Claimed
The Stranger #1
by
Claudia Balvenie
@claudiabalvenie
claudiabalvenie.com
Copyright 2015.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the author.
CHAPTER 1
Heather stared into the dark abyss, waiting for her new master to come and claim his prize.
The fall of civilization wasn't so long ago that Heather did not understand the absurdity of what she was doing. Though she did not know the world before, in her twenty years on the planet she'd quizzed her grandparents about what life was like when technology ruled. Now, humans banded together in small communities simply trying to survive, while mutated creatures prowled the night.
And they gave their women to wild men to ensure their survival.
She shivered in the thin white dress, her only clothing allowed. For countless years, the Stranger demands were the same. Every seven years another woman was chosen from among their ranks to serve him as his bride. In return, he kept the perimeter of their community safe from the blood-sucking creatures that roamed the planet.
It was a good system, the rest of her people believed. They were a large community, more than a thousand individuals, so the likelihood of one person or their immediate family being chosen was low. In order to make the sacrifice more bearable, the chosen's family would receive great benefits during the seven year interim. The propaganda machine stated it was a great honor. The young woman was treated like a princess during the weeks between her choosing and her being taken. Add to all of this, if Heather desired it, she could refuse the honor, and another would take her place.
Heather knew she would never refuse.
But it was not for the standard reasons. She could easily tell the others that she willingly went to help her family. That was true, they were poor and her elder sister was quite fertile. The family grew nearly every year, and extra food would not be turned down. She could also say it was because her career was not as important as others. She was an old-earth historian, with her major studies in the recent technological past. While she certainly believed her work was useful, she had to admit she was not providing food or water for the community, and therefore was not essential personnel.
But none of this mattered. The real reason she wanted to be chosen is that she'd always been fascinated by the Stranger.
As a child of six, when he first came into town, she had been enraptured. He came at the darkest part of the evening, riding tall on a black horse. The horse itself was a marvel, almost demonic in nature, with eyes that glowed with an inner flame.
The Stranger though, he captured her imagination. He wore only black, with long black hair that flowed freely down his back, under a cowboy hat. A cloak dramatically billowed behind him. His face was covered in a mask. The only skin, pale as it was, was visible around his pale blue eyes. His voice, deep and commanding, sent thrills down her spine, even as a child. Everything about him imprinted upon her, and she knew she desired no other.
She spent the next fourteen years making certain that she would be standing here when he came. No matter what it took, she would be his bride.
So now, at twenty, she stood clad only in the fine, thin, white dress awaiting the only man she'd ever wanted. Her dark, thick hair whipped around her face as she stared, willing her eyes to make his shape out in the distance.
Her people stood behind her a distance, forming a semi-circle. They held torches to combat the dark as well as the cold, and shivered together. She kept her back straight, fiercely facing the darkness and frosty weather. She knew his time approached, as their faint mumbling fell silent.
The distant sound of hoof beats invaded her eardrums. The time was now. He was coming.
As her dark master approached, she felt the thrill of fear wash over her body. She was afraid, and that was exactly what intoxicated her about this man.
As one, the rest of her people fell to their knees in front of him. She alone stood tall, her dark eyes finding his pale ones, unflinching. She had dreamed of this moment for years, when finally his full attention was on her, alone. She would not cry or shy away, as others had. She was far stronger and far more willing.
He slowly made a circle around her, still mounted, his eyes taking in every inch of her body, until finally he stood in front of her again, his gaze locked with hers. It was different than the other rituals she had seen. She knew she had his attention. Finally the barest hint of a smile touched his lips, only enough that she could see it.
“Who gives this bride unto me?” His deep, formal voice queried the crowd.
The mayor stepped forward, wringing his hands in worry. He clearly felt guilty for what he had asked Heather to do. “I, uh.. our community has chosen...”
“No,” The Stranger said simply.
This confused the mayor. He looked from one side to the other, searching for help from the other townsfolk. The ritual had always gone the same way before. “N-no?” he stammered.
“No,” The Stranger continued. “This one has chosen herself.”
A small smile touched her own lips, and her cheeks flushed.
“I, uh, is she displeasing to you, my Lord? Shall we offer a different woman?” he asked, worry clear in his voice. “We have the lists, I can give you the second, or third place winners?” A shriek sounded from the middle of the crowd, a soft sobbing from somewhere else. Her eyes never left his.
