by Lily Thomas
After a few more minutes of walking through the forest, voices raised in irritation reached his ears. He couldn’t help himself but be drawn forward. He strode through the forest seeking out the raised voices, too interested for his own good.
As Bruyx rounded a thick tree trunk, he stopped dead in his tracks. There she was again, that damn human woman. And now she was fighting off a couple of alien men.
That was the problem with this hunting planet the Hennians had set up to test their warrior skills. They brought in fighters and criminals, people who were lawless with violent tendencies, making this planet savage. And then they brought in people like this human woman who had no skill to their name just for fun.
Bruyx frowned as he watched her trying to keep the alien men at bay, but she’d lost her spear it looked like. All he wanted to do was walk away and never look back, but he couldn’t condone what these men would do once they tired the fight out of her. The men would kill her, eventually, after they enjoyed her body.
Gritting his teeth, he dropped his rope and supplies on the ground. He would go to her aide once more, but he was really hoping this would be the last time he had to assist the human woman. She was proving just how soft he was, and it irked him like no other.
He was a Sri’thaen. He was ruthless. He could care less about one human life, but he found himself plowing through the forest straight towards the alien men.
She was turning out to be a pain in his ass.
With a curse and a shake of his head, he unsheathed his sword and stormed towards the men.
“Hands off the human!” Bruyx bellowed at the top of his lungs. He wanted them to know he was pissed and ready to defend her to the death. If he could scare them off and avoid a fight for the human, all the better for him.
The two men turned their yellowish cat eyes zeroing in on him, and he automatically knew what species they were. They were Dekkarians. Spots covered their skin, and they had a feline quality to their looks. They’d end up being a challenge for him. They looked well-built and were known for their good fighting skills. Probably the reason the Hennians had brought them here in the first place.
“We found her first.” One of the Dekkarians squared up with him not ready to back down from the fight.
Bruyx scoffed. “I’m not interested in her.”
“Then why fight us?” The second Dekkarian stepped up beside the first.
“I live by a set of principles, and I expect others to have standards as well.” Bruyx shrugged as he twirled his sword the air whistling past the sharp blade. “Think of this as me doing you a favor. She’s a real pain in the ass.” It was the truth, and the very reason he should just walk away.
Jessica rolled her eyes in the background, and he found himself pleased that she felt sure enough of his skill to hang around. He would’ve thought she’d bolt in case he didn’t win, but there she was watching on with eager eyes.
“Then let us have her. After a night with us, we’ll be able to tame the spirit out of her.” The first Dekkarian smirked.
Bruyx understood there weren’t as many women as men here on the planet, but that was no reason for them to act like animals the moment they stumbled upon one.
The men began to circle him. He was going to tan her ass when he was done with these two. How hard was it for her to stay out of trouble? Although it might be his ass that needed some tanning. He really should let her deal with her own messes from now on.
One man lunged forward with a spear, Bruyx dodged to the side using his sword to send the spear tip off course. Then the other Dekkarian took out a sword. This was going to get interesting.
All he had to do was not get speared, which was easier said than done. In some ways, he’d been hoping the other men would back down, but if they wanted a fight, then he was more than willing to burn off some of his anger at the Hennians on these two men.
The Dekkarian with the sword slashed his blade through the air with a glint of steel. Bruyx raised his own and met the strike just as the other Dekkarian stepped forward ready to stick him in the side while he was busy with the first attacker.
Fantastic. He was going to get killed before this even started.
A rock flew out of nowhere and struck the Dekkarian with the spear in the head. The man let out an animalistic roar but forgot about Bruyx.
“Come, take me on like a man!” The human woman hollered.
Never mind, she was going to get killed before he had a chance to save her. But it was better her than him.
His biceps bunched as he shoved the other man’s sword off of him. He would just have to trust she knew what she was doing so he could take on the men one on one. It would go easier that way and hopefully faster.
“Why fight for her?” The Dekkarian grunted as he blocked a sword strike from Bruyx. “She’s just a human.”
He didn’t have time to debate this with the Dekkarian. He could hear the human woman was still alive. But how much longer could she remain alive while she assisted him with keeping the other Dekkarian distracted?
“Unless you lied and you do want her.” The Dekkarian backed off, and they began to circle each other.
Bruyx was tempted to look over and see how she was doing but the moment he turned his head, the Dekkarian would take advantage of the moment to surprise him.
The men squared off, assessing each other as they continued to circle. Every once in a while, one of them would test the other, searching for any weaknesses they could take advantage of like an old injury.
He noticed the Dekkarian favoring his right side, probably meaning he could go in from the left and surprise the man.
Leaping forward, he dodged around the man in a blur of movement, spun around and came in on the man’s left side. The Dekkarian hadn’t been ready for the surprise attack and stumbled disarming himself in the process.
Bruyx wasn’t about to let him rearm. He sliced the sword through the air, the metal singing as it cut the air, and then it sliced through the Dekkarian. He went down blood gurgling up between his lips. He was a goner.
