Her nostrils flared. Fists clenched.
She’d been living her whole life doing what she was told. Following the set of unspoken rules that women on New Earth were supposed to live by. And lately, she couldn’t handle it anymore. Not for one more second.
Women’s rights were Kia’s pressure point, that one thing she was well known for not being able to keep quiet about—a push button to immediate righteous rage.
Today was no exception.
Kia caught her balance, whipped around and swiftly rammed a knee into his groin. Felix grunted and wheezed, his knees smashing to the ground. She smiled with satisfaction then glanced around furtively, hoping no one noticed her show of force. She was stronger than any other female on New Earth. Stronger than most men. Kia was petite, but it was deceptive.
The crowd continued to mill about. Felix groaned and fell against the dirt sidewalk, his hands cupping his crotch.
Kia grinned and strode away without a backward glance.
Her whole life she’d been freakishly strong. Stronger than anyone she knew, except for her father. He was so strong he could bend metal. Dad had taught her how to keep their strength a secret. He’d said it was his special power and he’d passed it on to her.
It was both a blessing and a curse.
They never told anyone about it. Not even her smaller sisters. The strength was a secret her parents kept about their family.
Yep, a blessing and a curse.
Kia was extremely lucky to get the job as security at the marketplace. Such a position for a female was rare. But the shopkeepers liked the idea of a woman as guard, an unexpected secret security that other men wouldn’t expect. And Kia loved the opportunity to flex a bit of her secret muscle.
Kia continued walking through the bustling morning crowd, almost reaching her destination, when something above caught her eye. She tensed, expecting the worst and instead saw a bit of unexpected beauty. The browns and grays of the busy marketplace muted in her periphery, and for a moment Kia saw a flash of clear blue sky. She bit her lip, flooded with happiness at the sudden explosion of color. Her eyes scanned the murky atmosphere. There it was again, that bit of blue shining over the heads of the men and women pushing past her in the central square of Singapore, unaware and uncaring of the rare miracle popping overhead. Finally there was a break in the crowd and Kia could stop and watch from her vantage point as the clouds parted and the two suns winked. Her lips curved. She gloried in the majesty shining overhead, the feeling of rays of light kissing her skin, the vivid color of the bright blue sky and the tranquility in the midst of a chaotic New Earth morning.
The smell of savory cooking wafted from nearby stalls, the sweaty skin of the masses and their too-sweet perfumes—all of it clogged her senses but that sky, oh that sky—she focused on it like a talisman, dreaming of escape. The raucous laughter of teenage pickpockets and the hawking of wares from nearby stalls—shouted right in her ears—all melted away for the moment as she stood, awestruck at the sudden break in her gray wren existence.
What she wouldn’t give to escape off-planet in a ship through that gleaming blue sky and live past the stars, safe and clean. Someplace where she could leave the house and not fear for her family’s life. Someplace where she didn’t have to train secretly every freaking day just for the chance to gain a position as a Bounty Hunter in order to care for her mother and two younger siblings.
She closed her eyes and inhaled. Dad was in hiding and she was unable to contact him. Mom had no idea where he was or when he’d come back. If ever.
Her eyes grew hot and her nose pricked. No. She wouldn’t allow herself to melt down here, in a public place. These were the fears she indulged in late at night, in the bunk above Janet, letting the tears fall, trying her best to hide the shuddering sobs that racked her body when she let the fears consume her.
She was the eldest, technically an adult herself. Dad had taught her well. On his way out the door he’d paused and met her gaze, deep and full of meaning. “Watch over them,” he’d whispered. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Kia inhaled.
No time for daydreams. She needed to turn her secret into a plan that could get them all off of this death trap, this hive. The Hurlians, who dominated all the inhabitants of New Earth, wouldn’t let humans live off-planet, but Kia had discovered a loophole. As a Bounty Hunter she would be part of their Union, and she would no longer be under the rule of Hurlians. She would be allowed to move for her job, and she could take her family with her. So their future was up to her, all on her shoulders. She was her family’s only hope.
