Stoke - 5. Dream

I sat at the table. We were at an impasse. Wren had shot down my plan almost right away. As had Talon, again. Eon was nervous and hadn’t picked a side yet. Hanja and Tyren thought it may work but were still concerned. Amaris was all for it, supporting me immediately. Talon stood behind me and I felt the unease coming off him. Tyren, Hanja, and Wren sat at the table. Eon stood behind Wren, fingers holding the back of his chair. Amaris was on my lap. I was braiding her hair slowly.

“We’re not doing it.” Talon broke the silence, voice hard.

“There is a very real possibility it could put you both in danger. I am worried about that, but what if Kalian is right? You two are some of the strongest Magik users that have ever existed. Maybe you could stand against this creature.” Tyren’s hands were folded in front of him on the table. Hanja leaned back in his chair, his eyes on the two of us.

“If Kalian thinks he can do it, he can do it. I have the utmost belief in him.” Amaris nodded and I wrapped my arms around her waist, squeezing her affectionately. I blinked as a sharp stab of jealousy slipped through my head. I glanced over my shoulder at Talon. His eyes were on me, and I shuddered at the black slowly spilling into them. Talon being jealous…was doing something for me. I shook my head and returned to the conversation taking place around me.

“You humans are all stupid. We have no chance.” Wren snapped, claws tapping aggressively on the table.

“If we are to die anyway, why would it hurt to attempt any defense we can think of? You have continuously told us that we aren’t able to stop it, but we’re somehow meant to prepare? If there is the slimmest chance that this may work, and it’s our only choice, why ignore the potential? Unless there’s something you're not sharing?” Hanja rubbed his chin and narrowed his eyes at Wren.

“He has a point.” Tyren added with a nervous smile sent my way.

“What you’re suggesting, so I can make sure we’re on the same page, is for Kalian and me to enter a dream. A dream where he has admitted that this thing can control him. Why would I be any different? This has bad idea written all over it.” Talon’s voice was filled with scorn.

“This could be our only chance Talon. I get that you’re worried about our safety, but if we can save our friends, we should at least try!” I turned to look up at him and he rubbed a hand across his face.

“We’re not the ones in danger here. It really comes down to this being a decision Talon and Kalian must make. We’ve weighed in and tried to advise them the best we can. That’s all we can do. Wren, is there really nothing we can do in addition to the runes?” Eon crossed his arms over his chest, looking around our group.

“I suppose adding runes to the trap door in the closet would give us one final place to run to. There is only one entrance however so if it gets in…”

“We’re dead.” Amaris finished.

“Wren, show me the trap door. We’ll have to make preparations if we must spend an extended amount of time down there. If we have to, I mean.” Eon said and Wren stood so fast that Eon had to catch his chair. They walked to the closet, disappearing after a few seconds. I smiled to myself. I wondered how many “preparations” would be completed once those two were alone. Hanja rubbed his temples hard, his eyes closed. Tyren coaxed him to stand and then up the stairs. We should place bets on when Hanja would hit a level of annoyance where his brain would implode. I watched them go, grunting when Amaris turned on my lap.

“You know there are other places to sit.” Talon nearly growled behind me. Amaris’ eyes slid to Talon and the smallest grin appeared on her face.

“Jealous much Talon?” She rolled her eyes and hopped off my lap, planting a sloppy kiss on my forehead. I laughed and pushed her away.

Turning, I smiled up at Talon. I still needed to address Wren believing I needed to be restrained in some way. As Wren said, I didn’t think it’d be a particularly hard sell. His face was serious, and he quirked an eyebrow when I looked at him, “Do you want to continue talking about this upstairs?”

“Yes ‘talking’. That’s totally what’s going to happen.” Amaris laughed as she threw herself down on the couch across the room. Talon remained silent and was already at the base of the stairs when I noticed he’d moved. I stuck my tongue out at her and blushed when she bucked her hips up on the couch and crossed her eyes. I scurried up the stairs and found Talon reclined in the chair in our room already.

“You don’t want to lay down with me?” I pouted, licking my lips as I eyed him.

