Striker (36 page)

Sweat poured down his face as he climbed ever higher. Suddenly, a warm, rough hand grasped his wrist and began to pull him up. When he looked up, the noonday sun blinded him. Up and over the edge, Zeus collapsed onto a bed of thick green moss, panting raggedly. His muscles, the consistency of jelly, jumped, twisted, and burned from the strain.

The person assisted him into a sitting position, and then pressed a cool clay cup to his lips. The cold water tasted divine and Zeus slowly drank his fill.

"I have been waiting for you." Still blinking spots from his vision, he glanced up to the person who helped him.

Male or female, he could not tell but the resemblance to Sun Eater was uncanny. "Are you an Ancient?"

He—she grinned. "Is that what we are being called nowadays? I am called Light Bringer and I am the Gate Keeper." He stood up and flourished a complicated bow.

Zeus did not know what to say. This experience was not at all what he expected. "I am Prince Zeus Vondorian." His stilted bow at the waist seemed incomplete when compared to Light Bringer's. He would not copy the move for fear of bungling it completely.

He glanced around and realized he was in a bowl-shaped hollow covered in thick, spongy moss. A cluster of eggs the size of small boulders sat on the far side of the nest. Closer, two beautifully carved half-shells sat. But what kept Zeus’s attention was the blue, shimmering circle standing outside the nest.

Light Bringer followed Zeus’s gaze. "Ah, you can see the gate. Curious, most cannot."

"I thought wormholes only existed in space."

Light Bringer chuckled. "Ah, the naiveté of youth. Wormholes burrow through everything:  space, stars, and planets. If it is a physical obstacle, the hole will eat its way through. The only parts visible are the beginning and the end."

"Where does it go?" Zeus asked.

"If it were any place nice, do you think it would need a gate keeper?"

That sounded dangerous. "Can we close it?"

"The hole will eventually collapse when it does not have enough energy to sustain it. But enough about my gate. The day is growing late, and you need to take your birth beds down the mountain."

Retrieving the birth beds ... this was not what he expected. Why did the other males not talk about speaking with the Ancient who seemed to live on Rhodes Peak? Come to think of it, he could not recall anyone who climbed speaking of the experience.

Zeus’s muscles screamed as he moved. He would not be able to take the birth beds off the plateau the way he came, but he did not see another route down. "How am I supposed to take them down the mountain?"

"You ride, of course," Light Bringer said with more mirth than Zeus thought was warranted.

He followed Light Bringer's gaze skyward to see a monstrous, flying creature circle overhead, coming closer with each pass until the animal landed near the edge of the nest. The broad, white wings of a raptor beat the air a couple of times, kicking up dirt as it—he—stamped and pranced on four cloven hooves. Creamy, iridescent feathers covered the equine body. Where the sunlight shone, a soft rainbow of colors bloomed in waves down the powerful form. Lightly, on delicate feet, the creature moved toward Zeus, shaking his long head. The row of five sharp spikes along the snout to mid-forehead made him step back warily.

"He will carry you down." Light Bringer gazed fondly at the beast.

"He is beautiful," Zeus whispered, more intimidated than scared.

"You should see his mate, she is more so."

He wanted to protest when Light Bringer ushered him toward the animal. He was not ready to leave yet. He had questions. Surely, there was time to talk.

"Zeus." There was an admonishing tone in Light Bringer’s voice.

"What? You can read my mind?" Zeus glared, none other than Alpha should be privy to his private thoughts.

Light Bringer laughed. "Then, do not broadcast your thoughts. Yes, you must leave now because his mate is ready to lay again. She will not do so when a stranger has invaded her nest. No, you cannot come back until more younglings are born to you. Yes, I would very much like to chat with you. When I have time, I will visit. Truthfully, you are standing in the home of another. What goes on here is none of your business. Does that satisfy your curiosity, young prince?"

Zeus felt chagrined. Of all the Mar'Sani who came before him for their youngling's birth bed, was he the only one to be chastised by the Ancient?

"I would appreciate you calling me by my name. Calling me 'the Ancient' makes me feel tired. No, you are not the first to be so nosy and you will not be the last."

He let Light Bringer heave him up onto the beast's back, instructing Zeus where to hang on. Before lifting up and securing the birth beds, Light Bringer passed up a pouch woven of red vines.

"When you see Prometheus, give him these. He will know what to do with them."

Zeus peered inside and saw two speckled rocks the size of goose eggs. "What makes you believe I will meet Prometheus?"

Light Bringer gave a secret smile and simply handed Zeus both carved birth beds, strapping them to the animal's broad back.

"Go in peace, Zeus Vondorian." With a smart smack on the beast's rump, the animal took off at a run towards the cliffs edge.

