Alien General's Beloved: SciFi Alien Romance (Brion Brides) (25 page)

The other seven were all the more determined to kill them for it. Corden saw each of them for what they were. The two who'd argued with him had gone too far, no longer seeing a way back from their treacherous path. Even Corden's offer hadn't been good enough for them. One or two looked like they were going to turn sides during the fight, but Corden wouldn’t let them. It was too late; they'd missed their chance.

He cut through them, his spear moving so fast it kept a neat, circular area around him untouched. Anyone who stepped into it was bound to lose at least a limb. In the middle of it, Corden was a whirlwind of motion, the spear twirling in his hands wildly, blocking strikes from every side.

Without a warning, he twirled the spear around in his hands, aiming a powerful strike behind him. He could hear it pierce the armor the warrior wore, the telltale signs of a ruptured lung evident in his wheezing breath. The man collapsed, instantly trampled by the others to end Corden.

They had failed his test and they knew it. Although they had lacked the strength to accept his punishment, they hated the general for reminding them of their failures.

Corden grinned. It was good fight, a righteous one. He wasn't only taking down enemies, he was getting revenge for all Brions that the originals had shamed.

The two fighting alongside him were silent and grim, no doubt thinking of their endless punishment, but Corden had little sympathy for them. In contrast, the six still standing opposed to them were snarling, hissing in fury. They were doing everything they could to bring Corden down, but he refused to give them that satisfaction. The six kept coming for his legs, but Corden jumped back every time, using the deadly spears for stepping stones in the next moment.

He wished he could have given them more time to realize their inevitable defeat, but the thought of Lana kept urging him onward. Corden wanted to return to her as soon as possible, to see if she was all right. He trusted Yarel to handle the organizing, but not to protect Lana when the need arose.

He tried a feint, striking too wide of an arc. Immediately, one of the originals stabbed the spear toward his heart, but Corden ducked under it, lightning fast. He grabbed ahold of the spear and held it in place to block the next strike. The force of the blow shook the spear free from its owner's grip and the next moment found the warrior dead with a red line on his throat.

Corden had already turned to the others, dropping the spear. It looked like keeping a good hold on your weapon was a recent thing. Even
Worgen
had let himself be disarmed like that.

By his side, Tuven and Ilen were doing their share. They'd both brought down one of their former brothers and no regret showed on their faces. It seemed eternity was a lonely place and finally their age showed in their eyes, a century of bad decisions. Corden charged ahead of them, bending almost in half when he had to lean back to avoid getting his throat pierced.

The trick allowed him to bring his own spear about, cutting a deep gash in the other warrior's stomach. The man slumped, entrails spilling out from between his fingers.

That left the last two. Normally, Corden would have finished them himself, but he left the task to his two new warriors. He stood back, allowing them to go one-on-one against the originals. At times, the fight was fierce, but neither of them called for his aid and Corden wouldn't have offered if they had. It was their test, their trial.

When it was all over, he was more than pleased to find himself and his two standing. They were both panting while Corden had barely worked up a sweat. Even the originals were no real challenge for him unless some bizarre occurrence happened that distracted him from the fight.

He looked the two warriors over and they stood under his gaze like young boys on the day the Elders determined their future.

"This was your first trial," he said. "Are you ready for your second?"

"Yes, General," they responded as one.

Corden knew the rank was right, but he felt like he needed to give them a new title to salute to soon. It was too obvious they'd been used to answering Worgen like that and he didn’t intend to be a replacement for him.

"The
Flora
is a big ship," Corden said. "You will find a place to hide and stay out of sight. Do not allow yourself to be seen. We will meet tomorrow in the landing bay near here."

They both nodded, although Corden noticed the doubt in the eyes of one of them.

"Is this a test, General?" the man asked. "If we see something that is wrong, should we still hide?"

He smiled.

"Life is a mission where everything can go wrong in the blink of an eye. Keep in mind what I told you and make your own decisions."

Corden left them behind, pleased when he didn't see either when turning back. He noticed ways they might have gone, but that was no longer his concern. He'd succeeded in bringing two warriors to his side, saving them from the doom Worgen offered.

The general rushed through the ship, almost flying under the ceilings which was mostly blessedly tall and very dark. Both suited him very well.

He found Lana in the same atrium Worgen had visited the first time. Rage rose within him when he saw the other general with his hand around Lana. It took every ounce of willpower in his body not to react to that insult, to that
intrusion
.

Corden wondered if Worgen knew he was alive. Because if he did—or even suspected—he was likely to do anything to provoke Corden out of hiding. And what fastest way for that than to publicly touch Lana?

The sight set his blood on fire.

His
gesha
's eyes were wild and bright. She was looking around in a hurry, scanning the crowd around her. Corden realized she had to be looking for him, knowing he couldn't leave her unprotected.

He wished he could somehow signal her about his presence, but he couldn't risk her safety. Corden had to hope that Lana was able to handle whatever was to come on her own.

The situation itself was
odd
. Now that Worgen believed his army was in the making, he had returned to his search for a
gesha
, it seemed. The hall was filled with Terran women, all staring at the ground to avoid looking at the terrifying harbinger of death before them.

Corden wondered what exactly Worgen was thinking. The recognizing moments were provoked by extreme situations. Danger, happiness, fear, variations of basic, powerful emotions. And while it was clear that everyone in the atrium shook with terror before him, without actual danger Corden doubted anything was going to happen.

He thought it was even more likely that there was no
gesha
for Worgen. In Brion history, it wasn't uncommon that men who were so broken never bonded.

It was hard to make out Worgen's words over the silent, fearful muttering of the crowd. Corden's hearing was better than excellent, but there were more than a thousand women saying how badly they wanted to get away from there. Judging by the look on Lana's face, however, it wasn't anything good.

