by Noah Layton
‘They were winged beings capable of extraordinary things, and in their mighty ways they decided upon creating the land that you and I now stand upon, and all of the other beings that inhabit the islands in the ocean. They breathed life into them, and in the process they created the Harpy Cores, a series of legendary items that grant special abilities to the individual who comes across them. We possess scraps of knowledge regarding their nature, but to the peoples of these islands they are now considered all but lost… Until you picked one up in your world.’
I digested everything that had been said to me, thinking back to that red, glowing orb.
‘And which one did I pick up?’ I asked slowly.
‘I am unsure, but judging by your description of it, I think that it may have been the Warrior’s Rage. It allows the user to channel supernatural energy through their body, pressed on by the heat of battle, until it is released in a brutal war cry.’
‘That sounds… Pretty much like what happened in the forest today.’
‘Yesterday, you mean?’
‘Wait, yesterday? I was out overnight?’
‘You descended into a long slumber after the incident that my harpies described. It has taken a toll on your body. Your body has become infused with the blood of the harpies. You are not one of us, but your physical form is taking on the strength and agility that we possess.’
‘Jesus…’ I muttered to myself, running a hand through my hair.
‘Pardon?’
‘Oh, nothing… I just don’t know how to feel about that. It’s like my DNA has been altered… Not that I’m complaining about looking like a Greek god…’
‘I’m sorry but, Dee… En… And what is Greek?’
‘It doesn’t matter, your highness. But I still don’t understand how this Harpy Core that you speak of ended up in my world.’
‘That is the question of the hour, isn’t it? How does an item, any item, cross from one plane of existence into another? I have been running this problem over in my head since Princess Evelina first told me that tale, and I cannot come to a definite conclusion. I’m sure we shall find out eventually though. That said, two things are for certain; first, the Harpy Core in question brought you to our lands upon you touching it, and secondly, upon your contact with it, you have taken on its powers. Both are astounding facts, but it is the second that is most strange.’
‘Not the fact that I was teleported to another world?’
‘Oddly enough, no. You see, anyone can bring themselves into contact with a Harpy Core, but upon touching them, only those with the physical, mental and spiritual fortitude and worthiness to truly harness the powers contained within can take advantage of them. As a result, two things can happen; you absorb the powers, or… You explode.’
‘… I’m sorry, your highness, but did you just say explode?’
‘Those whose bodies and minds cannot comprehend the power of the Harpy Cores cannot bear the strength and power that they bestow. Their bodies become… Overburdened, shall we say? At least that’s what the old tales suggest…’
Queen Athina fumbled through the stack of papers before her, eventually finding one, examining it briefly and handing it to me.
It was a crude, ancient illustration of a person holding a glowing object in their hands – or at least it looked like a person. More accurately it used to be a person. Now it was just a red mess of splitting skin and bone.
I gulped at the sight, my body shivering involuntarily.
‘The sword I was holding did something similar,’ I remarked, handing the parchment back to her. ‘I don’t know if Princess Evelina or Ariadne told you but it practically exploded in my hand right after this Warrior’s Rage thing took hold of me.’
‘They found the shattered segments of sword on the ground near to where you were lying.’ She stood from her seat and crossed to a set of drawers nearby, returning with a bundle of cloth. Setting our food and drink down upon the floor, she set the cloth down on the table between us and unfolded it, revealing the split, shattered pieces of metal within.
‘As you’ve likely already seen, we harpies prefer spears, and our swords have never been put to much use, although some do prefer it. This weapon has existed for centuries, and in an instant you destroyed it.’
‘… Sorry.’
The queen let out a hearty laugh, shaking her head.
‘That’s not an accusation of any sorts,’ she chuckled, ‘if anything it’s a compliment. Your harnessing of the Warrior’s Rage was of such an incredible magnitude that you quite literally split apart smelted metal.’
‘It’s pretty crazy,’ I said, trying to take it all in. ‘It does face me with one problem, though; how am I supposed to use this power if every weapon that I channel it through is destroyed when I use it? Do I need to have somebody following me around the whole time with a pile of swords every time I blow one up?’
‘This is indeed a problematic situation,’ the queen replied, drumming her fingers against her chin. ‘I have a feeling that the only reason that you survived today was because you were holding a weapon to channel your powers. If your hands had been empty at the time, well… That explosion situation may not have been far off reality.’
I took a deep breath to calm myself, nodding.
‘So what do we do?’
Queen Athina paused, looking over to the chest of drawers from where she had retrieved the sword. More scraps of parchment and more books were stacked atop it.
‘I may have a solution,’ she replied. ‘We will discuss the matter tonight at dinner.’
‘Dinner?’
‘In these dark times we celebrate every victory that is bestowed upon us, and yesterday we achieved a most successful of victories. Tonight the harpies will dine in the grand hall, and you will be our guest of honor.’
Chapter Six
An Unwelcome Gift
After being escorted by one of the guards outside of the queen’s chambers back to the royal both bath chamber, I found myself alone with a moment to run over my journey so far.
