I hate the Fates. In case it wasn’t clear before, let me reiterate that I really, really, really hate those fuckers. Doesn’t matter my best friend was once the leader of them all, ever since they lost him they’ve been taking it out on the entire Universe, throwing one cosmic fit after the other.
Constantly ruining all our lives.
Don’t know how much times passes, but eventually Sol’s sobs taper off. One look down at her and I see her lashes lying over her cheekbones. Her breathing’s evened out into the soft undulations of sleep.
No female’s ever slept on my chest before.
That thought registers just as my soul-connection with Ianythi opens, flooding me with a wave of happiness and hope, as she appears next to us.
“Fort’em.”
“How?” I ask her, ignoring the way her eyes land on Soleria in my lap and widen. “How can we bring them back?” Her emotions are too chaotic now, confused, torn between the thrill of the news she brings, and the sight of me wrapped around Soleria like this. I can’t sift through them all.
Ianythi tears her white eyes away from Sol. “Nylicia just visited Zen in a dream. She’s also just revived the ex-queen.”
Dimithinia’s return has been realized.
Only a being that lived through her historic reign would be able to appreciate the magnitude of that.
Holy shit, the Queen of Ritrio is back.
“We’re on the way to wake Dyletri. Hurry. We have to get them all back before he dies and Zeniel’s inner-vengeance gremlin pops free completely.”
Cyake has an infinite distrust for Nylicia. Hell, we’ve all had our doubts about her over the millennia, yet right now I feel nothing but gratitude towards that small, scheming female. She’s giving us a way to get back the girls. To somehow reverse Ismini’s end of the sacrifice even though the queen is back?
Fucking-A, man. Fucking-A. Go Nylicia.
I stand with Soleria in my arms. “Give me a few. I’ll meet you there,” I tell my sister.
But she doesn’t leave. No. She watches me dematerialize to my bed where I gently place a sleeping Soleria on it.
My sister continues watching me even as I tuck Soleria in and lean down to run my fingers across her cheek. “I’m going to help get them back for you. Just like I promised.” With that, I straighten—
And come face-to-face with my sister’s stunned expression, one I don’t dare to read too closely. Nah. I’m good. Better to focus on what can be fixed and help get my new friends back.
Chapter 9
- 2 weeks after Ismini and Evesse’s return
IANTHEN
“M y restaurant hasn’t been open in almost three weeks. I’m using the WiFi to pay my employees for their extended vacay, but come on. I’m losing money.”
“Problem solved. I just wired a million into your personal bank account.”
“What the fruck?! First off, no. Second off, how’d you get into my bank account—no, don’t answer that. Doesn’t matter. I don’t want your money. I want to be back at work! Thirdly, take that money back!”
They say every quest begins with a few words. Sometimes it’s a sentence, other times it’s a soliloquy.
For me, it happened to be the argument I had with Soleria about half-hour ago.
Hell, no. I didn’t take the money back.
But the agreement to get her to keep it was that I set a system up that’ll allow her to return home, regardless of how unsafe I fucking deem it to be.
Which it is. It’s unbelievably freaking unsafe for a weak mortal like her. The ceFtuts were unleashed in her neighborhood a few weeks ago, while Ismini and Evesse were with us in Enzyria.
For all I know, Soleria could be a target. What other reason could there be for that specific four-block quadrant of Queens, New York to be targeted by the Aviraji? Either that or they were still after Ismini and Evesse at the time. Either way, that’s a red-hot zone as far as I’m concerned, and my new, stubborn-as-fuck human friend is determined to plant herself right in the middle of it.
Thankfully, the being who can answer my questions has finally made enough time in her schedule to see me.
After weeks of me trying to get her alone.
“I have explained to you all,” comes from above me, a lilting, teasing quality to her tone. “You all want a piece of me. There’s only one to go around. I’m an extremely busy female.”
I ascend the final step onto the rooftop garden of the compound. All around me, a replica of the woods on this dimension rises, an oasis onto itself. One I know well enough not to get caught up in. No. My focus becomes all about that small, see through female sitting on the edge of one of the fountains.
