Starfire 1: World on the Edge of Forever: Starfire, #1

By Lila Lovecraft

Dani Zar is a young, halfbreed beauty, -- illegitimate daughter of the late Roran King and the Valent woman Eluna. She has the self-discipline of a Roran and the unique gifts of the Valent, an ancient wisdom race.

Because of her mixed heritage, Dani is an outsider to both the Valent and Roran cultures, which are distant and strange to each other. Yet it falls to her, to convince the Roran that the threat of the Zunit insect race is real, and to convince the Valent that they must work with the Roran if they are to win against the Zunit. If Dani Zar fails, the galaxy will be lost.

Against this extraterrestrial tableau, the halfbreed Dani Zar and the Roran Coalition officer, Tenaegon, fall in love and strive to keep their love alive against all who would thwart their union.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Redleaf Cottage
• Release date: Feb 4, 2013
• ISBN: 9781386810087

Lila Lovecraft

My name is Lila Lovecraft. I'm a sorceress, scryer, necromancer, high priestess, and rootwytch. My knowledge of magick and the occult comes from long experience and training, though I must admit that some of my talent is hereditary. I also write fiction. I favor erotic romance mixed with bits of paranormal lore, mystery, horror, fantasy, science fiction, fairy tales, folktales, mythology, dreams, and gothic fiction. I hope you enjoy my stories, and if you do, a review is most appreciated. I own and run the old Belle Fleur Hotel for my paranormal clientele. Next door I also own the modern Café Karma, which is open to both human and paranormal patrons. This leads to many interesting situations that inspire my fiction. Thank you for your support and for stopping by.

Book preview

Starfire 1: World on the Edge of Forever

by: Lila Lovecraft

© 2012 Lila Lovecraft

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. This story is for mature audiences. All characters are eighteen years of age or older. Any resemblance to actual persons is either coincidental or imaginary.

This is the first release in the Starfire series, a fantasy romance series. To find out more about my fiction, and a list of my titles, please visit lilalovecraft.com.

Chapter 1

Dani sensed the strangers as they approached her building.

Damn them to the Barrier and back!

What's up? asked Anders, who had been filming the dance, while monitoring the accompanying music. There's no one coming. Security would have called.

Three strangers, murmured Dani. In disguise. She closed her eyes, straining to sense more about them. Hiding who they really are. Hiding from me. Her eyes opened wide. Suddenly she knew. Officers of the Planetary Coalition! This thought popped into her mind with no warning. Now she knew what they wanted. They had come for her.

Security just called, reported Anders. Three strangers outside. Is that what you felt?

Yes, Anders.

How did you know?

I just know. I can feel their military presence, their neatness, their precise movements, and their efficient way of disembarking from the cruiser. I can't explain how I know these things, but I know.

Dani watched them on the screen. The tall one, carried a musical instrument, but it was too far off for her to see clearly. She felt light-headed. There was something strange about him, something she should have picked up on by now. It eluded her. His energy made her feel uncomfortable.

As they approached, she could see that the instrument was a xylone. Then he was Roran, for the xylone was an ancient Roran instrument, a combination of string and pipes. It was like a bagpipe and small harp combined, used on the battlefield to distract and unnerve enemies, or played in a ruler's court to entertain with sweet melodies. A Roran with the Coalition, how strange!

Dani turned around to find both Anders and Charlie watching another monitor and waiting for her orders.

When the strangers request entry, let them in and treat them as guests. I will speak to them after we run through this dance number again. I hope we get it right this time. Dani felt an edge of excitement coursing through her lean body, ready to attack the dance number once more. She always worked best under pressure.

The troupe of dancers took their places. Each dancer was wearing a beautiful costume; glittery makeup covered half of each face. All the jewel-toned colors from the Roran sunset were used to make their costumes. The dancers themselves were of various humanoid and mixed humanoid races from all across the galaxy. It was interesting to note that they had all originally sprung from the same Valent seed sown many millennium ago, but had through untold ages, on their different planets, evolved different coloring and characteristics.

Dani's costume was a soft gold, with flesh-colored cutouts, complementing her light golden tanned skin. It complemented her wavy blond hair, piled loosely on her head, half of it falling down her back into ringlets. There was only the slightest amount of glitter on Dani's face, above her eyelids. Her aqua-green-blue eyes were dark and serious. It was hard not to watch her, for her Valent beauty was mesmerizing.

Dani walked back into the large dance studio. Alright everyone, let's take it from the top again. The translating computer called out her direction in all the different languages of the dancers present. Dani was dancing the female lead in a dance she had choreographed, a dance depicting the Roran legend of Halanna and Zorax, a tale of love and love-lost, a long time ago, so long ago that the story was now a myth. The Roran dancer Fieran played the part of Zorax superbly. Much of the dance took place while hanging and swinging from thick elastic cords, a Valent technique. After all, it was both a Valent and Roran story. The cords