“Before I go, I need to feed, and before I feed, I want to ask you again. Will you accept my elgida, Esania?” He stood with his back against the window, the bright afternoon sunlight streaming in, surrounding him like a halo. His dark scale-armor was gone, replaced with the black sleeveless tunic and pants. With his wings folded neatly against his back, and his cropped golden hair, he looked as sharp as a blade.

They were alone in the tower now. Vanu had left, and Sara had disappeared downstairs, giving them an appraising look as she left.

That Sara.

She understood more than she let on.

Esania paused, as if there were an imaginary line she was about to cross. “It would help if I knew exactly what an elgida was, Imril. All you’ve told me is that it’s very painful, and it’s permanent. That doesn’t exactly make it sound appealing.”

His eyes roamed over her body, making her feel naked. “I also told you that it would allow us to consummate our bond without harming you.”

Consummate our bond.

This was really happening.

“Does that not sound appealing to you, Esania?” Imril raised an eyebrow. He was in his element now; confident, cocky, as if he knew exactly what was going on in her body right now.

Wait… that was because he did.

Unfair.

And clearly, he wasn’t going to stop until he got what he wanted.

“It…” A flush spread through her cheeks as her body came alive once again, reacting to his closeness. It sounds amazing. Down there, between her thighs, she was definitely wet, aching to have him inside her. She knew they were compatible. Stars, that first day, when he’d abducted her, he’d been naked. She’d seen him; all of him.

And right now, she couldn’t get the thought of his impressive cock out of her mind.

The puritanical Primean voice inside her head was completely silent.

“Why are you denying me, Esania? Why do you hesitate?” He traced his bare fingers down her neck, drawing her power into him. Esania didn’t even blink. She was used to the feeling by now. The more he took, the more relaxed… and horny she felt.

“I’m scared,” she admitted, allowing herself to feel vulnerable for the very first time in her life. Gone were the masks and defenses and completely artificial Primean barriers to intimacy.

She was simply a woman.

He, a man.

And she craved him.

Her old existence was gone, and she wanted more in this life.

She wanted to be free.

“What exactly are you afraid of, Esania?”

Oh, that was easy. “The unknown. You’re so powerful, Imril. Your body, your abilities, the very being that you are… what you’ve done and what you’re about to do. Do you understand that it’s so very hard for my simple mind to comprehend someone like you?”

He shocked her then, because for the briefest moment, so quickly she almost missed it, an expression of pure desperation flashed across his face.

As if he were lost.

“I promise, you will know everything. There are to be no secrets between you and me, Esania.” He dropped to his knees and unfurled his wings, bringing them around her in a spectacular embrace. “I would never hurt you. I just want to make you mine. The elgida is my mark. A seal, of sorts. Once I have inscribed it into your skin, the elgida becomes a conduit for my power. As I feed from you, I will be able to replenish your strength.”

Now that definitely didn’t make sense, but Esania had learned not to try and rationalize things on this planet. “A seal?”

“It is an ancient Auka technique. Let me lay the groundwork,” he urged, placing his hands on her waist. He slid his fingers over the contours of her body and buried his nose between her thighs, inhaling deeply. “Let me in, Esania. Trust me. I will make everything right.”

Her breath caught. Hardly believing that he was actually kneeling before her, she placed her finger beneath his chin and tilted his head upwards, so she could meet his eyes.

Oh, how she wanted to believe him. Logic flailed around in her mind, warring with her growing desire. “I’m out of my depth here. I don’t understand the politics on this planet,” she said slowly as she ran her fingers over his jaw, feeling his skin, which was so strange and wonderful. It was perfectly smooth, hard yet soft, velvety yet slippery, made of scales that were so tiny they were almost like cells. “Why are you all alone, Imril, without an empire or an army? What happened to you, and why do the Naaga keep attacking?”

“You need to know, don’t you?”

“I’d feel a lot better if I knew what’s going on. I grew up in a world that was based on law and order and structure. This whole thing has been a nightmare for me.”

“Not anymore.” He ran his hands down her thighs, and Esania resisted the sudden urge to tear off her pants and let him have his way. “This entire situation is my doing. I was a tyrant, thinking I would rule the world forever. I ignored my Lords when they fought, when they started wars, when they began to conspire against me. Absolute power has a way of breeding contempt, and age breeds ennui. I forgot how to value life. Even my own life became pointless.”

The thought of an ageless being with almost unlimited power, indifferent to the plight of his own people…

He was the closest thing to a god that she’d ever encountered. She should be terrified of him, and het here she was, commanding his full attention as he kneeled before her, gently caressing her body.

