Destiny

by Jason A. Cheek

  Reaching deep into my soul, I released the raging beast within me. Immediately the Werewolf side of my soul howled to life. The thought should have horrified the Klavikian inside of me, but instead, I gave a prayer of thanks to Ukko for the burning fire growing inside of me. The Fring devastating my body should have made such a physical response impossible, but somehow I managed to lift myself up. As a primitive roar ripped from my lips, I smashed into the Elves attacking the girls shattering their ranks in seconds.

  Nothing would be allowed to jeopardize the future of the Pack! My thoughts were suddenly jolted back to the present in a flash as icy water splashed on my face. My head lolled weakly from side to side, but even that little bit of exertion seemed to exhaust me.

  For a second, I didn’t know where I was, but as the water was wiped from my face, the anxiety seemed to lessen. Lying still, I listened to the sounds of water being rung out in a shallow bowl next to me as my mind struggled to piece together my scattered thoughts. For the first time in what seemed like forever, I felt better. My head was clear and the pain that had been racking my body was all but gone. The fever must have finally broke.

  Once again I felt the cold, soothing touch brush against my skin as soft hands gently moved down my body washing the sweat away. My eyes felt like they weighed a ton, but after what seemed like an eternity, I managed to crack them open. For a second everything was blurry, but my vision cleared a moment later as my eyes adjusted to the low light as I focused on my benefactor.

  The first thing I noticed was the brown mane of hair that cascaded around the small woman as she worked. The crimped dreads hung teasingly across a bronze shoulder, barely covering the slope of small breasts that rode high on her chest. Sitting on her knees as she was, I at first thought she was naked, but as she moved around to clean the grime from my body, I noticed the hide loincloth hanging from her slim waist. My breath caught in my throat as I watched her work. It was as if I were suddenly aware of her nakedness in a way like I’d never noticed a woman before. The sudden desire rising up inside of me was shocking in its intensity as my thoughts reeled.

  During my time growing up on Earth, I’d never been interested in female companionship, other than in teaching new students the word of Ukko. Not that I wasn’t aware of the attraction the females I taught felt for me. My single female students were always throwing themselves at me, trying to get me alone in the back room or getting handsy with me in one-on-one sessions. Normally it was subtle. Most cultures around the world tended to frown on women being too forward about their sexual advances, but in places like South America, more than one woman had expressed their desire for me in no uncertain terms.

  I’m sure the truth would’ve surprised most of my students, but for the most part it never crossed my mind one way or another. Don’t get me wrong. There were times I wondered if something was majorly wrong with me. I mean, shouldn’t I have been struggling like any other horny teenager growing up on Earth having to learn how to control their hormones? By Ukko’s light, I should’ve had some sort of a sex drive going on, but there was nothing.

  At the time, I’d just figured it was for the best. It wasn’t like I had any kind of a future to offer a prospective mate even if I had wanted to be with one of the many women who’d expressed their interest. So for the most part, teaching and helping those in needs became my focus outside of training and learning to control my powers. Grandsire wasn’t exactly pleased with my decision, but it wasn’t like I had a choice in the matter. Ignoring the pain and suffering of innocents was not an option for a Paladin of Ukko. Not to mention, I needed the meaning it gave to my life.

  For this reason any level of intimacy was foreign to me, which was part of the reason I was unsure at first who was more surprised when my body began to respond to the small hands gently stroking my skin. As the hardness began growing between my legs, a part of me realized I should be embarrassed at my body’s physiological reaction, but as the girl crouching near my feet looked up with a hungry grin, those concerns flew from my mind.

  The savage intensity of the girl’s beauty held me captivated. She almost glowed in the flickering light. Her skin was decorated only by a primitive rawhide necklace with a row of large fangs that hung between the soft valley of her breasts, flawless except for reddish-black stripes that marked her cheeks and forehead. Studying the wild eyes that watched me closely, I suddenly noticed the pointy ears peaking out of the dreads on either side of her face as something inside of me snapped in recognition.

