Mercenary Hearts

Mercenary Hearts


Chapter the Fourth: Ambient Wonder


Piro felt his hearts skip beats as he found satisfaction in his lady’s arms.

She was not his bondmate—she was the nurse, Kya ‘Pomor—but Piro closed his eyes and willed the truth away, imagined for a few moments more that Lela’ra ‘Sraom was the one atop him now.

When Kya had at last stilled, she slid off of Piro and brought his dream crashing to a halt. He opened his eyes, watching as Kya reached for her clothing. She was struggling back into her sari when Piro sat up and reached out, catching her arm, tugging her back to his side.

“It’s cold,” she whispered.

“I’ll keep you warm,” he murmured, drawing her against him until they lay on their sides, her front facing the fire, her back pressed against his chest. She drew the sari over both of them like a blanket.

By the Rings, he wanted to hold her, listen to her hearts slow to their regular rhythm. Just a few moments more to pretend Lela’ra was still in the land of the living…

He squinted his eyes shut tightly, squeezing a single tear from each, and pressed his mandibles to the nape of her neck so that Kya would not know he cried.

Kya was still, and while he was grateful for the time to compose himself, he feared that she was hurting as well. He licked her neck until she purred quietly.

“Are you satisfied that you are with child,” he whispered, “or would you like to increase your odds?”

*-*-*-*

Kya quivered as she pondered his question. Piro held her gently, and his hands were still; he was not trying to seduce her or pressure her in any way.

Kya rolled over—she ought to be facing her mate for this discussion—and put her hand gently on his cheek. By the Ancestors, he was old. He had visible wrinkles in his hide.

But he had bred her with the ardor of a male half his age.

“Can we do it…the traditional way?” she murmured.

“Of course,” Piro said, and licked her muzzle. She jumped at the sudden intimate contact. How strange that she’d been mating with this male, yet the tenderness in his tongue’s caress shocked her.

He withdrew, watching her react.

She had not expected such respect from a male she’d essentially bullied into breeding. By all rights, he should have slaked his pleasure on her and considered her discomfort a fair price paid for the child she desired.

Kya placed her mandibles under his in a gesture of affection and submission.

Piro sighed—she felt his breath against her muzzle—and only now did his hands start to move on her body.

He was in no hurry for her to assume the position. He seemed more interested in tracing the length of her spine, and somehow he seemed to know exactly where to touch to set her nerves on fire. She found her body coming back to life, pressing insistently against his, writhing under his touch. She held her breath, wondering if he would give her the touches she desired, and when she thought she could wait no longer, he would finally find his way there. She moaned loudly every time, making certain he knew of her approval, and when she did this he would purr and begin to stroke her, indulging her desires.

Kya closed her eyes, for if he could dream, so could she. Soon she imagined that she was being caressed by a young Zealot, who looked upon her with pleasure, who did not turn away from the brand on her thigh. And, of course, he would know exactly what females enjoyed…

She hardly needed to imagine that part. Piro really did know what he was doing.

Kya found a moan escaping her mandibles as Piro trailed his hand up her inner thigh for the final time and made his way at last to the center of her. His fingers found her sensitive place and he laid them on her gently, like a musician about to play an instrument. And then he moved…light, slow circles. Almost no pressure. No thrusting. No teasing, now. Just slow, regular circles—over and over—over and over—

Kya whimpered as her hips began beating. The pleasure was a gentle but constant input. He was not trying to show off for her, or hurry her along, or satisfy himself. He was supporting her and letting her discover her pleasure for herself.

She fell into her fantasy, and as her body grew hotter, Piro’s touch was still there, just the slightest bit firmer now, just a little bit faster…

“Piro,” she panted, wanting more.

He purred as he granted her wish.

Kya felt her hide growing slick with heat. She was moist between her thighs. A muscle in her lower left mandible twitched uncontrollably.

“Piro, don’t stop.”

She was on the verge…she just needed a little more…

His finger teased her opening.

Kya groaned. Once he found out how wet she was, he’d mount her and it would all be over... Piro would be grinning in delight when he took his pleasure, oblivious to the fact that she’d been denied hers.

Piro’s finger slid inside her as his pace increased a little more.

“Piro?” Kya gasped.

“Come for me,” the male murmured.

Kya threw back her head, disbelieving, but her body would not let her lips form the words to question him. Her body was desperate for release, now, and she could not bring herself to deny herself this indulgence.

She did as he asked.

Her climax was powerful and yet it was not enough; no sooner had her shout of pleasure split the darkness than she felt a sudden lust rising up again in her belly, drowning out the aftershocks that should have given her satisfaction. She felt as though she were only beginning.

“Piro….why….”

“Why what?” he murmured as he withdrew from her.

“No!” she cried urgently.

“No?” he asked, recoiling.

She grabbed for him. She needed him. Desire seared her brain. “Don’t stop!” she pleaded. She was ready to throw herself at him.

