Interra (Awakened Series Book 5)

by Harley Austin

  Elle had found Serena’s lips again; the two of them making out aggressively on the couch. Elle’s body was all over the top of Serena’s, as both rocked their hips and pubic patches through each other’s while still feeling the deep sensations of other couple a building away. To Serena if felt as if Elle were entering her with a thick full cock. It didn’t take Elle long to push Serena over the edge again, making the goddess come hard.

  Both now lay together exhausted. Kellie lifted her fine body from the hunky Navy Seal who could now barely move. Her body had never felt so sexually aroused in her life! If she’d had any reservations about Preston’s offer of giving her a ‘backrub’ in her room on a first date, they’d been overshadowed by his talents between her legs.

  Serena lifted herself from Elle’s fine lips. Both withdrew their feelings from the couple a building away and mingled them only with each other now. Both still trying to catch their breaths.

  “That was—” Elle breathed heavily, “a little unexpected.” She lifted her knee, smoothing her skin over Serena’s, while wrapped in Serena’s embrace.

  “You’re really beautiful, Elle.” Serena breathed, still a little out of breath. “Sorry, I messed up your hair.”

  “You’re funny, Serena.”

  “How?” she smiled.

  “I just made love to another woman and you’re all worried about my hair.”

  “I think we’re attracted.”

  “OH, you think?” Elle drew a badly needed breath. “Rion’s going to fucking kill me.”

  “No he’s not.”

  Elle pulled Serena’s lips into hers again. “You’re really intense, Serena.”

  “Me?!” Serena grabbed hold of Elle’s ass while diving deeply into her feelings, causing her body to ripple in ecstasy.

  “AHAHHH!” Elle’s body rocked. “God. Neither of us is going to get any sleep tonight.” Elle mumbled, kissing down Serena’s cheek to an oh-so-sensitive spot under her right ear.

  “What side of the bed do you want?” Serena whispered.

  “Why do you ask?”

  “Because—mmmm—I think—we’re going to be sharing—ahhhh—the same side for a while.”

  Elle nodded, her tongue pulling away from the inside of Serena’s mouth for a moment. “I’ll be on whichever side of the bed you’re on. Believe me.”

  40

  S erena stretched warmly, softly under the sheets. She could feel Elle resting quietly, still wrapped around herself on her side of the king bed. Then suddenly she looked up, aware of others in the room. Her vision focused quickly as she saw four very handsome young men dressed in fine-fitting dark military fatigues.

  “Go away, Jerrod. It’s only noon.” Serena heard Elle mumble against the skin of Serena’s neck.

  Serena looked at the digital clock flip to 12:01.

  “I realize it’s a bit early for you two, but we need to find Rion. The government is already gathering around Interra.”

  “So?” She flexed her sleepy body next to Serena’s. Lifting her arms above her head she nearly exposed the two of them before Serena caught the sheet and kept it covering. “They can’t get in.” Elle yawned.

  “We don’t know that.” A serious look came over Jerrod’s face.

  “Pardon our barging in on you like this, Serena,” another of the men in black fatigues apologized. The thinnest of all of them, his accent seemed almost French.

  “Jesus, Aramis,” another of the bigger of the young men frowned. “Not even in the room for sixty seconds and already you’re hitting on her?”

  “You’re a little late to the game, Parisian. The Montpellier girl found her first.” Elle’s French was elegant. They were the only two of the Invicti who spoke it.

  Aramis shrugged, an un-conciliatory smile crossing his lips; his eyes never leaving Serena with their sheet still pulled up high to keep both she and Elle covered.

  “They’re doing it again.” Ian complained to Beau. The two always spoke French whenever there was innuendo.

  “Elle, seriously,” Jerrod began. “Carson wants to speak with us as soon as we’re available.”

  She sighed. “Alright.”

  Serena watched Elle slip from her embrace and then from the sheets to stand in front of all of them stretching. The eyes of every guy in the room were on her. Except for Aramis, who was still smiling at Serena.

  “Out, all of you,” Elle ordered. “Serena’s a guest.”

