My Demon, My Love...

Several weeks had passed and neither Reve nor Azlyn had discussed what had happened between them. Reve would, occasionally, make attempts to be affectionate with her, but Azlyn often found ways to thwart his efforts. She could not fathom why he continued pursuing her; he had gotten what he wanted, so why would he not leave her alone?

Azlyn had tried to discuss the situation with Nissa, while going into as little detail as possible. That proved to be a fruitless venture as all Nissa could do in response to Azlyn’s story was to squeal with excitement and press for more details. While going on and on about how amazing it would be if a slave were to become a princess. As if there was any chance in all the realms that Azlyn and Reve would ever marry.

Azlyn had wanted to talk to Zareb, being that she thought he was likely the most level-headed and unbiased in the situation. The issue with this was that Zareb had been sent away on assignment and no one could say how long it would be before he would return. Azlyn hoped that he was safe, wherever he was.

Azlyn had even become so desperate that she had sought out advice from her one other friend, Blaz. Although, Blaz did not want to hear about any relationship that she may or may not have with Reve. He had nothing but cruel things to say about all of demonkind; that is, when he was not making attempts at flirting. Eventually, Azlyn grew tired of Blaz’s attitude and she walked away. She had gone to him, seeking advice on her unrequited love for Reve and Blaz was too absorbed in his own desires to behave as the friend that Azlyn needed.

Over the last few days, whenever Azlyn had some free time, she found herself wandering the castle halls, aimlessly. She did not want to hear Nissa’s enthusiasm nor Blaz’s discontent. She avoided spending too much unnecessary time in Reve’s room, so that they would not be alone together when they did not have to be. She did not want to know what he had to say because she was certain that it was not anything that she wanted to hear said out loud.

Reve had been so sweet the morning after their encounter. They shared breakfast and he even hand-fed her some of the food. After they had finished eating, Azlyn was rising from the bed to take the breakfast tray back to the kitchen, when she smelled the intoxicating scent from the night before.

Azlyn turned and looked over her shoulder at Reve and knew that he had released his pheromones again. Azlyn could scarcely believe that he was interested in having her again, but he made it clear that he was. Azlyn, gladly, obliged his request and they had made love again.

Nevertheless, after that, it went back to business as usual almost immediately. Reve rushed up out of bed and began to dress for his day. Azlyn grabbed the tray and took it to the kitchen. When she returned to the room, he had already gone. She did not see him again until breakfast the next morning.

Azlyn did not know why she was surprised. She had warned herself over and over that it would be this way. She was just grateful that she had not been transferred to another position. She did not want to work for anyone else in the castle, working for Reve was a dream job as far as slave labor was concerned, even if her heart ached a little every time that she saw him.

Suddenly, Azlyn could hear footsteps coming towards her, she looked up and saw two very lavishly dressed young demons. In many ways, they looked a lot like Reve, though, their features were harder and crueler. She knew that these were the twins, Reve’s older brothers, from the family dinners where Azlyn had served Reve.

“Well, well, well…what do we have here?” Prince Gedeon hissed as he stumbled in her direction.

Azlyn could smell the alcohol wafting off of them as they approached her.

“Isn’t this the slave that has Reve all riled up?” Gedeon asked, looking Azlyn up and down.

“What do you mean?” Prince Hadeon slurred.

“You know, the slave the Reve beat up the guards over.” Gedeon explained.

“Oh yeah, I remember hearing about that. I can kind of see why, though.” Hadeon said, leering at Azlyn’s breasts.

The look in the eyes of the princes made Azlyn feel very uneasy.

“I apologize, your majesties. I am in the middle of an errand just now. Is there something that I can assist you with?” Azlyn stated with a bow.

Azlyn attempted to swiftly pass by them, but as she made the effort, she felt someone grab onto the back of her hair. The strong hand yanked her, bidding her to walk backwards after the princes as they headed down the hall.

“You were not dismissed, slave.” Gedeon called back to her as Azlyn realized that it was his hand pulling her along by her braid.

As the princes pulled Azlyn along with them, they passed the hallway that neared the entrance to the castle. Zareb was walking up the hall, towards them, as they passed. Zareb saw the look of panic in Azlyn’s eyes as she made eye contact with him, desperate for help.

Azlyn reached out for Zareb as she was pulled away, but she knew that there was nothing he could do. He would be risking his own life if he were to confront the princes. Zareb sped up his step and made it to the end of the hall just in time to see Azlyn, taken down another hallway before disappearing out of sight.

While Zareb may not have been able to do something to save Azlyn, personally. He did know of someone who could do something, someone that he believed would be more than motivated to end this situation as rapidly as he could. So, Zareb took off running, hoping that he would make it before something unthinkable were to happen.

