To Catch A Warrior [Unearthly World Book 5] (2 page)

“Take the vessel home, Cy. I want to try one more planet. I can take a shuttle. There’s no need to put any of my warriors at risk.”

“You plan on heading into the dead world, don’t you? This exit we’re heading for only leads to one place.”

Titus knew it was a risk. There was a sun circling a planet named To-ogg. There was talk of a world existing within the sun. It was speculation. The world existing within the sun was said to be brilliantly beautiful with wildlife in abundance—for a while. A metamorphosis took place every few hundred years. Life began, life thrived, life died and then a cold blustery frozen tundra set in. The sun’s fire imploded the area, closing in around everything, until it was purged of all, only to expand, the fire receding, and allow the strange life cycle to begin again. Strange, but Titus believed the rumors of his elders, some claimed to have been there.

“The sun is the last place I can look. I have to try.”

“Titus, your honor knows no limits. It would be suicide; you almost died once because of that female. You have no clue if the tales are real and if they are, what cycle the sun’s planet is in.”

“Cy, if I die it won’t be a suicide mission. It will be a failed recovery venture. You are well trained. The Southern Zargonnii warriors will accept you as their leader if I don’t return.”

“Damn it. You are too important a warrior and leader to lose. Let me go.”

Titus turned and placed his hands onto Cy’s shoulders. “You are too important a friend to lose. You are the closest I have to a brother, both you and Finn.”

Cy growled. “Finn should never have brought that female on board your vessel to begin with. He is partly to blame for this and yet he doesn’t look for Bertha.”

“He has his mate and child to worry about. The female human was surrendered into my care. I accepted her as my responsibility. No one twisted my arm.”

“Don’t do this.
That
female human isn’t worth your life.”

“Why? Because she’s mean, ornery and impossible?”

“No. Because no one cares about her. That says a lot about any species. When a Tonan dies, no one cares. Unless he’s one of Cobra’s warriors, and Cobra will only accept a Tonan if he’s mated to a human female. If the Tonan dies, his mate dies, that means two deaths, a devastating blow. I don’t think I would want to mate if I knew my female would die when I did. I’d never let her out of my sight. I’d have to stop being a mercenary and warrior. And do not tell me the females Bertha was with care about her. They express concern yes, nothing more, and they knew her for years. Ask them Titus, go ahead and ask the females who knew Bertha for years which of you they would rather see at the end of the day.”

Titus knew Cy was right. “One more search, Cy. One. After this, if I don’t find Bertha, I’ll let her go. I swear. I’ll have to; there is nowhere else to look. I’ve run out of options available to the Zargonnii. And if you would just let more people into your heart you would make an excellent mate for a human. You have a great deal of passion, my friend; it’s too bad it’s tempered by pride, and anger.”

“Human females are worthless to me. They can’t battle, they’re fragile. One good squeeze and you’d pop their heads off their shoulders,” Cy grouched.

“Gee, thanks for the mental image
I’ll never
get out of my mind. You’ll have to get used to human females, my friend. If you end up leader you’ll be in charge of their wellbeing too.”

The face Cy made almost made Titus laugh. Cy growled harder, spun on his heels and strode away. Titus turned back to the console. The ship rocked when they exited the worm hole until settling to a standstill. Amidst the black space past the window, a flaming round mass came into view. Rolling waves of flames danced across the ball of fire. There were no stars. Streaks of silver exploded from the sun at intervals, bursts zipped across the sky and faded. A memory nagged. The more bursts, the colder the season because more of the sun burned hotter. The sun must be on its last leg with the planet within; the fire must be closing in. This would prove tricky, and dangerous.

A solitary black planet, surrounded by a white ring was the only other visible planet besides the sun. The inhabitants on the planet kept to themselves, they were an ebony mass, no limbs, no eyes or ears. They could move, see and hear; Titus had no clue how, except they left a sticky black trail in their wake. The planet was peaceful and his warrior mercenaries left this quadrant alone. The inhabitants had adapted to their planet, it was useless to others. Tonans stayed away; the planet was mostly dark, no rays to rejuvenate shields. The white ring around the planet was said to be a force field of protection, or the inhabitants would burn.