“We need to talk about this more. The face you’re making leads me to believe talking is not on your agenda, Sunshine.” His face and voice were serious still and I let out a disappointed whine. Serious, responsible Talon was far less fun than the Talon who’d fucked our argument better after feeling the Soul Eater’s presence. I’d chewed him out, but in reality, the thought had made me all hot. There was something wrong with Talon and me. Should life threatening situations arouse us? Was that normal? I was losing my mind. That was the only realistic explanation.

I lowered myself to sit on the bed across from him, rubbing my sweaty palms against my knees. He ran long fingers through his dark hair and sighed, “I still don’t like it. I think it’s dangerous and foolish.”

“Isn’t that every plan we’ve ever made as a group?” I laid back on the bed and patted the spot next to me. He ignored it and tipped back in the chair. He looked up at the ceiling and the front two chair legs left the ground as he balanced himself precariously.

“You’re not going to convince me Kalian.” He still stared at the ceiling, and I twisted the edge of my tunic. His fears were justified. I had no way of knowing if this plan would work. There were obvious dangers and neither of us wanted the other one put in a scary situation.

“If we’re going to die, I’d rather go down fighting. I’m not going to sit here twiddling my thumbs while we wait for it to come to us.” My voice was filled with anger, and it surprised me. I hadn’t felt it building up, “I thought you of all people would be on board. You’re a fighter Talon. What’s stopping you from fighting now? You aren’t a coward. I’m confused. It’s not the most solid plan, but you shot it down before giving it any thought.”

The chair legs slammed down, and he leaned forward quickly, eyes blazing, “Do you want to know the difference little lord? You really want to know?” I stared at him, shocked at the volume and the nickname I thought was long dead. Talon could be boisterous and loud, but it was normally in good humor. He’d never yelled at me like this. I straightened and opened my mouth, but he rushed on, “You’ve been in my fucking head. I let you. I shouldn’t have to put this into words. I can’t protect you in the physical world. In the here and now. I have failed repeatedly. Now you want to try our luck in a dream world where our enemy seems to control every aspect?”

“This isn’t a fucking game. We have no idea what the rules are and what could happen. If we die or get hurt there, will we wake up? Does it get stronger the closer it is? We have no idea, and you want to throw caution to the wind and fucking skip into its gods damned jaws. It’s stupid. It’s reckless. I’m not going to let you put us in that position because if something happens to you, I will self-destruct.” The silence after his outburst was abrupt. It stretched between us, dense and uncomfortable. We stared at each other, and it was like brick after brick of an invisible wall slammed down in the space between us. Talon looked away from me, features pulled tight with tension, and I stared at the wall behind his head.

I let my hands lay in my lap as I digested his words. I had been in his head. That was true. I had seen the unease, the fear, and the thoughts of inadequacy. It hadn’t occurred to me how far Talon’s self-inflicted poison had spread. He acted as though he was powerless, helpless. Like he wasn’t one of the most powerful Magik users we’d ever seen. Even Wren and Tyren were impressed with him. Tyren had said it not long ago. His view of himself was so skewed now.

Mallex. Every single hurt now, every strange tick my friends and Talon had adopted could be traced back to the crazed, dead blond. He was dead! He shouldn’t still be able to hold this much power. It made me feel like we were running from him. As if somehow, he was alive and pursuing us constantly. My nightmares (minus the Soul Eater), Talon’s crippled confidence, and all the other little things we’d been weathering as a group were culminating in an overwhelming amount of uncertainty and terror. We weren’t the same people who’d left Syrin. That had been obvious from the moment I first fought, when my friends had been hurt, when Hanja had driven himself to the point of collapse to give us a fighting chance, and finally, when we’d found Talon. I laced my fingers and took a deep breath and then another right after. Talon was looking out the window, not actually seeing anything. He was lost in his own head and so far from me. The wall that the silence had built was solid and formidable. Resting my hands on the bed, I slowly pushed myself to standing. The wall wasn’t real of course, but I still found myself pausing in the middle of the small floor. I forced myself forward and combed my fingers through Talon’s hair. I didn’t speak and after a minute, he leaned into my touch. His eyes flicked up to mine and my heart seized at the wet glaze over them. Unshed tears. Talon rarely cried and I hated that he’d been pushed to it now. He took a shuddering breath and held his arms out. Climbing onto his lap, I rested my hands on his chest as I looked down at him. I was subconsciously aware of the dangerous creak the chair made at the addition of my weight.

