by M J Marstens
“Are you twits done tormenting me? I actually have something useful to tell you.”
This gets their attention. Khal motions for us to follow him and we walk away from the party, deeper into the darkness of the night.
“What have you learned, lahela’iki?” Kane asks.
I explain to them about how their individual godhoods are directly linked to their afflicted moons and how their representative namesake rules their charts. None of them seem overly surprised at this, so I continue. I have not started in finding the overall balance in their charts, but I did cross-reference them to find similarities. Since I don’t know what I’m looking for in particular (hint, hint, guys), I did a general assessment. The only parallel between the seven charts is their Part of Fortune, all in Virgo.
“What is this Part of Fortune,” asks Illu.
“Well, let me first explain that the Part of Fortune comes from the Arabic parts, also called lots. These were first introduced into astrology in Arabia in the late Middle Ages. They do not represent physical points in the sky, but rather are mathematically derived from three points in the chart, such as planets or angles. The distance between two points is added or subtracted to the position of the third to come up with the degree and sign of the part. For the Part of Fortune, depending upon whether you were born in the day, with your sun above the horizon line, or at night, with your sun below the horizon line, you calculate an equation using your ascendant, or rising sign, along with your sun and moon.” I stop to see whether they are still following me.
No one looks lost and Uryn nods to encourage me to keep talking.
“Ok, so because the Part of Fortune is derived from the placements of the Sun, Moon, and Ascendant, it represents a macrocosm of your ego, unconscious, and personality and is translated into the overall health and fortune of a person. Basically, it’s like your ‘good luck’ sign in your chart- even more so than Jupiter, where a person experiences abundance or blessings.”
“Blessings. . .” Kane contemplates.
“As in the opposite of a curse?” theorizes Arawn.
“Ah, I suppose the antonym to a blessing would be a curse and vice versa.” I offer.
“That is excellent. Thank you, Zahra.” Khal commends.
I preen a little under his praise.
“If we were at the office, I would bend you over my desk like you want.”
I’m back to glaring at him.
“Are you fucking kidding me? First she’s blowing Mio and now you get to bend her over your desk. I guess it’s my turn to hold down the girl.” Caed says this all too conversationally.
I look over at the twins and silently beg them to keep their mouths shut. Luckily, they seem willing not to kiss and tell. . . for now. I need to get out of here. I look back to the Luau, now in full swing, with male dancers performing on a stage, juggling sticks of fire.
“Alright, well, I’m going to go. I’ll work some more on your charts later. Do you want me at the office tomo- shit!”
The guys look at me, wondering what I’m swearing about now. I’m such a professional.
“I forgot I had my flight home tomorrow. I was supposed to get back to Mary about going home to sort things. . . you know, for the next couple of months. What should I do?”
“It’s already taken care of, mon coeur.”
“What?” I ask Nyam, bewildered.
“Stay through the weekend. We will switch out your flights and you can go home for a day or two next week. That way, you can keep working on the charts and apprise us in person about the progress.”
“Ok, how are you going to change my flight so late?”
“We’re gods, remember?” He winks at me.
I roll my eyes.
He’s definitely the sun: all ego.
CHAPTER 29
JUPITER
“May I come with you?” I ask Zahra, before she can go.
“Sure,” she answers easily.
Of all of us, she seems most at ease with me. . . given her past interactions with the others, I can understand why.
“I actually was going to take a small stroll. . .”
“A walk around the resort would be nice; it has been too long since I last explored it.”
She gives a nod and we skirt around the Luau pavilion to the secluded path that winds around the resort. Even though there are lamp posts dotting the area, everything is shrouded in shadows, due to the new moon not casting any natural light. We walk in amicable silence, until Zahra whispers:
“Can I ask you something?”
I hear the heaviness in her question and know it goes beyond something trivial, possibly beyond personal.
“My mother always said you could ask, but it did not guarantee an answer. I cannot stop your questions, lahela’iki. . .”
“But you cannot say whether you can answer them or not. That is what I should have asked. If you can answer something. . . actually somethings for me. . .”
It figures she’s riddled with questions. I do not underestimate Zahra’s astuteness, though, as knowledge in her hands could prove dangerous.
“What do you wish to know?”
“What can you tell me?”
I let out a laugh. Clever girl.
“How about an exchange?” I propose.
The others have used their wiles to acquire information from her, perhaps I could use her curiosity to gather some as well.
“An exchange. . . meaning?”
“I’ll tell you something if you tell me something.”
“Uh. . . what do you want to know?”
“Tell me something. . . private. . . something personal.”
I figure if there is any clue that she’s unaware of from her previous life, it would be through something of this nature.
“Huh. . . well, you already know I donated my vibrator to Goodwill- by accident. Personal like that?”
I tuck my head to my chest and just laugh. This girl is something else.
“I was thinking more along the lines of private or personal thoughts.”
“Oh,” she says quietly. I hear the trepidation in her voice. . . I might be on to something.
“You can tell me. I would never judge you. And in return, I’ll tell you something about us.” I’m taking a gamble, as the guys all agreed that no more information regarding us or our past lives should be divulged to Zahra. But if she told me something useful. . .
