Protected By The Alien Bodyguard (A SciFi Alien Warrior Romance) (Mates of the Kaluma Book 2) Read online

  His thumbs touched a spot between my legs that made me jerk and moan as a liquid heat spread to my limbs. “Kotche, your name is—”

  Suddenly an explosion lit up the sky. The warrior and his mate who’d been walking toward us were suddenly gone. I whirled around, but the bronzed warrior was slipping away from me as if being tugged from behind. “No!” I cried out, grabbing for his hand. Our fingers locked, and he stared right into my soul with those fluorescent eyes like lasers. “Don’t let go of me. I know your name.”

  I opened my eyes to chaos. Creatures all around me were screeching. The tarp covering our cages was in shreds, and I could see talons the size of my arm slicing into the fabric. Shouts echoed from outside as laser fire shot over our heads. One soared right past my head, and I caught the scent of my burning hair just as I saw the laser hit the creature in the cage across of me, killing it instantly.

  Our cages were still being pulled across the ground, but not for long, as something seemed to hit a wheel and instantly we were airborne—and not in a good way. The cages, stacked on top of each other, toppled. Skags and I were on the bottom. I heard his squawk and watched as his eyes went round and panicked just as our cages smashed to the ground. I hit the side of mine, and I must have blacked out for a second, because when I came to, Skags was in my cage with me.

  My head pounded, and my vision swam. Something warm and wet dripped down the side of my head. I tossed my matted hair out of my face to see Skags’ cage smashed a few feet away. Mine wasn’t in any better condition. Two bars had been wrenched from the top, providing a hole. Scooping up Skags, I threw myself through the bars, ignoring the pain when a jagged piece tore a hole in my side.

  I tripped over my rags and hit the ground before telling myself to calm down and assess the situation. Glancing around, I saw nothing but smoke, laser, fire, bodies, and battle. Something had attacked our caravan.

  Massive, winged creatures with scales and long tails circled the cages, and I watched in horror as they picked off my fellow captives one by one, flying away with them to … who knew where? I clutched Skags tighter, who thankfully had fallen silent, probably as shell-shocked as I was. The winged creatures were working with some others on the ground, large hulking things with bulbous eyes and V-shaped mouths.

  A shriek caught my ears a little too late, and I felt a talon grasp the fabric at my back. “No!” I screeched, flailing as it sought to rise into the air with me. Its grip was faulty, and I dodged the creature’s other foot as it tried to grab for my head. A fang-lined mouth snapped at me, and I swung a fist at it, catching it in the side of the head. That only angered it, and I swore it was going in for the kill when a spiked ball slammed into the side of its face.

  Immediately its grip on me loosened, and I dropped to the ground in a crouch, whirling around to find the bronzed alien, the one who’d given me food, the one who’d been in my dreams, standing over me. He was covered in a dark liquid and looked a bit unsteady on his feet. His eyes were feverishly bright. He spat out a few words, but I had no idea what he said, as his language was foreign to me. He reached for me, and for some reason, my brain told me to trust him. I slipped my hand in his and rose to my feet just as his body jolted.

  I gasped as he swayed on his feet, and more slick, black fluid—his blood—poured down the side of his head. Oh no, had he been shot?

  I reached for him just as he wobbled and then pitched forward. With a cry, I went down with him, his heavy body slamming on top of mine. Pinned beneath him, I squirmed and pushed, but there was no moving his big body, so I just concentrated on breathing. I could manage to pull some air into my lungs, and I could feel Skags wriggling in the folds of my blanket, so at least we were both alive. As for the warrior who saved me? I wasn’t so sure. I could feel his blood soaking through me, and I tried to listen if I could hear his heart or his breaths, but the battle sounds around me were still raging.

  I went still, not having much of a choice and also feeling slightly protected by the big body on top of mine. Even in death, this warrior was still protecting me. I reached up and prodded his chin, thanking him silently for trying his best. I would rather lie here than be carried into the air by those winged things.

  The laser fire eventually slowed, and all around us came the horrifying moans and cries of the wounded. Skags had gone mostly still, wedged between me and the warrior’s body. Footsteps sounded nearby, and I held my breath. Something shook the body above mine, and a few voices shouted commands, but they didn’t move him further.

