Nix Winter
THE PET 5 BY NIX WINTER & J.J. MASSA
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THE PET 5
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THE PET 5 Copyright © 2006 by Nix Winter & J.J. Massa ISBN: 1-59836-267-4 Cover Art © 2006 by Nix Winter All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form without permission, except as provided by the U.S. Copyright Law. Printed and bound in the United States of America. For information, you can find us on the web at www.VenusPress.com
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Dedication:
For London
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~*~
“I don't want to go, Master,” he whispered, his face pressed against the rumpled linen of his lover's white shirt. Fear made his voice small, hesitant. The two of them stood in the shadow cast by a wing of Her Majesty's shuttle. The taller man had short red hair, broad shoulders, strong arms wrapped around his pet. The pet was delicate, damning short sky blond hair brushing against his neck. He held his master tightly, tears soaking into the warm linen. “My love, don't be afraid,” Tristan said as his fingers found their way into Alix's hair to the back of his head as he guided him to tilt his head. Their eyes meet, locked onto each other. The master's green held as much fear as the pet's sky blue, but Tristan smiled as he held Alix's attention. “You are a lord now and nothing can take that away from you. You are the same as I am, but if Her Majesty wishes your company for a time, you must go with her. She is your master as she is mine.” Alix sniffed, trying to suck back tears as delicate fingers reached up to touch Tristan's lips. It was the kind of touch one might give a train window when you weren't sure you'd ever see home again. “I always thought I was the same as you, that there were no gods and we were the same, just people, but we're not. I am different. It just doesn't mean what you thought it meant, Master.” Alix pressed his face to Tristan's chest again, holding him with all the strength he had. “The voice from my dream? Remember? You said it was just a dream, but Master it says I shouldn't go. Something bad will happen if I go.” “It was just a dream, Alix,” Tristan ground out, his emotion intense. “Whatever I thought you were, what you are is everything. Do you understand? You are everything to me. In ten days I will come to the palace and I will find you. We will troth. You will bring Her Majesty such happiness and peace until then that she will allow it and then we'll stay together always. You can be my co-captain of The Raver.” “I don't know anything about being a captain,” Alix pointed out. “I'm good at something else. Something important. Master, I don't want to go with this woman. I'm 5
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afraid.” Tristan pushed Alix back a little, holding him by the shoulders. “We can all be afraid at times and I know a lot has happened to you since you came to know me, but we must obey the queen. It's all that keeps our world sane. The throne and our traditions keep us from descending into chaos as other worlds have. You must be brave. You are one of the gods now.” “I have never believed in the gods,” Alix said. “I don't believe in them now, but I believe in the voice. There was so much light, Master. Help me, please. Don't let her take me.” “She is our queen, Alix. If she wanted me to walk naked down Throne Road, I would have to do it.” Tears in his eyes, Alix pushed Tristan back though still held the white linen fisted in his hands. “I was never a slave. I was born a free person with the stars in my heart, no matter who thinks they made me. You were born a slave and you only think you travel the stars.” The slap was sudden and arose from the cold hurt between them. Alix let his hands fall away from his master, blue eyes full of tears and pride, the bright red handprint on his cheek. “I only speak the truth. You are stronger than me, but you are bound and a slave to your culture and I don't know how to free you.” “You're an ignorant creature! I am not a slave. I am a lord! I am the one that protects you!” “But you won’t protect me now that I'm asking you for help,” Alix said, pain lining his forehead “Do you know that on The Raver I read there are many other worlds out beyond our sun? That there are other places? We can go away from here.” “There are no other places, Alix,” Tristan said. “Those places are violent and chaotic, ruinous. There are no other places to go.” “What's going to happen to my sister?” Alix asked, suddenly, harshly, angered by Tristan's words. “What's going to happen to my mother? My best friend, Rio? That's not violent?” “They have a perfect world! A perfect life, and only some of them are chosen to serve the gods. It is a good life! In other worlds your people would be exploited and there would be no one to protect them! Yes, we have a class system, but it hasn't hurt you.” “How do you know what's hurt me?” Alix snapped, giving Tristan a small shove. “I 6
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want to go home! I want my family.” “Alix, please,” Tristan said, reaching for him as he backed away, “Please, I know things are confusing, but please listen to me. Let me help you!” “You think I'm a creature!” Alix nearly yelled. “Don't touch me!” “I didn't mean that, Alix! I didn't mean it that way. Listen to me! I am your master still! Listen to me! Stop! Come back!” “You are my master only when I want you to be!” Alix said over his shoulder as he walked out of the shadows they'd been in. “I am your pet only when I choose to be!” The light half blinded him when he stepped out from under the wing, but he could hear Yraine's voice clearly, hear the almost forced calm to it, and he knew it the instinct of a prey creature that she was more dangerous than he'd imagined. “Lover's quarrel?” “No,” he said. “Lord Yarrill forgets his place.” “Indeed,” she said, reaching to take Alix's hand, “Come with me, Lord Harper. We will show him what a powerful lord you are, how much you have to offer our world.” As her hand took his, he felt the chill warning of the voice he'd met in what he knew wasn't a dream. 'Run,' the voice urged, becoming much louder in his mind, 'Run! We will help you, Alix. We can help you get away.' There was in his heart the pain of Tristan's words, 'Ignorant creature.' The burn of the slap on his cheek--and he wanted to be a powerful lord, wanted to look down his nose at his beautiful read headed lover and prove that he was his equal. “I don't need his protection!” “Of course you don't, Lord Harper,” she said, drawing him up the stairs. “You are going to be the greatest lord. You are going to save us all, Lord Harper,” she purred, and he could hardly believe that she was the same woman who'd been singing with him. She was different now, so much so that one face had to be a mask. As soon as he stepped onto the entry ramp, it closed behind him. The ramp lifted away from the ground as they walked, her walking backwards, smiling at him, comforting, too much so, and he pulled back, just a little. “Can Tristan come with us, please?” “No, no,” she said, holding his hand tightly. “He wouldn't understand. He doesn't understand how things really are. You're better than he is. You understand how the world really is.” “You can tell him,” Alix said, looking back over his shoulder, and the ground seemed so far away already. Below, Tristan waved both arms at him. Alix wanted to go 7
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back to him, but then suddenly, stronger arms grabbed his shoulders. He was pulled into the shade of the shuttle, looking up into the scarred face of a man who was more narrow hardness than any lord or god he'd imagined. Thin, gray lips nearly rose into a smile. “Very good, Your Majesty. This is the contaminated one. Your world will be safe now.” “Let go of me!” Alix struggled, but they were too far inside the shuttle for anyone outside to have seen, and there was no one who would help him against the queen in any case.