While it had been a crazy couple of days on Aries Island, and while the harpies had evidently become a lot more comfortable with my presence, I still didn’t know whether I could trust them. I could already hear my grandpa’s voice ringing in my hand as if he was stood right next to me.
Don’t trust a single motherfucking soul out there, Kit. Everybody will tell you exactly what you wanna hear, believe me, but when it comes down to it everybody except your family is looking out for their own interests – and then even your family have their own priorities over you. Take me, for example. I may be family, but it’s in my interest to make sure that you’re safe and independent. If I don’t, what kind of grandfather would I be?
I always remembered his voice as a growl, like how the bulldog from Tom and Jerry would sound if he could speak.
I didn’t have any family who cared about me any longer because I had no family remaining at all – but even so I had a memory of some parts of one, and it was my duty not to betray that memory.
Shaking my head back into the moment, I headed down the steps and into the bath chamber.
The flames had dimmed a little, and in the constant steam that poured into the air from the water held in by the soaked, perfectly chiselled rocks, the light danced around me, reflecting in globules across every available surface.
But none of that was my point of focus – that title went to none other than Princess Evelina, who was gliding through the water gracefully with a slow, smooth breaststroke in my direction.
The moment that I arrived her eyes flitted up to meet mine.
‘Back so soon?’ She asked casually.
‘I like to get straight to the point,’ I replied. ‘Taking your time with things can be a bit of a drag sometimes… Your highness.’
I was still getting used to the ways of the harpies, even if there were parts of their lifestyle that I really, really liked the sound of – not least of all my experience with Ariad
ne the night before last. It had been the greatest, most frenzied sex of my entire life.
But now, looking down upon the princess as she moved swam steadily to the end of the pool that I stood before, I didn’t know whether to be turned on or intimidated… Or both.
Evelina was the literal heir to a kingdom. One wrong move and she could probably have me beheaded, if she didn’t end up doing it herself, that was, but the little act that she had pulled earlier in crawling across the bed like a minx had left my head spinning.
You can own this, I thought. Don’t let her get to you. Just be cool.
That plan worked right up to the point where she swam to the point of the pool right in front of me, moving to stand upright and sauntering out of the water wearing nothing but her lacy, silk underwear. Her entire body was soaking wet; while seeing her incredible figure, her busty chest, her toned stomach and her round ass swaying back and forth was complete pleasure, it didn’t exactly do wonders for the idea of holding it together.
I almost had to tip the back of my hand up beneath my chin to close my mouth like some kind of malfunctioning mechanical doll.
The princess made towards me, unashamed in her nakedness, moving to within only a few feet of where I stood, before darting sharply to her right and snatching up a towel set down on a nearby rock… But she didn’t go anywhere.
Slowly, gracefully, she leaned over the rock before her and rested atop it, arching her back, pushing her shoulders back and jutting her round ass out in the air.
My jaw fell straight back open, but I couldn’t really be blamed for that, could I?
‘That how you always stare at girls in your world?’
‘Only when they look like you… Your highness.’
‘I’ll take that as a compliment.’
‘You definitely should.’
The princess turned slowly, sliding up the rock effortlessly as water dripped from her wings. Then, like it was nothing at all, she slid from her fingers into the waistband of her underwear and pulled them down her legs.
I watched them to the ground beneath her feet, just as she moved her legs apart in the slightest, sexiest of ways.
‘Aren’t you going to come and join me?’
‘That an order or a request?’
‘A royal order.’
Even if we had come to heads on more than one thing since my arrival on Aries Island, this was one thing we could agree on.
I crossed to her, the princess gazing at me intensely as I approached, moving between her legs. She pouted her lips delicately and I moved to kiss her, closing my eyes, but was instead met with a soft finger pressed against my own lips.
I opened my eyes to see her smiling slyly at me.
‘Kneel before your princess,’ she commanded, pushing me back lightly with a single finger.
Who was I to ignore the heir to the throne?
I lowered myself, suddenly becoming conscious of how hard I was getting inside of my shorts, and watched as Princess Evelina leaned back carefully against the rock, exposing herself proudly before me. I ran my hands up her legs, sliding my nails lightly across her skin before teasing her lightly with my tongue, guiding it around her.
Despite the definition of wetness, actual water doesn’t exactly do wonders for sex, but the princess was the exception; she was already dripping with desire from between her legs, and I couldn’t keep it from her or myself any longer. I lowered my tongue to the bottom of her quivering sensitivity and ran it up her slowly, her body shivering with pleasure as I did so.
She had earned the title, not just in power but in the perfection of her body. I licked at her more and more intensely, unable to get enough of the sweet taste that she gave off. I couldn’t stop myself from burying my tongue between her legs, indulging in her perfect taste with relentless passion. All the while, the princess moaned out intensely, eventually bringing her hips to move rhythmically up and down, riding my face and drenching my mouth in the process, neither of which I minded at all.
