AllFreeNovel
Share Us
KAIO
J’onn stood on the platform, eyes damp with unshed tears. He was the most loyal man I’d ever known, and he absolutely did not agree with my decision to trade my safety for the safety of my people.
The Imperial Fleet followed my ship as I exited our atmosphere. Most of them peeled off slowly in beautiful rays of color as my vessel moved further from our home world. They were oil slicks of light, shining through the sparks of the universe. I mourned them leaving me, because it well and truly meant that I was on my own now. Only I could face what was coming. I was headed into the unknown with very little safety net.
I’d met Magnum only once before, and I’d known from that brief meeting that he was a narcissistic pile of Santorexian slime. Even though I had an ironclad contract in my possession, signed and sealed, I did not trust that he would hold to our bargain.
I loathed that the bonding mates were now human women. Magnum hailed from Earth, and I was sure that others of his kind would have the same self-serving attitude with absolute zero care for other creatures, not even others of his own planet.
Two escort ships riding in my wake were a security blanket as I shifted to hyperspeed. J’onn wanted to fly with me, but I’d told him to stay behind. He was my second-in-command, and the planet needed him during my absence. I was lucky to have someone to trust, because there was no one else to rule if I…
If I died.
Lightyears flowed past, bringing me ever closer to the gladiator staging grounds on the other side of the desolate planet purchased by the Galactic Prison System so many star cycles ago. A final burst of energy launched me through rings of blue. My vessel slowed to a crawl, hovering above a wasteland. I switched to manual and piloted slowly closer, deciding to circle the planet before heading to my final destination.
The edges of the galactic gladiator battle grounds came into view. It was easy to know where I’d be entering the fray. The geography was obvious. A frozen tundra butted up against a boreal forest. An area that could nearly pass for a tropical vacation and featured a gorgeous snake of river—which was likely infested by all variety of alien species ready to munch on unsuspecting swimmers—kissed against a very active volcanic region. Deep valleys and sharp canyons punctuated the landscape.
I was almost directly over the crazy grid of terrains when flashing violent green lights fritzed to life in front of my ship. Nanoseconds later, a giant floating three-dimensional head joined the lights.
“This is a no-fly zone. I repeat. This is a no-fly zone, Partner. Best turn around and find a new route.”
Magnum.
T.
Bloodworm.
Or at least a gigantic version of his severed head, complete with Texas drawl and dark eyebrows knitted over violent eyes.
I reversed away from the warning, steeling myself to head toward the very place I was avoiding. I didn’t know why I was delaying the inevitable. At least I wasn’t a prisoner, not exactly. I was a King, here of my own volition. I wasn’t going to be thrown into a cage, hosed down like an animal, beaten if I got out of line. Or worse, sent back to Vanguard Prison like an inmate.
Funny how I feared that place, yet it was the very institution that had saved my own people from the war criminals who ravaged without regret.
“Your Highness, we will land first to secure the platform.” The comm buzzed, filling the space around me with Dismor’s voice. She was a strong warrior, selected for her quickness with a blade, matched equally by her wit in political situations. Her counterpart in the second escort plane was her opposite in every way. Blunt force, blunt words, pure muscle. Magl’on was a force of nature.
“I will await your signal to land,” I agreed. If I’d learned one lesson from ruling a world, it was that a good leader knew when he needed to follow.
I shifted into autopilot once more, pressing the stabilize function. A soft whirring preceded four wings curling out from the ship. They fluttered in midair so quickly that they were nearly undetectable blurs of white. I waited patiently as Dismor and Magl’on landed, pointing the noses of their ships toward the walkway that led into an ornate building. Magnum had built his own sort of palace on this planet. No doubt he considered himself some sort of supreme ruler as well.
Below me, my bodyguards exited their crafts and walked swiftly toward a V-shape of Galactic Gladiator Games personnel. Body language was tense, but after what seemed like an actual eon, Dismor nodded her head quickly and my comm came to life once more.
“Clear to land, Your Highness.”
“Thank you, Dismor.”
“I don’t like this, Your Highness.” Dismor rarely spoke her mind, though I’d given her complete freedom to voice her opinions in the past. She’d always quipped that it was not her duty to speak unless it was part of her base mission—to protect her monarch.
“It is necessary, Dismor. You know this.”
“I would have happily taken your place, Your Highness. You know that.”
“It was either me or a thousand of our men, Dismor. Five hundred of our women. Sacrifices and… entertainment.”
Dismor cursed under her breath. “Only heathens think all our men are battle-ready and all our women are mere playthings.”
“One moment with you, Dismor, and they will surely see the error of their thinking.” I smiled as I pressed the landing icon. The wings stilled and jets of air puffed out from beneath the vessel. I descended slowly, as if upon a cloud, touching down with a whisper of noise as the wheels birthed from the ship’s smooth underbelly to support my craft.
Now, she laughed. “Less than a moment, and I will help them see that it is a woman who could end all war.”
