Era of the Moon, page 30
“Learn my native tongue, and you’ll find out.” Warm lips pressed into her shoulder blade, right above her scar, but despite his jestful tone, Cerilla’s thoughts were still heavy. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m just worried.” She admitted, her emotion washing over him – increasing the palpitations in his heart and the worries in his mind.
“About what?” A strand of her hair twisted delicately around his finger as he listened to her.
“Immediately, that this plan won’t work, and long term about what will happen to us after all this. Oh, and I’m fearful for how the Trial might end.” She confessed, and though he didn’t outright admit it, Sebastian was concerned about the same things.
“What do you think we should do?” He released a sigh, blowing warm air over her shoulder.
“I don’t know.” Cerilla stated, voice drenched in defeat.
“What happens if it comes down to the end and our clan numbers are tied?” His voice was level, but tinged with hints of concern.
“I don’t know.” Cerilla said again.
His arm pulled her tighter against him. “What happens when we leave here?”
“I don’t know.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Despite the mood, Sebastian smirked and asked his next question with a playful tone. “What do you know?”
Cerilla sighed. “I know that you will forever be etched into my soul, and I can’t bear the thought of being apart from you.” Cerilla rolled over, wincing at the sharp pain in her leg, caused by a wayward stone digging into her flesh. “But what will our families think? Bigotry runs so deep between our people. Could your family or nation even accept me?”
“I don’t care.” Sebastian’s eyes glittered with defiance. He was ready to defend her against any threat, even bigotry, but no matter how much he tried he couldn’t force his people to accept a Moon dweller – Cerilla knew this.
“You have that luxury. You’re a Crown Prince, you can’t leave your Dominion. I’d have to give up my entire life to be with you. That’s a hard decision to make. One I’ve never had to consider before.”
“But it’s for me. For us and our fated bond.” And the wellbeing of the entire Realm, she thought as she remembered the goddess’ cryptic words. Cerilla opened her mouth to say this, but she didn’t have time to respond because the next thing that happened was their heads snapping in the direction of a nearly otherworldly roar.
“Sebastian!” Callahan boomed. Cerilla and Sebastian were too far away to bear witness to the details of his fury. His eyes had shifted two shades darker, his skin was humming with angry electricity, and his teeth were grinding together so loudly anyone within spitting distance could have heard the sickening sound of bone against bone. His rage was primal and unable to be reasoned with.
“Fecking seven hells.” Sebastian whispered.
“Show yourself!” Callahan demanded. Cerilla watched as he planted himself on a hill on the opposite side of the camp and thick ropey vines sprouted from the ground, rooting him to the very place he stood.
“What is he doing?” Cerilla asked herself. Her first thought was he might be restraining himself, knowing he was unable to control his rage so he would instead lock himself to the earth so he wouldn’t harm anyone.
She couldn’t have been more wrong.
“Coward Prince!” Callahan spat. “Show yourself or your whole camp dies at my hand!”
A humorless laugh escaped Cerilla’s lips in a breathy exhale. “He can’t kill an entire encampment. He is one male. Where is his clan?” She had assumed he’d return with his entire force to enact his revenge.
“He is one male.” Sebastian agreed, voice still in a hushed whisper. “But he is a male scorned, and a very powerful one at that.”
“Isn’t he afraid?” Cerilla asked. “He thinks a whole clan is in there.”
“At times love leaves little room for logic.” Sebastian replied coolly, uncaring that another male thought he loved his mate so much it was driving him to madness. Because in his soul Sebastian knew Cerilla would never be Callahan’s in any way again.
“He doesn’t love me.” She retorted. “I was a plaything or status symbol to nearly every male in my life,” She paused. Sebastian felt her hand grasp his in the darkness, the power of the moon seeping into his skin the instant she touched him. “Until you.”
