Lucien.Get up. Time to go— Seth growled in his mind.

His eyes flew open. It was still dark since he had his lights set to activate only on command. Hot breath fanned his chest and his legs were tangled with…

Oh, God.

He teleported himself in a surge of power into the hygiene room. His legs almost gave out beneath him making him need to clutch the entrance to the hygiene unit to steady himself. Everything around him seemed to swirl and distort. He closed his eyes with a groan and muttered a curse under his breath. Running a rough hand through his tangled locks, Lucien staggered into the glass cylindrical unit. He slapped a hand against the console to activate the cleansing rays.

Blue light engulfed him immediately, head to toe. His hair, now clean and tangle-free, slid forward as he stared at his feet.

The scent of sex no longer surrounded him.

He didn’t want to think about last night. His head pounded with the familiar headache he usually experienced after getting shit faced.

He took a strand of his hair between two fingers and frowned. The ends were already curling softly. It was thick and heavy, the weight of it keeping everything but the last few inches almost straight. He hated it—made him look like a fucking Barbie doll from behind. He should cut it.

Women loved his hair, though.

The fuzzy memory of hands fisting in it as he ravished plump lips made him shake his head. He scrubbed his hands over his face, wiping the thoughts of the night before from his mind.

Looking into the mirrored control panel, he stared at his stubbly face. His beard was as pale as the hair on his head, its color making it barely noticeable. Huffing out an exasperated breath, he hit the correct symbols on the panel to rid himself of his facial and body hair. He felt cleaner that way.

Lucien decided to deal with his long hair later when he figured out what he wanted to do with it.

Teleporting one of his uniforms on, he concentrated on the hangar and willed himself there as well.

The hygiene room melted away until the familiar metal and rubber scent of the hangar surrounded him. It was a monstrosity of soaring ceilings webbed with metal, like being inside the belly of a mechanical beast. Beneath his booted feet, the soft rubbery texture of the flooring cushioned his steps as he walked forward within a lighted path.

There were hundreds of transports lined up in concentric circles almost as far as the eye could see. The soft white overhead lighting reflected off each craft, winking like stars all around him.

Alpha 7 had become home to thousands of fallen, homeless reapers. Every day there were more. He’d lost track of the many new faces and names.

There were two rules though. No one entered without Devon’s permission, and no one revealed Alpha 7’s position, so that meant no bringing booty calls to the station.

He walked past his old viper to where Seth, Devon, and Ashriel stood.

Ignoring Devon’s welcoming smile and Seth’s usual blank stare, Lucien zoned in on Ashriel, who, as usual had a glower on his rugged face. Even the glossy black feathers of his wings were ruffling in agitation.

Lucien smirked at Ash. He really didn’t like the reaper. He was a stuck-up, goody-two-shoes, who acted like he was better than everybody else. It hadn’t taken Ashriel long to snag Anniel for himself.

Anniel. Lucien’s first real crush.

Stupid me.

As he drew closer, however, his attention was arrested by two rusted heaps of metal behind the trio.

He narrowed his eyes, his brain recognizing the contours of two space transports. Better yet, a pair of death traps, not even safe enough to take a piss on.

“What the fuck is that?” he finally asked standing next to his brother.

“Our rides,” Devon answered.

Lucien looked at Devon. His un-identical twin looked dead serious. His bewildered gaze went back to the pile of garbage. “Do those things even fly?” Lucien scoffed.

Seth scowled. “Of course. Natanael and I flew them personally all the way here.”

Lucien strode past Ashriel to inspect the crafts. They were too big to be personal transports, but not large enough to be starcruisers.

Stopping in front of a boxy one, he let out a snort of amusement. He turned back to Devon, Seth, and Ashriel.

“This piece of shit looks like an Earth camper with wings,” Lucien laughed with a jerk of his thumb over one shoulder, indicating the decrepit transport.

“That piece of shit is yours,” Ashriel grinned with smug superiority, as he folded his beefy arms over a ridiculously massive chest.

Lucien’s laughter stopped abruptly as he turned with a scowl to look at the battered hunk of junk again. He planted his fists on his hips and walked around it one more time.

At some point, the thing must’ve been a shiny silver. Now, it was dull grey, scored over with dents and scratches. It had rear rocket cones that were black, burnt to a crisp.

Lucien let out an exasperated breath. “Shit. What the fuck does this thing run on? Fuel?”

“You guessed it,” Devon replied.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Lucien laughed in amazement.

Seth rolled his eyes and huffed, “Look, it’s a hybrid, and the guy that sold it to me told me he only fills the tank like once an Earth year.”

“It runs on what kind of fuel?” Lucien demanded.

“Fossil,” Ashriel informed with a little grimace. “Damned thing stinks like Lucifer’s testicles.”

Lucien rubbed his jaw. Devon had said they needed to acquire moderate looking transportation, fit for nomad Demon hunters. He just hadn’t realized this is what moderate would look like.

Taking a deep breath and deciding that he needed to stop acting like a fucking primadonna, he did his best to envision the potential in the beat up craft. Maybe he could use his power to lift the rust off and restore the metal back to its original luster.

Remi suddenly appeared before him, holding his twins, one in each arm. “Say hello to Uncle Luke, boys.”

The twins looked mostly like Rowie, down to the gleaming, bottomless black eyes. Their hair, on the other hand, was as deep blood-red as their father’s—hair that stuck out of their heads like the corona of a sun.

“Well, if it isn’t thing one and two,” Lucien smirked.

One of them smiled at Lucien, the other sniffed at him and blurted, “hungry.”

That made Lucien quirk a brow at their father. “What’d he say?”

Remi ignored him. “Uncle Lucien isn’t on the menu, Ky.”

Lucien felt his eyebrows shoot to his hairline. “Menu?”

Remi grinned. “Row and I are weaning them off the vein juice.”

As in blood— Lucien thought internally, staring warily at the little crimson-haired boy.

The child gave him a wolfish grin.

Lucien bared his own fangs at the little brat and gave a low growl.

Ky’s eyes went round as he threw his arms around his daddy’s neck. The other twin scowled at Lucien with a snarl of his own.

