Luciel heard a beautiful masculine voice singing.
". . . Waiting for the winter sun...and the cold light of day...."
She stirred, feeling disorientated. The last thing she recalled was...Davariel and Remuel kissing each other—Holy crap! Dava made Remu go down on me! They both made me c.... She gasped and clamped her thighs tight with a moan. Drakken was right. Davariel was losing control more and more to sate his hunger.
"I throw myself into the sea...release the wave...let it wash over me . . ."
Again, the singing drew her attention. Blinking open her eyes, she discovered herself naked on the cream-colored couch in the twins nursery. One of the balcony's glass panes was open, making the billowy cream curtains dance delicately with the tropical ocean breeze.
". . . to face the fear...I once believed...the tears of the dragon...for you and for me."
She rose, wondering if this was another one of Davariel's projected dreams, and drifted dazed to the open balcony.
The sight took her breath away.
Davariel sat reclined on a lounger. His hair draped over the back of the chair and moved like the silken curtains in the breeze. His sinewy body was relaxed, naked except for the large pillow covering his loins, upon which he'd reclined the babies' plump little bodies. They were also naked, moving their chubby legs and smiling up in adoration into their father's face.
He stopped singing and turned his head to her. She almost wanted to cry, fall to her knees and beg him to continue.
She bit her tongue instead, knowing his ability to enthrall made him uncomfortable. Still, he regarded her with those big, brilliant, blue irises. They barely glowed anymore, revealing how beautiful and rare the original color was; a shock of vibrant blue surrounded by a dark ring.
"Trying to get the boys used to your nudist ways, eh?"
His lips kicked up in a lazy smile. "They don't like clothes either. Look how happy and free they seem now." He gripped two little ankles and brought his head down to kiss their pudgy feet. They gurgled in delight, flailing tiny fists. "My love, you're too far away. Come join us."
She'd barely finished snuggling up to him when he began devouring her mouth.
"Davariel, the babes!"
"The babes will delight in seeing how much their parents love each other," he groaned against her lips. "Luci, my Luci...I love you so much it hurts."
"Oh, Dava...."
She let him kiss her, but then he stiffened and looked down.
Luciel covered her mouth trying to stifle her guffaw. Two little streams wet his muscled belly. The babies squealed in delight at their shocked father. "Oh, yeah. They definitely look free and happy now, Dava. Let's just hope they don't free anything else."
*******
Later, that evening, Drakken returned to find Davariel trying to apologize and convince everyone to gather for dinner.
The vampire didn't ask anything, only watched in amusement. From what little he heard, it seemed as though he'd missed out on an exquisite orgy. Davariel's cambion abilities were already manifesting themselves.
"You needed to feed, Davariel. You don't see them begging their food for forgiveness when they eat," he finally drawled.
"They're my friends, not food," Davariel answered, annoyed.
Drakken laughed. He remembered an Edenian cartoon about fish that said a similar thing. "Okay, Nemo, I gottcha."
"Now you're talking weird like Luci." Davariel screwed up his face in a confused grimace.
Drakken drifted to him, stopping a breath away from his lips. He sniffed at the cambion, rolling his eyes. "Your blood becomes cleaner of the evil that polluted it. You smell like...love, Davariel. I want a sip." He dipped his head and tasted Davariel's lips. The golden beauty tasted of chocolate, champagne...and lust in its purest essence. Drakken shuddered, feeling his fangs elongate.
"Haven't you indulged enough, vampire?"
Drakken ceased licking across Davariel's lush lips at the angry sound of Luciel's voice behind them. He frowned at her for interrupting his snack. "Do you ever tire of Davariel making love to you?"
Davariel snickered.
"How could you compare-" she began.
"Because, for me feeding is more pleasurable than sex," Drakken interjected. "Even Davariel feels more alive when he feeds from the sexual energy generated by others around him. Sex is just an appetizer."
Davariel snorted this time. When they both looked at him in irritation, he merely replied in Luciel's Edenian jargon, "not!"
*******
Luciel knew Davariel needed to feed this way as he came of age for a cambion, but seeing how he let others touch him so intimately made her feel jealous.
There were other problems arising as well. Seraphia's new high priest knew where they were. Ashriel had requested to meet with her in the Master Guardians' space station orbiting Sjoria.
She'd heard he was young, but she hadn't expected a boy as young as Abdiel. Ashriel was very impressive, though. Already, he towered over Luciel by at least a foot, and his body was more muscular than Dava's.
Luciel gave him a curt nod when she finally met him. The reaper looked like he never smiled, his handsome face wearing a perpetual scowl.
He folded his meaty arms over his chest, regarding her with keen, silver eyes. "How is Davariel?"
"In good health. Thank you." She kept her tone as cold and impersonal as his.
"And his spawn?"
Luciel gritted her teeth, reminding herself that different species of humanoids used different mannerisms of speech. "Our babies are fine."
Finally, Luciel saw emotion flash in the reaper's face. His eyes went as round as his mouth, and his wings folded straight back, as if praying. "Babies? Davariel has fathered a brood of demons?"
Luciel clenched her fists. "My babies are not demons!"
Ashriel went back to scowling. "Davariel's blood was still tainted when he mated you."
The way he said mated made her feel dirty, like a whore. "He was changing. His blood wasn't black anymore. It was red."
Ashriel took a deep breath, his eyes narrowing to tiny slits. "And what color of blood do your babies carry?"
Luciel summoned her divine sword. "What does it matter? They're just babies. I believe they're entitled to free will because they carry my blood as well."
"You can't protect them forever, Luciel. I'll be watching...closely...always. If one of them so much as goes near any of the portals to hell...."
