by S. A. Price
A whimper escaped her and she moaned. “Teasing is bad...so bad.” Gods, she needed contact. She needed hours with her guard, sweaty and indulging.
“Yeah, but our girl likes bad,” she heard Khalid say, his breath against her ear. When had he gotten so close? “If you want them to stop, you know they will.”
“That’s the problem, I don’t want them to stop. I want you all,” she moaned. “Naked and sweaty... Hours of it,” she said and closed her eyes again.
“When this is all over, that’s what you can have,” Abaxley said in her other ear. She felt his fingers run along the swell of her breast. “But you need to come, don’t you? Needy Princess.”
She nodded. Coming would be swell, but it would only knock the top off the need.
“I think leaving her just on the edge of need would make her that much more ferocious in a fight,” Eli said as her hand moved up, her fingers pressing against her clit, but giving her no more.
Scur let out a groan and moved her against him. “If that’s the case, I’m going to be able to tear a man apart without having to beast out,” he said between clenched teeth.
“I hate you both. Hate you...” she moaned.
Abaxley tugged on the ring in her nipple and she cried out. She was so close. She rolled her hips again. She could feel something...something different just on the periphery of her need. Something smoky and distant, but getting closer.
“Just wait until we have you home and naked. You’ll really be hating all of us,” Khalid said, his hand moving to her other breast. “You’ll need at least a week to recover.”
“Oh, the captain can be arrogant,” Eli said, and Alyx could hear the laughter in the other woman’s voice. “Good to know.”
They all touched her, all of them holding her, amping her up. And then she felt it.
A tug.
She wasn’t expecting that. She was expecting Scur to give in and slide inside her, giving them both what they wanted, but no. A tug at her navel...deep. They needed to be somewhere. Soon.
Pulling back from rubbing against Scur’s throat with a nip to the skin, she stopped moving between them. “We need to get dressed,” she said, hating it. “And we have to hurry.”
“You felt something,” Khalid said, the first one to step back from her, though it didn’t look like he wanted to. Scur cursed under his breath but set her down on her feet. “We will finish this later.”
Eli, showing she was definitely the daughter of the devil, slid her fingers under the edge of her bottoms, and stroked her before removing her hand and stepping back as well. “Let’s get dressed, boys, our princess knows something.”
Shaking, and unsure if it was need or the feeling, she let Abaxley carry her back to the shore. He set her down on the downed tree, and handed her a small towel so she could dry off. She was quick, though they were quicker, getting dressed again, and standing.
The tug happened again, this one like a wave rolling to her. she turned as she was finishing tying her boot. “There...” she said and hopped the trunk. “Bring the camel, too.”
They walked deeper into the foliage, walking toward the cliff face, but further into a denser area. “It feels...” she said to herself and turned around a corner to see two large pieces of granite and felt the pulse there. “It’s a portal. We need to go through.”
***
“Not first, you don’t,” Khalid said. He knew Alyx could handle herself, and if she wasn’t the Princess of the Arcane Court, he’d let her waltz her way in first, but she was and they still needed to protect her. “Eliora, you stay next to Alyx. Abaxley, once Alyx gets us through the portal...” He knew they wouldn’t get through it without her going in first. He wasn’t sure if he knew that instinctively or if it was something coming from Alyx that wound its way through his thoughts. “You and me in front.”
“I’ll cover the back,” Scur said.
“You ready?” he asked her. “Once we’re through, you need to let us go ahead of you. Cool?”
She nodded. “We need to hurry.” She grabbed his hand and stepped through with him.
The second they were on the other side, he pulled her behind him and as much as he didn’t want to, let go of her hand. Abaxley moved in beside him and they looked at each other. Khalid could tell by the look on Bax’s face they were thinking the same thing.
“Why the fuck is it nighttime?” Scur said, voicing his own thought.
“And where the hell are we?” Eli said.
Alyx looked around and then up, pointing. “Faerie. That’s the Great Mother constellation.” The world around them swayed with warm air, fragrant with hibiscus and something richer, darker. “We need to go this way,” she said and pointed.
