Clove : Book 4 of Lord Emperor Vampire Series
folder
Vampire › Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
49
Views:
22,809
Reviews:
795
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
1
Category:
Vampire › Slash - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
49
Views:
22,809
Reviews:
795
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
1
Disclaimer:
This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.
Buster
Oh, I was called bitch, evil, wicked and a meany. Thank you. I strive for that. This last time I wasn’t intentionally evil, I just hit a writers wall. I ended up penning a creepy little slash piece then I came back full force wings a flappin’. No cliffies this time. I promise.
Bunnies are coming up after this chappie.
I offer up rice krispy squares of fatty goodness (no redeeming calories in them what so ever) to the Loyal: Dark Avenger; Shattered; Black Opal; Marin Liliz; Rorarin; Rosemary; HallowsEve; ATOI(x7) Where the heck have you been??; k; AsyenMari; Rosei; Laur; Spirit; Bunnicle (you’re alive!!!); Natana and ____to be added.
K: this chappie is dedicated to you for you wonderful explanation of how Claudius should be a sword for X. I stole it ooops, liberated it!
Chapter 161: Buster
I awoke in darkness. Let me say that it wasn’t “the” dark because the dark doesn’t smell like love. Well, my antiseptic love. I could hear a heartbeat pounding under my ear. I felt like every bone in my body was broken. The way we hit, they probably were. Cloves filled my nostrils
“Sasha…”
I got arms tightening around me. I cried out as I felt something shift in my back. I broke my spine…
“Do not move, Fallen. Do not try and heal. Just stay still. You are very injured.”
“Are you all right?”
I got a kiss to the forehead. “You’re almost in two pieces and you are worried about me.”
“What?”
“You crushed your pelvis…your leg is twisted in a weird angle. We have sent for the physician. We landed rather far from the Warehouse. Shade is actually going to let him ride.”
“I should be able to….”
“Do nothing, Fallen. Please. The last thing you want to do is fuse your spine.”
/Listen to him, Sex. I can’t see you but you’re broadcasting pure agony./
/Sorry..I’ll shield/
/Don’t do that…you will need all the power you got to heal when the doctor sets everything back where it’s supposed to be./
“Why do you have your wings out?” I blinked up at Sasha’s blue eyes? He looked like he was crying.
“Because this is a private matter. Prying eyes need not know the details. Shhh, Sex. Just be still, be calm.”
I could feel thud thud thud through the ground. Father’s wings were ripped open at the tips and Armor dropped to the ground beside my head. “What is wrong? I can feel your pain all the way back to the warehouse. Why haven’t you healed?” His voice trailed off as he looked past my waist and his face blanched. I tried to lift my head up. Armor pressed his hand against my forehead and pressed his own face down to my ear. “Just be still.”
“Is that bad?”
“You’ve looked better.” He gave me a brave smile. Oh crap. I’m royally fucked if both of them are trying to keep me calm. And I had a concussion.
“Father…”
“Sex..”
“Can you heal my head? It hurts and my ribs…I can’t breathe right.”
He looked at me sadly, “I do not have the control to localize healing, Fallen. It’s just one big burst.”
He had a cut on his cheek that hadn’t healed completely. “Concentrate on the tip of your finger. Think of it like a lit cigarette, you only want the healing light there. Just gently call it, think of it like water. It’s been damned up. If you pull the sluice gate high, you’re going to get a burst, you just want a pin hole, direct it were your want it go like a garden hose. Draw it you’re your fingertip. Claudius blinked as the tip of his finger danced with healing light.. “You got a cut on your cheek.”
He brushed at his face and the cut was gone.
“Sex….”
Just concentrate on your hands, just the same way. You’ll only heal what you touch. The blue light of healing filled the dark space created by Father’s jet black wings. Armor’s hands were on either side of my head gently circling my temples with his thumbs. That was distracting…which is what it should be. I was numb…but that might be because the pain was so damn intense…especially if Armor was feeling it back there.
Father laid his hands on my me. My head cleared…ohmggod. The pain scale went from unbelievable unbearable agony to just minor unbearable agony. I gritted my teeth and tried to see my groans of pain inside. Father concentrated running his hands down my neck, across my shoulders then swept them around to my chest. I actually felt my bones kitting back together. Bizzare feeling. I can pass on a repeat of that sensation. I felt my right leg spasm. It was like a jolt of electricity shot up from my toes right into my brain and then exploded into fireworks.
