Chapter 1

Cynthia Rodgers was helping her bonded mate, Virathea Tzilank, to board the shuttle that would take them to the transport starship waiting in orbit above the planet Sapphire. Normally Virathea was the type of Dizyntk who would refuse such help due to her own stubborn pride even though she was only just able to walk due to the wounds she was still suffering from. But this was the one whom she had pledged herself to in front of her Princess and her friends and in front of the Goddess herself. She belonged to Cynthia now in every way imaginable. Therefore she did not even think of complaining as she felt Cynthia's hands help her into the ship.

As she was helped into her seat, Virathea winced slightly from the pain in her back. Her healer, Sister Oriakana, had only grudgingly given her permission to undertake this trip home. She knew that Virathea's best hope of fully recovering lay with her family even if she was worried about letting her travel with her injuries. So now, only three months after suffering the wounds that nearly killed her, Virathea was going home for the first time in four cyankas. She was also bringing her new mate with her. There was no possibility that she would be separated from her now. Virathea leaned back as the shuttle lifted off and she felt Cynthia take her hand. She smiled and closed her eyes and thought back to the ceremony that had taken place two weeks previously.

It had not taken as long as she had feared to recall the entirety of the Pledge. She had first learned it, as all Dizyntk learned it, in her childhood. Now she was ready to exchange that pledge with another. She had her finest dress uniform on for the occasion. It was the color of a dark blue sapphire with silver trim. Silver inlay was also used for the Royal Crest on her left shoulder and her House's crest on her right. It was the most beautiful clothing she owned and this was only the third time she had ever worn it. The left sleeve had had to be pinned up and she needed help from one of the priestesses to get it on due to the complexity of it and her injuries, but she was finally in it. She was able to walk, slowly, into the corridor leading to the main courtyard of the Temple on her own. The pain was shooting up her back and she almost growled loudly when she saw Cynthia come out of the room in across from her. All she could do for moment was stare at her. The pain was forgotten.

Cynthia had insisted on wearing a human dress that she had a design program for. When Virathea had glanced at it on screen, it had looked even more complicated than her dress uniform. She was also unsure why it had to be all white. But Cynthia wished to wear it and that was all that mattered. Now she was standing there in front of her. It was made of a material similar to silk and had lace sleeves and a veil and Cynthia looked beautiful in it. Virathea hobbled to her and touched her face under the lace veil.

"You look beautiful in that Cynthia. Is this what all human females wear when they bond?" she asked quietly.

Cynthia smiled at her and replied, "Not exactly this but something similar. It is called a wedding dress. I always wanted to wear one even if this was not the way I originally imagined doing it."

Cynthia took Virathea's hand. "Let us go and do this, my love. I want to call you mine as soon as possible. I will help you walk to the courtyard."

"I can do so on my own..." Virathea started to protest. Then she saw Cynthia narrow her eyes at her and decided to let Cynthia have her way on this one. "As you wish, my love."

With Cynthia's aid, she had walked slowly out to the altar at the center of the almost empty Temple courtyard. At this point, only Velakari was present and waiting for them. It was nighttime and the light from the larger of Sapphire's moons was streaming in at an angle through the skylight directly above the altar. It was coming down precisely where the two of them were to kneel before the priestess in order to recite the Pledge to each other. There were lights inside the Temple but they had been turned down to allow the moonlight to be accentuated. The scene made Virathea feel as if the Goddess herself was paying particular attention to this bonding.

The two of them knelt on the ground in front of Velakari and Cynthia took Virathea's hand into both of hers. Virathea was transfixed by the sight of her lover bathed in the moonlight. The dress she had on appeared to shimmer. She almost looked like the Goddess herself and Virathea would have been unsurprised if Cynthia sprouted wings at that instant. She did not, of course, but it still took Velakari's voice to bring Virathea out of her trance.

"The two of you have come before me and before the Goddess in order to be bound to each other." Velakari stated as she began the Ritual of Bonding. "Once the bond has been made, it cannot be unmade. Once the two of you recite the Pledge, you will belong to each other for the rest of your lives and none may change that. Therefore I give you a minute to contemplate the seriousness of what you are about to undertake."

As was custom among the Dizyntk, those about to be bonded were given a minute to consider whether or not they truly wished to go through with the bonding. The reason for this was simple; there was no such thing as divorce in Dizyntk society. Once you were bonded to someone you were bonded to them forever. This was the reason that the only ones in the courtyard were those being bonded and the priestess performing the ceremony at this point in the ritual. The potential bond mates were allowed to consider this with just themselves and with no pressure from family or friends. In fact, this was the third time this day that Velakari would ask whether they were sure about this. This was also customary but it was also the last time she would ask them. As the minute came to an end, Virathea felt Cynthia squeeze her hand between the two of hers and saw her smile and nod at her. She returned the nod and smile and they both looked up at Velakari.

"The minute has passed and I ask you for the last time, are you both prepared for this?" Velakari asked them.

"We are." the two them said in unison with each other.

Velakari smiled gently at the two of them and looked up and said in a loud voice, "Let the doors to the inner courtyard be opened."

