“Stop with the humor Liasare. I’m not in the mood. We’ve had to destroy a carefully planned warehouse and are now in the process of having to go to the damn trouble of setting up another one. I’ve not had the luxury of sleep for a few days now. First I healed you from the bullet that you took, and then I had to deal with the aftermath. Healing, as you know, takes a bit out of me, so spare me your sarcasm.”
“Right.” She should have felt chastised, but instead, she felt like she’d scored some points with him. Was this a concession? Was he recognizing that perhaps she had some brains inside her thick skull? Whatever...she’d take it when she could get it. “So talk Jurek.”
He looked at her long and hard and then said, “My people are known as Praestani. We are shape shifters. Unlike the shifters you may be familiar with, we don’t shift into another animal or mass form. Our true form is pure energy, but we are comfortable in either mass or energy. We travel as energy and are gifted with the ability to heal ourselves and others. We are very powerful Liasare, nearly indestructible.”
“How have I never heard of your species?” she wanted to know.
“We have kept ourselves unknown for many reasons, mostly for our healing powers. There are those that would try to harness and steal that from us.”
“But if you are so powerful, wouldn’t it be impossible?”
“There are always ways around things Liasare. You must know that.”
They stood facing each other, and she began to look at him closely, inspecting him, searching for something, anything to refute what he was telling her. He was energy and he was mass. He could remain in either state. He was indestructible and ultra powerful. Liasare felt the icy fingers of fear prick her skin and goose pimples erupted all over her body.
“Don’t fear me Davidson. The time for that has passed.”
“Can you die?” she wondered aloud.
He sliced his head one time, quickly and briefly.
“Never?”
Once again, he repeated the motion.
“But how?”
He narrowed his eyes but didn’t respond.
Liasare paced to the viewing platform and stared at nothing, trying to fathom what Jurek just told her. “Is that why the first time I touched Tak I had that awful reaction?”
“Yes, he was unprepared and didn’t have time to mute his powers. Normally when we are around humans or other species, we stay in a muted state. For some reason, Tak wasn’t that day.”
Liasare shook her head and shivered. “I thought I was dying.”
“Our touch can kill Liasare. But it can also bring the greatest of pleasure.”
Holy hot hands, don’t I know it!
She turned then as his eyes locked onto hers and she remembered back to that day. Yes, his touch certainly could bring pleasure, and waves of it. Her cheeks burned as the memories rushed back.
“Don’t be ashamed of it.” He was in front of her in a flash and he reached out and rubbed his thumb along her bottom lip.
“Why do you always do that?” she whispered. She wished more than anything he didn’t have this effect on her.
“Do what?”
“Rub my lip?”
“Because I imagine my lips and tongue are there instead, licking you, tasting you,” he whispered.
She shivered again, as the sound of his voice sent a wave of heat straight to her belly. “So why don’t you then? And please don’t say, ‘it’s complicated.’”
He sighed and nodded. “But it is. There are things Liasare that I would like to share with you but I can’t ... so many things. My life is ...” he released another long sigh.
“What Jurek? Your life is what?” she nudged him.
“It’s not my own to give.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Neither do I.”
“Now you’re speaking in riddles.”
“Yes, it would seem that way, I suppose. This is difficult for me to answer as I am trying to understand it all myself. What I can tell you is that in my five hundred years, I...”
“Wait! What? Five hundred years? You’re five hundred years old?”
“Yes, I am.” She began inspecting him again, wanting to feel him beneath her fingers, to see if he felt that old. She knew he didn’t, but her mind was taking her in a thousand different directions right now.
“Did Naroo teach you to use the transmuters?”
“Are you changing the subject?” she countered.
“No. You need to know how to use them. Come.” He walked her to the wall and explained how the flat glass squares could be accessed for food or to change the room into anything one desired. Jurek gave her a demonstration and ordered her a cup of coffee.
