She nodded, raising her hand and creating it.
Tordan nodded at them. “I’ll be back in a few hours.”
When he was gone, Mordjan glanced at each of them. “All right, everyone, brace yourselves. We can’t waste any more time.”
And with that, he began to carve into her husband. She didn’t flinch, didn’t turn away as they removed the icy flesh, going ever deeper.
If Elsifan hadn’t already been dead, she would have been tempted to kill him again. Instead, she simply kept her magic strong, stabilizing him, working with his body.
Distantly, she wondered what abilities he would have when he woke. Would he be stronger, faster? She thought he might need new limbs for that, but she didn’t understand anything about it.
The irony of it all wasn’t lost on her. Just this morning, they had been in the caves, king and queen of what was left of the River people. And while life had been hard, at least it had been normal. They had been normal.
But with the day’s events, Durstin had found himself in love with an elf.
And in the process of regaining her throne, she found herself in love with a cyborg.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Durstin
Durstin awoke to pain. He couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, and for a moment, he thought he was paralyzed.
He forced himself to lift his arm, and pain like he’d never known shot through him. His scream woke his wife, who he realized had been asleep, her head lying on his stomach.
Instantly, her hands were on him, warmth moving through him, taking away the pain. “No!” she cried. “Don’t move!”
Mordjan was there, pushing some clear liquid into a long clear tube attached to his arm. “She’s right,” he said, gently putting a hand on Durstin’s shoulder. “We saved your life, but it will take a while for the pain to subside. Rest easy, I’ll be right back.”
As Mordjan exited, Durstin reached for Kiersten’s hand, his throat growing tight as he remembered the warm energy coming from her during the binding. It was a flow of magic, a flow of love. He wondered why he had ever doubted her. She could have left him at any time, could have gone back to her kingdom. But she had stayed.
He prayed he would live through this, so he could be the man she needed him to be.
“I feel . . . different,” he rasped, his throat dry.
“You’re a cyborg now.”
“No. Connected to you.”
She sat beside him, laying her head on his good shoulder. “We were already connected, my love, in all the ways that counted.”
“Wait . . .” His thoughts were muddled, but the full impact of the binding was coming back to him, and he felt like he’d been hit with ice all over again. “You mated with me. You lost your life . . .”
“I love you. I wouldn’t have made any other choice.”
The thought that he was responsible for taking any of her life span away was unacceptable to him, and for a moment, he wished the ice had taken him.
She must have seen the look on his face, because she stood and leaned over him, eye to eye. “Durstin, don’t be a fool. I am fifteen hundred years old. Old enough to know my mind. If I bound myself to you, it’s because I didn’t want to live a single day without you.”
The only time he’d cried since becoming a man was the night the Ardaks invaded, but at her words, he felt a tear slip down his cheek. “I forgive you for lying to me.”
She smiled. “You’re just saying that because now you’re stuck with me.”
“No.” He raised his hand, brushing a finger over her cheek. “I had already forgiven you before the binding. After I had the visions in the cave. I want you to know that I understand why you did it, and I’m never going to think about it again. I’m just going to be grateful I have you.”
She stared at him, her mouth slightly open and her eyes bright. She touched her forehead to his. “Thank you, my love. Thank you. I’m never going to lie to you again.”
“Never say never,” he said matter-of-factly. “You never know what life will bring. But I love you, and we’ll deal with it together.”
“Like the Cave of Knowledge?”
“Yes,” he replied. “Just like that.”
Mordjan returned, bringing Tordan with him.
“It’s good to see you awake.” Tordan smiled. “How do you feel to be a cyborg?”
“I feel . . . okay. There is a bit of pain, but Kiersten has been helping with it. I’m a bit confused as to what exactly you did to me though . . .”
“Technically, you’re a cyborg because you have a chip,” Mordjan explained. “But you won’t have access to most of the things we can do because we didn’t replace any limbs to give you speed or strength or install any hardware to enhance your senses. We simply replaced the organs and skin we needed to keep you alive and the chip will help to regulate the functions of your artificial organs.”
“Fuck. If I don’t have any powers, what good am I?”
“Well, you can still learn really fast,” Tordan said dryly.
“And you’re alive,” Mordjan added. “I’d say that’s a win.”
“What do you mean I can learn really fast?”
“The chip in your head acts like a giant storage device of sorts. It basically means you can download and store information, making it easier for you to learn the advanced technology.”
“Thank the gods,” Durstin said. “I feel like I’ve been tossed into another world—it will be good to be a part of it.”
“Yes, that’s also why we’re here. We know you have to finish the tests to gain access to the Cave of Knowledge,” Tordan said. “It’s vital you do that as soon as possible.”
“You should be ready to go in another two hours.”
Durstin raised his eyebrows. “Only two hours?”
“Welcome to being a cyborg, which comes with exceptional healing capabilities. The chip helps to repair your damaged bone and tissue, as well as produce white blood cells more efficiently. Besides, your mate gave you a lot of magic, both during and after the surgery.”
