Corruption of the Rose

by S. J. Sanders

  The promise was spoken softly, but she bristled with indignation. She stared at a point beyond him and her mouth flattened. “Very well. Leave then,” she replied stiffly.

  His hand snaked forward, drawing her to him, forcing her to meet his narrowed, hot gaze. “I do not like this. You are angry.”

  “Congratulations for deducing that,” she snapped.

  A growl vibrated from him, but she did not divert her gaze nor shudder. Whatever pain he gave her was always designed ultimately to give her pleasure. She was not afraid. Instead, she allowed her power to wash over him, plucking at him, soothing his aggression with every surge. She could feel the effects before she saw the visible impact of them as his body relaxed. Saris’s eyes widened with the realization at what she was doing, and he stumbled away, his hackles rising with apprehension. He jerked back away from the bed.

  “You seek to control me?” he snarled.

  Rose drew up to her knees, facing off with him as her blanket dropped from her body, exposing her curvy figure, her chin lifting. “I may be in an uncertain place right now, but I am not weak, someone to be pushed in whatever direction you desire without my own desires and needs being taken into account. You seek to control that, so I placed my own control upon you. It felt good, didn’t it? Didn’t it tempt you to yield completely to me?”

  His expression shuttered, and he backed away from her. “It is impressive and most promising of what is to come when you are ready to take your rightful place,” he growled. “Until then, you will rest and continue to take this time alone.”

  She didn’t bother to reply. Her eyes bore into him as he stalked from the room. If her gaze had been capable of drilling holes through him, he would have been pierced multiple times over. If anything, it seemed to encourage him to make his retreat all the hastier.

  Rose scowled, her lips pulling back from her teeth in an expression of disgust as she allowed herself to flop back into her bed. She lay there, her mind churning as she allowed her eyes to drift around the room only to linger in specific points throughout the space, her eyes growing heavy.

  It was dark when her eyes opened, the fire in the hearth banked with only traces of red glow visible on the coals. Strange. It wasn’t like her to wake in the middle of the night. She shivered, drawing the blankets higher around her. Autumn had set in since her arrival, leaving the nights chilly. Although the cool air stung her nose and cheeks, the warmth of her blankets normally would have kept it from waking her. So what had?

  Then she heard it. A scraping sound coming from a far corner of the room just beyond the door. She stared into the dark, a clammy sweat breaking out over her skin, and she strained to hear it.

  A hissing rattle rose again, mingling with a rustling sound. Rose’s muscles tensed as she warily pushed herself up onto her side. She licked her suddenly dry lips, her tongue feeling ashen and sticky against her skin.

  “Hello? Is someone there?”

  The hissing grew louder, punctuated with numerous rattling sounds increasing in volume as the source noticeably drew closer.

  “Saris? Is that you?” she whispered hopefully.

  It was stupid to ask. She knew that it wasn’t him. Not only did it not sound like him, but she didn’t sense the familiar presence of his energy. This was cold, a ravenous hunger beating through it that was in no sense sensual. It was pure aggression. A tiny alarmed squeak burst from her lips as she scrambled back on the bed.

  It whipped forward, the sound unmistakable. There was snapping as its body slid forward, and a piercing shriek broke the air. Her breath stuttered.

  Not good.

  “Saris!” she screamed as the thing lunged, numerous mouths filled with long, venom-dripping fangs coming directly for her.

  With a cry, she drew up her arms, summoning a wall of energy. Water surged, breaking through rock as it rose up from the groundwater deep beneath the mountain. The angry scream of the creature whipped around her as she noticed the lashing coils encased in the flowing wall. Her lips parted, her invocation crying out in the elemental kingdom as her guardian snapped forward, his glowing coils whipping out as he attacked the creature, illuminating its horrifying form in the process.

  Her breath stuttered out of her as she watched the multiheaded serpent writhe, its fangs snapping as the numerous tails that sprouted from its singular torso struck through the air, the rattles on them hissing as dangerous barbed tips snapped forward. Rose rolled and dropped off the opposite edge of the bed, heart hammering in her chest.

