Daegon: Alien Warlord's Conquest (Scifi Alien-Human Military Romance) (15 page)

Z
oey experienced very
little of her way back to Gaiya.

In pictures and glimpses, she remembered coming down from the temple with Daegon. She recalled his strong hands supporting her, despite being wounded himself. There was a memory of him sending people back up to retrieve Arboc's body, but that might have been the delirium talking.

She sincerely hoped that "bring me his head" wasn't as literal as it had sounded. With Corgans, she wasn't so sure.

A horde of Yemalan had been waiting when she got down. Daegon had been absolutely adamant that she couldn't stay and start figuring out the fate of an entire species. As best she could, with the help of a Yemalan officer that spoke the best Corgan, Zoey managed to make it clear that she wasn't running away, but was, in fact, quite hurt.

Reluctantly, the Yemalan accepted that. Zoey promised to return to them, on the condition that they left Poural at once. The raiders didn't seem too happy about that, but with no other choice and with Daegon looming over her shoulder, they agreed.

She didn't experience much of Plural’s restoration either. All she could see were damages of war, but Daegon assured her that it would all be taken care of. She was sad when he told her that The Chieftain might be demolished due to the damage it had suffered in the attack.

"It just isn't safe," Daegon said, amused that he needed to comfort her over a building.

"Palians can fix everything," Zoey assured him drowsily as the medicine they gave her began to take hold.

"I will be there when you wake up," Daegon promised as she slipped into dreamless sleep.

H
e was
.

Zoey woke up in a weird room. She had gotten so used to the dimness and scents of Corgan ships that seeing a Union medical bay was frightening at first. When Daegon appeared in her field of vision, the fear left her and she smiled.

"How long was I out?" she asked.

"A while," Daegon said noncommittally. "We're almost there."

"Where are we going?" Zoey asked, still sleepy, despite the fact she'd apparently had all the rest in the universe. "Are we going to your home world? I'd like to see it..."

Daegon laughed, his voice warm and soft.

"No," he said. "We're approaching Gaiya, my love."

Zoey's eyes snapped open.

"I've never heard you call it that," was the first thing she said. "Corgans don't –"

"I figured we should," Daegon said, shrugging. "Being that we are about to become Union members, unity in naming things is natural."

Zoey tried to sit up. It turned out to be quite a task, so Daegon had to help. With a better angle, Zoey could see that what she'd thought was a medical bay was in fact a brightly lit cabin. Still somewhere inside a Union ship, though, that much was clear. She wondered how Daegon had got there.

"You're joining the Union," she repeated, unable to believe her ears.

"Yes," Daegon said.

"On whose authority?" she asked. "I thought you weren't going to let it happen. Something about "over your dead body" or along those lines."

She shouldn't have said that – the thought of Daegon dying wasn't a happy one by a long shot. She remembered Mara James saying something similar.

"I was persuaded," Daegon replied with a grin, leaning in to kiss her.

"Oh?" Zoey asked, accepting the kiss and smiling happily when Daegon deepened it, showing just how much he'd missed her while she was resting. "I can persuade you some more, if you want."

"You're too tired for that," Daegon countered with a smirk.

"I meant
arguments
," Zoey shot back, glaring. "You know, talking. Having a conversation."

"So did I," Daegon said innocently. "It's what persuaded me, after all. But you should focus on getting your strength back. Apparently you're not delivering only one, but two species to the Union."

He had a point. Zoey groaned thinking about that. Her superiors would
not
be thrilled, to say the least, but she was intent on seeing her promise through. No matter what anyone thought.

"Alright," she promised. "I will eat and sleep some more and all that. But first, I want to hear about everything that happened."

"You were there."

"I want to hear it from your perspective," Zoey said cheerfully. "I need to report to the Union, you know."

"From my point of view, a troublesome Terran girl came and turned my life upside down," Daegon said, looking positively pained as he spoke. "That is pretty much it. Everything else is ordinary."

"Space battles, fighting on top of huge statues, battles that cover an entire world..."

"Yes."