“Breathe. You’ve been so focused on me, that you haven’t been taking care of yourself, love. It’s all coming to a head now. The things you’re saying about yourself aren’t true. You’ve protected me since the very first moment we met. I have never felt safer than I do when you’re with me. You can’t be everywhere at once. Getting captured or my being hit with an arrow weren’t your fault.” He blinked rapidly and swallowed hard. I brushed my fingers over his cheekbones and pressed kisses to them gently, following the path my fingers took.

“What if we get in there and I can’t do anything? What if I’m stuck more than you because its power is similar to mine? There are so many variables.” He murmured, relaxing into my attentions.

“You’re right. There are a lot of things we don’t know and can’t account for. We’ll be together, though.” He rested his face in my neck and his breathing hitched. My fingers traveled to run over the back of his head and the nape of his neck.

“We really can’t do anything else can we?” His lips moved against my skin and my hands rubbed over the broad expanse of his shoulders.

“Not unless Wren pulls himself out of his doomsday spiral and starts thinking objectively.” His arms wrapped loosely around my waist, and he met my eyes again. His own were red but his cheeks and eyes were dry now. Part of me thought I should be concerned that once again, Talon had forced his feelings down instead of letting it out. Not that I should complain. I was guilty of the same behavior.

“Since when are you so calm and collected?”

“Since you needed me to be.” I shrugged and let my arms hang over his shoulders, “I think it’s worth a try Talon.”

“I’ll think about it.” He relented and we held onto each other for what felt like hours. I closed my eyes and rested our foreheads together as long fingers stroked down my spine. His hands started roaming and they became more persistent. They slipped under my tunic and ran over my skin. I whimpered softly when his thumbs rubbed lightly against my nipples.

“T-Talon?” He yanked my tunic roughly to the side, I heard the seams rip, and then his mouth was on my chest. His tongue wrapped around a nipple and my hips lifted involuntarily as he switched to sucking on it. My hands dropped and fumbled awkwardly until I managed to pull him out. He sat back and pulled my top over my head, an almost delirious look on his face as his eyes ran over every inch of my exposed torso. I couldn’t help the heat that spread to my cheeks, and I wrapped my fingers around him. I called light as I stroked and he bucked into my hand.

“Don’t want it like this.”

“Wha-“ He lifted me and carried me to the bed. He set me down and we stripped each other quickly. I turned to roll onto my back. He held my hips and stopped me. Getting the hint, I shifted onto all fours. I felt the bed sink as he kneeled behind me, and I cursed the need for prep and foreplay and all the obstacles that kept him from being inside me sooner. My head hung as lips moved down my spine, kissing every half inch or so. Two fingers slid easily into me, and my brain tried to remember seeing him with lube. I was distracted as those fingers began pumping into me. I dropped onto my forearms and spread my legs farther, trying to rock back hard on the digits. The bed moved underneath me, and his fingers slipped out, pressing to the spot that lay between my entrance and balls. My mouth dropped open as his tongue circled my rim. He flicked the tip of his tongue against me a few times and I resisted the urge to squeeze my legs together.

“Talon please.” I gripped the blanket as his tongue slid into me, his hands repositioning to hold me open. Tiny little gasps and whimpers fell from my mouth as he worked his tongue inside me. I bit my lip hard, trying to focus on the slight pain so I wouldn’t come. My hips were rocking back eagerly to meet him, and I whined as he withdrew. The pitiful sound was cut off as three fingers replaced his tongue, and I almost came undone.

“Not enough.” I gasped and looked back at him, rolling my hips back on his fingers. His eyes were locked between my legs, and he moved his fingers just right. I saw stars, arching my back. He hit the spot again and I looked over my shoulder at him again. Our eyes met and I saw the same lust filled haze in his irises that I’m sure mirrored mine. He was hard and the head of his cock was wet. My mouth watered and I wanted it to be in somewhere. I didn’t care were. I was getting so needy that thought was impossible. His fingers left my body and I moaned in anticipation. Gods, this man made me a mess. Talon lined himself up and my soul left my body at the first hard press. I pushed back up onto my palms and gasped as he forced the rest of his length in in one more thrust.

