Predator

Chapter 45 – Rhade’s Week

Riddick looked up with a slack-jaw at Kyra as she stood glaring at him with her fists on her hips. ‘Shit. I am not ready for this.’ He was anticipating some much needed sleep after his chat with Ronon not a run-in with a pissed off teenager. “We just had a talk that’s all.”

“About what?” She paced back and forth in front of the couch he was sitting on and her hands were active with her ranting. “He just said the words of death for a relationship. He said the dreaded four words - we need to talk! The only thing I can think of is you played the big bad and tried to intimidate him.” She stopped pacing and turned to glare at him. “Tell me I’m wrong!”

“You’re not wrong but you don’t understand how things work with Nietzcheans. He’s displaying for you!” He shot to his feet and loomed over her. “Do you know what that entails? If you choose him, he will want to mate and that means husband and father.”

“What if I want to mate?” She said in a seductive tone and wagged her eyebrows.

“Let me tell you a little something about Nietzcheans, darlin’.” He grabbed her upper arms and growled in her face. “There is no such thing as casual sex with them. If you let him fuck you, he will consider you mated and that is forever! You can’t ever leave him! Do you understand what that means?”

“I know exactly what it means! He and I will be happy and love each other forever just like you and Alex do!” She brushed his hands from her shoulders and pushed him back with open palms to his chest. “Aren’t I good enough for that too, Riddick? Don’t I get to have love and happiness in my future just like you?”

“Of course you do, Kyra, but has it come to that already? Do you love him or do you just love the idea of him?” A resounding slap echoed through his room and when he looked at her again she had tears forming in her eyes. “Answer my question, baby girl.” He said quietly as he watched the tension coil in her body. “Are you in love with Ronon?”

“I won’t lie to you, Riddick.” She sniffled and wiped her tears away with the back of her hand. “I want the fairy-tale that you lucked into.” She walked around his suite and indicated the surroundings with a wave of her hands. “You found your Princess. You married your Princess. You moved into your Princess’ palace. You had a child with your Princess and have another one on the way. Can’t I have my Prince?”

“You have finally found a wonderful life, Riddick, and God knows you deserve it. You’ve been through so much shit and survived it to find something wonderful waiting for you at the finish line.” She was sobbing and, when he tried to go comfort her, she warded him off with an outstretched arm. “Ronon and I are just getting to know each other. I am finally comfortable around a man. A man can actually touch me now and I don’t flinch. I love that feeling.”

“When he is near me or looks at me, I feel it here.” She placed her hand over her heart and clenched her fist. “I want the opportunity to find out if he is my Alex. Can you understand that?” He nodded his head and felt humbled by her uncharacteristic tears. “He makes me feel alive and he is the only man I’ve ever felt like exploring love and a future with.”

He studied her hopeful expression and understood her need to find a semblance of normalcy in her life. He had lost hope long ago that he would ever find it until one day he took a contract to ghost a woman. Everything about him changed the moment he saw her. His heart began to beat again when he touched her the first time and threatens to pound out of his chest with every touch since. His life would never be the same again and he couldn’t be happier.

He stared at Kyra and saw the young girl who idolized him years ago, Jack that once upon a time almost lost her future to a bunch of aliens on a ball of sand planet. He saved her from that nightmare with a lot of help from Carolyn. Her life didn’t get any better after they escaped that hellhole. She lost her innocence and youth to a life of mercs, murder, and slam. She died repaying her life debt to him by saving his life. Now his mate has given her a new chance at life just as she gave him. ‘Who am I to deny her that?’

“Okay, Kyra. I understand everything you said and I’ll try to support you but I want you to be careful. You have garnered more than Ronon’s attention and I wouldn’t suggest veering off of that beaten path.” She smiled at Riddick and a slight blush colored her cheeks. “Don’t even think about it, Kyra.”

“What is wrong with a little competition? It will only prove he cares about me.”

“These are Alex’s sons we are talking about.” He pointed at the smirk on her face and wagged his finger at her. “I don’t need a war between 2 Nietzcheans and the God of War’s son.”

