Tork Ro’den was tired and needed a drink. This job for his uncle had taken him longer than he had thought it would, and now he was eager to get home. Tul was not the kind of planet anyone went to unless they had some shady business trading to do. His uncle was in charge of the small mining planet owned by the royal family, and had been disturbed to hear of a group of fanatics who were causing trouble. As prince, Tork was responsible for overseeing all family interests in the outlying planets. The mines were the most important business operation on the planet and they must always run smoothly. Though he had been here many times before, this was the first time a business problem had taken so long for him to resolve.

As he waited to land the shuttle at the spaceport, he looked at the numerous freighters and trading ships in the area. Tul’s location at the edge of two large galaxies made it a perfect place for commerce and certain illegal activities, which was why this spaceport was always busy. The mines were located on the other side of the planet, far away from the single spaceport, and he had been there for almost a week trying to find out who was behind the attempts at sabotage. He was no closer now to finding out what was really going on than he had been when he first arrived. Frustrated he had not resolved the issue he had to admit it was time to go back to Rara.

“Vessel R1022 you are cleared to land.” The computerized controller's voice brought Tork back to reality.

Finally he had clearance to land. Unbuckling himself he left the ship and made his way to the company offices, where Karn was waiting for him.

“How did it go?” he asked Karn.

“I couldn't find a thing. There's no record of this group existing before they came here. I can find nothing strange in any of the manifests going back five years. No security agency on any planet in this system has heard of the resurrectionist movement. They must have been smuggled onto the planet, which is the easy part to figure out. But I’m perplexed as to why they are trying to stop our mining operations.”

Tork made himself comfortable in a chair, “There are only two possible motives for disrupting the mines, political or economic. They either want to destroy the royal family or they have bolder plans. Without the Sero ore there's no other source of energy for N-Fusion engines. We're the only ones that have Sero mines for two quadrants. Any disruption here will cause a huge price spike.” Tork gave a heart felt sigh, revealing his level of frustration. Running a hand through his hair, he spoke with weariness lacing his voice. “I don't think that we're going to find out much more here.”

“I know, but it was worth a try. I hate trying to solve problems from behind a desk. I’d much rather be hunting.” Karn grinned and pushed himself back from the desk.

Tork knew what kind of hunting he meant, and it was more of the two-legged female variety. “Well, you have tonight. I need you and the crew to go and rustle up supplies for the trip home. We're getting out of here in the morning. I'll see you later.”

Without too much trouble, he found his way into the nearest bar and proceeded to get roaring drunk, hoping maybe he could ease his frustration. He was halfway through his third bottle when her scent hit him like a physical blow. It was like smelling heaven. His spine began to tingle, and a heat shot through his body making him instantly hard. Only his warrior’s self control stopped him from instantly going primal. He flared his nostrils wide to take in more of the heavenly scent of the female he knew was nearby. He knew at once what this meant; he had found his mate.

Whipping his head around, he scanned the room until he spotted her in the corner of the bar. She looked to be Raran except she had jet black hair, not the blonde that was so common among Raran women. She was also rigged out for combat, which meant that she must be alone. Her black hair and green glowing eyes had captured his attention the moment she entered the bar. His body tightened as he stared at her. Waves of lust rolled through him as he fought the urge to run over and grab her. He wanted to sling her over his shoulder and take her to his cabin. The need to secure a mate for himself- and mark her with his scent- was overwhelming. He needed to claim her now. Once a Raran male scented his mate the Ber Toc, or mating fever, would soon set in. If he did not claim her quickly, he would start to lose all of his control. The last thing he wanted to do was go primal and scare her.

She was trying not to be noticed, and he could understand why. This space port was not a place for any female. She would be his from this day on and there would be no need for her to defend herself again. He would make sure she was never again in a place such as this. He noticed her eyes shoot up when a small fight started at the bar. She looked wary, and it was all Tork could do not to go over to her. Damn, but she brought out his protective instincts. It was going to be a long night. He kept his eyes on her as she got up and walked towards the exit.

By the Goddess! She was nearly as tall as he was! Much taller than the average Raran female- in his estimation. Her height was not the only thing distracting him though. Her breasts were large and firm, and they way they were pressed against the material of her black vest made his mouth water. As he watched her, his hunger growing by the moment, an image of his mouth suckling at her breast filtered across his mind’s eye making him sweat. His hands ached to touch them. Her skin was a creamy tan color he had not seen on any female before. The urge to touch her was so strong he had to clench his hands to stop them from shaking. He needed to her have her next to him.

Caught in a haze of lust, Tork did not notice the Vok trader until it was too late. The fight at the bar had spun out of control. What had been between two men had become an all out brawl, and the beautiful female was walking right into it. He watched her duck as a large man swung at her. She weaved to avoid the man as he fell over, carried there by his own momentum. Tork admired her body as she moved, but froze when he saw the Vok trader turn and step towards her. Incredibly fast, the Vok trader grabbed the beautiful woman by her hair. She reached for her blasters, but before she could pull them clear of their holsters, the trader had slammed his huge fist into her head.

Tork let out a war cry that shook the room. All movement stopped as his cry echoed. The trader never had a chance. He knew his only hope was the weapon still strapped to his belt. But before he could even draw it the fight was over. Tork drew the laser sword from its sheath and ran at the man that had hurt his woman. The laser sword flew at him in an arc and cut the man almost clean in half. Before his body could even hit the floor, Tork swept his newly discovered mate up into his arms and walked out of the door.