Karun: A Sci-Fi Alien Dragon Romance (Aliens of Dragselis Book 2) Read online

  I saw Andie run toward me, and in her eyes was an emotion I knew was mirrored in my own. It struck me then that the wall I was trying to create between us was pointless. This magnetism that had materialized from nowhere was rooted in something deeper, something more arcane than physical attraction.

  I needed this woman. And just as that thought hit me, I watched her slip away from me.

  The dragon in me reared back to life, despite the many electrical shocks I had just taken. As I watched Andie snatched by the claws of that vile creature, something primal emerged from the depths of my being.

  I shifted and took to the night sky, trying to catch the demon’s trail. He had moved with speed and purpose. Strategically, he flew out beyond the camp, beyond the reach of the lights Pavar and Hardin were desperately trying to set up.

  As I sought to follow, I caught sight of the squat little orange and red demon carrying the now one-armed golden demon. Ragal pursued them, but he, too, had a stun charge piercing his thick dragon skin. Caught between forms, he was struggling to maneuver and match the demons’ track.

  Blood rushed through my veins, my heart pounding as I again located the demon who had taken Andie. It was the bony grey demon who had assaulted me with a stream of stun charges and plunged the repeat charger into the flesh of my back. Andie was limp in his arms and my heart plummeted.

  My first foe, the golden-horned leader, was still firing with his existing arm at Ragal, who managed to avoid about half of the hits. I flew toward my brother, trying to pry the charge out of his back.

  I felt the sting of more charges as I was hit, but there was no other choice so I persisted.

  The demon holding Andie was firing at Ragal and me as well. Andie dangled dangerously in his one hand.

  Finally, I freed the stun charger from my brother’s back.

  The grey demon charged at me and knocked me back. In the darkness, with the chargers having sent my brain into dizzying disarray, I fell back to the ground.

  “End him, Baluwama! End this Dragselian piece of shit!” screamed the leader, crazed with excitement.

  I rose back up, narrowly missing a shot to my head.

  Ragal had regained himself as well, and we rose up into the air, two dragons in the night before our enemies, both of us full of wrath.

  Sending a stream of fire into the sky above as both a warning and a promise, I flew at the one called Baluwama as he turned to flee.

  Ragal and I split, and he chased the leader and his henchman in an opposite direction.

  I heard Ragal’s roar and knew my brother could face this enemy without me.

  Chasing Baluwama, I watched as he carelessly handled Andie’s incapacitated body, and my rage grew greater.

  He dove into one of the crags and I followed. As we descended into the crag, I knew one of us wasn’t coming out of this place alive. The knowledge filled me with purpose.

  Flying between the sheer rock walls of the crag, one moment, I had to turn sideways to fit between and the next, the walls opened to wide canyons. In the dark, it was nearly impossible to see what was coming at me, but I could see the grey form of the demon ahead of me, and I focused every fiber of myself on catching him.

  Rounding a corner, I lost sight of them. The crag split into two paths, and with so little light, it was impossible to tell. I hovered, frozen in fear that I had lost her.

  Just then, I heard a loud scream emerge from the canyon to my right and I burst forward.

  “Let go of me, you shit eating demon!” Her voice reignited in me the hope that had started to dim.

  I roared to let her know she wasn’t alone.

  “Karun!” came her scream, and I felt a renewed vigor.

  Baluwama wove and maneuvered through the cliffs and sharp walls of the crag. Andie still dangled, but I watched as she released a blade from her waistband and struggled vigorously with her captor.

  They started to fall as she made headway, slicing the demon in the leg, but the demon struck her hard on the back of the head and she lost her blade.

  Through a narrow series of sheer rock walls, we emerged into a slightly wider canyon, and the sound of rushing water filled the air.

  “If you want this human whore so badly, catch!” He screamed giddily. Helplessly, I watched as Andie fell, dropping down into the canyon like a rock.

