Chapter 194: That Shit Was For The Birds
Da’kea waited until the door was closed before turning to the other conscious males in the room. "She does have a point. None of that was normal," he said softly. "I was ready to kill them just for being in the same room as her. I have never felt that level of rage before."
"Nice to know I wasn’t the only one," grumbled Au’dtair. Pushing himself away from the wall, he went to go stand over Vraev’ox. "But I am not feeling it anymore."
"I have a theory," said Jun Li over the speakers. "I think it might have something to do with the fact that you had scent-marked her, and then you couldn’t smell her."
"Explain, please," said Da’kea. He needed a logical answer to that rage and loss of control. It was the only way he could think of to not experience it again.
"You had essentially marked your territory, and as soon as you had, it disappeared," pointed out Jun Li blandly.
"Then why were we okay with it at the beginning?" asked Au’dtair, going back to his position against the wall.
"Because there were no unknown males that could be potential threats at the beginning. When strange males entered what you essentially consider your territory and then approached your mate with unknown intentions, a mate that no longer smelled like you, you lost your mind. I’m actually impressed with your control, to be honest. I would not have been surprised if there was a dead body or three as a result."
Da’kea let out a low grunt, clicking his tusks together in thought. The AI had a good point, but how could they balance their need to have her covered in their scent and not let her own slip through.
"And their reaction?" asked Ye’tab, tilting his head to the three unconscious males.
"No idea," stated Jun Li. "Which is why I think we have to go to the source to find the answers. They couldn’t even smell Mei Xing and still were chosen. And in an overly dramatic manner, too. Were they always such drama queens?"
Au’dtair let out a bark of laughter at the question. "No. They really aren’t. But I am going to go find my mate. Could you let me know when they wake up?"
"Of course. I’ll lock the door too to make sure that they don’t go anywhere until you are ready to deal with them," assured Jun Li, and the three males left the room. They needed to be near their female right now. Hopefully, it will be better once the suppressor wears off, but until then, they will be keeping Mei Xing in their sight at all times.
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I laid on Midnight’s chest, playing with the soft fur under my cheek.
"Not like I mind, but did you want to talk about it?" asked Midnight, his fingers trailing up and down the sides of my back, the slow, gentle motion calming me down even more.
I shook my head, not wanting to really speak until I had figured out things in my head first. I was... scared? Maybe not scared, but definitely stressed. I couldn’t trust my own body, and what did that say? I was a freak of nature, an example of genetic manipulation... a mutant. I went from being an ordinary human girl to having seven mates simply because the Alliance and the Sisalik decided to play God.
But as much as I would like to say that I was at a crossroads, the truth of the matter was that I wasn’t. There was no point in lamenting over what had happened or screaming up at heaven over how unfair things were. It was what it was, and it was time to put on my big girl panties and deal with this shit.
"Just thinking," I said after a few minutes. The hatch to my quarters slid open, but I didn’t bother to move. My nest was now the unofficial meeting point for everyone.
"About?" asked Ye’tab as he crawled into the furs and got himself comfortable beside me.
"What to do next," I replied as my fingers continued to stroke my own personal werewolf.
"And what is your decision?" asked Da’kea, coming to lie down on my other side. Au’dtair took the bottom of the nest without complaint. The other three would have to find their place amongst the other men. Or not.
"Find the Hive first, take out the Alliance, either fill in the void left behind or find someone else to do it, and then go find the Ethawainian home world and see if they can clue me in on stuff. While I am not above spending the rest of my life never leaving home, I want to do it on my own terms, not because I am too scared about attracting more mates."
"Sounds good," grunted Au’dtair. "When the others wake up, Tha’juen can find the Hive and arrange a meeting."
"I can start figuring out what is going on with the Alliance and where their weak points are. It is unlikely that they would be willing to let a female use their name, so she must be working with them. However, that doesn’t make sense either," mused Da’kea out loud, and I could practically see his mind whirling with everything going through it.
"I’ll start with the information that Jun Li has on the Ethawainians; see what I can figure out through that," added Ye’tab.
"There is a hermit that Silver knows. I’ll get him to set up communications between you two, and you can ask him any questions you have," offered Midnight. I just lay there, letting their voices swirl around me. It was nice not to have to come up with everything myself. I simply told them my plans, and they have already started trying to figure out how to help.
"Thank you," I said, cutting through the multiple conversations. I didn’t know what else to say but "Thank you."
"Anything for your, Star beam," smiled Midnight, and even Night chirped from his corner in the room.
I was going to be happy when this period was over, and I wasn’t as hormonal. That shit was for the birds.
