The weeks flew by and blurred together. Fight after fight after fight.

John asked if he could sign a waiver or something like that to increase the number of Diamonds and Salts he faced, but that rule was inviolate, and he was denied. He asked to have additional fights and was granted permission to do so alongside the other gladiators owned by Gnahad. Those fights had no collars, poison, or restrictions on weapons.

Gnahad took a great deal of heat for that, or so his wife said, and John liked the wife enough to stop joining those fights. They were not exciting or challenging battles anyways.

Gnahad’s wife was also named Gnahad. Her name was pronounced with a slightly different tone John could neither make nor hear, so he continued to call her Gnahad’s wife.

Not being a flight risk, John was granted additional freedoms to move about and do as he pleased – for the most part and within reason. He was also given the position of head trainer over the other gladiators.

Gnahad, his wife, their guards, and staff also trained with John. He was so trusted that Gnahad even had John train his three children.

John’s winnings grew and grew, even with the great expense of breaking a third-tier Transcendent collar every week. He rarely thought of Amber or the Peerless, but when he did, he felt pangs of guilt. But he didn’t feel those pangs acutely enough to care all that much.

After John ranked up to mid-low Gold, he put some thought into buying his freedom. He had way more than enough crystals to do so. He just couldn’t take the leap. Very rarely had he found life enjoyable, and he finally was again, and regularly, every time he fought. And he was always given mighty battles that pushed him to the brink.

For the time he existed between fights, John was doing fine. He didn’t opine over past wrongs and betrayals. His heart and mind weren’t constantly filled with thoughts of Amber, or his desires, or how to prevent Amber from eventually betraying him, which would completely crush his spirit and break his mind.

And John knew Amber would be safe. She was smart, very capable, and hopefully had Nine watching her back and helping. She’d be fine even if she never managed to escape on her own. He just had a hard time believing escape would be an issue if she commanded her own ship.

John certainly planned on winning the battle of wills against Betrayal, and if he stood victorious, he would then figure out how to save Amber if she hadn’t managed to save herself by then. And they could go their separate ways after, as friends. He couldn’t be around her. She was too good at pretending. He knew he’d eventually fall for it. He’d rather have Betrayal take his body than that.

No matter how hard he tried, John couldn’t stop being possessive of Amber and seeing her as his. Too much time had passed between his capture and this day. No matter how the Peerless had fixed Amber by making her capable of being an Alii and performing all the duties expected of one, she had to have been tainted by other men by now.

John would not share what was his, and as an Alii, Amber wouldn’t be his alone. He couldn’t even tolerate the thought of such.

Thankfully, with all his battles and his need to focus on healing from his injuries after them, John didn’t have much time to think about how Amber was sharing herself around like a common nightwalker. He tried his hardest to avoid all such thoughts too.

----------------------------------------

As John was meditating, Gnahad entered the pens and testily ordered John to follow him, waving off all questions from his staff and telling the guards to stay put.

It was difficult for John to read the expressions of most aliens, but the raloins, being reptilians, were even harder to read.

Still, John knew something was wrong. If he had to make a bet, he’d bet that Gnahad was far more tense and angrier than usual.

Vampire and raloin walked through many hallways and took an elevator up to the giant warehouse he had only seen his first day on Thecla. Then the two exited the backdoors of the Great Ring of Vodalus.

The strange sky was painted with red and orange hues as dusk approached. John asked, “What’s going on? Where’re we going?”

Gnahad ignored the questions, grabbed John under his armpits, and flew up into the air, staying low over the many buildings of Vodalus.

Once at the port, the Exalted flew down and passed through a checkpoint, then flew low around the outer port before landing near either a very small ship or the biggest shuttle John had ever seen.

After landing, Gnahad quickly walked towards and entered the vessel with John following closely behind.

Nine was inside the ship sporting an odd configuration John had never seen before, and the biosynth had advanced to Diamond.

“Here he is,” said Gnahad. “Now, release my wife and children.”

“No. You will stay here, nearby, and wait for your ship’s return. You will not ascend off planet by your own means or by ship. After the internetworks hops us to the nav beacon, as long as we’re not followed, your ship will be released with your family aboard. We have no desire to harm them. Please don’t force our hand. Stay calm and stay cool and your family will be back with you, safely, very soon. Keep your mouth shut until then. Understood?”

Long moments passed as Gnahad seethed. Finally, he said, “I understand. I will follow your instructions. I swear by the great fires of Djina, if my family is harmed in the least, I will dedicate my life and all my wealth to ending yours.”

With his emotionless face, Nine said, “If you stay calm, cool, and only do as instructed, they won’t be, so don’t do anything to harm them. And remember, we have a mid-low Exalted aboard. In no scenario could you save your family.”

The raloin stayed silent and stared daggers at Nine. He then angrily turned and debarked from the ship.

