Chapter 18

Sovereign Luxtetana met Kipexo and Ethan as he usually did as they stepped off the Anamafrid the next morning, but he had a look on his face of joyful expectation as he greeted them this time.

“I have news,” he said with a smile. “Repairs on the broken vessel should be completed tomorrow.”

“Sweet,” Ethan said. “The others will be happy to hear that.”

“Yes, but there is something else I wish to show you now, something for you and no others.”

The sovereign headed down the hall, waving for them to follow. He led them to a familiar room full of monitors and medical equipment, only this time, they entered a door on the right-hand side rather than the one at the back. In the middle of this new room stood a pod, but it was different from the one Ethan laid in before. This one was much smaller, human-sized, Kipexo realized. It had no less than a dozen large hoses attached all around the outside where the other pod didn’t, and there was an oxygen tank sitting next to it.

“We’ve made improvements,” the sovereign said. “With your permission, we will try again to extend the life of the Earthwalker. This model was built from data collected during Ethan’s first treatment. It is made with Earthwalker anatomy in mind only and should be safe for the Commander’s denmate.” He picked up a thin rubber bodysuit and held it out to Ethan. “First, you must change into this.”

Ethan looked up at Kipexo, but Kipexo didn’t say or do anything. This was what Ethan wanted, and it was entirely the Earthling’s choice to move forward with it.

When Kipexo didn’t object, Ethan stepped forward and took the bodysuit. The sovereign led him to a corner in the back of the room and pulled a curtain closed to give Ethan privacy while he changed. A few minutes later, Ethan stepped out dressed in the dark blue suit and took the sovereign’s offered hand. He threw his leg over the side of the pod and slid in, and it fit him perfectly where the other one seemed to swallow him up. The same two Lifreet from Ethan’s first treatment entered the room and approached the pod.

“To stop your body from overheating,” Sovereign Luxtetana explained, “we will flood the pod with cold water to keep your core temperature down.”

One of the other Lifreet took a mask from a hook on the wall nearby while the other started adjusting knobs on the oxygen tank.

“Since you will be submerged,” the sovereign continued, “you will need to wear this”—he motioned toward the Lifreet currently holding the mask out to Ethan—“to maintain oxygen supply.”

The Lifreet helped Ethan secure the mask and fit it properly around his head, then they turned on the oxygen and prompted him to lie down.

The sovereign went to the side of the pod. “We will hear you if you speak. Tell us what you are feeling as the treatment progresses.”

“I will,” Ethan said, and it sounded like he was speaking down a long tube.

One of the Lifreet touched a button on the side of the pod, and the lid slid shut.

“Can you hear us, Ethan?” the sovereign asked.

“Yes.”

“We will start the water flow now. It will be cold, but that’s necessary to maintain proper core temperature throughout your treatment.

“Ok.”

Seconds later, water began flowing through each of the tubes into the pod.

“Jesus Christ, that’s freezing!” Ethan cried.

“The treatment will start in twenty seconds, and you should no longer feel cold.”

Once the water stopped flowing, the pod began to hum, and Sovereign Luxtetana and the other Lifreet pulled up the diagrams of Ethan’s body they used last time to monitor him. The sovereign shared his tablet with Kipexo again, who watched the screen intently, waiting for any indication that something was wrong. No alarms went off and no red notifications popped up as the procedure went on for five minutes, during which they regularly checked in with Ethan, who stayed conscious throughout the entire treatment. When the machine’s hum began to die down, the sovereign smiled at Kipexo.

“Success,” he said happily. “Your Earthwalker was able to withstand the entire treatment without complications.”

“Did it work?” Kipexo asked.

“We will run tests once he is free from the pod, then we’ll know.”

The water quickly drained from the pod through the hoses, and the lid unsealed from the base with a whoosh. When the lid retracted, Ethan sat up and pulled the mask from his face.

“I did it!” he exclaimed.

“How do you feel?” Kipexo asked.

“Like I just had the best night’s sleep of my life.” He quite literally hopped from the pod, splashing water all over the floor. “God, I feel like I could run a marathon, or climb a mountain, or…” He looked at Kipexo, and his master recognized the glint in the Earthling’s eyes.

Kipexo tilted his chin up and raised a brow, but he chose to remain silent and stare intently into Ethan’s face as the three Lifreet took scans to check if the treatment was a success. After an agonizingly-long few minutes, Sovereign Luxtetana beamed at Kipexo, though the Commander barely noticed as he maintained intimate eye contact with Ethan the whole time.

“Commander,” the sovereign said with a bow of his head. “We see the same results in the Earthwalker’s body that we see in Lifreet after a successful treatment.”

Ethan finally looked away from Kipexo’s eyes, but Kipexo continued to stare at his Earthling as Ethan asked, “Does that mean I’ll live as long as Kipexo?”

