“We’ve been friends ever since,” Kragyn told her as they continued the walk back to their home cave.
“It’s always good to have friends in a place like this,” Reanne said. “Do we have any other neighbors I should know about?”
“A couple of the pit fighters and their females live in caves a centi-span or so from ours. They are Elcara and Arknon, and Maselle and Lorn. Maselle seems like a nice female, but Lorn is a belligerent sort. I think Maselle is probably fucking him for protection. She doesn’t seem especially happy with him.”
“I don’t remember which ones they are. Perhaps you can point them out to me the next time we go to the pit.”
“I can do better than that. I will introduce you to the females so that you can get acquainted.”
“That would be great. I haven’t had a female friend since Jaeli was sold off at the slave auction. She was the sweetest thing---a Chakanian.”
“Chakan is a Consortium world. This means they were stolen after the peace agreement with the Sargan Empire!” Kragyn exclaimed. “I guess this means the war is not over.”
“She was very beautiful, but it was like she didn’t even know it.”
“Chakanians are affable people, but they love their freedom. Your friend will not make a good slave.”
“I don’t think most of the females I met on the Pican ship were going to make good slaves.”
“Well, at least we are no longer slaves,” Kragyn gave an ironic chuckle.
“We’re free on a lawless prison planet instead,” Reanne laughed as well. “At least we are together.”
“That makes me happy.” He gave her an affectionate look.
Reanne smiled back at him. “Me too.”
When they got back to the garden, it didn’t take long to fashion the sticks into a frame for the tent to shade it. They tied the thin plastic blankets to the poles with some strapping Kragyn had collected from the shipping containers the supplies were delivered in.
Hot and sweaty from the long walk and the work at both ends of the journey, they decided a warm bath was in order. Reanne had quickly learned that a bath was never just a bath. They came with mind-blowing sex and a quick wash followed by a nap and often more passionate sex. Not that she was complaining.
It didn’t take her long at all to figure out that she had fallen in love with Kragyn. Even though they didn’t say the words, Reanne believed he felt the same about her. After all, they did say the mating vows.
At times, they could almost forget they were in prison. They were making a life together the best that they could. She still felt homesick from time to time, but she pushed it to the back of her mind when it happened. Most everyone there was in the same situation, far from home with no hope of going home.
But there was Kragyn, a far better trade than she could hope for what was taken from her. They were now in it together. He had lost every bit as much as she, but they found comfort in each other.
That night, Kragyn wasn’t going to the pit, so they checked his snares and got two skitters, and one slither. They only needed the one slither for the evening meal, so they gutted and dressed out the kills side by side. Kragyn showed her how to do it step by step. He was pleased to see how quickly she learned the process.
When they finished, they laid out the two hides to dry and took them to Varnis and Sprell to cook for the young ones. The two amphibians were always grateful to get whatever Kragyn could spare. With the crossbow he’d won in the pit, he was able to bring down larger prey when he could find it.
He and Reanne could get by with the skitters and slithers, but Sprell and Varnis had all those young mouths to feed. Some small ruminants came to the waterhole where they got the sticks for the garden. They reminded him of the ruminants they raised for meat on Farseek.
Even though smaller in size, they were too much for he and Reanne to use before they would spoil. Sharing them with the amphibians for the young ones gave them a change of diet and ensured the kids would eat well.
Chapter Twelve
After three days away from the pits, Bardo sent one of his minions to ask when Kragyn intended to return to the pit. Bardo liked to think he was the ruler of the village and surrounding territories. Most people accepted that. Kragyn neither accepted or denied his claim.
Bardo gave him the few days off he requested to spend with Reanne, so Kragyn chose to go back to the pit as asked. He liked fighting in the pit. It gave him purpose and confidence in his ability as a warrior. It also won him the extra food rations that he gave the amphibians for the children.
Kragyn already had enough food stores in their cave to feed Reanne and him for a year. He preferred the fresh meat to the protein bars, but he alternated because he didn’t want to deplete the source to the point it could not renew itself. Reanne agreed with him, relating the fact that many species on Earth were extinct or becoming extinct.
Julconi hadn’t been a pristine planet for centuries before it became a penal colony. The Dezron continent was the worst. Once the mine was played out, the Sargans were no longer interested in developing it for agricultural purposes on the other continents. They didn’t have the millions of slaves they would need to make it possible.
What they did have were millions of dissidents and untrainable slaves they needed to get out of their populations to keep them from causing dissent among the obedient masses. So Julconi became the dumping ground for the Sargan Empire’s incorrigibles. Now Julconi was home to millions. Dezron Continent had thousands.
Dezron #2 had a village population of about five thousand with another two to three thousand spread further out. There were more mining caves on the far side of the village with numerous caverns. It was about the only option for most of the newbies.
Bardo controlled the village and all of the buildings left behind by the mining operation and subsequently the guards who lived there when Julconi became a penal colony.
Despite his skills as a warrior, Bardo was not someone that Kragyn wanted to cross. He was only one man, and Bardo had hundreds of thugs. As long as he fought in the pits every two to three rotations, the village boss was happy. Kragyn brought more people out and more wagers of the commodities that were available. Plus, they paid admission and drank the fermented swill he served at the bar.