Interesting.

“Simmer down,” Remi ordered them.

Natanael, Abdiel, and Eriel arrived, talking and laughing boisterously.

Today Natanael’s hair was deep purple at the roots and the rest red-orange.

Lucien turned away to investigate what would soon be his new home for the next day or so.

As far as he could tell, there were three hatches—three ways in and out. Three hatches to guard if they needed to land in hostile territory.

He approached the hatch door on the right side of the craft and studied it, wondering how it activated.

Seth stepped up next to him with a pad small enough to fit in the palm of his hand.

“You can open it with this. It’s like a master key.” Seth stroked a finger over the blank screen and it lit up blue. Lucien recognized Gruesh symbols. Good thing he knew Gruesh.

Seth tapped the pad a few times, entering a series of directives. “Here,” he said holding the pad out for Lucien. “Take it.”

Lucien took the pad, looking down at the screen that was pulsing red now. A beam of light flashed from the screen, even as it vibrated in his palm. “What the hell is it do—fuck,” Lucien yelped when he felt something jab him between his thumb and forefinger.

He dropped the pad and stared at his bloodied hand. “What the fuck, Seth. That thing cut me.”

Seth bent to retrieve the pad. “It was just registering you as a new user.”

“How about giving me a heads up next time,” Lucien snapped.

“To get it to open you have to address it by its name.” Seth’s lips twitched, as if trying not to smile. “Its name is Sugar.”

Lucien snorted, shaking his head. “Open up for daddy, Sugar.”

Seth’s eyes widened as the hatch slid open with a hiss.

“You shouldn’t have identified yourself as daddy,” he said as Lucien stepped inside the dimly lit craft.

About to ask why, his answer came in the form of a seductive feminine voice. “Welcome, daddy.”

Lucien began to chuckle.

Lights came on, not very bright, but soft, homey. The air inside was cool, but not cold, and everything smelled clean. At least the interior was better than the exterior.

The inside was in tones of grey, from the very pale to almost black. Just like an Earth camper, it had a lounge area with four charcoal-colored plush seats.

“These recline,” Seth said sitting in one of them to demonstrate. The seat moved around him, fitting itself to his body. “Back, Sugar.”

“Yes, Sethaliel,” the disembodied female voice purred sexily.

Lucien smirked and watched the seat lower Seth back until he told it to stop. After a few more directives his feet went up and then down until he was finally sitting upright again.

Each seat had interface ability with the craft and other passengers. It even had a canopied hood that slid down from the overhead cabin and gave any passenger the holographic experience of his or her choice.

Lucien tried a few out. He set himself at a beach, complete with a setting sun and tropical palms swaying in the warm breeze off a foaming ocean. He joined Seth in a verdant forest, where they both ran naked, laughing, until they took a plunge off a high cliff into a river of foaming jade. It was exhilarating.

Lucien stood, his heart still beating from the holographic experience.

“I’m beginning to like this bucket of bolts,” He admitted with a grin aimed at Seth.

The weretigri nodded. They both strode toward the back. Seth pointed out the eating area.

“Each seat in the lounge has a compartment that reproduces a wide variety of foods, but if anyone wants to share a meal with someone else, at least three people can eat from a table with seating benches that unfolds in this area from that compartment in the wall.

Lucien nodded and turned to walk through a narrow hallway with four metal doors, two to each side. Opening one, he saw it was a hygiene unit, and an old-fashioned metal commode. Seth explained that any bodily waste was analyzed to monitor the crew’s health status, and was also a source of fuel for the craft.

Lucien wrinkled his nose at that bit of information. No wonder Ashriel found the exhaust from the craft offensive.

At the end of the short corridor were two narrow doors. Opening one of them, he found a tiny cabin with a bed just barely big enough for two.

“Down below us is a storage area that almost runs the entire length of the ship and there’s a decompression airlock chamber in case we need to go outside the craft during space navigation.”

Lucien nodded. “Okay. Now…how fast can this thing go?”

“It should take us just two days to get to Earth, and that includes a stop for replenishing supplies. We’re going to use our combined powers at least until we get to Crimbregeere Six. We’ll spend the night there. Afterwards, we’ll head out to the Edenian Solar system and Earth.”

Lucien nodded. “And how will we avoid being recognized?”

Seth stuck his hands in the pockets of his black Alpha Angels uniform. “I accessed, with the help of a few good contacts, the universal data base and…” he grinned then, “I kind-of tweaked our images. By the time anyone figures it out, we should have found out what we need to know.” His smile vanished, his gaze became intense as he just looked into Lucien’s eyes.

Earth. It’d been like forever…and everything that had happened since.

Lucien remembered standing on the surface of Megdoluc…standing before Angel. He’d just run Devon through with Lucifer’s sword. He’d thought he would enjoy finally slaying his brother, but it felt as though he pushed the sword through his own gut. His twin had fallen to the ground, black demon’s blood spewing from him as he tumbled down in a lifeless heap. Lucien had been so crazed. He’d wanted Angel, his brother’s woman, for himself and would have taken her, forcefully even, if it hadn’t been for Seth.

Seth had given him a rude awakening.

“I had to do it,” Seth said, his face a cold emotionless mask. His eyes, though…the pale blue eyes held a wealth of torment.

Lucien turned away, not wanting to relive the horror of the days that followed. He’d been gone only a few years, but it had seemed like an eternity. Every time he escaped, the Demons would find him and take him back to the anteroom to Hell. They seeped out of dark corners, dark reflective surfaces. They were the monsters beneath beds at night, or in closets, those shadows that slithered around in the darkest recesses.

He pushed past Seth and walked through the craft to the front, into the navigational cabin. The seats there were similar to the ones in the lounge. There was a pilot’s chair, a navigators chair and two other chairs he guessed belong to gunmen’s positions from the amount of symbols depicting the different array of laser cannons and pulsers.

The entire cockpit was glass instead of a view-screen to look out. He noted there were retracted shields to cover the glass, he guessed, in the case they encountered space debris

He shook his head, thinking how archaic.

