by Zara Zenia
"I've come to collect my wife," I tried to explain as calmly as I could. "But I'm late, really late."
"What flight was she on?" she whimpered.
"The one from Earth."
"There are lots of flights from Earth, sir."
"The most recent one!"
She flew back in her seat and picked up the phone. I was worried that she was calling security, but then she said.
"Carina... She's been waiting for you in the arrivals lounge," and she pointed over to it.
"Thank you. Thank you!"
I sprinted over and burst through the door. The room was packed out but amongst all the different species, the human stood out.
"Carina!" I called.
She glanced over at me with a little sadness in her eyes. She was beautiful, the most beautiful and delicate, little creature I'd ever seen. I ran over to her.
"Carina! I'm so sorry I'm late!"
She looked at the blood, the torn clothes and the cut on my head and shrank back in her seat.
"Who are you?" she screamed.
She even looked so mesmerizingly pretty when she was terrified and I had the strongest compulsion to reach out and hold her. But as I moved closer, she screamed.
"Get away from me!"
People nearby looked over and a tall purple creature walked over.
"You want me to call security?" he asked Carina.
"I'm her husband," I explained.
He looked at my muscles and nodded before walking away.
"You're Gar'zul?" she gasped.
"Yes! I couldn't wait to meet you."
I grabbed hold of her hand and she pulled away.
"Get the fuck away from me!"
Chapter 6
Carina
No, no, No! This can't be happening. He said he was coming to collect me but he can't be my future husband. He’s hideous!
The guy was covered in blood, had a great, big gash on his head and a crazy glazed look in his eyes as though he was shell-shocked.
"You're Gar'zul?" I asked again.
"That's right."
Jesus, even his voice was scary.
"Are you sure you're not like, his bodyguard or something? I was told I was going to be the bride of a wealthy man, an athlete who passed all the tests at the matchmaking service.”
"I'll be honest," he said in his gruff, voice. "I don't normally look like this. I was in an accident on the way here to meet you. That's why I'm late. I'm sorry. I don't mean to scare you."
He tried to hold my hand again but I wrenched it away.
"No!"
I started to cry. This was a terrifying nightmare. I hoped that I had fallen asleep on the shuttle and was now caught in the grasp of a nightmare. I should have married Marco instead, I thought. At least then I would be on Earth and away from this beast that looked as though he climbed out from the depths of hell.
"Would you like to come home now?"
"No!" I screamed, fully aware that everyone was staring at us.
Yet, despite his appearance, there was a softness in his eyes. When he tried to hold my hand for the third time, I didn't pull away. I felt as though I was in the presence of a wild and wounded animal.
"You're really Gar'zul?" I asked.
"Yes! I've been so excited to meet you. You're beautiful," he said. "So beautiful."
Looking around the lounge at all the strange alien faces, I realized I had no choice. This monster was my life now.
"Ok," I sighed as I relented. "Let's go."
I didn't know what I was expecting but I certainly didn't expect to be marrying a man that looked more like a devil. As we walked through the spaceport, I tried not to look at him. Instead, I focused on my strange surroundings. There were so many people walking by, so many different species. It would seem that there were no two people that looked alike. Meanwhile, I couldn't help but notice that everyone was looking at Gar'zul as we passed. Was it because he was so terrifying looking? Was it because he was covered in blood with ripped clothes and a look of sheer madness on his face? I couldn't say. All I knew was that occasionally, people would approach and slap him on the back. As we stepped outside, the sun hit my face, I cowered and jumped back, shielding my face with my arm.
"Oh, my God! The sun, it's so bright!"
Having spent my whole life in the mine, I wasn't accustomed to sunlight, and I certainly wasn't used to the bright, blinding light on this planet.
"We are closer to the sun than Earth is," he explained. "You will get used to it, I hope but-"
Our conversation was soon interrupted by a group of young aliens that looked just like he did with blue skin and a long tail.
"Yo! Gar'zul! It's you! Whoa! What happened to you?"
"Stop for a picture, please?"
"You were dynamite the other day!"
Gar'zul stopped to talk to them and even stood for a photo before the youngsters scurried off with smiles on their faces.
"Sorry, they were kids from my planet," he said as he showed me to the car.
"So, you knew them?" I asked.
He shrugged.
"They knew me," he replied.
I had never been in a car before. Of course, I had seen them on Earth but I'd never known anyone who could afford one. This, however, was like no car I had ever seen back home. It was more like a miniature spaceship that drove itself, with every surface a window.
"Belt up," he said as he helped fasten my seatbelt. "You won't be used to the speed this thing moves at."
He leaned over me to secure my body to the seat. He smelled strange, like a feral animal and I could smell the blood on him too.
"Are you sure you're ok?" I asked.
"Sure," he said. "I'm no stranger to violence."
His words chilled me and I froze to the spot, the breath failing to come out of me.
"Sorry, shit. That sounded crazy," he said. "I mean I'm a professional fighter. I'm used to the occasional injury now and again."
