Dark Nine [18+]

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28 & Kor Glossary

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 1 ✿◉●•◦ Year 20,500 I didn’t know I’d find my mate through my darkest instincts, or that I was even on that path since the beginning of my instinctual journey. Usually everything was so simple here on Earth – it was only difficult if you didn’t obey. Technology organised the chaos. However, humans were still spiritual with unpredictable ties to the dark matter of the universe, so we had to organise that too… well, kind of. Humans had evolved to survive by perfecting Our Technocracy in the Universe to co-exist with each other and all other planetary systems who were in contact with us. We also called our beloved human government system simply; Our Tcno. Free will power was kept through the declaration of the Dark Light Constitution. The Light was the enlightened choice through the Tcno’s intelligence. The Dark was instinct. Either option had to be recorded on your file, but nothing was recorded post-decision if you chose the Dark Path. To keep Tcno basic rather than overbearing, only nine major life decisions were monitored by the Tcno, and all these decisions were made when you were 12 years old. You would note Dark or Light. Decision One. Privacy. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Two. Health. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Three. Education. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Four. Social Circles. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Five. Super Powers. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Six. Philosophy. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Seven. Mate. [ Dark ] [ Light]  Decision Eight. Taxes. [ Dark ] [ Light ] Decision Nine. FDW [Final Death Wishes]. [ Dark ] [ Light ]  The most common Dark decisions were for 6, 8 and 9. Light for all the others ensured a fulfilled life with limited danger and maximum safety. To be a Dark Three – choosing three dark choices over enlightened choices – was normal. 75% of the population chose these set principles. To be a Dark Four, Five, Six, Seven or Eight always had inconsistent data. There was no annual statistic that matched the previous year. We didn’t really understand the inconsistent data, but it did prove, to most, that we had free will because of the constant inconsistencies in choice. However, one statistic was finite. To be a Dark Nine was impossible. No one was a Dark Nine, because if you were a Dark Nine you were removed from Our Tcno. There was nothing on the outside. Nothing. No one. You were marched outside the walls of Our Tcno and never heard from again. Your rights vanquished, so even if you were executed, nothing could stop it – as you lost all your rights in the system. There is one small loop hole, however, to leap from the Dark Eight, into the Dark Nine category, choosing instinct over Our Tcno’s intelligence. It’s the loop hole that comes with Decision Seven. It was the only decision you had to make twice. Your mate. It was only a preliminary decision at 12, hell, because you were 12, noting whether you wanted Tcno to choose the mate for you later on in your life, or whether you would choose on instinct alone, could be flexible. Of course, choosing a mate happened at all kinds of ages into adulthood. And for me, today I was 21 years old, standing on a directed physical path way that split between two doors. I was already a Dark Eight in Our Tcno system. I only chose Light for who would be my mate, as it was the only loophole in the system to get out of this place alive. Technically, through gene analysis, personality data and more – Our Tcno could match you with someone you could consider a soulmate. A near perfect match. But if you chose the Dark. Or if you chose to be a Dark Nine in adulthood– something very different happened when you were thrust outside the city limits. You were not killed. Rather, you were sold for profit, usually to an intergalactic planetary species who desired human companionship for whatever reason or value it would bring to them. I was looking to be sold for a different reason. I genuinely believed I owed the Kors my life. The Kors resided on the Dark Ninth, their unique planet. When I was a week away from turning 12 years old, I fell ill with the virus everyone seemed to get when they were a few weeks off from turning twelve and receiving the Dark Light Constitution. The only way to be healed from this age-related virus, was to enter into the health system and receive the cure. Our Tcno did not hide that they developed the virus specifically to convince you that you needed their superior health protection, as it was their direct, open and honest way of proving they could engineer a cure for literally anything, hence, securing your long and prosperous life. By some miracle, I healed on my own from a Kors Herb called Jace. How I received it, I have no idea, all I know is I had it at the time, I consumed it, and I got better. It healed me to full strength – only because it didn’t kill me. And it also gave me a special superpower. Enhanced Instincts. Sounds lame, but it was pretty cool. I’d tell you all about it later. Right now, I had to make my last decision on the seventh choice. “Choose the Dark or the Light, sister,” Brie asks me to choose, a helpful Tcno government employee running the Mate Sort. I was next in line. I walk forward now toward two doors, light or dark. Behind the light door, is a helpful lure – a glass panel allowing me a look into Our Tcno’s choice for me. And of course, I see a tall, waiting man, who I do find extraordinarily attractive. I doubt he is human, but a subspecies, basically an alien able to mate with me. I can tell he is inhuman by the way his skin is slightly dark tan and greenish and sparkly. It’s hard to define but he is definitely not an OG human like me. He is trying hard to keep in a smile of excitement as his eyes sparkle with my initial approach. However, when I take my first step toward the Dark instead – Brie calls out. “Mars is your perfect match, Diana. Please don’t disappoint him, he has been waiting for you for some years.” I ignore Brie, although I do look to see Mars’ face change completely as he notices my feet moving off the path. His mouth flattens, his dark handsome eyes worry, expressing everything from being invested, concerned and possessive. Wow. I’ll admit one thing… I kind of like that look. Possessive. But… I knew this part of the journey would be a challenge, I just had to resist! I may very well believe he and I would have the perfect chemistry, considering the initial butterflies I feel inside my stomach right now just interacting with him through a glass panel, fifteen feet away… …but… The strings forging between us right now, do nothing to absolve the heavy weight inside my gut, telling me to run for the Dark. I take another step toward the Dark choice. “Is it because the forbidden option is the desirable one?” Brie asks me, truly curious. I answer her briefly now, with a single, “No.” “Why?” Brie now calls out to me with quiet panic. I don’t look back at Mars, a little scared I might just think twice if we make a longer connection. I focus on Brie entirely instead as I answer her again, “I should.” “Should? If it’s a question of morals, shouldn’t you go to the love who will be perfect for you, and he for you?” Brie asks, before going strangely quiet, listening to a voice in her ear, titling her head, she then presses a button on her necklace. I turn around as what I think should be forbidden – now bursts through the Light door. Mars is let through, and I get the shock of my life when he stalks for me. I have to look away as I also realise he isn’t just anyone. Dressed in Tcno’s Elite-Donor grey on white suit, with black shoes so shiny they almost reflect perfectly like a mirror, I am basically watching a high exec of not just Our Tcno but from the Universal Board, standing in my way. He was ultimately super fucking rare. Like, so fricken rare, it was really hard to even possibly imagine how we ended up mates. I carefully and tentatively look Mars over again, head to toe. Um. Wow? My blood is feeling hot and cold all at once. He holds his arms at his sides, in a relaxed but stiff pose and I can’t look above his pockets, his dark eyes are just too intimidating. “You can’t stop me choosing,” I remind him, carefully… I get a sudden urge to lock eyes with him, to dare it. I gulp as I look up to catch his dark, now rather sharpened eyes. “It’s your choice,” Mars agrees, and his voice is like beautiful poison to my ears – even his natural smell is too damn clean and deep for me to consider all the notes within, without falling, “…but I’d like to think you could choose to stay…” “Why?” I ask him straight. “Because it’ll be good.” Mars holds out a hand for me, even though his tone didn’t sound pleasant or even too sure. Fuck. Some kind of resolve inside me snaps. No! I can’t believe this is happening – but I can’t leave him without an invitation. “Well… I don’t want anything on record,” I whisper that as an indirect invitation; come get me – but not like this. Not here. Mars’ hand freezes in the air between us, my words must have sent a shock through him, just as much as they sent my own nerves off the deep end. I side step around him and quickly unlock the Dark. When I push through the door, I quickly step through and shut the door behind me. I see what’s on the other side is simply an ET, an express teleportation device. The location is set to unknown. Whoever is buying Dark Nines, that’s where I’ll go. Hopefully off planet. I step through, walking straight to my next destination. Just like that – I’m through… and where I end up… is kind of… well… purest luck. **** I didn’t expect it to be this at all. I stare wide eyed at the unique dark flora around me, in a green house style palace, or castle, or whatever this place is. I’m in the throne room, staring at all the green. As a Dark Nine, I’m unironically on Dark Ninth; the planet I always dreamed of going to. The Kors lived here. A planet that was always dark, the light only being sent by their three distant moons and the luminescent plants, which all sparkled. What’s more, is this planet was peaceful. Very peaceful. I look behind me but the portal is shut. There is one more ‘problem’, however. Our Tcno had the technology to send Mars back through space, back in time if need be – to achieve interception with a target, such as me. And, well, guess what. I didn’t expect Mars to be a fucking Kor. I’m not alone. He went back in time to beat me back to this location. Mars is sitting on the throne, at the top of a steep staircase overgrown with purple metallic vines, looking down at me, dressed in tribal Kor clothes, no suit – and all his muscles are pretty much on display. He is now ten times more drool worthy. Fuck. I mean, I did invite him to woo me outside the system, if he so dared… so I shouldn’t be so damn surprised, but here I am… and here he is. “I guess you don’t like the females on Dark Ninth?” I speak up to him, so far above me, hoping to sound somewhat cheerful. “Females are forbidden from this place. We are an exclusively male planet. I joined Tcno to find a mate. We can breed with humans,” Mars answers me, with such little words, but so much information, I just gape and try to formulate a question. Uh – Um… “Why am I here again?” I ask, almost forgetting I walked through the portal myself, but the Kors did technically buy me from Earth… so I did ask the right question. Huh. Okay. I did. I just need to remember to breathe. “We can breed with humans… and –” Mars repeats himself and also talks a bit slower for me, but I already interrupt him, because if he is insistent on breeding, I didn’t want to just bend over like a clueless idiot. “Well, I’m sorry but I don’t want to be–” “There is no desire to make you do anything, we do not chase…” Mars interrupts me back, now eagerly awaiting my reply. “Oh?” Is all I ask, raising a brow back to him. “The backlog to get to this planet has a waitlist of over a million female subspecies,” Mars half shrugs, “We have no shortage.” “Why don’t you let that eager lot flood in? You’d have all the choices in the world,” I am also truly curious why this planet is exclusively male… so strange. “We do let them in,” Mars explains, “But you didn’t let me finish.” “What? Oh…” “Our choice sustenance is female kind, preferably of those we mate with,” Mars sounds… amused. I blink rapidly as I try to process what he just said. I rephrase it back to him, with a question. “You want to eat your mates?” I ask, “Like, as food?” “Some female species consume their mates, sometimes that concept is reversed,” Mars laughs now, deep, dark, and ultra sexy. Oh… fuck me… my heart beat slows. I now rapidly find the fact I find him sexy, utterly disturbing. “Are you trying to tell me, there’s a waitlist of females trying to get to Kors… just to die?” I squeak that last part out. Mars doesn’t seem to want to answer that, looking away and chewing on it. Why am I about to ask this… fuck it, “…raw or cooked…?” I instantly regret asking it, and Mars seems more amused but also refuses to answer that, “Do you, uh, do you eat anything else?” I ask, suddenly my heart is wanting to race, and I rather have some of my fears assuaged. “Fruit,” Mars answers, nodding as he thinks about it. “How do you… eat people when… you… sorry, you look human, like an omni –” omnivore, except I can’t finish, because Mars smiles wide for me to show me his teeth, and there’s probably two extra canines on each side, razor sharp – so six shredders… I guess the others are for crushing bone – ew… but also, damn it, how come his teeth look sexy to me?! “What do your kind do if you have a daughter –?” “We send them away,” Mars explains, quietly and closed off – as if he doesn’t want to discuss that part. “I’m… confused… am I going to die?” I ask, laughing slightly, while holding my elbow with one hand and twisting one ankle back and forth as my eyes try to slyly scan for exits, knowing damn well I can’t outrun that beast on the throne. “No?” Mars answers me… just far too late and far too coy. He even tries to hide his curling smile with his hand as he leans his chin on his palm, his eyes now looking me over slow… calculated… I saw him do that in Our Tcno. It was flirty then. Now it’s something else entirely. “I’ve never met a Dark Nine,” Mars quickly changes topic, when he sees me looking very hard for the closest and quickest exit. “I guess that makes me… unique?” I ask, hopefully, “And rare – very rare, probably won’t meet another one, for a very, very long time,” so don’t kill me and maybe you can keep me around just to pick my brain, at the very least? I ask all the rest of that through my eyes, projecting my feeble hopes out at him. “Diana,” Mars says my name, distracting me again, “Why don’t you explore this place… the others already know not to touch you.” “Oh,” I gulp, feeling slightly relieved, “And how many more of you are here?” “On the planet?” Mars asks, “Nine of us.” “Nine?” I ask, now just confused by the number. “Yes, Nine of us,” Mars agrees again, “Venus, Mercury, Terra, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto.” “Are you Gods?” I ask. Mars shakes his head slowly but still I feel like that doesn’t deny anything. I start to walk backwards, genuinely afraid to turn my back on him. I really, really hate it when he answers me with silence or tiny shrugs or shakes of the head… or worse, amused smiles. I prefer words. I don’t know how to say goodbye to him so I just walk out the way behind me. He watches me go, but nothing dramatic happens, he is just curious, I guess? I guess I can hope that curiosity will keep me alive a little longer.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 2 ✿◉●•◦ Planet: Dark Ninth, Species: Kors, Population: 9, Designation: A Peaceful Eden This place was truly a shadowed paradise, with the green of the plants being dark, sparkly, tending toward purple, reds and some blues but mostly greens. The moss on the rocks was bright silver. The architecture was probably hundreds of thousands of years old. The Dark Ninth Palace is not guarded, because there are no enemies. It was just propped up on a hilltop with little wind, and every side showed the expansive planet-wide forest system. I do wonder how such a civilisation got to this point, especially when I see the ruins of a much larger city, expanding out into the forests beyond. In other words, there used to be more than 9 male specimens of the Kor species, but somehow they are all that was left? I hadn’t wandered very far, a little nervous to explore when I wasn’t familiar with untamed wild nature on this scale before. I sit on one of the boundary walls, legs dangling over as I just soak up the forest beyond. The sky is full of stars, a neighbouring galaxy lights up a lot of the sky. The major light source however are the three moons lined up in a perfect straight axis. They all look equal in size to Earth’s moon. The gravity was slightly denser than Earth, so I felt the way every movement I took was slowed down slightly. It was nothing I couldn’t get used to, though. When I was 12 and ate the Jace herb from this planet, the superpower I was open to receive at puberty, was influenced by that herb. Not only did I never get sick again, I had Enhanced Instincts. It was probably useless and intangible to others, but for me, it just meant I was always right when I sensed something coming my way. I could prepare to avoid danger, whether it was from another person, or sensing a natural disaster. It purely served my own selfish defences. Super powers for human kind were always in a few categories, enhances senses, such as eyesight, taste, smell, etc. Or you could choose speed or strength enhancements. For me, I guess I was spiritually enhanced. It made sense, then, that I was somehow matched perfectly with a Kor. They were deeply instinctual and so was I. I still couldn’t really comprehend how they mated with females and consumed them afterwards. That concept is so creepy it makes my skin crawl. But to be fair, the universe was very, very strange, and it was just the way their own evolution unfurled… I guess? Below me is a path into the Dark Forest. Behind me is the Dark Palace. It was steep, that’s the best way I could describe it. The steps were too tall, the height of the walls was too high, the structure was very rectangular, with no turrets or pretty feminine architecture, almost like a prison honestly. It was too masculine, but the beauty was brought in from the nature, which crawled over everything and brought in dim glittery light and a soft touch. I find comfort in the sense that I don’t feel threatened; and I can trust my Enhanced Instincts on that at least. It was the logic in this place that was scaring me. I was a female and a potential mate – but technically I could only be a mate if I was willing. As Mars said, they did not chase. So… very logically… I just had to resist and deny the Kor Mars. I was just scared that I couldn’t resist. I can only imagine and wonder what the others are like. Strangely named after the planets in my home solar system, I wonder if they drew inspiration from our home… especially since Mars was incorporated into Our Tcno as a High Elite-Donor. That meant he provided assistance to human kind, in return for favours… perhaps such as females for… food; ew, it’s so gross. I am wearing a black shirt and black pants and black shoes, my blonde hair is straight and just past my shoulders and I have hazel eyes. My skin is pale to the point it’s kind of translucent, I’ve always hated it, as I couldn’t tan without burning, and now I just stuck out like a dish plate in the perpetual darkness of this place. It makes me ultra self-conscious. But aside from my basic girly instincts and feelings, I had to work out my plan of survival. The reason I aspired to be a Dark Nine was, I think, mostly influenced by ingesting the Jace herb. I remember the taste of it, flying through my senses and my blood, changing my system to be stronger, better and more alert. So more than freedom, I wanted out of Our Tcno to search for my potential… whatever that was. Our Tcno wasn’t an evil system, it was the best humankind could come up with to ensure both our survival and happiness. But there was always the 1% who needed to choose the thrilling option, too, right? The strange and weird and unknown, which called us to be explorers and adventurers. So technically I achieved my greatest goal, having an adventure off Earth. I got exactly what I wished for. So I should be happy – and I was. I was happy. I was just… I don’t know. There was a whole other factor working in my life now; the will of the Kors on this planet. If they were hungry, I had pretty much accepted, if they decided to eat me, I’m fucked and doomed. That thought makes my mind go quiet. Too quiet. A new abrasive feeling dares to touch my strong-willed mind. It’s a feeling and an idea, that is only quiet because it is exactly that… it’s the idea of submission to a stronger fate… or nine of them. Is this what it felt like to be a lamb trembling before a wolf, casually hunting down its next dinner, and the lamb knows it’s pointless to try anything, so it just stands and trembles and goes quiet before it’s killed? I really, really hoped that wasn’t the feeling entering my system now. The only true way out, if I needed one, was to find an ET portal. If Mars came and went from the Dark Ninth… an ET was present. I hold onto that notion, that there was a backdoor, I just had to find it. I jump down off the wall, and I turn from the beautiful glimmering darkness of the forest, to face the prison – I mean palace. As I walk back inside along a narrow path, I now take note of all the rooms inside this place on the bottom floor. There are a lot of doorless ‘cells’, so many were empty, it seemed odd… they had a purpose a long time ago, I just don’t know what. The rest were big open spaces, that led straight down toward the middle room, which was the throne room where Mars was just before. The stairs up to the next levels seemed to get darker and lonelier, so I hadn’t found any confidence to climb up to those areas just yet. I wander back into the throne room, but Mars is gone. I feel watched in here, however, I feel watched from up above. I strain my neck to look up, where multiple balconies from the higher levels look down on this hall, and the feeling of being watched goes away as I search for the watcher. I suck in a nervous breath as I move toward the nearest spiralling staircase, and I brave the steep climb, using palms and feet to climb up. I had aimed to get off at the second level, but I enjoy the movement of climbing and end up winding my way to the very top, until I’m at the fourth and final level. Up here, I see sparkling rays of moonlight, shining in through small windows, none of which are large enough to even stick a head through. I find their tiny little windows, very odd, but at least they let in enough light to see where I’m going. I walk past more empty rooms, until I finally find a space that isn’t so boring. I’m peeking in at a stone library. At the centre, is a globe sized rock, floating above a podium like an artefact on display at a museum. It softly spins naturally in slow motion. The rest of the stone library shelves are empty of actual books, but still this place feels like it’s full of wisdom. I walk right up to the floating globe, and my eyes scan over the surface features, wondering why it looks so familiar. I look under its side until I see a faint outline of the Great Red Spot – Jupiter’s infinite storm. This is the planet in Earth’s solar system, the Jupiter, and I don’t think it’s just a model on display. I realise the closer I look at it, the less solid it appears. It’s more like dense gas. I swear on my life, I’m not actually going to touch it, but I can’t help but point out a finger and hover it closer to its surface, especially that iconic storm. As my finger hovers a bit closer, I hear angry footfalls coming in through the entry behind me. “Don’t touch!” I have already snapped my hand back and jumped around to see another member of the Kors striding through. This must be Jupiter. A little taller than Mars, he is still giant. His skin is a grey metallic, almost a matte-silver, his snarling razor teeth are so white and shiny they seem robotic almost… or just godly. Jupiter doesn’t just scold me, he is striding over to clearly manhandle me out of the room, I can tell from the way his eyes don’t just focus on my eyes, they slash through me, back and forth with menacing intent as I don’t – thankfully – stand still like a terrified lamb. Instead, I try to run so fast for the exit, my feet skid along the moist stones, and I trip onto my palms and onto one knee. I hate that I’ve fallen in front of one of the Kors, but it’s too late now to blush in front of the predator. I lunge back up to my feet and run back for the exit, only spinning to see Jupiter focusing on what I left behind. My left shoe fell off at his feet, and it was enough of a distraction for Jupiter to consider it like a strange thing he has never seen before. I hold onto the side of the archway leading to his library room, and I gaze back in longingly for what is mine. Jupiter snaps his gaze out to see me looking in at my property. He leans down, picks up my shoe – and frisbees the damn thing out of the room, so hard and so fast it flies out over the throne room and somehow gets stuck on a jutting curve in the strange architecture. I look up at it, knowing I’ll never get it back now. Fucking asshole. I am genuinely pissed that he was so fucking rude about it. I glare back in at Jupiter for a second, but only because I can’t ignore my hurt pride. “That was unnecessary,” I scold him, somehow managing that while feeling my adrenaline spike as Jupiter’s black eyes narrow and he suddenly looks rather unsatisfied by my retreat. I quickly turn and end up barging right into Mars’ front. He snuck up on me! I didn’t sense him at all, as he didn’t feel like danger to me, but I’m still caught off guard after face planting directly into his abs, my hands now laid flat on his waist, feeling his heat. “Careful, Diana. Remember, you’re not meant to be here,” Mars speaks over me, totally okay with us being flush. “Hey, you bought me,” I snap up at him. “It’s only temporary,” Mars somehow appears both perfectly cheeky and handsome as he says that. “Seriously?” I pull back a large step, but his hands quickly rich out and smoothly slide over my wrists, immediately shackling me to him, so I can’t leave the conversation so soon. “…I said to stay on Terra…” Mars whispers now, raising a slightly annoyed brow. “Ah – you mean Earth -? Tcno?” “Terra – Earth, yes, they are the same. That is where you’re allowed to be, Diana,” Mars answers more sharply now, seemingly still angry that I denied him back on Earth. “I wanted to be a Dark Nine,” I state the obvious. “Exactly. But you’re still not allowed here, females are forbidden to settle on our planet, but for a while, it can amuse us… until it doesn’t… eventually we will have to deal with that,” his eyebrow motions to the room I just entered and escaped from. I gulp, and I stop resisting. Mars hands on my wrists, feel weirdly comforting anyway. “Then tell me what to do,” I change tact, wondering if relying on Mars, will change my destiny to a quick and likely miserable-as-all-hell death. Mars now sees I am calm, and he unhands my wrists, leaning down a little, to catch my eyes with a friendly and sweet look once again. “I’d love to talk to you, Dark Nine,” Mars seems so young and flirty, when he smirks like that, but it’s still somehow sweet enough, “Let’s chat.” I gulp again, “Just, chat?” I confirm. “Yes –” Mars answers so smooth and still so friendly for a man that wanted to eat me – At the same time, our interaction is cut in half by a loud scoff. I look over my shoulder, and across the balcony along the throne room’s top, I see another Kor. He is too in the shadows to make out any features, but the other giant Kor-like-god is unimpressed by Mars and I. Mars looks at his ‘friend’ in shadow, I don’t know if they’re related or family, but he seems irritated by the scoff destined for our ears. Mars glares and growls out a deep warning at the other perving Kor. The other Kor responds with a still glare, but then turns to walk back into his own space, out of sight. Mars continues to stare after him with his spiked temper. But he remains calm enough for me. I’m in shock myself. The growl he let off to protect me was the sexiest god damn thing I ever heard in my life. It sounded perfectly possessive. I keep the fact I am impressed, wiped from my face, however, too scared to show any clear sign of attraction, lest it be a green light for Mars to bite into me or something of that nature. I stand stiff and awkward as I wait for Mars to look at me. At the same time, I feel a cool heat suddenly at my back. I get the shock of my life when yet another Kor sneaks up on me. But this one isn’t new. I look up and behind to see Jupiter has silently approached, just to stand behind me like a stone pillar. He isn’t doing anything. Fucking um – creepy, much?! I spin and step back into Mars front, just to feel his protection, as I stare with wide and terrified eyes up at Jupiter’s silent approach. “It’s nothing personal,” Jupiter changes his tone, even though he still looks mean, “Just don’t touch what isn’t yours. Manners, while you’re here…” I nod, while I feel Mars step back from me. When his heat leaves me, I purse my lips, forcing myself not to lean back in search of his heat. “I hear you,” I answer Jupiter, “I apologise… but I wasn’t going to touch it –” Jupiter sneers slowly when I try to deflect blame and not take responsibility. I snap my mouth shut and Jupiter at least stops focusing on me, to look at Mars behind me instead. Nothing is being said. I didn’t know if they were enemies or friends, it was really hard to tell. I look over my shoulder back up at Mars and he is just staring Jupiter down. “A Dark Nine,” Jupiter adds, into the heavy silence, “Really?” “Maybe,” Mars teases but doesn’t elaborate, “Relax.” Uh. Me? I seriously can’t tell if Mars told Jupiter to relax or if it was said to me. But Mars abruptly starts to walk off, and I turn to follow, knowing my safest place right now is with Mars, not with any of the others. There were at least seven more lurking here, and I had a feeling they were all watching. I didn’t like that. So, I think I’d just stick to Mars’ flank, before I stumbled across any of the others while alone. “What is this place? It looks like a prison, no offense –” I talk to him while he strides and I half-jog to keep up with him. “It is a prison,” Mars answers coldly. “Oh…” I didn’t expect him to answer in the affirmative, “But, for who?” Mars looks over his shoulder with a handsome, all-too-welcoming smile, “For us. When we broke out of here, uh… well,” he doesn’t elaborate, he just lets the potential-answer come to me in the silence. His eyes are too relaxed for the answer to be what I immediately think it is… right? My mouth just hangs open, and Mars delights me by actually giving me the direct answer after he considers keeping it a secret, but he just tells me instead. He slows down his strides and turns to me, to tell me, clearly and carefully, “We were once prisoners to the female Kors, for approximately a hundred thousand years they were breeding with us and controlling us, rightly so, because how we are sustained was a direct threat on their lives and bodily autonomy,” Mars explains, “When we got out, we ate till our heart’s content. And maybe for a spot of revenge. Maybe. Who knows. A hundred thousand years in a prison might drive the sanest to a little madness, wouldn’t you think, Diana?” I think he is joking around at the end, but it’s hard to tell. “You’re very nice to me, Mars,” I say it as a statement, and a question. Because it didn’t add up. If they were so mad, and if they ate every single female of their species… why be nice to me? Mars goes silent again. When he looks back at me he gives me an amused smile again, but no words. When he doesn’t want to answer, he just doesn’t. I’m not 100% sure why, or what custom is reflected in that smug smile of his, but I am starting to get an idea. I’m not entirely certain that I understand why their history is so fucked up, but I am just happy that I’ve survived yet another 30 mins on this planet, with nine hungry demonic planet-gods all around me in this literal prison. Not to mention… since there are no females here… they’re all probably a little hungry.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 3 ✿◉●•◦ We sit outside by a small stream, running between boulders, so the most beautiful silver moss sparkles before us. It’s a cute little spot for chatting. I sit back on the grass, leaning back on my hands, as Mars lays down beside me, spread out, relaxed and eager to speak with me outside of their former prison. “Speak freely, Diana,” Mars asks me so politely, while looking up to the evernight sky. I like that Mars has an obvious awareness of my fears. He is an expert at making me feel safe, which in itself feels strange logically, but I was slowly getting used to his energy. It’s not that Mars was welcoming and super friendly, but I felt his direct permission to be open with him, and I reckon with myself that it’s never a bad thing to communicate. Talking is exactly how we’d sort out our dynamic, my place, his mind, my mind, my future. Whatever that may be. “There is no one here,” I murmur, “…what do you guys do… all night?” “We made this place our home, but we don’t stay on Dark Ninth all the time. We are all on the Universal Board, so we travel around a lot,” Mars answers, also open about their behaviours. “It must be nice to be so free,” I murmur, “Where I come from, I guess most humans felt free, but I had a strange desire to get out of the hold of Our Tcno. It’s strange to know you are a donor for Earth… although I guess that is none of my business. But it is also strange we were matched in Earth’s system.” “Our frequencies aligned,” Mars explains, “That’s how it works. What do you wish for now that you’re free of your solar system?” “Not to die,” I blurt out, looking down at him, pointedly referring to his appetite. Mars’ handsome eyes hold mine steady and show no sign of an imminent threat, “…you… won’t eat me, right?” “I could,” Mars answers while showing off half his razor-sharp teeth again, he is just a lot closer this time and it sends a shiver down my spine, so I look away, “…however, I don’t want to… I want to know your thoughts… your desires.” “Well, I want to feel like my potential is fulfilled, so I need to keep exploring the universe – preferably alive and not as a ghost.” “Do you ever think about sex?” Mars asks, raising a curious brow as he draws my attention back down to him. He slowly rests his hands behind his head on the soft grass, awaiting my response. Now, I find myself amused and quiet. I smile and say nothing, mimicking him. Mars looks rather pleased that I have now developed a sense of humour. “How about you tell me your full intention… with me,” I answer him boldly with a question. “I have no intentions,” Mars smirks, giving away the lie, but then he adds, “…other than to ask you questions, Dark Nine… we seek wisdom and need to know how you think.” I notice his slip up in language. We need. They. All of them. Need. If they needed to know me – I should keep my cards close and not reveal everything. “Do you love?” I ask, putting the question on Mars. At the question of love, Mars’ eyes fire up and his expression hardens. Curiously, it’s contradictive. It’s passion and it’s defence. It’s fury and pain. “Diana, you know nothing,” Mars changes his tone as he sits up slowly, “Our concept of love is out of your limits.” “Out of my limits?” I gasp, “My whole life I’ve done nothing but love. It’s in my blood. My species. Humans. We love, one another, each other, and the universe itself. How is love outside my limits?!” Mars snaps right out of his calm demeanour, finally showing some raw and uncensored emotion. I watch in shock as he stands and looks to the three moons while pacing along the garden, he growls to himself, but I hear the words, “Your species are practically loveless.” I watch tentatively as Mars seems to blend perfectly in with the flora, his greenish tan skin, glittering just like the plants around him. He could literally be crouched in the forest, ready to strike, and no one would see him, he camouflages perfectly. It reminds me of a lion on the savanna, or a leopard perched up high in a tree. It makes me realise the Kors may not be the main population of the Dark Ninth. Top predators, the lonesome kind, could not build and sustain populations to the degree of the ruins I see dispersed around me. I wonder if they had evolved to prey on the general populace – which they already exterminated. I really didn’t know what I was dealing with here. I try to keep my reasoning simple. The worst thing you could do with an alien predator was run and turn your back to them, so I keep that in mind. At no point would I run screaming. As Mars is pacing along the stream to let out his anger, I ask him a different question from my position. “Are you just playing with your food?” Mars slows his walk to look at me with a clenched jaw and sharp eyes. “You’re no fun,” Mars whispers, “You’re not even naked.” What the hell! “Are you serious right now?” I snap out, finally finding a reason to jump to my own feet, “You have got to be joking, if you think I’d just bend because you’re so hot. I have strength to resist looks, Mars. I have the will to say no. I don’t have to serve your needs. If I am going to die, it won’t be on my knees serving your desires. But I will die fighting back to keep my dignity.” Mars looks intrigued once again and slightly calmer, even as he slips in another insult, “…spoken like a true virgin… but, I apologise, Diana, you are a Dark Nine afterall.” “Why are you so obsessed with me being a Dark Nine? If anything, it’s personal to me. It just means I have made sure I have the greatest freedom to choose. It’s nothing to do with you…” Mars squats down by a small plant and his fingers smooth over an oval leaf with a spikey top. He stands up and he shows me the distinct leaf a little closer… I squint at it, and then my eyes abruptly widen – that’s the Jace herb, “…that’s what saved my life when I was a child…” I whisper now. “It didn’t save you, Diana,” Mars murmurs quietly, “It’s killing you. It’s a slow poison. We feed it to our chosen mates, it pulls out your hidden strengths to ready you for pregnancy, manipulates your genetics so you can breathe and thrive on the Ninth, and ultimately it kills you quickly after birth, stopping your heart. Because you’re useless to us then. Our children are self-sufficient the moment they are born. They only require a vessel for development. And we breed with thousands over our lifetime.” “Rewind a second, Mars. Did you poison me when I was a child…?” I ask, flabbergasted. Mars answers by dodging a direct affirmation, and answering me carefully, “Diana, I swear I don’t want to hurt you.” “No. Forget hurt. You want to kill me,” I correct him, “Not that I should be surprised after what you’ve admitted.” “There is one more thing I haven’t shared,” Mars explains, looking sheepish, “These aren’t normal circumstances.” “…what … on the Ninth… do you mean… and speak plainly, please.” “I’m not actually your mate,” Mars admits calmly, “And the Jace won’t kill you this time if you fulfil your own wishes. I came to you initially during the Mate Sort, because I was picking you up, as you’re mated to all nine of us on the Dark Ninth… but… unless you mate with all of us, the Jace will kill you ultimately,” Mars shrugs one shoulder, “Yeah… sorry. The thing is, we didn’t choose this. You did. I’m just following orders.” What – What the… Fuck? “What do you mean, I did? I did what?” I try not to stutter, as I am heavily invested in knowing what the hell Mars is on about. Mars sucks in a breath and explains, “When you chose a superpower, off grid, it was randomised, attuned to your deepest spirituality. So you got enhanced instincts, but it was only a compliment for the automated letter we were sent our way. The Tcno did not read it, it was sent out confidentially. Inside was your wish to serve us all.” “Um, I never made a wish… like that… least of all to serve?” I whisper. “Like a maid,” Mars suggests, holding out an open hand to motion at me, like that explains something, and the handsome bastard is trying not to look so smug, “Like a… like a… pet?” “Like a slave,” I correct him, again, “You know that’s what you wanted to say.” “I will say many things, but sometimes certain things don’t need to be said with such vulgarity,” Mars looks me over, head to toe, “We have portals to your world, and we monitored your growth after you matured into an adult at 18. You have a defined personality, Diana, you are obsessed with helping wounded animals. Not any kind of animal, either. Dangerous animals, who are often abandoned. You wished at every birthday to help the wounded animals who needed the most… attention…” Mars blushes a little, “If you are wondering if I am perhaps calling myself an animal… I wish I could deny it, but poetry will say otherwise. As Kors, we are ultimately animals more than men. Instinctually and spiritually… we are not humane, we are self-serving.” “But once again, we come back to this, you are so nice to me, Mars. Is it an act?” I ask, “I am reluctant to trust you. And you don’t look like a wounded animal to me.” “Listen, then. We are selfish animals. We love with brutality. Our hearts have unknown limits. We’ll destroy entire solar systems for you. If you serve us. Your wish, is our wish,” Mars really wants me to see this in a positive light, but I’m not so sure. “Mars, you barely know me…” I murmur, gulping down my true feelings. “You’re free to leave,” Mars adds, more impatient than before, “Whenever you want, wherever you want. I’ll escort you to where you wish to go.” “But why are you so kind? Answer me, you never properly answer me,” I don’t know why I am obsessed with this question, but I need to know the answer. Mars faces me with a twitching brow. He attempts to keep his distance, but something inside him snaps. I straighten my back as Mars stalks right up to me. He snatches up my chin firmly and leans down to meet me at eye level. “Why am I kind? The alternative is unthinkable,” Mars’ drops his tone a few octaves, “I want to know you. Cruelty is counterproductive. Especially if you are destined… as it would seem… to mate with all nine of us. This is a sweet introduction.” “That’s not even possible… the n-nine of you, part… like, nine… like mating to… to all nine of you,” I whisper, stuttering only because of his powerful glare, this close to me, “I swear, it’s n-not in my desires. I – I have… I can’t… I just don’t know.” “The universe knows. And you’re untouched,” Mars finally unhands me, “Another reason I am kind, Diana… you are new to this… so am I, speaking in this way,” Mars admits a small weakness there, that he has probably not interacted with a female in this drawn out manner. No doubt he could just use carnal desire to make a woman submit for sexual intercourse, fuck and run… or… let’s not even go there. “What am I new to, exactly?” I ask this breathlessly, my hand reaching for my other wrist to squeeze it for comfort, while I’m staring straight at his mouth. There was something about it. Mars sees my fresh desire, right there in my eyes, and in the way I now slowly lick the salt off my lips. His eyes burn through me when he sees my tongue dare to taste my own lips. But Mars doesn’t kiss me, as my lips part open, he brings up a hand to my face, and two of his fingers run over my plump bottom lip that I just tasted myself. He presses his fingers across that lip, and slips them past my teeth, over my tongue. Mars feels how I lick gently over his two deep fingers, any deeper and I might gag, but I liked how bold he was, taking my mouth like he owned it. He slips his fingers back out and he grabs my throat instead. I gasp in an excited and innocent breath, and Mars finally gifts me what I had wished for seconds prior. A kiss! A… kiss? I wait for it, but his tongue is the first thing I feel on my lips – as he licks over them. Mars glares at me, as his forehead touches mine and his hand slips down my skin, over my collar bone, under my shirt, to press over my heart. As he watches me, I close my eyes. All I feel is his forehead against mine, his hand over my heart… and then it sinks in. The real gift he left tingling on my lips. The taste of him. I instinctually lick the taste off. I can only describe it as a liquid aphrodisiac. When I taste it, I change. I become immediately aggressive. I lunge at Mars, attempting to rip his clothes off. I suddenly understand why he wears some kind of thick leather. As I grasp the straps at his shoulders, I can’t rip them off. I let out a weird growl as my nails claw at him, my hands diving for his abs – as Mars slowly grins, then shoves me back. I stumble back a few paces and fall on my butt. I spit onto the ground, trying to get his taste out of my mouth. When the taste of a Kor leaves me, my senses mellow out. Humiliated, I look up at Mars, standing a few feet from me, with evidence of my scratches on his skin – they heal before my very eyes but I did that to him. “Stay a-away from me,” I hiss at him. “Don’t worry, Diana, we’re much worse,” Mars steps to the side, to look back at the forest, only glancing back at me briefly, “You tasted what our love does to us. And that taste is in my mouth all the time.” “It’s poison,” I whisper, gulping multiple times, hoping I never feel that Kor base instinct ever again. As I’m closing my eyes to stay calm, I feel the air move past my shoulder, as Mars stalks right by me. “Almost,” Mars sounds nonchalant, his voice distant as he leaves me, “…but it’s venom, Diana, not poison.” My ‘friend’ retreats at that. I guess the chat is over… Now I’m left traumatised, sitting on the grass by the stream on this alien planet, after feeling an alien instinct. Their ‘love’ must be… fucking savage. I can’t imagine what making love with them is like… or I… I could try. The abrupt thoughts are so intrusive, dangerous and exciting, the moment I start to imagine sex with them… …I can’t stop. That quick, I feel me changing. My soul, hijacked by Mars’ sly seduction. My chemistry and my thoughts are starting to change and warp and twist. So… Mars hadn’t been nice to me after all. I’d just been lured into his trap until I wanted to kiss his delicious mouth. It seems being a mate to a Kor, or all of them, if that was even possible – wasn’t a matter of plain old attraction. Whatever attraction you showed, they still had to perfect you first so that you’d survive their natural fury. More than predator. They were completely fucking alien. I had to keep that in the forefront of my mind as I searched for my escape. It was time to stop exploring the Dark Ninth. I had to get the hell off this planet!

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 4 ✿◉●•◦ I gaze up at the evernight sky and I pray for a miracle. I had a planet covered in ruins, beautiful forests and inhabited by 9 walking predatory alien subspecies to humans. My Enhanced Instincts push my gaze toward the stars however, not toward the Kors’ prison. If the Jace herb was poisonous, and had been supposedly killing me since I ingested it 9 years ago, I certainly felt no ill-effect, only strength. I do wonder if that is speeding up my aging process for that maternal transformation the Kors needed to breed. I had effectively traded monitored life on Earth, for this darkly lit path. To be targeted by an alien subspecies for breeding…? …well, that wasn’t something I had exactly prepped for. I knew life outside the system would be dangerous and unforgiving, I just didn’t think I could be sucked into another set of rules so quickly. Above me, where the stars glow blue, I can see through a light layer of mist. That’s where I spot a red blinking light. Someone was above me…? I watch as the small spacecraft lowers into the atmosphere and then zips off into the ruins ahead of me. I know intuitively this has nothing to do with the Kors – someone else must have been monitoring me. Perhaps it was the infamous Freed. They were subspecies of all kinds who lived like nomads, little was known about them and I did expect to run into them at some point. It makes sense they would be following any departures from my solar system. They would have tracked my voyage here through the teleportation stream left behind, which always left an imprint of where you were from and where you were going. I don’t look back to the prison that Mars has stalked back into, giving me space to contemplate his story, their need of me, and the venom he let me taste on my lips. Mars was utterly delicious and deadly. Jupiter was terrifying, short tempered… although somewhat mannered. And once again… that was only two of them. Imagine being a mate to nine carnivorous aliens. Heh – I was still a little in shock about that, but shock forevermore was not going to help me. I start to trek into the forests of Dark Ninth, deeper into the ruins. I notice my pale skin now glows a pale luminescent green, reflecting the soft neon lights around me. There were no exceptionally tall trees anywhere, the tallest being at around half my height, looking like bonsais. Dark Ninth mostly had low lying shrubs and vines that climbed up the ruins, giving the landscape more shape. While flowers bloomed everywhere, I notice the bugs that pollinate them are almost invisible due to their transparent wings and bodies… so I guess almost-invisible butterflies or moth like critters had been spared by the Kors. The ruins themselves were pretty much raized down to their foundations, with only random walls still standing, while everything else remained ground down below ankle level. I step through turquoise grass, which feels as soft as butter under my soles. I had good visibility up to the horizon, and also where the ship had landed, camouflaged perfectly into the deep blues, purples and greens of this planet. It’s landed on a flower bed maybe half a mile forward from my location. It was going to take a short few minutes to walk there. I look behind me, as I feel multiple eyes on me from the prison. Of course they’re watching – – but then I see movement toward me. A… an almost completely transparent shape, as tall as the other Kors – but literally invisible. So this was an invisible Kor now?! On the very edges of his figure I see blurred lines of the landscape. What’s more, is I think it’s natural, not artificial. But I see a wobble in the air, as the arms lifts and a weapon is drawn out. “Get down, Diana.” The Kor snarls the command at me, the voice is velvet but the warning is clear. This wasn’t Mars or Jupiter, it was someone else. I trust the direction and I drop into the shrubs, looking back to the spacecraft. My eyes widen at what I had been walking toward. I see weird creatures with eight legs, crawl out from under the craft. Gigantic spiders. Oh, my goodness. Also, what the fuck?! My eyes are glued to the giant spiders crawling around the dark fields, dispersing with cautious intent. However, before they move off too far, I hear a zwing, it’s a distinct drawn out electric zap, or more like the whistle of slowed and directed lightning. I watch as a miniature blue zig zag arrow, strikes and paralyses one of the spiders. The others crawl at top speeds in all other directions, so fast it’s honestly terrifying how quickly they move. My heart beat races as the spaceship itself has abandoned it’s own cohort, lifting off and flying out quickly with the first strike. While all this has happened in under two seconds, I feel a slight sensation of heat at my shoulder, and I look to see the butter soft grass, bend and lay flat under a silent, heavy invisible foot of the Kor beside me. I look up at the distorted light around him so I can see him carefully anchoring himself to get a good aim on all the remaining spiders. He is pulling back some kind of translucent arrow, then he stills, and shoots off four at once. The air around me buzzes with their heat, and I almost feel scorched by it, as the light-weapon is fired and I watch four arrows disperse in north, west, east and north-east directions – all finding the backs of the spiders. I watch them all fall down, struck dead. “…I missed one,” the invisible figure says calmly, lowering his weapons, I feel his gaze on me. I slowly get up, and as I do, I see a big fat arachnid right in front of me, like right, right in front of me. It’s a super enlarged jumping-spider. I scream when the Kor does nothing, and the spider raises a large leg at me, curiously…? When the Kor does nothing, and the spider just keeps staring at me, I turn to run, and the cheeky Kor immediately snaps up my elbow and catches me. Daring to chuckle about my terror, the invisible man pulls me back to where I was, explaining, “This one is ours.” I’m jerky in my movements as I turn back to the spider, which is still very frozen, with a leg still out reaching to me. It’s as tall as me. It’d be cute if it was the size of my little pinky. But this was fucking different. “Ours?” I ask. That one word takes the remaining breath out of my lungs and I feel dizzy. I stumble forward a bit and the Kor props me up by sliding a hand off my arm, around my waist instead. His heat warms me up, and I focus on him being a pillar next to me. If he was calm, I should calm down too. “We raised this one, it’s a pet, say hello to Chonk,” the Kor tries to push me forward but I push back, refusing to move closer to it. “Why that name –?” I whisper. “He’s really fat,” the Kor chuckles again, “Go away, Chonky, she doesn’t like you. Typical female,” he adds that on just to piss me off, I know it! I watch as Chonky looks disappointed and turns to walk away – except he jumps away, like a whole field away. My mouth hangs open at the speed of that thing. So it was a super-giant jumping spider. “What’s your name?” I ask the Kor, gently removing myself from his warm arm around me. I step to the side and he says nothing. I wonder if the fucker is smiling all amused at me, as my eyes search for his expression. “Neptune.” He answers, just after a weirdly long pause. I gulp, and I nod, saying nervously, “My favourite planet…” “Good,” Neptune loves that answer, answering me very quickly. I stumble back a few steps, and I see him tense a little, by the way the grass bends with his movement forward. I stop retreating. Don’t run. “I’m just going for a walk to get my sense of the terrain,” I explain, “Is there anything out there that’ll try to eat me?” I speak nervously, too quickly, before I can think. Even as I’ve half asked it, he knows what I’m going to ask and I can hear Neptune’s quickly muffled start to a deep chuckle, “Um. You know what, never mind,” I whisper, turning and walking off with the deepest blush filling my cheeks. I don’t even know why I feel so embarrassed. But at least I’m not running away, I’m just walking away slowly. As I make my slow escape, I feel Neptune walk up and beside me, not too close but keeping me company, I think. I don’t speak to him and he doesn’t speak to me. Maybe he is on sentry duty, protecting the vulnerable female from any other dangers – otherwise it’d be a waste of meat – did I really just think that? God damn it. I keep walking through the grass, between the flowers, until the ground gets a little wet beneath my feet. Water. I lick my tongue over the dry roof of my mouth and I know I’m dehydrated. I lick my salty lips next on impulse and thankfully there is no more residue of Mars’ venom. Neptune has stopped a foot in front of me, and I feel his gaze on me. I bet I look exhausted and a complete mess. He picks up on my thirst, however, “…this way,” Neptune speaks so gently, I immediately feel my hair on the nape of my neck rise. I follow his imprints in the grass, as for the moment, I had no backup plan. We walk along the grass until the ground suddenly opens up to show crystal clear liquid. I wouldn’t have known it was water, as it was perfectly still. It is not until Neptune just dunks himself in, and the water curls around his skin, giving him slightly more shape, that I know it’s a huge spring. Eager for a drink, I immediately squat at the edge of the pool. The Kor swims back to me as he sees me reaching one cupped hand into the water. He apprehends my wrist before I do that, and it feels weird being grasped by something I can hardly register with my crappy vision. He takes my hand out of the water and surfaces in front of me. “Allow me,” Neptune gets on one knee in the shallow water, cupping both his hands in the clear liquid, he brings it up like a perfect bowl. He basically offers it for me to drink from like a cup, tilting his hands toward my face. Weird… very weird… but maybe this was the way they all drank water. Instead of being rude, I just awkwardly focus on the floating water, moving below it a little more, my lips touch the tips of his fingers by accident but he tilts his palms upward anyway, so I can drink the water. It’s a well timed flow, so it’s not as awkward as I thought it was going to be. I’m thirsty enough to swallow every drop, and I’m impressed I don’t spill it all over me. When I’m finished, I feel a million, so I lean back and sit on the grass with a stupidly proud smile on my face. “Thanks,” I keep it polite and simple, I didn’t need to overdo the compliments. Neptune moves out of the water, and I’ve let my guard down. I had assumed he’d just walk off to stand on guard, a little way away from me. Or maybe even just stand next to me, or something like that. I can’t see him and neither do I expect him when he reaches down to catch my throat. With one hand, Neptune holds my neck softly – no pressure at all, but I am completely caught still for him, and I am easily captivated by how bold he was to do that. I stare into nothing but the air, as I just feel his hand on me. “What… what are you doing…?” I stutter, only to breathe in after the question, immediately tasting the change in the air – I tasted his exhale, so his face is right in front of me and I don’t even know it. Oh, my. I blush a much deeper red. It’s like he is ultra-invisible now, or my brain is blocking out the signs of his shape, because I can’t see anything. Neptune’s hand slides off my neck, and his palm touches my mouth, as his fingers splay across my red cheeks – and… okay…? He is now holding my face, for some reason. I feel his eyes are all over my freaked out expression. I don’t know what he is looking for, but I just wait for him to stop doing it. “Hm.” He makes one small and low noise, masculine and possessive enough to make me feel some kind of way – and then he just releases me from his assessment. I breathe in deep and lean back on my elbows, as I see the grass move with his steps away from me. He’s going. Good. Good. I stare out at the perfect water, and I feel that my senses have come alive. My skin is literally glowing like the plants around me now. I hear him walk off by the slight rustle in the shrubs and grass behind me, but just as quickly, I hear him moving back. I don’t look. I stay where I am, staring at the water. “Come to me.” Neptune murmurs behind me, his choice of words are peculiar. Just as unexpected as his hand reaching for my throat, now his hand slips over and through my hair, he easily bunches it up – I suck in a nervous breath as I wait for him to pull it back, to urge me, but he just as quickly lets his fingers thread out and away from me. Uh – unsatisfying. He applied the teeniest bit of pressure only, a miniscule tease of his power, just – just playing around with me. I turn around now, fast, staring with quiet desperation, wanting and needing him to have tugged it just a little bit harder before he let go. I bite my lip as I glare at the nothingness behind me. “Careful, now,” Neptune speaks over my face, I feel his breath touch the side of my ear, as he has leaned down and stood back up. He walks off, and I quickly stand… …and everything… …everything… …inside my body… feels liquid… airy… I feel like I’m floating as I step after him. Am I high? I stumble after Neptune, while focusing on his feet depressing the grass down with each step. If all these mother fuckers had superpowers of their own, or different affects on my system… I really don’t know how I’m going to keep fighting them off. They could weave spells over me. I’m already forgetting that I want to run. Why… why would I want to run? Ah… My logical brain repeats the word, over and over. Sustenance. Sustenance. Eat. Eat. Oh, but am I hungry…? No. I almost stop walking, as the cold thrust of reality sinks home once again. It’s not me. It’s them. I had to remember, no matter what state of mind they could trick me into – they were hungry… they were, not me. No matter what, I could never forget that, or it’d be the end of me.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 5 ✿◉●•◦ I had followed Neptune back to the prison, we walked around it and he took me to a separate structure, basically an underground bunker which housed their spacecraft – so it was technically their garage, I guess? Neptune had jumped down, while I climbed the old ladder carved into the rock. Below here, the bunker is fitted with grey and white clothes on the walls along with Universal Board accessories, whether they be weapons or official books. Yup, books were still a thing in the universe in 20,500; by Earth years anyway. Off to the side of the area where they prepare for intergalactic travel, is the spacecraft itself. It is a literal triangle, it’s very slim and not even that big. I bet it’ll hold all of them but not much more. I waltz over to stand in front of the space craft, where the name is itched into the side. “E” At least, it looks like the letter E to me. I’m sure to them, it means something else in their Kor tongue. I feel safer near something so familiar and human; technology, fashion, a ride… it gave the Kors a new sense of civility. I assume this is why the mysterious Neptune brought me down here, to show me that side of them so I wouldn’t be so scared. That’s how I reason it. Neptune is empathetic. While I stand next to E, I look over my shoulder and I freeze. Neptune has intercepted me again. He is now slightly less invisible, but the air around him somehow provides him features. I finally see his irises, which are neon white. I feel like I’m staring at a hologram, but he stands in the way of all the arrivals. Yes, all of them. Behind Neptune, to which I have not dared to adjust my gaze, all the other Kors have arrived. Mars is with them, Jupiter too, plus six more, of varying colour but all equally giant in size. “What’s happening?” I whisper as quietly as I can to Neptune, who has been waiting for me to speak up. “Come on board,” Neptune reaches above me and presses his hand to the E panel. A circle opens and I feel a gravitational force sucking in, Neptune ushers me toward the door, located under the craft, “I’ll help you.” I get the sudden idea that they are helping me off planet. They must feel with their deep instincts, my unease… they must be helping me go to another part of the universe… I step toward the door and the pull of the gravity wave is smooth in tugging me into the centre and up into the craft. It pushes me to the side when I’m through and I land steadily on my two feet. I’m now looking at two long stretches of seats to strap into. Five on either side. Neptune is next up, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder, leading me toward a seat in the middle of the left row. I don’t struggle when I know he wants me to sit down. I turn and obey the suggestion, while Neptune reaches around me for the shoulder straps, pulling them over and buckling me in. As his hands adjust the sizes of the straps, he takes his time, so he can explain to my silent expression of hope, “We get a lot of visitors here, Diana, our planet is designated as a tourist attraction, for the Elion League,”All Elions were not subspecies to humans, such as those gigantic spiders, and yes, they were considered enemies, “We don’t stop them dropping by, especially if we feel like hunting, but we don’t tolerate them at all if we have female guests that we need to protect,” Neptune looks me over, as he steps back to inspect the handy work, “We’re all going off world, we can’t leave you here undefended,” Neptune turns around and walks off toward the front of the ship, where he inputs all the instructions on the one device in the spacecraft. Neptune is messing with another floating globe-like structure, but this one has many dimensions, like a rubrik cube. I watch as Neptune starts turning all the dials, while my throat feels dry with sudden anxiety. “Are you helping me leave Dark Ninth…?” I speak up, but Neptune starts smirking through my unsure wording, and I see all his razor sharp teeth, six canines like Mars and Jupiter, “What’s so funny?” I ask, frustrated and embarrassed. Literally at any time I felt… nervous, or worried, or scared… these fuckers needed to smile or laugh. “Not everything is about you, Diana,” Neptune speaks to the dials he is still inputting directions into. He speaks so casually. Is he already bored of me? I blush with a weird possessive anger. But then the others join us. They come up one by one, quickly moving to their positions. I freak out and end up staring at all of them, completely wide eyed. One of them has skin that looks like the universe, a universal void, covered in glitter, with eyes that have no colour… it’s just translucent. One is not invisible but still looks translucent, his skin is very similar to mine actually but the difference is the blue tinge for him, while my skin now has a green tinge. The rest of the Kors I categorise into colours, because my courage only allows me to take wide and quick sweeping glances of each one before I end up staring wide eyed at my toes, while my fingers grip the straps over my shoulders with a grip I know will hurt my fingers later. However, I just feel extremely intimidated – who wouldn’t?! They were so big and there were nine of them. They all wanted to fuck me. And then EAT me!!! One Kor was a nature green like Mars, very similar in every way, aside from the jagged silver scars all over his body, like he had been tortured badly in the past. Jupiter sat down next to a golden Kor, who wasn’t bright like Earth’s gold, but more… matte, with that Dark Ninth sparkle shining through his eyes. The other three were strange like Neptune, one was moving around like him, I could barely see him and I get the feeling it’s Uranus, as he stands near Neptune, double checking that the dials are in the right places. Mars walks over to sit next to me, strapping himself in. The other seat on my left is taken by an unknown, a Kor with grey skin, black stripes and silver eyes. I glance at him only for a brief second. Around me the others sit. Neptune waltzes over and takes his seat with his invisible friend on our side. When everyone is strapped in, the ship starts to move and we can barely feel anything, but I do feel one thing very particularly, and that was the eyes of every Kor, now focused on me. The silence that comes with it is the heaviest god damn thing I’ve ever felt in my life. “So… what are your names?” I ask into the great void, “…it’s a pleasure to meet you all…” I add that on in a rushed whisper, hoping I sound respectful. When I look between the five expressions opposite me, I see the same look on all their handsome faces – annoyance? When I look to Mars at my right for some kind of reassurance, he doesn’t seem to care so I look to the one Kor I can actually see at my left, since the other two are invisible… all around…I see low levels of… anger, “Sorry I asked?” I add, with deeply hurt sarcasm, “What did I do? I’m just existing over here… like, sorry?” They didn’t have to make me feel so inadequate as a guest here. “Girl.” I hear that deep drawl, straight from Jupiter’s mouth. I look at him and his straight expression of neutrality, bordering on grumpy Kor fury. His tone is so formidably serious. My eyebrows crease together, I look very worried. My bottom lip trembles as I feel the tears building up in the back of my eyes when the Kors finally stop their theatrical intimidation. In unison, the handsome bastards all break out into gorgeous smiles. All of them except the scarred one. So, eight of the most wide smiles I’d have ever hoped to see from them, now bloom around me – some chuckle while their eyes are alight with relaxed amusement. I smile too but I’ve stiffened further in embarrassment, I just feel like if I even blink the wrong way, two fat tears will roll down my cheeks – and it’ll be seen as weakness! Mars’ large hand reaches over and holds my knees, “…breathe, Diana…” His kind tone catches me off guard. I look up at him sideways and he blinks slow, unthreatening. “You got me good,” I whisper a little fast, just wanting to say something, while now laughing, bordering on hysterical. I keep staring at all their delicious smiles – showing all their razor sharp canines … but somehow it works into being pretty handsome. “Are we going out on business?” I ask Mars quietly, for him alone. “We’re going somewhere,” Mars murmurs to me, “…to have some fun… we’ll show you off… we’ve never had a perfect match, a Dark Nine at that, we’re proud to parade you around a bit,” Mars does explain that, however, and my mind starts racing. Show me off, parade me around – what?! Why? “…did you say show me off, b-but?” I can’t finish the question when Jupiter starts introducing their names. “Don’t be afraid to ask if you forget us,” Jupiter sounds awfully sarcastic about that, as if it’s not possible to forget who each of them are, “Saturn,” he elbows his golden matte friend, “Terra looks like you,” Jupiter motions to the others lined up on his side, “Pluto…. or Louie,” he was the one with universal darkness, probably the most beautiful but the most shy looking, “…and Venus… we call him E, just ah… just don’t talk to him, Diana, he’s been heartbroken for fifty thousand years.” “Move on from me,” Venus speaks up, he is the strange dark green one like Mars and scarred up. Truly, if one of the Kors looked miserable, it was Venus – I mean E? Weird… Now I know who is sitting next to me, even as Jupiter explains, “Uranus is next to Neptune, we still have no idea who is who,” Jupiter smiles a little at that, and I feel relieved none of them can see them either, “On your right, Mercury, E’s little brother… he’s our best hunter.” The introduction is done, as he doesn’t need to introduce himself or Mars to my left. “Um, so what do you all expect of me at this function we are going to?” I ask them all, “Should I do anything in particular…?” “Expect? Just be, Diana…” Mars repeats himself, looking sideways at me, “We will provide for you.” “Provide what?” I ask, feeling clueless. Mars seems uninclined to answer, looking to all his Kors for some help. I look to the rest, expecting one of them will have the answer. But even Jupiter narrows his eyes at Mars and ignores me. “Like, providing assistance?” I ask Mars, guessing the answer, “Tell me what you mean please.” “We take life,” Mercury abruptly answers me, his attention catching me off guard. I turn to him as he murmurs, comfortably, “For that we give everything we can, Diana.” “…like… a trade…?” I whisper to him, looking into his silver eyes. “Anything,” Mercury slowly looks away from me, to all his brothers, “…any wish you have… you’ll get…” “All this for a girl you just met?” I ask, raising a brow and feeling a little giddy about all these promises. “Not any girl,” Mars’ shrugs, “…we wouldn’t fuck just any girl… we’ve been waiting a long time for you, Diana…” “Waiting for me?” I ask. “E,” Mars speaks up, “Why don’t you explain?” I look to Venus, who can’t look me in the eye. He looks at Neptune and Uranus. Eh- “Dark Nine – Enhanced Instincts – the Jace poison – Diana, instead of dying, you evolved into a female Kor,” Venus speaks with a monotone, no emotion whatsoever. “So, you’re saying I’m… not… human anymore?” I ask, confused but wanting to understand perfectly before I assume anything. “You were,” Mars explains briefly, “We altered you, Diana. We want to repopulate Dark Ninth. Before we do that, we’ll convince you to participate.” “It shouldn’t be hard, since Feys are notorious whores,” Venus speaks up now, he finally looks at me as he asks, “…you like our venom, don’t you… Fey?” “What’s a Fey?” I wonder. “Female Kor,” Mercury answers, while glaring at Venus, “Right now you’re the most valuable female in the entire universe, that’s why we’re going to show you off. We want to repopulate an extinct species with you, Diana.” “Not if she denies us all, Feys are notorious deniers,” Venus mentions, in another monotone of misery. “Excuse me, are you crazy?” I snap, losing my temper a little for the first time, “What are you even saying, E…” “Don’t fight with him, Diana,” Mars chuckles, “He is insane. He lost his mind, many destinies ago,” a destiny was ten thousand years. So at least five. Venus doesn’t fight back, but I do feel him close off and retreat into his own mind. He’d look handsome if he wasn’t so shrunken in on himself. Anyways, in the new comfortable silence, I also go quiet for a bit. I lower my tense hands onto my lap, stretching out my fingers. I breathe in deeply and then I breathe out, I do this a few times to feel a bit more centred before I speak up again. “I have a question,” I say slowly, “But please don’t get mad.” “Ask,” Jupiter catches my eye. “Am I in charge?” I ask a tricky question, “…is there a strange dynamic between Kors and Fey… I’m just guessing… I’m just thinking out loud… but because of what I am, will you obey me… is that what you mean by provide assistance…? Is that why the females imprisoned you all, because you were bound by their word? You were abused for that…? Or?” Some of them gulp. “Firstly, that’s a lot of questions,” Mars begins, “The thing is, we… we have so many memories we cannot say what we really feel…” Mars murmurs to me, “But, Diana… you’re almost right. But it’s not your tongue. It’s your heart that will lay out commands for us.” “My heart?” “You give your heart, we give our allegiance,” Mars gets closer and closer to my ear, while Mercury does the same to my other, they’re clearly trying to freak me out, so I stay very still between them, “The trade is to secure your understanding that eventually… one day… we will turn on you… in your case, you’re lucky we voted to keep you alive, no matter the thirst for you… we need to begin somewhere, and it won’t help to kill you after one child… you are our first Dark Nine, there will be more of you but right now we need you alive indefinitely… with our restraint on our hunger you’ll be our little fuck slave and our prized breeding vessel,” Mars sounds so damn vicious at the end, viciously proud and possessive, it’s purely animal, before turning on the civility, just to lie, “I’m sorry, did I just speak from the fire on my tongue, Diana? I apologise… Ididn’t mean to scare you.” Mercury actually uses his razor sharp canines to nibble on the top of my ear, teasing me with their strength and lethality. He doesn’t break my skin but I feel my body panic with rising realisation. They want to master me. Mars also nibbles my ear – and I feel the sharp shredders from Mercury and Mars is far, far too much for my poor heart to handle. I’ve now paused my breathing for too long, and my head droops back, while still trapped in my chair. I start to lose consciousness quickly with my growing terror. The scary part is not the shock. It’s the violent emotion rising in me, different this time, I am much more needy. It felt like crawling fire in my bloodstream and a glowing ache in my bones, shining through my skin. My need was becoming physical, changing me, making me horny for their teeth. I wanted them so bad, I wanted them to tease me with playful bites, to tug my hair, to control me, to touch me, to break my full resolve. I craved that submission. My only defence mechanism kicked in – and that was to lose consciousness. It was the only way to escape my bodies need to react, where my lips would part for my tongue to taste my lips, just to hear my voice concocting an animalistic noise of need and desire. I couldn’t give that to them yet. It was too dangerous. The Kors were providers. But providers of wishes? Of anything? Of anything, really? Yeah, right. I bet most Feys folded in two minutes when the Kors started to seduce them – a kiss or even the touch of their teeth was enough to break your resolve – they could only possibly have provided for the strong Fey who did deny them, and used that to control them for a longer time. I had to find my power in that side of me, even if it drove me crazy trying to fight my base instincts… supposedly I am their first female since my gender’s full extinction off their planet. I mean… what could go wrong?