**** Tristan thought he'd known pain. He'd lived through the death of his parents and the death of a beloved pet, the hatred from his sister, and worse, the loss of Misha. He'd never wanted another pet! He'd told them no! He'd even avoided his home world as much as he could to stay away from any reminders of Misha, but then he'd gotten Alix. And then he'd been running, screaming Alix's name. Offending the queen didn't matter, fines, censor, even having to live away from his family's home. He just wanted Alix back! Alix looked over his shoulder...then disappeared into the shuttle. The entrance ramp had already withdrawn and Tristan stood on the blacktop screaming at the shuttle as it prepared to depart. There were cameras on the shuttle! He felt a deepening desperation as the shuttle lifted off and away. “Alix!” “Tristan!” The response was sudden and like cold water being thrown over Tristan's growing hysteria. He literally jumped sideways from the voice, and holographic representation standing near him. “Fuck me! Mischa! Now is a bad time. Does your master know you're doing this?” Tristan said. “Are you aware of how condescending you sound, Tris? No wonder your boy thinks you're an ass, but that's beside the point. I need you to find Valentine for me. And you should call me Poison now, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, Lord Yarrill.” Tristan blinked, found tears in his eyes. Misha had been his best friend; his only real friend and the two redheads had been in so much trouble as boys that they had earned many unpleasant titles. “It's too much for me,” Tristan said, hands holding his shoulders. “I miss you so much, Mischa” 8
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“Do not pass your emotional lameness off on me, Tristan Yarrill. I am not Mischa anymore. I need you to move your sorry self. You must find Valentine for me. Tris, do this for me and I'll forgive you for failing me. Fail me in this and I'll kill you.” Tristan stared at his former friend, at the great beauty that he'd never fully considered before. Mischa was as delicate and perfect as Alix, but his coloring was more contrasting, green eyes, ruby hair, and a shiver went up the back of Tristan's neck. He had no reason to believe that a pet could harm him in any way, and yet, he knew in his gut that Mischa would do as he had promised. He turned and stalked towards the house. “What have you to do with Valentine, in any case?” “He is not well. Walk faster, Tris,” the holograph complained, as he was unable to move more than a few meters from the communication device Tristan wore. “How can you possibly know if he is well or not?” Tristan challenged as they entered the house, which seemed to empty now that Alix was gone. He paused, as if the world had gone slow motion. He knew the scent of blood. “Valentine!” he called, motioning for the stairs, which appeared in perfect timing with his steps as he ran up to the second level of his house. “Valentine!” Poison's avatar followed along, fear bleaching out his already pale face. “What is it, Tris? Tell me what you sense?” There was nothing in the study except spilled whiskey. Tristan's bedroom was another matter. He quickly dropped to his knees beside Valentine, who lay on blood soaked Persian carpet. Mischa's avatar hissed. Bullets, lasers, almost nothing could stop Valentine. Irritate him, reduce him to a mindless predator, yes, lay him out in a puddle of blood, no. There was a syringe in his neck and his head was bent a bit too far to the side, blond hair fanned out over his face, crimson soaked through his shirt from a bullet wound that shouldn't have even slowed him down. “Val,” Tristan whispered, reaching for his friend's wrist. “Idiot. He hasn't had a pulse in centuries,” Mischa complained. “Tell your house computer to give me full access.” “House, full access for Mischa Mascon,” Tristan said, mind numb with grief and confusion. “Who would do this? How could someone do this? Attack my lover in my own home. It is despicable, deplorable. What do I do?” “Be quiet, for one thing,” Mischa's avatar complained, eyes nearly rolling back in 9
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its head as Mischa's attention turned to the problem of identifying the substance in the syringe and concocting an antidote. Almost keening in his grief, Tristan moved to Valentine's other side and pulled his limp body into his arms, rocking him, fingers combing away silky blond hair before he offered his wrist to Valentine's now bloodless lips. “Tris,” Poison said, now gentle as if he knew his former friend were at the end of his endurance. “Pull the syringe from him, command your house to generate 'antidote one'.” “How can you do all this, Mischa? How can you know what to do? You were mind wiped. There was nothing left. I saw you, after. When I was trying to buy you, I saw what was left.” “Maybe blood is thicker than technology and no one knows blood better than Valentine. Trust me, Tris. Do as I ask, please?” “House, generate antidote one,” Tristan said, and the house fairy appeared holding a china plate with a small black patch on it. “I recommend caution, Master. The substance on the patch is of unrecognizable composition.” “What do I do with it, Mischa?” “Pick it up carefully by the white corner and place the dark side down on his cheek. It is then safe to touch the plastic film on the outer side. He's likely to wake up hungry. You might want to get your distance.” “I am done running,” Tristan swore, glaring at this holographic image of a friend he'd lost, not sure if this were Mischa at all, or all Poison. Still watching the other redhead, he pasted the patch down on Valentine's cheek. “Valentine wouldn't hurt me.” Poison leaned over a little. The smile on his beautiful face chilled Tristan. “You don't know your friends very well, do you?” The shift in Poison happened so suddenly, a kind of gentle confusion coming over his face, almost as if he were a completely different person. “We used to be really good friends, didn't we?” “Yeah,” Tristan said. “We did. I'm sorry, Mischa. I should have done something more. I hope you haven't been hurt.” “Do people hurt their pets?” Poison asked, coming back to totally Poison again. “Tristan, move away from him before that thing kicks in. You might think I just belong to a fat pervert, but I am a brilliant biochemist and I know Valentine's chemistry very well.” 10
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“I never said you weren't a brilliant biochemist,” Tristan snapped, feeling like the dimmest of them all, and he hated feeling that way, got aggressive when he felt that way. “I'm the captain of a ship, what does that have to do with anything?” “Quiet,” Valentine whimpered, voice ragged, his fingers reaching up to caress Tristan's face. “You are a hero, Tristan. You don't have to be anything else. Poison, stop trying to scare him. House, Pauline cocktail, large. Bloody hell, where's Alix? There were earth marines with our queen. Damn, Tris. We should have killed the bitch.” The fairy appeared, holding a golden tray with a large tumbler filled with blood red froth. Tristan helped Valentine sit up as he reached for the favorite concoction. “You can feed from me, if it will help,” Tristan said, holding the weak vampire close against him. “I'll feed from you later,” Valentine said, with a smirk, “And you as well, my heart. Beloved, you know you are my soul.” The holographic Poison crossed his arms, watching Valentine with slitted eyes. “Did I tell you that you could be polyamorous?” “No,” Valentine said with a smirk, “I dreamed you filled your house with pheromones that turned me into a ravenous beast.” “Didn't,” Poison said, one foot tapping soundlessly on Tristan's tapestry like carpet. “But that's a good idea. Dreaming? Was that why you didn't save yourself, before you had lost the strength? Dreams?” The holographic Poison flickered around the edges. “And I didn't say you could be polyamourous.” “What is he complaining about?” Tristan asked, taking the glass from Valentine's hand, holding it so he could drink. Between swallows, Valentine whispered, “He's upset because he hasn't paid attention to my loving you still. Where is Alix?” “Oh damn,” Tristan whispered. His Alix hadn't wanted to go, had begged for his help. “I made him go with Yraine. I have to get him.” “Poison, baby, did you tag the shuttle that just left?” Valentine asked, trying to push himself up a little more, one foot slipping on the carpet slicked with his own blood. “Of course, shall I have the royal defenses get rid of it?” “You can't do that,” Tristan said, old rivalry between himself and his best friend coming like second nature. “He can,” Valentine cursed, “But he's not going to.” 11
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“I'm not?” Poison asked, suddenly looking innocent beyond question. “You are not, you murderous little bastard,” Valentine said, and then Tristan understood just how much of a third wheel he was as Valentine and Poison's eyes locked. There was between them something stronger than Tristan had ever imagined. “We will go after them and I will break her neck myself if anything has happened to Alix.” Valentine pushed himself up to one knee then unsteadily to his feet. “But I know him through your heart and memory, too. He deserves a chance to live and grow.” Poison opened his eyes. “The shuttle is headed for a larger ship, bound for a secure research station,” he said, reciting information by rote, until his personality clicked back into the hologram. “I believe they mean to vivisect the little beauty. He's been contaminated by a non-earth originating species. Very interesting. I do want to meet this pet.” “You stay away from him,” Tristan said, suddenly not sure where anyone stood, hardly aware of the tears on his face. “He's not just a pet! He's a lord now!” “Oh, and one word by someone who couldn't tie her own shoes makes the law on who isn't and isn't a pet? You're a moron!” Holographic Poison growled with a rage that drove Tristan back. “Maybe!” Tristan raged back, barely noticing as Valentine took a couple steps back, so as not to be in between two old friends. “Maybe all I am is just a normal man! I'm not immortal and I'm not brilliant! I'm not a beautiful singer and I'm not real kind and not everyone likes me! I'm just a man. That's all I bloody am! Just a man!” Poison scratched the side of his mouth, eyes half hooded. Valentine relaxed. That was the look of amusement. “Gentlemen, can we argue of our merits later? I think that I should like to give some marines back what they so kindly gave me.” “Oh goodie,” Poison smirked. “We're always in for fun when you start talking like an historical, Valentine love!” “What kind of fighter craft do you keep, Tris?” “What do you mean fighter craft? The Raver is armed with half a dozen one person fighters, but it's too far.” “Poison?” “I'm on it,” said the slender redhead. “Tris, I'm going to need access to your accounts. I will need energy to do this quickly.” “Give him what he needs,” Valentine said, peeling out of his ruined shirt. “House, 12
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shirt.” The fairy appeared again, a folded white shirt on the golden tray. Tristan sank down into one of his blood-splattered chairs. “Take what you need,” he said, his consent trigging the opening of his bank accounts to Poison. Alix had been taken by the military, and not their little home world military. His sweet Alix. He saw him in his mind, blue hair swirling around him in the water, eyes full of love and hope, so smart, so creative and daring.
