Perilous Love

by J A Essen

  “Tsh!” A sharp intake of air and Fuck are my rewards.

  Grabbing the pants by the waist, I slide them off as he angles his hips up off the bed. His entire length is now lying across his lower abdomen, bobbing in anticipation.

  “Close your eyes,” I order. He hesitates, but finally does so as I begin to draw my fingers up the insides of his thighs. Leaving my left hand drawing up towards his balls, I reposition myself completely to his left and brush them with the back of my fingers as I trace around and up his abdomen, dipping my fingertips into the small valleys in between each set of muscles. I pull my fingers from his body and shift underneath the covers as quickly as I can. Several seconds pass before he finally opens his eyes and finds me buried up to my neck amongst the heavy furs.

  “What the hell?” His eyes are wild with confusion and lust.

  “Not nice to be teased is it?” I joke with him.

  His eyes go dark, and a primal mood settles over the bed as he rips the pile of warmth off of my body and takes me…

  Magnificently.

  Chapter 23

  Faudron

  Morning has come entirely too early after last night’s round of entertainment.

  Twice.

  The sun is filtering in around the drawn draperies, begging us to pull them back and flood the room with its light and heat. Edana is already moving around the room when I open my eyes enough to allow reality in.

  “Ugh. I don’t want to,” I mumble as I pull the covers back up over my head like a petulant child. She pulls them down from the foot of the bed.

  “Come join me. I had the handmaidens start a warm bath and asked that they please bring food and leave it just inside the door.” She’s already removing the thin gown she was wearing.

  “Ugh.”

  “Really? I’m standing her naked in front of you, and you have the nerve to say that?”

  “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”

  “Get up sleepy head. Now.”

  “Okay, okay. I’m coming.”

  She just grins at me, and I realize my faux pas. “Very funny.” I angle my head at her and cut my eyes.

  “I’m on my way.” I smart back rhetorically.

  Shuffling my feet, I meet her at the tub and step in, the water warmer than expected, and sink slowly to avoid scalding my balls. Spreading my legs, I offer her my hand, and she steps in settling in between them. We just sit in silence, the beams of sunlight finding their way through pin holes in the drapes and slicing through the dusty air. My arms around her, her head leaned back against my shoulder, we say everything by saying nothing at all.

  This is what I never thought would happen to me; the lone wanderer, hopping from one adventure to the next.

  “I love you, Edana,” I whisper into her ear.

  Her skin begins to glow, softly; not like the bright burst she emits when she comes on my cock, but muted and pulsing.

  “And you, Faudron. I couldn’t imagine ever loving someone more deeply than I do you.”

  Once the water has dropped below body temperature, we exit and dry each other’s body; not sexually charged, but with true caring and loving. Touches that are gentle and relay so much.

  “Are you ready to start this?” I ask as I tie up the side of her trousers.

  “I still question King Nathair’s guards’ ability to spare the innocents, but yes, I’m ready to see this through.”

  “Let’s eat. I always feel better about a task on a full stomach.”

  She nods her head, and we sit down to poached quail eggs, bread, honey, jam and fresh cow’s milk.

  *****

  “Valiant!” I scream as I step out of the side entrance to the castle.

  Wallace is grinning ear-to-ear, “We found him wandering the forest and I recognized the saddle we had presented you, so I had the men bring him back. Would’ve been a waste of a good saddle.” He smirks at me.

  I jog quickly over to my loyal companion and encircle his neck with my arms. “Didn’t figure I would see you again ol’ boy.” I pat his side, and he butts me with his head once as if to say, Enough with the mushy stuff.

  Grabbing an extra riding blanket off the stack just inside the overhang of the stables, I toss it across Valiant’s back, just behind the saddle. “Edana, you can ride with me, here.”

  I grab her waist with my left hand and then give her a playful slap on the ass with my right before I help hoist her up onto her spot behind me on Valiant. Swinging up as well, I hand the proverbial reins over to Edana, and she starts to lay out the plan to the men as I move Valiant up to the lead.

  “We will ride straight through into the forest and then take a slightly western route up to the mountains. When we arrive, I’ll dismount and shift to locate the point of the portal entrance. You men will have to form up tightly on one another and be physically linked, hand to shoulder with Faudron in the lead. You, my hero, will have your hand on my back. As soon as I touch the wall, and it wavers, we must all push through together to have a chance of it not closing on any of you. The sensation is going to be strange and slightly disorientating, but the moment you regain your wherewithal, you MUST subdue the two elves standing guard.”

  The other men have now mounted their steeds and formed up on us.

  “At that point, we will have to make our approach in a very clandestine manner to avoid detection. The most advantageous route will take us further west, well wide of the city of Ithoran. We can use the cover of night to converge on the side entrance where there will be only one guard who will once again, need to be subdued. Once we infiltrate the castle, I will hide your men and seek out my friend for help. After he’s secured and we establish a plan of safe attack, I will return for you.”

  “Everyone clear on the details?” I inquire.

  The men nod their heads as Wallace asks, “Anything you can think of Princess that could cause issues? Any reason to believe they may have increased guards?”

