by Bevan Greer
“Almost as delightful as the time you lost the Cazeth, a group of unstable chaons that are still at large and have been for what, a decade?” Demise asked thoughtfully, his voice calm and polite.
Krital’s laughter left him and he frowned. “Honestly, you demons have no sense of humor,” he said sourly. “And you bring up the Cazeth every time I see you,” he grumbled. “But the Master is right. We can’t have demons and devels leaving the world. Let’s get started and see where we need begin our search,” Krital said with a sigh.
Demise watched Krital out of the corner of his eye as they moved towards his house to confer. He sent a mental warning to his servants to gather the leader of the Thirst Demons to him with a full report of their efforts thus far.
Krital irritated him beyond measure, but he did have a fair reputation, the Cazeth not withstanding, for being a great and terrible devel. A master of both fire and ice, Krital would be a force to reckon with in battle. For while Demise could worm his way into Krital’s mind, he’d have to do so without burning or freezing to death.
They entered Demise’s house and moved straight towards the seating room where the Thirst Leader stood waiting along with two of his warriors.
“Not a bad place to live,” Krital said thoughtfully as they moved through the dark corridors. “Dark and yet clean of any glimmer of chaos or death. Even your pets are orderly.” He grinned.
Demise ignored him and moved towards his soldiers.
“Report,” he ordered.
“They are nowhere in System space, Lord Demise,” Ceck, Captain of the Thirst Demons reported. “Our last report of the SpaceStalker, the prisoner’s ship, showed it to be heavily damaged. We concluded that the ship is now under repair, but where we do not know.”
Lord Demise nodded. If only Naria were here with her vast knowledge of the System, he thought. She could tell them the best place for a ship to find repair in the System.
“Try Rovi,” Keep Krital said. At Demise’s questioning look, he shrugged. “I have young ones interested in everything outside of Dark World as well, Demise. And one of my brood has an incurable fascination with planet Rovi. Apparently the gray skinned creatures there can fix anything.”
Demise nodded. “Very well. Ceck, regroup the demons. The Searchers will be taking over now,” he said aloud. Mentally he commanded his man to get a party out to Rovi immediately.
Ceck nodded and bowed to both demon and devel before leaving with his men in tow.
Krital watched Ceck and his men leave before turning a wary gaze on Demise. “I hope you know what you are about,” he said quietly and left Demise staring after him, wondering whether his intent had been obvious or just how much of the devel’s powers he didn’t know about.
“So you’re telling me that the Cazeth are from a moon called Wern on Dark World? I didn’t see anything more than the planet when we were forced to land,” Jace murmured as he listened to Naria’s quick mind at work. He loved the way her eyes glowed as she spoke about history. She obviously loved her subject matter and was more than just a little librarian on Seven. Stars, the woman knew more about Dark World than any ‘scholar’ he’d ever come across.
And she had a workingman’s knowledge of the Cazeth. Amazing, he thought, determined to see her home to Seven and study these volumes from which she’d gathered her information. The thought of actually battling and defeating the miserable aliens who had invaded and turned his planet into chaos made his muscles tense, his mind filled with glory and revenge.
“Uh, well,” Naria answered him slowly. Interestingly enough, she seemed shy about taking any credit for her knowledge, constantly mentioning the worthy scholars that had gathered the information. She didn’t realize, obviously, that putting that research together into rational thought was a skill in of itself.
“Dark World has its own means of protecting itself, apparently. The five moons of Dark World aren’t visible to the naked eye, enshrouded in darkness. And they aren’t traversable without the Trans Sector circles.”
“Tell me more,” Jace said and stood, escorting her out of the library into the bright sunshine of Rovi. Talking about dark worlds made him itch to see the light and he walked with her slowly towards a cantina, hungry for more than just her words.
“Dark World has its own defenses, the dark creatures that overtook you on the planet, the orange trees that drink blood and thrive on emotional misery. The moons, however, sustain much of Dark World life.”
