“I was beginning to think you would never ask.” She smiled up at him. “Yes.”
“Welcome to my dwelling.” He took her hand as they entered.
Tau lived in a very spacious dwelling. It reminded her of Tarek and Jana’s space, as well as Zymar’s tent.
“Your dwelling is big for one person.”
“I need space. I have a hard time if I am confined to a certain area.”
Talia nodded her head. It made sense to her. Although he had never said he had been caged, it was there in everything he didn’t say. She could understand the need for space.
Tau had a large living space. He said that many times he would invite Tarek and Jana and others over, just to see it filled up. His kitchen was a work of art. He had two other rooms. One was a huge sleeping room and the other allowed him to exercise or meditate. He called it his all-purpose room and then there was the cleansing room. It too was bigger than expected. His house was beautiful. His furnishings were big and sturdy, but pleasing to the eye. He had picked up the browns of the ground and mixed the greens of the trees in with it. It had a very soothing effect.
“Your dwelling is beautiful.”
“I am glad you like it.”
Talia watched as he walked over to her, stopping just short of touching her. He raised his hand and caressed her check.
“Talia.”
“Wait. There is something I have to tell you.” She moved away from him and walked over to the living area to take a seat.
“I have to tell you this, before you say anything to me. I am not who you think I am. I was not born here. I was born on a totally different planet. My people call themselves souls. I lived there for a long time. We have no real concept of time, so it is hard to communicate to you how long, but it feels like forever. I don’t know how I ended up in this body, but I am thankful I did. I am glad I met you.”
Talia sat with her head down and her hands folded to keep from playing with them as her nerves got the better of her. She waited for the, is this a joke laughter to come, but heard nothing. He was still there. He hadn’t run away. She could see his legs and they had not moved. She sat silently waiting for something. Finally tired of waiting, she raised her head to find him looking at her with an expression of acceptance.
“I don’t care where you came from, Talia. I am just glad you came. Many Mians are not what they seem on the outside. You belong here, believe me on that one. I saw the scans.”
She felt her lips turn up into a smile. There was something about Tau that made her want to hold on to him.
“We still need to discuss your sleeping arrangements.”
“You promised me a big comfortable place to sleep and I am holding you to it.”
“Well, as you saw, I have a huge sleeping space, but I may have neglected to mention I happen to sleep there too.”
“Then I guess it had better be big enough for two.”
“I was hoping you would say that.”
Getting up, he led the way to his sleeping space. Talia took the shirt he handed her and excused herself to go use the bathroom, as he took off his shirt. She almost tripped over her feet when the big expanse of his back came into view. She ran out the room before she crossed it to touch him.
Talia started talking to herself. You have to be on your best behavior around him. He is just being polite by letting you stay with him. She grumbled at herself that she never asked him to be polite. Having changed into his shirt that hung low on her, she went back to the sleeping room.
He was so cute, laying on the far edge of the bed. She slid in the bed and laid on the opposite edge.
“Well this is nice,” he said, clinging to the side of the bed.
Talia found herself laughing. “I agree, but it might be nicer if we moved closer to the center of the bed.”
“That’s an excellent idea.” The laughter in his voice was contagious and she found herself laughing more as they both slid closer to each other.”
“Tau, there you are. I can see you now.” She spread her arm out and realized she could not touch him, not even accidentally. “Looks like there is more than enough room in here for two.
“I think we have a problem, Talia.”
She inclined her head to listen to what he had to say.
He frowned and made his eyes look sad. “I have a rule in here. It’s called the touching rule. I have to be able to touch you in case I get scared in the middle of the night.”
She fought the laughter that threatened to come, as she watched him trying to pull off a fearful look. “That is a perfectly legitimate rule to me.”
She scooched over some more, until she was closer. “Is this better?”
“Almost.” He moved over the last couple of inches and pulled her into his arms. “Now this is better.”
“It is.” She spoke into his shoulder as she raised her hand to stroke his chest.
“Tau?”
“Sleep, Talia. There’s no rush.”
***
Tau watched her as she slept. He had waited a long time to find the other half of his soul. There had been much speculation among the ones like him that they would not be granted a soul mate. Talia was proof they had been wrong. Now all they had to do was hang on. The war was becoming more violent as the Krier made plans to wipe them from the galaxy.
The weakness that plagued them from not being united with their other halves was becoming crippling. At least it was for him, but he would not force her to unite. It had to be done when she was ready and not before. He felt another tremor hit his body and he held her hand through it. She was his salvation, but she was also his destiny.
He watched as her breasts rose and fell with her breaths. She was so beautiful with her golden skin and her bronzed eyes. He touched her hair with his fingers, feeling the softness of it. He was humbled to know that in this reincarnation of himself, he was finally allowed to be with his soul mate.
He fell asleep holding her hand.
