Kael's Quest

by T. J. Quinn

  “Can I convince you to forget this insane idea?” he made one last attempt.

  “No, you can’t,” she assured him, with determination on her tone.

  “Then, I guess I’ll have to meet him. There’s no way I’ll let you go out into this battle alone.”

  Rhiannon hugged him, happy for his support. “Thank you, this means a lot to me.”

  “Very well. When can I meet this man?”

  “Tomorrow. I’ll bring him to the bakery, early in the morning,” she suggested, stepping back. “I just want you to promise me to be open-minded. He’s not from here, and he’s a bit different from the people you know.”

  “What is he? A repented demon?” he asked, sarcastic.

  “Please, father.”

  He raised his hands in surrender. “Alright, alright, I promise to be on my best behavior.”

  “Thank you, that’s all I’m asking for.” *

  Her father left for work that dawn, as usual, and a few minutes later, she heard someone knocking on her door.

  Kael was there. “Were you watching the house?” she asked, amused.

  “Of course. I didn’t want to waste a single second of the time we have with each other.” There was so much urgency in his tone, she shuddered with anticipation.

  He picked her up in his arms, right there, at the door and claimed her lips in a passionate kiss.

  She could feel his hard cock pressing against her stomach, showing her just how much he wanted her.

  Turning around, he pressed her against the door, while his hands pulled her nightgown up, exposing her aching pussy to his touch.

  She let out a loud moan, burying her fingers in his hair, pulling him even closer, surrendering herself to his kisses and caresses, eager to feel him inside her.

  He didn’t make her wait. Unzipping his jumpsuit, he pulled his hard cock out and right there, he thrust it inside her, grunting as her walls welcomed him, clenching around him, turning each inch of the path inside her into a road of sheer pleasure.

  Rhiannon sobbed in pleasure, loving the way the ridges on his shaft enhanced each sensation, multiplying her pleasure incredibly times. She would never have enough of this, of him.

  A few moments later, they were swirling in the turmoil of pleasure and bliss they conjured each time they were together.

  She was still lost in the haze of pleasure when he carried her in his arms up the stairs. He wasn’t done with her, but this time he wanted a bed so that he could worship her body the way she deserved.

  They spent the next couple of hours making love, oblivious to the world outside and by the time the sun reached her bedroom window, she was exhausted, but happier than ever.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Are you sure we have to get up?” she grumbled.

  He chuckled. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

  “I don’t want to, but I have to. My father is expecting us at the bakery shop,” she explained, jumping out of bed.

  “What? Your father?” he turned to look at her, surprised.

  “Yes, he wants to meet you,” she replied. “Last night, he tried to convince me to stay away from the battle, and I refused. But, we had an enlightening conversation, and he ended up accepting to join us. All I know I learned from him, so you won’t regret having him in your small army,” she added.

  “Are you sure this is a good idea? He might think I’m a demon,” he asked, with a frown.

  “I told him you were different and asked him to keep his mind open. I’m sure he will have a bit of trouble accepting you at the beginning, but the impression won’t last.”

  He shrugged. “Well, I hope you know what you’re doing.”

  She smiled. “Trust me on this,” she asked him. “Just don’t let him know what we were doing. That would certainly be more than he can take,” she warned him with an amused tone.

  He smiled and nodded.

  After a quick bath, she got dressed, and they left. Like the other day, she was wearing pants instead of a dress.

  “Won’t your father be upset with those pants?” he asked, curious.

  She looked at her clothes and shook her head. “Though most women choose to wear dresses all the time, some, like me, prefer the pants,” she explained. “I do wear dresses now and then, but I have to admit I prefer the pants.”

  They reached the bakery, but she used the back door instead of the front one. She didn’t want her father’s customers to see Kael. The villagers would need some time to get used to his presence.

  Leaving Kael in the baking room, Rhiannon went looking for her father.

  “He’s here, father,” she whispered in his ear.

  The old man nodded, and after telling his assistant to take over the sales, he accompanied Rhiannon to the back room.

  As expected, her father’s surprise was big.

  “Are you sure he’s not a demon?” he mumbled, not sure of what to think.

  “Demons are quite different from him, believe me,” she said, smiling. “Kael, this is Peter, my father, and Gwendolyn’s son,” she introduced them.

  “It’s a pleasure meeting you, sir,” Kael greeted him, with a respectful tone.

  “Rhiannon told me you plan to attack the demons next time they show up,” her father said, in a cold tone.

  At least, he wasn’t shouting and screaming.

  “Yes, that’s right. I defeated some of the demons a few weeks ago, when I found them attacking Joshua, so I’m certain we can destroy them,” he explained. “But, I also plan on following them to their lair. I was told they seem to multiply faster than you can kill them, so the only way to stop them is killing whatever breeds them.”

  “That sounds like a good plan but are you sure it’s viable?” her father asked, uncertain.

  “Yes, they are vulnerable to fire, so I’m sure we can destroy them forever,” Kael assured him.

  The other man nodded. “Very well, I guess it’s worth a shot. I’ll join you as soon as I finish here.”

