"Oof. You're right!" Steven was startled at how strong it was as the heat from the mushroom filled his mouth. Asherah giggled and grabbed his hand, skipping through the forest, ever closer toward the temple.
"How does it work?" Steven ran after her, holding her hand. "I mean, I was on Earth and then I wasn't."
"Fractures in space. You could travel through fractures." Asherah looked back at him as they ran through the forest. "I really don't know how exactly."
"They called me a deviant." Steven had so many questions. Would he have enough time? Did it even matter? Asherah ducked some ferns and they waded across a small creek.
"Gatekeepers are not allowed to breed with each other." Asherah found a tree and let go of Steven's hand and started climbing. He followed. "The product of their pairing is called a deviant. You are against the laws."
"But why?" Steven pushed.
She stopped and Steven climbed up next to her, gripping the bark. "Deviants are like... gods. They are not limited to existing fractures like regular gatekeepers. They can make their own fractures. But they have no compassion and do not care what they destroy. At least that's what they say. I know better." Asherah leaned over and kissed Steven then continued to climb.
"I'm not a god. I'm just... me!" Steven followed again as they climbed up into the canopy.
"Would you kill one of your bear friends?" Asherah looked down at him as he climbed up next to her again.
"Not a chance!" Steven exclaimed.
"You didn't kill Laurence either, did you?" Asherah looked at him sideways.
Steven was quiet for a moment. "No. I couldn't. I really wanted to, but then I just couldn't," Steven admitted.
Asherah giggled and touched the tip of his nose, "Compassion." She started climbing again. "But an ant. Would you crush one and feel bad about it?"
Steven really hadn't given it much thought, but no, he's killed ants and they were just ants.
"What about a mealworm in your grain? Does it bother you to feed it to your hens?" Asherah and Steven approached the top of the tree.
"Well, no." Steven hadn't given that much thought either.
"We are to deviants as ants and mealworms are to you," Asherah stated. "That's why you are so special." Asherah coiled herself then launched off the trunk of the tree, flying gracefully through the air and falling until she reached the branches of the neighboring tree. Steven was stunned. He had never seen anything quite so beautiful. He followed and landed smoothly next to her.
"Why can I climb like this?" Steven asked. He had a feeling that Jacob may have been on to something.
Asherah mussed his hair and kissed his cheek then jumped off again. Steven followed. On the next tree they both climbed up, racing. "Your mother has dominant Elf genes. She was recently part human and your father is human." Asherah laughed, "You would call yourself a mutt." She braced her feet on the trunk and jumped off backwards, flipping through the air until her feet landed in the branches of the next tree, walking the branch to the trunk. Steven had never tried hot dogging like that and jumped like he was used to. Asherah frowned, "What are you afraid of?"
Steven looked at her, then remembered. "Oh, yeah. It's not like I'm going to die from falling." He grinned, then frowned. "Why doesn't that bother me?"
"Our bodies care about living, Steven. In our bodies we would be afraid or hurting. That doesn't matter to us anymore." Asherah hung from the branch with a hand swinging back and forth, looking up at Steven. He reached down upside down and kissed her, not able to resist. She returned it passionately, then giggled, caressing his face.
"Here, it's different. What happens, happens, and until then, I plan on enjoying you, my love." She pulled herself up and embraced Steven, kissing him deeply. She looked over her shoulder at something and Steven looked as well. The temple trees were much closer now. "Ever been inside a temple?"
"You're kidding, right? Until today, I didn't know there were aliens," Steven chuckled.
"We're not aliens. Terrans are," Asherah grinned. Steven understood - perspective. "You said my father was human and mother part human. Have they been to Earth before?"
Asherah jumped off the tree and sailed into the next tree. It was a long jump but Steven followed. "Terra is forbidden. Legend has it that a tribe of humans was banished from Terra through the fractures. But that was thousands and thousands of years ago." Steven caught up with her and she swung around to face him, wrapping a leg around him as she pulled him close. He caught his breath at her full embrace and she bit her lip as she pulled him closer. "There's a little bit of human in all of us by now. Terrans developed isolated because Terra was forbidden."
