6

"So what are we going to do?" Kal asked as he continued to pace. 

Trying to get through the rest of the day after meeting Emma had been torturous. It had been a surprise for all three Draygonians to find their female but to find that they all had a female had been a bit of a shock. They had known it was possible. Those who were compatible with each other tended to be drawn to each other in one way or another. The fact they had all become best friends and seemed to know what the others were thinking only backed that up. Still, it had left them all a little surprised when they had come across the blonde haired female. 

On Draygon it wasn’t uncommon for females to have multiple partners. It didn’t always happen and usually it was two or three males. Jag’s mother had only one partner, his father. However Sid’s and Kal’s mothers had more than one partner. Recently though, certain tribes who followed a more conservative path had wanted to ban the practice. These were the same tribes who were reluctant to take part in the mission to reach Earth and form an alliance with them. As far as they were concerned, the Draygonian’s were diluting their bloodlines by choosing another species to assist with keeping their own species alive. However with fewer and fewer Draygonian women being born and those alive struggling to become pregnant, they were out of options. 

Jag sighed tiredly, rubbing his eyes with the tips of his fingers. Kal had been a ball of energy since the discovery like a child with a new toy. Surprisingly, Sid was taking things with a much calmer head than Jag expected. Sid had always had a way with women. He was far from the type to settle down and start a family; a self admission. Jag had half the expectation that Sid would be grumpy and declare it all a mistake. He was never with a woman for more than a month and there had been a fair few heartbroken exes who had shown their displeasure of being dumped in some very dramatic ways. And yet here he was, lounging on the couch with his phone, waiting patiently just as Jag was for Kal to burn himself out. 

Jag on the other hand wasn't sure what to think or feel but not because he wasn't sure if he was ready for this. He hadn't thought much about finding the one to complete him nor actually been prepared when it occurred. He had not been repulsed by the idea, he simply hadn't given it much thought. 

No, what had his mind in such a muddle was the fact he couldn't stop thinking about the scars that marred Emma's neck. The more he fixated on them the more he started to think that they had been caused deliberately. 

Then there was the fact Emma had been outright petrified. 

She had tried to hide it but her aura and eyes had given her away. It presented itself like an inky blackness that swirled around the blonde, wrapping around her neck like a noose. Jag hadn't seen anything like it on a woman before, at least not on any Draygonian females. Sure fear existed as a state of mind but never had Jag witnessed the emotion wield such a choke hold on anyone. 

"Maybe we could talk to her." Kal started talking again, brows pinched into the middle. "We could find out who her friend is and…" 

"Kal." Jag finally spoke, the silent command clear from his tone. 

Stop and sit down

Kal obeyed, sinking into a seat on the long grey couch, fingers drumming on the flat boxy-shaped armrest as he tried to reign his enthusiasm in. 

"We don't even know if she is aware of the pull." Jag finally spoke. "It could take time for her to feel it. But right now we aren't going to do anything." 

"And what if we bump into her?" Kal countered. "Do you want us to just ignore her?" 

"I didn't say that." 

"We still need a plan." Sid finally spoke up. "A female meeting all three of her males at the same time is almost unheard of. It would be overwhelming for someone from our planet so it would probably be unimaginable for someone from earth."

"Okay so what then?" Kal asked. 

Neither Sid or Jag answered immediately. Jag conceded that Sid did indeed have a very good point. On Draygon, a female like found her first two mates within a year but the third (and rarely the fourth) would take longer. Not to mention, this was normal for Draygonians. They found it natural but Earth didn't follow the same customs. They certainly found themselves in a very difficult situation. 

"I don't know." Jag admitted, looking between Sid and Kal. "But pouncing on her and declaring her ours isn't going to work." 

"What if one of us approaches her first?" Sid piped up, finally putting the communication device down that served the same purpose as a modern day smartphone but was nothing more than paper thin glass or, at least close to glass but infinitely stronger and more flexible. "One by one we could, you know...seduce her and then when the time is right, tell her the whole truth."

Silence fell between the three warriors. 

"That is actually a very good idea." Kal muttered clearly unhappy he didn't think of it first. 

"It is." Jag nodded. "but I don't think I could wait very long." 

He had only seen Emma twice and he was already craving a sight of her again. Soon that wouldn't be enough. Soon he would desire to touch her and breathe in her scent and eventually he would be compelled to want her wholly. To fill her and mate her. Kal and Sid would feel the same and that never ended well for males. All of those pheromones would have them on edge and it wasn't uncommon for Draygonian males to end up fighting. It was pretty animalistic but Draygonian males still shared a lot of qualities with the other predators on their planet. It was probably why they still had tribes rather than uniting under one leader. 

