The Magic Number

by Natalie Gibson

  Israel paused to let that sink in. He’d been acting weird because he was proposing. Camilla turned to look at him, and her eyes shone with tears unshed. Nanae looked less affected. He’d gone completely still. He was stiff as stone. The table creaked under the pressure of one of his arms.

  Izzy, unsure what the reaction meant, rushed on before he lost his composure. “I don’t know about your culture, but around here, polygamy is illegal, or I’d ask you both to marry me. I don’t care if people think what I want is wrong or immoral. I only care about what you two think and the home we can make for our child. Obviously, neither of you are totally opposed to the idea of us being together, but I know it might take some getting used to: thinking of me more than just a sexual partner.”

  Camilla did what she never did: she interrupted. “I can’t speak for Nanae, but I don’t think of you that way. What you said is beautiful and blunt, and I loved it, but it’s not my call to make.”

  Nanae, the Dominant and immortal, would decide. It was as it should be with the three of them, but Israel worried about the Nephilim’s silence. Was there anger, fear, or love behind his stoic visage? Was it a little of all three emotions? Izzy waited as Nanae came slowly back to life. The giant turned his body to face him. His saucer-sized hands pulled at Izzy, starting on his pant legs and then his hips, waist, shirt, arms, and lastly, his neck.

  Izzy let himself be tugged into position and was rewarded with the hardest, most passionate kiss he’d ever experienced. Nanae’s lips were soft, but he pressed so hard that Izzy could feel the teeth behind them. They used teeth and lips but little tongue. Nanae scraped and pulled, the intensity of the kiss mirrored by his clasping grip on Israel’s body. A growl escaped Nanae, and the sound pulled a moan from Izzy. The chair squeaked on the linoleum as Nanae pushed himself back and stood.

  “Is that a yes?” Israel said in a breathy voice that revealed just how much the kiss had affected him.

  Nanae said nothing. He licked the blood from his lips as he backed up against the kitchen wall. He must have pierced Israel’s skin during the kiss, but Izzy hadn’t noticed. Izzy stood and backed out of the kitchen into the tiny space they called the “hall” of his apartment. As he watched, Camilla crossed to stand next to Nanae. Her face looked worried but determined when she slipped her tiny hand into the giant’s and squeezed. Nanae’s arms hung limp at his sides, and he didn’t squeeze her hand back. His chest heaved with the effort of breathing. Camilla’s eyes pleaded with Izzy, but he didn’t understand what she wanted.

  “I want to spend my life with you both. I know we can make this work,” Izzy said. “We can take care of each other. Maybe with both Camilla and me to feed and love you, we can help you control the Beast Camilla said lives inside you. Maybe together, we can be enough to keep you from eating up the world. Maybe even enough to bury it deep inside forever. I know I’ve hit you with a lot all at once. I’ll go and give you time to talk about it and decide.”

  Israel turned and headed through the living room to the door. The place was one of the largest in the boys’ annex, but it was still small. A mere dozen steps got him to the entrance. He opened the door, but it slammed shut before he could get through. Nanae’s arms were on either side, pinning him in place but not pressing him there. They weren’t touching, but Izzy could feel Nanae’s hot breath on the back of his neck. Izzy stayed facing the door. He had hoped it wouldn’t go this way, but the fear had been in the back of his mind. Nanae was angry that the smaller man had beat him to the punch. “I know as the submissive male I shouldn’t have come to you like this, but we’re kind of in uncharted territory. I didn’t know what the proper etiquette for declaring my love was. Just think about it and answer me later.”

  “No, we deal with this right now.” Nanae growled more than said the words. “You love us? You want the three of us to live together and to make a permanent family bond?”

  “The four of us. Baby makes four.”

  Nanae gripped Izzy’s shoulder painfully and spun him around to look in his eyes. “There are five of us, actually. It’s just that you only want four. I am not welcome.”

  Izzy stared into the eyes of a stranger. It was Nanae’s body and face, but the eyes were completely different. Flames burned, and in their depths, Izzy thought he could see the figure of a man crouched and cowering.

  “Izzy, let me introduce Nanae’s Hunger Beast. It wants to scare you; don’t let it.” Camilla eased herself down onto the couch. She was clearly worried but not going anywhere. She picked up a magazine off the coffee table and started thumbing through it.

