Shadowborn

Chapter Forty-Six: Intimacy

Chapter Forty-Six: Intimacy

I woke to the sound of a whimper at my side. Adrenaline surged and I was completely awake in an instant. Rain still fell outside, but it was bright enough to be early morning. I took quick stock and found that everyone was in the tent, looking for who had caused me to wake.

Serena whimpered again. Her eyes were jammed shut, her fists clenched into her chest, and her body curled into a ball. Her teeth clenched so tightly I could hear her teeth grinding, and as I watched her hands started opening and closing.

“Serena,” I whispered, taking her in my arms. “Hey, wake up.” I cradled her face, running my thumb over her cheekbone. “It’s just a dream.”

Her eyes flew open with a cry, bloodshot and teary. She blinked at me, completely confused, then a sob slipped past her lips. She threw herself at me, her hands running over my body in a way that told me exactly what her nightmare had been about.

“I’m alright,” I told her. I guided her hand to where the Valax queen had impaled my abdomen. “I’m okay, Serena. The fight’s over. We’re safe.”

It took her a moment to rein in her short, gasping breaths. I held her tightly the entire time, stroking her hair and whispering reassurances. It would seem there was one benefit to her reliving my memories, and it was staving off the eventual fallout from what she’d seen during the fight.

The others had woken as well. Rhallani immediately wrapped her arms around Serena from behind, sandwiching the blond between us. Tiana hesitantly lay at my side with her hand on my upper arm, her face pinched with worry. Noelle took Serena’s hand in both of hers with a distressed look on her face as well.

“I’ve got you,” I said again, pressing my cheek to her temple.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbled into my chest.

“No apologies, remember?”

She nodded, staying buried. “I was back there, in the fight, trying to heal you, only...I was too slow. Too late. I watched you die,” she whispered.

“I know.” I couldn’t count the number of similar dreams I’d had, before and after Allura’s deal. “Believe me, Serena. I know.”Findd new stories at novelhall.com

“I didn’t mean to wake everyone.”

“Don’t you worry about it for a second,” Rhallani said, brushing Serena’s hair out of her face.

Noelle made a sound of agreement. “You have no control over your dreams. It helps if you can find something to ground you after waking. I use Zaren’s scent.”

I raised a brow at that bit of information, releasing my grip on Serena just long enough to brush my knuckles along Noelle’s jaw. She leaned into the touch with lidded eyes, then pushed my arm back to Serena.

She stopped shaking and tried to sit up, but I didn’t relinquish my grip just yet. “I’m okay,” she promised.

“And?”

A smile tugged at her lips and she snuggled back into me. “Seems we’re all having bad dreams these days,” she said.

Tsuki stood, still wearing my shirt and only my shirt. “I’ll go find some breakfast for us.” She left with Ryoko and Noelle both volunteering to help.

After she left, Rhallani gave me a pointed look. I checked my status to find my Essence had risen yet again to seventy. Three more Essence at some point in the night, which seemed to make her excited. I took a chance to slide the collar of Serena’s shirt aside to look at the handprint on her shoulder. It was better, and it seemed to be healing faster than my own burn, but its existence still worried me.

She shivered when I brushed my thumb across it, but then I trailed some kisses along her collarbone and she sighed happily. I rubbed her back and she trailed her fingers along my chest, occasionally going low enough to brush against the puckered white scar where I’d been skewered, trying to reassure herself that I really was okay.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, and I kept Serena within arm’s reach until I was sure she was fully calm. After, while we were all getting ready, I noticed that Tiana, Serena, and Rhallani were all donning my armor instead of traveling clothes. They were hidden under the thick cloaks that would keep the rain off them, but it did make me feel better knowing they were at least protected. From the way Serena immediately relaxed when hers wrapped around her, I figured she felt the same.

Banishing the bedroll and packing up the tent proved to be a breeze with Elisa’s new contraptions, which earned us more than one soggy, envious glare from the other members of the caravan while they packed up in the morning rain.

The weather took no mercy on us. Our entire day was spent trudging along in rain cold enough to make me miss the snow. Serena was in no mood to talk, but we spent most of the day walking together anyways. She stayed close enough that we were nearly touching, occasionally shooting me grateful glances.

At around midday we finally entered the valley proper that separated Anford from the rest of the kingdom. During the parts of the day where the rain was lighter, I could see the outlines of mountains running parallel to the road. On our right was empty space with a line of trees just visible through the downpour. It wasn’t quite the thick woods we’d traveled through before, but it was more than enough foliage to hide any manner of enemies close enough to present a problem.

