Chapter 17

After sneaking Nikki into the house without letting anyone see how torn her clothes were, Kristine sat on her bed and waited for Nikki to get out of the shower. She knew she was going to have to apologize to Nikki for being upset with her. She wanted to do it soon because she knew Nikki would be leaving the day after tomorrow.

Kristine looked up as she heard the door to the bathroom open. Nikki came out wearing a long shirt as a nightgown and a towel around her hair. She sat on the edge of her bed and began to towel dry her hair.

Kristine got up from her own bed and went to sit next to Nikki, waiting until Nikki stopped drying her hair to look up at her. Giving Nikki a hesitant smile she said, “I’m sorry, Nikki.”

Nikki nodded, “I know. He’ll be okay Kris. Zachary will make sure of it.”

Kristine shook her head, “No I’m sorry about being angry at you.”

“Oh.”

As Nikki lowered the towel to her lap, Kristine charged on, “I was hurt that you were making all these plans and I wasn’t included in them. But most of all I was upset about losing you.”

Nikki frowned, “You’re not losing me, Kris. We will always be best friends.”

Kristine nodded, “I know that. It’s just that you are going to his world and I won’t see you anymore because you’ll have a new life where you’ll be so busy being his wife and a new queen. You won’t have time to come here.”

Nikki took Kristine’s hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze, “That’s not true Kris. There’s still the gang to worry about. We all know that they are after you and your parents, so someone will have to be here to protect you. Xavier and I have already agreed to come and protect you when Zach can’t do it.”

“Yes, but you and Xavier will be busy with all that royalty business.”

Nikki laughed. “Not really. At least that’s what Xavier says. He said that Zach is really the busy one, as well as the other members of the council. Sometimes it can be busy for the King, especially during war time and during any major political crisis. Other than that, he just deals with meetings where he mostly regulates the talks or signs any important documents. My job sounds similar to what a president’s wife would do. You know make the important appearances, support her husband’s decisions, and do some important charity or concerned citizen work.”

“Oh. Well, it still sounds busy.”

Nikki laughed, “In any case, I won’t forget about you Kris. I want you to come visit me when you can and Zach said he’d love for you to see his home too. And I want you to be with me for the wedding Kris. You know a bride can’t get married without her maid of honor.”

Kristine’s eyes went wide, “They have that in their world?”

Nikki chuckled, “I don’t know, but I’m going to talk to them and see if I can do that. There’s no way I’m going to get married without my best friend involved too!”

Kristine threw her arms around Nikki, “I’d be happy to be your maid of honor chica.”

“Thanks, Kris.” Nikki hugged her tightly, “I love you, Kris. No matter what happens you’ll always have a place in my life. Remember that okay?”

Kristine sniffled, “Okay chica. I love you too.”  As she pulled away from Nikki, they both wiped the tears from their cheeks and Kristine grinned, “So, in less than two weeks you’ll be Queen Nikki Raneri.”

Nikki’s eyes went wide. “Oh my God, Kris! I’ll be married in nine days!” she squealed.

Kristine joined Nikki in the excitement and together the two of them began to gossip about what a perfect royal wedding would be like.

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Xavier grimaced as he leaned against the wall just inside of his bedroom. He could still feel the wildness threatening to break through the surface and consume him. No matter what he’d tried, it was getting more and more impossible to control. Even Zachary was looking at him with fear in his eyes.

He hadn’t even made it to the entrance into the manufactory building when Zachary had caught up with him. He’d thought for sure Zachary would have stayed a little longer with the girls, but found out Nikki had sent him to look after Xavier. He had briefly acknowledged the fact that Zachary was already obeying the orders of his queen before she was even officially crowned. That thought alone had helped him to focus on remaining sane a little longer.

Of course, that was until Zachary had once again brought up the notion that Xavier and Nikki should just do it already and get it over with. Especially since Nikki didn’t seem to be against it. Xavier had simply growled at Zachary to back off, which he had done the moment Xavier had turned glowing red eyes on him.

