Surfing.1
Aiden couldn’t understand the attraction of the sport. A person basically stood on a board and tried to keep from drowning as they attempted to corral Mother Nature’s elements.2
She wasn’t a swimmer, or even a water lover, and would rather have her talons trimmed than even set foot in anything deeper than a bathtub. And Aiden hated having her talons trimmed.3
She did love the beach, though. The smells, sounds, and feel of the whole shore side was something that she had always liked. As a young girl, her Patria had once lived high above a mountain lake that seemed to stretch past the horizon. Flying over it, and skimming the surface always appealed to her. The eagle in her loved it, while the human in her could most assuredly do without. 4
Her not liking the water didn’t matter to Savitar one way or another. To him, it meant less people taking up his surfing space, and if there was one thing he was protective about, it was his ‘space’. Besides, he knew that, just like surfing soothed his inner demons, Aiden sought her comfort by flying. He wasn’t about to make her do anything she didn’t want to do just because he thought that surfing was the be all and end all.5
At the moment, he was wave deep in surfing season, with hours upon hours spent riding ten-plus footers to the shore of Neratiti. Aiden had stuck around for the first couple days, watching him from the beach, but he could sense her boredom. She even flew above him as he surfed, but even that didn’t seem to help after a while. 6
With nothing major happening on the Daimon front, and Stryker being quiet, Aiden decided that she would return home for a few days. Savitar gave her a searching look, biting down on wanting to tell her to be careful. If he did, she would know that he saw something in her future. 7
Knowing that it wouldn’t kill her, but not liking that he couldn’t tell her in case it changed it, he agreed that she should go. He kissed her as he held her bare body against his, and told her that he would call her later.8
He stared at the waves after she had gone back to her condo, his thoughts alternating between telling her, and feeling guilty for once again using her to further cosmic goals. 9
Savitar had known of Nick’s little idea of causing problems with Aiden and then blaming Ash for them, and he seriously wanted to kick the Cajun’s ass. He had taken Nick in after his death, when Ash was too guilt-ridden and angry to train him, and this was how the little bastard repaid him? 10
He couldn’t interfere, since it didn’t go too well the last time he did something like that, but he knew he had to do something. There was no way he was going to let anyone hurt Aiden before her time came. 11
Reaching a decision just as a particularly beautiful wave crested the horizon, he sent out a mental summons to a Were-Hunter, then teleported himself and his board on to the wave.12
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~13
The music was a little too loud, even for someone who firmly believed that ‘if your ears aren’t bleeding, then it isn’t music’. Aiden cringed slightly, finished her drink, and then leaned back against the railing that ran the length of the bar. 14
“Another one?”15
Aiden glanced back at the woman who was currently tending the bar. Cute, blonde, and looking barely legal enough to be working here, Aiden knew that she was well over one hundred years old. The Arcadian Wolf wiped the counter down while she waited for Aiden to make up her mind.16
“Naw,” Aiden said. “I’m good for now.”17
“Right, then,” she replied then turned away to other customers.18
Aiden sighed to herself as she looked over the crowd. Mostly Were-Hunters, with a good proportion of human mixed in, it was similar to any lamina in any city that she had been in. Established safe houses for Were-kind and their kin kept to a basic formula… loud, dimly lit, and full of creatures that would kill you without hesitation if not for the laws that governed such places. 19
Recognizing only a fraction of the crowd, and suddenly feeling inexplicably lonely, Aiden decided she would do better sulking at home. She waved a goodbye to the Wolf behind the bar, then walked to the front door. It would have been easier to just teleport herself to her home, but didn’t think it would go over well with the humans in the crowd. They thought it was a normal nightclub, and it was more hassle than it was worth having to deal with the issues disappearing would cause.20
The air was decidedly crisp as she stepped out and joined the pedestrian traffic on the sidewalk. She jumped as the cell phone vibrated in her pocket, and opened it to find a text message.