  I dove, tucking my wings into my body, not knowing how far down the canyon went. All I saw was her body falling. It felt like hours as I watched her crashing down, pulled by Vaxivia’s gravity toward certain death.

  I dropped my head down, angling . . . anything to give me the smallest increase in speed.

  I was within an arm’s reach of her, but I saw the surface of a rushing river approach and was forced to make a split-second decision.

  Instead of extending my wings and pulling her into me as I so longed to do, I angled even lower and aimed just beneath her.

  Immediately, I felt the icy sting of water engulf me as we broke the water’s surface. I surged forward, still with all the momentum of my dragon’s body. I felt Andie’s form hit against mine. I rolled, trying to encapsulate her with my wings.

  I felt the heat and pressure of her body against mine just before I hit the hard, jagged rocks along the river bottom. With the last of my consciousness, I used my body to absorb the shock of the impact to protect her. Pain spread through every limb and I fell into the darkness of my own unconscious mind.

  Chapter 12

  Andie

  I woke up wet and shivering in the bitingly cold darkness of the canyon. Far above, the stars of Diana’s Nebula pierced through the black curtain of night. I blinked and angled myself up into a seated position.

  Beside me, I slowly took in the colossal body of Karun’s shining silver dragon form, unconscious but breathing. Pushing off from the wet clay beneath me, I crawled toward him, my body aching and sore.

  As I slid my hand over the sterling plates of his dragon armor, I could feel the great heat of him. He was a magnificent thing to behold, this great, fearsome creature before me.

  Maybe it was the cold, maybe it was the shock of the evening, but it felt like I was in a trance. All I could think was that I wanted, needed to get closer to him.

  Shaking and cold, I pressed my body against his, my head by his neck, our chests aligned. For just the barest of moments, I was blinded by a flare of light followed by what felt like a flash of connection. It was almost like an EE but still, somehow, different. For just a fleeting millisecond, it was like some kind of organic interface.

  I didn’t see or hear anything like an EE, but I felt. It jolted my senses like an electrical shock, only not at all unpleasant, just wholly unexpected.

  It had felt like gut-clenching fear, searing rage, and something warm and soft and lovely that I couldn’t put into words.

  Pulling back and looking at him, trying to understand what I had just experienced, I saw something small and black embedded in his chest. Putting my hand to it, I felt a brief surge of heat, and the great silver dragon before me stirred ever so slightly, and then nothing.

  I remembered him wearing a necklace, a small black rock on a chain of rough looking silver.

  “Karun,” I whispered. He didn’t move or respond.

  I tried to remember what exactly had happened. His head was still affixed, and I knew that was the only thing that could actually kill him. But I also knew that Pavar was still healing from their last battle, so his recovery might not be entirely swift.

  It was difficult to remember all the details of the battle, and I had no idea how long we’d been down at the base of the canyon.

  The river that rushed through, splashing my boots, was unknown to me. I had known the history, the cause of the crags, but it was considered suicide to go down one.

  All around us was lush vegetation like I had never before experienced—green, spindly looking plants with thin, narrow leaves that curled at the tips and turned blood red. Glowing white flowers on delicate vines that draped, str
etching up the canyon wall. Farther back from the shore of the river, a dense carpet of purple.

  I felt like we had been dropped on another planet. We were alone in an alien world, my dragon-man and me.

  I grinned to myself at my possessive inclination. I had barely kissed the man, but knowing that he had pursued me through the night, rescuing me from the clutches of that demonic fiend, it felt right. He was my dragon-man . . . at least until he regained his consciousness and told me otherwise.

  I wasn’t sure, but it felt like something had changed. I remembered running toward him just before the demon had grabbed me. The look in his eyes was one of raw need. I wondered what would have happened if I had made it to him. Would he have held me, kissed me, touched me?

  The thought of it, imagining the great muscles of his arms wrapping around me again, pulling me to him, molding to the angles of his hard body . . . it was enough to make me forget the cold sting of the water at my feet and heavy in my clothes and hair.