The princes drug Azlyn down the hall and to the right. They took her into Hadeon’s bedroom and Gedeon released his grip as he threw her towards the floor. Hadeon turned and locked the door behind them.

“You are going to show us what it is about you that has driven our little brother so wild.” Gedeon sneered as he strolled towards Azlyn, beginning to undo his belt as he went.

“No, please, you don’t have to do this!” Azlyn begged, knowing exactly what they had in store for her.

Azlyn began crawling along the floor, slowly backing away from Gedeon. However, Hadeon walked around behind her, bringing her retreat to a quicker than imagined end. Hadeon peered down as he stood over her; he licked his lips making Azlyn feel sick to her stomach.

Suddenly, Hadeon reached down and grasped onto Azlyn’s shirt, just in between her breasts. He allowed his nails to elongate and sharpen as they sliced through Azlyn’s shirt like butter. She flinched as a few of his nails began to stab into her. Azlyn cried out as his claws ripped open the flesh along her breasts where they had been making contact.

Blood began to flow from Azlyn’s wounds, only exciting the princes further. She watched, horrified, as both of their horns began to elongate, and their eyes darkened. Their nostrils flared as they inhaled the intoxicating scent of her blood. They released their own pheromones in return; however, Azlyn did not find their scents pleasing like she did with Reve’s. One of them stunk of burning hair and melting flesh. While the other smelt of rotting eggs. Azlyn had to fight the urge to vomit as she attempted to avoid breathing in their stench.

“It’s not about what we have to do. It’s about what we want to do.” Hadeon sneered.

“Nice work with the top, brother. Let’s match your work down below.” Gedeon snarled.

Gedeon clenched Azlyn’s shorts and ripped them away from her body. She now lay on the cold floor completely naked and exposed. There was absolutely no hope of rescue this time, who would dare defy two of the princes, especially the heir to the throne. Gedeon reached forward and ran his sharpened claws along her stomach to her belly button and then back down towards her thighs, lacerating her flesh as he went.

Tears burned in Azlyn’s eyes and began to run down her cheeks. She screamed out in protest as Gedeon leaned forward and began licking the blood from her stomach. She flailed and kicked as he reached in between her legs, slowly allowing his fingers to trail upwards.

“Scream all you want, honey! No one is coming to save you! The more you fight this, the more I’ll enjoy it.” Gedeon growled.

“Please! Don’t do this! Please! I’m begging you! Let me go! Please!” Azlyn cried.

Azlyn, desperately, looked into the eyes of each prince. Hoping to be met with even a shred of the compassion that she had found in Reve. To her dismay, her gaze was met by cold, emotionless stares; the only thing that existed in those eyes was greed. These two were used to getting what they wanted, when they wanted it, and right now they wanted Azlyn.

Hadeon reached down and began roughly, groping at Azlyn’s breasts. Gedeon had continued his trail up her legs and had found her clenched vagina. He clawed at her as he attempted to begin his exploration of her insides. Azlyn held as tightly as she could, hoping that it would obstruct his pursuit.

“Stop!!!!” Azlyn screamed and flailed her arms, clenched fists swinging for anything that they could find.

Hadeon grabbed Azlyn’s wrists and began controlling her arms. She attempted to fight against him, but he was far too strong for her. Soon, she was unable to move her arms and all she could do was flail her legs while she strove to remain tightly clenched. She did the only thing that she could think to do, so she swung back and drove her foot up hard between Gedeon’s legs. Gedeon grabbed his crotch and winced in pain. She did not know what possessed her to be so bold, but she wanted out of this, undefiled.

“You little whore! You will pay for that!” Gedeon raged as he regained his composure.

Gedeon sat up on his knees and leaned over Azlyn. He balled his hand into a tight fist, reared back, and brought it crashing down, hard, against Azlyn’s cheek. It throbbed badly, but the pain was worth keeping him from getting inside of her, even if it was just for a few more moments.

“Come on, quit fighting this. You’re going to love it. If you like Reve, then you’ll really enjoy us.” Hadeon cooed in her ear.

Unexpectedly, Hadeon leaned down and began kissing Azlyn, violently. He used his grip on her arms to force her upward and into him. While his brother clawed at her nether regions and sucked the blood from the wounds around her belly button. His free arm wrapped around her legs to keep her from being able to kick him again.

Azlyn screamed against Hadeon’s lips and she flailed her body the best she could against their restraints. She felt more disgusted with them than she had in the shower with the two guards. Why would they be doing this? Why would knowing that their brother may care for someone spur them into behaving in this manner? She could feel the blood loss beginning to make her woozy. She desperately hoped that she would faint soon, so that she would not have to experience whatever atrocious acts that were about to committed against her body.