“So, you were changing the subject, but I’m not sure if it was because I thought you were old or because I was trying to figure you out.” She looked at him again, running her eyes up and down the length of him. They stopped when they reached the point where his snug pants molded to his hips, outlining what lay beneath. Liasare unconsciously licked her lips as she thought of that luscious tattoo, and...other things she’d like to get her hands on. Her face heated up with flames as she shook her head slightly trying to get her mind out of the gutter it had somehow fallen in.
What the hell Liasare! Get your shit together. You’re about to go up in flames.
The corners of his mouth tipped up but he never said a word. He cleared his throat, bringing her back to the moment and continued, “There is a prophecy I am supposed to fulfill. My mother has imparted this to me in my dreams. For years I didn’t believe her, but everything she’s told me has come to pass. Here’s the strange part. I think somehow you are a piece of the prophecy too, Liasare.”
“Whoa. What do you mean? Your mother told you this in your dreams? How can I be a part of this?”
“I’m not sure of it all except that the Prophecy of Thul predicts the end of the universe unless one can step in and prevent the turn of events. There is true evil out there and the Dark threatens to unfold. It’s upon us Liasare. I can feel it. My dreams would speak of this but I didn’t believe it until about twenty years ago. That’s when things began to shift. There’s been a disruption of the normal flow of energy. The Praestani can feel it when we travel. It is as if there is friction upon us that shouldn’t be there, and it’s increasing.”
“What does it mean?”
Jurek shook his head. “We think the disappearance of the thousands of humans and other beings is part of this. We suspect someone or something is creating an army of sorts. There are other things too. Creatures that haven’t shown themselves for centuries are resurfacing.”
“What do you mean?
Jurek rubbed his face before he spoke. He walked in a circle, and then turned to face Liasare. His brow was furrowed and his eyes were nearly black as they focused on her.
“You’re scaring me Jurek.”
“I want you to see something. Earth has become a breeding ground for...for things that should have been left to the Darkness.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Liasare, look into my eyes and I’ll show you. Don’t be frightened. What you’ll see is only a memory of mine. It can’t harm you. Do you understand?”
She nodded. She stared at his eyes as they enlarged and the pupils dilated, creating black orbs where all the whites disappeared. Her body was pulled through the dark orbs and she felt herself being dragged through murky liquid before she emerged on the other side.
It was night and she was standing next to Tak. They were looking at an old, two-story dilapidated building, somewhere on a street on Earth. Her vision was crisp, even though it was night and her skin tingled with the sharpness of her power. She felt so... alive. Her nostrils flared as they picked up a scent...a scent that shouldn’t be there. It was death. She recognized it by its sickly sweet odor. Not decay, not old, but recent. Someone had either died in the last hour, or they were near death. Her sense of hearing was intensely acute, and it was then
she realized she had Jurek’s abilities. A hint of something metallic landed on her tongue. It was in the air. Blood...lots of it. She tasted rust and moist dirt. Her body was assaulted with a barrage of human emotions...fear...lost hope...hatred...disgust. Something else drifted over her olfactory nerves...Xanthians...but another odor that was unfamiliar to her. Her power flared and danced down her arms and legs. She glanced at Tak and he nodded. He felt it too.
They silently entered the rear of the building and Jurek flicked his eyes to Tak, motioning him to go down the stairs on their left. They walked through the arched doorway at the bottom and Liasare wanted to scream...and would have if she hadn’t been in Jurek’s memory. Bodies were scattered everywhere, butchered beyond recognition. Worse yet, there were monstrous creatures eating the flesh off the bodies. Living humans hung in chains attached to the walls, some of them conscious, others not; some were barely alive. It was obvious some had been tortured, eviscerated and beaten.
One of the creatures looked up at Jurek and Tak and hissed. It had fangs that elongated and when it unfolded itself, it stood nearly seven feet tall. It had appendages on its back resembling wings, yet when folded in, they were completely hidden. Blood and human tissue dangled and dripped from its gruesome mouth and it moved so fast Liasare lost track of it. Jurek and Tak altered forms and destroyed everything in the room, including the humans that were barely alive.
