Chapter 4

Gaelec

I placed the last batch of cleaned fish in the cooling unit then pulled off my work gloves before washing my hands. The stares of my companions weighed heavily on me. More than two weeks after my return, I felt more like a stranger than ever. The males kept their distance, studying me, a few of them undoubtedly reporting my every move to Moriak.

I didn’t know any of them. Males rarely lasted more than five or six years with a Pride. Ten pretty much constituted a record, unless they were among the extremely few who managed to form a permanent mate bond with one of their females.

Aside from Moriak, the other two males I had encountered before were far older and worked in different parts of the village. I foolishly hoped they would rekindle the friendship we once had. However, they were here on borrowed time, their expert skill being the only reason they had not been evicted yet. It made complete sense for them to avoid drawing unnecessary attention by associating with me.

It sucked beyond words to be in my current position. The males didn’t want to incur Moriak’s ire by befriending me. And the females were growing steadily annoyed with my indifference towards them. Sure, I could force myself to cozy up to one of them. But aside from the fact that I didn’t want any of them, doing so would be an all-around lose-lose for me. Any female I pursued would infuriate Oluina, on top of whatever male had previously secured her favors or was working towards it.

The thought of giving in to Oluina made my stomach roil, not to mention that it would cause an all-out war with Moriak. There was simply no winning.

Why can’t they just leave me alone?

Despite the gloves and protective clothes I wore to cleanse today’s catch, I still reeked of fish, no matter how much I scrubbed. I hated that task. Instead of gutting the slimy things, I wanted to be optimizing our buildings and revamping our infrastructures. But the Matriarchs were too rigid in their desire to keep things just the way they were. My tongue burned with the need to insist, but I didn’t want to make myself more of a pest than necessary.

Then again, a part of me believed their reluctance partially stemmed from the fact that they didn’t know if they would keep me. Having me begin significant modifications that no one else would be able to finish or maintain would put them in a precarious situation. And that made sense.

Should I just leave?

That question was now a constant companion of mine. Every other hour of every day, I would weigh the pros and the cons of just moving on elsewhere. But where?

I couldn’t return to my birth Pride, even though the younger brother I kept in touch with would have been extremely happy about it. But our Matriarchs would not allow it. Anyway, it didn’t make sense for a male to stick around in their birth Pride as all that females present had a direct bloodline with him since they were all his sisters, cousins, or aunts. And going to another Pride would put him in the same position that he was currently facing. The Alpha and other males would feel threatened by him, while the females would want to use him as a breeder.

Maybe I should just go to the city.

Except I wasn’t made for it. The short time I spent in similar environments, whether during my journey back here or while on the few missions I performed before my incarceration, the packed population hubs had felt overwhelming to me. Too many people, too many blinking lights and technology shouting for your attention, too many vehicles threatening to run people over from all sides, and above all not enough nature.

Heaving a sigh, I walked out of the fish plant on my way home. I would take an intensive shower to try and scrape off more of the lingering stench and then go for a run through the forest to clear my head. However, as I turned onto the main street, I spotted Ylis chatting with a couple of young huntresses in front of the Great Hall.

“Gaelec!” she exclaimed, waving at me.

After a quick goodbye to the other females, she ran towards me. I stared at her with curiosity, wondering what had her so excited.

“I’m not sure if you’re aware, but there’s a feast coming up next week. I was wondering if you would accompany me?” she asked with a huge grin.

My stomach dropped. We had not seen each other much since my return as Moriak appeared to conveniently assign tasks to me on the type of schedule that limited my ability to spend time with the females, which suited me just fine. She was the last person I expected this from. Shifting uneasily on my paws, I searched for the most diplomatic way of turning her down.

She snorted and gave me an amused look of disbelief. “By the gods, Gaelec, relax! You may be a Stellig—and a hot one, too—but I’m well aware that you’re not interested in me that way. I might have been offended if I didn’t also only think of you as a big brother and the best trainer.”

My face heated from embarrassment at the same time as my shoulders slumped with relief. I would have hated to alienate the one person I considered a friend here.

“Sorry,” I said sheepishly. “But the Queens have been a little intense lately.”

She laughed, although I didn’t miss the glimmer of commiseration in her blue eyes.

“Yeah, you shouldn’t have come back all muscled up like this,” Ylis said teasingly. “You’ve got all the females going into heat. But hey, having me by your side should help keep them at bay.”

I snorted. “Are you trying to piss off Oluina?” I asked teasingly.

