Once It Gets Dark Ch 07

~~~~There is no sex in this chapter -- please read the previous chapters for that :)~~~~~

By request, here is a short

list of the Veril names and vocabulary

relevant for this chapter, as our protagonist, Anna, understands it so far:

-

kel

= toy

-

Kirtim Shenk

= "Army of the Fallen Sun"

the name of General Tsul Vo'ren's Army

-

kulum

= water

-

mish

= sweet

-

shenik

= "general"

(the highest military rank)

-

Suchil Tem

=

name of the Head Counselor, leader of the Veril government

-

Tsul Vo'ren

=

the General's name

-

-tz'in

=

first person singular possessive suffix

"my"

(added to the end of the word:

--

mishtz'in

= my sweet;

--

Sheniktz'in

= my general;

--

Annatz'in

= my Anna)

-

Vik Iche

l =

name of the General's friend, his Colonel and leader of the Shadow Guard

German Vocabulary And Names:

-

bitte

= please

-

bitte nicht

= please no

-

Gnade

= mercy

-

Hilfe

= help

-

nein

= no

-

Neuverhandlungen

= renegotiations

-

Scheiße

= shit

(a popular and versatile swear word; "ß" is pronounced like "s")

-

Tiergarten

= name of a park close to the seat of the German government in Berlin

-

Volkspark Friedrichshain

=

name of the Park, where the Veril Main Base is stationed (

Volkspark

= the people's park;

Friedrichshain

= Name of a popular neighborhood in the heart of Berlin)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHAPTER 7

Confused and unsettled, I stood in the empty tent, looking dumbfounded after my captor, who had left just a moment ago. What had I just felt? What was wrong with me? He was the Butcher of Hamburg, a monster. Why was he making me swoon?

I needed to sit. On my way to the sleeping area, I stumbled over something on the floor. When I bent down to see what it was, I had to laugh again. It was my bag, right next to the bed, in the opposite direction of where I had looked at the beginning of this doomed night.

I found my phone after some digging, but just when I wanted to take it out, the felt-covered door of the tent moved. Panicked, I shoved it back.

In the twilight, I could only make out a shadowy figure who placed something on the ground in front of the door and left again. One of the guards bringing me food; I guessed from the delicious smell that filled the room.

I decided that the phone had to wait. The risk of being discovered was too great, with the guards going in and out of the tent and the General bound to be back at any moment. Besides, the mouthwatering scent wafting through the tent made me realize how hungry I was. And thirsty--I had been sweating so much I was probably bordering on dehydration.

It was a reflex to reach for my phone's flashlight, and I already had it back in my hand when I paused and laughed. How idiotic would it be to use up my precious battery for this? I would have to manage some other way; fortunately, it was not completely dark when I went towards the door thanks to the moonlight shining through the circle above the fireplace.

With shaky hands, I picked up the jug and emptied half of it right away. Never had a drink been as refreshing as this cold water, soothing my parched throat like balsam. I took the clay plate in one hand and the jug in the other and carried them to the little table.

When I sank into the soft cushions, I winced. I felt every bruise and sore muscle and was extremely grateful that I didn't have to sit my aching thighs on a hard chair. Every part of my body that the General had touched was hurting--outside and inside. I ran my hands over my wrists. He had grabbed me, yanked me, and pinned me so often that they were already severely bruised, and now the skin was broken in several parts from where he had bound me.

I had only been with General Tsul for one night and a half, and I was already in a pretty sorry state. I needed to start taking care of myself. Nobody was going to give me a medal of honor for fighting back every time he humiliated or touched me. All I was going to earn were bruises and possibly even more severe injuries.

I thought that the General probably didn't really want to harm me. Or else he would not have checked up on me this way today. But I doubted that he always had his incredible strength and temper under control.

And there was also another part of me. A part that loved how the memories of his touch were still visible on my body. The bruises a token of how good his strong hands had felt when they made me submit to him, marked me, took me, and made me his.

