by LK Kelley
Gem placed her hand on the lock, and the hook just popped open. She turned to Lola.
“Well, I didn't exactly unlock it, right, Lola?” Then, with a sneaky expression, “Want to see what's inside as much as I do?”
Lola's silence and cocked head indicated she agreed, so Gem removed the lock, and opened the door, which groaned with a loud squeak. She and Lola entered the dark building. She jumped when the door slammed shut behind her. She also heard a click, and turned to open the door again. Only it was locked.
“Hmmm. OK. If we can't get back out, there is only one way to go. Forward!”
A few steps into the building was all she could take before darkness enveloped her. It was so black in the little shed, she stopped dead still.
“Now, what, Lola? I don't have a flashlight....”
She snapped her fingers when she remembered.
“Wait a sec!” and, digging into her pocket, she fumbled around until she found what she wanted. She pulled it out. It was her small, quarter-inch flashlight with a high beam. She had almost forgotten she had put it in her pocket for an emergency that she used to find the book in the CCR! It was a security blanket for her in case she needed to unlock her door to her house in the dark.
She turned it on, and it flooded the little shed with light. Gem pointed it, and made a circle. She heard a rustle ahead of her.
“Lola? Lola, what did you find?” Gem demanded.
“Woof!” Lola said to her, and her light showed Lola taking off at a run with Gem on her flank.
“LOLA! Come back here!” she shouted. Somewhere in the back of her head, she registered the fact that this place was much larger on the inside than the outside, and she had a Dr. Who moment, remembering the Tardis. It had the same oddity about it. Now, what was that called? Gem forgot what the scientific name for being larger in the inside than the outside. Still, though, she continued to chase Lola, having no idea where they were going!
Suddenly, Lola came to a complete halt! Thanks to Lola’s Fae eyes, she could see everything before her! Never in her entire, long life as a Fae had she ever seen anything like the scene before her eyes! She heard Gem panting from the exertion as she brought up the rear – and almost tripped over Lola!
“Lola! What the hell were you thinking? You scared me to death! Don’t you ever do anyth…!” Gem started to admonish Lola for running away from her, when she glanced out of the corner of her eye, and realized that they were both standing on a ledge. She grabbed Lola, and backed up against the wall feeling her heart beating so hard, it was about to pound out of her chest! OK. She was afraid of heights! But, Holy Moly! Below her? Blackness! She sank down onto her butt immediately, and Lola climbed into her lap to lick Gem’s face. Moments later, an audible “click” was heard, and one by one, lights clicked on to light up the tunnel behind them, and then, the space below them. When enough had lit the room in front of her, she slowly stood with her mouth dropped.
“Lola?” she asked. Realizing her little dog was not much of a talker, Gem set her down. It wasn't a ledge she was on, but it was the top of stone stairs that led down into the most amazing room she had ever seen – a room in a cave! A huge cave – maybe about the size of a football field, and at least as high, was in front of her!
This “room”, for lack of a better description, had three sets of staircases: one on the left that led upward to a clear landing that led down to a lower landing, before they wrapped around the left side of the cave, while the right set of stairs led down to another clear landing wrapping around the right side of the cave. The left side had three doors, while the right had only two.
The stairs in front of her wound in a very wide twist as they descended into the “great cave room”. She heard little nails on the stone, and realized that Lola had already started down the steps. Gem ran after her.
“Lola! Stop! Wait!” she yelled, which was really dumb. As if Lola would stop!
Gem never liked to go into the unknown, but Lola was always eager to explore new places. Gem just wasn't the kind to leap before she looked. But, she was beginning to rethink that position, now. She followed Lola down the stairs, until she reached the main level. Lola had beat her, of course.
When Gem's mouth had successfully closed after looking around in awe, she looked to the left. To the far end of the room, a giant fireplace – large enough for her to stand upright inside – stood encircled by a cacao colored, leather sectional sofa flanked by two tan, leather recliners. A large, flat top rock in the center served as a coffee table, and set on a rock pedestal. Not a bad idea, either. No coasters needed. Caves always had a tendency to have a lot of moisture, so the stone was a good call. Two tiled and metal (must be aluminum) end tables were placed strategically with one between both recliners, and one at one end of the sectional. Lights were provided by Tiffany lamps that sat on both tables.
