Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
Caspian
I’m kind of a little stunned at what Xavier did to his harem girl, but also kind of not.
I would have killed her too, except I would have most likely just shifted and eaten her.
The fact that he basically made her disintegrate slowly is kind of disturbing.
She was watching as little bits of her body floated away.
I don’t think it hurt, and there was no blood or gore so cleanup should only require a broom and a dustpan, but still, it was a pretty hardcore way to die.
I should probably be scared of his power, but I’m not.
I only feel grateful that he’s another line of defense for Lila.
I don’t think anyone is going to forget about that anytime soon, especially since he broadcasted it to the whole ship.
Xavier made inquiries as to where the cats were—either up here or down in the pod—and discovered they are actually on the main ship.
As we make our way to the lightning cats’ quarters, every screen we pass shows exactly what happened to Elyan.
People are gathered around, whispering and pointing at it, all wearing horrified expressions.
Xavier has assumed his mysterious persona once more and is cloaked in mist, but they all blanch or shrink away when they see us walk past. Hopefully it goes a long way in keeping Lila safe, though bonding with Saxon has obviously helped her, as well as her ability to shift into a kraken.
I rub a hand across my chest at the pang in my heart when I think about my mate.
Although I am happy for her and Saxon, it’s been too long since I’ve seen her, and it’s time she was returned to me.
I need to reassure myself and my beast that she is fine, despite being told that she is.
Seeing her in person will go a long way in calming us both down.
Going after those responsible for her being placed in a vulnerable position is the only thing keeping my beast from bursting through my skin and rampaging back to the circus pod to find her.
We are definitely ready for our turn with her.
We don’t even want sex, we just want to feel her in our arms again and listen to her belly to reassure ourselves our eggs are safe.
I asked Link, and he assured me that they were fine after he scanned her.
He said that although her body has changed, nothing within her womb did.
The only thing he wasn’t sure of was if our little darlings would now also have a taste for blood.
He told me he didn’t say anything to Saxon, and Lila was asleep.
Also, our beast forms like blood anyway, so it really isn’t a big deal to me, and we will deal with it if they happen to enjoy blood.
The trek from the warlock’s quarters to the lightning cats’ accommodations takes about ten minutes.
We could have used the sideslip elevators, but Xavier wanted to be seen just to drive home the seriousness of the situation.
People’s reactions to seeing him were hilarious.
Most of them found new places to be very quickly, but I think the message has been driven home—Lila is under his protection, and death will be the only outcome if you mess with her.
There is no room for negotiation, just an automatic death sentence.
We get to the door, and he pauses and turns to me.
“It’s going to be freezing in there. May I give you some magical protection?
” he asks, looking me up and down. I visibly shudder at the thought of being cold.
My kraken is most definitely a tropical water kind of creature.
In my full form, I can regulate my temperature if I have to, but in half form, I will turn into a Caspian popsicle in there, and that is not my version of fun.
“Yes please,” I reply, and his mist peels back, revealing his waving hand.
I feel a warm barrier cover my entire form.
I look down, thinking maybe he’d put a sweater over my top half, but no, I’m still naked, and I can see a shimmer of magic coating my torso and tentacles.
I raise an eyebrow at him, and he shrugs.
“It would be a shame to cover all that.” He gestures to my form before the mist recovers the hand and he turns his attention back to the door. I’m pretty sure he didn’t need to peel the mist back to protect my skin. Instead, he did it to reassure me.
That’s the thing about Xavier. As I get to know him better, I can see how thoughtful he is when he cares about someone. Not everyone would understand that side of him.
I hear him clear his throat, and the air starts to prickle with the intensity of his magic. “Stay close in case one of the lightning cats goes on the defensive. I should be able to deflect their lightning if need be. Let’s go and get us a cyborg.”
He overrides the locking mechanism, and the door slides back, causing a blast of air and tendrils of fog to roll out of the door.
Hopefully he has protected the underside of my tentacles as well, otherwise this is going to be painful.
