Soros: Alien Warlord's Conquest (Scifi Alien - Human Military Romance) (7 page)

"Yes, but –"

"Turn it on. Stand as far back as you can. Don't move, don't even breathe until you're sure it's safe."

"What about you?" she asked, the concern in her voice painful to hear.

"I can take care of myself," he said, grinning as he saw the way she glared. "Stay hidden."

"But why?" Kat asked, still doing as he'd said and retreating into the far corner of the cave. "They are looking for you. I'm nothing to them."

"I wouldn't trust Turian to be able to see the difference," Soros replied, hearing sounds outside. "Don't move, Kat. No matter what."

"You can't ask me –"

The boulder in front of the door exploded. Shielding himself from the falling rocks, Soros glanced behind him. Kat was nowhere to be seen and definitely not heard over the ruckus.

Outside, he could barely see the sky between all the fighters. As he'd predicted, Turian had no concept of overkill.

Just then, the man who wanted him dead more than anyone else walked into the cave.

T
he world seemed
to split in half.

Kat didn't know the man who stepped into their hideout, but she could guess. The grand armor the warrior wore, the amount of dark lines of ink running across his face – it had to have been one of the clan lords. And if Soros was right, it was Turian.

She knew he was the newest of them. After Nadar Brenger had become the chieftain of the Corgans, several of the others had died. It wouldn't have been right to call them old, since very few warriors actually ever reached a grand age. But as tensions escalated, quite a few clans suddenly had new leaders who wanted nothing to do with the Galactic Union, and Turian was definitely among them.

In fact, he was the one true threat. Another clan lord had tried to rebel a while ago and had been defeated by Zoey Swann's new husband. Turian had taken up his cause, but not nearly as many had joined him.

The way Zoey had put it, the chieftain said it was only a matter of time. Those who wanted to stop the Corgans from joining the Union would rage against him and would either die or see that it wasn't the end of their world. He expected it to be over soon, but as much as Kat could tell, not without bloodshed.

Soros' words came back to her. She had wanted to believe that the chieftain was different, but looking at Turian's expression, Kat knew there would be no talking to that man. He looked positively ready to murder, but Soros hadn't backed away one step.

The clan lord's presence crashed into her world. With the roar of fighter engines and the chattering comm link that Turian didn't bother to turn off… The solitude was over. Technology returned with full force to their chosen exile and they were no longer alone.

It bothered Kat a bit how quickly she'd adopted the "we". She had to forcefully remind herself that it was Soros' fight, his problem. In fact, she was a prisoner who he kept in the middle of his personal battles.

She should have hated him, but that was hardly the case. Kat didn't know what she thought anymore. With only a few days, she had broken her single cardinal rule – don't get attached.

Too late now.

She watched Turian slowly approach Soros. The way the clan lord behaved was meant to insist that Soros was his prisoner now, but the sliver of fear he couldn't completely hide said the opposite.

"I knew I'd find you here," Turian said, stopping a few feet from Soros, who had yet to acknowledge his presence in any way. "You always loved these mountains. All the little exercises you had us do. I guess they finally paid off."

He can't be more than a few years younger than Soros
, Kat thought.

"You credit me with way too much sentiment," Soros replied.

"Do I?" Turian asked. "I don't think so."

She noticed how he kept himself firmly away from Soros, despite trying to establish dominance. Always standing with his back to the cave’s doorway, ready to jump to cover if his old commander chose to attack him.

"I think you care more than you admit. Isn't that the reason you still haven't gone to the traitor chieftain?" Turian went on.

The clan lord probably thought it was nothing, but Kat didn't miss the moment Soros glanced her way when he was accused of caring. Her heart started beating faster, and she nearly dashed from her cover. Soros wasn't doing anything because she was there. If he attacked Turian and they backed into her, she might be killed.

Kat realized even Soros could no longer tell where she was. The stone floor beneath her feet wasn't the forest where footsteps could give her away. The warrior didn't dare to do anything, because he couldn't be sure she had obeyed him and stayed in place.

Ideas started rushing through her head the moment she realized everything Soros was doing was to protect her. She couldn't just stand there and be his weakness. If Turian figured out that he finally had his feared commander at his mercy… No, she couldn't let that happen.

