Right or Wrongness, that is the Question...
Chapter Eight
Da'an and Liam watched from their combined selves as the energy ceased to be drawn from each of the chosen. Zo'or and Agent Sandoval both resumed their upright positions, but Da'an's currently uninhabited form did not move. Zo'or and Sandoval were looking at it apprehensively.
"It's alright," Liam said to the other two in his group, "Da'an has been temporarily relocated," Liam continued, tapping his head with his finger for emphasis.
Zo'or looked startled, "Da'an actually allowed such a transfer to occur?"
"Why wouldn't he?" Liam asked curiously.
"It's just," she paused, "I didn't know he trusted you to such an extent, I had heard that your relationship had been strained recently."
"I had heard that you and my father's relationship had been strained for a few years now, but you appear to have resolved your differences," Liam said with a nod toward them.
Zo'or and Sandoval appeared slightly confused until they looked down and realized they had not stopped holding each others hand. They both blushed slightly, and dropped their hands quickly.
Liam was about to make a comment when their attention was drawn back to the thus-far-silent Re'carusha who called them to back to their duties.
"I believe we are ready." Harmony/Discord said to the small group.
Zo'or glanced at Sandoval a bit nervously, then back to the glowing figure. "You are going alone?"
"It is my fight, if I am successful I will return to speak to you," the Re'carusha nodded to them and disappeared in a flash of golden light.
"So, I guess we wait," Liam said, sitting down against the cave wall with a sigh.
An hour later the Re'carusha had not returned. Disony, as Liam was now referring to her in his head, would probably be gone for at least three more hours. He directed his thoughts to Da'an. "Well, I guess we are done for the time being," Liam said.
"Does that mean you are going to send me back now?"
"I guess I'd better." Liam sighed mentally.
"You sound almost disappointed," Da'an said curiously, carefully concealing her excitement at the possibility.
"Well, you aren't such a bad companion, no pun intended, and it has been kind of nice to have someone in here who knows what they are doing." Liam said quietly. He didn't know exactly what he was feeling, but he definitely liked having Da'an so close to him. "Alright, let's see how we're going to do this," he said silently.
"Do you always talk to yourself, Liam?" Da'an asked with a smile as Liam walked to his now motionless body.
"I think I've just gotten in the habit," he responded. There was a pause as he placed his hands on the side of Da'an's head. He quickly completed the transfer, feeling an almost tangible sense of loss as Da'an's conciousness left him. He found himself staring deeply into Da'an's newly opened eyes, his hands still on the side of his face. And then Da'an smiled, gazing up at him with a captivated expression. It was a moment that seemed to be frozen in time, before a slight noise beside them broke the spell.
"Yes, Zo'or?" Da'an asked not sure if he was angry, disappointed, or glad that they had been interrupted.
"I was wondering if I could have word with you." The young Taelon looked nervous and Da'an immediately knew what it was his child wished to discuss.
Da'an turned to Liam with an apologetic smile, Liam nodded his head in understanding and watched as they retreated to a corner to have a long overdue conversation. Liam decided he had a similar conversation to take care of.
He glanced over at his father and sighed as he saw the somewhat sad expression on his face. He got up and walked over to him, noting Zo'or and Da'an were now immersed in a discussion that seemed to involve much stroking and sharing. He was glad that the parent and child were, after a millennia, resolving their differences. He sat down heavily next to Sandoval.
"How are you doing?" he asked after a moment of silence.
Sandoval exhaled slowly, "I'm about as well as can be expected considering the son I've been searching for is someone I've been trying to kill, I'm feeling sympathetic towards the aliens I've conspired against more than once, and I've discovered-" he broke off, afraid he had said to much.
Liam gave Sandoval an appraising look, "Discovered you have strong feelings for an alien who is probably responsible for causing you more pain than any other person you know?"
Sandoval looked startled for a moment, but didn't say anything.
"You know, sometimes, it's nice being your son, you get to give out advice," Liam said.
Sandoval smiled faintly, "And what's your advice?"
"Find out what she wants, at least then you'll know what direction you are going in."
"Not bad advice for a two year old," Sandoval said with another grin.
"I've always been a rather precocious child," Liam said modestly.
Sandoval gave him another look, "Would you mind a little advice from your father?"
"I figure I'm a little behind in fatherly advice, so I should take all I can get," Liam said with some amusement.
"Alright, why don't you talk to Da'an, maybe I have a little trouble with my love life, but I've always prided myself on being able to spot it in others." "You and Da'an have something, something I don't think you want to lose."
