Ruby:
Ruby leaves Anavir tied up without affording her so much as a glance, and closes the window behind him.
Orion:
Orion hears Anavir screaming and tenses.
‘What’s going on?’
The scream disappears as soon as it came.
‘Did she ask for help?’
He spots the glamorous psion in the sky, and his tension melts away for a moment. What a sight. He watches in awe.
Ruby:
Ruby floats down to the beach, assuming a few majestic formations along the way. Finally, he lands before Orion.
“Anavir is upset, but there is no danger,” he says firmly, his golden eyes fixed on Orion. “I would sooner destroy the universe than harm my Goddess. She will help with lessons. But for now, it will just be us.”
Orion:
Orion regrets showing up in his loincloth. Ruby’s beauty is breathtaking, with that chaotic blood red hair blowing in the wind over his pristine angel face. Orion would rather prefer to display his bare boned reaction. But then, Ruby can sense his every thought and feeling anyway.
“Being alone with you is an honor to die for,” he purrs in a sultry rasp. “But Anavir is my friend and no desire could consume me enough to stop me from protecting her. So you better be telling the truth.”
Ruby:
“You could not begin to fathom how to stop me from harming your friend,” Ruby goads. “My power is infinitely beyond yours. And that is why I called you here.”
“It’s pathetic, Orion. How can I have faith in my mission to save Erosia, when its Gods succumb so easily to my power?”
Orion:
Orion is hypnotized by Ruby’s goading and pushing, with that hypnotic voice of his, and those golden eyes that carry all the music of the multiverse. But his question is unexpected, and Orion is taken aback.
“Is that why you haunt me and stalk me all those years, Ruby? You need a God to believe in?”
Ruby:
“This is not just about me,” Ruby says impatiently. “I am destined to be the King of Erosia, who saves it from corruption and restores the old ways. But I cannot reinstate the visions of the Gods without their guidance.”
Orion:
Orion bites his lip.
“You don’t need Gods with power. Your power is magnificent, Ruby. Whatever you need, you can do it yourself.”
He places a hand on his heart.
“My power is right here. And you need me to inspire yours.”
He moves in closer and places a hand on Ruby’s chest. As he feels the psion’s heartbeat against his hand, fire surges through his veins.
Ruby:
Ruby tenses as the hungry animal reaches to touch him. He has the instinct to step away, but he’s also intrigued by Orion’s train of thought and wants to hear more. He decides, since he has the power to send Orion flying away with telekinesis at any moment, there’s no real harm indulging him for now.
Orion:
‘Ruby’s not moving away.’
Orion is overcome with the painful urge to throw Ruby down and take what is his. Yet Ruby isn’t his. Yet.
Ruby:
Through psionics, Ruby senses a stir from his two lovers upstairs in the castle, and catches his new lover untying Anavir. Watching his two beloveds plotting and planning together makes his heart melt. He tries his best to hide that feeling from Orion, lest he might mistake Ruby for succumbing to his love.
Orion is no psion, but he will pick up every emotion and desire, come hell or high water. It’s harder to hide from that beast than one might realize.
Orion:
Orion sees Ruby’s smile. He can’t imagine what’s going through that complicated mind of his, but damn, that sweet smile is everything.
“So what do you think, Ruby?”
Orion keeps his hand firmly placed on Ruby’s heart, staring right into his eyes.
“You be the powerhouse, I’ll be your whore. Then you’ll be infused with the spirit of Erosia.”
Ruby:
Ruby cracks a smile. He stands closer, and puts both of his hands on Nokoma’s hand, pressing it against his own heart, their eyes locked. He speaks in a slow, hypnotic voice. “I might prefer a mistress.”
He grins.
“Are you prepared for the transformation of your lifetime?”
Orion:
Orion laughs.
“You got me there, smartass. Very funny. But you tell me I’m the God of sex. So I’m afraid it’s you who will die in my flame and rise again.”
He considers taking a handful of Ruby’s ass to make his point, but decides he’d prefer to stay close to Ruby and not go flying across the beach in a fury of red lightning.
Ruby:
The animal delivered the predictable response. Ruby knew he was coming here to do this. Yet he was ill prepared. He’d spent the entire day devising a failsafe plan to fend off this insanity, but then, his crows showed him a view of the Animal sending Rosha to bliss. Instantly, Ruby’s rationale was replaced by nerves screaming about Orion’s wild night with Anavir. The plan was gone. Ruby feels a cold sweat. He releases Nokoma’s hand and steps back, but he still feels unsettled.
‘He resisted the impulse to help himself to my sensual bits – but I should hurl him across the beach regardless. Sadly, there will be no red lightning, as my demon is nowhere to be seen. He guards my women jealously, yet he leaves me for the wolves.’
‘I want to hurl him away. But I’m intrigued. How does he do this? Why is he the God of sex? What does it take? Beyond that, I must convince him to stop running and take up his mantle. This is not childsplay. If I boss him around, he’ll lure me into a sado masochistic playground. What ever have I gotten myself into?’
Ruby’s mind spins and spins and spins.
Orion:
Orion doesn’t need to be a psion to know what’s going on. The great Lord Prig, the King of the Sky, the Immortal Psion with the power to end the universe – is afraid.
‘He’s afraid of me.’
‘And he wants to teach me about power.’
Orion watches his prey squirming in the heat of his passion. And he hasn’t even grabbed his ass yet.
Ruby:
Ruby hears Orion’s thought, relieved. This is exactly what he wanted.
“At last, you recognize the power of Eros to reduce an immortal psion to a cold sweat.”
He pauses and looks the predator in the eye.
“You are more powerful than I, dear Nokoma. I’ve held fast to this claim, but you are not one to attend the meanderings of an ancient and educated fool. For something to hold meaning, you must experience it yourself.”
Orion:
Orion’s eyes sparkle as he looks Ruby over.
“You’re an annoying showoff, but you’re also humble. It’s adorable, and it’s part of what makes you so hot. All that surrender, Ruby. You want a God so bad. Someone better than you, to protect you.”
Orion bites his lip as he feasts his eyes.
“I wish I could be your God, but you’re wrong about me. I’m obsessed. My heart is in your hands, and I will chase you until you destroy me. You must understand, Ruby – it’s not the predator, but the prey – who holds the power.”
Ruby:
Ruby understands the dynamics of seduction better than the animal could ever dare to dream. That is exactly what makes the animal’s superior execution so frustrating.
“I am enamored with the art of seduction, and we two masters could certainly discuss dynamics until Valanis fades to dust. But in the meantime, my homeland is under attack, and I’m here, unable to return. You spent countless lifetimes obsessing over your vision of Erosia, until you finally found the power and the love you needed to make your dream a reality. Now you have a clear path to revitalize that dream, and all you do is run.”
His golden eyes glow.
“What are you afraid of?”
Orion:
“You almost had me convinced that I was the God of Erosia,” Orion says in an ashy tone. “Leave it to that dirty mind of mine to dream such immaculate beauty, and crown him as Prince in my erotic paradise. But I can’t believe it anymore, Ruby. I would not create… this… just to deprive myself of a taste. If I created the world that made you, then you would crave both women and men.”
Ruby:
‘If only I could retreat to my mind palace and stop time for a year while I decide what to do.’
At my worst I am a black void of chaos and morbid despair. Sadly, I am rarely in between.
