As the summons quieted, Jarl felt something cold nearby, at the edge of his awareness. He turned towards it. Whatever it was, it was a threat and it was coming closer. He looked at Arlen, who didn’t seem to sense anything wrong. Was he overreacting?
“Arlen,” he whispered. “Do you feel that?”
“Feel what?”
“Something dangerous, coming near,” he said. Arlen stiffened and looked at him.
“You’re sure?”
Jarl nodded. Arlen’s eyes narrowed.
“It must be a threat to humans only or I would have felt it. Take me to it.”
Jarl shivered but started leading him away from the humans. He fingered his gun nervously. What would be a threat to humans during the peace? Nothing on this planet could hurt them right now. He could feel it in the swell of the moonlight. Humans were completely safe during the peace. They drew closer and then he caught a glimpse of a creature moving towards them and froze. It was the female creature and she was the cause of the danger. Without thinking, he stepped into the path in front of her. She paused and Arlen was quickly at his side.
“Get out of my way,” she hissed. “I have a right to one of the humans.”
Was that true? It couldn’t be. He could sense that eight creatures were already talking to the humans. They were all in a group but he could tell that each of the creatures had attached themselves to their human and were trying to persuade the humans to split up. It might be another night or two before the humans felt safe enough to do that and if he were closer he might have urged patience, but now he was faced with this threat and he wasn’t sure what to do.
“The humans are intended for others,” Arlen said calmly. “You have no place here. You were banished.”
Jarl started at that. Why had she been banished? Because she posed a threat to him? He had wondered sometimes why he hadn’t ever seen her since that first incident when he came to live in the woods. He hadn’t expected something like this.
“We haven’t been able to feed properly since this human came along,” she said, gesturing to Jarl angrily. “He has destroyed the balance of our planet. She may not recognize the disruption but I do. He’s destroying our world.”
“He’s saving it,” Arlen said. “And balance is being restored. You should trust our planet when she says this is good. How can you defy her so openly?”
“She’s being misled by these humans,” the creature said. “Instead of neutralizing them, they’ve infected her. Their poison is misleading her. They must be destroyed.”
Jarl shivered. He knew the creatures weren’t feeding the same way since he was somehow making humans not offer themselves. He hadn’t expected any creatures to be angry about that. Did they starve now? After all, they barely had anything to feed on. Were they dying off because he had stopped their food supply? Was he disrupting their entire world? The planet approved of him, he knew, but had he done something to manipulate her into that approval?
“You have no business with the humans,” Arlen said firmly. “The planet agrees. All of us agree. We want peace. You don’t.”
“They don’t deserve peace,” she hissed, the moonlight glinting off her fangs. Jarl flinched, but drew his gun. He would protect the other humans. If anything happened to these eight humans, anything at all, then everything was ruined. No human would ever trust the creatures again. Keisha and Jonah would be isolated and hated, as would the new harvesters doing the routes with them. They wouldn’t have anyone for those routes and the colony would starve. No, he couldn’t let that happen and he leveled the gun at her and tried not to tremble. He was a good shot but hadn’t used his gun in over a year. Would he manage to hit her?
“You can’t hurt me,” she said with a sneer. “It’s night. No bullets can hurt me.”
That was true, Jarl thought in shock. But how else could he stop her? He thought of the animals he had killed over the past year and what Arlen had taught him. There was a rhythm of life and death on the planet. If his arrow coincided with that rhythm, the animal died. He had learned to persuade the music to let him kill when he needed it. He could never kill more than he needed, but he had learned enough.
Well, he needed to kill her now. He sent his will into the music nearby. If he didn’t kill her, everything would be destroyed. Maybe he didn’t need to kill her for sustenance, as happened with the animals he killed. But this was just as necessary. Too much would be destroyed if she survived and reached the humans. He felt the music bending towards him. The planet was listening. The planet didn’t want to destroy one of her creatures but she was listening.
He poured his heart into the message and her eyes widened as if she suddenly recognized what he was doing.
“You can’t turn the planet against me,” she said. “How dare you even try!”
He focused on the need to kill her and then, suddenly, a chord ran through him. His finger squeezed on the trigger without his command and it was almost as if he could see the bullet leave the gun and soar through the air. He knew exactly where it would hit even before it struck her in the heart. Blood splattered and she cried out and collapsed backwards.
“That can’t kill me,” she gasped, but he felt the music of death in his mind. “It can’t,” she repeated in a frightened voice. “A human can’t kill me. Not at night. Not ever. Humans can’t do anything.”
Jarl took a step closer to her. She was still bleeding and as she coughed, blood ran from the corner of her mouth. When Ender had shot Arlen at night, the bullet had been almost instantly repelled from his body. This bullet had done damage and that damage wasn’t vanishing. She went limp and he felt the death around him intensify for a moment, then he felt it replaced by a wave of renewal. He could tell that an animal would be here soon to feast on the body and continue the rhythm of life and death. The creature’s death was part of the music of the planet now, and would give rise to new life in the future. He took a deep breath and staggered backwards, the gun falling from his hand.