The walk back to the castle had been one of the longest trips Xavier had ever made. Every step had been pure agony and he’d had to concentrate on keeping his fangs and claws sheathed. Since all of his attention was on controlling the beast, it had been left up to Zachary to steer Xavier in the direction of his rooms and to make sure no one accosted them as they made the trip through their world and to his rooms.

Once Zachary had safely seen Xavier to his bedroom, Xavier had dismissed him saying he was just going to get some sleep. Once again Zachary had tried to reason with him, but Xavier had shut the door and locked it behind him. He’d waited until he heard Zachary’s footsteps fading down the stairs before some of the tension had left his body.

Now that he was alone, he pushed himself away from the wall and staggered to his bed. Removing his clothes, he crawled under the sheets and willed himself to go to sleep, but even sleep seemed to be afraid of him.

He lay there feeling his body beginning to heat up. Soon sweat dampened his skin and hair, as well as the sheets beneath him. He groaned and squeezed his eyes shut tighter against the heat and pain that seemed to be consuming his body.

It was in that state that his mother found him. The moment Zachary had left Xavier’s side, he’d immediately gone to the Queen hoping that Xavier would listen to her reasoning if not anyone else’s. Devnet had listened to Zachary’s quick explanation and had immediately made her way to Xavier’s chambers.

Her concern for her son had escalated when there had been no response to her knocking and she’d heard the groans coming through the door. Using her powers, she’d unlocked the door and walked in to find her son and his bed soaked through. He looked as if he was in agony as he writhed on the bed.

She spoke his name softly, “Xavier?”

When there was no response, she placed her hand against his forehead, “Xavier, can you hear me, my son?”

Xavier groaned as he felt a cool hand gently soothing his heated forehead. His mother’s voice managed to penetrate through the haze of pain. “Try to relax, honey. I need you to look at me.”

Xavier forced his eyes to open and heard his mother’s gasp. He groaned and closed his eyes again as the light in the room seemed to be too bright for him.

Devnet frowned as Xavier closed his eyes once again and she frowned even more when he opened his mouth to speak to her. She stared at his fangs which were elongating even as he spoke in the Wahani language.

“Atia mais ongla eth idi?” He hissed.

She swallowed her fear as she answered him in English, “Your body is trying to deal with an imbalance of sorts. The moment your soul recognized Nikki as your other half it began to change, to make room for her so to speak. But you’ve been putting off the completion and so it’s trying to deal with the loss.”

She sighed, “Xavier, the longer you put off giving your soul what it needs to flourish, the harder it’ll be for you to remain sane. Don’t you see? You are losing even the half of your soul that remains. You know a body needs food to survive and when there isn’t any nourishment, it begins to eat itself if there is no nutrients provided. It is the same for your soul. You won’t let it have the other part that can keep it nourished, so it is compensating by taking what is left. It’ll keep doing that until there isn’t anything left to feed from. You know what will happen when that time comes.”

Xavier snapped his teeth in frustration, his angry voice sounding in his mother’s head, I won’t do that to Nikki.

Devnet frowned, “From what Zach tells me, Nikki is more than willing to help save you.”

She doesn’t deserve this, mother!

“Doesn’t deserve what? To love you?”

He growled, I won’t let her be used like a piece of meat to feed a hungry beast!

Devnet shut her eyes, “Oh Xavier, I don’t think Nikki will feel that way when she’s with you. Don’t you see? You are the only one standing in the way of making the both of you happy.”

We will be happy! I just have to hold on for nine more days.

“I don’t think that’s wise, son. You won’t be able to control it that long. I don’t think you’ll even have half of that time left.”

He growled once more, Then help me to control it.

“You know I can’t do that.”

Just do it mother!

She sighed and mentally sent for the healer who came at once. Devnet opened the door when the man knocked and allowed him into the room. She went to her son’s side and held his arms down as the healer leaned over him. Indicating that she was ready with a nod, she put all of her weight into keeping Xavier pinned to the bed.

The healer tested the syringe before he quickly and smoothly injected it into Xavier’s neck. Xavier arched off the bed and roared as the medicine spread like fire through his veins. Twisting and growling Xavier tried to break free from his mother‘s hold. Nearly six heartbeats later, he went limp as the medicine finally took effect.

