by Tana Stone
After a while, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to trace my way back to my assigned room. The maze of open-weave walkways seemed never ending and unchanging—each metal door and each spiraling staircase just like the dozen before it.
Was it possible to get lost in a Vandar warbird and never be found? I would have punched something if there was anything around me that wasn’t iron and wouldn’t have broken all the bones in my hand.
“Come on, Alana,” I said under my breath. “You survived the swamps on Morrena. You can do this.”
My mind flashed back to the toxic marshes on the alien planet, and the fumes that had risen up and seared the inside of my throat. I’d been left for dead in that wasteland and managed to survive—although the acid scars on my feet had never fully gone away. If I could withstand that, this was a walk in the park.
One thing the swamps of Morrena didn’t have was a huge Raas to distract me and muddle my mind. I had to stop thinking about the gorgeous warlord, if I was going to succeed.
Never let a mark get in your head. That was what one of my academy instructors had drilled into me. And none ever had. Until now.
It didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to think about Raas Bron and the fact that I still needed to kill him. Not now, at least. Now I needed to contact the empire. Once they’d locked onto the Vandar horde and started their onslaught, I could use the ensuing chaos to take out the warlord.
Satisfied with my new strategy, I picked up my pace. Rounding a corner, all thoughts of the distracting male flew from my mind.
“What is this?” I walked forward, and ran my hands over the chain that surrounded the battle ring. I hadn’t set foot in a practice ring in longer than I could remember. My heart pounded as I eyed the sparring weapons hanging on the inside of the circular cage.
Glancing around, I saw no one and the only sounds were the far away echoes of footsteps. The ring appeared to be in the bowels of the ship and away from the action. Surely no one would see.
I moved quickly up the short flight of stairs and entered the ring, my gaze locking on one of the sparring axes. “Let’s see how hard it is to fight like a Vandar.”
Chapter Twelve
Bron
“We’ve heard from Lodvak, Raas.”
My majak’s voice pulled me from my thoughts of Alana lying naked beneath me. I shifted from one foot to the next as I stood overlooking the command deck, adjusting my cock and grasping my hands in front of me. “What do they say?”
“They welcome the human refugee.” Svar glanced at me from his console, his hands gripping the curved edges. “She may either remain with them, or repatriate to her home world at a later date.”
I choked out a rough laugh. “Her home world being Earth? It has long since been designated a wasteland.”
Svar twitched one shoulder. “It will be her choice.”
I nodded. “Good. It is done.” I turned to face forward again, swallowing a hard ball of regret as I thought of the human leaving to live on an alien planet. I would most likely never see her again.
Which is a good thing, I reminded myself. She is a distraction you never asked for and do not want. I growled low and rested a hand on the hilt of my axe, the cool metal comforting beneath my fingers, which still buzzed hot from her touch.
“Raas?”
I looked back at my majak, whose eyebrows were raised. Had I growled loudly enough for him to hear? A quick glance at the other command deck officers told me that I had.
I cleared my throat. “I was thinking about the Zagrath, and how I long to spill their blood.”
Several raiders rumbled their agreement, and I allowed myself an inaudible sigh, although Svar did not look so easily convinced.
The door to the command deck swished open, and Corvak stomped through them, his face set in a glower. He clicked his heels together without missing a step. “Raas, I have news of the human you will wish to hear.”
“She was taken back to her quarters, yes?” I did not want the shock of walking in on her naked in my quarters again.
Corvak inclined his head while frowning. “She was, then she left.”
That made me turn fully toward him. “Left? Where did she go? Did she attempt to escape?”
A brusque shake of my battle chief’s head. “No, but the raider I tasked to follow her at a distance reports that she has been wandering the ship for quite some time now.”
Curious. Why would a human female who claimed to be running from the empire care about exploring a Vandar warbird?
Perhaps for the same reason she was inspecting your headboard, a little voice in the back of my head whispered. She is not a victim like she claims to be.
“Has she found anything that should concern me?”
Corvak planted his feet wide and braced his hands on his hips. “I would have thought a female prisoner wandering the ship would be of concern, Raas.”
“She is not a prisoner. She is merely a female we are transporting.”
“Too bad,” my battle chief grumbled so low I could barely make out his words.
I did not like Corvak’s obvious disapproval of my handling of the female, but I could not fault him his opinion. There was something about the human that gave me pause. She’d struck me as both weak and scared when we’d found her, but I’d seen flashes of a tough and shrewd female beneath the bruises and tragic story. Even if she was who she claimed to be—and my doubts were growing by the second—I could not have her moving freely throughout my ship. She might not have found anything yet, but who was to say she wouldn’t?
“Where is she now?” I asked.
The edges of Corvak’s mouth twitched up. “She is currently in the battle ring.”
I stared at him. “The holographic one?” How would a human who claimed to have been enslaved on a mining colony have any clue how to operate a holographic fighting program?
“No, Raas. Our old battle ring.”
