Ethereal Underground Part 17

"Just for you," another purred, as they all began to sing again. All but two of them began to dance around the fire, singing and moving in unison.

"I do not think we are planning on eating here," Annalise whispered as she leaned over to Ash.

"Wouldn't hurt. I'm starved," he said in disagreement and walked forward.

She reached out to grab him as he let go of her hand, but Leon had her arm, "Do not follow him."

"I will not let any harm come to him," Annalise said and glared at him, annoyed that Leon would keep her from following Ash. If these beings were as terrifying as the seraphs said they were then she wanted to keep her eyes on Ash.

He sighed and rubbed his forehead, "Fine, but I will come with you."

Finlay nodded and stepped ahead to go sit where Ash was by the fire. Arie came to stand by Annalise and walked beside of her, "What is up with these girls?"

"I do not know. It appears as if they are harlots."

"Shhh, Annalise," Leon chastised, "Do you want to get us killed?"

"What would you like to call them?"

"Hulmiens. That's it."

"I don't like them," Arie growled.

Annalise turned to her and put her hand on her shoulder, "Do not worry. Finlay, he cares for you. He may have a past with these evil creatures, but he will not have a future with them."

"Soooo, what are you cooking up?" Ash asked as he leaned over on the log from where he sat, eyes on the pot that hung over the fire.

The others took a seat around the fire as one of the hulmiens came to stand beside of Ash. She leaned over, tail swooshing back and forth as she whispered in her ear, "Razda meat. I know it is your favorite."

"Yes," another agreed and came to stand beside her friend and place herself in the mortal's lap, "We aim to please." She let out a giggle and wrapped her arms around him. Yet a third creature came to stand behind him and run her hands through his hair.

Ash closed his eyes and smiled, "Can't wait."

Annalise scowled at the four of them, crossed her arms and tried to keep her mouth shut. She did not like these hulmiens at all, she decided. She could feel the conflicted emotions fading away in Ash and being replaced by emotions that she was only slightly familiar with. Turning to Leon, she whispered her concerns, "Are they going to kill him?"

"No, not yet," he said with a laugh, "They are just playing with him. Like a beast plays with its prey."

"It is sick."

She heard Finlay let out a laugh and she turned to see him standing off to the side watching the show. The hulmiens would pa.s.s him as they danced around the fire, one by one trying to get his attention. He would swirl them around occasionally if they were friendly. The overly friendly, the ones running their hands over his wings, he would push off of him and encourage them to go dance.

Arie stood up, going over to where he was and spoke to him angrily, "You had better watch it."

"Love, it's all good. Come with me, dance," he laughed as he grabbed her by the hand and began to dance around the fire with the hulmiens. His loud laughter reverberated off of the rocks as he did so. Finlay was a spectacular dancer, even moving in a circle around the pit of fire, and he eventually had Arie laughing and dancing with him. They would take turns pointing and laughing at Ash, making comments about him and the ladies. Annalise tried to ignore them, but found it difficult to ignore their persistent happiness. Did they completely forget that they were all about to waltz into the layer of the fallen?

Leon scooted closer to Annalise and put an arm around her. She eyed his large arm suspiciously and didn't say a word.

"These creatures are fascinating aren't they?" he asked, a smile on his face as he watched his friends having fun.

"No. I do not think so," Annalise disagreed and looked over at Ash to see the hulmiens attempting to pour some kind of liquid into his mouth from a carved out rock. He turned his head to refuse it and the liquid ran down his chin and onto his chest. Annalise turned her eyes away from him but could still hear their laughter. She badly wanted badly to get up and stop their nonsense, but Leon's words made her stop and listen.

"They are telepathic. That is how they can sing together like that. They hunt in packs sometimes. One or two will draw out the prey and then they will all feast on it. It's very b.l.o.o.d.y, very vicious. They can also read the minds of their intended victims. That is how they know your mortal likes razda meat. I am sure that is not at all what is in that pot."

"I do not care," Annalise insisted.

"Is that really the kind of person you want to spend all your time with?" Leon asked and pointed over to where Ash sat.

Annalise did not look over, choosing instead to eye Leon suspiciously, "He cannot help their enchanting ways."

"They do not make him do anything he does not want to do."

"Do not lie to me as you have before. I am not so nave. I can see that Finlay is only having fun and letting it affect him and Arie. That is why you and I are sitting here unaffected. Ash is mortal. I am guessing that is what they feed on."

A hulmien came to stand in front of them and Annalise looked up at her and frowned.

"Beautiful seraphs, come and dance with us," she reached out to run her hand along the outer part of Leon's wings.

"No thanks."

"But we are so very lonely," she begged, her hand now going to his arm.