When Kiersten looked as if she would protest, Mordjan cut her off. “You don’t have to worry. Most of us got up from the cyborg surgeries and had to go straight to work. After the upgrades, the five of us went straight into battle.”
“That’s reassuring,” Durstin said dryly.
“It is. I was fully functional and had no problem using my tech.”
He’d obviously missed Durstin’s sarcastic undertone.
Tordan smoothly changed the subject. “When you’re done with the Cave of Knowledge, I’d like to offer you the opportunity to do the upgrades you’ve been hearing about,” Tordan said. “It will give you extra power. I feel it’s important for us as leaders to have as much capability as possible, which is why I’m doing it myself.”
“What are the upgrades?”
“They give you the power to use a suit of exoarmor. The suit allows you to connect different parts – energy swords like what the Ardaks use, an energy shield, wings for flight, laser cannons and kill twenty Ardaks at a time, speed and power like you’ve never felt before . . .” Mordjan’s voice trailed off as he removed the tube going into Durstin’s arm and took out the needle.
“Oh gods,” Kiersten breathed, “so much power.”
Durstin privately agreed. That much power seemed almost . . . magical.
“Yes, it’s incredible. Almost unbelievable. That’s why it’s important for us to have as many cyborgs do it as possible.”
“Is the process that risky?” Kiersten asked.
Mordjan’s lips tightened. “Yes, it can be. We have to replace some of your blood with artificial blood, so his body will need to adjust to it, and there is some upkeep because we have to add more blood periodically. We’ll replace his battery with one of a higher power and then teach his body to withstand the electricity.” He paused. “With Durstin, we were smart. We put the battery compartment in his torso rather than in a more easily accessible place l
ike a limb. That means he can take a larger battery than any of us, and perhaps will have the greatest power.”
Durstin glanced at his wife, who nodded, before he answered Mordjan. “Of course I’ll do it. I want to defeat the Ardaks as much as anyone.”
Tordan clasped his shoulder. “I was hoping you would say that. The rest of us will wait until you finish the tests in the Cave of Knowledge. Then we’ll go together.”
“By my estimates, we have eleven days until the Ardaks return,” Mordjan said. “So, time is of the essence.”
Durstin heard a voice with some static ask for Mordjan, and realized it was coming from his head.
Mordjan’s voice came through loud and clear, but his lips didn’t move. “I’m on my way.” The cyborg turned and left, and Durstin turned to Tordan.
“That’s going to take some getting used to.”
“It won’t take you long,” Tordan promised. “I can’t tell you how thankful we are for everything you’re doing. The Cave of Knowledge, the addition of your warriors to our armies, and now the cyborg upgrades. I’m sorry again that I didn’t come and find you sooner.”
“If you had found me sooner, we might not have found the Cave of Knowledge and the Crystal Cave might have been given to the Ardaks. And if I hadn’t been injured, I wouldn’t have become a cyborg.” Durstin looked at his wife. “Everything happened just as it was meant to be.”
Her eyes went wide with disbelief because she knew that he had never believed it before.
When Tordan exited the room, he pulled her so hard that she came onto the bunk with him, sprawled across his chest.
She pushed back against his shoulders. “They said two hours until you’re well.”
“They said two hours until I could travel,” he corrected her. “But right now, I think I could use some more magic.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Kiersten
All at once, desire for him overwhelmed her. Her husband was back, but it was better than before. She didn’t have to hide anymore—not her identity, or her magic. He knew who she really was, and had almost died helping her attain vengeance for her father against Elsifan. Even better, he was mated to her in the ways of her people and he was a cyborg so he had powers of his own.
As his mouth met hers, she parted her lips so his tongue could stroke over hers. She didn’t try to fight the passion, the burning need to be his once more. She wrapped her arms around his neck, threading her fingers through his hair, and met his mouth hungrily.
He groaned, opening his mouth in a powerful kiss that was partly ravenous. His arms were strong around her in a familiar, yet different, embrace.
She’d been so afraid she’d lose him. First with her secret and then with his injury. But he was still here, still kissing her, and still very much alive.
And there was no more fear of losing him. Not through her secret, not through an early death while she herself didn’t age, and he would be stronger than ever in battle.
She raised her skirt and straddled him, dropping her knees to either side of his waist.
His hardness brushed against her, seeking entrance. His lips went across her jaw to her ear, but he offered no small talk, only heavy breaths and a deep groan of pleasure as he slid into her. Her head fell back in ecstasy as he inflamed the nerves inside her body and she began to move over him, rocking her hips in an ever-increasing tempo.
His hands stroked up her body, cupping her breasts, playing with the nipples through the fabric of her dress. When his clever fingers found the laces of her dress and bared her breasts to him, she leaned forward over him so he could find a nipple with his lips, gasping when he sucked it into his mouth.
He was beneath her but never still, using his teeth and lips to traverse the skin of her chest from point to point, suckling, laving, lavishing her with pleasure until she shook with it.
She rose up once more to gain leverage, increasing the rocking motion of her hips until he brought his hands to her waist to help her move even faster. She reveled in the pleasure that built and raked through her, until it overwhelmed her and she shook with the force of it.
