Narzek Gets A New Cover

Narzek is a passionate sexy romance set in space opera where a small fleet of Farseek Warriors enter enemy space to retrieve people abducted from their world after a sneak attack. Love doesn’t always come when it’s convenient, but it’s worth fighting for when it feels this right.

On her way to a desert war zone Cayla Fox was abducted from Earth by alien slavers.

Sold into slavery she worked long hours for a hard bed and barely enough food. After a year, she has lost hope of ever regaining her freedom or going home.

Until the alien warrior comes to rescue her and the others abducted from various worlds. A shock of attraction flashes between them that draws her to him.

The gorgeous alien calls her solmatuandsends her to his warship instead of the passenger ship with the rest of the rescued slaves. Though Cayla would be safer, she is his soul mate. Neither can deny the attraction between them. As the heat of passion rises between them, so does the danger level of their mission.

Narzek feels guilty for exposing his soul mate to the dangers he faces.

Yet from the first kiss, he can’t find the will to let her go. From the day she was abducted Cayla longed to go home, but how can she leave the man she is growing to love?

Will they even survive long enough for their dream of a future together to come true?

Narzek is Available for Pre-Order

Lieutenant Commander Narzek Pardantu’s family was counted among the missing after the Sargan bombed his world to ruin and stole the survivors to make them slaves of the Sargus Empire. With most of his own family still missing, Narzek volunteered for the next mission to search them with half of the Farseek Brigade’s small fleet of ten dreadnaughts. The other half would remain to protect the Farseek system as their homes and infrastructure were being rebuilt.

When he finds his solmatu or soulmate, he uses his rank to have her brought aboard Dreadnaught Ten instead of sending her to the passenger ship with the rest of the rescues.

Then he has to explain it to Cayla Fox, who was abducted from Earth and forced into slavery in the Sargus Empire. As the heat of passion rises between them, so does the danger level of their mission.
Will they survive the mission so they can return to Farseek to have the life they were planning together?

Contains explicit sex scenes, no cheating, HEA

Pre-Order for Delivery on November 28.

Click Here to read the first two chapters of Narzek

Coming Soon From T.J. Quinn

Arantxa thought her best friend was crazy to even think about applying to an alien matchmaking agency to find a husband. Samantha thinks it’s a great opportunity for them to escape their mundane lives and get husbands. She will even pay Arantxa fee. She finally gets Arantxa to agree with plans for them to only look for mates on the same planet.

When Samantha finds her mate first, Arantxa convinces her she should go ahead and meet him. With Samantha gone, Arantxa decides to take a chance on a man named Biurk from the same planet. Things start to go haywire from there.

Instead of letting her use the agency transport, he convinces her to let him send a ship for her. Arantxa has her suspicions that things aren’t quite right but she tamps down her doubts.

The ship is seized by pirates who kidnap her to sell as a sex slave. But before they arrange to sell her they take her back to their planet and amuse themselves by torturing her and the ship’s crew.

So Biurk hires a mercenary to rescue. Arantxa. She feels an unexpected attraction to Korben who is sent to rescue her. A wrong turn and a missing communicator leave them lost in the forest alone together.

Feeling dutybound to give Biurk a chance to court her, Arantxa fights the growing attraction to Korben. Only vaguely humanoid compared to Biurk, Arantxa doesn’t understand this illogical fascination with this alien who no one would mistake for human.

Nothing is quite as it seems nor do all the pieces fall together until almost the very end.

Axel Rex Sample – Final Draft

Prologue:

Cyborgs were in the development stages before the interstellar war with the Mesaarkans to augment the Federation defense force.

They were the Vikings of the future, part man and part machine designed, bred and conditioned to find the darkness in their souls to kill the enemies of mankind.

They fought a hundred-year war that left Earth in ruin. Although they were bred to kill, Admiral Carson Gregor, a man of vision, believed they could be repurposed. So, cyborg Vyken Dark came back with a few of his brothers to help rebuild civilization on Earth.

When he returned, he discovered thousands of cyborgs created as he was still in stasis ready and waiting to be awakened. Educated and trained via virtual reality while in stasis, they would provide the manpower for the monumental task of rebuilding Earth.

Axel Rex was one of those cyborgs awakened for the job. In the first weeks after his awakening he had been awed by Vyken Dark and his brothers who had fought in the interstellar war. They were legendary to those cyborgs in virtual reality. His first year in life in the real world started with mundane farming tasks for the Enclave of New 

Chicago. He displayed leadership qualities valued by those in command and moved up in the ranks.

Axel Rex Personal Log:

I am a cyborg, a cybernetically enhance human being, created from a human embryo. My brain is enhanced with a fully integrated biocomputer, scanners, enhanced sight, hearing and olfactory senses. My skeleton is made from a metal alloy.

I was made to fight the interstellar war with the Mesaarkans that destroyed almost every major city on Earth, but I remained in stasis for 80 years until the war ended. I lived in virtual reality while in stasis, educated and trained for war, but I was finally awakened after the war ended and four cyborg brothers returned to Earth to help rebuild. On awakening I was additionally programmed for the rebuilding and to maintain law and order.

I spent a year working for the Civil Restoration Enclave in old Chicago. We rescued the people living in the ruins then demolished the tattered buildings and moved away the wreckage to rebuild the city. Thousands of cyborgs were awakened that year to help.

When the United Galactic Federation of Worlds asked us to build an interstellar spaceport in a city called Farringay to the east, none of the cyborgs agreed with that location. We wanted it built in New Chicago. But Cyborg Command made it an order.

Cyborg Jolt Somber, who was put in charge of the project, chose me to become second in command. A few months into the project, Commander Somber found his female Iris beaten, raped and left for dead in the ruins. Unfortunately, that was their first meeting. Jolt found her in time, but there were other complications.

Two Months Ago

“I need you to finish the Farringay Starport project for me, Axel,” Jolt said through our Cyborg-net.

“Sir?” I responded in surprise. I didn’t see that coming. “We’re not even half-finished, and you still call me Newbie.”

“You were trained for this in your new programming. There is no reason you can’t take over. The Federation is sending engineers to supervise the construction. Your job will be to supervise the cyborgs.”

“May I ask where you will be?”

“I’m taking Iris to live in the mountains. She is a dawning psion, and the growing population at the Enclave is too much for her psyche to handle before she learns to shut out other people’s random thoughts.” Jolt explained. “I won’t risk Iris’s sanity for the damn starport project that should never have been started in Farringay.”

“It has always seemed strange to me, as well. New Chicago is better situated to support and run it. They are not making any improvements to the city outside the compound… Not even to clear away the ruins and reclaim the land.”

“If I had to guess, I’d say that Alexander Berke has something to do with this. Vyken and I both think he has someone high up in the Federation Council in his pocket. That’s the only way to make sense out of putting an interstellar spaceport in the middle of a ruined city without rebuilding it.”

