Read Online Schism: The Battle for Darracia (Book 1) by Michael Phillip Cash - Free Book Online

closed his mouth, at a loss to explain his feelings. “I don’t know what I believe in anymore.”
    Tulani ’s hair tickled his nose, and V’sair brushed her curls from his face.
    “ I can’t see. Tie your hair back,” he said.
    “ It feels good when it touches you, no?” Tulani asked seductively, her clasped hands resting intimately against his lower belly.
    Gracefully they descended to the forest floor, coming to rest on a bed of red clover and lichen -covered rocks. They heard the call of wild birds and the keewalla monkeys that roamed the glades. A waterfall cascaded over the high rocks, and the gentle creatures of the night called to them.
    “ Deep Fells,” V’sair said with wonder. His skin prickled, and he was acutely aware of the female behind him. His urges made his fingers tingle; his lips ached to touch hers.
    “ Part of them. It is my family’s home.”
    In the distance the castle floated, its many turrets outlined by the gleam of its white lights. The other buildings used different-colored lighting, so the city in the sky looked like a brightly colored constellation. V’sair rarely had seen his home from a distance. Once, Zayden had stolen him away without his parents knowing to see the city from the ground. It was as exhilarating then as it was now.
    “ Waaw!” V’sair’s eyes took in the lush gardens, bathed in the moonlight of the four moons. Overhead he heard the leathery wings of the herns, along with their screeching call for the mates they chose for life. He looked up to see a flock of them flying in a cross-shaped formation. He never had been so close to one, except in the museum of course. He couldn’t believe his mother had let him fly here without a detail and in the evening. He knew he should return by daybreak, and that was a good thirty-four hours away. He glanced at the herns and followed their flight. They were predatory, he knew, but never attacked in the evenings.
    V ’sair demounted then lifted his arms to help Tulani as she slid off Hother. His heard her breath catch in her throat as his hands spanned her tiny waist. She rested her hands lightly on his shoulders, and the world narrowed to just the two of them. She was light as a feather, her legs sliding down his body, her full lips finding his own. He was acutely aware that nearly every part of his body touched hers, and his skin burned through his clothes.
    V ’sair slanted down, taking her mouth, kissing her tentatively, then opening his mouth and letting their tongues touch. Sparks flared between them, and Tulani felt V’sair’s chest expand with the same excitement she felt. She reached behind him to pull his tunic free, and his hands skimmed down her body, coming to rest on a firm breast. She sighed with pleasure into his mouth, and V’sair deepened his kiss.
    A burst of fireworks exploded in the night sky, and for a scant minute, V’sair thought their kiss had caused it. A great cackle split the silence.
    “ What do they do here?” It was a gravelly voice, as if from a rusty barrel.
    “ Bobbien…” Tulani closed her eyes. She thought they would have some time before her grandmother showed herself. “You are far from home.”
    “ I am a wanderer, always wandering, don’t you know?” She paused and pursed her wrinkled lips. “A maid, a man…” The voice continued. “What mischief is this?”
    “ No mischief, Greanam. It is Tulani…and Prince V’sair.”
    The prince bowed deeply, his face blushing blue with embarrassment as he tucked in the errant tails of his tunic.
    “The prince…Prince V’sair…son of Queen Reminda, my good friend?”
    The old Quyroo stomped out of the shadows. Her breast s hung flat and long; her belly was big, covered loosely with a brown loincloth. Her red braids reached the forest floor, dragging all kinds of feathers, leaves, and twigs in the knotted mess. She held a tall stick with a length of hemp attached to it.
    V ’sair bowed deeply, “At your service, my