(This story begins approximately 5 millennia before the disappearance of the Island of Atlantis and 50 years after Chapter 3.)
Atlantis swallowed and gazed with envy at her best friend Hadrese, who had recently given birth to her first Elven Little One. “Hadrese, he’s beautiful. What have you named him?”
“I haven’t decided yet,” gazing down at her son Hadrese asked, “Would you like to hold him?”
Grinning from ear to ear, Atlantis nodded and held out her hands, scooping up the Little One, Atlantis, marveled at the glowing green skin, the cutest little pointy ears she had ever seen. He lay in her arms; head nestled in the crook of her elbow and his little butt in the palm of her hand.
“He’s so tiny Hadrese,” she laughed and said, “I barely remember when Tri’an was this small. Naw, I doubt the big lunk was ever this small!”
Hadrese giggled over her friend’s description of her brother of her heart. He had grown up and had reached his final height of eight feet two inches tall. He was a handsome elf, but very clumsy.
“We are about to have company Atlantis.”
“If your mate and you wish to be alone, my dear, then I would be happy to return later.”
Laughing Hadrese said, “No, please don’t go, it’s my Uncle Oberon and his V’ma’ter’i, Tajor, both eccentrics extraordinaire.”
Atlantis felt tension settle in her shoulders and used a little of her magic to relax her arms so the Little One would not awaken. Atlantis swallowed and wondered if either one of them had changed since she had eaten dinner with them over a half century ago.
The door opened and in tumbled in Twa, robed in yellow and red and trimmed in black. He opened the door with a flourish and announced, “Lord Oberon and Lord Tajor, have arrived.”
Atlantis’s eyebrow shot up, as she beheld her old nemesis. He had not bothered her in over a half a century. She watched as his eyes began to twinkle. He rushed to her side and picked up her hand and bowed over it, kissing the air above it, “Lady Atlantis, how are you, m’dear? I haven’t seen you in many a decade.”
Suppressing a smirk, she replied, “Good afternoon, Twa, how are you?”
Grinning he gushed, “I am much finer in beholding your beauty!”
Atlantis could not suppress a bark of genuine laughter, that escaped her throat, as she watched Twa’s twinkling eyes and mischievous grin, for whatever reasons the elemental was being incredibly suave and debonair to her today.
Lifting her eyes, she gazed into the burning gaze of Oberon, without missing a beat, Atlantis inclined her head, and said, “Lord Oberon, it is a pleasure to see you again.”
Glancing towards Tajor she beamed at him, “I see you Lord Tajor.”
Both males bowed from the waist and smiled, “A pleasure Atlantis,” Tajor murmured. Their eyes fell together to the Little One her arms, “Your nephew, my Lords is gorgeous.”
The Little One stirred in her arms and looked up into her face, rolled his eyes around and then returned to napping. “He has Dorn’s eyes.”
Smiling Hadrese said, “He sure does.” Hadrese’s v’ma’ter’i was her cousin once removed on the du Nuven side of family. He had defied her Mam’s sibling’s mandate and had befriended her over a hundred years ago, and she had been the one to recently introduce him to Hadrese.
Atlantis had watched the two form their spirit connection and become a family. She was holding her cousin twice removed in her arms; he had green skin like his mother and his father’s startling sky blue ones.
As she stared down at the little face and memorized his features, wistfully wishing that she could have one of her own.
Hadrese watched her friend trace her Little Ones face with the back of her index finger. Her gaze rested on Twa’s and followed his gaze back to her uncle and his mate. The raw hunger on their faces told her that they wanted a Little One of their own and wondered why they had abruptly stopped interviewing Elven females trying to find another v’ma’ter’a.
The entrance of her mate and her father, King Borlan, interrupted her line of thought.
Atlantis stood as soon as King Borlan entered the room, he greeted his twin brother in an exuberant fashion and hugged his mate, and Tajor, smiles and congratulations were given and received.
The King’s gaze settled on Atlantis’s face and his mouth went slack, “As I live and breathe Atlantis de El’a. You look just like your beautiful Mother. You’ve given this old heart quite the jolt, my dear. For a moment I thought it was your Mam came back to rejoin with us. You are a credit to your Mam and your Sire.”
Inclining her head, Atlantis beamed at King Borlan, who instructed her, “Now sit down. Your holding my grandson and I do not want to see you uncomfortable.”
Smiling at King Borlan, Atlantis settled down in her chair, cuddling the Little One close in her arms. Glancing back at King Borlan, she murmured, “Thank you Sire, for your kind words. I have been told that you were the last to see my Mam alive.”
King Borlan gazed down at the Elven female holding his grandson, choosing his words carefully, he said, “I was and your Mam was a credit to all elves, carrying her duty to our race with honor and dignity.”
Startled at her Overlord’s open admiration of her Mam, Atlantis gazed into his eyes; a lump settled into her throat, she nodded. Grinning she inquired, “Would you hold your grandson Sire?”
Grinning King Borlan said, “Indeed my dear.”
Atlantis stood and walked around the end of bed and as she passed Oberon and Tajor the spirit connection reacted and enveloped her. She continued walking as if nothing extraordinary had happened and laid the tiny Little One in the King’s arms.
Stepping back she curtsied and turned to Hadrese and Dorn. “Congratulations my dears, he’s lovely. I’ll return later to see you. I wish you goodnight.”
Good manners dictated that she wish the remaining two high lords good evening as well, turning slightly, she inclined her head to them and said, “My Lords a pleasure to see you both again, may the sun shine on your face and the wind be at your back.”
Looking down at Twa, she said, “I can say with all sincerity, Twa, it was a pleasure seeing you this time around.”
