Conjuring the Flesh

by Brandon Fox

  “Please,” Leif pleaded. He bucked, trying to impale himself on Ander’s flesh.

  Ander slowly eased through the ring of muscle.

  An explosion of sensation engulfed him. He felt the slippery warmth of his friend’s clenching flesh, a tickling sensation as if a hundred feathers grazed his cock in fleeting touches, an itch comprised of hot lust and desperate need. A low groan escaped as his shaft sank deeper into Leif’s body. The sound mingled with the companion’s gasps in an odd harmony, as if they were a single beast caught in a storm. A pale red aura shimmered around them and pulsed in time with their synchronized heartbeats.

  Ander leaned forward until he supported himself on outstretched arms, with Leif’s knees hooked around his elbows. Thane lifted his gaze from Leif’s cock and met Ander’s eyes. They kissed passionately as Ander began to fuck Leif with long strokes.

  Leif’s body gripped him fiercely, slippery flesh shaping itself to the contours of the invading cock. Ander fought to control his thrusts, restraining the urge to bring release with a few short jabs. His own ass clenched, feeling echoes of the intense pleasure radiating from his friend’s body. Behind it all hovered Thane’s strong presence, supporting him through their bond, sustaining him on the brink of orgasm as his body moved with a mind of its own.

  Leif stopped squirming and held himself motionless, muscles taut, mouth open in rapture. His cock spat its first long streamer the length of his body. Streaks of light raced along his phallus and torso like fireworks. He let out a throaty wail as jet after jet of semen drenched his chest.

  Ander growled deep in his throat. An overpowering jolt of energy poured through him, first along his cock and then through his groin and the rest of his body. An explosive orgasm hit him like lightning. His hips bucked, and he threw his head back as his cock spewed its seed deep inside his friend.

  Thane released Leif’s wrists and scooped up some of his come. He smeared the pearly fluid over his cock, then leaned back, shifting to the side and propping himself up with an arm thrust behind his back. He pressed his erection upright with the other hand and presented it to Ander.

  Though his orgasm still racked his body, Ander lowered his head and took Thane’s cock in his mouth. He pressed his tongue against the bottom of the glans and lashed it feverishly. He was rewarded with jets of Thane’s semen. It filled his mouth, flooding him with its earthy potency, dribbling from between his lips as more and more pumped out of his lover’s powerful body.

  At last, his mind reeling, Ander slowly withdrew from Leif’s sweaty body. He let Thane’s cock slip from between his lips, then lowered Leif’s legs to the floor and eased himself down. Their bodies pressed together, Leif’s copious ejaculation smearing their skin. They still glowed with a faint red halo that slowly faded as their breathing returned to normal.

  Thane stretched out next to them and removed Leif’s blindfold. The companion looked at him with awe.

  “So the legends are true. There’s something beyond the pleasure, isn’t there? I felt—”

  Thane put a finger to Leif’s lips, touching them gently. “Not here. These things shouldn’t be spoken of unless we’re sure of our privacy.” He gave Leif a knowing look. “I’ve been in more houses of companionship than you might guess. More than once, there was an ear on the other side of the door. Is this house any different?”

  Leif rolled his eyes. “You’re right. Tannis hasn’t stopped talking about you and Nicolai since you got here.”

  Ander tugged his hair. “You’ve probably been taunting her, little monster. I know how much you like dangling beautiful boys she can’t have in front of her.”

  “Who, me?” Leif’s pious expression was utterly unconvincing. “I’d never be so cruel.” He managed to hold his dignified expression for five seconds while Ander looked at him sternly, then broke into a smile. “Well, maybe I mentioned that Thane’s your lover, and she doesn’t have a chance against you.”

  “I can say this much,” Thane said. “I can tell you have the capacity to become an apprentice. Would you like to join us?”

  Leif’s happiness was radiant. “I’d give anything for the chance. Much as I like Lady Tay’s house, it hasn’t been the same since Ander left.”

  Loud pounding at the door made them jump.

  “Thane? Are you in here?” Nicolai’s tense voice immediately dispelled their relaxed happiness.