At this point the three sets of doors that led from the courtyard to the outer Temple were opened and those who were there to watch the ceremony walked in. For the most part these were normally friends and family of those being bonded; although any who wished were allowed to view the ceremony. In this particular case it was just friends as the two being bonded had no family residing on Sapphire. Still, the number of witnesses filled the courtyard. A few were friends with Cynthia but the majority of those filing into the inner courtyard were those Dizyntk that were friends and acquaintances of Virathea. Even she was shocked as she noticed how many individuals that she knew were here. It was a tribute to how respected Virathea was that there were more Dizyntk here to witness her bonding than would fit in the courtyard.

More would have been able to fit except that the front of the courtyard, the part by the center doors opposite the altar, had been cordoned off for the Royal Family. Virathea and Cynthia could see that the Queen and the Princess, along with their families, were all there as well as those of the Palace Guard that had survived the attack and were well enough to be here. The scene was enough to make the two of them just stare, mouths agape, at the gathering crowd. Even after it was apparent that no more would be able to fit in, Virathea and Cynthia still just stared around them. It was a soft clearing of her throat by Velakari that got their attention back to the business at hand. It also caused a small ripple of laughter through the witnesses.

Velakari looked seriously out at the assembled onlookers and the ripple of laughter quickly died out. "We are here this night to enact the most important of all the ceremonies that the Temple performs. These two will exchange the Pledge of Bonding." Velakari said in a clear, strong voice. She then held a pair of four inch wide silver bracelets that almost looked like manacles above her head. "At the end of the Pledge, they will have these bracelets attached to their wrists. Each is inscribed with the name of the wearer's owner, for in reciting the pledge the one to whom you recite it becomes your owner in all ways that matter. That is why it is recited simultaneously by those being bonded. This is the way it has been done among Dizyntk for over a thousand cyankas and we continue that tradition this night."

She lowered her hand, stepped forward even closer to Virathea and Cynthia and looked down at them. "You may begin the Pledge." she said in softer voice.

Virathea looked into Cynthia's eyes and the two of them took a deep breath to calm themselves. They then nodded and began to recite the Pledge of Bonding to each other.

"I have chosen you as my mate. From this day forward, your pleasure is my pleasure; my body belongs to you. To use and to enjoy, to touch and to hold, to create new life. For your pleasure is my pleasure, my body belongs to you."

This was the first of the three verses of the pledge. It was the part that made you physically the property of the one to whom you were reciting it to, as well as the promise of conceiving offspring in the case of male/female mates. It also clearly states that your body is always available for your mate's sexual pleasure. This verse is one of the main reasons for the openness that Dizyntk have towards sexuality.

"I have chosen you as my mate. From this day forward, your life is my life; my blood belongs to you. To mix and to mingle, to shed in your defense, to bring forth new life. For your life is my life, my blood belongs to you."

The second verse was the promise that even your life and blood belonged to the one whom you were bonded to, as well as the promise to defend your mate even unto death. The life being mentioned was referring to the act of childbirth, which involves blood as well. Again, this was only important if there were mates of opposite sex involved but it was still part of the Pledge no matter the sex of those being bonded.

"I have chosen you as my mate. From this day forward, your happiness is my happiness, your sadness is my sadness, my soul belongs to you. To share in times of joy, to soothe in times of pain, to share in the life that I will create with you. To be with you, to love you, until the end of all things. For your happiness is my happiness, your sadness is my sadness, my soul belongs to you. I have chosen you, as you have chosen me, for I am now your mate."

This was the final verse and, arguably, the most binding. The pledge promises that you will not be separated even by death as you have promised even your soul to the one whom you are reciting the pledge to. It is also the part that acknowledges that this is a mutual pledge, that all reciting it are equally bound by it.

After the reciting of the Pledge, Cynthia lifted her veil and the two of them leaned in and kissed each other. While they were engaged in the kiss, Velakari attached the bracelets to their right wrists. Traditionally they were attached to the left wrist but Virathea's missing left arm prevented this and Cynthia had requested that she have the bracelet on the same arm as her mate. In old days the bracelets were sealed shut by a bead of solder, but this was done by a small laser welder now. It was one of the things that priestesses had to be proficient at and Velakari completed attaching and sealing the bracelets in less than a minute. The only way to remove the bracelets now was by cutting them off. As they were a titanium-silver alloy, this was easier said than done. The Dizyntk were nothing if not serious about their Bonding Rite.

Cynthia stood and helped Virathea to her feet. The two of them embraced each other. They turned then and walked together into the crowd. After about an hour, they retired to Virathea's quarters in the palace and would spend the next three days alone.

It took another ten days and two operations before Sister Oriakana would agree that Virathea could go home to finish her recuperation. Now they were nearly to the starship that would take them to the planet of Arlintk, although they would be stopping at Ashal-Kendant along the way. They had boarded and were already relaxing in their room when Cynthia asked something she had been curious about. Cynthia had understood that Virathea's family was an old and respected one among the Dizyntk and found it odd that their home world would be such a remote one. Virathea explained how it had come about. Her family had originated on Dizyn, like all family lines, then moved to Sapphire when the Asarazyntk's claimed it and rose to ducal status.

