Fenix: A ScifFi Alien Warrior Romance (Stolen Warriors Book 3)

by Ella Maven

  “I think Bezmir has been too kind to you. He’s kept you under lock and key like something precious, when I know you’re just currency.” He tilted his head and dragged the index finger of his free hand down the side of my neck. “What’s got the Drix so hooked on you? I prefer a Rogastix female, but then … a slit is a slit, right?”

  I shuddered, instinctively clenching my legs together. I inched toward the fire as his claw tapped my collarbone before descending down and stopping just at the top of my breast. I fought to keep my breathing under control, but my heart was pounding in my ears, and cold sweat trickled down the back of my neck.

  He leaned forward and inhaled deeply. His tongue, a fat black thing with bumps like boils licked at the corner of his mouth. “You smell okay. Has the Drix gotten a piece of you, yet?” His lips tilted up. “Did you try to sell him that slit for your life? Because I hate to break it to you, human, he’s never going to choose you over enough Kixx to keep him comfortable for a hundred cycles.” His hand traveled lower, skimming my ribs until he hooked a finger in the waistband of my pants. I almost gagged

  “But me?” He shrugged. “I could be persuaded. With payment of course.”

  I reached out and my hand closed around the ladle handle. Without thinking, I yanked it out and slung the contents at Hirtz’s head. Burning hot soup splashed onto his face. He let out a scream that curdled my blood and stumbled away from me. His back hit the opposite table, sending mugs and plates clattering to the floor. Shouts from the dining hall sounded, and in seconds, crew members were peering into the dining hall.

  Hirtz, having wiped most of the soup out his eyes, opened up his swollen lids and leveled a look at me that had my heart dropping to the floor. He lunged for me, and I ducked out of the way at the last minute. When I tried to scurry past the crew members, they blocked my path as Hirtz screamed, “Don’t let her leave!”

  His hand tightened in my hair, and I had a flashback to the night at Bezmir’s when the ogrices attacked us.

  I couldn’t scream for help then, and I couldn’t scream for help now. Fenix was most likely in the hull below fixing something. With a sharp tug, Hirtz tossed me against the wall. I slipped on the wet soup on the floor and fell to the floor on my hip.

  “You want to know how hot that soup is?” He roared as he grabbed me around the wrist and dragged me toward the kettle. I began to shake my head frantically, and tugged on his grip, but he was too strong, and I couldn’t get my footing on the wet floor. “I’ll show you.” His mean eyes lit up with a cruel joy. “You can match your precious Drix with a melted hand.”

  I tried to scream, but nothing came out but a whispered no. The heat of the soup touched my fingers, and I closed my eyes as tears squeezed out of the corners. Suddenly, a sharp light flared from behind my lids. Hirtz’s hand around my wrist let go, and I collapsed onto the floor. Scrambling away from the kettle, I glanced up.

  Fenix stood in the center of the kitchen, his hands engulfed in flames and his lips peeled back in a snarl as he stared at a Hirtz who was slapping at the fire licking at the bottom of his pants.

  “What’s going on?” Bezmir bellowed from behind Fenix. He shoved his way past his gathered crew to stop abruptly when he caught sight of the wrecked kitchen and Hirtz’s smoking clothes.

  Hirtz stumbled to his feet, his expression a mask of rage that sent a bolt of fear slamming into my gut. He pointed at Fenix, but his words were directed at Bezmir. “He was a mistake. I told you that, and you ignored me.”

  Bezmir crossed her arms over his chest and widened his stance. “Well, looks like he did the job I hired him to do.”

  Hirtz’s nostrils flared. “He set me on fire.”

  “That was a warning,” Fenix growled as he pulled his gloves on. “If I actually wanted you to go up in flames, you’d be ash right now.”

  Hirtz lunged at Fenix, but Bezmir stepped between them, holding his second-in-command back.

  Fenix, seemingly unconcerned at any threat to his safety, pulled me to my feet. “Are you okay?”

  I tried to hide my wince, but when I put weight on my left foot, my hip flared in pain. Fenix pulled up the hem of my shirt and spotted the blooming flare of red on my skin. He made a hissing sound between his teeth, and I could feel the heat of his palms through his gloves. “I should have killed him.”

