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Lilia looked around himself, confused. He didn’t know where he was, nor could he remember how got there.
He was lying outside the entrance of a small grotto in the middle of a vast, barren wasteland. Dead, grey ground lay all around him and continued as far as the eye could see. There was a thick, smoky miasma all around, echoing the fog in his mind. All he knew was that he was desperately parched. He touched his throat and tried to speak, but only gasping sounds came out. He sighed internally. He tried to move before freezing and looked down at himself. With one glance he realized he was dreadfully injured – his right leg was bent the wrong way and a gaping hole protruded from his chest – no doubt from a spear. He was dressed in his old verdant green armour, though it had been mostly torn off. Laying by his side, blunted and battered, was Oathkeeper. He quickly covered the wound on his chest with his arm but otherwise was largely apathetic to his injuries. He was sure he wouldn’t die from this -it would start to heal soon enough. It was inconvenient however if he wished to know where he was.
Just then, the sound of a soft melody in the distance caught his attention. Lilia’s focus was immediately drawn to the voice of the one humming the nostalgic tune. Body on full alert, Lilia watched as through the haze an imposing figure walked towards him, heels lightly crunching the dry dirt underfoot. With his long tail swaying languidly behind him and markings proudly on display in his dragon-like form, his Prince and ward, Malleus Draconia, stepped out.
Seeing his darkened form, Lilia’s garnet eyes widened as a wave of memories flooded his consciousness. As the puzzle pieces began to fit together, they formed a clear picture in his mind and dread slowly crept into his bones.
He remembered now – both the original memory that this scene was plucked from, as well as the moment of his Prince’s overblott that he had been unable to stop. Once he had put everyone to sleep, Malleus must have chosen this particular scene to enter Lilia’s dreams. Lilia wanted to look away in shame, but something primal- a dreadful foreboding in the pit of his stomach- told him it would be dangerous to look away from the approaching apex predator.
Malleus looked expectantly down at him with a small smirk playing on his lips. A confident air hung about him as he stopped a few meters in front of the wounded ex-general. Lilia wanted desperately to back away, to run, but his back was already flat against the stony outcropping he was leaning against. Against his will, his survival instincts kicked in and his injured leg twitched in response, causing pain to shoot up through his body. This made his torso lurch, jostling his gaping chest wound. Lilia doubled over, hissing in pain. He was truly stuck between a rock and a hard place.
He shot Malleus a frustrated look.
This was wrong. Malleus shouldn’t be here.
He tried saying as much, but all he managed was a raspy gasp.
Meanwhile, the overblotted housewarden was observing the injured fae in from of him enthusiastically. He seemed almost giddy. After all, his plan had succeeded – having effectively entered Lilia’s subconscious, he had drawn forth a memory where the old general was at his most vulnerable and too drained to resist his nature.
Lilia was a rare type of fae in the Valley of Thorns. Unlike others of their race who drew magic from nature or simply created it within themselves – Lilia drew strength through the magic within the blood of other fae. He resembled what humans would consider a vampire. To other fae on the other hand, he was more like a parasite – the greater the magic of the creature Lilia preyed upon, the stronger he became. While his kind was looked down upon in peacetime, in battle Lilia was unstoppable. His skills and strength were unmatched – allowing him to rise to the rank of general and become the trusted aide to the royal family. Eventually this honour changed slightly with the appointment by the Queen to raise the young prince. Since then, Lilia had mostly kept his blood-drinking habits to himself as to not disturb the other creatures in the castle and distract his charge. While it was no secret, it had always bothered Malleus that he had never been privy to this side of him and his past.
However now, things were different. Thanks to the magic he had cast, he could finally enjoy this version the other usually kept hidden. Of course, that wasn’t the only reason he had brought the two of them into this particular dream. In order for his ultimate goal to be accomplished, he needed Lilia to be weak and more susceptible to his will.
Malleus crouched down, resting his elbow on his knee and leaned his palm against his cheek, tail swishing idly on the ground, stirring up dust.
“Oh dear, it looks like you’re thirsty, Lilia,” he pitied, fake sympathy in his voice.
Lilia started to slowly shake his head and push away.
No. This wasn’t right.
As if reading his thoughts, Malleus reached out and gently but firmly held his chin- forcing Lilia to look at him.
“Memories are just dreams of the past Lilia, of course I have access to yours here.” He explained.
Though it hurt, Lilia swallowed and after a moment finally found his voice again.
“Impressive- not only can you pluck memories from my mind- you can also alter them.” he croaked pathetically.
“Oh? How so?” Malleus tilted his head to the side, feigning ignorance to make him say it.
“In the original I wasn’t alone. I had plenty of bodies to drink my fill from,” he said bitterly.
Malleus chuckled.
“If it was the original, you wouldn’t need me.” he stated matter-of-factly.
