Bane of the Wild Hunt (Heart of the Tithriall #2)

37. VILLAINOUS PLAN

Chapter thirty-seven

VILLAINOUS PLAN

Sage

W e flew next to speak with Sassha the Wolf Maiden who was the Sua of Aes Lyrra. Summer was initially skeptical when she saw the river plunging through the earth into a cavern and heard the village was underground. It was not until Ciaran snorted in derision at her uncertainty that she allowed me to tug her down the worn stone steps after the Aes Lyrra sentries. But she was purely enchanted by the cave below in which the village perched at the edge of a subterranean lake with the river thundering through the ceiling and forming a massive waterfall.

Sassha had always been enamoured of Rian, and my cousin knew it. He knew that she would be easy for him to convince that she needed to move her people.

My mother discreetly shook her head while we sat in Sassha’s stone hut sipping tea whilst Rian regaled the Sua with tales of our adventures. They talked about his hounds of wildfire and her wolves which seemed to be as fond of him as the Sua because they curled up at his feet. He sat closer to her than he usually would and had allowed her to touch his arm when she offered him her condolences. When it came time to discuss her people joining the other villages in the settlement, all he had to do was ask her. She agreed to go wholeheartedly and claimed that she had always known he would aid them.

“I am getting the sense Rian can be a bit of a cad,” Summer giggled to me quietly once we left the blushing Sua behind. “I thought your people were… wholesome.”

“He may be much more liberal with himself than I am, but he is always honest about it with his lovers. And this was not truly like that. Sassha has been half in love with him for the better part of a century, but she is sworn to Diarmaid, a guardian of virgins. Rian knows that she will never act on her attraction, but she does enjoy flirting with him. And he is always prepared to use everything to his advantage when he must,” I explained with a shrug.

“So… would he have fucked her if she was up for it?” she asked bluntly. I should probably have been used to her crudeness, but she still managed to take me off guard.

Summer smirked at my wide-eyed reaction, and I was sure she actually enjoyed riling me. She kept her head tilted curiously at me as I glanced ahead to ensure Rian was engaged with Ciaran.

“If he thought it would get him what he wanted.”

“And what did my brother think of his… coquetry?” she wanted to know.

I grimaced in uncertainty of how much I really wanted to disclose to her concerning the rather colourful bedroom life that Aodhan had shared with Rian. And anyone else the two of them frequently invited to share in it…

“Let’s just say they were both very open-minded males so it was never a problem,” I suggested, and thankfully, she seemed to know not to press for anything more.

Rian anticipated that Imogen Firebane of the Aes Rurrinn would be much harder to convince, which was why he had decided to leave her to the last of all the Sua.

Her village was built into the edge of the cliff above the valley with mud and grass huts connected together by rope bridges. Her hardy people farmed hanging gardens and domesticated dmirr herds that could scale the sheerest of cliffs with their cloven hooves.

It took even more coaxing to get Summer to climb the rope ladder suspended hundreds of feet above the valley than it had to get her to go into the underground village. Once we reached the village, I noted the bustle around us seemed to be much more organized than the average day-to-day village life.

They have already been warned , I guessed down the bond to all my brothers, and they agreed with me.

Maybe Imogen will be nicer than usual, Ciaran mused, but we all shared a sense of doubt between us.

Sure enough, the Sua had already been warned by Eive and Sassha via their teine ceangal . Imogen’s infamous temper seemed to have worn off by the time her sentries brought us into her home.

“I will not waste your time here. I have already given the order for my people to pack,” Imogen told my mother, barely pausing in her packing of her hut to speak to us. “We will be ready for the Wild Hunt after Aes Mirr has been moved. But I do want to know how you will do it,” Imogen insisted, finally turning her fiery eyes on Rian. “How do you intend to defeat so many enemies without an army or the use of the most destructive elements of your collective power?” she demanded.

“It is simple,” Rian assured her, completely unfazed by her obvious suspicion. “I am going to talk to them.”

“Talk to them?” Imogen blurted at the same time as both my mother and Ciaran. Even Darragh was staring at him like he worried Rian had lost his mind.

You said blade and shadow! Ciaran reminded him.

“I have given it all great thought,” Rian reassured us. “And I am going to start by attempting to ascertain what it is that they want,” he insisted as if this were the most logical thing in the world.

“They want to destroy us!” Imogen shouted at him in exasperation. I could almost see her questioning whether trusting him was the right call after all.

“That much is very evident but why ? And why now ?” Rian insisted, unbothered by any of the looks that were thrown his way. “I need to know if it has anything to do with the blight that is infecting their home. A sickness that they might not realize will only spread faster if they manage to kill all of us.”

