Becoming D'Vaire (D'Vaire, Book 11)

by Jessamyn Kingley

  “We’ve decided it’s probably not best to have parts of the spell that can’t be reconciled by the simulator, so we’re content to let the poison idea go,” T’Eirick said. “It also allows the Sentinel Brotherhood to retain that unique feature for themselves. Saura and I would like for you to bespell our weapons to engrave them with our names to prevent them from being used against us.”

  Alaric nodded. “I was going to ask you about that. I would be happy to do it. I will handle it as soon as you are resurrected.”

  “Thank you, Alaric. That would be wonderful,” Saura replied.

  “The other thing I did work on was asking Fate to mark them in some way as the leaders of the Darkfallen Court. We’re going to leave the how up to her as most races didn’t get to decide how their rulers were singled out,” Delaney stated.

  “Yeah, I’m pretty sure no one asked her to slap a skull in the middle of my chest,” Chander remarked.

  “I happen to be very fond of that skull,” Alaric commented as he aimed a heated look in the Arch Lich’s direction.

  “Anyway, anything else we need to discuss on that front?” Chander asked.

  Delaney laid a hand on the table, and a piece of paper appeared underneath it. He slid it across the table to Chander. “Here’s the completed spell.”

  Chander took a minute to read it over, then glanced up with a smile. “Del, resurrection spells are becoming your specialty. What, this makes three now?”

  “Maybe I’ll decide to cast one myself and convert my magic to necromancy. That’s how the whole Order of Necromancia got started in the first place,” Delaney teased.

  “The hell you will,” Vadimas retorted. “Chand, stop trying to steal my dark wizard.”

  Delaney’s eyes lit up with amusement. “Imagine that. As a necromancer, no one would think I stood out. They’re all dark casters. I could fill D’Vaire with kickass dead people.”

  “Hey, they’d still have to complete the sanctuary application,” Aleksander responded.

  “Grigori, you might need to take Del to your room and get him to lie down,” Idris interjected. “I think he’s hallucinating and is in real danger of being choked by a High Arcanist if he doesn’t get it under control.”

  “Delaney the Dark’s incongruous fantasies aside, we need to discuss the real issue we’re all avoiding,” Vadimas stated with a sinister glare for Delaney. “We have to fine-tune the deaths themselves.”

  “This sucks, you know. Casually sitting here planning my parents’ deaths,” Dra’Kaedan grumbled.

  His twin reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder. “I know, but it needs to be done. We’ve just got one shot at this. If we fail, we have no clue how else to fix our Carvallius and Latarian problem.”

  “We’re only going to be gone for a day,” Saura reminded them gently. “Just think of it that way. Now, Aleksander, are you sure you’re ready?”

  “The way you guys have all explained this to me is that the soul vessel will rise from the midsection. So, as soon as they feel tired, we’ll call Chand over, so he can tell us when to start,” Aleksander said.

  “Exactly. I think it’s imperative we do it before the vessel gets too far away from the corporeal shell. It’ll become weightless, and we’ll be unable to affix the slices of stone Madeline’s already cut for us. We want it high enough to make it easy to shove in, but it’s going to be a short window,” Chander responded.

  “So how’s he going to be able to handle two of them at a time?” Brogan asked.

  “It’s only going to take me a second to push the stone in. Then I can move on to whoever wants to go second,” Aleksander retorted. “I’m not going to allow you to be involved. That’s not open for discussion.”

  “The reality is, no two people die at the same rate. It’s likely there will be a couple of minutes or if one of them is really slow, it could be hours in between. There’s no way it’s going to be simultaneous if for no other reason than there was a short amount of time between their resurrections,” Chander said. “Cadlyr has the slivers?”

  “Yes, I think he should hold on to them until the time is right,” Dra’Kaedan answered.

  Chander bobbed his head. “Okay, any other questions for us, Aleksander?”

  “No, I know you’re all going to be there guiding me, so I don’t screw it up. If I think of any other concerns, I’ll be sure and ask.”

  “No matter what time they die, we’re going to do the resurrections the next day?” Vadimas asked.

