Nuworld: Claiming Tara (42 page)

Darius made love to her with his tongue until she thrust
her hips into his face and grabbed his hair. Her orgasm
tore through her.
Darius freed himself and pulled away. Her vision blurred
as she watched him strip. Finally, he stood at the end of
the
bed
naked,
his
hardened
erection
dancing
in
anticipation.
She didn’t say a word but
simply watched
as he
positioned himself over her.
“I need to know Tara, please.” Darius made no attempt
to touch her, but simply knelt between her spread legs.
She blinked several times and cleared her thoughts. “I
never stopped loving you,” she whispered.
Darius’ grin melted her heart.
“My lady, I will show you that I deserve that love. If it
takes a lifetime, I will show you that you never have reason
to leave my side again.”
“There will be no other women.” She knew his people
didn’t view his horrendous act as a crime. But she did, and
he answered to her now.
“Tara, you are it for me. I promise.” His expression
bordered on dangerous, his expression so intent.
She prayed he meant what he said, but knew only time
and his continual show of loyalty would convince her.
“Then prove that to me now.” Tara reached for him,
gripping his hardness in her hands, and stroked the velvety
skin that moved over his harder than stone erection.
Lifting her legs and spreading them at the same time, he
knelt
before
her,
pressing his hardness against
her
oversensitive entrance.
Tara
watched
those
smoldering
gray
eyes.
His
expression didn’t change when he shoved his steel
hardness deep inside her.
Fire ignited inside her, spreading with a fury she didn’t
try controlling. Darius glided his massive shaft over her
inner muscles, and she reached for him. “Darius. Please.”
The words were hard to form. More than anything, she
needed him to soothe an itch that was driving her mad.
He spread her legs further while he pulled slowly out.
When he plunged back inside, she screamed.
“My beautiful Runner,” Darius growled.
Tara managed to keep her eyes open. She watched when
he
threw his head back and pounded into her. Tara
climaxed again and again. When she thought he would
explode, Darius stopped and pulled out.
“Roll over.” His voice sounded rough.
Tara pulled her legs from around him and struggled to
flip over. Darius helped her but then gave her rear end a
sharp swat.
“Ouch,” she
cried, but she loved the sound of the
spanking, and the brief warmth it brought to her rear end.
Once she was on all fours, Tara arched her back.
Darius slid into her easily, and the new position had him
pushing against the most sensitive part of her insides. She
kept her arms locked, pushing back against him. Sex with
him had never been so good.
Tara had no idea how much time passed as he moved
her around and took her in every position they could
master on the bed. She was numb and sated when he
finally allowed her to collapse into complete exhaustion.
The smell of their sex and body sweat filled the air of the
room. Even though it was very cold outside, neither of
them felt a need to find a blanket. She fell asleep with his
arms and legs wrapped around her.
“Darius?” a voice called.
Tara jumped with a start as she recognized Torgo’s
voice. She sat up quickly and reached for a blanket.
“Are you awake yet?”
“I’m awake, Torgo. I’ll be down in a second.” Darius
rolled over and pulled Tara down on him.
“Hurry. The candidates are starting to assemble.”
Torgo’s voice cracked as he spoke.
Tara imagined how much he’d grown. She pulled away
from Darius and rose from the bed to walk across the room
to the shower.
“How do you plan to get from here to the arena?” He
admired her naked body as she picked up her clothes
“What did you say?” Torgo’s voice came from the
hallway.
“Go downstairs!” Darius’ voice boomed, and feet were
heard scurrying down the hallway.
“I’ll make it.” She smiled and shut herself into the
bathroom.
It was Syra’s voice Tara heard as she came back into the
bedroom. She was on the other side of the closed door
leading to the nursery.
Her heart leapt as she also heard two small babbling
voices. Her twins were content and happy. She heard an
occasional squeal as one of them decided they deserved the
toy the other possessed. Tara listened for a few minutes,
anxious for the time when she would be sitting on the
nursery floor, exploring the toys with her children.
Finally, she crept to the hallway and back to her old
bedroom. Darius was nowhere in sight, and she knew he
believed she’d be able to sneak back out of the house. The