John felt horrible. Gnahad was a decent man, and his wife and children were innocents. John could’ve purchased his freedom long ago. All of this was unnecessary. He knew Nine had no way of knowing that, so he embraced his friend.

“My Alii disobeyed orders to come here and retrieve you. I hope you appreciate that,” said Nine.

John didn’t, but he couldn’t tell his friend that. He said, “I wish you didn’t take his family hostage. They’re good people. If I was just sent a note or message, I could’ve purchased my freedom.”

“And why is it that you haven’t yet,” asked Nine.

John didn’t want to lie to his friend. He also didn’t want to admit the truth either, so kept his silence.

Nine turned to the comms and was cleared for departure. Once Gnahad’s ship began to ascend off Thecla, Nine said, “It’ll take hours to reach Jim. I should bring you up to speed.”

Confused, John asked, “Jim?”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

“My Alii’s ship. Fastest in the Peerless fleet. The Meleua and I have access to view and review our Alii’s points and how they’ve been used. Jim cost more points than any kauwa has ever spent on a small ship. It looks like a clipper. Looks are deceiving. It’s really a corvette. A fine ship. One of the first to use tech learned of from my old ship.”

John had an assumption where the ship’s name came from. He asked, “I assume Amber is your Alii? How many are in her kauwa?”

Nine replied without turning around. “I’d stop calling her that. Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. But yes. Only two so far, the Oliua and the Meleua.”

Relief flooded into John. Neither the Oliua or Meleua could take their Alii’s virginity, so Amber was unsoiled.

Then that relief twisted into fear and anxiety. Amber being unused left John in a worse spot. He loved the woman too much. Being near her for too long would destroy his resolve. He could resist for months, but eventually he’d fall right into her vile trap to destroy him.

Amber has a ship now, thought John. She can escape easily at any time. For the sake of my mind and spirit, I must only thank her for the attempt at saving me. I will then return to Thecla with the hostages.

“What tier’s the Meleua,” asked John. “And congratulations on Diamond.”

“Gratitude. The Meleua is a two-two-one. Very capable. And very affordable. I was less expensive than I would’ve been had we not failed in our mission. Officially, I was punished for being AWOL, absent without leave. The Nanis Heiau took all my credits. But I returned of my own volition. You didn’t. Most likely you’ll have a credit ban of at least a year. It is Meleua’s belief that since Alii disobeyed orders to come rescue you that she will not be allowed to bid on you. They won’t allow her to be your Alii.”

John planned on returning to Vodalus with the hostages. He couldn’t care less what punishments the Peerless had planned for him. “What kind of trouble is Amber in? I mean your Alii. For disobeying orders.”

“I don’t know. How Alii are punished is not made public. Meleua has an idea, but he told me in confidence, so I’ll not share what I was told.”

The ship exited the atmosphere of Thecla and approached the internetworks system. Nine was too busy to answer questions, so John worked on removing his collar. Once free of it, he asked, “Why was the Meleua affordable if he’s so capable?”

“If my Alii is allowed to purchase you, you’d have to agree to some stipulations most find unacceptable. She cannot grant the basic reward all other Alii give in exchange for credits. Our kauwa’s Meleua is considered serviceably defective. He is competent, has a very strong libido and desire to earn and spend credits, and his defect is not genetic or inheritable.

“As our Meleua has ascended, his haphephobia and mysophobia, fear of being touched and dislike of bodily fluids, have worsened. He wants to pleasure himself as he looks at his Alii with no touching done between the two at all. His old Alii was not okay with that, and neither were any others.

“He’s a perfect fit for this kauwa. When credits are spent on my Alii, whether to impregnate or not, both participants will watch each other touch themselves.”

Hearing this caused anger to infuse John’s heart. “She’s given out this reward? To how many?”

Nine turned to look at John. “She hasn’t. She has no Oli yet. As an Alii, she will, as is her duty. You better come to terms with that, and quickly.”

John would never be able to come to terms with that, giving him even more reason to return to Thecla. As he worked on calming down and purging the anger from his heart, Nine told him, “From what I was told, it’s believed the more time she spends as an Alii, the greater the chance of her being offered a ganian form, hopefully one for an Alii and not a regular Kahaki.

“But even if it’s a Kahaki form, it’s believed the carnal knowledge rule will be removed or modified enough for her to perform the normal functions expected of Alii. Regardless, she’ll still want a slim force capable of unique missions unsuited to other kauwas.”

The two friends had almost an hour of flight to kill. Nine scanned John for trackers and found three. John didn’t learn much of interest besides the specifics of Nine’s return to the Peerless and that since Amber couldn’t completely service her kauwa, all members of it could purchase a deuce from any other Alii at Crazy Day prices.

After a short hop, the small ship slowed as it approached a much larger one. Jim didn’t look at all like a Peerless design. It was dark, sleek, and curvy.

Nine requested permission to dock through the comms channel and the strange monotone voice of a Mele responded, “The price is high.”

“Akua paid the greatest price of all,” answered Nine.

