1. Ivy

Please don't claim me. Please don't claim me.

The Beast was known as the toughest fighter in the entire prison. He was relentless and never gave up, single-minded in his pursuit.

He was probably the same in bed, and that was what made the other Prizes desperate to be claimed.

But not me.

The fighters came in a multitude of different shapes and sizes. Some had eyes blacker than a shark's. Others had skin the color of projected magma. Others' bodies rippled with light as if they were carved from rainbows.

The Beast had none of these things. His skin was a dull grey like granite and bore the scars from a thousand battles over the course of his lifetime.

He was tall and muscular, with a pair of twisted devil horns on his head. One was chipped, the tip sliced off from some unknown fight. They protruded from the thick thatch of long hair that hung about his shoulders.

His movements were graceful and hypnotic. He took blows well and used them to counter his opponent. He was strong and fast, capable of taking down opponents twice his size.

His muscles rippled as he entered the room. His eyes were hooded and dark. He wore nothing but a pair of shorts that reached mid-thigh. He had no tattoos or adornments. He was a blank slate compared to the other fighters.

Some liked to keep a tally of their victories on their arms or across their chests. Others liked to have an image of an alien skull tattooed on their skin to mark each death they'd claimed.

The Beast had none of these. There probably wasn't enough space on his skin for his victories anyway.

Of all the fighters, he was the one I was least concerned would claim me.

"He never chooses anyone," Harper had said. "He never so much as glances at us. Thousands of victories and he never chooses a Prize. He just moseys on back to his cell and recovers for the next battle."

Still, that didn't prevent her or the other girls from trying. They wore their best jewelry and sexiest dresses. Maybe one day one would get lucky.

There was something special about the Beast, something that gave him an edge. Everyone said that. But no one could quite figure out what it was.

He was the reigning champ and had never been defeated. He marched down the tunnel toward the Prize Pool where victors chose their Prize.

The Prizes were women and I was one of them.

This wasn't my first rodeo. I'd been up for grabs for the past three days but not once had I been claimed.

I stood alongside the two dozen other Prizes. They were gorgeous creatures from all four corners of the galaxy.

I never stood a chance against them. That was a good thing. I didn't want to stand a chance.

The other girls smiled shyly with their manicured nails and perfect makeup, and sexy, provocative dresses. They were made of sheer fabric so everything was on show.

I was dressed the same. It wasn't like they gave us a lot of choice in this place.

The fighters never paid me much attention. Why would they when there were sexier girls more willing to perform their duty than I was?

When the fighters chose their "Prize"—and boy, did I hate that word!—the girls always seemed excited they'd been chosen, and the others were actually disappointed they hadn't been!

New meat like me was meant to be the most popular, I was told. There would be a feeding frenzy and I would walk bowlegged for weeks, maybe months.

But no one chose me.

The fighters sneered at my small breasts and curved frame. They rubbed their rough hands over my pussy and declared me defective when I didn't moan with delight as the others did.

I wasn't defective. I just didn't want to be their "Prize."

The other girls looked away when the Beast entered the room, assuming the subordinate pose the fighters preferred.

I took the opposite approach and looked the fighters in the eye. I was not subordinate and never would be.

It was bad enough I'd been abducted and forced into this existence. I wouldn't pretend to enjoy it.

Abducted. It sounded crazy.

There was supposed to have been a bright light in the sky and aliens probing at my ass with their long implements.

But that hadn't been how it happened.

I went to sleep one night in my room back in L.A. and the next thing I knew, I woke up in this place surrounded by goddamn aliens.

"You have to be claimed sooner or later," Harper had said.

Harper was human like me, only she'd been in this dump for three years already. She was a popular choice among the fighters as she was sexy and enjoyed what she did.

"If you don't, Lily will think you really are defective and send you somewhere worse than this," she said.

Worse than this?

"What could possibly be worse than this?"

Harper, as usual, was immune to sarcasm and quick with a response.

"They'll sell you to the pleasure houses," she said with a shiver. "Then you'll wish you'd been chosen by a fighter."

I saw how Lily, the madam, looked at me each time I failed in the line-up. Her expression spoke of bad times ahead.

Very bad times.

My choice was as simple as it was unsavory:

Whore myself out to these creatures or be whored out by someone else.

I never remembered that discussion in the career advisor's office.

Lily rubbed her hands nervously and approached the Beast. It was Lily's job to welcome the victor and usher them in to choose their Prize.

"Congratulations on another win! It was a very exciting fight."