“Except for Berke’s compound was barely half a klick away. He was going to provide the spaceport with a myriad of vices to satisfy the eclectic desires of space travelers of whatever species that come this way,” I said. “Before we razed it.”

“I seriously doubt we’ve seen the last of him. He was long gone before his place was demolished. I’d wager he is hiding out somewhere regrouping his enforcers and looking for backers to rebuild,” Jolt said. “And we won’t be sanctioned to stop him.”

“But we’ll get everyone out we can so they don’t get forced into serving in the brothels or the fight clubs.”

“That would be my plan. The Enclave says they can take all who want to come. They just have to agree to do their share of the work.”

“So, what are you going to do? Hide out in the mountains?”

“Iris is my number one priority. Once she gets control of her ability, I will be running protective services for the Eastern rural communities of the Enclave. Bodee Flint will be trained to become my second in command,” Jolt related.

“That lucky bugger! Not only does he get a gorgeous female when he’s not even looking, but a new job dropped into his lap. I’ve been out a whole year longer than he was, and I get this nightmare project.”

“He had at least one chance in 500, just like the rest of you. The female needed a mate, and Bodee was expendable, so to speak. A cyborg laborer is not that hard to replace, but the kid has potential. You could still find your female in the ruins somewhere. If not, when you finish the starport complex you can come work for me.”

“I think I would like that whether I find my female or not,” I said.

“I’ll keep that in mind. If all goes well, you should finish in about four months.”

I don’t see that happening, but I will do my best.

Chapter One

“Sir, the female in that old apartment building refuses to vacate and we are ready to throw in the demolition grenades.” Sparks Jammer reported over the cyborg net that connected them.

“Then she must be removed,” Axel replied. “Can’t any of you remove one female from a building? She can’t hurt you while you are wearing full battle armor.”

“But we could hurt her without even meaning to. None of us have ever touched a live female before.”

Axel frowned inside his own armor. He had never touched a live one either. Most females would just run out of the buildings once they announced eminent destruction. “I will go,” he said.

He found the young woman hiding behind what was left of a support wall on the ground floor. Axel moved in stealth mode so she never heard him coming. She screamed when he gripped her upper arm without warning. He was very careful he didn’t grip too tightly, otherwise he could break her arm with the cybernetic gloves attached to his armor.

She screamed and tried to wrench her arm from his grip as he pulled her from her hiding place.

“Let me go you fucking robot! I live here… I didn’t do anything! Let me go!” the female screamed as Axel Rex escorted her from the building.

“I am not a robot,” he corrected. “I am a cyborg in full battle armor.”

“I don’t care who you fucking are. You have no right,” she hissed. “I don’t wanna go anywhere. Let go of my arm.”

“I apologize if I have caused you pain. If you are in that building when we demolish it, you will die.” Axel didn’t stop until he had her outside the building.

“No, you can’t! Sammy’s in there. You have to let me get him. Please don’t kill my cat. He’s my best friend,” she pleaded.

Axel retracted the helmet of his armor and looked down at the disheveled and dirty female in his grasp. Her amber flecked green eyes shimmered with the hint of tears as she said the last, and something stirred in him as her scent reached his nostrils. Even under the smell of her unwashed body, he noted a more subtle scent that put his body on alert.

The foul-mouthed female in his grasp was his female. He blinked and wondered if fate was playing a joke on him. My female? This is my female!

For a moment, the utter joy of the discovery stunned him. He sniffed to catch the scent again to be sure he wasn’t mistaken. He wasn’t.

“Please, you can’t kill my cat,” she cried, trying to wrench her arm from his grasp.

“Your cat?” he said, frowning as he stared down at her, thinking she might be attractive under that stringy dark hair and layers of dirt.

“Yes. I’ve had Sammy since he was a baby.”

Axel looked back at the tattered building he was about to destroy and scanned it with his internal sensors. There was a small feline hiding in some rubble at ground level. From previous observations, he knew that people living in the city ruins valued their animal companions.

“I have orders to destroy all the buildings in this area. I will let you go back to get your cat if you agree to come back out,” Axel told her. “Do you also have belongings you wish to recover?”

She shook her head, staring up at him. “Nothing worth saving except Sammy. But where are we going to live if you destroy my building?”

“Go get your cat, and we will talk about it.” He released her, and she nodded. He watched her pick her way through the rubble as another shock of excitement raced through his mind and body. Mine, he thought.

Her body was lean and graceful, a bit too lean, but not surprising considering how people lived in the ruins of Farringay. Her hips swayed just a bit, clad in a ragged pair of shorts that barely covered her ass. Her muscular legs were shapely and her back straight. Her stringy brownish hair hung to her shoulders.

Axel’s mind was racing as joy continued erupting inside him. He didn’t even know her name yet, and he was wondering how to break it to her that she was his. At least she wasn’t gravely injured and defiled as Jolt Somber’s mate had been. But he didn’t think this claiming would be so easy as Bodee Flint’s had been either. Bodee’s mate had come looking for him.

Axel used his cybernetic internal scanner to follow her progress, waiting patiently for her to emerge with the cat she claimed. She picked up the cat from its hiding place, only instead of coming back to where Axel waited for her, she exited through a window at the back of the building.

“Spark,” Axel called over the internal cyborg network. “The female is running. I’m going after her. The building is clear. Take it down.”

“Yes, sir,” his lieutenant responded. If his second in command wondered why he was going after the female, he didn’t ask. Axel wasn’t surprised. People frequently ran when the cyborgs commanded them to leave the ruins of buildings, they called home. Axel had never gone after any of them. None of them had been his female.

Axel ran in a parallel direction from the female, calculating where he could intersect with her route. He cut through an alley just ahead of her, stepping out in time to catch her before she ran smack into him.

She squealed as his hands gripped her upper arms. “Let me go,” she screamed. “Let me go.” Her eyes sparkled with anger as she stared up at him, clutching a big yellow tiger cat to her chest.

“I can’t. I won’t hurt you,” Axel asserted, staring down at her. “But someone else might. I can protect you.”

“I’ve done fine by myself until now,” she muttered. “I run fast and hide well. I don’t need your help.”

“Yes, you do. Where are you going to live? What are you going to eat? You are only one female. You have no weapons. If the gangers catch you, they just might kill you after they all rape you.”

“It hasn’t happened yet.”

“But it has happened to other females here. I can take you to a safe place where you can get food and shelter.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t want to go with you. Why do you even care, cyborg?”

“Clearly you don’t sense it the way I do, or you wouldn’t ask.” Axel hesitated. If he just blurted it out, she probably wouldn’t believe him. “Just come back to the barracks with me, and I will explain it to you while you have something to eat. Then, you can get cleaned up.”

“And if I don’t want to stay?”

“I hope I can convince you that you do.” He gave her a faint grin and loosened his hold on her arms. “Will you tell me your name?”