She shook her head, leaving the daydreams behind. Time to get back to work.
Kayzon continued to drag his target through the busy human marketplace, not giving one shit that they were all staring at him with mouths gaping open.
He heard their gasps of surprise. Their shrieks of horror.
Civilians. They were the worst part of his job.
His muscles bunched with each step, his brow ridges lowered and his jaw tightened. Let them stare. Stare and worry they would be his next target. Kayzon was a Xylan Bounty Hunter, with the insignia on his chest armor to prove it. He could grind their best warriors into space dust with one arm tied behind his back and have their blood smeared on the ground in seconds.
“Mommy, Mommy, what’s that?” an offspring cried as he passed. The mother turned and looked up into Kayzon’s harsh features. A shrill scream issued forth from her open mouth. She dramatically threw one arm in front of her as if to ward off his attack.
Kayzon puffed out a sigh of irritation and instantly regretted retracting his helmet. And not taking the longer route on his return path to his ship. This shortcut through the marketplace was a bad decision.
He was taller than any being in this crowd. His royal pigment and black Bounty Hunter armor were distinctive. But he knew what was causing their fear.
His cybernetic eye.
And the deep scar that bisected the right side of his face.
Always that damn scar.
The other humans in the busy open-air marketplace scrambled to clear a path for him as he forged through the crowd. They bumped against each other in their haste, dividing like water beasts under the bow of an ocean ship. They whispered and elbowed, nodding in his direction, staring at him with wide eyes.
He noted their strange flat features and colorless skin. They were weak compared to Xylans. There were a few larger males among them, some with darker skin tones who showed promise, but still nothing to compare with the feeblest of Xylan warriors.
Although Kayzon’s human target, THX690, had been strong and difficult to retrieve. He had fought valiantly, nearly escaping his carefully laid trap. And that had been unexpected. But on the other hand, Kayzon suspected his target wasn’t actually human, just hiding amongst the humans.
Kayzon accepted this mission to collect THX690 because the degree of difficulty had been high and the payoff astronomical. Higher-ranked Hunters had tried and failed; other Hunters had passed on the mission. But Kayzon had accepted, hoping to further his career and make his name on this retrieval, rocketing up the Bounty Hunter Leaderboards to a top ten position. But there was a reason others had failed. This mission was problematic. It led him on a convoluted trail to this obscure planet in the corner of the known universe. Finally, only a tip-off by an unknown source had led him to New Earth.
THX690 was wanted for a string of vicious murders committed against females in the red-light district of Creekan Minor and had been hiding on New Earth, thinking it the only place in the four sectors he wouldn’t be found. He was wrong.
New Earth was a hidden planet ruled by the Hurlians—a teeming mess of ghettos strung together, one after another. A planet few knew of. Hurlians historically kidnapped Earthlings, finding the nearness in their physiologies close enough to study and use for testing, or for sexual respite. On his arrival, Kayzon realized the Hurlians must have kidnapped so many humans from their home worl
d over the millennia, they’d run out of room for them elsewhere and started dumping them on a planet they’d called New Earth.
The Hurlians were notorious for their dedication to their own species. They considered all other species, including Xylan, lesser beings subject to their rule. Because of this extreme xenophobia, Hurlians were despised throughout the four sectors. They didn’t advertise the existence of this planet they’d created to cage their leftover humans, because they knew other species would be enraged. Humans were classified primitive, and their home world, on the opposite edge of the universe, was considered off limits to all species due to the Rare Indigenous Species Act. This allowed for the peaceful non-interference of this planet’s growth. Every species had signed this accord except the Hurlians. Now Kayzon knew why—they’d had a whole planet of humans they’d kidnapped and were hiding. They didn’t want anything or anyone to interfere with their human captives.
