Soros: Alien Warlord's Conquest (Scifi Alien - Human Military Romance) (4 page)

T
he crew
of the
Dauntless
hadn't taken the news well.

Since they were the closest thing Kat had to a family, she let them voice their concerns before telling them she didn't care. Mostly their arguments went as followed: "We can't be this poor", "It's suicidal" and listing all the deeds either Soros or one of his students had done, of which there were many.

Kat listened, knowing they were partly right, before shutting them all up. It was hardest with Evan who clearly had offered up the job as an unfortunate attempt at humor, meant to put her in a lighter mood.

In the end, they were left hovering with the
Dauntless
over Hetton while Kat took her fighter down to the surface. She had agreed to take a few days to prepare herself, but that was all. Zoey Swann had said the matter was urgent and she understood that. To make her crew feel better, Kat assured them that if the task got to be too dangerous, she'd settle for confirming Soros' position and running like hell.

The lie didn't make her feel any better, but their begrudging silence certainly did.

At least they know me well enough to not argue for too long.

In truth, Kat had no intention of abandoning the second half of her job. None the least because Soros interested her. A man like that was bound to be levels above the scum she was usually stuck with and despite the obvious danger, Kat couldn't deny that she enjoyed both the challenge and the prospect of meeting him.

The image of the warrior she was looking for helped too if Kat dared to consider it. A picture had been added to the materials Zoey had given her, several years old now, but it was something at least. Ever since they'd set off from Gaiya, Kat had found herself drawn to the image again and again.

The man on the photo was awe-inspiring to say the least. He was younger than she'd expected, having trained all those legendary warriors. Tall and strong and proud, yes, but she was absolutely mesmerized by the look in his eyes. There was such passion in them, and unbreakable severity too. It kept her in its hold, and every time she had to tear her eyes away with force.

Soros was a living legend, one that she was more than anxious to see. In her years, so many great names turned out to be nothing but overblown publicity stunts, but all signs pointed to the fact that Soros was the real deal.

As evident from the resistance she met on Hetton.

Of course, Kat hadn't expected to just waltz onto his home world and have his secret hiding place pointed out to her, but the reality was almost the opposite. The very mention of his name shut mouths so fast it was like Soros' name caused brain aneurisms.

Every person Kat talked to, even when she pretended to be an interested Union worker hanging out at a bar, went deaf when she asked the most innocent questions. A few ran from her like they had forgotten their stove on at home.

After a few fruitless days, Kat gave up on trying to ask and started listening. Luckily for her, there were actually a few Union people on Hetton, looking for opportunities in the newest realm opened to the Union after the Corgans joined the fray, so she didn't stick out as painfully as she had originally feared.

It didn't take much time for her to figure out that she needed to patrol Dolon Hall as closely as she dared. The way the locals made it sound, Soros would never leave it for too long, or stray too far.

When Kat picked up a distress signal from a Corgan hunting pack with a Palian receiver built into her fighter during a routine patrol, she thanked the gods for Palians again. They really could intercept anything. She listened with her mouth open as a report came in, saying that Soros had defeated twelve men without getting a scratch on him and was getting away.

She couldn't believe her luck. Could it be that simple? Kat had expected months of tedious combing of every square feet of Hetton, but it seemed a man like Soros couldn't stay hidden no matter what.

It was all going great until it went completely to hell.

Unwilling to lose a lead like that, she flew higher and searched for the lone speeder that was supposedly heading away from Dolon Hall.

Got you
, she thought when a heat signature matched on her scanner, but that joy quickly turned to ash in her mouth when a group of dots started to approach
her
.

Kat was about to ask what the hell were they thinking when the first shot almost took her down. She fired up the engines and ran, seeing a whole escort of Corgan fighters on her tail. They didn't look like they wanted to talk.

"Fuck," she murmured, trying to keep her eyes on both Soros and her unwanted followers by letting loose a volley of cover fire.

She couldn't let the warlord go, but at the same time she hadn't expected her life to be in danger like that. Kat quickly considered opening a channel to them, but she had nothing to excuse herself with. Saying she was a bounty hunter would have gotten her shot at even more persistently in all likelihood and saying she was not meant she had no business being so close to their precious academy.

Even if she turned around and fought for real, she could at best hope to get a few of them down before the overwhelming force turned her little fighter into a pile of nuts and bolts.