She hadn't even watched it. I suppose it got a little boring after a while. Come to think of it, I had no idea how long Lily had been here. I made a mental note to ask Harper. She knew everything about this place.

The Beast grunted and turned on his heel to march out of the room. A pair of prison guards turned with him. They were about the same height as him, broad-chested and huge. They wore thick armor that covered them head to toe. A helmet concealed their faces. They carried weapons called shock rifles that emitted a powerful burst of electricity like a taser on steroids. It was the only weapon that could take down these animals under their care.

Lily stepped in the Beast's path and I wondered where she got the balls to do something so stupid. The Beast could tear her to pieces in an instant and pick his teeth with her bones.

But she had a job to do.

She raised her hands and waved them.

"We had a new shipment come in a few days ago. I thought you might like to look them over. Some are fresh and untouched."

The Beast glared at Lily, who immediately lowered her eyes. She performed a kind of curtsy and backed away from him.

Harper stamped her foot on the dais where we stood and growled under her breath, frustrated her efforts had amounted to nothing.

The stamp brought a smile to my face. Sure, we might be in hell, and sure, we would never escape and things could only get worse from here, but at least I had Harper to keep me entertained.

Harper gasped and suddenly stood upright. The other girls leaped to attention too, straightening their long necks, pristine backs, and smiling their gorgeous coy smiles.

What did they think they were doing? I wondered. The show was over. The Beast had left and—

And then I noticed him heading toward us.

My breath caught in my throat at the sight of him approaching.

His strides were long and powerful, his eyes like laser-beams.

"He's coming!" Harper said. "He's coming! He's mine! He can smell my perfume!"

I raised my chin to look at him defiantly. It never failed to dull the fighters' interest in me.

His boots were heavy and scuffed with dust from the fighting pit. His perfectly-formed muscles glistened with perspiration. His scars were puckered and a dark shade of grey.

I found it hard to meet his eyes. I felt intimidated by his immense size. He was the undisputed champion of the fighting pits.

But I refused to let him think he could dominate me. I refused to let any of them think I was just a piece of meat for them to gnaw on and toss away.

So, I met his eyes.

They were dark and hooded. They caught a shard of light that I couldn't identify the origin of and glowed an intense gold.

My God, he was a gorgeous creature.

The scars that crisscrossed his body gave him an air of danger.

His eyes pressed on me and I felt their weight.

Look away,my instincts commanded. He's a dangerous predator. Look away.

But I refused, the same way I had refused when the other fighters had sought to claim me.

I stared at him and he stared straight back.

Out the corner of my eye, I noticed Harper wiggling her shoulders to ensure the Beast got a full nostril of her pungent perfume.

There was a slight shift in his eyes. Tiny, small, and... amused?

It was almost not there… but I would swear on my life it was.

He turned his head to Lily and didn't say a word. He gave the briefest of nods before marching away. The guards moved with him like a shadow.

That was a relief. For a second there, I thought he was going to choose me!

Lily stood there, staring at me as if she were waiting for me to do something.

"What?" I said.

"What are you waiting for?" Lily said. "Go with him."

I glanced at Harper, whose expression was pursed.

But Lily wasn't looking at her. She was glaring at me.

There had to be some mistake.

I couldn't have been claimed.

I didn't want to be claimed.

Harper frowned with confusion. She couldn't believe he had chosen me. The other girls wore the same expression.

Shocked?Join the club.

"Move!" Lily said quietly but firmly.

My legs felt unsteady as I stepped off the dais and shuffled toward the Beast who waited for me on the other side of the room.

This can't be happening. This can't be happening.

My heart thudded in my chest, so hard I thought it was trying to escape.

I joined the Beast and glanced at him.

He would shake his head at the obvious mistake that'd been made. I would return to my safe spot on the dais and Harper, or one of the others, or Lily for all I cared, would take my place instead.

It'd all been a terrible mistake.

But when I looked at the Beast, he didn't shake his head. He waited for me to join him at his shoulder and we marched, side by side, toward his cell.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

I wasn't supposed to be his Prize.

What the fuck was going on?

We walkedin silence down the long hallways that stretched like spiderwebs. We were located in a prison called Ikmal, on a moon named Gharr. The entire moon was a prison, where, according to Harper, the worst criminals from the known galaxy were sent.

The intergalactic equivalent of Alcatraz.

And I had been abducted and brought there to service the victors in a twisted series of daily battles.

Lucky me.

"Today is my lucky day," Harper had said first thing this morning. "I've got a secret weapon that will make me irresistible."

She sprayed herself with perfume that made me gag and pinch my nose.

