"And how can there be a fifth element," asked Apollonius, "alongside

water, air, earth, and fire?"  "There is the ether," replied the other man,

"which we must regard as the stuff of which the gods are made.”

 

Philostratus- “The Life of Apollonius of Tyana”

 

What started as a quick kiss burst into an inferno.  Cross’s hand found her hip and pulled her forward, so she slammed against his body.  “Open your mouth, Nia.  Do it, now.”  He commanded, just like he had the first time.

And, once again, Nia was absolutely willing to follow instructions.  She gave a small gasp as Cross’s lips slanted across hers.  His hand came up to fist in her hair, holding her in place as his kiss ravaged her.  Cross may have been withdrawn in everything else, but once Phazing was triggered, he just dominated.

Nia decided she didn’t mind, at all.

“You’re so beautiful, baby.  God, it’s like a miracle.”  He moved and Nia found herself flattened up against a building.  She dazedly noticed that Cross had maneuvered them into an alleyway.  They might have been invisible, again.  Nia was too far gone to know or care.

Cross gripped one of her legs and lifted her so she was cradling his hip.  She was wearing a gauzy, water colored skirt, so he had no problems pulling it aside.  He stared down at her panties for a beat and then left them in place.  His erection pressed up against her, hard enough to intensify the burn that his kiss had started.

“Cross.”  Nia instinctively moved against him and bit her lip at the sensation.

“Good girl.”  He lifted higher, sandwiching her between himself and the wall.  “Slide down a little bit.  See how that feels.”

Nia whimpered at the sensation of his pants brushing against the silk of her underwear.  She wanted all the fabric gone.

Now.

“That’s it, baby.  I have an idea.”  Cross lifted her, again.  His free hand slipped inside waistband of her panties so he could find the very core of her.  Callused fingers rasped across delicate flesh and her head fell back in rapture.  “Yes or no, Nia?”

“Yes.”  She could feel the Phazing energy swirling tighter around them, pushing higher than she’d ever been in her life.  “Yes, that’s a fantastic idea.”  Thank God, he was coming to his senses.  All Nia’s instructions about not getting naked in public were gone as she reached for Cross’s shirt, wanting to see him.  “Yes, yes, yes…  No!”  She rocked against his palm, when she felt him stop.  “Don’t tease me, you sadist.”  She whacked his shoulder.

Cross’ mouth curved, but there was a desperate edge to it.  “I thought you’d like this.  Be a good girl and we‘ll negotiate.  Don’t touch me, okay?  Just let me touch you.”

Nia blinked.  “What?  Why?”

“Because, I said so.  Don’t I always stop touching you when you ask?”

She struggled to process what he was saying as his knuckles brushed against her heated center.  He was up to something and it wasn’t with the portion of his anatomy that interested her right now.  His fingers moved again, distracting her.  “Damn it, right there.”  She shifted, trying to bring him back to the spot.  “You’re cheating again.”

“Are you going to be good or not?”  He challenged, not giving in.  His eyes glowed with a frenzied light.

“Yes.  Fine.  I’ll be good and I won’t touch you.  Just touch me, already.”

 “I will.  God, you’re soft.  It’s killing me.  How could anyone be this soft?”  She was so wet that he had no trouble slipping two fingers inside of her.  “That’s it, nice and deep.  Shhh.”  He leaned forward to sooth her as she made a small, anxious sound of submission.  “Shh.  It’s alright, baby.  Don’t be scared.  We can stop anytime you want.”

Nia’s palm came up to grasp the rough texture of the wall behind her, trying to find leverage.  She’d waited for her Phase-Match, because she’d known that he’d come.  Even after the Fall, she’d known.  Now, he was here, though and she wasn’t sure what to do.  She’d never felt a man inside of her before.  The stretched, full feeling of his fingers overwhelmed her for a beat, making Nia’s eyes go wide.  Almost instantly, she relaxed, again.  Her head rested against his shoulder, surrendering to the sensation.  This wasn’t just a man.  This wasn’t just her Match.  This was Cross.  “No, don’t stop.”

