Feral Heart

"I want you," he managed to whisper once he was able to pull back. His features were slack, as if drunk.

"As do I, you," she responded heatedly. "In any way. Let us not waste this time we have."

He could only growl in response, overwhelmed with base passion. He lowered himself, cupping Una's firm breasts. She hissed and squirmed against the bark of the tree behind her, chains dancing from her wrists, as Ryan licked, sucked, and nipped at her breasts. Then he moved down, leaving a trail of cooling kisses upon the nymph's inhumanly golden skin. The salty-sweet flavor of her only encouraged him to delve further.

Finally, he felt the soft wisps of golden hair above her sex against his chin. He could smell her arousal, which was surprisingly more fresh and pure than any woman he had ever known before. The aroma increased his sexual intoxication. His kissed around Una's upper thighs, then down along the tendons which stood out in relief. He followed them back up toward her gloriously exposed pussy, which, even in the faint light of the nearby campfire, glistened.

So beautiful, Ryan thought briefly, before pressing his mouth to Una's sweet sex, sucking and licking between her slick folds. She tasted as fresh and clean as if she had stepped from a mountain stream, with none of the gaminess Ryan would have expected from a woman who had been sitting naked upon the ground for more than a full day.

She gasped at the pleasure of his mouth and arched her back, even as one of her hands fell to the back of Ryan's head. Heavy chains slapped against her thigh, but she ignored it. Her other hand reached up and back, clawing at the coarse hide of the tree.

"Please," she whimpered, spreading her legs even further and pushing down against Ryan's mouth. "Do not stop . . . do not . . . oh, my . . . oh . . . oh . . . oh!"

She rocked against his mouth, gasping and whimpering with each thrust, lick or suck of his tongue and lips. Her face contorted, and her back arched deeply when she finally erupted in bliss.

Una emitted no sound when she climaxed, but the tense trembling of her thighs could not be mistaken, nor the undulating convulsions of her body or the mixture of incredulity and gratification upon her glowing face. She stared down upon Ryan with a look that could be described as worshipful.

As the woman's orgasmic tremors quelled, Ryan looked up at her from between her thighs. The inhumanly sweet taste of her filled his senses. Never had he experienced such a flavor. He kissed Una's thigh, then her taut, quivering belly, before she pulled him up with her hands clutching his face. Her eyes blazed. She kissed him fiercely, tasting her own essence upon his lips.

"Now I return the favor," she whispered hoarsely, pulling back. A deliciously wicked smile upon her face, she lowered herself to a squat, knees spread far apart as she caressed the bulge in Ryan's shorts. It grew and pressed outward, making the blonde nymph lick her lips in anticipation and desire. She tugged on the zipper, moving it down, then separated the fabric of Ryan's shorts.

He sighed as his erection was released. Una's hands were deliciously cool upon his heated shaft. Her eyes glittered like flickering green flame before her tongue slipped out to swipe the head of Ryan's cock. Her gaze drifted up to his face, holding his attention as she parted her soft pink lips and slid them down the length of him.

He shuddered in pleasure, ensnared by her gaze. The eroticism of the entire scene was not lost on him. He watched intently as she devoured him to the root, and trembled with bliss. Her tongue slipped out to massage the very base of his cock. Her throat rippled around the head, sucking and pulling.

Then she slipped back, dragging wet lips along his tense shaft, until they were pursed moistly against the very tip. Then, again, she delved back down, swallowing his shaft in its entirety before drawing back to the head.

Again and again she did this, until it seemed her own animal desire overcame her. With muffled throaty sounds that were akin to a cat's deep, rumbling growl, she sucked and licked, pushed and pulled with her mouth. Blonde hair swirled around her face. Her fingertips dug into his upper thighs, almost painfully. The air was filled with the sounds of her voracious sucking.

Ryan's own base instincts kicked in after several minutes, and he suddenly clutched Una's head, stopping her. She looked up with an almost angry look, but upon reading his strong smile, allowed him to stop her.

"Let me do it," he whispered, gently pushing her back against the tree. Una breathed heavily through her teeth, lips wet with spittle, but she did as her lover desired and leaned back against the tree. With his hands braced against the rough bark before him, Ryan lined up his cock with Una's mouth and pushed forward.