Devnet let go of her son and motioned for the healer to leave. He sighed and bowed before saying, “It’s not going to have any effect on him for much longer, Your Highness. It’s supposed to work on contact. As it is, it’s taking a few heartbeats before it even seems to affect him.”

Devnet nodded, “I know that, Riel. Believe me I know.”

Riel bowed to her once more before he left her alone with Xavier.

Devnet sighed as she sat next to her son and watched him sleep. Now that the medicine had taken effect, he had returned to normal again. She leaned over and ran her fingers through his hair, brushing it from his forehead. She was going to have to find a way to let Nikki know just how close Xavier was to losing it. Somehow they were all going to have to convince Xavier that he would have to claim Nikki within the next few days if he was to have any chance of surviving at all.

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Two days later, Xavier and Zachary stood near the portal while Nikki and Kristine hugged each other with tears in their eyes. The day had finally come for Nikki to go with Xavier to his world where she would have some time to learn about his world before the wedding.

The day before, only Zachary had showed up to walk the girls home. He had told a panicked Nikki that Xavier was doing fine, but needed to stay away from Nikki for a little longer just in case. He had told the girls about the plans for the next day.

Nikki was to pack a couple of suitcases with only the essential things she would need. He told her not to worry so much about clothes since she would be getting a wardrobe fit for a queen. Instead, she was to pack things she knew she wouldn’t be able to find in their world.

Then, after he walked them home, they would go to their room and hand the suitcases out of their window to him. He would then take the suitcases to the barn where Xavier would be waiting until the girls could join them there.

It had worked without a hitch. When Nikki had walked into the barn and saw Xavier, she had almost thrown herself into his arms. Zachary had stepped between Nikki and a suddenly tensed up Xavier and explained that it wasn’t safe to get anywhere near him just yet. Frowning at Xavier, Nikki had simply nodded and turned to say goodbye to her best friend.

“I’m going to miss you chica,” sobbed Kristine.

Nikki sniffed, “Oh stop Kris! You know you will still see me! Zachary will come get you on the day of the wedding okay? And you know I’ll be here to walk you home when Zach can’t make it.”

“I know, Nikki. I’m still going to miss you though. My room is going to seem so empty with you gone. And you know my parents aren’t going to make it easy, either!”

Nikki grimaced as she pulled away from her best friend, “Kris, I know it’s going to be hard. Promise me you won’t say anything to them.”

“I won’t Nikki, I promise.”

Nikki nodded. “Okay, Kris. I’ll see you soon okay?”

Kristine hugged Nikki one last time before letting her go.

Xavier opened the door to the portal and picked up the suitcases. He turned to Nikki and said, “I’ll go first so I’ll be there to greet you when you go through. Zachary will help you in after I’ve gone, okay?” At Nikki’s nod, he gave her a quick kiss on her cheek, “See you on the other side, princess.”

She smiled as she watched Xavier step into the hole and disappear. Zachary came to her side and took her hand, “You ready, princess?” he asked.

Nikki sighed, “Ready as I’ll ever be.”

He nodded, “Okay, tell Xavier I’m going to stay a little longer with Kris.”

“Sure.”

Zachary grinned, “Okay princess, this isn’t going to be so bad. All you have to do is step down into the hole and lift your hands up and out. The moment you think you feel something like cold steel against your palms you grip it, okay. That should be the ladder you will climb down from. Understand?”

Nikki nodded, “I got it Zach. Really.”

He gave her trembling hand a squeeze and helped her to the portal, “Don’t forget to breathe princess, it’ll be a piece of cake.”

Nikki gave him a hesitant smile and took a deep breath. She turned to Kristine and smiled, “See you soon Kris.”

“Bye chica.” Kristine responded.

Nikki took a step down into the portal. As Zachary let go of her hand, she disappeared from Kristine’s sight.

Kristine stared at the space where her best friend had last stood. Her lips trembled as fresh tears welled in her eyes. Zachary closed the portal door and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her.

“She’ll be okay Kris. I promise we will all take good care of her.”

