Realms of Fantasy

by Mychael Black

  “I wondered if they might be behind it. Thank you for telling me, Talah.” Aridas slipped a finger beneath Talah’s chin. “You will be safe with me, but only if you do not keep secrets anymore. If there’s more I need to know, tell me. I know the being you spoke with earlier, but by reputation only. Anything more you can tell me will help us both.”

  “Sepha is the leader. Originally, he wanted me in your Order. Then he decided to keep me, and the Low Council demanded he send me on my mission. I don’t really know that much about him.”

  “What is he up to?” Aridas mused quietly.

  “I don’t really know. He never told me. But I don’t think he’ll let go of me easily. You’ve seen what he’s like.”

  “I have, unfortunately. Sepha is a warmonger, Talah. I wouldn’t put anything of that magnitude past him.”

  “We probably shouldn’t stay here long. He’s going to come looking for me once he finds out I’m not home.” Talah tried to get out of the bed so they could leave.

  “In a minute.” Aridas stopped him, rolling half on top of Talah. “I want a kiss first.”

  Finding himself pinned back to the bed, Talah draped his arms over Aridas’ shoulders. He lifted his head, covering Aridas’ lips, and parted them with his tongue. In the kiss, he tried to express all he could of his own growing need for the angel.

  Licking Talah’s lips, Aridas pulled back slowly. “Now we can go.”

  Talah wanted Aridas’ hands on him and he arched against him. “In a minute we can.”

  Aridas chuckled, hand sliding down, fingers closing around Talah’s cock. “What do you want, Talah?”

  “To always be a part of you.”

  “You always will be.” Aridas slid down and traced the length of Talah’s cock with his tongue.

  Talah parted his legs for Aridas, giving the angel access to him. Drawing up his knees, Talah rolled his hips, urging Aridas to do more. Aridas rolled the lower half of Talah’s body upward. Then Aridas flicked his tongue over Talah’s hole, never breaking eye contact.

  “Please, Aridas, please.”

  Aridas lowered him and, with Talah slick with spit, he thrust his cock inside in one smooth motion. “Come on,” he whispered, leaning down to lick Talah’s lips, “take what you want.”

  Talah wrapped his legs around Aridas and met the angel’s movements, stroke for stroke. He bit at Aridas’ lower lip hard enough to draw blood then licked away the few drops.

  “I want everything.” Aridas rolled them until Talah was on top. Gripping Talah’s hips, he thrust up, pushing his cock deeper.

  Giving Aridas what he asked for, Talah spread his violet wings out. The movement of his hips continuously impaled him on Aridas’ cock as Talah’s nails lengthened then ran downward over the angel’s chest.

  “Take me…” With the words, Aridas turned his head, baring his neck in invitation.

  “I give it all to you.” His true nature began to show as he lowered his head to Aridas’ throat. This was something he’d never done for anyone, yet Talah willingly did it for Aridas. Talah sank his teeth into the tender flesh and drank greedily. Talah’s climax surprised him, wave after wave rolling over him in exquisite pleasure.

  “Talah.” Aridas whispered the name seconds before heat rushed through them both, his body arching beneath Talah’s as he came.

  They both remained joined together as Talah continued taking Aridas’ blood. When everything slowly returned to normal, Talah released him. Lifting his head, he licked at the drops of blood left on them as he stared down at Aridas. “I will always hunger for you.”

  “And I will always be here to sate that hunger.”

  “I know that somehow, but we really should leave now.”

  “I agree.” Talah got off the bed and picked up the remnants of his pants. “I suppose I should be grateful my tunic covers everything.”

  Aridas chuckled and dressed. “Sorry about that. I’ll make sure you have replacements when we return to the Order.”

  Talah dropped the pants with a shrug. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

  “Right behind you.”

  Chapter Five

  Though he’d returned to the Order with Aridas, Talah found it hard to stay behind the cloistered walls. Slipping out to the nearby town, he strolled down the crowded street, simply enjoying the noise and the bustle. Cutting down one of the alleys, he ignored the filth strewn on the ground. He was in the mood for a drink or two at one of the nearby taverns then he planned on returning to the Order before anyone noticed he was gone.

