Mate For The Feral Barbarians (Celestial Mates) Page 4

  My desire to compete with my twin disturbed me beyond anything I had ever experienced before. For most of our lives we had been equal in all things. Now, with our mate arriving from the strange place called Earth, all I wanted to do was push him aside and claim her as my own. It didn't make sense to me, but I could not keep my inner panther from grumbling and growling that I should take her for myself. I suspected that Vock was thinking exactly the same thing.

  How we would get through this trial, I still did not know, but the cupids had brought us one tiny female. We had no choice but to allow her to make her decision.

  The thought crossed my mind that perhaps she could take us both, but I pushed it aside. How could such a delicate little creature ever withstand the mating of two Zimbre males? She would be torn apart and damaged beyond repair, unable to bear young for the clan.

  I would not inflict harm upon her. If that meant allowing my brother to claim her then that would be what had to happen. I would rather see my mate grow with my brother’s child than to destroy one of the few females in the land.

  I kicked my Kong beast in the flanks, encouraging it to run faster through the thick jungle underbrush. I heard the scooting of the Bonzo primates high above in the canopy. They threw husks of fruits and giant seeds down from their perches, trying to pelt us. The Bonzo were cranky beasts who sometimes gave Zimbre trouble, especially the females and cubs. Just the sight of them filled me with concern.

  “We should not have left Kimmy alone in the treehouse,” I said, pointing up at the Bonzo in the treetops.

  “It was you who refused to stay with her,” Vock said.

  “How am I any guiltier than you?” I demanded.

  “It requires at least two to take down a Cocoche bird. So stop complaining and start focusing on the hunt.”

  “Don't you think one of us should go back with Bonzo in the area?” I asked.

  “If you return, I will return,” he said. “I will not allow you to claim her without me.”

  “I never considered you a selfish man, Vock, but you seem more concerned about winning than with our mate’s safety.”

  “We both want to be the one she chooses,” he growled. “Don't pretend to be any more virtuous than I.”

  Vock had a point, I had to admit. I wanted her for my own so badly that I could not drown out the sound of my panther growling in my head, insisting that I take her away and never return. To do so would destroy the closest relationship I had in the world: my relationship with my twin brother. But the primal need to sink inside her and clamp her flesh between my teeth was so powerful it hurt.

  It was as if I were a starving animal and only she would sate my hunger.

  I opened my senses wide, sniffing the air and perking up my ears. I slowed my Kong beast to a walk, taking in the area as we approached the Cocoche bird trail.

  “One is close,” I whispered.

  Vock lifted an eyebrow and motioned toward the trail, putting up one finger to indicates that he believed it was one mile down the trail. I nodded at Vock and reined my Kong beast onto the path.

  We moved slowly, seeing signs of the Cocoche bird. A giant orange feather was hooked in a thick jungle brush. I plucked it from the branch and sniffed the tip. It was very fresh. Vock nodded and we continued on, moving slowly, our senses piqued, our Kong beasts under control.

  The Cocoche were very fast, even faster than the Kong beasts. We would have to corner the bird or take it by surprise if we wanted to sink our spears into its feathered hide.

  Ahead in the trail, a thorny bush rustled and a giant orange head popped out in front of us. The bird screeched at the sight of Zimbre Warriors. It squawked loudly and ran in the opposite direction.

  Vock knew what to do. He started through the thick jungle, veering off the trail. I gave chase to the bird. It ran on two powerful legs, charging faster than almost any other creature in the land. My Kong beast strained to keep up, and I heeled it in the sides to encourage it to push faster.

  We charged toward our goal: the ravine at the edge of the jungle. If Vock made it in time, we could trick the bird into the trap. We only had one chance to do it right. If either of us failed at our task, we would go home without meat for our bride.

  7

  Kimmy

  When the Vock and Konko left, I stayed in bed, enjoying the feeling of soft furs over my skin. It was nice to have someone else take care of everything for a change. Two someones in this instance. How had I ended up with two hot barbarians on an unknown planet? I sighed thinking about it. For a moment, I considered again that I might be dreaming.

