Ecstasy Unbound (The Guardians of the Realms Series)

by Jay, Setta

Crap, why did she have to relive her biggest life altering mistake with him? She would rather he not know of her failure.

  “I know this must be difficult. I heard enough in your mind to guess.” His jaw was clenching so tight, she worried for his teeth. Thankfully, his fangs had retreated. “A large part of the mating ceremony is the blood bonding. In that I will relive the most poignant of your memories, as you will do with mine. Trust me when I say that there are things I’m not looking forward to you seeing either. We have both lived long lives. I just think, if you’ve been through what I expect, I would rather hear before I see it.”

  Her heart stuttered in her chest. He was going to see it? Damn, damn, she felt the blood drain from her body. He rubbed her back, gently, and tucked her head under his chin. He whispered at her head, “Just breathe and tell me.” At least she didn’t have to look at him. Best to get the crap over with. She took a heavy breath.

  She had cleared her thoughts and figured it best to start at the beginning. “I grew up sheltered. With the Gods falling to madness from dark energies, my mother and father felt it smarter to keep us a secret and away. Especially since our mother always thought my powers would evolve into something amazing. That obviously never happened.” She brought her head up and gave him a tight grin. She found she would rather see his face while she spoke.

  With a tight nod at her attempt at levity, he urged her on, watching her with those penetrating eyes that saw everything.

  “The news apparently got out about my odd power and my mother’s feelings about my potential greatness. The Tria came for me… it wasn’t until later that we found out about the rumors and pieced it together. My mother felt it was Artemis and Ares’ doing, sending their demented offspring to breed with me... or something sick like that.” She had barely gotten the words out as bile built in her throat, almost choking her at the sickness of the two Gods. The Tria, the triplets Deimos, Than and Phobos, were indestructible and pure evil. It was rumored that the three had been fed dark energies from birth. It was said that that was why they were so powerful, and so demented. “My mother, Aphrodite, and Hades’ had been forced to exile the three to hell when they were unable to kill them. My brothers and I were unconscious and in bad shape, but I heard Drake and Pothos helped exile the bastards to Hell Realm.”

  “Go on.” Uri said in a tight whisper, but she heard his teeth grinding. All during her explanation, he’d held her in his lap, sitting in the warm water, absently rubbing circles at her hips or on her back. It relaxed her and she appreciated being soothed by him.

  “That was it. They found me unconscious. I had hopped into another’s head and was laying in one the hallways in my mother’s palace. They raped me. I wasn’t inside my body, so I don’t remember the act itself.” His body stilled and he got even more rigid against her. She leaned back into his chest and cleared her throat to continue. Her stomach churned. “When I came back to my body, I was broken, and my brothers were fighting them.” She fought back the tears that threatened as she relayed the memory. Uri had gone back to drawing the soothing circles against her flesh, but she had seen the fury in his eyes before curling into his body. For some reason, that grounded her, and she was able to continue. She had practically whispered the hardest part. “They were toying with my brothers. I’m lucky that was part of their fun. It’s the only reason Erik and Vane lived. The Tria were so powerful. It was the worst thing imaginable to wake up broken and violated, only to be forced to witness the brothers I loved more than anything, being shredded. I tried to move, but I was too broken. I couldn’t help them.” She had to stop and take a deep breath. “Finally, my mother and father, along with their warriors, came. That was the last I saw before losing consciousness.”

  “And…” He encouraged. She wasn’t sure how he knew there was more.

  “I guess the worst part was my “knowing” power had made me want to leave. I just didn’t understand it. I’d never felt my intuitive power until that moment, and because I hadn’t heeded it… Uri, the whole thing was my fault.

  “It wasn’t your fault. They would have found you eventually. Someday, I’m going to find a way to kill those fuckers.” He took a deep breath and kissed her temple.

  He took a deep breath, still holding tight to her. “Let’s see if we can work with the head hopping.”

  “Then, you can explain that talk of a syringe.”

  Chapter 19

  When they arrived back at the compound, they found it full of Guardians that seemed surprised at her entrance. Drake and Sirena weren’t there in the war room yet. Uri announced to the room’s occupants that she was his mate, which set the room a buzz, and sent flutters to her stomach.

