Alien Romance Box Set: Uoria Mates Complete Series (Books 1 - 10): A Sci-fi Alien Warrior Invasion Abduction Romance

by Ruth Anne Scott

  “I’ll tell you what, Braden; I’ll give you the first one for free.” This was met with a chorus of laughter and applause at the way that he showed his immeasurable ego. “I won’t even try to fight back. If you can make your mark, then by all means make it true.” This was his way of breaking down the defenses of Braden and making him think that he didn’t have a chance. I knew that there was no talking with other members of the tournament, especially when they were in the field of battle at the time.

  “If you expect me to turn down the opportunity to strike you down, Camden, then you’ll be waiting a long time.” Braden pulled two arrows and fired them with the intention of taking down Camden and wiping that look off his face once and for all. The first arrow barely missed, but it did scratch the surface of his ear enough that he would need medical attention. The second went a little wide and at the last moment, Camden reached out with his red gloved hand and extinguished it in flight.

  Braden was beside himself and I could tell that this had seriously made him rethink his position. He was going to make a mistake, unless of course he could look at me in the eye and know that I believed in him. I wasn’t allowed to say anything, but that didn’t stop me from waving my arms. He must’ve caught something in his peripheral vision, because he turned and we made eye contact for that split second.

  The slouch in his posture that I had seen became more rigid and he was ready to fight back with everything in his power. “That was pretty good, but it wasn’t good enough, Braden. Remember, I only gave you one free one and you took advantage of that by shooting two at the same time. I applaud your effort, although I do not appreciate the method in which you decided to pursue me.” This was the kind of smack talk that was meant to disable your opponent and give them something else to think about, but the task at hand.

  “What makes you think that I missed?” This made Camden smile and then he laughed, so loud that the entire crowd joined in. They were following the leader and you could tell that a lot of them were not impressed by his need to pump out his chest.

  “You can’t possibly think that I’m going to believe for a second that you fired that shot on purpose. That you meant to miss your target and just nicked me enough to draw blood. You must have known this was not going to be enough to make me fall at your feet. You must know that this is a losing battle and that every opponent that I’ve come up against since becoming a guardsman has not got past the first round. You’re lucky that I did not kill you the first two times, but this is your third and final attempt. That can not go unanswered.” It was then that he moved his hands in a blur of motion that almost made it difficult to see what he was doing. His arrows took off at a speed that didn’t seem possible and Braden barely moved in time, so as to not become impaled on one of those energy arrows. The second one skinned his cheek and left a permanent reminder of just how deadly these games really were.

  Chapter two

  I watched with trepidation and worry in my heart, but outside, the exterior was hardened steel to give him the strength and courage to go further than he had ever gone before. He stood there leveling his gaze on Camden and neither one was moving. It appeared that they were waiting for the other to strike. It was that awkward silence that was making it very difficult on everybody that was witnessing such a meeting of the minds.

  “If you do not shoot an arrow in the next 5 minutes, both of you will be disqualified.” Lord Vadam had decided to take a stand and I knew that the rule book was now being force fed into every decision that he was making. He was reading it intently and he had no interest in being surprised again. This time, he would be prepared and I could see that I had rattled him slightly.

  “You heard him, Braden and if you don’t take the shot, then I will.” Braden was waiting and I could tell that Camden was itchy to send that final arrow into his chest, as a warning to others that he could not be beaten.

  When Camden reached for that final arrow, he was not the only one. Braden pulled his out at exactly the same time and they fired simultaneously. It was like watching a boxing match with two opponents that weren’t going to go down by a right jab or left hook that came their way. Once again, everybody was on their feet and that final arrow from both of their quivers was making the trajectory towards their intended target. It was mostly a flash of light, but somehow I had slowed it down in my mind and was able to perceive in vivid clarity each of the arrows.

  I didn’t know quite how I was doing it, but it was fascinating to watch nonetheless. The arrows contacted each other and exploded with such a flash of light that everybody had to shield their eyes. When they turned around, both men were standing, but then Camden fell to his knees. A piece of the energy arrow had embedded itself in his shoulder. The rules stated that the arrow had to pierce a victim, but it did not say that the entire arrow had to be present. I knew that Braden had made the only decision that he could make. He had drawn first blood and now was waiting for the decision to be made from Lord Vadam.

  I saw him panicked and going through the book with one page after the other. He finally stopped and I would say from the look on his face that he had seen the truth and it wasn’t pretty. This must’ve been the first time that they had ever used the rule book. I had set a precedent and I was hoping that that would follow from one tournament to the next. Everybody was waiting and Braden was now standing with his hand against his chest with his hand formed into a fist. I knew from reading the books that this was his salute to a fallen warrior and that once given the decision, he would raise it in honor of his own victory.