Soft footfalls stopped behind him.

“It needs allot of work, but I guess it’ll do,” he sighed turning to look at Seth.

It wasn’t Seth.

“What are you doing in here?” he asked the Ky. He knew it was Ky because the other one only looked half as nuts as this one.

The kid pouted and whined, “hungry.”

Lucien frowned. “Didn’t your mama give you anything to eat?”

The baby boy wrinkled his nose. “I don’t like prinut.”

“You don’t?” Lucien asked, brows raised. He had to grudgingly admit the little bastard was adorable as fuck.

“It tastes like shit,” the kid grumbled causing a snort of laughter to burst from Lucien.

“Do your parents know you talk like that?”

Ky didn’t answer, but stared at Lucien with those huge eyes through the strands of crimson that fell over his face. His lower lip jutted out and trembled, completely melting Lucien’s heart.

Lucien sighed, rubbing the side of his neck. “If you promise not to kill me, I’ll let you open a vein.”

The baby boy gasped and rushed to hug Lucien’s legs, staring up at him in gratitude. The baby grinned, sharp little fangs gleaming in the dim light of the pilot’s cabin. “I wuv you, Uncle Luke.”

“Yeah-yeah. I’m only letting you do this once,” he told the child as he hefted him up into his arms. He shook his blond hair back and tipped his neck. “Your mama and pops want you to be a big boy now and start eating real food.”

Lucien shivered as the baby petted the side of his neck. He wasn’t even sure the kid heard a word he said. Ky was staring at his pulsing jugular with something akin to ecstasy.

His black eyes darted to Lucien’s face and he grinned, tiny dimples bracketing the sweet rosebud mouth. Lucien felt his whole body go lax.

He was experienced enough to know the kid was using power to lull him. Being just a baby, the realization astonished Lucien.

As Ky kissed his cheek and sniffed along his neck, Lucien wondered what other abilities the little weredragon twins had.

Teeth sank into his flesh and the sensation of bliss took him by surprise. It felt so good, he could just sit and let the baby drink his fill.

“Stop trying to roll my mind, Ky,” Lucien demanded. The little fucker was sneaky, but Lucien was over three hundred years old, had already been around the block a few times. He knew when a vampyric creature was trying to fuck him over, and this one was laying it on a little too thick.

Lucien grinned when the bite took on a more piercing sting. Patting Ky indulgently on his back, Lucien decided he kind of liked Remi’s kids.

A little gasp snapped Lucien’s attention to the entrance to the cabin.

Kaden stood there, eyes and mouth gaping.

“Hungwee too,” the other one blurted.

In a blink, the second baby weredragon was feeding at Lucien’s neck. Lucien hadn’t even seen him move. Kaden wrapped his arms and legs around Lucien, overlapping his brother, and sank his fangs deep. Lucien immediately felt the pull. His knees gave out beneath him and he fell into one of the seats behind him.

“Wait-no,” he commanded, his voice already weak, “Not at the same time. F-fffu—“

“I think he’s starting to wake up,” a woman’s voice informed.

Rowie?

“Oh, wait, I missed a spot.”

That had definitely been Remi.

Warmth suffused Lucien and a hot wet tongue laved at his neck, giving him goose bumps.

Lucien cracked his eyes open a sliver to see himself engulfed in Remi’s healing fire…and the bastard was licking his neck.

Lucien acted without thinking, kneeing Remi in the balls and shoving him back with a disgusted snarl.

Remi went down moaning, curling into a ball of misery as he cupped his bruised nuts.

“Baby,” Rowie wailed rushing to her lover. “God-damn-it, Luke. He was only trying to help you.”

“I thought the asshole liked pain. I was showing him my gratitude,” Lucien spat, rubbing his neck. He was a little surprised he hadn’t broken out in a cold sweat upon awakening to a male plastered against him, licking his neck. Fucking hell.

Amadashiel and Natanael were standing in the doorway to the pilot’s cabin chuckling.

“Enough wasting time” Seth snapped. “Time to haul out.”

The reapers moved away from the doorway as Seth reached over to retrieve a bundle of clothing. That’s when Lucien noticed everyone was wearing navy blue flight suits. “Luke, time to change the uniform. Use these for now and send your uniform back to your quarters. There can’t be anything that identifies us as Alpha Angels onboard.”

Lucien took the new uniform in his hands. After months of being cloistered aboard Alpha 7, he was finally leaving its safety.

The memory of Rayne up in her glass stasis unit filtered through his mind. She wouldn’t remember him when she was awakened. He’d be a total stranger to her.

Unable to help himself, he teleported into her room.

Cyneolle and Chameleon stood to either side of the glass unit.

“She’s not awake yet, is she?” he asked even though he knew they’d wait until he was no longer aboard Alpha 7.

“No,” Cyneolle replied.

“Could I have a few seconds with her…alone?”

The cyborgs turned on their heel and walked out without questioning his motives.

When the door to the small room closed, Lucien turned back to the glass stasis unit.

They had opened the top cover, but Rayne still slumbered peacefully.

“My sleeping beauty,” he whispered.

He traced the soft curve of her cheek with his finger, the delicate bow of her lips. She sighed and her sweet lips twitched as if she wanted to smile.

She was so tiny, so delicate, and sweet.

“My angel,” he groaned, dipping down to kiss her one last time. She moaned, giving him access to the hot moistness of her mouth. He devoured her, savoring the sweet innocence of her.

When her arms reached for him, he teleported out, back to the awaiting transport, the taste of her still in his mouth.

Seth was scowling when he flashed his clothing off and began pulling on his new flight suit.

“About fucking time,” the weretigri snarled.

“Just needed to take care of one last thing,” Lucien sighed yanking his flight suit up his torso.

“But we’ll be back. You’ll see Rayne again when we get back,” Remi said from his position in the navigator’s chair.

Lucien closed his suit and sat in one of the gunman’s chairs to pull on his boots. The new uniform had a tacky emblem of a little red devil inside an equally red circle with a line drawn through it.

“Really?” Lucien deadpanned..

“Aren’t you at least going to ask about Boy?” Remi said.