“How can I be sure that you won’t turn into that tyrant again?” Her voice didn’t even waver.

“I don’t make the same mistake twice.” Imril’s expression turned fierce. “And I will have you to keep me in check, no?” He took her hand into his and began to trace swirling patterns on her palm with his finger.

Oh, he could be charming. How she wanted to believe him. “What are you doing, Imril?”

“Just thinking of how I will make your elgida.”

Esania let out a tiny puff of exasperation. She hadn’t even accepted yet. “Explain.”

“My mark. The knowledge comes from the Ancestors, and the design itself spills from the void between worlds. All Drakhin have one elgida to give in their lifetime. It binds us together. It tethers your soul to mine.”

Speechless, her heart hammering, her body trembling with need, Esania could only stare at him as he ran his long fingers down her palm, her wrist, her arm, tracing the most intricate pattern. His description of the elgida didn’t make anything clearer, but his words were utterly enticing.

Stop overanalyzing everything.

“Do you trust me, Esania?"

“I…” She closed her mouth and nodded. Yes.

She, the Primean who had been taught to analyze everything dispassionately, to look at the facts, surrendered to an instinct, a gut feeling, a sense that this was right.

The second time in her life that she’d given in to that feeling.

“My elgida will be the most beautiful, a creation worthy of your beauty. You brought me back to life, Esania. Let me give you my soul.”

Stars, when he looked at her like that, his amber eyes glowing, his catlike pupils widening, his lips slightly parted, an expression of perfect longing on his face…

She wanted to surrender.

But this was a delicate exchange, and if she was going to bind herself to him for what sounded like… forever, she needed to do it right.

Esania took a deep, trembling breath. “Promise me you’ll protect my people. Promise me that we’ll be free in this life—on this planet. Promise that whatever you do, there will always be a place for me and my people in your world, and that includes the Vradhu, if they wish.”

She’d already calculated the probability of them getting off this planet and successfully reaching their intended destination, Torandor.

It was close to zero.

They probably weren’t ever going to get off this planet.

Imril watched her so intensely she thought his blazing eyes would tear a hole right through her. “You put me to shame, Esania,” he said at last, and she didn’t entirely understand what he meant. “I told you before, if you accept my elgida, I will give you everything.”

A promise.

That was all she had in this world.

And Imril could have torn it away from her at any time, but he’d held back. A creature who possessed the power of a god, yet he was oh-so gentle with her.

How earnest he looked right now.

She closed her eyes. “Do it,” she whispered.

Her body was on fire. Not in her wildest dreams could she have imagined that it was possible to need someone so badly.

Imril brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm. His warm lips sent an electric tingle across her hand and up her arm. He literally felt electric. “This is not something I can complete in a single sitting. It will take time, perhaps an entire revolution.”

“An entire revolution… around this planet’s sun?” A year? Is that what he means? Suddenly, she was filled with alarm. How was she going to endure this sweet torture for an entire year? “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Imril chuckled, his voice deep, warm, reverberating through her body, stoking her arousal to new heights even as he continued to draw energy from her in a slow, exquisite trickle.

She didn’t mind. His touch made her feel relaxed, euphoric.

It was like being on some sort of drug.

“It might be an entire revolution before I complete my elgida, but that doesn’t mean we can’t mate. As soon as you bear even part of my mark, I can return energy to you. When the elgida is big enough, the act of mating won’t kill you. Instead, it will energize you.”

“Well that’s a relief.” She, who had always prided herself on being a patient person, was now so terribly impatient.

Imril snorted. “I am old. I’ve tolerated a lot in my lifetime, but even I wouldn’t have lasted an entire revolution. Be strong now, my love. This will be painful.”

Feeling giddy, as if she were floating on clouds, Esania dropped to her knees. Imril drew his wings—still painted with nightblack—closer together, forming a dark cocoon around her.

He began to trace her palm, and this time, the tip of his finger emitted a faint golden glow. A dull pain spread through her hand as he drew patterns with his finger.

Strangely, feeling pain only sharpened her arousal.

An intricate design started to appear, burned into her skin with great precision. Swirls, lines, fluid shapes, and mysterious alien characters appeared on her hand.

The markings were deep pink against her brown skin, and they were beautiful, like a grand old piece of Earthian artwork. As Imril continued to work, she looked up at the glittering ceiling.

“That... looks similar to what’s up there.” Brilliant gemstones winked back at her, and the longer she stared, the more she got the sense that this was the Universe; wild, ancient, unfathomable, making her feel as insignificant as a speck of dust.

