Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Rohak
“Asacrifice was made for you, Child of Fate. Use it well,” an unknown voice rippled through my mind, a hesitant whisper like the barest breeze that gently rustles new spring leaves.
It stirred something within me, a recognition of sorts that blipped into existence before fading just as quickly. I tried to hold onto it as long as possible, but it was like grasping at strands of smoke.
My hands clenched around something soft and yielding, as if my fingers were trying to pull those words back. But instead of understanding, I was met with the feeling of a body beneath my hands.
The rough callouses on my palms rasped against delicate skin as I gently roused from sleep, mind hazy and thoughts sluggish.
It was warm here, wherever I was, with this body pressed tightly against mine.
Their deep breaths puffed against my neck, heating the skin and the blood beneath.
Their fingers tensed and relaxed randomly against my bare chest as if they were reaching for something in their dreams.
Who am I holding?
I tried to pry my eyelids apart, but the effort was too great. Something in my body demanded I keep them closed for just another minute, to bask in the darkness before everything was brought to light.
Leaning into my other senses, I obliged.
My fingertips moved gently across the person’s bare skin, their body mirroring my own nakedness.
Long swoops over their sides indicated full hips and the edge of small yet firm breasts.
Goosebumps erupted over the woman’s skin in response to my touch, and I swore I heard a soft moan as she slept.
The undulating pathway of her bare form was soothing; something about running my hands over her flesh settled the rapid beating of my heart while sending all of my blood south, straight to my cock.
Somewhere, in the deep recesses of my brain where the rational part of my mind was currently trapped beneath this haze, I knew that I should create space between us, at least enough so that our hips weren’t flush together.
But something else insisted I push closer to the woman, my erection bending to slip through her thighs so my shaft was resting against her swollen and wet lips.
A deep groan turned into a growl as I felt this creature’s obvious arousal; her hips lazily rocked back and forth, coating me with her wetness as she rubbed against me.
“That’s it,” I rumbled in my mind, “use me.”
The words were completely foreign, almost as if something—or someone—else was speaking through me to the woman now clutched in my hands as I unconsciously helped her cant her hips.
I thrusted in time to her movements, pulling far enough away that I could feel the head of my cock brush against the small thatch of curls just at the apex of her thighs, before I pulled her body back toward mine, grinding the base of my erection against her clit.
In seconds, she was moaning, her hands scrambling for purchase against my back as she pushed her breasts against my chest once more before throwing her leg over my hip, opening herself up to me.
With one hand, she reached between us, cupping my balls briefly before grasping my shaft and blindly navigating my erection to her warm, soaked core.
A purely animal instinct took over, begging me to thrust forward and seat myself completely inside this woman; to claim her as ours.
Solidify the Bond, that androgynous voice whispered through my mind once more, giving me pause just as I began to push my hips forward. The tip of my cock just barely breached her core, and just that bit had my restraint dissipating like smoke.
Bond? I thought. I’m already Bonded.
The woman nestled her nose against my neck while she wriggled, desperately trying to push me farther inside. I held her hips tight in my hands, the hazy fog of lust and whatever this strange entity was beginning to lift enough for me to actually think.
I scrunched my eyes closed tight, desperately trying to remember how I got here and what happened before I woke to a woman in my bed.
I finally recognized my room—the bed felt like mine, my signature slightly smoky scent lingering on the sheets. But, as I inhaled, I noticed something else there; a faint undertone that was not the sickly-sweet roses so characteristic of Gisei, my Bonded.
No, this was deeper, richer, and more robust. Like a pine forest after a heavy rain, the needles all saturated and bursting with a scent so sharp it almost burned.
Layered over it, though, tempering the stinging thickness of pine, was a faint aroma of parchment.
Not like a new sheaf, but like ancient scrolls so weathered with age and time that they were nearly indecipherable.
Instantly, my eyes flared open as recognition set deep in my bones. My heart raced with the implications of my discovery.
Sure enough, Faylinn lay in my bed, in my arms, her brows creased in what I knew was frustration as a small, nearly indecipherable whine lilted from her lips.
The shock of the situation had my grip loosening on her lush waist for a moment, but that failure was just long enough to allow her hips to push forward, seating my cock further in her pussy.
Faylinn was wet and warm, and I felt her walls tremor around my erection as the voice inside my head begged me to fuck all the way inside.
A small thread of awareness illuminated in my soul, like a golden filament that connected me to the stunning creature beside me. Vague thoughts and emotions filtered through, and my eyebrows rose in shock, realizing that I was feeling Faylinn’s emotions.
Why is Faylinn in my bed? Where was Gisei?
Pain and agony unlike anything I’d ever felt ripped through my mind; an open wound that bled fresh with every pound of my broken heart.
Alois—my oldest friend, my brother, my companion—was dead.
I killed him, just as I killed Gisei.
The reality still felt vaguely out of reach, like a film had been drawn over my consciousness, blanketing everything in numbing grey.