“Jarl,” Arlen said, sounding shocked. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah,” he managed.
Arlen bent and scooped up the gun. Jarl took it from him and put the safety back on, then slid it into his belt. He felt numb and couldn’t help staring at the body. He had killed someone. Not an accidental killing, either. He had pleaded for it, begged for it, persuaded the planet to allow it. He was a murderer.
“Come on, Jarl,” Arlen said, drawing him back towards their home, away from the body and the colony. “You’re safe now.”
He still felt numb when they reached the cave and Arlen snuggled into the bed with him, holding him tight.
“I killed someone,” Jarl finally managed to whisper.
“You had no options,” Arlen said softly. “There was nothing else that could have happened. If there was any way to avoid her death, the planet would have done it.”
“But I convinced the planet,” he said. “I persuaded her. What if I overwhelmed her? What if the creature was right and I’ve poisoned the planet?”
“You haven’t,” Arlen said firmly. “But it is true that her music has changed since you joined us. She is learning to adapt to you just as you are adapting to her. Now that there are more humans, your individual influence is lessened and she is learning from others as well, but you will always be special to her. You will always be her first human, and the one closest to her.”
“But what if I abused that? What if there was another option that I just didn’t see?”
“There wasn’t,” Arlen said. “If you didn’t kill her, I would have.”
Jarl shivered. Maybe he would have preferred that. He didn’t like to think that he had been the one to shoot her, that it was his bullet to pierce her heart. It would have better for Arlen to kill her. After all, there was a good chance Arlen had killed before. He had never asked Arlen about it and probably never would, but there was a chance Arlen had lured out a human before him and fed on their flesh or nightmares. There was a chance he was alr
eady a murderer, and killing the female creature wouldn’t be as much of a shock.
“Our planet is in harmony again now,” Arlen said softly, stroking his cheek. “Can you feel that? I don’t know if you’ve been able to sense her discontent this past year, the quiet discord in the lower registry of her song, but that creature has been causing disruptions since I first approached you. We exiled her, but perhaps death was the only solution. Now everyone is united behind the idea of helping humans survive. She was the only one who thought otherwise.”
“Are you sure? Is it true that creatures can’t feed as well? Are you all starving now?”
“Some go hungry,” Arlen admitted. “More than before. But there has always been hunger. We eat once a year, sometimes less. Sometimes we grow weak from hunger and die. It is a natural pattern that we have adapted to. We will adapt to this new pattern as well.”
So he had killed before. Jarl shivered, but wasn’t disgusted at that thought. Arlen needed to survive and he had. He was just grateful Arlen didn’t have to feed like that ever again. Jarl would offer all the food he could ever want.
“Once there are more humans, it’ll be less of a problem, right?” he asked, and Arlen nodded.
“Someday, each creature will have a human and hunger will vanish. We tolerate the hunger now because we know that day will come. Perhaps not for a hundred years, but it will come.”
“I think it’ll be sooner,” Jarl said. He thought of the eight people who had come out to the woods. It wasn’t a lot of people but then again, there might be more tomorrow night. When this first batch returned and shared what had happened, surely more would come out tomorrow, and more the next night. He hoped they established their friendships quickly because once they were drawn to the woods, he needed all of them to survive. He wouldn’t be allowed to look at the moon when they were drawn out, he already knew. He wouldn’t be allowed to influence the outcome. They needed to adapt on their own. And even if it were just these eight, that was nearly tripling the number of people with creatures. They could start being more open about the creatures being friendly. Next year even more people would come out, perhaps even adults and not just the young people. And eventually, the peace would be seen as a time to greet the creatures and not a brief respite from the horrors of this planet. It was already happening; night was no longer a time of terror. The humans were finally starting to adapt, and in time they would be part of this planet the same way Jarl was.
“Do you feel better?” Arlen asked, stroking his hair back from his forehead.
“I feel hopeful,” Jarl said, and Arlen smiled, baring the fangs that Jarl had come to love.
“Is a hopeful mood a good mood for more?” Arlen asked in a teasing voice, his hand stroking down Jarl’s back to squeeze his bottom. Jarl chuckled.
“That depends,” he said, rolling to straddle Arlen. It was his favorite position now and Arlen enjoyed it immensely as well. “What mood are you in?”
“I’m in the mood for you,” he said in a husky voice. “I always am.”
“Then I suppose we can do more,” Jarl said, leaning forward to peck a kiss on his lips. He no longer missed kissing, since there were so many other ways they were intimate and they could kiss, just not the way Jarl normally thought of as kissing. The fangs prevented a few things, but not many, and Arlen’s alien stamina more than made up for it.
