Chương 80: Chapter 79- A New Bond

Elias startled awake, memories flashing and racing through his mind. After a moment he calmed as he realized he wasn't in danger and neither was Astra. His head thumped back into the pillow for a sigh as he remembered that she had left earlier to sleep in her own room. As much as his own heart wished for her to stay the night, his mind knew that it was far too soon. She was a noblewoman, and not a low born one. Duchesses were a bare step from royals, and there were proprietaries that would need to be minded.

He sighed as he thought back to the previous events of the night, disbelief and satisfaction filling his mind in equal measure at the memories that promised, no matter how much he loved that impossible woman, she loved him too. The wild and improbable nature of their bond caused him to laugh out loud as he stared up at the unmoving ceiling, willing it, however unlikely, to vanish and transpose itself with his old sad ceiling.

The one where, over many nights, he had stared up at the sky sleepless and alone, desperately hoping for a better life, and here it was. A friend who understood him tip to tail, a mysterious world full of magic and mystery, and a gorgeous woman, strong, fierce, and proud whom despite hope beyond hope loved him. Elias let out a soft sob as a tear leaked from his eye, how could he possibly hope for such a bright future.

A bleak white apartment, filled with nothing but daily necessities, and a job that was little more than a placeholder until his next life and death struggle in service to a monolithic and uncaring state was all he should have to hope for. NO. Brother-eli, something is wrong. Eli shook himself to full wakefulness, and as he sat up he realized the overwhelming sense of dread and ennui did not come from inside himself, but from elsewhere.

He scratched Tia behind the ears for a moment before dropping his feet to the ground and searching inside for a second. A dense knot of anxious worry and despair squirmed in the back of his mind and he realized the source. The knot writhed, reeking of blood, anger, fury, anxiety, despair, bleak hopelessness and more indefinable emotions as the knot dug itself into an ever deeper pit. Astra.

He stood, pulling on the weird white linen pants and shirt that stood in for underclothes in this bizarre world and strode for the door. Come on Tia, she needs us. I'm coming brother-eli. A clatter echoed behind him as a soft weight dropped to the ground and pattered along behind him. Elias reached the door and opened it, one eye closed to preserve his night vision as the other squinted against the bright light of the glowing stones embedded in the hall outside.

He turned down the hallway and strode towards the next nearest doorway, as the guards turned in his direction. Sasha studiously avoided making eye contact, swiveling her eyes back forward and staring at the wall opposite as if trying to bore a hole in the wall with her eyes, but Cooper just made direct eye contact, only arching a brow at him with a bemused expression.

Elias tapped his temple, before coughing to clear his throat and speaking out loud in a croak while still holding the one eye closed, " Tough dreams Coop, she needs me." His eyes squinted as his eyes flickered over Eli, down to Tia shifting anxiously while staring at the door, before easing and facing forward. He picked up a wooden disk in his lap and picked it up with a knife and resumed whittling." Aye, reckon she does."

Eli put a hand on the door for a moment before shifting it to drop onto his shoulder, " Thanks for watching over her Coop." He gave it a squeeze, " Dawn's coming soon and she'll be hungry. Expect three Tia's for breakfast." Coop snorted, " Aye." He looked back up at Eli, fixing him with a serious gaze, " She is my liege Lady, lad. You are a sharp one so I reckon you may understand, but take care, I like you both and would hate to have to choose." Eli smiled at the man, " You'll never have to Coop."

He gave Eli a slow smile, " Aye, see that your words run true lad."

Astra's POV She startled awake, gasping and heaving for breath as her mind swirled with memories of blood, sweat, and death. A field of corpses had cluttered her footing as she kicked aside tables, dismembered limbs, and shattered furniture. In the back of her mind she could feel him dying, the last of his resources guttering out as he struggled to stay with her for just one more minute.

Spending his heart's blood liberally just to spare her feelings, the weight behind his words as he told her he was at the end of his strength. She asked for more and he gave it. They sweated and stamped, slipping in pools of blood, weaving through a dance where if they slipped for but a moment it would spell their end. They laughed wild and free, and when the end came he promised she would never be alone, never again. Never.

