Chapter Forty-one
She ached to stay in the safe, warm confines of his arms but knew that she could not. Knowing that the longer she allowed herself to linger, the harder it would be to push him away, Crys finally pushed far enough back from Lorne that she could look into his eyes. "I can't stay," she whispered to him. "It's not that I don't want to. It's that I can't."
He pulled her back to him. Knowing that words were useless, he decided to let his lips do his talking. He sought hers and then pledged his undying love to her with a very gentle butterfly kiss.
His kiss made her knees go weak, but her mind knew she had to remain strong for his sake . . . for all their sakes. She slid a hand between their bodies and forced herself to push him away. Tears sparkled in her ice blue eyes as she whispered, "I'm sorry."
"You're not going anywhere, Crys! I won't let you, and if you're determined to just throw your life away to him, he's going to have to take me too! I'll call him! I don't have to know his name! All I have to do is call out to him, get his attention! I'm not going to live without you! It took me a lifetime to find you! You say you love me; prove it! Stay with me!"
"I can't do that, Lorne. If I didn't care about you so much, then I could, but I can't," she repeated, shaking her head. She lowered her eyes from his for a moment but then raised them, blazing determinedly, to meet his again. "And if you call him, I'll find out, and when I do, I will give myself to him. I promise you that."
It was then that the wind had began to whip up around them, and he clung to her. He had been sensing a storm building all night. He knew it would not be long. "I won't let you go, Crys, and neither will Angel. He's nearby. All I have to do is call him, and he'll be here and together we'll stop you. Neither one of us want to lose you." His eyes were drawn upward by a flickering light, and he realized that it was the nightmare coming again.
"Lorne, you can't stop me. I could have left already if I'd only made myself." As he did not look back down to her, she thought he might be crying. That thought saddened her even more, but she knew she did not have a choice. "It's not safe for any of you to be around me! I trust you and Angel. I do! I just can't stay, but if I didn't trust you, I wouldn't be able to leave so easily!"
"What do you mean, Crys? If you didn't trust us, you couldn't leave so easily?"
Her children were stirring worriedly around them, and Crys closed her eyes against the tears that welled therein and the knowledge of their coming reaction to her next words. "I'm going to leave them with you. I trust you two to take care of them, no one else."
"You're not going anywhere, Crys! I'm not taking my arms from around you! If I have to keep them there 24/7, I'm holding on to you!"
Blue and Elvira had almost opened their mouths in roars of protest, but Cindy had hushed them just in time. Like Lorne, she had seen the being in the air and knew the Hell that would ensue if they allowed him to know that they were there.
"Lorne, you don't have a choice! I'm going! You can't stop me! I . . . " A snowflake landed against her cheek at just that time, and Crystal's eyes flew open to find snow beginning to drift down around them. Her mouth snapped open, but no sound came out. He was there! She had but seconds to give herself over to him if the others would stand any chance of living! "I'm sorry," she told Lorne again in a rush of breath that was his only warning to her next maneuver. In one swift turn, she flew out of his arms and leapt toward the railing. Already, ice was growing underneath her boots.
Blue flew into his mistress' face. Lorne, Cindy, and Elvira all sprang for her, but it was not their dead weight against her legs that brought her down. Lorne sighed a sigh of relief as he saw Angel fly through the air, grabbing her and bringing her back down to the deck. "You're not doing it, Crys! He doesn't know you're down here! He's just looking for you! Don't give him a reason to see you!"
It was then that Angel felt the mask slipping from the ship, and he knew they were in trouble. The Lewises must have dozed off, feeling that they were safe! Their sleeping had caused the mask to fail!
"Angel, you don't understand! You don't know how he is! He'll destroy the ships and every one on them just because they're here! The only chance for you and the others to survive is for me to give myself to him!"
Jack had been waiting for Will with great anticipation. The minute Will had returned and closed the door softly behind him, Jack was out of the bed and across the room. "I missed you," he said as he put his arms around Will. Lex's words returned to him: It all begins with a kiss.
