15. Kami

15

Kami

J ust as we finish, there's a loud noise and a scuffle from outside the room.

The shadows over the next bed clear, and Malkar rushes from it to join Oz outside, closing the door firmly behind him.

"We are going to be doing that. A lot, " Ries says, his voice husky. "So, ah, did you get what you need?"

"I did." I feel myself flushing again, which is silly because I'm naked and full of Ries.

He smiles. "Good." His expression shutters as he looks over at Crash, who's still sleeping, then says in a low voice, "Maybe don't tell anyone about that special need of yours. Not everyone's understanding."

"And you are?"

He nods, his eyes so dark I could drown in them. "I'm used to people hating me because of what they think I might do. But you… Taking energy… That's necromancer shit."

"I'm not?—"

"It doesn't matter what you are. People will see that and think only one thing. Which is ironic because demons like Malkar flat-out take energy to feed." He pauses. "Demons are one thing. Dryads with demon power are another."

I feel awkward now, sitting so intimately. Spilling my secrets.

Well, not all of them.

Ries won't let me pull back. He kisses me, and it's a soft sharing that stirs me anew.

The kissing continues, an organic need that builds.

Then I feel a soft hand on my hair, a tender caress.

Malkar bangs through the door. "Hey, it was supposed to be one time," he snaps. "You're done. They're losing it out here because of our dryad. We need everyone guarding the door."

Ries loosens his arms from around me. I quickly part from him and dart into the tiny bathroom, my heart racing.

And not because Malkar just returned. Or because I wanted more sex with Ries.

But because that kiss, and the brief feel of his large hand stroking my hair, made me feel something.

Something dangerous.

I struggle to ignore the gestures and focus on the fact I'm not hurting from hunger anymore. And that I've got a strong ally on my side for what's coming.

After cleaning up, I return to find the guys gone. Even Crash.

I'm alone though the noise outside the room is growing louder.

I lie down in the bed, relieved not to find any wet spots anywhere—because, gross—and shut my eyes, ignoring all the yelling.

I should be scared, but I'm too exhausted to care and soon claimed by sleep.

And dreams.

Who the hell would decorate a place like this?

"I know. It's so tacky."

I glance away from the bear furs all over stone floors and the wall murals of orgies, large, floating penises, mega-boobs, and creatures with all manner of parts, to see a tall man staring beyond me at the wall.

"I mean, not every dick needs to be a foot-long, and not every breast is melon-sized." He shrugs. "Eh. But what can you do with primitive humans?"

I glance back at the mural. It's not from a cave or drawn with primitive hands that I can see. The art is hyper-realistic, sure, but the prurient depictions are amazingly life-like.

Ahza used to be an art connoisseur. Or at least he dated a lot of demons and fae who were into art.

I clear my throat. "Um, primitive?"

The stranger looks down at me. He's taller than Oz but leaner. He's wearing a long black robe with a hood that's pushed back.

His short, dark hair reaches the back of his neck, his eyes a gray so light they look almost white. His ears are rounded, his hands containing five fingers, no extra joints. And his skin appears a pale tan, so he's likely a regular with very little, if any, fae in him.

"Oh, I'm not fae." He scoffs. "As if I'd admit it if I was though."

"I'm sorry?"

His expression gentles. "It's okay, Kami. It's not your fault you're part dryad."

"I'm…what now?"

I'm really confused. First of all, I wasn't apologizing for being who I am. And secondly, am I in a castle? How did I get here? Where are the others?

Ahza appears in a blink. His hair is mussed, his dark eyes bright with laughter. He looks as he always has—a slight young man with pointed ears and a smile that lights up any room.

"Hey, battle bitch. What's shakin'?"

I launch myself into his arms and hug him tight.

He hugs me back before pulling away. "I have to know. What was sex with a merman like? I've always wanted to try it."

I glance back at the snotty regular…who's not a regular.

Between one blink and the next, I see a shimmer of power around him. It's so intense I'm nearly blinded before it slowly fades away.

"Sorry about that," he says.

"Ah, yeah, no, er, problem." How does he know I can see auras? Or in his case, one massive fucking soul?

I turn back to Ahza. "How are you here?"

Then I realize he's not. He can't be.

I feel the sadness ball in my gut and spread to the rest of me. Filling the void that's always there now that he's gone.

I'm dreaming, obviously.

"Well, obviously," the man—who's not a man—says.

"Are you reading my mind?" I stare from him to Ahza, who looks as alive as he was back when he was happy and healthy and real.

"She's not too bright, is she?" the man says to Ahza.

Ahza looks embarrassed. "She is, but this is a lot right now."

"Ahza?"

He smiles at me. "Oh, I'm totally dead and gone. That's why you can see me…Mancy. Ha! I've still got it. "

"I loathe that term," the man says.

I ignore him. "So you're a spirit?" Maybe my necromancer powers aren't as dead—no pun intended—as I'd thought they were.

"Ha. That's funny." The man says without laughing. "And I'm not ‘the man.' I'm nothing so pedestrian. I'm Sebastian."

"O-kay." Sebastian of the enormous soul and no sense of humor. Got it. "Ahza, what's up?"

"Merman sex? Yay or nay?"

I flush. "Oh my Death. If you must know, yay. Now tell me where?—"

"I knew it!" He looks at Sebastian.

"Maybe. We have a few things to do first."

"Oh wow. Awesome." Ahza's grin lights up my whole world. Dead or not, he's still my brother.

"Yes, that's why he's helping me," Sebastian says. His words are precise, his tone even, yet I swear I hear a haughtiness there.

He continues, "His soul is pure. Not that horrendous human ‘pure.' I mean untainted, absolute. So few things in life are absolute anymore."

Ahza nods. "I'm going to keep visiting you in dreams, Kami. I just wanted to tell you to stay strong. You can't die in the Radiant Trials."

"Not for Beyrthnel." Sebastian's mouth is a thin line. "That is one god who is forbidden from returning. But the other… You may proceed as you like."

"Huh?"

"You aspects are all the same," he mutters. "And if I didn't owe Leon a favor, this would not be happening, mind you."

"What? I'm confused."

"I'm so not surprised."

Oz is gently calling my name.

I blink up at the large orc, wishing I wasn't always the smallest person around.

"Kami? It's time."

"For what?" I rub my eyes, feeling as if I slept in grit. A glance around shows the others standing and ready for whatever comes.

Ries smiles widely at me. As does Malkar, who gives me a condescending nod that's actually kind of cute.

I stare at him and sense something not fae in the glow around him. Something…horrific yet also pleasing. Grand on a scale even Sebastian might appreciate.

Wait. Sebastian?

Who's that? And why would I consider condescension attractive?

A blink and the light around Malkar is gone. He's muttering under his breath at Crash, who growls something back.

What the fuck is wrong with my brain?

A glance back at Crash shows the fae glaring at me now. So at least some things remain constant.

Then I remember what the hell we're all here for.

"It's time for the Radiant Trials," Oz says, his voice solemn. "Now we have to do our best not to die."