Cosmic Bounty (12 page)

“Courtship involves fighting to impress the female, to show her we are capable of protecting her and creating strong offspring.”

“Oh, I really don’t like fighting. I’m already yours anyway. Can’t we just skip the fight and go straight to the wedding?”

“We know you are ours.”
Gol’s
smile was heartwarming. “But it is our way. You will find we are not the only ones who will want to court you. Every female has to have more than one quad unit to court her, to insure she has a good choice.”

Kat raised an eyebrow at that. “Has to? What if no one wants to court her,
then
what does she do?”

“In the long history of
Galafrax
, this has never happened. The males have always greatly outnumbered our females. Our desire for sex and to reproduce is a strong instinct.”

“Well, I can see why, but I still get to choose you. I won’t be forced into accepting another set of brothers, if you get your asses whipped,” she teased.

“We are Demos Lords, the best, fastest and strongest of all in
Galafrax
.”
Ric
spoke matter-of-factly. “We will not be beaten, and it is always the female’s choice no matter the winner.”

“I’m glad of that. Is there anything else I should know about this courting thing?
Any hidden surprises?”

“Apart from proving ourselves as strong warriors, we must also prove ourselves capable of pleasuring the female of our choice.”

Kat sat up at
Gol’s
words. “I don’t have to let anyone one else touch me, do I?” She twisted around to face
Gol
. “I don’t want anyone else to prove if they can pleasure me. You are all I want, all I need.”

The brothers glanced at each other before
Gol
pulled her back into his arms.

“We would not allow anyone to touch you. You belong to us. This is simply a formality we must go through. You will choose us to pleasure you first, then after that night, declare to the officials you are pleased with our performance and have chosen us. The others will never have an opportunity. It will then be over and we can have, as you say, our wedding.”

Kat relaxed against
Gol
. “Phew, you had me worried for a moment.”

“You do not know how much it pleases us to hear you say you want no others.”

“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it. I care for you all. I simply could not imagine belonging to anyone else.”

As if unable to stop himself,
Gol
kissed her. It was a passionate, reverent kiss, leaving her breathless.

Dazed, she smiled at him. Now, happy in her role of horny twit, Kat felt empowered at how much her men always wanted her and she them.

“In the next rotation, we will be arriving on
Galafrax
,”
Ric
interrupted, tugging her from
Gol’s
arms and pulling her onto his lap. Automatically, she wrapped her arms around his neck. “I suggest we make the best of our time, before we have to part from you.”

“But only for a short time, right?”

“Correct.” Div crowded in on her left, pushing back her hair from the nape of her neck, placing open-mouthed kisses down her spine.

“Then you will belong to us for the rest of time,”
Gol
declared. The others grunted their agreement, more eager to love Kat until she was once again boneless and mindless.

****

From the holographic display in front of her, which was connected to the front bridge screen, Kat got a clear view of the planet, which would become her new home. It was a swirling red, black, brown and yellow planet, with hints of green. One end was covered in white and blue, much like icing on a plum pudding. In the darker areas, pin dots of lights glittered and gleamed from the dark side of the planet, showing it heavy with population. It was exotic and eerily beautiful.

“What do you think?”

She glanced through the holographic screen at Div, who had won the toss to stay with her until the ship docked. “Very different from my home world, but it’s magnificent.”

Div’s
smile was one of pride. “In time, you will feel as at home here as we do.”

The ship shuddered under her feet. Div rose and grabbed the clothes she would wear once off the ship. “Come, let’s get you ready.”

Kat sighed and let Div wrap the heavy cloth around her body, placing the cloak’s hood over her head, almost blocking her vision.

The door swished open and the rest of the brothers stood waiting.

“Let us take you home.”
Gol
stepped through, offering his hand to her.

She smiled nervously up at him and placed a trembling hand into his warm one. Silently, she prayed she would grow accustomed to the strange Demos ways and be able to call this alien world home.

“I feel like a moving, carpet bag.”

“I’m sure you’re a very pretty carpet bag, if I knew what a carpet was,” said Div, waggling his eyebrows at her. She giggled, drawing attention from passing Demos soldiers.

They escorted her through the ship to the ship’s docking bays.
Hul
and
Gol
took point as Div and
Ric
walked behind her, like armed guards taking her to the execution chamber.

She could see other quad brothers lining up to board the transport shuttles, all of them eyeing her with curiosity.

There was no seating, only straps dangling from bars above them. Each soldier reached out, gripping a strap. But there was no way she could reach up that high. A strong arm encircled her waist, pulling her firmly back against one of the brother’s hard bodies. She glanced up to see
Hul
gazing down at her, a small smile playing on his lips.

