Page 8 of Souls of Steel
It really wasn’t and I suspected the man felt the same. “Selene Renard,” he drawled, as if tasting the words on his lips. “Tell me, Selene. What are you doing with a highly advanced chimera prototype? Someone like you shouldn’t even be near this area. You’re certainly not qualified to pilot a chimera.”
He was still ensconced in the Cerberus and hadn’t even bothered to introduce himself or show his face. Clearly, he thought I was worth less than the dirt under his shoes.
Well, fuck him very much. I straightened my back and shot him my sweetest and most dishonest smile. “I don’t think you’re in any position to decide that. Only a chimera can choose its tamer, and the Sphinx has chosen me.”
I had the urge to stick out my tongue at him and finish my little rant with a ‘so there’. But that would’ve been childish and I held back. I didn’t have to do anything anyway, since the Sphinx provided me with her silent support. Her eyes flared with crimson power and she let out a low rumble that sounded far more animalistic that anything a mecha should’ve been able to produce.
For what seemed like forever, the other pilot didn’t answer. I suspected he must’ve reported the information to someone, because a few minutes later, he spoke again. This time, he sounded a little more polite. “I see. You are correct then. It is not my place to get between a chimera and its tamer.”
As if he’d just decided I was worthy of his attention, he opened his cockpit as well, allowing me to get a good look at him. Dark-haired and muscular, he fit inside his massive mecha far better than I did in the Sphinx. His gray eyes were red-rimmed, like in the case of all chimera pilots—like mine would undoubtedly be now. His full lips twisted into a sharp smile that threatened to slice as deep into my soul as the chimera’s power had.
“Perhaps it’s time that I introduce myself as well. I am Flight Lieutenant Knox Alexander, second-in-command of the Grand Chimera Warrior Unit. Come. It’s time for us to meet with General Rhodes.”
His words made a mix of conflicting emotions surge over me. On one hand, I was relieved General Rhodes had survived the incident. On the other, I wasn’t ready to face him. A man like General Rhodes wouldn’t react well to my union with the Sphinx.
But that wasn’t something I could prevent and I’d already accepted the responsibility of becoming the Sphinx’s tamer. I wouldn’t let anyone stand in my way, not now, not ever. “All right, Flight Lieutenant Alexander,” I said, bracing myself for what would doubtlessly be a difficult confrontation. “Lead the way.”
Tamer of the Hell Hound
Knox
“A chimera pilot who is a woman? Are you sure of this?”
“Yes, Sir,” I replied through the coms. “Her name is Selene Renard. She’s piloting the Sphinx.”
“This is unexpected.” At the other side of the connection, General Rhodes hummed thoughtfully. “Selene Renard. That name sounds familiar. Flight Lieutenant Alexander, secure the area, then bring the girl to my location. We will discuss the matter then.”
“Yes, Sir.”
The com-link went silent and I suppressed a sigh. As a Chimera Warrior, I’d sworn an oath at a very young age to protect Terra from all invaders, apsidic in origin or not. Since then, I’d seen countless horrors, made some bad choices, and had even come to believe that nothing could surprise me any longer.
Clearly, I’d been mistaken. The redhead who had shown up out of nowhere on today’s mission was a huge surprise, and not one I welcomed.
She was beautiful, her crimson hair tumbling down her shoulders in rebellious curls, her eyes as dark as the void of space, her skin fair and her lips full and rosy. Her Terran garb hid most of her curves and I hated it, because I wanted to see what she was hiding underneath her clothes.
“She seems to have some kind of binding around her breasts,”my chimera said knowingly.“I think she might be more endowed in that field than she appears to be.”
“You’re not helping,” I told him between gritted teeth.
“Of course I am, my pup,”Cerberus replied.“You just don’t know it yet.”
I tried to tune him out, but it was impossible. I’d had plenty of women throughout my lifetime, but none of them—not even the Terran sex workers—had looked like that. Then again, none of them could pilot a chimera either. Who was Selene Renard, really?
“Here’s a thought. Why don’t you ask? She seems interesting and you need a new female in your bed.”
“Can you get off my case?” I snapped at him. “Now’s really not the time for you to nag me about my sex life.”
“Why not? There are only two things that matter in the life of a male—blood and breeding. There’s been plenty of bloodshed today, so you can focus on the latter. Not that I don’t value your connection with your pack mates, but they can’t exactly give you pups.”
I let out an aggravated groan. To this day, I didn’t understand how I’d gotten stuck with a chimera who was obsessed with having children. I didn’t want heirs or anything like that. The other Grand Chimera Warriors were my family—my pack, as Cerberus liked to put it—and had been ever since I’d joined the Academy. But for some reason, Cerberus didn’t think that was enough.
“For Tartarus’s sake, I don’t want a woman right now. I’ve had my fill when I was at the base.”
“That’s not even remotely close to being true,”Cerberus replied.“You can lie to yourself, but you can’t lie to me.”
I ignored him. No matter what Cerberus thought or said, I had no need for women. They bored me to tears and I only spent time with them when I had to. The noblewomen I knew were related to my brothers-in-arms and I had to be polite to them because tradition dictated it. And the occasional bed partners I took when I left Chimera Academy were just a way to add variety and let out sexual tension. Useful, but boring.
Selene Renard would be no different. She might have managed to pilot the Sphinx, but that was undoubtedly an anomaly that would soon be fixed, once the chimera was back in the hands of The Grand Judiciary.
