1
Morning arrived without any major changes. At least, the children and teens sequestered in the small cave thought it to be morning… heck, it could have still been the middle of the night, or even the next afternoon for all they knew. All watches, cell phones and even video games were removed from their belongs as soon as they had arrived, so no one was really sure when it was.2
All they knew was that they had been in the cave for far too long, and that if help didn’t arrive soon, then hope was going to be fading very quickly. 3
“They’re not coming.” 4
The eldest hostage, a teenager named Frank, closed his eyes wearily at the fatalistic attitude of the girl beside him. “If it’s daytime, then Hunters can’t be out in sunlight,” he reminded her. “And stop it with the doom and gloom before you start everyone freaking out.”5
“Who made you boss?”6
He looked at her. “Oh, do be quiet,” he said, mimicking the tone of the Hunter his father was squire to. “No one made me boss, but someone had to step up and take the responsibility on, did they not? I don’t recall you volunteering.”7
“You’re an ass.”8
“And I plan on continuing to be an ass until I’m home in my nice warm bed.” 9
“Do you think they’ll kill us before the rescue, or during the rescue?”10
Frank gave her an evaluating look, and deciding that she wasn’t being sarcastic or fatalistic, he replied. “Dunno. Makes sense to do it during, so that the guilt will be carried for a lot longer.”11
She nodded in agreement, and settled back against the wall. “Ever wish you were born in to a normal family?”12
“Not until yesterday,” he replied honestly.13
~~~~~~~~~~~~14
“When is this supposed to happen?”15
Ash looked at Tria as she stood in front of the table he was at. “Tonight,” he said, answering her question. 16
“And I would assume that you’ve worked me into the equation somewhere?”17
Ash and Leo exchanged glances, prompting Leo to excuse himself while Ash leaned back and regarded Tria through sunglasses. “Why?”18
Sitting in the chair on the other side of the table, Tria sniffed slightly, laced her hands together, and placed them lightly on the surface in front of her. “Because Kessar knows that you’re not going to trade me for them.”19
“Why wouldn’t I?”20
She should have been insulted, but she wasn’t. “He might think you will, based on your history and doing all you can to protect humans, but deep down he knows that you won’t risk a Dark-Hunter for hostages that he’s going to kill anyway.”21
Ash regarded her silently. “I…see.”22
“He knows that some rescue is on the way, and it will feed into his army, or feed his army. If I go, it throws a few things into chaos, since he’s not expecting it, and it might give a better chance to get the kids out.”23
He noticed that her voice broke slightly at the end, but ignored it as he continued to stare at her. “We’re leaving at dusk,” he finally said. 24
Tria nodded once. “Then I would really like to spend the rest of the day in my own house, if that’s all right?”25
“Yeah,” Ash whispered, a moment before transporting Tria to her own home. He stood from the table and exhaled before motioning Leo back over. 26
“Is she coming?” Leo asked.27
“Volunteered.”28
“Thought so.” Leo checked his watch. “We got eight hours. I’m going to run my people through a few scenarios, then pack them off to bed.”29
“I have something to do,” Ash said. “I’ll be back later.” He vanished from the room, appearing in another room a fair distance away.30
“Shouldn’t you be off planning something?” a voice from behind said. 31
Ash turned, his eyes closing slightly at the sight of Tria as she rooted through the entertainment stand in her bedroom. Pulling a narrow box out, she brought it to the bed and opened it. 32
“Do me a favor?” she asked, not looking at him. “Could you see to it that my personal effects and any additional pay gets donated to a children’s charity? The house can revert to the Squire council.”33
“Tria-“ he stopped when she looked up at him. Calmness covered her like a shield, her mind accepting whatever was in store for her. His hand slipped into his pocket as he sat on the bed beside her, and he pulled the necklace out. 34
“I,” he paused, then removed his dark glasses. “I bought this about a week ago because it reminded me of you.” 35
Tria smiled slightly as she stared at the stone. “It’s beautiful,” she said. “But you didn’t need to-“36
