Endosymbiosis

42. Thirst

When the leaders decided to go upstairs, I started breathing again.

"This is the Tower of Crime." Kadi whispered in my ear. "On each level some crimes are allowed, more and more heinous the closer ir gets to the bottom. There, the price to enter is higher, but the tower pays back the ones that enjoys it to the fullest." I raised an eyebrow. What kinds of beings were those who ventured into the depths of this Tower? Perhaps those who were with me... And maybe Korrok was planning a visit there at some point. "Depending on what you do, it's even possible to earn starstones here."

"Is that why we're here?"

"No... Because no starstone can match the adrenaline of entering a den of beasts and leaving alive."

I knew that feeling more than I should.

"Not to mention the bottom is a great place to dump bodies..." Lupan added with his vulpine tone, and I leaned over the window once more.

What corpses could be hiding in those depths? Were those from my past there too? Or did they prefer the darkness of the core? I climbed the stairs away from those questions, not wanting the answers.

We reached the highest and most illuminated level of the tower, completely surrounded by windows that let in the beams of moonlight, tinged with the blue of the waters around us. Behind the glass surreally colored sea creatures swam and floated, gleaming beneath the lights like jewels.

Inside, shelves of exotic drinks lined the shell-encrusted walls whose colors ranged from gold to coral hues that littered the edges of the flooded precipice. It was hard to believe that a place like this could be real... A purely beautiful haven, until we immersed ourselves in its hidden layers of depravity.

"I'm bored already." Korrok growled. "Let's go down a few levels." He turned to go but stopped when he realized that neither I nor Kadi had moved. "You know where to find us."

And then they descended into the darkness.

Kadi and I stared at each other, covered in the turquoise light that danced through the windows. We were completely alone, surrounded only by shelves full of drinks and the sounds of creatures swimming in the depths outside.

I walked between the shelves and ran my finger over the bottles.

"Want a drink?"

"On second thought, I wanted something else in my mouth..." He leaned toward me, those bold eyes warming my body, and I knew the angle of my raised eyebrow could cut diamonds.

"I'm not on the shelf to take when you're thirsty..." I snapped, as my distracted eyes read the labels on some of the vials. "'Supernova Flames' or 'Winter Asteroid'?"

Kadi approached slowly, his hunting footsteps bringing him to me. He leaned his shoulder against the window beside me.

"Why don't you mix the two?" He purred. "Hot as an explosion, cold as a glacier... Almost a dose of you."

I bit my lip and the bait of his smile as I poured the two liquids into a glass for me and another for him.

"Too bad if my friendship is too complex for you..."

"Why do I feel your 'friendship' is a punishment?"

I stared at him from behind the layer of my eyelashes.

"Maybe because you deserve one."

He moved even closer and I swallowed hard, but my mouth was no longer asking for the drink now that my lips had shifted their attention...

"So beautiful..." Kadi whispered, his fingers sliding down my face and lifting my chin. "And with such a sharp tongue..." His other hand slipped down my back and his fingers played with my bare skin, digging into my waist. "You can say all these things, but your body doesn't lie to me..." Then he pulled me against him, destabilizing me with the shock.