  “No. The detail sent out to apprehend me and Faudron had a two-week window before suspicion would arise, and it has only been right at a week now. I don’t foresee any unplanned complications.”

  “Well, in that case, Princess,” Wallace motions for his men to fall in line behind him, “lead out.”

  And so with Edana at my back, and Valiant carrying us forward, we begin our trek to put an end to King Brennus.

  The ride to the forest seems to go by in a flash. Edana’s head laid on my back and her arms secured around me give me a feeling of determination that I haven’t known before. I want to put an end to this pain for her and give closure to a situation that is both sad and disgusting.

  Our advance slows tremendously as we begin to push west into the Forsaken Woods. There is so much growth intertwined between the trees that we must all dismount and go on foot to keep from being knocked off our mounts.

  “I take it this,” I wave my hands around at the dense cover, “is the reason you had us come from the west.”

  Edana nods her head. “When we do venture out of the portal, this side is avoided because of how difficult it is to traverse. We keep to the east near the waterfall and river.”

  Edana blushes and I know exactly what she’s thinking about right now. As I think about our first time on the edge of the river and how primal she became, I can’t help but notice the flush of heat on my skin as well. Thank god the cover has it so dark in here, and no one’s paying attention to me.

  At this point, the canopy is so dense that I’ve pulled out my sword, and I’m hacking and slashing our way through it all. Just as I’m about to ask Edana if she has any idea how much further we have to proceed, the tip of my blade sends sparks into the air as it scrapes down the granite side of the mountain.

  “Well. Guess we have made it to the edge of the Mountains of Dubh.” I comment as I check my blade. None to worse for the wear.

  We turn east, and as the foliage begins to thin, Edana puts her hand on my shoulder, “Wait. I need to shift.”

&nb
sp; She walks just out in front of us all and standing in a clearing, speaks “Athraigh,” and shifts into a chocolate-brown bear. With her nose to the dark granite mountainside, we follow closely behind as she works on seeking out the exact point on the mountain where we’ll be able to gain access to her lands.

  I’m cautiously looking around when all of a sudden I run smack dab into the back side of a soft, fuzzy brown bear.

  “Watch it.”

  A female voice? “Who was that? Who goes there?”

  “Faudron, can you hear me?”

  There it is again; muffled, but definitely a female voice. “Show yourself!” I announce.

  “It’s me, Edana.” She sounds ecstatic.

  “How are you…” I trail off as I look into the eyes of her shifted self.

  “I don’t know. I didn’t even know it was possible across species. It has to be due to our Joining. This is INCREDIBLE.”

  “I’m glad YOU think so. It’s a little unnerving to me. You’re communicating to me, SHIFTED, and without actually speaking.” Weird.

  “Well, silly, we are here.” Edana motions with her head at the wall.

  “Line up on me men, we are here,” I order. “Remember, as soon as we notice the mountain face begin to waver, we all rush through. Whoever regains their senses first, help Edana subdue the two guards. They’re going to be taken unawares, and this should work in our favor.”

  Chapter 24

  Faudron

  I feel like I’m going to be sick. She wasn’t joking when she said it was going to be an unusual experience.

  I push up off the ground and shake my head, trying to clear my vision that is still swimming.

  “We have this one, don’t let that one flee.”

  I hear shouts and commands coming from multiple directions. I push up again, and I’m able to stand this time, albeit slightly off balance.

  “Edana!” I shout out, not knowing exactly where she is.

  “It’s alright hero; we have it under control.” She sounds out of breath, but alive.

  “There is clothing here in my pack for you.” I slide it off of my back and feel it being taken from my hand.

  Finally, my sight clears and I can see Wallace and two of the men have one elf down and unconscious. It looks as if the other tried to run, but only got about half-dozen steps before Edana pounced on him and the remaining guards helped her bind and gag him.

  So far, so good.

  “We must figure out a way to keep them standing here alongside their normal positions.” Edana has shifted back into elven form and is giving orders, helping to secure success to the mission. “You can’t see great detail from the castle outlook, but you can tell if anyone is standing here or not. We need to fashion some type of poles that be driven into the ground and then lash them up to them. You and you,” she picks two guards, “go into the forest and find some large, fallen branches. We can utilize them. I can cast a spell to keep them unconscious. Guard detail lasts for several days at a time. I just hope this isn’t day two or three for these guys.”

  As men scurry into the woods, Edana limps over to me, favoring her right leg.

  “Let me see.” I sit on a stump, and she places her right leg for me to inspect. “It’s nothing really, just got scraped on the guard’s falchion. The bleeding has already stopped.”

  "Rune of Uruz, Symbol of healing, There are no dark dealings, I ask you to feel the pain, I ask you to detain the pain, Heal the wound, Do not doom, So mote it be!"

  I rub the spot where she was cut with my heated hands for several seconds and upon removing them, the cut is gone. When she puts weight on it and takes off in a sprint, I can see that the limp and pain are gone.

  Upon returning to me, she leans in and whispers into my ear, “Guess you’re good for more than just astonishingly great sex,” and gives me a peck on the cheek.

  When the elves are strung up and given the appearance of standing for the portal again, we head off to the west on foot, the sun already near the horizon. “We need to push quickly if we are going to make it to the castle before the moon is high in the clear sky,” Edana instructs.

