Pride x Familiar (61 page)

#

(Caelum)

The top of the palace was gone.

Nothing but a cloud of pulverized debris that
slowly drifted to the ground.

And she was gone too.

Nothing remained of her.

Nothing to bury. Nothing to mourn over.

I fell away from the remains of the palace
tower, falling at terminal speed to the ground thousands of feet
below.

Unable and unwilling to direct Ravana to
fly.

With its effect-fields and wing-vanes powered
down, a fall from this height would surely kill me. Even if Ravana
survived, I would not, and that was fine by me.

My reason for coming here was gone.

Even if the war was over, I no longer had any
part to play in it.

My war had come to an end.

I stared up at the grey sky, lit up by flashes
of orange and lightning blue.

A carrier wrapped in flames burned a path
thousands of feet above me. It would hit the city in minutes, and
many people would die.

I didn’t care.

The one life that meant everything to me was
gone.

Everyone could die for all I cared.

I closed my eyes and accepted my end.

Caelum.

Ah, I’d forgotten this sense of peace that
slowly surrounded my heart.

How long had it been since I’d last felt this
peace with her at my side?

Not since the many months since she’d been
spirited away.

Caelum. Caelum.

I opened my eyes and saw the sky around me fade
quickly to white.

Had I died already?

I hadn’t felt anything, no impact, no shattering
of bones and body.

I turned my head and noticed I was no longer
linked to Ravana.

What was this?

Everything around me was white – a pure white so
blinding it almost hurt to look upon it.

I stretched out a hand and felt nothing but
emptiness around my fingers. No breeze, no air, no cold or
heat.

Nothing.

Caelum.

I turned my body. I realized I could do that
much though there was nothing for purchase. Yet I was certain I had
turned.

Please…come back to me….

A girl’s voice – a girl’s feelings – calling out
to me.

Who? Who are you?

I felt a sudden, nearly unbearable sense of
loss. It grew to a crushing weight within my chest.

Lisanna…Lisanna?

It couldn’t be.

But if I had died then perhaps she was here
waiting for me.

Perhaps this was where we were to meet, before
we both could move on.

I searched about for her. I needed her. I
couldn’t move on
without
her.

I needed Lisanna.

Caelum. Please. I’m right here.

Yes, I sensed her clearly and I turned in her
direction.

I concentrated and willed myself to move toward
her.

Part of me realized I wasn’t alone here. There
were other objects, other entities, here with me. Were they
spirits? Were the lost souls like I was? Were they too searching
for a way out?

Please, hear my heart.

Stronger. I felt it stronger this time, and the
sensation drove me onwards.

I know what I need to do.

I felt myself moving away from the entities. I
felt myself racing toward the source of that voice – the source of
those strong, warm feelings.

I’m not afraid anymore.

Lisanna.

I’m coming.

I’m almost there.

I will accept my fate.

I felt hands on my hands.

I won’t run away.

I felt my body fall into something warm and soft
and alive.

I won’t leave your side.

So very much alive.

Instinctively I knew I was out of the void.

Instinctively I knew I was in her arms.

And I understood that like the warm body
embracing me, I too was very much alive.

#

(Simone)

We fell away from the Vault.

I rolled back with him, my arms embracing him
tightly.

And his arms were firmly locked around me.

I closed my eyes.

I had him back.

Do you hear me, Celica? I have him back.

He lay on me, his chest weighing down on my
breasts, his warmth mingling with mine.

We lay like that for a long while.

I didn’t care how much time went by.

I had what I wanted, right in my arms.

I wasn’t going to let him go…at least not for a
little while longer.

Then I heard soft laughter and a quiet
whisper.

“So warm. You’re so warm. I missed you. Gods,
how I missed you. I missed you so much.”

My heart jumped.

Missed me? He missed me? Caelum missed me!

His arms tightened about me and he pressed
himself into me.

Oh gods! My body is growing warm – very
comfortably warm.

“But…”

My heart skipped a beat.

But? Did he say but?