He was surprised to find Bardo waiting for him at the fighter’s entrance.
“Kragyn, my man,” he said. “I had to come down here and see the female that lured you away from the pit when you were on a winning streak.”
The Farseek Warrior nodded respectfully. “Bardo, allow me to introduce my solmatu, Reanne Winter. She is human, stolen from her world by the Picans.”
Reanne took that as her cue to nod and smile. “I am pleased to meet you, sir,” she said graciously, trying not to stare. Bardo was clearly not human. His face looked vaguely human, with deep-set eyes and a wide flat nose. Though he didn’t look reptilian, he was covered with fine pale green scales with three-fingered hands and opposing thumbs.
He wore the prison issue cargo pants and some kind of vest. He was powerfully built, broader and at least seven feet tall. Bardo looked like he could give Kragyn some pretty stiff competition. Reanne suspected that was how Bardo gained his power in the first place.
“Now I see. Your mate is lovely and so tiny,” said Bardo with a calculating look.
“She is my soul mate, solmatu,” Kragyn repeated. Bardo had a look he got whenever he thought there might be profit to be made. He was sure the other man was considering that Reanne might be a lucrative addition to one of his brothels. But not as profitable as Kragyn was in the pit.
Bardo had his own females who were statuesque and nearly as tall as Kragyn. The two men made small talk for a little longer until Bardo excused himself to speak with the other fighters who were arriving.
Escorting Reanne around the pit with his hand resting at the small of her back, Kragyn took her to the table where some of the other females were seated.
“Kragyn, it’s g
ood to see you,” said the slender one with long yellow hair in numerous braids on her head. She had large blue cats eyes and a pert little nose that was also very catlike and full lips. She was humanoid but definitely not human.
“Nice to see you, too, Maselle, Elcara. I want to introduce you to my solmatu, Reanne. She just arrived on the last shuttle,” he told them.
Reanne nodded politely to both of them.
“So that’s why you haven’t been around,” said Elcara. She too was a species of humanoid that Reanne hadn’t seen before. She had pure white hair and amber eyes that were larger and a little wider apart than human with a pouty little mouth and a turned-up nose. Her skin was nearly the same lavender as Kragyn. She and Maselle both looked like human caricatures.
“We have been… Bonding,” Kragyn told them. “Would you mind having Reanne join you while I check out the other fighters and see what the lineup is?”
“Not at all.” Elcara smiled. “That will give us a chance to get acquainted.
Reanne pulled out a chair and sat perpendicular to the two women.
“Kragyn seems quite smitten with you,” Escara said after he was out of earshot.
“Pheromones,” Reanne said. “We are fated mates so to speak, so we send these mating scents to each other. We are both smitten.”
“You are lucky,” Maselle said. “They tell you to pick a male to fuck for protection, but they don’t tell you what to do if you pick wrong.” She ended with a bitter laugh.
“What is wrong?” Reanne asked.
“Lorn is a brutal lover. He hurts me, sometimes tormenting me for hours before he finally fucks me. I hate him. I wish he would die.”
“Oh, you poor thing,” Reanne said. “Can’t you leave him?”
“He promised if I left him, he would find me and kill me.”
“Some males are jerks like that,” Reanne said. “Is he one of the guys over there with Kragyn?
“He’s the big gray one with the silver hair. When I first saw him when I got here, I thought he had a kind face,” Maselle said. “He was for a few days then he got more aggressive and demanding.”
“Maybe you should kill him when he is sleeping,” Reanne muttered.
“I have thought of it, but I was afraid I might injure him just enough to make him mad. Then he would kill me. Maybe he is afraid I will try it because he took my long knife,” said Maselle.
“And sometimes he ties her up so she can barely move when he gets it in his head that she might try something while he’s asleep,” said Elcara.
“Usually after he’s been especially brutal.”
Reanne just frowned and shook her head. “What about Bardo? He’s the law around here. Won’t he do anything?”
“As far as he is concerned, women are property, although he thinks of his fighters as property, too,” Maselle said. “He offered to put me in one of the brothels where I would have to fuck anyone they told me to.”
“You think that would be worse than having Lorn as a lover, or should I say, rapist?” Elcara murmured. “If he wants it, he orders her to assume the position.”
“What a pig!” Reanne murmured. “I hope Kragyn beats the crap out of him.”
“No, Lorn is even meaner when he loses,” Maselle moaned. “Maybe, I should just kill myself.”
Both Reanne and Elcara looked at her in alarm.
“No, I didn’t mean that. I don’t have the guts. I keep holding out hope someone or something will happen to change things,” Maselle said. “I don’t want to die. I just don’t want to be with Lorn; it seems the only way to get away from him.”
Reanne sat talking with her new acquaintances until the matches were about to begin. Then she went to the bar where she could see the pit. There were five fighters, and Kragyn drew the odd pebble. That meant he would fight last after eliminations. It was going to be a long night.
Kragyn won all his fights that night, the first one was against an alien he hadn’t met before. When they finally left the old warehouse, they heard a smacking sound and a woman crying and squealing after each one. The way the sound echoed, they couldn’t tell where it came from.