A huge, 70” flat screen TV had been installed over the fireplace. Gem wondered where the hell he'd gotten it, and wouldn't it be hurt by the humidity of the cave? That's when she realized that there was no humidity! She wondered how that was possible. Her eyes continued to cross the room, and she saw a huge mahogany, divider had been placed to divide the “media room” from the next part of the cave.
After she had walked around for a few minutes, and years later she wondered how she had missed it the first time, there was a waterfall. OK. That was a mild term for it. It was in the center of the cave, and fell from...Gem's eyes darted upward until she was craning her neck backward to see the source. Her mouth opened in shock. The water was flowing from a relatively small hole in the rock roof that was at least one-hunded and fifty feet high! It cascaded down a succession of rocks that fit together to keep the water flowing downward,which kept it from splashing onto the floor. It emptied into a large, twenty-foot, semi-round hole in the cave floor! For the life of her, she couldn't figure out how it was circulating! The pump would have to be massive! What was even more amazing was that it made very little noise! And, the noise it did make was very soothing.
Shaking her head she looked to the right where a massive kitchen stood in gleaming stainless steel, glass, and stone. She looked for the bright light that illuminated it, but could find none! It was outfitted with everything known to mankind – or womankind – who loved to cook. Since she did like to cook, she was drawn to it. Gem walked to the kitchen, and just stood. A twelve-foot bar of stone and black granite stood in front of her, which looked for all the world as if it had been hand carved! And, the black granite top sported a large, stainless steel sink that was set deeply into it. The granite overlapped the rock, forming a breakfast bar complete with no less than six stools covered in black vinyl with black frames. Or was the fabric actually leather? Everything else was top of the line, and the most expensive of everything. Yep. Leather it was!
Gem also saw several kinds of appliances on top of it. She raked her fingers along the smooth, cool granite as she walked around the bar to the kitchen. The back side of the bar had two dish washers that had been inserted into the rock?
“How the hell?” she wondered, then turned.
The kitchen was in a “U” shape with two of the largest side-by-side refrigerators she had ever seen in her life! To the right of those was a triple sink and then two, large wall ovens – again, set into the rock wall! To the right was a gigantic oven complete with large grill, and eight burners. The glass, black, and stainless steel cabinets completed the kitchen. That's when she realized that there was a large, hanging wine cabinet over the bar with stemmed glasses for all types of different drinks.
Gem stepped onto one of the bar stool’s foot rest, and plopped down on it. She put her head in her hands as she continued to look at her surroundings. How was this possible? She looked up to the landings, and presumed that was where the bedrooms were. Maybe an office? Jaxx’s bedroom?
“OK. Don’t go there unless he’s with you, Gem!” she said aloud.
The waterfall was very relaxing to hear, because it appeare
d that Lola had curled up next to it, and was snoring happily as she slept. A small smile escaped Gem's lips. It would seem Lola had made herself at home in this monstrous cave. Gem stood up, and walked to the media room. She watched some TV for a while, and then, decided to take a nap. She lay down on the sofa, and in seconds, Lola had jumped up onto her legs, so she could wiggle between them and the sofa back. There were several throws, and Gem covered the both of them up with one of them. Listening to the soothing sound of the waterfall, Gem fell sound asleep, and for the first time in her life, she had not one dream.
Jaxx was frantic. Gem had disappeared! The five of them searched the house from top to bottom, and finally they searched the grounds. It took them hours, and finally, they entered the clearing with the shed. One look was all it took to see that the door had been breached. He had an epiphany!
“Wait here,” he told the others. “If I'm not back in an hour, I will have found Gem, and well....”
“You're going to mate her, right?” Taylor asked with a smirk on her face.
“Yes, I am. I can't let her go around without my protection any longer.”
“OK. Go get your mate, buddy!” Stan slapped Jaxx on the back grinning like the Cheshire Cat in Alice and Wonderland.
When he walked into the shed, the rest of them laughed, turned around, and slowly strolled back to the house. There was no reason for them to wait for Jaxx, let alone Gem. They’d be gone for a while...quite a while!
Jaxx walked into the one place on Earth that was his, and his alone. No other could cross the threshold, and if they did, they would die – even his own kind. But, there was one person who could cross it. His true mate. Only she could enter his warded thresholds, and survive. It would be as if it were he that crossed it.