“You guys fight over Alex all the time. What’s the harm?” She asked innocently.

“You’ve seen the harm we cause her when we fight with each other! I don’t want to see her upset because her sons are fighting over a woman! These boys have a destiny to fulfill together when she passes on her power to our daughter and she cannot afford dissention amongst them.”

“Kyra, I am beyond fucking tired and I want some sleep.” He grabbed her by the elbow and walked her to the door. “Go ask Ronon the difference between his Pride and Jesse’s. He can explain it all and if he can’t I’m sure Alex can educate you on the Prides and her Godling. Now get out.” He slammed the door behind her and left her slightly bewildered out in the hall.

~*~

Rhade had carried his Lady to his room and set her down on her feet. He slowly walked a circle around her and gazed hungrily at her form. “You are so beautiful.” His voice was a sweet caress that wrapped around her senses. “I never thought I would have this with you again.” His breath on the back of her neck was like a warm blanket that permeated her skin and sent a shiver through her body. “I have waited for you…for this moment for so long.”

“Telemachus, I’m so sorry.” He stood before her and stared into her passion glazed eyes. “I never wanted us to be apart.” He placed his finger over her lips and hushed her.

“We are together now and nothing will ever keep us apart again.” He tenderly cupped her cheek in his palm and pulled her into a deep kiss. His hands moved to her back and untied her top, which he allowed to drop between their feet. His right hand slid between them and palmed her heavy breast. Her lips left his with a gasp and she raised her black eyes to meet his hazel-brown. His left hand went to her hip and released the knot that held her skirt together. It fell from her waist and joined her top on the floor. “I love you, Alexandra. I have always loved you.”

“I love you too, Telemachus.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and nibbled on his chest until he growled with pent up desire. “Are you ready to claim me, husband?”

Another low growl rumbled through his chest and he swept her up in his arms. He carried her to the bed, placed her in the center, and went to his nightstand to retrieve a small wooden box. He came back to the bed, sat beside her, and handed her the box. “The question is are you ready to claim me?”

She opened the box to find a matching set of Double Helixes with the Majoram Pride symbol etched into them and an apprehensive look furrowed her brow. “I know when Nietzchean males take mates from different Prides they wear the appropriate Pride Helix when they spend time with that female.” She picked up the armbands and looked deep into his eyes. “I cannot remove Tyr’s Helix.”

She saw his face fall and set the female Helix down on her lap. “Hold out your arm, Telemachus.” He held out his left arm and instinctively flexed his bicep when she fastened the Helix in place. “This is a little different but it is the best that I can do.” She held up her Helix and it floated up from her hands in the air between them before it merged into one with Tyr’s on her left bicep. “The Kodiak symbol is on one side and the Majoram symbol is on the other. Is this okay?”

A heart-warming smile broke out on his face and he traced the band on her arm. “It is perfect.” He leapt on top of her and pinned her beneath him on the bed. “You are perfect.” He planted quick, desperate kisses all over her face and pulled back with a smirk. “This is really going to piss off Anasazi, isn’t it?”

“He will have to deal with it.” She smiled, shaking her head at his Nietzchean competitiveness. “I promised him I would never take off his Helix and I haven’t but I am required to wear yours as well. It is a fair compromise.” She ran her tongue into his mouth to glide across his and they dueled for dominance. When they pulled apart, they were both gasping for breath. “Let’s not talk about Tyr right now.”

“I agree.” He drew a hard nipple into his mouth and lapped at the tip with his tongue until she moaned loudly. “Take off my clothes.” He growled before he took her other hard tip between his teeth and bit down. She mentally removed his clothing and arched her back thrusting her breasts into his face. “Mine.” He purred as he buried himself to the hilt within her hot channel in one hard thrust.