Khalid nodded. Not once had he ever thought to question her and it wasn’t his faith in her, which he had in abundance, it was more than that. There was a connection growing between them that he never thought possible. It started with just knowing when she needed him but now it went deeper. He could feel what she felt, the echoes of the pull, and every instinct inside him told him to follow her lead. They started moving again and his eyes moved back to the sky. “We need to keep watch. Look where the moon is.”
“On the left,” Abaxley said to him. “Shit...”
“Oh, well this just got interesting,” Scur said. “Which might be good, ‘cause I have a shit ton of sexual frustration bottled up that a good fight and some blood might take the edge off of.”
“Just keep watch,” Khalid said.
“Moving sand...twenty yards to the left,” Bax said.
“Quicksand,” Alyx said softly. “Something isn’t right.”
“Well lookie what we have here...” they heard from the left-hand side just to the right of where the moving sand was.
“And I think we discovered what isn’t right here,” Scur said with a sigh. He and Bax stopped walking at the same time, looked at each other, then to the three hobs not too far from them. “They’re outnumbered,” he said, his voice low.
“Moon on the left and quicksand,” Eli said. “Guess those warnings were spot on. We could take those three in our sleep.”
Bax grinned. “I got the one with the yellow hair,” he said.
Alyx scoffed. “We don’t have time for this.”
“We’re gonna have to make time,” Khalid said at the same time Scur claimed the dark-haired one in the middle.
“Shouldn’t take all that long, sugar,” the berserker said and casually strolled from his position. “What happened to the rest of you?” he asked the hobs. “Here I thought there would be a lot more than three of you.”
“You don’t know how many we have,” one of the hobs said.
“I know I come off as a meat head, but trust me, I can count.”
Bax rolled his eyes. “Cut the small talk,” he said and looked to Eli. “Ladies first.” Alyx ran forward and he grabbed her. “Ah ah. You still have a job to do. There will be plenty of bloodshed later.”
Eli curtsied at Bax before taking of, pulling her curved blades out of the side of her boots. “I don’t mind if I do.”
“Bax, go,” he told the faeblin. “I’ll make sure Alyx stays put.” He put his arm around her and pulled her to his side. “Think of it this way, Alyx, neither of us have really been able to assess the strengths of your guard. It will be beneficial for us to watch.” He pointed to where Eli and one of the hobs where fighting.
“Take Eli for example. She never lets him at her back, always knows exactly where her opponent is, and she’s also aware of where Scur and Bax are, too.” He winced when the hob didn’t move quick enough and Eli’s blade sliced a line across his chest, though not deep enough to kill. The woman was quick and skilled and he was glad Alyx had found another warrior for their clan.
Abaxley ran forward in a blur, and then to the side, slipping around the nearest tree. He reached around it and launched himself at the back of the blond hob, slamming him to the ground then gripped him by the hair and wrenched, breakin
g his neck.
“Holy shit,” she said. “I didn’t know he was that fast.”
“Damn,” Khalid said with a whistle. “He’s almost as fast as Jed. Though no one is as fast as that kid.” He pointed to Bax. “Keep watching him. See the way he moves? That right there is finesse and skill. Even though he has the strength, he doesn’t need to use it. His speed allows him to always be a step ahead of his opponent. Scur, on the other hand,” he turned Alyx so she could see her berserker, “he uses his strength. Each of us fight uniquely, but have no issue fighting together.”
She nodded. “And they are all magnificent,” she said as Abaxley rolled his opponent and then jogged back to her.
“You said we didn’t have time,” he said and grinned.
“We don’t,” she said, turning once more. Khalid could feel the urgency in her, the tug inside her body.
“Guys,” he said and heard the crushing bones.
The hob Scur had been fighting crumbled to the ground, lifeless. Eli went for the killing blow, and he could tell by her positioning, she expected the hob to fight back. Instead, he leapt back, narrowly missing the scythe carving out his heart, and started to run. Eli moved to run after him.
“Let him go,” Khalid said. “He’s alone and probably won’t even make it out of here alive anyway.”