With that, Malleus stood up and with a wave of his hand, whisps of sparkling green magic flew out and an ebony oak chair was conjured from the either. He sat down before fixing his gaze on the object of his obsession. He extended his right arm towards Lilia, making sure he was paying close attention to his every move. With one perfectly manicured nail, he dug the sharp black talon of his thumb into the flawless marble skin of his index finger and pierced it. Lilia watched as, agonizingly slowly, a drop of shimmering crimson blood made its way through the broken flesh and formed a perfect teardrop at the tip of his finger.
Lilia bit his lip and closed his eyes – afraid to make a sound, not bearing to look at the offending digit.
“Why are you doing this Malleus?” he asked, not really expecting an answer.
Malleus’s saccharine smile remained in place – not being fooled by his attempt at conversation.
“You’ve always been good at talking yourself into distraction,” he commented calmly.
It was true – in the past he had talked his way out of everything from hunger and pain to doing chores and assignments, many times. Those games were not going to work with him, and Malleus pointedly ignored the question. They were both aware that Malleus’s blood contained some of the strongest magic in the world – a dangerous gourmet buffet for someone like Lilia.
“This is an order as my vassal, Lilia- drink my blood!” the Prince commanded- authority heavy in his voice.
“You know why I can’t do that!” Lilia spat out through gritted teeth, eyes still closed, and head turned away. Despite his efforts, the smell of his blood had started to waft over and was becoming harder and harder to ignore. His injured body needed replenishment, and Malleus was well aware of that.
Malleus’s smile only grew. It was becoming more sadistic by the second.
“I do, but Silver isn’t here and this isn’t the real world.” He reminded the poor man.
When Lilia had adopted Silver, he decided he did not want the human to be raised surrounded by the scent of blood and had gone cold turkey since that day. For the past 17 years Lilia had been true to his word and not touched a single drop.
The placebos had helped – the red drinks he claimed he loved – for a while at least. Not using as much energy to travel, fight and exert his magic the way he used to had also allowed him to continue fasting for as long as he had, but he knew it wouldn’t last forever. Since he had arrived at Night Raven Collage, he had had constant exposure to sunlight which had severely drained his strength. He had felt his power weaken practically daily. Luckily, he had always been good at distracting himself and others from his weakening state. He thought he had been hiding it well. He never imagined the day would come when it would fail him, and in turn, fail in his duties to his charge.
Coming back to the present, the old general took a reluctant breath, regretting every decision that led to where he was now. The scent was almost overpowering.
“You must be so tired, so thirsty…just have a taste…” he tempted, his voice velvet smooth.
Still he remained defiant. Malleus huffed in frustration, pouting a little.
After a moment of contemplation, he put his nail back into the pinprick he had made earlier and dragged it further down his finger- down to the second knuckle- opening the cut even wider. The fae prince extended his arm in front of him again with his hand hanging limp.
“If you do not drink I will continue to cut myself open until you take care of it.” he threatened.
At this Lilia’s eyes snapped open and he turned his head in alarm. He knew this was a dream- it wasn’t real. He knew it and yet the moment Malleus opened up his wound further all rationality left his brain. Without care for his own injuries he limped forwards on all fours towards his master like a man dying of thirst and Malleus was his oasis.
As he approached, his normally slit pupils expanded into black holes and his sole focus became the gently flowing stream of blood from the offered limb. The crimson liquid pooled at the drooping tip of the extended finger. Malleus gently lowered his arm so the yawning wound aligned with the waiting mouth of the person prostrated before him. Before a single drop could fall to the ground Lilia’s tongue reached out underneath and lapped it up. His tongue stroked the tip of the digit back and forth gently before twisting itself around the finger, eventually taking it in his mouth and sucking on it.
Malleus’s smile was all teeth and his eyes shone with delight as he absorbed the grotesque display before him. The old fae’s mind now clouded and eyes unfocused, the prince took the opportunity to push his finger further into his servant’s open mouth. To his surprise, Lilia closed his eyes, moaning softly in ecstasy. Wanting to test Lilia’s reactions, he moved his finger around on Lilia’s tongue and noticed the delayed but pliant response as Lilia let him spread his blood all over the other’s jaws and tongue. As he did so, Malleus noted with relish how the blush on Lilia’s face grew.
“Mmm, you look quite good on your knees,” Malleus remarked, revelling in the view.
Lilia only blinked owlishly in response, seemingly unable to comprehend the comment in the moment. Finally, the prince’s finger appeared to run dry and Malleus slowly extracted his finger, with Lilia tipping forward and upward a little as he did so, chasing the source to the drug now connected to Lilia’s lips by a string of saliva. The blood fae sat back on his heels, staring at nothing. His half-lidded eyes gazed at the prince as if in a trance.
Malleus took a black handkerchief out from his robes and wiped his finger clean and dry before moving to wipe around Lilia’s mouth.
“Now you won’t be able to get the taste of me out of your mind ever again.” He said, satisfied, and pocketed the handkerchief.
With that, Lilia blinked rapidly a few times, and as if coming out of a hypnosis, his faculties returned one by one. They sat in silence for a while before Lilia spoke up, throat no longer hurting. As his eyes returned to their normal shape, he eventually came back to himself.
“You took advantage of me,” Lilia stated frostily. There was no force or admonishment behind the observation, only hurt. Malleus nodded.
