Warden (Elemental Paladins Book 1)

by Montana Ash

  “As entertaining as this is, we really should be getting inside.” Cali said.

  That brought Max quickly back to the matter at hand, the fact that she had indeed been ‘pussing’ out. “Are you all sure this is the best thing to do?” She asked, seeking reassurance.

  “Of course Max. Why wouldn’t it be? Why are you so worried?” Lark asked, looking concerned.

  Max bit her lip and glanced around at the concerned faces surrounding her. Without meeting any eyes, she voiced her biggest fear, “What if they don’t like me?”

  Lots of shuffling feet and throat clearing met her question and Max rolled her eyes at herself. She sounded like a doofus! Shaking off her reservations and pretending like the past ten minutes never happened, Max moved forward and grabbed the door handle, “Just forget it. Let’s get this done.” And so saying, stepped inside.

  ****

  To Max, the inside looked much like a mess hall she had seen at an army barracks with dozens of tables and chairs on one side of the room next to a serving station stacked with plates, glasses and cutlery. The other side was open plan with lounges, coffee tables, wall-mounted big screen televisions and pool tables. Various doorways looked to lead to offices or outside to the outer buildings. There were more than a dozen people milling around, with the amount of men outnumbering the women four to one. Her entrance garnered a few stares and halted conversations but beyond that not much interest. Max let out a relieved breath, no one was staring at her. The whole room seemed to take a collective breath however the moment Ryker and his crew stepped in. People didn’t stop moving exactly but they all seemed to pause for a second or two before continuing on with their conversations or tasks. She noticed subtle nods of acknowledgment from some of the strangers and clear snubbing from others. Max found the whole dynamic very interesting. Maybe her paladins were bad arses! Not that they were her anything, Max amended, but if she was going into the lion’s den then maybe it was a good thing she had these particular soldiers at her back.

  “Well, welcome to the Lodge.” Lark smiled, “As you can see, this is the main hall where everyone comes to eat and relax. There are main offices to the right where the wardens and paladins conduct business. The big room off to the centre there is the council meeting chambers. That’s where the Council gather to discuss matters of importance, make rulings, that kind of thing. And the back door there leads to the half dozen or so recruit barracks and training facilities. It’s quite a large set up.” Lark pointed appropriately as he explained.

  Max nodded and asked, “So you guys have an office here for when you train the newbies?”

  Axel replied, “Yep. Last door over there on the right. But that’s more Ryker’s gig than any of us. He’s in charge of the admin shit, we just get to knock heads together.” Axel seemed inordinately pleased with that last fact.

  “And how many young paladins live here that you train?”

  “Anywhere from a dozen to thirty at a time. At the moment there are eighteen, which is fairly standard. This place is actually the largest facility in Australia. There’s another one in Tasmania that houses about half that. The greenies come from all over the world and are only here on a rotational basis. They get trained all over by many seasoned paladins to ensure they’re exposed to multiple skill sets and fully qualified before hopefully being bound to a warden and their own Order. As the Captain, Ryker has to sign off on every new recruit.” Axel explained.

  “And you guys are permanent trainers here instead of being in your own Orders?” Max asked. There was no way she could wrap her head around Ryker being a teacher. He just didn’t have the patience or the social skills, she felt really sorry for the trainees here. And Ryker sitting in an office doing paperwork? That just boggled the mind. He was more suited to biting heads off chickens or making number plates.

  “Someone has to train the new soldiers.” Darius responded rather stiffly to Max’s question.

  “Besides, that whole Order thing is too restrictive. A man needs to be free to feel the wind in his hair!” Axel exclaimed with a wink. Max laughed at his antics, the man was never serious.

  “That’s dogs, man.” Beyden nudged Axel with his shoulder, “Dogs like to feel the wind in their fur.”

  Axel narrowed his eyes, “Are you calling me a dog?”

  Beyden held up his hands, all innocent-like, “Hey if the collar fits …” He managed to duck the responding punch aimed his way. He laughed and grabbed Max’s hand, “Come on squirt. Let me introduce you to a couple of friends of mine. Caspian is a Water Warden and his two paladins are brothers. They’re really nice and not pretentious in the least. You’ll like them.”