“It’s the song of the void between worlds.” Imril’s voice stole her attention away from the dazzling ceiling. “It’s the flow of life throughout the Universe. It’s all around us, ripples of energy that we can’t see or feel. I can only see a part of it—your vir.”

When they were on the Medusa, escaping from the Paxnath slavers, they’d entered the Netherverse, a parallel dimension that had spat them out somewhere near this wild, uncharted planet. Could it be that the Netherverse was this so-called void between worlds?

Her hand was on fire. Her body was on fire. Pain mingled with pleasure and desire, sending her to the very brink.

Imril didn’t relent. Everything she thought she knew about life and the Universe was turned on its head by this beautiful monster.

Really, Humans and Primeans knew so very little about the Universe.

As Imril worked, the patterns burned into her skin started to glow, turning golden and then fading. She closed her eyes and clenched her teeth, breathing heavily. She cried out as the pain became almost unbearable, tears appearing at the corners of her eyes.

“Just a little more,” he said gently, sending a final burst of warmth down her arm. The sensation faded, leaving the most pleasant, tingly afterglow in its place. “There you are.” He kissed her bare skin.

Esania didn’t feel so drained anymore. She breathed a great sigh of relief.

Gently, Imril released her hand. He studied his handiwork, appearing rather pleased with himself. “I will tell Rau to bring you some aminac to rub into the markings. This will heal very nicely.”

“That wasn’t as bad as I thou—”

Suddenly, she found herself in his arms, being lifted to her feet. Imril’s kissed her slowly, tenderly, taking her vir. At the same time, he sent a ripple of warm energy down her arm.

She felt it. Her body absorbed a little bit of his power, and it was utterly intoxicating.

“This is my power,” he whispered, kissing her lips, her cheek, her throat, burying his nose in the hollow of her neck. He inhaled deeply. “With time, as the elgida grows, you will be able to take more and more, .”

She still didn’t really understand, but right now, she didn’t care. Feverishly, she kissed him back. “Does this mean we can…”

“Not yet,” he whispered, pressing a finger to her lips. “Still too dangerous. This is just a fraction of what I need to do, but for now, it is enough. I hate that it hurts you, but it will all be worth it. But first I need to go and deal with a certain… problem.”

“The Naaga,” she ventured, taking a wild stab. “I wish there was something I could do to help.”

“You just being here is enough.” He leaned in and kissed her again, his hot, sensual lips gliding against hers. “The humans and the Vradhu will arrive soon, and Mael is on his way. He will stand guard here while I attack Nykithus’s stronghold.”

Esania froze. “I thought you didn’t trust Mael.”

“He’s changed. I don’t know how, but he is sane again, and I know my brother better than anyone. He would never hurt someone that didn’t deserve it. His fight is with me, not with you or Sara or your people.”

“Are you saying you deserved it when he knocked you out?”

Imril’s left eyebrow twitched. “My brother and I have a long and turbulent history. I may have…” He sighed. “The situation is not ideal, but I have no choice. I have to go soon… before the Naaga get too cocky, before Mael’s shadowveil collapses. Mael is the second most powerful being on this planet… the most powerful in some ways. He’s the best person to guard the eyrie while I’m away.”

Still warm with the afterglow of his touch, Esania’s right arm throbbed. She stepped forward and placed her hand on Imril’s chest.

His glow became a little brighter.

“Hey,” she said softly, feeling his broad, muscular chest through the thin fabric of his tunic. It was sheer torture. She just wanted to pull him onto the bed and have her way with him then and there. “I don’t know what’s out there, and I’m not going to ask. Just… come back, Imril, and be safe.”

He curled his fingers around her wrist. “Esania. Close your eyes. Now, can you feel it?”

There was something there, a faint tugging sensation in her heart. She nodded.

“That’s me. That’s our bond, forming through the elgida. If anything ever happens to me, you would know.”

“Our bond…” Yes, she could definitely feel it now. It was as innate as breathing, or her heartbeat. It was a feeling, a part of her, a sixth sense.

This thing… it was going to change her from the inside out.

He kissed her again. “I’m very hard to kill, Esania.”

So irresistible. So sure of himself. How could he be so certain, and why did a sliver of unease enter her gut just now?

“Just be careful,” she whispered, unable to even consider the possibility of losing him. “You got into trouble once because you thought nobody could touch you.”

“True. But I never make the same mistake twice.” He took a step backward, and Esania reeled. Imril’s eyes blazed. Power crackled around his hands. He folded his wings and regarded her with a look of pure hunger. Every line and muscle in his body was taut with tension. He was on the very brink… she could feel it.

