Trinket (Reverse Harem)

Thirteen

I did not want to watch this.

Ormiss had changed from his usual skirt into one of old, shiny leather made from the skin of something I didn't recognize, and could go the rest of my life without knowing. At first I thought that it was dappled.

No: just bloodstains. Ancient, ancient bloodstains. Generations of bloodstains.

He had taken off his necklaces, leaving just his trinket around his neck on a thin leather thong, and carried in his hand a whip braided from that same, shiny, horrible leather and it jangled slightly as he moved, and it was covered in sharp bits and such I couldn't identify. He carried it by its braided handle, with the lash's length trailing behind him as he walked, making a sound like bones shattering.

The Queen and her court stood on a balcony overlooking the palace square. I stood below on the palace steps with my consorts, who were now in their true forms. Dozens, maybe hundreds of hippocamp clustered around to watch around the edges of the square, creating a large open space.

I'd expected some kind of pole or stocks to restrain Asund.

Ormiss moved to the center of the square. He pointed at Asund, who stood off to the side in human-form, framed by Zimon and the Queen's guards. They herded him forward at the tips of tridents. Zimon was right at Asund's shoulder, and I think I saw him lean over and whisper something to Asund, but the silence was otherwise eerie.

Ormiss pointed at the ground.

Asund walked to the spot. Ormiss pushed on his shoulder. Asund knelt. Ormiss pushed him again, bending him over so Asund's muscled back bent in a bow, and Asund laced his hands behind his neck.

Ormiss walked in a circle around Asund, then took up a position behind Asund. He raised the whip.

I flinched as it lashed across Asund's back. The sound was horrific as the lash snapped and all the bits of it crunched and clicked.

Blood spread over Asund's back. A deep trench peeled up across his skin.

Asund flinched and bent forward, but did not make a sound.

"One." The Hippocamp gathered intoned.

The next lash made an even more terrible sound. Blood sprayed Ormiss' bare chest, arms, face, and the skirt. Blood poured off Asund's back, down his thighs, onto the sand. He arched, muscles tight, didn't make a sound.

"Two."

"Three."

"Four."

Asund collapsed onto one hand, breathing hard.

"Five."

"Six."

The Hippocamp hissed siiixxxxx like willing Asund to give them a howl of agony as the whip carved deep, horrible trenches into his back, and blood pooled and poured and bits of his skin got flung around from the motion of the whip.

Assund breathed hard through his teeth, face twisted in fury. He knotted his hands behind his neck again.

"Seven."

A bit of his flesh hit my dress. Slid down. Left a red trail.

"Eight."

Asund arched again.

I glanced up at the Queen. Her face with fury.

Ormiss lashed Asund again. The lash cut down to the bone.

"Nine."

Four more to go. Four more.

"Ten."

That pulpy sound would haunt my nightmares forever. Asund remained firmly on his knees, his body twisting as he fought it—fought to stay in human form, fought to not scream, fought to not run away from the lash. He twisted and snaked but didn't make a sound, didn't get off his knees.

"Ellllleeeevveeennnn!"

Nobody would say Ormiss went easy on Asund. He was soaked and splattered with my wolf's blood. It plastered his long hair to his chest and shoulders. It soaked into the skin of his hands and under his nails. Dripped off the leather apron. His own sweat cut paths through the fresh blood layered over the dried blood, painting him various shades. Even his face was covered in blood.

"Twellllvvvveeeee!"

Asund's back looked like a the petals of a flower.

"THIRTEEEENNNNN!"

Asund collapsed forward onto both hands, breathing hard, blood pouring off his ruined, ridged, petalled back.

Ormiss turned to the Queen. He pointed the whip at her, the bloody tail dragging patterns in the sand.

The Queen, expression furious, nodded.

I moved. Korr nudged me back with his long neck.

Asund shifted one knee. His entire body pushed as he shoved himself up, then he yanked his other leg under him, swaying, back bent. Then he yanked himself upright.

He took one staggering step towards me. Then another. Then another, getting weaker with each one. I held out a hand to him.

You can make it. Just a few more steps.

He dragged himself across the sand and dropped just as he reached me. Itek ducked between us to catch him, suddenly in human-form.

"Asund," I said as he sagged against the two of us, smearing us both with blood.

"I... told... you..." he rasped. "I'd walk away."

/*******

Peeeepppssss....

PEEPSSSSS. Who is doing Nano this year? I am debating if I want to do it because YOU KNOW.... there are like other books I need to finish. (Storm, Dark Places, Covenant, The Book That Shall Not Be Named, etc)

DON'T BEAT ME! NO HIT. NO HIT. NOT HIT.

But I am thinking that I want to re-write the Silence & The Sorcereress, and I'm weighing if maybe I want to do that for my nano project. (Maybe I should learn to spell sorcereress too...hahahha, butterrrrr thumbs) That's *TECHNICALLY* cheating but YOLO, amrite?

I also want to put Ormiss in his own story, where he gets the girl all to himself. ;) And Korr & Ethat get their own story, and Itek, and Asund... (a story of nothing but Korr & Ethat, murder dragon & diplomat, moving from place to place while Korr tries to stay ahead of his brother's tendencies?)

Maybe I should just start my own AO3 account and write my own fanfic? LOL. XD

~ Merry

(Perilously pantstering forever)

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