She couldn’t help the yelp that escaped her lips as she tried to at least partially cover herself. The sound seemed to break Zelek out of his own trance, and he turned around to give her some semblance of privacy. Terrwyn hurried to the bank, putting both hands on the grass and shoving herself upwards.
“I’m sorry,” Zel said, back still to her. “My shadows... You were gone a while and I was concerned.”
Standing up and feeling water drip down her body, Terrwyn hurriedly put her clothes on, not caring how wet they got. She could feel the colour of her cheeks and found her fingers fumbling with the buttons of her pants. She had barely finished and was bending to pick up her armour when Zel turned.
He ran his eyes over her as he moved closer. Terrwyn straightened, hugging her leather and plate vest to her chest. Zel stared at her with an intensity she found she couldn’t meet. She looked down at her still-bare feet, the grass around them wet with the droplets that were sliding off of her.
Zel put fingers under her chin and forced her to look at him. His gaze was no less bright as it bored into her eyes. Her brain was sluggish, thoughts fighting as if through water. She didn’t know what it was she wanted to say, only that she wanted to say something. Then he moved.
The hand holding her chin slid back to cradle her neck while his other hand pulled her tight as he pressed his lips down onto hers. She made a little noise of protest that was swiftly lost when he used the opening to plunge his tongue between her lips. He teased her with it in a way that had her arms shaking, her vest slipping from her grip.
When it hit the ground, she kissed him right back, all her pent-up thoughts and feelings bursting free at the same time. Her blood was hot in her veins and she felt her heartbeat speeding up. For right now, there was no tomorrow, no demon witch, nothing, except Zel and her. And she wasn’t about to pass up this chance.
He made a faint noise of what she thought was surprise at her sudden retaliation, but didn’t seem bothered by it if the way he increased the pressure on the back of her neck was any indication. Terrwyn was struck by how much better he was than her last lovers. The way he moved his lips and tongue sent little jolts through her that made her shiver in the most delightful way.
She could feel the hard muscles she’d admired only days earlier against her, feel the strength he exerted against her still-damp back, his arm like iron around her waist, her hands pushed up against his chest. That thought had her pulling away from him.
Zel relaxed his hold on her with obvious reluctance, his gaze bright on her as she pressed against his chest. Once she could get her arms free, she wrapped one around his neck and pulled his head back towards hers while she snaked the other around his back, reaching down and squeezing his butt. His eyes widened before a smile briefly lit his face. Then he was kissing her again, and she really didn’t care about the rest.
Her nipples had gone tight and hard, much like the part of him she could feel pressing against her lower half. Zel pulled away from her just enough that he could turn his focus from her lips to her neck. He rained gentle kisses down the side until he reached just above her collarbone. He grazed his teeth against her skin in a way that made her gasp, the sensation seeming to go straight to where her legs split.
She didn’t even notice he’d moved his hand until she felt the warmth of it enveloping her breast. He cupped it briefly before rubbing his thumb over one hard bud. She couldn’t help the noise that came from her throat, feeling her valley tighten.
His chuckle was low and she could feel it against her neck. Seemingly encouraged, he dragged his finger back over, eliciting wonderful little sparks from her. She grabbed his neck and pulled him up so he could kiss her again, trying to use her mouth to show him how much she was enjoying the attention.
Zel’s fingers went from rubbing to gently pinching, bringing out a whole new set of sensations. He pulled away from her mouth and then dropped his head. She expected him to return his attention to her neck, but instead she let out a little cry of surprise as she felt his lips close around her other nipple, right through her shirt. He didn’t seem bothered by the fabric and what he was doing with his tongue and teeth made her not care either. He could keep doing that for as long as he wanted.
Terrwyn squeezed her legs together as her need rose to levels barely shy of uncomfortable. Zel had her feeling like he could bring her over the edge just with the attention he was showing her breasts, something she hadn’t thought possible. Shifting fabric drew her focus to the fact that he was trying to lift her shirt with his free hand, mouth still busy doing its wonderfully tortuous work.
She grabbed the hem of her shirt and held it down. That had him popping his head up, heavy-lidded eyes meeting hers, face creased with confusion. Terrwyn flushed, but she had to explain if she wanted things to progress. And she very much did want them to progress. “I—I’m not...dainty,” she said, voice cracking slightly. “I have scars and trained for years, so I’m not exactly like most other girls and—”
He cut her off with a quick kiss. “I don’t care. Besides,” he said, smiling, “scars are a sign of courage.”
While she smiled in relief, Zel had his hands working. Before she knew what he was doing, he had her shirt half off, his mouth closing on her bare nipple. She gasped. His free hand worked the other pebbled breast, the combination making it very hard and distracting to try to pull her shirt the rest of the way off.
She felt a touch of relief that he didn’t even seem to notice the scars or the fact she was nearly as muscular as he was. Not all the men she’d been with in the past had been so...accepting.
But it wasn’t fair that she was the only one to feel good. As much as she wanted him to keep going, Terrwyn gently pulled his face towards hers until their lips met again. With her other hand she reached towards where his pants were straining. She stroked softly, locating the edges as she used to fingers to carefully run up the shaft.
