Legends of Marithia: Book 2 - Darkness Rising (16 page)

“
We closed at midnight. Who
goes there!” yelled a man’s voice, obviously annoyed at being
woken.

“
Calm down Griff. It’s only
me, Yuski. My friend and I need a safe place to rest, do you have
anything available?” she asked.

The peep hole sharply closed and after
some heavy locks were lifted, the Inn’s door opened with a loud
creaking noise to reveal a stocky old man standing in his sleeping
clothes.

“
Yuski! It’s always a
pleasure to see you, but it’s not like you to come at this hour or
bring a friend. ” said Griff warily, “I do have a room available
but it has the one bed. Will that be a problem?”

Anakari bit her lip and asked, “Is
that really all you have left?”

“
Believe me when I say that
rooms are scarce. Marithians are frightened and afraid to sleep
outdoors or to stay in any place for too long. My rooms are always
full, but I keep a room open in case of emergencies. I won’t even
charge for the room as goodness knows that we are lucky to have a
demon hunter staying with us. Just tidy the room when you leave,”
answered Griff, smiling with a mouth full of missing
teeth.

When the women hesitated, he said “Are
you going to come inside? Or are you going to keep us standing here
in the cold?” he asked nervously with foggy breath and eyes darting
around in search of danger.

The two girls both followed him inside
where a fireplace crackled; they both felt more comfortable in the
warmth as the pain in Anakari’s arm subsided.

Griff grabbed a shiny silver key off
the wall and handed it to Anakari.

“
Room twelve, up the stairs
and on the right,” said Griff, yawning, “Get yourselves some sleep;
there is no rush for you to leave in the morning. A demon hunter is
welcome to stay as long as she pleases.”

“
May the gods bless your
kindness, Griff,” whispered Yuski.

Griff returned to his bed and almost
immediately began snoring.

Yuski guided Anakari to their room.
The elf couldn’t help but notice the scratch marks and dark stains
that looked like they were made of blood along the
walls.

She tried to push the thoughts of
Wumvarn out of her mind.

We’re protected
inside
, she told herself.

Once they were inside their room, they
placed their things by the bed and both of them eyed off the
fireplace. The room was icy cold as the window had been left ajar.
Anakari muttered a spell under her breath and the window snapped
shut.

“
Thanks. It will take me a
moment to prepare the fire,” said Yuski, her teeth beginning to
chatter.

Anakari turned to the fire place which
was laden with wood.

“
Verto nemus ut
flamma
,” chanted Anakari, pointing at the
fireplace. A sparkle burst from her fingertips and the wood burst
into flames.

“
It appears that I should
travel with you often, my mysterious sorceress,” giggled Yuski,
“thank you, again.”

She stared at the bed and asked coyly,
“The fire will help, but it is very cold tonight and I am sure that
neither of us fancy sleeping on the floor. Do you mind sharing the
bed?”

Anakari shook her head and laughed,
“It’s alright with me; at least we won’t freeze.”

“
Well, okay then. Are you
hungry? I have some food in my pack if you would like to eat
before…” asked Yuski, beginning to free herself from her heavy
clothes.

The demon hunter’s words stopped when
she caught sight of Anakari undressing in the fiery glow. The elf’s
body was perfectly formed and would be the envy of any girl. Her
long silver hair draped over her hairless body, but it was not her
attractive qualities that shocked Yuski, it was that her body was
covered in symbols that shined in the light.

Yuski lowered her voice and said
quietly, “Kari, why is your body covered in writing?”

Anakari turned away in
embarrassment and her cheeks reddened. She quietly said, “I don’t
know. I have always had them for as far back as I remember. Aldorus
told me that he noted the markings when he found me as a child and
that he could never translate them. To be honest, you are the only
other to see them. You are the only other to see me, like
this
.”

“
Please, don’t be shy. I
have just never seen any symbols like
these
before. Children are forbidden
to be tattooed in these parts, but if you had them when you were
small they would have faded and changed as you grew but these
markings are solid, look brand new and react to light. How
extraordinary,” she said, edging closer.

The chill could be felt from outside
their closed window and even the fireplace couldn’t completely stop
the cold from creeping inside. Anakari climbed into the bed and
pulled up the sheets, facing the window. Yuski followed and tucked
in behind her, forgetting her plans to eat before
sleeping.

Yuski, cuddled up to Anakari’s back
and stared at the symbols in the low light. She whispered, “These
markings are fascinating. I would love to know what they
mean.”

Anakari felt the warmth of Yuski’s
body up against hers mixed with the cool breath of her soft words.
She’d never felt the touch of another woman before, or anyone’s for
that matter. Something stirred inside her and she felt her body
begin to warm from the inside. She suddenly felt wide awake and her
heart pounded faster.

What is happening to
me?
she thought.

Yuski ran her fingertips along Kari’s
smooth elven skin, tracing the symbols; the texture made Yuski’s
heart pump faster. Anakari had never felt anything like this before
and her body sent sensations through her that felt more intense
than any spell she had ever cast.

She turned to speak and breathed,
“Yuski…”

Her words were interrupted by Yuski
placing her soft lips on Anakari’s. The touch of her lips sent the
elf over the edge and she moaned when she opened her mouth to allow
Yuski’s tongue to slide in.

Breathing heavily, Anakari’s tongue
danced around Yuski’s. The silky textures lit a fire inside them
both as they held each other tighter.

The elf lost control and threw their
blanket onto the floor, pulling Yuski to the ground to land on top
of her. The fireplace added extra heat to their already scorched
bodies as Yuski moved from Anakari’s mouth to her neck.

The elf was overcome with a newfound
need that she had never felt before; a yearning for a new touch
that she did not know how to satisfy.

