Is It Magic? Chapter Two

 

Chapter Two

“Damn,” Relath whispered. “That was intense.” He could feel Khat’s chest hair tickle his face as the big man continued to breathe heavily. Relath felt wonderfully sated. He hadn’t felt like this in… Well, ever.

“Yeah,” Khat whispered harshly, the hand casually rubbing Relath’s back stopped. He felt the lawman stiffening up.

Relath couldn’t help but detect a note of anger. “Are…are you okay?”

“Yeah.” Khat sat up pushing Relath off. “At least I can think now.”

Relath felt dismissed and suddenly abandoned. It wasn’t like he hadn’t felt like that before, and commitment was something too dangerous to even think about, but it didn’t make the sting of rejection any less painful. “Wow. Didn’t peg you for a fuck and flee kind of guy.” His heart, he realized way too late, was going to suffer with this one. When had he allowed for that to happen?

Khat snorted. “Fuck and flee. Hilarious.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not necessarily into…cuddling. But…that…that was nice.”

Khat looked back at Relath. “Cuddling? Really? I didn’t peg you as a clingy, emotional kind of guy either.”

“Sorry. I just thought… I thought you…” Relath sat up and swung his legs to the side of the cot, putting his back toward Khat. “Thought you were having a good time, is all.”

Relath heard a heavy sigh. “I did. I…did like it. I mean…damn it, Relath. I’ve liked you ever since… I don’t normally do one-nighters. Don’t like that.”

“Excuse me? I’m not the one running out the door, here.”

“And I am?”

“You’re the one who pushed me off of you, getting all offended at the cuddling. Not me.” Relath turned to face Khat. “What’s up with you?”

Khat’s face turned an adorable shade of red in the failing light of the sun streaming in from the high windows, but he said nothing.

“Wait. Wait a minute. I get it. You thought I was… Wow. Really? You thought I was trying to seduce you so you wouldn’t throw me in jail?”

Khat smirked. “You mean you weren’t?”

“Well, considering how well it would have worked, because here I am, in jail, thankfully, no.”

“You weren’t waving that delectable ass in front of me day and night to make sure I couldn’t think straight?”

“Oh, that? Well, yeah. Wait. Delectable?” Relath smiled and blushed a little himself. “Yeah, I will admit I was trying to seduce you. But not so you wouldn’t lock me up. Tie me up, maybe, but…”

Khat narrowed his eyes at Relath and turned even a deeper shade of red. “Then why?”

“Why was I trying to seduce you? Because just thinking about you makes me sweat. I love your voice, your body…” Relath ran a hand down Khat’s bare chest. “Even your skin. You’re beautiful.”

Khat blushed again and leaned over to kiss Relath gently on the lips. “Just my body? I feel so cheap.”

Relath chuckled. “Okay, Mr. I’m Not Into The Emotional Shit, I also think you’re kind and caring and strong. You command with your voice and have rough hands that feel good on me.”

“Why didn’t you leave? I thought you would leave once I told you I would arrest you and bring the castle down on you.”

“Usually I do leave when that happens. I’m always on the run. But…this place is different. You’re different. For the first time in a long time I wanted to stay.”

“Damn.”

Relath looked up into Khat’s eyes. “Is that a good damn or a bad damn?”

Khat pulled away. “Bad.”

“Why? You have a family I don’t know about? Some beautiful woman you keep barefoot and pregnant?”

Khat laughed. “No. Nothing like that. It’s just that…”

Relath grunted. “A lover?”

Khat scowled. “No! Nothing like that either.”

Relath nodded. “I see.”

“No. You don’t. There was…a man. He and I kept company. He didn’t like that we weren’t going to – you know – make it permanent. Things happened. Words were said. We didn’t part exactly friends. He thinks I… Well, he saw you the other day when you…”

Relath looked up. “When I what?”

“Do you remember seeing a guy with long black hair? Kind of a perpetual frown on his face?”

“Oh! White as a fucking ghost?”

Khat laughed. Relath realized he loved that laugh. “Yeah, that’s Almar. He’s… Well, he was…”

“Your lover? That tall, thin ghost was your lover?”

      “No! I told you. It wasn’t like that. But yeah, we had similar interests.”