  “Wow, damn, it’s true then, congratulations, man.” Pothos said, and came and gave Alex a brotherly kiss on the cheek. “Welcome to the family, little one. Though, I guess you were already a part of my family, cousin.” His sapphire eyes lit as he grinned down at her. He was huge, Drake’s size, and when he wanted, the son of Hades was able to pull wings from his back. His father was the only God with wings. It was known to all that he had inherited that gift. He looked so much like she imagined his father would look in that era, short black hair, piercing sapphire eyes and chiseled jaw and body. He wore black gauges in his ears and had a studded belt over his black jeans. Tattoos darted up his neck and others came out from under the sleeves of his tee.

  Vane walked in with Conn right as the rest of them were offering their greetings. So many wore surprised looks. It was a big deal. Alex felt a little shell shocked herself. She saw that Conn officially introduced Vane to the others. She wondered how they were getting along so easily. Vane had always been a menace to Conn’s computer systems. She shook her head in exasperation.

  Both Sacha and Bastian, the beautiful, exotic Kairos Guardians whose race was known for their teleportation abilities, moved forward. They were reserved, their movements graceful. Regal. Both bowed and welcomed her into the Guardian fold. Alex wondered if they were siblings. They looked so similar, like ancient Egyptian royalty with their black hair, dark eyes and tanned skin. Sacha was shorter, with her hair in a long braid, and delicate features whereas Bastian was tall and muscular like the other male Guardians. They were kind and soft spoken, with a respectfulness that seemed a part of their DNA.

  Dorian came up next. The Nereid actually looked more surprised than the others. Or it was just the fact that the others were getting past it, while his shock seemed to linger. He slapped Uri on the back, “Damn, who would have thought. I’m happy for you, man.” Dorian wore a bright orange hoody over worn jeans and a green t-shirt. Did that hoody have muscles drawn on it? She looked up into his smiling face. His blue tipped blonde hair was all spiked high on his head and his aquamarine eyes were stunning. He was tall, like Uri, but a little leaner, not that the male lacked in muscle. He bent and kissed her cheek. There was something about him she couldn’t place. It was a kind of awkwardness, but he smiled down at her and, wow. It made him almost too beautiful to look at. She couldn’t help but smile in return.

  When Conn introduced Vane to Brianne a few feet away, Alex felt the tension. Alex noted Conn’s expression echoed what she was thinking. There was some crazy chemistry between her brother and the female Guardian. Had they met before? Brianne had her titan hair up in odd Princess Leia buns. The female Geraki was a stunning with pouty lips and shining amber eyes. Her race was able to transform into an extinct bird of prey, or partially transform so that she was able to use her powerful wings on her human form. That explained the brown leather halter top with matching pants. She imagined a Geraki wouldn’t want to have their backs confined in any way. Brianne’s earlier whoop of excitement, when Uri announced Alex was his mate, seemed currently subdued, the female Guardian’s entire focus solely on Alex’s brother.

  Before she was able to ponder it, Drake and Sirena walked in.

  Sander grumbled, “Why are they here and not in Tetartos yet?” Uri’s muscles tensed beside her, as Drake faced the m
ale. Sander had darker skin, a mix between Vin Diesel and the Rock, with his shaved head and darker skin, but the hazel eyes and perpetual bad attitude were all his own. She and her brothers had learned a great deal about all of the Guardians in the last centuries. And she had to admit, he was not her favorite.

  “Because, I am in charge. Sit your ass down. All of you.” Drake’s voice could have chilled the room with its icy irritation, and Alex had exuded a lot of restraint not to smirk. Everyone found seats. Uri pulled her chair close so that he could put an arm over the back of her chair. She took a deep breath and took in his wonderful scent. His warmth flowed over her and soothed her as Drake began telling the others about Erik’s horrible situation.

  “Sirena believes the moment we get them to Tetartos, Erik and Sam’s mind link will connect and he will be able to locate her… as well as Cyril and Elizabeth.” They would most likely only have one shot to get Sam and the others out, and get their hands on Cyril and Elizabeth before the two found a new hiding spot.