"What is that?" I said.

Harper raised a small glass perfume bottle like it was the Holy Grail.

"The female mating pheromones of the neb. He won't be able to control himself."

"Neither will the flies. It smells worse than cougar piss."

Harper arched an eyebrow.

"And you have some experience with cougar piss, do you? The Beast can't resist me when I wear this stuff. You wait and see. Today is my lucky day!"

There was a strong sense of hierarchy among the Prizes. There was prestige in snagging the highest-ranked fighter.

And that prestige, apparently, now belonged to me.

The Beast had chosen me.

Had he mistaken me for the one wearing the stinky perfume?

I glanced at the Beast out the corner of my eye, unsure what to say or do. He turned a corner. I missed a step as I hurried after him.

Did the corner of his mouth quirk up at my stumble? If it did, the smile was gone in an instant.

Our footsteps thumped loudly on the metal grating floors. The walls had once been white but were now scuffed with dark marks.

Prisoners milled around, most standing at random corners. They eyed the Beast and the guards as they passed.

But mostly, their eyes focused on me.

The dresses Lily forced us to wear were made of the same sheer material and left little to the imagination.

The prisoners licked their lips. Some had sharp needle-like teeth they gnashed as they ran their eyes over me. Another had a long tongue that reminded me of a frog or toad. He licked not only his lips but his bulging eyes, cheeks, and dimpled forehead.

The freaks belonged in a Salvador Dali painting.

I focused on the floor ahead, my cheeks glowing red. I had never felt so exposed my entire life.

Were the Beast and his two guards enough to stop those creatures if they took it into their minds to take me?

I panicked. Suddenly, I didn't mind the idea of being in his cell. At least then I would be away from the others.

It was a long walk to his cell. It was identified with a number "6" stenciled on the wall outside. The door hissed open at the Beast's approach.

My mouth felt dry. I didn't want to enter the room but I didn't want to stay outside it either.

I glanced down the hallway. I could run, I thought. I could get as far away as possible. I used to be a good athlete in high school.

But I wasn't in high school. I was surrounded by prisoners who would use me and pass me along to the next guy in line. At least with the Beast, there was only one of him.

The guards stood with their shock rifles tucked into their shoulders, ready to open fire at a moment's notice. I had no doubt in my mind they would unload into me if I attempted to run.

With a heavy heart, I marched into the cell.

The door slid shut and the lock clicked into place.

Locked.

This was it.

There was no escape for me now.

The Beast's cell was a reasonable size. Back in the Prize Pool, I had to share a room with the other girls. I had a small lumpy bed that took me over twenty minutes to get comfortable in each night.

The Beast had a full king size bed. It looked comfortable and my body ached to lie on it.

Of course, the bed wasn't there for lying on.

It was for other… activities.

In one corner was a small table with two mismatched chairs. A door led into a private bathroom—another perk that wasn't afforded to we Prizes. We only had a communal shower. I wondered if the Beast had access to hot water.

The Beast stopped, turned, and looked me over.

The injuries he'd sustained during his fight had already healed. Only spots of blood remained on his hard skin and muscular frame.

This was it, I thought. I was brought here to do a job and I needed to get on and do it.

I was trapped in a room with a powerful prison inmate. It wasn't like I could stop him if I refused.

I kept my eyes on him to show I wasn't afraid.

Inside, I was terrified.

I reached for the clasp at my shoulder to undo my dress. The damn thing wouldn't open! I struggled with it until finally, it popped.

There was another quirk to his lips. Blink and you would miss it, but it was definitely there. Then his expression returned to that dark and somber mood he always seemed to occupy.

Finally, I got the clasp open. I slipped the dress over my narrow shoulders and let the flimsy material slide down my arms, my slim waist, and over my hips, to the floor.

It was the only piece of clothing I wore. It might have been thin, but it was something. Now I felt more vulnerable than ever.

I swallowed. My mouth was dry.

The Beast kept his eyes on mine before his attention gradually dropped down.

I raised my chin to maintain at least a little pride in this mad situation.

His eyes ran over my curves and took in my breasts, my flat stomach, the small tuft of hair over my sex, then down my long legs, and back up again.

A thick and impressive lump formed in the front of his pants. His eyes turned misty and heated. Then he slipped his shorts off and I saw him in all his glory.

His cock thumped on his abdomen when they came loose from the confinement of his shorts. He was thick his entire length and I wasn't sure I could fit him inside me.

And what would happen then?

