Rebirth Read online

  Since it seemed she was going to be out for a bit, I eased myself out what was left of the door, and used my talent to sense the island for her sister. When I located her, I couldn’t help but smile lightly to myself and head immediately to go see her. De’Nara hadn’t forgotten me – she had gone back to the grove where we’d parted paths last and was waiting for me to come to her. With a light bounce in my step, I rushed to her side, using my gift to help me avoid all the people who were still roaming around the island.

  De’Nara’s glade had changed quite a bit in the last five years since I’d been there. The flowers and vines I had planted and nurtured with magic had completely taken over the place. The ground was a blanket of colors, and even the trees and branches were draped in hues of vibrant vines blooming in vibrant colors. The smell of sweet bliss wafted like ambrosia through the air.

  And there, a goddess in her own domain, was De’Nara dancing naked with the dappled sunbeams that cascaded through the vibrant canopy around the glade. My heart nearly stopped with the beauty and awe that it felt watching such a scene; though if it had, I could honestly say I died happily. To think that such perfect beauty could exist in this world moved me to tears.

  “Dee…” I called out lightly to her and she laughed freely, danced over, wrapped her arms around me, and then gave me a deep passionate kiss.

  “You’ve grown just as handsome as I’d imagined you’d become,” she told me smiling.

  “And you’re as beautify as ever,” I told her while blushing. “Have you been well?”

  With a laugh that lightened my soul, she tugged me down upon the grass and then nestled back up like it was old times again. “I’m fine,” she told me. “A lot has happened, but I’m fine. Should I tell you some of the highlights of the life of De’Nara?”

  “Certainly!” I was anxious to hear more about what she’d been doing.

  “Well, let’s see. For starters, I got married.”

  I felt my heart sink at those words. I’d feared as much since she was a woman of twenty-two years of age now in this world, and most women had already produced several children by her age. “Are you happy?” Even though I was sad, I still wanted to support her.

  “I’m always happy,” she told me with a smile. “But, you know, it was a shame. That marriage didn’t last long. My husband was born in Kent, and they’re used to certain stupid things. When he found out I wasn’t a virgin on our wedding night, he said a few things that I didn’t approve of – while inside my house! Unfortunately, his sword was slower than his mouth, and I was widowed before he could even share a night of passion with me.”

  She laughed lightly and stretched happily amongst the flowers on the ground. “So after that, his family was informed that he’d died in an assassination attack – those things happen sometimes – and his body was sent back home. His family still wanted a connection to mine, so one of his idiot brothers was sent to marry me.

  “I met him, and he told me that I wasn’t going to work my heretical witchcraft any longer. He was going to teach me my place as a woman. After that, he somehow fell out the window of the house and almost died when he hit the ground. It was rather unfortunate that he lived. That meant he somehow bounced back up and impaled himself on the wrought-iron fence a couple of times before he was fully dead.

  “It was a terrible scene. I witnessed the whole thing from our balcony. The ground must’ve been quite moist, as he bounced up and down two or three times before impaling himself atop the fence. A terrible accident. His family was notified, and what was left of his corpse after the hounds tore it from the fence – they got to it before we could stop them, you see – was sent back to his family.”

  My mind was reeling at what she was saying! To me, who knew her so well, it didn’t sound like an accident or assassination attempt either time. It sounded like they’d annoyed a woman who had spent years training herself for war, and who had embraced the path of the blade fully. If that was an accidental death, I’m certain it’s simply because De’Nara accidently lost her temper with the idiot.

  De’Nara giggled as if she somehow found the whole situation rather amusing. “Since then,” she continued, “his family sent their third wife’s second son – or is he the second wife’s third son – whatever he is -- to marry me. Honestly, I have to say I think I can get along with him quite well as a husband. We said our vows, he moved into his own room on the other side of the house, and he does his thing without bothering me, while I do mine. He seems much brighter than his brothers were.”

