Zylan Rebellion Read online

  ZYLAN REBELLION

  An Ellora's Cave Publication, July 2005

  Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.

  1056 Home Ave.

  Akron, OH 44310

  ISBN MS Reader (LIT) ISBN # 1-4199-0314-4

  Other available formats (no ISBNs are assigned):

  Adobe (PDF), Rocketbook (RB), Mobipocket (PRC) & HTML

  ZYLAN REBELLION Copyright© 2005 RAVYN WILDE

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part without permission.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. They are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.

  Edited by Marty Klopfenstein.

  Cover art by Syneca.

  Warning:

  The following material contains graphic sexual content meant for mature readers. Zylan Rebellion has been rated E–rotic by a minimum of three independent reviewers.

  Ellora’s Cave Publishing offers three levels of Romantica™ reading entertainment: S (S-ensuous), E (E-rotic), and X (X-treme).

  S-ensuous love scenes are explicit and leave nothing to the imagination.

  E-rotic love scenes are explicit, leave nothing to the imagination, and are high in volume per the overall word count. In addition, some E-rated titles might contain fantasy material that some readers find objectionable, such as bondage, submission, same sex encounters, forced seductions, and so forth. E-rated titles are the most graphic titles we carry; it is common, for instance, for an author to use words such as “fucking”, “cock”, “pussy”, and such within their work of literature.

  X-treme titles differ from E-rated titles only in plot premise and storyline execution. Unlike E-rated titles, stories designated with the letter X tend to contain controversial subject matter not for the faint of heart.

  Zylar’s Moons:

  Zylan Rebellion

  Ravyn Wilde

  Dedication

  This book is dedicated to my father. A love of books comes from many sources. Mine stems from growing up in a home where the bookshelves overflowed, and my father would lie on the floor of the living room—reading late into the night. I miss you, daddy.

  Author Note

  Readers, whether this is your first time on Zylar or a return visit…there is a vocabulary sheet at the end of Zylan Rebellion to help with Zylan words and to keep you from feeling lost. If you haven’t read the first two stories in this series, don’t fret, the books can be read alone and still make sense. Welcome to the world of Zylar!

  Ravyn

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

  Jacuzzi: Jacuzzi, Inc

  Prologue

  Sitting in the bow of the flat watercraft, Ahnika looked over the calm Zmarian Sea and marveled at the vibrant purple water lying quiet and still, glimmering like the finest crystal. The floating island looming in the distance appeared as a slight turquoise haze on the horizon. Zmar’s single sun shone high in the green, cloudless sky and warmed her skin. A light breeze blew over the water, bringing with it the spicy-sweet smell of Nui fruit. It was the perfect time to be going out to gather herbs.

  “Ahnika, make us some water sculptures,” her youngest brother, Daza, demanded. At nine life cycles, he didn’t possess the temperament for just enjoying the view. She glanced at Niko. Neither did a boy of twelve. Smiling at them, she nodded.

  Unconsciously, she entertained her two younger brothers by using her talents to make figures from the water. Zmar was a planet comprised of over eighty percent of the liquid—so most of her people learned the art of creating water shapes with their minds by puberty. The activity was so simple—it required no concentration.

  She formed the water into sea creatures, real and imagined, made faces appear and manufactured land animals…and let her mind drift. It should have been the perfect bi-non to enjoy being out in the sun where she could revel in the rare opportunity to visit one of the unclaimed pieces of land. She would be able to run wild on the grass and in the forest and get away from people stacked on top of each other.

  Instead she felt…distracted. Some dark presence seemed to almost permeate the air surrounding her and she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. Unable to pinpoint the reason for her uneasiness, she worried even more.

  Her instincts screamed to abandon the trip and return home. Immediately. Skin prickling with growing alarm, she felt as if she were being warned of danger lying just ahead. But what danger? Her frustration level grew as her eyes darted over the vast, empty sea. It was useless to speculate. Whatever forewarning was being sent her way was wasted. Since she was just reaching maturity, she was too young to have developed any precognitive abilities. Such powers could come to her, but it would take a long while to learn what they meant. In the meantime, she had no way of knowing why she felt this way.

  Sighing, she mentally pushed her agitation away and chose to believe she was just being fanciful. Or restless and torn because she would soon start making the rounds of claiming parties. The first of the celebrations she’d be attending would be on Zmar and if she didn’t discover her mate on her own world, then eventually she’d be taken to Zylar, their mother planet.

  Her divided emotions must be the cause of her restlessness. Between two heartbeats she fluctuated between excitement and dread, very hesitant to move on with her life. Not that she didn’t want a mate, she just yearned for something more. She really didn’t want to go from her parents’ overprotective home to a Life Companion’s. Yet, when she closed her eyes, she could almost sense him somewhere out there waiting for her.

  Imagining a man with flowing dark hair and enticingly golden skin, whose shockingly pale blue gaze would steal her breath, she questioned her sanity when she could see him so clearly in her mind’s eye.