Chapter Eight
Talia woke up hot. She was more than hot, she was on fire. She had been with Tau for over a week and every morning she would wake up hotter than the last one. Every night she slept in his arms, only to hear him say ‘sleep Talia. There’s no rush.’ He was wrong. There was a rush. She hadn’t known what she was missing the first night he murmured those words to her, but she had firsthand knowledge now. The way he kissed her every morning made her body flush and her brain melt from the heat.
The first morning, it had just been a kiss. He had called it a chaste kiss, where his lips pressed against hers and she breathed in the smell of his body. It had made her achy. He had just smiled when she fidgeted, he seemed to like her reaction.
The next morning had been different. His lips had touched her again, but his tongue had found its way into her mouth. It was just enough to make her want more of a kiss, but he stopped. He got up murmuring slowly to himself, he had to go slow. Each morning went like that. It had been like the unwrapping of a flower one soft petal at a time. She was to the point where she wanted to rip that flower open.
Opening her eyes she wondered what he had in store for her this morning.
“Hi Lia.”
She smiled. Tau only called her Lia when the two of them were together. Just hearing that name on his lips made her body ache for more.
“Hi,” she murmured, reaching out to cup his jaw. She loved the shape of his face and the feeling of it in the morning, when small bits of hair made its way through his skin.
She watched as his eyes lit up before he turned his body more and leaned over her. Her tongue came out to lick her lips. She could tell by that wicked look in his eyes he was going to kiss her. Her breath caught in her throat when he lowered his head and touched her lips. She was on fire before his tongue slipped past her lips to stroke her own. She loved the sounds that came out of her throat when he touched her.
She moved her body closer, trying to invade his skin as he dueled with her tongue making her hotter.
<
br /> “Please,” she moaned, feeling so restless.
His hand went to her side, lifting up the shirt she was wearing as he pressed possessively against her hip. She slipped her hand around his back, touching his hard muscles, tracing them one by one. She needed him.
She felt a gasp leave her mouth, as he burned a trail up her side from her hip to her breast. Her tightly closed eyes opened wide with wonder as his hand touched her nipple. The heat of his palm against it brought a sharp gasp out of her mouth. The feel of his hand tugging on it caused her to cry out, as she thrust her hips upwards.
“Tau, Tau…”
“I want you, Lia.” His mouth covered hers again as his hand retreated from her breast.
Talia realized he was soothing her, bringing her back from that fast approaching brink. She was not happy.
“You’re playing with me,” she screamed at him, when he finally stopped kissing her. Her head was still cloudy from what he had done, but she wanted, no she needed, more and she needed it with him.
She wanted to touch him, but he said if she did he wouldn’t be able to stop and he had to stop. She had questioned him, why? His only response was he needed to make sure this was what she wanted. He couldn’t take choice away when she still didn’t know she had a choice.
She got out of the bed angry.
“Lia, wait.”
She stormed off to the cleansing room. He could feed her another line later. Maybe Zymar would come so she could go fight another battle. At least there she knew why the Kriers were trying to torture her.
Jana had been right she when she told Talia males had no idea what they wanted. “Talia.” She had said. “Males say, I want the other half of my soul. I want her today, but when they meet her they get scared.”
“Why do they get scared?” Talia had asked, both confused and frustrated.
“I think it is because suddenly everything they have ever wanted is being given to them. That would scare anyone.”
She nodded at Jana’s words. She was right, of course. Talia was scared too. She had lived forever as a soul and had never been given her one basic desire to be loved by someone who would love her forever. It was scary, but it was time for him to get over it. She had.
She left the bedroom now that she was dressed and headed for the kitchen. She knew that was where he would be. The first morning she walked into the kitchen looking lost. He asked her if she ever cooked and she shook her head no. He had made her a big breakfast, making her eyes go wide at the amount of food. He laughed and said big bodies need lots of fuel. Every day since, he cooked for her, never demanding she learn. He did demand she learn how to cook in the wild.
They had studied the berries and the flowers that were edible. Not just on this side of the planet, but on the entire planet, since her gift gave her the ability to go anywhere. Then he taught her to track small game, trap it, kill it — she still had problems with that — cook it and eat it. She was beginning to feel like the warrior he proclaimed her to be. Her body was still soft compared to his, but he kept telling her he liked her just the way she was.
“Sit down, Lia.”
She had been standing in the doorway watching him cook.
“Zymar’s coming today.”
“How do you know?” She wished Zymar would come as she showered, but that was just anger speaking. She didn’t want to leave Tau’s side, even if he did like teasing her.
“Tarek told me last night. Zymar contacted him earlier in the day to say he would be here. He wants to spend some time with you today, Lia.”
Talia nodded her head. “He said he would come, I told you, remember? He wants to go over plans for the next attack. It must be coming sooner than he thought, if he is coming today.”
Tau refused to meet her eyes and he turned his back to her. “That may be it, but maybe he just wants to spend time with you.”
“He can always spend time with us, Tau.”
“Just you, Lia. He wants one on one time with you and I have to sit back and allow it, because you have to have a choice.”
Tau turned around and sat her food in front of her. “I’m going to shower. Eat, Lia.”