"I missed you too," Will returned, his words brushing softly across Jack's face. "I looked for you, but I couldn't find you. Where were you?" Jack's arms around his body felt wonderful, and he ached to melt into him. As Jack recalled Lex's words of advise, Will remembered Clark's.
"I was in the galley with Lex, who gave me something to settle my stomach." He did not go into details of how he was drunk and hoped that Will could not tell. Before Will could get a single word out, Jack's mouth sought his in a gentle kiss. He was nervous as to how Will would react, but Will's lips instantly parted under his. As Jack deepened the kiss, Will's tongue pressed gently against his lips, seeking permission that Jack hungrily granted. Their tongues swept across each other as they delved into one another's mouth and feasted in the treasure that they offered.
Jack's lips left Will's and began to trail slowly down Will's body, biting buttons off as he went and bringing sighs of pleasure along with each button and newly kissed spot. Even as pleasure swept through every inch of Will's being, he knew he did not want their first time together to be on the floor and gently started to push Jack backward towards the bed. Jack felt the bed nudge the backs of his knees and quickly turned around, pushing Will onto the bed. He did not stop his onslaught of kisses, and soon he had Will's shirt off. Just the very sight of Will's naked muscles set Jack's blood even more afire. His hands slipped caressingly over Will's naked chest and then his muscles, massaging gently. The sheer pleasure of touching him made his whole body tingle.
Jack's every touch brought Will higher toward the stars that seemed ready to engulf him. He had never even dreamed he could feel as wonderful as Jack was making him, but even then bits of Clark's advise floated back to him. He paused as he considered one of Clark's suggestions. He had never been one to admire any of his own attributes, as Clark had admitted that he himself also had not, but as he remembered how Clark had told him that Lex grew excited when he used the maneuver, Will flexed his muscles for Jack.
Will took Jack's breath away, and he found it extremely difficult to breathe even as he felt himself grow harder and thought he would explode. "Do it again," he said, and Will obliged with an even bigger smile. "Damn, you're so . . . handsome you steal my breath away!"
"As you do every time I gaze upon you, my love," Will breathed up to Jack before using his beloved's startled excitement on him. Quickly, he rolled him over so that he now straddled Jack instead. Lowering his head, he began to nuzzle Jack's neck before slowly working his way down to his first button. Clark had only told him about how to do it and had not shown him. Will prayed he would not make a fool of himself and destroy their delicious mood even as he took Jack's button in his teeth.
Jack trembled. He could hardly wait for Will's mouth to be on him! He only hoped he would not explode before the right time had come! He did not think he could get much harder and hold back!
Will worked slowly and carefully and breathed a silent sigh of relief when he managed to bite off Jack's button. Spitting the button across the room, he turned his mouth back to Jack's flesh. His lips trailed kisses down to Jack's next button. The second button came more quickly and revealed even more of Jack's chest. With the third, he freed the exposed, tender skin that Clark had told him was equally as sensual regardless of gender. Trailing kisses across Jack's chest, Will paused at his nipple. He admired its beauty for a moment before flicking his tongue out and licking it.
Jack almost shot off the bed, such was the intense ecastcy that rolled through his body! He trembled and waited for Will to do it again, but it was at that moment that something crashed through the roof, knocking a hole straight through the floor! "What the Hell!" Jack asked.
Will had not even noticed. Instead, he frowned. "You didn't like it?" he whispered in disappointment.
"Oh, I loved it! But I think I blew a hole through the floor!" He clung to Will and gazed toward the floor.
Will rose up off of Jack enough so that he could look between their bodies. "Holy . . . !" Just what the Hell was that thing! Ice!
A lone figure had been walking across the Sea Witch's empty deck when the icy winds had picked up, but it was only when something that sounded like an explosion came from the Pearl, that the woman looked up. The first thing she noticed was what appeared to be a gigantic ice shard having split the Captain's cabin in two; the next was something shining in the sky. When she looked up, her heart nearly stopped, and Linda fell back against something that began to ring. Among the heads that turned to look at the bell was the monster's. Frostbite's eyes narrowed on the girl, and she took her last breath in that heartbeat. The only thing she knew from that point on was an immense cold beyond anything else she'd ever felt.
