Page 62 of Asmodel
“Holy cow, chica!” Raxx exclaimed, leaning with his hands on his thick thighs. “Dang, knocked her out with one punch.”
“I did no such thing,” Izzy retorted. “She’s just getting used to the PsyShields, that’s all. But she’ll wake up soon, won’t she?” She glanced at Asmodel.
He placed his comforting hand on her shoulder. “I believe so. When she wakes up, we’ll find out what her intentions are.”
“Yeah.” Raxx straightened. “Just so you know, if she reverts into her bad ol’ self, Echo gave me a way to stop her once and for all.”
A residual tremor rolled beneath Asmodel’s feet. Looked like the chaos Prisma-Solara unleashed earlier still echoed in the earth and the air. He held still as his psychic senses hummed with the aftershocks of her power, a heady mix of fear and awe he associated with the Krystalii.
“That’s good to know.” Asmodel stood next to Raxx. “But I think the PsyShields are going their job. Look at her.” He gestured to the unconscious alien.
Prisma-Solara’s crystalline form shimmered in the hazy sunlight. Instead of her usual vibrant glow, her body had a fine film of silky crystal dust covering most of her protruding crystals. Other sections had broken off, leaving jagged edges.
“Do you think she looks like this because of the PsyShields?” Izzy gasped, touching her mouth with her fingertips. “Did I do this?” She turned to Asmodel, her face ashen.
Asmodel wrapped an arm around her shoulders. His heart slowed to a rhythm to mirror hers. The urge to hold his empathic woman was a strong one. One he had no intention of ignoring. His woman was a treasure. He gripped the tip of her shoulder when that thought hit him. His woman.
“You are not the cause of any harm to her,alma gemela.” He pulled her close. “She was already disintegrating when we arrived.”
“Yeah, could be why she turned into a total nutcase.” Raxx nodded in agreement. “Hang on. I think she’s waking up. Remember, Echo and I got this if she goes sideways.”
Asmodel opened his mouth, then snapped it shut. Not worth asking what sideways meant.
Izzy reached out a hand towards Prisma-Solara, but stopped before touching the crystalline female again.
The Krystalii’s eyes, usually blazing with an inner fire, were now dim. She looked fragile, a stark contrast to the devastating force she’d been moments ago.
“How are you, Prisma-Solara?” Izzy pulled her hand back into a fist. “Do you want any help?”
The crystal female sat up, clutching the side of her head. “I’m empty. Like something inside me has been ripped away.” She looked at them. A clear, rolling orb trailed from the edge of one of her eyes and traveled in slow motion down the side of her face.
“How can we help you?” Izzy kneeled beside her, keeping her hands laced together on her thighs. “What do you need?”
Prisma-Solara frowned, causing several crystal panels around her mouth to loosen and fall off. For the first time, Asmodel watched as the cascade of light shining through her crystal body was now lighter. As if the brilliant yellow color had turned clear.
“I need to be cleansed.” Prisma-Solara’s voice was a melodic echo. “It’s possible a natural waterfall will eliminate the poisonous dirt and energy of this planet on me while recharging my essence.”
“I saw one in the jungle when Jaltaar took me to meet Talira.” Izzy glanced up at Asmodel.
“What are your intentions after we take you there?” Asmodel frowned. He couldn’t connect a psionic thread to the alien. Not that he expected he could with her wearing the psychic shields. But he had to try.
Prisma-Solara blinked, her face tight. She shut her eyes before opening them with a cry. “Lord Baelon!” She wailed, holding her head between her hands. “My lord is gone.”
“Prisma-Solara!” Asmodel barked. If he let her wallow in her fears, they’d never get a handle on her. “You will answer me.”
The female stopped and her eyes blazed.
At first, the look confused him. Then, as he watched her jaw set, he relaxed. It was a look he recognized. He’d seen it on his brothers when they first realized their servitude to the Akurns was over. This female wasn’t afraid because she lost something. It was something altogether different.
Prisma-Solar kept her eyes on his as she stood.
Izzy got off her knees and joined him.
“For the first time in my life, I’m free.” As she straightened, crystal dust and clumps of CeluriaVO dirt dropped off her. “I’m no longer a slave to a brutal-and-cruel master.” Throwing her head back, she flung her arms wide, causing a maelstrom of broken glass and crystals mixed with silt and dirt to fly. “My fate is my own.” She brought her head back and stared at him and the others, the color of her eyes dull but the determination clear. “Take me to a waterfall so I may get rid of the last of my captivity.”
Her words sent a rush of conflicting emotions through Asmodel. The chains, the endless experiments, the sheer helplessness of the servitude he’d endured as a slave washed over him. The Krystalii’s declaration stirred within him a deep, fierce sense of kinship with her. Something he’d never imagined would happen.
With a surge of determination, Asmodel knew what had to be done. He closed his eyes to get a feel of the jungle and the animals within it. There, a fearsome-looking beast that looked like a cross between a wolf, a panther, and a porcupine was lapping water near a waterfall. The harsh quills lining its spine quivered with each movement.