Rise of The Fallen

–Kora–

One moment I was floating in a sea of darkness, and then suddenly I was choking. Rolling over, I coughed up tons of water onto the ground beside me.

“Kora!” Elazar’s frantic voice called out above me. I coughed again, gasping for air while a large hand rested on my lower back. “Menya, menya,” he whispered gently, his hand rubbing small, comforting circles along my spine.

I trembled as I finally regained my senses, feeling how wet and cold I was. It was pitch black wherever we were, but I couldn’t care less as long as I could breathe.

My chest and cheek rested on the hard rocky floor as I tried to relax. I was beyond disoriented, and could hardly focus on anything but the cold ground, my harsh breathing and the warm touch on my back.

After a few moments, I tried to push myself up onto my hands and knees. Elazar helped me to sit upright, holding me as I swayed a little.

“El?”

“It’s okay. Menya. I am here.” he reassured me and I sighed, shivering again.

Before I understood what was happening, I felt warm hands sliding under my sopping wet clothes, pulling them from my body.

I stirred in an attempt to stop him, to cling to what little sense of dignity I had left. But my mind was still a bit too muddled and my body all too sluggish to really do much. My clothes were stripped from me, and I was pulled against Elazar’s warm chest, nearly as naked as the day I was born.

Almost instantly, I melted into his embrace, clinging to him as his arms wrapped around me.

“I will warm you, Kora. Just rest.”

I didn’t protest, closing my eyes as I burrowed as close to the alien man as I physically could. I couldn’t see anything, and besides the cold from the damp cave air and my wet hair, all I cared about was the warmth of Elazar body heat.

Water dripped from somewhere in the cave, along with the beat of Elazar’s heart as it thrummed in my ear. The thick, musty smell of the cave was easily overshadowed by El’s woodsy scent, reminding me of mahogany and…something close to rain?

“Are you okay?” He asked in his language, doing his best to use words I could actually understand.

I buried my face further into his chest, not caring about any repercussions or embarrassment I might have later.

“Kora?” he asked, keeping his hands still on my backside.

I mumbled my response in a mix of both our languages, too worn out to do much else. “Shut up, and give me a few minutes to recuperate.”

“I do not know that word.” His voice rang with the slightest bit of confusion.

“Nevermind.”

Sighing, I resigned myself to the fact that we couldn’t just stay here like this. We needed to figure out where we were, and how the hell we were going to get out of here.

Sitting upright in Elazar’s lap, I looked around. Some types of mushrooms were faintly glowing further within the cave. They barely gave off any light, illuminating the area less than a foot around them.

It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.

I curled my hands against Elazar, pausing when my skin stretched painfully. My hands stung from cuts I’d obtained while freeing Elazar from the vines. There were only a few scratches that I could feel across the rest of my body, but they were nothing compared to how Elazar must have felt. His entire body must be aching from his wounds.

Worry tugged at my heart at the mere thought, and I pulled away from El even more, not wanting to injure him further. I felt Elazar’s hesitancy to let me go but he didn’t resist very much.

“Elazar, Are you hurt?”

Something splashed in the water beside us, and I jumped a little before I realized it was probably his tail.

“Do not worry for me, I am strong,” he said reassuringly, but that wasn’t exactly the answer I wanted. Reluctantly, I stood up carefully, holding my arms out beside me for balance.

Navigating in the dark was going to be a pain in the ass.

“El, where are my clothes and bag?” A slight shuffling noise ensued before I felt the slightest brush of sopping wet fabric against my arm. I grabbed what I assumed was my shirt and shorts. “Dammit.”

I turned away, wringing out the excess water from my clothes that were twice as cold as the bitter air around us. I then reached blindly for my bag until Elazar held it out for me, the strap grazing my palm. “Thanks.”

Sifting my hand through the bag, I was disappointed but not surprised to find everything inside was soaked as well. Stuffing my clothes in the bag, I set the strap over my shoulder, and looked towards the glowing mushrooms.

I was not looking forward to blindly navigating this place.

“Ok, let’s try to find our way out of here.” Taking a deep breath, I took a few careful steps forward, only to suddenly slip on wet rock. “Fuck!” I pitched forward, slamming my eyes shut. My fall was halted by a pair of familiar strong arms before I hit the ground.