Any way Kat looked at it, she was fucked.

I can never just have it easy, can I? s
he thought.
So much for trying to sneak up on Soros subtly. I bet it looks like a fucking firework show from the ground right now.

As if to confirm her fears, the speeder seemed to have stopped somewhere down in the dark forest. Kat had no time to figure out what to do about that or what the legendary warrior would say about being hunted. Her pursuers fired a barrage at her ship and this time her luck was nowhere to be found.

The shot that hit her was perfect. Kat knew what it had hit at once as well as the fact she had seconds to save her life. The engine would be gone within moments. She hit the eject button, praying to any god who could hear her. In the next second, she felt a blast of heat and then cool air rushing through her hair as the explosion blasted her away from the fighter.

Kat crashed against the ground so hard that it knocked every bit of air out of her lungs. She gasped, trying to free herself from the constricting seat. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, trying to pull in as much oxygen as she could. The straps binding her to the ejected seat were stuck, so she had to cut herself loose.

Only darkness loomed around her, but Kat wasn't a fool. Her target would have seen her, and her pursuers would want to make sure she was dead. At that moment, she wasn't thrilled at the prospect of meeting either of them.

Crawling as far as she could, still breathing heavily, Kat turned her cloak on. With shaking hands, she pulled the hood over her head just before she collapsed.

The last thing Kat heard before she slipped into unconsciousness was a speeder bike.

L
ight woke her
.

Kat opened her eyes to find herself lying on the ground where she'd clearly dropped the night before. It took a moment for her sleepy mind to register that the shadow she was seeing was her hood. She was, in fact, witnessing her surroundings
through
the material.

With years of work and practice, Kat had trained herself not to wake with a wince. She had not moved a muscle, only the lids of her eyes had opened.

Now that she had a moment to consider, she
did
remember the Palian who had sold her the armor saying that it was possible to see through the artificial fabric. She'd even used the feature on occasions.

I must have gotten a good kick in the head to feel amazed by my own suit
, Kat thought with a hint of amusement.
Damn those Palians are clever.

She had reached that conclusion a while ago. Palians did
everything
, knew all the secrets and got along with every species as much as was possible. It puzzled her why they didn't rule the galaxy.

Or perhaps they did and had neglected to tell anyone. All things considered, that was quite likely.

Her mind was wandering, but her body remained motionless. The reason for that was standing about ten feet away from her.

It was a Corgan warrior, that much was painfully obvious. He, because it was most definitely a man, was standing with his back to her. From her awkward angle, it was hard to tell, but Kat judged his bulk to be monstrous. He was so tall he could easily look
over
the wreckage of her fighter, or at least the biggest piece that the explosion had left of it.

His long black hair was tied behind his head, reaching to the middle of his back. There were two long, thin swords strapped to his harness, but Kat knew better than to try and run and give him a chance to use them. Corgan reflexes were amazing and the fact that they were sheathed for the moment meant nothing.

A good warrior needed a second, an extraordinary one merely a heartbeat to draw them. If this was the warrior she’d been looking for, well… She wouldn't see him move before death took her.

Trapped, Kat searched her mind for a way out. First things first, did he know she was there? The seemingly obvious answer was "no", but she didn't feel comfortable trusting her fate in underestimating the enemy. Even if it wasn't Soros, it was a powerful warrior with experience to spare. And she had just woken up.

Had she moved in her sleep? The fabric covering her armor had to have rendered her practically invisible, but it wouldn't cause her body to vanish. The warrior might not see her, but he could very easily just step on her.

So, was it a trap? Kat knew that Brion warriors had exceptional hearing. It was said that the bastards could hear their enemies' heartbeat and judge their best move by it. Corgans had no such thing, but with his enhanced senses, could he
sense
her?

Kat settled for the only option left to her. She waited. For long minutes, the warrior didn't move. He stood still, looking at the wreckage as if he were carved from stone. Kat used the time to scour the surroundings, as much as she was able to without moving her head. She didn't see any speeders, nor anyone else. They were alone.

Turn around
, she thought.
Just turn around. Let me see your face and then...

And then what? That thought was bothering her and not a little. Everything she'd read about him told her that he should be aware of her presence. Why, then, wasn't he doing anything about her? Kat was starting to feel like he was playing with her.