  “We’ve met, remember? I nearly tore your throat out. Maybe today, I will leave out the nearly part.” It smiled. More a show of teeth than a show of pleasure, really.

  “It can hurt you, but Nanae and I can always heal you, and Nanae would never let it kill you. He loves you, you know.”

  Israel started to say that he knew that, but it clamped his throat and lifted him off the ground. Izzy could still breath, but the position was painful and threatening. For a being with Nanae’s strength, killing a man from this hold would be nothing. A simple flick of the wrist would snap his neck. A slight application of pressure would cut off his air supply.

  “I want to kill you.”

  Camilla’s tinkling laugh chimed. “Don’t sweat it, Izzy. He wants to kill me too, and I’m still here. You’ve obviously read this issue.” She waved the magazine at them. “Page twenty-seven is ‘How to Bring Out Your Boyfriend’s Inner Bad Boy in the Bedroom.’”

  It dropped Israel and backhanded him in one swoop. Izzy’s head snapped to the side, and he tasted blood. Camilla immediately began to remove the bruise caused by blood that didn’t belong there below the surface of Izzy’s face. It turned on her. “Stop helping him!”

  Frightened that the Beast might lay its rage at Camilla’s feet, Israel choked out, “Let’s just keep tonight about me, why don’t we. I’m the one you want to kill, right? Tell me why.”

  Its focused hatred was back on Israel, and it forgot Camilla even existed. It even offered a hand to help Israel stand. It smiled at Izzy as it wrapped its arms around his torso, clamping his arms at his sides and lifting him off the ground. Its teeth slid through Izzy’s skin and into the flesh. Izzy tried not to cry out. It nicked the artery. The blood came more freely, and the pain lessened as it didn’t have to pull on the wound to draw the flow out. It was almost pleasurable. It probably could be if Nanae could remain in control while feeding. Izzy made plans to try it out even as he felt his life draining away. Camilla said Nanae wouldn’t let it kill him, and Izzy believed her. Nanae loved him. Israel laughed. He must be pretty screwed up if a man had to almost kill him to prove his love.

  The Beast tore away from Izzy’s neck roughly and dropped him to the floor. The pain successfully cut his laugh short. “Do not laugh!” The Beast dropped down to hover over its prey. Nanae, still not in total control, exhibited enough dominance to tear his own wrist with his teeth and rub the two wounds together, successfully healing the wound and saving Israel’s life. The spark of an idea crossed the Beast’s face. “I don’t want to kill you. That is too easy on him. I am going to ruin you instead. Then, Nanae will have to kill you.” A small move brought the dripping wrist from over Izzy’s neck to over his mouth.

  Izzy clamped his mouth closed. It laughed at Izzy’s resistance, and the sound was cruel. With its other hand, it pinched Israel’s nose so hard that the cartilage and bone not only broke, but powdered. The pain was intense, and with tears streaming down his face, Izzy opened his mouth to both breathe and scream. He could do neither because hot, prana-dense Nephilim blood filled his throat.

  It was both the most disgusting and delicious thing he’d ever tasted.

  IZZY WOKE on his own bed. He sat up. With a look down his body, he saw that he was whole. He felt his neck, and while vaguely sore, it wasn’t torn or bleeding.

  “How do you feel?”

  Camilla’s gentle voice hadn’t startled
him, but Izzy snapped his head the direction of the sound before she finished the first word. It hurt to move that fast. Izzy rubbed his neck.

  “Easy, Izzy. Try to move with deliberate slowness. You have a share of my strength and speed, and it will take time to grow accustomed to the change,” Nanae said. “Pretend you’re swimming in molasses. That should temper your movements enough to appear human.”

  Israel could see only Nanae standing in the doorway to what he hoped would become their bedroom instead of just his. He couldn’t see Camilla, with Nanae filling the doorway as he was, but he could sense she was there right behind the Nephilim. He could feel that she was concerned and wanted him to be okay. He could feel the same in Nanae, though it was more reserved. They both loved and desired him. Izzy could actually feel these emotions radiating off of the pair.

  “Appear human?! Great. What the hell did your blood do to me? What am I if I’m not human?” He swung his legs over the side of the bed, using Nanae’s advice to normalize the move. It worked, but it took a lot of concentration.

