The Gilded Gaze

His darted tongue flickered out of his mouth, tasting the air in a long slither. "And I appreciate you, Floria Alwinday."

His eyes were still brilliant. Still golden. Tried as she could, she couldn't quite tear her attention away from them. They demanded her attention, a deep need in her soul satisfied when she gazed into them. Every second away feeling cold and lost. A freezing mist of the mind, only cast away by the warm embrace of his gaze.

Eyes that demanded answers. Demanded she speak.

"Is something the matter?" he asked.

She blinked blearily, deep words rising from within her. Secrets. Her secrets?

"It's just...if there's no free will, what's the point of any of this? What's the point of me learning if that was always what was going to happen?"

What? I've always wanted to...

Her mind was wandering, and her mouth with it.

"Little girl goes from the farm to the big city..."

"Tries so hard..."

"Comes so far..."

Ssalka listened to her woozy rant, amber-gold gaze still fixed upon her. Stuck on her, strange rings of lighter yellow radiating off his irises. What was-

She shunt her eyes closed and shook her head. "I-I don't get it," she confessed. "Why? Why me? Why did you decide to help me? Why did you decide to help this little, cocky, pale, book-worm-"

At that moment, she froze. Froze to a sensation on her hand, warm and soft.

Ssalka.

She was speechless, mouth open wide as she watched him plant the long, loving kiss across her hand, his pearly fangs shining bright. Hood outstretched, the tip of his tail weaving back and forth as a slow and captivating metronome. Every movement, every act, tailor-made to entrance and enthrall.

He broke the kiss, his head kept low with a solemn, kind voice. "Remember when we first met?"

"I-"

He looked up. Eyes on hers, devouring her gaze. Demanding an answer.

She wanted to answer. She had to answer, and a new voice that wrapped tight around her brain gave the whispering promise of great pleasures to simply obey.

"Yes."

A waved of heated tranquility washed over her. Her expression melted, eyes growing dull. Her apprehension fell to gooey drops that slid down her mind like rain, gasping mouth pulling into an uneven but satisfied smile. It did feel good to answer. She wanted to. To answer. To...

He planted another kiss. This one on her forearm. "Do you remember what I said? When I ripped the portal, and you were so scared that I would harm you?"

A fuzzy memory fizzled in her mind. She remembered the terror as he tore away, the cold fear of a fate worse than death as he broke her bindings.

His eyes were glowing like suns now. Sparkling in an all-consuming, all-embracing warmth that brought the edges of reality to a fuzzy blur. She could only think of him now, staring in his eyes of celestial yellow that shined in the rays of last twilight. Eyes so full of life and wit and endless wisdom, fixed on her and her alone.

Her heartbeat in a thrilling pitter-patter. She was smitten, looking up at the being drawing ever closer. His handsome face, alien yet alluring in his sharpened features. Strong coils that squeezed down on her, the muscles underneath speaking a gentle strength. His whole, long body gently swaying in graceful form. A dancer from a dream, trapping her in the spell of his sublime, masculine beauty.

He...

She stammered. "I remember..."

"Remember what?"

"I was scared," she recalled.

Another kiss. Across her shoulders, a teasing lick dancing across her neck.

"And what did I say?" he whispered into her ear. "Why would I ever hurt a creature as lovely as you?"

What was he...?

Her willpower slammed the brakes.

"Wake up, Floria!" it screamed. "He's trying to-!"

She grit her teeth. Balled her fists, and tore away her gaze. A deep and rending hurt rolled through her, her own mind and body protesting against her rebellion.

"H-hey!" she urged. "I-!"

A slender finger guided her chin upwards. Ssalka, lifting her face to meet his. She dared a glimpse, and now...his eyes were normal.

Golden, but only golden. No tempting glow, no maddening rings of light. Only his eyes, meeting hers. Studying her.

"I made a promise to you, Floria Alwinday. That I would never let harm come to you. I keep my oaths."

She squinted. "What...?"

He tilted his head, hood softly flaring. "Are you happy, Floria?"

"What kind of-"

His eyes flashed. "Are you?"

She paused, arms falling slack against her sides. Her teeth found her lower lip, biting it as she answered. "I-"

"You weren't, were you? I can see it in your eyessssss..."

She talked without thinking. "I'm nothing special," she muttered. Already, she could feel the tears welling in her eyes. "Without magic, I wouldn't be anything. Just a girl that reads too much and knows too many useless facts about-"

He placed a claw against her lips, silencing her.

