Chapter 2
"What do you mean, she isn't here?" Damien frowned. "Then where is she?"
He stood in the main office of Haytham Academy. In front of him, seated behind a desk, was a young woman neatly dressed in a blue shirt.
She stared at him dreamily, as if in a daze. It was a sight he'd gotten used to over the last month and a half it'd taken to get here. Why so long? Because he'd had to avoid the main roads. And why did he have to avoid the main roads? Because every time he simply entered the vicinity of a woman, it's like they could smell him.
They'd be attracted to him like moths to a flame and surround the carriage curiously, eyes hungry with desire, and it was a hassle to drive them all away. Hence, he was forced to take other routes which delayed his journey.
"Oh, I'm not supposed to tell." The woman answered hesitantly. Damien saw the blush to her cheeks and realized what game she was playing.
Vera and her mother, standing a bit further away, then saw him lean in. A few words were exchanged, some back and forth flirting that ended in a short make-out session between the two. Vera felt a blood vessel pop in her head as the woman took Damien by the collar and refused to let him breathe.
"Was that really necessary?" She asked as he came back with several lipstick marks upon his neck, cheek, and, of course, mouth.
"That's how information collection works, Vera. Equivalent exchange and all that." He hit her with a piercing stare. "Why, jealous?"
Vera's ever-impassive face showed no sign of fluster. "This again? I keep telling you, Young Master," She sighed tiredly. " You must rid yourself of this delusion that I in any way, shape, or form have romantic feelings for you."
Damien's hackles were raised as she made her ludicrous claim. "Why do you care who I kiss, then?"
"I don't."
His eyes flared. "Oh yeah?"
"Yes."
"Fine." He smiled. And then he walked right back to the woman, continuing where he left off until he had her climbing over the desk, knocking over everything in her way. The way she sat there and hugged his waist with her legs, rocking her sex against him, was like a knife to the heart.
Vera's eyes turned red at the sight. She felt her chest tighten and looked away, heading back to the carriage.
Damien saw that and broke contact with the woman to follow after her.
"Wait, don't go." She pleaded.
"Fuck off." He replied, not even bothering to turn around.
He was done here.
***
"He's just like his mother." Vera's tone betrayed her bitterness as she reached the door to their vehicle and threw it open. "He only does that to hurt me."
Mary took a seat next to her daughter and rubbed her temple. This had gone on for weeks already. The man--boy, she supposed, given his actual age, but he certainly didn't look it--was angry at her. But it's not like she could blame her daug
hter for refusing him. The consequences for admitting aloud her love for Damien would be cataclysmic.
"I hate him," Vera's voice cracked. She angrily wiped at her tears. Vera had resolved herself to accept her place and give up on him. To be happy for him when he chose someone else. But this? He was taking every opportunity to make her suffer and she couldn't understand why. No, rather, she could.
It was because he was vindictive and cruel, just like her.
Vera was sick of it.
She felt the carriage wobble as Damien walked in. He told the driver to take them to the nearest tavern before settling his gaze on Vera. She had her eyes closed so she couldn't see it, but she could feel it.
Damien folded his arms, clicking his tongue.
Stubborn!
Seeing her with those squared shoulders, sitting perfectly poised as if she hadn't a care in the world, irritated him because he knew damn well it was a lie.
Over the course of their journey here, he'd made repeated attempts at getting her to say "yes". To what? Marrying him, of course! Ever since they'd gotten closer during their short time at Baumeister, she'd always been his first choice when it came to a wife.
But she refused him each time, so he switched tactics.
Oh, he understood quite clearly that his attempts to make her jealous were hurting her. But see, the thing is he isn't trying to make her jealous. She thought it was, but he wanted her to hurt. He wanted her to hurt so bad she couldn't stand it. Wanted her to see him with all these women and lament her constant refusals!
For what reason? Well, he certainly isn't a sadist or a very petty bloke...usually. He simply wanted her to explode. To hate him, be angry at him. To the point she slips and admits to loving him.
So far...she's enduring too much! It was really pissing him off. Was she a masochist? He didn't like seeing her in pain, but he rationalized he'd be glad to spend the rest of his life making it up to her so he tried not to be too bothered by it. Its okay if she hurts a little now so she can be happy later.
In the meantime, she'll suffer the consequences of her stubborn nature. Well, if he meets another good candidate who steals him away later, though, it'd be her loss. Damien won't wait around for any woman forever. Not unless they already bagged him. So far, Vera hasn't.
Its a real shame. He was prepared to be the most caring and thoughtful of lovers...in a few years when she was of legal age and hopefully gaining some of her mother's vivacious, soul-stirring curves.
Speaking of....