“You expect those monsters to speak intelligently with you about anything? They are beasts with unquenchable appetites for death and destruction!” Imogen objected.

“All I know for sure is that those monsters were smart enough to conjure magic to thwart us. They managed to infiltrate our homeland with an unsettling efficiency that required careful strategy, organization, and leadership,” Rian pointed out unapologetically. “I understand that no one here wants to admit it, but they outsmarted us!”

Imogen hesitated and a heavy silence ensued as we all grudgingly allowed his words to sink in.

“He is right,” whispered Summer with a glance up at me as her ears tucked back. Imogen knew it too and was unable to meet any of our eyes as she deliberated.

“So yes, I will try to talk to them. But do not worry,” Rian reassured us, “there is no part of me that is willing to allow their crimes to go unpunished. My people and my mother are dead because of them, and I do not care how reasonable their excuse may be for any of it. Once their usefulness to me expires, I will bring a swift and brutal retribution down upon them somewhere very far away from here. Undoubtedly when I scorch Uile Breithà.”

“Then you must plan to use them against the humans,” Summer realized aloud at the same time that I did.

“Indeed,” he admitted with a wicked grin, pleased that we finally understood. “You said we can not afford to risk so many fey lives in this war,” he reminded her. “And you say the Fuath are beasts with unquenchable appetites for destruction. So are the humans,” he pointed out to Imogen who appeared intrigued as she agreed. “All we must do is put them together. And watch them destroy one another.”

I was still trying to wrap my head around the plan Rian was concocting as Summer and I emerged from my portal into a beautiful, late afternoon sky. I simply could not decide whether it made him mad or an absolute genius. Unleashing the Fuath on the humans would be akin to turning a living nightmare upon them and condemning them to a fate of sadistic violence and torment. It would be a villainous measure to take, and yet I could not deny it would solve all our problems if Rian could convince the Fuath there was a better world for the taking.

I decided to put it out of my mind for the time being. There were far more pleasant things with which I wanted to concern myself at that moment.

Ciaran had taken my mother home for me after we spoke with Imogen, and Rian and Darragh had returned home to the encampment. Serafin and I were now leading Summer and Pyrope to the place where I’d promised my anam a bath, and I was becoming nervous about it.

I spied the steam rising from the snowy slope of the mountain below and followed it down to a ledge that was just big enough to accommodate the two vargr. The snow had melted around a crack in the rock through which I slid just as Summer landed behind me. I heard her curse about going underground again, but she clambered into the hole, accidently kicking snow down on me below.

I reached the bottom of the channel and removed my heavy cloak to sling it over a nearby rock while I waited inside the cavern for her to catch up. The brief blocking of the exit made the steam build up and moisture beaded in my hair and on my skin. But going ahead was worth it to see her face once she slid from the low tunnel entrance onto the ground and sat looking around.

“Whoa,” she breathed in astonishment, and I reached for her. She gave me her hand without looking up and allowed me to pull her to her feet.

“I thought you might appreciate it,” I laughed as I pulled her deeper into the cavern filled with warm steam rising from the pools of hot water. I removed my armour from her and sent it to its metaphysical home, leaving her in the heavy clothing that my mother had brought her.

“Are we really going to bathe here?” she verified in excitement when I stopped on the bank of the closest pool and dropped her arm.

“I am not going to intrude on your privacy,” I assured her as I began emptying my pockets of the soaps and oils I’d brought from home.

By the time I had turned back toward her, Summer was already peeling off her thick outer layer and carelessly dropping her clothes on the floor. I turned away again just before I saw the flash of her naked flesh in the corner of my eye, but it was still more than enough to trigger my body the way I’d feared it would.

I knew she was comfortable with her nudity, so I had debated getting in the water. But with the increasingly feral way I had been feeling around her, it seemed unwise to challenge my control. And it was clear to me now that those concerns were well founded.

I set the soaps and oils I’d brought on a rock where she would be able to reach them from the water. I could not help listening to the sound of the water splashing around her legs as she waded into the pool while I kept my eyes averted from her. But then she groaned, a sound of pure and visceral ecstasy, and it seemed to sing through me and ignite my blood with even more awareness.

Staying out of the water was definitely the right choice considering I hadn’t even looked at her, and my cock was already straining hard.

Keeping my eyes on the uneven floor under my boots, I walked over to a protrusion of rock to sit. When I finally risked looking up, she was waist deep in the water. Her red hair was loosened over the fawny skin of her back that was faintly striped with white markings. I could not seem to look away as she sank into the water with a sigh and then pivoted to face me. Her ears pressed down as she tipped back to wet her head.

“So what do you think of Rian’s plan?” she asked me once she had straightened again.

“I’m honestly not sure if it is brilliant or mad.”