How were they doing this to each other?

“You didn’t tell me this whole process would involve torture.” Esania’s voice cracked slightly as she stared at him. She swore she could see a faint glow around his body. Either he was becoming more and more powerful, or she was starting to see things.

“You think this is easy for me either? Patience, my mate. Soon we will be able to explore one another.” He looked her up and down, slowly, hungrily, his eyes bold and dangerous. A certain strangeness came over him. “You smell delicious.” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Even your arousal is delicious. I can’t leave you like this.” Again, he stepped forward, as if temptation were pulling him back and forth. “Come here.”

“This isn’t going to kill me, is it?” She was just being flippant, but he looked aghast.

“I would never…”

“The waiting is going to kill me,” she whispered as Imril took her into his arms. Without warning, he scooped her up and carried her across to the bed.

She yelped in surprise. “What are you—”

“Shh.” He laid her down and stepped back, devouring her with his eyes. “I can’t leave you like this.”

Esania felt naked under his gaze, even though she was wearing the comfortable white dress he’d given her earlier.

“We can’t mate, but there are other ways for me to feed.” Imril grinned, sending a wicked shiver through her. Despite her lack of experience in all matters sexual, Esania didn’t feel the slightest bit nervous or out of her depth. Imril led the way, she responded, and it felt oh-so natural.

Like they’d known each other for an eternity.

Imril kneeled on the floor and dragged her toward him, spreading her thighs so she straddled him, her lower legs hanging over his shoulders. He pushed the hem of her dress up and planted slow, deep kisses on her thighs. Faint golden light swirled around him, and if Esania concentrated hard enough, she swore it actually looked like the swirling, intricate patterns he’d drawn on her body.

As he kissed her, he drank from her, naturally absorbing her energy, her life. The elgida on her hand started to feel warm again, but this time, it wasn’t painful.

“Ahh…” She sighed as she drowned in a pool of heady sensation. Imril pushed her dress up to her waist, revealing her thighs, her lower belly, and the soft lips of her pussy. He only had to come closer for a wave of blissful sensation to ripple across her bare skin, across her exquisitely tender sex.

Stars, she was so ready.

Imril slowly stroked her silken entrance with his finger, sending an insane jolt of pleasure through her. “I almost went insane wondering what secrets you were keeping for me down here. I am not disappointed.”

“Ah, Imril,” she squealed as he probed deeper, a playful smile hovering on his lips. She could hardly believe that this was her own voice—excited, high-pitched, breathless. “How do you know so much about my anatomy? You don’t know anything about our species.”

“Instinct,” he replied smugly, watching her face intently as he ran his fingertip over her velvet folds. He thrust deep and she gasped. He withdrew and found the deliciously sensitive pearl of flesh at her entrance.

“So this is sensitive,” he murmured, as if he’d just discovered something profound. “If I do this, and this…”

“Imril!” Her mind was exploding.

“You want me to stop?”

“No!” Her fingers dug into the soft mattress. “Don’t you fucking dare stop.” Her body tensed. She closed her eyes as he caressed her again and again.

Faster, faster…

“Your vir is so sweet right now,” he whispered.

Slipping his finger inside her once again, he brought his lips to her entrance and kissed her.

She sighed deeply. Her limbs grew heavy. A feeling of languid euphoria spread through her body as he stole her energy away. They were surrounded by a golden glow; she definitely wasn’t imagining that.

And even as he drank from her, a trickle of his energy entered her body through the elgida, and her strength returned.

He sucked on her clit, gently at first, then harder.

“Oh yesss,” she sighed, closing her eyes. She couldn’t move. She closed her eyes. Her pleasure was announced in low, breathless moans.

“Mhmm,” Imril replied, sounding terribly pleased with himself. His clever tongue took her pleasure to new heights, with each tremor of sensation breaking yet another barrier.

Just when she thought her pleasure levels had reached their maximum, they went higher and higher.

And she whimpered and sighed and cried out, a slave to her desires.

Helpless against his touch.

More!

He gave it to her.

How does he know… how does he do this to me?

Instinct.

As he flicked his tongue again, something incredible happened.

A tidal wave of pleasure hit her. Her eyes snapped open and she stared at the glittering ceiling, drowning in swirls and fractals and starbursts, which flickered with golden energy as her body went into overdrive.

She cried out.

She writhed in pleasure.

A supernova exploded in her mind.

And then…

Release.

Instinct was a powerful thing indeed.