“You are unable to see,” Elazar said beside me as I used his arm to stabilize myself once more.

“Yeah, humans don’t have fancy night vision like other animals.”

Elazar was silent for a moment. “I will carry you.”

I swung my head to the side to look at him in bewilderment, but could see nothing.

“You must be joking.”

“What is gockeeng?”

I nearly facepalmed. “Elazar, you were nearly eaten by a carnivorous plant! You can’t carry me through the caves after having almost being torn to shreds.”

Not to mention I’m practically naked.

A low, irritated grunt sounded from him, and I crossed my arms over my chest to ward off some of the cold.

“You speak too fast,” he rumbled in frustration. “Too many strange words.”

I rolled my eyes, only to realize the action was practically pointless in the dark. “What I’m saying is. You. Are. Hurt. You no carry me through cave!” God, I sound like a caveman.

Elazar huffed, and before I knew what was happening, he grabbed me, placing one arm behind my back and the other under my legs before hauling me up into his arms.

Shrieking, I grabbed onto his shoulders as he moved forward.

“Elazar, put me down!”

He grunted again. “No.”

“Listen here, you big moron! You set me down right now or else!” Gently, I poked his chest. “You don’t need to be carrying me while you’re covered in cuts, and who knows what other injuries!”

“Hmph, stutus female,” he muttered under his breath.

“Hey! Don’t ignore me! I’m serious!” I reached up, grabbing onto his left horn and tugging down ever so slightly.

Elazar’s breath hitched and he stumbled slightly, nearly dropping me right then and there. He removed his arm out from under my legs, letting my feet touch the ground. Then he pushed me back, pinning me against the wall of the cave, and holding both of my arms in his hands.

I squeaked in surprise, turning my head away slightly, afraid I’d fucked up.

“Kora,” he growled in my ear, his warm breath fanning across my shoulder. He leaned in a bit closer, and suddenly I felt his body heat seeping into me.

Shit, did I finally piss him off? Do I apologize? I was only worried about his health! I didn’t mean to–

My thoughts suddenly grounded to a halt as I felt something hard and thick nudge up against my stomach. My eyes widened, and I glanced down despite not being able to see. But I didn’t need to see. I had a pretty good idea what was pressed against me.

Did he just–

Elazar’s breathing grew harsh, and he dipped his head down towards the crook of my neck, his warm breath causing a shiver to run down my spine. His lips brushed my shoulder, and suddenly I wasn’t sure if my shiver was from the cold or something else entirely.

“El,” I began, my voice trembling. I didn’t know what to say, whether to tell him to back off or to come closer.

“Stop. Do not fight me,” he choked out before abruptly pulling back. I stared ahead through the darkness, confused as hell. I swore that I could faintly make out his silver eyes in front of me as he kept his hold on my wrists.

After a moment, he huffed, releasing my arms and picking me up bridal style once more.

Did I just turn him on somehow? But I didn’t do anything. I mean sure, I was pretty much naked but–

My face heated.

Oh my God…it finally clicked.

–Elazar–

Faux, this little female is more stubborn than the blood vines!

Not only had she endangered herself by jumping into the blood vine nest to help me, she also fought me when I attempted to help her.

Just like the first time we encountered each other, and when she was injured from the devil cat.

Kora was always fighting me!

She nearly drowned in the waters when she pulled away from me, and now she was refusing my help to navigate this cave despite the fact she was unable to walk more than a few steps on her own.

She also continued to molest my horns, treating them like toys as a kit would. I nearly pounced on her out of reflex when she tugged on my horn a moment ago.

I huffed in aggravation, cradling her more protectively in my arms.

I’m just glad that she has stopped her pointless resistance, and is cooperating for the moment.

My eyes moved down to the little female. Her facial expression was twisted into deep thought, her eyes staring blankly ahead. My gaze moved to her plump breasts that swayed in a mesmerizing way with each step I took.

I distinctly remembered how soft and flexible they felt in my hands, and couldn’t help but wonder how they didn’t cause discomfort while she went about her daily routine. They bounced with just the slightest movement when not constrained by the strange wraps she often wore underneath her leathers.