  “I am honestly not sure what it has made you. Our blood makes a number of creatures, depending on the relationship between Nephilim or Akhkharu and progeny. The outcome can also be affected by words spoken at the time of turning.”

  “You don’t know? Is that why you’re keeping Camilla out?” Israel stood slowly and stretched. He was only wearing boxer briefs, and his hair was wet. He ran his hands through the moist mop atop his head. He closed his eyes, turned away from them, and put one hand on the bed for support. The blood was making him feel high. He slid to lie facedown on the bed, the cool sheets soothing him. He rolled to face up after a moment and threw his hands over his head. “You’re scared of what I might do?”

  “Yes, that is exactly why.” Nanae let Camilla push past him then. Whatever moment he’d feared the most was clearly past. The danger not completely gone, Nanae grabbed Camilla’s arm to stop her from going to Israel.

  She fussed. “Nanae, he’s obviously not dead!”

  Nanae did not capitulate. “No, but there are other things—”

  Israel jumped in with a snort. “You were worried about me waking up as a zombie?”

  “He calls them ‘zambie.’ Izzy, do you want brains? No? See, Nanae, he’s not a zambie. The sooner we figure out what he is, the sooner you can stop acting like this. Izzy, tell him you don’t want to hurt me so he’ll let me go.”

  “Yes, tell me. Do you hunger for Camilla’s tender flesh or thirst for her quenching blood?”

  “Eww. No. Course not.”

  Nanae continued with his questioning. “Our sister Annu, the moon, has risen. Can you feel her?”

  Izzy thought about it for a moment and then shook his head.

  “You are not hungry for anything?”

  Izzy crossed his arms behind his head so he could see his favorite people in the world. “The only thing I feel is horny. Just admitting it gave me wood. I want to bury myself inside her while sucking your cock. I want to feel her orgasm around my dick and taste your cum at the same time.”

  Camilla laughed. “Just what I wanted to hear. Sounds like he’s back to normal to me.”

  Nanae leaned his head back on the doorjamb and muttered, “Impossible.”

  She ran to Izzy when Nanae released her and lay down on one side. Izzy turned to kiss her. It turned her to goo and left her gasping. Izzy pulled away and sat up. Camilla writhed on the sheets from his simple kiss.

  “Please.”

  Her simple one-word pleading set his nerves afire. Izzy, seeing her milky skin through a gap in the side of her dress and wanting to feel that smooth skin against his, grasped either side of the torn seam and pulled. The thread was obliterated and Israel thought Camilla’s naked body had never looked so tempting as it did like this: round with his child and slick with arousal. He stood beside the bed watching her, feeling her desire grow. Her need fed his, and when he couldn’t wait a minute more, Izzy tore off his own boxer briefs. He dropped the destroyed undergarment on the floor and leaned over Camilla. “Spread your legs,” he commanded. “I’m going to fuck you stupid.”

  She did, powerless to ignore a man who loved her when he told her what he wanted, what he planned. “Yes. Please, Izzy.”

  “No,” was all Nanae said, but his hand on Israel’s shoulder made the word law.

  Camilla whimpered but said nothing to the contrary. Her men would work it out so that she got what she needed. Israel was less sure. “Why the fuck not, Nanae?”

  “Because you are made Lilitu, and it could kill her if you did.”

  THE THREE lay across Izzy’s king-sized bed. Camilla slept between her two men, who faced each other by propping themselves up on their elbows. They’d stared at her and listened to her songbird voice until she’d fallen asleep. She’d been exhausted and fell asleep in mid-verse. Izzy was not tired. He felt like he might never be tired again.

  They’d made love, but it was careful and guarded, and Nanae had been very specific about what Izzy could and couldn’t do where Camilla was concerned. All their needs had been met, and Nanae promised it would get easier with practice. Neither of his beauties had any objection to more practice in that area.

  “So what’s a Lilitu?” Israel asked.

  “I am truly sorry, my beauty, for what the Beast did to you. I would never have wished this for you.” Nanae looked tired for the first time since Israel had met him. Ereshkigal’s Law forbade the making of progeny. Nanae would not only have to protect his Sinnis, but now, he had Izzy to watch over. If Ereshkigal found out what Israel was, she would kill him.

