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Chapter 8

Tursum- Sasha

Sasha gently shook her little sister awake.

“Lani, baby, we are here. You don’t want to be asleep when we arrive. I need you to be alert.”

She sat up, stretched and yawned. “Where are we?”

“We are two minutes from wherever we are being dropped off. We entered Terra Mysterium an hour ago.”

“I hope they have food. I am starving.”

Their driver laughed and Kalani blushed.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t been able to feed you the last two days. I know you must be starving.”

“Don’t be. Trust me, my body is not complaining.”

“Stop it! You are not fat. You are stunning and any of the men would be lucky to have you.”

Kalani pulled her robe tighter around her. “What if one of us doesn't get chosen?”

Sasha took her hand. “We will both be chosen. Keep your head up. Always wear confidence, even if it is a false confidence.”

Tiffany laughed behind them. “I hope you both get rejected. Who would want such ugly redheads as their breeders? You both are so disgusting and ugly.”

“Tiffany, what makes you think they would want such a bitch for a breeder? You are probably going to nag them to death. I have a headache. I don’t want to have sex tonight. I don’t go down, you do! Eeewww, why is your penis so salty? Not my ass,” Sasha mimicked her voice.

The other girls laughed and Tiffany growled at her. “Shut the fuck up, you dirty slut.”

She yawned. “Says the one that sucked her boyfriend’s brother’s dick behind the garage and does not care that he busted them.”

The whole van fell silent as everyone waited for Tiffany’s reaction.

“I was practicing,” she mumbled, trying to defend her actions.

“Mhmm, yeah, okay.”

“Ladies, quiet. We are here. We do not want their first impressions of you to be that you can’t get along,” Miss Autumn said from the passenger seat.

Sasha nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

Miss Autumn stepped out of the car and an elderly gentleman, flanked by four other men waited for her at the bottom of the stairs. She curtsied to them and they all nodded to her. She spoke to them, but with all the windows in the van up, they couldn’t hear what she said. She gestured to the van and the men nodded. She came back to the van and pulled the door open. Kalani stepped out, quickly followed by Sasha, who stepped in front of her, to block her from view. One of the men glared at Sasha, but remained silent. Kalani gasped behind her and clutched at her robe. Sasha glanced over her shoulder and clenched her jaw when her little sister was staring at one of the men in awe.

“Lower your eyes,” Sasha hissed at her.

Kalani’s head dropped immediately. Sasha was hit in her shoulder as Tiffany stepped into place next to her. One of the men stepped forward. His yellow eyes never leave Kalani’s face and his dark skin almost shined in the sunlight. Sasha eyed him under her eyelashes. He was very handsome and he only had eyes for Kalani. She began to wonder if he was one of the men that were to choose a breeder this year. If so, that boded well for Kalani. Goddess, please let him choose her, take that a lot of worry off of Sasha’s shoulders.

“I am Gamma Gregory. We welcome you to Terra Mysterium. This is Beta Malcolm, Breeder Program Head, Jackson, the clan doctor, Dr. Thomas, and lastly, the king's personal assistant, Jeremiah. The king sends his apologies for not being able to meet you, but he is running a few minutes behind schedule. He will meet us inside. Please, leave your bags in the van and follow me. We will have your bags taken inside and to the right rooms after the Selection Ceremony.”

He turned on his heel and walked upstairs. Kalani took Sasha’s hand as they all followed the gamma upstairs. Sasha walked past the beta and a shiver passed through her body. The hungry look on his face as he stared at her made her nervous. She squeezed Kalani's hand, nodding to the beta. When they stepped inside the dark foyer, Sasha leaned close to her team.

"Careful of the beta, girls. He's dangerous. Remember to keep your head down and be careful of every move. Entice the men and pray for your sisters. We all need to get chosen. I do not want to do this without any of you. Understood?"

They all nodded. When everyone was inside, they were then led to a large open room with the long tables pushed back against the walls. The stained glass windows depicted clouds and rolling hills. Winged creatures flew in the sky with sheep and cows clutched in their claws. The high ceilings and chandeliers gave the dining hall a very old feeling. Jackson clapped his hands together to draw everyone’s attention.

"Ladies, line up side by side. The king will be here momentarily to inspect you. Lady Autumn, if you will be so kind as to wait in the hall, you will receive your payment and then you may go. We will handle the girls from here."

Kalani was purposely pulled away from her as the girls lined up. Sasha drew in a deep breath and took her spot at the end of the line where she had been pushed. The door opened and Jeremiah cleared his throat.

"Presenting, His Royal Highness, King Aiden."

All of the girls dropped into bows with their chins flat on their chests. The king moved down the line slowly. Sasha cursed that she had chosen to allow the others to make her the last one to be inspected. She had to hold this position until he gave her the okay to stand and her knees were already shaking as the long time scent of her dreams hit her nose. Who held that tantalizing scent? He was here or was she just being overly hopeful?

"It's you!"

Sasha's head snapped up at Kalani's words. She found herself staring at the man from her dreams who was eyeing her sister curiously.

"Do you know me?," he asked her.

She lowered her eyes away from his face. "No, sir. I thought I recognized you. I do sincerely apologize for my outburst. I swear it won't happen again."

Sasha's head was pushed back down.

"The king has not addressed you yet-"

"Do not touch her in that manner," came his angry voice. “Show our breeders respect!”

Sasha trembled as his voice sent shivers down her back. Her heart started beating hard and she felt herself get aroused. She heard the men start sniffing and she flushed. Oh, Goddess, why did she have to get turned on here in front of all of them. This was so embarrassing. She was snapped out of her thoughts by his hand gripping her chin and tilting her face up. Sparks erupted on her skin, a hundred times more potent than the electricity from her dreams. He tilted her head, studying her face. Her eyes went to his lips before falling to his chest. Goddess, the man was delectable. Would his skin feel as rough against hers in reality like it did in her dreams? Her heart rate picked up and her arousal got stronger. His nostrils flared as he inhaled her scent.

"You do not seem to be afraid, " he murmured, his voice as low and as full of desire as she had always heard it. "Why?"

"It must be, because I can not see you and without my sight to tell me I need to be scared of you, my fears are different from everyone's else's, sire," she answered politely.

His thumb brushed her lips as his hand dropped off of her chin. He slowly backed away from her.

"Welcome to Terra Mysterium, ladies. I am King Aiden. Before we commence with selection, do any of you have any questions?"

Sasha stepped forward. "May I ask what kind of shifters you are?"

Aiden looked at her shocked. "You don't know?"

"No, Your Highness. We weren't told. We weren’t told anything except to stay silent, spread our legs and open our mouths."

"Let's play a game. The first to successfully guess what we are, will win a prize. The rules will follow the selection ceremony." He looked around at the other girls as Sasha stepped back. "Anybody else?" Nobody else said anything, so he sat down in a huge black, heavily cushioned throne set above the rest of the hall. "Jackson, you may begin."

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