Lost in Barbarian Space

by Anna Hackett

  They reached the wall and Colm watched Honor start upward. She didn’t rush, taking her time to find cracks to jam her feet and hands in to.

  Colm took a breath and followed her.

  A few times, his hand slipped. The wall was slick; some of the cracks wouldn’t hold his greater weight and crumbled. Above him, Honor looked like a Markarian monkey. Damn, she was good.

  “Come on, Colm. Almost there.”

  Finally, he pulled himself onto a high ledge beside Honor. He saw another tunnel entrance nearby. Quickly he reached out and touched her face, just to reassure himself she was okay.

  She pressed her palm over his hand, turned her face into his touch.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  He nodded. He was. For the moment.

  Then he heard noises below. He pulled back, holding a finger to his mouth. Together, they leaned over and looked down.

  Five of the white-furred creatures had entered the cavern below. Even from up high, they looked huge. Their white fur was thick and covered every part of their body. The lead beast moved around the cavern, searching, sniffing.

  If these things were what Colm thought they were, he knew they’d have an excellent sense of smell.

  “We need to keep moving.”

  The creature reached the base of the wall they’d climbed. And looked up.

  Colm saw dark eyes lock with his. He ducked back, away from the ledge. “Go. Into the tunnel.”

  Honor scrambled up and into the tunnel. Side-by-side, they carried on.

  “So, more than the wolves call Ansar home,” Honor said. “Do you have creatures like these ones on Markaria?”

  He shook his head. “But we used to.”

  She frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “They look like early Markarians. Like my ancestors.”

  Her eyes widened. “Before you had nanami? Before the First Warriors bred human DNA into them?”

  “Yes. These creatures are similar. They just appear to be adapted for the cold weather. Instead of the bronze skin, they have fur.”

  Honor slowed to a stop and put her hands on her hips. “Okay. So what do we need to know about them?”

  “They are wild, beast-like, and excellent hunters.” He met her gaze. “Meat eaters.”

  She groaned. “All right, let’s keep moving.” She looked at her watch. “We still have several hours until the storm dissipates and we can go topside.”

  Colm reached out and touched the nape of her neck. “You don’t mind…that I come from something like those beasts hunting us?”

  She touched his chest. “Warrior, that is a stupid question. You’re part human, as well. You make the choices in your life to be good, be bad, protect, hurt. Those creatures don’t have that capability.”

  Her words reminded him that one day he would no longer have that capability either.

  “What?” she demanded.

  He saw her watching him. “I am closer to those beasts than you think.” He shook his head. “We need to keep going.”

  She looked like she wanted to demand more explanation, but she fell into step beside him. “Colm?”

  He tensed. “Yes?”

  “I don’t mind being stuck in ice tunnels, hunted by wild beasts, stranded on an icy moon, and lost in barbarian space as long as I’m with you.” Her tone was soft.

  The feelings that moved within were a mess of savage satisfaction, hope, anger, and despair. Colm felt the connection between them, knew his nanami had been telling him this from the moment he’d met her.

  Honor was his.

  He dropped his hand and stepped back. And he could never claim her.

  “Let’s go.”

  ***

  Trekking through the ice tunnels, Honor could feel the tension throbbing off Colm.

  “Colm, talk to me.”

  She saw a muscle working in his jaw, but he stubbornly remained silent.

  She stopped. “I’m not taking another step until you tell me what’s wrong with you. I know you’re hiding something—”

  “My nanami…they have slipped my control. Seeing you threatened has them riled.”

  “I’m fine.” She nudged him with her elbow. “And I can take care of myself, remember?”

  He stopped and looked down at her. “I know, my little warrior, but that doesn’t change my need to protect you.”

  Quiet fell between them and all she could hear was the rapid beating of her heart. “Do you…do you feel that way about all the women who share your bed?”

  “No.” It was less a word than a growl.

  His answer warmed something deep inside her.