“Earlier today, when I was in your lap- ah, blinded, you got stern with me, and with your deep voice, it made- I mean I wanted- no, I thought about you fingering me in front of all the other guys.” She blurts out.
Horror washes over her face and she clamps both hands over her mouth. I’m rooted to my spot, having stopped walking during her confession, and work to control my body. As gods, we have infinite memories, and I can recall exactly the moment she’s referring to from earlier today. She had been squirming in my lap, sending a fissure of pleasure to my groin. I had halted her movements, almost becoming rough in my effort to stop her before I embarrassed myself. At the time, I was worried I had been too gruff with her. . . apparently not. I express this previous concern.
“Oh- no.” She blushes. “I kind of liked it when you got all firm with me. . .”
No wonder we are all drawn to her. She appeals to our domineering tendencies, bred into us since the dawn of time.
Zahra continues, “I guess it just floored me, is all. . . the others act all alpha, ya know, but you seem so gentle and serene, I guess it just took me by surp-”
Her voice cuts off when I push her body roughly into the darkened alcove, across from where we had been standing. Not giving either one of us a chance to think, I crush my mouth to hers and let go of the reigns holding me back. Like Saturn, I have always kept a tight leash on my inner emotions and desires. Not necessarily because of the same consequences Saturn experiences, but because of my never-ending role as peacekeeper and the stigma that has come with it. I’m the perpetual ‘good guy’. I’m expected to hold back
, to sacrifice.
No longer.
CHAPTER 30
JUPITER
In all my eons of existence, there has only been one woman: Lina. After her curse and ultimatum, I made my peace with the situation. For this reason, I do not think the curse has affected me as strongly, as I have not fought against it, like the others. Instead, I embraced it as my reality and accepted its presence in my life. Being the largest and most benign planet has allowed me all this time to not feed from another and so I have not let that part of the curse imprecate me. And while I have my urges and desires, they were easy to repress in light of the situation.
But that was before Zahra.
Her admission broke my control and I burn to have her. I’m like the raging storm of my namesake, consuming everything she offers. She’s so small against me, barely coming up to the middle of my chest, for I’m indeed a giant, even in human form. Both my hands span the entirety of her waist and hoist her forcibly against me, drinking in her whimpers when my tongue thrusts against hers savagely.
“Lift your dress up,” I command brusquely.
I have her seated on the little ledge of the recessed wall, a precarious balance made only possible by my strong body stabilizing hers upward. She hesitates to comply and I pinch her chin to get her attention.
“I said lift your dress up. I’ll not be asking again, lahela’iki.”
“O-o-o-o-kay,” her voice wobbles out uncertainly.
“Answer only with ‘yes sir’ or ‘no sir’, understood?”
Her eyes widen, but she obeys.
“Yes, sir.”
I’m so hard, I’m about to burst out of my patterned surf trunks I wore for the party. I watch as she slowly pulls the dress up until I can see the scrap of lace covering her core. Even in the dim light, I can see it’s soaked through.
“Now, spread your legs.”
When she doesn’t say anything, I reach out and ruthlessly twist my thumb over her clit. She lets out a surprised yelp.
“Answer me!” I thunder.
“Yes, sir!” She all but sobs.
“Good girl.”
I run my finger up and down the seam of her sex, making her moan and push against me harder. When she begins to pant erratically, I hook her panties with my finger and tug, until the pathetic excuse for underwear is in tatters around us.
“Touch yourself for me.”
I catch her eye while she debates whether to follow my order or not. I lift a brow in challenge. One thing I have learned about Zahra- she does not step down from a dare. I’m using that to my advantage. As expected, her fingers go to her dripping pussy. . . what I did not expect is her maintaining eye contact as she slowly begins to fuck herself. In my peripheral, I can see her slender, white fingers slip inside the delicate pink flesh of her sex. Unable to hold back, I slide one of my own digits next to hers, until we are moving in tandem. One of my fingers is two of hers in size and is a tanned and callused contrast against the soft perfection of her digits.
The only sound now is the harsh breathing escaping us both as we work towards her release. I clamp back down on her clit, working it with my thumb and fore finger, while still keeping pace with my middle finger inside of her. I hear her breath hitch as she climbs closer to her peak. I crook the digit deep inside her pussy while pressing hard against her sensitive nub and feel her beginning to unravel.
“Not yet, Zahra.”
I bring her to the top, before pulling back and repeating the process. Her legs are shaking and she’s barely touching herself anymore. I take pity on her.
“Come for me, Zahra.”
And she does. With a magnificent cry, she tilts her head back against the wall and gives a final, brutal thrust into my hand. Her body is bowed towards me, contorted in pleasure. Slowly, she comes down from her high, although her breathing is still coming in fitful gasps. Without warning, she pushes me away from her to slip to the ground. Once she’s kneeling before me, she arches her head back to look at me while slowly stroking my erection.
“Fuck me. Make me come again.” She says this on a breathless command.
I lift a brow. Her orgasm has made her brazen.
“Are you topping from the bottom?” I ask smoothly.
