22. CHAPTER 22

After several minutes of organizing our ship"s docking, Lorvian and I walked the long stretch of tube until we entered the ship. The ship was dim, all but the emergency lights, which flashed and flickered. The ship that once carried life within its walls was now void and hollow. It was like I had been gone for decades.

Lorvian stopped and placed his hand on my shoulder, and we waited for the other Valisian male and what looked like a human male to arrive. The Valisian looked nothing like Lorvian except for the height and ears. His face was more angular and thicker, and his long, straight, brownish-red hair flowed well past his shoulders. It made me wonder if these aliens weren"t just some sort of vampire elf. He looked at me with sharp gray eyes; unlike Lorvian, I could meet his gaze. How hot were these aliens?! It was then I noticed the man by his side. Short ginger hair, fierce light green eyes, and his most defining feature was a small strawberry birthmark on his cheek, I knew him! He was the guy who stole my wallet!

"Lorvian," the other greeted aloof in his approach, and I noticed that his voice carried a slight accent to it that was not like Lorvian"s at all.

"Xil," Lorvian replied, just as coldly. There was a cool sense of formality here, not what I would expect from siblings.

"This is my human, Kevin."

"Caspian," Lorvian replied, gesturing toward me.

"What happened, got caught stealing over running for your life, Kevin?" I said, staring daggers at that bastard, and yeah, I stressed his name, if it was his real name.

"I think we have other problems," he said, shifting uncomfortably.

"So, it was a male, not a female, who has conceived. This is blessed news," Lorvian said, ignoring our little exchange. "If he carries to term, then our race could be saved, and the King will reward you greatly."

"Yes," the other replied with his chin held high as he seemed to look down on us both. I hated him already. "I will be the King who saved our people, especially if their women can conceive without the need for altering like the males. But if they all can transform into omegas with the gene therapy, these new aliens will indeed have their uses." He stared at me.

"How fortunate for you. Did you raid this ship with Regis? Was that your first encounter with them?"

"I don"t know what you"re talking about," he replied, and neither did I.

"You were always the smart one. Your mind is like a maze, but in your brilliance, you tend to underestimate others. How did you set up a trade with these humans so quickly?" Lorvian continued. "Seems to me like this would take a long time to do, and all without the hegemony knowing?"

The other laughed. "It is as I said, I have no idea what you are talking about. Regis sent me this human as a gift. I had no idea what it was until I read his report." He scoffed. "However, he mentioned nothing about raiding them."

"It was the Travol rebel Daruuk who attacked these human colonists. While investigating this attack I found my way to a slave camp in Qzai where Daruuk had fled to. I didn"t find him there but I found data that Regis was the true owner of the camp."

"Regis would be a treasonous fool to throw his lot in with him."

"I suggest summoning him here instead of me."

"I was certain it was you who had a hand in this…" The other appeared to think.

"And you may want to investigate that Omega of yours, brother. If he is a gift from Regis then who knows what the little bugger is capable of."

Kevin fiddled with his fingers, and I felt bad for him. I wanted revenge for him stealing my father"s wallet, the only memento I had left of him, and this inadvertently fell into my lap. I should"ve done the happy dance, but my stomach was in knots.

"And the one standing next to you?" He sneered. "Was that creature also a gift from our brother?"

"I"m not a creature," I replied on instinct, and he seemed almost shocked and appalled that I would even address him.

"Don"t tell me you put a chip in him, and it took?"

"Our chip to be precise," Lorvian smirked proudly. "I guess your human doesn"t have one, did it not take, or you didn"t bother?" The silence of the brother spoke volumes. "So, you just climbed on top of the poor lad and did your business, huh? And you call me a brute."

"You can understand me?" Kevin looked at Lorvian as if he was his savior. Now, I wanted to find a way to help him out of this mess. Well, I wanted to until he pointed an accusatory finger in my direction. "I know this guy, and he"s a born liar! He"s a spy for our planet!"

"You fucking lying bastard!" I lunged for him, and before I knew it, Lorvian was pushing his brother back. I didn"t know how close I came to death until I saw a piece of my tunic caught in the tips of his long, sharp nails.

"I will have this whore"s head!"

Lorvian laughed and gave his brother one more shove. "Your omega accused mine of a heinous crime, which caused him to lash out the way he did. See the advantages of getting them chipped."

"What of it?" Xil looked to Kevin, then to me, and settled down.

I hid behind Lorvian for protection; I didn"t know what Kevin"s game was, but all kinds of fuck him.

"My human is a little Wolcan, which is why I trust him. He will do and say whatever he has to save his own ass."

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence."

"So, you don"t even trust him," the other Valisian laughed.

"Why would he tell me something that disadvantages him? Surely, this human man"s pregnancy boosts his own value and ensures his own safety as well, does it not? Perhaps you ought to have him properly inspected in case Regis is playing you for a fool."

Xil looked at Kevin, and for a moment, I thought he would rip him apart like he tried to do me. "No omega makes a fool of me," he said through clenched teeth, and I saw his large curved fangs for the first time. He then looked to Lorvian. "If this human is working for Regis in some plot against me, I will have my answer, but first I will have him tested for a pregnancy. If he is not pregnant, then I will relinquish my protections from him and have him tortured until he tells me everything I need to know about what our brother is plotting." He then looked at me. "Human, translate."

The air grew as cold as deep winter. I didn"t want to say the words, but I also wanted this over with, and I was pissed off on top of being afraid. If Lorvian thinks I"m a spy, then what the hell will happen to me once we get back to the ship? Kevin, that fucker fucked me! I told him exactly what he said and enjoyed the look of terror that swept across his face.