Chapter 4 #3
Kavon felt Aurina’s keen gaze on him, but he kept his attention on his warrior. “When you attacked her, you dishonored yourself and you disobeyed me. Zaltoh, for the wrong of assaulting a woman of Clan Mal Dor, one you’d vowed to protect as a warrior, you are hereby banished.”
The warrior’s head snapped up. “No!”
“This was not your first mistake. You do not possess the mettle to be an honorable warrior. I no longer need your services, and I no longer wish to see you here. I will protect this woman by ensuring she never needs to set her gaze upon your form again. Go.” He saw Colm and two other warriors rise, and Kavon nodded at them.
They flanked the banished man and ushered him from the hall.
Kavon turned his attention to the woman. “I acknowledge the wrong done to you, Starla. I have done what I can to avenge you. Whatever else you need, you tell the head of my household.”
The woman nodded, swiping at her tear-stained face. “Thank you, Warlord. For everything.”
With a nod, Kavon stood and turned to Aurina. She was staring at him. He held out a hand, and she set her hand in his.
As they left the hall, he headed in the direction of the hargon stables. A bad mood settled on him. He hated that a woman under his protection had been hurt. And now, he was even less interested in taking Aurina to the crash site in the Wilds.
But a deal was a deal, and a warrior always kept his word.
He led Aurina into the stables, and nodded at the young stable boy. “I need my mount, Tay.”
The boy bobbed his dark head. “Yes, Warlord, I’ll bring him right now.”
Aurina waited quietly, but he still felt her intense regard. Finally, Tay rounded the stone wall, leading Tarm.
The hargon pawed at the ground, snorting. He tugged at the reins, and Kavon saw the boy was using every one of his small muscles to hold onto the beast.
“What the hell is that?” Aurina’s mouth dropped open. “It looks like a cross between a horse and a…a…”
Tarm snorted, flames shooting out.
She swallowed. “A dragon.”
“It is a hargon beast. Warriors use them as war beasts and for traveling.”
“Warlord.” Tay handed the reins over with a look of relief.
Without a word, Kavon gripped Aurina’s waist and lifted her up. She gasped and grabbed at the pommel. She held on while he mounted behind her.
“A little warning next time, barbarian.”
Tarm protested the extra weight with a fierce snort and lift of his head.
“Quiet,” Kavon warned, digging his knees into the powerful animal’s side.
Tarm quieted but gave one more snort for good measure. Kavon urged the beast out of the stables and down the cobbled street to the main gate. Then they were outside the estate.
He leaned down and nudged his chin against the side of Aurina’s face. The damn woman smelled like his soap, but under it was a unique scent that was all her. His nanami flared, letting him drag that scent in deep. He let his lips brush her ear. “It is not far to your ship.”
“Good.” She tilted her face up. “Zaltoh was a strong warrior.”
Just hearing the man’s name deepened Kavon’s foul mood. “Yes. Like I said, a good fighter.”
“Yet, you still banished him. It seems to me your people worship strength.”
“We worship honor. Strength is a part of that, but so is the ability to uphold your word and protect those to whom you’ve granted your protection. Zaltoh did not do that. He hurt someone far less strong than him…to my deepest regret.”
Aurina looked across his land. “I took one look at your world and thought I understood you.”
“That we were all simple barbarians.”
“Yes.”
“But like a good scout, you keep gathering information.”
She smiled. “Yes. And something tells me there is nothing simple about you, Kavon Mal Dor.”
He felt a tug deep inside, felt his nanami rising. All because of this strange woman. “Hold on.”
Her hands tightened on the pommel. “Why?”
“Tarm, go.” Kavon nudged the beast with his boots.
The animal lunged into a fast gallop.
Aurina cried out, jolting, but Kavon had already tightened his hold on her. He’d never let her fall.
They raced across his farmlands, the sun on them, and the wind tossing their hair back behind them. As Tarm leaped a small rock fence, Kavon heard Aurina laugh. Not a polite laugh or an orchestrated feminine giggle. This was a huge, throw-your-head-back laugh. It made him smile.
