Chapter 18

The Prince finished his meal with a smile on his lips. He had removed the protections on his chest and forearms. He wore an almost black, dark blue coat with trousers to match and a golden middle section with the symbol of Bethmoora as the buckle of his silk belt of the same color. All his outfits looked as if they had been sewn directly onto his body. They aligned perfectly with his tall and lean silhouette. They drank the rest of the wine bottle and opened another one. It was past four in the morning, yet time had remained still in her apartment. He didn't show any sign of tiredness. This time, the small hours, was his day. Loreto, however, fought against the imminent yawn. She wished the night to never end. She was spellbound listening to him. She took the opportunity to ask what or who had produced the earthquake shock hours before her first residence concert at the Grand Theater. He told her about the origin of the forest god, the Elemental. The one the Prince had released that night was the last of its kind. Agent Hellboy had killed it with three well-aimed shots. Nuada could not hide his pain as he remembered.

"The Elementals give and destroy all life on the planet. Their ichor feeds of green even the most inert concrete," he said with pride in his voice and his gaze lost in a random spot before him." They also have the power to heal any creature of Mother Earth."

They were sitting in the dining room. Loreto allowed Nuada to sit at the head of the table at her left. She didn't mind. He finally seemed relaxed. The wine had made him forget, at least for a few hours, the pain he carried along. The CD reached its end, Loreto then played the following installment of the compilation For Lovers: Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong.

"You should have seen it, Loreto!," he rose his voice thrilled and faced her. "Even in its last hour, the Elemental's spores turned the street and adjoining buildings into the forest floor. It rained pollen, the moss gained terrain through the asphalt and for a single moment, that corner of the city smelled like fertile soil."

His amber eyes shone. They were barely distinguishable under his eyebrowless, yet prominent brow by the dim light of the standing lamp. The shadow it produced mingled with the dark skin of his eyelids and under his eyes. They glowed in the shadows like the focused gaze of a feline hunter in the night. She would have observed him for hours. His features seemed like the result of a Renaissance artist's chisel on the marble block. The strong nose with a slightly curved bridge, the thin dark lips like the skin of his eyelids, the marked superb cheekbones, the strong jawline, the tall and wide forehead. There was no trace of beard or moustache on his face. Loreto shook her head. The wine was loosening her up. The Prince noticed how she was staring at him. He drew half a smile and drank the last sip of his glass.

"So- so- so they don't exist on the planet anymore," Loreto mumbled and dried her sweaty palms on her pajamas pants. "Aren't they at least other creatures equally powerful under the elves' command?"

"The forest demigods," he answered immediately. "Their destructive and healing powers are not as great as that of the Elemental, but on them our health mainly depends. Surprisingly for us, as we built the many underground cities of Bethmoora all along the world, the descendants of the Elemental could grow and blossom under the ground despite the scarce sunlight available." The Prince lowered his eyes and combed his hairs backwards with his fingers. He let out a frustrated sigh and let himself fall against the chair's backrest. "My druids fear the demigods biology may have also evolved like ours to adapt to underground life and that that change may have weakened their properties."

He suddenly stood up and went to the couch. He almost collapsed, laying with his back against the wall and his legs anchored to the floor. Loreto left the table as it was and tentatively approached his side. She sat down at his right with crossed legs and watched him in silence. The Prince closed his eyes, facing the roof. He searched for her hand and took it in his.

"Thanks," he said with a fatigued sigh and squeezed her hand in his. He interlaced his fingers with hers and let out a sarcastic chuckle. "I never thought I'd have a human friend. One never stops learning."

Loreto smiled as she observed him, fascinated.

"If you with thousands of years of life say one never stops learning, then what's there left for me?," she mumbled amused with an ironic overtone and hugged the Prince's hand.

Nuada opened his eyes. He sat before her and approached until they were face to face. Loreto swallowed hard and took a deep breath. He emanated a raw and warm perfume from his neck. She wished to bury her nose in his skin and feel its warmth on her lips. Loreto bit her lower lip and held back the delicious tickle that shook her lower belly. He looked straight into her eyes.

"You have the type of eye color that changes with sunlight," he whispered deep. "What's their real color?"