“Bigger…much bigger…than I remember….”

He chuckled as he lay on top of me. Then he
shifted his body and his arms, easing some of the pressure off my
chest.

His voice was a whisper, slowly growing
stronger. “Were they ever this big?”

Eh? Big?

My heart jumped and a shiver ran through me as
my eyes grew wide.

He muttered softly, “They feel so soft and
full….”

What did he say? What is he talking about?

I swallowed and cleared my throat to speak, but
all that escaped was a surprised squeak.

He—he—he’s groping me!

Caelum muttered, “Damn, these are really
something. When did you get these?”

Raising himself up on one arm, while the other
massaged
my left breast, Caelum looked down at me with
confusion.

“Lisanna—”

He froze – but not his hand – and I saw his
confusion grow several orders of magnitude.

“Lisanna? What happened to your hair? And”—he
looked down at my chest—“when did you grow so
large
?”

He might be confused, but his hand was moving
with a mind of its own.

He swallowed visibly. “By the gods…these
are…heavenly….”

My breathing grew ragged.

Oh damn, his fingers felt good. They felt better
than good. Even over my blouse and bra, they were really working
their magic on me. A slow, burning heat spread out from my chest
and into the rest of me. I reflexively squeezed my thighs
together.

His palm rubbed over the peak of my breast.

I stifled a moan, then a second by clamping down
on my lower lip until I tasted blood.

I had to stop him. I had to stop him before I
lost control!

This—this wasn’t how I wanted to give in to
him.

Not on the cold floor of a dimly lit rock
chamber.

This was not how I dreamt my first time would
be!

I cleared my throat through sheer force of will.
“Caelum….”

A faint frown etched his brow. “Huh?”

I swallowed hard and forced the words out. “I
told you before…didn’t I.”

His frown etched a little deeper.
“Li—Lisanna?”

I gave him the strongest glare I could muster,
and growled through the arousal choking my voice. “Don’t grab
them…
without permission
!”

With the last of my self-control, I drove my
knee bluntly into his groin.

“Geh!” He pitched forward onto me, his whole
body instantly rigid. His voice broke as he whispered a strangled,
“Lisanna….”

As he fell on me, cold shock blew away the heat
of my arousal. Clarity returned to my mind.

Lisanna! He called me Lisanna! No, he’d been
calling me Lisanna all this time!

I found strength in my arms. I pushed him off
me, and Caelum rolled onto his back.

He was trembling from intense pain, a feverish
sweat beading his face.

Gods, I must have really hit him hard with my
knee.

Oh no, I hope I didn’t permanently injure
them
!

I straddled his waist and gently shook him by
his shirt.

“Caelum—Caelum, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hit
you so hard. Please—please say something!”

“Geh…damn…woman…what’s wrong…with you….”

He grew still for a heartbeat and I feared he’d
passed out.

But a heartbeat later, he ever so slightly
opened the eyes he’d squeezed shut.

I pulled him up by his shirt, and lowered my
face into his. “Caelum—who am I? Who am I?”

“Eh—huh?”

“What’s my name?”

His eyes slowly widened. “Gah! My balls! What
the Hell? What the Hell did you hit me for?”

He tried pulling back but couldn’t find the
strength to push against me.

I lowered him gently back to the cold rock floor
of the chamber, feeling my anxiety rise and fall with every breath
I took.

Lisanna. Who was she? Who the Hell was she?

Under me and between my thighs, Caelum’s body
began to relax.

I reached out and wiped his face with my
fingertips and palms. He watched me anxiously for a few
moments.

I gave him a warm smile, trying to reassure the
both of us. “Caelum…do you know me?”

He breathed in and out a few times before
squeezing out a reply. “Of course…I know you.”

“So who am I?”

He breathed in and out a few
more
times
before replying, “Simone Alucard…Raynar.”

I swallowed, feeling relief flow through me.
“And?”

He blinked a few times as he studied my
face.

“And…you’re the girl who saved me.”

#

(Melanie)

When I regained consciousness, I had no grasp on
my surroundings.