“I always thought the best plans were a little of both,” she admitted with a half smile, gently squeezing along her furred ears the way someone might wring out their hair.

“You would want to see him march an army of Fuath on Uile Breithà? What happened to being diplomatic and preserving billions of lives?” I asked her.

“This would be preserving lives. Fey lives. Obviously I would rather not unleash a Fauth invasion upon any living creature, so I still want to see us attempt negotiations first. But if you are right, and they refuse to listen, then we need to protect our courts and preserve the magic that will counteract the damage of their pollution,” she pointed out. “But I do not want to see him march those monsters into battle with the Vale,” Summer stressed firmly.

“He will not do that. Not as long as there were fey to protect there,” I reassured her and then hesitated while I debated whether to fully enlighten her. “Summer, the truth is we really do know humans will not listen. Rian meant it when he claimed to favour diplomacy, but he always tries to be ready for anything. We have innumerable spies in Uile Breithà who have infiltrated human and nonhuman societies at every level to know our enemies completely. We have studied them for many years, so when our attack is finally launched, it will be a swift and fatal blow that will cripple them before they can mount any defense.”

She was unnerved but also strangely reassured by this revelation that we were so prepared.

“And have you attempted to speak to them directly?”

“Not directly, but both our subtle and overt efforts to encourage them to change their behaviour for the health of their people and the environment have all been thwarted. It is industry and greed that rule them,” I assured her.

Summer appeared to resign herself as she exhaled a heavy breath and nodded.

“I suppose it is not worth worrying over until we see if he can even convince the Fuath,” she said with a shrug.

“If anyone could do it, then it would certainly be Rian. His power is versatile, and he is resourceful.”

“Does he… Are there spies like that in the Vale too?” she asked me reluctantly. I held her eyes a moment before nodding solemnly, and she nodded back. “Do you think that I could send a message to Amira through them and let her know I am safe and well?” she asked.

“Of course, I am sure that could be arranged.”

“I also wanted to ask what Rian meant when he said he didn’t need his gift in Kaldthjem. Why did the priests invite him to come analyze the slaughter?” she asked me. “What could his gifts tell them about it exactly?”

I lowered my eyes to my hands, elbows bracing on my knees as I interlaced my fingers together.

“You will learn about it soon, so I suppose there is no harm in telling you, but Rian does not merely deconstruct magic and matter. He… consumes it. He can ingest magic and use it to fuel himself, or he can acquire new power by absorbing it. That is why we are able to create our portals. It is magic he took from someone else,” I admitted.

“He… acquired that skill by… eating it?” she verified, her eyes widening in uncertainty and wariness.

It was well known that Rian was a Scrios and could unmake any living thing around him, but it was a lesser known fact that he could also consume magic. Fey with his Scrios magic, and Light Wraiths like me, who had the Light of the Sylvan in my veins, were rare phenomena among the aes sídhe. Such gifts had been passed down from our ancient ancestors, the Mavaari Elves, who were the Fallen Sylvan that had gone to serve the Destroyer.

“To take someone’s magic like that, every bit of their essence must be channelled into him. It is not something he does lightly, but he shares any new power he has taken with us through the bond. He can also taste magic more fully and can follow it like a bloodhound. It is how he was able to track you across worlds.”

“He could have tracked Cian O’Duinn,” she realized.

“If the trail had been fresh enough,” I confirmed.

“And… Could he have consumed the Fuath wards?” Summer guessed.

“It is very possible. I have never seen him try to ingest anything that is not organic or elemental,” I admitted.

“Then has he ever tried to ingest the Rot?” she asked.

“He has, but it is dead. There is nothing to consume.”

She hummed, her eyes distant as she contemplated this unnerving revelation. After a moment, she spied the soaps and oils that I’d left out on the rock for her. She seemed to shake off her thoughts and began to move toward them.

“Are you really going to sit up there all afternoon or are you going to get in?” she demanded, stretching up out of the water for the soaps and oils.

I meant to look away, but no part of my body would seem to comply with the intention. I could not tear my eyes from her, hair plastered to her back and shoulders, when her full breasts emerged from the water. I could not prevent the fantasy from invading my mind of my tongue collecting water droplets from every inch of her skin—

“Well?” she pressed, and I blinked, forcefully clearing my head just before she glanced over at me in concern.

“I don’t want to spoil your experience,” I assured her, my voice sounding rough even to my own ears. I tried to shift and discreetly tugged on my clothes to relieve the pressure and constraint of my pants, but it was not nearly helpful enough.

“I can assure you that a beautiful, naked man can only ever enhance my experience,” she laughed as she scooped some soapy paste from the container. She began to stroke it through her hair, fingers working against her scalp, and once more, I was helpless to look away from her.