“With regular weekly treatments, life will be longer for you. How long is not known with certainty as you are the first Earthwalker to be treated, but if Lifreet lives are compared to yours, centuries can be achieved. If you stay on Dradaheirn, we will monitor and adjust to make treatments as effective as possible.”

Ethan looked at Kipexo again, and this time, his eyes were full of tears. “No komitaifra,” he said quietly. “Kipexo…”

Kipexo still hadn’t looked away. “Can the three of you give us some privacy for a moment?” he asked.

“Oh, um, certainly,” the sovereign replied, and several sets of footsteps announced the Lifreet’s departure before the door clicked shut behind them.

The second they were alone, Ethan ran into Kipexo’s arms, and Kipexo scooped him up onto his hips. Their mouths crushed together into a frenzied kiss full of moans and lapping tongues.

“I’m yours for centuries,” Ethan murmured against Kipexo’s lips.

Kipexo groaned.

“I’m so fucking horny,” Ethan whispered with a slight whimper in his voice.

“I couldn’t tell.”

“My entire body is buzzing. I need you.”

“Right now? Right here? With people listening just on the other side of the door?”

“You’ll just have to make sure I stay quiet.”

Kipexo growled and walked to the corner with the curtain, which he yanked closed so hard the fabric threatened to rip clear off its hangers. He set Ethan on his feet and started peeling the bodysuit down. It was soaked and stuck to the Earthling’s skin, so it took time to roll it off, but once he did, he found Ethan’s cock was already rock-hard underneath.

Kipexo clicked his tongue. “You’re going to have to learn restraint after these treatments, boy. I want to see you beg me with your eyes to fuck you until I decide you’ve waited long enough. I’ll have to find out if you can wear a cage in that thing. Locking your cock up when you’re this desperate for my cock sounds like the most delicious form of torture.”

Ethan moaned and stroked himself. “Yes, please.”

“Turn around and put your hands against the wall,” Kipexo ordered.

Ethan quickly obliged.

Kipexo pushed on the Earthling’s back, making him bend over further, then he slid Ethan’s legs apart, opening his perfect little ass up for Kipexo to ravage. He took their bottle of lube from his pocket before popping open the front of his pants and freeing his hard cock. Once his Earthling was lubed and stretched by his master’s fingers, Kipexo clamped a hand over Ethan’s mouth and leaned down near his ear.

“Someday, I’ll chain you to a wall while I stripe and fuck your ass. I’ll gag you, tie you up, and use you again and again and again, until you’re so full of my cum your belly will bulge with it.”

Ethan moaned against Kipexo’s palm.

Kipexo slid his cock in the boy’s ass.

“I can’t wait to stuff my fist inside you,” Kipexo whispered as he thrust deep.

Ethan whimpered.

“I have centuries to think up all the ways I can fuck this beautiful body. Every inch of it will know what it feels like to belong to me.”

Kipexo pumped himself hard into Ethan, keeping a tight grip on the Earthling’s mouth so he couldn’t make a sound.

“You. Are. Mine,” Kipexo bit out with each thrust. “My heart. My desire. My life.” He nuzzled Ethan’s neck. “You are perfect and loved,” he murmured. “I don’t deserve you, but I’ll spend the rest of my life devoted to you, Ethan.”

Ethan made a choking sound as tears welled in his eyes again.

“My Ethan. My boy. I love you.”

A tear trickled down Ethan’s cheek, and Kipexo wrapped his arms around him, holding him close.

“Come for me,” Kipexo requested sweetly.

Ethan’s breath hitched, and he arched his back. Kipexo hardened his thrusts, rushing toward his own orgasm, and just as he tipped over the edge, Ethan cried out against his hand as he came too, jerking and writhing in tune with the spasms wracking Kipexo’s own body. They stood there like that for several minutes, each catching their breath as they came back down to reality. Kipexo removed his hand from Ethan’s mouth, and the Earthling sighed.

“Fuck…” Ethan mumbled. “I’ll never get enough of this.”

“Thanks to you, we have many solar cycles left to enjoy each other’s most carnal desires.”

“Thanks to me?” Ethan said in surprise, then he groaned as Kipexo pulled out of him. “How is this my doing?”

Kipexo used the wet bodysuit to clean himself and his Earthling the best he could before taking a towel from a hook on the wall and drying Ethan off so he could dress. “You were brave and stubborn and weren’t afraid to trust the Lifreet. If the decision had been left to me, I never would have allowed them near you, much less allowed them to subject you to their unknown treatments. But you have a mind of your own and chose for yourself. Our reward for that choice is nothing short of a miracle.”

Ethan smiled as he pulled on his clothes. “We make a good team.”

Kipexo smiled too. “Of course we do. We’re denmates.”

“And denmates look out for each other.”

