“Being a bunch of stars in the Universe keeps me occupied. It’s a big place. But, I keep an eye on things. Thought you should know you put a twinkle in old Cynus’ eyes. Tonight, the Muse sing and the world is a better place. You did it. Have an extra cookie. Oh, and he’s your one, Kiddo. It’s time to be loved. You’ve waited long enough.”
The swan lifted off, flapping in place in front of Melia and tapping her heart with its beak, eyeing the resultant glow.
“There. I fixed your heartstrings. You’re a badass, like me, and no brat of Hades gets to mess that up, not on my watch.”
Taking wing, the swan faded back into the stars. Melia bobbed in wonderment, the restored energy coursing through her chest. The silence waned as the Muse filled the night with song, its beauty transcendent.
I’m going back to Magic. Home to Jasper. Forever. Filled with gratitude, her beautiful voice joined the chorus, singing as she circumnavigated toward her heart.
Chapter 17
Theo glided down to the scattered bodies on the sand. Turning his head, he examined each one. Wellie, charred to a blackened crisp, lay face down. That’s a mercy. Romer stared, sightless, at the stars. Lyra had squirmed her broken body to reach him, her check resting in his splayed palm. She did not move.
The witch looked at Theo, clicked her fingers and disappeared. Figures. I’d skedaddle too. What a damn nightmare. Can’t wait to shower, this air is greasy-nasty, funking up my scales.
After shifting, Theo knelt, naked, and touched Romer’s neck. Alive, but not for long. He did the same for Lyra and headed for Wellie. Jeez, Kid. Nobody understood what you’d be asked to do. You were one brave Cajun.
From the burnt husk, a faint moan came. Holy crap, he’s alive and suffering? That’s even worse.
Theo stepped back, locking eyes with Jasper. “You good?”
The black pushed down to halfway across his palms, Jasper’s sweat gleamed on his skin from the effort. “I’m working it,” he muttered, concentration complete.
Wellie moaned again and Theo swallowed over a lump. Twice today. I’m getting soft.
Fighting the feeling, he glared at the desert. Dammit Topper, I need you.
In frustration he bellowed, “Topper!”
“I heard you the first time. How did you call?”
He stared down at her. “Don’t know. I needed help, so I called out with my mind.”
“Useful. We need to practice that going forward.” She waved and jeans landed at his feet. “Call for me when you’re naked whenever you’d like.”
Theo grabbed them and yanked them up his long legs, grateful for the sass.
She knelt by Wellie, and Theo heard her soft sob. “Oh, you brave man. What a powerhouse.”
With great gentleness, she rolled Wellie. “He’s burned everywhere but his mojo bag.” She reached out and raised the bag. “High John, High John, High John, can you help us?”
A shimmer rose from her hand and a tiny dancing figure hopped along her palm. “I already did! Filled him clean up with dark before the Daddy did, made the seal. Dat Daddy cain’t get in, cain’t take over.”
“How do I release him, High John?”
“You peel dat boy like a satsuma. Take the dark crusty off, he be light underneath.”
Topper eyed Theo, then placed her other hand on Wellie’s shoulder. “I am sorry if this hurts, Wellie.”
Fingers trailing over the black, crispy skin, Topper sucked in air and pulled a big chunk away. Clean chest skin lay underneath, and Wellie’s body jumped.
“He happy. Keep me on him, I dance on dat pain.” High John shimmered and faded back into the bag.
Topper nodded, laying the mojo bag back on Wellie’s chest before moving to work on his face, clearing eyes, nose, and mouth.
“Hurts. Don’t stop. Get this... black crap... off me.”
Topper paused, inclined her head, and snapped her fingers.
Alma’s head swiveled as she looked around the desert. “It’s about time.”
“Can you peel him? Please? I’m Topper.”
“Ah, Chere, so brave,” Alma knelt, tears splashing on her blouse. “I’ll care for my boy, you tend those others, Ms. Topper.” With practiced hands, she snatched the crisped skin away. “Your hair is a lost cause, Chere.”
“Damn, Chere. The bele, they like my curls.”
“It will grow. The sea holds plenty of fish.”
