Eternal Damnation: A novel of the Amagarians

by Reid, Stacy

  “Let me come to you.”

  “Never.”

  She stopped the flow of the water and using her telekinesis turned on the crystal spray which cleaned her body within seconds. Another pulse of air dried her, and she stepped from the shower stall and went into the sleep quarters. She quickly dressed in a silver sari, conscious of her Darkan’s psychic eyes watching every dip and hollow of her body. His phantom touch brushed against her nape and her bared stomach, and she saw him as if he were there, as he dropped to his knees and pressed a kiss above her navel.

  A sharp knock on the door had her spinning around, and Kala entered. Her sister faltered. “Shilah, there is a strange light glowing around you! What is it?”

  The fire of their connection had engulfed her body, the thread humming with a sweet resonance only she and her lover could feel.

  “It is nothing,” she said huskily, firmly closing their link, and marching from the room to prepare the arguments for the Senate.

  The sweet scent of flowers wafted through her nostrils. Shilah knew she wasn’t alone the moment she woke. A wall of heat pressed into her back, and she wiggled, scooting back against the man that held her with such tender possession. His body felt as hard as valnetium, unyielding, his arms strong, surrounding her. His scent wrapped around her, and she purred, feeling safe, content. She felt him inside of her, a part of her. Every breath she drew brought him deep into her lungs.

  “Did you sleep well, my mate?”

  Lachlan Ravenswood’s low, husky growl shattered her sleepy contentment. Her heart lurched, her mouth dried, and a multitude of emotions jumbled through her—the most prominent longing for the man behind her. She inhaled deeply, and it took several moments to realize he wasn’t there. A peculiar loss scythed through her heart. There was a deep part of her that hungered to see him beside her. It had been five days since she’d been in the ship, waiting for news on the Senate call to assemble. And each day, Lachlan visited her, or she’d slipped into his mind and visited him. There was always a sharp sense of disorientation, an awful tug of fear that he was really within Serange before she’d accepted what they saw was the Darkage, his touch, kisses, and loving words filled her soul for hours because of the strength of their mating bond and her tremendous psychic abilities.

  Their link flamed with familiar dark silver heat, a bond forged between them that could never be broken, and one that she’d never want to see shattered. She twisted on the silken sheets, facing him. Several days’ worth of beard shadowed his jaw. He looked even more ruthless, but his eyes were alive with swirling needs. She reached out and touched his lips. She felt the softness against the tip of her finger. He growled low, a purr of deep pleasure, and her heat tumbled sweetly inside her chest.

  “You visit me every day,” she whispered. “And torment me with things I shouldn’t crave, but how I want you.”

  He brushed a hand across her cheek tenderly. “I would crush an empire for you.”

  And that was what she feared, but he was brutally unapologetically himself.

  “But for you, I will also show mercy.”

  The shock of that promise, given in such a solemn tone tore through Shilah. Her hands trembled as she slipped them around his neck, drifting even closer to his body. “What do you want from me, Lachlan Ravenswood?”

  “Your heart…your soul…your laughter…your happiness.”

  A hunger for him flamed in her chest like a living entity. She smiled, unable to halt the rush of tender feelings humming through her.

  “And that my mate…that I wish to see.” The pad of his thumb traced the curve of her lips. “Your smile makes the bleak cold flee, and I imagine that is what it feels like to bask in the ray of your sunshine. I’ve brought you something.”

  She glanced down and blinked. “Flowers?” The most beautiful she’d ever seen. An array of purple, and blue flowers with a dark red vein at the heart of each.

  When she looked up, she found such longing and hunger in his eyes mirroring the desires of her soul.

  She leaned closer to him, her mouth scant inches from his. “They are lovely. Where did you find them?”

  His finger brushed against her lips, and suddenly she was there, where he stood. Dense, savagely beautiful jungles with wild creatures surrounding him. He lay on the ground, the grass rich and lush, a luminous waterfall rushing off the hill behind him. It was a hidden alcove, verdant and more beautiful than anything she’d ever seen. She lay atop him, peace seeping into her bones, the fine spray of the roaring waterfall misting the air. She could feel the individual droplets on her skin, breathe the scent of damp earth into her lungs.

