Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 130081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 650(@200wpm)___ 520(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
“Hello,” he began, holding out a hand. “I am—”
“Holy shit—he’s a fucking Scourge!” one of the human males growled, taking a protective stance in front of his mate. The other male did as well—watching Davrik warily.
“No, he’s not a Scourge!” The female Commander Baird said impatiently.
“Yes, he is!” her mate insisted. “Look at his gray skin, Bairdida!”
“Yes, but also observe his eyes,” the female Commander Sylvan remarked. “He has blue irises with white sclera. A true Scourge has red irises and black sclera—this male doesn’t have the red-on-black eyes that denotes our ancient enemy.”
“I am not a Scourge,” Davrik said quickly, hoping to end their suspicion. “My gray skin tones can be attributed to the Giant Kindred blood I have in my ancestry. Though I mostly identify as a Blood Kindred.” He bared his teeth to show his dull double fangs.
“See? He’s not Scourge,” the female Commander Baird said impatiently. “Now could you please step aside, Oliver? I can handle myself—I’m the head of Security for the entire Mother Ship, you know.”
“I know, baby—I just want you to be safe,” the human male with dark blond hair murmured.
“You must be the female counterpart of Commander Baird in my own universe,” Davrik remarked. “Only on my version of the Mother Ship, Commander Baird is the head of the Fleet, rather than the head of Security.” He turned to the female Kindred with the blonde hair. “And you must be Commander Sylvan’s female counterpart—Commander Sylvania?”
“I am Commander Sylvania. And this is my half sister, Commander Bairdida and our mates, Oliver and Simon. As well as my assistant, Commander Lan’ara.” She nodded at each person in her party in turn as she made the introductions and then stepped forward to hold out her arm for a warrior’s clasp. “Welcome to our Mother Ship—and to our universe.”
“Thank you, Commander. I am Davrik, of the other universe where the Kindred are mostly male, rather than mostly female.”
Davrik took her arm carefully, very aware of her human mate’s protective gaze. Both he and the other human male were much taller and more muscular than most human men, though neither was as tall as Davrik himself. His Giant Kindred blood gave him a definite advantage in this universe, he noted. Not that he would use it in any way except to find his beloved Sonya.
When he finished clasping arms with Commander Sylvania, Commander Bairdida came forward and offered her arm as well. Then Commander Lan’ara stepped up but instead of her arm, she held out a slim, lavender shaded hand.
“Please take my aide’s hand, Commander Davrik,” Sylvania said. “She is an Empath Kindred—she will be able to tell your true intentions in coming here.”
“With pleasure.” Davrik took the slim lavender hand willingly in his much larger one and waited to feel the same sensation he felt when a Priestess of his own Mother Ship “Saw Into” him. It was a very uncomfortable process—the feeling of someone rifling through your brain and searching your thoughts and memories, but Davrik was prepared to endure it—he was prepared to endure anything to get to Sonya.
However, the sensation inside him when he took the Empath’s hand was much different from what he had expected. Instead of the feeling of cool fingers rifling through his brain, he had a warm sensation which started at the center of his body and moved outward. It was like coming in from the cold on a chilly day and having a heating element wrapped around him. Only instead of the heat coming from the outside, it was coming from the inside.
At once, he felt some of the anguish he’d carried for the past five years dissipate. It wasn’t gone completely—nothing could completely erase the agony of his loss and the never ending need to find his mate again. But he felt like he could take a deep breath again and look at the world with fresh eyes.
At the same time, however, he saw his own pain reflected in the deep purple eyes of the female before him.
“Ahh,” she moaned softly. “I feel it…to lose a mate you loved so dearly…to break a Bond that entwined both your souls—how terrible!”
“Forgive me!” Davrik pulled his hand away hastily. “I didn’t mean for you to bear my pain,” he said stiffly.
“No…it is all right.” Commander Lan’ara straightened up and took a deep breath, as though trying to rid herself of the pain. She turned to Commander Sylvania. “This male—Commander Davrik—lost his mate in a shuttle crash in his own universe. He has come to our universe to find her again.”
“Or her doppelganger,” Davrik said. “This universe’s version of her.”
Commander Sylvania frowned.
“But surely you know the woman you find here won’t be the same one you lost, Commander Davrik. She will have different experiences.”
“And probably a great deal of trauma if she happens to be human and she’s been trapped down on Earth with the Scourge,” Oliver added grimly.