“You are mine forever now, Alexandra.” He slid his hands under her shoulders and pulled her back into his penetration. “I’ll never let you go ever again.” Her cries of passion made his blood fire in his veins and he pounded into her hard and fast when he lost his control. “Baby, you feel so good.” Her power surged through her body as he drove her to the heights of ecstasy and the Phoenix emerged. It surrounded their writhing bodies and their pleasure magnified a hundred fold. “By the Progenitor, Alex, I’ve never felt like this before.”

“Telemachus…” Alex’s eyes turned white when she looked upon her 6th mate. “I’m gonna…”

“Me too.” The white flames licked their bodies and Rhade felt her pussy contract around his cock heralding her climax. “Alex…” She screamed as her orgasm quaked through her entire being and took him over the edge with her when she clamped down on his cock.

Tremors ran through his body as he collapsed on top of her and rode out the remnants of his release. Her breathing was erratic and she could feel the liquid heat he shot into her warm her insides. “Damn…Rhade.” She gasped out while trying to catch her breath. “I missed you and I definitely missed that.”

“Me too, love.” He kissed her lightly and rolled them to the side. He was still buried within her as he held her to his chest. “There could never be anyone else for me.”

“I sometimes wish I could say the same.” She whispered. “It is a difficult life I created for myself when I decided to live a mortal life. I am immortal but I wanted to stay amongst you so this hectic existence is what I am left with. It is so unfair of me to place these demands upon you and the others just so I can stay.”

“I don’t think any of us really mind, Alexandra.” He said lovingly as he ran his fingers through her loose dark locks. “We might bitch on occasion because we really wish we were the only one to have you but the price you require is not too high that we won’t pay it to keep you.”

“Telemachus, are you aware of Ronon displaying for Kyra?” She whispered as she caressed his chest. “They appear to be getting very close.”

“He has expressed his interest in her to me and I approve of his choice. She is a strong female with excellent survival skills. I don’t think he could find a more appropriate female for him if he tried. Do you disapprove of the match?”

“No, not at all. I think Kyra is a wonderful girl and I know Ronon will make an excellent husband and father to any woman.”

“I sense some hesitancy in there somewhere, my love.” He kissed her on top of her head and nuzzled her hair. “Is there a problem?”

“Kyra is a spirited girl with a fractured past. I think Ronon would be a wonderful balance for her and show her that there are good people in the universe. He is the most loving child I’ve ever seen and could only be the perfect mate to her. Riddick is concerned about it, of course. He thinks of her as a younger sibling and is quite protective.”

“My son would never hurt her and, if he is interrogating him right now like I suspect he is, he will find our boy isn’t easily scared off.” His gentle laugh reverberated through her body and she felt his shaft move within her. She took a quick intake of air and closed her eyes at the pleasure it induced. “I’ve seen them together, Alex. The way they look at each other has the same passion that we’ve had since we first met. I see us when I look at them. It is a beautiful thing.”

“I agree with you, Telemachus, but I think we might have a problem.”

“What would that be?”

“Jesse is displaying for her too and I think Brandon is showing interest as well.” She pulled back from him to gaze up into his beautiful eyes. “I know how Nietzcheans get when they are displaying for the same female and I don’t want my children fighting.”

“Anasazi’s son is displaying for her?” She nodded her head. “Oh that is rich!” He heartily laughed and the same delicious vibrations ran through her body from where they were still joined. “Tyr will be quite disturbed when his supposedly superior genes do not impress the girl and his son fails to win her from Ronon.”

“I know in my mind and heart that Kyra will claim Ronon as her mate but I do not want this thing to go too far. If things get out of hand, the three of them could seriously hurt each other. Will you talk with Ronon and express my concerns?” He arched his eyebrow in protest of interfering but couldn’t resist the pleading look on her face. “Please, my love.”

“I don’t like it but I will do it for you.” She smiled and laid her head back down on his chest. “I’ll tell him not to injure him too badly.”

“You are such a devious bastard.” She slapped his chest playfully until he grabbed her wrists and rolled them over so he was pinning her to the bed. “You love to prove you are more superior than him, don’t you? This will end up being a display of superiority over each other instead of the boys.”