“Sex…Sex…..Fallen….Fallen, please,” I roused awake again. Sasha was laying beside me. One wing was flat over my waist hiding my mangled hip and leg. I could breathe easier. My thinking was clearer.
“Don’t let me go.” I whispered turning my head toward his face. “Promise me, you’ll never let me go.”
“I will follow you into the Dark. I will find it, I will track you. Orel Wessel, Lycans or anything else that raises it’s ugly head will find me cutting it off.” His hand came up and stroked my cheek, “I understand now, Sex. This helplessness and feeling of inadequacy is hard to bear. I had family to rely on, to get support from when I am too weak to stand on my own. Your coven fledgling cling to each other lost in the darkness that this world can offer. They fall prey to everyone. It doesn’t help that the House of Assassins culls the covens every fifty years.”
“What are you saying?”
“Armor is your shield. I will be your sword. I will protect you.”
“Weren’t you doing that before?”
“No, I was standing in your way.”
“Am I going to have to be seriously injured every time to make you listen to me?”
Tears welled up in his big blue eyes. “Forgiveness is not something I ask for.”
“Naw, you kind of demand things…and I don’t mind giving in to your demands, Kitty…just, listen to me once in a while. That’s all I ask.”
/Doctor is here./
I lifted my forearm and laid it across my eyes to block out the light of the afternoon sun. “Move…move. Holy shit.”
Not good if the attending physician is reduced to profanity.
/Sex…/
/Tell me. No one will let me see./
/I don’t think…/
/Your Majesty please…/
/Remember X and I would watch Mythbusters and grimace of the stuff that would happen to Buster the crash test dummy.”
/Shit./
/The good thing is that your leg seems to be attached but it’s…not right./
The things you don’t want to learn while you laying flat on your back unable to move. Apparently a vampire physician has a gift. Not of healing. That would be horning in on the Empire blue line gig. No, a physician had for the lack of a better term – x-ray eyes. No one knows how come some get it and some don’t. There is probably some kind of gene, yadda yadda yadda. I just wanted to get fixed and get the hell up.
“It looks like he took the blunt of the impact on his left pelvis. The pelvis is got a number of hair line cracks but his femoral head is cracked and is out of the acetabulum” His gaze swept over me. “He’s had a multitude of breaks and heals…”
“Just kiss it and make it better.” I grunted. I hate being talked about as if I’m just the next gerbil experiment.
“You’re going to need hip replacement…I understand you have healing ability but if I return the femoral head to the acetabulum without reconstructive you could be doing more damage. You might just lose all sensation in your left leg all together.”
“Can we heal his fractures?”
The physican stared over at Father. “I have only heard of your abilities, the abilities of the Emperor line. I have not seen it. If you have fine enough control to pinpoint healing.”
“Hey, Doc, think of it like a laser. Run your hand along the fracture, Father, trace behind him…it should be good.”
“You trust me?”
“With my life.” I reached up and grabbed at Armor’s hands. I had a feeling that this was going to hurt…really bad. Wasn’t even close to my expectation. I screamed once and that made everyone jump and them both Father and brother slapped a moving binding on me and a vocal binding. It felt like someone was dragging a lit cigarette slowly along my flesh and internally. Who’s bright idea was this? Mine…yet again.
“Do not Phoenix, Sex. Control it. You will kill us all if you get it go.” Armor whispered as I tried to crush his hands
/Hee hee heeee. Hee hee heeee/
/What the hell are you doing?/
/Lamoz breathing. Controls the pain. Hee hee heeee./
I’m going insane. I took Hellcat advise. There was one hell of a nasty bump a little too close to the family jewels. I actually twitched and jerked Armor over my head and onto my chest. I really didn’t need his crotch in my face right at his moment. Then the searing of my pelvis was over. Armor sat back up and knelt on my hair. That was the least of my worries. Now that the mass of pain was gone, it was localized to my dislocated hip and it pulsed with fiery agony.
“You’ve gotten strong.” Armor pulled a hand free and flexed his fingers.
“Skell had an insulating shield around us. Kept stuff out, kept us in. Blocked Marcus and the hellcats out.”
The physician knelt over me, “How are you feeling?”
“Like I got knocked out of the sky and broke my hip.” Typical doctor, no sense of humor. I’m the one in the screaming red zone of agony here and I can still crack a joke.