Mary felt his eyes move towards her. Like a physical force, she could feel him roaming up and down her body, his gaze like a soft caress against the most sensitive parts of her body. Her womanhood moistened in spite of her.
Their travels together had taken a heavy toll. The Young Master used her as a guinea pig in his efforts to learn control of his newly awakened powers. The result was that she ached to touch him at every possible moment he used it on her. She fought it, but now her body craved him on its own even when he wasn't directing its full force upon her person.
She found herself masturbating every night, yearning for his touch. Images of him suckling her breasts and pounding the entrance to her womb haunted her dreams. Being roughly played with, being held down and recklessly seeded.
Such thoughts pervaded her mind each time the Young Master set his eyes on her, these days. She hated herself for it, and maybe resented him a little for making her this way. But if she knew anything about the Young Master, it was that he didn't mean to do this. It was pure experimentation.
Perhaps he'd be amused by this development, but that was all. She never believed he'd take advantage of her, and that was his saving grace. Say what you will about him, but the Young Master was, at heart, not a bad person. At the least, not to people he cared about.
Anyone else? Well, she didn't know. Other than the fact he can be very mischievous. He wasn't like Muriel.
Or Elias, she realized. Elias was always very...stalwart. Righteous, even. But to a fault. Damien, though, was chaotic and whimsical but not cruel. Perhaps that was part of the attraction, if she was honest.
Mary loved Elias, but he had been too shy in his younger age to make a move. For whatever reason. Damien? He was bold and unafraid to pursue what he wants. If it had been him instead of Elias...
Mary shook the thought from her head. It was dangerous and made her feel pathetic. Most of all, guilty.
"So, where to now?" Mary asked, hiding the fact that her nipples felt so sensitive now that just brushing against her clothes sent jolts of excitement through her.
Damien grew gloomy. "Well, I'm not traveling all the way to the bloody Martial Empire. I had a letter sent, saying I'll pick her up when she returns. It should only take six months or so. Until then, I'm going to Reykjavik like I planned and settling down."
***
He came quietly. Softly. You shouldn't have taken notice of his entrance at all amid the boisterous atmosphere of the Inn. And yet, every female in the room was alerted to his presence. They looked at him and felt their womanhood quiver with desire.
....Damien smelled their arousal. It was a sweet, succulent temptation. He knew he could have any of them, or all of them. All he had to do was want it and any of these women would happily agree to being fucked right here and now, in full of display of everyone present.
If Mary and Vera weren't here, hell, he probably would've done it. Let it not be said Damien would say no to a good orgy,
But alas, it was not to be. Well, he didn't really care.
He approached the tavern master stationed behind the bar. "One room."
Damien was promptly kicked in the shin. He grimaced and let out a grunt. "He meant two," Vera told the burly tavern owner.
"Fine. I wasn't planning on sex tonight, but if you're so keen on giving us privacy so we can make you a new sibling--" Damien didn't even get to finish before Vera sent another attack his way but he was prepared and moved his leg before her strike could land.
Mary ignored their antics and took the keys from the man.
Meanwhile, Damien ordered a hot bath to be prepared for which the two at his side were grateful. They hadn't had a good bath in several days. They'd washed in nearby rivers, but a warm bath and soap was much preferred.
Damien, for his part, simply asked for a pint of their strongest ale and took a seat, ordering a meal for him and his companions for when they finished bathing.
He chose an empty table near the center and drank in silence. He didn't interact much with anyone, but tried his best to stop his aura of masculinity so that the women would stop trying to eye-fuck him.
As he sat, a certain conversation entered his ear.
"It seems they've already sent forces to the gateway."
"So it's true? War?"
"It'd be ridiculous to think otherwise after what happened in Beauclair."
A third voice joined in. "Hm. Have an old friend living there. The outskirts. Said he saw the monster. Black as ink, like void given form. Had these tendrils to it that turned everyone it caught insane."
A heavy silence pervaded the group for a moment.
"They say they're already conscripting people."
"What? Now?"
"The knights and soldiers were barely deployed."
"I know. Thing is, the enemies already here won't go away just because the demons attacked."
"Fuck. The Alliance has been around for over a decade already. You'd think they'd have dealt with the Gauls already."
"Well, it's not just Gaul. The Aiel from the Dry Lands have always tried to worm their way into the other kingdoms' territories. We're lucky our kingdom is so far away, or they'd be attacking us too. "
"A lot of opportunities to be had in war," One of them grunted. "Everyone will be looking to take advantage. Brigands and highwaymen will be commonplace soon, mark my words."
"Ha. The Nobles will get to us long before they do. There's plenty of barons out there who'll use this as an excuse to bleed us dry. War funds, they'd say. You won't be able to afford to live."
"Carpenters will be able to. Coffin making is going to become a booming business in the coming months, I'm sure.
"I knew I should've become a woodworker."