  The wyrm didn’t belong there! It was immature, which accounted for its small size, but that didn’t make it any less lethal. However it got there, there was little doubt that it wouldn’t be delayed for long until it got a hold of her.

  “Saris!” she screamed again, terror surging through her.

  Chapter 17

  The shrieking goblin that materialized in his room startled Saris with its clamorous arrival, dragging him suddenly and fitfully from sleep. Saris jerked up in his bed, his eyes snapped open, and a snarl rose from him as he faced the intruder, prepared to deal with the disruption.

  Half-asleep, he did not think—he acted. He snatched up the hapless male with one hand, dragging him brutally up until they were eye to eye. The goblin’s eyes widened, and he wiggled as he waited for Saris to come to himself.

  Saris blinked as he focused on the goblin, his brow furrowing in confusion. It was still making its horrendous grinding shrieks that were disturbingly close to the sound of claws on slate.

  “Stop that infernal noise. I am awake! What is it?” he shouted as he gave the goblin a light shake before setting him on the ground at his feet.

  The goblin’s mouth snapped shut, and he straightened, brushing back his wild mane of dark hair. His brilliant pale green eyes, however, were still overbright with urgency. He hopped around Saris’s legs, his words spilling out in a rush.

  “Master, your female—there is danger!” he shouted, his voice trilling in alarm.

  A loud roar burst from Saris as he leaped past the goblin, cutting the male off mid-sentence. That didn’t deter the goblin any. He shot off after Saris, his small body translocating every so often in swirling dust as he shot off ahead, leading the way. Few beings had such an ability once they were brought into the material world, but he was thankful that the goblins possessed it, otherwise Saris may have not been alerted in time.

  Careening around a corner, Saris took the stairs three at a time, the enormous bulk of his body more than once crashing into a sharp curve of the staircase leading down into the workroom. The walls vibrated with each impact, but it wasn’t the only reason for the tremor running through the castle. Saris’s rage was feeding his Mastery over the earth element, causing the stones to shift in protest as the spirits dwelling within the heart of the mountain were awakening from his disturbance.

  It was dangerous. Saris could hear Darthar’s voice hissing at him to control himself. The mage had been an Earth Master himself and had cautioned Saris many times about the fury of the spirits of the Earth Kingdom and the levels of destruction that they were capable of. Feeding his rage to the earth spirits could bring the castle down around them from the shifting weight of the mountain.

  Dragging his power back within his control, he slammed through the doorway, the lock breaking with the force of his impact. It swung open violently, crashing against the wall with enough force to send a giant crack through half the length of the door as he barreled into the workroom.

  He saw the wyrm rising threateningly over Rose, her watery barricade steaming and weakening under the force of the fire-born creature. Her power flowed over her so thoroughly, draining away her energy in the process, that her skin looked frighteningly pale. Even her dark hair appeared to be blue in the soft light of her magic.

  She didn’t lift her eyes to him, all of her concentration and rapidly waning power keeping the fire wyrm at bay. His eyes narrowed on the creature, searching for its vulnerable spots beneath the thick fire-temp
ered scales that covered much of its body. As he circled behind it, he could hear the sounds of approaching lupi who were doubtlessly also made aware of the creature’s presence with their dwelling.

  “Fire wyrm!” Jalis snarled. “How did a fire wyrm get into the mountain?”

  “First manticores and now fire wyrms,” Gnaval muttered, looking at Saris before returning to Rose with noted concern. “What are your orders, Saris? She will not last long.”

  “It’s a miracle that she has held her own against it at all,” Aigra observed as he prowled closer, his body filling most of the entrance, briefly blocking Gnaval, Jalis behind his bulk.

  Saris was tempted to snap Aigra in half for the insult delivered to his female—for that was exactly what it was—but, with effort, he pushed back his reaction and ignored the male. He had more important things to focus on.