That somehow did not placate my worries. I kept my eyes on his face as the car glided out onto the highway. I was told he was a wealthy billionaire but this dude looks more like a homeless predator. And I was supposed to be his wife? I just couldn't get my head around the idea. The more I stared at him, the more frightening he seemed to be. Then I looked down at his hands and saw the swollen knuckles and the scars. Would he ever use those fists on me? And there’s no way he’s a billionaire! Don't they all have fine, regal features and wear fancy suits?
"So, you could easily afford the mail order bride service?" I asked.
It was a loaded question. I needed to know more about him and he certainly didn't look as though he was as wealthy as he said.
"Oh, yeah sure," he said. "It wasn't that much."
"I hate to ask this but... are you rich? I was told you were rich," I said and instantly regretted it.
I was petrified that I had angered him with my rude question but he just smiled and looked at me.
"Yeah, I'm rich. Don't worry about it, the service didn't send you out here to marry some poor bastard. You'll have everything you need. You won't have to work or worry about a thing."
There was that softness in his eyes again. It was such a stark contrast to the bulging muscles and scars that ran across his body.
"So, anyway," he continued. "I really hope you'll be happy here. We're just approaching the city center so we won't be long. There! Look in the distance!"
He pointed ahead of us. There was a gargantuan building that loomed up on the horizon like a ship in the night. It was the biggest thing I'd ever seen.
"What the hell is that?"
"That's the arena. It's where I live."
He beamed as he spoke, obviously proud of himself.
"You live there? Is it like a huge apartment block or something?"
He chuckled to himself and I couldn't help but smile at seeing the giant with a grin on his face like some sort of terrifying and monstrous Santa Claus.
"No, it's not an
apartment block. You'll see soon enough."
We exited the highway and entered the busy, tangled streets the surrounded the arena.
"This place is wild!" I said. "Like a glass covered jungle."
"What's a jungle?" he asked.
"Like, a forest but wetter, I think, and hotter too. There are all sorts of crazy, dangerous animals in a jungle too."
"What's a forest?" he asked with his brows furrowed.
"It's a place where there are loads of trees," I explained.
"What are trees?"
"You don't have trees here?"
He shook his head and poked out his bottom lip.
"What about grass?"
Again, he looked completely bewildered.
"No jungle, or forest or grass."
"Weird..." I said to myself and looked out the window.
We were approaching a billboard from the back. I could see people staring up at it from the other side. I wondered if they had movies on this planet. I'd never had the chance to visit a cinema but I'd known people who had. We drove further down the street and I looked over my shoulder at the billboard. The enormous, blue face staring back at me looked familiar.
"What the?"
Then I saw the writing at the bottom.
"Gar'zul vs The Green Gotax. This Saturday."
"What?"
I looked at the billboard, then over at Gar'zul, then back at the billboard.
"Is that you?"
He looked out the back.
"Urgh... Yeah. I hate those things. It takes ages for the photographer to take your picture and then they always pick the worst photograph. I told him to use the other one where I'm holding up the severed head but he insisted we use the one where I'm holding up the ax."
He rolled his eyes.
"Maybe next week the guy will actually listen to me."
I watched the billboard disappear into the distance as we drove away. So he was who he claimed to be.
Chapter 7
Gar’zul
Arlodd Lory was a prize fighter with a body like a machine. I was always grateful that I'd never had to fight him for real because we were evenly matched. He often fought in a different league so we'd never come across each other in the arena. We did, however, meet up at the same time every week in the training center to spar.
He was in the ring now, shuffling from foot to foot as he psyched himself up.
"Come on Gar'zul! Or has your human woman tired you out?"
He laughed to himself, his huge shoulders shaking up and down as he chortled. He was as tall as me but twice as wide with his purple skin covered in scars and tribal markings. He came from a neighboring planet, one that had always been viewed as being hostile with an unforgiving terrain. He prided himself on coming from a long line of warriors and he never let me forget it. I stepped into the ring and raised my fists.
"Yeah, my human's tiring me out. She won't stop talking."
We laughed as we circled each other in a peculiar dance.
"How long has she been at your house now?"
"Three weeks."
As soon as she arrived, I purchased a beautiful, newly built mansion on the edge of town. Davoth assured me it was where all the sports stars of the city lived and that he was nearby. I think Carina was impressed, but she was still a little awkward to be around as she got used to life on an alien planet.
"Is she everything you ever dreamed of?" asked Arlodd.
"She's gorgeous. The most beautiful person I've ever seen."
"Lucky you. Maybe I should buy myself a wife."
"You already have a wife!" I reminded him.
"Yeah but she's getting old."
"Arlodd you buffoon. Be grateful you share your life with a woman who loves you."
"Whatever."
He threw the first punch and caught me straight in the jaw.
"Fuck, that was a hard one."
"I've been practicing."
"I can see that."
Circling my way around him, I distracted him with my left hand before cracking a punch into his cheekbone.