She caught her breath as she looked up into his steel-grey eyes. The faint smile he gave her softened his features and stirred things inside her that she didn’t know she could feel. …Things she didn’t want to feel for the big cyborg. A man like him could kill in the blink of an eye with no weapons. Would he do that to her if she didn’t do what he asked?

“L-Layna Rose,” she stammered. The way he was looking at her made her realize that killing her was not what he had in mind. He wanted her, and he wasn’t going to let her go. That excited her almost as much as it frightened her. “Can I bring Sammy?”

“As you wish,” he said. “Come, our transport isn’t far from here.”

Just then, an explosion sounded from one of the buildings being demolished. Layna’s cat startled and dug his claws into her arm, trying to get away. “Sammy, no. Shh, it won’t hurt you.”

“We should go,” Axel said. “There will be more explosions. We have to clear ten square kilometers from this area for the new starport and employee residences.”

“Where are all those people going to go?”

“There is an Enclave near New Chicago. We have been transporting people to join one of their communities out there,” Axel explained. “This way.” Axel pointed and rested a gloved hand low on her back to urge her to walk with him.

While they were walking, he summoned the pilot for the hover transport to take them back to the industrial complex that served as their base for the starport project. It was the closest building intact near Farringay that was large enough to hold the 500 cyborgs who were doing the demolition work and securing the perimeter of the project area. Axel was more than capable of flying the transport, but his crews would need it to return to base at sunset.

He didn’t want to leave Layna on her own until he settled some things with her. As they boarded the vehicle, Axel considered that it might all go better after she had a meal, a shower, and fresh clothes.

Ten minutes later, they were landing at the cyborg base. The old industrial complex consisted of four enormous connected buildings set in a rectangle with a once-grand courtyard in the center. The courtyard was overgrown with weeds and tall grass.

The cyborgs made little effort to improve the place. It only needed to serve them for several months while they demolished the ruins and built the starport, with housing for the employees, and support businesses for the community. It would be a gated community with security.

“It’s not much to look at,” Axel said as they went inside. “But it’s safe here. Do you want some food before you get cleaned up?”

“Yes, I do. I haven’t eaten since yesterday, and all Sammy had was a small mouse he caught,” she said to him.” 

“Okay,” he said, “I will take you to the mess station after we stop at the armory so I can remove my armor.”

They had entered through a door by the hovercraft bay, and he guided her across it to a second door that opened into a long corridor. Axel stopped at the first room on the right. It was filled with rows of open storage chambers. The cyborg stopped at the first one, turned and backed into it.

His armor pulled away from his body as if by magic and attached itself to the walls inside, leaving him stark naked. It didn’t occur to him that he should have warned Layna until he saw her staring like she couldn’t look away. He suppressed a smirk, knowing his body was perfectly toned and proportioned with well-defined muscles, and he was amply hung.

He wasted no time taking his khaki cargo pants from the shelf on his right and pulling them on. He pulled on a black t-shirt over his head and tucked it into his pants. He stepped out of the chamber, fully dressed and steered Layna back out into the hallway.

The wide corridor was lined with large rooms on both sides that were filled with rows of bunks stacked two high. The mess area was located in the open area past the bunk rooms. Food processors were set near the wall to the right with six rows of long tables set back from the bank of food dispensers.

Axel led Layna to the food line. “Can you read, Layna?”

“Only a little. My mom started to teach me, but she was gone before I learned more than basic words.”

“Is she dead?” Axel asked.

“I don’t know. Mom disappeared one day and never came back,” Layna said with a sigh. “I’m sure something happened that she couldn’t come back or she would have. She could be dead.”

“I am sorry for your loss,” Axel said sincerely. “What would you like to eat?”

“I mostly eat meat, whatever I can catch or kill, mostly small animals: squirrels, rats, rabbits. I find greens and fruit sometimes in the growing season.”

“Here we have cultured meat and eggs, vegetables, and fruit, pasta and various mixtures of everything. We also have coffee, tea, and various fruit drinks.”

Layna looked up at him and shrugged. “Pick something that you think is good. And some meat for Sammy.” She set the cat on the floor.

“Aren’t you afraid your cat will run away?” he asked, but that cat simply sat on the floor by her chair.

“No, he usually follows me wherever I go. There is no blasting here to scare him,” she said.

END OF SAMPLE

Axel Rex Chapter One

 

Chapter One

 

“Let me go you fucking robot! I live here… I didn’t do anything! Let me go!” the female screamed as Axel Rex escorted her from what was once a luxury apartment building in a city called Farringay.

“I am not a robot,” he corrected. “I am a cyborg in full battle armor.”

“I don’t care who you fucking are. You have no right,” she hissed. “I don’t wanna go anywhere. Let go of my arm.”

“I apologize if I have caused you pain. If you are in that building when we demolish it, you will die.” Axel didn’t stop until he had her outside the building.

“No, you can’t Sammy’s in there. You have to let me get him. Please don’t kill my cat. He’s my best friend,” she pleaded.

Axel receded the helmet of his armor and looked down at the disheveled and dirty female in his grasp. Her amber flecked green eyes shimmered with the hint of tears as she said the last, and something stirred in him as her scent reached his nostrils. Even under the smell of her unwashed body, a more subtle scent that put his body on alert.

The foul-mouthed female in his grasp was his female. He blinked and wondered if fate was playing a joke on him. My female? This is my female!

For a moment, the utter joy of the discovery stunned him. He sniffed to catch the scent again to be sure he wasn’t mistaken. He wasn’t.

“Please, you can’t kill my cat,” she cried, trying to wrench her arm from his grasp.

“Your cat?” he said, frowning as he stared down at her, thinking she might be attractive under that stringy dark hair and layers of dirt.

“Yes. I’ve had Sammy since he was a baby.”

Axel looked back at the tattered building he was about to destroy and scanned it with his internal sensors. There was a small feline hiding in some rubble at ground level. From previous observations, he knew that people living in the ruins valued their animal companions.

“I have orders to destroy all the buildings in this area. I will let you go back to get your cat if you agree to come back out,” Axel told her. “Do you also have belongings you wish to recover?”

She shook her head, staring up at him. “Nothing worth saving except Sammy. But where are we going to live if you destroy my building?”

“Go get your cat, and we will talk about it.” He released her, and she nodded. He watched her pick her way through the rubble as another shock of excitement raced through his mind and body. Mine, he thought.

Her body was lean and graceful, a bit too lean, but not surprising considering how people lived in the ruins of Farringay. Her hips swayed just a bit, clad in a ragged pair of shorts that barely covered her ass. Her muscular legs were shapely and her back straight. Her stringy brownish hair that hung to her shoulders.

Axel’s mind was racing as joy continued erupting inside him. He didn’t even know her name yet, and he was wondering how to break it to her that she was his. At least she wasn’t gravely injured and defiled as Jolt Somber’s mate had been. But he didn’t think this claiming would be so easy as Bodee Flint’s had been either. His mate had come looking for him.