Up for a movie?- Ash21
Aiden smiled and closed her phone. She never replied to his messages, since the man had more than enough calls coming at him. She knew that he would wait outside the theatre until just before the show started. She rounded the corner of a building and looked around to make sure that no one was watching, and teleported herself to the alley behind the theatre where she, Ash and Simi usually watched movies.22
All her warning senses kicked in to high alert and she spun around in time to see someone coming at her. She dodged out of reflex, staggering back when something wrapped around her neck. She immediately reverted to her eagle form as the metriazo collar limited her use of magic.23
Fuck, fuck, fuckity, fuck. She opened her wings as far as she could, and flapped against hands holding her, clawing with her talons at the same time. 24
“Hold her!” someone yelled.25
Aiden screeched as a net went over her body, and pulled tight. She looked, sighing to herself at the sight of four blonde, good looking men standing over her. She couldn’t use her magic without it hurting her, and that seriously pissed her off. 26
Images of the last time this happened to her flooded through her brain, bringing the pain and anger back. There was no way she was going to go through anything remotely similar to that again. Grabbing a piece of the net in her beak, she started to pull the material apart.27
One Daimon pulled out his phone and handed to another one. “Call Acheron, tell him we have her, and ask where he wants to meet.”28
Aiden stopped ripping at the net and stared at the man. What the fuck? Ash? 29
The Daimon flipped the phone open, stopping when a knife sailed past his face and embedded itself in the Daimon beyond him, before falling to the ground as the unlucky victim exploded into golden dust. 30
The remaining Daimons looked to the mouth of the alley, and at the tall man in black who stood there.31
Nick Gautier pulled another knife out of his jacket. “Next one won’t miss you,” he said, putting a little more Cajun into his voice than usual. “How about you three just back up from the eagle…”32
The Daimons looked at each other, then took off running in the opposite direction. Aiden watched them go, then waited as Nick slowly approached her. His head tilted as he seemed to study her.33
“Aiden?”34
She screeched quietly, and patiently waited as he untangled her from the net. When she was free, Nick placed both hands under the metriazo collar and pulled. After a few yanks, the collar came off with a flash that caused him to cringe and mutter a few curse words. 35
Aiden transformed into human, and willed clothes onto her body before his vision could clear. “Thank you.”36
“Glad I came along when I did,” he said in a semi polite voice. “What did they want?”37
“No idea, really.”38
“Did they say anything?”39
She looked at him as she felt her powers surge back. “No.”40
“Nothing?” he looked surprised, then angry.41
“No.” she turned away slightly. She knew she was lying, but he seemed a little too intense about the Daimons not saying anything. Besides, the last thing she wanted was to give him more ammunition to use in his hatred of Ash. “Thank you for your help, but I think I want to go home now.”42
He nodded with a slight smile, then she vanished.43
Wanting nothing more than to drink until she threw up, Aiden teleported back home. She pulled out her phone, and checked the number that came with the last text message she received. It was nowhere near Ash’s cell phone number. 44
Annoyed with herself for taking the message at face value and not looking at who had sent it, she sighed, then dialed Ash’s correct number.45
“Hi ‘den.”46
She inhaled, then told him about her night. “Someone texted me, pretending to be you, then when I arrived behind the theatre, Daimons slapped a metriazo collar around my neck. They mentioned about calling you and asking for further orders, then Nick showed up and chased them off.”47
Ash was silent for a full ten seconds before he spoke. “I…see.”48
“Well, I’m glad one of us does,” she replied sarcastically. 49
“Did you want me to come over?” he asked, ignoring her anger.50
Aiden inhaled through her nose. “Honestly, Ash,” she said. “I just want to get falling down drunk, throw up a little, then pass out on the floor somewhere.”51
“I’ll bring the pizza,” Ash said, then hung up.52