  They walked on, taking twists and turns through the tunnels. As they came to a junction, she saw Colm cock his head.

  “What is it?”

  “They’re coming.” He grabbed her arm and pulled her forward.

  They broke into a run, sprinting down the ice tunnel. Honor took the lead, glancing back periodically to see if she could spot their pursuers. She turned a corner, and the solid ice beneath her feet disappeared. She landed waist-deep in icy, slushy water.

  “Honor!” Colm roared.

  The water had chunks of ice floating in it and Honor felt the cold seeping in through her clothes. It was frigid.

  Gasping, she fought to get back to the edge, but there was a small current. The water was pulling her away from Colm.

  She saw Colm splash knee-deep into the water, reaching for her. Honor tried to swim, but she could feel the intense cold already affecting her. Her movements were sluggish and clumsy. Her breaths had turned into sharp pants. God, she was so cold, and it hurt. Awkwardly, she shrugged off the weight of her backpack.

  She heard a noise. Behind Colm, she saw the creatures appear.

  Honor tried to warn him, but her voice came out as a hoarse rasp.

  It didn’t matter—he’d already heard them.

  Colm turned, drawing his sword. In a blinding rush of speed, he launched at their pursuers.

  Honor fought to stay afloat and reach the edge, but the current was just too strong. She bumped into something and realized it was a large formation of ice spearing up from the floor. She grabbed it, her hands sliding over the slick surface.

  But then she wrapped her arms around it, and stopped herself from being dragged farther away in the flow of the icy river.

  She heard the grunts and growls of the animals, and saw Colm fighting with frightening, lethal skill. He cut down two beasts, blood spraying across the ice and the white fur. Another roared at him and Colm roared back. Her teeth chattering, she stared worriedly at his face. Again, his control seemed gone, and there was a wild warrior left in his place.

  He impaled another creature on his sword. Another beast rushed forward and Colm gave it a vicious kick. It stumbled backward, and it was enough time for Colm to swing his sword around and kill it.

  All the beasts were dead.

  Honor blinked. She was drowsy with fatigue, her body was numb, and she could barely move her arms and legs anymore.

  Colm reached the edge. He was covered in streaks of blood and his face was a lethal, primitive mask.

  He looked frightening. But she knew she couldn’t stay in the water much longer and survive. And this was Colm. Whatever was wrong with him, she knew he had a core of warrior honor at his heart.

  He’d never hurt her.

  The water dragged at her and she realized she couldn’t hold on much longer. Any second now, she was going to lose her grip and go under. She looked over at the warrior who’d burrowed under her skin, who made her feel.

  She hoped he survived. She hoped he stayed safe.

  The next thing she knew, Colm leaped forward. He splashed into the water just a meter from her. She tried to protest, but her frozen lips wouldn’t move. She saw the blood wash off him, staining the water. He grabbed her, hauling her to his chest, and then with strong kicks he pushed them to the other side of the tunnel. Honor looked up into his face. It was a wild mask, with that
primitive edge.

  He pulled her close, but Honor was so cold she couldn’t even feel the heat of him.

  Colm started to run through the tunnels. She knew he had to be cold, but if it affected him, he didn’t show it.

  She wasn’t sure how far they went, but suddenly he stopped. Honor couldn’t keep her eyes open anymore. He set her down, but her legs went out from under her. He growled and caught her, keeping one arm wrapped around her.

  There was movement and she heard fabric rustling, but she wasn’t sure what he was doing. She tried hard to open her eyes, but she just couldn’t do it.

  He moved her, laying her down and she felt fur against her back. Hands tugged at her clothes.

  “No,” she muttered fretfully. “So cold.”

  He ignored her, stripping her wet clothes away and leaving her naked. Honor heard more noises, the clink of Colm’s sword. Then his big, naked body wrapped around her and pulled her close into his arms. He yanked the fur around them.

  This time she felt the faint brush of heat. She tried to burrow closer to him. She felt his hands rubbing all over her body, chafing against her freezing skin.

