The Princess and the Blade

[Emora Deen]

Tenara leaned a little closer to Havi. "Is there anything we can do to help him? This world isn't his world. It's not the same rules... does that help at all?"

Laurius frowned at the door. "He'll adapt. He has to."

"Go easy on him," Tenara said.

"I go as easy as he likes," Laurius replied. "He doesn't want it easy, Tenara. He wants to be dominated and controlled, and I'm doing that with as little cruelty as possible." He looked pointedly at Havitharon. "Am I wrong?"

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi met the man's eyes, weighing what he thought he saw there and what he knew of Laurius so far. "I do not find your actions cruel," he spoke carefully.

What really constituted 'as little cruelty as possible' in Artisuren's situation? "But I'm not certain they are merciful. I don't understand why, but your mastering him seems to be tempering his condition. But a bond-broken Ivis in Artisuren's position is just as likely to wish for..." He drifted off, not proud of his harsh line of thought.

[Emora Deen]

"Wish for what?" Tenara asked. "Is there anything we can do to make this better for him?"

"Perhaps what would be best for him is letting him just be a blade," Laurius said and hated it as the words left his mouth.

Tenara scowled at him. "He had a life and you stole him from it. He deserves as much freedom as this life can give him."

[Soran Nightblade]

Havitharon didn't want to admit that his theory leaned closer to Laurius's words. "You could try asking him what he wants." An ugly thought dawned on him. His eyes flicked to meet Laurius's. "I suggest you go after him."

--------

Artisuren leaned against the port side rail and gazed at the cold waters below. The gray sea looked as choppy and restless as he felt.

It was unsightly to flee the room as he had. Just as it was unsightly to use Laurius's stupidly comforting voice to take refuge from the punishment his Yurivis had cast upon him. And now, to survive in this world, he would have to debase himself further by living at the expense of that princess's health. He sagged against the rail, fixated on the waves slapping the ship.

It would only take a shift of his weight to join them.

A sudden crack jolted him out of his thoughts, and a damaged bolt clattered to a stop against his boot. He'd only just registered what it was when the length of guardrail he was leaning on lurched forward, and him along with it.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius frowned at Havitharon. He wanted to argue with him because it was easier to have Havitharon give him the answers than ask Artisuren what he wanted. After wall, Havitharon had the advantage of understanding where Artisuren came from. He sighed, collecting the dagger and putting it back in the sheath beneath his shirt. "Some fresh air probably would do everyone good," he said pointedly to Havitharon, his gaze darting to Tenara.

He left the room, closing the door behind him. Artisuren looked like he needed air, so maybe he went up on deck. He took the stairs two at a time. The ocean air rolled over him, smelling of salt and strong enough to send the loose strands of his red curls billowing around his face. He shoved them away from his eyes, and scanned the deck. He spotted Artisuren on an upper level and jogged up the stairs to him.

He was approaching from behind when the bolt snapped and the guardrail gave away.

"Arti!" He lunged forward, grabbing hold of Artisuren's collar as he toppled forward. The man's weight nearly pulled him over the edge. He grabbed hold of the other guard rail as they swung out over the ship, and growled as he strained to keep his feet on deck and pull them back onboard. A few people noticed their distress and raced toward them.

[Soran Nightblade]

Artisuren grabbed instinctively at the arm that saved him, adrenaline roaring in his ears. He kicked his legs for some kind of foothold, but ultimately ended up holding on to Laurius's arm with a bruising grip. The alien finally looked up at the person collaring him. When his eyes met Laurius's, he stopped thrashing and went shock-still.

What if the rail broke again? What if Laurius fell in? "Let go," he breathed, not even thinking about his words. He loosened his vice-grip on the man's forearm.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius shook his head. Let him go? He grit his teeth, and threw himself back so hard he lost his footing. But, they landed backward on the deck, Artisuren sprawled across him. Laurius dragged air into his lungs, stretching his arms out. He was pretty sure he tore a muscle in his left shoulder. He patted Artisuren's chest. "Not a great time for a swim, my friend."

[Soran Nightblade]

Artisuren flattened himself against Laurius as if the deck might drop out from beneath them if he moved. His heart was pounding through his skull. Laurius's words slowly wormed into his consciousness. "A swim..." he barely breathed. Unsteady laughter rattled out of him. He pressed his forehead into the man's chest and laughed not caring how mad he looked.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius arched a brow at Artisuren's laughter for a second, but it seemed contagious, and a second later he was laughing with him. He patted the man's shoulder and attempted to push up on his injured arm, but yelped and fell back. Okay… maybe a little more than a pulled muscle.

[Soran Nightblade]

Artisuren jumped back when the body below him flinched in pain. A new set of hands grabbed him by the shoulders and guided him firmly to the side.

"Watch it! You wanna go over again?" One of the crew said gruffly. Two more men had been drawn over by the chaos. One investigated the broken rail while the other crouched next to Laurius.

Artisuren barely heard them. Laurius's cry of pain was still resounding in his ears. It was easy to spot the obvious bruises blooming where he'd abused the man's arm. And his shoulder...

From saving him?

The worst part was he couldn't make his lips work to say something. What could he say? He'd selfishly clung to him and injured him with his own hands.

"Ye all right, mate?" The stranger asked, touching Laurius's arm with a testing grip.