He turned on his heel and left the kitchen. Talia sat in silence until she finally picked up the fork and ate. Why would Zymar want to spend alone time with her? She didn’t like the direction this was going. The more she thought of it, the angrier she felt. Was she some sort of prize to be fought over? Worse yet why wasn’t Tau fighting over her? Why was he being so accommodating?
The knock on the front door let her know she was out of thinking time. Getting up she cleaned up the mess. There was hardly anything there, Tau rarely left things dirty. Then she went into the living area.
Zymar was standing there talking to Tau. When she came in, his whole face lit up. It was only then that she realized she had missed seeing him.
“Talia, it is so nice to see you again.”
“I am glad to see you again, Zymar. I have missed you.”
She caught the dark look of pain in Tau’s eyes and controlled her need to smile. He deserved that.
“Talia, can we take a walk together and talk?”
She smiled up at him and nodded. She turned so she could catch the look on Tau’s face without looking at him directly. His beautiful eyes were no longer shining. They were a flat, dull color. They now reflected death. The earlier joy she got from pricking him left. When he hurt, she hurt and right now she felt like she was dying. Turning, she followed Zymar out the door.
They walked a long distance away from the dwelling before Zymar began to talk.
“How have you been, Talia?”
She gave a genuine smile as she looked at him. “I have been well. Tau has taken care of me.” She found herself laughing. “He treats me like I am one of the young at times. He acts like I might break.”
“Compared to him, compared to us, you are one of the young.”
“I cannot be so much younger than either one of you.”
He gave her a delightfully mysterious smile. “Tau and I, even Tarek, are very ancient souls. We were called back because our planet needed us. You are a relatively young soul compared to us, not in years, but in centuries. None of us knew you existed. Your existence has given the rest of us hope.”
“This planet is a combination of both young and old?”
He nodded his head. “To be more accurate, it’s a combination of both the young and the ancient. The ancient ones were the guardians of Mian. Some say they were the guardians of the known galaxy. All we are sure of is that they guarded this planet, their home planet. One day every ancient one disappeared at the same time. Speculation has abounded since that time, mixed with the lore that they were simply a tale to make the young sleep well at night.
No one knows what happened to them for sure. What’s worse is we, who have come from elsewhere know less than those born here. We all know one thing. We have to stop the Kriers from destroying the planet and killing the people.”
“And when we win?” Would she be allowed to keep the body she had grown to love? The body that responded so deliciously when Tau touched her.
“No one knows. It’s the chance we take. It’s the chance we have all deemed worth it.”
“Is this why you came to educate me?”
“No. I came to breathe your scent in one more time before it was no longer just your scent.”
Talia looked at him and for a minute she wanted to be what he needed. She understood, because the memory that spent so much time hiding from her was coming out of hiding in pieces.
She had been in her dwelling when the summons had come. It had been a cold flat voice speaking directly into her living space, even though there was no body attached to it. ‘Talia, you have been summoned.’ That had been it. No please. No explanation. Just a summons.
She had shivered in fear at first. She knew what this meant. Whenever a soul was summoned that soul was never heard from again. Oblivion was the word that was whispered around.
At first she had wanted to resist, to hold onto her non-life just a bit longer. Finally, she realized what she had was not a life.
She walked into the waiting light with her head held high.
Chapter Nine
“Why did you come here, Zymar?”
“I had to see you one more time. I had to assure myself of what I already knew.”
“That I am not the other half of your soul.”
“Yes.”
“Now what?”
“Now, in an act of total selfishness before I let you go, you spend the day with me. After that, you go back to Tau. What you do after that is up to you, but I will give you this one word of warning. This war is real and death waits for no one. Grab onto whatever joy you can while you can.”
Talia nodded her head. He was right of course. “Lead on.”
“There is this place I don’t think even Tau has found. Allow me to mesmerize you.”
Talia took his out-stretched hand and followed him as he left Azure behind and headed deep into the woods. They came to a small clearing; a waterfall cascaded down into a small pond. The beauty of it overwhelmed her.
“How long have you been alone?”
“I can’t measure that in years. I think we would have to talk lifetimes and still I can’t measure it. I simply am alone. I have lived with the knowledge that it was my destiny in life to be this way. Then Jana showed up. Everyone knew Jana was for Tarek. It was like she wore a sign. We rejoiced for him long before the village celebration.”
Talia felt the same need he had for another to call his own, deep in her heart. She had felt that same desire forever, also. She would never forget walking into the white room after she had been summoned. The complete whiteness of it had robbed her of her senses, of her ability to think and then she had been slammed into a chair.
“Talia, you have been tried and found to have been a disruptive influence for this society.”
“Why, because I want more? Because I question things? Every citizen that care about their world should want more.” Those were a few of the things she wished she could have shouted out, but they had rendered her incapable of speech. She had caught the one whispered word before they slammed her into the first body, warrior.
Tau's Miracle: Alien Destination: Scifi FantasyRomance Page 5