Chapter 1
1122words
Official star charts marked it as a "diplomatic planet," a shining example of humanity's outreach to alien civilizations. But Ella knew better. Beneath that emerald exterior lurked something dark and dangerous.
The moment her boots hit Zenos-V soil, her suspicions crystallized. Two distinct scents hung in the air—not mingling but clashing, each staking its claim to the territory.
The first was familiar—scorched metal from the landing platform, mixed with the perpetual damp rust smell of recycled air. It was the scent of human colonies everywhere: practical, efficient, suffocating.
The second drifted from beyond the low mountains marking the colony's boundary. This scent was alien—sweet fermenting plants mingled with something musky and wild. Intoxicating. Dangerous. A primal warning wrapped in seduction.
Ella's gut told her that Lina—sweet, gentle Lina—had vanished somewhere in that perfumed wilderness, in Kaelen territory.
Her assigned quarters were standard colony fare—a metal box barely larger than a closet. Ella dumped her bag in the corner and fired up her terminal, projecting weeks of collected intel onto an encrypted screen.
Every lead pointed to one person: Lina Anderson, brilliant xenobiologist who'd gone dark after her expedition to Zenos-V. Official records listed her as "voluntarily detained for in-depth research."
"Voluntary my ass," Ella muttered, swiping to Lina's final message. Triple-encrypted, yet disturbingly brief:
"Help."
Ella grabbed the lone photo from her desk—their graduation day at Interstellar University. Lina beamed at the camera, eyes bright with idealism and hope. The perfect scholar, believing in universal communication and cross-species kindness. Ella smirked. Since day one in journalism, she'd only believed in hard evidence and humanity's inevitable darkness.
That innocence had made Lina perfect prey.
Ella's mind drifted back to the academic conference that had changed everything.
***
Lina had commanded the room that day. Standing before the holographic display, she'd presented her "Cross-Species Genetic Resonance Theory" with quiet confidence. She proposed that certain species could communicate beyond conventional senses—achieving emotional and cognitive connection through genetic pheromones. Bold stuff. Controversial. Brilliant.
That's when Xavier had appeared. Not a speaker—just watching from the crowd. He had the Kaelen's trademark height and striking features, but lacked their usual predatory intensity. Instead, he carried himself with scholarly gentleness, almost human-like.
After the talk, he'd made straight for Lina.
"Dr. Anderson," he'd said, voice warm and magnetic, "your theory is the most romantic interpretation of the universe I've ever encountered."
Unlike others, he hadn't questioned her methodology or demanded practical applications. He'd touched the very heart of her work—that idealistic romanticism. In the weeks that followed, he'd played the eager student, engaging Lina in deep discussions, asking profound questions, praising her boldest ideas. Knowledge and understanding—his weapons to dismantle her defenses.
Ella had warned her. The Kaelen weren't the friendly faces they presented. Those diplomatic smiles masked humanity's desperate grab for their energy tech. But Lina, drunk on finding a kindred intellectual spirit, had just laughed. "You're paranoid, El."
Then came the invitation to the Kaelen ecological research center—a facility normally off-limits to humans.
A massive glass dome housing alien flora that filled the air with intoxicating scents. Xavier had led Lina to its heart, where a strange plant bloomed with color-shifting, translucent petals.
"The Enchanted Ford," Xavier had whispered, his voice hypnotic. "We believe its fragrance unlocks the planet's primordial consciousness. Feel it, Doctor. Open your heart to the resonance."
Lina had obeyed. Eyes closed, she'd inhaled deeply. Warmth had flooded her body, her senses heightening to impossible levels before her mind went blank with pleasure. She never saw Xavier's transformation—the scholarly mask dropping to reveal naked hunger as he watched his prey take the bait. The flower's scent had acted like a trigger, amplifying Lina's genetic signature until she blazed like a beacon to his predatory senses.
***
A sharp ping from her terminal yanked Ella back to the present. An encrypted comm request flashed on screen—her informant, "Raven."
She connected. A digitally-masked voice rasped through the speaker: "Got your intel, but I'm warning you again—this ain't a game, Reporter. You're way out of your depth."
"I paid triple, Raven. I need information, not a lecture." Ella's voice could have frozen nitrogen.
"Fine! Took your money, so here it is." Raven sounded agitated. "Carlos's party is a hunting ground. Those human women aren't 'companions' or 'arm candy.' They're mates. The only mates these bastards will ever have."
"What the hell does that mean?" Ella frowned.
"It means the Kaelen don't 'date.' Their biology is… different. A male bonds with exactly one female in his lifetime. Once chosen, it's until death. No breakups. No divorces. Just possession until somebody dies!"
The words hit Ella like a bucket of ice water.
"That's why they're so damn careful before making a move. Watching. Testing. Playing poet. They get one shot—can't choose wrong! Once a Kaelen decides you're his, you're already marked at the genetic level. He'll do anything to have you because without you, his existence means nothing!"
"That's insane…" Ella whispered, a chill crawling up her spine.
"Ridiculous? That's their biology!" Raven's voice rose. "Xavier chose your friend, so she became his possession. And where you're headed? That's the territory of an even deadlier predator. Carlos! Still unmated after all these years. Know what that means? He's pickier—and more dangerous—than any of them. He doesn't want some docile lamb. He craves fire that fuels his need to conquer. And you, Miss Crusading Reporter…"
Raven paused, voice softening with something like pity. "Your loyalty, your courage—it's like waving a damn flare in the darkness. You think you're mounting a rescue, but to him? You're walking straight into his trap!"
The call cut. Silence crashed down. Ella stood frozen, Raven's words echoing: "the only mate," "until death," "the brightest flare in the darkness."
She'd prepared for a battle against power and violence—not some irreversible biological imperative. Lina's situation was infinitely worse than she'd imagined.
Through the window, the Kaelen territory loomed darker than before. That sweet scent wasn't just plants anymore—it was an ocean of pheromones, calling silently, waiting.
Ella took a deep breath. The fire in her chest didn't dim—it blazed hotter. So what if she knew? Laws could be broken. Even biological ones.
She stuffed the stolen service uniform and the black-market invitation into her pack. Her eyes hardened with resolve.
"Hold on, Lina." She promised the photo—and herself. "I don't care if he's a poet, a beast, or your damn 'destiny.' I'm bringing you home."
Without hesitation, she strode into the rust-scented night.