When they neared the boundary to the Wilds, he slowed Tarm. Soon, they stepped off the verdant farmland and into the rocky, wild terrain.
“It looks forbidding.” She was staring ahead to the shadowed, sharp spires of the mountains. “But somehow wild and exciting, as well.”
“This is the Darken Wilds.”
“The mountains look like the teeth of a demon.”
“Plenty of demon monsters call the mountains home.” He pointed to the slope of the western part of the closest hill. “Up there, I have my mines.”
“You have people working in here?” she asked, her tone incredulous.
“We’ve set up good defenses to the mine entrances. And I have warriors there to provide security to the miners, including traveling in convoy when they return to the estate. They only travel during the day. The beasts of the Wilds are…quieter in the daylight hours.”
“What do you mine?”
He sensed the excitement in her voice. “Ore for various metals. Gold. Zoaal, which we burn for fuel. Various gemstones.”
“Gemstones?”
“It appears women are the same, wherever they are from.”
She poked out her tongue. “I like collecting jewels. I have an extensive collection.”
“I’ll show you some of mine later.” His Tanaa emeralds were the exact same shade of green as her eyes. They would look exquisite against her skin.
“What are your mining methods? Is it all manual labor?”
He raised a brow. He’d expected questions on the gems, not his mining practices. “There is some manual labor, mainly to build the access tunnels. But the mining itself is carried out using nanami.”
“Nanami? The organisms in your blood?”
“Yes. The miners are Markarians whose nanami have an affinity with rock. They can direct the power of their nanami to melt through the minerals and collect it.”
“Amazing. I’d love to see it.”
He nodded. “I can arrange that.”
“And your nanami? What do they have an affinity for?”
“Fighting.”
She laughed. “I should have known.”
They crested a rise and below, he spotted where Aurina had crashed into his world. “We’re here.”
She stiffened in his arms. “Oh, my God.”
When they reached the bottom, the deep gouge was still visible, and Kavon pulled Tarm to a stop.
She didn’t wait for him to help her dismount. She slid her leg over and awkwardly dropped to the ground. He went to chide her for putting herself at risk, but she was already hurrying away.
He scanned the surroundings to ensure there was no one—or no thing—nearby. Then he followed her.
She was standing near the slope where he’d discovered her. Her arms hung by her sides and her shoulders were slumped.
“There’s nothing here.” She looked around, her face shocked. “There should be pieces of my ship, at least.”
He gave a nod. “There were metal items. My men carried some things back to the estate, but we were in a hurry to escape the darken beasts and Drog.”
She turned. “Drog?”
Kavon tried to control the rage that welled at the warlord’s name. “The vilest, most dishonorable warrior in Markaria.”
She watched him. “I take it you don’t get along.”
“My family has feuded with his for centuries.” Kavon looked away and took a deep breath. “You probably don’t remember much of last night, but he was the one coming with his vicious hunting dogs.”
She was quiet for a moment. “Then I’m glad you got to me first.”
The idea of Drog getting his hands on Aurina made Kavon clench his teeth for control. “He knows something happened here. He will be sending his spies to find out about you.”
“Well, I hope I’m gone by then.” She shook her head. “So, he took the rest of my ship and belongings?”
“I suspect so.” The man had left nothing behind except the disturbed earth.
Aurina wrapped her arms around herself. “My e-beacon…it sends an emergency message to my brothers.” She demonstrated, with her hands. “It’s a metal ball, about this big.”
Kavon’s muscles tensed. Hearing her talk of leaving, before she’d shared what she’d learned or helped him with the sword…he hardened himself. He had the beacon, but he wasn’t ready to share that with his skyflyer, yet.
She sighed, despair on her face. “It either didn’t survive, or Drog has it. I can’t contact my brothers. Even if they find this planet, there’s no crash site left to detect.”
Kavon did not like to see her like this. He touched her shoulder.
She looked up at him. “I need to find that beacon.”
“You help me find the sword, and I’ll help you find it.”
“I’m alone,” she whispered. “I hate being alone.”
“You said you are a scout. You must have been alone frequently.”