Chapter 6 - Broken limits

Brandon pushed his power down and tried to focus.

He swallowed as more nausea rose as the small flame inside of him was denied a meal. With the sickness came pure hot agitation. “I’m telling you everything, but you won’t listen to me, Ezekiel!” He said elbowing Ezekiel in his chest as hard as he could.

Ezekiel growled and released him quickly, before Brandon could hit him again. Pivoting on his heel Brandon turned to him so that his back was to the wall. He glared at the beast trembling openly.

“I’m not going to confess anything to you.....So STOP interrogating me at every turn! I didn’t ask to be here! I just want to be left alone!”

Ezekiel, easily unconvinced, smiled at him darkly. He stepped forward and leaned in crowding him. He put his arms on the wall boxing Brandon in. Brandon turned his head away as Ezekiel drew into him or his face would have been inches from Ezekiels.

Ezekiel didn’t speak for a moment and even though Brandon couldn’t see his face he could feel Ezekiels eyes burning through him. Analyzing him.

Finally Ezekiel leaned even closer, and put his lips next to his ear. “You’re really good at that...” he whispered a wicked edge to his tone.

“At what?” Brandon questioned not understanding. Brandon flinched away as Ezekiels breath hit his ear, but there was nowhere for him to go.

Brandon glanced back at Ezekiel, but was shocked when he came eye to eye with sharp shining cat eyes. Pupils contracted so sharply that they were now no bigger than a silver of wood bit into him. Brandon didn’t like being seen through the beasts calm gaze. It was too unflinching. Far too understanding.

“At deflecting...you’re honestly the best. I’m actually starting to wonder if you’re a little bit delusional...or maybe thats not it...” Ezekiel answered with a controlled tension in his voice that sent both thrill and anxiety across Brandon’s nerves as Ezekiel spoke next to his ear. “You tell me to move and you want me to stay. You tell me to be quiet when you want me to talk. You tell me you don’t want me when you DO want me.” With no hesitation of apology Ezekiel’s palms and fingertips traveled down Brandon’s chest suggestively. The hammering of his heart against Ezekeils palms was as undeniable as the shudders that rocked him in that moment. Brandon couldent deny how much he was being affected.

“You act like you’re afraid of my touch. Why? What would happen if I held you....tasted your lips? What if I had you completely at my mercy....where you want to be? Would that be so wrong? Why can’t we just be truthful with each other...and about how we feel? What we both want?” Brandon swallowed as he felt the energy between them turn electric.

Because truthfully every time you touch me, I sort of want to kill you?

Brandon thought to himself. He wanted to move aside, but he didn’t dare touch Ezekiel back in anyway. He didn’t want to get drawn into this moment. He was paralyzed by the raw magnetism between them. The pull that his powers were only fueling. Brandon knew that Ezekiel had no idea what he was playing with. No idea what danger he was stroking.

“You act like you hate me sometimes but when it comes down to it...” Ezekiel continued to speak softly, so that even more than a scream his words penetrated “All the words melt away in the end.” He placed a hand over Brandon’s heart, it thumped inside of his chest, increasing in speed. “All the riddles and secrets don’t matter anymore...It’s just you and me and what your holding back.”

Ezekiels hand skimmed up his chest, past his collar bone, caressed his throat and stopped at his chin. So gentle, so achingly bitter. Ezekiel stretched out his fingers and rubbed his thumb across Brandon’s bottom lip. “Your right here with me and I want to know...” He whispered more leaning in. “Let me in. Let me see you.”

Then Ezekiel kissed him....just below his ear where his pounding pulse could likely be felt. He kissed him again a little closer to his mouth, then he kissed him again and Brandon closed his eyes. Ezekiel kissed his way closer and closer to Brandon’s mouth but still he didn’t kiss him fully. Instead Ezekiel came real close so that his lips brushed the side of Brandon’s mouth,

“Why won’t you let me help you? Whatever it is I promise I will try to understand...” he finished with a rumble in his voice that made Brandon shiver against his will. Brandon was sure that his heart was going to burst as he felt it nearly shatter with the desire to kiss the man.

