane

ABOUT THE BOOK

Bobbie Flemming was having one of those terrible, no good kind of days.

Her boss yelled at her because of something a co-worker did, her sometimes boyfriend was getting engaged to another woman, and she wore two different shoes to work. To make matters worse, she agreed to be in a charitable “most eligible” auction for her friend Chuck, who won’t speak to her if she doesn’t show up.

Bobbie doesn’t feel most eligible, and she definitely doesn’t feel like going on a date with someone so desperate they have to win her in an auction. But when two of the hottest men on the planet, who happen to be twins, show up and outbid everyone, Bobbie thinks she’s won the lottery. Until the one in charge opens his mouth and she realizes he’s bat sh*t crazy.

Now, Bobbie’s being whisked off, without her consent, to the middle of Central Park — and what is that — a spaceship?

This was how Bobbie finds herself stranded on an alien planet, with not two, but four incarnations of the same man. (They do that on their planet, it’s like their thing.) And all four of these hot alien males think Bobbie is their fated Charge Mate. All Bobbie knows is she didn’t sign up for this. Sure, the sex might be awesome, and the guys might be super-hot, but what does it take to get back to Earth where everything is normal, and there aren’t Emperors who want to kill her?

Charged: An Otherworldly Reverse Harem by Gillian Zane

Published by Parajunkee Publishing & Design
www.parajunkee.net

© 2018 Gillian Zane

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. For permissions contact:

info@parajunkee.net

Cover Design by Parajunkee Publishing & Design

Editing by Raw Book Editing

For the Butterflies.

1

Bobbie’s Terrible Day

Bobbie Fleming knew that today was destined to be one of those terrible, no good kind of days. It was going to be one of those days reminiscent of a quirky women’s fiction novel, but without the slow progression to self-realization and the eventual sticky-sweet happily-ever-after at the end.  How did she know this? Because as she was riding the elevator to get to her dead-end job on the 11th floor of the seventh tallest building in the city, she looked down and saw she had worn two different shoes. Two different shoes! They weren’t even the same pair in different colors. She liked to do that. When she found a shoe that met her strict requirements of comfort and style, she bought every color they had—well, the good colors.

The metal doors of the elevator reflected her image all warped and distorted, but clearly showing her one red shoe with a stupid bow, and one orange shoe. She might have let out an audible yelp since the mousy lawyer standing next to her startled and was looking at her like she had grown a third head.

“My shoes,” Bobbie mumbled as an explanation for her weird noise making, and gestured in the general direction of the floor. The lawyer nodded like he was placating a crazy person and looked at his phone with consternation even though he hadn’t even pressed the unlock button on the screen.

It was going to be one of those days. She knew it. In every bone of her body. It might be Friday, but she could smell the coming apocalypse in the air. They were becoming routine now in her life. She had refined her Spidey sense to spot them before they had barely begun. With lots of practice, she could now lock on to the impending tragedy and brace for impact. All it took was a simple clue, like mismatched shoes.

Usually, she would combat this kind of day by jumping on social media and sharing hilarious cat videos. She loved cats even though she didn’t have a cat, but considered herself a future cat lady. There would be fabulous cats with grumpy faces that would epitomize her day with fun hashtags that said adulting is hard. A little laugh to ease the tension and anxiety that was her current state of being. It would help her pull her shit together, get through the day, and welcome in the weekend with as little stress as possible, so she could wake up on Monday and do it all again.

Not today though. As soon as Bobbie sat down at her desk, her inbox began to chime. One email after another with little red exclamation points next to them. It was barely 9 a.m. and her department was in a tizzy. One more problem, which was nothing more than a product of her overly dramatic and anxiety-prone client, to fix. It took her two hours to settle down her client and task out what would be needed to fix the current issue. An issue that turned out to not even be an issue once things got rolling. When that was done, she managed to get up from her desk and sneak down to the first-floor lobby where there was a gift shop that sold a plethora of unnecessary crap.

Bobbie turned over a pair of atrocious flats which were vaggazled—vagina plus bedazzled—Bobbie’s word for overly-decorated and glittery items. They happened to be pink, which was pushing it with matching her current outfit, but they would do. She winced at the price, even though she knew what it would say. Thirty dollars. Thirty, because the proprietor, a female who had perfected the resting bitch face, knew what these shoes were here for. They were here for people like Bobbie. Women who rushed out of the house without checking their shoes, or women who were overeager to wear new heels without bringing Band-Aids, or women who were prone to accidents and broken shoes. Women who were in the midst of a shoe crisis, and would wince as they forked out thirty dollars for an atrocious pair of glittered flats, but didn’t have another choice. Some women might have powered through the day in crappy shoes, knowing this woman probably picked them up for a couple bucks at a jewelry show, but for thirty, Bobbie was willing to take the hit.

She reluctantly handed over her card while the proprietor smiled a rare pleased smile, which had everything to do with the taking of money, and nothing to do with giving her customer a bit of reassurance.

Bobbie didn’t bother hiding the fact that she changed her shoes in the store. She slipped her mismatched heels into her oversized bag, flipped off the owner of the store as she turned her back to her, and marched out in shoes that didn’t match her outfit. Bobbie tried with all her might not to look at herself in the elevator’s reflection as she made her way back to her floor. Pink flats were better than mismatched heels, she told herself.

“Bobbie!” Her name was like venom on the lips of her boss as she rounded the curve back to her cubicle.

“Mal?” Bobbie asked.

“I need that Fisher report before you go to lunch,” her boss said with a wave of the hand and a quick turn in the opposite direction.

“Good Morning to you, too.” Bobbie sighed and went back to her cubicle, knowing she had two hours to produce a report that normally took four. Another day of eating her lunch at her desk.

When lunchtime had come and went, Bobbie had completed her portion of the report and sent it with a satisfied sigh to her boss. She managed to extricate herself from her desk and get to the microwave, coated with the explosions from everyone else’s lunches, to pop in her own bland, diet frozen meal. After four minutes of watching the little tray spin around and around through the food-speckled glass, she grabbed it, cried out from the heat, and then managed to get it onto the counter, where she again burned herself by removing the plastic covering.

It seemed like an act of God was needed to get her back to her desk with the food, but somehow she managed. She fished out her eReader, bringing up her current read, an epic fantasy about a runaway half-elf and his merry band of mismatched friends doomed to either save or destroy the world. She shoveled the bland food into her mouth as her tragic day slipped from the forefront of her mind and she was taken to a world where the trees talked, and dragons could be ridden into the skies.

“Bobbie!” The food on Bobbie’s fork flopped off, bounced on her left tit and began to slide into her bra. When she tried to save the food, her hand knocked into the plate, upending it and landing it open portion down. Splatters went everywhere, including her face and her computer screen. She didn’t turn around; she stared at the mess in horror.

“Where are the financials that go with the report?” Her boss all but screeched at the back of her head. “I have to send it to Farraday, and I can’t without the financials.”

“Lauren was supposed to send you the financials. Remember we discussed it in the meeting yesterday?” Bobbie reminded him.

“I don’t care who was supposed to do it. You were in charge of the report, Bobbie. You were supposed to send it to me.” His voice had gotten more high-pitched with each word.

“You were the one that told Lauren it was her—”

“Stop with the excuses, Bobbie. Get the report done.”

Bobbie finally turned around to face her boss, glancing over at the side of the room where the awful Lauren took up space. She was gone, probably out for a late lunch. She was known to take a two-hour lunch while conveniently forgetting to punch out.

“Lauren’s at lunch; she has all the data,” Bobbie said, but she knew by the look on his face, he didn’t care.

“I need that report on my desk in thirty minutes, or you'll find yourself without a job.” He didn’t bother hanging around for a response before he stomped away and Bobbie was left with an almost impossible task.

Forty-five minutes later, five threatening voicemails left for a girl who refused to answer her phone if it was the company’s number, an amateur hacking job into Lauren’s console, and Bobbie managed to deliver the report, even though she was pretty sure the numbers weren’t right.

Her stomach growled atrociously, and Bobbie pulled herself up from her desk, which still had smears of her earlier failed lunch all over it. She would clean that later, she told herself. Now, she needed to spend more money that she wasn’t supposed to spend on an overpriced sandwich that was damn good, but not worth the price. By the time she got downstairs though, they were all out of sandwiches, all out of soups, all out of those handy little salads in the clear plastic to-go boxes. The only thing left was a paltry little blueberry muffin left over from the breakfast stock.

It took her all of three bites to devour it in the elevator back up to work.

Bobbie’s day was becoming one for the books. But, it was paltry stuff. Stuff she would get over. People in third world countries had much worse problems. Even people in her own neck of the woods were barely hanging on. The receptionist’s husband recently found out he had prostate cancer, the lady from the 8th floor had a son with leukemia, and there were rumors that the AP girl was getting evicted from her rent-controlled apartment. Bobbie didn’t really have the right to complain about her day when it was only trivial things. Little speed bumps in the road of life, and before she knew it, she would be smooth sailing, back to eighty on the intercontinental highway. Bobbie often told herself things like this to reaffirm her positive nature. Positive people brought positive things into their lives. Positive thinking, positive life was her motto.

“Stay positive. Stay positive,” she chanted under her breath, as for the third time that day she avoided eye contact with the girl reflected in the elevator doors. She continued to chant as she wiped at her mouth, which may have still held muffin crumbs, before she exited the elevator on the 11th-floor lobby and entered the reception area. She was looking down at the white smear on her shirt with dismay, which was why she didn’t notice the crowd gathered in the small area until the last minute. She clumsily stumbled to a halt, locking eyes with the man in the center of the crowd. His face went pale when he saw her and Bobbie knew her day was about to get much, much worse.

Most of the people gathered around were from accounts payable, and accounting. They were people Bobbie didn’t associate with much, unless it was a forced company event. Except for one. One of the CPAs, the one in the center of the crowd with his arm around a cute blonde while his eyes were locked on Bobbie.

Bobbie recognized the woman he was holding a little too close to him. She knew she was the COO’s daughter since her father had only recently paraded the girl around the company, flashing the new fancy engagement ring on her finger to anyone who could stand to look at it. Bobbie hadn’t cared to pay attention to who the lucky guy was…she probably should have.

“Kiersten will be taking over as COO, brought into the fold by her future husband Marlin —,” the COO was saying as Bobbie bumbled into the fray.

Future. Husband. Marlin. The gleaming rock on Kiersten’s finger shone like a beacon, reflecting into Bobbie’s eyes and blinding her. It was one of those moments where time seemed to stand still. While Ms. COO Daughter was flinging her sparkly hand around in a circle, weird bird-like words came out of her mouth that Bobbie couldn’t understand. The CPA in question, Mr. Marlin Toups, continued to stare at Bobbie, only now his eyes had narrowed to slits, as if he expected her to do something.

Bobbie had considered this man her on and off again current relationship. And now she was walking in on his what—engagement party or hostile takeover? Had he forgotten to mention this fiancé when they were hooking up in the supply closet yesterday? In fact, she remembered he had explicitly said she was the only one for him as she swallowed him down to avoid any mess.

This was the pinnacle of her day. The apex of her tragedy. And the sad part of the entire situation was that this was becoming the new normal. Every day for Bobbie was a repeat of terrible, no-good things. She might as well get used to it.

She managed to get away without making a scene. She hid at her desk, behind her Alfredo splattered computer screen, and she only let one tiny tear slip down her cheek before she pinched herself and remained strong under the incessant berating of her own inner monologue.

Just another one of those days. Bobbie’s new normal. Not even a Monday, but a Friday. It should be a topic of happiness, since she would be out of the office for two whole days. Her inbox chimed. Scratch that. Because of the sketchy numbers in the recent reporting, they would be working Saturday.

Bobbie sighed, and for a moment let her head slip to her desk in defeat. It was only a moment though. She only had time for one little moment.

When Bobbie managed to leave her cubicle at the end of the day and trudge down the eleven flight of stairs, since the elevators were packed and she didn’t want to wait, all she wanted to do was eradicate the last 24-hours from her memory. Then she would be happy. Maybe. Happy. What an odd concept but that’s all she wanted to be. It seemed like an impossible feat. Bobbie had a niggling feeling that happy wasn’t going to happen anytime soon for her, if ever. She could honestly say her life was firmly planted in the Hot Mess category of the utter failure index. She could be the poster girl for failed basic single girl in action. And she was not being a Drama Queen. She was definitely not a fucking Drama Queen. She’s a realist. And the reality of her situation was that she was a walking, talking, waste of a life at the present moment. Things might change one day, but at the rate she was going—she wasn’t going to hold her breath.

2

Now Watch Me Whip

The esteemed Prince of a large province called Thames Virdan landed his ship in the middle of a baseball field that was located smack dab in the center of an island in one of the most tightly packed cities he had ever had the misfortune to visit. He had heard from a random stranger that there were over 8 million beings that populated this city, 1.6 million on this island alone. He had never been prone to anxiety, but it was as if he could feel the heat of a million bodies in the air around him and it made his chest tight.

His home province had half of that population encompassing a region one hundred times the size. His realm made sense. This was illogical living if there ever was. He had to give them some credit, though. Their advancement in travel was nowhere near his realm’s, so this did make sense when it came to commuting to and from work. They were restricted to vehicles with wheels or rails, for the Creator’s sake. Wheels and rails! He missed his home and was grateful for the bounty of his realm a little more each day.

Roc pulled up the viewing screen so he could make sure there was no one in the area to witness the ship’s transition. A group of females, all in barely-there exercise attire rushed past on fast feet. They all had gadgets strapped to them, their long hair pulled up in tight ponytails and sweat dripped down their well-muscled bodies. So different from the women of his realm. Just the variety alone on this planet was staggering, and the amount? There were so many of them, all unique and varied. Their skin ranged from the palest of peaches to the dark brown of the richest of soil. Along with their skin variations, they also varied in their hair colors, size and shape, both men and women alike. Dark brunettes like the citizens of his neighbor realm Polari, to the lightest of blondes which were only recreated with dyes on his planet. Some even had dark black hair like the people of his realm. And if that wasn’t enough, some men and women colored their hair in bright birdlike shades to look different, making them stand out in a crowd with odd pinks and greens. There were so many of them, it must take drastic measures like this to stand out in a crowd.

He watched the group of exercising women run by, not one glancing in his ship’s direction. He knew none of them was the one he searched for, but he had never seen a woman in such little clothing before he had come here, except for the few times he had managed to bed one. His dick hardened and he scowled at it. He cursed his own realm’s small population. He might not like this crowded place, but the sight of females behaving in such a free manner was inspiring. Maybe one day his own world could flourish like this one.

“If females were as prevalent as they are on this planet, we would have this kind of population, and women could act in such a fashion…” Rochford of Thames, Roc for short, had gotten into the habit of talking to himself in his native tongue as the isolation of his travels set in. He had spent a little over one of his planet’s rotations on Earth, and he was feeling homesick, especially in a congested city like this New York place. He yearned for the wide-open grass plains of his homeland. Real grass, not this odd cultivated green stuff. Green grass? It was so bizarre. He needed to get this mission over with and get back home to where things made sense.

Roc engaged the space folding mechanism and the ship faded out of existence, bending space around it so it didn’t exist in this time frame. It was a handy trick, especially in situations like this. He opened a door to the plane he wanted to be on and stepped out onto the bright green grass in which he had placed his ship. Holding up his wrist, he keyed in the retrieval coordinates and closed the door.

He had been in New York for a week, using nothing but his senses to guide him where he needed to be. His intuition told him this was the final trek; this was where he was supposed to be. He felt like he had been searching for so long with little results.

He was done searching. If he didn’t find what he was looking for tonight, he would have to take drastic measures. He stepped out into the night, wrinkling his nose at the smell of the city, exhaust from their vehicles, with the underlying smell of the flowers blooming around him. When the humans eradicated their exhaustive use of fossil fuels, this city would surely be a sight to behold. It wouldn’t be that long; his own people had relied on explosive technology a millennium ago until they found better ways. One day the humans would as well.

The night was just beginning, and even though it was late, the glow from the city never let it get too dark. No matter where he ventured, it was never too dark. Even in this empty field where they played sports during the day, and there were no lights, he was able to see without aid. He made his way out of the short-grassed field and onto the main walkways of the park. He smelled food almost immediately and his stomach grumbled. He hadn’t taken his nutritional supplement.

The humans of Earth had lots of strange customs. One of which was selling food from little carts and vehicles. He was unsure how these foods were prepared, but the humans seemed to love the little mobile food sellers and stood in long lines to buy their wares. He was hungry and tired of his supplements, so he approached the nearest food vendor.

“Food,” he paused and then added the nice word that was mandatory in this language to get things done, “please.”

“What do ya want? I got mocha, caramel, peach, strawberry?” the vendor asked Roc. He had no clue what the first two were, but he knew that the peach was a fruit. He wanted more than just fruit but thought this might be a good start.

“Peach.”

“Whip or no whip?” The vendor asked the oddest questions.

“Is it necessary to beat my food before serving?” Roc asked.

“What? C’mon man, there’s a line, stop fuckin’ with me. Whip or no whip?”

“Fine, whip it, if you find this necessary,” Roc grumbled.

“Whip it good,” the person behind Roc said with a laugh, and a few others joined them in their odd joke. He didn’t understand their careless mocking but was not one to let a slight impact him. He turned and glared at the man behind him. The man was nearly a foot shorter than Roc and underweight. He was used to intimidation due to his sheer size. In his realm, he was more of an anomaly than on Earth. The average male on his planet usually being about four hands shorter than Roc, females about five. There were quite a few Earth men in this region that were as big as, if not bigger than Roc, but it was still not that common. So much so, that people had a habit of walking up to him and stating plainly, “Man, you’re big.”

It was another odd habit of the humans, stating the obvious.

Roc glared down at the small man. He stepped back, knocking into the two people behind him. He held up his hands in an act of submission and Roc grunted his acceptance of the man’s supplication. He turned around and stared at the vendor who was holding out a cup filled with an orange drink, covered in a white frothy looking paste.

“What is this?” Roc asked in horror.

“Your peach mochifrappi with whip. It’s what you ordered, dumbass. That’ll be $12.85.”

3

Ice Cream and Cat Vids

Bobbie’s apartment was located in Inwood, an hour-long train ride from her work. When she finally got off at her stop and trudged up the steps to the main street that would take her to her tiny apartment, she was feeling pretty damn sorry for herself. She looked longingly at the closed bakery across the street, thinking how relaxing it would be to eat her weight in eclairs.

Then the skinny bitch inside of her called her a fat cow, and that fantasy went out the window. The bakery closed early anyway, and because of Bobbie’s schedule, she had never been able to taste their tempting wares. Another fact that niggled at her life sucks list. She decided on the walk up to her apartment that she didn’t need to eat away her troubles when she had a few wine bottles she had confiscated from the last client party. She had been saving them for a rainy day. Today seemed like a perfect ‘rainy day’.

The first thing Bobbie did when she got into her apartment was kick off her shoes, chuck her bra across the room, and pour some wine. It was cheap wine, but it would do the job. She sat in front of her computer and pulled up her favorite social media site. Nothing like zoning out to videos of people falling down steps and off trampolines to lighten her mood.

After the second glass of wine, she was feeling much better and her sides were hurting because of all of the laughing over the latest Fred the Ass post. That guy was hilarious, and his cat was even better. She couldn’t figure out how he got the little guy to do the stuff he did.

Her phone chirped, and she switched it to Do Not Disturb, thinking it was a co-worker, but she happened to glance at the screen first. It was her bestie, or the friend she thought of as her bestie. She wasn’t sure what Viv thought of her, since the girl seemed to have so many friends compared to Bobbie.  Bobbie figured she was just “another friend” to Viv, but to Bobbie she was only one of two.

Viv: Whatcha doing girl?

Bobbie: Being lame.

Viv: Coming to get you in 30. Got ur tix to party at Xink.

Bobbie started typing but before she could type in a reply, another message popped up from Viv.

Viv: Don’t even try to back out. You said you were going.

Bobbie: IDK

Viv: Stop being lame, c’mon.

Bobbie: I had a crappy day.

Viv: You told Chuck you’d be there, he’s got that auction thing.

Bobbie: FML I did say that.

Viv: Be there in 10.

Bobbie: You said 30!

Viv: Just slap on some make-up, I have a dress for you.

Bobbie stood in a panic. Her place was a mess. There was an open container of cookie butter on the coffee table and a pizza box from last night that she hadn’t bothered to clean up. Viv would judge her and find her lacking if she saw this mess. She needed to hide all the evidence. And now. There was one thing you could say about Bobbie, she moved quickly when motivated. She didn’t have time to put makeup on, though. She might have tripped a few times, but she blamed it on the wine, and not her usual suckage.

Ten minutes later her bell rang and Viv pushed her way through the door. She was a whirlwind of perfume, crinkling laundry bags and clacking heels.

“Where is your make-up? I guess I’m going to have to do that, too!” she said by way of greeting.

“O.M.Gee, girl, did you wear that to work?” she chided, not letting Bobbie get a word in.

“I had a bra on at the time,” Bobbie defended her pantsuit.

“You look like Hillary,” Viv scoffed.

“She’s got mad style for a senior citizen.” Bobbie was on the defensive.

“You are twenty-nine, not a senior citizen.”

“Thirty.”

“Hush, do not speak of that. Here’s the dress, but let me do your makeup first.” She brandished the strip of fabric, not giving Bobbie the chance to say no. The first thing to cross Bobbie’s mind was the dress was ridiculous. Bobbie picked up the plastic laundry bag with the slip of material in it to see if she was missing something. Maybe there was another part to it?

“It looks like a few pieces of material slapped together,” Bobbie frowned.

“It’ll look hot. You’re going to get auctioned off for charity tonight. You gotta make ‘em pay more. That dress will make them whip out their credit cards.”

“Wait, what? Is that what Chuck had in mind when he asked me to help out? Oh my God, I can’t do that! I thought I would be holding an iPad or something, directing guests to the auction tables.”

“Oh, yes you will. You’ll make some money for charity and get a date. Maybe get laid. Win, win, bitches! That bastard is smart.” She snapped her fingers and rummaged through Bobbie’s meager supply of make-up.

“Oh, hell no! Isn’t that like prostitution?” Bobbie stepped back and flung up her hands. She was not going to do this. Not even if it was for the best charity in the world.

“You told Chuck you would do it. If you back out now, he’ll never forgive you, you know how he is. We’ll never get into any of the clubs, you have to do this!” Viv whined.

“Why aren’t you doing this?”

“He tried, but Steven said no way, and yeah, I guess that makes sense since we are dating,” she laughed.

“Yeah, because he knows it’s like prostitution. He’s a smart man, you should hold onto that one.”

“It’s not prostitution. You don’t have to sleep with them. But if you are feeling the chemistry, I would go with the flow!” Viv winked and pushed Bobbie into a chair. She whipped out a makeup brush and began to work.

“Gah! I can’t believe you guys are making me do this,” Bobbie whined but pursed her lips when Viv squeezed her cheeks.

“You are doing this.” Viv poked her and began sprinkling powder on her face. Bobbie fell quiet as Viv went to work, her hands quick and practiced. She had gotten the knack of makeup application from her day job where she had become a jack-of-all-trades. She could do hair, make-up, and fashion in a few minutes, all under pressure and with someone screaming at her.

She flicked the makeup brush one more time and then sat back, inspecting her final product.

“It’ll do. Now get dressed.” Viv patted the plastic covered fabric.

“Where did you get this anyway?” Bobbie unzipped the fabric protector and pulled out the dress.

“Today’s photoshoot. The model looked really hot in it.” Viv shrugged. “Thought it would suit you.”

“I can’t fit in anything a model can wear.”

“It was a plus-size photoshoot.” Viv smiled big and Bobbie scowled at her.

“That doesn’t make me feel any better,” Bobbie sighed.

“Hey, those plus models are actually just normal sized girls. I swear the biggest girl was a twelve, and big is in right now. I wish I had your tits and your ass.” Viv ran her hands over her small breasts and frowned. She was stick thin and could eat more than most grown men. She worked in the fashion industry and often told stories of how the vendors sometimes mistook her for one of the models. It wasn’t cute.

“Yeah, and I wish I had your metabolism, so bite me.” Bobbie wasn’t feeling charitable at the moment.

“Put on the damn dress, stop feeling sorry for yourself and let’s get to the damn party. Maybe we’ll both get laid tonight.”

“I don’t need to get laid,” Bobbie pouted.

“Yes, you do. When’s the last time you got some, and Marlin doesn’t count. Sucking him off in the supply closet is not getting laid. When was the last time you had an orgasm that wasn’t caused by that plastic dick in your side table? By the way, I saw on Instagram that he’s engaged? You guys aren’t still fucking around, are you?”

“Why am I friends with you, you’re such a bitch?” Bobbie growled instead of answering. Viv glanced at Bobbie’s face and grimaced.

“You didn’t know, did you? Ugh, sorry about that, chick.” She patted Bobbie on the back half-heartedly. “Stop glaring at me like that, you love me. I shoot straight, you wouldn’t have it any other way!”

“I found out today, and yes, we were still hooking up in the supply closet.” Bobbie said the last little bit under her breath. Hindsight was always 20/20, and in this situation, Bobbie looked like a fool. Marlin and Bobbie had gone on a total of maybe five dates. They had sex after the second date and fell into an instant “old relationship,” where they did boring things and hooked up every now and again when they weren’t busy doing other boring things. The sex had been mediocre at best, and yawn worthy at most. Bobbie had worked up the nerve to end it, but Marlin had quickly tried to pursue her again with a vigor she had never witnessed in their one-year relationship. This ended in some of the best sex she had ever had with him, but nothing near like the best sex she had ever had (with Johnny Miller her sophomore year of college, the only guy who had given her a multiple orgasm, then proceeded to give her bestie those orgasms the next night, then tried to talk them into all doing it the third night). Because the sex with Marlin was better when they were broken up, they started a routine of sneaking off at work and hooking up in the closets. This soon led to boring and routine sneaking around, which for the last six months had consisted of her sucking him off, expecting him to reciprocate, but he had to hurry off to some errand and Bobbie was left wanting.

“Better now than later,” Viv shrugged. “This way you’re free to suck off as many men as you want in supply closets and not feel guilty!”

Bobbie glared at her friend harder and Viv winked.

“Get dressed!” She stopped fighting, grabbed the dress and went to her bedroom to change. She laid the material on the bed and looked at it with trepidation. Her day spun through her head like a broken movie and she didn’t know if she wanted to scream or cry. What she wanted to do was forget. And a night out, maybe some drinking—maybe even some of the good stuff from Chuck—would definitely help her forget. At least for tonight.

With a sigh of resignation, she grabbed the dress and wrestled it on. She glanced at herself in the mirror and gaped. Viv was right about the dress, even though Bobbie would never say it out loud. The dress was flattering and sexy on her. It was a bohemian style print dress, cut short to the tops of her thighs. The plunging neckline wouldn’t allow Bobbie to wear a bra, so she slipped it off through the sleeves. The flowing material did wonders for hiding the rolls and bit of belly that made her self-conscious.

“Got it on?” Viv cried, opening the door even though Bobbie didn’t answer. “Holy Buddha’s balls, you look fuckable!”

“Thanks, I guess,” Bobbie said and turned back to the mirror to work on keeping her boob in place. If she turned too fast, it popped out of the dress.

“I got tape.” Viv held up a packet of apparel tape. She began tugging on the dress and applied a piece to each one of Bobbie’s breasts to keep the material from revealing too much. She turned Bobbie to the mirror and looked over her shoulder at the transformed woman. Viv grinned and it was contagious, Bobbie grinned back. Viv had done an excellent job on Bobbie’s makeup and hair, and combined with the ultra-sexy dress, for once Bobbie felt sexy. Looking in the mirror and thinking that was a big step in positive thinking for her.

“You look amazing. Mirror selfie time.” Viv stepped out of the frame and Bobbie picked up her phone and posed in front of the mirror with lips pursed, but not too duckish. Leg out, hands on hip, she snapped a quick shot.

“What do you think?” Viv slipped into her own scrap of material, a fringed white tank dress that barely covered her twat. She had legs Bobbie would sacrifice her soul for, but she wasn’t lying about the no tits and ass part. If Viv was a B-cup, it was because of stuffing and you couldn’t figure out where her back ended and her ass began because it was flat as a board. Bobbie’s curves might not be as tight and hard as Viv’s lithe frame, and she might not have a leg gap, or be able to wear an XS, but it was good having tits and ass, even if her thighs had a penchant for rubbing together.

“You look fantastic, but don’t bend over.” Bobbie gave her the side-eye as Viv snapped her own mirror selfie.

“Why would I have to bend over?” Viv looked mortified.

“You always find a reason, usually it has to do with a line in a song that says ‘touch the floor,’” Bobbie joked.

“Never,” Viv laughed and packed her lipstick in the tiny clutch that perfectly matched her dress.

Bobbie’s phone pinged only a second after she Instagrammed the shot, and she frowned seeing it was Marlin.

“Marlin just liked my photo.” Bobbie rolled her eyes.

“Instant justice,” Viv laughed. “C’mon, bitch face on. You look good! You’re gonna get so many boys bidding on you. It’s gonna be a bro fight! They’re gonna be panting after you!”

“Whatevs.” Bobbie seriously doubted it, but she smiled a little from Viv’s comment. She was leery about going to this event. She wanted to just go out and have fun, not go to some charity party and get bid on by total strangers. What if some sleaze was the one to win a date with her? What if it was someone like Marlin? She didn’t want to think about that. She had to do this, she knew she couldn’t back out. If she screwed over Chuck, she risked becoming a social pariah.

Her second and only other friend besides Viv, was Chuck. Charles Haverly Jefferson Parrish the third. Chuck to only his closest first thousand friends. He was on every social wannabe list in the city, and could get you into every club and every party worth attending. He had gotten Bobbie and Viv into events that only the most elite attended.

Chuck was also Bobbie and Viv’s closest friend; the surprising thing was he started out as Bobbie’s friend first and she had introduced Viv to him. This wasn’t usually the case since it was Viv and Chuck who had the huge social group and introduced Bobbie to everyone.

Bobbie and Chuck grew up together and were inseparable until Bobbi’s life went from charmed to tragic. Chuck was shipped off to and elite boarding school in France when he was on the cusp of puberty, whereas Bobbie’s parents had died in an avalanche on a skiing retreat in Aspen. Bobbie had been sent to live with her Grandmother in Idaho.

Chuck was a spoiled trust-fund baby who counterbalanced his party ways and carefree lifestyle with lots of causes and charity functions. Bobbie had only recently come into her inheritance when she turned twenty-five and her grandmother had passed. She used what was left to move back to New York, buy a quaint apartment, and pay off a few student loans. On her first night back in the city, she and Chuck had reconnected, since he was the only one she remembered, and had been fast friends again from day one.

Chuck was always trying to pull Bobbie and Viv into his charitable causes and if they refused, he would pout and not talk to them for months. The last time they backed out of one of his events, they were put on the eighty-six list for six-months, until Chuck finally forgave them when he wanted premiere tickets to a show only Bobbie could get tickets to since it was produced by a company owned by her employer. She had been surprised he couldn’t wrangle them up himself, but figured he just wanted an excuse to talk to her again. He was a pain in the ass, but Bobbie loved Chuck. He was one of her only friends. Had been for a long time. She didn’t have many good memories involving her childhood, but the ones she did have, usually involved Chuck.

“C’mon, I ordered a car and it’s almost here.” Viv held up her phone, a flashing car on the app showed it right around the corner.

“I know I’m going to regret this,” Bobbie sighed as Viv dragged her out of the apartment and didn’t stop to let her catch her breath as they hurried down the steps and into the waiting hired car.

“Just chill, Bobbie, you might be surprised what’s going to happen tonight!”

4

Baby Cakes

Roc tore into an overstuffed burrito he had managed to scrounge up at another street vendor and contemplated how these humans had managed to get to this point of evolution if this is what they subsisted on. He sat on a park bench, slurping his orange mocha thing, deciding it tasted nothing like fruit, and stared off into the wall of clunky metal and reflective glass that soared into the sky. It was like a massive wall that protected this tiny green space in the middle of the city.

He maintained a careful watch while he ate. One could never be too careful in this city. The humans maintained an ever-vigilant security presence, a local armed militia they called police. Their distinctly marked vehicles were on almost every corner, but they were still missing a lot of things. Assaults in back alleys, illegal substances exchanging hands in plain view, and a robbery was currently going down.

The police gave the people around the park a sense of security as they enforced an almost ridiculous amount of local and regional laws. From what Roc gathered, these humans had laws against consumption of certain chemicals, rules on how to use their air conditioning in a proper fashion, and even rules for where they must cross the streets. He thought most of the rules and regulations they enforced were ridiculous. The humans considered this realm a place of great freedom compared to the other realms on Earth. He did not want to visit those other realms.

“Say, man, you got something for me? I ain’t eaten in days.” A small man covered in dirty, mismatched clothing shambled up to Roc. He was limping, and looked underfed and weary from some kind of toxic substance. It could be that he was actually starving, but most likely he was addicted to one of the many chemical substances people took on this world to make them feel happy. Roc dug in his pockets and pulled out a few bills and handed it to the man who looked at the bills stupidly.

“No chemical substances,” Roc said gruffly.

“Anything you say, man. Thanks, no really, thanks.” The guy turned on his heel and hurried off, his limp not bothering him as much. Roc didn’t watch him leave; his eyes were on the building across the street. There was now a line of people waiting to go inside; all were dressed in the clothing that was in fashion in this region, all of which looked strange to Roc.

The common trend of the realm was tight. The men wore tight pants and tailored shirts on thin frames, the females wore small tight dresses on well-padded frames. It was usually barely enough to cover their more delicate parts. Lucky for Roc, the men remained covered, but with the tightness of the outfits he wondered how they could move around normally. He had taken to wearing tailored suits during his travels on Earth. It was considered formal, but it wasn’t restrictive and he wasn’t looked at oddly when he walked into a social environment with humans.

A car pulled up to the curb near the building and Roc felt an electrical jolt go through him. His body began to vibrate as if he were a magnet and he was being drawn to metal. He got to his feet and pitched his trash into a receptacle already overflowing with garbage, not wanting to get overly excited in fear that he was overreacting. His hands tingled with the nearness of something. Could it be what he was looking for?

He wondered if it could finally be her. Had everything he went through this last year led him here? Was his search over? There was only one way he could know for sure. He made his way to the crowd of people waiting in line. It was time to confront his destiny. And it looked like whatever he needed to find was in the general direction of whatever these people were waiting in line for.

“Why are you standing in this line of humans?” Roc asked a woman at the end. She turned, aggravation on her face, until she took him in. She pursed her lips and looked him up and down with an appreciative perusal. Women of Earth had no qualms about letting their wants made known; he found it refreshing. So much easier than trying to navigate the social etiquette of his planet. He did not find this particular human attractive, but he still found her open appreciation flattering. He smiled at her, and she began to speak.

“This is for Xinx, baby cakes, it’s the hottest club in the city, everyone who’s anyone is gonna be there tonight. There’s some kind of thing,” she said with a hint of seduction in her tone. She looked over his shoulder at his other manifestation and winked.

“If they do not let you in, why do you wait?”

“It’s all for show, a line means the club is hot, you know. I’ll get in, they let the hotties in first,” she cocked her hip and shot him another sultry look. “Stick with me and I’ll get you in.”

“You stand at the back of the line,” Roc observed honestly. She rolled her eyes as if what he said had offended her, but it was the truth. When her appraisal turned to an outright glare, Roc turned away from her, walking down the length of the line until he got to a revolving door where a muscle-bound human stood sentry, dressed in black and holding a clipboard.

“In the line if you aren’t on the list,” he said in a robotic tone that clued Roc in on the fact that he had been saying it repeatedly.

“I am not on a list, but I will not get in that line,” Roc said.

“Then you will not be getting into the club,” the human said, mocking Roc’s accent. The man turned away, dismissing him, which should have infuriated Roc, but he was getting used to this behavior on Earth. They did not know him, or his important role. It was not their fault. He also knew how to handle these situations.

Roc dug into his pocket and pulled out two bills, which he assumed would be suitable. He placed them on the clipboard that the man held in his hand like a shield. The Earthlings put great value on these papers, associating them with currency and trade, much like his people treated silica and obsidian. Printed paper was absurd in his opinion, easily corrupted and misused, but it had been easy to come by when he first landed.

“Does this help?”

“Yes, sir, I see you and your—" he looked behind Roc, “brother are on the list. Through the doors and take the elevators to the top.”

Roc forced a happy gesture with his mouth that the humans used so liberally, and walked into the building. The tingle began again as he neared the elevators. This had to be it. He pressed the button to take him to the top floor, and hopefully to the end of this damned mission.

5

ass slapping, panty wetting, jaw-dropping hot

The line for Xinx was down the street and around the corner by the time Bobbie and Viv made it. The club was located on the top floor of an office building in Manhattan. The lobby of the building was where the line began and guests were ushered into elevators when they were “approved” and sent up to the party.

Viv and Bobbie had been to Xinx a few times since it had opened a year ago. It was one of the more intense clubs in the area and they always had a good time when they went. They knew the drill of a Chuck night out, and avoided the line by heading through another set of doors at the side of the building. They walked across the lobby like they owned the place, which was the key to getting into any club. They directed their attention to a woman with a clipboard and headset standing in the middle of the lobby. She frowned at their approach.

“Vivian Hill and Roberta Flemming,” Viv said with a smile and pointed at the woman’s clipboard. The woman said something meant for her headset, probably repeating their names to whoever was in charge. She nodded and tapped the clipboard, pulling something from underneath, her demeanor changing immediately when they were confirmed guests.

“Good evening, ladies.” She handed Viv and Bobbie key cards with VIP stamped on the front on sparkling glitter lanyards with Chuck’s charity printed down the side. The girls put them around their necks.

“Those will get you into the back elevators which will take you to the VIP section. Take the lifts to the right. Have a wonderful night.” She smiled a pretty smile and gestured to the area with a secondary set of elevators set back from the lobby floor. This was a first. They had never been in the VIP section of Xinx before. Bobbie felt a tingle of anticipation in her stomach.

As the girls walked across the floor to the elevators, everyone in the long line stared at them with jealousy. Bobbie couldn’t help herself, she walked a little straighter, her sashay a little more pronounced. This was exciting for her, and she was glad, for the first time ever, that Viv had dragged her out.

“This is awesome,” she whispered and Viv flashed her a grin and a nod in agreement, as she placed her card into the slot in the elevator and it called the elevator to them, sliding open silently in just a few seconds. Their ascent to the top took only a moment. They had barely enough time to take a deep breath before the door slid open to the pulsing sounds of one of the hottest DJs in the city. The music was thick and rapturous; the heavy beats of the EDM music slammed into the air like a living entity. It crawled over Bobbie’s skin and urged her on, making her want to move, to dance.

They had been deposited in the back area of the club, directly in the VIP section, roped off and raised above the dance floor. Women dressed in corsets with their hair pulled back in tight ponies served drinks or other specially-requested items to the patrons. Some of the women even entertained the guests with a bit of hands-on attention and Bobbie tried not to stare too hard at what was being done in some of the darker corners of the space. Bobbie’s eyes landed on a cocktail waitress sitting on the lap of a man she was apparently serving. She lifted a glass to his lips while he massaged her leg. That interaction was tamer than most Bobbie had seen, but it was still disconcerting.

Chuck noticed them the moment they stepped onto the platform, and he rushed to their sides excitedly, flailing his hands around in an overly dramatic reaction to their appearance.

“Perpetually late, Bobbie and Viv! Nearly gave me a heart attack,” he exclaimed but clucked appreciatively over their attire. “The festivities are about to start. Viv, go play with Geoffrey and Mel, I have to get Bobbie to the stage.”

“I don’t feel comfortable with this, Chuck.” Bobbie didn’t move, hoping to back out of whatever he had planned. He was having none of it. He grabbed onto her arm and began to tug her forward.

“Stuff it, Bobbie, you’re always complaining about how you can’t get a date with a wealthy, put-together man. Viv and I decided to force the issue.”

“I’m never going to forgive you for this,” Bobbie pouted, but gave in to his tug and let him drag her along. “What if I get a troll?”

“There are no trolls here! I promise you, we have strict requirements for this event, yes indeed. And you will forgive me, yes you will. You’ll probably kiss my ass with thanks after the guy who bids on you gives you a massive amount of orgasms and lavishes you with expensive gifts and toys.”  They made it through the crowd and to the side of the raised stage where the DJ was located. Four other women and two men stood nervously to the side. The women were as dolled up as Bobbie and all of them had generous curves and were somewhere in their late twenties or early thirties.

“What is this? Auction off a desperate chick night?” Bobbie said in horror, looking at the other women.

“Hush,” Chuck whispered directing a glare at Bobbie. “It’s for a good cause. And all the girls being auctioned are hot up-and-coming professionals. Just like you! Be quiet, and get your ass up on the stage when I call you. Same goes for you, ladies.” He gestured to the women behind stage and placed his foot on the first of three steps that led to the microphone stand as the music screeched to a close.

“This is happening right now?” Bobbie squeaked.

“You’ll be fine.” He pecked her on the check then turned with a flourish and climbed onto the stage.

In typical Chuck fashion, he strutted across the tiny area, grabbed the microphone, disengaging it from the stand and taking it in hand. He smiled big as he stepped to the front of the stage and gave an exaggerated bow like he was about to perform a circus trick.

“Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the BABS Humanity Effort Annual Auction!” A smattering of applause erupted from the crowd, with a few half-hearted woo-hoos. Chuck pursed his lips and put his hands on his hips, giving the crowd a good glare until they relented and the applause increased.

“Now that’s better!” He smiled, flashing his perfect, straight, white teeth. “You’re here for a good reason, a charity that is near and dear to my heart. So, get out those phones and start bidding. Look around at the tables near the bar and join in on the silent auction—all you have to do is type in your bid via the app. We have some wonderful items donated by our very fabulous sponsors! I don’t know about you, but I could use that Rolex Jillian Jewelers has up for auction, or that trip to Cancun from Bildy Travel, so you better get your bids in quickly!”

Bobbie’s curiosity got the better of her and she stepped up on the first step to get a good view of the crowd and auction items. She could use a trip to Cancun, she hadn’t been to Mexico in a while and could always use a little R&R. Chuck had the place set up nicely with the tables against the half-walls that separated the VIP section from the main bar area and dance floor.

All she could see of the auction items were the elaborate balloon centerpieces, and printed signs that described each item for auction, along with instructions on how to download the app. Bobbie had no idea what Chuck’s charity, BABs Humanity Effort, did, but it seemed to be popular with men. It was a packed house with a high ratio of men to women in the crowd. In fact, the majority of faces peering at her from the dance floor were men. Viv would call this a sausage fest.

Most of the guys in attendance looked like business men, dressed in suits, or polos and dress slacks. There were a few that were more casual in jeans and button downs, but most of them were dressed better than the usual bar crowd Bobbie was used to.

As Bobbie was scanning the crowd she felt of tickle of awareness in her chest, a charged air feeling like you would experience before an electrical storm. Across the room, two men stood straight as boards, reminding her of military men. They stood out from the crowd around them, not because of size or stature, but because of the way they held themselves, and for the simple fact that they did not talk, they held no drinks, and they stared straight at Bobbie.

It took Bobbie a moment to digest another startling fact. They were exact replicas of each other. Identical twins down to the smallest detail. That was something you didn’t see every day. Made even more rare by the fact that they were ass slapping, panty wetting, jaw-dropping hot. Like hawt with the annoying aw in it. It was rare enough to see one incredibly delicious looking man, but give him a twin and that was the shit out of a really good made-for-chicks porno. They stood tall compared to the other men around them, but not stand-out large, maybe an inch or two over six foot if she was judging correctly from this distance. They had perfectly bronzed skin, as if they had Middle Eastern or Hispanic roots, and to add to that ethnic look, their hair was the darkest black and hung down around their faces in messy waves.

Her eyes locked with the twin that stood closer to the stage and she was startled to notice that she could tell what color eyes he had from this far way. They were the most intense shade of piercing green. She could only find one word to describe them: stunning. They exuded intensity she could almost feel, rubbing against her skin from across the room. She couldn’t stop staring. She wanted to walk over and smell them.

That was an odd thought. Even for Bobbie, but that was precisely what she wanted to do. Men like those two had to smell delectable, like let me lick your neck yummy. Anything else would have been a crime of nature. She frowned at her own perverted narrative, but her hormones were ramping up just looking at these two. If looking at them did this to her, what would it be like to—she couldn’t open that can of worms when she was about to go up on a stage in front of hundreds. She was so flustered by her own thoughts she lost her balance on the step and grabbed the woman next to her to steady herself.

“Sorry,” she mumbled an apology.

“Geez.” The woman steadied her with a scowl, but when she saw what had captured Bobbie’s attention she froze. “Oh wow, yeah, I would fall over, too.”

A stirring of jealousy filtered into the lower parts of Bobbie’s stomach and again she was struck by her strange emotional reaction to these men. These men were nothing to her, yet they were stirring up all kinds of drama in her brain? She tried to tell herself she was acting ridiculous, but that didn’t stop the feeling of possessiveness deep in her gut. Their eyes were still on her, and she could feel their gazes trailing up and down her body, leaving a path of heat that had her panting slightly and her cheeks going bright red. She needed to calm herself. She turned her back quickly and hid her face. She wasn’t used to this kind of reaction to someone of the male species.

“Wonder where they breed men like that,” another auction item added. “Because I’ve never seen anything quite like those men before.”

“Me either,” Bobbie managed to choke out, getting the nerve to turn and face the twins again. She was trying to control the urge to poke these girls in the eyes and scream, “mine!” Her eyes found them in the crowd again, and they were still looking at her. Intense and almost feral, their gaze devoured her, but there was little emotion in their countenances, only something that could be described as calculation. There was no denying they wanted something from her. She hoped they weren’t debt collectors, illegal organ harvesters, or something else equally nefarious.

She didn’t know what to feel about their intense stare, only what it was doing to her insides. It was turning her on in the weirdest way, and giving her the urge to rush over there and lay a claim. From the look they shared, her outlook on the auction did a full 180, because Bobbie wanted to be auctioned, and she desperately wanted those two fine specimens to bid on her and win. She didn’t care which one, only that one of them needed to win her.

“Now for the main event. Ladies and gentlemen, get out those bidding paddles because do we have something exciting for you! I have gathered ten single ladies and gentlemen from across the city, all prime specimens of singleness. They are ready and willing to go out on a date with you! Local restaurants have graciously donated fully comped meals, along with tickets to some of the latest Broadway extravaganzas…how can you deny the awesome that is this auction? You get a free meal and maybe make a love connection, or a new friend in the process! Get those paddles out!”

Bobbie heard Chuck’s words, but her mind was elsewhere. She shyly looked up and tried to find the twins. She saw that one of them was talking very animated, she presumed to the other. He held up his wrist to cover his mouth, but she could see the dip of his jaw, the rise of his eyebrows. She wondered what they were talking about. Maybe they were talking about her? Maybe they were fighting over who would get to bid on her. In Bobbie’s dreams.

“Roberta!” Chuck’s voice snapped her from her inner musing about the twins and she smiled; an automated response.

“Come here, Roberta. Isn’t she lovely, gentlemen? Because, yes, Roberta, likes men…don’t we, Roberta? That means this bid is for the gentlemen in the house. Sorry, ladies, but don’t worry, we have some for you, too, just a little bit later!” Bobbie nodded dumbly and walked out onto the stage. She found a spot with an X marked in tape and stood there trying to look casual. The lights were too bright, she couldn’t see the crowd.  A loud applause had broken out and she looked at Chuck questioningly. “For you, dumbass,” he mouthed. Bobbie smiled a nervous smile and did some weird curtsy thing that she prayed to God didn’t get recorded and uploaded to social media. She tottered and glared at the man with his phone held high. She knew she wouldn’t get out of this without a modicum of embarrassment. She just hoped it wouldn’t be that life-shattering, like make it on a meme.

* * *

When the female stepped onto the raised platform in the middle of the room, Roc felt the floor beneath his feet give way. Time stopped and his vision narrowed to only her. Every beat of his heart, every pulse of his veins changed orbit and found her as its center of rotation. She was his sun, and he sighed as his entire being aligned around her. He rubbed his fingers together, looking down to see a charge spark between his digits. He stared down in shock. The truth of everything shown to him in that tiny spark. They were charged. The prophesy was true.

His people channeled energy through their molecules; it was how they split, how they gained sight. His world was all about energy. Yet, he had never experienced energy manifesting in this way. The euphoria of the culmination of half a century of searching filled the void that was inside of him. The void he hadn’t realized existed so absolutely until this moment. He had yearned for his Charge Mate, for what it could mean, but he hadn't realized exactly how his life would become complete once this mission was over. Goosebumps broke out on his skin, and it felt like his hair was standing on end. It was true. He had found her.

He had begun to doubt the prophesy. Especially after so much time had passed in his search. This planet was too big. The people too many. He thought he was chasing someone compatible. Maybe slightly matched. But, here he stood, looking up at a female whose charge matched his perfectly.

A female of another species. This was supposed to be impossible. He had found his Charge Mate.

The shamans of his world called it the fingerprint of the creators. His people’s and Earth’s people shared similar natures. But to share a charge! This would set his world upside down. This proved that the life that existed on the Otherworlds were too much of a coincidence to be not engineered. The Universe was so vast, so foreign, the intelligent species of the universe so varied, yet, here in this section of the galaxy, across a shared wormhole, lay two planets with intelligent life that matched. Both species were so similar they could be the same. Both had the spark within them, and they could reproduce together. If that wasn’t a sign of an intelligent creator, then what was? Some argued that his people were seeded from a great species of aliens that came before them. A species that created life in its image and planted them on the nearby planets. Roc didn’t know what to believe, he only knew he was staring at his destiny. His female.

The female in question was breathtaking. Absolutely perfect. She was a rare flower in a sea of common wildflowers. Statuesque and lush, her height rivaled most females on his planet, but where the females of his planet were petite and willow-thin, she had curves upon curves. He hadn’t thought he would be so fascinated with breasts, but the dress she wore showcased the sides of them, and their plump roundness teased him with the hope that the material would move an iota and show him the world.

His dick hardened, and he adjusted himself. It even affected his other manifestations, which usually wasn’t the case. He was hard as a rock, even on his homeworld, which was kind of embarrassing since he was in a meeting back in Thames.

Distracting himself, he focused the majority of his consciousness on the meeting about the centralized sewage system in the Capital City. It wasn’t working. The female—his Charge Mate, did a turn and her skirt flared slightly, her calves, the coloring so different from what he was used to, were exposed for everyone in the room’s eyes to behold. Their creaminess, tantalizing even from this far away.

She was an apparition he couldn’t have imagined. Different, but the epitome of everything he could have asked for in a Charge Mate. Her hair was the color of his favorite flower, the Kori that bloomed on the side of Mele Mountain, the highest peak near his home and a favorite spot of his from childhood. Her red locks were highlighted with what looked like spun gold and hints of rose that cascaded down her body in a style that reminded him of a waterfall.

Roc wanted to rush the stage and claim her as his own. He wanted to throw her over his shoulder and bring her to the nearest bed, and explore every inch of her creamy skin. He could imagine his bronze hand against her thigh, such a contrast in color. He knew that she was his perfect match. Every molecule of his being recognized her as his Charge Mate. She was everything he could have ever wished for and more, and all he had to do was buy her.

6

Can I please buy a redhead?

“Roberta, Roberta, Roberta!” Chuck did a bow in her general direction. “This fiery redhead is every male’s dream! Roberta, who her friends call Bobbie, is one of the city’s top Estimators at Putman and Urgon. She is a Virgo and likes her men well-equipped…” He paused for dramatic effect and there were a few titters in the crowd. Bobbie felt her cheeks get hot and she could have killed Chuck if they weren’t in public. “…with the necessary tools to treat her right. If you bid on a date with Bobbie, our sponsors have donated a Monica Limousine service for the two of you, dinner at L’Ubligia and a make-over for both of you at Lapistos’ Salon and Spa, along with two tickets to see Big Catch at the Totalia. Nice, right?” He paused for the crowd to clap and they did as expected.

“Roberta is a catch, gentlemen, she’s a non-smoker, doesn’t have a cat and probably makes more money than you. Let’s start the bidding at a cool five, what say you, boys?”

A man raised his hand from the corner and Bobbie could have died of embarrassment. She recognized him from her building. They didn’t work for the same company, but maybe he was bidding out of pity? Five hundred didn’t seem worth all the donations of things they would get to do. Or was it five dollars? That would be ridiculous. Why did Chuck start it so low?

“Six, anyone for six thousand?” Chuck called and another man at the back of the room raised his hand.

Six thousand? Bobbie’s mouth popped open in shock and she made a point of slamming it shut when Chuck shot her a look. A man in the back raised his paddle. Another one after that. Then another. She could feel her cheeks flaming and she had to do a breathing technique her therapist taught her to keep her panic in check.

“Ten, anyone for ten?” Bobbie’s eyes shot up trying to see through the bright stage lights. Her eyes landed on one of the twins, a paddle held high. That slow burn of arousal washed over her from her chest to her thighs. It was lustful anticipation and something Bobbie had never experienced before in her life. If they could turn her on just from a look, she couldn’t imagine what they would do if they won the date. She worked up the nerve and shot the twins her biggest come-hither smile, hopefully conveying to them that their bidding was welcome and to do more of it.

The number increased. There were two men in the back that were bidding against one of the twins and all three seemed dead set on winning. One of the men in the back would throw up his paddle, then the other guy, who Bobbie couldn’t see that well, would throw his up, and then promptly one of the twins would bid. When it hit twenty-five, it was between the twins and only one man, at thirty the man in the back shook his head and disappeared into the shadows. Bobbie felt bile rise in her throat.

Thirty. Fucking. Thousand. Dollars. All to win a date with Bobbie Flemming. She couldn’t believe it. And one of the twins had won. One of the twins who turned her on with just a look. She needed to get some air, she might be hyperventilating. She might be about to spontaneously combust. She was having some kind of fit. Like in the old times. Where were smelling salts when you needed them?

“Sir, you have yourself a date! Come claim your prize. Get to know the lovely Roberta, and you guys can set up a date to get together.” Chuck motioned for Bobbie to leave the stage and began to introduce the next person.

Bobbie carefully made her way down the stairs, her high heels a menace when it came to the uneven floor. Her eyes were on her feet as she took the couple of steps to the dance floor and when she looked up, there were two massive men standing there with a woman in a headset talking to them in a fast, high-pitched download of information.

“You have thirty days to claim your…err, date,” she was saying. “When you agree on a time, come find me and I’ll make the reservations for you. You can go for your makeovers that morning and we’ll have limos to take you to your set meeting place. Get to know each other, find me when you’ve agreed. Enjoy yourself, you have no obligation to each other tonight, other than to set that date,” she repeated over and over again, until finally one of the twins stepped around her to face Bobbie.

The twins didn’t even look at the woman who was talking. One took the business card she forced into his hand, but their eyes never left Bobbie’s. They had spent thirty grand for a date with her. A tingle of apprehension washed over her. What kind of person spends that kind of money to win a date with someone like her? Chuck had greatly exaggerated her monetary status, plus she wasn’t that easy on the eyes, so why? Maybe it was the dress?

She didn’t make a lot of money at her job. She barely had two grand in the bank for her future retirement, much less thirty lying around waiting to be given to a charity for a date. She began to seriously doubt this guy’s frame of mind, but then she started to think about which man was it exactly? She didn’t know which one of the twins was her date. Would they both go on the date with her? That would be pretty awkward. Her inner boujee princess did think it might be interesting, maybe sexy, but awkward nonetheless. The mechanics of the whole thing would just be weird to work out. What would go where? Her cheeks flamed at the thought as she knew exactly what she wanted where.

As Bobbie’s mind drifted to the mechanics of dating both twins, she didn’t hear one of the twins as he spoke. He was smiling, but didn’t look happy if that made sense, or friendly for that matter. It looked forced. His smile was rather menacing, and scary as hell as she thought of what could go wrong with this entire scenario. Her legs shook a bit, and her own smile fell from her face, lustful thoughts gone as a million and one ID Channel scenarios fluttered through her brain. Stranger danger! Had she really been dying for them to win the auction? What was wrong with her!?

“I’ll need you to fill out some paperwork. Would you like to take a seat in the VIP section and I’ll come up and find you?” The woman broke the weird moment, and pointed to the VIP seating area.

“Yes,” the smiling twin said stiffly.

“Do you need an usher?” the woman asked.