“Yes. I will make you addicted to this. This is the only way I can ensure you won’t leave me ever again, even in the real world.”
Lilia wiped his lips with his sleeve. After a moment he shakily got to his feet, his injury already healed and forgotten. With Malleus still seated, the older fae was slightly taller, forcing the other to look up at him. Leaning on the armrest, Malleus leaned his fist on his cheek and looked up at his old caretaker with an air of satisfaction, waiting expectantly with an amused expression.
“How could you do this to me Malleus?” Lilia asked, venom and betrayal in his voice.
“I told you- I want you – all of you - to be mine. And I want you to live, which is something you seem intent not to do.” Malleus replied, annoyance building in his tone.
“But I don’t want this. I don’t want to be…this...anymore…” Lilia gestured to his beaten and blood-stained self, armour so worn that the colours had faded long ago.
Malleus’s gaze levelled with Lilia’s and his expression turned cold. Slowly and deliberately, he stood up from the chair and gazed down emotionlessly at his most cherished person.
“That is unfortunate. However, I’m afraid that that is no longer your decision to make.”
Lilia just looked at him darkly, irritation evident in his taught body. Unperturbed, the heir to the Valley of Thorns bowed at the waist before him, and lifted a strand of his long, silky hair to his mouth, absentmindedly smearing the blood on his lips before looking into the other’s eyes through his lashes.
“Surely it must have felt good, following your nature?” he asked, a smirk playing on his lips.
Lilia’s reaction was visceral – his eyes sharpened and started glowing crimson, the air suddenly sparking red and green, brimming with fae magic. His hair spiked upwards as if shocked by static electricity. The blood that had healed his wounds had also revived his energy – ready to unleash it at his unruly prince.
“ENOUGH, MALLEUS!!!” With that roar, he jumped and grabbed hold of Malleus’s lapels.
Malleus willingly let himself be pushed backward and smiled as the chair fell backwards with the force. Before the back of the chair hit the ground, it disappeared; leaving the pair sprawled on the ground, allowing Lilia to straddle his prince’s torso.
“Stop trying to control everything- you can’t! Life…doesn’t go that way. Not even you can force people to do what you want, it isn’t right!”
Malleus’s smile disappeared and became replaced with a frown. From above, storm clouds began forming in the sky, building in tension and pressure.
“NO! I will not lose you! I won’t allow it!” Malleus retaliated, equally forceful.
“You must – don’t you see?! I’m dying!” He confessed, finally admitting to what he had avoided putting into words for so long.
“NO- you just need to replenish your magic- you cannot die yet!”
“You foolish boy!”
Aggravated, Lilia clawed at his hair and beat Malleus’s chest with his fists, to no effect whatsoever. He was getting nowhere with this spoilt man-child, grinding his teeth in frustration and rubbed his forehead into Malleus’s chest.
“I understand that you’re upset- this is the first time you must deal with actual loss –you’re in the privileged position to have never known it before. You’ve had everything go your way your entire life, but you’re old enough now to know that people leave, and people die. To think that after 178 years you still do not understand this simple truth!”
He sighed, and with one exhale all the energy inside him left in one breath.
“…Maybe we were wrong to shelter you for so long…”
A heavy silence hung between them. Eventually, Lilia continued.
“You never knew your parents… but we loved you Malleus. No one ever had the heart to tell you ‘no’…not even me…”
As he spoke, he realized the truth of his words and just quickly has his anger flared, it just as quickly ebbed away, leaving in its wake a tired and defeated old man.
For a wavering moment, Malleus looked conflicted, almost guilty. But as quickly as it appeared, the expression ironed itself out into one of neutrality and indifference. The storm clouds disappeared and were replaced with soft grey rain clouds.
“Fine, then. So be it,” Lilia looked up into the others mesmerising green eyes, his own pleading.
“I cannot live like that anymore. Please understand.”
Malleus only shook his head and brought his hand up and slowly stroked his cheek softly, an amused expression playing on his face, like Lilia’s grievances were merely trifles.
“Fighting your nature isn’t healthy, Lilia,” he chided, in the same bemused yet affectionate tone Lilia had always used towards him, as if he were a child.
Lilia looked into his eyes and knew he had lost. He hung his head in resignation.
“You truly don’t listen… I thought I had raised you better than this.” He sighed, sadness in his voice and got off his fallen prince.
The last comment sparked indignation and true to Lilia’s words, Malleus ignored his words and got up; he got what he came for after all. With a sweep of his cape, he turned to leave; leaving the man who had raised him all alone, with not even a single familiar to keep him company. With one final glance behind him, he gave his prisoner one crumb of comfort.
“Do not worry, I’ll return. I’ll take care of you, just as you always have me. You won’t want for company,” he reassured.
With the remnants of his fragile strength, Lilia forced himself to look up at Malleus, determined to remain defiant.
“You cannot keep us trapped like this forever Malleus. One day you must accept reality.”
At this, Malleus scoffed, the very idea laughable.
“I make my own reality now.”
And with that he was gone.