He had heard stories of how it happened, and even witnessed it from a bystander’s point of view, but he had never experienced it himself. Kincaid was still thrumming with the force of his Rut. His fangs scraped his lip, his morá throbbed, and his cock was hard as granite. 

He was a snarling mess when he entered the palace. His aura radiated from him in powerful waves. So strong that people dropped like rocks as he passed. He had never been so out of control in his life. He felt like a fledgling going through his first Rut. His training to keep himself leashed flew out of the window. 

Merda saw him from down the hall and paled. She rushed toward him with purpose, brown glittering face pinched in concern. She nearly stumbled at the weight of his aura, but managed to keep herself upright and in motion. She knew better than to touch him, but she grabbed the edge of his cloak and tugged him quickly to his rooms. 

Once inside, she quickly shut the golden door, spinning on him with anxious eyes. “What is wrong with you?” she hissed. 

Kincaid couldn’t reign himself in enough to speak. His breath came out in short ragged breaths. His nostrils flared rapidly, trying to suck in the scent of his mate that was no longer there. It frustrated him, claimed his mind. 

He needed to mate him. 

Make him his. 

Breed him. 

“Kincaid! Get a hold of yourself!” Merda snapped, the weight of his aura bearing down on her. She leaned against the door for support, knees buckling as she fought not to submit. 

She knew Kincaid was strong, but never imagined he was this powerful. The discipline it must take to keep this power in check…

Kincaid took deep breaths, trying to calm his riled instincts. He breathed in deeply then let it out slowly. Again and again, until his aura was sucked back inside him and his desire was tamed...temporarily. 

“Sorry,” Kincaid exhaled, opening his eyes and facing his lieutenant. 

“Want to tell me why you knocked nearly forty people unconscious just now?” 

“I found him.”

Merda’s eyebrows rose. 

“You’re sure?” 

Kincaid frowned at her. It was impossible for him not to be sure. When you find your fated pair, you know. And the redyra might not have noticed, but the moment his skin lit up in all of those wondrous colors, his fate had been sealed. Kincaid nodded to appease her anyway. 

“The King will be pleased.” 

Kincaid knew his brother wanted him to find his mate because when he sired heirs it would be another thing to hold over his head. Keep him in line. It was no secret that Kincaid was the stronger of the two, but somewhere down the line, Bodric had convinced himself that Kincaid was after his throne. And it was for that very reason that Kincaid didn’t want to find his pair. He didn’t want to sire fledglings. 

The Council had been pressuring him for years, even suggesting that he go to a Breeding House. 

Kincaid was not interested and had put off siring for as long as he could. But now, it seemed he could hide no more. 

“We must make preparations,” Kincaid told his lieutenant, though uttering the words made him feel ill. Merda nodded. 

“I’ll have a team of trackers ready by the next sun. Where does he dwell?” she asked. 

Kincaid thought about the redrya who scrambled away from him. 

“South District,” Kincaid informed. 

Whether he wanted it or not, he was going to have a mate. 

Early in the morning, Kincaid awoke, barely having gotten any sleep with his Rut paying him an extended visit. His reaction wasn’t as severe as the initial one and he was glad he was finally able to get control of it. It was incredibly inconvenient having all of his servants dropping like logs whenever he was near. 

Merda located the redrya immediately after receiving a physical description from Kincaid last night. 

“Reid Hudson. Twenty-five Earth cycles. Bowie Gate Attendant. Lives with his mother. Two days until Rut cycle,” Merda reported as both she and Kincaid headed toward the South District with a few trackers. Kincaid didn’t think they were necessary since he had no intentions of forcing the redrya to come with him but didn’t thwart them. He was already acting out of the norm by avoiding mating, it would only make the situation worse if he didn’t show possession. 

And Kincaid had to admit, he was strangely intrigued by the redrya. How defiant he seemed in his haste to get away. It was the strength of will alone that pushed the man to his feet and away when it was clear his body would spread for Kincaid right there in the alleyway without a moment's hesitation.

He never cared much for redrya before, but he knew how important it was for the continuation of their species. He was glad that the redrya he was tied to at least provided some sort of interest.

The streets were pretty desolate and the few redrya they did see, ran into their houses, shutting their doors at the sight of the small group of Naerians prowling their side of the town. Most likely praying it was not them they were coming for. 

But they kept going past, feeling the eyes on them as the redrya peeked from behind their curtains, watching their every movement. 

