Barbarian Blood: An Alien Romance

by Abella Ward

  He was a Vllar, a powerful alien who would never love a weak human like her... He probably thought she was ugly or even repulsive! He wanted to marry Nariya, a beautiful Argarian. Kara didn’t even come close to her. He had only saved her life because he thought it was his duty, not because he cared. How could she be so stupid to fall in love with him?

  Her eyes were full to the brim with tears. A throbbing headache began to nag at her temples. She took a deep breath and drank a glass of water that lay on the tray beside her sandwich. Taking a bite, she tried to distract herself from the wayward thoughts that were barreling through her head.

  ***

  Arazor checked the clock on the system. Two hours and twelve minutes until sunrise. He rechecked Nariya’s location. She was still in the same location as before. She had not moved. He started packing up and his mind drifted uncontrollably toward Kara.

  In the past several hours, he had seen her quite differently. He just couldn’t forget those big brown eyes wide with fear–the kind of fear he had witnessed only when a victim is being tortured. The way she had begged for it all to stop... His chest constricted terribly at the thought. He wondered what the bastard did to her. He could see that she was vulnerable and sensitive, and her heart was badly wounded. No wonder she didn’t want to marry him or anyone else if given the choice. She was scared, and it was hard for her to trust anyone again. And in that moment when she cried bitterly in his arms, mourning the loss of her baby, something triggered a change in Arazor’s cold heart. She was a smart and brave woman. A woman who had defied him when no other woman in his world would dare refuse him if he chose them for himself. Yet, Kara had stood up for herself.

  He had decided to let her go as he didn’t want to force her. She probably thought him to be a cold and brutal warrior, just like the rest of his kind. He wished she could see him differently, see who he really was behind the harsh mask he wore. If she could do that, then she was the one for him. The woman he had always wanted. And if she didn’t, then it didn’t matter anyway. He knew her leaving meant he would never be able to choose another mate. Ever.

  ***

  Arazor drove the rover over the massive sand dunes for hours before they reached the city. They stopped some distance away from the city. All they could see was the huge wall surrounding the city. Arazor hid the rover under the cloaking field while Kara adjusted her robes. She wore a gray linen gown with a hood. She glanced at him. He wore his desert pants and boots with a long cloak. He too pulled the hood over his head and adjusted the sword at his belt. They were disguised as travelers as to not attract attention.

  They walked toward the wall and stopped a few yards away from it.

  “Don’t go nearer to the wall,” warned Arazor. He bent down and took some sand from the ground in his gloved hand and threw it toward the wall. The sand spread in the air like a cloud of dust. The invisible force field shot sparks everywhere.

  Arazor scanned the surrounding area with his field detector. He found an opening in the force field: a fissure a few yards to their left. The opening in the force field led to an opening in the city wall, which was wide enough for both of them.

  “Be careful and follow me,” Arazor said.

  Kara’s heart skipped a beat as she followed Arazor into the city. They were treading through dangerous territory and they would have to be very cautious.

  “Tell me the status of Nariya’s location,” Arazor ordered Kara once they were inside the city.

  “It’s toward the north, near those towers up there,” she said, checking her comm-pad.

  They walked through a bazaar that reminded her of ancient Babylon. The buildings had sandy white walls and, far beyond, she could see the turrets of a castle. The people looked like the Bedouin of the desert with their white robes and turbans, their skin dark against their sharp green eyes.

  “So, what’s the plan?” Kara asked Arazor once they had made their way through the crowded Bazaar.

  “That tower is part of the prison. Rezurn must have locked her up in there,” he said, checking his own device and making calculations.

  “How do we get in?” she asked him, straining to look in the direction of the tower.

  “A friend of mine was once imprisoned here. It was a long time ago, but he said the cells are guarded by the Druzhal. They are vile creatures, ruthless and cunning,” he explained. “I can hold them off. Meanwhile, you must get Nariya out of her cell.”

  The sun bore down on them as they made their way up the stone steps toward their destination. “Here, take this,” he said, stopping to take out a small cylindrical device. “When you press the button here, it will help you break the lock. Find the exact location of Nariya’s cell once we’re inside the prison.”