Liam gazed at his feet, and then over at Da'an, "You may be right, she is special."
Sandoval raised an eyebrow, "She?" He gave a small laugh at Liam's blush.
Liam stood,"Well, it looks like Zo'or and Da'an are done, you see if you can capture Zo'or's attention, and I'll speak to Da'an."
"Sounds like a plan," Sandoval said, also standing.
Sandoval quickly crossed over to Zo'or. Zo'or looked up at him, startled for a moment, but after a moment, she got up and followed him. They didn't speak, but she knew that what they were about to say was going to be critical to their future. He led her to the back of the cavern, around the first turn so both couples could have a semblance of privacy. They turned to face each other.
"Zo'or," Sandoval began after a moment, "I know we have previously had some ," he paused, "disagreements." "I would like to put that behind us, I believe that we will be able to work together more efficiently and thus achieve a greater percentage of positive results."
As Zo'or watched Agent Sandoval speak she had a sudden burst of intuition. "He's scared," she realized. She knew exactly what she wanted with Agent Sandoval now, and she was almost positive that he wanted the same, but he was obviously confused as to her thoughts. "Well, I'll have to show my intentions," she thought with a slight smile.
Sandoval finished up his train of thought, noticing that Zo'or was smiling. "She obviously doesn't realize how much it's distracting me," he thought wryly.
"Sandoval?" Zo'or asked in a carefully neutral tone.
"Yes, Zo'or?" he asked, turning his head to meet her eyes.
Zo'or didn't wait for him to turn again, she stepped closer, putting her arms around his neck and pressing her lips against his. She didn't care that this was un-Taelon-like, she didn't care that he was her enemy, all she cared about was the feel of his lips on hers.
Sandoval was shocked when Zo'or initiated a kiss, but he had to admit he was not going to turn down the opportunity. He circled her waist with his arms, pulling her even closer to him, and kissed her back. For awhile it was only a sweet, simple kiss, but it didn't stay simple for long. Sandoval opened his mouth slightly and ran his tongue along her bottom lip. Zo'or gasped, opening her mouth just enough for Sandoval to enter. Zo'or found that kissing a human was not as hard as she had thought it might be, and Sandoval rather quickly found that his reservations about their future together weren't nearly as important to him when they were employed in enjoying each other's company.
Meanwhile, after Sandoval and Zo'or had quit the larger chamber, Liam turned to meet Da'an's curious gaze with a determined one of his own.
"Da'an, I wanted to speak to you concerning us," he said carefully.
"To which 'us' are you referring, Liam?" Da'an asked with uncharacteristic nervousness and excitement in her voice, despite her attempts to suppress it.
"I was referring to the 'us' that may not be approved of by the Synod," Liam said. "I want to know if you think that there is any chance of us becoming more than friends."
Da'an turned away from him, she couldn't think with her protector's green eyes focused on her, it was much too distracting, and tempting. She wanted this to be a rational and logical decision, not based solely on an emotional reaction that it was supposed to be impossible for her to feel. She closed her eyes to better think of a response, when a thought came to her. "What did it matter if it was an emotional reaction, isn't that enough?" Suddenly she realized that it was. She had just came to this awareness when she felt arms encircle her from behind. She sighed and leaned back into Liam's embrace. "I think there is a very good chance, Liam," she whispered, placing her hand against the side of his face and looking up at him.
"Good," Liam said softly, leaning down to kiss her upturned lips. She sighed against his lips and turned in his arms to get in a more comfortable position. Liam almost instinctively found her hands and pressed his now-glowing palms against hers. He immediately found himself involved in another, less intense, sharing. They were linked, he could feel the bond forming that would forever bind them together. He realized what was likely to happen if he didn't ease off the sharing a bit, he quietly withdrew a bit from the sharing, leaving only their uppermost thoughts linked. He opened his eyes as he felt Da'an pull back from the kiss.
She looked up at him a bit curiously, "Why did you pull back from the bonding?" she asked.
Liam blushed a bit, "It's just that, I know what usually happens right after a bond like this is initiated, and I'd really like a more private place for that to take place."
Da'an gave him an understanding glance and an amused smile. Liam blushed slightly, and linked his fingers through hers and sending a quick psychic stroke through their bond. Da'an gasped and blushed blue, giving her soon-to-be-mate a mock-reproving look. She received an impish one back and couldn't even keep up the pretense of being angry with him.