Aiden stared at the phone, then slowly closed it, turned, and threw it against the mirror that hung on the wall by the door. She blinked as it bounced harmlessly off the reflective surface and landed softly on the floor. 53
The knocking on her door pulled her shocked stare away from the mirror, and she opened it. Ash stood there, a large pizza box in his hand, and a slight frown on his face.54
“Breaking mirrors is bad luck, you know,” he said as he entered and placed the pizza box on her coffee table. 55
Annoyed at him for robbing her of the temporary satisfaction of destroying something, Aiden stuck out her tongue and raised her middle finger at the same time. 56
“Oh, like that’s mature,” Ash said in a droll voice. He held his hand out and a small foam ball appeared in it. “Here. It’s called a stress ball.” He smirked. “It helps get rid of tension.”57
Aiden pick it up from his hand, took a step back, and whiffed it at his chest. The ball hit harmlessly and fell to the floor. He gave her an unamused look.58
“You’re right,” she said brightly. “It does work.”59
“Oh, ha ha. It is to laugh.” Ash opened the box, pulled out a slice of pizza and handed it to her. Then, he went to her fridge, grabbed two bottles of beer and came back, opening them before giving one to her. “Now,” he said, pausing as he took a drink from his. Although he didn't need to eat, he actually liked a cold beer now and then. “Tell me again about what happened.”60
Aiden stared at the immortal, wondering just what had gotten in to him. Here he was, sitting in her condo, enjoying a cold brew and acting like nothing had happened. “Uh, apparently you text messaged me, setting me up for a Daimon trap, which your sterling Dark-Hunter broke up.”61
Ash took another drink from the bottle in his hand. “That’s it?”62
“Nick seemed mad when I told him that the Daimons didn’t say anything when they had me in the net.”63
“Hmmm.” 64
“Okay,” Aiden said with a sigh. “Although it is a rather refreshing change, this cool, calm, and ultra-relaxed Ash is starting to get on my nerves.” She closed her eyes and muttered under her breath as he just smiled slightly. “This isn’t one of those things that you won’t tell me, but hell, I’ll end up in all sorts of melodramatic shit with, leaving it so that you or Savitar come to the rescue, yet again, making me feel like some useless tit, is it?”65
Ash blinked at her choice of words. “Uh, no. Not that I know of.” He stood, placing his bottle on the coffee table. “Is that how you feel?” he asked quietly. “Like a useless twit?”66
“I said tit.”67
“I know,” he replied dryly. “Don’t feel that way, okay?” He looked down so he could see into her eyes. “You’re never useless, and there is no way that I would knowingly make you feel that way.”68
Aiden took a bite from the pizza and turned to look at the wall beyond him. She chewed then swallowed. “Yeah, well. Think of it from my point of view for a while. I don’t even feel safe in my own home any longer.”69
He reached down to grab his beer bottle. “Why not?”70
“Stryker was here. Someone broke in and invited him in. Then I have Blood-Rites pounding on my door, suspecting me of... I don’t know what, but hell…” She trailed off, and took another bite of the pizza.71
“I’m sorry,” Ash replied honestly.72
“Yeah,” she whispered.73
~~~~~~~~~~74
Savitar made it to the shore just as a man appeared on the white sand. The figure looked around slowly, his nervousness apparent, even though he tried to hide it. He straightened as he noticed Savitar approaching from the water, and patiently waited while the immortal wiped down the surfboard and stacked it on a rack with a few others. 75
“I need a bodyguard to make sure that Aiden Falconidae stays safe,” he said without looking at his visitor. “I don’t care if she knows someone is looking out for her or not, but the main thing is to make sure that she is unharmed.” He finally looked at the man. “Up for the job?”76
Fury Kattalakis tried his best not to look shocked. Savitar was asking him, a Katagaria Wolf, to look after an Arcadian Eagle…especially an eagle that had, until only recently, hunted wolves as part of a personal vendetta. He resisted the urge to run his hands through his blonde hair. That was a human trait, and although he had been born with a human heart, his animal side took over at puberty, and held a large chunk of his personality and ways.77
“Uh...”78
