by D L Colon
Bruce laughs a little and says, “You win.”
Noryad slips his knife back into its sheath and gets off of Bruce. He reaches a hand down to help Bruce stand up and they both look at Xandar. Noryad then realizes that Coral was watching the fight, since she is standing on the wall behind Xandar. Completely ignoring her, Noryad looks at Xandar, “It has been a long day and opening the portal for that many people has drained me. I needed to train and that’s why I came here, but now I need to rest. I will see you tomorrow.” Xandar nods and Noryad turns and walks toward Coral. “I apologize for my reaction earlier. I can assure you that it won’t happen again, Goddess. Go and do what you need to do, I will see you in the morning.” He gives her a soft kiss on the cheek and heads out of the church door.
As he leaves Xandar, his men and Coral see new armor starting to attach itself to his body, but he doesn’t show any sign of realizing this.
Merlin comes out from the shadows and says to no one in particular, “And that is why the Armor of Kings has chosen him.” Upon hearing this everyone turns around to face Merlin.
Chapter 45
Coral immediately feels Noryad’s absence with her body when he walks away. With the way he says goodbye she wants nothing more than to have his arms around her, but she knows that his reaction caught him by surprise and she reacted a little too harshly as well. If both of them want something more serious than they already have then a few things have to be taken care of first. As everyone else is leaving for their rooms, Coral decides that is time to see Albert and make things clear once and for all.
******
Albert is fucking the maid, and two other girls, in Coral’s room when Coral appears at the entrance of the Throne Room. It is dark out, but she wanted to make sure she caught everyone off guard, except for Bryan, who appears from the shadows to greet her. “Long time no see, dear friend.”
Coral walks toward him and gives him a hug. “Where is Albert, Bryan?”
Bryan drop his head and answers, “I don’t know, Coral.”
Coral, knowing that Bryan isn’t telling her the truth, asks, “He is in my room, isn’t he?” Bryan nods and Coral says, “Good, it is time to finish this once and for all.”
Coral heads toward her room with Bryan right behind her and as they near it the screams of pleasure Coral hears are unmistakable. The closer she gets to her room, the more disgusted she becomes. When she’s just outside the door and she hears Albert say, “OH yeah that’s it. Once I kill that bitch, Coral, I will make you my Goddess and we will have sex every night, all three of us.”
Bile rises in her throat and she’s heard more than enough to wish Noryad were here to support and help her with the decision she is about to make. Shaking that off and focusing on the task at hand, Coral pulls power into her hands and pushes the doors to her room open, making them crash and break against the back wall.
Albert, hearing the doors break and hit the wall, instantly stops moving as his blood turns to ice. Afraid to look, but more afraid not to, he raises his head and sees Coral standing there. The three woman, who were servants of the Goddess, quiver in fear as they clutch the sheets, covering themselves. He sees Bryan behind her, his face in shock when he sees that one of the girls is the girl he had been hitting on and Albert can’t help but smirk at the hurt in his eyes.
Coral, whose face has no sign of emotion on it, walks into the room and uses her powers to snatch the sheets from the girl’s hands and make them disappear. Two of the girls try using their hands to cover their bodies, which are drenched in sweat, but the last one is looking at Coral with hate and disgust in her eyes and doesn’t attempt to cover her body since it is already obvious what was happening. She turns around and says to one of the girls, “There is the guy you wanted to be with. Look at him, you have shamed yourself in front of him. You wanted this to remain a secret and you would do everything we wanted as long we keep the information out of his hands. Now that option is no longer on the table. If you had any hopes of there being anything between you and Bryan, they are no longer possible.”
Bryan shoots a look at the one talking, “What makes you be so sure of that?”
The woman talking looks at Bryan in shock, “So there’s still hope then? Well then, let me tell you this.” She starts talking and goes in to vivid detail about everything the woman he wanted to be his has done with them for years while they were trying to have a relationship. She even told him the lies she has told him to be able to have sex with Albert and the rest of the girls. Bryan, who had a fighting spirit only moments ago, now looks defeated. Even though he is feeling anger, hatred and distrust towards the girl, Bryan keeps his mouth shut, just like Coral.