  Max let herself be dragged over to one of the lounges where a blond, slim young man of around twenty-one was seated watching a re-run of MASH. Next to him was a dark haired man almost twice his size, with another equally built guy on the bench seat opposite. All three were extremely good looking. All paladins had to genetically engineered to be hunks or something. It made her wonder if maybe Vin Diesel or Dwayne Johnson were paladins. They certainly fit the bill. Maybe they were in need of a lonely little warden to bind to? Max snickered to herself, that would be awesome!

  “Max! Did you hear what I said?”

  Max cringed, “Sorry. I was just thinking of something.”

  “Must have been something pretty good, judging by the gleam in your eyes.” The cute blond said, drawing her attention. He looked much shorter than all the giants around her and had clear blue eyes that sparkled with life. Although he was amused, he wasn’t laughing at her and Max felt herself relax further as she responded;

  “Hmm. It was. The Diesel and The Rock. Pretty great thinking!”

  Ryker frowned, “The what and the what?”

  “If you don’t understand, then you’re too young to know.” She shook her finger at a frowning Ryker.

  The blond burst into laughter, obviously understanding her references. Beyden was right, Max thought, looks like she was going to like Caspian.

  “Max, this is Caspian, guardian to that which sustains life. These are his two paladins; Lawson and Leo. Together they form the Order of Riparian.” Beyden introduced formally.

  Max responded in kind, dipping her head in a respectful nod and murmuring, “It’s an honour to meet you.”

  Beyden grinned at her like a proud papa, “Caspian, this is Max … she’s new.”

  Caspian arched his fair eyebrows, “New to what?”

  “New to the area.” Ryker responded before anyone else could. They had all agreed not to advertise her ‘stray’ status until absolutely necessary.

  “Whatever you say Ry.” Caspian smiled but Max could tell he wasn’t convinced. Seems cutie was also a smartie. And he must know the gang fairly well given he had just called Ryker ‘Ry’ with no adverse effects.

  “Max is staying with us for a few days until she meets with the Local Warden Council. She is seeking out a new Order.” Ryker continued.

  “Really? Was your last one not to your liking?” Leo, the paladin seated on his own asked. “Good help is so hard to find these days.” He winked.

  Oh boy, another charmer! Max thought. “Nah, it wasn’t them. It was me. I was too hot to handle.” She winked back, getting her flirt on and damn if it didn’t feel good.

  He laughed along with his fellow paladin and liege, “Looks like you’ve got your hands full then folks.” He said to the six paladins ranged around her. “You know we’re just down the beach if you ever need extra help.”

  “Thanks.” Ryker said dryly.

  Beyden turned to Max and explained, “Riparian is only about ten minutes south of us, between the ocean and the river. They’re our closest neighbours.”

  “Really? Then you must know the Buff Brigade pretty well then. This is excellent news!” She parked her butt on the arm of the lounge Caspian and Lawson were seated in and leaned close companionably, “You must tell me everything! For starters, have you ever seen this fabled stick Ryker has buried in
his rectum? Does it ever come out or do you think it is lodged there permanently?”

  Total silence reigned for all of a heartbeat before her newest three friends burst into laughter so hard, their faces soon turned red and they were gripping their heaving sides to contain themselves. Axel, Cali, Beyden and Lark were all sharing in the hilarity as well. The only one not smiling was the big man himself, although he didn’t appear angry. In fact, Max could have sworn she saw amusement in his eyes. Perhaps the stick was removable after all.

  Caspian wiped the tears from his eyes, “Oh, I like this one.” He said to his soldiers before turning to Max, “I like you.”

  “That’s my line.” Axel joked.

