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  In a low voice she asked, “Who do you bury today?”

  The woman shrieked and turned, gasping but with her hands clawed in a defensive posture. “Who are you?”

  The Orb took over. “Be at ease, Pettra. This is Kali, my host. She needs to know of this.”

  The woman bowed from the waist, mud and stone dust coated her clothing. “Of course. I am burying Talniathico of the Vorwing today. He was one of the First, and his loss hurt the Orb deeply.”

  Kali looked at the headstone that had been prepared. “He left no body, how will you bury him?”

  Pettra smiled shyly. “It took me a while, but I gathered him up and put him back together. It is what I do. He is here.”

  Kali followed Pettra into the mausoleum and stopped as the figure wrapped in gauze struck her as horribly familiar. The six and a half foot fairy that had tried to strangle her was lying in repose, reassembled from his component molecules back into the semblance of the living man.

  “How did you…”

  Pettra smiled and bobbed another bow. “We all have our skills, Host. Attention to detail is mine.”

  “Apparently. Very well done. Do you stay here on your own?”

  “I have a room in the city when I am not needed. I eat in the refectory and study at the library, but since I cannot tell anyone about my particular assignments, it makes it hard to socialize.”

  Pettra had a look in her eyes that Kali associated with mania. “If you ever need someone or want someone to speak with, tell the Orb, and I will come.”

  “Thank you, Host. I may take you up on it. It is not happy work, but I keep them all as fresh as the day they died.” Pettra’s hand caressed the dead Vorwing, and Kali fought a shudder.

  “What do you need to do to bury him?” Odin’s voice came from behind them, and Pettra dramatically shifted shape.

  Fangs, teeth, a huge back and grasping claws surged toward Odin, and he misted to nothing as she lunged past him.

  “Pettra, stop! This is my bodyguard, Odin. We did not know anyone was here when we arrived, or we would have announced ourselves properly.”

  Pettra paused, her troll-like countenance confused. She shifted back into a fairly normal shape and nodded. “That is best. I do not do well with surprises. I am a great caretaker but not very social.”

  Kali gave a mental whistle.

  She is excellent at restoring the dead. While the Nameless may die away from Home, she retrieves them and buries them with honour and care in the same form that they lived in.

  You have protected the Nameless from knowledge of this, why? Kali had to know.

  Your lives began again here, but the constant memory that they are in danger is more than I expect any of you to live with. Pettra will continue to keep the dead, and the others will live never knowing what will become of them.

  Kali sighed, Knowing that we will be remembered, even if only by a madwoman, may help matters. There is nothing like the feeling that nothing you do matters and you will be forgotten the moment that you are over.

  I will think about it.

  The Orb ceased communication, and Odin wrapped his arm around her waist. “I wish to show you something.”

  She followed him out into the light, and he walked one of the immaculately tended paths.

  “I know that the Orb told you that there were twenty of the Firsts and that they had all been reclaimed, but count the statues.”

  She quickly did a tally of the black stone life-sized images that symbolized the Firsts. There were eighteen. Her victim was not yet in the group. “The Vorwing I killed today will make nineteen. There is one left out there.”

  “What does the Orb have to say about that?”

  “Nothing. The Orb is in mourning for the lost Vorwing.”

  “Truthfully? The deaths that it brought on do not earn it contempt?” Odin was shocked.

  She smiled and wrapped her arm around his waist. “You do not hate your children just because they do not turn out the way you plan. You understand them if you can and simply love them if you can’t.”

  “The Orb thinks of itself as a parent?”

  “It was a dead universe with no children. It wanted life, craved it, and when it could, it adopted children of its own. That those children were spoiled and were given too much was not something that the Orb had considered. It tried to do better with the next round, and though the children did still die, the Orb was proud of their actions while they lived.”

  She turned slowly and opened her arms to the thousands of graves all around them. “It mourns them every day, because every day, it lives outside time, and they live and die endlessly. Our graves are probably here as well. With time a fluid thing, it is likely that we have died and appeared here out of time.”

  He looked around him, curious. “I do not see my image in the stones, nor yours. I believe our images are within the refectory hall as they have been since the day we began here.”

  “So, three days for me.”

  He chuckled. “It did take a while to thaw you out. It is closer to five days.”

  A peculiar whistle got their attention.

  They walked back to the mausoleum, and Pettra was waiting. She smiled brightly. “Since you are here, I wondered if you wanted to say a few words.”

  The strange creature crooked her fingers, and the body floated out of the mausoleum and followed Pettra down a path to an open hole in the ground.

  “The Vorwing live a very long time, so they like to be encased in stone.” Pettra lowered the body into the hole and knelt beside it. Her hands dug into the ground and a cocoon of stone wrapped over the gauze and sealed the Vorwing forever.

  Pettra followed the stone with a layer of earth and after that, turf sprouted.

  A headstone stood at the ready, and with a casual strength, the caretaker shifted it into position. Her claws cut into the stone easily, giving Kali a feeling of relief that she had not let the woman get close.