“So good.” He groaned and his hands found their normal spots on my hips. The first rolls of his hips were always unhurried and shallow. He let me adjust. Not that it mattered. I was alternating between panting harshly, moaning for more like a whore, and gasping his name. He hadn’t even started in earnest. When he did, I was hopeless. His grip on my hips was almost bruising and he bucked into me fast and hard. The force dropped me back to my forearms. Originally, I had been moving my hips back to meet his, but I couldn’t keep up. I could only hold on. I blushed at the realization that the entire cabin could hear exactly what Talon turned me into. They knew I lost control. How I faced them after they no doubt heard what we got up to was beyond me. Right now, I didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was how hard Talon was fucking me and how close I was. He had found my spot with practiced ease, and I cried out. His hips stilled for a fraction of a second and then he shifted his angle and began thrusting right into my prostate over and over. The man had zero mercy. No matter how much I begged and told him I wasn’t going to last if he kept it up.

He did let up finally and his hand slid around to grip my neck. He hauled me up against his chest and I turned my head to meet his lips for a heated kiss. He added pressure on my throat, and I gasped into his mouth. I blinked my eyes open to look at his flushed cheeks. His hand that’d been holding my hip caressed my chest and tweaked my nipples and I couldn’t take my eyes off his.

“Look.” He motioned with his head and my attention was drawn to the window. I blushed hard as I watched our reflections in the glass. I could see the jerk of my hips as he pounded into me, his hand splayed flat on my chest now as the other gripped my throat. My cheeks were bright pink, and my eyes were hooded as I let my head fall back on his shoulder. I couldn’t take my eyes off the image. Blushing even more, I shrugged his hands off, falling back onto all fours. I watched reflection Talon glance to me and then the window. His moan mixed with mine and we watched him take me in this slightly different position. I looked…less than wholesome. It was hard to look modest in the position I was in, but it seemed to be exciting both of us. The watching that is.

My head spun and I felt tension dig into my spine. I didn’t even have time to gasp out a warning before I came. I dropped down to my forearms, breathing hard. I tried to stay focused on the window and I moaned loudly when Talon’s head fell back. His thrusts became wild, and he fell off his rhythm completely. His head dropped and I watched his unfocused eyes run over me. His jaw clenched and I heard him gasp and then it was over. I’d never seen him orgasm like this, since obviously I was normally facing away, and the sight filled my belly with new desire. I watched his face until he slumped forward, hands resting on the bed beside my head.

“We’re doing it.” He chuckled against my neck and didn’t answer. I kept silent as we separated and cleaned up, but once we were cuddled under the covers, I couldn’t stop myself.

“I was serious. We’re doing it.” I adjusted so I could look up at him.

He raised an eyebrow and smirked softly, “I don’t have a say anymore?”

“Please.”

“I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Give me time to think.” I nodded, thinking it was fair. Little did we know that the decision would be taken from us.

I woke up suddenly. Something was wrong and I sat up quickly. Talon lay on his side facing me, face scrunched up in distress. He was asleep and I tried to shake him as I looked around. I fell back slightly as my hand went right through him. I stared at where half my hand had disappeared into his shoulder. I pulled it back and went back to searching the room. What had woken me up? The cottage was silent. I wasn’t even able to hear Talon’s snoring or breathing. The bed under me was solid enough and I panicked for a moment. Why couldn’t I touch Talon, but I could feel the blankets under my hands?

I let my legs hang over the bed and felt unease creep through me. A scrape, a tap, the air around me went even more still. I turned back to the sleeping man and bit back a startled cry when there was no one there. I sprang from the bed, “Talon? Talon!”

My heart was going a mile a minute and, not sure what to do, I darted for the door. My hand waved through the knob as my body slammed against the wood. I stared at my hand yet again. With my cheek pressed against the door, I tried again. My fingers touched nothing but air. Fear wrapped around my spine, and I turned when I heard that scraping noise again, closer this time. A creak and the entire house shifted. I fell against the wall. Bracing myself, my eyes went back to the window. Long black fingers ran over it, sharp-looking claws making a heinous noise against the glass. I was frozen. The hand’s palm pressed flat for a minute. Blue light flared up and the hand jerked away. The room shifted again so the entire thing wasn’t at an angle. Glancing down, I confirmed that the orb was solid black. Wren’s runes had worked, even in a dream. While still in view, those fingers tensed with an unpleasant crack. They hesitated and I winced at the cracking noises as they jerked around independently. My stomach dropped to my feet when the window groaned, forced open half an inch. I was glued to the wall, unable to look away, rendered mute. Those fingers continued to crack and move. The window shuddered up an entire inch. Finally breaking free, I ran forward as I saw those cursed fingers slip into the opening. I slammed the window down and gasped, my breathing ragged. There were black smudges left over from where the fingers had been caught in the window.

