Kari didn’t know how long had passed since he had started this fight, it could be minutes or hours.
The chilling fog of rage still burned within him, blocking out the screams and cries and the sight of sickening crimson. He kept lashing out again and again, large geysers of ice in the distance and ice shooting from his hands at close range.
He was blind and deaf to the death around him. But the soldiers kept coming and he was flagging. How long?
How long had he been here?
How much time had he brought?
Not enough. Not yet. More. I need more.
The little pool of power in his mind’s eye was nearly empty and he watched as it visibly drained. He pulled, mentally willing all the moisture, all the power from the slick rocks at the bottom. All the moisture from the blades of grass at the edge of the pond and from the earth all around. He watched as the pool finally ran dry and kept pulling, kept willing the power to continue flowing within him.
Time, I need more time.
A terrible tearing sensation started at his left fingers as he kept throwing his ice around and it began to crawl up his arm while starting in the right hand as well. And it hurt. Painful beyond imagination, it felt like his skin was tearing away from his body. Dimly he was aware of his own screaming but he was numb to the sound. He could see through his tears that his skin remained in place, fingers still able to move and ice still erupting with terrifying force around him.
In fact, if anything, the ice was more violent in the force of its movements now.
He threw an arm out and nearly fainted at the pain. He stayed upright through willpower alone and gaped at the sheer force of destruction his ice was now capable of. Kari had just wiped out countless men with a bare wave of his hand but the tearing feeling was now starting at his toes and moving up towards his torso with alarming speed.
Life force, he realized. This was the effect of using his life essence.
He visualized his little pool of power again and froze in horror at the picture now in his mind.
The liquid power was all gone, even the moisture of the rocks at the bottom was gone. The grass around the edges was shriveled and brown and blackening even further as he watched. The once soft earth was hard and dry with great fissures and smaller cracks patterning the surface.
So dead and desolate compared to the once lush and idyllic vision.
Kari felt like his heart was breaking and choked out a sob even while he still forced out his ice into the bodies surrounding him.
This was his life.
That was the price.
It hadn’t really hit him before, just a vague concept that was too terrifyingly real to think of properly. He dropped to his knees and looked around with eyes clear for the first time since he had let the rage consume him.
Mangled bodies of humans and horses surrounded him. Limbs missing or at odd angles and red.
So much red.
The sickening crimson was a sticky layer over everything. It had seeped into the very earth at his knees and created the thick mud he had sunk into. The sound hit him all at once and was almost more horrifying than sight- screaming, sobbing, begging, yelling, praying.
Tears poured down his face and splattered onto his muddy knees. Kari brought up a hand to wipe them away and it came back smeared with red.
Blood. He now cried tears of blood.
The tearing sensation had stopped its advance when he stopped throwing his ice around but Kari knew it was converging on his heart. Tilting his face to the bright blue sky, he summoned the last of his will and forced out the ice in a devastating arc centered from his seated form.
Suddenly numb to all feeling and sound, he let his eyes slip shut and body slump to the ground. He was grateful that his last vision before he died was the crystalline sky, however selfish that might be.
He only prayed that he had bought enough time for the cost of his life.
*****
Darkness surrounded him.
It was an ebbing and flowing kind of darkness, like mist swirling around him. It caressed him with gentle tendrils and stabbed him with pointed spikes.
Was this dying? The place between life and death?
Snatches of sound made their way to his ears but they were indistinct, too short and too abrupt for Kari to find meaning. He floated by, numb to all but the most painful of feelings. Sparks of light wound their way into his vision but they were too bright and he cried out in pain as they flashed.
He was drifting again.
Kari couldn’t explain how he knew this was a different time from the last, but it was. The mist still swirled around him but it felt almost comforting now, a lone presence beside him at the end of things. The pain would still stab into him occasionally but the feeling became dimmer as time went on.
Perhaps it was punishment? He knew he deserved it but his mind was fog and he could not remember why.
Voices. He could hear voices.
It was like the noise was distorted by water, the sound so warped he couldn’t put it into words. His vision wavered, bright lights stung his eyes with their intensity and he couldn’t make out the colors among the blinding white. He let his eyes slip shut and the darkness engulf him in its comforting numbness once again.
Screams. Terrified screams chased him through his own mind. Cries and pleas for mercy joined the unholy choir of screaming voices. They warped and distorted, becoming inhuman and the comforting darkness began to ooze blood. Red dripped around and onto him, crimson liquid trickling down his pale arms and body while faceless horrors chased him wailing their terror.
Kari fell screaming into oblivion.
The light was more distinct now, and he could make out colors.Whites, yellows, oranges, stark against the darkness. They flickered and danced across his vision in familiar patterns but Karicould not understand them. Noise trickled down, again familiar in its patterns but he could no more comprehend the meaning of the sound than he could the lights. He could feel his body, though. It was impossibly heavy and aching. He watched the dancing light for a while before the darkness took him in its embrace once again.He was being moved. Limbs changed position and Karitried to crack his eyes open but it felt like they were sealed shut. His mouth was forced open and something warm trickled down his throat. He coughed and choked reflexively but it kept coming. Soon enough he was used to the sensation and eagerly welcomed it. It felt warm in the empty hollow of his stomach and soothed his parched throat.
