Argurma Monster (The Argurma Chronicles #2)

Chapter 7

Zoreth’s mission was a simple one. Arrive at the specified coordinates on Earth, retrieve Kaylar, and return to their house fleet. He recalled stepping out from his ship and walking across the sand as he made his way to the edge of a forest... and then nothing.

Odd.

Blinking, he squinted at the bright sunlight cutting through the trees above him. He did not know what hit him, but some of his systems were still malfunctioning. Frowning, he attempted to establish contact with Veral... and failed. He groaned and sat up, his hand going to his head as it spun. It would take his microsystems a while to repair whatever damage he suffered. In the meantime, he could not process what exactly had happened to him. The island seemed pleasant enough, but then—

A shadow fell over him and he froze, his sensors sending a rush of information through him that made his scales prickle. Swinging around, he rolled to his feet, keeping his body crouched low to the ground, only to see a monstrous creature looming over him, mandibles spread wide as eight skeletal, metallic limbs unfolded aggressively. Zoreth’s vibrissae rose in response. Whoever this was, although it had once been Argurma, it was not Kaylar or anyone else of the line. And the modified Argurma was registering as a threat across his systems as Zoreth prepared to defend himself and terminate the male if necessary.

If it is even possible , Zoreth recognized with a grimace.

To his hasty calculations, the odds were not in his favor. The male would know that as well, and he could see that knowledge in the dangerous gaze staring down at him. Those eyes unnerved him, as much as he detested to acknowledge it. There was something feral within that gaze—as if all the advances that had refined Argurma civilization had been stripped away from the male and replaced with a ferality and six deadly weapons attached to his spine. The long metal limbs arched aggressively with their metal claws poised over him. Curiously, the attack never came. Instead, the male vibrated with hostility—and warning.

“Mine!” the male snarled.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, I keep telling you that I am not yours. And don’t go hitting him again, Talech,” an infuriated female voice belted out as a small, pleasantly rounded figure pushed by the monstrous Argurma.

The presence of the human was startling. Although Zoreth had prepared himself for possibly encountering humans, the moment Kaylar’s last known coordinates brought him to the island, any hopes he had were crushed into stardust. And yet here she was, standing in front of him with a delightfully adorable look of hostility on her face as she glowered up at the monster before turning to inspect him with a worried gaze.

Zoreth dragged in a deep breath, unable to help himself as her tantalizing pheromones hit the receptors on the inside of his mandibles. Shock rolled through his system with the awareness of the one thing he had lost hope of finding—standing in front of him was a compatible female. He had been unable to make any calculations for how finding a potential mate might affect him, but just breathing in her pheromones brought a certain pleasure that drew him and inspired a longing within him.

He now processed how it was that Veral, the first among their kind to find a human mate, had been lured by his instincts into keeping the human close and caring for her until the mating bond formed. Such a mating to an obviously weaker, dependent species had seemed illogical, and he had privately pitied the male—until now. There was something so decadent about this female’s scent and flavor on his receptors that it was like sinking into the bliss of a sweet cup of yanili brew.

“You weren’t harmed, were you? Your head is undamaged, yes? I’m afraid you took quite a blow, but as long as everything is functioning right and you can get us the hell out of here, that’s all that matters.” Her frown returned when he failed to immediately respond, enraptured as he was with the first taste of her pheromones. Her brows lowered and her head whipped toward the other male at her side. “Look at what you did! He’s braindead now. What use is he to us if he can’t get us off this damn planet?”

She was truly magnificent. A soft purr stirred from him as his mandibles instinctively vibrated for her, drawing a menacing growl from the male hovering above him. The female, however, made a sound of disgust as she moved away from both of them.

“Oh, fuck, not you too!”

Zoreth blinked as he registered surprise and then understanding as what the female said sank into his processors. He narrowed his eyes on the other Argurma. The male dared to make a mating claim? He could overlook the attempt on his life as Argurma were naturally of a warlike disposition, but for the male to make a mating claim—such things were not permissible. On Argurumal, compatibility did not guarantee a mate. The choice belonged to the female, and he could not even adequately care for her if she was needing another male to intervene for her safety. And she was clearly in need given her confusing jumble of words.

This Talech had no rights here. Zoreth’s eyes narrowed on the male as he slowly pushed himself up onto his elbows. Unlike their distant ancestors, their society changed from the aggressive claiming of primitive male Argurmas to a society ruled by mothers and queens. Males could refuse a female’s desire to mate, but he otherwise had little power other than to show his ability to protect and provide. Laws protected the female’s rights and were upheld by males of the line. Not one member of his mother house would protest if he terminated the male at the female’s behest. He just needed her permission recorded—or proof of immediate danger and a forced mating. Of which there were no signs of either.

