by Ash, Leela
“Well, I wouldn’t be fine if you were still in Kaldernon,” Cherin said rubbing his eyes. They were both apparently having trouble adjusting to the light. Having their bodies torn apart and put back together so intensely had taken a toll on each of them. “You’d never forgive me if I stole your mission.”
“Well, good thing we’re both here then,” Leika said, slapping him on the shoulder and then using it to help her get to her feet. “We don’t have much time. We should get moving.”
“Well yeah, but…”
“But what?” she asked, raising her eyebrow at him. Cherin clamped his mouth shut and hurried to his feet, immediately holding an arm out to steady himself and rubbing his head with his free hand.
“I just thought it would help to get our bearings first.”
“You know this area isn’t safe,” Leika said. Everywhere on this planet is unsafe, but especially here. This is where you can see Kaldernon.”
She looked up to demonstrate her point and gasped. In the sky there was nothing but white fluffy clouds.
“This can’t be right,” Cherin sighed, squinting into the sky. “Lopu must have harnessed enough power to send us to a safer place.”
“Well, how are we going to know where to go, then?” Leika asked, her tired purple eyes filling with frustrated tears.
“Don’t worry,” Cherin said, gripping her shoulder and smiling. He dug through his bag and pulled out a knife. “We’ll make a trail.”
He cut an “L” into the tree behind Leika and winked. “No problem.”
Leika seemed instantly placated and took charge once again.
“You’ll be in charge of making the trail markers then,” she said, her voice no longer wavering. She had always been more comfortable being in control. It was maddening when they were kids but she had grown into her bossiness. It was almost sexy.
“Right,” Cherin said, his eyes twinkling as he followed her through the forest trail. “Lead the way, boss.”
Leika smiled to herself. It was nice when he was accommodating. But that’s why they were friends. Both of them liked being in charge, and both of them didn’t mind listening to the other. It wasn’t a power game with them. It was equal.
“I’m going to have to use some magic first,” Leika said. “To see if I can sense survivors. I know a charm to help.”
“Of course. Do you need space?”
“Just keep watch. I might be a little out of body for a while.”
“Sure.”
Leika made a circle in the dirt.
“Don’t cross this, all right? Or it will interrupt the ritual. Only if it’s an emergency.”
“Got it,” Cherin said.
Soon, Leika was deep in a trance. The world appeared to her behind her eyes just as it did with her eyes closed, but with one big difference. Everything was transparent except for the hearts of the descendants of Kaldernon. She cried out in surprise when her ears picked up a drumming of several heartbeats at once. They were clustered far away from where they were. Probably far further than what three days would allow them. But that was all they had. Otherwise the power of her cloak would be waning and it would be another case of lost Loni and shifter souls being stuck on Earth.
Suddenly, she picked up on another heartbeat; a strong, fierce one coming from the direct opposite direction of the cluster to the north. She would have to make a choice which one to follow, and it wouldn’t be a difficult one. Although it was risky, she had to try her best to help those most in need. Even though it was more practical to save one descendant of Kaldernon, her mission had been to help as many as possible. She couldn’t help both at the same time, but she would at least be able to try to get the largest group together possible.
When she opened her eyes again, the sun had moved far in the sky and she had the sudden presentiment that there wasn’t enough time in the world. Cherin was perched on a tree stump not far from her circle, munching absently on a handful of berries from his rations.
“We have to go,” Leika said. “Now.”
Immediately Cherin got to his feet and soon, he was following her north.
CHAPTER 11
They traveled as far as they could before the unfamiliar planet grew dark and disturbing.
“We need to make camp,” Cherin said. He knew if he didn’t put his foot firmly down, Leika would have them go on all night. Fortunately, she seemed as spooked by the strange turf as he was, and agreed to stop without much protest. He set to work busying himself to make a fire and set up their tent. Most of the supplies had been re-gifted to them by people who once lived on the planet themselves. Accounts of Earth and its customs had been handed out to all the people of Kaldernon as soon as possible so that everybody could try and make the descendants feel as welcome and at home as possible.
As Cherin worked, Leika busied herself by whipping together some famous Loni cooking. It was unlike anything in the galaxy she’d been told, and by the time he was finished setting everything up, his stomach was rumbling loudly in anticipation of their meal. They sat side by side on a fallen tree by the fire, their shoulders touching as they ate. It was comforting to have her so near. He didn’t have to worry about where she was or what might be making her feel vulnerable.
“So what do you think of this place?” he asked.
“I don’t know. It’s scary here,” Leika said, looking around at the dark trees silhouetted by the fire. The moon was barely visible through the trees and she sighed. “I’m already anxious to get home.”
“Me too.”
Leika was too tired to be very talkative, and soon she was passed out inside the tent. Cherin managed to be lookout for a few hours, but knew he had to stay in his top shape. Sleepless nights were a terrible idea. He ducked inside and smiled fondly down at Leika, who was sprawled diagonally across their sleeping bags. Of course she was. That’s how she had always been.
