*.*.*
Ristéard stood at the edge of the landing platform watching as the Kassisan shuttle slowed for landing. He was an imposing sight. At close to seven feet of pure muscle, he carried an air of barely suppressed violence in his stance. His light blue skin was swirled with darker blue tattoos that he wore proudly. He had earned each in either battle or competition against those who thought to take his title. Those who were stupid enough to dare either one died a slow, painful death. He did not show mercy to anyone, be they male or female. There had been three females who thought to take his place, one in battle, two by deceit. He had killed them as slowly as he had killed the numerous males who had tried. If they wished to cause him harm, he felt they deserved the same punishment.
His people knew he could be a brutal, heartless warrior but they also knew he was a fair ruler who gave to them. His research showed Lord Ajaska Ja Kel Coradon, Leader of Kassis, was the same. After he was informed that Ja Kel Coradon wanted to meet with him, he had ordered Commander Rue to return. He had wanted to know everything she knew about the Leader of Kassis…. everything. He could tell by the increase in her breathing and the flush to her skin that she was withholding information from him at first. His softly hissed command warned her not to hold anything back if she valued not only her position but her life. She told him of the night she and two other officers had spent with the leader almost forty years before when they had just completed training and were partying on a distant Spaceport. She relayed what she remembered in specific detail. Her insight to that night gave him an idea of the type of male he would be facing. It had also left him highly aroused which was a constant state for a Elpidios male. After he had dismissed her, he had called for one of the women he kept for his pleasure. As he bent her over his desk, taking his time with her, his mind focused on the information he had. His release came swiftly, taking the edge off but never satisfying him. He pushed the disappointment to the back of him mind. He had more important things to deal with than the constant hunger that ate at him. After the female clean him, he dismissed her back to the rooms where the females he kept for his private use lived without another thought.
Now, he was focused solely on the pale skinned female that Commander Rue said was the first sign of the prophesy stating his bride, the female who would save his world, was coming. The shuttle landed and within moments the platform opened, allowing the passengers to disembark.
Ristéard’s eyebrow lifted when he saw the huge figure of a Tearnat male walk down the platform first and look around with a deep scowl on his face. He stared intently at Ristéard for a moment before he dipped his head in respect. Only when Ristéard responded in kind did he motion for the others. A slender, darker green Tearnat female walked down the platform with her head held high. Ristéard bit back a smile at the scowl the huge Tearnat gave the female who waved her hand at him as if brushing away an annoying speck. She stepped off the platform and turned to stand next to the male who immediately wrapped a huge arm around her waist, drawing her protectively against him.
The next one down the platform was a huge male that could only be Ajaska Ja Kel Coradon from Commander Rue’s description. He was almost as big as Ristéard, both in height and in strength from the look of it. He paused, looking over at Ristéard before he looked up the platform and nodded. Ristéard’s attention was truly caught at the protectiveness of the males for those who were still aboard the shuttle. He understood why the moment he saw the next two couples descending. His eyes were riveted to the two beautiful females descending the platform, surrounding by four males who searched the area intensely for any signs of a threat.
The females had golden, pale skin. Their coloring and size contrasted each other as if they had been painted with two different brushes by two different artists. One was taller, with dark hair hanging in a long braid down her slender back. When she glanced at him, he could see that her eyes were indeed the color of their oceans. The dark, dark blue that pulled at the soul of the searcher. His eyes roamed her sleek form pausing on the slight swell of her abdomen. His eyes moved to the slightly taller male who glared back at him in warning.
Her mate, Ristéard thought. He would not be an easy adversary to beat.
Ristéard bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement of the male’s warning. He would give him the respect of knowing he would not harm another’s mate unless it was necessary. He held sacred the bond between mates and a female while she was breeding.
His eyes moved to the other female who fascinated him with her unusual coloring. Commander Rue did not mention a second pale-skinned female. She was so small he might have wondered if she was a child if it had not been for the way the other male had his hand on her. Her hair was a color he had never seen before except in the crystals that used to litter his world. The few crystals that were left had belonged to the ruling family and his father had turned them over to the scientists in the hopes they could discover the property hidden inside them. Only a handful remained. The others used up or destroyed in the experiments.