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I take pity on her, grinding my thumb against her clit again and again as she shakes and moans and pleads, her eyes wild with desire. Now she understands what it's like to be loved by a Fae. We aren't gentle creatures. We're warriors of the Light. We love as hard as we fight…with every ounce of our souls.
She will always be safe with me because I'll destroy entire worlds to ensure it. That's the Fae way. And that's the power we wield. It's wild and fierce, as much a part of the Fae as the Fae who wields it.
She shatters in my arms, her Light growing bright as a supernova. As she falls apart, writhing and gasping my name, her Light finally begins to dim, drained for once. Perhaps this Valkyrie is more like the Fae than expected. Emotion fuels her, feeding her power. She reaches for it when she feels anything deeply. It's instinctive to her, as instinctive as it is to a Fae.
Instinct I understand. The symbiotic relationship between emotion and power is one every Fae knows. This is a good sign.Perhaps we aren't so helpless when it comes to training this Valkyrie after all.
She trembles a final time and then falls still.
I scoop her into my arm, holding her close to my heart. My lips run across her forehead, words of praise falling from them. She doesn't rest for long.
Within moments, her eyes pop open, focusing on me. "What was that?"
"That's Fae power, Valkyrie," I purr against her skin. "Our power is part of the Fae who wields it. Everything we feel feeds it, fueling it."
She processes that for a moment. "So had you been very angry?"
"A wave of fury would have rolled over you, so intense you would have felt your blood boil in your veins."
"Well, then," she whispers. "I guess it's a good thing you weren't very mad, wasn't it?"
"At you?" I tip her chin up, smiling. "Never, Valkyrie."
She blushes, averting her gaze. "Um, do you always feel…that?"
"For you? Always."
"Oh." She swallows. "Um, is it always like that? So…intense?"
"I wouldn't know. I've never been mated. And no Fae warrior has ever been soul-bound."
Her gaze flies to mine, shock written all over her face. "Never? As in never-ever?"
"Never-ever. We're the first,lyseste ljós."
"How? Why?"
"Odin forbade it. The Fae were meant to guard all the Valkyrie and Valhalla. We couldn't fulfill that oath if our loyalties were to the one Valkyrie that held our bond."
"You couldn't do both?"
"Nei. We aren't designed that way,bittesmå ljós. Once you claim a Fae's soul, his loyalty is to you and you alone, as it should be."
"As it should be?" She stares at me like I've lost my mind. And then some thought occurs to her. One that has her sitting upright, horror dawning in her eyes. "Dax…if I fall to the dark, what happens to you?"
This is one question I don't want to answer. But I won't lie to her. I can't, not if I'm ever going to gain her trust. "There's a reason so many Valkyrie died in battle, Rissa," I say quietly. "When their bonded warriors fell beneath the might of the enemy, so did they. Once a bond is complete, there is no surviving. If one falls, they both fall."
"That's…barbaric," Rissa whispers in horror.
"Perhaps, but you can't live with half a soul. The warriors granted a second life knew this. They accepted it. So did the Valkyrie. Every great gift demands a price. That's always been the cost of power." I brush my lips across her forehead before dragging myself from the bed. "It's what holds us to the Light and keeps us from falling to the dark. The Forsaken pay no such price for their power."
"There has to be a better way."
"Perhaps." I shrug. "Or perhaps this is the most compassionate way. I spent millennia with the Valkyries and the warriors, Rissa. Not a single one would have willingly chosen to survive the death of his or her bonded mate. Not one."
She nods, her brow furrowed as if she's deep in thought.
"I need to go check in with Damrion. Why don't you shower and get dressed? We'll be leaving soon."
