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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Zepharos lay quietly, his wound clean and bandaged.

It was as he said, nothing serious, but the toxin on the beast’s claws had done its trick, knocking him for a loop.

His body was warm, but he trembled slightly, so Maria curled up close to him, draping herself over his body to help warm him further.

Her Infala seemed to sense something was wrong with her mate, glowing steadily as she lay atop him.

To her surprise, his began to faintly pulse and glow as well, as if his rune was communicating with hers.

They weren’t fully bonded yet, but from what she’d heard about the process, that sort of connection could still very well be possible.

More surprising was the erection that sprang up long and hard, straining the fabric of his trousers. Zepharos’s eyes opened, a spark of energy returning where only exhaustion had been just moments ago.

“Hey, you said that stuff weakened your body,” she joked, playfully whacking his cock through his clothing.

“Not all of it, apparently,” he replied, his hands roaming over her body.

“Hey, you need to rest. ”

“I need more than that.”

Maria knew it was weird, but her arousal spiked to match his in an instant, her nipples hard and sensitive, her clit already beginning to swell with anticipation.

Sure, part of it was the huge amount of adrenaline in her body shifting from flight to a far different instinct.

But it was also the crazy pigment in her flesh pulling her to take him deep.

To join their energy and heal him in the most wonderful way possible.

Without even realizing what she was doing Maria slid one leg out of her bottoms, pulled Zepharos’s cock free from its constraints, and lowered herself onto him, slowly taking him until he bottomed out, her body shivering with the rush of sensation igniting static-hot tingles of bliss in her belly and beyond.

“You,” he murmured, his hips moving on instinct.

Maria rocked back and forth, churning his length inside her just right, her clit rubbing against him in the perfect way. “Shhh. Let me do the work.”

In his current state, he was in no condition to argue.

Not that he would have. Maria was working his girthy length expertly, drawing his energy and blood flow through his body, peaking in his cock, mingling with her own power, his pre-cum blending with her own juices to form their own perfect lube, sensation-enhancing and wonderful.

The heat in Maria’s belly was a little different this time.

Stronger, as if her body was burning through a flu with a powerful fever.

She broke a sweat, as did Zepharos, which was normal most of the time under such intimate circumstances, but this felt more intense, as if they were sweating out toxins.

It was the strangest feeling, but it in no way tempered their pleasure.

In fact, the new sensations were rather enjoyable as their passion grew.

Maria felt her G-spot swelling with every grind, clenching his cock tighter as she milked every inch with her greedy pussy, taking all of him deep, and hard, and loving every second of it.

The swirling ball of orgasmic energy was exponentially growing, and for a second Maria felt as if she might explode from the pressure.

“Yesss!” she cried out through clenched teeth as she came, her body locking up hard as the sensations took over, engulfing her from head to toe while her limbs felt numb and her clit like a supernova of delight.

Zepharos’s back arched as she came, his cock stiffening even more, his hips bucking as an enormous climax burst from deep within him, an almost painfully hard gush of cum shooting into Maria’s spasming pussy as her own climax continued to break over her like a series of massive waves smashing into her relentlessly until her body felt like it could take no more.

They rode the waves together until, finally, she collapsed on top of him, chest heaving, her respiration fast and hard, her pulse thundering as if she’d run an Olympic sprint.

It took only a moment before her vision cleared, her eyes locking with her lover’s, Zepharos’s gaze clear, sharp, and energized.

Maria realized she felt supercharged as well. Sex was always a delight, but this was different. There was no need to recover, but, rather, she felt full of pep.

“What happened? I feel so full of energy,” she marveled.

“Me too. I’d heard of this, but thought it was an old myth.”

“What?”

“That when Infalas were joined, partners could share one another’s pain as well as pleasure, and in rare instances, unite their power to heal, as it seems you just did to me. The toxin is gone from my body entirely.”

Maria blinked repeatedly in shock. “Wait. Are you saying I have a magic pussy ?”

“I didn’t say?— ”

“Oh. My. God! I need that on a shirt!”

“A shirt?”

“Forget it. Maybe a mug. Or some panties. In any case, my pussy is magic !”

He grinned wide and bright, pulling her close, kissing her Infala, the rune flashing and tingling beneath his lips. “That it is, my dearest, and long before today.”

Zepharos sat up, rolling his shoulders and testing his body. By the look of joy on his face, it seemed that, indeed, he was good as new and ready for adventure. He rose to his feet, a spring in his step, moving to the rock sealing the doorway and pressing his ear to it.

“What are you doing?”

“Seeing if they’ve moved on. The Volvix don’t stay in one area long. They’re roaming pack hunters.”

“Yeah, but even if they’re not there now, they could come back at any time.”

“True, but once we hit the water, we’ll be safe. They don’t swim.”

“Water?”

“From what I was told, it should be very close. Just another cavern or two away. If we hurry, we can make it in no time and use it to get out of these caves.”

Maria looked at the pack animals, her heart breaking for them. “But what about our Llamalians? We can’t just leave them.”

“Who said we’d leave them? Haven’t you ever looked at their feet.”

“Hooves.”

“Not really. More of a combination,” he corrected.

“And you’ll note that, while it takes a little up-close looking, they are, in fact, webbed.

Llamalians don’t just cross streams. They are excellent swimmers.

Better than we are, I’d wager.” He leaned back and heaved the rock, rolling it out of the way, listening closely a moment then nodding, satisfied before heading out, leading the animals quietly.

