ASCENSION: BOOK 1.

Chapter 10: Consumed.

Calm had settled in The Capital after the Azgeda attack. The bodies of our fallen warriors were prepared to be honoured and the injured were looked after by the healers of Polis.
I felt fortunate to have only sustained minors cuts and bruises, easily treated. More than anything my body ached from the fatigue of combat, but I could still feel the adrenaline in my veins.
After being attended to I made my way to see Lexa, who had been taken to one of the rooms in The Tower of Polis. As a Natblida she would remain in The Tower until the conclave was announced. The sentries that guarded her room bowed as I approched and allowed me access. It seemed that word of my deeds for Polis had already become widespread in The Capital.
Upon entering the room I looked on as Lexa sat in some discomfort whist one of the healers cleared the black blood from her face. She caught a glimpse of me from the corner of her eye and politely asked the healer to leave the room. I walked over and sat in front of the Trikru leader, looking over her injuries.
"It's a wonder you're still alive." I said with concern as I dipped the cloth into a bowl of warm water and continued to wipe away the blood.
"I'm alive because of your arrows, because you came back." Lexa looked at me deeply, her voice full of gratitude.
"Says the woman who wouldn't let me give up on that battlefield," I smiled back as a mutual respect passed between us.
We'd saved each other and even if Azgeda had triumphed, there was no one else I would have wanted to fight beside other than Lexa Kom Trikru.
"You honoured us this day, Skaigada. Polis will never forget, Trikru will never forget. Even if I die in my conclave you have my word my people will always stand with Skaikru." Lexa spoke from the heart but to think that she still faced the prospect of death troubled me.
"I believe that the warrior that sits before me has no intention of falling at her conclave. In my heart I know The Spirit Of The Commander will choose you, Lexa." I softly spoke.
Lexa breathed deeply. Her eyes searched my own as she leaned towards me, gently placing her lips upon mine. Easing into her kiss, I felt my heart begin to beat faster in my chest. Slowly and attentively we consumed each other's lips, needing to feel every movement.
As we parted to catch our breath, Lexa's head still leaned against mine, "Stay with me," she whispered next to my lips. I needed no words for this plea of desire, only a kiss... deep, thirsty and full of fire.

There's something the heat of battle does to a warrior, something that walking so close to death leaves you with in the aftermath. A burning fire ignites, your senses are heightened, you yearn to feel the very heart of life, to taste divinity itself.
We didn't care that our bodies ached from combat nor did we care about duty or what was expected of us in the days ahead. All that mattered was the touch of our skin against each others, our lips devouring each kiss that was offered.
Lexa was as untamed on the furs of her bed as she was on the battlefield. Piece by piece our clothing fell as piece by piece she consumed me with her touch.
Desire charged our blood like a lightening storm, both of us caught in it's energy, a relentless need to feel alive in the unbound pleasure that passed between us. We wanted each other again and again as though our very existence depended on it and for a time it felt like it did, it felt like it was all that mattered.
This fierce warrior woman who held me in her embrace, who's emerald green eyes met my sky blue stare, whispered softly across my lips as my breath quickened under her touch, "I need you." Each word uttered with longing.
I pulled her closer, deepening the kiss, holding tight to those taught muscles that flexed across her back as she commanded my body. What felt like a shockwave enveloped my entire being. My breathing hitched, my mind swimming with the woman who lay above me as her name played upon my lips.
She was beautiful, wild like the lands of her home and free in her desire. Lexa made me feel things I'd only dreamt of in the solitude of night, she made me feel like a force of nature, like I had found a part of my soul that had been missing for so long.
Sleep would not find us that night nor would the rising of the sun bring us rest. Time moved differently as we lay entwined with each other, an energy surrounding us from what felt like an unseen force. It was unlike anything I'd ever experienced before. It's was primal, carnal, it was all consuming.

As I eventually allowed sleep to find me, my thirst for this warrior woman quelled, I dreamt of finding my peace by her side. It was the sound of rain falling outside that awoke me. Stretching my arm out across the bed, I found only an empty space. As I focused my eyes I turned my body to look over at the beautiful woman that stood looking out of the window, lost in her thoughts.
I pulled myself from her bed, wrapped the furs around my naked body and wandered over to stand beside my Trikru warrior. Noticing the scratches upon her bare shoulder, I lightly touched them with my finger tips, feeling guilty about marking her body in the heat of our embrace. Lexa turned and grinned, somewhat proud to wear those marks I'd caused. Yet, still I placed a gentle kiss upon her shoulder to soothe her naked skin.
Draping the furs around both of us, I leaned my head against Lexa's as she continued to look out over Polis. Grey clouds filled the sky, blocking the rays of the sun. The rains fell heavy, the mist on the horizon looked like a ghost sweeping across the land. It felt haunting and eerie. "You're thinking about your conclave," I said to Lexa, concerned that her mind raced with thoughts I couldn't even conceive.
"It's difficult not to. The Clans will arrive tomorrow, the fires will be lit to honour Takoma and the conclave will be called for. A New Commander will ascend before the week is out." Lexa tried to sound focused on the matter at hand. To fight in the conclave was an honour for those born with Nightblood, but there was something wavering about her voice when she spoke. The stoic Kru Heda I had come to know still held her confidence but there was an edge of sorrow about her. In my heart I felt it too.
"This life is cruel. We fight, we die, we loose the ones we love time and time again. It's not living, it's just surviving. We deserve better than that." My voice quivered with sadness. I didn't want Lexa to fight, I didn't want to loose her to this brutal tradition.
She placed a kiss upon my head to calm my worries, even as she faced death she thought of others. "I can't hide from my blood, this was always my fate from the moment I was born. It's just ..." Lexa stopped herself from continuing as the the words to come were too much to bear.
"Tell me," I urged her to continue.
She looked at me as her eyes glazed over, "Death was easier to face when I wasn't falling in love."
"Then fight for us, Lexa. Stay alive for us." I felt how heavy both of our hearts were. Pulling her into a kiss, holding her tightly to my body.
Until the the sun rose on the next day we had no obligations, we could forget about the expectations of others, about what we faced.
Taking her hand I led her back to warmth of her bed, wanting to feel the heat of her body next to mine, to lose ourselves in this bond that had ignited between us. We had found love but this road would not be an easy one to travel.