He turned his attention to Father. “You have two options depending on the severity of the injury. We will have to operate. I recommend a biologic fixation which would replace the damaged area. He’s young and active, it will bond with the porous surface and allow the bone to integrate with it.”
“How long would it take to bond?”
“Humans anywhere from 3 to six months. With Vampiric healing ability, more like two.”
“Too long.”
“Unless you can re-grow bone, that is your only option.”
“I can’t, but Father can.”
Claudius stared down at me expressionlessly. It was a mix of stunned, relief, stunned and mortification. “You must be kidding, Sex.”
“You had a bone shield. It was strong. I broke my daggers against it. A Hip isn’t as big as that thing.”
“It hurt so much…and you need a constant blood supply.”
“I don’t have two months to be down. You know what a good hip looks like, you can monitor our progress. Father you can instruct. Armor, you’re going to have to be our transfusion. Just keep biting and I’ll just latch onto your wrist.”
“Sex…are your sure?”
“I’m hurting here, really bad….” I gave him a weak smile, “And we both know I need full range of motion in my hip.”
The physician colored. Virgin much?
“Sex….”
“Azrael?”
“X and Skell are going to tag team on you. You handle pain better than any of us, so you got the short end of the stick you get to stay in wonderland. X is got better control with the healing light and Skell has got medical knowledge. 500 ways to kill a vampire. He could be a doctor if he was only trying to kill them.”
“And you?”
“Just useless fluff again. I’ll keep the home fires burning. Let them run your subconscious. You’re going to have to move up into the pain.”
Oh joy.
There’s a tv commercial about a guy sitting at his kitchen table with a steak knife, some scotch tape and a bottle of whisky. He’s talking to the doctor who his telling him how to do his own surgery. This is just so fundamentally wrong. This was the same thing. I had been shifted slightly so Armor could prop me against him. That was joyville. I think I turned and whiter shade of pale. I fanged his wrist and someone dropped down beside him and let him fang them. The transfusion drip had started. Father lied. He didn’t grow bone, he just moved it around. He didn’t’ lie about it hurting though.
I could feel X and Skell moving within me. Strange….so damn strange. Scooping chips from a shoulder and depositing it where the Physician directed. It was like dropping wax chunks into a crack then X applying a little flash of healing light internally to fuse it together lightly. My femoral ball must have looked like a patchwork quilt. Finally the physician claimed it was ready.
By that time, I was stupid with pain and could barely drink, I was reduced to swallowing when my mouth filled up. Father flared his hand and looked me in the eye. I swear my injury reacted like a shrinky dink in the oven. It twitched. My leg jumped. I wrenched my mouth off of Armor and…fainted.
I awoke in darkness. Let me say that it wasn’t “the” dark because the dark doesn’t smell like my antiseptic love. I could hear a heartbeats pounding under my ears. I felt like someone had set up bongos on either side of head and where playing them like donkey kong. I took a deep breath; Cloves and Apples filled my nostrils. And Cinnamon. Well didn’t we smell like Christmas.
The first thing I realized was that I wasn’t in stupefying agony any more. I opened my eyes to black feathers. Father was on my right. Armor was on my left. A purr sounded by my hand. “Can we go home now?” My voice was raw and scratchy.
I got a laughter of relief and Father kissed the side of my face. “How are you feeling?”
“Really really tired.”
“I will have to declare a conflict of interest.” Armor stroked the side of my face.
“Thank you.”
“Just because I cannot be your Father, Little One, does not mean I cannot help out.”
“Sex,” I pointed out.
“Later with my Xavier arrives.”
Oh, he made a funny. Just couldn’t appreciate it now. “This day is not over yet. You need to get up and we need to make a statement to the House. The challenge is yours Sex. I would have died if you did not put yourself in harms way. You would not have been injured.” He shifted and I felt the warm leather against my ass cheeks. Wait. I still had my apron on. I had my pants and docs for once…I reached under myself and found bare flesh. What the hell, I had assless chaps on!
Before Father opened up his wings, he pulled out his belt and my apron got turned into a breech cloth. I was left with a little dignity. He dissolved his wings and I had and blink and turn my head away from the bright sunlight.
“The Loyal and the House are watching, Sex. Get up on your own.” Kitty shade rolled away when Father stood up. I wiggled my toes and flexed everything. It worked, it just felt…spongy.
