Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Lila
The opening to the cave system looms high above us like a gaping maw, and piercing, jagged rocks line both the top and bottom, making it look much like a sandworm breaking up out of the sand to swallow us whole as we approach it.
“Before we go any farther, you need to know that we may not return. Many people have entered this system and not come back out. The villagers have many tales to tell of the poor lost souls who never return. Some are greedy off-worlders looking for easy gems to score, and some are misguided locals all looking to get ahead in life, but all have the same outcome—they never return.”
“So there’s something inside the cave that is killing them?” Tirrian asks, peering into the darkness, and Zala shrugs.
“Maybe, or maybe it is the cave itself. We won’t know until we go in.”
“What about your ancestors? The ones who have traveled it before? And how did this ‘faction’ get my grandmother down there? If you, your father, and his mother are the only people with knowledge of the path, then doesn’t it make one of them responsible?
” I can’t help the accusing tone that comes out when I ask the question, but Zala doesn’t seem upset.
“You’re right. I have no idea how they got in there. I doubt that it was either Father or Jadati who helped them, and if she knew how, she would have said so. Her vision obviously didn’t show her that much.”
“A warlock could bypass the path if they had a firm picture of where they needed to go in their mind, and that could have been pulled from either your father’s or grandmother’s minds if they were prompted to think about it, but there are not many of them powerful enough to do it,” Xavier muses.
“Think back over twenty years, when you were just a child. Was there someone back then who could have achieved it? Because that is the time frame we are looking at,” Silac suggests, and Xavier purses his lips.
While he thinks, I take a seat on a nearby outcrop, suddenly feeling slightly woozy, my body shimmering between my Rilunese and my original forms.
“Lila?” Zala notices, and I wave her off, breathing heavily as I try to get my form stable.
“Shit, what is happening?” Silac looks between me and Xavier, his concern warming something inside my chest. Xavier steps up and runs a hand over my arm, pouring some of his strength into me.
“Lila is going through a lot more blood than we planned for. Oshan said the key to her energy would be sex with her mates, but none of them are here, so we have been substituting it with blood, but it just isn’t helping like it needs to.
She needs more and more, and she drank the last of it when we landed.
I wasn’t able to secure a supply in the city as I had hoped. ”
“But you’re her mate, can’t you just bend her over one of the rocks and help her out?” Tirrian is sarcastic as fuck, but he makes a good point.
“I am not officially her mate until we cement our intimate bond, which can’t be done until she has her memories unlocked by my parents.
Although I would take great pleasure in, as you said, bending her over a rock, and it will only help temporarily, it won’t be the fix a fully sealed mate would give her. ”
“What about the blood from the sandworm? I could drink that.” I almost want to gag at my suggestion, because that thing smelled horrid, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
“That’s actually not a bad idea,” Xavier says, but Zala shakes her head.
“The villagers bleed the worm once it’s killed because its blood taints the taste of the meat. I’m afraid it’s soaked into the sand on the outskirts of the village. It also helps ward off any other sandworms that become bold.”
“Shit. Well, I can feed her, but I can’t give too much to be able to use my powers effectively. Can we ask any of the villagers to donate?”
“Of course, I’m sure they would be happy to,” Zala says and turns to leave.
“But that is not going to help us if Lila needs to change while we are in the caverns. She can drink from me,” Tirrian announces gruffly.
“I will take dragon form. He has more than enough for Lila while we are beneath the surface.” My mouth drops open in shock, and the grumpy dragon crosses his arms defensively.
“Of course I knew one of us would have to come to her rescue during this mission, I just didn’t think it would be before we started,” he growls, wearing a sneer on his lips, but I just ignore that because he is being incredibly selfless.
“Will your dragon allow her to feed? He will see her as another predator, so won’t he fight back?” Silac sounds curious, and there’s a funny light in his eyes.
