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“Of course. I will always lead my horde. As long as I’m living and unchallenged. I’m not the type of king who will sit on a throne all the days of his life doing nothing but giving out orders. I am scheduled to take half of my horde out on a raid in a matter of days actually.”
“Oh.” That meant he’d be gone. It also meant I’d be alone again.
“Do you have an interest in inter and intra-planet politics?” he asked.
“No. I was just curious about you, that’s all.”
“Ask away.”
“Your favorite color?”
“Blue,” he replied.
“I should have figured. I think a crown of cobalt diamonds would suit you well.”
“I trust your expertise in this. You are the master jeweler after all,” he said.
“Ghid? He is your older brother?” I asked.
“Yes. We had five more, but they all died a warrior’s death. Except one. His name was Mhad’i. He had the brains and learned to read and write while my brothers and I were training to be hordesmen, and then spent his lifetime commanding ships. He was a true born leader just like all of my brothers, Ghid and myself included. Unfortunately, Mhad’i crashed his shuttle on an unknown planet and was never heard from again. We couldn’t even find his ID in the wreckage. Everything was burned to ashes. He was here one day and then gone in a flash the next. I don’t believe he is dead. In my heart, I truly believe he is still alive.”
“In the stories about both of you, you’re always together. You and Ghid. The Xihran brothers. So you’ll lead this colony together?”
“I imagine so.”
“Peas in a pod then?”
He chuckled. “Just missing a handful of peas. I hate that my other brothers were separated from Ghid and I in death and another in uncertainty, but when we got together we usually wreaked complete havoc. We did take orders well, but when there were no orders, we did what we wanted. We were hated, except for when kings needed our service. We’ll wreak loads of havoc for the right price and right reason.” He reached for my tunic, which I had hand washed and hung over a line to dry, pressed it to his nose and inhaled. “Now, about you…”
“What about me?”
“I think we were brought together for a reason. Your escape attempts are futile,” he said.
“Don’t remind me.”
“And yet…I can’t leave you alone.” He walked over to where I was sitting and circled the chair.
“You can if you tried hard enough.”
He lifted some tendrils off my shoulder and spun them around his finger. “I don’t want to try. You see, I have always been successful at getting what I want. I raid. I defend. I conquer. I win.”
“You’ve never lost anything in your life?” I asked.
“No. Maybe in a fight with one of my brothers, but I don’t think that’s what you’re talking about.”
“I wasn’t. There’s never been anyone other than your brothers in your life that you wished you could still be with?”
“Are you talking about women?”
I nodded.
“No, I don’t hold onto feelings that may rob me of my judgment. I say that now, but ever since we crossed paths I can’t help but think that I’ve made decisions that center around my feelings for you.”
“But I’m in heat. Even some of your hordesmen were drooling after me.”
“I’ve been surrounded by dozens of pleasure slaves in the height of their fertile periods. I’ve never had a problem with constraining myself before. But after you, I come like a wild beast who hasn’t eaten in days.”
I swallowed as a blaze spread upward through my body. “I…I don’t know how to stop my heat from heightening.”
