A Hero's Rebirth Ch. 06

Lymarith bit her lip and tried not to cry in jealousy.

"Quick, lie down," I told her as the fifth shot sprayed into Diamiutar's hungry depths. Lymarith wasn't about to argue, but laid down, her legs spread in anticipation.

If all her body really wanted was cum, Diamiutar was almost full. As my eighth stream of thick, warm sperm filled Diamiutar, I quickly pulled out, turned, and drove my length home in Lymarith. The next spurt made Lymarith swoon, her hunger satisfied. And I finished out my now almost insane dump into my second needy matron. Her cum orgasm came on just as strong as Diamiutar's had, and I felt like my muscles were jelly for a second from the overwhelming sensation.

The two lay next to each other, grateful to finally be free of the hunger that had filled them.

"Damn," I muttered. "You got that bad with me being delayed by just three or four days?"

"It is a difficult thing, to know the pleasure and to wet your body's hunger then to go without." Diamiutar agreed. "But... if we all avoided the chance of feeling such need... the entire elven people would cease to exist."

Fuck, and I thought teenagers were horny.

"Though..." Lymarith giggled. "The satisfaction was almost worth the suffering. It was as though I received a fine meal after a fast. Hunger is the best seasoning, they say, and this hunger made our love far more satisfying."

Diamiutar relaxed and savored the afterglow, "You are not wrong, dear Lymarith."

After allowing them a moment to recover, we emerged and prepared for dinner. A few subtle winks let me know that the other matrons had enjoyed the surprise sensation as the orgasms hit them. Laliera just looked away bashfully, the experience being so new to her, and as little time as she'd had to adjust from the old expectations of Wild Elf society to the vastly different experience of living as my matron. Amura remained curious, but aloof, her emotions unreadable.

As we ate, Tavorwen informed me that she had reported to the Generals about our success and we had received a request to report to the Council in the morning. I just nodded, enjoying a tender, hot piece of some kind of poultry. Debriefing was fairly standard, and while I seemed to exist outside the currently existing military structure, they'd want to know everything that was going on.

"I also requested additional support for the Den Keepers and Botanists to assist in the modification of one of the unused aviaries." Tavorwen continued. "We should have everything prepared within the week for our new partners."

A week was a touch slower than I liked, but from what I was learning, Elven society generally moved at a snail's pace, everything about me and how I had changed their society had seemed to be at a blistering fast pace to them. We could accept a slight slowing on this to help the Council still feel in charge and respected.

I enjoyed a rare relaxed evening with my household. Benavur had liked to remain as close to my side since she became my matron, and Laliera too seemed to want to remain as close to me as possible. Benavur was sewing on something, and Laliera wrote in something that looked like a journal. The elves didn't seem to have invented couches yet, so instead of sitting up against me, they had to be content sitting at my side. Heilantu and Narusil seemed to have a newfound sense of camaraderie as the two sat close together whispering. Anbethir was working on some sort of enchanting project, sharing observations with Lymarith beside her. Creadean had claimed a desk and was working on what looked like a map. Many of my other matrons and maidens read books or scrolls.

I sat watching. Laliera was already looking like she belonged here. She was proof that we had gone and helped her people and now they were counted among our allies. It wasn't enough though. We had to reach out to the remaining elves. We'd managed in a pretty timely manner. And with my new boons, it had been a resounding success. But we couldn't sit back on our laurels and let time go to waste.

My boons. I'd received three of them. Strength, from X'Thallion, Endurance, from Elglathar, and whatever the magic gift was, from Noriva. The strength had been a subtle thing, everything seeming to be much lighter and easier to manipulate. The gift of endurance had had immediate and noticeable effects. The gift of magic... What would it do?

"What plagues your thoughts, Master?" Mavrin asked, putting her scroll down.

"I'm just... curious. When X'Thallion gave me the boon of strength, I was just... stronger. When Elglathar gave me the boon of endurance, or however you say it, it just happened. But what is the gift of magic from Noriva going to DO?" I admitted.

"It could be any number of things," Narusil admitted. "When you say 'magic' it seems many of our words are all combined into that one word for you. Sisters, what did the Goddess actually say?"