"Well, now what do we do while we wait for both of our relations and the Re'carusha?" Da'an asked.
"Hmmm," Liam said, pretending to think about it, "well, I think you could use a bit of practice kissing-" he trailed off as Da'an gave him a light slap on the chest. He quickly caught her hand and gave her a quick kiss, which turned into a longer kiss, needless to say the time passed quickly and was put to good use.
Sandoval and Zo'or walked back into the large chamber an hour later. Zo'or had received a crash course in Human relationships. Sandoval insisted it would not be a good idea to join in the cavern, but he certainly had very few inhibitions beyond that. His strokes along her back and neck and thrown Zo'or into a whole knew level of physical pleasure, while her psychic attentions kept him enthralled. They had spent a very interesting time together, but both had agreed that it was most likely time to rejoin the others. Zo'or checked to make sure they weren't interrupting anything and then they both had reentered.
Through the bond that was even now becoming stronger between himself and Zo'or he could tell that Zo'or was pleased that her parent looked so happy. She linked her hand with her chosen one's again and they both took a seat across from their respective relations. They noticed Liam's arm, comfortably around Da'an's shoulders and smiled as one. Small talk ensued, both of the newly formed couples conforming to the unspoken agreement not to mention the relationships yet. Eventually it seemed as if they had exhausted the topics, a rather strange silence ensued, each waiting for one another to fill it. As it turned out that was unnecessary as they felt a sudden feeling of almost euphoric contentment. They quickly sat up, glancing towards the place where the Re'carusha had last disappeared. They didn't have very much of a wait.
Liam noticed a slight disturbance in the wall, it seemed to be getting darker. He blinked, "What was that?" He stared at it harder, frowning. Da'an followed his gaze and her eyes widened. Zo'or and Sandoval immediately turned around to find a fully coalesced Disony smile at them from a haze of golden light.
~~~~~~~~~~
The End of yet another chapter, many of you are wondering when will it end.... Well, the answer is not even I know. I just keep saying, "One more chapter, just this last one." And it keeps getting longer and longer... It's like the Energizer bunny, it just keeps going and going, or just like lays, you just have to have another one, or (as I prefer to believe) just like Maxwell House, Good 'Til the Last Drop. Have a nice day! ~Your Worshipfulness
Chapter Eight
Da'an and Liam watched from their combined selves as the energy ceased to be drawn from each of the chosen. Zo'or and Agent Sandoval both resumed their upright positions, but Da'an's currently uninhabited form did not move. Zo'or and Sandoval were looking at it apprehensively.
"It's alright," Liam said to the other two in his group, "Da'an has been temporarily relocated," Liam continued, tapping his head with his finger for emphasis.
Zo'or looked startled, "Da'an actually allowed such a transfer to occur?"
"Why wouldn't he?" Liam asked curiously.
"It's just," she paused, "I didn't know he trusted you to such an extent, I had heard that your relationship had been strained recently."
"I had heard that you and my father's relationship had been strained for a few years now, but you appear to have resolved your differences," Liam said with a nod toward them.
Zo'or and Sandoval appeared slightly confused until they looked down and realized they had not stopped holding each others hand. They both blushed slightly, and dropped their hands quickly.
Liam was about to make a comment when their attention was drawn back to the thus-far-silent Re'carusha who called them to back to their duties.
"I believe we are ready." Harmony/Discord said to the small group.
Zo'or glanced at Sandoval a bit nervously, then back to the glowing figure. "You are going alone?"
"It is my fight, if I am successful I will return to speak to you," the Re'carusha nodded to them and disappeared in a flash of golden light.
"So, I guess we wait," Liam said, sitting down against the cave wall with a sigh.
An hour later the Re'carusha had not returned. Disony, as Liam was now referring to her in his head, would probably be gone for at least three more hours. He directed his thoughts to Da'an. "Well, I guess we are done for the time being," Liam said.
"Does that mean you are going to send me back now?"
"I guess I'd better." Liam sighed mentally.
"You sound almost disappointed," Da'an said curiously, carefully concealing her excitement at the possibility.
"Well, you aren't such a bad companion, no pun intended, and it has been kind of nice to have someone in here who knows what they are doing." Liam said quietly. He didn't know exactly what he was feeling, but he definitely liked having Da'an so close to him. "Alright, let's see how we're going to do this," he said silently.
"Do you always talk to yourself, Liam?" Da'an asked with a smile as Liam walked to his now motionless body.