And the humans had been breeding and multiplying here for generations, far away from their home world. He suspected none of these humans were recent kidnapping victims. The Rare Indigenous Species Act had put a stop to that. The Hurlians were using this planet as a breeding tank for their humans, which he was certain was actually more convenient for them than having to go across the universe for their kidnapping.
Kayzon didn’t see a single Hurlian here on New Earth, though. Maybe the humans were left to sink or swim on their own. And they appeared to be multiplying in alarming numbers. This planet was heavily populated. This growth, combined with their isolation, would explain their lack of modern environmental technology. Smog filled the air, sewers were open and exposed, and trash was strewn about in the streets. Yet he noted they had power to run machines and lights. This planet was an odd combination of high tech and primitive.
Kayzon shrugged and continued walking. None of this was his concern, nor were the reactions to his appearance. He was here to extract his target. This was a high-paying mission.
Strength was important in a Bounty Hunter, as were patience and honor. But most important of all was the ability to think and to plan. The cunning hunter was the one who rocketed up the Leaderboards. And this hunt would be his ticket to the top. He was Banished from Chronos. He had no line, no Bride or offspring.
But the gods had shown him the true path of a warrior. No matter what the outside universe thought of his features or his line or the fact that his father was the notorious traitor Kroga of Seventy-Five, he was still Kayzon, a warrior who brought in the scum of the universe for extradition. And this mission would be another step on his own personal God-led path to absolution.
He continued on his route, determined to leave New Earth as soon as possible.
“Kia, look at that. What is it?”
The bone-thin, filthy boy Kia had been about to expel from the marketplace, the one who was trying yet again to pickpocket patrons, pointed at something behind her. His eyes were huge, and his voice trembled. Kia whipped around, curious to see what was going on, and sucked in a breath. She stood in shock, like everyone else in the crowded marketplace.
It couldn’t be.
She turned back to the boy. “Out,” she ordered, shoving a loaf of bread into his arms and then pushing against his back to get him going. “Get out of here now.”
“But—”
She raised her voice at him. “Get. Out.”
His eyes widened even more. He grabbed the bread, turned on his heel and fled.
Kia stepped forward, her attention now focused on the tall Bounty Hunter making his way through the crowded marketplace square. He wore the distinctive shiny black armor they all wore, and there was his insignia on his chest.
She just couldn’t even believe this was happening. Off-worlders almost never came to New Earth. No one left this planet and no one visited. Except for the Hurlians. They could do whatever they wanted. The bastards.
Small children were running from the Bounty Hunter, and people screamed in fear. She grimaced. There was no sound of battle or blaster fire. What was wrong? He seemed to simply be walking, dragging something behind him, and they were terrified. Just the sight of the powerful Bounty Hunter had people scurrying? Wow.
He grew closer, and the crowds parted so she could get a better view, and she gasped.
A Xylan warrior. The Bounty Hunter was a goddamn Xylan warrior.
Kia had never seen a Xylan in real life. She’d seen pictures and heard all the stories everyone had heard—that they were mean motherfuckers, they brooked no disobedience, and they never raped. They also had this weird thing where they were very into their skin color. If you were dark skinned you were rated the highest members of their society, and if you were lighter skinned, well, you were shit outta luck.
This was totally bizarre to Kia. No one cared about that on New Earth. On New Earth they were all a mix of every type of skin color, hair color and eye color. Kia had black hair she attempted to keep sleek but often ended up in a poofy cloud, her eyes were black and her skin was medium toned. All that meant was she looked a little like her mother and a little more like her father, and that’s all that anyone cared about. Status on New Earth was attached to how much currency your family had and whether you were unigod or multigod. Beauty and youth could sway people, but yeah, mainly it was all about currency and being part of the religion that was in charge.