Entering, he searched quickly for Gem. He didn't see her immediately, but he did hear a little snore. Following it, he found Gem sound asleep on the sofa, and Lola was snuggled up against her, snoring her little pug snore. He was unsure how Lola could have entered, but he assumed it was because of the close ties the two of them had...or maybe dogs were immune to wards. That was a frightening thought, and for a moment that worried him, until he realized that it was just fine, and OK, since she was so protective of Gem. Hmmm. Perhaps they did have the ability to bypass wards.
Noticing that Gem shook a little, he assumed she might be cold, so he built a fire in the gigantic fireplace, then sat on the stone table, and stared at Gem in her sleep. She was a true beauty. Her face was scrubbed clean, and she was innocent in her sleep. Jaxx's mouth quirked his mouth at how her face would look in sleep having been made love to numerous times! And, now, he was ready to find out!
He stood, and kneeled by the sofa. Like Prince Charming kissing Sleeping Beauty, he leaned over and pressed his lips to hers. In a few moments, he felt her lips move against his, and he deepened the kiss.
Gem's eyes flew open when she felt lips on hers, and stared straight into Jaxx's eyes. His lips left hers, but stayed close, so he could slam his mouth into hers again. Her eyebrows went up, and then, a groan that came from deep inside her escaped, and she threw her arms around his neck pulling him to her. Their kiss was not slow or gentle. It was fast, and filled with desire! Just what Gem wanted.
Neither knew how long they lay locked with their lips against each other, but finally, Jaxx raised his head, when he heard a huffing sound. The two of them looked over at Lola whose head was peeking up from between her nice, cuddly place next to Gem, and was glaring at them with a “get a room already” look.
“In other words, Lola is claiming the sofa, and she's telling us to 'get lost',” Gem laughed as Jaxx pulled her to her feet.
“Let me show you my place,” he whispered into her ear.
Gem's stomach plummeted to her feet! Just his words could cause her to orgasm! The wetness that suddenly appeared and drenched her panties was testimony to it! Gem turned to give Lola a kiss on her little head, leaving a very happy, and contented Lola snuggling down into the sofa in front of the roaring fire that Jaxx had built. Gem let him lead her to an arch that was just off the kitchen, and down a long corridor. She heard it, before she saw it. Waves upon crashing waves were just ahead. Quietly, they exited another arch, and into....
“Oh. My. God!” Gem breathed quietly as she beheld water. Lots of water. Not just water, but an entire ocean? Her mouth hung open for so long, her mouth became terribly dry.
Gently, Jaxx reached over, and shut her mouth with his hand, and she licked her lips trying to put moisture back into them.
“What do you think?” he asked.
All Gem could do was shake her head.
“Don't you like it?”
Gem nodded her head.
“How?” she whispered. “ I had no idea that this kind of thing could be underground!”
“Actually, my love, it’s only one of such caches all over the Earth,” he told the stunned Gem.
“But, how?” she repeated.
The moment had come that he had been dreading. He had to come clean, and tell her who he really was. Would she shrink from him when he did?
“It’s a really long story, Gem,” he told her.
“Well, I’m not going anywhere, so give it up, Jaxx!” she demanded.
Well...when your mate demanded something, you gave it!
She stamped her foot!
“Who are you, Jaxx?” she asked, then whispered, “What are you? I’m not going to ask, again, so if you don’t tell me what’s going on that includes my life, them I’m gone!”
Jaxx took her hand, and led her to the pure white sand closer to the ocean. He waved a hand, and a large blanket appeared, a bottle of wine, and some cheese and fruit. He looked at her surprised eyes, grinned and sat down, motioning Gem to do the same. She carefully sat down, keeping eye contact with him at all times. And, it was then, she knew her life was about to change.
“Gem, I’m not from here.”
“No kidding! So, where are you from?” she almost snarled. “What are you? A magician?
“No, of course not!” he began, putting up his hand to stop her from asking the obvious questions. “Please, let me finish.”
Gem squinted at him in annoyance, but didn’t say a word.
“I am very old, Gem. I am older than this planet. Older than the Universe. And, even before this Universe ever existed.”
Gem opened her mouth in disbelief, then tried to speak, but she couldn’t.
“Long ago, our Creator designed angels. As eons continued, He decided to put a group of beings above us. He was lonely, and wanted beings of his own kind.”
“You mean humans?” Gem finally was able to grind the question from her lips. “You’re a-a-an angel? Holy shit! I-I mean, Wow!”
