A Diamond in the Darkness Pt. 02

"It has special magitech in the handle that will take a small genetic sample upon the first touch. The magitech will then adapt the blade to what suits the wielder the best." He carefully handed the blade directly to Eli as he was explaining it. Eli felt a small prick in the palm of his hand, and noticed the eyes of the dragon in the pommel had begun to glow. After a moment the blade began to shift like it had turned into a thinner single edge blade.

The blade was ebony in color, the cross-guard became a hook that bent down and covered the hand, and the pommel had shifted to a more solid round knob. It felt light in his hand, almost as if it were a part of him. "I've never held a sword in my life. I've barely ever held a any kind of weapon, so how does this feel so natural?" Eli asked bewildered, giving the sword a few small swings.

Charo laughed again, clapping a hand on Eli' shoulder. Eli winced slightly, and looked up at the elven man. "You've attuned well to the magic here. That mixed with the tech, you're instinctively learning what it's like to wield a weapon." He said, a large grin on his face. "I would suggest that you train with some of our soldiers, or even under the princess here."

Saleasi nodded, and smiles. "Revis trained me personally, so either he or I would be well suited to teach you. Though neither of us will go easy on you. " She giggled slightly and winked at him. Eli smiled back at her and opened a portal to store his sword and armor.

"That would probably be a good thing. I was never great in a fight, but it looks like that's going to have to change." He shakily stood up, and managed to fully stand on his own for a moment before his injured leg gave out. In a flash, he was in Saleasi's arms. He looked up at her and chuckled slightly. "I guess, I'm not quite back to full strength."

She helped him back to his feet and stabilized him. "Until you're capable of walking on your own, I'll help you walk." He leaned up and kissed her cheek, and she blushed deeply. "Thank you Saleasi. Hopefully I'll be back to my normal self soon enough."

They stood there for a moment, their eyes locked. That is until Eli's stomach growled loud enough he could have sworn there was an echo. He chuckled slightly, and patted his stomach. "I think its time for food. Actually come to think of it I don't think I've eaten since I left my apartment yesterday." He said a grin on his face.

Saleasi was about to agree when her stomach growled just as loudly. "I suppose we both need something to eat." She said giggling, and waved to Charo. "We'll be leaving now Charo, take care not to cause too much damage to the room or yourself. Ilesha is already a little overworked as it is." Charo nodded and bowed respectively. "I shall do my best princess."

Saleasi and Eli walked carefully, back to her room. Along the way she had flagged down one of the maids, who while red faced, quickly went to get them their food. As they walked through the now vacant doorway, Eli shifted his weight back onto his weak leg. Tentatively, with Saleasi right beside him, he made his way over to the table they had sat at the previous day and sat down. The room had been cleaned, and only a few signs of the fight remained.

They sat in silence awhile, taking in the scars left in the stones and the broken frame of the door. "Why was Ilesha calling me sire earlier? I meant to ask sooner but I got so wrapped up in everything I forgot about it until now." Eli asked, breaking the deafening silence.

Saleasi shifted slightly in her seat across from him. "Well, technically since we did what we did last night..." She paused as the maid came in with a cart bringing them their food. "We're seen by the people and law to be engaged. " Eli's eyes went wide. "Oh... that's not how I thought I would propose..." His voice trailed off as he realized that none of this was what he thought his life would be.

Just two days ago, he was living a normal life. Even if he did barely scrape by. Eli shook his head slightly, he was here now. He was sitting across from a beautiful elf woman, in a castle, and was about to have one hell of an adventure. Whatever was going to happen, he might as well enjoy it.

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After they had finished their meal, the maid came and collected the dishes. Revis entered the room as the maid was leaving. "I would have knocked, but it seems they still haven't replaced the door." He said as he bowed to the both of them. Eli couldn't stifle his laugh quickly enough and Revis smiled slightly. "We were just thinking about going to look for you actually." Eli said, opening a rift and pulling out his new sword.

"I'm in need of a teacher so I'm not useless in a fight." He said standing up, bracing himself on the table. Revis looked at him in surprise. "You're joking with me right? Surely you cant be serious, I was all but dead mere hours ago." He said gesturing to the vacant door.