His lips found her temple, brushing a tender kiss upon her soft skin. “Well, he thinks he does. That’s the mindset he is acting from now.” The earth shuddered beneath them, so violently that Sebastian wrapped an arm around Cerilla to stabilize her and hunched his body over hers to block any falling rocks that might slide down the hillside above them.
“What is that?” Cerilla cried out, but even yelling her voice was drowned out by the earthquake around them.
On the other side of camp Callahan was unmoving, locked to the ground by the vines on his feet as he manipulated the earth around him.
Callahan roared once more, eyes so dark they were nearly black, and threw his arms up in the air.
“My goddess told me of your ruin by my hand! Now watch it be done!” Vines thicker than the oldest trees in all the Realm sprang from the earth, all of them covered in thorns thicker than Cerilla’s arms. The vines sliced through the tents, coming out the over side dripping in dark red blood and viscera.
“Goddess above.” Sebastian whispered, watching as unpredicted carnage ripped through his camp.
“How is this possible?” Cerilla asked. Callahan was manipulating the earth in a way she had never seen or heard of before. Every rock a mile out from him was quaking and the entirety of Sebastian’s camp was now covered in girthy vines that could have easily killed all of his clan. Cerilla had to force down the bile that threatened to spill from her mouth, the hot liquid burning her esophagus as she choked it down. He was one male, but he had done the damage of dozens.
Callahan’s lips turned up in a sinister smile, his face contorting in a way Cerilla had never seen before. His hands closed violently into fists and all the vines under his command constricted in one final death squeeze before falling limp to the ground. With the snap of his fingers the vegetation connecting Callahan to the ground withered and died, allowing him to step away and turn on his heel in the direction of his own camp. But he was not done yet.
Before he walked away, Callahan stomped his foot, sending the earth beneath Sebastian’s camp into the ground. It was as if a giant hole had instantly formed and swallowed the entirety of the space into a hungry chasm. The earth shook as it had before and only once Callahan had finally disappeared into the Dark Wood like a shadow did everything became eerily still.
“I- we- how did…” Cerilla muttered incoherently as she stared at the abyss where her mate’s camp had once been.
The wind howled in their ears, accompanied only by the chirps of crickets. Sebastian still held tightly to his mate, rhythmically rubbing his thumb over her skin to sooth himself.
“Even as a child I always feared that the Earth Province could destroy us all if they wanted to. That their power had the capacity for utter destruction.” Cerilla listened to his words as his steady heartbeat stabilized her erratic one. “They don’t rely on the sun or moon to restore their powers. He could be stronger than us all at any time of day. I can burn things down and you can control the waters, but the Earthies could control everything else. They could kill all our crops. Make our soil untenable. Our air unbreathable. Our animals feral and dangerous.” The next words hit Cerilla right in the gut, and they would be words she thought about for years to come. “He could destroy us all if he wanted to. If he understood his power, we would be at his mercy.” Cerilla tried to swallow the lump in her throat, but it wouldn’t go down. Sebastian, sensing her rising anxiety, used his finger to twist her head and place a lingering kiss on her lips. “Let me take you back to camp.” His eyes burned with the memory of her promise from earlier, her promise to have him that night – it was the only thing keeping him from losing it completely. Similar to her mate, Cerilla clung to her lust, needing a distraction from the horrors of the night – both those witnessed and imagined.
Chapter Twenty-One
The flap to Cerilla’s tent was hardly closed before Sebastian was on her, ripping at her clothing wildly. Her boots were by the door, her pants in a pile by her bedding. She felt a chill lick up her chest as he pulled her blouse over her head and exposed her breasts to the night air, but that chill was soon replaced by his heat.
“Goddess above, I’ve missed this.” Sebastian ran his tongue up the center of her flushed breasts, eventually leaning over to one side and teasing a single erect nipple with a gentle swirl of his tongue before burying his face in her neck, inhaling her essence. “I crave you.” His teeth grazed the sensitive skin of her neck, nipping lightly before kissing away the sting. “My fated one.” If his touches weren’t enough, the reverence in his voice alone would have been enough to drive her mad with pleasure.