Anakari’s lips quivered and she
stuttered, “I… I don’t know what I’m doing.”

Yuski raised her head to look her in
the eyes and could see both fear and longing within.

“
Calm your mind Kari,”
whispered Yuski, “I will take care of you and give you pleasure
that you have never known.”

Yuski placed small gentle
kisses on Anakari’s lips and brought her chest closer to Anakari’s,
rubbing them lightly together. Both girls screamed out in pleasure
as their excitement built; Anakari became aware they may be heard
and hastily whispered, “
Quietis sanus
inter nos
.”

Her body’s markings glowed from the
casting of the spell. A small ball of light formed far above them
and the room was covered in a blue, glittery glow.

“
I don’t want anyone to
hear us,” whispered Anakari, embarrassed.

“
Wonderful!” giggled
Yuski.

She worked her tongue down to
Anakari’s breasts, circling the elf’s hardened nipples.

“
Please… I… ” whispered
Anakari, her body now overcome with sensations she couldn’t
control.

“
I want you… to feel… what
I feel,” said Anakari, casting a spell that was used for sense
training. She whispered, “
Permissum
nostrum viscus certamen quod nostrum pectus pectoris pello
pepulli
.”

Her body pulsed and a white glow
covered both their bodies in an enchantment.

“
Kari… what did you do?”
asked Yuski, before returning to the elf’s breasts.

“
By the gods!” exclaimed
Yuski as Anakari’s senses flowed into her own.

Yuski ran her fingertips down
Anakari’s stomach and stared at her own stomach as she watched her
skin move by itself.

Her eyes widened and face beamed as
her experience met her thoughts of possibilities and she excitedly
said, “Amazing!”

She stroked the elf’s side and said
gently, “Kari, I just want you to relax.”

Anakari felt her work her way down to
her inner thighs, kissing her way toward the middle. Yuski blew hot
air from side to side, driving the elf crazy with
anticipation.

Anakari clenched her teeth and closed
her eyes. Her legs writhed in frustration as she cried, “Yuski…
please… I.”

Finally, Yuski gave Kari what she
craved for. The elf screamed out as Yuski’s hot mouth and slippery
tongue made contact. Anakari ran her fingers through Yuski’s hair
as her body snaked from side to side with her swiftly increasing
pleasure.

Yuski moaned as Anakari’s senses
overloaded them both. Her breath quickened as Yuski’s rhythm
increased in speed. Anakari let go of Yuski’s hair and gripped the
blanket so tightly the stitches started to break.

Anakari’s symbols glittered as she
neared her climax. The magic inside her was so powerful that the
blanket rose from the ground as she prepared to explode from the
inside. Yuski screamed as she barely kept control to complete what
she had started.

“
I… think… I’m… going…”
said Anakari between heavy breaths, biting her bottom lip
hard.

They tensed with sweat covered skin,
the fire light licking their rhythmic bodies.

The elf screamed as her body began to
climax; Yuski lost control and joined her. The room rumbled with
each release of magic from Anakari’s body. Dust shook free from the
timber floorboards as if a minor earthquake had just hit their
room. With their bodies twitching in the wake of pleasure, they
held each other as the blanket slowly sunk its way back to the
floor and the spell of combined senses faded.

Yuski slowly leaned over to pull down
the pillows from the bed. She laid a warm kiss on Anakari’s
forehead and held her head close to her heavily beating
heart.

Anakari took in a few quick breaths
and then breathed out in complete relaxation and exhaustion. She
snuggled her head further into Yuski’s bosom, placing her ear on
the demon hunter’s chest and fell asleep to the rhythmic
thumps.

They drifted into a deep sleep in the
warmth of the fireplace, with arms and legs entangled.

Chapter 12 : The Queen Of
Hearts

“
Morale can be a formidable
enemy in times like these, while we are most vulnerable and
desperate for a sign; a sign to give Marithians hope that we
will
win this
war.”

(Sir Dryden – Knight of the
Elves)

It was late in the evening and storm
winds wreaked havoc on the island, a bolt of lightning struck one
of Trahoterra’s talon-like peaks. The red moon’s glow gave the
ocean a frightening appearance and made them feel as if they were
flying over a vast sea of blood.

Karven caught sight of the shining
beacons at Fang Cliffs twinkling, guiding him home and yelled, “We
are not far now!”

Makya did not have the ability to
respond to the dragon in the storm. He hung on with all his
strength to the magical seat in Karven’s armour, with Shanka tucked
under his heavy coat for protection. The rain pelted the trader’s
skin and chilled him to the bone, but he knew what he had agreed to
do. Wrapped tightly around the trader’s torso was a special package
that he guarded carefully. Inside it was the artefact containing
the beating heart of an angel that was their only hope to save
Nymira from completely slipping away.

Flying through a storm was usually a
simple task for the king of dragons, but today was
different.

Karven carried a heavy load of Makya’s
remaining wares in a giant wooden crate. They were much needed
weapons and armour that they could ill afford to sacrifice into the
ocean. The winds were too strong for them to fly higher and they
were travelling low enough for the gigantic waves to threaten to
swallow them both. Karven flew with great speed for the protection
and safety of Trahoterra’s caverns.

Banking right, Karven narrowly avoided
a giant wave. It managed to clip the crate, but Karven ripped it
out of the water in the nick of time and the wave continued into
the endless bed of water behind them. The huge net containing
Makya’s crate skimmed the surface of the ocean as they rocketed
forward.

Weaving through the storm’s fury was
terrifying. The wind howled loudly as if the gods were yelling at
them to turn back and the rain hammered down on Makya’s coat,
almost deafening him.

The sky lit up with lightning,
allowing Makya a complete view of Trahoterra.