  He looked into Kara’s soft brown eyes and saw them fill with raw emotion. She nervously wrung her hands. His chest constricted again, but he tried to focus on the mission. Her mere presence was becoming a distraction and he didn’t like it. She seemed so innocent and lost that he sometimes felt she shouldn’t be on this dangerous mission at all. Her body was too frail and she was still weak from the attack. “Lastly, keep this for your protection,” he said as gave her a silver dagger.

  Kara’s stomach knotted as she took the dagger. With trembling hands, she adjusted her breathing clip and rechecked Nariya’s location. Her mouth went dry and she fumbled in her robes for her water bottle. Her heart thudded in her chest.

  They reached the prison and after a while, carefully avoiding any encounters with Druzhal guards and using his device, Arazor found them a secret passage near the foot of the prison wall. The passage was pitch black and it took a few seconds for Kara’s eyes to adjust to the darkness surrounding them. Arazor led the way with a beam of light emitted from the device on his wrist.

  “Stay close to me and keep your eyes open,” Arazor said as Kara stepped silently on the stone floor and followed him. She could hardly make out the way. Checking her tab once more, she quickly spotted where Nariya was located.

  “Arazor...,” she whispered. “I found her.”

  He stopped and took a look at the map. “Good,” he said. “Now...”

  But before he could finish, they heard strange whispers inside the stone walls. Kara jumped, unconsciously grabbing Arazor’s arm as fear gripped her.

  “Druzhal,” Arazor said quietly, pulling her closer to him. “You need to stay calm, Kara. Otherwise, they will find us in no time. They can smell fear.”

  In the dim blue light, Kara nodded and took a deep breath. She tried to focus on her breathing as Arazor gently pried her hand off of his arm. As the whispering continued, they walked on through the passage until they turned a corner. They were met with a circular open space lit by green flaming torches. All around them were cells.

  Kara looked around, trying to determine which cell held Nariya when the whispers became deafening. Then the Druzhal emerged from the shadows.

  Kara gasped, trying not to scream. Four tall, gray-skinned men with horned heads and beady yellow eyes crept toward them, battle axes in hand. Arazor held his sword in front of him, ready to strike, while Kara stayed close to him. She tightly gripped the dagger in her trembling hands. Then, without warning, the Druzhal attacked.

  Arazor parried and struck back. His sword was lethal. It injured the first one while the other gained in on him. Kara managed to duck beneath their blows and run toward the nearest column. She hid behind it while Arazor continued parrying the attacks the horned creatures inflicted upon him. Time was running out.

  Kara checked her comm-pad for the location of Nariya’s cell. It led her to one of the cells on her left. Using the device Arazor had given her, the age-old lock melted under the heat of its lasers. In less than a minute, the door swung open. Her mind racing, she took a torch hanging from the wall and glanced back. Arazor was fighting three of the Druzhal now, the fourth one dead at his feet. She quickly stepped into the dark walled cell and saw that it was empty except for a woman lying in the corner. She
seemed unconscious.

  Kara ran toward her and tried to shake her awake. “Nariya! Nariya! Wake up!” Nariya opened her eyes drowsily. She looked pale and had a glazed look in her eyes, as though she had been drugged. Kara helped her up into a sitting position. “Nariya, we need to get out of here–fast!” Kara could hear the metal clashing outside. Sheathing her dagger, she helped Nariya up to lean on her shoulders and carefully moved toward the door.

  Arazor was locked in combat with two of the Druzhal. There were now two bodies lying dead at his feet. Arazor saw Kara and Nariya coming out of the cell. “Kara! Take her to the rover. If I don’t make it back to you in an hour, don’t wait for me. Take the ship and leave!”

  Kara stared at him, her eyes wide. Dark blue blood dripped from his forehead down his face and gashes covered his chest and arms. His clothes were almost in tatters. She couldn’t leave him behind…

  “Kara, go. Now!” Arazor shouted as he severed the head of one of the Druzhal who had spotted the two women.

