Moon Witch Ch. 10

"You know, Selene, for the first time in seven years I felt happy. I felt fulfilled. My beloved Maito, he saw past me as queen and he saw past me as Jahto's slave. He was all the kindness and softness that I needed.

"I can't bring myself to show you anything else," she says, her eyes turning hard. "I wasn't involved in politics at all while Jahto kept me in the palace, but I was aware enough to know that the war that was waged in a few months' time was frivolous and a waste of lives. They... Maito was conscripted. So many Gra'marians' lives were lost in the war, including my husband's. We were married for so little and that bastard Jahto took his life away for nothing. I received his body and buried it, but if anything that made me feel even less like I had any closure.

"It was devastating. I laid around for a few days, but as time went on I could only feel myself getting angrier. I wanted revenge. I wanted to take away lives the same way my Maito's life was taken away."

As she speaks, I can see Re'aila's passion growing heatedly. I'm sure that if she were fully alive, I would be able to feel power viscerally coming off of her.

"So I snuck into the battleground. I had my own hunches about life magic and how everything worked by this point, and it felt very fitting to go test it out in a place where lives were already being lost for no reason at all. I was lucky enough to have gathered enough life fragments during my work at the butcher's that when I snuck around, it felt natural enough to take away his life."

I see the excited glint in her eyes, a small look into the crazed look she gets when recalling her sweet vengeance.

"You remember the one guy who came to collect me during their coup?"

"Yes." I know she's talking about the mean looking one.

"That was Jahto's right hand man. He was serving during that war, and he was the first one for me to go find. The pathetic guy wasn't on the battlefield, of course not. But I found him, and within the hour I'd ripped from his soul all his life energy."

Re'aila looks at me now, making eye contact so intent that it reminds me a bit of the Desert Rose's insistent stare. "Selene, dear. I don't know if you will understand, ever understand the pure rush of power you feel when you rip someone's life from them. It's like I could feel myself getting stronger instantaneously. And I felt that with every life I took... The next taking got easier.

"I was like a demon on the battlefield. They didn't know who or what it was, but they knew there was something out there that was taking the lives of soldiers indiscriminately. I felt my rage continuing to build. At the end of my time there I'm sure I was capable of tearing down ranks of men at a time."

I can see the grief that she still feels for Maito, but I don't comment on the irony of her going around killing all these innocent soldiers when that's what brought about the death of her husband in the first place.

"I was living like an animal at the time. I barely had any awareness of who I was or who I used to be. It was actually when I saw a guy who from the back looked just like Maito- it occurred to me that I could try to bring him back from the dead. I had his body after all, and so much life energy within me that I could always feel a storm of my power within me."

"Didn't you write to be careful of that specifically?" I ask.

Re'aila's face is overcome with sorrow. When she speaks, it comes out as a whisper. "I regret it so much. I defiled the memory of my beloved husband. At first I was overjoyed at having him back. But as time went on, I had to face the truth about what I'd done. Everything seemed so perfect, but I could tell that he just wasn't fully alive. People aren't meant to come back from the dead.

"I spent so much time hoping that awful feeling would get better, but it only got worse. And I... I couldn't live with what I'd done. I could tell that Maito needed to be released back to death. I didn't want to live anymore, either. Not without him. And not with everything I had inside of me. In truth, my mind was poisoned. The thirst for vengeance I had inside of me had become all consuming, to the point where I don't think I was human anymore. I was turning into something else.

"So I killed us both." She laughs, the sound a little too shrill for my comfort. "Areana Noressa. The Desert Rose. She was one of my backers during my reign who was practically exiled from Gra'marah after I was ousted. I found her and she promised to host me after death. I had so much life energy attached to my soul that even after physically passing, my power would live on. That's why I've been here, waiting for the day when one of my offspring would find my journal and seek out the Desert Rose."

"And I'm that offspring," I say. "But papa was the magic one. My mother's last name was Nuor, sure, but she could do no magic."

"When it comes to magic, Selene, blood is one of the strongest forces. Life. Just as you read from my journal and as I learned while I was alive. Your father was born with quite a large amount of magic, and combined with your mother's bloodline you were born with raw power."

I think back to my life, the way that I succumbed so easily to Azrath and his influence. Juxtaposed to the memory that Re'aila showed me of her combat, I feel like a small child. Weak. Helpless. I don't even know that I've thrown one punch in my lifetime, and here this woman exuded power. "I've never felt strong in my life."

