Cassian

The room is silent. I look over to the bed where Neytiri now lays. She's asleep. Of course, she is. No one can withstand my hedon. Not even her. One of the legendary Ikniri. The last one. The one that slipped through my grasp yet has been spared.

I know that in the end she will only get in my way. The influence of her people is lost on her. She is her own person now and from the way she reacts to the life around her she will not agree with my plans. Which is why I can only hope that by the time the truth comes back to her she will have enough feeling in her heart for me to step aside.

I don't want to have to kill her. But I will if it comes down to it.

The door to the far side of the room pushes open and I don't have to look up to see who it is. Hynden. Her kingdom was the last stop. I've barely spoken to her since my arrival and her agreement to stand by me when the time comes.

"Never thought I'd see one alive... after that day anyway," she says. I look up at her. She's watching Neytiri with a cautious expression. Her curly blonde hair falls to her shoulders. In the past I would have wanted nothing more than to run my fingers through those golden tresses. But that was in the past.

"There was a time when you wouldn't have wasted a second to slice her throat," she says. I hear the bitterness in her tone but keep my eyes trained on Neytiri. Her eyes are closed, and her skin is taking on the fire's warm glow. She's beautiful. I knew she would be.

"Yes, well I already killed her race. By the time I came across her I had bigger things to deal with than killing a child," I say.

"That didn't stop you before," she quips back. I feel irritation bubbling under my skin as I turn to her.

"Like I said. I had bigger things to deal with," I say. Her eyes widen and I see the fear behind them before she drops her gaze.

"My apologies," she murmurs. I turn away from her looking back at Neytiri' s sleeping form. Never has something put me at such peace before. Hynden takes a seat next to me.

"You killed the king of your kingdom," she says. I shrug.

"He wasn't fit to be a king. They're all going to die in the end anyway," I say. She laughs softly, but there's no humor in it.

"But I thought the plan was t-"

"I know what the plan was. I made the plan, Hynden."

I whip my gaze to face her.

"Why are you here," I ask. I see the hurt in her gaze from my words, but she says nothing. She only looks to Neytiri.

"You care for her, don't you?" she asks. Her gaze meets mine.

"You once looked at me like that," she adds. "How can you care for the offspring of the very creatures that took our families away from us?" she asks.

I shrug. It's a fucked-up situation. Her people killed my family. But I personally killed her people. Our fates seem to be connected in more ways than one.

"What are you going to do if she turns on you, Cassian?" she asks. I shake my head standing.

"She won't," I say. I look at the symbol engraved on her face. My mark. I look back at Hynden.

"And if she does, I will kill her," I say. Hynden stares at me with a mixture of fear and horror. She stands, never breaking eye contact as she makes her way to me. She gently places her palm against my cheek, her gaze boring into mine. She seems to be searching my eyes for something, and I notice the frown on her lips when she can't find it.

"You've changed so much since that night," she says.

"If you didn't have the same face, I might mistake you for someone else entirely." She rubs her thumb over my cheek. Something that used to comfort me, but now makes me feel nothing. Her gaze falls behind me to Neytiri. She smiles but it's filled with pity.

"Poor child. To have the heart of a heartless man," she says. She pulls her hand away from my face and turns away from me walking to the door. She pauses, looking over her shoulder.

"Safe travels, Cassian. You know you will always have my loyalty. I will see you when the time comes."

Hynden gently closes the door leaving me alone with Neytiri once again. I look back to where Neytiri lays and make my way to the bed, laying down next to her.

I run my finger over her cheek, feeling electricity from where our skin meets.

"You are so lucky to not remember the death of your tribe," I say.

I relive the horrors of losing my people and family every day of my life. I can also remember taking hers. I know the pain she would feel if she remembered that day.

My eyes travel to the mark on her face. The mark that I gave her. Symbols of the ancients are a big deal. They form on our bodies over time with maturity and mastering of certain gifts. They are what make us unique among our people. Giving Neytiri my mark keeps her memories at bay, along with her power. But it would seem that my mark is weakening as she matures, her memories fighting to come to the surface. It may be time to give her another mark, maybe more to ensure my control over her.

I try and feel some form of guilt at my manipulations, but I feel none.

I smile. Hynden is right.

I have changed.

Neytiri

I jolt awake, looking around. I groan, holding my head to try and dampen the pounding in my skull. I look around to see that I'm back in my room. The light is shining in from the morning sunrise, casting a soft glow across the room.

A room that I don't recognize.

"You're awake." I jump, looking in the corner to see Cassian watching me with a steady gaze and an emotionless expression. I immediately think back to the dreams I was having, but as I try and recall them, nothing comes to mind. They were so real though. I flinch from the sudden throbbing in my head.

"What happened?" I ask. I look at Cassian in confusion and he leans back in his seat taking a deep breath before blowing steam from between his teeth. I watch mesmerized as it rises but doesn't dissipate like normal fog usually does. He stands walking to the window and opening it so that the steam wafts out.

"You took in too much of my hedon," he says. The word sounds familiar. I then remember Xavien using it. All my memories come back to me and I recall the night we went together to the swimming hole. I was in the water with him and then there was a fog, and we kissed and... I narrow my gaze at him.

"I didn't take it in. You surrounded me with it," I say. I see the corner of his mouth twitch.

"True," he says.

He finally stands from the seat across the room and sits on the edge of the bed. My heart speeds up from the close proximity of his body. My eyes fall to his lips. Lips that were on mine only a few hours ago. He looks straight into my eyes.

"I wanted to test you. I wanted to see how much you could take. I might have over done it a bit," he says. I try and see if there is any hint of amusement in his gaze, but there is none.

I blink in confusion.

"W... why?" I ask. I can feel the fear of him creeping back into my soul.

"In the past, the Ikniri were known to adapt and create. My hedon is used to weaken my enemies. Or pleasure those if I wish it. But the Ikniri have always been able to sense the threat, and counter it, leaving them unaffected."

He reaches out, and I have to fight myself to sit still as he touches my cheek. My eyes widen as I look deep into those bright red orbs and see something entirely evil.

"But you have no counter or awareness. And that makes my plans very easy," he says. I can barely breathe from my nerves. He smiles, but it's not at all kind.

"Don't worry. I won't use it to harm you. Now that I see you are not a threat to me," he says. He places a quick kiss on my lips and stands to leave the room.

"We will be leaving soon," he says with his back to me as he makes his way to the door.