Twin Blades

Twin Blades



Chapter the Eighth: Duelling Hearts





Time Setting: After the meeting between Lord Hood, Commander Miranda Keyes, the Master Chief, Rtas ‘Vadum, the Arbiter and 343 Guilty Spark aboard Shadow of Intent; before the Shadow’s slipspace emergence at the Ark.







The Arbiter felt vaguely guilty for letting Rtas 'Vadum pull him through the corridors of Shadow of Intent instead of going off with the Master Chief to prepare for the coming assault, but not guilty enough for him to struggle in the Shipmaster’s grip. He also felt badly for not giving Rtas more personal time, and if it hadn’t been for the constant battles and the unthinkable price of defeat, he would have. He had to sleep anyway; one rest cycle could not hurt now.



‘Vadum came to a halt before a door and bowed to the Arbiter, gesturing towards the portal. His curiosity piqued, the Arbiter gripped the handle and turned it.



The first thing he noticed was an aroma, like a soft incense in a firebowl. When the door swung open all the way, the Arbiter sucked in his breath. The harsh regulation lighting in the room was dimmed down to almost nothing; instead, the stateroom was illuminated by the flames of flickering firebowls set in rows along the shelves, tables, and desk of the room. Underneath the incense fragrance, the Arbiter could smell Rtas’ scent on the objects in the room. This had to be Rtas’ stateroom.



And it was done up like…like…



The bed had a thick, soft blanket pulled back to reveal silky purple sheets. Soft music of windflutes and chimes played in the background, right on the edge of hearing.



Understanding crashed through the Arbiter’s mind that he was not going to get much sleep at all.



He was staggered. He had been wondering if Rtas had lost his nerve—in fact, some dark, uncharitable corner of his mind had wondered if ‘Vadum was just a tease, someone who got off suggestion and games and never intended to give him any real satisfaction.



And now, out of the blue, this…



‘Vadum poked him in the ribs to push him inside. The Arbiter jumped forwards, surprised, almost nervous with the excitement coursing through his veins. Rtas followed him in and shut the door. The lock slammed home with an echoing clunk.



Something wasn’t quite right with this scenario, the Arbiter thought as ‘Vadum wrapped his arms around him and nuzzled him firmly, placing his right mandibles squarely atop the Arbiter’s. What was…by the Rings, that felt good, and his heat, and his scent! …what was it?



The Arbiter startled as he heard the click of his ornamental shoulder guard snapping off. That was it…ever since he’d realized that he hadn’t ruined his chances after the unfortunate end of their shared dinner, he’d been planning a way to seduce Rtas that would bulldoze right through any reluctance or teasing. But now, the second they were alone, ‘Vadum was on the verge of ripping his armour off.



Correction, the Arbiter thought as his chestplate hit the floor. Was ripping his armour off.



“It looks nice in here,” the Arbiter murmured into Rtas’ earbud. “It would look better with some white armour on the floor.”



“If you can find any,” the SpecOps commander replied with a teasing smile, “please be my guest.” He carefully lifted the Arbiter’s helmet off his head and set it gently on the desk. Then his hands returned to roaming the Arbiter’s chest, as though it had hurt him to remove them from his partner’s body for even that short bit of time.



The Arbiter did not need a second invitation. Growling, he tugged on ‘Vadum’s left shoulder guard. ‘Vadum, green eyes flashing and a broad grin on his remaining mandibles, retorted by stripping the Arbiter’s right thigh plate. The Arbiter suddenly found himself seized with the desire to get rid of ‘Vadum’s clothing as quickly as possible, but the job was only halfway completed when ‘Vadum—having now removed all the gold filigree armour—tackled him right down onto the bunk. They tussled for a while, sometimes laughing, sometimes moaning as hands went everywhere and somehow the rest of Rtas’ armour and both their jumpsuits wound up missing in action.