  “The ruling states that the arrow has to be inside the opponent. It does not say if the arrow needs to be intact. Since this is a gray area, I have decided to judge in the name of the rule book. The victor is Braden. It does not mean that Camden has been usurped and his role as my guardsmen taken over by another. It only means that he is no longer eligible to fight for his position. He’ll have to wait like everybody else to find out if his position has been taken. I believe that there are two more opponents to take the stage. This will determine the final 12.

  Braden came over and put his two hands on my shoulder. “I don’t know what you intend to do, Shana. I sense that you might be more than meets the eye. Do what you need to and I don’t want to come back here, unless you are victorious. I know that you can do it and I believe in you.” I did believe in me, but now standing a few feet away from a man that was hell bent on destroying me had seriously made my confidence wane. “I think that deep down I’ve always known that there was something different about you. We’re going to have to talk about that at some point. I’ve been hiding from it long enough and it’s about time that we shed some light on where you came from.” I should’ve known that my questions would raise some suspicion in his mind.

  “Braden, I’ll tell you anything that you want to know, but not until after this tournament. I don’t want either one of us to be distracted and it might come down to the two of us.” The final 12 would fight till the final six and then those final six would move on to the feat of agility. I had no idea what that would entail, but I wasn’t sure if I was up to the challenge.

  “I understand your need for secrecy, Shana. We both know that you don’t come from around here. Your interest in the looking glass only confirmed to me that you’re looking for a way to go home. We’ll talk about that later.” I felt a little sideswiped and I wasn’t expecting him to lower the boom in such a way. “You go out there and give him everything you can bring to bear. Show him that you are a woman and that you can fight any battle that comes your way. Be courageous, be true and don’t let him intimidate you like I almost did with Camden.” At least my opponent was not five times my size. He was only two times and he was looking at me and then at Lord Vadam like he was thinking that this was some kind of joke.

  “You can’t be serious. This is not a test of my talents. I want real compet….” He didn’t get a chance to say anything else, before the arrow punctured his suit of armor.
The rules did not state when the arrows had to fly and I decided to take a proactive stance. I fired before he could even finish his sentence and now he was looking at me dumbfounded, as he fell onto the ground. He was injured severely, but if I did my job right, he would live to fight another day.

  There was a stunned silence and then they finally pulled themselves out of their shocked expressions to give me an applause that was worthy of a warrior going into battle. They were confused and I only had to shoot one arrow and I sensed that this was not common or even expected.

  “As your lord, I decree that this flying of the arrows has been completed. Those 12 that stand ready will go now into the forest and complete the cycle of Offus. The first six to bring back one of these elusive animals will be declared the winner. The one that does it first will have an advantage over the final five. That advantage will be revealed to them before the next competition.” I knew all about the Offus and how fast it could be on its feet. It hid during the day and only came out when it was ready to feed. This meant, we were going to have to flush it from where it was hiding and hope that we could get a clean shot.

  “Braden, there is nothing in the rules that say that competitors can’t work together.” He looked me incredulously and then he smiled with a bemused smirk on his face. “I think that between the two of us we can easily take down one of these things together. Then we can take down one more and walk back to the black castle as one of the six” I don’t think that he was expecting that answer.

  “That has never been done before, Shana. You really have changed things around here. I am sure that Lord Vadam is now wondering how to get you out of the tournament, as fast as possible. He’ll reach into his dirty bag of tricks and come out with something that is suitable to throw at you. He’s hoping that he won’t have to, but I can see that he is ready and willing to make an example out of you to others.”

  “As it is well known, after each competition, there is a resting period of one night. Tomorrow, at the crack of dawn, those competitors will embark on bringing in the Offus. We all know that it’s not easy and not a lot of people are prepared for how tricky this animal is. This will give the competitors a fair chance to ready themselves for going after a suitable prey. I will leave you with one thought. A woman has never won this thing and I don’t think this year is going to be any different.” He was obviously referring to me. He wanted to make sure that I was well aware of his displeasure over this latest turn of events.

  “I do believe that you have got underneath his skin. That doesn’t happen very often and there’s a reason for that. I’m behind you, but I think it’s time that we finally talk about the Offus in the room.” that was not how I would put it, but once again, it was close enough to reality, as it was ever going to get. I sensed that there was somebody out there and they were looking out for my best interest. I didn’t know how I could possibly know that, but something was nagging at my consciousness. There was a feeling that there was a benefactor that was making sure that I was going to be a viable opponent. The arrow that I shot should have wounded him, but instead it killed him. My intention was to go for the shoulder and not 5 cm from where I intended. It could only mean that my arrow was knocked off it course. I had no idea how that was possible, but I had a feeling that whoever was my benefactor wasn’t going to remain a secret for long.

  “I told you, Braden that we can talk about this after the tournament.” I knew that that was never going to hold water. He was determined to speak to me and the way that he was looking at me, only made me that much more aware of the fact that I didn’t come from this land. If questioned further, I would have no idea how to answer and I think that he was banking on that.

