Heirot

Talon let out a relieved sigh and his body visibly relaxed. The tension in his muscles ebbed, and his face looked softer. It wasn't gone, by any means, but it was hardly torture now. It became a harsh annoyance, and nothing but that.

The young vampire's eyes watered, and a tear fell down his cheek. He crumpled over himself, pressing his forehead to the stone floor. "Thank you."

Vlad rose from the bed and knelt next to his bloodling. He glanced up as he realized Espha was still standing there. He withheld a snarl. The only human he could generally tolerate when he felt this way was Tenele. "Out. I'll tend to him," he told the worried-looking girl as the door gently squeezed her out of the room. Men didn't usually like to have their guts lying out on the floor in front of the women they cared about.

There weren't many places Talon could be touched at the moment, so Vlad just knelt beside him with the link open and quiet. He used his thoughts to try to show the man what he felt. He tried to show him that he'd received these wounds protecting the people he loved. Those feelings were the permanent him. The madness that had taken over... it was an invasion he'd lost to, this round. But it was not who he was.

Talon curled on the floor, listening to the thoughts that his master shared with him. Each one soothed the vampire a little more. He eventually melted into the floor, and Vlad's thoughts became so soothing that they lulled him into enough comfort that the vampire could find peace in sleep.

Vlad made himself at home on the floor beside his bloodling, keeping the link open and quiet. Human sleep was needed to heal these wounds, but he hardly saw the need for them both to do it. He considered worrying over Tenele, but stopped himself. He knew them too well, and from what little Shi had told them, he suspected the village would be deserted by them time they arrived.

Next, he found himself pondering the strange connection he'd formed with Talon. It was almost like what he and Tenele shared when making love...but that was only hearing each other's thoughts. This was different....almost like sharing physical bodies and stamina. And, if focused enough, even thoughts.

He wondered if he could teach the bloodling other magics with this. Things his body had only learned through relentless torture and trial and error. Could he simply show the younger vampire what he could never explain or teach in a million years?

And should he?

After some time, when he could think clearly past the holy pain, he pushed up to his feet and checked on Tenara. Being a room away had no affect on the link. He tried using his powers to pull a blanket up over the sleeping Shi's shoulder. That, too, did not disrupt the link.

When he was confident it wouldn't cause a backlash, he returned to the other room and lifted his protege, mostly with his powers to avoid hurting him, and set him to rest in his own bed. The rest of the night and dawn was spent on the balcony, watching for figures on the edges of the sands while carefully managing the link.

Tenele snuggled closer to Atul, despite the immense heat. The morning sun was rising again, and its light filtered in through the door. They would need to head back today, gather Sho and take her back to the palace to be with Khi. Maybe then she would feel a little better, maybe talk a little more.

Tenele reached up, wincing at her sore arm, before she gave Atul a gentle nudge of the shoulder. She was sure he was sore from shovelling a majority of yesterday evening.

* * *

Espha stopped by very early in the morning, sneaking into the room quietly so not to wake up Tenara, who was tucked very neatly under blankets on the couch. The child had selflessly given up her bed to Khi, and instead made her own bed in the living area of her parents apartment.

She tip-toed to the door to Vlad and Tenele's room and opened it slowly. She peeked in, and not spotting Vlad in the doorway she crept closer to the bed.

Talon was sleeping peacefully. It made her heart feel a little better. She hadn't been able to sleep at all that night, thinking of the expression he wore and how he attacked her. She hadn't meant to hurt him...

She sat quietly at the edge of the bed next to him, reaching out to brush his silver hair away from his face.

Vlad rolled his eyes as he heard the girl cross the room to Talon. He had been standing at the balcony's edge, watching the sands for signs of his wife and husband-to-be. He turned and took a few silent steps to the boundary between the balcony and room. "Don't surprise him right now. Wake him, then touch him," he explained in a bored tone, not particularly interested in her puppy love at the moment. But it would hurt Talon if he accidentally ripped her arm off while his body was on overload like this.