Sevrina was the first to speak. "I believe her words were 'My boon is a gift of magic. The elements shall answer thy will and answer thy call.', or those were the words as closely as I can recall."

They thought hard.

"...'The elements shall answer thy will and answer thy call'. That could mean so many things." Narusil mused. "Already you begin to have a grip on elemental spells, but why then would this be a boon."

"But the laws of magic are well recorded," Mavrin noted. "It is not as though they are a mere suggestion. To use elemental spells, you have to follow the proper steps."

I laughed, it made me think of superhero movies back home. I remembered watching the "Fantastic Four" movie, where Chris Evans had played the Human Torch. "Yeah, it's not like I could just..." I snapped my fingers and opened my hand like Chris had to have fire fill his hand.

I chuckled for half a second looking at the flames filling my palm...then it clicked. My hand was on fire.

"AH!" I yelped, flicking my hand to throw the fire from my hand. The fire immediately went out.

Everyone, myself included, was in shock.

"What in the realm of Palloranth, was that?" Tavorwen breathed.

"I... I don't know." I admitted. "I just..." I snapped my finger, "... and there was fire."

This time, my snap didn't do anything.

"What were you thinking about?" Sevrina jumped in.

"I was thinking about..." I muttered.

The Human Torch is a character who manipulates fire, and specifically when he has filled his hand with fire.

"...a character from my home world that manipulated fire." I breathed.

"Try again." Mavrin urged.

I thought about the fire and snapped. Orange flames filled my hand. The head of the fire was enough to be pleasant to me, but no more. Nothing seemed to be burning, there were just... flames.

"By Talnir..." Narusil breathed. "How is this possible?"

"I don't know!" I laughed nervously. "I barely know anything about magic, but..."

I closed my hand and the flame disappeared. I opened my fingers to show the flames were gone, then snapped again and the flames filled my hand again.

"... it works." I conceded.

"Can you only command flames?" Sevrina pressed.

Oh, boy. That was a terrifying thought. I extinguished the flames. Who else could I emulate? Man, I wish I had been more of a nerd! I hadn't really had time for superhero cartoons or movies, but I had watched a few... How could I...

Well... for once the plague of Disney pushing everything constantly might help me. No one here had to know where I got my inspiration... right?

I swallowed, I was secure in my masculinity. I could do this.

I took a breath then swirled my hands around each other like Elsa did at the beginning of Frozen, and formed a ball of ice between my hands. (Fuck you, Tony, for making me watch Frozen.)

"Ice also obeys you." Creadean marveled.

"Fire and ice obey, what about lightning?" Risavis breathed.

Okay, what superheroes used lightning? My first thought was a clip I saw of this newer hero, I think his name was something like Static Shock. He just held up his hands or fingers and electricity just... went.

I flicked my hands to dismiss the ice, then held up my hands and thought about it, and a thin arc of electricity linked my fingers. It was so fucked up. I'd been tased before, I'd touched charged wires before and shocked myself, but this... this didn't feel anything. It was a slight tingle, like a slightly charged needle touching my skin where the arc of electricity made contact.

"This is marvelous!" Narusil gasped. "Not only can you command the elements, but you can do so without overwhelming power! You seem to have complete control over the elements you channel."

Narusil was right. My spells had done everything from freezing my hand to knocking me flat on my ass because I wasn't able to control them, not really. I had been able to run through the elements of the three spells I'd cast, but there wasn't so much as a singed hair or mildly cold hand.

"Wow." I breathed. The blue lightning between my hands was somehow beautiful. I spread my fingers and let bolts connect each of my fingers to its matching pair, making a series of bars of electricity. A thought passed through my head and with a simple nudge of thought, the column split and linked making a spider web of electricity between my fingers.

This didn't make sense. Electricity didn't work this way. Electricity found the easiest path from point A to point B and followed it. But I could mold it and make it dance with a thought, instead of acting as it should.

"Such fine control... it truly does obey your command." Laliera marveled, seeing the lightning branch, meld and dance at my whim.

With a thought I dismissed the electricity, and it disappeared as if it had never been there. I stared at my hands. What would people back on Earth give to be able to do what I had just done? I still didn't know the limits of what I could do. I had barely scratched the surface. There would have to be a lot of experimentation and testing, and who knows how we could do that safely. Human Torch could fly, I wondered if I could too.