  “So you’ve been married three times, widowed twice, and are still married?” I asked, trying to sort out the details of the tale she’d just finished telling me.

  “Not at all!” De’Nara giggled lightly. “What do you take me for? Some cheap floozy!” She sat up, placed her hands on her hips and pouted lightly at me. I couldn’t help but stare at the beautiful roundness that was her naked breasts just a few feet away from me. Lord knows, I’d missed seeing them every day!

  “I was only married twice,” she corrected me, “and windowed once. The other one died before we could ever get married.”

  “Oh. I’m sorry, my Great Lady. I beg your humble forgiveness. I suppose you aren’t as great a floozy as I’d imagined. I apologize,” I told her while laughing lightly myself. Dead husbands, far away, had nothing to do with me. De’Nara was my first love, she held a special place in my heart, and if she killed those men, they deserved to die. If she asked, I would’ve helped her bury them without question, or without remorse.

  De’Nara killed them.

  May the bastards burn in hell!

  I didn’t care; I still loved her. And if this third bastard ever tried to hurt her, in some idiot attempt to get revenge for his brothers, I’d make certain that he had just as permanent of an accident. No matter how many times he had to bounce across the ground.

  Impulsively, I grabbed the back of De’Nara’s head, pulled her forward, and kissed her passionately. Much to my enjoyment, she didn’t resist. I’d heard enough. Whatever had happened in those years she was gone, it didn’t change my feelings towards her one bit. She was still my first love.

  And, after a few moments stumbling to get my clothes off, she became my first lover as well.

  De’Nara’s Request

  It was several passionate hours later before we finally untwined ourselves from each other’s arms and lay back exhausted amongst the flowers. Laughing lightly, De’Nara snuggled her naked body up tight against mine and I wrapped my arms around her gently.

  Smiling lightly, she told me, “you know, Mik, I’m no longer protected from getting with child.” My heart skipped a beat! Shouldn’t you tell someone a thing like that before making love to them?!

  “In fact,” she continued, “I was going to ask if you’d help father one for me. If this time doesn’t take root, would you try again with me?”

  “Me? A father?” My mind was in a daze. “You’re married, though!”

  De’Nara laughed lightly and then nibbled on my ear. “And that’s the problem,” she told me. “I need to produce a child to bind my house and the house of Kent together. It’s all politics, but it’s something that needs to be done. I just don’t intend to have a child with one of those idiots. Ever!”

  “And thus, I was hoping you’d help.” It was a lot to take in, but with her nibbling, and her being pressed as warmly against me as she was, I was almost on the verge of getting ready to help her again. “I’ll raise it. Tend to it. It won’t be a burden to you, and we’ll keep it our secret. Can you give me a child?”

  “Well, I’ll certainly enjoy trying.” Rolling her over, I climbed back on top and did my best a second time to try and make her desire reality. She was just as loving and passionate as I was, and I tried repeatedly to help fulfill her wish until I simply couldn’t try and longer.

  Exhausted, I lay back on the ground again and stared up at the sky. The second moon had already risen and was visible through the trees. We�
�d been caught in the midst of passion and baby making for the whole afternoon.

  I couldn’t help but think that today was a good day as we drifted off to sleep together in each other’s arms.

  De’Nara’s Champion

  The sun was already shining when I awoke the next morning, and De’Nara was already up and going through her sword stances, just as she used to do. I was happy to see it was the sword I’d given her that she was holding and using; though I had no idea where she’d had it stashed earlier.

  “Good morning,” I told her sleepily. Le’Nara’s bad habits had rubbed off on me somewhat, and I wasn’t a morning person anymore.

  “Good morning,” De’Nara told me lightly. “How are you, and how’s him?”

  “I’m fine,” I told her while stretching, “but Him – and I assume you’re talking about my manhood – He’s empty and dead tired.”