  She’d even allowed herself to wonder what their children would look like.

  Would they have the pale pink tones of her flesh or would they be a beautiful tan like their father? Stupid thought. She reminded herself that she didn’t even want a mate, nor did she have the slightest idea of what he would look like when she got one.

  “Who’s that, Nika?” Daza asked.

  Looking at her brother in question, she realized he was focused on the water. Glancing over to see what caught his attention, her eyes opened wide and she gasped in shock. While she’d been dreaming, she’d unconsciously formed an aquatic sculpture in the shaped of a man’s head. Not anyone Daza would recognize…but she sure did.

  If she replaced the purple water with dark hair and lightly bronzed skin, it would be the man she’d just been dreaming about. The man she’d foolishly decided must be her mate. She was losing her mind. First she thought she’d gained some sort of precognitive ability, imagining some horrible danger, and now she was inventing people.

  “Ahnika, are you all right?” Jannela’s soft voice intruded on her thoughts.

  Her friend looked worried. She gave Janey a weak smile and said, “I am fine. I just feel a little—I don’t know—nervous for some reason. Like something bad is about to happen to us. Do you feel anything?”

  Janey shook her head. “No, but that shouldn’t surprise you as neither one of us has any powers to speak of. Do you think we should tell the herb woman we need to turn back and forget about gathering medicinal plants this bi-non?”

  “On what basis? That I feel as if a million bugs are crawling over my skin? You know how much attention she would pay to warnings from someone not known to have any precog skills. This is the first time for many nons the weather has been nice enough to allow us to go
to the far island for harvesting. No, just keep your eyes on the boys for me while we are on land, would you? Niko and Daza are going to want to see if all their treasures are intact so I’d appreciate it if you would take them to their little hidey-hole for a bit. I’ll help the women and try to push them to finish as fast as possible. Just don’t stay away too long. I’ve got a bad feeling and I want to get back home as soon as we can.”

  “Sure, I’ll be glad to take them. That’ll be fun. Okay then, let’s change the subject and see if we can’t get you in a better mood. Did your father tell you if you are going with him to Zylar at the end of this moon cycle?” Janey asked in blatant eagerness.

  “He isn’t sure yet. Something’s bothering him and he said it would be best if I go to my first claiming parties on Zmar. He feels there’s no reason for me to go planet-hopping if my mate is here.” She sighed. “I’m sure he’s right…but, somehow…I just don’t think I’m going to find a Life Companion on Zmar and I want to spend time under Zylar’s moons.” And this irritated her because she knew the ancients taught that true psychic potential never emerges until you spent time under Zylar’s Moons. Zmarians had migrated from Zylar and kept most of their physical characteristics except for the added pigmentation in our skin. Most psychic abilities just didn’t seem to show up until you’d been on Zylar.

  Janey just shrugged.

  Ahnika continued thoughtfully, “Unfortunately, my father doesn’t think it’s necessary for me to worry about any possible psi-abilities I might discover. It is so unfair—they’ve already made plans to take each of the boys to Zylar for a month when they reach puberty to give them a dose of the moons. They’ve never even considered such a trip for me,” she lamented.

  “I know. My parents did the same. All the boys from Zmar are taken to Zylar to spend a setnon’s cycle under the moons, but it is not believed to be a needed expense for the daughters. You know our parents figure we’ll get all the power we’ll need once we’re mated.”

  Ahnika snorted, “Well, I don’t think I like the obvious inequality. Even my mother just tells me it will all work out and not to worry. She promises me I’ll find my power and then she smiles knowingly. I hate that! How can I uncover my abilities if I don’t go to Zylar?”

  Janey giggled. “Maybe she is talking about an entirely different kind of power. The kind that starts and ends with making your mate happy, with keeping his life—”

  Ahnika chimed in, “—serene and calm, a home filled with warmth and children. A place to escape from his duties…” They both burst out laughing. As young girls they had often been chastised for failing to use the proper tone of respect when repeating this portion of the Mating Creed during their studies. Their parents took the ancient writings very seriously.

  Neither of them understood why the sentiment was so irritating. A female’s life followed a very preordained path. Ahnika didn’t have any options. She was expected to place herself in front of eligible males, find her mate, bear his children, and then keep their home a refuge from the outside world. It was all she’d been trained to do. All she and Janey were expected to do. Why should the thought grate on her every nerve? She didn’t have a choice, as this wasn’t about her or what she wanted, it was all she could ask from her life. Her thoughts were tumultuous, forever shifting between wanting something more and the anticipation of finding the one man who could claim her. She wanted her own home and children. Since her birth, this time of her life had been talked about and planned. She’d been grilled with painstaking thoroughness on mate protocol and highborn social customs…and, recently, been measured and fitted for new gowns to wear to the social gatherings.