‘Vadum wasted no time in bowing his head and starting to lick—by the Forerunners, ‘Vadum had some nerve, licking his way around the Mark of Shame. He seemed fascinated by the texture of the scar under his tongue, and it tickled all the Arbiter’s remaining nerve endings around the outline of the brand. All the while, Rtas’ hands were travelling up and down the Arbiter’s sides, and just when the Arbiter was about to grab Rtas’ head and shove it downwards, Rtas’ tongue continued its journey across his body. Strange how the air striking the moisture on his skin felt cool, and yet, the act of being licked made him feel burning hot at the same time.



And then ‘Vadum’s hands encircled his shaft, dancing lightly, ever so lightly… If the Arbiter didn’t know better, he’d swear it was ‘Vadum’s first time, the way he explored him so slowly and carefully—but of course it wasn’t, the SpecOps Commander had been bonded, after all…



Then ‘Vadum touched him, slowly and deliberately, right in the most sensitive place…



By. The. Rings.



Rtas ‘Vadum knew exactly what he was doing.



The Arbiter clicked his mandibles together and groaned, torn between grabbing ‘Vadum and showing him firsthand what happened when you teased an alpha male Sangheili for too long, or laying back and watching ‘Vadum work his magic. When ‘Vadum gripped his shaft at the tip—just at the tip—forcing him to pump his hips in order to feel that delicious friction along any more of his length…that’s when the Arbiter decided to lay back and enjoy for a bit. Rtas was, as a matter of fact, quite skillful. It seemed like for every move he made, the pressure got just a little more intense, a little faster, a little hotter…



Distantly he wondered if maybe he shouldn’t tell ‘Vadum to take it easier…but no. No, why should he? He’d be good to go again before long—all he had to do was keep ‘Vadum at his mercy until then. Easy enough. Right now, if Rtas wanted to service him so much, why should he object? After all, it felt so good…



The Arbiter felt his breath catch in the back of his throat as ‘Vadum shifted his grip ever so slightly. He suddenly felt a ripple of fear cutting through the warm haze of desire—a fear that Rtas would stop all of a sudden and leave him begging shamelessly for more.



Damn ‘Vadum, for bringing him—him, the Arbiter—to this state!



He could feel tears tracing cold trails down his cheeks as he squeezed his eyes shut even tighter. His breath was rasping, and his mandibles were quivering uncontrollably.



Rtas added just a little pressure in just the right place and the Arbiter lost control. ‘Vadum stayed with him, squeezing him long and slow, until he ran dry. The Arbiter's jaws clenched as the last ripple of pleasure passed and left him exhausted and mellowed—but not yet satisfied.



He gave Rtas a smug grin.



The other Sangheili was delicately wiping his hands with a cloth, all gentlemanly manners. The Arbiter allowed himself a private smile at the idea of dashing ‘Vadum’s professional resolve to pieces. He would definitely make the other male beg for it. Make him promise, at the very least, an encore in a time and place of the Arbiter’s choosing.



The Arbiter licked his mandibles, trying to decide where he should call that favour in…he definitely favoured Sergeant Johnson’s bunk. Faggot, indeed.



But that was a fantasy for later. He had another fantasy playing out for him right now.



“I think you should come here,” he said, his voice a low growl.



“I think you should sit up,” ‘Vadum retorted smoothly.



The Arbiter raised an eye ridge. “Oh? And what happens if I do?”



“Try it and see.” The SpecOps commander gave him a teasing little smile.



Well, now. Rtas still wanted to play games. The Arbiter didn’t see any harm in indulging his new bed mate; he needed a few moments to get ready for the main event anyway, and the more games ‘Vadum played, the more games the Arbiter could play in return. He pretended to concede graciously, sitting up cross legged in the bed, while all the while he was thinking, after Sergeant Johnson’s bunk, where else could he get the ever-so-proper Rtas ‘Vadum to bend over for a quick fuck? Perhaps another utility closet—after all, it wasn’t nice to tease.