  The girls watched as the last of the guys filed out the bedroom, closing the door behind them.

  “Elle!” Serena all but gasped sitting up and pulling the sheet closer against her. “I can’t believe you just did that! In front of all those men!”

  “The guys are just like us, Serena.” Elle found some standard-issue clothes in the built-in armoire. She slipped on a fresh pair of the black ribbed panties and a matching tank top. “You can drop the sheet, they can see right through it.”

  “They can?” Serena was suddenly mortified.

  Elle nodded. “You could too if you tried.”

  “You mean, they’re all sun gods?”

  “They are.”

  “All of them?”

  “Yep,” Elle nodded. She found some of the black fatigues and tossed some of the clothes onto the bed for Serena as she slipped out of bed.

  “Do you always parade around like that in front of them?”

  “We all know each other really well, Serena. It’s not a big deal for us. We’re a lot like the Kir.”

  “I keep hearing that name.”

  “I’m sure you’ll be hearing a lot more of it.”

  “I take it these Kir people don’t wear clothes?” Serena picked up the pink panties Elle had tossed.

  “Seldom.”

  “Is Rion a nudist?”

  “The Kir aren’t nudists, Serena. You’re still stuck in your Human culture. Are the animals nudists?”

  “No.”

  “Same thing.”

  “I think I prefer to keep my clothes on.”

  “It’s up to you. When in Rome—or Jericho—or Ki.”

  Serena nodded, pulling on fresh pink panties and then black fatigue pants that slipped around her ass like a finely fitted comfortable glove.

  “Are these,” Serena looked at herself in the mirror. “What everyone wears? I feel like I’m modeling something.”

  “Probably Sevrin’s doing. Everyone’s clothes are tailored here. One of Jericho’s numerous annoyances.”

  “I don’t think it’s annoying.” Still topless, Serena looked at how well the pants fit, using the bedroom mirror.

  Elle smirked. “I bet neither does Rion.”

  * * * * *

  The six sun gods entered the large conference room already filled with people Serena didn’t know, but it felt like all of them somehow knew who she was. The only people she recognized were Jake, who was sitting next to Admiral Dark, and Francesca on the opposite side of the table, and Carson whom she had only briefly met. He didn’t look old enough to be sitting at the head of the table, but apparently the kid was large and in-charge somehow.

  The chairs were already filled with other people while some were standing around the room listening as all of them entered. It felt like Jake was about to get up and offer her his seat, but Dark’s hand was on Jake’s arm, keeping him firmly seated. All of the Invicti stood by each other on one side of the room. None of the others stood next to them. They were also the only ones dressed in black fatigues. Serena had no idea what protocols were playing out, but clearly, she had not been told anything.

  “… that will work well, Eric. Thank you.” Carson complimented an Asian-looking halfblood seated at the table. “Shifting gears here, people,” Carson announced to the others now. “The rest of our team has arrived. Welcome—all of you. For the sake of brevity, I’ll dispense with the formalities for now. Serena, I realize you are the only one of us who is not up to speed on recent events. Your team will have to fill you in while in-transit.”

  Sh
e nodded, having absolutely no idea what all of these people were planning for her to do.

  “With Rion still MIA and the knowledge of the gods out of commission, we’ll need return to Interra if we want to have any hope of restoring the knowledge of the Sentinels.”

  “All roads lead to Interra—” Serena heard Jerrod quip.

  “It’s always been that way.” Kent stood up holding a small remote. A large screen lit as it descended from a long slit in the room’s tall ceiling. Serena recognized him! Oh, my god. It was the same guy who’d been shot on TV during the Healthcare hearings. He was one of the gods!?

  “Twelve thousand years ago our ancestors made the decision to abandon the cities of the gods. With our populations dwindling to next to nothing, it was becoming impractical to keep them defended. To keep them and our knowledge from falling into the hands of the Seven—we destroyed them. Acturus, Benanthim, Silven, even Ki. All of them were reduced to nothing, erased from existence, all of them but one—our capital, Interra.”