“I know the way,” Bobbie said helpfully, thinking this might be a good time to make a break for it. She did not want to be alone with these men. They were a lot bigger than she initially thought. They must be at least six foot five. And not a lanky tallness. Their shoulders were wide and imposing, their bodies large and muscled. They wore suits that fit their physique perfectly and screamed money and privilege.

“I would like to join you in a quiet spot, female,” one smiling twin said in a heavily accented voice. Bobbie was usually good about placing regional accents, but she didn’t recognize this one at all.

“Bobbie, female is not appropriate,” she corrected automatically as she moved forward through the crowd. People moved to the side as soon as they noticed what trailed behind her.

“Bobbie,” the man repeated, as if the word was foreign on his tongue. They had made it across the dance floor with no issues, and the bouncer undid the velvet rope when Bobbie fished the lanyard out of her purse and flashed it.

“We have a table for you in the back, Ms. Flemming,” the bouncer said, pointing her to a seating area in the back corner. It was dark in that area, a little too dark. Most of the time horny VIP patrons would request this booth to get some privacy. She wanted to request another booth, but the place looked crowded and the attendant had already turned away from her.

“Thank you,” she said to no one in particular, and headed to the wide sofa with the twins trailing after her. Anxiety flared in her chest when she looked at the sofa, which, if she was being honest with herself, was basically a skinny bed. Should she sit in the middle and let them sit on either side of her, or should she sit on the end? She was torn, but in the end, she didn’t want to be crowded by them. She sat on the end and one of the twins sat next to her. He turned to her and looked her over from head to toe. That warm feeling she was getting accustomed to when around them flooded her body, pushing away the fear and trepidation and bringing that lust back to the forefront.

“So, I’m Bobbie and you are?” she asked, raising an eyebrow when they both stared at her for too long to be comfortable. The other twin had not sat down next to them, but remained standing. He looked away toward the crowd like he was a bodyguard.

“Yes?” he asked when she made a motion with her hand.

“Your name?”

“Yes, oh yes, my name is Roc,” he said and smiled that forced smile again.

“And your brother?” Bobbie was getting frustrated with this conversation. The two might be the hottest men she had come across in a long time, with their dark hair and bronze skin and very ethnic features, but they weren’t the smartest bulbs in the fan.

She mentally chastised herself for that thought. She was judging them too harshly. It was obvious English wasn’t their first language, maybe they weren’t digesting what was going on well.

“My brother?” he asked looking confused, his smile slipping.

“Uh, yeah, him. I’m assuming he’s your brother since you two are identical.” She pointed to the other man who wasn’t looking at them.

“Brother?” he said again, rolling the word around as if it was taking a bit of time to sink in, or translate. “Oh, him, he is unimportant.”

“I thought twins shared some kind of special bond? Unimportant is kind of mean, don’t you think?” She shrugged when he just looked at confused.

“I find you pleasing,” he said, changing the topic.

“Uh, well, thank you, I find you and your, err, brother pleasing.”

“This is a most unexpected custom your people have. We outlawed it on our wor—in our country. It is refreshing to see that you at least use it for charitable purposes. I hope the money we have issued to this Chuck person helps in your world—country.” That fake smile again, like it was being used to cover up how ridiculously awkward this moment was.

“Charity auctions are outlawed where you’re from?” Bobbie asked confused.

“No, we have charity. Auctions of females are what is illegal. They do not like selling females on my….in my…where I come from,” he stammered for a moment but recovered quickly. “It is considered wrong, since our female to male ratio is so low, usually most transactions of women are handled through families, with an exchange of land, or if the family has a significant position to forfeit.” He said this like it should make total sense to Bobbie. She stared back at him in horror.

“Transaction of women? Um, you do know this is only for one…” Bobbie was interrupted by the lady with the clipboard.

“Ok, Mister…”

“Roc,” Bobbie scoffed.

“Ah, yes, Mister Roc, here is your paperwork, please fill this out.” She thrusted the clipboard into Roc’s twin’s hand, the man looked down at the paperwork, picked up the pen she gave him and began to fill it out.

“Now, how do you plan on paying for this? Would you like to pay with a company check, or a credit card?” the woman asked.

From the inner pocket of his jacket, the unnamed twin withdrew three stacks of bills. He handed them to the woman, along with the clipboard. Both Bobbie and the woman gaped at him like he was out of his mind.

“Oh, okay,” she gasped and then pressed the button to her earpiece. “Joe, can you send security up here, I’m going to need an escort. Thank you, Mister Roc,” she said and hugged the money like a baby. She did a double take when she realized they were identical. “And Mister Roc two.” She grimaced, as her cheesy name registered. Guess she had the same mouth vomit issue as Bobbie.

The woman didn’t move until a big man dressed in black approached them. The woman went to shake the twin’s hand, but he ignored her and went back to scanning the crowd.

“So, Roc—what is it you do for a living? Pharmaceutical sales?” Bobbie asked still astounded by the money.

"Your outer layer is beautiful." Roc ran a finger over Bobbie's exposed knee and she shivered as electrical shocks spiked over her skin and traveled right to her core.

"That was different," she murmured looking down at her knee, uncomfortable with his attention, but excited by it at the same time. She had never had a reaction to a man quite like this. Actual sparks.

A noise from her left and her cheeks flamed red yet again. There was a couple getting a little hot and heavy in the section next to theirs. Roc’s eyes followed hers and he stared without shame at the couple, while Bobbie tried to not make it so obvious. The woman was sitting on her partner’s lap, facing out, and she was not trying to disguise the fact that his hand was merrily rubbing her out. The woman rocked back and forth as the man’s fingers moved in circles between her legs. It was scandalous, but exciting at the same time. From her close proximity to Roc, and the voyeuristic sights, Bobbie was becoming hopelessly turned on by the whole situation. And she did not want to be turned on.

"Is this an acceptable mating area in your culture?" Roc asked. He had moved closer to Bobbie and she shivered as the warmth of his skin touched hers. He didn't sound offended, just curious.

"Not really," Bobbie whispered back. She was a bit put off by the couple’s open display but oddly fascinated with how much the woman was enjoying herself. She couldn't remember the last time she was that into a bit of fingering.

"Their coupling lowers my patience greatly. I would like to engage in a similar act with you." He spoke close to Bobbie's ear, and when she turned her head to gape at his forwardness, their faces were practically touching.

"I think we should get to know each other more, before we—uh, if we—she said, her lips mere millimeters from his. “I’m not that kind of girl.”

“You are not a girl, you are a woman, that is pleasing to me,” he parried.

“Is that all it takes, to be pleasing to you, no Y chromosome?”

“I know nothing about chromosomes. I know only that our bodies are connected. I feel the spark. Can you not feel it?”

“I feel something, I don’t know about connected, though. That sounds rather stalkerish.” Bobbie grimaced.

“I can tell your body is preparing itself for mating.”

“Wait, what the—,”

“We are made for each other.”

"I think you might be getting ahead of yourself, mister." Bobbie tried to slide away from him, but Roc's hand slid out and wrapped around her waist, pulling her close to him.

“Your culture dictates mouth to mouth contact as an acceptable first step of the mating process, correct?” He did not give her a chance to respond.

His lips descended on hers and Bobbie stiffened. She half-heartedly tried to pull back, but he was strong and insistent. Her entire body heated under his touch, like a traitor it screamed for more attention. She told herself she had no other choice but to kiss him back. His lips were soft, yet brutal. His mouth plundered hers, pushing past her defenses and sending electric shocks directly to her pussy. Ping. Ping. Ping.

She jerked as those sparks ignited over her skin, seeming to erupt from her veins and pour out onto her body in sizzling waves. Her core flamed with need so intently that she had to physically break away from the kiss or she would debase herself and lift up her skirt and beg for him to touch so she could release the pressure. She needed to orgasm. Right now.

Gasping, she stared at Roc. Her breasts were heaving, and she placed a hand over her heart as he met her gaze. His face was unreadable, he showed nothing, not affected by the kiss as she was.

"You feel the connection, too," he smiled and this time it looked natural and not forced.

"That was..." she whispered. He reached out and took her hand, entwining his fingers with hers.

"Bobbie, I cannot wait to show you my home." He said it sincerely like this was a great honor to do so.

"Okay, but maybe we should go on that date first." She laughed under her breath because she knew she wanted to see his house and maybe his bed, and the floor, the shower, and even the kitchen table. She had never had sex on a kitchen table, but she had read about it a lot. It seemed like quite a nice endeavor to have sex on a table.

"So, I must go on a date with you and then you will go to my home?" he asked, clearly curious.

"Yes, well, maybe...if the date goes well."

"What is a date?"

"Really?" she asked, laughing. He only regarded her with that cool dispassionate look again.

"You know, a date. When a guy takes out a girl, or really, any two potentially romantic duo...doesn't really matter what gender…” She was stammering, and Roc was making no efforts to finish her sentence or help her out of her current blabbering mess.

“A couple, trying to make a romantic connection. They go somewhere and talk, get to know each other. Dinner, coffee, maybe drinks. To see if they are compatible so they can take their relationship to the next level, which is usually another date,” Bobbie finished in a huff, proud of herself that she had finally clarified what a date was.

“I already know we are compatible from our spark and I would like to increase our relationship. There is no reason for a date. We are, well, I will explain later.”

"Oh man, you are something," she murmured as he scooted in closer to her.

“Why am I this something?”

“You are so forward. I think we need to go on the date to get to know each other first. I hope that you respect my wishes, if not we can’t associate.”

“Would this not be a date? By your definition,” he motioned to the space between them.

“Well,” she shrugged.

“See, we are finding our compatibility. Are you ready to see my home?”

"I, well, this is really sudden. I think I'll just give you my number and you can call me, we'll go on that date...and see what happens." She got up as fast as she could and stood over him. She dug in her purse and pulled out a business card, not trusting herself to put it in his hand, she left it on the table.

"Really, call me and we'll set something up. I'm a bit…I don’t know. This is kind of crazy. Just pick next Saturday night, okay? I’m free.” She looked at the twin who was staring off into the crowd, scanning the area. He didn’t once look back at her.

Roc stayed seated, but he looked up at her with a little smile on his lips like what she was saying was cute.

"Call me, really, I can't wait to go on our date," she grimaced at the unintentional similarity to a once popular song, and turned, nearly tripping over her heels as she made a beeline for Viv.

7

Infuriating Females

Roc watched in frustration as his female ran away from him. She had felt the charge. The connection. She had even thought he was attractive, yet still she ran away from him. He didn’t know what to do. He must have her. She was his, he had even bought her. But, she seemed resistant to this purchase.

Had she been taken against her will?

This sometimes happened on other worlds he was familiar with. On some of the more primitive worlds, they would trade and sell their own kind, for either reproduction needs, or to put them to work in the more menial tasks that most didn’t want to do. Roc had thought Earth to be more advanced than to sully in slave trade, but often he was surprised by aliens and their customs.

If she would have been merely attending this social event, he would have had the task of convincing her they were connected and that she must leave with him. While Roc considered himself to be relatively charming, he knew he didn’t have that much charm.

But, she had fled, probably not thrilled about her life as a slave, even if she was attracted to him. He had to get her back. He had to explain to her that he wouldn’t own her. That they would be together as equals. That he was more likely going to be her slave… since the moment he had set eyes on her, she had owned him.

He felt a tightening in his chest as the panic of the loss of her began to manifest. He had lost her. He had let her go because he was too scared to make a move. He wasn’t used to being heavy-handed with anyone. People usually did as he bid, but he knew this might require a bit of heavy-handedness. He didn’t look forward to it, but knew it was probably necessary.

“Oh, where did she go?” The woman from earlier, the one he had paid off, came back to the table.

“She left,” Roc said, the words making things real, tightening his chest further.

“Oh, what a shame, but look her phone number is on these papers. Make a date, and then text me with it. I’ll set everything up.” The woman handed Roc a sheet of paper and he folded it and stuck it in his pocket.

“Fine.” He stood and moved away, using his extra muscle to clear a path, the woman sputtering behind him.

He looked across the crowd, but couldn’t see the female anywhere. Her hair color would stand out in the sea of browns and yellows. He needed to find her, and fast, before she disappeared from his life forever.

Roc began to push his way through the crowd, leaving the VIP area and going across the dance floor so he could get to the elevators, or whatever would get him to the ground floor quicker. That had to be where she was going. It was the way she had come in, that must be where she was going.

“Oh Papi, stay and play with me.” Warm female arms went around his neck and the scent of woman filled his nostrils. It wasn’t his woman, but it was a female, something so rare for him. He had only bedded one female in his lifetime, and only because she was a widow looking for comfort. His people don’t usually have recreational sex with the opposite sex. Since females are so rare and inaccessible, most are married off as soon as they are of age. Widows and barren females being the only ones with the freedom to take many lovers.

The woman pressed against him was the one from the line, he could smell the alcohol on her breath, and the loose way her limbs hugged him. She giggled and moved to the music, the warm spot between her legs brushing against his dick which hadn’t gone down since he had found Bobbie. She purred when she felt his erection and he growled, using his other hand to pull her off him and set her aside.

“Find another willing male,” he told her from his other manifestation while he headed in the direction of the elevators.

“Asshole!” she called from behind him, but he cared nothing about how she thought of him. All he cared about was the beauty who had run away from him.

Roc all but limped to the elevator, groaning as he saw the crowd waiting to call it up. It was primitive transportation, but it was the only one available. He glanced around and saw a sign that said stairs. They were on the 48th floor, but a descent had never phased Roc. He opened the door and took the stairs two at a time. In mere minutes, he was in the lobby with only a hint of sweat on his forehead.

The night air was cooler than it was in the lobby and he took a deep breath as he hurried out onto the sidewalk. There was a bustle of activity in this area with men wearing red vests running back and forth, and a sign that said Valet in big, bold letters on the sidewalk. A black car screeched to a halt and a man and female got out of the car, and without even looking at him, the man tossed his keys at Roc.

“Take care of her,” he called as stepped onto the curb, put his arm around the girl, and headed to the building.

It was a gift from the creators, was all Roc could think when he slid behind the wheel of the primitive conveyance. It was time to find his possession. His Charge Mate.

8

Prudes & prejudices

"I'm leaving," Bobbie said out of breath as she found Viv on the dance floor.

"Why?!" Viv stopped dancing and turned to her.

"It got a little intense with the guy who bought me!" she exclaimed. "Thanks for that, by the way." She pouted and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Intense, like he's a creep, or intense like your toes want to curl? I saw them, the twins, right? So fucking hawt…” She fanned herself and bowed her head as if under a great weight.

“Yes! And the toes," Bobbie said reluctantly.

"Then why are you leaving? Get back there and take one for the team!" Viv pushed on her, but Bobbie wasn't moving.

"I'm going home. It just got weird. I'll go on my date with him, hopefully we'll have great sex somewhere I can control the situation, and then we'll see where it goes. Right now, I do not want to get pounded like some hooker in a public place. Not my idea of a good time."

"You're no fun, orgasms in public are more intense.”

“I want to go.”

“I’m not leaving, so if you want to run away, get yourself home on your own. I’m doing this because I care about you and your lady parts—which need attention. Not because I’m a bad friend.”

"You're such a bitch sometimes," Bobbie frowned at her friend, but she didn't really mean it.

"I'm just looking out for you, you know you need this. If they have you all hot and bothered this quickly, you need to get naked with one or both of them. Both preferably, a little bit of double penetration.” Viv made a crude gesture with her hands and Bobbie gasped.

"I'm not getting naked with anyone tonight." Bobbie stepped back and held up her hands. “I don’t even know them!”

“Later then, prude." Viv went back to dancing and Bobbie glared at the back of her head. Finally giving up on trying to change Viv’s mind, she began to force her way off the dance floor toward the exit, which wasn’t as easy when she was alone. She pulled her phone out of her purse and opened the ride share app. Choosing the cheapest fare she punched in her destination and hit accept. She had five minutes before her car arrived. She figured she should wait outside, as far away from the twins as possible.

* * *

Bobbie was outside of the club for only a few minutes when a sleek, black, and very expensive vehicle slid to the curb in front of her. The door opened, the inside was dark. She should have checked for a sticker, or double-checked her phone for the type of vehicle.

"Nice ride," Bobbie murmured, trying to remember if she had accidentally checked off the wrong class. She wanted the cheap ride. This was not cheap.

She realized her mistake the moment she slid onto the back seat. She glanced down at her app and the car that was supposed to pick her up was five blocks away from her. The windows of this vehicle were illegally tinted. She couldn’t see the driver and the interior was so dark she could barely see next to her.

As her ass made contact with the supple leather, and her feet were firmly planted in the well, the door closed without any assistance, and her mind began chastising her for being the biggest moron on the planet. She deserved to be the next victim of a serial killer because of her vast amounts of stupidity.

“Let us go see my home now," the voice of her dreams/nightmares said from the shadows next to her. It was sinfully sexy and washed over her like she was submerged in a warm bath. It was Roc.

"Oh shit," she cursed and went for the door handle, but it was locked and the car was pulling from the curb and speeding into the night.

Roc slid from the shadows, revealing his disturbingly handsome features. His looks were almost otherworldly, he was so good-looking. He had strong chiseled features and a predatory visage as he looked at her. He brushed at his longish black locks that stood out in stark contrast to his bronze skin. She wanted to touch his hair, to help him get it under control, but she squeezed her hand shut so she wouldn’t be tempted.

"I was waiting for a paid ride, I didn't intend for you to bring me home," Bobbie stammered.

"I know, but I could not let my possession run away. You are mine now. I bought you for thirty thousand of your dollars.”

"I am not yours, you bought one date, you did not buy me. What third world country are you from that you think this is normal?" His charm was wearing thin now, no matter how sinful he looked.

"I paid a great sum for you. It was most of the human dollars I had on hand, but now that I have you, my mission here is done and I will not need the money.”

"Human dollars? Mission? What are you talking about?" Bobbie turned and stared out the window. She had to keep a bearing on where she was. This guy was talking like he wasn't going to return her. Was he kidnapping her? Was her life in jeopardy? Was she about to be sold into sex slavery?

Thin tendrils of panic surrounded Bobbie’s chest and she felt her heart rate increase.

“My mission was to come here to find my female. I have found her. My mission is complete. I can return home now."

“I don’t know what you’ve found, but it isn’t this female, mister. You can bring me home now because I will not be returning with you to your home."

"I am bringing you to your home. My home is now your home."

"I don't think so!" Bobbie exclaimed, fear now leaking into her voice, the pitch going up drastically with each word.

"You have fire, I like that. You will love my world, and my world will love you.” He grinned and that predatory look came in his eyes again as he took her in from toes to tits.

"Your charm just wore off, Roc, I don’t find you attractive anymore. I’m going to tell Chuck, and the BABs people, they can get your money back to you.”

“You can tell anyone you want, that does not change the spark that is between us.” He ran a finger over her exposed thigh and she frowned when that spark he spoke of tingled across her skin.

“Pull the car over right this instant and let me out. There will be no taking or claiming or sparks!"

"You have no choice, female. Please be quiet, and do not fight this. I know you are scared. You were probably not liking being a slave. But it will be better and we will be there shortly. If you would like I can make you feel pleasure as we wait. Would you like if I touched you between your legs like that couple in the drinking establishment? Would that settle you?”

"You are not touching me!" Bobbie slid farther back in her seat, pressing her side to the door, all while keeping an eye on the menacing twin.

"I will. Please do not fight me, you will find it most enjoyable,” he purred and ran his hand up her leg, pushing his other hand in-between her thighs and forcing them open with unimaginable strength. Bobbie knew right there that she was no match for this big man. He was going to rape her and probably kill her. She would be a face on a milk carton, or a re-creation on one of those detective shows. Girl dresses like a hooker, gets auctioned off to a stranger and ends up dead, her body found in the Florida swamps.

Bobbie tried to push him away, but everywhere she touched him to push him off, sparks flew, and she became more and more turned on. She hated her own body at that moment. Why couldn’t she be outraged? She should be enraged, fighting back with everything she had, but her traitorous body was caving under his touch. Actually wanting him to touch her, even though her brain was screaming no, no, no.

He reached up her short dress skirt and hooked a finger in her panties, one finger slightly grazing her labia, causing her to cry out. With one pull, the fabric tore and he ripped them away from her body.

"Please don't," she whispered as her whole body began to shake in what she thought might be fear, but she suspected it might be need.

"You do not want pleasure?" he asked as he palmed her torn underwear. He looked down at them and rubbed the lace between his fingers as if he had never seen anything like them.

“I don’t.” She barely managed to get the words out. The hand that was reaching out to touch her leg stopped in mid-air.

“I can sense your pleasure. I can smell our arousal. I do not understand why your body reacts to me, but your mouth is saying no. I would like to bring you pleasure, Bobbie.” His words were a purr.

“I don’t know you, you have forced me into this car, and are trying to take me against my will. I might be attracted to you, but I know this is wrong. You can’t force me.” A small sob broke through her lips and he frowned.

“It is not wrong. The spark that ties us together has shown the path of our future. You are mine, provided by the universe. I am yours.”

“I wasn’t provided by anything. I’m no one’s spark or whatever, the only person I belong to is myself.” Bobbie was proud of her strong words, how she got them out with a hard edge.

“But, do you not want to be completed? For just as you belong to me, I belong to you as well,” Roc said in a careful tone, his eyes showing the slightest hint of pain at her reaction to him. There was one moment, one tiny moment, when Bobbie felt her resistance slipping, when she almost wanted to let go and give into this spark he spoke of. But the voice in her head screamed to not be led by her libido. To not let this lunatic take advantage of her.

9

I Don’t Want To Believe

The car came to halt and Bobbie whimpered from the quick stop, the back and forth motion sent a shiver of arousal through her and she hated every second of it. She sat up straight and yanked down her skirt, hoping to hide how desperately turned on she was from her would-be rapist, the one who was too damn perceptive for his own good.

"We are here," he said and Bobbie glanced around. They were in an empty field. Would he kill her now? Did he bring her out here to dump her body where no one would find it?

"What are you going to do to me?" she said, unable to hide the quiver in her voice.

"Bring you to my home," he said incredulously. He had a slight tone of exasperation like he was tired of repeating himself.

“This is your home, this baseball field?”

"No, I had to hide my transport here."

"What?" she asked with confusion. The door opened behind her and because her back was pressed so hard up against it, she fell out onto the dew-laden grass. Before she could get too comfortable, she was being picked up like she weighed nothing and big arms came around her. She was held tight by Roc’s twin. He shifted her in his arms effortlessly to get a better grip on her, throwing her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. Because she wore no underwear, she felt cool air on the backs of her thighs and her exposed pussy. It was completely embarrassing. Like that wasn’t enough, his hand moved up her thigh and cupped her bare ass in a quick squeeze.

"Hey!" she cried, trying to swat at the twin, but unable to move her arms in that direction.

"You have nice assets, female, I cannot help myself,” Roc said, walking next to them.

"Bobbie," she growled.

"Bobbie, you have nice assets."

"So, because I have nice assets, you’ll let your twin feel me up, too? This is ridiculous and uncool," she said from her upside-down position.

"I don't understand this concept of twin," he replied as they walked across the field.

"You're both obviously fucked up in the brain. I don't know what your mom did to the two of you in the womb, but whatever she did, it turned you both into psychopaths."

"I only have one brain and it is not fucked up,” Roc said stoically. Bobbie dismissed this statement as more psychobabble and held still as the twin walked them across the field. She hoped if she played it cool an opportunity would arise and she could get away.

The field was large and they walked quite a distance. Roc chatted almost excitedly about his home and how much she would love it.

When they neared the trees, both men stopped and Roc held up his wrist and he touched it like it was a smart watch. He pressed a button and there was a popping sound a few feet from them. Bobbie tried to shift around and look at what was happening, but wasn’t able to see around the mountain that held her in place. She felt the air around them change, become charged as if a storm was about to descend quickly on the area. It was impossible to see, since all she had a view of was the twin’s ass, and the tight pants that sheathed it so perfectly.

A hiss of air sounded and a metallic smell tickled Bobbie’s nose. She again tried to move her body so she could see, but all she managed to do was make herself uncomfortable.

The twin holding her began walking forward and the clank of metal and the jolting of his steps signified that they were going up some kind of metal structure, but her view was of a glass like material that she couldn’t place. When she was finally able to get a view of their surroundings, she gasped. It was some sort of structure, made of glass, but not really because it had an almost metallic nature. There were decorations and designs like she had never seen before. The walls and floors seemed to be made of the same glass-like material and electrical patterns filtered through their depths in bright blues and purples. What looked like symbols flashed and Roc reached out and touched his hand to the wall, sending off a series of chirps and an automated voice spoke in a foreign language from hidden speakers.

There had been no structure in the field. Nothing like this. She knew for a fact there had been nothing there. She had assumed they were going into the woods so they could rape and kill her, she hadn’t expected this. She should be reassured. Her other option wasn’t exactly the best, but this was bizarre.

"Wa-where are we?" Bobbie stammered.

"My transport," Roc said proudly.

“Like, as in a car?”

“No, like as in a spaceship,” Roc said.

“A spaceship?” Bobbie’s voice was two octaves too high.

“It is a Terra accessible S-Class, one of the fastest atmosphere penetrating crafts made by my people,” he said with a bit of pride.

“And this thing is going to take me to your home. W-where exactly is your home, Roc?”

"Quadrant 89.3 of the Vion Solar System, on the planet Polaridis. That is my home.”

"Oh fuck."

10

Possession is nine-tenths or something like that

She was in his transport. She was his now. The glee of attaining her filtered through every aspect of his being. He hadn’t felt this much joy in a long time. He wanted to shout to the rooftops that he had attained the unattainable. She was his! The prophecy had been real. They hadn’t believed it could be true. They had mocked him when he made plans for this mission, when he obsessed for the last fifty years. His father’s new wife had taken to mocking him incessantly when she found out. It was unheard of. It was heresy. It was unnatural.

Never had an Earthling charged with a Polaridi. Never was it written in their records. His people had tried to stay separate from Earth, only observing them from afar, not wanting to interfere and impact their proper evolutionary tract.

He had even been told what he planned on doing was unethical, that if he were to take an Earthling to their home planet it would be akin to abduction. He didn’t want to think about that part of things, because he might have done that. She hadn’t wanted to come with him, said she wasn’t attracted to him. She was lying, well, about the attraction part anyway.

He had to show her his world. He had to make her understand what it meant to be a charged pair. They matched—in the long run that had to mean something. She would forgive him when she came to realize what he had done.

She had to. There was no turning back now.

* * *

Roc's twin walked down a long hall with her still thrown over his shoulder. He turned abruptly, placed his hand on the wall and a door opened. She didn't see Roc anymore, he had gone in the other direction, abandoning her with his Neanderthal twin. She didn't know why she was so affronted by his abandonment, but she didn't quite trust the twin. He hadn't spoken to her, she didn't even know his name.

Her world spun, and she was being upended over his shoulder and thrown in the opposite direction. She squealed and braced herself for a hard impact, but only soft luxury greeted her. She looked quickly from left to right and realized she was on a mattress of some kind. She ran her hands along the soft, silky fabric. It felt amazing, absolute pure luxury. The material seemed to embrace her body, filling in all the little cracks and crevices that needed attention and comfort.

"This will be your quarters, until you are ready to share mine.” The twin finally spoke, his voice was exactly like Roc's.

"I will not be sharing your bed or Roc’s! You two are screwed up." The twin cocked his head, his eyes narrowing as if she confused him.

“I do not believe I understand your planet’s customs as much as I should. I will leave you for the moment.” He straightened and quickly vacated the room, the door hissed closed behind him.

Bobbie was alone.

She looked around the room. It was richly decorated with lavish materials hanging from floor to ceiling, giving the appearance of being in a tent. It was not what she would imagine a spaceship to look like on the inside. The bed, which was a little smaller than a king, took up a good portion of the space, and on the far wall was a shelf that held some items that weren’t recognizable, and then another door on the far side of the room. She got off the bed and went to the door that led outside first, but she couldn’t find a handle. There was nothing to indicate how to open it. But when she walked to the second door, it hissed open when she neared it, like she was at a grocery store.

This room was odd shaped, and the walls looked like the glass material she had seen in the hallway, but they weren’t opaque. Light shined along different spots along the wall. They were what could only be writing, small symbols in a strange language she had never seen. She pressed the wall that held a symbol resembling three circles interlocking. A hole opened up in the floor, and portions of the floor raised up to resemble a seat. A blue light flashed, then turned to red. Was it a toilet? Bobbie peered down at the contraption. It certainly resembled a toilet. The hole in the middle of the seat looked like a receptacle to hold something and there was a light sheen of what looked like liquid running down the side.

Only one way to find out. And if it wasn’t a toilet, well, then Roc could clean up her piss. She chuckled and it sounded maniacal to her own ears. Served him right for buying her. Or was this an abduction? She was on an alien ship. The obvious conclusion was Roc was an alien. She grimaced when she thought back to how she was all lusty around him. She was the victim of an alien abduction, by a genuine alien. Sure, he looked very human-like, in a supermodel sort of way. Did that mean all supermodels were aliens? Was he going to anal probe her? She didn’t want to think about anal probes. This had to be some stupid trick. Maybe she was on one of those hidden camera shows that were coming back in fashion. What was that practical joke show called, the Yaboro Experiment? She couldn’t remember. He didn’t look like the skinny guy from that show. Maybe it was a new show? She looked around to see if she could spot any hidden cameras. All she saw was more and more of the glass like material the entire ship was made from. There was no way they could make up this stuff, right?

She hiked up her dress and sat on the seat. She felt something shift and the seat got more comfortable. That was a neat a trick. She did her business, and when she was done a puff of air blew across her vagina, sending warm tingles up her body and a fragrant aroma wafting around the room. She felt clean, even though there was no toilet paper to be found.

When she stood, the contraption closed in on itself and dropped back into the floor.

“Oh, sweet baby Jesus,” she said aloud. Of all the things she had witnessed tonight, the toilet did her in. It made her situation painfully apparent. There was no recreating that on a joke show.

She was on a spaceship.

She had been purchased in some weird mating ritual by an alien.

He was an overly horny, hot alien, but he still thought he owned her.

She didn’t know where to start when digesting this. Bobbie had never been an adventurous girl. When her friends had gone on white water rafting trips, she had stayed in the cabin and read. When her bestie from high school had set up a backpacking trip through South America, she had bowed out at the last minute. That time Viv wanted her to join her and her boyfriend in the sack, because she wanted to give him a lesbian fantasy for his birthday, Bobbie had said “hell no,” even though she had had a few bi-curious fantasies that revolved around Viv.

She was a coward.

Bobbie had always wanted to be adventurous, though. She loved to read science fiction books where the heroine was fearless and explored the far reaches of the universe. She also liked the ones where the handsome alien swooped down from the heavens and rescued the heroine from her drab human existence.

Which was kind of what had happened to her, if she thought about it from a different perspective? Hadn’t she been thinking how tragic her life was only a few hours earlier? How her love life had taken a wrong turn ages ago? How boring her job was? How she was a hot mess and a waste of a human?

And look where she was now. On a spaceship, headed to some alien world, with two hot aliens, one of which thought they had a spark.

Mind. Blown.

“Weakling,” Bobbie mumbled to herself, as even the hint of giving in crossed her mind.

She needed to get home. She needed to fight this guy until he was too tired to even bother with her and he sent her on her way. She wanted home. She wanted her drab life and her boring job. She wanted her non-existent love life. She didn’t want some spark that ignited her entire body and turned her on more than she had ever been turned on before.

A sob escaped Bobbie’s lips and she staggered to the bed and fell onto its soft expanse. The material clung to her body, snuggling her in, comforting her as if it was made out of Xanax and unicorns. She felt the stress of the day leach out of her, and the lights in the room dimmed as if reading her mind. She couldn’t process what was going on, she was so tired. It had been a long day. The room around her churned and she felt her body sucked further into the mattress. It was too much. She couldn’t hold on to things anymore. She closed her eyes.

11

Rule No. 1: No Sex With Aliens

Roc tapped into the human flight traffic system and began to monitor the paths of their flying ships. He could only fold space around the ship when it was stationary. Once he was moving he would be visible, and could possibly be tracked on radar. It was always a risk he would be spotted by a human on take-off, the inevitable UFO spotting, but his biggest worry was inadvertently crashing into an airplane, or more importantly, one of their military vehicles that sometimes did not appear on his radars. All he needed was a crash landing and questions from governments he couldn’t answer. The less the governments of Earth knew about his kind, the better. There were rumors that one of the other planets in their family of solar systems was in contact with the Earthlings, which accounted for their rapid progress in the last hundred years, going from animal powered contraptions to microchips in the blink of an evolutionary eye. But, that was only supposition because of the rapid advancement, and the prevalent conspiracy theories revolving around alien contact and crashes.

Before the Polaridi people were a space-faring race, there were never rumors of aliens or UFOs, so the human concept of Occam’s razor comes into play with the humans—the simplest explanation is usually the answer. They see UFOs and have numerous reports of alien crashes; therefore, aliens are most likely visiting Earth. There are at least seven space-faring races in this section of the universe, all with access to the Earth wormhole. His people were pretty convinced that one of the other alien races must have made contact with the people of Earth and they might even have inadvertently, or purposefully, advanced their technology. It was a highly debated topic on his planet. They always landed on the side of natural progression and no interference, but other races of people did not believe in the same principles. There had been talk by the Planetary Space Commission, a ruling board that oversaw the realm’s space travel, of investigating the matter, but nothing had come of it. In Roc’s year on this planet, he had gathered information about the sightings and human theories, which were mostly conspiracy theories and discounted as paranoia by the majority of humans. He would turn in his research to the commission on return and they could study the information provided and make a decision. He was grateful they had not opposed his mission to Earth, so he had to repay their kindness, even though permission was probably only given because he was heir to the most powerful throne on Polaridis.

Roc was used to getting his way, but he also made it a point to either repay the favors that were given to him, or show some kind of gratitude. He engaged the engine, using the Earth’s own magnetic field to fuel his take-off. He fastened himself into the flight chairs and braced for takeoff. There was a slight tugging on his midsection as he accelerated into the upper atmosphere and then broke through the protective layer that kept all of Earth’s breathable air safe and sound. He was staring at the expanse of space in under five Earth seconds.

When he had the ship in low Earth orbit, he sat back and let the view-screen go opaque, taking in the beauty that was this planet. His Charge Mate’s planet. A place she might not ever see again. Because of him.

Something unfamiliar wrapped around his chest and squeezed—guilt. If he had to do it all over again, would this be the way he would find his Charge Mate? Was this the right way to get her to his planet? He couldn’t think of any other way. His patience wouldn’t allow him a slow seduction, he didn’t have it in him. He had been waiting a long time for her, had been searching for her for over a year. Now that he had her, it was hard to restrain himself. He wanted to touch her, wanted to find out about her life, know what made her happy. She slept, though, and that was how it should be, this was for the better when they entered light-speed.

Plus, she had told him she didn’t want him to touch her.

Roc frowned at the controls under his hand. They swirled under his palm as he accelerated, bringing the ship into light-speed travel. He tried not to think of her harsh words, of her accusations, but they bounced around in his brain like little needles. The ship stretched in two directions as it was bent and catapulted faster than the speed of light. Part of him slowed, while most of him picked up speed, and he took a deep breath as he let his mind acclimate to the schism in his brain. Part of him moved at a different time and speed until his brain rectified the shift and compensated for the difference.

“She doesn’t want me to touch her.” Roc spoke aloud in his native tongue, so much more expressive than the words he knew in English, which felt like a heavy language full of double meaning and sarcasm. He had come to enjoy the nuances of the language, but he wasn’t very expressive with it, and sarcasm still went over his head.

Could he live with his actions if she couldn’t stand him? If she kept him at arm’s length? Could he handle that? He didn’t think so. He must convince her that he was her destiny.

* * *

“Bobbie, please wake up, you are very tempting all displayed on this bed in such a fashion,”

“What?” She moaned.

“I know you do not wish me to touch you, but seeing you like this…” Roc’s voice was warm velvet on her skin. She made a weird sleepy sound and stretched.

A very male sound emanated from the space above her. It was hungry, and frustrated. Her eyes popped open. Roc stood over her. He had replaced his fashionable three-piece suit with a strange bodysuit. Bobbie’s eyes trailed down the mountain of a man, her eyes landing on his crotch. The material was skin tight, and he was erect, plastered against his stomach, leaning slightly to his right. The size of him had Bobbie gulping back a gasp. It was so evident, and right there. He wasn’t as big as some of the men Bobbie had seen, mostly in porn videos and random internet searches or unwanted dick pics sent on social media, but he was the biggest man she had seen with her own eyes.

He closed his eyes with a groan when he saw what she was staring at. He slipped a hand down and adjusted himself so it wasn’t so obvious, but there was no hiding that monster.

“You are making things worse, my fe—Bobbie, if you do not wish me touch you, can you fix your garments and look at my face, not my…” His voice was a rough stuttering as he trailed off. Bobbie frantically looked at her own body to see what he was referring to. The tiny scrap of material she called a dress had shifted in her sleep. One of her breasts was exposed, her nipple hard and erect like his cock. To make matters worse, her dress was up to her waist, and she had no panties on so yeah, she might as well be naked.

A normal girl would have squealed and pulled her dress back in position, covering herself demurely, but Bobbie was frozen. She had done as was told and brought her eyes up to the man—err, alien—and now she couldn’t move, captivated by the deep green of his eyes when they opened and stared at her. They almost glowed and were the only alien thing about him. If she had been smart, she would have recognized that this wasn’t natural. Nothing about those eyes were human.

The black iris wasn’t round like a human’s; it had a slight slit to it, not quite as prominent as a cat’s eye, but evident enough when you paid attention.

“Bobbie,” he groaned. “I do not know how to handle your reactions.” He looked away from her eyes, taking in her body. His hand extended, his eyes again meeting hers, waiting for her to protest, but she was captured by his gaze and couldn’t look away. He ran a hand along her thigh tentatively. She jerkily looked down and this time she physically saw the sparks, they jumped from her thigh to his fingertips.

“You see them,” he whispered. “This shows our compatibility, that we match. This is our spark. Only a charged pair makes sparks like this.”

“I don’t understand.” Bobbie’s voice was hushed to match his low rumblings.

“A being of my genetic makeup has only so many potential mates, a match that will bring about offspring. When we get near a female that holds this capacity, we can sense it, and it is confirmed when we touch. Sometimes when the charge is strong enough a small spark displays. It is the energy that will allow us to join and reproduce.”

“Energy?” Bobbie gasped as Roc’s fingers slid millimeters over her skin, sending the sparks he spoke of careening off his fingers.

The feel of him was electric, but he hadn’t truly made contact with her skin. He dragged his fingers a fraction of an inch over her body and where his fingers trailed, she felt it on her skin, deep in her body, and through her soul. Her skin heated, flaring in reaction to the near contact. When he finally laid his fingers upon her skin, jolts erupted, burrowing into her skin and traveling directly to her pussy. She fell back on the bed gasping as she reacted to the intensity. Moisture pooled between her legs, her body desperately wanting to fuck.

To the alien’s credit, he didn’t push the issue. He knew she was reacting to him, but he only continued the light trail of his fingertips across her exposed skin and explained what was happening.

“Your race is carbon based, so is ours. That is why we breathe compatible air mixtures to exist. Carbon based is the most common in our universe actually, but it is not the only kind.”

“Sure,” Bobbie gasped. Proud of herself for being able to speak.

“Another common trait our races possess is the electricity our bodies generate. I alone produce enough of what your people call calories, that I can power this ship.”

“Like the Matrix?” Bobbie nodded like she knew what he was talking about.

“No, I do not think it is a matrix. I believe it is more like your Wi-Fi internet. Or what you call a battery.”

“Wait, you’re telling me, you’re like a battery? That’s ridiculous. That is like the Matrix, but that’s not real, it’s a movie,” Bobbie scoffed, finally finding the will with his ridiculousness to pull her skirt down and cover her lady bits.

“We both produce energy.”

“I think you might be mistaken, there is no way calories are powering this ship.” She managed to pull the dress over her tit and was happy now that she was covered.

“My race has adapted to intake energy a little differently than yours. I would only power this ship with my own energy if there was an emergency.”

“So, you’re an alien that is masquerading as a battery?” Roc’s hand froze and his mouth slipped into a frown, his fingers made contact with her calf, making her his as the sparks erupted further.

“I do not masquerade as a battery. I am from a race of people that has learned to harness energy and use it to travel the stars,” he all but growled.

“And you’re saying humans are the same?”

“We of Polaridis and Earth are basically the same. We have only evolved so our intake and output has become different.” He broke eye contact and looked down at her splayed across the mattress. She saw that hungry look in his eyes and knew if he went back to the earlier ministrations she might not be able to tell him no. And she needed to tell him no, he had abducted her! Abduction is wrong; it shouldn’t be rewarded with orgasms.

“Intake? You mean like eat? Drink? What does that mean? And I don’t even want to know about outtake.”

“Your race relies on water, and a daily intake of food, our bodies have adapted to intake pure energy along with consumed substances, because our energy output is greater. We can process food, water, and things like that, but we also rely on solar energy to survive.” He clenched his fist and made a little explosion motion with his hand, trying to simulate something that wasn’t sinking in with Bobbie.

“So, you eat sun explosions? That’s so different. How could you even think we could reproduce if you’re all like energy and I’m all like what, water?” Bobbie didn’t even try to overthink what she had just said.

“We both produce energy, the difference is that my people have learned to harness that energy, and it has become an innate skill. Now that our charges have come together, they will mingle and your body will learn to harness the energy like I do. We will produce optimal offspring of great abilities since our charges are so similar.”

“Whoa, mister—we just met and you’re already planning our offspring.” Bobbie ripped at the sheet under her and tried to pull it around her so she could cover herself more, but somehow Roc was leaning on the bed and restricting her from covering herself. She glared at him, trying to convey her full hatred of him in only a look.

“There is one reason we possess this charge,” he dragged his finger along her arm and a spark shot from his finger to her shoulder, making her gasp. “To know that we are compatible mates who will produce children. This is why when one of my people find their Charge Mate, they stop at nothing to be with them. Our numbers are so small, our Charge Mates are precious,” Roc’s voice turned menacing with the last few words and his fingers got more aggressive, this time finding the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. He was getting too close to the part of her that ached for him to touch. She tried to squirm away, but it was half-hearted. Her body was a traitor.

Her logical brain had slipped away. She heard what he was saying. She heard how wrong it sounded, but she didn’t care. All she cared about was his fingers, and those beautiful sparks he was causing to manifest around them.

“Those sparks mean we are meant for each other? Like soul mates?” She met his eyes again.

“It is not a sign of what you humans call love, or what my people call soul-matched, but it is the spark that starts it. It shows that our attraction will be immense if we acknowledge the pairing. It shows our bodies are matched, and when I enter you, when my cock slides into you, you will feel my energy fill you and you will never experience anything like it with another man.”

“Fuck,” Bobbie whispered. She took a deep breath and tried to center herself. “But again, you are getting a little ahead of yourself. No sex with aliens; it’s like one of my rules.”

“Let me show you how compatible we are. Let me claim you as my female,” Roc rumbled, his fingers inching toward Bobbie’s pussy. She wanted to give in. She wanted to say yes. She wanted him to show her about this spark thing. And she was kind of curious about this alien thing. Would he look human without clothes on?

The thought made Bobbie’s heart speed with panic. She shouldn’t be thinking like this. She should be trying to get away from this crazy alien, not laying here with her naughty bits on display and practically begging for him. Why wasn’t her logical brain taking over? It was time to pull down the stupid too short dress and demand to go home.

But if his touch could make her feel like this, what would his tongue feel like? His dick? The logical voice began to fade away into oblivion. She was curious about exactly what this spark meant, and what it meant about compatibility. She deserved some fun. Especially if that fun included orgasms. It had been so long.

“Roc…” Her cheeks pinked as a lusty moan escaped her lips. She couldn’t help it. His fingers slowly traced circles on her thighs, getting closer and closer to the sweet spot. She was about to give him permission to touch her more, she was about to give in. If he continued those lovely touches, she would beg him to fuck her. The way he looked down at her with a slight smirk on his face, he could tell she was about to relent. Bobbie’s legs were spread slightly, only a little bit, but it was enough.

He stood, his eyes still on her as he pushed the hair back from his face and tugged on the collar of his suit. Leaning over her, he placed both hands on either side of her body. Bobbie squirmed in anticipation. This was going to happen. She was going to do this. But instead of the ravishment that Bobbie expected, Roc sat back with a pained look on his face.

He spit out what could only be a curse in his language, and stood from the bed.

“I am needed on the bridge.” His face twitched in regret, and Bobbie sat up quickly, righting her dress again.

“Wait, what? You’ve got to be shitting me!”

“There is a situation.” Roc turned and pressed one of the symbols against the wall, the door slid open. She jumped off the bed, and hurried after Roc in her bare feet. She wasn’t going to let him off that easy. She knew he was aware of her following him, but he hurried along, down a long hall and through an expansive room that held all kinds of interesting items. Her steps slowed and she looked around in awe. What was this place? She wanted to stop and explore, but he wasn’t slowing down. She ran behind him in her bare feet to catch up. Looking over her shoulder at what appeared to be a large microwave with regret. She wanted to know what it was, but she wanted to know what Roc was about to do even more.

“Where are you going? What’s this situation?” Bobbie asked, panting slightly as she caught up to him. He was tall and his strides were long and hard to match.

“I have been hurt,” he said cryptically.

What does that mean? Bobbie didn’t know how to process that statement so she remained quiet next to him. Things were getting stranger and stranger.

12

Mid-flight mishaps

Roc’s luck had never been this misplaced in his century of life. But, seeing Bobbie’s creamy skin on display in his bed, hearing her soft little moans of excitement had distracted him. Distracted piloting was never a good thing. And now he was injured.

He traversed his ship with Bobbie trailing behind him. He had taken his largest S-Class because he didn’t know how long he would be away from his home planet and wanted to bring enough provisions to last at least a decade. The living quarters were located at the back of the ship, so it took them a few moments to get to the bridge.

He was already appraised of the situation, the injury was not that serious, but he winced when he saw Bobbie’s reaction and realized his mistake in letting her follow him. There was quite a lot of blood, and it made for a treacherous path on the silica floor.

His secondary manifestation was standing still at the helm, behind him the viewing screen was dark black, and he noted a few warning lights were flashing. The moment he was hurt he pulled consciousness away from his secondary manifestation in case the wound was serious. The pain had been great, so he couldn’t judge the seriousness of the wound in his current state.

“Holy alien balls,” Bobbie cried and rushed over to his secondary's side. “Your twin, what happened? Why isn’t he moving?” Her words were rushed and panicked. Roc took a moment to appreciate the concern she was showing to him.

“It is fine, I was—” He paused because he didn’t know the English word. “Replacing a converter, but I did not seat it properly within the access block. It expanded and impaled me in my shoulder,” Roc walked to his secondary and looked carefully at the converter embedded in his flesh. There was a cut that ran from his neck to his upper chest where the broken part had shattered and grazed him.

The suit his secondary wore was saturated in blood, which was the most worrying of this incident. He could only lose so much blood before his secondary would become too weak to be useful.

Roc punched in a few commands from the helm’s internal unit, and a magnetized gurney was belched up from the panel in the sidewall of the ship. He dragged it to his secondary, attached the medic cuffs to his wrists and ankles, and then activated them to get his body onto the gurney.

“How did you know he was hurt? Is it like a twin thing?” Bobbie asked as she inched closer to the gurney, looking down at his prone secondary manifestation. Roc looked up at her funny, before he could check his emotions. On Earth they had not discovered how to harness their own energy, which meant they had no concept of secondary manifestations. But he had to treat these injuries before they worsened. He wasn’t sure how he could explain this while he was tending to his wound. She kept saying this twin word, which he understood the concept, a match, or double. But he wasn’t sure how to explain the difference.

“I felt the pain,” he answered honestly and Roc began to treat the wounds, deftly extracting the shard of silica embedded in his shoulder. He didn’t have a full medical ward on this ship, only enough for first aid and not for the materialistic repairs. He could staunch the blood, seal the cuts, but there would be scarring, something that wasn’t common on his planet.

“How did you feel the pain?” Bobbie asked, stepping up to the gurney and letting her hand flutter over the blood-stained suit. Roc looked up and his face softened when he saw the concern on Bobbie’s facade. She frowned when she studied Roc’s face and didn’t find what she was looking for.

“At least tell me his name before he dies.” Her voice broke a bit.

“Dies?” Roc asked stupidly. “I will not die.”

“I know you won’t but, him, you are so frustrating, he can’t lose that much blood, right? That has to be bad? Is there a doctor on board? He’s not even breathing?”

“Everything is already repaired, I am fine,” Roc said, putting away the few implements he had used.

“Then why isn’t he breathing or anything?” Bobbie asked exasperated. Ignoring his narcissism, like she cared about him, she was worried about his twin.

“I forget that our nature will be hard to understand for you,” Roc said. He didn’t want to wake his secondary up because there would still be pain, but he did concentrate and start up his circulatory system again to help with healing.

Bobbie exclaimed as he began to breathe again. She held a palm to her mouth and looked at Roc in shock.

“Explain! Now!” She demanded, even stomping her foot, which he found kind of charming. “He was dead, and I didn’t even know his name. Tell me now, Roc! I’m tired of these games. You’ve kidnapped me, put me on a spaceship, heading to God-knows-where. I need some information, or so help me—,” Her lips pulled down into the most attractive little pout and Roc couldn’t help the smile that drew his mouth up. He wasn’t used to this unrestrained showing of his feelings. He had learned to keep them in check ever since his introduction to society.

“Stop smiling at me like an idiot. What’s his name?”

“Roc,” Roc did a slight head nod that was the equivalent to a human shrug, knowing he was being purposefully vague, but for some reason he was enjoying her anger. This was also new to him, he usually liked the few women he had engaged with to be compliant.

“Dammit, you’re such a dick. What is his name, why can’t you just answer that?”

“He is not a he, he is me," he said with his usual stoic face. "Rochford of Thames, son of Rochfordi, high Emperor of Polaridis. Me.” He pointed to himself and then his secondary.

“That’s not possible. I don’t know why you can’t just tell me about your twin. Is it not respectable on your planet? Is there some kind of anti-twin movement?” Bobbie’s voice didn’t sound as assured as she felt, he thought it was delightful.

"That word, again. I understand what it means to humans and why you would think this. Two cells within a womb, but I am not a twin. It is me, this body is part of me. Not a twin.”

“What the hell are you?” Bobbie couldn’t hide the frustration in her voice. And Roc knew he was making this explanation worse than it should be. More information was better. He had to go into detail if he didn’t want her to get the wrong impression of him. He could ruin everything by saying something misguided.

“I am a male of the Polaridi race. And with this distinction, I become more,” Bobbie frowned at him and he grappled with the language barrier that limited him. He had the basics of English down, but these topics were tough to convey in any language. What he wouldn’t give to have her modified with a translator, but that would take an amount of trust they did not share yet.

“What, like mitosis?” Bobbie laughed, but it didn’t sound amused, it sounded slightly hysterical. Roc searched through his memories to see if he knew what this mitosis was, but it wasn’t registering.

“I do not know this mitosis,” he said and looked to her for clarification, but she was a little too pale, so he went on to try and get this explanation over with, concerned for her health. He wondered if human females fainted like Polaridi females.

“Remember, the energy we spoke of before?” He waited for her to nod, and when she did, he went on. “I am a male, and have a higher energy than others on Polaridis. My people absorb the photons from the suns. We also give off energy. At a point, the energy is too great to hold within us and we need another receptacle, and a male, like me,” he patted his chest, “splits to contain the extra energy.”

“Mitosis,” she repeated and then that laugh again and Roc frowned. “Like a clone, right? You have a damn clone? That’s kind of rude, though, that he doesn’t even get his own name?”

“I again am confused about this word, clone.”

“Like you split, your DNA splits and you make a second Roc, is that what happens? Sounds painful.”

“No, this is not a separate entity,” he gestured to his sleeping secondary. “I am one part of a whole. I am Roc. I am part of Roc. This body is Roc. That body is Roc. Like another leg, or arm, but much more. Yes, painful, but on Polaridis we have great Healers.”

"Holy shit." Bobbie slapped a hand over her mouth again, a bit green around the gills. Roc wanted to assist her, get her medical attention, but he could tell by the way she carried herself that he must keep his distance.

“The stronger you are, the more times you split. In my lifetime I have split four times. Two of my parts, the tertiary and quaternary manifestations are still on Polaridis. None of my manifestations are autonomous. It is how we accomplish so much. While I resided on Earth, I still did business on Polaridis.”

“I’m—well, that’s interesting,” Bobbie said looking down at Roc’s body. “Gives multi-tasking a whole new dimension.”

“I do like to multi-task,” Roc smiled, knowing this word was positive in the English language but Bobbie’s only response was to stare at him wide-eyed. For the first time in Roc’s long life, he felt the intense pang of self-doubt. If Bobbie rejected him, if she refused to honor the charge, he didn’t know what he would do. He had to make his life on Polaridis worth her giving up everything for. He had to make himself worth giving up everything for.

13

He speaks a strange language

The man Bobbie thought was the actual Roc sprayed something on the other guy’s chest and she watched in awe as the cut formed a crust along the ragged edge and sealed itself. The man lying on the gurney blinked and looked up at her. She took a step back.

“You’re looking at me with two sets of eyes?” He nodded and Bobbie shook her head, the possibilities freaking her out.

“By leaving half of myself on my planet, it also helps me travel faster than lightspeed, two parts want to be whole. It speeds up space travel. The separation can be disorienting and sometimes can be detrimental to our mental health, but it is a productive way of traveling.”

“So, you have four bodies, but one brain?”

“Technically I have four brains,” Roc one said.

“I’m so confused.” Bobbie collapsed into what she thought was a chair, but it rocked back and threw her off end over end. Hands were on her pulling her up and to her feet, one big arm held her tightly. She was pressed against one of their chests. Their? Was that the proper pronoun? She shook her head, she thought the new gender identities of her generation were confusing enough, how did this even compare?

“More brains mean I can focus on different tasks without my other manifestations having to concentrate, but we are all the same being. It is why I can recover from an accident, and my two parts back on my home planet can attend meetings, and this body can distract itself with the warm female pressed to its chest.”

“Oh,” Bobbie said, in perfect agreement that his warm chest was quite distracting. She glanced at the man on the gurney, his bright green eyes on her. His suit was still pulled down and there were small specks of blood on his bronze skin. The wound now looked nothing more than a week-old injury, scabbed over and raised.

“And I need to confess that our space travel does tend to make me disoriented at times, but can be combatted with distraction, and sexual interaction is on the top of my list as a favorite distraction.” She looked up at him and the alien actually winked. Winked at her!

“Sexual interaction?” Bobbie had been reduced to repeating everything, making her mind muddled.

“It is quite a pleasurable way to rectify the time displacement,” Roc, the one holding her against him, not the one lying on the gurney, said as if it was an obvious fact.

“You mean, because we are traveling faster than light? Isn’t that supposed to slow down time?” Bobbie gave herself a mental pat on the back because this had come so readily to her brain.

“I am pleased that you understand.” Roc smiled that awkward smile. “Two of my parts remain in Polaridis time, while two, these two manifestations on the ship, are traveling faster than the speed of light, but our consciousness is in sync. This means that two of my manifestations are greatly accelerated, while two function on normal Polaridis time. It can be disorienting. I would like to lose myself in pleasure while we travel, but only if you will allow me.”

“I think you might be pushing your luck on that one," Bobbie said, proud of her resolve.

“But, it would help with the travel, my female—”

“Bobbie,” she frowned, correcting him.

“Bobbie, let me lose myself in your body so I will not get confused as we travel faster than light..." Roc’s hand moved down her side, slipping under her dress and pulling it up at the hem. Bobbie shivered as the cool air touched her skin.

“Jeez, you are determined, aren’t you?”

"I will bring you such pleasure, Bobbie, let me be your master."

"No one is my master, I'm my own master, Roc," she stumbled over the name, still unsure about what exactly he was. Were they like bees? There were four Rocs?

“You can be my master as well, Bobbie.” Roc moved his hand to slide it through the silky material of her dress, pulling the top aside and revealing her bare breast. He rolled her nipple between his knuckles and she moaned as the sparks erupted over her skin.

“There is too much cloth between us.” Roc ripped the material open and it fell away, leaving Bobbie completely nude in front of the large man.

“This was my only clothes!” Bobbie said in protest. “And don’t you have to pilot this ship or something?”

"I shall get you many dresses. I shall shower you in the most beautiful styles of my people. You shall have servants to dress you. And we are on automatic, do not worry about the ship.” He looked at her naked body hungrily.

