DarknessOnThePlains_TheBeginning

by Jayme Malvagio

  “Perhaps we should go inside,” Niccolo gestured for her to lead the way.

  “Allow me to get the door then,” Pavlo said, traversing the last few feet with long strides.

  Niccolo followed Terri into the front room and could barely mask his surprise. Where the outside of the house was cold and lifeless, the inside was full of color and warmth. The wooden floor was spotless. Paintings and framed photographs adorned the white walls, and small potted plants were dispersed around the perimeter of the room. Two burgundy sofas, a wooden rocker, and three beige wing chairs, all in immaculate condition furnished the room.

  He turned his attention back to Terri and found her smiling at him, head held high with pride. “You like?” she asked.

  “You have a most beautiful home,” he replied with a nod.

  “Wait ’til you see the bedroom.” She batted her eyes at him before strolling to the back of the room.

  They followed her through the narrow door, Niccolo then Pavlo. The bedroom was sparsely furnished with a dresser just left of the door and a vanity with three individual mirrors positioned on the far wall, both a dark cream color. A large canopy bed dominated the space, the wood frame stained a deep crimson and the mattress covered in pillows of varying size. A battered hope chest nestled against the foot of it.

  His observations were interrupted as Terri removed her worn jacket, revealing milky white shoulders beneath the straps of her off-white evening dress. By the time she had stepped out of her skirt, he and Pavlo were eager to help with the rest of her disrobing. Pavlo removed her corset cover with practiced ease. Niccolo, not to be outdone, slipped the bustle from her trembling body with smooth grace. She unfastened the bindings of her corset, letting loose a sigh of relief, and dropped it to the floor. By the time the petticoat, pantaloons, stockings and chemise were discarded, her skin glistened with a fine layer of perspiration.

  Terri let her gaze travel back and forth between the two as she coyly covered her breasts with one arm and her pubic area with the other. “I’m feeling a bit exposed here, do you plan to join me?”

  She watched with interest as the two men quickly shed their clothes. Worrying her bottom lip, she nearly bit through it when they revealed lithe well-muscled bodies. She’d never seen such well-defined bodies in her life and yet here were two equally magnificent specimens standing before her. Their skin was so pale it seemed almost translucent. The taller one, Niccolo stepped forward first, boring into her soul with those marvelous eyes. She trembled beneath that stare, not daring to breath, not daring to move as his hands gently cupped either side of her face. She was surprised by how cold they were, and nearly gasped, but his lips covered hers before the breath could escape. Her eyes drifted close as she lost herself in the moment as his kisses drifted down to her chin, along her jaw, her throat, and wound a way to her breasts.

  Feeling the hair brushed away from her neck, she snapped her attention to Pavlo who pressed up close behind her, his erect member nestling between her cheeks of her rump as he nibbled at her earlobe. Her body trembled from the dual attention and her skin burned beneath their roving touch.

  Niccolo sucked her left nipple into his mouth and rolled it lightly between his teeth as his hand massaged her folds. She gripped his hair, her body shuddering, and her knees nearly buckled under the weight of her explosive orgasm.

  “Wait,” she finally managed. “I need to sit for a moment.”

  They guided her around to the side of her bed, letting her perch on the edge. Pavlo dropped to his knees before her, pressing his face between her thighs. She moaned her approval as his tongue pressed deeper within her than she would’ve thought possible. It wasn’t until she felt him biting playfully at her inner thigh that she realized he’d replaced his tongue with slender fingers. She felt a flash of pain quickly replaced by euphoria as his attentions became fiercer.

  A soft caress of her shoulder reminded her of the other suitor. He stood next to her, his erection mere inches from her face. Needing no further prompting, she took the entire length of it between her lips and began to work it with a fervor she barely knew she possessed.

  Her thoughts scattered, and she found it hard to concentrate on either man as her mind drifted away on wave after wave of pleasure. She wasn’t sure what they were doing, but she knew she’d never experienced anything like it. Her entire body seemed to be on fire and freezing all at the same time as a thousand tongues caressed her every nerve.