The sound of a voice nearby helped me focus my
thoughts into order as I struggled to understand what was being
spoken.

It was the sound of a woman in conversation.

“Yes, she’s regaining consciousness now. Very
well…yes…yes…I’ll update you on the situation in a little
while…would you like to speak with her?”

I swallowed and opened my eyes slowly, barely a
crack.

White light greeted me, yet I was surprised to
find it was less than glaring.

The woman’s voice came from beside me. “Very
well, I’ll call you later. Goodbye, Mistress.”

Concentrating a little more, I stretched my
Awareness out to my Valkyrie Armor.

There was no response.

It wasn’t there.

It was gone.

Now my eyes widened quickly, and I looked about
the interior of what resembled an ambulance. Somehow, even without
my Artifact, I could tell we were flying. As I turned my head
slowly in order to discretely peer around me, my eyes met the gaze
of a beautiful young woman with long, blonde hair almost as white
as snow. Her eyes were a sparkling violet color.

Seated beside where I lay, she smiled warmly at
me. “Hello, Melanie Cardwell afil Avenir.”

I swallowed, and spoke without the chance to
test my voice. “Who…who are you?”

“Do you remember your time in the tunnel?”

I searched through my memory. “Yes….”

“Well, I’m the one who rescued you before you
burned alive.”

“Burned…?”

She nodded quite faintly. I almost thought she
was responding to the subtle rocking of the interior of the
vehicle.

“Yes, it was quite an explosion. However, your
Valkyrie Maiden protected you though the impact knocked you
unconscious. And I was on hand to retrieve you.”

I blinked abruptly, and raised my head a little,
ignoring the pang that ran through my brain.

“Are you my contact? Are you with Crescent? Are
you going to take me off the colony—?”

The woman’s sudden laughter cut me short. When
she recovered, she shook her head weakly and briefly covered her
lips with her left hand.

I felt a cold sliver of fear run down my
back.

It was then I realized I was lying on a gurney
and my body was strapped down to it.

Without a Fragment or Artifact, I had no chance
of getting free of my bonds.

I looked at the woman and couldn’t help sounding
afraid. “Who…who are you?”

When she replied, she sounded greatly amused but
I heard no malice in her voice. I realized she really had no
intention of hurting me, but it did little to soothe my fear.

Seated beside the gurney I was strapped into,
she leaned down a little. “My dear girl, I’m not with Crescent, and
I’m not taking you to them. The members of Crimson Crescent that
were supposed to ferry you off Pharos have been apprehended. No one
is coming to save you.”

“Then—then who are you?”

For a moment I glimpsed a great regret run
across her face. Then her expression cleared away and she gave me a
reassuring smile that unfortunately did little to quell my
fear.

“My name is Helena Morrigan afil Avenir.”

I swallowed hard. “Avenir? You’re a
Familiar?”

“Yes, and I’ve been entrusted with your
well-being.”

I felt my face contort in confusion. “You—you’re
not going to hurt me?”

“Of course not,” she replied, looking a little
hurt. “I’m going to be taking care of you.”

How could she feel wounded? Didn’t she know how
hard my heart was beating right now? Didn’t she know that cold
sweat was trickling down under my clothes?

The woman, Helena, turned slightly in her
seat.

“Listen to me, Melanie. You’re extremely
valuable to us. To find someone so gifted with the Valkyrie Armor
is a rarity amongst rarities. We affiliated with the Avenir Pride
couldn’t be more proud of the talent you’ve displayed.”

I realized what she was saying. “You’ve been
watching me?”

“Yes. We’ve known about you for some time now.
However, we didn’t know what part you were to play in the events
that unfolded.”

Her words were a stake driving my fear deeper
into my chest.

Helena crossed slender, shapely legs that
emerged from a business skirt. “But first we have to undo some of
the changes Crescent did to you.” She tapped her temple. “We have
to sort out the mess inside your head.”

I listened to her, and her words drove the stake
of fear all the way to my heart. “What do you mean by that?”