To my surprise, some of her amusement faded, and her face slightly hardened. “Absolutely. She needs to get over herself. And at the same time, I’ll get Moriak to fuck off.”

I stiffened, outraged anger immediately surging within me. “He’s trying to move in on you?” I ground through my teeth.

“Of course,” she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Oluina is great but nearing the end of her reign as Head Huntress. She knows it and hates it. Moriak is in a similar position. He’s trying desperately to stay relevant but is terrified of you.”

“Which I totally do not understand,” I said with genuine confusion. “I’ve made it abundantly clear that I do not want his position or her. Why can that not be enough?”

She glanced over her shoulder at the huntresses still standing outside the Great Hall and gestured for me to fall into step as she started walking towards my residence.

“Because every female is drooling over you, and every male is afraid of you,” Ylis said in a factual manner. “You being a Stellig makes you highly desirable to begin with. But you survived more than a decade on Molvi and returned looking fabulous. Although you haven’t been on a hunt yet, we can all see that you’re even more badass now. Just looking at the way you move, your strength when you pull out the fishnets and carry the crates screams of how lethal you’ve become. They think you’re merely biding your time, assessing everyone before issuing your challenge.”

I heaved a sigh, feeling utterly annoyed. “What will it take for them to get it through their heads that I just want peace?”

“Nothing, I’m afraid,” she said in a sympathetic tone. “The longer you maintain your distance, the more upset the huntresses will grow at you snubbing us all. So, here I am! I can be your excuse not to pursue the other females, and you can protect me from that old pervert.”

I burst out laughing at the sing song way in which she pronounced that last sentence. She was so adorable, I wanted to ruffle the soft mane on her head.

“You know, I’m eight years older than you. People might deem me an old pervert as well if they believe us to be a couple,” I said teasingly.

She waved a dismissive hand. “Eight is entirely fine. It beats sixteen years with him!”

“Fair enough,” I said with a chuckle. “They all expect you to take over the Head Huntress role at the rate you are going. With you choosing me, the Pride will see me as an even bigger threat.”

Ylis shrugged and gave me a smug look. “They will, which means better protection for you!”

I snorted and shook my head affectionately at her. “How are you still single?” I asked, genuinely confused.

The oddest expression fleeted over her beautiful features, piquing my curiosity. She appeared on the verge of saying something before shrugging again with an air of disdain.

“All the males here are annoying and too whipped by Moriak. Hopefully, there will be some hot new males attending the feast. After all, its whole purpose is getting new blood into the Pride.”

I gave her a sideways glance with a hint of amusement. “But that means I will get in the way of any interesting suitors,” I challenged.

“What you will be is protection,” she countered with conviction. “Half of the males who will show up will be flat out insufferable. You can send them packing on my behalf. Anyway, it’s not like we’re going to be all over each other. We can just act the way we always have, close and affectionate, which will keep people guessing.”

“As you wish,” I said with a smile.

She stopped mid-stride and turned to stare at me. “You truly are the best. I’m really glad you’re back.”

For the second time since my return, she gave me a bone-crushing hug and rubbed her temple against mine before releasing me. My heart ached. It had been so long since I had been embraced with such genuine affection. I missed how much simpler life used to be.

Just as I was releasing her, we both jerked our heads to the left, simultaneously getting the sense of being observed. My heart leapt in my chest when my gaze locked with Moriak’s. He was glaring at us, clearly seething. Next to him, an older male dressed in fancy attire was also looking at us but with a speculative expression.

“Fuck!” Ylis hissed under her breath.

“What is it?” I asked although my gaze didn’t stray from the Pride’s Alpha.

“That jerk with him is Ranor, the recruiter,” she replied, her voice tense. “There’s a big mission coming up in the next few weeks. Whatever you do, don’t go!”

My stomach painfully twisted upon hearing those words. There was no question in my mind Moriak would put as much pressure as possible to make me participate and hopefully get caught again. What better way to eliminate the competition?

“Don’t worry, I have no intention to do so ever again,” I said, anger seeping into my voice.

“Good! Remember that the reason he’s not taking you on cullings is because he fears and hates you. He cannot allow you to outshine him. Be careful. He will start whispering in the Matriarchs’ ears to get them to coerce you to go.”

“Thanks for the warning, but I will leave the Pride before I’m conned into throwing my life away like this again,” I replied firmly. “Anyway—”

My com going off silenced me. I glanced down at the interface on my bracer only to have my jaw drop in shock.