She sucked him eagerly, accepting every thrust of his cock no matter how deep he wished to plunge. One of her hands came up, trailing chain beneath it, to clutch Ryan's firm buttocks. The other fell between her spread thighs, massaging her needy, wet sex.

Ryan thrust again and again, plundering his lover's talented mouth. Unlike every woman he previously known, Una became obviously more and more aroused the rougher and deeper his thrusts became. Whenever he pushed his cock into her throat, she shuddered, then groaned afterward as he pulled back. And not for a moment did she allow her lips to leave his shaft.

Finally, his need for release was impossible to ignore, and with a few last thrusts, he slapped his hands to the back of Una's head and shoved his cock as deep into her throat as he could reach. He gasped and trembled with the incredible rush, his seed pouring directly into Una's throat where it was automatically swallowed. Both of her hands clawed at his legs, leaving raking welts. But she was not trying to push him away; indeed, it seemed as if she wanted to insure he would not withdraw.

But withdraw he finally did, feeling a few trickles of semen oozing from his cock as it slid back across Una's tongue. She breathed deeply through her nostrils, suckling him for every precious drop of fluid, not wanting to release him. Her ministrations inspired Ryan who, despite the fact that he always felt light-headed and weary after orgasm, now felt energized.

He pulled back abruptly, his cock leaving Una's mouth with an audible popping sound, and pulled her up. She hissed and moaned, grabbing his head to kiss him deeply. The taste of his seed lingered in her mouth, and Ryan sucked it from her tongue. Without any direction, Una climbed into his arms, framing his torso with her lean, strong thighs. His cock, still erect, brushed through the soft fur surrounding her dampened sex.

For a moment, the kiss was broken and the two lovers stared at one another, breathless. Faces and bodies sweaty and glowing, they shared heated smiles. Una licked her lips wantonly and looked down upon Ryan's hovering, glistening cock. Then she met his eyes once more, her own fierce. "Now," was all she said.

Pushing her against the tree, Ryan latched his mouth to the base of her neck, sucking the flavor from her flesh as he pushed his hips up. His cock speared inside her, finding her snug, wet, and welcoming. Una gasped at the intrusion, then pulled him in deeper with her heels at the small of his back.

He buried himself to the hilt within her and for a moment did not move. He relished the rippling, sucking motions of her inner muscles, the pleasurably burning heat of her depths. Una's legs tensed around him. She whimpered in his ear.

Slowly, he drew back, almost until his cock slipped free, then shoved back in forcefully, making his lover grunt. Over and over, he thrust into her, making her body shudder each time. Una panted against his neck, raked her nails across his back.

They kissed, they hissed, they panted and heaved, uncaring to the world and whatever dangers may have been lurking within the darkness around them. All that mattered was the moment, and for the first time in Ryan's life, he realized he was taking a lover who shared his proclivities for rough sex. The harder he gave it to her, it seemed, the harder she wanted it.

He pinned her to the tree, savagely pounding his sex against hers. Una's claw-like nails ripped through fabric and flesh as they sliced across his back, but Ryan ignored the pain. If anything, it fueled him.

Then at last, Una thrashed as she climaxed, panting deliriously. Her body vibrated like a leaf in a windstorm, her vaginal muscles pulling incessantly upon Ryan's cock until he joined her in orgasm.

With a final thrust, Ryan buried himself deep, back arching and head falling back as his seed poured into her once more. He glared up at the dark sky, mouth open as if to call out a triumphant roar.

But the guttural bellow that rolled across the land was not his.

Heaving for breath, Ryan looked about desperately, a sudden and incredible clarity in his senses. It seemed he could smell everything, hear everything, even taste every essence upon the wind.

His and Una's eyes met. They both spoke at the same time. "He's here."

Abruptly, he pulled back, and Una dropped to the ground in a crouch amid a jingle of her chains. Quickly, Ryan tucked his slick and spent penis back inside his shorts, even as he heard the stirring of the loggers in their camps behind him.

He felt strangely fueled, as if he had been given some form of performance-enhancing drug. He looked to Una. "What did you do to me?"

She stared back, apprehensive. "I have awakened within you your true potential," she explained quickly. "Your true strength, as granted by your heritage, but which you have long suppressed. It will not last long, but it should serve you for this fight."

A chorus of cries erupted from behind him, carrying fear and pain upon the still night air. Ryan pivoted, snatching up the pistol from his belt.

