Calm Before the Storm (24 page)

She proceeded to tell Merak all she knew
about the palace and Irina’s whereabouts. The news that Tyr was not a traitor
pleased Borealis, but the fact that he had been stabbed and was possibly dead
was a grave concern. They knew the Discordants could best use him if he was
alive so Borealis was also inclined to believe he was being healed somewhere in
the palace.

“I need to get to Abrasax and get the
pendants,” continued Cassi. “They’re our insurance for Irina’s safety.”

“Fine, but Tani should go with you as
backup,” ordered Merak.

Tani looked pleased. “Oh yeah!” She
grinned, her eyes sparkling in anticipation. “I’d love to face off with that
bastard. C’mon, Cassi, let’s go get him!”

Merak held Cassi back as she was about to
leave. “The rendezvous point is the Rasal Portal outside the west gate. We
should have the power to hold that starportal open until sunrise.”

“We won’t be late,” Cassi promised giving
his arm a squeeze. “Stay safe—see you on Lyra.”

The two women disappeared into the night.

Tyr was finally led into the great hall by
Rusalka and her two shedu guards. Rusalka had enjoyed tormenting him all the
way there, forcing him to stumble and crawl to keep up with her pace. “It’s a
pity Choronzon wants you in one piece,” she spat at him as they arrived. “I
would have so enjoyed carving you up a little. What I will enjoy though, is the
look on your face when that little slut dies.”

Tyr’s blood ran cold. Time was running out.
He knew that some kind of ritual involving his and Irina’s essences was
necessary for the Discordants to gain control over The Balance and that they
would kill Irina to get hers. He would never let that happen. He’d die first!
If they hurt her… That thought squeezed itself around his heart and crushed the
breath from his lungs. He blinked as Rusalka shoved him into the brightness of
the great hall, his eyes slow to recover from the darkness of the winding
corridors that had led them there.

The hall was an enormous oval space.
White-marble columns rising almost eighty feet high to support a huge domed
ceiling covered with paintings of what Tyr imagined were Discordant victories
in battle against Eunomi warriors. In front of the columns were tiered rows of
seating, currently occupied by a multitude of shedu, Ophiuchans and other
lifeforms that Tyr didn’t recognize. The arrangement gave the space the
atmosphere of an amphitheatre. Tyr’s gladiatorial instincts immediately sprang
to the fore.

At the far end of the hall on a raised dais
sat a group of figures who appeared to be the authority, the crowd falling
silent when a tall man in with long blond hair and satyr-like features raised
his hand. “Thank you, Phenex,” remarked the brown-haired man standing next to
him.

Tyr surveyed the man critically. It was
obvious that he was the one in charge. He was tall, sharply dressed and held
himself with authority, his presence radiating a dark power that Tyr had never
felt before. He had thought Abrasax evil but this man made his skin crawl like
nothing he had ever felt before.

Rusalka led Tyr forward until he was twenty
feet away from the man. “My Lord Choronzon,” she announced obsequiously, “here
is War, yours to command.”

“Rusalka my sweet,” the man purred
smoothly, “a pleasure as always.” He looked Tyr over, his eyes alighting on the
bruise on Tyr’s cheek and his split lip. “But did I not say that I wanted him
undamaged?” His eyebrows lifted as he turned to Rusalka who was now wide-eyed
with fear.

“Oh Lord of the Abyss! I am sorry. He
stumbled and fell as we—”

Choronzon waved a hand. “I want no
excuses.” He walked menacingly toward Rusalka who was visibly trembling.
“Someone was obviously careless. I don’t do careless.”

As quickly as that Choronzon seemed to
expand, his body growing huge as he took on his true form, which Tyr was
unsurprised to see was even more hideous than Abrasax’s. An arm slashed out to
cut down the figure of the shedu guard standing to Tyr’s left. The guard crumpled
in an instant, his body dissolving, leaving nothing but gray ashes, a stain at
Tyr’s feet. Rusalka, flinching with obvious relief at her lucky escape, went
down on one knee, head bowed.

Choronzon, now returned to Earthani form,
scraped a long nail down her cheek, grabbing her chin to tilt her face upward.
“I still have a use for you, Rusalka my dear, but you would do well to remember
who is in charge. Don’t overstep the mark again. If I want you to damage the
goods for me I will tell you. Otherwise…” He bent his face close to hers and
licked her ear giving it a sharp nip as he did so. “Keep. Your. Hands. Off.” He
stood back. “Are we clear?” he said, his smile filled with malevolence.

Rusalka bowed her head again. “Yes, oh Lord
of the Abyss.” She nodded fervently.

