On a Barbarian World (18 page)

Aurina’s laser glowed orange, and Kavon saw the rocks heating. There was a loud sound behind him, and he spun to see the trondor had landed.

It was a giant creature with leathery wings like a bird, but a thick, stocky body covered in scales. It snapped its sharp beak, and when it opened its mouth to screech again, rows of sharp teeth were visible.

He charged Tarm toward it, hefting his sword. The trondor screeched again, swiping out with a giant clawed foot.

Then it flew into the air with a flap of wings, only to land on the other side of him. He forced Tarm to wheel around, the well-trained hargon turning sharply.

But the trondor had lost interest in Kavon. Its gaze landed on Aurina.

“Aurina!” Kavon dug his heels into Tarm, charging ahead with his sword raised.

But the giant bird was already moving toward her.

She turned, her face set in determined lines. No screaming or hysterics for his woman. She fired at the trondor.

The laser hit its wing, and it let out a terrible screech. It snapped out with its beak.

Aurina ducked, sliding in under the creature and firing again.

This time the animal didn’t make a sound. It leaped into the air, its takeoff a little off-kilter.

Aurina jumped to her feet. “Come on!”

Kavon sprinted to her, grabbed her arm and just stared at her for a second. She was amazing, with a calm, steady courage. It was admirable and completely terrifying for a warrior.

“Kavon, call the men. There are more of those flying menaces circling overhead.” She waved at a dark opening she’d opened in the rock pile. “Let’s get inside.”

With a nod, he bellowed for his men. As a tight unit, they moved forward, fighting off another trondor as it dived at them. Soon, they were all coaxing their hargons through the small opening.

It was tight, and Tarm protested the indignity of having to squeeze through the entrance. But at least it was too small for the trondors to get through.

Inside was pitch black, except for the dim glow of Aurina’s Sync. “Light wands,” Kavon said.

Aurina was shaking her laser stunner, then she tapped it against her palm and cursed. “It overheated and burned out.” She tossed it against the wall. “Dammit.” Then she gasped. “Look.”

Where they stood at the entrance had once been a wide cave mouth, but ahead, it narrowed to a tunnel with crisp, even sides—clearly man-made. And one wall was etched with Markarian sacred script.

Aurina hurried over, stroking the engravings. “Can you read it?”

Kavon stopped beside her. “‘Stop if you want to live. The Mines of Riom are cursed. Within them lives sickness and death. Creatures of myth and nightmare. Many men have perished within…you are warned. Do not join the foolish dead in the eternal sleep of death. Turn and go back to your warm beds, women, and villages. Turn back and live.’”

Aurina shivered. “Well, that’s cheery.”

“Nothing that we didn’t already know.” Kavon squeezed her shoulder. “Let’s unpack our gear and head in.”

“What about the hargons?” Aurina asked, patting the scaled hide of her animal.

He suppressed a smile. For someone who thought they were pretty frightening in the beginning, she seemed to be growing fond of hers. “They will stay here. They do not mind the dark, and if we leave food, they won’t venture far.”

She unclipped her bag from the beast and nodded.

Soon, their small group headed into the dark tunnel.

Kavon kept his light wand lifted high. Dirt and small rocks crunched under his boots. Here, the air was still cooler, but from a lifetime of being associated with mines, he knew as they moved deeper, the air would heat.

“Look,” Colm called out.

A rail track appeared on the floor. It was made of wood and metal, badly deteriorated.

“That’s a good sign,” Aurina said.

They followed it as it snaked through the tunnel. Finally, they reached an area where the track split, spearing off into three different tunnels. And in the center of the junction, sitting on the tracks, were large, bulky shadows.

“Mine carts,” Kavon said. The simple metal carts were an old design—hundreds of years old.

Aurina tapped her Sync screen. “We need to take the central tunnel. Do you think we can use the carts?”

“It’s a risk. The track could be damaged in places.”

“I will ride first.” Colm dumped his gear into the lead cart. “It will cut a lot of time off our journey.” He looked around, his nose wrinkling. “The less time spent in this cursed place, the better.”

Aurina placed her gear in the next cart. “This is my ride.”