In the dim moonlight, I ran my finger over the imprints his hands had left on my arm, remembering his body on top of mine, pinning me down.

I exhaled. Why did I keep having those thoughts about the monster? I really hoped that it was because the effect of his venom had still not worn off, but deep inside me, there was a growing fear that it had another reason.

He had said it himself once:

'You just like me a little bit more than you want to admit.'

I shook my head. No, it had to be the venom or some other kind of Veril magic. Maybe there had been something in the food after all? I gave the plate in front of me a suspicious look. It was covered with a damp cloth, which I picked up to clean my hands, like I had seen the General do the last time we ate.

I had uncovered four palm-sized dumplings, made out of some kind of green dough that was folded in the form of an intricate flower. There was also some kind of pinkish-red sauce. It looked beautiful and so appetizing that I quickly decided to throw my suspicions overboard. I took one of the pasties in my hand and carefully bit into it. My mouth instantly exploded with flavors so much more rich than any of the human food I had ever tasted before. The dumplings were filled with a mix of ground meat and vegetables, seasoned with herbs and something spicy.

The slight burning on my tongue made me think of the General's venom. I shivered and dipped the dough into the sauce. It tasted like wild berries, and I closed my eyes, savoring every bite.

It was astonishing how much of a difference a good meal could make. I had completely emptied the plate in minutes, completely forgetting my table manners and cleaning out the remaining drops of sauce with my fingers. I felt a lot more calm and almost optimistic now that my stomach was full. I yawned and stretched my arms up; even the pain in my limbs seemed less pronounced now.

Looking down on myself, I realized for the first time just how filthy I was. My shirt was clinging uncomfortably to my body, stained with blood and sweat and other things that I didn't even want to think about; disgustedly, I took it off and threw it on top of my bag next to the bed. I yearned for a good shower and looked around the tent, but there was nothing that I could have used to wash myself.

I was getting nervous, hoping that the guards wouldn't come in now. I really did not need any more Veril to see me naked. The experience in the car had already been humiliating enough, and I felt my face heat up in embarrassment as I thought about it. But I really, really didn't want to put the disgusting shirt back on.

I scanned the room for something to cover myself with, and my eyes caught on the sheets lining the furs in the sleeping area. I shrugged; at this point, everything was better than the nasty shirt. I got up and pulled away a medium-sized cloth. It was made out of a thin cotton-like fabric and pleasantly cool to the touch. I wondered again if such select linens perfect for regulating the summer heat were a privilege of the General or if they were simply the standard equipment of a Veril military tent. No matter the reason, I was glad about it since their fine texture made it easy to tie them into a makeshift sarong-style dress.

I placed the fabric behind my back and crossed it at my front, tying each one of the two corners around the opposite side of my neck, thus creating a sort of halter dress. It was a skill my friends and I had perfected in the summers back home, which we had spent sunbathing on a lake not far from my parent's house in southern Germany.

I made sure to make the knot extra strong so my creation would not unravel at an inopportune moment and looked down at myself; it had turned out pretty short, and I mostly blamed my big butt for that, but I thought that I appeared at least a little bit more representable now than I had in the t-shirt.

There was no mirror in the tent. A powerful warrior like the General probably didn't need to worry about his appearance. Then again, I could not imagine him looking bad in anything. He was either devastatingly handsome or utterly terrifying, like in the video from January Twelfth: blood-covered and feral. Most of the time, he was both. My heart gave just the tiniest of flips as I pictured him.

I shook my head again. I really shouldn't be spending the precious little time that I had away from him gushing over my captor. I would have enough occasion to do so when he was back.

I wanted to occupy myself with something else and keep my mind from going back to the General, but there was nothing for me to do.

Of course, there was my phone, but I didn't dare take it out. Not with the dirty plates still on the table, waiting for the guard to return and retrieve them. Well, that was something I could do--hand the plates back. That way, I didn't need to worry about unannounced visits, and it would also give me an excuse to peek outside of my prison for a moment. Despite everything, I was curious about the enchanted park that had seemed so much more Veril than human when we arrived. Was it not a shame to be stuck inside this admittedly very nice tent if I had the rare chance of glimpsing the hint of another dimension?