house was completely silent, other than the noises from the
nursery, and Tara assumed everyone had left to watch the
test, leaving Syra to stay with the children.
Tara used the staircase by the kitchen and closed the
back door silently behind her. She stood motionless in the
yard for a moment, listening. Two guards stood on the far
side of the house, laughing over something. Tara edged
alongside
the house
in the
opposite
direction,
and
wondered if her new friend, Crator, had anything to do with
her bike being parked where she had left it.
“I don’t know who you are,” Tara whispered as she
grabbed her handlebars and pushed her bike away from
the house. “But if you are taking care of me, Crator, I really
appreciate it.”
Tara started her bike once she was away from the
house, then drove over the rough countryside, around the
town, and toward the clan site.
Hundreds of bikes were parked in a lower field. After she
left her motorcycle with the rest, Tara began to hike the
incline to the arena. The clan site buzzed with activity,
considering the early morning hour, and she pushed her
way through Runner and Gothman until she reached a
roped-off area. Four large poles had been shoved into the
ground to form a square, and several ropes were wrapped
around the area providing a fence for the arena. Stakes
stuck into the ground created an opening for contestants.
Outside this area, competitors were checking in at several
tables. Tara headed straight toward them.
“And to think, we’ll be working together by tomorrow.
You haven’t noticed any competitor that you think could
beat me, have you?” The voice caught Tara off-guard.
“I don’t know all the Runners that are fighting. I’ve only
seen the written tests. Can’t really judge a person by what
they write.”
The second voice belonged to Darius, and Tara turned to
see where he was. But that first voice, she knew that first
voice. Who was it? She spotted Darius. His guards blocked
her view of the other man. She continued moving through
the crowd toward the tables.
“That’s true. Drink with me to victory, my lord.”
“It will definitely be a day to remember.”
To whom did that first voice belong? Tara turned again,
and this time she saw him. The man talking to Darius was
Kuro.
She’d almost forgotten him. Kuro…her first love. How
unimportant he seemed to her now.
They had met as teenagers, and at eighteen winters he’d
pressured her to marry him. They were madly in love,
completely inseparable. But she thought she was too young
to marry. She wanted the
Age of Searching
. He wanted to
rule the Blood Circle clan by her side. She’d refused his
proposal, and in anger and humiliation, he’d left the clan.
That was five winters ago.
Now, here he stood, talking to the papa of her children,
the man who had claimed her, and the man whom she
loved as a woman.
It made sense that he’d return now. Here was his chance
to do what he’d always wanted to do: rule the clan.
How had he met Darius? Had they become friends? And
what was Kuro saying? He obviously assumed he would
win the Test of Wills.
If he still possessed the warrior skills she remembered, it
would be a challenge fighting him. Darius must have
known she would fight him. Why hadn’t he said something
to her?
Suddenly she wondered what Kuro might have told
Darius about her. Had he mentioned knowing her growing
up? And if so, what else had he told Darius?
Kuro turned at that moment and caught sight of her. He
gave her a distant look. Then, his eyes widened and he
looked at her again.
Darius turned to see what he was looking at and both of
them caught her eye.
Tara
turned
and disappeared
into
the
crowd. She
scanned the row of tables, and approached a Runner she
didn’t recognize.
“You here to check in for the Test of Wills?” he asked, as
he grabbed an armband.
“Yes. I’m Leetha with the Blood Circle clan.” Her heart
pounded against her coat as she was given a white cloth to
tie around her arm.
“Bordo, with the Kill Water clan.” A booming voice next
to her announced his arrival.
Tara glanced at the man and shuddered. His arms were
thicker than her waist.
“And he’s going to win!” A shrill female voice announced
this information loudly,
and several other
Runners
surrounding the large burly man began to cheer.
Tara was forgotten and shoved to the side, as Bordo’s
supporters pushed their way to the tables.
“Oh Crator, I’m doing the right thing, aren’t I?” Tara
mumbled. She wrapped her coat around herself tightly and
hurried back through the crowd.