  She was a Wild Elf! The sound of my beating heart thrummed in my ears as the implications hit me. Immediately the dam burst as memories of the last several days came flooding back to me. Grandsire being killed, the Tuonellians coming to Earth, the battle with the demon knight, rescuing Frostbrand and Starfire and our flight down the mountain, the Fring, and the Elves … gasping for breath my eyes darted urgently around the large tent looking for Starfire and Frostbrand. Seeing them nowhere in sight, I felt the panic welling up inside of me as one single thought reverberated in my mind. I had to save the girls!

  Fear, rage, loss … the complex emotions assaulted me as I struggled to roll onto my hands and knees, only nothing happened. Except for my arms flailing uselessly at my sides my body refused to move. My first response was to reach for my power, but instead of feeling the familiar strength surging through my veins, nothing happened. My energy pool was bone dry as if I’d been fighting for my life. How could that even be possible?

  True panic hit me then. Instinctively I searched inside my battered body as I fought to lift myself up. From somewhere deep inside I felt the power given to me by Ukko still flowing into my body. Instead of pooling into a reserve like it normally did, it was feeding directly into my body. Without a second thought, I redirected the flow, brutally forcing it into my muscles.

  The scream that ripped out of my parched lips only came out as a low rasping moan, but that didn’t lessen the severity of the pain or the convulsions racking my body. My eyes rolled into the back of my head as abused muscles clenched in agony, exemplifying just how sick and injured I truly was.

  Instantly soft hands gripped my face as a musical voice urgently whispered in my ear. “Be at peace Klavikian, all is well with your charges. You have the word of Enelya Tasartir. You must let your body fully heal if you are to recover your strength." More soothing words followed, most of them lost in the haze of pain, but gradually the tension drained from my aching body.

  Slowly I once again became aware of my surroundings. This time, the small Elf was lying on top of me. Her small breasts were pressed against my chest as her hands steadily stroked my face. Feeling me stir beneath her, she lifted herself up to straddle my chest as she reached for a bowl by her knee.

  The movements of the girl’s lithe body made me intensely aware of her nakedness as she pulled out a strip of meat to chew on. There was definitely nothing under that loincloth but bare skin! Pushing the thought away, I mentally shook my head ignoring my body’s reaction.

  With a ghost of a smile, the Elf girl’s dark brown eyes watched me closely as her small mouth worked the meat for several minutes. Leaning forward she pressed her soft lips against my own, firmly pushing the food into my mouth as her dreads splayed across my chest while the scent of wild blossoms filled my senses.

  For a moment, I froze at the shared intimacy that passed between us, before weakly swallowing the sustenance without question. She touched my body with a familiar ease like I was some lost lover. Almost as if she knew me on some deeper level, but the thought slipped away a second later as my hunger returned with a vengeance. I was starving. Thankfully without hesitation the Elf girl continued feeding me the entire bowl, her lips lingering longer with each pass.

  Although this primitive level of care was unneeded in most places on Earth, on Irlendria this was how many healers cared for the injured or sick. Even so, by the time the bowl was empty, there was more kissing going on than actual feeding, which wasn’t something I’d ever
heard of healers doing from my studies.

  I know I should have questioned what was happening or at least wondered about the why, but like any other male, all that I could think about was the burning heat rising up inside of my loins. It was my first kiss. Even weakened as I was my body responded to the tender pull of those urgent lips without hesitation; the intensity momentarily wiping away all thought. I’d never felt desire like this before in my entire life.

  Maybe it was the near death experience or simply the emotional trauma from everyone I’d lost, but with everything I’d been through the “why” didn’t seem important at that second. There was no question that the Elf girl had saved my life and obviously that of Frostbrand and Starfire. How could I turn down her simple request?

  I’m not saying it wasn’t hot, because it was. It was just the whole experience was outside my normal realm of understanding. Not that there’d been much of a choice in the matter, but then again maybe that’s how things like this went.