Yanking his sword out of the man’s side, Bruyx stormed over to where the human woman was running around grabbing anything she could find off the ground and throwing it at the last Dekkarian.
If her life wasn’t hanging in the balance, he might have stopped to laugh at the scene unfolding in front of him.
She had a lot of spunk, and there was a fearless streak in her that he could admire. She hadn’t fled and left him to fight the Dekkarians alone, and he had to respect her for that.
As he approached, his foot snapped a small twig on the ground, and the Dekkarian spun around on a heel his spear swinging around in a broad arc, nearly nailing Bruyx in the face. Ducking, he rushed forward, wrapped his arms around the other man’s waist, and tackled the man to the ground. Time to get his hands a little dirty.
Both of their weapons were lost to them as they rolled around on the ground pummeling each other with their fists, trying to get the upper hand on each other.
The Dekkarian rolled them over, getting on top, his hands grasped around Bruyx’s throat, choking him. Then the Dekkarian let out a grunt his grasp loosening. Bruyx let a fist fly through the air decking the Dekkarian on the side of his jaw, his teeth clinking together with the force of the blow.
Unsheathing his dagger, Bruyx plunged the blade deep into the Dekkarian’s side, pulled it out and plunged it back in until the Dekkarian stopped grunting with pain. The man slumped over.
Bruyx took a moment to calm himself. The adrenaline was still pumping in his bloodstream. Sitting up, he dislodged the Dekkarian’s body rolling it off to the side. He removed the dagger from the man’s side and ran the blade over the grass cleaning it. He shoved it back into its sheath right before he stood back up on his feet.
“How are you?” Bruyx glanced over at her, but she didn’t appear to have a scratch on her. Her alabaster skin was perfect and only heightened by the stark contrast of her midnight black hair.
&
nbsp; “Fine.” She sent him a smile, and he scowled when his heart jumped in excitement.
He glanced back down at the body and noticed a trail of blood matting on the Dekkarian’s head. She must have nailed him in the head with a rock. She may have just saved his life.
“Can’t you stay out of trouble?” Bruyx grumped instead of paying her any sort of compliment. Without her, he wouldn’t have been put in this mess in the first place.
“Hey! My life only got interesting this morning and mainly when I found you.” She pointed an accusing finger in his direction.
“I could’ve let you die.” He picked up his sword where it’d fallen and sheathed it. “You should grab that Dekkarian’s spear.” He pointed at where the weapon was laying on the ground.
“Already planned on it.” She strolled over to the dead body and picked up the spear before picking up her pack and slinging it over her shoulder.
Bruyx picked up the bags the Dekkarians had on them and began going through the supplies. They were dead so they wouldn’t need these things any longer, and there was the possibility they would have something he could use.
Then he checked out the mens’ clothing and boots. Sitting on the ground, he placed his foot against one of the dead man’s, but the size wouldn’t fit him. Too bad. He’d been hoping for a new pair of boots.
“Umm.”
“What?!” Bruyx barked. She may have shown strength during the fight but couldn’t she shut her mouth for once?
“You know with that kind of attitude I’m almost tempted not to tell you that someone is stealing your rope.” Her arms folded in front of her chest.
He looked up to see her pointing behind him with a single finger. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw an alien man sprinting off through the forest with his rope. Red flashed across his eyes. Damn everyone on this planet for making his life harder!
Bruyx launched into action, sprinting after the alien that was disappearing into the trees of the forest.
All he wanted to do was cuss, but that wouldn’t get him anywhere. All he could do was chase this alien down and rip the man’s throat out for taking what wasn’t his.
Chapter 4
Jessica huffed and puffed as she trailed behind the Sri’thaen doing her best at keeping up. She was in shape, but the thief and the Sri’thaen were keeping up a good pace. Then she recognized the area and an idea dawned on her.
The good thing about having lived on this planet for a few months was the fact that she was a lot more in shape than she used to be, but it didn’t mean that she liked the massive amounts of exercise. It only took being hunted and the fear of death to get her into shape. Her ex would find her new body more to his liking since he’d run off with a skinnier woman the moment their divorce had been finalized.
She was amazed to find herself still a bit bitter about it… it’d been nearly a year.
Shaking her head, she drove memories of her ex out of her mind. Now wasn’t the time to dwell on her failed marriage.
Splitting off from them, Jessica charged through the underbrush of the forest. She knew where this man would head because there was only one place to run to in this part of the forest. If she didn’t impress her Sri’thaen savior with this move, she would never impress him.
Jumping over a mossy log, she kept her feet pounding the ground. Soon the thief would have to follow a rock wall, meaning she knew exactly where she could intercept him and delay him long enough for the Sri’thaen to help bring him down.
As Jessica darted past trees, she felt hope blossom in her chest.
She saw the rock face rise up through the trees and knew it was her time to pop out and if her timing was right…
Leaping out from behind a tree she found herself face to face with the alien thief. He couldn’t stop himself in time, and they both went down in a jumble of limbs. He tried to untangle himself, but Jessica started whamming on him with her fists.
She didn’t have long to wait. The Sri’thaen sprinted onto the scene in mere moments and ripped the man off of her.