By the time the time evening rolled around, pretty much everybody was tired and cranky from a particularly soggy day. Especially after those with higher Strength had to unstick a wagon from a particularly stubborn patch of mud. Realizing everyone needed it, Korey called another early stop.

The horses were taken care of, the wagons set up, and canvas thrown across them to give us some reprieve from the constant rain that had become our companion. Ryoko and Garm got to work making another hefty stew for the caravan, and Korey gave her permission to infuse it with a little mana to give everyone a pick-me-up. While she cooked, I was sent to wait by the fire while the others started setting up the tents.

This time the girls all sat down to eat with me. The stew was easily some of the best I’d had on the road, and I could tell the difference from the first bite. By the end of the bowl, I felt warm and invigorated, and I could tell by the expressions around the camp that more than a few of the others felt the same. We all heaped plenty of praise on a radiant Ryoko, who claimed her spot quickly at my side grinning ear to ear.

After a surprisingly enjoyable dinner, the council of Rhallani reconvened and I was once again left to my own devices. I’d just leaned my head back to close my eyes before whatever Rhallani had planned for me when I felt someone sit down next to me.

I cracked an eye to see the long blond curls of Yen, swept over her near shoulder so she could look at me. “I’d like to talk, Ren.”

I didn’t answer right away, regarding her carefully. I knew little about Yen other than her relationship to Pierce and her propensity for close quarters combat. Other than that, she was a mystery to me. “Sure,” I said.

“About Rastra.”

“Alright.”

She took a breath. “What does she owe you?”

I blinked. “What?”

“She said you were paying her way to Amesseria, and that she’d agreed to work it off after we arrived. I want to know how much she owes.”

After everything that had happened in Anford, it took me a minute to remember the last time I’d talked to the fire mage. “Ah, right. About that.”

Yen bristled. If I didn’t already know she was Pierce’s niece, I would have guessed it based on the look in her light blue eyes. “I want to pay it off. She’s been through enough, she shouldn’t have to worry about debts after what happened.” I could see her already working herself up and figured it best to get ahead of things.

“I agree,” I said, taking the wind out of her sails. “She doesn’t owe me anything.”

That made her frown. “How are you paying Korey, then?”

“Called in a favor with Pierce. Korey was still paying for Dern, so I suggested he have Rastra fill that slot. All it’s costing me is a few perceived favors, and I’m not really worried about those.”

“You—” She shook her head, her curls bouncing. “That’s not how you made it sound to her,” she said accusingly.

“She was with Fel,” I said with a snort. “If I’d said I wanted to help her out of the kindness of my heart, do you really think she’d have believed me?”

That was enough to give her pause. “Then you’re not trying to...entrap her?”

I made an aggravated noise and leaned my head back. “Gods no! And I am so tired of everyone I meet asking me that question!” I looked back at her. “Look, Rastra seems like a nice girl, but I’ve got my hands full at the moment. If she feels at home in your party, then that’s fantastic. She doesn’t owe me anything, and I hope she’s a good fit for your group.”

She gaped at me. “You...aren’t anything like what I was expecting.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I grumbled.

That earned a smirk out of her. “My uncle says you’re a lord. I’d be a poor excuse for a future party leader if I didn’t at least suggest to keep us in mind if you ever need to hire a party.”

“I think I can do that.”

Her shoulders relaxed, and she looked me up and down. Right when I thought she was about to leave, she said, “thank you. For saving her. Her and Lana.” She shifted in her seat. “They’ve both become...important to me, and neither of them would be here if it weren’t for you.”

I raised a brow at that. I vaguely remembered Pierce mentioning Yen pestering him to take in Rastra before I’d even suggested it. “Whatever your party ends up looking like, I’ll keep it in mind under one condition.” She looked at me cautiously. “If any of you get into trouble, you keep me in mind, too. I’m going to need allies I can count on in the future, and I take care of my allies.”

She gave me a strange look, then shook her head with a small smile. “I already owe you way too much, but fine. I guess you’ve earned the benefit of the doubt at this point.”

I inclined my head at her and she took her leave. I watched her while she left, heading back towards her party. Lana looked up at her with a wide smile, grabbing Yen’s hand and pulling her down to sit around their fire. Rastra, whose injury had almost completely healed to three long lines that marred half her face, looked at her with a much more hesitant expression.