  Our caravan treks off into the woods, keeping close enough to the edge so that we catch glimpses of the city as we progress. I can spot elves going about the end of their daily tasks; drawing water, feeding animals, children playing in the open. Other than the physical differences, you would just think it was another human kingdom we were moving towards.

  The edge of the city fades away, and the walls of the castle begin to rise taller and taller to the northeast of us. It appears to be as close to pure white as stone can get. I can see the length of the front run-up from the profile view, and It’s quite spectacular; must be one hundred yards long with either pillars or flag-staves spaced every ten or so yards. The windows are large and filled with stained glass scenes, most likely depicting their race’s history.

  Edana moves us closer to the leading edge, and I can see the small bridge with the one guard she has told us about. It’s very short, only about five yards and the guard paces. Edana says she can’t shift, or she will be detected.

  “Wallace, pick your fastest two men. When Edana gives the order, they are to cross the expanse at bolt speed and take down the guard.”

  “Caine, Rowley, you are up.” The two men proceed to the edge of the forest and count the guard’s steps to and from the castle, planning their exact moment of exploding from their cover. Edana gives the word, and the men count down as the guard begins his walk toward the forest end.

  “Three, two, one…go!” Both men are off the second the elven guard turns on his heel. The speed at which they cross the open, grassy area between the castle and forest is actually quite an impressive feat. Nearing the bridge, our luck continues to hold as the guard stoops to brush something from his boot. When Caine and Rowley hit the stone bridge, their footfalls alert the crouching guard, but he barely even has time to turn his head before Rowley slams into him, bowling him completely onto his stomach and Caine drops a knee into his back. They catch him behind the head with a club, and the short struggle is over.

  “Bind him and sit him here on the pedestal by the wall with his falchion in the crook of his arm.” Edana points to his perch. “Then let’s move inside quickly.”

  I find this take-charge, bossy side of her quite entertaining.

  The castle corridor smells old and damp; there is dense, green moss clinging to the walls and spreading toward the ceiling. The floor is slick with moisture and difficult to traverse without taking short, carefully planned steps.

  “Where are we going, Princess?” One of the men inquires.

  “Shush, idiot. Do you want to get us caught?” Caine whispers.

  Edana raises her hand, and we all stop dead; the men grabbing for the butts of their swords in preparation for the worst. There are voices just ahead and a small flickering of light. It begins to grow brighter and the voices louder and then, suddenly, just disappears. I can hear a door close, and it looks like we dodged another potential disaster.

  “Here, just around the corner.” Edana motions for us to move again and we follow two-by-two behind her. She opens a hidden door to the right and makes a hand motion for us to wait while she surveys the situation. The seconds tick by agonizingly slow as we stand, six humans in the cold, damp passageway of an elven castle. She returns with an all-clear signal, and we file in.

  Closing the door, she begins, “This stairway leads down to the river flowing beneath the castle. There are stores of old, abandoned supplies; stone, hay, textiles, all kinds of things to make fire and keep warm. Keep the fires small and the breeze should pull the smoke along with the river and dissipate it before it reaches the edge of the castle. I’m going to head for my friend, although I’ll have to take a surreptitious route to do so. I will most likely not be back until mid-morning at the earliest, assuming we can arrange planning quickly.”

  “You seem so sure that he’ll side with you when you lay everyth
ing out. Why is that?” Wallace speaks up.

  “He helped Faudron and I escape when Breacca, my handmaiden relayed what Brennus was planning on doing to Faudron. I have no doubt that he’ll be with us.”

  With that, she turns and heads back out; closing and locking the door behind her.

  Rowley leads the way down the stairs and nearly takes a tumble on the fourth step down. “Shit this is slick. Be careful guys.”

  We proceed cautiously, giving at least six steps between each of us in the case of another slip. The stairway is metal and winding, and it isn’t long before we begin to hear the bubbling of a stream. Another two stories worth of steps and we hit soft earth. There is some type of fluorescent plant life that I didn’t notice the last time Edana and I traversed this area. It’s giving off a vibrant, green glow and allows us to more easily gain an overall view of our surroundings.

  “Men, set up against the wall there. If anyone comes, their backs will be to us when they make the landing, giving us the element of surprise. Gather stones and build a crescent shaped block between the wall and the stairs to reflect the heat back toward our position. That hay there can be spread out to protect us from the damp ground beneath us while we sleep.” Wallace gives out the orders and the men snap-to, quickly getting the area ready for however long we’ll have to wait.

  Walking along the river, I notice that there is an abundance of fish, so running out of meat won’t be an issue. That’s a serious relief.

  I can’t help but wonder how Edana’s meeting with Taranis is going to fair. He did help us escape, but there is a major difference between that and planning an assassination of their king. Will our luck continue to hold strong?

  Chapter 25

  Edana

  Okay so maybe I was lying just a bit when I said I had no doubt that Taranis will help us. There is a minuscule niggling in the back of my mind that is whispering ‘you’re crazy Edana,’ but I just keep pushing it away and dwelling on the likelihood that he will.