A large bay opened on Jim and Nine flew into it. Once everything was settled, Nine debarked with John silently following his friend.

Before taking a couple steps off the small ship, before he even had a chance to get a good look at her, Amber flew into John’s arms, squeezing him tightly. Just her smell caused his heart to hurt. Holding her so close was too much. He tugged on her mind. She accepted the tug.

John fought and won the usual battle needed to pull someone into his Mind’s Eye and had a much easier time doing so than he ever had previously. Amber stood before him in all her terrible beauty that ate through his resolve like acid.

“I’ve missed you so much, my love. My boyfriend,” exclaimed Amber passionately, her eyes glassy. She tried to hold John, but her arms passed right through him. “I really wish I could hold you in here.”

“It’s good to see you too,” replied John. “I really wish you didn’t take Gnahad’s family hostage though. I would not see harm come to them.”

Looking hurt, Amber said, “He’s a slaver. But, still, come on, you know I wouldn’t hurt his family. The way we set it up, only he could do that. I can’t turn down plans from my Meleua by telling him I see Kahako life as valuable. And we needed…I needed to get you back. I wasn’t gonna leave you. Never. I told you, I gave you my heart. All of it. A hundred percent. We finally get to be together again. Finally.”

Amber stood there for a long moment excitedly smiling as John racked his brain. He’d be returning with the hostages. They wouldn’t be together. He couldn’t come up with a way of telling her this without hurting her feelings, and he didn’t want to do that.

“What’s wrong,” asked Amber. “You don’t seem excited. I…I disobeyed orders to come save you. You’re happy to see me, right?”

John repressed everything he felt, smiled, and said, “Of course. What orders did you disobey?”

“My…we were supposed to scout out…oh, I should tell you – this is probably the fastest ship in the Peerless fleet. It’s definitely the most expensive ship a new kauwa’s ever had. Oh, and I wanna say sorry about what they made you do. All the Nanis Heiau. That was awful. I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

John scowled. It was just something disgusting I had to do. It wasn’t terrible or even all that memorable. It was no big deal, he thought.

With a look of grave concern, Amber continued. “If you need to talk about it, you know I’m…I mean, if you need help working through it, you can always talk to me. Stuff like that isn’t easy to get over or…just live with. You don’t have to do it alone.”

What nonsense is she talking about, wondered John. He said, “Let’s just…what sort of trouble are you in? And why care? Use this fast ship to get away from the Peerless. Problem solved.”

Amber smiled the happiest and brightest smile he had ever seen on her face. “Oh, John! They’ve found a way for me…”

Amber stopped talking as her face crumpled and tears flowed freely from her eyes. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed. John watched her while wishing he could comfort her in some way.

After long minutes, Amber wiped her eyes and managed to get out, “I never dreamed…,” before breaking down in tears again, sobbing even harder.

It took Amber a long while to collect herself before she could truly speak and continue. “It…it’s a miracle. I never even dared hope. I can have babies! Your babies, John! But we gotta play it smart. Like you said, no mistakes.”

Fear seized up John.

Amber, with a look of grave concern on her face, said, “Say something, John. Please don’t be weird now. Come on. Don’t do the silent thing again.”

“You want to bear my children?”

“Yes,” exclaimed Amber enthusiastically. “Of course! Only yours. I love you so much. You’re my boyfriend. The only one I’ve ever had and ever want.”

John took his time processing what Amber had said, and the implications of it. A great fear entered his heart. The fear began to spread throughout the rest of his body, making him feel faint. “I…please don’t do this to me if you plan on betraying me. Or have any betrayal in you. Please. I beg of you. I can’t…please. I will not survive it.”

Amber’s crying renewed. Her hands passed through John’s waist as she attempted to hold him again. “I’d never betray you, John. Never. I told you. I want you and only you. I love you and only you. Always and forever. Only you.”

John stood dazed. He thought it would take months. It took only minutes. Amber won. She had him. She broke his resolve. He prayed fervently that she wasn’t playing some sort of sick and cruel game. If she’s serious…this…God. I’ll have children again. Children!

The Peerless had verified John had fecund seed. Since he had sworn off all women, and he needed a true wife to father children with, he had given up on that dream. He had given up on true happiness.

Vengeance, strong enemies, glorious battles – these are fine reasons to exist. But children of my own? My line continued, honoring my ancestors. A real and true wife to raise them correctly with? Children! Heirs! These are reasons to truly live!

Can I really have happiness again? Have a real and true wife? One that truly loves me and won’t betray me? Children! A purpose! To live, to really live, and not just exist! I swear now, if this is true, these ones will survive me! I swear to all that is holy and good, these will survive me.

After putting all his will and effort into stopping the tears falling from his eyes, John realized it was a losing battle. He turned around so he couldn’t be seen.

Softly and compassionately, Amber asked, “John…are you crying?”

“No. Of course not. Please, just give me a moment. I’m just…I need to…finish thinking.”