by Debbie Behan
‘Oh, I see. You mean grass skirts and colourful body painting.’
‘Yes! You like that?’
‘No!’ She grinned. ‘I love it.’
He laughed heartily. She had grown accustomed to his sense of humour and the more they grew to know each other, the more she opened up and relaxed around him. After ordering moonjuice for two he took her hand. ‘Come and dance with me Caitlin.’
‘Sure.’ She tried to sound confident and worldly. She had taken only a few lessons but was not about to let an opportunity go to dance with someone like Axon, a gentleman who was both honourable and exciting to be around. Hardly a man she imagined spending a full day with a woman. Never mind that he was about to wine, dine and now dance with her.
‘I’m honoured you have been able to give up so much time for me. Does Zoren know you wagged it or are you supposed to be sick?’ she teased.
‘Wagged it?’
‘It’s an Earth term; if you skip class you wagged it. Sorry, not that funny now I know you don’t get it.’
‘Cait.’
‘Yes Axon.’ Her mind was dreamy dancing so close.
‘Just dance.’
‘In our world a man would pretend it was at least a little funny if he were expecting more from the woman he held.’
‘Cait.’
She chuckled. ‘I know, dance and zip it.’
‘I was going to say, that was funny. Now can we go to bed together?’
‘Axon.’
‘Yes Cait.’
‘Just dance.’
They both cracked up laughing.
They swayed effortlessly to the music, their bodies moulded into one another, and Caitlin felt as if they had danced together for years. Is there nothing he’s not good at?
I didn’t know you brought perfume with you, it’s quite intoxicating.’
‘I have no handbag, carry nothing.’
He held her at arm’s length. ‘It drives me crazy, you wear it all the time.’
‘No, I never wear perfume. It’s just me. Rory thinks it’s a power. It seems to get stronger if I feel threatened.’
‘What, with me?’
Caitlin glanced around. ‘We could be in for a rocky night. Can you handle it or do you want to leave.’
‘Umm…’ He grinned. ‘I want to see this play out Cait. It’s okay, if there is real trouble as you say, I’ll get us out straight away.’
‘Don’t believe me do you?’
‘Cait, just dance.’ He pulled her in, ready and excited to see what trouble Cait would get herself into this time and glad he was there to keep an eye on her.
‘You are one big mystery Cait. And trouble with a capital T.’
‘Axon.’
‘Yes Cait.’
‘Just dance.’
His smile was wide, his eyes bright and ready for what lay ahead. She hoped he knew it wasn’t him she was scared of or did he make her feel even a little threatened? It was something else, but what?
****
Back at the table they nibbled on a fresh seafood platter and watched the first performance of the night. Female islanders, dressed in traditional costumes with their tops painted on, danced out stories of old. After dinner, Axon moved Caitlin’s chair closer to him and she leaned into him to watch more entertainment, this time from the men. One of the over-eager bucks hit on Caitlin, first serenading her, and then invited her to join them on the stage. She refused, wanting to stay in Axon’s comfortable arms, but laughed and surprisingly went with him after three others came to help. As two of them lifted her onto the stage, she hoped she didn’t embarrass Axon as she had enjoyed a little too much moonjuice during dinner.
To inspire her to learn their native dance, they wrapped a grass skirt around her waist and a halo of flowers around her head. She had fun with it and enjoyed every minute of the lesson, giving them as much cheek as they gave her. The laughter at the table beside theirs was the loudest. The entire table stood and gave her a standing ovation when she finished. She curtsied towards them and clapped with excitement when it was over.
‘That was entertainment at its best.’ The one with the curly dark hair stood and asked for her name so he could introduce her to his family.
She winked at Axon. ‘Call me Red.’
The dark-haired one eyed her. ‘Glow Girl,’ he decided.
‘Why?’
‘You are simply glowing, girl.’
‘And you?’
‘Anything you like.’
‘Then I will call you Jett.’
Some of them at the table heard and laughed. ‘Jett. Jet black hair. Funny.’ The woman next to him chuckled.