Cerilla’s hands groped wildly at his clothing after carefully stripping him of his bandolier and weapons. His taut skin was warm beneath her hands, and his body was a sight to behold. His sun-tanned skin called to her, marred here or there by the scars of battle, but all of it begging to be touched. His growing arousal most of all. Like a heat seeking missile he pressed into her, his arousal caressing hers gently – a contradictory action considering the savage plowing he desired thrust into her with. But first he would be gentle, extracting pleasure from her slowly, priming her body for his – only then would he unleash the beast within him.
Cerilla stepped away from him for only a second, allowing them both to relieve themselves of the final clothing items that kept them apart. They stood there looking at one another for a single moment, both of their chests rising and falling with rapidly increasing breaths.
Sebastian’s hands shot out, pulling her to him, her back to his front, and slowly ran a hand down the length of her body. Heat trailed over her shoulder, along the side of her right breast, and over her belly button, before resting at the apex of her thighs. He pressed one finger to the bundle of nerves there, massaging her gently.
“We’re going to play out one of my dreams, Ame.” He looked down at her, head turned to the side like a predator might eye their prey. While one hand played with her, the other slid to tweak the nipple of her left breast. “As I said, my fantasies of our next joining have been frequent and diverse.” His mouth watered as his arousal teased the space between her ample bottom. Cerilla writhed against him as her pleasure built. “So, I will let my mate choose how I will take her.” Cerilla whimpered, a sound he wished to capture with his own mouth and consume. And he would – just not yet. “Let’s start with an easy question. Does my mate want me to have her standing or lying down?”
Though Cerilla was thoroughly enjoying the work he was putting in as they stood there, the discrepancy in their size would prove to be challenging, and she was desperate for him.
“Down.” She answered, bucking her hips as his circling of her pleasure center grew more fervent.
A wicked smile spread across his lips as he spread hers and dipped a finger into her wetness.
Two digits impaled her, taking the breath from her lungs, caused by the immediacy of their entrance. “Above or below me?”
Her answer was immediate. “Below.” Something within him was disappointed at that, as his most recent fantasy had included her bouncing on his engorged member as her breasts nearly suffocated him. But the disappointment did not last, he relished anytime he got to spend inside of her and would just save that fantasy for another day.
“On your knees or on your back?” His bite grazed her neck again, and the animal within him loved the feeling of her pulse thrumming beneath his teeth. The rhythm of his fingers was steady, and as she thought to answer his next question he moved to slightly, changing their position. With one hand never leaving her pleasure button the other snagged both hers and placed them above her head on the tent post. With this same hand he pushed her long hair over her shoulder, giving him an unobstructed view of her smooth skin. He traced a finger down the center of her back, watching with satisfaction as her skin pebbled beneath his touch.
Cerilla mewled, her ecstasy continuing to climb higher and higher without spilling over, Sebastian edging her to the line without yet sending her over it. He pushed her forward, eyes rolling back into his head as her round bottom ground into his manhood.
“Knees,” This word came out as a breathy moan, her head dropping down and back arching even more, giving Sebastian an extremely pleasing view. His other hand teased the skin of her bottom, desiring to slap it hard and mark it as his own – but again he reminded himself to catalogue that thought away for later. Already wet and waiting for him he plunged three fingers inside her from behind, the other hand continuing to swirl around her pleasure button. The penetration of his fingers was welcomed, and it wasn’t another minute before she was crying out his name, grinding down into his fingers and riding out her first release.
Sebastian waited until her walls released his fingers and she had milked her climax for all it was worth before he pulled himself from her and licked all three fingers clean. A moan escaped his lips, deep and guttural, vibrating Cerilla’s chest with its bass.