  I’d let myself fully participate in probably the most erotic experience of my life. Something I never would have been down for back on Earth. I mean, what kind of girl gives blowjobs to two guys at once? I wasn’t sure.

  I just knew that I’d never have done it before. Probably. Maybe it was because I’d never had the opportunity. Maybe it was because I was a prude. I didn’t know. But given the situation, I knew that I’d only talked myself into going along for the ride because I’d been convinced this was a dream.

  And what if it was a dream? What if I never woke up from it? Was it really so bad? I groaned and sat up in the fur covered bed. The air was warm and the smell of damp jungle hung sweet in the atmosphere. I took a deep breath and stepped out of bed, pulling a soft tanned skin from the tangle of furs.

  I wrapped a piece of supple, silky leather around my body like a towel after a shower, and walked around the little treehouse. First, I looked out the window, trying to see if I could spot my barbarians. They were nowhere to be seen. Turning, I took in the room.

  It was a simple space, the fire pit sat cold at the center of the room. There was a little table and chairs off to the side and a wooden trunk was pushed against one wall. I walked over to the trunk and knelt beside it, peering inside to see what looked like plates and bowls made out of clay, utensils made of twisted bark, and a knife made of razor sharp black stone. Strange that these primitive aliens would use similar things to what we had on Earth.

  Standing, I considered building a fire from the stacks of cut logs in the opposite corner. I needed something to do while my barbarians were away.

  It was hard to believe, but I was actually getting a little bored. There really wasn’t anything to do around here except wait. I wasn’t tired anymore after sleeping for a few hours and I needed something to do.

  I didn’t see any signs of technology. That meant there were no TVs or computers. I didn’t see signs of books or art either. What was I supposed to do with myself all day? My barbarians had already given me a few ideas of how I would be spending the rest of my life with them.

  I looked out the vine-covered door and saw a short tree near the ground. It bared fruit that looked just like oranges.

  I’d been starving when the twins left, but now my stomach was clenching in protest. I needed something to eat fast and there didn’t seem to be anything in the treehouse except some dried herbs hanging from the rafters.

  I bit my lip and considered for a moment. This was a jungle and was probably dangerous. They’d been concerned that I wouldn’t be safe without them, but then they’d left anyway. What would it hurt if I climbed down there and tried one of those fruits?

  I pushed at the door, but it didn’t budge. Looking around, I noticed a latch and flipped it open. Then the door slid away, and I was able to climb down the ladder. When I was down on the ground, I walked over to the fruit tree and plucked a big orange fruit from the waxy branches. Sniffing cautiously, I smelled the rind. It had a bitter sweet scent, which gave me hope that there was something good inside. I tried to peel the rind away with my fingers but it was too thick. All I did was get it under my fingernails.

  I remembered the knife in the trunk so I took the fruit back to the ladder and started to climb up. Once I got into the treehouse, I placed the orange on the table and grabbed the knife from inside the trunk.

  Knife in hand, I took the orange fruit and car
efully sliced the rind. I was surprised to see blood red juice seep out of the skin. So startled, I dropped the orange on the table with a shriek. Once my shock wore off, I picked up the orange and sniffed at the juice. The scent was heady sweet and smelled like a cross between a mango and a banana. This had to be food.

  Carefully, I flicked my tongue over the hole I’d cut, lapping up a drop of juice. My eyes widened at the delicious flavor. It did taste like a mango and a banana had a baby. Pushing my tongue inside the hole, I lapped up more juice. After several seconds, I still hadn’t died, so I decided this was definitely edible.

  Intent on feeding myself, I cut away the rest of the rind and popped pieces of the segmented fruit into my mouth. An avocado sized seed sat at the center. Each segment was shaped like a crescent moon around the hard center pit.

  I popped each piece into my mouth and the sweet juice burst over my tongue with each bite. I wished I was sharing this flavor with my twins. Just the thought of what we could do with this fruit almost made me forget how hungry I was.

