The girls felt me reach my decision and give the order and they all screamed. The protector tore into my body, snapped the neck and squeezed the heart until it stopped. Whatever powers it had, it could not operate out of a dead body. Through my protector I saw it try to force itself into Cherine, but her spirit was in her body, so it gave up and dashed off.

Previous Post 082

904

I left my body too and with the protector leading I followed it. It came to the void where I was waiting, but even as I spun a vortex of power around and began to tear it apart, it flickered out of the void. There was no way to trace it back to our world so I hurried, mad with fear that it may have returned to our home, returning to Aganthi’s body.

The girls all confirmed they are present and alright. I held Cherine to me, Dommi holding my foot to the leg for the healer to repair it. My own healer was desperately trying to heal my own body and urged me to provide a heart to stop any brain damage. I had given up on my body and paid it no attention, all I cared about was my sweet brave Cherine.

When I looked again I saw the twins had both placed an arm across the chest of my corpse. At that moment Cherine fluttered her eyelids and I knew she was awakening. Quickly I turned her so that she would not see my body.

“Cherry baby, everything’s alright, it has gone. Your leg is nearly fixed. Shh love, just keep quiet a little while, let your bone mend properly. What a brave little wife I have. My own dear special love…” And so I carried on. She put her little hand to my lips, stopping me.

“Oh Robert, what have you done! You have killed all of us. It would have been better to let it rape all of us than to have you kill your own body.”

“It had to be done. Girls, quickly, let all the Cherinians know, not one of them is allowed to leave their bodies. No more dancing until I have found this monster and killed it.”

“You won’t have to find him Robert. He is coming back for me.”

“This time then I will destroy it.”

She looked at me sadly, not caring. To her the end had already come for all of us.

PART NINETEEN

Chapter Eighty One

Those within driving distance came. Alki and Marian were over almost immediately. Aganthi’s foot was still being joined and they found me sitting in a pool of blood with my little Cherine in my arms. Then they saw my body and did a double-take.

“That over there is me Alki, this is the body of Aganthi, she lent it to me. I must explain quickly, for I must return to my own body. We were attacked. It is a man with powers we had not even thought of. My only power that is still greater is the protector. I also suspect he lives in Greece, for he swears in Greek. Alki, will you please help organise. Nobody is allowed to go to the void or to jump. We know too little about how we jump. You will want to leave people here to protect us. Don’t! That is what he will expect. He will be looking for those who are vulnerable.

If he gets into the body of someone you love, kill him or her. It is the only way. My healer will immediately create a new body for your loved one, if the original can’t be healed. Spread my girls out with your families. Only Cherine and I will stay here, we will wait for him.”

Without wasting more time I left, Solomon sent Aganthi back to her body and I returned to mine. I was not too surprised to sense Maria and Kosta had arrived and were helping my healer. The protector was also helping my healer. I told it to get some other healers to help. It has only one important job to do now. It must look after Cherine.

I reminded it of how it had protected us during the Sparkler war. It must now envelope Cherine within itself and see that she is not harmed.

I felt my heart start, but it faltered and stopped again. The healer restarted it and after a dozen beats it stopped again.

I felt someone enter my mind. It was Meli.

*Aganthi is fine, so is Cherine, but she knows your heart refuses to work and she is like Wendy was when you found her. She has given up hope. What do I do?*

*Tell her, ‘You too Cherine? You have no faith in me?’ I will return Meli, but I have to stay in the void for now, at least until I can find and kill the bastard.*

*You will kill again my Robbie?*

*I have to. This one has power, but he is evil.*

*He is not evil, he is insane! He knows about you and thinks he can attack you!!*

I sent Meli a grin and waited for her to return. She sent to me, *You can’t feel it Robbie, but Cher is holding your hand. She is crying so I think she will be alright now. Robbie, I came to you to ask you to let me try something. When you asked me to make you a body in our world, I said I can’t. I still think I can’t. But I think I can do something else. It may help to heal you or it may kill you - I can’t decide what to do.*

*What? Meli mou, what do you want to do?*

*When I create the bodies in my worlds, I use some kind of energy. I tried it just now on myself. I hurt, like I was on fire.*

