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Iris has used her ability to dream her target’s location to gain recognition and to be the most efficient hunter she could be. The psychic knives that appear at the ends of her hands help her to stun rather than kill prey when a death is not necessary. Nothing escapes her, not livestock, not lost people. Anything that runs, she can hunt.
When the Citadel calls on her to help find a lost object in an alien jungle, how can she resist the urge to test her skills on another world?
Venin is a throw-back shifter of the Azon variety. He has the ability to embrace his peoples’ most ancient form and use the instincts that accompany it to his advantage.
Partnering with Iris is not his first inclination but once he gets to know the hunter, he wants nothing more than to sprint with her in the wild and test out both of their basic instincts to the max.
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A Hunter’s Dream
Copyright © 2012 Viola Grace
ISBN: 978-1-77111-195-9
Cover art by Martine Jardin
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
Published by Devine Destinies
An imprint of eXtasy Books
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A Hunter’s Dream
Tales of the Citadel Book 5
By
Viola Grace
Chapter One
Iris watched the beast circle its target. The beltharo was a predator of the highest order and yet, it always chose the weakest targets. The current object of its hunger was a young woman who huddled, trembling, against a rock.
“Galria? Please stay still and don’t try to run. I will draw its attention, but if you move, it will turn to attack you. Do you understand? If you cannot bear the sight, close your eyes and cover your ears the moment that I engage it.”
The woman stared at her, wide-eyed at her appearance. “I understand.” Her voice was a low whisper.
Iris fought a smile. She had been attending a formal event in her town, receiving an award for being the prime hunter of the region. Her hair was up in elaborate curls, her best boots rose to mid-thigh and her matching vest covered her in the softest leather.
She looked like she was about to attend the most formal of hunts and as she engaged her psychic knives, she felt like it.
Concentrating on the business at hand, Iris let out a harsh groan to draw her prey. The beltharo whirled and lashed its scaled tail inches from the young woman pinned against the rock.
A peculiar calm swept through her as it always did when she hunted. The beast charged and she sidestepped, slashing at the animal with her psychic knife. It screamed and arched violently away and she pursued it.
The beltharo curled away and tried to attack her once again. She leapt into the air and came down on its neck, burying her knives into its spine. The animal collapsed and whimpered as it shifted slightly under her.
When she felt consciousness leave the beast, Iris got to her feet. She retracted her psychic knives and went to rescue her target.
“Galria? We can go now. I have a rhesh waiting for us.” Iris put her arm around the girl and helped her to her feet.
“I have been lost for two days. How did you find me?” Galria was spotted with blood, splashed with mud and very pale.
“It is what I do. The woods are no mystery to me, pet.” Iris smiled. “The only mystery is why it took so long for your father to ask for help.”
Galria blushed. “I told him I was running away with Travez. He must have thought I had gone through with it.”
“You obviously didn’t find your young man.”
“I couldn’t find the rock where we were to have met and then darkness fell and I got lost.”
She sobbed and Iris gave her a one-armed hug while they walked to the clearing where the clawed and fanged riding beasts were waiting. “Have you ridden a rhesh before?”
Galria had a stunned look on her face. “No. I have not. I have heard that some ride them, but I usually ride a manuk.”
Iris helped the young woman into the saddle. “His name is Torth and he is a calm one. Just keep your weight in the stirrups and hold on. I will lead you.”
Iris got onto her own mount, Teddi, and took the leads from Torth. “There is a pouch with water and another one with food in it. We will be moving slowly through the woods so you can eat while we walk.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much.” Galria immediately grabbed for the water and carefully took a few sips.
Comforted that her charge was not going to try gorging herself on water or food, Iris shifted forward and Teddi took his first steps on their path home.
It took a certain posture to be comfortable on a rhesh, but Iris had plenty of practice. The more common manuk with their six legs and herbivore tendencies made them the preferred beasts of burden in most areas, but if you wanted to get into the forest, it was rhesh all the way.
Iris looked behind her a few times during their trek out of the woods and Galria was surprisingly calm after her ordeal. She had finished eating and drinking and was watching the forest go by.
They were in a wide-enough area for Iris to bring her mount almost in line with Torth. She looked at the young woman with concern. “Are you injured elsewhere?”
Galria burst into tears. “Only my heart. I thought that Travez wanted me, was willing to run away with me, but when I saw him in the woods he was in the arms of another woman. He said he wanted to marry me but he was with her.”
Iris winced. “Is there any way that you misinterpreted what you saw?”
She sniffled. “Only if he slipped and fell into her genitals, repeatedly.”