"Do not forget the knife," Una reminded him. "It is the only thing that can kill him!"

Right, thought Ryan, already moving. He darted for his tent, ducking within to grab the rolled-up bundle and turn it out. The knife fell to the ground at his feet, a dull glimmer to its crudely-worked blade. He snatched it up, feeling a strange warmth radiating through his hand. He ignored it, and dashed from the tent.

Less than a hundred feet away, screams of pain and bellows of shock mingled with decidedly inhuman roars within one of the large tents. The nylon walls bulged as human bodies were hurled against it. As Ryan approached, several men ran out, horror contorting their faces. Across the dirt road, the men from the opposite camp had emerged, hesitant and unsure. Ryan noted Milton among them.

"Stay back!" Ryan yelled, then addressed the men who ran toward him. "Who's still in there?"

One of the men regarded him with wild eyes. "Fucking thing got Jose, and Mike!" he cried. "I think Paco's still in there!"

Ryan watched the large tent as it convulsed back and forth. "Get to the other camp," he ordered the three men. He cocked the hammer on his pistol. "Go! Now!"

As the men complied, scampering across the road, the large tent not thirty feet from Ryan suddenly erupted as an inhuman figure burst forth, shredding the durable fabric with clawed hands and hurling the remains of the construction to either side. In the light of the camp fires, the creature was finally and fully revealed.

Standing nearly seven feet in height, it was lean and humanoid, covered in coarse brown fur with a face like that of a blunt-nosed wolf. The growling mouth, held open wide, revealed pointed teeth, and the creature's fingers ended in gleaming claws. Burning eyes the color of sunset glowered beneath a dark brow . . . and they were immediately focused upon Ryan. The almost human face twisted in a malicious grin.

"So she has taken you, and you have taken her," the monster growled.

Ryan met the creature's stare with one of his own. "And you're about to be taken down."

Man and monster hesitated only a moment longer before charging across the ground between them. Ryan raised the pistol and fired as he ran.

Bam-bam-bam-bam-bam! The revolver thundered loudly, sending bullets which slammed into the beast-man's body, making him falter and stumble, but not stop. The monster bellowed in anger and leapt, bloodied claws flashing in the amber fire light. But Ryan feinted at the last moment, taking a half-step to the left before diving to the right. The large knife in his left hand flashed, slicing through air, fur, and flesh.

He ducked and rolled beneath the monster's talons, coming up onto his feet and pivoting. The monster stood ten feet behind him, one taloned hand pressed to its chest as it turned toward him once more. Baleful yellow eyes flashed evilly. "My knife," it grumbled.

Ryan held the blade before him as he assumed a defensive crouch. "Mine, now."

The creature took a guarded stance, flexing its claws. It now stood between Ryan and Una, who watched anxiously from her tree. Her eyes darted worriedly from the monster to Ryan.

"It won't help you," the monster intoned, taking careful steps.

Ryan's military instincts kicked in. He was aware that the rest of the loggers were behind him. "Milton!" he yelled.

"Wh-what?"

"Get you and your men out of here! Take my truck!"

That was all the men needed to scramble for the large government vehicle, and they did so with desperation.

"No!" bellowed the monster, lunging forth. "Everyone dies!"

But Ryan was quick to intercept, and as the monster dashed toward the rapidly-filling truck, he slashed the knife across the back of one of the creature's legs. The monster faltered and fell, grunting as it impacted the ground.

"Go! Go! Go!" yelled Ryan.

Milton stood in the open driver's-side door. "What about you?" he called.

"Just get the fuck out of here!" screamed Ryan. His attention switched to the monster as it rose, favoring the now-wounded leg. The sight of it was all the additional impetus Milton needed, and as his men frantically encouraged him, he ducked back into the cab and slammed his foot onto the accelerator.

The monster whirled around as the truck drove down the road. "They will come back," it gloated. "And when they do, I will slay them all, just as I will slay you."

Ryan snapped up the pistol, firing off the last bullet. It slammed into the beast's forehead, making it flinch and wince. The bullet fell, flattened, to the ground. "You're not doing a very good job so far," Ryan remarked, dropping the revolver. He switched the knife to his right hand.

The monster growled malevolently. "I will not simply kill you," it menaced. "I will devour you. And then I shall take Una one last time . . . before taking her life."