“Fuck the similar interests. At least you eat! That guy didn’t look strong enough to lift a fork. He blackmail you or something because…damn.”

“No. I know. He’s…odd. But he is the alchemist in town and… “

“You wanted better rates?”

Khat shot Relath an angry look and Relath laughed.

“Honestly, I don’t see anything even appealing in that guy. Even though I only saw him for a few minutes I remember him! Scarier than hell!” Then Relath frowned. “When was that? Wait…oh yeah. It was when I cured old man Van Derke, right? Wasn’t he an alchemist, too, back a few hundred years back?” Relath giggled. “Yeah, I have to admit, I made too big a show with that one. Did it for your benefit, you know. Showing off I guess.”

“Well, Almar wasn’t amused.”

“He lodge a complaint or something? Want you to run me out of town?”

“Worse. Van Derke is his father. Almar couldn’t cure him either. The man was dying. Then you come along. Well, Amar really believes you’re a wizard now. He’s an idiot. But he sent runners. To the castle.”

“What? Runners? As in to tattle on me? When?”

“That same day, is what he said. Fucker told me earlier today. But I have a feeling those runners are going to be tattling on more than just you. I think he wants my head, too.”

“Shit. That wasn’t just the other day either. It was more like four. So chances are the runners have already arrived and there just might be a troop on its way back as we speak.”

“Pretty much what I was thinking.”

“So then why? What the hell was this all about? You had your way with me and now you lock me up and hand me over? Is that it?”

“No! Fuck, Relath! For someone as good as you are at scamming folks, you sure can be stupid! I…I didn’t even mean to do this…but things got heated and… Face it, Relath, you’re not safe here. You never have been and now you’re out of time and you need to run. I’ve been not so subtly hinting at that for over a week, now.”

“Look, as accustomed as I am to running, you honestly do not need to worry about me. I am a wizard. They do exist, so I can protect myself. The problem now is making sure you’re protected.” Especially with the smell he detected a moment ago. Relath rose from the cot and walked to his coat, now laying on the floor, and picked up a small bottle of his elixir. He sprinkled a few drops on his hand, then turned back to Khat and, slowly waving that hand, spread his fingers.

Khat laughed out loud. “Me? You’re going to protect me? I’m sorry, Relath, but as amazing as your elixir seems to be, I’m more inclined to believe you stole that liquid of yours off some unsuspecting alchemist. You cure a few small ailments with it, then make up the chillshade shit and rake in the dough.”

“You don’t believe in magic. I understand that. Then let me ask you a question.”

“Go ahead.”

“What would be the reason you’re floating six inches above the cot?”

Relath watched the color drain from Khat’s face even before he looked down at himself. In the moment of realization, Khat pitched his body back and screamed. “Fuck! Put me down! Put me down!”

Relath waved his hand again and Khat settled gently back on the bed. But Khat did not understand Relath was only trying to prove a point. He once again threw himself backward and tumbled off the cot. He scrambled to his feet and backed away from Relath, holding his arm out as if he needed to fend off the smaller man.

“Did you do that? How the fuck did you do that?”

“Calm down. Yes. I did that. I’m a wizard. That’s how I did that. Now do you believe me or do I have to turn you into a toad or something?”

“Toad?” Khat screamed.

“I’m kidding! Calm down, I’m just kidding. I wouldn’t do that.”

Khat breathed heavily for a minute, still holding his arm out. Dropping it finally to his side he asked, “You could do that? I mean, you can turn people into toads?”

“Why? Have someone in mind?”

Khat laughed but it sounded very stressed. “No. Just trying to figure out how crazy you really are.”

“You mean you still don’t believe me?”

“No! Wizards and magic and fucking dragon shifters don’t exist! They’re myths! Fucking folklore told only to frighten small children. In case you haven’t noticed, I am no child!”

Relath looked up and down Khat’s still-naked body, settling his stare on Khat’s beautiful flaccid member. “Oh yeah, I noticed. No problem there.” Khat’s large-even-when-deflated cock actually jumped and start to rise. Relath shot his eyes up to Khat’s face just in time to see it turn very red.

“Think you’re funny?” Khat ground out.

“I’m not laughing. But I really am a wizard. And…um…”

“What?”

“I’m… Well…good friends with a dragon.”

