After recruiting his sister Joon, a genetic scientist, to research the connection between humans and Draxos, Sysko was rewarded with groundbreaking information. His sister had found an ancient text that outlined how the Draxos gods had entered Earth’s galaxy millennia ago and had mated with the native humans of that era.

Through several genetic manipulations, they’d created a hybrid species that was indistinguishable from humans and remained within the human gene pool. These were the humans with the recessive Draxos gene. But the tale went further, outlining the story of how the Draxos had been able to transform the hybrid humans into full-fledged dragons, by activating the recessive gene. It was only the fated mate of a dragon who could be transformed, by using the semen of the enthralled male to activate the recessive genes of a hybrid female.

His sister had even found a ritual that would bring the human into total transformation, culminating in the mating bite that would complete the transition. Once the transition was complete, the human would be like any other Draxos, capable of reproducing full-blooded dragons. He couldn't believe what luck he'd had. His sister had just gone through a mating tournament of her own and had been granted five mates. Had he known she was so busy, he would not have given her the mission, but she obviously was the right person for the job.

Now he had the information he needed to conduct his breeding program. The possibility of success was growing with each passing day. His sister's computer simulations, back on their home moon Arcadia, showed very positive results that corroborated with the results his science officer was achieving onboard the Black Phantom.

Now, they just had to get enough females into the program and convince them that they would be well-compensated. It would still require each hybrid female, who was identified, to be taken back to Draxos for the tournament. Only then could fated mates be found. The computerized simulation suggested that a thrall state could be achieved with a hybrid present, the pheromones still carried traces of the recessive-dragonoid genes. However, they had yet to find a volunteer.

His fighters had been successful in ridding the planet of most of the cyborgs, but the readouts suggested that there were still several more lurking in wait. If the cyborgs were able to begin assimilation or release a virus on the humans, all would be lost. Every last cyborg had to be eliminated from the Earth to ensure the safety of the population and the survival of both species.

Sysko’s sister Joon was convinced that the human DNA could be the key to a cure for the plague that had crippled their own race. Bringing mature females into the gene pool would both ensure their immediate strength, and increase the birthrates quickly. So many males went without mates. Many males fulfilled themselves in the pleasure houses throughout the galaxy. Some even settled down with non-Draxos females, even though young would never result from the mating. Still, others had turned to fellow males for love. But most refused to give up the fight, each time a new maiden entered the tournament.

Sysko himself had not competed in the tournament in twenty cycles. The times he had competed had been a great disappointment. He'd been left wounded and scarred in the desperate attempt to win a bride. But he had never thralled. Now, he’d found a planet full of compatible females. Even with the small fraction of a percentage of those with the necessary recessive genes, it was still a vast quantity more than the available females in the Draxos race.

It was now a matter of identifying them and getting them to agree to enter the tournament. The Draxos had started their offer at one million dollars, but there had been very few entrants into the DNA database. The one female they’d found with the dragonoid gene was beyond childbearing age.

He understood their reluctance. Their planet had just lost almost a billion of its race, and they were understandably shaken. Most were probably confused about the difference between the cyborgs and the Draxos. It would take time to build a relationship with these people and to bring them reassurance that the Draxos meant them no harm. Without even one positive outcome to show as an example, he would get very little buy-in from the human race.

All he needed was one successful transformation. One happy bride and family. This would require patience. In the meantime, Sysko was determined to cut down each and every last cyborg on Earth. It took a great deal of tracking to find their signals among the signals admitted from the planet, but he finally found one more. Out of sheer agitation at the stress of not finding brides, he decided to go on the last scouting mission himself.

Sysko gathered his away team and started to his private military speeder in the hangar. His science and tactical officers followed him into the ship. They hurried out of the hangar and exited the hatch into space. Sysko steered his speeder through space, past the remains of the Archon mothership.

He knew there were more Archon ships and more armadas across the galaxy. The one he had destroyed was only one of many. Of all of the surviving races in the Galactic Collective the Draxos were the strongest, but their strength was fading fast. Sysko angled his speeder through the atmosphere of Earth, following the signal of the last cyborg on Earth.

He flew over a large wilderness area and swooped over the signal and hovered above a small lake. Two human females emerged from inside a tiny structure on the shore and looked up at his speeder with shock in their eyes. This was not the best introduction for them, but it could not be helped. There was a dangerous cyborg in the vicinity and it had to be destroyed.