Chapter 135: Blood from her beating heart

Alyssa hadn’t calculated the risk before stepping into empty air. It had been born of pure impulse, a sudden wave of boldness taking full possession of her heart.

The jagged edge of the cliff receded rapidly as gravity pulled her down the mountain face. Yet, she didn’t feel a single shred of terror. All she felt was a blinding trust, a certainty deep in her soul that Dorian would never let her get hurt.

Through the crack of her eyelashes, she watched his transformation unfold in mid-fall.

Massive, obsidian wings tore from his back, unfurling against the sky. Even from a distance, she saw his eyes snap from golden brown into glowing blood-red orbs.

He dove off the cliff after her like a falling star, his wings folded flat against his back to maximize his speed, his hands outstretched to catch her.

Alyssa squeezed her eyes shut, a breathless smile curving her lips. When his powerful arms slammed tightly around her waist, a sharp, gasping laugh tore from her chest.

She felt the fierce hammer of his heart against her ribs, the hot rush of his breath against her cheek, and the force of his wings snapping wide as he halted their fall and shot back up toward the heavens.

The sudden shift from freefall to ascension left her utterly breathless. The wind whipped her hair into a frenzy, roaring past her ears as they rocketed straight through the dense clouds.

"Open your eyes, sweetheart," Dorian’s deep voice rumbled into her ear, sending a shiver straight down her spine.

Her eyelashes slowly fluttered open. The first thing her gaze locked onto were the striking, luminous red pupils of his eyes, staring down at her with an intensity that made her blood hum.

She shifted her head, watching the rhythmic beat of his black wings slicing through the air. Below them, the world had vanished. The kingdom, the mountains, and the forests were gone, replaced entirely by a boundless ocean of blinding blue sky and rolling white clouds.

"Oh, my goddess," she gasped, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "This is unbelievable, Dorian!"

"Dorian isn’t the one holding you right now, sweetheart," he murmured back, his tone dropping into a deeper timbre that vibrated through her chest.

Alyssa’s breath hitched as she realized he had given total control to his demon.

"You’re Soren," she breathed, a radiant smile breaking across her face. "It’s wonderful to finally meet you."

Soren’s red eyes roamed over every inch of her flushed face, his gaze burning with a dark, consuming obsession far more feral than anything Dorian had ever shown.

"I have waited an eternity to hold you like this," he said. "To finally meet the woman who has my entire existence in a chokehold."

Alyssa let out a soft laugh, instantly warming up to his dark charm. "Dorian warned me you have a mind of your own. Is it true?"

Soren smirked, the arrogant gesture only accentuating his impossibly handsome features. "I’ll let you figure that out yourself, little lamb. Right now, I am far more fascinated by my Queen’s boldness. Did you truly just hurl yourself off a cliff?"

Alyssa gave an eager nod, trying to see through the curtain of hair blowing across her eyes. "I did!" she giggled.

Soren carefully lifted one hand from her waist. He pushed the hair away from her face and tucked them behind her ear before sliding his hand back down to her hip.

"You jumped off the cliff’s edge without a single flinch of fear? Did you truly trust me that much?"

"I did," she repeated softly, meeting his burning gaze without hesitation. "I knew you would never let me fall."

Soren let out a deep rumble of laughter, shaking his head in awe. "I have a crazy, beautiful wife, and I am completely in love with it."

"What’s truly crazy is the two of us hovering above the clouds, casually chatting as if flying is the most normal thing in the world," Alyssa laughed, leaning her forehead against his chest. "It’s so peaceful up here. It makes everything else just... fade away."

"Then let me show you what true peace feels like," Soren murmured into her ear. "Wrap your legs around me."

Alyssa looked up at him for a brief second before obeying. She hitched her thighs up, locking her legs securely around his waist. The movement pressed her core against the hard bulge straining inside his trousers, and a sudden wave of heat shot straight to her stomach.

"Lock your ankles behind me," he commanded next.

She crossed her ankles tight, the action pulling her hips even closer, smashing her core directly against his throbbing length.

"Good girl," Soren growled softly. His hands slid down from her waist, his large palms cupping the round curves of her ass through her shorts, lifting her and clamping her tight against him.

"Hold on tight," he whispered against her lips. "And don’t be afraid. You trust me, right?"

"With my life," she answered instantly.

Soren flashed her a devilish smile, and without warning, he snapped his wings shut. They plunged straight back into a freefall toward the earth.

