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She enlarged the area on the screen. “Five hundred metres north, there is an underground stream. Mishka can bring it to the surface and Deniali can make it rain. While they are prepping, Kardu should use a wide blast to deprive the fire of oxygen, and you should stand by to create a fire shelter if necessary.”

“Done. Solid plan, Brigs.”

“Good. Go. The fire is getting closer.”

He chuckled.

Brigs spent the next two hours with her back tense and her ears listening to every command, expletive and whooshing of flames that came through the com system.

“Fire is out. We are coming home.” Solos made the announcement, and the crowd gathered in Brigs’ office burst into applause and hugs.

Brigs remained at her desk, notifying local law enforcement and the farmers. When she was done, she pushed through her other charges and headed for the deck.

The others followed her, and when the team arrived, she crooked her fingers at a tired Solos. When he walked up to her, she slid her hand behind his neck and pulled his head to hers. The kiss was wild, and they were both breathing heavily when they parted.

“Well done, Solos.” Her breath came out on a whisper.

“Good plan, Brigs. I told you, you would do well.”

“I am just glad you are all safe.”

She applauded her charges, and they grinned, covered with soot, dirt, grass and slick damp.

“Time to go inside and debrief. I need a blow-by-blow account of your activities, Lefari made dinner, and it looks like you worked up an appetite.”

The second team went forward and congratulated the first. Together, everyone went inside and sat around the long table. Brigs took her place at the head with Solos on her right and Urgan on the left. Lefari served dinner and Brigeet got the details of the event.

Her headset recorded all information, and she enjoyed the blended work of the team dynamic. A few events indicated that they had a problem getting off the ground, but Solos was a good team leader, and he had bullied them with the threat of disappointing their new matriarch.

She looked out at the sea of earnest expressions and realised that she was indeed their matriarch. She was in charge of the base, the team and their lives. They would live or die depending on her logical assessment of the situation.

Sure. No pressure.

The second mate ceremony was the same as the first, but her clothing was lighter. She wore a light Grecian-style blue gown, white crystal headdress and she held Solos’s hand on the way to the magistrate.

She took Urgan’s hand and held it while she signed, but the moment that she was done, she took Solos’s again. He held her hand while she and Urgan kissed for the first time. Tweliak administered the touch of tears, and Urgan kissed Brigs again.

Urgan’s hand heated up as they kissed, sending tingles through her.

Tweliak cackled and pounded her cane on the floor. “Dinner at my place. My grandson is yours, Matriarch Alass.”

She nodded and hauled both of her men through the crowd that only half-heartedly tried to stop them. Urgan’s family held any of the greedy folks at bay. They wanted him safely in the custody of his new matriarch.

The Guardians were all in attendance. Two skimmers had been pressed into duty for the event, and Solos took off with their bond group, Deniali and Kardu.

The others were right behind them.

The Guardian base was not a secret. It could easily be seen from the sky. They cruised up on it and landed neatly.

Brigs and Urgan headed to her room with Solos. He kissed her softly at the doorway and shook Urgan’s hand. “Welcome to the family, Urgan Alass.”

“Thank you, Solos. It is an honour.”

The two men had their moment, and Brigs got bored and wandered into her bedroom.

Urgan scuttled in after her and closed the door.

She laughed. “Lock it, please.”

He darted back to the door and flicked the lock.

As his matriarch, she was expected to lead him, so she started without him. She pulled her headpiece off and set it aside. Pin by pin, she released her hair until it tumbled around her.

He was staring at her with rapt attention. “You are lovely.”

“You don’t mind the split facial colour?”

Urgan came toward her and cupped her face in his hands. “I caused it, so of course, I don’t mind. When my grandmother told me she was eager to give me to you, I was delighted. You are beautiful.”

“Flatterer.”

“Not flattery, truth. I have seen ugly in others, and it does not burn in you.” He leaned in and kissed her.

She leaned up and tried to take over, but his hands moved over her, loosening her clothing and letting the gown slip to her feet. His tunic fought her hands, but he parted from her for a moment and stripped.

“Whoa.” She was sure she had only thought it, but he was ripped. He may look lean, but it was all lithe muscle.

He unravelled his dark mane and approached her again. The kiss rocked her senses, but the feel of his skin against hers sent electric shocks through her.

She pushed him back onto her bed and climbed on top of him. His hands ran over her, waking her nerves and causing more prickles to run through her. It was like trying to have sex with static cling.

She growled and rocked against him, working her hips so that her clit rubbed against the length of his cock.

He groaned and rolled so that she was under him. She laughed and wriggled under him. “I am gathering that you have been talking to my first mate?”

“It is traditional before the bonding ceremony, Matriarch. One wouldn’t like to go outside of the matriarch’s preferences.”

