Paladin (Book Two of the Elemental Paladins series)

by Montana Ash

  “This was Diana’s idea, you know.” Max told him presently.

  “What – my punishment?” Max nodded her head and Darius found himself smiling sardonically, “Of course it was. She’s pissed off at me.” Not that he really blamed her. He hadn’t exactly been treating her well.

  Max shook her head, the sun reflecting the deep red of her hair, “No … she’s in love with you.”

  Darius felt himself go stone-still. Diana was in love with him? He burst into laughter; full, unrestrained, genuine laughter. There was no way Diana was in love with him. Max waited patiently for him to get all the hysteria out of his system, saying nothing as she ran sand through her fingers. “You are so very wrong, My Lady.” He finally said.

  “I’m not.” She said simply and with surety. “I also know you are in love with her.”

  This time he didn’t laugh. “Max …”

  She held up a stalling hand, “You know, this will go a lot easier if you don’t lie to me ... or yourself. The biggest sin you can commit is lying to yourself.”

  Darius felt himself shiver as goose bumps popped up over his arms. Almost those exact same words had been uttered to him eight hundred years ago on a bloody battlefield in Portugal by Verity, Diana’s liege. Revolution, his mind whispered, but Darius pushed the whimsical voice aside. Max could see a lie as easily as she could see the ocean in front of them. That’s why she had said those words – there was no other reason or agenda. Given she could see a lie, he decided to go with the truth;

  “Yes. I do love her. But it’s not the same love you and Ryker share.” He was quick to point out.

  “Of course it’s not.” Max agreed. “Nobody loves the same.”

  “That’s not what I meant.” He shook his head, “Besides, the feelings are not reciprocated.” He assured her.

  “They are too.” Max argued, much like a ten-year-old would. “I can see your souls remember? Not to mention the threads holding everyone and everything together.”

  Darius frowned, a strange fluttering in his belly that was definitely not hope, he assured himself. “And you can see a thread between Diana and I?”

  “Absolutely.” Max’s voice was clear and confident.

  “So you can see my thread fruitlessly chasing after Diana, huh? Wonderful. That’s not embarrassing or anything.” He ran his hands over his face, cursing when sand got in his eyes.

  “Not exactly.” Max hedged.

  He rubbed his eyes, squinting at Max and trying to decipher the look on her face. “What do you mean ‘not exactly’?”

  “Well, I think it’s pretty much the opposite. Diana’s soul reaches for you.”

  He swallowed when the butterflies made an appearance again. “I don’t believe you.” He would know if Diana had feelings for him like that … right? He had slept with her twice now!

  “Then why is the thread gold and not grey? The thread sustaining the bond, sustaining the emotion, is gold. Gold is the colour of Diana’s soul; grey is the colour of yours. It is her soul that reaches out to you. Her soul forming a bridge with yours. Not the other way around. Trust me, she is in love with you and has been for a long time. The strength of the thread is like a bridge, connecting you two together even across countries. It’s one of the strongest I have ever seen.”

  He was flabbergasted … and humbled … and flabbergasted. They had been connected by an unbreakable gold thread for eight centuries?

  “Now.” Max pushed up onto her knees. “I would deliver your punishment … and your reward on the Great Mother’s behalf.”

  Darius felt the Adam’s apple in his throat bob up and down as he swallowed. He stared into Max’s eyes and they seemed to challenge him; ‘you game?’ they appeared to say. He narrowed his own eyes. He was an ancient knight, wasn’t he?

  TWENTY-FOUR

  Diana stood next to Ryker and watched as Max planted a solid lip-lock on Darius in the distance. She wiped her hands on her pants – her palms were sweaty. She had been so nervous that this wouldn’t work, that she had pushed for this and it was going to backfire. She was terrified Darius would never forgive her for breaking his trust and revealing his past to Max. But Max was his liege – or would be, as soon as he pulled his finger out – and she had every right to know her paladin’s histories. After putting in the request for Max to attempt to help Darius the same way she had helped Ryker only a couple of months before, she had shared some of Darius’s history.

