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niara

I was dreaming again. I found myself in that same land with the red sky overhead and the black earth beneath my feet.

This time I was walking, and though pockets of steam geysered up from the ground every few feet and I could tell the place was searing hot, my bare feet were unscathed and the temperature did not bother me in the least.

I did not know my destination, but it soon became clear.

A bed appeared before me in the middle of this vast wasteland.

The thick mattress was covered in black sheets, and black flowing, gauzy curtains enclosed it.

I approached and lay down on the most comfortable mattress I’d ever felt—it was like a pillow beneath my body, cradling me gently.

As soon as I settled, unseen hands ran over my exposed skin, beneath the slip of a dress I wore, until they tore it away from me, leaving me naked. Against the shell of my ear, warm breath from unseen lips whispered foreign words, their resonance a soft thunder that made my bones quietly vibrate.

Invisible hands ran up my legs, over my belly, skated across my breasts and up to my neck, my jaw. They caressed my skin reverently, raising my temperature and making my breathing grow shallow.

I spread my legs wider, an invitation. Every part of me wanted more of this feeling, wanted it to never end. The fingers stroked back down my body and dove between my thighs. I cried out and writhed, seeking to draw them in deeper, desperate for them to fill me.

They invaded me, stretching me and then curling, hitting a spot within me that I hadn’t even realized was there. Whimpers of ecstasy escaped my lips as those thick fingers pumped in and out, massaging that pressure point that made me scream out involuntarily.

Sweat broke out across my skin. My entire focus was on the delicious intrusion of my body, on magnifying the pleasure being delivered. I reached for the unseen hand but felt nothing.

“Not yet,” the voice told me. I whined at being denied. Then the speed and intensity of the hand’s movements inside me increased. I could do little else but lie there and take the delicious onslaught.

A white-hot bolt of fire shot through me, starting at my core and radiating outward. A silent scream captured my throat as my body seized, pure bliss cascading through every muscle.

Afterward, my throat was raw, my limbs like jelly. Lungs gasped for breath and the hands retreated. My eyelids shut, and I fell into a deep sleep.

When I awoke, Morros was high in the sky, his brother moons distantly visible. Though it was late, I felt deeply rested. Maybe even restored.

The echoes of the dream vibrated through me. The passionate physical experience was also accompanied by a feeling of safety, a sense of acceptance. Perhaps it was just my imagination, but for a moment there, after reaching the peaks of ecstasy, I truly felt at peace.

I blinked, staring up at the Melancholic Guardian to whom the Water Mages owed so much, wondering what He wanted for me. Was peace at the end of this road I was traveling? Was my path truly laid out in His register? Was I walking in the direction He’d laid out?

Unable to stop my thoughts from spiraling, I rose and slipped quietly out of the tent so as not to wake any of the cooking staff. My feet whispered across the sand, my mind back in the dream. That voice whispering deep inside me. I was moving automatically, but my destination was inevitable.

He was waiting for me.

You’re back , his voice growled in my head. So familiar—the voice from my dream. The beast in my mind.

A warden stood guard two dozen feet away on the other side of the cage, his back to me. He could not see me in the gloom, but he was still closer than I would have liked. I crouched, peering up at the creature, unable to make out any of his facial features in the dark.

How is this possible? I asked him mentally. How are you in my mind and in my dreams?

He opened his eyes, and those glowing embers trapped me in place. There was nothing human in them, but the intelligence there was impossible to ignore.

I cannot explain it , he replied, appearing to choose his words carefully.

Cannot or will not?

Those molten eyes pulsed with light, but he did not respond. Being this close to him was like a soothing balm across my skin. Cool water on a burn that eased an anxiety within me that I hadn’t realized I’d held. I craved proximity to him.

It made no sense. This was a hulking creature of lava and fire. Terrifying in his size and power. Why was I drawn to him? Why could we hear each other’s thoughts? Why did the thought of his touch launch a thousand butterflies within my chest? What was wrong with me?

My fingers brushed the surface of the water cage and I held myself back from piercing the barrier.

Will you remove my collar? the beast asked. I vow that I will not harm you. I believe you know this to be true.

Perhaps this was all an elaborate ruse, a trick, the creature using some arcane magic to lull me into a false sense of security with mental communication and passionate dreams. But I could sense his emotions deep within my chest. It was as if I had a second heart that represented him, and right now he was hopeful, cautious, pleased by my presence.

There was nothing of duplicity there. Then again, what if this, too, was just a part of his power?

Will you harm anyone else? I asked.

Not unless they are trying to harm me.

Even if this was a trick, the fact that this “beast” was sentient, intelligent, and had any emotions to speak of meant that we had done him a terrible wrong in capturing him in this way. There were rules and laws, even about taking an enemy prisoner. Laws we were not following.

What happens when I remove the collar?

You will save me from a great deal of pain.

It was like a wall came down. He let a tiny trickle through of the agony he’d been experiencing since the collar was placed around his neck. That second heart inside me expanded, and I realized he had been protecting me from his pain.

I gasped and covered my mouth, hoping I hadn’t made too much noise. With little further consideration, I reached my arms into the cage and toward his neck. His skin was more leathery than I’d expected, not the rough texture of the volcanic rock it resembled.

The collar itself was constructed of magefrost and steelcrystal. Its metal clasp was sealed inside the magefrost, accessible only with magic.

I withdrew my hands and gripped them together, took a deep breath, and closed my eyes.

With Morros nearing fullness overhead, I had access to more power than at other times of the lunar cycle.

The seaglass gems braided into my hair and the small one on a pendant around my neck allowed me to channel Morros’s power.

Theoretically. I focused intently, directing my will toward the collar and pushing. My gems began to hum softly with power.

It was working! In moments, the magefrost around the collar’s clasp melted away, revealing the mechanism. I gave it a push with a tiny chunk of ice and it released, causing the entire collar to fall onto the sand.

Pride filled my chest, inflating me like a pufferfish.

I opened my eyes, and my gaze caught on the beast. Between us, the air shuddered like the intake of breath, and then his enormous body began to ripple.

The dark lava of his thick skin softened, taking on a molten form.

The thick horns curving away from his head split and undulated.

His entire body glowed red-orange and a cascade of steam rose between us, blocking him from view.

Within a few seconds, the steam cleared.

My jaw hung open. Before me was a man, no longer a beast. A large man, to be sure, with deep, mahogany brown skin and thick fiery-colored locs hanging past his shoulders.

The subtle echo of fiery wings flashed behind him in their retracted state.

He was pure beauty, with full lips framed by a neat dark mustache and goatee, a regal nose, and dark brown eyes.

Those eyes had just a hint of fire behind them and were watching me carefully.