Leon leaned away from her to stay out of her grasp, "I said no."

She frowned, beautiful face showing legitimate concern and sadness, "We will still let you join us if you change your mind." With that she walked away, and Annalise was glad. She was about to say something not so nice.

"Tell me," Leon said and turned her face to look at him, "What is it about this mortal that makes you feel for him?"

This caught her attention, "Feel? What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I am talking about. You are sitting here about to go drown each of those hulmiens that have his attention. That is very unlike you."

"I am worried. That is all."

"You care for him."

Annalise paused and let out a sigh. She didn't want to lie to him, but she didn't want to tell him the truth either. He had kissed her before she left their realm with Ash, and that told her that he cared way more than he was admitting to her. It told her that his feelings may be unseraph like, like the ones she was having for Ash. "And if I do?"

"I don't know, Anna. I just don't want to see you hurt, and I am worried that he will do just that."

"He has kept me safe," Annalise said firmly, "And he will not let anything happen to me."

"I'm not talking about your body. I am talking about your heart, my dear Anna," he whispered as he placed a hand on her chest and smiled down at her. "I do not think that I can replace this bond you have with him, but I would not break your heart. I cannot love like a mortal can but I have always been there."

Annalise brushed his hands off of her. It was so weird for him to be behaving this way towards her. However, as she let herself think about it, he had always found small ways to touch her. Small ways to complement her and help her out in any way he could. He had protected her, been her confidant and always her friend. Still, she had never thought to look at him in any way but that before. She had watched mortals in love on her globe and wondered often what that would be like, but never considered Leon as a partner. Duty was what had called. And duty was what had led her to Ash.

"Leon, I do care for you. You are incredibly special to me and I do not know what I would do without you. I want you here. Always."

He smiled down at her, "I've waited a long time to hear you say that." He leaned over to her and she pulled away from him, recognizing that now as him beginning to kiss her, and put some s.p.a.ce between them on the seat.

"But it is different with Ash," Annalise mumbled. She laid her head down in her lap, not wanting to see the expression on Leon's face. Covering up her ears, she tried to drown out the increasingly loud sound of the hulmien's song and laughter and of Arie and Finlay as they danced and were entertained by the Ash's behavior. Her own confusing feelings and those from Ash were absolutely exhausting.

Ash The songs that came from the hulmiens' mouths seeped in and out of his ears. The melody made him feel relaxed. It was a feeling that didn't come often and one that he liked to savor. In his mind, he vaguely remembered the warning about the creatures being dangerous. However, looking at them, they didn't seem dangerous at all. They looked almost human, except for the animal tails that swung behind them. They were all tall and extremely beautiful by any standards. One of the hulmiens with dark hair and piercing violet eyes kept winking at him. What he wouldn't give to stay down here forever with them and forget about the world. He laughed as they all grabbed him by the hand and danced with him. Ash swayed along with their song and each time they started a new chorus he felt more and more relaxed. He noticed Annalise and Leon talking out of the corner of his eye, but decided to focus on more important things. He didn't understand why he had been worried so much about Leon anyway? Whatever was going to happen would happen no matter if he worried about it or not.

A hulmien tried to put a cup to his mouth, but Ash gently pushed it away and shook his head. The hulmien spilt the drink all over his chest. She grabbed her tail to try and mop up the mess. "Are you not thirsty from all the dancing?" she purred into his ear. Ash licked his dry lips and choked back the urge to grab the cup and empty it. Another one of his instincts told him to refuse the drink, so he promptly took a step away from the woman and tried to find something else to do. He noticed Finlay spinning Arie around on his shoulder. She laughed as her curls bounced over her face. Ash shook off another hulmien that had decided to grab him by the waist, and walked over to his friends.

"Having fun?" Arie asked him.

Ash grinned and put his hands on his knees to steady himself. "I feel so strange."

Finlay dropped Arie onto her feet and turned to face Ash. "It's because you are the only mortal male in here. Their charms do not affect us. You probably feel euphoric right now. Do not worry. I won't let them harm you. We will slip out after they have had their fun."

Ash felt some relief with Finlay's words, but something else in the back of his mind kept him from acting on all the urges the hulmien brought out.

A few of the girls ran over and broke up their conversation. "Do not talk when there is so much dancing to be done!" one of them cried out. She gripped Ash's wrist to pull him back into the circle; while a few of the others grabbed Arie and Finlay.

