He Got Away
ALIEN KING KARN'S POV
Kraye turned blue.
I grabbed his throat with my bare hands. I lifted his feet off the floor and watched his alien skin turn a darker shade of purple as I squeezed.
"You want to talk about my daughter?" I growled. "I will show you a pain much worse than what she felt."
I slammed him into a golden pillar. The gold cracked and the roof began to shake. Kraye hit the floor and coughed up a thick pool of blue alien blood. He was fast, though. He rolled away and grabbed a heavy gold spear from the wall. He swung it at my head, and the tip cut my cheek. I felt my own hot, dark blood drip down my face, and the sting only made me want to kill him more. I licked the blood from my lip and smiled like a demon.
I lunged at him again. We were like two monsters rolling on the floor. I punched him in his alien face, feeling his nose break under my fist. He kicked me in the gut with his heavy boots and scrambled back toward his throne. He was gasping for air, clutching his side where I had broken his ribs. Even though he was losing, he still had that mean, smug look in his eyes.
"You are just a brute, Karn!" Kraye yelled, spitting blue blood onto the white marble. "You think you can win her heart with blood? She will never love a beast like you! She is a soft human, and you are a monster!"
I did not answer him with words. I grabbed his arm and twisted it until I heard the bone pop. He screamed, a high, thin sound that filled the whole room.
"Stop! Please, stop!"
"Karn! Stop it! You are going to kill him!" she cried, her voice breaking.
I looked up at her, and for a second, my rage cooled. I wanted to run to her. But then I looked at Kraye.
Even though he was hurt and bleeding, he started to laugh. It was a wet, bubbly laugh.
"See, Karn?" Kraye choked out, blood bubbles on his lips. "She is scared of you. You are the monster in her story. I am the one she wants to protect."
I wanted to rip his head off right then. I raised my fist to crush his skull, but Kraye was trickier than he looked. He pulled a small device from his belt and threw it at my feet. A thick, grey smoke filled the hall instantly. I coughed and swung my arms, trying to find him in the cloud, but I felt nothing but air. I heard his heavy boots running into the shadows of the back hallways.
"Kraye! Get back here!" I roared, the sound shaking the glass windows.
I did not chase him into the dark. Not yet. I looked up at the stairs where Aurora had been standing, but she was gone too. She must have run away when the smoke hit. The hall was empty now, just the smell of alien blood and the sound of my own heavy breathing.
The two Chiefs walked in then, their swords dripping with red. They looked around at the broken throne and the blood.
"He got away into the inner palace," the first Chief said, wiping his blade. "But he is badly hurt. He is leaving a trail of blue blood. He won't get far."
"I do not care about him right now," I said, wiping my own blood from my cheek. "He is just an injured dog. I need to find her before he does."
I turned away from the throne and started to run. My alien heart was thumping in my chest like a drum. I did not care about the gold or the trade routes. I had to find Aurora before Kraye found her first. I had to get her out of that white dress and away from this planet forever.
"Aurora!" I shouted, my voice echoing through the long, gold halls. "Aurora, come back to me! I am not going to hurt you!"
I ran through the gold halls like a hungry wolf. I could smell her. I could smell the fear and the sweet human scent of her skin. The palace was falling apart. My ships were still hitting the walls with big bombs. The ground was shaking. I turned a corner and saw a piece of white silk stuck in a heavy metal door. Kraye had tried to hide her in a secret room, but he was too slow to keep me out.
I did not use a key. I kicked the door with my strong alien legs until the lock snapped and the metal bent.
Inside was a small, quiet room with gold lamps. Aurora was hiding in the corner. Her big white wedding dress was puffed up around her. She looked at me and let out a loud scream. She was shaking so hard the jewels in her hair made a clicking sound. Her eyes were wide and she was crying.
"Get up," I said. My voice was rough from the smoke.
"No! Stay away! You are covered in blood!" She cried. She looked at my face. The red blood was wet and dripping onto my armor. "You are a monster, Karn! You destroyed everything!"
"I destroyed a thief," I growled. I walked over to her. My shadow was big and dark over her body. I reached down and grabbed her arm. I did not care if I was being rough. I was too angry to be gentle. I pulled her up to her feet. "That dress is coming off. You are coming with me right now."
I did not wait. I scooped her up and threw her over my shoulder. She hit my back and started to kick her legs. She hit my heavy armor with her small human fists, but I felt nothing. I walked back out into the hall. My boots crushed the broken glass on the floor.
"Put me down! Kraye! Help me!" she screamed.
"Kraye is crawling in the dirt," I told her. "He cannot help you. Nobody can help you now. You are back where you belong."
I walked past the two Chiefs. They were taking gold from the walls. They looked at me and the girl on my shoulder and nodded. They had their money, and I had my prize.
"We are leaving!" I shouted. "Burn the rest of this palace. I want nothing left but ash and smoke."
I marched through the fire. I reached the roof where my ship was waiting. The engines were loud. I walked inside and the heavy doors slammed shut. It was quiet now. The war was outside.
I went to the back of the ship to my private bedroom. It had dark furs and soft lights. I dropped her onto the bed. She tried to run, but the wedding dress was too big. I reached out and grabbed the white silk. With one big pull, I ripped the dress right down the middle. The jewels flew across the room.
"Stop! Please!" she sobbed. She tried to cover her skin with her hands.
"I told you," I said. My eyes were glowing red. "I do not want his clothes on your skin. You are mine again. You belong to me."
I looked at her soft body. She was safe. She was back on my ship. The Crab King was beaten and his world was burning. I felt a heavy hunger in my gut. I was tired of sex toys and annoying mistresses. I wanted her.
"We are going home, Aurora," I whispered. I crawled onto the bed and pinned her down. "And this time, I am never letting you go."
The ship moved fast into the stars. I looked at her and I knew I would never let another man touch her again.