He shrugged. “Won't it be best to alter your targets?”
“He's right,” Air said. “Rath was the best option to start with because he possesses all the Elements. But you should try the procedure with others. It will make you more flexible.”
“You said it would be rough on Keltyr if I took his Earth magic because he only possesses one.”
“But you've had some practice now. You know how to be more gentle.”
“No. I'm not sure if I want to use them as targets,” I said. “It didn't go so well with Rath.”
“Only because he was resisting your help at the end,” Fire said. “You're not going to resist, are you, horny boy?”
Kel snorted. “You think you're funnier than you are. But no, I'm not going to resist.” He grinned broadly at me and held out his arms. His tail even lifted into a cute curl. “Do what you will with me.”
“All right then.” I rushed him.
Keltyr grunted as he caught me, then wrapped his arms and tail around me. General Ranor hadn't joined us, so there was no one feeling awkward when I kissed Kel. We were able to take our time, really sinking into the kiss. And, more importantly, our love.
When I eased back, I smiled at Kel. But before I could tell him I loved him, Air spoke.
“That is what you must focus on with Aranren,” Air said. “You will need that bond to save him. Unfortunately, it's thin and frayed. The only reason it remains is that Death is unaware of it. So, sink into it slowly and subtly as you distract Death with your attack. This will be a complicated maneuver, Ember. And we have only just begun to train for it.”
“I understand.” I stepped back from Kel. “Are you ready?”
Keltyr didn't crack a joke this time. He just nodded.
Earth advised me this time, guiding me through the best way to cage his magic. It was a slower, tedious process. By the time I finished, both Kel and I were sweating and shaking. But I managed to capture Earth even as I used the element to form a clay cage around Kel. When I lifted the cage with Keltyr's Earth Magic in it, my lover collapsed to his knees. I instantly released the magic and destroyed the Keltyr-statue. It crumbled to dust this time.
Kel gasped and fell forward as his magic returned to him. Xae got to him before I did, catching the Dhon man and picking him up.
“I knew you were into me,” Keltyr said to Xae before he passed out.
Xae snorted and shook his head, but also stared affectionately and concernedly down at his cumbersome burden. Even with Xaedren's bulk, Kel looked awkward in his arms, his long limbs dangling along with his tail. But I was more concerned about his health.
I rushed over to stroke Keltyr's face, the bond between us already filling with power. There was no resistance this time, but Kel wasn't in a position to resist. The energy rushed into him, and he sat up in Xae's arms with a gasp.
“Are you all right?” Xaedren asked, his deep voice and the way he held Kel making it seem intimate.
Kel smirked. “No, I'm still feeling weak.” He stroked Xae's back with his tail. “I think you should keep carrying me.”
Xae snorted and dropped Keltyr onto the grass. “You're fine.”
Kel grunted, made a sound of painful complaint, then laughed. He bounced to his feet and declared, “I'm ready for my reward now!”
“Come here, you big buffoon,” I said adoringly. I held out my hand, and Keltyr took it. But before we left, I looked at the others. “Is this all right?”
“Of course,” Rath said. “Enjoy your night.”
“We will!” Kel pulled me into an embrace and faded us away.
Chapter Twenty-Five
I knew where we were going, but it was still a surprise to arrive in the main living space of yet another home in the sky. But where the Dellamar house was a natural wonder, this place stood on legs of steel, stacked over other steel cubes to form a giant pillar that soared into the sky hundreds of feet. Even prepared for it, I felt a thrill as I walked over to a glass wall and peered out across the Dhon city of Ruva.
The Dhon was the most technologically advanced race on Varr. They shared a lot of their inventions with the other races, but not everything. I think it was more a case of the other races not appreciating the modern Dhon devices rather than the Dhon hoarding them. The Varraen, in particular, snubbed the Dhon way of living. To them, it was the greatest insult against nature to live in glass and steel columns. Even though those columns had been built by magic and were powered by it. It just wasn't their style. But I'll tell you what—I would have loved a Dhon lift in the Dellamar house. The contraption carried people upward in a metal box, using magic to deposit them on any floor of a building in seconds. No climbing stairs. In Dellamar, it would probably take us ten minutes to get down to the ground. Of course, Rath and I had simply floated down. But still. The stairs were bound to get used at some point. Why have them if not?
Ruva was twelve hours ahead of the Wraith Lord Citadel. So, although it had been late afternoon there, it was early morning here. The city should have been sleeping, its lights turned off and its streets empty. Instead, it sparkled in the dark, lights on everywhere, and the street below was full of Dhon vehicles, powered by magic, not a horse in sight. The Varraen may naturally possess the most magic on Varr, but the Dhon used it the most expertly. Ruva was the pinnacle of magical cities, in my opinion.
The view wasn't of tree branches, but it felt like a forest with all those steel pillars sprouting from the earth. They weren't uniform either. Each one had unique aspects like cone-shaped balconies, stone statuary, or even water features. The building across from us was actually two buildings conjoined, with a waterfall between them. Yes, the Dhon loved their metal, but they were still people of nature, and the city was peppered with green spaces. Many of the buildings had gardens atop them or plants growing in boxes built into their walls. There was so much to see, and that was only from the apartment's view.