  “I want at least twenty-four hours on the other side. We must get the stones to Carvil, and there are conversations we need to have with our familiars. Time allowing, I’d like to speak with Scheredin’s parents as well,” T’Eirick stated.

  “Yeah, ask them where to find my sister.”

  “Don’t worry Scher, we’ll ask if we find them in time,” Saura assured her nephew. “I also don’t want to inconvenience all of you. If we die in the middle of the night, I don’t want you doing the resurrections in the wee hours of the morning. Wait until you’ve had time to coordinate your schedules.”

  “Mom, are you serious right now? You get exactly twenty-four hours. I don’t even want to wait that long,” Dra’Kaedan countered.

  “From the moment we get the call that you’re close, we’re all committed to staying at D’Vaire until the resurrections are done. None of us have any issue with how that’s going to alter our schedules. We’re certainly not going to feel inconvenienced,” Chander said.

  “T’Eirick, we’re going to die on a weekend,” Saura directed.

  The former Grand Warlock smirked. “If we have any control over it, consider it done.”

  “Timetable’s set. Let’s go over the resurrections themselves. Which of you wants to be first?” Chander asked.

  Saura and T’Eirick turned their attention to one another. She shrugged as his lips curled up in a wry smile. “It’s Saura’s turn. I was born knowing I’d be the Grand Warlock, and she later became the Grand Summoner after we met. This time around, she’ll the be first darkfallen and her name will always come first.”

  The former Grand Summoner grinned and cupped T’Eirick’s face in her hands. “Thank you,” she said softly, then kissed him. “But it’s fine with me either way.”

  “My mind is already made up.”

  “Okay, I won’t argue.”

  “There’s a first,” T’Eirick muttered while she glared.

  “This is the point where I remind you that you have three days of resurrection sickness to look forward to,” Chander said.

  “Mom, try to remember not to sit straight up as soon as you open your eyes like you did last time,” Dre’Kariston warned.

  “Believe it or not, I know that.”

  “I want to talk about the power funneling. Is this necessary? It’s going to be painful for Chand,” Alaric inquired.

  “I don’t care how bad it hurts. We want to convince Fate they need a remarkable amount of power. I think the best way to do that is to combine what we have at our disposal. We’ll have the warlocks all push their magic into Dre’Kariston and the wizards will do the same to Del. Dre’Kariston and Del will then shove it in my direction,” Chander said. “The combination of magic will also ensure that their healing abilities will be painless for dark wizards and warlocks, as well as necromancers when applied.”

  “The transfer of power will be painful for you and Del too. The light going into your dark,” Somerly complained to Dre’Kariston.

  “Come on, guys. We know you love us, but we’re only talking about a few minutes at best in pain. None of us are ever going to count the cost,” Dre’Kariston responded. He swiped a thumb gently over Somerly’s cheek. “It’s not going to be that bad.”

  “What do we have left to do or discuss?” Chander asked.

  “I guess the only thing we’re waiting for is our deaths,” Saura remarked brightly.

  “It’s weird that you’re excited about that,” Dra’Kaedan complained.

&nb
sp; “T’Eirick and I are being granted eternal life. We may be offered the ability to be a new kind of healer, one this world needs. If that were not enough, we get to spend that immortality with all of you.”

  “It would be remiss of us to leave out this is going to give us the ultimate punishment for the man who betrayed our people. Carvallius led us all to our deaths. He must pay. Dre’Kariston stopped him once, and now we finally get the opportunity to avenge the Coven of Warlocks and take that burden off our children,” T’Eirick said. His eyes glittered with rage. “Latarian put a fucking knife in my son’s chest after over six centuries as his captor. We’ll find her and when we do, she’ll be rooted in the afterlife as well. These aren’t things we’re taking lightly. In many ways, they’re just as important as being darkfallen.”

  “I’d just like to say, I think every person in this room is incredible, and I know this is going to work out exactly as you intend, because I’ve never met a more determined group of people,” Grigori told them.