Would he get angry? Would he beat me for displeasing him? Would Lily? Would he force himself inside me whether I fit or not?

My breath quickened and my heart rate doubled.

He approached me, his attention on my body and not my face. He came within touching distance. He raised one hand and ran it over my stomach.

I forced myself not to recoil at his touch.

I didn't want to make him angry. He regularly tore creatures ten times my size to pieces with his bare hands. I might as well be made of tissue paper.

His hands were rough, the muscles thick and strong. He squeezed my hips and ran his palms over my ass and squeezed me there too.

His cock pressed against my stomach, yearning and hungry after his victorious fight.

"You've never fucked until you fuck a monster," Harper had said, her voice echoing through my mind.

I didn't want to fuck a monster. I didn't want to fuck anybody.

The Beast's hands continued to flow over my skin, bringing goosebumps writhing across the surface like a tossed pebble in a pond. He cupped my breasts in his hands and rubbed my nipples, pinching them between his fingers.

His cock—impossibly—grew even longer and harder.

Then he raised one hand up my chest, rested it on my shoulder, and cupped the back of my neck. He ran a thumb along my jaw and cheek and looked into my eyes.

Despite myself, and I hated to admit this, but I felt tears clog up my nose and throat. I blinked them back and struggled to control my emotions.

I might act like no one could hurt or harm me, but the truth was, I was just a girl far from home, forced to pleasure any creature that looked my way.

And when the Beast's eyes met mine, something changed in his expression. He blinked. It was like he'd turned a switch. His eyes lowered and he removed his hands from me.

He took a step back. He was still hard as a rock but he no longer pressed himself against me.

"I'll… take a shower," he said in his raspy voice.

He marched into the bathroom and within seconds, the water was running.

He just leftme standing there.

Naked.

My body could still feel his bare hands.

I was relieved he wouldn't take his frustrations out on me but at the same time, I was concerned.

What if Lily heard about what happened? What if she learned we didn't do anything?

But the night was still young. There was no telling what we might get up to before I had to return to my shared quarters in the Prize Pool.

I didn't move until the water splattered on the bathroom floor as he took a shower.

I bent down, picked up my dress, and pinned it back on my shoulder.

I peered around the room. Now what was I meant to do?

Escape, you fool!

I turned to the door and looked for the handle but there wasn't one. I pulled and pushed and pried on it but it wouldn't open.

"Computer. Unlock this door."

"Negative," Computer said. "You lack the necessary authority."

"Then how am I supposed to get out of here?"

"You are scheduled to leave under armed guard at seven o'clock tomorrow morning."

Seven o'clock? Did that mean I was trapped in here until then? With a huge fighter that could do whatever he wanted with me?

No. There had to be another way out.

"Computer. There's a fire in here. I need to escape now. Quick!"

"I detect no fires in the cell."

"There is. It's… I think your sensors are broken."

"Negative. Sensors are working optimally. Would you like me to call an engineer?"

An engineer… That meant the door would have to open to let him in. And that meant I could escape.

"Yes. Call an engineer."

"An engineer has been scheduled."

Yes!

"He will come tomorrow morning at seven o'clock."

No…

"Can you make him come sooner?" I said.

"Negative. The engineer is busy with other projects until that time."

Of course, he was. Meanwhile, I'm being burnt to a crisp in here.

Then maybe I could ask the Beast to let me go? I mean, he got a nice handful earlier. Maybe that was all he needed from me?

I edged toward the bathroom and nudged the door open. There was no shower curtain. It was a wet room and he had his back to me.

His face was aimed at the water that streamed from the showerhead and ran down his face and body. His big beefy hand was wrapped around his thick cock and he stroked it aggressively.

I backed away from the door. I stumbled over my own feet and fell flat on my ass.

I would never get that image out of my head…

That huge beast whacking off while he was thinking of…

Me?

He wasn't finished with me, I realized. He was fantasizing about what he would do to me…

So why hadn't he done it already?

I thought back over our little scene in his room earlier. He stood proud as he probed at me. He could have taken me then. Nothing was stopping him.

Then he looked into my eyes and…

The change came over him. He realized I didn't want him to use me.

Could that be right?

It sounded ridiculous.

I mean, the guy was the most feared creature in this place and yet… he refused to take advantage of me?

Then why had he brought me to his cell in the first place?

And what was he going to do with me now I was locked in there until morning?

The water ceased splattering across the bathroom floor.

He'd finished with his shower.

He would come in here, naked and wet, and find me standing here in this slutty dress…

There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

I quickly pulled the bed's covers back and slipped into the bed.