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could sit on the beach, mope, and eventually die of starvation,

dehydration, or a lot of other “ations” she’d rather not consider.

“Move inland,” she ordered. “It’s our best bet to find clean water.”

As she trudged through the thick sand, Ivy’s standard-issue black

boots seemed to grow heavier with each step. The muscles in her thighs

burned, and a dull ache had begun to form between her shoulder blades.

In short, she’d never been more miserable, but when they rounded the

front of the ship, she couldn’t contain the smile that stretched her lips.

In the distance, situated atop a rolling hill, a lustrous city rose up over

the canopy of trees. Judging by the way the sunlight gleamed off the

buildings, most had been constructed using metals and glass, but in the

center of the city sat at honest-to-god castle. The stone exterior appeared

more silver than gray, but with its rounded towers, ramparts,

battlements, and waving flags, it looked like something right out of a

fairytale.

“I guess we won’t be eating pussy tonight after all,” Ivy mumbled.

Tariq snorted and shrugged. “Speak for yourself.”

“Oh, my stars!” With wide, rounded eyes, Cami slapped at her mate

as her cheeks flushed an interesting shade of scarlet. “What is wrong

with you?”

Before Tariq could respond with some smartass retort, a line of what

Ivy assumed to be soldiers emerged from the tree line. Six men and two

women, all with inky black hair and softly pointed ears marched toward

them with swords and daggers raised. The hem of their long-sleeved,

black-and-silver tunics rustled in the breeze, while a shiny, black,

spandex-like material covered their legs, disappearing into stone-gray

boots that laced up to their knees.

“Are those…” Cami blinked several times and glanced up at Ivy.

“Are those elves?”

They sure as hell looked like elves to Ivy. Pale blue swirls and

splotches dotted their exposed skin like shimmering birthmarks, and

even from the distance, she could make out their fair skin, delicate

features, and graceful movements.

“
Peta aplo oruz!
” the female in the front shouted at them, except her

cadence sounded almost lyrical.

Scowling, Cami stared down at her feet, then shifted her gaze to the

sand around her. “I don’t know what she’s saying. We need to remove

our shoes? That’s what it sounds like.” Her mouth fell into a little
O
when

the other female repeated her command. “Weapons. She’s saying

weapons. She wants you to drop your blaster.”

Well, it made more sense than taking off her shoes, but Ivy wasn’t

about to give up her blaster to anyone. “Yeah, not happening, cupcake.”

“Dalton,” Tariq said as he skirted around her to pull Cami against his

side, “I’ll follow your lead, whatever you decide, but a little diplomacy

never hurt anyone.”

“
Peta aplo oruz! Sta sos kalian!
” the female who appeared to be the

leader of their welcoming party yelled again as the soldiers neared them.

“She either wants us in the trees or on our knees,” Cami murmured

out of the corner of her mouth.

The elven female raised her sword, her face contorted into a mixture

of anger and fear as she continued to issue commands. Tariq snarled

when she reached for Cami’s shoulder, but the woman was quicker,

swinging her blade to rest at the side of his neck.

“On our knees.” Lowering herself into the sand, Cami spoke quickly,

her voice trembling with anxiety as she tugged on Tariq’s hand.

“Definitely on our knees.”

Ivy counted only eight, and between her blaster and Sion’s teeth, she

was confident they could take them. She didn’t know, however, if more

guards lurked in the shadows of the trees. Either way, once they

dispatched the soldiers sent to collect them, they had nowhere to run,

nowhere to hide. They couldn’t take on the entire city, and furthermore,

whether she liked it or not, she needed these beings’ help if she wanted

to get her and her crew off the damn planet.

Gritting her teeth, she dropped her blaster at her feet and slowly

lowered to her knees beside Cami. Sion chuffed and growled, the fur

along his spine standing on end, but he plopped down into the sand at

her side. His tail flicked in agitated movements behind him, and he

watched the strangers with an uncomfortable intensity, but at least he

hadn’t eaten anyone.

Thank the stars for small miracles.

“What’s going on?” she whispered to Cami.

They had no defensive strategy, but as a Class-A Telepath, Cami was

their best—if not only—line of offense against these aliens.

“It’s a little hard to make out,” Cami answered, her brow furrowed

into a shallow
V
above the bridge of her nose. “They’re taking us to

the…citadel…like a palace. Their leader doesn’t want us harmed, so

that’s good news.”

“Leader?”

“The closest word in our language would be ‘king,’ I think.” She tilted

her head to the left and frowned.

Before Ivy could ask about the expression or question her friend

further, guards surrounded them. Some held their swords at the ready,

while two of the men circled behind Ivy and her crew, binding their

hands together behind their backs with something that felt like warm

putty. When they reached Sion, the guards paused, pursed their lips, and

looked to their leader.

Clearly, no one wanted to approach the giant cat.

“It’s fine,” Ivy informed him. “Shift back.”

The beast shuddered from head to tail and stretched out in the sand

as he completed the transformation back to human. “You know—” he

panted when he could speak again, “—normally, I don’t have a problem

with nudity. That being said, parading my naked ass through the middle

of a strange city on an alien planet wasn’t on my list of top ten things to

do today.”

He’d barely pushed himself into a sitting position when Cami began

speaking, her words slow and halted, but unmistakably the language of

the guards. Once again, Ivy found herself in complete awe of the woman.

After a heartbeat of hesitation, the female leader nodded once, and a

rush of words flowed from her bow-shaped lips as she jabbed a finger

toward the pile of clothes on the ground. Three guards stood in a loose

circle around the shifter while he donned his shirt, pants, and boots.