“I’m sure there’s more than one quicksand pit,” Alyx said and grinned at Scur and Eli. “You are all getting a kiss but first,” she turned. “We need to go this way.”
Eli cursed under her breath. “I hate losing one. It makes me twitchy.”
Khalid laughed and gripped her shoulder. “Promise you can have the next one then.”
“Guess I can live with that,” she said with a sigh. “All right, Alyx, lead us to temptation.”
He and Bax took position at Alyx’s sides, Scur and Eli behind them as their princess led them about a hundred more yards, the moving sand on the left turning into a thick vegetation of wild flowers and vines. Alyx stopped them in front of a large rock, though it wasn’t solid. A doorway was carved into the side, symbols Khalid couldn’t interpret branded all around it. The rock wasn’t anything to look at, but the vines which grew along it were something he’d never seen before. The bluish green leaves seemed to glow in the night. He took a step forward and looked inside, barely being able to make out a set of stairs leading down. “Is this it?” he asked Alyx.
She nodded, her eyes scanning the vines and the symbols. “We descend. But first...”
“Way ahead of you,” Abaxley said and took several pictures. “All done, baby.”
“Well then, let’s see where this leads.”
“I’ll go first.” He ducked under the doorway, which didn’t clear six feet, and started the descent. He couldn’t feel any fear or trepidation coming off of Alyx, so while he had his guard up, he didn’t think they were walking into a trap. He just hoped he wasn’t wrong.
11
The air was smoky, heavy with incense and moisture as they descended the staircase. Water, she realized. The cavern was heavy with moisture because water was running further down into the cavern. An underground aqueduct in Faerie that probably spilled over into the Earth plane, and that was how the oasis sprang up. Since water carried magic, created life, this was a hallowed place. A place of reverence and opportunity in a dried-up landscape. Not only in Faerie, but in the human realm as well.
Torches inset in the walls held green fire, Faerie fire, perpetually bright, infinitely dangerous in the right hands, but sat sleeping on the walls, doing the job they were conjured for.
They walked, Khalid in the front then Scur, then Alyx and Eli, with Abaxley and the coyote bringing up the rear. Getting closer to the running water, Alyx noticed the passage opened to a larger room, the sound of soft breathing and dripping water finding them. Whatever was waiting, was waiting patiently. She followed her guard into the space and stepped forward.
In the center someone sat on a large dais, a bemused look on their face. A being sat, with the back end of a large cat, the torso and arms that of a man. Sprouting from its back were large, black feathery wings, and twisting horns protruded from its head. He bowed to them.
“Welcome, Alyx Mayhem, daughter of Carter and Serreta, Goddess in Training.”
She arched a brow. “How do you know my name? My parents’ names?”
“There is very little in this world I don’t know,” the being said. “I am Themopoli, Lord of Mauite.”
Abaxley stepped up. “You’re a manticore. I was told they were extinct.”
He smiled at her faeblin. “Not extinct. Waiting, Abaxley Sennecott, Child of Starlight, Ruler of Stars. Prince of Beginnings.”
Again, he gave a title, and something extra.
“What does that mean exactly?” she asked. “Waiting?”
“We were charged with protecting that which would bring the world we helped create back to itself. My brothers, Gritipoli, Vindictus, and myself, have been waiting a long time, and it is fortunate you are worthy.”
“Worthy?” she said.
He nodded. “You took the right road; and carry a piece of the old world with you, willingly.” He motioned to the arm that the cicada melted into. “Your companions gave the guardians a valiant death. You believe in knowledge, and you love, you love with all your heart. All things that make you worthy for this challenge.” He looked to Khalid. “And you, you ensured victory by remembering the tenants, Khalid Ingvar, Son of Hallik and Vetra, Beloved Protector of the Goddess, Lord of Creation.”
“You said that twice. Surely Alyx isn’t a goddess, won’t be,” Bax said.
Themopoli inclined his head. “When Faerie started, we didn’t have royals, we didn’t have a ruling class. We had beings of power, ones humans called gods and goddesses who worked for the betterment of all. Your lover is a being of immense power, the same with her sisters.”