  As it turned out, he didn’t need to do anything anyway. An irritated growl rose from Jalis, accompanied by a brutally loud snap of the male’s teeth as he pushed his way by Aigra to gain access to the workroom. Gnaval slipped by them, silent as a shadow, choosing instead to draw up to Saris’s side to await instructions. Saris gave the male a grateful look before bending forward to stalk closer to the wyrm, whose five heads were momentarily distracted by them.

  “You speak as if her magic were weak,” Jalis snorted quietly. “If she were, she would not be here under Saris’s tutelage.”

  “Not necessarily. I know the reason I would be eager to have her under me at all,” Aigra pointed out far too disrespectfully for Saris to ignore.

  He instantly bristled, his body half-turning with determination to teach the other male a hard lesson about respect. It was only by a considerable amount of control that he was able to push past the snide taunts that accompanied the bitter scent of jealousy. Saris had already broken the male once for his attitude. He wondered just how long the male would last before he was forced to do so again.

  But not now.

  The wyrm required all his attention. It was unfortunate that it was not an immature wyrm. The adolescent swayed in front of Rose, trying to find a weakness in her barrier she erected. It was at a lethal age, but he was just thankful it wasn’t an ancient adult that had found its way into the castle.

  Saris crept closer.

  Gnaval, not one to be easily shaken, remained close at his side as they secured positions in the creature’s blind spot a safe distance away. The wyrm had its tail toward them, the scarred length of its torso reflecting the weak light of magic from its ruby scales. The way that Rose’s eyes flicked back and forth nervously where she sat, he knew that she was blind in even the weak light that her magic produced.

  Small flames flickered from the serpent’s mouths, and from the watery wall a crested sea serpent struck out, it mouth opening, a hard spray of water hitting the wyrm before fangs snapped down viciously on one snout, tearing into it with teeth and clawed feet that appeared nearly diminutive on the enormous length of its twisting body. Nonetheless, it was effective against the wyrm. Its fire smoked back into its mouth, dark blood streaking down from its face as its legless body writhed on the stone floor, a terrible high-pitched scream vibrating through the air.

  Saris instinctively wanted to slam his hands over his ears to protect his sensitive hearing, but instead, he ignored the pain driving into his brain as he lunged forward. He collided with Gnaval, who had erroneously chosen the exact same moment to move on the creature.

  Pain slashed through him from a claw colliding with the vulnerable skin of his belly. Naval murmured a hasty apology as he twisted ineffectually, unable to free himself from Saris’s limb, the uncomfortable claw digging deeper. Saris landed a solid kick with his hind legs that he would have to apologize for later, and pushed himself free of his friend’s weight, throwing himself onto the injured wyrm.

  Its long body twisted the moment he hit it, curling in on itself. He dug his claws and fangs in deep, raking furrows into every vulnerable patch he could reach. The belly was what he wanted, but other than a few shallow cuts, he was unable to strike it directly.

  The roaring bellows and deep snarls signaled the attack of the rest of the lupi as they jumped to his aid, the workroom echoing with the sounds of battle. The screeching strike of claws on scales and the angry screams of the wyrm were interrupted by the sound of snapping fangs, wet sucking sounds of bleeding wounds, and the percussive sounds of the wyrm’s body repeatedly hitting the stone floor.

  Although everything seemed to fall into a chaos centered on the churning wyrm, the lupi retained their controlled training. They charged at it in short melees before dropping back, circling and attacking again. Every attack was designed to draw pain and blood, to distract the wyrm from Saris’s relentless attack.

  He dug his claws and teeth into the serpent, attempting to pry off each scale that protected its throats. Without access to its belly, that was the nearest vulnerable spot if he could pry them free. The soft flesh exposed, he would be able to shred it, spilling its life essence on the floor. As the lupi fought with the wyrm, it thrashed within Saris’s hold, attempting to drag him down into its embrace. A plate cracked beneath his hand, coming free from its furthest right neck as the fire wyrm moved like a current that threatened to devour him entirely. He could feel it in the acidic drip of venom that occasionally hit his pelt.

