Chapter 23
The shuttle ride to Botune was strained, though a transformation overcame Lena as they got closer and closer to the planet.
The physical pain of the separation was lessening, that clenching in her heart that was overwhelming anytime she was off her pain meds, but an intense sensation of despair began to infiltrate her.
Somehow, she knew it was Screl, his emotions seeping into hers as they approached Botune, and anxiety turned into fierce determination.
Dronzal landed the shuttle without issue on the roof of the palace, echoing the memory of the last time Lena had been there.
Two bulky guards ushered them through the maze without a word, but the final destination was clear.
The Sovereign was expecting them.
The room was eerily silent, all eyes on Lena as she stood before the Sovereign, who was seated on his magnificent throne.
His offspring sat on either side of him, Princess Vottol giving her a serious look as she made her proclamation before the Thren royalty.
“Oh, you are so certain that you are fated to my offspring,” the Sovereign said, a hint of laughter bubbling on the tip of his tongue. “You, a human.”
“I am. And I ask you to release him from his imprisonment and let him return to Henios with me.”
The Sovereign laughed, a deep tinkling noise that buzzed in her ear like an insect. Four eyes focused on her once more, darkening to almost black as they roved over her body.
“You are willing to prove it?”
Prove it? How could she prove what she felt inside?
“Yes,” she answered without thinking, without considering the consequences.
Vottol looked horrified as she sat on her throne, eyes glued to Lena.
“We shall see, then.”
The Sovereign nodded at one of the guards, who hurried from the room without a word. Tension strained the air, like a heavy raincloud ready to burst. Were they going to get Screl? And what did the Sovereign mean by proving their bond?
There was still so little she knew about Threns, but in her heart, she was certain she was doing the right thing. Already the hollowness in her chest was dissipating, filling with hope once more.
A few minutes later, there was a shuffling at the entryway, two guards escorting Screl until he stood in front of the dais.
A wave of melancholy washed over Lena, and she almost cried out, but kept her lips sealed, waiting for the Sovereign’s order. Screl eyed her with a look of pure fear, his hands restrained behind his back with cuffs similar to what he’d used on her.
“What are you doing here?”
His voice entered her head, though he hadn’t moved his mouth, the sensation comforting and strange at the same time.
“I don’t want you to be harmed.”
Lena knew her message was delivered, because Screl’s mouth curled ever so slightly, a smile that showed he was alright despite the dark bruises covering his bare chest and shoulders.
A sense of peace settled over her, even with the danger she knew they were in, the mere proximity of her fated telling her she’d done the right thing.
“My offspring, this human endorses your claims that she is your fated.”
Screl stood tall, glaring at his father in a way that he hadn’t been able to the last time everyone was in this room.
“Free us, then. Allow us to go to Henios,” he said, but the Sovereign just laughed.
“I will accept your renouncement and allow you to leave if you can prove to me that you two have bonded. You will enact the joining for all of us to see.”
A jolt lanced through Lena’s chest, Screl’s anger and her fear melding together until they became indistinguishable from each other. She raged too, horrified that this awful male would force his own son to do something like this.
But enough was enough. No matter what her feelings were, she wouldn’t let this tyrant dictate what happened to Screl. Clearly, he had harmed his son in ways she would probably never understand, but it stopped here.
“We’ll do it,” Lena said firmly, and Screl’s eyes met hers, wide with shock.
“You do not have to, amoreth. It will be difficult, but you will survive without me.”
“I want to. I won’t let him win. I won’t let him hurt you anymore.”
The Sovereign laughed, a deep and throaty sound that echoed to the ceiling as he glanced at his guards.
“Well? Bring Prince Rohieth to his throne.”
The two Thren scrambled to pull Screl toward the empty chair. They roughly shoved him to sit, his wrists still cuffed, and returned to their places at the edge of the dais.
“Come, human,” the Sovereign said with an eerie grin. “Come claim my offspring.”
Lena trembled as she stepped toward the throne, though Screl kept his eyes glued to the floor. Even as she stood before him, he refused to make eye contact with her. With one final glance around the room, she got to her knees, forcing him to look at her.
“Don’t do this, amoreth. Just go.”
