“When can I speak to him?”
Ella knew what she needed to do, but she also wanted to speak to her prince more than anything she'd ever wanted in her life. She could feel the need for him pulsing inside her chest. Nothing had ever been so strong or so definite.
He was her life and she only wanted to be with him. She didn't know why or how and none of it made sense, but Ella didn't care. She had spent her whole life doing things that made sense and what had that gotten her? She loved her job and her students, but she still felt empty and alone almost all of the time.
Finally, she was going to do something that didn't make any sense, and she was proud of it. She couldn't help the deep need inside her to speak to Shay.
“You will speak to him when the time is right, I am sure. It is at his discretion when that takes place. He risks madness every time he looks at your picture, let alone speaks to you. I understand that it is difficult for you, and I am sure that it is difficult for prince Shay as well. In the end, I am sure it will be worth it for both of you.”
“What do I do now?” she asked. She knew she needed to call the school and let them know. She was going to profoundly miss her students and her school, but she knew she was doing the right thing. There was an understanding of what it meant to be matched to a Draconian, so she knew the school would understand.
“Now, you will depart Earth for the bride ship Mercury Rising. Then you will be inseminated with your prince’s seed. ”
“And it's really going to take a year to make it to Galaton?” she asked.
“Yes. There will be a brief stopover at Draconia to deliver the other brides who have been matched with dragons from our home world. Then the Mercury Rising will continue on to Galaton.”
“I'm going to go through the wormhole to the Draconian star system, right?”
“That is correct. Now, we should begin the preparations.”
“Can you contact my school and let them know I was matched? I just can’t do it. I’m all muddled and can’t face saying goodbye.”
“Not a problem. Right this way.”
The secretary escorted her through the Draconian Consulate and flicked his finger across a control panel that opened a sliding door into another room. There were banks of computers against one wall and holographic screens against another. Secretary Kim went to the holographic screens and began to input information. An empty wall slid open, revealing the inside of a space pod. There were rows of seats, empty and waiting for passengers.
Secretary Kim instructed Ella to take a seat in one of the chairs and helped her strap on her harness. When she was safely secured, he went to the control panel at the helm of the space pod and input the necessary information that would take her into space and to the bride ship Mercury Rising.
When he was finished, he turned to her and smiled. Placing his hand on his heart, he bowed slightly and looked up at her with a respectful expression on his face.
“Congratulations, Ella Turner. And thank you from the people of Draconia and Galaton for your commitment to the continuation of our race.”
The secretary stepped out of the space pod and the doors slid shut. Ella was left alone in the dim light of the pod as the engines rumbled to life below her. She gasped as the pod accelerated upward unimaginably fast, moving through the roof of the consulate and through the clear blue sky of Earth.
She watched everything outside the window of her space pod as her ship moved faster and faster toward her destination. As her pod sped toward the upper atmosphere, she braced herself for the fiery impact. The sight of streaming lights blazing around her as she broke through the stratosphere filled her heart with terror.
Ella had never been into space before and this was a completely new experience. She watched in shock and awe as she broke through the barrier between Earth and space. On the other side, her pod came out into the broad expanse of space. The black void was sprinkled with the twinkling lights of distant stars. The sun rose up behind the blue-green sphere of her home. She saw in the distance the Draconian armada that constantly orbited the Earth.
Her pod sped through the voids toward a little ship that she knew was the bride ship Mercury Rising. Soon, her pod docked in the bride ship and the exit door slid open.
She was immediately greeted by a seven-foot-tall Draconian in a white coat, indicating he was a medic. The medic put his hand to his heart and bowed.
“I am medic Zeke,” he said, raising to his full height again.
He stepped into the pod and helped her pull off her harness.
“Welcome to the bride ship Mercury Rising,” the medic said.
“Thank you,” Ella said. “When will I receive my mate’s seed?” she asked.
“We will start the insemination process immediately. Please follow me.”
Ella followed the medic down a wide, well-lit hallway through the bride ship. She saw other human girls passing by on their way to their own rooms.
They finally came to a door that slid open, revealing the apartment inside. Ella stepped through the entrance and took in the room that would be her home for the next year. It was like a luxuriously furnished apartment that one would find on Earth. The furnishings were a mixture of human extravagance and Draconian logic.
There was a small kitchen with the food replicator. A living room with stark white furniture made out of Draconian memory foam, which Ella happen to know was extremely comfortable.
It had both curving and squared angles that created a modern aesthetic. The couch itself faced a bank of windows that looked out onto space. Through double doors at the far end of the room was a bedroom with a king-sized bed, made out of the same material as the couch. The medic took her on a tour of the apartment.
The thing that excited her the most was the walk-in closet full of an assortment of the latest fashions. There were trendy fashions from Earth made of bright multicolored fabrics, and the latest gowns from Draconia that the female dragon shifters were more inclined to favor. There were shoes and handbags and accessories as well. Ella couldn't believe her luck.