  As soon as I finished the first fruit, I knew I needed more. I grabbed a big wicker basket from the trunk on the floor and started to climb down the rope ladder. At the bottom, I went to the tree and began gathering fruit. If this would be the rest of my life, it didn’t seem so bad. I could live like this. Maybe?

  The twins had mentioned a clan and I’d seen hints of a treehouse city when they’d taken me from the cave. Gathering fruit between sex sessions was my new normal, and it pretty much seemed like a lucky girl’s paradise. If I could add swimming to the mix, it would be even better.

  Lost in thought about what a lucky woman I was, I didn’t notice the small primate-like creature who’d wandered from the forest and now stood on the other side of the orange tree. I placed the last fruit in the basket and glanced up just to lock eyes with the thing.

  It looked a lot like a baboon, but it had a snout like an anteater with a tongue that flicked in and out of a sharp toothed mouth. The sight of its teeth made me scream instinctively and back away, dropping my basket of fruit on the ground. I tripped over the basket and fell forcefully on my ass with a loud thud.

  The creature charged forward and grabbed my basket with its human-like hands. I scrambled back on my hands and feet, trying to get away as fast as possible. When I was a yard back from the creature who, I sprang to my feet only to see there were now baboon creatures all around me.

  My heart shot into my throat. I turned in a circle, seeing that I was surrounded and blocked from getting back to the ladder.

  “Easy now,” I said, as if they could understand me. Mostly I was talking to myself.

  I put a hand up in the universal gesture of “easy now.” But it didn’t seem to be so universal with these things. As soon as I made the motion with my hand, the animals screeched and bared their crazy teeth, charging at me from every side. They stopped short and started to prance around aggressively.

  Oh shit.

  If they were trying to intimidate me, they’d definitely succeeded.

  8

  Vock

  I heeled my Kong beast in the flanks, pushing it to go faster. The Cocoche bird was getting away, its speed leaving my fastest mount in the dust. I knew my brother would be pushing up behind it with his own Kong beast. We had a plan in place. And we had carried it out several times before.

  The Cocoche beast was a favorite among the Zimbre people. My brother and I were the best hunters in the region. Our treehouse city honored us with festivities each time we brought down one of the giant birds.

  But this time, we were taking down a Cocoche bird for our mate. Nothing could fill me with greater pleasure than to provide for her. Kimmy with the bright shining eyes and soft curves that made my cock swell with virility and burn to be inside her again.

  I pushed thoughts of my mate aside as I pushed my Kong beast faster, giving chase to my prey. I held the reins of my mount’s bridle in one hand and my spear in the other. Even if we were able to corner the Cocoche bird, we would still need to take it down with our poison-tipped spears.

  If worst came to worst, I would shift, using all of my strength to succeed in this hunt. Kimmy needed to eat. She would need her strength for the trials ahead. Choosing between my brother and I would test us all, and I was sure that the small soft creature from the distant land of Earth would need as much nutrition as possible.

  The Cocoche bird veered to the right, ahead on the path and I continued in the same direction, hoping to cut it off. My brother came up the path behind me, and he followed the bird on its new course.

  We were close to the ravine, and the bird would be caught there without any means of escape.

  I turned my Kong beast to the right and pushed on through the thick forest. Branches slapped my cheeks and thorns tore into my legs, but I did not feel a thing. I was fully focused on one goal and one goal alone: bring down the Cocoche bird for my mate.

  I heard its screeching up ahead and the sound of my brother yell my name. We were so close to the entrance of the ravine, the bird had to be veered into it or we wouldn’t have another chance.

  I rushed on the back of my mount toward the sound of my brother’s voice, coming up to where he and the Cocoche bird were facing off against each other. The giant orange creature stared Konko down, screeching and flapping its giant wings. My brother’s mount roared over its bridle, growling and baring its sharp teeth.

  I lifted my spear, ready to let it fly. But the Cocoche bird jumped to the side and sped into the entrance of the ravine.