  She had explained how Darius had been bound to his previous liege for over a thousand years in the Order of Magne. The Magne Order and its Warden were one of the most famous in all of their history. He had been a staunch supporter of regular humans and had thrown his lot in with them multiple times over the years, participating in battles and wars, including the Battle of Lisbon where Diana had first met Darius. Partaking in the trials of non-wardens was not commonplace, even back then and not typically well received by the higher-ups. But even they could find no fault in the way the Magne liege conducted himself; he was a hero in every society, a true man of honour, paying tribute to his domain. He had been an Air Warden just as Darius was a paladin of air. But that was to be expected, she supposed, given they were brothers. She had then gone on to explain that Darius was the younger brother by a hundred years or so and had actually been raised by his soon-to-be liege after the death of their parents. They were close, very close. But around forty years ago, a good decade after The Great Massacre, Darius’s brother began to change. The deterioration was swift and he had withdrawn from society and his brother mere days before becoming a chade.

  Darius had never forgiven him. His sense of abandonment from the person who had raised him, from the person he had laid his life on the line for, for the person he literally gave his life force to …? Well, it was immense and all consuming. Hence, the deep-seated hate and disgust he felt for the chades. Darius believed his hero brother and liege had chosen to betray everything he stood and fought for and had become a creature with no morals who preyed on his own kind. Diana wanted Max to understand how her continued defence of the chades would impact Darius and how difficult it was for all of them, let alone for Darius who had a very personal history, to contemplate her theories. Diana was actually on Max’s side and felt her ideas held merit. Max was innately in tune with nature, people and the world, it stood to reason that she may feel something nobody else could. She was also unbiased, having no pre-conceived notions about the chades. Darius was an extremely intelligent and rational man. She knew that if he could just clear his head and accept some of his past, he might be able to move forward and see the potential too.

  That was another reason for her racing heart and the swirling butterflies in her stomach. What if Darius wasn’t open to Max and the soul-deep healing she knew the Custodian could bestow? What if he wasn’t ready to begin the healing process? Ryker had practically needed to be dragged into it by the tiny redhead. Diana hadn’t attempted to follow them nor listen in, even though she had been horribly tempted to do so. But about thirty minutes after they had walked down the beach, she and the others had felt a strange stirring of power through the Order. Max had well and truly closed down the link but clearly power of that nature was unable to be fully contained and their Heraldry’s had writhed on their forearms, pulsing with power. Diana would be lying if she didn’t admit it was a little disconcerting to have a moving tattoo on her arm. Ryker had stood up from where he had been playing with the new pup on the ground – grumbling the entire time about having to keep the ‘mongrel thing’ – and walked outside. Unable to contain her impatience any longer, she had followed and was now able to breathe deeply for the first time in what felt like hours; the kiss she was witnessing boded well.

  “Why is Darius kissing my woman?” Ryker grumbled, wriggling his jaw. No doubt he was picturing returning the bruised favour to his second in command. He hadn’t allowed Max to heal the evidence of the punch. Some kind of man thing, no doubt.

  Diana narrowed her eyes at the picture th
ey both made; the sun was setting behind them and cast their bodies in a romantic silhouette as Max’s much smaller body arched into the wide, muscled frame of Darius. They looked darn good together. For the first time ever Diana felt a twinge of jealousy. Over the years she knew Darius had been with other women, just has she had been with other men. She wasn’t going to live a life of celibacy just because the man she considered perfect in every way was too dense to make a move. But right now, after having been intimate with the man, Diana felt the first stirrings of possessiveness.