"I think I've just gotten in the habit," he responded. There was a pause as he placed his hands on the side of Da'an's head. He quickly completed the transfer, feeling an almost tangible sense of loss as Da'an's conciousness left him. He found himself staring deeply into Da'an's newly opened eyes, his hands still on the side of his face. And then Da'an smiled, gazing up at him with a captivated expression. It was a moment that seemed to be frozen in time, before a slight noise beside them broke the spell.
"Yes, Zo'or?" Da'an asked not sure if he was angry, disappointed, or glad that they had been interrupted.
"I was wondering if I could have word with you." The young Taelon looked nervous and Da'an immediately knew what it was his child wished to discuss.
Da'an turned to Liam with an apologetic smile, Liam nodded his head in understanding and watched as they retreated to a corner to have a long overdue conversation. Liam decided he had a similar conversation to take care of.
He glanced over at his father and sighed as he saw the somewhat sad expression on his face. He got up and walked over to him, noting Zo'or and Da'an were now immersed in a discussion that seemed to involve much stroking and sharing. He was glad that the parent and child were, after a millennia, resolving their differences. He sat down heavily next to Sandoval.
"How are you doing?" he asked after a moment of silence.
Sandoval exhaled slowly, "I'm about as well as can be expected considering the son I've been searching for is someone I've been trying to kill, I'm feeling sympathetic towards the aliens I've conspired against more than once, and I've discovered-" he broke off, afraid he had said to much.
Liam gave Sandoval an appraising look, "Discovered you have strong feelings for an alien who is probably responsible for causing you more pain than any other person you know?"
Sandoval looked startled for a moment, but didn't say anything.
"You know, sometimes, it's nice being your son, you get to give out advice," Liam said.
Sandoval smiled faintly, "And what's your advice?"
"Find out what she wants, at least then you'll know what direction you are going in."
"Not bad advice for a two year old," Sandoval said with another grin.
"I've always been a rather precocious child," Liam said modestly.
Sandoval gave him another look, "Would you mind a little advice from your father?"
"I figure I'm a little behind in fatherly advice, so I should take all I can get," Liam said with some amusement.
"Alright, why don't you talk to Da'an, maybe I have a little trouble with my love life, but I've always prided myself on being able to spot it in others." "You and Da'an have something, something I don't think you want to lose."
Liam gazed at his feet, and then over at Da'an, "You may be right, she is special."
Sandoval raised an eyebrow, "She?" He gave a small laugh at Liam's blush.
Liam stood,"Well, it looks like Zo'or and Da'an are done, you see if you can capture Zo'or's attention, and I'll speak to Da'an."
"Sounds like a plan," Sandoval said, also standing.
Sandoval quickly crossed over to Zo'or. Zo'or looked up at him, startled for a moment, but after a moment, she got up and followed him. They didn't speak, but she knew that what they were about to say was going to be critical to their future. He led her to the back of the cavern, around the first turn so both couples could have a semblance of privacy. They turned to face each other.
"Zo'or," Sandoval began after a moment, "I know we have previously had some ," he paused, "disagreements." "I would like to put that behind us, I believe that we will be able to work together more efficiently and thus achieve a greater percentage of positive results."
As Zo'or watched Agent Sandoval speak she had a sudden burst of intuition. "He's scared," she realized. She knew exactly what she wanted with Agent Sandoval now, and she was almost positive that he wanted the same, but he was obviously confused as to her thoughts. "Well, I'll have to show my intentions," she thought with a slight smile.
Sandoval finished up his train of thought, noticing that Zo'or was smiling. "She obviously doesn't realize how much it's distracting me," he thought wryly.
"Sandoval?" Zo'or asked in a carefully neutral tone.
"Yes, Zo'or?" he asked, turning his head to meet her eyes.
Zo'or didn't wait for him to turn again, she stepped closer, putting her arms around his neck and pressing her lips against his. She didn't care that this was un-Taelon-like, she didn't care that he was her enemy, all she cared about was the feel of his lips on hers.
Sandoval was shocked when Zo'or initiated a kiss, but he had to admit he was not going to turn down the opportunity. He circled her waist with his arms, pulling her even closer to him, and kissed her back. For awhile it was only a sweet, simple kiss, but it didn't stay simple for long. Sandoval opened his mouth slightly and ran his tongue along her bottom lip. Zo'or gasped, opening her mouth just enough for Sandoval to enter. Zo'or found that kissing a human was not as hard as she had thought it might be, and Sandoval rather quickly found that his reservations about their future together weren't nearly as important to him when they were employed in enjoying each other's company.