her. The best thing was to remain in earshot of the arena,
but find an isolated spot to wait—and hopefully remain
unnoticed. Tara moved to the edge of the clan site, doing
her best to avoid any Runners she recognized. Once in the
trees, she climbed to a large branch and got comfortable on
her perch. She would wait here for the competition to start.

Tara realized she’d been dozing when she heard Patha’s
voice boom through the sound transmitter. She’d dreamed
of the old lady. Tara had sat next to her at the campfire in
the desert. The old lady had kissed the white cloth tied
around Tara’s arm.

“Number eight and number three
will
present
themselves at the side of the arena,” Patha announced.
“The Test of Wills is about to begin.”

The crowd exploded with cheers, and everyone began
moving at once. All those who had been standing and
visiting now hurried to get the best seat to watch the fights.
Rows of wooden benches surrounded the arena and the
dull thumping of people climbing to an available spot
vibrated through Tara’s tree branch.

Tara slid to the ground and headed to the arena. She
was number three. She would be in the first fight. Was it
good to be the first fighter? How had they determined who
would fight first? “Quit worrying and have faith,” she
muttered quietly.
Crator will guide you to victory. You have
faith that He’ll do that, don’t you?
She knew that she did.
He’d proven his abilities. Whatever He was, He wanted this
for her, and she would not let Him down. If it hadn’t been
for the dog woman, Tara wouldn’t be here now. There was
no better way to honor her memory.

Tara had to fight her way to the arena. The crowd was
thick, and no one seemed interested in letting her pass.
Her toes were stepped on, and more than one elbow
jammed into her by the time she removed her coat and
entered the arena.

A neutral Runner she didn’t recognize c
onfirmed her
armband number, and grabbed her hand and the hand of
the other contestant. “Round one of the Test of Wills shall
begin.” The woman yanked Tara’s arm and the other
Runner’s arm into the air.

Multitudes of bodies tested the strength of the ropes
surrounding
the
arena.
They
screamed
their
encouragement at the neutral Runner’s words.

“Let the fighting begin.”
Tara looked at her opponent for the first time.
“I guess you’ll do for warm-up,” the tall, thin young man