  She lifted the flowers to her nose and inhaled. They smelled dark and mysterious, very much like the man himself.

  “I can feel your worry, my mate. Rest your fears on my shoulders.”

  It was an invitation to trust him with her deepest fears. She assessed him briefly, he could have followed her to her world but did not because she wished him to stay away. And she knew regardless of how perilous her situation was now, he would not go against her desires.

  She opened her mind to his, showing him all that had transpired since her arrival. “I cannot keep wondering why the Senate crowned Prince Quan. He is not of our kingdom. There are many princes here who are fit to lead if it is believed the Symonrah bloodline’s reign has ended.”

  His phantom arms dragged her atop his body. “They fear him.”

  “Our history has taught us it is unwise to allow a ruler to reign with fear. Dxyriah has an army, why has the Senate not mobilized them if they fear Prince Quan?”

  She felt the warrior in him turning over her words.

  “He has the support of those in your Senate.”

  “That is what I fear.”

  “You are wise and intelligent, mate, they will see the wisdom of your words.”

  Warmth burst inside her chest, and with a sigh, she snuggled even deeper into his arms, wishing she was in the Darkage with him.

  “There is someone I’d like you to meet, Shilah.”

  With a blink, they were within his halls. A young girl walked over to him, a hesitant aura about her, but her eyes shining with absolute faith and acceptance.

  “She is over four hundred years,” he said with some amusement. “She denies the beast inside her and does not let it out. This is my sister, Nayia Ravenswood. I have hopes that you will meet and speak with her one day.”

  Unable to speak, Shilah nodded, enthralled by the way he greeted his sister, the careful way he spoke and touched her.

  “Does she live at your castle?”

  “I have avoided her since I returned from Mevia. The malice is too much for her. I feared how she would react to me in such a state given our history with the beast.”

  Shilah glanced up at him. “And now?”

  “The more I’m connected with you, my mate, your light anchors the malevolence.”

  Three little boys barreled around the corner, and with fierce roars, they rushed toward him.

  “These are Nayia’s sons.”

  Shadows darted from his feet, and grabbed them, hanging them in the air, upside down. They shrieked, loving it, and at that moment Shilah irrevocably lost her heart to Lachlan.

  For once in her life, she was desperate to allow her heart to overrule her mind and logic. Needs long denied rolled over her like an ocean of fire. She saw it—the promise of a future with him, the man within the beast, the darkness, and the light. At this moment, Shilah wanted to belong to him as she’d never wanted anything in her entire existence.

  22

  A couple of days later, a shrill sound alerted her that a hovercraft approached the underground docking area. Kala glanced at her, her eyes deepening, and she peered into the future. “It is Rah and Megladine. They have news.”

  At last. The inaction and lack of information had been driving her mad with frustration. She’d spent the previous six days locked away, not venturing out of the hovercraft despite Prince Nov
ar’s numerous invitations. She’d read over the bloodlines laws until they had been interred in her mind, watched the city through the monitors, and re-watched the memory feeds of her brother with his wife and children.

  Those moments were the hardest, for it had been difficult to watch their happiness and recall how brutally their lives had been taken. The family hovercraft had malfunctioned in the sky, and before they had ejected from the ship, their vessel had crashed into the side of the mountains. It had been the investigator's belief their vessel had been hacked, their path redirected, but there had been no electronic footprint to follow. How quickly their hovercraft had crashed into the mountain, without their Prime Sentient Intelligence canceling the potential hack led Shilah to believe the attack had been made by an assassin with telekinetic or teleportation powers. There had been no virus redirecting their system and taking control of the ship’s mainframe, only raw, brutal power as they slammed the ship into the mountains.

  Grey metallic cubes rippled in the air as Arrow used nanites to take a physical pixilated shape. He then spoke through the interactive construct of the vessel. “Baron Rah Blavenstoke and Megladine K’tair seek permission to dock.”