“Good. Now undo his chains and get out of
my sight before I change my mind.”

She followed his instructions, fumbling
over Tyr’s knotted wrists, freeing his bonds. Tyr flexed his hands and nearly
laughed out loud as Rusalka scooted out of the hall at the speed of light. He
could almost have liked Choronzon for that if he hadn’t then felt the tingle of
electricity that he now knew instinctively was Irina. Turning his head, he
registered her slight frame among the group on the dais.

His blood heated, surging through his
veins, a lava rush of fury that almost caused his heart to seize as he took in
her circumstances. She was kneeling, arms bound behind her back, blindfold over
her eyes. Her neck encircled by a leather collar, the leash held by a shedu guard.

But that was not the worst of it. They had
humiliated her further by gagging her mouth and leaving her half-naked, breasts
exposed, chocolate curls hanging loose barely covering her chest. She looked so
fragile and vulnerable that his heart shattered with the weight of her pain.
Tyr could feel the threads of her shame weaving toward him, searching for a
lifeline.

The strategic, logical, calculating brain
that usually kept so cool under pressure lost all focus as Tyr exploded in
fury. So intense was his anger, that he was only feet away from her before
being dragged to the ground by four large shedu guards. “Cover her up, you
bastard!” Tyr raged as he continued to kick and struggle, inflicting injury
even in his restrained state.

“Let him up!” ordered Choronzon, a curious
glint in his eye as the shedu immediately let Tyr go. The moment he was free,
Tyr lunged for Irina gathering her into his arms, a protective embrace, her
sobs vibrating against his chest. “I’m here, baby!” he murmured, his lips against
her hair. “What did they do to you?” He managed to pull the gag off her mouth
and undid the blindfold. The relief in her amber eyes as they gazed into his
was a lance straight through his heart. He should have been there to protect
her.

“I thought you were dead.” A tear rolled
down her cheek. “Don’t leave me again.”

“Never,” he swore, her beautiful face
calming the storm of his anger like nothing else could.

“Well this all very touching,” broke in
Choronzon, “but not what we’re here for.”

“Let her go, Choronzon. You don’t need her;
you have me. I’ll cooperate with you if you let her go.”

“Tyr,” Irina whispered into his chest, “you
said you wouldn’t leave me.” He gazed down at her again.

“I’ll always be with you,” he said in an
effort to reassure her. “Whatever happens I’ll be with you, remember that.”

Tyr had unbound her wrists as he spoke and
she raised her hand to his cheek, her touch a soothing balm to the heated fury
inside. “I can’t live without you,” she said, understanding what he meant to
do. “I won’t.”

“Irina…” She put a finger to his lips.

“Enough already!” Choronzon sighed rolling
his eyes skyward. “I’d say get a room, but there really isn’t time for that. We
need your essences to control The Balance and having them both will ensure our
dominance. Chaos will reign! So tell me, mighty War, why should I let her go?”

“Because I will kill her and then myself,
which means you won’t have either of us.” Tyr stood his ground, going for the
bluff. He felt Irina’s hand tighten around his waist as she tugged him closer.
“I don’t think you want to wait another eight hundred years for the chance to
be in control of War again.” He saw Choronzon’s frown of disbelief. “I will do
it. I have nothing to lose. At least if you let her go you will have me. I’ll
cooperate with you as long as she is safe.”

“Hmmmm.” Choronzon rubbed his chin
thoughtfully. “Well perhaps we can come to some arrangement.” His eyes gleamed
with excitement. “As Abrasax has not yet returned with the pendants we need for
the ceremony, I will give you a chance to save her.” Choronzon snapped his
fingers at one of the women. “Give her your robe.” The female unclothed herself
and gave Irina her loose blue dress, leaving herself semi-naked.

Once Irina had covered up, Choronzon took
her by the hand to pull her away from Tyr who stood fast, fighting the urge to
grab her back. Choronzon stroked his fingers down her arm. All Tyr could do was
watch silently, the magnetic threads that bound them cleaving to each other to
ensure their connection remained.

“I believe we have the opportunity for some
entertainment,” Choronzon said as he walked toward his seat on the dais, taking
Irina with him. “I hear you are a champion fighter on your home planet. I
wonder if you can beat my champion.”

“Bring him on.” Tyr stood strong,
determined to rise to the challenge. “If I win, you let Irina go.” Choronzon
laughed.

“So confident.” He was sitting now, Irina
at his feet, his fingers running through the strands of her dark hair. Tyr
could feel Irina’s revulsion as she shuddered with every stroke of his hand,
the vibrations pulsing through their link.