She responded with a hard blow to the side of his head,
and he flew backwards, crashing to the ground.
His head fell back and hit a rock. He lay motionless.
Tara stood tall over the fallen Runner and secured her
gloved hands together behind her back. The crowd cheered,
and she waited for the next contestant to enter the ring.
The next two fights were similar to the first. The fighters
would aim one blow at Tara before she flattened them. A
hard punch to the abdomen, a kick in the face, each
caused the other fighter to fall, defeated. The third fight
lasted for several punches.
A
young,
stocky woman came
after
her with full
vengeance. She knocked Tara backward and punched her
twice before Tara regained her balance.
Tara came back at her with several kidney punches, and
the crowd groaned as they felt the woman’s pain. As her
opponent struggled to regain control, she once again stood
still with her hands behind her back. The crowd screamed
for
her
to
attack
again.
Tara looked
at the
crowd
surrounding the arena. It was not a fight to the death, and
she refused to hurt the woman any more than necessary.
The woman finally pulled the white cloth off her arm and
threw it to the ground, indicating her surrender. Part of the
crowd moaned. Apparently, she’d been a favorite of one of
the clans.
In between the following fights, Tara scanned the crowd.
The Gothman were sitting on one side of the arena, and
she spotted Darius easily enough. One of his guards was
talking, and Darius was listening intently.
She caught his eye when he looked at her, and he
smiled. She glanced away first and looked at the crowd of
Runners. For the first time, she laid her eyes on Patha. He
was staring directly at her. It was harder to pull her gaze
away from him.
Did he recognize her? Of course he would, she decided.
Then Tara noticed Reena sitting next to him and also
staring.
Suddenly Reena’s hands went to her mouth. Patha
steadied her, putting his hand on her arm.
She
watched
as Reena looked
at Patha and said
something. He nodded and they both turned and looked at
her again. Reena started to get up, but Patha pulled her
back. He then leaned back and crossed his arms across his
chest. His face wore no expression.
Tara was forced to pull her attention away from Patha as
she took on the next contestant. After several more fights,
Tara’s adrenaline soared. She ignored the crowd now and
focused on each contestant. By the tenth fight, she began
to feel more evenly matched. She and one fighter, a large
burly man, fought for almost an hour.
Nothing she did would make him fall. He was thick as a
tree trunk. His punches served only to increase her drive to
fight. At one point, he grabbed her from behind and slowly
began to
squeeze
the
life
out
of
her.
With sheer
determination Tara managed to reach behind and grab him
by the neck. A hush fell over the crowd as she slowly
turned until his neck cracked and he slumped, lifeless, to
the ground.
A sense of battle took over all of Tara’s thoughts. She no
longer cared that Patha or Darius watched. She was a
merciless machine, and each contestant who entered the
arena felt
her fury.
Tara
lost
count
of
how many
contestants she’d eliminated. The noise of the crowd came
back to her when Patha’s voice exploded over the sound
transmitter.
“There will be a ten minute recess. Several of the
contestants have withdrawn their application for the Test of
Wills. We’ll begin again shortly with the last ten
contestants.”
There were only ten more contestants? Two large Runner
warriors strolled into the arena and escorted Tara through
the crowd. She knew both of them as Patha’s personal
guards. Fortunately, they paid more attention to everyone
surrounding them and didn’t look too closely at her.
“Make way for the next leader of the Runners,” a young
boy screamed not too far in front of Tara.
“You’ll defeat the others, don’t you worry,” came another
voice from beside her.
“Never seen anyone fight like you, lady,” a man yelled.
Patha ordered her to be secluded in a white tent near
the arena. She was given water as the two warriors stood
outside the tent preventing Runners and Gothman from
entering to offer their allegiance.
Tara’s hands shook as she sipped the water. The crowd
outside pushed against the canvas, and more guards yelled
at them to step to the side. Tara exhaled and watched her
breath appear as a puffy cloud in front of her in the chilly
air. A Test of Wills hadn’t been called for in over a hundred
winters, and Tara couldn’t recall from her history lessons if
another warrior had successfully won every round. She felt
exhilarated and nervous at the same time.
“I’m meant to lead the Runners.”
The crowd outside the tent and throughout all the
benches buzzed with the excitement of the day. The same
questions were repeated everywhere.
“Who is she?”
“Can anyone defeat her?”
“Which clan is she from?”
The Blood Circle clan members knew exactly who she
was. Whispers circulated through the crowd. “Tara is dead.
How is it that we watch her fight?”
Kuro pushed
his way toward
Patha.
He
demanded
permission to speak with the leader of the clans. Patha
ordered his guard, who stood next to Kuro, to inform the
young
man it
would
be
inappropriate
to
speak
to
a
contestant during the test.
“You know who that is out there.” Kuro looked past the
guard and spoke to Patha anyway. “What are you going to
do about it?”
Patha didn’t answer and the guard stood between Patha
and Kuro. “Patha will not speak with a contestant.”
Disgusted, Kuro left Patha for the other side of the
arena. It had been well over six cycles since Kuro had
spoken with Dorm Gowsky. Granted, the Neurian leader
was no warrior. He had been, however, a means to an end.
There had been no reason for Gowsky not to believe what
Kuro had told him about Tara. And Kuro had believed
Gowsky when he’d said Tara was dead. He’d been so
excited with the news that he hadn’t investigated to learn if
it were true. Kuro would have unlimited power leading the
clans. He’d been so close when he was younger, but Tara
wouldn’t have him.
The bitch! It wouldn’t have surprised him a bit if she’d
spread her legs for Gowsky in order to stay alive. Then
she’d plotted her escape. That’s what Tara did best –
fucked men, then ran from them. She would not make a
good leader of the Runners, he thought with bitter disgust.
He searched through the Gothman, looking for Darius.
The Gothman were whooping and hollering and faking
punches as they downed Runner ale. Darius was still
sitting
on the
bench with
several men
around
him,
including his little brother.
Kuro
pushed
aggressively
through
the
men
and
confronted Darius. “That’s Tara, isn’t it?”