  She laughed freely and patted her stomach lightly. “Of course, he’s empty. It’s because he filled me up! I was just wondering if he was sore and might need some healing. Lee had told me that you weren’t taking advantage of the girls like your father. I was worried that we may have been too much for him, for his first time. If you need healing, just say so. I may not be as good at is as Lee, but I’m certain I can fix bruised hips or overworked men-parts. “

  I couldn’t help but laugh, then get up, and hug her. “I’m fine, and he’s fine too. He just needs to rest for a bit before he tries again.”

  “You’ll have plenty of times to try,” De’Nara told me. “After all, we’ll be leaving on the same ship to travel to the mainland. If the weather holds good, that’ll give us a month together. If it gets bad, we may have sex or eight weeks.”

  “Six to eight weeks,” I corrected her.

  “If you say so,” she laughed and then turned and kissed me passionately before finally skipping away and pulling out her clothes from behind some bushes. “Here,” she tossed them at me while they were still bundled up. “These are for you. Lee told me that you saved the last clothes I’d worn on the island. I thought you might like to have the first and last that I wore back from this trip as well.”

  “I’ll make them my treasure as well,” I told her honestly, as I started to separate them and then fold them up neatly. Dress, bra, panties, girdle, hose, heels, garter… it was a complete set of clothes this time and much more than just the plain dress she left behind the last time she rushed away from the island carrying nothing more than her sword.

  By the time I was finished, De’Nara was standing beside me while wearing nothing except an ivory white bracelet. Her sword was nowhere to be seen, and I glanced around to see where she might have put it. Watching me, De’Nara laughed lightly and tapped the bracelet. When she pulled her hand away, the blade was in it and ready for use.

  “I told you’d I’d find a way to always carry it,” she told me. “Last night was the first time it’s left me since the day I got it. You should’ve seen the looks the sailors were giving me on the ship when I carried it everywhere in my hands. I even ate meals holding it in my left hand and my fork in my right. I wasn’t going to release it until I found some way to keep it with me, and it took mother and one of the scholars and a wizard to come up with the bracelet so I could store it.

  “Snowflake is never far from me, you can rest assured of that.” De’Nara tapped the sword against the bracelet and it faded away into it.

  Now that’s a magic I’d like to learn how to do someday!

  Laughing lightly, De’Nara skipped over and held something out for me. “I have something I’d like you to have Mik’hail.”

  Looking down, it looked to be a shiny silver badge of some sort. Curious, I took it and held it up to the sunlight. It reminded me of one of those badges you see the Texas Rangers wear in the TV shows of Earth, except it had an eagle on one side and De’Nara’s face on the other. “What is it?” I asked curiously.

  “It’s the badge of the queen heir’s champion,” she told me solemnly.

  “Queen heir? Champion?”

  De’Nara laughed lightly and then shook her head from side to side. “Don’t tell me you didn’t know!”

  “Know what?” I was definitely out of the loop on something important it seemed!

  De’Nara got into a fit of laughter so hard, she had to sit down and cry. I sat down with her and simply waited for her to compose herself – a trick that I’d picked up from Mother. When in doubt of what someone is saying, say nothing and be patient. They’ll let you know what you need to know soon.

  And, sure enough, after a few moments, De’Nara straightened herself up. “I know we don’t talk about status here. I just had no clue that you didn’t know! Allow me to introduce myself formally for you.”

  De’Nara stood up, pretended to curtsy (which was actually something impressive to watch since she was still quite naked), and introduced herself. “De’Nara Andorian at your service; First Daughter of Andor, and Heir to the Throne of the Shining Star.”

  First Daughter? Heir?

  De’Nara was a princess!

  And not just any princess! She was the heir to the throne and would become queen someday!

  I’d just spent all evening yesterday having sex with the next queen of Andor, and my child might be taking root in her womb even now!

  Fuck me!!

  Seeing the shocked look on my face, De’Nara laughed lightly and then leaned up and hugged me tight to her chest. “You really didn’t know!” She sounded both shocked and happy.