“No,” the Stranger stated firmly. His eyes were only for her.
“Perform the ceremony.” He commanded. He lowered his hand to her, covered in a supple black leather. She lay her own bare hand in his. Electricity shot down her arm at his touch.
A voice droned on in the background, speaking the rituals incantations. It was a promise, that if she pleased him, that he would protect her people for as long as seven years. And the words, that she'd memorized so long before, but knew she'd never need, to end this contract if it ever became necessary. She could break the whole pact if only she spoke those special words, and he was honor bound to release her.
He would no doubt withdraw his protections from her people then as well.
“Is it done?” The Stranger asked, when the voice finally fell silent.
“Y... yes. You are wed.”
With one fluid movement, he swept her from her feet and settled her in front of him on the nightmare horse. She could feel the heat from his hard body pressing into hers, as he reared the horse back dramatically.
Without another word, she and the Stranger plunged into the darkness.
CHAPTER 2
The horse was faster than any she'd ever ridden before, and the countryside blurred together.
The spell of his eyes was broken as they raced into the night. The silence between them stretched on, until she could take no more.
“You have not aged.” She stated.
He said nothing. Still she could feel the warmth of him, welcoming in the cold evening. His arms were on either side of her body, a small break in the wind. She tried another tact to get him to speak.
“Where are we going?” She asked.
Again, he did not speak.
“I've never been so far from home before,” she began.
“Foolish woman,” the deep voice sounded, a rumble against her back. “Why did you wish this?”
She took a deep breath, trying to keep the excitement and alarm from her voice. “Since the moment I
first saw you, I knew that I would be your bride.”
“This is no romance. You should not be desirous of what is to come. Surely you know what they say of me?”
She had, and dismissed them. Her mother would tell her the story of the returned bride, one who had come back mad and elderly. She ranted of terrible experiments, being taken by many men, forced breedings. Heather had ignored it, knowing they were simply scare tactics.
“You should have married within your own people. This will go harshly for you.” He continued, the rebuke stinging in her ears.
“This position should be a sacrifice. Instead you clearly desire it.”
He was silent for a long time. She couldn't help it, no matter what he said, he was there, almost holding her, the length of his body pressing against her own. She'd wanted this for so long, his words couldn't pierce through.
“It is moot. By the time this is done, you will be pleading for it to stop. You have no idea what is in your future.”
His gloved hand slowly wrapped around her waist then, and pulled her tight to him. Some of the rumors said that he was not human at all, and was as mutated as any of the creatures that roamed the wasteland. What she could feel pressing against her seemed human enough for her.
And so they plunged, deeper into the darkness, further from the only home she had known, captive to an unknown master.
CHAPTER 3
Dawn was still an hour or more away when she first caught sight of the castle. At first she could not believe such construction could exist, at least not in this continent. And yet, there it stood, masses of hewn stone built high into a rocky outcropping.
It was an architectural marvel like nothing she'd thought still existed, not after the fall of humanity. And yet there it was, larger than life itself. The horse began to slow.
“How...?” She asked, simply, knowing he would understand the question.
“I have myriad servants.”
“But...?”
“I have my reasons.”
It was then that she caught sight of the creature nearby. Unbidden, a shriek escaped her lips, causing the demon horse to flinch itself.
“Mutant!” She yelled, pointing.
He pulled the horse to a stop, as the creature shambled into view. Her breath came in short, shaky bursts. She felt him slide to the ground behind her.
“Do not fear.” He said, and lay a hand briefly upon her thigh. He stepped closer to the creature, his hand on the hilt of his sword. She blinked at the realization that he carried a sword with him. She'd never though about how he too would need to defend himself in this land.
A second mutant appeared, and a third. She lay her hands over her mouth, trying not to draw any more attention to herself. Since he'd protected her people for so long, she'd never seen one of the creatures closely. They resembled elderly men, mostly balding but with long, stringy hairs left clinging to their scalps. Their mouths were full of sharp, pointy teeth, which she knew they used to drain the blood from their victims. Their bodies were pink and wrinkled, all the way down to their hairy manhoods. She turned her head away then. Having saved herself for the Stranger, she had never seen a man's parts, and had no desire for her first view to be of these creatures.
Her attention was drawn back to her master. He was speaking to the creatures in a guttural tongue that she'd never heard before. They responded in kind, their voices growing heated. She'd never known that the mutants had their own language, let alone that the Stranger could understand it!