"It takes practice to feel strong," she responds, smoothing my hair down. It's meant to be comforting, but it's hard to feel comforted when her touch is so icy cold. "And there's a strength in bending, being flexible. We are strong in our own ways."

"Why have you been waiting for me, though? Do you need me to do something so you can pass on or...?"

"Maito was the one who talked me down from going crazy. When I brought him back to life, he wasn't the same, but in some respects he was. He saw how I'd changed from my obsession with revenge and he- he convinced me not to do it. Before ending my life I regretted that he talked me out of it - but I loved him and his memory too much to betray his last wishes.

"But the fact of the matter, daughter, is that now, generations later, the line to the throne is even messier. Last I heard from areana noressa there's a new king who made it in by overthrowing the last one."

"King Azrath," I offer. "He treated me like King Jahto treated you."

"That just proves my point," says Re'aila, a hint of frustration in her voice. "These kings coming in are undeserving of the throne. I may be heartless but I've never thought to violate the bodies of people who can't resist it."

"If that's your point, then what it is that you want? It seems like you want something of me." I trail off as I'm met once again by the intense look in her eyes.

"Revenge, Selene. I want you to take back the throne, take your rightful place."

I don't know how to respond. "I'm not even Gra'marian. I'm just about the least qualified to rule a country, let alone Gra'marah. I don't even like it there."

"Child, you're my flesh and blood. There's no one alive today more qualified than you. You're descended from the original bloodline of Gra'marian royalty. You're a daughter of King Cuno, daughter of Queen Re'aila."

"I... Queen Re'aila, I can't. I need to get back home to my sister. All I've wanted is to return to my normal life, and I'm closer now than ever."

"Oh, sweetheart," she says. Her tone is delicate but her words haunt me. "Why did you feel so drawn to seek out areana noressa? Don't you know that there will never be normal for you again? It's in your blood."

I try not to let on that her words do absolutely bother me, because it's an uncomfortable truth; I wouldn't have been able to stay away from this place. Even the journal had me obsessed when I first found it. There's something about Queen Re'aila that calls to me, a destiny that I can't seem to escape even if I wanted to.

But I do want to escape it, my internal voice argues back. Era's face comes up in my imagination and suddenly my whole conversation with Re'aila feels inconsequential and nearly foolish.

"I'm sorry, but Era needs me. That's the life that I choose. I just escaped from Gra'marah's clutches, it makes no sense for me to go back willingly."

The queen gives a sad little smile. "You're as stubborn as I always was. But at the same time, Selene, I don't think you can escape this. Haven't you felt it? There's something big coming on the horizon for you. Your fate is calling out to you."

I feel a bit shaky at everything she's saying. I speak slowly, hoping that my voice won't betray how unsteady I feel. "No. I know what my future holds and it's happiness and peace with my family."

"I hear you, but you're in denial," she says smoothly. "Either way, all of my life energy is confined here in this place but you can speak to me anytime you need. Luckily, you already have the means to." She gestures towards my neck.

"I can speak?" I'm confused.

"Your necklace."

My hand immediately goes up by instinct, rubbing at the metal around my neck. "How-"

"I may be cold and dead, but I have ways of getting things done." The queen lays another frigid hand on me, stroking my cheek. I can feel my skin tightening, goosebumps forming on my arms. "I know that you don't believe it, but I'm absolutely certain that I'll be hearing from you soon. Take care until then, daughter."

And so we embrace and she presses her lips against my forehead. My head is reeling as I walk away from the little sanctuary with everything I just learned about Gra'marah and its royalty. But most of all... The fact that Queen Re'aila expects me to take the throne from Azrath. That my mother had a line of stronger magic than papa. That I'm descended from royalty at all.

I feel like I have too much in my head to process anything I've just heard. What, if anything, of what I just learned do I tell Era about? Maybe when I get back I should just put everything to do with Gra'marah out of my head.

Except Eryx... The little voice in my head pipes up, and I curse it for butting in where it's not welcome. I haven't considered much about what it will be like when I return back home. I try to tell myself I wouldn't mind ever seeing him again when we return, but the truth is something about that does bother me just a bit.

I sigh. Either way, we have a couple more days left of our journey, so I'm sure how I feel about things will gain some clarity soon.

---

The Desert Rose is vigorously bouncing up and down in my lap, her breasts in my face. "Lick them," she gasps, shoving them closer towards my mouth.

I don't know how long I've been here being tortured by her, but it feels like it could be days.

She's subjected me to her most twisted desires while I've been here. The pain that she's been inflicting me has been accompanied by her mocking and delighted laughter, along with the agony that I have from not being able to finish. My body is hyper aware of the pleasure I'm inundated with as she uses my body to her every whim.