Coral walks to the bed and snaps her fingers. Under the three girls a hole opens and Coral says, “I, Coral, Goddess of Fate, release you from your status as servant of the Goddess. I also send a warning to all Gods and Goddesses that you want to take down a Goddess, that you are all nothing but common whores who want to be under the sheets with a man of power. Now that I think about it, those Gods may hire you as whores instead of servants.” She snaps her fingers again and the three go through the hole, screaming loudly.
As the hole closes Coral turns around to face Albert. Bryan has taken out his katana and has it pointing at Albert, just in case he moved to attack while her back was turned. Coral looks at Albert in disgust, “As for you, Albert Rose, I will not marry you. If any of the Gods want to wage war against me, then let it be done, I will be ready for war.”
Albert starts walking toward Coral, but Bryan, faster than Coral has ever seen him run, puts his katana against Albert’s neck and forces him on his knees. Coral continues what she was saying, “You are now going to be sent to your family with a message.”
Albert’s face turns red with rage as he screams at Coral, “YOU THINK YOU CAN ORDER ME AROUND? I AM ALBERT ROSE, BITCH! DON’T FORGET WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO! I CAN HAVE NORYAD KING KILLED IF I WANT TO!”
Coral looks down on Albert with amusement on her face says, “That’s why you sent Blake? For someone who could have Noryad King killed you haven’t done a damn good job.”
Coral snaps her fingers and Albert disappears. She turns to Bryan, whose face is expressionless, and gives him a hug. As Bryan returns the hug she says, “Have this room closed off and burned so no one can enter it.”
Bryan nods, lifts his hand and forms a ball of fire, which he throws on the bed. The bed starts burning and Coral and Bryan leave the room, Coral seals the door after it closes behind them.
As they walk away she looks at Bryan and says, “We will be going to the Castle of Noryad King. You will be coming with me, Bryan.”
Bryan nods and they both disappear with a flash of light.
Chapter 46
Coral and Bryan appear at the Castle and are heading for Coral’s room when they see Noryad on the balcony of his room. His eyes are looking at them, but it doesn’t seem like he’s seeing them. Then he turns his face and, using his powers, calls the souls of the dead. They appear one by one, some are familiar faces to Coral and some aren’t, but the ones she really recognizes are Nohar and Liand. They are talking with Noryad, but his face reflects loneliness, a loneliness that she knows she can take care of. They haven’t sat down to talk yet, but she knows when they do they’ll both feel better afterwards. Bryan, who is watching the expression of longing on Coral’s face, says, “Why don’t you talk to him? I need to talk to him, not for you but for me.”
Coral looks at Bryan in shock and asks, “Why do you need to talk to him?”
“I am a grown man, Coral. I have been beside you for a long time, but it’s time to move on and for that I need Noryad to help me with something.”
Coral looks at her life-long friend and knows he speaks the truth. “I will miss you, my friend. May the Goddess watch over you.”
Bryan kisses her cheek and heads for Noryad’s room.
******
Noryad is on the balcony of his room and the souls of the de
ad come to visit him, not because he called them, but because they felt the sadness within him. Nohar is the first to appear with Liand. They approach him and start talking to him, asking how his trip to the other end of the Caribbean went. Noryad looks to his right and sees Coral standing there with a man. He looks at them, but doesn’t acknowledge them, as he thinks to himself that means she went to see Albert already. Noryad turns from them to face Nohar and Liand and notices that the balcony has started getting crowded with souls of the dead. Dragging his attention from Coral, he continues talking to them about his trip and what happened until he hears a knock on his door. He excuses himself for a moment to answer it. When he opens it he is face to face with the man who was with Coral.