Cross kissed her again and the energy all but glowed around them.  He quickly jerked back like her lips burned him.  “No.  Too much.”  He glanced back down at his fingers penetrating her, separating her, like he just couldn’t resist watching.  “That’s a good girl.”  He groaned softly as she moved.  “Let me all the way in.”  His voice was vibrating with Shadows and it sent an additional shudder of pleasure through her.  Cross sounded so menacing, except he was cradling her like she was made of porcelain.  He held her open and vulnerable, but Nia was safe from everything.  “How’s that feel, baby?”

“Wonderful.”  She could barely get the word out.  She arched against him as he stroked deep inside of her.

It was wonderful.  He was wonderful.

If he screwed up their Match with his insecurities about Phazing, she’d kill him.

“Say my name, again.”  He ordered, tautly.  “Tell me what you want, Nia.”

“Move your hand.  Cross.”  The word broke as he began to slide his fingers in and out, faster and faster.  “Cross, please.  Yes.”

The energy built, crackling around her.  It felt so, so good that Nia could only let it wash over her.   Stronger and stronger… Oh, God.

And then Cross stopped, again.

Nia’s eyes flashed open.  “You really do have a death wish, don’t you?”  She panted.

“Give me a second, baby.”  He swallowed, looking strained.  “If I keep it controlled, I can make you happy and we won’t have to do the whole Phazing.  I can make you come without triggering the energy and we’ll be okay.”

Nia gaped at him.

Was he nuts?

 He couldn’t possibly think that would work.  She could’ve cried as the big dummy completely killed the mood.

Even if she found relief this way --and okay, she totally could, because he was super good with his hands-- it still wouldn’t be enough.  And it sure wasn’t doing him any favors.  She could feel the power it took for him to resist Phazing.  It wasn’t natural.  It was draining him.  Phazing had to be mutual.  And they certainly couldn’t avoid sex forever, so the whole idea was ridiculous, anyway.

Cross’ body, combined with even the restrained weight of his power, was driving Nia crazy in a real good way.  But, he was holding back.  It wasn’t right if he held back.  She could sense the energy he was shielding her from and it was a constant distraction.  Like the hum of a florescent light fixture.

Why didn’t he just trust her?  How could he not see that they were a Match?  Nia had to fight the urge to just shove the obstinate jerk to the ground, strip off his clothes, and make him understand the truth.

“Cross, stop.”

He halted, the air sawing in and out of his lungs.  “Stop touching?”  He verified.  His voice was even more Shadowed, now.  So dark that Nia felt her breasts tighten in response.  She actually had to close her eyes for a second.

“Stop touching.”  She whispered, miserably.

Damn.

He instantly released her, his hand sliding free.  There was something so erotic about even that.  One word from her and he had the strength to pull back even that close to the brink of Phazing.  How many men could do something that hard?  She could see how aroused he was, how much he wanted her.  It was astonishing.  Cross wasn’t dangerous.  Not to her.  He was the safest place in the universe.

Nia swiftly stepped away from the wall before things got hot, again.  She needed to make a point about something, but she’d forgotten what.  “Thank you.”  She straightened her skirt, keeping her palm on his wrist, so the headache wouldn’t hit him, again.  “Sorry.  That one was my fault.”

Cross didn’t respond to that.  His attention was fixed on her mouth.

“Right.”  Nia licked her bottom lip, feeling damp and terribly unfulfilled.  “Where was I?”

“I felt you after the Fall.”  Cross prompted, still not raising his eyes to hers.  “Knew you were my Match.”

He’d actually been listening to her and he remembered what she’d said?  Nia’s heart melted.  “Right.”  She repeated, still out of breath, but recalling her argument.  “So, if you felt me, if you knew even then that I was your Match, don’t you think there’s a reason Gaia chose me to be with you?  I’ve never heard of Phase-Matches who couldn’t sustain each other’s energy.  We’re supposed to be together.  It’s destiny.  So, then there’s no reason to worry that the Shadows will hurt me.”  It all made perfect sense to her, but Cross obviously wasn’t convinced.