  Barely registering that Niccolo had withdrew from her mouth, she let herself drift onto her back. “No,” she attempted to scream when she felt the euphoria ebb as Pavlo’s teeth left her skin, but she couldn’t hear her own voice. She nearly cried with gratitude when the sensation resumed. She didn’t know which of them was kissing her, biting her. She didn’t care.

  Her bliss took on a dream-like quality. She felt as though she were gripped by one continuous orgasm. She was vaguely aware of voices, but the voices were unintelligible, merely whispers on the wind. Who could be talking and why? These thoughts should’ve troubled her more, but nothing could bring her out of her stupor. Not even when the edges of consciousness began to darken and close in on her did she try to comprehend the situation. She still convulsed with pleasure as her world faded to black.

  “I said enough,” Niccolo snarled, pulling Pavlo to his feet by the hair.

  He hissed in response, fangs extended, still dripping crimson, the blood lust apparent in his eyes.

  “Control yourself, old friend,” he insisted in a low voice.

  Pavlo’s shoulders tensed, his fingers uncurled, exposing razor sharp nails, and his knees flexed, preparing to spring. Niccolo quickly released his hair and dropped back in a defense crouch, baring his fangs.

  Clarity finally returned to his friend’s eyes and Pavlo threw his head back and laughed. “My deepest apologizes. Too many years of solitude seemed to have all but obliterated my manners.”

  “Think nothing of it,” he replied, rising fluidly.

  “Why did you interrupt my feeding?” he stared over at the unconscious woman.

  “You nearly killed her.” Niccolo was at her side in a blur of speed.

  “And your point is?”

  “She’s no ghost. I’ll not take her life.”

  “I thought you were morally opposed to keeping pets,” he said, one eyebrow arched.

  “I am and before you ask, I’m not looking to start a stable either,” he assured him with a laugh.

  “What are you proposing?” His shock was evident. “We just allow her to alert everyone in the savage lands to not only our existence, but our immediate presence?”

  “Hardly,” Niccolo scoffed. “She has no idea what we are. We’ll just be on our way before she wakes.”

  “How can you be so convinced?”

  “I was in her mind until she succumbed to your…persuasion. Where you not?”

  “No.” He shrugged. “What would be the point of exerting such energy on a meal I had no intention of releasing?”

  Niccolo cocked his head to the side. “Have you no trace of your former humanity?”

  “To be perfectly honest, I’m a bit astounded to learn you’ve rediscovered yours. You no longer kill what you eat?”

  “Not an innocent.”

  “I assure you she was far from innocent.” Pavlo snickered as he traced his fingers along the side of her leg.

  “But she’d done nothing wrong and she still has a will to live and…” He paused as he sat beside her on the bed.

  “And?”

  “And she is a woman.”

  Revelation lit his face. “Ah, you always did hold a special place in that cold heart of yours for the fairer sex.”

  “I have had many revelations in my life, but there is one that is most germane to this conversation.”

  “Which is?” he prompted when no further words came.

  “There are two beasts warring within in me, each fighting to control my hand. One is everything I was: evil, mean, sadi
stic and…vengeful. The other, well it is everything I want to be: compassionate, wise, and all that I still find good in the humanity from which we must sustain ourselves.”

  “And the latter is the beast with the upper hand.”

  “For now,” he laughed. “But it really just depends on which one I feed the most.”

  Niccolo punctured his index finger with a fang, creating a mixture of saliva and blood before rubbing it over the holes left in her thighs from their feeding. It only took a moment for them to close and vanish from sight.

  Pavlo snorted in amusement and turned to face the window. In the blink of an eye, he stood before it, moving the curtain aside. “Well, if you are quite finished reeducating me on the fundamentals of morality, perhaps we should move to a safer place to finish our conversation and await the coming sun.”

  “Do you have a place near here?”