‘They like it.’ He stood back and played with his goatee. ‘Jett it is then.’
She gave him a warm smile. ‘Nice to meet you, Jett.’
‘Same.’ He shook her hand, turning it over. ‘Your skin is so soft.’
‘No! Don’t even think about it,’ she chuckled. ‘No calling me soft touch or I swear I won’t speak to you for the rest of the night.’
She could see by his expression he was hanging on her every word. Maybe he thought she was really an actress and was a paid part of the act. Her team invited and made performers welcome at their table all the time when they went out at night. It made the evening more fun. It was a buzz that she for once was getting fussed over and she liked the attention. What could it hurt? They didn’t know she wasn’t a star and she soaked up the attention. She turned and put her hand out toward Axon. ‘This is my very good friend, Wolf.’
Jett shook his hand and invited them to join their table. ‘Your friend has us wanting more of her entertaining abilities and good humour. I hope we are not intruding on your plans for tonight.’
Axon was all for the development of connotations with other rulers and knew by the hum of their magic that they were powerful individuals. It would do Caitlin good to start forming friendships with those she may one day have dealings with.
Axon stood and extended a hand of friendship. ‘Maybe for just one drink then,’ he said, and picked up their two goblets and the carafe. Caitlin held on tightly to his arm as they moved across to their table.
‘Everyone, this is Wolf and Glow Girl.’ Jett grabbed the rest of the family’s attention. ‘Oh and my alias is Jett.’ He grinned as he pulled out a chair for Caitlin.
One of the men laughed heartily at his pet name. Caitlin was almost sure he was a brother. Even though they had opposite hair and eye colour, the features and build were similar.
The brother stood up and his blond hair fell forward as he reached over to shake Axon’s hand. ‘For the exercise you can call me Calyx.’
Caitlin was so absorbed in his baby blues that she blushed when he spoke and hadn’t caught a word he said. ‘Sorry.’ She giggled. ‘Can’t hear anything over the music,’ she fibbed.
‘I said, this is my wife, Zuri,’ he said more loudly.
‘We also use code-names.’ Zuri shook Caitlin’s hand. The leggy blonde with the stunning looks tossed her hair back and lowered herself delicately back in her seat.
Next to be introduced was Jett’s wife, Melita, who was quite amused. ‘I think I like it better than the one we normally use.’ She took Caitlin’s hand gently. Her personality radiated sweetness, and the pitch-black hair and eyes gave her a cultured and mystic appearance.
On the other side of the table, yet another sibling looked nothing like his two strikingly handsome brothers. He had long blond hair and a beard that she wondered if he had ever shaved. Caitlin laughed with him. His personality was loud yet he was easy to get along with and during the night, Caitlin changed his alias to Razor, because he needed one. His wife, who never got a word in edgeways around him, he called Angel, and Caitlin thought she looked just like one.
The last man at the table was the brothers’ father. He kept giving Caitlin bear hugs and growled in her ear during the evening so she amended his title to Ted Bear. He scowled every time she called him that, but didn’t ask it to b
e changed. His wife then became Honey Bear. She was sweet and chuckled constantly, which made them all laugh even more. If she got Ted started, his big belly laugh shook the table. Caitlin took to him and spent time getting to know him better, sitting between him and Razor for a while. They had big personalities and were very similar.
She pulled at their beards. ‘Even these things are the same. You both need a good shave.’
They laughed, their eyes telling her they enjoyed every minute of her teasing. It surprised Caitlin as she never normally made friends this easily, yet these people she felt she’d known forever. She was having such a good time with them too.
Jett at one stage led Caitlin to the dance floor, and his attention had Axon on his toes. ‘If he wasn’t married I’d worry about my competition,’ he whispered to her when she came back to the table.
‘I’m having a blast A— I mean Wolf,’ she said, and leaned into him.
‘I think it’s time we left. You’re worn out.’
‘It’s all the dancing. Can we stay if I sit here and catch my breath? ’
‘Of course we can,’ he said. Her eyes were alight and she looked gorgeous. Her perfume grew stronger, and drew them all in. Energised again, Caitlin jumped up and moved around the table to chat to the women. Axon shook his head and snapped himself out of the daze she kept putting him in while near him. If she was doing this to him, he wondered what this power was doing to them.