Jace sat them and ordered them something to eat and drink. He noted that she had removed her glasses since they sat in shadow outside the cantina. Several nearby patrons gave her a second and third glance, clearly entranced with her exotic beauty. Jace wished he could recognize her bloodline but was helpless to do so. He could only sit and stare at her in admiration, as much for her beauty as for her intellect.
“Naria, your knowledge of Dark World is truly fascinating. Please, tell me more,” he said softly and watched her blush. How very innocent, he thought, and yet so very mysterious.
“From what I gather, Dark World has five moons: Lysst, the prison and military moon, where we met; Arnth, the pleasure moon; Fer, the learned moon; Mrunde, the death moon; and Wern,” she said with a frown.
“Wern?” he repeated and felt a chill race up his spine as he said the word. He acknowledged the foreboding he felt as real and stared hard at the discomfort on Naria’s face.
“It’s a very bad place, Jace,” she said softly. “Rumor has it that the moon houses the potential for the end of the world as we know it. That to let those from that moon escape is to invite disaster.” She shivered and Jace placed a hand over hers with concern.
“You truly believe this?” he asked, knowing that she had some other sources than her books for this knowledge. Perhaps her mental gifts told her of such things, or her time on Dark World had showed her this truth.
“I do,” she said and stared down at his hand on top of hers. Jace watched as her features calmed, the hint of a smile now gracing her full lips.
“What?” he asked and ran his fingers over her hand soothingly. He felt startled to experience a familiar heat urging him to touch her everywhere. Letting go of her hand, he sat back and stared at her with unblinking eyes.
“You’re a very comforting person, Jace.” Naria smiled up at him, making his heart race with an unfamiliar emotion. Jace knew lust, knew it very well. He knew affection too, his feelings for Dare and his crew apparent to all. Yet his feelings for Naria confused him. One minute he wanted to make love to her until neither could stand, the next he wanted to enfold her in his arms and protect her from the world.
“Comforting?” He grinned to hide his turbulent emotions. “I don’t know about that. But I’ve been told that I can be very satisfying,” he said slyly, his gaze fixed to her lips.
She laughed lightly and rolled her eyes, a becoming flush gracing her cheeks. “Jace, you really are a scoundrel.” She grinned. “But a likeable one at that.”
Jace grinned back at her, pleased to find she enjoyed his company. He still didn’t know what to make of her. He no longer believed her to be an enemy, but something about her story on Dark World didn’t ring true.
“Naria,” he began after their food had been brought out to them. “I would like to accompany you back to Seven after our time on Rovi. We have a short stop to make in between.” He smiled to himself, knowing that if he didn’t get his men some much needed repast he’d regret it. “But I must say I’m more than curious about these books you have read in your libraries.”
She choked on something and his eyes narrowed. Reaching for a cup of Rovi wine, she downed the contents in one gulp, surprising both herself and him.
“Are you alright?” he asked in concern. He could see that she didn’t like the idea of his accompanying her to Seven and his hackles rose in suspicion yet again.
“Fine.” She coughed and poured herself another glass. He wondered if he should tell her to stop, that Rovi wine had been creat
ed with the large gray people of this world in mind. But then he figured to let her go. Perhaps in a drunken state she might reveal something, like the truth for a change.
“Good,” he said smoothly, his eyes glowing as he took in her flushed face as she swallowed her second cup. “So tell me of life on Seven, Naria. What did you do? What of your family there? Is there a young man waiting your return?” he asked lightly, needing to know the answers to his questions, and the last in particular, urgently.
He watched as she seemed to ponder something. He sent out a light mind probe, certain she wouldn’t notice it in her now fuddled mind. He saw darkness and hints of light, Carinna’s face clear and dear to her, shadows of a creature looking uncomfortably like Lord Demise. And then he watched, startled, as her mind flipped through pages and pages of information, pictures of Seven, Rovi and a host of other planets as she scrambled for information.