Kavon handed his gear to Kian and placed a hand on the edge of Aurina’s cart. “Our cart.”

“It’s going to be a tight fit, warrior. You’ll be right behind me.”

“Yes, I will. In this cart.”

She huffed out a breath. “Kavon—”

He climbed in and sat, then waved at her to join him. “Old mines haunted with evil. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

She climbed in and settled in his lap. “I’m trying not to be pissed at your over-protectiveness.”

“You like it.”

She made a small, strangled sound, but he noted she didn’t refute his words.

Then she took her time shifting around to get comfortable. Her round ass rubbed against him tantalizingly, and he gritted his teeth.

She rubbed again, one of her hands pressing against his thigh. “Fine, it’s annoying, but I find it kind of sweet.”

He heard his warriors try to muffle their laughs. “I am not sweet.”

“Sure you are, big guy.” She shifted again, grinding hard against him, then patted his leg.

He gripped her long braid and held her still, his lips brushing her ear. He kept his voice low, “I know you are taking revenge by rubbing yourself against me.” He lifted his hips so she’d feel his hard cock against her. “But be warned, I will have my payback later. I promise.”

She shivered. “Dangerous mines, remember, Kavon? You need to focus.”

He slid a hand down and patted her thigh. “I remember. And I will also not forget that payback.”

Soon, the warriors were all settled in the mine carts. Colm released the brake on his, the metal screeching with age, and his cart disappeared into the darkness. Kavon reached over the edge and released his brake. With a small jerk, the cart moved forward.

They gathered speed. The tunnel walls whizzed past them, just murky shadows beyond the light of the wand. The tunnels dipped and turned, and sometimes ran straight. At other times, they twisted down in a spiral, taking them into the depths of the mine.

“This reminds me of a ride I took at the theme park on Yavik,” Aurina called back breathlessly. “Just a little darker and scarier.”

“I do not believe people would do this for fun.”

She snorted. “Of course you wouldn’t.”

Suddenly, Colm shouted from ahead. Kavon grabbed at the brake and yanked it. Metal shrieked against metal, and the cart slowed.

Ahead, he saw Colm’s cart stopped at a huge pile of rocks. The tunnel had collapsed.

Kavon glanced back and bellowed for the others to stop.

Then he caught Colm’s gaze. The shadows cast his face in sharp relief. “There’s no way through. End of the line.”

***

“No, the map says the tunnels continue.” Aurina climbed out of the cart. She stared at the huge pile of rocks and cursed. “It must go through there. If I hadn’t burned out my laser…”

“We’d have been eaten by the trondor,” Kavon said from behind her.

“We need to get through these rocks. We’ve come too far to give up now.”

Kavon nodded. “Warriors, let’s move these rocks.”

Aurina stayed clear as the men got to work shifting rocks. Two of them together could move some of the big ones. She was woman enough to admit she enjoyed seeing the flex and bulge of Kavon’s muscles as he hefted rocks. Okay, all of the warriors were prime specimens.

Finally, Kavon told them to stop. He was frowning.

“What is it?” She pushed forward.

And stared at a huge, blank wall of rock.

The track stopped just short of it.

“It doesn’t continue?” That couldn’t be right. She pressed her hands to the rock. It was smooth, nothing unique about it. No joints, no door, nothing. She snatched up her Sync, paging through the ancient maps. “It’s right here. The tunnel continues on to what looks like a large open area. This is wrong.” She waved a hand at the wall.

A hand touched her shoulder. “Or the map is wrong. The maps are old. The memories of the few survivors who made it out of the tunnels were likely muddled.”

“No.” She shook her head. “There’s a way. I know it.”

Kavon forced her to turn and face him. “Your dedication to this quest is admirable. I have enjoyed watching you as you’ve pieced this together. You’ve brought me closer to finding Durendal than anyone or anything before. But your beacon is no longer contingent on finding the sword.” His face was strangely blank. “I will give you the beacon.”

Aurina blinked. Hell, those were the words she’d been so desperate to hear…so why wasn’t she jumping for joy? She stared at the man in front of her. Her big, tall warrior. Respected leader, honored warlord, brilliant lover. A man who’d pushed her and tested her, made her angry, happy, and thrilled all at once.