  Max couldn’t be more pleased with how things were going. Seemed like there were a few good eggs in the whole warden basket and just because Ryker and his team didn’t want her around permanently, didn’t mean she couldn’t find another good group of people who did. As the laughter died down, Max watched as Caspian went to pick up a glass of water only to accidently bump it off the table. The glass landed with a dull thud on the wooden floor as expected but to Max’s astonishment the water did not. She watched in awe as it stopped a mere inch from the ground and formed a small ball of swirling waves as it hovered in the air. Lawson bent down and righted the glass before the wet mass somehow poured itself gracefully back into the glass. Caspian then casually picked it up and drank down the contents like nothing had ever happened.

  “What the hell was that? That was so cool! Can you do it again?” Max asked eagerly.

  Caspian appeared confused as he looked between herself and the others, “Um, I’m not sure why you’re so impressed. Water is my element. It’s kind of my thing.”

  “Well yeah, but that was –” Max broke off when she saw the look of warning Ryker was giving her. Right. She was supposed to be playing it cool. Sophisticated, knowledgeable, Warden Max wouldn’t be phased by such childish tricks! Oh no, she saw this type of thing all the time, yes indeed! So she tried to cover her tracks although she hated to mislead such a nice guy. “It was just nice to see. Not all wardens use their powers so openly.”

  Caspian nodded, “That’s true I guess … sad but true. I am somewhat more active with my domain than many of our brethren.”

  Max tilted her head, “You think wardens should be more active?”

  Caspian sighed, “I think the Great Massacre has a lot to answer for.”

  The Great Massacre? She had heard that term thrown around but she hadn’t really been satisfied with any of the answers. Maybe Caspian would be a little more forthcoming. She was just about to ask some more questions when a man with five others trailing behind him joined the party. He sauntered right up and sat himself down in the arm chair next to Max. The other five men remained standing, arms crossed over beefy chests behind him like guard dogs or something. Max found the whole thing a little rude and didn’t think she was the only one if the amount of frowns was anything to go by. She then noticed that Caspian’s face was suspiciously blank and he tried to sink further into the lounge as if trying to disappear. Leo stood up and flanked him on the other side. Bad blood perhaps?

  The guy who planted himself in the only remaining chair leaned forward and extended a hand to Max. The smile on his face could only be described as oily as he introduced himself, “I understand we have a new warden visiting. I am surprised I didn’t hear about your visit before now. My Grandmother is a member of the International Domain Council. I am Ignatius of the Order Vulcan.”

  Max eyed his hand warily. She really didn’t want to shake it but good manners demanded it, “Hi, I’m Max.” Eww, she thought. His hand was hot and sweaty and his grip was like a cooked noodle! You could always tell a lot about a person by their handshake and his weak grip spoke of a weak character to Max.

  His smile dimmed somewhat at her curt response. “Just Max? Surely that is a nickname of a sort. What is your true name and Order?”

  Darius responded before Max could formulate a half way decent one of her own, “Max is staying with us temporarily until her formal introduction to the Local Council. She comes seeking a new Order.”

  Ignatius raised his dark eyebrows and Max could swear they had been plucked as he said, “You’re staying with them? Max, my dear, these paladins can barely call themselves knights. Although they are quite adept at beating newer paladins into submission, they are not very skilled at protection. If you are seeking a new Order, then you have clearly experienced failure in the past. If you don’t want to repeat those mistakes, I suggest you make alternate living arrangements quickly. I can suggest some suitable replacements.”

  He smiled cockily and continued to fawn over her as if he were doing her a big favour instead of insulting the only people she knew and liked. There was no way she would trust one word out of this moron’s mouth and she would sooner go back to living on the streets than take his advice for accommodation. She had a moment of fear though as she recalled the whole point of her coming here was to meet other wardens and paladins and find someone she could potentially bond with. That would of course mean she would need to stay somewhere else eventually but she just wasn’t ready for it to be right now. And she definitely didn’t want it to be with anyone like Sir Ignatius here. She cast a glance toward her group of paladins and was relieved to see the dark looks on their faces. Seemed Ignatius and his knights weren’t popular.