Topper moved to Romer and Lyra, assessing, then sent the call. Lacey arrived first, followed by Elthera.
“What is your evaluation, Topper?”
“Bones smashed, crushed organs, internal bleeding. They are near the end.”
“We’ll tend to Lyra,” Lacey decided. “You tackle Romer, Topper.”
The three witches worked over the bodies, opening blood flow before placing healing spells for the crushing damage within.
Turning to Romer’s bones, Topper wept as she healed. “He destroyed you, honey. I’m so sad you endured this.” One by one, she straightened the ribs, aligned the spine and neck, and tended to his limbs. Air moved in and out, chest rising and falling, but Romer did not awaken or move.
“Any progress? He is alive but unresponsive.”
“She’s the same. The body functions, but her spark is gone.”
The witches exchanged a look.
“They are stable enough to take to Magic. Let’s get them home and comfortable; all we can do is continue to try,” Topper decided.
“Agreed.”
Melia floated toward the ground as the faint pre-dawn light chased the shadows from her front porch, and from the man who was hers forever, seated on the steps.
“Don’t touch me. I still have Big Daddy’s crap in me,” he warned, splaying hands with black fingers. “I’m working on it.”
Give him to us, Muse. We are ashamed.
“Jasper, hold out your hands, my love.”
Palms up, the vision of supplication, he raised them. Blue filaments shot from Melia’s head, entering Jasper’s hands and driving through his fingertips. Black goo poured from his nail beds as the last traces dissipated.
“You feel different.”
“I had a father-type encounter of my own. Zeus repaired my heartstrings. I am whole once more.”
Jasper pulled her close, savoring her scent. “There is no red, only true passion remains, Melia. I love you. When we left the jail to the sea, you wanted to be lovers. I can’t live without knowing you still want to be one with me.”
Jasper’s eyes, brown and gentle, floated in her seas. “Come inside and let me teach you, Melia, and begin a love story worthy of a Muse’s song, for now and always.”
Releasing the responsibility for the first time in forever, Melia let her mind go. Not a Muse, but a woman, not a force, but a beloved treasure. “Love me, Jasper, I am yours.”
He scooped her lithe body and carried her into the house, lips lingering on her skin. He set her down in front of the window and murmured, “Don’t close your eyes, my Love, see the sunrise paint your awakening body.”
His fingertips traced the collar of her simple dress, following the slim bones of her neck, massaging the fine corded muscle before dropping to her collarbone. The gentle touch made her shiver, his body fitting to hers from behind as he grew hard against her.
Each button of her clothing gave way in sultry tug, then Jasper pressed his palms along the tops of her breasts, teasing the straps of her bra before sliding the thin cotton frock off her shoulders. She turned her head, kissing his jaw before returning her eyes to the breaking sun, a spectacular show of peach and gold.
Jasper ran his hands along her sides, smoothing each rib and flowing, with knowing pressure, over her hips. He brushed her mound, breathing into her ear, and her quake smashed her into his rock hard cock. Curious fingers tapped her hidden bud before sliding up the soft curve of her belly to her bra. Hard nipples pushed through the thin material; Jasper pinched, rubbing and playing as Melia, instincts responding, moved her hips into
him.
Maintaining the rubbing connection between his throbbing cock and her round ass, Jasper leaned back, muscles rippling, and unsnapped her bra, sending it to the floor. He let his breath flow near her ear as curious hands grew more intense, his pinches and pulls contracting her nipples to tight pink buds.
With a growl, he lifted and spun her, grabbing a leg to open her into a straddle around his waist as he feasted on her breasts.
Melia squirmed, cascades of sensation throbbing within her pelvis as Jasper’s hands cupped her butt, fingers moving against her panties, touching a million untapped nerves.
“I’m not sure what to do,” she whispered, “I’m spinning.”
“Don’t think, just ride the sensations, my love. Let me show you the amazement your body holds in intimacy. This is yours, too. Harness it. My pleasure is to lead you beyond what you assume you know, to what you are.”