  The footsteps retreated. I listened to the rattles of cages and the occasional flapping of wings until silence reigned. Well, almost silence. Against my breastbone, I could feel the slight knock of the bronzed warrior’s heartbeat. His breath tickled the top of my head. He was alive, although not conscious. I heard another flap of wings and braced, but this wasn’t the scaled flying creatures. This was something smaller, with dimpled skin except for furred wings. A giant hooked beak pecked at the warrior’s shoulder, and I immediately went into defense mode.

  “Yah!” I shouted, rocking my body until I was able to get an arm loose. I waved it at the scavenger. “Away!”

  The creature only watched me with beady eyes set on either side of its head and pecked at the warrior again. Frustrated and pissed off, I grunted and wriggled and squirmed until I managed to extricate myself from under the warrior’s body. Weak with hunger, dying of thirst, and dizzy from the blow to my head, I tried to face off against our attacker which… now that I got a better look at it, was about the size of me. With a long neck, it towered over me, beak dripping with what I assumed was blood.

  Skags charged it, his neck flaps unfurled, but the winged creature lashed out with a spurred foot. I just barely scooped Skags into my arms in time before he got a puncture to the chest. As the creature advanced on me, I glanced around helplessly for something to use. Spotting the warrior’s spiked ball weapon laying on the ground near his body, I lunged for it, and just narrowly avoided a stab to the back as I fell to my knees. My fingers closed around it, and I came up swinging, slamming it into the creature’s neck and effectively preventing it from snapping at me again. Or anyone.

  I didn’t look at the creature’s body. I hated the violence, but despite my confusion about myself or this place, my survival instinct was strong. I glanced down at the warrior, who hadn’t moved. His back rose and fell with his deep breaths. Looking up, I could see more of those damn creatures circling overhead, and it would only be a matter of time before another dropped down. All around us lay bodies and the burning remains of the caravan. The smoke would draw attention. Someone would come soon, and I didn’t think that would bode well for me or Skags.

  Shoving the weapon into the folds of my rags, I knelt down at the warrior’s side. After a lot of grunting, sweating, and cursing, I managed to roll him over onto his back. I took some time to get my breath back.

  “Skags,” I rasped. He had been sniffing around, but at my call, he trotted over. “Help me.” I told him before taking the warrior’s wrists in each of my hands and tugging.

  Skags got the clue quickly, the smart little thing, and got a good grip on the warrior’s pants with his teeth. He pulled with me, and although we made agonizingly slow progress, we finally made it to a tree line that provided some cover.

  I thought repeatedly I could cover a whole lot more ground if I left the bronzed warrior, but I could still feel the food he’d left me in my pocket. Other than Skags, he’d been the first being on this planet to show me kindness. The image of him saving me from those winged creatures was burned into my brain.

  I didn’t know what this was… this feeling that I had to do the right thing. I wasn’t sure any of my captors had that feeling, ever. I’d been kicked, bit, beaten, starved, and spat on. They didn’t care about me, but this warrior with his glowing blue eyes and deep calm voice made me want to do something kind. If it got me killed, then so be it.

  I dragged him further into the forest, until my
legs stopped working and I collapsed onto the ground. My elbows buckled, and I hit the dirt face first. Rolling onto my back, I coughed up dried leaves until Skags came over and ran his raspy tongue over my face.

  Groaning, I dug in my pocket for the food the bronzed warrior had left me. Shoving the rest into my mouth, I barely chewed before swallowing. After that, I searched the warrior. I wasn’t any good to either of us without something to drink, and luckily he had a canteen on him. I drank as little as I dared, terrified we wouldn’t find another source of fresh water any time soon.

  Then, I inspected the warrior. He had short white hair and swirls of white marks across his chest and neck. I touched them gingerly, but they were a part of him—a discoloration of his scales, but in a very distinct pattern. He wore a strap across his chest where he kept his weapon. I’d remembered seeing that when he’d been outside my cage. His belt held a plethora of things—freeze dried fruits, salted and cured meats, as well as a skin of water. I chewed a small bit of the meat and gave some to Skags. He also had sharp spikes on the caps of his shoulders in varying lengths, which looked like deadly weapons all on their own.