Steven found her fur tantalizing and wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her even closer, feeling her muscles rippling under her skin as she strained against the branch. Smiling, she let go of the branch and wrapped around him completely, leaving Steven holding both of them up. But she was extremely light. He felt her cheek against his and kissed her neck.
"Why did you bond with me?" Steven asked.
Asherah pulled back a little and looked at Steven. "Because we were right for each other," she said as if that was a silly question. She looked into his eyes. "When I kissed you, I felt you. You were real. And you just fit me. Like you still do."
"I missed you so much, Asherah. I got angry at myself for missing you," Steven said, kissing her cheek.
"I know. I was always there," Asherah said, embracing him tight as they hung there.
"Even when I was drinking that tea?" Steven smelled her hair. It was intoxicating.
"Yes, I never left," she whispered into his ear. He could feel her breasts against his chest as she fought to control her breathing. Her excitement filled him with anticipation and he shuddered. Asherah's breath was hot against his cheek and the thrill of it went up and down his spine. For once, Steven could enjoy her with no thoughts of resisting, surrendering completely to her. Her life washed over him like waves of joy, pure ecstasy. How could they be dying? "Shhh, don't think about that. Just enjoy me," Asherah said softly as she held him tightly. He kissed her neck and thoroughly enjoyed her. She looked into his eyes. "No regrets, okay?" she said.
Steven was breathless at the intensity of the love that was washing over him. It was like an eruption of passion that seemed to have no end. He shook his head. There were a million things he could have thought of that he'd have done differently, but not a single one mattered now. They were together and would move on together to whatever waited for them. She smiled at him, "Now you get it." Releasing him, she fell backwards and grabbed a branch and Steven let go to follow her.
Jumping from tree to tree, they raced each other, and Steven landed on the ground in just enough time to reach back and catch her. She wrapped around him again and kissed him passionately, then sank to the ground and ran off. Steven followed, but then he looked up. They were right at the temple. It was immense and the rows of trees making its walls seemed to go on forever in both directions as well as upwards. Asherah was already climbing up the massive trunks and Steven jumped up to follow, catching up to her as they got to a gap that served as one of the many entrances. It was hundreds of feet up and the view was amazing. They both landed inside at the same time and Steven looked around, amazed.
"I used to play in here, and sit there watching the gatekeepers work." Asherah pointed at a branch a few dozen feet up.
Steven saw a little Asherah sitting up there humming. He recognized the song. "You used to hum that to me in the meadow!"
"Mm hmm. It was one of my favorite childhood songs," Asherah said looking up at the younger version of herself.
"It sounds Celtic, like that love ballad you also sang to me." Steven said. He looked at her, remembering her constant humming and singing at the meadow. "You have a lovely singing voice. Have I ever told you that?"
Asherah leaned forward and kissed him, then skipped off as she started singing the love ballad to him. Steven followed, enjoying watching her having so much fun
. He found himself having fun, too. Whenever they go, he was content. She looked back at him and grinned as she climbed up to the next level. Steven watched her climb then followed after her.
"You can hear my every thought and feeling but I can't hear all of yours as well. Why?" Steven caught up with her and she turned and looked at him.
"Remember hanging in the tree?" she whispered.
Steven nodded, the echoes of the ecstasy still washing over him.
"That was me." Asherah's eyes twinkled. "You can hear me. You just need to listen." She looked around. "This is my favorite place here. This is where I want to spend my last moments with you."
They were standing in an antechamber with several skylights. The sun was bright, and vines were growing all over the trunks and branches that made up the walls and floors. She held Steven's hand and they walked over to a bright corner and she pulled him down to sit next to her. She looked out the skylight. Steven followed her gaze and could see the whole valley. There was forest as far as the eye could see and he could see that nearly all of the trees had homes built into them. He would have missed them if he wasn't already familiar with them. The homes matched the trees and blended in very well. It was a vast city that was a part of the forest.
"Beautiful," Steven said. He couldn't think of a better place to spend his final moments with the love of his life.