  He kept rubbing her with short strokes—up her back, down her sides, along her legs, up her arms. Slowly, so slowly, the heat of him seeped into her, and she started shivering—huge, bone-rattling tremors. She was shivering so hard she worried her teeth would shatter.

  Colm held her tighter. Then he started to kiss her. Small kisses along the edge of her hairline, then down her cheek, along her jaw, down her neck.

  He kept up those tiny kisses and the long, warm strokes of his hands. Soon the shivering stopped, and the icy pain disappeared. “Tired.”

  “Sleep.” His voice still sounded strained. “I’ve got you.”

  ***

  Colm held a sleeping Honor tightly in his arms. He’d almost lost her.

  Even now, his nanami were still buzzing through his body with rage. Seeing her trapped in the icy water, and unable to get to her while the beasts had attacked him, had almost driven him out of his mind. He barely remembered fighting the creatures. It was just a blur of sound, color and rage.

  When he’d reached Honor, she’d been freezing to death.

  She was warm now. He pulled her closer and listened to the steady beat of her heart. He watched her face as she slept and slowly felt the terrible rage in him calm.

  He dragged in a deep breath. He had to admit that he was no longer fully in control of his nanami. His arms tightened on Honor. He’d hoped he’d have many more years before he reached this stage, but it was time to accept that soon, he’d no longer be able to function normally.

  He’d become like his father.

  Colm’s jaw locked. But he would never let himself risk hurting someone weaker.

  And definitely not Honor.

  She stirred, her hair tickling his nose. This was his last chance to hold her. He would get her back to her people, and then he knew his time was over.

  When he returned to Markaria, he’d head to the Northern Wastelands. It was time. Kavon was mated and settled. His friend had turned his estate into one of the most powerful on Markaria.

  Colm wouldn’t be needed anymore.

  Honor stirred again. Her cheeks were pink with warmth, and the pinched look was gone from her face. She pressed into him and made a small noise that made his desire rise. She was out of danger now.

  And he had to have her.

  He rolled her beneath him, settling into the cradle of her thighs. As her eyelids fluttered open, her eyes meeting his, he thrust inside her.

  Her mouth opened in a silent cry, more heat filling her cheeks. Colm moved slowly this time, his nanami strangely calm. He kept his eyes locked with her green ones. By the warrior, it felt like she was made for him. She was tight and slick around him, and he kept plunging his cock into her over and over.

  Colm reached down, sliding his hand between their thrusting bodies. He touched her, felt where she was stretched around him, and then slid his thumb up to find the tiny nub above. He rubbed it and felt her jerk against him with a husky cry.

  He worked her hard and didn’t slow his firm thrusts. A second later, her release hit her, and he watched the emotions skitter across her face.

  As her body contracted on his, he couldn’t hold off his own release any longer. Pleasure slammed into him, he thrust himself deep to the root and held himself there as he poured himself inside her.

  Colm dropped onto the fur and pulled her close, her legs tangled with his. Then, exhausted, he fell into a light sleep.

  When he stirred, he thought he was dreaming. But as he stared at the ice roof above him and felt the warm lips traveling down his body, he realized that this wasn’t a dream.

  It was so much better.

  Honor was on top of him, her lips tracing a trail down his chest. She stopped every now and then to lick and suck and tease. She nipped at the ridges of his stomach and he drew in a sharp breath. She scooted further down and her mouth pressed to his hipbone.

  “Time for me to drive you a little crazy, warrior.”

  As her hand circled his cock, he wondered if he’d survive this.

  When she sucked the head of his cock into her mouth, a strangled growl broke free from his throat.

  She licked and sucked, working her mouth down, taking more of his large cock into her mouth. Colm had to watch. He lifted his head and wasn’t sure he had ever seen anything so arousing as watching Honor pleasure him.

  Involuntarily, his hand slid into her hair and he directed her. He urged her to take him a little deeper. Unable to stop himself he bumped his hips up, forcing more of his cock into her mouth.

