The Alpha Gladiator (6 page)

Chapter
Six

Ravage led his men through the
underground maze of the arena, following after Felix.
 
Guards surrounded them, training their
blasters directly at their heads.
 
Even
if he did try a bold attack move, he
’d be dead in seconds.
 
He could fight several men at once, but he
couldn’t outrun an energy bolt.
 

Ravage
still tried to figure out how he was going to get his people home.
 
If it was anyone else but the armada of
Sennex Prime who had taken them, his military force would have already blasted
the fucking assholes from space.
 
But
without their support, he would have to be the one to rescue his men.

The earlier games had already
commenced and the aftermath lay splattered all over the ground.
 
There were pools of red
since most
species in the near-by galaxies had iron based blood, but there were splotches
of other colors mixed in the dirt.
 
The
bodies had been disposed of, and Ravage’s fury burned through his soul.
 
He wanted to kill them all, slit all their
throats so they knew what it was like to be a helpless victim.

Felix turned to smile at him.
 
“I expect a glorious battle,” he said
coldly.
 
“Not only is this event sold
out, I was able to obtain exclusive televised rights.
 
You would make a valuable market strategist
if you’re interested in a position.”

“When
I get finished with this bloody spectacle, I’m going to rip your fucking head
off,” Ravage vowed.

The haughty veneer slipped off Felix
’s face.
 
The man turned and nodded curtly to the
guards, who opened the massive gates.
 
The roar of the crowd was deafening. The so-called games had been going
on all day, with different ludi presenting the new arrivals.
 
But now it was time for the grand
finale.
 
Ravage was pushed forward.
 
There was no way to escape from what was
about to happen, so he threw his shoulders back and walked boldly into the
spotlight.
 
Just inside the arena, swords
and shields waited for them, and Ravage grabbed one of each.

Felix’s
twelve best gladiators watched them approach.
 
They were dressed in black leather, big men staring at them with
resignation.
 
These men wanted to win
because they were close to being sent to Sennex Prime to fight for their
freedom.

“There
is no need for us to kill each other,” Ravage called out to Slayer.
 
He pointed to the platform where all the
lanistas of the games had gathered to watch.
 
“
They
are the ones who took us from our homes.
 
Who put us in this
arena.
 
Who expect us to tear each other apart for
their
entertainment.
”

Slayer
grinned at him.
 
“We are here because we
want to be here, Lycan.
 
We are fighters
who want nothing more than the glory of the arena.
 
Our goal has always been Sennex Prime.”

“You
willingly fight for them?” Fray asked in disbelief.

“
We don
’t fight
for
them,” Slayer
said.
 
“We fight for the money.”

Ravage
took a deep breath and cleared his mind.
 
The blood of his ancestors rushed through him, bringing forth his
wolf.
 
The animal stalked under his skin,
waiting to burst forth.
 
Wanting the fight.
 
Needing to taste the defeat of their enemy.
 
Knowing the gladiators were out for nothing
but the sport of the kill, Ravage didn’t have to hold back.

All
twenty-four men glanced at the podium and waited for the signal to begin.
 
Felix Crispus stood on the dais and raised
his arms.
 
It only took a few moments for
the audience to grow silent.

“Let
the games begin!”

The
fight started off with a battle cry.
 
Ravage held up his hand, holding his men back, as he watched the twelve
gladiators run toward them.
 

“Wait
until I change,” he ordered, and his men nodded.

Ravage
rushed forward and met Slayer with a roar of his own, dimly aware of the others
clashing together.
 
Yes, only he and Fray
had proper training, but Lycans were born fighters.
 
The clang of metal against metal and the
sound of fists landing on skin were the only things that penetrated through the
haze of combat.

 
Ravage spun and his shield found Slayer’s
jaw.
 
The gladiator fell back without a
sound.
 
Though he was dazed, he was not
out for the count as he twitched on the ground and made grunting efforts to
rise.
 
Ravage
waited,
his sword primed and ready in his hands.
 

The
big brute got to his feet, shook his head to clear it, and faced Ravage with a
sneer.
 
He lunged, as did
Ravage
, and their blades rang out with fury.
 
The gladiator was quick, he was good, but he
tired easily under each thrust, block, and parry.
 
Ravage quickly gained the advantage, pressing
the gladiator back, again and again with a jab and swipe, until Slayer made a
mistake with his footing.
 
His belly connected
with Ravage’s blade, and he toppled soundlessly to the ground.
 
Ravage let the body fall and then yanked the
sword from the flesh, hearing the skin pop around the metal.
 
As the blade withdrew, blood bubbled over and
ran in a crimson tide, blending with the blood of previous victims.
 

Then
Ravage let out a primal scream as he stood over his kill, so loud and savage it
stopped the fighting.
 
He dropped his
sword and shield, and let the wolf out.
 
His bones snapped and shifted, elongating his limbs until he stood seven
feet tall, on hind legs that had claws gripping the bloody ground.
 

He
wasn’t the same type of wolf from his Earthling ancestors, the kind that walked
on four legs and could only follow the call of the moon.
 
No, his people had evolved.
 
Adapted.
 
They now walked upright, a light dusting of
fur coating their bodies.
 
Their snouts
had razor-sharp teeth strong enough to snap bones.
 
He howled and received eleven answering calls
as his men changed into their wolfen nature.
 

The
remaining gladiators backed away, eyes wide in fright and disbelief.
 
He had known all about waiting for the right
time to attack, and now, it was upon them.
 
Ravage pointed after the gladiators and his pack charged forth.
 
Terrified, the gladiators turned and
scrambled away, trying desperately to escape the slaughter. It was no use.
 
Even as some stood their ground to put up a
token measure of resistance, the wolves were too fierce, consumed with
revenge.
 
