Sacrifice Ch. 07

He pulled out and away from her, leaving her empty and trembling on her elbows and knees. She made no movement or sound, except a soft gasp as he returned, and without preamble slid back inside of her now hyper-sensitive flesh. Her eyes fluttered closed and she tried to breath deeply and calmly. He had to yet to find his own pleasure. They weren't done just yet.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her up-right and flush against his chest as he rocked back on his knees. She groaned as the weight of her body forced her as far down his shaft as she could take him and waited for him to grab her waist or hips and begin to piston into her as he had done so often in the past.

But he didn't. Instead he remained almost still as she listened to his harsh breathing, and felt his cock twitch and throb inside of her. He merely held her there, filling her, with his arm wrapped tightly around her.

"Thelios?" She whispered, her voice a tremulous rasp. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy the embrace, or the feeling of him pulsing inside of her like that...but the longer he held her the more unusual the moment became, and the more uncertain she became.

"Mmm?"

"Is something wrong?"

His lips brushed her shoulder. "Why would you think that?"

"You....you're not moving." she gasped softly as he ground into her, his length pulsing inside her again.

"You don't enjoy this?"

She inhaled with pleasure as his fingers found one of her nipples and tugged it gently. She shook her head. "No...yes, I mean....I like it." She breathed, arching against his hand. "Do you?"

He made no answer except a humming sound of affirmation and pleasure.

"But, if you're so anxious to move..." he offered after another moment, and shifted to extend his legs beneath them, "by all means."

Calliope was forced to find her balance as he released her and lay back, leaving her astride his hips with him still buried deeply inside of her.

She glanced over her shoulder. He had made himself comfortable with one arm crossed behind his head, and was gazing down appreciatively at her bottom as his other hand lightly traced the shape of it. There was a small smile playing at the corner of his mouth. She couldn't help but find a smile of her own.

"How's the view?" She asked with a soft chuckle.

"Magnificent." He rumbled back, pulling his eyes back up to give her one of those soul melting looks of his. She looked away and leaned forward, simultaneously balancing herself with her hands on his thick thighs, and letting his length slide out of her until only an inch or two remained. She paused, then let it slide back in again. She grinned when she was rewarded with a moan of pleasure from the mountain beneath her. "I love watching my cock disappear into you like that." He growled. She flushed and swallowed a moan.

She was happy to provide him with a repeat performance, working her body slowly up and down his shaft until she herself was near trembling with the desire to just ride him fast and hard until they were both spent and exhausted. She couldn't see his face, but she could hear his groans turn to growls and felt his fingers bite into the flesh of her hips and rear.

Yet still he let her move as she would. She wondered if he was enjoying the torture, or was simply still anxious about hurting her. In the end it didn't matter. He might have been able to control himself, but she certainly wasn't...

She sped her movements, rocking her hips with increasing urgency...gasping as the head of his cock began to batter against the entrance of her womb in that wonderful, almost painful...

Calliope stopped with a gasp and a curse, her nails digging into his thighs, her hips shifting anxiously despite her attempts to still herself. Careful, she'd promised to be careful...they had to be...but how the hell was she supposed to do that?! She growled in frustration.

Thelios came to her rescue and pulled her back against him and turned to lean them both on their sides, never leaving her body. He lifted her leg up over his hip and held her tightly as he began to pump into her with quick, shallow strokes.

She was happy to have as much of him as she did...but she wanted more...wanted him deeper. She told him as much in a low and pitifully desperate groan. He didn't comply. Instead he nipped at her ear with his teeth.

"Touch yourself." He ground out, still grazing her ear and neck with his fangs. "Touch your cunt for me. Now."

The words may have excited her, but the fierce snarl in his voice made her see red. Her fingers flew to the apex of her sex, and the moment she pressed against the hard nub of her clit the rest of her snapped as taut as a drum skin. And like that she was over the brink, gasping desperately for air as her sex spasmed wildly around him.

"Faster. Don't stop!" He ordered roughly, his hands tightening around her hips. She whimpered and bucked, but managed to heed him. Desperately she crushed her fingers into her flesh, gasping and jerking as shock after shock of literally gut wrenching pulses were forced through her body.