He scented her arousal in the air and growled deep in his chest. “We need to keep our mate interested, don’t we?” He purred into her ear and heard her moan when his hardened length moved within her. “I wouldn’t want you to ever feel unsatisfied with your choice of me as a mate.” He thrust into her again.

“I can assure you that will never happen, Telemachus.” She stared lovingly into his shining eyes. “Now I believe we have a lot of lost time to make up for so satisfy me again, husband.”

“As you wish, wife.”

~* ~

Kyra stood outside of Ronon’s chambers wringing her hands and chewing on her bottom lip with dread. She was very nervous about talking to him. She didn’t want to have the ‘let’s just be friends’ talk that she felt was coming. As she paced in front of his door trying to work up the nerve to ring the access, it swung open suddenly and a smiling Ronon looked at her with a sparkle in his eyes. “You plan on staying out here all day or are you coming in?”

“Sorry. I was just…running some things through my head.” She smiled sheepishly at him and walked past him into his quarters. “Thanks for inviting me over but I thought we were going to hit the gym?”

“We will.” He closed the door behind him and followed her into the sitting room. “Did you talk to Riddick?” He sat beside her on the couch and stretched out his long legs to rest on the table.

“I did.” She looked angry for a second and turned apologetic eyes up to him. “I’m sorry he did that. He likes to interfere in my life as often as possible.”

“You shouldn’t fault him for that. He cares about you and for most people in the universe that is a rare thing. He expressed his concern about my displaying for you and I understand it. A human mating with a Nietzchean would worry any of the female’s family.”

“He said you would tell me what all that entails.”

“That is why I asked you to come here.” He saw a look of dread cross her face and smiled as he took her hand. “Come here, Kyra.” He pulled her closer to his side until she was leaning against him and he draped an arm across her shoulders. “Nietzchean men display for a female that they are interested in. Under normal circumstances, a female will choose a male strictly on appearance, strength, intelligence, and genetics to ensure the superiority of their children.”

“Most Nietzcheans do not care about love. It is not a factor when their only concern is genetic advancement of our race through reproduction. We also do not mate outside of our race. The males are allowed to have as many mates as they wish but the female can only have the one mate. Nietzcheans are mated for life and sex is the act of mating.”

“My Pride does not follow most Nietzchean standards. We choose to mate whoever we want and we decide if we want more than one female.” He felt her tense and saw her mouth open but cut off her words. “I am not interested in having more than one mate, Kyra. I just want you but you need to decide if this is something you want. Forever is a long time and you cannot leave me once we are mated. We also cannot have sex before you decide.”

“Why not?”

“I differ from most Nietzcheans in many ways but if we make love I will consider you mine. You will be my mate and there is no turning back after that.” He looked into her smiling face and dipped his head in for a kiss. “I want you, Kyra, and just so you know I will fight for your love.”

“Riddick told me that there was a difference between the Nietzchean Prides standards and views on mating.” She felt tension mount in his body that was pressed against her side. “Will you tell me what the difference is between your Pride and Jesse’s?”

“I already told you mine.” He said in a tight voice. “Jesse is a Kodiak. Their Pride believes in multiple mates. His father proved that when he took Tamerlane’s mother after he had mated mine. I don’t think he even loved Freya. He used her as a means of status amongst the Empire and to breed the reincarnation of our Progenitor. Tyr betrayed his oath to my mother for no other reason than power and he had all the power a man could ever need when he mated Alexandra.”

“When the Kodiak Pride still existed, they were known to take as many mates as possible to propagate the Pride with their offspring. Females had no say in the matter and were subservient to their husband. If they ever brought embarrassment to their mate, the male would punish the female accordingly.”

“Punish?” She arched her eyebrow in concern. “How would they punish them?”

“The male would beat his female in front of the Pride until she begged for his forgiveness. Their Pride followed the old ways and it made them weak.” He growled with his response and felt the shiver run through her. “Why do you ask about the Kodiak?”

“He…um…” She stammered and couldn’t bring herself to speak the words.