I took the cloth and dirty bowl, leaving only the half-empty jug on the table, and walked to the tent's exit.

As soon as I lifted the felt covering the door, there was a flurry of darkness in the night's clear air, and three Veril soldiers manifested right in front of me. One with an assault rifle and the other two armed with long spears, which they crossed, blocking me from leaving: The General's Shadow Guard--the wards of my jail. I looked at the frightful warriors, and all my instincts screamed to run back inside. But I had decided that I couldn't and wouldn't spend any more time scared and cowering.

I breathed in the fresh but warm air full of exciting new scents and aromas and tried to calm myself. They were not going to hurt me just for standing in the door, I told myself. I was the General's toy--

keltz'in

, as he liked to call me since I had yelled at him in my apartment's corridor.

And his guards were surely going to be careful not to break their commander's plaything. They weren't even supposed to touch me, I remembered, because then I would smell like them. I lifted one palm up and extended the other one, holding the bowl, towards the warriors.

My voice cracked from fear as I said, "I'm sorry." I cleared my throat and tried to give them my most winning smile. "I was just wondering where I could leave the dirty dishes."

They didn't move; did they even understand English? I took one step forward. I was really close to the guard in the middle now, and I could see from the way he looked over at his comrades that he was getting nervous--because of me! This was kind of fun, and I almost felt like messing with the soldier a little. I extended the bowl to him. He hissed and ripped it quickly out of my hand.

"Thank you," I said, and deeply regretted that I didn't know how to say the words in Veril. I would have to ask the General. I smiled at the absurdity of the two of us studying vocabulary together.

The guards seemed a little unsure what to do about me, and I took the chance to look around a little bit. The camp seemed busy, and in the light of the unusually bright stars above, I could make out the shadows of soldiers carrying all kinds of weapons, ranging from modern firearms to swords and crossbows. There were also four or five military vehicles arriving at the main road, looking a little bit bigger than the ones we had used to get here. Had the General left the Base? I stood up on the tips of my toes, trying to look past the Veril standing in front of me.

"Go," said the guard to my left in heavily accented English, and firmly gestured towards the tent's opening behind me.

I jumped and felt as if I had been caught doing something forbidden.

"Yes, sorry," I conceded. "Thank you again!" I gave an awkward bow and walked backwards into the tent, somehow too afraid to turn my back on them.

I stumbled as I stepped through the entrance and muttered in German,

"Scheiße!"

"That is not a very nice thing to say."

I let out a little scream and whirled around. The General was standing in the middle of the tent, arms crossed, a recently lit fire flickering behind him, highlighting his powerful silhouette in all its glory. How in all the world had he gotten in here?

"Can you turn into shadow, too?" was all I could whisper as I was staring at him dumbfounded.

"No," he answered, his voice dangerously low as he stepped closer to me. "My magic is different. You were simply too preoccupied with disturbing my guards to notice me." He was in front of me now, glaring down, and I noted with some satisfaction that his lip was still injured from where I had bitten him earlier.

I tried to divert the topic away from me.

"What is your magic?" All of Germany had been asking the same thing; his abilities had to be terrible considering what he had done to Hamburg.

Unfortunately, the General saw right through me.

"Do not concern yourself with my magic and dedicate your pretty little head to answering the question as to why I find you outside the tent, although I have explicitly told you not to leave." His eyes narrowed.

"But you didn't," I replied, trying to resist the urge to give into the pull I felt and wrap my arms around his neck.

"Excuse me?" he asked, looking at me with his eyebrows drawn in ill-temper.

"You didn't tell me not to leave the tent. You just said I shouldn't run from you. And I didn't try to run; I just wanted to return the dirty plates."

He hissed, "Do you wish to argue with me, human?"

He was getting angry, and I remembered that I had wanted to be more careful around him. We had played this same game so often by now that I knew what would happen: This was the moment where I gave him some snide retort, and he would grab me and pull me around or hurt me in some other way. And I was too tired and too bruised to go through all of it again. I took a step back in anticipation and lifted my hands up in a reassuring gesture.

"No. No, I don't. I won't leave the tent without your permission again. I'm sorry, Vo'ren."

