Kissed by Lightning Ch. 17

The silence became oppressive the longer they walked, everyone simply cautious and curious as to their destination. Stefani's body was tense and moved sluggishly through the cave. Rain was a breaths' span behind her, his eyes roaming every crevice and corner of the space before them, vigilant for any danger. There was no doubt in the priestess voice as she spoke to her sister, and Rain wasn't sure if he was comforted, or worried about that. He kept his steps even and at pace with Stefani's unhurried ones. His wolf paced restless within, confused and furious at the feeling of his absent mate.

They rounded a corner which led to a small alcove, up ahead he could see a small cenote, with nothing significant about it. He smelled fresh river water but could hear no sound, except the echoing silence of the cave. He sensed Stefani's burst of speed before she actually moved, and in seconds she had crossed the space and was facing them from the far edge of the cenote. Rain stepped forward, glancing around, wondering why they weren't moving forward but could see no sign or reason to stop. Stefani still stood hollow and stoic, her gaze trained on the pool of water in the cenote. She heard no sound, felt nothing, spoke no words as she reached her palm up to her face and with her fangs sliced deeply into the skin. Rain growled, moving towards her as she held her palm over the pool of water, watching as her blood dripped into the water. 'Five.' She whispered as Rain's hands wrapped around her arm bringing her body tightly to his. His hand held her smaller palms tightly, waiting for them to heal.

"What the hell are you doing?" Rain stared down at her. Anger boiled in his veins at her lack of reaction, he fought for control of his animal while she stood empty, cold and staring blankly at the water. His hands tightened on her shoulders enough to get her attention back at him for a moment. Her hollow gaze looked up at him, the red and and gold eyes disturbed him. There was something in the reflection of her eyes that he couldn't place, something inhuman.

"Rain," Lithinia's breathless whisper drew his attention momentarily. He noted everyone's stiff form and followed their gaze to the surface of the pool in the cenote before them. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw the reflective surface rippling and moved in a circular motion, the stain of her blood growing and undulating in unnatural ways. He could sense a strange wind pick up in the alcove they stood in. A strange echoing rung in his ears as wind passed thorough them. He winced, mesmerized at the strange way her blood moved like a living snake in the water, spreading and tainting the water a deep red.

"Does anyone else think this is strange?" Cole snorted at Ostara's bewildered tone. He was pretty sure they could all agreed that this whole situation was completely strange. Syfien scolded her younger sister quietly "You create deadly weapons with your spiritual energy and you find this strange?". A couple of wolves snickered at the witches side conversation, most of them unsure of what to do at the moment as the awkward silence carried for several minutes.

Raven gazed at Stefani who seemed entranced by the blood-tinted water, just as most of them were. He felt the strange rush of wind that blew through them and the pulsing beat beneath their feet and wondered if this is where she'd been leading them all along. The vampire inside him, his darker side, was uncomfortable by being out in the open like this. Something in Stefani's eyes didn't sit right in his gut. He saw her move a fraction of a second before she intended to. In that same second her body dove into the cenote expertly and without reason. "What the—" Katrina gasped as Rain stepped forward, shouting orders to half of his warriors to stay behind and threw himself after her.

The burst of activity that followed left the witches a little out of sorts as they watched the three vampires dive in after Stefani and Rain, followed by the two Mactire wolves who were unsure of why the were diving into the red tinted water. Syfien could have sworn it was only a few feet deep. Lithinia stepped at the edge and spoke quietly. "Syfien build an air bubble around us. Ostara work on our speed... She's opened a portal." Lithinia could feel her sisters magic on her skin, little tickles across her skin filling her with power as a light blue film covered her. Her eyes flashed lavender as her sisters stepped forward and beside her, their own eyes glowing respectively and they dove one after the other.

Diving into the red tinted water was strange, there was no sense of being in water because there was no current in the underground cave they were in. There was no movement in the water around them. 'How strange.' Syfien thought as she looked around wide-eyed. She was glad her spell was so efficient, she really could breath normally and the small lights surrounded them still. Syfien forced herself to focus through the tight spaces, the walls were jagged and unfit for people to swim through and could be a serious problem if she spaced out. The witches, with the use of Ostara's speed spell, were able to catch up to the rest of the group rather quickly. The wolves had a thick dark blue light surrounding them, similar to that of the witches, Lithinia guessed that was Rain's doing. Cole and Hale swam nearest to each other, making sure to use the surrounded cave walls to give them a boost while they moved.