He stared at her understanding more. Naria was no more a Seven inhabitant than he, with just as many secrets, he thought curiously. So her story about leaving Seven had been false. But her memories of terror and her time on Dark World had felt true. A puzzle, he thought, and one he had every intention of solving.
“Seven,” she said with a dreamy smile. He could just envision her flipping through to her chapters on that planet. “Oh yes, a wonderful world full of learning and multi-raced inhabitants. An exhilarating world to behold during the Light Years.”
“Really? Tell me more,” he urged her with a grim smile.
“More?” she glanced up at him uncertainly. “More.” She nodded, concentrating. Jace had to refrain from laughing and thought that the next time he wanted real answers from Naria he would definitely ply her with drink.
“Well, suffice it say that Seven is not a very nice place during the Dark Years,” she frowned.
“Why not?”
“There are evil creatures there,” she murmured, introspective. “And they thrive on pain, on anguish. It’s not a fun place to be during the dark. The light, however,” her voice rose in pleasure. “It warms and it soothes. It calls out the most beautiful creatures,” she said dreamily and looked up at him, her eyes lingering on his white-blond hair and golden features. She licked at her lips and Jace stared at her hungrily.
He looked around him and saw that many of the patrons around them had left, the mid-eating hour clearing. He slid closer to Naria and lifted her hand to his lips. She stared at him, her attention fixated now on his mouth.
He lowered his lips to her hand, turning it over to kiss the middle of her palm. He heard her gasp and smiled to himself, knowing that sooner or later he and Naria would have to come together. His body demanded it as did hers, though she denied it through her ignorance.
He stroked her palm with his tongue, tasting her and inhaling her scent, a soft feminine fragrance that shot through him like an arrow of lust. He looked up at her face and froze. Her eyes, before dark pools of purple life, now gleamed a rainbow of colors, seething and swirling, mirroring his own. Never before had he seen eyes like that unless he looked into a reflecting glass.
Aroused beyond measure, he moved his lips over her hand. He kissed the tip of one of her fingers, sucking on the tip before taking it deeper into his mouth. He watched her eyes shimmer and her breathing quicken, heard the telltale gasp of desire leap from her throat.
He closed his lips around her finger and bit lightly, then released her hand and watched it fall limply back to her side.
“Shall we go?” he asked quietly, his eyes on hers. He needed her now, his body aching and hard. And by the stunned look in her eyes, he knew she needed him as well. He didn’t intend to let things go too far, she was after all, quite inebriated. But the urge to take more from her overwhelmed him and any chivalrous notions he may have had vanished as he quickly walked her towards a darkened alleyway.
As soon as he reached the shuttered confines of the alleyway, protected from view of passersby, he pressed her against a wall and urgently brought his lips down on hers. She sighed into his mouth, her lips giving back as much as he took. He groaned into her mouth, his body hardening even more as he felt the curves of the aroused female under him.
“Naria,” he said with a groan and deepened the kiss, his tongue sweeping inside of her mouth and tasting her very essence. She tasted of spiced wine and mystery, her breath mingling with his and stealing all reason. His hands moved up her sides to cup her full breasts, causing her to arch into his large palms.
“Jace.” She gasped when his mouth left hers to trail over her jaw and down her neck. His hands cupped her breasts, his nimble fingers teasing and pinching her nipples into hard knots of arousal. Jace could fast feel himself losing control, something that never happened to the strong-willed Psi. His body nudged hers, pressing into her femininity, seeking release from her startling heat.
“I want you, Naria,” he whispered against her neck. “I need you,” he said urgently and sucked hard on the point of her pulse.
Naria bucked as one of his hands moved from her breast down to the waistband of her trousers. Jace was oblivious to everything, the passerby on the street, the darkness filling the sky as night came upon them. He could only taste Naria. He needed her, his mind continued to torment him. He knew he couldn’t take her on the street, as much as he wanted to. But he had to feel her.