Nope, not testing it the way Chris Evans's Human Torch had. I'd be much smarter than to jump off one of the pathways and just pray it worked on my way down. Who knows what I'd have to do, but I wasn't about to just put my life on a coin toss like that.

"So, um... how common are these boons?" I asked.

"Well," Diamiutar began, "We have records of them in legends..."

I blinked.

"So, they are about as common as a summons being successfully called," Tavorwen admitted.

"What do you mean?" I demanded. "Why wouldn't your gods give these gifts more often? What possible reason could they have to withhold these capabilities from elves for ages, just to start heaping them on me?"

The matrons exchanged glances.

"Well Master, none of us are exactly theologians. For all that you have selected a wide variety of skill sets, you have yet to select a priestess as a matron and they are the ones who would be most likely to be able to answer that question." Diamiutar noted.

I wondered why. Why did the gods of this world make the decisions they did? Why had I been led to the matrons I had? I had fourteen matrons. How was it that there were still areas of expertise that were barely touched on by my house? It made no sense.

I blew my breath out in a frustrated sigh.

"I'm sorry, Master." Sevrina apologized. "I could have studied at least basic theology, but I was intimidated by the volumes of basic theology."

"Oh, come on, surely your bible can't be that thick." I laughed.

"... Bible?" Creadean asked.

"You know, your scriptures?" I retorted. "The book all the things your gods told you have been written in. You have one of those, right?"

The elves exchanged a glance. Risavis covered her mouth with her hand, but I could feel her mirth.

"Master, we do not have a single book. We have libraries." Diamiutar explained gently. "Libraries for each member of the Enlightened Hosts, though each people has a more extensive library on their patrons deities than the other peoples. But... there are hundreds of volumes of direction from our gods through our high priestesses."

My mouth went dry. "Hundreds..."

"Hundreds just for Abarith. Hundreds more for Mythrin. The Library of X'Thallion is the smallest since he usually allows his matrons to communicate with his children. We even have libraries on the gods which guide our sisters, but their libraries should be far more complete." Diamiutar verified.

"Our libraries for Noriva and Elglathar were nearly lost after the Massacre," Laliera admitted. "We prioritized the preservation of the volumes we believe to be unique to our collections. Our Elders believe that nothing was lost that did not exist in the libraries of others."

"That's a relief." Diamiutar celebrated.

I was just shocked. When Sevrina had said she had been intimated by the volumes, I had assumed she was talking about the musing of scholars on the scriptures, not the scriptures themselves. I knew back home on Earth, most Christians argued about which translation of the Bible was the best, or if you could translate it at all, and the libraries of theology were just what some scholars thought about what they read, or how they wanted to add context to change how you looked at a verse. The fact that there was just so MUCH scripture here was... terrifying and intimidating.

"How... How do you even start trying to do what your gods ask you to with so much scripture?" I demanded, gobsmacked.

"Each god has foundational teachings that they ask their followers to try to adapt in their lives. These foundational teachings have helped to form the society we live in, the laws we obey, and the way we help one another." Diamiutar replied. "So while only the wisest of sages of the divine understand all the dictates of our gods, the average elf can generally know how to live to avoid offending our gods with ease since that is how we all live."

"Sounds like it would be pretty easy to hijack a society like that," I noted. Religious tyrants, manipulating a poorly educated society, were a dime a dozen. Smaller societies like those of the elves, were more susceptible.

"What do you mean?" Nauveir pressed.

"Well, if only a small percentage of the population actually understands the scriptures, couldn't someone use that ignorance to teach whatever they wanted, sprinkled with what is actually in the scriptures, to drive the people to follow them, or manipulate them into doing whatever they wanted?" I clarified.

"There are a few factors that complicate that." Tavorwen pointed out. "First of all, most gods take offense at actions like that, and would either stop granting them divine magic or if severe enough, may cause the magic to recoil, causing harm to the user. Secondly, you would have to have a society where all the elders failed in their duties dramatically for generations upon generations. You said your people were much shorter lived, so you likely only have five or six generations at once, but... as long-lived as we are, my mother, and my mother's mother, and her mother, back nineteen generations, are still alive. The manipulator would have to overcome so many generations to bend a people to her will."