I rolled over to my hands and knees and sat back on my heels. My muscles ached but it was not compared to earlier. I climbed to my feet ready to locked my knees if our little physic surgery didn’t work. Just weakness and it was fading fast. I tested my weight. It felt good. I took a few steps. Normal. Everything was back to normal. The wind came up and my blizzard of hair whipped all over the place. Every time I phoenix I end up looking like Cousin It or Lanseng. My hair was at my ankles now. Traumatic day indeed.
“We need to make a unmistakable statement. Father.” I gestured to my right. Armor came to my left, untied his own hair and offered my the ribbon. I tied it back off my face. Shade returned to panther form but remained blue.
/You can be red if you wish./
/Statement. Strut, just like John Travolta./
An image of me in Hades’ Golden Phoenix just sent shivers down my spine, /No Travolta imagery please./
/How about like the Right Stuff?/
/How about, I just concentrate on not falling on face?/
/Works for me./
“Let’s go. I want to go home.”
Father wasn’t kidding when he said we hit the ground pretty damn far from the warehouse. We were closer to the airport than I wanted to admit. The trees seemed to hold Ranked as we passed than fell into step behind us. There was a small crest just before the warehouse. Father stepped up and touched my shoulder. “Wings, my Emperor.”
I glanced over at Claudius, “That too?”
“It was never mine. We both knew that.”
“Wings, my sword.”
/I’ll announce your arrival./ Shade trotted ahead and stood at the top of the hill and get out a mighty hellcat roar. Her tail flicked urging us upwards. I crested the top and looked down to see the rest of the House spread out under umbrellas, huddled around the base of trees sticking to the life preserving shade.
Hades little bastard that he was turned and looked up at me. The wind picked up again and I lost Armor’s ribbon. My hair blew everywhere. In my eyes, up my nose, in my mouth across the bare patches of exposed ass. Father stepped up next, his black wings russling and his own ebony tresses streaming back. Shade gave another roar. The Rank behind me dropped into reverent pose. Those in the shadows as well. The whole clearing genuflected.
Hades stared up at me. I felt more than saw Father drop into his elegant pose. Armor followed. Finally the only one left standing were Hades, Nightshade and myself.
“ALL HAIL BLOOD EMPEROR XAVIER! ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!” Hades lowered his arm bowed his head, then dropped down into reverent poise.
The small clearing rang with the chant. I gestured for everyone to get up. I just wanted to get the hell out of here. Queen Nightshade fell into step by my side as I marched down the small hill. /Isn’t good to be Emperor?/
/Except for the shattered hip, just peachy./
Hades rose when I approached. “Lord…” He searched my eyes to find out which brother was here, that little spark that jumped into his watery blue eyes told me that he knew it was me, “Xavier. I was concerned when the physician was sent for…”
I still had that core of anger inside me from finding out that this was all their fault. They set the wheels in motion and now I had a baby brother, another body in the Von Drachenfeld funeral plot and a rebuilt suspension. I didn’t look at him. I just paused long enough to get the words out and continued on back towards the limo.
“Tell Liam he has an appointment with the Stone of Punishment, tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. For his act of treason, he will receive ten lashes. He deserves more, but I don’t think he would survive in that red body.”
Hades was sent spluttering. “Who?”
“Skell…I do believe that boy knows his way around a whip and he’s the one who’s been most affected.” Warden bowed as he opened the car door for me. Shade popped in. I gratefully dissolved my wings and sprawled on the back seat. Father came in next and sat at my feet.” The door closed behind us and the car stared moving.
“Come here, Fallen.”
I shifted and ended up on Father locked in his arms. “Is that wise?”
“Isn’t that what today is about? I am Head of the House of Assassin. I am Blood Emperor of the Vampire Nation. I have found the object of my betrayal and he has admitted it me. I need to set an example.” I sat up and looked at his saddened eyes. “You don’t want a repeat of Marcus and the challenges. You don’t want to see what I can really do. I don’t what to see what I can really do now Skell's shield is down.”
“Fallen.”
I brushed ebony tendrils from his face and traced my finger tip along his eye brows, “I would like to cherish you Father when we get home.”
“Where is home, Fallen Angel? Von Drachenfeld or Shadoe Inc.?”