“Entertain us then, War,” he said. “If you
win, you will be bound to me for eternity, but I will let her go. If you lose,
you will still be bound to me, but she will die.”

Tyr’s heart froze at Choronzon’s ultimatum.
He had to win. Fear surfaced but instantly met warmth that surged through the
tendrils encircling his heart. A message of love from Irina.
You won’t fail.
I trust you
. His heart soared carried by her faith. He loved her so much,
he would not fail. Could not fail. Tyr stood unblinking. “I accept,” he said.

The surrounding crowd, silent before
Choronzon, now dared to voice their opinion erupting in a heated fervor of
bloodlust. They loved a good fight. Choronzon waved a hand to silence the crowd
again. “Excellent. Go—equip yourself and prepare to meet my champion.”

Tyr followed two large shedu from the hall
accompanied by a number of Choronzon’s entourage.

Irina watched him go as Choronzon continued
to stroke her hair. Bending down he whispered in her ear. “Whatever happens my
dear, I will have you before you leave here. Whether that’s alive or dead
depends on your lover. Do you think he’s up to the challenge?”

“I think,” she said steadily, though her
body trembled at his touch. “I think the war is already won, Choronzon. You
just don’t know it yet.”

Cassi and Tani reached the square famous
for its whorehouses. You could buy and sell anything on Ophiuchus and female
flesh was one of the major commodities. “Which one is it?” asked Tani. “There
are at least a dozen brothels on this side of the square alone.”

“I was told to go to the Gilded Lily,” said
Cassi. “I hope she wasn’t lying.”

“There it is.” Tani pointed to a sign with
a large golden lily painted on a red background. Music was blaring from inside.
“You hope who wasn’t lying?”

“An Ophiuchan class-A bitch called Morana.”

“Why did she help you? Does she have a
grudge against Abrasax?”

“I got the impression she’d sell her own
mother,” said Cassi, eyes scanning the building for a way in. “She would
probably sell her whole family for the right price.”

“Oh. So what did you give her?”

“That’s the weird thing. She asked me about
Ziad, whether he had a female or not.”

Tani gaped. “Ziad?”

“Yeah. I should have mentioned it to him
but I forgot. You don’t think she might try to kidnap him or something, do you?
Use him as a sex slave.” Cassi and Tani were both laughing now at the thought
of Ziad enthralled to a woman. “Not Ziad. He’s a beautiful guy, but he’s too
wrapped up in his work to bother with females. She probably needs his healing
abilities for something.”

“I’m sure he’d be happy to help. Ziad’s the
most generous male I know,” Cassi said. “But back to business.” She paused.
“There’s a window open up there.” She pointed to an opening on the third floor.
“Think you can make it?”

“No problem,” Tani answered with relish.
“Hoist me up and I’ll go. You stay here.”

Cassi gave her a leg up so that Tani could
grab the lowest ledge. She climbed like a cat and was soon hanging on to the
window, peeking through to see if it was safe to enter. Disappearing through
the gap, she emerged from a side door ten minutes later, dressed in a sheer
robe, the garb of an Ophiuchan slavewhore, carrying a bundle of similar
material. “Put these on,” she said giggling, throwing the bundle to Cassi.
“This is going to be fun!”

Cassi eyed the robe with distaste. “What is
this thing?”

“It’s a ticket to looove!” cooed Tani.
“Abrasax won’t know what’s hit him. He’s in there. I saw him drinking in a
booth. Apparently he has just sold some girls to the proprietor here and as yet
he’s unaccompanied, so I think it’s up to us to show him a good time. There
were some very interesting rooms upstairs with lots of toys we can play with.”

Cassi could imagine exactly what was in
those rooms, knowing full well the kind of clientele this establishment
probably catered to. She finished dressing and looked down at herself feeling
practically naked.

“Looks good on you!” said Tani
appreciatively. “You should dress like a girl more often.”

“I do dress like a girl!” Cassi was
indignant.

“An uptight girl, maybe, but you don’t
really act like one. Think you can pull off being seductive?”

“I guess. How hard can it be if you can do
it?”

Tani laughed. “Come on, we’ve got a job to
do!”

“Abrasax might recognize me.” Cassi bit her
lip while remembering that fact. Tani thought carefully for a second.

“It’s okay,” she said, “lots of the girls
are veiled and if you wear your hair down I think you’ll be all right. It’s
quite dark in there.”

When they entered the brothel, it took a
moment for Cassi’s eyes to penetrate the veil of darkness. The place was
heaving. Plenty of action was going on in full view of the rest of the
clientele, not everyone bothering to use the discreet rooms on the upper
floors. Cassi had been to many similar establishments during her long existence
and should have become immune to the sights and sounds of the debauchery around
her, but she still felt the familiar stab of pity for those whores enslaved,
with no choice but to give their bodies to whoever was paying.