  Lost in his own thoughts, Talah paid little attention to his surroundings. Lately everything he thought about revolved around Aridas. He wasn’t sure how to explain any of it, except he felt whole with the angel in his life, something he never felt before. Knowing Aridas’ emotions were the same was something Talah had yet to adjust to.

  Even away from the protected walls of the Order, Talah could feel Aridas within him. It was as if the angel’s power shadowed him. Nothing in his existence had prepared Talah for his own emotions or dealing with another who needed him. But it felt so easy just to slip into it, to allow it to be. Talah hadn’t struggled against any of it, and he had no intention of even trying to.

  A shadowed figure jumped down from the roof of a nearby building and landed near Talah. Before Talah could react, a numbing force took over his body. He remained standing but couldn’t move at all.

  Sepha straightened from his crouch then grabbed Talah, pulling the angel against him. “You tried to escape me, my little pet.”

  Talah was given no chance to answer as they took to the air. In a dizzying blur, they set down on the floor of Sepha’s main salon.

  “Now explain to me why you didn’t return to me as I told you.”

  The moment Talah could move, he attacked Sepha, expending what energy he could.

  Sepha’s talons sank into Talah’s face and arm. He shoved Talah back and kept the angel pinned against the wall with his body. “Did you really think I would let you go free?”

  Talah stared unblinkingly at him, ignoring the blood dripping from the wounds. “You don’t own me.”

  “You’re mated with that bastard. That’s why you went with him, isn’t it?” Pure rage twisted Sepha’s features, and his talons tore into Talah’s chest.

  Talah couldn’t react as a brutal force freed him from the talons and sent him flying toward the ceiling as Sepha cursed him. “You worthless whelp! I own you!”

  Before he could fall, Talah hung spread eagle, suspended in mid air. Sepha lifted his hand, engulfing Talah in hellfire. “I’ve only played with you before, my precious. Now you will truly feel what I can do.”

  Talah’s mind blanked as he writhed in the agonizing pressure. Bereft in the excruciating torment, Talah screamed.

  Thunder shook the walls so strongly that Sepha’s concentration was broken. Growling, he spun around seconds before a blast of white light slammed him back against the opposite wall. A blur of red and orange followed, and several arrows found their targets in Sepha’s chest and shoulders.

  Blood poured from Talah’s mouth, nose and eyes to the floor beneath him. The hellfire left his body misshapen and distorted. He fell to the floor and lay in a heap. Sepha roared. His body ejected the arrows as he advanced on Talah.

  Light enveloped Talah, protecting him from anything Sepha might have done. The figure in the doorway stepped into the room, red eyes blazing with fury. A lift of the angel’s hand had Sepha flying through the air again, pinning him to the wall near the ceiling.

  “You should know better, Sepha.”

  Sepha’s power pushed back against the force that held him to the wall and he dropped to his feet. A split second later, he flew through the air straight at Aridas and sent the angel back through the door. Their bodies tangled as Sepha’s talons sank into Aridas. “You. So you are the one.”

  Aridas heaved Sepha off of him. “Such a pleasure.”

  Sepha got back onto his feet in the bl
ink of an eye and whirled to face Aridas. “My claim is first on him.”

  Talah tried to get up on his hands and knees, attempting to focus on the other two.

  “Mine is stronger,” Aridas countered. “If you want Talah that badly then you will have to kill me first.”

  A simple look from Sepha sent Talah collapsing back to the floor. The pain, while not as agonizing as before, debilitated the young angel.

  Smirking at Aridas, Sepha laughed before he said, “And I control him.”

  With only a slight bit of power, Aridas began healing Talah’s wounds, siphoning some of his strength to aid Talah. “He bows to me willingly.”

  “You can no more destroy me than I can destroy you, Aridas.” Sepha crouched in front of Talah. “And it seems we wish to possess the same toy. A problem, wouldn’t you say?”

  With the added strength, Talah’s wings spread out in agitation as he half rose to his knees then struck out at Sepha. Easily blocking the blow, Sepha twisted them both until they were facing Aridas. His arm pinned Talah against him as he lowered his head, savagely biting the angel’s throat. Gloating triumph gleamed in the gaze that held Aridas.