"I owe allegiance to no one," Soros told Turian. "I have no business with Nadar, or with you."

"Doesn't the chieftain rule us all?" Turian asked with malice glinting in his eyes, making his opinion on the matter obvious.

"Idiot," Soros said coldly. "Corgans can't be ruled, only led. Nadar knows that, even if you don't. I want nothing to do with either of you."

"Shame," Turian spat, and now Kat was honestly afraid for Soros' life.

The clan lord's eyes, furious before, were now glowing with a dark, unstoppable loathing.

"You will have to deal with
me
. If you wanted to avoid that, you shouldn't have killed my nephew. And Tereck is only barely alive," he hissed. "They were no match for you, Soros, how –"

Kat winced when Soros surged forward so fast that even Turian's eyes flew wide in surprise.

"They were not," the warlord agreed, his deep voice carrying the weight of his fury. "And you sent them after me anyway. Did you really believe I would come along when I had already refused your offer? I have told you already that I will take no part in this. I will not be Nadar’s puppet, nor yours. Or did you expect me to show mercy to those boys?"

Kat didn't see Turian's face very well, because Soros had moved in the way, but she
did
see the warrior stand straighter after a moment. He gave the clan lord such a terrifying glare, that for a second, Kat thought he would flee.

"So it is the second," Soros said, his voice dripping with venom. "Your judgment is as flawed as it ever was. I expected better from you."

Seeing the clan lord shrink back for a moment was truly something. Old times seemed to catch up with him as he became a student standing before his commander once more. Then the moment passed, and Turian remembered the army dwelling behind the door.

"I will make you pay for that," he growled. "Either by making you betray your ridiculous principles or simply by killing you. The choice is yours, Soros. Choose well, and don't try anything stupid. By this point, it should be obvious that you have no way to escape."

Again, Kat saw Soros' eyes look around the cave, searching for a clue of her.

"Yes," he told Turian. "It's quite clear to me I managed to teach you nothing. At least the chieftain would have enough honor to come and face me alone."

Turian's blue eyes flashed at the insult, but a crooked smile appeared on his lips.

"Spare me your lessons, Commander. We both know how that would end. Nadar might die like that, but I take no pride in throwing my life away. Now, what will it be? Join my cause and we can stop the chieftain before it's too late, or die here, pointlessly. I warn you, if you attempt to trick me, the consequences will be dire."

"There is nothing you can threaten me with," Soros replied.

Kat started to inch closer as Turian’s ugly grin widened.

"I already told you. Sentiment. You always loved Dolon Hall, while I never cared for it."

From her position by the wall, Kat saw the rage in Soros' eyes and knew the clan lord had been right.

"If you go against the Hall, the Corgans will never forgive you."

"They will. Apparently we are a very forgiving people. I am giving you a chance. Think before you throw it away."

Soros hesitated, and Kat knew it was because of her. She was almost there, only a bit more to go, but she couldn't hurry. The noises coming from outside and Turian's comm link were probably drowning out her steps, but she didn't want to risk anything.

Up so close, the difference between Corgans was obvious to her. Soros had let her live even before he’d got to know her, but the clan lord most likely would not. And after everything she'd seen Soros do, Kat wasn't prepared to take chances with those Corgan reflexes.

She'd only get one chance, and even that was lunacy, but Kat didn't even consider stopping. It was either that or watch Soros be killed. The few days they'd spent together had been enough to convince her that Soros was the kind of man who'd rather break than bend. He would refuse Turian, even if he managed to ensure her safety.

Every person in and around that tiny cave knew that he could kill Turian, but Kat found no comfort in that, considering the sheer firepower around the mountain. They'd simply bury Soros under tons of rocks if left with no other option.

She'd managed to hide her gun and the long dagger under the black cloak before Turian blasted his way in. With only a few feet separating them now, Kat took a moment to consider as Soros remained silent. Luckily for her, Turian was being patient in the hope that Soros would choose life over honor.

Kat knew better.

He is quicker than me. So much stronger. Which would scare him more? The dagger needs an angle. I can't give him an out like that. The gun it is.

