Page 1 of Fated to the Hunter
Chapter 1: Kiera
The loincloth-clad Xarc’n warrior brandished a pair of glowing twin blades, ready for the giant alien bug. The oversized winged scorpion was already wounded; one of its wings hung shredded, a ragged hole torn through the membrane. It shrieked as it swooped, claws extended. The hunter dodged with practiced ease, and the creature slammed into the center of the market square, sending up a cloud of dirt and debris.
I backed away, heart pounding, and ducked behind the counter. Garrett, my market stall-mate and fellow bugpocalypse survivor, looked ready to balk.
The creature’s head swiveled, mandibles twitching, scanning for its target. What it saw instead was a market full of humans. Yummy, tasty humans. It ignored the Xarc’n hunter and instead turned several times, as if looking for the most delicious morsel.
As it did, it discarded its now-useless wings, shaking them off.
That always creeped me out. Like,reallycreeped me out. Imagine breaking your arm and deciding the best fix was to tear it right the fuck off. Nope. Nope nope nope!
Shudder.
Its baleful glare landed on our stall.
“Oh my god! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” Garrett shrieked as he ran, making a beeline for the closest building.
The idiot! Everyone knew the flyers hunted by sight, and the best thing to do was hide and stay as immobile as possible! But Garrett had panicked, and now the flyer’s attention was solely on him. It charged.
I gawked at the monster barreling toward us like a freight train. I’d seen flyers before, but it was the first time I’d seen one quite from this angle.
The creatures looked like giant winged scorpions, minus the pincers, which somehow made them worse. Their sinuous bodies were split into five distinct segments, with two pairs of wings sprouting from the one closest to the head. The next three sections had clawed and barbed legs, each pair strong enough to carry off a child or a small adult. The final segment curved up and over their backs, ending in a massive spike. Not a stinger, but a spike meant for impaling their prey.
But from the front? All I saw was death.
I froze behind the counter, barely breathing, praying that stillness would make me invisible. My heart pounded so hard I was sure it would give me away.
The creature from hell jerked to stop just yards from the booth, like it had slammed into an invisible brick wall.
It took me a beat to realize the hunter had grabbed onto its tail. The alien warrior grappled with the length, holding on with his own sharp claws. He dug in with his feet, also clawed, and yanked, the muscles on his arms bulging. The flyer whipped around its attention fully on the hunter again.
“Isn’t that the new hunter that came with Harb’k last time?” whispered Holly, who was manning the refreshments stand nextdoor. She hid under her counter, peeking over the edge just like I was.
“Yeah, that’s him,” I whispered back. “They say he used to fight the scourge up in the Rockies in Canada.”
“Did you know Harb’k is mated now?” Holly asked, a note of disappointment in her voice. “To some nomad girl.”
“Yeah, I know.”
I’d seen Harb’k and his new mate earlier this morning setting up the booth for their group. Zoey seemed really nice.
“It’s a shame. Guess he’s off the market now.”
“Yeah,” I said, relaxing a bit now that it seemed the hunter had this all under control. “Maybe you can crush on this guy instead. Look at those muscles!”
“Mmm, this one is pretty good too. But is he good with kids like Harb’k?”
I grinned. That was a pretty convincing selling point. The kids here at the compound, both the human and mixed Xarc’n ones, loved their uncle Harby. “Maybe you can ask him when he’s done with the flyer.”
I turned back to the action. Yes. This Hunter was just as easy on the eyes as Harb’k. But unlike Holly, I wasn’t in the market for a Xarc’n hunter boyfriend. And it wasn’t because I didn’t find them attractive.
Hell! Look at this fine specimen! He was dragging the flyer, a creature the size of a truck, like it weighed nothing at all.
Aside from the signature leather loincloth that all Xarc’n warriors wore, our alien protector du jour wore pieces of armor strapped to his body, but it wasn’t enough to cover up his perfectphysique. He was a wall of purple muscles, genetically modified to be big and lean but still retain cat-like speed and agility.
His physique wasn’t the only panty-wetting thing about him. His face was masculine and chiseled, maybe a tad bit too angular and a little rough around the edges for some, but that was exactly how I liked them.
Then there were the claws on his hands and feet. The ones on his feet were huge and non-retractable. His horns commanded attention too. They were massive, spiraling arcs that swept out from his temples. I used to find them strange, but now after years of living here in New Franklin with a hunter group, I thought they were beautiful. Very regal.