The princess definitely knew what she wanted – she finally placed a slender foot onto my shoulder and pushed back, giggling as I almost stumbled back onto my ass.
She undid her bra hurriedly, biting her lip as she gazed down at me before casting it aside to reveal her round, perfect breasts.
They only remained before me for an instant, though, as she turned around and bent back over the rock that she had originally leant across.
With her round behind stuck into the air, Princess Evelina turned and looked me in the eyes.
‘Take me, Kit,’ she moaned, running a hand up between her legs and rubbing her legs and rubbing herself in my brief absence. ‘Take your princess…’
I pulled my throbbing length from my shorts, managing to drag my gaze away from her round ass for just a second to look over my shoulder.
The steps out of the bath chamber were right behind me. Anybody could come walking down there at any moment and see me about to take the princess of the freaking kingdom from behind, but I didn’t care. I was too lost in the moment, too enthralled in her body, too-
‘I think that’s enough for now.’
My head whipped around, back to where the princess was bent over – but she wasn’t. She was stood a few yards away, wrapping her towel around her body.
‘Wait… What?’
‘Dinner begins in a few hours,’ she said casually, heading for the stairs. ‘Don’t be late.’
With that she departed into the darkness, and I was once again left alone.
Except this time I had literally been left standing there with my dick in my hand.
‘What the fuck was that?’ I said to myself, half-hoping she would actually hear me as she made her way out of the bath chamber.
I could hardly comprehend what had just happened – she had teased me to the point that I was as rock hard as I had been with Ariadne before literally begging for it and taking off.
I shook my head and scoffed nervously, pulling my shorts back up as I looked down at the shimmering water of the pool.
Why not?
Spent the next hour relaxing and regaining my bearings, indulging in the heat of the royal bath chamber and wondering where the hell things would lead to with Princess Evelina. She may have been the heir to the throne, and maybe seemed to be prim and proper in the eyes of her harpies, but behind the scenes she had literally bent over and begged me to take her.
I don’t really need to tell you what else I spent doing in the bath chamber in an effort to rid myself of the sexual frustration that I had had burdened on me like a tonne of cement.
Just know that it worked.
There was no other explanation for it, but then again was it that big of a deal? She was the same as the others; starved for a man in a land which I, who just so happened to be a man, had landed.
Did I really care if I was being looked at like a piece of meat? Honestly?... Probably not.
But that still didn’t explain why she was so keen to tease me like this. Was it a power play? She didn’t seem like the type to abuse it like that… But then what the hell did I know?
Returning to the bed on which I had awoken after the battle, I found another tunic laid out before me. After making myself look presentable and getting my act together, I got dressed into the outfit – or rather I attempted to.
In every movie I had seen where people had worn these things they always made it look so easy and natural to wear, but I had no clue where to start. It was a huge piece of cloth, almost twice my height, and for almost an hour I folded, refolded and re-re-folded the thing around me, trying a hundred different way to make the outfit work but failing to do so in a more and more spectacular fashion every time I tried.
The sounds of the harpies eating, laughing and talking in the grand hall not too far away had started up half an hour prior, and I was no closer to figuring my outfit out.
I heard the clapping of footsteps coming down the steps at the other end of the pool and turned to deal with the prin
cess once again – but it wasn’t her.
‘What are you doing?’ Ariadne asked with a smirk, looking my naked form up and down as she rounded the pool. ‘The party’s in full swing and there’s an empty seat at the table.’
‘I can’t get this damned thing to work,’ I said in frustration. ‘You can do it and you’ve got freaking wings. How am I supposed to…?’
‘Raise your arms,’ Ariadne commanded, a hint of her warrior’s voice rising up in her tone. I did as I was told, standing as if I was having a suit tailored, and in no more than a minute Ariadne had fitted it to my form perfectly, darting around me and under my raised arms. She threw sections of the sheet around until it was no longer a sheet, but a well-fitting robe. ‘You can put your arms down now.’
I lowered them slowly, eliciting a laugh from Ariadne, and found that the entire thing fitted tightly to my figure.
‘Thanks.’
‘Don’t mention it. We’ve got a party to get to. Shall we?’
‘Wait… Are we going to talk about what happened earlier in the forest?’
‘About what, exactly?’
‘Me almost exploding. I thought half the citadel would be on my back about it.’
‘You’re not the only one who knows about the Harpy Cores, Kit,’ Ariadne said casually. ‘Every being in the archipelago is told the stories of the Cores by the time they can understand words. We know what we saw, I and the princess and the other girls too. But don’t worry about it; we’ve been ordered not to speak a word of it to anyone by Queen Athina herself.’
She raised her arm and I folded it into mine, and together we headed to the grand hall. Before reaching the archway I went to remove her arm from mine.
‘What are you doing?’ She asked.
‘Well… I didn’t want you to be the most hated harpy on Aries Island. Won’t there be some girls out there who are jealous of you?’
‘… Jealous?’
‘Yeah, jealous.’
‘I don’t know what that word means.’