“Child. Child open the window…Open the door.” I whipped my head around as hands pounded all over the door, shaking it against its frame.

“Leave! You’re not welcome here!” I screamed, near hysterical.

“The ruined one doesn’t have any answers for you, does he? About me. About you. About your…Talon. Does he? That cursed little runt.” The voices were filled with pity, some laughed, and they echoed around the small room.

“W-what are you talking about?” The pounding on the door stopped and I jumped back as the hand appeared in front of the window again, inches from my face.

“New power, forcibly awakened. You were given something that you didn’t deserve, your partner stole his. Cursed! Cursed! Both of you!” Screams, more laughter, and background shouts of outrage.

“How did we manage that? Talon was born with his power. He awakened! And if mine was gifted, that’s not stealing.”

“Late! Late like yours because it doesn’t belong to him! Then he ruined it! Sullied it! You don’t deserve it! Powerless!” I covered my ears as the voices continued to crescendo.

“From whom? You’re not making any sense! Magik can’t be stolen!” The window rattled and I pressed the wood down.

“From me and mine. The ones trapped because you humans were too soft…too tasty.”

“Well, that’s unfortunate, but I’m afraid I can’t help you.” More screams and laughter. I winced and frowned when the noises abruptly stopped. I took a breath. It was over. I staggered back and let out a breath of relief. It was short lived. As soon as I exhaled, two hands appeared, and the window was ripped upward. The room flooded with black, it spread fast and I fell into the dark. The window shattered. I couldn’t see it anymore, but I heard the glass break and wood splinter. Something heavy dropped onto the floor near me and I was so scared I thought I might be sick.

“Yeah, you can fuck. Right. Off.” I looked up as the dark around me shuddered and then began leeching away from the window. Screams filled the room again and I could’ve cried when there was enough light to see Talon standing over me. Black covered his arms and crept up his neck, his black claws clinked together as he drew the inky substance into himself. The screaming morphed into laughter, shrill and low at the same time. Talon stumbled, eyes going wide in disbelief. Whatever had dropped into the room rose in front of the window. It was so tall, it hunched against the ten-foot ceilings. Shadows twisted around it and fell over its body in a cloak. Faces, there were faces in the shadows, twisted in pain and anguish. My attention was drawn back as Talon staggered backwards and fell through the door. I saw the fear in his eyes and heard him screaming and slamming against the solid door mere seconds after he’d passed through.

“Troublesome little boy. Too much trouble.” Its voices slithered over my skin, so close I was too scared to look.

“Talon?” I heard him cry out and then something hit the door so hard a piece of wood flew off. Whatever it was loudly slid down. It had to have been Talon. I turned with a snarl, only to come face to face with it. Its shadows swirled but around its head they were thinner. A bald head with skin the color of midnight and elongated ears ending in severe points. Empty sockets for eyes and a black hole for a mouth. I didn’t care. I could only hear the cry that’d left Talon. I brought my hand up, level with its face and let loose my power. It reared back and the dark swirled to shield it from my light.

“Oi, pretty sure I told you to fuck off. That’s mine.” I glanced over my shoulder as Talon fell forward out of the dark. He caught himself and swung in my direction, panic clear in his eyes. His arms bracketed mine and black shot out to bolster my light. The screams were unbearable. As I watched, our light and dark twisted around each other. They didn’t merge, just rushed toward their common enemy. The thing shrunk down enough to escape out the window and I let my hands fall. Talon was panting behind me.

We jolted awake. The light in our room was on, our friends crowded inside, concern etched on their faces. Talon’s hands were on me immediately and I reciprocated, looking for where he’d been injured in the dream. His arms weren’t black, fingernails normal. We were panting, covered in sweat. Whipping my head around I saw the window. Completely intact. It had felt so real. The fear, the power, and the sounds.

