(Dear readers. Full disclosure that this chapter may be more plot driven then sexually charged. Hopefully, it will still be an entertaining read, but I wanted to give that caveat. --Abashed)
*
Sierra quickly scanned the shelf in the instruction room one final time, perhaps as an attempt to delay having to go see what her venom had achieved. The light reflecting off a few glass syringes in shadow caught her eye. In that same corner on the shelf were bandages, tweezers, a few small, dark bottles and finally, a gray handheld device that looked vaguely familiar. Sierra glanced back at the prone form of Lord V and then grabbed the device before running over to the immobile Ingentian.
Sierra locked her jaw, her stomach churning as she swiftly knelt down beside him. Lord V's normally beautiful face was contorted, his eyes closed. His pale skin looked sallow with shadows of dark veins beneath the skin. Sierra was startled to see his chest rise as he took a rasping breath and his eyelids fluttered only to close again.
Though Lord V's eyes remained closed, he issued a whisper-groan so quiet that Sierra barely heard him, "Button . . . blue," he rasped.
Sierra fumbled with the device until she found a blue square on one side. She pressed in and the thing bleeped to life with various lights and a humming sound. Sierra held it to Lord V's neck, having no idea what to do. A scanning, blue light zipped across his features, then the device began issuing a pulsing red light and where the pulsing light hit, the lavender veins appeared to flare deep purple and then seemed to recede. Lord V's brows knit and he mouthed a silent groan.
Sierra began to move the device painstakingly along every inch of his head and torso. It didn't restore him perfectly, but she could see it was miraculously returning some smoothness to his skin and nearly erasing the purple blush to his features. His breathing seemed to be normalizing, though he remained motionless.
Sierra paused in her ministering. Thus far, she'd been responding only by instinct. The delayed reaction of her venom had surprised her. She looked down at her tormentor and the high buzz of anxiety seemed to drain from her to be replaced with a heavy, numb feeling. Setting the medicorder aside, Sierra stood up and with a determined tightness to her lips, stepped back over to the shelves, her eyes searching.
~
Lord V was barely aware of his surroundings as he nauseated in and out of consciousness. Every time he awoke, the pain laced anew through his body and every breath was squeezed out of him with a feeling like a fist tortuously grasping his lungs. He felt the subtle heated prickles of the medicorder helping to nullify the poison racing beneath his skin, but his consciousness would wane again before he could process much more.
The next time he resurfaced into consciousness, a thought tethered him awake, "I am alive." His body still felt quite sore, and he couldn't quite bring himself to open his eyes, but he was breathing normally through his nose except for the slightest twinge and delay of breath. He felt a kick to his leg. It wasn't a strong kick, but it seemed insistent. Lord V opened his bleary eyes and it took several moments for him to register what he was seeing.
It was his slave covered in human blood, no, it was Sierra in his red, silk night shirt. She hovered above him. Silly slave, he thought sleepily. He tried to close his eyes again, but another kick, this time harder to his shin, angered him. He meant to say, 'Let me sleep!' but all that came out was, "gnhemesleggh" and his saliva dripped down his chin from the ball gag.
Lord V's eyes widened in shock and he snapped out of his fog to find that he was still naked, lying on his stomach, but his wrists were bound behind him and his ankles cuffed into a spreader bar. A chain between the handcuffs and the spreader bar meant he couldn't raise his hands without also pulling the heavy bar up making him rock into an awkward arch. His predicament enraged him, but all he could do in his weakened state was to simply glare up at the clear, lovely, face of his slave who was frowning down at him.
She nodded at his seething, expressive eyes. "I could have let you die," Sierra said simply. Lord V's eyes narrowed to angry slits. Sierra chewed her lip then said flatly, "I'm not sure what I should do. Should I attempt to escape and leave you like this for your people to find you? Should I hurt you as you have hurt me?" At this Sierra gestured to the equipment lining the walls.
Lord V's eyes widened and he furiously began straining at his bonds. His body rocked comically as he tried to break free, eventually exhausting himself. He lay gasping around the gag, his body shivering from his efforts. As he regained his breath, he stilled his struggling and coolly observed her.
Sierra's sad, enchanting green eyes held his gaze. She spoke again, a tremble in her voice, "How can I let you live knowing you'll only come after me? Why can't you just leave me alone?" She shook her head sadly and looked away from him.
Lord V looked at the girl that had caused him so much trouble and so much intense pleasure. Her glossy, golden brown hair still fell in loose waves about her shoulders, the red silk of the night shirt a dramatic contrast to the soft springtime of her coloring. Though her face was strained and sad, it was like the shifting loveliness of the sea, no less beautiful for expressing a somber change in mood. Her lovely chin held high, her gaze steady; he had never seen her look quite so beautiful.
When she turned back to him, he motioned with his eyes and jerked his chin the best he could to indicate he wished the ballgag to be removed so he could speak. Sierra scowled at him and shook her head, but he held her gaze pouring all his longing and affection for her into one shared look.
~
The depth of feeling and strange softness in his gray eyes surprised Sierra and against her better judgment, she knelt down to remove the gag. Earlier, she'd grazed his ankle as she had bound him to the spreader bar, and it hadn't caused a relapse of the poison, but she still tried to remove the gag without touching him as much as possible.
Lord V worked his jaw. When he attempted to speak, nothing but air came out at first. Finally he managed to rasp, "Well slave, it seems you have developed some thorns after all."
Sierra kicked him hard in his side, however, she couldn't hold back wincing in sympathy to see his face contort in agony. He recovered with a grimace and sucked in breath, his eyes pinching shut only to pop back open indignant and angry. Sierra said in an even voice, "I am not your slave."
Lord V's jaw tightened, but he kept her gaze and nodded. "Sierra," he began. He cleared his throat eying her warily, "Surely, you cannot blame me for wanting you?"
Sierra loomed above Lord V's bound form, the red, silk nightshirt pulled taut across her chest as she folded her arms and peered down.
"You don't want me," Sierra bit out. "You want a puppet, a plaything. I will never be Elanna."
Lord V smiled weakly at that, "No, you will never be Elanna," he repeated softly. His voice rose in volume and took on some of its customary dry imperiousness, "And yet, you can't deny your own desire, little human. I recall how beautifully you begged me to fuck you." Sierra's face reddened, but Lord V continued, "In the end, isn't what I want from you what you crave to give?"
Lord V knew better than to laugh, but it was difficult as Sierra's expression became the most perfectly adorable sulk.
Instead, Lord V tried unsuccessfully to keep the teasing out of his voice as he taunted, "Unbind me and I'll show you what I mean."
It was Sierra's turn to have her eyes blaze in anger. She twisted her pretty lips in a stubborn, little scowl and stalked off to the toy shelf. She returned ominously tapping a black, riding crop in her hand. Lord V raised his eyebrows as she returned to his view.