The fire mage’s eyes went wide when Yen reached out and pulled Rastra nearly into her lap, wrapping an arm around her and whispering into her ear. Rastra sat up straight and looked over her shoulder, her eyes searching me out. I nodded, and she smiled at me. Then Yen pulled her even closer, wrapping her other arm around Lana, and I turned my attention away from the trio.

“So,” Rhallani asked from behind me, mischief dancing in her eyes, “Yen, huh?”

“Not at all,” I said with a chuckle. “Something tells me I don’t exactly appeal to her tastes.”

She looked towards where the three sat and shrugged. “More for us, then. Come on, it’s time.”

I pushed down the apprehension her words stirred in me. Whatever happened tonight, I hoped it didn’t involve any more tears. But a quick headcount revealed everyone but Serena still outside the tent, and I shot a questioning look at my Arelim.

I tightened my arms around her. “Then don’t. I’ve got an idea on how to let Rhallani know we’re all finished.” I leaned in close and whispered my plan in her ear.

Her eyes went wide, then she grinned. “Oh, she’s going to love that.”

I rested my forehead against hers and closed my eyes, then reached out with the sixth sense that came with my skills. I could tell immediately that Rhallani didn’t have my armor manifested, but she wore the gem at her wrist and that was all I needed.

I conjured a tendril from the gem and took direct control of it. The sensation was strange at this distance, but when I wrapped around her arm I could feel her soft skin as if it were pressed into me. I couldn’t hear, but I could feel the gasp travel through her. I started trailing the tendril around her body and chuckled.

“What?” Serena asked, her tone giddy.

“Seems Rhallani is stark naked.” I continued questing southward with the tendril until I got to her hips where I felt the unmistakable bands of the strap-on she’d borrowed from Tiana. I followed along the fake appendage and very quickly ran into someone’s nethers. Whoever it was, I gave their clit a soft flick and wrapped around Rhallani’s leg before pushing against her rear opening, only giving her a second’s warning before I slipped past the rim and into her tight depths.

We heard a familiar squeak from the tent next door and Serena collapsed into a fit of giggles against my chest. Stifling my own laughter, I felt Rhallani’s armor appear on her body. I commanded the tendril to slowly fuck her ass and withdrew, this time reaching out for the gem around Tiana’s throat.

I conjured another tendril there and took control of it. I writhed through the valley between her breasts, looping around them both and squeezing them together, then wrapping the end of the tendril around her nipple and giving it a tug. We heard another muffled cry from next door and Serena laughed harder. I could tell that Tiana was up and moving as well, so I left the tendril with the command to play with her clit and withdrew from it just as Rhallani barged into our tent.

“Zaren, you motherfu—uucker!” She wobbled on her feet, only saved from tumbling by Noelle’s sudden appearance. Her cloak was pulled tightly around her, but from the protrusion at her crotch I guessed she didn’t stop to disarm before storming over.

“Is something the matter?” I asked innocently as Tiana stumbled in, red-faced with a fist between her teeth.

Rather than answering, Rhallani launched herself at me. Serena, who was only laughing harder, managed to stay impaled on my cock as the Arelim crashed into me, her lips mashing into mine with an aggression that caught me off guard. She pulled away with glowing, heated eyes. “I’m so fucking proud of you right now,” she panted.

I laughed, then looked at Tiana to gauge her reaction. The second her eyes met mine they rolled up and she bit down on her fist as orgasm wracked her. Once again, Noelle found herself the only reason one of my harem didn’t end up on the ground.

Tiana managed to collect herself, breathing hard, and stalked across the tent. She threw her cloak ot the ground, revealing that she hadn’t even bothered to summon her own armor, and flopped down on her back behind me. She gripped my by the chin and practically yanked my lips to hers, her tongue seeking mine out aggressively, then she pulled away. She made a desperate sound and practically yanked Rhallani off me, fishing her fake cock out from under her cloak and guiding it to her core.

Rhallani plunged into Tiana’s depths with a groan and came on the spot. Noelle, who was making an amused hum, walked over and took Rhallani’s cloak off for her. She folded it up and set it on the ground, then did the same for the cloak Tiana had discarded.

I looked down at Serena, who had just managed to collect herself. She took one look at my expression and immediately collapsed into more giggles. “Unbelievable,” I muttered.

Noelle’s hum shifted, and I looked up to see her staring at where Serena and I were still connected, one of her fangs digging into her lower lip. Before I could even react, Serena stifled her laughter long enough to pull me into a kiss, then slid off my length and pushed my shoulder away so I was laying on my back.