Espha glanced up to Vlad, then back down at Talon sleeping. "I won't wake him," she whispered. "I just wanted to make sure he was okay." She drew her hand away very slowly and stood even slower so not to disturb him.

The young woman could almost feel Vlad's annoyance with her. It wasn't exactly a new emotion he showed her, but it was one that she hadn't seen from him since they first met near four or five years ago while the plague ravished Ida. After their journey together thought that hell, with Arken beating down on them, and her family being killed by it, she had thought of him a little like an older brother. But, he was to be husband to the King soon, and maybe that changed things. King-Soul they would call him. Or maybe her relationship with his Blood was what he didn't approve of. Or maybe he was tired....

Espha gave him a Hajaran courtly bow. "I'm sorry for intruding. I will visit when he is feeling better."

* * *

Tenele fed Sho water and rations after stoking the fire in their hut. She knew they needed to head back now that the bodies were buried, but she was concerned about carrying the girl across the desert. They would need to make camp at night, and the desert got cold. The future-queen was afraid that they would not be able to keep her warm enough in their small tents.

"How are you feeling, Sho?"

Sho opened her yellow eyes and looked up at Tenele. "Sho is stronger," she said intently. "Is Talon back?"

Atul poked his head in the door. He was shirtless, despite the coolness outside. The sweltering heat of the hut hadn't worn off for him yet. "The horses are ready, and the sands are warming."

* * *

Vlad studied Espha for a moment. "I need to ask a favor of you," he said slowly.

Espha straightened, clasping her hands together. She gave him a peculiar look, and then nodded. "I am happy to help you."

* * *

Tenele glanced up to Atul, nodding. "Talon is not back, but he is home resting. He was injured and we are going back to him. You will see Talon before tomorrow's end, or sooner. Wrap tightly in your blanket, Sho. I will come back to get you."

Tenele stood up and stepped outside the partitioned off room to speak with Atul.

"Do you think that we can keep her warm tonight? I was... I was thinking that if you were strong enough, and maybe Vlad was strong enough, that maybe Knight could take her on ahead of us? Then, we could travel back without the fear of losing her to the cold. But, I don't know if that would even work here. Talon was able to open a portal to this place to let them through, do you think that the laws of the sands will let Knight port from here?"

Atul nodded slowly as he considered her plan. "I don't know if he's tried before. But perhaps he can. At the least, he should be able to make faster progress than we could without him."

He rolled his shoulder stiffly. Pain lanced through his spine, but he kept it in check. "I should be able to support him. Sleeping with you has renewed me," he joked. "How are you for travel?" He peered at her injured arm.

* * *

Vlad glanced over his shoulder at the sands that stretched out beyond the castle. "The king is not back. I will need to play his role today. I will need to concentrate." he tapped the side of his head, and his skull pounded. Holding the link with Talon was mentally draining, and it felt like his focus was crumbling. "I've been helping him, and it will harm him when I leave." He didn't try to explain the burden they were sharing at the moment.

"I need someone to watch him, and Tenara. And the reptile girl. And the sands," he admitted, not bothering to mask his anxiety as he glanced across the horizon for the thousandth time. Now that the sun had lit the landscape, staring at it would be blinding torture. He would still prefer it over ruling from Atul's throne while the people he loved were out there somewhere in unknown condition.

Damned if he ever volunteered for babysitting again.

Tenele cupped a hand over her arm. "It hurts, but its not life-threatening. Riding will be easier on both of us if we don't have to carry her. Granted, she is very small."

* * *

Espha nodded. "I will be happy to watch them. It would be my pleasure to help the King-Soul." Espha bowed her head, feeling like he had tasked her with something very precious. He wanted her to watch the ones he loved, and that was very important.

Vlad blinked at her quietly. No one had addressed him that way yet. He was surprised how pleased it made him. And how badly it made him miss his lovers. "I am in your debt," he muttered softly. It was true that he was not the type to entrust the safety of any of his family to a stranger. Espha was closer to his inner circle than she probably believed, or than he had really realized yet.