**** Alix stopped struggling, went limp, tears clinging to his face. “Why?” The royal shuttle held one very uncomfortable queen and two dozen soldiers that easily out massed both her and Alix combined. Powerful creatures that Alix had to remind himself had to be human. They wore hard shell coverings of gray, silver markings on them. One of them held Alix easily, lifting him almost off his feet, hard metal hands bruising his arms. The man in front of him was small compared to the others, dark hair, short and spiked. He had a sharp nose and dark eyes. “Because you're sleeping with the enemy, so to speak. But then you like sleeping with anything that can overpower you, don't you? Isn't that what you're bred to like?” “You mustn't hurt him!” Yraine spat, her hands in fists at her side. “He is a lord of our world! He has all the rights of any of my subjects! He will help you with what you need to know, as you asked! But you mustn't threaten him.” Long fingers reached out and caressed Alix's cheek, combing through silky blue hair. “They're not threats. He will tell us all he knows and then we will cut him up into cells, and cut up those for traces of the Di'Jigh. He should be grateful if death finds him before we reach Evers Station.” “You can't do that,” Yraine said taking a step forward, until one of the marines caught her by the back of her dress and pulled her down into his lap. “Let go of me!” “Now, now, Yraine,” the nameless representative from Earth said. “You should be grateful. We are taking you into protective custody. You'll be safe from the war on Evers as well. Earth promised you protection for your cooperation, did we not?” “Protection for my world! My people!” “I have heard you say more than once that you are Centri’menimas. Must save money anywhere we can. You, yourself, are actually a very interesting specimen. Without 13
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you, did you realize that most of the military will not be able to fully function? I love subspecies of humanity. Very interesting evolution on this world. Without you to command them, this world will come under our control and protection very easily.” “Valentine will kill you when I tell him to!” Yraine screamed, growing hysterical now as the shuttle obviously went too high to be headed back towards the capital. “Oh, but your majesty,” he said with mock respect, “We know how to deal with simple vampires. Did you really think we'd give you money for something as simple as a vampire?” The man holding her in his lap hissed, baring very real fangs. Yraine screamed, eyes suddenly wide and filled with fear. Alix wasn't sure he could make himself speak and he understood well that this woman had betrayed him, that his master had probably betrayed him as well. It was a pain that he would have to push away for that moment. It was not his way to allow pain to anyone. When he did speak, his voice was soft, inviting. “You don't want her. She'll only fight and cry,” he said, standing a little straighter, legs parted, lips parted. “I'm much more fun than she is.” “I bet you are,” Nameless said, fingers caressing down Alix's throat as his other hand came up under the thin shirt Alix wore. “You don't mind getting fucked by all of us? Is it okay if she watches? We can send photos back to your old lover?” The taunt wasn't serious, but Alix could pick up the thread of exploration in the man's voice. Perhaps it wasn't serious only because he wasn't sure he could manage to do it, or because of some other inhibition. “I bet you could do it, if she wasn't watching. Lock her in her room, and just let her listen. Then it's just you and your men, and me, and I'm just a pet. It's like being alone with a fantasy.” “My, my, aren't you the daring little prisoner? We can do anything we want with you, you know that?” “Yes, but I can make it more fun for you,” Alix lied. He didn't really know how he might be able to do that, but he was willing to bet he could try, if it would protect someone who had less chance of protecting herself. “Such a shame,” Nameless said, so close that Alix could smell the metallic odor to his breath. The man twisted one of Alix's nipples hard, hard enough to bring tears to Alix's eyes. “If only you were not contaminated, I would have enjoyed owning you.” “Sir,” a female voice said, from the far end of the cabin. “There are two small 14
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vessels of unknown design in pursuit.” “Really?” he said, his other hand cupping Alix's groin, massaging roughly. “Evade them. We can make the jump long before they reach us. When we are back aboard the Russell, nothing on this world could catch us. If they get close, just shoot them down.” “My ship is not armed,” Yraine said spitefully, lifting her chin. The man she sat on stood, dumping her onto the floor. “I will handle them, but then the woman is mine for a while.” “As it pleases you,” Nameless said, giving his captain a nod. It was his master, Alix knew it! It was his master who was coming for him. “My master is coming for me.” “Your master is nothing,” Nameless snarled, delivering a stinging slap to Alix's face. “Show us a display, ship.” The wall to the aft became a display, and there were two little teardrop dagger-shaped ships, one red, one black. According to the screen, they would reach intercept range in only four minutes, so they had to be moving at insane speeds. Frightened beyond thought, Alix thought maybe, maybe his master really was a god. The ship he was in might have been unarmed, but the warriors in it weren't, and somehow the man who'd said he'd take care of the ships had got to where he could do that. The man had exited the little shuttle and was shooting at his Master! White-hot laser lashed out, twisting as it cut through the supersonic speeds the ships were traveling at. “Which one do you think is your master?” Nameless purred against Alix's ear, as Alix tried not to fight against the impossibly hard hands holding him. “Red or black? Has he left any tightness in your ass?” “Don't hurt him, please,” Alix begged. “I'll do anything you ask, please!” “Love. Such a waste.” Both little ships veered off, evading the beam. “Follow the red, that's his master. The vampire is easy to deal with and I wouldn't mind taking him alive.” His master wasn't a god. He knew that more deeply than anything had ever touched him. His master would die, burned and shattered from that weapon this nameless monster had, and he forgive his master for making him go, forgave him for not understanding. He loved him and he was just a man. Tears blurring his vision, he opened the door to the voices he'd first heard on his master's ship. 15
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They were there; he knew they were, still. He pried open the door in his mind and felt. He felt his body go limp, sagging in the hands that now shook him. His body was far away from him, though, all time seemed to stop as he awareness rose out of the fleeing little shuttle. Stars fields stretched out around him, vast and lovely, millions of colors and lights and songs, and he felt the voices around him. It wasn't as overwhelming as it had been before. He didn't dissolve into them. He couldn't dissolve into the beauty of 'them' because he needed to save his Master now; he needed and knew who he was. “It is not something you can undo,” the clearest voice said. “We will need you as much as you need us now.” Below him, he could see the queen's shuttle moving so slow like a graceful ballet as the two smaller ships, his master and Valentine, wove around it. All of their feelings were open to him and he knew his master's love, Valentine's love, Yraine's fear, Nameless' greed, even the fear and struggle in the voices, the energy around him, and he understood now why they hadn't accepted him before. He'd been looking for a god then, still, subconsciously. He would keep responsibility for himself. The killing light hit the red ship, tearing off the nose and Alix watched the metal tear in slow motion. “I accept and I will help you as well.” “You are not the strongest choice,” the clear voice said, “But we will accept you. You must find the monarch. It is fallen to this world and will die without physical joining with you. Use well what we offer you, Alix. It is not an endless gift.” The next voice he heard was Nameless', and greed quickly turned to fear in the man's voice. “Oh shit! He's completed a join! Kill him!”