She sat up in bed, knowing that her feelings were wrong, the irrational ramblings of a mind flooded with memories of pain and fear, and hurting all the same. She gasped scrambling backwards into the corner as a creaking sound and a sliver of light shot through the dark before disappearing. Soft steps approached as she panted deep heaving fearful breaths in the dark. A soft voice spoke, " Hey."" Troubled dreams?"

A soft clicking rang across the ground, before a shape in the dark clambered into her bed, warm smooth scaled brushed against her and a soft familiar purring vibrating against her skin as it curled against her. The familiar form imparting a soothing sense of comfort as it eased her emotions, dulled their edges. The soft voice sounded in the dark again, " Do you want to talk about it?" She shook her head." That's ok. We'll be here as long as you need us, ok?"

Her heart trembled in remembered fear of the fading dream, as she asked in an unsteady voice, " Together?" A soft comforting voice, one that caused a sympathetic vibration in her chest, answered." Of course." If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it." Together, always."

Astra's POV A soft purring on her chest lulled her slowly awake, chasing away the half forgotten dreams of terrible things. As her eyes cracked open and registered the unfamiliar ceiling above her, her grandfather's training asserted itself and the memories of the past day shot through her mind in a spell assisted blur. She groaned inwardly. I can not wait until I can replace that spell. A warm weight on her chest caused her to look down, and the sight of Tia sleeping peacefully spread a smile across her face.

She must have been worried. As she sat up, cradling the wyvern so as to not wake her, a tug on her shoulder startled her. As she looked over her heart swelled as she caught the sight of Eli asleep in a chair next to her bed holding her hand. I guess it wasn't just Tia. The warm swelling in her heart threatened to spill over into their bond, and she panicked for a moment, before grinning as she was able to restrain it from doing so with an unpracticed fumbling hand effort.

The unspoken love and support of their actions supplemented the gentle contentment radiating from her bond to Eli, and while she was too tired to notice the previous night, she noticed to her delight that she could also feel a faint sensation trickling over from Tiamat as well. The sensation was much weaker, faint like an echo in the depths of a cave, but she was able to feel the emotions just the same.

As the memories of the previous night drifted through her mind and the vague recollection of waking up in fear and terror only to find companionship and comfort ready at hand and the relief it brought generated another swell of emotion sweet enough to make her heart ache just a little bit. She smiled in wonder, wondering what she could ever have done to warrant such a fortuitous fate. I really should thank them.

A soft knocking woke Eli, as he bolted up right. He was sitting in a chair, head leaned back against the wall, slightly drooling, but the noise was enough to rouse him. The door opened as he blinked blearily as an unexpected figure strode in carrying a tray with breakfast. He blinked up at Astra, down at a sleeping Tia in an empty bed, and back, it took him a moment until his might caught up, but at the sense of amusement in their bond he gave her a sleepy grin." Breakfast in bed on the first date?

I must be a lucky man."

" Look, I appreciate the fact that you have plenty of men, but I refuse to hold you back." Elias gave Astra a mulish expression as they watched the men and women of the garrison work through their morning exercises in the courtyard. They had been arguing with low voices for a while now, but the heated body language was getting to the point where it could be ignored no longer.

The intensity of their newfound connection had subsided the following morning and, while neither was sure if this was due to the lack of the heightened emotions of battle or just a natural consequence of the tether between them maturing and settling. The situation was new for both of them and while Astra was better prepared for the existence of such a connection, twinborn were rare and even she did not know what the future would bring.

Despite an initial bit of worry on both of their parts, the empathic connection that had started as a roaring bonfire resolved into a more comforting ember in the back of their minds. Eli had found that connection was a little simpler than the one between him and Tiamat, the transmission of images like what had occurred the night before was still possible but required both proximity and a monumental effort of will and focus compared to the deluge of images the pair was able to send the night before.

The intensity of the connection however, was something else entirely, and while Elias was not sure if that was simply due to the unique nature of the connection or the staggering pillar of passion and willpower that Eli was exposed to now that he had a glimpse into the mind of Astra Emberholdt, as he came to appreciate just how much of a sheer force of nature the woman was, even more so than her outward appearance would suggest.