The Tzilank family had been a warrior family that had served House Asarazyntk for almost three hundred cyankas. This had begun before the Dizyntk had discovered star travel and had continued right up until the end of the last civil war. After House Asarazyntk had claimed the Imperial throne, one of the earliest acts of the new Empress had been to promote the Tzilank family to the status of their own noble house in honor of their long service. She also asked the new house to transfer their allegiance to the Empress' most important ally, the new Royal House Zerleen which was to watch over both the Asarazyntk's planet of Sapphire and the entire Second Star Cluster as well. Shortly after this, the Queen at the time gave a large tract of land on the new colony world of Arlintk to House Tzilank and the family moved there. Although still sending its best members to serve as officers for the Royal and Imperial militaries, the Tzilanks also served as overseers of part of the new colony world for their Queen. Thus Virathea had been born and raised on the colony world of Arlintk and this is where most of her family still resided.

"Each cyanka, in the spring, all the twelve cyanka olds compete in a combat tournament. The top two are sent to the Second Cluster officer training facilities on Kalantk." Virathea told her mate.

"Not the Royal Guard?" Cynthia asked.

"Oh no, my love, one cannot just enter the Royal Guard not even from my family. One must join the regular military and earn their way in." Virathea replied.

"Let me guess, you were number one in your cyanka." Cynthia said while smiling at Virathea.

Virathea laughed as she shook her head. "No, I was not. I was third, so you can imagine how upset I was."

"Third? But then, how did you get in?" Cynthia asked in genuine surprise.

"I did not get to be sent to officer school, but there was nothing that said I could not join as an enlisted soldier. That is exactly what I did two days after the tournament." Virathea said as she smiled at the memory.

"How long did it take for you to make it into the Royal Guard?" Cynthia asked.

"Almost two cyankas. In fact neither of the ones who defeated me in the tournament was ever accepted into the Guard. It was not all about hand-to-hand ability after all and I knew that." Virathea said.

"I take it that there are a lot of your family in the Royal Guard though." Cynthia said.

"No, there are not. You would think so, all things considered, but I am the only one right now. There are many of my relatives in the military and even two in the Imperial Guard, but only me on Sapphire." Vira told her. "There have been several in the past but my only other relative in the Guard transferred almost a cyanka ago. I suppose they will have to transfer someone in until I am healed. It is unheard of to not have a Tzilank in the Guard."

Cynthia smiled and laughed lightly at her mate's comment. They were lying together on the bed in their stateroom. She was lightly tracing the pattern of the tattoo that had been applied above and to the side Virathea's left eye just before they had been bonded. It was not unattractive and it was a mark of bravery in combat, or so Vira had told her. Though she had not asked what the two earrings that now adorned Vira's right ear signified. She decided to rectify that.

"I have been meaning to ask, what are these two ornaments for?" She asked as she ran her fingers lightly up to the tip of Virathea's right ear.

Vira smiled for two reasons. The first because Cynthia's fingertips felt good playing with her ear and second for the pride she felt in the decorations. "The smaller silver one with the sapphires near the tip of the ear is a personal commendation from the Queen for my services. Normally you only get something like that when you retire or die in service. Exceptions are sometimes made though."

It was indeed a rare honor to receive the decoration while one was still in service and Virathea was especially proud of it. It was a silver and sapphire depiction of the Royal Crest with Virathea's name etched one side and Queen Kiasyphia's on the other. She had almost been too embarrassed to talk when the Queen had personally presented it to her along with the other earring and pierced them into her ear.

"And this one?" Cynthia asked as she traced her fingertips back down to the larger golden star suspended from a ring halfway down on the outside edge of the ear.

Virathea shivered for a moment at her mate's touch. She smirked at Cynthia because she knew her mate was doing that on purpose.

"That is a medal for valor. It has the name of the battle etched onto the front and my name onto the back. The ruby chip on the left top arm of the star signifies that is the battle I lost my arm in." Vira told Cynthia.

Cynthia shook her head slightly at the thought. She personally thought that such a reminder of losing a limb was a bit morbid. She also understood, however, that her mate's species thought differently. Such a reminder was something of great pride to Virathea, Cynthia knew. She would just get used to it. "At least it is pretty to look at." She thought to herself.

Cynthia leaned forward then and slowly licked the tip of her tongue between the two decorations. Virathea gasped at the feeling generated by this. She could feel Cynthia's fingers tracing slowly up her thigh. Her hips came up slightly and this caused Virathea to growl a bit at the brief pain that shot through her lower back.

Cynthia stopped immediately. "I am so sorry, Vira, I didn't mean to..."

Vira reached up and pulled Cynthia's face down and kissed her on the lips, interrupting her mate's apology. Vira pulled back a little. "No apologies, my love. The pleasure you bring me far outweighs the pain. Just make sure we do this gently."

"Of course, my love." Cynthia replied before she reengaged the kiss.