“Why you?” Savitar asked him. Fury nodded. “Because I know I can trust you.” The immortal gave him a deep stare. “I know that you would allow no harm to come to her if I asked it of you.”79
Fury repressed a shiver at the underlying threat that statement contained. “Protect her from what?”80
“Stryker wants her dead,” Savitar said. “I don’t want her dead.” He crossed tattooed arms over his black wetsuit. “Would you like a few moments to think it over?”81
Fury blinked, surprised that he would be given a choice. He had his duties to his Patria to consider, since he was the de facto Regis, or leader of the pack. He turned, startled as his brother Vane appeared beside him. Vane looked as confused as he did.82
“I require your brother to do something for me for two weeks,” Savitar said easily. “It would please me if you gave your consent for him to abstain from his Regis duties for that time period.”83
Vane looked from Savitar to Fury, and back. “Is it anything that would harm him or the pack?”84
“No.”85
Vane looked at his littermate. “Up to you, Fury.”86
Fury looked at the sand. “I don’t think Aiden Falconidae would want a Katagaria Wolf bodyguard.”87
“Oh, I can guarantee that she won’t want one,” Savitar assured him. “But there are times in our existences when we don’t always get what we want.” He brushed away the ache that threatened to surface at that thought. “I won’t kill you if you say no.” Savitar stopped as if to reconsider. “Actually, I would…but not this time.”88
“What the hell,” Fury said with a sigh. “There aren’t any leash laws in that city, are there?”89
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~90
“What the hell is your problem?” Nick snarled in anger. 91
The Daimon he was talking to returned his glare with a bored one of his own. “Take a step back from me, Dark-Hunter,” he said in a mild voice. 92
“You were supposed to make it look like Ash planned her capture.”93
“We did.”94
“The eagle told me that you said nothing.” Nick shook his head with an aggravated growl. 95
“Don’t know what to tell you,” the Daimon told him. “We mentioned calling Acheron for further instruction. Not my fault if the eagle didn’t hear us.”96
Nick stared for a moment, wondering if Aiden had heard them, but lied to him when he asked her about it. He could feel Stryker nibbling at the fringes of his thoughts, trying to gain access to see what he was up to, and finally gave up trying to hide tings from the Spathi Leader.97
Yes? he thought politely.
It took a few seconds while Stryker quickly went through the thoughts in Nick’s head. Then, he spoke. Interesting idea, but not one that will work. You forget that Savitar knows what you’re doing before you even know you’re doing it. 98
I’m doing it more to mess around with Ash than anything, Nick explained patiently. Keep him busy and he won’t see it when I plant the final blow. 99
Impatience is a weakness. 100
So is redundancy. Nick blinked when he could actually feel the heat from the anger Stryker was directing at him over that remark. I meant that the longer I wait, the more time Ash has to find out what is going on.
And if you stop being so impatient, then he won’t get to find out what is going on, Stryker explained in a forced tone. Mess around with Ash if you want, but try not to make it so obvious the next time. Play the good Dark-Hunter for a while. 101
Nick sighed as the voice vanished, and glared at the Daimon before tuning and stalking away. “Play the good Dark-Hunter for a while,” he mimicked in a whiny whisper. “Got my own agenda, pal, and I’m takin’ initiative.” 102
~~~~~~~~~103
Ash stood on the balcony, looking out over the city lights as he thought through the conversation he had just had. Through too many beers, Aiden had told him that she was fed up with being some cosmic pawn, and it annoyed her to no end that secrets regarding her life were being kept from her. Even though she knew that it was necessary at times, it made her feel like some child who couldn’t be trusted with being told certain things. 104
Or, at least that was what Ash had gotten from her between the swearing and going off on a tangent while telling stories. He had known her long enough to tell that it made her feel useless at times, and completely hurt at other times. 105
He looked down at a sensation, and locked eyes with a large white timber wolf that was looking up at him from the tree line. The wolf paced as he watched Ash, revealing a distinguishing brown mark on his body.106
“Fury?” Ash whispered.