“Nylicia.”
“Ianthen.” Staring down at the water, she lowers a hand and skims it across the surface. The water ripples slightly with the move, as if reacting to her ghostly touch.
“I’m assuming you already know all the questions I’m going to ask.”
“And then some,” she sighs, shoulders falling with the movement. “Child, you werewolves are forever dying to know it all. And I thought I was a nosey bitch. Anyway, I’ll answer your most pressing one. Yes, Soleria must return to her life for now. Much hinges on her being at that restaurant over the next few weeks.”
That’s my most pressing question?
Laughing, Nylicia faces me, the prismatic light coming off the surface of the water enhancing her skin’s golden glow. “Yes, it was actually. There are some questions you aren’t ready to have the answers to.”
“Bullshit, Nylicia. Tell me straight up. Is she the one? Is she the reason I’m going to die?” Three weeks with that question gnawing away at the back of my head. Three weeks of becoming closer to Soleria, my chest aching in ways I’ve never felt before—
“No, Ianthen. She isn’t the reason you’re going to die.”
Ever heard of the term “out of body experience”? That’s exactly what happens to me as my brain soaks in her reply. Suddenly, it’s like I’m looking at myself from outside my body, watching my facial expression collapse.
But that can’t be right. It can’t. This is the answer I needed, the only positive one that makes sense. The reason I can now be as close to my new friend as I want without worrying about her becoming the death of me.
Well, not as close as I want. I can’t become the death of her, either. Fucking her while she’s still human only ends one way—with her body broken in the aftermath.
No, Ianthen. She isn’t the reason you’re going to die.
Fucking-A, right? Hoorah. Light up those fucking fireworks, ‘cause this male is back to being carefree and fun loving.
We’re cleared for take-off, motherfuckers.
That is, until the real deal comes along. You know, my fated female, the one that will truly end my long-lasting existence in this flesh-and-blood body. It’s back up into the cosmos for me. Reuniting with the source, the same force that once walked this Earth and fathered my best friend and his brothers.
Considering my actual soul is billions of years old, I remember that existence. What it’s like—both chaotic and beautiful, peaceful and agonizing. To be nothing but power and consciousness once again, to lose the experience of having a physical body . . .
Alright, it wasn’t horrible, but I’m so not fucking ready to go back there. To not be here with my loved ones anymore? To lose the vibrant poignancy of walking the physical plane? The sights, the smells . . .
The sex?
Nah. It’s okay. Forget what I said earlier. Soleria not being the one is absolutely, hands-down the best news I could have ever been given. Spank you very much.
Crossing my arms, I stare at the ground as my brain switches over to pure tactics. “She’ll need someone with her twenty-four-seven, especially if the goal is to collect intel on what goes down in the area while we keep her alive.”
“Now you’re talking my language.” Smiling wider, Nylicia mimics me, crossing her arms in front of her chest. The move does nothing b
ut enhance those large breasts of hers, but for the first time since meeting her, I’m not even tempted to linger there for too long.
When she straightens her legs to cross them at the ankles, the gossamer folds of her dress parting to reveal both those legs and the sky-high, opened-toed heels attached to her feet, I don’t focus on that either.
Okay, so Nylicia’s hot. Trust me, I’m not the only one who’s thought it before. We all speak about it. And, usually, the Hyren in me can’t help but imagine what it would be like to have a taste of that.
Not today. Soleria’s return to Earth must go off in the safest way possible. We just got Evesse and Ismini back two weeks ago, and the former remains comatose despite Vedlyl’s best efforts to wake her.
That last thing any of us need is something happening to Sol.
“Zeniel’s off-grid. Dyletri is consumed with his new R’ma, but—”
“Can’t spare him. His schedule is about to become packed in the next few weeks.”
I know better than to ask. She’s stingy with answers at the best of times, let alone when it has nothing to do with the being asking. “Okay. So we send in Liz and Sil.” My sister is also an option, but not a reliable one.