"Shhhhhhhh...."

Ssalka leaned his head closer to hers, his eyes kind and understanding. "I know. I know your struggles, and I know your pain. You were never meant for this. Any of this."

"Wha...? But what about free-"

He rose a claw, cradling his hand against face. It was soft and gentle, thumb brushing against her cheek with a loving touch. "You were never meant for this, Floria Alwinday. We are all pawns, every single one. All with our parts to play. And you...since the stars first shined in the void...had a very, very important part to play. SSSssoooooo very important..."

"I-"

Her resistance was fading again. He wasn't imposing, but his voice. It carried the promise of ease. Of joy and fulfillment. An invitation and all she had to do was-

"What are you doing, Ssalka?" she quavered.

It was like he'd been waiting for her to ask. His hood shuddered in delight, and he leaned back his head. Darted his tongue to the end of her nose.

"Everyone has their part. Everyone. And you have yours, Floria Alwinday."

She kept silent, too enraptured to speak.

"Do you honestly see it, Floria? Living out the rest of your life in a high tower, pouring over musty old tomes?"

She did see. She saw it so very clearly. In days past, it was what she'd always dreamed of; exploring the worlds of magic through rigorous study.

But that was so very long ago. Before she met him.

He'd shown her so much.

"Is that the life you want?" he asked.

"I-"

Rings of auric light. "Is it?"

"...No."

"What life do you want?"

"I want..."

"I want..."

He cupped her chin, lifting her lips close to his.

"You deserve to be free," he cooed. "Free from thisssssss. Free from struggle from pain. You desssssserve to be happy. I can give this to you, Floria Alwinday. I can give you so much."

Her eyes shut in an uneven blink, her own vision going blurry at the edges. Gradually, her own eyes began to glow with the same glow as his, splotchy rings of entrancement rolling outward from her iris.

She strained a weak smile. "So...much..."

His tongue darted against in a gentle, tickling taste. "So, so much..."

His lips drew to her ear. Whispering in shades of lustful promise, his tongue flickering with every word.

"I offer you...a purpossssse."

"Purpose...?"

He slid his hand against her shoulder, the metal of his rings tracing ghosts of shivering cold against her flesh. "A purposssse. A meaning. Something I knew you were always desssstined for the moment I laid eyesssss on you."

She hung on his words, heart thudding in smitten thumps deep inside her. She was helpless; unable and unwilling to resist as he brought her closer. The last vestiges of resistance emerging as a few, pathetic tugs against his grasp as she melted. Lost in his eyes. Lost in his warmth and weight, his thick and heavy coils slowly winding around her. A pleasant, snug feeling that sent a sliver of drool down her mouth.

"I want you, Floria," he purred. "I alwaysssss have."

His shining eyes ceased their golden gleam.

The spell broke. Her rational mind turned on like a lantern's light, sending her into a wild shake of her head as she tried to get her bearings. Tried to regain what little sense she had. A mild throb of panic shot through her when she realized she couldn't move her arms. Couldn't move at all, stuck in place by Ssalka's tail wrapped around her in a tight, embracing vice of black scales. She struggled once, twice, then gave up, looking up into Ssalka's eyes with confused and wanting stupor.

"What are you saying?" Floria weakly prattled.

His hood drew to his neck, slowly fanning inward as he leaned in his head. Guiding it, drawing it against her neck in a long, loving nuzzle.

"You're mine."

"What?"

He pulled back, teasing her neck with a leaving touch of his tongue. "You will be my mate," he purred.

"You-"

"Come with me."

His eyes glittered with his cloying words, scratching her cheek in playful touch. "Think of it. You will never grow old. Never grow weary. Never grow lonely and never, ever again know the touch of sorrow."

Her breathing was ragged; terrified yet excited. Her cheeks flush to beet-red, a deepening ache growing between her legs. His words carried promise, every syllable rising something inside her that she'd never known was there.

She sheepishly muttered. "And...?"

He smiled, pressing a finger against her chest. "And...that is my offer. Abandon your

will, Floria. Let me tear away the illusion that plagues you. I can make you happy..."

"Happy..."

"That'ssss right, Floria. Happy..."

Her vision dulled, mind growing fuzzy and eyes came alight with his hypnotizing glimmer.

"My mate," he cooed. "My companion. My muse. My sssslllaaaave..."

"Your slave..."