Or maybe he isn’t all he’s cracked up to be,
she thought hopefully for a moment, only to have that notion dashed.

As if reading her mind, the man turned. Kat had to bite her lip not to gasp. The same hard, unyielding blue eyes that she'd seen on the image were looking right over her head, but the effect was magnified tenfold.

The man in front of her was stunning. Every inch of him spoke of power and authority, the slightest movement of strength and skill beyond anything she could have imagined. Impossibly, he seemed to grow taller now that Kat was seeing him properly.

She was glad that he didn't see her or else she wouldn't have been able to hide the fear that washed over her. It wasn't the mindless, cowardly terror of prey. It was the most natural thing in the world, looking at someone she knew she couldn't possibly match.

If that man wanted it, she'd be dead in an instant.

But that wasn't the only reason her heart beat faster all of a sudden. Despite the danger, she couldn't look away from Soros. The same severity that had made his opponents drop their weapons and surrender drew her in like gravity.

He was, without a doubt, the most gorgeous man Kat had ever laid her eyes upon.

With that embarrassing realization out of the way, she was free to lay in wait once more. She didn't know if she’d made a noise or if he’d simply decided to finally move, but after a moment, never taking his eyes off something behind her, Soros slowly walked past her.

Kat stayed as still as she could, trying not to breathe as he passed by so closely she could have brushed her fingers against his boots.

She listened to his footsteps heading away from her, options wildly running through her mind. The first part of her mission was complete. If she'd had any doubt before, she no longer did. The second part of her job seemed less likely by the second. The warlord didn't exactly seem to be in a talkative mood. It was obvious to Kat that no bounty hunter was going to take Soros in or convince him to do anything he didn't want to.

That being said, she still didn't dare move. In the middle of nowhere, she had no place to go either way. And there was no fucking way she'd be able to outrun him if she gave her position away.

So again, she waited. Long minutes of utter silence passed before she finally dared, with meticulous care, to turn her head.

Soros was nowhere to be seen, but Kat had her eyes on something much better. The speeder. And safely strapped to its side, the cursed Corgan rifle that had taken her fighter down.

Frowning, she judged the distance. If she could only reach it, her chances would approve a lot. Surely even Soros would have to think twice before pursuing someone with transport and a weapon.

It was too tempting. As best as she could, Kat prepared and then was up and running. Her body felt stiff, but she was moving.

From the corner of her eye, she saw Soros. Just
standing there
, two trees away from her. And if her eyes weren't deceiving her, the bastard was smiling. She could have sworn on her life that he’d walked at least a hundred feet from her. Did he fly back? The forest ground was covered with leaves and sticks, she would have heard him move back, right?

Kat didn't stop to ask. She didn't stop at all, not until she reached the bike. On the run, her mind was frantically trying to make the right choice in a completely fucked up situation.

Which should I go for? The bike or the rifle? The rifle.

Kat had studied Corgan technology, along with their favored speeders. It took her only a second to release the gun and turn around and…

Soros was there.

I didn't hear you move!
her wounded pride objected.

But it was no use. Soros was standing right in front of her, close enough that she could poke him in the chest with the rifle. There was no fear in his deep blue eyes. Kat had no idea why, but she found that to be incredibly sexy.

It took her a moment to remind herself that developing a crush on the man who was going to murder her to hell and back very soon was not a good idea.

"Step back," she ordered with as much force as she could muster.

The most dangerous man in the Corgan realm tilted his head a bit, a small smirk on his lips.

"I will, if you turn your cloaking device off," he said.

His voice was incredibly deep, strong and smooth, as if he were giving her a command. Kat considered. The offer seemed fair, especially since her cover was blown the moment she'd chosen to run. She did as he asked and pushed the hood back, finally looking at him without the fabric in the way.

Soros gave her a long look, but she couldn't deduce anything about his opinion of her. Instead, she was staring at his tattoos. The hood had hidden some of the dark ink from her, but now the beautiful, twisting lines were plain to see.

All Corgan warriors had them, they symbolized the cuts the priests had made to provide them with new organs and enhancing surgeries. She noticed the lines only covered his face on the right side, going up and disappearing under his long black hair.

The moment stretched while they calmly observed each other. Then Soros took a step back. It occurred to Kat that he was not appropriately afraid.

"Your suit is very impressive," the warrior said before she could question his judgment. "No wonder they didn't find you."

