by Serena Yates
Elryk returned his attention back to the raft, remembering Alwiil's warning about it dissolving. Kaythan had been gone for more than a minute, and to Elryk's horror, the raft began to fade at the edges, dissolving into thin air just like the guardian mermaid had ‘promised’ it would.
He called up the earth magic within him and tried to coax the wooden logs into growing back for him. It was hard work and when the wood finally reacted, he was so relieved that he almost lost his focus.
Sweat soon beaded on his brow and when he noticed first one, then two more shark fins circling the raft, a full-out panic was imminent. How was Kaythan going to make his way back up onto the raft without being attacked, or worse, eaten?
Elryk's heart beat so fast he was about to lose it.
A loud splash right next to him made him jump and he lost his magical hold on the logs. Kaythan was back! Gulping for air and shaking from the exertion, his mate clung to the dissolving raft with the shaking fingers of one hand. In the other, he held a shell-shaped urn, which was a deep green on the bottom and a swirling blue and white on top.
"Here.” Kaythan coughed and held the urn up for him to take.
"Come on up.” Elryk held out a hand, focusing on keeping at least the logs under Kaythan's hand from vanishing.
"No time.” Kaythan shook his head, dislodging rivulets of seawater from his drenched hair. “Get the water magic back, then we can worry about me getting up on the raft."
Not too sure they'd have time to worry, he took the urn, eying the sharks warily. There were at least seven of the great beasts.
"Don't worry about them.” Kaythan brought his second hand up to help him hold on while he regained his breath. “They actually helped me."
"Helped you?” Elryk was distracted from the cool urn for a moment.
"Yeah, they helped push me back up to the surface when I started to run out of air. I don't think I would've made it without them.” Kaythan smiled.
Huh. Would wonders never cease? The sharks were giving Kaythan a wide berth, circling the raft like guard dogs or something.
The creaking logs reminded Elryk that he had a job to do and he sat back, cradling the urn in his hands as if he was holding water. Within seconds the top half of the urn sprang open and revealed a deep blue pearl.
The pearl started glowing and the whole shell-shaped urn dissolved into a bubbling fount of quickly dissolving beauty. The water magic gurgled up from his cupped hands and flowed over the rim flooding his entire being. Water magic poured into him, stroking the back of his neck like waves lapping a beach. It almost swept him away, it was so powerful.
Elryk absorbed all it had to give, smelling salt and brine, feeling warm sand caress his feet and hearing a lake ripple against a rocky shore. Like with the earth magic, after a while the imagined perceptions faded and he returned to reality. His hands were empty and the urn was gone.
So was the creaking of the logs he sat on. When he looked to check, the edges had stabilised. The surface of the ocean was quiet, and there was an almost naked Kaythan in the water, looking up at him with lust in his blue eyes.
He grasped Kaythan's hands and pulled him up onto the raft with him, holding him tightly in his arms for a moment.
"I'm making you all wet.” Kaythan's voice was soft.
"Doesn't matter.” He slid a hand behind his mate's head, pulling back so he could look into his eyes. “I missed you and I worried about you and now I need to kiss you."
Kaythan smiled and licked his lips before he moved closer to touch Elryk's mouth. Kaythan's lips were cool at first, but as he nibbled along Elryk's lips that quickly changed. Elryk responded by sucking his mate's lower lip inside his mouth, enjoying the salty taste from the ocean water. He followed it up with an exploration of Kaythan's lips, then his tongue. Kaythan sighed and melted into him, sliding his legs over Elryk's thighs and moving closer until their groins touched.
Elryk went from half hard to a full-blown erection in seconds.
"Yes!” He slid his free hand down Kaythan's naked back, enjoying the feel of the slick skin under his fingertips. “Please."
He followed the curve of Kaythan's back all the way down, moving his hand inside the other man's briefs to caress his ass. Pressing their groins more closely together, he started rocking back and forth to get the friction and pressure he wanted.
