by Bevan Greer
She had seen many that had at first survived and eventually fallen under her half-sisters’ tortuous skills. Only the Incubus relished her sisters’ ‘delights,’ clearly enthralled as they themselves gave equal pain and pleasure to the women they seduced. Thoughts of seduction made her think of the man lying so calmly next to her.
She looked down at Jace, once again marveling at her deepening feeling for this man. His blond hair fascinated her and she wondered if had blond hair covering the rest of him. She blushed as she again wondered what he looked like naked. Having grown up amongst creatures free and taking in their own sexuality, she had never understood her aversion to the raw, physical coupling on her planet.
She couldn’t seem to grasp the concept of physical intimacy without a stronger connection. But she didn’t feel too badly, knowing that Carinna too had tried it and found it unsatisfactory.
Her thoughts turned back to Mikhel. That man had been assaulted, his inherent sensuality stripped from him. Having studied about the Fenturi, Naria knew that if she did not find some way to fix what her sisters had done, Mikhel would lose his mind. Already his cries proclaimed him getting closer.
“Jace,” she whispered and leaned over him, intending to wake him. “Jace, I need you to—”
“Hmm, I need you too,” he said in his sleep, a sexy grin on his firm lips. Before she could protest he pulled her down on top of him and brought her mouth down to his. Naria knew that he wasn’t truly awake, but even so his kiss devastated her.
He used all of his mouth to kiss, from the sensual pressure of his lips to the erotic touch of his tongue to the deepened slant of his mouth over hers. When he lifted his head to take a breath he pressed his body into hers by placing his hands over her buttocks, squeezing her to him, making her feel what he felt.
She closed her eyes tightly and reached for sanity.
Jace!” she said forcefully and watched him blink into wakefulness, his hands grasping firmly before letting her go in surprise.
“Naria?” he asked in surprise. He stared at her swollen lips and smiled, a killer smile that sank Naria’s hopes for getting her point across.
“Mikhel is in trouble,” she said quickly.
At her words Jace straightened and sat up, moving her off of him gently. He rubbed at his head and Naria knew he had not yet recovered sufficiently to help Mikhel, not after all the power he’d lent her.
“Jace, I heard him crying out earlier. And you can’t help him, not now. But I can. Trust me. I won’t hurt him,” she said quietly with conviction.
Jace stared at her as if wondering at her motives, then sighed and stood. He looked rumpled and half awake, his black eyes tinged with red. But the concerned look in his eyes shook Naria. He shook his head but then grabbed her, pulling her behind him as he released them both into the hallway.
Naria followed quietly, understanding that while he didn’t trust her, he would do whatever he needed to save his crew. And though she hadn’t earned his trust, had in fact almost caused harm to his crew with her actions denying the Dark Worlders earlier that day, she would do anything she could to make him believe in her. Jace’s opinion had come to matter very much to Naria and she couldn’t shake her tender feelings for the charismatic man.
They stopped at Mikhel’s door, the halls curiously empty.
“I heard him crying out it pain,” she tapped her head reading Jace’s question. “In here.”
He nodded in understanding. “Naria, you are going to explain everything you do to him. In fact, I want you to show me what you’re doing. And don’t make the mistake of thinking I’m too tired to stop you,” he said firmly, grasping her chin in his hands as he stared into her eyes. “I’m not.”
Naria swallowed nervously, seeing a bit of the unused power shimmering in Jace’s being. That power had stood him equal to her father, something she shouldn’t make the mistake of forgetting, she thought.
They entered together and found Mikhel thrashing on the bed. Naria and Jace approached and Naria turned to Jace.
“Sit down there,” she said and watched as he pulled a chair towards the bed. “Jace, I know you’re tired. Trust me. I’ve healed before and often. I know what to do.”
He shook his head. “I won’t trust you until you finally relent and tell me the truth,” he said.
