Her Alien Rebel by Presley Hall
Ren
As I follow Prince Droth,my thoughts are spinning. I’m not sure what I anticipated my arrival on the prison planet would be like, exactly, but it’s already been more than strange.
Droth is speaking, filling me in on what they’ve been doing over the past months—telling me about finding the materials for the communicator and assembling it, about their hopes that it might be the key to an escape, and about their decision to leave the small village they built to avoid being attacked by other prisoners over that same communicator.
I listen as well as I can while taking in the surroundings of the camp… and who is inhabiting it. There are several more of the Terran women milling about, besides the one that I accosted in the woods and the ones who arrived in the clearing with Droth and the other warriors. Not so many as to outnumber the Voxerans, but still…
I notice one in particular, a dark-haired woman with lush curves who steps into the arms of one of the Voxeran warriors, a man I remember knowing as Kaide. He bends his head to kiss her, the white swirls on his skin glowing softly in the sunlight, a sure sign that his emotions are high.
Kaide is bonded to the Terran woman, there’s no doubt about it. But how can that be?
How is it that my fellow warriors have found mates here on this prison planet? Among a species different from ours? It’s not something I’ve ever heard of before, and my immediate reaction is suspicion—that there’s something off about it. Wrong, even.
But a small part of me resists that idea, remembering how the golden-haired woman felt in my arms, how soft she was against the hard strength of my body, even as she fought me. Having her in my arms felt good, despite the reason that she was there at all.
Just as quickly as the thought comes, though, I shake it away. Whatever is going on with the other males, I’m not here for that. Mated or unmated, it doesn’t matter to me, except in terms of what Droth has planned for these women, if they’re coming with us. From the way he spoke over the communicator, telling me to bring a large ship, it seems that must be what he has planned—not least because he’s mated with one of them himself.
I refocus on what matters, which is the plan that Droth intends to share with me, and following that plan to get my prince and my fellow warriors back home. Back to Vox, where we can finish what we started.
“Tell me about our home planet,” Droth says after he shows me a place where I can settle in for the night once we’re finished. “What news do you have of the rebellion? Of Drokar?”
“It’s not good,” I tell him honestly. “The rebellion has lost a great deal of the momentum that once sustained it. Drokar has done everything within his power to break the spirits of those who rebelled and keep them from rising up again. It will take a great deal to convince them that we have a shot at ever dethroning Drokar.”
I can see anger in Droth’s face at that—a fury that I recognize, because I feel it too. It’s been simmering for a long time, since the failed attack that led to my scarred features and Droth’s banishment with the other warriors.
It’s time to end this.
The thought is sharp and immediate, resonating through me as I meet my prince’s gaze head-on for the first time in five years and feel the thrill of impending battle rush through my veins.
“And my brother?” Droth speaks quietly, but I can still hear the anger burning in his voice. “What of him?”
I hesitate for a fraction of a heartbeat. Droth’s brother Kardax is the reason our first attempt to take down Drokar failed. Kardax betrayed us, revealing our plans so that Drokar could prepare for our attack. I’ve never understood why he did it, and the way he turned on his own brother makes me hate him almost more than I hate Drokar.
“Kardax serves as an advisor and emissary for Drokar,” I say. “The false king has rewarded him well for what he did, allowing him to take on much of the responsibility of governing the kingdom. He’s kept Kardax close ever since your banishment from Vox.”
Droth’s jaw clenches at that, his eyes darkening. “We need to get off of Nuthora as soon as possible. We will take them both down if need be.”
“You said you have a plan, my prince?” I query.
Bringing the ship was the easy part of his rescue mission, relatively speaking. As Droth mentioned, the solar council doesn’t care so much about who lands here, as long as they don’t leave. Getting off the planet’s surface undetected will be the hard part, and it will take careful planning to ensure that we escape safely.
“I do. I think I know a way to get all of us away from here without alerting the council, now that we have a ship.”
I nod eagerly, waiting to hear the rest. Like any plan, there’s a risk of it not working, especially as hastily constructed as all of this is. But I won’t regret coming to their rescue, no matter what happens. I would rather end up stuck here on Nuthora than to have stayed back on Vox, watching the rebellion slowly wither as Drokar’s grip on his stolen power tightens. At least here, I’m with my brothers.
Not alone. Not left behind again.
No matter what happens, I’m once more with my prince and my fellow warriors. I will fight alongside them, as I’m meant to.
“There are surveillance towers where the systems that control the radar are run from. I know the location of the nearest tower, but we’ll need to disable its systems.”
Droth begins to lay out the plan for that in more detail, going over how we’ll reach the location and what means we might be able to use in order to destroy the tower or disarm its systems.
I listen carefully, intent on every word he says with the laser-sharp focus that has always served me well. It’s why I fought at Droth’s side for so long, respected and valued—because for me, the mission has always come first. I don’t allow myself to be distracted.
But as I nod at something my prince tells me, I catch a glimpse of the light-haired woman in my peripheral vision, returning to the camp after everyone else.
She must have a habit of dawdling, I think, but even as the unkind thought crosses my mind, it flits away just as quickly.
I feel as if I can’t tear my gaze from her. Her curves are as lush as those of the dark-haired woman I saw embrace Kaide earlier, if not more so, and it brings back the memory of how soft she felt in my arms. And she wasn’t yielding to me then, but fighting me. How much softer would she feel under my hands, wanting and pliable? Arching up as—
Akhi. Focus.
I force my attention away from her, turning it back to Droth. This isn’t like me. I’ve never been one to be distracted by women or any other form of pleasurable recreation, but maybe I’ve gone too long without such pleasures. The needs of my body are taking over, pulling me away from my duty.
These Terran women at the camp are an unexpected surprise.
I respect my prince’s choice of mate, of course. It’s his right to claim any female that he has formed a bond with. I would never slight his choice by arguing that it’s strange, or that maybe it shouldn’t have happened.
But I need to remain focused.
I can’t allow myself to be distracted by any of them.