  “Del, has anyone mentioned today how fucking fantastic your mate is?” Chander asked.

  “I’ve thought that at least a hundred times today. Does that count?”

  “Works for me,” the Arch Lich replied. “Yours is the opinion that matters the most to him.” Chander rose from his chair, and they all quickly said their good-byes so everyone could return home.

  Grigori leaned over to Delaney. “You ready to go try this blood-drinking thing?”

  Delaney’s smile was gorgeous, and his dark eyes were devoid of fear. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  Chapter 32

  It would be a lie for Delaney to say he had no worries about Grigori drinking his blood for the first time, but he wasn’t anxious for himself. They had no idea how the vampire would react to all the magic that poured through Delaney’s veins, and he wasn’t a huge fan of suspense outside of a horror movie. He was glad they were finally at the point where they’d get all their questions answered, and he could lessen the burden of his concern for him. After leaving the gathering of sorcerers, Delaney walked at Grigori’s side toward their bedroom.

  He shook off the tumult of emotions the discussions about T’Eirick and Saura had dredged up. It was going to be a difficult time for everyone as they passed over to the other side of the veil, but Delaney figured dwelling on it beforehand would only make it worse.

  When the time came, he would be ready for whatever happened. Before then, Grigori needed him, and Delaney was happy to oblige. They made it to their room, and Grigori went straight to the alarm clock to set it.

  Tugging his phone from his pocket, Delaney asked, “Four minutes?”

  “Yeah, but I’m thinking it’s too soon to get ready.”

  “What do you mean? You have a week and a half before you run out of the blood you drank before our mating ceremony.”

  “I know. No worries…I’m drinking tonight, but I think we need to do a few things first.”

  Delaney’s brows drew together in confusion. “Like what?”

  “Do you remember what it felt like when I bit you?” Grigori asked, and Delaney nodded. It was an incredible feeling, and the desire already consuming him had intensified to new heights. “Okay, so think about having that sensation for four minutes straight.”

  “I’m going to be naked for this.”

  “Damn right we are.”

  His T-shirt hit the floor seconds later, and he leaned down to untie his sneakers. “What else do we need to do besides get naked?”

  “Decide who gets to bottom? I imagine we’re both going to need to fuck after I’m done drinking.”

  Once Delaney got his shoes and socks off, he glanced over and his hungry gaze roamed over the smooth skin of Grigori’s chest. I’m glad I’m not the only one tearing off my clothes, he thought as he reached for his belt. “You get to drink. I get to be the one fucked.”

  “Willing to negotiate?”

  “Absolutely not.”

  Grigori chuckled as his footwear hit the floorboards. “I think we should stretch your pretty hole before I bite.”

  “You won’t get any arguments from me,” Delaney assured him as he shoved his pants and underwear down. He stepped out of them and ran his hand over his hardening length.

  “Stop playing with yourself and get over here,” Grigori ordered as he climbed onto the bed, naked. He snagged the lube from the nightstand and poured some onto his fingers.

  Delaney got up onto the mattress and crawled until he could kiss Grigori. When they stopped for air, Delaney was out of breath and still on all fours. “We can’t forget to set the alarms,” he warned.

  “No fangs or dick until they’re set.”

  “We’re such a good team,” Delaney crowed as he shuffled around to give Grigori access to his ass.

  “Hmm.”

  “What?” Delaney asked as he waited. Grigori had yet to touch him.

  “You know there are things we haven’t tried yet.”

  “I’m sure there’s all kinds of things we haven’t tried yet. Remember all that shit we saw on the Internet? I don’t even know how some of that stuff works and if I’m being honest, it’s a little disturbing.”

  “We’re not bringing disturbing into our bedroom,” Grigori stated. “The idea I had doesn’t require anything not currently available.”

  “Okay, what it is?”

  Grigori didn’t reply with words. Instead one hand landed on Delaney’s ass and he used a thumb to expose his pucker. Then he swiped his tongue over it. At that point, Delaney’s eyes rolled back into his skull and he let out a moan.