  That wasn’t the only problem, however. The challenge was also to remain close enough to its heads, placing his hold within the perfect range to evade the strikes of their tapered triangular heads. His fur warmed, and the smell of singed hair filled the air as flames danced just over the top of his arms. The wyrm was venting its fury, angry and in pain from the lost armor as he tossed the scale aside.

  It twisted again, attempting to roll him, but was thwarted by one of the lupi that seized its tail. Saris jerked his arms beneath the monstrous jaws once more just as venomous fangs attempted to dig into his limbs to deliver their toxins. He did not practice self-deception. He was all too aware that he just barely escaped as it was—and the wyrm was giving no quarter. Without being able to deliver a death blow soon, he knew there was a chance that the serpent would overwhelm him soon.

  He needed one of the lupi with him.

  His head jerked up, his eyes searching the shadows for them. He knew it was desperation that made him seek them as his eyes fell on Gnaval. The male sat reclined as if he had been struck to the ground by the enormous tail and hadn’t yet recovered. Jalis and Aigra were circling and attacking at random intervals. Although their bodies were covered in bleeding wounds from the lancelike barbs at the tips of its tails, Jalis and Aigra didn’t slow or stop in their efforts even once. Blood splattered on the stone all around them and dripped from their pelts, their breath coming out in gurgled sounds as they fought.

  They were failing.

  Saris tore his gaze away, a pain filling him. If he failed, not only would his brethren die but his beautiful Rose would be snuffed out from the world and the barriers around the mountain would finally fall. Their guardianship would come to an end. Their fate rested on him alone. Jalis and Aigra would not be able to help him any more than they already were. It was taking both of their efforts to keep the tail from looping around him, and Gnaval, who would have been his only hope for assistance, was currently stunned and not moving.

  Saris drew himself tighter, panting, his claws digging into the throats of the wyrm as he attempted to claw free another scale. His hand slipped, and a sharp sting shot through his arm like a hot blade thrust deep into the muscle. Throwing back his head, Saris bellowed in agony, the fire of the wyrm’s venom pumping through him.

  “Saris! No!”

  With a struggle, Saris lifted his head, his eyes falling on his apprentice. Her face waxen with exhaustion, she had pushed herself to her feet, her body swaying with the effort to remain standing. Her blue eyes, brimmed with magic, stared at him sadly, her pale lips parting with an expression of anguish.

  Lifting her arm, Rose’s magic poure
d out of her and into the water serpent’s wall, turning it into an enormous cyclone spinning across the ground, swallowing the wyrm up, snuffing out its flame and keeping it hostage in the waters as Saris tore out the rest of the scales, his claws sliding deep into the flesh, tearing out the throats in one vicious move. Even without the scale, it was still not an easy task, but one he finished gratefully as he felt the blood and gore release into the water before it dropped away, leaving him and the wyrm on the floor of the workroom.

  He lay there in agony, only distantly aware of the shouts of the lupi. It was the soft hands of the mage on him that became the center of his pain-filled world as she slowly turned him.

  “Oh, shit. Saris, what were you thinking?” she whispered hoarsely, her fingers skating over the muscle of his arm.

  “Trying to save you, I think,” he muttered with a wince.

  “You already did that much when you brought me here,” she replied quietly. “I was angry in some ways, but what I’ve just done… the clarity I have recently gained, that never would have been me before now. It is me, but more me than ever. Thank you, Saris.”

  He squinted up at her. “You forgive me then?”

  A soft, weary laugh burst from her as she lowered herself over him. Her lips caressed the center of his chest as her breath stirred the shorter fur with whatever words she muttered against his muscle. The wash of cool energy filling him swept over him in a gentle wave, extinguishing the fire scorching through his limbs until even the pain dulled and melted away just as Rose swayed and fell forward, limp, against his chest.

  With a dismayed shout, he wrapped his arms around her, holding her against him as they lay there. His arm was still tender where the wyrm struck, blood trickling from the half-healed wounds, but the venom no longer attempted to consume him. He didn’t care about the rest of it. The bleeding was slowing, and right now, the most important thing was the mage cradled in his arms.