  The Orb took Kali’s body and stepped forward to the edge of the grave. “Today, we remember Talniathico of the Vorwing. He was a good man before he took the power of the past into him and after he father twenty-seven children. Three of those children joined him on his last day, but they are now beginning lives anew in the universe of their birth.

  “Talniathico was a man who loved laughter, joy and having a good time. He was a pleasure to watch until he turned, and even when he did, I could turn my eye from him. He was strength, he was joy and he will be missed in his universe and in our Home.”

  Kali watched her glittering black hand caress the turf, and an ornate band of flowers with star-shaped blossoms bloomed. “Thank you for your care, Pettra.”

  “An honour, as always, Orb.” She bowed again, and it was a dismissal.

  The Orb stood and reached out for Odin, “It is time to go.”

  He nodded and wrapped her in his arms, transporting them back to their apartments.

  Kali saw her own flesh return, and she sighed. “The Orb is gone for the evening.”

  Odin pulled her tight against him. “Well, the Orb may be mourning, but I have just been reminded that our time together will be finite.”

  She laughed and looped her arms around his waist. “It sounds very philosophical. Tell me more.”

  Chapter Ten

  Having her clothing removed by columns of mist that had remarkable dexterity for nothing more than nebulous gases was peculiar, but he wanted her to stand still, so she stood still.

  The twisting vine that wound up her thigh until it parted her and slid into her caused her to give out a startled gasp.

  “The noises are nice. Keep them.” His words were quiet, but they reverberated along her skin as he whispered into her neck.

  The fastenings of her skirt released, and her bodice parted seconds later. Her parted thighs kept the fabric from going anywhere, so Odin lifted her with the extensions he was generating, and he tilted her to her back.

  She chirped a squeak in surprise. He laughed, a
nd her clothing floated gently from her.

  She sighed happily when the columns of air began to caress her limbs and slowly drifted her over to the bed.

  His hands complemented the movements of air, and while the tendrils went hot and cold on her flesh to test her reactions, his hands woke all the spots that he had introduced himself to the previous night.

  Kali shook, shivered and arched into each of his strokes, parting her thighs when he drew close and begged him with soft words that sighed into the dim light around them.

  Odin’s eyes glowed in the darkness and lit the sculpted planes of his chest.

  Kali reached out to touch him, marvelling at the even heat that his body put out.

  “You prefer a warm lover, do you not?”

  She giggled, embarrassed that she had expressed that sentiment out loud. “I do. You are perfect.”

  He blushed and guided her hand down his body, over every ridge and steely, silken inch of skin until she gripped his cock with her hand. “I am hardly perfect.”

  “You look perfect, you feel perfect and don’t want anything else, so for me, you are perfect.”

  He stared into her eyes, so she slowly started to stroke his cock. When his body shuddered, she quickened her pace, loving the look on his face.

  His eyes were half closed, the skin was tight on his cheeks and his jaw was tense and flexing.

  She moved her hand more quickly on the soft skin, and he groaned, “No.”

  Hurt, she pulled her hand away, but he kissed her, stroking his tongue into her mouth while he moved over her and pressed into her slick moisture. He braced his weight on his forearms and continued kissing her while his cock moved on its own.

  Her eyes widened with surprise as his cock worked its way into her and began a rippling motion that shocked her to her toes. She had heard of Wyoran physiology but had never experienced the prehensile member before.

  Without him shifting his weight, his shaft rippled, twisted and rocked into her, stroking her in the most delightful ways. His lips caught her exclamations, and he chuckled against her as she shivered on the edge of release.

  A spot inside her enjoyed the internal writhing more than the others, so as he moved across it, she wrapped her legs around him and held on tight.

  Shock rippled through her when the air around her clit went hot and cold in increments and the tiny shifts in temperature had her screaming in his arms.

  She bucked, twisted and swivelled her hips against him, but he simply held his hips still and kept his cock moving as she moaned, thrashed and hung on for dear life.

  With a low groan, she slumped against the bedding, only to find that they were suspended three feet above the sheets.

  He chuckled and released her mouth, placing small kisses against her jaw, neck and forehead. “I definitely like the noises.”

  His pleasure was obvious, and it brought to her mind another issue. “Don’t you…” She made a gesture with one hand.

  “What?” He frowned.

  “Cum? Orgasm? Get off?” She bit her lip and lifted her hips slightly. He was still rigid inside her.

  “Oh. No. Not normally. It is an exception, not the rule.” He smiled.

  “How about the hovering, is it the exception?”

  He laughed, “That was an accident. I wanted you to be comfortable.”

  She grinned, “Fine, let me be on top.”

  He rotated them in mid-air and lowered his back to the sheets. “I am at your disposal.”

  “Excellent. This time, you hold still, and I will do all the work.” She stroked her hands down his chest, toyed with his nipples and worked over his abdomen. She used her nails lightly and returned to the spots that made him flinch.

  Inside her, she tightened her muscles around him and felt his cock jerk in reaction.

  “I didn’t know you could do that.”

  Kali laughed and lifted her head so that her hair tumbled down her back, “You never asked.”

  She lifted and dropped on him for six strokes, then clenched and released him for ten beats, then repeated her pattern until her body was shaking, his was trembling, and she had almost bitten her way through her lower lip.