**** The impact of the beam knocked Tristan into a spin. One minute he was falling, his oxygen torn away and blackness faster over his mind than regret. He'd failed in this one final thing and he was falling. He'd never believed in life after death, but he wanted to suddenly, wanted there to be a tunnel of light and Alix already waiting there for him. So they'd find some way back to The Raver. Light did wrap around him, warm and somehow smelling of his Alix. He could remember hiding his face in Alix's hair, the clean smell of Alix's skin as they'd lain in bed, talking about things Alix had read. He'd given Alix too much freedom, and now, floating in the light, he wished he'd given him more. Freedom seemed so precious now. The slap hit his face with a sting and his eyes blinked open. Valentine was dead, 16
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too? And heaven looked a lot like a royal shuttle in violet and gold? “Wake the hell up, Tris!” Valentine growled. The vampire squatted by him, blood in his blond hair, primal viciousness in his eyes. “I need you to witness.” “I said I'd do it,” Yraine said. She, too, had her share of blood on her clothes and hair, and Tristan was sure she'd never be quite who she'd been before. As he moved, he found his Alix lying near him, sleeping peacefully. “What happened?” “Your boy is bad ass,” Valentine said, with a smirk. “Knew there was a reason I liked him. Her Majesty was just about to declare Poison to be a lord again, weren't you, Your Majesty?” Very careful of how he slipped his arm from under the sleeping Alix, Tristan moved to his knees. “Yes, please do that, Majesty. We have saved your life. Give us this gift.” “You have saved our whole world,” she said, as if she had finally decided to really do what was asked of her. “I do agree to give you this reward. The creature known as Poison hereby is returned to his former name as Mischa Mascon. He is not heir to the Mascon family; that will continue through his uncle, unless he has no heirs. I am grateful for rescue.” “You bloody well ought to be,” Valentine snapped, teeth slightly on edge as he wasn't going to get to kill her. Tristan was much more interested in Alix though. He touched his face tenderly. “Alix, wake up.” There was not a drop of blood on his Alix. His hair, such a lovely pale blue, lay around his face and it was just as if he slept, but he did not wake. “Don't worry. Mischa can find out what's wrong with him. He might just be tired.” Valentine said, as if he were praising him. “What did he do?” “He killed the marines. All of them.” “We are at war,” Yraine said softly. “All of us must defend our world--lord, pet, commoner.” Valentine didn't say anything, and Tristan wasn't sure if Valentine was going to kill their queen or not. There were so many things he wasn't sure of, like how he got out of his ruined little ship, how he got to be laying here next to Alix, but it felt like he had a second 17
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chance at life. He had his Alix and he would fight anything to protect him.
**** Elizabet Yarrill knew nothing of what her brother had just done. She knew only that her accounts were empty, so she sat there, staring at the information screen. Empty. The family had even mortgaged her club. If she had wanted to kill her brother before, now, this rage made her earlier murderous thoughts look like sisterly love. “Oh, Tris. Just wait till I get done with you.”
**** Poison pulled back from the interface to the network. His heart raced, body chemistry unbalanced by the prolonged heavy network manipulation. All he knew was his Valentine was alive, and that's all that mattered to him. His body ached and he kicked his chair back into a reclining position. Laying there in jeans, bare feet, long red hair around him like a blanket, that was when the first flashback hit him. He was young, the world smelled of smoke and wet stone and there was Valentine, human, just coming through the far door of a ruined church. His Valentine, the flush of life in his cheeks, the moonlight at his back, dressed like a lord when he wasn't. His Valentine's voice was so clear in his memory, “You are as beautiful as the first day I met you.” Poison took a slow breath, remembered dreams he had had as a young man, before his life had been ended by laws that wouldn't bend, when he'd been Mischa. He never let himself sleep now, just rest, putting himself into a sleep too deep to dream. Now, exhausted, he fought sleep and the coming dreams, but they won. Miran. He'd never been that nice. Wasn't possible. As he lost his battle with sleep, he messaged Valentine, “Come home soon. I need you.”
**** Jira fired her retro burners lightly, pulling out of the exit with too much velocity. Hands moving over the controls like a maniac, she started scanning for Tanin or Arin's frequency. The helpful AI in her ship suggested the largest chuck of debris would be a good anchor, and she agreed. “Jira?” Arin's voice came over the comm. “You fucker,” she screamed, deploying cables to the ship she'd picked for her anchor. “You better be alive.” 18
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“Fuck you back,” Tanin said cheerfully over Arin's comm. “Hi Jira! Did you come to save us from falling into the sun?” “We were not going to fall into the sun,” Arin's voice said calmly, like the gangster he was, able to face down Death, making even the end think he had a better hand of cards. “But suffocation is just as bad. Jira, you gonna tie on so we can come visit you.” “How's home?” “Home's gone, Tanin. Suit up, no time for blowing each other. I got a crate and we have to hit planet side fast if we're going to do it in one piece.” “Was that a sexual reference?” Arin asked, still calm for a man about to run out of air in the wreckage of an enemy ship. “Wasn't,” Jira said, finishing her ad hoc docking. “But if you don't get your ass over here, I'm going to do you with a spanner.” Arin laughed, but she could hear Tanin muttering, slightly offended. Tanin was the best of them, the doctor, the healer, the bright-eyed flower child. In darker times, he would have been the maid that Arin and Jira would have fought to win the hand of. Then she heard his breath catch, heard the soft moan, and her heart stopped, fingers caressing the little black speaker that was as close as she could get to her lovers. Tanin muttered something she couldn't make out, and then Arin followed, words clipped, pained. “There is a new queen. We are summoned. Make ready to receive us, Jira.” That was the best news she could have imagined. They were both coming. A new queen–she didn't know anything about that, or really care. Her home was coming back to her and that was all that mattered.
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~*~
Taken by pirates. Squirrel had been had been prepared for the worst before the cargo ship he was on was attacked. He was going to die. There was nothing he could do to get out of it. He'd tried. It wasn't that he wasn't beautiful anymore, but no one needs a blind pet, let alone a nineteen year old, sexually untrained, historian pet. His body was lean, the lines on his stomach tight, and his hair was soft and long, curling naturally around his slender body. He was told it was brown, sable, deep and golden. His eyes matched, dark brown with golden flecks. When he felt his face, it was heart shaped with full lips and long lashes, a small nose. He had been the pet of a noble master, a scholar in his own right, and now...now he was the prize of a pirate. Alone in the dark, leather cuffs holding his wrists out to the side with not enough slack to move at all, he waited. His legs were apart too, held in wide leather cuffs that left his balls and cock hanging unprotected, left his virgin ass open to whatever beating or use the pirates could think of. He cried silent tears as he waited, wishing he at least knew what would come to him. Sexuality had been inhibited in him while his young master lived, but for the last month he had not had those drugs and he feared the response his body might give to some ignoble pirate! He would fight them! He would! Squirrel whimpered as he pulled at his restraints...fearing they were just waiting to do him in.... Or he was going to be sold to someone awful! Evander strode through the door to his quarters impatiently. He wasn’t in the mood for guessing games and his crew was being unnecessarily vague about what they’d captured on their last raid. He only knew they’d put a “special prize” in his quarters. He was almost at his sleep chamber door when he heard the choked whimpering. It was as if whoever was in his room was fighting…fighting fear. The very thought caused him to harden instantly. 20
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A pet! They’d captured a pet for him to use…Was there any chance it would be a pet worthy of more than one ride? Doubtful, but he’d see. A smile played about his mouth as he moved through the door, only to have it frozen on his face. What a beautiful pet this was. Arms cuffed and stretched out and above him and legs cuffed and spread as well. Fear had caused an erection in this sweet little pet--Evander noticed that almost immediately. His gazed traveled up the lean body to the sweet face of the youngster and he stepped forward. The pet’s eyes were open, tears of fear streaking down his face. His head whipped toward Evander, sable hair swirling about like billowing satin. “Shhh,” Evander reached out and stroked the smooth, shiny mass of silk flowing from the crown and well past the waist of the beautiful young pet. “You look at me in terror, pet, am I that frightening to behold?” The man didn't know. Squirrel had an edge, though he didn't know how long he'd keep it. He tried to pull away from the hand touching his hair, knowing him so intimately. “Don't touch me! I am for noble hands only. You will free me at once!” And yes, he was hard; his smaller cock erect and swaying as he struggled against his restraints. He would not have dared to speak so to someone in the city, but here he would speak as he wished. Evander chuckled richly, amused at the reckless bravado of the fierce little beauty. “Ahhh, noble hands only is it?” He stepped closer to the pet, sinking a hand into the thick waving hair and cupping the fragile skull. “And lips, my little plaything? Noble lips only as well?” He leaned forward and brushed the forehead with his lips feeling his new pet’s pounding pulse. Closer still, he brushed one open palm down a chained arm, over lightly muscled ribs and stopped at the thin hip, his fingers closing over it, thumb stroking the prominent pelvic bone. The little pet twisted in his restraints. Evander gave him scant time to react before his lips covered the soft sweet mouth. Squirrel had imagined his first kiss and this was nothing like the simple, basic thing that he'd imagined. He caught his breath, and without warning, there was a tongue in his mouth, gentle and probing. He turned his head one way, then the other, but the chains and the hand on his head held him. His tongue ran from the tongue taking his mouth, and his 21