Bobbie shivered from his look alone. She imagined what it meant to be devoured by this man. He was so intense, so driven, and there were four of him. The thought alone had her traitorous body humming with desire. She shifted as the vibrations of the ship and her wild thoughts had her body coming alive. Moisture pooled between her legs and she saw the red of her blush spread across her chest, her nipples hard and erect, straining toward this alien as if begging to be touched.

"I can smell your arousal. I don't know why you still resist me."

"You can't just take me without my permission. I want to go home, Roc,” she whined.

"Your own people sold you to me. Why would you want to stay there? What is there that you want to return to? I can show you the universe, pr’ialla.” Roc bent his big body over Bobbie’s and kissed her exposed shoulder, running his tongue along her creamy skin. Bobbie’s brain shorted out for a moment under his lips, but she managed to move back even further, focusing on his words and not the feel of his actions.

"It was a mock auction, for a date only, not for actual ownership of me!" She exclaimed, building up enough resistance to step away from him. She crossed her arms over her chest to cover her breasts. Both Rocs turned to face her, their eyes trailing up and down her body. She didn’t care, she went on to protest with her voice, even though her body wanted to give in. She knew she was only arguing because she didn’t want to give in too easily. She didn’t want to look like she was weak.

"I know you're some kind of fucked up alien or something, but we don't sell people! You didn't buy me, you bought a date with me! Why can't you get it through your thick, dumb head?"

Both Rocs cocked their heads, Bobbie had seen it twice before, she knew it meant he was confused and trying to figure something out. Sure enough, his words affirmed his feelings.

"You are trying to confuse me," he said softly.

"Even if I was, do you regularly purchase women? Hold them in your bed? Is this what your people are like, because then I don't know if you are a very nice people."

“No, how I came to find you was highly irregular. The sale of humanoids is illegal on my planet, especially females. I assumed your people as primitive in that region, I had scanned through the library systems on your Earth, and had not realized that I could easily come across your slavery rings. But when I found you and sensed our matched sparks, I knew I could not let another human purchase you.”

“It wasn’t what you think, I wasn’t being sold,” Bobbie said.

“I will not force you to do anything, Bobbie,” Roc said. “We have a charge between us, can you not feel it? Even now I feel it call to me, but I will not make you do anything you do not want to do.” He took another step closer to her.

"I don't know what feeling you are talking about," she lied.

"You deny the truth." He leaned down and kissed her, capturing her mouth with expert precision. She sighed against his lips and pressed her chest against his, reveling in the feel of her skin against his. This was unreal. She stood on the bridge of a spaceship, butt naked and making out with the hottest male, alien or not, she had ever been with. He was also a damn good kisser. He put his all into it, even if he had three other parts running around like wayward bees. She felt everything he was feeling, every bit of hunger as he nipped at her lips, as his tongue slid into her mouth and tangled with hers. He was hungry for her. It vibrated around them, but he focused everything on that kiss.

"You feel the pleasure of our shared charge," he said as he pulled back from her lips. He smiled, one of only a few legit smiles she had seen on his face. Figured a real smile from him would be how he rubbed in her lies about not being attracted to him. His hand came up and gripped her breast in a tight squeeze, then he pulled his hand back, letting sparks fly over her milky skin.

The electricity pinged across her chest, little lightning bolts to her nipples, sending hot sparks of arousal through her breasts and down her body until she felt an almost painful arousal between her legs. She thrusts her breasts toward him in reaction, a sigh on her lips, a chuckle on his.

Bobbie couldn't resist the feeling it sent through her, but she still tried to protest their joining. "You just can't go around kidnapping people. I have a life. You've stolen me away from my friends, my family. You have to know what you did was wrong, Roc.”

“You have me now. You can make a new life, a better life," His hand moved from her breast to her stomach and she clenched in anticipation as he slid his hand lower, across her abdomen, passing up what she wanted him to touch, only to fall on her thigh. She instinctively spread her legs slightly to grant him access. It was an instinct. She hadn’t made the choice to do that, had she?

“I will give you pleasure like you’ve never experienced before. Every day you will only know pleasure. On our world, we have advanced medicine, we live for centuries. There are no diseases, we live in a time of peace. There will always be one part of me devoted to you and your every desire.” His finger slipped between her folds, finding her clit with laughable ease. He circled it, pinching it between his thumb and forefinger. She cried out, her back arching as her knees buckled. He caught her with one hand, but continued to pinch and pull at her clit.

She felt something cool against her back and her feet left the ground as Roc placed her on something solid. She braced herself as he spread her legs and inserted two fingers into her soaked pussy, continuing his assault on her clit with his thumb.

“Roc!” She cried out, hating the wanton sound of her voice and the way she pressed herself against his hand, wanting him deeper, wanting to come so bad she could feel it in her lungs. Sparks flew across their skin and her hair felt like it was standing on end. She wanted to hate what he was doing to her, wanted to fight him, but it felt amazing. Utterly amazing.

“Do you like the pleasure I bring you, pr’ialla?” Roc asked.

“Yes.” Her word was barely a whisper.

Roc bent over her body, his mouth replacing his thumb. He sucked her clit into his mouth, and she cried out with little restraint. His fingers pumped inside of her with a brutal efficiency as he continued to explore her with his tongue. She thrashed against him, moaning louder as an orgasm violently forced its way out of her body. Lightning arced from her skin to slam into the walls around her. It felt like her chest was breaking open with the pressure, the energy too great to be held inside of her. He didn’t stop lapping at her as she flooded him with her climax, his tongue persistently taking her without minding the results of her violent explosion.

Another quake spasmed through her and her throat was thrashed from earlier, so all that emitted from her mouth was a hoarse cry of elation. If she would have had a voice, she would have shattered the glass around them. Her vision went black around the edges as her mind couldn’t wrap itself around the intense feelings that were zinging through her body. She fought to stay conscious as she realized she couldn’t hold herself together anymore. She collapsed against whatever was holding her up as she fought to control the waves of energy passing through. When it became too great, too much too hold inside, she gave up and let the pleasure ride through her unencumbered.

14

Space Traveler Fail Log

Roc carried Bobbie back to the bedroom with her cradled against his chest, more satisfied than he had ever been. He had his Charge Mate. Finally. She had let him pleasure her. It wasn’t the joining of bodies that would bring about their final attachment, but it was enough for now. There were things to be done in the middle times. He was on the verge of being fully healed, so he could pilot the ship and attend to his female. But there were also things to do on Polaridis, and he was having a hard time concentrating with the traveling and distance. Lightspeed travel was undertaken by the folding of space in front of his ship, much like he had hidden it on Earth, but instead of folding the space around the ship to hide it, to travel space was folded and the ship was moved through space. It wasn’t instantaneous, and when the ship punched through space, he lost track of his other manifestations.

It was an odd feeling. He hadn’t had this issue on his flight out. He’d been able to compartmentalize his actions and concentrate through the jump. But he was too much in this moment, in the joy of what was occurring with the finding of his Charge Mate, to even consider breaking apart his processes enough to concentrate on his business on Polaridis. He considered shutting them down, almost as if he was going to sleep, but when he came out the other side of the fold, he realized he had done it unconsciously. It was only him and his secondary aware at the moment. He hoped this didn’t alarm anyone back home if they were mid-action. He would be home shortly and hopefully handling the situation. At the moment, he had more important things to handle.

Right now, right here, it was all about Bobbie. They would make this trip across the cosmos to his home planet, and he would convince her this was where she wanted to be.

* * *

Bobbie woke again in the most comfortable bed in the universe. There was a warm weight against her back and she stiffened when she realized what it was. Or really, who it was. Roc, her alien abductor, with the wicked tongue.

“Be still.” His velvet voice rolled along her skin and embedded in her stomach. His hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her close. She was naked from their exploits earlier, but thankfully she was covered with a soft blanket. He was under this blanket with her though, and when their skin met, she realized he was also naked.

She went rigid when a large, hard object nestled against her ass and brought about tiny shards of fear of what he could do to her, but also an underlying shiver of anticipation of those same things. She remembered the orgasm from last night. It had been out of this world. The intensity of it had knocked her out, which was something new for her. Definitely a first. Her cheeks flushed thinking about it and how she had let him do whatever he wanted to her so easily. How she had screamed his name and begged him to take her. That was not how an abductee was supposed to act, even if she had never experienced pleasure like that in her life.

She remembered the attention he had lavished on her, how focused he was on making her come. Another first for her. She had been with a few men in her life, had experienced good sex before, but never had a man gotten so into going down on her like that. Foreplay was always hit or miss with the guys she had dated, some better than others. Roc had eaten her out like she was an exquisite meal. He had all but worshipped between her legs. Thinking about it had her arousal skyrocketing back into existence, her insides tingling in anticipation of another round of Roc. She felt like a mindless sex-starved addict as her body wiggled against him of its own volition, making his cock nestle between her cheeks and press against her ass.

“Does that mean you like that I am in here in your bed?” Roc’s chest rumbled against her back.

“No,” Bobbie managed to choke out, but she didn’t move away.

“Your words say one thing. Your body says another. You did not like what I did to you on the bridge?” Roc’s chuckle rumbled against her back and the warm heat of him spread along her flesh, sending a barrage of electric shocks up her arm and making her break out in goosebumps.

“Yes,” she whispered, unable to lie to him anymore.

“And that was but a small portion of what I can do.” He moved his hips, his cock slipping between her legs and moving easily against the opening of her pussy because she was drenched.

“That was a fluke, I was overwhelmed.” Bobbie bit her lip to hold back a moan. His cock was thick and she squeezed her legs together as he slowly moved back and forth, barely touching her sensitive areas. He would be so big inside of her. She knew he would fill her, and by the way he touched her, by the way he moved, she knew he could bring the most exquisite pleasure.

The only sound in the room was their ragged breaths as he slowly pistoned his hips against her from behind. Bobbie wanted to give in, wanted to let him take her, but something in her, that stubborn streak that had kept her head above water so many times, held her back. She pressed her eyes shut and felt the world around her shift slightly. The low grumble of engines made the entire room she was in vibrate. She was on a spaceship. In the middle of space. She might never see her own planet again.

She surged to her feet, slapping a hand on the icon she’d seen him use the day before, making the door slide open to the bathroom since she couldn’t wait for it to slide open. She managed to also find the toilet, and it popped up right in time for her to empty her stomach into it. It had been awhile since she had eaten, so it was mostly bile.

There was a cool hand on her forehead, and a cloth wrapped around her back to cover her nakedness. Soothing words that she couldn’t make out. When the heaving stopped, this man, or alien whatever he was, picked her up like she was a baby doll. Bobbie wasn’t a small girl. She was always on the heavy side, and a good height. But he carried her through the small room, activating another panel, revealing a small alcove that he stepped into.

He set her down on her feet, but his arms remained around her. Bobbie would have pulled away if he’d remained erect, or continued to pressure her into sex that she wanted, but didn’t want. Instead he only began to clean her off. Warm air washed over her, it smelled fresh, and her skin tingled with clean.

“What is this?” she asked.

“Charged particles, makes the skin clean.” He held out his hand, and she saw a faint luminescent on his palm. Then he pressed a panel on the wall that was ringed in a darker color than the rest of the small alcove.

“This is the control, this is clean body,” he pointed to an icon that was a circle with another one inside of it. “This is clean hair.” He pressed an icon that looked like four wavy lines and the room filled with an aroma that reminded her of lavender. Her hair stood up on end, and then fell down her back in silky waves that she couldn’t help but touch and run her fingers through.

“This is finish. It is simpler on ship than it will be at home,” Roc said and he pressed a colored circle with a smaller circle in the center that wasn’t colored in. The room again filled with an ionic like charge, and she smelled citrus and rain. Her skin glowed and tingled again.

“Amazing.” Bobbie looked at her skin, which had a slight bronzed color to it, as if she had been tinted in gold.

“This is just the clean room. It is nothing, you are the amazing thing,” Roc said.

“Amazing thing?” She laughed as they stepped out of the cleaning room. Roc handed her a soft piece of material and she ran her hands over it.

“Travel suit,” he said and held it up, running his hand over the back so it split open and he held it down by her feet so she could step into it. “And you are quite amazing.” He pulled the suit up her body, doing nothing overtly sexual, only making sure she was covered.

“Run your finger over this seam, and it will close.” Roc ran his finger down the center of the suit and it closed like magic.

“You don’t even know me. How can I be amazing? You only think that because we share this charge. No matter who I was, or what I looked like, you would be all you’re amazing.” She tried to mock his voice with those last words and he frowned.

“It is a considerable truth that I would be attracted to my Charge Mate, no matter their appearance, but I am in awe of the female fate has delivered to me.” Roc fingered a long lock of her red hair. “There is no hair color like yours on my planet. It is the color of our smaller sun.” He let the lock drop and looked into her eyes. “And you are intense, a fighter, it is—,” he frowned as if struggling for the word.

“Exhilarating,” he finally finished.

“What? Are you used to people doing whatever you want?”

“Yes.” Roc cocked his head to the side in that odd way of his, as if to convey it wasn’t his fault. “I am a Prince of my people.” He said this like Bobbie should understand what that meant, and she guessed she did understand. She knew what a prince was, could imagine how they were treated. He probably had people fawning over him every moment of his day, agreeing with him, doing his bidding no matter how strange. No one disagreed with him, or refused to do what he asked. No wonder he had swooped in and taken charge.

“Well, just because you are a Prince, doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want with me. Do you understand that?” Bobbie poked him in his chest.

“I understand.” Roc smiled the predatory smile that made Bobbie shiver. Her eyebrows drew together, suspicious of that smile.

“What?” she asked.

“I am your Prince, and that means I will do whatever you want, anything.” He said this in a tone that resonated with sexual innuendo. Bobbie chewed on her bottom lip, trying not to do a little hip shimmy in his direction.

“Anything?” Bobbie asked.

“What is it you want from me, Bobbie?” Roc asked, his voice sincere.

“I want you to take me home.”

* * *

“That is not possible.” Roc couldn’t control his face and the emotions that were churning under his skin, so he left the small room and began to pace in the bedroom. How could he fix this? He had only just told her he would do whatever she wanted. And this is what she asked? He should have been prepared for it. He should have known.

“Why isn’t it possible?” Bobbie’s defiant tone, which usually had him aroused, grated at the guilt buried in his chest. Now that he had come to understand exactly what happened on Earth, he felt like he bungled how he had handled her. He had taken her against her will, but it wasn’t possible to bring her back. Now that he had her, he couldn’t let her go. She was his future, his everything. If she went back to Earth, he would be ruined.

The Polaridi that lost their Charge Mates were shells of what they were before. His father had lost his Charge Mate, Roc’s mother, almost seventy rotations ago, and he had never been the same. He had become harder, showing little emotion, his focus only on the realm he ran with almost obsessive control. Thames Virdan, the realm his father ruled, flourished under the monarch’s micromanagement, but the household he maintained did not. When Roc’s father realized that the household staff was about to revolt from mistreatment, he married the first eligible royal, so she could take over running the palace. It had been a terrible decision, but he didn’t have the heart to find someone he could possibly love. He had told Roc it was impossible, he had given his heart and his charge to Roc’s mother, and would not be happy again until they were reunited in the Afterlands.

If Bobbie went back to Earth, he would become like his father. He did not want that. He had to convince her to stay.

“Tell me why you would like to return?”

“It’s my life, Roc. You took me from my life. Do you not understand that? What if I swooped in and forced you out of your home and made you come to Earth?”

“Tell me about your life. What do you consider your life?”

“I don’t know. My friends, my job, my apartment,” she huffed, blocking the path he was pacing in the bedroom.

“You have many close friends?”

“Well, no, I mean yes—well, I have two,” she blundered that answer.

“And are they like your soul siblings? That would be hard to separate from,” he nodded.

“Soul siblings?” Bobbie asked, her forehead crinkled in non-understanding.

“They are the family of your heart, not blood, and they will do anything for you, give up the world for you, and you will do the same. I have only one. I would do anything for him. It is lucky in life that you have two.” Roc closed his eyes, the pain of separating her from people like that engaging the guilt again. He should turn the ship around. He should bring her back to her friends.

“Well, not like that, I mean, they are my friends, but Viv’s dating someone and she’s—well, she’s kind of distracted, and Chuck, he’s my other friend, the one from the stage, remember? He’s a good friend, but slightly narcissistic. He can’t help it, he was raised privileged.”

“I do not know the word, narca—” Roc said.

“Narcissistic. That’s kind of harsh, but Chuck just sometimes puts himself first,” Bobbie shrugged and sat on the bed as if what she said had pained her. Her description of her friends lifted a great weight from Roc’s shoulders as he looked at his Charge Mate, at the conflicted look on her face. There was something wrong. Maybe it was because she thought she had to return home, because of some obligation. He had to discover what it is.

“Your job, that is your profession, correct? Is it very important? Is that what you must return for?” Roc asked, not trying to make her angry, but her cheeks flushed red anyway.

“My job isn’t important. It’s not very important at all, or a good job.” She looked down at her hands in her lap.

“Then it is your apartment. Is this like a home? Is it family? I would miss my home as well,” Roc sighed, that had to be it.

“I don’t have any family left alive,” Bobbie sighed. “And my apartment is small and cramped.”

“Then why do you wish to return home? I am trying to understand what holds you there,” Roc implored, kneeling before her so he could look her in the eyes when she spoke.

“It’s where I belong,” she whispered. “I’m a human, I belong on Earth.”

“The universe has matched our charges. It is telling you that you belong with me.” Roc lowered his tone to match hers.

“What if the universe is wrong?” Bobbie looked up to meet his gaze.

“I have never known the universe to be wrong.”

15

Bobbie Sees the Universe

Bobbie felt a tear slide down her cheek. Roc’s big hand came up and wiped it away. He was being so earnest and concerned over her well-being. She felt herself softening in her resolve. He had asked all the right questions to sway her in her decision. Her brain was churning with emotions and regret over a life that had never quite clicked into place. He was right. There was nothing for her on Earth. She had nothing. Friends who were little more than acquaintances, a job she hated, an apartment that was a barely functioning residence, and no living family.

Roc sat next to her on the bed and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. The room listed and she shifted, falling deeper into his embrace.

“I can’t wrap my head around the fact that we are in space,” Bobbie said, bracing herself on the mattress so she wouldn’t fall into his lap.

“Did you not dream of traveling the stars as a child? There were many pieces of literature about this on your planet.”

“I’ve always been fascinated with the stars, and cosmic stuff, but I figured the closest I would get to mastering the galaxies would be wearing Hot Topic galaxy pants,” she said with a little too much honesty. She had wanted to be an astronaut when she was a child, but with each choice she made in life, that career became impossible, until finally at too young of an age to be jaded, she realized she wasn’t meant for anything great, just normal.

“Even my race has not mastered the outer galaxies. A hundred thousand light years is still too much, even with our technological advances.” He kissed the side of her head.

“So, you guys can’t go to the edge of the galaxy?” she asked.

“We have been able to map our edge of the galaxy, about a thousand of what your race calls light years away. But the ones that have ventured that far have not fared well if they kept a part of themselves on our planet. We try to stay within a ten light year radius when we keep a part of our whole on our planet.”

“The light years and parts of wholes, that’s where I’m getting all confused,” Bobbie chuckled.

“There are many things on our planet that might be quite different, but we have only been space-faring for about five-hundred years. Some of the peoples that left with all their splits to explore the galaxies have not returned, but our hope is great that they survive, since we do get signals relayed back on occasion. These explorers have helped us become a powerful presence in this galaxy. They are also how we discovered the wormholes that connect us to other solar systems.”

“Wormholes?” she asked.

“Yes, a wormhole is a change in the matter of the universe. The matter rips the area to pieces and what would take years to travel happens in only a moment if entered.”

“Are you talking about black holes?” she asked.

“Possibly. I am not that learned in your race’s concepts of space science, so I cannot tell you exactly if this is correct. But at the edge of every solar system lies a wormhole. My people believe this is a gift from the Creators, a way our makers have made their existence known. A passage to bridge the gap between the stars, as if to say this is what we are supposed to do. Your world is our world’s direct wormhole link. We have known about your planet since the beginning, almost five hundred years,” he explained.

“Your people have known about us, but why have you not made contact?”

“When we discovered wormholes and then subsequently discovered humans, the subject of contact was greatly debated among our people. At the time of your discovery, your people were underdeveloped, and not much more than savages living in buildings made of sticks and stones. Warring against each other in brutal combat, with nothing more than fire and pointy metal objects. If we would have made contact, things would have quickly changed for your world. The rulers of the time voted to let your planet develop naturally and we would make contact once the possibility of wormhole travel was discovered by your people.”

“But, you were willing to abduct an Earthling and take her as your—" Bobbie faltered. What was she to him?

“Charge Mate,” Roc said with a possessive growl.

“I don’t like that word. When you say it, I think of wolves, or dogs. Animals mate,” she frowned.

“I am not an animal,” he frowned back at her.

“I don’t know, you are rather beastly.” She slapped at his arm as it tightened around her.

“I am considered brutish among my people; it is a fault,” he frowned. “Does it disturb you?”

“What? I don’t know. Well, at first you did throw me off a bit. You remember the part about the abduction?”

“And now?” he asked. Bobbie didn’t want to answer the question so she changed the subject, because honestly, she didn’t know how she felt. She knew she was supposed to think of him as a brute, a guy who ripped her off her planet and forced her to come with him, but she didn’t feel that way at all. In fact, she was beginning to soften toward him. She couldn’t stop thinking about the night before. About the way he made her feel. It was hard to admit to herself, but she wanted a repeat performance.

“Why do your people think you’re a brute?” It was a question meant to distract him, and her.

“It is nothing.” He shook his head as if he didn’t want to talk about it.

“Doesn’t seem like nothing.” Bobbie patted Roc’s leg, marveling at how muscled it was. The material of the suits they wore was thin and left nothing to the imagination. She had a hard time not looking at his crotch and the bulge that was plainly visible against the thin material. She needed him to keep talking, to keep her distracted.

“The people of my homeworld are smaller compared to humans. Most men slighter in stature to the women. You are about half a hand taller than the average female on Polaridis,” he said in reference.

“Wow, so all the guys on your planet are going to be shorter than me? That’ll be different. But what about you?”

“My mother was Polari, the master lands of Polaridis, the rumored beginning of our species. They still embrace a more natural way of living than the other realms. This tends to breed them bigger since they subsist on consumed foods instead of supplemental. When she took up residence in the palace she instituted regular meals to replace the supplements.”

“What do you mean?”

“They grow their food, trying to get most nutrients from natural means, instead of supplements, which the rest of the planet has taken to doing. They also raise lesser beings to be used for food, which isn’t looked on well by the other realms.”

“Lesser beings?”

“Creatures with no known intelligence,” Roc said.

“Oh okay, like our cows and pigs,” Bobbie said.

“Yes,” Roc agreed.

“So, they grow their own food, and raise farm animals? What do the other realms do for food?”

“It is synthesized. The basic nutritional need is digested through small capsules. You digested yours while you were sleeping.” Bobbie looked at him funny. How did that happen?

“Is that why I haven’t been hungry?”

Roc nodded and went on, “Your body has everything needed to function properly. You will take another capsule before bed tonight. I gave you one while sleeping because I knew you had not eaten for a long period of time.”

“That’s not much fun,” Bobbie frowned.

“No, it is not. We do have freeze dried edibles on board, and at the palace we maintain a garden with grains and vegetables. There is also fruit trees and shrubs. My mother implemented the garden when she bonded with my father. It has become a tradition of long standing within our realm. The palace has state dinners, and we employ a chef, something that has set us apart from the other realms. The chef has perfected a synthesized meat replica, which has now become popular. In the last decade, a few restaurants have opened in the big cities, replicating our palace dinners. Because of the new trend in our palace, along with the marriage of my parents, the realm of Polari went from being the last influential state, to second only to Thames Virdan.”

“All because of your mother.” Bobbie patted Roc’s hand when she saw it clench. “Can I ask what happened?”

“It is unknown who did it. My parents were vacationing in Lividiania, that realm maintains some of the most beautiful natural water outlets, and the Emperor had invited them to his ocean palace. But their people are impoverished compared to the other realms. Lividiania only maintaining their higher influential level to the realm of Namei because of the silica that is extracted from their beaches. There was an uprising while my mother was shopping at the market. She had guards, but the riot happened so quickly. She was recognized, and taken. They held her for five days, and murdered her when their needs were not met in time.”

“That’s awful.” Bobbie slipped her hand into Roc’s, and she squeezed it gently. She watched in fascination as blue sparks spiraled around their fingers.

“It was a long time ago, and her death sparked an outrage that drew the realms together when there had been unrest. Murder is almost non-existent in all the realms now, and it has pushed my father to take a role in a move toward a global government.”

“I guess it’s good that something positive has been bred from something so negative.”

“Yes,” he nodded. “But let us not talk about that. I would like to show you my ship. I do not believe you got much of a look at it last night,” Roc chuckled, making Bobbie blush. He stood, pulling her up to her feet with him.

They wandered around the ship. He pointed out a small galley, the storage area, and even brought her down to the engine room. It was nothing like she expected. Everything was so slick, and all of it was made out of the glass-like material that Roc called silica.

He also brought her to the medical room and showed her different implements that she wasn’t quite sure about. What stood out was that she could plug her suit into a reader type gadget, a screen would pop up and display all her inner workings like an x-ray.

“That’s just ridiculous,” she laughed.

“The suit regulates body temperature, and monitors your vitals. If you have to expel any fluids and you cannot get to a restroom, it can be done within the suit, and the material is converted into a gas.”

“Kind of disturbing. I hope it doesn’t smell,” she frowned.

“There is a slight aroma.” Roc’s face was as stoic as ever and Bobbie rolled her eyes.

“The suit is flagging your iron count as low, so your supplement will have an extra dose within it,” Roc continued.

“Handy.” She peered at her insides on the screen. Of all the things she had seen in the last day, this one didn’t even faze her.

They continued on to the bridge and found Roc’s other self working diligently on something. He was bent over a panel and typing furiously.

“Calculations,” Roc standing next to her said.

“What kind of calculations?”

“Our entry angle to the wormhole. We have to hit it at a perfect trajectory to place us on the right path to Polaridis.”

“Wait, if you don’t go in at the right angle, you’ll end up somewhere else?” Bobbie asked horrified.

“Oh no.” Roc gripped her shoulder and squeezed to reassure her. “This will put us in a direct course to our planet, so we don’t get stuck in the gravity well of another planet, or the wormhole itself. This saves energy and time.”

“Oh gotcha,” she pretended like she understood.

The Roc sitting at the bridge sat up straighter and began running his hand over the dashboard in front of him. The wall directly in front of him went opaque and she was greeted with a blackness so deep she thought he had changed the color of the wall. But then she saw flashing lights begin popping up all over the screen, and the ship lurched, making Bobbie brace herself on the chair in front of her.

“We left your solar system, so we are decelerating and coming into view of the wormhole,” the Roc that was playing Captain said, sliding his hands along the dashboard in front of him. The ship’s lights went out around them, and the walls began to shimmer. Bobbie stood in awe as glowing dots of light stretched out before her, then contracted into a sea of stars. She felt a slight bit of vertigo overtake her, as if she had put on a pair of VR goggles. She gripped the seat with both hands and gaped at the sight before her. She could see in every direction, including underneath her, as if the entire ship had disappeared. She seemed to be floating in the middle of space. Her stomach roiled again and she gulped around the nausea that threatened to make itself known. Roc noticed her unease and pressed an icon in front of him. The floor appeared underneath her feet again, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

“What is that?” Bobby pointed to a bright light to the left of them when her brain had settled down and she could understand what she was looking at.

“A small planetary object your race calls Pluto,” Roc said.

“Oh shit,” Bobbie breathed. She turned around and faced the display in front of Roc. It was an insane sight. There was a gaping hole in space, darker than everything around it, yet surrounded by a halo of light. Rocks and debris orbited around the dark black object, some falling in, other’s speeding up and getting shot in the opposite direction at incredible speeds.

“This is the wormhole. We call it Alpha because it was the first.” The Roc standing at her side put an arm around her waist and she snuggled into him without thinking about it. Bobbie watched as a streaking comet with a bright blue tail barreled past their ship, sailing in the opposite direction of the wormhole. She followed its path as it headed toward Pluto.

“This is amazing," she said, walking around the chair, and closer to the Roc who was still fiddling with things on the dashboard in front of him.

"Wait until you see my world," Roc said coming up behind her and placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Is it as amazing as this?" she asked innocently.

"More," he breathed.

"Then I can't wait." She looked at her kidnapper, feeling the charge spark across her skin as he ran his fingers over her cheek.

"I'm glad you aren't resisting anymore," he smiled.

"I never said I wasn’t resisting anymore.” Bobbie tried to make a serious face.

“This does not look like you are resisting.” He ran a finger down her nose, letting it play lightly on her lips.

“I’m not easy, Roc,” she said when his finger slipped away.

"Female, I have strong feelings that nothing about you shall be easy." He leaned down and kissed the outrage off her face.

“Stop calling me female.” She pushed at his chest.

“But, I like it so, pr’ialla.” He smiled, the glee meeting his eyes.

“What does that mean? You’ve called me that a few times.”

“I am not quite ready to tell you,” he said, forcing her to slap at his chest to get him away.

“We are about to enter the wormhole, time to strap in,” The Roc who she had begun to think of as Two said from his position at the helm. Roc tapped an area on the floor with his foot and the floor folded in on itself, forming into a chair like some kind of weird origami contraption.

“Sit,” he said and Bobbie did as told. Roc leaned over her and positioned her thighs and made her sit up straighter. He then pressed a button and the chair formed around her in a thin, sheer material, like webbing.

Roc took his own seat and did the same, then Two took his spot at the helm, in front of them, still pressing buttons, and doing whatever it took to make this ship run.

“You might feel a bit of acceleration when we descend,” Roc said as the ship turned and pointed itself at the dark blotch in space. Bobbie could almost feel the tug of the wormhole on the ship. The spacecraft creaked slightly as the force of gravity pulled it into the wormhole.

“Entering now,” Two said and pressed a button. The view out of the windows blurred as the spacecraft shot forward, allowing the wormhole to pull it in. The screen went black, or wait, she was seeing something—tiny flecks floated around them, turning into lines and zags as they plummeted into the darkness.

A great force pulled at Bobbie’s feet. She felt her body lengthening, her hair flying out around her as gravity was lost. She became obscenely heavy, her hands shifting slightly underneath the webbing as gravity increased. Then they were being expelled, somersaulting through space and time, into a completely new solar system. Bobbie floated in her chair, marveling at a bright red sun with a beautiful white star next to it.

She was in another solar system. Bobbie Flemming, normal girl from the big city, was in another solar system, flown there by an alien prince who wanted to make lots of babies with her. If she wasn’t so fascinated with the sights before her, she might have pinched herself to see if it was real.

16

Stockholm syndrome

“How many planets are in your solar system?”

“Six.”

“And which planet is yours? I mean, you know, the number in line?” Bobbie asked as Roc walked her back to the living area. They had gone back into lightspeed travel, so the viewing was covered. Two was going to set their course, but Roc was free to answer all of Bobbie’s questions.

“Second.”

“That seems awfully close to two suns,” Bobbie mused.

“The planets of our solar system are spaced greatly apart. There is a lot more space between us than your planets, and we have a—I believe your people call them gaseous giants there is a large one in the fifth position which stabilizes the gravity between the planets.”

“This is fascinating. I didn’t believe it really, until I saw it,” Bobbie mused as they took up seating in what could only be described as a living room area. There were a few sofa-like seating areas with overstuffed cushions with tables interspersed between them.

“What did you believe to be happening?”

“I don’t know, that you were an escaped mental patient, holding me captive in some weird contraption.”

“That is what you thought?”

“Well, I guess not really, but it’s hard to wrap your head around these types of things. I mean, when was the last time you were kidnapped by an alien that wanted to make you his love slave?” Bobbie laughed at his grumpy face.

“I have no intentions to make you my love slave. What is a love slave?”

“A slave that you own to have sex with, I think. I guess sex slave is a better description,” Bobbie shrugged.

“I do not want you as a slave. I want you as my partner, and other half.”

“You already have like four halves.”

“That is not possible,” Roc said, a hint of a smile on his face.

“Fourths, whatever, you know what I mean.”

“The thought is from the same intention,” Roc said.

“So, no slave, then?”

“Yes, to sex, no to slave,” Roc smiled.

“Is that all you can think about?”

“With you in the flight suit, it is at the front of my mind, yes.” Roc ran a finger down her leg and she trembled.

“Will it be like last night?”

“I can do better,” Roc said. Bobbie felt his gaze deep in her gut. He was looking at her like he was starving and she was a delectable meal. “Let me show you what it is like to be my Charge Mate.”

“You make my brain all fuzzy,” Bobbie whined as Roc leaned down and captured her mouth.

“You have made my entire being come alive.” Roc pulled Bobbie to her feet, pressing her body against him. The suits were so thin she felt every part of him, along with his now very erect parts that pressed against her belly.

“Feels like just one part,” Bobbie laughed.

“I feel you in all of my parts, pr’ialla.” Roc moved in a graceful spin, sitting down on the sofa cushions and pulling her on top of him. She cried out as she made contact with the hard length of him through the material of their flight suits.

“What you did to me last night, I’m still sensitive,” she whispered and couldn’t help a slow sensual slide abasing his lap.

“If you let me enter you, if you let me join with you, I will make your soul cry,” Roc vowed, kissing her neck and the exposed part of her shoulder.

“My soul? Why would it cry?” Bobbie asked, sitting back so he had to look at her.

“You will not only feel it here,” he teased her with a finger between her legs through the fabric of her suit, and she moaned wantonly. “You will feel it here as well.” He placed a hand over her heart.

“A heart orgasm?” she joked.

“Let go, Bobbie, let me in, please?” Roc begged, thrusting his hips against her.

“Yes, yes, I need this,” she cried, won over by his earnestness. He wasted no time. His finger dragged across her suit, splitting it open to reveal her breasts. He captured one in his mouth and sucked hard, making her squirm against him, cupping the other in his hand and squeezing.

“I want to begin where we left off.” Roc stood with her still wrapped around him. She squealed as her legs left the ground. She wrapped them around him, squeezing herself against the hard muscles of his stomach to steady herself. He kissed her as they moved away from the sofa. She let herself get swept away, never thinking this kind of pleasure was even possible, that someone could make her feel this way, swept off her feet, literally.

Not breaking the kiss, Roc slapped the icon for the bedroom door, moved them inside and laid her on the bed, only breaking away to look over her figure. He stripped the flight suit away from her body and looked down at her with appreciation. Again, she was completely nude in front of him and she felt no ill ease. No insecurity about her larger frame. From the way he looked at her, she believed he liked every inch of her body, no matter if there was a little extra in places. She stretched and spread, hoping to entice him closer. She wanted him on her, in her, she wanted to feel complete. She hadn’t felt this in need of someone in a really long time, probably ever.

He pressed her into the mattress, and began licking his way down her body, stopping to suck on her nipples, then on to her belly button, before finally spreading her legs and nestling his big body at her apex.

He was true to his word, he picked up right where he had left off earlier. He sucked her clit into his mouth and she threw her head back and moaned his name. Electricity arced over her skin, shooting over her stomach and into her pores. Each pinprick of energy made her arousal that much more intense and she pushed her hips up, wanting more, wanting him deeper inside of her, even if it was only his tongue.

The door swished open and her eyes shot open in alarm. Two stood in the doorway, his eyes on her, his arousal as evident in the suit he wore as it had been in his other self. Bobbie’s mind rebelled as she tried to grasp the otherworldliness of the situation. As Roc pleasured her with his mouth, but stood above her looking down at her as well.

Things clicked into place as his hungry gaze watched her. It was the strangest sensation. But it felt right. She wasn’t confusing him as a twin anymore. It was the same look, the same need. The only difference was the scar that ran across his shoulder, which was the only lasting sign of his earlier injury on the flight deck. The sudden possibilities of four bodies invaded Bobbie’s imagination.

Holy shit, the possibilities.

17

The possibilities of two

Roc drowned himself in his female’s core. Her clit was a warm round bud, darker in color than the rest of her. It stood up and begged for his attention, so he sucked it into his mouth, plucking at it with the tip of his tongue. He was rewarded with her moans of pleasure and his name on her tongue. He opened her up with his fingers, inserting two inside of her, curling them slightly to find that sensitive area that would send her over the edge.

She began to rock on his hand, his name over and over again on her lips, her moans blending into each other as he increased the pressure. He fucked her with his hand with an intensity that should be admired and written about in historical texts, it was that good. He was the Prince, and this was his female. She was his, and he would make her climax until she never once thought about anyone else but him. Until she never wanted to return to Earth.

As he dined on her pussy, he looked down on himself between her legs from his other manifestation. It was truly a wondrous sight. She bucked and scissored her legs around him, moaning unintelligible sounds as electrical sparks erupted around them. They erupted from her skin and slammed into the walls around him. She was close to climaxing, but he couldn’t let her come, not yet, so he slowed down, removing his fingers from her depths.

Her eyes shot open and they landed on his face. Roc almost wept when he saw the hunger in them. She wanted him. She wanted all of him.

Slowly he began to undress his secondary as he stared down at his Charge Mate lying anxious on the bed. He stood from between her legs and grabbed a cloth. Roc wiped at the juices that coated his face and smiled down at his Charge Mate. The desperation on her face was truly delightful for him. It warred across her face as she watched him begin to undress, joining his other manifestation in a full nude display for her viewing enjoyment. Her fists curled impatiently pulling at the sheets on the bed. Her legs scissored back and forth as if she couldn’t contain the energy inside of her. It was truly mesmerizing for him. He could not contain the pleasure it gave him.

“Is this what you want, pr’ialla?” He did something he rarely did and spoke through both of his manifestations at once. He saw the gulp of her throat, the widening of her eyes. But her head nodded up and down in the affirmative.

She would be his. And all of him would belong to her.

* * *

Thoughts of two cocks sent a desperate panic coursing through Bobbie.

She watched as he slowly peeled off both flight suits in an eerie unison that seemed rehearsed but was probably only muscle memory. The two bodies were the exact same, except for the scar over Two’s shoulder. She watched with hungry eyes as Roc revealed a perfectly sculpted male body under the body suits. She didn’t notice anything different about either one of them. His chest was the epitome of male perfection on both of his forms, and what made things even crazier—everything about him was completely human. It was all in the right place. The only thing that stood out as different was the bright green of his eyes, but even that could be explained as a slight anomaly. He was all human. All male. All hers.

When he pulled the last parts of his suit off, revealing that he as well went commando under the suit, she bit down hard on her lip. Two cocks. They popped up as the material freed them, springing free, large, hard, and swollen with need. She found no difference, he was like any other male she had been with in her lifetime. The only difference was he was male perfection times two. His dick was straight and thick, like the rest of him above average, it stood out away from his body begging for attention. Both cocks glistened with a drop of pre-come and when he gripped it in his hands, stroking it for her benefit, she moaned and spread her legs, wanting to feel him inside of her.

"You like my body, Bobbie, I can see it in your eyes."

"You're hot, but you're still crazy," she laughed.

“Let me show you my crazy.” Roc settled between her legs and began his assault again with his mouth. The slow burn of her orgasm was pushing at her almost from the start, but each time it would build to its crescendo, Roc would slow his pace and lazily lick at her, bringing her back to reality.

“Will you submit to me?” Two stood over her and asked.

“I don’t know what you mean?” She moaned as his attention sped up again.

“Come back to my home? Be with me?” he asked lightly.

“Do I have much of a choice?” She was proud of herself that she managed to get those words out.

“You always have a choice,” Two said.

“Then you’ll bring me back to my planet if I say no?” she asked, realizing that if he refused there really wasn't anything she could do about her situation. She might not like what Roc had done to her, but there wasn’t any options for her at this point to return to her normal life. She could fight him or hold on for the ride. Currently, the ride felt really really good.

"We are already about one light year from your home planet. If we return, the life you knew will be gone, your friends will be much older,” Two said.

"Well, then I guess I have no other choice,” she said. With her words, Roc sped up his attentions, his pace quickening, pumping her with his fingers in a steady rhythm.

“I wish it had been different,” Two said, but Bobbie barely heard him. There was no slowing the orgasm now. She pushed against Roc’s hand, wanting more, wanting everything. She screamed her release, slamming her pussy against him and undulating in waves with the pleasure, this time managing to hold on to consciousness as the energy swirled around her and sparked in every direction. He continued to lick her, his fingers not leaving her even as she tried to squirm away. When another quake racked her body and she jerked, the pleasure too great, the touch too much, he released her legs, allowing her to fall back on the mattress.

After the last shock of her orgasm faded from her, she looked up to find four eyes, so eerily the same, looking down at her.

“This is so hard to fathom. You’re really only one person?”

"Yes," they said together.

"So, this, both of you, it's like I'm with only one person, right? You’re not going to be all jealous?”

"One person, a few more benefits," Roc said as he stood next to his other form.

"Like, while I'm doing this to you," Two held his hand out and indicated for her to place her own in his palm. She did as he instructed and he pulled her up to stand in front of him. His gaze traveled up and down her body, still flushed from the earlier foreplay. Two placed his hands on her hips, then ran them up and down her sides in a slow sensual rhythm. Roc sat down on the bed, positioning himself behind her. He grabbed onto her hips as well, bringing her closer to his body just right.

“I can do this,” Roc said, pulling her down onto his lap and aligning his cock at her soaked entrance. She felt him reach between their bodies and grip his dick, holding onto it as his other hand brought her down onto him, letting just the tip penetrate her. He was large and thick but she was wet, her pussy sucked at him, wanting him inside of her. It was where he belonged.

He slid inside of her while she begged him for more, her head pressed against his other chest in front of her. He filled her slowly, taking up every inch of her with almost intolerable slowness. When she was finally seated on his lap, fully filling her, he put his hands on her hips and held her in place.

“Don’t move,” he hissed, pulling her hair to the side and leaving light kisses on the back of her neck.

Electricity shot from between them, pulsing down her legs and up his arms, but he held still, embedded inside of her.

“I cannot begin to describe what this feels like,” he whispered in her ear. “I finally feel complete.”

“I have found our final piece.” Two said standing before her.

When Roc began to move, Bobbie thought she might embarrass herself and come right there. He held onto her and began moving her up and down on him, not letting her set the pace. He was in charge even though she rode him. Her pussy pulsed around his thick length, causing more friction and more electricity to erupt around them.

“Do you like how I make you feel?” Two said, looking down at her. Bobbie raised her eyes to him and nodded as she rode his other self, his hard length penetrating her deeper with each stroke. “I can make it even more by doing this,” Roc purred in her ear, and his other self knelt in front of them. He spread her legs a bit wider and then pressed his face into her wet pussy.

Bobbie’s voice cracked over another yell as he began to lick her. His cock pumped into her pussy and his mouth sucked her clit until she was so lost in the sensation of mouth and cock that she didn’t try any more to hold on to her body. She let go. She let the sensation, the electricity that pooled around them, envelope her and take over her entire being. It was what she imagined an out of body experience felt like, yet it was grounded in something so deliciously carnal. She was nothing more than pleasure; she was everything and lust.

She came as she rode him, her hands going to his head, plunging into his hair as he lapped up her climax. This orgasm was not as intense as the other one, but it didn’t let up and die off as easily. It was like a minor quake leading up to what was to come, rolling around in her cells and spreading out like a bubbling volcano. She had only experienced multiple orgasms once before, but it hadn’t been like this, nothing like this. Another spasm tore through her. Then another one as Roc didn’t stop, he didn’t let go.

When the intensity subsided slightly he withdrew from her, lifting her to the side and off his lap. She wasn’t satisfied even though her body was spent. There was something missing, something she needed more of, as if she wasn’t done. She whined in protest as the cold air hit her skin. She reached for him, but he pulled away from her.

“I need more," she whined and he chuckled, both of him chuckled, in a very manly way. One of him, she didn’t know which one, she didn’t care, grabbed her by the hips and flipped her over so she was on her hands and knees in front of him. He swatted at her ass and she cried out as the feeling of pain infused with the pleasure of want spread over her ass.

“Stick up your rear,” he growled and she did as he demanded, pushing her ass up into the air and spreading her legs so he could see her pussy. She loved this position. It felt so naughty and always drove her mad when a lover wanted her like this. She wanted to be taken like the sexual animal she was. He gripped her by the hips and she felt his cock press against her entrance.

“Yes!” she cried out as he slammed hard into her, no niceties this time, no easy push and pull or slow tease. He took her hard and fast, knowing her body was ready, knowing she was drenched in need and could take his hard length.

"Fuck!" she cursed. She felt the mattress shift and he was in front of her, his hands in her hair, leading her face to his lap. His dick pressed against her lips and she opened for him, taking his length into her mouth while he fucked her hard from behind.

"Suck me hard," he said and drove into her mouth. She eagerly swallowed his cock, sucking on it with a frenetic need as it went deeper and deeper into her mouth. He gripped her firmly by the hair and pushed deeper down her throat as his dick relentlessly pounded into her pussy. From the front and the rear, he took her until her whole being centered on his dick. The spectacular cock that pumped into her pussy and the cock that fucked her mouth. She lost herself in sensation.

“Bobbie," her name like a prayer whispered over two mouths. Both of him stiffened as one, their bodies going rigid and still, she knew what was to come, so she sped up her pace. He growled from two mouths as orgasms ripped through him. Bobbie felt the warm spill of Roc's seed in her pussy and tasted his come as it erupted into her mouth. She swallowed him down, sucking down the salty liquid, all while continuing to pump her ass against his cock.

She slipped her own fingers between the folds of her pussy, rubbing herself hard and managed to come again at the last minute. It was hard, and rough, the zing of the charge blanketing her entire body and forcing her to jerk against them. She cried out around Roc’s dick, calling his name as she was consumed, body and soul, by the sensation.

18

Amazing at multi-tasking

Roc’s world imploded around him. This is what it was like to have a Charge Mate. His entire body was consumed by the female before him. All of him was drained and emptied into her. Even the two parts of him that weren’t engaged in this moment had come alive and erupted in pleasure.

"You are the perfect female for me," Roc said as his dicks softened and he withdrew from her mouth and pussy. He cradled her against him and they rolled onto the bed. From the other side of her, he got off the bed and grabbed a cloth from the dispenser in the restroom. He coated it in cleaning enzymes and cleaned his own parts, reapplied and then went to the bed and cleaned her and his other self who was holding her body to his chest. After he was done cleaning, he stood and began to dress. He had things to do on the bridge. He wanted to stay and explore with both of his selves. He wanted to see what new ways he could take her with both of him embedded deep inside of her, but he had to be vigilant. Space travel was still dangerous.

"Where are you going?" she asked sleepily.

"I have to maintain things on the ship, we are going at a very fast pace. There are some things that need monitoring, but I will stay here with you while I do it," he said, and saw a slight frown cross her face.

“What is it, pr’ialla?” he asked.

“Your use of pronouns will take some getting used to.”

“You will understand the dynamics as we engage more.” He kissed her bare shoulder.

“It’s just so bizarre how you can be here with me, but also flying a ship, and doing God knows what on your home planet,” she stifled a yawn. He didn’t want her to fall asleep. He wanted her to continue talking to him. He loved hearing her talk, loved hearing her figure out the dynamics of his world and culture.

“Right now, I am here with you, flying this ship, and also sitting on a sofa on my home planet.” He nipped her shoulder and she shivered.

"You are amazing at multi-tasking." She didn’t stifle the next yawn.

“I was not very good at it a moment ago,” Roc said at her back.

“What do you mean?” she asked, her voice a bit slurred with sleep.

“All of my parts orgasmed together,” he said.

“You mean your two parts on your home planet orgasmed as well?”

“Yes, I thought they had gone dormant, but somehow they were engaged with other menial tasks autonomously. It was quite different, when I came, it happened in all of my manifestations. I could not focus on anything,” he chuckled. “That’s never happened before.”

“Really? So, nothing you’ve done has ever tested your concentration like that?”

"Before you can split, the Healers who assist with the operation test your brain. You must be able to maintain a certain amount of multi-level-function before it can ever begin to happen. A lot of my people never split, it's just not possible for them. If the Healer who assisted me in my split found out about how I was caught up in your body, they might second guess their allowance of my splitting.”

“Wait, some don’t split? But, you've split into four. Is that rare?" she asked, curious now.

"I'm the only one. Before me, my father and a few other royals had split into three. One of my father's manifestations was killed during the riot that took my mother and he never split again, so he's only at two at the present moment, losing one of his parts was traumatic. And losing my mother of course worsened it.”

"You must be a rock star on your planet.” she sighed as he rolled her to her side and began to run his tongue around her nipples which had hardened in the cool air.

"I am heir to the throne, I was born the Prince. I would be what you call a rock star no matter what I did. But no, no one knows. No one but one Healer, who assisted me, knows I have been split in four, well, now you know. I keep that a well-guarded secret. When I ascend to the throne, it will be a great asset to have. I have not even told my father, so no word of that when we get to the palace.” He moved his big body over hers and pushed her legs apart with his knee. His cock was hard and ready and so was she. She moaned as he pushed into her, taking her with one long thrust. She cried out in pleasure and a bit of pain, since she wasn’t used to this much attention and was sore. He was so big, but he felt good inside of her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and took him further into her body, speaking nonsense in his ear.

"You were made for me," he moaned into her neck as he thrust hard into her. With each thrust, their pace picked up until they were both panting. Sparks ran up and down his arms and discharged into her skin. He did a push up over her, holding himself up on his arms, his large body hovering over hers as he impaled her. He slipped a hand between them and began to pluck at her clit as he increased the pace. Harder and harder he plunged into her, the sensation of being embedded, spiraling around his body with electric shocks. When she began to pant in anticipation, he smiled down at her, knowing what that meant. She was ready. Ready to explode.

He watched her break apart around him, her head falling back, her mouth open in a silent scream.

"When you come, I feel it in every pore of my body. I feel the explosion of energy overtake you,” he growled, his own body going rigid, ready for its climax. He gripped her hips hard enough to bruise and pistoned them as he took her as deep as he could go until finally he let his own climax erupt inside of her.

He fell against her, moving his body at the last minute so he wasn’t crushing her.

"Our charges tie us together. I feel it when you come. It makes it so much more intense, and makes it impossible for me not to orgasm when I’m inside of you.”

"You mentioned that before, charges and sparks. Can you explain it more to me?" She sighed as she kissed him, for the first time taking the initiative with the little acts of pleasure and Roc settled against his Charge Mate and tried his best to explain to her what she was to him.

* * *

Bobbie loved how their tongues tangled together when they kissed, and she chuckled as she felt him becoming hard against her hip. She didn’t care about being messy or precise about the kiss. She kissed him like she wanted to consume him, until she was satisfied this was real. He took a deep breath against her lips and sat back, looking down at her with a mystified look on his face.

“I never knew it would be like this.”

“What?” She touched his skin and saw the spark rise up to meet her finger. It brought a smile to her face.

“Most living beings are made up of electricity, but my race, it is more, because we have harnessed it. We hold the extra energy inside of us. We have evolved around it so much so that we now need it to reproduce. We also use it to split—the photons we absorb in our bodies become a living part of us, taking on a new form, almost like our signature, what your world might call their fingerprint. This electricity, or photon stream, is what helps us procreate, but it can only happen when we find a similar charged being, someone with the same or similar stream.”

“What did you do before your planet learned to harness it?” Bobbie asked curiously.

“It was like your own world; our technology and knowledge has been both a blessing and a curse. We had always had small numbers, our reproduction never matching what occurs on Earth. But when we began harnessing our own energy and using supplements instead of consuming plant-based products for nutrition, it greatly decreased. At one point in our society, no children were born for decades, the only saving factor was our long lives. When children began to be born to the younger generations, scientists noticed it was only to certain pairs. Females and males with similar charges.”

“You said that before. The same or similar, what does that mean?” Bobbie asked.

“Each person has their own power signature, like a fingerprint. There is no one exactly alike, but some have similar traits, portions of the charge that match.”

“Like blood type?”

“I think that might be an appropriate comparison. If you share some parts, you can reproduce, but if your charges almost match, then you are a Charge Mate. And when Charge Mates join together, their sparks rise up to meet each other until there is no end and beginning to their charges. They match. They mate. Now our charges will match.”

“So, you changed me?”

“And you changed me. Biologically it means we have a 100% success rate of producing offspring of a powerful nature,” he said all matter-of-fact as he ran a hand over her exposed skin. She sighed as the charge sent up sparks much like if she was touching those static electricity balls at the children’s museums.

“I knew when I first saw you that we were similar in charge, but I did not know until I touched you that your charge matches mine almost perfectly. We could not do this if it were not the case.” He sent up another shower of sparks. “Only powerful Charge Mates can do this and I have not heard of a pair like this for a long time.”

“Why were you there in the first place?” Bobbie asked.

“I came to your planet to find you. It had been prophesied by a seer employed by my family on my birth. My father did not believe in the prophecy, because this same seer has a propensity to prophecy things we want to hear, and every ruler wants to find their matched charge. But I knew it had to be true. I made the long journey for you. And it was true, I found you." He dipped his head and took her lips with his own.

"Well, why didn't you tell me from the get-go? You might not have had to kidnap me," she said in a dreamy voice.

"You would have believed me?" He chuckled, running his hand up and down her side, making her shiver, the sparks never abating.

"Maybe," she sighed as she felt his cock stir against her leg, it was hard again. She would be sore, she would be worn out, but all she wanted to do was climb over his body and take him inside of her. She wanted to pay attention and see if she could feel the sparks deep within her pussy. She should be tired, but she did what she wanted and pulled herself on top of him, trying to put her theory to test.

19

Separation has weird complications

It took another day to reach Roc’s home planet, and most of that time Bobbie spent inside what Roc called a medical terminal. It was a silica tube that had all these cords and wires coming out of it. A gurney shot out of it on command and Bobbie laid on top of it, completely nude, and let Roc slide her in after he attached sensors to her skin. He even attached what he called a plug to one of her veins. She only protested slightly when he slid a tube into her vagina, saying it was for medical purposes, so she shouldn’t complain.

Before she had submitted to the medical tube, he had tried to explain everything.

“Our atmosphere is different, a higher amount of oxygen than you are compatible with. There are also viruses that you must be inoculated against. Your human body is not immune, as well as you might carry something that could impact our world. You must be adapted for a cohesive transition. I will also go through the same, not as intense, but I must be scanned for things I might carry now,” Roc reassured her.

After the nail-biting initial scans, Roc came back to check on her and told her he would put her under now. She was going to get treatments that would be slightly invasive, what she knew of as inoculations, and detoxification. It would take a while and it would be better if she slept through it.

When she woke, she was back in her bed, alone. She ran her hands over her body, checking to make sure everything was still there. There was a wrist cuff attached to her left wrist just like the one Roc had on. She brought it up to her face and realized it was seamless, and when she tried to move it nothing happened. It was physically attached to her, but weighed almost nothing. It seemed like it was another part of her skin. She couldn’t even find where it began and she ended, only the texture was different. Insane.

The moment she sat up, the door hissed open and one of the Rocs was standing over her. Her eyes were slightly blurry from sleep so she couldn’t tell if he had a scar or not. She rubbed at her eyes until they focused.

“How do you feel?” he asked.

“Great, actually.” She stretched and when his eyes got that hungry look, she glanced down sheepishly at her nude body. He was insatiable.

“Are we there yet?” she asked and laughed at her own joke.

“We’re about to enter the atmosphere and dock; you should get dressed.” He handed her the body suit and looked away from her, adjusting himself self-consciously and making her smirk.

“Right.” She scooched to the end of the bed and began slipping on the suit; it automatically adjusted itself to fit around her.

“I want you to come to the bridge and see my homeworld as we land,” he said, his face looking nervous for the first time. What did he think? She thought. That she wouldn’t like it?

“Okay, take me to the bridge,” Bobbie said as the suit conformed over her feet and the bottom hardened into a protective covering. They walked to the bridge at a hurried pace, the trip seeming to take forever. They didn’t talk. Roc seemed nervous, so unlike his usually self-assured persona.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Yes, a bit anxious about being whole again. It takes a lot out of you to be separated from yourself, it’s like missing a limb. And things don’t seem as normal as they usually do.” Bobbie wanted to press him on exactly what he meant, and she also realized he didn’t have an accent anymore. His voice was more musical, not as stilted as he usually talked. But as they rounded the corner, she halted abruptly and gaped at the sight in front of her.