He moved her carefully off his sleeping bag and was pulled immediately into a peaceful slumber. In the middle of the night, he was awakened by a powerful fire in his loins. He opened his eyes and was shocked to find Leika lying beside him, running her hand from his shoulder, down his legs. She lightly cupped his groin as she went and he grunted in surprise and pleasure.
“What are you doing?” he whispered.
“The same thing you were doing when you kissed me,” Leika said. “Twice.”
She climbed on top of him, her purple eyes dark with longing. “I was scared and moved closer to you. But once I started touching you, trying to wake you up, I…”
She didn’t need to finish. He already knew, and his body was on fire for it.
“Come here,” Cherin said, touching her cheek. He lowered her face to his own and kissed her deeply. Leika sighed in pleasure as their tongues met and their bodies bucked against each other. Cherin had never wanted anything more in his life than to be with her, and nothing was going to stop him now.
He sat up and lifted her with him, flipping Leika gently to the ground and rolling on top of her. Cherin gently stripped her of her clothes, planting hot kisses all over her body. She tensed and writhed beneath him, shuddering in pleasure as her hard nipples disappeared into his mouth and beneath his fingers.
Leika helped to pull his clothes off and stared at his lithe body, rippled with immense muscles he had gained from a lifetime of training. She gasped when he was suddenly on top of her again, and wave after wave of intense pleasure was lapped upon her as he rocked his hips against her. The friction of their bodies made them both gasp in pleasure, and he found the center of her pleasure and began pleasing her lovingly, with all the patience in the world. Finally, she could take no more and begged silently for him to enter her.
Cherin’s light blue eyes gazed into Leika’s, violet with longing, and finally submitted to her body’s requests. He hissed in pleasure as he was immediately enveloped by the heat of her. She moaned softly as he parted her, both of them receiving unbelievable pleasure from one another’s bodies. They cried out toget
her in delight as a lifetime’s worth of lust finally culminated into their intense passion. Cherin’s firm member pressed inside of Leika, then pulled out, tantalizingly slowly. He wanted her to get used to his power, and fed it to her little by little. Her hands gripped his shoulders as he cradled her in his arms and slowly began giving in to his longing.
Leika moaned softly as Cherin’s self-control started to wane, and before they knew it, they were both ready for him to unleash all of his sensual energy on her. Leika wrapped her long legs around his bronzed body and Cherin paused for a pulse inside of her, savoring the way his cock felt buried inside the woman he loved.
Wait, loved? Of course, as friends, but…
The complication made him pause for a moment, until a gentle press of Leika’s heel reminded him that there were better things to think about. Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was betraying something. Would they still be able to be friends after this?
Leika, who had grown impatient waiting for him to continue pleasuring her, grunted and pushed herself hard down the shaft of his cock. He groaned in surprise as she gasped in pleasure, finally taking what she had wanted all along. This was the final straw for Cherin, who growled from deep inside himself and unleashed a flurry of hard thrusts. Leika was paralyzed on the ground, taking all of what he could dish out to her, her milky white breasts heaving as she panted in pleasure, holding onto his strong forearm as if it were her life raft.
Suddenly, her frail body began to quake and Cherin stopped, worried he had done something wrong, or had hurt her somehow.
“Don’t stop,” Leika’s annoyed voice panted, sexy and husky. Needing.
It sent a surge of longing through him and he rammed himself into her again and again, stuffing her full of every inch of his member as her climax began to pool around it. Her body contracted powerfully around him and he moaned from somewhere deep within himself he hadn’t known he was capable of. His cock shuddered inside of her and he felt the familiar tingling in his abdomen as his own orgasm suddenly exploded from his loins, a deep thrill flooding them both as string after string of his hot semen erupted inside of Leika.
Finally, Cherin collapsed beside her and gathered her up into his strong arms. They fell asleep together, not bothering to dress. They would worry about the complications in the morning.
CHAPTER 12
Leika was the first to waken. She stared at her best friend’s naked, powerful body, sprawled beside her own and covered by the tent, shielded from the heat of the morning sun. What the hell had she done?
Leika rushed out of the tent and stoked the fire before washing up and dressing herself. She felt furious for some reason. Although the night before had been the most pleasurable she had ever had, she didn’t want that to happen with Cherin of all people. All the girls fawned over him and always acted evil and jealous toward her for his attention. She had always prided herself on the fact that they had nothing to be jealous about. They had been the ones with the problems for imagining things that weren’t there. But what the hell had just happened?
“Morning,” Cherin said, poking his head out of the tent. He was still naked, and the sight of him turned her stomach.
“Put some clothes on,” Leika grumbled.
Cherin shrugged and disappeared back into the tent, reemerging soon after fully clad.
“How many heartbeats did you hear last night? I forgot to ask.”
Leika sighed. “There’s one to the south, but a cluster up north. We can’t save them all, so I’m heading for the cluster.”
“What do you mean we can’t save them both?” Cherin asked, his face darkening.
“I have to prioritize. The group to the north is really far away. We have to get to them. They are many. One to the south is nothing compared to this.”
“I can make sure we rescue both,” Cherin said, jutting his chin out stubbornly. “We leave no descendant of Kaldernon behind.”