  Assessing the warrior’s injuries, I determined he’d been hit in the head with laser fire. It hadn’t pierced his scalp, but it had taken off a large chunk of his ear. The hole there was clotted with blood, which was sticky and black.

  I didn’t dare waste the water cleaning him, but I wished I had something to attend to his wounds. I continued to dig through his belt, finding a satchel of supplies, but none that were familiar to me.

  Frustrated, since I wanted to make him as comfortable as possible, I dug a slight impression in the ground and settled him in there, hoping the dirt there was cooler. I didn’t like the heat of his skin when I touched him. What if he died in his sleep tonight?

  Too tired to do much else, I curled up at his side and Skags nestled in with me. I needed to rest before I moved us again. We were under the cover of a dense bush with massive leaves, but this warrior was a bronze god who seemed to reflect the sun. Couldn’t he be more inconspicuous?

  I looked up, seeing a glimmer of the sky through the trees, and waited for dark. The plus side? I wasn’t in a cage. And I’d die before anyone put me in one again.

  Two

  Mouse

  I woke to the sound of moaning. Blinking my eyes, I saw nothing but darkness, until my pupils adjusted and could make out the vague shapes of leaves overhead. Skags was making his worried squeaks, so I shook the sleep from my eyes and pushed myself to a sitting position.

  Next to me, the bronze alien was trembling. I immediately lurched to my knees and pressed my palm to his forehead. I hissed at the heat and shook out the sting on my palm.

  “No die,” I murmured, smoothing my hand down his chest. His scales seemed to be moving, emitting small clicking noises that made the color shift and shimmer. The white marks on his chest and neck seemed to spark like lightning. His lips tensed and twitched, and few sounds fell off his tongue that could have been words or just cries of distress.

  Goosebumps rose on my skin as I watched him helplessly. I couldn’t let him die. Already I felt a responsibility for him.

  Grabbing his skin of water, I propped his head in my lap to angle him slightly upright. I screwed off the top and let a few drops of water slide into his mouth. He smacked his lips, and his throat worked as he swallowed. “Yes,” I said, smoothing a hand over his short hair. “Drink.”

  I poured in more water, giving him time to swallow small gulps. After a while, he trembled less, and I hoped this was the break of his fever. Already his skin felt a little less hot. Skags nuzzled under the warrior’s hand and licked at his fingers.

  Tomorrow I’d find more water. I’d get him clean. If he was still alive now, and he fought off this fever, then there was hope he’d come out of this.

  Finally, he took a deep breath, his body shuddered, and then his muscles loosened. The lines in his brow smoothed out and his mouth went slack. I was worried for a minute he’d died, but I felt his heartbeat, strong and sure. His breaths were even, and his skin no longer felt hot to the touch. Content he’d make it another rotation, I closed my eyes and drifted off.

  The next morning, I crouched near the pile of my current possessions. And none were actually mine. I was just temporarily borrowing them from the unconscious alien who was still alive and sleeping deeply.

  What I had was a small pouch of food, a skin of water that was dangerously close to empty. A spiked ball weapon. A sharp knife, and a pouch containing various liquids and powders that were foreign to me. As for me, I only had the rags on my body, and those weren’t worth a damn thing.

  “Water,” I said to Skags. “Find it.”

  I covered the warrior as best as I could with some large leaves, making sure he had plenty of room to breathe, but that no one would stumble upon him. Then, with Skags at my feet, I went in search of water.

  There were things I seemed to know, but I couldn’t remember how I knew them, like the sound and smell of clean, rushing water. Trees surrounded me, soaring high into the sky with their leaves protecting me from the harsh morning sun. The ground was covered with a greenish carpet of vegetation that felt nice to walk on. The warrior had thick shoes, and I wondered what those felt like. The only thing covering my feet were thin-soled, crudely-sewn shoes that didn’t provide much protection.