She slipped her hand under the black cloak, seeing the way the miraculous fabric immediately adjusted to hide her motions. Kat didn't have the luxury of checking whether Soros was still unaware of her whereabouts. She drew the gun, pointed it at the back of Turian's neck and said, "One move and you die. I can promise you that."

In the minute she'd planned her move, Kat had gone through a nauseating array of phrases she might use. All of them sounded stupid, but she had to say something. She didn't dare to get too close to the clan lord, fearing he'd simply disarm her. So the tone of her voice had to be enough to make him understand.

She'd been right. The moment he heard her voice, Turian turned in a flash, but seeing the gun hang in the air unassisted made him pause just long enough for Soros to join in. The warrior pulled his twin blades free faster than she could see, and in the next second, the clan lord's neck was between them.

In that moment, seeing Turian's eyes, Kat dearly wished she'd live in a world where all the evil tyrants were stupid and blind – it took the clan lord only a second to deduce all he needed.

"I see you've got company. Show yourself, girl."

Behind him, Kat could see Soros shake his head.

"Don't do it," he growled. "Don't tell him anything, least of all your name."

She shut up while Turian smiled.

"I see. He tried to hide you. And now he's protecting your identity. How sweet of him. Now, little girl, what did you think was going to happen? There is still only two of you and hundreds of me."

"No," Kat replied, putting as much conviction into her voice as she could.

Drawing on everything she knew of Corgan clan lords and about Turian particularly, she said, "There is only one of you."

The angry look he gave her assured Kat that she was on the right track. As she'd thought, they weren't his prisoners yet. He was theirs, like any person who valued their life above all others would have been.

"I don't believe for a second that you’d trust any of your warriors to do what you do," she pushed on, hoping she hadn't misinterpreted anything. "You want to live at all costs. That is why you're at a disadvantage. You know Soros. You know he will die if he must. So will I. How about you?"

Turian gritted his teeth furiously, confirming everything she'd suspected from the start.

"As for what now… That is simple," she said. "You will walk out of here, with Soros. Tell your men to give you space to deal with him alone. Soros will lead the way. When he finds a place where we can slip away, I will let you go. Until then, one wrong move and I will take your head off."

The clan lord considered her proposal, but Kat could see the dark look in Soros' eyes. Turian said what the warlord had to have been thinking.

"You must think I'm insane. The moment we are alone, he will kill me anyway."

"We will stay in sight of your men, but far enough from them. And if you think it's safer for you to signal them as we go and hope I miss, forget about it. I'm not that bad of a shot, and Soros would finish you even if I didn't. Now, I've given you a chance.
Choose well
."

She had to wonder what it felt like for Turian to hold negotiations with a floating gun, but against her expectations, the clan lord grinned.

"She's quite something, isn't she, Soros?" he asked. "You've found yourself a nice little guardian."

Soros chose not to answer that taunt. As Turian opened the channel and spoke into the comm link, Soros turned to her.

"That was very brave of you," he said silently.

"Thank you," Kat said, beaming until Soros went on.

"I didn't mean it as a compliment," the warrior continued. "I told you to stay hidden."

"He would have killed you," Kat protested, slightly hurt that her efforts to save his ass were not appreciated in the least.

"And now he'll kill us both if he catches us again. Which you have made considerably easier for him."

"How exactly?" Kat demanded, not realizing how much she'd raised her voice before Turian turned to her with a smile.

"I wish I could see if you're as pretty as you are ferocious," the clan lord said. "But I can tell you don't see that you've exposed Soros' lie to me."

"What lie?" Kat asked angrily, still holding him at gunpoint. "He doesn't lie."

"Yes, he did. You heard us. The man we all thought to be as cold and unyielding as the mountains around us... has a weakness after all. Lead the way now, Soros. It's a beautiful day outside."

Giving her one last look – one amused, the other indescribable – the two warriors stepped out of the cave. Kat only had time to slip the gun back under her cloak to keep it hidden from Turian's men before she hurried after them, careful not to run into anyone.

Her mind was a mess. In another moment, Turian's words would have gladdened her, despite the fact that he had intended them as an insult.

Now, they filled her with petrifying dread of the future. Had she accidentally killed the strongest man in the realm?