"For now into eternity. To time's end and beyond. Forever."

"Forever..."

His voice grew serious, urging with devilish need. "Ssssay it."

A flickered tongue teased her ear. "Sssssay it."

This was it. In the back of her mind, she knew that the black serpent was offering her a choice. He needed her to agree, to accept. In the back of her mind, Floria argued with herself.

But her will was sapped, melting, receding under his warmth.

Insider her, one side screamed. Shouting and thrashing that Ssalka was seducing her, taking control of her mind to force her to agree. A part of her mind screaming for its own survival, howling that she was barreling towards the point of no return. If she gave in, everything she'd worked for would be gone. Gone forever, for beyond forever.

The other side...content. Basking in Ssalka's gaze. Completely trusting in him and his promise of a happier existence. Falling into that auric glow. Staring at how his black scales played in the light, his sharp features cut from divine stone. A god in her eyes, sending her breaths into halted gasps as delicate claws moved down her chest.

It took two seconds.

With the last of her will, she summoned a sentence. Speaking with clear eyes and a sober mind.

"Yes."

Ssalka's hood shivered in delight. He darted his head towards her with liquid speed, nearly touching his eyes to hers. Filling, devouring her vision. Filling her sight with that comforting, melting, joyful light.

That golden light.

That golden promise.

His tongue flitted at her neck, his lips curled into an overjoyed smile.

"The only choice you could make," he soothed into her ear. "The only..."

His irises flashed a deeper gold, spellbinding rings rippling from them. Her own eyes had matched is, her muscles going limp and her gaze falling into an easy, woozy, and satisfied smile.

Floria felt...good.

She felt happy.

She felt Ssalka's eyes on her. He was pleased.

That made her happy.

Everything about him made her happy.

Her thinking mind tumbled away like the last grains in an hourglass. Sliding into an inescapable pit as Floria Alwinday submitted to Ssalka.

A sly glint flashed in his eyes, the swirls in his gaze replaced with solid gold.

But the ones in Floria's remained. Flaring out from her own iris in shaking circles, in bands of different yellow, like ripples in water. She was ensnared. Enslaved. Completely, hopelessly under his spell. Thoughts fuzzy and fogged. Warm and complete. Smiling up to him, hanging on him in a bleary, empty gaze.

He rubbed her shoulder, squeezing her tighter in his coils. "There...isssssn't that better?"

It was. She babbled a reply, her words lost in a half nod.

"Goooood. Now then...I think we need to get you more comfortable."

His coils slackened, and he slowly reached under her shirt. Curling a ringed finger under the lowest button, unfastening them one-by-one. His smile growing with every quiet snap of her metal fastenings. Her whole body felt like heated goo as his finger reached her collarbone, tugging out the last button with a smile full of mischief.

Snap.

Her shirt opened, falling loose against her bare skin. She shivered, trembling in delight at the sensation. Still lost in his eyes. Mind thick as mud. Her head swaying in a dizzy rounding sway, eyes rolling gold, and her mouth open in a giddy, drooling smile.

Despite her state, she could still think. Simple thoughts passed through her head, small and pure.

Ssalka...

Happy...

Want...

He grabbed her shirt, tossing it towards her bed and reaching under the strap of her bra. He scratched it with a raised brow, testing his tongue against it.

Take...

She saw it in his eyes. He wanted them off. Needed them off.

Her body acted on its own, reaching up with sluggish motion, guiding the first strap down off her shoulder. She had to get it off. She had to make Ssalka happy. Her hand went to her second strap, both of them finally over her shoulders.

He finally reached up, tugging at their front.

"Allow me."

With a tiny rip, he severed the connecting thread in the front, then traced circles to her back with his claw. Cut the back trap clean in two with a single flick of his wrist. It fell away, cut in twain, and fluttered to the floor as two useless shredded pieces.

A small gasp shot through her as her bare breasts bounced into the open air. Ssalka's eyes fell on them in a salacious stare, looking at them as a hidden wonder.

He smiled, and so did she. Her body made him happy.

That made her happy.

He moved his lips to her neck, drawing his sharp fangs to her skin.

"Ssssssuch a lovely creature..."

A weight curled around her waist. The end of his tail, winding around her legs and pulling downward.

His tongue ran across her neck, tracking thing strands of drool. "Doesn't this feel good, Floria Alwinday? Doesn't this feel...right?"

She weakly nodded.

Right...