He was moving faster in her, and deeper...her fingers could feel his thickness filling her each time he thrust back inside of her. Her limbs strained and shook. Her pulse pounded loudly in her ears, behind her eyes...throbbing to fill her panting mouth and swollen lips.

His hand came down hard over hers, suddenly, gripping her hard. His teeth dug into her shoulder as he thrust one last time, seating himself deep inside of her and grinding his hips as he pulsed, spending his seed with a long, low moan.

The sensation sent another, deeper wave of pleasure through her. She arched and let out her own sobbing cry as her body clenched and shuddered uncontrollably. Her hips jerked fitfully as tiny after-shocks rattled through her center, leaving her whimpering and breathless.

Calliope shook and trembled in his arms for some time after, unable to find the will or energy to do anything else. He simply held her like that, cupping her body with his, until his own harsh breaths became slow and even once more.

He spoke, but she was too groggy to make sense of it. "Hm?" She wriggled slightly tilting her head back toward his, though he still remained out of view. He tucked his arm beneath her head as she lifted it to catch him in the corner of her eye.

"I asked if you were all right."

She smiled tiredly and nodded. "Yes. Better than all right. Much better."

He returned the smiled and she felt the pad of his thumb swipe across her cheek. "This is something I haven't seen in a little while. I'd be worried if I wasn't sure I hadn't hurt you." She frowned at his strange words and lifted her own fingers to her face. She understood when she felt the wetness there. She had no memory of crying and wondered when it had happened.

"How strange" She murmured. "I don't remember it at all."

"I didn't hurt you...did I?" She smiled at the rare note of uncertainty ringing in his voice.

"No, you were right to think you hadn't. I'm fine." And she was. She tingled all over, and her muscles still twitched and pulsed now and then, but she lacked her usual heavy ache. She yawned and nestled in against him, making happy, if sleepy, sounds of approval when she felt him cover them both with sheets.

He made a satisfied sound of his own. "Then sleep well my sweet, teary wench."

She laughed softly, feeling his own near-silent chuckle reverberating in his chest. "And good night to you my handsome, fanged beast."

He nuzzled her with another, deeper chuckle. "I like that." He growled softly against her hair.

"I thought you might."

As she began to drift he squeezed her tightly to him. He sighed contentedly."I...Good night, Calliope."

"You what?" she murmured, wondering what he was going to say.

He kissed her shoulder. "Nothing. Go to sleep...I command you." He added in a low drawl.

Calliope smiled against his bicep. "As you wish." She smirked, still wondering what he had begun to say...but too exhausted to do anything but comply.

%%%

Calliope had decided that she was determined to help. However, this was easier said than done.

To begin with, there wasn't a great deal she had to offer. She tried to be attentive and supportive in the few ways she was able. Certainly he was no more inclined to discuss what troubled him than he usually was, but she was pleased to listen and offer her thoughts in the rare moments he was.

But what she really wanted was to be truly useful to him. More....proactive, in her assistance. As far as she was aware, the only way for her to do that was by continuing to gather what information she could.

And indeed, she had managed to glean what she could from both Penelope and Kara but in the end none of it added to what Thelios and Demitri already knew. It was a frustrating endeavor since her circle of acquaintances was rather small, and she had done little to make herself liked among the women of the place. She had no one to blame but herself, however. Her reserve, though it seemed to amuse Lady Nagi, endeared her to no one. And she had been quite content to follow her master's example when it came to the others...and now she was beginning to regret it.

She'd also noticed, with chagrin, that the male slaves and servants kept their distance completely. Not that this should be surprising to anyone, all things considered. It was unlikely anyone had forgotten the rather dramatic scene in the entrance hall when they had first arrived.

Still...something was going on and she wanted to know what, especially as it affected her master. It might have been her imagination, but it seemed as if far too many conversations came to abrupt halts as she neared people in hallways and there were certainly nothing to warrant all those sly, sidelong glances she seemed to be getting from all corners either. If she was with Thelios, certainly. It was hard not to stare at a giant wearing nothing but a hip wrap and a fearsome scowl.

But then, she might just be becoming paranoid.

