The Barbarian’s Captive
Warlords of Farian | Book 4
Bailey Dark
Copyright © 2019 by Bailey Dark
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
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One
Cartari
I jumped out of the transport, snow sifting onto my boots as I landed, more flakes settling onto the scuff in my beard and the fur in my hat and coat. I clapped my gloved hands together and then palmed the trigger on the side of the spaceship and closed up the entryway, lugging my gearbag to my shoulder. I slid the door of the garage space closed and thumbed in the code. I had rented the space for one month. I should be back well before then, but had given myself a couple week’s space, just in case. The mission should be over within ten days, but… This was uncharted territory and I was far from home.
I was on Vailstor, a snow planet a couple solar systems away from Farian, but still within the same galaxy. We used one of the minerals, called calasis, to fire our laser cannons. We were interested in striking up a new contract with them. If I could get General Blatson on board with the deal I had been authorized to make, my trip would be much quicker. If I couldn’t, well… I had been authorized to make some winds of change blow that this planet might not be ready for…
I pulled the fur cap lower on my head and ducked into the roaring gale. I had purposely landed at a spaceport in a more obscure part of the Capital City, but that meant there were also less buildings blocking the severe weather conditions. Not that there were that many skyscrapers, or infrastructure to speak of at all. It was a mining planet. Not much else going on here. Some ice fishing. A few yak ranches.
I followed the trail into the city. I needed a warm hearth, a nice meal, and a drink. It had been a long trek across the stars alone.
It had been six months since the battle for Bristola against Gorgin and his pirate goons on my home planet Farian, the rest of the pirates having been cleaned up in the meantime. I had been worn out by the battles on the seawinds. Prince Axis could tell. He knew I needed a break from Command. When he asked for a volunteer to take this mission, I jumped at it, even though it was solitary. He and Princess Ceritha were doing amazing things against the blue flu that had been decimating the ocean animal life. It was well isolated and the firefins and dolgans were flourishing again. Their wedding had been one of the most beautiful, and spirited, celebrations I had ever been to. But, I needed some time away.
This was the perfect solution.
I was to check in every two days with the handy com, either the one in my pack or the one at the spaceship. General Blatson reportedly had a few military fortresses around the Capital City, but we didn’t know much about Vailstor, so this was as much a reconnaissance mission as it was a networking and offer-giving one.
A wooden sign swung in the wind picturing a stein. That had to be a symbol known across the universe. There was no better vessel for holding liquids that made a man merry or woman swoon.
I let myself in the door as the wind burst particularly cold against my face and was greeted by a much warmer temperature and not a few warmer smiles. This would be the place.
I thumped the snow off my feet and the chill out of my bones at the door on the mat and made my way to the bar, happy to hear the trill of some odd musical instruments, stringed and winded, striking up a tune just as I entered.
The rather heavyset and pinched looking old woman behind the bar glared at me as I set down on the stool. I twisted my universal translator under my heavy coat as she began speaking. It hummed slightly and conveyed her words to me telepathically. When I spoke, she would hear my words in my tongue, but understand them through the mental connection. She would feel slightly dizzy, but not typically realize the difference. She would just understand what it was that I was saying. This was not a telepathically or kinetically skilled planet, and it was a bit of manipulation of their mind, that they weren’t quite giving permission for, but… It made the communication much easier.
“What can I get you, stranger?”
“Beer and a meal, perhaps?”
“Just have stew and whiskey tonight, that all right?”
“Absolutely.”
“Good enough.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
“Pay up front. Ten glorain.”
I had made change at one of the universal exchange depots on the way here and put the right amount on the table, with a substantial tip. She nodded her thanks and bustled her way to the back. I kept my hat pulled low, but scanned the bar underneath the slight lid. Most people seemed at ease, enjoying the evening with their friends. There were, however, two unruly youths who seemed to be eyeing me in a way which I found most unpleasant.
Axis had found it quite useful, more than once, that I squeezed my way out of fights with a glib tongue and a joke, rather than my fists, but as they neared me, just as the old woman approached with my stew, which smelled so good I could taste it, I knew this would not