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 6 ✿◉●•◦ “You’re mated to 9 cannibals,” Iris tells me, she had been looking after me since I awoke in a daze, “I don’t envy you. Even if the Kors have a history of treating Fey’s like queens… you’ll be… you’ll be… well, gone soon,” she gulps and looks away as she says that, “It’s much better being friends with them… I’m employed by the Universal Board, I’m guaranteed their protection,” Iris sighs with her personal relief. I sit on the couch I had woken up on, I’m with Iris in a concave dressing room the size of a football field, although narrow in design and with curved walls. It’s like we were in a long tunnel, yet sound did not echo. I guess right now I was being tended to by Iris, my personal assistant for the day. She was usually a personal assistant for the Kors, as I could identify her position by the choker adorning her neck. It has nine silver circles with their colours represented in the middle. I don’t want to talk about me and my fate. I decide I will try to get information on them. The Kors. Iris was a protected subspecies, a human with factor 6, from the neighbouring galaxy Andromeda… unlike Earth, she had freedom, and factor 6 gave her the ability to communicate with ghosts, her appearance was bald, no hair at all… that didn’t stop her painting her face, she wears a pink lipstick, which matched the pink of her eyes. She was very pretty. “It looks like they’re all paired up, except for one,” I point to her necklace, while she’s still sorting through a bunch of clothes on a moving rack next to us, trying to work out the most appropriate dress I can wear for their party. I’m not sure where the Kors are, but I guess I’ll be escorted to them by Iris. “You didn’t know?” Iris fumbles with the pendants, “Venus and Mercury are brothers.” “I knew that,” I snap a little bit, but I admit, “…although… I don’t know about the others…” “Jupiter and Saturn are brothers, both hot heads, be careful with those two, their egos are massive,” she laughs and sighs, shaking her head as she clearly recounts some interesting memories. I watch as she sorts through the clothes, as she softly teaches me about them further, “Neptune and Uranus are brothers. Pluto is… mmm… one of a kind, he doesn’t speak much,” she seems to blush thinking of the Kor who radiates the darkness of the universe, while simultaneously sparkling with its gentle light. Pluto’s eyes were intimidating to me, though, as they had no colour at all, it’s like he had no eyes, so I hadn’t looked at him long on the ship. “Mars?” I ask. “Mars and Terra are cousins,” she explains, “Not brothers. Mars and Terra are quite charismatic when they speak to me but I find it quietly disturbing. Like very sweet and kind predators. It makes no real… sense to me…” I concur… although I say nothing on it. “Are the Kors close as a group?” I ask, as she finally picks out what I’m going to wear. It’s a… belt? It’s not a very big one… it would not fit around my hips, that’s for sure. As she shows me, it’s metallic with links that move like scales, with a dark blue cloth at the front and the back. “Stand up,” Iris waits for me to do so, and she takes away the towel I had been given, after I had somehow woken up washed and cleaned. She places the belt around my waist, the metal is so lightweight I can barely feel it, although she does put it on tightly so it can barely wriggle around. The cloth falls between my legs and over my ass at the back, “This is based off a custom they have not seen for many destinies. It’s called a Plume, and it comes with this,” she walks to a bunch of draws set into the wall, and she pulls out a bunch of accessories, coming over with a… “A Krown, with a K,” she says while winking, bringing over a collar. It’s the same metal as the belt. It has a chain on the end, that links to the back of the Plume. My hair is pushed aside as Iris places it around my neck and connects the chain to the belt at the back. “Is there anything for my breasts?” I ask, “You know, if I get cold?” “A Kor will warm you,” Iris speaks too close to my face as she walks around me, inspecting every inch to make sure it’s not even slightly misaligned with my posture, “There’s no need for anything else when you’ll be wearing them… metaphorically. Besides, your feminine traits are on display like this, they’ll enjoy that.” “My breasts aren’t even big,” I say self-consciously, “It feels weird having them ‘on display’… what’s there to see…” “You’re a silly girl,” Iris just smiles to herself as she stands back and points to the couch. I sit down again, and she grabs a phone at her belt, unlike me, she doesn’t show an inch of skin below her neck, wearing an all encasing white robe with straight edges. “Are you going to call them?” I ask, before she initiates anything. She nods and walks off to make the call in private. She talks in a coded language anyway, so I can’t understand what she is saying. Everyone in the intergalactic system had an implant to help with language between subspecies. I’m slightly annoyed I can’t understand her now, as it sounds like she is speaking some kind of ancient tongue not registered in the system… maybe she can even speak their tongue. I cross my arms over my chest to keep myself warm and Iris comes back in a few minutes with a twinkle in her eye. “Come with me, the party is starting.” “Do they all drink and get rowdy?” I ask, jumping up to my feet, “Any advice? How do they dance? What games do they play?” I walk with her quick strides, and all my questions seem irrelevant to her. “…hmm…? Um. It’s not that kind of party…” Iris murmurs, raising a brow at me, “I thought you knew. I’ll ask you a question and you answer me. What is the most important thing between all species, the one action that is always celebrated… and enjoyed, of course.” “Debates and diplomacy,” I joke, thinking of all the things a Universal Board might do, you know, like communicate, “But uh, I’ll admit, I don’t know, what are you hinting at?” Iris chews on her perfect lip, looking a little nervous now. “You have no idea?” she whispers, looking at me with renewed concern, “I thought you’d have been informed… or at least heard some rumours.” “I don’t engage in gossip,” I murmur, but really it’s because I was outside all the social circles back on Terra, so I didn’t hear all the gossip, or any rumours, or I heard very little. We walk down the enormous dressing room – I have no idea if we’re on a spaceship or a planet, but once we are at the end, she looks down another corridor, which leads down to many other doors, and at the very end, probably a few minutes walk down, it seems to open into a another massive open area, where I see darkness and lights flashing, like at any party or club atmosphere. I also hear low toned music, like at any party on Terra. What was I missing? As we walk toward the party down the spacious corridor, Iris has slowed her steps. I slow with her until we come to a complete stop and she faces me, grabbing my wrists. “Are you a….” Iris chokes up and looks to the side, “I should not ask,” she scolds herself, “…what did you ask me before… I did not answer… are they close as a group… solitary predators are never close…” she answers me now, while looking at her own feet, as she slowly meets my eye again, “But they do come together to… to mate with a woman.” “Oh, it’s a sex party,” I grin and then she grins, happy I guessed correctly, however, the more I say next, the more her grin fades just as quickly as it appeared, “So there will be other women there? Thank goodness. I genuinely thought I was going to be tormented by all of them all night, but of course they probably have so many others invited – groupies or whatever they are called, just for the act of sex, it’s not all about mating and babies, sex can happen outside of mating bonds, like duh, of course… what, uh… Iris… why are you looking at me like that?” I trail off with concern for her newly set neutral expression. “Never mind it,” Iris whispers now, “Come, it’s best you just see and not worry your pretty little head about it – just learn as you go. As a Fey, you are inclined to intelligence that will match theirs, so, no doubt, no doubt… you’ll work it out,” she does not seem confident on that, “It is not my place to… instruct you about this event any further. The Kors will have my tongue if I say too much. Come on, hurry, keep up, we’re running late and I have to supervise the other staff who are tending to everyone tonight,” she rambles off about her own duties, and I don’t mind, as I follow her quick footsteps down the long hall. I feel like I’m missing some kind of major point that is so obvious to everyone else and would be equally obvious to me if I just tap into my Enhanced Instincts, now that I was… genetically, somehow, Fey. But I can’t weave together a magic answer now. I can’t ‘feel out’ a clean conclusion… to perhaps a very dirty truth. Something animalistic was going to occur. Something primal. Something… big. Very big. Something so big I can’t even comprehend how big. It’s exactly what I cannot fathom. It’s hard to anticipate what you have never known. Although, I’m about to find out.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 7 ✿◉●•◦ I stand at the top of a monstrously large room. Even though it’s an inside space, it feels like it’s outside. In front of me are at least two hundred steps that lead down to the ‘party’. There’s a catwalk down the middle of the cavern and off to both sides are lounges… perhaps a few hundred to the left and a few hundred to the right. Tens of people cluster around their own spaces or intermingle between them. The people are so small, however, I can barely make them out from up here. The surface isn’t entirely flat either, while the cat walk is high up, so everyone can look up at a select few of the most beautiful female subspecies already walking across. I so did not feel like I fit into any special category for good looks… yet I had no choice but to join that walk in a moment. I see why I am running late, the line of females is already making its way off the walk at the very end, toward their planetary representatives. I look up and I see the words CLUB HIVE, carved into the ceiling. Below me, the stairs are dark but the air smells like a sweet perfume, just lightly fragranced to be alluring enough for you to step forward, I feel more relaxed breathing it in. Before Iris ran off to do her supervising role, I had asked her where I had to go at the bottom… she helpfully said “I’d see” …eh… It was not a very reassuring answer, as I was already so nervous, but it does give me a job to do. I take in a deep breath, I start to descend the stairs, while my eyes frantically scan for the Kors. I had been in the dark the whole time – but the moment my bare feet land on the first steps below, the music in the place is hushed down, the lights all dim and one major spot light blasts over me. My eyes burn and I can’t see a damn thing. “The First Fey to be seen in five destinies – she can be considered the most valuable female in the universe since her capture. Her name is Diana. She is 21 Terra-years, she is fertile and mated to the 9 Kors of Dark Ninth.” With the intimidating introduction boomed over me, I’ve lifted up my arm to shield my eyes. I try to not freak out, but for some reason my life feels threatened. I feel hunted like this. With a rising panic and instinct to flea, I start to run down the stair case. Probably not the most sane thing to do but the steps themselves are not steep, so I can get down quickly if I just keep my gaze focused on my feet as I shield my eyes. The harsh spotlight follows me and my semi-translucent skin starts to burn next. I guess I’m no longer used to harsh lights as a Fey. When I reach the bottom, I stop running but my momentum is too fast, so I trip awkwardly, landing on my side. The spotlight is immediately dimmed so my skin stops burning yet continues to heat up underneath with a blush from the humiliation I feel. That stumble could have easily been avoided if I had just used my brain and slowed down more gradually. But fuck, those asshole Kors did not prepare me for this. They let me go into this completely clueless. To top it all off, not only am I now over thinking but I am in pain from falling on a hard surface, tears running down my cheeks. I know thousands of people are watching me, even in the dark. “Come on, young Fey,” the host now has a reassuring tone, perhaps a total of three seconds had passed since the slip, but it felt like an eternity to me, “Get up, you can do it, slowly… Diana…” I follow the calm instructions. I get back up and I hold one arm over my tits, while my other is held out in front of me, to steady myself as I quickly power walk forward, trying to end this catwalk as soon as possible. My heart is racing and I feel a lump in my throat. I feel like a kid at their first large birthday party, but the attention is overwhelming and I’m mortified. I can’t even walk in a straight line perfectly, but eventually the dim spotlight is switched off, the music is turned back up and my eyes scan frantically around the room looking for the Kors. Where are they, damn it! I start to panic when I don’t immediately spot them. I keep pausing and looking either side, but I can’t focus, I’m scared, I can’t think clearly and – up ahead. Oh, finally. I see some hope. Right in front of me, jogging down the walk is Mars, with a dark robe swaying over his large shoulders, I notice he is mostly naked underneath aside from a few leather accessories. His face is cleanly shaven, his black straight hair is combed back off his handsome yet sly face, which is entirely focused on my retrieval. Mars is smiling with pity, but that smile turns to something more genuine when I start sprinting toward him. Safety. I feel it. Everyone else that is staring at me felt like the real threat. But the Kor coming to me felt like home. It made no fucking sense but I trusted my gut. When I reach Mars I slam myself into his front, clinging on to his powerful physique while he simultaneously sweeps me off the walk and turns to carry me away. As he holds me close, Mars has an arm under my knees and another behind my back. I just stare up at him as my hero, while he is smiling and speaking through that dangerous smile, “You’re so skittish when you’re nervous Diana. I love it. You should be scared like that more often, it’s so fucking hot, I could hunt you for days and days,” Mars really didn’t have to add in that last bit, but at least he is honest… heh? But even so, his voice is so sexy and deep and devilish. He looks totally captivated by me after I looked like a lost lamb out there. I should be disturbed. I mean, I am disturbed. But more than that, I am grateful to be off that catwalk. Mars jumps off the end of the catwalk and walks us down a secluded path. When he drops me to my feet at their lounge, I am quickly mortified all over again. The lounge is basic, sure, with a very comfortable curving couch, where all the Kors recline – but on the massive table in front of them… it’s… well it’s not a table, it’s a platform. The platform is glow in the dark and reminds me of the fluorescent plants back on Dark Ninth, except it’s a flat rock with fluorescent veins. On top of the platform is a translucent cage. It’s not small, it’s huge. It’s much too big for me, yet Mars is holding my hand, and that strong hand of his is now sliding to my wrist, lifting my arm, he swings me up and puts his other hand under my foot, basically hoisting me up onto the platform. I step through the see-through cage, and the moment I’m inside on the platform, the cage buzzes with some kind of registration, and I feel it through the Krown around my neck. The collar warms and feels weird. I grab it while I walk to the edge near their lounge and I place my hand on the solid bars, which are still mostly naked to the eye. I can’t get out. Mars waltzes over to sit back with his fellow Kors, while I look out toward other similar platforms where I see other singled out girls. It’s all the girls from the catwalk… but again, they look experienced, like they belonged – literally posing comfortable on their platforms, some are dancing slow and sexy, others just lie back and talk to their people. “What is this,” I whisper to myself, as I turn toward the Kors, getting down on my knees and leaning down to them, inches from the cage, “What is this about…?” as I ask it, every member is staring at my naked tits. I feel angry… or was it disappointment, but I’m not sure why. I place an arm over my breasts, and immediately nine pairs of eyes quickly move up to my face. The darkness helps me see Neptune and Uranus more clearly – ironically. Jupiter is reclined the most next to Saturn, watching me with narrowed eyes as he finishes a whole glass of Mist; alcoholic dense air. Saturn quickly stands up and grabs more from one of the staff running around with dishes filled with more Mist. I see the staff member has a distinct tattoo on the back of their hand of a red rose; the symbol of the Freed… it’s just something I notice for a moment before I focus back on my Kors. Pluto, Mercury and Venus had been playing a game on a table in front of them via a screen. Gambling no doubt like the high rollers they were in the universe, comfortable in their earned position. But in regards to me alone, I didn’t feel earned. Terra stands up as Mars sits back. Terra approaches me directly, his neon blue eyes so human – but he did represent Earth, so I guess that made sense. “Do you feel at home yet?” Terra asks me, indeed as politely as Mars. “In a cage?” I ask him, “Really?” “With us,” Terra rephrases himself, “Don’t be scared, we voted in your favour, remember, Diana?” “Are you referring to your vote not to eat me?” I ask. “Correct,” Terra murmurs, nodding, stepping to the side and motioning to Mars, “I think Mars was the only one who voted in favour of… just keeping the status quo.” Mars just watches me when Terra admits that. Mars, you damn sexy predator. He looks content to listen to the other Kors, but he is also clearly content and proud with his first stance on my eventual fate, regardless of their majority vote. “His venom,” I tell Terra, “Made me… very, I mean, insanely horny… to the point of terrible aggression… will all your kisses do the same? Drive me into my wildest instincts?” Terra leans his elbow on the edge of the platform, leaning closer toward me, tilting his head closer too, while looking over the Kors and answering me honestly, “Yes.” I place my hands on my knees, over the Plume’s soft cloth, as I wait for Terra to explain some more. There was so much I needed to learn. He looks at me, as if he expects me to ask more. When I don’t right away, hoping for him to just offer some more facts, Terra just smiles, stubborn, happy not to provide anything unless asked. Arrogant fuck – “What kind of party is this, Terra?” I force myself to ask a question, “…why am I up here… I can’t chill out with everyone on the lounge? I have to be on a cold rock? Really?” “We opted into the poly theatre,” Terra explains, “Everyone is going to watch as each alliance who opted in, fucks their most valuable female. You are ours, so there you are. When we get the green light, we’ll give everyone a show, it’s no big deal for us,” I purse my lips tightly as Terra looks comfortable with this… and I wait for him to notice my discomfort, “Tell me,” Terra prompts me to speak my mind. At least he somewhat cares. I lean down closer to his ear. “I’m a virgin, I’m pretty sure that means I can’t fuck nine men,” I explain to him, the fucking obvious, “It’s kind of… I mean, it sounds painful, doesn’t it. I’m untouched,” even as I explain it, Terra’s robe, which hangs over his naked skin – pitches a gigantic and morbidly huge tent, “Terra, this is not the time to get horny, I need some compassion.” “We already agreed if you don’t want to fuck yet, we’ll let you off,” Terra explains, reluctantly, “But you have to trade off our pleasure for a price,” I raise a brow, hoping he explains, he does, for once, “Here is your second option. To lay down in your cage and stay still, then one by one, throughout the night, to help introduce you to our power… all you have to allow… is the simple permission… to be kissed by each of us. Not all at once but maybe, hmm, each hour that passes, a Kor will jump up and give you a taste of our venom,” he trails off, “Do you consider that compassion, Diana? Sweet and gentle kisses instead?” “Venom, from all nine of you throughout the night,” I rephrase it, “In return for my purity to remain intact, for now at least?” “Yes,” Terra looks quickly to Mars, who is all by his lonesome at the edge of the lounge, hung on every word between us – wanting to know what I’ll choose. I sit back and consider my two options carefully. Get fucked by all nine Kors. Virginity – ripped away, probably painfully. Get kissed by all nine Kors. Venom, slowly driving me crazy throughout the night, to the point that if I beg them to take my virginity… option 1 happens anyway. Is this just a trick? A game? A joke, even? I glare at Terra, who is patiently waiting for my answer. For the first time since meeting the Kors, I don’t feel scared, confused out of my wits or frightened. For the first time, I see the game a little clearer. “Are you scared of me?” I ask Terra. He says nothing, so I ask further, “Why am I in a cage if you’re not all utterly terrified of the first Fey you’re courting in fifty thousand Terra years.” Terra looks away suddenly, his cheek twitching, his eyes darken and swirl with emotion and he holds out a hand for the cage, it passes through the bars that allow him through, and he opens his palm near my cheek, without touching me. I softly press my cheek to his palm, feeling him, and with his touch, he can pull my face forward, through the translucent bars. So, with his contact, I can leave the cage. I try to slowly crawl forward just a bit further but Terra moves his hand over my jaw, twisting his palm – my whole body twists with it, by some kind of magical force, it’s like he controls my limbs while we are in contact. Gasping loudly with his magic, I end up on my back, with my head out of the cage, hanging off the edge of the platform, looking back up at Terra, as he takes his hand from me, and the cage solidifies back around my body. I’m stuck, with the bars on either side of my neck, keeping my face out of the cage as I look up while on my back. I’m at his mercy. Two of Terra’s fingers trail over my pulse and he smiles wide, “So easy, even after fifty thousand years,” he throws my words back in my face, “You need to learn us before you throw out anymore insults, Diana,” he puts his hand under my hanging head, and he lifts it up to lay back on his flat palm, so he can lean down to hover his lips over my mouth, “…do you want to taste me, Fey?” he asks. “Go to hell,” I hiss. Terra smiles and shrugs as he steps back to the couch and lets my head loll back. Great, I have to stare at all of them upside down. Terra sits next to Mars. Mars is still watching. The rest of the Kors are also glancing at my predicament with quiet amusement. “I didn’t choose option 2,” I tell Terra, “You chose for me.” “Then choose otherwise,” Mars smiles at me, “…what if we opt out of the display and go somewhere private?” he asks, “You can even play around on the couches for a few hours before we go. That way we can drink mist and pussy.” “Fuck you, Mars, until I give my permission, you can’t take it, so I’m going to stay right here… option 2… I’ll live through a few kisses.” Yup. I decide then and there. All the Kors who had seemed ‘busy’ gambling or drinking and chatting – suddenly go quiet and all look up at me. They all stare at my mouth. Even Jupiter stops mid conversation to look at me like a prize. Before they move to secure the first place, the one who had already been scheming moves faster. Mars jumps up, comes close and puts his hand under my head, gathering up my hair into a bunch and holding me still while all the others look. “You’re not hungry enough,” Mars mocks his fellow Kors. I try to tug out of his hold, just to annoy him, and Mars’ eyes focus on me as he moves downward, obsessing over the blush creeping up my neck and flooding into my cheeks, “Do you want to know a secret, little one?” I still as Mars asks this closer and closer to my lips. “Tell me,” I’ll take any information I can get. “You already understand what this venom does to you, Diana. After my kiss, you’ll break, you won’t last one minute before you start to despise your resolve and see the value in you gifting your life to us.” “Let’s make a bet, if you’re right, and I fold – I’m your bitch forever,” I whisper to him quickly, suddenly seeing my way forward. Mars smiles with the thought of a challenge, “Or?” oh yeah, he definitely wants to bet. “If I last a minute after your kiss, you free me of Dark Ninth forever –” as I say it, Mars had been smirking, and on the word forever – he tilted his head close and pressed his mouth to mine. He could barely wait to do it. I expect a ravaging deep kiss with his tongue already all over mine, however, Mars is strategic. He kisses me with one single soft depression against my mouth, then he leans up and blinks a few times while admitting, “I’ll kill for you, Fey Empress VI of Dark Ninth, I’ll give you anything you desire.” “Empress?” I whisper. Now that’s valuable information. “You like that?” Mars growls, showing off his sharp teeth. “You didn’t give me any venom,” I say to him, furrowing my brows, “Why not?” “Trust in my nature, Empress,” Mars lets my head fall back against the edge of the platform as he moves back. He sits down, “Now choose freedom or power. Go, but go where? Or stay.” “And get fucked?” I ask, “…” I guess I look disappointed he didn’t give me any venom… I can’t hide it from my face – “Oh, for fucks sake.” The moment is intercepted as Jupiter jumps up from the other edge of the lounge and he stalks over aggressively, after discarding his robe and walking over with his huge cock on display. Right before my face, I am faced with a real weapon for the first time. A Kors’ hard and giant silver cock. Holy fuck it’s gorgeous. “Do you want to fuck this, little bitch?” Jupiter asks me, holding onto my neck, he squeezes it once while his cock hovers before me… I am breathless and wide eyed. It’s inches from me. It’s right above me. “…hey asshole…” I throw an insult back at him, “…can I… at least feel it, first…?” I force out the suggestion, and Jupiter steps forward to rub the head of his cock, not along my face, or near my lips, but down my neck, following my pulse. His dick is so hot, “I meant with my hand,” I add, and Jupiter just glares at me, so I move quickly while his skin is touching mine. I reach out and I grasp his shaft, unable to fit my hand all the way around it. Mm, I feel down his shaft, stroking it once – by accident honestly, and Jupiter lets out a restrained and low toned growl, trying to keep his cool when I hold onto it at the head, entranced by it like a wand. “Can I… taste it?” I ask, while seductively glancing up to his dark eyes. Jupiter says nothing so I reach forward, flicking out my tongue before he can deny me. That’s when he grabs the back of the chain attached to my collar and jerks me back an inch, “No,” Jupiter shakes his head, “You asked to feel, you felt it, so decide. Diana. We won’t hurt you,” those last four words are said with such firm and soft resolution. There it is. That’s all any of them had to say. I make my decision. I look over the cock head of Jupiter’s beautiful silver wand, straight to Mars’ irate expression on the couch. He is pissed I was so easily swayed by Jupiter’s more explicit approach. But Iris was right. Terra and Mars were too charismatic and manipulative. Jupiter and Saturn having the biggest egos and quickest tempers, had a silver lining – brutal truth, no hesitation, literally shoved right in front of my face. “I don’t want options, I want whatever this feeling is,” I blurt it out as I reach for his cock with both hands, and Jupiter slowly grins and keeps his cock just out of reach. He denies me anyway. “Notorious whores,” Venus speaks up from the couch, eyes downcast, not even looking at me. Jupiter puts both his hands on my cheeks and lifts me up, pulling me out of the cage, I kneel at the very edge of the platform as he kisses me instead. I open my mouth and he opens his. Jupiter’s venom hits hard. I forget the kiss. I taste it and it tastes like nothing… until Jupiter deepens the moment, lingering, so I have to swallow at least once, which means his venom is absorbed into my system. I become… immobilised. My whole body starts to go limp and Jupiter holds me up as he prolongs the kiss a little longer. Until he finally takes his lips from mine and watches my eyes. He let me go. I fall over the platform, only saved by his arm reaching under me, quickly hoisting me up and tossing me onto the couch, so I land on Venus’ distraught lap, my legs lie over Mercury and Pluto is still next to Venus. As I lie across the three of them, I start to twitch, Jupiter’s venom is surging through me. It knocked me out and now it was bringing me back, more alive than ever, even my intellect feels like it’s on fire. They watch it happen. It’s not painful. It’s disabling my usual senses. It’s giving me Kor instinct. But Jupiter isn’t just horny, he is switched on, and now I feel switched on… I feel like I start to see more. My senses feel dulled to pain. But pleasure feels more prominent, because even lying across their laps, I feel like their skin being in contact with me is turning me on too. “Don’t touch her, let her roam,” Jupiter suggests, looking over at me, as I start to turn myself around. I want all of them. I want all of them, undeniably. I’m not scared of them anymore. What stops me is a nagging little thought in the back of my head. Mars. Mars. Our bet. It was only 60 seconds. Mars tried baiting me into it. Jupiter gave me the venom. And the luxury of feeling and taking in the size of his dick. With all my strength, I use the aggressive lust curling through me – to twist and roll off their laps onto the floor. I get up, while my thigh muscles keep wanting to press together and my hand wants to delve down to rub my clit. I grab the belt with two hands as I stand up, and I realise this belt is a fucking life saver. I hold it tight as I get to my feet, my body shivering, as if I’ve already reached a climax. Except I hadn’t. This was just the beginning of one. I force my gaze past Venus, or E, and his narrowing suspicion, including Pluto’s movement forward, as if anticipating the twist in my resolve. Even Mercury seems to be reaching instinctively for a weapon, forgetting he does not wear any. I saw what Jupiter, Terra and Mars had on underneath their cloaks – nothing. They were all mostly naked. I turn past Terra, his blue eyes look panicked. Jupiter stands to the side, huge arms bulging as he crosses them, watching me with sudden neutrality. Saturn had been lounging with Uranus and Neptune, but they also look fairly disturbed. I look to Mars last of all. I force out the words. “I win.” I start to turn, as my whole body is on fire with need and desire. Sex could happen anytime. But I just won my freedom for now. Jupiter should not have kissed me, he gave me ideas with his venom. I try to walk, when I hear Mars snarl, “Where will you go, come back here.” “Diana,” Jupiter also calls out, “Think before you run.” I had stumbled to the edge of their lounge. I turn around, my cheeks flushed. I focus on all nine of them. I breathe in deeply with my new resolve. “You’ve all become arrogant. I was handed to you on a platter,” I say through grit teeth, “You killed all the females on Dark Ninth and then expect me to be delivered from Our Tcno, then be happy about being your Empress… If I am Fey why not treat me like one, aren’t you hunters? You do not chase?” I scoff, “Well, you do now. Let me roam, Jupiter,” I repeat Jupiter’s words, “I’m free now. If any of you want to fuck me, and I do want to fuck you… you better catch me first,” I nod multiple times at Jupiter’s hard cock, “…trust me… Empress or breeding bitch… if you lie to me about love, I’ll know it. I’ll only accept you all when you take me in our most natural way. Everything else just feels wrong. I’m leaving. The next time we meet, I won’t be your clueless naïve guest. I’ll tell you what, you can have me if one day I wake up in my hide out and you’ve all managed to sneak in without me noticing. Then I’ll capitulate. I’m very good at hiding.” At least I had time. There were too many eyes for them to make a scene with other members of the Universal Board. “Why do you want it naturally?” Mars asks, now curious. “Because,” I shrug, still fighting off Jupiter’s venom, but also using it to match their deepest needs with mine, “Mars, my deepest instincts say to run, how else will I gain your respect if you don’t see what I’m worth when I’m out scheming against you?” I ask, “My whole life I’ve lived under radars, we’ve met now, great, but that’s it – the expectation that I’m now yours, is bullshit,” I motion to the whole outfit, “You don’t deserve this. If I’m the most valuable female in the universe, you better do something about it. Prove it to me.” With that, I turn and stumble away. My gut was telling me the truth of things. They destroyed Dark Ninth. If there were nine super villains in the universe it was these arrogant easy-going Kors. How do you tame arrogant, lazy monsters? Number one, I am fighting back. Venus wasn’t altogether wrong. Perhaps I did have a side that was equally horny as it was urging me to run, fucking hide and deny. Luckily, I had somewhere to go. The Freed, roaming travellers of the universe. They were here. Iris was supervising the temporary workers. That’s where I was headed. To people who could help me. I just escaped another system. Even though sexually, I realised I wanted the Kors, I knew giving in to a lust engineered to be perfect in its power was futile for me. They offered death by teeth or the promise of being an eternally revered breeding cow until they were through with me. I knew the sex would be incredible, but fuck those terms. If they even wanted a chance, they needed to show off, hunt me down and give me something to be proud about. And I needed to show them I was worth more than an amusing, lazy, dismissive smile. I get a funny thought as I make my escape. Perhaps as a Fey, I was just as cruel in my desires as they were. Afterall, Iris said I’d match them. Well, I don’t know, but I was certainly trying my best to survive.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 8 ✿◉●•◦ There were protected planets in the universe where you could not mine for resources, instead these planets were solely for camping, yup, entire planets – these were the homes of the Freed. You couldn’t build major infrastructure; the biggest home you could have was a travel pod, dropped in from one of the intergalactic manufacturers of the pods that provided everything sustainably. Shelter, tools for making drinking water, hygiene facilities and they could even help with growing edible food. The Freed were not as friendly as I first thought they would be at Club Hive. When I tried to talk to the staff, even for a moment, most of them were too busy to pay me any attention. The one who helped me, ironically, was Iris. She handed me a copy of her ET Key, and said I could borrow it since I was the Fey Empress and she couldn’t refuse, although she said it rather sarcastically I’d like to believe, and I hoped she was more a friend rather than a worried ‘employee’. I had thought she worked for the Kors, but I hadn’t really thought that would mean she works for me too. Her ET Key gave me free ET movement and access to over 10,000 habitable planets, but her bookmarked favourites were Planet Live where I am now for my temporary hide out, Planet Meda, her home planet, Planet Dark Ninth… and Planet Earth. The jungle that spread across Planet Live was full of the living pods, beautifully designed and completely impenetrable – if they were empty you could use your blood to gain access to it for three months. I sit on top of my free camping pod, with one neighbour – a fellow female traveller named Quarzina. She was from Planet Meda like Iris and had the distinct bright pink eyes, pale pink skin and she was currently in hiking gear, after hiking through some of the marked trails around our camp site. She sits with me on top of my pod, on a flat surface, we eat cooked food provided by the pod. I had no idea what it was; iaek6gh. That was the name of the food, and I didn’t want to know what was in it, I just like that it tasted good and provided nutrition even though it was a green sludge in my bowl. “It seems like it’ll rain soon, it’s only ever as heavy as a mist,” Quarzina explains, “You haven’t ventured far.” “I’ve been here 24 hours and slept half of that time,” I explain, chuckling nervously, I’m just a runaway Empress, most valuable female in the universe, hunted by nine Kors who want to mate with me, have lots of babies, then devour me, no big deal! I don’t say that, but Zina does know I am running from the Kors, she just doesn’t know why. I guess she assumes I am a fugitive or stole something from them, since I arrived wearing Kor finery, and still have it on currently – the Plum and Krown. I had just put on a basic yellow rain jacket I found in the pod as well. “I wouldn’t rest too long if I were you, I’d keep moving, I’ve seen a Kor twice,” her eyes go wide as she recounts the stories, “Both strange instances. I’ve seen one walking through a city, almost perfectly one with the crowd, if it wasn’t for their height or their sharp eyes. Only predators have eyes that focused – they barely blink. The other time I’ve seen a Kor hunt, I was camping on Planet Berry. That is when I first researched them….” she pales, “You realise they are intergalactic hunters, assassins, and bounty hunters, not just representatives of Dark Ninth? They are experienced in hunting throughout the universe. Not just their planet they destroyed,” she tapers off into a whisper, “The only reason I am talking to you now, is for your soul. I doubt you will live past two days. For that, I will speak with you. But even I am unsure why you remain so calm…” she finishes off her own bowl and puts it down, grabbing a glass of water and chugging that dry, she looks at me and waits for me, “So? Spill it all, Diana,” so she expects me to tell my story? I guess since she is the last who will ever hear it, according to her. I feel reluctant since she had little faith in my own abilities, but to be fair, she had witnessed Kors in action more than she knew anything about me. And… I have no Freed friends. The universe is terrifyingly huge. My destiny is a matter of luck, at this point. I have nothing to lose… so heck, I tell her everything. I start with my simple life at home, about how I enjoyed caring for hurt animals no one else would try to save, especially those who were dangerous – like abused Terra creatures, tigers, lions, leopards, wolves – so many gorgeous predators were pets and so many were discarded and eventually killed. I had a habit of intervening, if I could, to at least attempt to calm the animal. It is as I explain this to Zina that I realise I had found a few missing pieces of the puzzle. No one else could help a wounded predator in the way I could. Not in healing the physical wounds like a vet, but the mental scarring. I figure now it was only after I ingested the Jace herb that I had grown skills to help in more spiritual and soulful ways, connecting with the animal’s spirit to understand them at their deepest level. So at least talking out loud had helped me realise I could connect those mysterious animal instincts to this weird ‘Fey’ ability. When I am done with where I am from, where I have been, and why I am here now – Quarzina is truly dumbfounded. Which makes two of us. “…the good news is you may live another day…” Zina smiles, “…wow… I do not envy you…” “Iris said the same thing,” I laugh awkwardly, “Any… new ideas? About what could help me?” “You’re not scared of death, that is a good thing, it means you know they will not harm you,” Zina answers me seriously, “If anything, you are anticipating them – I can tell you from what you’ve told me, they’re probably already here watching you. But since this is a courtship, it will be fun. I am certain of this as they voted in favour of your life and the fact you are their only female so far, who has successfully morphed into Fey. I only have one concern.” “Which is?” I ask, already faithful in her wisdom. “If their vote changes,” she murmurs, “That is something you can’t know, anticipate or navigate. And even if they were to change their vote, they would not tell you, you’d be lured in and the end of your young life will be near,” Zina shrugs, “I’ll tell you one thing, Empress of Dark Ninth… you should be doing something about your situation, not sitting here waiting. For that reason, I will leave you alone now. But knock on my door if you need assistance.” “You’re not scared of the Kor?” I ask, curious by her seeming indifference. “I hear we do not taste good,” she grits her teeth in a nervous grin, “Heh… well…” she murmurs something to herself as she turns around to leave my pod, sliding down the curved ladder, she lands on the soft earth and trudges back to her pod next to mine, “Good luck, Diana!” she waves at me, walks into her home, and leaves me to contemplate her last chilling piece of advice. If they change their vote… I would not know. They would not tell me. I… I am literally frozen to the spot, as my thoughts overrun my headspace, my senses outreach into the surroundings, listening, my nostrils flaring as I try to pick up any hint that they are here. Nothing tangible alerts me. But deep inside, I know they aren’t far away. I quickly descend into my pod, closing off all exits and entries, turning up the dim lights and checking all ‘corners’ of the curved pod. There was a bed, a self-washing rug, a metal cabinet with supplies, a sink, a few large windows to the outside, but I slid down the blinds. In my private space, I realise I made myself my own prison in here. They can’t get in, but what’s the point if I can’t go out, either? What value did I bring to them, too? Aside from being the only Fey of Dark Ninth to be alive… what would stop them changing their minds about me? I still enjoyed the thought of meeting the Kors again, under difference circumstances, preferably where they showed a little more respect for me. I pace as I think, but my brain keeps tripping into the same thought, over and over. I don’t like it, but I think I might have no choice but to try enhancing my superpower. The only way to truly fall into Enhanced Instincts was to live like an animal. Not literally. But, literally… just for a bit… I’d have to do the unthinkable. Go out into the jungle during the night, completely naked, it would lure them out. I’d also be at my best. Strength and speed were not going to help me against seven foot alien subspecies that had lived like gods for tens of thousands of years. My wisdom would not match theirs, my age of 21 was a hindrance. I had so many disadvantages aside from… well, two things I had to my advantage. Enhanced Instincts was one. The other advantage was something I had to acquire more of, to supplement all my other weaknesses. Kor Venom. It gave me them. Literally them. Their powers, their thoughts, their lusts, it helped me understand them. How could I milk Kor Venom? I’d need to lure them into a few kisses… but how did I extract it? I look around the pod. I had no lab to replicate their venom, and I wasn’t a scientist. “Damn it,” I continue to pace, feeling useless, but no amount of overthinking is going to save me. I had to continue to experience and feel, this time with my freedom. I set an alarm for nightfall. I’d squeeze in another nap, and I’d venture out into the dark. For now, I had no other brilliant ideas. **** Nightfall I slipped out of my pod as the sun set, and I walked right onto one of the trails Zina had been hiking on. I covered my naked body in streaks of mud to keep away the insects. Apparently, a small lake was a few kilometres away. I trek toward it, muddy, naked and alone. I didn’t alert Zina, I just moved with my instincts. I walk without any incident of being stalked, and curiously, I feel nothing, I hear nothing and I sense nothing out of the ordinary. My Enhanced Instincts were finetuned, I could see well in the dark, almost as clear as if the sun was up, but still, this is when I lose my ability to track and anticipate? Strange. I guess I just wasn’t being hunted or something? I make it to the lake, and with relief, it is not a dark reflection of the sky. It is clear, it is shallow, and it is absolutely gorgeous like the waterbody Neptune had swam through on Dark Ninth. I see little fishes swimming around but nothing more. I jump in and go for a night swim, heading out to the middle of the pristine lake. Under the stars of the universe and with no light pollution, I feel the most free I’ve ever been as I gaze up. I have an ET Key to all areas of this vast dimension. Freedom in tact, soul mine… I only had one ‘problem’ – a ‘problem’ I found quietly exciting. The Kors wanted me. But I wanted them. On my terms. Now, I wait. I have washed off all the mud, and I feel like a water nymph as I just kneel in the centre of the shallow lake and look all around me to the beautiful dark green jungle. No large predators roamed here, it’s one reason it was a great camping site. It was safe. The top of my ears wriggle. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. Footsteps. Light ones. Not a Kor. Or a careful Kor. I look up the way I had come, and I watch curiously as Zina walks out, for some strange reason she is smiling and in her nightwear…? Uh… she looks weird. The smile looks… strange. Zina finds me in the middle of the lake and she waves at me, “HELP!” she yells out at me, “Diana–” she screams as she hears something behind her and she runs forward toward the lake. It’s then that I see she has pulled her second arm out of her pocket. But her hand is missing. She’s bleeding everywhere and now my heart is racing. I stand up as I see movement in the trees – larger figures. T-they were… t-they weren’t hunting me. They were hunting Zina in some kind of display. I want to scream out to her, I want her to come to me, but the moment I open my mouth, no sound comes out. I just don’t have the time. Zina had stumbled into the water behind a boulder, looking faint, as her arm pours blood. She has lost too much already. I watch as she looks behind her, unsteady on her feet as a beautiful man walks out of the forest. Terra, his light blue skin was pulsing with black veins underneath, as if he had been running. He is quickly closing the distance to Zina. “Come to me,” Terra talks normally to her, walking up behind her, he puts a hand on Zina’s woozy head, whispers something comforting into her ear – and snaps her neck with his magic. I just stare as her neck cracks to the side. She almost falls down but Terra catches her, lays her up on top of the boulder and looks all around at the edges of the nearby jungle. I see Jupiter stride out from the trees, a severed hand behind his teeth. He spits out the hand as he grins at the catch. The others jump out from the jungle to inspect the kill. All nine of them. I feel intense grief combined with disgust. But the Kors aren’t even looking at me, as they move in, so many of them, leaning down to take a bite. I wince at every moment, hardly able to watch – but they don’t rip her apart. They find a place to clamp down with their teeth and they drink her blood. As they eat, her body starts to deflate. Somehow their venom is breaking down everything, so there is more to consume. When their teeth let go, Zina’s remaining blood is not red, it’s metallic. Whatever is left of her shell, flakes apart into metallic dust. It is then I realise the Kors don’t eat flesh. They consume entire souls. What is left of my friend is star dust, glittering on the rock, luminescent. So… that explained Dark Ninth. That beautiful luminescent planet was just a beautiful graveyard. The nine alien Kors basically look like Gods, as they laugh and exchange words of encouragement for successfully eating their favoured food for the night. But those murderers just killed my friend. Jupiter, Saturn, Pluto – they stand with one another, communicating, Jupiter gives me one quick glance, looking rather smug. Mercury and Venus sit down on the boulder Zina was hiding behind. Venus and Mercury quietly watch me but I don’t feel threatened. Neptune and Uranus disappear into the jungle. It takes me a second to realise Mars was never there in the first place. Terra has left the group. Terra is stalking along the edge of the lake, on my left, trying to catch up to… there he is. My gaze swings left, where I had not sensed him. Mars is deeply camouflaged into the vines, crouching down, just watching me. He is closest to me. I see a blinking light up above him, in the trees. Mars presses some kind of button – and before I know it, he’s shot something at me! I scream and duck down, but thankfully I am mistaken. Thankfully? Ah – ha – yeah, how do I feel about a net being shot at me and successfully wrapping around me. My arms get pinned to my body and I fall into the water, unable to swim! I thrash about, even though it’s shallow – I still struggle. Only for a second I am worried, when four invisible hands move around me and pull me up out of the water. I gasp in fresh breaths dramatically as Neptune and Uranus stand at my front and back, holding me up, admiring the handiwork of the net Mars weaved together himself. “Get it off me!” I scream at them, while Neptune holds my arms and pulls me into his front, so we’re flush with one another. Uranus’ hands feel over my elbow at my back, looking for a latch on the net. His fingers tickle and I squirm, so Neptune holds me a little tighter. When I look up at him, Neptune’s white teeth are completely red. I gasp again and look down. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” Neptune apologises, while blood drips onto me. “EW!” I scream but he holds me a little tighter. Uranus finally finds the latch, tugs on it, and the net finally loosens around me. “Little Fey, you can relax now –” Uranus tries to scold me, sounding as smooth as Neptune, but he doesn’t get a chance to pull the net off. Not when a deep and dark growl of total overwhelming possession, resonates from the jungle to our left. “Oh, come on,” Neptune growls to himself, as he glares behind him at the angry splashes of water. “Hands off,” Mars snarls at both of them, as he approaches looking pissed off and hungry. Neptune steps between us, keeping Mars at bay, “She’s mine, Neptune. You know the rules.” “Just think before you bite,” Neptune growls in Mars’ ear as he steps aside to let him through and I panic. “No!” I whimper out and try to hide behind Neptune, but he somehow increases his invisibility and disappears from view altogether. I look back for Uranus but I can’t see him either. Only Mars and I remain standing in the middle of the water. Mars doesn’t have to chase when my own clumsiness with the heavy net over my head, still draped around me, causes me to slip and fall to one knee into the water, now at an even more ridiculous disadvantage. Mars is completely naked and he drops to one knee with me, as his skin is covered in black stripes, mimicking Mercury’s pattern. This was clearly him on the hunt. “What rules are they?” I gasp out, trying to tug off the net but it doesn’t slide well. I just get more tangled, so I stop moving as Mars reaches out a slow hand. I still completely as he grabs a bunch of it tangled in front of me, and he pulls me closer. I drag through the water, until I’m in front of him, looking up at him. His dark eyes don’t blink, but he is watching my mouth for a few seconds, as my mouth quivers. “What rules,” I repeat, begging him to talk. “My net, my kill, my choice,” Mars drawls so deeply, he sounds totally switched from civil and polite – to his animal side only, “You’re at my mercy, little one.” He explains no further. Mars pulls one part of the net out and up, and it comes off me. I breathe out a heavy exhale and intake a shakier breath, but I don’t move as Mars moves closer to my face, looking over my body and my neck and back up to my mouth. “Why are you naked?” Mars blinks slow once, and his eyes dart up to mine. A curious question, also growled deep. “…I’m… free to do… as I please…” I whisper out, a little nervous, but it’s a response. I half shrug, trying to lighten the mood. Mars doesn’t care. Although I notice his cock is awfully hard – and high. He doesn’t care to hide it. I try my best not to focus on it. When my eyes fall, I make sure they fall to the waterline instead. “Please don’t decide badly,” I add, “Please, Mars. I don’t want to die yet –” Mars puts his hand over my mouth, but only for a second, his fingers trail down my lips and chin, and his hand falls over my skin, over my neck, down to my collar bone, down to my heart. He likes my heart. He feels the beating rhythm, and I lean into his hand as I look up at his beautiful face. Mars had just finished licking over his teeth. Yet, he quickly decides, “Go, Diana,” he growls it out, but with an amused smile – still that fucking… argh, “I’m not done hunting you yet,” he stands up abruptly, pulling his net back to his belt. I turn around and stumble toward the edge of the lake, while he walks behind me but not too close. I keep my gaze down, my body on fire when I should be running for my life. When I reach the edge where the other Kors are, I look up to see if they’re also just as entertained. However, they’re gone. Silently. When I gather the courage to look back at Mars, he is also gone. I stumble around in a circle and I see nothing. Where the heck? All I’m left with is a rock covered in glitter. Zina’s shadow. It shines on that boulder, but she’s dead because of me. I don’t cry, I just look at the aftermath of having a friend and I feel rather numb. It’s too late, I can’t bring her back. One thing is certain… the Empress of Dark Ninth can’t have any friends. The Kors consumed everything. They weren’t carnivores. Or cannibals. They were just a different kind of predator. Soul hungry. For the feminine kind. I truly had no idea how to combat that. I only knew the Kors were now here, with me. And anywhere I went, they would follow.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 9 ✿◉●•◦ I returned to my pod and I have a choice to make, to take the ET Key and get off planet – or deal with the Kors on Planet Live. I had 10,000 habitable planets to choose from, but they would follow my signature through space. It took at least a few hours to do that kind of trace, however, so I had a head start if I wanted one. I wait a few hours, in my pod, knowing I made a deal with them that was so… ridiculous… now that I had played it over, again and again in my head. I’ll tell you what, you can have me if one day I wake up in my hide out and you’ve all managed to sneak in without me noticing. Then I’ll capitulate. I’m very good at hiding. I sweat with embarrassment just replaying the memory. Now that I had seen them kill, hunt and vanish with speed and silence, I had no choice but to return to Dark Ninth before them. My only two realistic options left were to traverse a landscape I knew so well, that being Earth… or the place they wouldn’t expect me to choose, Dark Ninth. Earthlings would probably kill me for being a Dark Nine. I had no choice but to choose the risky option and go back to their home planet. They wouldn’t expect that, right? My aim was clear anyway. I would look around for new information while they were gone, and try not to get eaten by giant spiders or Chonk in the process. By the time a few hours had passed, if I still didn’t feel safe waiting for our next inevitable encounter, I’d leave before they could intercept me. **** In my first hour on Dark Ninth alone, I’ve hit the jackpot of new info. My risk paid off. Not only did I explore all their rooms on the top fourth floor of the prison without them noticing… I explored all the other levels. The third floor had guest rooms and lounges. The second floor had laboratories, it was a workplace and it belongs to one Kor specifically… E. Venus’ floor. I stay on this level because it’s abandoned and full of files. I spread them out on a damp work bench, where green moss crawls over everything. Little glow bugs circle around helpfully as I read through the papers I found at the top of the pile. What I find is an album of the last days of ‘feydom’, or Fey rule of Dark Ninth. On one page is a photo of Empress V, named Cinta. She is decked out in a huge dress, with a hood that covers her face, and material that covers her arms and hands… the only visible skin on her face is covered by a metallic bronze mask. Behind her, in chains – crawl the shadowed Kors… they do not look strong, they look weak, underfed, too skinny, only crawling because they look starved near to death. They are completely subjugated, some look covered in welts and bruises. All around the procession, hundreds of females stand with pregnant bellies, well fed and smiling as they see the Empress strut with her slaves. When I flick through the album pages, I see many images of Cinta with one Kor in particular, always around, by her side. Venus. Grey with gold stripes, he looks nothing like he does now; green. He looks the most fed and most happy, although an ankle chain follows him in every image. He seems to be working in this very lab most of the time, as vials and vials of… what I think is venom, is being produced, stored and shipped out. Plenty of cabinets are filled to the brim with Kor Venom. It is the only thing that makes sense to me. I hear footsteps, however – there is no way they’re back already! But of course… they wouldn’t chase me forever, maybe they had decided to come back home for a small break? Shit, I should have anticipated that. I turn around, and I only see one of the Kors has come back. Blushing from being caught in his abandoned laboratories, I just freeze up. I had come to Dark Ninth wearing the Krown and Plume too, I just didn’t expect any of them to see me like this so soon. Fuck. Covered in shadows, Venus doesn’t stare at my tits, instead he looks straight at my exposed face, his eyes wide and furious. “Why the hell are you in here, Diana?” he asks, loud and clear. He walks over, and I step very far back, hiding behind a few tables, I keep my distance as Venus strides past to look over the albums I spread out… he stops breathing for a moment, then starts to breathe heavy. His large shoulders are hunched over, as if in extreme pain. Venus spins around, as if staring at the photos is too much for him, but his expression is blank as he leans back against the workbench, his dark eyes glazed over. Stuck in a memory, he keeps thinking, his body tense, every muscle straining, every vein popping. “E?” I whisper. He doesn’t respond. I shuffle a tiny bit closer, still keeping a large enough distance between us. “Venus?” I call to him again. His breathing had steadied, but his hands are clenching the workbench behind him a little too hard. He looks up, his only movement, but he doesn’t see me. I step closer again, then I come to a stop. My instincts tell me to halt. Don’t get any closer. It was dangerous to disturb him. I wait, using the opportunity to look Venus over, and really take him in. He was taller than I realised, he just walked everywhere behind others or looking down, his shoulders curved in, his movements shuffles rather than large normal strides… his green skin looks… dusty, or mouldy? The scars look mangled and raw, even though they must be old. I wonder if he picks at them? This man looks… unhinged, but also unreachable. In pain, but also wanting to be in that pain, with no desire to come out. “Is it she, who hurt you?” I ask into the air, pointing to the picture I laid out of the ex-Empress. Again, Venus doesn’t hear me. “Diana,” Mercury’s here. I didn’t hear anyone else approach. I gasp but Mercury puts his hand over my mouth, to stop me screaming. After a few seconds, he takes his hand away, but he keeps his heat close to my back, his hand resting on the top of mine, which I’ve laid out on the table next to me. I had been leaning on it, now Mercury leans on it with me. I look to the exit of this workplace, but no one else seems to be around. “The Empress before you, one day she realised she was in love with E,” Mercury explains softly, his mouth next to my ear as we watch Venus, “That to her, was her greatest weakness, and would eventually lead to her demise if she ever caved into her love for a Kor. To be a successful Empress, successful as in one who lives a long time… she had to kill him, before instincts took over and they could mate, which would lead to her submission, which could then lead to the fall of the Feydom. So, to combat her greatest weakness, Cinta sent Venus to an early execution,” Mercury explains the story with patience, helping me understand from an outside perspective, “…it’s that decision that would lead to the end of the Feydom… the female rule of Dark Ninth.” “What happened, since the execution failed?” I murmur. “Have you worked it out yet, that venom was extracted here? Why waste Kor Venom, when it can be extracted from bone marrow,” he explains, “E just had to live while it was done, until it was done, until the end.” “They went for his bones?” I ask. “Venom was never taken from bone marrow before,” Mercury explains, “So it was performed with inexperience… it was equivalent to torture, and Cinta watched it happen, never halting it once. But E didn’t die… he was meant to, and in his last breaths, or what should have been, he lay broken and bloodied, hoarse from screaming… I watched from my chains as Cinta had a moment of regret and tried to kiss him goodbye, apologising for the betrayal of their love.” “…a little late for an apology,” I murmur. “Not only that,” Mercury growls, agreeing with me, “The torture had changed his venom, it had evolved to fight for his survival, and the potency became toxic. When she kissed her beloved Kor that she sentenced to death, Cinta died instantly… an accident… and unceremonious… tragic for her… it was a delight for me to see, however… although, not for E. He still loved her.” “So not only was Venus betrayed and tortured, his own venom killed the love of his life, just from a kiss,” I gulp. “He had been tortured like that for three days, Kors are tough to kill, you must know,” Mercury adds, “But that also meant the venom was already distributing around the prison and Dark Ninth itself, and all those who tasted it, rather than experience their addiction to euphoria, they all died instantly,” Mercury points to a picture in the book of all the guardians of the prison, “They died first. We escaped our bonds because of this.” “What about the other Kors?” I ask, “The men around Dark Ninth, were you nine the strongest or something?” “We were the only Kors, since the start, we not only live forever but our DNA slowly reshuffles overtime, we change appearance, we can mate forever with the Fey, but while we live forever, they do not,” Mercury’s hand boldly touches my belly and I jerk away, out of his shadow. I turn to face him, my heart racing. “…you did not have sons?” I ask. “Of course we did but none were pure Kor like us,” he explains slowly. “Are you a different breed?” I ask, “To the Fey?” “Something like that,” Mercury looks to Venus, who is stuck in a bind within the traumatic memories replaying in his head, “But we only love once. As Venus took to Cinta, it seems Mars has taken to you…” Mercury gulps and looks me over head to toe, “…but… he’s not the only one who feels that way…” “Huh?” I whisper, “You also feel that way?” “…all of us feel that way, maybe it’s a curse for going on a rampage and obliterating our captors… all of them… until nothing remained in our hearts…” Mercury shrugs, his expression cold when he speaks of their destruction of the planet. “Who thought of bringing the Fey back?” I wonder. “We all thought about it,” Mercury murmurs, “So one day Mars scouted out a human female leaning toward Dark Nine tendencies, which would make you a prime candidate for Dark Ninth life. E redesigned the Jace herb to rearrange human DNA… it works better on a young subspecies, hence we had to give it to you as a child, it worked, but no wonder, E never gets it wrong,” Mercury sees the fire of curiosity in my gaze. “But why?” I wonder, “Why would Venus want to make me a Fey? Did you all become…” I dare ask it, “Lonely, or something?” “As the universe expands, our life is prolonged, yes we were alone, but you’re not here because of loneliness, we have never been lonely…” Mercury seems reluctant to elaborate on that, “…but why not, Diana?” “Why not? That is why you did it?” I ask, raising a brow, “Do any of you harbour hatred of Fey kind… even though I am the only one now,” I whisper, terrified of this answer, “…do you feel a need to… keep exacting revenge…?” “No,” Mercury tries not to smile at my concern, “You are completely innocent to our crimes, and of past Feydom crimes… and it’s not that all Fey were bad, it’s that some were and by the time we were prisoners for destinies on end, we had a need to exact total vengeance. There was no mercy shown to us for so long, we gave that back when we broke out… from the Fey perspective, it made sense to keep us imprisoned forevermore,” Mercury further explains, “…it’s not for a lack of intelligence that we were shown such lack of mercy… even a moment of kindness, could lead to the death of a Fey and then all of them. And when we are hungry, it’s hard to foresee… but they were also addicts to our venom,” Mercury tapers off and seems curious if I’ll be confused about it. I’m not. It’s making more sense than ever before. I take a seat on a carved stone stool, and I fold my hands in my lap instead, “Why did you come back to Dark Ninth, Diana?” “Why not?” I ask, throwing the words back to Mercury, “I am curious too, I guess.” We both hear Venus move then, and I turn to see him lean up off the bench, his eyes focused on the here and now, “Get out of here,” Venus tells me, his eyes stone cold, “Don’t come back in here without permission or an escort.” “I’m sorry, I promise I’ll ask you directly next time –” I try to speak calmly, but Venus snaps. “Don’t bother,” Venus’ sharp eyes look away from me back to the paper I spread across his moss covered work bench, “Don’t touch my stuff, don’t talk to me, and don’t even try,” he snarls at the end, looking over his shoulder at me with true aggression, to the point his younger brother steps between us and puts a hand on my shoulder, ushering me out quickly. “Go,” Mercury walks behind and he doesn’t address Venus. When we are out of there, I walk slowly with Mercury, and his fingers trail down my spine, it should tickle, but instead it sends electricity through my veins, a pleasant rush. I curl away from his warm touch, only to look up at him and observe his intent, “What now?” I ask. “Who do you want to take it,” Mercury asks me, seriously, “Who will you choose?” Take what… my virginity? I’ll admit, I had fantasised about it a lot. “Who do I prefer?” I ask, and I gulp, “…I want… um… I admit… it’s Mars… but I don’t trust him… after all, he hunts me and didn’t even vote to keep me around…” Mercury smiles handsomely at that, clearly thinking about some kind of inside joke. “Would you like to feel more at home?” Mercury asks instead, “Or would you prefer to keep running away from us?” “I’d like to feel more at home, with the ability to leave whenever I so desire,” I ask that instead, “That seems rather reasonable, it’s my human brain speaking… a compromise…” “Due to the nature of risk, and the value of you, you can’t go anywhere without bodyguards, literally. I will happily flank you if you need to travel, even if you wish to visit your old planet,” Mercury is being very kind, but I’m not sure if I should be suspicious of that as I feel like we’re finally getting more comfortable with one another. “Mercury, I hope you’re being plain with me. Please don’t ever lie to me,” I say, suddenly adding, “Trust is important for this relationship between me and you… and them, wouldn’t you agree?” “Of course, Diana,” Mercury keeps pace with me as I walk a little aimlessly. “Where is everyone?” I ask. “Bathing,” Mercury explains, “I’ll show you to our natural spring baths, you’ll love it.” “Why wasn’t Venus bathing?” I ask. “He doesn’t,” Mercury looks a little embarrassed admitting that, “I don’t think he has bathed in a thousand years. That’s probably why he turned green.” I look disgusted, and Mercury doesn’t blame me for looking grossed out. “What appearance does he usually have?” I ask, “In the photos, he looked different then.” “Exactly, like me, but his stripes are gold,” he explains, “Or they were…” “Alright… well, let’s go to the others, then,” I toughen up, while my thighs feel heavy, at the thought… of maybe giving in a little… especially thinking about them all naked, in a Dark Ninth hot spring… bathing in nature… how delicious… argh, I had already put the thought of my friend Zina to the back of my head… that was bad, but even so, I had no choice but to communicate with the Kors, they were my destiny now, “I will try to stay calm, Mercury, and I’ll try not to run away again. Thank you for talking to me about Venus… and not… you know, putting me in a cage again…” Mercury pats my head in approval. I smile up at him, feeling cheeky, since his own smile seems genuine. After the pats, Mercury’s hand slides down my head, to the nape of my neck, and as he holds me, his fingers suspiciously follow the veins along my neck. I feel him searching for my pulse. It freaks me out and my smile drops, “Why do you do that? You’re all obsessed with my neck.” “It’s a beautiful neck,” Mercury explains quietly, “…it’s admiration for your beating heart…” like Mars putting his hand on my chest, he had done it twice on two different occasions, “…it’s hard to believe you’re real…” Mercury says that low, with honest vulnerability, it feels like a massive compliment. “Do the others know I’m back?” I ask. “No, none of us thought you’d return so soon – I just left the springs to check on my brother, he must have sensed a disturbance, nothing gets past E’s senses,” Mercury explains, “Before Venus went insane, he was the head Kor, the best at everything. We all looked up to him. Mars stepped up when he stepped down. They used to be best friends but… E is hard to reach now, even I have trouble and he trusts me the most.” And who could blame E? He was only tortured in the most excruciating fashion, had his venom permanently altered to be lethal and had the love of his life, not only sentence him to such a horrendously failed execution, but then she died in his arms. I do wonder how someone could heal from that, E had been shattered beyond belief, into something completely unrecognisable. I’m already intrigued, however, with the impossible. I want to help Venus. But I know trying would even be dangerous. I knew he was volatile. So, for now I’d keep my distance from him, and focus on the others. Maybe new experiences would help, and I guess I counted as something brand new… so who knows, maybe I can help E come out of his shell and trust again? I think of Mars too… maybe Mars could help me with that, since they used to be best buddies… well… that is, if he didn’t kill me first. I had to work on that too. I feel kind of smug walking back to the Kors with Mercury flanking me. Mars may have snuck up on me on Planet Live, hunted me down and scared me out of my wits, but I wonder how he would react when I walked right into the room? I’m already anticipating all their reactions. So far Mercury had been rather pleasant at my return, so maybe… hopefully… the others would be happy to see me as well. Heh, my main priority was staying out of a cage, after all.