She never thought she would witness something quite like this. A beautiful blue-green sphere took up most of the view in front of her. It looked so similar to Earth that she almost thought she was back home, but she couldn’t deny the presence of two suns that floated behind the globe. And there were other differences. The clouds that surrounded the globe had a pink hue to them, not white like Earth’s, and the sea was slightly greener, not the deep blues of her home planet. Giving the planet a pink and teal feel, unlike her blue and white homeworld.

Large land masses in unfamiliar shapes took up the majority of the sphere. This planet seemed to have a lot more land than water. The land itself was a rich red and purple color. She had thought at first it wasn’t land, thinking maybe it was more clouds. But it was a lot of land taking up most of the planet.

“It’s beautiful,” Bobbie said in a low murmur.

“Yes, it is,” Roc said and he put his arm around her waist.

“We’re breaking through the atmosphere, we have to secure ourselves.” He motioned to the chair, and Bobbie got in it and this time she pressed the button herself, instead of waiting for him to do it for her. Thin tendrils snaked around her, holding her in place.

As soon as she was secured, she watched in wonder as flames shot up around the spacecraft, turning the hull bright white as the ship punched through the outer atmosphere and then leveled out when it reached the inner part of the planet’s air. The nose shot up until it was parallel with the water underneath, then Roc punched in a few more coordinates. He also began speaking into one of the panels and Bobbie could barely make out murmured responses from what she assumed was something like a control center.

“We’ll land just in time for dinner. I’ve set up a private supper with only my parts so we can come back to full cohesion. Technically we’ve been separated for about five years.” Roc looked away from her toward the screen.

“Five years?” Bobbie asked in wonder. That seemed like a long time to travel.

“Yes, four of those years were spent during travel,” Roc said, but Bobbie interrupted him.

“But, wait, this trip back only took us a few days. I wasn’t in that tube thing for two years, was I?” she asked horrified.

“No, not at all. It feels like a few days to us because we travel at lightspeed, but for the people not moving faster than the speed of light, well, one light year traveled feels like an actual year—what we call rotations.”

“That is so bizarre. So how many years on Earth has it been?”

“Two years,” Roc said.

“So, why five years then?”

“I spent one year on Earth looking for you.” Again Roc looked away from her toward the big screen, distracted by something. It was probably amazing seeing his home planet after all this time.

“You spent a year on Earth looking for me?” Bobbie repeated in awe.

“Yes, it took me a bit longer than expected, but the prophecy only told me the planet and continent, not a direct location. I visited quite a lot of cities on the North American continent before I finally found you.”

“How did you even find me?” she asked, thinking about how this all might have gone down differently if Roc wouldn’t have come to that club on that night.

“Technology. We can track the charge of a person. It’s not exact, but I can tell if someone of my same distinct pattern is within 100 miles of my vicinity. It’s not as precise as I would like, and if you weren’t a close replicate it wouldn’t work. I was not aware that you would be an almost exact replica, so I had a lower error margin. It was a slow process. If the science was precise, we would be able to match a lot more pairs and maybe have a greater population.”

“Why do you sound different?” Bobbie’s thoughts from earlier resurfaced, and she realized from his explanation how differently he was speaking. He had always sounded like, well, like English was his second language, but now he sounded normal. The accent was gone. It had taken her this long to realize it.

“No one speaks English here. I picked it up during my stay in your United States and Canada, but most of us on Polaridis speak regional dialects. In my domain, it’s Polara, the master language of our planet, but in the other domains they speak varying dialects. Some speak over a hundred different languages in one realm. Most diplomats and travelers have a language implant installed. Everyone at the palace has one, so they’ll understand you, and since you now have one, you’ll understand them. I’m speaking Polara, you are speaking English.”

“No shit. Is that what this is?” She held up her cuff and he nodded.

“It’s one of the things that it does, along with accessing the network on our planet, and it’s a communicator, also a GPS. For your translator, you might find that some words won’t have a translation, so you’ll hear the original word,” he said.

“Ooh, does that word translate?” she asked.

“What word?” Roc asked.

“The pri-ah word.”

“Ah, pr’ialla, I don’t believe so,” he chuckled and she frowned.

“Tell me what it means!”

“One day.” Roc looked over at her and winked.

There was a change in altitude and the craft descended, Bobbie gasped at the sight of the ground before her. A city lay before them. It was like every fantasy painting come to life. Spires of tall buildings made of the same material the ship was made of reached like arms outstretched into the sky in haphazard towers, some going straight up into the air, other’s folding onto themselves in great arches. The sky was an orange-pink color that you only saw during sunsets on Earth, but the two suns were still high in the sky. Great trees that probably stood hundreds of feet reached for the sun as well, situated between the glass-like buildings, as if decorations.

“What are the buildings made of? Is it a metal? Or is it like the ship?” Bobbie asked.

“It’s silica, like the ship, not a metal. We map the DNA and grow it to our specifications,” Roc said like this was something everyone does and knows about.

“You grow buildings?”

“Yes, DNA coding is intricate work, takes decades to perfect, and a new building can take a hundred years to grow to perfection, but everything you see is a constantly changing specimen.”

“And the buildings exist on photons as well, is that how you grow them?”

“Correct.” He smiled at her with pride. “Sometimes the builders will need an influx of a certain protein, and so they’ll have to cover the buildings and then douse it in a supplement, but that is few and far between.” He disengaged his restraints and took Bobbie’s hand. “See that building on the horizon?” He pointed and she searched the landscape for what he was indicating. When she saw it, she gaped at the magnitude and size. The building, if you could call it that, was a gleaming structure at the base of a dark black mountain. The colors of the building were iridescent, ranging from purples, to blues, and greens. There were great windows that looked to be thirty feet high that ran along the side of the structure. Towers soared into the air around it. There were crafts hovering around the outside with great wings, and the flap of them sent up sprays of the dark purple mud of the mountain.

“What is that?”

“The Emperor’s palace; that is our home.” He smiled at her, and Bobbie could tell that he was pleased she was in awe. As they neared the building, lights appeared in the sky near the side of the mountain and Roc pointed the craft in that direction, setting it down with an efficient landing that was barely felt. Bobbie could see they were on an outcropping that jutted out from the side of a cliff and looked down into a large courtyard full of flowering plants and monstrous trees.

Things began buzzing around the ship, small flying crafts sprayed a white mist around the craft. Roc ran his hand along the dashboard and alarms began to blare with flashing blue lights buzzing in every corner.

“Time to disembark.” Roc stood and keyed in something on the wall. More beeping sounded and a line of lights appeared in the hull. A rounded rectangle formed and then slid to the left with a hiss. Stairs unfolded and extended from the floor, landing with a metallic clank on the red ground of the plateau.

Bobbie thought the red plateau was a synthetic material, but once she descended the stairs and got closer, she realized it was grass. The coloring was a deep red.

She bent down and pulled up a blade, noticing the feel was thicker than grass, with a fuzzy feel almost like it was a succulent from back home, but it didn’t break from pressure as she stepped on it, like a succulent would, it folded under her feet.

“Is this grass?” she asked Roc, and both nodded in response.

“This is insane.”

A small man in a white pantsuit hurried over to them. His jacket wrapped around his body like a wrap-around dress, and there were bright gold buttons and strange looking epaulets on both shoulders. He had emblems that resembled medals on his sleeves, and the way he held himself screamed military and importance, even though he was no bigger in size and height than Bobbie.

“Your Highness,” the man greeted and bowed low, his right hand at his back, his left hand in front of him in an almost dance-like move.

“General,” Roc said. The man looked up and then glanced at Roc’s second self with a confused glance.

“How did you beat me here?” He directed his question at Two and Bobbie realized he wasn’t wearing a flight suit like her and Roc. He was wearing a pantsuit that was similar to what the General wore. His tight frame wore loose fitting pants, and a comfortable shirt, with his jacket only half buttoned up the front.

“General,” Two said. “Of course, I knew I would land here. Well before I issued orders to control.” Roc gave him the look that he was so good at dishing out, the look that said why are you questioning me.

“Of course, of course. I hope your journey was fruitful.” He looked at Bobbie and his eyes widened, taking her in from head to foot.

“It was. General, this is Bobbie Flemming, I’ve claimed her as my Charge Mate. Please give her your utmost respect, as she will one day be your Empress.”

“Wait, what?” Bobbie squeaked.

“Mistress Baa-beee,” the General stumbled over the foreign name.

“General, sir,” Bobbie said. She gave Roc the side-eye, hoping it conveyed her annoyance. How could he have not told her about the Empress thing?

“We will be retiring to my wing. Please inform my retinue that I will not be disturbed unless an emergency.”

“Yes, my Prince. I will convey the information. Jives will be stationed in the lobby waiting in case you need anything.”

“Perfect, where is my transport?” Roc looked around and then spotted a sleek looking iridescent teardrop parked to the side of the plateau. He grabbed Bobbie’s hand and headed in the direction of the vehicle, not stopping to answer the few questions the General tried to get in before he disappeared.

Roc placed his hand on the side of the teardrop and a door opened along the side. He got in first and then held a hand out for Bobbie to follow. She ducked her head and slid into the vehicle, gaping at the plush seats and the lights that flashed along what she assumed was the control panel. Two followed behind her and got behind the control panel, pressing a few buttons to start it up.

Bobbie sat, looking around the impressive transport. She was on edge until Roc pulled her against him and she settled into his arm in the comfortable seat.

“We’ll be there in a few of your Earth minutes,” he whispered against her hair. “We’ll rest up tonight and then tomorrow we’ll start getting you acclimated to your new home.”

“You mean as the future Empress,” she said caustically.

“My father is a healthy man by Polaridi standards, even though he is three centuries. It will be a long time before you’ll ever see that title; you’ll have plenty of time to acclimate to your role.”

“How old are you, by the way?” She turned to him.

“Barely a century,” he said running a hand through her hair, which had fallen in her face.

“You’re an old man.” She sat back taking him in. He looked barely thirty.

“I’m barely an adult on my planet,” he said with a smile. “I only came of age at forty so that makes me barely old enough to vote.”

“I don’t think your math is lining up, and holy shit, if you age out at forty, does that make me a teenager or something?” Bobbie asked, not upset by the fact that she was considered so young.

“Yes, but if you don’t mind, I’m going to tell them you are fifty-five years of age, because technically on Polaridis our years are longer, the revolutions greater around the sun, so you would technically be around twenty of our years if they looked closer. Not able to mate, but since your years are harder and shorter on Earth, you are nothing like the twenty-year-olds on our planet.”

“I don’t know whether I should be insulted or happy about that particular tidbit. So, are you being a pervert by having sex with me?”

“It is all a matter of perspective,” he said with a chuckle. “We’re here.” He couldn’t get out of the transport quick enough, both of him. When Bobbie followed she realized they had landed on what looked to be a large balcony.

“This is my private wing. No one will disturb us here.” Roc held out his hand and Bobbie took it, his other self flanking her to the left as they walked across the slick balcony floor.

He led her through tall glass doors that were at least thirty feet high but slid open without a sound. The glass sparkled like diamonds but you could see through it clearly. The glass doors led to a vast reception area with a table at the center that held an exotic and overpowering bouquet of flowers in all shades of the rainbow and even a few colors Bobbie couldn’t identify. She shook her head and looked at it again. There was no putting words to it because she had never seen something in that spectrum before. It had to be because of the second sun. There were more types of light, so there had to be new colors of light. Was that possible? She thought.

She stopped when she saw two more beautiful men standing to the side of the room, resplendent in tight pants and airy shirts that had triangle shaped necklines. Their hair was styled the same, the same dark black as Roc’s, but varied in length from her two Rocs. Theirs was longer and Bobbie noticed a few lighter highlights in them that her Rocs did not have.

The two Rocs inclined their heads and took in their counterparts with an odd expression.

“Interesting,” one of them said.

“Quite,” the Roc beside her said.

“What are you guys talking about?” Bobbie asked looking at him.

“There has been an interesting development that was not expected,” Roc said as he took Bobbie’s hand. “Supper is laid out, let’s dine and rest up.”

“C’mon, what aren’t you tell me, Roc?” she asked.

“We will discuss it together in a moment, but right now, Bobbie, I would like to only tell you one thing.”

“What’s that?” she said, trying to peer around him to see the others.

“Welcome home.”

20

Four Asshats are not better than One

Bobbie followed Roc into a large room where supper had been laid out. She was surprised at how similar it was to how things were set up on Earth. She gaped at the similarities between Roc’s dining room and what she would find on her own world.

“This is so—” She ran a finger over the wood-like table and looked at Roc, not able to convey what she was thinking.

“When we began to serve actual dinners, we asked an engineer to work up suitable eating areas. He had traveled to your Earth before, on a quest to expand his knowledge base. So, your culture inspired these designs. Along with the restaurants that have popped up because of our new pastime.”

She was on an alien planet and she was surrounded by people who looked and acted very human. She stood in a room for dining that was complete with a table and chairs that only looked like very modern versions of what you would find on Earth. Lighting hung from the ceiling and cascaded in an artistic looking chandelier, intricate artwork hung on the walls. The artwork was like nothing she had seen before, showcasing colors she couldn’t even name, but it was artwork on a canvas-like material, hung on a wall and displayed for pleasure. She felt comfortable. She felt at home.

A being about half Bobbie’s height held trays that steamed with aroma and laid them on the table.

“Thank you,” she said when another one laid a napkin on her lap after she had taken a seat.

“It’s a mechanical assistant,” Roc leaned toward her and whispered, even though there was no need for the low voice. “It has no concept of manners.”

“But I do; a girl needs manners.” Laughter came from the Rocs across from her and a frown spread on Roc’s face. There was something going on and Bobbie couldn’t figure out what it was.

Two stayed quiet, filling his plate with an array of food. Bobbie could place none of them.

“So, all of you have to eat?” Bobbie asked.

“Four stomachs,” Two said.

“I guess it makes sense, but that would mean that one of you could get hungry while the others are not, and how do you distinguish who is hungry and who is not? Is it the same when one of my parts hurts, like if I stub my toe? Can you distinguish between who is hurt?” Her questions rushed out while she was perusing the food, looking for something suitable to eat. She kept sticking her fork into different dishes, testing consistencies. Everything looked like potatoes.

“To bring it back to your toe. Can you tell when you stub a toe which one is hurt?” Roc asked her.

“Sometimes,” Bobbie finally decided on something that looked like pasta and put it on her plate. She took a tentative bite and spit it out, it tasted like coffee, which wasn’t anything she had expected.

“Try this, it tastes like your world’s lamb.” He placed an orangish meat on her plate and she took a bite, the taste was savory and full of flavor.

“When did you start noticing a difference?” Roc asked, and Bobbie looked up confused. Since she was technically here alone with Roc, then if he was talking, it would be to her. He had no reason to talk to himself. But one of the new Rocs, the one who sat across from her, answered his question.

“On your return home. The time spent on Earth was normal, just with the slight lag because of the distance, but as soon as you returned home, in that time we began to feel different.” He shrugged his shoulders in a very human gesture, and a very un-Roc like look crossed his face.

Bobbie gaped at the two men across from her. What was going on? She looked between them, red flags flying in her head. The pronouns were always jumbling up in her head, but now his use of them felt wrong. The Roc across from her was using the wrong terms. He kept saying we, as if he was autonomous from Roc and Two.

“The complications were expected for the travel. There were times when we blanked for periods as the distance increased or decreased, but on the return home, after one blank during a fold, we woke and had no direction but our own.”

Our own. Bobbie was new to this four parts of a whole thing, but this didn’t seem like it was following the script of what Roc had told her.

“But, you still feel like part of the whole?”

“Yes,” the Roc across the table nodded.

“But able to act independently?” Bobbie was going to have to name this one Three and the other Four just so she could keep them straight in her head. She knew she was looking back and forth between the two of them stupidly.

“We felt full cohesion when—,” Four looked at Bobbie and there was no mistaking what he was referring to. “And then we blanked and there was autonomy after.”

“There have been no complications because of this, though. A bit of autonomy shouldn’t hurt. It actually might have a benefit in the long run. We—" Three stumbled over the pronoun.

“We can accomplish more if there are more minds on the subject,” Four finished.

“This doesn’t seem right. I’ve never heard of this happening before.” Roc looked at his counterparts, now more twins than parts if Bobbie was digesting the situation properly.

“Wait, are you saying you’re more like clones now, from what? What caused this? The lightspeed travel?”

“Maybe,” Three shrugged again in that very Earth-like gesture.

“But doesn’t light-speed travel happen all the time between your people. Isn’t this how your world achieves faster than lightspeed travel? By one of their splits remaining planet side?” Bobbie spoke up. The two men across from her looked at her with cocked heads, like she had said something bizarre.

“There has never been a case of an original splitting four times, without one of the parts being killed,” Roc said quickly. “There was one case where the emperor had three parts, and one was crushed while he was touring one of the mines. He split again a decade after his third had been put down,” Three said.

“Why did you split this many times, then?” She turned to Roc since he was the original Roc.

“It’s a biological imperative, hard to describe, but you feel like there is too much of you and you have to split, or you burn up,” Roc said.

“You have so much energy built up, it has to coalesce into something else, so you split,” Four added.

“And there hasn’t been anyone who split four times?” Bobbie clarified.

“No one that we can find in the records,” Four said. “We doubled our research efforts while here alone. Nothing in the original archives”

“So, you’re in uncharted waters,” Bobbie mused.

“It would seem. There have been old stories, stories that have been cited about the origin, but nothing definite,” Three said.

“Nothing can be proven about the origins. It’s all myths and superstitions, orally passed down and only recorded centuries later,” Roc said, but he looked thoughtful.

“Can you tell me about the origins?” Bobbie asked.

“They are old stories,” Three spoke for the Rocs. “Passed down by word of mouth, before we learned to channel our sparks and implement the silica so we could write down our words. We think a lot of the stories were changed and manipulated over time, some of them lost for all times as families that passed down the legends died out. But, they all start the same, billions of rotations ago our universe was made of light. All different kinds of light and energy, that coalesced and became aware. Some light became too much to hold within the barriers that were around them so they became more, exploded outward and it was how the Universe was created.”

“The Big Bang,” Bobbie said in awe.

“Right, like your Big Bang theory on Earth. But our stories say that the universe is a living creature that split. It is made up of light, but at some point, some of the light became listless and wanted to become mass. The light watched as planets sprung up and formed life, as water spurned living creatures…and they felt want. They wanted to touch, feel, and not watch. They learned how to form their own mass and that is how the first humans came into being.”

“That’s different from our origin stories,” Bobbie said.

“Our energy is so much a part of us, and on so many different planets you find similar looking beings. It is how we explain how different intelligent life that exists on different worlds, in different solar systems look startlingly the same,” Four said in a low voice as Bobbie gaped at him.

“I thought it was a fluke that our worlds are so similar,” Bobbie said.

“No, it’s not a fluke, in fact it’s quite a common look. There are some differences—skin colors, eyes, some have hair, others have none, some have gills and live in the water, but they still have the same shape, the same parts, and most can breed together. It speaks of a common blue print.”

“So, this origin story, how does that hint at what you are experiencing?”

“The first being of light that became Polaridi found that they forced too much of themselves within the confines of a body, so they split after a few rotations. One of our famed originals, a female name Alla, split over one hundred times, and each of her splits became separate beings, but all looked like the original.”

“True clones,” Bobbie said, taking a sip of her drink and reveling at the taste, enjoying the tart flavor. “But wait, I thought only males could split?”

“Now, only males can split. But she was an original. The being of light that started us, and chose to take a female form so she could carry life. Most origin believers use this to explain why there is so little diversity in coloring on our planet, because we all came from the same stock of Polaridi. Other worlds have skin tones in all shades of the rainbow, hair colors, you name it. On our, world each of the domains has their own look, and it’s rumored that each domain was started with an original couple.”

“But I don’t understand how this might explain your situation.”

“Because the story states that the splits didn’t start acting autonomously until she split her third. It’s why the emperors always try to reach three splits, to see if they can form an autonomous clone,” Roc said.

“So maybe it’s not three but four splits,” Bobbie studied the two men across from her. There was something different about them that she couldn’t quite figure out. There was some small difference that set them apart from Roc and Two. Two sat without talking, only eating as if by remote. He was nothing more than an extension of Roc, whereas, Three and Four were looking around. Four scratched at his arm. Three looked down at his hands almost shyly. After a moment, Bobbie figured it out. It was their mannerisms. The corner of Four’s mouth quirked up constantly, as if he was about to break out in a smile. Three couldn’t make eye contact with anyone, almost seeming smaller than the other three. They acted different than the stoic Roc at her side. Only recently had she been immersed in this world of splits and seers, of charges and energy, but she knew Roc and was amazed at what a difference only a small change in personality would do. It was intriguing and she wanted to find out more. Wanted to help them figure out the mystery of this change.

Roc must be truly unique on this planet. The only one of four, and from what he said, the only Polaridi to have a Charge Mate from another planet, and now the only male to have his splits go autonomous. Not only was Bobbie dating an alien, she was dating a Unicorn alien. Was that even right? Were they dating?

According to Roc, they were mated—a forever pair. She was destined to be an Empress. She didn’t want to think about it. They would be dating for right now. The sex was great, he was sweet and protective, and now there were four of him. Four. It had seemed extraordinary at first, but now, as she sat back in her seat and took in the big males around her, it seemed perfectly natural. She enjoyed being around Roc on their ride through the stars, and now she would have a chance to find out what his other selves were like. This could get interesting.

There was a moment of self-doubt when she thought about what she might be giving up. She hadn’t thought about Earth all day, and certainly had given up on asking Roc to return her. He said two years had passed, so that meant if they were to leave today another would be gone. That was only four years. She could pick up where she left off, right? People had reappeared after being missing and moved back into their old lives all the time. Hadn’t she recently read a blog post about a man who went missing in the 90s and was found in Florida with no memory? Or was he on drugs and his family didn’t want anything to do with him? Bobbie couldn’t remember, it had been one of those stories that pops up on Facebook and she might have only scanned the picture captions.

Glancing over at Roc, she took in his strong jaw, and the way he held his shoulders. There was only one way to describe it: regal. She should be intimidated, or scared, especially from the way she had gotten here. The thing was, though, she had come to enjoy being around him in the days it had taken them to get back to his homeworld. Especially when he devoted all of his attention to her. She wasn’t too sure about this life-long Charge Mate thing, or this future Empress gig…but Roc had been right about one thing. What had been holding her to Earth?

Both of Bobbie’s parents passed away a long time ago and she had gone to live with her grandmother. The home her grandmother, whom she called Kiki, provided was a loving home, but in her first year of college she had lost her grandmother to cancer. There had been no other family members, both her parents only children.

In college, she had made a few friends, but none who stood out and held on after marriages, children, and subsequent divorces. The only ones who stuck were Chuck and Viv, and only barely. During college, she had dated one long term boyfriend and that had ended badly, then a few more long terms after college, all of which led to the distrust of the male species. After awhile she stopped trying and that’s how she ended up with Marlin. Most of her attention had been directed at her job, which she hated. What drew her back to Earth? All she could think was she knew what was expected of her on Earth. Here—well, it was an unknown.

On this world, there were so many possibilities. She had only been here for a moment and already there was a mystery that needed to be solved, a mystery that revolved around four beings that were oh so delicious, and willing to bring her pleasure if she only asked.

“It’s more than the four split,” Roc said, bringing her back to reality. “This didn’t begin until we found you, Bobbie. If it was because we split into four, this would have happened two decades ago.”

“You think it’s about me?” She had been caught mid-sip and spit a little bit out. There must be something alcoholic in the drink, because she was feeling a bit slippery around the edges and her thoughts were coming loose and fast.

“It could be, about the spark we share,” Roc said.

“Do you think our charges have changed? Do you think that’s why they’re more autonomous? That would mean my charge wouldn’t match theirs?” Bobbie pointed to the men across from her.

“There’s one way to find out.” Four stood, making Roc get to his feet as well. He stepped forward to block Bobbie in an odd display of jealousy. She pushed him away roughly, but barely managed to jostle him.

“Stop it, Roc,” she giggled and slapped a hand over her mouth at the sound. “What’s in this drink?” No one answered her; they were all glaring at each other. All except Two who was still eating his food like a robot.

“If he’s not me, I don’t want him touching you.” His hand fell protectively on Bobbie’s shoulder.

“Can’t you feel them? Aren’t they still a part of you, Roc?” Bobbie said softly.

“We can feel him,” Four said.

“Yes,” Roc said grudgingly.

“Then let me do this.” She sidestepped the big man and crossed the floor to Four. He was staring at her in anticipation, his eyes never leaving hers as she sashayed over to him. She couldn’t read anything from his look, but she felt powerful, holding all four of the men in check by her actions. She was the only one that moved. All of them stood stock still, four pairs of eyes on her. She might have swayed her hips a little more than usual, she might have smiled a little bigger. While she hadn’t chosen this path, it was growing on her.

Bobbie held her hand out; Four didn’t move. She stepped closer, until she could almost touch him, but still she held back. She might be imagining it, but she thought she could feel it. It was ready, like an electrical current waiting to find a ground. She held her breath and broke that last fraction of an inch, laying her hand on his cheek.

Sparks flew across her hand and down her arm. They were a bright blue color. Similar sparks traveled along Four’s neck and across his chest. Bobbie gasped and Four’s hand jerked up, holding her in place. He trailed his fingers up to her neck, their eyes locked. Bobbie had been kissed by Roc, a kiss that had changed her life and set her world upside down. She knew that Four would change everything again. She knew it would be different and wanted to find out just how different. He wasn’t Roc, he was something new, but he had the same face, the same body. There were slight differences, the hair, the way he held himself, and that slight uptick of his mouth, instead of the frown that Roc had perfected. She wanted to see if his kiss would burn differently than Roc’s.

She was jerked back against a hard chest. Roc had intervened. She turned her head to the side and saw the scar peeking from underneath a white shirt. It was Two. Was Roc trying to see if he could still control him, or had Two taken it into his own hands?

“Roc?” She said in a low, questioning voice.

“Yes. I have to figure this out, I can’t watch you with him. I want to tear his head off and it’s my own head. I don’t understand this.”

“Our charges match as well, it’s still…” she said and he spun her around.

“I need to figure this out, Bobbie. I only just found you, and this feels like I have to share you.”

“You’re the one that took me off my planet, Roc, with the intention that I was supposed to be with four men.” He tried to interrupt and she held her hand up to stop him, making him frown. “Yes, I know they were all a part of you, and I get that, but in my world four guys are four guys…so excuse me if it’s taking me a little bit to digest this as well. And now that we’ve finally gotten here and are sitting with all four of you, you act jealous when it’s not quite what you expected.”

“I am not good with change,” Roc said, his frown still firmly in place.

“You seem to be pretty well adapted to me, and I’m a big change.” Bobbie pursed her lips and put her hands on her hips.

“You had been prophesied on my birth. All my life I’ve known about you. You are the final piece to my puzzle. You are not change, Bobbie, you are my fate,” Roc said and his forehead furrowed when he saw Bobbie’s cheeks go red in anger.

“Nice to know I could have been anyone, you asshat.” She slapped at his hand that tried to grab hers. Nothing like a bit of male chauvinism to set a girl back on her path.

21

Something to think about

Roc nodded at her outburst, knowing this would probably aggravate her more, but was unsure exactly what the problem was. She threw her hands up in the air and he winced. Obviously, a wrong move on his part.

“We discussed this earlier. You have exceeded my expectations, Bobbie, you are perfect, the perfect match for me,” he tried to fix the situation.

“I need to take a shower or something. I’ve had a little too much testosterone for one week.”

“Our bodies do not process that particular hormone,” Three spoke up and Bobbie waved her hands to stop him, her face was still flushed in aggravation, and Roc wanted to say something to make this better.

“I will show you to the bathing room and how to use it,” Roc’s quaternary manifestation said. He was standing off to the side, regarding her with a slight smile on his face, and it took everything in Roc’s self-control to not throttle the thing, whatever it was.

What was once part of Roc, but now another man, another man to be jealous and protective of, met his eyes and tapped his forehead trying to convey something. Like he knew what Roc was thinking. That action only made Roc’s scowl deepen. Kill the interloper, he thought and hoped that he heard that as well.

“No. Is there another female around here somewhere? Someone with similar parts and pieces as me? You know, someone who can show me the girly ropes?” She didn’t want him. Roc flinched as her gaze landed on him, and she watched as her eyes softened in regret of her quick words. At least that was something.

“I will fetch Nia,” the other autonomous Roc said and hurried off.

“Since I am not needed, I will go handle some things,” Roc didn’t stop to think about what was happening, what could happen—he strode out of the room, leaving his Charge Mate with two unknowns. He was still there though, still in the piece of him that remained part of him. He would be able to watch over things, but right now with only two parts of him left, he couldn’t focus all of his attention on the churning emotions roiling around in his brain.

Roc left his wing and headed to the common gardens at the center of the palace. It was one of his favorite places and he found it centered him. He sat on one of the many reclining spots within the garden and dropped his head into his hands. Putting all of his concentration into what was going on back in his wing, he realized if he focused, he could follow the movements of his tertiary and quaternary manifestations as well, he just couldn’t take control of them. They were truly autonomous. It was like he could read their minds, look through their eyes, but do nothing but watch.

This development could greatly change his future. He didn’t know what kind of men they had become. They were truly autonomous, which meant they could make their own decisions. Would their wants and needs align with his? Would their actions benefit his visions of the future and how this realm should be run under his eventual reign? Could he trust them to make decisions, attend meetings? He would be restricted to only two bodies, when he had become used to multi-tasking between four. He felt crippled and restricted. What if he had to travel again? Could he trust them to make the trip for him, or better yet, could he trust them to stay behind and make decisions in his absence?

For the first time in Roc’s long life, he felt like he had no idea what was going on.

* * *

Roc didn’t stop and wait for a reaction, he turned and left the room quickly. Two went in another direction, leaving Bobbie alone with Four.

“We are conflicted,” he said and ran a hand over his face. Bobbie again was struck by how different he acted than Roc. She was also now starting to think of him as a completely separate man. Maybe Roc was doing the same, which was why he had gotten so upset. She wouldn’t have liked to see him with another female, even if she looked just like her. In fact, it might make things worse if they shared the same face.

“Are you still connected with Roc?”

“Yes, but it’s not like before. I feel him, I know what he is doing, but it’s separate, he cannot control me.” His shoulders slumped. “He finds my presence an intrusion. He thinks I am wrong.” Bobbie saw the pain in Four’s eyes and wanted to comfort him, but when she stepped forward he shook his head in the negative.

The sound of a door opening and the rat-a-tat sound of clicking heels over the marble-like floor had Bobbie turning to face the newcomer. She had requested they get her another female to help her out, but she wasn’t quite sure she was ready to meet another alien.

Three rounded the turn and came into the room with a small female behind him. She was tiny, almost child-like and Bobbie wondered how old she was.

“Bobbie, this is Nia, she runs the household for the Emperor. She’ll show you around the living quarters.” Three made a gesture to Four and they both left the room. Nia’s eyebrow raised and she watched them walk out of the room.

“Good day, Bobbie,” Nia bowed her head slightly. Now that Bobbie had a better view of her, she could see that this woman was not a child, but an older woman. There were fine lines around her eyes and mouth. Her hair was so dark it was almost blue, and her skin was the same bronze color as Roc’s skin. Her eyes the only difference in coloring, and they were more amber than green. She glided over the floor on tiny feet and stood next to Bobbie, her head not even reaching Bobbie’s shoulders.

“Hello, Nia.” Bobbie held her hand out and Nia looked at it in puzzlement. “Uh, how we greet each other on my world.”

“Oh, pardon me.” Nia placed her hand, open palm against Bobbie’s, but didn’t close it. Bobbie squeezed and shook it slightly, causing Nia to frown again.

“Can you show me how to freshen up?” Bobbie asked.

“Freshen up?” Nia asked.

“Clean.”

“Yes, yes, of course.” Bobbie had let Roc clean her on the ship, letting him press all the buttons. She had only managed to use the toilet, but hadn’t figured out the shower room on her own. Her hair was leaning to the greasy side again, and she was sure there was a slight smell about her that she had picked up in the medical tube.

Nia led Bobbie down a hall and opened a door to a large room. A counter lined the far wall and a glass-like room was nestled in the corner.

“I shall have this bathroom stocked with essentials, ma’am, anything you wish,” Nia said.

“I don’t know how to use anything, or what is used on this planet,” Bobbie confessed and Nia gave her a surprised look. Bobbie didn’t understand why it would surprise this woman. She was from a different planet, she had to know that.

“I will have a finishing docent come to instruct you on the accoutrements. We do not have a female royal, so she will have to be recruited, it might take some time,” Nia said. “I am sure you would like to clean now, though.” She went to the wall near the small glass-like room and waved her hand in front of a panel that had a slightly different opacity than the rest of the wall.

“These are different settings,” Nia said pointing to seven glowing symbols. “You choose which level of clean you would like before you enter. The first five are levels of clean, light to heavy. You would only pick heavy if you were covered in some kind of residue, like mud.”

Bobbie stepped closer and looked at the symbols. They were all the same symbol but there was a slight variation on the marking. All of them were circles with smaller circles in the center, some had additions to the circles. Bobbie recognized them from the ship’s shower. Roc had tried to instruct her, but she was lost.

“Clean,” Nia said.

“And what does the addition of this serif mean?” She pointed to the little tail on the circular symbol.

“More,” Nia responded.

“And this one?” Bobbie pointed to another circular symbol, but this one had four wavy lines in the center of it.

“Hair,” Nia patted her hair. “But, only in a sense of cleaning or maintenance.”

“And this?” It was a symbol with two interconnecting squares.

“If more than one person is in the cleaning room, when you click this you will get another set that will specify how many.” Nia pressed it, and lines, much like tick marks showed up.

“This is very specific.” Bobbie saw another smaller symbol that looked like an upside-down triangle, but curved.

“That is more settings, like hair removal, sexual preparation, that sort of thing. Your finishing docent shall explain it more. Undress and I shall show you.” Nia made a motion for Bobbie to proceed.

Not usually shy, Bobbie did feel odd undressing in front of this woman. She had a critical eye as she took in Bobbie’s nude body with careful contemplation.

“Ah, you need a reflection.” Nia pointed to another panel along the wall above the small counter. She pressed it and the wall faded to black, then a mirrored gloss. Bobbie’s reflection stared back at her. She had been right. Her hair was leaning to the greasy side, but other than that, she wasn’t looking that bad. She might have even lost weight.

Bobbie would never be described as petite, unlike the woman next to her. She was about eight inches over five feet, and tended to fluctuate on the heavier side. She had always liked her body, though, even if it wasn’t in the spectrum of a perfect female body on her world…even though it was becoming fashionable to have a big ass and tiny waist thanks to a few reality television stars. But unlike those women who used surgery to achieve their unnatural proportions, Bobbie’s ass was big, but her waist wasn’t tiny. She curved, but didn’t plummet.

With her bigger size, she also had large breasts, which were her favorite attribute, and Roc seemed to like them as well. She saw Nia staring at them in wonder.

“Please enter the room,” Nia said, pressing the second setting for clean, and the hair button.

Bobbie stepped in and the glass around her went opaque, a humming noise began and soft blue lights flared around her. The room filled with a steam, which was not what happened on the ship. Bobbie had a moment of panic, because steam usually meant heat, but it wasn’t too hot, only a pleasant warmth that washed over her skin like a sauna.

The steam dissipated and was replaced by a foam that covered her from head to foot. She closed her eyes and her mouth as a clean smelling aroma she couldn’t place filled her nose. The foam sat on her body for a few moments and then another substance was released from the ceiling that only landed on her head and miraculously stayed there, only saturating her hair. A few more moments there and a gas like substance washed over her, dissipating the foam off her body.

Once the foam had been washed off, the light in the room turned green, and the condensation was wicked from her skin, her hair fell against her arm dry. The door slid open and Bobbie walked out of the room completely dry and cleaner than she had ever been.

“That wasn’t like the ship,” she said to the woman waiting for her.

“We cannot use the soaps on the ship, so they use an ion-based cleaning solution. It doesn’t clean as well, but it works well enough. Here we can have more luxuries.”

“I like these luxuries.” Bobbie sniffed her arm and delighted at the floral aroma that drifted off her.

“I will have clothes specially made for you. I have already called for a tailor,” Nia said when she walked back into the room holding garments in her hand. She held up a brightly colored piece of fabric.

“I don’t need special clothes, I can wear whatever,” Bobbie said as she touched the fabric and ran the soft material between her fingers.

“We do not have whatever,” Nia said with a frown.

“You don’t have stores that sell clothes?” Bobbie asked.

“We do, but you will not fit in these clothes,” Nia said.

“Wait, what?” Bobbie stopped and gaped at her.

“Our people are much smaller than Earthlings,” Nia said and bowed her head like she was embarrassed.

“But Roc,” she said. The man was huge, over six foot. That wasn’t what Bobbie would call small.

“His majesty is unique in size and stature. He has use of a special tailor as well, along with clothes imported from Polari. The only clothes I have for you, ma’am, would be clothes made for Roc, and that would be inappropriate. I have brought you male lounging robes until we can fetch a tailor. Until then, ma’am, I am afraid you cannot be allowed to leave the Prince’s wing.”

“Just get me some male clothing, I’ll be fine. I can wear some of those tight looking pants, and one of the shirts the g—Roc was wearing.” Bobbie caught herself at the last moment before she referred to the four as separate. “I can go out wearing that, right?”

“That would be highly inappropriate, ma’am,” Nia said with that same embarrassed look.

“Is there some kind of restriction on what women can wear here?” Bobbie had a bad feeling about the way Nia was acting. Were there restrictions on females? Bobbie had never considered herself a feminist per se, because she didn’t think she could tout that title since she wasn’t involved in political activism, or any kind of protest, but she enjoyed her independent lifestyle as a bold, beautiful, woman and thought something seriously needed to be done about the gender bias when it came to pay scale, that stupid ass pink tax, and the fact they couldn’t get a damn female in the White House. She hadn’t voted for the current U.S. President because she was pretty sure he was a misogynist. Instead, she had donated regularly to a group that helped liberate women from repressive governments, if that counted. She didn’t know how she would react if she found herself in a society where women were closeted away, or made to cover themselves in public.

“Females are highly revered, ma’am, and protected. If you were to go about dressed like a man, it would cause confusion.” Bobbie could tell Nia wasn’t telling her the entire truth. Was it her bias or cultural bias?

“Confusion? That’s it? I can deal with that. And I’m pretty sure I’m going to stand out and cause confusion with my red hair and my gargantuan size no matter what. I might as well flaunt it, right? I’ll wear some of those pants and a shirt, like Roc was wearing.” Bobbie gave the woman a look that Roc had given her a few times when he wanted her to do what he asked.

“Ma’am,” Nia bowed her head in deference and left the room. Bobbie wandered around the bathroom trying to figure out what some of the raised pieces were for. She pressed one near the door and it didn’t seem to do anything but flash blue.

22

Who’s the alien now?

“Bobbie?” Bobbie had wandered into the attached bedroom and was peering into a drawer when Roc’s voice had her standing up straighter and spinning around with a surprised exclamation, her hands fluttering around her naked body in a useless embarrassed motion. She was standing butt naked in an unknown person’s bedroom. It was a smooth move. It could have been anyone that walked in on her. Luckily, it was Two, and Bobbie let out a relieved sigh. She could see the smallest bit of his telltale scar peeking out from under his shirt.

“I don’t have many options as far as clothes,” she laughed, indicating her lack of attire. “Nia went to find me some. She says there aren’t female clothes in my size.” Bobbie hadn’t meant for it to come out so insecure, but no girl wanted to hear she was the biggest female on the planet and they didn’t make clothes that fit her.

“You’re different from the other females of Polaridi, that’s true. Does this make you uncomfortable?” He took a step toward Bobbie and frowned when she stepped back. She didn’t understand why she stepped back. She was still a bit hurt from earlier, and the insecurity had taken root deeper than she expected.

He was right. She was nothing like the females of this planet. Nothing like what he would have expected. Her hair was a crazy color to him, her size was monstrous compared to the others. She would stand out as different no matter where she went, too pale, too big, too red, too Bobbie. How could Roc want someone like her? He was only infatuated because of this stupid charge. If he had his choice, his Charge Mate would be half her size with that sleek black hair all the people of Thames Virdan had, not this mass of red curls that was her hair.

She was the exact opposite of what he probably desired. How could he find her attractive? He was probably disappointed when he realized she was his Charge Mate. So, now Bobbie was stuck on an alien planet, with a man who was only attracted to her because they shared some weird electrical spark.

“Yes, it makes me uncomfortable. I’m going to be like this lumbering giant around all these petite bronze beauties,” Bobbie said, grabbing a blanket from the bed and wrapping it around her to cover her body.

“These petite beauties you are focused on have bodies like children, unlike my Charge Mate whose curves make me realize what I was missing all of my life.” He moved quicker than Bobbie expected, putting himself in front of her.

“How can you say that? They are what’s normal here,” Bobbie pouted.

“I am not a normal man on my planet. I, too, am much larger. They don’t make clothes for me in the stores. We match, pr’ialla.” He tugged at the blanket around her.

“Where do you get your clothes?”

“We have this advanced technology called a tailor, and I make frequent trips to Polari, where the men and women are larger. In fact, it is usually the Polari females that I desire, and not the Virdan ones of my birth realm. The ones with the large breasts and lush hips,” Two chuckled and Bobbie slapped a hand on his chest.

“Stop making fun of me, you ran off, and that woman was so tiny, and she looked at my body like I was an—an alien. And what, you’re going to run off to find those desirable Polari women now?”

“I am still here, aren’t I? Those women could never compare to you.” Roc kissed her forehead, drawing her into his arms. “And don’t worry about Nia, she is not used to change. All that matters is I find your body mesmerizing.”

“Mesmerizing?” Bobbie repeated with a smile in her voice.

“Your curves, and your larger—attributes are,” he stopped and held her at arm’s length, looking up and down her body which was still covered in a blanket. Bobbie looked down and noticed he wasn’t lying about that attraction, his pants bulged with his attraction.

“They’re what, Roc?” she whispered.

“Tantalizing,” he said on a breath of air, once again tugging at the blanket, this time managing to dislodge it and drop it on the floor.

“What do you like about my body?” Bobbie teased, loving the way he was reacting to her. Her insecurities were like a bad afterthought. What was going on right here had her confidence shooting through the roof. There was no denying he wanted her and he found her beautiful.

“I can’t decide,” Roc admitted, his eyes focused on her breasts.

“Maybe these?” Bobbie felt powerful as she grasped her own breasts, squeezing them and rolling the nipples between her fingers.

“Yes,” the word was a whisper through Roc’s lips.

“What else?” Bobbie asked, biting her bottom lip as she watched Roc’s eyes trail down her body.

“Maybe what’s here.” She slid her fingers through the lips of her pussy, marveling at how wet she became in only a moment.

“Yes,” he said, his voice strangled.

“How about—”

“This.” He grabbed her by her waist and pulled her to him. “And this.” He spun her around, his hands on her ass. She stumbled a bit and whether by accident or design, she wasn’t admitting to it either way, she braced herself on the big bed with her hands, her ass in the air for him to explore.

“Bobbie,” Roc moaned, and his hand pressed against her back, pushing her down onto the bed as she felt his body press against the back of her. His hard erection nestled against her ass and she pushed back on it, once, twice, until he barked out a growl and his hands were gripping her hips to hold her steady. He lifted her legs up, forcing her on her knees on the bed. She expected him to take her like this, to pull out his cock and impale her with its thick length. She was ready, soaked from the anticipation of the sordid act. She wanted it. She wanted to be fucked hard. But what he did took her by surprise. She heard him shift, a soft thud, and then she felt his hot breath against her exposed pussy.

She cried out when his tongue licked across her wet folds.

“Roc!” she cried as he began a slow exploration with his tongue. He licked her from pussy to ass, sucking her clit into his mouth and then venturing back again to the small puckered entrance of her butt. His ministrations were so thorough she was close to orgasm in no time at all.

“Ma’am, I have managed, oh dear,” Bobbie looked behind her to see Nia standing there, staring at her and Roc.

“Put the clothes by the door, Nia, thank you. You will not be needed for now,” Roc said from behind her, and Bobbie couldn’t help the giggles that escaped her. As the door slid closed behind Nia, the giggles turned to laughter.

“You are terrible,” Roc said as she fell on her back on the bed, still laughing.

“I can’t help it. This situation, it’s so strange.” She draped an arm over her eyes so she couldn’t see him glowering at her.

“The palace manager witnessed my face buried in my newly acquired Charge Mate’s ass, and you think it’s funny? She will go and tell all the others that I was on my knees before you.”

Bobbie let her arm drop away and sat up to study this strange man she found herself insanely drawn to.

“Will that be a bad thing?”

“They will say I’m less than a man,” he frowned.

“For pleasing me?”

“Yes,” he scowled.

“But, you are this strong male, bigger than any other, right?” Bobbie got to her knees in front of him, and found the buttons of his shirt. They were slightly different than what you found on Earth. They slid into each other, so it took a little longer than usual to figure them out, but with a quick flick of her finger they undid and she marveled at the ease. She pulled his shirt off, revealing his bronze skin, his broad and muscled physique.

“You have done things that no other man has accomplished.” She dropped his shirt to the floor and reached for his pants. Sliding her finger in the waistband, she found the clasp and loosened them.

“You are to be an emperor.” She grasped his cock in her hand and he sucked in a breath.

“Your actions should show them what a real man is, not what they think it should be.” She slid off the bed and knelt before him, yanking his pants down and letting his cock spring out. She took his dick into her mouth slowly, licking down the side of it until it nestled into the side of her mouth. She sucked it in and he cried out. Sparks began to appear on her hand as she grasped the length of him and pumped him into her mouth as she sucked him.

“Bobbie,” he moaned, grasping her head in his hands.

She swirled her tongue around the head of his cock as she pumped with her hand, slow up and down strokes. She took him in further and further until he was deeply buried in her throat, a talent she had perfected in college. Lights danced around them, and she closed her eyes against the intensity. His hand was at the back of her head, guiding her, but letting her set her own pace. She sped up, even grazed her teeth along the bottom, making him cry out and hold onto her tighter.

He stiffened and his hand in her hair tightened. He was ready.

“I do not want to come in your mouth, I want to be buried inside of you,” Roc growled. Bobbie pulled back and looked up at him, his cock hard as a rock against her cheek.

She stood quickly and pushed on his chest, making him fall on the bed with the motion. Crawling over him, she grabbed for him, aligning the head to her core, and embedded him into her with a moan. Roc’s hands fell to her waist and he laid back and let her guide their pace. It was intense, her head thrown back, her back arched, taking her own pleasure with each rock of her hips, knowing he would come quick because of her earlier attentions.

When his fingers fell to her clit, rubbing it quickly to help get her off, she didn’t hold back. The energy of the orgasm exploded out of both of them with a roar and a blast of light. Brightness danced against Bobbie’s closed eyes and her skin felt like it was on fire. Her hair stood on end as if she had been rolling around on a trampoline.

“Bobbie, Bobbie,” Roc whispered her name as if in prayer. He pulled her to him, cradling her against the crook of his arm, still partially inside of her.

“Roc,” she whispered his name back.

“I don’t know if you can call me that anymore.” He rubbed her arms, causing her to shiver. She sat up and looked down at him, her eyebrow raised in question.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just me. I sense the others, but I’m in total control of myself. That sounds so bizarre, but I am me. I am not Roc anymore.”

“When did it happen?” Bobbie asked, searching his face for a difference. For changes. How could this happen? One minute he was only one part of a whole, and now he was this separate being, Roc, but not Roc.

“When you took me into your mouth, I felt a lessening and a greatening, and I was not aware of what Roc was doing. One minute I was him, then I was aware of him, of the fact that he was here and also in the garden, and then it was only you. Only me. Only us.”

“Can you still sense Roc? Is he here?”

“No, he left.”

“Where did he go?”

“I don’t know, but I think there has been a launch order processed. He is only him, only Roc. And he left.”

23

Four becomes One

Roc sat in the garden, enjoying the sight of Bobbie and the play on words he was sharing with her, all while being in his favorite place, when something happened. His world condensed and Roc was alone.

It had been a long time since Roc had felt this alone. Even though his splits were apart of him, in this moment he knew they had always been separate as well, like parts of his personality segmented into different partitions. And now they were all fully on their own. He hadn’t been a single for almost sixty years. Yet, here he stood, alone.

He could feel Bobbie and his secondary’s union. If he closed his eyes he could feel their joining, the exultation his secondary felt as she pleasured him. It was muted. He could also feel his other two parts as they were aware of the joining of Bobbie with one of him. They stood still, their heads turned toward the bedroom, all of them erect and aware.

It was a heady feeling, one Roc was unsure about. He didn’t like being unsure. He didn’t like not knowing. He needed to figure this out and he needed to do it fast. He connected with his former part that Bobbie was calling Four and sent him a quick message through their shared connection.

* * *

Bobbie got dressed quickly in the clothes Nia had left for her. Four was waiting in the atrium at the end of the hallway, a worried look on his face.

“Do you know where he went?” Bobbie asked.

“He needs time to process. He’s trying to figure things out, you’ve been left in charge,” Four looked at Two. “Since you were the last one to break away.”

“Is that what happened, are you all now separate?” Bobbie asked, looking from Four to Two.

“Yes, we are still connected, but it is like someone with a telepathic connection might be linked to a loved one, not like we were,” Four said.

“Do you have that on this world, telepathy, things like that?”

“It’s rare, but it does happen. Usually people who possess that ability are revered and placed in great positions of deference,” Two said.

“We are not like that, though. I can’t connect with you, Bobbie, only my—" He stumbled for a word to call his brethren. “Others,” he finished, but the frown on his face said he did not like the term.

“Is he mad at me?” Bobbie asked, looking at Two guiltily. She had thought she was with Roc. She didn’t realize what she was doing would set off this chain of events. She had already been with Roc and his second self on a few occasions. Why was it so different now? She had only been in this world a short time, but she didn’t want to hurt Roc. She might not be set on this Charge Mate thing, but she didn’t want to throw it away before it even started. She was willing to give it a try.

“No,” Four said, his hand extended, and he took hers in his. It was warm and reassuring and she smiled up at him. She felt a spark shoot up her arm, and she sighed with the pleasure of it. Her world had become very confusing. It was one thing to have one man, with a few more attributes than normal, it was another to have four separate men. She had always considered herself open-minded, and was proud of the fact that she wasn’t that judgmental. She had her moments, she had been raised by a conservative grandmother, but as the modern world became less and less traditional, she too had begun to embrace the more open lifestyles of many of her peers. Did it mean she had been fantasizing about polyamorous happily-ever-afters? That would be a big no. Yet, when she looked at Four and Two, her mind thought about all the benefits having these two ridiculously handsome aliens, by her side, in her bed, in her—she shook her head at that last thought which was about to come into existence and she could not allow that. It was too soon for talk of hearts, and love, and especially happily-ever-afters. She had a jealous man on the run, and a new world she was very ignorant about.

“What do we do?” Bobbie asked.

“We carry on as usual,” Four said.

“Roc sent me a communication,” Three said as he entered the atrium, looking a little mussed. “In case you didn’t understand what he needed.”

“What does it say?” Bobbie asked excitedly.

“He’s going to find the prophet that prophesied at his birth. He asked for the Healer to be called to our quarters to discuss revealing that we’ve split into three, and then we can make plans to reveal the fourth at a later date.”

“Why would he do that?” Two asked.

“He said it was time to stop sneaking around. With the introduction of Bobbie to society, we’ll have a lot more on our plate. He thought it seemed only fitting that we were transparent. The secrecy will be our autonomy.”

“Introduction into society?” Bobbie gulped.

“Yes, state dinners, boring charity events,” Two sighed. “I hope I’m not the one that will need to attend those.”

“I’ll accompany Bobbie to those,” Four said, looking at his hands and then shooting Bobbie a shy smile. She smiled back and saw Three looking at them, his lips turned down in a frown.

A light flashed in the wall nearest them and Bobbie looked at Two questioningly.

“The Healer is here.” He tapped the panel on the wall. “We’re in the atrium, Lagara.”

Sharp footsteps hurried to their location, Bobbie self-consciously tugged at the men’s clothes she wore as she turned around to see a gorgeous female enter the room. Her hair was the color of teak and hung in long, thick waves down her back. She was barely five feet tall, and only because she wore heeled boots that came up to her knees. A tunic dress barely covered her, but she wore a long flowing robe like top that hung in silken swaths around her.

“Lagara,” Two said, taking the role as the one in charge. Three and Four stepped back and fell quiet. Even though they trusted this Healer with their split, it was obvious they weren’t ready to trust her with their autonomy.

“My Prince,” she inclined her head in a deferential manner.

“This is Bobbie, she is our Charge Mate. Bobbie, this is Healer Lagara, the high Healer of Virdan,” Two said. The female’s eyes fell on Bobbie. There was no warmth there, only a clinical assessment.

“Is it now? Can I see the charge?” She walked over to Bobbie and Two took Bobbie’s hand. He squeezed gently and sparks sizzled between their palms and circled around their fingers. They were a purplish color, which was new, they had been blue up until that moment and Bobbie looked at them with a bit of pride.

“I have never seen a charged match so perfectly formed. I guess the prophecy was correct.” She stood in front of Bobbie, her eyes barely reaching her chest. Her hand shot out and she touched Bobbie’s hair, wrapping the long strand of rose gold around her bronze finger. “I’ve never seen such coloring either, and her size, I know you’ve always been worried about hurting the women you bedded because you are so big. She should be able to take your size quite well.” Bobbie’s cheeks reddened and she looked over and saw that Three and Four were both making the same expression of exasperation at the Healer’s words.

The women they bedded. A flash of jealousy pooled in Bobbie’s stomach. And considering Roc was nearly a century old, Bobbie was pretty sure it was a substantial amount, being the Emperor’s son and all, and the fact that no one said no to him. Bobbie wondered if they had bedded this attractive Healer as well. She was good looking and the woman was eyeing Bobbie’s men like they belonged to her. A primal urge to claim her territory and show this woman who she was dealing with took root, making Bobbie clench her fists to dispel the urge. The feeling made her slightly nauseous with its intensity.

“Healer, please mind your words, they are making my Charge Mate uncomfortable,” Two said and he squeezed Bobbie’s hand.

“Pardon me, sir.” The Healer bowed her head. This time, it wasn’t as deferential as it was supposed to be. She looked up, her eyes assessing Bobbie. “I would like to examine the female, if that is okay, Your Highness?”

“I don’t think that is necessary,” Three said from his position against the wall and the Healer turned and looked at him oddly. Her brows knit together, confused by Three’s reaction to her request. To cover up Three’s sudden actions, Two pulled something from his pocket that looked like a phone and pretended he was engaged with a task. It would appear that he had used Three to speak, while he did something on the device.

The Healer glanced at Two and then back to Three, her face showing she bought it, but what other choice did she have? There had been nothing like this before.

“We are here to discuss you filing the paperwork of the third split, not for you to experiment on our Charge Mate,” Three said.

“I simply wanted to make sure she does not have any issues with our atmosphere, Your Highness. But if you insist, I shall refrain. About revealing your third split, you are really ready to reveal this? Do you think it’s wise? The Emperor did not split in a third until his second century.”

“By my size alone, I have proven that I am more than my father,” Three said coldly and Bobbie sensed an underlying tension there.

“You are right, my Prince, I will file the paperwork and make the announcement. It will cause a media storm.”

“I expect as much.”

“Is that all you need of me, sir?” the Healer asked, looking again at Bobbie with a clinical detachment.

“That is all,” Three said. The Healer bowed at the waist this time, then turned and left as quickly as she had come.

“What will happen?” Bobbie asked.

“She’ll file the paperwork with the realm register. As a courtesy, we’ll send a communication to the Emperor, but it will get out, most likely from someone who processes the paperwork. It will be in all the newsfeeds by tomorrow. It will be combined with the news that I have brought a Charge Mate from Earth. We’ll be the topic of conversation for weeks.”

“That’s quite a lot of news at once,” Bobbie said.

“Might as well get it all out. There is a brunch being hosted by the Emperor tomorrow where we have to be in attendance,” Four said. “It will probably break while we are there.”

“You’ll take her to the brunch?” Two asked Four.

“Yes.”

“I’ll make an appearance at the training facility then and check on our men. You’ll have to stay here alone, I suggest continuing the research,” Two said to Three this time.

“Men?” Bobbie asked.

“As the heir, we are the de facto military leaders, and we take it as a very important responsibility,” Two said. “There are always media waiting around near the base. I’ll try to deflect some of the attention by making an appearance there.”