Azlyn was pulled away from her thoughts as she heard loud banging coming from the door of the room. She looked over and saw that something was trying to force the door open against the lock. The princes stopped their assault, momentarily. But soon continued, apparently, secure in the fact that the door would stop whoever was attempting to enter.

“Help!!!!” Azlyn called out, hoping whomever was on the other side of the door was looking to assist her.

The being on the other side of the door became more frantic and desperate to break down the door, as the banging grew louder. As the mystery savior rammed themselves into the door over and over again, the door creaked and jolted, threatening to be ripped straight from its hinges.

The door exploded free from its frame, shards flying about, and Reve rushed inside the bedroom. He had looked as though he would murder someone from the moment that he entered; then when confronted with the scene before him, he completely lost any reasoning that he had left inside.

Reve moved so quickly that his feet did not appear to touch the ground. He was behind Gedeon, before either of his brothers had the chance to react, he grabbed Gedeon by either side of his head and yanked him backwards, tossing him away from Azlyn.

Hadeon released his grip on Azlyn’s arms and allowed her to drop back down to the ground. He took a few steps back and tried to reason with Reve.

“Brother…it is not a big deal. We were just having a little fun, that’s all. She is only a slave.” Hadeon attempted to explain.

Reve only growled in response.

A terrifying thought struck Hadeon, it was all too clear, he could not believe that he did not see it sooner. Reve had never really cared what they had done to the slaves before, as long as they did not do it front of him. Nevertheless, here he was, prepared to rip them to shreds, presenting in his primal form, growling as he stood over this naked and whimpering slave.

“Is she…are you…is she your…mate?” Hadeon could barely form the words as he spoke.

It was a grave mistake to try and take another demon’s mate and Hadeon was very aware of that fact. It was even more of a disgrace, to rape the mate of a family member. Hadeon was not completely sure how to handle this situation being that the mate, in question, is a slave.

“Reve…this…this is…sick and wrong.” Hadeon stuttered, as he looked from Reve to Azlyn and back again.

“Who are you to judge?! Like what you were doing was not sick and wrong?!” Reve snarled.

“Reve! How dare you treat me like that! I don’t care how strong you are, you are forbidden to ever use your strength against me!” Gedeon yelled as he rose from the ground, shaking off Reve’s attack.

Gedeon rushed at Reve and knocked him off his feet, leaving Azlyn unprotected. As Reve took a moment to compose himself; Gedeon grabbed Azlyn and pressed her into him as she struggled to get away from his grasp. He grabbed the back of her head and forced his vile tongue into her mouth.

Reve moved to attack Gedeon and force him away from Azlyn. Though, Hadeon grabbed onto him and forced his arms behind his back. Reve struggled against him, but Hadeon used every bit of power that he had to hold Reve in this position.

“You need to watch this Reve. You need to get past this. She cannot be your mate, she is a human. Love between a demon and a human is sick. You’re royalty, Reve! You cannot throw it all away for some disgusting slave.”

Azlyn struggled against Gedeon’s hold, trying to pry herself away from him. Gedeon snaked his hand down and grabbed her butt, squeezing it firmly and forcing her body into his. She let out a muffled cry around his tongue and into his mouth. She wanted to bite down on his tongue and punish it for its invasion, but she knew that she would signing her death certificate if she did. He began to slide his hand back in between her legs; his movements slow and deliberate.

“She…Is…MINE!!!!!” Reve screamed out at the top of his lungs with so much force that the room shook.

Reve suddenly used every ounce of strength and speed that he possessed within his legs and began to run backwards. He slammed Hadeon into the wall behind them as hard as he possibly could, knocking Hadeon unconscious, instantly, upon impact. Once Hadeon’s limp body had released its grip on Reve, he then ran forward and was on top of Gedeon and Azlyn in a split second.

Reve took one arm and wrapped it around Azlyn’s waist, pulling her away from Gedeon. Then Reve took his other hand and clenched his fingers, tightly, around Gedeon’s throat. He forced Gedeon to release his grasp on Azlyn as Gedeon’s focus was diverted to fend off Reve’s attack.

“Azlyn stay behind me. Do not let anyone touch you.” Reve commanded.

Azlyn did as she was told and twisted around as Reve released her. She slunk down to the floor and tried to make herself look as small as possible. She kept one eye on Reve and Gedeon while her other eye, carefully, watched for any sign of movement out of Hadeon.