Kaythan slid his arms around Elryk's shoulders and deepened the kiss as he responded with corresponding motions of his own. They soon found a rhythm, the raft rocking on the water helping them along. It was a slow, sensual build of arousal that made him gasp with pleasure. Not even the fact that he was still fully clothed could stop him from enjoying the feeling of Kaythan in his arms.
He pulled back from the kiss and looked into Kaythan's eyes as the pleasure began to crest. Kaythan's eyes widened as his hips started jerking in release. Elryk couldn't hold back any longer and let go. Wave after wave of ecstasy travelled through his entire body until he had no more to give.
He dropped his forehead onto Kaythan's shoulder and held on until he'd caught his breath. Hearing Kaythan's breathing slowing down and feeling the other man's chest against his, gave him great satisfaction.
At least they were in this together.
"That was different.” Kaythan grinned as he lifted his head and placed a short kiss on Elryk's lips.
"Nice.” Elryk wasn't quite ready to return to reality.
"Yeah, except the slight mess we made.” Kaythan pointed at their groins.
"Let me see what I can do about that.” Elryk grinned. “After all, this water magic has to be good for something."
He focused on the stickiness inside their underwear and wove a spell that he hoped would wash it all away. His crotch was nice and clean immediately.
"Wow.” Kaythan touched himself, as if to check that everything was as it should be. “That's pretty amazing."
"You liked that?” He grinned. They could probably enhance their love life with all kinds of different magic.
That was as much time as they were given.
From the corner of his eye, he saw a tidal wave appear on the horizon and he suspected their time in the second chamber was up. He barely had time to grab Kaythan's clothes before there was a roar similar to that made by a giant waterfall and the quickly disintegrating raft vanished completely. Just before they were swallowed by the shark filled waters, the giant wave enveloped them, lifting them up into the sky. With a final blue flash and a last gurgle, it was gone.
Elryk sighed. They were now precariously perched on the top of a high rock arch so thin that he was amazed it was able to support their weight. To make matters worse, a wind strong enough to blow them off their exposed position was coming from the south.
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Chapter Six
* * * *
Kaythan sensed Elryk's unease with the height they'd been deposited at. His mate's eyes were wide and his breath came in short gasps. Come to think of it, Elryk hadn't been really comfortable at Arith's place up above the ravine, either. Kaythan tightened his embrace and bent his head for a kiss to distract his man.
Scorching heat met Kaythan's lips and Elryk clung to him as they caressed each other's tongues with slow strokes. He let his hands roam up and down Elryk's spine, loving the feeling of muscles bunching in response to his movements. Elryk had placed his hands flat against Kaythan's shoulder blades and held on. The skin-to-skin contact on his back reminded him that he was still half naked and he pulled back reluctantly.
"I should probably get dressed before the next guardian shows up.” He grinned into Elryk's lust-filled eyes.
"Or before this damned wind blows us off into the depths.” Elryk nodded and looked around. “Air magic was never my strong suit. And being as high up as we are now makes me fundamentally uncomfortable. I don't like that the wind seems to be getting stronger. It feels like it's trying to make sure we fall to our deaths."
"I know what you mean. I'm like that with w
ater.” Kaythan buckled his belt, trying not to blush with the embarrassment.
"I thought I sensed some reluctance in you when we started talking about who should dive for the piece of the Magic Key.” Elryk frowned. “But you never even hesitated to be the one to dive into the ocean."
"I knew it was the only sensible solution.” He shrugged as he slipped on his boots. “Besides, I'm not going to let an old fear run my life."
"You're more courageous than I am.” Elryk pointed at the thin, rock arch beneath them. “That? Just scares the hell out of me. It doesn't even look substantial enough to hold up on its own, never mind with our added weight."
Just then there was the sound of rock crumbling and when Kaythan peeked down, a few tiny fissures had appeared in the surface they sat on. As if in response, the wind got stronger, starting to howl with the force of the air currents around the arch structure.
"Great. Another test with a time limit.” Elryk trembled.