  I let out a deep breath of relief as my brother chased the bird through the narrow entrance. I sped in behind him, holding my spear tight in my fist, ready to let it fly.

  Konko was ahead of me, gripping his spear. The Cocoche bird charged down the ravine and stopped at a sheer wall of rock. When it realized it was trapped, it spun and faced us, screeching loudly and flapping its wings. The monstrous call of the giant bird reverberated through the air and ground, tingling the hairs on the back of my neck.

  I hefted my spear and drew back my arm, taking perfect aim at the beast’s heart. As I began to exhale, I let my spear fly. The aim was true and it bit through the animal’s hide with a loud thwack. Konko threw his spear a second later and it pierced the beast’s hide only a few inches from mine.

  The calls of the bird were terrible as it stumbled about at the edge of the ravine. Its giant wings flapped violently and huge orange feathers flew around in the air. With a strangled croak, the Cocoche bird fell backwards on its knees, its long legs bending in the opposite direction from most other animals. It stumbled to the ground, its head lolling to the side as it slowly bled bright orange blood on the ground.

  Konko and I hurried to our kill, jumping off our mounts to finish the job. I pulled a long dagger from the waist of my loincloth and grabbed the bird’s massive head. With a decisive slice of my knife, I cut the animal’s throat, finishing the kill.

  Konko looked at me and smiled a toothy grin, pulling his spear from the dead animal’s chest. I pulled mine out as well and attached it to the saddle on my mount. I drew a twisted vine rope from my saddle at the same time and carried it to the downed bird. Konko and I went about tying the animal’s giant legs together with the rope, and attached it to the saddles of our Kong beasts.

  With the Cocoche bird successfully hunted down, we could now go home to provide for our little Kimmy. I had never felt more proud in my life. Even though I had taken down many Cocoche birds before in my life, and was a proud hunter in my tribe, bringing the feast home to my mate surpassed anything I had ever done before. The thought of Kimmy reminded me that I had to share her with my brother. It brought a deep ire up in the pit of my stomach. The last thing I wanted to do was share her with Konko.

  The enticing aroma and soft curves of my Kimmy called out to me and begged to be mine alone. I wanted more than anything for her to choose me. Murderous thoughts swam through my brain as Konko and I pulled our kill down the trail and back t
o our treehouse.

  My brother and I shared a bond that only twins could share, but when it came to claiming my mate, my bond to my brother was secondary. I could never harm him, no, but competing with him for Kimmy? That was a different story. I didn’t intend to play fair or nice.

  I was a hunter, a warrior of the tribe, and I did not intend to lose this battle. Even to my own brother. If I had to lie, cheat, and steal to make Kimmy my own, I would do so. I simply had not decided on how exactly I would get her away from Konko.

  At the first possible opportunity, I intended to do just that. And I had the distinct feeling my brother had exactly the same plan.

  We were identical and some Zimbre legends said identical twins shared a soul. I didn’t believe in that old myth, but there was a connection between us that was undeniable. If I was thinking something, it was likely my brother was thinking the same thing. I looked over at him with my teeth clenched, studying his expression.

  Was he devising a plan to steal Kimmy away from me right now?

  It was entirely possible that he was. But first things first, we needed to get back to the treehouse, butcher the Cocoche bird, and feed her the sweet meat of its flesh until she was full and ripe and ready to take our cocks one after the other.

  We knew that she had to choose the strongest between us. And whoever’s seed was stronger would be the one who fertilized the ripe flower of her womb. Mating with her at the same time would only allow for Kimmy to make a more informed decision about which of us was more worthy of her. After the feast, we would sink our cocks deep inside her warm, moist cunt.

  Just the thought of it made me hard as a stone-tipped spear, and I could not wait another minute to arrive at home. As we turned the corner into to the clearing below our treehouse, the sounds of Bonzo beasts chirping and screeching filled my ears. The sight in front of me was a shock and filled me with utter contempt and fear.