Then they pulled his arms behind his back and secured his hands with

the same goo they’d used on Ivy and the others.

The look of it reminded her of thick honey, but it didn’t feel sticky

against her skin. It surrounded her wrists but didn’t squeeze, and it even

stretched slightly to allow for minimal movement. She’d never come

across another substance like it on any of her travels, and she found

herself cautiously fascinated.

“They’re scared,” Cami whispered as the guards pulled them to their

feet and began marching them back toward the forest. “I’m just getting

glimpses and flashes of thought, but I gather it’s been a long time since

outsiders have been here. Thousands of years, if I’m translating

correctly.”

“
Vitka!
” the leader of the guard snapped as she jerked Ivy forward by

her elbow.

Ivy didn’t need a translator to know the female wanted them to be

quiet, and to a degree, she could sympathize. The language barrier was

making her twitchy as fuck, and she could only imagine the other

woman felt the stress tenfold.

So, while they marched through the forest of blue grass and spindly

trees covered in blue and yellow leaves, Ivy said nothing. Instead, she

took the time to observe. The two female guards stood only a couple of

inches shorter than her, but strangely, the males weren’t much taller.

Not one of them could have been over six feet tall, and they all had the

same lean, streamline build.

Their escorts slipped gracefully, soundlessly, through the forest,

something Ivy couldn’t hope to imitate, even with her genetically

modified enhancements. She was strong and quick, light on her feet, and

she could shoot the wings off a Reemian sandfly at fifty paces, but no one

would ever accuse her of being “quiet.”

Focusing on her heartbeat, she slowed her breathing, blocking out the

ambient noise around her as she honed her abilities. The Alliance didn’t

have a classification for what she could do, which suited her fine. The

star tattoo at the corner of her right eye was more than enough of a label.

As her pulse slowed, her neurons began to fire rapidly, allowing her

to view the world at quarter speed. She could still feel the wind on her

face and neck, but through her eyes, the rustling leaves now stood still.

Turning her attention to a green beetle zipping between the branches,

she narrowed her eyes and counted each flap of its tiny wings. Being able

to see the world in slow motion—even an unfamiliar world—calmed her,

gave her clarity, and it eased some of the simmering anxiety.

She watched the blue vein in Tariq’s neck pulse, the muscles in his

forearms strain, and the way his nostrils flared with each shallow breath.

Towering over their escorts, the hybrid presented a rather intimidating

sight, and he clearly didn’t appreciate his restraints. Or more likely, the

murderous expression had to do with the way the male guard practically

dragged Cami along next to him.

A hard jab between her shoulder blades brought the world rushing

back just as they cleared the forest on the edge of the city. Ivy didn’t say

anything, but when the asshole shoved her again, she couldn’t hold back

her temper.

With a throaty growl, she spun around and crowded against the

male. “Touch me again, and you’ll lose that fucking hand.”

He glared back at her, but nodded and stepped away when his

commander barked orders at him. Ivy couldn’t be sure, but from the

corner of her eye, she could have sworn she saw the female guard smirk.

“Don’t these people have shuttles?” Sion grumbled.

Ivy snorted. “We’ve been walking for five minutes, and we’re more

than halfway there. Aren’t you supposed to be all about nature and

shit?”

“Yes, when nature actually makes sense. This place looks like a

rainbow vomited on it.”

“It kind of reminds me of Wonderland.” Cami sighed and rolled her

eyes when everyone stared back at her blankly. “Don’t any of you read?”

While they hadn’t been chastised for talking this time, as the ground

changed from dirt paths to stone streets, they all fell into an uneasy

silence once again. The nearer they drew to the enormous castle, the

heavier the tension hung over them. Ivy could feel the anxiety like a

living thing, as if every nerve in her body had been strung too tight.

Despite what Cami thought, Ivy actually enjoyed reading, and she’d

always loved the stories about fantastical worlds and happy endings

most. Unfortunately, she had a bad feeling that this fairytale wouldn’t

end in ever-after—happily or otherwise.

Sitting behind his desk in the library, Kai leaned back in his chair and

watched the four vidscreens on the far wall. The young female with

raven hair appeared to be the most like the Xenons with her delicate

features and quiet, musical voice. The two males fascinated him,

especially the one with the scarred face and reddish hair.

“You said he can transform into a feline?”

“Yes, sir.” The corners of Tira’s lips twitched. “Have you ever

encountered his race on your travels?”

“Once, on the planet Helix. I know little about their race, but I’m sure

the elders will have the information we seek.” Kai’s gaze flickered back

to the female with dark-blonde hair and curves a male could lose himself

in for what felt like the thousandth time. “Tell me what you’ve learned,

Captain.”

“The language barrier has made communication difficult. I gather the

males are named Tariq and Sion, while the smaller female is called

Cami.”

“The other female?” Kai asked, doing his best to keep his tone

neutral. “The blonde one with the star-shaped marking near her eye.

What do you know about her?”

“She is their leader, and she speaks most unusually. I’m not sure of

her name, but she has repeatedly demanded to speak with someone

named…Alliance.” Pausing, Tira folded her hands together behind her

back and stared toward the vidscreens with a furrowed brow. “Sir,

perhaps it would be advisable to consult the elders.”

Kai raised his right hand in a dismissive gesture. “Patience, Tira. I

want to speak with them.”

“Vasili, I must protest.”

“Your protest is noted.” Rising from his seat, he twirled his fingers,

using his magic to close each of the vidscreens. “Firstly, I’d like to meet