"I'd spend hours up here just gazing out there," Asherah said quietly. She leaned against Steven and together they leaned against the trunk that framed the skylight, looking out and down onto the forest while enjoying each other. She reached up and grabbed the back of his neck and pulled herself up higher and kissed him gently. "I love you, Steven." She looked into his eyes and he felt lost in her eyes.
"I love you, Asherah." He caressed her face and kissed her again. She smiled and lay against him while he played with her hair. It was getting dark finally. Steven looked out as darkness began to consume the landscape. He wasn't afraid, however. He held Asherah tightly and she squeezed him back as the darkness swept over them.
Chapter 29
Lohet closed his eyes as he listened to Penipe's quiet weeping. He could hear the racing heart beats of Steven and Asherah, and they were getting irregular. They were close to complete arrest.
He had hunted and killed young deviants before. Including the one that had the incident that laid waste to Sirel's home world. Why was this one any different? He looked at Penipe and remembered what she said. All of the deviants he'd faced regarded him as nothing but an insect. They were completely unable to relate in any way to what they would consider lower life forms. But this one was an anomaly. No deviant would have considered saving someone, especially at their own peril, and even more especially if that person was chasing him. And yet Penipe said that he had saved her and almost perished doing so.
And here he was, dying because he put himself in the path of a toxic bullet that would have killed Asherah. Lohet was seeing the results of that with his own eyes. The deviant came here to save her in the first place. Bonds don't stick to deviants and yet he was solidly bonded with Asherah. It just wasn't adding up.
"He has compassion," Lohet said under his breath, shaking his head. His daughter looked at him. He turned and looked at her. "When you next visit the Council, I want you to ask them to refine their definition of deviant." He looked at her and she nodded.
Someone dropped down off the top of the cliff onto the landing and Lohet turned to see a girl about Asherah's age. She was carrying a net bag filled with fruits and mushrooms. She looked at them, surprised, then looked at Asherah, screamed, and stepped back, almost falling off the edge of the landing. Brandon instinctively reached out and caught her and pulled her away from the edge. Tor'eng looked up to see the Selkie friend of Asherah who brought her food every day, then returned his attention to his dying daughter. She looked at Brandon and Asherah and said something in a language Brandon didn't understand. He only looked at her then back at Steven, thoroughly discombobulated.
The Selkie's scream charged Lohet into his already growing decision. He stepped away from his daughter who only halfway tried to stop him and suddenly he was kneeling over Steven. Sally looked up, her face still wet and full of defeat and agony. He looked in her eyes and she mouthed, "Please," unable to speak anymore. Looking back down at Steven, Lohet reached down and put his hand on his chest and Steven immediately convulsed. Lohet closed his eyes as he concentrated. He had the ability to calm, and that included slowing racing hearts, but he was fighting against a toxin that was intended to make a heart beat so fast that it burst. Steven's heart was incredibly strong but it was on its last few beats when Lohet put his hand on him. He gasped, feeling the stress of the toxin. Suddenly his daughter was beside him. She put her hand on him, then a hand on Steven's cheek. The result was almost immediate. Lohet's struggle reduced massively and Steven's heart rate stopped increasing and slowly started to reduce. Suddenly he was taken back to the alley as he remembered the words from the strange homeless man. His choice, and now he has made it. How did the man know? Lohet shook his head, trying to concentrate.
Penipe sat there frozen, staring at Lohet, her eyes wide and mouth open in an interrupted wail. He looked over at her and met her gaze. She was speechless and trembling, in complete shock and confusion. Was he doing it? Saving Asherah? She dared to hope, looking at Tor'eng whose eyes were shut in his anguish.
Lohet concentrated on fighting against the toxin, now backed by his daughter. He had taken Steven's heart out of the danger zone, but would have to maintain his presence until Steven's body metabolized the toxin completely. He heard something and looked down. Steven's eyes were fluttering and opened a little. He looked up at Lohet, and looked confused. Steven tried to say something, but his lips and throat were dry. He licked his lips then looked back at Lohet with clearer eyes. "Asherah? Is she okay?" his voice was barely a raspy whisper.