  Ander sprang up and crossed the room. He turned the lock and opened the door a crack. Nicolai stood alone in the corridor, his hair disheveled. Ander let him in, then closed the door again.

  Nicolai’s tense expression softened at the sight of the three sated youths and the smell of sex. “Leave Thane alone a few minutes and look what happens. It never fails.”

  “What’s the problem?” Thane asked. “You sounded worried.”

  Nicolai nodded, though his appreciative gaze never left Leif’s sleek form. “Lady Tayanita just sent word. She heard a rumor that the city gates are going to be closed at sunset. She fears there’s going to be a search. If we don’t leave now, we might be here a long time.”

  Thane reached for his pants. “We’ll go immediately. If this rumor is true, the commander is desperate. We’ll certainly be taken in for questioning if they catch us.” He paused with one leg thrust into his pants, looking at Leif with a thoughtful expression.

  “Leif, I know you want to come with us. But it might be better if you wait until any search is over. We might get stopped on the way out of the city. It’d be safer if you weren’t with us. And you might learn something valuable after we’re gone. I’ll tell you how to find the lyceum in case you have news that can’t wait for our return.”

  Leif nodded, his expression serious. “If I’m to be an apprentice, I’ll act like one. I’ll stay and listen if that’s what serves you best.”

  Ander put on his shirt, then bent over Leif and gave him a quick kiss after Thane finished providing directions to the lyceum. “Until we meet again. It’ll be worth the wait, I promise.”

  “Of that, I have no doubt.”

  Chapter 9

  ANDER slumped in his saddle, confused and frustrated. What can it be? Nicolai knows, so why would Thane hide it from me? He restrained himself from raising the subject again. Whatever the problem was, Thane didn’t want to talk about it. The night before he had lapsed into silence, holding Ander tightly beneath the blankets they shared with Nicolai. Their lovemaking had been fierce.

  Thane had moved ahead of the others. He rode with a stiff back, discomfort showing in the rigid set of his shoulders and his stony silence. Nicolai rode beside Ander and merely looked disgusted. His attempts to lighten Thane’s mood had failed miserably.

  Ander sighed and looked around the forest. They’d reach the lyceum by nightfall unless the snow got heavier and started drifting. Landmarks along the trail were already becoming familiar. A pile of boulders on their left meant they were within a mile of the timber bridge crossing the Wildwood Gorge. An hour later they would pass a stone obelisk marking the Battle of the Iron Arrow. From there it was only a few miles to the boundary of Thane’s estate. Maybe if I change the subject. If he starts talking, he might relax. He urged his horse forward. Thane gave him a sidelong glance, wary.

  “I hope Leif can come to the lyceum soon,” Ander ventured. “Erik and Skorri will test his endurance, I wager.”

  “Only a fool would bet against you on that,” Thane replied. “But Leif might surprise them. For someone who doesn’t know anything of the art, he has great control.”

  “Leif has some secrets of his own. When he became a companion, he was taught that sex is the purest and most subtle of all skills. He took it to heart.”

  A smile tugged at Thane’s lips. “To the heart and beyond. Skorri and Erik might find their own endurance strained.”

  Ander was elated at seeing Thane’s mood lift. “It’ll be interesting to forge a link with him. Sometimes he goes wild during sex. I’ve always wondered what he’s feeling when it happens.”


  Thane’s face paled, and his eyes shifted back to the frozen trail. Their horses walked patiently through the rocks and decaying pine needles, their calm a startling counterpoint to the tension that now crackled in the air.

  Ander hoped for an explanation, but none was forthcoming. An exasperated snort made him twist around. Nicolai had moved up to join the conversation and was just behind them. His weary expression was tinged with irritation.

  “Sometimes there are disadvantages to Thane being stuck at nineteen,” Nicolai said. “When he’s determined to feel bad, you’re not going to talk him out of it.”

  Ander ground his teeth in frustration. The northerner’s unhappiness was plain. Nicolai’s natural inclination was to soothe, using his strength to protect his friends in times of trouble. Ander wanted to press him, plead for his help, but knew his loyalty was as strong as his compassion. He might let his disapproval show, but he’d never break a pledge to Thane.