  Either way, no matter how intense the make-out session was becoming as soon as the food stopped flowing I was done. Almost before I realized what was happening my eyes began closing of their own accord. A moment later, I felt those same small hands pull a thick fur over our bodies as the Elf girl once again rested her head against my chest before the darkness overtook me.

  ***

  Location Irlendria / Startüm Ironwolf:

  The next time I became conscious of my surroundings again, I realized the agony that had been tearing at my soul apart was all but gone. Even though I lay motionless, I could tell my body was still very weak. Hearing movement nearby, I groggily opened my bleary eyes looking towards the sounds.

  For a long second my mind failed to comprehend what I saw as my mouth gaped open in surprise. It was dark again, but the flickering light from the fire gave off more than enough light for me to see what was happening. Possibly a more accurate statement would have been to watch the action that was going on. Whoever the Centaur was from the battle by the river, she definitely knew the Wild Elf. Lip-locked the way they were it was obvious they were more than friends.

  Casual sex had never been an option for me. Not because Paladins were prudes or that Ukko frowned on the sexual promiscuity of his religious warriors. It might sound like an odd question to ask, but it was amazing how many times the subject was brought up by new converts. Probably because so many religions on Earth had issues with sex and intimate relationships between unwed men and women. Most just automatically assumed Ukkodians would have similar hang-ups. I’m sure my own lack of intimate relationships caused some of the confusion, but that wasn’t a Ukko thing. I’d just never been interested in sex one way or another while growing up, but now watching the scene before me, it was like I couldn’t look away.

  “He wakes!” The sharp hiss made my blood turn cold. For a split second, I felt like a teenager caught peeking into some girl’s bedroom window. The Centaur’s angry black eyes suddenly bore into me as the Elf girl untwined herself from the filly’s arms. Hurrying to my side, the Elf girl began pulling me into a propped-up position while speaking over her shoulder.

  “Nessa, can you bring the bowl of meat that mother prepared?”

  Obviously irritated the Centaur rose to her hooves in one smooth motion as my breath caught in my throat. Embarrassingly my eyes focused on the bounce of her impressive breasts. From the scars that marked her body, there was no question that she was a warrior. Forcing my gaze away from her bare chest, I studied the color of her lean and heavily muscled body. Except for the roan-colored mane of hair flowing from her head and down her back, her skin was completely white. There was something important about the color, but whatever it was my mind couldn’t seem to recall the forgotten memory as she angrily clopped towards the tent’s flap.

  What was wrong with me? It was like I couldn’t stop ogling every female I saw!

  With one last angry glare, the Centaur left the tent as I tried not to stare at the nearly nude Elf girl that suddenly plopped into my lap. Still only dressed in a loincloth, she straddled my legs pressing a wooden bowl to my dry lips. “Drink.” Seeing my nose quiver at the terrible odor she smiled fiercely. “I know it smells horrible. It tastes even worse, but it will help your body heal. Now drink!”

  For a moment, I thought about arguing, but that made little sense. If they’d wanted to poison me, they wouldn’t be working so hard to keep me alive. Not that I had any choice in the matter as the bowl was suddenly upended into my mouth. Grimacing, I gulped the foul tasting liquid down until the bowl was empty. Almost immediately a warm heat began spreading throughout my emaciated body as the Elf girl’s slim arms immediately wrapped around my neck. Leaning forward without hesitation, she pressed her lean body against my chest kissing me softly. Without conscious thought my hands ran up her muscular thighs, thankfully stopping just short of her loin cloth as I spoke in a hurried rush with my voice cracking from disuse.

  “Whoa, time out for a second. What do you think you’re doing?” Seeing the surprised look on her face, I suddenly felt self-conscious as we both became aware of my body’s obvious reaction to her nearness. Stuttering, I tried a different track. “You don’t need to do this. I mean, you don’t even know me?” Before she could answer the flap whipped open as the Centaur came striding back into the tent. Taking one disgusted look at us, she tossed a large bowl to the Elf girl before storming back out with a flick of her tail.

