Chapter 38 | Ravinica
Chapter 38
Ravinica
I KEPT MY EYES ON A swivel the entire trek. It was late, bone-cold, and dreary. The Isle looked so different than it did even a week ago, with trees blowing haphazardly, loose leaves sputtering around in whirls, and an eerie dread creeping through my blood. The moon was hidden behind gray clouds—an ominous sign of another downpour on the way—as if scared to show her luminous face.
I wanted to trust Arne. Truly, I did. This time, I felt it was different. I knew I was being foolish, following my heart rather than my logical mind.
If Grim, Magnus, or Sven knew I was doing this, they'd castigate me, and it would be well-deserved.
Arne was my only ticket to see Corym, though. I needed to see where we stood—if the draw I'd felt to the elf, and vice versa, was just a fleeting thing; if he wanted to go home to Alfheim in the portal his sister took, and forget about me.
My captor became something much more toward the end of our time together. Selfishly, I hoped Corym didn't want to leave.
If he wanted to stay, I wasn't sure what the answer was. Keeping him with the Lepers Who Leapt was dangerous. If Vikingrune Academy found out the Lepers were keeping a Ljosalfar in their midst, there'd be hell to pay. The academy's laissez-faire attitude toward the magicless rebels would not fly. Soldiers would come down on them en masse.
So what was the alternative? Bring Corym to Vikingrune ?
The thought alone made me shudder. If I wanted to talk about being unsafe, that was the most dangerous option.
Right?
My body was tense as I trudged a few paces behind Arne through winding footpaths and dark trees. We snaked over no less than three rivers, heading southeast from the academy.
This was a section of the Isle I wasn't familiar with. The Gray Wraith had spit us out on the southern peninsula of the Isle, and we'd headed due north through Delaveer Forest to get to Academy Hill. This area, northeast from the shore, seemed desolate and untouched by human hands.
At least we hadn't needed to take the underground path through the mountain to get off Academy Hill. My blood pressure hadn't spiked yet, worried Huscarls would be waiting in those tunnels for our sneaky escape.
My heartbeat was starting to sing in my ears, thumping loudly, warning me and keeping me on my toes.
"No fear, little fox," Arne said ahead. "We're almost there."
It was like he could feel the tension coming off me, even without looking back at me. I hadn't spoken in over an hour. It had been nearly three since we exited Vikingrune's southern gate and made our way down the back-and-forth mountain passage.
The sound of swiftly running water rang out ahead, stealing my thoughts. It sounded like a fast-running river, with splashing.
Through the trees, a huge waterfall poured down in the distance, atop a tiered, wooded mountainside. The drop from the top of the forest to where we walked was over a hundred feet.
I hurried my pace to keep up with Arne. "What's that?" I asked him.
"Our destination. Norn Falls." He bobbed his eyebrows annoyingly.
"Why is it called . . ." I trailed off as we drew closer and I realized the waterfall was not one, but three. The largest fall began at the top of that wooded hillside, but two smaller ones flooded out from lower tiers of the hill, all of them plunging into large rivers below that snaked in our direction.
"Urd Fjord, Verdandi Fjord, Skuld Fjord. The Three Norn Rivers we've just passed," he explained. "The falls are taken after the names of the waterways."
I hummed, curious. "Why in Odin's name would it be our destination?"
"Because I'm not taking you to the Lepers' camp, lass."
My heart slammed against my ribs. I stuttered a step, nearly choking on my spit as alarm bells went off in my head. "Excuse me?"
He tilted his head at the blanched, pale expression on my face. With a smile, he muttered, "Not for some devious purpose, Vini. It's because the Lepers don't know we're coming." He winked at me. "Don't worry. Your elf does."
That didn't make me feel much better. Still, I kept close to him, creeped out by the quiet woods around us.
We gained an incline, marching up toward the waterfalls. Deep crevices were etched into the waterfalls at all three ledges of varying heights.
They looked like secret cave entrances, darkening as they pushed deeper into the mountain—hidden from sight by the foamy white froth spilling down from above.
Arne said, "The Koldna Hills and Koldna Valley have many hidey-holes."
I could barely hear him over the roar of the falls now, tumbling down near us. Spittle from the nearest waterfall dampened my skin as we reached the top of the slope near the cave entrance.
The ledge only gave us a narrow three-foot path to walk on, leading up to the cave. The waterfall arced over the ledge, making it slippery, before dropping the rest of the height, about thirty feet down to the rocky rivers.
I balanced myself and headed for the cave mouth.
Ten feet away, we stopped. Darkness stared back at us to the left, with rushing water and a drop to the right.
"All right," Arne said, smiling. "Moment of truth. Let us find out if your lovelorn elf made good on his promise to stay."
He started walking past me, red tunic billowing in the night chill.
I called out, "Arne."
He froze. Turned. "Yes?"
"Not you."
Arne blinked, his face shocked. "What?"
"You wait out here." My voice was low and stern, piercing through the howl of the waterfall. "I want time alone with Corym."
I saw the hurt in his eyes. The crinkling near the corners, his face sinking. For a moment, his shoulders drooped, and I worried I had lost him.
But I needed to be sure. I wanted to see if he would listen to me, do as I commanded, even when we were so close to our destination.
He squared his shoulders, took a deep breath, and sashayed down the path toward me. "As you say, little fox. It's your goal, after all. Not mine."
With a firm nod, I stepped past him.