"It's going to be my time to shine, then."
"You? Why?"
"I learned how to work wood from my Pa years back."
The man's friends laughed raucously. "The only wood you know how to work is the twig between your legs."
"Not even that. His Pa only had three kids. This guy is going on six. No cock control at all." They all guffawed.
Jesus. Is the man aiming to start a football team?
Damien shook his head up at the crazy bastard who couldn't control his nut. He was halfway through his ale when the food was brought out. Vera and her mother came down from their bath a few minutes later.
"Hear anything interesting?" Vera
Damien shrugged. "Just the usual stuff that's been making the rounds lately. "
Mary's brows knit themselves together ever-so-slightly. If you weren't Damien, who could watch the woman for hours on end without tiring and was already intimately familiar with all her little micro expressions, you'd surely miss it.
"Muriel's most recent escapade has become an even bigger issue than I imagined it would be. I didn't expect Lucius to blame the Asmodians." Mary dipped her voice.
"Eh, I expected someone would take the blame." Damien took his pint and brought it to his lips. "Those guys are too scared of my mother to even chastise her properly and you already said they don't have the power to beat her anyway on such short notice, if at all. But they had to answer to all the foreign powers who had their own people caught up in this shit."He followed suit and also lowered his voice, not wanting the other people in the room to overhear.
"But to blame the demons?" Mary spoke doubtfully.
"They're an easy target to blame."
"Yes, but that's why I don't understand the decision to lay it on them. This will spark all-out war on a monumental scale. It shouldn't have been them. Anyone else would have--"
"The other options are worse, at least for Illium specifically. At least this way they can do damage control."
Mary was silent for a while. Then, "I traveled with Lucius and your father when they were younger. I didn't expect the boy to have grown into someone so...calculating."
Damien scoffed. "That's what you don't get. People change. They're stubborn bastards about it, but sometimes they're forced to. Lucius, being who he is, had to as well. He's the King, he had to make a choice that was best for his people. I don't blame him. I just resent that they've let someone as dangerous as Mother roam around freely for years without even trying to prepare to lock her down."
Mary could say nothing. He was right. There was ample time to find a way to attempt trapping Muriel in the years she had been, for the most part, docile. But Elias loved her and thought he can keep her in check through that.
But having a loving husband and family wasn't enough to stop a woman like her. She could kill her closest friends and family at the drop of a hat if she was truly pushed that far. Only her children were an exception. Everyone else was secondary
And Lucius...he may have been persuaded by Elias to trust in him. Elias was always the man's weakness. The King had, in his younger days, looked up to Elias and had an almost unshakable faith in his ability to work miracles.
But for Muriel, miracles fell short.
With Lucius' father off-world, only he and Elias together might have managed to actually find a way to suppress Muriel. And they had not even tried to look.
"Well, if she had never fucked up so badly and hurt my friend, I'd probably be with her now helping to kill the guy." Damien chuckled. "Though he is going to be Dolly's father-in-law, which also makes him family...so I'd probably have settled with beating him. Maybe at least let a dog fornicate with him a little to teach him a lesson."
...And there it is. Damien's own brand of madness.
Mary could only offer a hollow chuckle at his words. Every member of this family was seemingly either insane or very, very odd. Damien sometimes seemed both. Really, it was even scarier than Muriel's.
"Anyway," Damien stood and brought his voice to normal levels. "I'm going to wash up, too." He called for a nearby serving girl and asked for another hot bath to be prepared in his room. He then sent Vera a wicked smile. "Care to join?"
"Pedophile." Vera spoke with obvious disgust.
He rolled his eyes. "Please. I only meant that you could at least come and wash the back of your beloved Young Master."
Vera made a show of looking around. "But I don't see Young Master Jacob anywhere in sight?"
A look of annoyance flashed across his face. "Fine. I prefer your mother anyway."
"I know," She replied, a touch quieter.
Damien ignored her, turning his attention to the woman at his side and offering his hand. "Shall we?"
Mary felt incredibly awkward. She hated how her body screamed at her to accept, but her rational mind knew she couldn't. Shouldn't. Mary cursed his newly awakened bloodline.
"I think not," The refusal didn't come easily, but come it did.
"A pity," He sighed. "I guess that means I'll be bathing alo--"
"I'll go!" A new voice abruptly entered the fray in the form of a flaxen-haired beauty from one table over. She rose from her seat eagerly, as did several other women whose voices clamored for his attention
Damien glanced at Vera, who stared up at him soulfully. But in the end, she was silent.
He clicked his tongue yet again, as he often did these days, and slid an arm around the first woman's slender waist.
Vera sat there, turning away from them. Meanwhile, Damien took the woman and moved across the floor. Along his way he took another, all three disappearing upstairs.