His mouth opened, tongue rolling deeper and hotter against her throat. Devouring her skin, delighting in her taste with a low hiss rolling from his throat.

His attentions sent a deep and wanting up boiling inside her. Deep in her belly, a fire began to burn. A new kind of need, crying out in a primal urging emptiness. A dryness in her throat, a thirst that began to spread through her nerves and between her legs. The embers of desire, spreading in rolling waves.

Want...

She wanted him. Wanted him. Wanted everything about him.

"Want..."

He pulled back with a hungry grin. His tongue went to her nipple, wet warmth teasing it to tautness.

"What was that, dear?" he asked.

Her legs jerked, hitched as the empty thirst within her sent jolts across her.

"Want...you..."

He chuckled. "Of course you have. You always have. Now then...let's get you ready, hm?"

His coils gave a final tug down her legs. Her pants and boots fell away in a single motion, joining the defeated bra on the floor below. She shivered again, a flushed heat claiming her face as his coils held her up in total, helpless nudity.

A gentle, calming hand gently clutched her mouth, like a sculptor inspecting his work. Eyes meeting hers, promising comfort. He whispered, words flowing in a sultry sigh.

"You won't need thossssse..."

No...

A claw traced gentle circles around her nipple. "My mate doesn't need clothes..."

"No..."

"I know what she needs..."

With smooth motion, he reached out for the last and final piece of her possessions. Her glasses, still framing her face. She made no effort to stop him. This was what he wanted. This was what she wanted. So simple and pure her thoughts had become, happy and entranced in a fog that clouded her mind. Only him. Only how she could serve Him and how much she knew He loved her.

Did he want them off? Somehow a free hand wandered to her own face, instinct and obedience guiding her to remove the glasses herself.

He wrapped a hand around her wrist, shaking his hand in a chiding 'no'. Her heart churned in panic. Had she displeased him? Had she-

"No. I think we'll keep those. They look so lovely on you."

Her hand relaxed, falling to her side. Her glasses pleased him. They would stay.

She watched him, awing in his presence as his eyes traveled down her body like fresh honey, taking in every detail of her naked form. His gaze speaking silent desire, so thick she could taste in the air as a creamy aroma.

The warm tips of his tongue touched her neck. The fire in her roared, stoked by his touch. Her legs jerked, clenching together as her lust turned to need and glorious addiction, a coppery taste of drool filling her mouth. She needed him. Needed him.

He chuckled, brushing a fang against her throat. Teasing her, whispering to her.

"I think you're ready..."

She could only nod, lost in his grip. She was ready.

Floria had only enough sense to guide her head downward. Greedy eyes traveling down his toned body, to where his torso melted into his strong tail. Where they met, his pleasingly smooth scales pooled into a small slit, glistening with want.

She sagged in his grasp, her muscles growing heavy. Her salvation was at hand, hidden behind the scales of his body. She licked her lips, her own lips grinding in tightened lust as she watched his member emerge.

Thick and wet, Ssalka's cock pressed forward from the lips of his slit, emerging slowly and rising upward. Pink and wet, hard and smooth with tiny, nubile spikes of flesh lining its top. Large, strong and instantly her entire world.

She gazed on him, entranced at its beauty and its promise of pleasures from beyond. Her libido flared to near-pain, screaming for satisfaction or she would simply fall apart in his coils.

Ssalka whispered, torturing her with his breathy sigh. "Isssss thissss want you want?"

Floria guided her head to a nod. She needed him. She needed him to complete him. This was all that mattered. Her body pleasing his.

His coils loosened at the bottom of her legs. In a moment her bottom half was free, free to cross her legs, grinding them together in heated lust while the rest of his tail kept her hoisted into the air.

"Sssssspread your legssss."

Floria obeyed, guiding them apart. Strong hands gripped her thighs, pleasing indentations in her smooth skin that sent her brain into a snarling fit of lust. She was lost now. Lost in her own body, in a crackling fiery field with no escape.

It sent something out of her, small and quiet in a voice of urgent need.

"Ssalka..."

A gentle hand ran through her hair, through the roots of her locks.

It came to rest on her crown, staying there as his hissing voice wormed into her mind.

"Look at me, Floria..."

She rolled her head over to him, obeying his command and looking to the radiating golden rings in his stare.

From below, she could feel the tip of her lover test her folds. Pushing at its edges, flesh meeting flesh, his own guiding her lips apart in a slow, torturing pace.