Sisters. “You mean the other princesses, the queen.”
“We don’t use those terms,” he said to her. “You are all power in your own right, none should be over another. That’s what got us in this mess, the quest for power. You, and the other, the phoenix, will realize your power and soon. All worshiped, all loved, what is that if not a goddess in their own right?”
“He’s got a point,” Eli said. “The title, by the way he explained it, fits you way better than being a mere princess does. You’re far more than that.”
“Is anyone gonna ask exactly what we’re doing here?” Scur said, looking around the room.
“And you know all of us?” Bax said to the manticore, ignoring Scur.
He looked to Scur, then Eli. “Scur Nordscov, final Son of Candessa and Gryphon, Consort to the Goddess, Berserker General, Lord of Pain. And Eliora, Daughter of the Darkness, Princess of Lust, Duchess of Agony, a piece of the goddess’s soul. You are all known to me.” He looked to her, his eyes kind. “But you are not whole. Not yet. Soon.”
“Oh, Duchess of Agony, I’m so putting that on a shirt,” Eli said with a grin.
Khalid cleared his throat and Alyx could tell he was trying not to smile. “You’re right, she isn’t whole yet. There is a piece of her, of our guard, that’s still missing. I have no doubts that she will find it.”
“Bax,” Eli said, “he knows all of us because he’s part of Faerie, part of its knowledge. Like it’s brain.” Her attention when to the manticore. “Am I close?”
The manticore winked at her.
“These titles you are giving us...” Bax said.
“All that you are, and will become,” the manticore said. “I assume you are here for the amethyst?”
“The titles make sense to me,” Khalid said. “Scur is the Lord of Pain, I mean the man literally thrives on it. Eli, well, she did grow up as a torturer, so agony fits her well. Creation for me? I assume it comes from my powers. And you, Bax, you are the beginning of an entire species.” He looked to the manticore. “Yes, we are here for the amethyst. Can you tell us how to retrieve it?”
&
nbsp; “It’s here,” he said and gestured to the running water. “Alyx Mayhem, your task is to retrieve it.”
She looked sideways at her guard. Khalid, her protector. Eli, the piece of her soul, Scur, her consort. They would have to talk about that later, even though everything the being before them said felt right, and true. Looking back at the manticore, she moved forward. “Just retrieve it?”
“Yes, retrieve it.”
She walked past him and looked down into the water which was moving, but still clear. The bottom of the pool was filled with river stones, and gleaming jewels. She looked up once more. “Which one is it?”
“That is for a goddess to know.”
“What’s the catch?” Scur said, stepping forward. “There is always a catch.”
Abaxley sighed. “She has to pick the right one.” He looked to the manticore. “And if she doesn’t?”
The entity cocked his head. “Without the amethyst, you will be unable to access our homeland.”
“Yeah, not buying that that’s the only catch.” Scur crossed his arms over his chest. “What happens if she chooses wrong?”
“She doesn’t get a second chance,” Eli said.
“Alyx,” Khalid walked over to her, his hand going to her shoulder. “Go with your instinct. It’s what led us here. You know exactly which one you need to take. Don’t second guess yourself.”
Nodding to her captain, she reached up and touched his hand, stroking the skin. She felt Willy stir under her skin on the other side, closed her eyes, and sighed. She felt Abaxley come closer, his hand on her hip, and then Scur was there, hand on her other hip, and Eli’s soft hand slipped into her left.
She opened her eyes and looked down into the pool, her eyes going to a large gleaming gem. She went to her knees, settling, and leaned in, reaching into the water. It was cold, but not overly so, and the touch was like a balm on her skin. She reached and let her fingers drag across the stones, and felt something warm, something almost jolting. She wrapped her fingers around it and pulled it up, and then opened her hand to see a river rock.
“Alyx...” Bax said.
“This is it,” she answered, knowing in her bones, with the pulse from the stone, that she was right. Scur helped her to her feet and she approached the manticore, hand out, stone on the flat of her palm.