She was rewarded by his faint moan. Terrwyn swallowed a smile and did it again, adding in a little rub to the end when she reached it. He caught her hand then, pulling away to stare at her. “Enough,” he said, voice rough.
Now she did smile, reaching forward with her other hand to tug at the string of his pants. “These are in the way.”
He growled faintly, gaze falling to her legs. “Same to you.”
Terrwyn reached down and swiftly unbuttoned her pants. She got to watch as Zel yanked off his shirt and threw it to one side, revealing the skin of his chest. Like her, his skin was marked with scars. Her eyes were drawn to the light smattering of black hair that covered him, darkening into a thick line that ran over his stomach and disappeared into the pants he was currently fumbling with.
Before she could offer help, he grabbed a small knife out of his boot and cut through the tie. She blinked as he all but ripped his pants off. Terrwyn barely got a glimpse of the whole of him as he wrapped his arms back around her, his mouth finding hers.
While their tongues battled for dominance, he pressed down with his arms, so that the two of them slowly sank onto the thick grass. While one arm was still wrapped around her waist, Zel used the other to gently part her legs. Terrwyn needed little urging, her valley slick, her desire running like lightning through her veins.
He shifted his arm and used both hands to pull her closer, and she moved eagerly forward, putting her arms behind her to support herself. He used a hand to direct himself to her opening. With his eyes on hers, Zel eased himself inside of her.
Terrwyn let out a little cry as she felt the full length of him slide in, his shaft grazing her pearl in a way that had her need hitting a new high-water mark. He moved back and then was pressing himself into her, each movement drawing sensation from her so that it was difficult to keep herself upright. She dropped to her elbows as Zel continued his sensual onslaught.
Each thrust seemed to come faster, almost in time to t
he pulse throbbing in her ears, the length of his arrow striking deep inside. It combined with the rub against her pearl in a way that had her fingers digging into the grass. It was almost too much, her body practically singing as he ran himself in and out of her.
He shifted so he had a better angle, and his next dive into her had her back arching. He was deeper inside of her, almost to the end of her valley, every movement drawing more sensation out of her. One particularly hard thrust was her undoing, the way his shaft slid by her pearl causing all of her rising desire to condense into a whirlwind that coursed through the whole of her like a wildfire.
Terrwyn cried out as her whole body tensed and clamped down, the waves of her pleasure running through her. She fell back to the grass, unable to hold herself up any longer. Like he’d been waiting for it, Zel managed only a few more thrusts before he too cried out, barely pulling out in time to avoid filling her with the milk of his seed. Instead he splattered the grass with it, then collapsed on top of her.
Both panting like they’d been running, they lay entwined there, sweat slowly cooling. She reached out to gently stroke his hair, feeling his breath warm against her, his head pillowed on one breast. Neither of them spoke, both aglow with satiated desire.
* * *
Zelek leaned his back against one of the trees, eyes sweeping the area. Everything was quiet without even the call of crickets. Only the light breeze rustling through the trees provided noise. That alone told him how dangerous this place was, that it was somewhere they didn’t want to linger.
But Chayn was inside and there wasn’t anywhere Zel wouldn’t track the traitor. Four years hadn’t dulled his anger, had only taught him how to control it, to keep it from consuming him. But this close it was simmering in his chest, ready to erupt into full flame again. Chayn had taken far too much from him, and Zelek was all too happy to take the other man’s life as recompense. His only comfort in all of this was that he’d been able to hide the Solidification Scroll. Family legends said it could give shadows physical form and that kind of power in the hands of someone like Chayn...
Movement from the side drew his attention. It was just Terrwyn, shifting in her sleep. Seeing the way she’d already managed to make a tangle of herself and her blankets lightened his expression. Every watch he found her in some new contorted position, some hardly comfortable looking, but she never woke up.
A smile lit his face as he studied her. He might have been wrong about her being inexperienced, but he at least hadn’t been wrong about her interest. Not that he’d doubted that. Terrwyn had a great deal of difficulty keeping what she was feeling off her face, even when she was actively trying. He could admit to himself that he liked watching her struggle with that and fail. Her almost complete inability to lie, to hide her own emotions, he found oddly reassuring. In a way, Terrwyn was very pure. What you saw of her was what was there. No more, no less. He liked that.
And the rest... Zelek’s smile grew. Well, he liked that a great deal as well. She really was a rare kind of woman and one he didn’t want to let go. So he supposed he couldn’t really be upset with his shadows for their little game.
He glanced at the shadows nearest him and shook his head. He’d heard the stories of course, that the more your shadows liked you, the better relationship you had with them, the more active they’d become. Independent action by shadows was unusual and generally not something they undertook lightly. Which is why he hadn’t doubted them for a second when they’d told him that Terrwyn needed him and directed him to the pond.
They hadn’t exactly lied to him he supposed, but they had definitely manipulated him into doing what they wanted. On the one hand, Zelek was glad his shadows liked Terrwyn. On the other, he wasn’t wholly comfortable with the idea of them interfering with him and his plans whenever they liked. He didn’t think they’d ever do anything to hurt him but what he wanted and they wanted could turn out to be different things.