Grinning at his old nemesis, Twa put a leg forward and bowed, “Atlantis you have a truly beautiful soul, may all the wishes of your heart come true.”
Atlantis smiled gently down at the elemental in front of her, using her magic, she willed herself home. Barely able to control the spirit connection with her v’ma’ter’i without letting them know she knew of their existence she staggered to a chair in her public room, and sank down into its the depths. Leaning back she closed her eyes and accepted the wash of magic over her mind and soul, instead of the soothing her as it usually did, she became edgier and grouchier.
Scowling Atlantis stood up and paced up and down the room she paused as she felt anger and betrayal come roaring down the spirit link, she knew from the taste of magic that Oberon was livid. Slowly, she came to a halt in the middle of the room, taking a deep breath she sent her mind seeking down the connection and into Oberon’s mind she willed her magic to see with Oberon’s eyes, he was glaring at his brother the King.
Nothing was being said except Oberon was breathing heavily and his heart rate was more rapid then usual. Gently Atlantis let go of the connection and found the one Tajor had with Oberon and eased down its path, he was shielding hard from his mate, getting into his mind would be riskier then normal, but she had many years of practice and wormed her way past his defenses.
He was replaying his memories of seeing her for the first time in decades, the pleasure seeing her gave him and the anger he felt when Twa had touched her hand. He had memorized her features and details of her smile. Warmth flooded Atlantis as he remembered his pleasure at seeing her with a Little One in her arms, the longing to see her arms filled with his own child, a dull ache that he kept hidden had roared to life, as she had passed him and Oberon on her way to give the King his grandson.
Atlantis felt his shock when she seemingly didn’t feel the spirit connection and the self-doubt that had been nagging him for years that perhaps she wasn’t his v’ma’ter’a returned making his disbelief in ownself intensify. He had been staring at the place she had vanished from when the King had softly said, “Oberon, you stubborn ass.”
Startled from his musings he had cast his gaze at his brother-in-law wondering what his problem was with his mate.
“You have ignored your duties to yourself and Tajor for how many years?”
Startled, he glanced at his mate, to find him looking blankly at his brother. “I have no idea what you mean.”
“Atlantis de El’a is your v’ma’ter’a and you have not claimed her?”
Shocked coursed through Tajor at his King’s pronouncement. He had blinked and had felt anger roaring at him through his mate’s link with him.
“That is quite impossible, Sire,” stated Oberon.
Standing up Borlan leaned over and gave his grandson to his daughter and turned to his brother, looking down at him, he said, “I felt that flare of magic. It came from both of you and it’s because you have not claimed Atlantis as v’ma’ter’a both of your magic’s are out of control. Two things could take place, you both become Werekin or your spirit connection with Atlantis will seek out what you all three desire and force freewill from you and connect you all accepting of it or not.”
Tajor had cut off his spirit path with Oberon the moment he heard Borlan’s pronouncement. Oberon hissed, “It’s impossible for us to have the connection with Atlantis, we only met her once over five decades ago, if a connection was made we would have know it.”
Dorn had snorted and said, “Uncle Oberon you don’t know do you?”
Glancing down at his nephew by Life Joining Oberon glared at the younger elf and didn’t say a word.
Tajor was not so reticence with his inquiry, “Know what Dorn?”
Dorn had glanced at Hadrese who had inclined her head, silently agreeing with Dorn about something they were silently communicating. Dorn said, “Exactly five decades ago, the elementals gave her, her own home. As one of her childhood companions, I was quite surprised by it, as you know as well as I do, that you are not given your own home by the elementals without having a spirit connection.”
“When we questioned Atlantis about it, but she just grinned and shrugged her shoulders and said she must be beloved of the elements and was given a rare gift, she had pointed out she had been birthed at the moment her Sire had passed into the Beyond. At first Hadrese and I didn’t believe her, but as the years passed and we have not once seen any Elven male near her except for those of us who grew up with her, we began to believe her explanation.”
“It has only been recently as the last decade that her companions have been meeting their mates and moving off, that I have noticed a change in Atlantis,” stated Hadrese, “She has become incredibly reserved and sad, she hides it well, but I have seen glimpses of it recently.”
Crossing his arms Oberon had said, “If that is all true, then why haven’t we felt the spirit connection snap between us? With our first v’ma’ter’a it roared into place and there was no question about the connection no denying it.”
Tajor had turned and muttered, “I told you five decades ago it was in place and you said it was impossible.”
“Hmm, yes, the breath of fresh air, I remember you saying something about that, but I have not felt it.”
“Breath of fresh air did you say Uncle Oberon?” demanded Hadrese. Dorn had sucked air into his lungs and shock spread across his face.
“Yes,” was his terse reply.
“That is what you feel when you have a connection with a Sky Elf, their magic is subtle and sometimes you don’t realize your mate is with you especially if that elf is trying to hide its presence from your conscience mind. I know Atty, she would have respected your wishes not to claim her and remained a quiet shadow in your minds, so subtle that after the first whiff of her magic you would have no longer felt her presence.”
It had been at Hadrese’s pronouncement that triggered Oberon’s roaring anger had blazed a path down to her and had enveloped her. Slowly she allowed her connection with Tajor to melt and then melt away from Oberon and she returned to her surroundings, darkness had fallen, since elves could see in darkness, she did not bother setting a magical glow she transported herself into the gardens, she stood under the moonlight and absorbed the feel of the grass under bare feet, reveling in the cool breeze on her bare skin.
Her body tingled and she shivered, as her breasts became pointy tips, if Oberon had not stood between her and Tajor she would have claimed him many decades ago, however, Oberon did stand between them…a perplexity of major proportions.