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 10 ✿◉●•◦ Mercury makes me wait behind a few stone pillars, putting his finger to his handsome mouth, telling me to keep quiet and wait, while he re-enters the pool without me. I watch as he steps into the still water, which ripples to welcome him within. His grey skin, covered with black stripes, gets absorbed below the water line with each step he takes, as steam rises from the cloudy turquoise water. I see the seven others, all lounging, most with their eyes closed, leaning back, just absorbing the heat. The pool is naturally oval shaped, although the steps down are built in architecture, like the pillars holding the roof up. This area was a part of the prison, but nestled away into the Dark Ninth Forest. The walls had been broken down so that the hot springs had become a natural feature of these ruins, half under cover, half bleeding out into nature. Mercury seemed confident I wouldn’t run, since he did not look back to check if I would have second thoughts – and he does not alert the others. He takes his position next to Saturn. They murmur quietly to each other, but nothing I can particularly hear. I slip off the Plume and Krown, silently placing it on the wet stones. I peep around the pillar and my heart is as steady as my hand as I lean out to work out how I’ll approach them, what I’ll ask, say, and do. Finally, my superpower doesn’t feel so useless. It’s as clear as day, after witnessing some of their past in photographs with Empress V Cinta. What I had to do was simply everything opposite of her own actions. And it helped that it did not feel like a forced decision. I had always been naturally gentle, quiet and liked to avoid conflict. But I had always had a core that was unshakable, when needed I could be fierce and brave when it came to new challenges, or stepping into a zone that I wanted to be in, even when I had to overcome any fears of the unknown. And I wanted to be here, with so many unknown risks, with all nine Kors. Minus Venus, who did not come back with us from his old labratory in the prison. I’d just have to do this without him for now. I slowly slide around the pillar until I’m in full view, but I’ve made my breathing more smooth so it’s undetectable, and no eyes see me and no ears hear me, as I softly walk forward. I have a plan. I wasn’t going to say a word. I approach the hot springs as swiftly as I can. I make it to the first step without detection. They had all been resting, eyes shut, heads back, steam simmering around them all. Mercury blended right in, pretending not to know. My toe touches the water as I sink my bare foot onto the steps, and the first sound of my arrival echoes. All eyes snap open, and I jump to dive bomb off the first step into the middle of the hot spring, before they can react. I slam in and sink under the water. My nerves feel tingly with so many ancient souls staring at me, combined with my recklessness. I stay under the water, until it sinks into my hair, curling around my limbs, like a comforting veil. It’s as if nature approves of my decision to be so bold! Feeling amazing and full of life, I feel satisfied. It’s like I’ve hunted them down, as I face upward, kick off the bottom and rise to the surface. My head escapes the water line. I breathe in deeply, then I open my eyes and slowly stand upright in the middle of the hot spring. When I am standing up completely straight, the water laps at my nipples, while I reach up my hands and thread them through my blonde hair, stroking through the water as I spin in a circle, gazing every Kor in the eye. I am gaining some kind of freshly forged bond with them, that is beyond naivety, once consumed by their memory. Right now, I own this moment, bringing them firmly to the present, so they don’t have to think about how it’s so crazy that I am real, that I exist, that my heart beats. I am not hard to believe. I am real and I’m not the old Fey, I’m something else. Born human, that will always stay with me, making me different even if my DNA had changed to become just like a Fey. My veins throb with luminescence in the water, reacting to the hot spring. I take my fingers out of my hair. I had spun around clockwise, from Mercury, to Saturn, to Neptune, to Pluto, to Uranus, to Mars, to Terra, to Jupiter. They all had the exact same expression when I looked at them. I was greeted with shock, turning to a different kind of euphoria that I see clearly in all their eyes. It was the satisfaction and pleasure that came with knowing they finally  ‘caught their prey’. But it’s mixed with confusion. They didn’t catch me. And I didn’t come here to hurt them. I just came here willingly. I hum a little mischievous song to myself, as I duck back under the water and come up again. I look to Mercury for affirmation. He looks proud, frozen to the spot at my nakedness, but proud. I lick my lips and turn in a 180 in the water to Mars. I swim toward him, my arms pushing the water aside as I kick closer. Mars’ eyes sharpen, suspicious. I stop just before his stretched out legs, he sits on a rock, his arms out of the water, laid out on the edges. I dive under the water and grab Mar’s right foot with my hand, kissing his toes, then tickling the sole as I kick back up, grinning when he pulled his leg back from the ‘assault’. I laugh as I reach the surface and see Mar’s expression of disbelief at my audacity. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” I finally speak, telling Mars this directly, and then all of them, as I turn around once more, swimming back to the stairs. As I swim back the length of the hot spring, I feel every eye on me, and I feel true power in that moment. They don’t want me to leave, and they feel so much in this moment, they can’t even speak! I pretend I’m exiting, swimming for the steps, without looking at any of them, I give them my naked back as I walk up two steps, the water only lapping at my knees by then. I spin around, however, and sit on the third step, most of my body out of the water, but it still sits around my hips, as I hold my knees to my chest and cover my chest, hugging them close and popping my chin on the top of one knee. As I look over each Kor, soaking up their silent attention… I feel like an Empress right now. They’re waiting for my word. My voice. “…before I tell you what I decided, I want to know why…” I begin, “I guess I just want to know why you hunted Zina.” “Camping grounds are also hunting grounds, what we did was legal, and any person who camps on Protected Planets knows the risk of natural death,” Saturn speaks up, eager to get me to the part where I tell them what I decided, “Legally, Diana, we hunt, we do not murder. It is recognised as such at the highest levels of authority in the universe.” “I thought as much,” I whisper, but still thinking that I learned that a little too late, but unfortunately, I couldn’t fix that mishap, “So, as for what I decided, I… ah… I willingly decided to capitulate to my instincts,” I answer, “Not from fear. But because… why not? I know what my body and soul tell me,” I look at Mercury, and he smiles softly, “…but I want to make it clear, I am human first, Fey secondary.” “We’d love to make you feel right at home, sweetheart, but one of us is missing,” Jupiter speaks up now, looking annoyed, “Where’s E?” “Not here,” Mars stands up, the water dripping from him as he focuses on me, as the unofficial designated head Kor, he walks toward me. I stare at his nakedness. Yes. I stare without shame. His body is insanely magnificent to me. I think he is the most refined of them all. There was something about his skin, how it was one with nature on this planet completely. Like a perfect camouflage, without the invisibility. It was the way he moved with his confidence too, that lifted him above the others like a King. He never waited for anyone or anything, he just moved in for what he wanted. The only reason this response took so long was the fact I ‘ambushed’ them while they were naked and vulnerable. Now I’m finally getting some of Mars’ special attention. As he closes the final gap between us, I make the decision at the last moment to stand up and meet him, using the steps to keep my eye level with his, since he is much taller than me. I was five foot five, they were all at least seven feet tall. Not to mention the width of them, built with predatory musculature. While I was… well, I was just small, like a human. Mars says nothing at first, his first move is to hold up his palm, an open invitation to step forward and press my cheek to it… inviting me up for some venom. I look to his mouth, and I see over his sharp teeth, the venom already drips with a distinct glitter. “Prove yourself,” Mars asks me to truly capitulate with this. To master capitulation, I had to survive that kiss without freaking out. I had to trust them. Especially Mars. I grab his hand with two of mine, and I place it over my left breast, over my heart but with a distinct difference – so he can squeeze it if he wants. A more sexual offer, as I step down, but lean up at the same time, offering my mouth to accept the kiss. I lick my lips by accident, a little thirsty for a virgin, but Mars’ eyes notice immediately – and he seems jealous of my own tongue. His hand squeezes my breast, as his other hand reaches behind, spanks my ass once and doesn’t leave as he squeezes that too with renewed ownership, as his mouth crushes mine. I keep my head up as he finally, truly kisses me. Mars doesn’t lick my lips. He doesn’t peck me. He truly, deeply, finally, tastes me – and in his expression of lust, I also feel a deep, warm love seep through. A long-term possession. The kiss lures me in, I get on my tip toes, while Mars’ fingers dig and knead over my ass, his hand sliding to my other breast, down to my rib cage, causing a ripple of need down my spine. I gasp into his mouth and push myself flush with Mars’ iron hard abdominals, until his giant dick is sliding across my waist. I gasp again and open my eyes when Mars’ saliva hits my blood. I grab onto his shoulders, scared for the slamming aggression. It’s different this time. Mars feels different. He… now my… Eyes. Seek. Him. I glare with need at his shaft, a dark navy green. I feel that there is zero need in Mars to hunt me. It’s gone. I obliterated it by coming to him. But he does want to fuck, I already do too – but now I feel his need overwhelming my own. I grab his hand which has slid along my rib cage to my waist, and I pull it over my stomach, trying to push his hand between my legs. He stops his hand at my belly button, just to see the quick look of frustration grow in my green eyes, as his other hand kneads my ass still. I plead with him, just by glaring. “What is it, Diana?” Mars asks, pretending to be oblivious of how horny I am. “MmmMm!” I moan out a complaint, while a blush creeps up my neck as I hear the others stand up in response to the animalistic and shameless noise I just let out. “You want… something?” Mars asks again, looking straight at me, no blinking, as his warm, perfect, strong hand, slides off my ass – and he steps back into the water, stepping back again. The entire time, I’m stepping forward in some natural dance, magnetised to step forward and close the gap he is artificially creating, luring me deeper. I reach out with both hands, licking my lips again, tasting his sweet, sweet need in the lingering venom. But as I reach out for Mars, my fingers stop a hairs breath from his torso, when two hands snap up my wrists, halting me. Either side of me, Mercury had approached and grabbed my left wrist, while Jupiter apprehended my right. Mars stands untouched, as if protected by his own personal security. He seems delighted I am so eager for him. I pull on Mercury and Jupiter’s hold to no avail, while the others keep circling closer – yet my eyes can only focus on Mars’ gorgeous mouth. “Let me go?” I ask it, I whine it, I whimper it – all three at once, as my need overpowers my civility, “MmMm please, why?” I beg them, as Mercury and Jupiter still keep me from closing the miniscule distance left to Mars. “You have yet to taste us all,” Jupiter explains simply. “I’ve tasted you,” I whisper, biting my lip. “…you have yet to taste all of us…” Jupiter repeats himself in an irate murmur, tinged with only a low level of amusement, “You’ll taste us all, then you can touch, touch, touch all you like, little one.” “Then give it to me.” I order it. I want it so bad that I demand it. Mars reaches for me. He wraps his hand around my small neck, tight – but not too tight. But still… Even though I can breathe, the grabbing of my throat gave me a slight shock, I didn’t expect it. Holding my chin up, Mars looks offended. “Know this, Diana,” Mars’ eyes travel down my face, as he drawls with a warning to take this seriously, “You give. We take. In return… you will live… however, we will take you whenever we desire. You’ll know nothing else. The price for our venom is death, it always has been. In place of death, it’ll be your complete and total obedience. A willing slave. A venom whore… we all get what we want.” “Do you agree to those terms, little one?” Mercury has moved in slyly to my ear, nibbling on the top with his sharp teeth again. Do I agree? Mars’ hand squeezes down my throat once and lets me go so I can decide. I move instantly as I close my eyes, I turn my head toward Mercury’s sexy mouth and deep growl – and I open my lips for him. I kiss Mercury. He bites me, gently, on my bottom lip, wanting to tug on it just a little bit. My wrists are released, and I bring both of them up to clasp Mercury’s face, wanting to prolong the kiss – when other hands grab my waist, pulling me back. When I whimper in a breath and look over my shoulder – my heart starts to race. Behind me, Terra, Jupiter, Saturn, Pluto, Neptune and Uranus wait, crowding in, blocking all escape. The venom from Mars and Mercury is combining into a need so deep, I feel like I’m on the hunt for a deep, rough owning – from each one of them. Or altogether. But first, I needed to taste all of them. Their venom. They wanted it that way. I was going to capitulate. I was going to give them everything. Nothing else mattered. I needed their touch. My deepest Fey Enhanced Instincts wanted one thing above all else. I wanted to be their venom whore. Fey Empress VI, Diana.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 11 ✿◉●•◦ Kor hands are warm, and they’re all around me. Jupiter’s hands smooth over my hips, along my stomach, above his, Pluto’s cool touch is below my breasts, his hands cupping the underside, Saturn’s hands are on my neck and face as he steps in front of me and kisses my eye lids, then he looks into my glazed eyes to see just how horny I am. It’s not just Saturn, when he leans down to kiss my lips, a slow and tempting, full kiss – I look up and see Neptune’s white neon eyes as his own lips kiss my forehead and trail down the side of my face. They’re all over me and I love it. I taste Saturn, who tastes expensive and rare. Like a sweet wine, he only gives me a tiny bit, before Neptune is quickly pushing in and stealing my mouth. His tongue slides in and the other Kors growl in annoyance that he is giving me so much of him. Neptune tastes like every wish of yours will instantly come true, his heart is massive, his feelings are every feeling at once – but overall, he is a force of optimism. I taste that sweet, sweet optimism. I want to keep kissing him because I feel so high. I claw at his neck with curling fingers and Neptune looks deep into my eyes, his nose touching mine – only to be pulled back aggresively so Pluto can move in for the kill. His hollow eyes are not so hollow after all. Up close, I can see his features are just so dark, so deeply reflecting a void with universal light sparkling here and there, that he is just teetering on the edge of other dimensions. Pluto kisses the side of my mouth, giving me the least amount of venom. I have to lick my lips to get the taste and he is already pulling back. Jupiter steps over me, he doesn’t let me take even a moment to process Pluto’s ‘nothing’ flavour, which was something far more complex, but like I said, he doesn’t give me a chance. Jupiter crushes his mouth to mine, leaning over my head, standing so tall he just stays flush behind me, his cock warming my spine, along with Neptune’s cooler shaft. I can’t control Jupiter’s kiss, as his mouth once again tastes like ideas – new ideas, new everything. He only pulls up when I need to breathe, and I gasp in a breath, looking up as I see Uranus’ lightly tinted green-white eyes, hovering above. He doesn’t kiss me. I feel his saliva hit the tip of my tongue – I couldn’t see him do it, but his white teeth smirk when he sees my look of shock at the fact he gave me his Kor venom in such a crude way. Terra sees my renewed shock and pushes in, glad to see me so vulnerable – he finds it adorable. Terra kisses me through a handsome smile he can’t help, as his hands spread over my ass cheeks, greedily kneading both of them. He tastes like life. A beautiful promise. When he pulls away, reluctantly letting me go, I am looking up at all of them, all around me as I spin and spin in the water. All their hands reach out and touch me with their fingertips, trailing along my skin, making me feel crazy. I don’t know who to look to, who to focus on. Mars is on the outside looking in, although his way leads all of them. He reaches in a hand – to bunch up my hair. While I’m feeling all of them through their venom, understanding all their natures at once, I feel quietly confident. This feeling they’ve gifted me, is home. All of them let me taste a tiny bit. In a dance they seem to know well, every Kor steps back, as Mars steps forward, his hand bunched up in my hair is what is stopping me from ‘dancing’ around with their power. He floats down to my eye level, and he forces me to look at him without looking at all of them. “That’s what you feel,” Mars drawls, as he moves in with every word, his lips now touching mine so lightly it tickles, “Before you die.” I don’t have time to process the threat as I just attempt to whimper and can’t even do that. Mars picks up my waist, crushing me to his front, pulling my head back tightly by my hair – welcoming them forward. It’s so they can all kiss and nibble at my neck which he arcs on full display. Mars kisses and sucks on the throbbing part of my throat. His cock slides across my clit, rubbing and pulsing but not pushing. He just teases me with what’s to come. Pluto, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, kiss my neck with Mars – they are all pretending to bite me, and my heart is almost stopping with the renewed fear of predator’s razor sharp teeth so close to my most vulnerable pulse which pumps through the carotid artery. I feel one hot tongue, lick across my neck, all the way to my jaw, and I see Neptune’s gaze, on white fire as he licks up into my ear. Pluto and Saturn are scraping their teeth across my neck and the taunt skin. Mars’ eyes look over my chin as he leans up and looks down at my terrified expression, as my legs squeeze tighter and tighter around his torso, looking for a sense of comfort. Mars sees the fear in my eyes is real and he takes it as a sign of respect for their power. That is when I feel his cock slide along my virgin pussy until he is pushing – but I also feel… more. My eyes widen as I feel a second cock, coming from… Neptune… and a third… from Saturn… while the fourth and fifth shafts from Uranus and Pluto, nudge my thighs, as if waiting their turn. Jupiter and Terra stand shoulder to shoulder, and they just watch over all of them, looking in at my contorting expression with smug patience. I think they want my ass. They were just waiting. Mars also observes me and my morphing behaviour as three Kor shafts push up into my pussy together. I had never done anything like this before. My pussy isn’t just wet, it’s soft and wanting – yet I have no idea how three giant Kor dicks are slowly pushing into such a tight unused hole. How could this be possible – perhaps because I am made Fey, or perhaps a side effect of their venom. I suck in a deep yet shallow breath, as I see Neptune dive for my breast, to suck at my right nipple – while Saturn grabs my other breast, squeezing it hard with his hand. They’re following Mars, his cock is deeper than their own, if only an inch in further. He hasn’t stopped staring at me, as my breasts are sucked and kneaded under him. Mars stops pulling my hair and I had been pulling up without realising it. I jerk up just a bit, while Mars leans closer down to my mouth a bit more. Pluto and Uranus watch from behind him, as they lick over their sharp canines. So many Kor eyes on my skin. So many Kors to satisfy. And I was only starting with three! I anticipate more and my body responds as I accept the inevitable. With my mental submission, a sensation like no other starts to spiral through my blood, throbbing from my womb and my thighs. A sense of urgency. I want to fuck. I want to… move on them… but they hold me so tightly still so only they can merge forward into my body. At their pace. It’s what they want. But… “More,” I dare whisper, and they all hear it, “Let me…” I choke on the word as Mars pushes in a lot deeper, yet still only maybe halfway. Saturn and Neptune push in with him, and my pussy stretches so tight, I feel something pop, and I almost cry out, but I muffle it to only come out in a small, panicked breath. I wait for the pain but there is only a deep, hard, iron, velvet, times three sensation of extraordinary pleasure. This was insanity. How?! This must be the kind of pleasure you can only feel if you’re getting taken and owned by Gods. I feel nothing but Kor induced euphoria. Mars’ mouth curls up in the corner, seeing the same break in my eyes. He knew this would happen. “More?” he repeats my word, directly over my lips, not letting me taste. Such a tease. He makes me do it. I reach up to press my mouth to his, kissing Mars and saying at the same time, “All of it. M – oh fuck,” I whimper when Mars doesn’t show a single touch of mercy, nor does his expression even change a little bit, as he thrusts in to my hilt, at the exact same time as Saturn and Neptune. They make sure every inch of their shafts are now warm and squeezed in my aching pussy, which stretches to accommodate all of them. Like clockwork, as my feeble hand claws into Neptune’s shoulder, and my other wacks at Mars’ collar bone, desperately looking for an anchor and finding none, they hold me up as they set the pace and the brutal fast thrusts. Mars, Neptune, Saturn, one, two, three, when one thrusts out, one thrusts in, followed by another a half a second later, until I’m being fucked constantly and without pause. My virginity is well and truly dead. The steady climax I felt blooming from all their warmth, now tips over the edge, shooting through my system with incredible force, as every part of my body wracks with an orgasm. It’s like their venom bites me too in that moment. My body isn’t my own, the way I twist and squeeze is amplified by their hot and hard bodies and all their eyes staring at me simultaneously as I cum. I can’t continue to kiss Mars, who keeps his mouth on mine but watches me struggle to keep my senses, as they all hold me so tight. I feel Saturn’s heat at my back, Neptune’s hard abs at my side, Mars’ hips between my legs. I feel like I’m getting ripped apart, but when my eyes drift down, it looks like they’re barely moving. “Ah,” I freak out when I realise they’re going slow. When my eyes snap back up to Mars for reassurance, he asks me again. “More?” he enquires, so calm. I shake my head, “N-no,” I answer honestly, as my whole body is still struggling with the first climax. I had no room to move so I was just trying to survive the feeling of its explosive nature rocking through me still, as each Kor took charge of my pleasure. Mars nods at me a little, and I hold his gaze, as I feel like my nipple couldn’t be anymore sensitive to Neptune’s tongue and teeth – as Saturn licks into my ear and nibbles it too. My whole body trembles. Meanwhile Mars still watches me like a formidable King, waiting for me to take it to the next level. He is letting me know, the moment I say more – the moment I ask, I’m done for. I know it. And I know I shouldn’t want to know what it’ll be like but… …but how can I survive such slow thrusts… knowing they’ll never end it themselves. They could fuck me for hours like this and I’d go insane within the first few minutes. I purse my lips as I reason with this. I can’t believe I’m going to allow this. I close my eyes as I arc my neck back between them all, giving them this, “Do whatever you want to me,” I whimper it, “Do whatever you fucking want.” I feel heat over my face as Mars immediately leans back in, but I’m too afraid to look. “Cute, Diana, that you think closing your eyes will help you survive,” Mars moves his sharp teeth down my jaw and neck, not lightly – much harder. It hurts to the point that I scream out as I lean closer to Saturn, who catches my mouth and holds my chin, kissing me hard as he fucks me harder. Neptune slides his hand down to my clit and he pinches it between two fingers. My breath is stolen by Saturn’s possessive kiss, and Mars is… oh… my… fuck. Mars is biting my neck – starting to. I feel two sharp canines pierce my skin and my blood starts to run down to my shoulder in a thin river. I keep my eyes closed as Mars laps up the tiny drops of blood, and he keeps fucking me slow, while Saturn fucks me hard. Neptune fucks me somewhere in between, his face appearing next to Saturn, wanting a turn on my mouth. I move away from Saturn’s hot mouth to Neptune’s cool lips. He bites my lip, until he has it pricked. As Neptune also licks my blood, lapping his tongue over the cut on my lip – I realise two things are happening. Direct venom, direct direct, into my neck and mouth. Mars’ venom and Neptune’s venom, pure and unfiltered, starts to cause some kind of half-way paralysis. I can’t move, but I can feel. Just like a night terror come to life. Mars stops teasing my neck to hold my throat with his hand, feeling my pulse and the wet blood as he starts to fuck me hard with them. Neptune ups the pace, until all three of them are showing me to a climax that is utterly terrifying. The feeling is a tsunami, as my body can’t move, and my breaths feel tight, it’s like they’ve forced me to feel like prey on the run even though they already fucking caught me. And instead of feeling near death, I feel alive. It made no sense. Other than the fact I knew they wanted me to live. So, I had that confidence. Mars, Neptune and Saturn thrust in all together, holding their cocks pulsing and hard inside my womb, as I feel them release their Kor seed into me. It’s not over in a second, it keeps coming, their shafts stay hard, if not harder, as they swell and pulse out their seed, to mark my womb as theirs forever. As a third climax wracks through me, mentally unhinging me, my eyes roll back, looking past Mars, Saturn and Neptune, past Jupiter, Terra, Uranus and Pluto who wait their turn – but they are still… no one is walking through the water. But yet I hear splashes. I hear ripples. Past Uranus and behind Jupiter, I see Venus walking forward, standing tall, he looks over all their heads down to me, and I see him staring at my mouth. Mercury had left to fetch his brother, and he returned with him! I didn’t even realise he snuck off after that kiss. Mercury stands at E’s side, arms crossed. Venus is standing extremely tall and alert as he looks to Mars only for a second, not even asking for permission as he reaches in past the three of them. He pulls up my head, cupping the back, bringing me up toward his mouth. I’m too numb to pull away, I just stare with terror at his mouth, knowing I’ll die if he kisses me. Venus is looking angry already. “Are all your dreams coming true?” Venus asks, cruelly, “So much attention, so much love… how cold do you feel?” he asks so strangely, “You don’t care, why would you care,” he glares at my lips. Of course I care! I want to scream it, but Venus looks hungry for revenge. The others might be over it, but he looks feral just behind his calm demeanour. Mars is still holding my neck, but he lets me go slowly. So do the others, as they pull out, I’m left barely standing in the water, in their circle, as Venus is the last to have his taste of me. If they let him. I turn to him, wobbly and wavering, as I stare up at his cruel dark eyes, having no idea if they hold pity or any form of mercy. I doubt it. What if he only hates? I keep trembling from the post-climax, even in the hot water, as my blood still feels on fire after mating with three of them, with the other six all around, unsatisfied, all next in line. I am at their mercy and I want to be, that’s the insane part. Venus’ eyes glimpse down to my wavering physical strength, and he holds out a hand to grab my elbow, steadying me. “Thank you,” Venus growls over me, as he steps closer. My eyes widen… why is he thanking me? “For what?” I can’t ask it loudly, it’s more of an airy attempt through my numb vocal chords, although I see hope in Mercury’s expression that Venus was thanking me. The Kors go from hoping to stiffening a second later as Venus pulls me closer, up toward his mouth, as his head tilts down to mine, and my body presses against his front, since he dragged me in. As my body lightly rubs into his, Venus is looking straight at my mouth. “For giving me another chance to feel this again, just to kill it… this time on my terms, you pretty little whore,” Venus whispers at the end, as if looking for a deluded version of his own personal salvation, he kisses me for himself. He moves in too quick for any of them to be able to do anything about it. It’s too late. Yet, out of all of them, it’s the most beautiful and graceful kiss I’ve received. I feel like I’m being romanced by it, even as his venom comes next. I wait for death. The kiss had prompted the other Kors to freak and reach out, but by then the lethal lips of E had already touched down on mine. The venom seeps past onto my tongue, it tastes like finality – but is tainted by beautiful… hope? At the same time, I feel my body get attacked by the lethality. Only for some kind of miracle to occur. Venus puts his hand on my chest, waiting for my heart to stop. He takes his mouth from mine, and sees I am still standing. Still breathing. For some reason, I am… immune? Venus tilts his head the other way with curiosity, his lips twitching once, one of his brows even moves up in a wide handsome arc I had never seen until now. I stare, spellbound by the beauty appearing on his face, when that deluded hope turns to realisation. Venus actually looks… happy. When I glance quickly to the other Kors, even Mars looks completely shell shocked by the fact I didn’t drop dead, but equally shell-shocked Venus looks so familiar. Even to me, it’s like I’ve just seen him for the first time. But no one gets a chance to comment on it. And I don’t get a chance to wonder what kind of impossible next set of events could occur to escalate the drama of my new free life. A flood light spills over all of us. I shield my burning eyes. I instinctively look to my Kors, wanting to know they are safe, but all of them have switched on a special ability, so they can all turn invisible?! I didn’t know until now, until I see it happen, as they all disappear and fade in a split moment. All around me, I see familiar Tcno personnel, dressed in camo suits, hiding in the vegetation, now standing, guns pointed, lasers on me, masks covering their features. Earth’s… military. What the actual f – I stand naked and still, as the military doesn’t even seem to care about the Kors. One lead officer steps forward, pulling down his mask, he holds out two hands as he speaks to me and the air around me. “For the purpose of being transparent on a treaty bound planet, we are the IIA from Earth,” he announces, “With a message for the Kors – we now have irrefutable evidence that you broke the Intergalactic Treaty, you illegally altered the DNA of a species outside your own jurisdiction,” he really sounds angry at the end, “Diana,” he focuses on me, “Come here, now. We’re here to… take you home.” “I’m a Dark Nine!” I yell out, my voice scratchy and painful as I make myself speak, hoping that somehow stops this insane process. “You’re not anymore,” he yells back, “Diana – your DNA is now illegal, we have grounds to detain you. And if you don’t come willingly, we will execute. This is a mercy, come here,” he holds out a hand for me and waits for me to walk toward the other end of the hot spring, to climb out and join hands. I look around me, and my Enhanced Instincts say the Kors have only hidden far enough away to protect their bodies from bullets – buy I feel every eye of them on me. I nod, agreeing for now. What else could I do? I am too shocked to feel anything, I just know I have to obey to live through this ambush. “One more thing,” the officer stands up, speaking to the air around before I move out of the pool, “We’re here to arrest one Kor named Venus – or E?” he waits, “For the direct and premeditated tampering of DNA of another species…” he waits, knowing there will be no willingness to come forward, “This is all recorded. This is all going to the Universal Board. If you don’t give yourself up to face legal proceedings, this will escalate far further. More charges will be added to your record… E…? Last chance?” the officer waits. Nothing happens. I shuffle out of the water, covering my breasts with my arms. I climb up the steps closest to me, and I walk toward the officer, past all the guns pointed at me and still pointing. As I stand before the arresting officer, I keep my eyes down as submissively as I can. I don’t want to be seen as resisting or aggressive. “This way, Diana,” he says kindly enough, holding up a hand to usher me back along the path, to a spacecraft from Earth, that settled down into Dark Ninth nature, a fair way back. Before I can move, I feel a flush of heat behind me. The officer looks tense, reaching for his gun, as he looks up and up. I glance behind my shoulder. Venus appeared. “Not without me,” Venus speaks politely to the human. The officer looks surprised he gave himself up, so he is speechless for a moment. “…this will work in your favour,” the officer murmurs, nodding up at the giant Kor. “Just so you realise, I’m not going because you’re attempting an arrest,” Venus explains, “She’s not going anywhere without me. And if you want to remove me,” he leans over me, over my shoulder. I have to hunch down a bit as he leans all the way to the officer, “You can kill me but I wouldn’t advise starting a war with Dark Ninth, puny human.” As he leans back up, he puts a protective hand on the side of my face, lightly – a terribly kind touch of reassurance. My whole body sings with Venus’ light pat. The officer gulps. His eyes scanning back and forth as he reads through his Eye Access, for any kind of action he can take against Venus’ ‘threat’ but he comes up with nothing. After all, Venus was just being polite… polite enough to be honest about why he was coming forward. “Well, you’re under arrest anyway,” the officer growls out, pulling out his gun and stepping back, “Move it. Walk slowly.” I step forward and Venus shadows every step, moving with me, he feels like a second skin or body armour. I feel safe. He is looking out for me. It is at this point of my journey outside Earth that my thoughts on the Kors do a 180. They won’t kill me. But they might just kill everyone else to keep me alive. Since I am the last – or first Fey, however you choose to view it, the Kors are so intuitively and naturally protective, it’s on another level. I’m starting to respect that, even if it scares me.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 12 ✿◉●•◦ Venus and I sit in a waiting room on the spacecraft, which has taken us back to Earth. Around us the walls show a simulated forest, while we sit on a simulated ‘park bench’ to help us feel more relaxed and at ease, while Officer Miton came back with the next set of steps we would have to take. I sit opposite the table with Venus. He had been scrubbed down, to take off any bacteria. They managed to remove the green, so I could see the grey skin and gold tiger stripes – and even his dark eyes, now glow a dark, brown gold. It’s a gorgeous colour. Instead of worrying about my fate, I stare at the clean Venus, who looks like a brand new Kor. He had been sitting straighter to protect me, to appear strong and unapproachable. His hair is black with gold dust, and his face is unbelievably handsome when relaxed. I could almost stare at his facial features for days, he was like Mars in that respect – completely devasting with beauty and masculinity, enhanced by six Kor canines, larger muscles and an impressive height. While he is comfortable to be naked, I am dressed in a white dress they passed to me since I was not comfortable to feel naked. I chew on my lip while Venus just watches me like he is seeing me for the first time. His expression and demeanour changed after our kiss. I wanted to address it, but not directly. We had some time to kill anyway, until Miton came back with more information. “Mercury said you were the head Kor,” I begin, “What made you the best at everything? What makes a head Kor?” “It’s not being the best at everything, it’s being the one who weaves that web to catch a heart, I had top game,” Venus explains lightly, his mean voice toned down but still just underneath since he had adopted it for so long, “Until my own heart was caught by Cin. I had never loved before her.” “So you can talk about Cinta?” Venus does glare at me for phrasing it in a way that sounds slightly condescending, a blush creeps up my neck and I quickly ask, “…why did Cin grab your heart…?” “She was cruel and cold hearted, formidable like a Kor, that strength caught me by surprise and never let me go,” Venus explains, carefully. “But?” “She melted around me… however, that was my mistake for thinking that’s what it was on her behalf,” Venus looks away, as he smiles to himself, explaining it bluntly, “It was a web of her own. She knew I was head Kor. She could rule with an iron fist if I loved her, all she needed to do, was catch my attention – and I question everything, so she made me question everything, and I ended up obsessed with her odd behaviours,” Venus speaks openly, and as he gets it off his chest, his shoulders lose their tense stature, “I didn’t know it was a game until I kissed you, Diana.” Oof, that catches me off guard. “…how did one kiss, make you think that…?” I murmur. “She would,” Venus brings up his hand gracefully, to show me what she would do, “Push. Me away. Every time she kissed me, she’d push at my chest – the truth coming through her cold hands, as she kissed me. You didn’t push, you didn’t pull, you didn’t… do anything… you just… waited. And you knew, from what Mercury told you, what would happen… what my venom could do. But you didn’t move.” “So you realised, I waited for death,” I gulp, feeling shame just thinking about my submission in that moment, “But you did drag me into your chest, you pulled me in.” “You didn’t push back, and you didn’t shy away, even knowing the kiss would kill you,” Venus’ eyes aren’t dark when he says that, they’re light, “That was the ultimate test of your heart as a Fey, your heart and your soul – you lived for nothing but the truth of that moment, like I did. It wasn’t about what you’d gain. It’s about what would happen to the both of us. You accepted… reality. You didn’t try to manipulate it.” “It was all too quick. I’d say I acted very normal,” I try to rephrase it, my mouth curling up a little, “I just reacted like any girl would react. A beautiful man pulls me in fast for a kiss. I had just lost my virginity to Mars, Neptune and Saturn – I had just been kissed by eight Kors… and then a ninth Kor pulled me in for yet another taste of venom… in truth I wanted it and I didn’t care about the consequences.” Venus smiles, tilting his head, “…exactly…” “What now?” I ask, splaying my hands on the table before us and leaning forward, “Am I going to be exterminated, since you manipulated my DNA?” Venus leans in toward me, his eyes sparkle as he explains, “It’s beyond cute to me that you wanted to discuss our kiss, before your own execution,” E likes pointing that out, and especially likes my deeper blush, but he quickly changes topic, further flustering me, “I ran the simulation of Our Tcno, to see what judgement would be handed down, the first thing before a trial is a charge of… this,” he motions around, “I violated a treaty and you can’t exist. However, the AI system, Tcno, glitches when it takes into account a Dark Nine who is pregnant, that ‘glitch’ automatically switches to the darkness of will-power… in plain terms, it’ll be your decision, against the ‘perpetrator’, me. I changed your DNA. You will be asked to decide – if it was a crime. If you believe so, it’ll go to a Jury of Light – those you are completely ingrained in the system of your planet. If you decide it’s not a crime, we’ll be free to leave to a neutral zone, where the other Kors will pick us up.” “How do I decide?” I ask Venus, and I see him gulp when I ask that. He didn’t expect me to ask him. I was just curious what he’d say. E’s eyes scan my whole face, and his cheek twitches but he doesn’t answer. I just see the pull in his eyes for me. I see it, and I know it’s a hunger… but I also know it’s more. “Diana.” A human interruption as the door finally opens to our waiting cell. I turn around and Officer Miton comes in with his hands out, looking rather… disappointed, “…this is… a bit rare but you’ll have to decide whether or not this is a crime, Diana. Based on the fact we found out through our tests that you conceived in the last few hours, you’re pregnant,” Miton tries not to look uncomfortable about the fact the team who were sent to us, watched me get fucked in that pool on Dark Ninth, and I honestly just choose to stay in denial about the pregnancy for the moment, “Do you feel your human DNA was violated… by the Kor Venus, who produced an agent from Dark Ninth, to alter your genetic structure… do you feel there was an injustice against you? Think carefully.” “It happened without my knowledge,” I admit, standing up from the bench to pace for a bit, needing to focus on my movement and not on E’s stare or Miton’s irritated posture, “But I don’t feel violated…” “Are you sure it’s not some kind of sway they have over you being a hostage?” Miton asks, impatient. “I’m no hostage,” I explain, glaring at Miton now, “I am an Empress of Dark Ninth.” “You are, but you were, human,” Miton mentions, “You have the right to be avenged.” “No, I don’t, because I’m a Dark Nine, Our Tcno has no say on my justice, only I do, Our Tcno is involved only because I was tampered with while human. Now that I am outside Earth, and sold to Dark Ninth, and pregnant… I am both Freed and a Kors mate, a Fey. I was not a mate until I agreed to be. Females have the power of that decision, because their fate afterwards is so expensive…” I look down as I say that, and I look backwards to Venus, “…but in this case it’s exceptional circumstances, we made an agreement that I will live… that I won’t be subject to the nature of Kor appetite… that alone is a price that negates any negative impact of being changed from human to Fey.” “I don’t have all day to discuss this, please just make a choice,” Miton seems frustrated I am not going to be executed. “It’s not a crime, that’s my final decision,” I say to Miton, adopting a snarky attitude, “Now why don’t you fuck off since you’re so busy.” “You don’t have to be rude,” Miton puts a hand to his chest, smiling arrogantly and looking happy that I swore and broke down any rapport between us in that second. Miton takes one final look to the intimidating Kor, but gets stopped from leaving when Venus smiles slowly and commands something of him, softly and with a deep knowing that what he asks, can’t be refuted. “Before you go. Kiss her hand,” Venus drawls. “Why?” Miton growls at Venus. “Diana is an Empress,” Venus doesn’t have to say anymore. I forgot it is protocol to show respect to those in charge of planets. I just didn’t feel like I earned that position at all. I am slightly overwhelmed when Miton hesitates but jerks in his forced movements to consummate the protocol. He awkwardly avoids my gaze as he throws two temporary ET Keys on the table and quickly gets down onto one knee and picks up my hand. He kisses the back of it and quickly gets up and moves off. Venus licks his lips as Miton backs off, turning tail and stalking quickly from the room. “Now that the system has sucked you in and spat you out again,” Venus picks up the ET Keys and throws me one, “You’ll be the target of criminals who want to ransom you against our wealth. That is why you can’t go anywhere alone. You’re pregnant and you’re solid gold. The only Kor gold left in the universe, you understand that value, don’t you?” “I have an easy solution to that. Can’t you just make more Fey?” I ask. “We don’t want to,” Venus murmurs, his eyes scanning over me, “We only want you.” “Why.” “Because we have the luxury, there is no one else… what else could be better than to live like Gods.” “Sharing a Goddess of your own creation?” I ask, blushing brightly, “I’m hardly anything like a… queen, or empress or… goddess… or anything like that. I’m so basic. I’m just… Diana.” “So?” Venus looks unimpressed by my logic, “I’m just… Venus. Do you think I care that I’m just one being? Everyone is not just themselves. You’re alive, Diana. Have no shame or limitations in being here.” “Are you… really Gods?” I ask. There is no direct answer to that, however. Venus slaps his ET Key on his thigh as he turns to the ET machine in the corner, our ticket out of here. “Come on,” he stands up and holds out a hand to usher me forward, “Time to leave.” I don’t object to freedom. I follow E through to our next neutral zone. Planet Mercy. **** Planet Mercy is a Protected Planet, so another camping ground. Venus and I end up transported to a beautiful natural cave, teetering to the edge of a forest. Below us, however, is yet another pool. Not a hot spring, just cool cave water. We had to wait for the Kors to fly in and pick us up, so I sit on the edge of the cave pool, as Venus jumps in and dives underwater. He cleans off twice and comes up sparkling and fresh. From crazy Kor to something entirely different. Venus changed as fast as a chameleon. He doesn’t stay in the water, he pulls up onto the side of the pool, his naked thigh touching mine, as he just sits with me, watching our reflection. Weirdly, I feel comfortable being alone with him. And it’s extra nice to know we aren’t being filmed anymore. I have my hands over my stomach, over the white dress they gave me. Ah… I am still in denial of the fact, that hours ago, I fucked three Kors – and my body was already preparing for a baby. “Are you scared of me?” Venus asks, his voice echoing slightly into the cave. “I was only ever worried about you,” I answer, shrugging, “And I was weary, not scared. The others said you went insane five destinies ago. No big deal, am I right?” “…you broke that curse on me,” Venus murmurs back, his voice deep and sexy now, “Thank you.” “I never meant to do anything,” I sigh, spreading my fingers over my belly as I rub in nervous circles, closing my eyes, “But like you said, there should be no shame in being… alive.” “The universe is light and dark, that is what your Earth tapped into, although that Tcno system is a little clunky… nothing beats Kor instinct,” Venus’ hand touches my thigh, resting on it, under the edge of the white dress. But his singular touch, causes all my nerves to sing with fire and excitement. I twitch away from him, since the energy is so much. Once again I am blushing and smiling as I open my eyes and turn to Venus at my side, biting my lip as I look up to his dark brown-gold and now rather patient eyes. “Light,” Venus carefully moves his hand back onto my thigh that I had shifted away nervously, and this time I don’t twitch as he squeezes my leg once, “Dark,” he tilts his head down, motioning to himself, “Light,” he looks at my hand on my belly, then he smiles and shows me all his sharp teeth, “Dark,” he doesn’t show me those shredders long, only giving me a glimpse before he turns in toward me, suddenly placing a hand on my neck, pushing me down onto the rock as he curls that same hand on my neck, around the back of my head, slowly lowering me down so I don’t knock my head too hard on the cave floor. Now I’m laid back, with Venus over me. He keeps his face hovering just over mine, his lips touch my mouth. A super light caress, not even a kiss. But when E pulls up, still holding my wide-eyed gaze, he concludes, “Dark and light… love… destruction,” he moves in and lightly nibbles on my bottom lip, “We’re dangerous when we dance.” I don’t know what he is saying, but I feel slightly… off now. I hold up both my hands and pat both Venus’ cheeks, trailing my fingers down his warm jaw, “Are you threatening me?” I ask, shy and confused. Venus slowly grins, his eyes are looking kind of crazy. He says nothing. Eh. I crawl out from under him but he lets me go. When I stand up and flatten out my dress, my heart is racing. Venus turns around and sits down by the edge of the pool. I watch from behind. His dick is hard and right there on display… I could straddle his lap and sit down on it if I wanted to. “I’m whatever you want me to be, Diana,” Venus talks to his own reflection, “I’ll give you whatever you want. Anything at all.” I keep staring at his cock and Venus slowly looks up at me through our reflection, still staring at his… Um… I quickly look for his eyes and his shoulder ripples as he twists a bit toward me, his brow arching, “Anything,” Venus drawls again. Honestly, I wanted to taste him. With my tongue. I didn’t feel safe sitting on it. But something about his dick looks tasty. “Anything? I want you to, let me, um,” I gulp down my nerves as I ask it more clearly, “I mean, can I suck it? Can I try to? It’s kinda big…” Venus smirks with his lips, no teeth. I feel confident again. I peel off the dress so I’m naked as I get into the water, wading toward him and his cock. I look up at E as I look over the head of his dick. I stick out my tongue to lick it, and it tastes good. His fresh grey skin gives his dick gold ripples, and it looks like a weapon. I kind of love the way it looks. Tasting it with my tongue is just the start, I try sucking the head of his cock into my mouth – and I like that too. When I roll my eyes up to see if Venus is enjoying this, he looks rather interested in asking me a question. My lips leave his cock and I ask, “What?” I selfishly hope it’s a compliment for my courage, or my ability. “When I said anything, I meant… anything,” Venus murmurs, intrigued, “Asking to serve me is rather… reversed… of what I was offering.” “Like what? I just wanted to suck your dick,” I snap pursing my lips rather angrily, “What was I meant to ask for?” “I just didn’t expect such willingness to serve without a price, a Fey is bought, always, it’s never… like this,” Venus looks me over, “That’s what I mean… when I said that kiss changed me… Diana, it’s the difference in you, you’re inclined to surrender… I find that, very odd. And kind of… unstable.” “Um,” I step back in the water, totally embarrassed, “I was just horny.” “There is more to life than sex,” Venus shakes his head at me, “Diana, you little whore. Come back here,” he raises another sexy brow and tries hard not to smile. Is he playing with me? I can’t tell! “Wait,” I almost take a step closer, but then I pull back, “I’m confused. What do you want?” “I’m asking what you want?” Venus fires back. “You just s-said all this s-stuff like what I’m d-doing is wrong, or r-reversed,” I stutter. “What you’re choosing,” Venus corrects me, “Is strange.” “I can’t enjoy… wanting… the- the… I mean… this feeling inside,” I put my hand to my chest, “My desire is to bond. Is that not normal?” “Kors fuck, we don’t make love,” Venus explains, loudly and to the point, “Don’t you know that, little one?” “Oh,” I don’t know the difference, I won’t lie. I remain silent and still in the water. Venus kind of looks annoyed now, his hard dick throbbing while I keep the distance between us. “…are you teasing me…?” Venus asks, in a low growl. “N-No,” I stutter again, “You’re confusing me!” Venus jumps into the water and walks toward me. I close my fists by my side, and he approaches until we’re flush. I don’t back off, I just purse my lips and stare at his torso, “What?” I growl out. Venus’ hands reach up and hover above my arms but don’t touch me. It’s kind of driving me crazy. I feel the energy of him just hovering his palms there, not doing a damn thing. Venus finally places his hands to my elbows, finally, and with that moment I breathe out in relief and look up, meeting his eyes. My own thank you. “What is it now?” I ask him, “Tell me the truth.” Venus leans down, his eyes not leaving mine, “I like… that you’re so… utterly… submissive to us.” “I am?” I ask, “I guess I am?” Venus’ hands hold my arms a bit tighter and he rubs up my skin, his tongue slowly licking over his sharp teeth, as his hands rub over my shoulders, then back down my arms again. “I can feel it,” Venus explains, “You. Without… tasting you. Your essence. What we devour,” he looks down into my eyes, “You’re giving it away right now.” Um, what the hell is he talking about? “What does that mean? Am I dying right now?” I whisper. Venus shakes his head, “No, your essence, it’s replenishing… but, you’re giving it to me because you are becoming dependant… on independent creatures,” Venus looks at me with a slightly scolding look, arching his other brow, which feels like some kind of judgement, “Are humans dependent on their mates? I mean… if you were to mate with us, and we moved on to another, you’d die of the pain. Like… beaching yourself, you’d suffer and wilt away… because your essence became a part of us. You need it. The connection. I say it because that is a human trait, not Fey. Fey are independent entirely.” “E, my soul is human, my DNA is Fey, that is why I am human first, Fey second,” as I say that, Venus nods and accepts it as a good response. “I did not know humans were so… pathetic,” Venus explains, blinking, “Until I met you.” “Did you just insult me?” I hiss. “You’re so… weak,” Venus lets me go, shrugging, “I didn’t know. I’m sorry… I just didn’t know.” “I thought you were smart and knew everything,” I fire back, “You’re a dickhead.” “You’re just really fragile,” Venus shrugs, “I didn’t know how much. Your heart is so feeble, the way it beats faster when stressed, no doubt your kind dies of heart break. That is pathetic.” “You just went insane for fifty thousand years, is that any better?” I ask. “I didn’t drop dead, did I?” Venus jokes about it, turning around, hand on his chin, growling to himself, “This is really something else… we won’t have to consume you because you already give your essence to us… like a symbiosis…” You know what? I am so done with this conversation. I turn around to leave the pool, needing some damn air! I get out of the water, and when I do, I feel shadows fall on me. They appeared out of nowhere, turning off their invisibility shields. You have to be kidding me? I look up at the line of eight Kors, standing around the pool. Arms crossed over their chests, staring between E and I. They had been listening in the whole time. And they look just as shocked as Venus. I blink, I roll my eyes and stalk around them. “I need some air, leave me the hell alone,” I growl at all of them. They let me leave, but only because Venus advises them. “Let her go, her heart is… a very weak thing.” “You just realised?” Mars scoffs, “Even the echo of the heartbeats, barely flutter. Any hint of negative emotion and she’s almost near death.” “I’m NOT that weak!” I scream, turning on my heel and turning back to all of them, who turn – and each predator looks totally wide eyed that I even had the ability to scream. ARGH. They had me so wrong. I throw my hands up and turn around and for the first time – I run. Not to run away, but to achieve some temporary distance. Just to fucking breathe and ponder and wonder, because dealing with another species, was kind of infuriating.