Page 38 of Light Fae's Love
“Ariana, stop!” Quinn’s voice is like thunder on the mountains as it hammers into me, rolling me via our connection. Lucca is gone now and Quinn is before me, staring into my eyes, hammering wave after wave of his strongest mind-mesmerization into me, to get me to stop eating Lucca’s Light.
But I can’t stop, even as I’m inundated by Quinn’s black flows. I cry out; Lucca has fallen away on the bed, shaking like he has a palsy, gasping like he can’t get enough breath now.
As I drain him to death with my power.
But Quinn’s incredible dark-light is suddenly pouring into me. Cascading inside me like the darkest ocean of fire, black, red, and gold flame devours me as he surges in, kissing me. The touch of Quinn’s body on mine and his lips devouring mine breaks my connection to Lucca as I feel Quinn’s command thunder all through me, enhanced by his touch.
Ariana, stop! Take me instead.
I do. My power opens like a devouring maw then, swallowing Quinn’s Night as I drink him down through our kiss. But Quinn’s magic understands darkness; as Quinn’s power floods into me like a blackfire tide, burning me up in a decadently dark way now rather than scorching and bright, I feel him counterbalance Lucca’s energy in my veins.
My magic is no longer threatened as Lucca’s blazing, every-color Light is matched by Quinn pouring his dark passion of Night inside me. He floods his power down my throat with his kiss, making the black maw of my void devour it.
That void closes as Quinn creates balance inside me. I don’t know when the flow of power between Lucca and I cuts off, my terrible void ceasing to devour him. I only know that I blaze bright-dark and dark-bright all at once now, as rainbows of unprecedented saturation and hues careen through the loft. My veins rush with shimmering white light and rainbow-dark mist. Quinn’s and Lucca’s powers are like twin suns blazing inside me.
One bright as life.
The other, dark as death.
I gasp as I realize what they’ve done. For not only did Lucca pour his power inside me with this transference, but Quinn did also—balancing and calming Lucca’s disastrous Light as it invaded me.
I still feel how deep and wide that ancient maw of darkness inside me opened to eat Lucca’s power, rather than allow it to be stored within me. As Lucca and I stare at each other now, him gasping on the bed, me still locked in Quinn’s arms and gasping just as hard, I suddenly choke. As I rub my chest, a deep pain aches in my body and heart. My magic used Lucca’s energy as fodder; as I grip my heart, I know that wasn’t part of the plan.
Not only that, but Quinn had to pour his own energy inside me to stabilize my power and stop it from eating Lucca’s energy—and nearly killing him. As I feel only half of Lucca’s full might still burning in my chest, and a matching amount of Quinn’s power now stored inside me, I know my magic has ruined all our plans.
Tears burn my eyes now, not just from the lingering pain still coursing through me, but also because of what I just did. If we lose control of our magics before the Council, it will be my fault now, thanks to the endlessly devouring void deep inside my Dark Fae magic. As I blink, tears slip down my cheeks. As Quinn sees it, he sighs with a pure, beautiful sorrow lighting his eyes.
Gathering me close and holding me from breaking.
“It was just supposed to be Lucca!” I am sobbing now on Quinn’s chest. I can’t help it. To have so much pain, right after such ecstasy, then to have my magic so spectacularly eat Lucca’s and fuck up our life-and-death plans is more than I can take.
As Quinn holds me close, I sob harder. He wraps himself around me, petting my hair. The fact that he’s being so nice after I so disastrously made everything go wrong is too much now.
I break—losing it in his embrace.
Lucca’s strong arms wrap around me from behind; only then can I finally control my sobs. I gasp, pulling his arms in hard around me as I cuddle into Quinn. Their touch is the only thing that can soothe me, and slowly, it does.
As my misery abates, Quinn sets a solemn hand to my chest. Pressing in with his dark, lovely power, I feel him search for Lucca’s bright Light stored inside me. He finds it blazing like a star of molten plasma deep inside my chest. With a nod, he kisses me with his soft, luscious lips.
“It is enough, Ariana. It will be enough for our Revenant demonstration in Rome.”
“How can you be sure?” Doubt cascades through me now as Quinn curls me back in, his arms close around me. As we hold each other now, breathing together, I feel our trio’s powers braid into a deep, bright-dark coil all through us. None of us want to voice what might happen if the transfer wasn’t enough.
Because we all know what will happen if it isn’t.
I feel deep fear, but also stubbornness inside my men then, that they will not break unless we all go down together.
They’re prepared to—and I am also, as I understand the horror of what we’re facing now.
“What we did cannot be helped,” Quinn says at last as he holds me, and I feel his heart beat in his chest. “I would come up with a different plan, but for the first time in my life, my mind is blank. It was the right thing to do, transferring my power into you along with Lucca’s, to balance his Light with my Night and stop your devouring, Ariana. You would not allow Lucca’s Light to be in you without my darkness present. And so I let my Night be in you as well. For as long as Lucca’s Light is.”
“But you need your power to face off with your Vampire Council!” I say, knowing I made a dangerous situation with the Council so much worse now. I feel how Quinn’s and Lucca’s powers whirl far lower than they normally do as we all cuddle together. Only I have my usual power moving through me; augmented by Quinn’s and Lucca’s, my Dark Fae energy surges bright silver and gold now as it churns with a maelstrom of midnight-dark rainbows through the room.
Their powers are not available to me, though—until we need them in Rome.
“I shall deal with having only a fraction of my usual power while we are in Rome. I’ll have to.” Quinn is pragmatic now as he kisses my lips.
“Quinn’s right, Ariana.” Lucca squeezes me from behind now, cradling me close. “There was no other way to balance my power inside you. Quinn and I accept we’ll be at a tenth or less of our usual might while our magic is stored in you. Because it can be safely stored there now until it is needed.”