Liasare felt herself shoved out of the murky water and she opened her eyes to see Jurek’s face. She screamed, and tried to run from her room. He pulled her into his embrace and placed his hand on her head allowing his soothing flow of energy to wash over her and ease her panic, leaving her chest heaving for air, but allowing her mind to accept she was safe.
Her hands grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and pulled him close to her, needing to feel his body next to hers. Her gut was knotted up and her body was invaded with a foreign iciness that shook her to its core.
“W-h-h-a-a-t were those th-h-h-in-g-gs?” she stuttered as she shivered.
He nestled her head in his neck, holding it there, saying, “We’re not sure, but we know they are creatures of the Dark.”
“I d-d-on’t u-und-ders-stand.”
“Neither do we. In my five hundred years, I’ve never run across anything like it. Tak has been investigating them but we think the Xanthians, or whoever is controlling them, are breeding them.”
“F-f-f-fuck.”
Jurek lifted his head and saw how pale Liasare’s face had become. “Hell, I didn’t think this would have such a negative effect on you.”
“C-c-c-can’t g-get w-warm.”
The iciness had crawled into her body like a serpent twisting its way around in her that didn’t want to release its grip on her. Jurek picked her up and took her to the bed, placing her upon it. He tugged up the covers and wrapped them around her and put his flow of energy into her. The current raced through her, tingling all of her nerve endings.
“W-whoa, w-what’s th-that?”
“Me ... my energy. I’m trying to warm you up.”
“I-if y-you k-keep that up, y-you’re going to have a d-dif-f-ferent k-kind of w-warm on your h-hands, if you g-get my d-drift.”
“Oh, I get your drift all right,” he said as he rotated his hips into her. She felt the bulge of his erection hit her close to that spot that started to burn, making her gasp.
“D-don’t! N-n-not unless you m-mean it. I d-don’t w-want you to s-start something you r-refuse to f-finish.”
Why does he have to be so damn sexy? His voice, his hands, his body, his hair, his mouth. Can’t there be one thing on him that repels me?
His lips twitched in the beginnings of a smile. She narrowed her eyes at him, realizing he’d read her mind.
“I’m not sorry I heard that. And one day, I would love to have your tongue trace the tattoo on my hip.”
She sucked in her breath on that one.
“Is th-there n-nothing s-sacred around you?” she murmured as she lowered her eyes.
“Fraid not,” he smirked. “But I’m extremely flattered. How can I not be? I’m holding a beautiful woman in my arms who thinks I’m damn sexy and wants to lick my tattoo. Believe me, if you could read my mind, you’d be equally flattered.”
“Do sh-share. It’s only f-fair,” she demanded, looking up at him, still shivering slightly.
He rubbed her lower lip with the pad of his thumb again before answering, his voice low and husky. “I’d like to make you climax again Liasare, but this time with my mouth. Only I’d spend time licking other delicious parts of your body before I made my way to personally pay homage to that special spot of yours.”
Oh holy mother of all mouths! Stop talking and start doing!
Her eyes nearly popped out of her head and she felt her cheeks burn as she immediately turned an undiscovered shade of red. Jurek chuckled and gave her a look that said, “You asked.”
“Okay,” she squeaked, “I wouldn’t say I’m flattered...embarrassed is more like it, among other things. Well, maybe flattered. Shocked, hell, I don’t know what I am. I think we need to change the topic here. Besides, I’ve finally warmed up. I think you’ve just split a few thousand atoms in me.”
“Here,” he asked as he felt her forehead, “or here?” as he slipped his hand between her legs.
“Get out of there. You’re not playing fair!” she said as she slapped at his hand.
“I never said I played fair Liasare and you’d best get used to it,” he breathed as he ran his tongue down her neck. Before she could react, he moved out of the bed and extended a hand to her.
