Page 83 of Protected by the Alien Warrior Triad

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Forn

Ilean over Tammy, trying to wake her up.

“What happened to her?” I growl, feeling anger at Darok. He was supposed to keep her safe. If we can’t keep our mate safe, then we are surely not worthy of her. Weshoulddie in the battle today if we can’t even guarantee that the future mother of our children will be in good health.

“She found out the reason we’re sick. There is some sort of poisonous fungus that the animals are eating. That’s why we all got better when we were searching for a new home for our tribe. It’s because we were eating untainted meat.”

I stare at Darok, realizing that this answer makes perfect sense.

“But we got too close to the mushroom,” he explains, “and she breathed in its spores… It’s an undiluted dose, and I fear…”

Hadone clenches his fist. “I deserve this. I deserve this for that dead woman. I kill everyone that loves me, and I deserve nothing but pain.”

Diana rushes to Tammy’s side. She holds her, crying. I look down at the second human female, feeling immense guilt that I couldn’t keep her friend safe.

The horn sounds. It’s a deeper horn that the one which is used to announce the presence of Aurelians. It’s the war horn – used only to declare that a battle against another tribe is imminent, or that there will be a fight to the death between members of our own tribe.

Today, it’s our turn to fight. A fight that we will likely lose.

I’d thought that if Tammy was on the sidelines, watching me fight, that perhaps she’d cheer me on. I’d hoped that seeing her would buoy my spirits, and grant me strength.

Now, I do not have even that. My fated mate is going to die, and there is nothing I can do to save her. She died discovering the cause of our people’s sickness.

If Tammy dies, there’ll be nothing to fight for – and yet the fish-eating triad will claim that because she is dying, and not yet dead, that the fight should still take place.

According to our traditions, I suppose it should. We will have to fight to the death, because I know we’ll receive no mercy from the fish-eaters. Their hatred for Hadone is too strong.

Perhaps if they knew the truth of what happened to that human woman, they’d not even care about keeping the battle within the rules of our society. They would attack my triad without even care of banishment.

Perhaps I can’t blame them – not because I feel Hadone is deserving of such hatred, but because I feel the pain that the fish-eaters must have experienced when they lost their fated-mate.

I pick up Tammy. She’s so light – like a child. Her eyes are now closed, and she doesn’t breathe easily. Despite being in a coma, she’s unable to maintain the slow breathing rhythm of sleep. Her breath is raspy, instead; each lungful a struggle. I am glad that she’s not awake to feel the torture of her ragged, bloody lungs.

We walk slowly. Each step of my feet on the soft dirt makes my toes wriggle. I’d ache to feel this soft earth beneath my bare feet for a lifetime, walking hand-in-hand with my mate. Yet now, she has been taken from me – and in a few short minutes, we shall be taken from her.

We reach the hidden entrance to our tribal caverns, and descend into the darkness below. Together, we walk down the long tunnel until it opens up into the place we’d called home for nearly two centuries – until we were exiled because of our conflict with the fish-eaters.

And, appropriately enough, there they are. The fish-eaters are waiting for us. Waiting to end us.

And yet they look at us with shock.

“You could not even keep her safe? You’re failures – not even fit to be members of the Scorp-Blood tribe.” It’s their leader, Cornal, and his words are scathing.

“Does she live?” Ton demands.

“She lives,” I reply.

“Then we will still fight for her.”

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