by Vi Voxley
He dragged Zoey up by her hair. In her weakened state, she was nothing but a doll in his hands. Daegon noticed she no longer had her glove, nor her gun.
He will do it. Arboc sees no way out of this; he really will take her from me as his last strike.
Daegon struggled for words once more. If Arboc went through with his threat, it would mean he'd won. No matter the actual outcome of the war, Daegon would lose everything with Zoey's death.
"No," he said, unthinking.
Arboc laughed, cold and hollow. His broken voice was a reminder of Zoey's glove. Daegon couldn't imagine he would want to let the person who ruined his plans go. All he could count on was that the traitor hated him more.
"You should know better, Daegon," Arboc said, a hint of pity in his voice. "You can't plead with me. All I want is for you to watch this happen, knowing you couldn't save her."
"I can," Daegon replied. "If I die instead."
Arboc's eyes went wide as Zoey screamed, "No!"
Daegon didn't listen to her, keeping his gaze locked on Arboc. The other lord regarded him seriously, trying to find the trick.
"What do you mean?" he asked, keeping the struggling Zoey in check.
She was fighting him with all her strength, but even without the wound she would have been no match for the warlord.
"Stop, Zoey," Daegon said, "you'll make your injuries worse."
Turning to Arboc, he explained, "If I walk off this platform in her stead, will you let her go?"
His offer made Arboc grin so wildly it appeared to almost hurt. The other clan lord stared at him from under the strands of his dark hair.
"Yes," he said. "She can do nothing more to me than she already has."
"Daegon," Zoey interrupted. "Don't do this! You can't possibly believe him!"
He came closer, seeing Arboc become defensive at once. Daegon shook his head sadly.
"I just wanted to say goodbye," he said.
"You can do it from where you stand," Arboc snapped back.
Daegon judged the distance to them. He wished there was a way he could warn Zoey, tell her to throw herself free. There was no way he'd act blindly when there was a way he could hit her instead.
"Don't make her watch," he asked. "Do that one thing for me.”
The look in Zoey's eyes was terrible to behold. She was starting to realize he was actually going to do it. She redoubled her efforts to break free, but Arboc refused to let this last chance to enact his will slip by. His eyes were hungry all of a sudden, the desperation burning in them.
Daegon had guessed correctly – he was willing to give him everything in exchange for his life. He pushed Zoey away harshly and she fell against the platform's edge, sliding down to the ground.
She started to stand up, but Arboc's sword blocked her way. Even that wasn't enough. With her bare hand, she started to push the blade away.
"Stop," Daegon ordered curtly and she jumped back like she'd been hit, confusion plain in her eyes. "Don't make this needlessly difficult, Zoey."
She shook her head in denial.
"Daegon, please, don't do this, he won't..."
A Corgan warlord was able to do many things, among others, judge distances with incredible precision. Before Zoey could finish or move from where she was, before Arboc managed to figure out there was no way he'd leave her in the hands of that maniac, Daegon jumped off the edge.
He could hear Arboc's victorious cry, but there were more pressing issues.
The platform had a ledge, reaching to his waist, but like the structure itself, it had been damaged by time and the bombardment. Through the hole in the ledge, Daegon had seen an extending little extrusion that he hoped could bear his weight.
His reflexes had to be perfect, not to mention the daunting task of holding his weight with one arm.
He stepped off the platform, hearing Zoey scream and Arboc cry out in joy. Everything happened within a second. Arboc forgot about Zoey and rushed to see him fall, his hated enemy plunging to his death. They were up so high that one couldn't see anything on the ground from the ledge.
Holding the weight of him and his armor up with one arm, Daegon waited. When he saw Arboc's shadow lean over the edge, he struck. The sword had still been in his hand when he fell, and now he swung at Arboc with all his might. He could hear the other warlord roar in pain and frustration, and the figure above him disappeared.
Not waiting to see what had happened to him, Daegon flung himself back to the opening in the edge and pulled his body up.
Zoey had done the only smart thing and dashed away from Arboc, running past him. Now Daegon had Zoey at his back and Arboc, at last, alone in front of him.
He hadn't scored a perfect hit, not by a long shot, but it had worked. Arboc's left shoulder was bleeding, but other than that, he was still capable of fighting. Seeing that there was no other way for it to end, the traitor finally faced him, bringing his twin blades up.
Daegon could hear Zoey trying to catch her breath. The wound in her side was pretty nasty, but he thanked all the spirits that she had managed to get to safety. Now all he had to do was take her to the healers – right after he'd dealt with Arboc.
The other lord regarded him with a smile.
"It is such a pity," he began. "We could have used a man like you, Daegon. If you had only seen reason, we would already be the rulers of this world."
"I have no wish to rule this world," Daegon replied coldly. "I have my own home world to look after. This belongs to the chieftain, Nadar."
Mentioning him flamed forth such rage within Arboc that Daegon thought he'd explode.
"Him," the traitor growled. "You would betray the true Corgan way for him?"
"I'm beginning to realize what he means," Daegon shot back, enjoying the wince on Arboc's face. "By saying that we make our own destinies. That we can leave things that no longer fit us behind."
"Like the ways of your people?" Arboc roared.
"You," Daegon said, raising his sword, distantly aware that he was mirroring the pose of The Chieftain, "are not a Corgan. And I will deal with you like I would with any traitor."
Seeing that there was nothing else he could say, Arboc surged forward. Now, backed into a corner, he fought Daegon at last. After all, he hadn’t come by his position by accident. Arboc was quick and clever, dodging between Daegon's strikes, but he answered with the same. For long minutes, there was no other sound but the clashes of metal upon metal and the wind around them.
Two swords were twice the trouble, and offering two shields. It was harder to find the killing strike than Daegon had thought, but step by step, he forced Arboc back to where the platform ended.
When he saw Arboc look around, Daegon glared. There was no way he'd allow the traitor to take the coward's way out.
The momentary lapse of attention cost Arboc his chance. Daegon sprung closer as soon as he saw the other avert his eyes from him. The long, thin blade of his sword slipped between Arboc's, going right through his already wounded shoulder.
The traitor screamed in agony as Daegon twisted the blade in the wound. Unable to bear it, Arboc dropped one sword. But his other hand was still alright and Daegon could feel the cold metal cutting into his flesh above his hip. It was a risk he'd been willing to take. In the next second, his fist hit Arboc's face, sending him falling backwards.
From there, it was over. Arboc still had one sword, he had pulled it free from the wound he'd dealt Daegon, but he was down. Standing above him, Daegon stepped on the hand still gripping the weapon, pushing down until Arboc let it drop and then knocking it away.
Zoey came closer, limping, still applying pressure to the wound in her belly. She was very pale. Daegon wanted nothing more than to leave Arboc there to rot and suffer until death delivered its mercy. But Zoey had seen enough horror for a lifetime.
"Turn away, my love," he said, and when she turned her back, he cut Arboc's throat with precision he didn't think the traitor deserved.
He supposed it didn't
matter. Every means of dying ends in death.
Together, he and Zoey left the dark temple behind.
Chapter Twenty
Zoey
Zoey 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.
* * *
He 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?"
* * *
The 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 irr
elevant 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."