Alien Romance: The Alien's Bliss: A Sci-fi Alien Warrior Invasion Abduction Romance (83 page)

Shards of glass came at us with deadly precision. I was in the line of fire and I got three of them. Two of them went into my shoulders and that last one slid effortlessly into my left thigh. I looked over to see that Nicholas was down on his knees and Braden was looking down at his chest where a shard had ripped through him like he was made of nothing.

There was no way out and those flames were getting closer, until they were licking at our faces and making us realize that death would’ve been preferable to burning alive.

Chapter eight

It didn’t look good for any of us and then I saw something in the window that gave me pause for the cause. The white-haired Lord Wallace was standing there with his hand over his head. He looked like he was concentrating on something and then it dawned on me that he was the one that was controlling the Dragos. I don’t know why he was doing it, but he had shown his hand. Unfortunately we were in no position to fight back.

Lord Wallace’s hands were glowing, but right now, I was trying to find a way to get out of this Inferno in one piece. The web mistress was dead, her body burning and there was too much debris in front of me to get to her in time. She looked like she was surprised, but at least I gave her a smile, before she finally left this mortal coil.

“Braden, Nicholas, look out the window and tell me that I’m not dreaming.” I would say that Lord Wallace was scared. He wanted to make sure that the White castle had no competitors.

“I don’t know why he’s doing this. He must know that all three of us are going to have to determine who is going to become part of his castle.”

“I can get one of you out of there, but only one. The person that jumps on this offer the quickest will find themselves able to walk through the flames unscathed. All you have to do is give me your fealty and together we can walk into the Black Castle and take what is rightfully ours. I hope that you choose quickly and if I were to make a suggestion, I would say that it would be in your best interest to get rid of your competition.” I couldn’t believe that he was actually saying that he wanted one of us to kill the other two and then take our rightful place at his side.

I knew that I wouldn’t do that, but Nicholas was another story altogether. He had just finished telling us that he was willing to jump on board whatever the winning side might be. Braden was not a worry and if I were to die, he would most likely want to die with me.

“I’m sorry, but I think it is time for us to say goodbye. I don’t think it comes, as a surprise that I’m willing to walk with the White Castle, just as long as I survive. You’ve always known that I was never one to be trusted. I think it goes without saying that it pains me to see you both die like this, but I have to do what’s best for me.”

“You are doing the right thing, Nicholas. I will pave the way for you. Just walk in a straight line and don’t deviate from it in the very least. Don’t look back, because you really don’t want to see what happens to them. I would’ve liked to see you kill them, but I understand that you have feelings about that. I’m just glad that you have decided that it is in your best interest to take my offer and run with it. Can you imagine the look on Lord Vadam’s face when we show him that you’re the only one that is left standing? I think it goes without saying that his expression is going to be priceless.”

The fire was getting closer and both Braden and I stood there and watched, as Nicholas walked through the flames like he was parting the Red Sea. He morphed through the wall and was now on the other side looking in at the coffin that he was leaving us to live this remaining few minutes together. Whatever Lord Wallace was holding in his hands was the thing that was making the Dragos become something that they weren’t….killers.

“I know that this is a blow, Shana, but we can’t think like that. He’s made his decision and now we have to try everything we can to make sure that their plans do not come to fruition.” I had to admire his moxie, but the flames were high and burning brightly and if we were able to get through them, there was no way that we would walk away without some major burns.

“Braden, I’m all for surviving, but I think that we might be in over our heads. I can’t breathe, I can’t see through the smoke. It’s just a matter time, before I fall to my knees with smoke inhalation.” I had enjoyed my time with both Nicholas and Braden. This and the fight for the equality of the women in Markham was the highlight of my trip. If this was how it was going to end, then I wasn’t just going to stand here and let it happen. Even if I knew that it was a losing battle, I had to at least try.

“I don’t care; Shana and I will not allow them to win like this. I don’t care if I have to crawl on my hands and knees through this fire and then with my last breath tell Lord Vadam of their plans to take the Black castle. I’ve never had any love lost for the man, but this goes against everything that I believe in when it comes to the Festival of Dragos.” His conviction was passionate, but he had yet to tell me if he had a plan of escape.

“Shana, if you listen to me and do exactly as I tell you, I can get you and Braden to safety. It won’t be easy and I’m going to give you a few tools that you can use in your own defense. I can sense that your DNA can withstand the transference.” Before I had a chance to ask Falla what this transference was, I was inundated with an energy that called to the armor. It came to me and stuck to me like glue, giving me a fighting chance against the fire that was burning out of control. I stood in front of Braden, shielding him from the worst of it, while leading him up the stairs. It didn’t matter where we went, the fire followed like we were some kind of pie piper.

“Shana, I hope that you know what you’re doing. The best way to get away from fire is to go below it and not above.” It wasn’t like I had a choice and the armor was literally pulling me along in its wake. I had no control and I had to believe that Falla was the one that was doing this. Out of the blue, I went to the far wall of our bedroom and smashed into it with the fists that were made of this interesting substance. It ripped a hole through the wall and I was able to grab Braden, even though I wasn’t the one that was doing most of the work.

With the use of the armor, I had the ability in some form or another to actually leap away from the carnage with Braden holding on around my neck. I landed on my knees and then I felt that I was the one now holding the reins of the armor.