Across the ship, Blue pressed his wings against Crystal's mouth to keep her from screaming for he knew what was about to come. The little dragon scrunched his eyes tightly closed as, in that same second, Linda was turned instantly to ice and exploded. Shards of what had been her body flew everywhere.
Lorne gasped and continued to hold on to Crys, knowing that she would try desperately to go for Frostbite now. Angel did not let go either but looked up to find Cordelia. "Come quickly, darling! It's safer to be here than out in the open!" He held tightly to Crys even as he heard Frostbite call out.
"Gee, and here I thought you cared about people. I know you're here, my little Popsicle, and if you don't come out, the rest will share that bitch's fate! I know you care, and you know what you have to do to save them!" With that, he opened his arms wide and rained ice shards among the ships.
It was only Blue's tightly pressed wings against Crystal's mouth that managed to silence her scream, but she managed to shake her mouth away from him. "See!" she demanded from the men. "That's what's going to happen! That's what's going to happen to every one here if you don't let me go!" Tears were running freely down her face. She knew she should just let him have her and would if only she could get away from them. She could not, however, call him with them anywhere near her. That knowledge renewed her struggle, and Cindy and Elvira threw themselves across her back and legs, penning her down with even more weight.
Cordelia, meanwhile, had already been trying to catch up to Angel when he called out to her. She ran toward him even as Frostbite slung an ice shard twice her size straight at her. She had been near the railing when the shard blasted into the ship, taking a chunk of the railing with it. Its impact threw her off balance, but another landing in the direction she was sent stumbling blasted her backwards into the water. "Damn it! I'll get you yet!" Another flew at her as she fell into the water.
Angel heard the splash and knew he had to let go of Crys or Cordelia would drown. "Crys, stop fighting, stay here! I'll be back!" He dove over the side and down into the icy water. He could sense that Cordelia was near to him. His hand groped blindly until he found her. He fought his way back upward, carrying her with him, only to see that she was unconscious when he reached the surface. Holding tightly to her, he pulled himself up on the ship. Laying her on her back and her head to her side, he pushed gently on her stomach to make the water come out. He figured she had swallowed quite a bit but knew she was still breathing.
Lorne held even tighter to Crys. He had heard the splash and had known that Angel had had to go after Cordelia. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him return.
Still, Crystal tried desperately to talk sense into those around her. "Lorne, listen to me," she pleaded desperately. "You saw what happened to Linda. He'll do that to every one of you unless I go to him. How can you just stand by and let that happen to your friends!"
"If you go to him, Crys, it will only increase his power and it will not take him away from here. He is hell-bent on destroying us! I won't let you go!" He did not know where the Lewises were, but he hoped that they would get the mask back in place quickly.
"He's hell-bent on destroying you only because I'm with you! If I go to him, I can get him to leave you alone! But if you don't let me go, we're all going to die!"
As Lorne and Crystal each argued their points vehemently and Angel continued desperately trying to revive Cordelia, Frostbite continued to reign terror on the ships.
In the midst of chaos, Ororo's blue eyes flashed open. Cold winds rushed over her and nearly sent her toppling back onto her cot when she flew to her feet. The sky was so darkened with storm clouds and snow that she could barely see, but the one vivid light in the sky fueled her fury and strength. Without a word to Logan, who she did not even know was awake, she sped upwards into the sky. "By the Goddess," she cried aloud though the wind snatched her words away as quickly as she summoned her powers, "you shall not have these people as you did the others!"
Glowing red eyes met determined baby blues a mere split second before Ororo's hands clasped together and she shot a multitude of lightning bolts at Frostbite. His bitter laughter chilled her blood, and his eyes froze her to the spot so that she could not even move as the lightning bounced off of him and sizzled through her body. She dropped like a rock.