“Yes, but they also follow each other’s lead when the situation calls for it. Knowing each other’s strengths and allowing them to shine is just as important.”

“Yeah? What’re my strengths?”

Kipexo studied Ethan a moment then said, “Empathy, strength of will, honesty… You’re open-minded and accepting to a degree I’ve never seen before, and you are not afraid to speak up for others and what you believe is right.”

“That last one only really started once I met you. Knowing you’ll back me up makes me bolder than I used to be.”

“Good. Be as bold as you like. I’ll always have your back.”

Having finished dressing, Ethan tugged the curtain back and took Kipexo’s hand. “Reseila is probably waiting for us. Let’s go find out if Dradaheirn is going to be our new home.”

For the first time, the thought didn’t fill Kipexo with anxious dread.

*****

Reseila sat in her usual chair across the desk from Kipexo, and the look she gave him made his lip twitch over a single fang.

They’d said no; he could see it on her face.

Kipexo tilted his chin up and waited for Reseila to deliver the news, already preparing himself to fight for what he knew he deserved.

Beside him, Ethan held his breath.

Even Sovereign Luxtetana looked anxious at the sudden tension in the room.

But then Reseila smiled.

Kipexo swore. “Gods damn you, Major.”

She laughed.

“They accepted?” Ethan asked in surprise.

“It wasn’t easy,” said Reseila. “The discussion grew heated more than once, but, in the end, we all acknowledge that the benefits of you taking this position far outweigh the costs of your demands.”

“Demands?” Sovereign Luxtetana said with a curious glance at Kipexo.

“Just tying up some loose ends,” Kipexo said. “I planned to take the job regardless.”

“You did?” Ethan asked.

“With your approval, of course.”

“I suspected as much,” Reseila said. “I couldn’t see you letting all this hard work go to waste. Nevertheless, I saw the justice in what you were asking of us and wanted to see it done. I’ll have to meet with Reethis. I’m to ensure he strips all Galacorp clearance codes and identification from the Anamafrid’s systems. He’ll have to reapply for clearance to enter Raugon airspace if he wishes to fly in our territories in the future.” She winced and added, “I’d advise him to wait a few solar cycles before attempting that, though. The Chiefs were more upset about the loss of a perfectly good ship than they were about all your other requests combined. That’s gonna sting for a while.”

“Noted,” Kipexo said dryly, but then he sat up straighter and cleared his throat. “So… that’s it then, isn’t it? There’s nothing else to negotiate?”

Reseila grinned. “I think so,” she said, her voice full of excitement and disbelief. She looked at Sovereign Luxtetana. “Are you ready to sign a peace treaty?”

The sovereign closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, letting it out on a slow exhale before opening his eyes again. He steepled his fingers on the table in front of him and looked around the table at them all. “From a young age, I was shown the steps of a proper sovereign by my father who ruled before me. He taught me to bleed our enemies until none stood, either Raugon or Lifreet, for he believed the death of a people, either yours or ours, would be the only end of this war that was started before he was even born. I listened but always questioned my father’s words, so when my kingdom finally came to me, bleeding and dying, I chose to believe a different truth. I hoped for a different end, and I set out to find it.

“Not a solar cycle into my reign, a Raugon Major crossed my path who brought me many steps closer to my hope over the past few solar cycles. Then a Raugon Commander arrived to bring me to the edges of that different end I sought so desperately. Now, here we stand, ready to step into peace. No more bloodshed.” The sovereign bowed his head. “There are not words in any language to express my gratitude to the Raugon and Earthwalker who made my hope our truth. Thank you.”

Kipexo nodded in respect.

Reseila reached over and squeezed the sovereign’s hand.

Ethan just beamed.

Sovereign Luxtetana clapped his hands. “Let’s sign.”

There were three signatures needed on the document Reseila pulled up on her databand: Reseila’s on the Veil’s behalf, Sovereign Luxtetana’s on behalf of the Lifreet, and Kipexo’s. Beside his name was Kipexo’s new official title of Ambassador of Lifreet and Raugon Affairs. Before adding his name to the bottom of the document, Kipexo looked at Ethan, giving his Earthling one last chance to object before he signed away their future, but Ethan only nodded with determination. With a stroke of Kipexo’s finger, the treaty was signed and finalized, and Reseila immediately forwarded a copy to the Veil.

It was done.

The silence that fell between them was tinged with relief, awe, and a bit of unease about the future as they all peered around the table at each other, that was until Ethan snorted.

The Earthling laughed, breaking the tension with a snap that reverberated around the table, and, one by one, they all started to laugh with him.

They’d done it. They’d done the impossible.

A truce between the Raugon and the Lifreet… Kipexo couldn’t imagine what that would look like, but starting today, he would be on the front lines of a different kind of fight, a fight for peace.