by Cynthia Sax
The medic’s gaze shifted from Power to her. “Your garments are loose on you.”
Her ass coverings hung low on her hips. “I haven’t been hungry,” she mumbled.
“Repair your damage, Astrid Ragnhild.” Power moved toward the exit. “I’ll meet you in the training chambers.”
The doors closed behind him. Silence stretched.
“There are other warriors than Power, more suitable warriors for you.” Medic Tifara scanned her with a handheld. “I’m devising a way to break your bond with Vengeance. When you’re free, you’ll have your choice of males.”
“I didn’t say I wanted to be free.” Why did everyone assume that?
The medic gave her a pitying glance. “It has been multiple planet rotations. Your nanocybotics haven’t faded, yet Vengeance hasn’t relented. The urge to breed with you must be painfully intense for him.”
Death nodded, his expression grim.
Astrid’s face heated. They both believed Vengeance would rather endure the harshest of pain than breed with her. “He’s stubborn.”
“No male is that stubborn.” Medic Tifara gazed at the handheld’s tiny screen. “And don’t worry about the lack of a genetic bond. The female cyborgs have no genetic bond with their males. Not every male will find his match.”
“They’ll settle.” For her, a female discarded by her mate. She lifted her chin, her pride and her heart wounded. “There’s no need for this discussion. Vengeance will relent.”
“You’re the only being who believes that.” Medic Tifara’s words were soft.
She was the only being. Others had been talking about their situation, judging her, pitying her. “I’m the only being who truly knows him.”
She looked down at her boots. They had been polished until they shone. She touched his forearm armor. Her male had left that for her.
Those were signs of caring…weren’t they?
“Who asked you to perform a full scan on me?” She suspected she knew the answer.
“Vengeance made that request.” The medic exchanged a glance with her male. “No honorable warrior would want a being under his protection to be damaged.”
Vengeance was an honorable warrior. Was that the only reason he tended to her needs? Because it was his duty?
Fuck him. Her face hardened. Fuck all of them. “I’m not damaged.”
They could leave her the fuck alone.
Medic Tifara’s head dipped. “You haven’t been taking in enough nourishment but you’re not damaged.”
“Tell him that.” Astrid drew one of her guns, tired of her warrior’s shit. “Cyborgs can be stunned, right?” She switched the lever to that option.
“It works on their organics, but—”
“That’s all I needed to know.” She walked through the doors. Medic Tifara and Death could show themselves out.
The two C Models in the corridor straightened.
“Give this message to your leader.” She shot first one warrior and then the other, the surprise in their eyes appeasing some of her pain.
Every cyborg she passed got stunned. They wanted to pity her? She was Astrid Fuckin’ Ragnhild, the Buoir Berserker. Their asses were hers.
That communication must have been shared because the corridors soon emptied, males dashing out of range, doors closing.
She didn’t care. They weren’t her true target. Or her primary mission.
Being a warrior, always prepared, always having an exit plan, she’d studied the schematics for the structure, those plans found in a database on the viewscreens.
She headed toward the docking bay for the level, stunning all of the guards, all of the warriors operating the space. There were several ships from which to choose. She entered the smallest one, located the bridge, sat in the captain’s chair.
The urge to leave, to steal the ship and fly away, was intense. Even if she succumbed to that yearning, she would return to the Homeland.
Her link with Vengeance hadn’t been severed. She hadn’t given up on him, would fight at least one more round, but right now, she required space.
Merely sitting in the ship gave her that.
Moments passed. She was blessedly alone, kept company only by her hurt, her humiliation, her anger.
Then she was no longer solitary, her refuge infiltrated. The air around her changed, infused with an energy, a connection.
“Are you damaged?” An achingly familiar voice asked the question from behind her.
“I’m not physically damaged.” Emotionally, she had been torn apart. “I guess I proved your point, huh?” Her laugh was shaky. “A female bonded with a warrior can be a threat to the Homeland.”
“You stunned them. You didn’t kill them.” Vengeance sat three seats away from her.
She couldn’t look at him. Her feelings were too raw, too exposed.
“You’re no threat to the Homeland.” He said that with certainty.
She didn’t disagree with him because he was right—she was no threat to the Homeland. Her anger was directed at him and at herself.
Fuck. She was a fool.
“Your warriors didn’t expect to be stunned.” That gave her a droplet of satisfaction. She’d surprised them all.
“They should have expected it.” Her male put his big hands on the console. She yearned to feel those palms on her skin, longed for his touch. “They should always be prepared for an attack.”
“You told them not harm me.” She guessed that. That was why they hadn’t reacted, hadn’t tried to disarm her.
He didn’t say anything, his lack of answer telling her he had given that order.
Silence stretched. Her heart ached.
“Well, you’ve handled the situation.” Her tone was bitter, but she hurt too much to hide it. “My rampage of stunning your brethren is over. You can return to your busy lifespan.” Without her.
“Can I?”
Footage played on the main viewscreen. The mother predator, looking well-fed and a little bit sleepy, chewed on a bone. Her cubs fought over a piece of hide, tugging it back and forth, their growls adorable.