My stomach clenched. I had many memories of practicing with Raas Kratos in that iron cage. My former Raas and friend had often sparred with me while discussing his strategy or working out problems. We’d spend a good deal of time lunging at each other with sparring axes, starting when we were apprentices trying to learn how to fight, and continuing through the time that Kratos ruled the horde.
I hadn’t returned to the old ring since Kratos had hung up his battle axe and named me Raas, partly because I feared it wouldn’t feel the same without Kratos. I’d spent all my practice time in the new holographic battle simulator, instead of the cage that held so many memories.
“Should I have her removed and returned to her quarters?” Corvak asked when I didn’t respond to him.
I drew in a breath and drummed my fingers across the carved hilt of my axe. “No. I will handle this.” I met his eyes and noticed his deepening scowl. “But you may accompany me. I have a theory that might require your particular skill set.”
A grin spilt Corvak’s face, and he moved one hand to the handle of his weapon. “Gladly, Raas.”
I gave Svar a sharp nod. “You have the horde, majak.”
He threw back his chest and snapped his heels as I strode off the command deck with my battle chief by my side. Corvak and I didn’t speak as we made our way quickly down through the ship, our steps long and our arms swinging by our sides.
My heart thrummed in my chest, anger building as I thought about the female who resided on my ship. A part of me wished to lock her in her quarters and dump her off on Lodvak as planned. It did not matter who she was, as long as she was not on my ship any longer. Another part of me needed to know the truth about her before I ridded myself of her presence. Was she truly a victim of the empire, a refugee in need as she claimed, or had she tricked me?
I squeezed the hilt of my weapon, fighting back the urge to let out a roar of frustration as I thundered down an iron staircase. The first mission of my command could not end in me being duped by a human. It was an intolerable thought, and one that made bile churn in my gut.
What kind of Raas allowed himself to be tricked by a female? Kratos would never have allowed a small human like Alana to get the better of him. This thought made me tighten my grip until the bones showed white through my skin.
As we closed in on the battle ring, I held out an arm to slow Corvak and put a finger to my lips. “I do not want her to know we are watching.”
He nodded and slowed his steps, and we approached with stealth and crouched in the shadows outside the iron cage.
My battle chief’s report had been correct. Alana was inside the battle ring, swinging a sparring axe. Even though the blade was not sharpened, the weapon was still heavy and long—sized to accommodate a Vandar raider. Yet the human held it without drooping, slicing through the air with smooth strokes over her head.
I shifted on my haunches. She might have gained muscle through working in a mine, but she did not gain such prowess with a weapon as a miner. And she had not acquired this level of comfort in the short time she’d been inside the ring, no matter how naturally athletic she might be. I pressed my lips together as my pulse quickened. No, this female had been trained to fight.
I watched her move across the floor, her footwork agile and the movements of her arms almost mesmerizing. Although she was flushed from exertion, her face was alight with enjoyment. It was a look with which I was all too familiar. I’d seen it on my warriors’ faces in the heat of battle. Not only did she know how to fight, but she also loved it.
Corvak elbowed me in the ribs, jerking his head toward the battle ring. He was right. We’d been watching long enough, and I knew what I needed to know. That is, until Alana told me the truth about herself and why she was on my warbird.
I stood and stomped up the stairs to the ring, stepping inside as she whirled toward me, her eyes wide.
“I think it’s time you explained yourself.” I narrowed my gaze at her. “And I strongly suggest you do not lie to me this time, female.”
Chapter Thirteen
Alana
The gravelly voice startled me. I’d been so caught up in the movement of the blade as it arced through the air, balancing my weight to keep from being pitched forward from the velocity. A Vandar Battle axe—even a sparring one—was a serious weapon and one that required concentration or practice to handle. I’d spent enough hours practicing with long swords and daggers to understand how to move with a blade, but this ancient weapon was a challenge even for someone with my training.
When Raas Bron stepped into the ring across from me, my fingers faltered, as did my grip on the axe handle. The thick wood slipped from my hand and clattered to the floor.
“I didn’t see you there,” I started to say, the tremble in my voice not manufactured this time.
“What are you doing?” Raas Bron was not smiling, and all traces of the Vandar who’d backed away from me in his quarters with longing in his eyes had vanished.
My gaze instinctively darted to the weapon on the ground, and my fingers itched to pick it up. “I got lost.”
The Raas took a step to the side like a predator beginning to circle his prey. His tail curled up off the ground, the tip quivering. “I can see that. This is not located between my quarters and yours.”
My throat was thick, and my cheeks shook as I attempted a smile. I took a step away from him, circling in the opposite direction out of instinct. “I got lonely and decided to come looking for you. After all, you did leave me so suddenly.”
One of his dark eyebrows lifted. “You were searching for me?” He cast his gaze around the dingy cage, shadows slinking toward the high, chain link walls around the perimeter. “Here?”
My pulse fluttered. He didn’t believe me. Shit. I’d really messed things up now. Why did I let myself be tempted by the sparring ring and the weapons? I glanced again at the axe at my feet, wishing it was more than a sparring blade.
“Go ahead,” he said, his voice a rumbly purr. “Pick it up.”