It’s been a thousand years since Kain last awoke and triggered an episode in her. Yet there’s no guarantee. He’s waking every millennia now, has been on the same schedule since the days of Ancient Rome.
Maybe it’ll be extended yet again.
Maybe we won’t have to deal with that fucker for another century. Maybe two. Maybe five.
Maybe I’ll find his hiding place in time and get to his body before those lids peel back and he resumes his idiotic quest to find my twin.
That’s still too many maybes and the last thing I want is my sister falling ill while she’s supposed to be protecting Soleria’s life.
“I can’t spare the twins. I’ve sent them off on a task.”
Meaning she offered those mercenaries something too good for them to pass up in exchange for doing her bidding.
I swipe my hair back from my face. “Fuck. Okay, so the twins are out. My sister is out. Dyletri and Zen are out. Can Xreak spare any Sesengts?”
“After what happened in Astoria? No. He has them all positioned along the Kystm grids and you know production has been lagging the last millennia-in-a-half or so. He’s picking it back up now, but it’ll be months before the new ones are field-ready.”
Holy shit. Xreak’s recruiting again?
I shove the thought aside. Now isn’t the time to get lost in the fact that beings are currently dying and being posed a question in the afterlife that will help us swell the ranks of the guardians, and by extension grow the Ryzes numbers, as well.
“So who the fuck does that leave us with?” I ask Nylicia. “I’m supposed to be in that chamber hunting for those POS brothers.”
“Cyake.”
My head tilts sideways in her direction, left ear aimed at her. Heck, I even tuck my hair behind it, making sure the airwaves are opened all the way and I’m correctly picking up what she’s putting out. “Excuse me?”
“If you want, I’ll send Cyake. He’s been angsty and he’d love to have something to do.”
Yeah, that makes sense.
They’ve become close, too. Almost tight-knit friends. At times, it seems like Soleria’s even closer to him than she is to me.
It’s not like it would upset her. I’ve seen the way her eyes glow sometimes when he comes around—a crack sounds out within my mouth and I curse as a sharp pain shoots through my jaw.
Fuck! Did I just break my tooth? Rubbing my jaw, I focus on fixing the molar I just smashed. “Who would you send in if not him?”
“You.”
Or Zex.
My eyes widen. Shit, that’s a perfect idea! If I can trust anyone with Soleria’s safety, it’s Zex. And even if his resemblance to Cyake ends up sparking Soleria’s interest, Zexistr is too obsessed with the human he lost sixteen-millennia ago to pay it much mind.
That celibate fucker wouldn’t even think of putting his hands on Soleria.
I open my mouth to tell Nylicia my brilliant idea.
And, as always when it comes to imparting certain information about Zex to her, nothing comes out.
Most of the time, handing Nylicia any 4-1-1 on Existence is impossible. We never know what it’s going to be. Some comments slip through; most others don’t. We’ve known this for millennia. There’s some great cosmic force that silences us, one that we all suspect has something to do with the Fates.
Well, Zex and Cy are convinced it might be Nylicia’s doing, not the Fates. But to even contemplate it means entertaining the idea that she’s something we’ve never come up against. Something more powerful than even the God of Existence or the Fates themselves.
The blockage is a two-way street, by the way. Same thing goes for us imparting personal information about Nylicia to Zex. In other words, it’s a no-go, blackout zone, a void no one seems able to penetrate. Which has made his search for her the greatest bane of his life.
Anyway, I’d have to find the fucker to see if he’ll be available, and chances are he might not be. He keeps himself mostly isolated, the gods know where. Has to, considering he’s a species-cycling, energy power house—the most powerful of us all—and every single form he possesses is unstable due to his lack of sex.
Even his human side is all fucked-up thanks to the deprivation.
I drop my hand as the reality of what this all means starts to sink in. “If not me?” Pointless to ask, futile, but a male can’t be blamed for trying.
Right?
“We go right back to Cyake. There’s no one else to send in. At least not right now.”