“I bought it for you.”37
He looked so unusually shy that Tria closed her eyes to block the tears that hovered there. It had been a hard few weeks, and she didn’t need to let a sweet gesture like this bring her to tears. “Thank you,” she whispered, bringing her hands up to pull her hair off her shoulders as he leaned forward to clasp it around her neck.38
His fingers lingered on the chain, then moved to her shoulder as he leaned in to kiss her. She gasped in surprise and their clothes suddenly vanished, and smiled against his lips as his hand moved to her inner thigh.39
Ash’s lips worked their way from Tria’s mouth, along her cheek, pausing to nibble at her ear before continuing to her neck. He could feel her blood pulsing below his tongue as he caressed, and his fangs broke the surface of her skin before he even realized.40
Jerking in surprise, Tria was about to object when a warm sensation spread through her body, setting every nerve to extra-sensitive. She desperately wanted him, needed him to fill her every need, and reaching up, cupped her hand behind his head and gently pushed him into her neck. She whimpered in unbelievable pleasure as his fangs sank deeper into the area between her neck and shoulder. 41
Her mouth opened in a silent moan and her breath seemed to leave her as she shuddered, causing her to throw her head back as stars filled her vision. This was incredible, and before she knew it, her mouth was on his shoulder, and she could taste warmth in her mouth. She didn’t even remember biting him, but by the way his body was reacting, she could tell that it was affecting him the same way. 42
Every sense was wide open and she experienced his thoughts, worries, disappointments and successes as they washed over. Her head spun as she could hear too many thoughts at once, and she was acutely aware that her heart was suddenly beating in synchronized rhythm with his.43
Lights flashed through Ash’s eyes as he savored the feel of something that was completely taboo for him to be doing. As a Hunter, biting someone was a highly sexual event, and one that was strictly forbidden… although there were always loopholes. Not that he actually cared about rules, loopholes, of anything else at that moment. All he wanted was to experience the ultimate ‘love bite’ with someone that he had actual desire to be with.44
As their hands caressed each other, he could sense her craving and her delighted confusion of what was happening. Although he wanted to remain this way forever, he knew that he couldn’t.45
Their fangs left each other’s shoulder at the same time, and they looked at each other for a brief moment before his lips dove at hers and her arms went around him as she fell back on the bed. Her legs wrapped around his waist, pulling him into her as one hand weaved itself through his hair bringing him impossibly closer.46
~~~~~~~~~~~~47
Appearing just outside the door to the conference room, Aiden listened quietly through the wood, then placed her hand on the knob and opened it. Stepping in, she was greeted by silent stares for a fraction of a moment before ten weapons were pointed at her. 48
Smiling slightly, she gave the Squires a bored look. “Ash around?”49
“Who?”50
Aiden looked at the man who had spoken, taking in his normal height and build, along with the spider web tattoo on his hand. “Ash,” she repeated. “Parthenopaeus. Tall guy, looks like the poster boy for Goth bikers?” She gave them a inquiring look, then shrugged. “My bad. I’ll be going.”51
“You’ll be staying,” the man said, “until we find out who you are.”52
Snorting, Aiden vanished, only to appear behind the man. “Aiden Falconidae,” she whispered in his ear, then vanished as he spun around. 53
Leo slowly turned a complete circle, looking for the woman, and ready if she appeared. The name she had mentioned was vaguely familiar, but he couldn’t place it. Although, judging from her vanishing act, she was most likely a Were-Hunter.54
“Eagle,” he said, the information suddenly surfacing in his mind. Her name had been on a Blood Rites search order from nearly a year ago regarding the death of the Dark-Hunter Keegan, and it was rumored that she was good friends with Ash and even better friends with the Omegrion Mediator, Savitar. And since he made his living sifting through rumors, he paid attention to all that he heard.55