His only response was to lift the hand that had just nearly brought her to the universe’s most shattering climax ever and casually pop his index and middle fingers into his mouth, sucking the taste of her right off of them.

Nia’s eyes narrowed.  “Wiseass.”  She shoved past him and stalked back out onto the street.  “After I thought it was so sweet that you were listening, too.”  She complained, expecting him be following along after her.  “I’m pouring my heart out…”

And right then, Nia remembered that she had to keep touching him.  She spun around, just in time to see Cross clutch his head in silent agony.  “Cross!  Damn it.”  Nia sprinted back to him, grabbing his forearm.  “If you need to touch me, then just do it!  Don’t suffer when I can fix it so easily.”

“You said no touching.”  He reminded her, looking baffled even through the blood tearing out of his eyes.  “You said stop.”

He stared down at her and Nia realized that her Match really was insane.  “So, you interpreted that as me wanting you tortured?!”  She shouted.  “You know what kind of touching I meant!  I swear to Gaia, if this is some kind of crazy masochistic, suicide plot, I will follow you into oblivion and I will kick your ass!”

He cringed slightly at her volume.  “Baby, calm down.  The headaches won’t kill me.  You’re right.  I shouldn’t have been touching you like that in the first place.”  He tried to shift his arm out from under her palm.

Nia wondered if it was possible to strangle someone with just the force of her mind.  Cross would rather double over in pain, separated by his precious two feet of air, than just accept that Nia was his Match and that she wanted to help him.

What the hell kind of life had he had led that he thought so little of himself?  That he thought she’d punish him by refusing his touch and leave him suffering with headaches so bad blood poured out of his eyes?

“Cross,” She struggled to keep her voice reasonable, even as she wouldn’t let him break contact with her skin.  “I appreciate that you stop touching me whenever I ask.  I know that if I say “no,” you’ll respect that.”

 “Always.”  He agreed with a quiet intensity.  He stopped trying to dislodge her hand.

“But, you understand the difference between me getting overwhelmed or frustrated and asking you to stop making love to me or something, versus me not wanting to touch you, at all, right?”

Cross frowned.  “What?”

He wasn’t getting it.  Nia tightened her hold on his arm and decided to make things simpler.  “Cross, you are my Match.”

She felt his muscles jump under his skin and realized that she now knew two things that Cross liked to hear:  His name and that she accepted their Phase-Match.

Nia pressed onward.  “Matches care for each other, right?  That’s what I keep trying to tell you.  Don’t you care for me?”

His mercury gaze met hers and something shifted behind his eyes.  Something so big that it swamped Nia’s senses.  Whatever Cross felt for her, it was already more than the connection of ordinary Matches.  It was like a huge living thing inside of him.

He could love her.

She was sure of it. 

She just had to be persistent.

Nia swallowed.  “I’ll take that as a yes.”  She cleared her throat.  “So, you understand that I don’t want you hurt.  It hurts me when you hurt.  So, from now on, I don’t care if I’m in a freaking Council meeting, after you and I have just had the biggest fight in the world and I screamed that I never want to see you, again… If you get a headache, you still come find me and touch me?  Got it?  Headaches trump no touching rules.”

He just watched her.

“Got it?”  She repeated, forcefully.

Cross gave a grudging nod.  “I can usually control them.”  He said at length.  “When I touch you and then suddenly stop touching you, it’s like the Shadows get agitated.  Like they think you’ll leave, and the pressure gets worse.”

“I’m not going to leave.”  Nia promised.  “Look, we’ll figure this all out.  We have plenty of time.  What matters now is that you’re okay.  Is your headache still bad?”

“Some minutes are better than others.”  He gave her another almost smile.  “I probably deserved that headache, anyway.  It was worth it, though.”