  “Actually, I have managed to secure acceptable accommodations in the foothills of the Sans Bois Mountains.”

  “Really? I didn’t realize that area was populated yet.”

  “It isn’t.” He gave him a wink. “Which makes it all the more appealing.”

  Niccolo checked her pulse a final time; it was faint and slow, but steady. He sprang from the bed and they both quickly redressed.

  “With a good tailwind, we could be there in twenty heartbeats,” Pavlo said as they stepped out onto the lawn.

  “Lead the way,” he gestured toward the starry night.

  “Do you think you can still keep up?” he quipped, leaping into the air.

  “Oh, I think I’ll manage.”

  Chapter Seven

  Kanati entered the general store, but couldn’t bring himself to match Acabo’s broad smile. The elder instantly sobered as he waited patiently for him to state his mind.

  “What happened to my aunt?” he finally mustered the courage to ask.

  “Enola?” His gaze dropped to the counter before him. “She took ill and never recovered.”

  “Did she suffer long?”

  Acabo gave a derisive snort. “What’s long when it comes to suffering? She stayed among us for as much time as she could. She was a fighter, your aunt.”

  “She always was,” Kanati said with a rueful smile. “When did she pass?”

  His brow pursued in confusion before fading away with a nod. “It was far enough in the past that I imagine your new home needs more than a few repairs to make it hospitable again.”

  “I have no money for supplies,” he admitted, gazing at his boots. “How often do the traders come?”

  “It’s pretty sporadic, but it could be awhile.” He cast a glance at the window. “The trading is better when the summer fades.”

  “I have a few pelts—“

  “So do I,” Acabo laughed. “I could use your back more than I could your possessions.”

  “What do you propose?”

  “You help me out here with the store—sweeping, stocking shelves, hauling sundries home for some of the elders, and in turn, you can take whatever you need to get your house back in order.”

  “Oh, thank you so much, Acabo,” Kanati gushed. “When can I begin?”

  “Right now,” he laughed, grabbing a broom from the corner and offering it over the counter. “Unless, of course, you have more pressing matters.”

  * * * *

  Kanati would divide his days between working at the store and spending time with the elders, relearning skills he had lost during his time at the boarding school. He may have owed his days to his tribe, but his evenings…those he vowed to reserve for Selu. By his second attempt, he found he could be in her presence and still maintain the power of speech. He thanked the Gods that he was her only suitor, for even though they they’d gotten off to a rocky start, he could sense she had an interest in him. When she accepted his offer to carry her wares home from the store for her, he was sure of it.

  “So,” she began, casting him a sideways glance. “Are you getting settled back into tribal life alright?”

  He let out a nervous chuckle. “It’s good to be home, but I just… I don’t know, I feel a bit like a stranger.”

  “You were gone a long time and you were so young when…” she let her voice trail off.

  “Yeah, I see certain faces and they seem familiar, but I can’t really remember anyone who is still here.”

  “Not even me?” she asked with a laugh.

  “Sadly, no.” He stared at the road before them. “You of all people I should remember.”

  “It will get better.” She patted his forearm. “I didn’t think I’d ever readjust to life back here, but I did.”

  “How long were you gone?”

  “Too long,” she replied, averting her gaze.

  They continued to walk in silence, leaving the main road and trudging up the hill to her home. Kanati opened his mouth to speak several times, but could think of nothing to say to lighten the mood and cursed himself for broaching the very subject he was already warned she didn’t want to talk about.

  “Let me get the door,” Kanati offered, springing onto the porch, stumbling under the weight he carried and barely righting himself before he crashed into the front of the house.

  “But your hands are full,” Selu observed, shaking with laughter. “Allow me.”

  She slipped past him and led the way into the house. “Auntie! We have a visitor.”

  Taima emerged from the bedroom, hunched over, looking incredibly weary until she caught sight of Kanati. She straightened slightly and smiled broadly as she made her way into the kitchen.