Lucien’s heart twisted painfully in his chest. Maybe it was from the ship moving clumsily around over the hangar. Right. Let’s go with that—he told himself.

Lucien pulled the seat harnesses over his torso and lap as Seth moved the craft to hover above the exit chute.

“Well?” Remi prodded in his usual irritating manner.

“No,” Lucien snapped.

He didn’t want to think about Boy or last night yet. He wasn’t ready to face what he had done.

“She” Remi said stressing the word, “is onboard. She’s going to be part of our crew.

She?

Was Boy still dressing as a female?

Lucien felt the back of his neck and palms begin to sweat as memories threatened to surface.

Remi clutched his arm as they hurtled through the different airlocks out of Alpha 7. “Technically, the battle pet is a true hermaphrodite, neither male nor female, but both.”

Lucien jerked his arm away. “I know that. So, technically you should call the battle pet an it then.”

Remi grinned molar to molar. “She wants to be a girl now. If you nail her enough, she’ll revert to full female.” Remi chuckled. “Gotta love Merulians, eh?”

Lucien turned away from the grinning red weredragon. “Fuck you, Fyre.”

“You’ll have two lovers, Lukey-boy. Think your dick can handle that many holes, man?’

“All of you better start using some form of birth control,” Seth grumbled. “Babies keep popping out the way they are, we’ll be able to populate our own planet.”

Lucien remained quiet, his heart hurting. What would that have been like…having both Raynes? He could almost see himself draped with one black, one white mane as they both sought to pleasure him.

Stupid me— he sighed internally.

He was cursed from birth. His life started out shitty and would always be shitty. Even now, Master Guardians hunted for him as well as demons. He could never have a true mate much less two…and definitely no children—ever. God only knew what he’d spawn, as the son of a fallen angel.

Rayne reached for the warmth that had awakened her. His taste was intoxicating, drugging…and she wanted more.

The passionate kiss ended just as she lifted her arms to hold him close, whoever he was.

Empty air greeted her searching hands for a moment before her left hand brushed soft feathers.

Frowning, she opened her eyes at the same time she sat up. To one side of her stood Chameleon, to the other, Cyneolle. It was Cyn’s feathered wing she clutched.

“How do you feel?” he asked, his face devoid of emotion.

Rayne smiled. Rising to her knees, she wrapped her arms around Cyneolle’s neck and slid her mouth over his. He flinched, but otherwise did not move.

Rayne drew her tongue across his mouth, trying to kiss him, but it was like licking a lifeless doll.

She released him with a pout. This wasn’t the person who’d kissed her.

Turning to Chameleon, she repeated the kiss with him instead. Chameleon responded, but it still wasn’t the same person. She released the second cyborg feeling a surge of sadness fill her.

“That was interesting,” the silver-haired cyborg commented touching his lips. He looked at Cyneolle. “Did you feel anything?”

Cyneolle’s green-flecked golden eyes shifted to Chameleon’s. “I felt her tongue make unusual contact across my oral opening.”

Rayne hunched her shoulders as she let out a dejected sigh. She must’ve been dreaming. The sun had been shining and a golden-haired angel hovered over her…or maybe he’d been a prince. He’d kissed her, warmed her from the inside out.

“Actually,” Chameleon continued, “It made me feel strange.”

“You also thought she’d make a meal of you?” Cyn asked, tipping his head to the side.

“No. I felt…” His brows drew together before his face went blank again. “It doesn’t matter. Perhaps I need to run a few diagnostic tests on myself. It has been a while.”

A pretty girl with raven tresses, much like Rayne’s, and glowing golden eyes, rushed into the room. “Am I too late? Is she…? Oh, Rayne,” she squealed with delight, before practically toppling Rayne over in an enthusiastic hug.

Alluna hugged her tight. “Oh, I wanted to be here when you opened your eyes.” She released her to lean back, grinning into Rayne’s face. “Happy birthday.”

“Birthday?” Rayne thought for a moment. A birthday was the anniversary of a birth. She frowned, feeling a bit confused. “It’s my birthday? Really?”

Alluna nodded. “The children and I prepared a picnic out by the lake in the envirolevel, but we gotta hurry. I left Jazz minding the babies, but I don’t like leaving them alone for too long. You’ll never know what they’ll get up to.”

Rayne’s mind hummed, processing all the information Alluna gave her as the girl helped her out of the stasis unit. They hurried out of the lab, waving to Dr Quinn on the way out.

Moments later, they were stripping at the entrance to the envirolevel, and then running down to the lake.

The babies were all there. Jazriel was helping little Ashniel stand, Kaden and Ky were chasing Ishana, Ivana, and Iliana around. The triplets were squealing and giggling in delight, their curly blonde hair bouncing in the sunlight.

Rayne pressed her hands to her concave belly. A memory came to her. She’d wanted a baby too. She’d been in a bed with two males, both blond. One she remembered clearly. He’d been shy and sweet as she sucked his cock, his face showing her the devastation she was wreaking upon him.

The other male…his scent was familiar, his body glorious and hair…a thousand shades of gold.

Her heart soon began to ache, and she felt her eyes fill. She loved him, wanted him…but she couldn’t remember his face or name.

Why? How could she love someone whose face or name she did not know.

She sat on the big pink blanket spread near the bank of the crystalline lake and remembered cuddling up next to him, only he’d been so thin, starving. She’d tried to entice him to eat, but he only turned his head away, silent.

Boy had been there too, but Boy was afraid of her. Again, she didn’t know why.

Her confusion augmented.

“Where are the others?” Rayne asked Alluna.

The girl turned to look at Rayne. “They’ve gone on a mission.”

Rayne could see and sense the sadness in Alluna. She blinked back tears before wiping them away to look back out toward the children.

Jazriel ambled over to Alluna and sat on her lap, a pout making his lower lip stick out adorably as he cupped her cheeks.

“It’s oaky, Jazzy,” she laughed with a little sniffle. “Momma and dada will be home soon, you’ll see.”

“Why were we left behind?” Rayne asked.