  Alex had lost all hope of staying clear of Exile when she found out they would need to help get Sam from Cyril’s clutches. No way would she or Vane have let Erik go alone. They would be together in Tetartos. She hoped something bad wouldn’t come from leaving Earth. She still felt they were needed in the human Realm. She felt uneasy by the whole thing, but she couldn’t see a way around it. Uri had said that Sirena didn’t think she would get any of his Guardian powers, but she held out hope that maybe she would get the one that let her out of Tetartos confinement spell. She blew out a breath. It just didn’t matter.

  Alex looked around at the sprawled Guardians. Her stomach clenched. She couldn’t wait to get it over with. She wanted to get on with finding Sam.

  Drake explained, “We have no choice but to go in blind. Sirena and I have gone over all alternatives, but based on Erik’s situation, we will have to play it as we go. Sirena thinks he will go wild when we get there. We’ll start at the Manor, but probably won’t have long to wait for him to link with her. It’s Sirena’s belief that Erik’s been burning through energy attempting to link to his mate in Tetartos, knowing she’s in danger. She thinks that link, which is one of the first things to happen in a mating, will solidify, fast, once in the same Realm. Uri, Alex and Vane will follow him using their family mind link. After they track him to Cyril’s compound, Uri will give us visuals to follow.” Everyone nodded. It would be easier if they had images from inside the compound. Something Sacha and Bastian would be able to use to get inside. According to Drake, even if they had visuals from a guard’s mind, they still wouldn’t know how many layers the Kairos would be forced to go through. If there were several layers of metal it would start to drain their energies and they might get trapped. The two Kairos Guardians held hard gazes as Drake vetoed that option.

  “P, Brianne and I will go up to get aerial views for everyone once we have the location. Jax will bring charges, we will most likely need to blast our way inside. Dorian and Sander will watch whatever doorway we can make to get in.” The other male’s groan actually made Sander, Jerkface, grin. What was that about?

  “Suck it up Dorian.” Drake’s hard stare had made the male groan again.

  “Whatever.” Dorian lounged back arms crossed over his chest, eyes the color of aquamarines glittering with irritation, while Sander continued to grin. O… kay?

  “Sirena will stay back and deal with whatever females we rescue. The rest will follow inside. I’ll have to send direction on the fly for the rest, since we don’t know what we’re getting into.” Drake had said, not appearing overly happy with the plan. Gregoire, Conn and Jax nodded understanding. Gregoire gave her a wink and she smiled over at the big Guardian.

  The rest happened so fast it was like a blur. She, Uri and the others including Vane and an out of it, Erik, touched down on a beautiful lawn, a courtyard they’d said was set at Drake’s Manor on Tetartos. Uri had procured a spelled vest and was helping her into it. It fit snug over the black shirt and stretch fighting pants they had picked up at her apartment before heading to the meeting. She felt the touch of Uri’s hands over the fabric, and her nipples responded instantly. The back of his big warm hand intentionally rubbed against them before securing the zipper. The courtyard was full of Guardians, and her brothers, but no one seemed to notice.

  Uri’s eyes held so much heat she groaned low.

  Sirena approached them, silently and whispered. “You two will need to be careful in there. Until the bonding ceremony is complete, you will be hit with bouts of uncontrollable arousal. It could easily distract you.” The Guardian healer grinned knowingly and shook her head, before turning her gaze to Erik, sympathy shining bright in her violet eyes. Alex also looked at her brother. He was still in his own world as he stood with his big body tense, eyes shut. Her heart clenched looking at him.

  Uri pulled her into his warm body. His thumb stroked seductively at the skin where the shirt and vest met the low rise at the back of her pants. It was a touch that should have felt comforting, but was anything but. It created images of licking every hot inch of his flesh, like he was a freaking treat, made just for her.