  He shuddered as Grigori continued to lick him and if he could find a way to speak, he’d thank him for being so considerate. Lowering his arms to the bed, he laid his forehead down onto them. All he heard was the thunderous beat of his heart and his own panting as Grigori hummed while he worked.

  Delaney didn’t doubt that the vampire was enjoying it—he was making more noise than he was—but then, Grigori wasn’t currently going out of his mind with so much pleasure that he wasn’t capable of something so simple as sounds. It reminded him of the beautiful vibrating plug his magnificent other half had purchased with his pleasure in mind. One thing was for sure; there was nothing Delaney enjoyed more than having his hole massaged, and Grigori’s laving was about as good as it got.

  As Delaney’s skin dampened and his ability to breathe shrunk, Grigori shoved his tongue inside. The muscles of Delaney’s legs trembled, and his balls ached. He could not take it any longer, so he rolled his head to free one hand. Once he did, he wrapped it around his cock and stroked himself. Which had the unfortunate result of Grigori lifting his mouth away from where Delaney now knew it truly belonged.

  “Why the fuck did you stop?” he whined.

  “Get your hand off your dick.”

  “But—”

  “Now, Delsaurus. You’re only supposed to be getting prepared to fuck, not blow your load.”

  Though he was not happy about it, Delaney reluctantly dropped his arm back to the mattress. “Hurry up,” he ordered.

  Two fingers slid inside him. “Take a few deep breaths and relax.”

  “We’re doing that tongue thing again.”

  “You liked me eating your ass, didn’t you?”

  Delaney managed to lift his head, so he could glance back at his grinning vampire. “You don’t even need me to answer that.”

  “I liked it too.”

  Deciding it wasn’t good to continue to think about Grigori’s wicked mouth, he closed his eyes and tried not to let the two digits buried in his ass drive him out of his mind. “Don’t touch my prostate, okay? I’m already on the edge.”

  “I won’t,” Grigori promised softly. He was kind enough to add a third finger and leisurely pulled them in and out of Delaney. The slow stretching helped Delaney cool his blood somewhat as he tried to keep his wits about him. They needed to stay calm and focused so they could both handle Grigori’s reaction to his blood. Minutes passed, a
nd Delaney managed to get himself back to floating just below the need to come.

  “Ready to set some timers?”

  “I don’t know, my fingers are pretty happy right now.”

  “Grigori, they can’t stay there forever.”

  “You’re kind of cranky,” Grigori teased as he pulled his hand away. He dropped a kiss against one ass cheek; then Delaney crawled away so he could sit up.

  Once he was settled, Delaney reached over Grigori and grabbed his phone. “Why are we doing it for four minutes anyway?”

  “Three was too short and five was too many,” Grigori explained, which Delaney supposed in his brain made perfect sense.

  “Okay, so set the alarm on the clock for five minutes from now. It’ll be our last reminder. We’ll do four on our phone timers but don’t click it to start until we’re in place. Be sure you’ve got it on as loud as possible. I need to hear it over, you know, everything going on inside.”

  “Alarm’s set and phone is ready. Come on over here.”

  Delaney got himself into position, sitting in front of Grigori. “Tell your dick not to get any ideas.”

  “He’s so hard for you.”

  “I know, let’s go.”

  “This isn’t very romantic,” Grigori complained as he wrapped his arms around Delaney and hugged him close.

  “We’ll do romantic next time. If we have candles and shit and you start running around the room, you might start a fire,” Delaney teased, only half joking.

  “Fine, I guess I’ll just bite.”

  Grigori took a deep breath and kissed Delaney’s neck sweetly right over his collar. “Stop,” Delaney ordered as he scrambled away. He jumped to his feet and turned to his mate, who wore a look of shock and concern.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Don’t you owe me a collar now that I’m going to be your blood slave?”

  Grigori grinned. “I got so excited eating your ass, I forgot,” he said. He got up and ran a hand over Delaney’s midsection, missing his hard dick by only millimeters, then walked over to his closet. After grabbing a box from inside, he returned to Delaney’s side. “Sit, we need to remove your old one first.”