Saleasi immediately stood up, walked over to Revis, and smacked him. "That's enough! You are the best warrior in this kingdom. You have trained every guard, my sister, and even me." Her voice was firm, and passionate as Revis looked at her in shock.

"I have full confidence in your ability to train him." She said placing her hand on his shoulder. Revis pull himself back from her and shifted his shoulders slightly. "Thank you Milady. Even if I don't believe in myself, I will believe in your words."

He bowed towards them both. "I will prepare the training grounds. Eli, your training will start tomorrow morning, I will send someone to fetch you." He said as he stood back up. Realization washed across his face shortly after. "I just remembered, King Garithmus has sent for the two of you."

-----

The throne room was gigantic, with high sloping ceilings. Eight large, stone pillars reached up into the ceiling. Magitech braziers lined the walls illuminating the room. At the far end of the room sat four thrones. The largest of the four sat in the center, back-lit by the sun shining through a stained glass window.

Sitting upon that throne was the imposing figure of King Garithmus. His ice blue eyes pierced right into Eli as he knelt before the king. "Stand up boy." Garithmus's voice boomed, echoing all throughout the room.

Carefully Eli stood, instinctively averting his eyes from the king. "Though I do not approve of what my eldest daughter has done. Calling for help from someone from across the universe." He paused, glancing at Saleasi who still knelt beside Eli. "You did save her life during the attack. For that I will allow you to stay."

His voice softened slightly from the harsh authoritativeness that it had in the beginning. "You also have my blessing in your engagement." Saleasi's head shot up in surprise as he said this. "I know that nothing I can say would stop her at this point. She's just like her mother in that way." He smiled at her, and stood from his throne. "Do not break her heart Eli."

"I-I wont your highness." Eli replied nervously as he glanced towards Saleasi who had tears in her eyes, but a smile on her face. She stood as her father got closer and ran over to hug him. "Thank you father." She said cheerfully and Garithmus smiled.

"The circumstances are certainly strange Saleasi, but the chancellor has informed me of the spell you used. If your souls had not matched perfectly you wouldn't have found him." He said and looked once again at Eli, who shifted nervously but met his gaze. "Protect her no matter the cost. Don't make the same mistake I did years ago." The kings voice was firm but protective.

Eli nodded, not breaking eye contact. "I swear to you that no harm will come to her sire." He replied, the determination evident in his voice. Saleasi reached out and grabbed his hand giving it a firm squeeze. King Garithmus chuckled slightly, and reached into his cloak, before producing a key. "I'm giving the two of you a new living space. One a bit more away from the ears of the staff, as well as being easily defensible."

He handed the key to Saleasi and began to make his way back over to the throne. "Eli, you were summoned to be a hero for our people. After your training you are to come up with a plan to defeat these things. They struck early last night, hopefully its not a repeating event." He sat down on the throne and gestured for one of the advisors to come forth with their business as Saleasi and Eli took their leave.

-------

Over the course of the next three weeks, Eli met with Revis at the training grounds. Every morning, he was put through every form of military practice that the kingdom had. Every night, he and Saleasi would strategize. They would discuss ways to fight the machines that would result in as few casualties as possible.

They would spend their free time between training and planning with Ilesha. Eli was fascinated with learning about her culture as well as her life before she ended up on Avidor. She was even trying to teach him some draconic. Though, that ended up with Eli getting confused more often than not. Saleasi would sit with a knowing smile enjoying the sight of her lover and best friend getting along.

"Revis really put me through my paces today." Eli said as he collapsed into one of the soft chairs in their new living space. The quarters themselves were nothing special. The main furnishings were simple, but made from a deep red wood. There was a small kitchen, and larder attached to the common room. Their bedroom housed the same bed and desks as Saleasi's former room since they weren't destroyed in the attack.

Saleasi smiled at him as she handed him a drink and sat next to him. "You're getting better at fighting though. It makes sense that he would start making you work harder." She said with a slight giggle in her voice.

While Eli had been training with Revis, Saleasi had been studying old records. Some of previous attacks, others about the expedition to the foreign world. The expeditions records didn't provide much new information, but it did give spatial coordinates to where the fleet had teleported to. "So according to the records that were left over after the expedition. We either have to rebuild the teleporter, or take a Gate that would put us far enough out it would still take us around two years to get there. At least with the ships we have access to."