She sighed, unable to consider doing so. To have Jace look at her with disdain and horror… she just couldn’t do it. “Fine then. I’ll show you what I’m doing as I do it. But Jace, you cannot interfere, no matter what you see. And you have to promise not to try to wrestle with my mind, merely observe. If you interfere, you may lose not only Mikhel, but damage me and yourself in the process.”
Naria saw Jace turn that over in his mind. She didn’t know what had possessed her to recommend this healing process. Only Dark Worlders with strong mental gifts, namely Demon Lords and the like, could attempt such feats. Yet Naria knew Jace was no ordinary mortal. She had seen brief glimpses into his vast mind. She thought this might work, if only he would leave the healing to her and not intervene.
He finally nodded slowly. “Alright,” he agreed in a deep, husky voice. “I’ll do what you say. But if Mikhel comes to harm I’ll step in.”
“He won’t be harmed, Jace,” Naria sighed. “But you may not like what you see. In order to heal Mikhel, we’ll have to face his demons, literally,” she made a slight joke. But when his mouth refused to smile, she sighed again and began the slow process of linking them together.
-13-
Naria exhaled deeply once she felt Jace and she firmly connected. The feeling caused some discomfort in its unfamiliarity. His presence didn’t necessarily burden her, but it increased the intimacy between them.
Words unnecessary now, she sat next to Mikhel on the bed and touched his forehead with her hand, pressing down firmly. Together, she and Jace struggled past the barriers in Mikhel’s mind to the root of the fear and darkness crowding his injured mind.
Once past the last barrier, she heard Jace gasp as she took in a quick breath. Suddenly in the midst of Mikhel’s pain, the two could only tighten their defenses so as not to get caught up in it.
“Mikhel,” Naria said softly. “Come back to us,” she repeated over and over. “Come to Jace and start at the beginning. Leave the darkness and show us how to help you, show us what they did.”
Naria waited while Mikhel struggled to free himself from the terrors holding him back. When he finally broke free, Naria saw the healthy, large glowing man before he’d been brought to Dark World.
“How is it you are here?” he asked curiously, studying both Naria and Jace as they appeared to him. In Mikhel’s mind’s eye, both Naria and Jace appeared before him. All three stood in a light field with calming waters and green vegetation surrounding them.
“This is your safe place, isn’t it Mikhel?” Naria asked. The world around her looked quite beautiful, nothing like what lived in Dark World.
“Yes, it is,” he said. “And I don’t want to leave it.”
“You must,” she shook her head sadly, Jace mirroring the action. “We have to get you through this, Mikhel.”
“Who are you?” he asked.
“I am Naria, a healer. Jace is with me here, in your mind. Together, he and I will take away the darkness, Mikhel. If you will let us.”
Then Jace spoke, something Naria had hoped he would not do. “Mikhel, trust me. We are doing everything we can to help you. But you must let us in to fix you. Dark World destroyed some part of you that Naria will help put back.”
Mikhel looked from Naria to Jace and she could feel the distrust burning in him. Yet when his gaze returned to Jace, she felt him ease. He nodded reluctantly.
“Fine. But what you will see will not be pretty. And,” he paused. “I don’t want anyone to know of this,” he said quietly, ashamed.
Naria touched his hand lightly, offering comfort. “It will be alright, Mikhel. You’ll see.”
Mikhel sighed and suddenly the picture ar
ound the changed. She and Jace stood with Mikhel watching as they returned to Dark World. Naria bit back her denial as she watched her father’s minions drag Jace out of the cell. Then the Thirst Demons repeatedly thrashed the other four remaining, Koneru and Castor taking most of the beatings.
Suddenly time flashed and they watched Nesham escape, saw Lord Demise’s surprise and interest in a new challenge. He grinned and they watched as Mikhel walked with him down a corridor. Then he was left in a room with only a large bed and a window.
A beautiful woman entered looking very much like Carinna. Yet slight differences in her face and height set them apart. Naria saw her sister, Depar, put Mikhel under her spell.