Noelle made a happy sound and shed her clothes quickly. Before I knew it, she was lowering herself down on my length. She paused long enough to glance up and say, “I am prepared, don’t worry,” before she sank slowly down my cock with a high pitched keen.

Just like last time, she was impossibly tight, scorchingly hot, and appropriately drenched. By the time our hips met, after spending so much time in Serena, I was already on the verge of erupting. Thankfully, Noelle seemed more than happy to just lean against my chest and rake her incisors along the flesh at my throat.

I rubbed her back while the twins cautiously stuck their heads in. They looked from where Rhallani was back to frantically fucking Tiana, who had her long legs wrapped tightly around the Arelim, to where Noelle sat on my chest with my length buried inside her and Serena cuddled up against my side, still giggling to herself.

“You’ve seen it all at this point,” I said with a laugh. “Might as well come in.”

They both came in, but didn’t sit. “What did you do to them?” Ryoko asked.

Rhallani was the first to answer, slamming her hips into Tiana’s with every word. “Fucking—nng—tendril—shit—in my aaass!”

Tiana reached out for me and I slid my hand into hers. “And one for me—eee—that knows exa-actly how to play with my clit.”

“I was going to stop when they got in here, but—”

“No!” both girls yelled at once.

I looked at them both in surprise. Rhallani slowed down long enough to tap the gem at her wrist and dismiss her armor, giving me a great view of the tendril snaking around her body and slipping in and out of her ass. “It’s the perfect size,” she panted. “Not as big as Zaren’s perfect cock, so I can still think straight, but just big enough to stretch me out just. Fucking. Right!”

Tsuki looked around until she found what she was looking for. She disrobed completely and fished my shirt out from where I’d dropped it, then slipped it on. Ryoko shot her a look I couldn’t quite decipher, as Noelle chose that moment to start sliding up and down my length, but the white haired Kitsune just scooped what I figured to be Serena’s shirt up and did the same, though she turned her body away from us while she changed.

I averted my eyes to give her as much privacy as I could in a tent this size and Tsuki sat at my legs between Tiana and I. Her gaze alternated between me, Tiana and Rhallani, and where I was buried in Noelle.

Noelle, now that she was acclimated to my size, had already started to slowly ride me. Tsuki managed to snap herself out of it, but I couldn’t help but notice she had one hand between her legs. “They told me about your past. A Patron who knows what it is to be powerless.” She forced her intense golden eyes to mine. “I’m very interested to see what you do in the future, Zaren.”

“I hope I don’t disappoint,” I said evenly, my breath catching as Noelle started to pick up speed. She started nibbling on what I was quickly beginning to understand as my weakpoint and my time with Serena finally caught up with me. I wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her down, shooting load after load into her core until I was spent.

She looked up at me with wide eyes. “Sorry,” I managed after a moment to catch my breath. “Serena left me ready to blow.”

“It wasn’t all me,” Serena chimed in. Se leaned forward so she could reach down and rub circles around the nub at the hood of Noelle’s core, drawing a hiss from the Malachai. “Zaren really likes it when you kiss and bite the underside of his jaw.”

“Now hang on—” I started, but Noelle was quicker. She darted under my chin and my words died in my throat when I felt her incisors nibbling at the hollow of my neck.

Serena looked very proud of herself when four sets of eyes and one set of teeth all fixated on my neck.

“After everything I’ve done for you, you betray me?” I asked, smiling.

She smiled right back, batting her eyelashes. “I thought everyone already knew,” she said far too innocently.

I wanted to reprimand her, but it was difficult to think with Noelle ravishing everything from my collarbone to my jaw. She didn’t slow down until I was once again hard inside her. When she pulled back, smiling, I couldn’t help but think she looked far too proud of herself. She started rocking her hips against mine eagerly, her hands linking behind my neck.

Ryoko had turned a shade of crimson, but Tsuki looked rather amused. She glanced to where Rhallani and Tiana were still fucking, though they’d slowed to a much more reasonable pace. “Tiana was feeling horny, and Rhallani offered to help. They were trying to be quiet so as not to disturb the rest, but then they both seemed to lose their minds.”

She turned her gaze back to me. “It’s a good thing Allura blessed your cock, otherwise I’m not sure you’d be able to keep up.”

“You’re telling me,” I grunted. “And they want to add more to the harem. It’s insane.”

“They do?” both sisters asked in unison. Then Ryoko’s eyes fell to the ground and Tsuki’s nose turned up, both of them blushing.