Lohet was stunned. The deviant was asking about someone else's welfare. He heard Penipe cry out and start hugging Asherah as Asherah tried to move her hand. Tor'eng cried and held them both. Lohet raised an eyebrow as he glanced at them. "It would appear that Asherah is recovering."
Steven sighed, looking at the ceiling then back at Lohet. "I guess you caught me," Steven said, resigned. He no longer had the strength to run or resist.
"That would seem to be the case, Steven," Lohet said.
"Please don't hurt her, okay?" Steven asked as he tried to lift his arm toward Asherah. He looked over to see Penipe embracing and crying over Asherah and caught a brief glimpse of Asherah's half opened eyes. She wasn't quite seeing anything yet but he could feel her stronger now as she fought to regain consciousness.
Lohet looked at Steven, stunned by the new reality that he faced. "Never again," he promised.
Steven looked at him for a long time. "Okay. Then I'm done running." He closed his eyes. He was so tired and she was alive. Her safety was all that mattered to him.
Lohet shook his head. "You don't need to run anymore, Steven."
Steven opened one of his eyes and squinted up at the vampire. Lohet smiled, keeping his canines covered. "You are safe, Steven."
"You're not going to hurt me?" Steven asked, confused.
Lohet regarded Steven thoughtfully. "No. You are safe." He comprehended that Steven was confusing him with the Terran legends, something Lohet would have to clear up later, but he meant in his reply that his hunt for the deviant was over. He was convinced that this was not an ordinary deviant.
Steven looked over and saw the wolfman crouching in a corner. The wolfman had peeled off most of his armor and was looking a little bored. He noticed Steven was gaping at him and grinned back at him, canines and all. Steven was too tired to even consider being afraid at the moment and smiled back weakly, not sure what was going on.
Steven shifted to get a better look at him then saw Lohet's daughter. She gave him a calculating stare. "Uhm, hi?" Steven said quietly. She just looked at him and he fidgeted.
; Only then did he start taking in his surroundings and looked up at the owner of the lap his head rested on. His eyes got wide, "Sally! You're here." Sally nodded, wiping tears from her face. Steven reached up and wiped her tears and looked at her for a long moment. "I'm so sorry." He thought for a second then looked at her. "Mom." That actually felt right for him to say. That's what Sally had been for him for all of his life. She smiled and covered her mouth, then leaned down and kissed him on the forehead.
Steven looked back over at the vampire then back to Sally. "You do know there's a vampire sitting right here, right?" Steven whispered.
Sally laughed, wiping her face. "Don't worry, Steven. He doesn't bite," she said, running her fingers through her hair. She looked up at Lohet. "Much."
Steven looked at her then back at Lohet. This was the creature from his nightmares. In the flesh. And he was not hurting him. Steven shook his head, fighting off a wave of dizziness. Then he saw Jonah and looked at him, remembering his childhood with him. "Dad." That sounded right to Steven as well.
Jonah gave him a lopsided smile. "It's about time."
"What happened?" Steven tried to sit up, but Aradia held him back down. He looked at her, perplexed.
"I have to maintain contact until you have flushed the poison," Aradia explained. "You must lay here for a while longer." Steven decided not to argue with the vampire and just nodded.
He gasped and closed his eyes. Asherah came into him strong and he felt her as he had never felt her before. Every nerve tingled and he saw her even with his eyes closed. She floated before him then moved to embrace him, passing right into him and suddenly he was flooded with her thoughts, memories and love. He convulsed and waved his arms around and tried to sit up again, pushing against the immovable force that was the vampire's grasp.
"What's wrong?" Sally said, alarmed, looking up at Lohet.
"Asherah," Steven whispered as he looked over at her. She was looking at him. Steven had trouble breathing and tears spontaneously streamed from his eyes as she came back to him. He reached out and she grabbed his hand. "I like your tree, Asherah," Steven said. She smiled at him. There was color in her lips again and he wanted more than anything to kiss her, but there were too many people around fussing over them.
Crow - The Awakening Page 63