Fertility Rite

Blurb

Lura, a winged female who resides on the planet Vrotia is about to commence the Fertility Rite, a sacred ritual all winged Vrotian females must perform or chance complete reversion to the primitive nature of the wild huntress. Vu, the Vrotian God of Fertility, has finally revealed to the High Priestess of the Justynian Order the identity of Lura's mate and at last the Rite may begin.

Nathan Callendar, an Earthling, is destined to fill that role. Lura must travel to Earth, seduce Nathan beneath an eclipsed moon, and convince him to return with her to Vrotia. She has only seventy-two hours before she must return to Vrotia--with or without Nathan.

Without his help she will be doomed to succumb to a predatory existence that has lain dormant within her until now. But will he see her only as an unnatural winged alien from another planet and deny her? Or will he allow himself to love the woman destined by Vu to be a part of his future?

Excerpt

Lura went with Dyanne through the hallway and into the central chamber. She stopped, daunted by the number of women gathered there. Although she was naked, they were all clothed in hooded silk robes, the colors indicating their station within the Temple. Each woman held a red flickering candle and stood in a circle around the room.

It parted and Dymetra stepped forward. She received the silk sheathed phallus from the initiate, who then stepped aside and took her place with the others. Dymetra walked to Lura. "Come, my dear, we must prepare the sacrifice. Lura hesitantly followed her to the center of the room before the circular altar. Dymetra pulled back the silk and held the icon out to Lura.

"You must place this in the grooved center of the circle." Lura took the phallus and knelt before the altar. Reaching over, she positioned the phallus in an upright position and twisted it down until it locked securely in the hollow core. There appeared to be an indented well surrounding the center that was filled with some form of liquid.

She rose to her feet and turned toward Dymetra.

"Begin your chant to Vu as you touch this torch to the ring of oil. Hand me the torch and kneel before the purification fire. By staring into the cleansing flames, the face of your mate will be revealed to you. When this part of the ritual is completed I will tell you more of your future."

Lura took the torch, leaned down and held it to the ring of oil, which immediately broke into a roaring red-gold ring of flame. She handed the torch back to Dymetra and quickly sank to her knees. Clasping her hands before her, chanting as she'd been instructed, she fixed her unwavering gaze on the golden flames. The phallus was soon engulfed by the fire, a pillar of raging flame. As the fire roared higher with the added fuel, a vision did indeed emerge in the form of a face.

Lura stopped chanting, mesmerized by the handsome masculine features revealed to her. Thick brown hair, strong, square jaw, intense eyes. And then it disappeared. Unthinking, she reached a hand out, wanting to see more, to touch his features. The heat of the inferno reminded her where she was before burning her skin and she quickly pulled her hand away. But the vision had been enough for her to be able to recognize him when she saw him.

"Rise, Lura. Your gift has been accepted by Vu and he has revealed the face of your lover to you. The name of your mate is Nathan and he comes from the planet Earth. He has been monitored over the last several months and has been allowed visions of you through that time. He will recognize you when you approach, but it will be up to you to make him accept you as his mate. And to convince him to agree to return with you to Vrotia."

Earth was a long way away from Vrotia. There were few mates who came from Earth, so very little was known about the planet.

"Will he accept what I am?" There were many civilizations who feared the winged women of Vrotia, being familiar with only the old folk stories of the primitive wild predators their race had once been.

"I have faith you will convince him to love you and not to fear you. Tonight and tomorrow you will rest. For the following five days you will be educated in the ways of seduction. On the seventh day you will be transported to Earth to complete the Fertility Rite."

A long red robe was draped around her and Dyanne led her away. Lura found the energy had seeped from her body and she was exhausted by all that had transpired. There was an ache between her legs. But foremost in her mind was the vision of the face revealed to her during the sacrifice. His name was Nathan and he was from Earth. Soon she would meet him in person. Seven days seemed like an eternity.