‘Vadum moved in behind him, letting his body brush suggestively against the Arbiter’s bare back. The Arbiter closed his eyes, savouring the experience. ‘Vadum’s hands caressed the front of his chest, working their way up to his shoulders and beginning to rub him there.



The Arbiter let out a throaty purr as ‘Vadum deepened the massage, with both hands kneading their way down to his shoulder blades. He could feel ‘Vadum’s hot breath on the back of his neck. Oh, yes, he could definitely get spoiled with a bed mate who loved to please as much as Rtas evidently did.



Then things took a sharp turn that the Arbiter was not expecting, and it blindsided him.



A strange sensation tore down the Arbiter’s spine as the right side of his body went limp. The muscles relaxed against his will and he felt weak, like a hatchling, as he sagged against the mattress. His left side tingled, but at least he retained control of those limbs. He could feel a shape like a sideways V blazing on the back of his neck, as though ‘Vadum had put his shattered jaws right over the Arbiter’s sweet spot and…



By the Rings, that arrogant bastard had bitten him!



And of course his body had reacted just like a hatchling’s and gone limp. The Arbiter thought that should be grateful that with only half his jaws, Rtas could only trigger the biological reation in half his body. But still…



Nobody ever bit the Arbiter. Nobody bit the Sangheili he used to be, either, the Supreme Commander of the Fleet of Particular Justice. Biting was something done by the dominant to the subordinate. He was the biter, not the victim, and if he did occasionally want to be mounted, he did so secure in the knowledge that his partner would obey his every order instantly, to give him exactly what he wanted when he wanted it without any undesired surprises.



That certainly wasn’t what was happening to him now. This situation was completely out of the Arbiter’s control.



Rtas moved behind him, wrapping his arm around the Arbiter’s chest from behind, drawing him close in an iron grip...and nipping the other side of his neck.



It came to him in a sudden crashing realization that he had underestimated Rtas ‘Vadum very, very badly.



All this time he’d thought ‘Vadum’s hesitance was a sign of submissiveness. It wasn’t unknown, to have high ranked Sangheili who got their personal thrills out of willingly surrendering their authority to a lover in private. Somewhere along the line he’d mistaken Rtas for one of these. Perhaps it had been the Arbiter’s presumption just because every lover he’d ever taken, save his first, had been submissive to him. Perhaps he thought that ‘Vadum’s monogamous ways were a result of a docile nature.



How wrong he’d been. By the Rings, he should have known better—he’d seen ‘Vadum in combat, leading his men forward not through threats or violence but through the sheer force of his personality. The SpecOps Commander was a dominant male in his own right, and suddenly the Arbiter found himself being the one who was the hunted.



Hunted by a predator who’d lured him in here, seduced him with hands-on service and then out of nowhere shown his true colours and bitten the Arbiter, as though the Arbiter were a virgin female!



As ‘Vadum shifted his body in search of the right position, he leaned his weight on the Arbiter, crushing him into the bunk. The Arbiter could feel Rtas’ breath hot on his neck as he lay there, his whole body sluggish from the drugging bites, and any second now he was going to be completely dominated by…



Unbidden, his mind flashed back to that first year of War College, to that very first time…like now, crushed against a mattress, though back then he’d been half off a cadet’s bunk and his whole body had been paralyzed by a very powerful bite by someone with all four mandibles intact. He remembered how it had felt, how through his unbidden arousal he’d also felt a horrible and chest-choking fear…



He could feel another male behind him now, hard and hot, and knew that any second he would…



“No.” The word ripped from his mouth and it was too late to take it back, not even for Rtas. He struggled to get his working arm under him.



The Arbiter suddenly found himself flipped violently onto his back, with a very aroused and angry and agitated SpecOps Commander looking down at him.



“No?” Rtas demanded. “What damned game are you playing n…”



The Arbiter cut off ‘Vadum’s tirade by moving his right arm up, catching Rtas behind his shoulder blades and tugging the other Sangheili up on top of him. Rtas moved along with his urging and soon their mandibles were caressing one another.