Zoey laughed, pulling the warlord in for another kiss. That is, she tugged and he followed her motion of his own volition. She was weak enough to barely be able to lift her own arm. Everything she'd done on top of the temple had clearly been pure adrenaline.

"I can't believe you jumped off the platform," she said. "I thought... I thought I'd lost you."

"You will never lose me," Daegon said, lifting her chin up so she could see his bright blue eyes shine with passion. "I promised you."

They were quiet for a long moment, simply staying locked together.

Then Daegon said, "But you can put that into that report of yours. I think it will do good for my reputation. On the other hand, no one will believe me the next time I try that..."

"
Next time
?"

T
he chieftain was waiting
for them in the Citadel with Mara James. Nadar Brenger was a very tall man, powerfully built like Daegon, dressed in his battle armor and observing them approach with a small smirk. The look in his blue eyes said that he probably knew things they didn't. Zoey's first impression of him was of a very stern man she wouldn't want to cross. Luckily, they seemed to be on the same side.

Beside him, Mara James was glowing, looking positively ready to burst. Zoey was seriously glad to see her well, especially since she thought they would be spending a lot of time together in the near future.

Daegon greeted the chieftain with a small nod of his head, and Nadar Brenger answered with the same. Zoey wasn't about to ask, but she would have bet that wasn't the proper way to greet the ruler of all Corgans. She had asked how she should behave and Daegon had smiled and shrugged, saying there really was no protocol for such occasions.

She too did the little bow, and the look in the chieftain's eyes said that was fine with him. She supposed that the two people who had just helped him maintain his position were allowed a little more freedom than customary.

Mara winked at her, grinning ear to ear.

"Daegon," the chieftain said. "And Miss Swann. It's good to have you back with us."

"Chieftain," Daegon replied. "Mara."

"And I hear you've reached an understanding?" the chieftain asked, his blue eyes shining.

Daegon looked at Zoey, nodding.

"Yes," he said. "I must ask you though, chieftain. Did you choose me for this task because you knew something like this would happen?"

It looked so very wrong – a strapping, powerful warlord trying to look innocent. After a moment, Nadar Brenger gave up.

"Yes and no," he admitted. "I thought you the most likely of my clan lords to hear her out. And I supposed that if something more came of it, you wouldn't mind."

"You've never met me," Zoey cut in.

"No," the chieftain allowed. "But Terran women have their charm."

Mara James smiled even wider, nodding, as if it were the most natural truth in the galaxy.

"How are the others taking it?" Daegon asked.

The chieftain shrugged, smiling menacingly.

"The usual way," he said, his deep voice dark and dangerous. "Grumbling and complaining. Saying that you were influenced, which is, of course, true."

Before Zoey could interrupt, Nadar went on, keeping his blue eyes on her, "And absolutely irrelevant to me, since I trust Daegon to make up his mind even without your charms."

"Will they accept it?" Zoey asked, more than a little concerned.

When she came to Gaiya, her biggest concern had been Daegon, but now she'd seen what Corgans who really hated the Union looked like.

"Eventually," the chieftain said. "Don't expect them to welcome you with open arms. Tell your council that too. And of course, we will discuss the terms."

"Naturally," Zoey agreed, but wouldn't let it go. "What if someone else like Arboc rises to lead a clan?"

Nadar Brenger and Daegon exchanged a look that said a lot even without words. Zoey was suddenly very certain that her warlord
had
brought the traitor's head along.

"Then they are free to challenge me," Nadar said with a vicious grin. "Or my second-in-command."

His eyes turned to Daegon. For a second, it seemed to Zoey that Daegon was surprised, but then his usual stoic visage returned.

"Yes, chieftain," he said.

The chieftain nodded, accepting that. Zoey noticed they were
very
good at expressing gratitude without words. Warriors... She really needed to speak to Mara at some point and figure out how to make sense of Corgans.

"Now," Nadar said, turning to her. "I hear you're inducting two new members."

Zoey shrunk back from his piercing gaze, knowing that her promise had to have caused the chieftain quite a bit of trouble.