Perhaps they weren’t so different, not when it came down to their essentials. They had both been irrevocably hurt by people who were meant to protect them and love them.
“I want to. Trust me,” she told him, the sensation of hearing his voice in her head becoming less strange as they communicated without speaking.
With his eyes on her, she unbuckled his pants, jerking them down just enough to reveal two cocks already standing at attention.
Everything about him was an aphrodisiac, his eyes glimmering down at her and the scent of spice that permeated his skin, the ridges on his lower abdomen and the tentacles undulating weakly behind him.
She hated seeing him this way, and yet her body reacted on instinct as she reached for his lower cock and gripped the shaft firmly, her core aching with the need to be filled.
Screl seemed equally affected, his eyes half-lidded as he gazed down at her, muscled arms bulging as he strained to break free from his cuffs.
Lena gripped his thigh and nodded, trying to reassure him as she brought her lips to the tip of his cock, pressing a soft kiss against the tender flesh. The room was deathly silent as she circled her tongue around him, getting him good and wet before opening her mouth and sliding down his shaft.
Screl groaned, but didn’t let his eyes shut, watching her as she bobbed up and down on his cock. The ridges felt electric as they slid past her lips, and when his lower cock was dripping with saliva, she released him, moving quickly to the upper one.
There was something primal about the heat running through her, an urgent need to mate despite the fact that they were in a room with onlookers. Clearly the work of their previous joining, and yet it felt right, like this was where she belonged, on her knees for him.
Screl’s muscles were tense, as if he were trying to contain the desperation coursing through him, but she longed for them to be alone so he could let it all out. Finally, she gave his length one last wet kiss, precum making her mouth water and her body tremble with eagerness.
Lena got to her feet and, before she could second guess, she removed her pants, dropping them in a pile next to the throne. The rest of the room faded away as she straddled him, tentacles circling her waist and tangling in her hair without their normal vigor.
“Focus on us,” Screl said in her mind, and she nodded, every ounce of her attention already absorbed by the male in front of her.
Raising up, she wrapped one arm around his neck, using the other to grip his lower cock firmly. She used the tip to nudge her panties to the side, already wet with her arousal, and slid herself down, her body making room for each ridge as they sank into her one by one.
She knew she should try to be quick, but it was impossible not to linger on the sensation of euphoria filling her body. Now that she knew what was happening, what the strange heat meant, she wanted to cherish it, to focus on each and every nanosecond of pleasure.
“You are so beautiful, Lena.”
The words lit her up with joy, like the stars sparkling in the sky.
Slowly, she settled into his lap, reveling in the fullness of his cock, her sweet warmth squeezing him tight.
His upper cock throbbed against her clit, and she already felt dizzy, praying to whoever would listen that she could make it through this.
Lena raised up, almost letting his cock escape before sitting back down, letting the pleasure shoot up her spine like a bolt of lightning. Screl moaned, his mouth agape as his tentacles tightened their grip, fighting through the weakness.
All other sights and sounds faded from existence; there was nothing else besides her and Screl becoming one.
Each plunge sent fire racing through her, an orgasm building quickly as his upper cock raked across her clit.
She gripped it hard, pressing it against her wetness so it stimulated her with each stroke, her legs quickly beginning to tremble between the bouncing motion and the pleasure coursing through her body.
“Come for me, amoreth. Come for me, and this will all be over. Let me fill you.”
Yes, over. She wanted this to be over.
No, she wanted this to never end—their bodies intertwined, their minds entangled like a mess of thorny roses.
Lena focused on her building climax, on Screl’s abs tensing and his arms straining to reach for her. Once they were free, they could continue this on and on for as long as they wished without any interruptions.
With a final plunge, pleasure jolted up her spine and tingled her limbs, every nerve aflame with desire. But she knew it wasn’t enough, wasn’t the full joining that would prove their bond.
As her cunt clamped onto Screl’s cock, he gritted his teeth, clearly trying to hold back until he was fully sheathed within her.
With trembling legs, Lena raised herself up once more, her juices squelching as she let his length slide out. She held his cocks together, maneuvering herself with some difficulty until they prodded at her entrance, her muscles relaxing on contact like her body knew what it needed to do.