A blazing shot of rage went through Corden as he considered whether his plans were what got Lana in trouble. Had the Torons betrayed him? The cowardly Palian? Corden gritted his teeth. Too many parts of his plan were clunky, relying on people he would rather have not trusted.

Perhaps the two warriors he'd spared had alerted their general.

Or perhaps none of that had taken place. Seeing the way Worgen looked at Lana, Corden started to think the mad general really
did
want her for himself. Only that was not the way Brion bonds worked. You couldn't
choose
your fated. Worgen had no way of making Lana his.

And then Worgen finally spoke up, loudly enough for everyone to hear.

"My
gesha
is somewhere in here, but I can't seem to find her," he said. "It has made me think that the circumstances are not dire enough for me to recognize her. So I am creating the necessary danger needed."

Corden growled. He looked down upon the gathered crowd, thousands of women suddenly screaming. In the midst of them, Lana was standing fairly calmly, but he could see how pale she was.

If the
gesha
wasn't there, would he kill them all?

The answer was
probably
. After all, they were expendable to him. Corden wished he hadn't sent his two warriors away. They could have slipped into the crowd undetected and joined the other guards Worgen had brought. There they could have helped Lana into safety.

Seconds had passed, but the danger hadn't descended upon them yet. Corden would have thought it was all a joke if he believed Worgen was capable of such a thing.

The doors of the atrium opened and a pack of enraged Torons entered.

Corden moved before he could properly register he was in motion. He saw red before his eyes, red that wasn't coming from his valor squares that were still dim through some miracle. Worgen had clearly heard of the Torons attacking his men and his response was blood-curdling. The species that protected the innocent was now used as tool against them.

Corden knew exactly where he'd gotten the idea. Back in the times where Worgen had crawled out from, there had been no Union yet. At least in the way it was now, spanning from one end of the known galaxy to the other. When it started, it only united the core worlds and its power was nothing to brag about.

Species like the Torons were often exploited by those with more advanced technology. They were used for sport, injecting the beasts with a substance that drove them insane. Then they were pitted against each other and the spectators bet on them. There were many other species similar to the Torons, all with their subtleties, but few matched their ferocity when called upon in such a way.

When the Union began to expand and impose rules upon different species, such things were naturally prohibited. The Torons became a part of the galactic whole like anybody else, but for Worgen... the dark days truly had never left.

Corden pushed through the crowd, doing his best to avoid being seen by Worgen. He had to crouch down for that, being naturally taller than most of the people in the atrium, his spear making it doubly difficult.

The women were screaming, trying to get out of the way of the rampaging Torons. A few stopped to look at him and Corden cursed Worgen for making him come out into the open in such a way. Lana would later have to explain it away as one of Worgen's men showing a little compassion.

As for Lana, Corden knew
she
was safe. When he'd arrived at the atrium, his first notion had been to make sure his
gesha
was all right, but Lana was still standing with Worgen. Trusting the mad general was the weirdest sensation Corden had ever felt, but he knew that Worgen was perfectly capable of protecting Lana. It seemed like he had chosen to do so, too.

Every time a Toron came their way, the spear would flash through the air and the dark general’s burning armor would blaze. Lana barely had time to jump away when it happened, only to approach him again as soon as the danger passed. Corden could see the resistance in her eyes, the way she hated looking for Worgen's protection, but it was the only safe place in the atrium.

He pushed against the crowd to reach the Torons. It was a small mercy, but Torons were a species that stuck together, even when crazed. All four beasts were in one corner of the atrium, breaking through everything in their way. It was a miracle that they'd yet to kill. More so because it would have made Corden's task almost impossible, or at least considerably more painful.

Corden reached them, stopping for only a second, still keeping low and thanking the gods Worgen's attention seemed to be fixed on the women instead of the beasts. He pulled the knife from his hip and cut a gash on his forearm. Bright blood spilled from the wound, hot and rich.

The Torons turned, sniffing the air. That was the downside of employing them as a weapon. Once a Toron had lost its mind, there was no aiming it. Instincts took over, ruling absolute. And the strongest of their instincts was the lust for blood. Corden slid closer, letting the Torons get a good whiff of him before dashing for the door.

With a howl that could break glass, the Torons followed him. Corden ran through the hallways, hiding his face as well as he could. Admittedly his face was not what anyone was looking at with three rampaging beasts on his tail, but he could never be too sure.

The Torons were damn fast when they had the scent. Corden took corners so fast he nearly crashed into the walls. Finally his destination dawned before him.

The other Torons were waiting. Not because he called; he had no chance of doing that. They did it because it was a mercy to put down one of their own. It was a fate worse than death for a Toron. Corden slipped between them and they let him pass. He wondered if they were grateful to him for bringing their tortured brothers to them or if they hated him for it.

He'd find that out later. After making sure the Torons were dealt with by their kin, Corden began making his way back. He'd taken only a few steps before he realized there had been four Torons in the atrium. Only three had chased him.

That left one crazed beast still in the atrium, with Lana.

Corden ran.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Lana

Everything was going to hell.

Lana had known there was something bad coming the moment she'd been told of Worgen’s arrival. She had to bite her tongue not to growl out of frustration. It was the one thing she'd hoped to escape that day. It had begun
so well
. And after she'd received the originals, Lana had honestly hoped that the mad general would leave the
Flora
alone for a while.

Apparently not.

The
Abysmal
had signaled her that Worgen was coming aboard and that she had to gather the Terran women again. Lana had no clever plans this time. The Brions had had the ship first and they had passenger lists as well. She wouldn't be able to hide everyone, but she did her best. In the end, about two-thirds of the women who should have been there actually stood in the atrium.