“What’s happened?” Tyren’s hair was mussed from sleep, yellow eyes so wide they looked like they might pop out of his head.

“Did you go through with it?” Eon said at the same time, hand on Wren’s shoulder. I looked him over. Wren was visibly shaking, lips pulled tight across his fangs as his eyes refused to leave the window.

“It came to Kalian again. I got in. It didn’t go well.” Talon gasped, head in his hands.

“No, it did, we drove it back.” I insisted.

“Yes, after it slammed my entire body against the door so hard I lost consciousness for a few seconds. Not sure how that works when you’re already fucking sleeping.” Talon snapped.

“We used our powers together! They turned into this amazing spiral!” I exclaimed, rolling over Talon to stand.

“Why did you smear the runes?” Hanja was at the window, red eyes sharp as he turned to look at us.

“W-we didn’t. I didn’t. They were as Wren left them when we went to bed.” I pushed past everyone to get to the window. Sure enough, the symbols on the glass looked as though someone had taken their hand and smeared it across the pane.

“It could have taken control of you again Kalian.” Wren’s voice was a whisper, pink eyes like saucers. It unnerved me that the normal Wren was completely absent. He’d even used my name. His voice didn’t raise in volume as he continued, “I told you to have Talon restrain you. Something, anything. You’re sabotaging us.”

“Listen, I’m sure he forgot. It’s an honest mistake.” Amaris was leaning against the wall. Her head tilted and her eyes fell to me in a silent question. I nodded and she visibly relaxed.

“These mistakes the young lord is making seem to be getting more dangerous.” Hanja mused, fist held to his chin as he continued to stare me down. Tyren frowned at him and looked at me with sympathy.

“Agreed.” Wren wouldn’t look away from the window, even as I stood in front of it. Eon’s hand rubbed up and down his back, but I don’t know if the other male even felt it. Talon was still sitting on the bed, knees bent and elbows resting against them as he rubbed his eyes.

“I liked it better when all we had to worry about was treason and a coup.” He mumbled, fingers pressing harder against his eyelids.

“The good news is, it sounds like you were able to drive it back.” Eon came to inspect the window, hand resting on my shoulder reassuringly. It didn’t help. It was my fault. Hanja was right.

“Listen, we need to get over pointing blame. Myself included.” Talon sat on the edge of the bed, “It’s already happened. Wren will need to fix the runes and we’ll do better from here on out. If we stop working as a group we’re going to fall apart. No more withholding information. No more forgetting.”

“I will believe that when I see it. You two especially have always had a hard time being forthcoming. If you wish us to be left in the dark, I don’t understand why we’re here. We’re putting ourselves in danger and you don’t even trust us fully.” Hanja’s voice never left its normal volume, but the anger in it silenced the room. He left the room without another word. Tyren looked at us sadly as he moved to follow. I hadn’t even known Hanja felt that way. Had we been driving them away without knowing it?

“Be downstairs in fifteen minutes. We’re having another meeting. A real one. You’re going to tell us everything. No more vague half-truths.” Eon glanced down at Wren and then back to us, “And you two, you’re going to do the same. Everything on the table or I’m afraid the trust in this group will crumble.”

How Eon managed to get Hanja downstairs and at the table was beyond me. I was sure it had more to do with Tyren, who stood behind him with a grim expression, hands on Hanja’s stiff shoulders. Wren was silent and had a far away look in his eyes as he sat next to Hanja. Amaris took the last chair and Eon stood between Wren and I. Talon’s fingers tangled in the hair at the nape of my neck and my eyes jumped from person to person. No one wanted to start.

“My nightmares started as something completely different. Most centered around Mallex and what he did to me, or to all of you. Only after we came here did they switch to…that thing.” I offered. No one looked at me and I deflated a little bit, but continued, “The first one you heard about and you heard about the second one a bit too, but I’ll give you more detail.”

“Perhaps too little too late.” The words were monotone and I resisted the urge to look at Hanja.

“In the first dream I was drawn into the woods. It was far gentler. I walked of my own volition. Probably because I didn’t know enough to be threatened yet. The second dream, I was forced into the woods, dragged to it. Each time I entered the dark, I couldn’t use my Magik. It was like I was in a patch of the world Magik wasn’t allowed to touch. Once I ran and got far enough away, though, I was able to fight back.”

