Wishing Stars Ch. 06

"Do not move!" He screamed directly into her face and Thalia slammed her eyes shut with a whimper.

Suddenly his lips were on hers. They were hard, demanding. Again, Thalia tried to struggle but his hands wouldn't budge. In retaliation, Xieol pressed harder. The kiss was harsh. Thalia felt her skin splitting against her teeth. Blood filled her mouth with the taste of metal. Panic rose in her chest. He was pressing her against his chest so hard that she couldn't breathe. Her lungs screamed for air. She was instantly far more terrified of suffocating than she was of him. Desperate, she raked her fingernails across the skin of his cheek.

Xieol pulled back just far enough to slam the back of his hand against her unblemished cheek. The force of the blow snapped her head to the side and sent her tumbling off the bench. Xieol stepped back and let her fall. Thalia sucked in a breath as her body hit the floor. Before she could think of escaping, Xieol followed her down. His large body pinned her to the floor. Her vision was blurred with tears and pain, but she could see his three tentacles emerge from his scalp.

"You will obey," Xieol's black lips were pulled back from his teeth in a snarl. His lips returned to hers and he balled her hair into one of his fists. With his crushing weight pressing into her, she had no hope of getting away.

The terror became so much that Thalia felt strangely detached from the situation. She found herself wondering about things that shouldn't have mattered just then. What did a humanoid need with tentacles? Thalia struggled to remember what she had learned about sea animals from the gearmen. They were used to move, to fight, to...taste?

The touch of Xieol's tentacles gliding across her face soared to the forefront of Thalia's mind. Somehow her mouth found its way open, and she was screaming against Xieol's lips. Instead of pulling back, the prince pressed forward. His tongue snaked into her mouth.

Thalia began struggling in earnest, bucking beneath him and thrashing. She brought her teeth down as hard as she could on his tongue, but it didn't have any apparent effect. Xieol seemed more egged on than anything. He simply pressed her harder into the floor, his hand twisted in her hair until she thought he would wrench her scalp free. Thalia kept screaming against him, half choking on his tongue.

A series of loud noises slowly broke through her terror. Xieol seemed to eventually hear them as well. He released her lips with a growl and glared towards the door. He barked something in a language she didn't understand and she cowered beneath him.

The door opened and two gearmen stepped into the room.

"Guardsman Cruft," They announced in their happy voices.

A large Arktzirax man, nearly the size of Xieol, roughly pushed passed the gearmen. His black eyes swept across the room, including the couple on the floor, but he didn't comment. If he was surprised, he hid it well.

"His Majesty requires your presence, immediately, Your Highness," Cruft announced in a deep, gravelly voice.

"And he sent you?" Xieol responded, his tone too light for the situation. He pulled himself up and sat back on his ankles with a short laugh.

Freed, Thalia scrambled away from him until her back hit the wall. She glanced around, but there was nothing to hide behind. The only object in the room was the large circular bed. She was definitely not going near that.

Xieol didn't seem to notice her. He was deep in discussion with the Guardsman. They had switched the conversation into what Thalia assumed was their native tongue. They must have guessed she did not understand it.

Despite everything, Xieol did not appear to mind the interruption in the least. He was even smiling at the other man. Thalia was shocked to hear him release a few deep barks of laughter. The men spoke for a couple more minutes before Xieol finally sighed and rose to his feet. Guardsman Cruft stepped out into the stairwell to allow Xieol to pass, which he did. It was almost with an afterthought that Xieol stuck his head back into the room.

"Do not do anything stupid," Xieol commanded her, using her language once more. "Thruk would not like losing his mate."

With that, he was gone.

The door slammed shut behind him, leaving Thalia alone with the two gearmen. They stared at her in silence. Thalia remained where she was for a moment, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

"Did he..."Thalia started, but her voice was hoarse and she had to pause to cough, "Did he mean Abigail?"

"His Highness's comment was most likely a threat against Lady Abigail," A gearman responded cheerily.

"To ensure your good behavior, Princess." The other robot finished.

"He can't hurt her!" Thalia demanded, struggling to her feet. A gearman approached to assist her, but she waved him away. "Only Thruk can touch her! That's the rule, right? Right?"

"General Thruk is obligated to obey His Highness's command, even if that order is in direct violation of the law." The gearman said.

"He would order Thruk to kill her?" Thalia responded, shocked.

"His Highness may command anything," the gearman said simply.