"That might be why my people fell to my mother," Amura murmured quietly.

Everyone immediately fell silent, to let the Shadow Elf speak. She glanced around nervously, but when she realized she was being permitted, even asked, to speak, she swallowed.

"Well, Ya'av encourages us to... weed out the weak. It isn't worth feeding those who do not contribute. So my mother killed her mother and took over our house when she was only four hundred years of age. Only the strongest can survive long enough to see their children's children. Perhaps that is why... So much I've seen and heard is unlike everything I was told and thought I knew... well before I was marked." She declared, her eyes falling. "After I was marked, I was told nothing, save what I was to do."

My heart ached for her. She had lived a grueling and horrific early life and before she had been shown the truth she had never had a reason to doubt the story she'd been taught. All things considered, she was adapting well to the revelations she had been given. To me, she was proof that hidden inside each Shadow Elf was a Night Elf, I just wasn't sure what was required to qualify a Shadow Elf as a returned Night Elf, and how to accomplish it.

Her revelation about the brutality and weakness of Shadow Elf society was enlightening for me and seemed to be a bleak confirmation to my household.

It definitely put an oppressive blanket of pensive reflection on the gathering. Amura clearly felt bad for ruining the mood, and after a moment walked down the hall, retreating to her room.

The rest of the members of my house dispersed to their various activities for the evening. I was left mostly to myself. Benavur and Laliera lingered nearby, but the rest went their separate ways. I waited a bit, then excused myself and walked down the hall to Amura's room. I knocked gently on her door.

"Amura... may I come in?" I asked through the door.

Silence met me.

"Amura...?" I repeated.

After a moment of silence, I got concerned and gently opened the door. Amura sat on her bed, staring blankly at the wall.

"Amura, are you okay?" I asked, slipping into the room and closing the door behind me.

She didn't respond for a minute, then finally spoke. "You haven't come to finally cave to your male weakness and force yourself on me... so why are you here?"

I thought for a moment. "I'm worried for you."

"Worried?" She repeated, then turned to look at me with a mess of confusion, anger, and disgust on her face. "Am I so weak that you 'worry' that I cannot endure such a meager thing as... this?"

I looked her in the eyes. "The strongest man I'd ever known couldn't stand the torment of his mind in the dark of the night. He ended himself. Even the strongest can succumb to a weakness of the mind."

"Your understanding of strength is lacking." She snapped, turning away. "If I had any such weaknesses, I'd have thrown myself from the tower of El'Muth'Ran decades ago."

"You know how you'd have done it," I stated. "That means you thought about it. That's the first step. I'm glad you stepped back, but if you need help to not go there again, I'm here, as are the rest of the house-"

"YOU KNOW NOTHING!" She screamed. "I TRUST NO ONE! I CAN RELY ON NO ONE!"

I let her breathe as she panted, her explosion letting pain, anger, and fear slip through our bond.

"In El'Muth'Ran, to trust is death. To depend on another is death. To be weak is death." She ranted. "Even now, I expect you to push a blade through my back. I stay close so if I am to be slain it is at least the first being to make me feel a spark of warmth to do it. I'd rather you than Creadean. She looks at me with suspicion and doubt. Or Heilantu. One of your precious impregnated. She loathes me and all that I am. I see it. I only eat what I see her eat to be sure she does not poison my food. Even then, I fear she has dosed herself in the antidote."

She turned toward me, tears dripping from the corner of her eyes. "And you... I could do nothing before your magic. I could never cast a ward strong enough to prevent your rods of death from tearing me apart if they truly work how you told the whor-... Elves... of the plains. Now I have seen the power of your boons, I know you could tear me apart with your bare hands or summon fire, or whatever element you would, to end my miserable existence... So, why do I still drop my guard around you? Why do I feel... warm... in your presence?"

She clawed at her neck. "Still the magic binds me to you... and I hate you for it... just as I hated my mother... but you... You mock me by feigning to not be my slaver, but a kindly master. The Father claimed I was pivotal to his plan, but I realize all he requires is my womb. A breeding chamber for him to reclaim some kind of divine dignity as he uses me to reclaim his lost lineage."