Impure

by Kenna Bardot

  The fact that my Final challenge was not coming for more than two more weeks meant I still had time to prepare but every day that passed I got more and more nervous.

  At first, only my pride had been at stake, and that was a big thing for me. But now along with it came everything else.

  "Guys," I whined in my best impression of an annoying brat, "play with me. I'm bored."

  "Mireyah, we can't. We're busy studying and preparing. Go bother Hollis or Ryle." Char shot me an impatient look, the warning flashing in his eyes as he turned towards me.

  While I knew he cared for me, he was still the strictest of the five, so I had to be careful how much I was willing to push him and put myself at risk. Well, maybe.

  I had a bit of a daredevil in me. Being with five of the most beautiful thrilling Descendants in the world.

  "But they're being all broody and boring. They're no fun." I crossed my arms under my breast, which I knew pushed them up to put them in full view. Too bad Ryle wasn't there. He'd have been all over that.

  "We're no fun when we're in serious study mode either," Tate's voice sounded very patient even as he stared down at the book he was holding. Although, really, he hadn't turned a page in over ten minutes so I highly doubted that he was studying as hard as he made it seem like.

  "Well, there's a huge understatement. Okay, perhaps not really have fun." I sighed and sobered up. "I was thinking I should already start training for the final challenge. I know it will be bad."

  Char's face cleared up, and he slapped a hand to his forehead. It was the most reaction I'd ever gotten from him ever. "Well, aren't we selfish and self-centered?"

  "Damn right we are," Shep agreed.

  I rushed over and wrapped my hands around Char's waist, squeezing hard. He started, and I could see that I coaxed a smile from him. "Such drama. It's fine. I just don't know what to do anymore. I want it over but also don't want it over because what if I don't make it?"

  Char squeezed me back hard and drew me into him. "Don't talk like that or I’ll punish you."

  "Nothing could be worse than losing you." I burrowed into him and sighed when I felt Tate and Shep join us and wrap their arms around me.

  "Okay then, time to train." Char gave my shoulders a squeeze and pushed me back to look down at me. "No mercy."

  Well, I asked for it.

  ✽✽✽

  I walked towards the guys' quarters with the tray of drinks I'd volunteered to get. They'd let me because they thought it was cute how I liked to pretend to still just be their servant.

  I figured it was the least I can do considering they were being much nicer to me. And because I loved them. Wasn’t about to forget that.

  I walked faster and stopped when I realized I was practically skipping. When had I become Miss Bubbly pants? I shuddered and resumed walking at a more leisurely pace.

  I heard a sound to my right but before I could check it out, the tray and all that was on it went flying and clattered to the floor. The drinks spilled, drenching me in cold liquid from the ale that I'd gotten for the guys to drink.

  I saw Annalee first, my face darkening at the laugh that escaped her lips. The same people who had abandoned her not that long ago surrounded her. What lies had she been spreading to get them to believe she was cool again; I could not know.

  "Oops, guess you're gonna have to get more of that." Galina, the same kitchen maid I'd punched in the face in my first week at Godsvail. I smiled at her, pure pleasure even as I seethed from what they'd done.

  I looked down at the mess they'd created. "Sure, I am. Hey, isn't this your domain? You should get more food and drink, right?

  "You can't order Galina around." Annalee snarled and gave me a push.

  "But we can." Ryle appeared around the corner flanked by Shep and Char. The formation struck me as funny, and I slapped a hand over my mouth to keep myself from bursting into giggles.

  "Maybe it's time you're all taught that no one could talk to a human that way but a Descendant and last we checked, you were all humans."

  Annalee, Galina plus Otis and Mauve stepped back. Mauve trembled before bowing to the guys, and I had to smirk at that.

  Ryle slung an arm around my shoulder and gave the top of my head a quick kiss. "You okay, Mireyah?"

  I reached behind him to give his butt a quick little pinch and shot him a cheeky grin. "Yes, Ryle. Peachy keen. A little sticky, not gonna lie. And peeved that I lost the drinks."