Kristine sobbed, “I know. I just miss her already.”

Zachary simply held her and let her cry a little longer.

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Nikki gasped as her hands came into contact with cold steel. Just like Zachary had said, she quickly gripped it, but not hard enough. Her grip slipped and she almost went tumbling into the murky water below if not for the arms that reached out to catch her.

Anticipating Nikki’s reaction upon entering his world for the first time, Xavier had placed the suitcases on the ground and climbed back up the ladder a bit to wait for her appearance. He quickly caught her before she could go tumbling off the ladder and held her until she was steady. “Whoa princess, I’ve got you.”

Nikki reached out and got a firm hold of the ladder. “I’m okay.”

He nodded, “Okay, let’s climb down and I’ll take you to your new home.” He grinned up at her as she turned to look down at him.

Once Xavier had gotten off the ladder, he helped Nikki get her feet on firm ground before he picked up the suitcases and motioned for her to follow him. “Careful princess, it’s not a good idea to slip and fall into the water here. There’s things waiting just under the surface for a tasty meal.”

Nikki frowned at his back, “You know, this isn’t exactly the kind of welcome I was expecting.”

He looked over his shoulder and grinned at her. “I know. You’ll get the one you’re expecting when we reach the castle.”

Nikki rolled her eyes but was extremely careful where she placed her feet as they walked down the narrow walkway to the strip of land in front of a huge manufactory building.

She craned her head to look up at the building. It was so tall that it seemed to disappear into darkness. “What is this thing?”

Xavier walked towards two massive steel doors as he answered her, “It’s what we like to call the manufactory building. Basically, it’s the hub of all the things that make our world run. All the computers, security, water, you name it, it’s in here. Anything that keeps our city running smoothly is controlled from this building.”

Nikki watched as Xavier stood in front of the computer screen next to the two doors. A few seconds later, a computerized voice said, “Identity, please.”

“Marcus Xavier Raneri,” he stated.

Nikki heard a few clicks then the voice came back, “Welcome back Prince Xavier.”

“Thank you.” Xavier replied.

There were a few more clicks then the voice said, “Priority 1 clearance approved. Stand clear of doors.”

Xavier motioned for Nikki to stand back as they watched the doors open. Nikki could hear the doors as they screeched open. At her curious expression Xavier nodded, “Yes, they are operated by computers.”

Nikki followed Xavier into a large room with a low ceiling. As she heard the screeching doors close behind her, she looked up at the three rows of ceiling fans. Once the doors had clanged shut, she could hear the low hum of the ceiling fans as the bright gold lights on the fans bathed the room in a surreal glow.

Xavier led her down a short narrow hallway which came to a dead end. Before she had a chance to ask him anything, she watched as he placed his hand flat against the wall to the right of the door.

As a green square lit up the wall around his hand, another computerized voice said, “Print match found. Proceed Prince Xavier.”

Suddenly the wall in front of Xavier swung open to reveal a narrow rectangular room. As Nikki followed Xavier into the room the door closed on it’s own behind her. Nikki took in the long desk with a computer and telephone on it. She also noticed the chairs with several magazines scattered over them to the right of her and a large one way mirror to the left.

Xavier continued walking to the door on the opposite wall and set down the suitcases. Nikki watched as he reached behind his neck and unclasped the silver chain he always wore. She saw the four small keys that hung from the chain and watched as Xavier used one of them to unlock the door.

Sticking the keys into his pocket, he picked up her suitcases and motioned for her to follow him into what looked like a huge fenced in yard. As she closed the door behind them, two Dobermans came running up to them.

Xavier set down her suitcases again and petted the dogs as they greeted him. He turned to grin at Nikki, “Princess, meet Rolf and Chaz. Two of the finest guard dogs you’ll ever meet. Guys, this is Nikki. She’s my ulhi’maos, so you have to take very good care of her for me, okay?”

Nikki arched an eyebrow as both of the dogs barked as if responding to Xavier’s request. Then they both walked towards her. “Um, Xavier?”

Xavier chuckled, “It’s okay, they’re just saying hi.”