  “Arm the high beams,” Kala said, moving over to the large windows of the ship, so she could keep the approaching craft in her line of sight.

  Their hovercraft door slid open, and Rah and Megladine boarded. There was an air of satisfaction about them, and from the tender way Rah brushed against her, Shilah surmised they had been intimate. A profound ache filled her. Megladine had already been sterilized when her family had revealed an Alpha telekinesis genesis along with her foresight, but the law still prevented her from seeking a life partner. Despite her inability to produce children, Rah loved her with every breath in his body, and Megladine had the same love and respect for him. It was heart-breaking that they had to hide their relationship or face the full force of the bloodline law. When she’d just discovered them in bed together, quite by accident, Rah had expected her to report them. She hadn’t, and Shilah knew he’d never understood why she did not.

  It had been the first time she’d compromised her honor, but it had hurt something in her at the thoughts of Rah losing the woman he loved. It would have been a judgment of death for Megladine.

  “The meeting has been convened, and we leave for the Senate now. It is not being broadcast for we do not wish to stir unrest within the kingdom until the best way forward to declare you both still live.”

  Kala made her way over. “I’ve seen what will happen if our people know we are alive. They will march to the Senate doors, and there will be a riot and lives will be lost. I cannot see what inflames the riot, so it is best we make an announcement after we’ve removed Prince Quan from our kingdom.”

  Megladine eyes swirled with power. “I do not glimpse the future you’ve seen, Princess Kala.” Then she cast her lover a sideways glance, and a radiant smile creased her lips. “But I do see a future our kingdom will celebrate in.”

  Unease slid down Shilah’s spine. “And what future is that?”

  Megladine shifted her regard to her. “I see no death of our people, and that is every reason to feel relief. For months my dreams have been haunted with darkness and despair. Now it isn’t so.”

  The tension seeped from Shilah. “I will be ready within a few minutes.”

  She made her way to her room and opened the glass partitions that housed her suits. It would not be the full regalia of a princess, but it would be enough to meet the Senate. There she dressed in a dark blue bodysuit, which fitted her body like a second skin. She grabbed her weapons belt and banded it about her waist and took up her high beam gun and slipped it in the holster belt. Then she tugged on the overdress, that was similarly molded to her upper body and down to her hips, then the skirts flowed to her ankles. Each side of the flowing material had thigh long slits, so she could easily access the blasters on her hips. Next golden armbands were secured to her upper and lower arms. Using her telekinesis, she brushed her hair until it rippled down her back in cackling energy, and then braided it in a single plait. Shilah then slipped on her boots, ensuring another high beam gun was secured in the holster on her boot.

  And the entire time, she felt Lachlan Ravenswood in her mind, daring her to connect with him as she had done days ago. But Shilah had been strong and had denied the connection, but not strong enough where she hadn’t lain awake hungering to simply feel his warmth and scent around her.

  Shilah exited to see that Kala was similarly dressed. Rah glanced at the blaster on her hips. “You know the Senate will be opposed to you taking weapons into the chamber.”

  “They can oppose all they wish. Prince Quan should not have been crowned, even if they had believed the Symonrah bloodline had ended. Another Prince from our Kingdom should have been called to serve. Quan flouted the law, and they allowed him to.”

  He nodded, and they made their way from the vessel. Prince Novar and several supporters from the resistance waited. Prince Novar smiled at her, although there was no humor in his eyes. A pervasive tension entered the group, and they did not speak after greeting each other. Their party made twelve in total as they moved toward a large steel plated rover craft. A short, stocky man dressed in white waited by the rover. She glanced at Rah who flanked her left.

  “Is that man with us?”

  “Yes. He is from O’andor. I’ve hired him to teleport us to the halls of the Senate. The less time we spend in the open, journeying there, the better.”

  “And he is to be trusted?” she asked, even as she delved into his mind, reading his intention which resided in the wealth promised for the job, nothing more.