  He gripped her hips and held her tightly. “Just go.”

  She nodded and with him guiding her, she moved on him, the flared head of his cock dragging and plunging into her as she rose and fell endlessly. His hands tensed on her, and she gasped when he let out a low, agonizing groan, and she felt a spurt inside her.

  Blinking, she paused, but he gripped her and moved her hard until she screamed and bucked against him. The moment that she came, he released her, and Kali draped herself over his chest, catching her breath.

  She felt a wet trickle between her thighs and told herself that she would shower later, for now, she was ready for a nice nap against the perfect man for her.

  Kali was lowered into warm water, and Odin settled her on his lap. “Why are we in the tub?”

  “You achieved your goal, and I thought it would be nice to have a soak so that your muscles weren’t wobbly when you woke.” Odin’s hands were massaging her back and outer thigh.

  “You are serious.”

  “I am. As host of the Orb, you cannot be out of commission due to a sex sprain, so while I enjoy sharing this time with you, I will keep in mind that you have a duty to the Orb and the rest of the Nameless.”

  Kali found the Orb in her thoughts, Is he serious?

  He is. Xeric and Orphia had a problem when their bondage play caused a pause in their ability to answer my call.

  Interesting…and creepy. More than I need to know.

  The Orb was amused, but Kali turned her attention to helping Odin remove the marks she had left on his chest. “Sorry about that.”

  He looked down, and his starry eyes were close to supernova. “I enjoyed it.”

  She licked her lips, and his gaze tracked the small move. “Good to know. Now, if you will give me your hand, you missed a spot.”

  Sex in the tub was out of the question, but there was nothing like a quick orgasm to start one’s day with the right frame of mind.

  Chapter Eleven

  The first distress call from a Sentinel came to her while she was eating breakfast.

  Kali? It’s Aura. Randr has been captured, and I need help.

  Kali sat up and concentrated, Send me your coordinates.

  That won’t do much good, I am trapped in a seraglio, and I am not getting out of here any time soon. They have attached some sort of collar to me, and I can’t transport.

  Just a moment, I will get Orphia on the line.

  Kali paused and linked Orphia’s mind to hers and from there, Aura’s.

  It was decided that Orphia and Xeric would join Aura and break her free. In a delightful twist, Xeric was going in as Orphia in case someone was trying to capture the Sentinels.

  I will await an update.

  The ladies promised to give an update, and they ended their call.

  “What was that?”

  She looked up, and smiled at Odin and the cup of tea he was handing her, “My first conference call. I hope I picked the correct one to help.”

  She bit her lip and sipped at her tea, pausing in her worry to meet with the councillors in her living room. Ravikka, Toril, Mavish, Rehnara, Elorak, Nir and Gwetho sat in her home and shared their concerns for the population of Home.

  “I don’t have any intention of interfering in the day-to-day running of this city.” Kali raised her hands in surrender. “I do as the Orb bids and welcome it to speak through me.”

  Ravikka sighed at the others, “I told you. She is not here to replace the council. She has other duties that the Orb will call her to.”

  Kali grinned, “Precisely.”

  Gwetho nodded, “I can feel that. The Orb knows us and what we can and will do for the others. It would not double up when the council has served so well.”

  Nir leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “What purpose does Odin
serve? He has been an active Nameless for centuries.”

  Kali arched an eyebrow. “Odin has been assigned here by the Orb. If you wish to know what purpose he serves, ask the Orb and be satisfied with the answer.”

  Her skin darkened and she was suddenly shoved back to look through her own eyes at a distance. “Nir, what would you ask me?”

  The man swallowed, “I would ask why you have taken one of our greatest warriors and assigned him to a Home-bound Terran?”

  The Orb lifted one of Kali’s hands, and Nir’s eyes glowed white hot. “I will commune with you for a while, and we will see if you can find an answer within.”

  Gwetho winced. “As you will it, Orb.”

  “Thank you, Gwetho. You have gained wisdom.” The Orb smiled politely. “Anything else?”

  Ravikka inclined her head. “No, thank you. You have been most generous with your time.”

  The Orb smiled again. “Then, you had best get back to the council hall. There is a new recruit on the way as I speak.”

  The councillors’ widened their eyes in unison, and with inclinations of their heads, they disappeared, one by one, until the last one next to Nir took his arm and took him along.

  Odin smiled and poured her fresh tea. “What is Nir learning?”

  Kali took over her body again. “That some things are none of his business. He is being given a history lesson of all the times that the Orb has been questioned and what the results have been.”

  Odin winced. “Not pleasant.”

  “No, most of them are lying on that plateau.” She sighed and drank her tea. In one moment, she went from being relaxed and cheerful to being pensive once again.

  A knock on the door filled her with relief, but Odin went to answer it, tendrils of fog floating behind him.

  Aura was standing there with her arm around Orphia. Orphia was lifting her companion, and behind them, Randr and Xeric were in the same shape.

  With a bit of bustling, Kali managed to accelerate Xeric’s healing, and he, in turn, healed Aura and Randr.

  Once everyone was in fairly stable condition, they had a meal, and Kali asked the question, “What the hell happened?”