He laughed.
“Yes. Unfortunately, I was fooled by one particular angel, as were others, and we joined him in rebelling against the Creator. He cast us from the great expanse, which is what we called it, onto a moon in the newly formed Universe called Anaerra. Within a few thousand years, we were split up onto two moons. Our kind, my kind, survive by drinking blood.”
Gem interrupted. “Y-you mean like a-a v-vampire?” she squealed.
“Well, truthfully, the legends about vampires are true, only what many don’t realize is that we are angels – fallen, to be sure – but, still angels.”
“Holy crap!” she exclaimed then asked herself, “Seriously Gem? That’s all you can come up with?”
“Yes, well, my moon was called Onaerra. Where Anaerra was the most beautiful place in the Universe, Onaerris was the opposite. It was volcanic in nature.” He watched her mouth drop. He watched Gem lean back, and waved his hand for pillows, then continued. “For eons, we provided the Anaerris with precious jewels to build their massive spires! In return, they provided blood for my kind to live,” he paused. “You OK so far?”
“Huh?” Was he kidding? The man she loved was an angel vampire, and he asked if she was OK? “Not really, but continue.”
&n
bsp; “So, many, many hundreds of thousands of years later, the Anaerris, for some reason, stopped providing us with blood, causing a great deal of pain and suffering for my people. Unfortunately, our leader was so corrupted by the lack of blood, he decided that we would invade, and conquer, Anaerra. By the time we did get there, everything was dead...and the moon was completely unliveable. This made our ruler even more angry. There was a great battle to the death. We have special weapons that are the only things that can kill us, and we used them. Blood from both sides filled the moon generously. After a while, my brother, Jolinaer, turned his back on his own people. And, he took a mate. An FYI...angels could not procreate with each other. There were never children. Anyway, the short of it was that several of us on both sides decided to stop the bloodshed. A crystal was given to me, which held the great peach ocean of Anaerra, and...”
“Rewind, and back up, Jaxx! An ocean was put into some crystal? That must be some crystal!”
“You bet. It’s about the size of your beautiful hand!” Jaxx took her hand and kissed it, making Gem shudder.
“Now wait a minute! You are saying that an entire ocean was placed inside a crystal that fit in you hand? Come on, Jaxx!”
“It’s true, my love. Now, let me continue!” He grinned when she stuck out her tongue in a juvenile move, but with a smirk. “My brother and his mate, who was Anaerris, entrusted me with that crystal, and I came to Earth, at their request, along with several other friends...Taryln and Stanarak, to name two of them. Jumping forward, the lot of us set ourselves up as gods to the humans. Stanarak, and I guess you have already realized that it is Stan, became my second in command on Atlantis, where we settled, then….”
“Atlantis??” squeaked Gem.
“Yes. It was real, “he told her, answering her next question. “Anyway, one of our own found a human female, Cleito, and married her. She actually had five sets of twin children! We were all shocked that we were compatible with humans, and that for the first time, we could procreate! Many of us went a little nuts, and had tons of kids, then…,” seeing her eye narrow in anger, “and, no, Gem. I never had another woman, so get that idea out of your head right now! Now, as time went on, I replaced Azor, who held the title of the original Poseidon, and took over the persona. I ruled the Earth’s oceans. I put the crystal in a statue, made in my honor by my subjects, then an earthquake hit Atlantis, the first of many. The statue toppled with subsequent quakes, and the crystal cracked, pouring the entire peach sea into the Atlantic, causing the immediate rise of the oceans, and inundating Atlantis. In the process, the pressure on the Earth’s crust increased due to the peach ocean, and massive earthquakes resulted, followed by massive rain for about forty days. When the fountains of the deep opened up, and released the interior oceans and lakes, the gaps left inside the Earth, later also served as a 'drain'. Many caverns either collapsed, remained intact, or new ones were formed. This one you see before you is one of those that remained intact, and this is just one such ocean. Unfortunately, afterward, the drains were not as large or numerous, so, the oceans of Earth rose many feet even after draining into the fissures and caves,” he told her. “By the end of this, and after what water did drain away, the entire topography had changed. Ages went on, gods fell by the wayside, and we just began to blend into the human population. Some of the past ice ages were actually due to this mixing of the oceans. This fountain is a filter that I perfected after thousands of years.”