  I waved him off. Sure, it hurt, but it was just a bad bruise. I’d live.

  “See?” Hirtz shoved Bezmir off him. “He’s too close to her.”

  “You worry too much,” Bezmir snarled at him. “I have this under control. I don’t need you causing problems. What were you doing in here with her anyway?”

  Hirtz didn’t answer, and I… well, I couldn’t.

  Fenix frowned as he shuffled his feet. “Why is there soup on the floor?”

  Hirtz did answer that. “She threw a ladle full in my face.”

  Bezmir gestured to his chin. “Ah yeah, you got some, uh…”

  “What?” Hirtz asked.

  Bezmir cleared this throat. “You have some herbs stuck to your chin.”

  Hirtz swiped angrily at his face before stepping up to Bezmir. “I hope you know what you’re doing. We have a whole lot riding on this exchange being successful. We don’t need your little Drix experiment messing it up.”

  Bezmir’s eyes darkened and his head slowly titled to the side as his shoulders bunched. “Are you questioning my choices?”

  Hirtz’s jaw worked, and they held each other’s stare for a few tense moments. It was Hirtz who looked away first. With a savage kick, he sent the remnants of a bowl flying against the wall before he brushed past his leader and stalked out.

  Bezmir remained stiff, facing away from us, until his shoulders dropped, and he turned. “Back to work,” he barked at his crew.

  They scattered quickly, and when Fenix made to turn with me to walk away, Bezmir stopped him with a hissed, “Drix.”

  Fenix glanced at him over his shoulder. “He was about to burn her hand. I’m doing what you asked me to do.”

  “Sure, but remember what we said, or a burned hand is going to be the least of her problems. Understand?”

  A muscle in Fenix’s jaw clenched, and his hand tightened around my wrist before he gritted out. “Understood.”

  Ten

  Fenix

  The mark on Jennie’s hip darkened quickly, turning a swollen blue and purple. She explained in her halting rasp when we were alone that she’d be fine, but I hated she’d been hurt.

  “That’s twice now you’ve successfully defended yourself,” I told her later that rotation while we ate alone in our small room.

  “I’m a peaceful person,” she whispered.

  I leaned back against the wall and braced my wrists on my bent knees. “Rexor was a warrior. He had the instincts and the inner drive to punish those who did wrong. It’s in his blood, I think. His brothers were the same. I don’t think he loved killing, but he believed in what he did. Mikko, though…” I chuckled to myself. “He loved a good fight. He was good at it too. One of the best fighters I’d ever seen.”

  She shifted closer to me and laid a gentle hand on my leg. “You?”

  “I never liked it.” I clenched my gloved hands, and the tight skin resisted the stretch. “I wanted to work on our aircrafts. Fix mechanical issues. Back when my memory was good, I wished to return to our home planet and help rebuild. I liked working with my hands…” I shook my head. I never forgot the reality of what was done to me, but I did forget I used to have dreams. “Anyway, I don’t like the fight. I do it because I have to. Just like you did what you had to do to stay alive.”

  “Sometimes I wonder why I fight so hard…” she swallowed, and her eyes began to water. “…to survive.”

  I snorted. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought the same thing.”

  “But then I met you…” her cheeks flushed a pretty pink and she ducked her head so that her shiny black hair covered her face.

  Gripping her chin, I
titled her head back so she couldn’t hide. “I knew as soon as I saw you that Fatas kept me alive for you. You’re my purpose. So, you have to stay alive. What would I do without you?”

  She smiled as tears spilled down her cheeks. “Okay. I’ll work on my soup flinging skills.”

  Sobering, I warned her. “Stay away from Hirtz. I don’t trust him.”

  A deep voice bellowed outside our door, and I bristled immediately. More shouts rang out, and then a thud shook the floor, followed by a pained groan. Alarmed, I turned to Jennie. “Stay here. I’m going to check out what’s going on.” Unleashing my machets, I ventured out to the main cabin of the cargo ship.

  When I saw the scene before me, my blood ran hot, and my fists tingled with a burning heat. Hirtz stood with his back to the cockpit. The majority of the crew stood at his back. He held a laser gun trained on Bezmir, who sat slumped on the floor, bleeding from his mouth. Two of the crew lay dead at his side. The smell of laser gun fire hung in the air.

