Page 69 of Taken to Voraxia
“I know the Rakukanna and the Raku have…beentogether. She could be pregnant.”
Rhorkanterannu puffs out a breath. “And this means what to me? At worst, it only increases her value. If she is with kit, then you can rest assured your Raku will bend to my will. Any will. He will rip his hearts out of his chest with his own hands.”
“Yes, but…” My heart beats to infinity. I think hard and as Rhorkanterannu flicks his skein-covered eyes towards me I remember that IamSvera. And in that realization, the answer comes to me quickly.
“I’m a virgin,” I say with a start, “I’ve never been with any male. And the Raku isn’t the only one who makes decisions here in Voraxia. If he tries to trade more than the xub’Raku are willing to, then one of them — or another Voraxian — could challenge him. They could win, depose him, refuse to trade and then you’d be left with what? A woman you refuse to kill and a Voraxian kit? Wouldn’t you at least want one womb for yourself? Like mine, that has never before seen a kit or a male’s part. It could be yours to bear your heirs at least.”
Krisxox shatters the silence that falls after I finish speaking with a splintering screech. I stagger back, but the Niahhorru near me surges forward again, this time grabbing me by the arm.
“She makes a strong proposal. We should take her.”
The king waits a long, seemingly interminable moment. His silver gaze searches my face — for what? I don’t know. But finally he exhales after a lengthy pause, “Alright. Bring her. We can have one shekurr while we wait.”
Svera shouts, but her voice is nothing against Krisxox’s rage. “Nox! Nox!” Krisxox seethes and screams and I can no longer see him as I’m dragged by my arms between their enormous silver bodies. So many silver eyes look down at me. So many tongues wet so many lips. Just one of them dares speak to me, however.
He leans down with head bowed, and his genuflected gaze comes across strangely reverential. “I look forward to my turn with you during the shekurr.”
He jostles me slightly, but as I trip, his other hand slides around my stomach, catching me before I fall. He holds me upright and even though his skin is like a film of sand stretched over stone, I get the strangest impression that he’s trying to be careful.
“Apologies, female,” he says, shocking me fully.
And then Krisxox roars all manner of foul curses, which abruptly cut off with a cry of pain and then nothing. And in the silence he leaves behind, I remember perhaps the most important thing this stranger just said.
Out loud, I whisper, “Turn?”
19
Miari
“Augh…” My head is pounding. My heart too.
I feel like I’m back in that cave with Kiki where this whole mess started, scared out of my own skin of the khrui, only this time I’m also trying to make polite conversation. Something along the lines ofplease, for stars’ sakes just let us go.Meanwhile, they just continue brandishing their talons and leering over us.
They’ve abandoned their coverings and stand before us completely naked, these weird, stumpy cocks jutting out from between their hips. I try not to imagine what’s going to happen and focus instead on the ship we docked after being sucked up into the sky bynothing.
It was so strange… a beam of light washed over us as we stood clustered together in a small copse, darkness descended and the next thing I know, I’m being carried by one of the Niahhorru through the labyrinthine walkways of this ship.
It’s older than any of the transporters the Voraxians have. It almost looks older than the Antikythera satellite wreckage at the back edge of the colony, where I collect most of the electrical parts and metal bits I use to build my inventions.
And unlike the Antikythera satellite which is all thin plastics and sleek surfaces, the Niahhorru ship is a heap of blackened metal and rusted bolts. The floors are pocked and the ceilings are all warped. The walls are covered in deep grooves that I imagine could have been made by the spikes covering the Niahhorru.
I sit up against the tray beneath me, shuddering as I imagine its proposed use. Though the room is dark, I can still see heavy cabinets against the walls, shelves empty.Medical bay. Maybe this is where they conducted surgeries. Or experiments. Tortures unknown.
Svera and I lay on mirrored tables on either side of the room, facing one another. Shackles have been built into the platforms, but the Niahhorru don’t bother with them.Where would we even go when I can’t even imagine where we are or how we got here?
The room is packed with even more of the four armed-monsters than greeted us on land. Three times as many, even though this room is barely bigger than our guest house.Our guest house… Xoran’s guest house. Because maybe I won’t see him again…
I shuck that thought aside. It’s not helpful here. I don’t have anything that is though. Just a desperation to live and a knowing that Xoran and the rest will try to come for us. Try. Because for all I know, they could have beamed us four quadrants away in any direction. Maybe more. Maybe ten. What’s outside of the eight quadrants? Are we about to find out? Will we live that long?
I glance across the space at Svera, sitting up as I am. She has one arm crossed over her chest to shieldmybreasts even though hers are covered beneath the hologenerator.Even now operating for her Tri-God…I’d laugh if I weren’t so terrified.
Some barking between the males clustered around us draws my attention to the right. The crowd shuffles apart and one of the monsters moves towards Svera’s side.
“What are you…what are you doing to her?” I try shout, but my throat is so dry. I hack out a cough and swallow paper butterflies.
The brute doesn’t answer me, and proceeds by holding the wand in his hand out towards Svera and waving it wildly over her body.
“What are you doing?” I shout again, but no one responds. The king is conspicuously absent, and so are some of the others that beamed up with us. Some are new faces and even though they’re just as big and scary, they seem younger somehow, more volatile.
