Shadows of Obligation
Chapter Two: Shadows of Responsibility
Elowen shifted on the leather cushion, her thighs still aching from the previous night's activities. She was a skilled horse rider, but her mount now demanded different abilities. She sat on a mischievous stag with a night sky-colored coat. Thalion called it a skydancer. Its antlers were as dark as Elowen's hair, each tip sporting a gleaming beacon that stood out even in the midday sun.
Thalion had left most of his army in Aurelian, under the command of a cousin, while he and his wife headed back to the fae realm and his castle, Pyreheart Citadel. Only the priest, Diarmuid, and five of the guard members accompanied them.
Elowen glanced at Diarmuid. Thalion was away with one of the guards on a scouting mission, leaving her in the care of the priest.
Diarmuid had given her a choice during her marriage ceremony. But it was purely illusion. She shifted in the saddle, her bottom stinging from Thalion's slaps.
She needed to know more about her husband and his people. If she didn't, she'd end up like her father, empty and alone. She focused her attention on Diarmuid again. "Why does Thalion hurry to return?"
Silver eyebrows lifted on Diarmuid's black forehead. "Thalion, my lady."
Elowen bit the inside of her cheeks. "Thalion, my lady."
The priest patted her shoulder. "In the fae realm, titles are important, even among family. For now, that's how he should be addressed." He waited until Elowen agreed with a nod, then continued, "According to Brehon law, your marriage is confirmed. Yet, under Queen Mab's laws, the union of an eirnacht must be consummated in his heartland. Thalion must bed you in Pyreheart."
A tiny sliver of light shone in Elowen's heart. Is there a way around this? "What if he doesn't?"
Diarmuid's silver eyes gleamed with seriousness as they stared into hers. "Queen Mab declared your lands open to any who could defend them. If Thalion doesn't claim you, war would return to Aurelian."
A chill ran through Elowen. The people back home wouldn't survive another war. Her thoughts drifted away, the road vanishing, replaced by the colorful leaves of trees beneath a blood-red sky as sidhe lords marched across the farms, causing havoc once more.
Lysander wouldn't withstand a second loss. His people wouldn't either. Elowen tightened her grip on the reins. 'Could I survive this?'
Diarmuid studied her, his fingers closing around a cauldron pendant. "Your marriage to Thalion is legally binding. But based on Queen Mab's laws, the union of an eirnacht must be physically consummated in his heartland."
If she submitted, everyone back home would live. Elowen stared at her hands. Would there be anything left of me afterwards?
"Lord Thalion will help protect Aurelian from others, won't he?" The question came with effort as terror clawed at her.
Diarmuid eyed her. "He legally must. He has accepted Lysander's allegiance, and your hand in marriage."
If she complied, everyone would survive. Elowen studied her hands. But would any part of me remain after he had his way with me?
"Why... Why does he have to carry this out in Pyreheart?" The heat of embarrassment blush warmed her cheeks. "Isn't our marriage good enough?"
Diarmuid brushed his fingers over his pendant. "Our magic, especially ours, is closely tied to sexual intercourse and bloodshed. It's a part of fae existence. Despite our shared laws, despite the Gods watching over us, our people are different."
Her gaze drifted away, but fear tightened her throat. 'What will this do to me?'
She cleared her throat, fighting back emotion. "How did you find out about our mother?"
"Your eyes betray you," he murmured, patting her leg. "Fairy won't discriminate against a half-human."
Skydancer hooves brought Diarmuid's return to the present as Thalion and Fergus got back. Elowen racked her mind with the priest's words, seated in their traveling tents later that night.
After Thalion helped Elowen down from the skydancer, he took care of her on the journey, ensuring her comfort. His behavior mystified Elowen, especially once he ordered two tents to be set up, one for himself and the other for her.
During the ride, Thalion treated her kindly, despite the pain he'd inflicted recently. This confusion only increased when he set up separate tents.
During the following evening, he approached her and plucked a tent flap to one side. Despite his earlier harsh actions, he moved gently. "May I help you settle in?"
