13. CHAPTER 13

This fight didn't go as planned for the little green bastards who came after me. Caspian hid under a table. Good, it was better for him to be out of my way. I shielded my face with the helm and made short work of them, loving the speed and flexibility my armor allowed me to have. The shop had burnt blaster holes, scattered jewels, and shattered glass.

I had put the last down, placed my boot on his thick neck, and pressed until the bones cracked and my foot dipped into the flesh.

"It's safe," I said, releasing my helm and heading to the place I saw him run off to. The shop owner gasped and stood up, wiping the debris and shattered glass from his nice suit.

I lifted the table to find it empty. "Caspian!" I called to him.

Either he took it upon himself to make his escape, or they took him; neither would surprise me much. No matter what, running through the streets wouldn't solve anything. It wasn't as if I couldn't track his location. The chip in his head assured me of his whereabouts at all times.

I checked my device but wasn't getting much feedback. Now I worried about him. Either they had a jammer on my location, or they tampered with my equipment. Fuck!

Now, I had to hasten.

They left me with no other choice but to attend this meeting at the Omega Club and concede defeat in this area. I doubt they had taken him to the club itself, as this alien struck me as being far more intelligent than a brute. But perhaps I could at least siphon information from there, and it was the only lead I had. If I had been lucky, he would have just run off on his own, and it would have been easy to track down a belligerent human who did not know where to go.

The Omega Club was a hotbed of damn near every vice one could find at this station. I believe the next station was at least one thousand miles away, so each station competed to be the premier place. Wayfarers from all over the galaxy could come and find everything they could ever want in one place.

Those bastard Yogs awaited me at the door. It was almost as if they couldn't wait to get their asses kicked.

"Back off!" The same Valisian woman, what was her name again? Yes, Elvira interfered, and I tossed one of the stocky green fucks in her direction, which she caught effortlessly and flung him to the side. "I didn't think you would come."

"I couldn't help it; he made his proposal too irresistible to refuse." If she didn't detect the heavy dose of sarcasm, too bad for her. She had to have known what happened.

"We will allow him safe passage!" She hollered at the Yogs who looked like they were prepared to join the others. "Follow me." She bowed and led the way through the dimly lit club until we reached a small, closed room. I took a seat at the corner bench. "He'll be with you shortly, and I—"

"Don't bother apologizing. I've had enough of phony niceties."

She stood away from me, which was the better option for her as far as it concerned me. I was becoming even more agitated and in no mood for their games anymore. I couldn't believe I was missing my human already, and I shifted in my seat, wanting to get up and pace or tear someone's face off, but that would only show how much I cared rather than achieve anything in getting him back.

A tall alien entered. I forgot what the hell he was, but his skin was paler than even my own. He sported fearsome canine teeth and horns, which seemed to jut a little from his head and form a curve until they stopped just at his jawline.

"His name is Jarik." Elvira introduced him, but I didn't care.

"Where is Feion?" I said, hoping this fool in front of me was him. I watched him place a monitor on the table, and I rolled my eyes. Not this elusive shit again.

With one flip of the switch, the screen turned on; my eyes made out what looked like an office, except bare minimal light bathed the interior, keeping it along with the massive-looking figure who sat behind the desk in shadow. I waited for a light to come on like it was a show, and when I realized that wasn't the case, I couldn't help but laugh at the strange spectacle of it all. I had a vague inkling of what this creature was by his silhouette but I wasn't sure, either way, he was wasting my precious time and a part of me wondered if this was intended. If so, bravo.

"Of course, I should have known you wouldn't meet me in person." I sat back in my seat and stretched my arm over the back of the booth.

He chuckled amusedly. "I didn't climb to the top of this station if I was stupid."

So, he considered an in-person meeting a stupid move; he wasn't wrong about that. My impatience was known, and he had drained almost every ounce of what I had right now. "Or it's easier to spy on everyone when you're a shadow in the dark."

"That is correct, as well." He chuckled, though the sound was almost like a growl.

"Why send your men to attack me after I had already agreed to your meeting? Were you that desperate to take my human?" It"s better to get down to business.

"How do you know he didn't escape of his own volition? A young man like that being raped every night by you. Anyone would leave when they have the chance."

"I didn't rape him, it was mutual." I popped my knuckle through my armored glove to drive back the urge to punch that damn screen.

"I'm sure you gave him plenty of chances to say no."

"Where is he?"

"I don't know, but if he makes it here, we would protect him; his fellow humans are under my wings, and I'm sure they would make him feel comfortable." Under my wings was a very interesting phrase. I allowed him to continue. "Besides, I thought you Valisians appreciated a little show of force, especially from what you believe are the lesser races."

"If you're going to get pissy at me about your lot in life, save it." I rolled my eyes, not wanting to hear a whining tirade about how we Valisians ruined their life. If they had a problem with me, I'd rather they rally their people and fight me instead of barking in my ear like a rejected woman.

"No such thing. I was a slave among my people, and now I am liberated because of the Valisians. I am surviving, dare I say, thriving in this world when many of my so-called betters aren't. I've conquered this station, and now I have a Valisian prince at my beck and call." He said it like he was so proud of himself, and his identity was getting closer than ever to being revealed.

"Don't overdo it, worm," I replied with a warning.

"Let's not allow the bickering over some human male to ruin what could be a fruitful relationship. I have a proposal that will make you forget he exists. Also, I have a lovely replacement for you. Elvira, she's quite lovely, don't you think?"

I heard a slight gasp of protest escape her lips, but she knew how to remain silent. It seems this fool is trying everything in his power to get me to snap. He further insults me by offering a Valisian woman like a hunk of meat on a platter. Was this a display of his power, showing me he can reduce my people if he chooses? "She is a healthy, beautiful omega capable of birthing children." I looked at her only somewhat before keeping my eyes on the screen. Now I knew why she lived here. She wanted to escape the harems she would have been tossed into at birth once they knew her status. Perhaps her parents cared enough for her to defy the hegemony and keep her hidden, or maybe she escaped? "How rare is it? Huh? To come across a fruitful Valisian woman and birth through her pure-bred children?"

"I'm sure you didn't ask her what she wants."

"She will do whatever I ask; if I tell her to fuck you on that table in front of Jarik, she will."

"No thanks." I held my hand up, not wanting her to come near me. "Is that your proposal? To exchange my human for the possibility of pure-bred children?"

"No, just making way for amicable negotiations." He appeared to have eaten something, and the smacking and poor table manners, even clouded by the shadow, grated on my nerves. They always accused us Valisians of being too clean. But I think it's because they were all too damn filthy! "Prince, you should know of all people that you are fighting the tides of fate. If you don't latch onto something future-proof, you will lose."

"I'm my father's heir. I will never lose." Ah, the negotiations had begun.

"You are one of many, the breeding rights of a king. Your brothers and sisters are off proving themselves in the new world while you twiddle your thumbs and fuck some human—"

"You will all have a new threat soon, and like always, you will beg for me to save you."

The creature laughed unconvincingly. "Don't be so sure. Your brother Xil has a human male of his own. I have word of how he bred him and worked out a deal to secure more from that human colony on Cerulia. If these humans will trade their own men, they may not be the warmongers you are looking for." He gobbled down a large chunk of something and smacked his lips. "Do you wish to be locked in a pointless contest to showcase the worthiness of some omega?"

Now, he was on to something worth listening to. "What are you thinking?"

"The colony ship of our new visitors is advanced for a species that has just discovered FTL travel. Do you know why that is?"

"Spare me the suspense." I knew nothing about their ship, but I wasn"t going to tell him.

"Because it was built not by humans but by the AI the humans' control."