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 13 ✿◉●•◦ I sit and try to think. Seriously. But all I can think about is something kind of ri-dick-ulous, yep, all I can think about is how the nine Kors all have beautiful dicks. The colours of their shafts, every kind, invisible, or gold, silver, grey with black or gold stripes, dark night-green, light terra-blue… each shaft large, ribbed and… well, E was tasty. E didn’t let me explore him long enough without causing me to stop due to the judgemental look on his gorgeous, handsome face. There was something about them, those sharp eyes – if they were judging you, it was hard not to notice. And it was no big deal, what Venus said, right? Independent creatures fucking an emotionally dependant ‘human’ female. Don’t overthink the consequences of that dynamic, Diana. I try to reason with myself but I just can’t stop thinking about… …their giant cocks… iron hard, perfect Kor weapons when they were horny. Nine Kor dicks. And their long shafts weren’t their only perfect weapon. The taste of their venom had a special unique kick to every Kor. Every flavour was a universal gift, wish, promise, idea, an open door… Kor power. I don’t think it was chemical. I think they had some kind of Kor essence… core… soul… like star dust but 100 percent star dust. I currently sit naked on grass, underneath an overhanging gigantic fern, looking out at more sticks and giant ferns and spongey moss. Protected Planets were green, comfortable, safe and great places to hide. Albeit, I wasn’t hiding, not this time, I was just… decompressing. I hold my knees to my chest, as the green ferns provide me with just enough shade to keep out the sweltering temperatures. The cave isn’t too far off, I only ventured marginally deeper into the forest of Planet Mercy, because a lot of the ground was steep and rocky, so it was hard to get far without having to climb or grapple with vines and slippery trees. I wasn’t a monkey, and I had no desire to look like one, so here I was, grudgingly fern bound, thinking about being an Empress and mated to nine men with nine dicks and razor sharp canines… or were they fangs? Mars scraped and bit into my neck when we fucked, mercilessly, when I said do whatever you want to me. Did I regret it? N-no… And their beautiful cocks. Oh my… And their beautiful promise as mates. And being the most ‘valuable’ female in the universe, the only one the Kors could mate with. I put IIA off our backs for now, being a Dark Nine and pregnant, at least I had the free will to decide if my altered DNA was a crime or not. And I’ll be perfectly honest, I still wasn’t sure. But I did, perhaps foolishly, consider the Kors my friends now. And Dark Ninth my home. 48 hours later and that’s where my free thoughts had taken me… cocks… venom… belonging to and bound to another eco-system… how did this happen to me again? When I had originally wanted complete and total freedom? That’s why I was trying to think clearly. I just had to breathe, breathe and think, think and recognise that I couldn’t be a naïve travelling wide eyed ‘I don’t know, I don’t understand’ human any longer. I had to accept this. Accept what? I was pregnant. Mars, Neptune or Saturn were the father. What else? I was… I am… enslaved. I gulp as that word sticks. They wanted to breed with me a lot more. I didn’t even have any kind of thoughts on that, by any thoughts, I mean coherent thoughts, my only non-coherent thoughts were somewhat barbaric. Kor cock. Kor cock. Kor cock… Beautiful Kor dicks, so gorgeous – why were they so god-damn beautiful and alien and all I could think about now. My blood was pulsing faster through my contracting veins, my heart felt like it was bleeding for their warmth, their touch, their sharp predatory eyes. I stiffen when I feel my Enhanced Instincts catch onto the strange movement in the air, a distinct unnatural wispy feeling – made by the movement of a body closing in on me. I look up and I see white neon eyes looking down and in at me, the area around his large masculine outline is blurred where he ends and nature begins. Neptune, standing next to my hiding spot, looking down under the fern at me. “Hi,” I murmur, letting go of my knees and letting my legs open side to side, as I grasp a hold of my feet, my soles together, I lean forward and look up at Neptune’s open eyes, “What do you want?” “We have to go back, Diana, to our home planet,” Neptune explains, his eyes struggling not to fall between my legs. I had opened my legs like petals… did I care? I already explained what I can’t stop thinking about. “I know,” I don’t complain, I just half shrug… but as I open my mouth to string some pointless words together for some light small talk, I notice once again that Neptune’s eyes roll over my naked skin, he finally looks right at my pussy, and my eyes abruptly roll over his body too… even though I can’t see it perfectly, I focus on… on… there. I shut my lips and I gulp. Neptune leans down a bit further and steps into my giant fern cave, thwacking it aside, he moves right down onto a knee and kisses me, his hand cupping the back of my head. I don’t expect the sudden kiss, but I welcome it. That is not all, his hand dives between my legs and two fingers plunge right into my pussy, as he leans me back and deepens the kiss. Neptune finger fucks me and kisses me. His venom is the same, tasting like any wish in the universe – all promises kept for eternity. I love his cool mouth, I love his venom, he may just be my favourite Kor. And his fingers, now fucking my pussy – so deep and pulling out, just to thrust in again while I gasp against his lips, my hands not reaching for his neck, face or torso… instead, one of my hands grabs onto his cock, the other – cradling his balls. Oh… fuck. His balls are so big and soft and warm, I pull away from Neptune’s mouth to stare wide eyed at his own amused eyes, now narrowing. Without a word, he steps up, pushing the fern out of the way of his head as he gets closer to my face. I lean up toward his balls, my tongue out as I lick between them, along the warm and perfect sack, I lick over him a few times and he smiles with all his razor sharp teeth – glorious, dangerous, and so happy with my position and my choices. I don’t know exactly why I can’t think about anything but sex after their kisses. Sex and foreplay and sex and kisses and now their balls too, I… love the taste of him, his sweat is like a watered down Kor venom – still delicious but I can’t get enough. I suck on his balls, and then I lick up the length of his cock. He is pulsing with desire to cum all over me. I feel it. Neptune licks over his razor sharp canines as he stands taller, his cock bouncing up and away from me as I strain my neck upwards, lips not close enough to his cock. “Why are you teasing me?” I whisper it, feeling hurt. Why am I emotional about this. Neptune’s eyes slowly move to my mouth, as his hand moves along the back of my skull, moving my head right back, as he suddenly orders, “Open that mouth… I’m going to pump your throat full of my cum, little human…” I glare up at him, I’m Fey now… but still, I open my mouth with need – and Neptune holds his dick to push it down into position. Stepping over my face he plunges his cock into my mouth, and then toward my throat – standing with one leg over my shoulders, the other over my front, his thighs squeezing into either side of my face to keep me still and at his mercy. I’m so fucking wet in this position. Neptune’s hand pulls my head back further, and his dick slides expertly over my tongue, and down… down… in… squeezing through my throat, I swallow him down and choke, and he pushes in a little more, starting to throat fuck me. I had never done this before, and as my eyes water, his spare hand presses to my cheek, his thumb wiping away a tear. He is trying to fuck me quietly, but seems to hear something in the distance, so he pulls his cock out and I gasp. He tries to smack my mouth shut with his hand – but it’s already too late, even as his palm holds my mouth shut, our fern is pulled aside and Mars steps forward to look in at our private moment. My eyes bulge with embarrassment as Mars doesn’t even look at Neptune, he just looks at me, and his mouth downturns in the corner… his eyes don’t blink, however, they shine darker. “Come on,” Mars growls to both of us, “We have to go before the ET portals are shut for maintenance…” he doesn’t even acknowledge the throat fucking. Neptune takes his palm from my lips and picks up my arm, hauling me to my feet. “I only needed a minute longer,” Neptune growls out after Mars, who is leading us back. “I’m not surprised to hear that,” Mars grins now, looking after his shoulder at Neptune, who drags me along with their fast pace. I just wipe my mouth clear of any excess spit, still staring at Mars with embarrassment for some reason. I think it would have been less humiliating if he had just acknowledged what he stumbled across. Mars looks over his shoulder at us, past Neptune for a moment, clearly wanting to look ahead back to the cave, but makes a small concession – by looking at me for a brief moment and finally speaking about it. “Venom whore,” Mars drawls, as if reading my mind. He turns and leads the way back, Neptune just continues to haul me along. “…I’m not a whore…” I whisper, even though I want to be one, “…I’m not a venom whore… I’m not addicted…” I mouth that to myself, even though I know I am. Was I turning into a mindless slut already…? Maybe that’s why I wasn’t acknowledged. I start to panic. Maybe I was losing myself. What if their venom wasn’t just addictive but brain numbing. I couldn’t even think about anything but sex. I hold onto that one logical thought that might help me through this. These handsome bastards were turning me into a breeding bitch, and it was easy for them. If I let that happen without questioning the end, sure, I’d get my pleasure for free… but if I just surrendered to their arrogance – I’d lose my standing and my respect so quickly. I had to find a balance between Empress and giving into my growing, compounding needs for them. That was my next goal then. How not to lose my damn mind.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 14 ✿◉●•◦ Back on Dark Ninth, the Kors show me to my guest chamber – which would soon be permanent rather than temporary. Any dust and harmful bacteria had been exterminated with, ironically, a cleaning device from Earth called a Vac, just because we specialised in weird gadgets like that back at home which were often popular all throughout the habitable planets full of subspecies. Around me the dark and veiny prison stone of the room is accentuated by the green luminescent moss. The luminescence which I now recognise as soul-stuff. The soul remnants of the species before me. The Fey of Dark Ninth… as littered glitter all around me. Yikes. The room is sparse, with a purple bed – and an adjoining bathroom. There is a desk and a small library. There is also a small window, which I have to stand on top of the desk to see out of, to get a view of the outside nature. The bed itself is soft, fluffy and perfect. At least something wasn’t old or reminding me of bones. I end up sitting in the middle of it, as I watch Jupiter pace by the front of the guest room on the inner balcony – there are no doors to any rooms so I just watch him move left… to right… back again… back again… again… again. I start to glare because Jupiter looks a little annoyed, especially when he glances in to look at me. Eventually, after awhile of requesting time to myself in my own space, I give up on privacy and call out to Jupiter as he patrols. “Why do you look so angry for?” I call out and Jupiter stops sneering to come to a halt in his pacing, looking in at me slowly. “Are you going to just sit and think all day?” Jupiter inquires. “When we all got back, Mercury mentioned ransom again,” I say, “It scared me. That I’ll be a target of intergalactic criminal syndicates. So sorry if I wanted to think about that threat. What else am I going to do anyway, I don’t have a job besides… baking the bun,” I sigh as I slap my hand to my stomach, “I’m literally a breeding vessel, Jupiter. I might be an empress… but damn… it’s a pretty boring job.” I had stripped naked and adorned a brand new Plume, a green silky skirt around a chain around my waist – but no Krown, I didn’t want that collar choking me, even if it complimented the bottom. So, I’m straight up, tits out again, but hell, why not – there was no population to hide from on Dark Ninth. Jupiter doesn’t enter my room, it’s as if he won’t unless invited. It’s a silly thought to me, until I see him glaring spontaneously at the line around the stones which mark the entry point to my guest chamber. So, there may be no door, just a boundary, and as he leans against the arch, I do wonder if he can’t enter unless I formally invite him in. “…it’s not that simple…” Jupiter grumbles to himself, while glaring at that line. “Come in?” I try not to laugh, especially when Jupiter sighs darkly and somewhat demonically for no reason before he steps forward – raising his head and his silver eyes, “What are you, a vampire that needs permission to cross the threshold of my house? If you can call it a house?” I try to joke. “I wouldn’t intrude unless invited to intrude, Empress Diana,” Jupiter growls back at me, immediately beginning to panic-stalk the room now, but not coming near me. Why is he so anxious to expel his pent up energy for? Couldn’t he relax? For a moment anyway, I am slightly taken aback by the Empress title being used for the first time. I stare with what feels like a stupendous amount of exasperation again as Jupiter now walks to one end and then the other end of my chamber, pacing fast, hands behind his back as he glares at every corner. “Are you paranoid I’m being watched or something?” I ask. “I was placed on watch duty,” Jupiter growls out, “The others are at work. Securing our investments and reputation in the IA… I’m the best with growing our numbers. But here I am, looking after a female.” Argh! Why the hate?! I try to shake off his snarky tone. What did he say? Reputation in the IA? Ah, the IA was the Intergalactic Alliance and the IIA was Earth’s Intergalactic Intelligence Agency, sometimes I get them confused, but I quickly reason these ancient aliens have a lot of housework to do around the universe, no doubt they made quite the footprint on reality. Making it to the Universal Board was the most prestigious level of authorisation in the universe. Most people could never expect to even dream of making it that far. I mean, most souls died. Subspecies who lived forever often had the same negative attribute, and that was the sucking of life force from another… the price was heavy, but their egos weren’t exactly all about philanthropy, compassion, or sympathy. Of course, the Kors would only care about one thing. And one thing only. Power. Every kind of power. So that is why Jupiter looks pretty annoyed he has been assigned to watch me. I guess he had better things to attend too. Pssh. “Please stop pacing,” I murmur at him, “This female is rather annoyed. You’re irritating me.” Jupiter stops pacing again, slowly turns to face me and just looks at me. His eyes swirl, his rage is simmering. “What do you want?” he asks me, cold. “You know nothing about humans – I assume Mars and Terra are the ones heavily invested in Earth… am I right?” I ask, slowly getting off the bed and standing. After what I’ve voiced, I see Jupiter’s brow twitch up as if I’ve hit on something without having being told, I just work it out, “…I know you’re ancient, I don’t know how ancient…” I add, “Did the Kors create the solar system?” Jupiter tries too hard to appear relaxed. He won’t blink but I notice his jaw clench and quickly unclench, “Is that why you have Jupiter in your space… that orb. You protect it.” “There are some things which are female business… and some things which are male business… and some things which are Kor business,” Jupiter growls, lower and lower, “Do not inquire of it again. There is a reason we are an exclusive group.” “Until now,” I add. “Yeah. Why not,” Jupiter murmurs, looking me over casually as I approach him. My heart is racing, approaching a seven-foot silver alien with his teeth so ready to tear in – I wonder if pissing them off will one day be the end of me? Were they akin to abuse their power? To lose themselves to a pent up rage? They murdered a whole planet. Or consumed a whole species. Was that murder if they were just very, very hungry? Who was I kidding. Feeling slightly freaked out by my spiralling thoughts, I stand a few feet from Jupiter and look over his magnificent body, sculpted just like a god… except they’re just ancient aliens… likely their memories are so vast, that is the reason they are exclusive… it has nothing to do with being male… however much that might be used to separate us… my sexual features were still valuable, they couldn’t breed without me. And they couldn’t feel the best pleasure without me. So, check mate? I hope, at least, that somehow being female is worthy to them in more ways that I just haven’t found out yet. Learning about a species who sucked the life out of other souls, particularly feminine souls, was a constant process of prying and backing out. One day I’d understand. “Jupiter,” I breathe his name slowly, “…I don’t mean to offend you… I wish to learn… what can you teach me? Aside from… sexual release,” I quickly interject, keeping my hand on my stomach – it was a natural instinct, I couldn’t stop it. “I wouldn’t fuck you without the others watching anyway,” Jupiter dismisses that little detail and steps toward me suddenly, turning, arm outstretched as he puts his hand on the small of my back, “…shall we go for a walk into Dark Ninth… and I can teach you how to read this planet and understand what certain things mean. Like the three moons. Our tides. Our light. The fact that no animals beside us roam, beside Elions that occasionally drop down and dare to explore our paradise… this prison is our base but this planet is our home… the whole thing,” Jupiter sounds very proud on that last statement, as he ushers me along, and I walk with him, “…do you have any questions…” he asks, suddenly, as if wanting to know what I might want. “Can you teach me how to fight?” I ask, “I’d love to learn about Dark Ninth… but I’d also love to learn how to blend in, like Kors do… how to hide… if I need too… from Elions… criminals… Tcno… perhaps other potential threats,” as I word that carefully, I’m surprised to see Jupiter nod and accept. “Come on, then, Diana,” Jupiter agrees, “I’ll teach you… but please don’t ‘zone out’, I hate that,” he growls that in at the end, “You either learn or you don’t – but don’t get lazy on me.” “You really think so little of female kind –?” I ask, trying not to laugh, trying not to panic. “I think so little of anyone other than Kor,” Jupiter corrects me. “I’m not sure if equal levels of distaste of all others is any better than a targeted dislike,” I whisper, “Your nature is very… very difficult.” “Competitive, Diana,” Jupiter actually smiles, turning to me, he leans down to whisper in my ear, “…you have no idea what we’re capable of.” I don’t think much of that, until we walk outside and his gaze flies upward. I follow Jupiter’s eyes. Before I can even focus on the sky, everything around us burns with light. Everything turns white. For a split second I feel like I’m on fire, then the feeling goes. Then it’s dark again. My skin sparkles even brighter. Added luminescence? From where?! It’s like it was singed into my DNA. More soul-stuff. I blink and rub my eyes, as I focus on Jupiter’s upward gaze. I don’t expect anything of significance to happen – until one of the stars in the sky explodes in real time, in a brilliant array of dust, shooting out gases, particles of glitter – forming a ring, then a nebula. The whole thing happens so fast, sped up with magic, but it takes a moment for me to process Jupiter’s smirk. “…that was easy,” he drawls to himself, ushering me forward again. I stumble and look straight ahead, staring hard at the low-lying nature beyond. Jupiter just… he just… he killed a neighbouring star. Just by looking at it. “…how… old… are you…?” I ask, not even looking at him, and not expecting an answer. Jupiter seems to be in a sadistic mood, telling me with pleasure, “Older than this universe, you baby.” What the actual… …so Dark Ninth is no longer just a graveyard. It’s not even the Kors’ birthplace. Dark Ninth was hijacked. And if the nine Kors who wanted to mate with me, were older than the big bang… well fuck, they really were Gods.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 15 ✿◉●•◦ Jupiter and I walk along a well marked trail into Dark Ninth nature as he starts lecturing me with pride, “The three moons are our mothers, they give us our light, it is completely artificial…” Jupiter explains, “Dark Ninth is a gift from our fathers. This whole planet is the gift. The tides are equalised by the three moons. This location doesn’t appear on any map, it’s hidden by our moons.” “How did the Intergalactic Intelligence Agency get here then?” I wonder. “Exactly, how? That’s why the others are having discussions on your home planet right now,” Jupiter explains, his eyes slits as he thinks about it, “They’ll destroy all records in their files. All they need to do is threaten to pull their funding from Our Tcno.” “Oh, well that’s simple and smart… humans do love their money,” I laugh awkwardly, and I change subjects, “And why are there no animals aside from visiting Elions?” I ask. “This planet never harboured animals. The planet and the moons, all four were ancient Elion weapons – Dark Ninth belonged to Elions, they were slaughtered by our fathers. The Fey were then put here by our fathers, their favoured female species in the universe. Our mothers are the original Fey. Our mothers are dead.” “Where’s your fathers?” I ask. “Busy,” Jupiter grumbles, eyes turning from sharp and focused ahead on the trail we follow, to softening slightly as he turns to look at me by his side, slowly relaxing with my presence, “You need to understand some basic details about your skin. You can blend in with nature – to hide from threats if for some reason, you’re scared… but I assure you, we’ll always keep watch with you, Diana. I’ll teach you how to blend in soon. As for fighting, you are advised to hide first, and if confronted, with no other option, we will arm you.” Now that sounds exciting. “Arm me?” I whisper, feeling a tingle of excitement which is tinged with the danger of a Kor weapon. Neptune had electric arrows, small lightning bolts, it was fascinating. Imagine what weapon they could give me? “Later,” Jupiter smiles and laughs a bit, looking at me sideways and slowing down, “Now,” he reaches out and touches me for the first time since we were left alone on Dark Ninth. There was something oddly romantic about being the only two people on a planet. I stop with his hand resting on my shoulder and I turn to face him, as he also turns to me, “I’ll close my eyes for thirty seconds, Empress, and you try and camouflage around me.” “Any tips?” I ask, as he closes his eyes. “No,” Jupiter remains serious, “It’s a learned skill. I’m counting.” I back up from his hand, my heart now racing in excitement. So, I could really turn invisible too?! How come no one told me until now! I spin and I run into the vegetation, my mind racing as I look down at my skin. How to turn on that special Fey feature, shared with the Kors? Hmmmm. I choose a light green bush, squatting down under the overarching branches, I swat them aside and I sit down at the base of the plant and try grabbing the leaves in my hand. I focus on staring at my pale skin, glowing a light green like the plume around my waist. I try to imagine myself turning invisible. Of course, I don’t expect this to come easy – but as I focus on the leaves and my hand clenching the soft material, I watch as my skin ripples. It’s almost hypnotising to see my colour change. The ripples cover my skin, attempting to blend in with what’s around me. It’s very hard to focus it. I realise I’m not breathing steady, so I close my eyes for a second and exhale all my breath, to begin again, inhaling slowly through my nose – and exhaling out of my mouth. Five seconds each time. Focusing, I open my eyes and I see the ripples have faded, I’m slowly melting into nature. I’m halfway there, yes, but no, I am not invisible. I haven’t run far, Jupiter didn’t give me much time to go, I guess to ensure a sense of panic and urgency, to encourage the ability. Too bad for us both, I guess, that I wasn’t scared of him anymore. I rather felt warm in his presence, safe and protected. I look up to see where I left Jupiter, where he had last stood – and I must have glanced up at the end of the thirty seconds, because I see him standing there – and then I see him turn invisible. As it happens, the ground pulses out, the luminescence ripples along the ground, toward me. As it reaches my location, I feel it tickle. It sends a shiver up my spine and I know he has somehow located me with this weird radar he sent out. I am grinning as I can’t see him, but I do expect him. It is that playful expectation, that has me bursting out laughing and screaming in delight when he reaches into my hiding spot, his hands hauling me out a moment later. I’m lifted up high above the invisible Kor. I can’t see him, but he does just hold me above, my legs flailing, until one of my feet touches his shoulders… and I stop laughing to bite my lip, as I realise my legs are split apart and my plume had swung over one thigh, opening me up for his invisible eyes. “Jupiter,” I whisper his name, to the air, not sure where to look, but knowing he can see the want in my eyes. He lowers me and I place my other foot on his other shoulder. Without seeing him, but still holding me up – Jupiter licks right through my pussy, over my clit, and I feel my pussy juices concentrate as he starts to eat me out mid-air. I grab onto his head and his hair, and as he licks his tongue against me, I blush and watch as his camouflage ripples away and I can see his eyes holding mine, as he enjoys my taste. I purse my lips to keep in a full-blown moan at what his tongue is doing to me. Jupiter focuses on my clit, rolling it around and around – it’s so sensitive, I yelp out when he does it again. Grinning into my legs, Jupiter playfully chuckles as my knees buckle but my feet stay on his shoulders. Jupiter throws me up suddenly and I somehow manage to stand on his shoulders, balancing perfectly with my arms out. Breathing a little fragile from his clit-teasing, I look down as he compliments me. “You’re showing good reflexes, you’re getting used to your new body,” Jupiter speaks with pride, looking up as I jump down from his shoulders to the dirt. I stand back up and Jupiter already steps into me, up at my back, his arm wrapping around me, his hand sliding over to clench and knead my left breast possessively but also gently. Jupiter’s other hand slides down my stomach, brushing aside my plume to cup my pussy with his hand, teasing me with his finger directly on my clit. He starts to rub it directly in circles again, and he knows exactly how much pressure to apply, to make it feel like pure torture. I step back into Jupiter’s hot front, my hands clawing into his arms, using his torso as support as he keeps circling my clit with no end to his teasing. I look up at him, begging, “Please, stop that, it’s driving me crazy.” Jupiter doesn’t smile, although he looks pleasantly surprised by how I squirm and claw into him, “It’s too sensitive for that…s-stop,” I try squeezing my legs together but he lifts me up by the pussy – with one hand, so my legs kick out, and two of his fingers slip into me. At least my clit is left alone – but now two of his fingers are rubbing over my g-spot over and over and over. He lowers his arm from below my breasts, to my waist, to tighten around me as he hauls me up higher, turning and walking us back to the prison – while he keeps fingering me like this. “None of this which I now hold belongs to you anymore, Empress, you’re my whore,” Jupiter ends the lecture on that note, “You best get used to this kind of handling. I like you.” “You liar. Y-you s-said you wouldn’t… f-fuck me without the others watching,” I interject. “I never said I wouldn’t play with my pussy,” Jupiter stops fingering me, and starts to circle my clit again. God, he already wanted to call it his?! It was mine! But fuck, fuck, fuck, I am going to climax any second – I kick my legs out in some kind of protest. It wasn’t that I didn’t want that feeling – it’s that I knew the moment I came, it would feel like flying, my sensitivity would skyrocket… and he’d keep playing with me, just to hear me scream, cry or pass out from the pleasure. Jupiter was cruel like that, I could sense his intention was to torture me like this. He wouldn’t take things to half-measure. “Please,” I whimper out, terrified, still clawing at him as he walks, and his circling of my clit slows down – no more circles, now he’s rubbing it softly, oh, so, softly, I can barely feel him touching me – it somehow sends me over the edge, I cum hard, “Ah, e –” I squeak out as I orgasm from Jupiter’s touch, and he does exactly what I thought he would – he starts circling my clit harder as my pussy is leaking and squeezing nothing, over and over. Jupiter lifts me up a bit higher, and I feel his cock rest at my pussy entrance, getting covered in cream just from being under it. “I want to fuck your tight little ass, as hard as I want,” Jupiter drawls the promise in my ear, his teeth scraping under my ear, moving higher until his tongue is licking into my ear – as his cock presses against my ass. No, NO! With real panic, I somehow use his thigh in one of his paces forward, as leverage for my foot – to kick myself up. I fly out of his hold, right up, my body moves with such power, like a spring. I end up standing on his shoulders again. Jupiter was surprised. Not as surprised as me. But still, I’m scared to get fucked in the ass with him only and no other Kors to pull him away. Jupiter was too much. I jump off his shoulders and I run from him. As I run into nature, off the trail, two things provide me with an advantage. Jupiter’s initial shock, which gave him pause. And my skin. As I run, it fully turns transparent. I did it. I’m invisible!

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 16 ✿◉●•◦ I run through the low brush, away from Jupiter, completely invisible  – and totally exhilarated by the power in my new Fey body. Not only had I out manoeuvred Jupiter so far, my speed and power had confirmed that I didn’t just have Enhanced Instincts. My body was enhanced and my special abilities were expanding to cope with Kor company. And now I am flying with the speed I’ve gained under my feet. I sprint effortlessly down a lightly trodden path, and when I turn to see if Jupiter is pursuing me, I get a quick surprise. As I turn my head to scan the landscape of Dark Ninth behind me – my front crashes into Jupiter! I’m caught, swung around and brought to a stop. Of course the giant alien had to outrun me! Jupiter doesn’t hold me for long though, he unhands me after he has stopped me escaping, all to grin and cross his arms over his chest as he looks over my fluttering skin. My invisibility is still pulsing through me but only in flutters, providing me with a semi-camouflage while he looks at me sideways. “Going somewhere, little one?” Jupiter asks, “Watch duty also means watching out for any of your escape attempts.” “You’re the one threatening to tease me until I go insane,” I say, “And saying you want to butt fuck me –” “Yes, I’d love to fuck your ass,” Jupiter drawls, “But even I know you haven’t received obedience training. So I won’t hound you too hard for running.” “Obedience training?!” I hiss, focusing on those two words. “Come here, get on your knees, and suck my cock… down your throat… we’ll start there, shall we, pretty whore?” Jupiter sounds pleased to offer this, until I rebel again, but with new intel. “Neptune and I started that training on Planet Mercy, but nothing came of it when Mars interrupted Neptune pushing his cock down my throat,” I also add, “So I’m down two Kor cocks on tasting trials, I’ve now tasted E and Neptune, so yours won’t be my first experience, it won’t be a start, is what I mean,” Jupiter’s brow twitches, as does his frown, “What? Are you jealous you didn’t know about Neptune?” I ask, laughing, trying to rub it in with what little experience I have, “I’m just stating a fact so you don’t think you’re intent on teaching me something that I think I’m rather good at already. And I don’t think I want to pleasure you without the others close anyway. You’re a little big… and no one will be able to stop you if I’m choking and dying.” “I’m not an imbecile, little human, I know how to be gentle,” Jupiter sneers, ignoring all the rest. “Oh, really?” I mock him. “Careful, Empress, arrogance doesn’t suit you. E and Mars praise you for your submissive nature. So, what’s with your attitude with me then, brat?” Jupiter is unimpressed. “You’re rather short tempered, I’m rather chilled out. We’re not very compatible, you annoy me.” “You annoy me,” Jupiter murmurs, his eyes slanted, “Let’s go back.” “No,” my invisibility flutters from off and on, to just on, “I don’t want to go back inside that prison yet, I like it out here.” “We’ll return together, or you’ll wander alone, and I’ll activate our Kor traps,” Jupiter slowly smirks when he hears my confused halt in my breathing, “Dark Ninth is littered with our hunting holes, trip wires and other nasty things. I’m happy to delight you with a horror-show if you’re so hell bent on being a disrespectful female. Return with me, Diana. Do as you’re advised,” I look away from him, toward freedom, but I exhale a large breath and I eventually turn back to Jupiter, looking down as I nod submissively, “Good,” Jupiter growls, still annoyed, “When we return, you can rest…” he is speaking to himself, because now I turn and I run away again, intent on escaping from his watch. I want to challenge myself to evade a Kor. However, the moment I run, Jupiter notices and he snarls after me, “Diana! You fool.” I don’t know what he means, until I see his pulsing radar push out over the field – and it lights up certain areas of interest. These locations pulse once, sparsely laid out over nature. One is right in front of me. A rope snaps up as I run. A simple trip wire, but before me something horrible happens. As I tumble face first and downward, the ground opens up, dirt falls away off the grated and ancient doors – and below, a pit opens up underneath. Metal spikes await me. Lucky for me, I’ve somehow managed to grasp one finger into the grate doors that have fallen through, so I hang from them, looking down at the deep death trap. My one finger is slipping through the grate. I panic as I reach up my other hand, but my whole body slips and falls through the air instead. I was too slow! I scream. And for some reason I scream a single name. “MARS!” I truly believe I’ll be skewered and dead in under a second – when my scream for help is answered. The universe folds in around me, and folds back out. I feel like a whole soul connected to secret dimensions, pulled me in and spat me back out again. Because I literally end up spat out – onto a large conference table, back on Earth. Our Tcno. I recognise home immediately, because of the important officials sitting around this conference table, which is being filmed live. The President of Our Tcno was making a speech. The whole table was in focus with the top officials, military and otherwise. Including top advisors. Like Mars. And Terra. I’ve landed with a scream, my heart racing, as I see the camera on the ceiling roll down to focus on my bare tits, freaked out eyes and open mouth. Mars is right next to me, he had been seated at the table, but these two seconds of landing in Earth feel like an eternity as the red light of the camera, stays focused on me. A moment later, my open, trembling hand – is encased by a much larger, hotter and stronger palm. Mars’ fingers wrap around my hand, they hold me tight as he stands up over me, looking down at me with concern, but unable to say much. He pulls me off the table, sliding me toward him. I get up with shaky knees. With a hand on my waist, Mars pulls me aside. Security in the room have moved forward. “There’s no threat here,” Mars murmurs to them, and they stop to look at the President. “Inconclusive,” President Barth murmurs what his connection to Our Tcno advises him to do. Any inconclusive result will mean a Dark response is needed. The President still had extraordinary power when his will was invoked. He would decide what would happen for such a shameless, sudden interruption of his speech. I could be punished severely, even as a Dark Nine and technically a Fey. I press my front to Mars’ chest, hiding my chest, as his hand smooths over my hair. “There was an emergency,” Mars explains carefully to Barth, and to every other shocked official in the room, “Her life was in danger. I had to save her from a fall. Accidental.” I hear how Mars chooses his words so carefully. He knows all of this is going to broadcast around the Intergalactic Alliance soon. All subspecies loved some juicy drama. “We’ll respond to this matter now, for the moment, let’s end this speech,” Barth sounds polite and focused, but I see in his eyes, he is truly furious. He had always been a passionate politician. I used to admire him since Earth was his number one preoccupation, above all else, he considered our protection and defence most important. Right now, that passion makes me feel under threat. Mars keeps me off to the side of the room, as everyone keeps their distance but sends me glares of shock and horror at my entry. I did not mean to disrespect anyone, but I can see why people might twist this into some form of prank or attempt to humiliate Earth’s top names. I continue to hold myself to Mars, as he leans down to murmur in my ear, “They can’t do anything, Diana.” I whisper back into his ear, “Yes. They can.” “Shh,” Mars doesn’t want to say too much.  I hold onto him, tightly, with both arms. When a few minutes have passed, the cameras have all been shut off and most people have filtered out of the room, until only a handful remain. President Barth stays back, talking to Terra quietly. “…we’re terribly sorry, Mr. President,” Terra drawls, even though the Kors are more powerful, they choose to show respect, “How can we repay you?” “I need to think about it,” President Barth motions to one of his other advisors, “Who is this girl? I want to know.” “We don’t want to waste anymore of your time,” Terra tries to intervene, but a top IIA official approaches with the information. It’s shared to Barth’s holographic wristwatch. He reads through everything and absorbs it in seconds. “…this is the girl…” Barth whispers to others, not Terra, “The one that…?” I can’t hear everything. I hold Mars even tighter. His hand cups the back of my head and I look up to see his face, to see if he is confident or worried. Mars looks right at me but I can’t read his emotion. He is playing a character, and is closed off from showing too much more. “Ambassador Mars, may we talk to the girl?” the President calls out. Mars kisses me on the top of my head, whispering words only for me, “Don’t say much and it’ll be okay.” I take my arms from him and cross them over my chest. Mars helps me by putting his coat over my shoulders to hide me from all the other stares, as I walk up to the President with my eyes down. He holds out his hand, and I poke mine out of the coat to shake his hand. “Pleasure to meet you, sir,” I whisper. “Diana, you seem to be an experiment,” President Barth doesn’t let go of my hand, until I raise my eyes to his, and then he lets my hand go, but I am guessing he expects eye contact throughout this discussion, “The first regeneration of an extinct species,” Barth smiles a little, and scoffs a little, “Quite illegal, in fact. Are you aware of this?” “It’s… not a problem, Mr. President,” I answer, carefully, “It’s only me.” I feel a heat at my back and I know Mars has approached, standing behind me, overshadowing me as protection. “That’s how all things begin… you’re a Dark Nine too… a few things about you, miss, are quite out of form,” the President doesn’t seem to be trying to insult me, rather, he is trying to work me out, am I a threat, an embarrassment, or a non-issue for Earth’s reputation. I gulp down my nerves as he quietly says to Mars now, “It’s a funny thing, mating… it represents all our best and worst attributes, no matter the subspecies,” the President waits for Mars to make some kind of comment. “We apologise for the interruption and the uncomfortable fact that our woman has more authority than you, President Barth,” Mars is downright cruel when he wants to be, and even now, he talks down to Barth with expert precision, “Our Empress is our mate, Diana is therefore a Galactic Queen, not a planetary authority figure. While her face has been rather unknown before now, perhaps we can make this less awkward and go home before I have to humble you further.” “All guests on our planets in the alliance, must adhere to certain protocols, regardless, or it can be seen as hostile,” President Barth loses all comfortability, and goes straight on the attack. Even Terra, who stands to the side of all this, shoots Mars a knowing look. Shit. This was going to escalate. I step away from Mars and toward Barth. I even let the coat slide off my shoulders. With my tits bare, the President is immediately distracted from thoughts of war and hostility, “My entry was awful, but I meant to come to you soon anyway,” I explain, gently, “I hope to welcome a delegation from Earth, to Dark Ninth, to perhaps offer a deeper alliance. If my experimentation is a success, as you can see it is, perhaps humans with a desire to depart our solar system, could find a home on Dark Ninth,” I say any bullshit that comes to mind, “Mull it over. I am a Dark Nine and now Fey, but I am human in spirit. I love Earth. I am here as help. As help for humanity. I have great respect for you, Mr. President, and great respect for the human race.” I step back as the President has a lot to consider. I keep my chin high, his intelligent eyes swing, eventually, from my tits, to my eyeballs, to his advisors. A silence of deafening proportion comes from my two Kors – as excited whispers start from  Earth’s top officials. Terra omits clear anger, he doesn’t even look like he is breathing. Mars is cold. I turn to Mars, looking right up to his eyes. He smiles, but it’s empty. He takes my hand and leads me from the room, to the next. Terra follows. We don’t stop and we don’t talk until we reach their guest room. It’s a small room with a bed and a kitchenette. I sit on the edge of the hotel bed, looking awfully guilty. Mars pours himself a glass of water. Terra leans on the wall, hands in pockets. “Did I fuck up?” I ask them, “Badly? I didn’t know what to say. But I didn’t want war. I felt so stupid.” “I thought it was obvious, we lead, you obey us, but back there, you held yourself above us, quite far above,” Mars explains, coolly, showing no emotion, but I know he’s angry. He looks to Terra for comment. “This is my planet, Diana,” Terra tells me, “You… stepped out of line…” Mars laughs loudly, almost spitting his third cup of water he just had, back out. Mars growls deeply to himself, cleans his chin with a towel and drinks more water. Terra chuckles, leaning his head back, “Fuck. Wow. How do we punish this behaviour?” Mars chuckles with Terra, putting the glass into the sink. He turns from the kitchenette to see me squeezing my thighs together, holding my knees and biting my lip. My throat is dry with fear. Fuck, fuck, fuck. “We play it off,” Mars explains, “Bury it, so no deal is made, as there will be no deal with Dark Ninth – our Father’s planet, gifted to us, that you just tried to deal away,” Mars points at me, and turns away back to Terra, “One female later…” Terra starts laughing again, but louder. So does Mars. They seem quite hysterical for men. I blush a bit, and I don’t have the energy to argue. To be honest, I’m embarrassed by what I said and I’m worried I sounded like a total idiot. But I also, almost, died – at Jupiter’s hand. So just as I was finding my place with the Kors, I felt utterly lost again. I stand up from the bed and I shuffle my way into the bathroom to wash my face. I use a handtowel. I look at myself and I see my skin is translucent, greenish, my blonde hair looks healthier, and longer already. I look okay, honestly, I don’t look as scared as I thought I might. Hopefully the President saw strength in me too. I purse my lips and I turn around as Mars appears in the doorway, shaking his head, saying, “It’s okay, Diana,” he seems to dismiss it all, now. I hold my hands together in front of me, as I remain quiet. Mars looks okay, no longer angry, as he steps forward and places one of his hands on my cheek, so I can lean my face into his palm. I look up at Mars, I don’t mind him standing over me, I find it protective to be in his shadow, “You had him spell bound with your tits,” Mars murmurs, “Good move,” I manage to hiccup on a little laugh, and his eyes devour mine with appreciation, “Never do that again.” I shake my head, “I won’t,” I whisper, “I was scared.” “So was I,” Mars admits, “Jupiter almost fucking killed you,” he growls that low, “What happened?” “I was being a… I was… I don’t know, I was just having fun and he scared me, he warned he’d turn on traps if I ran, but… I had no idea Dark Ninth had death traps everywhere,” I add, “And I don’t know why Jupiter turned them on if they are so dangerous to begin with.” “He called your bluff,” Mars growls low, seeming unimpressed I didn’t surrender earlier, or maybe just angry at Jupiter for being so reckless all because of his ego, “It’s a long time ago now since we even thought of them, we deactivated them destinies ago,” Mars explains, “…besides, you called to me.” “Yes. So, you’re not angry anymore?” I ask, raising a brow, “I’m sorry, I am.” “Calling to me tells me the baby in you is mine,” Mars smiles with pride, “You’re all mine.” “Yeah,” I agree, “I think I am. No punishment then?” I squeak that out, smiling with gritted teeth. Mars furrows his sexy brows and his sexy mouth can’t contain a frown. Before it turns into a little evil smirk. And he looks at me and chuckles a bit, he even slowly licks over his teeth and looks at himself in the mirror. He doesn’t answer me then. I cross my arms over my tits and I try to look angry that he just ignores that question. Until he doesn’t. “When we go home,” Mars drawls, “We’ll all take a bite of you.” “There’s not enough of me for everyone to nibble at,” I growl the obvious. Mars raises a hand and holds my neck, his thumb right over my pulse. “Your blood, there’s enough,” Mars explains, quite soothingly and relaxed. “What?” I ask, “No way.” Mars is drooling, his teeth are covered in venom, as his eyes focus on my neck. “…and one female later…” Mars repeats himself from before, “You’re treading through deep water, Diana. Careful.” “Don’t threaten me… when you could…” I murmur and feel breathless, I’m a little flustered as I get another idea, “…when you could fuck me instead,” I ask it, no, I demand it, a bit too aggressively perhaps, “Mars.” I try to reach up and kiss him but he continues to hold my neck firmly, keeping me away and down from him as his eyes scan over my expression of defiance and desire rolled into one. “I’ll fuck you when I want to fuck you,” Mars replies, ice cold. He lets me go and turns from me, walking back out of the bathroom. Argh. I lick over my own teeth this time. I don’t feel threatened. No. I feel excited. And I’m not sure why, I just do.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 17 ✿◉●•◦ When we all return to Dark Ninth, I’m too awake to sleep, so I decide to just take this prison as my home now, no more peeping around with fear. I just take control. I do remain a bit cheeky, though, by reading through documents from E’s laboratory, just not in view of him. Using my new power of invisibility, I’ve stolen – um, I mean borrowed – a book on Dark Ninth and gone to my desk to read through the history of this great planet. I am busy for hours, to the point no Kor bothers me as I read privately at my desk. Dark Ninth is fascinating in every way. It’s a work of art. Dark Ninth is an engineering masterpiece. Not only is it an ancient Elion weapon of mass destruction, it is habitable for any species because it can be tweaked to house any species at all. In simple terms, this planet is a sanctuary. This planet could literally serve to save endangered species, before they go extinct. Of course, my brain goes to the predators of Earth, though they were bred for captivity, one infamous predator was always too wild, always hunted and always endangered. It was a miracle they hadn’t gone extinct yet. My favourite big cat – the tiger! Everything else had been domesticated. I could put tigers on Dark Ninth! I slam the book shut and I run down to Venus’ laboratory. He is at the back of the main lab, looking through some kind of microscope. It looks like he has been slowly cleaning the area up for research once again. I boldly walk up and tap his shoulder twice. “Hey! I want to engineer Dark Ninth for tigers – big cats!” I tell him as he isn’t even looking back at me yet, “I’ve been reading. All your notes, E. You worked out how to work with the engineering, the Elion technology, that’s what you’ve been studying for destinies, isn’t it?!” his silence is something I consider positive, because he could have flat out said no – and he didn’t. E finally turns to me, swivelling around on his stool, “Why?” he asks, raising a brow. “The planet is a sanctuary, a place to save –” “It’s a sanctuary now, is it?” E asks, smiling so handsome, he seems glad I’ve come to visit him down here, “…you care more about animals than humans and subspecies?” “No,” I snap, “I just have a fondness for animals. And you know that. You studied me too.” “Talk to Pluto, he loves animals,” E drawls patiently, “I’m sure he’d love to discuss this idea with you.” Venus might be half-fobbing me off, but at least he didn’t deny the idea completely. “What’s his nickname again?” I ask. “Louie, or Lu,” he murmurs while looking at my mouth. “But… you can do it, right?” I know I’m pushing him a bit. E raises a brow and says nothing, although he looks pleasant. I assume that’s an earthly equivalent of a snarky of course. While he is still on his seat and right there in front of me, I dart in for a kiss. I kiss the side of his mouth really quickly and move back, my little thanks to E for hearing me out. Venus immediately blushes and I turn and run out of the lab. The question was whether E wanted to do it or not, I just hoped he would think how on Ninth it would be a bad thing to have tigers here! Tigers were awesome. I’m sure the Kors would agree. For now, I’d find Pluto on E’s advice. Pluto was the most mysterious Kor to me. I knew nothing about him, so it seems like a good opportunity to talk to him. I peek in at Saturn in his planetarium, which is what I decided to call all their designated rooms up above on the top level. They were for each Kor exclusively and their planet at the centre of each. Therefore, planetarium kind of made sense to me. Saturn is walking around his orb when he sees me standing at the entrance. He looks pleased I’ve come to visit him. “Do you know where Pluto is?” I ask. “Pluto is on watch duty,” Saturn explains, “Just started – he’ll be looking for you –” I turn around and run to the edge of the balcony, looking down to see him waiting at my room, after hearing my voice he turns around and looks up at me on the higher balcony. I wave down to him. Below on the ground level where the throne is at the top of the steep stairs, Mars reclines with glasses, reading through the Universal News on his Feed. Those devices were everywhere in the universe, keeping the alliance strong with the same information always at access. Mars looks up from reading the latest news to see me smiling down at him with gritted teeth. He immediately looks suspicious of me and my happiness as I hurriedly climb down an inclined wall covered with safe climbing vines, just to jump to Pluto with my idea. “Come inside,” I usher Pluto into my room, “I want to discuss something with you!” Pluto watches me enter my chambers and I run to sit on the plush purple bed. I sit cross legged and ask him to come closer by patting the spot next to me. Pluto wasn’t just quiet; he seemed the most gentle – and he had no brothers here. He was an only child. Pluto doesn’t sit on my bed, he stands at the bed post, looking down at me with those deep intelligent eyes. “You need something from me?” Pluto speaks for the first time. I thought he might sound ethereal, like a fairy – but his voice is so deep… it’s very, very gruff and super sexy. I’m taken aback! I can tell he hopes to share my bed with me. Well… m-maybe later but… I blush as I take in his deep voice, while I try to keep my thoughts on track, “Do you like animals?” I ask. Pluto looks confused for a moment, but he does nod eventually, “Do you think we could make this planet a sanctuary for endangered species?” “I’ve always wanted to do that, but it’s not in our interests to bring attention to this world,” Pluto explains, “You’ll have to ask Mars.” My smile becomes a frown, “Why Mars?” “We vote on everything but he makes the decisions regarding habitation,” Pluto explains. “I’ll ask him later then,” I murmur, holding onto my ankles, as my eyes simultaneously run over Pluto, “…you’re on watch duty for how many hours?” “Twelve,” Pluto explains, “Half a Ninth.” “What shall we do?” I ask him, and he remains silent, while I dare ask quietly, “Is it in my rights to… to ask for… you know…” I look him over, “…or is that like, off limits or something? For me to ask, I mean?” “You can have whatever you want,” Pluto drawls, “What do you want from me, Diana?” “Lie down,” I whisper, wondering if he will follow a simple instruction. Pluto motions to the bed and I nod, so he walks around the side and he lies down while watching me all the while. I swivel around on my butt and stay close to his side, without touching him. I chew on my bottom lip as I think about what I can ask him. I change subjects. I’m curious of what he’ll say when I talk about my fears. “Do you believe I will survive on Dark Ninth?” I ask him seriously and quietly, “Will I survive the Kors? You too? Will you let me live forever… or is that all a lie… a lie you’ve all told me together… all before you decide to chase me down – after equipping me with the skills to run and hide, after I’ve given birth of course, so it’s at least, entertaining for you all if I have knowledge on how to fight and run,” I say this quietly, with a bit of suddenness too, to draw out a real response. Part of me is amused by the places my fear takes me. It was ridiculous to think this attention from the Kors and all their promises were lies – all fake promises and empty words. But Pluto takes my words very, very seriously. He immediately sits up, his hand reaching for my throat, his endless, dark eyes, looking down at me from above since he is so much taller. His hand on my throat is large, squeezing around my pulse just slightly, to feel my heart beating. I’m used to them going for my neck. I stare up at his mouth, so still and stern – his eyes cold and focused on me. “Who told you that?” he asks, curious. “No one,” I whisper, gulping when the touch of his tightening hand on my neck, causes my blood to rush. “A Fey doesn’t have much intuition,” Pluto drawls over my lips, “It seems to be a human trait.” “What does a Fey have?” I ask, his hand unmoving from my neck, his lips still just hovering above mine. “Pragmatic and cold thoughts, they never believe in ideals or maybes,” Pluto sounds like he recounts a subject he is an expert in, “They only believe in fact. They don’t hope for anything, they take what they can.” “Intuition is just a feeling, how could they have had no intuition,” I whisper, raising a brow. “You get that from Terra, he made your species,” Pluto explains, ice cold in his factuality, “It means you see beyond.” “Not too far. It’s not like a special power. We see a little beyond, sure, and it’s just anticipation, trusting a feeling in your gut,” I shrug a shoulder… to be honest, I’m over this conversation… I can’t stand Pluto’s sexy full Kor lips being this close to my mouth, his hand on my neck and us not touching further… “Will you kiss me, Lu?” I whisper desperately for more of his attention. “First… what made you think we’d only build you up to chase you down, Diana?” Pluto asks, drawing it out, “We have only promised you the world and more. Anything you desire is yours.” “B-Because…you could all and you can all lie to me, why would I know any better? You’re all so smart and intelligent and handsome… and I’m just an Earth girl,” I explain, a little breathless as I keep breathing in his breath, spiced with the magic of the universe, “And even so. You can do whatever you want to me and I’m powerless to stop your intentions. You could all kill me right now. You could all cage me and I’d never escape. Instead, you Kors play because it’s fun to test different subjects… it’s too easy to torture and kill… far too easy. Better to play and mess around first. Right? I’m just… a little girl… what can I do?” Pluto tilts his head to the side, and his eyes rise from my lips, to my eyes. He lowers that gaze immediately, however, coming in for a kiss. I seduced him. Yes. I pull back. “Wait. Lie down,” I ask of him, pulling away from his lips. Pluto’s hand slides from my neck, and he hesitates but then lies back on the purple sheets. He is unsure of my intentions. I unclip the plume from my waist and I straddle his hips, sitting back on his thighs to look at his glorious cock, dark like the night sky. “So, you’re going to betray me? All of you?” I ask, as I lift up my hips and grab his cock in my hand, to rub the tip of his cock across my pussy, “Pluto,” I whisper, as I sit down on his shaft and I’m plainly greedy about it. I sit down all the way, I make myself cry out as I see a bulge in my stomach. Simultaneously, he enlarges within me, and my pussy clenches so hard I’m sure I’m strangling his shaft with my extreme desire. I’m trying to test my own parameters. And I feel like taking what they offer. Since it’s right there, all the time. Their offers of sex. We could have endless sex. I start to lift my hips and drop them, again and then again, carefully riding Pluto while closing my eyes and throwing my head back, biting my lip. This is easier than I imagined, aside from his huge size, the riding part is easy, and the pleasure is perfectly climbing as I control the pace. Every time I move back down, swallowing him up, back within, I feel like I’m performing a dance of seduction. Even if there was a possibility that they all lied to me. Even if there was the tiniest chance of me being wrong about them. If they were more cunning and mean than my heart could recognise – perhaps I could sway their hearts and minds with sex like this. Pluto indeed falls victim to my feminine movements, his hands clasping my hips, as he leans up and starts to nibble at my hard nipples, sliding his hands under my ass to move me faster over his cock. I run my hands into his hair. I pant with my need to cum. “Mm, Pluto, fuck me like a… a… –” venom whore. I can’t say it. I can only warn him with a high pitched cry and a low moan as my body tightens and squirms over him, sucking him in so tight – needing to milk every bit of Kor seed out of his balls, into my womb. I cum so slow – it’s utter perfection, timed in sync with his thrusts, as he moves balls deep every time. Kor cock is beautiful. I love Kor cocks! I fuck him even harder, even as my thighs tremble and my core is on fire. I throw my head back and keep riding him, feeling like I’ve done this a thousand times – even though it’s my first time riding anyone. I feel like a goddess right now in this moment, especially with the best orgasm of my life still blooming through me. Only for our dance to… to slow down. Pluto’s fingers, clenching my ass and hips, take me with easy Kor strength and power, as he steadies me to a stop over his cock, while it’s buried deep inside me, and I’ve forgotten to open my eyes. All I know is my heart is beating a million miles a minute and my neck is throbbing – now screaming with sensitivity at the sharp Kor shredders I feel caressing my taunt skin. I open my eyes and Pluto bites down – hard. He drinks my blood aggressively while my hips keep jerking and moving on their own. Kor Venom, injected direct into my bloodstream. I think I’m in control, preparing for euphoria as I get a hold of him. Instead, the euphoria really, really goes out of control. His venom, gives me him. Pluto’s deepest, darkest desire and need to hunt. I feel it completely, and not only is my orgasm intensified and prolonged, I suddenly know everything a Kor wants to do to me. Specially, this dark and quiet Kor. Forget gentle. Pluto’s mind is dark and twisted. He wants me chained up and bent in every way that he can fuck me, just to fuck me in every way that’s possibly allowed, to see me covered in cum and crying with unrelenting waves of pleasure forced upon me, over and over. Pluto wishes to see a goddess reduced to a cum covered harlot who can barely think a coherent thought unless it’s about Kor cock. He wants me twisted up for him, bound and stuck. If he had me all to himself, he’d destroy me. He desires the extraction of ultimate pleasure. Pleasure that shouldn’t even be legal. Pleasure he can give me, even if I try and run, because he can just bind me in ropes or chains or any device that keeps me at his mercy. Unable to escape the torture. It’s like Jupiter’s need to tease me. They all have one thing in common. I’m seeing it now. They want to torture me with pleasure. I don’t know why, but it’s in their hearts. I wonder if hunting females down, is not all they did. Perhaps they played with them too. Like this. This was just as important to them. I come out of my stupor, paralysed briefly with the extreme feeling of Pluto rushing through me. His teeth have left my neck and he lets the blood drip down my skin as he holds one of my nipples between his teeth, not biting but still holding it captive between his shredders. My tits are at his mercy, and his smile is so evil, as I look down at his masculine eyes of promise. These Kors specialise in exquisite ends. The kind of sex that is impossible to experience unless handled by Gods of this Universe. As my nerves fire back to life, I try pulling off his pulsing cock inside me, but he licks between my breasts, up my neck, cleaning the blood off first – and I start moving my hips again. I keep fucking him. I’ve lost control. I just keep fucking, harder and harder – over a Kor cock that is even larger and more girthy than before. I start to cry, I can’t control my own body. My body is outwitting my brain. Run. Run. Or submit with no chance mercy. I can’t do this. I can’t! It’s too much –! Before I start to sob – it all stops. “Empress.” Pluto’s dark voice. He has stopped fucking me, and I remain seated on his shaft, trembling and nerves wrecked with Kor venom, his soft lips now pressed against my ear, his hand cradling the back of my head. “…yes?” I whimper out, terrified. “This is training, Diana,” Pluto murmurs in my ear, “That’s enough for now. Go bathe.” He palms me off him. Pluto literally pushes me off to the side and he stands up, walking away from me, while his seed leaks from my pussy down my thighs. I end up scrawled across the sheets, clenching them in my fist, as fear shines through my eyes. I’m serious, I don’t know if I can handle this kind of pleasure. I didn’t have one of them to satisfy. Only Nine. I see a shadow in the entrance, and I turn to see Mars looking in, after coming up here to check on the noises I was making. “I sensed your tears, and your fear,” Mars murmurs, somewhat glaring in at me, “What is it? Did Pluto hurt you?” I shake my head. He did quite the opposite. “I was crying for my soul,” I whisper, “You’re all taking parts of me away from me,” I don’t know where I find the words, but they flow, “I’m grieving that. I’m losing me… to all of you. One day there may be nothing left.” Mars seems intrigued by this notion. He doesn’t approach me. He leans his shoulder on the curve of the stone arch, hands in his pockets from the suit he still wears from before when he visited Earth. He is so handsome, and he too, owns a part of me. “Only two of you have tasted me,” I add, “How can I allow another seven to taste me–” “We don’t want a lobotomised idiot,” Mars chooses his words carefully, even half smiling at me, almost sympathetic, “Relax, Diana. Little human fears won’t serve you well here.” “I don’t feel right when I’m bitten,” I say, “I feel… like I’m dying.” “Kors kill,” Mars explains, harshly, “We agreed to keep you alive, that doesn’t mean we know how to… so bare with us as we try.” “I am trying too,” I whisper, “But there is only one of me.” “And there won’t be another,” Mars growls, “Go clean yourself up.” “Come with me,” I beg, “I don’t want to be alone.” “Pluto watches you,” Mars says simply, as Pluto roams the balcony outside my room, not paying me any attention. “Just… please, Mars… Mars,” I just finish with his name. Begging him. Mars looks like he is about to deny my request for extra kindness. His dark eyes don’t stray from mine. But he keeps it in, whatever he wants to say that is immediately bound to be negative. Instead, he just stares hard at me. The giant Kor looks just as in pain as me. Mars is agreeing to keep me company with that forced silence. “Such a cry baby,” Mars murmurs, abruptly, his sexy eyes filled with some kind of emotion, I don’t know what… but… he doesn’t go. He stays at my request. Good. I smile, despite the tease. He still looks tortured by his own attempt to be needlessly sweet when he owes me nothing. Still. It brings me comfort I’m not the only one being tortured by this unnatural dynamic between a Kor and a mate they’re actually trying to keep alive. I’ll concede he had no idea what he was doing, just as I had no idea. At least we could try together. To learn together and hopefully not fail spectacularly in the end.