  Ander resigned himself to the silence and wrapped his cloak more tightly around his body. Gray clouds loomed above them, and snowflakes danced in the breeze. Nicolai was oblivious to cold and Thane too preoccupied to notice it, but Ander shivered and pulled up his cloak’s collar. Soon they were clattering over the timbers of a high bridge. Snow fell more heavily, wet flakes blending into the cataracts thundering through the narrow chasm beneath them.

  His cloak was soaked by the time they reached the obelisk. His leathers still kept him dry, but the cloak’s insulating properties were lost. He began to shiver as dusk fell. They rode through shadows, silence broken only by the occasional howl of a wolf or cry of an owl deep in the forest. The castle finally came into sight, its windows glowing warmly in the darkness. They crossed the bridge into the old fortress and entered the courtyard.

  A door at the round tower’s base swung open. Golden light spilled onto the snow. Sorel bounded out and ran toward them, his breath puffing in white clouds. He stopped beside Nicolai’s horse and gave his partner a pat on the thigh. “I felt you coming. I felt your disquiet too. What’s wrong?”

  Thane dismounted, landing heavily on legs stiff from too long in the saddle. “Now’s not the time. We’re cold and hungry. The news will wait.”

  Sorel took the reins to Thane’s horse while the others dismounted. “I’ll take the horses to the stable. Go ahead to the library and warm yourselves. I’ve got a fire going.”

  “That’s my Sorel,” Nicolai said affectionately as he handed his reins over. “Always ready with the pleasures of the body.”

  “I trust that’s not a complaint,” Sorel answered cheerfully. “You’ve never objected to creature comforts before.” He pressed a hand against the mound at Nicolai’s crotch, then collected Ander’s reins and led the horses toward the stable.

  Ander followed the others to the tower, numb with cold. His flesh began to tingle as soon as they entered the foyer at the tower’s base. They hung their cloaks on pegs beside the front door, then went past the staircase leading to the upper floors and entered the library.

  A roaring fire filled the fieldstone hearth. Everything had been restored to its rightful place following the recent search. Ander crouched in front of the fire and extended his hands toward the flames. Nicolai settled contentedly on the leather sofa a few feet back.

  After a moment’s hesitation, Thane sat cross-legged on the floor next to Ander. Light from the fire glinted off the planes of his high cheekbones. The angle of the light turned his eyes a dark gray. He watched Ander intently, his expression unreadable. A minute passed in awkward silence. Unanswered questions hung between them like a sheet of ice, impenetrable and painful to touch. Finally Thane lifted a hand and touched Ander’s cheek fleetingly before hanging his head and looking at a spot on the floor in front of his legs. “I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I was hoping I’d think of something, find a way to make everything all right. I… I’m afraid. It’s hard for me to admit.”

  Ander moved closer, alarmed by the ache in his lover’s voice.

  “I’m going to go look for Sorel,” Nicolai said as he slid off the sofa. “See you later.” He left the room in a few long strides, closing the door softly behind him.

  “What is it?” Ander asked, his voice tight. “What happened at the commander’s house?”

  Thane closed his eyes. His lips pressed together, and his breath rasped. Ander rubbed the back of his neck, massaging tense muscle. As Thane dropped his defenses, their link burst open and surged with turbulent emotions: fear, grief, and a torrent of insecurity. Despite his thirty years of experience in life, Thane doubted himself with all the intensity of any youth new to manhood. The art had preserved his spirit as well as his body at the moment in time when he and Lucian had first immersed themselves in the kei.

  At first Ander was too overcome to speak. He tightened his hug and tried to send reassurance back through their bond. Thane’s failure to respond increased his concern to near panic. “Whatever it is, I’ll stand by you,” he said. “You know that. You feel my heart, just as I feel yours. There’s no way you could doubt it.”

  Thane looked up, his eyes filled with anguish. “I never doubted you. But I’m afraid of what might happen if I… change. If I become someone different from who you love now.” He looked down again and rubbed his eyes with the back of a hand.

  Ander was bewildered. “Change? What kind of change?”