After another deep breath, she looked Screl in the eye, easing herself down as the pleasant fullness sent another jolt through her. She was filled to the brim, ridges brushing her tender interior as Screl bucked into her, needing to give her the release she so desperately craved.
“Give me your seed, amoreth.”
She enjoyed the way his eyes widened as she sent the message his way.
Screl grunted, filling her with cum, her muscles clenching around him as he painted her interior. The spot between her chest glowed bright, that same strange blue as before, a sense of rightness filling her with bliss.
Even if she tried to deny it, this was where she belonged.
Before she could stop herself, she pressed a quick kiss to his lips, his body slack and his own chest flickering with a mirrored glow. She pressed a palm to the spot, heat tingling her fingers and spreading up her arm.
A voice broke through the blissful silence, jolting Lena back to the room.
“So, my offspring was telling the truth.”
Without looking at the Sovereign, Lena slid off Screl’s lap, mourning the loss of his warmth as his seed trickled down her thighs. She quickly dressed, then pulled his pants up, zipping them as best she could.
When she turned, the Sovereign’s eyes were glued to her, a cruel grin on his face.
“Father, I think it is time to let Rohieth and his fated go.”
Vottol was standing in front of her throne, making her way over to them with her mouth pursed into a thin line. She helped Screl up, nodding to a Thren standing behind her chair who hurried and took over supporting the injured prince.
“I suppose so. You were the last of my offspring, and always the most disappointing. It is no wonder that the cosmos have cursed you like this.”
Screl glared, a low growl rumbling in his chest.
“The cosmos have done nothing but bless me, and I will do anything to cherish my mate in a way you never could. My mate will never know pain or hardship, only love and devotion. I will forever be grateful to the Gods for blessing me with my amoreth. And for ridding me of you.”
The Sovereign glared, and Screl wrapped his arm around Lena’s waist, standing his ground in a way that made her swell with pride.
“Be gone, Rohieth. You are no longer my offspring, nor my heir.”
Screl didn’t bother to say another word as he stumbled off the dais, keeping a firm grip on her even as the other Thren supported him. Lena’s last look into the throne room revealed Princess Vottol speaking to the Sovereign before they both disappeared from view.
Lena and Screl were deposited in a room, the same one as before as far as she could tell. Screl slumped onto the bed, and she rushed to his side, trying to find a place to put her hands that wouldn’t touch a dark bruise.
“You came back,” he said without looking at her, rubbing his wrists, which were raw from the cuffs.
“I did,” she replied, hovering awkwardly near the bed.
“Why?” he asked, finally glancing her way with a look of pure despair.
The sensation pierced her heart, all the fear and self-loathing he felt coursing through her veins like they belonged to her.
Gently, she took one of his hands, trying to find the right thing to say, but before she could give her answer, a beeping at the door interrupted them, and Lena began to tremble, Screl’s fear turning into her own.
“Who is it?” he called, standing up with difficulty and placing himself in front of her.
“It is me,” a high-pitched voice hissed, and Screl hurried over, his tentacle grazing the wall and the door whirring open.
Vottol.
“You must leave at once before Father changes his mind,” she said, not bothering with any preamble as she entered the room in a flutter of robes. “I have secured a small ship for you that will take you away from here. There are a few of your crew members who wish to stay with you, but not many.”
She winced, giving her sibling a solemn look as he placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Thank you, Vottol. I appreciate all you have done for me. For us.”
“Oh, Yavriel,” she said, placing a palm to his cheek and holding it there for a moment. “I am sorry for all of this, for what Father has done. But you will be free of him soon enough.”
“And you will be Sovereign,” Screl said, and Vottol’s grimace curled into a slight smile.
When Lena stepped up to them, the princess placed a hand on her chest, right where the glow had burned just minutes ago.
“You two have been given a great gift. Use it wisely. Cherish each other.”
Lena nodded, not trusting her voice as Vottol turned her attention back to Screl.
“Now, you must not delay further. Your ship and crew are waiting in bay five.”
Screl nodded, taking Lena’s hand and heading for the door. He gave his sister one last look before pulling Lena through the entryway and leading them down the hall.