“Well, I guess we’re all sorted. So, what kind of outfit do I have to wear to this brunch?”

Three pairs of eyes met hers. All of which looked rather horrified.

24

Transmute this

“What do you call this contraption, Four?” Bobbie asked when he ushered her onto a platform with a tube jutting from the top of it.

“Four?” Four asked.

“Oh, I’ve numbered you guys to keep track of you in my head. I couldn’t very well call you Roc, Roc, Roc, and Roc.”

“And how did we get our numbers?” he asked with a sly grin that was his and his alone.

“Order of appearance.”

“Save the best for last?” he said with a twinkle in his eye.

“I think I shouldn’t show favoritism,” she winked.

“No one else is here to know.” She pursed her lips in response and pinched her chin, checking him out from head to toe in mock assessment.

“Yet to be determined,” she finally said.

“You wound me, mistress.” He mockingly put a hand over his heart.

“You’re too sensitive then, but dammit, answer my question, what the hell is this thing?”

“A tube transport.”

“Oh, nuh uh, you are not sticking me in there to get sucked up into the ether and spit out on the other side.” She shook her head and made a dramatic negative gesture with her hands.

“You don’t get sucked up into the ether,” Four laughed.

“Then what in the blazes does it do?”

“Transmutation of energy. It coverts your body to light and transports you to the destination of choice.”

“Um, not that much better. You do know I’m not one of you guys, right? I don’t survive on photons; I’m eighty percent water.” Her eyes had gotten huge; she wasn’t going in that thing. There was no way in hell. Four’s eyes softened.

“You make a good point, but we are the same. I am made of water as well. We just learned how to access the natural energy in our systems, your people may one day do the same. It is simple physics.”

“Still, not something I want to chance.”

“Maybe we should walk then.” Four looked away from the tube toward the small town.

“I’m all about the walking. Well, how far away is it?”

“A few breaths, not that long,” he said.

“And what is a breath?” Bobbie rolled her eyes.

“One hundred spaces,” he clarified.

“And a space?” she asked exasperated, not sure if the translation wasn’t coming through. He held his hands as far apart as they could reach.

“Give or take.”

“I guess that’s not so bad. I could use the exercise, I could deal with losing a few pounds,” She looked down at the shapeless men’s clothing she wore.

“Nonsense,” Four said. “Exercise is always good, but I do not wish you to lose any of your delicious shape.” He slipped an arm around her, and Bobbie couldn’t help it, she blushed.

“Stop, they’ll think you’re with a man; talk about the rumors,” Bobbie laughed, but Four didn’t drop his hand. Four had her tie up her hair and put a hat on her head so it wouldn’t be quite so obvious she was a woman. He had explained that since there were about six men to every one woman there were sometimes issues with kidnapping by desperate men. It was rare, but a man’s standing in the peer class was measured by his ability to procure a wife, which went back to his standing in life. Desperate men did desperate things sometimes. Hence the hat.

Four took her hand and they set off. Her shoes were a bit tight, but they would do for the mile or so hike they had, if she had done the mental calculation in her head correctly. His arm width was probably a good two meters, meaning a breath was about 600 meters, which was a little over a third of a mile. Four had called ahead to the tailor so they were staying open later than their usual operating hours and expecting her for an emergency session. Four had explained it wasn’t the usual palace tailor so this gentleman was bending over backwards to get in the good graces.

Must be nice to have that kind of pull.

Bobbie and Four walked side by side through the alien city. She tried not gape, but she was pretty sure she was doing a bad job at keeping that in check. It was similar to cities on Earth, but then so very alien. The houses grew up from the ground, the same silica-like material everything was made of, in all the colors of the rainbow. Between them, monster trees jutted up, their limbs winding around the buildings, seeming to hold them up. Strings of lights fell from the limbs that cascaded over the streets. There was no yards—the buildings were placed right up against the sidewalks, which were the only mode of passage. Tubes appeared every now and again, and people would appear in them on occasion, a great light would flash, and a symbol would flash, then someone would be standing in the tube.

“This is the shopping district,” Four explained. “These are all here because of the proximity to the palace and the tourists and industry it draws. If you travel a little farther out, you’ll get to the wealthier neighborhoods, then the river, and on the other side the normal folks and the businesses that furnish them exist.”

They were stopped a few times along the route as gushing citizens expressed their love for the Emperor and his son. But for the majority of the walk they were alone. Four had on a hat and dark glasses, and most residents of the area had the same bronze skin and dark hair; he blended into the crowd easily.

They stopped in front of a store that had a symbol on it Four explained meant tailor. He knocked twice on the opaque part of the entry and a man about an inch shorter than Bobbie came to the door. He bustled them in, murmuring welcomes and well wishes.

“It is a pleasure to serve you, Your Highness.” He escorted them into a back room, passing yards of colorful material, mannequins, and all sorts of ribbons along the way. “I have a few outfits I could modify to fit the lady, but anything fancier will have to be custom made. Please, can you change into our fitting garment?” The man handed Bobbie a scrap of material and she looked down at it skeptically.

“I’ll assist,” Four said and nodded for the tailor to leave.

“I can’t even find a seam,” Bobbie said exasperated.

“Here, let me see.” Four ran his hand down the side of the fabric and it came apart. “You’ll need to undress and this will wrap around you. It will give exact measurements to the tailor.”

“Undress?” Bobbie gulped.

“What, are you shy now? You forget I shared a few memories with Roc before we got-” Bobbie pressed a finger to his lips.

“Hush, I get it. Can you get my clasps?” She waited patiently while Four painstakingly unbuttoned her pants. They had given her a pair with clasps all up and down the leg for some reason. Four bent down next to her and began to remove her pants. With each piece of skin he revealed, he laid a quick kiss on the exposed area. She shivered and let her hand trail to his hair.

Kiss by kiss, he traveled from her ankle up her leg, and Bobbie felt the spark of his touch with each caress through the thin fabric she wore. When he exposed the skin of her thigh, he dropped another light kiss, and she moaned with the sensation. She wore no underwear since they didn’t seem to be a big priority on this planet. When her leg was free, Four quickly moved away and let her remove her slippers, and then kick off the pants.

He stood and watched her hungrily as she pulled the shirt over her head to stand before him completely nude.

“You are truly remarkable,” he murmured.

“How can you say that? I look nothing like the women of this planet. For heaven’s sake, I have to go to a special tailor just to get clothes that fit.” She hated that her insecurities were slipping in and leaving her mouth. They must think she was so weak, obsessing about her body, but she couldn’t help it.

“Your uniqueness makes you that much more alluring.” he cooed and he ran his hands down her arms, sending sparks flying.

“You have to say that because our charges match,” she pouted, again hating her repeated self-doubt.

“I say it because it’s true, since the moment I set eyes on you I have thought of nothing else.” He leaned his body down and captured her lip, which poked out in a pout. Bobbie sighed and leaned against his chest. Four’s kiss was soft, a caress against her mouth. He didn’t pressure her into more, or try to bend her to his will. He teased until she opened up, and then he explored tentatively, not wanting to scare her away. It was everything she had imagined, soft to Roc’s hardness, tentative to his aggressiveness, but still exerting control.

Before she crumbled in an aroused mess at his feet, he pulled away, dropping a light kiss on her forehead.

“Let’s cover you up before I scandalize you on the floor in the tailor’s shop,” he chuckled.

“I won’t mind,” Bobbie sighed and Four’s chuckle turned to a very manly grumble of appreciation.

“Clothes, or we’ll never get this done.” He held up the garment to her skin, then ran a hand down her side, and the material moved against her as if it had its own control. It adhered to her skin and wrapped around her, covering every inch of her from her neck to her toes.

“Now that is a sight.” Four turned her around and pressed up against her back. She might as well have been naked. The material was something similar to black silk, but stretchier. It fit to her like a gel, and every fold and roll of her skin was evident. Her erect nipples stood out, along with the delicate folds between her legs. It was the most erotic thing she had ever worn.

“Marvelous.” The tailor bustled back into the room. He had some sort of tablet in his hands and he was busy punching in numbers and waving it about. He barely looked up to see Bobbie.

“This will be the talk of the town. I cannot thank Your Highness enough for bringing this spectacular lady to my door. Outfitting her will be an adventure,” he laughed, and Bobbie looked over her shoulder at Four pleadingly.

“Nothing too outlandish, though. Please stick with on trend things,” Four admonished.

“Of course, but this young lady will be a trendsetter herself. I can already guess the cosmetic surgeons will be rather busy after the first ball with this lady in attendance.”

“The wealthier Polaridi have a habit of modifying their bodies to trends—skin coloring, waist reductions, that sort of thing,” Four whispered in her ear.

“Breasts implants were all the rage about three centuries ago after the Wife of House Galavanti made an appearance right after giving birth. I can see them gaining new momentum again,” the tailor chuckled. “I think I know how to outfit you, my lady. I’ve taken all your measurements, and I have a few outfits I can modify to fit you, if you wouldn’t mind waiting. It will take me a few moments. I can have my son bring in tea.”

“We don’t need any refreshments, sir. We’ll wait, don’t worry about us,” Four said.

“Perfect, let me get this done so the lady does not have to run around looking like a boy,” he chuckled again and hurried out the door, closing it behind him and leaving Four and Bobbie to their own devices.

“Let me help you out of this measuring device,” Four said. He had moved so fast and was at her ear so suddenly it made her jump at his proximity. “Did I scare you?” he asked as he ran a hand down her side, releasing what held the material together.

“No, well, kind of.” The garment fell away and lay at her feet, leaving her again exposed to Four’s appreciative eye.

“What shall we do for the few moments we have alone together?” Four’s lips were against her neck and she shivered, his fingers trailing along her stomach, cupping her breasts, and trailing across her nipples. She could feel the hardness of him pressed against her back. She had only recently joined with Two, resulting in Roc’s leaving. What kind of person would she be if she let Four have her?

She wanted him. She desperately wanted him. But she also didn’t want to hurt the rest of them. Four’s hand skimmed over her skin, his fingers dipping between her legs and finding the tight bud that brought her so much pleasure.

“You’re so wet for me, Bobbie.” He bit her ear and she moaned, knowing he was right. Knowing her body ached for him to enter her. His finger slipped deeper, easily moving between her legs in the wetness.

“I don’t know if this is the right thing to do, Four.” Bobbie pressed against him, wanting to feel more of him.

“How can it be wrong, look at us?” Bobbie’s eyes looked up, finding their images mirrored back at them. Sparks danced up and down their skin. They were beautiful, in colors of purple, blue, and green.

“How can it be wrong?” She agreed, but she didn’t spread her legs further as Four added more pressure to her.

“You worry about Roc?” His fingers fell away, but he stayed at her back.

“I do. If he got any sense of what we are doing, I worry what it will do to him,” she sighed. She wanted Roc, but she also wanted his different incarnations.

“I feel his jealousy, but I’m not experiencing it for myself. I don’t know why, but I’m not affected by it. I would like to share you with him, with all of us. I would like all of us to take you together. It’s the only thing that feels right to me. It keeps me up at night as I imagine what it would be like for us all to drown in you together.” He pulled her against him, grinding his hardness into her, showing her exactly how it made him feel.

“All of you?” Bobbie asked with a squeak.

“Can’t you imagine it?” he whispered.

“I might need help. I’ve never even considered anything like this before.” She spoke in a soft tone to match his.

“It would be quite a sight. Who would enter you here?” His fingers dipped between her legs again. “Roc, maybe. You could ride him. And I would be behind you. Have you been entered here before?” His hand came around her, fondling her ass, sliding a finger through the crack to nestle against the tight hole.

“Never,” her voice wavered.

“Perfect, I will be the first to enter you there. And as we filled you, to the brim, who would you take in your mouth? You like to swallow deep, right?”

“Two, I would take him in my mouth,” she said on an exhalation of breath.

“You would swallow him while Three suckled your breasts and you pleasured him with your hand. You would be filled in every orifice. Complete. Whole.”

“I don’t know if I can handle that,” Bobbie gave a little nervous laugh.

“Oh, you’ll handle it. I know you’ll handle it.”

“I can’t wait,” Bobbie moaned.

“Neither can I, pr’ialla.”

25

Prophesies aren’t what they’re cracked up to be

Roc had to take a charter all the way to Namei where the banished seer had taken up residence. The country wouldn’t allow a foreign royal’s transport access without a whole lot of diplomatic nonsense, so he booked a charter and claimed he was going on vacation. No royal drama for him.

The realm was small, and the seer was well-known, so he had little trouble tracking her down at a hovel on the beach on the southern side of the isle. She was a tall woman, almost halfway through two breaths, and her supplement diet had left her quite slender. She sat on her porch in nothing more than a colorful tunic, still looking young and fresh like he remembered, if not a few more wrinkles around her eyes and mouth.

“If it isn’t the Prince of Thames. I would curtsy, but why bother, I’ve already been banished.”

“Seer Dahli, you’re looking well.” Roc bowed his head slightly. He needed her on his side and he could already tell she wasn’t happy to see him.

“Does your father know you’re here?” she scoffed and pulled out a nubiy pipe. The Namei locals grew an herb that when ingested through inhalation gave a euphoric-like experience. It had no detrimental side effects, but it was known to be addictive. Seers liked to use it because it lowered their blockings, helping them see better. Dahli was not making a prophecy though.

“He does not. May I sit?” He indicated the chair next to her and she shrugged.

He took a seat on the rickety chair, made not out of silica but the wood of the trees of the island. The chair rocked and he sat quietly, listening to the sound of the seer’s inhalations and the cacophony of bird calls that were so different in this part of the planet than his own. The sound of the surf crashing nearby, the birds singing their lamentations to the coming night. He would like to bring Bobbie here to see this part of his world. He thought she might enjoy that.

“Why are you here, Prince?” the seer asked after the silence got to be too much.

“Your prophecy came true. I found my Charge Mate on Earth,” he said. She made a small sound of surprise and Roc looked over at the seer with curiosity. “You did not expect it to be truth?”

“It was rather far-fetched, I began to doubt my sight after I was banished and some of my more outlandish prophesies failed to come to fruition,” she sighed. “So, what is her name?”

“Roberta Flemming,” Roc said.

“Bobbie,” the seer sighed.

“Yes.”

“You found her in a sea of metal and glass, in the land of milk and honey?” The seer asked curiously. “That was an odd combination of adjectives. I thought I was losing my sight after that one.”

“I did, I didn’t know how to undertake that one, but Earth buildings are made of metal and glass so I searched a lot of their world’s big cities, and one of their realms call’s themselves the land of milk and honey.”

“Milk, like the excrement mother’s feed to their young?”

“One of their main sources of nutrition is from the discharge of mother’s milk from a land-based herbivore that is mainly in existence only to be fed upon.” Roc looked back out to the water, watching the water birds dive into the surf, trying to pluck a fish out of the water for dinner.

“After I gave that prophecy, I checked-out all the archives on Earth, but there was nothing about their obsession with milk,” she laughed.

“I only had to ask the first Earthling I came upon and they knew what I was talking about.”

“That’s a relief. Your father thought I was out of my mind. Then he never forgave me after I didn’t see what happened in Lividiania.” She sighed and rubbed her hands along her upper arms as if she was cold.

“Can I get you something, seer?” Even though she looked young, Roc knew the female was over four centuries. She had lost her life-mate over a century ago, and then she had been banished by his father after she failed to see Roc’s mother’s death.

“I’m fine, youngling. You did not come all the way out here to give an old woman some closure, though, did you?”

Roc looked down, ashamed that his trek out here had not been for her benefit but his own.

“There have been more complications, and father destroyed the prophesies when he banished you. Do you still have them?”

“I do, but that does not mean I will give them to you,” she said with a note of defiance in her voice.

“What is it that you want?” Roc asked with trepidation. She could ask for anything, probably something Roc couldn’t give her, like her reinstatement as a Virdan citizen.

“Your father didn’t only banish me, he also banished my two sons.”

“I didn’t know that.”

“I think he was actually trying to be benevolent, knowing it would injure me more if my sons were in Thames and I was banished, so he let us all go so we could be together. They have never forgiven me.”

“I would have an easier time reinstating their citizenship than yours,” Roc said.

“You will do this?”

“It depends on my father, but I can request that he makes this change. I think with the fulfillment of finding my Charge Mate, he should be more receptive. Plus, your sons did nothing wrong. Where are they located?”

“Here in Namei. Neither have bonded. They believe their true mates must exist in the realm of their birth, since these light-haired Namei are so different, there couldn’t possibly be a Charge Mate among them.”

“I will do my best,” Roc said.

“That’s all I can ask from you.” The seer stood and slowly made her way into the shack. Roc waited patiently as he heard rustling coming from inside. The woman lugged out a large silica book and placed it on his lap with a flourish.

“That’s all of them.” She slid her finger along the spine and the book opened to a page with the classification of Prince. “And these are the ones that center around you.” She brought up one in particular and Roc bent over the book and began to read it.

The youngling prince will take his throne of right,
on his date of birth ten spans past the moon’s last row.

Before he’s crowned he’ll know the time, the unrest begins
as the zeitgeist crumbles around the spires of a purple tomb.

The four will be free, by the hands of fate, found within
the land of milk and honey, hidden in a sea of metal and glass.

The charged mate of Earth will stand by the prince’s side,
to conquer the plague of tired ideas and find the sanctity within.

New will become old and old will become new. A new time arises,
at the feet of the youngling prince and his empress of red.

“This is rather spot on.” Roc sat back in his chair, holding the book to his chest.

“Is it? I never could decipher the bit about the four, and what’s supposed to become old and new. I deduced that your reign will bring back old traditions, but I was always afraid of the citation of the empress of red. I worry that she will bring about bloodshed.”

“Her hair is red,” Roc said.

“Is it!” the seer exclaimed in delight. “You don’t know how good that makes me feel, boy.” She patted Roc on the back. “How about this four bit?”

“I split into four,” Roc said softly, in case someone was close. The seer gasped and looked at Roc with wide eyes.

“And they are autonomous now?”

“Yes, after I found Bobbie things began to change.”

“Here, here’s another, I never could figure it out. Maybe it means something to you.” She called up another verse in the book and Roc read it aloud:

“Five to one and one to four,
and so it begins like the time of lore.

A change is near, a change has begun,
there shall be no salvation until it is done.

The prince begins the onset of Eve,
the world unites, but they give no reprieve.”

“I don’t understand this one as well as the last,” Roc said honestly.

“It’s the only one I ever did that rhymed. I was sort of proud of it, but didn’t understand it. It can only mean some kind of war. I got that from both of the poems—your ascent to Emperor will come with great strife.”

“And this Eve? Who is this? The name is funny.”

“It’s an Earth name, that’s all I know.”

“Thank you, seer, for showing me this.”

“You made a promise.”

“I did. Can I get your prophecies? I know my father destroyed most of them, but were these the only ones about me?”

“No, since your birth, most of what I’ve seen has revolved around you. I will send them to you. But now you must go. I don’t think it’s safe for you here.” She looked around, suddenly wary, and Roc felt a tingle of concern. He hadn’t brought any guards with him, and only a few people knew where he was.

Roc got up to leave, asking for the seer to hold up her implant. She held up her hand and he transferred over some universal credits, along with his contact information.

“When you have the time, please send me what you have seen about me. I can transfer over more funds when I get back to the palace.”

“You are too generous,” she smiled, but then her face went slack and she grabbed at Roc’s slacks, pulling him closer, with more strength than she looked to possess.

“The false empress lays in wait. She’ll strike when the time is right, and all eyes are closed. Far away in the land of silica she’ll flee. With the empress of red to darken another’s forced bed.”

“Wait, what does that mean? Who is the false empress? Who’s forced bed?”

“I don’t know, I’ll have to think on it, but I would suggest you hurry home, and protect that new Charge Mate of yours.”

26

Porn Star Goals

Somehow Bobbie and Four had the strength of will to pull away from each other when they heard a clatter from down the hall. Bobbie pulled tight the robe that Four wrapped around her. She couldn’t meet his eye the entire time they waited for the tailor. Their conversation was reserved and polite. Four was so different from Roc—it was kind of refreshing but confusing. Where Roc was assertive and took control, Four let her guide things a little more.

“I think until Roc comes back, we need to keep things PG-13 at least,” Bobbie sighed as she pulled the robe tighter around her.

“What is PG-13?”

“Do you have movies here, where people pretend to be other people and act out a scripted story? I didn’t notice anything that looked like televisions in the palace, but your technology is very advanced so I might not be able to recognize it.”

“We have something like that.”

“Well, on my planet, we rate them based on content. Bad language, nudity, so parents know if their kids can see it.”

“Your world will display something that is not suitable for children?”

“Yes, but only in a closed room and children aren’t allowed. PG-13 means kids under 13 aren’t allowed without a parent due to language, brief nudity. That sort of thing.”

“We would not have any kind of nudity on our displays. If it is not suitable for polite society, it is not displayed. There are certain darker avenues if one would like to pursue that route, but it isn’t considered proper.”

“Porn isn’t exactly thought that highly of where I’m from either, but it’s becoming more and more accepted,” Bobbie said and was proud of herself for not blushing.

“That word, porn,” he mouthed it with a heavy accent, “is not translating.”

“Shortened version of pornography. It’s a film that shows people engaged in all kinds of sexual activity. Some are standard sex, some are more adventurous…like one girl with four guys.” Bobbie couldn’t stop the blush from forming on her cheeks this time.

“And it is filmed and displayed for all to see? Who are these women that would engage in something like this?”

“I see how it is, so similar to my world. Your mind went straight to blaming the women first, and not the men that buy the porn.” Bobbie rolled her eyes.

“Bobbie, this is not against women. I just know why a man would do this. Some men measure their self-worth by the number of women they bedded, but what does a woman get out of behaving in this fashion? What would entice her to have sex with strangers?”

“Money,” Bobbie stated plainly.

“Ah,” Four nodded with understanding.

“A lot of money, actually, and for a woman without options, sometimes this is their only outlet to make a good deal of money. And honestly, some women are similar to men. They like the conquest, they like the sex and like being a sex object to hundreds, sometimes thousands of men and women.”

“Your world is a lot more accepting of this than ours. With the low number of females in our population, there would be outrage if a female engaged in this behavior with men she was not committed to. Now, there have been instances where couples have displayed themselves on purpose, some on accident, but it would not be tolerated for it to be a career.”

“I guess that’s a no then,” Bobbie pouted.

“A no for what?” Four turned to ask her.

“Well, I had big dreams of starring in my own adult films, thought with your planet’s market not being saturated and all, I could make the big bucks.” Four threw the closest thing he had at her, which turned out to be a pillow. It hit her right across the face. Bobbie faked outrage.

“Your humor is not funny, female,” he said as the pillow made contact.

“You’ll pay for that, Four! Especially after I make it big as the hottest porn star on Polaridis!”

* * *

The clothes that the tailor worked his magic on were stunning, and Bobbie walked out of the little shop dressed like a proper Vondan female, resplendent in flowing materials in bright colors, and tiny slippers that made her feel like she was walking on air.

They didn’t make it back to the palace until after nightfall, and Bobbie’s long day caught up to her. Servants had set up another meal, but after her constant yawning didn’t let her take a bite of her food, she finally asked to be pointed to her bed. She collapsed on it without even bothering to find her toothbrush, or undress. A few hours later, the bed moved and a big body pressed against her back. Not that long after that, there was another that pressed against her front. When she woke in the morning, she was sandwiched between three of the most attractive men she had ever laid eyes on. Her men.

Hers. The thought sent delightful shivers down her skin. She wanted to nudge them onto their backs and explore their bodies like a proper day should be greeted, but the elephant in the room was there was one missing. The puzzle piece needed to start everything rolling. So, instead of bending over Two and licking him until he came alive, Bobbie tried her best to not disturb anyone, and slipped out of bed.

She began the arduous task of trying to figure out where everything was. It wasn’t working, but she didn’t need to despair. Within minutes of her being awake, the wall began to flash, the boys were getting groggily to their feet, and there were three chittering females descending on Bobbie. Their goal was to show her the ropes, fix her face, do her hair, and get her ready for a very important brunch with the Emperor.

She was having brunch with the Emperor.

Could life get any weirder?

The women were all life-mates of members of the House Representatives. From what Bobbie could discern, this was similar to the Roman senate of her planet’s history. Which made sense if they were run by an Emperor. The common people needed to be represented.

The ladies fussed over her, showing her how to apply their forms of make-up, which was very different from Earth-based make-up. A screen was called up on the wall and this contraption popped up which fit over Bobbie’s face and should have given her hives because of the claustrophobia, but it went opaque and it was light; she barely felt it.

“You’ll be eating brunch with the Emperor and his life-mate, and two members of the House Representatives, respectively. They are considered the third and fifth influential of the lot.” The woman who spoke was named Ulidinia. She was a life-mate to a member of the lower House Representatives, but Bobbie wasn’t sure what that meant and asked if they could explain their political system.

“Our world is divided into six land masses, one is uninhabitable. Each of the continents have their own ruling system in place, based on their own policies, but each has an Emperor, and our Emperor is the First Emperor.”

“What does that mean?” Bobbie asked.

“The most influential.” The girls tittered when Ulidinia said this.

“I’m still not getting it,” Bobbie confessed.

“Our land is the richest, our population the greatest, our military the strongest, therefore our Emperor is the First. If we ever declined and another Emperor challenged our Emperor, we could be dropped down in influence.” Bobbie nodded, she kind of got it. She wondered how they decided on this. Did they compare their bank accounts and census reports?

“And the House Representatives, what is this?”

“Each influential family sends a member to represent them. The House advises the Emperor and he usually listens to them because they have the voice of the people, but it will always be his decision.”

“What decides whether a family is influential or not?” The mask made a whirring sound and withdrew from Bobbie’s face. She gasped when she looked in the mirror. The makeup was perfection, subtle highlights and contouring, nothing too outrageous, which is what she had been afraid of. None of the women she’d met on this planet had been done up crazily, but you never knew.

“A split, or a legacy of splits, a prophet, or someone who possesses the touch,” Grendu said. “My life-mate is the first of his family to split, so we are a lower house. The higher houses are represented by legacy members. Generation after generation of families that have multiple splits, or they have members that have been touched with sight, visions, that sort of thing.”

“Can women split?” Bobbie asked and all three women shook their head.

“But it is the female line that produces prophets, and those with sight, which is much more powerful than any split,” Jin said, nodding for emphasis.

They had begun working on Bobbie’s hair, this time extracting another device that disengaged itself from the wall. They placed it on her head like she was Judy Jetson, and depressed a button. Bobbie didn’t feel a thing but when they removed the hat, her hair was done in an elaborate mass of curls that spilled around her face and neck.

“Now the clothes.” A hidden door in the wall slid back to reveal the clothes Bobbie and Four had purchased yesterday. They discussed them until they finally settled on a flowing rose gold material.

“No one on our planet has skin like yours, or your color hair,” Jin said, holding the light dress up to Bobbie’s chest. “This will look spectacular on you.” They held their arms next to hers, comparing, and Bobbie smiled, enjoying how they were interested in her differences, and not judgmental. Each of them had light skin, with bronze highlights. She couldn’t compare it to a race on Earth, maybe similar to people from Korea, but slightly darker.

Bobbie was exactly what she had been called over and over again, a mutt. Her parents were both mixed races, her mother was a blend of Irish, Scandanavian, and African, while her father was Japanese and Hispanic. It usually led to people asking Bobbie, “what in the world are you?” Her skin could get quite dark if she tanned, but she rarely did that because of fear of skin cancer, and her hair was a thick red mass of curls, but was tame because she had been doing treatments for the last year. Her eyes were slightly tilted at the corner, but large, and nothing as obviously Japanese as her father’s had been. Even without the tan, she was much darker than the rest of the people on this world. Between her height, her curves, skin tone, and hair, Bobbie wasn’t going to blend in on this planet, no matter what she did.

Bobbie looked at the tiny pale wrists next to her own and sighed. She was used to being different. She guessed it was destined to be her thing, no matter what planet she was on. She let the women undress her and slip on what they called undergarments, but was more like strips of soft fabric that stayed in place by sheer force of will. Then they slipped the dress over her head and ran their hands over the material until it fell into place. When she moved side to side, the material sparkled and shimmered like actual gold.

The women clapped their hands and gushed over her. They gave her compliments and found some lovely slippers that matched the dress. She didn’t even have a moment to look in the mirror before they were pushing her out of the door, claiming she was running late, but calling out words of encouragement along the way.

It was time for Bobbie’s first political meeting.

27

How do you spell that?

She recognized Four standing at the entryway when she left the sleeping area. All four of the men were identical, but there was something about the way Four held himself. Whether it was the curve of his lip, the different way he fixed his hair—whatever it was, Bobbie was proud of her observation skills. Two was more rigid, plus his telltale scar, Three slumped his shoulders slightly and was shyer than the others, not willing to stand out in a crowd. And Roc, he exuded control, the born Prince who would one day rule this realm.

“Four,” she greeted and nodded at him. He leaned down and kissed her cheek, touching her waist lightly and sending sparks raining up her thigh to pool between her legs.

“You look amazing,” he whispered, his eyes trailing from breasts to toes.

“Thank you, you don’t look that bad yourself,” she said and took in the cut of his clothes, perfectly tailored and streamlined across his fit body.

“Thanks, but I wanted to talk to you about something serious before we leave,” he winked.

“Um, okay, shoot,” she said with only a hint of trepidation in her voice.

“I don’t think I’m a huge fan of the name you’ve given me, and neither are the others.” His lips tilted in a smirk, but she could tell he was serious.

“I don’t have much of a choice, considering it would get kind of confusing to call all of you Roc,” she protested. “What else am I supposed to do?”

“I can see where that would be confusing,” he conceded.

“So, Four.”

“There are other options,” he said and slipped his arm through hers and began to walk her out of the wing.

“Like what?” she asked, taking in how the architecture changed once they left Roc’s wing of the palace. The entire building was what would be called ultra-modern on Earth, but there were hints of age to a lot of the furniture that dotted the different rooms. She tried to keep all of her attention on the man next to her, but she kept getting distracted by strange objects she was unable to place. She wanted to run up to it and ask Four what it was and what it did.

“I happen to have four names,” he said. Bobbie skidded to a halt and regarded Four in shock. That was so random.

“Four names? That’s a mighty fine coincidence.”

“It is, isn’t it?”

“Do you guys do surnames like we do on Earth? My culture does three names, but there are a few cultures on Earth that have just two names, some, four or more.”

“We take a name that represents our father, our mother, our nation, and ourselves. But, as far as a surname, I guess you could consider the prefix on my primary name as the sur, since all the males share the same prefix and the females will incorporate it into the paternal name.”

“I don’t understand,” Bobbie said honestly.

“Roch is my father’s prefix. He is known as Rochforral, and inherited the Roch from his father, Rochmorrai.”

“And your mother?”

“She was known as Tamattreia RochPolari, and the P is capitalized only because she was a direct descendant of the original, Polari.”

“That sounds important.” They had slowed their pace and Bobbie pulled Four along to check out what she assumed was a piece of art. It was a spiraling statue of what looked to be a type of rock. When she got closer she realized that the rock had a slight glow to it, almost like the rock was heated.

“It is. My mother was one of the most important females of her time. The only female born in that generation of her family, even though the grandfather of her house had ten sons. She was from an original family, with great power of her own. The only reason her family was not a member of the empire ruling class was because one of her ancestors abdicated when he could not split.”

“That sounds like an interesting history.” Bobbie touched the statue and felt the stone; it was actually pretty hot.

“There have been a lot of recounting of my mother’s line, especially after her death. Her family has since become the second family of Polari, and with the current emperor never producing an heir, it is considered that they will regain control one day.”

“That will be quite an ally to have,” Bobbie said and Four nodded gravely.

“They have remained in contact with our father, and on occasion we visit with the family. It is very large, and nothing like our own. Our father was an only child, and he had only one child himself.”

“Do you miss your mother?” Bobbie asked when she saw the thoughtful look on Four’s face.

“I wasn’t even in existence when she died. I only have the memories that I possess from Roc,” he said, but there was still a pull at his eyes, a downturn of his mouth.

“And what name do you get from her?” Bobbie said changing the subject.

“Our secondary name, Tameratti. Our tertiary is our home realm, Vondan.”

“As a people, you call yourselves Vondans, right? Like I would call myself an American?”

“Correct, but the region is Thames Vondan, the only region that took its entire name from the founder. You’ll hear us say Rochford of Thames, but refer to each other as Vondans. It makes no sense, but it’s how we do things.”

“Vondans sounds better than Thamians,” Bobbie joked and Four cocked a head in acknowledgment of her great wit.

“Most males will have a tertiary name of Vondan, or the masculinized ending, Vondand, Vondsta, or Vondi. Females usually use Vondia, Vondon. My mother kept hers original and did the same with us.”

“The suspense is killing me. What is the final name?” Bobbie whined.

“Finnrod,” Four said and looked down at her as if for approval.

“I like it. What does it mean?”

“Space traveler.” He walked them to a door and pulled on her arm to stop her. “We’re here.”

“I think I might call you guys by your names, in order,” she whispered in case they could be overheard.

“In order?”

“Yes, One is officially Roc, Two will be Tam, Three, Von, and now you’re officially Finn.”

“A good name,” he smiled.

“Shall we do this shit, Finn?”

“Let’s do it.”

* * *

The door led to an atrium that only boasted a small table, and another huge door guarded by two guards. When Bobbie and Finn walked into the atrium, both guards moved as one to open the doors for them.

“Prince Rochford of Thames, son of Rochforral, high Emperor of Polaridis and Charge Mate Roberta Flemming,” the door guards announced.

“They already know about me?” Bobbie hissed.

“Two, err, Tam sent a communication when we landed.”

Bobbie looked into the room, which seemed to go on forever. There was a large table at the center, with numerous Vondans standing around looking bored. There were no chairs in sight. They all turned as one—the men shifting their bodies to the side in a deferential way, the women doing a head bowing gesture. Only two figures did not acknowledge Finn and Bobbie. They stood on a dais, their part of the table raised up to reach their waist. The man was smaller than the woman, who stood a couple of inches above him. They both looked young, in their thirties at the most. The man had hair that had hardly any pigment, and looked nothing like his sons, because this man could be none other than the Emperor. The woman at his side’s hair was almost brown, but still on the blonde side. She regarded Bobbie with cool appraising eyes.

“Why do they not have black hair like the rest of you?” Bobbie asked in a whisper.

“Do you think your world is the only one that invented hair dye?” Finn teased.

“It seems so in your face here, though,” Bobbie shrugged.

“That’s the point, to stand out—here,” Finn gestured, guiding her to a spot at the Emperor’s side. Finn took his position at the right hand of the Emperor, and Bobbie was placed at the right hand of Finn.

“Now that we are all here, the feast can begin,” the Emperor spoke, his voice louder than Bobbie expected.

Male servers descended on the room, carrying trays laden with spicy aromas and sizzling sweets. They maneuvered through the room with ease, placing dishes in front of the occupants in order of rank, but no one dared take a bite until finally the Emperor picked up his eating utensil and began to eat.

Finn held up what looked like a small shovel and nodded to her plate.

“You should have given me table manner lessons,” she whispered to Finn, but it must have been a bit loud because the woman seated across from Bobbie smiled.

“No need, lady, we know you are from a different world, so we expect your table manners to be atrocious.” She smiled in a way that Bobbie couldn’t interpret as either rude or helpful.

“Mivarda, Life-mate of House Representative Gravat,” Finn said conciliatory, gesturing to the man seated next to the woman on the Emperor’s left.

“Pleasure to meet you,” Bobbie said and the two gave a differential nod of the head.

“That will be one thing you’ll never be able to hide,” the woman to the Emperor’s left said.

“What’s that?” Bobbie asked.

“That you are an alien.” No smile graced her face. Insult.

“Tormi is the Emperor’s Consort,” Finn said and the woman grimaced an acknowledgment.

“Pleasure,” Bobbie said without any emotion gracing her word. She could tell there was no love lost with this woman.

They went on to a series of introductions as conversation continued. Bobbie could kind of figure out what the rules were. As the Charge Mate of Roc, she was considered higher in rank than most, but not in an established way, so most initiated conversation with her before an introduction was made. She couldn’t tell if it was because of propriety, or just snobbery.

Most of the conversation was directed at Bobbie as she took small bites of all the food that was placed in front of her. A few of the guests were interested in Earth and the technology, others seemed to be fascinated with how Bobbie and Roc had hooked up, which made for a highly engaged recounting of the auction.

“Your planet places women for sale?” a horrified voice said from down at the end of the table. Bobbie couldn’t make out who it was.

“No, well, not legally,” Bobbie said. “It was a charity auction, for a date. Like a parody. Do you guys have parodies?” She looked around at the faces looking at her, and she tried to get Finn to help her out.

“It was meant only in jest, but to help out the less impoverished, like a match-making prophet,” Finn said and Bobbie shook her head as all the people around her nodded.

“Ah, so they pay money to be arranged to be introduced to a female,” the Emperor joined the conversation.

“Basically,” Finn said.

“Sounds wonderful. I wonder if the Houses would be interested in doing something like this. We could raise money for the terraforming projects.” The Emperor looked to his Consort and she rolled her eyes and looked away, making the ruler of the realm scowl.

“Where are you traveling to at the moment, Rochford, I hear your transport set off yesterday, right after your return with your Charge Mate, and the rumor mills are all a titter with your third split. Did it happen before or after you found your Charge Mate?” The Consort’s eyes were on Bobbie, even though she had directed the question to Finn. Like she knew the answer already, but wanted to see what Finn said.

“I’m looking for information,” Finn said deflecting, not answering her question.

“Information on what?” The Consort did not let it go.

“On the prophecy given at my birth,” Finn sighed. Why couldn’t he lie about the situation? Bobbie thought. There were a few gasps around the table.

“She was banished decades ago, no one knows her location,” the man at the end of the table said. Bobbie didn’t remember his name.

“Namei, she resides in Namei,” Finn said with confidence. It made Bobbie wonder if he knew more about Roc’s activities than he was letting on. Were they still highly connected?

“Did you announce yourself, son, or did you just cross into another realm like a thief?” The Emperor slapped the table, causing the glasses on the table to clink together.

“I entered the realm using my contacts, which happen to be the current Prince,” Finn glared at his father.

“Very well,” the Emperor nodded.

“Highly inappropriate,” the Consort snorted. “And for what? A prophecy that was practically the ravings of a lunatic.”

“I think we have proof that the prophecy has merit.” Finn placed his hand over Bobbie’s and sparks began to play against their joined hands. Again, the gasps around the table.

“I believe I am satisfied,” Finn said loudly and took the napkin that had been placed against this shirt and threw it on the plate of food in front of him. “If I may be dismissed, Father?” He looked to the Emperor.

“I would like to know more about this trip,” the Emperor said.

“In private, please,” Finn deferred to his father.

“Very well.” The Emperor made a shooing motion with his hands and Finn grabbed onto Bobbie and practically pulled her from the room. There were nods in her direction and even a few smiles that seemed genuine.

Their pace was hurried, until they rounded a corner and were far enough away from that room.

28

In the closet

“You were brilliant,” Finn said and slipped an arm around her.

“I was just reacting, I had no idea how to handle myself,” Bobbie chuckled, but slipped an arm around his chiseled back. She couldn’t help herself. She ran her fingers along his muscles, feeling the charges spark off her fingers.

“You handled yourself beautifully. They’ll be talking about how mysterious you are for weeks,” he laughed, stopping to pull her into his arm, placing his chin on her head.

“You weren’t that bad yourself,” she chuckled and the rumble of his laugh vibrated her own.

“I hate those formal things, much prefer parties.” His hands rubbed along her arms and she shivered from the contact.

“We managed well,” she whispered.

“That we did. We make a great team,” he whispered back, dipping his head so she could look up and meet his eye. The allure of his gaze gripped Bobbie and froze her. She was lost in his dark gaze, completely lost. Her heart sped up, her palms began to sweat, and the energy around her became a tangible thing.

“Finn.” The word was barely a sound, but it had an instant effect. Finn’s lips crashed against hers, their tongues tangling as he plunged his hands into her hair. He guided her movements by holding onto her like his life depended on the kiss. They kissed for what felt like hours, her body becoming numb, and then exploding in fire with his slightest brush of contact. When he broke away, Bobbie gasped, breathing heavily against his lips, still only millimeters from her own.

He was tugging her, pushing her away, but keeping her close. His mouth came down again, but he was forcing her back through the room. A hiss of a door opening, and then another as it closed, then Bobbie’s back was pressed against something hard.

She cried his name when her lips were empty of him. Her hands yanked at his clothes, unpinning his pants and freeing his impressive length. He growled as she wrapped her hand around it, and the tiny room they were in lit up with the electricity of their joining.

“I have to be inside of you now,” Finn growled.

“Yes,” she agreed. She was wet and ready, she didn’t need anything more. He spun her around, hiking up her dress and ripping the fabric of her undergarments away from her pussy. He tested her with his fingers and bit down on her ear when he felt how turned on she was. “You’re so wet. Your tight little pussy needs my dick, doesn’t it?”

“Now, I need it now,” Bobbie moaned. That was all Finn needed. He tentatively slipped himself between her legs, and when he met no resistance, he pushed hard into her. The force of it pressed her against the shelving, and she braced herself, holding on for the ride. Deeper and deeper he plunged into her, pulling back until only his tip was inside of her and then ramming himself into her again. She felt him in every part of her body. Her skin was on fire with the charge. The electricity of their union woke every bit of her being. The room was alight with their joining, lightning zipping off of them and sizzling against the walls.

Finn’s pace became frantic, his thrusting unsteady, causing Bobbie’s orgasm to slip away and then ramp back up again when he found a rhythm.

“I’m not going anywhere, Finn.” She gripped his hips from behind, holding him tight and calming his pace.

“This might be the only time I get to have you,” he panted against her neck, holding his big body still against her.

“This won’t be the only time” The light around them faded and Finn slipped out of her as if he was just realizing what they were doing. She turned quickly, her dress dropping around her bare legs. He wasn’t looking at her; there was something he wasn’t telling her.

“Look at me.” She grabbed his face, forcing his eyes to meet hers. “What is it?”

“Now that we’re not the parts of Roc, he’s jealous. It’s why we think he went to the prophet, to find out how to fix this.”

“Fix this? Like, what do you mean?”

“Bring us back together,” Finn whispered.

“He can’t,” Bobbie shook her head.

“This has never happened before.”

“You think Roc is trying to get rid of you, and the only thing you’re worried about is that you might not be able to be with me again?”

“Since you got here, the only thing I’ve been able to think about is you,” Finn confessed, his eyes glistening as Bobbie got on her tiptoes and kissed him.

“You’ll have me as much as you want,” she said against his lips.

“But, Roc.”

“He’ll get over it. You are still the same, but different. We all share this crazy charge, right?”

“Yes.”

“That means all of us are connected. All four of us—you, and me, Roc, Tam and Von,” she laughed as if the thought was just occurring to her.

“You would be okay with this?”

“Oh yes,” Bobbie smirked, her hand slipping between them to grasping him in her grip. He was still hard and the pressure against her hip had been driving her crazy. “Now, where were we?” Bobbie dragged her skirt up, Finn’s hands slipping up her thighs and grasping her under her ass. He lifted her until her butt came in contact with a shelf and she was able to brace herself so he could enter her easily.

His fingers spread her folds, guiding himself into her, his eyes never leaving hers.

“You’ll be okay with all of us?” He slowly drove into her.

“It’ll be a sacrifice,” she cried out as he fully seated himself inside of her, bumping against the back-wall of her cervix. “But, I’ll manage.”

His sexy male chuckle had Bobbie throwing back her head and pushing her hips forward to take him more.

“Fuck me, Finn,” she moaned, wanting him to move, wanting him to bring that fleeting orgasm back. He did as told, holding onto her hips as he pumped into her at a steady pace. As their breathing intensified, Finn’s pace picked up. He was so determined, so focused on their joining that she held on for the ride, not wanting to upset his rhythm. The sparks ignited again, the room lighting up as their passion skyrocketed. Bobbie’s cries became louder and louder, and Finn took her mouth in a deep kiss. When she was close to exploding, Finn had to shut his eyes against how bright the room had become. The final explosion of her orgasm forced his eyes open, to marvel at the electricity that swirled around the small room.

“You’re our world, pr’ialla,” Finn groaned against her neck as his orgasm overtook him and he emptied inside of her.

29

Big Boy Pants

Finn and Bobbie fled the small utility closet they had christened, like school kids who had snuck in for a torrid kiss. Both of their cheeks were bright red, and they rushed down the hallway holding hands and giggling. They needed a bed; neither one of them were sated.

When they burst into Roc’s wing, the eerie quiet hit Bobbie and she sobered almost immediately.

“Can you sense the others?” She was afraid of what their joining had done. He had said Roc was jealous. What about Tam and Von—how deep was their connection?

“Tam had to go into town to handle some business, and I can’t sense Von or Roc.” A little V formed between his eyebrows as he concentrated.

“What do you mean you can’t sense them? Is that normal?”

“Nothing about this is normal.” Finn’s voice was soft. “But, yes, this is new. I don’t know how, but I can’t sense them.”

“What’s the matter, your guilt has gotten the best of you?” Bobbie and Finn spun around as a glowering Roc stood in the doorway that led in from the balcony.

“Roc!” Bobbie exclaimed. She broke away from Finn, intent on rushing to Roc’s side, but her steps faltered when she saw the look on his face. He wasn’t excited to see her, he looked downright furious.

Roc crossed the room faster than Bobbie thought possible, his big body slamming against his double with a crash.

“Couldn’t keep your fucking hands to yourself,” he growled, his hand around Finn’s throat.

“She’s as much a part of me as she is you, and you know it!” Finn defended himself and Roc slammed his left fist into Finn’s stomach.

“You could have waited,” Roc growled, but this time Finn was the one to land a hit. They were close and the punch was not as hard as it could have been, but it got Roc’s hand off Finn’s throat.

“Stop!” Bobbie cried, tripping on her dress as she ran over to them, trying to break them up. It didn’t work out as much, and she pinwheeled her arms trying to save her balance. She tumbled into them, gripping shirts and arms to steady herself.

Big hands came around her, and she fell to her knees, pulling both men down with her.

“Bobbie.” Roc’s voice sounded concerned.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” She pushed Roc’s hands away, but they were tied together in a tangle of arms and legs, so he didn’t move much.

“Do you know what it’s like to know you were with him, with them?” he growled.

“With you, too,” she whispered.

“How can you be with all of us,” his voice broke.

“If it would have all been you, how is it different?”

“Because it’s not all me anymore.” His head found her shoulder, dropping down in supplication.

“But we are all still connected.” She pulled his head back so he would face her. “You felt us, right? That’s why you returned so quickly.”

“I was heading back anyway, I just broke a few air zones on my return,” he sighed out his response.

“So, you felt us together?”

“I fucking came in my pants. I’m still fucking hard from it,” Roc growled.

“You feel it. You might be separate, but you are still together, you can’t deny that. How can you be jealous—it’s like being jealous of yourself?” Bobbie said logically, gripping Finn’s hand when she felt him try to shift away from her.

“It’s not the same,” Roc argued.

“It’s different, it’ll take some getting used to, but this is how it’s supposed to be.” She scrambled out of Roc’s lap, getting to her feet so she could have a better stance.

“I’m a jealous man.” Roc got to his feet, shooting Finn a look that Bobbie couldn’t interpret.

“There is no reason to be jealous, because even if you aren’t here, even if it’s not you that’s making me come, you’re still there.” Bobbie smirked when she saw the reaction her naughty words had on Roc’s demeanor. He was still hard, and he adjusted himself with a scowl.

“And when you’re here, the others will be able to feel it as well.” Bobbie’s hand found the seam of her dress, her fingers running down the catches and releasing them with a flick of her finger. “Come on, Roc! You kidnapped my ass and brought me to this planet. You had me convinced it was a good thing to let all four of your man parts have their way with me, and now that things are a bit different, you’re throwing a hissy fit. Pull up your big boy pants and learn how to share, Roc, because I’m attached to all four of you, no matter who can think for themselves or not.” Bobbie stood there in only the small covering that held her breasts in place, while Finn and Roc stared at her.

“You’re impossible,” Roc muttered.

“No, I’m logical. We all share the same charge, and you’re attached to them as much as I am. If you tried to force things back to the way they were, you would be eradicating three living, thinking beings that are parts of you!”

“I cannot talk to you while you’re nude.” Roc ran a hand over his face. Bobbie’s eyes trailed to Finn and he was holding back a laugh. “And I wasn’t trying to eradicate anyone, who gave you that idea?”

“Why did you go to the prophet? Wasn’t it to try and fix this situation?” Finn asked.

“I was trying to get more information. I knew the prophecy was longer than what I remembered, and I was right. She saw that Bobbie would bring about this separation.” He moved his hands between him and Finn. “But, it said nothing about all of us together. Five to one and one to four, something like that.”

“Five to one,” Bobbie said and raised her eyebrows, looking at Roc as if he were stupid.

“One to four,” she repeated and both men looked at her.

“I don’t understand,” Roc said.

“There are five of us, all joined together, so like one unit, and the one became four, right? That has to mean something right there. That has to mean we are expected to be one, all of us.” The implications of a prophecy predicting their union stuck deep in Bobbie’s stomach. She was having fun right now, enjoying her new sexual freedom, working through the issues and the mysteries that these men had around them. But fate, and prophecy, and things like that had the panic rising in Bobbie’s throat, trying to choke her and box her into a corner. Words like Empress and mate rang in her ears. She wanted them all to join together with her, but what did that mean in the long run? What if it was a constant fight? A constant battle of jealousy?

“That could be one way to interpret it,” Roc said, not looking at her.

“What are you talking about? That has to be what it means.” Bobbie put her hands on her hips, still nude, still not caring.

“So, what she’s saying is, stop being jealous, this is about teamwork,” Finn laughed.

“Then let’s stop talking and explore this new dynamic we all share,” Bobbie smirked at Finn. Bring it back to the sex. When she was fucking them, that was when she truly felt content.

“You expect me to share you, even as we make love?” Roc said unbelieving.

“Why yes, yes I do.” She stripped off the scrap of material that held her breasts in place and they hung heavy and erect from the chill in the air. She didn’t wait for Roc to argue anymore. She cocked an eyebrow at Finn and turned, heading toward the bedroom. She smiled when she heard two sets of footsteps behind her.

When she made it to the bed, Roc was at her side, crowding her with his big body. His hands gripped her hair and he tugged a little too hard until she was looking at him.

“What is it you want me to do with you, female?” he said in a tone that was a little bit scary and a lotta bits sexy.

“I want you to give me lots and lots of orgasms, and I want the same of Finn.” She smiled, Roc groaned, letting go of her hair and wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

“I have never had a female make me feel this way, make me do things…” he said it as if he was talking to himself. Pushing her down, he let her fall on the bed on her back. “Orgasms it is.” He spread her legs, his eyes on the slick folds of her sex, already pooling with moisture, swollen from her earlier union with Finn. He knelt before her, pulling and shifting her until he had the perfect access to her.

“Roc,” she moaned his name as his fingers parted her, searching for her clit, and then his mouth descended, sucking on that sensitive nub, his tongue fluttering against it for added value. When he pinched it between his lips and inserted two of his fingers inside of her, Bobbie sat up halfway with a yell. Her eyes popped open and found Finn, standing against the wall, his eyes on her.

“Come here, Finn,” she mouthed, not able to get the sound out because she couldn’t get her body to function properly. His eyes darted to Roc, who was too busy between her legs to even notice the other man.

“Now, Finn,” she demanded and he obeyed. Roc looked up from between her thighs, his face coated in her wetness, and watched with a hooded expression as Finn crawled across the bed to be next to Bobbie. She tugged him to her, grabbing at his waistband and hurriedly undoing it to get to the organ that strained against the material of his pants.

When it was free, she made a sound of appreciation and moved her body slightly so she could lick down the length of him. He still tasted like her. Still coated from their earlier union. Finn cried out with the contact and Bobbie made another noise of appreciation. She looked down at Roc, who was staring at them, and took Finn fully in her mouth as deeply as she could manage.

Roc’s eyes closed as if he could also feel what she was doing, then his head ducked down to find that amazing little spot and continue the intense tonguing he had been doing previously. Finn pumped his cock in Bobbie’s mouth, while Roc fingered her and sucked her clit with an expert’s technique. Sparks erupted over her skin, down her legs, around her mouth to travel over the men as they brought her close to falling over the brink.

Finn pumped harder into her mouth, holding onto her head to steady himself and guide her as she let him set the pace, which matched perfectly to Roc’s rhythm as he fingered her. When the pressure building in her stomach became too much, she let Finn’s dick pop out of her mouth and gripped the sheets in her fists, crying out with abandon and thrusting her hips against Roc’s face. She screamed both of their names as bolts that looked like lightning bounced from her to both of them.

She didn’t want it to end. When Roc finally ceased his ministrations, she scrambled onto the bed, pushed Finn onto his back and impaled herself on his ready cock. It was time to really join as one. She looked over her shoulder at Roc who was wiping his mouth with a cloth he had grabbed from the dresser. He was looking at them, watching as Bobbie rode up and down on Finn’s cock.

“I want you inside of me, too,” she moaned, not quite sure if she could manage this. They were so big, and she had never done anything of this magnitude, but she knew it was right. She knew this was the key. The bed shifted and she didn’t look back. Her body tensed when Roc’s hands slid to her hips from behind, as Finn shifted his legs so Roc would have access. She continued her steady rhythm as she rode Finn, but stilled when she felt Roc’s heavy cock slip between the globes of her ass.

He placed a hand on her upper back and pushed her forward, angling her just right.

“I’ve never done anything like this before,” she whispered.

“We’ll go slow,” Finn said, assured of what Roc would be doing.

“You’re so tight, pr’ialla, you think you can take both of our cocks?” Roc growled in her ear.

“I think so,” she said, her confidence from earlier waning. She could feel the head of Roc’s dick slip from her ass to her pussy, which was already full to brimming with Finn’s cock. Slowly, he entered her, a millimeter at a time, letting her body accommodate him.

Bobbie tried to relax, to not clench in fear as more and more of Roc entered her. She wanted to experience pleasure but her brain was so focused on every inch of him that she couldn’t let herself relax until he was fully seated inside of her.

“Bobbie,” Roc crooned her name as Finn took a nipple that dangled in front of his face into his mouth. Finn bit down a tiny bit, causing Bobbie to cry out, and Roc to push that last inch and seat himself inside of her. She was full to bursting, their two, large cocks deep inside of her pussy. No one moved as Bobbie panted with the overwhelming intensity of the feeling of being full to capacity. She had never experienced anything like this before, the mix of pleasure and pain was almost excruciating. She wanted more, but was afraid of what could happen.

“You have to do the driving, you’re in control,” Finn whispered. And Bobbie knew this to be true. They couldn’t move without her directing them because they would have to get the rhythm just perfect or risk someone slipping out. Bobbie laughed as she began to push back onto them, slowly at first, finding the how, finding the when. They all made noises of pleasure as the rhythm increased and Bobbie let the pleasure take over. Her entire being faded to one spot of consciousness, the pleasure that was being generated by having both of her men inside of her. Her vision darkened, her skin exploded in sensation, and waves of electricity began to penetrate every opening of her body. She let her head fall back and she came in a symphony of sensations and the charge brought them all together, forcing orgasms out of Roc and Finn at the same time.

Their hands wrapped around her hips, gripping her legs and arms as they pumped into her, emptying everything of their being into her core. When they were emptied, she fell limp against them. The men became soft and pliable under her touch, and she breathed them in on a sigh. They slipped out of her as she could not hold them inside of her any longer and she sobbed as their absence thrummed through her body like an empty well.

Bobbie faded in and out, her body still on fire from the combustion of the joining. She felt warm hands on her, thoughtful ministrations as they cleaned her up. She wanted to say thank you. She wanted to smile and show them that she cared about what they were doing but she couldn’t control her faculties. She managed to sprinkle out a giggle though, as she realized she was drunk on dick.

“What’s so funny, pr’ialla?” One of them asked. In her non-lucid state, she couldn’t tell who it was.

She wanted to answer but she could only shake her head, feeling the blackness get a bit darker at the sides of her head. She wanted to fall asleep—no, that was wrong, she didn’t want to fall asleep. She wanted to get up, kiss Finn and Roc, and tell them that they had blown her mind. Sleep won.

30

Home sweet alien

There was a warm tugging on her breasts that brought her back to consciousness. The light in the room had changed, darkened, which was odd, since there wasn’t a lot of lighting change on this planet. The two suns left not much of a night period on this side of the globe. Warm hands on her thighs spread her legs and she moaned, afraid to open her eyes.