  Shaking herself out of a bout of freaking Sexual ADD, she looked at her brother again. His eyes snapped open, he roared, his fury shaking the ground, and was gone. She tracked and followed in his wake. They hit a shield around the facility and, even though she knew it would happen, she, Vane and Uri all groaned at the impact. She felt Uri giving visuals to the others. Erik was in lion form, growling and roaring at the shield. They appeared to be outside a mountain in the heart of some jungle she’d guess would be in South America somewhere, if the continents had the same names as Earth Realm.

  She felt a knowing that they needed to enter at an odd spot lower in the ravine. She sent Drake the information, using Uri’s connection to the leader. She explained her ability, and that she felt it was the area where they needed to blow the hole. Jax was there a second later. She tried to get the information to Erik and the others as Jax lay the charges. It was an area outside the shield that Erik was banging into. No guards were to be seen. She saw the winged Guardians in the air. It was impressive, seeing Drake in his beautiful iridescent green dragon form. He was stunning. Brianne was in full avian form, soaring in the winds the opposite direction Pothos went, with his beautiful massive black wings extended, his black weapon harness the only thing attached to his wide thick chest and arms. The whole sight was exceptional and she felt a sense of rightness for the first time since setting foot on Tetartos. It relaxed her some.

  Blasts rang out, frightening birds from the haven of the jungle surrounding them.

  Chapter 20

  Sam gained consciousness again, her mind coming into focus in slow, hazy increments. She didn’t even want to think of the long term repercussions of the drugs they kept dosing her with. Though, who knew what long term was anymore? Days? Months?

  She needed to get out.

  Her holding cell pulsed in and out of focus, like the room was made of Jell-O that was being jiggled with a fork. She closed her eyes against the sight. Actually, she thought, it was more like being in a rubber ball. It felt like her world was that ball, being bounced against the floor, over and over, totally in the control of the asshole that kept dropping her.

  She blinked and shook her head, hoping the bouncing would soon stop. She knew they’d come, they always did when lucidity began setting in. Her muscles were sore from the constant tension her body pulled into every time she gained consciousness. She forced herself to block thoughts of other reasons she was sore. She didn’t have time, needed to focus and come out of the daze as quickly as possible.

  She took in her surroundings. She was lying naked in the freezing cell again. Better there than the lab. She didn’t dare think of that now. She felt fragile, as if she’d break if she allowed thoughts of her abuse to permeate her mind. Those thoughts would only serve to break her down.

  They’d cleaned her before locking her in, another violat
ion. Lucky for her the Nazi fuck apparently didn’t like dirty “patients”. At least she wouldn’t have to smell them on her skin. Instead the smell of sterile cleaners filled the frigid air.

  Sam forced her thoughts back to her goal. She needed to get out and try to free as many as her fellow inmates as possible. There was strength in numbers. With no idea what the layout of the facility was, it would be a struggle, but if she had others with her, they might have a shot. She’d find a way, as long as her tormentors stayed away long enough for the drugs to leave her system.

  She felt raw, all the way to her nerve endings, her body felt changed, she knew something was happening, just didn’t know what. God only knew what they’d injected her with or why. Nothing in the situation made much sense and what did made her sick. She felt like she was in a horror movie.

  Shaking her head to gain focus felt like it was happening in slow motion. She’d think on the whys of the situation later. She didn’t hear them coming for her, like she normally did when she started waking. It had to be a good sign. Might be the opportunity she’d been waiting for.

  Trying again to shake off the daze, she used what little strength she had in her weakened limbs to pull herself from the bunk. She had to close her eyes against the dizziness. She needed the shit out of her system… quickly. Steadying herself, she took a deep breath and managed to get upright.

  Sam staggered to the toilet in the corner of the tiny cell, slamming into the cot with her knee as she went. Good news was that the drugs had her feeling no pain. She crumbled in front of the toilet, her legs not willing to hold her as she stuck shaky fingers down her throat, emptying the contents of her stomach, over and over, until she dry heaved. Sweat beaded her forehead, but as she hunched there she started feeling less rubberlike.

  Standing on still shaky legs, she cupped a hand under the faucet, washed her mouth as well as she could, then drank, splashing cold liquid on her face between small sips. She needed fluids. Her mouth was dry from the drugs. She choked down what she was able.