Aiden appeared in front of him, and smiled. “Good. You’re not a slow as I assumed.” She looked around, noticing that no one had yet to lower their weapons. “Oh, come on, guys, I’m on your side.”56
“What do you want?”57
“To help.”58
“Why?” Leo had to ask.59
Instead of answering, Aiden took a step back. “The only one who needs to know my reasons is Ash. And he would be…?”60
“Not here.”61
“I’m amazed I didn’t notice that,” Aiden said dryly.62
Not really liking her attitude, not that he did to begin with, Leo motioned to a table. “He’ll be back soon. Have a seat there, and wait.”63
Sucking her lip briefly, she tilted her head and looked at him as if deciding whether to kill him or not, then shook her head and sat on the table behind her.64
So far, so good, she thought. Now all she had to do was convince Ash to let her accompany him, and then somehow get Tria alone she could remove the Huntress from the picture…all without jeopardizing the hostages, or anyone else that was with her. 65
To top it off, it seemed like her headache was making a major comeback.66
~~~~~~~~~~~~~67
Rubbing his hands together in anticipation, Kessar checked on a few of his ‘surprises’ for the rescue he knew was coming. He had already figured out that Ash would be among the rescuers, since the god had a penchant for sticking his nose in everywhere, and hoped that he would bring the Huntress with him. 68
The idea that Ash would trade her for the human youth was the one thing that Kessar wasn’t positive on. Of course, Ash would do anything to protect humans, but on the other hand, he would also do anything to protect his Hunters. If she wasn’t with them, then the children would die. If she was with them, then the children would still die, and then the rescue party would join his Gallu.69
Standing over the small hole in the dirt, he peered into a cavern below. This was where he planned on putting the rescuers after they were captured, and then infecting them one by one. There was no way out, except through a ladder or rope, and if the hostages were smart enough to create one, they wouldn’t make it far since the opening led directly to the Gallu dining area. 70
The only kink in the straightforward plan was the Dark-Hunter Leader, since he could easily vanish from any cavern and appear anywhere he wanted. Killing him outright would probably be the best course of action there.71
Checking a clock that showed him the time in nearby Las Vegas, he calculated that they would have at least three hours before the sun set. Since Dark-Hunters couldn’t be out in the day, that seemed like the most opportune time for them to show up and try to sneak in. 72
Hopefully it would be tonight, and they wouldn’t be rude enough to make him wait another day. Already the hostages were starting to whine and complain, and even though he wanted to kill them now, common sense won out. Besides, Ash might be able to sense if they were killed before any rescue attempt, and then he would have no reason to even bother showing up. 73
No, he definitely didn’t want that. So, he kept the humans basically fed, and occasionally watered, but beyond that, had issued order that they were to be left complete alone.74
~~~~~~~~~~~75
Babe? 76
Aiden tensed slightly at the voice in her head, and then relaxed when she realized that no one was watching her. A few of the squires were glancing at her every so often, but basically left her alone.
Ash’s not here, she replied back in her thoughts. And the rest don’t exactly like my being here. 77
Ash is…occupied, Savitar replied.
Doing what?
A little one on one private time with a Huntress, not that it’s any of your business.
Aiden resisted the urge to roll her eyes and moan in aggravation. Sometimes Savitar was annoyingly blunt with what he said.
Be careful, he continued. I want you back safe and sound in once piece.
Although she tried to stop herself, she couldn’t help but smile at that. Don’t worry. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.
I don’t want to get rid of you. Ever.
She blinked slowly, not sure if she heard that correctly. What?
Make sure the Huntress is in your sight at all times, he said, changing the subject. You have to time it just right, or it won’t work.
Does she absolutely have to be gotten rid of?