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body went tight, responding to the kiss, even though his mind resisted, frightened and confused about the change in his position. Evander felt the resistance. The young pet acted as if…as if he’d never been touched before by a noble or any other. And sweet, he was so sweet. The taste was vanilla ice cream and his mother’s cookies with the chocolate contraband she’d bought at black market prices just to treat him. The lovely, succulent mouth moving under his own, the frightened tongue trying to outrun him, it was all so intoxicating. Slowly he began to ease the heady kiss, lightly tracing the pet’s cleft with the fingers of one hand. Gently he pulled his hand from the spun satin and began to unbutton his tunic. “My beautiful pet, fit only for the touch of royal hands, I shall instead touch you with my body. What say you to that, little lovely?” His hand dropped away from the warm and inviting parting he’d been fingering. He stepped away completely, eyeing the weeping organ that seemed to seek his warmth as a flower turns toward the sun’s rays. Panting, Squirrel bent one knee, then the other, making his cock sway. His balls were tight and he was bound up in the intensity of desire. It frightened him nearly, how badly he wanted something, without knowing what it was he wanted. He'd just never thought much about sexuality, as that had not been what his keepers had wished. Once someone had told him that if he were bad, he'd be taken and ridden by one of the other, larger pets and he feared now that was what was about to happen. “Please, I can be valuable. I know many stories and I know much history. I can write well and I'm good at computer research. I can be an asset to you.” “Is that so, my pet?” Evander crooned, reaching out and stroking the swaying penis with one finger. “You can tell me stories and history?” He stepped closer, kicking off his boots and unfastening his pants. “That does intrigue me, yes,” he murmured, cupping the soft, lightly furred balls drawn tight. "Shall I stop touching you then?" The touch to his penis frightened him! He wasn't trained! He didn't know anything about having sex or how to please a pirate and he shivered, one ankle turning a little as if he could try to work a foot free. “No, no, you see, I'm just a companionship pet, that's all, and I wouldn't know how to provide pleasure at all. So see? I'm hardly any use for that.” “That is a shame, such a shame,” Evander tsked. 22
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He stepped forward, naked now, he moved against the bound body splayed in front of him. He was painfully hard and more attracted to this pet than he had ever been to any other. “I would hate to see you discarded--such a beautiful pet. What can I do, though? I would like a companion, but I need pleasure as well.” He reached around, caressing the waist of his new pet with one hand and teasing his crack with a wicked finger or two. His hard cock rubbed the rigid cock of the pet and he fought the sparks of desire shooting through him as he murmured, “I’m afraid someone will use you for such things, little pet. Ah well, I could teach you, but…” Squirrel went pale. The size of the manhood was much larger than his own, much too large. And he twisted to get away from the fingers caressing the very sensitive crack between his cheeks. He knew what was there, where that huge cock would be going, and he didn't want to, but tears started again, flowing down his cheeks. “No, no, no one will want me for that. I am not built to accommodate such attention and pleasure! If I were, someone would have wanted me in the city! Please, please, don't.” As he squirmed, his own hard cock brushed against the man pressed to him, caressing the very sensitive tip of his own manhood, making him have to fight not to moan. “Such pretty tears, pet. Do you know how beautiful you are?” Evander insinuated a long finger between the cheeks and caressed the puckered hole. “Nobody in the city ever tried to take you? I find that hard to believe.” Once again he moved away from the pet, this time to find a bolus capsule to ease his entry. Returning, he explained, “This will ease the entry for me and you will stretch to accommodate my width.” He moved behind the pet now, parting his quivering cheeks with one hand and pressing the capsule against the resistant opening. “I am not of interest that way. My master was very young,” he spoke as soon as the pirate had stepped way. His words had obviously saved him again. It was a moment until the man returned, a moment in which Squirrel had a chance to consider that he was alive...and maybe, just maybe, he might stay that way. “What? What is it?” The unseen object was hard, rounded at the tip, and it pressed against him. He'd never felt so exposed and his hips moved, forward, back, side to side, anything to get away from the unknown object pressing into him, but the tip quickly melted, coating the tight red 23
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circle, and allowing entry if his new Master wished to push. “What is it? What will it do? Please don't hurt me!” “Perhaps you weren’t of any interest to your old master in that way, pet. But you are of much interest to me. This capsule will not hurt you, but yes, when I enter you here,” he slid two fingers into the tight hole and slowly turned them. “It will hurt the first time. It will hurt at first and you will cry.” He pulled his fingers out and slid one long digit back in, turning, searching as he whispered into his new pet’s ear, rubbing his burning shaft on a velvet soft side. “I will try to make you enjoy our coupling my pet, but know that your tears are as precious as pearls to me and I cherish them as well.” He pulled his finger out and pushed it slowly in again, deeper, feeling the pet tense and then--he knew--he’d found it. He was going to be taken! He'd never expected it! And he cried big tears as he tried to pull away from the finger exploring him. It touched the very sensitive soft sides inside him and he whimpered, his cock so hard and he didn't know what he was feeling, didn't understand! The two fingers together made his ring of muscle stretch and burn and he tried to clamp himself too small and tight. “It hurts! Stop!” And that was only half-true as those fingers slid over some spot in him, it was...painful still from the entrance, but sweet as well...and the pain and pleasure mixed and confused him even more. “Owwww,” he nearly begged, his legs wide and his ass there for the use of his new master. “Yes, baby pet, cry, cry because it hurts,” Evander cooed, kissing a smooth shoulder as he moved in behind the new pet. “I will join with you if you cry or if you do not, sweet baby pet. Shall I keep you for my own or will you go to another after tonight? That is the only choice I will give you and more than most pets ever get.” He rested his burning length against the crevice he would soon enter and wrapped a hand lightly, teasingly around the pet’s hardness. “If you will be mine, I would know your name, pet. If not, it little matters, does it?” He fingered the cock in his hand, playing with the slit, waiting to hear an answer. But he would only wait a moment. Squirrel sobbed, mixed in the confusion of pain and pleasure and desire. “My name 24
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is Squirrel, but please, you are so big! I cannot take you in! Train me to be a good pet to you, please Master. Please, teach master, but please, Master, do not hurt me! It will hurt when you put yourself into me!” He rambled, breathless, instinct making him thrust forward into the hand around his cock. “It will hurt so good, my baby Squirrel,” Evander positioned the bulbous head of his cock at the tiny entrance and pushed. At first the small pucker resisted, but too much oil leaked from it and slowly he made his way in, until finally the round head of his cock breached the tight ring. “No!” Squirrel cried, his ring screaming fire as it was opened, spread without his permission as the large manhood penetrated him. His fingers clawed at the air and he sucked breath, telling himself it would ease, “Please! Master! It hurts! Please! Please touch me! I ache for your touch, Master! Why does it feel good when it hurts?” And his body tried to expel the wand of power within him. And his body responded as it was created to do, warming around his Master, bending to him. The more he cried, the more it hurt, the more excited he was. Squirrel was a perfect pet. Evander continued to lightly squeeze Squirrel’s hard cock and fondle his balls as he relentlessly pressed forward, filling the tight channel. “My sweet baby Squirrel,” he crooned, kissing his neck and shoulders and nuzzling his hair, “It feels good because your body wants it so much, needs it, needs me to fill it back here, just here as I am,” he continued to push into his new pet, the tightness caressing and massaging his burning length to the point that he could barely speak. “Needs this?” Squirrel was still crying, sobbing as he now struggled to get away from the penetration, and without realizing it, thrusting back towards the fullness that spread him. “I don't understand,” Squirrel whimpered, and he didn't, how it could hurt and feel so exciting? “I think I'm going to break,” he whispered, and he meant the rising pleasure in him, how his balls were so tight and his belly was tight, and he was falling into a pit of pleasure and pain. Orgasm danced around him, waiting to make its introduction. “Ahhh,” Evander moaned as the sweet, sobbing, and twisting body forced itself onto him until he could go no deeper. With one hand he continued to lightly fondle the new pet’s cock and sacks while, with the other, he gently pinched the hard little nipples on the hairless chest. “I could love you, I think, sweet, innocent little Squirrel,” he murmured, licking the shell like ear. “If ever you break at my hands, sweet pet, I will put you back together 25
