Page 29 of Alien Knight Steals the Bride

Taeger looked at Juliette, his expression thoughtful. “As far as I know, they can’t. But this,” he waved at the spreading flames, “I’ve seen Lumerian women manifest their powers like this.”

“So how do we help her?” Torrin demanded.

“If she were Lumerian, I’d say she needed an anchor; someone to help her channel her gifts. Preferably through a Yielding. I don’t know what to do with a human.”

“Then let’s try the Lumerian way,” Torrin yelled over the growing blaze. “We’re out of options.”

“I’ll need that orb you tucked away somewhere,” Taeger shouted back, holding out his hand.

Before Torrin could retrieve the orb from its hidden location, out of the sky, falling like an avenging angel with a blood curdling yell, came Falden, his mentor and friend, spectral cloaking armor flickering in and out of sight. Falden. Leader of the Lumerian Knights. Above and slightly to the side fell Vander, then Gareth and Cassiel. His unit. His friends.

Sword pointed up, ancient runes glowing an electric blue, Falden dropped in between Torrin and Juliette, straight into the fire. He gripped the hilt and raised his sword straight up. The blue runes flashed and electricity blasted outward from the ancient blade.

Dark storm clouds formed where there had been none. Thunder cracked. Wind whipped the fire into a frenzy before a torrential downpour soaked the surrounding ground with welcome rain, dowsing the fire before it could spread any farther. Only she remained alight, burning now with a low, otherworldly intensity, the flame so hot it burned blue at the center, orange flames licking at the wet ground.

For the first time, Torrin could see that below the flame, Juliette was perfectly healthy, her skin untouched by the fire encasing her entire body. Delicate red crystalline markings glowed with inner fire across one bare shoulder. He was dumbstruck by her beauty all over again. She was fire and ice. His everything. He didn’t know what was going on, but it was obvious to him that Falden did.

Taeger, Seth, and Greig drew their swords, semi-liquid blades swirling like smoke around ancient runes engraved with laser precision down the center. They formed a semicircle of protection around Torrin, ready to defend him with their lives.

Taeger shouted to Torrin above the storm, “Friends of yours?”

Torrin grinned. “Something like that,” he shouted, wiping the rain from his eyes.

Falden cursed long and loud in ancient Lumerian. Long enough to let Torrin knew he wasreallymad. Finally he shouted, “You had to do it, didn’t you?”

Torrin frowned in confusion before shouting back, “Good to see you, too. Do what, exactly?”

Falden ground out, “You used maju paste on her, didn’t you? After Dr. Jorvin told her to get rid of it, you had her light your markings, then spread the paste all over her. A human!”

Torrin looked at Juliette, then back at Falden, guilt riding him hard. “I’ll apologize later. Can you heal her?”

“Not while you’re here.” Falden shook his head. “It’s too dangerous and I can’t let you take the risk. Get out of here. King Dagan and his queen are waiting to transport you out.”

Torrin shook his head angrily, his shoulders rigid with tension. “No! I’m not leaving her!”

“Reckless..” Falden began swearing in Lumeran again.

Taeger stepped forward, his sword still at the ready, and shouted, “I hate to break up the reunion, but Lyari and Elduin just checked in. I sent them back to the Ambassador’s residence to gather more intel on those blood sucking A’nua Na-KI. Lyari said a ship full of them just landed in the back gardens. They’re loading up the barrels we saw. So, whatever you two are going to do, you’d better do it quick, because it won’t take them long to figure out what’s causing this storm.”

Torrin growled at Falden for the first time in his life. He didn’t care. “Heal her if you can, dammit! I’m not leaving her!”

Taeger looked at Torrin, then turned to Falden with a snarl of his own. “You heard my king. He trusts you to heal his woman, so do it, or I will. I’m pretty sure the yielding will do the trick. It’s obvious he’s chosen her, so what’s stopping you?”

Torrin barked angrily, “What are you talking about? I’m not your king. I’m not even Lumerian!”

“You,” Taeger bowed, “bear a striking resemblance to my late friend, King Torsev. Heir to the First House of Lumeria. You now carry his sword upon your back. I don’t know why this was kept from you, but I serve at your command.”

“And I am Torrin’s guardian,” Falden snarled, “serving at KingTorsev’scommand to keep his sons safe, hidden, and unaware of their lineage until their mother deemed it safe to tell them. The yielding is too dangerous! Unpredictable and vastly different for every couple. It will bind their life-forces together,” he shouted over the rain. “They could both die if one of them can’t complete the ritual.”

“I don’t care right now about anything but saving Juliette,” Torrin barked.

Falden looked into Torrin’s eyes. They were determined. Unbending. He bowed his head in defeat. “So be it. But hear me well; you both must yield all that you are to each other. Your heart, your mind, your soul, your life must be joined to become something more together. Do you understand? It’s not like a Caldorian Binding Ceremony. Good or bad, it’s forever. You live and die together.”

“I understand,” Torrin agreed.

Falden sighed. “Put the orb you found on the ground between you and Juliette. You will each need a few drops of blood to activate the yielding. You may as well use your own sword now that you’ve chosen one. Mine is currently in use,” he shouted with a bit of his dry humor returning. “Smear the blood on the divot you see there in the pommel, and it will begin,” he instructed.

Torrin didn’t waste any more time. Following instructions, he drew his sword, took a small amount of blood from his finger, and smearing the red drops into place.Turning to Juliette, he leaped into her personal space, drew blood as quickly as he could, and smeared it over the top of his. His arms blistered from the heat. He hissed in pain but refused to cry out. He would walk through the fires of hell for her if it meant spending one more day with her.

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