“Wherever you are.” I leaned forward and pressed a sweet, sweet kiss to his lips. I rested my head against his chest and listened to his hear beat. The rhythm of life, of my life. My Father. My Sword. My Lover. My Sasha.
________________________________
Questions about Hip Replacement
http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/hip/hiprepqa.htm#4
Bunnies are coming up after this chappie.
I offer up rice krispy squares of fatty goodness (no redeeming calories in them what so ever) to the Loyal: Dark Avenger; Shattered; Black Opal; Marin Liliz; Rorarin; Rosemary; HallowsEve; ATOI(x7) Where the heck have you been??; k; AsyenMari; Rosei; Laur; Spirit; Bunnicle (you’re alive!!!); Natana and ____to be added.
K: this chappie is dedicated to you for you wonderful explanation of how Claudius should be a sword for X. I stole it ooops, liberated it!
Chapter 161: Buster
I awoke in darkness. Let me say that it wasn’t “the” dark because the dark doesn’t smell like love. Well, my antiseptic love. I could hear a heartbeat pounding under my ear. I felt like every bone in my body was broken. The way we hit, they probably were. Cloves filled my nostrils
“Sasha…”
I got arms tightening around me. I cried out as I felt something shift in my back. I broke my spine…
“Do not move, Fallen. Do not try and heal. Just stay still. You are very injured.”
“Are you all right?”
I got a kiss to the forehead. “You’re almost in two pieces and you are worried about me.”
“What?”
“You crushed your pelvis…your leg is twisted in a weird angle. We have sent for the physician. We landed rather far from the Warehouse. Shade is actually going to let him ride.”
“I should be able to….”
“Do nothing, Fallen. Please. The last thing you want to do is fuse your spine.”
/Listen to him, Sex. I can’t see you but you’re broadcasting pure agony./
/Sorry..I’ll shield/
/Don’t do that…you will need all the power you got to heal when the doctor sets everything back where it’s supposed to be./
“Why do you have your wings out?” I blinked up at Sasha’s blue eyes? He looked like he was crying.
“Because this is a private matter. Prying eyes need not know the details. Shhh, Sex. Just be still, be calm.”
I could feel thud thud thud through the ground. Father’s wings were ripped open at the tips and Armor dropped to the ground beside my head. “What is wrong? I can feel your pain all the way back to the warehouse. Why haven’t you healed?” His voice trailed off as he looked past my waist and his face blanched. I tried to lift my head up. Armor pressed his hand against my forehead and pressed his own face down to my ear. “Just be still.”
“Is that bad?”
“You’ve looked better.” He gave me a brave smile. Oh crap. I’m royally fucked if both of them are trying to keep me calm. And I had a concussion.
“Father…”
“Sex..”
“Can you heal my head? It hurts and my ribs…I can’t breathe right.”
He looked at me sadly, “I do not have the control to localize healing, Fallen. It’s just one big burst.”
He had a cut on his cheek that hadn’t healed completely. “Concentrate on the tip of your finger. Think of it like a lit cigarette, you only want the healing light there. Just gently call it, think of it like water. It’s been damned up. If you pull the sluice gate high, you’re going to get a burst, you just want a pin hole, direct it were your want it go like a garden hose. Draw it you’re your fingertip. Claudius blinked as the tip of his finger danced with healing light.. “You got a cut on your cheek.”
He brushed at his face and the cut was gone.
“Sex….”
Just concentrate on your hands, just the same way. You’ll only heal what you touch. The blue light of healing filled the dark space created by Father’s jet black wings. Armor’s hands were on either side of my head gently circling my temples with his thumbs. That was distracting…which is what it should be. I was numb…but that might be because the pain was so damn intense…especially if Armor was feeling it back there.
Father laid his hands on my me. My head cleared…ohmggod. The pain scale went from unbelievable unbearable agony to just minor unbearable agony. I gritted my teeth and tried to see my groans of pain inside. Father concentrated running his hands down my neck, across my shoulders then swept them around to my chest. I actually felt my bones kitting back together. Bizzare feeling. I can pass on a repeat of that sensation. I felt my right leg spasm. It was like a jolt of electricity shot up from my toes right into my brain and then exploded into fireworks.
“Sex…Sex…..Fallen….Fallen, please,” I roused awake again. Sasha was laying beside me. One wing was flat over my waist hiding my mangled hip and leg. I could breathe easier. My thinking was clearer.