“You can’t understand it...not this!” Brandon moaned in pitiful misery.

But.....he was at his limit. What puny strength he still possessed, the flame suddenly tore to shreds. Brandon struggled to take in a breath that wasn’t full of Ezekiel. His scent, his breath, his body was all around him, in his head. In his blood. Brandon wanted to scream as the energy inside of him buckled, it gnashed through him. Tendrils of power trickled out of him and no matter how hard he fought it, he felt the energy inside of him latch into Ezekiels body.

Feeding....Ezekiel jumped slightly at what must have been a painful touch to his soul, then he closed his eyes as the power poured over him. Brandon let out a moan as Ezekiel’s essence.....the taste of his life took him over. A red hot knife of pleasure crawled up and down his spine and groin. In moments his cock was hard and his breathing had turned erratic.

Brandon instantly felt disgusted with himself. He was sure that the touch of the Flame was painful.....and yet the look on Ezekiels face was anything but that. He looked awe struck. “What the hell...” he began to say before a familiar voice drowned out Ezekiels words.

“Brandon!?...Ezekiel!? Whats up? What’s taking you guys so long....!”

Nate bellowed. He came barreling back into the sparing room breaking what little hold the flame had been able to cast over him. Brandon used the small amount of life that had taken from Ezekiel against the flame. He beat it down in anger. He chopped it apart. He felt it die away inside of him and become as silent as a dying ember.

Nate turned his head in their direction and froze. He ceased waltzing further into the room as he realized what he had interrupted.

“Oh! Uh sorry guys...” He said with a bashful grin. Eyes wide he turned and went right back out of the door.

But neither Brandon or Ezekiel had the time to care. Brandon took a deep cleansing breath and almost passed out as his hollow sickness quickly returned with a horrible gut twisting wrench.

IT wasn’t enough! Take more!

The flame was insatiable, but Brandon refused to obey it. He wished he could just shut down the way he had in the forest, but no darkness took him. Instead here he was.

Ezekiel stepped away from him. He was staring down at himself in wonder the pain from having is life eaten away rendering him speechless.

What have I done!

Brandon thought in disgust, then he doubled over as all the contents of his stomach made a move north.

Brandon just managed to keep his food down, but he knew that he needed to get away from Ezekiel. He straitened up, ignoring Ezekiels voice as he called his name over and over.

Brandon ran. He ran out of the sparing room, past Nate who also called his name; to the stair case. Brandon took the steps to his room by threes, until he got to his floor. Then he went down his hall and when he came to his door he slammed it closed behind him. He was in such a panic and he was so focused on grabbing the small waste basket by the bedside table that he didn’t even sense that he had failed to lock himself in his room. Sour burned him as he got rid of the orange juice he had consumed earlier that morning.

God Im never drinking orange juice again!

Brandon thought to himself as he pulled the basket away from his face. He set the basket down and made his way to the bathroom sink. But not before he got sick again in the toilet. After that he turned to the sink and threw cold water on his face and rinsed his mouth.

He slapped the knob to shut off the water and tried to walk back to the bed, but he was soon shaking too bad. Just as his stomach settled the fever came. It burned as it settled over him like tar. In only a few moments.

New cold sweat broke out all over his skin as the heat swept over him. Dizzy from the rapid decline he didn't have the strength to stop himself from collapsing. At first Brandon wasn’t to worried.

Hed spent many a night alone on the floor struggling with the sickness, and the dreams....and the memories.

But distantly as his consciousness began to slip away he realized that his door was opening!

Someone was coming in!

“Brandon?” Ezekiels voice called as he pushed the door open wider. Brandon’s horror knew no bounds as he slipped away into his recurring dreams.