She had to be removed from the picture, yes. Savitar sighed. I’ve explained what to do, and if you do as I tell you-
It should all work out, Aiden finished for him in an exasperated tone. I swear sometimes that you and Ash studied at the same school of vagueness and blind order following. 78
Just be careful, my little eagle. With that, he broke the connection, leaving Aiden with more questions than ever before. 79
Looking around again to make sure that no one was paying too close of attention to her, Aiden stood and stretched, stopping when she heard the rustling of people turning to look at her. Paranoid much? she silent asked them.80
~~~~~~~~~~~~~81
Ash opened his eyes wearily, blinking away the bleariness that wanted him to close them for a few more hours. He rolled on to his side, staring at Tria’s back as she slept a few inches from him. Her hair was to the side, and he could see the double bow and arrow tattoo that marked her as a Huntress. Not too far from that mark, he noticed two small punctures in the skin, and sat up to get a better look.82
“Oh, shit,” he whispered to himself when he realized how close he had come to puncturing her tattoo. Sharing something like that with someone, and then killing her by piercing the mark of Artemis would have been a definite comedown. 83
Why he had allowed himself to bite her was beyond him. It might have had something to do with how much joy he had felt in the past few weeks, and how fucked up his life had been for the past countless millennium. He constantly gave, while everyone took, and then when he met someone that gave to him without expectations, he couldn’t help but feel a little greedy in wanting all that he could take. He would hold her actions and gestures in his heart for a long time, calling on them to sustain him through the bitter hardships that he knew were still to come. 84
While his feeding from Artemis was done on a purely need to be nourished basis, biting Tria had been done because of the undeniable desire to connect with her on a higher plane. And now, he literally had a little bit of her in him, and she had some of him in her. It was something both would be able to take when their time ended. And he knew that could very well be tonight. 85
Checking his watch, he realized that they had not quite one more hour before returning to the meeting with the squires. Sadness gripped at him as he wished he could go back to the previous night and not give the promise of asking for her soul. If she died, and even if it wasn’t tonight, she would be in agony forever. He couldn’t break his promise to her without ending his own existence, and he knew that she was too stubborn to rescind her request. 86
Tria opened her eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the darkness before rolling over to face Ash. The memories of what they had done settled in her, making her want him then and now. Pushing that feeling down, she sat up to look into his eyes. 87
“I thought Hunters weren’t suppose to do that.”88
Ash shrugged slightly as he reached up and fingered the stone that hung around her neck. He noticed that her skin grew warm under his fingers, and her eyes closed as she leaned towards him.89
“You don’t have to go tonight,” he whispered as his fingers circled her breast.90
“Yes, I do,” she replied. “I just wish there was someway to stop the squires from going.” Opening her eyes, she smiled slightly. “But… no more talk about it. If this is my time to finally go, then I want to spend my last time in bed happy.91
Ash leaned back as she put her hands on his chest and gently pushed him towards the bed. He tried to smile as she straddled him and looked down at him, but found it hard to do. Trying to ignore that knot of dread and worry that was steadily building in his stomach, he focused on trying to take her mind off of the coming events. 92
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~93
Taking one last look around a room deep in the lower levels of his palace, Savitar gave a brief nod, satisfied with the accommodations. Vanishing from the dark room, he reappeared on the beach and inhaled the sweet sea air. 94
There were two things that he really didn’t like, and one of them was dark enclosed spaces. He was a creature that liked to be able to do what he wanted, when he wanted, and when surrounds by nothing but walls, it tended to put a major damper on his desires. That was one reason why his bedroom and all areas of the palace that he frequented had floor to ceiling windows or doors that could be opened to give the illusion of unending space. 95
Brightly lit enclosed areas were fine; it was the dim ones brought back too many ancient memories and emotions that he would prefer to keep buried and hopefully forgotten. But there were times, such as this, when he had to suck it up and tolerate some place that he would rather not be. The future of one of his closest friends depended on it, and there was nothing that could keep him from making sure that it went as he planned. 96
He just hoped that Aiden could- 97
He stopped, not even bothering to finish that thought. He knew Aiden, and he knew that she would do everything in her power to make sure that the Huntress was removed from the picture. As long as she herself didn’t get hurt while doing it. That had been a worry in his mind, and he had to stop himself more than once from contacting her and asking her to come back. He could find another way to get it done, but he refrained. He trusted Aiden like he had trusted no other, and if she was to trust him, then he had to show her the faith he had in her.98
“The universe was so much easier when I hated everyone,” he said to the empty beach. 99
Spying a wave cresting the horizon, his clothes morphed into a black and deep green wetsuit the same time a surfboard appeared in his hands.100