“Are you awake, pr’ialla?” The warm syrup of Two’s—Tam’s—voice rolled over her bare skin.

“Not quite,” she murmured.

Something large prodded at her entrance; careful fingers plucked at her clit and she gasped with the intensity.

“How about now?”

“Do you not know about foreplay?” She sat up and swatted at him.

“She’s awake,” Tam called over his shoulder. “You know when you took Finn and Roc into your body earlier, I felt it, almost like it was my dick inside of you as well. Not exactly, but almost like I could feel myself inside of you. It was an amazing feeling, but ever since then the only thing I can think about is being inside of you as well. Sharing you.” He leaned over her and took a nipple into his mouth, smiling up at her with a Cheshire grin.

“I’m still sore from earlier, come back tomorrow.” She pushed at his head, only wanting to crawl back under the covers. Her body was reacting quickly to his attention though, and as his fingers delved between her legs, parting her and exploring, she felt herself preparing for him, her body drenched in anticipation.

“You’re so responsive, pr’ialla,” Tam purred.

“Still not convinced,” Bobbie panted as two of his fingers entered her, dragging in and out, curling to find that rarely found spot inside of her that made her rip at the sheets under her.

“That’s it.” He looked at her as her back arched against the mattress.

“I think you’re ready.”

“Yes!”

She cried out as he slipped inside of her, her body showing no resistance to him. In and out he plunged, not as aggressive as Roc and Finn, but setting a good pace that had the charge sparking to life and erupting around her skin.

“You look so beautiful drenched in the charge,” he said and his pace slowed as he looked down at her in awe, his big body the only thing she saw. She wrapped her legs around him and pushed him deeper, meeting his thrusts with her own. Tam flipped her, and she was spinning, still wrapped around him, and then sitting on top of him.

“Make room.” Tam smiled up at her, and Bobbie felt the energy change in the room as they were joined by Finn and Roc. Roc crawled across the bed, his hands finding her face, his lips descending on hers as she rocked up and down on Tam’s dick. She felt a hand at her back as Finn found his way there as well. She didn’t know what they planned to do, but she was pretty sure it involved all of them and her body. It had been almost too much to take two, how could she be expected to accommodate three of them?

Roc broke away from her mouth and got to his knees. She knew what he wanted and she craved it as he slid the head of his dick across her lips, making her suck it into her mouth, swirling a tongue around the tip and waiting for that intake of breath that she so craved. He went slow, matching Tam’s rhythm as he entered her mouth while she slowly licked around his length, taking him in deeper and deeper. As Roc reached maximum depth, there was a warm tingling at her ass, fingers spreading something across her sensitive entry. She jerked but Roc held her in place.

“It’s oil, to help him enter you better,” Tam said. “So, we can both join with you.”

Finn’s finger pressed into the tight hole that had never had any kind of attention before. Bobbie groaned, but she couldn’t protest even if she wanted to. Her mouth was full, her pussy was full, and now she was going to have Finn fill her ass.

He took it slow because she wanted to fight it, and as Tam continued to thrust into her, making her loose and willing, and Roc held her head tight, his cock buried in her mouth, Finn entered her from behind. At first, it was Finn’s finger. He buried one, then two. The pain hit her at first, but then the burn of a fire she had never experienced before began to pool in that area. She wanted more, but her mind rebelled at the violation.

When his fingers slipped out of her, she knew it was time, she knew he would take her. Her pussy was on fire from Tam, and she continued to suck Roc down, then Finn was there, pushing the head of his dick into her tight ass.

“You’re so tight,” he groaned. “So tight.”

It was all pleasure and pain, fire and ice. She rebelled against it, fought it, but then the buzzing of the encounter rode across her body and saturated her with lust. She liked it—no, she loved it. This was different from them both inside of her pussy. Now she was full, now she felt almost complete. There was only one piece missing, but she couldn’t think about that now. All she could think about was the pleasure she was to give, and she was supposed to receive. She bucked and rode her men, while they fucked her in every available orifice. They cried her name as she moaned theirs. They were a sea of flesh, melding into each other, and becoming one.

When they came, again it was as one. The men emptied into her, into her pussy, into her ass, and deep down her throat. She finally felt sated as she fell against the mattress, murmuring nonsense words as they pulled her against them, as the tugged at her flesh. She might have come again from their touches, but she couldn’t be sure, her body was so charged up, so on fire. They sighed around her, called her that pretty name in their native tongue and kissed her as they held her close. Bobbie couldn’t think much past the orgasmic haze, but she knew one thing for sure, she was home. Finally, she was home.

31

The Butt Thing

Bobbie was awakened by the communications panel in the room lighting with news they had a visitor waiting to be let in and with the words ‘finally home’ resonating in her head. Her stomach clenched with the weight of that thought. She couldn’t be home with four men, in an empire they thought she was supposed to rule. This couldn’t be where she felt the most at home. Three men in bed was supposed to be a crazy one-nighter, or a swingers phase you went through before you settled down. It wasn’t supposed to be how you settled down for good.

She felt the panic trickling in. Words like settle down, home, and forever were not good for Bobbie’s frame of mind at the moment. Could she really see herself in this position every night? She moved and her body was sore, her legs, her hips, and especially her ass and pussy, even her fucking cheeks were sore. What if they wanted to do this every night? A girl couldn’t expect to have to do that every night? But they just might—these men weren’t exactly easy to say no to.

The room buzzed again and she groaned. She hadn’t figured out the comings and goings of all the technology, or the protocol, but she knew there were some servants that were allowed in and others had to request permission, so she wasn’t going to bother with trying to get up to figure out where she should even answer the door. She groaned and pulled the covers over her head, but they were squished under the big body next to her and she couldn’t get them to move.

She grumbled and tried to pull harder, but they weren’t budging. She managed to make one of the guys move, but he only rolled over and wrapped a big arm around Bobbie’s waist, holding her in place. She decided she wasn’t getting any more sleep at this point.

“Off of me,” she grumbled and pushed the arm aside. She wasn’t quite sure who it belonged to. The offending appendage, no matter who it was attached to, wasn’t moving.

“Stop squirming, Bobbie,” Tam grumbled.

“Don’t you hear that incessant buzzing?” She swatted at a hand trailing up her bare thigh, trying to shut her up by causing her to get all turned on.

“Ignore it, they’ll go away,” Roc murmured into his pillow. He had the covers and the pillows, the hog.

“In the meantime, they won’t let me sleep anymore, though.” She sat up and was immediately tugged back to the bed. Finn’s mouth suckled against her nipple, which had inadvertently fallen into his face.

“No, stop that, we have to leave this bed at some point,” she moaned. Two hard males turned into her and she felt their arousal on both sides of her hips. Even though her words said she didn’t want to, her body readied for more lovemaking. But, the thing was, she was sore from last night’s sexual adventures. Really sore. She had never done anything like that before. Her lower region throbbed with over-sensitized heat. And her butt definitely didn’t feel right.

“Guys, there’s no way I can handle a repeat of last night, it’ll hurt.” The bodies stilled next to her. Finn’s mouth immediately popped off her tit.

“Did we hurt you, Bobbie?” Roc asked.

“No, well, yes, but only because I’m not used to, well, any of what we did last night.” She knew her cheeks were red.

“You were not a virgin when we found you, though?” Tam asked.

“No, I wasn’t, but I had never been with anyone of your…” She indicated their dicks which were hard as rocks and standing out against their flat stomachs.

“You have not had a man our size before? That seems strange. On Earth, we did not stand-out in size like we do here on Polaridis,” Roc said.

“I, well,” she faltered. “Yes, I mean, I’ve been with men that have been large, but then I took both of you, and then the butt thing, I’ve never done that before. A girl has to get used to things a bit before she goes crazy and starts a new hobby,” Bobbie laughed, but she was met with three very sober faces.

“You don’t wish to repeat what we did last night?” Finn asked.

“We are Charge Mates, there is no going back,” Tam said petulantly.

“Look, I didn’t say that. Sure, we can have a repeat of last night, it’s not like I can go anywhere, you guys have me at a disadvantage. I’m on a whole other planet, and you’re the only ones I know here, along with the keeper of the spaceship. But this Charge Mate thing, that’s like forever, right? Like a marriage?”

“A marriage like you have on Earth can be broken. A charged mating cannot be broken,” Roc explained.

“See, that’s a lot to think about. That’s forever and I just met you guys. You’re great, especially in bed, and I really do like you, all of you.” She said that last part under her breath and continued, “But you know, big commitment before I can sign up for something like that. I need a bit of space. Let’s have fun, but just stop with all the mate stuff.” Bobbie’s mouth was running and she couldn’t control. She was in a panic, and the usual sabotage her life reaction was in full effect. Last night she had been all about a big old orgy with her favorite guys, and today she was about to have a panic attack when they started talking about feelings. Wasn’t she supposed to be the one begging for a commitment?

“It is already done, you are our Charge Mate,” Roc said. “And you were the one talking about five is one yesterday. Why the change of heart?” He stood with a frown on his face.

“I’m kinda freaking out here. Please, a moment.” Bobbie fluttered her hands in a gesture she knew was an outward sign of her inner panic. She didn’t understand why she was all worked up, but it was almost as if she couldn’t help it.

“When we entered your body and our charges matched and aligned, we became Charge Mates. You wanted this last night, Bobbie,” Finn said in a more reasonable tone.

“The only one of us you are not mated to is Von,” Tam said.

“This is ridiculous.” Bobbie managed to get off the bed. “You would think someone would have asked my permission through this entire thing. You kidnap me and take me off my planet, then you have freaky lightning sex with me that binds me to you for the rest of our lives. How is that consent?”

Bobbie scrambled back when Roc reached for her. She really didn’t think she was as mad as her words were making her out to be, but what she spoke was the truth as she felt at the moment. She hadn’t agreed to this weird alien marriage thing. Now she was stuck with these four, no three, guys for the rest of her life? What if they met another hot alien—what if she did? What if these particular hot aliens got on her nerves? What if she got knocked up by these hot aliens and they changed, wanting to only sit on the sofa and watch football while they ordered her around, expecting her to put out all the time?

Bobbie stomped into the bathroom and tried to slam the door, but pocket doors that close with a tap of the finger don’t allow any kind of outward displays of temper.

“Bobbie.” The door whooshed open the moment she closed it. Roc stood largely, and very much nude in the doorway, his cock still semi-erect. She had to try really hard not to look at it.

“Go away!” She turned her back on him, but he put his hands on her shoulders and he was spinning her around, forcing her to look at him.

“Did you not want to have sex with me on the ship coming here?” he asked, looking into her eyes. “Did you not want it as much as I did?” His voice was earnest.

“I did,” Bobbie admitted.

“Then what is this of consent?”

“I didn’t have a choice in this Charge Mate thing, that consent thing. Sex is one thing, forever is another!” she fired back.

“I did not know there would be such a unique match to our charges. I did not think my true match would be on another planet far from my own. I had as much choice about you as you did about me,” he said and Bobbie frowned. “And do you think I asked for that same charge to change me like this? To separate me. It’s changing me as much as it’s changing you. I never asked for this, but I’m going to deal with it.”

“So, you’re going to deal with me?” She huffed.

“Not at all, I’m trying to get it across to you that I’m as much of a player in fate as you are.” He held out his hands in supplication.

“The only thing I’m getting from this conversation is that you had no choice in being with me. Nice,” she scoffed.

“Not at all. I’m only trying to say that it was fate that linked us, and neither of us can fight against fate. You said it yourself yesterday. Five is One.”
“So fate has me stuck with you guys for the rest of my life? Is that what that means?” Bobbie rolled her eyes.

“We are becoming one,” he said quietly. “The charge is changing us. It’s changing me, and might be changing you.”

Bobbie’s eyes widened.

“What do you mean changing me?”

“We are becoming a unit. Our charges melding to be perfectly seamless. The side effect is what is becoming of the others, and things might change with you as well. Five is one,” he repeated.

“You could have mentioned this before, Roc. So, now on top of being the mate to four men, I also might see some weird changes happen to me?”

“Nothing is going to happen to you. You’ll be fine. I think your body will just learn to harness energy like us.”

“Like us,” she sighed.

“Is it so bad being with us? Do you want someone else? You were not with someone else on Earth, were you?”

“No, I wasn’t. But forever is a big deal, Roc. That’s something you commit to with someone you love, and I only just met you guys.” Her words faded away as he trailed a finger about an inch away from her skin, down her arm, and sparks rose to meet his fingertips as if that was enough to prove she belonged to him.

“You cannot deny this. This means we are forever linked, no matter how you rage against the situation. This means the cells in our bodies yearn to be near each other, that when we align we bring each other pleasure that can’t be recreated with anyone else. This charge right here means our children will be some of the most powerful beings on this planet,” Roc whispered.

“Our children?” Bobbie gulped.

“The way you have taken our seed, it might have already happened.” Roc placed a hand on Bobbie’s stomach and she slapped his hand away.

“I’m on birth control, dammit, stop with the children! I’m not even used to the marriage thing!”

“Your words wound me, Bobbie,” Roc said.

“Give me a break, Roc, this is all new to me,” she huffed.

“You’re right. I have been knowing about my Charge Mate since I could sit and listen to a story at my mother’s feet. I forget that you are not a part of this world. You fit so well, until you act like this.”

“She’s a part of this world, even now,” Finn said from the doorway. “Roc, I hate to interrupt, but the Healer is in the atrium, she’s insisting on seeing you.”

“Fine, see to Bobbie that she feels better,” Roc said. He leaned down and captured Bobbie’s lips in a quick kiss, then turned and exited the room, leaving Bobbie to shoot Finn a look that didn’t quite convey how mixed up she felt in the moment.

“Do you hurt, Bobbie? Is that why you strike out at us with words?” Finn asked.

“It’s not why. I’m feeling a little confused right now, give me a break. I’m on an alien world, married off to four hot aliens, when a week ago I didn’t even believe in UFOs.” Bobbie opened her mouth, even her cheeks hurt. That was a first.

“UFOs?” Finn asked.

“Unidentified Flying Objects, what they call unknown alien ships that supposedly visit our world all the time.”

“These ships are seen?”

“Some people think they see them all the time. I used to think those people were crazy, but I was wrong, wasn’t I? Because you guys had to get to my planet in a UFO, right?”

“We don’t visit your planet often enough to cause that much of a sensation. Let me care for your hurting, Bobbie.” Finn went to the panel on the wall and punched in something, causing a drawer to open. He took out what looked like a tub of cream.

“I’m fine,” Bobbie said stubbornly.

“Let me help,” Finn pressed another button on the panel and a wide chaise like chair rose from the floor. “Sit,” he ordered. Bobbie was unsure of what to do. She was a little sore, but giving in to Finn would be admitting defeat, and she never liked to give in easily.

“I said I was fine.” Bobbie crossed her arms over her bare breasts.

“Please,” Finn said, his eyes soft, his words soothing. How could she resist that? She took a seat on the chaise. He knelt down near it, making the chair move and widen, rocking her back in the seat and spreading her legs.

“What are you going to do?” Bobbie asked nervously. Her legs were up and her head was down as if she was about to get an OBGYN exam.

“Ease your soreness,” Finn said soothingly. He dipped his fingers into the little tin and stretched his arm out like he was about to touch her.

“No, really, what are you going to do?” Bobbie closed her legs.

“It’s a lotion, it’ll speed up the healing,” Finn soothed and used his free hand to spread her legs again. He slipped his fingers between her legs and began to massage the lotion through the folds of her sex, along with the outer mound and down to her ass. At first, she felt nothing, and then things began to tingle. Finn’s fingers rubbed against her clinically, but Bobbie couldn’t help her reactions, sparks popped along her legs and she could feel moisture pouring from her as she became turned on. She was such a slut, she chided herself as Finn’s pleased chuckle rolled across her skin.

“Can you feel it working?” he said softly, dipping his fingers back into the little tin and then bringing them back between her legs. Of all the inappropriate thoughts to pop into her head, she was hoping this lotion was a single time use lotion, and that no one else would be using it in the future because it was now full of her girl juices.

“Sort of.” She didn’t know what was working, only that she wanted to squirm and spread her legs wider like the whore she was. Who cared that she was on an alien planet, or that she was now married off to four hot aliens? They were hot, and they had big dicks, and they knew how to touch her in a way that made her body thrum like a fucking guitar. Yep. She was a slut. Damn, she was shaming her own self.

Finn slipped a finger inside of her, spreading the lotion on her insides, the tingling sensation spreading up and around her. He pulled out of her and got more of the healing balm. This time, spreading it along her ass, pushing a finger inside of her and making sure he coated every inch of her insides. By the time he was done, she was moaning and writhing against the chaise, begging him to touch her more.

“Now, now, now, Bobbie, we have to let the lotion work.” He smirked at her as she rubbed at her own tits and pushed her hips up for him to inspect.

“Please!” Bobbie moaned, and Finn’s fingers slid from her ass to her clit, this time rubbing against it, not to apply the lotion, but to bring her to heel.

“Is that what you want?” he whispered.

“Yes,” she moaned and his finger slipped into her. Nothing much, just a thrum of her sensitive clit and a curved finger in and out. It didn’t take long for Bobbie to buck against him, gripping the edge of the chair as she broke apart under his touches. She panted against the feeling of the orgasm, loving how the intensity of it was visible by the light show that erupted off both them.

“You are absolutely stunning,” Finn cooed as Bobbie fell back against the chair. She didn’t respond—all she could do was shiver out a nod. “And funny,” he chuckled. He began to clean himself up and then brought a cloth to Bobbie and began wiping at her.

“I think we should clean ourselves in the shower,” he said and helped her get to her feet.

“I’m a mess,” Bobbie whispered.

“Aren’t we all?”

32

Bored Royals

Later that day, Roc himself escorted Bobbie to her next dinner, and it was as uneventful as the last one. There were new faces, new snide comments from the Consort, who was technically Roc’s stepmother, and a plethora of pleasantries that meant hardly anything at all. This dinner was an evening affair, and it ended with cocktails in some sort of sitting room, with the men on one side and the females on the other. Since there were only a handful of women to the twenty or so men, Bobbie didn’t expect to learn much from this segregation.

What did surprise her though, was the Healer she had met earlier in the week was here. Bobbie racked her brain for the woman’s name, but she was horrible with those kinds of things.

“Lagara.” The woman placed her hand in Bobbie’s and Bobbie shook it making the Healer frown. Must be some other way of greeting on Polaridis.

“Thank you, I didn’t want to be rude and ask it again,” Bobbie said.

“I know you are probably overwhelmed,” Lagara smiled pleasantly.

“I am.” Bobbie smile weakly.

“So, why are you at this dinner? I thought it was only about politics at these things?” When Lagara frowned, Bobbie bit her lip thinking she had said something wrong.

“Everything is always about politics, my dear.” Tormi, the Emperor’s Consort, in a sea of white lace walked around to Bobbie, and while she was shorter than Bobbie, she managed to look down on her. “Lagara is happily married to a gentleman from House Navi.” The woman waved a dismissive hand to an elderly gentleman sitting near the Emperor. It was the first old looking person Bobbie had seen on this world.

“That’s your husband?” Bobbie asked, regretting the surprised tone in her voice when Lagara frowned. Maybe she loved him.

“His house is very influential and I’m the third girl born of my own house.” Lagara shrugged like this was supposed to make sense. When she saw the look of confusion on Bobbie’s façade, she went on. “Blessed with healing only, while my sisters have the sight.” She said this like it was going to clarify things.

“Oh, you act like you are a nothing, Healer Lagara,” Tormi tsked. Lagara shot the woman a look that Bobbie couldn’t interpret.

“But I thought you marry if you share a charge. I thought that was how things worked here?” Bobbie asked.

“Not many people on our world find their Charge Mate—it’s rather rare,” Lagara said. “So, when you are reaching an advanced age, and your parents want to make a suitable match for increased influence,” she trailed off and looked at her husband. There was something sad in her eyes. Bobbie looked at her mate’s stepmother and saw a very different look on her face; it was calculating. There was something going on here that Bobbie wasn’t understanding.

“Your husband is an influential man, and it landed you a position in the palace, not many people can say they are so lucky.” Tormi stifled a yawn, sipping from a tiny glass that held a liquid that Bobbie could only compare to a rum punch, but not quite. She had abandoned hers after one sip.

“I am a lucky woman,” Lagara said, but her words did not reach her eyes.

“If you could bare him a child, your future would be secure,” Tormi said.

“Sort of like yours, Lady Consort?” Lagara turned flaming eyes on the woman.

“It is not without trying.” Tormi rolled her eyes at the spite in Lagara’s tone. “Speaking of which, I’ve heard that you’ve been quite busy with the Prince the last couple of days.” All eyes turned to Bobbie, including women that were technically not in the conversation.

“I wondered if the mating techniques on your world would be similar to those on ours. We are supposed to be able to reproduce with Earthlings, but we have no inclination of what kind of primitive mating rituals were in place in your culture.” Tormi looked at Bobbie like she was nothing more than a curiosity.

“Lady Tormi, please,” Lagara said.

“Hush, Healer, it’s all everyone is talking about, especially now that your official split filing has become public. Rochford is now of three. Can a primitive Earthling know how to handle such a prolific male?”

“Insert tab A into slot B? And C, and D?” Bobbie held up her finger and inserted it into her thumb and forefinger which she had made into a circle. Tormi looked at her horrified and Lagara placed a hand over her mouth to hide her delighted reaction. “What, you guys don’t do it that way? Is that too primitive?” Bobbie asked in feigned embarrassment.

“We certainly don’t talk about it in polite company,” Tormi said from her lofty snobbish height.

“You’re the one that brought it up.” Bobbie finished off her drink, trying not to taste it.

“Making nice, stepmother?” Roc slipped an arm around Bobbie.

“As always, I’m the pinnacle of proper social behavior.” Tormi smiled but it didn’t reach her eyes. It seemed like that was the thing on this side of the room, while the men laughed raucously on the other side of the room.

“I’m sure,” Roc said and dismissed her with a glance.

“We were just discussing your split. Congratulations on the pinnacle of power,” Tormi said and tipped her head to the side in faked deference.

“I highly doubt I’m at my pinnacle,” Roc said in a haughty tone that had Lagara’s eyes widening in surprise and Tormi looking even more pinched.

“Bobbie, are you ready?” She nodded, as there was only so much of this proper social politeness she could handle. They gave their goodbyes to the two women.

“Are all social events like this?” Bobbie hissed when they crossed the threshold.

“Ever since my father married that viper,” Roc said looking over his shoulder at the viper in question.

“Do they share a charge? How did that relationship happen?”

“No charge. My father was lucky enough to find his Charge Mate in my mother, but to maintain his status as Emperor he needs a female, and she’s the sister of the Emperor of Lividiania. It’s a smaller province to the north of us. The union solidified a silica trade agreement and made her a Consort to the most powerful Emperor in the world.”

“Why is she a Consort and not an Empress?”

“She has not given birth, and is not a Charge Mate. It’s this way in case an Emperor finds his Charge Mate or they can’t produce a child together.”

“Wait, what? That’s kind of barbaric. So she would just be out if he were to come across a Charge Mate?”

“Non-charge matches are only made for influence and possible children. They are in place this way so they can be easily broken if needed. I think it’s rather logical if you think about it. It’s not a love match, and I, for one, would not miss her if my father decided to revoke the agreement because she hasn’t become pregnant. But he has no need of an heir because of me, so he’s not worried. In fact, he’s probably not trying to produce because if she did get pregnant there could be a power struggle.”

“What do you mean a power struggle? You aren’t heir apparent because of your birth order?” Bobbie asked, thinking about her time when she was obsessed with the UK royals when they got married.

“Tormi makes it clear to anyone who will listen that she doesn’t care for me. If she were to produce a child, it would be one more reason to hate me, since I would be in the way of that child’s succession. It wouldn’t be the only time a royal tried to off another royal because of succession order.”

“But if she has a child, you’re still the heir, right? Unless, she what? Were to kill you off?” Bobbie asked, thinking how advanced this world was, but how behind it was on cultural ethics. She was never a fan of gentrified caste systems, a big proponent of democracy and individual freedoms. She might not have thought about it every day, taking her freedoms and position in the world for granted, and she definitely never appreciated her citizenship when she was still American, but this outdated system made her aware of how much freedoms as a female she had before, and why she might have thought royalty was romantic on the outside, when on the inside it was the opposite. This was savage.

“Yes, to all of that,” he nodded.

“And if you were to get the throne, I would be an Empress if I had a child?” Bobbie whispered.

“You are my Charge Mate, so no, you’ll be an Empress no matter what if something happens to my father, or he steps down, which he has voiced would be his favored option.”

“And what are the job requirements for that position? And do I have to?”

“Still thinking about catching the next transport off this planet?” Roc shot her a look that said he was sort of joking, but really worried about what she was going to say.

“Can you blame me?” Bobbie sighed. She motioned to the bored royals who had retired to their thrones to glare at their guests, neither one looked happy. The Consort leaned over and whispered something to the Emperor who didn’t respond, only looked away. This caused his Consort to cross her arms and give a pained look to the back of his head.

“I have failed to show you the beauty of my world.” He shook his head. “I’m going to have to rectify this.”

33

Beauty is only skin deep

Roc kept up a continuous diatribe about the wondrous things on his planet as he walked Bobbie back to his wing of the palace. He would one day show her all of these places, once she was introduced and he squashed the rumors running around about her. They would have time to see his world, and she would come to love his planet as much as he did. He looked over at his Charge Mate, and the defiant set to her chin. He worried he might not have time.

What would he do if she insisted on going back to Earth?

He had said he hadn’t taken her against her will, and if she truly wanted to return he would do so. But he knew he couldn’t lose her. He had known about Charge Mates his entire life, had heard about what it meant that two people were meant for each other, but he had never heard about love. He had assumed it would stroke an attraction, a sexual gratification that wouldn’t be able to be found in other partners, but he hadn’t expected to fall in love with his Charge Mate so quickly. Now thinking about her unhappiness, about the fact that his world was making her uneasy, and she may prefer her barbaric Earth over Polaridis, gave him pains in his chest.

He began to speak about the amazing sights to be seen here, about the thousand-foot trees of Uvanda, and the Pearl Falls deep in the mountains of the Virdan Sunset range. He had never talked so much, at least not since his school days when he was forced into a debate. He was trying to win her over, and he hoped it was working. He thought about her outbreak this morning, and her reaction to this last social gathering, her smile which wasn’t as quick to come as before. Roc’s chest tightened in anxiety again.

“I want you to be happy here, Bobbie,” he said, slipping his hand into hers.

“It’s just…” She looked away, and Roc frowned, not knowing how to interpret her reticence.

“What?” he asked, squeezing her hand.

“This is so different for me. This society stuff ended on my world centuries ago. I’m not used to this etiquette stuff and restrictions.”

“Centuries ago?” What did she mean by that? Her world didn’t have etiquette and rules? He had seen how different they were, how free they were with their social interactions, and it had thrown him off. To be able to speak to a female on the street without repercussions was so different for him, but there were so many females. They didn’t cherish them as his world did. It was exhilarating, but at the same time, it was heart-breaking. Women should be protected and revered, not forced to display themselves on the streets in hopes of attracting a mate. Was that what she wanted to go back to? A world where men treated her like a piece of flesh, instead of the amazing and beautiful female that she was?

“Yeah, there’s no polite society, or whatever your stepmother called it.” Bobbie’s words shook him out of his internal outrage.

“The royals were spoken about on the news on Earth. The ones who kept having children, or gambling, they wouldn’t have situations like this where they were expected to behave a certain way? The rulers of your world aren’t expected to hold themselves in a proper fashion at a social event?” Roc asked.

“Not as strict, I guess. I don’t know,” Bobbie muttered. “There has been a severe decline in social decorum in the last ten years,” she laughed.

“What do you mean?” Roc asked.

“I’m trying to answer your question the best I can. I honestly have no idea because I wasn’t born into money, or at least the old money that breeds your type of royals on my world. But I think maybe you’re right when it comes to the upper caste systems in my world. But it’s getting more laid back. People on Earth are getting tired of elitism behavior. Even those royals you mentioned—the younger prince married a mixed race American actress, which would have been unheard of even ten years ago, and I don’t think his older brother would have been able to marry someone like her.” Bobbie looked up at Roc and he wanted to kiss her, but held himself back. He wanted this discussion with her more; he wanted to understand what was going through her head.

“Politics aren’t my favorite pastime, but it’s the nature of the game, and it comes with our positions. I know you didn’t ask for this, but there can be wondrous things here in my world.” He stopped and turned her to face him. “I’ll show them all to you.”

“It’s hard, Roc, because I didn’t ask for this, and this isn’t normal for me.” She looked down at her hands, and he slipped his into hers.

“You will be an amazing Empress for that reason. You will have new ideas, new ways of doing things. It even says this in the prophecy.”

“You haven’t told me about this. What does it say in this prophecy, how do you know it’s about me?”

“It is about you, I’m sure.”

“Can you show it to me?”

“I can recite it for you.” He slid his fingers over his band and called up a screen with those alien symbols on it, which made up his language.

"The youngling prince will take his throne of right,
on his date of birth ten spans past the moon’s last row.

Before he’s crowned he’ll know the time, the unrest begins
as the zeitgeist crumbles around the spires of a purple tomb.

The four will be free, by the hands of fate, found within
the land of milk and honey, hidden in a sea of metal and glass.

The charged mate of Earth will stand by the prince’s side,
to conquer the plague of tired ideas and find the sanctity within.

New will become old and old will become new. A new time arises,
at the feet of the youngling prince and his empress of red.”

“What does that even mean?” Bobbie shook her head in confusion. “I mean, I get the part about me, and Earth, but the other stuff? It sounds ominous.”

“The way I interpret it is that finding you ushers in a new era, and that when I’m crowned Emperor there will be some issues.”

“Issues, like a war? You speak of change, but this says unrest, that means war? Zeitgeist, that’s like common thought, right? That crumbling doesn’t sound good—it sounds kind of bad. People don’t like change.”

“It means that I will be Emperor and things might change, and it will be you who ushers in that change. Maybe it’s because you know a different way, or something else, I don’t know, Bobbie, but we’ll get through it together. We’ll change things.”

“Would that even be possible, to change things that have been in effect for centuries? Change them without a lot of pissed off people?”

“Anything is possible. If you want to change how things are done, we can do it together.”

“But it’s how you’ve done things for millennia. Wouldn’t it stir up trouble? This unrest the prophecy speaks of?”

“Governments are meant to change, to adapt. If not, they become stagnant, especially with a single all-powerful ruler,” Roc said, remembering the classes he took in his younger days. His father had made sure he was enrolled in an actual school, and not taught via tutors. One of his teachers had been quite progressive, stressing the issues with the oligarchy and the limited house that his realm employed.

“You would consider this?”

“I would do anything to make you happy.”

“Even upend your realm and the way you do things?”

“If I believe your ideas are illogical, we can discuss it beforehand,” he smiled.

He bent and kissed her on the lips. Nothing passionate like every other kiss he had laid on her, this one was sweet, gentle, and he hoped it conveyed his sincerity.

“Illogical,” she huffed.

“I don’t think that will happen often,” he smiled.

“And what will the rest of the guys think of this? What will be their roles?”

“Is that what you want, Bobbie?”

“All or none, right?”

“If that is what you want,” he said, swallowing hard, thinking about how complicated things could get.

“It’s the only thing that can work, no matter how confused you are with this situation—they are a part of you. They will be involved, in their own way.”

“I know, it’s just not—" He paused, trying to conjure up a word. “Blavidi.”

“What does that mean?” Bobbie asked.

“I can’t explain it well. It’s like your brain is muddled and things won’t settle down.” He ran a hand over his face, trying to imagine a world where he was Emperor and there were three other autonomous Rocs running around causing havoc. It wasn’t just the slight tinge of jealousy he felt when he saw the others invoke their own charge with his Charge Mate, it was also the fear he could possibly lose control.

“I know it’s different, but we’ll adapt,” she said.

“We’ll?” he asked, a smile spreading across his face at her acquiescence.

“Yeah, we. I think I’m pretty much stuck with the bunch of you.”

“Stuck. You say that a lot. I cannot accept stuck. Please tell me you want to stay. If it really is your wish, to go back home, Bobbie, I will take you back to Earth.”

“My life isn’t there anymore. No job, no friends—isn’t that what you said?”

“A few years have passed.” He looked away, not able to meet her eye over the slight exaggeration of the truth. “But I’m sure you can get things sorted out, pick back up where you left off. I’ll help you get back on your feet,” he said earnestly, thinking that if she did agree to go back to Earth, Roc would be right there with her. Maybe one of his manifestations would want to stay here and take the throne when it was time, allowing Roc to try out a normal life with Bobbie on Earth. Could he be happy living in a tiny apartment in that crowded city where the over-cooked meat of dead animals was eaten on the street?

Roc didn’t know if he would be happy in the city, but he knew for sure he wouldn’t be happy if Bobbie wasn’t at his side.

* * *

Bobbie thought about her life back on Earth. The tiny apartment she called her home, where the landlord upped the rent every year. Her job, which was the 7th level of hell. Her friends—she actually missed her friends—but they had been pulling away over the years. They both had fancy jobs, or fancy pet projects, both had semi-serious boyfriends, and she had been in the same place, stagnant, for a long time. Until a charity auction, and two aliens.

“No, I think it will only be a waste of time if you bring me back to Earth. It’s not like my life will be there anymore. I wouldn’t even know how to start over.” Bobbie sighed and Roc looked at her sadly. She had the urge to comfort him, even though she was the one who got the shit-end of this deal.

“I have a lot of regrets about how I got you here, Bobbie. I honestly thought I was saving you from a life of slavery,” he said sheepishly.

“You spent some time on my planet. Did slavery seem like it was a thing?” She rolled her eyes, not really believing he truly thought she was being sold at an auction.

“I didn’t think it was accepted, but it was discussed a lot. I read articles that called it sex trafficking, not slavery,” Roc said. Bobbie grimaced because that was a hot topic in the U.S. In fact, they had just busted an actress from one of her favorite television shows as a child, for being part of a sex trafficking ring disguised as a female empowerment group. Maybe it wasn’t so far-fetched for him to think that, especially since he wasn’t as sure about the nuances of her world.

“You really thought you had busted in on a sex trafficking auction?” Bobbie asked, but it was more a repetition of acknowledgment.

“Yes,” Roc nodded solemnly. Bobbie shook her head as she digested this, still torn about the entire situation. If he was to be taken at face value, he was only trying to save her, and with the awful way they had been communicating in the beginning, since he had only a year to learn English since people on Earth didn’t possess these handy translator implants, it was a wonder he didn’t mess up a few other things along the way.

She realized she believed him, believed he had nothing but good intentions, and if she was being honest with herself, her life before this was a mess. Roc had done her a favor by bringing her to this world. She wasn’t sure if she was okay with how they did things here, but maybe, just maybe, her progressive ideas might help make this place a little better. On Polaridis, she could possibly make a difference with how things were done, whereas on Earth she was only a waste of space.

The band around Roc’s wrist beeped and he looked down, then swiped so a small screen appeared on his forearm. Bobbie wanted one of those if she was going to be staying on this planet permanently.

“What is it?” Bobbie asked.

“We know where Von went,” Roc said.

34

Causing a Ruckus

“He caught a commuter transport to Polari, registered under the name John Smith,” Tam was saying as Bobbie and Roc crossed the threshold into their wing. He used his comm band to call up a flight plan on the wall display and a name on the flight registry popped up, along with surveillance footage of Von wearing a hat and glasses boarding a public transport to Polari.

“John Smith?” Bobbie laughed and Roc looked at her in confusion. “I guess Earth rubbed off on him.”

“Earth was quite fascinating, especially after the in and out of the initial travel there,” Finn said, looking at Roc and giving him some kind of side-eye that he couldn’t translate. How was that possible, it was his own face? How could he not understand the implied look Finn was giving him? Roc felt the frustration of their separation again. How could they be so different?

“How did he get identification to travel under that name?” Roc asked.

“Unknown, but his ability to use the network surpasses all of us. I wouldn’t be surprised if he found a way to produce it himself,” Finn said.

“Why would he go to Polari? Is there something special there?” Bobbie asked. As always, she was charmingly intuitive.

“Yes,” all three said in unison. Roc felt a sense of relief at the cohesion of their response, but when he saw Bobbie’s face, and the slightly flushed cheeks as she looked back and forth between them, he wondered if they might have been a mistake. Her response was so unlike her usually laid-back take on things, it was kind of fascinating. Why did she look angry? When he realized it might be jealousy, his first reaction was to smile, which then made things worse as she glared at him. He couldn’t help it though, she was jealous of Nasha. It was so cute. He wanted to kiss her, but he didn’t think that would go over well in her current state of unease. He smiled bigger, she glared harder.

“Yes, of course, Nasha,” Tam said with a big smile. Bobbie directed her glare at him now.

“It’s got to be Nasha,” Roc said with a nod.

“Who the hell is Nasha?” Bobbie said in a not very friendly voice. Roc wondered why all the jealousy. Was it because she believed Nasha was a female? All three men looked at her, identical creases between their eyebrows.

“It’s Nasha,” Finn responded ignorantly, like he had no clue what Bobbie spoke of, and Roc knew he had to intercede before things got out of control. The thing was, he was actually enjoying Bobbie’s reaction. Jealousy looked good on her.

“Yeah, who is this Nasha? Some old fling? Ex-girlfriend, or maybe a current girlfriend? Why would Von run away and go to her?” Bobbie threw up her hands in frustration. Roc started to laugh, he couldn’t help himself. He was followed by Tam. Finn was the only one who restrained himself, but if the look of pain on his face was any indication, it was getting hard to keep the laughter in. Roc felt that sense of cohesion again, enjoying this interplay with his female and his he still didn’t know what to call the others. Clones? Brothers? Twins?

“Stop laughing at me.” Bobbie did the most remarkably bratty thing and stomped her foot. She glanced down at her foot like the move surprised her.

“This is Nasha.” Roc pulled up the newsfeed on his comm band, the screen hovered over his hand in a glowing suspended box. He swiped with his palm and made the screen display on the wall, much bigger and easier for everyone to read.

Nasha’s image appeared on the screen. He was a handsome man, and when Roc and Nasha had attended school together, they turned heads when they went to events together. Where Roc was bronzed and dark-haired, Nasha was darker with more browns in his skin tone. He had gotten into the habit of dying his hair a lighter color, and Roc was surprised in this recent article that his hair was dyed the color of the sea. A blue green that stood in stark contrast to his brown skin. It made a statement.

Roc had contacted him a few times while he was on Earth and had sent him a few pictures of the sights and sounds, including the strange hair colors people dyed their hair on Earth. He guessed it had made an impact on his friend. In the news article, he wore a circlet of gold around his head and was dressed like some kind of sea creature, complete with a huge, fluffy collar around his neck. There was a headline in the language of Polari that stated Nasha was tearing it up at a masquerade party last night.

“What does that say?” Bobbie asked, calmer now that she realized Nasha was not a romantic threat.

“Polari’s second-in-line causes a ruckus at the Junia masquerade party,” Finn said.

“He’s a prince as well?”

“Yes, but not the heir, he has an older brother,” Roc answered.

“And I’m assuming this is a friend of yours?”

“This is Nasha. As good as any friend I have, he is our soul brother,” Roc answered Bobbie’s question. “We met in what you would consider a boarding school ages ago, and we’ve kept in touch ever since. He actually wanted to come with me to Earth, but his father forbade it.”

“And you think this is where Von went, to hook-up with this Nasha?”

“We spent many a holiday in the Polari winter palace, it holds a lot of memories,” Finn said with a bit of nostalgia that was confusing since he never experienced them—they were Roc’s memories. “Even though that was way before my time,” he added.

“Neither did Von,” Tam said.

“But we still have all the memories.” Finn frowned at his identical counterparts. “They are very good memories.”

“Ready the transport, looks like we’re going to Polari,” Roc said.

* * *

The transport was available for takeoff quicker than expected, which led to Bobbie and Roc running around like chickens with their heads cut off to get things packed and ready. Finn and Tam agreed to stay behind, in case they were needed in the palace. Bobbie and Roc would go and round up Von and bring him back into the fold. None of them knew why he would run off like this, so they didn’t know what they were getting into.

Both men walked Roc and Bobbie out to the landing strip, which was behind Roc’s wing, and she slipped her hands into theirs because she could sense some anxiety in the men she was leaving behind. Would they miss her?

When they stepped out onto the platform, the unique red grass soft on Bobbie’s slippered feet, she marveled at the sleek looking ship. It was a smaller version of the ship they had used to travel from Earth to Polaridi, the same shape and clean lines.

“Polari has been informed of your visit,” one of the butlers, Bobbie couldn’t remember his name, said and he walked with them onto the platform. He was keeping up a continuing dialogue of everything they would need to know about their trip, including the schedule for the next few days, and the current news environment.

“Mistress Bobbie does not have entry papers or identification as of yet, but the Polari have been informed about her status, and she will not need her identification to enter the realm.”

“Thank you, Smarn,” Roc said as if he was slurring the word yarn. It was quite a bizarre name, and Bobbie had to look away from the little man or else she would break out in a fit of giggles. He looked rather smarmy if she had to label him anything.

The butler looked at his comm band and tapped something on the screen that materialized over his hand.

“Excuse me, sir, but Healer Lagara is here to see you.”

“We do not have time for this,” Roc said under his breath.

“She says it’s important,” Smarn added. “An urgent interruption, to use her own words.”

“Fine, let her in and direct her to the landing platform.”

The group waited patiently on the raised platform, all lost in their own thoughts. Bobbie didn’t know what Von fleeing to Polari meant, or what it meant for the group’s dynamic and she kept running through scenarios in her mind. Was it because he was overwhelmed with being autonomous? Maybe he didn’t want to be part of this group, maybe he didn’t want her? Bobbie had no idea what Roc’s life was like before they had met. Maybe he was a player, and Von wanted to continue as a bachelor. Or maybe she was just being insecure again. Bobbie tapped her foot in impatience, hoping the healer would hurry her ass up. She wanted to get in the air and over to Polari so she could find out what the hell was up with Von.

After only a few moments, the doors were flung open that lead onto the portico and the small female raced over the slick steps and down to the landing platform in the blink of an eye. She was out of breath and a little rough around the edges when she made it to them. There was a tightness around her eyes, which shined with what Bobbie suspected was the stain of a recent cry. If Bobbie wasn’t mistaken, the Healer was in a bit of a panic. Was that why she rushed down here?

“Your Highness,” she said and bowed her head to Roc, then shot Bobbie a look. Bobbie must have given away something in her look because the Healer swiped at her face self-consciously. She had been crying.

“Healer,” Roc said in response. Tam and Finn had gone ramrod still, playing the mindless appendages.

“Have you read the newsfeeds this morning? They are claiming you’ll be looking to take rulership soon because of this show of power. I thought I should advise you about your decision for more transparency,” she said in a breathless flurry of words. She shot the butler a look, but went on. “If you reveal more, they’ll think for sure you’ll be making a play for your father’s throne.”

“I have not read the news this morning. We are in the middle of something, Healer, but if you would like we can delay the second reveal, and discuss the benefits of it when I return,” Roc said.

“Oh, yes of course, I didn’t realize you were going anywhere.” Bobbie narrowed her eyes at the Healer’s statement. How could she have missed the huge ass transport sitting here on the landing platform? Something wasn’t right. Bobbie placed her hand on Roc’s arm and gave him a look that she hoped he could interpret as a warning for caution.

“Yes, Bobbie and I are going on a small trip,” Roc supplied.

“That sounds wonderful. Where will you be going?” Bobbie placed a hand again on Roc’s arm, but he answered out of habit. His past with this woman went a lot further than his past with Bobbie, she might be reading too much into it.

“We will be visiting Nasha at the Polari winter palace,” Roc said.

“Sounds fun and relaxing. Well then, have a wonderful trip, I will meet with you again on your return.” The Healer bowed her head, and left quickly. The only way Bobbie could describe it—she was fleeing.

“The woman thinks she’s my new media spokesperson,” Roc sighed.

“You didn’t think something was strange about her?” Bobbie asked.

“She’s always been one to get bovarion about things.”

“That word didn’t translate, bovarion.” Roc looked down at Bobbie and cocked his head trying to find the right word to define it with.

“Drama Queen, is that what was said on Earth.” The words were said in the thick accent she remembered from before, so he had spoken the English words.

“That sounds about right, but it seemed like more, though.” Roc only shook his head, cocking it to the side in his Polaridi shrug. He said a few quick words to Smarn, then the two watched the butler hurry back to the palace. When the coast was clear, she went to the men who would be staying behind and threw her arms around both.

“I’ll miss you two.” She kissed Finn while Tam nuzzled her neck. The kiss was short, but she could already feel the charge building inside of her. When she broke away from Finn, Tam tugged on her chin, finding her lips with his own. His kiss was hungrier, rougher, and she sighed as he pulled away. She couldn’t get enough of these men.

“Bring Von’s dinkin butt back here as soon as you can.” Finn swatted at Bobbie’s ass. “Maybe knock some sense into him along the way.”

“Dinkin?”

“Dumb,” Roc said. “Come on, let’s take care of this.” He took her hand and led her toward the ship.

“Don’t worry, I will, and you guys behave while we’re gone!” Bobbie called over her shoulder and the men nodded their heads and placed hands over their hearts making her giggle.

Roc waved his hand with his comm band in front of the transport entrance and the door opened and three steps descended from the glass looking structure. Like a gentleman, he helped her board the ship. She was going on an adventure!

35

Mister Destined for Greatness

“I haven’t been to the Polari winter palace since I was an adolescent,” Roc shared as they took seats in the small ship. The cockpit was small, but much bigger than a large SUV on Earth. It had four seats that faced a large front panel made out of the same glass-like material everything seemed to be constructed from on this world.

The large panel was lit up like a Christmas tree with lights of red, blue and green. When Roc waved his hand across the glass, the viewing port went opaque and Bobbie could see the palace in the distance.

“You say that like you’re expecting things to be weird,” Bobbie said, leaning over and checking out the many controls swirling around. Finn had tried to explain to her that the silica was like one big living computer. You could touch anywhere on the surface, and depending on what it was initially coded to do would be what could be done with it. In the dashboard of the ship it was highly sophisticated coding, and the instruments, measurements, and controls were literally embedded into the material of the ship. The silica of the transport would interact with Roc’s comm band, giving him permission to control the ship. When he moved his hand in a certain way, the ship knew to follow certain orders. It was a fascinating technology.

“Nasha’s older brother thinks of me as a threat, and no amount of diplomatic interactions have swayed him. His father is another story. He gets along very well with my father and has always treated me like a family member,” Roc shrugged.

“Is the brother jealous?”

“I think it might be part of the situation. Kravitz is a complicated man.”

“Is he expected to take the throne soon?”

“Yes, Nasha’s father is very old. He’s almost on his fourth century, and for a male that’s near the end. Kravitz has also made a few strategic moves to put himself in place before his father dies.”

“What kind of moves?”

“Nothing official, but he has made a few inquiries about his father’s health and ability to run the realm. It has others questioning whether he will have his father declared unfit. With old age, minds tend to go first before the body.”

“That doesn’t sound good. What kind of son would do that?”

“If he was looking out for the well-being of his people, it would be a good move. No one wants someone who’s not using their full faculties in charge of a realm.”

“You don’t think so, though.” Bobbie said it as more of a statement than a question.

“I do not. Nasha has told me that his father is in perfect mind.”

“But he’s eventually going to be the Emperor, right? When he takes over, do you think relations might be strained with Thames and Polari?” Bobbie asked.

“I honestly don’t know. Once Kravitz takes the reign, things could settle down, he’ll have gotten what he wanted. There should be no reason for continued aggression.” Roc continued to fool with the controls and Bobbie watched in fascination as his fingers moved across the glass. “A few years ago, Nasha told me in confidence that his brother drank too much one night and went into a rage, accusing Nasha of trying to become the heir with my help. He thought we were planning some kind of coup.”

“Was there any reason behind his crazy talk?”

“None. I might not like him, I might not think he will be a good Emperor, but in no way would I ever get involved in doing something like that. If it got out that I was actively trying to take down the future heir of Polari, things could get very messy with the other realms. And I would never dream of actively trying to take Kravitz out of the running.”

“You mean kill him?” Bobbie asked, wondering if that was a thing they did on this planet, like they might do on Earth.

“That would be one way. If he is proved incompetent could be another. Same as he is trying to do to his father.”

“That happens? To heirs I mean?”

“Rarely, but it has been done. About five hundred rotations ago, the heir of Balavanta was proven incompetent by the younger brother and was not allowed to assume the throne on his father’s death. The reason behind the incompetency was kept out of the media, but most suspected it was because of his tendency to enjoy beno.” When Bobbie gave him a questioning look, he explained. “It’s a drink that can become addictive. It’s from a cactus-like plant on our world and it gives whoever drinks it a very euphoric feeling and causes a male’s erection to not go down.”

“Sounds like a fun night,” Bobbie said with a laugh.

“It can be,” Roc said.

“You’ve done it?” Bobbie was shocked.

“I had a rebellious youth, like most people.” He smiled at her.

“Okay, let’s not talk about that. I really don’t want to know why you would take a drug that would keep your dick up for an extended amount of time.” She sighed, that jealousy thing was back and biting her in the ass.

“I did not take beno for that reason. As you know, I have never had a problem with staying erect.” He motioned to his own dick and Bobbie slapped his arm.

“You’re intolerable,” she grumbled.

“I am right,” he nodded. “Get ready, we are about to launch.” Roc guided the transport into the air, making Bobbie grip the armrests as the small ship shuddered and shot into the air.

“Could things go wrong with Von going there?” Bobbie asked, gulping as they moved at a ridiculous speed.

“Things can always go wrong, Bobbie.” He turned to look at her. “My world is a peaceful planet. There hasn’t been a war in over three centuries, and there has not been a hint of instability within this current rein of royals. But the royals who instituted this reign of peace have been in power a long time, and they are reaching their apex of life. My father is one of them and has expressed weariness and a wish to be able to pass down the throne. An average lifes-pan on our planet is about three-hundred and fifty years of age. Our medical advancements have greatly improved in the last century and a lot of the older generations are now living to be over four hundred, but he is still reaching his dusk.”

“He’s three-hundred, but he looks barely thirty?” Bobbie said.

“He has had many procedures done in vanity, and I’m not sure his exact age, but I think he might be nearer to four than three,” Roc laughed.

“I would want to retire as well,” Bobbie said. “A tropical isle for retired royals in their fourth century perhaps?”

“And he’s not the only one. The rulers of Polari, Lividiania and Namei are all over three-hundred, and they were the original signers of the War of the Realms Treaty. Only Namei has a strong heir that is taking the reign.”

“And Thames.” Bobbie smiled at Roc and took his hand. He nodded in thanks.

“I cannot help it, I was born for greatness.” He squeezed Bobbie’s hand and she rolled her eyes.

“Aren’t we full of ourselves today?”

“I am not full of myself, I only speak the truth.” Bobbie couldn’t tell from his tone if he was being serious or playing coy. Of all the men, Roc was the hardest to read. She understood it was because of how he was brought up. If you were going to rule a planet, you couldn’t let everything show on your face. He had been taught at an early age to school his reactions, so he always seemed stoic and reserved. The other men could do the same when it was called for, but when they were alone, they let more of their emotions seep out than Roc did.

It wasn’t a bad trait in her mind, but it made interactions like this one a little harder to decipher. She decided to treat this like banter, and dish it back.

“The truth, huh? So tell me, Mister Destined for Greatness, what is it that makes you so special?”

“Can you not see it?” He laughed this time, and Bobbie knew she was right. He was playing with her.

“I see a lot of things.”

“What is your favorite?” he asked.

“Um, I’ll have to show you.”

“What?” He looked over at her, not understanding. Bobbie was already unfastening her restraints and slipping around the armrest to slide onto her knees between the seats. “What are you doing?” he asked even though he could most likely figure it out, especially when Bobbie slipped her fingers along the seam of his trousers and began to fish around clumsily until she had her hand wrapped around his cock. It went from flaccid to erect and popped out of the seam she had opened in his pants in seconds.

“Ah, my favorite,” she sighed and Roc looked down at her, stunned. He obviously wasn’t expecting this. He was also not expecting Bobbie to sit up on her knees and take him in her mouth in a quick motion. She sucked him down greedily, swirling her tongue around the bottom length of him as he became harder and bigger in her mouth.

“Oh, the creators, Bobbie, I need to put this in—” She sucked harder and he cried out, thrusting his hips upward. “Autopilot,” he finished. He managed to program the ship around her head. A musical voice said “autopilot engaged” and then Roc was disengaging his restraints and both his hands plunged into Bobbie’s hair as she continued to move on him, sucking him in, then pulling back. She added both hands to his length, sliding her palms up and down the length of him as she pulled on the head of his cock with her mouth. His dick leaked salty pre-come over her tongue as his body readied for orgasm.

“I want to come inside of you,” he moaned, pulling at Bobbie’s shoulders, trying to get her to stop. “Please, Bobbie,” he moaned as she continued to lavish his dick with attention. When he began to shudder, Bobbie sat back and looked up at him. She could feel her lips were swollen and her hair was a mess from his hands.

She slipped the robe-like outer material off her body and let it flutter to the floor. Roc’s eyes on her were wild, and his chest heaved like he had just run a marathon. She slid her fingers along the seam of the romper type outfit she was wearing and it slipped away.

“Why aren’t you undressing?” she asked in the sultriest tone she could muster, but it came out a bit ragged and out of breath. She was as affected as Roc was, it would seem. He scrambled into action, pulling away from his pants and throwing them across the small area, then his shirt. All he wore was his shoes when Bobbie crawled across the seat and straddled him. Their mouths met and he devoured her, plunging his hands into her hair as he sucked on her bottom lip. She slipped a hand between them, grasping him in her palm and aligning his dick to her vagina.

He grunted against her lips as she thrust forward and took him completely inside of her, her body craving to be complete. He felt so good inside of her, she could feel him all throughout her, filling her, overpowering her. She leaned back, bracing her arms on the dashboard and looking down her own body at their joining. She watched transfixed as sparks swirled and shot off her, circling around their bodies, emanating from where their skin touched. She pumped her hips, rocking over him, taking him in deep, then sliding him out as she stared down at his thick length embedded inside of her.

“I love it when you ride my cock.” Roc trailed his fingers over her breasts and abdomen, letting Bobbie do the work, letting her set the pace.

“I’m pretty fond of riding your cock as well,” she panted, letting her head fall back as his thumb slipped between the soaked lips of her vulva to find her clit. The heaviness of her impending orgasm began to pool around her as she felt the telltale rigidness of Roc’s body. He was on the verge as well. She picked up the pace, her thrusts becoming almost too intense, but she needed to get them off. It was an imperative.

Roc cried out, his hand reflexively gripping her harder as his climax overtook him. Bobbie sped up the pace even more until her entire being was nothing more than an explosion of pleasure. She was sexual. She was all pleasure. She couldn’t get enough of this alien.

When the heat wave of her finish faded, the chill air of the bridge had Bobbie shivering. Roc pulled her to his chest as his spent cock slipped from her and they both whined in protest.

“You are amazing, pr’iveni, amazing.” He stroked her hair and Bobbie murmured something she didn’t even understand into his shoulder.

36

It’s a power thang

“So, what are these other heirs like? Why do you think they are weak?” They were about two-thirds through their trip. They had finally gotten dressed again and Bobbie was secure in her own seat. Roc’s dick only thrummed a little. It was still hard as a rock and still soaked in Bobbie’s juices, since there were no facilities on this small transport. He kept adjusting himself and would see Bobbie smirk in some kind of female empowerment kind of way. He found it terribly enticing and would love to bend her over in her seat and work off his erection even more, but they would be there shortly.

She was trying to distract him and get him back on the topic of politics. Hopefully, it would work so he wouldn’t make a fool of himself in front of Nasha. The guy had already accused Roc of being led around by his dick during his frantic search to find his Charge Mate. He took a deep breath and thought about what she had asked him and how best to answer it. He didn’t want to make her paranoid about his world, but he also wanted her to be equipped with enough information so she could hold her own.

“Kravitz, that’s Polari’s heir and Nasha’s older brother, is a unique case. Out of all the future heirs, he is most likely the worst. He is paranoid and unpredictable, most likely fueled by the fact that he has only split once, even though he is a century and a half old. Nasha, the younger prince, has split twice and is my age.”

“It’s a power thing?”