“I can wait,” I insisted, although I was not sure which of us I was trying to convince.

Or if I was even talking about bathing.

Summer stopped what she was doing and turned to look at me. The water lapped at her shoulders, and one of her furred ears flicked away droplets as she frowned.

“I promise not to look! This is too incredible for you to miss out, Sage!” she insisted adamantly.

The irony of her thinking it was my modesty that was holding me back was not lost on me whilst I fought tooth and nail for every ounce of my composure.

But the water did look inviting, and I certainly needed the bath as well.

Summer had turned away to continue soaping up her hair and body, offering me some privacy, so I rose and stripped off the rest of my clothes. As promised, she did not turn toward me while I walked into the steamy water and sank beneath the surface at a safe distance from her. The water really was delightful, the heat soothing all my aching muscles better even than my fire magic, and I was admittedly thankful I’d taken Summer’s invitation.

I tried to stay focused on relaxing rather than on the gorgeous female across the pool, but it was difficult while still painfully erect. Every breath and sigh, every splash of water around her was captivating.

I tipped my head back to wet my hair and kept my ears beneath the water for several moments, listening only to my own breathing and heartbeat until my blood cooled.

“Some soap?” Summer offered, suddenly right behind me the instant I straightened, and I almost leaped out of my skin in shock. “I can’t see anything under the water,” she reassured me with a smirk when I looked at her with wide eyes. She extended the soap toward me.

“Thank you,” I murmured, our fingers brushing when I accepted her offering. Her skin felt hot, and her scent of honeysuckle and rain seemed to be even more potent in the heat, filling my senses with a rich awareness of her.

Summer drifted back a couple steps and sank into the water until her mouth was submerged as she watched me. Trying to ignore the thrilling sensation of those silvery-green eyes on me, I collected some of the soapy paste and lathered it in my hands.

After a moment, she suddenly rose high enough out of the water to speak again. “I know your people are more conservative, but it is so strange to me,” she told me.

I glanced up in curiosity only for all the air in my lungs to abruptly vanish when I saw her eyes on me. Not in objective interest but with the same helpless fascination that I felt whenever I was looking at her.

“What do you mean?” I asked her hesitantly.

“You are… You certainly have nothing to be ashamed or self-conscious about,” she advised me in all seriousness with raised brows.

“It is not about being ashamed.”

“Then why hide?” she demanded, and I could hardly breathe as her eyes lowered to my exposed chest before tracking down my arms and torso. “You are perfection. You do know that, don’t you?” she asked me.

I was rendered utterly speechless as she shamelessly devoured my body with her eyes in blatant admiration. There was already a delicate flush of heat in her cheeks from the heat of the water, but it darkened as she licked flecks of moisture from her lips. And then her attention shifted higher to her mark on my shoulder, and my cock reacted with a pulse of anticipation.

She was admiring me. Admiring what was… hers .

“I am not hiding myself, Summer. I am just selective of who I choose to share myself with,” I tried to explain. But it was honestly a wonder I managed to form coherent words at all with the way that she was looking at me.

“So does this mean I’m special?” she asked, her lips curving crookedly.

“You… do not give me much choice, but yes, Summer. Of course, you are,” I assured her.

She seemed surprised and met my eyes as if verifying the truth of my words before she looked quickly away from me. I worried at first that she had seen something in my face of the emotional and physical torment that I was enduring. But then she bit her lip with what seemed more like uncertainty.

“How is your back?” she asked, changing the subject, but I had the sense she was distracted or that there was something else she had wanted to ask me.

“It is healed,” I answered and began to lather my hair which drew her attention again. I could feel her watching me but pretended not to notice by keeping my head tilted up and my eyes closed. But gods, her awareness felt like it was branding every inch of my skin.

“Let me,” she said softly after a moment and began to drift hesitantly closer to me.

“You don’t have to,” I said automatically, and then felt a flicker of regret when she flinched. I’d never seen her so unsure of herself, so hesitant or coy with me, but there was also a stubborn tilt to her head.

“I know that I don’t have to, but I do want to. If that is alright with you,” she amended quickly. Her voice was so uncharacteristically timid and soft, but there was also the hint of a fragile hope. The thought that she just wanted to touch me was almost too much for me to bear.

“Alright,” I agreed, lowering my arms. Suds bloomed in the water from off my hands as she moved closer.

She was nervous, I could plainly see it in the thudding of her pulse in her neck, but she was determined. I wasn’t sure why she wanted to do this for me or why it made her so anxious, but I held still for her as she reached up.

Her touch was tentative at first, but she quickly gained confidence, and then each scratch of her nails on my scalp sent a thrill through me that ended in my cock.

As much as I wanted to let her relax me, my blood only continued to heat with every riveting moment she was touching me.