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~101
“Ready?” Ash asked, sitting on the edge of bed as Tria finished dressing in front of him. 102
“No,” she said with a sigh. “But let’s get this done.”103
“You could stay.”104
She looked at him with a small frown. “Nothing short of you tying me up to the bedpost will stop me from going.” She stared as a length of black cord appeared in Ash’s hand. “Keep that in mind for when we get back.”105
Feeling his cheeks flush, Ash tossed the cord on to the bed behind him, and stood to face her. “We’ll just have to make sure that it happens, then.”106
“Right. After all, I’m a Dark-Huntress, and we’re tough, ready to rumble and take no frikkin’ prisoners.”107
“Exactly.” Ash gave her a smile he didn’t quite feel, his mind suddenly on a dream he had had that night after the Gallu in the alley. In the dream, Tria had given him that look that made his breath catch in his throat, and then she suddenly vanished, leaving him with unfathomable grief and anger. That look he had seen from her recently, and he hoped that the pain from the dream would be something that he would not feel for a long time.108
With him, dreams were tricky things, with more coming true than not, while others hinted at things that had to be deciphered and sifted through for meaning. It could easily be that her vanishing was at the end of their time together, and the fact that he could never see her again…at least until he was once more free of Artemis for two months. 109
“I’m ready,” she said, bringing him from his musings. He gave her another smile when he realized he had been staring at her face.110
Giving her a brief kiss, he then took a step back, and transported them both to just outside the meeting room. Using his powers, he opened the door for her, allowing her to enter first, he followed, then shut the door behind him.111
Ash’s eyebrow rose as he spotted Aiden sitting on the corner a table on the other side of the room. She gave him a smirk, and waited for him to walk to her.112
“What are you doing here?” he asked as he gave her a friendly squeeze on the lower arm.113
“I’m here to help.”114
“Why?”115
Aiden smiled, then ignored him. “Tria Cavanaugh?” she asked. 116
“Yes,” Tria replied. 117
“Pain in the arse to be the center of attention, and have no one want you to do what you think is the right thing, isn’t it?”118
Tria looked from Aiden, to Ash, who was rolling his eyes in annoyance, then back again. “It is,” Tria agreed. 119
“’Den,” Ash said with forced calmness. “Why are you here?”120
“I’m not overly fond of demons, and I don’t like it when they threaten the innocent.”121
“Nicely put,” Ash said with a smile. “Now the real reason?”122
Aiden snorted in amusement, then motioning him forward, leaned closer so she could whisper in his ear. Ash slowly pulled back after she finished, and stared at her. 123
“Okay, then.” He turned and walked away. “Leo,” he said loudly, getting the Squire Regis’ attention. 124
Tria tried not to stare at Aiden, but couldn’t help it. The other woman was extremely pretty, with a nearly tangible aura around her the oozed animalistic sensuality. Ash had been more than cordial with her, and Tria found herself pushing down some unexpected jealousy. 125
Aiden ignored the Huntress as she stared, and then stood when two more females entered the room. Although both were tall and looked very similar, one was a blonde, while the other had hair that suspiciously looked just like Ash’s.126
“Aidens!” Simi squealed as she spotted her friend, and dashed over to throw her arms around her.127
“Simi,” Aiden coughed. “Can’t breathe.” 128
Simi removed her arms, and took a step back. “The Simi didn’t knows that Aiden was here. Is you helpings us, or it is something with Savvy? The Simi hopes it’s to helps because we could use it since it’s just me, Akri, Tria, who looks likes you two mets already, and my sister Xirena, who’s a good Charonte, but a pains as a sister.”129
Tria shook her head in confusion, and blinked her eyes a few times as she tried to decode that. “Wha?”130
Aiden smiled slightly. “You haven’t been introduced to Simi-talk yet? It’s rather… interesting. Excuse us for a moment.” She took Simi’s arm and led her a little to the side.131
Tria watched as the two women talked in hushed tones, and became concerned when Simi glanced at her a few times. Not liking the nervousness that she was experiencing, she started to wander around the room, getting into the mind frame for what lay ahead.132
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Comments
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Great
Even though this is chapter 14 and I have only read this chapter, I feel as though I know what's going on. Your characters are well developed and there's even some dry humor in there. I would definatly love to read what happens next! Great job, keep up the good work!
Summer
beginning: 5, language: 5, plot: 5, ending: 5, dialog: 5, characters: 5.
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That was really interesting and well written. I liked how you seperated out the different parts and let the reader see into each of the different perspectives. I would be interested in more description of what the characters look like. I could be wrong but I didn't really pick up on what they looked like. Try showing it, instead of just flat out describing them. The plot is really interesting though and I was definitely hooked though.
Good writing!
WRitingFree -
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Thank you for your comment
Since this is chapter 14 of a story, there wouldn't be loads of character description, since it would be spread throughout the entire 'book'.
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