by Lexi Thorne
"You did well," Edrea said as she gasped for breath and waved her away. The young witch's smile was too large for her face and split it in half. She turned to go, but then the mistress' voice stopped her short.
"Next time, don't roll your eyes at me or anyone I'm with."
The witch froze, and her blood ran cold. She had seen her. People had lost their lives for less serious reasons. As she walked away, she could tell that the only reason she was alive was because of her ability in the sheets and she had never been more grateful.
Edrea watched her leave and battled with the need to strike her down. But she pushed it aside. Maybe not all misbehavior needed to be punished. She closed her eyes and stretched out. She had absolutely needed that. For two days she has resigned herself to her divination room to plan her next course of action, but it had become increasingly apparent what she needed to do. It was the first thing that had occurred to her. She needed to make some examples of the leader of the settlement. When he was gone, the other would fall in line. Anyone who tried to defend him would only fall with him.
She laughed as she stretched once more, feeling absolutely relaxed. She hadn't needed two days to come up with that solution. But the mere fact that it took two days meant that it was the absolute best decision.
Edrea already knew how it would go down. Her seven ranking men in her Harem would be dispersed to the settlement to cause as much chaos as possible and capture the leader. He would be killed in her house. Palace. A small voice reminded her, and she chuckled. Wasn't that the hard truth? She was a goddess.
She knew it, and soon, so would everyone else.
"What?"
Chayton looked at her squarely, not blinking. He had expected this reaction from her, so he wasn't caught off guard. He stared at her, waiting for the chewing out that was to come.
"I know about the major clan and its crazy leader."
Now he was caught off guard. He blinked twice, a quizzical look spread all over his face, and he looked around the room as though the walls held some sort of answers to his questions.
Here he was thinking he'd just dropped a bomb on her by giving her some never before heard information and here she was telling him that she was already aware. Now he was the one who needed to sit down.
"You knew?"
"Duh. I'm the leader of this clan; you don't think I monitor the other clans around? Come on, give me some credit" she said, looking up at him from where she sat at the table. He was standing and staring at her in disbelief, and she felt slightly stung that he even had any reason to doubt that she would know about something as important as a tyrannical witch two settlements away. Just what kind of leader would she be if she didn't know?
The look of disbelief gradually melted away to give way for amazement, but despite how flattering it was, she still didn't like the fact that he even considered a possibility where she didn't already know
Granted, this was the first she was hearing of a territory expansion attempt, but that much was news, but the rest of it was something she already knew.
Yes, the witch had come to her notice when another clan leader had complained about her leeching off his land as a result of a technicality in their agreement.
She was an extremely powerful witch according to what she had heard, and so not many people would dream of going up against her. She was also rumored to use some original spell of her own creation to keep her minions in place. The place being, directly under her feet.
Keira proceeded to relay the information she had gathered on the witch.
Chayton listened attentively, noting that everything she was saying was exactly what he had been planning to tell her and then some. It was amazing. She was amazing. Now he could see how silly it was for him to assume she didn't know what was happening just because she didn't talk about it. She had her ears to the ground. She had a healthy level of skepticism as every leader was supposed to. He was so impressed with her. As he listened, it turned out she even knew of some shenanigans he had not heard of, and he finally sat down.
"So that's it. Anything I don't know that you'd like to tell me?" she asked and he almost laughed.
"Tell you? You've told me things I didn't even know. How do you do it?" he asked, reaching out and grabbing her hand. He was very happy that he would not be getting the ugly side of the stick today because she was guilty of hiding information just as he was. They couldn't blame each other for keeping it low-key. Even though there had to be people in the clan who knew about the maniac witch, still, it was best to keep it the stuff of rumors than to validate it by openly declaring their suspicions. He sighed, they'd both been trying to do the right thing.
"I know. I know. You're a very lucky man" she said smiling, and he nodded. Indeed he was.
The stared at each other for a while and then she remembered what they were talking about.
"The crisis at hand, it seems, cannot be averted. I suggest we send some people to the watch and ask that she back off. The humans are under our protection, so in a way, they are part of our territory. If she makes a move on them, she makes one on us."
Chayton couldn't have agreed more. Hadn't he been thinking the same thing earlier?
"I don't know her to her a very reasonable person Keira. Do you really think that's wise? We would essentially be putting the person's life in her hand."
Keira nodded. He had a point.
"In that case, I will be the one to go," she said simply. She lifted an eyebrow when Chayton didn't react in shock as she has expected.
"You're not going to stop me?" she asked, eyeing him curiously.
He chuckled, "Like I could even if I wanted to. You've forgotten just how well I know you haven't you?" he asked and she smiled.
"I am not going to stop you because I am going with you."
He watched her and asked, "You're not shocked either?"
Keira shrugged and smiled "what can I say. I know my man."
They laughed then.