  In the meantime, Shep had reached over and was holding my hand in his as he tended to do often. "We did tell you that you needn't serve us. That's not what you are to us anymore." He shot an evil look at Annalee and her crew. "Just you. Other humans need to serve us. In fact, we require drinks in our common area."

  Char walked towards me and stood in front of me. I had to look up to meet his eyes, and he asked, "You okay?"

  "Sure, it's just a stupid drink and food tray."

  He nodded and turned around to walk towards Annalee. "There is nothing I regret more in my time here in Godsvail than the day I picked you as my human attendant. You've been a huge disappointment."

  "Char!" Annalee whined, face contorting as she did so.

  "I believe you've forgotten how to address me. Master or sir and never by name. Although since I’ve cast you aside, I couldn’t care less." Char looked back at me and gave me a soft smile before his face hardened when he looked back. "We are not equals."

  Annalee deflated right in front of our eyes and nodded, taking a few steps back.

  Char pointed at the kitchen maid, Galina, and ordered, "You. Clean up this mess or embarrass your people. Then we need food and drinks brought to our room. If you don't know where it is, ask that," he said pointing towards the now-silent Annalee. "She should be good for something."

  Without another word, he turned back to me, grabbing my chin in between two of his fingers. Those pale eyes stared down at me, looking into my very soul. "Darling, are you sure you're okay?"

  I chuckled and rubbed a hand over his cheek. "Yes, as I told you."

  "Good." He bent down and landed a soft kiss on my lips. Afterwards, he looked at Ryle and Shep. "Where are those two?"

  "No fucking clue, Char," Ryle admitted with a shrug.

  "How disappointing. Well, to the room then. Mireyah needs to change." He stepped over the tray I'd dropped just minutes ago, and I snuggled closer into Ryle even as I squeezed Shep's hand.

  If my family could see me now, I highly doubted that they'd know who I was, given how much I'd changed in the last months I'd been in Godsvail. That and everything and everyone I'd experienced and encountered.

  What scared me, though, was the fact that I knew that if my friends from Wintercairn would see, they would judge me for snuggling up to a Descendant, much less five when we knew how hard lives in those areas could still be.

  But as Charolais moved ahead to pull the door open, he looked back at me and gave me one of his rarer smiles. That and the fact that he'd kissed me in front of a group of humans.

  Life had changed if my past self would not have only barely understood me, but she would have been very tempted to chase death rather than admit feelings for the dirty children of the false and punishing Gods.

  Gods save me.

  ✽✽✽

  "Greetings to students young and old," Headmistress Valencia Byta said, standing at the front of the dining room. The Descendants had mostly finished their meal when she strolled in. Her eyes fell on mine briefly, raising a perfectly arched brow in amusement at the sight of me sitting perched on the edge of the table while Shephard fed me bites of food with a smile. Even the other humans glared at me from the edges of the room while they waited to serve.

  I wanted to feel guilty that I sat there being pampered while they served, but the memory of how horrible most of them had been to me prevented me from feeling much guilt. Instead, I channeled some combination of Char's cruel indifference and Shep's need to rub his possessions in everyone's face.

  And t
hey were my possessions, as much as I was theirs. We belonged to each other.

  I nipped at Shep's finger playfully when he fed me a bite of my favorite Dijari fruit. It grew on trees, oval-shaped balls with a tough hide, but when the hide peeled away, it revealed a decadent flesh that practically melted in the mouth. Considered a delicacy that only grew in the South, it was something I'd never had before they'd started offering me some food intended for Descendants and Gods. Humans weren't worth the Dijari.

  So naturally, I practically bathed in its juices daily.

  I closed my lips around the chunk of fruit, moaning softly and smiling when Shep's eyes darkened with heat. I swallowed, shifting my gaze away from him to stare at the Headmistress as a little smile formed on her face.

  "The other judges and I have deliberated on the results of the interview and exam portions of the Qualifier. Kinnia Sutre," she let the orange-haired woman, who had contributed to my torment alongside Ashric Tovenaar when I'd first arrived, stand to loud applause from the friends who surrounded her.