She was headed back to their rooms after trying, and failing, to find any new information from Penelope. The air seemed full of whispers and anxious glances, yet she could find nothing secure to pin the growing tension on, and nothing more on the movements of this Phineas character at all.

"Excuse me..." She blinked at the clear, male voice which cut through her musings.

She turned at the sound to find a man, dressed in a simple white toga and a dark green cloak. The cloak looked well worn with travel, and was tossed casually over his shoulder. He was also holding a walking staff, which was unusual in a place like this, but other than that he seemed innocuous enough. He had a pleasant countenance topped with a mop of sandy blonde hair, and his expression was mild. He was watching her with a faint frown...or rather watching about an inch or two to the left of her. She glanced over her shoulder but there was nothing there.

"Yes?" She continued to take in his appearance and noticed his eyes, still looking in the wrong direction, were the strangest shade of blue. So pale...almost...

"Oh, you're blind!"

She clamped her hand over her mouth, aghast at her rudeness. "Forgive me!" She gasped. "That was intolerably rude of me."

His face split into a warm smile and he laughed softly. His smile made him suddenly handsome and she felt herself smiling back. "There is nothing to be sorry for my Lady...but if you're feeling penitent, perhaps you might assist me in recompense."

"Of course. I'd be glad to."

He lifted his hand and patted the arm of a statue next to him. "I'm afraid I can't find my way around this infernal labyrinth." It was her turn to chuckle. She stepped forward, taking his hand from the statue and placing it on her own arm. He stiffened slightly at her touch, but relaxed quickly. He also got a strange look on his face...but that too passed. She must have startled him, and felt foolish for not warning him. He was blind after all.

"That, I fear, is the nature of this place." She offered gently as he fell into pace beside her after draping his staff across his back with a long strap. "It has nothing to do with you. Hades knows I can't seem to keep these halls straight either."

"Perhaps I should find another guide then?"

She smiled. She could tell from his tone he was jesting, but he wasn't totally wrong. "Well, I'll do my best, and if that fails I'm sure I can find another slave who knows this place better than I."

"That's very good of you."

"Now, tell me, what is it you're looking for?" She asked as she led him slowly into the corridor with her.

"A friend of mine. He is a giant of a man, distinctively gray in hue, with short horns, stubborn streak a league and a half wide...I think he's known by most here as the 'Shepherd'." He paused and chuckled again. "I take it you know of whom I speak."

She glanced at him. "How...how can you tell?"

"We blind folk have other ways of seeing." He murmured enigmatically. Then he ruined the effect by grinning widely. "And you tensed up a bit there. You seemed surprised."

"Ah." She had been.

"So?"

"You're in luck, it appears. If I'm not mistaken the one you speak of is my own master."

He tipped his head toward her. "Then you might be mistaken. He doesn't keep slaves. And has no woman that I know of..." He sounded more curious than disbelieving.

"That's what they keep telling me." She murmured with a sigh. "What is it you want with him, if I might ask?"

He smiled pleasantly, falling into step with her. "I'm delivering an important message. For his eyes only." He tilted his head toward her and tapped the side of his nose with a chuckle. She smiled back, though with less sincerity. He seemed pleasant...and harmless...yet there was something strange...

She frowned. "It's lucky we ran into each other." she commented, watching his face. He tilted his head slightly toward her as if following the sound of her voice. "Convenient."

"Indeed. I couldn't have been more fortunate. Tell me...is Demitri still around?"

"Yes."

"Ah. Interesting."

|

|"Why's that?"

He shrugged. "Like I said...your master...if he is that, isn't one to keep slaves or servants really. Demitri was the exception...I thought perhaps you were a replacement of some sort. Can't imagine why he'd need more than one. He was just fine without Demitri for that matter... not that the roughian isn't excellent company once you get him in the drink. Thelios too for that matter. " He added, muttering absently to himself.

A comment Demitri had once made about that echoed in her head...something about them not providing the same type of 'services'. She almost reiterated it out-loud but caught herself with a faint blush. It might be the sort of thing she'd repeat to Thelios or Demitri...or even Penelope for that matter...but not to a stranger. She made an noncommittal sound which might have been agreement, but said nothing more.

He chuckled. She raised a brow at him. "Something amuses you?"