  Serena watched as the image on the screen now showed a spinning Earth that began to zoom in on the globe until it slowed and focused on the Northwest region of the U.S. The image then zoomed down to a mountain-covered peninsula below what Serena recognized as Vancouver Island in Canada.

  “Since the beginning of our own recorded history, Interra has been the jewel of the Ra—a place of knowledge and culture and understanding.”

  “The Tomb of the Ancients?” Keith asked.

  “The tomb is a myth,” Brenda offered. “Interra is not a myth. And it’s hardly a tomb.”

  “Brenda’s right,” Kent continued. “We’ve always known exactly where Interra has been.”

  “Including the Seven?” Julia asked.

  Kent nodded. “The defenses of Interra are not just formidable—but impregnable. The city is utterly invincible. In it’s day, during the war, not even the Kir could penetrate her defensive capabilities. Interra was the reason the Kir even respected the Sentinels.”

  “The Kir have a nothing but respect for the Sentinels, and the Dominion as well,” Kirin quickly assured the assembled company. The Kir name got Serena’s attention. The hunky, thin-waisted handsome guy stood tall and beautiful, with longer well-cut dark hair. Dressed in sung denim and a button down exposing a low-cut tank beneath it, Serena found herself staring almost star-struck without realizing.

  “All of us appreciate the Kir’s willingness to work with us, Kirin, Gage,” Carson acknowledged. “More than you know.”

  “Our pleasure, Carson.” Gage assured.

  Serena could sense Gage. About Kirin’s height, but not quite as built, he felt a lot like Elle, empathic. But Kirin didn’t feel nearly a bright as Gage. Still, Kirin’s feelings met hers as both of them exchanged glances. She could sense him lighting softly over her feelings, not in an invasive way—was he, subtly flirting with her? His feelings felt kind, playful, sincere. She was intrigued by his demeanor. She’d need to meet him later at some point.

  Still feeling Kirin, Serena continued to watch as the screen zoomed to the central snow-covered mountain rage of the peninsula.

  “For tens of thousands of years, these mountains were the foundations of Interra.”

  “The Olympics? You’re not serious.” Kari, was suddenly grinning. The incredible blonde goddess drew chuckles that rippled through the room.

  “I know what you’re thinking,” Kent nodded, “apparently someone not so long ago thought it would be cute to name the place Olympus. Unfortunately, like so many other stupid names around here, it stuck.”

  “Yea, like the Goddess of War,” Kari frowned at her husband.

  Dark smirked.

  “Or worse,” Kent grumbled.

  “At least I’m not stuck with the Goddess of Love—” Kari quipped, causing everyone now to look directly at Elle.

  “And whoever started that, I will find you and I will kill you.” Elle threatened.

  Serena’s eyebrow lifted.

  Jerrod was slowly moving away from where Elle was standing, a smirk crossing his lips.

  “You people need to be more careful with the labels around here,” Kent warned, looking unhappily at Jerrod.

  “Why? Because you don’t want to become known as the Geek God? Too late,” Jerrod quipped.

  Kent rolled his eyes.

  “Alright, people, let’s stay focused.” Carson interrupted their banter. “Kent, where is the city, if these mountains are its foundations?”

  “The Cascades and the peninsula mountains located here have provided some unique tectonic defenses for Interra.”

  “Tectonic? They buried it?” Carson asked.

  Kent nodded. “Beneath fifteen miles of solid rock.”

  “That’s incredibly deep, Kent. How do we get our people down there?” Eric asked.

  “The plate has ports, ancient volcanic tunnels, and probably some man-made ones by now as well, I’m sure.”

  “Now?” Carson asked.

  “The Seven have been actively excavating in and around the peninsula for millennia, Carson. The whole area has been all but quarantined as a nature preserve to hide their activities. There’s no telling what they’ve built or dug over the past few centuries. I assume it’s one helluva military installation by now.”

  “That sounds familiar,” Gage scoffed.

  “It does, Gage, but trust me, their recently acquired ionic drills won’t have any affect on Interra’s Reflex defenses.”

  “If you say so.”