“Well, show me what you have learned and what you have figured out yourself.”

He grinned and kissed her savagely until she sighed and relaxed in his arms. He worked down her body, nipping his way to her most sensitive areas. He lapped at the underside of her breasts and drew his teeth across her nipples.

She groaned and arched. He drew her to the edge of pain and then retreated.

Time blurred, and he burrowed between her thighs, inhaling deeply before he used his tongue, and she squeaked in surprise.

She rocked against his mouth as his hands cupped her buttocks and held her tight against him. When she shrieked, he continued to use his lips and teeth on her until she slumped in his grip.

Urgan moved up her body and fitted the head of his cock to her. His erection was wider than Solos but not as long. She grunted as he worked into her and held tight to him as he began to thrust.

He moved hard and fast but thankfully didn’t have much staying power. He groaned and jerked against her, but then, he did something extraordinary. Urgan kissed her and her body blazed in climax with just that one urgent kiss.

He sighed and slipped out of her, dropping to his back at her side.

Laughing weakly, Brigs pulled back the sheets and crawled into bed.

Urgan joined her and cuddled her against him.

It wasn’t the all-over spooning that she had with Solos, but it was nice.

She now had two wedding nights under her belt, and the way Lefari was speaking to Solos, he wanted to make it three.

With Jaluum’s societal rules and regulations Brigeet could have more than half a dozen bond mates. She was going to wait until she found out if she could have children with a local before she considered more men.

She had Solos, because he wanted her before he knew he could have her, and Urgan’s family wanted her to protect him. There was really no other reason to put herself through the social awkwardness of a third bonding ceremony.

Brigs smiled and fell asleep in her second mate’s embrace. Two mates. Two was just enough.

The teacher stood at the head of the class and looked out over the pale blue faces. The medical students sat and listened with rapt attention.

“And so, introducing the Alass genes into the population caused social change. Alassians are now ten percent of our population and have a strong gene link to predictable talents.”

The teacher looked at her students. “The Guardian Matriarch Brigeet Alass eventually obtained fourteen mates, and thanks to her second mate, Urgan, she bore each one at least one child; of course, she had three daughters with her first mate, Solos, and those women became the architects of the cities we live in today.”

A portrait painted by Rhoda of Yacaro flared behind the teacher, the half-blue features of Brigeet Alass were flanked by those of her mates, cascading in a backward wedge. It was quite the group image and it had been painted before the first bond was formalized.

One of the students raised their hand. “This is common knowledge. Why are we getting a refresher course today?”

The teacher smiled. “Because the species that spawned her has now been opened for full access to not only the Alliance but also the Nyal Imperium. You are learning xenobiology, and there is no better place to begin your studies than at home. Today, we are learning about Terrans and how they live and die in the course of normal events.”

Another student raised their hand. “Why are we learning about them now?”

“Three hundred years ago, there was one Terran on Jaluum. Now, ten percent of the population bear her genes. I believe that Terran biology is an important key to dealing with many of the species in the trading circles. They are out here, and they are spreading.”

The instructor straightened and prepared to speak when another hand rose in the air.

“What qualifies you to speak about this subject? You are very obviously Oefric.” The student had the snide expression that came with the top of the class.

Alicina smiled, showing fangs and shifted her form to that of her mother. “Because my mother was Terran, my aunts were Terran, three hundred years ago. I have aged well and studied every species that I could. Now, a Terran female or male has an active pheromone system. This can be a problem when dealing with them…”

Four hours later, Alicina headed back to her quarters on Jaluum and checked in with the base. She had tried to warn them in her own subtle way, but there was no getting around it. The Terrans were coming and nothing was going to stop them. Alicina didn’t think she wanted to anyway.

Our guest speaker will have her origin in the next book. When an Oefric and a Terran tangle in Nyal space, blood will flow.

Thanks for reading,

Viola Grace

[email protected]

http://www.violagrace.com

Viola Grace was born in Manitoba, Canada where she still resides today. She really likes it there. She has no pets and can barely keep sea monkeys alive for a reasonable amount of time. Her line of day job tends to be analytical which leaves her mind hopping to weave stories. No co-worker is safe from her character analysis. In keeping with busy hands are happy hands, her hobbies have included cross-stitch, needlepoint, quilting, costuming, cake decorating, baking, cooking, metal work, beading, sculpting, painting, doll making, henna tattoos, chain mail, and a few others that have been forgotten. It is quite often that these hobbies make their way into her tales.

Viola’s fetishes include boots and corsetry, and her greatest weakness is her uncontrollable blush. Her writing actively pursues the Happily Ever After that so rarely occurs in nature. It is an admirable thing and something that we should all strive for. To find one that we truly like, as well as love.