Keeper of the Flame

by Stephanie Burke

  Looking extremely uncomfortable in his new thigh hugging blue denims and tight white T-shirt, Flame tentatively entered the kitchen. He almost timidly walked towards his children and nuzzled each little cheek. The children seemed to posses a sixth sense when it came to their father, for the moment he walked in the room, both pairs of gray eyes popped open and they seemed to crow with delight. Ember seemed to look as if she approved of dad’s new duds, while Spark gave the interesting new clothing a cursory glance before looking back at his father’s uncomfortable face.

  “You look great!” Kendall cried as she appreciatively sized up the man in front of her.

  Forget the enhancer. A picture of Flame in those form-fitting jeans was enough to motivate any female patient to make a jump towards an instant recovery!

  He blushed! She could see the light red color climbing up his face before he turned stoically to her.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “I feel naked, Mistress!” he gritted out rubbing his damp hands down the thighs of his jeans. His actions drew her attention to how muscular and perfectly formed his legs were. “How am I to function when every line of my body is exposed?”

  Exposed and looking good, she thought to herself before realizing that he was perfectly serious. “You are properly covered, Flame.” She held back a grin. “Lots of men wear even less than you are right now. You should see the beaches in Ocean City in the summer!”

  His eyebrows shot up. “I do not think I could ever wear less than this, Mistress. That would be a flogging offense on my world. These clothes are almost indecent!”

  “Look at me, Flame. I’m perfectly decent and comfortable without having to bundle up from head to foot. You’ll adjust. Now let’s get some food inside of you. Sit down and get ready to eat.”

  What was a beach and what kind of unsuitable man would wear less than what he was wearing now? It had taken him a few moments to dredge up the courage to go before his mistress like this! Certainly she would not expect him to venture forth out into populated areas wearing less.

  When she turned to the stove, Flame discreetly examined her body in the strange and revealing Earth clothes. Her breasts seemed to be high and firm in her thin shirt, an admirable trait in any woman, if one cared about things like that. Her waist appeared, in the indecent jeans, small. Not small enough to span with his two large hands, but small enough to give her the perfect start on the hourglass figure that the women on his world craved. Her hips gently flared to those rounded thighs and long legs that he could imagine wrapped around his....

  The room was getting warm. Flame felt a not wholly uncomfortable tingle start in his groin. He looked down just as a part he never gave any thought to began to stiffen and rise. He looked back at Kendall, this time in alarm. She was turning to him and all he could think about was the fact that she would see him this way. These Earth clothes left little room for concealment. Thinking fast, he leaped to a seat at the table and, for the first time in his twenty-nine years of life sat in the presence of a woman.

  This physical reaction he was experiencing when in her presence required some deep thought on his part. Until he figured out what was happening to make his body...do that throbbing thing, he would have to hide his condition from her and hope to disguise any bulges that she might see.

  Kendall turned to the man and smiled to see Flame dutifully sitting at the table with his perfect posture, waiting to eat as she instructed. He looked a little uncomfortable, but he had followed her orders to the letter. Too bad the table covered all the good parts exposed by his new wardrobe. He was enough eye candy to make her develop cavities.

  “Eat,” she commanded with some amusement. Yes, having him around the house was actually starting to make her feel pretty darn good.

  * * * * *

  “You need to own and operate your own business, Flame,” Kendall stated with some certainty. “That’s the only way that you will be able to supervise your children all the time without having to explain to someone why they need extra attention, or why you need the extra time off from work.”

  Soon after Flame had consumed the last bite of his first meal prepared by a woman, Kendall pulled out a book called ‘The Yellow Pages’, and began flipping thin papers. She spent a lot of time mumbling to her self and shaking her head as he and the children looked on in bafflement.

  “I need a comfortable spot to think.” She herded them all to the small living space provided by the cabin. The rest of the morning was passed by her asking him questions like, “Do you think that you can operate heavy machinery?” and “You definitely don’t look like a white collar investor. Do you understand the stock market?”

  Between feedings and diaper changes, Flame kept his attention on Kendall as she continued to ask in these inane questions.

  His body’s reaction was cooled in the face of his uncertain future, but the feelings were there, simmering beneath the surface, threatening to break free every time she glanced at him from under her long eyelashes while burying her nose in the thick book. But her words brought him back to the business at hand.

  “My own business.” That was said with a bit of wonder. He could own property on this planet, without having to get special permission from the Matriarch. He had never thought to do just that. He paused in his contemplation of the strange reactions of his body to pay attention to what his Mistress was saying.

  As for Kendall, she couldn’t help but wonder what part she played in his future plans as she voiced her opinions. Would she be a friend, a confidant, or a fond memory? Would he let her visit the children or would he disappear completely from her life?

  “What does this flame-keeping business mean?” she questioned after dropping the book to the floor. “Both Spark and Ember have red hair, so does that mean that will have the same problems and energies that you do?” She pulled a nodding Spark from his seat and into her lap. She wanted both babies to live a normal as possible life under the given circumstances. “Does that make them special in some way too?”