  Giving me a playful smile, the Elf girl adjusted her hips to slide more fully onto my groin as she began feeding me. This time, she let me chew my own meat as she spoke in her musical voice. “Nessa is an old friend.” Seeing my raised eyebrows she blushed slightly. “Well more than just friends, but that was a long time ago. I was just explaining to her why there couldn’t be anything more between us when you woke up.”

  She said that matter-of-factly like the explanation should have been obvious. Unfortunately, it didn’t help to explain anything about what was going on. Grandsire had covered the various Elven Clans and their ways during our lessons, but he had only limited knowledge of the Wild Elves and their animal companions. I knew that most of their tribe had been devastated protecting the Great Forest during the Battle of Daeron. Dying by the thousands they’d held back the Tuonellians Hordes long enough for the Alliance to come to the Elves rescue, but doing so had almost destroyed the Clan. Nearly one in twenty hadn’t survived the battle. Afterward the Wild Elves had pulled back from the rest of the world, so little was known of their ways.

  Seeing my confusion, the girl continued explaining. “You saved our lives by the Otso River and in doing so stopped an invasion that would have killed many of my tribe had they been caught unaware by the Tuonellian deception. The Clan owes you Skuldir Líf. It is my honor and duty to repay the life debt owed by my people.”

  For a surreal second, it felt like the blood suddenly froze in my veins as my voice hardened in barely controlled rage. To say that I was angry would have been an understatement. During my time on Earth, I had ran into many cultures that paid their debts with the lives of their women and children. It was as if these members of their society were considered less than human, but mere property to be traded without a second thought or concern like cattle. In each culture the name was different, but ultimately the practice was the same. Always for the honor of the family or the tribe and approved by society at large or condoned by the ruling religion, but slavery none the less.

  “Your clan owes me nothing for my help. There is no debt that needs to be repaid.”

  Bowing her head, the Elf girl spoke without hesitation. “None the less, my life and that of Argus, my Wenci brother, is yours.”

  Sitting up, I shoved the Wild Elf from my lap speaking harshly. “I am a Paladin of Ukko. To accept such payment would go against every principle my God stands for. I do not sanction slavery, nor do I tolerate the practice in my presence.”

  Looking up at me incredulously the Elf girl rose to her knees. “You would discard my peo
ple’s gift after they have come to the aid of you and your charges?”

  My anger gave me the strength to rise shakily into a crouch as the tattoos on my skin began to glow red, lighting up the insides of the tent with heavy shadows. “I would fight to the death before accepting such a gift. Your Skuldir Líf has been paid in full. You are free to do as you please.”

  “You say that I am no one’s slave and am free to do as I please?”

  Already the exhaustion from my energy discharge was beginning to take its toll on me. I had no idea why the Rök runes tattooed into my skin had activated, but in doing so, they had used up the minuscule pool of energy that had built-up while I’d slept. Logically I knew it wasn’t the Elf girl’s fault, but that of her people’s. Still the whole idea rubbed me wrong. Forcing myself to calm down I spoke firmly.

  “Yes, I free you to live as you please.”

  Grinning happily the girl excitedly jumped into my arms, easily pushing me down into the sleeping furs as she straddled me once again. “Good, then I choose to serve you!”

  Needless to say, the argument didn’t end there. We argued well into the night, but it’s hard to stay angry when a beautiful naked Elf keeps throwing herself at you. Then again, I was always pretty stubborn. Just ask my Grandsire. Not that I’d ever had problems saying no before now, but, this time, it was different. Something about the Elf girl tugged at my heart.

  The discussion ended up being much more intense and completely different than what I had initially expected. The Elf girl’s name was Enelya Tasartir. As a spirit shaman of the Wild Elf Clan, she had very distinct ideas of what was right and wrong. In her own words, she explained what had occurred when we first met. During the time I’d been communing with the Great Forest, a connection had formed between us. At the time, it was the only way the spirits could awaken me. The link was completely different than what I shared with the twins, nor did it function like her connection to Argus either. It was something altogether different. For that brief moment, Enelya had connected to me at the level of the spirit, capturing the very essence of my soul. The experience marking her with the love she now held for me.