“It’s time to resume your training.”
“Wait! What about the rest of the prophecy and all?”
“You’ve heard and seen enough for today. We’ll talk more about it tomorrow. Now change.”
“Turn around.”
“Why?”
“Because you’ve seen me naked way more than you deserve. And so have your men, especially Tak. Not anymore. There’s a new sheriff in town and she says, ‘no more nudity.’”
“Liasare,” his voice picked up that hypnotic quality and sounded like water gently tripping over stones, “I’m the sheriff here and I always get my way. Change your clothes now and take your time so I can enjoy the view.”
Without another thought or any hesitation, she slipped out of her shorts and cami that she had slept in and stood before him in all her naked glory. He never took his eyes off of her, nor did he blink. He held her clothes in his hands and handed her each item individually, devouring her with his eyes as she donned them. When she was done, he pulled her to him and bent his head into her neck, inhaling her fragrance.
“Are you ready?” he asked, reaching for her hand.
“In more ways than one,” she answered. He was going to cause a meltdown in her one day, of that she was sure.
Chapter Thirteen
“Do we have to listen to this stuff?” Liasare complained. “I hate Trent Reznor.”
“What would you prefer, Mozart, or maybe Justin Beiber?” he mocked.
“You’re kidding, right? He was popular like, what? Fifteen years ago. I was an adolescent. And I never even liked him back then. So what...was he your favorite?” she smirked.
“I think you know the answer to that,” Jurek retorted as he reached for a few weapons hanging on the wall. “I want fighting music Liasare, not cheerleading music. Got it? It’s Nine Inch Nails for today. Get used to it.”
Liasare gave him an obscene gesture behind his back as he pulled some other things off the wall.
“I saw that and you’ll pay for that later.”
Did the man have eyes in the back of his head? What the hell!
He spun around and was on top of her before her mind could register his movements.
“I can hear, see and feel things before you can even begin to understand them Liasare. It would be wise of you to remember that,” he said as he released her.
“You’re really creepy someti
mes.”
“You have...”
“No idea,” she mimicked him.
He cocked his head and stared at her and then broke into a hearty laugh. When he could speak again, he began to teach her the art of fencing.
“I still don’t understand how this will help me. Those creatures were super fast...fast like you.”
“Nothing, Liasare, is as fast as I am.”
“Oh, get over yourself already Mr. High and Mighty. The point is, I’ll never be able to out-fence one of these things. I saw how fast they move. I don’t see how these moves will help me.” They had come to a halt in their movements.
“You will have the added protection of your weapons.”
“What if they can’t be killed though? What good will these do?” she asked in total frustration as she raised her epee in the air.
Jurek slammed her into the wall, his body trapping her tightly against it, and he breathed, “Listen to me and don’t be a bloody fool. I’m teaching you this for a reason. The weapons you will be given are made of silver and have been forged using Prasetani energy. They are deadly to any creature. If you so much as wound them, it will buy you precious time, but a stab directly in the heart will kill anything. Decapitation is also highly effective. I am trying to teach you how to use these. Yes, the creatures are faster, but if you wound them enough to slow them down, Liasare, you can then kill them. Do you understand?”
“Why didn’t you just say so in the first place?”
“Because you won’t listen long enough to learn anything, dammit. You’re so bloody stubborn and negative about everything. And you think you know it all. You’ve only learned about these damn creatures a few hours ago and yet you’ve already convinced yourself there’s no hope and there’s no way you can beat them. You won’t fucking listen to me!” He was staring at her as his chest rose and fell with his rapid breathing.
“That was a little harsh, don’t you think?”
“If I had thought that, I wouldn’t have said it. Now light on your feet and lunge. Use your blade when you feint. You can’t injure me. I will heal immediately. If you wound me significantly, I will alter forms. Now come on Liasare. Give me everything you’ve got!”
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