Astrid watched the family, wishing both she and Vengeance had stayed on her home planet. They had been happy there…when they weren’t trying to kill each other. She had felt cared for, part of his clan, respected.
“Are you monitoring the predators from here?” She still couldn’t look at him.
“I observed them before we left.” His voice, low and deep, coiled around her. “That was one of the reasons I wasn’t with you when you woke.”
What was his excuse now? Her soul cried out. He could be with her every planet rotation…if that was what he truly desired.
“Did Power emotionally damage you?” Her possessive male asked. He might not want her, but he didn’t want anyone else to have her.
“Power doesn’t have the ability to emotionally damage me.” Only he did. “I told you once that I was tired of being alone. I meant those words.”
“My warrior female—”
“No.” She finally gazed at him. He was so fuckin’ handsome and big and strong. And that made her angry, very, very angry. She pointed her gun at him. “I’m not your warrior female.” She pressed the trigger, stunning him.
Vengeance froze, his mouth open, his eyes blazing.
“I’m not your anything anymore, cyborg.” Her rage spiraled upward. “You made that clear to everyone, bringing me to this damn planet and then deserting me. And you didn’t leave me quietly either, did you? You made a huge show of it, ensuring every fuckin’ being knows you’ve rejected me. They’re all aware that you don’t want me, that you would rather spend an endless lifespan alone and frustrated than share a sleeping support with me.”
She stood, unable to remain seated.
“Your brethren look at me with pity.” Her voice strengthened. “I’m Astrid Ragnhild, the Buoir Berserker, one of the best warriors in the fuckin’ universe, and they think I’m desperate for any cock that comes my way.”
A muscle in hi
s cheek twitched.
Not wanting to hear words he didn’t mean, she stunned him again, silencing him. “I care for you. Clearly.” She rolled her eyes. “That’s the only reason I’ve put up with all of this shit. But my patience has run out, warrior. As of this moment, your nanocybotics inside me or not, I’m doing whatever I want to do. Fuck your pride. Fuck our connection. Fuck the relationship I mistakenly believed we had.”
She removed the armor from her forearm, slammed it down on the console.
“If I want to spend time with Power, I will. If I want to fuck the circuits out of every cyborg I see, I will.” Her chest heaved. “I’m a free female.”
That was a lie. She wasn’t free at all. Her heart was his, would always be his.
She gazed at him, some of her anger dissipating. “You’re a great warrior, Vengeance, one of the best I’ve ever fought against. If you wanted to win me back, I’m certain you could. It would no longer be an easy battle. Those trenches you’ve dug between us? I plan to use them to defend myself.”
She leaned toward him, placing her face a breath away from his. Her lips parted, the temptation to kiss him so fuckin’ strong. She missed his metallic taste, his warmth, the firmness of his lips.
“But I don’t think you want to win me back.” She sighed, pulling away from him. “Not enough to fight for me. You don’t care for me that much, and I’m not willing to settle for less.” She gave him a sad smile. “Humans have pride too. It isn’t merely a cyborg failing.”
She squared her shoulders, gathering the remnants of her self-confidence around her. “Not every war is winnable, Vengeance. I realize that now.”
She stunned him a third time, turned, and walked away.
Chapter Fifteen
Vengeance had, using his female’s words, fucked up. He had been so focused on how she saw him he hadn’t seen how she saw herself, how his proud human believed others viewed her.
He stood in the mock battle chamber, a sword in both of his hands, his form clad in black body armor. The sheath his female had branded with her scent hung from his waist.
The viewing area was filled to capacity. The news about this mock battle had spread quickly. The fight would be broadcast to every cyborg in existence.
Nineteen warriors stood behind him, all hand chosen based on their skill and potential. They chattered on private transmission lines about strategy and targets.
He ignored them. His gaze was fixed on his female. So was the gaze of every other male. Astrid wasn’t an object of pity, as she believed. She was an object of lust, of admiration, of yearning.
And he had emotionally damaged her.
She was giving up on him.
The words she’d shared in the ship had sliced into him. The sadness, the pain reflecting in her eyes had blasted holes in his soul. Watching her walk away from him, unable to stop her, unable to move, had been the cruelest of tortures.
He had been rocked to his core by her revelations, had sat on the bridge for half a shift after he regained mobility. The only reason he had showed up here, at the mock battle chamber, was because fighting helped him to process.
He was a C Model. Fighting and breeding were what he was manufactured to do. Fulfilling one of the goals of his design might clear his databases, allow him derive a solution.
He’d arrived to find his female in the space, across from him, on the opposing team, fighting for Power. Her face was flushed with excitement. A smile curled her lips.
To the crowd, it looked like she was making her preference clear. She had chosen the E Model.
The shameful truth was…Vengeance hadn’t given his female a choice. He hadn’t asked her to be on his team.
This mock battle had been fabricated to impress her, and, in his processors, he had relegated his take-action human to the passive role of watcher. He had selfishly envisioned his always-moving Astrid positioned in the seating area, her full focus on him.
He was a fool.
That wasn’t who she was or where she belonged. His warrior female’s place was at his side, in battle and in life. There was no being he trusted more, respected more, cared for more.