"What do you mean by have access to? I thought all the ships were in the hanger?" Eli said sitting up slightly to not spill his drink on himself. Saleasi shifted herself slightly and snuggled into him. "They are, technically speaking, but there's one that no one here can pilot."

She muttered something quietly, made a few gestures with her hand, and one of the books on the table began to slowly float towards them. "It's the ship that Ilesha crash landed here in. The specifications of it that we have from Charo's testing show it is possibly one of the fastest ships in existence." She said opening the book and showing Eli the information of the ship.

There were extensively detailed notes that filled the two pages in front of him. Some of it seemed like speculations due to Charo being unable to pilot the ship itself. Other notes were accompanying a schematic diagram of the ship itself, denoting the integrity of the ship after the crash, as well as how many people could possibly fit inside it. "Has Charo tried to have Ilesha pilot it? Since her people are the ones who made it." He asked, his eyes still studying the diagram.

Before Saleasi could answer there was a light knocking on their door. "Lady Saleasi, Lord Eli, may I come in?" Ilesha's voice called out through the door. "You may Ilesha, please come in and have a seat." Eli called back, closing the book, and setting it on the table again.

The door swung open and Ilesha walked in carrying a small, deep blue box wrapped with a golden ribbon. "My apologies for showing up unannounced. I wanted to bring this personally." Her voice was slightly shaky, like she was nervous about something. She placed the box on the table, and sat down in the chair across from them.

Saleasi smiled warmly at her and reached for the box. It had a slight weight to it and as she picked it up Ilesha squirmed in her seat. "You remember what we discussed Saleasi?" Ilesha asked timidly her eyes cast downward. Saleasi nodded, and handed the box to Eli.

He looked at her confused but took the box. "There is a tradition amongst Ilesha's people. If the second princess is unable to find a mate by her twenty-fifth birthday she is given to the husband of the first princess to ensure the lineage will continue." She explained, and looked at Ilesha caringly. "Because she came here as the only surviving member of her race, she was unable to find a husband. She came to me shortly after you started training, and asked if we could uphold the tradition."

This took Eli a moment to process. He carefully undid the ribbon and opened the box. Inside was a strap of purple leather and a golden lock. "This is a lot of responsibility." He said, his face a deep red as he looked at the collar. "That said, if it's that important, and you're both okay with it, I have no objections." He looked at Saleasi and Ilesha in turn.

Seleasi nodded her agreement. Ilesha stood up and walked over to them, before kneeling in front of Eli. "Please, it would mean a lot to me." She said looking up at him. Her face was a deep red, but her eyes were determined. Eli sighed and removed the collar from the box. He carefully affixed the collar around her neck, and fastened it with the lock.

There was a slight glow from the collar, as the magic in the leather transformed the materials from the malleable leather to a solid metal. It was just loose enough to not be uncomfortable, but there was no obvious way of taking it off. Shortly after it had transformed, Eli's wrist started to glow and a similar metal band appeared around it. "The pact has been made. I, Ilesha al Dracovia, now belong to you Eli Moore." She said her voice shaking as she stood. "Please take good care of me."

Eli stared in shock at the band around his wrist for a moment. "So, this means.." His sentence trailed off as he looked up. Saleasi was standing beside Ilesha now a big smile on her face. "You now have two wives, and the duties that come with being the husband to both of them." She winked at him and giggled as his blush deepened. "Ilesha and I will go get her things, can't have her living separately."

After they had left, Eli was dealing with a whirl of emotions. He hadn't been there very long and now had two wives. Part of him was in shock, while the other part was ecstatic. He thought he might have been dreaming, but the pain from the soreness in his muscles reminded him that he was very much awake.

He wondered how the three of them would fit in the bed comfortably, and decided it was best to make room for a bigger mattress. As he was moving the boudoir, a folded piece of paper fell out from behind the mirror. It was yellowed and appeared to have been there for quite some time. He picked up the paper, and unfolded it to find that the writing on it was glowing.