Titus strode for the hangar. His black boots making small booms as they connected with the hard floor beneath his feet. He would shuttle to the planet, get in and get out quick. A human wouldn’t last long on To-ogg. It was unbearably hot, but hopefully an inhabitant would know if a shuttle breached the sun. Titus would be fine for a little while on the planet until he could find a dweller. He was a southern Zargonnii and used to heat. Though his planet never became unbearably hot, the human females occasionally complained in the warmer season.

If he could find an inhabitant on To-ogg, he would ask if a human female had landed, or flown into their sun. Bertha was used to cold, she could have survived; her last home was an igloo after all. She refused to give up her furs, which was a boon on a cold planet; there might be hope. Titus’s optimism was he’d get lucky, find the mouthy shrew and pawn Bertha off on a desperate warrior who would treat her with love and gentleness. Where he would find such a warrior, he had no clue. All of his warriors knew about Bertha. If he was lucky, word of her hadn’t spread to the northern Zargonnii. Though he doubted he’d get that lucky.

“Don’t do this.”

Titus was surprised when he was grabbed by his upper arm and spun around. Cy looked furious. He also looked worried and desperate.

“Cy will you relax? I’ll be back before you know it. So don’t get too comfortable in my chair.”

“I have heard the rumors about this planet and know that the shining bursts mean the planet within will be gone, soon. I am going to make you a vow.” Intensity radiated from Cy.

Titus stiffened. “No, Cy, don’t do it.”

His features set, Titus knew there would be no stopping his warrior. “If you are killed looking for her…”

“No, Cy.”

“I will find her.”

“Don’t do this, my friend.”

“I will kill her.”

It was said—it was done.

“None of what’s happened has been her fault. Your anger is misdirected. Would you be able to look into the eyes of a terrified, tiny human female and take her life?” Titus asked.

“Let’s hope we never have to find out,” Cy muttered. “She’s not worth your life.”

“Then I will make you this vow. I will return. If I don’t, you better make certain you see my lifeless body before you take action. What I do, I do of my own free will. We are honorable warriors. What you said was done in desperation. I love you, too. I’m a warrior. Don’t stain my honor by killing something so defenseless in my name.”

“Damn you, Titus.”

Titus smiled. “Have you heard of the cyron beast they nicknamed Bertha? She’s a real bitch.”

Cy nodded. “Fine. I won’t stain your honor. The cyron will be history.”

“And the female?”

“I’ll give her to a bangor. I’m certain they’ll be happy together.”

“You are evil. Poor bangor bastard.”

Titus was relieved when Cy grinned. Cy was a good warrior. He was a hard warrior. His father was killed in front of him when he was twelve. A cyron, deranged and dragging a leg, broke through a barrier at a place of learning over two hundred years prior when three young males were being dropped off. It was late and most males were already inside. The cyron killed three warriors who were protecting their sons until two female Zargonnii, furious and fighting for their children, killed the beast. Cy came to stay with Titus and his father. They were best friends before. They still were. But Cy had changed that day. He was angry and he stayed angry. Titus was the only warrior he let close. And Titus knew females on their planet avoided Cy during the Holiday. Cy dominated to the extreme.

Placing a hand on his friend’s shoulder and turning Cy to walk with him, the warriors made their way to a shuttle. If Titus failed, he knew Cy would make an excellent leader. He was rough but not with the warriors. Deep down Titus wondered if Cy was angry with females. His mother was the only female of the three who didn’t come to her son’s aid. Titus wondered if Cy’s mother was dead. It was rare for a Zargonnii female not to keep watch of her son or sons from a distance. It had been a mystery for two hundred years.

“So,” Cy said and shuffled his feet. “Will you bring me back a present?”

Titus laughed. Whenever his father left on mercenary business, he would bring something back for Titus and Cy—years ago when they were children. Titus’s father had been dead for over a hundred years.

“Only if you behave while I’m away.”

“You’re all I have.”

Bonds between warriors ran deep. Zargonnii females spoke another language and stayed away from males unless it was to Holiday and conceive. The friends male warriors made while young lasted their lifetime. Introducing human females to male Zargonnii had an impact. The warriors were over protective of the tiny females. Their male bonds were strong but not nearly as strong as a mate’s. The Zargonnii way of life was changing. Titus wanted a human female. Not Bertha. He was a warrior who dominated during the Holiday and Bertha was too skittish—and mouthy. Waiting two long years between each two-week Holiday was frustrating.