"All right, let's consider our options.” Kaythan tried to sound calm. “Not that there are many. I think the only thing we can do is climb down as quickly as we can. It looks far too high to attempt jumping off."
"I agree with the not jumping part. Since I don't have my air magic back yet, I won't be able to break our fall by making us float. So we'll have to climb. Oh, and you forgot to mention that we need to find the third part of the Magic Key while we're at it.” Elryk went even paler as the fissures creaked and widened a little more.
"Good point.” Kaythan scratched his head. “Maybe the first thing you should try is using some of that earth magic to stabilise this rock? It worked with the raft, so maybe it'll be effective here as well?"
"I can do that.” Elryk closed his eyes and mumbled a few words.
Kaythan stared at the fissures. They didn't vanish, but the creaking stopped. They also weren't getting wider anymore.
"Did it work?” Elryk's eyes remained tightly closed, his hands fisted.
"To a degree.” He did his best not to laugh at his mate's sudden fear. It was so irrational that it was hard for him to see it as justified. But then, as he well knew, fear wasn't always rational.
"Do I want to know what that means?” Elryk's eyes remained shut and the man wasn't moving except to breathe.
"It means that you seem to have stopped the fissures from getting larger, but they're still there.” Kaythan put a hand on Elryk's arm. “While we seem to have a little break, can you try and use your magic to sense where this piece of the Muyd'Zel is hidden? I think it might be easier to sense things that are farther away than it will be once we're at ground level. I'm not holding my breath for your repairs to hold, but we should have a few minutes."
Elryk raised his eyebrows, still without so much as peeking through his eyelashes. He nodded and remained still for a few minutes. He turned his head this way and that as if to try and orient himself.
Kaythan was about to say something when Elryk's eyes opened.
"It's over there.” Elryk pointed at a rock formation a few hundred feet away. “On the very top of it, of course."
It had the shape of a column and looked about half as high as their arch. Who came up with these hiding places? It would be extremely hard to climb up the sheer walls of the smooth looking structure. As if in response to his internal complaint, the rock underneath them started fissuring again and the wind's strength turned up another notch.
"Time to leave.” Kaythan gripped Elryk's hand. “I'll be with you every step of the way. Just follow me down and you'll be fine."
"Okay.” Elryk swallowed, and his hand was shaking, but he didn't hesitate to follow Kaythan down one of the legs of their arch.
The rise was a good fifty feet, so the incline wasn't too steep. Erosion had left enough cracks and holes that now served as hand and foot holds. They had just left the top part, which was the thinnest, when the creaking and rumbling sounds started up again. Small pieces of rock fell the four hundred or so feet to ground level, blown in all directions by the howling storm.
Elryk froze above him, the other man's entire body pressing into the rock. Elryk was shaking.
"I think we need to keep moving. I'm not sure how much of this is going to remain in one piece once the whole upper part starts collapsing.” He reached up and locked a hand around one of Elryk's ankles to steady the other man.
The body contact seemed to relax his mate, and Elryk nodded as he started moving again. They were still about two hundred feet above ground level when the top part of the arch collapsed with a thunderous noise. The entire structure shook, but the supporting columns remained upright and undamaged.
The rest of the climb down happened in silence. Elryk seemed too focused on moving without looking down too much and Kaythan didn't want to interrupt his mate's concentration. When they finally set foot on level ground, Elryk sank into his arms with a sigh. The other man's whole body still shook and Kaythan held on, stroking his back until he'd relaxed.
The wind had miraculously stopped when their feet touched the ground. Wasn't that typical?
"You did really well.” He smiled at the pale face when Elryk pulled back to look at him as if to check that he meant it.
"I couldn't very well show less courage than you did when you went on your dive.” Elryk sighed. “But I'm glad it's over. For now."
Kaythan followed the other man's gaze over to the column where the third piece of the Magic Key was hidden. Elryk was right. They'd still need a way to make it up there.
