Title: Escape
Series: Crossing Nuwa, Book One
Author: Sean Ian O’Meidhir, Connal Braginsky
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: 09/13/2021
Length: 62900
Genre: Paranormal, LGBTQIA+, bears, shifters, alpha male, magic users, mage, virgin, action, technology
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Description
Rare male weresnake Robbie has had his whole life decided for him down to his meals. But when the time comes for him to perform an unspeakable duty to his clan, he runs.
San Francisco Pride is in full swing when technomage Theo spots a scared-looking young man with brilliant emerald eyes. He’s only looking for a hookup, but before he knows why, he’s taking Robbie home and introducing him to champagne and enchiladas. He doesn’t have any intention of falling in love.
Robbie doesn’t want to return to his clan, at least not without trying to fit a lifetime of experiences into a week, but every day he stays puts Theo in more danger. One week of freedom leads to sexual awakening and adventure… but they’re going to need all their wits and Theo’s magic to fight for their future.
Escape
Connal Braginsky and Sean Ian O’Meidhir © 2021
All Rights Reserved
We ate the delicious hamburgers in silence, and I was grateful for a moment to try to gather my thoughts. A mage? I wasn’t even sure what that meant. Did he mean he was a mind reader? Or like a sage? Someone who studied information?
Mother had taught me the histories of the Nüwa and that we were superior to all other shapeshifters, who were barely more than animals and not at all organized like we were. I knew about fae, who we were on par with, spirits of the land who were also mostly solitary but sometimes banded together for their own purposes. And then of course humans, who were our prey. Though I had never actually drunk directly from a human, as Mother had always fed me cows’ blood from a glass. Nüwa need blood to survive, though not very much.
And indeed, I hadn’t met any pure humans. There were my aunts, some full Nüwa, some simply carrying the genes, and their children, who I was allowed to play with until I turned thirteen. After that my cousins were not allowed over any longer, and for the last five years, I was told about my only real purpose…
I couldn’t tell Theo, a stranger, any of this. Even if he was a mage. Finally I had to ask, “What’s a mage?”
Theo seemed to have forgotten I was there and looked up with several fries hanging from his mouth. “You first,” he challenged without fully swallowing. “Tell me what you are first. We’ll play truth or truth. I ask a question, you ask a question. Sound fair? We can switch to dare later,” he added with that arousing half smile that shot through me, making me shift uncomfortably in the chair.
I busied myself with nibbling on one of the amazingly good fries. I had never heard of them before. Through my entire life, I had only eaten what Mother or my aunt allowed me. Usually Ms. Matlock, our housekeeper and cook, provided a meat—steak, fish, or chicken—and a vegetable for dinner, salads and soups for lunch, and always oats for breakfast. While my cousin had told me about all kinds of “junk food,” I had never been allowed it. After tasting them, I concluded that fries were my new favorite food. Well, next to blood.
Could I trust this man? I mean, Mother would find me soon anyway, and I might as well enjoy the freedom while it lasted. Maybe I could tell him a little?
“Nüwa,” I choked out. I hadn’t meant it to sound so pathetic.
Theo cocked his head to the side. “What now?”
“I’m…Nüwa,” I repeated, my heart pounding in my ears. It was not only the first time I was talking to someone outside of my family, but also the first time I had actually said what I was before. I mean, I was raised knowing that I would be able to shift into a snake when my shifting abilities began in puberty, and I had a great time moving between forms and enjoying the new sensations in my body. But I had never talked to an outsider, let alone explained something, which it appeared I was going to have to do. “Weresnake,” I added, barely above a whisper. It was my turn to smile as Theo straightened up and studied me through his glasses.
“Let’s see,” he instructed.
I sat motionless for a moment. The last time I had shifted was in front of Mother a few weeks before, and I had never shifted in front of anyone else. Then I remembered, hedging, “You said truth. Dares later?”
I relaxed so much when Theo threw his head back and barked out a laugh. I don’t think I could ever get tired of hearing that laugh. Theo was so different than anyone in my family, who were always so stoic. I’m sure I have never heard Mother laugh.
“I like you.” Theo waggled a fry at me.
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Connal Braginsky is a software engineer who lives in San Diego, California. Diagnosed with high functioning autism, Connal sometimes struggles in social situations, but has an inner world that is always incredibly rich. With an insatiable thirst for knowledge about many esoteric things, Connal brings a lot of personal philosophies and interests to writing.
Sean Ian O’Meidhir is a psychologist who lives in San Francisco, California. Sean is a hedonist who believes in living for today, living every day to the fullest, and enjoying as much as possible. They have been gaming since adolescence and have written about and played hundreds of lives, revelling in the chance to take on new personalities, dramas, even disorders.
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