“This is where it began,” Mikhel said in a low voice, his eyes tortured as he watched the demon begin her torture. Naria could only imagine what everything looked like to Jace. How would he feel about Carinna after seeing this? And more importantly, how would he feel about her if he ever learned that these cruel women were in fact her sisters?
Jace watched, fascinated, as Mikhel’s memories loomed before him. He had used his mental gifts throughout his life, but never had he seen thought transformed to solid reality before.
He felt protected in Naria’s mind, feeling closer to her as they watched the scene unfold. He couldn’t help but feel slightly aroused at the lush body of the beautiful woman now naked and writhing against Mikhel. And the hardy Fenturi seemed lost in desire as well, at least, the one on the vision did. Standing next to him, Mikhel watched the scene unfold in horror. And then Jace began to understand.
The woman led him to the large bed while a window overlooking the room suddenly filled with dark eyes seething with lust and impatience. Mikhel lay on the bed, his large body strangely subdued as the redhead worked her lips and body over his. He watched as the creature worked Mikhel’s body like an instrument, playing him effortlessly.
Jace could feel Naria blushing in her thoughts, could feel the passion she tried to deny at watching such an erotic act. Mikhel’s large body thrust up and into the demon’s mouth and Jace could feel his own arousal grow. And then the demon rose up to face Mikhel and he saw her face change. Her eyes burned blood red, her mouth opened into a hideous smile to reveal long, sharp and broken teeth and a pronged black tongue.
Mikhel tried to protest on the bed but to no avail. The woman soon turned the pleasure he’d been receiving into horrifying pain as she scourged him with her teeth and whiplike tongue. And then another demon appeared in the room with her and began to desecrate Mikhel’s healthy body.
Jace watched with Naria as Mikhel climaxed over and over while the demons sucked not only his energy but his lifesblood from him, scarring and biting him as they fed off of his body.
All the passion Jace had at first felt seeing the nubile woman’s erotic actions faded as Mikhel’s terror seethed and pulsed in the mental image next to him. He would have put out a hand to reassure him but Naria stopped him.
He turned to see her shake her head and direct her attention to the action before them.
Jace did so unwillingly, knowing she had reason for watching the monstrosity before them. Finally the demons eased off of Mikhel after what must have been hours of torture, speeded up at Naria’s urging. Jace fought the urge to protect his body seeing the pitiful condition of Mikhel’s. Mikhel moaned on the bed, seeking more release as his body incredibly hardened and pulsed again under the demons’ presence.
“Once more, please Depar,” the other demon begged. The one named Depar smiled, her body smeared in blood and Mikhel’s seed, her eyes glowing blue as she stared at his helpless body before her.
The other demon softly bit down with her sharp teeth over Mikhel’s arousal and he moaned and tried to deny the ecstasy her torment created.
“So strong, so fierce,” Depar whispered as she watched the other demon devour Mikhel’s energy.
Jace watched with revulsion as a mixture of blood, saliva and seed pooled around the demon’s mouth over Mikhel. As Mikhel moaned and finally lost consciousness, the demon grinned, her face returning the beautiful picture it had been before she’d ravaged Mikhel.
Next to them Mikhel shook his head and breathed raggedly. “You don’t know,” he said hoarsely. “The pain, the exquisite pain they gave me. They changed me and took away that which makes me who I am,” he said, slowly lowering his mental self to the ground beneath them.
Jace felt such sorrow and anguish emanating around them that he felt it hard to bear. They stayed locked in that hideous cell and could only stare at Mikhel’s naked and bruised body lying limply on the bed.
He could never have imagined such a thing had he not seen it with his own eyes. Jace shook his head. Of all the manners to prescribe torture, only on Dark World could physical pleasures turn so very ugly, he thought.
Jace’s thoughts merged with Naria’s as she agreed with his assessment wholeheartedly. Then he watched as she lowered herself to comfort Mikhel.
“Look at me, Mikhel,” she said gently. Jace could feel her mind stirring, her power and her heart merging as she felt such pity and remorse for Mikhel that Jace felt tears pooling in his eyes.