Noryad looks at the guy for a minute and determines that he isn’t a threat before he asks, “Can I help you with something?”
The man nods and answers, “Hello, Mr. King. My name is Bryan and I need to talk to you.”
Noryad steps aside and lets Bryan come in. The moment he steps inside every soul on the balcony disappears, leaving him alone with Bryan. Noryad motions Bryan to walk toward the balcony and Bryan heads there. Once on the balcony Bryan says, “I need your help. I need to know if what I am about to do will be the right choice.”
“Give me a moment,” Noryad says and heads for the door of his room, opens it and sees Coral there about to knock. Coral is surprised that Noryad would open the door before she even knocked on it, but shakes it off when Noryad motions to walk toward the balcony. Noryad follows her and once they arrive Coral sees that Bryan is already there.
Bryan smiles at her then turns to face Noryad and says, “What I was asking is, if I remain with Coral will I find what I need or should I leave and make my own decisions and see who I find along the way?”
Noryad is quiet while Bryan talked. Now he is using his power as a seer and is seeing the options he has. He discovers that Bryan leaving is the only way because if he doesn’t he will be a shadow of the Goddess of Fate for the rest of his life. Noryad answers him quietly, “I will tell you, but I have a question for you and Coral. Are you both ready to hear the answer?”
Bryan answers immediately, “Yes, I am.”
Coral hesitates for a moment before answering. “I am, too.”
Noryad nods and responds, “Okay, I will tell you your fate.”
Chapter 47
Coral and Bryan are looking at Noryad with interest, hoping to hear what Noryad has to say in response to Bryan’s question. He looks at them both for a moment before speaking, “Well, since both of you are sure that want to hear what I have to say, here it is. Bryan, if you remain as Coral’s shadow then that’s all you will forever be. You won’t find the mate you are destined to meet and you will only be remembered as the one who followed the Goddess of Fate everywhere she went.”
Coral has lost all color in her face at Noryad’s words. Bryan’s face is expressing the same feelings. She has known this was true, but she didn’t want to accept it and for some reason she can’t see Bryan’s fate. Noryad drags them out of their thoughts when he starts talking again. “But, at the moment, you must remain here with us. You are needed here and you will know when the time is right to leave. I will give you a detail you might want to consider. Your mate is here, among the living in the Castle. Now for the other question, if you leave you will live the life you crave to live. You will use your power to defend those in need and you will find your mate. You will also leave a name in history as one of the greatest warriors alive, after me of course.”
Bryan and Noryad both chuckle and Bryan kneels in respect. “You have granted me wisdom, Noryad King. You are one of the greatest men I have met in my life, and you have my gratitude and respect for not sugar coating anything, and for being honest to me, someone you just met.”
“Rise, Bryan, you are a warrior in this war and you deserve honesty from those who surround you, most of all from the King of the Dead.”
“When my time to die is upon me my soul will seek you so you can grant me my rest.” Bryan says and stands up, shakes Noryad’s hand and leaves the room. At the door he turns around and says, “You two need to talk before you keep pushing the other away,” and he closes the door behind him.
After Bryan has left the room, Noryad faces Coral. Coral knows that Noryad has already apologized for his reaction. It’s time for her to do her part so she takes a deep breath and licks her lips before she starts talking, “Noryad, I’m sorry for the way I reacted to your reaction this afternoon. I know this surprised you as much as it did to me and I shouldn’t have let my emotions get the best of me. I know that you know I am superior in status, but I never cared about that between us. I care more about those moments we have together, those moments you look at me with desire and like there’s no one better than me. When you hold me at night as we go to sleep.” Coral stops talking as embarrassment surges through her. “Look at me rambling about stuff that doesn’t matter. What I’m trying to say is I am sorry.”