A moment later, he shuddered, the strong pulses of his seed pushing her higher.
Durstin brought her down to his chest and she lay on top of him with his arms around her. The changes between them, her revelation and his transformation, had made their relationship new and exciting. A baby would make it even better. She could imagine Durstin as a father, teaching his son the ways of being a man.
So, even though the timing was imperfect, she had hope for the future. And lying there with his arms around her, she found she couldn’t regret it.
∆ ∆ ∆
True to Mordjan’s word, two hours later, Durstin was up, donning his clothing and armor to return with her to the Cave of Knowledge. She’d even stopped sending him healing magic to dull the pain.
She watched as he shrugged the armor on over his powerful shoulders, marveling again at the way he moved his body. As he’d aged the past ten years, she’d felt the time acutely, but found that he’d only grown more handsome. Now that they were mated, she was glad they would be together for many centuries to come.
Durstin finished sheathing his sword. “Ready?”
She sighed. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
He glanced forlornly back at the bed. “Me, too. What I wouldn’t give for another few hours like the two we just had.” He waggled his eyebrows at her, and she giggled, covering her mouth. He was the only one who had ever provoked that undignified reaction in her.
“I wonder if we passed the test.”
He snorted. “If we didn’t, I’m going to take it up with the boss.”
She giggled again, raising her hands to make a portal. “Let’s find out.”
He strode through the portal, and she followed, taking them once again to the tunnel outside Merryth’s cave.
This time, the entrance was closed.
“Hello!” she shouted, wondering if Merryth could hear her through the solid stone. Then she picked up a rock, imbuing it with earth magic and then clinking it against the rock at the entrance. It made a huge sound, like a gong, and she heard a shout from inside as the entrance slid open.
“You could have knocked!” Merryth stood there, her arms crossed.
“That was a knock!” Kiersten retorted.
Merryth simply stood there, so Kiersten strode in past her.
Merryth gave Durstin a cursory glance. “I see you’ve changed – not just a Mountain man but a cyborg as well.” Her lips thinned. “Did you get your crown?” she asked Kiersten snidely.
“You know I never wanted it.” Merryth looked away, so she continued, “I don’t want to fight with you, Merryth. Why don’t you tell me why you’re so angry?”
“Forget it,” she shot back. Then her lips twisted. “What happened to Elsifan?”
That made her pause. “You didn’t ask a crystal?”
Merryth glanced across the room at a crystal on the table. “I . . . couldn’t.”
“We joined forces with the Renwyn army and the Garthurian elves who didn’t follow Elsifan. He was killed, and we retrieved the golden key.”
Merryth gave a choked cry, putting her head in her hands.
Kiersten instantly went to her side. “Merryth, what’s wrong? You should be happy. We retrieved the golden key so Elsifan couldn’t trade Aurora for his own trip to the homeworld.”
“You killed him!” she muttered into her arms. “I can’t believe it. He was my. . .”
That gave her pause. “He was your what?”
She looked up, her face streaked with tears. “He used to visit me in secret, late at night. We would sit on the terrace and stare at the stars while we told each other stories of the homeworld.”
An uncomfortable suspicion rose within her. “How long did this go on?”
“It started when we were children, but then you inherited the necklace, and everyone said he should be with you. After that, he ju
st stopped coming.”
“Did you love him?” Kiersten asked, already knowing the answer.
Her sister looked away. “I don’t know. It was so long ago.”
Sorrow filled her at the expression on her sister’s face. Merryth had loved him. And maybe he’d loved her. “Merryth, I am sorrier than I can say about this whole thing. I never loved Elsifan, and if it’s any consolation, I never felt that he loved me. He was just doing it because everyone said he should. Maybe his heart had remained true to you this whole time.”
“Him choosing you was why I became a guardian—so I didn’t have to see you two together.”
Oh gods. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“What could you have done about it? Nothing!” Her sister dissolved into a sobbing mess, and Kiersten put her arms around her. There was nothing she could say at this point to fix it. A thousand years, her sister alone here as the guardian, and her being chased by an elf who didn’t love her.
“It’s all right,” she said, stroking Merryth’s hair. “It’s going to be all right.”
Merryth slowly quieted. “No. I don’t think it will be. I had always held out hope, but now he’s gone.”
Memories had begun to come back to Kiersten from years ago. “That’s why Elsifan was so obsessed with finding the Cave of Knowledge.” Her heart stopped as she remembered the final battle.
“He was?”
“Yes. He must have been looking for you,” she said gently. “The Cave of Knowledge was not supposed to be found until the time was right, but he never stopped looking for it.”
“If he loved me, he would have found it.”
Kiersten shook her head. “He tried for centuries, Merryth. He just didn’t know where you were.” He had told her that he hadn’t wanted the crown, but she hadn’t believed him. Yet, if he had told her that he loved her sister, if he’d just been honest, she would have spent every second of her existence helping him look for the cavern. Though she doubted the cave would have revealed itself even then.
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