Obsession is the height of passion, but what does one do when they find themselves enthralled with their enemy. Talamayas Sol loses his mother when he stumbles upon a mage in the deserts of his territory, and he is plunged into a despair he's never...
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Reason had flown out the window a few days ago. Talamayas had said he'd keep him at his side, which served Wren's purposes as far as surviving here, but he hadn't expected to what extent. Anywhere Talamayas went, Wren came with him. Training his soldiers, talking to his first general about politics and relations, spending time with his men in the evening before they slept, even conversing with a human nomad group that provided the Sols with blood. Talamayas made no attempt to hide the inner working of the Sols from him, and Wren wasn't sure what to make of it.
Surely the man didn't trust him. Was it because Talamayas planned to kill him as soon as he got the chance and what he knew didn't matter? That also didn't seem the case with how Talamayas was just downright relaxed around him. Wren had never seen this side of the Sol leader, the jovial, friendly, communication savvy vampire who ruled one of the largest vampire houses. His people flocked to him, loved him, and they all looked at Wren with curiosity.
Not one of them looked on him with loathing. They all seemed to want to say something to him but eventually gave it up. All except for Shan Sol, who watched his every movement and counted his breaths as he trailed Talamayas like a bomb squad on a threat. The general really didn't like him, and Talamayas had to dismiss Shan more than once in a night to get him off his back. That backhanded look of loathing in Shan's eyes haunted Wren as he was left with Talamayas in whatever task he was working on.
A few days in, he felt absolutely gross from the heat, but there wasn't a bath in sight that he knew of. It wasn't in him to ask Talamayas, but he was going to offend some of these sensitive vampire noses soon if something didn't change. Following Talamayas, he ran through the ways to ask about where he might find a bath, and he gasped a breath as dark magic swarmed his body.
A hand clamped over Wren's arm and dragged him away from Talamayas, and the man didn't even turn back to look at him. Shan Sol marched him down a hallway, and Wren tore from his grips eventually, though much further from Talamayas than he preferred.
"What is this?" Wren rasped, and Shan rolled his eyes.
"You want a bath or not?" Shan asked, and Wren lightened his expression.
Had Talamayas noticed him thinking too hard on how to ask? The man was perceptive.
"I would, yes," Wren answered as calmly as possible, and Shan nodded his head for him to follow.
"I'm heading down there myself, so I will take you. It's a shared bathhouse, so you'll have to deal with seeing a few of us naked." Shan mostly spoke to the air as Wren followed him cautiously down a set of stairs that led outside.
They only walked under the stars for a short duration, and the chill was washed away as they entered another corridor that led to tiered pools that filled an underground save system. Light from the stars filtered in a hole at the other side along with some other magic-fueled lights around the roof of the cave. There were vampires everywhere, and Wren gave pause as Shan Sol disrobed right in front of him. Without a care in the world, Shan pulled his shirt over his head and then dropped trouser right in front of him. A blush crept onto Wren's face, but Shan motioned for him to do the same.