Goodbye
Delphinus Island
At the end of the evening, they wandered back down the beach. ‘I guess we should go home.’ Axon held her hand.
Caitlin sat down onto the sand. ‘You know what I have always wanted to do?’
‘What? Lie on the beach of a magical paradise, with the man of your dreams and gaze up at the stars?’
‘Yep.’
He eyed her. Why did I say that? He knew they should be getting back. ‘I was just kidding.’
‘I’m not! She lay back on the sand and smiled shyly.
Not wanting to spoil the fragile innocence he saw in her eyes he lay down beside her. Caitlin rolled into him, comforted by an arm that held her protectively.
****
Daylight shone in their eyes and woke them. They had fallen asleep under the moonlight sky and Axon sat up quickly. Caitlin scrambled to her feet.
‘What!’
‘Hell, I fell asleep. Sorry Cait, I didn’t mean to startle you!’
‘Startle me! Geez, I thought we were under attack.’
‘What were you going to do; blow these up?’ Amused, he held up pillows someone had put under their heads while they slept.
‘Guess not.’ She looked around at the empty beach. ‘Where did they come from?’
‘No idea, but let’s find out.’ He glanced around.
Their new friends from last night sat out on their balcony far in the distance, a BBQ sizzled near them, and the aroma of bacon and eggs wafted in the slight breeze that blew suddenly towards them. They waved at Axon and Caitlin to join them. Without Caitlin having him under her spell as she had to keep him there last night, Axon saw through their magic and realised who they were. These undercover gods and goddesses had fooled him last night, but not in the light of day. Careful to prevent confrontation, he waved back to them politely.
‘Can we join them?’ Caitlin’s puppy dog eyes he found hard to refuse.
‘Just for another hour and then I have to be at work.’ He fiddled with his watch, unsure why he didn’t just say no. Caitlin had given him no chance to think and had him by the hand. Her impatience to get to them made him feel uneasy. He suddenly realised Caitlin had no idea why, but she had to cement the relationship with these people before they left. Something more was going down here and all he could do was support her until the mystery unfolded.
As with last night, Caitlin provoked the royal treatment with her joyful mood. The perfume, that was stronger today, had Axon fight to control further thoughts as her strange mystic charm forced them all to forget everything and just enjoy the moment. He shook his head and tried to remember if there was something else he should be doing. Forgetting about his work commitment, he took the coffee they handed to him and slumped down in the chair next to hers. His legs he sprawled out, suddenly calm and relaxed.
‘Ah this is the life; woke on an island with a beautiful woman next to me and now, with coffee in hand, who could ask for more?’
The father that Cait had named Ted Bear lifted his mug in a friendly gesture. ‘A coffee and breakfast is the least we can offer you both for so much entertainment. This has to be one of our best weekends here.’
They all agreed, and the conversation then turned to the mystery pillows and how Jett had gone to wake them. ‘He went to offer you two a bed for the night, but when he saw you were out cold, he put pillows under your heads,’ Ted said.
Jett came around the corner, tongs in hand. ‘Ah you’re awake.’ He put an arm around Caitlin. ‘Come, talk to me while I turn the bacon.’
‘Don’t get her to help you,’ Axon said. ‘I want to be able to chew it.’
‘Ha ha funny!’ She poked her tongue out at him and catching her, Jett smiled down at her.
‘No good in the kitchen?’
She shook her head.
‘Well you can’t be beautiful and cook too.’
Her face lit up and she glowed with the compliment.
‘Glow Girl, it suits you, lovely one.’ He touched her cheek softly.
Mission Tragedy
Axon and Caitlin had only just had a shower and were together enjoying a coffee when Rory found them in the kitchen.
‘To the tower!’ He banished them for their sneaky extended trip away. ‘Guess we can’t trust either of you. I should ground you both.’
They were happy to do a shift. It was late but they were far from tired, still energised from the couple of days away.