The dogs placed their heads under each one of Nikki’s hands and nudged it as if telling her to pet them. When Nikki began to pet their heads, they responded by letting their tongues hang out before licking her hands and bounding off together.

Xavier gave Nikki a smile, “See, they just welcomed you to our world.”

Nikki laughed as she watched the two Dobermans tumble together for a moment before they began to patrol the tall hurricane fence, looking every bit like the guard dogs Xavier had said they were.

Xavier picked up her suitcases again and said, “Come on, time to go home, Nikki.”

When they reached the gates in the fence, Xavier had once more used a key from the chain to unlock them before placing the chain around his neck again.

Nikki followed Xavier as he walked to the right, towards a small bridge spanning a wide river that seemed to flow under the manufactory building. She noticed a huge junkyard straight ahead, and what looked like dilapidated buildings in the distance.

Xavier turned to make sure that she was still behind him and saw her looking at the junkyard and industrial area. He filled her in as they walked across the bridge, “That junkyard is where the people from the West Side City dump all their wastes from their businesses. All those buildings that you see double as homes and businesses for those who live in the city. Everyone here is working class, meaning they don’t have as many powers like the rest of us do, so they make their living in labor.”

Nikki nodded as she followed Xavier across the bridge. “So this is where all the things that a decent home needs to run smoothly are made then?”

Xavier nodded, “Yes. This is where all the furniture, appliances, cloth, and other living necessities are generally produced.”

As they stepped off the bridge onto a grassy area, Xavier continued, “This is the East Side City. All of the affluent nobles live in this area. My friends Charles and Kegan have homes here. Zachary has a home here too, but he tends to stay in the rooms he’s been provided in the castle since he’s Chief Advisor.”

Nikki nodded, “Who lives in his house when he’s not there?”

Xavier shook his head, “No one does. It was only Zach and his father for the last few years, but now it’s just Zach. I’m sure he’ll settle his family there if he ever has that. A maid comes in once a week to make sure the house is okay. So it’s not totally left alone.”

Nikki nodded and continued to follow Xavier through the cobbled streets. She took in all of the beautiful homes lining the well lit streets. It was so obvious that the entire East Side City was extremely well cared for. All of the homes seemed to have clean colorful walls and well kept lawns.

At this time of the evening, there weren’t that many people out, but those that were noticed Xavier immediately and bowed to him as he walked by. Xavier acknowledged them with a smile and a slight nod as he continued walking through the city.

Soon they reached a gate that had two guards posted on either side of it. As soon as Xavier approached them, they saluted him. As Xavier nodded to them, one of them left his post to open the gate for them. Xavier motioned for Nikki to follow him and they walked through the gate into a huge grassy yard with two long buildings sitting side by side.

“Those two buildings are where the nobles send their children to train in things such as weaponry and the use of their powers. Behind the buildings is a pasture where horse back riding is taught to the nobles. Each child has a specific training route depending on what they are going to be when they grow up. Not everyone is going to need intensive training in horseback riding or sword fighting for instance.”

As Xavier turned to the left and headed for another bridge, Nikki finally saw the castle for the first time. Walking across the bridge with Xavier, she noticed how beautiful it actually was even in the fading light.

She could see the white pearlescent stone of the walls covered with green vines and vibrant colorful flowers. She noticed just how multistoried it seemed with all of the towers standing tall all through it.

As they entered a side door, Nikki saw that the floors were made of white marble with black veins running throughout them. Glancing up, she saw the beautiful carved domed ceilings held up by ivory walls all trimmed in gold or silver. What amazed her was how it all seemed to come together beautifully and subtly instead of seeming too gaudy or extravagant.

Nikki continued to drink in the magnificent castle as Xavier led her through several hallways. As they reached a set of stairs Xavier turned to her, “This is the beginning of the East wing. My rooms are at the top of the tower in this wing. I know it’ll be a little confusing to you at first, but you’ll eventually learn your way around. I think you should always take someone with you for a few weeks until you’re comfortable enough to walk around the castle on your own.”

Nikki nodded and grinned, “You said rooms, plural. Just how many rooms does a prince really need?”