“Get on your knees for me, Ame.” He ordered, all tenderness gone from his voice. Cerilla, legs slightly shaking, wobbled to the bedding and dropped to her knees. All sensations were heightened, including their new sixth since from their mating bond. Cerilla couldn’t imagine what it must feel like after the bonding ceremony was complete, because even then she could sense him stepping up behind her and she could feel his arousal as her own. “I have one final question, followed by a demand.” He knelt down behind her, the inside of his thighs resting against the outside of hers as his manhood pressed against her dripping entrance.
“What’s the demand?” Her mouth was dry from moaning, so her question came out quiet.
“Bite down on this.” He slipped a strip of leather between her teeth. It both smelled and tasted of him, causing saliva to pool in her once dry mouth. His breathe tickled her ear when he spoke his next words. “I don’t want to wake up the rest of the camp.” His teeth nipped at her earlobe, tugging gently before letting go. “Final question, Ame.” She nodded. “Are you ready for me?” The look in her eye told him everything he needed to know. It was glistening with desire and filled with mischief. She gave him a single nod of her head, and that was all it took.
Sebastian gripped her hips and pulled her up and back, sliding into her with one quick motion. Cerilla gasped at the sudden intrusion, the leather slipping from her mouth and falling to the bedding beside her.
“I said to keep this in your mouth.” Sebastian picked it up, not yet moving his hips as he allowed her to adjust to his pulsating member. Cerilla bit down once again on the leather strip. “Drop it again and I’ll be forced to punish you.” He tapped a hand on her bottom, alluding to the spank he wished to give her.
Cerilla spat the leather out once again, flashing him a wicked smile. “Perhaps I want to be punished by you, mate.”
“Wicked creature.” The words came out like a purr before he grabbed the leather once again. “I don’t wish to share your cries of pleasure with anyone else in this camp. Be a good girl and keep this in your mouth, and once we’re off this deity-forsaken Isle I will do anything to you that you wish, for as long as you want, and you can scream all night long if you so desire.” He gripped her hips once again, pushing her away before swiftly bringing her back onto his shaft. He bit back his own moan of pleasure – still trying to teach her a lesson. “Understood?”
“Yes, Bash.” She whimpered over the leather in her mouth, her core already tightening around him.
“Say my name again.” He ordered.
“Bash,” She moaned as he began to pulse into her. His pace increased slowly, until he was pumping rapidly. He wrapped one strong arm around her, using it to steady his pace and bring her down harder on him while simultaneously giving his hand the ability to play with her breasts. His other hand slid between her legs, swirling around her engorged nerve bundle as he worked toward his goal – a shared completion. He was close, desperately so, and the tensing of her body under and around him said she was too.
“Come on, Ame. Give it to me. I need you to come for me.” His words paired with the simulation of three of her erotic zones was her undoing. She tightened around him, milking him of his release as she leapt over the edge with him. Her head fell back against his shoulder, crying out against the leather between her teeth while he grunted quietly around the flesh of her shoulder. Heat from his hands seared every piece of flesh he touched, but he kept his fire subdued, focusing his mind on their matching, breathy pants and her pulsating organ that had his member in a vice grip.
Cerilla did not move her head from its place on his shoulder, not even when he placed a long kiss to her open mouth nor when he guided them down onto the bedding while still inside of her.
They laid together, still joined, until their heart rates leveled out and their breathing was normal once again. Sebastian unsheathed himself from her, and she instantly grieved his heat and the fullness of him inside of her. Just like him, nothing would fully satisfy her until they completed the bonding ceremony. Every sensation was incredible, but it wouldn’t drive off the need within them to bond – not only physically but also spiritually.
Sebastian grabbed a damp towel from the water basin beside her bedding and used unrushed movements to clean her of their sweat and his seed, before cleaning himself up and lying back down with a blanket draped over them both. Cerilla welcomed him into her bed, nestling herself against his hard body and guiding his arm over top of her, and for the first time since they left the caves, they both fell into a dreamless, satisfying sleep.
Cerilla awoke, refreshed and renewed – still in her mate’s arms.
“Good morning.” Sebastian placed a kiss to her lips.