I clung tighter to the soft, supple flesh against my palms, using it to ground me and hold me here to this moment.
In my pain, I pulled her tight against my chest, not realizing that my cock was still resting in her opening.
The movement caused me to sink deeper, the thread that connected us sharpening and pulsating until I could hear Faylinn’s thoughts just as clearly as if they were my own.
“Rohak . . . we can’t,” Faylinn whined in my mind. I froze, dick quivering in her warmth.
“We can’t?” I thought and jumped in surprise when Faylinn responded.
“No,” she whispered aloud this time.
My eyes grazed over her form, noticing the goosebumps of arousal that pebbled her skin and the tightness of her brown nipples that were pressed hard against my chest. Faylinn’s fingers dug deeply into the muscles of my back, her nails biting into my flesh hard enough to cut.
The grit of her teeth and clench of her jaw, however, belied her apparent need. Faylinn’s eyes were still closed so tightly that the corners showed the wrinkles in her skin.
“I won’t hurt you. I wouldn’t survive it,” I whispered a truth to her, knowing she wouldn’t remember it even if she did hear it. My heart rioted with the thought that, despite her body’s desire, Faylinn truly didn’t want me.
Reluctantly, I pulled my erection from her cunt, nearly weeping at the desire to stay inside her. The golden string in my mind rioted, shooting bolts of pain through my skull and body, every cell of my being demanding that I push myself back inside Faylinn.
With a shudder, I retreated far enough away to allow my erection to bob back against my stomach with a wet slap.
The tension in her face eased a fraction even as the rest of her body demanded the same thing I desired.
“Faylinn,” I whispered huskily, my voice tinged both with lust and disuse. “Faylinn, wake up.”
My words did nothing to rouse her from sleep. Instead, she pulled my body further into hers so we were completely flush once more. Faylinn’s head fit perfectly under my chin, and I rested there, closing my eyes to breathe in the smell of her.
With a sigh that conveyed both my comfort and confusion, I wrapped one arm around Faylinn’s waist, anchoring her to me, as the other hand cupped the back of her head. My fingertips found her scalp at the base of her spine, and I rubbed small circles into her skull.
If her response to whatever happened was the same as mine, then there was no doubt that her head was pounding the rhythm of a bass drum.
Slowly, incrementally, her body began to relax, her muscles liquefying and fingers twitching as she fell back into a deeper sleep.
As my arm moved, I caught a quick glimpse of a tattoo dominating my forearm.
It was black, like all other rune tattoos, but had an iridescent shimmer to it similar to the gold I’d seen in the string that connected Faylinn and me.
A quick glance at her arm showed a matching mark.
The shape was similar to the Bonding Rune that tied me to Gisei, though I quickly noted that mark was now grey and mottled, the ink fading into my skin with each passing minute.
What did you do, Faylinn? I mused, both disappointed and elated that she’d Bonded us together.
Faylinn clearly felt the myriad of my emotions because she fidgeted in her sleep, brows drawn over her eyes.
“Sleep, my love. I will be here.” I let the truth of my feelings for her echo for a moment as I simply relished in the feeling of finally—fucking finally—having the fiery, intelligent Rune Master in my arms. That relief, however, was short-lived when the reality of the situation crept into my thoughts.
We were Bonded.
How, I was uncertain. It shouldn’t have been possible—Faylinn had no magic, and I needed a particularly strong Destruction Vessel to keep the rapidly progressing Mage Sickness at bay.
Though now that I actively thought about my condition, none of the previously aggressive symptoms were present.
Yes, I still had a wicked headache and felt overly exhausted, but I assumed those were remnants of Bonding Faylinn and healing from the egregious wounds that should have claimed my life.
Did she Bond me to save me from death?
Faylinn knew how I felt about Forced Bonding; we’d had numerous arguments in the past due to some of her decisions, and yet, she chose to Bond me anyway without my knowledge or consent.
As frustrated as I wanted to be with her, I couldn’t muster the ire. There was no frustration, no righteous anger, just a sense of complete rightness, which scared me more than the fact that we were Bonded.
She’s not for you. Perhaps these were simply the actions of a friend desperate to save another . . . perhaps she will want to lead her own life—separate and away from me.
My heart sank at the thought. As much as I desired this, desired us, Faylinn had some explaining to do, and I wouldn’t let myself give in to what I wanted without both that explanation and her complete consent and understanding.
Body, mind, and soul, Faylinn owned me completely.
Once I had her, once I lay with her, there was no going back. She would be mine just as thoroughly as I was hers.
The Bond pulsed in agreement, comforted by my feelings for Faylinn. I closed my eyes, relishing in the press of her body against mine, the beat of her heart in perfect cadence with my own as if we were one being, one entity.
I found solace in her all-consuming warmth, the steady thrum of the Bond pulling me under to the place where my dreams and desires lived.