Although, now that I thought about it, her breasts were not the only soft and squishy part of her body. Her entire body was quite soft underneath my touch. The upper parts of her arms and legs were made of more fat than my own.

Did all humans lack such muscle?

Holding her against me, I could practically feel her soft figure molding against my own. Her tiny body fit so perfectly within my arms.

She shivered slightly, and my tail flicked around wildly as I held her more firmly against my chest, relishing the feel of her closeness. Perhaps her blindness in the dark was a blessing in disguise, though she’d been brave enough to venture into the unknown.

To say I was surprised that she’d jumped into the pit and helped me break free would be an understatement. With how cautious she had always been around me, I did not expect her to do something like this.

On one hand it made me proud of the tiny human, but on the other it only made me more anxious.

It was reckless to venture into the blood-vine pit with no plan. And with how small and frail she was, it was so easy for harm to come to her.

The thought stirred an image to the forefront of my mind of when I’d dragged her limp body out of the water less than an hour ago. My heart had nearly stopped when I realized she hadn’t been breathing.

I’d almost lost all sense at that moment. I didn’t know what to do and I felt like it was all my fault. But by the Sevens grace, she came back to me.

Now, I just needed to focus on getting us both out of this cave. This wasn’t how our trip was supposed to go; I simply wanted to bring her to get sacred fruit because I knew how much she enjoyed the other fruits I’d acquired for her over the past few days.

I’d come to enjoy her company far more than I ever thought possible, and the idea of making her happy causes my chest to swell with pride.

But of course, we just so happened to come across a hidden blood-vine den.

I only managed to hurt her in the end…

“Elazar, what’s that?”

Startled from my musings, I followed Kora’s gaze, looking high above our heads. All along the cave ceiling and walls were glowing blue specks. They twinkled much like the stars where the humans came from, somewhat illuminating the cave in a light blue hue, and making it easier to see.

“Spirit shards.” I glanced down at the small female as she furrowed her brows in confusion.

Of course she does not know those words in my language.

I set her back down on her feet, and reached up to a shard that stuck out from the rock wall. Snapping the piece off, I handed it to Kora. Her eyes widened in awe as she stared at the small object in her hand.

The corner of my lip turned up as I watched her reaction to something so simple.

“It’s like a krees-tell?” She muttered.

As she studied the spirit shard, I looked around for an exit from the cavern. The only tunnel was above a steep rock wall, meaning we would need to climb, and I couldn’t carry my Kora anymore.

My tail dropped to the ground as the little female looked at me then to the rock wall.

“Sheeat, how do we get up there?”

I walked over to the wall to inspect it, placing my hands on the surface. It was angled slightly, so it should be simple enough to climb even for the little human.

“We must climb.”

Turning back to Kora, I could see her worry as she looked upon her torn up hands. Of course, the blood-vines did not leave her unscathed either.

She walked up beside me, staring purposefully at the wall. After a short moment of hesitation, she grabbed onto the rock wall, and attempted to ascend it on her own. I stayed behind her, ready to catch the small female should she fall.

She managed to climb a few feet up before she paused, angrily mumbling, “Stoopead cliff!” Then she was climbing again, my eyes tracking each move of her body.

As she struggled to climb up the stone wall, I was frozen in place beneath her, entranced by her naked backside. I angled my head to get a better look, mouth drying as desire stirred within me. I couldn’t look away, completely hypnotized by the curvy sight of her. So much so that I didn’t even realize she was falling.

“Elazar!” Kora screamed. I snapped out of my delirious state just in time to reach out. She fell on top of me, the force of the impact slamming me onto the ground as I broke her fall.

I groaned in pain. Faux.

The small human sat up, saying harshly under her breath, “Phuack me…”

She looked down and our eyes met in the dim lighting as we both lay there, chest to chest, our legs entangled. I pushed up onto my forearms, gazing up at her. Hesitantly, I reached up, stroking her cheek with the pad of my thumb.

And she didn’t pull away.

Since the first moment I saw Kora, I knew there was something different about her. It was more than the fact she was human. I felt a connection to her that I’d never had with any other being or creature my entire life.

And now, as she leaned into my touch, I could only wonder if she felt it too?