  His expression deathly calm, Aridas drew an arrow from his second quiver. Drawing the bow, he said, “A problem indeed.” Then he let the arrow fly.

  An unearthly shriek filled the room as the arrow drove deep into Sepha’s forehead. He reared back, clawing ineffectually at it. The power infusing the arrow ate like acid over the outer shell of Sepha’s form. The scream stopped abruptly and a few seconds later, the demon’s body dissolved into dust.

  Talah swayed on his knees, trying to reach out for Aridas. His body had already begun to heal, but his energy had been severely disrupted. Aridas caught him before he could hit the floor.

  “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

  When Aridas picked him up, Talah tried to burrow against him, his arms circling in a death hold around the angel’s neck. “I’m sorry…I’m sorry.”

  “Shh…” Aridas got them out of the house and once outside, took to the air. “Not your fault, Talah. You’re safe now.”

  “You destroyed him. How did you destroy him?”

  “Like me, Sepha cannot be destroyed. His soul returns to the ether to be reborn. Only the outer shell that housed him is gone.” Aridas set them down in front of the Order’s great hall. “But it will take a lifetime for him to return.”

  “What did you use on him?” Talah asked as they went to Aridas’ chambers within the Order.

  “One of my gifts—the best, I dare say—are my enchanted arrows.” Aridas closed the door and locked it behind them. “Forged from lightning, they’re the ones I reserve for desperate times. We’ll get you cleaned up. Are you all right otherwise?”

  “Other than wishing I hadn’t snuck out for a bit of fun, I think I’m fine.” Although his body had been restored, Talah wouldn’t soon forget exactly what Sepha could do. He stepped back from Aridas and peeled the tattered clothing from his body.

  Aridas helped him, the touches gentle. “I wish I had gotten there sooner. I’m sorry, Talah.”

  “That wasn’t your fault. If anything I shouldn’t have snuck out. I didn’t think he would dare come that close to the Order’s territory.”

  “Neither did I.”

  Once Talah undressed, Aridas led him into a small room with a pool inset into the stone floor. He helped Talah down into the heated water then sat on the edge, watching him.

  “In all truth, I cannot hold you here against your will,” Aridas said quietly.

  Talah sank into the water and its warmth surrounded him, easing the tension. Looking up at Aridas, he shook his head vehemently. “I’m not here against my will. I’m here because…” He trailed off, momentarily startled. “I’m here because I am a part of you.”

  Aridas reached out, smiling as a lock of hair wound around his finger of its volition. “As I am a part of you.”

  “We belong together. What Sepha wanted, I’ve given to you. And he knew that. I didn’t know at first, but now I know I’m not empty inside anymore.”

  “We are two halves of the same soul, Talah. We were created from the same bit of ether, formed to be twins on opposite sides of the spectrum.”

  “For the first time, I believe in that, Aridas.” Talah soaped off the blood and rinsed beneath the water. When he emerged, he pushed his hair out of his face as he approached Aridas.

  “It amazes me how you managed to get through this old man’s defenses…” Aridas muttered.

  “I’m not entirely sure how that happened.” Talah shivered beneath the lovingly lustful look directed at him. Leaning against the edge of the pool, he slipped his arms around Aridas’ neck. “At first I thought you were just going to be another enjoyable fuck.”

  Aridas’ clothes dissolved into the ether and he slipped into the water, hands resting on Talah’s hips. “And now?”

  “Now? There isn’t a part of me that doesn’t belong to you. It scares me in a way, but I need you too much to be without you.” Talah rubbed against Aridas, slowly arousing both of them.

  Aridas tipped Talah’s head back, licking a line up the middle of his throat. “Love…”

  “Always.” Closing his eyes, Talah became pliable in Aridas’ arms. There wasn’t anything Talah wouldn’t let the angel do.

  “Complete this,” Aridas whispered, lips brushing Talah’s neck just below his left ear. “Complete the circle, Talah.”

  Talah groaned softly, realizing what Aridas wanted. “I want you on the bed.”

  “Yes.” Aridas’ wings unfurled, lifting them from the water. Setting them at the foot of the bed, Aridas didn’t hide his wings, simply letting them rest, water still dripping from the dark orange feathers.