We both turned to see the Dragos attacking with Rankin in behind about to do something that he would never forgive himself for. My hand came up over my head and made this ungodly slap that sent an echoing wave towards the Dragos. The vacant stare disappeared and in its place was confusion. Rankin landed and Braden went close, cautious of what his pet was going to do. He didn’t have to worry, because the spell had been broken and the echo of that slap was what was needed.

“I take it that this is not of your doing, Shana.” It was time that I told him everything and I laid out the fact that Falla was responsible for protecting us from dying a most painful death. “It’s a good thing that she came to the rescue when she did. Without her, I doubt that we would’ve been able to get away. I think we owe her a debt of honor that we’ll never be able to pay back. I do believe that we have a party to crash.” Rankin called to the other Dragos and another of his kind came down. I climbed aboard this orange one and Braden took his rightful place on Rankin.

Even though flight was forbidden, we took to the skies and made a direct line over towards the Black Castle.

As we got closer, a Griffin, most likely one of a few came out to defend what was theirs. The Dragos knew of his abilities and decided that discretion was the better part of valor.

The Griffin did not pursue in the trees and Rankin and this one that I was on was now breezing through the branches and then coming to a stop outside of the gates. We got off and we made our way over to the castle and walked in to see that Lord Wallace was now being declared the victor.

“Not so fast and we have information that is going to change everything. Lord Wallace and Nicholas can’t be allowed to take over the throne of the Black Castle. Lord Wallace has been working behind the scenes with a device that is able to control the Dragos. We are the proof, because they left us to die in a fire.” I could see that Lord Wallace was about to repute what I had to say, but then he saw the Dragos circling overhead and knew that he was either going to have to show his hand, or be attacked.

He raised his hand and I pulled an arrow from my quiver and fired it, breaking the glass on that device and destroying any chance that he had of fighting for what he thought was his.

As he made a run for it, the castle guards were right there to subdue him on the order of Lord Vadam.

“I declare reluctantly that Braden and Shana from the Red castle are the victors. Both Lord Wallace and Nicholas will pay for their crimes and now you two must decide on which one will claim the rightful place beside lord Russum.” The change of power took place fairly quickly and the rest of the tournament was not necessary to determine who was going to stand by the new lord of the Black castle.

“If it’s all the same to you, we need some time to think about this.” They allowed us to leave and on our way back home, we found ourselves accosted by Falla.

“You’ve done more for Markham than you can ever imagine, Shana. I know this hasn’t been an easy road, but I believe that I can send you home. If you’re ready, I do believe that it’s time for you to go back to where you came from.” I looked towards Braden and then this rush of air spun around me and I was surrounded by the same blackness that I had felt the first time that it happened.

“Braden… Braden… I love you.” There was no way that I could fight the gravitational pull. I found myself landing in the exact same spot that I had been. I was outside the club in a field nearby and I looked around and noticed that I wasn’t alone.

Braden now was in my world and he was getting up and looking around like a newborn baby.

“Shana, I love you too and there was no way that I was going to let you get away that easily. There is nothing left for me in Markham and everything that I’ve wanted is in you. I knew that it wasn’t going to be easy for him to adjust, but I would hold him by the hand and show him a world that he had never seen before. He had done it for me and it was time for me to do it for him.

THE END

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Taken for the Alien Prince PREVIEW

Layla could only remember running. She was barefoot and the ground beneath her feet was cold and damp, sticks and rocks occasionally digging into the soft flesh and low brush clawing at her as if trying to stop her. Everything around her was hazy. The color seemed to have washed out of the world and left behind only shades of brown and rust and grey. She felt like she was running through water, moving slowly no matter how hard she fought to go faster.

Chilling air whipped at her face and she felt the first few stinging raindrops of a storm cut at her skin. She didn't know where she was going or how she had gotten there, and as she ran, the trees seemed to blur and blend into one another, making it impossible for her to orient herself.

She knew they were coming after her. She could feel and hear their heavy footsteps even in the thick, muting air and feel their presence getting closer. They seemed to be everywhere even though she couldn't see them as she ran. The oppressive feeling of them was getting more intense, but she had to keep running. She didn't know where she was running, but her feet wouldn't stop. Her mind and her fear wouldn't let them.

She thought she could be getting away. She might have a chance to get out of the woods and find her way back home – only, she couldn't remember what home was or where she may be able to find it. All she could do was run.

A cold, sharp breath invaded her lungs as she turned around a massive tree. The hard, choking pressure of a hand on her neck cut off the breath and she felt the ground beneath her feet disappear as the hand lifted her up. There was a moment of consuming terror and then the world around her turned to streaks of black and grey. Then there was nothing.

What could have been hours or days later, Layla became aware again. She kept her eyes closed as consciousness slowly rose through her body and she felt every inch become awake and present. Her muscles ached with the type of depth that came from intense exhaustion and long exposure to cold. The air around her, however, felt warm and damp. She was lying on her back and could feel something hard beneath her like a slab of stone. A tingling sensation flowed through her body and she tried to move her arms, only to find that they were lashed to the stone beneath her with rough lengths of rope. She tried to move her legs, but they were also secured to the stone beneath her.