Wolverine had been watching helplessly from the deck and raced forward to catch her as she fell. He wished he had some power that he could fell the Demon with, but even though his claws ached to tear through him, he knew he could never reach him. He carried her into her cot and laid her down. She was not breathing; he began to breathe into her mouth, giving her his air and praying that she would revive quickly.
He would not leave her even though he knew that others were probably needing his help. He knew Jack could take care of himself most times, but the storm had now arrived and he feared for him. He hoped Will could handle him. Some one had to get to the ship's wheel and steer them out of Frostbite's path. He hoped that the Halliwells were okay and that the Lewises would soon come to their rescue. He continued to breathe into 'Ro's mouth, urging her to awaken.
Cole had been sleeping lightly so that he would be there if Piper should awaken. He had carried her to her cot after their dinner and dance. She was exhausted, though she would not fully admit to it, and as he had been about to go, she had begged him to stay. His heart had nearly broken when she'd explained that she was afraid that she would wake to find him but a dream. He had stayed close to her, listening to her breathe, until he knew she was asleep, and he had only just fallen asleep when it seemed all Hell had broken loose. As he was getting groggily to his feet, a sudden shift in the ship threw Piper on top of him.
Piper had been in the midst of twisting nightmares when loud sounds had began to splinter her dream state and she had suddenly felt herself falling. It seemed to her to be a long fall, though in reality, it was mere inches. Cole caught her to him and called her name. "Piper?"
Cole's voice instantly brought Piper the rest of the way back to consciousness. "Cole?" she asked, her eyes flying open in concern. "What's going on?"
"We are under attack, darling, but I'm not sure from whom. I need to check this out, but I don't want to leave you here. We must proceed with caution." He carried her over to the door before letting her slide to her feet. "Stay behind me and close enough that I can grab you if I need to." He opened the door cautiously and looked outside. The deck seemed to have knives made of ice sticking all over into it except for where there were great big holes that had gone all the way through and he could see that water was coming into the ship from them. Where was Xena, he wondered, in the midst of all the chaos? Did she know that the ship was sinking?
Piper knew Cole was eager to get out of the sleeping quarters and join the battle to protect the ship, but she also knew that she could not leave her sisters unprotected. She touched his shoulder gently. "Cole, I have to wake Prue. Some one must be here to protect Phoebe and Paige!"
Prue's eyes opened, and she got to her feet. "What's happening!" she cried only to be answered by Carl.
Carl said, "We're under some kind of attack, and it's tearing the ship up. I ain't going out there! I'll protect your sisters! You better come over here, too! It's safer over here!"
Prue looked and saw that Carl was under the cot with Paige. "What are you doing in here, Carl?" she asked.
"We spent the night," Joxer said.
Prue looked at him with disbelief in her eyes. "Why'd you spend the night?"
"We have to protect our women!"
"Well, shut up about it! You don't want Piper to know, and get out of here before Piper finds out!"
"Piper already knows," Piper announced, no longer bothering to keep her voice quiet, "and this is no time for discussion! We are under attack! Prue, I'm going with Cole, but some one has to protect Phoebe and Paige and those two are nowhere near capable!"
"Yes, we are!" Joxer told her. "I can take care of Phoebe!"
Prue shook her head. "You can't take care of yourself, Joxer! Now stay put until you're called for. Where's the Captain?" she called to Piper.
"Piper," Cole said, "stay here with your sisters. I didn't know they would need such protection. You should stay with them. I'm going to look for the Captain."
"Well, if everybody's staying," Joxer said, "maybe I should go look for Xena!"
"I don't need your help, Joxer!" Cole retorted.
"I'm going any way!"
"No, you're not, Joxxy," Phoebe interrupted as she pulled him back down.
"I guess I'm not," Joxer relented in a still, quiet voice, surprised that Phoebe had dared to pull him back down in front of her sister.