“Not entirely true, you told me in the kitchen that it grabbed you and your Magik triggered.” Tyren smiled reassuringly even as his partner refused to look at any of us for longer than a second.

“True, I wasn’t in control at all. It came from my mouth, my eyes, even my ears.” I said, resting my hand on Talon’s.

“Magik doesn’t work like that.” Hanja said flatly.

“I know that,” I snapped and then took a breath. Hanja had a right to be upset. I sighed, “I don’t know what happened. I woke up after that. The second dream I escaped differently.”

“With your Magik? It came back once you got away from the thing?” Amaris questioned, offering her hand under the table. I took it with the one that wasn’t in Talon’s and took a deep breath.

“Yes, I’m not sure if it was the creature or if the place I was lured into was a lair of some kind. When I ran, it gave chase, and I was still able to use light.” My hand had to be sweaty in both of theirs and I felt bad for a few seconds.

“Perhaps, controlling you and this dream plane is too difficult for it.” Tyren commented, fingers massaging the shoulders in front of him. I stared at the table, angry that we’d never even considered that. All this knowledge and experience and I had chosen to keep things to myself. I was an moron.

“Do you think your other dreams could be connected? Maybe they weakened you enough to let this thing in?” Eon added, shrugging.

“Hard to tell.” Again, I felt a stab of anger at myself. They only ever wanted to help. We were a family through shared experiences and I’d shut them out.

Talon sighed behind me, “The night after we had the argument about Kalian giving it information, I…felt it? Heard it? I don’t know. I was on the couch. This was after you and Tyren had gone upstairs, Hanja. It started as a breeze, but it didn’t make sense because Wren had fixed the door. This was a breeze that you’d have from an open window or door. Then there were voices. I couldn’t make anything out. Other than there was more than one.”

He took a breath and his fingers squeezed mine, “I was going to open the door. This was before Wren laid down all his lovely artwork. I don’t know what was out there. Wren said it wasn’t close yet, but…I felt it.”

“Wren, is there anything thing you can remember about it? Has it always been able to do things like that?” Eon asked.

Wren took a deep breath and laid his hands on the table, “My memory from that long ago is fragmented. I’m not sure if it’s repression or some kind of spell from my father. I know it was sealed. They bled me over and over every day for weeks until they had enough blood. I had to be healed by the shaman. A lot of people died, but they were successful.” His eyes showed that mentally he was miles away even as he spoke to us.

“I told you it fed off Magik, it wasn’t alone. At the beginning there were beings like the Soul Eater, born as the very first creatures to walk this earth. They were all devastatingly powerful, but not inherently evil. The Soul Eater…betrayed them?” He shook his head, “I can’t remember.”

“Tonight it said that Talon and I were cursed. That we’d stolen and been gifted our power from it and those like it.” I gasped softly.

“Humanity was given access to Magik. Nothing was stolen.” Tyren frowned.

“Are you sure we were meant to have it? We had to use runes, spells, and what not to make sure we didn’t blow ourselves away. Over time we adapted, but maybe that’s what it means.” I shrugged, getting confused.

“Would we have been able to create tools to harness it if it wasn’t meant for us?” Tyren shot back, smiling softly at me.

Wren stood, “We didn’t believe in gods in my village. There were good and evil spirits and the Soul Eater fell into the latter category, but there were good ones.”

“So it’s possible Kalian’s gift was given to him. What did my spell have to do with anything then?” Talon asked, running his fingers over mine.

“I wonder if it was dormant for some reason. I wonder if your meddling still woke it up.” Tyren mused, head tilting to the side as he thought.

Wren’s eyes flashed, “If that’s true than you may actually be able to stand against it. You too,Talon, if it thinks you stole something from it.” Wren’s claws tapped against the table as he looked at us, the crazed grin I was used to resurfacing.

“Did these creatures have names?” Eon asked, arms crossed.

“I can’t remember, but we used to have myths that sometimes the great spirits would bestow their power on regular humans.” Wren nodded, eyes bright.

“For what reason?” Hanja sounded annoyed.

Wren held his head at a strange angle as he grinned at Hanja, “To tip the balance. Every order of gods in history, no matter the culture, has liked to play with humanity.”

“Or use them to sway things in their favor.” Tyren added.