"Yeah," she said. "Sorry to spring that on you without warning like that. It just made sense at the time."

"I agree," Nadar said to her surprise.

"Aren't the other clan lords mad that you're letting the Yemalan get away? And that they now have to be in the same Union as their enemies?"

"You've given this a fair bit of thought."

"It's my
job
."

Nadar Brenger laughed, not moved by her concern even a little.

"Good," he said. "Then do your job. Make sure we never have to see those bastards again. You promised them a world. Give them one. Far away from us."

"I was going to," Zoey said. "Brions clean up planets all the time. I'm sure we can find one that is willing to accept the Yemalan. Of course, they have to make promises as well. If
they
don't want to get along with us, they might find Brion warships hovering above them very soon."

The chieftain nodded.

"Then it's settled," he said. "Don't worry about my position. It's not the first unpopular move I make and it won't be the last."

Zoey guessed that was fair. She had been with the Corgans for only a week, but it was clear they were able to take care of themselves.

Leaving the warlords to discuss boring matters like the severed heads of their enemies, Zoey walked with Mara.

"To be honest, I'd prefer dealing with the Corgan lords," she said, smiling. "You know what the Union is like. Compared to the council, a rampaging warlord is nothing."

"What did I tell you?" Mara asked, grinning. "They're not so bad once you get to know them."

"Daegon already asked the chieftain, but I'm asking you," Zoey said. "Did
you
know there would be something between us?"

Mara became serious for a moment and inclined her head slowly.

"I think so," she said.

"You think so?" Zoey asked. "How's that?"

"We were walking the shrine," Mara explained, "me and Nadar. You remember, you saw it on the beach? And sometimes people see visions there.”

"Don't tell me you believe that," Zoey said, surprised.

"I don't," Mara admitted. "But we really saw something odd that day. A longhaired girl and a figure that reminded Nadar of Daegon. So when the Union sent you here to conduct the negotiations, he figured, why not. We may not believe in the power of the shrine, but he for sure does. And here we are."

Zoey considered that. Could it be that she and Daegon were meant to meet? Meant to fall in love?

"What do you think it really was?" she asked.

Mara chuckled.

"Who knows?" she said. "That's the thing with the shrine. It's in broad daylight, next to the gleaming sun. It's often hard to tell what you see. Some have visions, but it could also be wishful thinking and all that. There are those who claim to see something in the waves. The couple we saw was walking right in front of us, and when we exited the shrine, I swear they looked nothing like you. So I guess it was a mirage."

"A mirage that worked," Zoey said.

"Yes," Mara replied. "As for me, I take the offerings of the shrine as they are. I don't know if it works. Maybe it only does if you want it to. But aren't you glad that it did?"

Glancing at Daegon, still talking to the chieftain, Zoey smiled.

"Very much so," she admitted.

"What are you going to do now?" Mara asked.

"I was thinking that while I figure things out with the chieftain and the Yemalan, I could stay here," Zoey said. "I really like Gaiya. It's gorgeous. And I could talk to you. I have so much to learn."

"Of course," Mara said immediately, beaming. "I would be so glad to have you here. There are Terrans on Gaiya too, but I guess they think I'm a bit weird. And you can
babysit
. I miss my fighter so much. Maybe after she's born Nadar will tell me where he hid my ship."

Zoey laughed.

"Gladly," she promised. "If you promise to teach me about the Corgans."

Mara sighed dramatically.

"Oh, the Corgans are nothing," she said. "Spend a little while with them and they start to make sense to you. A Corgan warlord is a whole other matter. The fact that bastard actually
hid
my ship should tell you everything."

Her words might have sounded weird for someone in love, but the looks Zoey had seen Mara send the chieftain told her everything she needed to know about that reltionship.

And, besides, "Daegon said he'd lock me up the next time there's a war."

"I read his account of what happened," Mara said, grinning. "I wouldn't put it past him."

"Are they always like that?"

"Only with us," Mara said, suddenly serious. "That's the thing. You get the whole package, all the good in Corgans and their over-protectiveness too. And you can't even be mad at them, because they love you so much."