Seeker: Demon Killers [Fantasy/Action | Complete]

Chapter 27: Maraduc

"Shhh," he said, kneeling down. "Move slow, or you'll scare them."

Lilitha felt cumbersome as she tucked her long legs beneath her and cautiously lowered her body to the ground. She swayed on her knees, hyperaware of how her elbows jutted out and her tail swished, much as she tried to suppress it. Maraduc used gentle fingers to tuck a lock of his wavy snow-white hair, so characteristic of the Eali, before brushing the serrated blades of grass back. Such an action could have caused loss of digits in any other species, but the Eali were so at one with nature that nothing desired harm to them.

Except perhaps Shifters.

With the same gentle fingers, he cupped his hands beneath several balls of snuffling fur. Several layers of fur shifted, revealing large doe-like eyes that stared up at him, quivering.

Around them, the air moved in subtle undulations. Star glittered, large as red moons, in the dark sky. The light shone through the small breaks in the thick canopy overhead, the leaves of which were also serrated and sharper than her claws. She hadn't been there long, but he'd always visited, keeping her safe, keeping her sane.

Maraduc spoke to it in the soft Eali tongue. The shaking ceased. The creature's eyes darted quickly up at LIlitha before flashing back to Maraduc.

"Isn't it beautiful? So delicate, so perfect."

"Such tiny vulnerable creatures would not survive one red moon in my world," she said in a low voice, keeping perfectly still. She was aware of how the skin on the back of her hands still held flickers of flames, bathing them in a glow.

"No, nor would I," was the cheerful reply. Soft long-fingered hands stroked the creature's fur before scratching its back. Those large eyes half-closed in bliss. "Which is why I'm glad I live in my world and not yours."

"Such peace and naiveté cannot last forever."

Despite the dismissal in her voice, the Eali didn't rise to the bait.

"That's also true." He sat in a more comfortable position, bare legs crossed over each other, in the thicket. With one brush of his hand, the area around Lilitha's feet receded, leaving bare ground. She sat down, tail curled around her body. That was an unnecessary gesture – Lilitha's telekinetic shield was near impenetrable, any gashes she sustained would heal the next time she shifted, and it wasn't like she minded pain – but it was typical of Maraduc to be so thoughtful. "But what is life if you can't live it to the fullest? Would you live in fear and bloodshed, hoping for the moons to pass, so you realise you've survived another day?"

"That's how you get stronger – weeding out the weak."

"Ah, but that's not the question."

His perceptiveness irked her sometimes.

"Are you happy, Lil?"

"Happy." Lilitha rolled the strange word on her tongue. It gave her a peculiar feeling, like that time she'd eaten a Furball before she realised their pure liquid, acidic contents made them impossible to expel. The tingling warmth at the bottom of her stomach – not exactly unpleasant, but wholly alien – remained for days. "What a bizarre concept."

"Yes, I expected as much." Maraduc looked thoughtful, his huge pale green eyes turned skywards. The last of the twilight dotted his smooth mahogany skin, beautiful as sparks in a fire. It caught Lilitha's breath every time she looked at him. It wasn't just aesthetics; the entire atmosphere of peace and gentility made life almost seem worthwhile. "And yet you sit here, with an Eali, looking at this sweet little creature that had just dropped off to sleep."

She looked. He was right. The little ball of fur had closed its eyes and the only movement she could see was the subtle beating of its heart and each breath moving in and out of its body.