“He is displaying for you.” He answered his own question for her and she nodded with downcast eyes. “I’m not going to ask you if he has your interest. It would be inappropriate.” He removed his arm from her shoulders and stood up to pace before her. “I will not allow that male to take what is mine!” His eyes flashed with anger before he could mask it long enough to face her. “I think you should go.”

“Ronon.” She moved to stand before him and he averted his gaze from hers. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No. I just have some things to think about and need to go visit my parents.” His eyes finally turned to see concern etched across her face and he forced himself to give her a relaxing smile. He entwined his fingers into her hair and kissed her seductively on her smooth lips. “I will see you at the gym in an hour and then we can meet for an early dinner, okay?”

“Okay.” She hesitantly parted from the warmth of his mouth and body. “Ronon?” She asked as she stopped before his door.

“Yes, Kyra.”

“I just wanted you to know that I’ve never been really comfortable around men before now.” Her head lowered to look at the floor and she kept her back to him so he couldn’t see her shame. “My life was difficult when I was younger and I was…violated mentally, physically, and sexually. I never thought I would be able to stomach the idea of a man touching me ever again but all that changed when I met you.”

He was instantly behind her and turned her to pull her into his embrace. “Shh.” He tried to calm her sobbing and caressed her hair and back. “It is alright now. I would never hurt you and would kill anyone who tried to hurt you.” He held her until she quieted down and whispered into her ear. “I already love you, Kyra. I’m just waiting for you to adjust to the idea of love and claim me as your mate. I will not rush you, baby.”

“Thank you.” She looked up into his emotional eyes and brushed a kiss across his lips. “I will see you at the gym.” She caressed his cheek tenderly and backed out of his door.

~*~

Alex lay sleeping in bed sexually spent from his repeated lovemaking while Rhade watched her. He hadn’t moved his eyes from her naked form since she fell into slumber until he heard the gentle knock on his door. “Come in.” He looked up to see his son storm into his bedchamber and held up his hand to stop him from speaking. “Shh. She is exhausted and needs her rest.”

“Only because you have an inordinate amount of stamina.” She mumbled. “Did you really think I wouldn’t sense my son’s presence in the room?” She patted the bed beside her and motioned to Ronon with her other hand. “Come here, baby.” He climbed into the bed next to her and sighed heavily as he stared into her eyes. “What is it, Ronon?”

“I have fallen in love.” He said sadly.

“It’s a bitch, isn’t it?” She said lightly until the edges of his mouth curved up in a smile. “So what is the problem?”

“I have competition.”

Her eyes closed in distress of the upcoming turmoil that was soon to enter her home but more importantly; from the pain she felt emanating from her child. “Ronon, all I can tell you is that Kyra already belongs to you but isn’t completely ready to admit it.” She looked deep into her son’s beautiful eyes and gently placed her hand on his cheek. “I went through this insecurity of feeling emotions with Riddick and he eventually came around. You have won her heart and she will come to terms with it soon too.”

He closed his eyes and nuzzled his face into her touch with a smile on his face. “I love you, Alex.”

“I love you too, Ronon, and you are the only one of my children that I will allow to address me by my name.”

“What do I do about the Kodiak and the Godling?”

The mere mention of the approaching feud made her sick and her nausea picked that moment to rear its ugly head. “I will leave that discussion to your father.” She brought her hand to her mouth and scrambled off the end of the bed. “I do not want to be involved in this dispute or interfere in your inbred need to display for a woman.” She turned to run to the bathing room and rasped out over her shoulder. “Just don’t let it go too far or I will intervene in the only way I know how – with finality.”

“At least you had the opportunity to mate her before this started up.” Ronon smiled at his father before he was pierced with a steely look that wiped the grin from his face. They watched her disappear into the other room and rushed to go to her aid. “Oh come on, Dad. I know you missed mating her. You went celibate for a couple of years. I can only imagine you are making up for lost time.”