"Them?" Kat asked, although she could guess.

"The ones who shot you down. They came to the crash site but left empty-handed."

Yeah, I was wondering how many times this cloak saved my life last night.

Out loud, Kat asked, still holding him at aim, "Where are they now? And why did they shoot me in the first place?"

Her target wasn't the best person to answer all her questions, but it had been bothering her since she woke up. The fighter's design could leave no doubt that it was Union-made. So how had they dared to fire upon her?

Kat knew that some Corgans hated the idea of joining the rest of the galaxy, but attacking an official ship was a severe crime.

"Hopefully far," Soros replied, a thoughtful look on his face. "Looking for me. That's why they took you down."

Finally Kat understood.

"They think I'm your accomplice. That I came to help you," she said.

"More than likely, yes," Soros agreed.

"Did they think you were going to escape using a
Union
vehicle?"

"Why not?" the warrior asked, shrugging. "It would have been a great plan. Who would dare attack a Union vessel, even if they thought I was on it?"

"
Them
, apparently," Kat said, glaring.

The warrior laughed. For some reason, she seemed to amuse him. Kat felt rather offended by that.

"Yes, I suppose it's good I have no intention of fleeing," Soros said, but then all humor washed from his face as he looked at her. "Now. If you are not an accomplice, who exactly are you? Start with a name, since you already obviously know mine."

His voice had dropped low and dangerous, and all at once, the rifle in her hands didn't seem like such a grand weapon. Kat answered his hard look, thinking that lying would get her nowhere.

"My name is Kat Edwards. I'm a bounty hunter," she said. "The Union hired me. They wanted me to find you and talk to you, nothing more."

"The Union has no business with me," Soros replied tersely. "I don't believe you."

Kat corrected, "The Union's ambassador hired me. The rest of them might not care, but she apparently wants to keep peace in this realm."

Soros snorted.

"That is more like it," he said, nodding to himself. "So it's the chieftain this time."

"I just said that –"

"If Zoey Swann hired you, he gave the command. It's as simple as that and I warn you only this once not to insult me by insisting it isn't so."

The way he spoke... His every syllable was etched with conviction and command, shutting Kat up against her will, even if she knew he was right.

"You shouldn't have taken the job," Soros said and Kat backed away from the look in his eyes, bumping into the speeder behind her.

"I only need to ask you a few things," she said quickly. "Nothing more. I'm no threat to you. If you answer me, there will be no more trouble for you."

"That may very well be, but as you might have guessed, I don't answer to anyone," Soros said, walking right past the rifle.

The fact that he didn't even seem to care about the gun bothered Kat the most. She turned, trying to aim again, but the warrior ripped it out of her hand like he was taking a toy from a child. He tossed it aside and stopped right in front of her, his merciless eyes filled with an emotion Kat couldn't guess at.

She backed away, quickly slipping around the bike, but there was no place for her to hide. When he grabbed her, Kat fought back as hard as she could, but she might as well have been trying to box with a wall. Soros' armor was tough, and so was he. Kat was hurting herself more than him, and he wrung her hands behind her back easily. That left her trapped in his arms, staring up at him.

Kat didn't fear death, but that was not how she'd imagined it either.

I didn't know the Reaper had blue eyes.

"If you're going to kill me, do it quickly," she said defiantly, but his answer surprised her.

"If I wanted to kill you, you’d already be dead," Soros said. "Those idiots might not have heard you over their engines and the fighter still burning, but I found you as soon as they were gone."

There were plenty of legends of people thinking crazy things before dying, like worrying whether they’d paid all their bills or if their hair looked nice. As she stood, the only thought rushing through Kat's head was,
Please tell me I didn't snore.

"I heard you when you woke up. Your breathing changed. So consider yourself safe from me.
However
…"

His deep blue eyes shone like stars as his voice dropped so low that Kat had a hard time catching all the words.

"I want you to understand that can change in an instant if you are foolish enough to try and run. Until you behave, I will not hurt you, but I can't let you leave. Before I know who my enemies are, the chieftain is just as likely to kill me as the rest of them. I can't let you run off and risk that you will give someone any information that would lead to me. You are coming with me."

The warrior waited for a second before releasing Kat. She stepped back, but didn't run, knowing it to be futile.

Great. From hunter to the catch of the day.