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 18 ✿◉●•◦ We don’t go to the pool to bathe, rather, we go for a walk along Dark Ninth’s trail from the prison. I mentioned I’d like to go to the clear water pond that Neptune originally introduced me too. So, I now sit in the clear water of Dark Ninth. The water provides a soft, cool kiss for my skin and cleans me quickly. Mars agreed to keep me company, he didn’t want to swim. The prison looms, while the three moons – their three mothers, gaze down at us with artificial light. I float through the water, on my back, even though the water is not very deep. I stare up. Mars switches from pacing along the edge, to stripping from his suit. He changed his mind after all; or perhaps I was too tempting to continue gazing in at from a distance… when he could just join and put aside his Kor patience. I am not trying to seduce Mars, however. Right now, I am reflecting, absorbing, and growing into the role of Fey Empress… and I’ll admit, I was also recovering from Pluto’s venom. What a ride that was. Mars finally dips into the water, he is naked at the corner of my eye but I don’t stare. I love how his green velvet skin matches the Dark Ninth nature. I look up and Mars dunks his head in and comes up with wet midnight curls and dark eyes focused on my position, as he wades across to sit in a corner of the clear water and keeps me company. I sit up in the water and kneel, then I paddle toward him. “When we go home, we will all take a bite of you,” I repeat his threat to me on Earth, “Your blood,” I try to mimic his threatening tone, teasing him. “Your blood is ours,” Mars states his fact and blinks slow, however, he doesn’t seem amused by my teasing. His dark eyes remain half closed as he watches me place a hand on his knee. He slowly looks up at me, floating in front of him, closer and closer, a curious look in my eye. “Well it’s not all bad,” I shrug, “Nine bites. That’s nine gifts of venom. I’ve had Pluto. I’m guessing you’ll take me now–” I whisper. Mars puts a hand on me. My belly. His hand splays across it, warm and gentle, while my hand stays on his knee. We are connected like this, skin to skin. “…you won’t rush that punishment into reality, no matter how nervous you are, you’ll wait little one… be quiet and listen to me,” Mars shakes his head, “We hunted human women a long time ago. But not like this. Out of pure menace – we just lived by our drives. We’re experts at that. This is the first time we are choosing different… you changed us… you are the first time that we are living beyond our darkest instincts,” I open my mouth to ask why, but I don’t have to, as Mars explains, “…we didn’t plan it this way… Diana… we didn’t plan on agreeing to share a female… we didn’t plan on keeping you around… we have always been exclusive. Always. Females are not beneath us, they are simply not a part of us, we don’t integrate well with social species, hence the prison the Feys confined us within,” he reads my expression deeply, and I wonder if Mars can tell I’m getting used to this, leaning down so his eyes are level with mine, “Female mates are every male’s greatest weakness. Your mere existence is your greatest strength. We are weary of such weakness, we are creatures of concentrated power – that is why we watch you closely. We watch all others closely. What is important to us, is gold to others. Even so, we all have our limitations. For one, we can’t twist the fate of us. I never wanted to fall in love with you – barely knowing anything about you, other than your need to be free, a Dark Nine on Earth… but when I saw you for the first time… it must have been what Venus felt for Cinta – the kind of poison to drive a man insane…” he trails off and every part of me comes alive like fireworks. I want to express to Mars, exactly what he just said to me. I knew nothing, next to nothing, about him, but I felt like I was tied to him at the deepest level. I still felt that. And he felt the same. There was no reason. “Mars. Every soul in existence, knows the same universal truth, that we can not pick who we love… when we do fall, we will never stop, we can never escape the pull of it, it is beyond our senses, and I have no common sense, not with you, I should run screaming, you’re the only Kor who wanted to…” devour me whole, I whisper it all before I cannot hold myself back any longer, and I stop talking to just kiss him. Our lips lock. But it’s not lust. It’s love at first sight, taking hold, through strings we cannot see and fate we cannot force. All the Kors are sexy. But Mars is mine. And I am his. His large warm hands slide all over my back, all over my skin, possessing every inch of me. For him to feel the same, makes it all the worse. It sends small shivers of fear through my belly and I’m breathless against his lips, as I arc into his abs, clawing down them, with one hand on his neck, over his rapid pulse. I’ve slid down his large alien frame, looking up at him, as his lips come off of mine, as he raises his head and keeps analysing every detail of my face. “A Kor loves like no other species in this universe,” Mars drawls, “It’s a dangerous thing. Humans are a close second.” “Because Terra made them,” I guess. Mars nods and smiles. “That’s right,” Mars growls in approval and then he kisses me, dipping his head back down to mine, but this time his tongue slips into my mouth. I close my eyes as I taste his venom indirectly. I prepare for aggression. But Mars has fundamentally changed. He tastes like sex. Like possession. Like mine. Just. Mine. I use my tongue too, and our tongues slide across each others. I wrap both my hands into Mars’ wet thick locks of hair, his dick hard between us. But instead of his dick uniting us, Mars suddenly wraps his arms around me and holds me close. I get squished into his chest as my head knocks over his heart, as our kiss is broken again. I feel my heart racing against his abs, my ear picking up his blood roaring through his veins. I bet he feels high like me. Just for having each other exist, and being able to touch and express the same feelings. It’s a wonderful thing. Mars stands us up, hoists me up over his shoulder, and starts striding back with me. A kiss, a hug and now being handled like a sack of bloody potatoes. “Why are we going back?” I complain, clawing his sexy bare ass with my hand. “It’s time for your lessons,” Mars murmurs, seriously, “The Kors are going to teach their Empress a thing or two about obedience and etiquette, so you don’t try to bargain with our planet again. We are the Masters of your Flesh and Essence. You are a venom whore who wears a crown and a chain. If we hold that chain, we must teach you.” “What’s the purpose of obedience anyway,” I grumble. Mars opens one of my legs by lifting my thigh, and he slides two fingers into my wet pussy. He finger fucks me a few times, then says, “Squeeze,” I do, and Mars pulls out dewy fingers – which I hear him lick and suck clean, “Good whore.” “But I’m not a good whore,” I whisper, “I have a strong mind. I won’t bend over for any of you.” “Have a strong mind,” Mars agrees, “But your flesh and blood belong to us.” “Don’t make it weird,” I squeak out, “Or I’ll scream!” I try not to laugh, I try to sound serious. “Empress, don’t tempt me,” a guttural threat, a deep hunger resonates from him – he wants me screaming. Mars, Mars, Mars, I can see him smiling oh-so handsomely right now, no, smirking, with his sharp teeth, even without actually seeing his face at all. Rather, I keep staring at his butt and the back of his ankles and feet and his long legs as he strides through the dirt and doesn’t make a sound any step of the way back to the prison. The perfect hunter, unseen and unheard, casually hauling my ass back to his lair – their lair. A bloody Kor Prison. And here was I – their new shiny chew toy. Yup, they were all squeezing and I was squeaking – exactly what they wanted me to do. I wouldn’t lie. I might be stupid just letting it happen and rarely questioning their motives. But I didn’t mind the attention, or the dream.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 19 ✿◉●•◦ Rigil’s POV Location: Unknown Spaceship Orbiting Dark Ninth I watch with steady, vile patience for our King to come – the honourable Estori of all Kor kind. The magic connection in the room grows, sparking and throwing out strikes of nebula to release the Kor calling through. Our Estori appears holding a staff with a screw like blade on top. Our King is a unique dark blue, with matching dark blue eyes and steel black hair straight down to his waist, he stands as an 8-ft giant, a foot taller than the rest of us… he had the largest appetite… he looks curious by my call for an emergency meeting. But Kor honour-codes were never meant to be broken, and if they were, you faced quick retribution. I believed what I found to be an emergency. It could not go unpunished! “Why have you called me, Rigil?” My honourable Estori comes to my side, to see what I see through the view of Dark Ninth below us. I used a spilen to capture the corruption in a hologram. “Honourable Estori, Alpha Centauri. Look what I’ve found our cousins doing. This is preposterous – the most insane thing I’ve seen a Kor attempt, I always knew they were corrupted by insanity after E lost his fucking mind – they all followed suit!” I sneer just looking in at the close ups of the forbidden activity, “You can see what I can see?” it’s a vision of Mars, embracing a female – with tenderness, how disgusting! “I know our law. Love is forbidden of Kor kind, a weakness we cannot afford. Mars humiliates us all… they have already mated and he still touches her, holding her close in an embrace – she isn’t allowed on that planet, can you believe this? A God, honouring a piece of flesh. She does not deserve such attention. Since when do Kor honour prey?” “Calm down, Rigil, I heard you the first time. You’d think they’d learn after what happened to Venus,” Alpha Centauri crosses his arms and speaks calmly, barely perturbed by what I see. I see the deeper issue. I sneer with all my teeth, my venom dripping heavy for the female below. “Please see my urgency. They are elevating the human female to Galactic Queen, registered in the Intergalactic Alliance this morning. I heard no call from Mars.” “We do not engage when we do not need to engage, Rigil,” my Estori looks at me, looking rather angry at my own reactions, “Fights over females have almost led to our extinction. It’s best you look away and leave them to their own devices, she will perish or they all will when they tear each other to shreds for her. Their foolery is not your concern, and I won’t have our entire blood line cut down by your grievance and jealousy.” “I honour our law – I sustain my energy legally, and I haven’t told you the worst of it, they have altered her to keep sustaining their needs, that is why she is still alive,” I add. “How do you know?” Alpha Centauri considers me beneath him, but hell, he considered all his blood beneath him. At least he is still asking questions. “With stealth I read Venus’ diary,” I murmur. “You snuck onto Dark Ninth, out of your own territory, to read E’s diary?” Alpha Centauri laughs, “Why do you mock me, wasting my time when I see no issue. I see one female. On a planet of nine Kors. She’s doomed or they all are. Why does it matter?” “…honorable Estori… listen to me, they all share her, nine of them agreed to keep her, to honour her, to rise her up…” when I say this, Alpha Centauri finally takes note – and his smug smile is almost wiped from his face instantly. “…although uncommon it is not improbable for the squad to share,” Alpha Centauri speaks through grit teeth, “…it won’t last…” he is still in denial. I shake my head and smile slow with all my sharp teeth, “They agreed to keep her alive eternally – forever, a queen to share between them. Give me the order to kill her and I will.” “What you say is impossible,” Alpha Centauri steps closer to me, looking interested by my words but unable to believe it. “Not with E’s meddling, they’ve made some kind of mutant human to satisfy their needs. It is against galactic law. He was tried for it yesterday.” “And was he found guilty?” “The girl had to profess that her alteration was done against her will, but she asserted no crime was committed… therefore Earth has not taken action and has let this heresy slide… before you dismiss this, I remind you, you are the only one who ever tried to sustain love,” I growl at the Head Kor, “And you were the one to suffer and therefore forbid it. Therefore. I ask you to consider this prey the greatest threat to our existence. Do not deny it. You know my concern is valid.” “With Venus’ input, and my own… yes, we forbid it,” Alpha Centauri adds, cool headed, although I know I speak of a horrific past, “What are you saying?” “I am not trying to prove a point, Estori – I am reporting my intention to kill the girl. Allow me to hunt her down. We will not interfere with their tastes, but we will not have a Queen when we have an Estori. You are all we need. She is a threat to you–” “No woman is a threat to me, Rigil, watch your tongue,” Alpha Centauri’s eyes burn – he could shoot gamma rays out of them, and it could split planets in two, or turn me to dust. I lower my head and grit my teeth as I back off respectfully. I await his command. “Rigil, tell our brothers, Proxima, Toliman, Sirius, Cano, Arcturus, Vega and Capella to stay out of Mars’ squad. You are forbidden from hunting her down.” “Yes, Estori,” I whisper my submission, even though I am angered by his final decision. “Yes, so you understand?” “Yes.” “You will do what?” “Nothing, I will do nothing,” I add, nodding and keeping my gaze downward. “Good, Rigil, because I will fix this concern myself.” I raise my eyes, to see the back of Alpha Centauri already leaving. I smile wide. Even better. He would deal with the new and young Galatic Queen. Mars, what a fool. In our past we used to revere queens. The problem was the chosen females we kept alive would eventually become hooked on venom, their mind would warp over time to be obsessed with power and domination. Kors would serve that insanity. Dreadful things would happen. Dreadful, dreadful things. Mars’ POV What a beauty. Our Empress had a soul worthy of us. Specifically, I adored her twitching, nervous eyebrows. I liked her facial expressions of deep concern and worry. A deep thinker and over-worrier, I enjoyed watching Diana’s feminine struggle in the midst of Nine Kor Gods. Most would shy away. I enjoyed that Diana dared to be adventurous while also holding onto that nervous and unsure hesitation. Her ability to consider the bigger picture, beyond her needs. Terra made a good species on Earth, well balanced and thoughtful creatures. When we had stints hunting them on Earth, it was always rather difficult and unpredictable, but ultimately, caused too much distress, so we left their kind alone. Fragility and strength, when spun together, created a beauty like Diana – the kind that was capable of so much more. She was so perfect. I wonder if she would ever know how much pride I felt toward her, especially for carrying my babe. Even when Diana bargained with our planet, something that should have enraged me, only shocked me, and then… made me laugh. Playful. None of us were used to being playful. But she made us less the hunter, instead of being mindful of resources, we were more soulful. Kors were susceptible to insanity if they became too interested in the heart, and less focused on logic. We all knew that. Living forever required calculation above all else. Females were one with emotion, passion and fragility. But that shit was always short term. That is why they were so dangerous to us. When you held power you held responsibility and we were responsible for a lot in this universe. Our power, our negotiating strategies were designed to help balance everything. Females tended to screw with our heads for the worse. But I don’t really care about that – Diana was gentle and not demanding. And very, very horny. A perfect female. I had placed Diana down on her bed and told her to play with herself, so she would be ready while I went to gather the other Kors for her lessons. We would watch her please herself and see how much that drove her insane – or us. Either way it would be fun to see her go pink and squirm. I round everyone up, calling them in from their rooms, last of all I find Mercury and E in E’s laboratory. “Time to teach our pet a lesson,” I smirk as Mercury and Venus turn to me and immediately drop all that their doing. “About time,” Venus licks his teeth, “I was wondering when we would take her again.” “She’s dying for it,” I whisper, “So wet her thighs were rivers.” Mercury salutes me and runs past, turning invisible. Venus walks more calmly toward me, looking relaxed and back to his usual self. Manicured, stable and probably the most relaxed Kor, second to me. “She’s really changed you,” I murmur, not wishing to delay our return, but curious on his thoughts. “I didn’t think my trust could ever be restored,” Venus admits, “But she reminded me of the light in this universe. We dabble too often in the dark.” “It’s only what’s natural for us, cousin,” I murmur, raising a brow, “…do you love her? Like you loved…” Cinta. I don’t say her name, she disgusts me, but I am curious. Venus looks slightly frustrated by the mention of our last evil Empress, but he only snarls a little, “Let’s go, Mars…” before his eyes shoot by me and he sees something out of the ordinary. Venus snatches my arm, jerking me back toward him – wind had cut above my head and an executioners blade slams and sparks against the rocks by my head. I turn to see my would-be assassin. A lazy shot, though. Simply to introduce himself. The arrogant diamond smile is one Venus and I don’t dare return. The invisible field shifts away, to show Estori – King of Kors – Alpha Centauri. His job was our survival. That was all his job was. He wasn’t really our King, but our agreed Head – capable of the most ruthless thoughts if we were experiencing particularly ruthless times… which we weren’t. “Honourable Estori. In peace times, you come?” Venus asks, not mentioning the blade almost cutting my head from my neck. It was his favourite hunting weapon – because his particular squad of Kors did not metabolise souls with venom but often chose more violent deeds to end their own very temporary mates. While we worshipped our females – to say our cousins did the opposite, was an understatement. “You have half a Ninth to deliver the Galatic Queen to Planet Apastron,” Alpha Centauri commands, “I want her head rolling at my feet – if you dare bring her to me alive, thinking her eyes will sway me, I will send her back to you to bury in pieces, so kill the bitch who sways you, we will not perish for your tomfoolery in engineering… Venus you know I’m right, and you’re wrong – love is a crime, never forget,” Alpha Centauri’s gaze collides with E’s before he slams the bottom of his staff to the ground, teleporting back to Planet Apastron. I turn slowly to E. E looks haunted, his brief joy – wiped from his eyes. Fucking Alpha Centauri. A serious, grievous bastard. “Our Estori placed an order we can’t refuse,” Venus murmurs, his tone switching from soulful to calculating logic, to protect his heart. “Intimidation,” I murmur, titling my head at E when he looks back to me for confirmation of my own reply, “We do nothing.” “…he will come for her…” E growls, “…and he will butcher her…” “No,” I shake my head, “You didn’t see it?” E shakes his head, unsure of what I mean. I smile as I lean into whisper for Venus alone, “…he is terrified of the Empress…” “Aren’t we all?” Venus manages to joke, stepping back, his eyes still panicked. “Don’t worry, E, we knew she’d bring us galactic attention, and Alpha Centauri has no skill we do not have… we will protect her,” I stay calm, “Are you okay, E?” “We do nothing,” Venus finally agrees, “You’re right. He’s scared.” We both hold each other’s eyes for a second too long. He is scared. And that’s exactly when you should run from a Kor. We would prepare Diana for the worst anyway, just in case. But we didn’t choose a female who would perish easily. Her instincts should keep her alive – including having our eyes on her at all times.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 20 ✿◉●•◦ Alpha Centauri’s POV Location: Stealthing within Kor Prison on Dark Ninth “Secure all perimeters, then we return, I want no more breaches,” Mars had quickly sent his squad on a security check, leaving their Empress vulnerable for a few minutes. I knew how to use stealth, within small moments of time where I would have that opportunity to change and twist fates. It was always the timing that changed fate. Our new Galatic Queen Diana is left by her lonesome. Imagine that, a King not meeting his Queen. What a farce. I now have 60 seconds before the Ninth Squad detect an anomaly in their energy fields. It’s all I need to take my fill of her and make a quick assessment. I am within the connected bathing space, watching the female move from the bed, suddenly turning to look right at me. I don’t expect her gaze to rest on me while I’m stealthing, but surely it’s a coincidence, it happened sometimes. Her turquoise eyes appear to run over me as she walks quickly for the bathroom, stickiness between her legs, running down her thighs, to her knees – all the way to her ankles. What a whore. I step back silently, willing myself not to smell her, as Diana walks right through where I just stood. She chooses to stand in front of the floor to ceiling length mirror to check herself over. She runs fingers over her neck, where they’ve been biting her. I feel my stomach turn, being so close to a female like this and keeping out of her way.  I only ever came this close to kill – not to watch. Yet within our small window of time, looking at her from the shadows… I think of my dead mate. The only woman I ever loved. My Orlai. She was timid. Sixty thousand years ago I introduced her as Fey to all the others, showed off her pregnant belly with pride, she was the only female I ever met that could handle me… who had brought a rare softness out in me. She was human. She never abused my venom, never even asked for it, just wanted to hold my hand and be next to me. But she never had our baby. One day she was there and then she wasn’t. She… I grip my staff a little harder… Orlai took her own life. I don’t know why and I still don’t. After that day which I’ll never forget, I went on a violent spree, I blamed it on her commands, I told my star brothers and every Kor alive that I ate her after she gave birth prematurely. It was all a theatrical lie to protect my pride. Because I didn’t want to be seen as weak, that I couldn’t protect her, that I wasn’t enough for her– Human females were the bane of my existence, they had too much Kor emotion – Terra was a fool making their species so similar to us. Fey were the approved mates by our fathers. They had the ability to fight us. It was better to have equals in menace – not timid, fragile, empathetic little worriers. Human emotions were… ridiculous. Only men could handle them. Women? They died of heart break and emotion. How weak they were. I’d always despise their weakness. Now I see their half human, half Fey obsession, looking so small and innocent… so ready to leech onto our species like a virus. I walk slowly up behind her, wanting to see her up close. My stealth is the best in the Kor class – you can’t be anymore unseen than I. I was the best hunter. The best at everything a Kor should be a master at. I had destroyed entire planets that waged war against us, entire species, entire Elion races – wiped from this universe – I was a harbinger of death. All of it was to protect my Kor species and to define our lore into reality. If you didn’t obey Kor honour-codes, I made sure you did. Falling in love was forbidden, it was simple, mate, breed and consume. No attachments. Females were food… All the while, as my thoughts race, I slowly come to a stop behind the Galactic Queen, and I look over her small petite human sized body, with Fey skin… and human eyes. So familiar. She looks so soft and tender. I slowly smile. She’d be easy to carve. Diana speaks into the mirror, completely breaking my chain of thoughts and making me forget I only had 60 seconds before detection. My eye glass says 59 seconds, but as she speaks I want to hear what she says… “Who’s there?” One scared whisper from a small being of temporary flesh, breaking all my beliefs in a second. No Kor could detect me with their eyes. How could she? Impossible. Diana has asked the question to me with dread, seeming to realise a Kor watches her with hatred in his heart. I consider showing her my diamond smile, my dripping venom, my need to kill her before she hurts one of us the way Orlai hurt me. Humans were too weak for Kor kind. But I make my decision. I would not show myself and confirm her small detection of me. My time is up anyway. 70 seconds. I need to leave. The Ninth Squad had their command. The Queen’s head better be rolling at my feet in 12 hours, or I’d put a bounty out on her to every Kor in the universe. **** Diana’s POV A few minutes earlier I’m on display, enjoying this performance I was putting on at Mars’ command. I didn’t know I’d enjoy doing this kind of thing, but I am not shy – I’m open to it. One hand, between my legs, another hand, squeezing my left breast, as I lay back on the bed with one leg raised up, with most of the Kor gang watching me. Terra looks proud of me… Mercury has just entered, and already in the room I have Pluto, Saturn, Neptune, Uranus… and Jupiter lingers back in a corner, arms crossed over his chest, angry he was the reason I almost died in a death trap out there a few hours prior. But he’d get over his guilt. We were all learning how to handle one another. Mistakes were bound. But, oh my, having seven Kors watch me touch myself, is making me ever wetter by the second. I am so naturally horny, as these giant aliens silently watch me rub circles around my clit, as wetness spreads across my thighs and the sheets. The silence in the room is electric. They don’t say a word, they just stand there, hard as hell as I make small gasps and moans of pleasure, and now I dare to dip a finger inside me. Their eyes are sharp, following my finger’s slow entry into my body. I spread my legs wider, I show them what’s waiting, how ready I am. Their sexual trance however, is broken by a rapid intervention. Mars comes in and grasps Terra on the shoulder. Venus also enters rapidly. “Quickly now, we had a code blue,” E growls to them all. “Secure all perimeters thrice, then we return, I want no more breaches,” Mars orders all of them. In seconds they all turn invisible and leave. “…hm…” I make a small noise as I sit up and hold my knees to my chest, looking at the sudden empty room. I wonder what happened? My Enhanced Instincts tell me there is no threat out there. I breathe in deeply through my nose… and I pick up an unexpected scent. My eyes shoot toward the restroom. I watch the entry. I see nothing. But I stand anyway, my eyes unable to look away. Who is in there? I look up and down for signs of the edge of an invisibility shield. Did Neptune stay behind, perhaps? I breathe in again, just a little, and I smell it again. Something is off. Some kind of new scent… like a burning star. How else to describe it? Strangely I feel no immediate threat to my life, just the need for curiosity, as I quickly move into the bathroom anyway to fix my hair and check my skin, just to look for bruises or scars. I was worried the way my Kors were handling me might leave marks. I stand in front of a big mirror and I inspect my skin, and my neck. Every part of my translucent blue-green skin, is perfectly clear… I look healthy. I do have a scar on my neck, from Pluto, although it heals before my very eyes. I stand very still. …mmm… in this peaceful moment of curiosity only, I feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand right on end. My heart is no longer at rest. It beats fast, while every other hair on my body starts to rise as well. Something. Someone. B-behind me. Directly behind me. I can’t see them. “Who’s there?” I ask the air, breathing in a rancid chemical smell, so close it’s right there. I feel his violent intent. The Kor that is definitely in the room with me. A Kor I don’t know. Terrified, I drop and hold my hands over my head, appearing small. “Diana!” Mars! I quickly unfurl and look up, hand on the mirror as I look behind me to empty air, and then to my bedroom, where Mars has just appeared, running in. Before I can explain what just happened, he comes forward to scoop me up. My skin is sweaty, my eyes must show my fear, as Mars holds me with his hands under my arms, lifting me off my feet to look me over and carry me back into the bedroom. “I forgot to arm you,” Mars sounds horrified at himself. “What’s going on?” I ask as I look past him to see the other Kors enter, weapons drawn, Neptune holds his bow back and ready to strike – the rest have guns, Terra just his hands, “What happened?” “The signal is gone,” Venus bites out, putting away a security device, “She’s safe.” Mars still looks horrified. He places me down, backing up while all the Kors come around me, huddling all around. Even Jupiter comes up behind me and places a hand on my head, as if to check I’m really still there, “Almost,” Jupiter growls out, sounding emotional, “Shit.” I am frozen as Neptune places a hand on my belly, as does Saturn. Terra gently runs the back of his hand over my cheek, Pluto and Uranus put a hand each on my shoulders. Mercury leans in over them all to run a thumb over my eyebrow, pulling my eye up, while looking into my gaze, reading the distress, before backing off and pacing, looking paranoid. Venus pushes through last and grabs my chin, holding my face up, “Did he bite you?” Venus asks, low. “No, who?” I ask. “Did he nick you with any blade?” Venus asks anyway. “I don’t think so,” I whimper now, feeling like their fear is causing mine to skyrocket. I place both my hands over my belly, so over Neptune and Saturn’s hands, “Who was it?” “The Head Kor wants you dead,” Venus explains, coldly, without much sympathy, but I don’t think he wants to feel right now, “He came with a message, we thought he left – we didn’t realise he’d come to you… we thought he was scared of you.” “I didn’t see anyone, but I could smell him,” I admit, looking past Venus to see Mars looking in at me, looking perturbed, “I thought Mars was Head Kor.” “But he is not the Estori, the Head of All Kors, the King,” Jupiter grumbles, “That’s Alpha Centauri.” “The King,” I say, flatly, “The King came to visit me? Why?” “Galatic Queens are against the rules,” Venus whispers, letting me go and backing off. “Well too bad,” I whisper. My non-serious words, capture all their serious attentions. I manage a small smile, “I’m not going anywhere. This is my home now.” “He wants your head,” Mars admits, stopping his pacing, “We can run or we can fight, what do you propose?” Now I am beyond shocked I’m asked for my own opinion on a solution here. “Diplomacy,” I start. “No,” E shakes his head, the rest sigh or look annoyed or growl, “He doesn’t want to see your eyes.” “He already has – in secret,” I whisper, “So Alpha Centauri is a liar.” Venus slams my lips shit with his hand, “Don’t ever speak those words,” Venus growls. The others relax enough to let go of me. Their hands slip away from me and I feel safe and loved, but I also feel their lingering concern. Venus lets my face go, and I walk past them all back to Mars. I stand in front of him, as he looks me over with that strange new terror in his eyes. “What are you so upset about? I’m right here,” I say, “I’m okay.” “Only because he didn’t kill you,” Mars speaks, hollow, and traumatised, “I was too slow. I made one mistake, letting eyes off you. Diana… you could have…” “Could have – am I?” I ask, “I’m right here. So, it’s my fate to be here.” Mars lowers his freaked out eyebrows with that. “Yes,” he agrees, “…we will still need to teach you Kor etiquette, and we will still fuck you – but first, we need to arm you. Right now.” “Allow me, Diana,” Mercury chuckles as he leaves the room to grab choice weapons for me.Clearly, he is going to come back with every possible supply. “What’s so scary about me anyway?” I ask, spinning in a circle to ask all of them, “I don’t understand.” They all look sly or sheepish, avoiding my gaze. When I turn back to Mars, he catches my cheeks with both hands, holding me still as he squishes both my cheeks together, his thumbs running over my mouth, his eyes darting all over my face. “Because you’re so loveable,” Mars admits, in a low, rough drawl, and it’s ultra-honest, which makes it ultra-sexy, “So weak, so squishable, so fuckable, so sweet… you’re like a drug to us. But more than that, we will do anything for you… and fuck the consequences.” “I make you reckless?” I ask, raising a brow, laughing lightly. “Very,” Mars admits, “We will lose our minds over you. I’ve already lost mine.” “Oh, shut up, you romantic,” I roll my eyes as I grab his dick in my hand, trying to distract him, “I have another idea,” Mars raises a slow brow as I drop my tone, sounding cheeky, hoping this boosts his ego and pride, “You become Estori. Kill Alpha Centauri,” Mars’ eyes darken. He grabs my neck, pushing me back, and I let go of his shaft, suddenly worried I’ve gone too far, “Kidding?” I whisper, “I-I’m kidding!” “Be careful what you command of me,” Mars snarls, low and vicious, “Rule one for our new Galatic Queen… never command us – or risk the fabric of the universe. Do you understand me, Diana?” he is no longer my lover in this moment. He is a teacher, indeed. I feel like a spoilt child being disciplined. “Yes,” I blurt, “Sorry.” Mars lets me go, looking pissed, as he paces back and shakes his head, “Careful, Diana, or you won’t be eternal. I want that child. I want my son. So you will obey.” Did he just threaten to kill me?! Mars has completely lost it. My heart shatters and my trust flies out the window, as I grab my neck with both hands and watch him walk off, as tears leak out of my eyes. The other Kors don’t come near me. When I glance at them, even Venus looks angry at me. “What did I do?” I ask, terrified for their anger. “This isn’t a joke,” E warns me, “If you treat us like a joke, if you throw kill orders out like candy – you will be the one in an early grave. Kors are divine. Do not command us to kill each other.” I look away from Venus’ glare… my insides twisting with emotion. Shit… I was wrong but… … Alpha Centauri wanted to kill me. I thought what I said was logical. I… plus they didn’t have to obey my ideas or suggestions. I was just brain storming! I walk out of the room, feeling guilty and also misunderstood at the same time. Pluto follows at a distance. I hate feeling confused with them. The sooner I learnt their rules, the better. Or else? Or else… I was gone. I’d choose freedom over barbaric mates, any day. I’d make sure they knew that. They weren’t the only ones with a desire for autonomy! They weren’t the only ones with pride!

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 21 ✿◉●•◦ Diana’s POV My Kors had a problem with being commanded by a Queen? Fine. I’d face this imminent threat to my life, myself. No ideas, suggestions or commands needed. I used Stealth. And I didn’t just escape Pluto with my new power of invisibility – yes, even to my own surprise. I think I mainly escaped because of two reasons. Pluto totally underestimated me, so was lazy with his watch of me. And every move I made, every step, I sorted out on the fly, basically so he and no one could anticipate what I did next – not even I. I just leaped, in the moment, toward a feeling that I was comfortable with – that made sense to me. Being part Fey now, I had a special knowing in how to follow threads of intuition and energy, a gift from the Kors genetic manipulation… I felt hyperconfident in my ability, even alone. Even pregnant. I spontaneously climbed one of the vines growing indoors, then squeezed out a window of the prison – none that they could fit through, but I certainly could. I slid down the walls to the mossy grass and ran to their underground garage outside the prison where the spaceship was located, within there I found an ET portal. I used an ET Key hanging on the wall next to it, to travel for an emergency trip to the Estori’s planet. Planet Apastron. Straight to the heart of the issue. Why wait? Why be discussed and gossiped about and do nothing? Or simply hope the Kors would protect me? The King had already been spying on me – in my room – just staring at me. Psh. I wasn’t having it. I was going straight to him. Not planning this in advance, I didn’t give the Kors any time to work out my plan and I didn’t even know my plan until I made it and found a gateway to the Estori on the memory of the ET Key. I moved as quickly as possible. I didn’t even have time to dress. And? Well. Here I am. Naked. On Planet Apastron – inside the King’s hall. All alone. No backup. Just me. I made a wager with myself, If I’m so damn interesting, why kill me? No Kor could punish me for facing this alone… certainly not if I ended up dead… but I bet against it anyway. Plus I had every right to confront the Kor who wanted my head rolling. And he would want to hear what I had to say. The portal was manned by two invisible Kors, I couldn’t see them but I felt them. I look at each, where I guess their eyes could be, and I turn around, not keen on being chased, I choose walking my way forward, showing no fear, into a dank and quiet, straight path – with a ceiling that had no end, but black trees grew and weaved upwards, like a vertical forest. At the centre, at the bottom on a podium… was a very patient Kor. He certainly looks like a king. “My name is Diana,” I introduce myself to the Kor Estori, since the other Kors said nothing when I stepped in, “Although… you already knew that, didn’t you?” Alpha Centauri sits up high on his massive throne, in a massive chamber full of shadows from the forest above. There is no light in here, only whatever the moon provides through more small windows. I wonder if this is yet another Kor prison, just on another planet. The Estori had been waiting for me. He doesn’t seem in a rush to get me like a mad dog, so I take that as a positive sign forward in negotiation. I hold his eye the entire time as I approach his throne and podium with smaller and smaller steps, unsure when to stop, while looking over his giant dark blue body – and darker blue eyes. He is what I imagined Neptune to be, if he ever were to turn off his Stealth. I decide not to get too close. So I stop a good hundred feet from the King of Kors. “I told Ninth Squad what would happen if you were to be brought to me alive,” Alpha Centauri speaks ice cold, his hunters eyes unblinking and focused on nothing but me. Did he not notice I was alone? “Estori… I wasn’t sent here and no one knows I’m here,” I tell him quicky, moving a hand onto my belly, “I came here myself. To hear you.” Alpha Centauri stands from his throne and a staff with a screw like blade on top appears from nowhere – it looks razor edged all around and it’s an utterly terrible design, like it would inflict maximum pain. I’m not sure if it was shrouded in shadow, and I hadn’t seen it, more focused on his eyes, but regardless, he brings it forward now, as if that giant weapon weighs nothing. My eye lingers on that cruel design longer than necessary, but it does terrify me. Shit. I try not to show it. There was a silence about this place. And the way he moved. The silence equated to endings and death. The quiet before something alive was obliterated to star dust. Especially when I see that weapon, I do wonder how cruel he is compared to my own sweet Kors… in comparison, at the very least. Everything in here shines with dust. “I would like to know why my death was commanded,” I state, trying to keep the conversation moving. “Love is a crime – so are Queens,” Alpha Centauri answers after a short silence. “I am pregnant, doesn’t that change the rules?” I tell him, “Don’t your honour-codes allow a woman to give birth?” Alpha Centauri spins, and I go quiet as he places his staff against his throne, turning back to me with clean and open hands. Out of no where, he seems to understand the distress a weapon like that can cause a vulnerable and pregnant mate. I stay still as he keeps his hands splayed, showing there is no danger, as he comes down the podium and closer to me. I didn’t think he’d approach me. I thought he hated me. I gulp as I run my eyes over him. Why was he 8 ft tall? Taller than any other Kor I’d seen. His long metallic black hair looks lush and full, as it waves down over his shoulders, down to his waist. He would be very handsome… if his whole demeanour didn’t attract the stench of death. If he didn’t smell like a burning star. He was like a magnet to things imploding. He seemed ethereal in the darkest sense. I certainly don’t trust him. I stand still with my one hand on my belly, now starting to fear deep down I’ve done something I’ll not live long enough to regret by coming here. “I admire you,” Alpha Centauri drawls those three words and he sees it relaxes my posture immediately. A compliment was a good start. “You do?” I whisper. “For your courage in coming here alone and without permission,” I see Alpha Centauri means it, even if his words are still cold. I just keep it as a sign to also be cold in return, showing no sign of warmth. I keep a stony expression. I stand very still, even with relaxed shoulders. I don’t make eye contact, I just stare at his abs, “Since you are pregnant, I will abolish the command against you,” Alpha Centauri holds out his left hand and starts to kneel, until his eyes are level with mine, his hand is hovering an inch from my belly. I hesitantly nod, and I feel paralysed with fear as he touches me. The fear only dissipates slightly when it’s a gentle touch, only feeling the part of me that nurtures life. “I’m pardoned?” I ask, forcing the words out, “Your Grace?” “As is our custom,” Alpha Centauri keeps his hand on my belly, as his eyes hold my own, “You will deliver, then we will feast,” he smiles, and his teeth are horrendous. I can’t look at them – they’re so sharp. I also can’t stay so still, so close to him. I step backwards and away from his touch. I know better than to run and I know better than to argue at least right here, right now. I hope one step backward is enough to alert him I’m uncomfortable. “Thank you,” it takes all my will power to say it, when my stomach is turning and my mind screams for me to run. But I have secured some safety for however many months it’ll take to bare my child with Mars. Enough time to work out the next move later on. “You are good, aren’t you…” Alpha Centauri murmurs darkly, losing his smile, as he just watches me with renewed hatred, standing back to his full height, “Cunning.” I think he just hates I didn’t run and I don’t show fear. “I came to a King, so I am showing respect, as I should,” I say, raising a brow, “I understand laws must be abided by – or chaos tears the universe apart.” “Liar,” Alpha Centauri tilts his head, “…you… Dark Nine…” I feel my throat goes dry with fear. How does he know that? My eyes ask the question, he answers, “You’ve been registered as a Galactic Queen. Who you are, now shows to the whole universe – exactly who and what you are. There will be punishment for that in due time.” “I’m nobody,” I answer, too quickly. “Not anymore. Do you enjoy being such a focus? Waiting for the thrill of nine types of Kor venom entering your system,” Alpha Centauri asks, morbidly curious. “I am mated with Mars,” I say stoically, “I enjoy Kor venom… but I never demand it.” Alpha Centauri accepts my statement as he also takes a step back, “Your courage has turned my heart, little human,” he sounds amused, but still dangerous, “You have my sworn protection until that babe is born. I honour Kor honor codes.” “Do you have any children?” I ask, as he turns for his throne, pacing away, until that question is aired. There is about three seconds of descending silence that convinces me he might just have a change of heart right back to murdering me. “No code requires we bare any child at all – every Kor makes their choice – I simply sustain,” Alpha Centauri answers me with what I presume to be the truth, “You’re pregnant – I can’t hunt you… yet,” he reaches his throne, takes his staff and sits back down gracefully, watching me, “Assuming Mars won’t bite first. You may go home now, Diana.” The relief I feel is overwhelming. I try not to feel it too much all at once, I clench my teeth and turn, walking back toward the guarded portal. The two invisible guards have turned off their Stealth, showing their dark grey steel colour, keeping their heads bowed – chains wrapped around their mouths. What… the fuck? I don’t understand why. And I don’t linger to ask. Part of me feels like Alpha Centauri might just throw that staff like a spear into my back if he were to have a moment’s indecision. So I walk through quickly, back to Dark Ninth. The moment I step out into the garage, I’m home. Right into the arms of Pluto, who holds me, looks me over and then holds my arm out, showing me to the room. Jupiter, Neptune and E are already here with Pluto. “I pity the next Kor who has watch duty over our Galactic Queen, who stumbles into death traps, warps through time to interrupt planetary meetings – and somehow uses her newly acquired Stealth to visit the Estori who just commanded her head roll at his feet,” Jupiter raises his voice, yelling louder and louder, “You… you crazy, puny human!” “I secured my life!” I scream back, defying him, “I did. While you discuss me like a bag of flesh you must protect at all costs – I simply got myself pardoned by addressing the issue, directly,” my words have silenced Jupiter, “I’m not claiming to know better than you,” I hiss, “I’m simply using something I guess all Gods lose at one point or another – since you live eternally in this hell. All I did was use my free will and ability to make a decision based on the ability I have, for me, about me, about my baby and my future living with a bunch of aliens who want to EAT ME,” I throw my hands up, only to feel breathless a moment later, and slapping both hands back to my belly, as I feel dizzy with my outburst. “Our babes grow quick, it can take a toll, sit, Diana,” Venus interrupts, his voice is still without the soft edge. He has returned to his cold self. Not too dissimilar to Alpha Centauri. But at least the insults had stopped. Neptune walks forward and takes my hand, leading me back to a seat a few paces behind me. As I get my breath back, Neptune kneels at my side, his hand rubbing up and down my leg. “How quick?” I ask the quiet Kors, “How quick do the babes grow?” “One month,” Neptune answers me. “No wonder I’m growing a belly so quick, and I haven’t even eaten anything yet,” I whisper, feeling weak, “Do you have some fruit or something?” Pluto and Jupiter share glances and leave together, presumably to get fruit for me and to bitch about how hard watch duty is. Poor them. Venus walks to a cabinet and takes out some kind of packed food. I worry as he brings it close, but he explains, “It’s just a protein bar,” he gives it to me and paces away. Neptune speaks to E about me, “We can not punish her for this.” “Mars will decide,” Venus is short and snappy, as he paces the garage, and then picks up a polishing rag to start cleaning his spaceship. “We should all vote,” Neptune murmurs, “Diana is a Dark Nine… if her own planet can not shape her, neither can we. We cannot direct her.” “Arm her and hope for the best?” Venus murmurs, scoffing and laughing to himself. “That’s precisely what I mean,” Neptune’s invisible hand reaches for my cheek, I see the edges of it glow with love as he brushes his thumb over my cheek bone, “Instead of hiding her, we should display her. Be proud of her. Life is limited but we can make it worth while to you, darling,” Neptune’s soft velvet voice sings of promises, as he talks quieter and closer to my ear, “You should have everything you desire before…” “You think I’ll die?” I ask, losing my smile. “No,” Neptune trails off, “If you were to die, you should live freely, but I will defend you until the end.” “She’ll start a war if you keep talking like that, Neptune,” Venus snarls low under his breath, “I see it in her,” he sounds crazy upset again about me being here. Great. E was moody as hell. Neptune’s hand softly touches my collar bone, as we both look at Venus, irate by me. At that moment more Kors come down the ladder. I see Mercury, Mars, Uranus, Saturn and Terra. “Where were you?” I ask as they file in. No one looks more outraged than Mars. No one answers me but him. “And where were you, Diana?” Mars asks back quietly, raising a brow. “Planet Apastron,” I say, loud and clear, “Do you have a problem with that?” “She came back alive and unharmed,” Neptune jumps up to defend me immediately, before Mars can lose his temper. But I also see his eyes are past that anyway. His anger at handling me is waning. He will get over it – and move on to new measures, I’m sure. We were all adaptable here. “That’s the only good thing about this,” Mars whispers, a little hysterical. “Yeah, don’t worry, Mars, my bones are yours at the end of this,” I growl, “Bloody Kors.” “She subdued the Estori,” Neptune adds, “Negotiated and left. With a deal.” “Were you watching?” I whisper, confused how he knows this. “I see and hear everything I need to hear, I showed them all,” Venus growls, pointing to a feed from a spy camera called a Spilens, virtually undetectable, set up in the throne room of the Estori and sending the signal back to one of the tablets he had been holding, but set back on a work bench now. “She also secured his word to protect her,” Neptune adds, “Alpha Centauri, vowing to defend her.” “She’s my woman to defend, not his chew toy,” Mars sees red, his snarl cutting off Neptune and even freezing E in his frantic polishing of their spaceship, “I decide your fate,” Mars calms down and looks at me direct. “No. I do,” I respond, “I decide my fate. That’s exactly what I just proved.” Mars can’t deny that but that doesn’t mean he’s not angry about it. “We already voted on keeping her alive, if you want her blood, you’ll have to go through me,” Neptune adds. “There’s no need for this,” Mercury holds up a hand, “Diana – well done. I’m impressed.” “It’s true, Mars,” Uranus also defends me, “She held her own.” “Is that not a trait a Galactic Queen should have?” Saturn murmurs, making a very good point. “To manipulate our kind,” Venus murmurs in a corner, “We die for this.” “What else do you have to live for, Venus,” I snap now, grateful for their support but triggered by E’s constant pessimism, “But this,” I demand an answer, “Terra,” I focus on him, “You made humans full of love, right? And virtually everyone in the universe agrees that love is the answer. At least those who are sane. Loving me. Loving you. Loving eachother. That’s all there is. And we do die for love, E,” I glare at him, “But I don’t want your venom like she did. I don’t care about it. I feel myself falling in love with all of you – and I’ll always have pride and autonomy, like all of you… because we’re all of this universe, and we all know what love is,” I say it with passion, hoping he understands. “We’re older than this universe,” Mars corrects me, his voice dropping, “And what you say is correct.” “Thank you.” “Half.” “What?” I turn to Mars, looking him in the eye. “Love, is half the story,” Mars drawls quiet… he doesn’t want to explain the other half. “You need to rest,” Terra tries to defuse the situation, “Come,” he holds out a hand for me. “And I need to eat,” I add, “Pluto and Jupiter are getting me food.” As I take Terra’s hand, and he pulls me along… I feel Mars’ eyes on me, until he turns and follows from behind, flanking me. I look back at my mate and I wish he could understand I didn’t mean to cause trouble. I was just… I don’t know, I was just trusting my new instincts, that they gave me. I’m assuming Mars doesn’t want to leave me out of sight at this point. But I don’t blame him for that. I know what I did was still a risk. I reach back for his hand, hoping he will take it. Mars does take my offer, threading his fingers through mine, but he only squeezes my much smaller hand once and lets me go, looking exasperated but patient to deal with me when we are alone later. We have to climb the ladder to get out of here anyway. I follow closely behind Terra. And Mars’ words keep haunting me. What was the other half that he failed to say? That he refused to speak of in my presence. I wonder if it’s as simple as I’m their natural food source. Was that it? A reminder of that? Or did he believe in hatred? Or darkness? Whatever the opposite to love was. I wonder… I really do. Maybe he just meant… the other thing… could be the difference between us. They simply chose to love me for some reason, some reason only they knew, after being nothing but an opportunistic predatory alien subspecies, preying on females across the universe. Something in me changed something? Or maybe I changed nothing. I was light and they were dark. If I was love… and they were… the other thing. If that’s what he meant about half the story…. what did it make us together, when we collided? War? Peace? Blood. Maybe… m-maybe we weren’t meant to be together at all. I didn’t even think about that. Was I forcing their hand, were my pregnant pheromones confusing them… was that all it was? Protect the harbinger of life, until she isn’t needed. I’m disturbed by my thoughts, and the things I do not know yet or understand. The other half. Whatever it is, I shouldn’t forget about it. I need to be weary, always. My number one goal was survival. I’m sure it was theirs too.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 22 ✿◉●•◦ I eat a feast and I forget everything that concerns me for a small time. Terra brought me to a little garden area around the south of the Kor Prison, overgrown with moss onto the stone benches and table, but it’s cute, with a canopy of vines growing along stone arches on either end, and all around are green, purple and blue sparkling plants. It was cute. Aesthetic and cozy and bathed in the light of the three moons. I liked it a lot. Along the table is everything I can want for, all from Earth – ordered via the ET Key food delivery service. It wasn’t cheap but my Kors didn’t care, they wanted me to eat what I was used to. There wasn’t much food around here anyway… I don’t count… although Terra now sits opposite me, as Mars waits outside our quaint garden, patrolling and looking up at the sky, thinking deeply to himself. I finish eating a bunch of pasta, salad, pizza and chocolate mousse. In how long? Minutes. Terra is quietly aroused by me eating so fast, I don’t know why – but I get that feeling by the way his neon blue eyes focus in sharply to watch me chew up everything. Weird? Um. Hell yeah. Did I care when I was this hungry? Hell no. “Thank you, oh my gosh,” I belch uncontrollably from eating so fast on an empty stomach, as my belly growls and grumbles after I speed-ate to clear off most of the steamy fresh plates of welcome human food as quickly as possible, “I was beyond starving. You have no idea.” Terra happily piles up the plates and pushes them aside, so he can reach over the table and pick up both my hands. He just holds them gently while he watches over me, a question in his gaze, “What troubles you, Empress?” “Everything,” I answer, laughing good naturedly, honestly feeling a lot better after feeding me and the baby. “The universe is filled with troubles, Diana,” Terra murmurs quietly, “If you run, you’ll run into others who’ll trouble you. Traps are everywhere. There are enemies everywhere.” “Are you trying to say I’m safest here because my friends are the big bad monsters of the universe?” I ask and Terra just smiles handsomely, obviously agreeing to that sentiment. “Now, be honest with us about something. Do you enjoy being Empress?” Terra changes topics. “I guess so,” I answer honestly, “Hard to know, only been here temporarily.” “I want to know because we are all vulnerable until we accept each other, we are all concerned you’ll disappear again. How does a Dark Nine feel at home?” Terra is really trying to make me feel comfortable here, I can tell, and I do appreciate that. I think before I answer, and as I think, Terra releases one of my hands, reaches into the back of his pants and pulls out a long slender gun, opening my one hand to put the gun in my palm, “Mercury said you’d like this one,” Terra smiles, “S-Ray. S stands for Stealth. Come here and I’ll show you how to use it,” Terra waits for me to comply, and I see he has a cheeky look in his eye. He wants to touch me. I smile back, and he squeezes my hand, pulling me over the top of the table. I climb and crawl over to his side, and Terra pulls me down onto his lap, sitting sideways – while his shaft is pressed against my thigh, and yes, it’s hard and very much upright… and looking very, very tasty. I feel like my pussy is instantly wet, and he’ll be able to tell, since I’m still naked. Terra shows me the button on the end, “Spin it, it goes invisible, just like us,” he shows me how to do it, then I copy him, “Hold it to the inside of your wrist, press the end in like a pen, it’ll shrink and stick to your skin at a nano level. It comes back to full size if you just stroke your wrist with your hand…” Terra raises a brow, knowing I’m holding a gun and sitting next to his bodily weapon, as it pulses and glows. His voice is getting darker, his fangs are drooling too, I can see since I’m so close. I nod, “Let me try,” I grip the gun, and at the same time I grab his shaft and start to stroke it with my other hand, without acknowledging it. Terra stiffens but also doesn’t say anything. I like that I can do something like grab his dick and not say anything about it, nor him, and just let it happen. It’s so hot to me for some reason. I bite my lip and just spin the dial, to make it go invisible, then I throw it up in the air, my eyes being able to see the very edges of the gun in stealth mode. I catch it with one hand, and I press it to my other wrist as I’m stroking him, only stopping to press the button that shrinks the gun against my skin. It shrinks. Now I only have one weapon left to play with. My head is already down and my eyes are focused, as I continue to stroke his Kor cock while my lips stay a hair’s breath from the head, teasing him with my breath. I admire the girth and length. Truly God like. Terra’s arms come around me, he moves the hair off my neck. “First lesson, Empress,” Terra whispers over my skin and licks up my neck to my ear, his teeth scraping along my pulsing veins. I close my eyes and lean up away from his cock, to hear him better, as he talks so quietly, “If you want to get fucked for pleasure,” he explains right against my ear, “From this moment on, you have to disregard your Galactic rights for the rest of your life. A pledge to us. As we’ve pledged to you,” he growls it low. “Um,” I push my hand to his chest as I look up at his sparkling neon eyes, and his white perfect teeth, so hungry to take a bite, while asking so much of me, “…I can’t do that…” I whisper, “I don’t even know why I’d do that.” Terra blinks slow, he tries not to scowl, his whole face looks animalistic for a second – it was scary, but he hides it away quickly. “There’s two types of fucking for a Kor.” I hear Mars, lecturing me, from the other side of the garden. I look over my shoulder, and Terra kisses my neck while my head is turned, while his hand splays across my belly and reaches for my breasts, squeezing one, as Mars walks forward, hands behind his back, a cold look in his eye. He knows I’m not going to like what he has to say. “When we breed,” Mars continues to explain, “That’s free.” “I have to pay for you after that?” I gawk. Mars manages a very small smile, but continues to look dead serious at the same time, “Yes.” “I have no money,” I whisper, distracted by what Terra is doing to me. He is playing with my right nipple, pinching and pulling it, while his teeth scrape against my neck, getting ready to devour a little of my blood when I least suspect it. “We don’t want money,” Mars answers straight away, “…we just need your rights to live.” “I know you eat women, stop reminding me,” I growl, “I understand. I don’t need to pledge myself to you. Geez.” “Oh, you do,” Mars whispers, “If you want Kor cock… you’ll pledge it. Otherwise you’ll never get fucked again.” “But why a pledge?” I growl, “You agreed to let me live, as my blood is enough to sustain you all.” “Yes, but if we change our mind – it’s Kor-honour codes to require a mate’s audible permission. You don’t fuck a woman for free. You fuck women who pledge. It’s your consent, Diana,” Mars tries to rephrase it, smirking. God, when Mars was feeling arrogant, it was the most overwhelming side to his personality. My Enhanced Instincts are right though, he is done being angry with me. He’s turning to other alternative solutions to play puppet master with his new blood bag. “It’s not consent for sex, you have that, you want my consent to kill me just in case you change your mind,” I snarl it, as now I’m angry. Terra times himself perfectly. As I’m glaring at Mars, I feel Terra’s lips smile against my skin as he opens his mouth to take a bite. Pain distracts me, as his vilely sharp Kor fangs, rip into my skin. The pain reminds me of their strength and their hunger. It’s momentary and it’s swamped by powerful pulses of venom. The magic hits me – oh, helloooo. Oh, no, no, no, what was I saying, what was… Terra comfortably drinks my blood and as he gets fed, his light blue skin sparkles with my essence as he drinks me up, and in return… I understand him with his venom inside me. Terra is very wise. I feel that first. But it’s mixed with nurturing. Being a parent. And also? Terra was feeling very much on edge. Like he needed to cum and bad. It sends me straight to the edge of my orgasm, but doesn’t fulfil me. So, while my head is filled with Kor power, wisdom and knowledge, my womb is tortured with unfulfilled lust. The kind that’ll make me agree to anything. Even giving over rights to breathe. Just to – to… To cum? THAT WAS RIDICULOUS! Terra slowly and excruciatingly pulls his teeth from my neck, while at the same time, I push away from Terra, dizzy on my feet as I resist his venom. I grab the table and stand up, my skin fluttering in between going invisible and staying on. I stumble quickly away from both of them. I wasn’t running, I was just getting space. I walk stiffly to the other side of the small overgrown garden, and I turn to face both of them, my neck bleeding but the trail is slowly stopping as the blood coagulates and I feel my thighs are wet with need, so wet that it’ll drip to my ankles soon. Forcing myself to speak up, I demand, “P-Please,” but I whimper it, and I see both their eyes focus so sharply on me, they expect a pledge, “Please,” I say with more strength, “Call Iris here, I need to talk to her immediately.” Both Terra and Mars are snapped out of their hunting glares. My Kors look surprised – as they try, so very hard, to keep that in. They’re fucking ancient and it’s so obvious they’ve never seen anyone resist like this before. What female could resist charismatic Gods like them? But to be fair, Fey and Human genes mixed together had never existed before until now. “Why?” now Mars is asking questions, his slow drawl touched with held back Kor lust. Heh. “I think she’d be a good lawyer,” I whisper out my intentions, then I repeat myself, “Call Iris here immediately.” “Empress… I can get you a real lawyer,” Mars murmurs, while clearly taunting me. “She knows you,” I hiss, “She survives you. Probably the only woman in the universe, besides me, who breathes around you fucking handsome fucks, fuck me,” I can’t keep looking at Mars and Terra… I spin in a 180, swearing under my breath, as my eyeballs were literally looking for Kor cock. Almost against my will. I didn’t want to stare at their gorgeous dicks and change my mind. The Kor chemistry in my blood, was acting like a magic curse on me. Give them everything, why not, why not, why not? But I could resist. Barely. But still achieving the impossible. Dark Nines always could resist the tricks of this universe the best. Our minds were one of a kind. I keep myself steady with a small, simple mantra. I did not follow. I did not fall. I made my own mind. Dark Nines did not fucking obey – even if it were nine Dark Gods demanding the price. They wouldn’t trick me. I had to get on top of them! Wait. Wait. Heh. I lock that new idea away for another time. It’s funny where new ideas come from. When you’re living with monsters. Who are denying me. Fuck! They knew when to be cruel. I almost fucking caved.