“I don’t feel like sharing my sex life with you, Ronon, and this particular bout of illness is upon her because of the tension between you, Jesse, and Brandon.” They reached her side and Ronon gathered her long hair back in his hands while his father ran his palm soothingly over her naked back. “Its okay, love. It will pass.” He flinched when he saw the tears streaming from her eyes. “Do you want me to get Riddick?”

“No.” She collapsed as the wave passed through her. “He is tired and needs his sleep.”

“He told me to call for him if you needed him and I will not deny his right to help you through this pregnancy.”

“I’m fine.” She said with a shaky voice. “I have you two strong men to take care of me. I am not alone in this.”

“Alex, you haven’t been eating since you became aware of the morning sickness.” Ronon said softly as he stroked her hair back from her clammy forehead. “You are carrying this child like a mortal. I know this illness is upsetting for you because you’ve never been sick before but you have to eat. The baby within you takes her nourishment from your body just like Tamerlane takes his from your breasts.”

“I know.” She said with heavy sobs racking her already trembling body. “I’m afraid, Ronon. I’ve never done this before and I feel completely out of my element.” A harsh laugh escaped her quivering lips and she shook her head like a lost child. “My element is fire and my home is the sun. What do I know about giving birth like a human to a superior being?”

“It is going to be okay, Mother.” He traced his fingers down her cheeks to dry her tears. “How about we get you cleaned up and back into bed where I’m sure Father prefers to keep you?”

She nodded wearily and Rhade lifted her into his arms. He walked down the stairs into the pool and set her down on a step that allowed her to lay her head back on the edge. Her mate went about washing her glorious body until he felt the tension bleed out of her. Ronon made himself busy washing her long hair and massaging her scalp. By the time they had finished rinsing the soap off of her, she had relaxed enough to drift off into a peaceful sleep.

Rhade lifted her carefully from the pool and laid her down on the table. “Dry her off, Ronon, and put her to bed while I get dressed. We will finish our discussion in the sitting room.”

Ronon ran the soft cloth over her skin and dried her hair to the best of his ability so that he wouldn’t wake her. He glanced at the woman who completed his missing heart and soul with a loving smile on his face. ‘You mean everything to me.’ He lifted her slumbering form in his arms, placed her in bed, and covered her up with a sheet. ‘I love you, Alexandra.’ He backed away from the bed and went to wait for his father in the other room.

Rhade joined him shortly and sat next to him on the couch. “Did you explain in detail your intentions to Kyra?”

“Yes. She completely understands our ways and those of the Kodiak’s as well.”

“You do whatever you have to do to claim your mate.” He looked at his father in surprise because it went against his mother’s spoken wishes. “I know it isn’t what Alex wants, Ronon, but I went too long without my mate and I would not see you go through the same heartache I did. If Kyra is truly who you desire to take as your one and only wife then you do everything in your ability to win her and keep her.”

“She is the only woman I want, Father, but are you telling me that if Jesse challenges me for her that I should treat him as I would any other Nietzchean?”

“Do you think Anasazi is telling him anything different right now?” Ronon shook his head no. “Alex knows Kyra will claim you but that doesn’t stop Tyr’s boy from issuing a challenge for her.”

“We will be going to war within our own home.” He glanced up at his father and took a deep breath. “She will be very displeased.”

“She knows what it is like to be without the one you love and she fights for her loved ones all the time. I will make her understand.” He placed his hand on Ronon’s arm and gave it a squeeze. “She would not wish to see you deprived of your loved one but try not to go too far. She will do what she said she will do to protect her children.”

~*~

An hour had passed and Ronon was working out with Kyra in the gym when Alex and Dorian had entered. Jesse had been benching some weight the entire time the young couple had been sparring and his attention snapped to his mother the instant she moved to another set of mats.

“Your father taught you how to fight as well as telling you about his history.” She turned to face him and he nodded his head. “Show me.”

His brow furrowed. “Mom, you are pregnant.”

“That is why I wanted to train you now before I get too far along.” She lowered her hands to her sides and looked at him expectantly. “You know how this works. Hit me with everything you’ve got so that I can gauge your strength before we begin.” He looked at her with concern and hesitated until she yelled. “Now Dorian!” He mustered all his strength into a single blow that snapped her head to the side.