Iris hissed in sympathy. “Oh, that isn’t good.”
“I couldn’t face my father, I couldn’t face Travez, so I ran. Now, I realize I should have just gone home and admitted what went on. I want to live and I want to find a man who won’t screw another woman just because he isn’t expecting me early to the rendezvous.”
She wiped her nose on her sleeve but straightened, regaining her dignity.
Iris grinned. “That is the spirit. Wait for the man who likes you for you and who will be waiting for you to choose the time and place. Not all men are like Travez. Some are better, some are worse, but all have something to offer. You just have to wait and use your instincts. They will tell you when the man is right. The right timing sometimes follows and sometimes, you have to make it yourself.”
Galria grinned. “Do you have a man in your life?”
“Sort of. I am a Deccoran. We believe in finding our mate in our dreams and then finding that man and bringing him into our reality. It takes a bit of practice to recognize the signs, but I am on the cusp of finding my mate. I only have to wait for a few more signals from the universe and he will be here.”
Galria was amazed. “I have heard of Deccorans but never met one before.”
“We don’t really advertise. Following
dreams as messages from the creator does not sit well with many, but I managed to find you after dreaming of your location last night, so I think that it works.”
“What? Why didn’t you come to me then?”
Iris sighed. “I could see the location that I found you in and an aura of danger but nothing solid. I didn’t see you, but when they asked me to look for you, I went straight to the spot of my dreams and there you were.”
The young woman blinked. “Oh. Thank you for heeding your dreams.”
“It is my job. Now, we are entering an open area and there is at least one other beltharo in the area. The rhesh are going to run and you are going to have to hang onto the saddle ridge with all of your might. We are going to move fast.”
Galria looked nervous, but when she nodded, Iris sighed and shifted in her saddle.
Teddi’s four ears swivelled as he took in what she was about to do. He jerked his wide head at Torth and the other beast perked up and they both rippled into their running postures.
The fur of the rhesh sleeked back and they crouched low.
“Here we go.”
She nudged Teddi lightly with her heels and both beasts leapt forward. The howl of the beltharo was unmistakable and while she crouched over her beast’s neck, Iris prepared her bolt gun.
The moment that they cleared the woods and entered the open space of the grassland, the beltharo broke from cover.
It was fast, scaly, clawed and wore a crest of feathers that showed it to be a female and probably very hungry.
Iris sighed at the necessity of wounding the animal, but as it gained on them, there was no choice. Teddi ran flat out across the plain, his muscles bunching and extending with every great leap.
Iris turned in her saddle and took aim at the bounding predator. Timing the shot with the cadence of Teddi and the beltharo, the bolt flew free and lodged in the female’s crest, paralyzing her instantly. She couldn’t even howl.
As the huge animal skidded to a halt, Iris pulled Teddi to a halt, bringing Torth in with him.
“Why aren’t we going?” Galria was terrified.
“I cannot leave her wounded. I either kill her or remove the bolt. No hunter leaves an animal defenceless and injured.” Iris turned Teddi back toward the beltharo and they walked up to the locked predator.
Iris dismounted and moved swiftly to the scaly head. At the base of the crest, where she had fired her bolt, was the nerve centre of the animal. “Don’t speak of what you are about to see. It would not go well for you.”
Iris charged up her psychic knives and plunged them into the beast’s brain, causing it to black out.
The moment that the animal was completely still beneath her, she retracted her knives and worked the bolt out of its skull, pressing the hole closed with her fist.
When Iris turned and wiped her bloody hand on her trousers, she saw Galria’s appalled expression.
“Yes, that is right. You were saved by a morinial. Now, I will get you home and you need never speak of it again.”
Galria’s lips pressed closed and she straightened in her saddle.
Iris fought her amusement and regained her own mount. With a low hum to Teddi, they regained their speed and continued their way through the forest and to the roads that would help Galria get home.
Her family was relieved to see her and Iris was handed a small bag of coins. Galria’s father nodded. “Thank you, hunter.”
Iris inclined her head in response. “It is what I do.”
The moment Galria was clear of the rhesh, Iris wheeled her beasts and galloped into the sunset. There was no sense waiting to be invited to the party. Now that Galria knew what she was, there was no way that the invitation would ever appear.
With the coins in her vest next to her skin, she returned to her home. It had been a long day and she really needed a good night’s sleep. Who knew what dreams the next day would bring?
Chapter Two
Her mother interrupted Iris’s morning tea. “Iris, did you really kill two beltharo yesterday?”
Iris sipped and blinked at her mother. “Did you really substitute low fat for all of Father’s cream?”