And he leapt.

Zeus screamed, long and loud, hurting his own eardrums with the sheer volume. He was too worried about holding on for dear life to enjoy the soaring glide. He swore he heard Light Bringer laugh but he was unsure with his own yell ringing his ears.

He had never been so relieved to be able to place his feet on the ground. He quickly removed the harness holding the kit's beds to the foul beast and stepped away, happy to see the animal leave while he rethought the idea of having more young.

Sitting heavily on a nearby log, he wished the trembling had something to do with the climb and not the flight. He sat there, staring at the sky, until Dargon and Alpha found him. Dargon slinked slowly towards Zeus, his belly round and heavy, swaying from side to side.

"You gave Dargon a fright with all the screaming you did,"
Alpha admonished.

"Did you see me ... on that ... that ... wicked creature?" Zeus’s ears burned with his embarrassment. Imagine if the twins had seen him!

Dargon chuffed, poking Zeus with his broad flat nose, causing him to rock back and almost topple off the log.

Zeus pushed back on Dargon gently. "Oh, you are too funny."

"You create drives that slingshot vessels through space at unimaginable speeds and yet are frightened of a simple flight down the mountainside."
Dargon brushed by Zeus, flicking his hard tail against Zeus’s chest.

Zeus watched Dargon sniff the birth bed, his nose pushing on the internal cushion. "The craftsmanship of the carving is exquisite."

"Just in time, for the kits will be venturing out of the pouch any day now,"
Alpha commented.

As much as he wanted to meet his younglings, the thought of Dargon once again in his humanoid form caused his groin to become heavy. There was a simple comfort in being able to sleep next to Dargon every night, but it had been a terribly long time since they had sex. Alpha took care of him and Dargon individually, and Zeus was happy he did not have to be completely celibate during the last stage of the kit's development. The mechanics for intimacy with Dargon was not possible in this form. So, Zeus waited for the day when the three of them would be able to make love together again.

"I can smell you." Dargon's chest began to thrum and he pressed his face into Zeus’s chest, rubbing, spreading his scent.

"He is not thinking anything you and I have not,"
Alpha teased.

Dargon sat heavily on his hind quarters, his pouch distended by the bulk of the kits. "I will be glad to simply be able to sleep and not have two kits rolling around and waking me up every two hours," Dargon groused playfully.

Two sets of hands appeared over the edge of Dargon's pouch. Tufts of fluffy, dark hair appeared above golden foreheads. Large, silvery eyes with elliptical pupils surrounded by a ring of soft blue peeked over the edge of the pouch at Zeus. He held his breath, afraid to move, or even breathe, and scare them back into their safe haven.

Over the last couple of days, the kits had become bolder, coming out further, staying longer. He grinned as they watched him curiously. He could not wait to be able to hold them in his arms. He knew today would not be the day, but to get to see them like this, even if only for a couple of minutes, made his chest swell and eyes prick with grit. At the moment, he was the happiest male on the planet.

The sound of a twig snapping caused the kits to duck back down in the pouch, but not for long. Before Zeus rose to see who came their way, the youngling's eyes were visible again. They should probably get back to the house. His family was due any time. He had invited them over, wanting to share the kits' coming out with them.

Azaes, Mestor, and Canry strode into the small glade shoulder to shoulder, talking with their hands. The sight of the barely-exposed younglings caused his brothers to stop and stare before they burst into loud bellows, snatching Zeus up in their exuberance. He laughed and clung to them, enduring hearty back slaps and playful shoves.

Mestor threw an arm around Zeus as they crossed the meadow to Dargon. "Saw you come down the mountain. Canry insisted we bring you clean breeches since you screamed like a banshee."

Azaes, Mestor, and Canry laughed so hard they hung onto each other to keep from falling over. Zeus’s face burned, his mouth working as he discarded all the explanations and excuses. The longer he stood mute, the harder they laughed.

Zeus turned his back on them, fists on his hips as he stared at the ground, a grin fighting to split his face. Gods, he was not going to live that down! A sharp, unintelligible exclamation was the only warning he had before his brothers bore him to the ground. The four of them rolled around in a tangled heap of arms and legs, tickling and laughing until Zeus bit a tail.

Lexi has always been an avid reader and at a young age started reading (secretly) her mother's romances (the ones she was told not to touch). She was the only teenager she knew of who would be grounded from reading. Later, with a pencil and a note book, she wrote her own stories and shared them with friends because she loved to see their reactions. A Texas transplant, Lexi now kicks her boots up in the Midwest with her Yankee husband and her 80 lbs. puppies named after vacuum cleaners.

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