Rain used the oxygen in the water to envelop Stefani, Hale, Cole, himself and the 6 of his warriors, letting them breath underwater. It wouldn't last forever, the process was draining, especially for so many people. He could only hope Stefani knew what she was doing. He was glad he didn't have to worry about the vampires, they were lucky enough to not need the oxygen. Rain frowned as he used a burst of air to push him closer towards Stefani. Her body moved quickly and determined as if she knew where they were headed. This was just too strange. Watching her body move, while those red/gold eyes shone bright and with no recognition in them. He reached out to her trying to grab her ankle uncaring of whether she kicked him or not. She moved expertly and with ease through the water avoiding him.

Katrina was glad her body didn't need oxygen as she swam gracefully. Unsure of how much time was passing by, she was sure they'd been down here for at least twenty minutes. Her hair floated around her face wildly, her gown swirling behind her, using each stroke to move her swiftly through the water. It was a rather magical feeling especially having Luciano swimming right beside her, unwillingly to leave her side. She snuck a glance in his direction and wondered about his tight expression. His dirty blonde hair moved softly in the water. She bit her lip and looked forward. 'No.' She put effort into kicking harder to speed up, they had to get to Stefani.

Rain was impressed with how quickly she moved through the maze of tunnels of the underground caves, her dark curled hair floated behind her and for a second he envisioned her as a water nymph. He growled when he saw her rising up to the break the surface several meters ahead of him. Thankful to have reached some sort of opening he sped up to reach her, and watched her leave the water before him. He sent messages to his wolves, pushing into their minds to ease their anxiety, letting them know they'd be out of the water soon.

Moments later, Rain broke through the surface, his long hair falling to one side as he looked wildly around for his mate. His wolf pushed to the front of his mind turning his eyes gold, using his better vision to see in the dark. He gasped as he found Stefani standing several feet to one side her body still, drenched clothes hugged her every curve. What startled him the most was the strange circular flat rock that stood before her. He pushed himself to the edge of the cenote and lifted himself out, following after her. Rain looked up at the strange ensignia that was meticulously carved into the rocky wall. It was a huge circle, flat and polished with a maze of swirls and eight huge symbols sketched on the outer edges. He reached her side as he heard the others finally break out of the water.

Raven and Cole reached them first, followed by Katrina, Luciano, and the rest of the wolves. They were just as surprised as he had been at what they saw, standing in silence. With a thought, Rain's fingertips lit up, the blue glow causing the water to blow off from their clothes. Cole and Hale both lifted up their fire covered fists and Cole said, "Stefani. Why are we here? What is this place?" While he asked this Cole met Rain's worried gaze as they considered her silent stiff form. It didn't even look as if she heard him, as if she wasn't in there at all frankly.

The witches took a little longer to break out of the pool's surface finding the rest of the group standing by what they recognized as a door of some kind. The strange glow of red and blue flames startled Lithinia but quickly faded from her mind as she looked up and found the elder vampire's eyes on her. She reached for Raven's hands as he lifted her up and out of the cenote. Her body momentarily pressed up against his, which flustered her, and for that heartbeat she could ignore the small chuckles of her younger sister. Raven gave her a small smile and set her steadily on her feet, then he faded from her view and stepped next to Stefani in the next second. Raven could heard Lithinia's fluttering heartbeat and it made the monster inside him hiss in pleasure. How strange to react such a way to a witch.

*

Stefani floated subconsciously without thought or worry. Her body was warm and groggy. She couldn't remember how she'd gotten there, how long she'd been there or where she was. She was weightless and floating amongst light. She could feel a breeze coming through, as if the wind was trying to reach her. Familiar.

A pair of brown eyes crossed her mind and she squinted trying to remember. There was something she had to remember, some place she had to be. She mumbled and curled into a ball. Her mind felt heavy, even as she floated.