“You’re impossible.  If you weren’t such a good kisser, I’d toss you back.”  Nia ducked slightly so she could loop his arm across her shoulder.  “Come on.  Let’s concentrate on saving the rest of the world, since you seem determined to screw everything up for the two of us.”

“I already saved the rest of the world once and look where it got me.  Explain why I should do it again?”

“It got you me.”  Nia reminded him, smugly.  “And with me comes great responsibility.”

“Actually, I think that’s Spider-Man.”

Nia hadn’t expected him to pick up on that reference.  She smiled at him, utterly charmed by the idea of Cross reading comic books.  “Do you spend a lot of time in the human realm?”  She’d assumed that he didn’t, since it took a lot of energy to get here.  Usually, two or three Phases were needed to make the jump.  Job could do it alone, but Job was Job so he didn’t count.  Cross was so solitary that she couldn’t imagine him taking daytrips to visit humans with some of his buddies.  Then again, his clothing was human.  And when the Air House had attacked her, Cross had certainly gotten into this realm just fine on his own.

“I spent time here when I was looking for you.”  He explained.

“You looked for me here?”  Elementals didn’t Match with humans, so she wasn’t sure what he’d planned to do even if he’d discovered her living in this realm.

“I looked for you everywhere except at the damn Council.”  He sounded disgusted.  “I should’ve known you were my Match.  Over and over, Job would talk about whatever crazy thing you’d done at that week’s meeting and –God-- how I wanted you.”

Nia froze.  “You wanted me?”

“Yeah.”  He seemed confused by her expression.  “What?  You missed the fact that, despite my best intentions, I’ve been trying to take you on every possible surface since the minute I got here?”

“But, that’s because I’m your Match.  You wanted me before that?  Just because I’m Nia?”  Nia was captivated.  The power of the Phase-Match was so special, but the idea that Cross would have been attracted to her anyway was incredibly important.

She hadn’t known how important until that moment.

“I’ve wanted you since Job first said your name to me.”  Cross’s studied her face.  “Nia, of the Water House.  Defiant and strong and willing to care about things.  And, now that I’ve actually met you...”  He shook his head.  “If I’d been given anyone else as a Match, I’d renounce her in a fucking second to be with you, instead.  I don’t care about Phazing or Matches or destiny.  There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to have you, Nia.  Just you.”

Nia realized there wasn’t a single thing she could say to that and not have it sound completely unworthy of him.  “Thank you for finding me, Cross.”  She finally whispered.  “Thank you so much.”

His mouth curved, slightly.  “You’re welcome.  Thanks for not getting killed by the Air House before I got here.”

“Hey, I was holding my own against them.”  Nia smiled, trying to hide how close she was to tears.

Cross made an “umm” sound.

“I was.”  She nodded.  “Really.  I’ve been taking some self-defense lessons with Uriel since the Fall.”

He slanted her a dark look.  “With Uriel?  Didn’t I just have to save his ass?  That’s the teacher you picked?”

“It was three against one!  He got two of them.”

“I got four.”

Nia couldn’t suppress a grin at Cross’s tone.  “You’re such a jerk.”  She leaned up to kiss the side of his jaw.  “You can teach me self-defense from now on.  Will that make you happy?”

“Thrilled.”  Cross glanced at something that looked like a car covered with vines sitting at the intersection.  He gave his head a “whatever” shake and turned back to Nia.  “Why do you need self-defense?  Why is the Air House even after you?”

“They aren’t.  They’re after Ty.  That’s why we need to get her out of jail, if she and Thar haven’t already escaped.  She’s too exposed there.  Parald could find her.”

Cross grunted.  “Those Reprisal assholes are right.  Parald needs to die.”

“I know, but I’m not risking Ty to do it.”  Nia leaned against him.  “I’m glad you’re here.  You can help me keep her safe.  I need help saving the world and you have experience.”

“God, if I’m your white knight, then you’re in trouble, baby.”

“I am in trouble.  We all are, Cross.  That’s why it’s so important that we find information on that blood donation.  I think that it will lead to something special.”