"First things first.” He took Elryk's hand and started walking. “We need to get over there and then we'll deal with our next problem."
They walked in silence for quite a long time.
"Is it just me or does that rock pillar seem to be just as far away from us as when we started?” Kaythan frowned, shading his eyes against the glare of the sunshine to try and make a more accurate estimate of their progress.
"It does seem as if we haven't made any progress at all.” Elryk sighed and sat down on one of the many smaller boulders lying around all over the place. “It makes a weird sort of sense, now that I think about it."
"Huh?” This, he wanted to hear.
"Since we're dealing with air magic, one of the ways the piece of the Magic Key can be hidden is height. Which is the obvious one, and that has quite clearly been used. But, there is another thing air magic can achieve, and that is a mirage.” Elryk frowned. “In this case, I can sense the object we're looking for, so we know it's there. I think there's an additional layer of protection, the mirage, which, because it's magical, makes the column unreachable on foot."
"So, however long we walk, we'll never get there?” Kaythan nodded. “It seems to me as if this task is a lot more difficult than the previous ones. I wonder whether that is part of the plan?"
Before Elryk could respond, there was a mournful squawk, followed by a second, louder one. Kaythan raised his eyes. Two black vultures were circling above their heads. Their glowing red eyes looked like burning coals, their sharp beaks were the size of hand-span long daggers. They were at least as large as horses and the powerful whoosh-whoosh of their beating wings fanned foul smelling air towards him that made him retch.
"Do you think they're the guardians of this place?” Kaythan sure hoped not. How were they going to get information from birds?
"If they are, I think we're in deep trouble.” Elryk swallowed. “We'll need to find a way to get them to help us."
The vultures’ squawks got louder.
"Can you please help us get to that rock formation over there?” Elryk sounded polite and pleading.
"Finally.” The first bird's voice sounded scratchier than a needle on glass. “We were afraid you weren't going to figure it out."
"We weren't allowed to help you until you spoke to us. The other contestants never figured that out, which is why we were a little late.” The second bird came closer, hovering right over Elryk while the first one came to hover over Kaythan. “Now that you have spoken to us, the
re's nothing to stop us."
"There are other contestants?” Kaythan didn't like the sound of that. Hearing that the Xoh'kas might try to get into the temple of Tah'Muyd, and being confronted with evidence that they had apparently succeeded, was a different matter.
"Yes, but they broke the rules. They jumped straight into this third chamber instead of starting with earth magic.” The first bird shook its head. “Unfortunately, what little we've heard about the Xoh'kas is consistent with cheating and being too arrogant to talk to mere birds. We don't think they stand a chance of making it very far, not with an attitude like that."
Not that they need to collect all the pieces anyway. Getting hold of one would be enough to stop him and Elryk in their tracks.
"Nysat warned us that the Xoh'kas were combing through the historical records to try and find hints about where the Magic Key might be hidden and how to find it.” Elryk went white as a sheet. “Shit, that means we have even less time to lose. If they managed to break into the third chamber, they might be working on the last two as we speak."
"Time to go, then.” Kaythan looked up at the bird above him. The stench was almost too much to bear, but there was no alternative.
"Grab onto our feet and we'll fly you where you need to go."
Both birds lowered themselves far enough so Kaythan and Elryk were able to reach their talons. Elryk gripped his with determination written all over his face. The bird gripped back.
"Please, don't let me fall.” Elryk closed his eyes and the bird took off.
Kaythan grabbed his bird's feet and they followed.
* * * *
Elryk's whole body shook so hard that he was afraid he was going to lose his grip on the bird's talons. Luckily, the bird held onto him as well, so a mishap was less likely. Still, he wasn't at all comfortable with this mode of transportation.
When his feet finally touched the ground again, he opened his eyes only long enough to make sure he didn't collapse into an abyss or was close enough to the edge of the rock pillar to be in danger of rolling off. But the bird had deposited him safely at the very centre of the stone column. He forced his hands to let go of the bird's feet and crumpled into a relieved heap.