Blue eyes locked and Jasper saw the uncertainty fade. His finger slipped between her skin and panties, touching, with gentle taps, the source of her power. Fingertip sliding along the wet awakening, he rubbed, with light strokes, the tip of her clitoris. Her reaction was visceral, and her eyes darkened with desire.
“Welcome to lust, my love. This is the barest inkling of the experience.”
Breasts heaving with her quickening breath, she grabbed his shoulder in a death grip.
“Show me!”
Instead, Jasper kissed her, a slow smouldering kiss, accompanied by the exploring finger, touching, opening her flower and returning with the agonizing touch.
“I need more!”
Jasper continued to explore her, holding her eyes, and smiled a lazy, knowing smile. “Melia, here you are not a goddess or a Muse, not in charge of any timeline, incapable of controlling the tempo or the outcome. We move in my arena, where I make you respond, expand, crave, and tip from desire. Here, in my space, you receive the incredible passion your body can create, but darling love of my world, I lead here.”
Melia felt the cracking shell, a sea change as the realization covered her. “I didn’t realize I held my heart apart from who, at my core, I am. I hid in the armor of a warrior, protecting a piece of vulnerability so fragile I destroyed the memory. Until now. In this moment, I see my place in the firmament, a star bound to another, forever connected to a universe.”
“When I saw you, Melia, I felt this the first day you touched me. Your touch blasted me from myself. Here, we come full circle.”
He set her feet back onto the floor and dropped to his knees, sliding her panties off and bringing his mouth to her wellspring. Tongue moving slow, he flicked with varying speed and direction as she moaned, legs shaking with years of repressed energy. Jasper’s fingers explored her wetness, touching her hymen before tapping against her anus. Her jump caused him to chuckle, vibrating against her swollen clitoris.
“Each nerve is there to speak, Melia. We’ll explore them all.”
“Jasper, I’m falling. My legs, they are so weak.”
He rose in a fluid motion, sweeping her up and kissing her with deep concentration. Melia realized he’d lay her on the bed and stood next to it. Eyes locked, he pulled the tee shirt up over his abdomen, stretching to yank it over his heavy shoulders, exposing a narrow waist and a line of black hair running from navel to beyond the top of his low-slung jeans. Eyes glued to his fingers, Melia stared at the slow unbuckling of his belt, leather sliding and breaking free of the worn brass buckle. Jasper slid the jeans and briefs down, loving how Melia’s expression changed with the emerging reveal. Freed, his cock bounced near her face. She licked her lips without knowing, and he eased closer to her. Her hands moved to touch it, and he grabbed her wrists, halting them.
“Take me into your mouth, Melia. This is a powerful moment within the act of love. You hold and control my body when you do so.”
He saw understanding dawn and as her mouth closed on him, he smoothed her hair back. “Suck on the tip to start, explore it with your tongue.”
Jasper relaxed, letting sensation ride him as she learned his flavor and ridges, growing bolder when his noises encouraged her. The edge nipping at his control; he pulled her away and kissed her, tasting himself.
“You’re driving me to the brink; join me there.” In one fluid motion, he flipped her onto her back, teasing her nipples, stealing another long kiss before spreading her wide and lowering his mouth. The flicks across her bud, in varying tempos, rewarded him with a grinding pelvis. Brown eyes gazed up from her mound. “Do you want me within you, Melia?”
“Show me the rest. I have to know what we can be.”
He lifted his body to hers and fed his cock to her need, thrusting in and through her, calming her bucking, involuntary hips. Pressing and lifting, he showed her how to find a rhythm with him. They rocked, urgency increasing, a sheen of sweat catching the light. Melia, slick with need, cried out in pleasure while Jasper struggled to make it last, continuing to stimulate her slippery, sensitive clit. Melia’s hips shook, her head tipping back, throat open and eyes clouded with the intensity of her orgasm. Jasper knew he was gone. His cock driving deep, hands moving to a grip on her ass that would leave fingerprints, he came, shuddering and complete as her legs quivered around him.
Chapter 18
Melia reveled in sensuality. I didn’t see this piece as necessary. Awakened, I can’t fathom a life without it. She kissed Jasper, sliding from the bed and pulling on her clothing. The face in the mirror gazed back, stronger, gentler, and wiser. This is me, fully formed. Jasper, my love, you have brought completion to an emptiness.