“Oh yes, the speed dating question that you refused to answer: ‘Why are you here?’”

Nia bit her lower lip and took a chance.  “I’m looking for answers; following clues.  Haven’t you wondered why I picked this human town to search?”

Cross glanced around.  “No.  Human towns all look alike to me.  One’s as good as another.”

She rolled her eyes.  “Well, Ty and I found something in our research.  You probably didn’t notice, since you’re so strong, but Mayport Beach is actually the easiest place to jump into the human realm.  For some reason, the barriers are weaker here than anywhere else.  We think that other beings are drawn here, because the shields are easier to bypass, and we’re… looking for someone.”

“For another being?”  He didn’t seem thrilled with that news.  “Aren’t the humans bad enough?  What else is lurking around?”

“We think that…”  Nia hesitated, then finished in a rush.  “We think maybe the Quintessence is here.”

Cross looked at her, sharply.  “There’s no such thing.  It’s a fairytale, baby.”

Nia had known he’d feel that way.  The Quintessence was pure Indiana Jones material.  Phases had searched for it for years and no one had ever even come close to finding it.

Until now.

“It’s real, Cross.  Ty was looking at human blood and she found something.  Something that shouldn’t exist.  Something that isn’t human or Elemental or anything else.”  Nia pushed on determinedly.  “Something Divine.”

“In human blood?”  Cross almost looked amused.  “Why would the Quintessence be a human?  If I were all-powerful, I’d go for a dinosaur or something.  No, wait, a continent.”

“I’m serious.”  Nia insisted.  “I have no idea why the Quintessence is donating human blood and I don’t care.  If we could find it, we could fix things.”

“Fix things?”  Cross repeated, warily.

“It’s magical, Cross.”  Nia waved an all-encompassing hand.  “It can do anything.  It could undo the Fall.  Maybe bring back my parents…”

Cross cut her off.  “You lost your parents in the Fall?”  He looked disturbed by that idea.

“Everyone lost their parents in the Fall.”  Nia swallowed hard against the memories.  “Didn’t you?  You must have.  Your father was the Shadow King and I know that he died.”

“Vice wasn’t my father.”  Cross’ voice went utterly emotionless.  “My father died when I was a boy.”

“Oh.”  Nia gave him a quick compassionate squeeze.  “I’m sorry.  I didn’t know that.  It must’ve been terrible to lose him so young.”

“Shit happens.”  Cross shrugged.  “But, usually because it’s supposed to happen, Nia.  Nothing can change that.  Not even the Quintessence.  You can’t fix the Fall.”

“Cross, I have to try.  Don’t you see?  I can’t just ignore this when I know the Quintessence is here somewhere.  I can feel it.  Will you just trust me?  Please?”  Nia willed him to believe her, even though she knew he wouldn’t.  It was like asking him to accept that Elvis was alive and living in Atlantis.

Cross stared at her for a long moment.  “Damn.”  He muttered.  “Finding it will be the least of our worries.  Once we have it, Parald and the Reprisal will destroy the world to get that thing.  Literally.”

“You believe me?”  Nia blinked.  “Really?  You believe it exists?”  Job certainly hadn’t.

“You could tell me anything and I’d believe it.”  He shrugged.  “But, this?  Hell, if anyone could find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, it would be you, Nia.  Of course, I believe you.”

Nia couldn’t help it.  She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him.  “Thank you.”  She realized that the tears were starting to fall, and tried to wipe them away.  “You’re the only one…”  She sniffed and trailed off.  “Thank you, Cross.”

“Oh, God.  Don’t cry.”  Cross drew her closer and buried his face in her neck.  “Baby, you’re killing me.  Don’t cry.  And stop thanking me for things.  I haven’t done anything.”

“Yes, you have.”  Nia whispered.

The Phazing energy flared, again.

Suddenly, Nia saw a barrage of images in her head and she realized that she was experiencing Cross’s memories.

…And every one of them was like a horror movie.