Noelle laced her hands through my hair and started riding me, her head resting on my shoulder. I put a hand on her lower back to push her thin body into mine and returned my attention to Rhallani. I didn’t take the tendril away, but I commanded it to take a slower pace.

She moaned appreciatively. “I guess you want to know about the experiments now.”

“Sorry, Rhallani,” Serena said, pressing her lips to my collarbone, “but Zaren figured it out and then some.”

Rhallani shot me a look of dismay and I briefly repeated what I’d told Serena a short time ago. Rhallani became pensive once I finished, lowering her head and focusing on sawing in and out of Tiana until both of them clenched in orgasm nearly at the same time. Then she pulled out and flipped over with a sigh, using Tiana’s sizable bust as a pillow. Tiana wrapped her arms around Rhallani with a smile, trailing her fingertips over the Arelim’s light gray skin.

“I doubt I’d have figured it out if it weren’t for your tests,” I told her.

She smiled tiredly at me. “I’m sure you’d have solved it eventually. You seem to already know a lot about souls.”

“How do you know so much?” Serena asked, trailing her fingers around where Noelle was still steadily riding me.

I played with her hair using the hand not pressed into Noelle. “I ran into a Siren. They feed off souls, which means they can sense them. She took one look at me and saw the damage Karn had inflicted on mine and became obsessed,” I explained. “She traveled with us, monitoring my soul and helping me understand the effects the cursed blade had on it. At first I just didn’t care enough to tell her to go away, but then she started poking and prodding at my soul.”

Serena looked up at me cautiously. “Another woman you were close to?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought. “No, Esadora was not a fan of men, much to Sandrel’s dismay. I doubt she’d have given me the time of day if I didn’t have such an utterly fucked soul. Probably why she actually survived the war.”

I hadn’t meant for the bitter note to slip into my voice, but it didn’t go unnoticed by the girls around me. Tiana’s hand found the crook of my arm and both Serena and Noelle chose a different side of my neck to attack while Noelle’s hips picked up speed.

She moaned into my neck and the muscles in her core started fluttering, massaging me in a way I hadn’t yet experienced. I groaned in surprise, both from the feeling of her wrapped around me and from her and Serena’s deliberate, forceful kisses and nibbles. Noelle’s hum raised in pitch and I felt Serena’s hand snake between us to rub circles around her nub. It wasn’t long before the deliberate clenches turned into the intense clamping down of Noelle’s orgasm, and I let the both of them push me over the edge and shot my second load into Noelle’s depths.

“You know,” I panted, not bothering to try and pry Noelle’s fangs from my shoulder, “you don’t have to drive me to orgasm every time I share something sad. I might start to think you’re trying to condition me.”

Serena just beamed up at me. “I wouldn’t dream of it,” she said in a very unconvincing tone.

After cumming twice and never leaving Noelle’s tight folds, I was starting to get a bit sensitive. I gently lifted her off me, and I felt two loads worth of cum start to dribble out of her onto my thighs. I felt cloth starting to clean it off, and was surprised when I looked over Noelle and found Tsuki to be the one cleaning us both off with a carefully neutral expression.

Noelle hummed happily and curled into my chest while Tiana took the chance to sidle close enough to link her arm with mine before returning to caressing Rhallani. It looked like they were both well and satisfied, so I dismissed the tendrils. Rhallani made a disappointed sound, but Tiana just hummed with pleasure. “If this is what it’s like to be on the road with you,” she said, “I can’t wait to get to the capital.”

Rhallani made a happy, if tired, sound in her throat. “Now that we’ve more or less got the Soul Essence figured out, we can move on to planning our manor.” She shifted in Tiana’s arms, then groaned and pouted at me. “I can’t even lift my legs right now.”

I gave her a stern look, then reached out and banished her strap straight to my storage. She beamed at me, pulling herself close enough to kiss me, then settled back into Tiana’s arms. The twins both piled in, though this time they were less hesitant to snuggle up to Serena’s side while Tsuki pulled the bedroll over all of us.

Tiana and Serena won the nightly battle to claim one of my sides, though Noelle came in close second by simply laying on top of me and latching onto my chest. Tiana made sure to put her back to me so she could spoon Rhallani though, and the twins curled up with one another while pressed into Serena’s back. It quickly got warm, but after the cold of the north it was a welcome change.

Though, as I eventually drifted off, I couldn’t help but feel like we were experiencing the calm before the storm.