Piper resisted the urge to roll her eyes at Phoebe and turned her attention fully on Cole, who apparently thought he might stand a chance of leaving her there. She had just started to speak, however, when Paige spoke. "We're perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves. We don't need babysitters!"
Piper glanced at Paige, who persisted, "Besides, Piper, you're stuck to Cole's butt, and somebody's gotta go for the Book!"
"I'm going for the Book!" Prue said. "You stay here!"
"And I am not stuck to Cole's . . . . . . but I am going with him!" With those last words, Piper's defiant eyes turned upwards into Cole's.
Taking her by the hand, he pulled her out of the sleeping quarters. "We've got to find the Captain first." The waves had turned angry and were slamming the ship on nearby boulders. Cole knew the ship would not last long, but he had no ideal where they were. He tried yelling for Xena, but it did no good as the wind snatched the words out of his mouth. Holding tightly to Piper, he headed for the direction he knew the wheel was in.
Brendan had been on his way to the Witch when the attack had started. He had quickly lost grip of the paper he had clutched, but before he could do anything to retaliate against the enemy or warn the others, he had seen an ice shard split the Captain's cabin in two. Fear filled him. "JACK!" he howled out the name of his adopted brother, the only man who had ever dared to believe fully in him, as he ran flat out for the cabin. The winds pushed against him, but he pushed back with growls and flashing eyes.
Jack had been trying desperately to reach the cabin door when more ice shards had slammed into the cabin, the last one bursting it apart. They were trapped inside the cabin with the ice shard between them and the outdoors. Jack could feel the Pearl being ripped apart as though it was made of paper. He could hear screams in his head, and there was nothing he could do. He could not reach the outdoors!
Some one had to get to the wheel! The shard was too big to break with his bare hands, and he had no weapon to use on it for his weapons lay on the other side. He heard Brendan howl his name. "BRENDAN," he yelled, "WE'RE TRAPPED IN HERE! GET US OUT OF HERE!" He reached out and pulled Will close to him. If another shard was to come through, he didn't want them getting separated.
Standing in the doorway, Brendan could see that there was no way to get past the ice shard. Instead, he dashed outside and ran around the cabin. The only thought in his mind was rescuing his brother and keeping Jack from being killed. That thought so filled him that he did not even realize that he was tearing at the wall with his claws, though he was still a man. He had partially wolfed and did not even know it.
Jack heard the wood splintering and turned to look behind him. His mouth fell open when he saw claws. Brendan had wolfed! He prayed he was not out of control. "BRENDAN?" he yelled through the now-opening hole.
"I'M HERE, JACK; I'M HERE!" His claws tore more savagely at the hole.
Will's gaze followed Jack's, and he trembled at the sight of the claws. "Jack, what the Hell is that?"
"That, Will, is Brendan! He's wolfed!"
"He's what?"
"But he's able to talk to me, so he must be in control for the first time in his wolf form!"
"Wolf form!"
"My brother's a Werewolf!"
"Brendan's a . . . a Werewolf!"
"Yes, and he usually can't control himself. As soon as he gets the hole open, I'm going out first just in case he loses it."
"The Hell you are!" Will exclaimed, jumping to his feet and beginning to search madly for anything that might be able to be used for a weapon.
"I got all he needs right here. If he's out of control and I hit him with this, it'll knock him out." He walked over to the bed and picked up the cane where it had fallen to the floor. He walked back to the now-open hole and began to make his way out of it. He froze as soon as he saw Brendan. "Brendan? How did you get your claws and not the full wolf?"
"Huh?" Brendan looked at Jack in confusion, and his blood ran cold when he looked down at his hands and discovered that Jack was right. It was at that time that Prue's scent met his nose. He could smell her fear, and it ripped at his heart. "Protect each other!" He was gone before Jack or Will, who had walked right into him when Jack had frozen so suddenly, could say anything more.
"We've got to get to the wheel, Will! The ship is out of control, and if we don't do something to control her, she's going to crash!" Jack raced off with Will right behind him.
To Be Continued . . .