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again.” Slowly he drew back and inexorably pushed his way back into the impossibly tight heat, closing his hand around the throbbing erection of his pet. “How does that feel, my sweet? Shall I stop now?” he pushed forward until he was as deep as he could be. “Have you had all you care to of my attentions?” Squirrel was so close to...something! He didn't know what it was. He moaned. It ached, the penetration, the hunger, and he wanted his master's touches to be firmer again, not light, not soft. “More! Please, Master, touch me more. But it hurts, why?” As his Master thrust deep into him again, he groaned. Still crying, he whimpered, “Master! Help me!” Evander pulled back and plunged forward, at the same time tightening his grip on Squirrel’s cock. “I will always help you my baby, always. Especially when you cry so beautifully and beg so sweetly.” He increased the speed of his thrusts, pumping his hand up and down on Squirrel’s hot erection at the same time. He felt the flesh around him tighten as he bit lightly on the shoulder in front of him. “Come for me, lovely baby,” he gritted, fighting to hold off and massaging the throbbing member in his hand. “I don't know how!” Squirrel cried. His entrance didn't hurt anymore and there was a deeper pleasure when his master moved within him now, stroking some secret spot that he'd never known existed. Every time the full head of his master's cock slid over that spot his body hummed with pleasure. Each stroke of his Master's hands pushed closer, but he didn't know what would happen. When it did, it flashed out of him, ejaculating over his master's hand. It was as if the world had condensed down into a single ball of light. He screamed, both from fear and pleasure. “Master!” The clamping tightness of the sheath around him sent white-hot sparks up and down Evander’s spine and closed fist-tight around his balls, squeezing, squeezing and his thrusts became short and erratic. “Yessss, my perfect baby, yesss,” he groaned, emptying himself deep inside his sweet pet. He still held Squirrel tight with one hand while, with the other hand, he clumsily reached up and released the cuffs around the pet’s hands. Still holding the insensible form, he carefully squatted down and released his ankles. That task completed, Evander carried 26
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Squirrel to the bed and laid him on his stomach. He moved to the nearby basin and returned with a warm cloth to bathe him. This would always be a service he performed for his pet. A small gratitude for the pleasure they shared. Always? Would Squirrel always be his pet? He found himself thinking of the next day and the next. He would learn more of this new pet. For one more day at least, he would keep him. Squirrel reached out, feeling the bed, searching for the edges of his new world. Soft sheets, comfortable bed, and he was reaching, searching. “Master? Where did you go? What are you doing?” Evander was poised above the slim, beautiful, and bare body of his new pet when Squirrel began to search for him. Search for him? Evander’s eyes narrowed. He sank to the mattress beside his little pet and carefully began to wipe him off. “I’m cleaning you, my pet…didn’t you see me at the counter? Perhaps you’d like to go on your own to wash your hands and face? I can’t use this cloth on you there now that it has our juices on it.” He was such a clever pet, so precious and precocious. Evander was a little in love with him already, he was, he knew. What was this little pet hiding? His sweet voice had held panic, urgency. Why? He ran his open palm down the smooth back and caressed the soft globe under his hand. “Shall we sleep, little pet or would you like to wash by yourself?” Evander purred solicitously, still suspicious. Squirrel sat up, feeling for the edge of the bed. He didn't know what to say, what to do, or what his master would say. What they'd just done was...something Squirrel would have to think about a little, but wanted to try again. And being a pleasure pet was a lot better than being a dead pet, by a long shot. He didn't want his new master to find out he was blind until he'd decided to keep him. Chewing his lip, he moved back towards his master, laying back down, lifting his naked bottom in an instinctive offering. "I would like, whatever you would like, Master. Perhaps you can teach me another way to pleasure you!" “Hmm, little pet. Pleasure me another way? There are many ways you can pleasure me.” Against his will, Evander found his hand straying toward the rounded globes presented to him so pleasingly. “You have pleasured me a great deal already this night.” He stretched alongside the soft young body and drew him into his arms, his hands 27
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traveling across the silken flesh. He settled the willing little pet into the crook of his arm, fighting his own tiredness after a long day. “Can you think of no way to please me my inquisitive Squirrel? Show me how useful you are with your hands and tomorrow, I will teach you what to do with you sweet mouth.” Evander half expected the little pet to lull him to sleep. He still didn't know if he would keep him. This would be a test of sorts. If his new pet kept his attention, he would keep him a while. Would this reluctant pet touch him? Would he even try to pleasure him? Evander had his doubts. Better to find out now how repugnant this pet found him before he allowed himself to become attached. Should he decide to make this one his own, he would find soon enough how much Evander liked to dominate. For now, he wanted to see how willing Squirrel was to be his pet. Squirrel rolled, caressing with his knee until he was on his side and could reach for him with cautious fingers, searching for his master's face. Evander found himself turning his face into the fingers that touched him. He’d forgotten how much he missed the willing touch of another. Or had he ever known such a thing? Squirrel’s fingers move over the surfaces of his master's face. Before he had only seen his young master. “You are beautiful.” “Pretty words,” Evander sighed, gathering the warm body closer. “Sweet words. Thank you for them.” He smiled slightly and kissed Squirrel’s forehead. Squirrel smiled, eyes closed. "So what would be required of a pleasure pet, master? Maybe I could learn." "Pleasure pet, hmm?" Evander chuckled, "You think you can learn, do you? Touch me where I touched you," he instructed. "Did my touch feel good to you?" he asked, not waiting for a response. "It can be complicated sometimes, making my body feel good and my mind as well. You must do as you’re told, pet, but you must always tell me the truth. To lie to me, to hide things–that will earn you severe punishments. Spankings.” "But Master, you touched me in so many places. Like here," he said, fingers trailing down towards his master's chest, and lower, around towards the curve of his ass. "And how should I hide anything from you? You are my master and you must know everything about me already, right?" 28
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“Mmm, your touch pleases me, yes. Touch me here,” he moved the smaller hand to cover his rejuvenating length. “I would know your mind as well as your body.” He thrust up slightly against the fine-boned hand. “I sense even now you hide something from me.” Confession time...but Squirrel was actually enjoying the play. "How could I possibly hide something from you? Am I not here, naked? Completely yours for anything you may wish to do with me? Bind me? Touch me; ride me again? Kiss me." And these were the things in Squirrel's mind, "Where can I hide something from you, Master? Do you not see me as I am?" “Mmmm,” groaned Evander, loving the feel of his pet’s hand on him. His pet. His. Yes… he would keep this crafty and clever little sweet. Evander rolled atop Squirrel and covered his mouth with his own lips. Touching, tasting, how he loved the exploration of this sweet pet. His hands traveled up Squirrel’s sides and one cupped his hip while the other caressed his clavicle. He couldn’t help who he was. He was dominant. That was it. The young pet’s sex caressed his own, not as soft now, and Evander’s hand slid over to cover it, fondling as he rubbed against him. “Yes, pet, I see you. I feel you, I taste you,” he murmured into Squirrel’s mouth. "Taste me, touch me, I touch you!" Squirrel said, eyes closed, hands seeking out his master's sex, his master's face with his other hand. "I like this! I want to stay here with you and be your pet!" “Ohhh, yes, little pet,” Evander groaned as he surged against Squirrel, loving the silky softness and hardness of his smaller cock. When he felt the small hand wrap around his burning length he gritted his teeth against the urge to come. “Yesss,” he hissed, “MINE!” he growl-roared. “Nobody else, ever! You understand?” he thrust again into the small, tight hand, caressing and massaging Squirrel ’s cock and balls carefully, masterfully in contrast to the feeling of urgency he wrestled within himself. He would not let go until his pet succumbed to him. "Yours," Squirrel purred, so excited, so warm inside as he said it. His hips squirmed, moving with small thrusts towards his master's caress, as he continued to hold and touch his master. "Yours in all ways." Did he love him? Evander couldn’t consider that now. He wanted him--the second time in less than an hour he wanted this pet. Wanted him more than he’d ever wanted another. 29
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The smaller male body thrust against him, Squirrel’s elegant and diminutive physique as exiting to him as his own ability to dominate. He felt himself approach the precipice. “Come, Squirrel, come for your Master,” he ordered, his voice harsh and rough. He was so close. And he wanted to! His body had been drugged against such passions for all his life though, and he had little experience with learning to push himself over the edge. He wanted to, to reach for that pinnacle, and he closed his eyes and pointed his toes and panted, and did not cum. “Come for me, little pet,” Evander growled. Yes, he wanted them both to be satisfied, but it was more than that. He nipped at Squirrel’s lips, reveling in the whimper he felt from the smaller body. Nipping his way down the thin young torso, he stalled long enough to suckle one hard nipple and then the other, quickly continuing his journey. Before the new pet could so much as groan, Evander enveloped his hard member in his own hot mouth. “Come now or go to another master,” he rasped around the tube of flesh, then sucking hard. “No master! Please!" Sensation traveled down his body, and the command, there was something in him that responded to it, responded to the threatened humiliation of being given away, and he came, ass cheeks tightening, entrance tingling, as his pet nature woke and carried him into the orgasm. Evander swallowed the gush of salty semen that spurted into his mouth, finally allowing himself to release against the soft sheet at the end of the bed. “Mine,” he mumbled, kissing his way up one sleepy Squirrel thigh. “Mine,” he declared to no one, since his satiated and exhausted pet had fallen quickly to sleep. Satisfied himself, he gathered the lovely body against his own mumbling “Mine” into Squirrel’s hair one last time before following him into sleep.