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 23 ✿◉●•◦ When Iris arrived with her ET Key she asked to stay by the spaceship, not keen on going out of the garage into the wilds of Dark Ninth. Iris is dressed up to party, with a gorgeous purple dress and bangles for both arms and heavy makeup. She even wears a blonde wig over her usually bald head. But aside from looking dressed to kill, she looks terrified of being on Dark Ninth. “You scared of the giant Elion spiders?” I ask, trying to smile. Iris looks skittish as she looks me over, smiles but doesn’t exactly answer, she looks distracted, before she shakes her head, trying to focus, “What do you need me for, Empress Diana?” She even steps toward me, kneeling and trying to kiss my hand. I stop her before she does that, quickly and awkwardly pulling her back up to stand, “No, no. Please… you don’t ever have to do that, we’re friends,” at least I’d like to think so. Iris paces backwards, “How can I be of assistance?” her eyes, however, keep darting to the ceiling. “We are alone, Mars called you in but no one followed me down here,” I assure her. Iris gulps, and makes a nervous airy noise of worry, “Are you okay, Iris? I thought you were safe with them – friends. Right?” “I organise all Mars’ plans through Intergalactic Alliance channels, regulated, monitored… I have been told repeatedly I’m not allowed here,” she tugs on her choker with the nine coloured pendants, “Why am I here, exactly?” “I need you to give me legal advice, they want me to audibly give away my right to breathe, if I want to get… fucked,” I was going to choose words less obvious, but decide to not be so obtuse. This was life and death, there was no time for small talk, “They say sex isn’t free after I’m pregnant,” I add that with a bit of embarrassment, but I’m glad she doesn’t laugh. I had put on the Plume she chose for me when we first met, hoping to respect her choice by even putting on the matching Krown, the collar, which I linked to the Plume at the back as she showed me how. I liked how the Plume caressed my growing belly. Iris hasn’t acknowledge that, though, instead, she takes my hand and leads me to a table. We sit together and face one another, while she holds my hand in both of hers. “Never give those rights away,” she advises me, simply, “Your Galactic Rights may be yours to give away – but there is a reason no one should. That is not just giving yourself over as a slave, it means no one can save you and abhorrent things can happen to you.” “Like being eaten alive,” I add, and she nods. I take my hand from hers, and I rub down my wrist, to see if the S-Ray will pop back up into my hand. It does, and I show Iris the gun Mercury passed onto Terra to pass onto me, “Pretty cool, huh? I guess this will come in handy at some point.” When Iris looks at it but not with appreciation, I shrink it back down and hide it away, gritting my teeth in an awkward smile. “They are arming you?” Iris asks through a clogged throat, like she’s suddenly sick with nerves. She coughs to clear her throat as she sees me nod, “Arming their mates is a game to them.” Now I lose my smile. I was hoping she wouldn’t say something like that. I had my awful suspicions; her steady pink eyes and steady words confirm my greatest fear. “Their charm… their treatment of me… is it all a grandiose lie?” I ask. My greatest fear of all is being lied to this whole time. “It’s not a lie,” Iris speaks gently, as she looks me over slowly as I abruptly relax, and I notice her eyes harden, “…and that’s the trap.” “You’ve done this before,” I guess, and her eyes snap up, almost looking guilty, “You’ve met others like me, haven’t you?” Iris doesn’t want to answer, her tongue is held still, “Tell me.” She doesn’t even refuse me, she just stays silent, and I have a feeling Mars’ commands on what she can’t say override mine in this situation. “To be honest, Diana. I am scared of the ghosts above us,” Iris whispers, “They’re everywhere wandering around, crying out.” “Oh. You have factor 6 senses,” I almost forgot, “You can communicate with the dead.” “I can,” Iris is happy to have changed the topic, “Can you sense them?” “Not at all,” I answer, “How many can you feel up there?” “All of them, Diana,” Iris almost looks green, her pale pink skin is flushed with discomfort, “I’d like to go back home, if possible…” “You’re here to advise me,” I answer, feeling a need to command her to stay. I couldn’t have her run from me, she was some of the only help I had available to me. “I can ask them,” Iris murmurs, still looking quite stiff. “Who?” “The ghosts, for advice, for you,” Iris purses her lips, as if she already regrets asking that, “But to speak to them I need a name.” “I only know one name, and I don’t want to talk to her,” I think of Cinta. Absolutely not. She was evil. She wouldn’t be able to help me. She was the one who imprisoned the Kors to be sexual slaves to all the Fey. The one to torture Venus into insanity. “The thing is, Diana, I can’t help you,” Iris suddenly blurts out, “I am surprised you’ve lived this long.” “Seriously?” my heart drops. Iris stands up and starts to pace away from me. I have no more questions. “Can I go back home now, please, Diana,” Iris begs me. “…you’ve met the ones before me…” I murmur again under my breath, only to be met with cold silence again. I can tell she is forbidden from talking about previous prey the Kors have played with. I have to think of a different question. “Please, Diana,” I feel bad that Iris is so desperate to leave, but I need her to stay just a little longer. “Do you know of any girls who escaped?” as I ask that quickly, Iris’ face visibly changes. Yes. Yes, she does. But there is no way she’ll tell me about them or her or whoever it is. “I have to go,” Iris’ voice becomes scared. Her eyes start to dart around the room, rather than the ceiling, and I look down to the hairs on my arm. They have risen, leaning left, right… left… right. A bit odd. Hmmm. I know better than to acknowledge the Kor stealthing in the room, eavesdropping. “You can go, but do you have film – in the public domain,” I add, since it is the last thing I was going to ask, “Of them hunting?” The best thing I could do, was see the truth, no matter how horrid. I had seen them hunt once and it was horrific, and even so I had a feeling I hadn’t seen the worst. “Now that is something you can search in your own time, Diana, I have to go home, it’s my son’s birthday,” Iris’ patience finally snaps. “Oh,” I stand up, suddenly feeling so rude for not even asking what she was doing today, “I didn’t mean to take you away from your son… you can go back, I’m sorry, Iris.” She can’t look at me. Clearly too disturbed by the ghosts I can’t see. She walks back to the portal, stepping back to Planet Meda. When I am alone, I turn around to see what Kor was listening. I glare at the wall but I sense nothing. I look around the garage. I guess I didn’t specifically ask to be alone, and now I was paying for it. “Who is it?” I growl. I feel, all at once, heat. I don’t understand where it comes from. But it feels like it’s closing in, all around me. I stiffen up, my heart racing. Ninth Squad show themselves. All of them! My Kors look hungry. They’re all around me, right up in my space, focused on my flesh. Terrified by how close they’ve come, I barely have an inch to move. They’re literally all around me. As I step back, I’m held by Mars, his green velvet arm slipping around my waist and keeping me still, as other hands reach out for me. Not just hands. Their open mouths with dripping venom from their sharp teeth. I don’t know where they all go, I can’t know when Mars’ hand slides over my eyes, blinding me, stopping me from seeing, so all I can feel are bites and kisses along my breasts, under my breasts, along my ribs, down my stomach and along my thighs. One of them lifts one leg, as a Kor dives in to kiss my clit and licks through my wet pussy, slowly savouring the best position and licking deep. They’re hands are grasping all my limbs like vices. One ankle, one knee and both my arms are held so tight and still by their large hands, while I feel their curious tongues lick across my body. It feels like it’s happening in all places, all at once. One Kor has lifted my toes to their mouth, nibbling along, and tickling the sole of my foot with one sly finger that runs in circles. I stiffen and gasp, while I taste Neptune’s venom on my lips, his dreamy essence seeping into my mouth – as he locks me in a deep, hungry kiss. The hand over my eyes pushes my head back, so my neck arcs. “You thought it would be that easy,” Mars has spoken against my cheek, near my ear, “To fight this, Empress? We’re giving you the world,” Mars licks into my ear, while Neptune licks past my mouth up to my other ear, “…submit, Diana… pledge yourself to us… if you do not…” I feel every inch of me is pulled, kneaded and clutched, it’s hard to think, “An Empress must serve all – but we want you. We do. Diana, please,” Mars sounds like he’s begging me. I feel two Kor cocks slide into my open hands, I sense it’s Jupiter and Saturn, but I could be wrong, as they use my hands to stroke their shafts. The tongue along my clit rubs in concentrated circles, driving up my lust sharply. I can’t escape it because I’m held firmly to the spot. One Kor cock now runs along the sole of my foot. Mars’ own cock rubs along my back, hard and hot and needy. My mate’s hand slides down my face, off my eyes, to my lips, where his fingers are so light along my bottom lip, wanting me to answer. “Shut up,” I whisper, “Just shut up and fuck me, please,” I look sideways to Mars, while my whole body is warm from the unexpected worship. He waits by my turned face, his dark eyes digging through mine, looking for my submission, “I’ll never fucking say what you want me to say,” I growl my defiance, while my eyes water with pleasure, and I try to kiss Mars’ cruel and beautiful lips, so close to me. I reach up and my lips brush his, but he denies me the kiss, holding himself just out of reach, as his eyes challenge mine, “Fuck you, kiss me,” I beg, “Kiss me. Please. Please –” I don’t expect it to be so easy. Mars’ look was unbreakable. And yet he breaks. Mars gives me what I want, as he crushes his mouth to mine, and grabs the back of my head, his tongue sliding straight into my mouth, giving me him. And his soul. His essence. I taste it. I taste the poison. The depths of it. Mars. He is totally, completely, in love with me. But I also taste the other half. The other thing. I know what it is. The fatal reality hiding behind that kiss of passion and this worship of my body. No love will outweigh their need to fulfil the cycle they’ve stuck to for this universe and before. Breed, fuck, consume. It’s not a cycle that breaks. It’s a cycle that comes around… and around… forever, and it’s coming even if love breeds hope. The only issue is hope is useless and dies. Mars is starving. My Kors are starving. I taste the bitter heavy void of lust between Kor and lover. I taste the empty hopeless ruining of my soul, coming for me. It’s coming. …Cinta… my god, C-Cinta had no choice… there was no other way to survive… all my thoughts… all my constant worrying… it was leading to one final realisation. Kors had to be in chains. They couldn’t help themselves. They had to take what was most ripe and beautiful… and kill it. All the while, the love was real and returned. It was the perfect trap. The happily ever after, delivered to you, and then you die.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 24 ✿◉●•◦ Despite the sinking feeling of impending doom, this moment being caressed and devoured through shared lust by all nine Kors – is one of the most unexpectedly beautiful moments of my life. I feel their tender need to pleasure me, and I love their hands, their tongues, even their sharp shredding teeth, slowly scraping along my soft skin, so delicate in their movements. I just wish it could be like this. And no price. But the price coming for me, is too high. Even for this love they’re gifting me. Mars feels me gasping for air from our deep kiss that I had demanded. I break away from it, and he lets me breathe alone, his handsome face hovering above mine, reading my panicked eyes. His large hand slowly splays across my cheek, focusing my attention on him, while the rest of the Kors continue to love my body and hold me so still. “Release me,” I whisper, terrified of the pleasure. “One more kiss,” Mars demands of me in return, “Just one more… my Empress.” I let out a noise of need as I try to hold back, but I give him one more chance. One more slither of hope drives me toward his request. I didn’t want to be in a position of never trusting them. Please, let me taste something else. Mars licks across my eager lips and engages me in one more, deep, terrifying kiss. This time? It’s a distraction. And I fell for it. Teeth. Teeth. They’re coming for me. Harder. I cry out as on every limb – I feel a bite from every Kor. And Mars, well, he keeps his dominate expression steady, and he doesn’t bite me, he just soothes me with that gentle, lingering kiss, still giving me tiny obscure amounts of his venom. It’s just enough – to mingle with the direct injection of eight other Kors. I can’t imagine what Dark Ninth tastes like. All of Ninth Squad, all at once. But I find out right now. The deep paralysis means I feel no pain. It’s more a mental and spiritual type of mind-fuck now. Venom shows you their self-portrayals. All together, I’m transported briefly out of this realm, down into a mental free fall through the void of their hunger. That is all it is. A free fall through one feeling that I imagine is death as you get ripped apart, atom by atom, as you melt from the inside. Every venom creates a dark warm embrace on the way down. It’s sticky, deep and inescapable. It’s over. What can I do? I only realise I’m facing it with resistance. What if I just… move with the pull, so my soul is not torn to pieces, and they can’t win. My instincts are the only thing that remain. I rely on them now as I turn around in the free fall and the moment I do, I see a key glowing below me. Take it. I hear Mars’ voice all around me, a caress of strength and promise. It’s yours, Diana. I trust him. My hands reaches out for it, I see the key is shapeless. No. It’s always changing. Now it’s just a puddle of light and metallic liquid. I stick my hand into it – and my reality shifts one more time. I’m steady. Everything is okay. In a few seconds, the experience is over. And I’m not dead. I’m still breathing. I wake up… just not where I expect to be. **** I wake up days later. What felt like seconds had been a half a weeklong coma. I don’t know this yet, but I’m about to learn. And I’m not on Dark Ninth. At least, I don’t seem to be. I wake up in a cell, in a blue dank dungeon, and no… I’m not free to move. I’m not in a corner curled up, or in a bed warm and snug. I’m chained down to a cold hard slab. I feel the chains all around me. I don’t understand the excess. Yet… despite my strange predicament, I feel strong. So strong in fact. I pull and yank on the chains, they don’t break… but I feel like they might just snap. If only I had another inch to move. I look around the cell as my breath moves past my lips as mist, since it’s so cold. “You imagined us in chains.” Mars, my mate, drawls quietly. I can’t see him. He turns off his Stealth a few moments later, and he is outside my cell. “It’s called having an imagination,” I whisper back, feeling so… strange, “What happened?” Mars keeps his distance, not entering the cell, “You could imagine anything.” Why is he talking about my imagination? How did he know I thought they should be in chains? Also, is that why I’m in chains? I have no idea what the hell is going on. “Can you answer me first, and ignore your ego for one second,” I hiss, “Why am I here? Where am I?” I sound hysterical but I think I have a right to be. “You’ve been sleeping for days,” Mars explains, his voice deep and quiet, “…we, um… we overdosed you on venom… sorry…” “Oh, great,” I roll my eyes. Overdosed. I… overdosed? I guess that would happen when eight Kors injected their magic into your blood all at once. “To be fair, it was an accident,” Mars growls but he looks away as he says it, looking pissed, “You shouldn’t even be alive.” “That’s what she said,” I think of Iris, “Damn… I feel strong. I don’t understand. And also, if I overdosed… on Kor venom… I am so confused, Mars. Help me understand. Why am I chained down?” “Not my choice, honey,” Mars snarls that endearment. He had never called me honey before. Weird. “It was mine, Empress.” Straight up my nose, I smell that burning star of his overwhelming scent of purest vile power. I almost choke on it, it smells so intense. My eyes water as I look at the second Kor, who has also been Stealthing. So, I’m on Planet fucking Apastron. Alpha Centauri stands next to Mars, a foot taller, his staff for once, is not in his hand. He wears some kind of barbaric leather skirt to cover his ding-dong… I don’t even want to think of it as his gigantic cock, because to be honest… let’s not go there. I just didn’t want to think about my enemy like that. Or any Kor like that, not right now. Not while I was in this predicament. Naked, bound and imprisoned. “Hello, Alpha Centauri,” I murmur as I look at the ceiling. Kor cock, Kor cock, Kor cock. Oh, no. Why am I so horny like this? Fuck, my mind needed a good fuck. I mean, I mean – “You’re immune,” Mars explains, while I’m having a private mental battle, “To venom. And your body is processing the venom in a way that you’re utilising it as extra strength. We’re just waiting for it to wear off.” “Oh,” I whisper, “Lovely.” “No female is immune to being prepared for feasting the traditional way,” Alpha Centauri doesn’t sound sexy, he sounds like a menace. Great, he still wants to eat me. Too bad I’m prego, “…look at your little human go so shy since I appeared, Mars… wavering loyalties?” “I wouldn’t touch you with a ten foot pole, Estori,” I can’t help myself, “You stink and your incredible appetite is rather disgusting.” “You smell iron,” Alpha Centauri’s tone drops an octave… so his scent was blood, fuck, that’s terrifying, “And I just finished my last meal… a few minutes ago, so you do read the energy right, don’t you, Empress – in tune… I’ll give you that, Mars… you chose well,” Alpha Centauri sounds too relaxed. I don’t like it. “When can I get out of here?” I ask, without looking at them. “Now,” Mars murmurs, “…but we’ve run into a small political obstacle…” “The Kors want to meet you, all of them,” Alpha Centauri helpfully explains, “So you will.” “Why is that necessary?” I ask. “I told you, but you didn’t hear me… or you didn’t understand,” Mars growls at me, “You belong to all Kors, you serve all Kors as Empress. Unless you pledge your life to a certain squad. If you will do so, and soon, Ninth Squad we will be your guardians.” I look at Mars carefully. Is that… all it was? Mars keeps his arms crossed, ignoring the Estori right next to him, who is watching me with an awry stare of amusement and deep interest. I hate that he likes me. It meant he would be thinking about me. I glare at Alpha Centauri, hesitantly. “A whore won’t pledge,” he tells Mars, while staring at me, “She wants more than Ninth Squad. She likes power. I can tell.” Alpha Centauri turns and walks away, smirking to himself. He looks like a universal super villain walking away so silently. Even Mars tries not to glare as he waits tensely for Alpha Centauri to walk off. “I really am sorry,” Mars whispers, eventually, “For the mistake.” “The overdose?” I ask, and he nods. I shrug, not sure what to make of it. Something feels missing. Like he’s leaving something out. Like the free fall. And that key. What was it? Mars opens the cell door now, and he comes over to take off all my chains. None of that made sense either. Chaining me down. I feel myself recede into my own mind. I am apprehensive about whatever is coming next. The Kors were acting defensive. Whatever happened to me – it was bad for all of them. That’s all I knew. I just didn’t know how. Not yet.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 25 ✿◉●•◦ Mars holds my hand and leads me out of the cell, making sure I’m steady after being in a coma for half the week. While we move out into a cold wind within the prison of Apastron, I feel safe with him close. I gaze at the metallic sheen on everything outside my lonely cell, and I spy the thousands of cells around me on the other side… but these don’t seem like Kor cells. They’re too small for them. Planet Apastron was different to Dark Ninth. As I try to look how far up these cells go, going forever it seems into the shadow sky – my view is blocked by Jupiter. He appears in front of me, holding out a robe, which he suddenly offers to put around my shoulders, distracting me from the sight beyond. It’s very light material, I barely feel it at all, but it covers me. It drapes softly around me and I feel like I look… just a bit more like Cinta. Dressed in a long, draping robe like this. “Spider silk,” I whisper as I touch it and I can’t feel it, “Isn’t it?” Jupiter makes a scoff of agreement, adding, “Yes, and it’s very fucking expensive, Diana…” as he admires it on me, I step around him to keep looking out at the cells beyond. Empty. Empty? At first glance… that’s what they appear to be. I squint. Or… are their moving bodies within them? Moving slowly and weakly, covered in so much dark blue dust and grime, they’ve appeared as if they’re not there at all. There are no lights to give them a reprieve from the darkness of this place. No lights to help with my eyesight. I try to focus, even though the cells are so far away from my own, which is on the other side of a large crevasse that eats away into the planet, dropping down until you have no idea how deep it goes. “Diana. We have to move now. Follow us.” Mars commands me. I ignore him. I walk to the edge of the crevasse. No barrier at all. I feel hands fall on my shoulders, and I see Mercury appear behind me, his eyes sharp and capturing my curious gaze. “What is this place?” I ask, wanting to know. “Doesn’t matter,” Mercury murmurs, seriously refusing to tell me. I am used to being dismissed by now. I shrug him off, or attempt to, as I turn my gaze back to the cells, “Hello?!” I call out and my voice echoes easily to the other side, “Is anyone there!” The moment I ask the question, my Kors suddenly all appear together, moving in my view and pushing me away from the edge, blocking my vision of the cells on the other side. I glare at all of them, it’s all I can do. But then I hear a reply. “…who…whoever you are…” I hear a sickly voice call out from the other side. My Kors look anxious to move me on. “Run… run while you… can,” it’s a gasp and a wheeze. The voice of someone dying. Severe dehydration. Malnourishment. The girls filling those cells are left there without anything. My heart twists silently for them, but right now my Kors are blocking any attempt to communicate back. I have to hold it in. “Go,” Mars doesn’t just command me, all of Ninth Squad tell me to move as one. My hands clench into fists, but they can’t see with the robe covering my skin for once. I turn and start to walk while they follow close behind. As I’m striding along to let out my growing rage and frustration, Neptune and Uranus pace to either side of me, always camouflaged. Neptune picks up my hair and twists it as he puts a band around, helping make me look slightly more presentable. Uranus keeps a hand on my neck, where he feels my pulse. “It’s really healed. Your heart,” Uranus murmurs, “Your heart was–” “Uranus. That information is unnecessary,” Mars snarls to shut him up. Uranus’ hand slips from my neck and he just flanks me with Neptune. “It was an accident, so it’s fine,” I snap out, “…because the overdose on Kor venom was a total accident, right?” I add, asking twice. None of my Kors answer me. Their agreed and easy silence sends a shiver down my spine. I’m not going to ask again. I just feel them staring at me and I feel their combined guilt, too. Or maybe it wasn’t guilt. Maybe they enjoyed seeing me almost die. I head down a gigantic staircase and it feels like it goes on forever, but eventually in the distance I see the throne room, where Alpha Centauri waits – alone. At least, he seems to be alone. We walk along a large bridge toward the end, that drops off either side into the crevasse before it spirals down to Alpha Centauri. “Stop. Wait up here,” Mars commands me without pause in his step. As I halt, my nine Kors stride past me, following Mars, their backs straight and their gazes focused sharp on Alpha Centauri and the audience below. The empty King’s hall is actually full of blurred edges… because the entire crowd of Kors is invisible. I’m glad a robe covers me. I assume I’m left here because I’m at a safe distance up here, away from savage alien cannibals. I tended to agree more with Iris now, about their cannibalistic tendencies. Ninth Squad might be more like vampires, where they melted the whole body and drank the metallic stew they created with their venom when they bit their prey all together, like poor Quarzina. But they were still eating all of a person. And they drank up my friend. They hunted her ‘legally’. But she was a friend. Was. Gone forever. Now she was star dust on a rock. Like every rock in this place and that place. Wherever they lived, star dust followed. Metallic death painted everything. Planet Apastron smelled particularly of iron. Ninth Squad join Alpha Centauri at the bottom, and I watch as they individually bow and stand either side of him, arms crossed to look with menacing glares over the invisible crowd of fellow Kors. I don’t know where Alpha Centauri’s own squad are, but I don’t like that they’re hidden. I had only seen two guarding the portal with chains around their mouths and I don’t see them there now. “This is your Empress,” Alpha Centauri isn’t formal as he addresses the assembly, he’s just talking quietly and the architecture of his prison helps his voice project to all corners, “For the next twenty-one days until her babe is born. You may wonder why she is an Empress. A Galactic Queen. You all know this kind of female worship is forbidden… but love doesn’t pick and choose… and Ninth Squad have fallen in love with Diana by fate. And I have pledged to protect her while she is carrying – so for three remaining weeks, our codes change as we have a real Empress. Temporarily, anyway. Now, what is most important is the end… so… the plain whore will either pledge to a few, or agree to take us all,” Alpha Centauri turns his gaze over his shoulder, up to my position, his metallic deep blue eyes locking with me, “Kings and Queens belong together. If you know what’s good for you, and I know you’re an easy slut, I’ve witnessed it, you should pledge to the strongest Kor, that is me. I am your wisest choice… Diana,” the Estori’s dark growl of my name is full of possession, something I don’t expect. My eyes fall on Mars, who looks furious by Alpha Centauri’s offer, but Mars is bound by silence in the presence of the Estori, “Let’s allow the girl to dwell on her choices for a few moments,” Alpha Centauri adds that with condescension, “I remind you, if you pledge to no one, Diana, you’ll be hunted and fucked by all of us. Of course… it’s your humble choice. Venus,” Alpha Centauri looks right past Mars, to E, as he stands next to Mars, head down, eyes also laser focused down on the blue stones as he tries to stay inconspicuous, “Any words of wisdom for your new Empress?” The bastard is trying to trigger him about Cinta. And Alpha Centauri doesn’t have to be sophisticated about it. Venus looks up, and slowly looks over his shoulder to me. “…what? Do words matter. We voted to keep her alive, I made her strong,” E speaks to Alpha Centauri instead, “She’ll live either way.” “Oh, yes, I forgot to mention,” Alpha Centauri tries not to laugh, “E made her immune to venom. So the Empress is resilient… as resilient as females can be.” I hear the Kor crowd hiss and snarl in disgust or shock or both. My own Kors look up and glare at the stealthing crowd. Perhaps they’re all glaring at me right now. “Wise words?” E ponders what he should tell me, and he finally decides, “How about it wasn’t an accident, Diana,” E has crazy eyes again, “And none of us are sorry. Our fathers created the Fey. We created you. Congratulations… you’re an upgrade… upgrades need testing. We overdosed you on purpose. Chew on that.” E lets the cat out of the bag. “That doesn’t matter. Who cares. Her time is finite. It’s time to pledge, whore,” Alpha Centauri loses his humour, his rage growing as Venus tries to make me sound more important than a bag of flesh, “Please… Empress… amuse us.” Alpha Centauri doesn’t even bother looking at me. I fucking hate him. Mars might be arrogant. But Alpha Centauri is a pig. “I’ve chosen to pledge,” I call down. Mars relaxes his shoulders, hearing my confidence. He knows me. “Your rights,” Alpha Centauri adds, “Not just words, girl.” “I pledge everything,” I whisper this, but it’s really a promise of all I’m capable of, “I promise everything,” I continue after a short pause,“Ninth Squad,” I state, “Will not have me. I pledge my life and my breath to the Estori. Alpha Centauri.” The Estori of all Kors, with the blackest heart and rotten soul – he knew without any doubt I would not pledge to him when Mars and Ninth Squad showed me love, at the very least. It takes him an embarrassing few seconds to even understand what I just said. Oh, how could I when he knew I’d choose Ninth Squad. But I chose him. Now I just forced his hand to defend me. The bastard didn’t know I was going to adhere to the advice of one of the entrapped females who called out to me, who warned me… and I knew she was on the slaughtering block… at some point, she was meat to him. As I’d be to all of them one day if I ever succumbed to any of them. Ninth Squad overdosed me. With purpose. Okay. I should have seen it coming. They were playing with me too much and I let them. Now I had to punish them. I was just a little slow in figuring that out. Alpha Centauri was the top dog, but he was one man. So right now I just made it one Kor I had to run from. Not nine. Not all of them. All the Kors below turn to me from the podium, and I’ve already turned on my Stealth. I’m gone to their eyes, and my height gives me time to vanish. All the Kors shift off their Stealth – even Neptune and Uranus. I see them standing tall, both dark blue like Alpha Centauri. Neptune and Uranus look like twins, but with light turquoise eyes and long black hair, they are both looking up with confusion and hurt. I don’t think they even know they accidentally turned off their forever-stealth. Or maybe they were just shy with me around. Mars hasn’t turned to me, he looks frozen with whatever emotion is running through him right now. Alpha Centauri… his reaction is most interesting. As I said, he did not expect the pledge and he was so ripped by it, he’s turned to me with that predictable and extreme hatred – he wants to show me that, but he can’t see me. The moment he knows I’m gone, figuring out that means I’m running away, he also turns on his Stealth, determined to catch me. I back up slowly to the edge of the bridge and I look down at the rocks jutting out at the sides. I can sense the Estori sprinting, aiming to stop me before I can escape up this long winding bridge back toward the cells. His strides would out stride mine. But I wasn’t running aimless, like an idiot. I lower myself over the bridge and I scale the side, holding onto the edges with the tips of my fingers. My strength from the overdose was fuelled by their venom in my system, converted to extra power in my muscles and nerves. I’m able to hang down here, my toes barely clutching around jutting uneven surfaces in the bridge. But I’m able to do it when I knew I couldn’t before. I guess the overdose had it’s advantages. A strong down draft over the bridge is carrying my scent down into the abyss, not up near their noses. I guess it’ll help and I’m proved right as I feel the vibrations through the stones from the weight of Estori’s extra muscle as he runs past me and up to the cells beyond. I stay where I am for quite a while. Not intending to move. I overhear my Kors speaking as one unified group, their voices travelling up to me one by one. “…it’s just like her to do something fucked like that…” Saturn speaks first. “…she’s playing with whatever strategies she can think of to survive… I respect it,” Terra is proud. “Or she’s proven to be a whore,” E tries to make it negative and he sounds very upset. “…she was matched to me,” Mars snarls, “She’s not stupid, she worked it out.” “No one sees through us,” Neptune speaks so quiet, I barely pick up on it. “She can,” Mars sighs, “…she figured out our loyalty was never going to last if she bent over.” “What a waste… the Estori will have her neck now, so much for being ours exclusively,” Venus is so fucking sour, “She can’t escape him. She’s done. We lost her.” “No. Use your head, E. She was ours and she escaped us through that pledge,” Jupiter growls, “If she can do that on logic alone, she’ll get away from him,” I’m surprised he has that much confidence in me, and he makes me feel flattered… while I’m casually hanging over an abyss. But their words steady me. “Everyone needs to relax. She just pledged her breath to him, not her heart… her heart is mine,” Mars’ soft words, filled with confidence, make me smile into the stones. That’s right. That’s all I did. It was easier for me to run if I only had one Kor on my back, not the whole fucking lot of them. And as for my Ninth Squad… I made my decision. I did… I wanted to be Empress. Their Empress. I just knew the only way to have them was to never pledge to them. Every female before had pledged to the Kor hunting her. And died. My plan was pretty simple. Run first. Hide. Just not forever. To be a real Kor Empress, I simply had to prove myself. I had to kill the King Kor. The Estori. I had to murder Alpha Centauri. I wonder if they’ll figure that out too. Everything changed when that girl called out to me. It wasn’t just me I had to save anymore. There were rows and rows of Kor prey waiting for death, all tricked with brief seduction by Alpha Centauri or his squad. A simple seduction was all it took from a universal power to convince a young girl all her dreams were about to come true, while being led to a cell. For all the women imprisoned on Planet Apastron – no intergalactic agency was coming for them, as Kors were legally abiding by their own rules on their own planet – which means I was their only hope. I had to be an Empress. I had to be. I had to save them and to do that, I had to take the place of the top Kor. Yup. This plan wasn’t a gimmicky stupid little reaction. Or a simple strange emotional need to feel okay. I wasn’t just running to secure my life, I was running now to save the females trapped on Planet Apastron. The hunt was on. You better not be so blind you can’t see me coming for you, Alpha Centauri – because this would be easy otherwise. As for me. I had to stay safe. I had to stay alive. I could do this because I knew I could. I knew why I was here now. It’s just who I was, I was getting through these challenges because I was a Dark Nine. I was completely free of influence. At least, I tried to be. Isn’t that exactly what an Empress had to be? Not a dominator like Cinta. But free. Always. Heart, body, soul. Being free was irresistible to any Kor. It was hypnotic to them, that’s why they needed to catch you and change that. To survive a predatory species, you had to fight. You had to prove yourself.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 26 ✿◉●•◦ After I feel many Kors from the assembly leave up the bridge or leave through the portal, when all movement and vibration stops through my hands, I climb back up onto the bridge as I watch Ninth Squad look to Mars for guidance, still all standing by the Estori’s throne. “We still have to defend Dark Ninth, I’ll stay here with E,” Mars commands, “The rest of you return home… until we find Diana.” They agree and I watch as they line up to leave this place through the ET portal. Mars and E stay close to one another and whisper in each other’s ears some ideas about me. I am betting on their ability to track me down via my screams – when Alpha Centauri, in their minds – captured me. I run up the bridge toward the cells and my nose picks up the burning star scent of Alpha Centauri off a descending spiral into the crevasse… a deeper, darker area below. I move slowly now, as I let my eyes adjust to the darkness. I take one step at a time, hunting the Estori, King of all Kors, with excitement. I don’t know where he thinks I’ve run, but I know he’s in front of me, the wind blows back and toward me down here, taking me his scent, and keeping mine away from him. At the bottom of this spiral, is a dark ledge, that runs along the crevasse. I follow it, toward a single blue light, sparking from around a corner in the architecture. The wind is much stronger down here. I get to the end of the narrow walk way, to look around the corner. I see an ET portal glowing, the sparks were shooting out because it had just been used. It’s still on, slowly powering down. Adjacent to the portal is an opening to the dark blue skies of Planet Apastron, which is where the wind is coming in sharply off the side of a mountain peak. I don’t have time to view the landscape of this alien planet. I know where Alpha Centauri went. The blue sparks are tinged with purple, green and silver. The portal itself smells of home. Dark Ninth. Of course. He thought I ran straight home. I realise quickly that I have to rush because Alpha Centauri will soon face seven of Dark Ninth Squad. I wanted to face him alone. Just before I barrel headlong into the portal back to home… I hesitate… I feel a strong sense of hesitation. ET portals only lingered with power… when multiple beings were passing through. Unless Alpha Centauri had no time to adjust the settings. That annoying gut instinct is sharp and powerful the closer I get to the dimming portal, almost shut, my time to make a decision is running out – time I don’t have to ponder as I usually do. I think quick. I am at war with myself, my instincts saying stop, and my mind saying don’t let this opportunity slide. Alpha Centauri was on the other side. I was pursuing him and he had no idea. This kind of surprise attack may be the only opportunity I have to take his breath, to kill him, to prove myself. Surely proving yourself, would require courage. Bravery. But what is courage and what is stupidity? My ancient instincts infused into my DNA say to stop. My human patience is small. My need to prove myself is now restricted to time running out. One more second and this portal is shut. I make my decision. I capitalise on time. As I leap through the portal, I stroke two fingers along my wrist, holding the S-Ray at the ready as I jump back home to Dark Ninth. **** Shit. I fucked up. After I’ve passed through the magic of the ET, to step onto wet mossy ground by a stream of Dark Ninth water running through the rocks… I see I’m nowhere near the prison. I can’t even see it on the horizon. Below me down the slight incline of a hill… maybe a hundred feet beyond me… standing between scattered boulders, are a circle of Kors that are not my own. Alpha Centauri stands with them, they’re silent, heads bowed in a circle, listening. For my steps. For my breaths. Which weren’t there. Until now. I had stepped through the portal invisible, but my feet have squelched into the moss and every eye of the nine brutal Kors of Planet Apastron, lift and look my way. The gratification I could feel at their surprise of me stepping through a portal after them, is completely washed away by the fact that whether or not I had the upper hand, is irrelevant now. I came here looking for Alpha Centauri. Instead, I found all his brothers too. Where as Mars’ squad were green, blue, silver, gold, bronze and a universal black, Estori’s Squad are not a representation of life, just metallic power. Three Kors are blood metallic red, covered in scars, two are steel grey, chains removed, two are a deep purple, only Alpha Centauri and a slightly scrawnier Kor next to him, are dark blue. My Kors are civil. These Kors are evil. I feel the distinct difference of a species who does not interact with anyone outside their own kind. Mars… all of his own… they were social, adaptable, interested in more. Some souls, no matter the kind, only cared for satisfying the primal hunger. We all had our drives. Some tamed those drives. Some fed them. I get not a word in my direction. Not a laugh. There was no bickering to be had. And when I turn around – the outdoor secret portal is shut, it won’t open again… I don’t have a key. I have camouflage, and one gun. The only thing I find odd, aside from Alpha Centauri and his staff, are the fact these Kors aren’t armed. Or perhaps I should find that most terrifying of all. I watch as Alpha Centauri’s arms remain crossed but his nostrils breathe in my scent as it finally reaches them. A slow scowl appears on his face, not so much a smile, as it is pure hatred. “Diana,” Alpha Centauri snarls my name even as I remain in stealth mode. He does not sound possessive, just caught off guard. He didn’t know I was chasing him down until now, “…it seems Venus has infused a woman with our hunting instincts…” he sounds civil enough, but I know his calmness is the exact opposite of what he intends, “…why were you behind me?” “I pledged my breath to you so my life is yours… I promised it to you. You promised me something too,” I talk. I immediately see the sets of eyes from his squad, focus better on my spot, just from the sound of my voice. “Protection, that’s all,” Alpha Centauri whispers, “…three weeks…” “You’ll keep your word?” I dare ask. I hold up my gun, and I aim it for his head. It’d be so easy… if he was alone. I lower my gun, feeling my body tremble with disappointment. I was so close. Alpha Centauri looks silently at my spot and I make a decision to show myself. I had to stop the hunt. For now. I hide away my gun, and I turn off my camouflage to show myself. He relaxes his shoulders when he can see me. “…if you run from a Kor, you get chased,” Alpha Centauri adds quietly, while looking me up and down. “I’m aware.” His Kor brothers are salivating. I’m barely looking at them since some of their fangs are showing with their smiles, and the venom drips so heavy, it drips along the ground, a testament to their appetite. “…you want something…” Alpha Centauri continues, carefully, “What?” “I’m going to become Estori,” I tell him straight, just as Kors speak to their prey, I give them a taste of the same, “Just as you’ve promised to kill me. I’m promising you the same.” Alpha Centauri’s whole face changes in that very moment. I see the shift in his personality. The entire time he saw me, he underestimated me. I finally see a flicker of doubt in his dark eyes. He didn’t know me. He was acknowledging that. I could take it as a sign of growing respect for his Empress, however, I just ruined my fucking surprise opportunity. I had one shot. I ignored my instincts. Now I’d have to wait for another rare moment in time. “I better leave you, then, huntress,” Alpha Centauri throws up his spear and catches it, casually getting down on one knee and commanding his squad’s undivided attention, “First, courageous one, why don’t you come… and taste me,” he offers it gracefully, even staying on one knee, hoping that means I’ll come forward, since it’ll make our eyes level. My instincts are pulled one way and the other. Danger and safety are ahead. But I can’t decide whether or not it’s one or the other. I think it’s because he can’t either. He can’t decide. Just as I can’t. I approach, feeling insane, but feeling less so, when I slide off the spider silk coat, and expose my pregnant belly. The Kors go from salivating to shutting their mouths. Even they knew to withhold, not wanting to stop the spread of their genetics through the universe. I don’t know what I’m doing. But I don’t want to appear weak. I glide forward to Alpha Centauri and he offers me his spear. I raise a brow, curious why he’d give me his weapon. I was strong enough to throw it. “So you trust it’s just a kiss, Empress, and nothing else,” Alpha Centauri speaks so gently, for me alone. What scares me is he adopts the sweet tone any of my Kors do, when they’re tricking me into something. But I did want to taste him. Because I wanted to know him. The more I knew about him, the easier it’d be to kill him. Alpha Centauri offers me the spear closer, showing me his brief submission, and I take it while it’s offered. With the spear in my hand I pull it back and slowly press the tip of the screw blade against Alpha Centauri’s throat. He didn’t expect that either, and perhaps he regrets giving me his own weapon. But I also believe in honour. A kiss of death. It was his promise to me and mine to him. I’d have three weeks to kill him and after that, if I didn’t succeed, I’d be running for the rest of my life. Still. It was enough time. Alpha Centauri doesn’t move to kiss me. He lets me do it, watching me closely and patiently. I use my one free hand to press to his cheek, to see if a gentle touch affects him in the slightest. He doesn’t flinch at all. I keep my eyes on his steady dark blue orbs, as I choose to make the kiss passionless. I just press my lips to his, cold. I wait for his venom to register, even if it’s just a miniscule amount. Lips that don’t move do nothing to transfer saliva. Alpha Centauri isn’t exactly one to be led. He just wanted to see what I’d do first, but now he uses his own hands to grab me, since me touching him first was his moment to return the favour. One strong hand slides around my back, pulling me in and under him, while his other hand rests right on my belly, as if he owns it – but really he’s just protecting it. His touch to my belly shocks me enough into gasping, and then he’s tongue slides over mine, he lets me go, he stands up. I collapse to the ground. Taking back his spear, he steps over me and past me. The kiss lasted less than half of a half of a second. That’s how little he was willing to give. But his venom sits heavy on my tongue, while I look at his squad watch me watching them, as the Estori strides back to the portal, striking it open with his own key. They follow him. And I sit on the wet mossy ground, eyes pinned to the portal. I swallow to get the taste out of my mouth immediately. Alpha Centauri… tasted. Like nothing. Normal. Like I tasted my own saliva. In other words? He tasted like me. It seems that E… didn’t just alter my DNA to be like the Kors. He made me a match. To. To. I – What exactly was that? Nausea swirls through me. Thinking it, just thinking it, makes me scared beyond all reason. Maybe it wasn’t DNA… it was soul… we were almost identical in our wants and needs. My instincts. My drive. My obsession with feeling. My obsession with strategies and generally being a pain in the ass. Alpha Centauri was exactly like me. Not DNA. But feeling. The Estori of all Kors… was a Dark Nine.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 27 ✿◉●•◦ I had been abandoned in the middle of nowhere on Dark Ninth when the Estori left me with the taste of my own Dark Nine instincts in my mouth. I wandered for a whole day confused and alone, calling out for help, but no one knew I was back on Dark Ninth. And I had a feeling the Estori hadn’t told Mars or Venus about my whereabouts… or I would have been found already. So, great, the one Kor who promised to protect me and my baby – strands me out here. And my only saving grace is a damn spider. Although it’s not so simple. After wandering through endless ruins and low lying shrubs, looking for the outline of the Kor Prison on the horizon to no avail, I’ve collapsed from exhaustion by a stream. I drink water, I pass out, and then wake up to find I’ve been abducted by Chonk. The Elion Spider pet of the Kors. Okay, okay, I lie, I lie – it wasn’t an abduction. He saved me. I woke up in his creepy little web, with a purple Kor fruit plucked and peeled and placed next to my head so when I woke up, I had something nutritious to eat. It’s pretty sweet what Chonky boy does, or it’s utterly creepy and terrifying, however you look at it, as he forces me to stay in his nest of webs, nestled into a corner of a dark ruin overgrown with thick vines. Chonk and I only met briefly and I seemed to offend him with my disgust at the fact he was a giant frickin’ arachnid. But that all changes when Chonky boy shifts to man. A hairy, wild man, who brings me food and is scared of all forms of eye contact. This man is strange, although non-threatening. He cannot talk. He sits away from me, brown eyes soft and gentle, his handsome face is dirty, and most of his torso is covered in a scattering of hair. When I tried to leave and search for the Prison and Ninth Squad, the wild man would jump into his spider’s skin, and block me from leaving. Truly, the sweet thing was protecting me though, right? Right?! As a man he’d bring me fruit and peel it open and place it on a rock for me to eat. I had to keep my distance or he wouldn’t approach. After three days of this tedious dance of trying not to upset the sensitive Chonk, I had enough of pissing and shitting in the same corner of the ruin. There was only so much smell I could take, and I couldn’t reach for the soil outside as Chonk would push me back to the centre of his web. Very strange creature. Since he didn’t eat me. He was almost exactly the same as the Kors. I wait for him to leave at the same dim dawn of the fourth morning, to bring me more food. I escape then, turning on my camouflage and running into Dark Ninth. I sprint for the creek, aiming to use the sound of the water to hide my steps. I don’t make it very far. I sprint headlong into an invisible wall. “Diana!” I hear Mars call my name as he switches off his stealth, embracing me after four days separated. “Mars!” I yell his name back to him, trying not to sob. “We’ve been trying to find you, Chonk wouldn’t answer our calls… so I came to see if he was dead,” Mars seems surprised to have found me, “Where have you been?” “Alpha Centauri is a Dark Nine,” I hiss, “Like me. He left me out here. He hates me. He probably thought the cold would kill me.” Mars’ expression warps as he considers what I said, “We’re hours away from our beds,” he explains, “He didn’t tell us about you.” “Chonk has been feeding me but he wouldn’t let me leave his nest,” I explain, “What do you think about the Estori being like me, a Dark Nine, Mars.” “Chonk doesn’t like our Estori, since he threw his spear at him once,” Mars explains, “…and we know, Diana… everyone knows Alpha Centauri is a Dark Nine.” “No one told me,” I hiss, “It could have been valuable information.” “It’s completely irrelevant,” Mars holds me at arm’s length, “We thought the Estori killed you. Which explained his stupid smirk and his inability to care when we requested anything he knew about your whereabouts. It’s a bloody miracle I found you alive. We had stopped looking last night. We concluded you were dead.” “He is cruel,” I whisper, feeling pale at the thought of maybe never being found. “If you think he is so cruel, why pledge your life to him,” Mars hisses. “I’m going to kill him,” I hiss back. Mars goes silent. He lets me go and steps back, looking me over, slowly shaking his head, “I am numb to the ridiculous emotions you drown me in, woman.” I shake my head too, mimicking him, “Welcome to my world of drowning,” I shove past him and walk in any direction. Mars turns to follow me, not beside me but walking behind, “So, you all concluded I died. You thought he ate me, didn’t you,” I whisper. “None of us have spoken a word since last night, finally mourning the accepted death of our babe,” Mars murmurs, oblivious to me, only to our creature we created together. “You mourned the baby?” I spin on my heel, glaring at the grim-faced Mars, who looked really sad – and is confused by my fury. He catches on a little too late that I matter too, and he narrows his eyes. “Diana,” he warns me. “No love to show, I get it, because you think I chose the Estori over you,” I whisper back, “No need to remind me every day of my lonely, miserable, temporary existence.” “I know you didn’t choose him as a mate,” Mars admits what he said to Ninth Squad, not knowing I overheard his realisation. I’m glad he admits it to me now. “That’s right,” I answer simply, “And our babe is fine,” I add, “I can feel him kicking, actually. Since he’s grown with the right sustenance. Chonk is a good baby daddy. Who knew a spider could do a better job protecting his woman better than a Kor, the mightiest fucking warrior in the whole universe.” “Did you fuck him?” Mars looks distraught. “No!” I yell, “I was being sarcastic, you idiot.” “You’re angry we didn’t find you sooner,” Mars guesses again, but guesses right. I spin to hide my flushed cheeks. My arrogance was growing. I was angry they were incapable of finding me on their own fucking planet. I could have died out here. Yes… it was my choice to be reckless. Yes… it was also… kind of… almost… entirely – not really – my fault. But still. I expected more from them. “Freedom means danger,” Mars comes up behind me, his hands moving along my hips, to lie over my belly, feeling for the kicks, clearly jealous I felt them first, “We can’t track you if you want such freedom.” “All Kors do is track prey and you failed,” I whisper. “Even Kors experience misfortune and mistakes, what’s gotten into you?” Mars’s hands go cold on my belly, as he suddenly guesses right… again, “…you tasted his venom…” I pull out of his hold and feel too guilty to turn and say yes. My mouth goes dry. I can’t explain it anymore. I can’t keep making excuses. I could say it was to know the enemy better. But I don’t know why. I don’t know what’s happening to me. But I think right now I feel awfully guilty. “I did,” I admit the truth, “…I’m an idiot… Alpha Centauri is an idiot… maybe I am too. Dark Nine instincts. Ultimate arrogance and trust in our abilities, just to end up stranded with Chonky boy.” The more I talk, the more I feel my eyes drip with tears I can’t control. I just want Mars to hold me. I just want to be held right now. I’m going crazy with my raging hormones. Mars doesn’t embrace me. But he does scoop me up, cradling me to his chest as we start walking back to the prison, knowing it’ll be a long trek back. I look up through wet eyes as Mars looks down at me with gentleness. We share a look that is perfect understanding. And I know he is my mate for life. We get each other. We’re different but we balance each other out. Our look of understanding is shattered by a pouncing Chonk, who sticks out a furry leg and clocks Mars in the side of the head. Mars is slammed to the ground, as Chonk jumps away and then jumps back closer, glaring at Mars as he stands back up, and I remain lying on the ground between them, looking at the spider glare possessively at Mars, as he rubs his cheek. “That’s not going to happen,” Mars snarls at the spider, only responding after a long pause. A long, long pause, as if he was reading Chonk’s mind. Another long pause comes. “No,” Mars explains again, “No, I wont – you think I will?” Mars steps back, throwing his hands up, “No, she’s not,” more pauses before he speaks. “You can talk to him?” I squeak from the ground where I lay. “Get,” Mars snaps at Chonk, and he pounces away, leaving us. Mars leans down to help me back up, picking up my hand, but suddenly feeling unwilling to pull me up off the bed of nature behind me. Mars gives into the moment. He slips his fingers from mine and flops backward, to lie down with me, so we’re side by side, staring up at the three moons. Mars sighs deeply, his hand sliding down my smaller bicep, down my forearm, finding my hand once again and holding it softly, barely squeezing. “He is very intelligent,” Mars murmurs, bored, “He thinks you’re going to kill me.” “I thought he was protecting me from you?” I ask. Mars barks a laugh, “He should.” “Why do you keep Chonky boy anyway?” “Elion tech is different to ours, by a long shot, it’s what our fathers were always interested in. Understanidng the incomprehensibility of it. The things you can’t decode, it’s all Elion. E tries his best. Chonk, as far as we know, has extremely sensitive hairs on his body that pick up pure intent. So, considering his reaction, and his warning to me, he knows… somehow… that you want to kill me,” Mars seems unfazed by this. “I’ve never thought about it,” I admit, “How can he know something that I don’t even know?” “Because he can sense what you’ll know later,” Mars finally squeezes my hand. Which means things will change between us. And I think I know when that’ll be. “Be honest with me,” I whisper, “Everything will change, won’t it. When I give birth. And I mean… between us. You’re not human. You’re alien. You eat… women… your mates… after they give birth. As unsavoury as that thought it… I can’t hide from it any longer,” Mars is silent. Which means I’m right. I ask another question, “Is it possible to say something one day, and tell the truth, and say exactly same thing another day, and it changes to be a lie.” “I know exactly what you’re referring too,” Mars explains, cool and calmly, “I can tell you the truth of us, but you won’t like the answer.” “Tell me.” “After our child is born. I will feel nothing for you.” “How long does that last?” I whisper. “Forever,” Mars has submitted to the truth, finally. He was always protecting me from it. Perhaps after thinking I was dead, he felt I was owed the truth. And I was owed the truth. “How do you know?” probably the dumbest question to ask an immortal god-like being who has existed before this existence itself. He doesn’t answer. I ask another way, “Did Cinta have children?” “No.” “And there is my answer,” I murmur, feeling morbidly poetic, “Cinta resisted. But I am already pregnant. I’m done for.” “Yeah… that’s how it goes…. Diana.” “You admit it, then. You’re all going to eat me,” I laugh lightly to myself, a quiet hysterical realisation. “Pledging to Alpha Centauri your breath, your flesh, means he is owed it, and we cannot take it, no one pledges to a Kor who isn’t the father, hence the shock to us all,” Mars explains, “…whether you meant it or not… you forced a war between us. We’ll have to kill him after all. That is the only thing stopping you from dying once my emotions for you are killed. I can’t take you through honour to the codes. And we won’t let him take you.” “So I saved my own life, and guaranteed you’ll self-destruct by killing one another,” I whisper, “I’m an accidental genius.” “Dark Nine,” he laughs too. It feels weird holding hands with someone I like, someone who I know, likes me right now, someone I know, will want to eat me after I’ve just suffered through childbirth. “What a strange existence,” I whisper. “I lied,” Mars whispers. But I doubt that, “About killing my emotions for you,” I don’t believe Mars as he backtracks so suddenly, “I won’t want to kill you. I’ll keep you. We will.” “You sound very confused, Mars.” “I had to say what I thought would happen, to taste it in the air… but killing you doesn’t feel right anymore,” Mars’ hand finds my skin. Not my belly. But my neck, as he turns to me, and I turn to him. “It doesn’t feel right to me, either,” I whisper, “I think I love you.” “I know I love you,” Mars murmurs back, “What a pain.” “You’re one to talk,” I whisper. “What do you want to do?” Mars asks, looking mischievous, “About this? Diana?” “I want to kill Alpha Centauri, and become Estori – an Empress in his place,” I whisper back. Mars strokes my neck with his hand, and his hand then reaches up to stroke down my cheek as his eyes search over my face and my body. “What has E created?” he murmurs to himself. “I’m right here, talk to me,” I grab his hand with both of mine, “To me, Mars. Talk to me.” “When I look into your eyes, I believe every word you say,” Mars admits, “I don’t think it’s a joke. I know you’re serious. And I like that. However… puny human… how… are you going to kill a Kor? Try now,” he challenges me, to see what I have in me if I were to go on the attack. I sit up and straddle Mars with a smile, but he rolls me over and slams me to the ground, holding my hands tightly above my head, his teeth at my throat, “Dead,” he whispers, licking along the sweat on my skin, “Just like that,” his tongue feels my pulse, then he leans up away from me and unhands me, “Again,” he invites me forward. I’m wet now. That’s the problem. I want to fuck him, not play-kill him. I try anyway. Just to amuse him. I stand up this time, urging Mars to stand with me. We stand at a face off, like it’s a duel. I rub my wrist, my gun appears, and I attempt to aim. Mars just switches on his stealth and the moment I can’t see him, my gun is smacked out of my hand by the back of his hand smacking on mine. I’ve dropped it, and Mars swiftly grabs my neck, moving behind me while I can’t see him… then he lets me go. “Alpha Centauri won’t kill you like that… he kills slow. Savouring every second you break down in his direction. He’ll let you try until you quit trying. Run. Or fight. Try your best. Come on.” Mars sounds vicious and encouraging at the same time. I thought Mars and I were playing a game. I still think it is a game. But still, I feel the panic in me rising, knowing he is right behind me but wants me to attempt more. To… To try. To play out a simulation. Of me, killing the Estori. My instincts scream at me, however; he’s learning all your moves now. Not that I had moves, per say. I wasn’t exactly trained. But me, whatever I was capable of, Mars was learning. I don’t move and Mars’ foot presses to the back of my knee, forcing me down. I stumble onto my hands and knees and he lowers behind me, pressing his warm dick to my ass, his hands holding my waist firmly. “Don’t make it that easy, Diana,” Mars releases me and watches me crawl forward and stand, but as I stand, he follows to stand flush with my back. He just snakes his invisible arm around my waist, “Now what?” he taunts, and he sounds cruel. He is rubbing it in. His strength. Over mine. I try to elbow him, but he doesn’t feel it. I try to kick backwards, but I can’t make contact with his balls. I squirm a couple of more times, and Mars stops playing nice. My Kor just tightens his hold on me, his hands sliding along my arms until he holds both wrists and lifts my arms above my head, stretching my limbs high above me. It hurts, but he only does it for a moment, so I twist around to face him, my hands stuck high above me in his easy hold from one hand. He turns off his stealth. Mars is a giant. I feel useless. I don’t know what the point of this stupid game is! As he holds me, I kick out but my legs can’t reach him. My teeth can’t reach him either. “Kill me,” Mars taunts me, “Come on, little puny human, do something to me. Hurt me.” “I can’t,” I yell, “I can’t! Let me go, you proved your point!” “You can’t! That’s right, Diana. You can’t do anything. And no one is going to let you go,” Mars changes, his whole face becomes a snarl of possession, as he pulls me closer, “You belong to me. You’ll never escape this fate.” Mars looks wild, feral in these abandoned lands, holding me at his mercy, his eyes hungry as he looks me up and down, slow. “I guess I can scream,” I whisper, my lip quivering. I don’t like it when he’s mean. Mars shakes his head, spinning me around and holding me back to his front, he slaps his hand across my mouth. “No, you can’t do that either,” Mars is just being a dick to be a dick, now. Fucking males. Fuck! Typical fucking – I try to bite his hand but his skin is too tough. Mars holds my head out to the side. He exposes my neck, and he looks at my pulse, while the sounds of Dark Ninth hover all around us. In the middle of nature, on a random day, all alone with Mars on Dark Ninth, I’m just… nothing. I feel like nothing. Life goes on without a fuss. He doesn’t speak of my heart. I feel his eyes and his sharp intent, as his teeth will be crushing against me any moment. But before I can even feel his eager bite, I feel the air rush past my face and then I feel the ground. It all happens so fast. I’m pulled to my feet and dragged back from Mars, who lies in a heap – his head bleeding, from a large whack to the side from someone’s blunt weapon. The people dragging me turn off their weak camouflage technology, and I take in what they wear as brown dishevelled travellers’ clothes. As I’m pulled back into their stealthing spacecraft, I notice the backs of their hands. Roses. Roses. The Freed – the wandering free spirits of the universe had come to save me. When I’m released and the Freed are cheering at their capture – no – their saviour of me… I turn and I see a distraught and smiling Iris in the spaceship I’ve been deposited into. As she reaches out to place her hand on my cheek, it trembles with her relief. “You asked for help, Empress,” Iris whispers, “I decided I better help.” “Why?” I whisper back, “What changed your mind?” “I can’t disobey an SOS from a Galactic Queen, I work for the Intergalactic Alliance,” Iris’ lips twitch, “I did what I should have from the start.” I feel the spaceship lift off and at the same time, I feel Iris embrace me since I just collapsed into her front. God, did I need this embrace. I squeeze her tight. This whole time I had been missing one thing. Help. I had tried to find help from the predators themselves. That was a mistake. This whole time, I just needed help from fellow human beings. All around me, faces of healthy young subspecies of all kinds, not just humans, are standing back with goofy grins and mischievous smiles. Their walls of their spaceship are proudly covered with thousands of ET keys. “You saved me,” I let her go, and I hear everyone talk at once toward me. Asking questions, voices filled with concern. Are you injured? Did they hurt you? How many are there? Are you okay? Are you okay??   “Alright, alright, everyone shh, don’t overwhelm her,” I hear a booming, commanding voice, and I turn to see who’s talking. The captain of the ship, I’d say. By the way he stands above all the others, though not as tall as a Kor, he’s still at least six foot six, so still pretty close. He looks well fed, his muscles are quite large, like he’s constantly moving and always gaining strength from his adventures. I get the feeling this one is an adventurer – the normal, human kind – because that’s what he is, human, with one long brown braid of hair down his back, “Hello, there,” he says, winking at me as he approaches, “They call me Danger. Welcome to my ship, your highness,” my eyes sparkle with his respect, “That’s the name of the ship,” he adds quickly and awkwarldy, leaning over to whisper it, as the others laugh, “Your highness,” Oh, shit. Right. I nod and smile, but I look away since he is looking so intently at my shocked and freaked out expression. It just all happened so quickly, “You’re shy? I didn’t think a Dark Nine would be shy,” Danger adds, just putting me on the spot in front of everyone, while Iris just stands there, fiddling with her necklace and smiling at my confused expression. Kindness. It’s quite shocking to experience when that need in you has been so ignored, “Best liven up, princess, you’ll be moving a lot now.” “Why?” I ask, “Am I… Freed now?” “Oh yes, yes,” Danger – I do wonder if that’s actually his name – stands back, “You are,” he looks over everyone with pride, “We all are,” he seems hesitant to walk back to his station, until he decides to just tell me what else is on his mind, “You’ll be running from them for quite some time, I’d say… until you disappear or they lose interest. I hear they hate women. So, you shouldn’t be thought of too much, give it a week or so, you’ll be off their minds,” Danger tries to make it sound reassuring, as he generously takes off his huge jacket full of patches of his awards, and he swings it around my naked shoulders, covering me, touching my cheek with the back of his curious fingers, “Are you okay, Diana? Do you need a medic?” “I’m okay,” I answer, “I mean… will I be okay?” I ask it with fear, and everyone laughs good naturedly. Danger smiles as he looks at me a little too long without saying anything. “No one I save, gets unsaved,” Danger finally answers, as he points a thumb at his chest, prideful of his reputation, as he straightens back up, “We’ll get you deep into the crowds – to the densest galactic cities. It’s hardest to hunt there. And they’ll find new prey, anyway, it’s a win-win, sweet pea.” Everyone starts to disperse as Danger finally waves them all off to their stations in his ship, as he goes back to the controls. Iris pulls me aside, and we sit together, at a small table. “He seems confident the Kors will give up on me,” I tell Iris, “Thoughts?” “It depends,” Iris whispers back, “It’s what you think, Diana. You’ll know.” Well. I was in love with Mars and his squad. And pledged my breath and flesh to the King. She doesn’t know that. I don’t tell her that. “I think I’ll be okay,” I smile at her and she nods, turning from me to talk to someone else briefly… my smile slowly fades. To be honest. I lied straight through my teeth. I can only hope I’ll be okay. But I know I owe my life to the Kors, by their standards anyway. Because they made me Empress. For that power and worship, they owe me death. Oh, well. If they can lose me on their own planet, and think I’m dead after four days, they’ll not find me in a city filled with every kind of subspecies. I’ll be okay. I’ll be fine. Freedom is freedom.  And I’ve found real friends. That’s all that matters.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 28 ✿◉●•◦ & KOR GLOSSARY 2 weeks later I had settled my self with some of the Freed in Light Metropolis. It was a small big city, not the biggest intergalactic city, but the third largest. Danger and Iris farewelled me as I moved into a boarding house with a bunch of other Freed. They were working odd jobs. They were usually busy and no one intruded on my privacy. It was really, really nice – until I started to feel lonely again. Two weeks into being freed, a week, give or take, until I was due to give birth, I was basically perpetually curled up on a couch, covered in blankets, watching the news constantly, from morning till dusk. As dumb as it sounded, it was easy to keep track of official Kor movements by the news sources. My limbs were aching, and my appetite was quite large. An eldery woman called Hapeet, was cooking everyone meals every day. She owned the boarding house and the rooms, and the Freed never had to do anything other than pay and promise not to break anything. Hapeet wasn’t one to talk much. She’d cook and sometimes leave all day to travel around Light Metro. Today she was staying back, cooking dinner early. Most of the day I watched as the young Freed dropped in briefly for lunch breaks. I had made one friend, although she was working every day, so I only saw her for an hour at a time. I hadn’t made much of an effort to get to know her. I was scared being too close to any females, but none of the males were too interested in me, and I think it’s because they knew I was a runaway Kor Queen. The Freed themselves had a code, however – no snitching, no bounty hunting. They had their own honour codes. It worried me for some time, since honour only held so much weight, but after a week of not being sold back to the Kors, I trust the strangers in this boarding house. It has the best views of Light Metropolis, which is just an absolutely gigantic mega city. Skyscrapers never stop scraping. It’s hard to see the tops. There is no bottom. The architecture has no level floor. Everything is connected everywhere. It’s just a gigantic metal maze. This city was always alight with energy and life. The rooms could block out all noise and light pollution though, so it was still easy to sleep. The two bigger Intergalactic Cities, The Away and the largest, The Vrooma, were larger in space overall. Light Metroplis was compact. My room was painted yellow and always clean. I hated the colour but I wasn’t complaining about the freedom. I shared the room with my friend, Jitters. She was quite calm for someone addicted to so much coffee. Of course, Jitters was her nickname. All the Freed had one. No one seemed to share their legal name. I hadn’t chosen mine yet. Although I liked to imagine I’d just be called Idiot. My confidence had been growing, though, with each day. I might not be an idiot. Just a victim of circumstance. Some people were in the wrong place, at the wrong time. If they went for a walk by the beach and a freak wave knocked them down and drowned them, they weren’t idiotic. You could avoid all danger but then you stop living. So, with awesome self-pity based logic, I wasn’t an idiot anymore, just a victim. Argh. And the only reason I don’t leave the boarding house is my pregnant condition. I’m tired all the time, my muscles ache for a massage, and I feel little Maelstrom, kicking away. I had picked a name. I thought it sounded unisex. So whether it was a boy or girl, I was going to call my Kor baby, Maelstrom. I liked it. It was the name of a Freed. But I wasn’t going to register her, or him. I was going to keep my baby off the radar. Kor children were self-sufficient… they’d evolved to not need mothers. Of course, I didn’t exactly care about that. This babe was going to have a mother whether they liked it or not. I push myself off the couch and waddle to my room, deciding to lay down for a nap. I was starting to feel quite dizzy this last week if I stood too long – probably because my belly was huge. I couldn’t see my feet anymore. I am so ready to be free of pregnancy. I just want to feel light again. I lay down in bed and the moment my head touches the pillow, I fall into a dreamless nap, my brain too exhausted to dream. **** A few hours later “Di!” Jitters whispers my name. Oh yeah, that was the name I kept using, by the way. I didn’t like it but when I introduced myself to the boarders, I forgot to choose a proper Freed nickname, and stopped a third of the way through saying Di-ana. Now I was just Di. Pronounced die. Hahaha… oh, god, I’m aware of the irony. I open my eyes to see Jitters still in her work uniform, a baker in the metro, she’s covered in flour over her black slacks and white top. Her blonde hair is cut short, and she holds a bunny shaped cookie in her hand. “Wake up,” Jitters encourages me to sit up, her eyes sparkling. She usually did most of the talking. I tried to stay as mute as possible. I groan as I sit back on all my pillows, and Jitters stands up as I take the cookie, eating that, as she pulls out her phone, and starts reading the announcement. “I thought you’d want to hear this. Light Metropolis won an intergalactic award from the universal board, for being the cleanest and safest city in the universe,” she says with pride, “We are inviting the citizens and freed travellers of Light Metro to join the celebrations from midnight until the next. Free access to all amenities for 24 hours. Sponsored and paid for by Saturn and Jupiter. Your exes are quite generous, I’m going to use it to take a night off in the best spa baths in the metro, because oh girl, do I need a massage and a facial,” Jitters grins as she pounces to her own bed, sitting back against the wall, “…I thought I better let you know…” she glances to the closet. I had set it up to hide in, in case any of the Kors from Dark Ninth were to visit, my plan was to literally sit in the closet and wait for them to leave. It seems like such a silly idea now, with my huge pregnant belly. “Have fun, thanks for the warning,” I keep my response short. I finish eating the cookie, enjoying it, when my belly suddenly moves and contracts, hard. The pain is excruciating, it’s the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life. It starts from the base of my spine and ripples up my back to my head. Pure fucking torture. I almost scream for Mars. But I slap a hand to my mouth. I know screaming for him can cause an instant connection, an opportunity for a wormhole between mates. If my life was in danger, he would intervene. I had to never scream his name. I had to make sure I was strong enough. Jitters jumps up, terrified. “Are you going into labour early?” she gasps, her hands shaking, “Who do I call? What do I do?” I shake my head as I get up myself and walk, and the pain quickly fades, “Just a warning… my body practicing before the real torture starts,” I joke about it, laughing but feeling light headed as I shuffle around, “Oh fuck, I hate this,” I whisper, feeling so… close. I am so close to going into labour. I know it. The last week must be hell for all Kor mates. I just didn’t have Kors worshipping my body to make it all the easier. I do wonder if one week of being pampered and spoilt was worth the death at the end, considering how miserable I am right now. But no… that’s just the exhaustion talking. “I should stay with you,” Jitters changes her mind, standing and helping me walk. I lean into her side, welcoming the extra strength as I go to the closet and open the door. “I don’t know if you’ll fit,” Jitters looks worried, “Do you really want to do this, Di?” Fuck no. “Yes,” I pull from her as I step into the closet. I turn around and thwack the coats aside. I sit on a very comfortable pillow, while Jitters stands there looking in at me, sad, but knowing I hate talking about my life. Jitters sits down opposite me, stroking the rose on the back of her hand anxiously as she stares at me, “…you don’t look good, Di… I think you should go to the hospital.” “I can’t,” I explain, “I literally can’t. You need to go. Leave me.” “I want to help you, Di –” “You can help by fucking off,” I hiss it, and I hope it’s harsh, I hope it’s enough to make her back off. Get any closer and the Kors will have her as a snack. Jitters jumps back up and moves away from me, turning around. I made her cry. Shit. I feel terrible. But she was in too much danger wanting to be so close to me. I didn’t want her being eaten if I was found. She was sweet, cute and way too innocent. Jitters doesn’t ask any more questions. She gathers fresh clothes and storms off to the showers. I use my toe to pull the closet closer to me. Just as I manage to shut the door – I hear the front door to the boarding house open and slam shut, very aggressively. It’s not Jitters. It’s someone who just came back from work, or maybe a new boarder. “No vacant rooms tonight, sorry, you’ll have to try the boarding room around Lial avenue,” Hapeet apologises with her sweetest tone to the new guest. “Not looking for a room. It’s just a delivery. Do you know of a pregnant girl who never leaves… I can see you know her,” how did Alpha Centauri find my location? “She needs to drink this. Can you give it to her?” “I… well, if you’re a friend, love, I’d think you can give it to her yourself,” Hapeet’s walking stick knocks on wood as she comes out to lead the newcomer to my room, “That damn girl needs some company. She’s very lonely.” Shit. Hapeet wasn’t very worldly. Her life was the street, not the universe. She didn’t know who he was. I can’t believe this is happening. I am too weak to do anything. Even so, I don’t open the closet door in defeat. I just stay in the corner, staring out through the wooden slats, as Hapeet knocks on the door, “Girl? You in there?” “She’s gone out.” I hear Jitters, as she runs over, trying to cover me. Oh, no. “Perhaps you can show me to her, then?” Alpha Centauri’s animalistic snarl is gone, he talks with a trusting calm and quiet masculine drawl. “No,” Jitters immediately answers, “No, I can’t. Freed honour code. We don’t follow each other.” “Then I’ll leave her gift, in her room,” Alpha Centauri bends to her suggestion. “Go take your shower,” Hapeet scolds Jitters, “I told you, no running around in towels naked. It’s unbecoming of young girls,” Hapeet shoos Jitters off while the Kor Estori tries not to laugh. I see a long shadow appear over the floor, and I stop breathing as Alpha Centauri silently walks in. He’s wearing blue jeans and a white shirt. But it’s him. Way too massive, the clothes hug him too tight, as his hair remains freely draping over his shoulders. In his hands is a tea box with a ribbon attached to it… a green ribbon. I’m still holding my breath. I know it’s not smart while pregnant, but what else am I meant to do? It’s my luck he doesn’t pay much attention to the closet, after his eyes did a quick scan of the empty, small yellow room. I let out a very quiet exhale, to breathe in fresh air just a little. Alpha Centauri is staring at the small table, looking over the papers scattered there. His eyes read through everything, as his fingers brush through Jitters paperwork. None of it was mine. “No prying,” Hapeet hasn’t left and I’m glad she tells him to get lost in her kind way, “Is that all?” Alpha Centauri turns to Hapeet, his eyes are furious but his smile is cold and calculating. “My apologies,” Alpha Centauri submits, lowering his eyes, as I stare out at him – he glances to the closet. I had leaned closer to the slats, to look right up at him. My abdomen contracts painfully again and I hold my breath. I impress myself. I don’t even breathe. I don’t make a sound. But my foot – my toes, they contort in pain, taking the brunt, my foot knocks the closet door with the lightest touch. It’s barley anything but it makes a tiny noise. Alpha Centauri stops before he takes his leave. His eyes turn sharp, he looks up to where I had been peering out of the slats, but I’ve moved back so he can’t see my eyes even if he can see clothes bent at odd angles. I just peek out to what I can see, which is just his jaw and the lower half of his face now, still turned to the closet. His lips twitch up in one corner, a miniscule smile, and then he leaves the room. “It was a pleasure,” Alpha Centauri sounds far too happy, instantly dismissing Hapeet. When he is gone, I gasp in and out, catching my breath back. I kick open the closet door and I crawl to the bed, holding the sheets to pull myself up to my feet. I walk to the tea. Miracle Tea. For pregnancy. It’s that simple. It’s just a common brand. It helps with pain. It’s safe. But the green ribbon is such a mocking touch. Mars’ colour. Mars’ baby. But Alpha Centauri doesn’t give a shit about Mars. He only cares about my pledge to him. My breath. His breath. I anxiously pack a bag, my adrenaline stops the pain and contractions. I feel strength come back to me. Eventually I pick up the tea box, ready to take the gift along, even if it’s from him. But when I pick up the box, it’s too heavy. I drop it back to the table and rip off the ribbon, opening the top. Inside, there are no tea bags, just heavy metallic vials. Each one has a label. Mars. Terra. Mercury. E. Jupiter. Saturn. Uranus. Neptune. Lu. Alpha Centauri. Rigil. Vega. Capella. Sirius. Toliman. Proxima. Arcturus. Cano. Eighteen vials. When I open a vial to look inside, I see a clear liquid. I don’t know why it took me so long. Kor Venom. The gift wasn’t tea for my contractions at all. It was power. I am so confused. I know Alpha Centauri found me first for one reason alone. His instincts. He followed my likeliest trail and found me. When he had suspicions that I was in the closet, he didn’t open the door and kidnap me. No. He was arming me. And not with useless guns. He wanted me strong like them. Because Mars said he didn’t kill quick. The Estori hunted his prey slowly. Sadistic bastard. The eighteen viles of Kor venom were also a warning. They had some kind of truce and were working as a team. They hadn’t given up on me at all. They were hunting me all together. The Estori was just making sure it was fun, as fun as possible – for him and his needs. His greatest desire in the world was to kill females. It was better to him if she was prepared. I guess to him, it made it all the more justified if it was a ‘fair fight’ making me ‘fair game’. Meanwhile, I can barely walk without fainting. Asshole. Right now, the adrenaline was making me move without trouble. But I had to leave this place immediately. I had to move. Again. I text Danger, he told me to SOS him if there was an emergency. He was the mover. He helped people escape systems. Or governments. A vigilante for those who wanted to get lost. I hope I can count on him now. I don’t know how much time I have left.   Kor Glossary   ꙰ Ninth Squad Mars, velvet green. Head Kor. Terra, translucent and pale blue. Cousins. Venus, bronze and striped. Mercury, grey with black stripes. Brothers. Saturn, matte gold. Jupiter, silver. Brothers. Neptune invisible and deep blue. Uranus invisible and deep blue. Brothers. Pluto, translucent void with universal sparkles.   ꙰ Estori Squad Rigil and Alpha Centauri, dark blue. Cousins. Vega and Capella, steel grey. Twins. Proxima, Toliman and Sirius, crimson red. Triplet brothers. Cano, Arcturus, deep purple. Twins.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 29 ✿◉●•◦ I don’t leave through the front door of the boarding house. Or the window. Instead, I go through the ‘side wall’. It was a secret door planted by Hapeet behind a bookcase, and she showed only the Freed travellers that she had a secret exit. It took you into the corridor of an adjacent boarding house, and then you could use their exit instead. Pretty simple but very effective. I also turn on my stealth since I’m going to need it. I walk out into the streets of Light Metro, and I instantly join the crowd moving down the sidewalk. My phone buzzes in my pocket and I quickly read the text. Danger. Pick up : Light Central Lazer Tag. 5 mins. I input the location and run while my adrenaline is still pumping. I’m close, which I’m thankful for. I reason Danger had ET’s in secret locations, a Lazer Tag centre must be one of them. A place to look inconspicuous while holding weapons and an easy place to hide illegal off grid portals. Right? They had to be hidden, since the dust always left a trail to wherever you travelled too. Danger was right about one thing. The crowds of a city would provide safety. I feel safer now being nestled between so many people, even while invisible. I’m good with orientation and navigation, so I don’t have any trouble getting to the Lazer Tag, which is inside a huge arcade, up a slow moving lift, on the top floor. It’s a great place to hide, I’ll give him that. I turn toward the front where you buy tickets, and as a bunch of kids are putting on their armour and grabbing their ‘guns’, I see Danger waiting by the entrance. He’s already in the beginning of the maze, which is dark and filled with fake smoke. Danger’s blonde curly hair looks a mess, like I’d woken him up from a nap. He managed to put on his captain’s coat, and a pair of dusty old jeans with too many rips. Even his boots look like they need replacing but he’s clearly too busy to bother. He smiles kindly when he sees me and he curls a finger for me to follow him into the game. When the attendee’s aren’t looking – and they don’t really care, anyway – I slip into the gamescape and follow Danger into the first turn, until we’re both embraced by the darkness. Danger turns to me and his deep blue eyes look stricken with worry. He was so carefree when I met him, I didn’t think I’d see him tense, ever. But I see pure anxiety in his face now. “They’ve put a virus through my system that I’ve spent over two centuries creating,” Danger looks pissed, and I wonder if he meant decades, because I’m not sure how he could have meant centuries, “Anywhere I go, Diana, they track me. Since when do they hunt men, anyway?” he jokes to himself, trying to smile, but he is too worried to pull off a laugh. “If they’re tracking your ET movements, why did we meet?” I ask. “I didn’t use tech to get here. I grew up here, I just chose a familial location and had family take me home for a ‘surprise visit’,” Danger looks paranoid, looking around consistently for any strange movements that might give away a stealthing Kor. I feel bad that he has been so impacted by helping me. Danger grabs my arm now and drags me through the maze, just as a bunch of kids start running around playing against each other. “You could have just ignored my text,” I say to Danger as he thrusts aside a flimsy art piece and pulls me up a ramp into a back corner of the building, an older section that was cut out of the current gamescape. At the top is a platform with a bunch of mirrors. No one is up here, so it’s a perfect hideout. Danger won’t answer me as he looks over the maze with our height advantage, and I stay quiet while he assesses the situation. I didn’t want to be rude but Danger wasn’t going to be much of a help if he ended up dead trying to be the hero. He didn’t have to answer my call if they were tracking him. I stand back with my backpack and I rummage through the vials. I should choose to drink one. It’d help give me an advantage. I have no idea what any of Estori Squad taste like or what benefits I’ll gain. I avoid their gifts of venom and I choose Terra. Earth. He was wise. As I bring the vial to my lips, Danger finally turns around and sees what I’m doing. He lunges toward me, ripping the vial from my hand and taking my backpack from me too. I don’t fight it, I can’t. He shoves it all back inside the bag and zips it up, throwing it over his shoulder, keeping it from me. He doesn’t have time to explain, he just shakes his head at me disapprovingly. “Can you sit here for thirty minutes? I’ll be back,” Danger asks me, “I’m going to take the backpack with me. Do you trust me?” I can’t lie and scream out yes, or no, I know he helped me off Dark Ninth and gave me his coat when I was cold, but that’s it. And I also knew Kor Venom was a commodity in this universe. So how am I meant to know if he is going to just take the vials and sell them and abandon me? My silence is honesty. Danger realises I’d be taking a leap to just sit here and do nothing and stop moving. He looks at his watch, checking the time impatiently before he sighs, pulling the back pack around and holding it up to me, explaining even though he clearly doesn’t have the time, “Never drink their venom again,” he snaps it. “Why?” “I have family who’ve done detailed analysis of what this shit does to your brain. To any female. Don’t take it. It’s designed to give you a high, and paralyse you, so they can deliver the baby. You aren’t a loved woman. You’re infected. The Kor are like parasites. The human emotion they show is an act to lure you in. Everything about them is designed to kill subspecies and leech off them to keep living. Females just happen to be the target. Think of every scifi horror alien movie you’ve ever seen.” “Not really into horror movies,” I say awkwardly. Danger grabs my shoulders, leaning down to growl at me, “You’re in one Diana, but you’re addicted to their supply, if you want to live, you need to disappear and you need to stop tasting their venom. I promise they’ll move on to another.” “They have girls in a prison, on Planet Apastron, just lined up to eat,” I whisper, “Why was I made an Empress?” Danger goes quiet, “You don’t know what to say because you don’t understand what it’s like. What they’ve said to me. I know they fake their love but I think it’s real.” “Babe, shit,” Danger surprises me when he calls me babe, while I feel like a whale, but I take the compliment. He looks like he really doesn’t want to say this, but he needs me to understand what he knows that I don’t, “Do I look… strange to you… at all?” Huh. Weird question much? “You’re exceptionally tall,” I say, trying to avoid saying and very handsome. “Almost seven foot, six foot eight, actually,” Danger explains, “You want to know why I’m so tall?” “Yes,” I whisper, feeling my heartbeat faster. Danger looks like he doesn’t like talking about this, but it’s the only way to gain my trust, “My mother, Orlai, was a human – who was hunted by the Estori, Alpha Centauri, six destinies ago. I’ve been around a long time. Do you understand? She was the only one to escape and have a baby and live. She faked her own death to do it. You can too. I’ve been trying to set up a permanent escape plan for you.” “Wait. Wait. You’re half Kor?” I whisper, confused. “Half human,” Danger snaps and seems to want to connect to that side of him, more. I back away from him, and I look him over. His clothes mostly cover him, but I guess his eyes have an old look to them. And his skin isn’t blue, just pale, I’m guessing like his mother. “I’d really like to meet this Orlai,” I add, “Your mother.” “Yes, well, she lives forever after mating with that Estori prick,” Danger doesn’t like mentioning him, clearly, “I’d love for you to meet her but I’m protecting her whereabouts. Do you trust me now?” I nod. Danger finally relaxes, finds a reason to grin, picks up the backpack and puts a finger to his lips and points to the corner. Sit, stay quiet and wait. For thirty minutes. So he can do whatever it is he can do to save me. I’ve never been so excited to sit down and do nothing in a corner. I feel like I’m going to make it. Finally. Someone who might just have the skills to save me. As I sit, the mirrors reflect me at every angle, I can see how my stomach contracts again, hard. I bite into my fist and arc my back as I close my eyes. Shit. Fuck. I thought the pain earlier was just a warning. But if I keep getting these pains… regularly, I don’t know if I’m a week out. I could be going into labour any time. Fuck. You better hurry quick, Danger.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 30 ✿◉●•◦ Danger somehow returns with a very silly smile on his face, while I’m sweating and stressed out. Around his finger is a chain looped to a metallic ET key that he twirls around and around. “Why do you look so happy?” I ask, feeling a need to laugh at the twinkle in his eye. He was seriously the most carefree person I’d ever met and we’d only known each other, what, all up, ten minutes in all of history? “Oh, I’m happy, Diana, because I just capitalized on a favour that the mayor owed me,” Danger squats down in front of me, “I have access to his top-secret brand new latest warp drive, which conducts undetectable travel across the universe. You coming?” He holds out a hand for me and I take a moment to breathe heavy before I reach and he grasps my hand, pulling me up, “You’ll owe me for this one, Diana,” Danger sounds entirely cheeky, mischievous and extremely proud of himself at the same time. I can’t hate him for asking for a repayment at some point. “Okay, you got it,” I answer non-hesitantly, while I waddle with him down the ramp into the live gamescape. Danger no longer seems to care about being seen and I guess I know why. As we exit the Lazer Tag and head up a stair case to the roof, the warp drive has already been delivered. “Won’t they detect us through satellites or something?” I ask him, worried. “Sure, they might see us up here on the roof, but they can’t follow us, so doesn’t matter,” Danger shrugs one shoulder, as we stand by the machine which has just been left here for us with no security team, no nothing. It’s all his to play with, and he knows it. Danger looks to be in his element as he navigates the controls and I just stand back feeling helpless. “Where are we going?” I ask him. “To visit my mother,” Danger smirks, “You coming?” “Yes.” “Well come on,” Danger holds out his elbow for me. I quickly step closer and link my arm through his as he walks me through the new portal that opens for us. We don’t even feel the suction of space time warping, as we go from the rooftop, to the inside of a tree house. That’s what it looks like to me. When I adjust my ears, I feel a sense of familiarity. Birds. Bees? I shuffle toward a window, overlooking a forest scape. We’re very high up. It really is a tree house. We’re on Terra. Earth. I’m back home. I turn to see Danger has already leaped over a couch and is reclining, kicking his legs up and taking a spontaneous ‘nap’. Meanwhile, I hear footsteps from the connecting kitchen. A young woman, wearing a pale green dress, with her curly blonde hair tied up in a bun, aside from the one or two curls framing her face, looks around to us with huge wide light blue eyes. First she looks at me, and then spots her son on the couch. “Another girlfriend?” Orlai whispers, looking distraught. “Mum,” Danger snaps as he grins and sits up suddenly from his ten second nap, “She’s not my girlfriend. She’s a special friend.” It’s weird seeing a twenty something year old, look and act like a twenty something year old, when she is literally six destines old. 60,000 thousand years. The Earth wasn’t even connected to the Intergalactic Alliance back then. She was an ancient human. I do wonder if Danger lied about growing up in Light Metro – that was impossible – although who knows what he considers to be a young age when he will also be as ancient as his sweet mother. “What kind of special friend?” Orlai asks nervously, as she looks at me kindly but also holds out her arms for her son. I watch as Orlai’s hands tremble a bit. I wonder if it’s a disease, but I realise quickly it’s literally just a nervous tremble that matches her super soft and gentle voice, which kind of always sounds on the verge of tears. She’s very sensitive about everything. She’s like an angel. Danger can’t keep himself from his mother, he finally leaps up and swings her up off the floor, hugging her tight. After swinging her around a few times in a cute dance, Danger places her down gently, roughs up her bun and keeps his hand on her head as he looks at me with pride. “Do you like her?” Danger asks. “Yes,” I answer at the same time as Orlai, and we both laugh awkwardly. “Sit,” Danger points to the couch. “Another girlfriend, huh?” I tease him as I waddle over and take a seat on a massive brown rocking chair. I look around at awe of this tree house which looks completely hand made. Everything about it is cozy and warm and smells amazing. The walls are made of logs, the windows are huge and open to let in the warm breeze, and the place is full of trinkets. It’s like a granny cottage in the sky. I like it. “I have commitment issues,” Danger admits freely, shrugging as he takes a seat on the longer couch again, and I stay on the rocking chair. Orlai runs off to the kitchen and comes back with freshly squeezed orange juice. She gives some to Danger and me, filling the glasses to the brim. I thank her as I take it and rest it on Maelstrom, and Danger drinks his glass in what seems to be one gulp. I gawk at how quickly he can drink that – but then I kind of remember he is half Kor and I look away, feeling embarrassed for almost forgetting. Orlai takes a seat by the window, setting aside some knitting and getting comfortable on a small stool. She tucks her bare feet in front of her as she hugs her knees to her chest, so small and petite on that stool. She’s so cute and adorable, I want to shrink her up and put her in my pocket. “So, what brings you here?” Orlai asks me, both super friendly and completely trusting of having me, since her son brought me here. I gulp and start with a question back, “Do you watch the universal news, at all?” Orlai shakes her head, “I don’t bother with any of that space stuff,” she feigns oblivion, “I prefer, my life, my small life,” she gently smiles and Danger rolls his eyes. “I clearly didn’t inherit that bunch of baloney,” Danger teases, “I can’t stop moving.” “Yes, yes, I’ve heard about your adventures enough, I told you my heart can’t take it so don’t start,” Orlai tries to sound mean but she can’t even manage that. This woman doesn’t have a mean bone in her body. She looks to my belly and she asks the obvious, “You’re due soon?” “Yes,” I answer, shortly. “May as well just spit it out, Diana,” Danger encourages me to let loose on my story. But I’ve already seen Orlai gulp at the first mention of my name. She does listen to the news. Who wouldn’t have heard that a human called Diana had become the Galactic Queen, an Empress of Kor kind. I see her keep a steady poker face but I have a feeling I better not delay the truth any longer. This may be the only opportunity I have to make a friend who can advise me of a real way to keep alive for longer than popping the baby out. “I’m running away from the Kors,” I just say it. What more need be said? Orlai’s face doesn’t change expression, she just looks to Danger and then thinks deeply to herself, before looking at me, “Which one?” “Mars,” the moment I answer, she seems to relax a little more, “He is the father.” Orlai stands up and walks over to me suddenly, and I worry as she stops by my chair, holds the back of it and leans down to my eye level, “You’re safe now.” Three words and they’re all I need to hear for my survival instincts to drop, for my body to relax… for my stomach to contract again. This time I do scream. I scream half of Mars’ name but I stop. Again, I bite my fist. The contraction lasts a lot longer and the pain just seems to be getting worse. “I can’t fucking take this,” I whisper, shimmying off my pants as Orlai brings over a blanket immediately to give me something loose to hold onto, “I haven’t even broken my water yet…” just as I say that, I feel a weird sensation within, before a rush spreads down both my legs. I blush a bright red, but Orlai isn’t fazed. Danger is the one who leaps up and starts pacing, hands on his head, “Shit, oh, shit, oh, shit, oh, shit. I didn’t see that. Fuck.” Orlai stays calm, she moves her hand to my belly and somehow her touch brings huge comfort, “Breathe. You need to choose a Kor. Think of them.” “What?” I whisper. “One you trust,” Orlai continues, “The one who helps deliver is your guardian. My hand at birth was a Kor called Jax – he was from another squad, actually, which is rare. Kors are like a brotherhood, I’m sure you’ve noticed. They do want to help the mother deliver, and usually the mate is too emotional for that. Especially considering what usually occurs soon after…” “Is that how you escaped?” I ask, “You had a Kor help you?” “It was complex in my situation but my guardian was sworn to silence, I had a special favour owed from Jax,” Orlai admits, as she reminisces, “And he died shortly after anyway. He was sick. But enough about me. Surely you have a Kor in mind that has been very interested in your birth. Your guardian for this process. Kor honour-codes state that the chosen guardian can’t be the one to hunt you down. It’s forbidden.” None of this is helping, now. I wish I had known this shit sooner. “My situation,” I whisper as I feel another painful contraction coming on, so I talk as quickly as I can before it starts, “Is a little more complicated than that. I pledged my breath to one and my heart to another. But the one who wants me dead the most also wants me to deliver and vowed to see it through. What you said doesn’t make sense to me. If the Kor who assists my birth, is not allowed to hunt me, then I have pledged my life to the one pledged to assist. See the conundrum? Did that make any sense –” I get that all out in one long exhale before I scream out and suffer through another contraction. Sweat beads on my forehead and runs down my cheeks in rivers now. “Who in Dark Ninth swore to assist you?” Orlai asks calmly and steady, “The honour codes I can argue for you. I’m an expert in them. And when they’re argued well, the Kors abide. Honour to them, is everything.” “I can’t,” I whisper, shaking my head, “I’ll have to do this without their venom.” “Diana, I don’t mean to alarm you but you can’t… you’ll die without assistance, these births are impossible without venom,” Orlai somehow says it reassuringly, with a perfect bedside manner, “You need help. Trust me, sweetheart. I know how it feels. I think about the pain every day when I think about my son.” “Oh, wow, thanks mum,” Danger sounds offended, still pacing erratically around the small cabin. I glare at him and he quickly shuts up. “The venom, Danger, you threw it away, it was delivered for me, I needed that and you took it away,” I hiss at him. “Who delivered the venom to you, honey?” Orlai waits for me to be brave enough, “It is a sign of admiration, respect – I promise you can trust that Kor to be your guardian. There is always a hunter, and a guardian. They never tell you that, do they?” Orlai smiles to herself, clearly having fond memories of Jax, “I had to stay in hiding when my guardian died. I had no choice.” “Honestly, I should probably leave,” I laugh as I close my eyes and rest my head back, “Listen. Danger. Where did you put that backpack?” “I threw it in a trash can,” Danger admits, guilty, “Should I get it back?” “Yes,” I nod, “I won’t need a Kor. I’ll use the venom gifted to me if you can find it.” Orlai nods at Danger, “Go. Quickly.” Danger sighs and uses his access to the top secret warp drive, to pull him back to Light Metro, following the path back through the pantry, which is where we stepped out of. Now it’s just me and Orlai. She sits back on the arm rest and looks a little uncomfortable about my hesitation to talk openly. “If there is one woman in this universe you can trust, I promise it’s me,” Orlai tries to reassure me. “I know, oh, I know,” I try to reassure her instead, “I just want Danger to get those vials back. I’ll use them. And there will be no trouble here.” “Oh,” Orlai puts a hand to her chest, having a sudden light-bulb moment, “You’re worried that I don’t trust Kors. I do. I know their honour-codes and what’s more is no other Kor knows me from my past. No one knows me. Only one. And he’ll never find me,” Orlai says it with such grace and peace, “So really you can have your chosen guardian at your side. I’ll allow it.” “I just need the venom Danger threw away,” I whisper. It’s like my whisper never ends as my vision strikes up to the ceiling, as every muscle in my body, contracts, every nerve, fires. My whole body screams with pain. When that stops, and I breathe, it feels like a thousand tears run down my cheeks, and I’m traumatised by the fact I didn’t even have the ability to scream. I twisted in agony. It wasn’t a contraction, it felt like it was pure rejection of the baby inside. I needed to get it out. My body needed to give birth, now. But if I feel that pain one more time, I’m going to go legitimately insane – or I’m going to die. Orlai has put a hand to my neck in a panic, and she can feel my heartbeat – as I can hear mine, palpitating. “Diana,” Orlai changes her tone. There is no more sweetness, “Now. You have no more time. Call him now.” She must know that pure pain is about to strike again. I can feel everything preparing to contract or fire – and I’m too scared to scream his name. So I just choose to whisper it, feeling the worst guilt in the world for caving in. He was my guardian. And he was Orlai’s hunter. I don’t want to betray this legendary woman, but I can’t feel that pain again. I feel pure fear for my life, it is the same fear when I fell into a death trap on Dark Ninth, just felt in a different fashion, there’s no need to scream this different beast’s name, my truly potent and pure terror will be enough to call my guardian-in-birth forth. “Now,” Orlai speaks without fear, hoping to calm me down, “Say his name.” “Alpha Centauri.” It’s a meek whisper from my lips. I close my eyes, the guilt too much. I just hope Orlai is brave enough to stay and argue the Kor honour-codes well enough for me, to stop him taking what he believes he is owed. Alpha Centauri will protect me from Mars if she manages to do that. I just don’t know if I can protect her from him. Jax was gone. She had no one to defend her. I’ve either secured my life and ended hers – or ended us both.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 31 ✿◉●•◦ “You threw it all away, didn’t you.” I hear Alpha Centauri from the pantry, just as the second wave of the worst pain in the world has caused me to twist and not be able to scream. When it passes, I heave out painful breaths as I watch the Estori glide out into the living area, ducking to fit in this small space, since the ceiling almost bumps with the top of his head. He moves right up to me, and from the corner of my vision, Orlai had disappeared from the arm rest while I was writhing. Alpha Centauri doesn’t hesitate to put a hand under my chin, over my neck, lifting my face and exposing more of my neck to bite. One of my arms flops off the side of the rocking chair, and the backs of my fingers brush the arm of Orlai… she’s literally hiding behind my chair. It’s literally the worst hiding place in the world. But even hiding, this woman grabs my hand and holds it so gently, giving me support while her hunter is inches from her but doesn’t realise yet. Orlai’s saving grace is my neck, my sweat, my own distracting eyes as I lock my gaze with the Estori, making sure he doesn’t look around. One inch up or if he moves one inch forward, she’ll be found. “I threw it all away,” I agree with him. “The venom was a gift, Diana, you beautiful fool,” Alpha Centauri scolds me, his eyes sharp and now entirely focused on his prey. “Help me,” I whisper. “I will,” Alpha Centauri answers too sharply, “I do not take pity on you,” he adds, letting the hate slip through, “I will help and then your breath is my breath.” “Are you sure about that though,” I hiss now, “Is that what the Kor honour-codes will allow?” “I am the most honourable Kor, I created the Kor honour-codes – no one knows them better than I,” Alpha Centauri hesitates but his eyes look pissed and his nostrils are starting to flare. He might smell her. I feign a contraction before it even starts as I cry out and push my head back, which moves the chair back – and gives slightly more protection for Orlai. Alpha Centauri doesn’t let me suffer. He feels my heart beating erratically and he finally moves in to press his lips to my neck, kissing me – fuck, the beast had it in him to give a kiss like that? I almost laugh at the shock of it, but the excruciating hell is about to return. He can feel it’s coming. I wonder if he’ll just let it happen. But Alpha Centauri opens his mouth. His fangs are large – but also very sharp from regular use. He pricks me, then plunges his teeth in. I feel his venom flood through my veins. With a full dose to get pain relief – and to get a full dose of him right now, I’m delighted to feel his patience and admiration for me. It’s real. I expect to get the aftertaste of bitter hatred. Instead, I feel nothing of the kind. It tells me it’s all a fucking act. Is it all an act, though? His evil side? When my body keeps contracting, this time I feel nothing but peace. Alpha Centauri releases his bite from my neck and he looks up to see my face is now relaxed. “Now tell me, Diana, why did you call me?” he asks me now, looking pissed about it. “You promised,” I say, “To let me give birth. To help me. To protect me.” “But then like a fool you promised me your breath, not Mars,” Alpha Centauri lifts the corner of his mouth up in a snarl, “Why?” “To challenge you, obviously,” I answer, “I know Mars is mine and I am his. But you… you’re a liar. Before this baby is in my arms you better tell me the Kor-honour codes and now. Loud and clear, Estori. As your Galactic Queen I fucking demand it.” “You spoilt shithead, you don’t command me, you’re nothing to me, just like all the rest,” Alpha Centauri smiles, he leans up. His eyes lift too far. His head lifts too far. He looks too far back. “Fucking liar,” I say it again to bite his attention back to me, “I said I demand to know the honour-codes, Alpha Centauri, do you hear me?” He looks at me. If he saw anything, he didn’t focus long enough. He leans over my face, hovering his lips above my own, “I’m going to kill you, Diana,” he promises it, “There is no point.” And he means it. The fucked up thing is he is honouring his promise to me, telling me the honour-codes would have less weight now. Even so, I feel my hand get squeezed, hard – by a protective friend that I just made. She’s pulled on me to stand up. A different fear fills me. Fear for her. Alpha Centauri hears her slight movement first, it’s enough for him to laugh and reach behind the chair to drag the cowering female to him. He grabs her hair in a bunch before he can even see her. I watch between them as his smile of the purest, most vile arrogance – is completely and utterly wiped from his face, murdered in a moment, simply by witnessing the human he dragged out into his front, so aggressively fast that she slammed to his chest and they’re flush for a moment. She’s tiny compared to him, and he instantly adjusts. The Estori is so stunned he can’t even move – although I watch his hand, which was in her hair, instantly release the tension and slide down her back, then he can’t move or talk, he just watches her. Orlai side steps and moves back to my side, her whole frame trembling as she turns her back to him. “Speak the Kor honour-codes, regarding a guardian and hunter,” she speaks it as best as she can, but ancient time can’t stop this primal fear making her voice shake, “She needs to know. Unless you plan on killing us both, in that case, get it over with,” she keeps her eye on me. She is praying just as hard as I am. “How are you alive,” Alpha Centauri drawls it, the quietest snarl I’ve ever heard in my life, pure pain, “No. Why did you leave?” “If I stayed I had a tiny chance, maybe 1 in a million chance that you’d love me enough not to eat me after our son was born,” Orlai strengthens her tone, “But if I left, If I managed that, I had a 1 in 2 chance of being a mother to my son. I just had to evade you to do it. I would do anything for my baby boy to have a mother.” “Orlai, I promised you that I wouldn’t have hurt you–” Alpha Centauri cuts himself short, and Orlai looks up at him, over her shoulder. “The honour codes,” she begs. “I taught them to you, little bird,” Alpha Centauri looks past her to me, looking awfully guilty, “The code here is simple. Diana. I am your guardian. And a guardian cannot be a hunter. You pledging your breath to me means nothing, because only our pledges matter,” oh geez, of course only their male oriented pledges matter and not a female pledge, “I cannot harm you.” “Honour it then,” I murmur, quietly. Orlai keeps her hand on my belly, and her touch once again, soothes me, making me feel ready for whenever this baby comes. As she faces me, I see she has this fading light within her blue eyes. She’s anticipating the worst. But still doesn’t know what or how it’ll happen. The scariest answer in the world is whether or not he’ll still love her now, or if that died with her successful escape and birth of Danger. Alpha Centauri’s eyes, I can see them even though she cannot. He couldn’t care less about me with his eyes lasered on Orlai, even with her back turned to him, he looks at the side of her jaw, bringing up his hand and trailing the back of his fingers down her exposed neck. Orlai looks as frightened as a bird stuck in a cage. “This, your skin, your blood beneath, you… mine, Orlai,” Alpha Centauri whispers, “The greatest Kor hunter who couldn’t hunt… not you. Tell me. Do you love another? Have you loved another since?” “No,” Orlai answers truthfully, and it’s a pained whisper. “Then I’m happy,” Alpha Centauri speaks so calmly, “You were in as much pain as I was, this whole time… torturing me, you tortured yourself.” “I lived,” Orlai squeaks, she takes her hand from me, and faces him one more time. I feel so fucking awkward watching this, but I’m kind of paralysed, so what else am I going to do? “There is a secret Kor code,” Alpha Centauri begins, seriously, standing tall as he watches her with those focused eyes. “Oh, is there?” Orlai tries to sound sassy and she can’t even manage that. It is rather adorable hearing someone so kind, try to sound mean. “The one who escapes, is the one you keep,” Alpha Centauri finishes. “You never taught me that,” Orlai fires back. “Because it doesn’t count if you know that in advance, obviously. Most just die while getting fucked,” Alpha Centauri laughs, “Am I dreaming, Orlai?” “You most certainly are, mother fucker,” Danger. He’s back, and he’s pulled a gun on Alpha Centauri, his father. He holds it steady though, and Alpha Centauri knows immediately who he is now. The Estori just smiles and drags Orlai in front of him, putting a hand to her neck and whispering over her head, “Kneel, little bird.” Orlai collapses with the sexy tone he uses. She hides her face in shame against the side of the couch, while Danger just looks traumatised by how she fell so quickly. His hand shakes and Alpha Centauri moves. With two fast strides he’s grabbed Danger’s wrist and twisted his arm behind his back, the gun drops and Alpha Centauri releases him just as quick, just to see what his son will do. Danger spins to punch, given the opportunity. Alpha Centauri lets him make contact. He wants to know how strong he is. Danger hisses and moves his hand back, shaking it out, “Fuck,” he backs up, “What are you, solid fucking iron?” “Close to it,” Alpha Centauri doesn’t fight him further. Danger just keeps backing up away and looks dumbfounded. Orlai stays where she is, breathing erratically. The Estori shakes his head at Orlai, clearly amused and still on a high with her return, “Thank you,” he speaks to Danger, “For looking after my little bird,” Alpha Centauri looks to me, “You’re still a whore, Diana,” he doesn’t have to sound so happy saying that, “Do me a favour,” he murmurs to Danger, seriously, “See her through… the rest will be easy,” the Estori nods at me. “Wait, where are you going?” Danger asks, confused. “Unfinished business,” the Estori looks to Orlai. Danger freaks out. “Danger,” I snap his name. He trusts me enough to focus on me, “Don’t worry.” Alpha Centauri strides back over for Orlai. She stands up as he grabs her arm, taking her back to the pantry and the hidden ET. They’re gone before Danger can blink. “What the fuck is going on?” Danger asks me. “He isn’t going to kill her,” I smile. “How do you know?” “Some secret honour code,” I explain. “You’re quite happy now,” Danger accuses me, “That fucker just took her to… to… he’s going to fuck my mother, isn’t he?” “Danger, you exist, right? Think. How did that happen. Good. Now stop thinking it and stop complaining,” I roll my eyes. “I save your life and you bring that prick home, wow, I hate you,” Danger paces, grinning while glaring and looking hysterical. “Can you help me, at the very least?” I whisper. “Fuck no,” Danger is pissed, as he reaches to his belt, and picks out a regular ET Key, “See you around. Enjoy being on the menu. If my mother even has the tiniest possibility of getting killed… well now you’re going to get that experience too.” My Kors, probably E, is tracking him and fucked up his own system of transport with a virus across the universe. If he leaves with that regular key they will all know where I am. I try not to freak as Danger moves toward the pantry too. In seconds, he’s gone. My location is going to ping. So, I know who’s coming next. As long as Mars doesn’t find me first in this state, I should be fine. All I had to do to secure Orlai’s lottery Kor ticket was to escape Mars then wait 60 thousand years to get fucked again to prove I ‘escaped’ – and here I am paralysed on a couch, giving birth, andI’m not even finished. This is the time he can eat me. The only thing I can do right now is trust Alpha Centauri’s judgement in leaving me here unattended. What a great Guardian. No doubt he was busy fucking Orlai. Great. Just. Fucking. Great. What could possibly go right, now? As I’m contemplating all this, something does happen. The venom is spreading faster and deeper than I anticipated. I start to feel… drowsy. Oh, no… I’m passing out. I can only hope I wake up at all.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 32 ✿◉●•◦ Alpha Centauri’s POV Orlai looks like a lost little dove as she watches me from far away while I’m up on my throne. I let my squad circle her, invisible. They liked to stealth when assessing fresh prey. Orlai will be judged by them. I was too fucked up about her to make a coherent decision. We had unfinished business, I just had to work out how to deal with her. Part of me wanted to gift her the collar of the damned and have her chained to my throne until her death. Another part of me wanted to love her, despite the insult of six long destinies living happily away from me. I know she survived because of our son. But me. What did I get in that deal? Orlai took all the light from my life. Diana… she called me a liar. A fucking liar. I had never been a liar, but I was one the day Orlai left. The day I thought she killed herself. She didn’t just run, she took off all her clothes and left them next to a pile of ash and bone. It was meticulous. Back when we used to feast traditionally, it looked like she just threw herself into the fire. She deceived me beyond a kind limit. She made me believe she was dead. And she never came back. “Alpha Centauri,” Orlai calls to me for assistance with her singing voice. The squad are closing in around her while she twirls, confused as they smell her and she can’t see them. “Who is this one,” Proxima shows himself, a red giant standing over Orlai, he had been leaning down, about to bite her neck, but he wanted to know her importance first. She gasps and leaps to the side, only to get knocked into the others, who hold her still. “Please, don’t kill me,” Orlai begs, terrified, looking for mercy, but Proxima won’t linger his gaze on a begging woman. He turns to me. She reaches out an arm and clutches onto his hand, and Proxima looks down at her little pale fingers, clutching desperately over his, watching her try, too feeble. She’s so cute. If Diana was here she’d be trying to save her. I saw the way they acted, they were friendly. But Orlai was the soft bird, and Diana was the Dark Nine, the Empress. I wish I could see her face right now, screaming to let her friend go, to stop taunting her, demanding I stop them playing with her. I wish I could hear it. For now, as they release her, it’s enough to cause Orlai to eventually drop to her knees, crying. Especially when Proxima took his hand away from her. No one was softer than her. “Bring her to me, Rigil,” I command my cousin, and he appears looking unsavoury at the tears and the crying. He picks her up and leads her to me by the hand. Orlai falls to my knees, her hand clasping my leg, as she looks up, begging for mercy from me now. “Please,” she begs again. “I’m not going to kill you,” I explain, quickly, “I’m going to keep you alive – a fate worse than death for a little bird like you. You’ll live to witness us.” “Witness what?” she whispers, confused. “Sit on my knee,” as I say it she clambers up to sit on my lap. Her eyes were different to what I remember. I’m sure she sees the difference in me too. When she met me, I was only kind to her and nothing else, even when I was cruel to all others. I didn’t feel like being kind anymore. Her fear is different… it’s her manifested guilt for leaving. For doing this to me. She was the reason I was so uncaring. Fuck, I’m getting angry. “I’m going to let you choose, little dove,” I whisper in her ear, all lies, just for her, “You can live and be witness to all our executions. Or you can die. In return I’ll let one Fey live. Vega. Capella,” I order them to grab the next set for execution. Orlai watches Vega and Capella disappear, and in silence, she waits for their return with a Fey prisoner. All the while, I watch her sitting so stiffly on my lap. While my squad watch her too, knowing she’s barely keeping her sanity. “I’m happy about all this, aren’t you?” I tease her. Orlai looks back at me, and she looks a little angry. Her anger is interrupted by Vega and Capella returning so soon, dragging out a Fey from the torture chamber which isn’t far off. Even starved and bleeding she can still struggle and fight back. But we don’t care. “Why are you doing this to her?” Orlai asks me, shocked. “I hunt the Fey who are responsible for the imprisonment of my Kor brothers on Dark Ninth,” Alpha Centauri explains, “You wouldn’t know, you’ve only been hiding for six destinies.” “What did she do?” Orlai asks, as the Fey is brought forward and laid out, held down by Estori Squad, as they hold her head to the side, getting ready to bite and rip. “Let this one pander to me,” I call out, before they execute, “What’s her crimes? Vega?” Speaking through the chains around his mouth, he explains, “She was in for being a senior venom extractor. This one is… well… we’re not sure, but Arcturus found some information. She claims to be Cinta’s sister. He only found that out yesterday in interrogation. She could be lying. He isn’t sure, no matter the method.” Vega sounds unimpressed. Arcturus decides to pull her forward, he was the head interrogator. I got too bored with silent Fey, they were hard to break, even when you tortured them beyond reason – they were fucking stubborn. Everyone of them in this prison was involved in the direct enslavement and abuse of E and his squad. It was old crimes but we never forgot. While Ninth Squad cleansed Dark Ninth of their abusers – Estori squad and I watched for and tracked any runaways. We caught them all. Enslaved them for life and killed them one at a time. “Beg for your life, whoever you are,” I don’t choose to believe what this Fey has said, but I want to see Orlai’s choice. I just want her to be selfish and choose me, choose life – fuck the Fey bitch. The Fey is dragged close and released. Skin, bones and covered in blue grime, she falls to my feet and Orlai tries to leap off my lap and help her, but I grab her dress and hold her still. “Patience,” I warn Orlai, “You,” I prod the Fey with my foot, “This is your last chance to speak. This isn’t afforded graciously.” “If I could, I’d squeeze every last drop of venom from your bones, just to hear how you sound when you break,” the Fey woman snarls at me, her voice hacked and wheezing, “They say an Estori’s venom catches a high price, I wonder if that’s still the case.” “Don’t act in control, you idiot, you’re on death row, ask for life and be done with it – you might just get away, the last pure Fey to live, don’t disregard this,” I tease her with truth, and the Fey pauses – and her tone changes. She looks up at me, “You’re serious,” she whispers. “You can call it a fifty-fifty chance, just beg,” I whisper to Orlai, and her, “It’s up to my gentle little dove.” The Fey looks to Orlai. Orlai, the human, will forgive anyone. Orlai turns to me. All she has to say, is she doesn’t want to die either. Prove to me she can choose me now, at least, as I chose her, showing her mercy in her treehouse. The Fey was going to die anyway. Orlai’s eyes are pure pain for me to stare in at. Even as she says exactly what I know she will. “Kill me instead,” Orlai makes her decision. My heart breaks. And the Fey hasn’t even started to beg yet. I smile, but it won’t be that quick. “Allow her to talk, little bird,” I whisper back at her, “Or have you forgotten how to beg as well?” I ask that of Orlai, who just looks lost. I stand up and place her aside, as I walk around the silent Fey, “Has everyone forgotten how to beg? You all face death with stony faces, and you, you want me to kill you,” I glare at Orlai, “I could have ripped your head off but I brought you here alive.” The Fey hears Orlai’s scared breath, and she musters up the strength to stand and whisper in her ear, “They’re all insane. Don’t cry for them.” Still insulting, even seconds from death. “You asked me to choose,” Orlai whispers to me, “I don’t want to be the reason someone dies.” “You’re the reason I suffered,” I give in and I forget our present moment. The reason. The anger. Was so bad. Was because I still wasn’t enough. I just wanted to be enough. As I look at her, I realise my brief love is fading. Orlai can see it. The Fey capitalises on it. She turns to me, finally asking, “I have no reason to live, and no love for any of you… but if I was to be gifted freedom, I want to give my life to another prisoner.” “Who,” I ask. “Her name is Airy, she did nothing wrong,” I hear her concern and I’m glad for the distraction, anyway. “It’s a funny thing… that I may believe you… I’ll see to it she goes free. Kill her,” I order the Fey’s death, and I look at Orlai. Orlai looks at her feet. “Watch,” I command Orlai, and she lifts her head to look. Obedient to the bone. There was always that. The Fey doesn’t want to be escorted, she hisses at Arcturus and walks herself back to the rest of Estori Squad of her own free will, glaring at them as they snarl around her. They pounce. Arcturus and Rigil stay out of this one. I watch Orlai and she watches the execution… something I wouldn’t advise for her weak heart, but I just wanted to see her suffer in return – and she doesn’t fight me, she never did. She only ran. I can see her eyes burning with the violence… until Arcturus side steps to block her view, taking pity, so now she can just stare at his rich and deep purple skin, a nice distraction from the sounds of bones crushing and blood spilling. “Is she the one,” Arcturus asks me, while looking at Orlai. I nod, my jaw clenching. Orlai closes her eyes, steadying her breath, waiting to be next. “You think you asking means you get to die, just to escape from me again?” I add, in a low snarl, “You’re going to stay here, Orlai. Forever. An honoured guest,” I don’t know whether I want to pet her silky blonde curls, whisper sweet nothings to her, or tell her how much I want to let Estori squad rip her up next. But even I don’t have the cruelty in me to be so lost to my feelings of betrayal. Time was of the essence. It’d only feel good for a second. So, her death wouldn’t be valuable to me. I could always show her exactly how I feel if she lets me in again… but I doubt we’ll burn like we used to. I hated her too much. And she was terrified of me. “You just want to hurt me,” her voice changes, almost guessing exactly what I’m thinking. She looks at me and knows. She always knew me. That’s the only thing I feared of her. Without enhanced powers, she was still like a mind reader, even though she never fought anyone, a complete pacifist, she still understood exactly what was going on in my mind. I feel love for her for a moment. Maybe it’s still in me. But fuck. I need her to learn strength. “Arcturus, Rigil,” I wave them off, “Fashion her a collar and chain for the throne. She’s staying as a pet.” Arcturus looks interested in such a soft human. So different to the Fey. He wants permission. To find out what that’s like. I can feel it in his red eyes as he waits for me to give anymore instructions. “Don’t,” I speak, low, “She’s my crown jewel. I found her. Not you. Her blood is off limits.” Arcturus raises a brow but is happy with that. No blood. But sure, if he wants to seduce her… good luck to him. She was frightful. Only I knew how to bring her goddess out. And to do that you had to be as vulnerable as she was. Arcturus wasn’t the type. I doubt I’d ever be able to be vulnerable like that again. Arcturus and Rigil escort her away, while she looks back at me. If my heart were to soften, maybe I’d try. I look at her one last time, letting her know it’s a slight maybe. But that’s all I can promise. One other woman was making me hesitate. Diana. I get a message through just as I’m thinking about her, while Estori Squad are cleaning up any remaining mess on my pristine floors. From E. One word from him. Captured. I smile slow. “Who wants to bet I can tame Diana before they all can,” I ask Estori Squad. They’ve turned off their invisibility to consider my question. We’re all smiles. Because the moment she’s free of Mars’ babe – she’ll be free to breed again. It’s just a matter of who gets there first. Ninth Squad were losers. They’d be pampering her to high heaven right now. Nice guys always finish last. I liked that saying. Because it was true.