“Alex!” Ronon began to rush forward and stopped when she held up her hand.

She looked up at him through the curtain of her dark hair with a smirk on her face. “Ronon, I am fine. Please stop mothering me and move back.” He did as she instructed while she glanced back to Dorian’s sorrow-filled face. “Its okay, Dorian. You have inherited your father’s enhanced strength. It is very impressive.” She took a fighting stance and smiled at him for reassurance. “Are you ready?”

He adopted a stance similar to her own and nodded his head. “Let’s see what you got, old woman.”

“Old woman?” She laughed. “This old woman can kick all of your combined asses. Now let’s go.” They launched into several blocked punches and highflying kicks that moved them around the room. “Excellent, Dorian. Keep it up.” He threw a vicious right uppercut that connected to her chin but she back flipped with the momentum and kicked him in the face during the motion. He looked back at her with dark eyes filled with anger and she smiled. “There’s my boy.”

He came at her swinging wild and she deflected every reckless punch as she sensed Brandon enter the room. His first lesson just presented itself to her. ‘Brandon?’

‘Yes, Mother.’

‘I need a distraction.’ She blocked several more punches and flipped over his head when he aimed a roundhouse kick at her head. ‘Get his attention on you now and try to act concerned that your brother is kicking your pregnant mother’s ass.’

Brandon fired a decent fireball at Dorian’s back and yelled. “Dorian, what are you doing? You are hurting our mother!”

Dorian was in full bloodlust mode and spun around to face his sibling. Just as he was about to reach him, Alex grabbed him from behind in a hold he could not break and tried to calm him. “Easy, baby. I am your simulated enemy in this battle.” He struggled against her superior strength in a vain effort to free himself. “Dorian, that is your brother and you cannot lose your control with one of the destined.”

After a few moments, his eyes cleared and he sagged against her chest. “Mom, I don’t know what came over me. I’m sorry.”

“I came over you.” She turned him around and stared into his horrified eyes. “That is my power that drives you to react that way. You need to learn to control it because someday soon, it is going to get a lot stronger and you can’t afford to lose it. You might think that you are balanced, Dorian, but my energy flows through your veins and I am an unknown element. Do you understand why this training is not pointless and why I am the one that has to go through it with you?”

“Yes.” He said humbly.

“Then here ends your first lesson.” She smiled and kissed his cheek before she began to leave the room. “Go and meditate, Dorian. We will take this up again tomorrow.”

“Holy shit.” Kyra whispered in awe as Alex disappeared and Dorian teleported from the room with a desolate look on his face. “That was amazing. Did all of you go through that training?” She looked at the 3 men present with an excited look on her face and completely unaware of the trouble that was soon to follow.

“Only those of us that are destined to be the Guardians of the next Protector.” Jesse said as he rose from the weight bench and dried the sweat from his chest with a towel. “My mother trained the ones she imbued with her power at conception that will have a place in this universe after she is gone.” He smirked at Ronon when he growled.

“You see, Kyra, my mother picked worthy mates to impregnate her with sons that have a higher power and will be able to stabilize her heir when she is given her birthright.” Brandon said with a sneer. “Then there are those lovers she had on the side that were not worthy of the gift she granted our fathers. The son produced from that union would be the killer of our mother. That is all she thought he was worthy of.”

Ronon started forward and Kyra grabbed his arm. “Ronon, stop!” She forced his gaze to meet hers and she waited until the anger cleared from his eyes. “Go to my room and wait for me there!” He looked down at her with an arched eyebrow. “I said go to my room!”

She watched him glare at his smirking brothers and spin on his heel to leave the room. She turned back to Jesse and regarded him critically with her hands on her hips. “I don’t know you but I thought you were nicer than that.” She looked at Brandon and shook her head. “I guess that Oh Mighty One thing has really gone to your head and it is very unappealing.”

The 2 men stood there with their mouths hanging open as the young woman they both came to feel something for turned and left the room.

~*~