They’d never gone against one of his direct requests so it wasn’t at a point where he should worry about it. Not when he had enough legitimate concerns to focus on. Zelek glanced at the Tower the loomed over their camp, impossible to ignore. Everything ended tomorrow.
He looked back at Terrwyn, feeling another worm of worry wriggle its way in. He knew she didn’t have magic, but she’d told him she had a plan. A plan he realized he’d never got her to tell him. He’d been too distracted by—He cursed himself. He should have pressed her for that, gotten the information out of her. If she didn’t need the rest he’d wake her up right now.
Zelek grimaced. There was nothing he could do at the moment. Maybe they’d have time in the morning. The only comfort he had was that she hadn’t been lying about having a plan or about studying magic. He’d have seen that immediately. He knew she wouldn’t risk her princess’s life, that Terrwyn would fight with everything she had. All he could do was kill Chayn as quickly as possible so he could help her. Their odds of survival might not be what they wished, but neither of them had a choice.
Chapter Twenty-Two: Splitting
After a full night’s sleep, and two more rounds with Zel back at camp, Terrwyn felt as ready as she could be for what was ahead. She checked her weapons and the closures of her armour. More than ever, she couldn’t afford any mistakes.
Finished, she watched Zel complete a similar check. Seeing the way his muscles moved as he twisted around to check the knives he kept in the small of his back, Terrwyn thought ordinarily that would have been enough to distract her, to drag him back into where they’d made their bed. But not now. Not with what lay ahead of them.
She glanced towards the horses, who they’d loose tied enough that they could eventually pull themselves free if the worst happened. Their camp they left as it was. They would either need it or not afterwards, so there was no point in taking it down.
The sun was barely above the horizon, creating pools of shadow. Which would only help them. Zel had already said he’d turned the last of the local shadows to their side. According to him, Chayn was even worse with the shadows than he’d been four years ago, making the process even quicker.
He straightened and caught her attention. There were no smiles today, he just nodded then jerked his head towards the last few hills lying between them and the black sands around the Tower. She fell into step behind him. He paused and looked at her. “Your plan, you’re sure of it?”
She held his eyes and patted the spears she’d strapped to her back. “Yes. I have it as planned out as I can.” Which was the truth, if just not the whole of it.
Zel studied her face for a moment, gaze dancing from one of her eyes to the other, before he nodded and turned away. A moment later, he pulled the shadows over them, hiding them.
Terrwyn couldn’t help but glance down as they moved. She looked the same, though it seemed like there was a dark tinge to her vision when she looked at herself. Zel had said that unless he asked the shadows to deliberately cover her so she couldn’t see through them, she’d be able to see herself.
They moved quickly over the small hills, through the handfuls of trees, and finally over the slightly larger hills that sloped down towards the depression the Tower sat in. Terrwyn couldn’t help the way her shoulders tensed when they moved into the open. She knew they were covered by the shadows and this was the time of day that their targets were least active, but it was hard to remember when she was jogging across the grass in full view of the Tower.
The grass gave way to the black sand and they both slowed. Running across it would only tire them long before they reached the Tower. It was oddly warm, warmer even than the morning air and something Terrwyn could feel through her boots. She ignored it, though she also couldn’t help but notice that nothing grew among the black particles. No grass, no insects skittering out, nothing. It was unnatural.
Neither of them spoke as they continued towards the arched doorway that w
as growing closer. By the time they reached the solid disc of black rock the Tower rose out of, Terrwyn’s back was slick with sweat, and the sun was higher in the sky than she liked. The witch typically wasn’t awake until noon, but Chayn was generally up a few hours earlier. According to the shadows at least.
She barely took a step towards the doorway when Zel grabbed her arm. Terrwyn looked at him, and he shook his head. She frowned but followed him. He led her halfway around the Tower to a portion of the stone that looked like the rest. Until he went straight through it like it wasn’t there.
Terrwyn stood there for a second, eyes widening, then hurried after him. It was dark inside, the rock of the Tower seeming to absorb the light. She shivered. There was an air, a feeling of wrongness about the Tower that made her want to turn and leave. But Aricia was waiting, and Zel was padding towards the staircase to their left.
They followed the curving stairs up, Zel stopping on the next floor which seemed to be just one open room. She came to stop beside him, meeting his gaze steadily, even though her mouth was dry. “He’s on the next floor,” Zel whispered, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Your princess is on the floor above that, with the witch up another floor.”
She nodded, having to swallow before she could speak. “Then we separate here.”
He squeezed her shoulder, gaze bright on hers. Terrwyn leaned forward so she could kiss him one last time. “Be careful,” she whispered, ignoring the prickling of her eyes.
“Same to you.” He pressed his forehead to hers then they moved apart, professionals once more.
They moved as quietly as they could up to the next floor, this one obviously sectioned off into rooms of various sizes. Terrwyn caught Zel’s hand and pressed it briefly, their eyes meeting. Then she continued upwards while he stalked forward, keeping his back close to the wall.
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