Alluna blinked at her. “Well, the babies couldn’t be left alone, for one. It was too risky taking them along.”

“There are thousands of reapers, both male and female aboard Alpha 7. You miss your mate, and I would have liked to join the mission.”

Alluna’s eyes widened. “Zak would never allow me to be in a situation where there might be danger. Besides, neither of us know how to fight.”

Rayne frowned, her mind going over all the information it contained. She had access to over a thousand different ways to battle an opponent, with or without a weapon.”

“I can fight,” she informed Alluna with a smile.

The girl’s eyes widened. “You can? But I thought…”

Though her skin was the color of deep golden caramel, Rayne saw how Alluna’s cheeks grew ruddier.

“What did you think?” Rayne asked, intrigued.

“Well.” Alluna began after nibbling her lower lip.

She opened her mouth to continue, but the sound of the girls squealing louder drew her attention.

Alluna screamed, jumping to her feet.

Rayne jolted up also, just in time to see two little dragons taking off into the air with the triplets, one of whom was holding onto one of the baby dragons’ tail.

Next to them, baby Ashniel laughed and clapped her hands, her jet-black wings fluttering excitedly behind her back as Jazriel whooped with glee.

One moment she’d been using Lucien’s bulging pectoral as a pillow, the next he’d just vanished, jolting Boy Rayne out of her slumber.

She’d sat up in the dark, rubbing scratchy eyes, and wondering where he’d gone.

Lucien cursed softly in the hygiene room drawing her attention, his voice a dark whisper within the gloom.

Boy’s hearts pounded at the sound.

And then, the hygiene unit activated, lighting him in a ray of soft blue light like a heaven sent angel.

He was glorious. Beautiful. Just looking at him, made Boy Rayne’s hearts ache. The frosted partition couldn’t disguise the fall of long blond hair sliding off bulky shoulders, or the perfectly sculpted body standing within the glass hygiene cylinder.

A fallen angel, that’s what he was—temptation incarnate.

She looked down at her body. Her breasts were still there, high and round, nipples two little points of need. Leaning back, she inspected the area between her legs. Her cock was erect making her gasp and slam her thighs shut.

Horrified, she stared in the direction of the hygiene room, desperately trying to tuck it back inside herself like last night, but she was still so full of Lucien’s cum, her cock kept springing back out. And was it her imagination, or was her cock actually growing? It looked longer and thicker.

It throbbed like a sore tooth. It wouldn’t bend or give, making it impossible to stuff back inside her pussy. If Lucien saw her cock…he hated men. He’d hate her too.

A sob bubbled up her throat.

Oh-no-oh-no-oh-no…

“Is it safe to come in?” a feminine voice called from the lounge area making Boy gasp.

Boy grabbed the rumpled black sheets and scrambled off the bed. There was nowhere to hide, and the females, because she could scent more than one, were coming closer.

Terror had her racing into the hygiene room…and tripping over the long sheet.

She crashed down into the glossy black floor, pain shooting bolts of fire into her belly.

When she lifted tear-filled eyes to Lucien, she discovered he was gone…again.

“Are you okay, sweetie?” a tentative voice asked.

Trembling started in Boy Rayne’s body, and she couldn’t help the snarl that erupted from her lips.

She clutched the sheet against her breasts tighter as she peered over her shoulder to bare fangs at the three women that stood there.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” the dark skinned woman named Anniel cooed. “We’re not going to hurt you.”

Rowie and Angel stood to either side of Anniel, Staring at Boy Rayne as if she’d lost her mind.

Boy Rayne stopped snarling. These women would never harm her. It was just instinct, the terror, the memories any and all women triggered within her.

Anniel bustled forward first. “Time to get ready, sweetheart,: she said with a warm smile. “We’re about ready to take off.”

The tall woman gripped Boy’s arm. Rowie came in too and gripped Boy’s other arm. They helped her up.

Boy clutched the sheet to her breasts, suddenly feeling shy about her nudity. Her unruly cock was still sticking up and semen was sliding down her thighs from her sore opening.

Rowie smiled at Boy, her hand gripping the sheet. “It’s okay, kiddo. Believe me, we’ve seen it all before.”

Boy gulped and relinquished the sheet as Angel tapped directives into the panel in the hygiene unit.

“One after marathon sex cleansing coming—“

Angel stopped speaking and gaped at Boy like the other two females.

Boy bit her lip and looked down her body.

Lucien had left little red marks everywhere. They’d bitten and shared blood too. One thing had never happened though. Lucien had never taken Boy’s ass…had never used Boy as a male bottom.

Boy cupped the breasts that adorned her chest…unsure of feeling comfortable as a full female.

“Hey,” Anniel said cocking her head to the side at Boy, “You okay?”

Boy nodded, moving forward into the hygiene unit. The blue rays of Lucien’s hygiene unit engulfed her body, cleaned her, filled her with vitality. Even her sore muscles were soothed. She was left feeling fresh and smelling of ocean breezes and wildflowers.

Clad in a form-fitting, dark blue flight suit, and shiny, black, knee-high boots, she allowed them to teleport her to the transport hangar.

When the time came to board one of the transports, Remi took her hand, Rowie the other.

“Come-on, sweetness. You’re coming with us,” Remi announced with a big grin.

Seth suddenly dashed out of one of the transports, his eyes wide. “Fyre. You’re kids are killing Lucien.”

Rowie cried out, and both her and her crimson-haired mate rushed within the decrepit looking craft Seth had dashed back into.

Killing Lucien?

The words finally registered in Boy Rayne’s mind, and she ran for the craft as well.

A pair of reapers blocked her way, a male, and a female.

Boy Rayne almost collided with their jet-black wings as they entered the transport ahead of her. She recoiled, terrified of the female death angel.

Thankfully, neither paid her any mind.

Still, Boy lingered behind them as they pretty much blocked the entire doorway where he could hear shouting and babies crying. The craft wasn’t very big and the reapers and their wings took up most of the interior space.

Enormous hands on her shoulders, had Boy Rayne jumping like a nervous cat.

“Easy, sweetness,” Zak grumbled easing past Boy with an apologetic half grin.