  Kara blinked several times before uprooting herself and making her way back through the dark passageway as fast as her feet could take her. With Nariya’s weight on her, she couldn’t run. In her free hand, she lit their path with her comm-pad.

  He won’t be coming back. He’ll die in there. That’s why he told you to leave! Her stomach twisted terribly and wave after wave of nausea hit her. Reaching the door, she helped Nariya outside and into the sunlight and adjusted the breathing clip on Nariya’s nose. Kara was exhausted but didn’t waste a moment. She picked up pace, leading her friend through the Bazaar and through the opening in the wall toward the rover. She barely noticed the tears streaming down her face. Once inside the rover, she settled Nariya into her seat and waited. It had taken her an hour to reach the rover. She wished with all her heart that Arazor would turn up soon.

  Kara glanced at Nariya, who had reentered deep sleep. Nervously wringing her hands, she counted the passing minutes. Then, burning pain seared her inner wrist. She grasped her wrist with her other hand. The runes etched in her skin had started to hurt terribly. Alone and helpless, she wondered what was wrong. Oh, Arazor... Where are you?

  Chapter Six

  It was the stench that woke him. The smell of damp, cold walls filled his nostrils. Pain seared the side of his head as he tried to open his eyes. An orb of sharp green light hovered above his head. Blinking, he tried to focus. Shooting pain seared his back and shoulders and dark blue blood dripped from his forehead, trickling down his face. His hair matted to his face. He tried moving his arms but discovered that he couldn’t, as both his hands and feet were shackled in chains that cascaded from the ceiling. For a moment, he wondered how he ended up there, and then it all came back to him in a flood. He was parrying the attack of the last Druzhal when more of them came at him from the shadows. Something hit him on the head and darkness took over.

  Arazor could hear voices nearby. Voices of men. Gathering his thoughts, he looked around. Where is she? He could only hope she had reached the rover safely, securing herself and the other woman inside. How long he had been unconscious, he couldn’t tell. The throbbing pain in his head kept distracting him.

  And then he saw him entering. The Klai leader.

  “Well, well. Look who’s here,” Rezurn said, taking out a chair and sitting in front of Arazor. Arazor clenched his teeth, straining against his chains.

  “What... do you want... Rezurn?” Arazor said in between labored breaths.

  “Commander, you are being extremely obtuse, I must say,” Rezurn said dryly. “It is you who took something of mine, and now you and your people must pay the price.”

  “Your people are already plundering my planet. We don’t have much left,” Arazor challenged him in a cold voice.

  “Commander, you’ve made a mistake. Somebody has to pay.” Rezurn smirked at him. “My forces have gathered around Agrion. They await my orders. The Armada I have deployed outnumbers yours in every way, so there’s no chance that you can defeat us. But! If you return my bride to me, then we might be able to strike up a deal.”

  Arazor’s mind raced. He knew Rezurn was lying. He had to bide his time while he thought of a way out.

  “Rezurn, it’s time we stop playing games. We both know you used Nariya as bait. You are after the Argarian weapons. Now, what do you want from us?” Arazor asked him.

  “Well... if you can give me access to the Sirrallion mines,” Rezurn returned smugly, “then we won’t attack.”

  “If I do that, I would become a traitor in the King’s eyes, Rezurn,” Arazor said.

  “It seems you don’t have much of a choice, Commander. Think about it.” Rezurn rose from his seat and left him.

  “You won’t get away with this!” Arazor yelled as the door closed behind him, swallowing him in pitch black darkness.

  ***

  Kara’s stomach knotted once more as she thought of Arazor. It had been more than three hours now that she had been waiting and she couldn’t take it anymore. The runes on her wrist were starting to burn so badly now that she grasped her wrist every now and then, panting. She needed to focus if she wanted everyone to survive this. Firing up the controls inside the rover, she sent a distress signal to Andromeda 13 but found the signal to be disrupted. Her mind racing, she suddenly remembered that this was a Vllar rover. She could send a message to the Agrion Galactic Elite force and ask for backup. She typed up a message using a translator and sent it across the galaxy. This was her only hope.