Instead, all the male’s aggression and potential for violence were aimed directly at Zoreth and him alone as the male hissed and bared his teeth. The female, however, huffed loudly, promptly silencing the male who glanced over at her in confusion. To Zoreth’s surprise, Talech drew back with an unhappy grumble, though the male’s eyes never left him once.

Despite the male’s hostility, Zoreth felt the tension ease from him in trusting compliance to the female’s judgment. The male’s retreat at her implied command also indicated that the broken Argurma was actually cognitively yielding entirely to her whim. It seemed that despite exhibiting signs of primal Argurma claiming behavior, the male had instinctively fallen into ritualized courting behavior. As such, Zoreth could not justify termination, but it also meant that, since there were no immediate claims, the male was unlikely to react with deadly violence if he were to court the female, despite how much it infuriated the other male.

“A word of warning,” the female offered with a thin smile, “I wouldn’t push Talech here too far. He likes me and is very protective of me. He won’t be happy if you try something.”

Try something? Ah, she refers to forced mating.

Zoreth inclined his head to her respectfully. “I have no intention of inflicting harm.”

Her lips quirked, but he could clearly see the disbelief in her expression. “Right. As you can see, you aren’t my first experience with Argurmas, buddy. I know what a purr means when I hear it, and while that worked out for the last girl and I’m sure Meg and Kaylar are very happy, I’m not certain I want to hitch my wagon to either of you. But I do at least trust Talech.”

Kaylar? His vibrissae fanned out with interest. He did not entirely understand her words, though inferred her meaning well enough. He was not concerned. He would prove himself, and she would not have to worry about the other male—Talech—because he was the only male who made a suitable mate. Argurmas did not mate in groups. He would be the only one. But first, he would retrieve Kaylar and get off this backwater planet.

“Where is my cousin?”

An amused look crossed her face. “Your cousin? Are you talking about Kaylar?” At his nod, she chuckled in her distinctive humanlike way. “I’m afraid you’re a bit late. They left weeks ago thanks to Talech here driving them away like a possessive monster.” She gave the male an annoyed but unmistakably fond look that made Zoreth’s vibrissae rise in an instinctively territorial display that had the other male chuffing in brutal mockery, the long limbs fused to his spine wavering in the air with an unquestioning threat. “Don’t ask me how long exactly,” she continued. “There’s no point in keeping track of time when you aren’t going anywhere.”

She paused, her expression turning shrewd. “If you are here for Kaylar, I assume that means that your ship is still in working order. You didn’t crash here?”

Zoreth cut Talech a smug look before inclining his head to the female. “If Kaylar left—with a mate, I presume,” he paused and gave her a questioning look to which she nodded in the affirmative, “then there is nothing else keeping me here. My ship is whole and functioning, and ready to depart.”

“Excellent!” A smile spread across her odd but lovely human face, warming him until she patted the other male’s arm. “Hear that, Talech? We’re getting out of here.”

Zoreth frowned. He did not recall offering. He opened his mouth to object—he wanted to—but promptly reconsidered and snapped it shut. He did not wish to fight the female, but he calculated that it would be unpleasant if he attempted to sway her. Talech knew it too because the male chuffed again, this time with genuine amusement at his predicament. Zoreth glared at the other male, infuriated by the fact that he had no choice but to bring his rival.

An impatient feminine sigh pulled him from his thoughts, and his gaze turned toward the female who was now also regarding him with amusement. “We’re just waiting on you, unless you need to lie down a little longer. As you can see, we don’t exactly have to pack.”

He shook his head. “I am ready to proceed.”

Casting a suspicious glance to the monstrosity that had once been an Argurma, Zoreth solidified his resolve as he pushed himself to his feet. He would follow the female, win her from the creature, and send out a comm to locate Kaylar all at the same time. And he would accomplish it in mere zecs.

Despite having to deal with the unpleasantness of a rival, Zoreth smiled to himself as he watched her turn away and strike out for the beach. This was turning out to be a most fortuitous assignment. He was eager to boast to his mother house in recollecting his adventure upon his return with his mate and with word of his cousin-kin.

“Zoreth’monushava’shangla requests your name, female,” he called after her.

“Beverly Ryder,” she grumbled, ducking between the trees.

His smile widened but quickly fell as the other male pushed by him with a snarl as he followed behind her.

“Mine,” Talech hissed again, and the long, pointed limbs unfolded aggressively from his back as he passed.

Zoreth smirked and trailed after the pair. The male would discover that was still to be determined. The game of courtship was still open to all, and Zoreth would make sure that he came out the victor in this particular contest. Soon they would be off the planet, and he would have nothing but time to woo Beverly. The monster would have nothing to offer her out there.

He did enjoy winning.