I grit my teeth and move forward when he does, heaving out a sigh of relief when the extreme cold doesn’t touch me.
We stand in the entrance to the quarters, and I think we both blink in surprise.
Although I knew it was going to be freezing, I had no idea their quarters would look like this.
In front of us is a simulated frozen tundra that looks exactly like the landscape on Iceen.
There are a couple of large rocks and an open space covered in ice with dips and crevices, and behind that is a rock face with a number of different openings.
I knew the main ship was set up to accommodate each species’ specific needs, like the mer tank, but I didn’t realize they had caves in here until Nambra mentioned Josa’s whereabouts.
I can see five different entries along the bottom, and then farther up are another two. I guess they need to climb the rocks to get up there, and based on what I’ve seen during the circus, they are quite agile, so it wouldn’t be a difficult task for them.
A growling sound has me focusing on the middle cave.
The light in here is quite dim, and I watch as Xavier produces a ball of light before launching it into the air, illuminating the area a little more.
I can make out the shadow of a cat, but still no color to give me a clue which one it is.
The shadow keeps growing in size as it makes its way closer to the entrance and us, the growling accompanied by a sizzling sound.
Lightning.
“That sounds like one pissed off cat,” I mutter to my warlock friend whom I feel increase the energy of his own power.
It’s like a clash of the titans. Soon, the area is rippling with the residue of both creatures’ powers, and I feel my hair start to float as static electricity clings to it.
Finally, I can make out the color of the cat, and I feel my stomach sink.
I was hoping it would be Maxsim, the alpha of the clan, but unfortunately, I can tell by its pale blue fur and the black mane that it’s Natalia, the vicious she beast. I should have guessed it would be her from the immediate hostility, but lightning cats can be territorial, so it might have been one of the others.
She steps out into the clearing, her body buzzing with tension as electricity swirls around her.
She roars out a warning before piercing her tail into the air and launching a bolt of lightning at us.
The blast of power hits an invisible barrier in front of us, which doesn’t even tremble at the contact, and bounces off, landing harmlessly against the rocks where it dissipates with a few sparks.
“Enough!” Xavier bellows, the sound reverberating off the rocks, but she doesn’t listen and launches another bolt at us, roaring her displeasure again.
Before it can hit the invisible barrier, a figure leaps from the caves above and intercepts the lightning, his large body absorbing the electricity as he lands lightly on his feet between us and the enraged she-cat.
Maxsim’s ombre blue body is twice the size of Natalia’s, and his roar is ear splitting, shaking the ground beneath us.
He quickly puts her in her place, causing her to flinch back and bow down in front of him. The alpha is finally here.
Xavier and I watch as Maxsim’s body shimmers, and then he changes form.
It’s a fast process, but it looks uncomfortable.
Unlike a shifter’s change, which is aided by magic, their bones seem to rearrange themselves until he stands upright in humanoid form, his muscular fur-covered ass on display with his tail lashing back and forth in agitation.
“Holy shit,” I mutter as I take in the lightning cat in front of us. I don’t know what I was expecting. Of course he isn’t covered by his normal loincloth or circus uniform.
“Close your mouth, squidlet. You’re drooling,” Xavier mutters, laughing quietly. I bet he’s looking just as much as I am, but his perving is hidden behind that damn mist.
“Fuck off,” I growl at him, and he chuckles again, a little louder this time.
“Change,” Maxsim bellows at the female cat, the alpha command rattling even me. My beast champs at the bit to test his mettle against this worthy opponent, but his thoughts confuse me for a moment until I listen closer.
Cat good mate for Lila. Strong, virile, and sexy. Fucking hell. Poor Lila, my kraken is basically acting as her pimp.
Calm down, asshole. She has enough on her plate. Let her settle into the mates and powers she has already, and Xavier is next, you know that, and don’t forget Link.
He purrs in response at the reminder of the sexy doctor and warlock, and then he settles back down. Fuck my life, that was close. Next thing I know, he’ll be taking them for a test run for her, and that is not really acceptable without Lila’s approval.