“It is, splitting is a sign of power. Before the initial world unrest, realms were constantly changing hands as the most powerful houses wrestled control from the weaker royals. Power was determined by how much charge a being could wield. Before we channeled our power into technology, my people used it for war. A man’s charge could fuel great weapons, and the stronger the family, the more power they wielded. The heir was determined by his power and not birth position. Things have changed since we have known relative peace in the last millennia. There have been a few upsets, almost culminating in another war a few hundred years ago. But rules were passed, and heirs were chosen by birthright, not power. There is always that insecurity that the old ways will come back to haunt us.”

“On my world, our rulers are chosen by their background and ability to govern, by the majority vote,” Bobbie said as if her form of government was somehow better than his.

“You consider the rulers of your world to be great leaders?”

“Well, no.” She moved her shoulders in that Earth gesture that meant she was undecided. Roc had watched their media outlets on Earth, how everyone was constantly fighting, two sides of the political spectrum always turned against each other. It had made his head hurt. He hoped his world would never consider a democratic system as some of the realms on Earth had embraced. Granted, those systems were better than some others on the planet that were run by merciless dictators. Luck had kept that from happening on Polaridis. There had been bad rulers in their history, but if they showed signs of maniacal behavior, they were usually quickly dispatched by the houses.

“Kravitz might be driven for power or respect, but no one will ever hold anything over him, like an elected official. To run for a government position, money is needed, and when money comes into play, when donations are needed, favors are racked up. Behind every elected official stands dozens of the rich holding puppet strings.”

“That’s a pessimistic way of looking at my government,” Bobbie frowned, and Roc regretted his harsh words. He knew she thought of his system of government as antiquated, something her own people had gotten rid of ages ago. But it worked for his world. She had to see that. He decided to bring it back to the heirs.

“Lividiania’s heir, that’s the fourth realm, is Tormi’s brother. He hasn’t split once, and his sister has not shown any talents as well. It’s rumored that the major houses of Lividiania are trying to rally around putting a new family on the throne. He’s supposed to be weak and, how would you say it—a scared cat?” He smiled and Bobbie laughed at the phrase, but then quieted when Roc frowned thinking about his future fellow rulers.

“On the other hand, Namei’s heir, Traven, has split twice, and shows great intelligence. He also has improved his country’s wealth and influenced a few profitable endeavors in the last twenty years. Namei is last in influence of the realms, but it is thought it will pass Lividiania at the next census count, especially since now Traven has found his Charge Mate.”

“I’m really trying to digest this, Roc, but it’s a lot to take in,” Bobbie said.

“It is understandable. My father has at least six appointees that are constantly studying the other realms and keeping him and myself appraised of the changing climate of the world.”

“It just seems like a lot of risk. If one of these guys is crazy, if he’s someone like Adolf Hitler, then what happens to that realm?”

“Who is Adolf Hitler?”

“He was the ruler of a country on my planet. They actually elected him, and he started a war with the world and killed millions of people just because of their religion. He would round up these people and put them in camps. They were made into slaves, and then killed by being put into giant ovens. Horrible.”

“If a ruler came into power like that, then the other realms would deal with it. We have been at peace for a long time, but that does not mean things won’t happen in the future. We are beings with emotions, and with those emotions come turmoil. Wars have been fought over a spurned lover, or a social blunder in the past. Because you vote on your rulers does not make it any different. You said so yourself, this Hitler was elected, right?”

“He was,” Bobbie sighed. “But then we can also vote on how much taxes we want, or different laws. That kind of thing, and your people have no say in those type of matters.”

“Do your people really vote on everything?” Bobbie nodded in response. “How does anything get done? What if the votes are influenced by money or lies?”

“Things change slowly, and there are laws in place to combat voter fraud.” Bobbie shrugged. “But, it’s fair, majority rules.”

“It is my experience that the majority of the population has better things to do than focus on the minutia of politics.”

“Says the man who will one day be making those rules.”

37

Us

Bobbie watched in fascination as the mountains fell away from underneath the transport and plains of wildflowers stretched out as far as the eye could see until they kissed the horizon. The blooms were a riot of colors, deep purples, bright reds, and even a lime green color that stood out as completely alien.

One color among the hundreds stood out, poking at the eye like a fly buzzing around for attention. She couldn’t quite wrap her eyes around the particular shade, but she had noticed it a few times in the paintings in the halls of the palace. It was a color that was slowly coming into focus, not found on Earth. It was some variant of red, but nothing like the deep tones she was used to. Maybe it was only visible here because of the suns, or maybe it was because of a change happening inside Bobbie because of the charge. Whatever it was, it was marvelous.

“We are crossing the Polari border. The realm is near enough to the equator that there is night here. It is short and one of the few places on the planet where there is darkness for an extended period of time each rotation.” Bobbie leaned forward in her seat to see more of the realm. She saw something that wasn’t common on this planet far off in the distance. Wildflowers gave way to fields of crops where small crafts buzzed over them, shooting out long sprays of some kind of liquid onto all the plants beneath them.

There was a large hulking machine, the size of a bus, churning up the mud in great spirals. Another large device hovered over the fields, a fine mist whirling underneath it in circles. It was amazing to watch, the technology so advanced to do something as basic as growing food.

“This is a large realm, but the winter palace is near the border. They have three major states that make up Polari, including the wealthy state of Poallun that is mostly made up of a small mountain range that gets wonderful snowfall during the winter. The royals have a palace there that they use for winter sports.”

“That’s where we’re going? Is it winter here? It’s been rather mild compared to Earth’s winters if it is.”

“It’s spring,” Roc said.

“Guess that eighty-sixes skiing.” Bobbie sat back in her chair as Roc pointed the transport in the direction of the mountain range in the distance.

* * *

The winter palace was a gleaming structure set into a cliff face that rose up into the clouds. It was only about a tenth of the size of the palace in Thames Virdan, but what it lacked in size it, made up in style. It was circular in nature, with multiple levels jutting out from the cliff at different heights, like cylinders cut in half and placed on a flat wall. The walls reflected the suns, iridescent like quartz crystal honed to a bright sheen. Transparent bridges stretched from one side to the next, with hanging adornments that resembled ice crystals.

Roc directed the transport to a platform that was as crystal clear as the bridges, but ringed with flashing blue lights so you could see where to land. Nothing was under the platform, and as they descended, Bobbie gripped the armrests, doubting there was anything there at all. Roc reassured her, telling her it was designed this way on purpose, but it felt like they were going to be falling through to nothingness.

With barely a jolt, Roc landed, and with a flick of his wrist the door opened, the stairs sliding out to the transparent platform below. Bobbie went to the door and looked down, panic gripping her chest. She couldn’t see the ground, only the rock face of the cliff going miles and miles down.

“How high are we?” Bobbie asked, her voice shaking.

“I really don’t know,” Roc responded. “It’s fine; it’s meant to intimidate visitors.”

“Consider me intimidated.” Bobbie stepped back, not trusting the floor beneath the transport.

“You have to leave the ship to meet my friend.”

“He can come inside and meet me, considering how rude this platform thingy is, like who builds this kind of crap?”

“People pay an exuberant amount of money to walk the glass bridges of the winter palace,” Roc chuckled.

“Fucking idiots,” Bobbie mumbled.

“I promise it’s safe.” He tugged on her arm and she slapped his hand away.

“They make something like your Earth ice cream here at the palace. It’s a new treat their chef recently created. I’ll get you some if you get out of this ship, Bobbie.”

“You bribe me with ice cream?” She peered out the door again, her eyes landing on a man standing at the edge of the platform. He was dressed all in white, except for a green scarf that fluttered around his neck. He held up a hand in greeting.

“It’ll be worth it. Look, if I step out you’ll see it’s safe.” He stepped down on the first step and Bobbie squealed.

“Roc!”

“Come on, Bobbie, look.” Roc placed a foot on the platform and the transparent platform glowed a faded purple color where he applied pressure. He stomped his foot and didn’t fall.

“I still don’t trust this lunatic creation,” she hissed and made no move to step out onto the platform. Roc must have been fed up with her hysterics, because fast as lightning, he moved, grabbing her by the arm and upending her ass overhead, until she was flung over his shoulder, his hand planted firmly on her rear.

“You dick!” she hollered as he strode to the other end of the platform. He crossed the offending structure in only a few strides and then her world was tilting and spinning and she was back on her feet, which were planted on a semi-opaque structure that at least gave her some semblance of security.

“Don’t do that again.” She kicked at Roc’s shins, which didn’t even make him flinch.

“You would have left the ship?” he asked.

“No, but still!”

“Nasha, this is my Charge Mate, Bobbie.” Roc took Bobbie by the shoulders and physically turned her, even though she swatted at him again. When Bobbie stopped spinning around and trying to do physical harm to Roc, she looked up and faced a man who seemed to be much younger than Roc. If they were on Earth, she would think Roc was in his thirties, but this man had only recently made it out of his teens. The other interesting thing was that he was also almost as big as Roc. The Virdan still had a few inches on him, but Nasha was taller than all the other men of Polaridis she had met.

She remembered Roc telling her that the people of Polari were darker skinned than the bronze skinned Virdans, and taller and thicker because of their diet. His mother was from Polari, and he had inherited her height, but not her coloring. The Polari people had skin the color of river sand on Earth, with brunette hair spun with golden highlights, and dark amber eyes. There were some variations in coloring, usually from the Polaris that worked the crops, their hair lightened and their skin darkened even more, to make a truly unique coloring of dark-skinned people with locks of gold. This man, though, he had dyed his hair teal, and it fell over his ears in a messy style that gave him a devil-may-care feel.

He winked at her and she blushed. This one was trouble. She could tell that already. Stepping forward, Nasha grasped her hand and bent over it in a very elaborate gesture, kissing the top of her hand lightly.

“What in the galaxies are you doing to my Charge Mate?” Roc bellowed, and Bobbie swatted at him again when Nasha straightened.

“I have taken to study all the information on Earth that we have in the Polari libraries. That was a gesture of greeting on her world,” Nasha said, his voice musical and pleasing.

“I was on Earth for a year and never once saw a greeting like that,” Roc growled.

“It’s an old gesture, a few centuries. When was the last time your people studied Earth?” Bobbie asked.

“A few centuries,” Nasha replied sheepishly.

“It was still a very grand gesture. It is wonderful to meet you, Nasha,” Bobbie grinned.

“Next time, hands to yourself,” Roc said.

“Oh, come on, Roc, I was only being a gentleman. Congratulations, by the way, I am truly happy you have found her. You’ll have to tell me all about it.”

“You mean I haven’t already?” Roc fished. Bobbie figured he was trying to figure out what Nasha knew before he laid it all out on the table.

“You’ve been rather close-lipped since you got here, it’s not like you,” Nasha said, his smile a little strained.

“Let’s take this inside.” Roc stepped onto the bridge and Bobbie went to follow him and realized the bridge was as transparent as the landing platform had been.

“You have got to be kidding me. Who thought up this nonsense!” Bobbie shook her head.

“Excuse me,” Roc said to Nasha, then walked up next to his Charge Mate and scooped her up without a word.

“Put me down!”

“So, you’ll be stuck out on this little portion of an outcropping, stuck between two spots you can’t cross, I think not.” Roc began to walk toward the palace.

“Are the floors in the palace like this?” Bobbie whined.

“Carpeted,” Nasha answered.

“Thank God,” Bobbie sighed and pressed her head into Roc’s chest for the trip. When they finally reached the balcony that wrapped around the palace, he set her down and she sighed with gratitude as she saw the iridescent flooring that swirled white and light blue.

“Roc!” A bundle of brown hair careened through the doors and embedded itself into Roc’s side. He looked down surprised, but a smile crossed his face when he realized who it was.

“Mea,” Roc greeted and slipped an arm around what appeared to be a young woman, giving her an awkward side hug and patting her lightly on the shoulder. He looked over at Nasha and Bobbie in a plea for help.

“Meavi,” Nasha chided and the female stepped back, red circles appearing on her cheeks.

The girl, Meavi, could not deny she was Nasha’s sister. She was a female version of him, but with softer features that she wore well. She was tall, but there weren’t many curves around the girl, from what Bobbie could tell. She wore a jumper-like outfit, with flowing material in the pants area that ballooned out and swished around her legs when she walked. The outfit was gold, and it matched her hair, which was a burnished brown with millions of strands of gold and bronze in it to make it look like it was alive.

She was stunning, but still had the immature look of a child.

“How long has it been, Mea?” Roc asked the girl.

“Two decades, Roc, I’m of age now, fifty as of last rotation, and you have a Charge Mate. I’m Meavi, by the way.” She turned to Bobbie and made a small bowing motion with her head, which Bobbie tried to return but failed on the execution.

“Bobbie,” she offered with a shy smile.

“Well, Bobbie, I see you’ve met my brother Nasha. He and Roc have boring things to talk about, all political and stuff, but I’m dying to know about Earth. You have to tell me all about it. Let me show you around the place and leave them to their yawn-worthy jalinda.” Mea grabbed Bobbie’s hand and tugged on her.

“Jalinda?”

“A party, for certain kinds of people that do normal kind of things,” Roc answered for her.

“Oh okay.” Mea dragged her off. Bobbie glanced over her shoulder when she got to the entryway and gave a small wave to Roc as her new friend dragged her away.

38

He’s his own person

“We have a lot to discuss, old friend.” Nasha gripped Roc’s shoulder in a friendly squeeze as the females walked out of earshot.

“Where is he?”

“So, it’s true?”

“I don’t know what he told you, so I can’t answer that.”

“That your splits have become autonomous—he’s his own person. Are all of them that way?”

“Yes.” Nasha was the first person out of their unit that knew about what happened. Roc didn’t know how he would take it.

“I have to say, until you showed up here, I thought you were playing some kind of practical joke on me, like we used to back in school.”

“I don’t think I have the imagination to make a scenario like this up.”

“Do you know how it happened?”

“I can only guess, but it has to do with Bobbie. When the charges came together, they changed, became new. I haven’t done a charge print since I’ve been back, since I would need the Healer to run the scan for me, but I’m pretty sure it won’t match the charge I left Polaridis with.”

“That’s insane. So all five of you are fundamentally changed?”

“Other than the autonomy, nothing else has changed.”

“What about with the female? Has she shown any signs or symptoms of an excessive charge?”

Roc shook his head and wandered into the living area Nasha and Mea used when they were at the winter palace.

“What are you going to do?” Nasha asked.

“I don’t think there is anything that can be done. This is how we are from now on. All four of us are also Charge Mates to Bobbie—that has to mean something. And we’re all connected, everything about me has been irregular, might as well add a few more issues on top of it,” Roc sighed and slumped into an overstuffed reclining chair.

“You always did think you were special,” Nasha laughed.

“There is no thinking involved; it is the truth.” A pillow was flung at Roc’s head and he knocked it away and shot Nasha a glare. “Jealousy does not suit you. You’ve always been the better looking one.”

“Truth,” Nasha laughed, sitting down in a high-backed chair across from Roc.

“Does Mea know?”

“She was here when he told us. There was no kicking her out of the room; she’s very persistent.”

“And what does she think?”

“She’s fantasizing about four autonomous Rocs as we speak.” Nasha shook his head in exasperation.

“What?”

“You’re the only male she’s been allowed to be around besides me and Krav. She was a bit obsessed. I think she might be over it now.”

“Good, she’ll make a good life-mate. Have there been talks?”

“I believe our parents were negotiating a deal before you came back with your Charge Mate.”

“Really? How could they possibly consider that with the age difference? I’m glad that didn’t happen.” Roc sighed, thinking about how many political maneuvers he circumvented by finding his Charge Mate.

“The only other possible beneficial move for our realm would be Lividiania’s heir.”

“Anything would be better than that match. There has to be someone in the Houses; anything is better than that flower.”

“Kravatz thinks anything else would be trading down,” Nasha grimaced.

“Trading down? What is she, cattle? You can’t let that happen, Nash, that would be a horrible move.”

“There is nothing I can do, Roc. What is there to be done? It will be the same with me. If my parents choose to give me in marriage to the daughter of Balavanta, I will have no other choice unless I find my Charge Mate. The creators blessed you with finding Bobbie.”

“That they did.”

“And we’re going to lose her.” Von finally made his presence known, walking into the room dressed like a tourist in walking trousers and a thin shirt without any buttons or clasps.

“Von, care to explain yourself?” Roc said by way of greeting.

“You should have let me be. I was fine here on my own.”

“You gave no reason for why you left and pushed us out via our connection. How were we supposed to let you be?”

“What does it even matter? Do you have to keep your manifestations in check that much, you still need to control us, Roc?” Von was an exact copy of Roc, but out of all his others, he looked the most varied. His hair was cut shorter so he didn’t have to wipe it off his face like the others. He also seemed smaller, paler, but that was because he tended to slouch when other people looked at him. It was probably because of the current emotional turmoil that he seemed to be in. Roc could tell he wasn’t in a good headspace, and had no idea how to even begin helping him out.

“This is all new for me as well, Von.” Roc stood, walking up to his twin. Nasha was looking at the two of them as if they were a science experiment. He had always been curious.

“Yeah, you have these pesky copies of you running around here thinking for themselves, I can see how that would be a new experience,” Von said bitterly.

“This is a new thing for everyone,” Nasha said getting out of his seat and joining the two men. “Sorry to interrupt.”

“No, that’s a good point, Nash. Von, I don’t know what you are battling in your head, but Nasha is right, this is new for everyone. There is no record of this ever happening. I don’t know how to put this in context, much less prepare for it if it were to come out to the general public. We are forging new ground here. I need you to be patient with me—and the others.”

“So, are you trying to get rid of us, and doing things that might jeopardize our Charge Mate?” Von let those words hang in the air, his eyes accusing his original.

“I am not trying to get rid of you, I am trying to find a way to work together. Have you not been paying attention? Have you not been opened up to what is going on with the others?”

“I’ve learned how to block it out,” Von said. “It’s helping me cope.”

“Cope? What do you have to cope with?” Roc threw up his hands in frustration. “We’ll go on as before, but now you make the decisions for yourself, as opposed to me. We’ll all work together—it’s what we have to do.”

“Work together for what goal?” Von said petulantly. Roc hoped to the creators that he didn’t come off this way when he argued with the House. It looked childish and was frankly exasperating.

“Our goal, us, what betters us, and the people we love,” Roc said in exasperation.

“Us?” Von said.

“Yes, us.”

39

Winter games

The female was a whirlwind of color and words as she led Bobbie through the palace. She was a beautiful thing, with long brown hair, much lighter than her brother’s, that fell almost to her waist. She was taller than other women Bobbie had encountered, coming up to Bobbie’s nose, and her cute, heart-shaped face was expressive and excited, which was different than the other more reserved females she had been introduced to.

“I just turned fifty, so Nasha still treats me like a child, but my schooling is done, and I’ve been stuck in the palace bored for the last year. This has been the most exciting thing to happen in a while. I can’t believe Roc has a Charge Mate, and from Earth. That is insane. This is the game room,” Mea said and flitted her hand.

“You’re Nasha’s little sister?” Bobbie asked, her head spinning.

“Oh yes, sorry, I didn’t mention that? Look, we have Sprilut. Do you play that on Earth?” Mea gestured to a large table in the shape of a shell.

“I don’t believe we do.” Bobbie was dragged along.

“Well, I’ll have to teach you. During the winter, you should come back. The mountain is covered in snow, and we can go jalloning. Have you done that?”

“I don’t believe so. What’s involved?”

“There are these magnetic cuffs you place on your feet and hands and you sort of fling yourself off the mountain and the snow just flies and flies,” Mea laughed like it was the best thing in the world.

“Um, that doesn’t sound safe.”

“Only a few people get hurt each season, nothing big. This is the kitchens, we just added this and hired a full-time chef. Nasha did that after eating a few dinners at Roc’s.”

“Next thing you know, people will be getting chubby,” Bobbie laughed.

“Cha-bee?” Mea asked.

“Fat?” Bobbie tried.

“Oh, really? That would be awesome! I hate being a stick.” She ran her hands down her hips and Bobbie tried not to be too jealous. Mea looked over at Bobbie and her eyes widened, “I’m upsetting you, aren’t I?”

“No,” Bobbie protested.

“This has to be too much. I’m so sorry, I just get so excited. We never have visitors since Nasha made the winter palace our permanent residence. They all go to the summer palace to visit with Kravitz, who is expected to ascend to the throne soon. My father is near the end, we can all tell.”

“I’m so sorry,” Bobbie said with sincerity.

“It’s okay, he’s lived a long and fruitful life. I think he is ready. My mother faded away about a decade ago, and I think he’s been waiting to follow her ever since.”

“But, still, you’re so young, you should have your parents for a little bit longer.”

“They had me too late, most people think. Both of them over three hundred, totally unheard of, but when they found out I was a girl, they told me it was fate,” she laughed. “You’re so sweet, Bobbie, we should be great friends.”

“I would like that.” Bobbie meant what she said. Mea seemed a little enthusiastic, but she also struck Bobbie as sincere.

“Oh fantastic! And if things go sideways, it will make it so much fun if we have to seek asylum in Thames Virdan.”

“Wait? Why would things go sideways? Why would you have to seek asylum?”

“My brother, Kravitz, he’s not—I don’t even know how to describe it, I want to stay positive. But, Nasha said if Kravitz does what he promised, we’ll have to escape to Thames.”

“What has he promised?”

“To eradicate his competition, in the House and his own family.” Mea looked at Bobbie and made that head bowing gesture, which Bobbie had figured out was similar to a shrug on this world.

“That’s horrendous!”

“It’s not surprising. Kravitz has been paranoid for a long time. But enough of that, I guess we should go back and find the boys. I’m going to try and talk Roc into bringing me back to the Thames palace. I need to do a bit of shopping, and they have the best little market down near the Virdan palace.” Mea smiled and pulled Bobbie in the opposite direction.

“Ladies,” Nasha said as Mea and Bobbie walked into the main atrium. Bobbie looked around the room, unable to spot Von, then noticed him on the balcony outside, smoking something that looked like a cigarette. His head was bowed and he had his arms resting on the railing overlooking the mountains. Out of all the men, she had very little interaction with Von—he was the mystery.

She felt eyes on her and turned to find Roc and Nasha both staring at her. She gave them a questioning glance and Roc tilted his head to convey he was unsure about the situation.

“Roc, I’m so glad you finally showed up. It was getting so boring stuffed up in this winter palace without anything fun and wintery to do,” Mea huffed and threw her body on the sofa.

“Why are you two living at the winter palace anyway?” Bobbie asked, figuring the winter palace was meant for wintering, much like the rich people of Manhattan left the island for the summer.

“My stupid brother,” Mea sighed. “Nash says he’s become unbearable. When I graduated, he didn’t want me back in Capital City, so he brought me here. But there is no local village, nothing to do but wander these halls. It’s unbearable.”

“What about Opil on the other side of the peak?” Roc asked and Bobbie took a seat on the sofa, not knowing what they were talking about so her eyes strayed back to Von. He glanced inside and she recognized pain in his gaze.

“We only have one transport here and it doesn’t have the power to get over the peak,” Nash said. “I left in kind of a hurry.”

“What is your brother up to?”

“The usual, but now he’s so quick to temper, he goes into a rage at the slightest provocation and it usually involves me or even mentioning Mea’s name. He believes we are plotting against him. I thought it best to get out from underfoot.”

“Can your transport make it over the peak, Roc?” Mea changed the subject even though Bobbie wanted to know more about this unstable brother of theirs. It sounded like he was going to be a lot of trouble in the future if he ever did get crowned Emperor. When they began to discuss the mechanics of their ships, Bobbie got up, drawn to Von, who had separated himself.

“So, you’re proving to be the broody one?” Bobbie said to break the tension with a joke.

“It would seem.” Von turned to her, and she studied his face, noticing how he watched her with the same hungry eyes as all of her men. He wanted her the same as the others, but something was holding him back. Had she done something? Or had he?

She walked up next to him using all the courage she could muster and leaned on the railing by his side. The view was breathtaking. The mountains around them soared into the air so high, they were covered in the purple and pink clouds.

“I prefer to be outside than with a roof over my head, especially when small talk is being made.” He crushed out what he had been smoking.

“Is that a cigarette, like we have on Earth?”

“No, it’s an herb grown here. It doesn’t have addictive properties and the smoke when ingested helps with the altitude. Plus, the taste is nice. I enjoy them.”

“Much better than nicotine,” Bobbie agreed, breathing in the woodsy aroma of what he exhaled.

“Why aren’t you inside getting to know Nash and Mea? They’re great people and Nasha is basically our only friend.”

“Because I’m getting to know you, Von,” she responded.

“What is there to know? I’m just another version of him.” He gestured with his head in Roc’s direction.

“I’m not buying that.”

“What do you mean?”

“I know I’ve only known Roc for a few weeks, and you and Finn for only half of that, but all of you seem to be very different people. Similar, yes, but you have your own personalities.”

“I don’t feel like I have much of my own,” Von said quietly.

“That might change in the future. You guys have plenty of time to figure things out along the way. I’m sure in a few years, if given the inclination, you’ll have set yourselves apart.” Bobbie felt proud of herself, channeling her inner counselor. It was becoming apparent that Von was having an existential crisis. She wasn’t too familiar with what that entailed, having friends that could generally give no fucks, and were materialistic by nature, but she got it. Wasn’t she having her own life crisis on the day Roc abducted her?

“If we grow too different, it’ll cause nothing but problems. There’ll be issues. Roc already doesn’t like that we’re autonomous. What will happen then?” He took in a deep breath as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders.

“I think you’re overthinking things, Von. There’s no going back now. You’re here, now we have to see where things take us.”

“Roc said the same thing.”

“That’s because I’m rubbing off on him,” Bobbie laughed and it coaxed a smile out of Von.

“Bobbie, Mea wants me to take her to the small town on the other side of the peak. Do you want to come?” Roc stepped out onto the balcony, with Mea and Nasha hovering behind him. She looked to Von who was still gazing out on the mountains.

“I think I’m going to stay here with Von,” Bobbie said and Roc nodded quickly like that was a good idea. She glided over to him, placed a hand on his shoulder and got on her tiptoes to plant a light kiss on his lips.

“Try to figure out what’s got him so,” Roc waved his hand in Von’s general direction.

“On it,” she whispered.

He slid an arm around her and pulled her in for a hug, dipping his head down and capturing her mouth for a deep kiss. Bobbie shuddered against him as the charge ramped up between them. She broke away with a gasp and pushed at his chest.

“Better go now,” she laughed.

“Right, we shouldn’t be gone that long and we’ll bring something back to eat.”

Bobbie’s stomach growled as she watched Nasha, Mea, and Roc walk across the scary ass transparent bridge to board Roc’s transport.

“Hungry?” Von asked.

“Starving, and I don’t know if I can wait until they get back,” she sighed.

“Let’s go find the kitchen. Nasha dismissed his staff when I showed up, so we’ve been living off nutritional tablets, but they should still have a stocked kitchen.”

40

The naughty thing about Von

Von and Bobbie wandered through the palace at a leisurely pace. He showed her things the overeager Mea had forgotten, mostly art pieces which were commissioned by some famous artist a few centuries ago. He even brought her down to the bowels of the palace, where it sat on natural hot springs that were used as a communal swimming and bathing area.

When they finally wandered up to the kitchens, Bobbie was famished, but Von made her sit on the counter and observe as he pressed button after button, calling up items. Nothing in the room looked like an Earth kitchen.

“Before Roc was of age, there was one school break where he spent the majority of his time in the kitchens. Since our mother loved cooking and food so much, he thought if he learned to cook he might find a piece of her to hold on to. Every now and again he liked to try out something new, but the kitchen staff gets nervous when he goes down there. This is a rare treat. I haven’t tried it before, I only have Roc’s memories.”

“What are you making?”

“Something like your Earth’s pasta, but not made with grains.”

“As long as it’s as yummy as pasta, I have a thing for carbs.” She patted her stomach in a self-detracting manner and Von frowned.

“I do not understand your joke, Bobbie,” he said.

“Well, um, carbs, or carbohydrates, they’re considered not good for you on Earth. There are all these no-carb diets that are always the rage, so when you eat carbs, well, you know, you get fat.” She grimaced and threw her hands up, feeling kind of awkward and she didn’t know why.

“That sounds like a ridiculous diet, no carbohydrates. Doesn’t the body need carbohydrates to survive?”

“I guess, maybe you just shouldn’t eat them in excess,” she shrugged and he nodded his understanding.

“Do you think you are fat, Bobbie?” Von placed the odd instrument he was using to cook down and walked to where Bobbie sat on the counter.

“I’m not exactly a light-weight,” she laughed nervously.

“Neither am I, but what I’m asking is if you do not like the way you look?”

“It’s a fatal flaw. Show me one person that likes the way they look, Von,” she sighed.

“I think you are the most stunning creature I’ve ever laid eyes on,” he said and placed a hand on either side of her and met her eyes.

“You’ve had to have seen better looking.” She looked away embarrassed.

“Never, and it pains me that you don’t see it. You have four men fawning over you, Bobbie. That must mean something.”

“It’s only because of the charge,” she whispered.

“It started with the charge, but now it’s all about you.” Bobbie thought he might kiss her. That he might take advantage of the moment and finally bind them together. He didn’t, not even a touch. He went back to his side of the counter and continued to prepare the strange meal while Bobbie watched.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence, only broken as Von explained what he was doing, or what item he was using. When he was finished, they ate in the kitchen at a small table in the corner. It wasn’t the best meal Bobbie had eaten, but it was nice. It was normal, which wasn’t something that was her usual M.O. in recent weeks. Yet, something kept her distracted while they ate. Why hadn’t he touched her? With the others, it had gone from zero to sixty in a moment, from easy camaraderie to passion explosion. She felt like she was doing something wrong and finally worked up the nerve to ask him.

“Why haven’t you touched me?”

Von twisted between his fingers the small utensil that was used like a fork. It was longer than what Bobbie was used to, and it had two prongs at the end, almost like something used with fondue. His mood was contemplative as he thought over her question. As if he didn’t know a reason, or couldn’t grasp the words to convey the reasons.

“I don’t think what we have is the same as what you have with the others.” His voice was low, but she heard him clearly. “I’ve felt you, through the bond that I share with them. I feel what they feel, I understand their wants. But—”

“If you don’t feel the same, I understand. Von, we just met, I get it,” Bobbie interrupted him. “I don’t want to pressure you.” She felt horrible. She already had three guys, and here she was trying to push another guy into her bed. She hadn’t wanted him to finish his thought because of fear of embarrassment, or what he might say. Even with the others fawning over her, a rejection would still be devastating. Bobbie was never good with rejection.

“No, not at all, Bobbie.” He got out of his chair and stood above Bobbie, looking down at her. He lifted his hand like he wanted to touch her, but dropped it to his side as if something was holding him back.

“Then what is it?” she asked.

“I can’t be like them. I think something went wrong with my split,” he sighed and began to pace.

“You mean, like you feel different, or is there something wrong with you physically?” A million complications streamed through Bobbie’s head. Was he sick? Or maybe he had an issue with his man parts? She had seen an ad that said erectile dysfunction affected one in every four men. That would be rather on point if this was the case.

“Nothing physical, it’s all up here.” he tapped his head.

“Oh! Look, if you’re having anxiety, or something like that, I get it. You don’t even want to know what kind of issues I’ve had before. I was seeing a therapist a few years back because I had this weird fear of escalators and thought I might get sucked into the bottom, and of course they have escalators that go to the 2nd floor lobby at my work. The therapist told me it was more about my job than an actual escalator…” Bobbie was rambling because she was nervous. “And then when I was dating this guy Liam, he would make these passive aggressive statements about my weight and I started to have panic attacks.”

“Please do not talk about people you have been with,” he said quietly.

“Look, I’m only saying you don’t have to be ashamed of whatever is going on in your head. I’m sure whatever it is, we can work through it.”

“I think this might be more than can be dealt with.”

“Just tell me, Von. I won’t get all judgmental, I promise.” Bobbie stood in the way of his pacing.

“I need you to…” he trailed off and looked away.

“What?” she prodded.

“Take control. I can’t do it, I don’t know what’s stopping me, but I can’t do it. I dream of you—" Again his voice faded.

“What do I do in your fantasies?”

“You dominate me,” Von admitted quietly. Bobbie stepped back, her mouth in a little O shape. Of all the things, she hadn’t expected this. She had a tiny bit of experience with a bit of domination and submission play between lovers. It didn’t last longer because the guy wanted her to be the submissive, and she wasn’t a very good submissive. She was all about letting a man take control in bed, but she wanted to kick it her way at times as well, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to let a man tie her up and slap her around. That was not her thing.

But thinking about what Von had said, and thinking about turning things around a little caused a shiver to trickle down her spine. He wanted her to take control of him.

“Von?” He wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“Yes?” He stared down at his hands.

“Come here,” she said in a voice that was low but demanding. His eyes shot up and found hers and she crooked a finger at him. “I want you to kiss me, now.” She hoped this was dominant enough. She wasn’t used to be a dominating person, often taking the middle road.

He walked toward her slowly, until they were only a breath apart, but still he held back.

“Are you sure?” His insecurity played out across his face, but all Bobbie could feel was the anticipation of the nearness, the spark sliding underneath her skin, waiting to explode out of her.

“Kiss me now.”

He obeyed. His soft lips descended on hers, teasing the charge from underneath her skin as it erupted around them. He slipped his tongue over her lips, coaxing them open with a trepidatious prodding. She sighed against his mouth, finally feeling finished, whole. Her hands went to his shoulders, holding him in place as their energy coalesced and became one.

“You are truly perfection,” Von whispered as they broke away, their breathing slightly strained, their bodies alive with the shared attraction.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” she smiled, her gaze trailing down his body and landing on the erection that strained against the tight pants he wore. Well, there was no E.D. for this guy. She slipped a hand across the clothing she wore, letting the soft fabric pull away from her body, as she let it fall to the floor. Von’s eye followed her every movement.

“I want you to pleasure me, Von,” she said, embracing the role he wanted her to take.

“What do you want me to do to you?”

“I want your mouth, here.” She touched herself, sliding her fingers across the bit of fabric that covered her pussy, making it pull away and join the other fabric on the ground. Her fingers parted the lips of her sex and felt how wet she had become from the anticipation of what they were about to do.

“Yes.” Von’s eyes were huge and the thrill of power she had over him had her body pulsing with arousal. She moved a chair to the side, and took a seat on the table, spreading her legs and placing them next to her on the table.

“Pull up a seat and dine on my pussy, Von,” she said, holding back a giggle at her raunchy talk. He wasted no time, grabbing a chair and sitting between her legs. It was only moments before his mouth was on her, hesitant at first as he licked cautiously, but as he got his bearing, he found her clit and sucked it into his mouth.

Bobbie moaned his name, and plunged her fingers into his hair, urging him in the right direction.

“More, use your fingers,” she cried and he did as told, adding his fingers to the mix, inserting them inside of her as his mouth continued to work her in a way that was intensely erotic. Bobbie moved her hips to his rhythms as the warm flood of pleasure took her over. She became a writhing and moaning being with nothing to worry about but the act they were engaged in. She thrashed as Von worked her body with an expertise that should be taught in a classroom, it was so good.

“Fuck me, now, fuck me, Von.” Cold air hit her pussy as Von sat up. He stood and pulled at his pants. The moment his dick was free of the material, it was pressing against her entrance, but he paused, looking down at her.

“Now, I want you inside of me,” she ordered and he did as she bid. He entered her, and the world around Bobbie exploded. The room was lit up with blue light as their sparks became an entity of its own. He threw his head back and howled and Bobbie heard three other voices join him. They were finally all together. Five becomes one.

It took only three thrusts, three long and hard thrusts, and Bobbie could not contain herself. She came, and she dragged Von with her, and with him came Roc, Tam, and Finn. She felt them as if they were inside of her as well. They erupted. The sparks surged around them, and Von poured himself into her body. Finally, complete.

41

Five becomes one

They found a bedroom after they had managed to get back into their clothes and stumble down the hallway. But the moment he saw the big bed with the oversized headboard and footboard, Von’s heartbeat sped up and he looked at his Charge Mate with all the need and want in his eyes he could convey.

After more fumbling, she had him on the bed and restrained and her gorgeous body was riding him, doing things to him that he hadn’t even imagined. He did want to touch her, but being in this position, unable to do anything but let her take control had him turned inside out. As he neared release, she laughed and disengaged her body from him, swatting at his dick coated with her juices.

She did this three times in a row, and he felt he was about to explode, but the pain that was building in his cock was exquisite.

“Am I doing this right?” she whispered as she dragged her nails over his chest, causing him to curse her name and praise her with one sound.

“There is nothing you can do wrong,” Roc said as he opened the door and took in the sight of his glorious Charge Mate antagonizing Von.

“Roc,” she squealed getting off the bed and throwing herself in his arms, her body damp with sweat and arousal.

“Pr’iveni,” he crooned and ran his hands over her body, cupping her breasts. “Get back on the bed, I thought I’d join you two,” he said in a tone that made both Von and Bobbie tremble in anticipation.

“What were you doing to him?” Roc asked.

“I was—“

“Show me,” he said and she did as bid, climbing across the bed and straddling Von.

“Are you ready,” she crooned and lowered herself back onto him, making Von thrash against the covers. “Don’t come until we’re ready,” she moaned as she began to rock back and forth on top of him.

Von tore his eyes from the glorious creature that rose up and down over him to see his twin undressing, his eyes on both of them. His eyes were hungry as he stalked across the room, his body nude and ready. Even though they looked alike, even though he was once part of this man, Von was so different now. Where Roc conquered, Von surrendered, like they were two sides of a coin. The man crawled over the bed, positioning himself behind their Charge Mate. Bobbie continued to pump her body up and down on Von’s cock, even as Roc pressed her forward, her full body making contact with Von’s chest.

She cried out in excitement, and Von could feel what she was reacting to as Roc’s body spread Von’s legs further and the head of Roc’s cock joined his own dick at Bobbie’s core. He gently thrust into her, and Von threw his head back with a growl as he felt Roc begin to pump deeper and deeper into her. Once again, he felt one with Roc, combined as they were in the body of their Charge Mate. She rode them as one, they rocked into her as one and Von felt a cohesion that he hadn’t felt in a long time. Roc’s hands gripped his hips for leverage and the three of them fell into a chaotic rhythm that had their hair standing up with the electricity and their words of pleasure translated to no more than strange keening.

When Bobbie shouted she was ready and he could come, he was surprised by how he instantly reacted, emptying inside of her like it was planned. Like it was choreographed and rehearsed. Like it was fated.

* * *

Bobbie awoke and stretched out on the bed, finding herself alone. She frowned, looking around for some indication of where the men were, but it wasn’t like they could leave her a note. She couldn’t read their language, which was one more reminder that she wasn’t as cohesive of a fit on this planet as she wanted to be.

Wanted to be.

That was a different thought. When had she transitioned from willing captive, to hopeful immigrant? Probably somewhere between the many orgasms, and the way her men treated her. And they treated her well. She ran a hand over her body, which was sore in places, and overstimulated in others. Her nipples were almost rubbed raw and when her hands brushed over them, she shivered. They were unbelievably sensitive from all the attention they had been getting lately. She wouldn’t be surprised if she could come from someone merely playing with them. The thought made the fire inside of her begin to burn again and she smiled at her wantonness.

She had never been one of those girls her grandmother had described as “hot in the ass,” the girls from high school who acted like they were in heat the way they fucked their boyfriends or any guy they could get their hands on. Bobbie had never felt that way with any of the guys she had dated, enjoying sex, but never craving it, never wanting to spend days in bed making love. Now, she couldn’t get enough of it. She would have been perfectly content to lock herself in a room with her four men and not come out for few days.

Four men. Her smiled grew broader. Bobbie Flemming was sleeping with four absolutely gorgeous guys. Sure, they were aliens, but who was judging? And they weren’t just hot, they also knew how to make her body purr. She threw the covers off her naked body and pointed her toes, feeling the delicious soreness between her legs. If someone would have told her that she would be having threesomes left and right a month ago, she would have called them a lunatic and written them off as deranged. Now look at her.

She laughed at her own thoughts and slinked out of bed, looking around the room to find the entrance to the bathroom. Nothing indicated another door, and she knew the one across from her led to the hallway.

There was an actual mirror hung on the wall, and she patted at her hair, which had a very just been fucked five, maybe six times look, and then gave up. Scooping up her clothes from the floor, she gave up on any underwear and slipped on the flowing dress she had worn yesterday, not knowing where her clothes she had packed for the trip were. She needed to find the boys.

Instead of finding Roc and Von, she ran into Mea in the hallway, who was looking resplendent in a teal jumper looking outfit with her dark hair piled on top of her head.

“Where’s the bathroom?”

“Looks like you need your clothes as well. Roc loaded them into the palace central intelligence.”

“Central intelligence?” Bobbie asked as she tried to catch up with Mea.

“Yes, the main network in a large home. No one explained?”

“Um, no,” Bobbie said. “Where the hell is the bathroom?”

“Sorry! Our bathrooms are in the basement area because of the elevation, I should have told you that yesterday. Roc and Von are down there in the men’s rooms.” She slapped a hand on a control panel and a door slid opened, Mea stepped in and disappeared. With a quick prayer, Bobbie followed and her stomach flew into her throat as the floor dropped out from beneath her and she was deposited on her feet in a dark room, lit with iridescent lighting, but no windows.

“Where are we?” Bobbie asked, looking around the room. There were large pools in the center of a room as big as a warehouse.

“The bathing rooms. There are personal bathers at the end of the room, though, if you do not want to get in the pools; those are more for luxury. The water comes from underneath the mountain, and bathing with water is a bit taboo, but all of this is recycled and is naturally fed from the underground heated tubes.”

“Are we on a volcano or something?”

“That word didn’t translate. What’s a volcano?”

“A mountain that spews fire,” Bobbie tried.

“Um, what in the galaxy? You have mountains that spew fire?” Mea looked at her shocked.

“Yes, it’s how land masses are formed on Earth. Molten rock is what exists at the center of our planet, what is in the center of yours?”

“Well, not hot rocks,” she laughed. “Our land masses are formed by a living one-celled creature that binds together and becomes more,” Mea explained as if it was totally normal. It was Bobbie’s time to stare at her.

“That’s insane.”

“You just told me your world has exploding hot rock mountains, who’s world is insane?”

“You’re right,” Bobbie shrugged and clapped her hands when Mea revealed a bathing room.

“Let me get your clothes.” She tapped out a command on the panel and a rack shot out of the wall a few moments later with Bobbie’s folded clothes on display. She picked a nice outfit and laid it out on the counter. “Clean up and I’ll come get you in a few. I think Nasha mentioned he wanted to do something before we all left.”

Mea’s communicator beeped and she frowned at the screen.

“What is it?”

“I don’t know, looks like we might have a visitor, but I don’t know who it is. Crazy week.” She laughed and it was Bobbie’s turn to frown. Mea wasn’t telling her something.

“I’ll come and get you in a bit. The palace can be a maze since they built it around the mountain instead of excavating the mountain.” She waved her hand in front of the door and it slid closed with a hiss. Bobbie was on her own in the bathroom and since it wasn’t exactly like the palace in Thames, it took her some trial and error before she got it to work properly. She managed to get clean and dry with fresh clothes and her hair styled in a basic arrangement. It would do.

Mea was waiting for her in the main bath area, impatiently tapping her chin with manicured fingers. They weren’t big on colored nails on Polaridis, but they liked to shine them up and add jewels to the end.

“About time,” she huffed. “The boys are doing their boring political talking. I want to show you the gardens, you’ll love them.” Mea grabbed Bobbie’s hand and began another tour of the palace.

42

Flaunting emotional instabilities

“Can you imagine the implications when this gets out?” Nasha was pacing the meeting room, his head bowed. Roc and Von had slipped out of the room they were sharing with Bobbie, leaving her sleeping off her active night. They had gotten used to only sleeping a few hours a night, but knew she required more, especially with the changes happening with the charge.

They had found Nasha in the kitchen and had begun discussing their differences. He was fascinated with the changes happening between them.

“It’s not going to get out,” Roc said roughly.

“It will one day, there is no disguising your…” Nasha waved a hand in their general direction.

“Our differences,” Von said, taking a seat in one of the overstuffed chairs.

“People will see what they expect to see. You only see it because you know me so well,” Roc said.

“You’ll have to prepare for it getting out one day, Roc,” Nasha argued.

“Among other things,” Von said under his breath.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Roc growled.

“Exactly what I said. It seems to be our routine in the last few sun phases, secrets and lies,” Von countered.

“Now, that’s enough,” Roc said. “I thought you would be over this emotional instability that you have been flaunting since we broke apart.”

“Flaunting,” Von huffed.

“You two are far worse than brothers,” Nasha sighed. He glanced at his wrist comm and shook his head. “Maybe not.”

“What is it?” Von picking up on Nasha’s change in demeanor quicker than Roc.

“There is someone approaching the palace. They have not declared themselves to the navigation, so I’m assuming it’s Kravitz. He and my father are the only ones who could bypass the security protocols.”

“Should we leave?” Von asked.

“I fear that if you were to leave now, it would only enhance my brother’s paranoia. Better stay and we shall act the recreational royals.”

“You should stay out of sight,” Roc said to Von.

“Oh, won’t that suit your needs,” Von said under his breath.

“I don’t understand your issue. Why must you constantly argue? You are like some thirty-something fighting against parental overstep.” Roc shook his head in exasperation, and he saw his words only increased Von’s ire. The man looked at him red-faced, so unlike Roc’s schooled features. Had none of his practice and training rubbed off on the man? The countless forced social engagements where he wasn’t allowed to show a single bit of emotion or he would be torn apart by his father.

“Do not show them a thing, Rochford, your emotion will be their currency,” his father had told him over and over again. Yet here was this man who was his exact replica, down to the birthmark that graced his forearm, who wore his emotions on his sleeve. So alike, yet so unbelievably different. How could they ever make this situation work?

* * *

Bobbie and Mea wandered around the beautiful gardens of the winter palace. There was so much to look at. The blooms were all stunning colors and shapes. So unbelievably different from the flowers on Earth, yet she found similarities in each plant. How one bloom had the layered complexity of a Hibiscus, how another bud had the shape of a rose, the coloring of a gardenia. There was one plant that looked similar to a daisy but had the smell of mint. She leaned over and took in a deep breath. Not quite, but close. She rubbed the leaf of the flower between her fingers and the aroma filled her nose.

“You must employ a lot of gardeners,” Bobbie mused, looking at the size of the gardens.

“You mean people that tend a garden? There are no such people here,” Mea said.

“Then how do you keep the weeds down?”

“They are programmed not to grow here.” Mea tilted her head in a matter-of-fact way.

“I can’t get over how you guys have control over everything like that,” Bobbie said.

“The programming of the genome catapulted our society into a new era of technology; everything changed after that.” A tone on Mea’s wrist comm beeped and she looked down, again she frowned at the screen. “We should probably find the boys.”

“Is something wrong?”

“I fear my brother Kravitz is paying us a visit.”

“We should probably leave then, I don’t want our visiting here to get you in trouble.”

“Probably too late for that,” Mea sighed.

When they neared Nasha and Mea’s wing, Bobbie could hear voices raised. Mea hurried to join them, but Bobbie grabbed her arm and held her back, holding a finger to her lips. She wanted to hear what the men were arguing about, and didn’t want their presence to stop them.

“I am only acting like you treat me. Boss me around like the parent and I will act like a child,” It was either Roc or Von’s voice and she assumed it was Von because of the way he spoke.

“Is that why you ran away? To defy and rebel?”

“I came here so I can get some perspective on this new life I have. It is not easy, if you think about it. I am like a child.”

“How can you be? You have all of my experiences.”

“Think what you will. This is how I feel and it doesn’t help that you act like you can’t stand me and won’t accept us.”

“Is that what this is about? To give me some guilt trip over how I’m not happy that this has happened—that we’ve all become autonomous?”

Mea whispered something Bobbie couldn’t understand and Bobbie waved a hand for her to shush.

“You’re not getting it. I don’t want it to be an issue. I don’t want you to treat us like a burden.”

“I’ve already said that we can approach this as an asset and not a hindrance. What aren’t you telling me? I thought we were over this, last night…”

There was silence, and Bobbie braced herself against the door, trying not to make a noise. She wanted them to hash it out, without her in the middle.

“Roc, Von, maybe we should figure this out at a later date. The ship approaches,” Nasha interjected.

“You’re right, Nasha, we will handle this later. Von, can you table this for later? We’ll figure it out. I don’t think of you as a burden, but I also don’t want our enemies to find out how we are separate. If you are unwilling to play the mindless split, then please just stay away.”

“I don’t care about playing mindless,” Von said with a sigh.

“Then for the love of the Creators, what is it?” Roc said in frustration.

“You don’t get it. We’re going to lose her, and it’s all your fault.”

“How can we lose her? What do you mean?” Bobbie went completely still now that the conversation was about her.

“She’ll leave us, you know she will, when she finds out the truth.” Mea tugged on Bobbie’s arm, trying to get her away from the door. Bobbie didn’t budge, she had to know what they were talking about.

“She doesn’t want to return to Earth, she’s said that. We are all joined, Charge Mates,” Roc’s voice was low, barely audible. She swallowed, holding her breath so she wouldn’t be heard, so nothing would give them away. Mea was staring at Bobbie with huge eyes, knowing they shouldn’t be there. Guilt from spying on them swirled in Bobbie’s stomach, but this was about her. About some lie. She had to know what they were lying about, especially if it involved her.

“What happens when she finds out you exaggerated the truth about the time period? When she realizes she’s only been gone from Earth for a few weeks? She’ll want to return, she’ll leave us.” Von’s voice was raised, and the truth carried loud enough that there was no mistaking what he said.

The emotions that overtook Bobbie did not let her remain silent. She gasped, her hand slapping against the doorframe in a distinct whap as she involuntary reacted to what she had heard. There was a clatter from the room, and Bobbie knew they came for her. What would they do? Would they try to hold her here? They had kidnapped her to begin with. Would they go back to keeping her against her will? She stumbled back into Mea and the smaller girl grabbed her arm and held onto her. She tried to shake it away. Would Mea help them?

“You idiot.” She assumed Roc said those words to Von. Roc who had lied to her, Roc who had taken her against her will and brought her to this planet that was so different from Earth. Roc had made it seem like years had passed on Earth, and that there was nothing left for her there. He had made it seem like he was her only option, her best option, that she should feel okay for falling for him, instead of guilty for leaving her world behind, since no one on Earth would even believe she was alive.

“Bobbie,” Roc and Von were in the doorway staring at her, with Nasha behind them. He looked concerned, but he was another large male. Three against one. She glanced behind her at Mea. Four against one.

“Don’t.” She held up her hand. “How could you? Wait, I don’t want to hear it. I know why you did it, I get it. I hate that you did that, but I’m pretty sure I know your stupid reasoning.” She did. She knew he would say something about her being his Charge Mate, how they were meant to be together and that he would do anything to prove they belonged together. Even lie to her so she wouldn’t do something stupid. Because she wasn’t capable of making an informed choice. It grated at her. Of all the misogynistic, heavy-handed bullshit.

“Let me explain,” Roc said in a soothing and placating voice. She couldn’t look at him, she was so angry.

“Bobbie?” Von this time, the anguish in his voice so painfully heard. She kept her eyes down. She didn’t want to look at him, didn’t want to see the emotions in his face that matched his voice. She could not feel sorry for him.

“I don’t want to hear it from either of you. How do I get back to Thames?”

“With me,” Roc said and she looked at him this time and glared.

“No,” she stated firmly. “I want to get back to Thames, and not have to sit within three feet of you for the entire ride, and then I want to start making plans to get back to Earth.”

This time she did glance up and look at the two men who had brought her such pleasure last night. Von hung his head and Roc looked ready to explode. He should, he should explode from the pain. It served him right. He shouldn’t have lied. He should have taken the time to convince Bobbie about their connection, instead of being a fucking caveman and dragging her away with lies. No matter how wonderful they were, no matter how good they made her feel, she couldn’t let them treat her like another possession to be handled.

“I can get you back to Thames, but after I take care of my brother,” Nasha said and both Roc and Von turned to glare at him.

“I’m coming!” Mea piped up, slipping her smaller hand into Bobbie’s.

“Don’t you dare, Nash.” Roc turned on his friend.

“I think this is the best option, and you know I’m right. I’ll get the transport ready, once my brother docks. I suggest everyone calm down and act bored until we can get away.”

43

The Whip Thing

Roc was so angry he could have killed Von. He thought seriously about drop-kicking him from the landing platform and watching with glee as he hit every rock on the five thousand breath drop down to the valley below. They stood on the balcony that wrapped around Nasha and Mea’s wing, staring at the clunky transport of the Polari heir to the throne. It was an over-equipped atmosphere breaker, meant for long-distance orbit travel. Expensive and showy, but not practical for inner-realm travel.

Nasha and Mea had gone down to the reception bridge to greet the visitors. Von and Roc had stayed behind to watch. Roc glanced behind him at how Bobbie was lounging on a sun seat like she didn’t have a care in the world. He knew her, though, could see worry that crossed her forehead, the puffiness under her eyes, and he could have killed Von when he saw her wipe at a stray tear that ran down her face.

“I don’t understand your actions,” Roc said in a voice that wouldn’t carry to his Charge Mate. He wanted to understand his double. He wanted to know what had caused him to act this way, which led to the exact thing they all feared. He could feel the heartache coming from Finn and Tam, as well as Von, all of their emotions so strong and whirling around him like a cyclone. It was overpowering and something he was not used to dealing with.

“You wouldn’t,” Von said, again that petulant streak playing across his words made Roc’s hackles rise. He wanted to punch something, to let his anger and heartache out in a rage, but knew it would only make things worse.

“Why would I not? You are me—you are a copy of me. I should be able to understand your actions. I should be able to understand why you ran away to your friend’s palace to sulk like a child, but I cannot fathom it. I have never done anything like this in my life.”

“I seemed to have gotten the short end of the emotional stick when it comes to this splitting thing,” Von sighed.

“What do you mean?”

“We all seem to have certain traits that are more prevalent in each of us. Tam inherited your loyalty and obedience, Finn your sense of humor, which I didn’t think you possessed by the way, but he got it, along with a sense of justice and honor. Me, well, I seem to have gotten your sensitive and overly emotional side, along with some of your more taboo sexual proclivities.” He sighed and Roc turned to him and looked at him like he had lost his mind.

“Are you saying that each one of you is manifesting a certain trait of mine, but more pronounced than it came across in me?”

“I don’t know if it’s more pronounced, just maybe because we are relieved of some of the other traits, it’s more pronounced. Or maybe you’ve surpassed them so well over the years, they are running rampant in us.”

“I do not see how I suppressed things like loyalty and obedience.” Roc shook his head.

“You have made it a point to disassociate yourself with your father after his bonding with Tormi,” Von said.

“Well, that’s certainly something unexpected. How did you figure this out?”

“It’s rather obvious if you think about it,” Von sighed again, his shoulders slumped in a way that Roc would never do.

“And this is why you ran off? Why you had to tell Bobbie about the time difference, because you’re what sensitive?”

“I didn’t tell her anything,” Von hissed, trying not to be overheard. “I didn’t know she was right there.”

“You would have told her eventually.”

“Yes, dammit, the guilt has been eating at me,” Von said.

“You didn’t seem to be drowning under a sea of guilt last night.” Roc had no problem dropping judgment on his double. None at all.

“I can’t resist her,” he sighed, looking over his shoulder at the girl in question. She had her back to them and had begun poking around at the controls on a side table. Low music started to play over the hidden speakers. “I’ve been trying to keep my distance. Between the guilt, and the weird desires I have, I could barely look at her, while all of you got to be with her over and over. All I did was feel it through you. I fell in love with her, not because of any time I interacted with her, but because of all of our shared emotions. It made me feel sick, especially when compounded with the fact that I knew you hated me, knew you hated my existence. How is a man supposed to function like that?”

“You just do, and I don’t hate you,” Roc said.

“You aren’t thrilled over our existence.”

“It doesn’t mean I hate you. We’ll make this work. But what you did, how you reacted and—if Bobbie really chooses to go home, I can’t make any promises. I’ll hate you because of your actions, not because of your existence.”

“Nothing will matter if Bobbie leaves, and you forget who was the one that chose to lie.”

“And we’ll all pay for that lie; you saw her face. She blamed you as much as me.”

“You’re right.” Von slumped even further onto the railing.

“We’ll fix this,” Roc nodded. “We have to.”

“How?”

“If I have to live on Earth with her, I’ll do that. I’ll show her I’m willing to do anything to be with her, even if it means giving up my homeworld. I asked as much of her, I can do the same.”