He chuckled, “It’s actually similar to an apartment in your world. But instead of all the rooms placed side by side, they’re set on top of each other. So, you’d enter the living area on the first floor, then walk up to the dining area, followed by a study, a bathing room, and finally the bedroom.”

Nikki whistled, “Wow! Our very own apartment, huh? This I gotta see.”

Her remark prompted Xavier to laugh as he began his trek up the stairs leading to the first floor of the tower that housed his rooms.

As they entered the living area, Nikki’s eyes went wide, “This is your living area?”

He grinned at her, “Actually, it’s our living area now.”

She laughed, “Man, this place is huge! Amy’s living room could fit in here at least twice!”

She wasn’t kidding. Since it was inside of a tower, the room was circular and boasted lots of plush couches, chairs, and recliners. There were plenty of different styles of tables mixed in with the styles of seating. All of it came together with the plush carpet to give the room a welcoming, cozy feel to it.

As they walked up the stairs along the wall, they entered the dining area. It was just as huge as the living area had been. There were actually two tables in it. One was a long formal looking one and the other was a smaller rectangular one. Nikki got the sense that the formal one was where the adults would sit and the smaller one was where any children would sit. There were also long tables similar to buffets lining the walls. Some of those tables were on wheels making them into mobile carts.

Xavier’s study was on the next floor and this room clearly had his stamp on it. A huge mahogany looking desk took up one side of the room. The rest of the room had a large square table with plenty of maps and other papers strewn across the surface. Nikki saw a coat of arms hanging from the wall as well as several pieces of weaponry that were familiar and not so familiar to her. Still, as busy as the room looked, she still got a laid back feeling from it.

They continued walking up the stairs into the bathing area and once again Nikki gawked at the room. Sitting in the center of the room was a huge Jacuzzi looking tub that looked to be about seven feet by seven feet and it looked to be just as deep. There were two ladders on opposite sides of the tub to use for climbing into the thing.

Nikki turned to look at Xavier and asked, “How do you fill that thing with water? Or even get it heated?”

He shrugged, “This is were powers often come in handy.” He chuckled, “Actually, the tub’s designed with pumps in it that pump water into and out of the tub. There are switches on the side of the tub, near the bottom that control the pumps. There’s also switches there to control the temperature of the water. Yeah, I know, it seems impossible since we’re in a castle, but you should know not all of the towers have these pumps built into them.

This tower is actually one of the newer towers. The older towers that were built before the invention of the pumps don’t have these luxuries. And I’ve heard about what a pain it was to refit the original castle base once they decided the kitchens and other areas needed to have access to fresh, sanitized water and other luxuries.”

Nikki grimaced as she thought about all the work that had to be done to put new pipes and the like inside the castle walls. She vaguely remembered once how her father had to have the leak in the downstairs bathroom repaired and the mess the workers had made to take out the old pipes and replace them with new ones. The bathroom had ended up with new pipes, walls, flooring, and a new sink. All that for one tiny leak. Oh yeah, she didn’t envy any of the workers in this castle.

They continued up the stairs to the top floor of the tower, which housed Xavier’s bedroom. Nikki couldn’t help but grin as she took in the room for the first time. It was clearly the room of a bachelor. The huge rectangular bed sat in the center of the room on a dais and appeared messy with the sheets and comforter bunched up in places and several clothes were strewn over the bed too. There were more clothes strewn over the floor, the curved desk to the right, the set of shelves to the left, and the armoire behind the bed. On the chest that sat near the foot of the bed was a pile of discarded weapons.

Xavier turned to her with a sheepish grin on his face, “I know, sorry. It’s been rather chaotic here for the last few days and the maids have been having trouble coming in and cleaning up. And they didn’t know you were arriving today, so they didn’t have the place ready. I promise I’ll let them know you’re here and to get this place tidied up as soon as possible.”

As Nikki arched an eyebrow at Xavier, she heard a voice coming from the doorway, “Is that so, Xavier? Well, we will just have to find out why someone was remiss in letting the maids know that their future queen was arriving today.”

Translations
Atia mais ongla eth idi? - What is wrong with me?
ulhi'maos - soul mate