Kuro had bellowed the question, and Darius looked
annoyed at the rudeness. The other Gothman pushed Kuro
back and grumbled something about showing respect to
the Lord of Gothman. He had no intentions of respecting
this race of people who possessed an Oldworld mentality
much longer.
“She’s supposed to be dead. What’s going on here?” Kuro
ignored the other Gothman and demanded an answer.
“You know as well as I do that Gothman aren’t allowed
to have anything to do with the Test of Wills.” Lord Darius
showed no expression as he downed his cup of ale. “We’re
just here to observe.”
“No one can fight like that,” Kuro snarled. “Except
maybe Tara.”
Darius stared blankly, and Kuro was furious. “I haven’t
seen her in five winters, and I can tell you without any
doubt that is Tara. If you aren’t so sure, then maybe your
claim isn’t as strong as you think. After all, you weren’t
able to keep her here the first time.”
Darius leapt from where he was sitting and struck Kuro
with his body while in midair. The two tumbled down the
stadium benches to the ground. Gothman hurried out of
the way in all directions, clearing a path for their lord so he
could fight.
Kuro landed on his feet and stood inches from Darius’
face. The rage in Darius’ eyes was enough to make the
largest of men back down. Kuro, however, stood tall and
smiled.
“I knew I could get a rise out of you, my friend,” he
whispered. “I won’t hurt her, I promise.”
Darius lifted
Kuro by his coat and
shoved
him
backward. Kuro stumbled a few feet before regaining his
balance, and raised a fist at the lord. But Darius moved
fast and grabbed Kuro’s fist with his gloved hand.
Kuro stared hard at the handsome lord, whose face
came within inches of his own. He hated the man for taking
Tara, and despised him even more for somehow managing
to bring her back. He wouldn’t let the hatred show. First he
had to win the Test of Wills, only then would he put Lord of
Gothman in his place.
“Fight her like a man,” Lord Darius snarled, undaunted
by the chivalrous smile. “She’ll take you down like one.”
“Trust me, my lord. I know exactly what she’s capable of
doing.” Kuro’s eyes gleamed. He yanked his hand free from
Darius’ and straightened his clothing. He slowly walked
away from the outraged lord.
Patha announced the fights would continue, and the
crowd pressed, again, against the arena. As Tara re-entered
the arena and the crowd volume noticeably increased.
Gothman and Runners pounded their boots on the wooden
seats and hollered and yelled.
Tara stood in the center of the ring, calm and unharmed
from the previous fights, letting the crowd show their
respect. These people would follow her unconditionally.
Kuro would have to kill her.
The next contestant entered the arena and Tara watched
him, searching for any weaknesses he might possess as a
warrior. He was a large man, standing head and shoulders
over Tara. She recognized him as the one who had checked
in when she had. He turned and held his hands over his
head, causing the crowd to make even more noise.
Tara realized he was drunk. With his back turned, she
jumped in the air and kicked him hard in the small of his
back.
The crowd roared as he stumbled but did not fall.
He turned and howled at her. “Why you little bitch!”
Tara wasn’t able to move fast before the man lunged
forward, grabbed her, and threw her as if she weighed
nothing. The ropes stopped her from falling, but she found
her torso twisted in them and took a second to gather her
bearings and balance. Hands were all over her, and Tara
got the sensation that part of the crowd tried pushing her
in, while others tried pulling her out of the arena.
Tara’s clothes were twisted, and she felt groped as she
finally faced her aggressor. A true warrior didn’t always get
to fight in the best of conditions.
“You’re going to lose this one, little bitch,” Bordo sneered
and lunged at her again.
“And you’re going to learn some manners,” Tara hissed.
She gathered her strength and jumped. Her legs went up,
this time kicking him in the face. The heel of her boot hit
him in the nose and blood splattered everywhere. It didn’t
stop the brute. This time when he picked her up, he
slammed her to the ground.
Tara lay without moving. The large man stood over her
breathing loudly, but she didn’t move. The crowd yelled for
her to get up and finish him off, but still she just lay there.
Reena’s hands went to her face, and she started to cry.
“Don’t worry, woman. I taught her this,” Patha
whispered.
Reena slowly spread her fingers and peeked between
them, unable to stop watching her daughter in action. The
large man approached Tara slowly. The noise from the
crowd was deafening. Patha glanced around. Most didn’t
know the Runner who was undefeated and facing a giant.
Already his daughter had their loyalty. He beamed with
pride, although he was also pissed. Once Tara survived her
way through this, and he had a feeling she would, she
would go a couple rounds with him. Patha watched the
giant Runner finally stick a foot under Tara to turn her
over. Patha would wait out the Test of Wills, his people
were too wound up to stop the event now. But when it was
over, Tara would face his wrath! She already had the title
she was out there fighting to win.
Tara moved so fast, most onlookers wailed their dismay
when they missed what happened. She grabbed his foot,
jumped up with lightning speed, and raised it high into the
air, causing the man to fall on his back. Before he could
move, she was on him.
After several punches to his face, she wrapped her
hands
around
his neck
and
twisted
his
head
within
fractions of the breaking point. Then she sat on him and
waited. Each time he tried to move, she turned his head
just a little farther.
At last, the giant sobered enough to see his life was in
her hands. He reached for the white cloth on his arm and
threw it to the ground.
She jumped off, and the crowd sounded ready to riot.
The contestants that followed were all huge men. They
hovered over her, and she made it look like a struggle to
defeat each one of them. Each time, they lost, bloody and
mad as hell. Tara remained unharmed.
At last the moment she dreaded arrived. Kuro entered
the ring.
A hush fell around the arena as they saw the man
predicted
to
win
the
Test
of
Wills stand before
the
undefeated woman.
Unlike the other warriors, Kuro stood facing Tara and
bowed.
She stood undaunted and bowed in return. Then, to her
surprise, he assumed the position of the ancient warriors:
bent knees, straight back, arms bent with hands opened.
He held the position until Tara matched the pose.
The crowd grew silent. No one moved. Everyone sat on
the edges of their seats.