  “Thank you very much for your concern. I know they’re hard on the eyes but I’m getting used to looking at them.” The fake smile on the other warden’s face didn’t falter but Max could practically see the wheels turning in his head. What did she mean? Was she agreeing with him? Did she disagree? Was she insulting the paladins? Or was she complimenting them? Sheesh, what a moron! She was glad she had met Caspian first so she could use him as a standard for a warden instead of this guy. Caspian chose that moment to let out a small chuckle that unfortunately drew the attention of the new warden.

  “I see you’ve been introduced to the resident fag. I must say Max, you need to start keeping better company. First the Rejects and now the only known arse-fucking poofter in our society. It’s shameful.”

  Ignatius spouted his hateful words with a sneer and it was all Max could do not to reach over and bitch slap the mother fucker! Looking to her right, she saw Caspian hunch in on himself as if to make himself a smaller target. But it didn’t matter how small the target was when the weapons used were words; they always hit home. Well, as luck would have it Max just happened to have an arsenal in her vocabulary. She leaned forward enthusiastically;

  “Thank God! Finally someone who understands!” She exclaimed sincerely.

  Ignatius’s eyes lit with satisfaction and he smirked in the direction of said ‘fag’ before leaning in even closer, “You don’t say?”

  Rage boiling internally, Max nodded her head eagerly, “Oh yes. I’m just like you are, you see,” She began drawing small circles over the back of his damp hand, voice sweet as sugar. She felt Caspian shift uncomfortably in his seat as his paladins stood straight and ready but gave no signs of immediate action. Max could tell they wanted to jump to their charge’s defence but they held themselves back. Those stupid politics Darius had warned her about, no doubt. Oily Ignatius of the Order Vulcan was looking smug and proud and … well, oily at the added attention. This was almost too easy! She smiled seductively;

  “I’m also a homophobic, ignorant, self-righteous, disgusting excuse for a human being – just like you!” She announced jubilantly. Max had the pleasure of seeing his smile replaced with a ferocious scowl before he yanked his hand away and jumped to his feet.

  “You have no idea who I am! You just made the biggest mistake of your life.” He threatened, bending down and invading her personal space once again. Max didn’t even try to hide her cringe from the SOB’s nasty breath.

  “Somehow, I don’t think so …” she paused dramatically, pointedly ignoring the fact that nearly every person in the room was now focused on the acti
on playing out in front of them “… Biatch!”

  The lousy excuse for a warden actually raised a fist in warning before obviously thinking better given the amount of eyes trained on them. Instead, he lowered his hand and stalked from the room, all five of the still silent paladins following behind him like good little ducklings.

  “Oh, don’t go! This is the first intelligent conversation I’ve had in years! Don’t you want to know what I think about the Chinese or women in the workplace?” Max kept shouting at the other warden’s swiftly retreating back until he was out of sight. She turned to Caspian and his two paladins with a cheeky grin, “Guess not.”

  ****

  Ryker gritted his teeth in a supreme effort to not grab Max by the arms and shake some sense into her. She was trouble with a capital ‘T’; a walking, talking incendiary device that could blow at any second! It didn’t matter that Ignatius was a complete tool. In fact, Ryker daydreamed about punching him in his fat head every time they crossed paths. Ignatius was still a warden, and a very strong one at that. He had five paladins bonded to him, four of them sharing a link to the fire domain just like Ignatius. Max had just made a very powerful enemy. And to add icing to this already fucked up cake, watching her put that greasy jerk-off in his place had left him with a massive boner. He was so hard he was afraid the metal zipper of his jeans would leave permanent teeth marks on his cock!

  Their little escapade the night before had left him even more volatile than usual. It was like no matter what he said to her, it was always the wrong thing. But she just turned him inside out and he had no clue why. Like take outside for instance, when Max had been about to enter the Lodge for the first time, she had hesitated and he had been taken aback by the fear in those blue-green eyes. So how had he dealt with his feelings of helplessness? Oh, that’s right; he called her a pussy! His damn shin was still throbbing. The spunky little wench sure had a good kick on her. You’d think a bruised shin as well as a bruised ego would be enough to deflate his … interest. But nooooo!