In the flesh…or rather, fur. 107
What are you doing here? Ash took a step back as the wolf appeared on the balcony beside him, reverting into a human male as clothes appeared on his body.108
Fury watched, slightly amused as Ash shifted his position so that he was now between Fury and the open doorway. Not that it would have stopped the wolf had he wanted to enter, but he could respect the protective nature that Ash seemed to have for his friends. 109
“Funniest thing.” Fury said in a voice that showed that it wasn’t the least bit amusing. “Seems that I’ve been pegged for bodyguard duty on the eagle.”110
“You’ve been what?”111
“Mr. Surfer-Dude decided that he prefers Ms. Falconidae alive and has… requested, shall we say… that I watch her for the next two weeks.” He smiled tightly. “Any idea why?”112
“Do you need a reason?” Ash asked, working through this development in his brain. It could be a good thing, since he could focus on just what the Daimons were up to with their screwing around with his phone system again. They had tried that crap in New Orleans a few years back, with disastrous results for the Dark-Hunters.113
“A reason? Not really.” Fury peeked around Ash’s shoulder. “But an explanation would be nice. Hey, nice digs.” He laced his fingers together and cracked his knuckled. “Where’s the eagle?”114
“Sleeping.”115
“Oh.” He gave Ash a speculative look. “Tired her out, did you?”116
“It’s amazing how not funny you are,” Ash said in a dark voice. “I was going to leave, but…with you here, Aiden will…flip.” Ash shook his head slowly. “I’ll stay the night so I can stop her from killing you in the morning.”117
“How noble of you.”118
“Do you need to go raise your leg against a tree before bed?”119
“Do you need to go fuck off the edge of a cliff before bed?” Fury replied with a snarl.120
Oh, yeah, Aiden was just going to love this. 121
“You can sleep in the spare room with me,” Ash said. “But hump my leg, and I’ll neuter you before I kill you.” 122
Fury gave him a bored look, then changed into his natural timber wolf form. You may be pretty, but you’re no bitch he thought at him, his voice laden with sarcasm. 123
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~124
“Babe?”125
Aiden turned around to face the man behind her. 126
“Gotta talk to you,” he said. He waited until she sat in the sand, and then lowered himself beside her. “I’m worried about you,” he said as he took her hand in his. “Someone is trying to hurt you so that I’ll hurt someone else, and I can’t let that happen. I’ve sent someone to look after you for a couple weeks, and-“127
“Hold on.” Aiden closed her eyes, then opened them. “A bodyguard?”128
Savitar nodded once. “I could ask you to come back to Neratiti, but that wouldn’t be fair to you. It just…well… please…just accept this and we can talk about it in a couple days.”129
She sighed. “I’m too tired to argue about it, so…fine.”130
“No.” He stared as she looked at him. “No ‘fine’. If it annoys you, then tell me.”131
“It annoys me,” she said. “But I understand.” 132
Savitar looked relieved. “Thank you. Just, please. Don’t kill him before I get there.”133
“Something tells me that I’m not going to like this.”134
“You probably won’t,” he replied honestly. “But I’m asking you to trust me in this. I picked this person because I believe that he can help you.” He leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips. “I’ll call you around noon.”135
Aiden watched as he vanished, and her dreamscape changed. 136
~~~~~~~~~137
Stretching completely, the white timber wolf rolled over on the floor, then jerked when he realized that he wasn’t sleeping outside. His eyes opened quickly and his snout raised as he sniffed the air. Looking at the bed, he saw a long form laying on his stomach, arms curled around a pillow. 138
An evil glint flashed through his eyes as he quietly got to his feet and stretched out, placing a cold nose against a foot that was sticking out from the blanket on the bed.139
“Shit!” Ash said loudly as he shot up in bed. He glared at Fury through the hair that fell over his face. “Do that again, Wolf, and I’ll invite Simi out to play.”140
Fury immediately changed to human, willed clothes on to his body, and smiled innocently. “At least I didn’t sniff your crotch.”141