"Okay well how about we approach her separately?" Kal finally added. "You said it yourself, Jag. She might not yet feel the pull. Her gene has only just been exposed to us so it's going to take time for the chemical interaction to start having an effect. However, the more she's around us, the stronger it will get." 

Jag looked to Sid to get his view on the matter but Sid simply raised his eyebrow and nodded softly in agreement.

"Alright." Jag agreed. "Let's hope this works." 

---

In the end, Charlotte pestered Camille so much that she finally agreed to go to the self-defence slash Jujutsu for beginners class in the hopes of getting some peace. 

Now, she found herself standing in a large studio inside the Ark with Charlotte as hazy sunlight filtered in from the large windows. The studio was a simple space with golden brown floorboards that peeked out from between the black mats that had been spread out, ready to receive thrown bodies. The walls were cream which gave the room a calming feel compared to the much more sterile and intimidating whites and chrome that made up the rest of the Ark’s interior. It was a room that relied on natural light which led Camille to believe that the room was perhaps also used for Yoga or another meditation technique. Camille had heard that the Draygonians were not only fierce soldiers but also had developed some very impressive relaxation skills throughout their history. 

“This is going to be great.” Charlotte grinned. 

Charlotte had been a ball of excited energy since she had successfully convinced Camille to join her. Camille couldn’t say she shared the same level of enthusiasm as her friend especially as more and more women poured into the studio. Eventually there were roughly twenty women in total, all milling around as they waited for the instructor. It appeared most of them knew each other well so, much to Camille’s relief, she wasn't even spared a glance. 

“Alright ladies. Sorry for making you wait.” A familiar male voice cut through the din, forcing everyone to stop what they were doing and pay attention. “Unfortunately Michelle is unwell this week so I will be taking your class for tonight.” 

“Oh this is going to be hilarious.” Charlotte chortled, the corners of her eyes wrinkling like a leaf to the flame as she smiled. 

Emma turned to look at where Charlotte was focused only for her whole body to free and her heart skip a beat. At the front of the class, donned in grey track pants and a matching t-shirt that left nothing to the imagination was one of the Draygonian’s she had bumped into several days ago. White hair glowed in the last orangey light of the evening while a friendly but professional smile graced the man’s lips. Even from a distance Camille could make out the mischievousness in those brilliantly amber eyes. She remembered this one because he looked a little different from his friends. His skin was almost a beautiful french blue that was so light that his markings were much more subtle. However he was equally as tall as his buddies and judging by his broad shoulders layered with muscles and arms that bulged against the hem of his t-shirt’s sleeves. 

Sid. That was his name. Camille remembered now how he had been friendly but flirty. It had confused Camille, not because Sid had flirted a little but because she hadn’t been offended by it. In fact she had been okay with it which was what had left her unsettled. Normally she would run a mile (if she could) when any man paid her any attention but while she had felt intimidated by these blue giants, she hadn’t felt like she was in danger. She had felt…well, safe. 

Lost in her thoughts it took a long second for Camille to realise that Sid was now staring back at her, the right side of his mouth tugging upwards into a smirk but Camille couldn’t work out what he might be thinking. In fact she didn’t give herself time, quickly turning away to look at Charlotte. 

“Now I know you usually work on self-defence based on your planet's teaching but I thought it would be fun if I taught you some basics of Krai-Na,” Sid addressed the studio full of women again. “This is a technique that Draygonians learn from an early age to help defend themselves and it’s not too dissimilar to what you have been practising with Michelle.” 

For the first ten minutes Camille forced herself to focus on warming up and following the moves Sid demonstrated until eventually she forgot for the most part about the damn alien and his cheeky smile. Eventually they split up into pairs to practise the moves. Camille noticed that a group of women at the front seemed more interested in grabbing Sid’s attention. The annoyingly handsome soldier happily showed them again, hands moving the women’s arms, legs and hips into place. An irrational surge of rage filled Camille at the sight. White hot annoyance flooded her veins as she almost glared at the women. It was obvious they were flirting with Sid and using any pathetic tactic they could to get his attention. 

“Ow!”

Something hard hit her in the shoulder making her jump. Camille snapped her head to the direction the hit came from to find Charlotte smiling at her innocently

“That hurt!” Camille frowned. 

“Well if you had been paying attention to me and not at Captain Hot-Stuff over there, you would have dodged it.” Charlotte smirked. 

“I wasn’t staring.” Camille frowned, getting back into the stance they had been taught. 

“Sure.” Charlotte clearly wasn’t buying it. “Remember I told you he’s a player. You’re better off avoiding him unless you’re after a bootie call.” 

“Avoiding who?” Sid’s voice broke into the conversation, making both girls freeze.