  Bezmir coughed, and blood splattered on the ground. “This is a mistake, Hirtz.”

  “I don’t think so. You’ve proven you can’t lead. You lost control of your crew, Bez, all because you chose the human and the Drix over us.”

  Shaking his head, Bezmir sighed. “I explained my choices to you—”

  “And I don’t believe your explanations!” Hirtz shouted, the laser gun wavering in his hand.

  “There are some things you don’t understand—”

  “No there are some things you don’t understand. This is the end for you.”

  “Only I knew the exchange location—”

  Hirtz bellowed a laugh. “I don’t care about that. What good is a supply of Kixx when most of your customers are dying? Your Drix is the longest-running customer, and you ask for his payment in Pliken blades!”

  “I plan to sell them back to the Plikens—”

  “No,” Hirtz said through gritted teeth. “You won’t. Because you’ll be dead. I have better offers for the human and the Drix”

  Bezmir shifted, cradling a burned arm to his chest. “You don’t know what you’re dealing with. I had him handled. I’m telling you, if you don’t listen to me, you’re going to get everyone on this cargo ship killed, plus many more.”

  “Considering keeping you alive just so you can see when I prove you wrong. But you eat too much.” He fired his gun, hitting Bezmir right between the eyes. He fell back onto the floor, motionless, eyes staring sightlessly at the ceiling.

  I took a step back, needing to get to Jennie because this entire situation had just gone from bad to flecked, but Hirtz swung the laser gun in my direction.

  “No, I’ll handle him,” he muttered. Without blinking, he fired the gun. Pain seared through my thigh, and my leg buckled. I hit the floor on one knee and struggled to stand as footsteps approached. Burning flesh filled my nostrils, and I gasped as a fiery heat spread throughout my body.

  I swallowed down the pain and rose to my feet, avoiding pressure on my shot leg. But all I saw was the end of the laser gun firing again. Agony seared through my shoulder and I hit the ground. Through the choking pain, I thought of Jennie. She needed to save herself. Shut in that room, she was going to be their next victim, and I wasn’t going to be able to save her. Passing in and out of consciousness, knowing I didn’t have much time, I inhaled deeply and shouted as loudly as I could, “Jennie, run!”

  I barely felt the next shot. As my entire body boiled in searing pain, the last thing I heard before I passed out was Hirtz’s laugh. “See? Handled. Now get the female.”

  Jennie

  Fenix had told me to stay put, but I hadn’t obeyed. I’d crept out of the room and hid behind a wall as I listened to everything Hirtz had said. Panic gripped my tightly as I realized that up until now, my treatment could have been a lot worse. If Hirtz had anything to say about it… I wouldn’t make it off this ship without a whole lot of scars and maybe a missing hand.

  Fenix stood rigid, but when the first laser fire hit his leg, I was suddenly very glad for my lost voice. My scream had been silent. I took a step forward, intending to throw myself in front of him—Hirtz still needed me, right? Maybe I could protect Fenix. I had to do something, and I’d taken one step away from the wall when Fenix’s pain-filled voice called out in a last gasp, “Jennie, run!”

  I didn’t want to. I couldn’t bear to leave him, but when Hirtz fired his laser gun a third time, I let out a choked sob and turned away. This time, I obeyed. I took off down the hallway, away from the room Fenix and I had shared, with tears streaming down my face. When Hirtz ordered, “Get the female,” I was already turning the corner into the kitchen.

  I’d spent a lot of time in there staring at the walls, the ceiling, picking at weak corners in the panels. Above the hearth, there was a steam vent. The opening was narrow—no way a Rogastix could do more than poke his head inside. But I wasn’t a Rogastix. I was a petite human who needed to hide. I grabbed a small bag of jerky and dried fruits as well as a tin of qua and shoved it down the front of my shirt to free my hands.

  As footsteps pounded throughout the cargo ship, I pulled myself up onto the thin spit holding the kettle over the heating element. Tugging aside the panel, I hauled myself up and into the vent. My arms aching, my vision blurry with tears, I shoved myself into the small space and shoved the panel back into place. Seconds later, a shout sounded from inside the kitchen. I waited there, completely silent, barely daring to breathe.

