Protected のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 21 - チャプター 30

ZURI POV"What do you think," Baalee asks while examining my face in the mirror The worry in her facial features is clear. My dislike for yesterday's dress hurt her and today she is extremely hopeful I will approve of my outfit."It is better than yesterday. I wish it covered more of my chest and shoulders, but it is very nice. I especially like the color," I say with a large smile and her face seems to crack open.All the worry leaves her blue face and her pointy fangs come into full view as she beams at me."Excellent. I want you to feel confident and beautiful as you watch the champions compete," Baalee says as she begins to straighten my tulle skirt.I nod and watch her in the mirror. My mind drifts off as I stare and the thought that kept me up last night returns.I have been upset ever since the announcements yesterday. I missed who Cull will be fighting today and it is making me nervous. What if he got paired against a massive Bronkark? What if he looses and he doesn't get to

CULL POV Moore's eyes flick toward the Gold status Commander again and I feel a twinge of pity for him. It was purely bad luck for him to be paired against the Hassin this round. Not only is Burk a Commander, but his battle sense is well-known among all of us. Captain Nole of Bronkark and Lieutenant Modok of Gaimo are also formidable soldiers from his battalion. Fighting any of them would be difficult. "He seems calm," Moore grumbles in a low voice and I look at Burk. His shoulders are completely relaxed and his facial features are smooth. "I have great respect for him and his comrades... I know he is lethal, but he could at least look a little worried," Moore says as he folds his arms across his chest. I nod. "As far as I know he never shows much emotion," I say to ease Moore. The Gaimo clicks his tongue once and finally peels his eyes off of Burk. "I probably only have a 20% chance of winning this match. He has an advantage in reach and speed. He might be a Hassin, but I h

ZURI POV I smooth my dress and smile as we pass the thousands of people to our front-row seats. Baalee and I both like this dress on me. I feel especially pretty. I can only hope Cull likes it when he sees it. As we sit down in our familiar seats I sigh. The two-day-long fighting between champions is finally over. Now comes the fights between the winning champions and the beasts. I feel less worried about these fights because Baalee said they should be easier for the champions to win. "We are down to the top twenty-seven champions. Our three-way champion winner Captain Bolis of Vaal has chosen to fight a Bunte. Will the other 26 champions line up, please," the announcer says, and the winners walk out onto the field. The crowd goes crazy and many people begin to wave colored banners that match the home planet of their favorite champions. The champions keep their faces neutral, but I can tell they are proud to have reached this point. "You will place your index finger on the scre

ZURI POV The last of the beast fights were quite boring. I didn't have anyone special to watch and it was clear the champions knew how to handle each kind of beast in the tournament. I am honestly glad it's over. Now we can focus on the important part, getting our mate."The Final day of the Harvest has arrived. All champions that fought a beast have moved on. All may challenge one another to prove they deserve the top spot. The last man standing goes first as the Winning champion. The order after his pick will be based on the fastest beast kill time. Then we move on to the champions from days three and four who lost. The longer they lasted in their battle against the top contenders, the higher their ranking. May the strongest win," the announcer says, and the crowd explodes with excitement. The sound is so loud Fiadh places her hands over her ears. The males run out of their holding area in a line while waving out at the crowd happily. When I see Cull my stomach fills with butte

CULL POV"The time has finally come. Commander Garlof as the winner of the Harvest, you can select your mate first. Will the fifty-five females from all over the Galaxy, please come forward," the announcer says, and I grow eager to see Zuri in a different dress. I might not have placed well in the final brawl, but I did achieve eleventh place. I defeated Orson fast enough to place within the top 15 and I am proud of that. I should have no problem claiming Zuri as mine. I have heard her name tossed around by a few males but they all placed after me. "Would you look at those dresses? Don't they look beautiful," the kea asks as I search the line of females for the group of blue dresses. When I spot Zuri my chest puffs out in pride. She looks radiant. Her final dress is gorgeous. The big skirt and lace sleeves shout feminine. When her eyes connect with mine I feel utterly complete. Although she isn't technically mine yet I can't turn off my happiness. I know Zuri will accept when I a