“Something wrong?” Ylis asked with a sliver of worry.

I shook my head. “No. Just a completely unexpected communication. I must take it. I will talk to you later,” I replied absent-mindedly.

“Okay, I’ll see you later,” she said, still sounding both curious and a little concerned.

I accepted the vidcom request, which was to commence in fifteen minutes, and hurried back to my dwelling. How in the world did Kayog Voln have my contact information? What could he possibly want?

All thoughts of scrubbing the stench of fish off me were gone as I frantically paced in front of the couch in the small but comfortable living area of my two-bedroom dwelling. The six minutes remaining before the time of the call dragged on endlessly as I stared at my vidscreen. My mind was running wild with speculations as to why he would reach out to me after all this time.

I still remembered our meeting, four years ago. The prospect of using the agency to get out of prison quickly had been extremely enticing. Foolishly, I had entertained the thought that Oluina would see the error of her ways and present herself as my soulmate—which I stupidly believed her to be at the time—and we would be reunited.

To my dismay, when we met, the Temern informed me that she declined an interview with him, which would have enabled him to confirm whether she and I were indeed soulmates. That crushed whatever lingering feelings I still harbored for her. After the initial pain, I was grateful for it giving me the final clarity needed to move on.

Anyway, shortly thereafter, the Obosians cleverly amended the law. From that point forward, any spouse would have to come stay with us in our Quadrant, if they couldn’t wait until our liberation. It had been a devastating blow to all the hopefuls. But as my heart had already been broken for the second time by then, it just felt like further confirmation that we were never meant to be.

I barely swallowed the yelp rising in my throat when the beep of an incoming call went off. I all but threw myself onto the couch before accepting it.

The smiling face of the Temern filled the screen. I couldn’t say for sure where he was, but he appeared to be in a mostly barren room, probably some sort of temporary office aboard a spaceship. I speculated about the latter because the clarity and strength of the signal indicated he couldn’t be too far from my homeworld.

“Greetings, Gaelec,” Kayog said with enthusiasm.

“Greetings, Master Voln,” I said cautiously. “I expected you to be shocked to see my face and promptly apologize for calling the wrong number.”

He chuckled and shook his head. “Not at all, my friend. You’re exactly the person I wish to speak to.”

“What in the world for?” I asked with genuine confusion.

“To tell you that I have finally completed the task we initiated four years ago and found your soulmate!” he said with a grin as one would announce wonderful and long-awaited news.

“What the fuck?!” I blurted out after a few seconds of stunned silence.

“I said I found your soulmate,” Kayog repeated, looking as if he was battling the urge to burst out laughing.

“Why would you keep looking for her?” I exclaimed, flabbergasted. “I don’t want to mate! Truth be told, I didn’t really want one back then. It was only a means to get out of prison early. But I am free now.”

“All the more reason to enjoy your newfound freedom with the love of your life!” Kayog continued with the same joyful tone. “Ophelia is quite eager to meet you.”

Ophelia… That’s a pretty name.

But that didn’t change my total disinterest in what he was offering.

“I am surprised and impressed by the dedication you put into pursuing this matter,” I said in as diplomatic a fashion as I could. “However, I’m in no position to take a mate. Beyond the fact that my current situation is precarious, I genuinely don’t want or need a female right now. Anyway, what species is she?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“Ophelia is a human,” Kayog said with a grin.

“A human?!” I exclaimed, shocked, not to say horrified. “How in the world could a human be my soulmate? Are our species even compatible?”

“Yes, my friend. Humans and Nazhrals are perfectly compatible. Previous unions between your two species have yielded the most adorable offspring,” he replied smugly.

“Be that as it may, humans are furless, clawless, ridiculously slow, can’t hunt to save their lives without all kinds of equipment, and are embarrassingly weak. Our females are huntresses. How would she even fit in?”

“While you are correct in your brutal assessment of humans, they have many other qualities that compensate for those other perceived shortcomings,” he said in a slightly chastising tone. “They are incredibly adaptable, smart, resourceful, compassionate, and extremely loyal.”

“Not all,” I immediately argued at that last comment. “There were plenty of them in Molvi, ready and eager to backstab anyone if it could profit them.”

“With all due respect to you, Gaelec, the inmates from Molvi cannot be used as reference to assess the morals and personality of an entire people. Every species has their rotten folks.”

I begrudgingly grunted in concession.