He let the girls pull on his clothes and rub up against him. They each took turns whispering in his ear and kissing his neck. He no longer cared about the fallen or his future with Annalise. The longer he danced, the less aware he became of his surroundings. All of the girls that danced around him started to blur. The colors of their clothes melted together. The fire swirled in the background. Ash fell on the ground, laughing. No matter how hard he tried to stop, the laughter poured from his mouth. He felt the tug of a few hands pull on him to get up, but Ash couldn't see straight. He put his hands out along the floor to feel his way away from the girls and the music. Something wasn't right. Inside he knew this, but there wasn't a single part of him that seemed to care. Too many hands were pulling on him.

He felt a strong set of hands grab him underneath his arms and pull him up. The hands dragged him away from the music. The sounds lessened in his ears, and Ash tried to see who it was that was dragging him away. Ash was set against a large rock, far from the creatures.

"Who's you?" Ash slurred. He noticed that his mouth wasn't working the way he wanted it to. He groggily pinched his lips with his fingers to help them move and tried again. "I said who are you?"

He rubbed his eyes once and watched as the colors started to take shapes again. He looked up to see Leon standing above him with a not so amused look on his face. "Great, it had to be Leon," Ash thought.

"You are weak, mortal. You can't even withstand the bewitching of a hulmien."

Ash let the seraph's words soak in. He knew that he wasn't weak. Being the only mortal man, he was at a big disadvantage. He heard one of the girls sing for him to come back to them. Ash smiled and started to push himself up off the floor to join them. They were so beautiful, it made him feel carefree.

"Oh, no you don't," Leon promptly pushed him back to the ground.

"But I need to be close to them," Ash complained. Why was he saying this? There was someone else he wanted to be closer to right now, but he couldn't remember who it was.

Leon shook his head. "The farther away you are from the singing, the safer you will be."

"Why do you care anyway?" Ash asked him. Leon wanted him dead. He figured that staying with the hulmiens forever was what Leon would want.

Leon sighed and looked at the wall behind Ash. His eyes were cold. "Because if you are hurt; then Annalise will be hurt. I cannot stand to watch her suffer at the expense of your bond."

Ash let his head fall heavily to one side before he answered. How could he forget about Annalise? It was Annalise that he wanted to be dancing with not those creatures.

"I will never let Annalise get hurt. All I want to do is protect her."

"Then why did you drag her on this quest with you. Why did you make Finlay and Arie come along? Do you not care for the redhead and your friend?" Leon's voice grew louder, but not loud enough to cover the singing in the background that called to him.

"Annalise is not that weak and feeble seraph anymore. She is stronger, we make each other stronger. This bond helps her become something you seraphs will never understand. My friends came along because they stand by my side no matter the cost. We want to help Annalise clear her name and prove her loyalty to her kind. I don't sit back and let monsters kill the people I love." He forced the last sentence out and had to keep from punching the wall behind him. He hoped that Annalise couldn't feel how angry he was right now. Leon was right. The longer he stayed away from the hulmiens, the less affected his mind became. Leon bent down to look Ash in the eyes. Ash felt a shiver run down his spine.

"I underestimated you. When this is all done, Annalise will return home and pretty soon this bond between the two of you will disappear. The seraphs do not a.s.sociate with your kind for this very reason; you mortals cause nothing but violence and destruction. You leave death and despair everywhere you go."

Ash wanted to protest, but he kept his mouth shut. Arguing with him would be pointless. Leon had no idea what it was like to be bonded. He had no idea how much they complemented each other.

"Where is she?" Ash asked.

"Resting. These human emotions have exhausted her. I promised Finlay I would keep you safe while he is enjoying what may be his last night with Arie."

This would not be Finlay's last night anywhere. Ash didn't like it when Leon spoke so negatively about their journey to the fallen, but he knew Leon was trying to guilt him into turning around.

"Finlay knew exactly what he was agreeing to when he joined us," Ash said. It was true.

"Only because he felt guilty for putting you in this situation in the first place; Finlay has spent too much time with you humans."

"You're wrong, Finlay has no reason to feel guilty. Why would he feel guilty?" Ash whispered. He meant to say more, but he felt himself start to drift into a deep sleep. He struggled to keep his eyes open. What kind of spell was Leon putting him under? Why was he so tired? He wanted to get up and find Annalise and make sure that she was safe, but the heaviness drifted over his entire body until he had been coaxed into a slumber. In the back of his mind, he figured it must be Annalise. Somehow her feelings of how tired she was were affecting him. Yet, maybe it was the hulmiens' poison. Were they ready to devour their food now?

A short time later, Ash awoke to the faint sounds of laughing. He groggily sat up and looked around. He was sitting against a rock wall. The light from the bonfire flickered off of the walls. He looked across the way at all of the hulmiens who were gathered around the fire. They seemed to be enjoying the company of the outsiders. Annalise sat smiling and talking with Arie. Finlay looked like he was talking strategy with Leon. Ash took a moment to take in the relaxed sight of his friends. It was so different from the chaotic week they had shared. Ash winced as he remembered his actions from earlier. Something about the hulmiens had impaired his judgment. He wasn't sure if it was the singing or maybe it was just being close to them that seemed to alter his mood, but he decided he couldn't take that chance again.