There was something she had to remember, something important. Stefani's mind struggled to think back on what she was missing. She felt so warm. 'Rain!' She gasped, jolting forward. Stefani fought against the lethargic feeling that covered her mind, she fought for breath, struggling to snap out of it. 'Rain.' Forcing her eyes open, she cried out at the brightness surrounding her. She felt the soft brush of the wind against her skin coming from nowhere in particular and she sighed in pleasure. He had to be near, she had to get to Rain. She tried to think back to the last thing she remembered but couldn't form a solid thought. Her mind was foggy like walking through quicksand. The harder she fought to think, the deeper she seemed to fall. She couldn't see, couldn't sense a thing around her but her essence still reached out to him. Maybe it always would. Stefani reached inside herself to grab onto the essence of her vampire and used her vampiric strength to fight against the exhaustion that beat at her. She would find him.

'Rain.'

Rain's whole body stiffened as Stefani's voice whispered his name into his ear. He knew that voice, but his eyes were firmly glued to her face, and her lips hadn't moved. He looked around, with his back to the strange carved wall. Her face was empty as it looked behind him, no sign of life in those eyes except— for a second he thought he'd seen a spark in those eyes. He stepped into her line of sight, still no response, his wolf growled inside his mind at her easy dismissal. He placed his hands on Stefani's shoulders, moved a hand to her chin, angling her face up to meet his and slammed his mouth down onto hers. He saw her eyes widen and light up like two brilliant suns. Both irises swirled then faded into their strange but more familiar golden eyes, her pupils expanded and contracted. Rain shut his eyes and let himself feel, his arm coming around to her waist.

At the same time Stefani felt herself shoot up towards consciousness. One second she was enveloped in light and the next she was aware of his teeth sliding deliciously over her lips. Stefani let out a gasp that melted into a groan. His huge body was sheltering hers. She felt the small water drops falling down her back and neck as Rain tilted her neck to get a better position and she closed her eyes. When Rain felt her return his kiss, a wildness inside him burst and he lost himself in the fever of her kisses. He felt his anxiety dissolving with relief, followed immediately with a fiery need to be inside her, to be moving in her, feeling her. Whole. Alive. Present. Everything faded. There was only her.

Rain forced himself to a calm, holding the reins on his wolf as he tore himself from her lips. He felt his body buzzing everywhere their bodies touched, and looked down at her bruised lips, parted and gasping for breath. Her cheeks were flushed as blood rushed to her face, and as she looked at him her eyes blinked rapidly. Rain felt himself relax seeing her eyes look normal again.

Stefani struggled to calm the heat in her body, sensing the people around them. It took her several quick breaths while she simply pressed her forehead into Rain's chest and eased her breathing to match his own. Rain ran his soothing hands through her hair, all the way to the bottom of her back. She purred.

"As much as I hate to break this up. Would someone ask her where the hell we are?" asked Ostara. Stefani stiffened as she heard Ostara's voice break through to her mind, realizing now that she had been enveloped in stiff silence. But now that the silence was broken, Stefani jerked backwards looking around with bewilderment.

Her gaze flew over the small cave around them, the pool of water behind her, the group of people surrounding her, and looked down at her hands. They were dry but she could feel how cool they felt, as if she'd been some place cold for a while. She reached up to touch her hair and stepped back wildly, sensing the wet strands.

"What the—Where are we? How did I- How did I get here? We were out- in the woods? I was- we were—"

"Stefani. Breathe. Stay calm. It's going to be okay." Rain's voice was oddly calm as if dealing with a crying child. Stefani lifted her gaze to meet his and took a moment to notice the strain in his eyes. Something was wrong. She saw the fear and concern in his expression. She swallowed, holding a hand to her throat as her thirst built due to her anxiety. She nodded in his direction, looking around trying to understand where they were. She could tell most of them were mildly wet, she could smell it all around her.

"What do you remember?" Raven asked, watching her with narrowed eyes.