Suddenly Noryad is standing in front of her. “It matters to me,” he says and captures her mouth in a slow passionate kiss. He lifts her in his arms as he kisses her and walks toward the bed. He gently lays her on the bed as he starts to slowly undress her. He slowly removes her gray t-shirt and jeans as he kisses his way down her body. He removes the rest of her clothes and takes all his clothes off. He slowly kisses his way down her neck, making his way to her breasts and he licks them slowly, savoring the moment as he bites them softly.
While his mouth and one hand explores her breasts, his other hand is in her core. His fingers are teasing her, slowly getting her ready for him. Suddenly she arches her back as she releases a loud moan and her body shudders. Noryad slowly gets on top of her and he positions himself between her legs. As he slowly enters her she clenches tight around him. He captures her mouth in a kiss the moment he is sheathed inside.
He continues kissing her and playing with her body as his hips move, increasing the pace, making her moan. He bites one nipple and then the other, alternating back and forth as he draws out the pleasure for both of them. He continues to make slow love to her until he loses control and increases his pace. He’s pounding into her, making them both moan louder, until they both scream as their bodies reach the breaking point and they fall over the edge together. As they lay there in ecstasy, Noryad puts his back against the wall beside the bed and wraps his arm around Coral’s waist, as they both fall into a deep sleep.
Chapter 48
Noryad wakes up as the sun is just rising above the sea. He opens the window facing the sea, he likes the scene of the sunrise rising up through his window. He hasn’t put his shirt on and he feels the Phoenix on his back move. He is quite surprised by the changes he has gone through over the past few months. He has Behemoth blood in his veins, he has the mythical Phoenix on his back for him to summon if he needs it, he has found that he is the King of the Dead and he has found an amazing beautiful woman who happens to be a Goddess. He doesn’t know where to find the Sword of Kings or the Armor of Kings, and those are two things he needs to find, but he knows that the Armor has to choose him, and so does the sword, once he touches it.
He knows it’s time for him to check what month it is off the island because there is a spell over the island that makes time run much faster than the rest of the world. He checks in at the Guild and sees that it is already August 16, his birthday has already passed and he is now officially 25 years old. He knows that date doesn’t hold any meaning, considering the times they are going through, but he absently wonders when Coral’s birthday is. Shaking off that thought for now, Noryad focuses his power to see how Drake is doing. He sees that Drake is looking for Selene, but he already knew this would happened. It needs to happen for Drake to find his humanity. He shifts his attention back to the Guild and sees that they are all training and facing raids of Destroyers and Saviors.
Noryad pulls out of the Guild and shifts his thoughts back to Coral as he comes up with an idea. He summons N
ohar and Nohar instantly appears in front of him. “You called, your majesty?”
Noryad nods and answers, “I need you to look for Bryan and ask him when Coral’s birthday is.”
Nohar bows and says, “It shall be done,” before he disappears to find Bryan.
******
Bryan is training outside the church when the temperature drops and he sees the soul of a man appear in front of him. His first thought is creepy, but he shrugs that off when the soul starts speaking, “Hello. I am Nohar, Commander of the Elite forces of the King family. I’m appearing in front of you because his majesty would like to know the birthday of the Goddess of Fate, Coral.”
Bryan thinks for a moment then asks, “Can you tell me what date it is?”
“Yes, today is August 16th.”
Bryan finds this weird because it seems like more time has passed than that since his arrival here, but he says to himself; I need to ask the King about that. Then he answers Nohar out loud, “Coral’s birthday is today.”
Nohar smiles and says, “Thank you, Sir Bryan,” and disappears.
Noryad is waiting for Nohar when Nohar appears, “That was fast” he says, in awe of the lightening speed in which the souls travel.
Nohar smiles and nods slightly, “I got the date, my liege. The Goddess’ birthday is today.”
“Thank you. Now I need to do something to surprise her.”
Nohar thinks for a second before responding, “You can take her with you to the river of souls. It shouldn’t be a problem considering that you are a Necromancer.”
“That’s it. I will take her with me and let her experience it firsthand. Thank you, Nohar, for the great suggestion.”