Khat simply stood there looking at Relath. Then, giving a huff, he twisted around, looking on the floor. Finding his pants, he scooped them up and stomped out of the cell and toward a door, behind which Relath remembered was a chamber pot. Khat walked through, turned to throw an angry stare back at Relath and slammed the door.

Relath drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Huh,” he said into the now-empty room. “That went well.” He grabbed up his clothes, too, and started to dress. Knowing an army was most definitely on its way to collect him, he didn’t have a lot of time to come up with a plan. Leaving was no longer an option, even if it had been on the table before. Not only did he have an Angel Walker to contend with, he had a raging need to protect the sheriff.

He laughed. Khat was not a man who would accept hiding behind someone easily. He was used to being the one standing between the people and any kind of danger that threatened them. Relath had witnessed that countless times in the past few weeks he had been here. But with the king’s men on the way, the large beautiful man was going to need saving. Khat could be the one in charge in the bedroom, Relath had no problem with that. In fact, he shivered from the thought of being sexually dominated. But on the battlefield Relath was the dominant one. It was going to be extremely interesting to see how that went.

That was when the smell, which had been on the edge of his consciousness for some time now, became overwhelming.

Putrid, sweaty, acrid.

An Angel Walker had just materialized.

But where?

“Um…Khat? Could you come out here, please?”

Silence.

A tingling feeling crawled up Relath’s neck. “Khat? Please answer me.”

“Yeah…I’m here.” He could barely hear Khat’s voice, almost as if he were trying to whisper but knew a whisper would not be heard.

“Fuck.” Relath ran to the closed door. It was in there with him. “Khat, you okay? You getting up close and personal with an Angel Walker?”

“That what it is? Smelly thing.”

“Try not to breathe it…if you can.”

“Well, since I need to breathe and there isn’t a hell of a lot of room in here…”

“I’m going to open the door, okay?”

“Can’t fit much more in this room, Relath.”

“I’m actually thinking about inviting the Angel Walker to join me out here. Figured you’d be okay with that.”

“Oh yeah. Have at it. Oh, and Relath? Tell me again you’re a wizard, okay? I think I’ll believe you this time.”

“I’m a wizard.”

“Good. Thank the gods.”

“I’m not a good wizard.”

“You tell me that now?”

Relath laughed. “Opening the door!”

The stench that slammed into him the second he opened the door was overpowering. Relath saw Khat plastered up against the left wall, a large dark creature stood pulsing in what was the rest of the room. Khat was right, there wasn’t a lot of space left for anything else. The Angel Walker stood on two stumpy legs, tentacles of various sizes and thicknesses flailed from all around its round body, knocking into the walls and leaving dark slimy steaming skid marks. Khat ducked successfully every time one of those smelly appendages came close, which was a good thing. Its bumpy, rutted, pockmarked skin boiled and oozed a black liquid that sizzled as it hit the stone wall and floor. It would dissolve flesh on contact.

“Who are you speaking to?” The vibrating voice came from the black blob, but from just exactly where on its body was a mystery.

“No one, Angel Walker. What are you doing here?”

“I came for the weak wizard who has been messing with my energy supply. Is that you?”

Relath looked back to Khat, whose startled and confused eyes stared back at Relath. Relath winked. “You would be correct, beast. I am your target.”

“I thought so. Prepare to die, wizard.”

Khat mouthed the words, “How does it not know I’m here?”

How indeed? That was going to be difficult to explain. Khat was not going to be happy.

“So…do magic…or incantations or whatever the hell you guys do,” Khat said. “I’m about ready to throw up from the smell.” He ducked again.

“Understandable,” Relath said, as if to the Walker. “Just make sure you don’t get hit by its saliva. Stuff will kill you.”

“Saliva? That shit is saliva?”

“Pretty much. It’s meant to digest its victims.”

“Who are you talking to, wizard?” If an Angel Walker’s strange voice could sound angry, that was it.

Khat continued his whispers. “I thought the damn things were supposed to only suck energy.”

“Mostly, but sometimes it eats, too. It uses those tentacles to envelope its prey and the”—Relath had to swallow hard to keep control of his stomach—“saliva begins the break down process of digestion. It’s gotta hurt like hell.”