“I don’t do well when people steal my stuff!” He roared into the other man’s face, and she trembled a bit at his raging temper. His brown eyes dropped a shade darker, and she could swear she saw bolts of lightning flash in those depths.
“It was just lying there! How was I to know it belonged to someone?” The alien man glanced between them, probably hoping the Sri’thaen would see reason and not kill him where he stood.
“Well, you won’t make that mistake again.” The Sri’thaen unsheathed his dagger and pressed it against the man’s jugular. “Any last words?”
“I’ve got one!” Jessica stepped forward with a hand outstretched. “Don’t kill him.”
“Why not?” The Sri’thaen glanced over at her, his brown eyes burning with the need to slaughter the man who dared to take his things.
“This planet is filled with nothing but death. Rise above it. Don’t let it infect you.” It was a warning for both of them. She hadn’t even flinched when her “friends” had been struck down right next to her. She’d just kept moving, trying to run faster than them.
“Maybe I was infected before I came here.” He warned her back.
“I don’t believe that otherwise, you wouldn’t have saved me, multiple times.” She reasoned. “Besides, all he did,” she pointed to the alien man trembling in the Sri’thaen’s grasp, “was steal some rope. It wasn’t like he tried to kill one of us.”
The Sri’thaen rolled his eyes, removed the dagger from near the man’s throat and with a heavy sigh like it took a lot of effort not to slice the man’s throat knocked the man out with the hilt of the dagger. The alien slumped to the ground in a puddle of unconscious flesh.
“Thanks.” Jessica heaved a sigh in relief. One less person dying on this planet was something to be proud of in her mind.
The Sri’thaen shook his head, as he sheathed his dagger. “Probably best to have killed him quickly before the Hennians get their hands on him.”
“Still… we have to separate ourselves from death when all he did was steal some rope. The most you should take is a hand.” She joked until she saw a smile crack across his lips. “I’m joking!” She rushed to say as she stepped between the Sri’thaen and the alien man slumped on the ground.
“It sounded good to me.”
“Don’t.” Jessica pointed a finger at him in warning, not that she knew what she’d do if he did decide to harm the thief. She eyed his biceps. There was no way she could take him down.
“I’m not.” He raised a hand in the air.
“So, have I proved my usefulness?” Jessica’s chest puffed out with satisfaction of her success.
He scoffed.
Her chest deflated.
“I helped you catch the thief!”
“The thief wouldn’t have snatched my rope if you hadn’t been in a fight for your life that I needed to rescue you from.” He shot back.
She wouldn’t push him for a compliment, but she’d thought it’d been pretty awesome of her to think so quickly on her feet.
Jessica followed him through the forest doing her best to keep quiet, but it felt awkward to just walk in silence when there was so much she wanted to ask him. She had no idea how long he’d been here on the planet. She had to wonder if he knew about the war his people were starting with hers. And hadn’t even reacted the last time she’d told him about it.
“Do you have a favorite food?” Start off simple, see where it went. That was the best idea.
Silence.
She rolled her eyes. How about another simple question? “What’s your name?”
“Why would you need to know that?”
He was talking! She’d take what she could get from the silent man even if it was only snark.
“If we’re going to spend time together we should know each other by our first names.” She shrugged. “It could make it easier if we get into any more fights. It takes longer to call you Sri’thaen since I assume your name migh
t be shorter. Also, it would be confusing if you were fighting another Sri’thaen.”
“We aren’t spending any time together. You’re tagging along and annoying me.” He eyed her from the corner of his eye. “You clearly don’t understand when you aren’t welcomed.”
“And yet you could slit my throat right here and put an end to it but haven’t.” Jessica raised a finger in the air as she made her point.
“It’s more tempting every time you speak.” He grumped.
She smiled. He was all about the bluster. There was a heart of gold in that chest, she was sure of it.
“Name?”
“Bruyx.”
“Nice to meet you, Bruyx.”
Silence.
She pursed her lips in frustration. Well, if he wasn’t going to ask for her name, she would just tell him. “My name’s Jessica.”
Silence.
Nodding her head, she slipped back into silence as well. If he truly didn’t want to make some nice chit chat, then she would honor his wishes. There was no need to annoy him more than she had to and cause her reluctant hero any misery.
They continued to follow the rock wall, and Jessica let her mind drift. Even if they were walking in silence, it was nice to have someone else nearby. She knew she wouldn’t have handled being alone very well. Company was the only reason she was still sane. Being hunted wasn’t something that was easy to handle alone.
As night fell, Bruyx finally stopped, and she was glad because he kept up a brisk pace and her feet were beginning to hurt. Jessica flopped down and watched as he gathered wood from around the area.
“Is a fire a good idea?” She stripped off her shoes and her nose wrinkled as the putrid scent wafted up to her nostrils. When she got off this planet, she would get a pedicure and soak her feet in hot water until they were as wrinkled as a mummy’s face.
“I prefer to have my meat cooked.” He pointed to a rodent that was tied up to his belt. “I’ll risk it.”