[Emora Deen]

“Argh,” Laurius snarled, pulling away from the man’s grip. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.” He waved the man back with his opposite hand and curled a palm over his shoulder. He flexed his hand, and tried to shift his arm out and stopped just short of moving it. “Hah…”

“I’ll call the physician…”

“I’ll manage,” Laurius said. “It’s fine.”

“But—“

“How about you see to the railing,” he said, nodding to the broken section. “And maybe do a maintenance round in the ship. It’s concerning. If the railing is in such a state of disrepair, what else is moments from failure? How safe is this ship, exactly? What if I hadn’t been here, and my man had fallen over?” Laurius lit into the crewmen with the eloquence and brutality of a shrewd businessman who had been wronged by a deal. When he was finished, they had promised a partial refund of his tickets and free liquor for the remainder of the voyage. Laurius wasn’t particularly satisfied with that. While it seemed the best solution, he couldn’t stop the nagging rage biting at him at the image of Artisuren going overboard. What if he hadn’t listened to Havitharon and come up a minute later?

Laurius accepted help to his feet and then half-hauled Artisuren to his with his good arm, groaning as he settled the man straight.

“Alright, alright. Enough hovering. Fix the bloody railing before someone else goes over.”

Laurius glanced up, spotting Tenara and Havitharon emerging from the dark of the ship. She wore a light blue dress, and coupled with her silver hair, she looked more like a wind spirit than a woman. Laurius had no desire to interact with them at the moment, so he curled a hand around Artisuren’s arm and led him towards the stern of the ship, where he knew some lounge chairs were.

He found a chair and fell into it, hissing as he settled back. His hand curled over his arm holding it tight to him.

“Well, the free liquor will come in handy later,” he admitted, glancing down at his injuries. “Are you alright? What were you thinking asking me to let you go? Madness.”

[Soran Nightblade]

Artisuren knelt on the deck in front of him. It took effort to keep his eyes averted. He wanted to look at Laurius's shoulder, but then his concern would be obvious. "I thought you would fall," he said grudgingly.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius pursed his lips, appraising Artisuren quietly. The sea breeze tossed his strange hair over his shoulders and the high sun glinted on his gold horns. He reached out with his good hand, curling a finger under Artisuren's chin and turning his face up. "Thoughtful of you," he said, smiling. He leaned forward, holding in a groan as he bent to where his lips nearly brushed Artisuren's. "Do you care for me so?"

-----

Tenara went to the front of the ship and propped herself on one of the railings, looking out over the sea. She took a deep breath of ocean air, and turned, pressing her back into the railing and looking at Havitharon. Her hand rested on the sword hilt, fingers playing with the texture along the grip.

“I’m sorry if I’m acting strange,” she said. “His questions feel so personal. I know they are purposeful but…” She sighed and looked off at the lapping ocean waves. Tenara was avoiding looking at the ship itself. She’d kept her eyes on the horizon or on Havitharon, and it felt silly that she couldn’t bring herself to look at something as simple as decking and canvas and rope. “Thank you for… singing to me last night. I’m sorry about your hand.” She took his hand, running her fingers lightly over the back, along the veins beneath his gray skin. She brought his hand up and pressed her lips to where his injury had been.

[Soran Nightblade]

Artisuren scowled. The obvious answer was no, he didn't care for this man. Sure, some basal instinct in his messed-up head had swooned when his master rescued him, but the feeling was just a mad instinct. He wasn't naive enough to mistake Laurius's actions for affection. He was a valuable piece of property and had almost fallen overboard; of course the man had grabbed him. But that didn't explain why Laurius had been there to catch him in the first place. "I could ask you the same. What made you follow me?"

_____

Havi's fingers twitched slightly around her small hands holding his. The whole event last night felt like a dream sequence. Acknowledging that it really happened brought tension into his jaw. He'd really sung, for all in the room to hear. It was hard to recognize himself lately. "I am glad if it helped," he said, a bit awkwardly. He looked down at her delicate fingers. "Earlier...when Laurius offered to give us privacy, I thought for a moment you wanted to ask him to stay."

[Emora Deen]

Laurius's thumb brushed Artisuren's lips as he pulled back. "Something about that room, or the princess and her phage bothered you. I wanted to check on you," he said. "I don't think I've acknowledged how difficult being corporeal has been for you. This world must be so different from yours..." He released Artisuren slowly, rubbing his aching shoulder with a wince. "It is different, though. You know that, right? The rules of your world don't apply to this one. Tell me what bothered you about earlier."

----

Tenara's gaze lifted from Havitharon's hand to his alien eyes. She appraised him a moment, a mixture of uncertainty and worry straining her features. "I wanted you," she assured him. "But my magic... at that moment, it wanted fulfillment. I think, at least, that's what I wanted. I'm sorry if it hurt you... I wouldn't have..."

Laurius was... complicated for her. Every part of her wanted to hate him—blame him. She needed someone to blame, and he was the reason Arken had the spell to make the blades at all. That need to hate him was at complete odds with how charismatic, charming, and genuine he seemed. Part of her was attracted to him. Havitharon was right about that. How she felt beyond that, Tenara wasn't sure. She was afraid of letting anyone but Havitharon close to her.

Laurius was a poisonous flower like Rami had been. He was beautiful but he would ultimately hurt her.

And besides... her heart, it would seem, had fallen for Havitharon, and Tenara had not decided yet if she was like her mother and capable of loving two—three men.