02 Wrath of Flames Read online

  Wrath of Flames (Book two of the Spirit Guide Saga)

  Published by H. Lee Morgan at Smashwords

  Copyright 2014 H. Lee Morgan

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  Chapter 1

  So caught up in recent events plaguing the mind neither the Fire Elemental or the Enchantress realized just how stormy the outside world had become. That all came to an end as a sheet of rain nearly soaked them to the bone by just stepping a foot outside their room. Immediately they hurried back inside and slammed the door. “Rainin’ cats and dogs out there!” Kanade brushed her front before any water truly soaked through. Her southern belle accent made him smirk before shaking her shoulder length metallic blue hair and wings. “Should have had Floa use her translocation before leavin’.”

  “Too late now.” Ethan turned up the heat, making his lightly tan skin redden as he stepped closer and steamed the moisture from them both. Kanade’s loving golden irises softened in gratitude.

  “I’ll grab the umbrella.” She said and moved to the corner of their nightstand where there stood a tall metal bucket etched with mystical runes and held a pair of umbrellas, one much larger than the other. Kanade grasped the larger golf umbrella for quite obvious reasons. She was far from a normal human woman. If standing at just over eight feet without shoes wasn’t abnormal enough, she had huge vibrant blue wings that lay tucked against her back. The topmost joints peeked over her shoulder and stood yet another six inches above the top of her head. Outstretched from tip to tip her wings were thirty feet wide and tucked, were six inches from dragging on the ground.

  Ethan stood transfixed as she plucked the umbrella out of its container, marveling intensely and with reverence as he always does when seeing her move. Aside from her greater than human size, she was clearly feminine. She had an hourglass, curvaceous figure that filled him with a burning desire no other had ever elicited in his entire life, even before dying once. She was soft and fit all at the same time and was beyond fair in complexion. Her skin was alabaster white, like freshly fallen snow, but it had a unique quality no other woman could naturally attain. Her skin literally glittered in even the faintest lights like millions of tiny clear gems.

  As she smirked he knew she was reading his mind and knew how much she was admired. I don’t deserve her. He thought.

  She spun and locked her gaze with his. “Course not.” Kanade teased. “But you got me nonetheless.”

  Ethan chuckled. “And I’m eternally grateful.”

  “My Angel,” She began softly, her voice dainty and like velvet that should sound coming from a woman of maybe five foot, but she pulled it off easily. The reference of ‘Angel’ in her species is reserved only for lovers. To think Kanade an angel would be wrong. Angels in recent religion were exaggerated myth. In reality they are Spirit Guides who ferry departed souls to Spirit World for the rest of eternity. ‘Angels’ in their society are considered spouses, husband and wife as that only happens when they find their soul mate. Kanade found her soul mate in Ethan. “are you sure you still wish to leave and not wait for the rains to slack? You’ve just regained consciousness an hour ago.”

  The Enchantress sensed his thoughts shift slightly from the immense love he had for her into a touch of guilt and sadness. “I need to get out, Kanade. I must. A little rain won’t stop me and others have been worried after I was injured.”

  If Ethan’s love for his woman was strong, Kanade knew hers was unbreakable. She stared down at her soul mate in a long sleeved shirt and jeans that were tight and stretched over a muscular body. Auburn hair nearly brushed his own shoulders while a short beard was just enough scruff that it wasn’t grungy. She loved his old world look, but it was his expressive grey eyes that had her weak in the knees. Desire the likes she never felt before filled every pore, sinew and aching bone for him. A craving that could never be sated. It went beyond physical needs, like his body, it is his mind so possessive of her she could never get enough of. It had been days since they were of one body and her needs for him were intense, but as she read him it lessened. Deep sadness squeezed his heart. Almost imperceptibly she nodded. “At this time of year rains can go all day long.”

  “Yeah, we’re in Scotland, not Florida.” He chuckled. “I’m still trying to assimilate to the weather in this part of the world…” Recognizing how she held herself had him saying “Angel, I need to stretch my legs. I’ve been out for three days and my joints are sore.”

  “Alright. I’ll stop acting like an old dog too tired to chase the mailman.” She made him smile, knowing he liked many of her adages.

  Together they approached the solid metal door and he took the umbrella like a gentleman and opened it quickly, spreading the wide canvas barrier in an instant before another rush of freezing rain rushed to chill a person to their very soul. The wide canopy easily deflected the torrent at just past the noon hour and lifted it to usher his true love beneath. She especially hated having her wings drenched for long periods and offered another heart racing smile. Before he could turn and shut the door, she snapped her fingers and they sparked a quick blue from magic and the door slammed shut all on its own. “Show off.” He teased and relished in her dainty laugh as she wove an arm under his to walk down the stone stairs without slipping.

  The old path from the First House to where they lived and worked was well over an hour away on foot and less traveled compared to other trails that spread over the lush landscape. It would have taken just minutes for Kanade to fly, but she doesn’t like doing so in the rain without a good reason. Still, she felt it was an intimate time between them in the rain. It made them huddle under the canopy so the downpour didn’t soak. A fine mist brushed them though.