  “Kent, if this place is this formidable, how are we supposed to get inside?” Kari asked.

  “Easy. We have a key.”

  “Do tell, Kent.” Brenda smiled.

  Kent frowned at her. He wasn’t even sure why she was being allowed to sit in on such a high-level briefing. Others had confidence in her. He didn’t. “I’m not sure you should even be authorized to be here, Brenda.”

  “Come, come, now, Kent. I wasn’t born yesterday. Your secrets are safe with me. The truth is some of us already know who your little key is at this point. Don’t we—” Brenda was now smiling at Serena.

  All eyes were turning to look at Serena now.

  Serena was suddenly, nervously, looking around the room. “Huh?” fell out of her mouth.

  “Don’t feel bad, Serena. They never tell me anything either.” Brenda leaned back into her chair, exchanging glances with an only semi-surprised Kent.

  “Unfortunately, Serena,” Carson began, “you’ve been awakened into the middle of a very hot conflict between the Seven and the Dominion, and what remains of the Sentinels.”

  “How am I a key?” Serena managed.

  “That’s what you get for sleeping with Rion.” Brenda was only a little surprised by how catty her comment sounded coming out. She smiled woodenly. The newblood Invicti goddess was beautiful. No wonder Rion was all over her.

  “Serena,” Carson continued, “I’m sure you have already been apprised of your newly acquired nobility within the family of the Ra.”

  She nodded.

  “Those same genetics are also the keys to the knowledge of the Ra. When Rion awakened you, his genetics became part of you. Our hope is that enough of Rion’s DNA will be detectable by Interra’s defenses to allow you access to the city.”

  “ME?!”

  “That’s what this meeting is about.” Carson informed her. “Getting you, and possibly others, into Interra.”

  Serena’s new mind worked quickly. “You just said this place is impenetrable, with God only knows with what kind of defenses. What if it doesn’t recognize me as Rion?”

  “Then you don’t get in.” Carson responded flatly.

  “She has a point, Carson,” Gage interrupted. “Leavenworth’s defenses are also keyed to our family genetics. Probably very similar to Interra’s. If she’s recognized, it’s all going to be good. If not—it could get dangerous. Even deadly.”

  Carson’s eyebrow lifted to Kent who was already nodding.

  “Gage is r
ight, Carson,” Kent agreed. “And genetics may not be the only key Rion has or knows about. There are a lot of if’s here.”

  “And just getting to Interra itself is going to be no picnic,” Dark warned. “The Seven are already swarming the region with foot and aerial patrols. Every major superpower Humanity has is parked just offshore or watching Puget Sound. As blind as we are at the moment, there’s no telling how many troops they’ve moved into the area.”

  “Agreed,” Carson continued. “Which is why we are going to need to tap some resources that we’ve not used in quite some time.”

  “Bad. Idea. Carson.” Dark scowled.

  “I don’t see that we have much of a choice at this point, Dark. You have a better option? I’m all ears.”

  “What are all of you talking about?” Kari could feel Mitch’s sudden trepidation, even animosity.

  “We need an insider,” Carson began. “Someone who can get us past their defenses.”

  “What kind of insider?” She was suddenly having a bad feeling about where this was going. But she didn’t have to wait for Carson to answer. All of them were suddenly aware of another person. Someone who’d just teleported into the unshielded room.

  Amethyst was dressed in black well-fitting fatigues, her blonde hair blowing softly in a slight wind that wasn’t there. Her incredible lavender eyes lit with soft psionic fire.

  “Hi kids. Miss me?”

  41

  A methyst’s sudden presence in the conference room lit psionic defenses like a Christmas tree all over the chamber. Except for the sun gods, who didn’t seem to care. Kari, warrior that she was, jumped out of her chair, a lethal mental charge building almost instantly and ready to be unleashed if the psychic bitch tried anything more than just breath.

  Julia was out of her chair next. “Carson! What the hell? You cannot be serious!” her eyes lit with bright fire.

  Carson calmly ignored both of them. “Silas, if you would be so kind as to offer our guest a seat at the table?”