After a few sweet moments, ‘Vadum pulled back and smiled. “So this is what you like,” he murmured as he sought position again. “You want to watch.” The Arbiter could feel a purr rumbling through ‘Vadum’s chest—apparently Rtas didn’t mind that idea in the least.



The Arbiter’s mandibles flickered, because while his brain was telling him that he ought to explain that actually he didn’t usually like being on the bottom, his body wasn’t interested in communicating in words right now. His body was interested in communicating in touches and thrusts and licks. His hips were already beating in anticipation; his tongue was lapping at the hollow of ‘Vadum’s shoulder like it held water in the midst of a desert, and his skin was tingling all over with the feeling of ‘Vadum’s whole body pressed against his. In fact, what his body wanted most of all was to have Rtas ‘Vadum inside him, and so when the other Sangheili drove forward, the Arbiter met him, and the force of their joining ripped the breath from the Arbiter’s lungs and drove his fingers hard into ‘Vadum’s back for support.



He knew his eyes were wide with the sheer shock and intensity of the sensations ripping through him, and he could not shut them. Instead he found himself looking up into the fathomless green depths of ‘Vadum’s eyes, as if the SpecOps Commander was looking not just at him but into him, absorbing everything he was and replacing it with parts of himself. This was intimacy at a level that was not just shorthand for sexual pleasure but meant, in fact, a shattering of individuality and a reconstruction using intermingled pieces. It was terrifying and relentless and inexorable, ripping him apart inside and out, and he would scream for it to stop if not for the fact that he was screaming for Rtas to give him more, please, he’d do anything if ‘Vadum would only give him just a little more…



‘Vadum responded, surging inside him with increased intensity, the SpecOps commander’s desire an insatiable whirlwind of hunger that would not be denied, that demanded the Arbiter’s body to respond in kind, and the Arbiter was helpless to stop it. He didn’t want to stop it. It was far, far too good to stop.



The Arbiter closed his eyes and howled, a cry as loud as the one he’d given when he received the Mark of Shame. There was no shame left in him now. Whatever his lover asked of him, he would do, and do gladly.



And then it was joined by another note, a baritone to the Arbiter’s bass, as ‘Vadum also lost control and let the maelstrom sweep through him.



They lay there for a few moments, panting for breath, their sweat turning ‘Vadum’s silken sheets to sodden lumps. ‘Vadum gently disengaged and rolled onto his side, where he cuddled up against the Arbiter as sweetly as you please, tucking his mandibles gently under the Arbiter’s and closing his eyes. ‘Vadum looked almost innocent except for that big fat smile on his face.



Oh, yes, now the bastard was being submissive. And he was still purring.



The Arbiter realized, with some surprise, that he was rumbling in his chest as well.



The Sangheili’s holy warrior lay there for a while, feeling the strength return to his limbs while Rtas slept soundly in his arms, slowly realizing that he had had his mind well and truly blown. What this encounter meant, he was not sure. Part of him was frightened beyond all reason.



But he didn’t want to leave.



Instead, he reached over and adjusted the waking alarm on ‘Vadum’s bedside table. It was set to alert them at the end of the rest cycle. The Arbiter adjusted it to wake them an hour early.



He absolutely could not let Rtas get away with this unscathed.



But right now, the Arbiter was tired from his exertions and ‘Vadum, that scheming bastard, he was passed out completely. Well, let him sleep while he could. He wouldn’t be getting any sleep when that alarm went off; the Arbiter would make sure of that.



Mollified, the Arbiter cuddled up to his consort and went to sleep himself.



*



The alarm went off and the Arbiter’s eyes flew open. He didn’t remember the details of his dreams—or rather, so soon after waking up, he didn’t recall precisely what had been a dream and what was a memory of last night—but it didn’t matter. The dreams had taken an effect on him, and he was already unsheathed and firm and ready to give Rtas ‘Vadum a little lesson.