There was a flash of light, but when Eli opened his eyes he was still in the same room as before. The figure of a woman appeared shortly after his eyes had adjusted back to the normal light. She looked exactly like Saleasi, but her hair was shorter and her eyes were both blue. "Hello Eli, I am Lady Lorelei, Saleasi's mother." She said, bowing slightly in his direction. "I wrote this letter ten years ago, shortly before the expedition set out, because I glimpsed the future. I know that I am going to die."

"However, the future I was able to see was beautiful. All three of my daughters are safe, and happy. I know that Saleasi, and Ilesha, will be going through a hard point soon after finding this letter, but you need to stay strong for them. They will stay strong for you." She paused and looked at the window. "In the room you were summoned in, under the statue opposite the entrance there is a loose piece of stone. Inside is something meant for the three of you."

Upon speaking those words the visage of Lorelei vanished, and the note crumbled into dust. Eli sat there in silence for a moment, before leaving the living quarters. He had walked the streets a few times without Saleasi, and learned his way back to the large shrine tower as well as a few other places. Normally the streets outside the castle were bustling with people going about their day, but it was fairly late in the afternoon now and the streets were mostly empty. Save for a few guards and some merchants starting to pack up for the day.

It didn't take long to get to the tower, and just as Lorelei had instructed, he went to the statue at the opposite end of the entrance. Through a bit of searching he found the loose stone. Underneath it was a long, thin, wooden box that had been stained black. It was fairly light and made no noise as he shifted it around in his hand. It was locked, but there wasn't anywhere for a key. Eli sighed and stowed the box in the subspace portal deciding to ask Charo to look at it for him later.

Eli arrived back at the living quarters shortly after Saleasi and Ilesha had. As he entered the doorway to the common room, he heard them both giggling in the bedroom. He walked over to the door as quietly as he could and could hear them talking. "I hope he comes back soon. I want to see the look on his face when he comes home and finds us like this." Saleasi said, her voice chipper.

"I'm so nervous Saleasi, what if he doesn't like this?" Ilesha's voice was timid, unlike her usual confident appearance. Eli opened the door to the bedroom at that point. "What if I don't like what?" He said with a grin, trying to hide his surprise. The two of them were dressed in very little clothing. Matching sets of silky lingerie, Saleasi wearing black and Ilesha wearing red.

Saleasi couldn't hold back her laughter. "My dear, you're as red as Ilesha's lingerie. As expected of you." She walked over and kissed Eli deeply, wrapping her arms around his waist. His hand immediately rested on her ass, and squeezed firmly, inciting a pleasured groan from Saleasi. Slowly she broke the kiss, and flashed him a grin. "Think you can handle both of us at once?"

Ilesha was still standing a little bit behind Saleasi, fidgeting nervously with her eyes cast downward. Eli looked at her for a moment and gently hugged Saleasi. "Only if both of you want to." He whispered in Saleasi's ear. She looked at Ilesha and nodded. "I'm not leaving the room, I want to watch." Eli let out a loud laugh and Ilesha jumped slightly.

"Who knew you'd end up being like this in the bedroom?" Eli asked with a grin. "W-we've talked about this actually. Over the years, if I couldn't find a mate." Ilesha said finally walking over to him, and grabbing his arm. "I'm only nervous because I haven't done anything sexual besides some experience with Saleasi." Eli glanced at Saleasi who just grinned and kissed his cheek.

"I never said I wasn't experienced with women Eli." With that she sauntered over and sat down next to the bed her long hair pooling around behind her. Ilesha's blush deepened and Eli felt her grip tighten on his arm for a moment before she pulled him down into a deep kiss. He pulled back Instinctively at first but slowly leaned into the kiss and wrapped his free arm around her waist pulling her closer. Her lips were soft and warm, and he could feel her trembling slightly. He broke the kiss first, pulling her closer and smiled. "Say the word and I'll stop Ilesha."

She nodded and began to pull him towards the bed. "Treat me like you did Saleasi, Eli. I want to feel just as loved." She whispered in his ear before breaking away from him. She game him a shy smile as she laid back on the bed, her legs spread ever so slightly, and her tail wrapping around her left leg. Small patches of obsidian scales decorated her skin, and the light seemed to dance across them. He nodded and looked at the sight before him.