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 33 ✿◉●•◦ Diana’s POV There’s nothing sweeter than waking up to Neptune’s kiss and feeling light again. I had been dreaming. But I experienced the rare, good kind of sleep paralysis as I woke up slowly, and my dreams meshed with life, so I could see a little green child running around already, this tiny little thing, being chased by a laughing Jupiter, Saturn and Mercury. Mars was watching with an emotional smile, and meanwhile he was flanked by Pluto and Terra, and I even noticed the chains on him. Around his mouth. Temporary, for sure, but even in the dream – I saw E come over and advise it was okay to take it off. That’s when I knew everything was fine, as I was waking from an upright position. I was not down. Like, not on a bed. I didn’t really get it entirely yet, but I was comfortable, wherever I was. It was Neptune’s sweet kiss that was helping me navigate the paralysis back to full reality. His venom was powerful, working to dispel any heaviness in my head. Eventually I moan awake and his lips are still on mine, devouring me, his hand tight on my neck. I’m awake. I’m panting. I’m… how the fuck am I wet and horny? I just delivered a kid. I feel it though, I feel how needy I am and it’s real. When the kiss is broken, Neptune lets me go – he had been visible the whole time, but the moment I blink and try to focus on his airy eyes, he turns invisible with a smile. I look through him with annoyance and I try to reach out, but I can’t. I hear a rattle, my body sways a bit. I then take in my position. Stuck in the Kor prison, mid-air with my arms out and my ankles out. I feel like I’m stuck in the middle of a spider web, chains attached to shackles, and I’m balanced so perfectly in the middle, it doesn’t hurt. And my belly? Low and behold, my translucent skin and Fey empowered muscles have pulled everything back in to how I was before. I also feel like I smell clean, and I think someone wiped me over, helping me feel fresh. I don’t even care that I’m chained up, because I can hear my baby running around. I’m grinning at the little half Kor child running laps around the Kors and eventually scaling a wall and screaming in joy as it scurries into the wild. It’s the weirdest and cutest thing. He was a little Mars. Green, just bald. None of the Kors follow our baby. I believe them when they say they’re self-sufficient – and he is safe on Dark Ninth. Afterall, there is no one here. My laugh at watching my kid escape the prison like a little Danger, catches the attention of the rest of my Kors. Nothing can stop my joy, nothing. We don’t discuss the chains. Each Kor waltzes closer, while Mars hangs back, a proud smile on his face as he paces slowly across the room, unable to keep the love out of his eyes. “Well, you did it, Diana,” Saturn starts to welcome me back, his golden eyes sparkling with pride like Jupiter, “You impressed us all.” “Stressed us all,” E growls under his breath, but even his eyes have softened, even if his voice hasn’t thawed out yet. “I learnt a lot in my adventures,” I tease them all, “A damn lot,” disregard me sitting around eating Hapeet’s curries all day for a fortnight, and occasionally hiding in a closet. They didn’t need to know that! Ha! “We’re all surprised,” Uranus speaks, still invisible like Neptune, while I just search the air where his voice projects, “…none more so than Mars…” I look past them all to their head Kor. Mars blinks slow, as he stops pacing. “Take her breath away,” he says it with pure love. I’m in some empty chamber – I haven’t thought too much about the vines growing around and draping around us in loops, until I realise they have a use. Mars walks around the squad as they crowd around me, looking for skin to worship. But I can’t focus on them. I am focused entirely on Mars, as he jumps up gracefully onto a vine and hangs off another to get over the top of them all, his face right above mine, his black curls falling forward toward me as I meet his stare. His fingers hover above my face, and his fingertips barely touch me, as he just admires my existence. It feels fucking amazing to bring such wonder to a creature much fucking older than me. “I figured, Diana,” Mars speaks, so coy as he tilts his handsome face and press his hand to my cheek, “I could always try to kill you with love. A love that’s so pure you forget how to breathe. That way I’d have a new rep in the universe – as the Kor who kills with just a look, or just a touch… or just my dick… you’d be the first to die that way, death by love.” “You sound like a bad poet on the streets, you wouldn’t make any money, though, you silly Kor,” I whisper, grinning, “And you can’t kill me. I guess you are a fool. The dangerous Diana lives!” Mars laughs, even the other eight Kors have to stop kissing me all over to give me a look. “Alright, I get it, you’re bigger and badder,” I sigh, “Now let me down. I’m guessing this is some kind of birthing position? And chains are kinky, but c’mon… let me go.” The Kors look at each other. Then they all start to nibble at me, biting me lightly all around my arms, my legs, across my stomach, Mercury kisses the inside of my thigh, high up, making my whole body tremble. Neptune kisses behind my knee, licking across my salty skin. E’s the lucky bastard at my cheek, kissing the pulse high up on my neck and teasing me with his fangs. As I’m filled with fear and lust, I look to Mars for help. He is just admiring me, still. “We’re going to eat, first,” Mars’ guttural growl, is all he can manage, as I feel those teeth along my thighs, my neck, even my wrists – I feel them bite me. The first time was an overdose. They’re drinking me up. I feel them take their fill – they are all utterly starving for me. “Venus,” Mars calls him up, and E releases my neck, his mouth and teeth bloody as he comes up to my face, looking down at me next to Mars. “You’re going to live,” Venus explains in a low hiss, smiling cruelly through his bloody grin, “For us. A new kind of mate. First – we have to build up your immunity… it’s going to hurt like hell, Diana. But when you get through it, your blood will regenerate faster than ever before. Your blood will supply us,” Venus says it so sadistically, but chooses to compliment me at the end, a rare moment from him, “I know you’re strong enough to handle it.” The venom from them all, drags me back to the void where I had been falling forever. I try to resist it, but they’ve already taken too much. At least, I think they have – and then they all stop, seconds before I’m flooded and drowned. Mars releases the chains from above and I’m caught by E, who swings me down and swings me back up to my feet once the ankle chains are off too. I stand in their circle of hungry gazes, naked and faint with bloody skin… but not bleeding. The wounds healed so fast. I feel like I have a spring in my step again. Strength. Speed. It’s strange, being covered in blood stains when I feel insane power start to pulsate through me. “We fuck her after I do,” Mars says slowly, warning them off. Mars doesn’t let me out of this empty room in the prison, however. He just takes my hand and leads me to a wall. A barbaric, nothing wall.   A vertical stone slab. A wall. That’s where we are going to fuck? I slide my palms along the stone and then I turn to him as he pushes me back against it, looking at my disappointed glare. “What, you want a five-star hotel?” Mars laughs, as he whispers across my cheek, to my ear, “I am the experience.” “I’m not paying,” I growl. “You will in screams,” Mars grasps my neck and lifts me up along the wall. He chokes me, the fucker. I gasp out, but he lets me go to slide back down the wall, and he grabs my legs under my knees instead, spreading my legs open and looking at my pussy as my hands slide against the slippery stone, looking for a hold. He just smirks at me looking so freaked out for no reason. I forgot how to fuck. “Relax,” Mars smiles, “I got you, puny human.” “By the knees, very smooth,” I tease him back. Ninth Squad pace closer slowly, so I feel the weight of all their disapproving eyes. Mars isn’t fazed. He carefully slides his hands to my ankles and forces my legs back, as he pushes me back, and he looks down at me, caught between his gigantic Kor torso and the wall. I place my hands on my mates chest, and his pulsing huge dick lies across my stomach, while he slowly raises my ankles higher, and higher. He is moving so slow as he drops me toward his throbbing dick, keeping my ankles captive. And Mars doesn’t slam it in. He pushes it in, inch by inch. I think I’m ready for it, but as I look down, watching it happen, I see his dick slowly expanding within my as it pushes deeper into my womb, stretching me wide. My whole body doesn’t just throb, my pussy attempts to milk him dry, spasming relentless – unsuccessfully. He’s not in all the way yet. Mars keeps sliding me down, I’m about half way, and he is just watching my impatient face as I close my eyes and try to breathe. I forgot. I forgot. I forgot about Kor cock – and about the fucking things it does to me. When Mars has me whispering gibberish chants under my breath to calm myself, he surprises me by slamming the last few inches into me, his hot body simultaneously slamming into mine and squeezing me into the wall. I gasp and cry out, as he keeps me sandwiched tight to this slab so he can keep me perfectly in place. While he thrusts, I won’t be able to back up or squirm anywhere. I’m trapped. He won’t release my ankles, not letting my knees bend at all. “Cold?” Mars whispers over my head, mocking me, as his dick pumps into me. I can hardly breathe. I’m fevered hot with him against my front, and ice cold at my back. It’s a workout and a stretch routine and a fucking ride. As Mars fucks me against the wall – he loves that I try to claw him, but I can’t, my nails are too feeble and blunt. And I can’t breathe. Every breath is knocked out of me because of his huge cock, stretching me so wide I didn’t even know I could feel like he is too big. I had three of them. But I think then I was in too much shock to understand this ravishment wasn’t just an animalistic event. They were experienced lovers. And Mars was literally imprisoned with all of them to be slaves to this. They had five destinies to be perfect whores for the Fey. I’m not complaining right now. I feel my body has been wound up. It’s about to explode. I close my eyes, scared for it – because he is so relentless. “I’m… I’m gonna cum, Mars,” I actually whimper. “I know you are,” Mars has to be such an arrogant dick – as my orgasm unleases hell, my legs being straight make the orgasm more focused on my pussy clenching across an iron hard cock that refuses to unload. I writhe and I scream out my pleasure. I can’t contain this energy he built inside my core, throwing my head back so hard I almost knock myself out. I cry out from the pain of my own blunder, but Mars quickly dives down. He kisses the top of my head, and weirdly that does help. Mars starts to switch our positions. I don’t know how he moves so fast, but his hands just slide from my ankles and grab me around the waist instead. Twisting me fast and violently shoving me back against the wall, so my once warm tits scrape across the cold smooth slab instead. I whimper at the pain of the cold, while his hot torso and groin warms my back and ass. I feel his wet dick slide across my cheeks. Mars just chuckles, “Such a wimp,” he licks across the top of my ear, making me giggle with how it tickles, “That’s better,” he reassures me, as he kisses my temple and his dick slides back into my pussy, but this time he is flush with my back. The most simple position, he uses to destroy me. Mars keeps his hand on the side of my head, keeping my cheek against the wall, as his right arm holds me around the waist and up high enough so my feet leave the ground. He keeps my legs pressed together with his own either side of my thighs, keeping me pressed against him and still, controlled against the wall – and as for his pulsing shaft, well he slides it in balls deep against my ass, stretching me to my limit, then Mars slides out only a little, and keeps slamming back in. Shallow thrusts – keeping it deep and driving me nuts. I know now. My pussy is his favourite toy, he fucks me as hard as he wants – and the pleasure in me is excruciating and perfect. I feel how my wetness welcomes him to use me however he damn well pleases – and he knows that’s what my pussy wants. Every cell sings as I’m being used. I feel totally out of my own control and in his only, as he fucks me faster, toward another climax. Mars is mean, though. Always. As I’m cumming and trying to voice it, he slides his hand from around my head, to my mouth, and he slams my lips shut, keeping me silent, as he asks into my ear. “More, Diana? Faster? How about even harder,” he squeezes me even more against the wall, we’re so flush his skin is all over mine, his abs, pressing into my back, his hips, pounding against my ass. It’s more than sex. This is… somehow humiliating – with the others watching. It’s so fucking hot though. Like some kink. Just as a third orgasm is tearing through me, Mars digs his dick deep as he can go, as he kisses over my pulse, before scraping his teeth down, cutting a line across the curve of my neck. He doesn’t drink my blood but I feel my mates venom, a tiny amount, causing my hormonal blood to scream for more. His desire for me, that’s what I feel, as I go over the edge again. I can’t even describe it. The way he starts to evade my mind, too. It’s so explosive and I scream so loud against his hand, I don’t feel myself sliding to the floor, as Mars stands over me… his dick still very hard. He waltzes away, smiling to the others. I’m leaning on one shaking elbow, my whole body trembles as I feel weak, even with all their venom inside me. Mars commands Ninth Squad, “I want her seeing stars.” “I want you more,” I call out for him, almost wanting to cry, “…you’re not finished with me…” My begging, from pure girlish need, has the squad all pausing their breaths. They’ve never heard me like this. Mars’ cock is still hard and I can’t stop staring at it. I want to milk it more. Mars watches me, knowing, knowing he did this to me. I crawl toward him, literally grappling up his ankles as I reach for his cock, out of reach for the moment, while I try to remember how to stand. I’m numb from the fucking, everything is fucking not working in my brain right now. I need help. “Give it to me,” I whine, “Give it to me, Mars. Help me up.” “You broke her mind in, I didn’t expect that.” I hear a voice next to my ear. A squatting blue Estori at my back, his face hovering behind mine, as he turns off his stealth. When I see Alpha Centauri watching me speak and act in a lustful madness, I blush so red, I think I’m going to cry just from the shock. “Ah,” I jerk away from him, as he pats his hand down my head, through my hair, down my back – I feel like a dog or a cat he just stroked, as he stands up to greet Mars. “What?” Mars asks, barely keeping in a pissed off growl from his throat, “I have to take care of this, Estori.” “Just checking,” Alpha Centauri smiles – using few words. I don’t fucking trust this cunt. “Why did you come here?” I ask, staying on the floor, but not hiding. “Just making sure they fuck you right,” Alpha Centauri snarls and smiles as he paces around to me again, chuckling in his throat as I flinch away toward Mars’ leg. Curiously, the Estori squats in front of me again, and looks between my legs, which I’ve let stay open. I caused a damn puddle. It’s the wetness he’s interested in. Alpha Centauri drags too fingers down my glistening thigh, and I watch as he brings those fingers up and paints his lips. He moves in then, grabbing the back of my head, jerking me forward and kissing me hard, so I can taste my cum mixed with his venom. His lips are harsh on mine, I freeze, as his lips are also hot and warm. And then it fades, his lips leave mine and he’s gone. I don’t know where. He’s probably still there, looking at me, but I can’t smell him with the sex in the air. “He likes you,” Mars admits, standing stoically, his eye down on me as I’m still holding his leg. “I still want to kill him,” I admit. “That’s exactly why he likes you, sweetheart,” Mars slowly smirks, “I believe we were practicing for such an event… weren’t we… when you were rescued. Close your eyes.” Why can’t he just keep fucking me? “What?” I whisper, and the other Kors try very hard not to laugh at my blatant desperation. “Close your eyes and count to ten.” “Okay,” I hiss and close my eyes. I count out loud. “1, 2, 3…” I open my eyes anyway, and I look around the room – everyone is stealthing –I focus on the slowest Kor, because he was watching me for my response. Mars lingered because he knew I’d fuck it up. “Diana,” Mars snarls over me, “You’ll pay if you don’t listen. Close your eyes. Count to ten. Do it right, play with us,” Yes, yes. I close my eyes with a slow smile I can’t contain, which he doesn’t appreciate, “Fucking brat, obey or pay up,” Mars snarls as a last warning as he disappears. “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9…” I open my eyes, standing up on wobbly legs. I smirk as I turn around. My Kors are gone. All of them. Hide and seek? Okay. I have to find all of them. And then I get a prize.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 34 ✿◉●•◦ Diana’s POV I stand up and I close my eyes. As I listen, I walk slowly, trying to detect where the sounds of my Kors walking are coming from. I try to hear their breathing, although that’s a little more difficult to detect. I move slowly. I hear them everywhere. I move toward the noise of their feet but they run away – I hear them giving off airy silent laughs as I almost catch them. As I move my way through the prison, I feel my hair lift off my back for a second, I feel a breath across my nape, soft lips against my jaw, and a Kor cock – slips between my legs, rubbing along my pussy. I smell Mars, as he bites his teeth together near my cheek, laughing as I turn and stare at the invisible air. My pussy quivered with pleasure when he touched me. My knees shake as I bite my lip, walking down one balcony, I hear Mars jump and slide down to the ground floor, holding onto another vine. I sprint to catch him. I run and jump, skidding down a slippery stone slab that is on an incline. I reach the bottom and jump onto the floor, only to have Kor arms wrap around me, as I’m squeezed tight in an embrace, and I feel sharp Kor fangs tease my neck. I’m released and I feel a hot Kor cock prod my belly button. I reach for it but they move back. I think it’s Jupiter. I can tell from the way his hands were on me – it’s just his way of being strong. “This is ridiculous,” I laugh as I run forward, arms out. I can’t reach any of them. But I feel them as they come close. One by one. A Kor will run their fingers along my waist, they’ll grab my arm and open my hand, sliding their cock through my curled palm, letting me stroke them once, before pulling back and running away from me. I run around the whole Kor prison being teased like this, laughing and enjoying it – as they also find it hilarious. It’s such a dumb game. But it’s so fun. I run and run around for them in circles until I’m too tired to try and catch up with them. It’s only then that I realise I can lure them forward to win. I run up to the throne, climbing up the steep steps, I finally reach Mar’s favourite seat. I climb on top, hearing them follow me, just keeping their distance. I sit and kick a leg up over the stone arm rest, as I slip a hand over my pussy, rubbing a finger over my clit. I hang my head back over the edge of the other arm rest, as I touch myself and moan. I feel like I’m about to cum already so I rub my clit harder and – My hand is promptly removed. Got em’. My wrist is held and lifted from me. My Kors, around me, have dropped their invisibility. I smile – because I win! Mercury is the Kor who has apprehended my hand, and placed it over his cock instead, making me stroke it again. “It’s fun breeding a girl like you, Diana,” Mercury kisses me with his eyes – his gaze one of true lust, “You love to play too.” “Well I am not just a breeding cow, this is fun sex,” I complain, still biting my lip as I see Venus slip past Jupiter and Saturn before they can claim my wet pussy. E spreads my thighs with his hands, diving forward. He licks right through me, eager to taste me. I can’t remember what I’m saying. I feel Terra grab my other hand, placing it over his balls to fondle. They’re so big and warm. Pluto steps forward to open my mouth, holding my head back, he doesn’t give me time to think as he starts to face fuck me. He holds my throat too, wanting to feel his shaft push and pulse into me. “…sometimes they need to be gagged,” Pluto grins, his tone so rich with his masculinity. He was so quiet, but when his dick is pumping into me – I know he is in full control of me as his fuck-vessel. I can tell he thinks I’m just made to suck and swallow his seed. It’s fun anyway. The thought makes me so horny that I feel myself wanting to cum right away. E seems to notice, as he spreads my lips and tongue fucks me instead, as my hips writhe, he holds me still. I suck harder on Pluto’s cock, wanting to please him. I feel Mercury cum over my tits, his hot seed pouring down me, while E gets my cream, licking me through the orgasm. I choke on Pluto as I climax, and that is when he cums hard – shoving his cock deeper, his balls pressed tight against my face as he unloads within and squeezes my throat, making damn sure I swallow. Two down. Seven to go… I gasp and cough to get my breath back as Pluto pulls from my mouth, smacking his cock against my cheek once, then running his balls over my face. He’s such a cheeky Kor God. He smells good too, like his balls have the most perfect cologne in the universe. I feel overwhelmed with pleasure now. E focuses his tongue around my too-sensitive clit. I wrap my hands into his hair, pulling at him, as the others watch my struggle closely. Venus waits till I pull hard – and he finally moves. I see his handsome and cruel smirk as his body slides across mine, as his cock smoothly finds my pussy and slams in, as he wraps an arm around my back, pulling me up at a better angle to fuck me deeper. A perfect lover, I can tell that’s what he was – at one time… a long time ago, way too experienced. Now he wants to make sure that perfect love is a perfect torture. His cock is so wet from my pussy cream, I can hear him fucking the wetness out of me. It sounds so erotic – and the others are hard as hell to try it. E welcomes Uranus forward, shoving my leg back further for him, so Uranus’ cock can stretch me wider, to fuck into me, while E thrusts out. In no time – I’m full by their thrusts at all times. My eyes practically roll back into my head, while I feel E lightly bites down over my pulse at my neck. Uranus pinches my right nipple, twisting it. I cry out as I’m fucked by them to another high. E keeps fucking me while smiling into my neck – he fucks me hard and harder every thrust, knowing what it’ll do to me. Uranus is in the same mindset. I scream when I cum for them, and I milk them both dry, straight into me. They came… deep inside. As I slowly come back to my senses, I freak out as I realise what that means. “W-wait,” I stutter, opening my eyes, looking at E and the stealthing Kor beside him, “You should’ve pulled out, both of you,” I whisper. “Sh,” E shakes his head, pinching my chin once, his eyes warm with possession, “We’re all going to breed you, Empress. Your womb isn’t yours anymore. It’s the price you pay for this experience.” I gulp, feeling my hormones taking over as my body trembles with wave after wave of pleasure, making me hungry to feel it all over again. What was I even complaining about? It’s hard to know when Jupiter’s silver rod slides across my cheek, spilling pre cum against my lips. I lick it clean and I open my mouth to suck his Kor cock next. I turn around, reaching for his balls, holding them, sucking him deep, while I feel Kor hands spread my ass cheeks. “Terra, join me,” Mars growls the command as he slides his cock across my wet thighs, before pressing his pulsing cock to my asshole. Terra wraps a hand around my ribcage, his hand squeezing my breasts as he slides his cock along my pussy, then places it next to Mars. They push in together. As they stretch my ass, I choke on Jupiter, and he lets me breathe for a moment, stroking my hair. “Fair warning, puny human,” Jupiter pats my cheek with his hand, leaning down to whisper, “It’ll be hard to breathe with me,” I suck him down deeper, accepting the challenge, glaring up at him. He won’t intimidate me. I can take it! Jupiter wipes his thumb under my eye – and he lifts my neck to get a perfect angle before he deep throats my neck. With every thrust from Mars and Terra, I feel my pussy dripping more and more cream. Jupiter is effectively choking me of air – and it’s somehow making the pleasure even better. A few thrusts in, I’m moved up off the throne, so Saturn can slide in and sit below. He grabs my hips and lifts his own, pushing his cock into my pussy – while Mars and Terra own my ass. They’re all inside now, pumping me hard together. I feel my ankle is held – it must be Neptune, as he rubs his cock along the sole of my foot, over and over – tickling me. I feel my whole body squeezing and contorting, as Jupiter keeps fucking my throat – the hardest of them all, using his strength to outmatch all of them. It really is pure torture through pure pleasure. I feel my body climaxing over and over – so damn tight, trying so damn hard to work them – that they all cum together. I choke down Jupiter’s load, and squeeze Saturn dry, while Mars and Terra empty their loads deep into my ass, still fucking me a little. Neptune even unloads on my legs. When they’re all done, when they all pull out of me and release me, I’m left on the throne, collapsed on Saturn’s heaving golden chest, as he strokes my neck and nibbles at my ear, licking into it, making my whole body vibrate since my nerves are on fucking fire. I fight to get my breath back, “How… how many times…” I ask huskily, feeling their nine Kor gazes staring in at me, “Do I have to… fucking do this… each day?” I laugh hysterically. I look back at Mars, my eyes basically leaking with pleasure. “We could keep going,” Mars teases, offering a hand, half smiling – so calm, so collected – and 100% being truthful about that scary possibility. They could fuck me forever if they just kept taking turns. “No,” I snap and they all laugh – making me also laugh and cry at the same time, “I mean no… thank you,” I change my tone and they all grin, “It’s not funny – my brain is melting guys!” I playfully glare at them but I feel one stare in particular is… more sharply focused… I even feel the menace in the air. A different kind of hunt. I roll my gaze to Venus. He is critically watching me, his mind moving a million miles a minute. He is dangerous in a way I don’t understand. An unhinged Kor. “I assure you,” E reaches for me, his hand grabbing my hair, petting me slow, “You’ll survive this, Diana, survive only to suffer,” he slowly smirks and Mars glares at E. “Shut up, Venus,” Mars demands his silence. E looks cruelly over me, “It’s pure love, Diana. Don’t you feel it,” he raises a brow as chills run through me. It’s how he touched me, how he fucked me… it was different. Like a love designed to ultimately hurt. Saturn looks at me staring up at him, trying to read his gaze too. He looks comfortable with E’s statement. So do the others. Mars was just angry E spoke some kind of twisted truth to me. Something I wasn’t allowed to hear. I don’t comment, as I quietly rest my face against Saturn and just acknowledge it to myself. As their altered Galactic Queen and Empress, I’m built to sustain them forever. What’s that to a Kor? What’s that to E? I never thought of it, until now, as a revenge that never ended. That’s what it feels like, and I keep it to myself as it disturbs me even more than the thought of them hunting me for my flesh. There was an ending when a Kor… killed… in the ‘traditional’ sense. Like Alpha Centauri and his way. If you lived… but they kept just fucking with you, mentally, physically, emotionally… I gulp… it could be a different kind of godly evil. …am I going to pay for Cinta’s sins? Did Venus want me to go crazy or something? I certainly fucking hope not.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 35 ✿◉●•◦ Diana’s POV Surrounded by the beauty of Dark Ninth’s flora, I walk outside while I hear a rustle in the shrubs around me, with Mars by my side. We’re both watching the way the little feet run through the wet mud. “So quick to stealth like his father,” I whisper to Mars, as I close my eyes and hear the little man sprinting toward me. I reach down and lift him up – the baby grins, covered in moss and sparkles already, as he shows me scary looking metallic teeth – sharp triple canines on both sides, “Maelstrom,” I scold him, “Don’t run away from me – I’m your mama… and I’m the Galactic Queen! Show some respect!” Of course, he has no idea what I’m saying, but his large dark eyes look at me and Mars, as he points a chubby hand at me, “Mo. Ga! Qween.” his little voice is scared that he hasn’t repeated what I said right. My eyes widen. So, newborns, on day one, run and speak. Mars looks so proud, he nods, “That’s right.” Maelstrom starts to wriggle and I feel like he has the zoomies, so I put him down and his stealth flickers on as he runs off again. “I’m afraid to ask, how does he eat?” I look to Mars. “Fruit and the dust is enough to sustain him,” Mars answers quickly, “Don’t worry.” “I’m not worried,” I lie, and he slowly smiles and says nothing. I keep walking, and he walks a little behind me. “Why Maelstrom?” Mars asks darkly, “…we choose their names… not the females…” “Tough,” I grit my teeth, angry, “You don’t like the name I chose?” “I love it, actually, better than what I was thinking,” Mars gets my attention by being so vague. I spin to face him, slowly putting my hands on my hips, “What?” “I was thinking, Diasphora,” Mars looks me over slow, and I get a chill down my spine. Dia like Diana. “Weird… Maelstrom is definitely better,” I stand still now, as Mars approaches and places a hand on my belly. “I wonder,” Mars hums to himself, “…what E will do if he is the father this time…” “I don’t trust E, he’s erratic,” I whisper, “Cinta broke his mind.” “Sh,” Mars looks beyond me, his nostrils flaring. He looks stricken by something. I smell the air too. And then I hear her. Crying from far away. I turn toward the crying, by one of the distant ruins. Not just crying. It’s sobbing. Grief. “Stay here,” Mars tries to command me, his tone dropping a whole octave – his whole body tensing. He uses stealth and silently sprints for the noise. I do too. I can tell Mars will approach more hesitantly until he knows for sure what it is, so I just go closer, quicker. I run around the back of the ruin and run inside. Within the crumbling walls, in the centre on a patch of dirt, is a thin, frail woman, flesh and bone, her hands on a metallic pile of dust, crying as she runs her fingers through the silver ashes. “Mama,” she cries out and puts her hands over her face, screaming, “MAMA!” I don’t understand – why was a stray woman crying over Fey remains? I was the last being alive with Fey DNA and it was miniscule. Logically, it makes no sense. Are we witnessing a ghost? She looks real to me. I think she must be Fey. Maybe one that got stuck in a time warp. Because nothing else explains this. I feel warmth at my back and I know Mars has approached me from behind. I wait for him to pull me back and scold me. However, I don’t expect him to place a hand on my back and usher me forward. He clearly wants me to make this person talk. I approach, turning off my stealth, my feet press through ferns and the naked woman spins, her brown eyes wide as she looks up at me. She looks familiar in a way I can’t describe. Like I’ve seen her face before. She doesn’t have hair, it’s fallen away from the stress. Her teeth look strong, but her body is barely keeping itself together. “Who are you?” I ask, and she doesn’t answer, so I ask instead, “…do you need help?” I hope I sound kinder, and not so confronting. “…female?” she asks me back, calming down a little. I nod and approach. She’s not armed, she’s just alone. She’s no threat. “Where are you from?” I kneel right next to her. “Depends,” she wipes her dry eyes, she had been crying but barely any water had come out. “Where do you come from today?” I change my wording. She looks to me, as she answers, “Planet… Apastron. I was pardoned.” I pretend to understand how that’s possible. I nod. I only understand that she’s covered in blue grime, so she must have been one of the prisoners in Alpha Centauri’s hold. She looks defeated by life. “Your name?” I ask. “Airy,” she barks out a painful laugh, “It stuck. I’m half only,” as I wait for her to explain to me, she heaves in a deep breath, “Half human,” she looks up at me, “You look a little… human too.” “…what’s the… um, what’s the other… half…” I gulp. Airy shivers as she looks down at the pile of dust, running the tips of her fingers through it over and over. I’m honestly concerned she may be minutes from death. We can’t keep talking forever. She needs strength. “…airy… the mistake I made… having you… a female, weak and soft like air… so she hid me away…” Airy keeps stabbing her finger into the dust. I reach over and grab her hand, pulling it back, “Fey,” she says, “I’m half Fey.” “Have you been locked away for six destinies?” I ask, feeling my stomach turn. I didn’t know Kors may have also imprisoned Fey for a life term – whatever that may be. “I am the only one… released,” Airy closes her eyes, “And I wish I was dead.” “Why?” I snap this, feeling bad for being so aggressive but being alive was a miracle. “I have no home,” she admits, “Nothing. They’re all dead… cruel to me… but still… all I knew…” “Is this your… um, where your mama died,” I see her looking at the pile, shaking her head. “No. I don’t… grieve… her. She’s the reason. They’re all dead,” she looks at me, whispering so quietly she’s just mouthing the words, her voice no longer anything but parched and dry and empty, “My mama was too evil –” she speaks it too quietly, in such pain, I barely hear, I don’t know if Mars heard, but I clamp my hand around her mouth, as gently as I can, and I hope she sees the warning in my eye not to speak another word. If she was her child. They’d show no mercy. Even if her father was a human. “Sh,” I try to put on a show for Mars, “No more. You need water. Take my hand. Half Fey, Half Human, that’s amazing. I’m like you too,” I explain. I hear Mars come forward now. Airy turns, her fear is heightened but she has no energy left to react. She looks up at Mars, as he turns off his stealth, and I see Mars taking her in with cold eyes. “You have your mother’s face,” Mars speaks without expression, just stating a fact. Shit – that’s why she looked familiar to me. Her face was similar to Cintas. They had the same upturned dark eyes, the same full mouth. I step in front of her, holding out my arms, “Mars. Don’t kill Airy.” “I can’t, if my Estori pardoned her, she is pardoned by all Kors,” Mars growls over me, “But still. Diana. Alpha Centauri is one hell of a prick. Cinta’s blood is an insult to Ninth Squad. It’s because of you, he wants you, so he sent a bitch like her here to piss us off.” “Shut up, forget your ego. I doubt that’s why. I think it’s because Orlai returned with Alpha Centauri,” I whisper to him, “If that’s the first mercy Alpha Centauri has shown in destinies, it’s because of her. It’s not to insult you, you arrogant idiot. We need to get Airy water and food or she’s going to die.” “Venom will make her better,” Mars’ sharp eyes cut through mine to Airy. I turn to see her looking at her feet, slowly shaking her head, “No,” she begs, “I don’t want your venom.” “Cute Fey bullshit,” Mars smirks at me, “She’s a liar like her mother too.” “Stop being so cruel, she’s half human! She has empathy, can’t you tell?” I hiss at him, tears welling in my eyes because I hear the human truth in her statement. I recognise her truth. The way I didn’t want venom, neither did she. But still Mars can’t help but taunt her, as he side-steps around me and she can’t resist. She stops shaking though, probably preparing for death, thinking that’s all that’s owed to her. Mars puts a finger on her neck, over her weak pulse. He slides his finger up and her head tilts to the side. I speak up, warning him. “As the Galactic Queen and your Empress,” I use what I can, “You better do what I want you to do, Mars – I pay a heavy price for your obedience,” I put a hand on my belly, “The price I pay, you pay in return,” I glare at him and he cocks a brow at me but he doesn’t object. “I wasn’t going to make it lethal,” Mars holds the side of her head up, knowing she’ll collapse. Mars is so amused by me, he can’t help but smile as he leans down to her neck, enjoying my inner turmoil. I watch as he bites over Airy’s pulse. I feel like I’m watching myself, from an outside perspective. I see the way she reacts. Her body does go limp, but she also receives strength. A moment later he takes his teeth from her neck. He lays Airy to the ground, letting her sleep, while I see her skin pulse as it starts to heal. “Thank you,” I whisper it, as Mars looks past her to me. “Let’s go back,” Mars commands it. I walk with him, wringing my hands together, “She won’t forget this mercy,” Mars drawls, “As for Venus –” “He can’t know about her,” I interject. “E can and will have her,” Mars growls over me, “For science, he can use some live meat.” I gasp by his inability to care that she’s half human, “I won’t let you or your psychotic cousin kill her,” I step into his front, Mars just pushes past me, ignoring me. “Get back in line, Dark Ninth is mine, Diana – you’re our special venom whore. The Galactic Queen and Empress title means nothing when I make the final decisions,” Mars is clearly triggered, but even so, his words wound me. I stand behind, feeling ostracised again. Mars shoots a sharp look back at me, “Don’t fall behind, Diana. Why so sour?” “Venom whore. Really? Have you not learnt that I do what I please?” I scream at him, “I’m here because I want to be.” Mars turns back to the prison, laughing. No, you’re not, that’s what it feels like he’s saying. I’m here because they chose to preserve me and make me sustainable for them. But me, me though, what I think I am, Queen and Empress, seems to be a mirage for what I really am. I’m their blood. Their food. That’s all I am. At least that’s what it fucking feels like when he laughs like that. “Do you love me?” I call out, scared. I know I shouldn’t ask it. I know he does love me. Mars knows I shouldn’t ask it too. He looks back, “Just a wimp,” Mars teases me, his voice dark and growly, “I love a pathetic wimp,” That’s better. I smile, until I realise he insulted me too, but Mars sees that I smiled, and he immediately rolls his eyes, “Women.” “Hey! You’re not any better, you carnivorous leeching predator! All you do is murder and complain when you’re ALONE FOREVER! Ooo, poor me, I can’t get a long-term girlfriend because I’m a creepy alien who sleeps while surrounded by all the dust-remains of all my victims. You asshat,” I see Mars flinch. HA! Haahaha! Damn, I feel good after screaming all that.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 36 ✿◉●•◦ Orlai’s POV Arcturus measures my neck and Rigil, Alpha Centauri’s cousin, makes the iron collar and chain. They both studied me silently. I knew Kors came in all personalities from my research, but Alpha Centauri’s Star Squad was known to be particularly vile. Ninth Squad were extremely popular across the galaxy, and universally other Kors had a reputation too, but in terms of our Milky way, the primary Kors for us were Ninth and Star squad. “You will be washed first,” Arcturus speaks over me without looking me in the eye. They were trained not to get emotional with their prey. It would be rare for them to be ordered to keep me as a pet, so I am treated as a rarity. Arcturus grabs my upper arm and takes me from Rigil, who watches me leave as he heats the metal to shape. Rigil has only distaste in his eye. I can tell he has trust issues. To be honest, I am glad I am being taken from him. The collar of the damned sounded pretty awful, but I’d deal with that when it adorned me. I had damned my own mate. I knew it. I knew I was cruel for doing so, but only one thing mattered in the universe to me. It was my son. Danger. Nothing else mattered. Not I. Not Alpha Centauri. Danger was my focus, my maternal instinct was greater than any feeling in the world. I had spent destinies raising him, guiding him, helping him from the side lines. Any time he had trouble in his exploration of the universe, he had me to fall back on. With the rise of technology, he was leaping across the universe exploring as far as he could. I rarely saw him regularly throughout the last a thousand year, the grief I thought might kill me, but just as I was submitting to the fact I may see Danger less and less and less – he brought me home a Galactic Queen, who’s Guardian was the man I had loved the most. I know I am a martyr being here, but I had fulfilled my job as a mother. Danger was brilliant, smart, strong – he needn’t worry about me now. I would face whatever life had left for me, with the same strength. Unfortunately, Arcturus is the very one of Alpha Cenaturi’s favourite Kor cousins that I wanted to avoid, as he was the most cunning and cruel. The interrogator of the Fey. Ruthlessness and mercilessness was exactly what you needed in wars concerning the existence of your own species, but it also meant he was very good at disregarding other species lives too. Then there were us puny humans. Who were very good at wanting to protect everyone else and sometimes very poor at protecting their own kind in the search for loving everything beyond our reach. We had faults in our complex empathy and compassion, but we survived well enough. Arcturus pulls me down one damp corridor into another, until I notice we’re ascending to their chambers. Alpha Centauri’s would be up this flight of stairs that we now approach, but at the very bottom… is a dark door – which Arcturus opens, dragging me inside. So he had the first floor. I glare at him sideways as he takes me into his condo. I’m surprised by the civility of it, as he lets me go once we’re inside. Instead of a cave, all around it’s just like any home would be, but for a Kor, that’s minimal furniture. All his is steel grey surfaces, grey walls, clean and empty. With a view of Planet Apastron’s deep cut valleys, the depths of them were larger than the heights of most mountains on the usual type of planets. But this place was another hijacked Elion world from an ancient past, just like Dark Ninth was unnatural, so was this planet. The colour of the sky is a streaming pink aura that flickers aggressively all over the place, the rest is blue grey skies and a steady stream of comets flying overhead. Arcturus has gone into his bedroom, where the bath is, I hear him running the water. I sigh inwardly. I know he’ll rip my dress from me without care, so I just remove it myself. I take off the yellow dress and drop it to the floor. After a minute or so, I feel the silence too long, so I turn just in time to spot Arcturus lingering in his doorway, staring at my naked body. The giant alien appreciates me, I can see that. I walk toward Arcturus, holding his eye but not challenging his authority. I won’t annoy him like that. It won’t give him a reason to annoy me back. I walk past him and he follows, growling under his breath at how I basically ignore him. I walk across soft grey carpet, past his bed, into the open tiled bathroom, with more views of the sky. His place is quite the catch. I could live here all my life and be happy staring at the sky forever just from this bathroom. I see my light reflection in the glass, just a puny human with blonde hair and light blue eyes. Diana was also blonde with greener eyes – but everything about her was different. All humans born later on were taller and stronger. I was ancient and I wasn’t grown on a huge diet, just what my people could hunt and gather at the time while living on the earth. So yeah, I was smaller than usual, and it annoyed me, because everyone always commented about it. Arcturus comes closer to me, as he sees me looking down at the wide perfect concave bath, set into the floor like a spa. Before he can put another hand on me, I step down into the bubbling water as it filled quickly. I sit across the basin as the warm water reaches my shoulders, and I wait for Arcturus to say something, the brute. He doesn’t so I stare at him. His purple skin is velvet and dark, metallic but soft over his large musculature, well fed by all the prey they catch on legal hunting grounds, usually protected planets. Freedom often cost the threat of meeting the wrong kind of alien on those planets. Adrenaline junkies like camping on them. I’d never go. You can guess how many times Danger made it a habit to camp on protected planets incessantly trying to prove a point of his own ability to avoid or beat threats to his life. But… I am tired of worrying. I had not planned to talk to Arcturus, but I change my mind. “You’re dirty,” I speak to him, very gently, “Or haven’t you noticed you need a wash too?” Arcturus narrows his eyes at my caring tone, but then he steps around me and steps into the bath too, grabbing the back of my head, he pushes my face under briefly, so the water soaks through my hair, then he yanks me back up and lets my hair go, his hand running down my back to curl around my waist, as he pulls me closer to him in the water. He was quick to take me. I blink the water from my eyes as I’m turned into him. I place my hand on Arcturus’ torso, looking up at his assured expression of a Kor who doesn’t find females to be trouble. Probably because he is scary enough as it is. Just being what he is and doing what he does. “What do you remember about our Estori?” he drawls this question at me, as I’m pulled over his leg. He’s cheeky, making me sit on his thigh, one leg either side of his. I sit comfortably on his leg anyway, just to tease him back. “Not much,” I admit, “Human memory is selective.” “I’m aware,” Arcturus cuts me off, raising a brow, “What do you remember? Tell me.” “I remember what I feel,” I explain, “I don’t remember events as well. It was a long time ago. What I remember most is being a mother,” Arcturus’ hand finds its way over my belly, pressing, his hand moving from one hip to the other, “You’re still fertile,” he drawls, “And wet,” oh he can tell can he? With my pussy pressed over his thigh, I bet he can. “I know my eggs are preserved from the venom,” I respond, “…you’d think that would mean Kors are meant to keep their mates alive…” “It was that way, but females became a threat to us. What we feel, is greater than what you do,” Arcturus is happy rubbing this in, looking at my eyes alone, his hand still on my stomach, while his cock is rising in the water in front of me, poking out of the waterline, a purple thick shaft. The moment I gaze at it, and my eyes linger, he jerks me a little closer until his cock is between my breasts, pointing up at me, “Please me, Orlai. You need to remember what it feels like to be one with another,” his other hand reaches for my neck and tickles down my skin. “I won’t lie with you, just to have another babe to care for – knowing this time I won’t survive. No one is that lucky, least of all me,” I hiss a warning at Arcurus now, while also feeling my voice waver, “Please,” I close my eyes as I feel myself wanting what he wants to give. It’s the truth and I hate lying. I can’t lie. I slowly open my eyes and I beg him now, as his cock pulses against me and I grab it with one hand, stroking it, “If… just promise me… if we do this…” I bite my lip, as I consider what I should say, “…if I’m to die at the end of all this, promise you won’t impregnate me first.” Arcturus growls in clear annoyance by the conditions but he agrees, I hear the change in his tone. “Your ass,” Arcturus offers instead, slowly bringing his face down to mine “…would you want that…” he drawls over my lips, “…Orlai…” it’s a challenge, the way he speaks my name with a perfect kind of attention. He’ll love me. He kisses me then, to see what I’ll do. It’s my number one weakness. A kiss. But only if it’s true. I test him now by feeling how his mouth meets mine without kissing back. Arcturus barely presses his mouth to mine, inviting me forward. After a second of hesitating, my whole body moves toward his and I kiss him back – wanting to taste his venom. I get a small amount and I quickly pull back to assess the situation. I close my eyes. I just feel. My whole body comes alive and my legs tremble while my pussy rubs against his leg, as I move my hips on their own, without thinking, as I peel open my eyes one more time to look up at his mouth and I feel hungry. I reach up and passionately kiss him again, or I attempt too. Arcturus swiftly moves out of my reach, standing and turning me around, shoving me onto the floor. With my legs still in the water, he pulls me back and presses a hand to the small of my back, sliding it down to the nape of my neck. My cheek is against the tiles, my ass raised for him, as I breathe through my sudden desire. Arcturus slips his cock straight into my pussy – and I cry out, with pleasure and tears and also betrayal. “Shh,” Arcturus’ scolding of me is both mean and reassuring. He slams his cock just a little deeper and I clench hard, crying out with pleasure. He keeps his cock deep, feeling me as I keep squeezing his shaft, the pleasure is unbearable. I forgot this. When I’ve squeezed him enough, Arcturus slowly and carefully takes his cock from my tight pussy, which refuses to let go. Then, he presses the tip of his soaked cock to my ass. I gasp in a breath as Arcturus doesn’t wait. While he’s shaft is warm and wet, he fucks into my ass like it’s been his for eternity. He thrusts deep, stepping closer as he holds himself over me very close, his body hot against my back as he weighs me down, keeping me still so he can pound me steady and with strength. I feel him gaining ground each fuck, as he wants to go as deep as he can, until I feel his balls pressed against me… only then does Arcturs really fuck me hard, choosing longer thrusts to feel it all. I can feel my belly moving out with the length of him, and I put a hand under my stomach to feel how deep he digs. Arcturus copies me, he follows by placing his hand over mine, making me feel it, as he keeps fucking me harder the moment he feels my body start to contort. I scream, closing my eyes as my pleasure floods every inch of me. I loved sex. I loved it so much. But I loved it too much. I feel myself falling in love with him, how he brings out everything I can possible feel, as he fucks me deep and slow, pumping his seed into my body. Arcturus runs his sharp fangs run down my skin across my shoulder, cutting a shallow line. My pleasure triples and I whimper uncontrollably. As I’m feeling myself losing it to the Kor euphoria, he wraps his hand into my blonde curls then, lifting me up from the tiles, while his cock is still hard and deep inside, still pulsing out his first load. He turns me around and drops me into the water. I flail around but Arcturus jerks my head above the water, as he settles us both down. He sits back, pulling me back, so I sit snug back in his groin – but his cock is still inside my ass, as he fucks me slow with his hips. He keeps pulling my hair tightly back, now it’s to look down at me, reading my eyes. The expression on his face tells me everything. He interrogates with sex – by making his prisoners feel this way. I thought it was some kind of special moment, but he just leans down to kiss my forehead and I know it’s mostly fun for him to break in my soul by connecting to me. I can’t believe this brute gave me some kind of pity kiss, while he keeps fucking me to another high. I don’t ask him to stop, though. I want it. But it doesn’t mean I don’t feel emotional pain. I cry and he watches the tears fall down my cheeks, just observing them and saying nothing. “You’re terrible,” I whimper. Arcturus doesn’t smile, he just listens, which is worse. But then he pulls my head to the side and kisses down my temple, to my ear, biting the edge as he growls, “Wait until we all share you, your heart will break eight more times.” I cum again, the very moment he says it. I’m so embarrassed by how my body reacts at the worst time, as I squeeze and lift myself up and down, needing to move as I cry out. He was fucking me too slow and he was still so fucking hard. “You made my little dove whimper.” Someone’s impressed. I close my eyes immediately. I’m so embarrassed. I heard him before I saw him. Alpha Centauri walks in, I feel his eyes on me and I can’t bear to see his expression. Arcturus keeps slow fucking me through it all, “She loves it,” one of his hands dips below the water, spreading across my stomach, until his finger rubs my clit. I squirm and he has to hold me tight, sitting up into me, curling around me, holding me still, his cheek next to mine, “Look at your lovers, little bird.” I open my eyes and I look to Arcturus’ steady gaze, black with a purple tint, and then I look to Alpha Centauri, as he comes forward and kneels on one knee, by the edge of the bath, “We might just find a way to break you yet, Orlai, my stubborn little dove,” Alpha Centauri promises me, his eyes still full of pain, “I should have chained you to me from the start. Speak.” But Arcturus keeps rubbing my clit in circles, wanting another climax to torture me with. I cry instead, as I pant and my eyes roll up to the ceiling. I keep fucking him back, trying too, but he keeps holding me still, “Harder,” I gasp, “Please.” Arcturus lifts my hips up a bit and starts pounding me harder than before. As the water sloshes around us, Alpha Centauri appears above me. He takes my face with one hand, leaning down to kiss my mouth, giving me bittersweet venom. I can’t kiss him back, too astounded by the pleasure rocking through me, absorbing and destroying all other thoughts. Alpha Centauri tastes like regret. I’m scared. Because I just don’t know if it’s for the past – or whatever he plans on doing with me next.

◦•●◉✿ DARK NINE CHAPTER 37 ✿◉●•◦ Diana’s POV I sit myself on the prison throne, crossing my legs, as Mars refused to let me near him as he went to talk to Ninth Squad. Silly Kors. I guess they forget they shouldn’t leave me alone – I tend to run to the edges of the universe. But anyway, this time, I just sit and I pretend to know what it was like to be a true Kor Empress. Cinta sat here once, when the prison was a clean place, scrubbed completely clear of the nature that has grown in all around it now. The area beyond me is wide enough to allow a massive procession of Fey to crowd in for a speech. Usually a throne is set up a little with a raised podium, not set up at the top of a damn pyramid. I guess it reflects her massive ego. And each step is so difficult to climb… I have a feeling the Kors carried her up here every time, since she was dressed in heavy draping robes, her mouth always smug. Her eyes always covered. I guess some people took evil to another level. And when those people they found themselves up here, sitting so far above absolutely everyone, it was even easier to dictate without caring for consequence. The Fey had been a matriarchy, but not any kind – the Fey not only enslaved the Kors but starved them until they were so thin I barely recognised them in those photographs. It was haunting to imagine them as not completely full of strength and health as they are now. But don’t get me wrong, they still killed. They were still alien. Literal gods of this universe. I hear my Kors moving and when I look up I see them jumping down and using vines of the architecture itself to slide to the ground floor, moving together. All together, they move as one force. To intercept. The intruder. I’m smug as they all shoot looks my way for sitting on this seat where they fucked me earlier. My Enhanced Instincts tell me to stay out of their problem with the last free half-Fey. I can’t do anything about Airy. I can’t help her situation. It’s unique to her and the Kors and they’ll sort it out together. If she ends up E’s prisoner in a lab, I’ll help then, but I also want to see how they resolve it without me near. As the Kors leave, I hear struggling breaths beyond me, and I’m not sure what it is, until I see little hands grappling up the last step. “Mo ga,” little Maelstrom climbs up the last step toward me, his stealth over, reaching for me desperately. I immediately lean down and pick him up, as his head lolls to the side and he snores instantly. He is so damn cute. I cuddle him right to me, shuffling back into the corner of the throne, I wrap my arms around the little creature and he sleeps against me. A hand rests on my head. My heart jumps. It comes from nowhere. I don’t want to disturb Maelstrom, so I just look up to see Venus looking down at us. “You stayed behind,” I whisper as he leans over the back of the throne, his hand sliding down my face and sending nervous chills through me. Venus leans in to watch the baby sleeping. “If he’s not breastfeeding, he’ll turn into a fully-fledged little Kor… no Kor has lived since we were born from our fathers and their moons,” Venus explains, like a bedtime story. It’s hard to know if he’s telling me or the baby, “With my help… I made you into another moon,” his eyes flicker to mine. He sounds romantic, but I know better than to fall for it. Whereas in the past he might have been a very together person, now I knew even his moments of calm, they were not… guaranteed. I just nod. “Good for you, E… I wouldn’t want those canines suckling at me anyway,” I speak mostly to myself. Maelstrom stirs from his nap, opening his wide eyes to stare up at E. I watch the baby’s reaction, curious what he’ll do. Maelstrom slowly blinks his eyes shut, turns back into me for a deeper snuggle and sighs a long breath before falling back asleep. I hold him closer. E stays hovering above. “The pardoned Fey girl is half human,” I speak of Airy. “Mars told me who she is,” Venus slowly sits. He sits at my feet. It bothers me, but he’s tall enough to still look formidable. He holds my ankle with one hand, his other reaching for my ribcage. He lays a hand over me, feeling my heart beat, beneath my breast. He keeps his hand there, “I knew Airy.” Well, shit. I didn’t expect that. I didn’t expect that at all. I raise a brow, “And?” “She’s good,” Venus answers me, “I don’t want her here, there is no home here for her. They’re sending her away. Somewhere she can live safely for the rest of her days. She’ll be warned not to return.” “Does everyone forget I am female?” I ask, laughing, “I shouldn’t be here either.” “We voted you in,” Venus smiles handsomely and I have to look away. E’s hand won’t leave my rib cage, nor my ankle. He’s looking up at me, his chin near my shin, his eyes curious. He removes his hand from me, “You’re fine. Your heart’s rhythm is normal.” So, he was checking my pulse? Oh. I look at him now, “Were you some kind of… doctor? Back then?” Venus’ nostrils flare, he suddenly stands up, looking annoyed. Shit. There he goes. His eyes run over me and he turns, standing guard but giving me his back. Okay…? “What’s a moon?” I ask instead, “A woman who can produce Kors?” Venus makes an affirmative noise. “Well at least you’ve finally told me something useful,” I add. Venus looks over his shoulder, “Now I know you can’t kill me. I’m too valuable. Heh.” “A mother,” Venus agrees, nodding. “Why are you really here, E?” I want to know. “…we’re going to rebuild the planet… just a bit…” Venus admits, spinning back to me, “That deal you made – or offered… to Terra. Our Tcno.” “Oh, the spontaneous shit I spewed to the leaders of Our Tcno when I landed over their conference table?” I ask, awkwardly smiling. “Yes. We’re enhancing collaboration Afterall. We’re going to let humans come here, to build and populate, just a select few females,” Venus’ eyes sparkle, “There’s relative peace in the Intergalactic Alliance. Why not?” “More moons?” I ask, curious and hesitant. Venus shakes his head, “Regular.” “Regular humans?” I raise my voice. Venus nods, “And only female? Why?” I don’t like the sound of this or the look in his misty bronze gaze. “Oh, Empress, don’t worry, they’re prisoners,” Venus looks both smug and cruel as he slowly licks his lips, “It turns out Earth has too many disappointments – not Dark Nine, but just rebellious factions called ‘True Nines’.” “They’re terrorists,” I hiss, “They call themselves True Nines. But E, all they did on Earth was sabotage Our Tcno, which isn’t even inherently bad, they just hate Artificial Intelligence – all they do is hurt others. To make statements, I remember they’d kidnap innocent children for ransom and poison our food systems and lure away anyone they thought was loyal to the AI… and they’d kill them, or they’d make them disappear. Why do you want women who want to kill, to be here?” “Temporary mates for visiting Kors, and food supply,” Venus answers, he points at Maelstrom. “No,” I growl, “No way.” “You’re going to have our Kor babies and they’re going to grow up,” Venus smiles, “They’ll have their first picks here. They grow quick. But they won’t need to sustain until they’re adults. So, the women will have some time.” “Women who don’t know they’re going to get eaten,” I hiss. “No, no, they were given a deal and a choice,” Venus smirks, crossing his arms over his chest, “Life in prison or… free on Dark Ninth.” “How much time until my little ones grow into adult Kors?” I worry now. Venus shrugs, “Maybe a few months.” “A few months?!” “A year,” Venus blinks slow, “12 months.” “…that’s not right…” I whisper. “Kor blood is eternal,” Venus walks toward me, and little Maelstrom yawns and stretches, rolling out of my hold and running off again. He goes so quick! My heart breaks. My hands clutch empty air, and I lower my legs, feeling deflated. I hate Venus. I put a hand on my belly and I hiss at him, “I hope it isn’t yours. You just live to torment female kind.” “I know it’s mine, you smell like me,” Venus has to rub it in, but he ignores my other accusation. “Fuck you, E,” I stand up and Venus loves that I’m tormented mentally by all this. Birthing every 4 weeks. Making Adult Kors in 12 months. That’ll kill humans who were sent here to be hunted. Fuck. Venus sees my reality dawning in my eyes, and he steps in front of me, coming close, even as I turn my face and say, “Go away,” I sound sad, but E just stands close and doesn’t touch, almost flush with me, his eyes watching me. I tentatively look up at him, and E looks satisfied, even as I tell him, “You’re cruel, you know? You didn’t tell Ninth Squad I’m a moon at all. You let Mars get hungry for me. You let him hunt me. Teasing my life. Like it’s nothing. When I’m everything.” “He didn’t kill you,” Venus points out, stating the obvious. “You didn’t tell me, either!” I snarl up at him now. “I don’t owe you any false pretences – you’ll get the truth from me,” Venus smiles, his hand reaching for my neck, sliding over my pulse, I only let him do it because I’m deeply considering kneeing him between the legs and I forget to move away, “I didn’t even know if it would work, Diana. That’s why I said nothing to you. As far as I knew that baby could have come out another way, and I didn’t want to scare you.” Argh. I press both hands to my stomach now, panicked at the thought, “What the hell, Venus.” I’m scared and withdrawn into my horrified thoughts. E makes his move. He steps in until we are flush. His hands wrap around me and fall to the back of my legs. Before I know what he plans, he hoists me up off the ground. I put an arm around his shoulder to stay balanced as he turns and sits to sprawl out on the throne, dropping me over his hips. I look over my shoulder and I see his hard cock, wanting to plough into me. It looks so damn enticing, even if it’s on a unhinged Kor. I glare back at Venus as my pussy complains, and I feel like my clit is screaming to be touched as my nerves start to feel like they’re on fucking fire. Maybe he is the father. I go to place a comforting hand between my legs but Venus swipes my hand away, grabbing my wrist. I try with my other hand and he grabs that wrist too, holding out my arms, as he smiles down at me. Cheeky Kor. “What do you want?” I whisper the question, “…show me.” Venus releases both my wrists and his hands grip my waist instead. He lifts me up and he lowers me down over his cock. He sits me on it, thrusting up as I let out an uncontrollable moan. He hits the right spot, holding me down tight, and my pussy clenches hard, over and over, I can’t stop squeezing him. “Ride me,” Venus demands it in a hunter’s growl, but he also shows me all his formidable teeth, as his hands slide over my ass, kneading my cheeks and fucking up into me, while he lowers his teeth to my neck to whisper, “Diana… be a venom whore for me.” His cock is already enlarged to his max girth and stuck all the way inside me, pulsing and hot as his pheromones are driving me wild. I feel my hips start to move on their own, as I close my eyes and fuck him slow, enjoying the excruciating pleasure. And E doesn’t warn me – he just bites my neck. And he bites me hard. His venom is heavy, it shoots through me and I fuck him fast as I climax right away. I don’t even have time to scream because E keeps fucking back up into me even faster, his hands sliding under my ass to keep me bouncing even as my body tries to milk him, refusing to let him go, clenching as hard as I can. His dick enlarges my middle, as he drinks my blood. I understand Venus as his generous gift of venom spreads right through me. There is no mystery to him when we connect like this. E wants one thing. He wants me full of him – my womb flooded with his cum, my pussy dripping with it. E wants to fuck me, over and over. To keep filling me up with his seed. Venus doesn’t want to stop. He doesn’t want food. He wants a mother, desperate to be the father of the next Kor. One of his hands leaves my ass to splay over my stomach, possessive of my womb, he just feels me as he fills me one load at a time. I mean. He even ignored Airy’s return. I actually do think Venus is the father. Because right now, I don’t want this to stop either. He might be an asshole, but he was a great fuck.