Beside him, Rtas moved his torso up on one elbow and blinked sleepily. “What? How can it be time to go to work already?”



It was actually somewhat cute to see the SpecOps commander groggy and half-asleep. The Arbiter smiled, and the smile was warm for a split second before it twisted and became wicked.



“It’s not time for work yet,” the Arbiter whispered in ‘Vadum’s earbud.



‘Vadum continued to blink those magnificent green eyes. “Then what’s happening?”



“It’s time for me to get a little something I need,” the Arbiter replied.



Rtas’ eyes flew wide open and his mandibles clicked. Oh yes, he was well and truly awake now.



“Now roll over so I can bite you,” the Arbiter said, pressing his authority while Rtas was still sluggish from waking up.



‘Vadum met this order with a big wide smile. “You don’t need to bite me,” he murmured, “I’m ready for you right now.”



The Arbiter was already running his hands appreciatively over ‘Vadum’s body, enjoying the feeling of the hard, shapely muscles under his soft, warm skin. He put his arm over the SpecOps commander’s chest, and leaned down, pressing his snout against ‘Vadum’s, flaring his mandibles with just the hint of a threat. “Do you not understand an order when you hear one?”



Rtas was peering up at him, completely unafraid, looking into his soul with those luminous green eyes. “You really do have control issues, don’t you?” he asked, before bowing his head and starting to lap the base of the Arbiter’s throat.



The Arbiter did not want to talk about control issues. The Supreme Commander of the Fleet of Particular Justice—no, he was the Arbiter now—whoever he was, he did not waste time discussing personal problems in bed. He was here to get some physical pleasure, that’s all he…



And now he was being a liar.



Honour demanded honesty. Honesty forced him to admit that no matter how much physical pleasure he got from Rtas—and that was a lot—there was more going on here. This was his battle brother, his closest friend, someone who had loaned him his personal sword during the suicide battle on the gas mining platform in an act of incredible faith. Someone who had been at his side during the Delta Halo madness, supporting him, watching his back. Someone who meant more to him than anyone else ever had.



It was terrifying. He had to get out of here right now and get himself together, back to the cool and composed and distantly authoritative figure he’d been for most of his life, that person whose identity was comforting and familiar and solidly in control and…



…and eternally and utterly alone.



Considering that right now he had his eyes squinted tight with pleasure as Rtas licked him, and his own purr was almost deafening, and he was hard as iron, the answer should be obvious.



And then ‘Vadum took hold of his shoulders and drew him down atop him, and whispered a name into his earbud.



A name of a Sangheili long ago lost.



The Mark of Shame had, by tradition, stripped his birth name from him; the mantle of the Arbiter swallowed all other names. But even before, others had addressed him more often by his rank than by his given name—and ever since the end of his first year at War College, he’d started to think of himself more as a cadet than as the adolescent to whom that rank had been applied. Soon everyone knew his name, but nobody used it. Even then he’d been distancing himself even as he’d been distinguishing himself…even then…



And now Rtas ‘Vadum had reached back into the mists of time and resurrected that young Sangheili with just one utterance of his given name.



The Arbiter looked down into ‘Vadum’s eyes and knew, in that second, a moment of revelation. Rtas did not want to mate with the Arbiter, or the former Supreme Commander, or any of the ranks and accolades that he had won over the years.



Rtas wanted to mate with the person under the armour.



“I l…” ‘Vadum’s voice cut off and he began again. “I want you as you are. Trust me. Please.” His eyes squinted shut. “I need you now.”



And he…stripped of all rank and armour and accolades…surrendered. Somehow, even as he drove into ‘Vadum and his consort rose to meet him, somehow even that act was an act of surrender. His world shattered.



But he knew the pleasure would make the pain more than worthwhile.



And he knew that Rtas ‘Vadum would help him put the pieces back together.