"Whoa!" he took a step back. "Remember we're not fighting for real, right?"
"Sorry, buddy."
For the next hour, we jabbed at one another, honing our skills while I told him everything I knew about Carina.
"She looks so frail but she's actually really tough. She used to work in a mine."
"A mine? Like a slave?"
"Yeah, kinda. On Earth, she lived underground mining for water. You know, the stuff that gets shipped out here."
"Crazy. I never realized that stuff came from a mine."
He hit me square in the center of the chest and I responded with a clip around the ear.
"Ah fuck. That stings, man."
"Sorry."
I wasn't really sorry.
"So have you got her into bed yet?" he asked a little too casually.
"No, I can't get close to her but it's expected isn't it? She'll be terrified. She hadn't left Earth until she joined the mail order program."
"Dude, you need to get her into bed soon so you find out what she's like before you marry her."
"Sure..." I sighed.
I wanted to tell him that sex wasn't a priority, not right now anyway. I wanted to get to know her first, become her friend.
"I need to go," I said suddenly.
"No way. We were just getting started."
"Sorry, gonna have to cut it short today."
Driving home, all I could think of was her. I had a feeling that she was a sweet thing but, rather like a wild animal, I had to gain her trust before she came closer. I'd also learned that humans were messy little critters. Over the last few weeks, I had bought her everything that a female could want; clothes, jewelry, makeup, the most expensive food. So far most of it was littered across the floor. Meanwhile, everything she didn't understand in the house was my fault, obviously.
I pulled into the driveway and saw her in an upstairs window. Clicking the front door open, I was at least hoping she'd come downstairs to say hello.
"Carina?"
Silence
"Carina?"
Looking around the front room, I saw all her dirty clothes in piles on the floor.
"Carina? I asked you to keep the house clean while I was out training."
She stomped down the stairs with a thunderous expression on her face.
"I don't see why I should have to do it," she moaned.
"What? Literally, the only thing I ask of you is that in return for everything I give you, you clean up."
She huffed and crossed her arms.
"I'm hungry," she said. "And I hate everything that's in the kitchen."
"You wanna go out for Glotters? You like them don't you?"
"I freakin' hate Glotters. I don't even know what they are!"
"I told you before. They're prots made from the floxskin and fried in a stelltail sauce."
"I literally don't have a fucking clue what you just said."
For the most excruciating moment, we stared at each other, silently angry.
"You look kinda cute when you're mad," I said.
She didn't look amused. She somehow got even madder, and even cuter.
"Where have you been anyway?" she asked as she slumped into a nearby chair.
"I told you! I was training."
"But you were home earlier yesterday."
"Look... I don't know what to say. It's not like I have a regular job, is it?"
She rolled her eyes and shifted in her seat.
"You said you'd fix the bath," she fumed. "But you haven't. I don't even know how to use whatever the hell that thing is up there."
"I'm sorry! I'll do it right now."
"I thought we were going out for Glotters?"
"I thought you hated them!"
"I'm hungry Gar'zul!"
"Aaargh!"
I flung my hands up in the air and stomped up the stairs.
"Before I come back down I want you to
clean all this up," I called over my shoulder.
"Whatever," she mumbled.
Looking over the railing, I saw she was still angry, and still unbelievably beautiful.
Arlodd was pounding his fists together and grinning.
"So you came back for more, Gar'zul. Let's hope you're better than you were last week."
"I'll pound you into the ground," I laughed as I climbed through the ropes.
He began jogging on the spot, moving around me as he punched to my right, then my left. I gave him a subtle, warning jab to his chin and he moved back.
"So, how is she?"
"Carina?"
"Yeah, who else is there?"
He eyed me suspiciously.
"Carina's great."
Even I had to admit that I sounded less than convincing.
"Why don't I believe you? You're a lousy liar, Gar'Zul. Tell me what's really happening."
"Fine!"
He moved to punch me in the eye and I skipped out his way before connecting my fist with his rib.
"Argh! Shit, that burns."
He laughed off the pain and continued to step around me.
"So, tell me everything," he said.
"Okay, well, don't get me wrong. She's beautiful. I mean, sure, she was a little skinny when she arrived but I've been fattening her up. She's a little bigger now and a whole lot sexier."
"So what's the problem?" he asked.
I took a couple of steps toward him then stopped in my tracks and hung my head.
"Time out."
"What's up?"
I grabbed a drink of water and sat on the stool in the corner. Arlodd crouched beside me.
"Have you...?" he raised his eyebrows.
"No. That's the thing. I can't get close to her at all and all we do is argue. She's a feisty one I tell ya. She's always telling me what to do and yelling about this and that. Everything has to be her way, she doesn't put up with any shit and she never lets me tell her what to do."
Arlodd sat back and leaned against the rope, laughing.
"That's what you wanted, wasn't it? A girl like Nasty Natasha?"
I thought for a minute. Nasty Natasha, the gorgeous goddess who could fight like the fiercest warrior.