“What about the throne?” Von looked over at Roc in shock. For once, he had surprised him.

“Our father has plenty of time to secure another heir.”

“Would we all live on Earth?”

“We all belong to her, so I don’t see how any of us could stay away.”

“You’re right,” Von nodded.

“Then we have a plan.” Roc slapped the railing and smiled at his double. He liked having a plan. He would fix this. He might not have been that impressed with Earth when he was searching for Bobbie, but he could make it work. He could make anything work where Bobbie was concerned.

“Von, can I ask you something? You mentioned earlier—sexual proclivities?”

“Remember that night with Widow Jestiana, where she used that whip thing—well, yeah, that’s why I had Bobbie tie me up, but I would like it if she did—”

“Yes, got it,” Roc interrupted him, for the first time regretting that bit of fantasizing during his youth. He shot Von a sympathetic look and got a glare in return.

“You think Bobbie would be into that?”

“Got to win her back first, then we’ll talk about getting Bobbie a whip.”

44

Nice Knowing You

Pulling yourself back together after being blasted into pieces wasn’t an easy thing for an in the moment kind of girl like Bobbie. She was used to speaking her mind, throwing a temper tantrum when it was needed, and high-tailing it out of the frying pan when the fire got too hot. The fire was way too hot right now and all she wanted to do was run home. The funny thing was, she was trying to conjure up things she missed about home, and the only things she could drum up was Viv and Chuck. Nothing else. Not a favorite spot to chill, or some object of value, not even a favorite food. Well, okay, she wouldn’t mind some major noshing on a steak and a loaded potato, but it was all kind of muted.

Voices carried in the distance and she stood and looked down to the landing platform. Three figures followed Nasha and Mea back to the palace and she thought she recognized one. There was a female with long white blonde hair that trailed behind her in stiff curls. The curls were new, but the woman was not. It was the Virdan Consort, Tormi.

“What is she doing here?” Roc voiced exactly what Bobbie was thinking.

They waited, not so patiently, as the five figures crossed the monstrous bridge, walking slowly as if to make their dramatic entrance that much more enraging.

“Rochford, my son,” Tormi said with fake excitement, walking to Roc and taking his forearm in the Polaridi customary greeting.

If Bobbie wasn’t just as surprised to see Tormi there as Roc, she would have taken glee in the fact that he looked as disconcerted as she felt.

“Consort, what brings you to the Polari Winter Palace?” He didn’t hold back.

“Matters of state brought me to Polari, you brought me to the Winter palace. But let me make introductions. Where is your lovely Charge Mate?” Tormi looked around, her eyes glancing off Bobbie and looking around her. Bobbie couldn’t hold back the eye roll.

“Right here,” she said with a sarcastic wave of the hand.

“Ah yes, so sorry, darling. Bobbie, let me introduce you to the head of House Transu and the head of House Mauvian of Polari. They kindly escorted me to the palace from the Capital City in the Prince’s transport. I had issues with my own, so I thought I could visit a bit here and then catch a ride back with you, Rochford.”

“What matters of state are you handling in Polari, Consort?” Roc asked.

“None of importance.” She waved her hand. “A charity auction, inspired by of all things, your own Charge Mate.” She smiled a tight-lipped smirk in Bobbie’s direction.

“Well, I hate to inform you, but I took the small peak skipper here, and it only has three seats,” Roc said, glancing at Von for clarification.

“Well, I was thinking of taking Nasha and Mea over to Thames, so now you have a seat open for the Consort,” Bobbie piped up. The two heads of Houses clasped their hands and nodded their heads in excitement like this was the best news yet.

“That’s perfect! How gracious of you, Bobbie,” Tormi said.

“I thought we would discuss this.” Roc looked at Bobbie in a panic.

“Nothing to discuss, it’s already been decided. We thought it might be Nasha and Mea’s brother so we would stick around for a bit, but since it’s not, we can head to Thames immediately, right?” Bobbie asked Nasha.

Roc was at her side in an instant, causing the two Polari politicians to glance at him in alarm, and she saw Tormi’s eyes go wide.

“Please don’t do this, Bobbie.” She shook him off when he grabbed her arm, glaring at him for effect.

“I’m doing this, Roc. Your heavy-handed behavior will not help things one iota.”

“I don’t know about you, but I’m famished. Can anyone show me where the kitchen is?” Tormi interrupted.

* * *

Bobbie was still seething when they set down in Thames. She saw that Roc’s transport was already here, and she hoped with all of her heart she wouldn’t run into him before she made arrangements to get back to Earth. Tormi had stalled and delayed, even ordering back servants to fix them a meal before they finally got to head back to Thames. Roc had tried to talk to her on numerous occasions, but every time Bobbie managed to brush him off. Her thoughts swirling with the betrayal and his caveman behavior.

During the flight back, she had begged and pleaded with Nasha to secure her a trip back to Earth. He had finally relented and contacted Healer Lagara to see if she could assist them. Bobbie was pretty sure he only relented because he figured the Healer would talk her out of it, but when they raised her on the communications panel on the ship once they crossed into Thames, she was giddy with the idea of helping.

Bobbie wondered what her angle was. Why was she so willing to get Bobbie back to Earth? Was it because she wanted Roc for herself? Bobbie tried to push those thoughts out of her mind. Who cares? She could have him. He was a liar, a kidnapper, and a brute. He had lied to her so she wouldn’t want to go back home, manipulating her so she thought this was the better planet to reside on. Convinced her she would be better off living in a palace with him and his three other—whatever the hell they were. That she would have a more fulfilling life as an Empress, all while pumping out a ton of little princes and princesses for his benefit.

What gave him the right?

When they had the palace in sight, Nasha called up his comm panel and dialed the Healer, or whatever it is they did to get someone on this planet, and Lagara’s face popped up on the screen.

“Prince Nasha, I have managed to procure the Consort’s star class for the trip. She has graciously allowed me to take Bobbie to Earth using her crew.”

“I bet she did,” Mea mumbled from the back seat, and Bobbie turned around to see what that was about. She raised a questioning eye and Mea shook her head and waved Bobbie off.

“Can you take Bobbie to the staff transport area? The Consort’s ship was there for maintenance.”

“Will do.” Nasha brought the transport back into the air and directed it in the opposite direction, flying around the palace to a larger, more elaborate landing pad. There were at least five ships parked on the platform, but Nasha set his down next to the largest ship, which gleamed gold in the suns.

“I thought the Consort’s ship was in Polari broken down,” Mea mumbled.

“Maybe they got it back,” Bobbie suggested.

“And fixed it this quickly?”

“Bobbie, I don’t know about this,” Nasha said.

“It’s going to be fine. I want to get back to Earth. This is the only way. I know Roc wouldn’t bring me back.” Her words were solid but her mind was not. Bobbie got a tingle of apprehension when she saw Tormi and Lagara standing together to the side of the landing platform, both staring at Nasha’s ship.

“I didn’t think she would be here to greet me, but I guess she just landed herself,” Bobbie said, talking her own nerves down.

“She’s elated you’re leaving,” Mea said.

“That makes two of us.”

“And I really did think you were sweet.” Mea kicked her foot out to open the transport door. “Nice knowing you, Bobbie.”

* * *

“This is for the better.”

“You’ll be back home.”

“You would never have enjoyed the politics of Polaridis.”

The platitudes and affirmations from Lagara and Tormi were grating on Bobbie’s nerves so she quickly left their side and went directly to the cabin she had been assigned. She threw herself on the bed and covered her head with the comfy blanket. Self-doubt stole in like a thief to attack her from the inside. This was the right thing to do. Earth was where she belonged. Earth was her home planet. He had lied to her to keep her away from where she belonged. She kept telling herself these things to push away the negative.

She wiped at a stray tear on her cheek and told herself it was because of the betrayal, and not because she would miss her men. She explained away the pain in her chest, it was from the hurt over what he had done and not because she was already missing them. Her pain was from him keeping her away from where she belonged, not because she was falling in love with Polaridis and its handsome Prince. She tried not to think about Finn, about how quick he was to smile, how easy he made her laugh, how Tam would do anything for her, no matter what she asked. How Roc had… she couldn’t think about that. She couldn’t think about the devastated look on Von’s face, about how giving him what he craved had satisfied a deep part of her soul she didn’t even know needed to be filled.

By the time the ship launched, she had given in to the tears. She lay on the bed and had a good ugly cry. Right as she felt the ship lift into the air, her wrist buzzed and she looked down at the cuff that was only a pretty accessory up until now. She swiped at it, and a small screen popped up. It was Roc.

“Bobbie!” he exclaimed as if he was worried she wouldn’t have answered.

“I’m going home, Roc, you can’t stop me.” She wiped at her cheeks, trying to hide the evidence of her anguish, even though it was an act of futility.

“I know, I know, pr’ialla, do whatever you want. I swear whatever will make you happy will make me as happy as well. If you want to go to Earth, I will follow you there, we will all follow you there…”

“No, you can’t do that, you belong here.” She wiped at her nose that was leaking like a faucet. She must look horrible

“We belong with you, pr’ialla,” he said, his eyes soft, his unspoken words heavy on Bobbie’s chest.

“What does that even mean?” Bobbie asked suddenly exasperated with his secret keeping.

“It roughly translates to my lovely stolen goods.” He laughed when he saw her face.

“And the other one, that sounds like it?”

“Pr’iveni?”

“Yes, that one,” she said in small voice.

“My love, our heart,” he said and Bobbie felt all her insides begin to crash against each other in a maelstrom of chaotic feelings. The tears poured down her face now, and she wiped at them half-heartedly.

“We’ll be right behind you. We’ll make a life on Earth with you, if that’s where you’re ha—" The screen blinked and then went out, and Bobbie pressed her cuff over and over again trying to activate it. Why did it cut out like that? She couldn’t let him go to Earth. The boys didn’t belong on Earth, they belonged here where they could make a difference. It would be so awkward with them all crowded in her apartment. She would have to get a bigger place, they would have to get jobs. What were they even qualified to do? She tried to imagine Roc working a desk job, wearing business casual, playing golf on the weekends. It didn’t translate.

They couldn’t follow her.

We belong with you, pr’ialla.

She didn’t even bother wiping away the tears now. She was now in inconsolable territory and there might be some snot. This time though, the tears weren’t because she was torn. This time they fell freely because she felt the same way. She belonged with them just as much as they belonged with her. But she was still so mad, she couldn’t allow them to manipulate her to get their way. Yet, what was she doing now? Interplanetary travel to make a point?

“Dammit.” She rolled off the bed, and went to the door, pressing the icon that said open. Nothing happened. She pressed it again, nothing. She pressed the other icon that she thought meant close, but nothing happened as well. She slapped a hand on the door, but it barely resonated.

“What the hell?” She spoke the words aloud. She held her cuff up to the door, thinking maybe it was locked to her specifications. Nothing. She found the comm panel in the wall and pressed the activate button. The screen flashed on, but a blinking blue icon flashed in the middle. She wasn’t that learned on the language but that definitely looked like a warning notification. She found the door to the bathroom, and pressed the open button. This time it worked. She found the comm panel in that room, again the flashing blue icon.

She was locked in this room and she couldn’t fathom why. Why would Lagara and Tormi lock her in? Maybe they didn’t want to be bothered with her? She paced the room, trying to figure out the motivation. Maybe they didn’t want her changing her mind? She knew why Tormi wouldn’t want her to stay on Polaridis, but why would Lagara help her get to Earth? Did she not like that Roc was about to reveal he was four? She had seemed rather unhappy about it when Roc had ordered her to do it to take the focus away from Bobbie.

That couldn’t be it, she mused.

There must be something else politically motivated that Bobbie couldn’t see. She was new to this world, new to the politics. She could barely figure out Earth politics, much less this crazy system they had in effect on this world.

After what felt like hours of pacing and not getting any closer to a logical reason, Bobbie finally gave in to her fatigue and laid down on the bed. She fleetingly thought she might be back on Earth when she woke up, she was that tired. The moment her eyes closed, she was sleeping.

45

Bitches Should Get Stitches

“Wake up, Bobbie.” Lagara’s voice had Bobbie sitting up in bed and groggily wiping at her face. There had been drool. She grimaced.

“Did we go through the wormhole yet?” she asked because she couldn’t think of anything else of importance to say.

“We aren’t going through the wormhole. I need you to get up, and get ready. You’re not going to like what’s about to happen, but you have to go along with it if you want to get back to Thames alive and in once piece.”

“Hold up, what are you talking about, no wormhole? Where the hell are we then?”

“We’re about to set down in Lividiania, and the Emperor’s Consort sent me to get you ready.” Lagara looked at her with pity. Bobbie did not like that look.

“Ready for what? What the hell is going on, Lagara?”

“Hush. Stop the yelling, Bobbie,” she said like a teacher would scold a child. “You need to get quiet and listen to what I have to tell you. We don’t have much time and she expects you to be presented in a certain fashion.” Lagara grabbed Bobbie’s arm and tried to tug her out of the bed. When Bobbie refused to move, Lagara’s face went from pitying to pissed. “I mean it, Bobbie, if you don’t cooperate Tormi will kill you and send you back in pieces to Roc. She’ll start a war to get what she wants. Do not tempt fate.”

“What is it that she wants?”

“Her brother’s throne secure,” Lagara said.

“What does that have to do with me?”

“I don’t have time to answer your questions. Get up, or I’ll get one of the guards to help me.” Bobbie did as she was told and let Lagara lead her into the bathroom where she pushed her into the shower and told her to strip.

“Why are you doing this? Why are you helping her?”

“Why else? Politics.” Lagara cocked her head and did a very human eye roll.

“That explains nothing,” Bobbie spat.

“She’s got delicate information on me, and she holds it over my head every chance she can get. This is the last time. If I help her with this, we’ll be done.”

“Sure, if you believe that I have some property to sell you,” Bobbie laughed.

“What do you mean?” Lagara asked.

“Nothing. What kind of information does she have on you?”

“Like I would tell someone else so you can blackmail me as well,” the woman scoffed and keyed in the codes to scrub Bobbie from head to toe.

“I’m not exactly the blackmailing type.”

“People do bad things to protect the ones we love—it’s why I’m here, it’s why Tormi is here, it’s why Roc did what he did to get to your Earth.” She opened the door and yanked Bobbie out of the shower, not caring about her protests. Lagara began to wrap something around her. It looked like the white lacy underwear things that she had been wearing under her dresses, but there was a lot more of them.

“Move.” Lagara swatted at her to turn. She placed one wrap around Bobbie’s back and they covered up her nipples, but little more, then she wrapped them across her body, and between her legs and along her thighs. Then Lagara shoved the hair machine on Bobbie’s head and punched in more codes. When she yanked it off, Bobbie’s hair was piled on top of her head, with ringlets trailing down around her ears. She glanced at herself in the mirror and nearly laughed. She looked like the chick from the Fifth Element.

“Where’s my multipass?” Bobbie’s first inclination when she was under stress was to joke.

“I don’t know. Do you need it? What does it look like?”

“Never mind. Why do I look like this, Lagara?”

“You are being given to the Emperor of Lividiania, Tormi’s brother.”

“Like, as a slave?” Bobbie looked from the mirror to the Healer in horror.

“More like for temporary usage.” Lagara did that infuriating head tilt.

“What in the fuck are you talking about, Lagara?”

“What the darling Healer is not telling you, is that I’m giving you as a present to my brother. If an Earthling can split Roc into four in just a few days, think of what she can do to my powerful brother,” Tormi spoke as she glided into the room. She inspected Bobbie like she was cattle, clucking her tongue and indicating that Bobbie needed to apply makeup with a spoiled flick of her wrists.

Bobbie placed her face into the mask and held her breath. Things were now next level screwed. What did Tormi expect of her? That she would power-up her brother like she did with Roc?

When Tormi pulled the mask away from Bobbie’s face, she was horrified to see the fear in her own eyes. She was being given to another man for him to use her, and from the way she was dressed, there was no sugarcoating what Tormi expected.

“What does that mean, Tormi?” Bobbie refused to use the woman’s title—Consort or Lady or whatever it was supposed to be.

“You’ll bed my brother a few times, he’ll split, and then I’ll take you back to Earth. Done deal. You can go about your life as an insignificant Earthling. Well, unless you get pregnant, then you can stick around and birth the child, then go back home.”

“I’ll bed your brother? Are you out of your mind?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are! You want me to fuck your brother, just like that? Because you think it will split him. No way. Nope, I’m not going to do it.”

“Oh, my dear, your consent is not needed.” Tormi moved with quick efficiency and grabbed on to Bobbie’s lace wristlets, a thin band protruded from the lace and she wrapped it around her own hand, tugging on Bobbie so she had to step forward. “All you have to do is lay there, and what did you call it? Insert slot A into tab B?”

“There is no way you can get away with this. When Roc finds out, he’ll do anything to get me back.” Bobbie tried to free her wrist but it was held tight.

“That’s where you’re wrong, my dear. Roc thinks you’re going to Earth, right now he’s headed straight for a wormhole. He’ll enter lightspeed and won’t be able to communicate with anyone until right before he enters the wormhole. That means I have at least four days to do with you as I please, or should I say, as my brother pleases.” She tittered out a laugh and patted Bobbie’s cheek.

“You’re talking about rape, Tormi. Rape!”

“I’m talking about getting my brother the power he needs to secure the throne, in any way possible. You’ll live through this, you’ll go on. If my brother doesn’t secure the throne, he will not live, and neither will I. We all have to make our sacrifices, girl.” Tormi plucked at a stray piece of material from Bobbie’s shoulder.

“Is that why you were in Polari?”

“I was there on a last-ditch effort to get support for my brother. Kravitz will not back him if he doesn’t split.”

“And you really think sleeping with me will make him split?” Bobbie asked, trying to play to Tormi’s logical brain.

“Doesn’t hurt to try,” she tittered. “Come on, Lagara, I need you on the bridge.”

Both females left Bobbie alone. She slapped at the door as it closed behind them, but nothing moved, nothing clicked into place. The comm panels didn’t work, Bobbie’s own cuff didn’t activate. They had her shut down.

Bobbie had been kidnapped again. But this time, she was pretty sure there wouldn’t be four handsome aliens as her door prize.

46

The Emperor Wears Stupid Clothes

All four of the men piled into one of Roc’s bigger star class transports. They didn’t need to discuss it, they knew what they wanted. Bobbie. They would live anywhere, give up everything, all to be with her. Tam began the calculations to take them off planet and headed in the direction of Earth. They were in the wrong rotation to get a perfect take-off, but if they waited a sun length it would be just right.

They got into a heated argument about the pros and cons of waiting, and it was finally decided that they would wait, because if they launched now they would have to circumnavigate the planet to get on the correct path, and that would take much longer, putting them behind Bobbie by at least five sun lengths.

They sat in silence, watching the clock. It was going to be a long week, which was the amount of travel time it would take to get them to Earth using this particular transport. They wished they had a smaller one. The smaller ships went faster, but they needed to use this one because of its cargo capacity. They needed a ship that was fully stocked with medical equipment and provisions they would need to live on Earth and still have the luxuries of home. Roc, Tam, Von, and Finn were willing to give up their planet and their throne for the woman they loved, but they were going to be logical about it. They weren’t willing to let Bobbie live out a normal human lifespan and they definitely wanted to be able to contact Polaridis if they needed to. They would miss their father, Nasha, and maybe even Mea, but they were doing what needed to be done.

A sensor beeped alerting Roc that there was someone on the launch pad. This was highly unusual since his engines were engaged and foot traffic was forbidden on the platform during a countdown. People were killed, if they weren’t careful, by a launching ship. He called up the viewing screen and cursed under his breath at what he saw. Mea and her brother were running across the red grass platform, her arms were over her head and she was waving them back and forth to get his attention.

The two bounded across the grass in a frenetic and jittery manner, then began to pound on the hull where the latch was located.

“Should I let them in?” Tam asked.

“I’ll do it.” Von got up and went to the door, opening it and extracting the stairs.

Mea and her brother came barreling into the bridge, feet flapping and dyed hair flying. The female stumbled and bent over at the waist, taking great gulps of air as if she had run from a great distance.

“I don’t think they took Bobbie back to Earth,” she managed to gasp out.

“Bobbie’s not going to Earth,” Nasha said at the same time. He wasn’t as winded as his sister, being in much better fitness than the female.

“What do you mean?” Finn asked, unhooking himself from the control seat and handing Mea an oxygen mask so she could stop hiccupping all over his floor.

“We watched their launch. It was quick, they didn’t wait for rotational optimization and they also did not exit the atmosphere. They went west,” Nasha said.

“They were up to something. I could tell by that fake witch’s smile,” Mea said, somewhat calmed down.

“Where did they go if they didn’t go to Earth?”

“That I don’t know. All I know is that they didn’t leave the planet.” Nasha tilted his head in ignorance.

“Call up the transport logs, find out where she went,” Roc said to Tam, who had pulled up the network display and began typing on it before Roc had even spoken.

“This says all of the Consort’s transports are still docked.” Tam turned around in his seat, looking at Nasha for guidance.

“It was one of Tormi’s transports, the big gold one she drags around the realm as a status symbol. The one that was supposed to be broken down in Polari,” Nasha added.

“It says it’s still docked in the staff platform for routine maintenance.” Tam was squinting at the screen in front of him.

“Is there any unusual activity from the staff’s platform? Anything that doesn’t look right?”

“There was a trade vessel that left, headed to Balavanta,” Tam said.

“What time?” Finn asked.

“No, that couldn’t be right, that was this morning.”

“This, this has to be it,” Tam pointed to a log entry.

“A diplomat transport from Polari, star class, parked on the visitor platform? That isn’t right.”

“They would dock there?” Nasha asked.

“Usually, unless they had high status, then the Emperor would allow docking at his personal platform,” Von said.

“Where is it headed, back to Polari?” Roc asked.

“No, that’s why it has to be this one. It’s headed to Lividiania.”

“Why would she take Bobbie to Lividiania?” Roc asked the group.

“I don’t know, but it looks like things just got a lot more complicated,” Nasha interjected. “I think it’s time you talk to your father.”

* * *

“I don’t know what you expect me to do with her, sister.” The small Emperor in the oversized clothes sat on his elaborate throne and stared down at Bobbie like she was a bug. She tried not to fidget, but she was doing a poor job of it, she felt so exposed.

“She’s an Earthling, and from what I’ve seen, if you bed her it increases your power. You’ll split and your throne will be secure.” This was the first time Bobbie had seen the woman deferential and not acting haughty.

“I don’t want to bed an Earthling, I don’t want to bed anyone, Tormi,” the Emperor practically whined.

“The House is at this minute debating whether to depose you or not, brother. I have tried to get the other Emperors to back you, but they refuse. All of them see your inability to split as a weakness. This is a way to keep your throne. You will be powerful, then I can come home and rule by your side. You won’t have to take a life-mate. If you split you’ll have the power and influence to hold this realm alone. It’s what we dreamed of, Storma,” Tormi was practically on her knees in front of her brother.

“You were supposed to get pregnant by your all-powerful first Emperor and secure an heir and a trade deal that would bring about more influence, not this half-cocked idea,” the Emperor sneered and threw the chalice he had been drinking across the room. Bobbie didn’t know if he was aiming for his sister, but it glanced off her shoulder and spilled a red drink all over her peach dress.

“Savage,” Bobbie whispered then clapped a hand over her mouth, but it didn’t matter, no one was paying attention to her.

“Why did you do that?” Tormi wailed.

“Why did you do this?” her brother wailed back, flailing in Bobbie’s direction. “I’m not going to rut on an Earthling. I can’t believe you did this, Tormi!”

“Take her back to the Emperor’s chambers! Get them out of here,” Tormi screamed. “Her too!” She pointed her finger at the Healer, and two guards appeared from the shadows of the room and grabbed ahold of the women. Bobbie tried to free herself but their grip was iron strong and they dragged her from the large room with little effort.

They dragged Bobbie down hallway after hallway into a dimly lit room with a monstrous bed in the center of it. The silica walls were covered in lush looking carpets to cover up the glossy and modern interior walls. The two guards pushed Lagara and Bobbie into the room and slammed the door shut. Bobbie managed to gain her footing, but Lagara fell to her knees. She looked up at Bobbie with a sense of hopelessness.

“Didn’t go as you planned, did it?” Bobbie rubbed it in, she rubbed it in hard.

“It will, just wait.”

“I think you’re a little delusional.” Bobbie began checking out the room, trying to find something she could use as a weapon.

“No, it will, you’ll just have to be with him a few times, and then they’ll send you back to Thames before Roc returns. They don’t want to start a war over this, that’s why they’re doing it while he is in route to Earth.”

“You are talking about letting him rape me a few times, you do understand that, right?” Bobbie didn’t want to scream, but the last part of her statement came out a little high-pitched. The Healer winced.

“It’s better than being dead.” That head tilt of a shrug and Bobbie did something she hadn’t attempted since college. She drew back and punched the Healer right in the nose. It hurt her hand. She yelped as the pain exploded in her hand, but knew she had done well when she heard the satisfying crunch. The Healer fell back to her knees, a small spray of blood flying across the rich looking carpets on the wall nearest them. It hadn’t been a hard punch, Bobbie wasn’t used to throwing a good one, but taking back a little power felt good. The Healer glared at her through her fingers that held her nose, and Bobbie smirked, the throb of her hand worth it.

A chime sounded and Lagara looked at her wrist in surprise.

“Who is that? Is that a call?” Bobbie asked eagerly as she saw the color drain out of Lagara’s face. Everything about her was pale, except the blood splatters from her nose. The call screen flashed into existence over Lagara’s wrist and the Emperor’s face glared at her.

“Where are you, Lagara?”

“I took a leave of absence, Your Highness,” Lagara sputtered. “I filed the paperwork with Chi.”

“I did not ask you that, Healer, I asked you where you were and who is that with you?”

“It’s me, Your Highness.” Bobbie bent over Lagara’s wrist and gave a little wave.

“Is that my son’s Charge Mate? What is she doing there?” the Emperor bellowed, and the sound of his voice seemed to make the entire room vibrate.

When Lagara didn’t answer, Bobbie answered for her.

“Your darling wife and this bitch Healer took me hostage and are going to—oopmf-” The Healer managed to get an elbow into Bobbie’s stomach and she doubled over in pain.

“I can’t talk now, Your Highness, I’ll be back at my station in three days.”

“If you break this contact, Lagara, I will place an order of treason on your profile. You will tell me where you are, you will tell me where my Consort is, and why you took my son’s Charge Mate without her consent.”

“I’m in Lividiania, sir!” Bobbie called over the Healer’s shoulder.

“She blackmailed me, sir, I had no choice.” Tears streamed down the Healer’s face and mixed with the blood from her swollen nose. It wasn’t a pretty sight, but Bobbie felt no pity. She deserved it. She deserved everything that would happen to her from this exchange.

“What has my Consort done?” The Emperor’s voice was low this time, concerned, and if Bobbie wasn’t mistaken, hurt.

“She thinks if your son’s Charge Mate split him into four, she’ll be able to split her brother as well.” There was a roar in the background, and Bobbie felt her heart speed up. It was Roc. He was there; he wasn’t headed to Earth.

She slumped over in relief, her knees making contact with the floor.

“No communications.” The door hissed open and the guard grabbed Lagara’s wrist, touching some sort of pen looking object against her comm cuff and forcing the communication screen to cut out.

“The Emperor has ordered us to remand you under penalty of espionage. You’ll be spending the rest of your days in the palace prison.” The guard slapped something on Lagara’s arm and pulled her from the room.

“You can’t do this,” she wailed, still holding onto her nose as best as she could. She tried to plant her feet and fight him, but the guard was much bigger and he pulled her along like she weighed nothing.

The other guard approached Bobbie.

“What are you going to do with me?” she asked, hating the quiver in her voice.

“You are to be secured.” He grabbed her by the upper arm, hard enough to bruise, and dragged her to the bed. Using those same wrist restraints, the guard tied her to the footboard of the Emperor’s bed, not caring that he had it so tight she was losing circulating fast.

“The Emperor will be here shortly.”

“Great,” Bobbie muttered, twisting her wrist to try and loosen the restraint.

“He is greatly worked up, I would not fight,” the guard said. Bobbie was unable to discern if the man said this to help her or to threaten her. Either way, the message was received.

Bobbie collapsed onto the little cushions in front of the bed, not wanting to get on the mattress to seem more compliant. She wouldn’t cry. She wouldn’t break down. Roc knew where she was.

That had to mean something. He would come for her. He would save her. The thought gave her hope, but at the back of her mind, a niggling bit of doubt wondered if he would make it in time.

47

Status Update: Single

The Emperor changed his status from mated to single with a flick of the wrist and a communique sent to the House. He also took the time to record a professional release declaring his new status to the media outlets in Thames Virdan. He stated a simple reason: treason.

He also did something unexpected. He declared war on Lividiania.

Roc watched as the live broadcast began to roll. His father sat on his throne in the robes befitting a man of his title. A crown the color of the sea, made of one seamless piece of gemstone, sat upon his head.

“I declare to you, people of Thames Virdan, with the utmost sincerity, I had no notion of the Consort’s intentions. Today, she took it upon herself to steal away my son, the heir, Prince Rochford Tameratti Vondan Finnrod’s Charge Mate, and bring her to the realm of Lividiania with the intention for harm. Consort Tormi of Lividiania did this to secure more power for her brother who is seated upon the throne of that realm. As of this moment, I have severed our bond, and Tormi of Lividiania is no longer Emperor Consort of Thames Virdan. She has also been declared an outlaw of this realm—the charge is treason.

Because of this, with great reluctance, I have also declared war on Lividiania. I urge my citizens to not take offense to this grave topic. The people of Lividiania have done nothing wrong; it is only their royals. They have tried to destroy the sacred bond of a Charge Mate, and their actions cannot be without repercussions. Until they release the Prince’s Charge Mate, unharmed and untouched, will Thames Virdan relinquish their declaration. I have authorized the Prince to take charge of the royal air and ocean forces, fleets 792 and 918 to take them to the border of the offending realm.

If his Charge Mate is not released, they have permission to bomb. The realm of Balavanta and Polari have offered their support. That is all, my citizens. Please, lift up your voices to the Creators and grant the royals of Lividiania clear minds to do the right thing.”

The Emperor leaned back in his throne and wiped at the bead of sweat on his forehead.

“Get her back,” he said.

Roc nodded and left the throne room. He had his orders.

48

Childhood dreams coated in animal fat

The Emperor of the 2nd to last influential realm of Polaridis entered his room like a strutting peacock. He wore all the colors of the rainbow in a flowing silk-like fabric that flounced around him like a piñata. His hair was dyed an odd-looking orange color, and he seemed to be wearing fake teeth, they were too big to be natural. When his eyes found hers, Bobbie noted they were a mud brown color beneath dark eyelashes, ugly and plain. His sister had obviously gotten all the good genes in this line, but missed the morals and brains.

“According to my sister, I am supposed to rut with you like a common breeder.” He looked down his straight nose at her. “I do not find you attractive enough to engage in such common acts, but she insists. She believes you will help me split. Are you some kind of Healer on your planet?”

“She’s a moronic short-sighted cow. I can’t help you do anything,” Bobbie spat.

“You speak odd words that I do not know,” he scoffed. “Odd like your oversized bloated body, so bizarre.” He looked her up and down and turned his head in disgust.

“I think you need to look in a mirror, cupcake.” Bobbie tugged at the restraint holding her to this man’s bed.

“Odd,” he shook his head again. “I guess I will do what I have to do. Being only one does make for a lot of tiresome questions. It would be nice to split. If you can help me split, I would be ignorant to not try.” He walked closer to her and she tried to put the cushions between them.

“Roc was split before we met. He was keeping it a secret so power-hungry skanks like your sister didn’t try something like this. He only came forward so the media would focus on him and not me.” She spoke her words quickly, trying to get the information out so he could understand that she couldn’t help him.

“Is that so?” the Emperor said in a nasally almost feminine voice. If Bobbie wasn’t scared out of her mind, she might have viewed this guy as comical. No wonder people thought him to be weak.

“That is so,” she said with an exaggerated nod.

“I think you make things up so I will leave you alone.” He sighed and inspected his nails.

“It’s the truth. The Healer knew about it, and she misled your sister for her own purposes. I don’t know what they were, but ask her.”

“My sister told me the Healer has found her Charge Mate but is married to an old House member. The Healer has been trying to get her life-mate killed off so she can take her Charge Mate to her bed with no complications. What could she gain by lying about you? My sister implemented the blackmail when she found out the Healer’s plans and knew she was close to the Prince.”

“That’s horrible, on both ends.” Bobbie gaped at the Emperor who discussed killing and blackmail without even a change in tone.

“It’s life in the court. You can’t trust anyone, but for some reason, Bobbie from Earth, I believe you. Most likely because I never thought an alien could bring about a split in the first place, so let us just say we did the deed and call it a day.”

“Hold up, what?” Bobbie couldn’t believe what he said. Was he really giving her a pass?

“What’s the point, right, did you not just say that? We’ll say the split did not take, even though we tried, a lie of course. I do not have to rut with you, you do not have to deal with me. My sister can go back to Thames and leave me in peace. The House will do what they may, or they can try at least.” He sighed and sat on a high-backed chair in the corner of the room. When he relaxed, Bobbie saw the lines on his face that weren’t a usual sight on a man of this planet. He was tired. It was apparent in the way he held himself and the weary pull of his shoulders. This man knew there was a sword hanging over his head.

“Right. What’s the point?” Bobbie took a seat on the cushions she had been using as a barrier.

“Honestly, this is quite a relief. I have never been one for all of this.” He waved his hand in her general direction. “Most people think I’m about the men, but not even them, not women, not men, not even myself,” he yawned loudly. “The only person I’ve bedded is my sister, and that’s only because she incessantly bothered me about it until I finally did it to shut her up. It was rather boorish and messy.”

“Now that is fucked up,” Bobbie said, her eyes as wide as saucers.

“What offends you?” His eyes were sharp again. They looked her over with new curiosity.

“You don’t think having sex with your sister is messed up?”

“It’s not exactly discussed at social gatherings, but it does happen among the royals. Continue the line, for better or worse, my father always said. She did not get pregnant, thank the Creators, then she would have been quite intolerable.” He wiped at an imaginary piece of lint on his clothes.

“Yeah, it would have come out barking like a dog with the IQ of a potato,” Bobbie laughed at her own joke.

“Again, with all the strange Earth words. What is this dargh, and a pohtater?” His words were heavy and accented.

“A dog is a four-legged domesticated animal that likes to pee on random objects and can lick its own crotch, and a potato is a starch that grows in the ground and tastes like childhood dreams when coated in animal fat, fermented milk, and fried meat.”

“I do not think I like the things of your world. Do you really coat things in animal fat?”

“Heavenly,” she sighed, missing butter. “How long do we have to pretend we are having sex? Should I make some noises to solidify your rapist mojo or something?”

“Maybe you should scream or something. Might make my guards respect me more, at least.”

Bobbie screamed and screamed. She called him every name in the book she could think of. She screamed like there was a red-hot poker up her ass. She cursed his sister, she threatened his life, she cursed the entire realm. The Emperor stared at her with wide eyes the entire time.

She screamed until someone crashed through the door, nearly breaking it off before it could slide into the wall.

49

General kiss-ass and the two dumbasses

“Your Grace.” A man in the most pompous military outfit Bobbie had laid eyes upon skidded to a halt in the middle of the room. He was flanked by the two guards she had seen earlier.

“We tried to knock, but we couldn’t be heard over all the—” He looked to Bobbie and then the Emperor. He raised his eyebrows at their position in the room and their state of dress.

“She was quite the demon, I could not get close to her.” The Emperor yawned from his comfortable chair in the corner.

“What were you two doing?” Tormi stormed in the opened door and accessed the situation. “Were you pretending to take her? Is that what you were doing?”

“Nope,” Bobbie said.

“Yes,” the Emperor yawned again.

“I cannot believe this!” Tormi threw up her hands in exasperation.

“What is it, General Tah?” The Emperor dismissed his sister and took in the military man.

“There are two Virdan fleets on the Balavantian border. They are demanding the return of the Prince’s Charge Mate, and they have declared war, your excellency.” The man bowed so low Bobbie could see the crown of his head. His hair was thinning. She hadn’t seen that a lot on this planet. Lividiania must not have as good of plastic surgeons as Thames did.

“War? How did they even find out we had her?” Tormi sputtered, her face flushed with anxiety and consequences.

“Do we know how they found out?” the Emperor asked the general, who looked as perplexed as the two guards next to him.

“How about this bit of genius deduction,” Bobbie interrupted their confusion. “Tormi here didn’t wait to confirm that Roc left orbit. She high-tailed it to Lividiania without even hiding her flight path. You think that might be it?” Bobbie was still tied to a bed, but she felt more in charge than the rest of these goons. When no one answered her, she kept prodding.

“Hit home, Consort—err, I mean ex-Consort, since the Emperor knows what you’ve done.”

“Her words are odd. Why would one want to hit their home, but I believe she speaks the truth, is that what happened sister?”

“Nonsense, I don’t know how they found out,” Tormi sputtered, staring at Bobbie with as much hatred as she could muster. Bobbie took a cue from the Emperor, looking down and studying her nails, which were in need of a manicure. Did they have those on this planet? She could only hope. She loved the act of having someone do her nails. She didn’t want to stick them in some hole and have them come out fixed. A little attention and pampering worked wonders for a girl’s psyche.

“You tragic oversized tramp.” Tormi stormed over to Bobbie, ripped at her hand restraints and pulled her to her feet.

“General, Hail the Virdan’s fleet now! We’ll let them know if they don’t leave our borders, we will kill the Prince’s precious Charge Mate.”

“Do you think that’s a logical plan, sister?”

“It’s the only plan. Get your laser at the ready,” she ordered her brother. “General, get the Virdan’s on the comm screen now.” The General looked torn, but when the Emperor nodded consent, he did as he was told.

The Emperor slowly got to his feet and glided past Bobbie. He picked up something from a shelf near his bed and clicked it. A laser akin to a mini lightsaber jumped into existence. Bobbie’s eyes were drawn to the bright instrument, and when the Emperor saw it held her attention, he flicked it in a graceful arc, making the light fan out.

“What are you going to do with that?” Bobbie asked, her voice quaked only slightly.

“If the Virdan’s don’t back down, he’s going to stick it into your forehead and we’ll get to understand what charred Bobbie smells like,” Tormi said with a laugh.

“Do not be crass, sister.”

“Not good, charred Bobbie smells awful, I wouldn’t do that,” Bobbie said, her nervous joke habit kicking in again.

The General cleared his throat and pressed his hand on the wall, activating the communications screen and drawing all of their attention away from the Emperor’s laser.

“Making the connection now,” the General said.

The Emperor walked over to Bobbie, grabbed her by the neck and pushed her in front of him in a startling act of violence. He controlled her with only one hand. He was much stronger than he looked. She could feel the heat of the laser as it neared the skin of her neck. She tried not to breathe.

Roc’s handsome face appeared on the wall in all its glory and Bobbie cried out, stepping forward as if he was in the room with her. The Emperor didn’t let her move an inch, though, and her cry turned into a gasp. Roc’s eyes found hers, but showed no emotion. She saw the tick of the muscle near his mouth as the only reaction to seeing her.

“Good evening, Prince Rochford,” Storma said with surprising civility.

“Emperor,” Roc said through gritted teeth. “I see you have my Charge Mate in your possession. She did not willingly cross into Lividiania, so I’m assuming you are holding her against her will. I ask that you deliver her to the border where our ships lay in wait immediately, or we will retaliate.”

“You assume much, Prince,” the Emperor said.

“Do you deny you hold my Charge Mate against her will?”

“I neither deny or acknowledge. She is here and we seem to be at a loss as to what we can do to rectify this situation.”

“You can return her and that will rectify this situation,” Roc growled.

“And risk having nothing to hold over your heads? I think not, Prince. This is my directive. You shall pack up your little ships, fly back to Thames, and I will think about returning your Charge Mate with all of her pieces intact.” Bobbie could almost hear the smug smile in the Emperor’s voice and knew it would grate at Roc’s irritation. He waved the little laser in the air for effect and Bobbie tried to convey with her eyes that these people were batshit crazy and Roc had to do something now.

Roc smiled back, and Bobbie knew in that instance she was going to be safe. She felt the tension drain from her body when she saw that look in his eye. He had this. He had this all figured out. He would get her out of this situation, she knew it. Never before had she been so secure in her faith in another person. In four people, to be exact, because she knew even though the Emperor spoke to Roc, all four of her guys were up to bat.

“Have you checked your communiqués lately, Emperor?” Roc asked. “Maybe get your General, or that treasonous bitch of a sister to check them for you.”

The Emperor sent a glare at the General and he pulled up something on his cuff. Bobbie watched the information from what was in those messages sink in. The General went pale as a ghost. Tormi, who read over his shoulder didn’t go pale, but her cheeks flamed red. It wasn’t a good color on her.

“What does it say?” the Emperor demanded.

“Thames Virdan, Polari, and Balavanta have all declared war on the realm of Lividiania. Namei remains neutral. A death order has been issued for the Princess of Lividiania, Tormi Alavani Lividi Boucvett, and her Consort status with the Emperor of Thames Virdan has been nullified, the reason stated is treason. The messages states that if the Charge Mate of the Virdan Prince is returned within six spaces of the receipt of these messages, the declarations of war will be lifted.”

“What about the death order?” Tormi shrieked.

“There is no mention of that, my lady.”

“I’ll never be able to leave Lividiania!”

“Serves you right.” The words popped out of Bobbie’s mouth and she kind of wished she would have stayed quiet. Logic said you shouldn’t provoke the person that wanted to kill you.

“Kill her, Storma! The Virdan bastard doesn’t deserve a Charge Mate!”

“If you touch one hair on her head, Emperor, I will cross these borders with the one thousand ships under my command and annihilate the Capital City and everyone in it.” Roc’s voice was ice. His threat believable.

“Oh, they are all bluster, they will not kill innocents.” Tormi stomped to her brother’s side. “If you are too much of a weakling, let me do it.”

The Emperor let go of Bobbie’s neck and she fell forward, bracing herself on the chair in front of her. She glanced up in time to see the Emperor take one step toward his sister with the laser raised. She thought he might take her out.

“Know your place, sister. Sit down and be quiet. Let the adults handle this.” There was nothing feminine about the man’s voice now, and Bobbie watched in awe as Tormi cowered and backed away as if she feared he would use the laser on her.

“Take the Earthling to the border and deliver her to her mate,” the Emperor said to the General, then he looked to the screen where Roc’s face was as stoic as ever. “She will be there in under three spaces. I apologize for what trouble my sister has caused you and your father. I will formally issue a blackout of her name. Her actions were hers alone and not with the jurisdiction of Lividiania.”

“I thank you for your actions, Emperor. Once Bobbie is in our custody, the declarations will be rescinded.”

The screens cut out, and Bobbie stood facing General kiss-ass and his two dumbass guards.

“Lady Bobbie, if you would follow me, we will secure your transport to the border.” The General made a gesture for her to follow him.

“A pleasure.” Bobbie did a little mock salute and followed the general out of the room. She tried not to listen to the screams that followed her, but it was hard to filter out such craziness.

50

Reunited and it feels so alien…

The ride to the border was anti-climactic. The General was conciliatory, if not outright cowed for the entire trip. He tried to make conversation, but it failed miserably with each attempt. Bobbie sat in one of the chairs at the back of the transport and failed to not bite her nails in anticipation of her return.

Would they be mad at her? She had left them, had intended to go back to Earth and leave them forever. What if they had enough of her shit and sent her packing?

When they made it to the border and a transport tube was extended to the monstrous Virdan ships that sat like hulking giants over the small hills that marked the border of Lividiania and Balavanta, Bobbie jumped to her feet and began to pace.

“Making the connection, ten, nine,” one of the operators began to countdown and Bobbie nearly screamed in frustration. She couldn’t understand what was taking so long.

Finally, he announced the connection and the door slid open at her side. She began to run. She ran like her ass was on fire, not caring that the tube was semi-translucent and she could see through to the hills below. The quicker she could get away from the Lividianians and into the arms of her men, the better.

They stood like a wall of male perfection on the other side of the door that led into the Virdan ship. They were dressed in uniforms that were perfectly tailored to their beautiful bodies. Shiny medals stood out on their chests, and intimidating boots covered their feet. If Bobbie wasn’t hot for them before, this sealed the deal.

She crossed the threshold in a giant leap and flung herself into their arms. Four sets of arms came around her, four lips kissed her, four pairs of hands stroked her hair, touched her arm, touched her back, and gripped her shoulders. They murmured unintelligible words of elation and love as she let the charge that erupted around her soak into her every pore. This was where she was supposed to be. This was right.

They drew her back from the door, her feet barely touching the floor, their hands holding her, stroking her. They walked her to the bridge, but only to give the orders that they were to return home.

“We’ll dock this ship at the palace. The rest will return to their duty stations,” Finn gave the order.

“Then we can take our large star class to Earth,” Tam added.

“Take the large star class to Earth?” Bobbie repeated his words as a question.

“That’s where you want to go, right?” Roc confirmed, swirling his finger around a lock of her hair.

“I don’t want to return to Earth.” Bobbie took the time and looked each one of her men in the eye, hoping she conveyed the sincerity of her statement. She wanted them to know that she was here to stay. And the reason she was willing to stay was them.

“Why not, I thought that’s what you wanted? To go home?” Von asked.

“I did, but then I thought about how tiny my apartment was, and how you guys would take up too much room there, and then Roc might have to learn how to golf.”

“What is golf?” Roc asked.

“A game where you hit a tiny ball with a long stick into a small hole,” Bobbie answered.

“How tiny?” Finn asked. Bobbie held up her hand and made an O shape the size of a golf ball.

“Doesn’t seem like a fun game,” Tam said.

“It has its moments,” Bobbie shrugged.

“So, tiny apartment and golf—that is the reason you don’t want to return to Earth?” Tam asked.

“I think living in a palace is kind of growing on me.”

“Is that it?” Von prodded her for more.

“The servants are kind of nice as well.”

“Anything else?” Finn asked smiling.

“And the big beds.”

“They are rather large,” Roc agreed.

“Big enough to fit five people.” Bobbie looked up embarrassed.

“So, that is what you’ve decided? You would like all of us?” Von asked with a bit of hope in his voice.

“I want it all, all of you, your beautiful planet, and we’ll have to discuss the other things, like children and this Empress stuff, but we’ll save that for later.” Bobbie’s heart almost broke at the elation on all of their faces. “Just no more kidnapping, okay? I think twice is my limit.”

“As long as you promise not to run away again, we won’t chase you,” Roc said, pulling her into his arms.

“The only direction I’m running is toward you,” she sighed and laid her head on one of their chests as they put their arms around her, holding her tight.

“We love you, pr’ialla,” they whispered, kissing her hair, her exposed shoulders, her neck.

“I love you, too,” she whispered back. “Now, can we go find one of those big beds?”

Epilogue

We Need a Bigger Bed

“The bed does not look big enough.” Roc looked down at the California King bed covered in pineapples and palm trees.

“That’s why we got a suite,” Bobbie said coming into the room holding a bottle of chilled champagne she had ordered from the concierge. She popped the top with an expert’s hand and began to pour five glasses of the really expensive shit. It was good to be the Charge Mate of the Prince of an alien planet.

“Some of us will have to sleep on other beds?” Von asked, a frown on his perfect face.

“We’ll figure it out. I don’t plan on doing a lot of sleeping in the beds, if you get my drift,” Bobbie winked. “This is our honeymoon, and you’re supposed to fuck like bunnies on your honeymoon, it’s an Earth tradition.”

“We traveled all the way to this tiny island in the middle of Earth’s largest ocean so we could fuck like a bunny. We could have done that back at the palace,” Tam said sulkily.

“But this view!” Bobbie threw open the doors onto the veranda and welcomed in the sight of the Pacific Ocean. It was absolutely stunning. “It was my dream to go to Hawaii for my honeymoon, so enjoy it, boys.”

They all smiled the placating smile they liked to give her when they were doing something to make her happy. When she saw that smile, she couldn’t help but think how lucky she was. She had insisted on coming back to Earth one last time, not to stay, but to visit. She would say goodbye to Viv and Chuck after their week-long honeymoon in paradise, collect a few mementos that hopefully weren’t pitched when she was reported missing, and then go back to Polaridis where she would become the Empress. It took a week of harassment, but she had finally given in and agreed to take the title. The current Emperor was stepping down upon their return. He had decided to retire and enjoy his last years in peace.

“The view is nice, but there are better views on Polaridis,” Von said, ever the pragmatic.

“How about this view?” Bobbie had slipped away after they checked in to do a bit of lingerie shopping. She knew they had nothing like this on their homeworld; it was almost indecent. She let her wrap dress fall away, revealing the lacy matching set that really didn’t cover anything of importance. It was only there to look fancy and make her look even more fuckable.

“Oh, the Creators,” Roc breathed as he looked Bobbie up and down with hungry eyes.

“Is this when we fuck like a bunny?” Finn asked.

“This is when we fuck like bunnies,” Bobbie laughed. They didn’t need any encouragement. Four mouths were on her at once. Roc claimed her lips, Finn kissed her neck, his body pressed against hers from behind. Von suckled on her breast through the thin material of her bra and Tam fell to his knees in front of her and began to kiss across her belly, holding her in place by her hips.

She was pulled back onto soft sheets as hands tugged on her nipples, slid down her hips and guided her legs open. Tam’s naughty fingers slipped her lace aside and his mouth found her pussy. She bucked against him as she was instantly taken over by the intensity of their shared charge. He had learned each fold and crease of her pussy and he used that knowledge to exploit every ounce of pleasure out of her. Von’s own mouth was still busy with her breasts, going from one to the other, and getting them to stand erect and hard against the thin fabric. She slipped her hand down his waist and found his cock, freeing it from his pants, pumping it in her hand with an expert’s touch.

“Where are you two?” She craned her head, panting as Tam’s naughty tongue had her shivering in need of more attention.

“Here,” Roc and Finn said as one. They had undressed and were hard and erect as they walked over to the bed before crawling over the soft mattress and kneeling on either side of her. When she licked her lips in anticipation, they moved closer to her, over her face, pressing their cocks to her mouth as one. She licked out, sucking on each one’s head in turn, taking her time with each of them. She licked up and down the length of their cocks, while Tam sucked eagerly on her clit, and she pumped Von with sure strokes as he bit down on her nipple, making her yelp even though she was trying to swallow Roc as deep as she could take him. This was how it was supposed to be. This was right. When the room lit up with the electrical storm that erupted from their skin, Bobbie orgasmed and took all of her men with her. Even Tam came against the sheets, as Roc and Finn emptied into her mouth, and Von emptied in her hand. Pure bliss.

It only took a moment of rest, a slight wipe of a towel and all of them were undressed and standing over her erect. She lay on the bed, luxuriating at the sight of her men. Purring slightly as they gripped their perfectly formed cocks, their chiseled bodies on display for her, alike but different. She sighed as Roc was the first to join her. He laid down on the bed and pulled her on top of him, his cock sliding through her soaked folds to sit in anticipation at her entrance.

“Roc, inside me, now,” she moaned and he did as was told and brought her down onto his cock, as deep as he could go.

It was Tam’s turn to enter her mouth, and he hissed and cried out as she suckled him as deep as she could take him. When she felt the press of Von’s cock at the tight hole of her ass, she begged for him to complete her. He spread warm liquid across her tight hole, and then pushed quickly inside of her so she could accommodate him.

She cried their names around the length of Tam’s cock as she bucked and pushed, almost ready to come again because Von was so deep inside of her and Roc was filling her pussy perfectly. She was only missing one piece, and she found him with her hand. They took turns. He would have her ass next, but now she did her best to make him come with only her palm. She stroked Finn until she heard that wonderful happy boy noise coming from his lips, and then she closed her eyes and let go.

The charge took over, erupting off their skin and into each other, connecting them all as one. They cried out together, five but one, like it was supposed to be. Bobbie and her boys truly knew peace.

The End

Glossary of Terms:

Polaridis - Home planet of the Polaridi

Thames Virdan - Most influential realm of Polaridis, ruled by High Emperor Rochfordi, he is referred to as High Emperor Rochforral of Thames. His son is the Prince, Rochford of Thames, known as Roc, his full name is Rochford Tameratti Vondan Finnrod.

Polari - Second most influential realm of Polaridis. Polari is ruled by a single Emperor Kravitz Nash Vin the Third, the heir is Kravitz Nash Vin the Fourth. Polari is known for their adherence to the old ways of food production and consume both vegetables, fruits, grains, and meat. This is considered taboo in some realms.

Poallun - state in Polari

Opil - city in Polari

Balavanta - The third most influential realm on Polaridis. Once Thames Virdan and Balavanta were great enemies but an alliance has been formed for the last two centuries.

Lividiania - A small realm known for their tumultuous leadership and are often cited by the World House for violations against it’s own people. It is known for its mineral deposits and outlandish local customs.

Namei - The island nation of Polaridis. The people of Namei pledge to remain neutral to all world disputes and maintain a laid back lifestyle. They are the only realm without an army and have ongoing issues with crimes against women because of their lax border policy. Women are often smuggled out of Namei illegally.

Characters:

Roberta “Bobbie" Flemming

Viv - human, one of Bobbie’s only friends

Chuck - human who organized the auction

Nia - (Knee-ah) In charge of household

Lagara - (La-gare-a)Head Healer

Jives - (Ja-ive) Main butler to the Prince of Thames Virdan

Seer Dahli - (Dolly) the seer that prophesied Bobbie’s appearance and later exiled.

Tormi - (Tour-me) Emperor’s Consort of Thames Virdan

Storma - (Store-ma) The Emperor of Lividiania

Nasha - (Nash-ah) Roc’s only friend, 2nd in line to the throne of Polari

Meavi - Shortened to Mea (Mia) youngest daughter to the emperor of Polari

Ulidinia, Grendu - Ladies in Waiting types. Life-mates to members of the Lower House Representatives

Mivarda - Life-mate of House Representative Gravat

Smarn - servant/butler at the palace in Thames

Widow Jestiana - Roc’s ex-girlfriend

Kravitz - Heir to the Polari realm

Traven - Heir to the Namei realm

Polaridi words:

pr’ialla - loosely translated to my lovely stolen goods
pr’iveni - my love, my heart

Male terms have a, female terms generally end in i or o
nubiy - drug/plant of choice for seers, it helps them relax, like pot
bovarion - Drama Queen
dinkin - dumb
beno - highly addictive drink made from a cactus-type plant that gives a male an erection

Jalinda - a “basic” party

Sprilut & jalloning - winter sports

Thank you for taking the time to read CHARGED by Gillian Zane.

All reviews are appreciated and will be rewarded with good Karma. Help an author out, she’ll be eternally grateful.

This is the first book in the The Otherworlds Reverse Harem Series sign up for Gillian’s newsletter
to find out more about book 2, like who the main characters will be (hint you met at least one of them in Charged), release dates, and sneak peeks. And as always; stay awesome!

About the Author

Gillian Zane is a bestselling author, known for her NOLA Zombie series. Zane is the pen name of a prominent blogger in the publishing industry, which will remain a mystery unless you Google it. Since she can remember her goal has been to become Master of the Universe and has decided to focus first on the literary world. Things are progressing nicely.

Zane has been a freelance writer for the last ten years and has published a few non-fiction works, none of which were very exciting. Zombies, ghosts, and other paranormal creatures are much more exciting. When she isn’t stockpiling MREs (Meal’s Ready to Eat) or researching how to build a cistern on a budget which will become quite handy when the zombie apocalypse hits, she’s taking care of her little family and exploring the city that she loves, New Orleans. You can find Gillian Zane on twitter @GillianZane.

Sign up for Gillian’s newsletter via her website for insider information and first look at new releases.

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Stalk Gillian Online:

www.GillianZane.com
gillian@gillianzane.com

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Books by Gillian Zane

The Karma Inc. Series

Cheat (Karma Inc. Book 1)

Shark (Karma Inc. Book 2)

Liar (Karma Inc. Book 3)

Creep (Karma Inc. Book 4)

Crook (Karma Inc. Book 5)

The NOLA Zombie Series:

SHTF (NOLA Zombie Prequel)

RUN (NOLA Zombie Book 1)

FIGHT (NOLA Zombie Book 2)

LIVE (NOLA Zombie Book 3)

JUSTICE (NOLA Zombie Book 4)

HONOR (NOLA Zombie Book 5)

Stand Alones:

The Haunted Sultan

Contemporary Erotic Shorts:

Pink Bikini Bliss