“How do you suggest we do that?” Leika snapped.
“We split up.”
“What? Are you mad?” Leika felt a grip of panic seize her heart and she gave Cherin the death look. What was she supposed to do without him by her side? It was so lonely by herself. And this world was terrifying and strange.
“No, just responsible,” Cherin snapped back. “Unlike you. What the hell was that stunt you pulled last night? Do you care nothing about our friendship?”
“You’re the one who kissed me first! Twice! You can’t blame me for this. You started this mess!”
They were in each other’s faces now, both of them furious.
“Nothing can be the way it was before!” Cherin continued. “I don’t think that’s what I wanted. What’s wrong with you? Why did you have to mess us up like this?”
“Me?!” Leika exclaimed. “I didn’t cross that boundary first. You did. And you know what? I’m not going to accept this from you! This is my mission, not yours. And I make the calls. You don’t get to tell me what’s right and what’s not. I’m going north. If you go south, then good luck to you! Don’t come crying to me when something goes wrong.”
Leika grabbed her backpack and stormed off, leaving Cherin staring after her in exasperation.
***
Cherin grumbled angrily to himself as he packed up the camp. Should he go after her? Of course not. Not when there was a descendant of Kaldernon who needed help. He would make sure everyone had their best chance. Besides, he wasn’t sure he could stand to look at Leika right now. She had crossed every boundary their friendship had ever had. Now, things would never be able to go back to the way they were. Kissing once or twice was one thing, but she had practically seduced him! What man in his right mind could say no to that kind of temptation?
If she wanted to go and get herself killed that was fine by him. But he wouldn’t leave any descendants behind. Not when he was the only option they had at getting rescued. Cherin groaned. He hoped that Leika remembered to make her trail markers without him there.
He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. It wasn’t that much different than his training. Cherin squared his shoulders and began to march south, his heart close to bursting with every step he took away from Leika. But this had been her choice, not his. And she had prioritized one group and herself over doing the logical thing to save everyone else. Besides, Lopu had believed that Leika could do this alone. Who was he to try to help her?
Wandering on foot was making Cherin restless. Before long, he was tempted to ignore one of the basic rules of navigating Earth. He wanted to save some time and transform into his dragon form. That way, he would be able to cover more ground and get to where he needed to be without any worries. Then, he could return back to Leika as if nothing had ever happened, and they would bicker and fight for a while before making it up to each other somehow.
Cherin’s agitation gradually got the best of him and he shapeshifted. It was nice to feel back in control the way he did whenever he took on his dragon form. Nobody else would ever fully understand the way it felt to shrug off your human attachments to take on the powerful magnificence of the mighty dragon. Especially not people like Leika. She always had to be so in control of everything and never once tried to bend the rules in her favor. Not that she ever knew of anyway. For some reason she wanted Cherin to think she was perfect. But she was full of flaws, and each and every one drove him mad in their own special, unique way.
He strapped his satchel to his arm and flapped his powerful wings to heighten his speed. He would find the man to the south ages before Leika even laid eyes on the cluster of descendants, and she would feel ashamed of herself for doubting him or blaming him for the strange turn that their relationship had taken. Unlike Leika, Cherin never needed anybody to help him out of trouble. She was going to regret sending him off.
Suddenly, Cherin paused. He had caught the scent of something. Something familiar. Someone maybe. But how? It wasn’t a woman’s scent. It was a man. And he didn’t smell very much like a shifter either. Somehow, it
was more Loni.
Cherin inhaled deeply. Apparently he had traveled much further than he’d originally thought, because he was certain he had stumbled upon the descendant of Kaldernon that Leika would have otherwise forgotten. He shifted back into his human form and dressed quickly. If he listened hard and used what he knew about tracking, he would find whoever the man was.
Within half an hour the scent was stronger than ever and he finally emerged from the foliage, standing face to face with a man who looked nearly identical to the rescued descendants.
“Who are you?” the man asked, eyeing Cherin up and down.
“My name is Cherin,” he replied nervously. “What’s your name?”
“Archer.”
That was one of the family names of the Dragon shifters. Of course; he must have been the son of Clayton. The boy who had apparently gone missing when the descendants had been teleported back to Kaldernon. “Son of Clayton?”
“What’s it to you?” Archer asked, immediately aggressive.
“I’m… I’m here from Kaldernon,” Cherin stammered. “I have a request to bring descendants of our kind home.”
Cherin had never felt more relieved in his life. He wasn’t going to let Leika hear the end of this one. She almost turned her back on the child of one of the descendants who had been rescued. They had been hysterical for so long after the boy’s disappearance. It would be rewarding to reunite a family like this. And no thanks to Leika. Stubborn woman.
“I don’t want anything to do with Kaldernon!” Archer growled. He started menacingly toward Cherin, who backed away with his hands in the air.
“Why not?” he asked, genuinely confused. Wasn’t it better to live on Kaldernon than Earth? So many horrible things happened here.
“I was born on Earth. This is my home. I’m many parts human. And besides. I’ve got unfinished business.”
“What sorts of unfinished business?” Cherin asked, his heart thudding in his chest.