The group stopped at a tiny house in the far back of the complex. 

The lawn was overgrown and the porch steps were falling apart with splintered wood fraying at the edges. It creaked as they took the few steps up to the fragile white door. 

Merda rang the doorbell and stood back for a few moments. It was unsurprising that it didn’t work. When there was no sign of anyone approaching, she knocked on the door, hard and firm. 

Kincaid’s ear twitched as he heard the soft footsteps of someone inside. 

His nostrils flared. 

It wasn’t his mate, but their scent was similar. 

The door creaked softly as a fragile old redrya, pale with illness, opened it. She wore a large white cotton nightgown that sagged off her bony shoulders. Her dark hair, peppered with gray, was pulled back in a bun with hundreds of flyaways. Her thin legs poked out from the bottom of her gown just enough to reveal her slipper-covered feet. 

She smiled at them, bowing her head in submission, her dark eyes glazed with joy. 

“How may I assist you, emkii?” she said, her voice soft. 

He knew even before she opened the door that this woman was his pair’s mother. 

“May we come inside?” Kincaid asked the frail woman. A few of the trackers raised their brows at the politeness Kincaid offered a mere redrya when normal protocol used a lot more force. Many Naerians didn’t think of redrya as people. They were a means of reproduction, nothing more. Though in some cases, when a Naerian finds their fated pair, they might fall in love. But that instance was rare. The love part at least. 

The woman stepped aside and let them in. 

There wasn’t much to look at inside. It was tiny with a small kitchen to the left, a tiny hall with two doors to the right, and a small living space with a bed, table, a small couch, and a hologram that was switched on, showing the news station. It was an older model and clearly broken from the way it glitched every couple of seconds. The whole place was rundown and falling apart, but that was typical with redrya.

The woman was leading them to that very living space and on the way there, Kincaid passed by one of the closed doors in the hall. The smell of the door reeked of his pair and he had no doubt that behind would be his living quarters. 

He stopped and stared at the door. Raising his hand, his glove-covered fingertips brushed along the smooth wood. He inhaled the heavy scent before letting go of a soft breath. 

Merda stared at him, her expression strange, but somewhat knowing. Before she could question him, Kincaid moved away. 

There wasn’t enough space for all seven of them to sit, so Kincaid and Merda took the couch while the others posted along the walls. The redrya sat on her bed across from them. 

“Would you like some tea?” The redrya offered. 

Kincaid declined for the group. 

“I’m sure you know why we are here. Your son, Reid, has been chosen–fated actually–to be bred,” Merda told the woman. 

The redrya’s eyes widened, sparkling almost. Happiness and excitement radiated off of her in waves. A reaction that–though not uncommon–he didn’t expect to see in this household. 

“Oh, Reid will be so happy!” she exclaimed. 

Somehow, Kincaid found that hard to believe. From the way he scampered away from him at their initial meeting, he’d assumed that this fate was less than desirable to the redrya. It was why they had chosen a time that he was still at work, they wanted to get a feel for his living environment. It was Kincaid’s idea. Merda just wanted to snatch him up from work and be done with it. 

Thankfully, it was not her decision, but he had to put on a show because despite being his lieutenant, Merda reported back to his brother, and he couldn’t give him any more of a reason to cause a problem. Kincaid knew his brother would get the Council involved and nothing good would come of that. 

“We know that Reid is at work right now. We came to get an idea of the environment he has grown up in. He will have a very important role in providing me with offspring. We will come again tomorrow to retrieve him. We ask that you don’t tell him anything in the event that he is unhappy with his role,” Kincaid told the woman. 

She nodded eagerly, so ready to please them. Though Kincaid was used to it from the redrya he had encountered previously, it made him uncomfortable coming from this woman. Something about it was wrong. It made his morá tingle. 

Kincaid stood and Merda followed. He nodded in dismissal at the woman before leading the group out of the house. He let out a soft breath when they finally left the human housing district. 

“Her illness is quite intense,” Merda muttered. Her own morá that crept along her neck and behind her ear glowed a putrid green, showing that she felt as sick as I did. 

“Yes. Her scent was...strong.”

“She probably doesn’t have much longer to live. I guess that’s better for you, your redrya will have nothing to return to and will be more inclined to comply. Do you want me to go back and take care of it now? The sooner she’s out of the way, the better.”

Kincaid shook his head. 

“No. We can use her. Leave her be for now.”

Merda nodded and they continued on their way.