Chapter One

"Hybrids, galaxy passport holders, and gentlemen of all species. Welcome to the Intergalactic Femme Matrona Exchange!"

As Thiago Arris swirled a golden liquid in his goblet, his ears perked up at the sound of the nasal voice behind him. He craned his neck towards the makeshift stage centered in the underground tavern. A single shaft of blue light illuminated the Mercurian standing at the podium.

The speaker was too small for the platform; his three-foot frame stood on a tower of stone slabs. The diminutive creature's row of beady, red eyes blinked sluggishly in turns. He had the bored expression of someone who spent innumerable hours working at a dead-end job. With his stumpy, trumpet-like ears twitching, his spindly fingers pressed down on the button of his choker, amplifying his voice across the seedy space.

"Please lower your ocular appendages to your screens and ensure your have preloaded your account with the 10,000 credit starting fee. The bidding will proceed in precisely five minutes."

The room of bidders had crowded into booths and segregated by choice into clusters of single species. Thiago's nose wrinkled in disgust. He counted about three dozen sleazy lowlifes assembled on the floor. They had traveled to this sleazy event from all corners of the Cassiopeia Galaxy. Most of the clients had a similar profile - wealthy older alien males looking for a good time.

Grunts of approval rumbled around the room. A few men fidgeted with the translation devices strapped around their ears. They were obvious first-timers, here to pop their bidding cherry. The ones that sat slumped in their seats with hands hovering over their screens, gazes narrowed and minds ready to bid....those were the clear veterans.

In the front of the room, Thiago recognized Admiral Izra. The Noxx were one of the most feared species in the galaxy. Izra was a high-ranking official with an incurable gambling addiction and a penchant for squandering his dirty money at intergalactic brothels. Though several other intimidating parties surrounded the mighty creature, including a table of twelve-foot grumpy Gigan businesspeople with their heads awkwardly tilted against the ceiling, he stood out like a hungover soldier reporting for duty.

With his pierced snout, a gnarled crown of feathers surrounding his head, and slippery, ghost-white scales covering his entire body, he was an impossible sight to overlook. Coupled with the retractable webbed wings of the Noxx, Izra looked like an evolutionary mistake.

"Please refrain from resting your tentacles against the cushions. Bodily slime is a nasty stain difficult to remove!" the auctioneer yelled, glaring at a group of Thesbians in the back row. Turning to the curtains behind him, he called out to an unseen subordinate. "Maliah. Bring out the items from Batch 799!"

A stout Mercurian hobbled out from behind the curtains, dragging a line of nude women shackled together in heavy iron chains. In single file, they stumbled onto the stage behind him, sickly and shivering. Thiago winced, finding it almost unbearable to look at them. But he kept his face a stoic slate.

He didn't flinch as bidders erupted in chaotic slurs around him, catcalling and propositioning the women in their native languages. Deep scrapes and infected gashes adorned their joints and limbs from nonstop hard labor. The women appeared resigned to their fates, blinking at the boisterous crowd with glazed, unfocused eyes.

"First, we have number 28749," the auctioneer announced, slamming his fist down and pushing a button on the control pad of the podium.

The woman on the far left yelped in pain. She jumped when the collar around her neck started to emit sparks. Her scraggly, dishwater-blonde hair shielded her face as she rubbed helplessly at her throat. The woman didn't look up; her deadened eyes stared at the ground. Metallic sounds echoed around the room as creatures pounded on their screens. The prices were accelerating at an alarming rate.

"43,000 credits is currently the highest bid," the auctioneer declared rapidly, retrieving a set of spectacles that accommodated all his eyes. "44,000 – going once, going twice...sold to the gentleman in Booth 14."

The bidders in Booth 14 broke out in celebratory whoops; the rest of the crowd moaned in disgust. A pair of Noxx guards ushered the blonde woman down the steps towards her new husband, a southern Vishyan flaunting flashy jewelry and thick patches of chest hair. The gravity of her situation finally registered in her mind. She shook with fear. With a wobbling bottom lip, she sandwiched herself between the blue-fleshed, four-armed creatures.

One by one, the women onstage were swiftly auctioned off. When every woman in the first group had a buyer, the auctioneer introduced the Special Collection. The only thing special about the collection was the price. The opening bid was a hefty 750,000 credits. A large screen descended from behind him, stopping short of the floor. A projector opposite the room noisily crackled as it turned on and displayed the profiles of the new imports.

Files were transferred containing physical descriptions and photographs of Earth women from different countries. The Company treated the Special Collection women differently. Their pictures showed carefully arranged hairstyles and beautiful faces painted with make-up. They appeared cheerful, blissfully unaware of their impending fates.

Thiago swigged down the rest of his lunar brandy and slid his empty goblet back to the bartender, paying for his drink. He made it halfway toward the back exit when he caught sight of one of the women on someone else's computer. He stopped abruptly, clutching a throbbing mark on his forehead.

He had to have her.

He turned back toward the bidding pit. He paused, studying the woman shown on the screen. She had untamed, coppery-red hair and vivid green eyes. Her pouting lips were slightly parted. Thiago cracked his knuckles and pulled the hood of his cloak over his head, concealing his features in the shadows. Grumbling under his breath, he moved undetected into an empty booth in the back row.

Izra would be the only competition for his mate. The creature bared a set of gritted, jagged teeth as he tapped on his screen intently. Logging in, Thiago pressed the bid button on his screen. He watched with a satisfied smirk as Izra's wings flapped out in rage, knocking his goons onto the floor on either side of him. Izra whirled around, snarling furiously with a maddened look in his eyes as he tried to figure out who was bidding against him. Thiago used Izra's distraction to his advantage, finalizing the bid on the girl.

"950,000...no...one million credits going once, going twice...sold to the gentleman in Booth 33. Congratulations, sir! We will deliver your bride in three to five business days."

Izra sprang up from his seat, a deafening roar erupting from his throat and rocking the tavern. He moved around wildly in a blind rage, causing dust and rock particles from the roof to come down on the other bidders. His eyes narrowed to threatening slits as he looked at Booth 33. It was empty now, but he caught a glimpse of a figure slipping through the swinging back exit. His hands curled into fists, plowing into an innocent bystander.