Kia had never told a single person, but her secret belief was that religion was all a big con, this talk of unigod and multigod. She couldn’t care less about the logistics of faith. Because, come on, what god in his right mind would let his people fight and kill each other if he was supposedly a just god? None of it made any sense. Religion was one more reason for people to fight and to be divided, as if any more reasons were needed.
And why was it the god or gods of each religion always seemed to conveniently be men? And why were the Deacons of unigod and Priests of multigod all men?
Yeah, the whole thing was a load of crap.
Her feet started moving. Her eyes remained glued to the Bounty Hunter’s every movement. He happened to be walking unerringly in her direction. Maybe she could speak to him. Would he give her some tips on how to pass the test to get her license? It wasn’t exactly easy to become a Bounty Hunter. She’d seen the testing parameters. It was fucking hard.
Kia couldn’t believe she’d actually get a chance to see a real-life Bounty Hunter in action and maybe even talk to one. Her stomach churned with excitement.
Oh wow, he was so close now. She was seriously all aflutter, like a little girl. She forced herself to remain still and kept that goofy grin off her face. He came up right alongside her, his eyes skimming over her and past as if she were nothing, and kept walking.
Her shoulders slumped. Well, that was underwhelming.
She got a good look at his face, though, at the features that made the others scream in fear.
Kia snorted. What was the big deal? He was striking. Something about him instantly sparked her curiosity, and to be truthful, caused a flame of awareness in her belly. He was so tall, so strong. His shoulders were so broad he blocked out the suns. Brown and gold coils of hair flowed past his shoulders. His dark skin practically glowed, it was so beautiful. No wonder the Xylan were so into dark pigment, because geez, this warrior’s skin was gorgeous.
And his features were fascinating. There was an enormous scar bisecting the right side of his face, and it started at the ridges on his forehead and ran over his right eye and down the whole side, creating a deep groove. Also, that eye was obviously cybernetic. It was white while his other eye remained hazel. So to some, that glowing white eye might be scary as hell, to her it was totally cool. Same with the scar. It told a story. A story she wanted to hear.
Kia followed him, watching his every powerful step, his every gesture. The Hunter suit was amazing. There was nothing like it on New Earth. No one here had technology like that.
He was dragging his target behind him like a slab of meat. She saw that his hands were claw-tip
ped and he had only four fingers instead of five.
Huh.
She was unable to make out if the human he’d captured was male or female because the target was bagged from head to toe. She was surprised to see the Bounty Hunter traveling with his target through a busy marketplace; this wasn’t something you saw every day. No off-worlders came to New Earth. She doubted most of them knew of its existence. She was ninety-nine percent certain the Hurlians kept New Earth hidden.
In fact, she’d never seen another Bounty Hunter in real life. Only on that reality show Bounty Hunters: Sector Two everyone watched through the black-market feed. It followed a clan of Creekan Bounty Hunters who worked throughout the four sectors, capturing the worst criminals of the universe. She’d watched every episode, an instant fan.
Kia managed to elbow her way through the crowd and matched his stride. He was so freaking tall, her head barely lined up with his shoulder. He looked mean as hell, and for some reason, she liked that.
“Hello,” she shouted up at him.
He ignored her.
Hmm. Maybe he hadn’t heard her. She tried again. “Hi, my name is Kia. And you are…?”
The Xylan warrior slowed down to course correct around a cart that sold pots and other cooking utensils, which caused his armored body to bump slightly against hers. He looked down and growled. His harsh hazel eye and that other cybernetic eye clashed with hers for a moment. She sucked in a breath. His gaze seemed to drill directly through her, inside and out. Like a gust of wind or a blast of energy.
It almost seemed something was passing between them, like they were having a personal connection.
Then he looked away, disregarded her and continued forward as if she were an annoying bug.
Darn. Well, the attraction certainly wasn’t mutual.
“Kia, what are you doing? Come over here! Get away from that Bounty Hunter! Don’t be stupid!” a woman cried.
The Alien Bounty Hunters Complete Series: Books 1-8 Page 25