  “I think it’s more like Max is kissing my man.” She stated forcefully. Diana winced, shit! Had she really just said that out loud to her Captain? She was bound to serve Max for as long as she walked the earth now. An emotional attachment with another was no longer an option for her and a relationship with a fellow paladin? There was just no way – no matter what Max seemed to think. Diana felt her heart break a little. She had been fine living and working with Darius all these years – at least she could be close to him and their relationship, though not an intimate one, was comfortable. But now? Well, now Diana wanted more. And she was never going to get it. “I’m sorry, Ryker. I didn’t mean –”

  But Ryker held up a silencing hand. “You know I cannot tolerate any sort of distraction that would endanger Max. And not just because she is my everything either. She is a Custodian, a daughter of Mother Nature and the most powerful entity on the planet. I believe she’s here for a reason. A much bigger reason than to make my sorry arse complete.”

  Diana nodded her head, “I know. I agree.” And she did.

  “Having said that. I will give you this one opportunity to be completely honest with me.” Ryker paused, his chocolate eyes intense and searching hard for something. “Is Darius your Max?” He asked.

  She swallowed convulsively. That was not what she was expecting him to ask. As strange as the question may have sounded to anyone else, she knew exactly what he was asking and it wouldn’t have had the same depth, the same intensity had he asked; are you in love with Darius? Max was his everything, he had literally just admitted to that. Was Darius hers? She cast her eyes back toward the couple, now picking their way carefully through the sand in their direction. Darius had his arm around the little Goddess’s shoulders and she seemed to be leaning a little heavily against his side. His broad shoulders cast a magnificent shadow along the waterline and his straight, noble back held an almost royal bearing. Was he hers?

  “He is. Darius is my Max.” She answered, a little embarrassed to feel the sting of tears trying to escape the confines of her eyes.

  Ryker gave a decisive nod of his head, “Then we’ll make this work. We’ll figure it out, I promise. To hell with the council and their rules. To hell with tradition. Max is mine and not even the Great Mother herself would have the balls to try and take her away from me. If Darius is that for you … then we’ll figure it out.”

  Diana felt one rebellious tear track a hot path down her cheek. She knew Ryker was a man of his word; not only was he her Captain and a born potentate, but he was also her friend. If he said they would figure it out, then they would. Her Boss-man would never let her down. Throwing decorum to the wind, she launched herself at the huge paladin of life, snaking her arms around his neck;

  “Thank you, Ry … just … thank you.”

  He cleared his throat and patted her back roughly in that awkward manly way that all males did when a female cried around them, “Yeah, yeah. You’re welcome. Just don’t let me down.”

  Taking a step back, she shook her head, sending her hair flying in all directions. “Never. I give you my word.” She paused, considered not asking her next question, but then couldn’t resist. “You really are a romantic at heart aren’t you? All those flowery words and sporadic fits of poetry you spout at Max? That’s the real you, isn’t it?”

  He winced and blushed – a real rosy blush that worked its way from neck to forehead. “Damn, Diana! Didn’t I just do you a huge favour? Don’t go spreading that shit, okay?”

  Her laugh was still a little watery as she replied, “Whatever you say, Boss-man.”

  “And stop calling me that!” He snapped.

  Diana grinned, “Sure thing.” Not! She added silently.

  “Hey! Handsy!” She turned and saw Darius helping Max up the three stairs. She was definitely leaning on him heavily and her face looked pinched and pale. Diana didn’t really understand what kind energy or power it required to heal a person’s soul but it was obviously taxing. Max was going to need to recharge her vitality before the evening ahead. Her mouth though? It didn’t seem to be lacking in energy, for she continued;

  “Handsy woman! I saw you throwing yourself at my man. Get your own six-plus-foot mountain of muscle!” Her grin assured Diana her words were in jest and likely designed to break the ice of her and Darius’s return.