Meanwhile, after Sandoval and Zo'or had quit the larger chamber, Liam turned to meet Da'an's curious gaze with a determined one of his own.
"Da'an, I wanted to speak to you concerning us," he said carefully.
"To which 'us' are you referring, Liam?" Da'an asked with uncharacteristic nervousness and excitement in her voice, despite her attempts to suppress it.
"I was referring to the 'us' that may not be approved of by the Synod," Liam said. "I want to know if you think that there is any chance of us becoming more than friends."
Da'an turned away from him, she couldn't think with her protector's green eyes focused on her, it was much too distracting, and tempting. She wanted this to be a rational and logical decision, not based solely on an emotional reaction that it was supposed to be impossible for her to feel. She closed her eyes to better think of a response, when a thought came to her. "What did it matter if it was an emotional reaction, isn't that enough?" Suddenly she realized that it was. She had just came to this awareness when she felt arms encircle her from behind. She sighed and leaned back into Liam's embrace. "I think there is a very good chance, Liam," she whispered, placing her hand against the side of his face and looking up at him.
"Good," Liam said softly, leaning down to kiss her upturned lips. She sighed against his lips and turned in his arms to get in a more comfortable position. Liam almost instinctively found her hands and pressed his now-glowing palms against hers. He immediately found himself involved in another, less intense, sharing. They were linked, he could feel the bond forming that would forever bind them together. He realized what was likely to happen if he didn't ease off the sharing a bit, he quietly withdrew a bit from the sharing, leaving only their uppermost thoughts linked. He opened his eyes as he felt Da'an pull back from the kiss.
She looked up at him a bit curiously, "Why did you pull back from the bonding?" she asked.
Liam blushed a bit, "It's just that, I know what usually happens right after a bond like this is initiated, and I'd really like a more private place for that to take place."
Da'an gave him an understanding glance and an amused smile. Liam blushed slightly, and linked his fingers through hers and sending a quick psychic stroke through their bond. Da'an gasped and blushed blue, giving her soon-to-be-mate a mock-reproving look. She received an impish one back and couldn't even keep up the pretense of being angry with him.
"Well, now what do we do while we wait for both of our relations and the Re'carusha?" Da'an asked.
"Hmmm," Liam said, pretending to think about it, "well, I think you could use a bit of practice kissing-" he trailed off as Da'an gave him a light slap on the chest. He quickly caught her hand and gave her a quick kiss, which turned into a longer kiss, needless to say the time passed quickly and was put to good use.
Sandoval and Zo'or walked back into the large chamber an hour later. Zo'or had received a crash course in Human relationships. Sandoval insisted it would not be a good idea to join in the cavern, but he certainly had very few inhibitions beyond that. His strokes along her back and neck and thrown Zo'or into a whole knew level of physical pleasure, while her psychic attentions kept him enthralled. They had spent a very interesting time together, but both had agreed that it was most likely time to rejoin the others. Zo'or checked to make sure they weren't interrupting anything and then they both had reentered.
Through the bond that was even now becoming stronger between himself and Zo'or he could tell that Zo'or was pleased that her parent looked so happy. She linked her hand with her chosen one's again and they both took a seat across from their respective relations. They noticed Liam's arm, comfortably around Da'an's shoulders and smiled as one. Small talk ensued, both of the newly formed couples conforming to the unspoken agreement not to mention the relationships yet. Eventually it seemed as if they had exhausted the topics, a rather strange silence ensued, each waiting for one another to fill it. As it turned out that was unnecessary as they felt a sudden feeling of almost euphoric contentment. They quickly sat up, glancing towards the place where the Re'carusha had last disappeared. They didn't have very much of a wait.
Liam noticed a slight disturbance in the wall, it seemed to be getting darker. He blinked, "What was that?" He stared at it harder, frowning. Da'an followed his gaze and her eyes widened. Zo'or and Sandoval immediately turned around to find a fully coalesced Disony smile at them from a haze of golden light.
~~~~~~~~~~
The End of yet another chapter, many of you are wondering when will it end.... Well, the answer is not even I know. I just keep saying, "One more chapter, just this last one." And it keeps getting longer and longer... It's like the Energizer bunny, it just keeps going and going, or just like lays, you just have to have another one, or (as I prefer to believe) just like Maxwell House, Good 'Til the Last Drop. Have a nice day! ~Your Worshipfulness