*There is no choice. My heart is dead. The spine was fixed, but I am still paralysed. Try it love, whatever happens I will be grateful to you for being brave enough to try. God but I love all of you, I’m the luckiest man alive. Meli, are the twins still connected to my veins?*

*Yes.*

*Get an adult to take their place. Tell them, whatever happens I will be a part of them and...Meli! Will you give me a sliver of your soul and take a sliver of mine?*

*Yes my love.*

*Do it then, now. Then send all the girls, one by one. It must be an exchange made both ways. Then you use that magic of yours and if it hurts me do not cry Meli mou, just be glad you could at least try.*

And so it was that the first family of Cherinians changed, grew in a new direction. All the girls fully exchanged slivers with me, even my Cherine again, and then they exchanged between themselves. For the first time ever not one single wife of mine could bear to be close to me or to each other. The others had to take them into separate rooms.

Meli sent the power and it knocked out the healer and set me on fire, every muscle, every nerve screaming and knotted in agony. I knew nothing but the pain for a long time. A sound came to me. It was of notes pure and not musical in the usual sense. They were notes created of a light, white and pure, made only to heal and repair. Slowly the pain faded.

Wendy sang until she no longer could sing. She transformed the energy, softened it and yet strengthened it so that it could do what it was supposed to do. She described her singing later as a kind of filtering.

For the first time in so much more than a year, I stood up on my feet and it felt as if they barely touched the ground and I felt my body was at perfect pitch, filled with energy and good health.

I spoke my thoughts aloud, “She spoke truly. < I see your soul is shared and the sharing strengthens you. With those where you share lies the answer for you.> Maria, take tissue samples now, they must be placed in the banks so that my girls never need fear for me again. Now I can fight that bastard!”

Cherine came dashing back in and without regard for the effect we had on each other she stood a moment, checking, and then ran straight into my arms. Her legs gave way beneath her as she sobbed her heart out and I raised her with my trembling arms and held her to my heart. When her sobbing subsided she opened my shirt to see the scars. She looked up at me in wonder.

“They are gone Robert. Your scars are gone!!”

“I no longer need them my love - the only scars I carry now are the memories of pains inflicted on you.”

Marian saw the shakes were getting the better of us and came to take her daughter away.

“No Marian. Let her stay. Let us find…Cherine, that blocking last time, it was not from amongst us. Who could it have been. Surely not this shadow creature.”

I let Marian pull her away from me.

“Alki, have you done as I asked?”

“Nobody will obey. They insist on staying here to help protect you. They have or are bringing their families too. As for your wives, they are all of them true Greek wives - not one of them will let us take them away. They all belong here with you they say. You want me to use force?” he ended with an ironic smile.

“Νόμιζα ότι οι ελληνικές γυναίκες είναι υπάκουες (I thought Greek wives are obedient).”

“Only on matters that are of no importance.”

“Food! I need food. Who has the order book.” We ordered from the delivery company food from seven different restaurants, with enough food to feed fifty people. When everyone seemed to be with us, I checked who is missing. Angelos was. I called him on his mobile.

“Angelo, can’t you come over?”

“I’m with my parents. Can I come later?”

“Soon as you can, but do not teleport to us, use your motorbike. You got the message about what is going on?”

“No. By the way, I’m sorry about interfering...what you were feeling with Cherine, it was like a spear through my head. I was at a restaurant near your house and I only did it to save myself.”

“The blocking, that was you? Good god, we need you here then. We’ll be waiting - however late you finish.”

“Why are you so excited Robert? We also know how to block.”

“Not the way he does. We only know how to block ourselves - he can block others! That bastard comes again, I’d love to be able to block him.”

Next Post 084

I hope you enjoy reading this story of fantasy, adventure and love.

Αλέξανδρος Ζήνον Ευσταθίου

(Alexander Zenon Eustace)
^{4th November, 2018}

* posted on Steemit: 4th November, 2018



For those who wish to be notified of sequels
@nikosnitza

If you wish to have your name added above, I would be honoured.

The arthur.grafo Steemhost pages