  After a few minutes she couldn’t suppress a shudder from the cold and began to warm all of a sudden. She naturally gazed down and realized her shiver was more than intended as Ethan felt it and used his ability to warm the very air around them. Her senses stretched and spoke of what he had done. “Darlin’, you’ve never done this before.” She said.

  “Celestia taught me this trick once.” He admitted. “I had to release and contain heat in a specific area. Right now it’s about ninety degrees around us. I’m blocking heat from dissipating between us. I know how you hate the cold.”

  “I do.” Her full, sinful lips curled at each corners. “It is good my husband is so very warm… Darlin’, I’ve missed hearin’ your voice and havin’ you awake.”

  “Three days…” Asleep for three days. He thought. “I know it must have been hard on you seeing me like that.”

  “Unbearable is not even a word close enough to scratch the surface.” She wiped away tears with her free hand before they had a chance to escape and run free. “The worst was not hearin’ your clear thoughts. I’ve been doin’ it so much it is instinctive to me after these months since we became one. It was like livin’ on pure mountain water for so long and bein’ forced to drink city. I had you, but couldn’t enjoy the purity of your mind. It takes power to read thoughts and see memories. In your comatose condition…if I hadn’t resisted it would have done worse damage. It was all my fault.”

  “Stop
beating yourself up. Even Floa said if you didn’t do what you did that arrow’s Demon Energy would have killed me. You saved me four times now.”

  “Four?” This stumped her. The waterworks were halted as the days of misery were put on hold. “I do not remember any other times.”

  “Let me clarify then.” He had to continue walking faster than normal for her legs were longer and so was her stride, but he adjusted the umbrella slightly as it was also the arm she clutched like a locked clamp welded in place. Kanade wasn’t letting go anytime soon, especially since he kept her nice and warm. “First was the day the 7UP truck turned me into road-kill. You were there, the only one who could see me and interact while they actually shoveled my remains off the street. You saved my spirit when hundreds of Demons came out of nowhere when they caught wind of my scent. Second was when Torment’s chains in Spirit World grabbed hold and you alone didn’t hesitate to jump over the desk to keep it from sucking me in. Third and most importantly to me was when I discovered you were the new Enchantress here at the First House. I was crushed after Fate shoved me in this meat-suit and didn’t know how you effected me till you told me we were soul mates. You saved me from my own misery.” He rubbed his left shoulder which held the umbrella and her arm. “And before I lost complete awareness in battle I barely remember something chilly and comfortable surge suddenly in my body which made all the pain go away. Just like you holding me right now. I know if you weren’t here keeping me grounded I’d be doubled over and curled in a corner after what happened to Storm-shadow.” His eyes fell as memories of his first real friend at this House started filling his mind.

  “You needn’t be.” Came a deep voice that had both Ethan and Kanade scream in fright.

  The rain slacked, but as it did they saw a giant stallion, black as midnight step closer, completely soaked. Sad blue eyes took the pair in as the most ancient of all steeds stepped out alone from a meadow. It was none other than Pegasus himself. Huge wings shook off the oversaturation and he stopped several feet away. Pegasus looked much like a Clydesdale, just bigger and nothing but muscle. Gold rope hung around his neck as a necklace which displayed a sparkling diamond as large as a man’s fist.

  “Your Highness!” Ethan and Kanade squeaked at the exact same time and bowed quickly.

  “Rise, Foals. Neither of you need to be soaked too.” He said sadly, but still rang with pride and command.

  Ethan gave a look to Kanade and with unspoken or thought they approached. She reluctantly let go and he lifted the canopy higher so as to at least bring the king’s head beneath. “You’re highness, I meant no disrespect. Storm was my best friend and it’s all my faulty…” Without Kanade’s touch and standing before the father of Storm-shadow who was also in grieving Ethan would be unable to speak around the lump lodged in his throat. “he died. He gave his life saving mine.”

  “It was not your fault, Mr. Volorum.” Pegasus clarified. “The fault laid in the Dragon who took his leg and the Elf who shot you. My colt did what he felt right and did so with honor to the very end. I watched his final moments through the recordings. Not even I could have come out unscathed against the Demon Lord which nipped at his hooves. He was your companion and if not for your aversion of water, you would have scarified yourself for him as well. You both carried a strong bond that renewed my faith in what we fight for.”

  “I don’t deserve your kindness, Your Majesty. If I had not been traumatized and felt I’d drown again…”

  Pegasus pressed his huge, wet head gently against Ethan’s and closed his blue eyes. The Fire Elemental stopped mumbling long enough to hear “I mourn for my colt, Fire-thrower, but not in that he died. His death is what made you do as you did which saved many, many lives. His loss is irreplaceable, but he found new life with you as a companion. Storm-shadow was long tired of living and killing Kelpies and has existed centuries without truly living. He was the only Pegesai in the Earth realm born to bond with a champion of fire. He long gave up hope of finding a connection others of the herd have, many having multiple riders. In the four months with you, he lived more than the centuries he had alone. Do not mourn his death for he is still existing in Spirit World thanks to your efforts. So were many souls that were not consumed during the chaos of battle. Take heart in the knowledge I give you now.” Pegasus drew back to look closely at the two of them and offered a sincere smile of gratitude. “My colt now gallops in the Fields of Rest within Spirit World.” Kanade smiled and beamed in joy at hearing this. “He grazes on the most lush grasses and has reunited with his family who waited for him. For this I am happy, but sad I will not race alongside his flanks till the day Odin loses his immortality. For like him, I cannot die till the Spirit King tells us it is time to finally join those we have lost in our long lives.”