The smacking sound stopped to be replaced by rhythmic sobbing and grunts that seemed to come from everywhere. By the time they found the source, they had found Maselle sitting on the ground by a big rock alone, crying.
The sun was rising, and even in the dim light, they could see welts on her arms, legs, and back. She had a black eye, her lip was swollen, and her prison issue pants were on the ground beside her.
“Maselle,” Reanne said, squatting down on the ground beside her. “What happened honey?”
“Lorne happened. He gets like this when he doesn’t win.” She choked on a sob. “And he just left you out here like this?”
“Yes. He knows I have nowhere else to go. Even if I did, he would come to find me and do worse.” Mazelle sniffed and got to her feet. She picked up her pants and pulled them on while Kragyn discreetly looked away. “I wish you had killed him, Kragyn,” she muttered as she fastened her pants.
“I’m starting to wish I did, the bastard! There is no reason to treat a female as he has done to you,” Kragyn said. “I know of a couple empty caves if you want to leave.”
“It wouldn’t do any good. Lorn would just find me and drag me back,” she said. “I will just go visit Varnis and Sprell for the day. Lorne knows I like to help with the children. That will give him time to calm down.”
“Oh, Maselle. No one should have to live like this,” Reanne mused. “He should be protecting you.”
Maselle laughed ironically. “He does, from everyone but him. Don’t worry about me. The gods will see that he gets what he deserves one day. I pray for it every time he does this.” With that Maselle shuffled away.
“Isn’t there anything we can do?” Reanne whispered.
“I’d have to kill him, and the next guy might be just as bad or worse. I don’t like it any better than you, but there is no law here.”
“Well, maybe the next time you fight him, you can beat him down, so he’s hurting too much to hurt Maselle.”
“That I can do.”
Chapter Thirteen
“They’re growing!” Reanne exclaimed as she emerged from the cave.
Kragyn was right behind her carrying a plastic tub of water for them to water the plants. “I see that.” He smiled at her enthusiasm. Apparently, the tent was working, that and the daily watering.
Once they finished the watering, they went into their training session. As Reanne got better at the self-defense moves, he started teaching her fehiatu the Uatu form of martial arts. He started her with slow-motion basic moves that made her think of tai chi. They did that for a few centi-spans which translated to about an hour to Reanne.
Next Kragyn would test her on her defense moves. She never knew what offensive he would take. Mostly he seemed pleased with her progress, but sometimes she would get silly when she messed up and couldn’t break his hold. Other times he would break her concentration by kissing and nibbling her neck while he caressed her body. But mostly, they took it seriously.
A few days after the plants in the garden patch had started to get leaves, Kragyn and Reanne came out to water them, but all the plants were ruined. Some were pulled up by the roots and others were chewed off at ground level. All of the green parts were gone.
“Skitters,” Kragyn said as they surveyed the damage.
“How are we going to keep them out? It’s not like we can run down to the farm supply and buy a roll of fence wire,” Reanne mused.
“No, but we might be able to get some of the metal pallets that the supplies are bundled on. There is usually a pile of them near the landing pad,” he suggested. We can probably find strapping enough to tie them together.”
“That’s a long way out with no wheels.”
“I guess it depends on how badly you want this garden.” He grinned at her.
“Do you think if we went deeper into the mine tunnel, we mig
ht find some kind of pushcart?”
“Not a cart, but I did see some wheels. I didn’t think I could use them for anything, so I left them there,” he said. “Since we’re not watering, why don’t we go ahead and train before it gets any hotter.”
“Okay.”
Kragyn set down the tub of water and headed to a small open space just beyond the garden. Reanne followed and took her place beside him in the starting position. He made a ‘shh’ sound signaling the first move and then various combinations of the sound to guide them through the motions.
When they finished the set, he surprised her with an offensive hold. Then he was surprised as she broke the hold and put him on the ground on his back.
“Good job!” He grinned up at her.
Reanne offered him a hand up, half expecting him to pull her down on top of him. That was precisely what he did. He wrapped his arms around her and rolled them so that she was beneath him.
“Now, what will you do?”
“No, fair! I would have been long gone if it was for real. Not offering a hand up.”
“I know,” he murmured, pushing her mussed up hair off her face. “I was ready for some fun.”
Then he claimed a light kiss from her lips, and she slid her arms around him, rubbing the taut muscles of his back.
“But we should probably take this inside,” he said when he lifted his lips from hers. He pushed himself up from the ground and stood, then leaned over and offered his hands to help her up.
It was still early, but too hot to spend much more time outside. Inside the cave, Kragyn picked up two light-stones from a shelf and gave one to Reanne. There were enough light-stones left in the cave ceiling the light their way. He just wanted to bring the stones as a precaution.
As they went deeper into the cave the passageway narrowed some. It seemed clear that the rocks mined there didn’t come out that way. The path they took also sloped downward, so they were going deeper underground. But the light-rocks in the ceiling allowed them to see well enough to keep going.
Kragyn (Farseek Warrior Series Book 1) Page 7