“Do not be alarmed by the drop. We have you and will not let you fall.”

She fought the rising panic of so many large soldiers in one small space. If they did topple over like dominos, no doubt she would be crushed in the process. There was no choice but to trust her quads would keep that from happening, and no one else appeared concerned.

Without warning the shuttle’s door closed. She heard a whirring sound, and then it did exactly as
Hul
said, dropped. Kat squealed in alarm, twisting in
Hul’s
hold to wrap her arms around him, trying to stop her stomach from ending up in her head. She buried her face in
Hul’s
uniform, clinging onto him for dear life, waiting for the gut-pulling feeling to stop.

“Easy, little pet,” he whispered in her ear, realizing he lifted her off her feet, cradling her against his chest. “It will end soon.”

After five long minutes, the falling stopped and the craft glided with a gentle rocking from side to side.

“Are you going to reveal what you have, Lord
Gol
? The whole ship knows you’ve been keeping an alien female slave in your quarters. We want to know what species she is.”

“Mind your words,
Til
, the female is none of your concern,”
Gol
growled, with deadly menace. “Until the shuttle docks, you are still under my command.”

Kat felt relieved when silence again fell, but could still feel the heavy stares of the men around her.
Hul
pulled her tighter against him.

The shuttle landed with a heavy thump, the doors slid open and quad soldiers filed out, leaving them till last.

“Thank you,” she murmured to
Hul
, as he released her and set her on her feet. She wobbled, still feeling shaky.

“We should have realized the atmospheric drop would be hard on you.”

“I’m okay. I’m just glad I had you to hold on to.” She smiled at
Hul
.

“Katrina, welcome to
Galafrax
.”
Gol
took her hand and led her out of the shuttle. A gust of warm wind hit her face, making her hair whip around. She inhaled the air; her mind struggled to find similes to compare the scents to. On one hand, it felt tropical, a slightly fruity tang with a hint of spice. The color of the sky was tinged purple red and they felt the heat of the large, red sun shining down on them.

Glancing around, she realized the shuttle had landed on a high building. She walked forward, gazing for the first time over the vast, alien city.

Kat stared in amazement. Streets were lined with earth shades of red and brown; the houses and buildings were a mix of different sized, pyramid structures. The streets were positioned uniformly, one after the other and stretched on for miles, all surrounding one central pyramid. Kat was sure it would be five times bigger than the pyramids of
Giza
in
Egypt
.

“We have those
kind
of buildings on Earth.”

“
Qyi
-buildings?”
Hul
questioned.

“On Earth, we call them pyramids, built by an ancient civilization called the Egyptians. I think there were a few
Qyi
-Buildings, built by other cultures on various parts of the planet, as well. But that was long ago. Humans don’t build pyramids like this anymore.”

Ric
took her hand, leading her away from the edge of the building, towards a large entrance other Demos quads vanished into.

“Where are we going, now?”

“We wish to get the adoption process underway promptly,”
Ric
stated. “The sooner it is done, the sooner we can formally court you and claim you.”

Chapter Eleven

Kat forced a smile and tried not to gape at her new ‘adopted family’,
P’Tala
. She would be known as Katrina
P’Tala
. It didn’t sound too weird.

“Katrina, this is
Tev
,
Yuv
,
Riv
,
Oul
, and their
sheraz
Sarrbeem
, your new fathers and mother.”

“Um, lovely to meet you and thank you for doing this for us,” Kat said politely.

This was Kat’s first proper look at a Demos woman. She was almost as tall as the men, heavy set with a flat chest. It wasn’t a wonder her men were so taken with her breasts, now that she thought about it. Her black hair was tinged with shades of grey, the same as the older men who flanked her. Apart from the body shape, her features were more delicate and feminine. Her eyes were a lighter gold, almost light yellow in color, as she gazed coolly down on Kat.

“It is our pleasure, little human.”
Tev
spoke first.

Kat remembered it was usually always the oldest who was the spokesperson.

“She speaks very softly,”
Sarrbeem
stated boldly with a frown, critically glancing over her, making Kat feel self-conscious, almost like a bug on display.
“And very pale.
I did not expect her to be so pale; she looks frail. Are you sure she is suitable to be a
sheraz
?” She addressed
Gol
and
Hul
.

“Very suitable.
We would have not asked this of you if she was not,”
Gol
defended, looking more than annoyed.

“Oh, very well, as long as she does not get in my way,” the woman said, rather rudely. She then swiveled on her heel and walked away. The door opened and slid shut behind her.

None of her ‘husbands’ were bothered by her behavior.