**** Evander woke sleepily and murmured to his new pet, “Squirrel, bring me a cloth from the basin.” “Yes, Master," Squirrel crawled out of the bed and felt his way across to the counter. Felt? Evander wondered why he was feeling instead of walking quickly to do his 30
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bidding. "Pet!" he barked "Yes, Master? Is something wrong?" Squirrel turned, reaching behind him for a solid surface. “Yes, pet, I need something from my tunic, right away!" he responded, pointing. Squirrel reached in front of him, searching for something to guide him. "Which direction, Master?" he fretted. Slipping from the bed, Evander stopped in front of the confused pet, still inching his way across the room. It was obvious the young pet couldn’t see his tunic. If he took another step, he'd be standing on it. "Pet," he growled, "What have you kept from me?" "Kept from you?" Squirrel evaded, "What do you mean? How could I keep anything from you?" In one fluid move, Evander’s arm snaked around Squirrel’s waist and molded the slight male body against his own. He gripped a handful of long silky hair and jerked the younger man’s head back. “What color are my eyes, pet?” He rasped. “Get it right or you will be a common pet for use by all. Every man among us is to use you as he sees fit. Is that your choice pet? You think so little of belonging to me you will lie and hide yourself from me?” Evander was truly furious now. Terrified now, Squirrel struggled against the powerful arm that held him even as his body rose to the passion of the possession. "Master! I don't know what color your eyes are! I can't see! Please don't throw me away! The problem can't be fixed, and no one needs a blind pet. I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please, I can learn this area. I can learn to serve you well, Master." Evander felt himself harden against the pliant body of his weeping pet. Blind… This beautiful and intelligent pet is blind… Somehow the thought of it just excited him more. This pet needed him and would need him for everything. He was smart and sufficient enough that he could meet many of his own needs, but he’d certainly need Evander’s benevolence, his strength, his protection. “You have been so very naughty, little Squirrel,” he rumbled down to the shivering pet. “You will be spanked until your cheeks feel aflame. And then you shall feel me deep inside you again. Afterwards, I will rub soothing cream on you if you are good. But only then. And so far it seems you do not intend to be good at all. Even spanked I don’t think I 31
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should keep a lying pet….” he trailed off. "But I didn't lie, Master!" Squirrel said, trying to hold still. He'd never been really spanked before, and wasn't sure why the thought made him hard now. "I just didn't disclose." "You might not have wanted me, if you'd known," Squirrel whispered. “You are a pet, Squirrel. It isn’t for you to decide what I might or might not have wanted,” he answered, though secretly, he had to agree. “It little matters, you are mine. And I will not have my pet keep things from me. I will forgive you this time, but one more episode of subterfuge and your punishment will be dire, do you understand me?” As he spoke, he led Squirrel to the door of his sleep chamber and into the sitting room. “This is the spanking chair and you will make sure you know where it is in relation to all other places in our home.” He sat holding Squirrel against the side of his legs. “Answer me! Do you understand you will be straightforward and open with me from now on?” "Yes, master," he said, nodding. "I will be open with you, but how will I know what you wish to know and what you do not? Do you really want to spank me? I will obey you without making you punish me. I don't know how I should behave while being spanked. It sounds painful, Master." Evander fought not to grin before it occurred to him that he could and his clever pet wouldn’t know it. “Yes, Squirrel, it is painful and yes, I certainly do intend to spank you. It is obvious to me that you will not obey me without punishment. You are far too clever for your own good.” One hand made its way up his pet’s supple body to the small of his back and pressed until Squirrel reluctantly did as Evander wordlessly bid him. “You will lie across my lap and I will hit your little bottom with my palm. You will count aloud each time I strike you. If you lose count, I will start over. You may cry if it hurts.” Squirrel had been on his way to his death and he should have been more submissive, but there was something trustworthy in his master. His unprotected cock brushed over his master's thigh as he was moved into place. "I don't need to be spanked to obey, Master, I promise. I don't like pain, master! I just thought I shouldn’t disclose that.” He tried to get his feet on the ground, some way to get more leverage. "Please, Master! Please don't hurt me!" Evander stroked his hand over the smooth satin skin of his pet and delivered a stinging slap to one rounded globe. “Stop kicking or it will go worse for you,” he warned. “I will spank you ten times and you must count. If you miss once, I will start again.” He 32
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cupped the warm cheek he’d slapped and squeezed it lightly, fondling the crevice between the two. “Are you ready to pay for your transgressions to me, pet?” "Owww!" Squirrel tried to hold still, but nine more of those? His bottom already burned. "One! Owwww! Master, it stings!" “It will sting still more, pet Squirrel,” Evander crooned, fingering the puckered entrance between his delightful pet’s cheeks. “You are very smart, but that spank was simply to get your attention.” Evander felt himself harden painfully between his own thighs as his little pet’s erection burned against him. “I will start now, and you will begin counting now.” "No! Wait! That didn't count?" Squirrel wiggled, firm bottom rising, shifting. "I can recite poetry! Wouldn't that be more fun?" Evander gave the taut posterior a loving caress and drew his arm back delivering a loud slap to the raised bottom. “Ouch! Stop! One! Please! Master!" Squirrel yelled, legs kicking, hands reaching back to cover his reddening bottom. "I will do everything you say! I will!" “Yes, you will, Squirrel, you certainly will.” He delivered another stinging swat to the other cheek and another rapid hard spank to the thigh where it met the crease. “You don’t understand who is in charge, my pet. What is the count?” "Two!" he cried, "Three! Please, Master! How will I be pretty to you if I am all red and bruised?" Crack! One more hard swat to the left cheek. Crack! One hard lick to the center, right in the middle, no doubt stinging all the way to the little opening in between. “Red, little pet, you will be, but not bruised. No. And I find your burning cheeks lovely to behold.” And it burned! Tears running down his cheeks, hands not doing any good at protecting his ass, "Master! Four, Five, Six! But it stings, Master! Please!" And as much as it burned, he was so hard, and his entrance tingled, pleading for attention elsewhere. “Ahhh, sweet pet, I’m so sorry,” Evander crooned, rubbing the warm red skin of the taut buttocks. He slipped a long finger inside the tight hole, shifting Squirrel so that his hard little shaft would only barely rub on his thigh. “You have miscounted. We must start from one again.” "No! No, Master! I didn't miscount! Please, please, I like your finger in me! Why does that feel so good?" He then tried to hold still, thinking maybe if he were still, his 33
