Between Light and Dark by Elissa Wilds

here on the Earth plane."
    "Why do I need an intermediary? Isn't there someone
who can contact you directly? I mean, you being a god and
all?" Laurell asked.
    "The gods and goddesses cannot contact me-or any of us
for that matter-without leaving a metaphysical trail that
would be all too easy to track. Their energy is very thick." As
he sat fully upright, the sheets pooled at Axiom's waist, baring the magnificence of his massive chest to her gaze.
    Laurell's eyes were drawn there, but she forced herself to look at his face instead. He licked his lips. Had he done that
on purpose? The yearning started to roll through her belly
and snake its way toward her thighs. Quickly, she shielded.
Hmmm. She liked being able to do that.

    She blinked and focused on his face. "I'm sorry, what did
you say?"
    "I was explaining that the gods and goddesses cannot
contact us here without being detected by the Umbrae."
Axiom tilted his head to one side. "If they could assist us
here, I know they would. It is an honor to be part of this
mission."
    Something about the way he said those words made her
think.
    "What exactly do you get out of this? I mean, besides the
esteemed privilege of having sex with me?"
    Her sarcasm elicited a small smile from him. "Is saving
mankind not reason enough?"
    Laurell narrowed her eyes. Something in her gut told her
there was more. "There's something else you want, but what
I can't figure out is what a god could possibly need."
    He shrugged and brushed a piece of lint from the bedsheets. "I wish to be the first Gray to serve on the Divine
Council. When this mission is successful, I'll have proven
myself worthy."
    "I see." The straightness of his spine and the way he refused to meet her gaze told her she'd hit upon a touchy subject. "This Divine Council ... they're the decision makers
up there in god world, right?"
    "Yes," he confirmed.
    "Why aren't Grays allowed to be part of the Council?"
    Axiom cleared his throat. "It is how it has always been."
As if that were answer enough.
    "So they need you, but they resent needing you."
    His jaw clenched. "They tolerate us because they must. Without our ability to neutralize the Umbrae, the darkness
would infiltrate the Light Realm."

    Laurell shook her head. There was racism in godland?
Maybe gods and humans were more alike than she'd thought.
"What does the Council get out of sending you to Earth?
Why do they care what happens to us here if they've got a
bunch of Gray Gods to keep the Umbrae at bay?"
    "Humans and gods were formed from the same source.
We are all connected. Therefore, what happens to humans
affects the gods and goddesses. When only a marginal
number of humans are infected by the Umbrae, it will
have little impact in the Light Realm. But if the Umbrae
are able to turn enough humans, it could mean the end of
us all."
    She frowned. That didn't sound good. "And you? Were
you formed from the same source too?"
    Axiom nodded. "Yes, but the Grays are more recent creations, considered to be anomalies."
    "You mean you're an accident? I don't get it. This source
you spoke of, I guess it's like what we think of as God,
right? I thought God didn't make mistakes."
    "I do not wish to discuss this further. Your incessant
questions are bothersome."
    She clenched her teeth. "Oh, excuse me for wanting to
understand why I've been kidnapped to save the world."
    "You sound angry. This is-"
    "Yeah, I know," she cut him off. "An honor." She sighed
loudly. "Well what if I don't want this honor? What if I
don't care that I agreed to do it? I clearly didn't realize what
I was getting into. Can't the Council pick someone else?
Isn't there a backup plan?"
    He sighed loudly. "If you refuse to cooperate, there will
be a meeting of the Council and a contingency plan will be instigated, but I am not privy to what that plan may be.
And you are missing a very important point."

    "What's that?"
    "Even if by some chance the Council decides to relieve