“No, he insists he is happy to do it,” Tirrian bites out reluctantly, and his eyes flick back and forth, his beast clearly making himself known much like my horny kraken does.
She pokes her exhausted head up. Good, strong, big dick, are her words before she sinks back down again. Well, it’s comforting to get her approval.
“Look, hurry up and decide, because if we don’t get started, we won’t be there in time, and it won’t bloom again until next year.” Zala taps her foot impatiently.
“Thank you, Tirrian, I appreciate your sacrifice. If there is anything I can do to thank your dragon, please let me know.” His beast flicks back into his eyes again, and his whole body vibrates much like mine does when my kraken tries to push her way through, but Tirrian clenches his fists and holds on.
“Here, drink from me, and let’s save the dragon for inside the cave.” Xavier is side-eying the dragon prince now, wearing one of those annoying smirks on his generous mouth. He holds out his wrist as Silac starts walking into the cave.
“We will just give you a moment.” He waves for Tirrian and Zala to follow. Both of them do, but not without a backward glance from the smoke blowing dragon.
“That is going to be fun,” Xavier mutters as he holds out his wrist for me. “Would you like to shove me up against the wall like we did on Earth?” He turns back to wink at me, and I feel myself relax for the first time in forever. My entire body aches from all the tension inside it.
“As fun as that sounds, I would never forgive myself if we missed the blooming of the flower because I was getting my pussy pounded,” I tell him wryly, and he grins.
“No, I guess not. Okay, messy pants for me, and luckily I can change them.”
Oh yes, my venom is going to make him come hard. “Pity Saxon isn’t here to help us out,” I joke, and he smiles gently.
“Bite me, baby, and let’s save your grandpa.”
My fangs drop down with just that little bit of encouragement from my warlock. I lean closer and run my nose over the thick vein in his wrist, his familiar scent making my mouth water. It’s all I can do to stop myself from draining him completely. I’m so freaking thirsty.
I pierce his skin easily, and when I draw away, his blood starts to run freely.
I seal my lips around the holes and drink deeply.
Xavier moans and pulls me against him, grinding into me as my venom pulses through his veins.
His whole body stiffens as he comes, and his small sigh of pleasure as he relaxes against me has me smiling.
His blood, fizzy and delicious and sparking with power, rolls through my body, pushing away all the exhaustion and revitalizing me.
It’s exactly what I needed. I swipe my tongue across the holes and pull away.
“Thank you,” I tell my fiancé, who just shakes his head and smiles.
“No, thank you.” He winks and changes his clothes. This new outfit is in darker colors, making it easier to blend in with the environment. “Okay, let’s go. I can feel Zala’s impatience.”
Holding my hand, he leads me deeper into the cave, my eyes adjusting to the low light quite easily, but Xavier throws a ball of light into the air that leads the way, illuminating so much more.
This cave is humongous, and large enough that the village we just left could set up camp inside it and still easily have room for all their larnuks.
It’s also dryer than I expected. I thought it would be cold and damp, but it’s not.
It’s quite cozy, and shiny gems glitter in the walls, reflecting the glow of Xavier’s light.
I’d love to stop and get a closer look, but we are on a time crunch.
As we move farther into the wide cavern, we find the other three have come to a stop at a large rock wall which has three separate tunnels in its face.
“Which way?” I ask, peering through the darkness at the others.
Xavier’s light is not the only one now. There’s a slight phosphorescent glow all around us, almost like the walls of the cavern are covered in something that makes it light up.
It’s also a lot cooler back here, like there’s a breeze racing through the tunnels, and I feel a shiver run down my spine.
“See that large rock there?” Zala points to a dais sitting just in front of the three tunnels. “You need to put your hand on it.”
Frowning, I walk over to where she points, and as I step in front of it, it lights up. Okay, not a rock, but some form of technology. There is an illuminated palm mark, so I’m assuming it’s asking for someone to put it on there.
“Why me?” I ask.