“Don’t let me go.” I whispered turning my head toward his face. “Promise me, you’ll never let me go.”
“I will follow you into the Dark. I will find it, I will track you. Orel Wessel, Lycans or anything else that raises it’s ugly head will find me cutting it off.” His hand came up and stroked my cheek, “I understand now, Sex. This helplessness and feeling of inadequacy is hard to bear. I had family to rely on, to get support from when I am too weak to stand on my own. Your coven fledgling cling to each other lost in the darkness that this world can offer. They fall prey to everyone. It doesn’t help that the House of Assassins culls the covens every fifty years.”
“What are you saying?”
“Armor is your shield. I will be your sword. I will protect you.”
“Weren’t you doing that before?”
“No, I was standing in your way.”
“Am I going to have to be seriously injured every time to make you listen to me?”
Tears welled up in his big blue eyes. “Forgiveness is not something I ask for.”
“Naw, you kind of demand things…and I don’t mind giving in to your demands, Kitty…just, listen to me once in a while. That’s all I ask.”
/Doctor is here./
I lifted my forearm and laid it across my eyes to block out the light of the afternoon sun. “Move…move. Holy shit.”
Not good if the attending physician is reduced to profanity.
/Sex…/
/Tell me. No one will let me see./
/I don’t think…/
/Your Majesty please…/
/Remember X and I would watch Mythbusters and grimace of the stuff that would happen to Buster the crash test dummy.”
/Shit./
/The good thing is that your leg seems to be attached but it’s…not right./
The things you don’t want to learn while you laying flat on your back unable to move. Apparently a vampire physician has a gift. Not of healing. That would be horning in on the Empire blue line gig. No, a physician had for the lack of a better term – x-ray eyes. No one knows how come some get it and some don’t. There is probably some kind of gene, yadda yadda yadda. I just wanted to get fixed and get the hell up.
“It looks like he took the blunt of the impact on his left pelvis. The pelvis is got a number of hair line cracks but his femoral head is cracked and is out of the acetabulum” His gaze swept over me. “He’s had a multitude of breaks and heals…”
“Just kiss it and make it better.” I grunted. I hate being talked about as if I’m just the next gerbil experiment.
“You’re going to need hip replacement…I understand you have healing ability but if I return the femoral head to the acetabulum without reconstructive you could be doing more damage. You might just lose all sensation in your left leg all together.”
“Can we heal his fractures?”
The physican stared over at Father. “I have only heard of your abilities, the abilities of the Emperor line. I have not seen it. If you have fine enough control to pinpoint healing.”
“Hey, Doc, think of it like a laser. Run your hand along the fracture, Father, trace behind him…it should be good.”
“You trust me?”
“With my life.” I reached up and grabbed at Armor’s hands. I had a feeling that this was going to hurt…really bad. Wasn’t even close to my expectation. I screamed once and that made everyone jump and them both Father and brother slapped a moving binding on me and a vocal binding. It felt like someone was dragging a lit cigarette slowly along my flesh and internally. Who’s bright idea was this? Mine…yet again.
“Do not Phoenix, Sex. Control it. You will kill us all if you get it go.” Armor whispered as I tried to crush his hands
/Hee hee heeee. Hee hee heeee/
/What the hell are you doing?/
/Lamoz breathing. Controls the pain. Hee hee heeee./
I’m going insane. I took Hellcat advise. There was one hell of a nasty bump a little too close to the family jewels. I actually twitched and jerked Armor over my head and onto my chest. I really didn’t need his crotch in my face right at his moment. Then the searing of my pelvis was over. Armor sat back up and knelt on my hair. That was the least of my worries. Now that the mass of pain was gone, it was localized to my dislocated hip and it pulsed with fiery agony.
“You’ve gotten strong.” Armor pulled a hand free and flexed his fingers.
“Skell had an insulating shield around us. Kept stuff out, kept us in. Blocked Marcus and the hellcats out.”
The physician knelt over me, “How are you feeling?”
“Like I got knocked out of the sky and broke my hip.” Typical doctor, no sense of humor. I’m the one in the screaming red zone of agony here and I can still crack a joke.
He turned his attention to Father. “You have two options depending on the severity of the injury. We will have to operate. I recommend a biologic fixation which would replace the damaged area. He’s young and active, it will bond with the porous surface and allow the bone to integrate with it.”