I take her nipple into my mouth, obeying her commands. "Harder!" She demands, and I suck as hard as I can, gently biting the tissue. In a show of intimacy, she snakes a hand around my neck, the other reaching down below my legs to push what she's inserted into me deeper. I groan at the pressure, it somehow adding even more heady sensations to what I'm suffering from right now.

She had taken special delight when she'd lubricated and then inserted some sort of toy into my backside. "They always like how it feels," she'd crooned, pressing it into me deep and then immediately sinking down onto me. I grimaced at the uncomfortable feeling, disliking it but not daring to say anything that might inflame her erratic temperament.

"You wish you could cum for me," she taunts. "Right, Eryx?"

"Yes," I gasp out. The feeling that I get before ejaculating has been present in full force in the pit of my stomach for the past twenty minutes at least. I'm not lying when I agree with her words, given how much I want to relieve all this pressure that's built up inside me.

She digs her nails into my inner thigh and I feel the intoxicating magic coursing through my veins once again. "Unnngh," she lets out, her moan long and drawn out. I feel her passage pulsing around me, encouraging me to cum into her. But in the most despairing way, my body can't and won't empty itself.

"Oh," a voice comes from behind us.

I immediately feel nauseous and retch, bile coming up and onto the floor. I look up to see Selene standing at the doorway, and she has a look of hurt? Disgust? On her face.

I can't do anything given how the Desert Rose has tied me into this position onto the chair, and she continues to ride me even as Selene has entered the room.

"Someone's a little jealous, I see." She taunts, panting vigorously. "It's not fair to use your pull to make Eryx feel sick just because you wish this was you."

I'm not registering anything that she says because the pleasure is all consuming right now.

She must really be getting off on being walked in on by Selene, because she rakes her nails down my arms and climaxes again, body shaking as she grips my tied down biceps.

I have the greatest sense of gratitude and relief when instead of going in for more, she gets up off of me and tosses back on her gown.

Yet still, I have this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. It gets even worse when I look up and see Selene staring at me. She seems frozen in place, just looking at me in the pathetic state I'm in. She looks away as soon as we meet eyes, but says quietly, "You're covered with blood."

I look down and see what she means. Apart from my very apparent and raging erection, my chest and my thighs are covered in streaks of burgundy. The Desert Rose didn't wipe off any of the blood every time she drew some, so now a sizeable amount is very obviously caked onto my skin.

I don't answer Selene, but the sick feeling gets worse.

"Alright, you're all free to go. Take a second to put on your clothes and breathe." She winks at me, tossing my clothes onto the bed. She slowly removes the toy that's buried inside me as I bite back my vocal reaction. She then undoes all the knots that are holding me tight to the chair, and without all those restraints, my body feels extremely energetic and exhausted at the same time. She smirks at me, indicating the small pool of vomit. "I'll clean up your little accident."

Turning to Selene, she asks, "Did you like meeting her?"

"I didn't expect to learn all that I learned today," Selene responds. I wish that I could understand just a little bit of what they're talking about, but it's as if my brain needs to use all of its focus on physically getting my clothes back on so that I can't comprehend what's going on between the two women.

When I walk outside, Selene won't quite look at me in the eyes. The Desert Rose is the opposite, stalking up to me and giving me a lingering kiss on the lips. After the hours I spent being tortured by her, I won't jeopardize our safe exit by refusing her attentions.

"Thanks for the good time," she says silkily. "Now, I understand you two are headed back towards Sorrea?"

Selene nods. "Towards the Southern forestlands."

"Good thing I can help you out there," says the Desert Rose. "When you two start heading off, I'll make it so that you two end up going that direction. Partly because Eryx treated me so well while you were gone, Miss Selene."

I feel another dull pang in my stomach, like it's threatening to vomit again.

"Thank you, Desert Rose," says Selene with a deferent bow. "I appreciate all you've done for us."

"Come back to visit anytime, witch. Us magical beings need to stick together, especially in light of all the conflict that is on the horizon."

Selene nods curtly, noticeably apprehensive at her words.

"You know where to find me," the Desert Rose nods. "The two of you just walk down this way and eventually you'll find yourself in Sorrea."

The Desert Rose waves from the doorway as Selene leads the way, with me following and leading my horse.

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Thanks for continuing to read. Please consider voting or following me to stay up to date for chapter 11. Where you think the story is going to go next? What are your thoughts on everything that's been revealed to Selene? See you for the next chapter!