He watched without interference as she placed her hand over Mikhel’s eyes and began to whisper to him. He watched as she slowly took his memories away, piece by piece. No more dark cell, no beatings or encounters with Lord Demise. The female demons, Succubus, he heard her call them, vanished as well as if they had never existed. And as she lifted the memories, Jace could actually feel Mikhel begin to ease.
Now he understood why she had been so adamant about taking Mikhel’s memories. A Fenturi could never forget such intense physical interaction, no matter how much Jace might have tried to heal Mikhel. Mikhel’s memories would always have been there to haunt him.
Jace had never before taken memories and found the process to be curiously simple. In Naria’s mind, he felt and saw her thoughts form, the way she used her mental gifts to do things even normal Psi would have found intimidating.
Slowly the images around them faded and Jace blinked to find himself again sitting in his chair next to Naria, her body bent over Mikhel’s protectively.
She had released them from Mikhel’s mind and yet the connection remained between she and Jace. He could feel her intense sorrow and pain at Mikhel’s abuse, yet she shelved it away as she continued to ease his mind.
Then she looked deeper into Mikhel’s memories, finding one that made Jace start with surprise.
“What are you doing?” he asked mentally.
“I need to replace all this ugliness with a good thought, something that will give him peace,” she answered. But Jace could feel her power ebbing, her strength low.
“Let me,” he said and physically touched her arm. As he did so, the connection between them faded and he felt alone and a touch empty.
“If you insist,” Naria smiled, exhaustion lining her features.
She pulled away from Mikhel and Jace took her gently in his arms, seating her in the chair he’d been occupying.
“You just need to,” she began.
“I know what to do,” Jace interrupted. “I saw what you were doing before.”
She nodded and Jace returned to Mikhel. He reached through Mikhel’s thoughts and picked up a trace of what Naria had found. Uncomfortable at having Naria watch the erotic act, odd considering the horrors of what they had all witnessed previously, Jace nevertheless resurged and emphasized Mikhel’s memory.
In it, Mikhel met with a young Fenturi in the Fentra forests. He and the female lay naked together, entwined in each other’s bodies as they experienced their first foray into sensuality together. Actually, he thought as he noted the scene, the loving and tender coupling amidst the lush homeworld of the Fenturi could be nothing short of heavenly. He grinned to himself, thinking that if he had such thoughts to fall back on, he might never have left that planet, or that woman.
Jace drifted back out of Mikhel’s mind and shook his head as he again felt his feet
underneath him. He noted the peace and slack stature of Mikhel’s restful body and nodded with satisfaction.
He glanced to Naria to see her reaction and found her sleeping as well, her face in a slight frown. Knowing that Mikhel would now be all that he had before, Jace lifted Naria in his arms and left the room. He walked with her quietly back to his room, resetting the security codes, and lay down with her in bed.
He stared down at her, wiping her hair off of her pale face. He noticed the bruises of exhaustion under her eyes and frowned. Such beauty, he thought, and such a giving heart.
He knew that Naria, while not ignorant of the intimacies between man and woman, had not the experience to fall back on. That she had witnessed such ugliness through Mikhel’s thoughts concerned him. And yet, he knew she had a connection to Dark World. Hel, Carinna looked exactly like the Succubi that had attacked Mikhel. And though Naria did not, she had more to do with Dark World than she’d admitted.
He stroked her soft black hair gently as he stared at her face. He tried to ease her mind as she frowned and shook her head slightly. He could only imagine the dreams that would plague her until she awoke.
As he stared at her, he wondered what it must be like to grow up on Dark World. Everyone in that world subscribed to pain and darkness. Even the sexual act had been relegated to anguish rather than the raw ecstasy it should have produced. Had she grown up there? And if so, how was it that she didn’t carry the darkness that the others did?
As his thoughts tumbled over one another, Jace shook his head. He needed rest and he resolved to deal with Naria and her issues when he next awoke. Settling down next to her, he hugged her to him tightly.