“Because you are the one who is seeking something from this tunnel. It needs to read your intentions.”
“How does a hunk of rock read your intentions?” I ask, completely unsure about all of this, but a sinking feeling is telling me I have no choice if I want to save John.
“Come on, Lila, you’re wasting time. Just get on with it,” Tirrian snarls, back to his default asshole mode, but he’s not wrong.
I lean in and place my hand against the palm reader.
It’s cold, but as I push down, I feel something click and pierce the tip of my little finger.
“Ouch!” I snatch my hand back, sticking my finger in my mouth to stop the bleeding, but within moments, the tunnel on the left lights up, acting like a beacon.
“I’m assuming that’s the one. Let’s hope it leads to the castle at the center of the labyrinth and not certain death,” I joke, and of course they don’t get my movie reference, but I’m comforted by it.
“Castle? There is no castle, just the flower,” Zala says, sounding confused, and I wave her off.
“Never mind. Maybe I should have a weekly movie night once we get back to the ship,” I murmur as we walk the path that is lit up.
“We have those,” Xavier says, taking the place next to me and grabbing my hand to offer me comfort, his ball of light trailing above us.
“Earth movies?” I ask him, and he shrugs.
“Sometimes. Where do you think we learned about that rugged and handsome captain of the sea, Captain Jack?”
Ah yes. How could I forget they named our son after a rum swilling pirate?
My free hand trails along the wall of this tunnel, trying to figure out where the light is coming from.
“It’s the gems,” Zala calls from behind us.
“This cavern is one of only two on the whole of Rilu that has these opalescent gems.” I stop and lean in to get a closer look.
Xavier’s ball of light dips down, and I can see the wall is practically riddled with gorgeous white opalescent gems, and it’s their glow that illuminates the tunnel.
“They are gorgeous,” I say, reaching out and running the pad of my finger over one of the super shiny smooth stones.
“They really are, and they are prized for jewelry all over the galaxy. Many crown jewels and wealthy individuals are always begging for access to the next harvest. Occasionally the cavern allows me to venture into one of the tunnels, but never far from the entrance, and I can only gather a few before it firmly tells me to leave,” Zala explains.
“Tells you to leave?” Silac asks, looking around skeptically. “How does a solid rock structure like this tell you to get out?”
“An invisible wall appears, and you cannot go any farther.”
“You’re basically implying that this structure is sentient.” Xavier sounds curious, not skeptical, as his own hand caresses the wall.
“Yes, I am,” she replies.
“I’ve seen stranger things happen in the galaxy. Come on, we’re wasting time,” Tirrian snarls.
We continue on our way, the tunnel sloping downward and around, leading us deeper into the center of the planet.
The journey itself is slightly boring, to be honest. I had revved myself up for drama, excitement, and terror when they told me most people don’t come back out, but so far, this has been a cake walk.
I turn around to face the others and walk backward. “I’m not sure what you all were worried about. This has been easy.”
Of course I had to go and speak too soon. I stumble, not looking where I’m going, and as Xavier jumps forward to steady me, he smashes into an invisible wall that has appeared between me and the others.
Xavier’s expression goes from relaxed to terrified in an instant, and he bangs on the invisible wall, shouting, but it’s completely soundproof.
I hurry back, trying to find some gap or something.
I check either wall to see if there is a hidden latch, but nothing.
I watch as they all do the same on the other side.
Xavier’s body shimmers like he’s trying to teleport, but I can tell by his look of frustration and his silent shout that he’s not going anywhere.
Tirrian makes them all back away, and we watch as his form shimmers, and he assumes his half form.
He sucks in a deep breath and blows a stream of fire directly at the invisible wall.
It just hits it and disperses, and my heart races as my anxiety increases.
I guess the cave has spoken. I need to do the rest of this journey on my own.
Suddenly, I watch on in horror as four trapdoors open below them, and one by one, they drop away, disappearing from sight and leaving me all by myself.