  I couldn’t see much in the dark, but eventually my eyes adjusted enough to see through the slits of the vent.

  Hirtz was in the kitchen shoving tables and pots aside as he bellowed for me. “Come out, girl!” In the dining area beyond, chairs were flying as the crew tore the room apart. “You’re just wasting our time. For every rotation you stay missing, I’ll take off a finger.” Cursing under his breath, he stormed out of the kitchen. I heard him direct the crew to search the entire ship.

  I shuddered and hugged myself tightly. What was I doing? Was there any point in delaying the inevitable? But Fenix had told me to run… Oh Fenix. My heart ached, pounding in my chest as images of his kind smile flitted in front of my eyes. My brave Drixonian who only wanted to tinker with machines but instead had been turned into a firebrand super soldier.

  He couldn’t be dead, could he? And if he was still alive… well if he was still alive then I had to do everything I could to stay alive myself. He’d asked me to, and I wouldn’t let him down.

  But Hirtz had shot him three times. I’d counted the shots. I’d heard him hit the floor. I had to believe that his words telling me to run weren’t the last I’d hear from him. If I gave up now, then his sacrifices for me would be all for nothing. Limbs shaking, I turned in the tight space. I lay in the duct-like tunnel, with the option to crawl right or straight ahead. I dug the food out of my shirt and took a sip of qua before crunching on a few nuts.

  Cradling my head on my arm, I let myself cry. I shed tears over my fears, over Fenix’s pain, and over the slight happiness I’d felt with his head on my chest now being ripped away. I fell asleep before the tears dried on my face.

  They tore the ship apart for three days. Twice, I risked detection by slipping down into the kitchen for more food. I slept fitfully and tried to do some exercises in the limited space, so I didn’t lose all range of motion in my limbs. I ventured down the two tunnels a short distance, but I was terrified I’d lose my way and wouldn’t be able to get back to the kitchens. I imagined myself lost in the bowels of the cargo ship, starving to death in a cramped tunnel until the smell of my dead, rotting body alerted Hirtz to my location.

  On the fourth day, I woke up to the sound of low talking in the dining area. I rubbed my eyes and stretched as much as I could in the small space before creeping as close to the vent panel as I dared. Angling my head near the slits, I listened closely.

  “…a mistake?”

  “Hirtz has a plan.”

  “So did Bez, and at least with his plan
, the Drix wasn’t an immediate threat, and the human was actually contained.”

  “We’ll find her.”

  A snorted laugh. “You sound confident.”

  “She has to be here. Quit your complaining. We have the easy shift. Sit here and wait to see if she shows up for food. She has to eat eventually.”

  I patted my chest, where my meager food supply was stored. Luckily, I’d just filled up yesterday, but this wouldn’t last me forever. They had to know I’d been stealing food.

  “…the Drix.”

  I perked up again. What were they saying about Fenix?

  “I’m not going in that room. I hope Hirtz knows what he’s doing with him.”

  “He said he can be controlled with Kixx.”

  The crew member blew out a breath. “If he says so. The Drix hasn’t cracked yet, and his skin feels like he’s been baked for a cycle.”

  I dug my fingers into my palms as I processed their words. Fenix was alive. From the sounds of it he wasn’t in good shape. But he was alive. I glanced back at the tunnels. There was no more time to wait around like some damsel in a tower needing rescued. I had to find him.

  Slowly, careful not to bump the sides of the duct and alert the crew to my presence, I tried to get my bearings. I had no idea where they were keeping him, but I had to search. It wasn’t like my schedule was full of anything else.

  With my food and qua tucked into my shirt, I began a slow army crawl through the metal vent in the direction of what I thought was the main part of the ship. The surface was cool on my hands, and a steady cycle of air kept me from overheating or feeling too claustrophobic.

  I crawled farther than I’d dared before, following the vent as it bent and curved. Sometimes I’d come to an intersection, so I’d place one quarter of a nut down to mark my way back. If I needed it.

  When a voice filtered through the tunnel, I froze, convinced for a split second that they’d found me, until I realized the voices were floating up from a small grate in tunnel. Heading toward the small stream of light, I peered down into a room I’d never seen before.