  After a few more minutes of waiting, Kara’s conscience didn’t allow her to sit back any longer. Arazor needed her help. It would be selfish of her if she took off toward the ship without him, especially after he had saved her life. Grabbing a water bottle and the comm-pad, she checked in on Nariya one last time before venturing out again. She turned on the cloaking field around the rover and entered the city once more.

  Adjusting the hood of her dress, her heart thrummed madly in her chest. She made her way through the city streets and up toward the prison. The sunlight seemed different at this hour, cooler than before. Arazor... His gray eyes and deep voice drifted uncontrollably into her head. The look of utter desolation in his eyes when she left him with the Druzhal brought tears to her eyes. Why do you care? You wanted him out of your life, remember?

  Her stomach churned all the more as she felt a tug in her heart for this alien man she barely knew. She just couldn’t leave him behind. Things were different now. She wanted him back. Alive. Technically, he was her husband and she owed him that much for helping her, protecting her, and even saving her life. The bond that he told her of, the one symbolized by the runes searing her wrist, was stronger than any magic. Somehow, she understood that now.

  Chapter Seven

  Burning pain jolted him awake. Arazor wasn’t sure how many hours had elapsed when he felt the runes on his wrist burn. No... No! Kara... His mind raced. Whenever one’s mate’s life was in danger, the runes started to burn uncontrollably, warning the other of an imminent threat. Pain gripped him like thrashing claws as one of the Druzhal dragged in a woman bound in chains, followed by Rezurn. It was Kara.

  Arazor closed his eyes and clenched his jaw as he tried to calm his nerves. In the dim light, he couldn’t see her face, but he could make out her whimpering, and his chest constricted terribly. Woman, what are you doing here? He tried to suppress a surge of rage that was beginning to boil his blood. Stupid woman. What was she thinking?

  “Commander... If I’m not mistaken, this woman is with you. My men captured her while she was sneaking around in one of the passageways,” Rezurn said with a smirk, eyeing Kara lasciviously.

  “Leave her alone, Rezurn. It’s me you want,” Arazor said in a firm voice before turning to Kara. “Kara, I told you to stay back.”.

  “I–I waited...,” she stammered. “But I–I couldn’t leave without you.”

  “Rezurn... Let her go,” Arazor said in a low voice.

  “Why are you even bothered, Commander? The Vll
ar despise humans, don’t they now? Humans are too weak and stupid for your kind,” Rezurn said with a sinister laugh. “Put her in chains,” he ordered the guard who held Kara. And it was then that Rezurn saw the band on Kara’s wrist. “Oh, I see now... She is your mate. How interesting.”

  The runes on Arazor’s wrist burned once more. He had to think of a plan before Rezurn turned Kara into bait. “Rezurn, she is not part of our war. Leave her out of this.”

  “Well, surely she can become part of it,” Rezurn said in a voice that chilled Kara to the bone. He stood close to Kara, who now stood shackled in chains opposite Arazor. He sniffed her neck lewdly and she turned away, tears streaming down her face.

  “Mmm... You smell good. I could keep you for myself,” Rezurn said with a smirk. He ripped her dress off her shoulders, exposing her breasts. Kara screamed in spite of herself as she trembled with shame.

  “But first, I need your mate to agree to some of my terms,” Rezurn said as he motioned for the guard to come forward.

  Kara stared at Arazor and saw the anguish in his eyes as he fought against his restraints. Her heart thumped in her chest when she saw the deep gashes inflicted on Arazor. The Klai leader had been torturing him, and now he would torture her too.

  The Druzhal flicked his whip and Kara winced at the sound.

  “Stop it, Rezurn!” Arazor said through clenched teeth. He could see what Rezurn was trying to do to him.

  Kara’s agonizing scream pierced the walls of the dungeons as the first gash appeared on her smooth back. Red blood marked her ivory skin. “Pl... please stop!” she cried out in pain.

  Arazor thought his head might explode. How helpless he felt–how weak. More whip lashes, the sound of each blow making him wince. Her screams ripped through the walls and tore at his heart.

  “That’s enough!” Arazor roared at Rezurn, his gray eyes bloodshot. “Stop this right now. I will think of a way to get you to the mines. Just stop hurting her!”