He slipped his hand inside of her trousers and reached down to cup her, feeling her soft curls against his warm palm. His hand felt her wetness and he groaned again, his body pressing against her hip. Just imagining what it would feel like to be inside of her tormented him until he knew he would die if he didn’t find out.
Jace moved his hand and stroked her with his long fingers, finding the hard nub of her arousal as he parted her soft folds. She moaned his name and pressed into his hand.
“Jace, what are you doing to me?” she asked and gasped as his lips returned to her mouth.
Jace inserted his tongue into her mouth, mimicking the actions he followed with his finger. He thrust one finger inside of her moist, tight sheath and felt her close hard around him. He continued to move his hand on her, faster and faster feeling the nub against his palm growing.
“Come for me, Naria,” he said thickly and looked down at her shimmering expression, blazing through the night. He knew people passed by them on the street, their view blocked by the rough edges of the alleyway in which he hid them. The fact that another world existed outside of his intimate one with Naria pressed him and he sought only to see to her needs. He could live with his discomfort, he thought, if only to see Naria shatter in ecstasy.
She gasped and fixed her mouth to his hungrily. Excited that he had brought her to such a state, he continued to move his fingers against her, his palm wet with her arousal. Then he stroked her again and felt her stiffen around his finger. So wet, so tight, he thought as he stared through narrowed eyes into her beautiful face. He watched as her face brightened and he swallowed her cry of release even as he felt it around his body and mind.
Her passion flared as she found fulfillment, her mind embracing his and letting him feel her ecstasy as if he had experienced it himself. The pleasure intense, he could only gasp into her mouth as her passion triggered his own. He felt himself explode against her and groaned at his loss of control. He closed his eyes when she moved against him, feeling his member shudder as his release poured inside of his trousers.
“Stars, Naria.” Jace groaned and opened his eyes to look down into hers. She didn’t seem disoriented or unaware, but had the look of a well-satisfied woman.
“You experienced this bliss too, didn’t you?” she asked shyly, her eyes shuttered but her lips curving slightly.
“Damn, but I did.” Jace sighed and grimaced as he straightened his body. “I don’t know what you did, Naria, but you completely did me in,” he admitted with a wry laugh. He looked down and though he felt uncomfortable, knew he looked presentable.
He imagined her body felt as wet and sated as his and amazingly felt hi
s body stir at those thoughts.
Naria felt his passion flare against her and looked down at him with curiosity.
“Jace?” she asked. “I have never before felt such pleasure,” she admitted. “Is what we have shared normal?”
Jace immediately shook his head, knowing that his life had irrevocably changed the instant he’d met Naria. “No, it’s not. And it’s something we’re going to have to deal with very soon,” he promised darkly, his eyes flashing. “But for now, Naria, let’s go back to our inn so I can get cleaned up.”
Naria smiled and linked her arm through his as they left the alley. “That sounds right,” she said. “Jace?”
“What?” he asked, looking around him. He felt a tingle at the back of his neck that told him they were being watched.
“Has that not happened to you before then?” she asked quietly, as if not wanting to know the answer.
He turned to her and stopped in the middle of the highly trafficked street. “Naria, you may not believe this. But I rarely make love in so public a place.” He grimaced. “I’m sorry for that. But I’m not sorry for what we did. No, Naria, what is between us is most unusual and very, very welcome.” He smiled down at her and lowered his mouth to kiss her sensually. “And there’s so much more to show you. I’m only sorry I didn’t begin this properly. But no matter, we’ll get to that soon,” he promised as he stared down at her. “Very soon.”
-12-
Naria sighed as the next few days passed in surprising normalcy. If not for memories of that amazing dalliance in the alleyway, she would have thought it had never happened. Jace had been unfailingly polite as he escorted her back to the inn and distant since.
She couldn’t understand him. But then, the rest of the men had become as remote as he. Perhaps she or Carinna had done something to offend the others? Had they given themselves away somehow?