“How long would it take to bond?”
“Humans anywhere from 3 to six months. With Vampiric healing ability, more like two.”
“Too long.”
“Unless you can re-grow bone, that is your only option.”
“I can’t, but Father can.”
Claudius stared down at me expressionlessly. It was a mix of stunned, relief, stunned and mortification. “You must be kidding, Sex.”
“You had a bone shield. It was strong. I broke my daggers against it. A Hip isn’t as big as that thing.”
“It hurt so much…and you need a constant blood supply.”
“I don’t have two months to be down. You know what a good hip looks like, you can monitor our progress. Father you can instruct. Armor, you’re going to have to be our transfusion. Just keep biting and I’ll just latch onto your wrist.”
“Sex…are your sure?”
“I’m hurting here, really bad….” I gave him a weak smile, “And we both know I need full range of motion in my hip.”
The physician colored. Virgin much?
“Sex….”
“Azrael?”
“X and Skell are going to tag team on you. You handle pain better than any of us, so you got the short end of the stick you get to stay in wonderland. X is got better control with the healing light and Skell has got medical knowledge. 500 ways to kill a vampire. He could be a doctor if he was only trying to kill them.”
“And you?”
“Just useless fluff again. I’ll keep the home fires burning. Let them run your subconscious. You’re going to have to move up into the pain.”
Oh joy.
There’s a tv commercial about a guy sitting at his kitchen table with a steak knife, some scotch tape and a bottle of whisky. He’s talking to the doctor who his telling him how to do his own surgery. This is just so fundamentally wrong. This was the same thing. I had been shifted slightly so Armor could prop me against him. That was joyville. I think I turned and whiter shade of pale. I fanged his wrist and someone dropped down beside him and let him fang them. The transfusion drip had started. Father lied. He didn’t grow bone, he just moved it around. He didn’t’ lie about it hurting though.
I could feel X and Skell moving within me. Strange….so damn strange. Scooping chips from a shoulder and depositing it where the Physician directed. It was like dropping wax chunks into a crack then X applying a little flash of healing light internally to fuse it together lightly. My femoral ball must have looked like a patchwork quilt. Finally the physician claimed it was ready.
By that time, I was stupid with pain and could barely drink, I was reduced to swallowing when my mouth filled up. Father flared his hand and looked me in the eye. I swear my injury reacted like a shrinky dink in the oven. It twitched. My leg jumped. I wrenched my mouth off of Armor and…fainted.
I awoke in darkness. Let me say that it wasn’t “the” dark because the dark doesn’t smell like my antiseptic love. I could hear a heartbeats pounding under my ears. I felt like someone had set up bongos on either side of head and where playing them like donkey kong. I took a deep breath; Cloves and Apples filled my nostrils. And Cinnamon. Well didn’t we smell like Christmas.
The first thing I realized was that I wasn’t in stupefying agony any more. I opened my eyes to black feathers. Father was on my right. Armor was on my left. A purr sounded by my hand. “Can we go home now?” My voice was raw and scratchy.
I got a laughter of relief and Father kissed the side of my face. “How are you feeling?”
“Really really tired.”
“I will have to declare a conflict of interest.” Armor stroked the side of my face.
“Thank you.”
“Just because I cannot be your Father, Little One, does not mean I cannot help out.”
“Sex,” I pointed out.
“Later with my Xavier arrives.”
Oh, he made a funny. Just couldn’t appreciate it now. “This day is not over yet. You need to get up and we need to make a statement to the House. The challenge is yours Sex. I would have died if you did not put yourself in harms way. You would not have been injured.” He shifted and I felt the warm leather against my ass cheeks. Wait. I still had my apron on. I had my pants and docs for once…I reached under myself and found bare flesh. What the hell, I had assless chaps on!
Before Father opened up his wings, he pulled out his belt and my apron got turned into a breech cloth. I was left with a little dignity. He dissolved his wings and I had and blink and turn my head away from the bright sunlight.
“The Loyal and the House are watching, Sex. Get up on your own.” Kitty shade rolled away when Father stood up. I wiggled my toes and flexed everything. It worked, it just felt…spongy.