She smiled shakily, staring at the miniature kingdom outside. The flames from the cooking fires danced on his face. "Thank you."
Thalion installed her in her tent, making it feel homely. "Good night, Elowen."
"Good night, Thalion."
After he returned to his tent, she felt his magic enter her tent. It glided over her body, stroking and soothing her, healing her thighs. The comfort lulled her to sleep.
The next day, Elowen's clothes remained on the ground outside her tent. In their place lay a tunic designed for riding, its fabric as soft as a gardener's palm. Flanked by Thalion's waistline, it seemed custom made. It and the breeks beneath it appeared enticingly tight on him.
While she dressed, Thalion emerged from his tent, wearing a tunic intended for riding, making her heart beat faster.
She ate the meal Fergus, the scout and cook, provided for her while Bran, Eamon and Celia played dice to determine the watch order. The two male guards won, and Celia rolled her eyes as she accepted the middle watch. They chuckled, their bright blue eyes glowing in the firelight.
During the dinner, Elowen's gaze wandered to the canvas tents. Thalion had chosen to spend the previous night with her. Now, however, he chose not to. She interlaced her fingers, watching the flames.
Their union wasn't officially sealed until he slept with her in Pyreheart. He was Thalion's victor, but also her protector. Lysander and the townspeople relied on Elowen to keep the pact intact.
Aurelian couldn't afford for her to gamble this alliance if Queen Mab had indeed targeted them.
Elowen traced imaginary lines in the sand, her muscles tense as she considered Lysander's options.
No human king would come to their aid. They were too close to the unseelie realm border, and all their neighbors had disliked her father. No time had passed since his death for him to change their opinion.
Thalion would impose a tax, but his men would guard their people.
I want to feel his touch again.
A tremor raced through her, recalling the mounting wave of pleasure that pulsed through her groin.
What will be left of me if I learn his desires? He already possesses my body...
But they lost the war. She closed her eyes and reinforced her courage, even as fear pounded in her chest.
As her husband rose to leave, she approached him, heat flooding her neck and cheeks. "May I share your tent, my lord?"
His starlight eyes locked onto hers. "You were half asleep and near tears last night, and now you're volunteering for more?"
Elowen lifted her chin. "I'm your wife."
"Indeed you are." His predatory smile appeared, and he unfastened the tent flap, gesturing for her to enter.
Touching her spine with trepidation, she entered the tent, stopping before the bedroll covered by a fur blanket. Her shoulders hunched.
What am I doing? Insanity...
"Don't tell me you now have cold feet?" Thalion's hands secured her waist.
Elowen inhaled deeply. "No, my lord."
A darkness enveloped him, a sharp glint in his eyes. "Good."
Every aspect of her shivered at his touch. Elowen struggled not to look away, but his stare held her. His mouth took hers in a passionate kiss. She clung to him, reacting to his aggressive caresses.
This time, he loosened the laces of her corset. The traveling gown slid off and landed carelessly on the floor. He removed her chemise, tangling her in silky fabric. She shivered chilly in the cool air inside the tent, visible under the faint glow of a fairy lantern.
Thalion gestured to the bedroll. "Lie down and spread."
Her heartbeat quickened, and she contemplated his intentions. Is he only going to take me this time?
He dragged her hands away, displaying her naked body to his view. "If I were to take you outside and spear you in the evening sky, my guards would be grateful for the entertainment. Perhaps I'll invite Celia. She enjoys women."
"No, my lord." Tears moistened her eyes. The kind, supportive husband of the road had vanished, replaced by the cruel master of the bedchamber. Her body craved his touch.
He steered her toward the bedroll, slapping her palms away. "Then lie down and spread or we'll put on quite a show."
Shivering, Elowen complied. The rough furs prickled her back, making her senses more aware. She'd come to him. He could do whatever he desired. And she had invited him.
He could leech all my life from me.
Her husband discarded his clothes, leaving only the ogham rune that hung from his neck. Her eyes closed, expecting to be violated. But he didn't touch her. She opened one eye and peered at him.
