Read Online The Lord of Near and Nigh: Shifter MC Novel (Pureblood Predator MC Book 2) by May Ellis Daniels - Free Book Online
Authors: May Ellis Daniels
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standing. Both were without clothing. Seeing the naked skin of other Hopefuls and Vessels was nothing new—the Priests sometimes told us the Everlasting had bid we go for days without clothing.
But the Priests were always covered, and seeing Priest Gabriel without his burgundy robes made me flush warm. I remember wanting to be that Vessel. I remember thinking the sensation tearing through me was named Envy, and wicked, and so I slid away and returned above deck, very ashamed, afraid my wickedness would be discovered and prevent me from becoming a Vessel for Priest Gabriel.
That night the stars seemed to burn very bright.
They burn bright now as well.
I want the warmth that arrives when Anik presses his lips to mine. I want him to press his lips over every part of me, even the secret places.
Especially the secret places.
I’ve never known this need before.
It makes me feel happy and afraid.
But there are two others that need us. She, the All Encompassing. And the Third. I don’t know why I call him the Third. Maybe because the All Encompassing is not really like us.
We three—Anik, me, and the Third—are united under her.
The Third is very far away. Lost to us. It will take all of our strength to bring him home. He’s convinced he’s alone. That he needs no one. But he’s wrong. He needs us most of all.
The time when I nearly experienced drowning in the cold ocean now seems like another life. I understand I was reborn during my swim from the Arc. That I shed some part of me, left it floating in the water to be destroyed by thundering waves. I understand that with Anik and the rest of my pack I have purpose.
That hope and Anik’s warmth is all that’s keeping me alive.
Sedna has done something to me. I inhaled the dust of her desiccated corpse. She’s inside me. I wonder if that’s partly why Anik pressed his lips to me. Does he sense her living in me? Will I become her?
I miss the ocean.
I never knew there could be such hunger.
It gnaws at me, a terrible, blind hunger.
What emptiness exists in me, to create such maddening hunger?
I scratch at the mark on my wrist. Three red disks. Like the Three united under the All Encompassing. Like three eyes. I remember the day Priest Gabriel gave me the mark. It was on my day of being accepted as a Vessel. I enjoyed the Purification Ceremony, then Priest Gabriel entered the room carrying a small blowtorch. He looked silly, wearing thick gloves to protect from being burned. I looked up at him, into his lovely green eyes, and knew I would permit him to do whatever he wanted with me.
Ascension or not. I wanted to be his.
Gabriel lit the torch, an odd blue-green flame, then heated a metal rod until it glowed red. Lifted my wrist and plunged the round metal tip into my skin three times. I remember the smell more than anything. Sweet. If I felt pain, it was only because I understood that I should.
“It’s a blessing to smile during the mark,” Priest Gabriel said as he burned me.
“Am I smiling?”
“Yes.”
“Am I in Truth?”
“Yes.”
That made me feel happy. I was no longer only a Hopeful. I was a sacred Vessel. One step closer to bearing a Guardian and Ascending into the Everlasting.
I brush the snow out of my eyes. I don’t remember when it began snowing. A while ago, from the look of the fresh snow obscuring Anik’s tracks. I wonder how long we’ve lain here. Should I wake him? He’s so tired.
Maybe we should rest a little longer. We’re both so tired.
It’s dark now. The wind howls above us, sending drifts of snow settling into the ravine. The ravine is nice. It’s sheltered from the wind.
The snow is burying us both alive.
It feels warm. Soft.
Like Anik’s embrace.
I lay my head down and close my eyes, praying not to dream.
***
I wake entombed in snow. My first full, panicked breath draws ice crystals into my lungs. My arms are pinned at my sides. I struggle and
But the Priests were always covered, and seeing Priest Gabriel without his burgundy robes made me flush warm. I remember wanting to be that Vessel. I remember thinking the sensation tearing through me was named Envy, and wicked, and so I slid away and returned above deck, very ashamed, afraid my wickedness would be discovered and prevent me from becoming a Vessel for Priest Gabriel.
That night the stars seemed to burn very bright.
They burn bright now as well.
I want the warmth that arrives when Anik presses his lips to mine. I want him to press his lips over every part of me, even the secret places.
Especially the secret places.
I’ve never known this need before.
It makes me feel happy and afraid.
But there are two others that need us. She, the All Encompassing. And the Third. I don’t know why I call him the Third. Maybe because the All Encompassing is not really like us.
We three—Anik, me, and the Third—are united under her.
The Third is very far away. Lost to us. It will take all of our strength to bring him home. He’s convinced he’s alone. That he needs no one. But he’s wrong. He needs us most of all.
The time when I nearly experienced drowning in the cold ocean now seems like another life. I understand I was reborn during my swim from the Arc. That I shed some part of me, left it floating in the water to be destroyed by thundering waves. I understand that with Anik and the rest of my pack I have purpose.
That hope and Anik’s warmth is all that’s keeping me alive.
Sedna has done something to me. I inhaled the dust of her desiccated corpse. She’s inside me. I wonder if that’s partly why Anik pressed his lips to me. Does he sense her living in me? Will I become her?
I miss the ocean.
I never knew there could be such hunger.
It gnaws at me, a terrible, blind hunger.
What emptiness exists in me, to create such maddening hunger?
I scratch at the mark on my wrist. Three red disks. Like the Three united under the All Encompassing. Like three eyes. I remember the day Priest Gabriel gave me the mark. It was on my day of being accepted as a Vessel. I enjoyed the Purification Ceremony, then Priest Gabriel entered the room carrying a small blowtorch. He looked silly, wearing thick gloves to protect from being burned. I looked up at him, into his lovely green eyes, and knew I would permit him to do whatever he wanted with me.
Ascension or not. I wanted to be his.
Gabriel lit the torch, an odd blue-green flame, then heated a metal rod until it glowed red. Lifted my wrist and plunged the round metal tip into my skin three times. I remember the smell more than anything. Sweet. If I felt pain, it was only because I understood that I should.
“It’s a blessing to smile during the mark,” Priest Gabriel said as he burned me.
“Am I smiling?”
“Yes.”
“Am I in Truth?”
“Yes.”
That made me feel happy. I was no longer only a Hopeful. I was a sacred Vessel. One step closer to bearing a Guardian and Ascending into the Everlasting.
I brush the snow out of my eyes. I don’t remember when it began snowing. A while ago, from the look of the fresh snow obscuring Anik’s tracks. I wonder how long we’ve lain here. Should I wake him? He’s so tired.
Maybe we should rest a little longer. We’re both so tired.
It’s dark now. The wind howls above us, sending drifts of snow settling into the ravine. The ravine is nice. It’s sheltered from the wind.
The snow is burying us both alive.
It feels warm. Soft.
Like Anik’s embrace.
I lay my head down and close my eyes, praying not to dream.
***
I wake entombed in snow. My first full, panicked breath draws ice crystals into my lungs. My arms are pinned at my sides. I struggle and
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