  “I intend to.” Diana muttered softly as Ryker moved quickly to intercept the duo, picking up a protesting Max. The stress lines on Darius’s face now looked non-existent and he looked relaxed and happy. And although his hazel eyes held questions when they met hers, they were yet to hold the same resolved look she knew hers did. “Oh, I intend to.” She repeated.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  Holy crap, Max sure packed a punch! Darius thought, the morning after his ‘punishment’ as he basked under the pelting hot spray of his shower. On the beach, when Max had placed her hands on him, he had thought for sure he was going to die for a few seconds. The agony from where she had touched him had been gut wrenching; loud, cold, hot, slicing and ripping away at his insides until he thought he would pass out. It had felt like his brother had abandoned him all over again – like he had been thrown aside and was left with nothing and no-one. He had no sense of self, no duty, no purpose. How was a man of fidelity supposed to survive something like that? But then, like some kind of shining star, a feeling of warmth, of peace, of hope had filled him and he had felt something … more. He could have sworn he felt another presence; a presence of great power, both magnificent and malevolent. The perfect balance of light and dark. Opening his eyes, he had been momentarily blinded by the colourful display of lights and sounds, that he could have sworn he saw something other than Max. But then he blinked and all that was in front of him was a tiny redhead, smiling up at him.

  The tingling warmth that had passed through his body appears to have chased away the cold and the resentment of the last forty years. Darius really did feel like Max had healed his soul. He only hoped it was permanent. But then, he supposed that was probably up to him. Max had given him a hand up but it was his choice what he was going to do with it now. The fact that he could actually take a deep breath and think rationally about his past and his brother was a miracle in and of itself.

  Stepping out of the shower, he dressed and prepared for the day ahead of him. He figured it was going to be a big one. But he had slept the best he had in years, so he felt fully charged to meet it head on. He was also going to be meeting Diana head on, he resolved. Last evening, as he had made his way back up the beach with Max, there had been a look in Diana’s grey eyes that hadn’t been there previously. He didn’t understand what the look meant but for some reason, it made his gut tighten in anticipation. He had to talk to her – if she would let him.

  Making his way downstairs, he counted off his to-do list; number one: make amends to his comrades; number two: make amends to Diana; number three: accept the fact that his brother was never coming back and a new liege was literally staring him in the face. He paused when he heard the commotion in the kitchen. The sound of clanging pots and plates hitting the table, raised voices and laughter, suggested that the kitchen was already full with the other members of the household. He was a little scared to go in now. After all, he had disgraced himself yesterday by physically assaulting his Captain and then had been forced to accept penance in front of everyone. Even though none of them had actually witnessed the act, he knew they were all aware of what Max had subjected him to – g
ifted to him, he amended – although none but Ryker could fully understand what he had gone through on that beach. Because he now felt like he was back in the headspace he had been before all the drama forty years ago, he now felt extra embarrassed and ashamed to walk into that room, filled with comrades and friends and family. He had been a miserable excuse of all three of those things recently and he knew he was going to have to eat a little crow this morning. This was going to be awkward.

  A hearty slap on his back had him hastily palming the wall in order to steady himself. “Hey man. You going to stand there all day?” The deep voice belonged to Axel and Darius braced himself for the imminent ribbing sure to follow.

  “No. I’m coming in.” He answered.

  “Good.” Axel smiled, a genuine smile filled with warmth and none of the teasing Darius assumed would be there. “I was on breakfast duty and I made omelettes; bacon, mushroom, cheese and capsicum.” He continued.

  Darius frowned. “Those are my favourite.”

  “I know.” He stated simply.

  Darius swallowed around the sudden lump in his throat. This was Axel’s way of saying he forgave Darius, that he accepted him, and that he supported him no matter what. Darius felt some more shame trickle through when he remembered his unkind thoughts about the younger knight. Maybe he had been wrong when he had thought Axel had some growing up to do, that he was never serious in his duties. The light, the laughter and the banter? That was Axel’s nature, just as much as the control and rigidity was Darius’s. Now that he thought about it, he realised that Axel always acted like a knight even when he hadn’t been bound in an Order, despite his irreverent attitude. He had also been the one to take on the role of protector and defender of Max’s fragile heart in the beginning too; standing up to Ryker and even asserting himself physically in her defence.