“But Ophelia is your soulmate, of that I have no doubt. Don’t you want someone who will never betray you and stand up for you? Someone who will wish nothing but your happiness for your own sake and not for how they can benefit from you or use you? Someone who will stand by you through thick and thin?”

I crushed the intense longing his words stirred in my heart and shrugged. “Your human doesn’t know me. She has no reason to show such loyalty or devotion.”

“She doesn’t know you yet, but she will. Ophelia cannot love anyone more than she will love you, and the same will apply to you where she’s concerned.”

“Even if that were true—and I’m not saying it is—I’m not in a good situation. Any day now, I could get evicted from my Pride. I’m still in the process of earning my place here again.”

“Wouldn’t it be easier to go through this phase with someone willing to support you every step of the way?” he argued.

I narrowed my eyes as a suspicion blossomed in my heart. “Why would she? Humans—and most of the galaxy for that matter—have a very negative opinion of Nazhrals. Why would she subject herself to the hardships I’m facing? What is she running from?”

“Ophelia is not running away from anything,” Kayog said in a firm but reassuring tone. “She’s running towards her soulmate. And you’re correct about humans’ opinions about Nazhrals. She was quite worried when I revealed your identity and past to her. Your people have a questionable reputation. As you stated so well, humans are physically weaker and more vulnerable than species such as yours. It is scary for her to put herself in such a situation.”

Although I hid it, his words stung my pride.

“Which is all the more reason why her so-called eagerness to give this a try seems suspicious to me,” I challenged.

“She is willing to give it a try because I vouched for the honorability of your character. I am a Temern. I can feel your emotions. And in my case, as an Edal, I possess a rare ability among my people which allows me to see and hear the song of your soul. You’re a good male, Gaelec. You are worth fighting for. I am never wrong when it comes to reuniting the two halves of a soul. She understands that there can never be another for her but you. Therefore, she is willing to take the risk and get to know you during the six-month trial required by the agency.”

I shifted in my seat and swallowed past the lump in my throat. It was a good thing that we were having this conversation through vidcom and not in person. His being able to feel how deeply his words moved me would have made me far too self-conscious.

“Even if I wanted to give this a try, the Matriarchs must approve any newcomer who wishes to join our Pride,” I argued. “And females are not allowed to join. The only females in a Pride must be direct blood relatives of the Matriarchs.”

“But Ophelia is not trying to join your Pride as one of the new Queens or future Matriarchs. She’s merely here to be with her soulmate. Prides never block bonded mates to stay indefinitely with their partner, right?”

“Right,” I conceded reluctantly. “However, those bonded mates are always males marrying one of the Queens. The opposite has never occurred before.”

“Well, there is a first to everything!” Kayog said cheerfully.

I frowned and shook my head, still unconvinced. The Temern sobered and leveled a serious gaze on me.

“Why such reluctance?” he asked with genuine curiosity. “Have you met someone since your return?”

I snorted and shook my head. “No, not at all.”

“Aren’t you tired of being lonely, then?” he asked in a gentle, almost paternal fashion that had my throat constricting again.

“It’s not that simple, Kayog,” I said in a tired voice. “The Nazhral culture is so different from hers… Life here is harsh, devoid of all the comforts she’s certainly used to in industrial cities.”

He grinned and waved a hand as if I’d said something silly. “Remember the part about humans being adaptable? Ophelia does not care for all the trappings of city life. In fact, she spent the past ten years working on various planets performing missionary work with primitive species, most of it as a teacher but some of it to help with housing projects or disaster recovery assistance. She is used to living in harsh conditions and adjusting to foreign cultures. Life in a Pride is far more comfortable than in some of the places where she has lived.”

“The past ten years?” I echoed. “How old is she?”

“She’s twenty-eight, three years younger than you are. See? You are perfect for each other in every way.”

I scrunched my face, failing to find additional arguments to throw his way. To be honest, I didn’t really know that I wanted to find any.

“I still need to obtain the Matriarchs’ blessing,” I muttered.

“Then you get right on it! I have faith in you. In the meantime, I will tell Ophelia to prepare for her journey to your homeworld,” Kayog said in a triumphant tone. “Trust me, Gaelec, you will not regret this.”

After exchanging our farewells, I stared blankly at the dark screen, too many thoughts rushing through my mind to properly sort them out. But two of them dominated. I had no idea what my soulmate looked-like, and I didn’t know a damn thing about human females.

Glancing out the window at the Great Hall in the distance, I heaved a sigh at the prospect of breaking the news to the Matriarchs. This was guaranteed to go well…