He stroked her, soothing and exciting her in the same moment.

“Kneel for me.”

Kya could imagine her handsome fantasy mate speaking in Piro’s voice; she kept her eyes closed as she rolled and rose up on all fours in the traditional breeding position. Ordinarily her mate would fold the short skirt of her breeding gown up onto her back, but she wore none, and instead of soft furs beneath her knees, she felt sand, and instead of incense she smelled the salt ocean, and…

…but why should a fantasy mate be restricted to the breeding chamber? If her dream male loved her, then why wouldn’t he take her to the beach for something adventurous?

She felt his thighs against her rear, his chest over her back. He was careful not to put too much weight on her, but oh, he still felt like a man to her. An aggressive, courageous, powerful Sangheili male, everything a female of her species desired.

But he did not enter her, no, not yet. Instead he curled a hand around her hips to stroke her opening with his finger, testing her, probing gently. There was an unspoken question in the gesture.

“Please!” Kya cried.

He gripped her hips and entered her on one swift thrust.

Kya hung her head and surrendered her body to her mate. He surged within her, and sharp waves of pleasure crashed over her. This was what she had wanted—a strong and skilled male to give her fit and healthy young….like any other Sangheili female, as though she were any other Sangheili female, as though her branding and the rape and her exile were the illusion now, and her reality was a fine husband and a growing family and a secure future.

And there was something else she’d wanted…to slake the burning lust he’d raised in her. As he moved in her, this new need was finally, finally met. It scared her, the intensity of this desire, the way she had craved…

…craved her fantasy husband…

“Lela’ra…” Piro panted.

They moved in tandem, two dreamers lost in their own visions, and this time their climax did not wake them. They moved intuitively, separating reluctantly only to cling desperately to one another, chasing loves that would forever elude them. Even as their breathing deepened and their pulses slowed, they did not wake, instead slipping into true sleep in the arms of their dearest mates.

*-*-*-*

The aching in Piro’s bones finally awakened him. He nuzzled his snout into Lela’ra’s soft neck, trying to hold on to the last vestiges of sleep, but the pain would not be denied. He felt as though he were lying on the cold ground, with a chill in his bones that caused them to throb, and something rough digging into his hide…

Piro’s eyes snapped open.

On the horizon, a single sun was rising, painting the sky with pink and orange. Overhead, a bizarre-looking bat creature spread feathered wings and soared towards the sea; its mournful cry echoed over the sound of lapping surf. Beside him, a female Sangheili young enough to be his daughter whimpered softly as Piro sat up and stretched his legs in an attempt to relieve the ache.

The fire in the fire pit had burned itself down to nothingness. The scent of the deer carcass tickled Piro’s nostrils; there was plenty of meat left on the bones for a Sangheili willing to flay them clean.

By the Rings, he’d mated with Kya not once but twice and then they’d fallen asleep out here.

Piro craned his neck down to watch his newest mate. She stirred, reaching out to the now-empty spot beside her. He rubbed her shoulder, trying to comfort her, but she shivered and opened her eyes.

For a moment it was as though she did not recognize him; she frowned, confused, and then she shied away and flushed purple.

“I think we wore one another out,” Piro said gently. “Excuse me while I dress.”

He picked up his clothing and moved some ways away, suddenly embarrassed. It was not his usual practice to fall asleep next to his mates; that was an intimacy he had reserved for Lela’ra. After her death, the world was once again his breeding chamber: please your mate and be pleased in turn, and then go your separate ways. He had not intended to sleep next to Kya. By the Rings, he had to be getting old, if two matings exhausted him so thoroughly.

He did not look back until he was fully dressed. Kya, too, had dressed and was now standing in her sari on the far side of the fire pit, looking out to sea.

Piro walked back towards their camp site. “Would you…would you like some more meat?” He felt strangely awkward, as though he were a youth again. He had no idea what to say to this female he barely knew. He lived with her—he could not simply go on his way in the knowledge he would never see her again. The relationship between them was something undefined now, and he did not know how he should behave towards her.

“I…I’m not hungry, but thank you.” She seemed self-conscious as well. “I’d best be getting back to see to my egg. I hadn’t planned on leaving it unattended all night.”

“Are you well?” he asked, fearing the answer. Had he hurt her?

She ducked her head shyly. “Yes…I… I just…it was…”

“Bad?”

Kya lowered her head in the negative. “Not what I expected.”

“Yes. It seems it was that for…both of us.” He reached for her, then thought better of it. “Until another time, then.”

“Take care,” she said, and turned to leave. Her stride became a brisk walk, then a bolt, until she was scampering away on all fours. He prayed she was running from her own turmoil, and not from him.

Piro settled on one of the logs and watched the waves rolling to meet the shore. He wondered if tonight he would have to kneel before his ancestral altar and beg Lela’ra’s forgiveness for a favour that had gotten out of hand.