He cracked an eye, and she beamed. “I’m going to Topper’s. I must check on the others. Come when you are ready. You need rest after yesterday’s battle.”
“And you don’t?”
“You’ll find I require little sleep. This nap with you will let me move for days.”
Her light steps crossed the room, and he heard the door to the porch close. Exhaustion tugged, but Jasper swung out of bed. Gotta find out how bad off they are. What they did… no man has greater friends.
Melia trotted up Topper’s steps, met by a swinging door. Guess she told her dragon to watch for me. Noises from the library turned her feet that way, and the carved dragon winked at her. Melia winked back, and the dragon grinned, opening wide.
“Where are we with them,” Melia asked in a low voice. Wellie looked up from his seat between Romer and Lyra, eyes lidded with exhaustion and worry.
“Nowhere. They aren’t responding. Stable in the body, but their spark vanished.”
“We’ve had no luck, spell wise, rekindling their auras. I’ve been reading all night, but my Greek section came up short.” Topper’s eyes, tired and sad, met Melia’s. “I’m not used to failing.”
“Your library is superior, Topper. I envy your patient acquisition of knowledge. You didn’t find the answer because spell work cannot reignite them. No failure lies within your efforts.”
We will restore the daimon, Muse.
Are you certain? It will silence two of you. The exchange of light is permanent.
The volunteers have committed, Muse. Seeing our father moved their hearts. Begin.
“Two of the collective offer to sacrifice themselves to reignite the fallen. It is the greatest gift we have; exchanging energy cannot be undone. The death of our body does not silence our voice, but trading our flame ends us.”
A parade of emotion moved across the room. Faces shifted with gratitude, sorrow, happiness, and guilt.
Melia shook her head. “Do not embrace a sense of guiltiness, it’s not the answer here. This is a gift given of free will. There is nothing within the Muse body but joy. See?” She reached for Topper’s and Alma’s hands and nodded at them to touch another. Soon the little library was a single connection.
“Wow! The sensation of nurturing overwhelms.” Topper’s hair grew pink and her eyes sparkled.
“Yes, this is not sadness or coercion, but the purpose,” Melia smiled, releasing their han
ds to end the connection.
“Do you feel that intensity all the time?” Alma’s eyes were gentle.
“I do. It is the nature of the Muse, and the interconnection is a humming lifeblood of cohesive joy and meaning within this form.” Melia touched Topper’s arm. “Your sense of duty is great, and respected, but none are absolute. We rely on each to be what they are. Set down your sword warrior, and rest. You have done so much it’s becoming a burden of duty instead of a joy.”
The tingle faded as Melia released her, and Topper rubbed her arm, thoughtful. That’s a lot to unpack, but she’s right, I got ahead of everyone this time, and we paid a high price. Well, no. Be honest. I am responsible for forcing this to conclusion. These deaths of soul are on me.
Blue filaments spun out of the crown of Melia’s head, wrapping around Lyra and Romer and threading into their minds and hearts. In slow brilliance, two blinding balls of silver light passed along two of the filaments, pausing against the crowns of Romer’s and Lyra’s heads before pushing through and disappearing.
The effect was immediate. Chests expanded in violent gasps as their auras, blew out, vibrating rings of light surrounding each body. Lyra’s eyes opened first, and she sat up, encased and shaking in the active light. She looked at Melia, amazed, and lifted her hands to her heart. Melia smiled and nodded.
Jasper walked in as Romer’s body quaked, bouncing so hard his legs slid off the sofa. Light streamed around his body, and his eyes opened, blazing blue under dark hair with a wide silver streak. Melia leaned forward, interested, and watched the light swirl within and through his form as the hair on his arms and chest changed, turning an iridescent silver.
“Metamorphosis,” she murmured.
Yes, Muse. This one is changing, both absorbing and emanating light. He is not muse, but no longer is fully daimon. His spirit now shines brighter.
He was great with spirit before, Ancients.
This may be a gift from Zeus, Muse. We do not understand it, but it’s pure light.
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