But Celeste hadn't found a mate on Earth or on Draconia. She’d had a chance with a few human men, but she hadn’t found the right one. At the ripe old age of twenty-five, Celeste was afraid she'd end up dying alone.
She continued to work through her stack of samples, noticing there were a few rock samples from a planet called Galaton. She'd never heard of the planet before so she opened her lab desk holocom to research it further.
“Galaton: an ancient colony of the Draconian Empire established five million years before the common era. While the Draconians of Galaton are genetically identical to those of Draconia, they do not share a culture or government. Galaton is an independent planet ruled by a monarchy based on inheritance and combat for power. Currently, Galaton is ruled equally by four princes, representing the elements: fire, water, earth, and air. Each section of the planet has been terraformed to conform to the element of its ruling prince. Galaton was inducted into the mating lottery March 25, 2046.” Just last week!
Celeste sat back in her chair, reading the information over several times. What a strange world. Galaton culture predated everything Celeste knew about Draconians, by millions of years, and they were very different from the dragon shifters she knew. They sounded more barbaric and brutal than those on Draconia.
She wondered what it would be like to be mated to one of them. These princes had to fight for their power. A cold shiver went up her spine just thinking about it. She'd hate to be mated with one of those men. She wanted a sweet, safe Earth Draconian. The guys who liked to play basketball and hang out at the flying range on the weekends. She also wouldn't mind traveling to the pristine world of Draconia, where human females were treated like queens. She couldn't even imagine being mated with a barbarian or visiting that dangerous-sounding planet.
At the end of her work day, she pressed her thumb to the ID sensor on the way out. She strode across the skyway to board the hover bus that would take her home. As she rode along the skyway, she looked down at the silvery-gray buildings and roads and thought about her world.
It was incredible to think that even with the sizeable population of New Detroit, everyone had an education, a job, a home, and food to eat. Each person was given work that suited them for twenty-five hours a week. The rest of the time, humans enjoyed swimming in floating pools, hover skating, watching holo-movies, and reading the new internet. Life was good.
She got off the bus and walked into her high rise building to take the elevator to the two hundredth floor. As she entered her apartment, she looked around at the rounded corners and pristine white walls, and felt bad for feeling sad. Even if she never ended up mating with a Draconian, she had everything she needed.
But it didn’t feel like enough.
She wanted a child to love. After her parents had been killed in the Mulgor invasion twenty-five years ago, she'd grown up in an orphanage in New Detroit, longing for someone to love. Even when she'd turned eighteen and transitioned into college housing, she had still felt something important was missing from her life.
The orphanage had been good to her. There were loving teachers and caregivers, but it was hard to shake the feeling that she didn't belong to anyone. If she had a family of her own, she would belong to someone then. Her children would love and need her as only children could. She longed for children with her whole being. The yearning was so intense she’d considered finding a donor or a one-night stand. But even in the new world, raising a child alone was not what she wanted. She wanted love; a family.
She longed for a mate who would sweep her off her feet and show her the universe through his eyes. She dreamed of the day they would meet and suddenly realize that they were meant for each other. Their hearts would overflow with love, and she would finally belong. His caring and tenderness would erase the past, and she would be reborn as someone who was capable of being loved.
Kicking off her comfortable but fashionable shoes as she walked across her shaggy carpet, Celeste made her way to her kitchen to pour herself a drink. She undid the top button of her jumpsuit and took a sip of raspberry gin. Drink in hand, she walked across the fluffy rug and gazed out the bank of windows across her wall, taking in the view. With a sigh, she pulled her long tresses out of her work bun. The thick auburn locks waved down her shoulders and curled around her curves.
The world continued on outside her apartment. People finding love. Achieving their dreams. Living the good life.
“TV on,” she said to her home holocom system.
The screen appeared against a wall of her apartment. A Draconian basketball game was playing. It had become a popular sport in the post Mulgor era. She let out a long breath and strode across the room to sit on her couch. Almost all the DNBA players had found mates. There was even a popular reality TV show starring one of the players and his mate. The whole world got to watch as they went through the mating ritual. The naughty bits stayed behind closed doors, of course.
Celeste tapped the holocom bracelet on her wrist to check her mating lottery app. Still nothing. She really needed to stop thinking about it. Maybe she should ask for a promotion at work. It was getting to be about time for her to move up in her career. It would mean greater responsibility, like being able to head projects to discover more about genetic abnormalities in babies, and greater compensation.
Celeste took another long sip of the strong, sweet pink drink, and curled her feet up under her on the couch. She liked her job, and she wouldn't mind moving up. She just felt lost. Surely there was someone out there for her. He just hadn't found her yet. With every day of waiting she lost a little more hope. She put down her glass and leaned her head against her hand, watching the DNBA players fly around their Draconian basketball arena. Slowly her eyes began to close.
Her wrist holocom chirped with a message. She slid her finger across flesh to bring up a message. Her heart lurched.
You've been mated!