It was their masters who saw the coin, not
the girls. Their lives were spent trying to buy themselves out of the debts
they would never be able to repay. She brushed her sympathy aside to focus on
the mission, wrapping the veil across her face, searching for Abrasax.

Tani spotted him and nudged Cassi in his
direction. Cassi watched in awe as Tani switched into character, swinging her
hips with a sexy confidence Cassi could never hope to imitate. Tani was such a
good actress! Then again, she was the Esseni of Love, so perhaps she had some
innate ability to radiate sexuality the way she did. Cassi followed, feeling
awkward, doing her best to copy Tani’s moves.

As Tani slid into the booth beside Abrasax,
his eyes gleamed yellow in the darkness and he slid an arm around her in
greeting. “Well hello, little lady,” he said. “Did Phenex send you? He promised
he would send me a present and now he’s sent me two.” His words were slurred.
Abrasax had obviously been drinking and that was good news for them. In his
drunken state he didn’t appear to recognize Cassi, his attention drawn to Tani
who was encouraging him to focus on her by rubbing her hands along his cheek
and batting her eyelashes suggestively.

“We could go to a more private place.” Tani
pouted and Cassi could only admire her attitude. She herself had no patience
for someone like Abrasax and if it were down to her she would have gone
straight for the jugular, but that wasn’t possible in the circumstances and it
was just as well Tani was here because the thought of even touching Abrasax
made her want to vomit.

Abrasax leered down at Tani lasciviously,
his fingers stroking her arm and squeezing her leg.

“I’d love to see your private place,” he
drawled, brushing his hands close to the area between her thighs.

“I have the most beautiful private place,”
purred Tani, not batting an eyelid at his blatant innuendo. Her attitude
reminded Cassi so much of Rusalka that she had to stifle a laugh. Men were such
easy prey! Bat your eyelids and show them some cleavage and their brains jumped
straight to their dicks.

Tani stood and led Abrasax, with Cassi
following, through the throng and up the stairs to a corridor with a number of
doors. Tani walked to an open one and gestured Abrasax inside. He pulled Tani
in after him and she giggled dizzily pushing him over, using his body to break
her fall. As she rose laughing and dragging Abrasax back up, Tani caught
Cassi’s attention with a hand held behind her back. Tight in her grasp were the
two pendants, which Cassi immediately grabbed and hid, joining in their
laughter as she helped guide Abrasax to the bed. Mission accomplished! But not
over. Tani’s expression clearly indicating that Abrasax was deserving of more
personal attention. “Follow my lead,” she whispered to Cassi as Abrasax made
himself comfortable on the bed. “We need him incapacitated, plus a little
humiliation wouldn’t go astray.”

The room was dimly lit by a dozen candles,
its centerpiece a luxurious four-poster bed laden with silks and cushions. Just
as Tani had said, the room also boasted a variety of pleasure toys laid out for
those clients who enjoyed such stimulation. “So, ladies!” he said, settling
back, arms open wide in suggestive invitation. “I’d like to see you both
naked.”

Tani lifted her eyebrows and turned to
Cassi. “What do you think? He wants to see us naked. Should we comply?”

“Maybe, but perhaps he should be naked too.
Unless he’s got something to hide?”

Abrasax puffed out his chest. “I’ll let you
strip me, ladies—prepare to be dazzled!” Cassi nearly choked. The guy was
serious! She couldn’t imagine anything worse than Abrasax naked and dangling.

Tani was barely managing to keep a straight
face. “We’ll strip you but you mustn’t touch us while we do it.”

She began to undo his shirt, straddling his
chest. “Arms up above your head!” she ordered. He seemed to like that. As Tani
did her thing, distracting Abrasax, Cassi began to gently rub a silk scarf over
his arms while coaxing them up above his head. Just as Tani finished stripping
his lower half of clothing, Cassi pinned his hands together and began tying the
silk around his wrists in a loose knot.

Abrasax didn’t seem to notice, too
inebriated and engrossed as he was, watching Tani moving sensuously around him
removing the rest of his clothes. She spread his legs. He licked his lips.
Cassi had by now tied each end of the scarf to each post on either side of his
head but continued to stroke his arms. He was so mesmerized by Tani he hadn’t
noticed the restraint.

Tani was wriggling up his legs and it was
clear Abrasax was expecting her to go down on him, his erection pointedly
asking for some lip action. As if meaning to oblige, Tani lowered her head but
then suddenly switched direction, roughly clipping his ankle into one of the
two shackles attached to the posts at the bottom of the bed.