  Talah planned on taking things very slowly to savor everything to the fullest. The soft brush of his lips touched the angel’s then teased over them before his tongue coaxed a soft sound of need from Aridas. The simple touch seemed to be Aridas’ undoing. He shivered and pressed closer, drawing Talah’s tongue into his mouth, sucking lightly on it as his hands rested on Talah’s shoulders, fingers kneading into the skin. Talah bore Aridas down onto the bed and knelt between the angel’s legs. He lowered his head, licking a line over the length of Aridas’ cock before lifting the angel’s hips.

  “Talah…” The name was whispered. Aridas’ normally stern and stoic demeanor crumbled, became wanton and needy.

  Having Aridas literally in the palms of his hands was an erotic rush all on its own. Talah teased beneath Aridas’ balls with his tongue as his fingers cupped and massaged them. Moving lower, he slowly rimmed the outer edge of the puckered hole, taking his first taste as he felt the impatient shifting of the angel’s body.

  “Yes…please…Talah…” Aridas drew his legs up, gripping them behind his knees. “Need this…need you…”

  Talah pushed his tongue inside Aridas, enjoying the intimate taste of his lover. The sheer thought of being inside the angel was more than enough to make him painfully hard. The light dance of his fingers played over Aridas’ balls and cock as he fucked him with his tongue.

  “Talah…in me. Now.”

  Rising to his knees, Talah quickly wet his cock then leaned forward, running the head of his cock over the crack of Aridas’ ass before entering the tight heat. Watching Aridas’ face with a sharp intensity, Talah felt the resistance slowly give way to him. A low groan escaped him, and his hand moved to the angel’s chest, pinching sharply at a hard nipple.

  Aridas hissed, his back arching, driving his hips down, chest pushing up for more. “Yes…” Red eyes focused sharply on Talah. “Take me.”

  Once fully inside him, Talah rocked back and forth against Aridas. One hand slid down to the angel’s hip, talons digging into his skin, keeping Aridas pinned in position. Hard thrusts repeatedly buried Talah’s cock in Aridas, sharply increasing the pleasure.

  Gasping, eyes widening, Aridas gripped Talah’s arms. “Talah.”

  Tala
h couldn’t look away from Aridas. He knew the body under him belonged to him. Every part of the angel was his. The thought escalated the sensations between them. “All mine. You’re all mine.”

  His canines lengthened, and Talah bit Aridas’ neck, lapping at the blood before his mouth fastened to the wounds. His hand slid between them, quickly stroking over Aridas’ cock as he took him over and over again until everything exploded within him.

  Aridas’ back bowed and heat flooded them both, the fire blazing out of control, enveloping them in rich red-orange flames. “Mine.”

  The blaze rushed through Talah, sealing their bond, not only joined in body, but in mind, heart and soul as well. Talah froze as he nearly drowned in the all-consuming flames that forged their connection.

  As the flames died down, flickering out of their own accord, Aridas held Talah to him. “All yours,” he whispered.

  Never having experienced anything like that in his life, Talah lay unmoving on top of Aridas, not in a real hurry to bring himself back to normal. He could feel the union of their hearts and minds. “As I am, Aridas.”

  Chapter One

  Waving his hand in an indolent gesture, Lucifer dismissed the most annoying of the lower echelon. His patience level, never at its best, remained notoriously short lately. His lack of success in his latest endeavor had his minions paying the price.

  His throne room, unlike what one would expect, was not fire and brimstone, but rivaled most in its claim to luxurious comfort. A black marble floor inlaid with silver patterning mirrored the occupants of the room in its depth. On its black stone throne Lucifer sprawled, clad in a loose, white silk shirt and black leather pants. Waves of rich, sable hair, dark as night, framed an angelically innocent face, yet his looks fooled none who truly knew him.

  “The next one who annoys me with a report of failure will have to be cleaned up by the imps. Am I understood?” The mild tone did little to hide the temper underneath.

  One of the bolder and possibly more foolish of Lucifer’s minions stepped up to kneel before the dais. Cloaked in a coal black robe, the fallen angel bowed his head before speaking. “My Lord. I have just received a report regarding one of our own: Nias. It seems he has fallen in with one of Michael’s angels.”