  Lately the whispers of unexplained promise seemed to constantly tease the fringes of her mind. Those faint rustlings worked on her psyche, pushing her in a direction she wasn’t certain she wanted to go. And the sneaky beguilement irritated her as she had no idea where to start looking for the one man who would call the links from her body. Until her new feelings made more sense, she would do the accepted thing—go to the claiming parties and look pretty in case some man came up to her and said, “You’re mine.”

  Dreaming of a golden-skinned man with long dark hair and icy blue eyes, whom she hoped might allow her a little more freedom than she received from her parents, only confused her. Were the dreams just foolish imaginings…or something else?

  On Zmar, she wouldn’t be allowed the chance to question her fate. There would be no adventure or time to figure out what she wanted in life. Since she didn’t have any idea what she did want, how could she argue with tradition? No. It was her duty to make herself available to the men of Zmar and, if no mate were found on this planet, then she would be taken to Zylar to be put on display there. And if a little voice inside her head asked why? Well, she’d subdued the nagging influence before.

  Pulling herself away from her depressing thoughts, she watched in mounting trepidation as the gathering area appeared. For several minons she’d been focused on her inner conflict, but now her agitation returned.

  Maybe her uneasiness just stemmed from the thought of being on land with only a small number of people in the gathering party. Being with so few people never bothered her before. Normally she loved getting away from the cramped environs of her home and going into the wild. She lived in Lianon, the ruling city in this district, and the entire area was designed so every square inch of dirt contained a multistoried building to house the population. The land was much too valuable to be used for growing food or for having space for roaming.

  Container gardens were located on the rooftops of each building for growing their food. Here and there, small patches of blue grass were left bare so small children had a space to play. Sometimes, she thought sadly, it would be wonderful to live in a place where she could run barefoot in the grass, stop and smell flowers or just take a few minons to enjoy being outside without being caught up in the crush of people that seemed to be everywhere at once.

  No. It wasn’t the lack of bodies that bothered her.

  Her father managed this area as Chancellor. In charge of keeping the peace and settling disputes in their region, he reported directly to the Ruler of Zmar. The ruling place for Zmar was half a planet away in a city called Meoc. She assumed Meoc would be the first place her father would take her for a claiming party. Zmar, in turn, owed allegiance to the Ruler of Zylar—and she was back to thinking of finding a mate. Shivet…she needed to concentrate on where they were going.

  Father wouldn’t have let them come out this bi-non if there were any problems to be concerned about. Blessed with strong precognitive abilities, surely he would have known if the gathering party would be in any danger. Although she couldn’t help reminding herself of the times he’d explained to her that he couldn’t see everything and how sometimes events were meant to happen without interference.

  Their destination was an island left solely to the wild. This uninhabited space allowed the plants and few land animals on Zmar free rein. As they approached, she scanned the area with worried care. Her anxiety increased as they landed the boat on the soft black sand beach. Besides Ahnika, her brothers and Janey, the little gathering party was made up of three elders—women known for their healing abilities, and two other girls who were a few life cycles older than Ahnika. Lianon had so many people living in it that she had no way of knowing everyone who lived within its cramped protection. From the young women’s conversation, she did know they had already started the social flurry of looking for a mate.

  Harvesting groups never took guards with them. Ahnika decided she would talk to her father about her uneasiness during this trip and suggest he assign at least one or two guards to each party. In her entire life there’d never been even the hint of a problem, but it didn’t matter—the isolated island could hide an army.

  She didn’t see or hear anything out of the ordinary. The beach they landed on appeared clear of footprints and the small clearing they were in this bi-non was filled with nothing but swaying blue
sage grass. The multicolored wild herbs were in bloom and she could see the peaceful mecgots, the little green furry creatures Zmarians often tamed for pets, tumbling in the distance. The scene couldn’t have been any more peaceful.

  Sighing, she started toward the colorful riot of flowering herbs, nothing seemed out of place in the little glade so she assumed her imagination was playing tricks on her and relaxed. Laughing at her brothers’ urgency to go exploring, she waved goodbye to Janey and the boys after making them promise to stay together. She kept her eyes on them until they disappeared into the turquoise forest and then she turned her energies to making the accumulation of herbs go as quickly as possible. She wandered close to the thick woods and stopped every few minons to watch and listen. It was obvious there wasn’t anything for her to worry about.

  Minons later she was roughly grabbed from behind. Glancing down, she saw deep red cloth covering powerful arms that were holding her immobile. As she fought her assailant, she heard screams and sounds from the other women as they struggled against a threat Ahnika couldn’t see and their terrified cries echoed throughout the clearing. A deep male voice shouted something about making sure the women they took were free of links.

  “They need to be young enough to train…”

  Wildly kicking and thrashing her body in an effort to dislodge the man confining her, she managed to whack him with her head and he dropped her to the ground. Turning over onto her back, she stumbled to her feet and, looking around her, she couldn’t believe what her eyes were seeing. These men wore tunics embroidered with the Zylan Ruler’s crest! Before she could gather her wits and run, the man who had grabbed her raised his fist and struck the side of her head near her temple.