  “You must be Kanati. It is very nice to meet you,” she spoke slowly, emphasizing each word as she smiled up at him.

  He cut a quick glance at Selu, but she had turned away. Her shoulders visibly trembled and he wondered if she were still trying to control her laughter from his near spill. She could’ve warned him that her aunt was slow. Perhaps it was just her illness that had addled her brain.

  Returning his attention to Taima, he replied in an equally methodical voice, “It is nice to meet you, too. How are you feeling?”

  Selu suddenly clasped her hand over her mouth and rushed from the room. Both he and Taima stared after her, mouths agape until they heard laughter erupting from the bedroom. Kanati shifted uncomfortably, still holding sacks of flour and rice.

  “Where do you want these?” he asked, still emphasizing his words, and Selu howled louder from the other room.

  “What has gotten into you, child,” Taima said, ignoring Kanati and going into the other room with Selu. Her voice suddenly sounded fluid and intelligent.

  He could hear whispers, but couldn’t quite make out the words. When they returned, the color in Taima’s cheeks made him wonder if she were still quite feverish.

  “Just set those down on the table. I’ll put everything away later,” Selu said, still struggling not to laugh.

  Kanati complied and turned to face the two women. “Perhaps I should come back when you’re aunt is feeling better.”

  Taima shot a seething stare at her niece and Kanati suddenly felt horrible about showing up at an ailing woman’s house unannounced. It was clear she was in no shape to have visitors and was probably embarrassed that Selu had let others see her in her current predicament.

  “I’ll walk you out,” she said, leading him by the elbow to the door.

  Once on the porch, she surprised him by giving him a quick peck on the cheek. He stared at her, eyes wide, a smile spread across his face. He was still staring into her eyes as he attempted to descend the stairs. Missing the first step, he tumbled the rest of the way and sprawled on his back in the yard.

  “I’m alright,” he assured her as he scrambled to his feet. “Maybe I’ll see you tomorrow?”

  He could no longer meet her gaze.

  “That would be lovely,” she said through the fingers that covered her mouth.

  * * * *

  Selu tossed on her straw mattress, unable to sleep, but unable to remain fully awa
ke. Being near Kanati had stirred something in her, something inexplicable. He was such an odd boy, but his clumsiness just made him that much more endearing. And that smile, she wished he would use it more often. It lit up his entire face.

  Her aunt had been so upset with her, but she still chuckled, thinking about their exchange earlier. Who knew that Taima would take her literally when she told her that Kanati was touched in the head?

  As she finally drifted off to sleep, she found she was already looking forward to seeing him again tomorrow.

  Chapter Eight

  Niccolo opened his eyes and gazed up at a jagged arched rock formation. Pushing up to his elbows, he surveyed the spacious cave. It was deep enough to provide shelter from the elements but still small enough to feel almost cozy. They were adequate accommodations indeed. He rose to his feet silently so as not to disturb the still form of Pavlo lying prone on the other side of the cave’s mouth. Padding further into the depths, he found a large rock and perched on it, haunches nearly touching his heels. He clasped his hands over his knees and regarded his friend thoughtfully.

  They’d never been close, but had always shared a mutual respect that given different circumstances could’ve easily blossomed into friendship. During the war, he had made it a point not to let anyone get to close to him. He never knew when he might have to kill someone who had gone rogue.

  Pavlo stirred in the darkness and was at his side in an instant. “You always were an early riser.”

  “It was a gift that has slowly transformed into a curse,” he said with a snort.

  “How so?”

  “The less time I spend in the land of dreams, the more time I have to remind myself of just how alone I am in the world.”

  “Ah, but you are no longer alone.” He patted him on the knee. “The pendulum now swings in the other direction.”

  “And for that I am grateful.” He paused as he studied Pavlo’s face. “But how long shall I be graced with your presence?”

  “As long as you’ll have me.” His smile reached his eyes. “I’ve explored these great lands, not sure what it was I sought, but perhaps it was you.”