  “Still, if I knew I could do what I did…”

  “Hindsight will do no good to what is.” Pegasus commented. “Such will only dishonor my colt’s sacrifice which allows you, and through your deeds, others to continue living. No one knew you had such an ability, but it came alive when it was needed most. Lives you will see many times are cut short. It never gets easier, but that means you made bonds which will never go away. So long as a Demon doesn’t destroy the soul there is always a chance to reunite in Spirit World.”

  “But what about Star-bolt? If I knew Kanade died I know I wouldn’t be far behind. She’s my angel and I know Storm and Star-bolt were soul mates and are in just as much love. Hell, they had weekly date nights after a thousand years together and I saw the unrelenting love they have for one another.”

  Ethan’s words had Pegasus’ large gaze turn. “Enchantress, have you not told him?”

  “Told me what?”

  Kanade hugged her arms beneath her breasts. “Your Highness, I hadn’t gotten that far in all my angel has missed out on since his injury.” Her gaze altered to her true love. “Star-bolt lives for another now. I learned when Tattoo and Queen Gra visited you and they told me she carries new life. Before she could see a healer to stave off pregnancy for a few years it was found she was already pregnant. She lives only for their baby…”

  “And will die as soon as she delivers.” Pegasus said. Ethan was shocked. “I can see how long one has to live.”

  “Like a Kitsune?” Ethan asked after remembering the nine tailed Tokala.

  Pegasus raised his head and gave a side look. He still nodded his large face. “Some of immense power can see how long one will live. I am one of them. I looked at my step-mare and no longer is her lifespan indefinite. Part of her is gone and the moment the foal separates from her womb her spirit will leave. Nothing can be done so speak not of this. I confide in the two of you and the other house leaders only so the shock will not be so severe. When she passes to be with her love I will rear the foal in her stead. Swear to me that none will spread. Not even Star-bolt knows she is going to pass on in thirteen months.”

  Swearing within Order was almost unbreakable and once one’s word is given it cannot be taken back. A person’s honor and reputation was not taken lightly here. Ethan wiped his eyes and said “I promise I’ll not speak of this.” While Kanade twanged “You have my word.” And for a Spirit Guide it was irreversible. Their kind cannot lie at all.

  “Lord Pegasus, might I ask what you are doing out here in the rain?” The Elemental inquired.

  “To be alone and mourn. It was just a coincidence we met. I had no idea you found your hooves again. This meadow is where I come to be alone. As for the rain, it suits my mood well. Now off with you both, many are eager to know you are well.” He dismissed them both and turned around to disappear back into the rain which picked up and made it seem the stallion vanished.

  The winged beauty reclaimed her man’s muscular arm and drew him close for a hug where his face fell in the curve of her neck while hers lay atop his head. She felt him shake with emotion for a few seconds before he pulled back. “You feel better.” It wasn’t a question, but he nodded anyway. “See, it wasn’t your fault if
even Pegasus can see his son isn’t truly dead.”

  “Alive without mortal coil.”

  “Precisely.” She leaned in and he met her soft kiss with one of his own. “No more sufferin’ or pain, least of all in the Fields of Rest.”

  “I love you, Kanade. You know that right.” He smiled finally in relief as tension melted off.

  “Wouldn’t mind hearin’ it again.”

  “I love you, Kanade. You know that right.” He repeated.

  Kanade threw her head back and laughed hard enough for her wings to flutter. “I hope to never get used to hearin’ those words or how happy they make me feel.” She turned and began walking away to leave the king of the herds alone for now. “Say it again.”

  “Your wish is my command, My Angel.”

  She beamed and they walked on for another half hour till the rain came to an end for now, but she didn’t let go of possession of his left arm even after the umbrella was shaken loose of water, tied up and laid over a shoulder. Along the way, those who enjoyed the sky bath took notice of them walking down the trail. It wasn’t hard to figure Kanade out, particularly with her vibrant wings or who escorted her.

  Cool moisture saturated the vast acreage the First House owned. Orderly forests, sprawling grasslands, vibrant lakes and rolling hills made for a rather natural and beautiful landscape all manner of creatures enjoy to the upmost. The rain had finally stopped pouring upon them, but to the south and west more sheets fell and not a ray of sunshine pierced thick black clouds. Fifteen minutes away sprawled the massive castle over a mile wide surrounded by a moat that could be considered a river if not for it being built upon a slight hill. Large trees grew from the roof as a protected nursery for children, especially Nymph seedlings to grow in safety.

  “Angel, they come.” Kanade sighed and thought, Well there goes my monopoly on my man. I guess it is to be expected after the last impression he made.