Her forehead puckers in confusion. While naturally submissive, she has obviously never been in a dominant relationship.
“What?”
I grasp her long hair in my fist and tug until her back bends.
“Who is in charge here?”
“Yo-you-you are, sir.” Comes her quavering answer.
She’s learning.
“Exactly. So do you get to make demands?”
“No, sir. I just tho-”
“Undo my pants.”
I release her hair so she can lean forward and do as I have requested. She doesn’t stop until the full length of my cock is exposed to the night air. I can feel her breath against me, her lips a whispers-length away.
“Now, fuck me until I come.”
I take hold of her long locks once more, so I can control her motions. Fisting her tresses, I angle her mouth over the crown of my cock. Poised over the tip, she snakes out a tongue to lick the pre-cum leaking from me, her eyes watching me as she attempts to take some control. Definitely topping from the bottom, but she would understand soon enough. Narrowing my eyes, I unexpectedly push myself into her mouth, slamming my length and girth to the back of her throat. She gags at the invasion. Her eyes are now watering and overflowing down her face, but they convey that she gets the message.
I relent marginally, and start thrusting slowly, simply enjoying the feeling of her tongue washing over my dick. She makes a humming noise and I growl, feeling the vibrations pulse down through my balls. Her tiny hands come up to wrap around me and I know I should not let her or she’ll never learn her lessons, but I realize she’s acting on instinct, not a need to control the situation. So I allow her hands to work me up and down, synchronously following the movements of her mouth.
I try to keep control, but I can feel my orgasm barreling down my spine. It has been too long. Zahra’s hands are moving at a frantic pace and I feel my balls tighten. Around a mouthful of cock, I hear her say:
“Come for me, Kane.”
I roar in pleasure and irritation as I do just that. Zahra swallows down every last drop as I come in jets over her lapping tongue. She purrs happily, drinking me in, relishing in her little victory. She waited until the last possible moment to give me that command, knowing I was already going to come. I would let her think she had won, but in the end, I would be the one savoring her punishment.
I yank her delicate wrists until she’s standing before me. She keeps her eyes downcast and attempts to look demure. Vixen. The question is should I punish her now or later? Of course, she’s expecting my retaliation now. . . possibly even hoping for it. Zahra Delsol is quite the little deviant masochist. Wait until Caed finds out. I silently chuckle; perhaps I should let him dole out her punishment. I can see the triumph in Zahra’s eyes when I do nothing to reprimand her. I smirk, later could not come soon enough.
CHAPTER 31
ZAHRA
I can’t help the look of smug satisfaction from crossing my face when Kane does nothing. I needed to Google ‘topping from bottom’, but I figure it means something along the lines of trying to take control. . . well, from where I stand, it looks like I just topped the shit out of my place from bottom. But Kane does not look ruffled at my gloating. In fact, he looks entertained, like he knows something I do not. . . maybe I’m celebrating prematurely? I’m afraid to ask now. He grins, like he knows my quandary, tugging my wrists higher. Something catches his eye and I realize it’s my tattoo.
“When did you get this?”
“My first year of college, when I started reading charts for money.”
He seems confused by my response.
“It’s not a Z?”
“No, it’s the glyph for Virgo. But I stylized it so it would look like a cursive Z- you k
now, a ‘two birds and one stone’ kind of tattoo.”
“I see, but Virgo is not your sun. . . you mentioned it was Capricorn?”
“Yes, I’m a New Year’s baby, actually. See, the traditional name Sarah means princess, but mom named me after the Basque New Year. It’s similar to ours, but celebrates the return of Venus in the heavens and is called ‘Altizarra’. Anyway, I got the Virgo symbol because I’m Virgo Rising. Your ascendant is equally as important as your sun sign and is totally overlooked by everyone who doesn’t practice astrology.”
“Interesting- I mean about your name,” He pauses, seeming hesitant before continuing, “Names are important to us as well and symbolize our status as gods on earth.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, remember when I told you my name was pronounced KAH-NAY?”
“Yes- and for the record, I offered to pronounce it that way, too!”
“I know, thank you, but as I said, no one has called me that for a long time. My people did, formerly, when I was still worshipped by them.”
“Your people?”
“Yes, Kane is an island deity. While we are not originally from earth, humans turned us into terrestrial idols. And when the monotheistic religions took over, we became earth’s monsters. So, once upon a time, I was Kane, the great father. . . I think you would know me better as Zeus.”
“Zeus? The Greek man-whore Zeus?”
He tosses his head back to laugh out loud.
“Not everything is as it has been recorded. Remember, humans are only postulating about our existence and what we do, they do not know for certain, though.”
I think this over. In Roman mythology, all the Greek gods were converted to become planetary deities. . . as is reflected in their names now. So Kane is Zeus, who is also Jupiter.
“Does that make Khal. . .ah-” My mythology facts are not up-to-date. I have always loved the stories, but it has been awhile. “Kronos!” I suddenly remember.
Kane nods his head in affirmation. The sickle tattoo suddenly comes to me and I recall Kronos’ symbol being a sickle. I’m starting to piece together some of this confusing puzzle.