He used his cybernetic internal scanner to follow her progress, waiting patiently for her to emerge with the cat she claimed. She picked up the cat from its hiding place, only instead of coming back to where Axel waited for her, she exited through a window at the back of the building.

Spark,” Axel called over the internal cyborg network. “The female is running. I’m going after her. The building is clear. Take it down.”

“Yes, sir,” his lieutenant responded. If his second in command wondered why he was going after the female, he didn’t ask. Axel would tell him if he wanted Spark to know. But it was unusual. People frequently ran when the cyborgs commanded them to leave the ruins of buildings, they called home. Axel had never gone after any of them. Then it dawned on Spark that the female must be his.

Axel ran in a parallel direction from the female, calculating where he could intersect with her route. He cut through an alley just ahead of her, stepping out in time to catch her before she ran smack into him.

She squealed as his hands gripped her upper arms. “Let me go,” she screamed. “Let me go.” Her eyes sparkled with anger as she stared up at him, clutching a big yellow tiger cat to her chest.

“I can’t. I won’t hurt you,” Axel asserted, staring down at her. “But someone else might. I can protect you.”

“I’ve done fine by myself until now,” she muttered. “I run fast and hide well. I don’t need your help.”

“Yes, you do. Where are you going to live? What are you going to eat? You are only one female. You have no weapons. If the gangers catch you, they just might kill you after they all rape you.”

“It hasn’t happened yet.”

“But it has happened to other females here. I can take you to a safe place where you can get food and shelter.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t want to go with you. Why do you even care, cyborg?”

“Clearly you don’t sense it the way I do, or you wouldn’t ask.” Axel hesitated. If he just blurted it out, she probably wouldn’t believe him. “Just come back to the barracks with me, and I will explain it to you while you have something to eat. Then, you can get cleaned up.”

“And if I don’t want to stay?”

“I hope I can convince you that you do.” He gave her a faint grin and loosened his hold on her arms. “Will you tell me your name?”

 

 

She caught her breath as she looked up into his steel-grey eyes. The faint smile he gave her softened his features and stirred things inside her that she didn’t know she could feel. …Things she didn’t want to feel for the big cyborg. A man like him could kill in the blink of an eye with no weapons. Would he do that to her if she didn’t do what he asked?

“L-Layne Rose,” she stammered. The way he was looking at her made her realize that killing her was not what he had in mind. He wanted her, and he wasn’t going to let her go. That excited her almost as much as it frightened her. “Can bring Sammy?”

“As you wish,” he said. “Come, our transport isn’t far from here.”

Just then, an explosion sounded from one of the buildings being demolished. Layne’s cat startled and dug his claws into her arm, trying to get away. “Sammy, no. Shh, it won’t hurt you.”

“We should go,” Axel said. “There will be more explosions. We have to clear four square kilometers from this area for the new starport and employee residences.”

“Where are all those people going to go?”

“There is an Enclave near New Chicago. We have been transporting people to join one of their communities out there,” Axel explained. “This way.” Axel pointed and rested a gloved hand low on her back to urge her to walk with him.

While they were walking, he summoned the pilot for the hover transport to take them back to the industrial complex that served as their base for the starport project. It was the closest building intact near Farringay that was large enough to hold the 500 cyborgs who were doing the demolition work and securing the perimeter of the project area. Axel was more than capable of flying the transport, but his crews would need it to return to base at sunset.

He didn’t want to leave Layne on her own until he settled some things with her. As they boarded the vehicle, Axel considered that it might all go better after she had a meal, a shower, and fresh clothes.

Ten minutes later, they were landing at the cyborg base. The old industrial complex consisted of four enormous connected buildings set in a rectangle with a once-grand court in the center. The courtyard was overgrown with weeds and tall grass.

The cyborgs made little effort to improve the place. It only needed to serve them for several months while demolished the ruins and built the starport, with housing for the employees, and support businesses for the community. It would be a gated community with security.

“It’s not much to look at,” Axel said as they went inside. “But it’s safe here. Do you want some food before you get cleaned up?”

“Yes, I would. I haven’t eaten since yesterday, and all Sammy had was a small mouse he caught,” she said to him.”

“Okay,” he said, “I will take you to the mess station.”

They walked through a wide corridor with large rooms on both sides that were filled with rows of bunks stacked two high. The mess area was located in the open area past the bunk rooms. Food processors were set near the wall to the right with six rows of long tables set back from the bank of food dispensers.

Axel led Layne to the food line. “Can you read, Layne?”

“Only a little. My mom started to teach me, but she was gone before I learned more than basic words.”

“Is she dead?” Axel asked.

“I don’t know. Mom disappeared one day and never came back,” Layne said with a sigh. “I’m sure something happened that she couldn’t come back or she would have. She could be dead.”

“I am sorry for your loss,” Axel said sincerely. “What would you like to eat?”

“I mostly eat meat, whatever I can catch or kill, mostly small animals: squirrels, rats, rabbits. I find greens and fruit sometimes in the growing season.”

“Here we have cultured meat and eggs, vegetables, and fruit, pasta and various mixtures of everything. We also have coffee, tea, and various fruit drinks.”

Layne looked up at him and shrugged. “Pick something that you think is good. And some meat for Sammy.” She set the cat on the floor now that they were away from the blast zones in the city. The cat generally followed her wherever she went.

 

Copyright©2019 by Clarissa Lake and Christine Myers

 

 

Joven’s Bride – Final Draft Excerpt

 

 

Prologue

 

 

Tales of aliens coming to Earth and taking people had been circulated for many years before the United Galactic Alliance of Worlds sent a ship to announce that it was true. Alien agents had been stationed on Earth for the last four hundred years to curtail human trafficking by other races.

During the four hundred years the aliens stationed on Earth took mates from the local population in what became West Virginia. The alien force was primarily comprised of humans and feline humanoids. Both compatible with humans.

Feline humanoids closely resemble homo sapiens except for their feline eyes and various shades of blue hair. The felines recognize their genetic mate when they meet them.  The Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service used DNA samples to find genetic mates for those not on Earth.

Before the Alliance opening diplomatic relations with Earth, Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking set up an ancestor DNA service on Earth. It linked with other such services on Earth to increase chances of finding mates for the feline humanoids, humans, and cyborgs.

The practice was controversial because felines give off a pheromone that causes their human mate to enter a state of heat. It manifests as an overwhelming need to copulate with the feline. In a sense, they become biologically addicted to their feline mate. The feline was given the identity and location of the mate on Earth without consent. The felines came to Earth and sought them. One touch and they would have no choice but to copulate with that feline or risk death.

Exposure to the feline pheromone is highly addictive to the genetic mate. The only treatment is hormones released by the feline during sex. Synthesized hormones had never worked to cure this addiction. No one had died in recent years, but a few who tried to resist became extremely sick and gave in to sex with their genetic mate to make it stop.

After diplomatic relations with Earth opened, the Narovian Matchmaking service began advertising on television and the internet. The Drayid attack on Earth tripled applications to the matchmaking service.