The ember that seemed to reside more in his heart than in his mind may have been a smaller and simpler thing, but shone less like a small flame and more like a brilliant star warm and comforting.

He was still able to sense her emotions, as long as he focused on the tether, and as he accompanied her on her rounds that morning, the insight into the way she gave her all to her duties with a nigh single minded devotion as well as the genuine depth of affection and appreciation for those under her care, gave him a newfound appreciation for a new side of her that he suspected but was nice to confirm.

Silence descended for a moment as the companies occupying the courtyard split into groups for jogging, and Eli grabbed Astra's hand and dragged her in the alley between the warehouses they were sitting next to. Cooper used his prodigious bulk to block the entrance and give them a modicum of privacy. Eli nodded his thanks before turning back to Astra, the small swell of emotion in their connection as she swiveled her full focus to him brought a small smile to his lips."

I almost died again last night, and worse I almost got you killed too. I would rather die four more times honestly, Astra. There is no reason to wait." Astra eyed Cooper's back as unbeknownst to her he rolled his eyes, " Eli, no one can die more than once. Well, it seems you may be the exception, and I appreciate that you care, but the risk to your future isn't worth it." Tia joined in as Eli translated, Sister, power for one is power for the whole flight, brother gaining strength can only be good.

Elias waited, looking her in the eye for a long moment, spending some time to send his emotions through their bond as best he could." Astra."" Any future without you in it is not one I am interested in."" The first fight we had was 2 on 1. The second 2 on 2. The third 2 on 7. The fourth doesn't count due to Mira, but the fifth was 2 on 32."

Elias grabbed her shoulders, and after flickering an eye to Cooper to ensure no one was looking before drawing her into an embrace and gave her a quick kiss, stepping back before they were seen." I may be shit at math, but there is no way we both survive the next one unless something changes." Eli did his best to project his feelings along their bond, " I love you, your well being is important to me, and I refuse to risk your safety by being ill prepared.

It will take some time to investigate the ambushers from last night, and there is no telling when there may be another attack. We can not wait any longer, I can not wait any longer." Astra stared at him for a moment before huffing, " Fine, you have a fair point." She glared at him as she spoke again, " If you must evolve, then you must. You are my counterpoint though, so I will be your guard."

Cooper choked on a laugh for a moment and Astra glared at the back of his head, " Repeat my words in the presence of my Father, Mr Cooper, and I will assign you to Lady Blackhall as her personal footman." Eli wore a crooked smile at Cooper's swift response, " Repeat what my Lady? I dinna hear nothing?"

Elias laid down on his bed back in the room in the officer's wing which had been assigned to him. Cooper and Mason both stood outside the door, while Tiamat sat at the foot of the bed facing outward, and Astra stood at his side in full plate armor, sword in hand standing guard as well. Elias had never triggered an evolution before, but according to every person he spoke to, it was a simple affair with the small wrinkle that you were helpless and vulnerable during it.

Personally he thought the amount of guardians was overkill, but he was touched that so many cared so deeply. Knowing how serious they viewed the matter, he decided he should honor their efforts and treat it just as serious. Tiamat, you should know that I appreciate you watching over me during my evolution. You are a great friend and a better sister. A small feminine voice echoed in his mind, Of course brother-eli. Nest mates care for nest-mates, it is the way of the world.

A thin tail whipped his leg playfully, You better return with a good blood-power-class-tier or you might need to start looking for a new egg-mate. Sister-astra looks very worried. He chuckled internally, just let me worry about that. Eli reached up to grab Astra's wrist, " Hey." She looked down, her stern expression softening, " Yes Eli?" He gave her his best smile, " No matter what happens. Together always, right?" Her expression melted as she grinned, " Aye, together always my counterpoint."

Eli closed his eyes and sent his intent to the system, and the world went dim, quiet, and cold as his senses contracted and the world closed in around him. His sense of time slowed as the presence of the system descended. *Ding*[Tier I Evolution Started - Humanoid] *Ding*[Evaluating achievements, please standby…]