She was giddy with excitement about all of the possibilities of her new wardrobe. But then she remembered she wouldn't be able to model them for her prince, and her heart sank.
But she would soon have his seed implanted inside her womb. She couldn't wait for that to happen.
“How do I get inseminated?” she asked.
“You will go into the bathroom and further instructions will be given to you by the shipboard AI. Your holocom has already been integrated with the ship system. If you need anything, just use your wrist holocom to call me, and I will come assist you.”
“Thank you,” Ella said, feeling a little nervous and excited at the same time.
She had never felt this way before. Her entire life had been a stream of events strung together by what was most appropriate at the time. Now she was doing something totally insane, and she couldn't be any happier.
As the medic left her apartment, she walked into the bathroom. It was like a normal human bathroom one would find on Earth, but it also contained a Draconian bathtub. The tub itself was circular and stood seven feet above the floor.
These tubs had become popular on Earth in the last thirty years since the Draconians had come to her planet but Ella had never owned one. She walked in front of the mirror and looked at her reflection. Her dark hair hung around her soft shoulders, and she could see the look of conflicting excitement and dread in her eyes.
“Welcome aboard the bride ship Mercury Rising,” the AI said. “Ella Turner, you are mated with Prince Shay of Galaton. We will begin the insemination process now. First you must wash yourself. Please remove all of your clothing and climb into the tub.”
Eager to get started, Ella stripped out of her clothes and dropped them on the ground. She walked up the circular stairs that led around the bathtub and came to the top, where she dipped her toe into the water. It was the perfect temperature.
She sank slowly into the water bit by
bit until her entire body was submerged. The tub was deep; far too deep for her to stand up in. She swam over to a ledge facing the mirror with the AI screen, and rested her arms over the cool stone. Images of her mate filled the screen in front of her.
She saw pictures of Shay all around. There was a picture of his dragon with his blue-green scales shimmering under the deep waters of Galaton as he swam. The image of the dragon was as startling as it was mystifying. He was the most beautiful being she had ever seen. She wanted to know everything about what it was like to live in the water lands of Galaton.
She saw images of Shay in his human form as well. His blue-green tinted skin was taut over his rippling muscled body. She saw him in a video emerging from the deep waters of the ocean. Beads of the salt water dripped down his muscled chest and over the astounding bulge inside his swim trunks. She bit her lip, wishing that the images showed what was underneath. There was an image of him fighting in the fighting pits of Galaton. His laser sword was drawn, his fanged teeth bared and his moss-green eyes shining like the luminescent algae that illuminated the underwater Coral Palace that was his home.
“Please find the provided vials of lotion on the ledge of the tub,” the AI instructed her.
She grabbed an amber bottle and squirted the white liquid into her palm.
“Wash your entire body, including your hair and sexual organs with the provided lotion,” the AI instructed her.
Ella did as she was told and dipped down into the water to wet her hair. She washed with a lotion that smelled vaguely of exotic spices and deep masculine musk.
“The provided lotion contains genetic material from your mate, synthesized from his seed,” the AI informed her.
Ella was already beginning to feel the effects of having Shay’s seed, even the synthetic form, contact her skin.
“While you apply the lotion to your body, please observe your mate on the screen.”
The combination of watching Shay on the screen and rubbing the lotion into her skin definitely had an effect on her overall state of mind. It was as if the whole world disappeared and all that was left was her and Shay. Even if they were many millions of miles apart, she felt more connected to him than she had ever felt to anyone in her entire life.
As she dipped the lotion between her legs to wash her privates, she felt a surge of desire so strong it almost knocked her off the ledge. Her pussy contracted under her hand as her entire body tensed in sharp pleasure. Her head throbbed and she gasped, still looking into Shay’s green eyes. When her body finally relaxed, she took a deep breath and rinsed the soap from her skin.
Ella climbed out of the water and stood under a forced air blow dryer that quickly removed all of the moisture from her skin. She went to stand in front of the mirror again and several more bottles of lotion emerged from the counter.
“Please apply lotion to your dried skin,” the AI told her.
More images of Shay appeared on the screen, each one more devastatingly gorgeous than the last. His seven-foot-tall form was ripped with exquisite musculature. He had rippling muscles and a swimmer's form. With every breath she drew as she rubbed the lotion into her skin, she felt more and more connected to him. She knew that the link must be taking hold.
“Now you are prepared for the insemination.”
A hospital bed emerged from a wall in the bathroom and the AI instructed her to lie down. At the same time, a robotic arm appeared, holding a wide plastic syringe.
Ella lay down on the bed and blinked nervously several times before she asked the AI if the robot was going to inseminate her.
“You may have the robotic arm insert the seed or you may do it yourself,” the AI informed her.
She gingerly took the syringe from the robotic hand and held it in her own human ones. Laying back, Ella carefully spread her legs and inserted the syringe into her wet, ready core. She had rubbed Shay's seed all over her body, including her sexual organs, and her readiness to accept the syringe surprised even her.