 

 

Chapter One

 

Washington, DC morning traffic clogged the streets. Carly Adrian stood at the door of the tour bus checking off students on her list as they boarded the bus. She and her friend Sara were two of four chaperones from their small-town high school in southern Ohio.

Carly taught freshman science and Sara taught senior English. Sara was doing the same just down the street. The kids were up half the night socializing and were not getting up and out of the hotel very quickly at all. Carly and Sara were checking them on to the buses while the other chaperones were going room to room to roust the kids out. About half of the kids were still in the hotel, a few straggling out at a time with their luggage.

No matter what was going on at the school, there were always stragglers. So, they waited.

Traffic was pretty loud, so they didn’t hear the noise right away. First came the blinding wall of light and with it the roar, almost like a freight train. Closer and closer until it cut through between the two tour buses.

Carly was horrified as Sara disappeared behind that hot wall of light. She screamed and screamed until her voice gave out but the noise was so loud that she couldn’t even hear herself screaming. When the wall of light was gone so was the other tour bus, the students and Sara her best friend since grade school.

Sara was the sister she never had. Now she was gone, just gone. All that was left was a huge black hole about a mile square and three hundred feet deep.

Carly sank to the pavement sobbing while the kids on the bus screamed and cried in the background. All those people driving those cars, people in the buildings people walking on the sidewalks disappeared. Carly knew with certainty they were all dead. Life as she knew it changed forever.

A few weeks before that an alien starship came into Earth orbit. Captain Dargan Merrek’s face appeared all over the world announcing the United Galactic Alliance of Worlds offer for Earth to join the Alliance.

The United Nations were not so united. They squabbled over whether opening relations with an extraterrestrial alliance was in our best interest. Alliance diplomats were trying to reassure world leaders that their intentions were entirely honorable.

Carly had believed they were, but who else would have the technology to cause the destruction she had witnessed in Washington?

They were stranded for days in Washington in a hotel with only auxiliary power. Eventually, they learned that an alien enemy of the Alliance had attacked Earth in an attempt to subjugate the world and use it as a food source. The Alliance stopped them and Earth joined them.

 

 

One Year Later

 

“I quit,” Carly Adrian murmured, holding out her folded letter of resignation, and sighed.

Principal Larry Marsh reached across his desk and looked up at Carly as he took the paper from her. “I can’t say I didn’t see this coming. Losing Sara, the way you did last year would mess with anyone’s head… And on the heels of aliens announcing their presence to the world. That pretty well changed the world as we knew it.”

“That’s exactly it,” Carly said. “I realized there was more to life than just a job. I’ve been given an opportunity no science buff could refuse.”

Principal Marsh raised his eyebrows.

“I’m going to the stars to meet my soulmate and live on a colonial world.” Carly smiled. “And I can’t wait!”

“You’re serious.” Larry shook his head. “I don’t believe it. When did this all come about?”

“A few weeks ago. Sara and I put applications in before DC. After first contact, we discovered the Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service advertising on line. They use DNA to find soulmates for various compatible races. Sara said it was like wishing on a star,” Carly paused and sighed. “I forgot all about it until they contacted me. I was in shock at first.”

“You’re going to marry a man you never met?”

“I already did. They guaranteed 99% success in matching people genetically. His name is Joven Brendict and we’ve been exchanging video mail almost daily,” she told him. “I’m sorry I didn’t give you more time, but Holly knows my curriculum and she said she can fill in until the end of the school year. I’m leaving on Monday.”

“Well, Carly, I certainly wish you the best. I hope you know what you’re doing.”

So, do I.

“Thank you.” She gave him a smile and took his extended hand for a last handshake. He was a good guy, and a pleasant boss, but like most of the good guys in their small town, he was already married.

This is the right thing for me. Joven is the one. I must not doubt him.

 

Two Months Ago

 

To: Carly Adrian

From: Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service

 

Carly,

We are pleased to inform you that we have found a genetic soulmate match for you on the Alliance Sector colony of Glasica. Your mate is a Narovian feline cyborg warrior retired from the United Galactic Alliance of Worlds Defense Force.

Captain Joven Brendict is in charge of Star System Security and owns a home and farmland on Glasica. Captain Brendict has an excellent service record and has excellent personal and professional references. Attached is his introductory video. Should you decide to reply, please let us know.

Narovian feline humanoids closely resemble homo sapiens with just a few differences. They have distinctly feline eyes, slightly pointed ears and varying shades of blue hair. Some have blue-black spots or stripes on their neck and shoulders.

We recommend that you take some time to get acquainted with your match before you make a decision to meet. Feline humanoids release powerful pheromones that cause their soulmate and themselves acute sexual arousal. The only remedy is to consummate the relationship within hours of exposure and mate frequently for up to ten days after initial exposure.

Narovian felines, call their soulmates meomee and become totally devoted to them. They mate for life whether their meomee is feline or sapien.

Should you decide to accept Captain Brendict as your mate, he will pay your travel expenses to Glasica, and our office in West Virginia will make the arrangements.

 

Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service

 

Carly read and reread the email on her laptop. It had been over a year since she’d made the application for an alien mate. She knew going in that her potential mate would be homo sapien or feline humanoid. She clicked on the thumbnail photo of him. It was a full body photo of him dressed in a slate-gray body suit.

He had short dark blue hair with a light beard, and his muscular form was enhanced by his body suit. As she enlarged it to see his eyes, her first reaction was, he’s gorgeous. She felt drawn by his blue feline eyes.

Can I really do this? …Go off to another world the bride of an alien male? I want to.

With Sara gone, she didn’t feel there was much to hold her there. Almost a year later cities all across the world were still trying to piece together who and how many died when the Drayid battle cruiser gutted New York City, Los Angeles, Moscow, London, Paris, Rome, Cairo, Delhi, Beijing, and Tokyo as they had Washington D.C. It was the single most significant terrorist act the world had ever known.

A year later, the world was still reeling. Carly’s teaching job was suffering because of the trauma after witnessing the attack. She was going through the motions teaching the required earth science curriculum. It had probably been two years since she’d had a date, and longer since her last regular boyfriend.

She and Sara decided to apply for alien mates after the Alliance announced their presence. After the Drayid attack, Carly forgot all about it… Until today. Finally, she clicked on the video link.

It loaded with a close up of Joven sitting at a desk, he smiled then spoke in slightly accented English:

Good day, meomee. You are seeing this because the matchmaking service has determined from your DNA that you are my genetic soulmate. That is all I need to know to ask you to become my wife and come to live with me on a world called Glasica, a young colonial world. The agency has told you what it means to be meomee to a Narovian feline.

I have reached the point in my life that I am ready to mate and have children. I want that female to be meomee, my true soul mate

My pheromones will bind us both emotionally and physically. You will become my only mate, and I will never desire any other. You and only you will be my one true love. I will protect you with my life.

I wait for your reply.

Joven Brendict end recording.

