PC Cast Goddess Summoning 04 Goddess of the Rose

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would be able to not simply destroy people s lives, but the dreams on which
generations survive.
You ll keep them out, won t you?
I have sworn a life oath to do so.
You should have told me all this earlier. Mikki shivered, feeling sick at
the thought that she d insisted he open the gate and let the women go into the
forest. No, it s not your fault. You tried to tell me that it was dangerous;
I should have listened to you.
You did what you believed was best for the roses. No harm was done; I was
there to guard the gate. I will always be there to guard the gate.
But if those things are in the forest, why is there a gate at all? Shouldn t
we seal it up and be sure it s never opened again?
We cannot. Mikado, not everything in the forest is evil. You should know that
even dreams must be tempered with reality from time to time. Our reality comes
from the forest and the threads of reality that drift there from the worlds
beyond.
First thing tomorrow you ll check all the rest of the hedge to be sure no
other area has been weakened by the roses being sick?
I will. You may rest easily, Mikado. The realm is safe under my protection.
She knew what he said was the truth she knew it because she felt it deep
within her blood. All her intuition told her that this incredible man-beast
would give his life to keep the Realm of the Rose, and its Empousa, safe.
Thank you.
This time instead of bristling at her appreciation, he simply bowed his head
slightly.
For a while they sipped their wine, each lost in their own thoughts.
May I ask you another question? Mikki said.
You may. He was looking at her with an open, interested expression.
When I asked you if you could teach me to conjure things, you said you
couldn t because only someone born of a Titan had that ability. Just exactly
who were your parents?
He didn t respond to her question for a long time, weighing whether he should
tell her his story, or whether he should stay silent and remain a mystery to
her a mystery that she would eventually tire of trying to solve.
The thought made him feel crushingly alone.
When he began to speak, his powerful voice was unusually subdued, and he could
not look at her. Instead, he stared blankly out into the night.
My father is the Titan Cronos. One day he visited the ancient island of Crete
and was struck by more than the beauty of the land amidst sea. He saw and
instantly fell in love with the fair Pasiphea. But she was no mindless maiden.
Pasiphea knew that mortals who become lovers of the gods usually come to
tragic endings, so she refused the Titan. Cronos was not dissuaded by her
rejection he waited and watched. When Minos, king of Crete, chose Pasiphea as
his bride, my father saw his opportunity. On Minos s wedding night, he drugged
the king and took his likeness, as well as his bride s virginity. Minos was
fooled, as was Pasiphea. But Cronos s wife, Rhea, was not. She suspected her
husband s infidelity and confronted Cronos. He denied loving Pasiphea. And in
truth, he did not lie. Once he d sated his desire for the mortal woman, his
love faded. Still, Rhea was not satisfied. She watched Pasiphea, discovering
that the new bride was pregnant. In a fit of jealous anger, Rhea cursed
Pasiphea s child. If, indeed, it was the son of a Titan, the child would be
born not man or god, but an abomination, a creature like none other in the
ancient world. That is how I came into being.
You are what the myth of the Minotaur was based on!
Bottomless and empty, his eyes found hers. That is the name Minos gave me. He
loathed me from the moment I was born.
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And your mother?
Pasiphea was kinder than her husband. She even used to secretly visit me, and
I remember when I was young, she sometimes sang me to sleep. He paused,
struggling to control his emotions.
Your mother loved you.
He flinched and felt as if her words physically hurt him. I like to believe
that she tried to love me. She named me Asterius, refusing to call me by the
name Minos had given me, but even in her kindness she could not forget that I
was a beast. She knew that because of my monstrous form, Cronos had somehow
been successful in entering her bed, the very thought of which was abhorrent
to her. The sight of me was a constant reminder that the Titan had tricked her
and invaded her body. So she persuaded Minos to build an enormous labyrinth,
saying that in the center of it was where he should hide the fortunes of
Crete, and that I would guard it for him. The labyrinth on Crete is where I
lived, away from my mother s eyes and those who would hunt me for sport. It is
where I would still be today if not for Hecate.
My God! They tell stories about you. Stories that say maidens and boys were
sacrificed to you.
The stunned expression on her face made him feel hot and cold at the same
time.
You should know that I have not always been as I am now. Before I answered
Hecate s summons, I was as Rhea cursed me to be an abomination, of both body
and soul. When I pledged myself to the goddess, she lifted Rhea s curse and
gave me the heart and soul of a man, though there was nothing even the Great
Goddess could do to alter my physical form.
His hand was resting on the table near the open map. The Empousa reached out
and put hers on top of his. He looked down at her hand.
I don t see an abomination when I look at you, Mikki told him.
Perhaps you should look deeper. There is still a beast within me.
I d like to believe in the man, if you ll let me, Asterius.
The man . . . His words were barely audible. He looked from her hand into
her eyes. The man hears you, Mikado, even if it seems your voice is speaking
from his dreams.
Maybe I am. She smiled softly. You and I have been in each other s dreams
before.
He turned her hand over in his and let his thumb trace the delicate lifeline
that bisected her palm, following it until it met the pulse point at her
wrist. Then, with a caress softer than the brush of a butterfly s wings, he
smoothed his thumb in sensuous circles over her pulse.
I can feel the beat of your heart, he murmured.
Can you feel that it s beating faster?
He lifted his eyes to hers. I can. Her face was so close to his that he
could feel the warmth of her breath on his skin. Her eyes had gone soft and
her lips were parted. He wanted to taste her! He wanted to drink her in and
lose himself in her sweetness. With a low growl he bent his head, replacing
his thumb with his lips. He could feel her life s blood pulsing, and he tasted
the salt of her skin. She shivered under his touch, and he let his lips move
to the delicate indentation of her elbow. Then he lifted his head. Her
breathing had deepened, and she was staring at him with wide, liquid eyes.
Before reason and common sense could make him change his mind, he leaned
forward and touched his lips to hers. She made a little gasping sound that
seemed to call to his soul, and he deepened the kiss.
Pain lanced through his body. His blood had turned to white-hot lava, and it
pounded with ferocious intensity within him. For a moment he was so
disoriented that his claws automatically shot from his skin and he bared his
teeth in a snarl, ready for the stealthy enemy that had attacked him. Then he
understood. Hecate s spell!
The Empousa did not love him; therefore, her passion would not be allowed. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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