He watched Annalise talking; it was so nice to see her relaxed and getting along with Arie. Annalise ran her hands through Arie's curls. They seemed to be having some sort of girl talk. The shadows bounced off of her face, making her skin look a bit darker. He hadn't been able to take the time so sit back and watch her beauty. The way her face lit up. She had a genuine way of making him feel like he could be cared for. A deep longing inside him stirred. It was a feeling that he had repressed over the journey. As a keeper, he was always taught to keep all distractions to a minimum. Annalise was the biggest distraction of them all. His mind needed to be clear in order to fight the fallen. As if she knew what he was thinking, Annalise looked over to where Ash was sitting. She whispered something to Arie, who nodded in agreement. Annalise stood up slowly and made her way over to Ash's side of the cave. Ash sat up straighter and smiled as she came closer. He thought about looking Leon's way, but decided against it. He didn't want anything to ruin the happiness that jumped inside him when she was near.

"Hey," he told her.

Annalise sighed and turned to sit next to him. "They say that you cannot get too close to the creatures." Ash felt his face darken in embarra.s.sment. It was a feeling he never had. Yet the thought of her seeing him act so stupid with the hulmiens made him feel even worse.

He hastily tried to change the subject. "I can take care of myself, but you seemed to be having fun with Arie."

She looked at the ground and pretended to straighten her clothes. "Yes, well Finlay told us that it is a mortal custom to have one last...what did he call it? Bravo before a battle." Ash wasn't sure what type of custom Finlay was referring to, but he was pretty sure he was making it up to get Annalise and Leon to loosen up. They both sat in silence for a long time. Neither of them having to talk. Ash still felt comfortable. He could sense how nervous she was about the jump into the tenth layer. He was also nervous, but because he was about to enter a layer that no one else could get to. The tenth layer had been closed off to citizens since the ecosphere was created. He still couldn't believe that he was about to enter it to fight the legendary fallen.

"There is no turning back," she whispered. She bravely grabbed his hand and squeezed it. Her hand felt warm and soft against his rough skin.

"You can still go home with Leon," he told her. He wanted to give her one last chance to turn around.

She shook her head. "If I go home, they will cast me out. If I go home with the blood of a fallen on my hands they may forgive me." Everything she said made perfect sense, but Leon's words were still stuck in his mind. Was he pushing her to be reckless like himself? He didn't want to feel responsible for someone else's death.

"And when it is over, what will become of us? How about our bond?" Ash wasn't sure what type of answer he was expecting. She didn't have any plans to stay, and he had too much pride to ask her to.

"Natara said it will fade with time." Her words stung him. How could she pretend that this past week had meant nothing to her? Ash coldly pulled his hand from her grip. The sudden thought of losing the bond terrified him. He enjoyed feeling the power of water around him. With the bond, the need to sleep and eat came considerably less. The connection with another living being made him feel less alone. Until she talked about it fading, he hadn't thought much about how much he loved it.

"This bond makes us unique. If you could give it a chance; maybe we can learn to control it. We can learn to do great things with it." He wasn't even sure why he was saying this. He knew all along the end of their story. Perhaps it was the hulmiens' poison that made him speak before thinking. The only thing on his mind at that moment was the fact that he did not want Annalise to leave, or their bond to fade.

She shook her head and slowly stood up. "This bond does not make us unique. It makes us an outcast. It is a curse for breaking the rules."

"That is Leon speaking."

"This is me speaking." She took her hands and put them to her heart.

Ash disagreed. He stood up beside her. He towered over her small form. Looking her in the eyes, he tried not to sound so harsh. "Once again, that is only your fear." She didn't answer, so he decided to drop the subject.

He looked at everyone at the bonfire. They needed to run. His cloudy mind had started to clear out. The hulmiens were preparing that large pot for something and he had a sneaky suspicion they had never eaten a seraph. Today would not be the day they would get to. Ash grabbed Annalise's hand and pulled her close.

"I know Finlay thinks we will be okay, but I really think we need to get out of here. Those friendly feelings the hulmiens share with Fin will eventually fade and we will end up like the piles of bones we saw back along the way," he told her. Annalise appeared to understand. He talked quietly in case someone was listening. He watched as Finlay started to dance with a hulmien and Leon started to twirl Arie around the fire. He thought that the hulmiens weren't supposed to have an effect on anyone but mortal men, but everyone was acting far too relaxed.

"What will we do?"