A torrent of excitement and terror spiraled up inside her, and she felt flushed and numb at the same time. She flicked her finger across the three dimensional hologram to read the details. The first thing she saw was his face. She gasped and dropped her arm. He didn't look like any Draconian she'd ever seen. His eyes shone pure black like two jet stones. His skin was rugged and tinted red. Celeste had grown up seeing the seven-foot-tall, devastatingly handsome, broad-shouldered Draconian soldiers and generals on the holocom. They were all clean cut, organized and dreamy as hell. The expression on this man's face was harder and darker than anything she'd ever seen on even battle-hardened Draconian soldiers in the ongoing confrontation against the Mulgor.
He had a sharp handsomeness that reminded her of the Draconians she knew. But there seemed to be a kind of raw power inside this man that jumped out of the holocom and grabbed her at her core. She bit her lip, looking at him again. She scrolled down, reading on.
His name was Salvatt Dorr, the Fire Prince of Galaton. Galaton? That far-flung planet with those barbarians who killed each other for positions of power? This couldn't be happening. All she wanted was a mate and a family. She didn't want to be transported to the other side of the universe to live with this terrifying dragon. She'd always imagined living the good life with a DNBA player like that girl on TV. Staying here on Earth or visiting the exotic Draconia. She'd never dreamed of anything like this.
She stood from her seat, walking to the window. Anxiety coursed through her veins. Her heart raced. Was she having a panic attack? Celeste leaned against the window wall and looked out at the city beyond. She'd wanted a change. Didn't she? She'd wanted a family, but maybe she'd also wanted something more.
The glitz and glamor of the DNBA wasn't as exciting as traveling through space. She would see the Draconian system. She would travel to Galaton to mate with a prince. Her life had to be safe. The Draconian Mating Council would ensure it. Right?
Her holocom chirped with a new message.
Report to your nearest Draconian consulate tomorrow morning.
Chapter 3
&n
bsp; Celeste contacted work and let them know she'd be going to the Draconian consulate to meet her mate. She wore her prettiest dress with the sparkling emerald green fabric that shimmered around her curves and complemented her red hair. She chose sexy shoes and glossed her lips with deep red. Celeste wanted her mate to see her at her best, even if he was some kind of barbarian warrior prince.
She took a hover cab to the consulate, too nervous to wait at the bus stop outside her building. The autodrive hover cab flew her across the city along a low skyway and landed in front of the consulate. She stepped out of the cab in front of the domed building, her heart racing. Sweat beaded on her skin, and she gulped.
She took several deep breaths as she made her way up the stairs and was more relaxed by the time she stood at the sliding glass doors. They swished open when she approached, and the holocom system greeted her as she entered the massive room.
“Greetings Celeste Dawes,” the artificially intelligent holocom said. “You've been mated with Salvatt Dorr, Fire Prince of Galaton. “
The AI showed holographic images across the room, displaying Salvatt in his native landscape. A thrill shot through her, aching deep within. She bit her lip. Masculinity oozed through time and space and she couldn’t look away from his brutal strength or the fire that glowed in the depths of his coal black eyes.
“When can I meet him?” she asked the AI.
“Standby for assistance.”
The seven-foot-tall Draconian secretary walked into the room wearing a skin-tight Draconian military-style jumpsuit. It hugged his every delicious contour like a silver-gray sheath. Celeste knew that with one flick of his finger, the jumpsuit would retract, and he’d be naked. The secretary put his hand on his heart in greeting and she did the same.
“Celeste Dawes. Thank you for coming. I am Secretary Kin Tal and will be assisting you during your transition.”
“It's good to meet you, Secretary. Can you take me to my mate, Salvatt Dorr? Where is he?”
“Ms. Dawes, I regret to inform you that Prince Salvatt is not on Earth to meet you. There are further conditions to your mating that you must be aware of.”
“What is it?” she asked, feeling less and less sure with each word the secretary spoke.
“You are to be inseminated with Prince Salvatt’s seed before leaving Earth. You will then travel through the wormhole to the Draconian galaxy. From there, it will take roughly a year for you to arrive at Galaton.”
“I'll have a baby when I arrive?”
“Presumably. That is the prince’s intention.”
“But we haven't even met. I can't have his baby. I don't even know if I want to leave Earth. I don't understand why he's not here.”
“The Galatonians are in the middle of an internal power crisis. The prince cannot leave his kingdom for fear of losing the throne. Each prince needs an heir to continue their lines and stabilize Galaton during this crisis. You will provide the fire prince his heir. It is an honor.”
“Right...”
Celeste didn't feel honored. She felt confused. How could she get pregnant with a Draconian's child when he was so far away?
“What about the mating impulse? How is he supposed to survive for so long without going mad?”
“The insemination and application of a special mating cream will begin the mating ritual. This genetic bonding will ease his inner dragon. You will communicate as little as possible over the next year, aboard your ship, to keep his dragon from becoming enraged with lust. This will help suppress the thrall. It will be a challenge for the prince. But it is a risk all the princes were willing to take.”
“I don't know what to do.”
