Page 63 of Interlude

About twenty minutes into the walk, a piercing scream echoes through the forest, the first noise I’ve heard apart from our own breathing and occasional quiet curse. I think we’re all just subdued, thankful we survived the fight with the Madovians. We may not have if Lila and Brannock hadn’t assumed berserker form. There were way more than we anticipated, not to mention the Nelecs.

“What is that?” I ask as we freeze. Zeydan’s brows furrow in concentration as he scans the tree line, but Xavier just chuckles.

“Lila has a good set of lungs on her, and I hear that Aaz’axian sex is kind of brutal. I’ve seen the barbs Brannock has on his cock, and I’m not surprised we can hear her.” He slaps the god on the shoulder. “Trust me, she’s fine.”

He keeps walking, and Tirrian follows after him. Silac hisses, and his forked tongue darts out like he’s tasting the air, his nostrils and hood flaring before he follows them.

I clench my fists, the urge to find them and save her riding me hard. That scream sounded like she was in agony, but I have no doubt if Xavier was worried, he would have disappeared in a flash to find her. I grit my teeth and hurry to catch up to the other three, hearing the god behind me muttering something under his breath. I’m not certain, but I’m almost sure I hear him mutter about making her scream even louder when he gets his chance.

I’m panting, and my fur is soaked with sweat when we finally make it to the location. We have literally had to squeeze between trees for the last five minutes, but it opens up into a space big enough to hold a large sarcophagus that glows with a grayish light.

Xavier conjures up bottles of water and hands them out. I take one, nodding my thanks before guzzling it down. The others do the same before they all take a seat around the clearing.

“We may as well rest and wait for Lila. A few more minutes isn’t going to hurt.” Xavier leans back on his hands.

I don’t join them. Instead, I walk around the enclosure, trying to get a feel for its frequency. I know everyone is counting on me to save the day, and I really hope I don’t let them down. I reach out and lay my hands on it, allowing my powers to try to sync up with whatever magic is running through the box. I smile and heave out a relieved breath as my magic and its frequency align, and my hands start to push through whatever the substance is.

“Should I wait for Lila or keep going?” I ask, unsure if I should proceed or not. I thought it was going to be harder than this. I turn to look at the others who are all watching me with varying degrees of shock and surprise, but a noise in the forest behind them has them all jumping to attention. I stay where I am, not wanting to cut my hands off by yanking them out, and hold my breath.

Please don’t let it be another Madovian, and if it is, someone kill that bitch because I can’t move.

Lila

Idon’t know how long I float for, but when I come back down to Earth, Brannock is holding me like I’m the most precious thing in the world to him. He whispers words of praise and wonder as he strokes my shoulder and head spines. His touch causes goosebumps to break out over my body.

When he sees me looking at him, he smiles, his fangs gleaming brightly. “You’re back with me, my lovely. Are you okay?” he asks, concern in his eyes.

I nod and swallow, my mouth super dry. “Yeah, I’m great,” I croak, feeling slightly hungover but relaxed as fuck.

“You did so well. Your body absorbed all my seed. If you weren’t on birth control, we would be having a baby. Our bodies are compatible.” He beams as he lowers my legs.

I wince and stiffen up, bracing for the pain, but there is none. “My seed numbs everything to allow me to pull out without hurting you,” he tells me and pulls free of my body. His cock is still hard, but I watch in amazement as the barbs, which are sticking out like a fucking pissed off porcupine, sink back into the grooves in his shaft. I wait for his cum to drip out of my body, but none does, and I frown.

He must see my confusion. “Remember, I said your body absorbs it.”

“No wet spot?” I ask, my eyebrows jumping, and he chuckles and shakes his head.

“No.”

“Well hell, that’s certainly a bonus,” I say, winding my arms around his neck and kissing him. “While that was certainly a different experience, I enjoyed it and can’t wait to do it again,” I tell him, pulling away and looking around for our clothes. “As much as I would like to stay and do it again, I need to find the others and my grandma and get out of this creepy as fuck forest.”

“Yes, of course. Let’s not keep your grandpas waiting any longer. I hope maybe next time we can do this without activating berserker mode beforehand.” He sounds a little unsure, and I stop what I’m doing and throw my arms around him, giving him a big hug. I want to rub my face against his naked chest, but I’m worried I’m going to stab him with my head spikes.

“This body is going to take a little getting used to,” I grumble as I pull away. “I hope I never have to use berserker mode again, so I can definitely say this will be happening again without it.” I wink and pull away, quickly putting my shirt on as he does the same, covering up the body I really didn’t get a good look at.

I will be rectifying that at the soonest possible convenience, but now I need to make sure the rest of my mates are safe, as well as my grandma. A rush of excitement flows through me, and I giggle at my thoughts.

Using my warlock powers, I stretch out with my mind, looking for Xavier’s, and when I find it, I realize he’s distracted and doesn’t notice me, but it gives me a direction to go in. I grab Brannock’s hand and drag him quickly through the forest. The two of us move over the gnarled branches, stumps, and roots with ease. The Aaz’axian form is flexible and fit, and we cover the distance in no time.

“They should be just ahead,” I tell him. We’d been quiet and alert, on the lookout for more enemies while we traversed the forest, but I can hear the others talking and pick up my pace, wanting to make sure everyone is okay. I remember Maxsim was injured, which triggered my berserker mode, and he may need to be healed.

When we break through a small gap in the trees, everyone but Ghosie is pointing a gun at us.

“Whoa.” Brannock steps in front of me and holds up his hands. “It’s just us,” he cautions the others, but I can’t see my lightning cat.

“Where’s Maxsim?” I ask with a rush of panic, feeling ill, then I realize someone else is missing. “And Saxon?” I fall to my knees, heartbreak zapping me of my strength. “Tell me they aren’t dead,” I sob loudly.

“No, baby, no.” Tirrian is the first to reach me, gathering me in his arms and scooping me up. “They are both fine,” he reassures me.

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