Alien General's Beloved: SciFi Alien Romance (Brion Brides) by Vi Voxley Page B

both.
    "She does, yes," the general said, before adding, "so do you."
    Corden felt his temper flash before he could get a grip on it. The twisted smile that slowly dawned on Worgen's face told him how deeply he'd been mistaken.
    Rookie mistake. Never underestimate the enemy. Never assume they have the weaknesses you wish they had.
    Well, that had been nice while it lasted. The whole two minutes of it.
    Knowing he was exposed, Corden let the valor squares come back to life, seeing the way Lana's eyes lit up at that. And right when he'd thought the situation couldn't get any worse, Worgen's attention snapped to her and back to him.
    "I see," he said.
    No.
    His fingers ached for the sure and solid weight of the spear in his hands, but one sudden movement meant Lana's death. There was no guarantee she'd live even if he stayed still, but Corden could no longer risk that.
    "It's been a while since I've seen those burn like that," Worgen said, turning his attention back to him.
    Corden wondered how much he'd given away. He was no rookie warrior to be ignored. If Worgen knew who he was, would he have dared to take his eyes off him, even for a second? Judging by the way his dark eyes were filled with life now, possibly.
    Arrogant bastard , Corden thought. From a Brion, that was a compliment.
    The line of Worgen's own valor squares was mostly hidden by his armor, the two rows of them disappearing under his collar. But all remained passive, even then.
    "So young," Worgen said, looking at him. "Such a fool."
    Corden refused to fall for that trap a second time, even if it grated on his nerves. He continued what he'd been doing ever since he betrayed himself to the other general. Edging slowly closer to Lana with steps that were barely movement at all.
    "Stay right where you are, boy," Worgen said exactly as Corden was thinking he was almost close enough to make a run for her. "I know all your tricks and a thousand more that our kind has forgotten."
    That was accurate, more than likely. Honestly, Corden hadn't thought it would work, but doing nothing had proven to be impossible.
    "What do you want?" he asked.
    Worgen looked at him with something akin to pity.
    "To make the Brions great again," he said.
    As I feared. Radgen has returned to us.
    "All those years," Worgen was saying, every word lighting up his eyes even more, his armor responding to the rise of his temper. The armor that was obsidian before began to glow like coal now.
    "All those years I've watched from the darkness as your Elders ruin us. We were great once, boy. Now all we are is slaves to this Union. Tame, neutered, imprisoned by this false leadership. The men I knew would have never allowed for this to happen, but they're all gone now. I've returned to put it right."
    I expected better from you.
    Out loud, Corden said nothing. Pride was not something he was willing to die for. If words were the only weapons Worgen used against him, he'd be fine.
    The words were familiar. Every once in a while, a radical emerged, wishing to bring Brions back to the good old days . They meant wars, flowing rivers of blood, endless circles of revenge and the threat of extinction.
    True glory, that.
    It was one of the reasons his position had been created. Against men like Worgen, exactly for men like him. Corden wouldn't have ruled out the possibility that the Elders had gotten the idea from Worgen's legend.
    Which means I was born to kill you, he thought. You and your treacherous dream of death.
    Worgen was still looking at him, his black eyes now alight with hatred.
    "For that, I need my fated," he finished. "It seems to be the one thing you've gotten right lately. All your generals, binding to Terran women. There has to be something in them that calls to power, to real strength. With one, I will be complete, ready to rule Briolina. Imagine what I would become with one, if a nobody like that last one can kill a Clayor Host after binding."
    The mad general's eyes drifted back to Lana,