  I heard the call of strange and unfamiliar birds. It occurred to me that there might be other animals here, even predators. Or worse, people. This was unknown territory to me, and I was wise to the fact that this strange space on the planet I thought I knew so well could hold hidden dangers.

  I huddled close to his body again. As I did, I finally noticed that the water was rising. It flowed past us, steadily climbing higher.

  Squinting in the dark, I looked downstream and saw what looked to be a very fresh landslide . . . probably caused by our fall. The water was rushing through but not fast enough. I looked at Karun’s great head. Already, the water was touching it.

  I tried in vain to move his body. It was useless. He was far too colossal for me to move. Instead, I thrust both of my arms beneath his head, feeling the heat of his breath as it blew over my body, temporarily warming me.

  I lifted with all of my strength, but I knew there was no way I could keep him hoisted above the water forever. Instead, I gathered my legs under me and placed his head on my lap, the water gathering beneath my freezing thighs.

  Shivering, I tried to curve my upper body into the warm length of his neck. If he were to breathe just a quick burst of flame, that would be all right by me. No such luck though.

  We stayed like that for what felt like an eternity, but it was probably closer to an hour. I kept trying to rouse him, but he was deep in a healing slumber.

  Finally, I saw light streak the sky overhead and felt the welcome heat of the first sunrise.

  The sounds of this hidden forest and the rising cold of the water kept me awake, though I longed for sleep.

  Instead, I spoke to Karun. It seemed like a silly thing, but he was so far gone and I knew I needed to try and stay alert.

  “I haven’t thanked you yet, dragon-man, for saving my life. I don’t want to guess what that hideous freak would have done to me. It probably wouldn’t be worse than what the gold one wanted to do, and you saved me from him too.” I paused, stroking his face.

  It was silky and hard, luxurious and fierce all at once.

  “I think you might be afraid of me. I know I’m afraid of you. In a good way, though, like the way it feels to mount a new racing craft, dangerous and exhilarating. I’m not sure what that means, but I know it means something.” My words were coming out broken.

  Despite the warming light up above us, the water was near my waist now and the cold was creeping tendrils into my flesh. I kept talking. As long as I was talking, I couldn’t die. That sounded right, or so I believed in my quasi-delusional state.

  “I’ve never met anyone like you. I don’t mean the dragon part. Though, I gotta say, that part is pretty freaking awesome. The way you kicked those demons’ asses and literally just turned those raiders into dust. The soldier in me is pretty envious of those moves.” I shifted my posture, arching closer to him. My bones felt like they were encased in ice now.

  “You’re so warm. I wish I could ride you. I’ve been on aircraft before, of course, but watching you and your brother shift, it looks so much more magnificent. And hey, there’s the added bonus of having you between my legs.” I laughed, wondering if he’d have made a dirty joke like he had sparred with me in the rover on that first day.

  My eyes felt heavy as I just kept babbling, sighing deliriously. “What would you feel like there? I’m not gonna lie, especially since you can’t hear me and I’m just talking to myself like a crazy person, which is kind of soothing. You know, you ought to try it.

  “Back to the point, Andie, jeez. Right, I’m not going to lie. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about that. I’m wagering a guess here, correct me if I’m wrong, but you can’t because you’re comatose, so never mind that, but the way you’ve looked at me—yes, I have seen you checking out my rack—I think you’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about that too.”

  The cold was starting to ease, and I felt a stinging heat, starting in the tips of my toes. What a lovely change. For some reason, my shivers were getting worse though.

  “I hope we don’t die. But I guess there are worse ways to go. I mean, we just fought an epic battle, and here I am with my knight in shining dragon form, on the banks of a gorgeous river, watching the suns rise. There are definitely worse ways to go.”

  I couldn’t make much sound anymore because my teeth clattered so badly.

  “If it’s okay with you, I think I’m just going to rest for a minute.” I sucked in a breath and it came in ragged bursts. It occurred to me that this was it.