“Do you understand that you are the exact genetic match for Prince Salvatt? You are his genetic mate. It is fated for you and no one else. If you do not go, the mating impulse will eventually destroy him.”
“I understand that.”
“This is the first time we've sent a bride to Galaton. The mating council feels the brides must be given a choice. Once you go, we cannot guarantee you can come back.”
“I don’t have to go even though I’ve been matched?”
“The committee will not force a bride to go into an uncontrolled environment. But we do trust that you will do what is right for your mate.”
“So, it's on me then,” she sighed. “Can I have some time to think about it?”
“Come back to inform me of your decision and we will continue from there,” the secretary said, putting his hand to his heart and bowing before walking away.
Celeste watched him stride out of the big, domed room through a sliding door. She turned to go, feeling confused and unsettled, and stepped down the concrete stairs to the sidewalk. Not only did her mate want her to come meet him on Galaton, which would take an entire year, he also wanted to knock her up while he was on the other side of the universe.
She walked out along the ground level street. The hovercraft zoomed overhead, silently slicing through the air. She felt strange walking on the ground. Celeste had spent most of her time walking the skywalks between the massive towers that made up the newer parts of the city.
She made her way through the old buildings along the street, the sun shining down on the trees that lined the sidewalk. She wondered if she could handle what lay ahead of her. What would await her when she finally arrived on the far-off alien planet? Would Salvatt be good to her? Would he be capable of loving her in the way she needed to be loved?
All her hopes for a mate and children seemed to shatter right before her eyes. She would never be mated with another Draconian again. The pieces of her dream fell down around her shoulders as she walked the old street. There were others down on the ground around her. A few old men played checkers on a board outside a quaint café. Old women did tai chi in the park. A young man walked his dog along the tree-lined street.
Did Celeste want to walk away from Earth and everything she knew for a man she’d never met? The thought of going back home made her realize she would only ever have a shadow; a half-life from then on. She couldn’t just go back to her job at the lab, after years of longing for a mate and child. It would be like admitting defeat.
If she didn’t go to him, her mate would eventually go mad and die.
She couldn’t live with that. As frightening as going into space might be, the prospect of killing her fated mate was far worse.
She’d grown up believing in fated mates, and believing in the stories she’d heard from human women who’d been matched with Draconian males. The women ended up deeply fulfilled and exceptionally happy. Not only that, being claimed by a Draconian imbued a human woman with superhuman vitality. She became more than human, stronger and with a longer life. It was hard to give that all up, just to stay on Earth.
Not that Earth wasn’t great, but her life would just be work and parties and whatever from now on. She’d never find another fated mate. And who knows if she’d ever find a human man to start a family with.
She approached an old water fountain in the park. A silver stream of water arched from a cherub’s mouth and splattered into the pool below. There were old coins at the bottom of the pool. It was an old Earth custom to throw a coin in a pool to make a wish. But they had stopped making coins on Earth a long time ago.
Celeste bent and picked up a piece of slick black stone, thinking of her mate’s obsidian black eyes. After polishing it off, she kissed it and closed her eyes.
“I wish for my prince to love me,” she said, throwing her stone into the fountain.
She let out a breath and opened her eyes, smiling. Turning on her heel, she headed back to the consulate. She was going to Galaton.
Celeste strode up the stairs and into the domed building. The AI greeted her but the secretary arrived before it got out its second sentence.
“You've returned,” the secretary said, raising an eyebrow. “Have you made up your mind?”
“I'll do it. I'll go to Galaton. Can I get started today? I don't want to lose my
nerve.”
“Come this way,” the secretary said, leading her to the back door of the dome.
The door swished open, revealing a smaller chamber full of holocom terminals.
“We’ve received the required genetic material for insemination. Using this source material, we’ve created a mating cream for you to begin the mating ritual.”
“Cream?”
“We have a skin lotion that was created by bioengineering a synthetic replication of prince Salvatt’s semen. We created it for long term use. Rubbing it on your body will imbue you with the prince’s genetic signature. It will bond you to him and prepare your small human body to accept him.”
“All that from a lotion?” Celeste asked.
She’d never heard of anything like that before. But she’d never heard of Galatonians before either. Now she was going off into the unknown to meet one.
“So I rub it on me? Can I just do my hands or my stomach?”
“I’m afraid you must rub your entire body. And while you do it, the council suggests you think of him. That will activate the cosmic link between you. All of this will help the prince overcome his mating impulse until you arrive. It will also enable your womb to accept his seed.”
The secretary began to flick through items on his holographic screen. A moment later, the far wall swished open, showing what appeared to be the passenger bay of a shuttle.
“Am I going now?”
“No time like the present.”
“Am I to be inseminated now?”
“First you must begin the mating ritual. Please take your seat in the shuttle. Your ship’s medic is waiting above on the Bride Ship.”
Celeste’s eyes bulged but she took her seat anyway. The automatic safety harness came down over her shoulders and around her waist while the secretary punched information into the shipboard holocom.
“You are ready for takeoff,” he said, exiting the craft.