Alyssa let out a high-pitched, wildly excited scream of thrilling delight. They broke through the cloud layer, spinning in a breathtaking spiral, her joyous screams echoing through the open sky.

Just as the emerald canopy of the forest below rushed up to meet them, Soren unfurled his wings and broke their descent in a sweeping arc.

He reared back up, his wings beating powerfully as he shot back up into the heavens, spinning them through the mist until they burst once more into the brilliant sunlight above the clouds.

"That was amazing!" Alyssa laughed breathlessly, her cheeks flushed a bright cherry red, her eyes dancing with pure happiness.

Deep within Soren’s consciousness, Dorian watched her through his demon’s eyes. He drank in the sight of her unburdened happiness, listening to the sound of her laughter.

Nothing in the world mattered except the woman in his arms. His entire life depended on her existence. Without her, he was nothing more than a hollow shell.

Alyssa caught the intense look in his gaze and offered a soft smile. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I love you," he murmured softly. "I love you so much, yet I feel like no amount of words will ever be enough. You are my entire world, Alyssa."

For a brief second, the red glow in his eyes flickered, and his familiar golden-brown irises surfaced before bleeding back beneath the red. She knew instantly that it was Dorian himself speaking to her through Soren’s form.

"I love you too, Dorian," she whispered against his mouth.

Seeing that she recognized him, he didn’t hesitate for another second. He leaned in, captured her lips, and kissed her. The kiss was instant, explosive, and intoxicatingly filthy.

Suspended thousands of feet in the open air with nothing beneath them but clouds, the heart-stopping thrill of the altitude fused with the raw, pent-up desire raging between them.

Dorian groaned into her mouth, a deep, needy, possessive sound that echoed in her throat as he slammed his mouth down on hers with desperate passion. His tongue invaded her mouth, slick and hot, tasting her, claiming her, taking everything she had to give.

Alyssa gasped into the kiss, her fingers clawing into his hair as she tilted her head back, offering him full access. The cold mountain wind howled violently all around them, whipping her hair wildly, but she felt nothing except the scalding, infernal heat of his body.

His hands tightened around her ass, his fingers digging into her skin as he hoisted her higher, grinding his rock-hard erection ruthlessly into her core.

A needy whimper tore from Alyssa’s throat at the sensation. Every time his wings beat against the air, the subtle shift of his body ground his length against her aching center through their clothes, sending electrifying sparks straight down her thighs.

He kissed her like a man drowning, drinking her gasps, his lips bruising hers with unhinged affection and raw sexual dominance. He hitched her legs tighter around his hips, refusing to leave a single millimeter of air between them, his heart hammering against her ribs as if his soul were trying to merge into hers.

When he finally pulled his lips away to draw breath, they were both left gasping, their breaths mingling in the freezing mountain air, their eyes locked in a gaze of wild, unbreakable devotion.

"I want you, Dorian," she whispered. "Take me back to the cave and claim me." She brushed her lips over his in a soft kiss. "All of me."

...

Far away from Wintercrest, thousands of miles across the land of the rogue territory, Ragnar picked his way through a dark forest toward an underground graveyard.

He had fled Wintercrest weeks ago after getting the strand of Alyssa’s hair. Now back in his land, he followed the familiar path leading down into the graveyard.

He slipped through the narrow opening of the cave entrance, descending a set of stone steps that led deep into the dark until he stepped into a vast burial chamber. Lit torches hung from the wall, the flames flickering and making the shadows dance.

He dropped to his knees before the open tomb and lowered his forehead against the cold stone floor.

Suddenly, an unnatural gust of wind roared out of the tomb.

Dust and shattered stone whipped through the air in a howling vortex. The flames flickered wildly, and the cavern walls trembled under a sudden surge of ancient power.

From the depths of the tomb, a plume of black smoke billowed out, rapidly twisting into a towering silhouette.

Ragnar kept his face pressed to the dirt until the wind died down. Only then did he slowly raise his head.

Hovering before him was a dark entity, the same entity that had manifested before Alyssa in Ashgard, and got burned when he touched her. Two luminous, blood-red eyes glared down at the kneeling Rogue King with terrifying intensity.

"You are late!" he roared.

"Forgive me, Lord Ozai," Ragnar pleaded, his voice trembling as he remained on his knees. "I wanted to be sure of my findings, and you were right. The girl is indeed an Onyx. The last of her bloodline."

"At last!" Ozai hissed in triumph. "After so many years, I shall be unbound from this pit! You know what must be done, Ragnar. Bring me her blood. Only the blood from her beating heart can set me free."