  “You’ll be more than welcome,” Kael assured him.

  They left the bakery and headed to the training camp. The other men were already there waiting for them, and they started immediately.

  By the end of the day, they established a meeting point in case the demons showed up that night and called it a day.

  “Do you think they will attack tonight?” she asked, as they returned to Gwendolyn’s house. Her father was walking ahead of them.

  “I have no idea, but I truly hope so. I want to find their lair as soon as possible. Hopefully, Esther will still be alive, and we’ll be able to rescue her,” he replied, in a stern tone.

  “Yes, we might rescue a few other women as well, that would be wonderful,” she said.

  “Your mother was taken by them?” he asked, in a low tone.

  “No, she was too old for their taste. They killed her instead, as they killed my grandfather, in one of the battles.”

  “We’ll destroy them. I won’t rest until we do,” Kael assured her.

  “Thank you for all your support, we wouldn’t be able to do this without you,” she said, smiling.

  “When I saved Joshua’s life, I vowed to protect him and his family. Giving his mother the medicine she needed was part of it,” he explained. “We don’t usually get involved in other people’s fights, because we are stronger than most species, but in this case, they messed with those I vowed to protect.”

  “Then, we’re lucky to have you,” she said, still smiling.

  She was happy he had decided to help them, but she wasn’t sure how she felt about his reasons. She knew she was jealous, but she couldn’t help it. She wanted to be the reason why he wanted to fight the demons. It was illogical, of course, but it was the way she felt.

  They finally said goodnight, and she went home with her father.

  The demons didn’t attack that night or the following nights. That gave them more time to prepare the firebombs and train their attacks, but the wait was ge
tting on everybody’s nerves.

  Kael had been able to master his shifting into the fire creature, and that was a significant advantage, but all he could think of was poor Esther, held captive by those monsters, probably enduring unimaginable tortures.

  “You look worried,” Rhiannon said, resting her arms on his chest.

  “I am, I’m also frustrated and impatient. It’s been a week now, and the demons haven’t attacked,” he grumbled, pulling her closer.

  They were still in bed after they had spent a couple of hours making love as if tomorrow didn’t exist. Rhiannon relished every second she spent in his arms, knowing she wouldn’t have many more.

  Once the demons were defeated, she was sure Kael would leave, and she would never see him again.

  “They will, you can be sure of it,” she appeased him.

  “I know, it’s just hard for me to think of poor Esther and all she must be going through in their clutches, and not being able to do anything about it,” he burst out, without realizing the sudden stiffness of the woman in his arms.

  “You sound as if you care a lot about her,” she said, in a low tone, trying to keep the ugly beast of jealousy under control without any success.

  “And I do, when I saved Joshua’s life, he became my responsibility, one of my people and that bond only became deeper when I helped your grandmother curing her illness,” he explained.

  And though his words made perfect sense, she wasn’t convinced. After all, Esther was a beautiful, young woman with a whole life ahead of her, if he managed to free her from the demons.

  Kael had never shown so much concern for her, and that was what really hurt her. She knew she didn’t have any right to feel hurt, after all, there were no promises of any sort between them. They had never talked about the future, or about them, and what was happening between them, for that matter.

  Holding back a painful moan, she rolled out of bed, needing a moment alone. “We better get ready. Father will meet us at the training camping this morning,” she said, walking behind the screens to wash up and get ready for another hard day.

  “Yes, we can’t be late today,” he replied, with an amused tone.

  Though Peter had proven to be a worthy warrior, Kael was sure the man didn’t like him much. Perhaps, he had guessed at his relationship with his daughter and wasn’t very happy about it.

  Though he could understand the man’s feelings to a certain point, he wasn’t willing to push Rhiannon away from his life just to please her father. He wasn’t ready to let her go, not yet.

  “Why don’t you go ahead first? I need a quick bath,” she suggested from behind the screens.

  He furrowed his eyebrows, not very pleased. “Are you sure? I wouldn’t mind waiting for you,” he told her.

  “It’s better if you don’t. Father doesn’t look very pleased every time he sees us arriving together,” she pointed out, in a low tone.

  She heard him put on his clothes. “Very well, if that’s what you want. I’ll see you there, then.”

  He didn’t sound very pleased, but she didn’t mind. She needed those valuable minutes alone to get herself together before she was able to face him again. “Thank you. I’ll try not to be late.”

  “Alright.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  The minute she heard the front door closing behind him, she allowed herself to slide to the floor and closed her eyes, as the tears rolled down her cheek. She was so desperately in love with him she wanted to ask him about his feelings for her.

  Of course, she would never do such a thing, but it was hard sometimes to hold back the words. She wanted Kael to love her the way she loved him, but she knew she was after an impossible dream. She would be happy if he just cared enough for her as to ask her to accompany him when he finally left the village.

  Washing her face with ice cold water, she erased the damage caused by the tears, and after cleaning herself up as fast as possible, she put the self-pity behind her back and left for the training camp.