Titus took as many females as he could and still it wasn’t enough for his sexual appetite. Word of his prowess had spread. Female Zargonnii were wary of him even though the Zargonnii females knew his seed produced many coveted daughters. Titus was sick and tired of never getting to hold a daughter. Human females thought he was powerful, but they weren’t afraid of him, at least not those he knew. A human female would give him a daughter he could see and hold, not catch rare glimpses of through the thick planet foliage.

The first time Titus came upon a daughter he actually saw it was during a Holiday many years prior. It was her first mating. Titus immediately knew she was his child. They stared at one another for a few moments. Showing herself to him was a gift, she could have avoided him, it had happened before with another. His daughter was beautiful and Titus felt his heart fill with pride, and sadness. He missed her first steps, her first
everything
. She was smaller than him and he felt a moment’s concern for her, but knew if she wasn’t ready to Holiday, her mother would never let her leave their pod. When he sniffed the air he could scent her mother was close.

Titus could scent no fear on his child, just curiosity. He also could scent himself on her. His daughter knew he was her father. Titus could tell by her curiosity. Prominent scent was nature’s way of making certain family knew one another. When she smiled at him and motioned a greeting he motioned it back. She slipped into the woods and Titus felt empty. It wasn’t the first time he’d questioned the Zargonnii way of life. Finding human females was a blessing. All he needed to do was come to terms over the loss of Bertha. If she wasn’t on this planet, Titus would have to admit defeat, there was nowhere else to search. As long as he survived the venture.

“Keep my seat warm for me. But like I said, don’t get too comfortable. And if I’m lucky, or maybe unlucky, have earplugs for the warriors ready. Big mouth Bertha will be none too happy to see me. If we’re really lucky, she’ll have found a mate.”

“I bet if she has, he’s blind, deaf and dumb,” Cy said. “Or wishes he was.”

Titus clasped Cy’s forearm and then climbed into the shuttle. As the door closed, a puff of steam rose, then evaporated. There was enough room for two warriors, or Titus and Bertha. As the shuttle hovered over the floor, he could see Cy staring at him from the window. The blackness of space looming behind his warrior was unwelcoming, especially if Titus were to die today. He wondered if he was being stupid. The female was a shrew, and Titus was the leader of his warriors. Many looked to Titus for guidance; many looked to find an escape route when Bertha entered a room. As the vessel flew from the hangar Titus promised himself this was it. Whether or not he found Bertha, he’d tried every option. If he lived, he would think of her every day, of that he had no doubt. He could tell himself he
had
tried. Titus hoped his thoughts would be enough.

“I’m a warrior and I keep my word,” Titus muttered. “I’m sorry if you’re not here, little female. If you’re not, I wish you well. You will haunt me the rest of my days.”

Titus exited the hangar, hovered, giving Cy one last look and kicked the vessel into hyper speed. He knew Cy. His friend would remain in orbit for at least a week, or longer. If luck were on his side, Titus would return to his ship. As he flew past the sun he watched the molten lava bubble. If he were really lucky, his ship wouldn’t explode the second he entered the sun.

“Just stay right where you are.”

Zabbie sat on the rock across from the roaring fire. She pointed at the spiked fruit that sat off to the side in ash and waggled her mitted finger at it. The object was double fist size. Zabbie watched the spikes curl at the tips on its side as it melted. The water forming beneath sizzled sending delicious smelling smoke puffs. The fruit, like everything else on the sun planet was a block of ice. The fruit made a sound, squealing. The icy purple object rolled back and forth an inch as the ice beneath it melted.

The upper half of the fruit exploded, the still frozen top spikes imbedded into the caverns ice covered ceiling. Zabbie waited, watching. She picked up the rhythm of the object and began rocking. If it were on the ice it would be rolling to safety. The fruit, or what Zabbie considered a fruit, hissed as the insides began to bubble and pop. The fruit was a beautiful splash of color in the frozen wasteland. An oddity, as was Zabbie.