  Thane took a ragged breath. “What if I wasn’t a mage? Or at least not a very good one?”

  Ander blinked. “I’ll always love you, no matter what. But how could you not be a mage?”

  Letting his breath out in a rush, Thane pulled Ander close against his side. “I got caught by a cantrip. If it weren’t for Nicolai, it would have killed me. He freed me from the trap, but that wasn’t the end of it. Afterward—”

  A loud thunk signaled the door latch opening. Anna marched in, a determined look on her face. “It’s a good thing you got back tonight. We have a problem.”

  “Can’t this wait?” Ander asked. “We’ve had a long trip, and we’re both exhausted.” He could feel Thane’s dismay at the intrusion and the effort required to compose himself.

  “No,” Anna replied as she took a chair near the fire and pulled it around to face them. “It’s the weather spell. We’ve used it for years to keep severe weather out of the valley, but I don’t think it’s a good idea anymore. We’ve never had the zamindar’s sorcerers looking for us before. They might be able to detect the spell’s effect on the kei.”

  Thane straightened but didn’t get up. His discipline and dedication, always in evidence in his work, prevented him from neglecting duty’s call. “You could be right,” he said tiredly. “But what about the gardens? Some of the plants won’t survive if it gets too cold.”

  “The really tender plants are all in the greenhouse. And none of us will survive if we let the zamindar’s sorcerers find us.” She stood and beckoned for Thane to follow. “We need your help to dismantle the spell, or I would have done it sooner. You’re the only mage who understands its complexities.”

  Thane nodded, then gave Ander a brief hug before rising slowly to his feet. “Don’t wait up for me,” he said. “She’s right. We can’t afford the risk of discovery.”

  “Can I help?” Ander asked. The sight of his unhappy and exhausted lover going off for yet more work made him ache.

  “Not for this,” Thane said softly. “Go to bed, jirí. We’ll talk in the morning.”

  Ander felt lightheaded as they turned and left. Jirí. Beloved. Though he already felt Thane’s love to his core, it was the first time the mage had used the term of endearment. He went to bed with the feeling that some unseen corner had been turned.

  A COOL breeze brushed Ander’s cheek, rousing him from slumber. As he stretched, his arm slid across Thane’s smooth torso. The slow rise and fall told him that his lover still slept. He yawned, wondering what time Thane had come to bed, and opened an eye just enough to see where the zephyr came from. Morning sun pour
ed through an arched window in the east wall. Snow crusted the edges of diamond-shaped panes. He shivered and snuggled closer to Thane to better share their warmth.

  Thane’s eyes opened, and his body arched sensuously. He rolled onto his side, pulling Ander against him. “You’re still here,” he said, his eyes filled with wonder. He ran a hand through thick hair at the nape of Ander’s neck. “Sometimes I fear I’ll wake and find I’ve been dreaming.”

  Ander returned the hug, felt Thane’s heart thudding against his chest. “Maybe we haven’t been fucking enough,” he suggested. “That should convince you I’m real.”

  Thane gave him another squeeze. “Maybe that’s exactly what I need.” He took a deep breath, then continued in a rush. “I can’t put it off any longer. You have to know what happened in Pella. About my accident.” He looked miserable.

  “Go ahead, tell me.”

  Thane rolled onto his back and looked at the ceiling. His breath left frosty wisps in the air. Finally he grimaced and met Ander’s gaze. “It’s our bond. I can’t feel it. Or any bonds with other mages.” His voice dropped to a despairing whisper. “I haven’t felt this alone for many years.”

  For a moment Ander stared, incredulous. “But… the bond’s there. I feel it, as strong as ever.”

  “I know. Nicolai says the same thing. But I still can’t feel it. Do you understand what that means?”

  Ander’s eyes got wide as he considered the question. Though he was only an apprentice, he knew that all the higher forms of magic relied on shared anima to energize spells. Only mages who shared a bond could combine their anima. Thane, the first and strongest of all the mages, would be crippled. And he can’t feel my heart, or share my pleasure when we make love. The reason for Thane’s reluctance to reveal his infirmity was painfully clear.