 

 

Carly stared at the handsome alien on her computer screen. He had a pleasant voice and seemed genuine, though she wasn’t sure how it was that he spoke fluent English. They must have used some kind of translator. She wanted to know him better, beyond that he was gorgeous and sexy.

 

Hello Joven,

I am pleased to meet you by video, and I want to know you better before I can decide to become your wife.

The agency sent me a complete profile on your world, and Glasica seems pristine compared to Earth. It looks beautiful. I also understand that other women from Earth have settled there happily. I have my mother here, but she is my only family. She lives in Brazil with her new husband. We talk on the phone about once a month, but I haven’t seen her in a few years.

The Drayids attacked Earth over a year ago, but it still haunts me… It happened right in front of me. My friend and a busload of our students disappeared in the wall of light which gouged a massive hole in that city.

Before that, we both applied to Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking to find husbands. I never quite believed we would, but I am pleasantly surprised. You are a fine-looking man with an impressive profile. Only the prospect of leaving Earth makes me hesitate to accept your offer.

 

The statistics on successful matching are impressive. Your offer is very tempting. If your offer stands after you have seen my reply, then we should discuss it further.

Carly Adrian end recording.

 

After Carly sent her video reply to Joven, she decided to set up a video chat with her mother. After watching Joven’s short video several times, she admitted to herself she wanted a husband and a family, and she would probably accept her match with Joven. She just needed some time to get used to the idea before she made the commitment.

She set up the call and waited. Carly was surprised when her mom’s image filled the screen.

“Carly, what a surprise. Is everything all right?”

“Nothing’s wrong, I just have some news. Remember back when Sara and I applied to that Narovian Matchmaking agency?”

“Yes… Why?”

“They found me a match, and he’s gorgeous. But I would have to go to his world, a place called Glasica.” Carly said.

“You mean to another planet?”

“Yes, Mom, in another star system. I haven’t decided yet, but the Narovian Matchmaking’s success rate makes it very tempting… And did I mention he is gorgeous?”

“But, Carly, we would never see each other again.”

“We hardly ever see each other now,” she reminded. “I will still be able to video email. I emailed the stats on his world, pictures and his profile.”

“Why can’t you find a nice husband here?”

“Oh, I don’t know. It might be because I am working all the time. Teaching isn’t just an eight hour a day job. There are extracurricular activities, lesson plans, grading papers. Eligible men are few and far between in this town.” Carly said.

“What about other agencies on this world?”

“None of them can genetically match me to my soul mate. This is a chance of a lifetime. I can spend my life teaching other peoples’ children or find some other job and maybe find a husband by trial and error. Or become a single mother by artificial insemination.”

“It sounds like you’ve made up your mind already.”

“I am considering it.”

“What’s a cyborg?”

“A technologically and genetically enhanced humanoid. He has a computer connected to his brain, and tiny little robots in his bloodstream to repair injuries and ward off disease. He was a super soldier.”

“That sounds dangerous.”

“He was a warrior, but now he runs security for his star system. I have his complete profile, and I saw nothing alarming. It sounds like he is in the same situation I am, with few prospects for a wife,” Carly said. “His species can recognize their soulmates by scent, but they are often worlds apart. They use genetic matchmaking services to find their genetic mates, and they are very successful at it.”

Her mother frowned at her from the computer screen and sighed. “I hate to see you go that far away, but I don’t want you to miss a chance to be as happy as I am with Hector. Just be sure it’s what you really want.”

They talked a few more minutes about mundane things before signing off. Her mother didn’t really want her to go off to an alien world, but she had gone to Brazil to be with the man she loved. Carly didn’t love Joven yet, but she was open to the possibility.

After she ended the call, she replayed Joven’s introductory video. As she looked into his intense feline eyes, something about him fascinated her. She realized she wanted to accept his proposal. She just needed a little more time to get used to the idea.

 

 

 

Chapter Two

 

After playing back the video a second and a third time, Carly sat back on her sofa remembering the events that brought her to this point.

The whole world went a little crazy even before the alien attack. The world was still getting used to the fact that they were not alone in the Universe. Earth was not the only planet in the galaxy inhabited by homo sapiens. But after the Drayids attacked, Carly sought counseling to deal with her grief and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Sara Thomas had been her best friend since grade school. They grew up in the same southern Ohio small town, went to the same college to become teachers just as they always said they would.

After Captain Dargan Merrek broadcasted his announcement about their presence in the solar system every hour for twenty-four hours, Carly and Sara became fascinated with everything alien. When Carly discovered the Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking site on the internet, Sara was genuinely excited as she.

Several humanoid races were compatible with Earth humans, and thousands of feline humanoids looking for mates. The Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service was not like the Earth dating sites that Carly and Sara had tried a few times. The Narovian service matched applicants genetically.

The men were exotically attractive, even sexy, and she could easily imagine a feline humanoid lover. She loved cats, but unfortunately, she lived in an apartment that didn’t allow pets. The fee was the same as what they would pay for an ancestor DNA search, so they had worked through the detailed application form together.

A few weeks later, Sara was gone.

Even though the trip had marked the end of the school year, summer vacation was not nearly long enough for Carly to recover. She still had nightmares about the day the Drayids attacked. She couldn’t have been closer to Sara if they were sisters. Losing her left a big hole in Carly’s life.

Without Sara, she couldn’t find much enthusiasm for any of the things they did together. Every summer they took a road trip around the country for a week at least. They were both so excited about finding alien mates together, hoping at least to find them on the same planet.

Now it didn’t matter anymore.  The summer after she lost Sara, Carly spent a lot of time on her computer looking at all the Alliance websites that had popped up on the internet between First Contact and the Drayid attack.

The more she learned about the Narovian Feline humanoids, the more confident she felt in her desire to find a feline mate. Carly studied their species in depth, but she had only skimmed the surface of information on cyborgs.

She did learn that the pheromonal meomee bond would temper the ruthless warrior in him. She had pretty much made her decision by the time she received a second vid-mail from Joven:

“My dearest Carly,

You honor me with your reply. Even without the scent of you, the sound of your voice tells me that you are meomee. You are as beautiful as I could imagine in my wildest dreams.

I am truly sorry that you lost your friend in the Drayid attack. I fought for many years in the war against them. We made peace with them, but your world took so long to accept our offer to join the Alliance, the Drayids thought they could annex your world even though it is within Alliance territory. We have a blockade in effect patrolling our border, but it is too late to prevent their attack on Earth.

The territory bordering Sector Six that includes the Glasica system has coexisted with the Alliance for millennia. Life on what is now my world is much like that of small community life on Earth. My kind have been coming to Earth for centuries, so we know a great deal about your culture.

I am pleased that you agreed to accept a cyborg mate, but there is one thing that was not in my profile. Enhancements to my DNA and alterations to my body as I was grown in the artificial womb gave me the ability to shift my body into animal form…” 

Joven backed away from the camera and changed into a large black panther-like creature. As he came closer to the camera, she could see leopard spots beneath the black, somewhat like domestic black cats with tiger stripes showing in the black.