In minutes, the twelve men who
had stood as unbeatable gladiators only a few minutes earlier lay dead upon the
sand.
 
Only then did Ravage realize the
spectators screamed and scrambled to get out of the arena seating.
 

Ravage
growled loudly once again and turned his attention to the dais, his gaze
landing on the terrified face of Felix Crispus.
 
He took off running at superhuman speed and a moment later leaped high
in the air to land on the platform with a heavy thud.
 
People screamed, and in a blind rush of panic
tried to push others aside to save their own lives.
 
Guards fired, but his reflexes were fast, and
in moments all the guards lay in bloody heaps.
 
Ravage couldn’t care less about them.
 
His attention was focused solely on Felix and Aleirah, who was held
tightly in his grip.

“
Let me go!
” Felix shouted.

Aleirah
’
s gaze met Ravage
’s, and he gave
a barely perceptible nod.
 
Faster than
the average eyes could see, Aleirah let her claws come out, and she swiped at
Felix’s hand which held the remote control.
 
He let out a strangled cry as the skin peeled away. Muscle, tendons, and
ligaments were ripped to shreds. Blood splattered and dyed the white walls a
nice shade of pink.
 
He dropped the
remote, and before anyone could react, Aleirah brought her foot up and smashed
the box.
 
Immediately, the metal collar
snapped open and fell to the ground with a slight clang.
 

“No!”
Felix cried.
 
He cradled his damaged arm
and scooted back until he bumped into one of the dead guards.
 
Scrambling fast, he scooped up a blaster and
held it at Aleirah.
 
“I’
ll shoot her!
”

Ravage reined in his wolf, turning
back only enough to communicate.
 
“Let my mate
go.”

“I’ll
… I’ll let all of you go,” Felix whispered, looking at the twelve vicious
beasts
who
had joined their Alpha.
 
“I-I can even have a ship waiting at your
disposal.
 
Take her and your men and
leave Kappuah.
 
Just don’t … don’
t k-kill me.
”

Ravage stared at the pathetic
lanista cowering before him
.
  
The acrid
scent of his fear made his wolf excited to see such submission on the man who
had thought himself superior.
 
His wolf
wanted to attack, to kill.
 
To drink this
man’s blood.
 
But the leader in him knew
that wasn’t the best choice for his pack.

“Get
the ship ready now.”

Felix nodded jerkily and reached for
his communicator.
 
Ravage listened
intently as the man commanded his personal space jet to be prepped for
take-off.

“It’ll
be ready at the ludus,” Felix said.

“On
your feet,”
Ravage said.
 
“You’ll be
escorting us to your ship.
 
And if you or
any Sennex raider comes back to my planet, I will kill all of you and feast on
your hearts. Do you understand me, Felix Crispus?”

The terrified lanista nodded, and a
second later, the strong smell of urine permeated the air.
 

Aleirah
rushed toward Ravage and he opened his arms, bringing his mate in close to his
body.
 
With Felix leading them, and
eleven wolven beasts keeping guard, not many tried to help the perspiring
lanista.
 
A few guards tried to shoot at
them, but their quaking arms misguided their aim, and the youngsters quickly
took care of those fools.
 

The
ludus lay to the east of the arena, far enough where they hopped onto Felix’s
private transporter which rushed them back to the compound.
 
Ravage stared at the clearly modern city in
disgust, noting how robotics seemed to do all the work while the human grew fat
and lazy.
 
He half wondered if Sennex
Prime was the same, with people sitting as machines took them everywhere.
 

Once
at the ludus, Felix led them through the large, winding building, past the
housing complex where he and his men had stayed, to the shuttle hangar.
 
Guards pointed blasters at them, but Felix
waved them away, clearly not wishing to be caught in the crossfire of any
fight.
 

“You
promised not to kill me,” Felix whispered as Fray sat in the pilot’s seat and
went through a quick preflight inspection.
 

“Didn’t say I wouldn’t hurt you.”
Ravage sneered right
before he punched Felix in the nose.
 
The
bone snapped with a clear sound, and Felix screamed as he cradled his
face.
 
Blood ran down his lips and chin
like a river, mingling with the other blood sprayed across his ceremonial
garb.
 
Ravage pushed Felix off the ship
just as the door closed.

Chapter Seven

Ravage strode onto the command deck
of his battle cruiser, back in human form.
 
Once he and his men had passed out of Kappuah’s grid, the Lycan fleet
had greeted them.
 
He had taken only
enough time to find clothes to put on before joining his men on deck.

“Lay in coordinates for home.” He barked
out the command.
 
Men immediately jumped
to obey.
 
“I want to leave this fucking
grid far behind, and blow up that fucking ship out there.”

The targeting missiles locked onto Felix’s
space
jet
and launched.
 
The explosion was brief
but satisfying.
   

Aleirah pressed her warm body
against his.
 
“What if they
follow?”

Ravage shook his head.
 
“
I don
’t think they
will.
 
But if they do, we’ll be ready.
 
The mating celebration will have to
change.
 
We can never be vulnerable like
that again.”

She slid her hands up his chest
.
 
A scent caught his attention, and he looked
down at her in wondrous shock.
 

Aleirah
blinked up at him,
then
cocked her head in
question.
 

“You’re
with cub,” he whispered.

“What?”
she asked, gaping at
him.

He placed a hand over her
abdomen.
 
“I can smell the change in you.”

“But
… but the doctor said—”

“
Doesn
’t matter what he said.”
 
Ravage wrapped his arms around her and hugged
her tight.
 
“The gods have blessed us,
mate.
 
Never again will I take your
safety, or the safety of our people, for granted.
 
I love you, Aleirah.”

“And
I love you,” she said.

The End

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