Zak wedged his six and half foot, muscular bulk between the reapers, excusing himself again. He went into the front compartment of the craft and then reappeared carrying a red-haired toddler in each arm.

The little boys had blood smeared on their lips and were sniffling, looking very repentant.

“You two are lucky you aren’t my boys. I may take a switch to your behinds yet,” Zak growled as he exited the transport.

There was allot of commotion within what Boy suspected was the cockpit of the transport. She heard Remi cry out in pain, and Lucien and Rowie’s voice afterwards.

The girl reaper turned, both her and the male chuckling. Her gaze roved Boy Rayne head to toe.

Boy backed away, but she stalked Boy until the back of Boy’s knees connected with the edge of a seat.

When Boy tipped back, falling into the seat that molded itself around her, she let out a warning snarl for the female reaper.

“Leave it alone,” Natanael said pulling Amadashiel away by one arm. “Go on and strap yourself in. We’re leaving,” he told the girl reaper with a frown. Turning back to Boy, he smiled and leaned down, his lips brushing over Boys in a soft kiss. “Hey, sexy. Let’s get you strapped in. You okay? You look a little green around the gills.”

Boy nodded. Truth be told, she felt a little queasy, but that was most likely due to all the stress she’d encountered since becoming conscious that waking cycle.

“Why so quiet? Did Lucien eat your tongue last night?” Natanael smirked wickedly. “Aside from other things?”

Boy felt her face heat.

Don’t tell anyone about what we just did— she recalled Lucien saying the night before.

“No,” Boy croaked out.

Natanael chuckled and gave her a light slap on the thigh before rising to his full seven-foot stature. “Right, pumpkin. He didn’t eat your tongue or anything else. He devoured it.”

Still chuckling, Natanael moved away and strapped himself into the seat across Boy Rayne.

From the cockpit, Boy Rayne could hear Seth yelling again and Remi laughing. Rowie’s voice threaded through the chaos.

“Where the hell did he pop off to?” Seth ranted. “I swear—“

Boy didn’t hear the rest because the female reaper swiveled her seat around to regard Boy with the eyes of a predator.

“So you’re a girl and a boy?”

Boy didn’t answer. Silver and black-flecked eyes drifted down Boy’s body. The reaper’s jutting nipples were about ready to poke through her skimpy attire.

She rested her elbow on the armrest of her seat and cocked her head to the side to nibble on a nail, still regarding Boy with hungry eyes.

“I’d love to fuck with you. You’re really pretty, you know that? I don’t think I’ve ever been with a Merulian before.”

Boy gulped.

When Boy didn’t say anything, Amadashiel frowned.

“Come-on, Dashy. Leave it alone,” Natanael admonished.

Amadashiel pouted at him. “You just want the battle pet for yourself.”

Natanael laughed softly. “I believe Boy’s ass has been claimed, sister.” He smirked at the girl reaper. “I’ll fuck you though, if you’re so desperate.”

Amadashiel huffed out a sigh and spun back around.

Boy looked back at Natanael who was silently mouthing at Boy—“stay away from her,” as he made a spinning motion with his finger near his temple.

“And stop telling it I’m crazy,” the girl reaper snapped still looking forward.

Natanael only chuckled.

The craft began to move. Boy dug her claws into the seat’s armrests and looked out through the tiny porthole opening by her seat.

The craft slowly turned and moved forward toward the enormous pulsing funnel-like tunnel in the center of the hangar. Moving over the funnel, it just hovered there a few minutes.

Something soft brushed against Boy’s knuckles. Looking down, she realized Natanael had spread a wing across the aisle toward her.

“Don’t be scared. If you want, hold my wing.” He grinned then. “Just don’t pull the feathers. That hurts.”

“You can pull my feathers,” the girl reaper said with a grin over her shoulder.

Boy stiffened when the sound of the engines revved louder. The transport tipped, nose pointing down into the center of the funnel. Boy began to pant and then grew dizzy when she felt gravity shift. Closing her eyes, she clung to the soft feel of Natanael’s primary flight feathers. A jolt and a few endless seconds of weightlessness made Boy’s stomach twist, and sweat beaded on her forehead.

“Baby, you oaky?” Natanael asked.

Her stomach heaved and she gagged, but since she hadn’t eaten anything that morning, nothing came out, only drool that slid down her chin to soil her pants.

Natanael unstrapped himself and knelt before her. Rummaging through a compartment just below the porthole window, he retrieved a dark grey cloth he used to wipe Boy’s face.

“Hey, newbie. You okay?”

Boy just groaned. She felt sick.

“Not used to launching?”

She shook her head.

“Talk to me, baby. Come-on. Tell me what you’re feeling.”

Boy eyes went to the closed door of the cockpit. So far, Lucien hadn’t said a word to her, hadn’t even acknowledged her existence after literally fucking her unconscious the night before.

Boy felt…hollow…empty…abandoned.

Natanael caressed the side of her face, understanding lighting his beautiful silver and black-flecked eyes. “I know how it feels, cutie pie. Been there, walked the walk.”

The girl reaper leaned forward, having turned her seat again. “The trick is making it not matter. Just fuck someone else…and then another and another until the faces are all just a blur in your mind.” Her eyes glazed over, lost in her own thoughts. “Always works for me,” she said softly. “I never let myself love anyone. No one will ever love me anyway, right? Fuck ‘em all.”

Natanael frowned at her, but Amadashiel just turned her seat around again with a sigh.

After staring at the back of the girl reaper’s seat for a few seconds, Natanael gave a little shake of his head and regarded Boy Rayne.

“Don’t listen to that. Everybody deserves love in their life. Sometimes it just takes longer for some people to find it.” He grinned. “I haven’t lost hope, and I’ve been looking for one hundred and fifty years. I was defiled when I was only sixty years old, so I’m still just a kid practically.” Natanael’s gaze searched Boy’s. “You feeling any better?”

“A little,” she answered.

“They’re speeding us along, at least until we’re far enough from Alpha 7 to keep it from being detected. Once we’re far enough away, they’ll actually pilot this thing for real until we reach our destination. Ever been to Crimbregeere Six?”