  They had moved the discussion to the couch in front of the massive wood-burning fireplace that dominated the living room. The large beige couch was made of some soft material and had wonderfully large cushions to would you up while sinking you in heavenly comfort. Sitting on it was almost like being in a warm embrace of a lover. Kendall rocked the sleeping Spark in her arms as she regarded his father. She was really becoming attached to the little guy and his sister.

  “We have special energies, Mistress.”

  Kendall inhaled the smell she decided to name “new baby”. She had discovered this wonderful new scent shortly after giving the twins a basin bath for the first time. It was a hypnotic smell that made her long to hold the infants more so that she could experience it. No wonder people loved having babies so much! The little buggers came with their own lure. Those thoughts saddened her a bit, but she pushed them aside for the moment to deal with the issue at hand.

  “What do you mean by energies?”

  If they changed form or floated in midair, they needed to be warned about society’s views on the strange and supernatural. She remembered the strange exchange earlier between the children while she was laying the law down to them and added telepathy to her list. But then, even on Earth it was said that all twins held a special bond. She would not worry about their silent form of communication just yet. They had bigger concerns to fret over.

  Flame began pacing the carpet in front of the large picture window.

  Watching Kendall hold his son was causing an almost burning sensation deep within his heart. He glanced at his sleeping daughter lying in her cube and felt a surge of warmth so strong that it almost brought tears to his eyes. His children were just like him, different and surviving in a world where they might not be accepted and quite possibly harmed out of fear and misunderstanding.

  He walked to Ember and squatted down to examine her sleeping form. What did those white stripes mean? He ran gentle fingers over her tiny head and watch
ed the little streaks of silver glisten. Would she be even more different than her father and brother? Spark possessed a few of the telling stripes, but not as many as his sister.

  “The energy passes usually to the female heads of the ruling houses ever few generations. I do not know why I was born with this,” he absently tugged on a lock of hair as he looked up at Kendall.

  Flame began to pace the length of the room again. “I will need isolation to teach them how to control their energies, Mistress. It may prove to be a complication to your plans for us.” Especially if Ember had inherited some of her mother’s energies, he added silently to himself. Could she be taught to control the fire within the same way he learned to, or would he have to seek and find a new method to help her control her two opposing energies?

  “But what do they do? These energies, I mean.” Kendall placed a small kiss on Spark’s forehead.

  Flame quit his pacing to stare Kendall straight in the eyes. It was time to expose another facet of his unusual life. Now she would have reason to fear and mistrust him and he would be able to put some needed distance between them. The things she did to his equilibrium were a bit freighting and wholly unexpected.

  He had no doubts that she would continue to help him, but he was about to give her a reason to disappear from his life on a permanent basis. He found that possibility disheartening even though the prospect of distancing himself from her sounded reasonable. Watching her caress his son caused a tugging in his heart almost as sweetly painful as watching the daily changes in his children. He did not know how to deal with them, so he would do his best to avoid these unsettling emotions.

  “We can manipulate fire, Mistress. Each Great House came to being because of their control over an essential element on our planet. Each element is vital for life and the ability to control is inherently passed on to women, the original bearers of life. This is why the women rule there. On Testrios I am an oddity, but not considered very dangerous. I am not allowed to venture far from my home and if I tried to cause problems for the Matriarch, I can be easily eliminated. On your world I sense that I could easily cause great harm and destruction, and no one would be able to stop me.”

  Kendall eyed Flame with more than her usual curiosity. Until she had met him she thought things like control over a destructive force, like fire, beyond the scope of human ability. But his very existence proved her thinking wrong and caused her to broaden her thoughts and open her mind to the unexplained. X-Files, eat your heart out! She was living with the real thing!

  “What do you mean by manipulate fire?” She adjusted her hold on Spark to cross her legs on the couch and snuggle back. She had to be comfortable for this one. This explanation would have to be good.

  “Fire holds no secret from me, Mistress.” He spoke in a quietly assured voice. “It can not harm me. I can control it, harness it, use it for whatever purpose that I deem necessary.”

  His words were without a hint of boast or bravado, like he was braced for a blow and Kendall instantly believed him. Never had she been so close to such an extraordinary being. He was bigger stronger and more handsome than any man, than anyone she knew, yet he seemed to be waiting for her to pronounce him unsuitable and run in fear from him. She would have to work on his self-esteem. Modesty was sexy but pitiful was well...Richard.

  After taking a moment to center his thoughts, Flame raised both hands to the level of his eyes and inhaled deeply. With a flash his gray eyes grew dark and began to sparkle. His gorgeous hair took on a life of it’s own as it began to flow around his head. Tiny slivers of flame danced upon each fingertip as he began to move, to dance with his hands.

  Twirling and spinning his hands in midair, he wove and shaped and melded the small tongues of fire until a perfect white rose glimmered before him. He extended his left hand the fire blossom floated in the air above Kendall.