It was the first time I had called him by this name. I had done it because I was scared of angering him more by using his title. But the moment the foreign sounds left my lips, my heart jumped. He inhaled, and his eyes softened.

"Anna," he said, and laid his right hand on my upper arm. For a moment, we just stood there, looking into each other's eyes, the only sound coming from the crackling of the fire behind him. Then he shook his head and laughed.

"Are you wearing my bed sheets as a dress?"

"Yes," I gritted through my teeth. "My shirt is really dirty."

He smirked and slowly ran his index finger down my exposed shoulders, stopping right on the curve of my breasts. "As far as I am concerned, you do not have to wear anything."

I trembled under his touch and leaned a little closer to him. "What if your guards came in? Won't you mind if they see me naked?"

"Why would I care who sees you, mishtz'in? As long as nobody touches you." He played with the fabric, taking it between his fingers and pulling a little bit, probably in the hope that it would unravel.

I smiled triumphantly as my makeshift dress held and decided to tease him a little bit. I laid my arms around his neck, stood up on my toes, and was pleased to feel him shudder when I softly brushed my lips against his pointy ear.

"What would you do if they touched me?" I breathed. "Or if I decided to kiss one of them, or did other things?"

The General gave a low laugh, and when he spoke in my ear, his voice was smooth and menacing at the same time. "My toy, if any other man touches you, I will cut his hand off in slices. But if they do something else, I will kill them so slowly that they will be begging me to let them die for days before I grant them their end."

I swallowed; this had taken a rather gruesome turn, but really, what had I expected?

"And me? Would you kill me, too?" I asked, and my voice shook a little bit more than I liked.

"My sweet, why would I damage my own property just because somebody else has touched it? You are only of use to me when you are alive." He placed his hand possessively on my butt and pulled me against him. "But let me tell you that: I will make you watch every second of what I do to them, and then when it is all over, I will make you lick their blood off my body before I fuck you."

He drew slightly away and gave me an impressive smile, managing to fully display his sharp teeth as he said sweetly, "So just try to remember that whenever you feel tempted, mishtz'in."

"I'm not tempted," I was quick to declare.

"I am glad to hear that, my sweet," he purred, leaning down to my mouth. "Because I have spent years selecting my Shadow Guards, and I would really hate to lose one of them."

The taste of his breath on my lips made me go all soft against him, and I entangled my fingers in his short black hair, pulling him to me. When he finally kissed me, it made my body melt in his strong arms. He was not gentle, and I could feel the bruise where I had bitten him, pressing roughly into my lip. I couldn't resist running my tongue over it, realizing my mistake when I felt him chuckle.

"Do you already want my venom again?" he asked, and mischief was dancing in his eyes.

"No," I replied quickly, pulling back.

He laughed again. "I should force you to take it anyway after what you tried to do at the beginning of this night. But you are lucky, my sweet, because we have to attend a meeting at the embassy soon, and I do not have time to properly fuck you before that, nor do I wish to bring you in front of the Counselor when you are a shaking mess."

A weight dropped in my stomach. I had completely forgotten about that.

"Which Counselor?" I asked--as far as I knew, there were twelve, after all.

"Suchil Tem." His mouth, still close to mine, tightened a bit as he answered.

"The Head Counselor?" I shivered and pulled back further. He was the leader of the Counsel of Twelve, as the Veril called their government, and the only one of their politicians that I had actually heard of. I was

really

regretting by now that I hadn't been paying more attention to current events.

"Yes, yes, the great Suchil Tem himself. First of the Counsel, Leader of the Shadow Realms, etcetera, etcetera."

The General took a step backwards and flicked his hand dismissively.

"Protector of the Veril Nation?" I joked.

"No." The General laughed and gave a small bow. "That would be me."

He was so beautiful when he joked like that, and as I looked at his face, I felt the unwelcome fluttering in my stomach again.

"Do you also have so many titles?"

"Almost as many as the Counselor," he smiled lazily.

This was not really news to me, but I couldn't help being impressed nonetheless. It was still somehow unbelievable that I was actually talking to the famous General Tsul--the great hero of his people and the nightmare of mine.