"Oh? Hm. No...just a stray thought is all."

She still had a creeping feeling something wasn't quite right, but couldn't put her finger on it. But then it was an odd scenario, and Hades knew she'd been a jumpy paranoid wreck these last few days, and getting worse...perhaps it was just that. She decided to ignore it. For now.

They had walked a little ways in silence, when he gripped her arm, stilling her. She paused and watched in confusion as he stepped back, keeping them from entering the next corridor and effectively hiding them in a nearby shadow with his movement.

Glancing down the hall she saw a small party pass by. It was headed by the cyclops and another whom she had seen at a distance at some of the dinners she had been party to. The second figure made her even more nervous than the cyclops did. That single, huge eye was unnerving, but this other one was tall and sinewy and covered in dark, greenish scales and his face elongated, his mouth full of sharp looking teeth. He looked caught between an oversized human and one of those giant lizards of the south...and had four arms. She had seen him before, but that didn't make him any less unnerving.

She shuddered and glanced away, only to notice the blind man was tugging at her arm and pressing his back to the wall so that a nearby statue was blocking him from their sight.

It came to her all at once and she recoiled as if struck."You're Phineas aren't you." She breathed. She glanced to the hall once more but the group had passed.

He gave a humorless chuckle and stepped forward from the wall. "It took you a while. I thought you'd have figured it out when you noticed I was blind."

"Wh-why? I mean...no one told me you were blind."

He raised a brow and tilted his head at an odd angle. "It's a rather noticeable feature. I have trouble believing no one mentioned it."

"I guess no one thought to bother mentioning it. I doubt anyone thought I'd need to know." She stiffened, remembering herself. Then gasped as his hand lashed out to grip her wrist tightly. She wondered if he wasn't just pretending to be blind. How could he have known they were coming and to hide after all?

She felt something strange...like an...icy burn on her wrist. It wasn't painful...but it was frightening and she was forced to swallow back a surge of terror. He shook his head. "I wouldn't. It's not in your master's best interests. Believe me."

She hesitated, her jaw twitching as she considered calling out. Then again, if he was threatening her...she resisted the urge to wrap her arms around her stomach. She remained silent, but glared daggers at him.

As if reading her mind his other hand came down over belly. She started and tried to pull away, only to find his too-cold grip on her wrist was like iron. He didn't even flinch when she tugged and merely looked off to the side as if seeing something down the hall. Her eyes followed his, but saw nothing.

"I see." He murmured.

"I don't." She growled and tried again to pull away. He let her go this time, his hands falling loosely to his sides. She watched warily, but he seemed suddenly distracted.

"Does he know it's his?"

Calliope returned the frown he was giving her and set her jaw. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm going to take that as a yes." He muttered dryly, then sighed. "This may complicate things. You will need to leave. It might not be safe here for you if they find out. Then again it won't be safe if they don't either I bet." He shook his head and grabbed her wrist again. "Come, we must get to him as soon as possible. We mustn't delay." He tugged her toward the hall, but she resisted.

"What makes you think I'm going anywhere with you?"

"If you have any interest in keeping Thelios and that child safe you'll take me to him."

"Are you threatening me?"

He bowed his head and sighed heavily. "No, my Lady...warning you. It's not me you need fear."

She watched his face carefully. He seemed suddenly tired. Or perhaps she simply hadn't noticed it before. She kept her voice low when she asked, "How did you get here? I thought they were looking for you. Did you not steal something from the gorgons?" She stopped when his face twisted into a pained grimace.

His voice was low and rough. "No. I did not. Though there is no one to speak for me in any case. They...they're missing...I fear they may be dead." He turned his face away, but she caught the hard swallow and she felt a sympathetic lump in her own throat.

"My Lord and Lady Nagi will be upset to hear it." She offered softly after a long pause.

He turned toward her with a curious expression on his face. "Lady Nagi?"

"Um, his sister. The one with the dark skin and the serp—"

"Oh, you mean Lamia? The Snake, right? I'm surprised she's here, and glad of it...but then I suppose she might be at risk as well. It's hard to say with her kind. What a mess we find ourselves in." He shook his head again, as if to clear it. "But please, we should hurry."