I rolled over to my hands and knees and sat back on my heels. My muscles ached but it was not compared to earlier. I climbed to my feet ready to locked my knees if our little physic surgery didn’t work. Just weakness and it was fading fast. I tested my weight. It felt good. I took a few steps. Normal. Everything was back to normal. The wind came up and my blizzard of hair whipped all over the place. Every time I phoenix I end up looking like Cousin It or Lanseng. My hair was at my ankles now. Traumatic day indeed.
“We need to make a unmistakable statement. Father.” I gestured to my right. Armor came to my left, untied his own hair and offered my the ribbon. I tied it back off my face. Shade returned to panther form but remained blue.
/You can be red if you wish./
/Statement. Strut, just like John Travolta./
An image of me in Hades’ Golden Phoenix just sent shivers down my spine, /No Travolta imagery please./
/How about like the Right Stuff?/
/How about, I just concentrate on not falling on face?/
/Works for me./
“Let’s go. I want to go home.”
Father wasn’t kidding when he said we hit the ground pretty damn far from the warehouse. We were closer to the airport than I wanted to admit. The trees seemed to hold Ranked as we passed than fell into step behind us. There was a small crest just before the warehouse. Father stepped up and touched my shoulder. “Wings, my Emperor.”
I glanced over at Claudius, “That too?”
“It was never mine. We both knew that.”
“Wings, my sword.”
/I’ll announce your arrival./ Shade trotted ahead and stood at the top of the hill and get out a mighty hellcat roar. Her tail flicked urging us upwards. I crested the top and looked down to see the rest of the House spread out under umbrellas, huddled around the base of trees sticking to the life preserving shade.
Hades little bastard that he was turned and looked up at me. The wind picked up again and I lost Armor’s ribbon. My hair blew everywhere. In my eyes, up my nose, in my mouth across the bare patches of exposed ass. Father stepped up next, his black wings russling and his own ebony tresses streaming back. Shade gave another roar. The Rank behind me dropped into reverent pose. Those in the shadows as well. The whole clearing genuflected.
Hades stared up at me. I felt more than saw Father drop into his elegant pose. Armor followed. Finally the only one left standing were Hades, Nightshade and myself.
“ALL HAIL BLOOD EMPEROR XAVIER! ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!” Hades lowered his arm bowed his head, then dropped down into reverent poise.
The small clearing rang with the chant. I gestured for everyone to get up. I just wanted to get the hell out of here. Queen Nightshade fell into step by my side as I marched down the small hill. /Isn’t good to be Emperor?/
/Except for the shattered hip, just peachy./
Hades rose when I approached. “Lord…” He searched my eyes to find out which brother was here, that little spark that jumped into his watery blue eyes told me that he knew it was me, “Xavier. I was concerned when the physician was sent for…”
I still had that core of anger inside me from finding out that this was all their fault. They set the wheels in motion and now I had a baby brother, another body in the Von Drachenfeld funeral plot and a rebuilt suspension. I didn’t look at him. I just paused long enough to get the words out and continued on back towards the limo.
“Tell Liam he has an appointment with the Stone of Punishment, tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. For his act of treason, he will receive ten lashes. He deserves more, but I don’t think he would survive in that red body.”
Hades was sent spluttering. “Who?”
“Skell…I do believe that boy knows his way around a whip and he’s the one who’s been most affected.” Warden bowed as he opened the car door for me. Shade popped in. I gratefully dissolved my wings and sprawled on the back seat. Father came in next and sat at my feet.” The door closed behind us and the car stared moving.
“Come here, Fallen.”
I shifted and ended up on Father locked in his arms. “Is that wise?”
“Isn’t that what today is about? I am Head of the House of Assassin. I am Blood Emperor of the Vampire Nation. I have found the object of my betrayal and he has admitted it me. I need to set an example.” I sat up and looked at his saddened eyes. “You don’t want a repeat of Marcus and the challenges. You don’t want to see what I can really do. I don’t what to see what I can really do now Skell's shield is down.”
“Fallen.”
I brushed ebony tendrils from his face and traced my finger tip along his eye brows, “I would like to cherish you Father when we get home.”
“Where is home, Fallen Angel? Von Drachenfeld or Shadoe Inc.?”
“Wherever you are.” I leaned forward and pressed a sweet, sweet kiss to his lips. I rested my head against his chest and listened to his hear beat. The rhythm of life, of my life. My Father. My Sword. My Lover. My Sasha.
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Questions about Hip Replacement
http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/hip/hiprepqa.htm#4