  She didn’t protest. Instead, she made a humming sound that vibrated through him and made him groan.

  She pulled back with a pop. “Just let go, warrior, this time I’ve got you.”

  Colm had never given up his control to anybody. He’d spent his life honing his control, knowing he’d need it to control the wrongness inside him.

  But in this moment, this intimate moment with this woman—his woman—he let her take the lead.

  As his orgasm hit him, he spilled inside her mouth, his back arching with the most intense sensations he’d ever felt. And for the first time in his life, he worried about nothing but pleasure.

  Chapter Twelve

  When Honor woke, she stretched her arms above her head, feeling pretty darn good.

  She stared up at the ice roof above her. Despite the dangerous creatures within, these caves— with their sparkling moss and pretty ice—were really beautiful. She turned her head and saw Colm was already up, rummaging around in their remaining backpack.

  The caves weren’t quite as beautiful as her warrior.

  He raised his head. When he saw she was awake, he grabbed a nutri-bar and brought it over to her.

  Honor pulled the fur closer around her naked body. She opened the packaging of the food supplement and studied him. She sensed he wasn’t feeling loose and satisfied like she was. Instead, that terrible tension was back.

  “You okay, Colm?”

  He grunted.

  She took a bite of the bar and chewed. “You’ve been—”

  “Out of control.” He shot to his feet, his hands on his hips. Then he spun, let out a small growl, and slammed his hand into the wall.

  The ice cracked.

  Her throat tightened. “We’re going to get out of here, Colm—”

  “It doesn’t matter if I make it out, Honor.”

  “I know you’re angry about something. Something to do with your father—”

  “I don’t want to talk about it with you.”

  That hurt. She swallowed. “With Kavon, then?”

  “No. It is my problem to bear.” Colm pressed his palms against the ice wall.

  She stared at his straining back. Unable to stay away from him, she stood. She pressed a hand to the corded muscles. “Let me help you.”

  “You warm my bed, Honor. That is a
ll.”

  She took the hit, then she steadied herself, shaking away the sting. “Well, we haven’t made it to a bed yet, so I guess I warm your furs. But this has nothing to do with you putting your cock inside me, Colm. We’ve worked together on this mission, we’ve fought side by side and saved each other’s lives. I consider you a friend.”

  He spun and grabbed her. She found herself with her legs wrapped around his hips, and her back to the ice wall. Only the fur kept her skin from the ice.

  His hands were between her legs. He thrust a finger inside her. She arched, crying out.

  “You are not my friend.” He kept thrusting one thick finger inside her, while his other hand jerked at the fastenings of his trousers. And then his hand was gone, replaced by his large cock. He slid inside her in one sudden thrust.

  She made a choked noise. He slammed her hands above her head.

  “We are—” his voice was so deep it was hard to understand “—well beyond friends.”

  “You are so confusing, warrior. One minute you say I warm your bed, but when I say we’re friends—”

  He thrust inside her again, his eyes turning a molten gold. “For now, you are mine.”

  He kept thrusting, slamming into her in hard, jerky motions. It was quick, dirty, and fast. She felt her orgasm rising like a tsunami. When it burst, she reached down and bit Colm’s shoulder.

  A second later he groaned, and spilled himself inside her. They stayed there, against the wall, both of them trying to catch their breath.

  Then Colm moved, swinging her into his arms. He sank down onto his fur coat, and settled her in his lap. His big body surrounded hers.

  “My nanami are out of control.”

  She frowned, not understanding the deep edge to his voice. “That’s not normal? In a tense situation, doesn’t that often happen?”

  “No. We learn to control them…always. But sometimes, a few people… We call it the nanami sickness. It causes people to lose control. It drives them crazy, makes them violent savages.”

  She froze. “Your father?”

  “Yes. Nanami sickness is usually inherited.”

  Panic flooded in her chest. “How do you treat it?”