Arlen began unwrapping the cloth from Jarl’s body, then from his own, and soon Arlen’s cock was pressed against his ass as he straddled him. Jarl leaned forward and lifted himself up as Arlen grabbed his cock and angled it into his body. He let out a soft cry as he pressed down on Arlen and felt himself penetrated, then the slow pleasurable slide as he lowered his hips fully. He loved this and he knew Arlen did too from the creature’s short breaths and half-closed eyes. Arlen licked his lips and grabbed Jarl’s hips, forcing him to start moving. Jarl was quick to obey, moving on Arlen and feeling in control in a way he never would have imagined, once. He arched his back and felt Arlen strike deep inside him and gasped as pleasure swamped his senses. He was aware of the rhythm of the planet quickening in time with their thrusts. It was no longer as much of a shift after that first time when he was linked to the planet, but the planet was always a part of their lovemaking now and he enjoyed it. It was so much more satisfying than sex with a human ever was.
He rocked his hips and Arlen gasped in sudden pleasure, then Arlen grabbed him and rolled so he was on the bottom with Arlen now pounding inside of him. He let out a breathless laugh. They usually started with Jarl on top but it rarely ended that way and he enjoyed everything about it as Arlen grabbed his leg and adjusted him to get a deeper thrust. He gasped and opened himself to his creature, offering his heart, his body, his everything. Arlen drank deeply from him as they moved together in perfect harmony with the planet and soon a wave of pleasure crashed over Jarl as he cried out and came. Arlen exploded inside him and remained over him, breathing heavily as the music of the planet settled into its usual melody. Jarl was panting and so was Arlen, and then Arlen collapsed beside him and pulled him into an embrace.
“I love you, Jarl,” he whispered, and Jarl nuzzled closer.
“I love you, Arlen,” he said, meaning the words as he had never meant them with anyone else. This was his home now, here at Arlen’s side. Every creature he had met aside from the female creature was friendly to him and with her gone, he felt immeasurably safer. He wouldn’t have to be worried about attack or threats or anything from another creature.
The planet still posed dangers, of course. There were still deadly animals that would hunt him if given a chance. But he was safe in a way he never had been before and he was amazed he could feel so safe in the woods that had terrified him his entire life. He remembered the fear that always gripped him the first night of each peace when he worried the night would swallow him and drive him into insanity. For nearly a decade he had left the colony to harvest the pollen and felt that suffocating fear. He never would have imagined that he could feel safe here, out in the woods at night, especially with a creature next to him. But he was safe, safer than he ever had been before. And soon, other humans would feel this safety. It would take time, but as more and more people adapted, the fear would lessen.
Already people had learned to appreciate the moon; in time they could appreciate the night. It would no longer be a time of terror and nightmares but pleasure and peace. He had made that transition, Keisha and Jonah had, and soon others would follow in their footsteps. It was only a matter of time and humans would be part of this planet that had for so long rejected them. Once humans learned to love the planet and its creatures, they would become one with it. He wondered if he would be able to feel if Keisha or Jonah had sex with their creatures. Had they felt him just now? Had they felt him every time while they lived in the colony? He hadn’t ever considered that. But now that they were part of the planet, everything was wound together. He was an individual, but he was part of a greater whole and unlike with the colony where he resented the greater whole, now he appreciated it. He loved it. He wouldn’t want anything else.
Jarl snuggled with Arlen and pulled one of the petals to cover them. For now, he had everything he needed. He was safe and he was with Arlen. And in time, there would be others to join him.
THE END
About the Author
Elizabeth James hails from Portland, Oregon and spent many hours of her childhood tucked away in the Gold Room of Powell’s Books, reading science fiction and fantasy masterpieces and hidden treasures. She writes romance with strong elements of science fiction and fantasy as a result, focusing on LGBT characters.
Thrall of Darkness
science fiction and fantasy romance publisher
Thrall of Darkness was founded because there is a shortage of good, quality literature featuring gay protagonists that does not reduce gay characters to stereotypes or dismiss them as secondary characters. Every story seeks to challenge the status quo by focusing on gay characters an
d combining drama, action, and sex into an addicting blend of fun-filled narrative.
You can find more information on Thrall of Darkness novels and short stories at thrallofdarkness.com.
Other Thrall of Darkness Novels
The Tarragon Series, starting with Tarragon Academy: an m/m urban fantasy series. Two young men struggle to find their place in a world where ancient ritual and modern technology collide and dragons have been spotted in the shadows of the mountain behind the football field.
Demon Season: an m/m urban fantasy novel. Taylor just wanted to bond with an ordinary demon during his first demon season, but he ends up with the Prince of Demons: an incubus. But his dark past slows his initial bonding with his demon and dangers from the demon’s past threaten their safety in the present. Will their love succeed, or will the demon hunters and shadowed memories prevail?
Sagent: an m/m science fiction novel. Gabriel grew up in Destiny, the orbiting city protected from the microbes that destroyed life on Earth. He has lived as a slave to the microbes, but when a mission into the underbelly of human society goes awry, he finds himself given a chance for freedom he never thought possible. Will he take it?
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