  Izzy could feel the exhaustion rising from the Nephilim. It was not a physical exhaustion, but an emotional one. He reached over Camilla to put his hand on Nanae’s shoulder in support. “Don’t worry about it. Seriously, there’s no reason to beat yourself up about it. I’m alive. Let’s just focus on how to move forward.” His hand dropped to rest on Camilla’s shoulder and slid down to unconsciously caress her breast.

  Nanae took a deep breath and visibly pushed the stress from his body. He smiled at Izzy. With his incisors retracted, it was beautiful without being frightening. Israel couldn’t help but return the grin. Nanae kept his voice soft as not to disturb Camilla. The two men had much to talk about.

  “I should have known, but it didn’t occur to me that a male Lilitu could be created. We Nephilim and all the progeny our blood creates live on prana. Prana is found in all living things. Animals contain it, but when cooked, the amount in their flesh is diminished. Plants, too, contain life, but the less sentient a being, the less prana. Humans contain the most prana of any creature in this world save Nephilim. Sufficient levels can be found in humans to keep us satisfied, but there are few sources that do not require killing the human to access. Organs such as the heart, liver, brain, ovaries, and testicles are extremely satisfying, but obtaining those kill. Creatures created with the tainted blood of a betrayer Akhkharu most often obtain their nutrients in this fashion. They are violent and bloodthirsty and are destroyed upon discovery. Zambie are made if the human dies during conversion.”

  A small sound of pleasure came from the sleeping woman between them, and they looked down at her. Izzy’s lazy hand had rubbed and tugged at her upturned titties, whipping her unconscious body into a stimulated but incognizant mania. He moved his hand to rest on her rounded belly in a protective gesture and she stilled. “That’s what you worried would happen to me?”

  Nanae nodded. “It is the worst possible outcome, because zambie must be destroyed immediately. All Nephilim agree on that. They are mindless, reanimated dead, a shell of the human they were before, who only exist to feed. They crave—”

  Izzy rolled his eyes back so that only the bloodshot whites showed and used his best zombie horror movie voice to say, “Braaainzzz.”

  Nanae was grateful that Israel was making this easy on him. This wasn’t a comfortable conversation and not one he’d had to have often. “Killing them is mercy. They are va
cant of prana, and getting it is their only thought. I am glad the Beast did not kill you before giving you my blood. I would not relish reducing your beautiful body to ash.” He reached to tenderly cup Izzy’s face, trailing his thumb over his jawline and lips, plump and reddened by their time together. “I feared you had become vitala when it was clear you were no zambie.” He lifted Izzy’s lips to examine the normal incisors there.

  Izzy loved the giant’s touch and reached out with his tongue to trace the sizable finger suggestively. “You were worried I’d be what? A vampire?”

  A single dip of the chin told Izzy vitala and vampire were, if not the same, very similar. There was something growing in Nanae’s eyes, and Izzy feared it could be the Beast rising again. Izzy still was not sure what he’d become, not sure he could survive the Beast’s attack. “If I was, would you have to kill me then too?”

  “No. A vitala lives on blood, but it takes centuries to learn the control needed to feed without killing. A vitala made with the blood of a betrayer Akhkharu can never learn, indeed never wants to learn, and forever kills with its feedings. They must be killed. A child of the light, made by an untainted Nephilim, can be allowed to live if the maker is willing to take on the responsibility of providing for the needs of that progeny.”

  A new need grew in Nanae. Israel could feel that the Nephilim at least partially wanted him to be a vitala. A change was happening in Izzy. He could feel himself mold to match Nanae’s desires. His eyes widened in shock as his canines elongated. He opened his mouth to show Nanae the sharpened, pointed teeth. The sight forced Nanae’s own incisors to burst into view.

  “Is this what you wanted?” Israel asked. The reshaping of his mouth gave his words a peculiar lisp. Nanae didn’t have to say anything to answer the question, and Israel slid over the sleeping mother of their child. Nanae turned so that he was flat on his back and Israel could lay on top of him. Israel dipped his head to whisper in Nanae’s ear, his breath tickling and tempting. “You want me to bite you, to drink your blood.”