  "Charolais Vide." The applause for Char was even louder, the worship the Descendants felt for those who ruled their school something apparent in every move they made. I didn't know if it was just genuine adoration, or genuine fear. I didn't suppose it mattered to Char. He enjoyed instilling fear in people.

  "Sariah Majele." She stood; a stunning blue-haired woman who felt wrong. Creepy. Sadistic, but she was nothing compared to the name she spoke next, "Ashric Tovenaar." My heart stuttered in my chest, hating the fear that I felt for Char. Ashric and the guys were rivals, though they usually left each other be. None of the parties wanted to risk the wrath of the Gods to fight one another, but with the excuse of the Arena Battle, nothing would stand in their way.

  "Osvaldo Springen." Even as she spoke the words, my eyes never left the black-eyed demon who stood and stared at me. "Shephard Tempestas," she said finally, and I drew my eyes away in favor of watching Shep stand to his feet. He clenched his hands into fists, and I knew he hadn't missed the silent threat Ashric paid me. "And finally, Adan Leven. Congratulations to you all, and may you make your Houses proud in the Arena Battle."

  The students filed out of the room quickly after that, elated or somber. It depended on how they or their friends had fared during the Qualifier. "You threw it," Ryle hissed to his brother, and I stood from the table to insert myself between them.

  "Don't," I pleaded. "He wants to stay with you. That's his choice to make, Ryle."

  "He should be with you. Protecting you instead."

  I smiled up at him, but it was a bittersweet smile. "I'll be in Sylfeshire, should I survive the Challenge. He can't be with me, Ryle. Not enough to matter." His forehead touched mine briefly, before he wrapped an arm around my waist and guided me out of the dining room and up to their rooms.

  "I hate the thought of you being all alone until we can visit you. Until you’re allowed to mingle with Gods."

  "I've survived worse things. I'll survive this too. Talisha always joked that I could survive the apocalypse," I teased.

  "Were you close?"

  I shook my head with a sigh as we took the stairs. "I always thought she hated me, but really she was just jealous. She wanted nothing more than to be chosen for Godsvail, but it wasn't her path. The Gods didn't choose her, and she told me all my life that if anyone from our village had a chance of being chosen, it was me. She hated that I didn't want it, and it made her bitter. That I would spit in the face of her dream. I didn't realize how insensitive I'd been until I came here, but I wish she could have seen that it wasn't right to expect me to want the same things as her either. Our relationship could have been different if we'd both had a little more care with how we spoke to one another. I regret it very much now, knowing I'll never get to apologize." I broke off with a sheepish smile, realizing all the guys were staring at me as we stepped into Hollis' room.

  "It sounds to me, like she would be very proud of the woman you've become," Tate said, drawing me into his arms and sitting on the edge of the couch. I positioned myself between his splayed legs, burrowing into his chest for warmth.

  "What makes you think that?" I chuckled.

  "All she wanted was for you to Ascend. She knew what an incredible opportunity it would be, that it would save you from a life of toiling away in that shop and fighting to survive. But I think that it would make her very proud to know that you made it this far, by being true to yourself. You spurn the Gods at every turn, dare them to try to force you to do anything. And that is exactly why you're here. They see something in you, something that even they know will make a remarkable force to reckon with as a God, and they want that for themselves. She'd be a fool not to be proud." Tate gave the tips of my fingers kiss, and I felt the calm wash over me along with the unassailable love that they had for me.

  Burrowing in tighter, I nodded. Finding some closure because maybe, just maybe, my sister could look back on our relationship with something other than bitterness in her heart. Maybe she could find it in her to miss me, despite our differences.

  Because I knew I missed her.

  Chapter 31

  Mireyah

  The air was solemn as we made our way back to Hollis' room a few nights later.

  One last night.

  That was all that stood between me and death, or me and the conversion to Sylfe. Either way, it could very well be my last night to be with them. To enjoy them. To touch them.