I snapped my gaze to his and saw the challenge in his eyes. “I don’t know what you—“
“Yes, you do. You’re aching to reach for the weapon.” His dark pupils flared, as his tail swished methodically from side to side. “So, do it.” He took another sidestep and plucked a sparring axe off the wall. “You’ll need it if you’re going to fight me.”
My pulse quickened. “Fight you?”
“That’s what you want, isn’t it? Someone to practice with?”
I fought the urge to let out a relieved sigh. At least he didn’t suspect I was there to assassinate him. That was something. “I guess.”
He nodded his head at the axe on the floor. “Then pick it up, and let’s begin.”
I slowly bent to retrieve the weapon, keeping my eyes fixed on him the entire time. “I should tell you that I’ve never used a Vandar axe before.”
“Not many have.” He tossed the handle of his sparring weapon from one hand to the other as if it weighed nothing. “But I suspect you will be better than you think.”
As we circled each other along the rim of the ring, I eyed him. He clearly suspected me of something, but what did he know? What could he know? My name and true identity were a secret, even among all but the top leaders in the empire. To all but the very elite, I was Mantis. It would be impossible for a Vandar—even a Raas—to know anything about me.
“I am not a seasoned warrior like you, Raas.” I feigned almost dropping my axe.
He grinned, but it looked more like an animal baring its teeth. “No?” He lunged for me and swept his axe wide and low, so that I had to jump to avoid my ankles being hit. “Your reflexes are as good as any raider.”
I cursed myself for my instinctive response, but outwardly I giggled. “A holdover from childhood, I’m sure. Don’t all children jump rope?”
He made another sudden move toward me, but I forced myself not to dodge the blow. Instead, I braced myself and prepared to let out a girlish yelp. At the last moment, he changed the trajectory of his axe, twisting it so the flat metal smacked my ass.
“Ow!” My scream was genuine.
His grin widened, and his gaze lingered on my stinging ass. “Maybe you do not have the instincts I thought you did.”
I bit back the snappy response that was on the tip of my tongue and forced myself to return his smile. “I told the Raas I was not skilled in battle.”
He shrugged, changing direction and coming at me from the other side. Spinning his blade rapidly, he tossed it to his other hand and darted it at me once again. Even though I could have easily defended myself with a parry of my own axe, I pretended to be flustered by his move. The slap of the flat blade to my other ass cheek made me bite my lip so hard I tasted blood.
“Having fun?” I spat out.
He bent low and shifted his weight over one knee then back to the other. “More than I had expected, although I’m disappointed you are not fighting back. I thought you’d dropped the female-in-distress act back in my quarters.”
I clenched the handle of the axe. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. There’s no act. I am a female, and I was in distress when you found me. I’m grateful to the Vandar for assisting me, but if you think I’m going to let you continue to strike me—“
“Then fight back,” he growled, springing at me.
I leapt out of the way, spinning and bringing my own axe down across his back. The slap of metal against flesh made my heart beat faster, as I swiveled to face him again. Before I could draw a breath, the Raas was lunging again, this time, without his axe.
I jabbed at him but missed, and he swatted the battle axe from my grip. I dove for it, but he caught me, looping a powerful arm around my waist and flipping me over his shoulder. I tried to kick out and scissor my legs around his neck, but his hold on me was too tight. My attempts to rear up and flip him over also failed. I heaved in a series of ragged breaths as I hung upside down and the blood rushed to my head.
“You win,” I said, my voice as jovial as I could make it, considering I wanted to murder him.
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br /> “I might have won the battle, human.” He did not release me, but strode out of the battle ring and down the stairs. “But I have a feeling you have brought a war with you, and I intend to discover the truth of it.”
The raider with the scar running down one cheek stepped out of the shadows.
“Bind her hands and feet,” the Raas ordered.
I struggled in vain, my protests a series of inaudible splutters. Bind me? Was he serious?
The scarred raider’s eyes were alight with an anticipation that sent ice down my spine. “Shall I hang her in my oblek, Raas?”
“Not your oblek,” Raas Bron said. “I want her in my quarters.”
“You can’t—“ I finally managed to say.
The Vandar’s grip on my legs tightened. “Oh, I think I can. As I have told you before, female, I am a Raas of the Vandar. It is my duty to protect my horde by any means.” His voice dropped to a deadly rumble. “Which means I can do anything to you that I wish to get the truth.”
If I hadn’t been hanging down his broad back, my knees might have buckled.
Chapter Fourteen
Bron
I barely noticed the startled looks as I thundered through the ship, passing gaping raiders as the female bounced on my back and pounded on my bare flesh with her small fists. I didn’t slow when I reached my quarters, storming through the door and swinging her down so quickly that she nearly fell trying to regain her balance with her hands and feet bound.
“What the klek was that about?” She blew a strand of sweaty hair out of her eyes as she glared at me.
I tilted my head at her. “Klek? The Zagrath curse falls easily from your lips, human.”
She started, then appeared to remember herself and where she was. “Why wouldn’t it? You know I lived on a Zagrath-controlled planet. I heard plenty of Zagrath curses while working in the mines under imperial control and run by imperial soldiers.”