She didn’t know that because he hadn’t told her. He hadn’t asked her. And now, Power, his rival, had the honor of fighting with her. The E Model stood by her right hand, chatted with her about strategy, not caring that Vengeance and his males could hear them.
“Study the faces.” Power advised Astrid. “Cyborgs can lock onto their targets. You, being human, don’t have that option.”
“I could kill my own warriors in the melee.” She scanned Vengeance’s team, lines etched between her eyebrows.
Vengeance stood straighter. Her gaze glided over him without pausing. There was no flicker of recognition in her brown eyes, no flare of heat.
He was merely another warrior, was no longer special to her. Pain sliced through him.
He was losing her.
“Target the K Models.” Power gave Astrid another tip. “For many of them, this is their first mock battle.” His gaze met Vengeance’s across the chamber. “I know the warrior I’m starting with.”
“You’ll be ending with me.” Vengeance tightened his grip on his swords. “I’m winning this.” His gaze shifted to his female’s face. “And all other battles.”
He’d defeat his competition quickly, removing Power from the space. Then he could concentrate fully on Astrid.
“The K Models are likely receiving the same advice as I am.” His female, having a human auditory system, had only heard Power’s side of the conversation. “They’ll be told they should target me. This is my first mock battle also.” She clasped her daggers, one in each hand, her stance strong, stimulating. Vengeance’s cock pressed against his body armor. “And I’m human, don’t have their speed or strength.” She blew out her breath. “I might fuck this up.”
“History predicts you will.” Power smiled, the E Model edging closer to her. “Everyone fucks up their first time.”
His tone implied he was referring to more than mock battles. Vengeance growled a warning. She was his, whether she continued to believe that or not. No other male would touch her.
Power glanced at him and smirked. “I’m honored you chose me for your first time.”
He reached out his hand. Vengeance rumbled with unhappiness.
Power flicked one of Astrid’s warrior braids.
Vengeance bellowed, rushing forward at cyborg speed with his swords extended. He would kill the warrior, would slice both of Power’s hands off.
No one touched his female.
He funneled all of his anger at Power, at the situation, at himself into his attack, his surroundings blurring around him.
The crowd roared their approval. Warriors on the mock battlefield stared at him, their jaws dropping.
“What are you doing?” Astrid yelled. “The battle hasn’t started yet, you big brute.” She threw her daggers at him.
The blades skimmed along Vengeance’s arms, one on each side of him, perfectly placed, leaving trails of scratches across his body armor. His female could have easily aimed for his unprotected head.
She hadn’t…because she still cared for him.
A little.
He would show her he was worthy of that caring, would protect that small flicker of hope, coax it into an explosion of feeling, of love.
“I’ve got this, my female.” Power extracted his swords from their sheaths, and his supporters in the audience cheered, stomping their feet.
“She is my female, not yours.” Vengeance swung both of his weapons.
The E Model leaned back, his shoulder blades grazing the floor. The swords whizzed over his face.
Power retaliated, jabbing upward. Vengeance spread his arms and twisted his body, barely avoiding the counterattack.
He couldn’t lose this battle. He had too much at stake.
Defending with one sword, he went on the offensive with the other. Blades connected. Sparks flew. Power, not having a C Mode
l’s tremendous strength, broke first, spinning out of reach.
They were well matched, the E Model’s speed compensating for his lack of muscle. Vengeance hacked away at Power’s body armor. Power did the same to his. Metal clanged.
The notification for the battle finally sounded and the space around them burst into activity. No one interfered with their fight, realizing correctly it was a private dispute between the two of them.
The warriors didn’t give his female the same space. They charged at her. She charged at them.
“To your right,” Vengeance yelled.
She turned and threw her daggers blindly, trusting his warning, trusting him. A J Model fell to the floor, a blade piercing his unprotected throat. A second dagger bounced off his body armor. The warrior’s arms and legs spasmed in mock death.
Vengeance grinned, avoiding Power’s swords. His female had her first kill of the planet rotation. She was fierce.
“Concentrate on our fight.” Power’s eyes glinted. “You’re a C Model. You don’t have the bandwidth to both battle me and protect Astrid.”
“I will always protect my female.” Vengeance cleaved the E Model’s chest armor into two. “Behind you.”
She spun around. Her daggers flew through the air. One of them punctured a D Model’s forehead. The warrior fell.
“You’re causing the deaths of your own males.” Power carved the body armor off Vengeance’s right shoulder.
“She’s human. They’re cyborgs. I’m evening the odds.” And he was on her side, always. He wanted his female to win, even if that meant he lost.
Power didn’t understand that because he had never truly cared for another being, not the way Vengeance cared for his warrior female.
Astrid might believe he valued his pride more than he valued her, but that wasn’t the truth.
He would give his life for her.
The tip of one of Power’s swords grazed Vengeance’s exposed side and he sucked in his breath, the pain intense, warmth dripping down his skin. He lifted his right sword, slicing the blade into his opponent’s bare left biceps. Blood spurted.
“Fraggin’ hole.” Power’s arm went limp, his weapon dropping from his fingers.
“What did you say about my bandwidth?” Vengeance, fully on the offensive, bombarded his opponent with blows, not holding back anything.