The woman who had almost married the man he loved... the thought brought the twitch of a smirk to the edges of his mouth before it all washed away.

"Stand here for a minute," he directed, before crossing the room toward Talon. He was going to break the link, and though they were both better off than yesterday, it would still be a shock to Talon to feel the pain double. If there was a way to break it gradually, Vlad didn't know of it. He stood at Talon's side, and let the link snap apart.

* * *

Atul looked her over with concern. Maybe Knight could take them the whole way? "Should we try to summon Knight first?" he pondered.

Tenele nodded, giving Atul a kiss goodbye. "Sagre ne reion, Knight."

* * *

Talon jerked in his sleep. His eyes snapped open. He withered in pain and flopped onto the floor. He'd been comfortable, and now he felt heat, and fire, and he wondered if he'd been attacked again.

The world seemed jostled as the sensation flared back, and too shocked to understand why, he immediately turned his attention to who might have attacked him. He paid little attention to the details of the individuals in the room. He found a heartbeat, and he went for it.

Vlad reached out and caught his protege by the collar as he tried to race past him, yanking him around and slinging him back into the bed. "Talon," he said firmly as he pinned the man against the blankets. "You're safe. Bear with me," he shuddered as a familiar force began tugging at his soul. "Espha....don't run," he managed, not sure who it was for. I'm coming, love. He shuddered, and disappeared from the room.

* * *

Knight appeared before Tenele, agile body bent to one knee. He wore a long black tunic belted around the waist, a jet earring dangling from one ear. He paused a moment, taking in Atul's condition and considering it, digesting all that had happened since he'd last seen them.

When he raised his eyes to Tenele, he looked bold. "I am yours, my love," he vowed with a confident smile. He glanced to his right and focused on a location in the sand. He disappeared, and reformed, a few feet off target, but with more control than Vlad had managed alone.

"I can teleport, but it will be inefficient. It will be draining for you with your injuries, and for the girl..." he advised, walking toward her. "And, if I cannot fully reach our destination... I may need your support to ride." He looked to her sympathetically.

Knight was a beautiful man, and his appearance always struck her. She often wondered where his clothing came from, or his adornments, but she never thought to ask, and right now was definitely not the time.

Tenele frowned. "Don't take me," she said. "I can ride back with Atul. Maybe her small shape will be easier to transport and put less strain on you? Maybe you can make it there with her, and not both of us? Atul will need someone to help him get back. He will be drained when I return you, and I don't want him left out here alone." Tenele went inside the hut and scribbled onto a piece of wood with charcoal. She wrote Vlad a note to let him know they were okay, and would be home soon.

"Do you think you can make it without me?" She held the note tight.

* * *

Espha didn't run. But, Vlad disappeared and it shocked her. She looked around for him, wondering where he'd gone. Talon heaved on the bed, and it worried her.

"Espha," he breathed. He smelled her. Sweet and lovely, Espha. No, he didn't want to call her over, not when he didn't trust himself.

But, Espha moved forward at his call. She was careful not to move fast, and she held her hands so tight together that they hurt. She didn't want to admit she was a little afraid after what she saw yesterday, but she was.

He knew it, too. He could smell it. It was like an alluring perfume she wore, and he wanted to drift towards it. Talon closed his eyes and held up his hand. She stopped, no more than a foot from his palm.

"Are you in pain?" she asked him.

"Yes," he huffed. "Not as much as yesterday, but pain. So much pain."

"Can I help?"

Talon thought about it, smelling fear made him want to taste it on his tongue. He shook his head violently. No, not Espha. He cared for her. She was young, and innocent, and he was a bastard for involving her in his life. "Go away," he huffed, pinching his nose, but that did little to alleviate it.

"But, Vlad asked me to look after you and his daughter, and the lizard-child," Espha whispered. "I must-"

"Go. Away."

"No," Espha replied firmly, and the fear he smelled quieted in an instant. It was there, but not nearly as strong. "Stop being a child."