Carly gasped and stared in stunned silence for almost a minute. Joven paced closer to the screen so she could see his blue feline eyes, those same eyes with the loving expression she had seen before. Then she realized that he was just as magnificent in his big cat form. She also knew it didn’t frighten her.

“I knew from the beginning that I must be completely honest about myself with you, meomee. Even with these enhancements to my body, I can breed with you in humanoid form and make offspring with you. Even the scientists who created me can’t be sure whether the shifting trait would be transferred to my children.

I will be deeply saddened if you can’t accept me as your mate because of this, but I will abide with your decision, meomee.”

“Oh, no,” Carly murmured to the man on her computer screen, as she saw the pain in his eyes at the prospect. He seemed to be in love with her already; or maybe in love with the idea of his soulmate. But when she saw that look on his face, Carly just wanted to put her arms around him and hold him close.

Come to me, meomee. We will have a good life here on Glasica. Two females from your world are mated to friends. I told them about you, and they hoped you would accept my proposal and come to Glasica to be my wife. Please consider it, meomee…”

Your meomee,

Joven

End recording.”

 

Carly watched the video a few times while she contemplated her reply. She knew what Sara would say. She wasn’t likely to find another soulmate match. Her gut feeling told her Joven was the one. The only obstacle that made her hesitate was leaving Earth, probably for good.

But what an opportunity! Before the Alliance came, Earth technology might not even establish an extraterrestrial colony in her lifetime, let alone travel interstellar. That in itself was exciting and terrifying at the same time. Maybe Joven made her feel a little bit of that, too. He was a hulk of a man, a fierce cyborg warrior, who could turn himself into a fearsome big cat.

Yet when he looked at her from her screen with such affection, Carly was sure she had nothing to fear from him. That was when she knew she had decided to become his wife.

Carly took a deep breath.

“Joven,

The answer is yes! I am pleased to become your wife. I only wish it didn’t take three months to get to your world. At least, we will be able to talk to each other in real time once I’m in space. That in itself seems as fantastic as marrying a shape-shifting feline cyborg.”

Carly paused to laugh out loud.

Please don’t be offended, meomee. I am laughing because I am happy now that I made the decision to come to you. When I say it out loud, it seems almost too fantastic to be real. But it feels more real every time I watch your vid-mails.

I know it’s right because I feel a unique connection to you that I’ve never felt with anyone else.

I learned as much as I could about your species after Sara, and I made our applications to the Interstellar Matchmaking Service. We were both born and raised within the radius of the Alliance Law Enforcement base, so I knew being matched with a Narovian feline humanoid was possible. Honestly, I was kind of hoping.

It’s probably just as well that it will take three months so we can get to know each other before your pheromones have us in the throes of mating frenzy. Although it does sound exciting. You are so hot.”

She smiled into the camera on her laptop at him blushing. Felines were well known in Alliance sectors for their sensuality and sexual prowess. Just thinking about the lengthy process of consummating their marriage got her female parts all excited.

“I mean you are handsome…”

Joven’s Bride – Part Two Excerpt

Prologue

Tales of aliens coming to Earth and taking people had been circulated for many years before the United Galactic Alliance of Worlds sent a ship to announce that it was true. Alien agents had been stationed on Earth for the last four hundred years to curtail human trafficking by other races.

Shortly, after that, an aggressive race called the Drayids attacked Earth and cut a mile square hole in twelve major cities around the world. They left a hole three hundred feet deep, and vaporized everything within, killing millions.

During the four hundred years the aliens stationed on Earth took mates from the local population in what became West Virginia. The alien force was primarily comprised of humans and feline humanoids. Both compatible with humans.

The feline humanoids closely resembled homo sapiens except for their feline eyes and various shades of blue hair. Although the felines can recognize their genetic mate, the Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service collects DNA samples and finds genetic mates for felines and humans.

Before the Alliance opening diplomatic relations with Earth, Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking set up an ancestor DNA service on Earth. It linked with other such services on Earth to increase chances of finding mates for the feline humanoids, humans, and cyborgs.

The practice was controversial because felines give off a pheromone that causes their human mate to enter a state of heat. It manifests as an overwhelming need to copulate with the feline. In a sense, they become biologically addicted to their feline mate. The feline was given the identity and location of the mate on Earth without consent. The felines came to Earth sought them. One touch and they would have no choice but to copulate with that feline or risk death.

After diplomatic relations with Earth opened, the Narovian Matchmaking service began advertising on television and the internet. The Drayid attack on Earth tripled applications to the matchmaking service.

#

To: Carly Adrian

From: Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service

 Carly,

We are pleased to inform you that we have found a genetic soulmate match for you on the Alliance Sector colony of Glasica. Your mate is a Narovian feline cyborg warrior retired from the United Galactic Alliance of Worlds Defense Force.

Captain Joven Brendict is in charge of Star System Security and owns a home and farmland on Glasica. Captain Brendict has an excellent service record and has excellent personal and professional references. Attached is his introductory video. Should you decide to reply, please let us know.

Narovian feline humanoids closely resemble homo sapien with just a few differences. They have distinctly feline eyes, slightly pointed ears and varying shades of blue hairs. Some have blue-black spots or stripes on their neck and shoulders.

We recommend that you take some time to get acquainted with your match before you make a decision to meet. Feline humanoids release powerful pheromones that cause their soulmate and themselves acute sexual arousal. The only remedy is to consummate the relationship within hours of exposure and mate frequently for up to ten days after initial exposure.

Narovian felines, call their soulmates meomee and become totally devoted to them. They mate for life whether their meomee is feline or sapien.

Should you decide to accept Captain Bradict as your mate, he will pay your travel expenses to Glasica, and our office in West Virginia will make the arrangements.

 

Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service

 

Carly read and reread the email on her laptop. It had been over a year since she’d made the application for an alien mate. She knew going in that her potential mate would be homo sapien or feline humanoid. She clicked on the thumbnail photo of him. It was a full body photo of him dressed in a slate-gray body suit.

He had short dark blue hair with a light beard, and his muscular form was enhanced by his body suite. As she enlarged it to see his eyes, her first reaction was, he’s gorgeous. She felt drawn by his blue feline eyes.

Could she really do this? Could she go off to another world and become the bride of an alien male? Did she have the courage? After the Drayid attack last year, she didn’t feel brave at all.

That was the day her best friend had died right in front of her. She and about seventy students were vaporized by the wall of light that gouged out a one square mile hole in Washington D.C. The Drayid battle cruiser gutted New York City, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Moscow, London, Paris, Rome, Cairo, Delhi, Beijing, and Tokyo. It was the single most significant terrorist act the world had ever known.

A year later, the world was still reeling. Carly’s teaching job was suffering because of the trauma from witnessing the attack. She was going through the motions teaching the required earth science curriculum. It had probably been two years since she’d had a date, and longer since her last regular boyfriend.