Keira was glad that even with imminent disaster, they could still afford to laugh over the issue. She felt more confident anytime he was around, and she knew that if he went with her to the parlay, even if things went sideways, they would have each other's backs. Plus, her people would not be completely without help, she had trustworthy men and women to entrust their care to. She and Chatyton were prepared for such a scenario where it happened that they were captured or incapacitated. Planning ahead was another thing amongst so many that they had in common.
So it was decided. They would go to the impromptu parlay together.
In times to come, they would admit that this was the point where their relationship fully matured. The point where they realized just how much they had each other's backs.
CHAPTER FOUR
Silas stared at the letter and the non-recognizable crest it bore. He didn't know its contents, but one of the help had given it to him and begged him to pass it to Edrea. He was one of the few, if not the only one she wouldn't strike down if the contents of the letter displeased her.
He stared at the crest one more time, wracking his brain to see if he could recall ever seeing a seal like that. He decided it had to be from one of the smaller clans. He wondered what it was about, but then again, there was only one thing that could spark an official looking letter arriving at their doorstep. The human settlement. He didn't know what Edrea's obsession was with it. Her territory was big enough. But that was just it. People like her were never satisfied. No amount of power was ever enough. Even after acquiring the settlement, he knew she would go in search of another stretch to take by force. She had grown a taste for seizure, and now nothing was out of bounds. He sighed as he approached her room. He knew that without a doubt, she was going to be unhappy after reading the letter. Which meant that he would have to bear the brunt of her anger. It wasn't like it hasn't happened before. He had been in more than one situation where she has turned his insides to liquid or made his bones collapse into themselves, reset and collapse again. Just ov
er and over, till she calmed down. She was irrational even when she was calm. When she was upset, the irrationality increased by an exponential amount.
He knocked once, praying that she was out. But then again, he had seen her favorite car in the driveway, and there was no way she would have gone out in another one. Furthermore, he had seen some of her puppets roaming the corridor.
It occurred to him then where she most likely was. The ranking seven of her harem, hardly ever left her side, except she was in the divination room where she went to him alone. He sighed. He was not certain whether even he was cleared to go and disturb her while she was in the divination room. He felt as though he had to wait for her to finish contemplating whatever it was that had taken her into the divination room before giving her the letter. But then again, if it were very bad, she would just blame him for making her see it late, and that would be the end. She never ran out of sadistic punishments.
He knocked once more, now wishing she was involved, her room and not the divination room. There was no response, and he sighed. It always had to be the harder option. It was never the easy one.
Silas headed for he divination room, clutching the letter subconsciously without knowing. As he approached the room, he steeled himself against what he would face. She only went into the divination room when she was greatly disturbed and needed some alone time in order to concoct some terrible scheme or the other. The schemes, he had no problem with. The unwarranted punishment, however, he had a thing or two to say about.
His first knock received an answer.
"Who dares?"
"It's Silas, my liege lady."
There was silence, and he was ready for all his teeth to fall out or something equally dastardly to happen.
But nothing happened.
Instead, the door opened of its own accord, and he walked in carefully, trying to be as silent as possible. It wasn't exactly a difficult feat; he was a vampire, his kind were known for being extraordinarily light on their feet.
"Ma'am?"
There was no response. Neither was there any noise. In fact, now that he took note of it, he realized that he could not even hear the sound of his own footfalls or his breathing. He wed quiet, but no one was that quiet. The only way it could be was if she had cast her silence spell. He looked around as he walked towards the only source of light in the dimly lit room. Even with his enhanced vision, he could hardly see a thing.
Suddenly, he was assaulted with a myriad of sounds, and he froze in place, unable to move. The sounds seemed to be coming from everywhere.
His natural ability kicked in then, and he realized that the sounds that had seemed so loud had only been the sound of a clock...and something else. He looked around and caught sight of a large hot tub. Sitting inside was a laughing Edrea. The laughter was the other sound he heard.
All at once, he knew what had happened. She canceled out all, so he had quickly adapted to not hearing anything at all. But then she had dropped the spell at once, and the sounds had temporarily overwhelmed him.
She was still laughing.
Oddly, he didn't take offense. If she was playing 'pranks,' then maybe she wasn't in such a sour mood after all. He sighed, if she has played the 'prank' on a human, the result would have been more devastating. He has a sudden idea that perhaps he intended to try it on a human sometime, maybe the leader of that settlement, and was just using him to test out her 'genius.'
She stopped laughing then, and her face took in a calm, calculated look. Somehow, this was worse than maniacal laughter.
"Very nice Edrea. It will work wonders on the human" he said
"See why I keep you around? You know me. You know me..you deduced what I want to use it for." she said, still sitting in the tub.
The water looked as though it was boiling, but she was obviously enjoying herself.
Must be used to the heat. Being from hell and all Silas thought to himself sarcastically and froze as he thought he sensed her tense. Could she have heard him? He really wished she hadn't because he was starting to soften up to the idea that nothing would happen to his insides or outsides at this meeting.