  After a hard day training, they were returning to the village when they heard the familiar raucous noise that usually, announced the monster’s arrival.

  Every man and women in the group froze for a split second before they all turned to look at Kael, waiting for instructions.

  “Take your positions immediately. Remember, we need to let at least, one of them go free so that he can lead us to their lair,” he warned them, before he shifted into the fire creature, and flew up.

  The demons finally showed up, but this time they were expected. Even so, the sizable number of demons surprised them all. There were more than a hundred of them flying over to the village. Apparently, they knew they were expected.

  All men took their positions, and the battle began. Seeing their grotesque features and the demonic laughter, infuriated Kael, and he charged against them with all his power.

  As a fire creature, he was able not only to torch the demons with his scorching breath, everything he touched burst into flames and he also realized he could throw actual balls of fire from his hands, which definitely came quite in handy while fighting the hordes of demons flying around.

  Though he was fighting the demons from the sky, part of his attention was on the ground, where Rhiannon fought the demons with her burning arrows. He had seen her put down some of the demons and he had felt proud of her courage and her strength.

  One by one, they were able to kill most of the demons, turning them into mere ash. At some point, Kael noticed some of the demons retreating from the battlefield, and he alerted his men know he would go after them.

  Confident the rest of the team would be able to finish the few demons left still fighting, he flew away after the rest.

  As he suspected, they didn’t go very far. The disgusting creatures had their lair in a huge cave not far from the villages. The place was heavily guarded with a flying patrol and stationed guards in almost every area.

  Kael couldn’t see a single woman around, but he guessed they wouldn’t keep their prisoners so close to the entrance.

  Silently, he flew over their stronghold, way above them, scanning the whole place as best as he could, using his scanner. The demons were cold-blooded creatures, so it was easy to distinguish them from their hot-blooded human prisoners.

  The number of humans he was able to detect was quite disheartening. He wished he could release them all that same instant, but he knew he would be overpowered there. He would need some help to get in.

  With an enraged growl, he flew away, back to Rhiannon’s village, to make sure everybody was alright, and they had managed to vanquish all the demons.

  And they had. By the time he arrived at the village, they were all celebrating. Other than a few bruises and slight burns, none were seriously injured and clearly happy with their victory.

  With a faint smile, Kael shifted into his humanoid form and landed next to Rhiannon. Like the others, she too was celebrating their victory.

  “Were you able to find them?” she asked him, turning to look at him.

  “Yes, I was, but there are a lot more than we expected and they seemed more organized than what they have shown on the battlefield,” he told her, with a concerned tone.

  She frowned. “You don’t think we can destroy them?” she asked, worried.

  “Yes, of course, I do. It probably won’t be as easy or as fast as I thought, but I’m sure we can destroy the demon colony,” he assured her, slipping his arm around her waist and pulling her closer. “I was able to sense a lot of humans inside their lair, still alive,” he informed her, with a sad tone.

  “That is great news,” she protested his tone.

  “Yes, they are, but I can’t help thinking of the nightmare they must be living right now,” he confessed.

  She knew he was thinking of Esther and it took all her strength not to cry out. “I know, but now, at least, there’s some hope for them,” she assured him. “After today’s victory I’m sure many more men will join us in this battle, a
nd soon we’ll be able to get them all out of there,” she added, pasting a happy smile on her face.

  He kissed the top of her head. “You’re right.”

  When Gwendolyn noticed his presence, she ordered silence from the people gathered in the main village square. The village’s leader, Sir Griffiths, was standing next to her. The concern on his face was evident.

  “Kael, tell us. Did you find their lair?” she asked, anxiously.

  Slightly squeezing Rhiannon’s waist, in a comforting caress, he walked away, to where the older woman was standing.

  “Yes, I did. There are a lot more demons than we thought, but I could detect a lot of humans still alive inside their lair. They hide in a huge cave, not far from here,” he explained.

  “Do you think it’s possible to get the women out of there?” Peter asked, in a stern tone.

  “Yes, I do. It won’t be easy, but it’s possible. The entrance is heavily guarded, but as far as I could see, there is no other way out, and that turns the cave into a trap for their inhabitants,” he replied. “They won’t be able to escape, and we’ll be able to corner them inside the cave.”

  “That could turn against us if they decide to use the women as human shields,” Rhiannon pointed out.

  “Yes, that’s a possibility. The demons are obviously less active during the day, so we’ll use that in our favor,” he stated. “We need to form two groups, one that will try to get as deep inside the cave as possible before they know we’re there and another one that will attack from the entrance.”

  “You want to catch them by surprise,” Peter concluded.

  “Yes, that way they won’t have time to think. From what I’ve seen so far, the demons aren’t very intelligent. They seem to follow orders in their attacks, and that’s what makes them so easy to defeat. If they were able to analyze the situation and act accordingly, it wouldn’t be this easy,” he explained. “Counting on that, the element of surprise will set them off balance, and they won’t know how to react, until whoever gives them orders realizes they are under attack.”

  “I like your plan. I actually think it might work perfectly,” Peter said, smiling.