She and Sara decided to apply for alien mates after the Alliance announced their presence. After the Drayid attack, Carly forgot all about it… Until today. Finally, she clicked on the video link.

It loaded with a close up of Joven sitting at a desk, he smiled then spoke:

Good day, meomee. You are seeing this because the matchmaking service has determined from your DNA that you are my genetic soulmate. That is all I need to know to ask you to become my wife and come to live with me on a world called Glasica, a young colonial world. The agency has told you what it means to be meomee to a Narovian feline.

I have reached the point in my life that I am ready to mate and have children. I want that female to be meomee, my true soul mate

My pheromones will bind us both emotionally and physically. You will become my only mate, and I will never desire any other. You and only you will be my one true love. I will protect you with my life.

I wait for your reply.

Joven Brendict

 

 

Carly stared at the handsome alien on her computer screen. He had a pleasant voice and seemed genuine, though she wasn’t sure how it was that he spoke fluent English. They must have used some kind of translator. She wanted to know him better, beyond that he was gorgeous and sexy.

 

Hello Joven,

I am pleased to meet you by video, and I want to know you better before I can decide to become your wife. The Drayids attacked Earth over a year ago, but it still haunts me… It happened right in front of me. My friend and a busload of our students disappeared in the wall of light which gouged a massive hole in that city.

Before that, we both applied to Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking to find husbands. I never quite believed we would, but I am pleasantly surprised. You are a fine-looking man with an impressive profile. Only the prospect of leaving Earth makes me hesitate to accept your offer.

The agency sent me a complete profile on your world, and Glasica seems pristine compared to Earth. It looks beautiful. I also understand that other women from Earth have settled there happily. I have my mother here, but she is my only family. She lives in Brazil with her new husband. We talk on the phone about once a month, but I haven’t seen her in a few years.

The statistics on successful matching are impressive. Your offer is very tempting. If your offer stands after you have seen my reply, then we should discuss it further.

Respectfully,

Carly Adrian

 

After Carly sent her video reply to Joven, she decided to set up a video chat with her mother. After watching Joven’s short video several times, she admitted to herself she wanted a husband a family, and she would probably accept her match with Joven. She just needed some time to get used to the idea before she made the commitment.

She set up the call and waited. Carly was surprised when her mom’s image filled the screen.

“Carly, what a surprise. Is everything all right?”

“Nothing’s wrong, I just have some news. Remember back when Sara and I applied to that Narovian Matchmaking agency?”

“Yes… Why?”

“They found me a match, and he’s gorgeous. But, I would have to go to his world, a place called Glasica.” Carly said.

“You mean to another planet?”

“Yes, Mom, in another star system. I haven’t decided yet, but the Narovian Matchmaking’s success rate makes it very tempting… And did I mention he is gorgeous?”

“But, Carly, we would never see each other again.”

“We hardly ever see each other now,” she reminded. “I will still be able to video email. I emailed the stats on his world, pictures and his profile.”

“Why can’t you find a nice husband here?”

“Oh, I don’t know. It might be because I am working all the time. Teaching isn’t just an eight hour a day job. There are extracurricular activities, lesson plans, grading papers. Eligible men are few and far between in this town.” Carly said.

“What about other agencies on this world?”

“None of them can genetically match me to my soul mate. This is a chance of a lifetime. I can spend my life teaching other peoples’ children or find some other job and maybe find a husband by trial and error. Or become a single mother by artificial insemination.”

“It sounds like you’ve made up your mind already.”

“I am considering it.”

“What’s a cyborg?”

“A technologically and genetically enhanced humanoid. He has a computer connected to his brain, and tiny little robots in his bloodstream to repair injuries and ward off disease. He was a super soldier.”

“That sounds dangerous.”

“He was a warrior, but now he runs security for his star system. I have his complete profile, and I saw nothing alarming. It sounds like he is in the same situation I am, with few prospects for a wife,” Carly said. “His species can recognize their soulmates by scent, but they are often worlds apart. They use genetics to find them, and they are very successful at it.”

Her mother frowned at her from the computer screen and sighed. “I hate to see you go that far away, but I don’t want you to miss a chance to be as happy as I am with Hector. Just be sure it’s what you really want.”

They talked a few more minutes about mundane things before signing off. Her mother didn’t really want her to go off to an alien world, but she had gone to Brazil to be with the man she loved. Carly didn’t love Joven yet, but she was open to the possibility.

After she ended the call, she replayed Joven’s introductory video. As she looked into his intense feline eyes, something about him fascinated her. She realized she wanted to accept his proposal. She just needed a little more time to get used to the idea.

 

 

 

 

Joven’s Bride: A Little History Part One

My first series, Narovian Mates centered on a race of feline humanoids who give off pheromones that cause them to go into a torrid mating frenzy when they find their soulmates. The pheromones cause both the feline and his/her mate to be affected to the point where they can hardly get their clothes off fast enough to have sex.

They get acquainted and bond while having sex up to several times a day for about ten days, then they are bonded for life. When this recognition happens with a complete stranger, it’s not always a happy occasion.

Not all felines are lucky enough to find their soulmate or meomee by chance because they might live on a far-off planet in another star system. Enter the Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service, which uses DNA matching to find soulmates for both humans and feline humanoids which are actually hybrids of homo sapiens.

Even before Earth was invited to join the United Galactic Alliance of Worlds, the match making service had access to DNA of humans on Earth through ancestor DNA evaluation services. In fact, the Alliance had a secret base on Earth before the pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock, to fight human trafficking by alien slavers.

While on Earth, the Narovian felines bred with homo sapiens and created offspring that looked fully human, but were part feline as well. I likened it to wolves or coyotes breeding with dogs.

Also, in this universe homo sapiens were not limited to evolution on Earth. Some superior ancient race put homo sapiens on dozens of compatible worlds as well as compatible variations. While there are aliens of other races not many can interbreed with humans.

There can be many variations with in one race, considering the variations right here on Earth. Or even consider domestic animals. A Poodle and a Pitbull are both dogs and capable of breeding. So that’s the premise I used with humans. Worlds with interstellar travel would likely have more variations within a race than those that don’t.

When the Alliance was at war with the insectoid Drayids, they began manufacturing cyborgs to fight the interstellar wars, using both homo sapiens and feline humanoids. Because they were sentient and self-aware beings, Alliance humanoid rights enforcement declared that cyborgs had to be freed after their service.

In much of “cyborg lore” they are capable of recognizing their genetic soulmates in various ways. So, they also benefit from the method used by the Narovian Interstellar Matchmaking Service.

Early in the Narovian Mates series, I established that the event took place in contemporary Earth time with extraterrestrial humans being technologically far ahead of Earth. Prior to becoming recognized by the Alliance, the Matchmaking service found matches for feline humanoids on Earth without notifying the Earthlings of the match. Some felines would come to Earth and deliberately expose them to their pheromones, giving them no choice but to mate for life.

 

Copyright©2019

By Christine Myers