Loreto ventured to caress his cheek. She allowed herself to brush with her index tip the mark that divided his face from one cheekbone to the other. Then she went through those circular ones on his temples. The Prince uttered half a grin and closed his eyes. He shortened the distance. Her heart beat out of control in her chest and rang in her ears.

"Hazel," Loreto managed to whisper. She licked her lips and attempted to hold his gaze. She could taste his breath at such a short distance. "Brown in the night, green in the day. Sad in the winter..."

"Gleaming in the summer," Nuada whispered faltering against her mouth and caressing her cheek.

It burned. Every cell of her body was slowly beginning to burn. She tried in vain to quiet down her agitated breathing. The Prince came closer and began brushing his face with hers. He reached her neck and took a deep breath against her skin. Loreto could not control the volume of the gasp that escaped her vocal chords. She felt his half-open lips brush her neck. He went up to her ear, advanced to her jaw. Loreto closed her eyes. The light touch of his skin with hers made her pores to stand wherever she felt him. His natural perfume was robbing her of every last bit of self-control. Her lower belly began melting away. She allowed herself to imitate him. She brushed his neck and cheeks with her half-open lips. She heard him let out a choked sigh in her ear. He intertwined his long fingers in Loreto's loose hairs and played with her locks, swirling and massaging her scalp. His breath was controlled and steady in her ear. A chill manifested on her nape and expanded through her back, shaking her completely. Loreto tangled her fingers in his long bleached hairs and cupped his face by his strong jawline. She moved away from him enough to face him. His dilated iris inside his amber pupils darkened his gaze even more. They breathed into each other's mouths like one being.

"Tell me how your eyes were," Loreto gasped with a thin voice thread.

"Opal and emerald," Nuada whispered in a labored sigh.

"And your skin?"

"Pale and rosy in the winter, tanned in the summer."

"And your hair?"

"Golden like the sun rays."

The Prince lowered his head and let out a loud exhale. He faced her and took distance.

"I've become a monster," his voice darkened. "For your eyes I must look like one at least. I differ so much from a human's appearance. I differ so much from whom I used to be when there was still hope in my heart."

Loreto leaped on his neck and embraced him in her arms with no chance to escape. She attracted him by the nape, nestling him against her neck. Nuada corresponded her hug with reluctance at first, then he squeezed her. Loreto searched for his mouth and softly she kissed his lips. She closed her eyes and cupped his marble face in her hands. The Prince let out a guttural sigh and kissed her back. His dark lips were soft and warm. They trembled. They separated. Nuada searched in her eyes for the meaning. His demeanor screamed skepticism. Loreto smiled and caressed his cheek.

"You're not a monster," Loreto whispered inside his mouth. "You're the most beautiful being I've ever known."

Nuada kissed her back, opening his way in her mouth. There was desperation in his touch, an urgency, a categorical imperative. Loreto hung from his neck and pulled him against her. He tasted like wine and scorching moist warmth. They collapsed and merged as one on the couch. Loreto tangled her legs with his and hugged his wide back. The Prince trapped her beneath him with all his body weight and kissed her deep and slow as if he had all time at his disposal. His big hands explored her body as he ventured one under her T-shirt. Loreto moaned away at the contact. The Prince went down on her, kissing her neck, her collarbone, her breasts and removed her T-shirt exposing her naked abdomen. He pressed his face against her skin and inhaled deeply. He left a trail of kisses on her skin as he caressed her core with his hands. Suddenly he stopped. He raised his head and looked at her. Loreto opened her eyes and faced him. An expansive wave of dread overwhelmed her as she read his features. Nuada placed both open hands on her abdomen and, focused, lost his gaze in a random spot. He pulled himself together, sat up on the couch and stood up in one movement. He offered his hands towards Loreto. A bad omen nested in the pit of her stomach. Dubious, Loreto took them. He pulled her up with no effort and raised her to her feet.

"What's going on?," Loreto barely whispered and wore back her T-shirt suddenly shy before him.

"Let's go to Bethmoora. I must take you to my druids," he said as he quickly wore his protections. He embedded his lance to his back and wore the sword belt. He faced her and hugged her tight against his chest. "I'm afraid your cancer has returned," he whispered, faltering against her head.