  The thought of losing them made me murderous. Having only just found them, I wasn't ready to give them up. And I'd wasted so much time. Time that we could have spent happy.

  So it was no surprise that as soon as the door closed, Shep turned to me and captured my mouth with a thunderous kiss. His arms wrapped around me, hefting me into his arms so I wrapped my legs around his waist. I knew the logical thing I should do was sleep, resting up for whatever was coming my way in the morning. But when the hard length of Shep ground against my clit through my panties, there was zero chance of me falling asleep before I'd taken everything he had to give.

  We collapsed to the bed, and I had long since stopped being bothered by the guys watched me. It wasn't unusual for me to take one of them to bed at a time, with the lot of them watching or playing with each other while they watched and took turns.

  But that wasn't what I wanted right then. I wanted all of us, connected. Because the day might come where they would be separated too, and they loved one another as much, if not more, than they loved me. That, I knew without a doubt.

  Shep tore my dress down the center, a sobering reminder that it didn't matter. No matter what happened the next day, I would never be an Attendant again, never have need for the black dress that had marked me as their belonging long before I became their love. I shoved the scraps of fabric off my body, never breaking from his tumultuous lips and tongue as he devoured me like his last meal.

  I supposed in a way, it was.

  When he finally drew back from my lips, it was to peel the underwear down my legs while I stripped off my bra. I finally glanced over at the others, finding they'd all taken off their clothes already. The urgency made me chuckle, but I watched as Shep stood to do the same. "I want to watch you," he whispered as he slid his pants zipper down.

  "And we want to push you," Char said. "We have plans for you tonight. Do you trust us?" I nodded, and Hollis stepped forward to grab me and tug me to the edge of the bed. He slid his hand through my center, finding me already wet and wanting.

  "She doesn't need foreplay tonight. Thank fuck, because I can't wait to be inside you." He laughed, and I squealed when his hands plucked me off my back and turned me over. My stomach pressed into the mattress, my legs dangling off the edge so that my toes barely touched the floor. He notched his head at my entrance, shoving in with more ease than he'd had the first few times I took him. It felt like he'd been true to his word, like I'd spent my days stuffed full of them.

  "That's not all me," I whispered on a gasp, and he chuckled and brou
ght his hand down on my ass in a teasing slap.

  "Do you think I need the reminder that we've all filled this pretty little pussy with cum already today? If you think we don't sit in our classes thinking about the fact that we're dripping out of you, you'd be mistaken." He thrust in again, a sharp snap of hips that might have made me jolt forward if the bed hadn't held me in place.

  "Fuck!" He struck the end of me on every stroke, taking me in a hard, punishing rhythm that was so much more than the way Hollis usually took me. He was normally gentler, more concerned for his size than the other men. "Is this how you push me? By fucking through me?" I hissed.

  Tate crawled onto the bed, kneeling in front of me. It was an awkward angle, but the proximity of his cock to my mouth made it obvious just what he wanted. I opened for him, letting him do the work and glide into my mouth.

  "We will push you by testing just how okay you are with us being together," Char said, and he went to the nightstand to remove a bottle of lube. “I’ll fuck Tate while you make him feel good. And Ryle is going to fuck Hollis while he fucks you." I widened my eyes, unable to answer with Tate inside my mouth.

  "Would you like that, Mireyah?" My eyes went to Tate as Char stepped up behind him, and the silver-haired man's eyes went hazy. The unmistakable sound of a bottle being popped open sounded behind him as Char grinned at me, and Tate moaned as Char undoubtedly spread him open with his fingers.

  My moaned echoed Tate's. I might have wondered if I could enjoy watching them fuck each other.

  But I didn't need to. If anything, I was upset that I couldn't see what he was doing. Couldn't see the way he shifted when he handed the bottle off to Ryle and slowly worked himself into Tate. I felt like I wanted to have a front-row seat, but the way Tate twitched in my mouth once Char seated himself fully inside him would have to do. He'd paused his movements, adjusting to the feel of Char inside him, so I hollowed my cheeks and sucked on his head for all I was worth. I wanted more. Wanted him.