She slipped it inside and pushed the tip in several inches until the AI told her it was at the right location and angle. Slowly, she pushed the stopper and the seed shot deep into her core.
The intensity of the contact of the pure biological seed from her mate hit her with a force she had not anticipated. All of a sudden, she was hyperventilating and rolling around on the bed. Before she blacked out, she saw medic Zeke rush into the bathroom. He scooped her up, carried her into the bedroom, and deposited her onto the bed. Behind the fading lights of her eyes, and the distant thunder inside her ears, she heard Zeke’s voice.
“Don't be worried, Ella, this is common. We are pushing the bounds of the mating ritual to get you inseminated as soon as possible. Your body is simply reacting to the unadulterated seed deposited inside you. It will soon pass.”
The medic left her alone in her bed, and she quickly fell into a deep sleep.
The next thing she remembered, medic Zeke was waking her from her sleep, telling her to get out of bed.
“What's happening?” Ella asked groggily.
“We are approaching the wormhole that will take us to the Draconian star system,” the medic said. “You must be strapped in. But first I am going to check the status of your insemination. He waved a medical wand over her body and checked the display.
“It appears the insemination has taken hold. Now put on this robe, and we will get you strapped into a chair for the travel through the wormhole.”
Ella wrapped the provided robe around her shoulders and tied it at the waist. Medic Zeke walked to the side of her chamber and typed information into the holographic control pad. A second later, a seat with a harness similar to the ones in the space pod emerged from the wall. Zeke instructed her to sit down and then he strapped her in.
“I will return to check your insemination status after we have entered the Draconian star system. There shouldn't be any problems, but we like to be as safe as possible.”
Ella was so confused and disoriented that she could only nod her head in agreement. Medic Zeke left the room and the bride ship Mercury Rising approached the wormhole.
Ella could see everything out the huge bank of windows at the far wall of her chamber. The wormhole was like a black void in space without a single star or light inside it.
The bride ship began to shake and groan. Ella squeezed her eyes closed and gripped the harness at her chest. In that moment, she really wondered what she had gotten herself into.
She missed her students back at the school on Earth and regretted that she would never see them again. But it was too late for regret now. The bride ship Mercury Rising shot through the wormhole, and Ella gasped and she watched in stunned amazement as concentric circles of light and dark shot past the window. It was as if time and space held no meaning and all of the laws of physics had reversed.
As abruptly as it had begun, the bride ship Mercury Rising burst out the other side of the wormhole, emerging in the Draconian star system. Off in the distance, she could see the blue-green planet of Draconia. It was larger than Earth and had different continental shapes, but there was an undeniable similarity between Earth and Draconia.
A moment later, the medic came back into her chamber and helped her out of her harness. He slid the medical wand over her belly to check the implantation of Shay's seed.
“Everything is in order,” medic Zeke said.
Ella let out a deep sigh. She had embarked on this journey for one reason - to go to her mate, Shay, and to bring him his child.
Chapter 5
From the first instant that Shay had seen his princess, he was stunned by her beauty. Not a moment went by that he did not have to force her image out of his mind. She had come to represent all that was good and beautiful in the universe, and not thinking of her, or contacting her, grew more difficult with each passing day.
His inner dragon roared against his mind as he fought his own dragons in the fighting pits below the Coral Palace. The vicious battles with his Dukes and Earls
raged on, day in and day out, as he waited for his bride's arrival.
Every time the females grew sparse and died off, the lower level aristocrats rose up against the princes. Every time, the families of the four houses put down the rebellion. But this time, at the back of his mind, when he felt most vulnerable and most in need of his bride, he feared that it would be different. He feared that they would overthrow his rule of the water lands.
Deep in the ocean, his fierce dragon form was locked in battle with one of his own Earls. Shay spiraled above the other dragon and shot back down again, baring his sharp fangs. Prince Shay sank his teeth into the neck of the opposing dragon and tasted his blood. He had no choice but to end his Earl’s life. He bit down harder and snapped the dragon’s neck.
The body of the opposing dragon sank below the waves, deeper and deeper into the vast dark ocean. The last thing Shay wanted was to watch his own men die at his hand, but there was no other way to protect his throne.
This was the tradition and the way of Galaton. The princes were forced to prove that they had the right to rule every five thousand years when the females ran out. He knew that he was the strongest among the water dragons. In fact, he knew he was the strongest dragon on the entire planet. He was the oldest among the princes at two hundred years old.
As he swam through the waves, back to the dome over the Coral City, his mind flitted to his bride.
The human female was only thirty years old. Young in terms of a Draconian life span. But she was a mature female for a human. He had received word that her insemination had been successful, but that knowledge had only made it that much more difficult for him to not think about her and worry about her safety.
All that stood between him and insanity was the growing child inside her womb. Without that bond, the thrall would overtake him, and he would be done for. The water lands would be lost.
He swam to the hatch of the dome and shifted into his humanoid form once inside. He flicked the spot at his neck and made his uniform reappear, and walked out into the corridor of his palace. Just then, he heard his holocom ping with a new message.