On a Barbarian World Read Free Page B

she had to limp along at a slow speed, she could still make it to the planet. Landing might be a bit rough, but she’d make it.
    A chime. “Shields are now offline.”
    Aurina froze. No shields was not good. She eyed the distance to the planet again. Still, it wasn’t far and while her ship might get a bit battered on landing, it should be fine.
    Suddenly, something whizzed past the viewscreen. Her muscles tensed, and she leaned forward. Another object whizzed by, headed for the planet.
    Dread curdled in her gut.
    Two more objects streamed past.
    Oh, God. The meteor shower.
    With her systems down, she hadn’t detected it, and now, with her shields down, she was in real danger.
    She touched her controls, her hands moving in a frantic dance. “Come on, baby. Just a little bit more speed. Let’s get out of here.”
    But the Ariel didn’t respond.
    Aurina sat back in her seat and checked that her harness was tight. The planet loomed ahead, filling the viewscreen.
    But as more meteors whizzed past, turning into a dangerous rainstorm of rock, she could barely breathe from the tension.
    There was a loud crash and alarms shrieked in a chaotic chorus.
    “Impact,” the computer said. “A foreign object has impacted the ship.”
    “Wow, I would never have guessed,” Aurina muttered. There was another crash and her fingers dug into her armrest.
    “Environmental systems are failing, and engines have been damaged.”
    The Ariel hit the atmosphere, flames flaring up over the ship. Aurina heard metal tear and groan. The ship was tossed sideways, and she was thrown against her harness.
    She was going to die.
    She dragged air into her tight lungs. She’d always thought death would be peaceful. A calm acceptance of what was coming, and being thankful for the life she’d had.
    But dammit, she didn’t want to die. She wanted to live. She wanted…more.
    More alarms beeped, and Aurina closed her eyes and tried to stay conscious. The reentry flames and shuddering of the ship died away. But now the ship was spinning, making her stomach reel.
    She caught a glimpse of a blue sky, sharp-peaked mountains, and brown land. Then the ground was rushing up to meet her.
    There was a huge jolt, and she was tossed around, her harness digging into her shoulders. Metal screeched, items vibrated, and glass shattered.
    Another huge jolt and something slammed into her head.
    She blinked once, her vision blurring, and pain tearing through her.
    Then there was nothing.
    ***
    The clang of sword against sword rang out through the early-evening air.
    Kavon Mal Dor urged his hargon beast forward, felt the animal’s powerful muscles tense as it sprang into movement. Kavon thrust all his strength behind his weapon, slashing his sword against the raider.
    The raider, dressed in scarred, worn armor, lifted his own sword, but it snapped under the size and strength of Kavon’s blade. With a scream, the man fell off his hargon beast, tumbling beneath sharp hooves.
    Kavon slowed his beast and turned.
    He’d already cut a swath through the raiding party, and behind him, his warriors were making short work of the remaining raiders. His jaw tightened. Raiders were the lowest of the low—men with no honor who stole and pillaged.
    They’d made the wrong decision in choosing to raid a village under Kavon’s protection.
    His nanami surged through his blood, giving him added strength and making his reflexes faster. The nanami were a part of every Markarian, a special life form that helped them survive the harsh conditions of their land.
    Kavon took down a final raider and soon they all lay unmoving. He urged his beast, Tarm, forward with a nudge of his knees. He saw two of his warriors calming the two women who’d been kidnapped, while the others rounded up any valuables that had been stolen.
    A tall warrior strode over to Kavon. “Everything’s accounted for, Warlord.”
    “Thank you, Darroch. The women?”
    “Unharmed. Just frightened.”
    Kavon nodded.