His horror must have shown on his face because the man laughed.“No need to look so terrified, little omega. We will take great care of you until you are handed over to your new master. I’m not about to damage the merchandise. It lowers prices and casts a disreputable image on my business. I warn you not to try and escape, however. Foreigners always cause the most trouble with that. There are several guards at every exit and if they catch a runaway, they get to have a little fun before they are returned.”The man strode forward and grasped Kariby the chin. His fingers dug harshly into his cheeks and the man’s lips twisted up into a cruel smirk.“Don’t think you’re safe just because you’re an omega either. They might not be able to have their fun with your little hole but I’m sure they would happily make use of this pretty little mouth.”
Karihad clearly underestimated how weak his near-death experience had left him. An escape attempt while they travelled was laughable. He could barely stay awake for more than half an hour after eating before he was sleeping again until being woken up for more food. Enidhad praised his increasingly healthy appearance and even his Master had seemed pleased although he had a greedy glint in his eye when he observed Kari.He had quickly learned that Enidwas Oran’s only personal slave.All the others he owned helped to run his slave trade business. He specializedin pleasure slaves and Kariwas exceedingly glad he had avoided having any personal lessons. But the way the man watched him with unveiled greed and lust made Kari’s blood run cold.His brief waking moments had been plagued by thoughts of what this Lezzkerperson would be like. Enidrevealing that he was the NiamreanPri
The darkness outside meant that Karicould see nothing of their surroundings as they made their way to the keep where this Lezzkerresided.All he could do was keep his head down and feel the sways and bumps of the carriage. Earlier,he had been dragged into the bath by Enidand scrubbed within an inch of his life before being doused in scented oils. He had then been dressed in nothing but a large black cloak and he felt incredibly exposed even thoughhe was fully covered.It felt like his nakedness under the heavy fabric was somehow visible and it made him uncomfortable. Enidhad reminded him gently that he was a pleasure slave now-his body no longer belonged to himself and he would be inspected before being accepted by his new master. The man had probably meant it to be a comforting thought somehow but the very idea that his body was no longer his own was disquieting.A
Karistood and stared in shock. What kind of choice was that? Death or an entire lifetime of servitude. He would take his own life before he allowed himself to be sold to a brothel but the other choice removed his freedom-the one thing he truly valued, and tied his very soul to this unknown man.Both choices were incomprehensible to Kari.“W-what? You can’t be serious!”The alpha merely raised an eyebrow and swirled the glass of liquid in his hand. “You should be more thankful, omega. It is rare for a slave to receive a choice. I could just as easily take that choice from you and claim you as mine whether you like it or not.”“Why don’t you?” Karistood with his arms still wrapped around his frame but stared up at the large man with all the defiance he could muster.Anything to focus his attention away
The sheer magnetic force of the alpha when he stood so close was insane. His heart raced in his chest and his thoughts had scattered completely. No wonder alphas were so dangerous to omegas. He flushed in shame when he noticed the man’s eyes flick down and Karirealizedthat he was still naked. He could feel the slick just starting to drip out from between his cheeks and his little cock attempted to stand straight.What kind of reaction is that? The atmosphere around the man screamed danger, yet he was getting turned on by it? He was mortified by his body’s reaction.“How cute. What is your name, little omega?”“KariGeneina.”“Kari…” The way the man spoke his name was dark and seductive, it sounded as though he was tasting it on his tongue. “You may keep Karithen.”“Keep?!
Pleasure slave. He knew that’s what he had been sold as, well, given away, so sharing the bed made sense except for the fact that the man had said he wasn’t going to touch him unless he chose him willingly. So until then, shouldn’t he be more wary of him? Ryedirknew he was a Daiyan, so why was he not more suspicious of him? He had no idea what he was capable of. For all he knew, Karicould shank him in his sleep. Karireached out for his power and felt a pang of disappointment when he still felt nothing. He glanced at his tattoo and observed the silvery white hexagonal prism with six thin arms that form a star-like shape. He took a deep bracing breath in and slowly let it out. It was there, he reminded himself, he still had the marking of a Daiyan. He needed time to heal, that was all. He set the towel down on the floor and padded out of the room. Ryedirsa
Karigroggily registered muted voices but was still too deep in the clutches of sleep to understand what was being said. Sleep had taken a long time to come last night, and he was unsure how long he had lain awake with his thoughts swirling around in his head. It made whatever time it was feel extremely early, though. A hand gently shook his shoulder and he grumbled, curling into himself to escape the prospect of getting up. It was unfortunately persistent. The voices were more distinct now but Kari’s foggy mind still couldn’t decipher the speech. After a few more unsuccessful tries, the hands gave up on shaking him and pulled him, albeit gently, sheets and all, to the edge of the bed. He was manhandled out of bed and into a standing position. He swayed drunkenly on his feet in his sleepy state, far too out of it to be bothered about his lack of modesty as the bedding was removed. He vaguely reg