  “Karun, I’m glad it’s with you,” I said, my energy draining out of me.

  I let my eyelids drop. A veil of darkness seemed to descend upon me as I felt the heat creeping through my body. As a soldier, I knew death could come any time, and I was okay with that.

  I felt a great shift beneath me and around me, and I knew I was about to finally find out what comes after.

  My body felt like it was rising into the air, weightless and free. Was this what Orion had felt?

  I opened my eyes to see this new frontier, and before me was a great muscled afterlife version of Karun.

  “Andromeda,” said spirit-Karun, concern in his angelic silver eyes.

  He held me fast in his arms against his body, and then he kissed me ever so lightly.

  The faint sizzle of it cleared the haze for just a moment.

  Not dead. I’d definitely have to be completely dead for my body to not respond to his kiss. So then I was hallucinating and half-dead, not much better, but I was willing to take it if it involved more kissing.

  Barely conscious, I felt him strip the clothes from me and inwardly reflected how much I resented my weak body that had no energy left to enjoy this moment more.

  We must have lain upon the purple carpet of the groundcover because I didn’t feel water anymore. I could barely flutter my eyes open to check.

  I felt his warm skin pressed to mine—he must be naked too, which was progress—but I was just a little too close to death to rejoice.

  I closed my eyes against the furnace of his body as I felt him shift and surround me with his dragon body. Finally, I fell into a deep and contented sleep.

  Chapter 13

  Karun

  I felt aching pain in every fiber of my body when I finally regained consciousness. First, it was just darkness, and then I heard her voice, broken and quiet. It sounded like nonsense at first, but as I slowly became more aware, I registered some of what she was saying until she stopped talking and all I could hear was the babbling sound of water.

  As her voice clattered to a halt and I realized that cold thing pressed against me was her freezing body, it jolted me completely out of my stupor.

  I was sore, but that was the worst of it, leftover sensation from all those stun charges and the jolt of diving headfirst into the bottom of a canyon. Truthfully, the impact could have killed me if I’d hit a sharp enough rock with the kind of momentum I had.

  Shifting at once, I scooped her up and carried her away from the water. I
n the process, I realized she had been waist-deep in the water, and it hit me that she had been trying to protect me in my unconscious state.

  She could have left me. She could have sought shelter, but instead, she had stayed in the icy waters at the bottom of a canyon, holding my head above water. Part of me was almost angry at her for being so reckless with her own safety, for nearly getting herself killed, and part of me was humbled beyond words, struck by the fact that she would have sacrificed herself.

  Overcome with emotion, I whispered her name, kissing her lightly. Her eyes fluttered open once more, a look of surprise on her face that was quickly replaced with a secret, probably delirious, smile.

  Her eyes closed, and she was breathing but in shallow, disjointed bursts. I needed to get her warm, and fast.

  Stripping us both, I laid her down farther up the bank, on a carpet of eggplant-colored foliage. I shifted again, though it stung just a bit, and huddled to keep her warm. I didn’t know much about humans or how they healed, but she was cold so I connected the dots that I could.

  In a normal scenario, the feel of a woman huddled naked next to me would have left me aching for release, but I was too distracted by my concern to give the situation even a fleeting thought.

  We stayed like that for hours. I was content knowing she was still breathing and that her body had finally stopped the violent shaking from before. The second sun was already midway across the sky when she finally seemed to be warm.

  She stirred, and my senses leapt to attention.

  “Karun,” she breathed, and I nuzzled closer to her.

  She didn’t seem to have minded my dragon form, but it was the first time I was in close contact with a human like this.

  It was strange and yet thrilling, this feeling of acceptance.

  Dragselians had probed Earth for colonization thousands of years earlier, influencing human lore and mythos, but it had been decided by a council of Dragselian elders that it would violate the Rule of Settlement, which required that no planet, asteroid, or other celestial body could be colonized if such colonization were to displace an autonomous and intelligent species.