"Okay. What do you have for me?" she asked.
As she spoke, her breasts heaved beneath the water, and he found himself struggling to keep his eyes plastered to her face. Somehow, it proved much harder than it should have been. Then he remembered that he had been asked a question.
"Ah yes. A letter arrived for you. It's from one of the clans. Possibly a small one, I'm not quite familiar with the crest."
He stretched out the letter, and it floated out of his hand toward her. For a brief instant, her eyes widened. What? Could it be? She wondered. But then she brushed it aside. It couldn't be.
Telepathically, she opened the letter and read through the contents - twice.
Then after the second time, she threw her head back and laughed. The letter had revealed two things. It could be because it was exactly what she suspected, and secondly, some clans could dare to stand up to her, as it seemed one was trying to do now.
She laughed once more, ignoring the first thing she realized completely. It didn't matter, that part of her life was over. The second part, however, fascinated her. She incinerated the letter in midair and watched as the ashes fell into the water around her. Then she turned to Silas who still stood before her. His eyes darted up to her face. She smiled. Interesting.
Edrea looked at Silas for some seconds, and the latter calmly returned her gaze. She was I'm pressed, it was almost like she hadn't caught him doing what he'd just been doing. She didn't mind. However, she liked being admired.
As he watched, she got out of the water.
Silas could not look away in time. Maniac or not, Edrea was a painfully attractive woman and denying that would be self-deception. So she'd seen him.
Feeling a bit risky, he didn't turn away this time and instead, took in the curve of her breasts and allowed his gaze wander to the smooth 'v' that was the junction of her thighs.
"Like what you see?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow. Silas swallowed, nodding like a confused schoolboy.
For a while, she didn't say anything. A small draft had made her nipples stand erect, and Silas stared unabashedly. She levitated her robe over to her, sliding into it smoothly and tying the rope herself.
Silas looked to the floor, but all he could see were those nipples. That arch. It was all burned into his memory.
He looked back up, and she was smiling at him.
"Come now Silas; surely you have seen a beautiful woman before."
Silas nodded.
"Beautiful women yes," he said, with a pause that was, no doubt, for dramatic effect. "...but never a goddess."
Edrea arched an eyebrow at his words, a pleasant smile stretched across her face. Someone else had just acknowledged her godhood. She felt good and now, the people she needed to get rid of, were coming right to her. It couldn't be more perfect.
She sighed in contentment as she made her way out of the divination room. Things were going as planned.
Chayton hid in the bushes and stalker Keira. She looked around for him, but he knew that she would never find him. Not without a heightened sense of smell and sight. Her magic may help her make her senses more sensitive, but he knew how to stay downwind.
He was his dire wolf form, and his discarded clothes lay neatly folded close to the tree behind him.
He moved quietly, never even making a sound. Not one she could hear at least, and he watched her. She was beautiful.
Keira's jet black hair swished around as she turned her head rapidly trying to look everywhere at once. It was not a secret how good Chayton was at avoiding detection. He had taught the other shifters how to, but none were as good as he. He would be hard to detect. She had to think hard and fast.
One spell came to mind then, and she smiled to herself. A small voice warned her that she would be over exerting herself, but she quieted it down. She had the entire night to recover, plus she was in the forest,
where nature fueled her. And the parlay was the next day, in any case.
She rubbed both hands together and Chayton watched from his hiding spot, wondering what it was that she had planned, and wondering whether to spring his attack or not.
Just then she spread her hands, and a whimper escaped his throat. He was standing in a barren field. The entire forest was just...gone.
He looked up and saw her staring at him with a cheeky smile on her face, and she mouthed the words "Got Ya."
Just then, the wind blew, and a lead touched his face, only, he didn't see it. He knew what she'd done now, and he was impressed.
She had rendered all vegetation invisible. It had to be a spell of her own concoction because it was too specific to have just been ready made and ready to go. He looked at her with awe as he made his way towards her, slowly transforming to his human form, as naked as the day he was born.
Keira stared at him as he transformed as though in a trance. She has seen him transform before, but it was always still a marvel to watch. She dropped her hands, and the entire forest materialized around them again. She felt a slight headache.
Always sensitive to slight changes in her composure, Chayton was beside her in an instant and helped her sit down. Already, she could feel the energy around her begin to replace the one she lost. She loved the forest.
She looked at Chayton and then later was watching her with concern written all over his face.
"Are you okay? That was a kickass spell" he said, and she laughed.
"Kickass?"
"Hey, I use slang."
They both laughed.
"I'm fine," she said then and lay back halfway, resting on her elbow.
He stretched out beside her, still completely naked.
"Put some clothes on for Pete's sake," she said playfully, and he inched closer, poking her with his slowly growing erection, despite the cold night.
"The real question is, why are you still in yours?" he said, winking at her.
It was so uncharacteristic that she found it to be a big turn on.