  He pulled me by the elbow and I was tempted to smack him across his face to let him know that I was not cattle. He did not have any right to put his hands on me and he would find out in short order that I wasn’t the type of woman that was going to bow down to any man or woman for that matter.

  “You can either take your hand off me willingly, Braden, or I can take it off by force. I would suggest that it would be better for you that you did it willingly.” He looked at me and then he realized that I was serious. I was not going to back down and I certainly had no interest in being pulled around like a puppet on a string. “I mean it and if you don’t let go, I’m seriously going to hamper the way that you conduct yourself in these competitions.” He reluctantly let me go. When I got behind him on Rankin, I felt this distance and cold icy feel that surrounded our relationship.

  We had come a long way and I thought that we had gotten past a few of his misconceptions about me. I guess even he had his limits and apparently I had overstepped my bounds. He knew that something was different, but it took me standing up to the Lord to make him realize that what he suspected was probably right on the money.

  Chapter three

  We didn’t speak the entire time on the way home and now he was pacing back and forth outside of the kitchen. I wasn’t sure if I could call it a kitchen, because it didn’t remind me of any kitchen that I knew of. I was getting used to the way things were around here. I should’ve been concentrating on a way to get home, but I had gotten caught up in the spirit of competition. I was always one that went against conventional thinking. Even in college, I took a lot of the trophies that were always going to young men. It didn’t matter if it was in hockey, archery or even wrestling.

  I showed them that a woman was just as capable. I knew that it was not going to make me any friends, but I couldn’t have cared less. I was making a statement and I’ve since learned that two other women had decided to take on the same role that I did. I wanted the same thing for this world and it might not be my place, but I thought who better than to make the revolution than somebody that had already done that back in her own time.

  Women deserve to be treated as equals and I did not like how this world was treating theirs.

  “I don’t know what to say to you, Shana. The first thing that comes to mind is that you’re out of your freaking mind. I never wanted to talk about this, but apparently I don’t have any other choice. I didn’t see it at first, but now it’s as plain as the nose on my face. I think it’s high time that you tell me why you came here. I don’t know what your agenda is and that bothers me.”

  I could see that he was mad, but I could also see that his excitement over a woman that could stand up for herself was showing itself in a physical way. He probably wasn’t even aware of his condition, but I was tracing each individual inch with my eyes. It looked like it was hard and ready to go to war. I didn’t know much about their physiology, but for the most part they were primarily the same, as anybody that was found on my planet.

  “I didn’t come here to make waves.” He looked at me like I was speaking in forked tongue. “I mean I didn’t come here to look for trouble. I didn’t even come here under my own will. I awoke in that field of strange grass and then you came upon me. I come from a different world. I don’t even know how to explain it, but I think that the looking glass might be the answer.” It was the first time that I had brought that subject up and I thought it was time that I finally find out more about it.

  “My Lord, Shana, the looking glass is a myth and a legend. People don’t even believe that it exists. There’s only been one that has said that he has walked through and come out after seeing what was on the other side. He’s a crazy man with flaming red hair and he talks in riddles like we’re supposed to know what he’s talking about. His eyes are wild and if that is the cause of going through the looking glass, then I don’t want you to have anything to do with it.” I wasn’t sure how this was any of his business.

  “I didn’t ask for you opinion, Braden.”

  I was about to say something more, but then he grabbed me and kissed me, before ripping at my clothes. I knew then that I was going to need armor, but right now, his pursuit of my flesh was more important than anything else. “You make me crazy and I don’t know what to do with y
ou.” I could see that he was coming up with something and I was perfectly happy to help him. “You are opinionated, wild and uninhibited and there has been no other woman like you in our history.” I wasn’t sure what he was saying, but the way that he was kissing me with a passion that was unbound was more than telling.

  “Shana, I don’t know why I’ve allowed you to get underneath my skin like you do. It amazes me that you can have that kind of affect on me after just a short time of knowing you.” He took my hand and this time this wasn’t going to be some spur the moment act of physical love. This was going to be more romantic and the gesture of his fingers entwining around mine was not lost on me.

  “I don’t know what to tell you, Braden. I guess I have always had this effect on the opposite sex. I just never found anybody that was worthy of my time. Usually, I just sleep with them and send them on their way. You’re different and I find your strength and character, not to mention a body that just won’t quit, something that I can’t get out of my head.” We went into the bedroom and there was no bed to speak of. There was this very plush mat on the floor.

  We were definitely going to need something to eat after we had done the deed. I would have to rummage through his cupboards and see what I could find to make a meal that was fit for a king and queen.

  We stripped in front of each other, taking our time and really allowing our naked bodies to sink into our consciousness. I was flushed to the touch and his cock was now saluting the sky with a helmet that was already showing its arousal by the leakage that was now moving down over the sides. I grabbed it and massaged it into the length, giving it a nice sheen, before once again finding myself on my knees.