Boy knew where the planet was. It was part of the information the Gorgundt cap had stuffed into his head. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been there. When I was an arena fighter, we were transported in crates. I only ever saw the back rooms were the cages were kept and the arenas.”

The unbidden memories of those horrific days replayed in her mind, the struggle to remain alive.

Natanael kissing the knuckles of her right hand brought her out of that dark place.

“Want to play a game?”

“Game?” boy repeated.

Natanael grinned. Standing back up he flipped a metallic-like hood over Amadashiel’s head.

“Hey,” she exclaimed in protest.

The hood was centered over each seat. Natanael pulled one over Boy Rayne’s head as well.

“All three of us can play,” he said laughing.

Boy just stared at the sight of space stretching out everywhere around her. The inside of the bubble-shaped hood projected an extremely realistic holographic reproduction of the immensity of space. The image shifted and suddenly Boy found herself sitting at the helm of a transport with both reapers. Natanael sat between her and Amadashiel.

“So what are we playing?” Amadashiel asked.

Natanael gestured to the front view screen.

Before them, a glowing red cloud of hundreds of other transports approached.

Wait. Not transports, but armed Vipers.

“We’re going to play a little game of war,” Natanael growled with a diabolical chuckle.

They’d played for what seemed like hours. After running the Vipers space war scenario three times, Natanael switched to a post-apocalyptic city scene and they battled legions of demons and devils.

At first, boy kept getting killed, but by the third run of the game, she was leaving both Natanael and Amadashiel stunned with how well she fought the different levels of demons and devils.

Boy had been designed to learn to fight quickly, study his opponents, and learn their weaknesses.

Afterwards, all three had worked up an appetite, and they’d moved a little farther back within the transport and shared a meal.

Boy wolfed down three twelve inch subs, stuffed with various meats, cheeses and veggies. Natanael introduced him to the wonders of carbonated drinks, cookies, and ice cream.

Stuffed like never before, Boy had practically crawled back to her seat and nodded off the minute the chair fitted itself around her new feminine curves.

Dreams formed, a new world, new sensations.

He was still hungry.

He?

Boy drew in a deep breath as he settled into a stiff bucket seat within a lumbering transport. Remi and Seth were to either side of him and they drove through an ancient forest. The trees were bare, thick limbs knotted toward a sky overcast with roiling black clouds. The two lane road wove through the darkness, the only sound the low hum of the engines in the transport.

He felt agitated, restless…angry. Biting back a snarl, he stood from his seat and headed to the back of the transport.

Girl lay on one of the bunks, naked, her legs spread as she touched her breasts. His mouth watered as his eyes focused on the succulent pink of her sex.

“Master,” she whispered, “fuck me.”

Boy jolted awake, feeling confused. In the dream…he’d wanted to lash out, hurt her, punish her.

Girl Rayne. She’d stayed behind in the stasis unit she was so terrified of. Guilt filled Boy, as well as the overwhelming need to hold her.

Hours later, Seth came out and sauntered toward the back. Natanael stood and went into the cockpit.

Boy felt tempted to follow but was terrified of the welcome Lucien would give her. Why hadn’t he come out or tried to communicate telepathically?

Boy huffed out a sigh. They were all linked. Lucien didn’t want anyone to know about him and Boy.

That was still confusing as well. Why did he want to keep their coupling secret? Everyone had seen Lucien practically drag Boy out of the playroom.

Was he ashamed?

The thought settled uneasily into the pit of Boy’s stomach.

Amadashiel hummed quietly to herself as she flicked through different scenes on a small electronic pad she held.

After a while, Remi and Rowie came out of the cockpit as well. Rowie was smirking, trying to get Remi’s roving hands off her breasts as he groped her from behind.

“We are going to sleep, you horn-ball,” she said trying to sound stern. Failing miserably.

Remi gave a little growl as he nipped at her neck. “Sure thing, babe, Right after I fuck you cross-eyed.”

Rowie gave a little squeal of surprise when he cupped her between the legs and pinched her. “Remi,” she cried out trying to swat his rump behind her.

They ambled down the transport toward the back.

Boy sighed dejectedly, just before Amadashiel got up and walked into the cockpit as well.

The girl reaper didn’t seem to care about possibly being rejected.

Boy wished she could be just as brave. She had no reason to go in there except seek Lucien’s company…and she was sure he wouldn’t like that. Not if they were keeping their whatever-it-was-they-had a secret.

All the food she’d eaten was making her belly ache so she stood and headed back into one of the narrow hygiene booths.

The pants portion of her flight suit had a strip of material that detached, exposing her genitals. Boy relieved herself, and activated the cleansing rays of the unit to refresh her body. The rays freshened up the appearance of the flight suit as well as reached through the cloth to invigorate her body.

She decided to loosen her hair from the braid Angel had plaited it into and shook it free. It fell into a shimmering white blond cascade down her back, covering her pointed ears.

Staring at her reflection a bit longer, she wondered if Lucien found her pretty. The room had been so dark last night. In a way, it was probably better that way. Had he noticed boy’s cock when he’d slid his inside her.

A little tremor made her shudder and her flaccid cock twitch deep inside her pussy.

She bit her lips, pushing the memories away lest her dick grow hard again and spring out of her. It would be hard to conceal with the form-fitting flight suit.

With another dejected sigh, boy palmed open the door to the tiny booth.

She’d barely lifted her foot to step out when a hard solid body slammed into her.

Boy was pressed back into the hygiene booth, her back meeting the wall hard enough to make her vision swim as two hundred plus pounds of aroused male pinned her there.

Lucien’s mouth covered hers, his tongue thrusting in, plundering, conquering, dominating. Boy was left a quivering mass of heightened nerves. Inside her pussy, her own cock throbbed and twitched, but thankfully didn’t pop out. It had grown so long, Boy was sure it would never come out unless it deflated…and that wasn’t happening anytime soon.

“Nat told me you’d gotten sick,” Lucien murmured against her lips before leaning back to study her face. His fingers deftly opened the top of her flight suit until her breasts spilled out. He massaged her aching mounds, pinching the nipples gently. “Can you get pregnant?”