  Kendall’s eyes opened wide and she unconsciously gripped the sleeping child in her arms closer. Her gasp of amazement filled the silent room. Fire danced and swayed above her head, yet she felt no heat and did not smell any smoke.

  Again his hands moved and the rose floated back to him and melted in on its self only to emerge as a bird, a fiery phoenix that followed the fluttering movements of his hands as his arms moved in intricate gestures. The fiery red bird reared it’s head and Kendall swore she could her it let out a cry of anguish before it circled the room leaving a rainbow colored wake to mark it’s movements and it’s passing.

  Finally the phoenix sank on itself, as Flame pressed his palms together, not unlike the legends of the mystical bird, only to be explode in a flash of hot fire, reborn as a snarling scarlet dragon.

  The dragon then split divided it’s self into two as he separated his hands. Two beasts, one a deep red, the other an icy blue, followed the movements of his hands as they rose and begin to circle the magnificent man that had called them forth. His body began to turn and sway in a dance more seductive than any dancers, more compelling than any master sorcerer’s controlling the beasts’ movements as they lazily glided between his spread legs and around his moving wide spread arms.

  In a silent clash of power, the two creatures of legend circled to pause in front of Flame, before they began to circle each other, as if waiting for each other to make the first move. With a silent zip, they circled to the sky as they began to fight a battle in the air above Kendall, each snapping and struggling for supremacy. The red circled almost lazily around Flames body while the blue weaved and darted through his arms and legs as if looking for an opening that would allow him to attack.

  In a sudden burst of movement and flowing hair, Flame sent the two combatants swirling about the room. Kendall could see the pull of tendons and sinew as the flying monsters passes close to her face. Her head whipped around the room as she tried to keep progress with the savage battle taking place in this very room.

  She felt a scream well up in her throat as the blue dragon, with an almost evil expression on its face, opened its mouth and a red ball of fire shot out to circle the red dragon. In retaliation, the red spit out a powerful burst of white flames that engulfed its intended victim.

  Finally, in a death scene found only in the wildest of imaginations, both dragons flew above the puppet master controlling their movements and became engulfed by the flames that they themselves created. In a clash so realistic it was almost heard, they exploded together in a colorful display of light, destroyed by the might which had brought them to being, the man called Flame.

  As each fiery ember softly floated to the ground around Flame, they disappeared without a trace of smoke or odor, before touching the furniture or the rugs covering the wooden floor.

  In the midst of the fiery finale, Flame stood alone; hair whipping wildly as silver eyes reflected the blaze that lived within him. “Are you frightened, Mistress? I know that no one here on this planet possesses these abilities.” He spoke softly as if he expected her to turn a bolt from the room.

  “Call me Kendall,” she replied automatically. She was still awed by what she had experienced because of this magnificent man before her. “I’m not frightened of you, Flame. If you wanted to French-fry me to a crisp, you would have done so by now. Don’t expect me to turn my back on you and these children now.”

  She looked at the baby in her arms. He felt right in her arms—just where he belonged. “You need me.”

  And maybe, just maybe, she needed them.

  She turned to grin up at Flame with a suddenly light heart. “Have you ever heard of pyrotechnics?”

  Chapter Five

  “This was a good idea, Flame.” Kendall panted as she jogged along side him, trying her best to keep up. “I haven’t felt this good in such a long time. I needed the exercise, although matching you is out of the question. Where did you learn to move so quickly through the terrain like this?”

  “Men are required to learn these skills as young boys, Mistress. Much practice is necessary.”

  “I bet you never thought you’d
be using them now.” Her voice rasped as she fought to keep up with his vigorous movements.

  “Indeed, Mistress. This is one skill I had not thought to use.”

  Eventually even Flame began to tire. Sweat beaded on his forehead and he began to fight for his breath. He had already stopped several times to help her along.

  “I’ve got to stop!” Kendall cried, exhausted from trying to keep up with his grueling pace and long stride. “I need air! My legs are killing me! My back will never be the same!” The man was a machine while she was merely flesh and bone. “No more!”

  “As you wish, Mistress.” His voice was also a bit raspy.

  “Call me Kendall. Under the circumstances, don’t you think it would be wise?”

  “Yes, Mistress.”

  Exasperated, Kendall plopped down on a large rock and refused to move another inch. Above her the red and gold leaves resembled a canopy of fire that offered cool shade instead of blistering heat. The grass on either side of the worn rocky trail was still lush and green.

  As she earlier predicted, the small woodland animals scurried back and forth along the forest floor storing food for the upcoming winter season. A warm breeze softly rustles through the leaves, stirring memories of her youth: of skinned knees and bikes, drinking ice cold lemonade with friends, running through fields of tall grass, and just lazing about enjoying the last dog days of summer.

  It was a glorious day in the woods and Kendall found herself drinking in all the sights that it had to offer, including the tall red–headed man standing before her.

  “You can’t go around calling me Mistress!” she finally sighed as she looked up at the tall man. “People will look at you funny! People will look at me funny! They’ll think that I’m some kind of sexual predator bent on controlling your every movement!”