The look Ash gave him guaranteed a painful death. He willed clothes on to his body, then stood from the bed. “Let’s get this over with, so Aiden can kill you and I can go back to bed.” 142
Fury watched Ash open the door and then wait for the wolf to exit the room before closing it…all without touching the handle. Fury walked down the hall, and entered the living room, stopping as the woman who was sitting on the couch stood and stared at him. 143
Aiden stared in shock at the man who was there, her senses telling her that he was Katagaria, and a wolf. All her old anger at wolves surfaced, and she took a step towards him, not stopping as he bared his teeth at her.144
“It’s far too early for this,” Ash said as he walked past Fury and sat on the couch. He looked at Aiden. “Seems you got a bodyguard.”145
Aiden’s gaze flicked to him as she silently promised that she was going to kick Savitar in the ass for this. 146
Trying to break the silence, Fury exhaled. “You seemed a little pissed off with this,” Fury said gently.147
“Oh, no,” she said. “Pissed off is finding Stryker in my condo… pissed off is finding Ash at my door with a bunch of Blood Rites. Finding a Katagaria Wolf in my living room? That is totally fucking infuriating.”148
“If it makes you feel any better,” Fury replied, “I feel about the same way.”149
“Then why are you here?”150
“Because Savitar asked me.”151
Then mention of Savitar’s name brought back her dream, and him asking her to trust him. Aiden sighed in annoyance. She turned for the door, stopping when she realized that Fury was following her. 152
“Where you go, I go,” Fury said. “’Cept for the can, of course…unless you want me to follow you there.”153
Ash moved, but not even he was fast enough to stop the blast that Aiden gave Fury. All he could do was watch as the hapless wolf sailed back over the couch to land in the floor in a pain filled heap. Oh, yeah… this was starting out just like he thought it would. Ash wished he had someone to lay down bets with on who would end up the alpha-Were in this one.154
Fury stared at the ceiling for a few moments while his thoughts alternated between killing her and admiring her for what she had just done. Deciding that his pride took second place to an annoyed Savitar, he slowly stood, straightened his clothes, and walked to the door. 155
“Don’t do that again,” he requested politely, and then waited for her to lead so he could follow. 156
“Have fun, kiddies,” Ash called from the couch. “And please…try not to seriously hurt each other.” He vanished, smiling at the glares they both gave him.157
Aiden exhaled, then looked at Fury. “Fine. Explain this to me as I take a walk.” She grabbed the doorknob and yanked the door open, then walked out. 158
Fury rolled his eyes, then followed. Whose leg did I piss on to deserve this??
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Comments
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oh love the last line. great way to end the chapter. and im am starting to see places where they do take advantage of aiden.- ive noticed that they always ask things of her when she is tried or mentally unstable- the perfect time for someone to let their guard down... poor girl. lol.
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Okay, so I am definitely going to be checking here daily to watch for an update on this story! I am really loving it so far. I feel like you kept to the characterizations of the core characters really well and I love your originals. I love the dialogue, it's very realistic. I like seeing more of Fury, he's one of my favorite characters (along with Savitar of course), and I feel that you have done an awesome job keeping them both in character. Keep it up.
beginning: 4, language: 4, plot: 4, dialog: 5, characters: 5.
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Thank you
Since this is part 14, there are 13 other parts that lead to this, as well as another Were-Hunter 'novel' that preceeded it, and a Dark-Hunter novel that gets mentioned from time to time (characters, etc). Just mentioning in case certain things don't make sense.
Hopefully I'll be able to continue this very shortly, but with summer here and the kids off of school, it makes for odd computer times.
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