He knelt between her legs, stroking his tense cock. His gaze locked onto her, consuming her.
What does he plan to do? Her body trembled as she anticipated his next action.
Did anyone ever touch you there prior to me? He caressed the light hair surrounding your folds.
You bit your lip. What will he do next? The cold dread interlaced with the stimulation luring you. "No, my master."
"Did you touch yourself? I can tell from the blush consuming your cheeks." He chuckled. "But if nobody else touched you, then you've got a lot to learn about pleasure."
You recoiled, but you had no place to run. His mouth landed on your breast, fingernails pinching your other nipple. Your skin tingled with each touch. He scratched under your little orbs, leaving red crescents on your alabaster skin. You squirmed under his touch, despising how well this game captivated you.
He pushed on your stomach. "Keep still." The command thundered out as a growl.
His tongue traced a wet line across your navel and you couldn't help but wiggle your backside against the fur. He struck your thigh then, causing a brief, severe discomfort that heightened the pleasure churning within you.
Your eyes burned with the humiliation. "I'm sorry, my... my master."
"My lustful human." Thalion smirked, glancing at you from the expanse of your body. "I should spank you for your insubordination."
This prompted a groan from you, the memory of the previous night's severe slaps making you squirm. You bit your lip, yearning but desiring you weren't.
Is this my debased fairy blood surfacing at last? Am I like my mother?
Thalion smirked, his eyes illuminating with dark foreknowledge. As he stood, he pointed at you. "Lie still."
You shivered among the furs as he searched through his belongings. Every sound made you start. When he returned, he gripped the tips of a soft, deer-made flogger. Your body quivered. You couldn't take your eyes off the leather strands.
Squatting again, he brushed the tips over your breast and belly. "For every time you move, you'll earn a stroke." His fingers slid over the hollow of your hip and glided across your slit. You gasped. Your body quivered involuntarily.
Thalion laughed, flicking his flogger across your left breast. Pain ladened with desire pulsed through you, making you writhe against him. He administered another strike, this time on your right breast.
Tears streamed down your face, even as your womanhood quivered. You wanted more and detested yourself for craving it.
"Have I selected the wrong disincentive?" He snapped the flogger against the soft flesh of your stomach. "Should I trade the flogger for a horse whip?"
You whimpered under the mischief twinkling in his smile, a wetness forming between your legs. "No." You struggled for stillness, clutching onto the furs.
He lashed your thighs. "No, who?"
Tears dropped, delicious pain and desire thrumming in your throat. "No, my... my master."
Thalion leaned forward, his lunar eyes gleaming with inhuman malice. "Excellent. Because pain is not tonight's lesson."
You gasped as he kissed your womanhood. All thought abandoned you.
He bit your pearl and licked around your opening. You lifted your hips to meet him, and he teased you with his tongue. Back arching, you groaned as the radiant moon pattern surfaced beneath his fair skin.
Without warning, he drew back, denying you the heaven you sought, leaving you yearning and hungry for his touch.
"No. Please." You writhed against the furs. Raging desire coursed through you.
He laughed and slashed you with the flogger, leaving red marks across your breasts. "Please, who?"
You shivered, panting harshly. "Please, my master."
Thalion sat back on his heels, stroking his fair cock. His lids partially veiled his eyes, his glow blazing like a full moon. "Do you want this?"
You murmured weakly, resignation coating your voice. "Yes, please, my master." You strained closer to him.
He gripped you with a hand on your abdomen, pushing you back into the furs. "What did I command?"
You breathed heavily, your mouth dry and limbs quivering. "Lie still."
"That's right." His voice deepened as he gripped your flesh. "Yet, you do not seem to listen."
He slashed you again, with the flogger laying flaming trails over your delicate skin. You struggled to stay still.
"Tonight's lesson is about obedience." He offered her a sinister grin. "Also, deprivation." His lips invaded her femininity again.
Elowen tried to follow his instructions, but the rhythmic movement of his tongue and the pressure of his teeth against her sensitive hood caused her hips to rock. "Pray, my master... Please let me be yours." She was past feeling self-conscious now, the humiliation of asking her opponent for satisfaction fueling her yearning and shame simultaneously.