Gedeon clawed and struggled against Reve. Scratching at Reve’s face, almost damaging his eye. Reve struggled against him until he was able to force both of his hands free; he grabbed one of Gedeon’s wrists with one hand, while still keeping a tight grip on his throat with the other, then he forced the hand backwards causing Gedeon’s wrist to crack.

Gedeon cried out in pain. He quit fighting and grabbed his wrist, attempting to stabilize it. He looked up at Reve with a hateful look in his eyes.

“Really, Reve?! All of this over a worthless slave?!” Gedeon snapped.

“You were warned! You knew that she was mine! You smelled my pheromones all over her and yet you covered her in your own! You disgust me!” Reve screamed down into Gedeon’s face.

“Reve, you cannot allow your feelings to go any further! Look at what you are doing! You are attacking your brothers, your superiors! This vile human has bewitched you!” Gedeon huffed through the pain.

Reve took a step closer to Gedeon. He drew his hand back and then released it, smacking Gedeon so hard that he fell to the floor. Gedeon reached out to catch himself as he fell, forgetting about his broken wrist, and screamed out as he was quickly reminded.

“Don’t you ever speak that way about her again! As a matter of fact, do not speak of her at all!”

Reve spit down on the floor in front of Gedeon’s face. This was meant as a sign of great disrespect. He had lost his esteem for Gedeon a long time ago but had kept it to himself until now. Now he wanted to make sure that Gedeon understood that his authority was no longer recognized by Reve.

Reve knew that this move could be dangerous as Gedeon was the heir apparent whom Reve was expected to serve after their father stepped down from the throne. Nonetheless, Reve also knew his brother and the only way to keep his sights off Azlyn was to make it clear, in no uncertain terms, that Reve was serious about her. He wanted them to understand that he was willing to do whatever it took to keep her safe, even if that meant a mutiny.

Gedeon may be the heir to the throne, however, Reve was faster and much stronger than both of his brothers, just based off his natural gifts. Not to mention, that Reve had spent his whole life training in fighting and military tactics. While Gedeon had trained in basic combat and diplomacy; Hadeon had been given purely intellectual training. Reve was a soldier and he handled his brothers like he would any other enemy. They did not stand a chance against him.

Once Reve was certain that Gedeon was not going to attempt to get up off the floor, he turned away from him. He walked over to Azlyn and scooped her up. He yanked a blanket off Hadeon’s bed and, haphazardly, wrapped it around Azlyn. He carried her out of the room and began walking back towards his chambers.

This time, Azlyn did not care who saw them and she did not concern herself with what they would say. She wanted Reve to hold her; she wanted to be comforted by him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled her face into his chest. She could not get close enough to him. She breathed in deeply, taking in his scent. He was like a breath of fresh air compared to his brothers.

Reve carried Azlyn into the bedroom and straight into the bathroom. He placed her in the shower and tossed the blanket aside. This time he did not stand outside of the shower, offering assistance. This time he climbed into the shower with her; stripping off his shirt as it was covered with his brothers’ blood, but leaving on his pants, so that Azlyn would not feel uncomfortable. However, he had to be with her, he would not leave her side, so that meant he was going to be next to her even if that meant standing in the shower too.

Reve slowly and carefully bathed Azlyn. He knew that her wounds would sting under the soap, but he did not want them to go uncleaned. Not to mention, he knew that she would want to wash away the feeling of their touch on her skin, removing its stain. Though, truth be told, his motivations were not purely unselfish, he needed to get his brothers’ pheromones off of her. He could not stand that she smelled like them, it was driving him insane. He needed to get their scent off and put his scent back on her, immediately.

After Reve had finished cleansing Azlyn, they stood underneath the water, and he allowed her to cry into his chest. He was angrier than he had ever been in his entire life. He could not stand that they had hurt her. He hated them for what they had done. He was ashamed to know that he shared the same blood with the likes of them.

“You are safe, Azlyn. I will never let them hurt you again.” Reve whispered, reassuringly as he smoothed her hair.

After some time, Reve shut off the shower and dried Azlyn off. He grabbed the same robe that she worn before and wrapped it around her. He picked her up and carried her over to his bed, laying her down. He changed into his sweatpants and climbed into bed beside her. Reve wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in close to him. She turned and buried her face into the crook of his neck. Eventually, they both drifted off to sleep.

Azlyn slept fitfully that night. While she felt safe in Reve’s arms, she could not bring herself to completely relax. She was in big trouble and she knew it. There was not getting out of this one. She had been involved in a situation that had included three members of the royal family and two of them had been badly injured. She knew that she would pay; she just did not know how or when. Every noise she heard caused her to wake for fear that someone was coming for her. Every time she closed her eyes, she could see their filthy claws groping for her. Nightmares raged throughout her dreams.