Ryan's face darkened. Flippancy was gone. The threat to Una, the monster's clear intentions, were all he needed to make his final decision. He said nothing more, but simply readied himself for the attack.

It came swiftly, despite the monster's hampering wound. The beast rushed low, talons flashing. Ryan moved deftly to avoid the attack, but a claw raked across his left thigh. The other barely missed his neck. He slashed, but found only empty air.

Man and monster circled one another, feinting here and there, testing each others' defenses. Claws and blade drew shallow wounds here and there, but neither combatant gave them much mind. Beyond them, straining at the bonds which secured her, Una watched with wide, furtive eyes and a heart palpitating so strongly in her chest she feared it might rupture.

Take him, Ryan, she thought fervently. Kill him!

But Ryan made a crucial error, and overextended his reach when he saw an opening. As the monster sidestepped him, Ryan felt a powerful, rending sensation across his back as the beast's claws cut deep. He gasped in pain and stumbled forward. But even as he started to turn to face the creature once more, it was upon him.

With a pain-filled grunt, Ryan found himself on his chest upon the broken ground, immense weight upon his back. The knife fell from his hand and clattered across the ground. Dark, dirty clawed hands cupped his face, tilting his head up. "Look upon your queen," gloated the beast upon him. "So beautiful, isn't she?"

Ryan struggled beneath the mass upon him, and for a moment, his eyes met Una's. There was real fear there, a sense of hopelessness that was all too evident. It was a look he had seen years before, upon the face of a ravaged young woman who had done nothing to incur the pain and humiliation she suffered.

The monster lowered its face beside Ryan's toothy maw dripping. "I want you to die knowing that I am going to have my way with her one last time, before ripping her heart from her chest and making her power forever mine."

A sudden energy borne of rage filled Ryan's body. He dug his hands into the dirt. "I . . . don't . . . think so," he grunted.

Then he pushed.

With an eruption of thick, chalky dirt, Ryan suddenly leapt to his feet, hurling the monster off him. The beast fell to the side, rolling and coming up upon its feet. But Ryan was quick, quicker than he had ever been. He scooped up a handful of earth and hurled it right into the creature's face, momentarily blinding him, and followed through with a leaping kick that impacted upon the monster's chest, sending it sprawling back several paces.

Landing hard upon the ground, Ryan scrambled to his feet and darted for the knife. He heard the angry roar and the rush of movement behind him.

Now or never, he realized, snagging the crude blade from the ground. He whirled about, knife at the ready. His senses told him where the beast was even before he saw it before him, and thrust.

There was a sickening splitting of flesh, a squelching of blood to the ground. Beast and man became frozen, faces inches apart. Eyes quivered, breaths were released.

Una trembled in her chains at what she saw. Ryan . . . No . . . .

He looked down, upon the momentarily confusing sight of the beast's claw impaled in his upper abdomen, just beneath the left side of his ribcage. There was something innately wrong with the fact that he could feel the heat of the invading digits of the monster's fingers, that he could see his own thick crimson blood spilling out and darkening his shirt.

He expelled once, then inhaled, wheezing, feeling a weight in his lung. He coughed, flecks of blood escaping his lips. The metallic flavor inundated his mouth. He swallowed thickly. The knife in his right hand, the harbinger of his and Una's salvation, fell to the ground once more.

Crudely, the monster jerked its hand free, making Ryan cry out in pain. "Choke on your own blood, human," the beast cackled, stepping around him toward Una.

Ryan fell to his knees, weakness invading his body even as his own life's blood trickled out. Every breath was a labor. The world around him listed this way and that. An ethereal warmth passed through him, washing over the pain.

I'm dying, he realized. A contorted smile twisted his lips. How ironic.

Behind him, the monster advanced upon Una with slow, deliberate, malevolent steps. Blazing eyes looked upon her hungrily. A thick, dark tongue passed across raggedly-sharpened teeth. "One last time for us, my sweet."

Una glared. "You do not know what you are doing, Steven," she wailed. Her eyes were liquid, spilling onto her cheeks. "If you kill me, you will never be human again. You will always be what you are: a monster."

The creature reached out a taloned hand, caressing Una's cheek with the backs of it's fingers. The nymph turned her head in defiance. "A monster is what it takes to destroy those who would rape this land," the beast said. "If only you would have understood this from the beginning, and given your power to me willingly, I would never have had to do this."