  Rah’s gaze was restless, moving over the street, up into the buildings and along the ground. They stopped at the teleporter, and he glanced around furtively. Tension rose in Shilah and knotted her stomach. It was evident they anticipated Prince Quan uncovering the route they might travel to the Senate and execute a pre-emptive strike.

  “Please, everyone hold hands.”

  They complied, and then he touched Rah. A flash of light blinded Shilah, and then with a blink, they were in the building of the Senate. Her stomach roiled, and several of their party bent over heaving. The halls were quiet, and Shilah did not linger in the corridors but made her way to the chamber. Rah went before her and opened the door. She entered, and a hush descended over the gathering council.

  All two hundred and eighty-five members of the Senate were seated, clothed in white robes. Shock blared from some of their auras, and relief from others. Prince Quan was there, seated on the high seat where the ruler of the kingdom should sit. His arrogance set her teeth on edge, and anger pounded through her veins.

  “We will sit below the Prince,” Rah murmured.

  “No,” Shilah snapped. “I will not recognize that he has a right to my throne when he does not.”

  She made her way around the circular gallery, heading toward Prince Quan. His eyebrow arched in sharp inquiry, and a mocking smile curved his lips. All the princes, High Priestesses, and Barons of the Senate watched her. She could feel their eyes on her, feel their assessment of her actions.

  She paused right before Prince Quan. His eyes too were like perfect diamonds— colorless, hard and sparkly, and ringed with black. He was an imperial in his genesis and very dangerous. He was also shockingly handsome with his jet-black hair, and chiseled cheekbones.

  “You are in my chair, Prince Quan. Remove yourself.”

  His gaze narrowed thoughtfully on hers. He was the kind of man to demand complete loyalty from his followers, and he got it through intimidation. No doubt he believed because she had fled, she was weak. “I am the Prince of this Kingdom, Princess Shilah and—”

  “I am not certain if the laws of your lands are different to ours,” she said with a deliberately mocking smile, reminding him and the Senate he did not belong to their kingdom. Her chin went up. She refused to look away, holding her gaze steady on his. “I am Princess Shilah
Symonrah, and you are on my seat. I will educate you today on the steps you can take to challenge my position, until that time you are only the ruling Prince of Arcadia and an interloper in Dxyriah. I am at a loss how the Senate did not correct your impudence when you planted your ass here.”

  A choked laugh from Rah ended quickly, and several murmurs swept around the chambers like a wave.

  “We were not sure you were really alive, Princess Shilah, the Senate meant no disrespect. Of course, we would not dream to recognize any claim made by Prince Quan if this council had irrevocable proof that the Symonrah bloodline lives,” High Priestess, Elizabeth G’undar said from the far left of the chamber.

  Prince Quan’s expression of mild amusement did not change, but he flowed gracefully to his feet, and stepped away from the seat, lowering himself into a highchair on the next level of the chamber.

  Shilah sat, and Kala took the seat to her left. Rah did not take his place but positioned himself above her, as if he was a bodyguard.

  The high priestess continued, “The Senate has been called to assembly to answer the charge that Princess Shilah is not fit to rule the kingdom of Dyxriah. Prince Quan has put forth that the Symonrah line has—”

  Shilah laughed, low and softly, but it was enough to arrest everyone attention on her. “That is not the agenda for this meeting, high priestess.”

  There was a niggling sense of wrongness Shilah could not put her fingers on. Though the Prince and his supporters had willingly appeared before the Senate, something warned her that all was not as it seemed. But what? She couldn’t anticipate it. The Senate comprised all the ruling Princes, Princesses, the High Priestess and her chief acolytes, and the Barons who made and administered the laws of their kingdom. As a unified body through voting, they would be the ones to determine the fate of Prince Quan. If it was up to her, Shilah might have ordered immediate banishment to one of the exiled planets. In their kingdom when a peer of the realm committed a crime, they could only be judged by fellow peers in the Senate who would give them a chance to defend themselves.