  “All my life, people have tried to get close to me for my name, my title, or my future authority. And yet, you’ve been my friend without knowing any of that! You truly are worthy of being my champion. Please accept it,” she asked me.

  “It’ll be an honor,” I told her honestly. “But I just need to know; what’s expected from the Heir’s Champion?”

  De’Nara laughed lightly and then kissed me soundly. “Honestly,” she told me, “not a whole lot. It’ll give you a lot of authority in Andor – you can arrest people, or judge them if necessary – and the people will consider whatever you do or say to be by the order of the Heir. You’ll carry my authority with you whenever you’re in Andor land.

  “For you, it means you should get to stay at any inn or house that you wish to stay in – no questions asked. If you like the mayor’s bed, kick the bastard out of it. Should he refuse, it’s treason against the crown and you have full authority to take his head if you need to. Rooms, meals, and even a night of passion with one of the women of the land are all easily within your authority.

  “You won’t have to take orders from anyone else. You can ignore the guards, the mayors, the Dukes if you wish. The only one who has the authority to command the Heir’s Champion is the Heir and the Queen. And, since I’m not going to ask you to do anything; and since I don’t think Mother would either; it’s not really a position that’ll hold much burden on you.”

  Giggling lightly, she kissed me on the nose and asked, “So, what do you say? Be my champion?”

  I wrapped my arms around her and held her close for a few moments while thinking it over. I really couldn’t see any downside in accepting it. If she needed me, I’d already come running to help her. She didn’t need to give me a badge to ask for my help; she already had it. All it could do is perhaps help me somehow in the future.

  Finally, I leaned down and kissed her passionately as I grabbed her by both her butt cheeks and pulled her up tight against me. “Then, My Lady, I suppose you have yourself a Champion. If you need me, send word to me and I’ll be there as soon as possible. Gondor is a distance apart from Andor, but should you need me I’ll be there as quickly as I can.

  “All I ask,” I told her, “is that we don’t announce the position to the world. I’m traveling to the school in Gondor as plain ‘Michael’, and I’m not even using my family name. I want to see the world without titles, and without wealth and responsibility for a while. I’ve always been ‘The Lady’s Child’ here. I want
to just be ‘that idiot’ somewhere else for a while.”

  De’Nara laughed lightly and then kissed me back passionately. “Then you shall be my secret champion. I’ll have to notify mother and the knights, of course, but we won’t make any public announcement. Enjoy being ‘that idiot’, and if I ever do need you I’ll know where to find you.

  “And,” she told me while staring seriously into my eyes, “if you ever need me, simply send me word as well. I’ll be there for you, just as quickly as you, for me. You are my Bladebrother, my Champion, and my Friend. I’d take death before I risked losing any of those.”

  Nodding, I stared back just as seriously into her eyes. “And you’re my Bladebrother, my Lady, and my Friend. I’d make death before I risked losing any of those.”

  “You’d make death?” De’Nara laughed lightly. “My, aren’t you full of yourself!”

  Nodding, I pulled in the energy around me and released a wave of fire, earth, and energy high into the sky. The flowers evaporated in an instant as the earth erupted and lava shot towards the heavens. The ground shook and with a thunderous roar, a volcano rose up and grew from the ground around us.

  “I would make lots of death, before I risked you,” I told her as magma poured around us and the forest burned.

  De’Nara’s eyes were huge as she stared up at me and whispered, “You’re a wizard…”

  A Lesson on Royal Love

  And where was Mother during this time where I was showing off, growing a volcano on her island, and burning the forest to cinders? She was calmly sitting out at the practice field, watching the fireworks and sipping on a cup of tea while everyone else ran around and acted crazy.

  Sometimes, I think her “I let my child have the freedom to walk his own path” philosophy might be just a little too lax!

  Let me tell you, I learned one very important thing that morning – it’s much easier to start a volcano than it is to stop one!