“You are making me mad, boy. That is a dangerous thing to do. I had planned on killing you quickly, but now I think I will stuff you in my mouth while you’re still alive. We will see if that is just as painful.” It began to move toward Relath.

“Surprisingly,” Relath continued after he shivered, “it has teeth but they’re not…healthy. You don’t want to see them, believe me. Nasty.” Another shiver shook his body.

“Yeah, being the rest of it is so attractive.”

“Ha.” Relath spread his feet to solidify his stance and raised his hands. “I wish you could stand back. This could get messy.”

“Just get on with it! Get me the fuck out of here!”

“Pushy bastard, aren’t you?” He closed his eyes as he moved his hands back and forth in an arc formation. “Flastern pickostom tally! Flastern pickostom tally! Flastern pickostom tally!”

Laughter filled the space and the Angel Walker’s fluttery voice boomed out, “I am surprised that you would know a calling forth spell, wizard, but you have no power over me. You don’t even know my name. Besides, I am already here! You are angering me with your pathetic attempts at wizardry. I came forth on my own to put you out of your misery!” A tentacle flew at Relath as the Angel Walker threw its entire mass at the young man. Anticipating the move, Relath took several quick steps backward, drawing the creature forward by the momentum of its own weight. The monster fell out of the small chamber pot room and rolled on the floor. Steam billowed up from where its liquids hit any flat surface and it screamed its irritation at missing the wizard.

“Never meant to call you, asshole. Just needed you angry to get you moving.” Relath cringed, having had to watch the Angel Walker squeeze through the doorway, too fat to fit, leaving its ooze covering the entire opening. Already the wood that made up the doorframe was disintegrating. But there was enough room now for Khat to escape.

“What are you going to do now, wizard? You have nowhere to run. You stupidly let yourself be trapped in this room. The door out is behind me.”

“Yeah, did that on purpose though.” Taking out a bottle of his elixir, he opened it and sprinkled a small amount of the dirty water on his hands. He waved at Khat as he darted through the dripping doorway. Suddenly Khat was floating in the air again, heading fast for the door leading outside. Relath continued to wave his hands and the door unlocked itself, opened, and Khat sailed right on through.

“Relath! Damn it! Put me down! Let me at that thing! You can’t do it alone.”

His voice faded as the door closed with him on the other side.

The Angel Walker held still for a moment. Relath knew why. It had finally detected Khat from the movement. “Didn’t know he was there, did you?” A low growling noise started to rumble through the floor and air. “You had no clue. Didn’t even hear him, did you?” The sound got louder and the air in the room began to heat. “What? Thought I didn’t have it in me? Yeah, not the best wizard, I’ll give you that, but even I can weave a Destablilized Halodium spell. Put it on him the moment I smelled you and I could smell you a fucking mile away. Not about to let you get any more of these innocents in this town, either. I now will stand as their protector, got that, Angel Walker? I may not know your name and I may not know your purpose in being here, but I sure as hell am not going to let you suck any more energy or weave any more of your chillshades. It’s over, fucker. Get out or I will cut you into a hundred smelly little pieces and feed you to a dragon.” Relath moved his still damp hand and when the weak wave hit the Angel Walker, it stumbled back, but only a foot or two.

The laugh that came from the quivering mass was not as strong as it was before. Relath knew it was shaken by the subterfuge and probably any mention of a dragon, but it wouldn’t be for long and the sunlight was failing fast. He had to come up with a plan to either get out of the room or to somehow defeat the beast.

He only had one shot. He didn’t have time for any kind of spell, not that he had anything that would defeat an Angel Walker, but when water mixed with the black ooze, the sizzle became a raging fire that would even scorch the Angel Walker. Pain was probably something the monster enjoyed, but it was still Relath’s only option. He just hoped it would work. His control over the Halodium spell was slipping and he would soon have Khat back in the room. He couldn’t risk it. This had to end now. Relath took the bottle of Talasar Elixir and hurled it at the Walker.

Then the most curious thing happened. He had intended for the bottle to bounce off the blob of a body and fall to the stone floor, break, and spray its totally harmless contents over the Angel Walker. But the blob-like skin sucked the bottle straight into itself. That even surprised Relath.

It also couldn’t be good.