“Yes, yes. What does that mean for us? It must be close. It showed itself to us.” Talon interrupted as we saw Tyren gearing up to no doubt give a lecture on the gods.

“You saw it?” Wren was very close to me, nose an inch away, “What did it look like? You fought it, how did it react?”

“Mostly shadow, it didn’t have eyes or a mouth. Its skin was black as the night sky, void of color. We hit it with both our Magiks, and it escaped.” I smiled at Wren, barely containing my pride. We’d driven it back together, dream or not. Wind blew against the cottage, rattling the door and windows. Talon’s grip tightened on my fingers and Wren’s pink gaze shifted to the door.

“It’s getting closer.” He said softly.

“Well, I appreciate the information that should have been given before this point. Perhaps when this was occurring. Wren’s lack of memory is also starting to sound…convenient.” Hanja said, irritation dripping from each word.

“Are you saying he’s lying?” Eon growled under his breath and scarlet eyes snapped to my brother.

Hanja’s face remained impassive, “Do you also have something you’d like to share Eon? Perhaps the reason for your sudden defensiveness and affection towards Wren? That could be a good place to start.”

“Hanj, that’s not our business.” Tyren admonished quietly and I watched his hands drop from the other man’s shoulders.

“Whatever is going on between them has nothing to do with you Hanja.” Amaris snapped, straightening in her chair.

“No? Are you sure? It’s taken the most practical and logical of you and turned him into an irrational puddle of enamored goo.” Hanja pushed himself to stand, glove covered hands lingering on the table, “I am sick of not being trusted with the most basic of information. I have saved almost all of your lives.” He turned without looking at us, even Tyren. We stayed silent and I winced when a door upstairs slammed.

“He-he’s been having dreams too.” Tyren fell into Hanja’s vacated chair, “I’ve tried to put his suspicions and fears to rest, but he’s stopped listening to me.”

“Dreams about what?” I asked. Could the Soul Eater have touched more than one of us?

“It used to be much like the ones he’s always had. The things that happened to us and what not. Recently, though, he’s been convinced you’re all lying to us. Keeping the truth from us to stab us in the back. He’s…different. He even accused me of, uh, being unfaithful.” Tyren looked down at the table, hands folded neatly in his lap.

“Talk about withholding things. Hanja having dreams could be directly related to the Soul Eater.” Talon huffed.

“I know. I was waiting for him to tell you now that we’re all being honest.”

“I’ll speak with him.” I said, standing.

“Kalian, maybe you should wait.” Talon frowned and I smiled at him.

“Hanja saved your life and healed me repeatedly. I trust him with my life.” Before anyone else could argue, I darted for the steps. Climbing them in a hurry, I strolled down the hallway. Now that the air had been cleared, Hanja was the last piece to fit our group back together. I paused at their door, listening for a moment. A strange sound met my ears. A loud thwack and then something being dragged. I frowned and eased the door open, turning the knob as silently as I could. My brain took a long few seconds to catch up. Hanja stood at the window. A large, wet rag in hand. As I watched he dragged it over the flakey runes on the window. The rag dropped from his hand, and he looked down at it. He stooped to pick it up and thwack! It smacked back against the window, and he cleared another rune.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I shouted. I heard footsteps immediately on the floor downstairs. Hanja turned to me and I stumbled back as black eyes stared at me, unseeing. Tyren shouldered past me, stopping in the middle of the room when he took in the situation. He reached for Hanja. Hanja’s whole body shuddered, eyes fading to white. He fell forward, face on course to meet the ground hard. Tyren caught him and Talon was next to them in the next second. They turned Hanja only his back and I looked on in horror as his entire body began convulsing.

“He’s going to bite his fucking tongue off at this rate!” Tyren cried and I was thrown off again by him cursing. Shadow slid into Talon’s hand and formed into a small square. He pried Hanja’s mouth open and jammed it in his mouth, muffling his struggles and protecting his tongue.

“You weren’t alone.” Eon stood next to me. Amaris had joined Talon and Tyren on the floor.

“I don’t think it was just those two.” Wren mumbled beside him, lip curling in a snarl. Hanja stilled and they set about taking care of him.

“It’s over.” Amaris breathed out in relief. The next second, the window exploded inward, spraying shards of glass over the room and letting in an unholy chorus of voices.