The top of the wave swelled within her, but once again he stopped her just before the peak, swatting away her hands when she reached down to play with herself.
Elowen sobbed, her lower lip caught between her teeth as she humped the air. The lash's soft touches on her femininity ignited a desperate need.
The moonlit shadow from Thalion's body overshadowed the lantern, a dazzling silver aura forming around the tent.
Once more, he got her close to the edge of ecstasy, only to lift his lips at the last second. When she jerked and arched her back, he punished her with the leather flick of the lash, stoking her longing, laughing at her cries.
She glared at him, her cheeks wet with tears. "I abhor you."
He flogged her breasts. "Who do you detest?"
Helplessly, she lifted her hips, wanting his lash. "I abhor you, my master."
The strap lashed down on her again, kindling a fire within her.
Eventually, he sat back on his heels, a malicious smile etched on his face. "Say what you wish." Thalion rubbed his cock through the cold air.
"Please, my master, your phallus inside me." Elowen gasped out the words, her face flushing with regret.
"Do you request me to copulate with you?"
She gasped and nodded, but he shook his head, the silver strands of his hair glistening in the dark.
"Say the plea." His voice was sharp, like the rune ogham hanging from his neck.
Gathering the courage to look him in the eyes, Elowen whispered the words. "Please, my master... Your phallus in me." Shame flooded through her as pleasure engulfed her lower abdomen.
She detested this.
He impaled her like a god, penis thrusting into her deep channels. "Since you're so polite."
The light beneath his skin pulsed, dwarfing the dim lantern. The walls of her femininity clenched with each thrust, his fingers hooking underneath her buttocks, hoisting her up as they moved as one. Elowen grabbed the furs, moving in rhythm with him. The ogham rune brushed against her breasts, flickering sparks of warmth against her twitching skin.
He let out a shout, cumming inside her like a shooting meteor. The wave washed over Elowen and she shouted his name, a rush of intensity captivating her.
He throned into her again, holding them at the climax. A third stroke took Elowen to the brink of ecstasy.
Even the fey had limits, and Thalion withdrew from her, tumbling to the side. They lay next to each other, panting and gasping for air.
The night breeze passed over their bare skin, taming their spent passion. The lash marks stung against her flesh. Elowen closed her eyes, fighting to hold back tears. She had given herself to him completely.
Queen Mab would no doubt regard her as dishonorable if she knew what desperate things she begged from the Fae lord.
Thalion's lips kissed her forehead. "I considered carefully, petitioning Queen Mab to give me the first opportunity."
Elowen's eyes bulged, his words penetrating the fog of lust-infused humiliation. He had appealed to the unseelie queen... "What do you mean, my master?"
"Since petitioning her, Queen Mab declared your lands fair game, but she owed me a favor." Thalion smiled, his features uncommonly hard and dark against the light filtering through his body. "I asked for one year and one day where mine would be the only army allowed in Aurelian, and my queen consented."
Elowen bit her lip, her mind racing with understanding. His regions bordered Aurelian - it made sense that he would seek the first chance after the unseelie queen allowed them to conquer.
But his words turned chance into purpose.
Thalion raised an eyebrow. "That's something I handle, not you." He flicked his wrist towards the lantern, causing the colorful dust to settle and the light to fade away. His pale skin, illuminated by the moonlight, faded to darkness as he drifted off to sleep, leaving the tent in the dark. Elowen lay beside him, furrowing her brow. Thalion requested permission to conquer their lands, spending a large sum of money to claim them. Why did he want this? What did Aurelian possess that he desired?
Or was it her?
Anxiety gripped her. What if it had to do with her mother? "They'll leave you feeling empty."
A frightening thought occurred to her. Perhaps Thalion wanted to marry them by fairy law, not just Brehon law. Did he intend to turn her into a fae?
She shuddered, pulling her knees up to her chest. "No. I swore I'd never."
However, the questions his careless statement raised kept her awake for most of the night.
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