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master would finish. "I don't like counting!" Gently, Evander eased his finger out, lightly rubbing the warm flesh. “Are you ready to begin counting? If not, this could take quite some time.” Without warning, he delivered another ringing openhanded blow. "One!" Squirrel whimpered, having some understanding now that his master was enjoying this, that it wasn't just punishment. "I will count as you wish, Master." “Very good.” Evander rubbed the small of Squirrel’s back, moving his thigh so that it rubbed against the hard member of his little pet. Pulling his thigh back, he said, “You will learn that there are times when I expect obedience and not a debate from you.” He pulled his arm back and struck the tender flesh three resounding blows, ending once again in the center. "Two, three, four," Squirrel sobbed, toes pointing, bottom only moving just a little. "Such a good, pet," Evander soothed, feeling the little sacks tighten against the skin at the top of his thigh. He slipped his finger into the warm and clinging pucker of flesh, just a little inside. "Calm, Squirrel. Don't come yet, little one, calm. Soon it will be over." "Calm, Master," and Squirrel tried, tried really had to relax and accept what would come. “Let’s finish this, hmm?” Rapidly, Evander spanked the rosy, glowing skin four more times in quick succession. "Five, six, seven, eight," Squirrel whimpered, "I will break!" “No, lovely Squirrel,” Evander stroked the hot globes, so beautiful and open to him. “Shh, I won’t ever break you. Does this not excite you? I feel you harden against me. Don’t you feel me as well?” Evander tapped one cheek and then its mate lightly. “Umm," Squirrel whimpered, his hard-on tight between his belly and Evander's thigh, his ass cheeks burning...and he realized that his master was hard.... "Master enjoys?" “Mmm, yes, Squirrel, I do. I like having you across my lap and subject to me, excited, and yes, even a little frightened.” He rubbed the warm flesh, realizing that Squirrel hadn’t felt his little spanks, his red bottom was desensitized to such a light tap. Moving to his thighs, Evander slapped one and the other, lightly. “You are so beautiful to me with your pink cheeks and your pretty cries. Does that alarm you, my pet?” "Yes, Master!" Squirrel squealed, wiggling, legs kicking against the air as the sting of the slaps hit, but he also rocked his hips against his thighs. "Teach me, Master! I will learn to be a good pleasure pet for you!" 34
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“It does alarm you? A good pet should count when he is spanked,” Evander said firmly, though he didn’t intend to start over. Squirrel’s enthusiasm, his excitement, both had their effect on him. Squirrel’s hard length brushed against Evander's as he squirmed and Evander had to bite back a moan. It felt good, hurt, but excited him in some deep primal way. Excitement leaked from the tip of his maleness, and he whispered. "I'm sorry, Master! I'll count better next time!" It did hurt really, but there was an even deeper excitement in surrendering to his master's pleasure. "I want to please you!" “You do please me, little Squirrel, more than any other has.” His fingers slid down to Squirrel’s tender opening now, prodding, testing. “How does this feel, Pet?” sliding one long finger deep inside, Evander groaned. “I think it’s time to take you back to bed. Stand up, pet. You will walk slowly. I’ll guide you with this one finger.” He flexed the finger lodged in Squirrel’s hole. Squirrel whimpered. So intimate, he blushed from the pleasure, from the shame of it, how totally controlled he was by his Master, and he knew he was now, that he would do anything he was told by this pirate. He moved, shifting the finger within him, and this brought a brighter blush to his cheeks. It felt so good, this touch in him, though he knew that the larger member that his master had had hurt a little, and he whimpered again at the thought, as he reached his feet. Nervous he stood there, lip between his teeth, waiting. Evander felt his heart clench. This beautiful being wanted to belong to him. This sweet little pet had made a choice and had chosen him. He reached around with his free hand and brushed the long, sable silk hair back. He let his hand caress a tight pink nipple as he nuzzled Squirrel’s soft jaw. “What a good little pet you are.” He kissed the curve of a delicate cheek. “My own sweet pet,” he murmured, nudging Squirrel forward with the finger buried in him. "I want to be a good pet, for you, My Master." Squirrel whispered, moving his hips as he walked, instinctively seductive. He didn't know what it meant to be a pet, not this kind of pet, really, but he trusted his master now. "I trust you, Master." He walked, step a little odd and tentative. Evander cupped the smooth, full cheek under his palm. With a little squeeze and a nudge, he indicated that Squirrel should turn. This playing excited him unmercifully. His sex ached with the thought of being buried where his finger currently resided. 35
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Gently mouthing and nipping at a round shoulder, Evander murmured, “Such a good pet, stop now. That’s it,” he encouraged, as Squirrel stopped as instructed. “Lean forward, pet, you’ll feel the bed just ahead. Place your hands on the mattress for me.” Squirrel purred and whimpered, again thinking about how the large member of his master would stretch him and it would burn a little. But there was that sweet pleasure he'd felt when his master was within him. Nervous, he leaned forward and touched the mattress, inching forward, pulling him over, his ass there for his master's use. "Please, Master, it wouldn't hurt at all this time?" Evander squatted behind the young pet, parting the cheeks and running his tongue over the puckered skin there. Placing open mouthed, sucking kisses, he stood up again, his engorged cock rested in the parting. “Perhaps it will hurt, Pet. I expect it will, somewhat. You will be sore as this is only your second ride.” Evander leaned sideways for the lotion he always kept nearby. “Shall I stop?” He drizzled the creamy liquid down Squirrel’s crack, waiting for his answer. That it would make a difference, he wasn’t sure. “Master, please? Maybe it will be better after, maybe it will hurt," he whispered, wanting to please his master, but he didn't want it to hurt. His legs moved farther apart as he danced around on the balls of his feet. "Please, master, the lotion stings!" “Perhaps if I rub it in?” Evander pulled back, taking his weeping cock in hand, he rubbed it in the dripping lotion against the tight hole that beckoned him. As the young pet moved to squirm away, rising to the balls of his feet, Evander parted his cheeks still farther, rubbing his thumbs on the soft skin between the globes. Without warning, he pressed himself into the tight hole, steadily. “There,” he sighed as he came to rest against Squirrel’s taut bottom. “Master? Please don't stop!” Squirrel whispered. “Don't ever stop!” He was a pet, he knew it, and this was where he belonged, what he was, who he was, and for once in his life, he was home.
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Note from Nix!
So that's it for this episode! Not that they're in any less trouble than they were! I'm sorry this episode took so long to put out! I really am. No excuse, but I promise to do better! Next episode will have a Tris and Alix lemon! And a Valentine and Poison one. Next episode should have so much smut in it, it'll have to carry a 'don't read at work' warning. Sometimes story just has me in its grip and I need to tell story. I hope the lack of love scenes with some of the characters is totally made up for with Evander and his new pet! I vote Evander for top seme! *shivers* And once Alix joins with the Di'Jigh, he'll need a 'sword' of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. He'll have Tanin and Arin, but two more swords have to be called. Then it will be this little world against both the Earth Union fleet and the Di'Jigh 'wolves' they are at war with! The solar war is a huge story, and really Alix's world is just a small corner of the universe, but isn't that the way all our worlds are? None of us live in the center of the universe, but we all want to protect the homes we have. I want to work on a whole Poison novel. He needs his story told. Please feel invited to send me feedback to
[email protected] Thank you very much for reading this book! You Rock!
Nix
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About the Author
Nix Winter lives in Seattle, in an apartment by the bay, with city lights and a gray cat. She loves science fiction and fantasy, works on making her own graphic novels and other various artistic projects. She's a strong supporter of artistic freedom and a believer in the power of love.
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