Knew it.
Cyake, or me. Cyake, or me. Cyake, or . . .
“Hunt, you won’t mate with her simply because you guard her.”
“Bullshit. I know you.” Voicing that concern takes me by surprise.
Fuck it. It’s true. Yes, she assured me earlier that Sol isn’t the one, but my reactions to her are still a cause for concern. Nylicia’s scheming ways even more so! Stop being a pussy. You’ve known her almost a month and guess what? No symptoms! Nothing.
Well, unless one counts the relentless erections.
But that probably has to do with the fact I haven’t had sex in almost three weeks.
What? I’ve been too busy. Too much shit going on.
Nylicia looks like she barely checks the urge to give me the finger. “You’ve spent inordinate amounts of time with the same females in the past. Many times, you even slept with that female more than once. You never become attached to any of them.”
“Tell me again that she isn’t the reason I’m going to die. And make sure you look me in the eyes as you do it, female.”
She nails me with the steadiest stare I’ve ever been given before. “You. Are. Not. Going. To. Die. Because. Of. Her. There? Happy now?”
I narrow my eyes. “Once more, with feeling female.”
Throwing her head back, she laughs up towards the sky, and I hear her mumble something that sounds like, “These fucking males.” Standing, she hits me with another stare, all confidence and honesty shining in her multi-colored eyes. “Soleria will not be the reason you die. Don’t make me say it again cause I’ll find a way to kick you.”
“Fine. When do we need to be back at the restaurant?”
“I believe Soleria made it very clear she plans on returning today. So hop to it, young grasshopper. Our new buddy isn’t known for her patience.” She disappears before I can give her a reply.
Sometimes—just sometimes—I totally understand Dyletri’s desire to throttle the female.
As much as I understand Cyake’s lack of trust in her.
But she’s done good. Real good. Hell, I’ve never seen Dyletri as happy and complete as he’s been lately. The situation with Zeniel is utter shit, but after Nylicia’s trick with bringing both girls back, I’m a little more inclined to have faith in her d
ecisions.
Closing my eyes, I search the dimension for that dark-blue, red, and white energy signature I’ve come to know so well the last few weeks. Seconds later, I’m in front of Evesse’s room in the medical wing, watching as Soleria steps out and softly closes the door.
When she turns and catches me standing here, she jumps a foot in the air. “Sonof—you just scared like five years off me and I’m not immortal yet, you ass!” She swats at me.
I step back before she can deliver the hit to my arm and break her fragile bones. “Get ready. We’re heading out.”
“Heading . . . where?”
“You said you wanted to go home. If I’m not mistaken, it’s about 7:15am New York time. We’ll be there just in time for you to open the place.”
“We?”
“You need someone to guard you, female. I’m it.”
Chapter 10
– Earth, Astoria, Queens, NY (USA)
SOLERIA
“W hy are you ‘it’, again?” I mumble under my breath, eyes closed and head leaning back against the wall.
The wall in my tiny entry foyer.
The entry foyer in my home.
The home Ianthen, God of the Hunt, just materialized us into.
Yeah. He’s in my house.
“There’s literally no one else we can trust to guard you.”
“Where’s Cyake?” Even I pick up on the whiny, slightly desperate quality to my tone.
Ianthen doesn’t answer but I swear I feel the temperature in the air drop a few degrees.
On the bright side, he teleported you guys into the house. You didn’t have to walk up those stairs with him and in through the door.
I resist the urge to groan and cover my face with my hands.
Of all the beings to guard me, why did it have to be him, God?
Oh wait. I know who I’m actually talking to now. Well, by name at least. And I doubt this Zexistr, God of Existence, can hear my prayers.
Or . . . Is it that other thing I’m thinking about? I open my eyes, ignoring the way the denim blue wall in front of me spins, and search out Ianthen. He’s already by the stairs to the left, back facing me, head swiveling as he looks around. “Which one is God again? Is it Zex, or that source thingy Liz told me about?”
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