Boy felt the color leave her face. She wasn’t sure. “I’ve been bred countless times and it’s never happened.”

Lucien dipped his head and suckled at her breasts, making boy jolt and wince every time he used his teeth to nip.

“Maybe we can get you on something just in case. I usually take a shot, but it’s been years.”

Lucien nipped back up Boy’s neck before hauling her up in his arms. “I need to fuck you now though.” He pressed between Boy’s legs, letting her feel the hard ridge of flesh bulging there.

Had he not held Boy up off the floor, she would have fallen to a heap on the floor.

Lucien kneaded boy’s buttocks, staring at her lips. “I want your ass.”

Boy froze. That was his male opening. Fucking him there would bring out his male traits again.

He felt her stiffen in his arms. When Natanael had told him she’d dry heaved after takeoff and had remained pale and drawn hours afterward, Lucien had worried. When Remi had laughed and said that maybe Lucien had probably scored a hit, a-k-a, next in line for daddy-hood, Lucien had almost puked himself.

Boy Rayne’s breasts still looked the same. Anniel’s nipples had darkened when she’d gotten pregnant from Garethiel. Boy’s were still pale-pale pink.

Lucien wasn’t even remotely drunk, but his body craved Boy’s with a fervor that shamed him.

“You’ve been taken anally before, baby. Didn’t you like it?”

Boy turned her head.

Disappointment zinged through Lucien. He wanted inside the battle pet so bad, but at the same time felt terror at possibly unintentionally getting her pregnant. Especially after Rowie told him of her only encounter with a Merulian male she’d once dated way before Remi joined Alpha 7. Only male Merulians got pregnant, especially interacting with Edenians. They usually needed a female of their own species, but their biology allowed them to also reproduce quite spectacularly with Edenian humans, male or female.

Boy had been more male than female before. Why he’d suddenly changed into a she, Lucien was not sure, but Natanael assured him that if she was continually used as a she, she would retain her female traits, although Boy would always be hermaphrodite.

Lucien was only happy to help Boy stay a girl. Still, he didn’t want to take the risk of getting her pregnant so soon after switching to female. Some of her male characteristics might still be viable and the threat of pregnancy very real.

She hadn’t given him permission to take her anally, and his cock was about ready to explode in his pants at the sight of her flaxen tresses streaming down in pretty waves around her high, pink-tipped tits.

“I can suck you,” she whispered shyly.

Lucien toes curled within his boots as he bit his lips. Her voice was sexy as fuck. A little deep and husky. Had it been that way last night?

“You won’t come that way. I want to hear you come,” he rasped against her ear as he licked the points. She shivered and moaned.

Good enough.

He let her down and spun her around. As he ripped open the flap between her legs, she grappled against the wall.

“Wait.” He heard the panic in her voice.

“Easy, baby,” he crooned in her ear as he freed himself. “You don’t want me to take your ass. I understand. I won’t, but someday you’re going to let me.”

He found her female opening and thrust inside.

Slick wet heat engulfed him, tighter than before, he was sure. He had to stop and take a few deep breaths to get his bearings.

“Fuck, baby. Shit. It’s like this is the first time anyone’s ever stretched this hole.” He palmed her breasts. “Does it hurt, sweetheart? I’ll pull out f it does. Is it my fault? Did I use you so hard last night--?”

“Please,” Boy cried out, making him wince. “Just fuck me already.”

Demanding battle pet.

Lucien didn’t hesitate. His groin slapped against Boy’s ass, their panting filling the enclosed hygiene booth. The space was cramped, barely enough room to move, but he fucked her ruthlessly. Poor Boy’s face was mashed against the wall, her ass tilted back for Lucien. He felt her squeeze, shudder, and cry out as she reached her first peak surprisingly fast.

Lucien gripped her breasts hard, the taut mounds filling his hands nicely. He pounded her harder, his vision already clouding with his impending release. Yeah. That soon. It stunned him

Boy cried out again, making him wonder how sound proof the hygiene booths were.

“Let me cum in your ass, baby. I’ll make it feel so good,” he growled.

Boy groaned, muttered something between clenched teeth.

“Say yes, baby,” he begged.

‘Lucien,” boy let out on a sob.

Good enough.

Lucien slid out and rimmed her back opening with the tip of his cock, preparing her. He was close to the edge, too close. So close that the minute he began sliding into that tight hot hole he began to come. “Fuck, oh-fuck, baby. So fucking good,” he shouted.

Boy was crying out too, her hand buried between her legs, pumping. The thought that maybe she was stroking her own cock had Lucien spurting harder.

He would analyze that reaction later when he wasn’t balls deep in the ass of a Merulian.

Delicious tingles ran up and down his body. He continued to massage Boy’s breasts, panting near her ear. When he tried to kiss her cheek, she turned her face away.

“You okay, Rayne?”

She nodded, irking him. “Talk,” he insisted tightly.

“Yes,” she retorted back.

Had he detected a bit of belligerence in her tone?

Unsure of what to say to her, he adjusted his clothing. He didn’t know what to say, but he just didn’t want to walk out and leave her there without saying something.

“Rayne—“

“I just need a moment to clean myself up, okay?’ she said, her shoulders hunched, head bowed.

He brushed a kiss against her sweaty neck and shot out of the booth…headlong into Remien Fyre.

“Fuck. What the hell are you doing out here?”

“I was on my way to get something to drink.” Remi said, eyes all wide and innocent.

Bullshit. Lucien knew the meddlesome weredragon had heard the whole scene inside the hygiene booth. The fucker most likely had his ear pressed against the door the whole time.

Scowling at him, Lucien turned on his heel and headed back into one of the sleeping cabins.

“Hey, that one is where Row and I are sleeping. Go crash with Seth next door.”

“Not on your life, asshole, You go sleep with him.” he tossed over his shoulder. To a surprised Rowie he said, “Move over, sweetheart. I’m bushed. Nice whip by the way. Your man comes near me while we all sleep, I’ll choke him with it.”