  I made marks in the trees I passed so I could get back to my injured warrior. As much as I didn’t want to leave him, we’d all die unless we found more water. His skim wouldn’t last the day between the three of us.

  Skags ran ahead with his nose in the air. He had a long snout with two large nostrils, and I’d found his sense of smell was excellent. He always knew when our one meal of the day was coming long before it arrived in our cages.

  He stopped, sitting on his back four feet with his two front feet dangling in front of him.

  “Skags?” I called.

  And then he took off like a rocket.

  “Hey!” I shouted, running after him. I knocked branches out of my way and got smacked in the face with a wet leaf or two before we broke out into a clearing, and I skidded to a halt.

  Skags sat on the bank of a stream, his mouth stretched into a wide grin, proudly displaying his find. “Wow,” was all I managed to utter as I took in the clear water, babbling over rocks and sticks next to a large cliff that rose in front of me. Ledges and alcoves were etched into the side, and I knew right away that this was where we needed to be. I would get no joy out of dragging the warrior here, but it wasn’t too far. Here, I could clean him, clean myself, and maybe catch some live game for food. Here, we could heal.

  With a happy cry, I raced to the bank and straight into the water. Skags let out a happy squawk and joined me, splashing around in the thigh-high water. He swam well, with his front, webbed paws easily keeping him on the surface. After I dunked my head under and gulped as much water as I could—as well as filling up the skim—I knew I couldn’t waste time getting the warrior here. The longer I waited, the hotter the day would get, and I couldn’t travel here in the dark.

  With Skags at my side, we walked back to the warrior, who hadn’t moved. Thinking quickly, I knew I would have to fashion some sort of sling to lay him in that I could pull behind me easily. The only large piece of fabric I had was the blanket I covered myself with. All I wore underneath was a band across my breasts and a pair of ragged short pants. Using two large branches, I wrapped the fabric around them, creating a sling. Laying it flat, I rolled the warrior inside and then picked up two of the ends of the branches. The other two dragged on the ground, but it was much easier than dragging a whole body.

  The progress was slow, tedious, and exhausting, but the promise of fresh water and shelter was enough to make me cover the ground quickly. When we reached the stream again, I dropped the sling to the floor with a groan and a triumphant yell.

  After a quick snack and some more water, I carefully made a little trench near the ban
k of the stream for the warrior’s body. I removed his shoes, and marveled that he had similar feet to me. But I wasn’t… one of him. I didn’t think so at least. I didn’t have scales or white markings, or the spikes on my shoulders.

  I left his pants on but unstrapped his weapons holder. Letting the water gently lap at his feet, I dismantled the sling and thoroughly scrubbed a strip of fabric to clean it. Content it was as free of dirt as possible, I went to work cleaning the warrior. He was covered in various cuts, but most had completely healed. His head was another story. Once I wiped away the dried blood, I was able to get a better look at his injury.

  His ear was mostly shorn off, and the scales around it were warped and melted from what I assumed was the laser fire. He’d have a wicked scar, but I was hopeful he’d still have use of his ear. I was able to pour water on it and flush out the ear canal as best as I could. Wiping down the rest of his body, I hummed to myself.

  I did that often, and I couldn’t remember why. It was some sort of rhythm and melody from my previous life, the one I could no longer recall. The sound soothed me, and the warrior, despite his unconscious state, seemed to like it too. His expression was relaxed, and when Skags sniffed at his hand, a few fingers twitched.

  I sat back in a crouch with my hands on my knees, waiting to see if he’d wake up, but he stayed still and silent. I squinted up at the sun, feeling the heat bake my skin.

  Speaking of getting clean… I hadn’t washed myself well. I’d merely done a little joy swim before leaving to get the warrior. I stood and waded into the shallow edge of the stream before taking off the rest of my clothes. My skin was red and itchy in some places, probably from my soiled clothes. So, I scrubbed them for a while before setting them out on a rock to dry. I had various bruises and a few cuts from my captor’s abuse. My head was still a little sore where I’d hit it, and I had a wicked scrape on my ribs from the broken cage bars. But I was alive, so was Skags, and so was the bronze warrior.