****
On Zoren’s orders, Rory and the team stayed on Ara to continue monitoring the sky. It had been a couple of weeks since Caitlin’s weekend away and after two more sessions with Woody, she felt much better. In fact she felt so good that night when she sat on watch, she was sure the heavens reached out to her and, through a psychic message, cautioned her of imminent danger. She woke Axon and Rory. Both raced up to the tower and manipulated the equipment to project a larger circumference as they searched the sky.
‘There!’ Rory pointed.
Axon punched heavily on the keyboard as he fed more data into the superior mainframe, the object finally coming into view.
‘Got it!’ He contacted Zoren while Rory hit the alarm. The ear piercing sound screeched through the castle.
‘That’s it mate, let’s get out there.’ Axon snatched up Caitlin in one arm and grabbed Rory by the elbow, and transported the three of them into the barn.
Rory began to bark orders. ‘The rest of the team will be here any second. I’ll organise the horses if you two can collect the bridles. I’ll meet you both out front.’
By the time Axon and Caitlin got outside, Rory had lined up the rides and was ready to help put the magic golden leather around the horses’ heads. The display of armour and wings always caught Caitlin’s breath.
Bree and Lisha arrived first and too much haste had them scramble oddly upon their stallions. Both girls giggled at each other. ‘We need to work on this, hey, stupid!’ Lisha pushed at Bree, which made her chuckle more.
Caitlin was tiny compared with Shargan, but the powerful animal chose her and no other would she ride. Because of this disadvantage, her horse knelt as she always did, which allowed her to mount without assistance.
Jarvis and Nathan ran towards them. They grinned at each other, somersaulted and leapt straight on their horses. Rory and Axon sideways glanced at each other. ‘So these are the cowboys I’ve hired.’ Axon shook his head. ‘Just hope Zoren never witnesses this mad bunch the way they mount a horse.’ He waved them off as Rory moved them up towards the danger.
Okay, ride
rs, from the tower we spotted three comets. The gas coming from them alone, if ignited, could blow out and cause massive damage to surrounding home worlds. Caitlin you will need to focus and send them to the coordinates I give you before you even think about sending out any sparks in their direction. Rory spoke telepathically to them. Caitlin, can you send the three of them up together?
She put both thumbs up. The no talking rule was something she wasn’t used to yet. Excited to try out her newfound powers on the three comets, Caitlin’s multitasking had her adrenalin at its peak, already powered up and calculating the ratio she would need to match the matter.
Rory split the teams into two. After placing them in position, he concentrated back on Caitlin. Steady now Cait, all I want you to do is push them off course. The teams will take over once they are high enough. After we’re out of sight I want you to sit and wait for further orders.
Caitlin nodded, her eyes quickly spotting the faint light that came towards her. She targeted their location, closed her eyes, visualised, but still needed a bit extra. A slight nudge at Shargan and now she had enough. Her horse understood her every movement, and the spirited animal kept her steady as she opened her eyes, aimed and thrust her hand in the air. The rush of power ejected from Caitlin like three giant bolts of blue electrical currents. The charged element encased the brutal comets and with little effort, turned them and sent the gas and matter into outer space. Rory had his hand up to give her the thumbs up when he saw a dark mist settle around her and Shargan.
****
From the tower, Axon felt helpless as he watched a faceless figure appear, arms enclosed around the woman he loved. He immediately transported to the spot but missed the mark as the Shargan faded. The only sound was his own agonising plea as he got a glimpse of the captor. ‘Please Jett, don’t hurt her!’ And the captor’s curse as he swore when he saw who he had. Both vanished in an instant.
****
Caitlin had been seized and Rory who had also raced to her rescue, picked up a devastated Axon. ‘Hell, Rory, that was Hades. If he takes her to Pluto she’s either already dead, or he’ll keep her so deep in the Underworld, she’ll never be found.’ His heart bled and his voice cried out for the safe return of the only woman he had ever loved. He knew only the gods could grant him his wish. How can it come true when it is a god who has taken her! His hopeful spirit sank but he still had to try.