“Come on. We’ll be safe when we get to the water. ”

Maria followed as he moved fast, his flashlight at its lowest level, the two hurrying past the bloody smear where their former attacker had been devoured.

There was nothing left of it, the rest of the pack not letting a single bite go to waste.

She shuddered, trying not to think about it, hurrying ahead as they plunged into a nearby tunnel, rushing toward the faint sound of water.

“ Safe ?” Maria exclaimed five minutes later when then exited a tunnel into the small cavern with rocky outcroppings along the walls. The place where the water sounds had originated. “You call this safe ?”

It wasn’t a stream or even a river. This was a racing torrent, the water flashing past and disappearing into a hole in the far wall.

“Trust me, it’s the fastest way out. The stories said?—”

“Did they say anything about drowning?”

He hesitated. “We’re not in a rainy season, so we should be fine.”

“ Should be fine? You’re not helping your cause any.”

A cacophony of growls and snarls began echoing from the tunnel they’d taken, as well as one high up on the cavern wall. Seconds later several Volvix emerged up above, staring down at them with undisguised hunger.

“We have to go. Now ,” Zepharos said, quickly making sure the packs were secure then smacking the Llamalians on the rear. “Get going!” he urged, then jumped in, the animals happy to follow as the deadly beasts hurried closer.

“Damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” Maria grumbled, then inhaled a deep breath and took the plunge .

The water was, surprisingly, not too cold, she was pleased to find. And it was fresh. Tasty, even, and mildly carbonated, which she learned thanks to an unexpected gulp.

Spring water. Of course. I’m swimming in Perrier.

The Volvix snarled and yowled, but they came nowhere near the water. He was right. Now let’s just hope he was right about the not drowning part.

They swooshed into the hole in the wall, sucked in quickly as the diameter narrowed from the much wider cavern. But the walls were not jagged and sharp, but rather smooth as a mechanically drilled tube, the stone worn perfectly even by thousands of years of water slowly wearing it away.

It’s almost like a water slide, she marveled. This is almost fu ?—“

Maria’s momentary enjoyment shifted abruptly as she plummeted down at a steep angle, the water speeding her to whatever waited below.

It wasn’t a sheer drop. That much she could tell by her placement in the water.

And while the descent went on and on long and fast enough to make her ears pop, it wasn’t vertical. But it sure felt like it.

She abruptly hit the bottom with a splash, much like at the end of one of those water slides she’d compared the experience to just moments earlier. Maria struggled up to the surface, sucking in air in the nearly dark pool.

“Zeph!” she called out.

“Over here.”

“Wait, I can see you. Why can I see you? Your flashlight’s off.”

“I know,” he said, swimming to her with a childlike grin. “Wasn’t that amazing?”

“You knew it was going to do that.”

“Didn’t I tell you?”

She slugged him in the arm—the uninjured one. “You son of a bitch! No, you didn’t tell me!”

“Oh. Sorry. They said it took us down, but I didn’t know just how far, or how fast. And now, since you asked, we have our way out.”

“What do you mean? We’re in a cave.”

“Yes, but the light. Look over there.”

She followed his gesture, the water naturally pulling them closer to where he pointed anyway as it flowed.

“It’s glowing,” she marveled, dazzled by the brilliant blue water’s sparkle.

“It’s an exit.”

“How? Is it some kind of portal?”

“Nothing so fascinating. Just the angle of the sun at this hour, the rays hitting the white sand on the bottom, illuminating it from below.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“The ancients thought it was enchanted.”

“I can see why. But I don’t see a way out.”

“It’s underwater, but it will only be the shortest of swims.”

“I trust you. You haven’t gotten me killed so far.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” he said, pulling her in for a quick kiss. “We’re almost at the wall. Time to dive. You ready?”

She looked ahead, the two animals were submerging and having the time of their lives, it seemed. If they could do it…

“Ready.”

“One last thing.”

“Yeah? Words of wisdom?”

“Of a sort. I love you, Maria of Earth. I just wanted to say that.”

Maria felt her heart swell in her chest, a knot of happiness clenching her gut. “I love you too, Zeph. Now get me out of here.”

“As you wish.”

He dove beneath the surface, helping guide Maria low enough to not bump her head.

It turned out it was barely a foot below and thus not a big concern.

They swam perhaps ten meters when their limited light suddenly erupted into full sun above.

They surfaced together, bursting out of the water with a splash.

“Oh my God,” Maria gasped, spinning a full three-sixty as she floated in the tranquil pool. “It’s beautiful.”

It was that indeed. A deep gorge bordered them, the cavern and water source hidden beneath, all emerging into a heavily wooded lagoon surrounded on all sides by tall hills and mountains, the tops angled out almost like a volcanic crater, allowing maximum sunlight to enter while keeping the entire area utterly secluded.

They swam toward the part of the shoreline where the two Llamalians had climbed out and were now happily grazing on lush burgundy and green grass. They sloshed ashore and walked to a dry spot, quietly taking it all in. It was perfect. It was safe.

Maria looked up at her man, love in her eyes. Love and hope. “Can we finally stop running?”

Zepharos felt his heart flutter in his chest, the way she looked at him, and he allowed himself to enjoy the feeling of love and the possibilities of this place. It was hidden. Secluded. And it would be near impossible to find.

“Maybe we can,” he said, a smile slowly spreading across his lips. “Maybe we can.”