Suddenly the two on either side of the Stranger leaped for him. With one fluid motion, he beheaded one and stabbed the other through the heart. As the two bodies dropped heavily to the ground, he pressed the blade under the first one's chin. After a long moment, the creature finally nodded, and the Stranger pulled his blade away. The creature raced off into the night.
The stranger walked back to the horse. He pulled a rag from one of his saddle bags and began to wipe down his blade. He muttered “Rogues” under his breath.
Heather was still in shock. “They're sentient.”
He blinked up at her, stunned by the question. “Of course.”
“We had no idea, we thought they were just monsters. All they do is kill.”
He sighed deeply at that. “That is not all they do.”
CHAPTER 4
They finally reached the castle, complete with a drawbridge across a chasm. It was lowered by men in hooded robes, and they stalked inside.
It was like a walled city. Even at this hour of the night, dozens of people raced around doing chores, shouting orders, tending to their business.
And every one of them was a mutant.
She had stiffened in front of him, her fear near to overwhelming her. The faces were so different and monstrous that she had a hard time comprehending. Every place she moved her eyes, some new horror lay in front of her. Some were the same as the blood suckers she'd seen outside. Others, slimy, with long tentacles that moved around their body of their own accord. Even more hairy, tall, and lupine.
A group of robed men, or mutants for all she could tell, stood next to the horse. The Stranger slid off and handed the reigns to one of them, while a couple of others drug her down and into their strong arms. She began to struggle against them.
The Stranger turned to her, faint annoyance in his voice. “These are my subjects. They will not harm you. Unless I require it of them, of course.”
She took several deep breaths, but she could swear she felt talons at the end of one of their hands. Still, this was what she had wanted when she rigged the election so that she could be the bride. She took another couple of breaths, and nodded. “I am alright.”
“Good.” He said, and nodded to the men. “Take her to my bedchamber. It is time that this ritual was consummated.”
With that, the creatures drug her away from him into the bowels of the castle.
CHAPTER 5
She was forced deeper and deeper into the castle, until finally the men pushed open a heavy door, revealing the most ornate bedchamber she'd ever seen. All of the walls were covered in costly tapestries, the bed, far larger than her own quarters in town, was lined in furs. A bear skin rug lay In front of a tremendous hearth. She stared, trying to understand. Her studies had taught her that this was simply not how her ancestors lived. Did he truly build this whole structure? And why?
She was pulled from her thoughts by the clacking of chain links against one another. One of the robed men roughly jerked both her wrists in front of her, while the other one held her tightly by the shoulders. He clamped a heavy cuff onto each of her wrists. Once secure, the one who had pinned her hands moved to the wall, cranking a gear.
She quickly realized it was attached to a pulley, mounted to the ceiling. Her hands rose above her, eventually supporting her whole weight.
“Wait, wait!” She cried, as she began to be pulled from the ground. “I am willing, this is not necessary!”
They looked from one to the other, hesitating. Then the one at the pulley shrugged and kept going, until she was fully off the ground, only able to touch with one pointed toe.
“Don't pretend you can't understand me, you knew what the Stranger was telling you to do!” She cried. He pulled it up one more notch, until even her toe could not touch the ground.
A soft chuckle emerged from one of the robed creature's throats. He moved in front of her, tilting his head back so she could barely see inside his hood. Sharp teeth and a dark red mouth was all she could make out. He slowly reached out and grabbed her breast in his taloned hand. He squeezed, slowly, until his grip became painful.
“We will have you,” He stated, his voice strange as if his mouth was not made for human sounds. “When he is done, we will be rewarded.”
She shook her head, horror crossing her face. “But, I am his bride.”
He laughed again, and released her breast. “And? You are the only one?”
Jealousy, strong and angry shot through her. Of course she knew he'd
had other brides, she'd seen two with her own eyes. But she thought she was special, somehow. After all, she had saved herself for him, she had desired him her entire life. Wasn't that enough
The two left her then, alone in a stone room, suspended from the ceiling, uncertain thoughts racing through her mind.
CHAPTER 6
When the Stranger finally came to his bedchamber, her arms had already gone numb from holding up her whole body. Still, the excitement at seeing him, all black and frightening, was enough to chase all the fear and uncertainty from her mind.
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