Abrasax began to look a little confused
trying to lift himself up to see what she was doing. His struggles tightened
the knots at his wrists and he jerked back in surprise when he found he
couldn’t move very far. “I didn’t realize this was part of the game.” His voice
was slurry from the alcohol but he was still smiling.

“Not your game,” replied Tani tying up his
other leg, “but ours. Don’t you recognize us yet, Abi? I thought you were
cleverer than this but I guess when it comes down to it you’re just like any
other male of the species, led by his dick.”

The smile faded as Abrasax began to panic,
the scarf pulling tighter as he struggled. “What are you doing? Who are you?”

Cassi took the opportunity to grab some
handcuffs from the pile of toys, clipping them around his wrists to make doubly
sure he was confined. Tani had found a leather gag. “Just lie there and relax,”
she soothed. “We wouldn’t want you disturbing the other patrons by screaming
your enjoyment.”

Cassi laughed and thanked her lucky stars
that saevici like Abrasax were unable to shift when under the influence! His
eyes were murderous and widened in recognition as they both stood in front of
him.

“Yes, Abrasax,” cooed Cassi, “it is me!”
She held up the pendants. “Thanks for the present. We’ll return them to their
rightful owners. You don’t need to worry your little head.” She looked down to
where his dick now lay flaccid against his thigh. “Or maybe you do!” She
shrugged. “C’mon, T, let’s go. I’m sure Abrasax doesn’t want us cluttering the
bedroom any longer than necessary.”

“Oh, really, do we have to go?” Tani
sighed. “I was just thinking about all those toys hanging on the wall. I really
wanted to use a couple of those riding crops on him.”

Cassi shook her head. “I think that would
be too much for him. Look, he’s flagging already.”

“You’re right,” agreed Tani. “Until next
time, Abi. If I see Choronzon I’ll tell him you’re a little tied up right now.
I’m sure he’ll understand.” She patted him on the head.

The look on his face was priceless and
Cassi felt no small amount of satisfaction as they left Abrasax naked and
bound, sure that if there really was such a thing as karma, then she was a
righteous bitch with a great sense of humor and Abrasax was enjoying her own
special brand of it.

Feeling satisfied with the evening’s work,
they made their way surreptitiously along the corridor into an empty room.
“Let’s split up and take a pendant each,” suggested Tani, “in case little Abi
gets released sooner rather than later.” Arranging to meet at the starportal
Borealis had mentioned, they gave each other a hug and went their separate
ways, Cassi deciding to exit via the window and Tani saying she would go back
through the brothel.

Cassi suspected Tani was actively searching
for information on the man she was duty bound to meet in the near future.
Apparently her duality partner was to be found somewhere on Ophiuchus. It was
hard for Cassi to imagine how Tani must feel knowing that somewhere out there
her fate was waiting for her and that they might never meet. Or if they did, it
could potentially be the death of her.

Seconds later her feet touched the ground
and she sped off into the darkness. Faltering when she arrived at the
crossroads, Cassi hesitated weighing her options. The Rasal gate or Phenex’s
palace? Perhaps a diversion was in order. Cassi’s instincts as a Eunomi warrior
could not be denied. She switched direction and headed for the palace where she
knew all the action was sure to be found.

* * * * *

Tani inched her way through the orgy that
was now in full swing, a number of hands grabbing her along the way. She
shrugged them off and was halfway across the room when she felt the tingling
prickle of hairs straightening on the back of her neck. She turned her gaze to
survey the room, and a dark head in the far corner caught her attention, a tall
man with his back to her in discussion with the proprietor.

She was conscious of the sudden diffusion
of energy that flowed from her body across the throng, searching for a conduit,
as if sensing a connection. The tall man turned almost as if he were sensing
the pulse that was leaving her body, seeking…something? His face still in
shadow, she was just about to switch direction to investigate when she glimpsed
Alcina on the stairs and realized she was probably here looking for Abrasax.
Damn!
Focus on the job in hand.
She looked back but the man had gone. Feeling
empty, Tani gritted her teeth and headed for the back exit.

It was hard to escape the feeling that
perhaps she had just encountered her fate, crossed paths with the man she was
destined to seek out. However, tonight was not the night. She would return, and
when she did, she knew that the Gilded Lily would be her first port of call.
Right now getting the pendant off Ophiuchus was more important than her fate.
The cold night air bit into her flesh through the skimpy clothes. Scratch that.
Warm clothing was the first item on the agenda, then the starportal. Tani
disappeared into the night.