A man she’d fallen in love with.

Her throat closed and she felt lightheadedness hit her.

She was in love with Kavon.

And he was going to give her the beacon and let her go.

She cleared her throat. “This isn’t about the beacon anymore.”

He tilted his head. “What is it about, then?”

She looked around at the warriors watching them. Right, she so did not want to have this conversation here. “It’s about finding the sword. For you, your family, your father, your people. I’d do anything to honor my mother. I understand what you’re trying to do, and I’m not giving up.” She thrust her hands on her hips and looked around. “The tunnels continue downward. We just have to figure out where.”

Kavon was silent for a second, then nodded, his eyes glowing. “Warriors, we search.”

The men scrambled, studying every inch of their surroundings. Aurina stared at the metal and wood track. She crouched to look closer. It was an interesting design, the metal wrapped around the wood. As she touched the metal, it glowed, and she snatched her hand back.

“Nanami,” Kavon said. “They infuse the metal. That is why the track in this part of the mine is in such good condition.”

She touched a design etched into the side of the track. “This almost looks like writing. You really have to—”

The ground beneath them dropped several inches.

The warriors cried out and Aurina lost her balance, falling squarely on her bottom. She snatched up her fallen light wand and looked around. A five-by-five-meter square of stone had dropped down. As she watched, it dropped another few inches.

Kavon hauled her up, and wrapped his arms around her. “We need to get off this—”

The platform dropped…and this time it didn’t stop.

It picked up speed, air rushing past them. As they whizzed downward, the warriors shouted. All around them was a vast, empty darkness.

Viken teetered on the edge of the platform, crying out. The others grabbed at him, but as the platform gathered speed, the warrior lost his balance and fell off the edge.

Colm knelt at the edge before bellowing a curse.

Aurina gasped and pressed her face against Kavon’s chest.

Kavon muttered a curse against her hair, his arms tightening around her.

She wasn’t sure how long they fell. It felt like hours, but in reality she knew it must have only been a few minutes. The platform started to slow. The warriors all crouched near the center, hands touching the ground to keep their balance.

Then it jerked to a stop, and Aurina was thrown against Kavon.

She pulled back.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded. He looked fine, his long hair windblown.

“Colm?” Kavon asked.

“Fine.” The warrior stood, his face a little pale. “Viken—” His voice was grim. “The fall was too high to have survived.”

Oh, God
. Aurina swallowed the lump in her throat. The warrior had been nice, in the prime of his life.

A muscle ticked in Kavon’s jaw before he gave a short nod. “We can’t grieve for him now. He may not have been fighting an enemy, but it was a warrior’s death. On an honorable quest.”

The other warriors nodded, bowing their heads.

Finally they all stepped off the platform and Aurina looked around. She gasped.

The platform was an elevator. She could see the framework and some complicated system that worked it. They’d descended deep below the mountain and were now in a giant cavern. This deep, the air was hot and thick.

And she could see.

The walls of the cavern all glittered with a shimmer of silver. Like the rocks were sprinkled with glitter.

“A primitive form of nanami,” Kavon said.

“I swear, if you could bottle and sell the stuff, you’d be the wealthiest planet in the galaxy.” She looked around, noting dozens of mine carts nearby. Some were still loaded with a sparkling ore.

“These nanami are unable to do what the nanami in our blood can do,” Kavon added. “They are wild, simple, unable to be directed.” He looked around. “Where to now?”

She pulled up her Sync. “God, the maps fit. I thought they continued on the same level, but they are
below
the other tunnels.” She studied the map, then pointed. “That way. We need to go into that tunnel.”

Kavon nodded and his men moved in closer. “Everyone, watch where you step.”

As they approached the tunnel, she looked along the rock wall, and saw another entrance to the left and another to the right. In the light of nanami, she could see an entire row of tunnel entrances. The mine was huge.

“You’re sure this is the one?” Colm nodded at their entrance.

“As certain as I’ll ever be. It matches the location on the map.”

They moved inside. The tunnel went straight, the floor surprisingly smooth. Then Aurina spotted something ahead.

She frowned. “What the hell is that?”

It was a long, brown…shell, lying on the tunnel floor.