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He snarled, gnashing his tusks, his eyes wide and feral. I’d never seen him before, and if someone had mentioned a male such as him, I didn’t remember.
Did he belong to a clan I’d never heard of?
He grunted and rushed me, his head lowered like a battering ram.
I flung myself to the side, rolling and rising to my feet. As he roared and raced at me again, I slashed out with my crystal blades. He spun and twisted, evading each blow.
Renewing my efforts, I bellowed and spun, swinging my swords.
He slashed out with his arms, deflecting them. With a grunt, his hands snapped out, and he gripped the sharp side of my swords, holding tight even as I tried to wrench them free. Like I’d impaled them in the trunk of a tree, they remained fixed and unmoving.
He yanked, trying to take them from me. I’d survived three worthy challenges in my rise to traedor, but I’d never seen anything like this before.
“Let go or I’ll cut you,” I snarled.
He gnashed his tusks and renewed his efforts, wrangling with me for control of my blades.
I released one and grabbed a short blade from the sheath on my thigh. I swung it up, gouging the side of his belly deeply, aiming for a non-vital area.
I’d killed. Too many times. I hated the thought of taking the life of this mighty warrior even if he had been watching my clan.
“Relent and I won’t hurt you again,” I snarled. “We can talk. As traedor, I’d welcome you by my fire.” Or try to as long as he stopped attempting to kill me.
He tipped his head back and bellowed before flinging my sword up and grabbing the hilt when it came tumbling down.
Before I could threaten him with my blade once more, he pivoted and bolted into the woods, taking one of my swords with him.
I stood on the forest floor, panting, wondering who he was and where he’d come from. If he’d wanted to kill me, he could’ve done so. Instead, he appeared to want my weapon more than to battle.
Was he a member of the Celedar Clan? Before I killed Nevarn for stealing my mate, I’d ask him.
Down one sword but surprisingly unscathed after the battle with the enormous brute, I circled around to find the trail again and raced through the forest.
I ran across an open area leading directly to a large tree.
The trail ended at the smooth trunk.
Tipping my head back, I bellowed my mate’s name.
Chapter 37
Vanessa
“Iwish for . . . companionship,” the carved god—goddess? –said.
“I’m not sure what you mean.” I wavered, wanting to leave but feeling strangely compelled to remain here with this alien.
“I have no one to talk with,” she said.
“But you live with this clan.”
“They consider me a god. They don’t speak with me very often.”
That was sad. “What’s your name?”
“I don’t have a name.”
“What do you mean?”