Ravon Markee blinked in shock. “How did you know that?”
Iris tapped the side of her nose. “I can smell it. Plus, Father has been complaining about it for two weeks.”
Ravon took a seat across from Iris and poured herself a cup of tea. “That is cheating. Do you think he knows?”
She chuckled at her mother’s blush. “Yes. If I can smell it, my father can smell it. He is simply humouring you. Why are you doing it?”
“He has been getting a little heavier around the midsection. I just wanted to keep him fit and healthy.”
Iris laughed at her mother’s mutterings. She inherited not only her mother’s looks but also her strange urge for low-toned conversations.
“Now, peapod, what happened yesterday? I thought you were attending your ceremonies. It was a little shocking to have them announce you as Prime Hunter and not have you there.”
“I was called away to rescue a lost woman from a few towns over. Teddi and Torth got a good workout and I stunned two of the beltharo with my knives.”
“Did anyone see?”
“The young woman saw, but she is unlikely to speak of it. Something about a beltharo trying to kill you has a tendency to blur social niceties.” Iris offered her mother some scones.
The baker had been by early in the morning, as had the farmer. Iris had bought her supplies for the next few days, including butter and milk. She grinned at her mother. “The cream is full fat.”
Ravon grinned. “Thank the stars. It has been harder on me than it has your father. Do you have any butter?”
Laughter spilled out of Iris as she and her mother exchanged pleasantries over scones, muffins and tea.
“Your father and I had an interesting visitor yesterday.” Ravon took a sip of her tea and smiled.
“Did you? That’s nice. Visitors are always welcome and interesting ones are so hard to find.” Thwarting her mother’s teasing was always entertaining and a very easy thing to enjoy.
Her mother let out a gust of air. “Fine. The Citadel has heard that there is a morinial in our town and they want to meet her.”
Iris leaned back in her chair. “You don’t say. How do they know it’s a she? And why did they come to you?”
“Your father does have certain status as mayor, you know.”
“What did he tell them?”
“He would look into it and get back to them today.”
“He is so very politic when he has to be.” Iris smiled. “I did wonder how long it would be before someone spoke out. What was the Citadel offering?”
“They were very vague. Something about a position and an assignment to seek out something. They seemed eager.”
Iris looked at her chiller and the breadbox. “If I am away for a few days, can you eat my food and weed my garden?”
“Of course, peapod. Do you think you will be gone long?”
Iris cleaned up the dishes and washed them in the sink. “Well, Mama, last night, I dreamed of the stars.”
Iris rode Teddi up to the gates of the Citadel outpost Keroa. The two men on guard in their smoke grey and black robes greeted her. “Welcome, traveller. How may we help you?”
She dismounted from her rhesh and looked at them in turn. “I understand that someone at the Citadel has been looking for a morinial. I decided to audition for the position.”
One of the men stepped forward and held out his hand, palm up. “Allow me to lead you inside, candidate.”
“And read my talent at the same time? Certainly. Take my hand, Teller, and determine if I am a freak by Keroa standards.” She put one hand out and kept her other on the reins.
“Harvin will take your rhesh for you and get it something to eat.” The other guard took Teddi and led him into the compound. The gates shut and locked with their guards inside.
Iris was inside the Ci
tadel and she had to find out why folk were looking for her. In her eleven years as an active talent, or morinial, no one had ever come looking for her for anything other than her skill as hunter. Some days, anything new was interesting.
The outpost was small, it held twenty members of the Citadel who involved themselves with the community and used Keroa to propel themselves to the outer planets of the system.
Few Keroans had ever been inside the buildings, so it was fascinating to see them up close.
The guard who had a grip on her hand suddenly looked nervous. She came to the awareness that he had just determined her talent.
“Don’t worry. I have not accidentally discharged my blades in almost a decade.” She chuckled at his small sigh of relief.
“Thank you. When awareness of your talent struck, I was pointedly focused on where your hand was.”
Iris almost hooted with laughter, but she restrained it to a light snigger.
They passed into the main building and the guard took her to an office. He knocked on the door. “Administrator. There is someone here to see you.”
“Come in.”
The guard left her with a bow and she opened the door in front of her. Two creatures were inside and since Iris had never seen an alien before, she had to guess at what they were based on Alliance information streams.
Two men turned to her, one crimson and one bronze, both with savage features. She grinned at them and inclined her head. “Gentlemen, I believe that I am the morinial you are looking for.”
Chapter Three
To her shock, both men’s nostrils flared. She knew that expression. They were both of species that used scent to gain information.
“What have your noses told you, gentlemen?” Her lips were twitching in amusement.