"I was— I was running. There was a rock. I mean-I kept seeing this rock in the distance and the closer I got, the harder it was to look away. My head started hurting but I was okay. I didn't feel- I mean- I— I don't understand. How did I get here? That was just a second ago. I felt something... some kind of energy in the ground. A pulse. And the rock. I don't understand. What is this place?" Stefani heard somebody sigh in resignation. She looked up for Raven, his essence always calmed her, and immediately he was at her side.

"You went all Emily Rose on us, with your body acting possessed,and your eyes changed color. Then you took off in another direction and led us here, to a cave." Cole spoke first. His tone was cold and controlled, he only used that tone when he was worried but didn't want her to know. Raven's cool hands rubbed some of her tension away. She shivered, stepping back and wrapping her arms around herself. "I don't. I don't remember any of that. I was sleeping or dreaming. I don't know one moment I was there and the next... It was bright. I was floating. Sleeping, when I felt the wind touch me..."

Rain stepped towards her, wanting to reach out to her, unable to stay away. Something behind him caught her eye. His broad body had covered her gaze before. With her vampire speed she found herself stepping away from him and towards the huge carved wall before her. Her breath caught at the base of her throat. The buzzing energy inside her jolted, buzzed as if recognizing something important. Stefani let out a deep breath.

"What is this?" Rain blinked, looking back at her while hiding his shock at her speed and her question. Raven and Katrina closed in towards her. Lithinia walked closer to inspect the wall as well. Stefani pressed her palm to her chest, feeling for her beating heart. "I feel it. Something is in here." Stefani whispered, more to herself than anyone else. Raven looked up unsure of what could be behind it, all of them followed that train of thought even as Stefani imagined they would. Even so, she had intended a completely different meaning to the statement. They thought she meant behind the carved wall, but she felt something inside herself, pushing, calling out to her, could feel the familiar lethargy crawling up inside her like hands dragging her energy downwards.

"We need to figure out what do. We can't just stand here till she goes all robotic again." Hale spoke up earning a loud growl from a furious Rain. "What we need to do is figure out what the hell is behind that wall." Rain's voice was tense. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea." Ostara chimed in while Syfien responded in disbelief. "Are you kidding?! We came all the way here, Ostara! The planets will be aligning in an a hour! There's isn't any time left!" Lithinia kept her eyes trained on Stefani, who was trembling and looked baffled at what she saw. Ignoring her sisters bickering. "Get a hold of yourselves." Raven hissed. His brother stepped closer to Katrina. His elder voice affecting the vampires clearly. The rest of the group shook it off. "We need to tear that wall down. We're here for a reason. We are not leaving until it's done."

Stefani reached forward with shaky knees, oblivious to their arguing. Her hands trembled as they approached the wall, the wolf and vampire inside her both argued against it. Everything happened relatively quickly. The second her hand touched the wall a light pulse exploded from the tips of her fingers, rippling out and filling in the carvings on the wall. She didn't hear Cole or Rain's gasp of surprise or Lithinia's groan as power assaulted her senses. Stefani didn't know what was happening, but her eyes were glued to the now golden symbols on the huge wall. The symbols called out to her, entrancing her and she felt her energy deplete, her legs tremble under her weight and then her body collapsed into familiar hands.

Rain held Stefani cradled against his side while he took a look at her body. Her eyes were wide as she watched the now golden symbols and carvings on the wall pulse. The whole group was startled as the ground shook, a horrible crackling noise that filled the quiet room. The change was violent. Raven moved quietly and stood beside the priestess, shielding her with his body. Luciano wrapped an arm around a reluctant Katrina and saw a couple of the wolves do the same for the other witches. They all watched mesmerized as the wall in front of them crumbled before their eyes, dissolving piece by piece, falling inwards.

'Open sesame.' Stefani's silly thought crossed her mind as she took a look at what the crumbling rock had revealed. She could feel her body throbbing, drained and exhausted. She still sensed something pushing inside her mind and fear crawled up through her stomach. She swallowed and held onto to Rain, letting his scent wash over her, giving her strength. She would face this. She wouldn't fade away again. She couldn't. The wolf inside her howled as the energy peaked, piercing her mind like a knife. She cringed with the pain. If she could relate it to anything she knew, it would be the beginning of a really nasty migraine. But this was much different.