He stayed with his back to me, not bothering to watch me head for the cave mouth. "I'll keep watch," he muttered.
I watched his slender backside for a moment, wondering if I was making a mistake shrugging him aside when he'd led me to where I wanted to go.
Then I shook my head, remembering what he'd done the first time we had escaped somewhere together.
And I walked into the cave.
It was pitch-black dark, deeper than I imagined, more than ten feet before curving slightly—
And I caught the faint flicker of firelight on the wall opposite me.
With my heart in my throat, I wheeled around the corner—
And my eyes landed on Corym E'tar, torch in his hand, at the back of the cave. He was a radiant being, glistening in the dark—not because of the torch. No, it was the natural magic of his skin, illuminating him like the moon, making him appear otherworldly.
My pulse picked up, my jaw dropped. His glorious hair was silver-white, ears long and tapered up the side of his head. His majestic face landed on mine, and a smile crept up the corner of his lip.
" Lunis'ai, " he rumbled in a deep voice.
I ran to him without thinking, tossing all doubts and inhibitions aside.
Corym dropped the torch as I ran. It thudded to the ground and stayed lit on the dirt. He opened his arms wide as I jumped into his embrace, wrapping him up.
The tall elf was sturdy, wiry. He was exactly as I remembered him, dressed in his regal tunic and pants he'd worn during our escape from the elf encampment. Washed, now, and clean. A smooth, hairless face, sharp chin, and knowing eyes.
I stared up at him, my eyes dewy. The flickering torch on the ground made him look younger and more menacing, but his smile took all that away. It was brilliant, radiant, only for me.
"Corym," I breathed, nestling my head against his chest, speaking directly to his heart. "Thank the gods. You're here."
"I've been coming here for days, to while away my nights and wait for you," he said in his rich, deep voice. He tilted my chin up with a soft finger. "I'm partly surprised the deceiver kept his word."
"So am I," I croaked.
He kissed me then, with my chin tilted. I went on my tiptoes to shove myself into him, pushing him against the back of the cave.
His lips were full, soft, and belied the hardness of the elf. Gripping the back of my neck, hand tangling in my hair, we deepened the kiss. His tongue darted into my mouth, toying with me, and I groaned into his.
A deep pool of heat swam inside me, aching and needy.
When we pulled our lips apart, he hummed. "Exactly as I remembered," he whispered. "And, as I foretold, the thought that dominated me during our time apart. Your lips."
I smiled at him, at a loss for words.
He looked so damn kissable, so I did it again. This time, my hands cradled the sides of his narrow waist, landing on hard hip bones.
He growled at me, saying, "Careful, lunis'ai . Unless . . ."
"Yes," I choked out, nodding profusely. "I need something more permanent to remember you by."
Something dark and intangible took shape in his gold-flecked eyes. Like a predator with the switch turned on, where he'd been playing good before. The lion taking place of the housecat.
His kiss was more needful this time, lustier. His hand burrowed into my silver-streaked hair, crushing my skull against his.
Corym's other hand dipped south, roving under my shirt, finding my bare skin. Goosebumps pebbled everywhere he touched, and my nipples hardened as our chests pressed together.
His hand moved up, gliding effortlessly, gracefully. He toyed with me, flicking at my nipple underneath my shirt, and I moaned in his mouth from the suddenness of his fervor.
I could feel the hard protrustion of him against my middle. Not a human man, but a man whichever way you sliced it—with something to show, too.
I touched him all over through his regal clothes, to make sure he was real. Cupped his ass, gripped his sides, and finally made my way between his legs to grip his length.
Corym was long against his thigh, stiff and warm through his pants. Reaching in blindly through the top of his waistband, I found the scalding-hot pillar I'd been looking for, and quite a pillar it was.
If I had expected elves to be dainty and thin and small, I was sorely mistaken. Pleasantly mistaken.
Corym was a big man where it counted, which shouldn't have surprised me with how commanding and confident he was in all other aspects of his life.
My fingers curled around his cock and stroked, punching his pants—forcing him to grunt and undo the belt and buttons keeping him constrained in a tight package.
Once he was free, I got to gaze upon his otherworldly cock, a feast for my eyes. It bounced to full hardness, curving slightly, a perfect specimen. Velvety smooth, pretty like the rest of him.
Corym swung me around so my back was against the cave, and my head swam with dizziness.
This was shaping up to be a weekend for the ages, as I claimed one man after the other. Sometimes two at the same time.
He worked urgently, as if I would disappear if he didn't keep his hands roaming over my body constantly.
My pants were the first to go, with the help of the gentlemanly elf, and then all signs of the gentleman fled.
He stripped down naked, ripping off my shirt while I tore off his. He fondled my breasts and pushed against me, gliding his long cock between my warm thighs.
"The first in generations," he muttered in my ear, peppering kisses along my nape. "How does it feel, lunis'ai , knowing we are the first elf and human to copulate in eons?"
I gulped hard. "It would make me feel a lot better if you didn't use the word ‘copulate.' Just fuck me, you dastardly elf."
He grinned at me, deep and wicked like my other men did when I said something that flared their libido to life.
He gripped his cock at the base. I lifted my right leg, and he held it under my wobbling thigh, pressing closer. The heat from his beautiful cock was overwhelming. The naked elf was filled with a glorious musk that took my breath away.
"Give it to me," I pleaded, "and don't stop stop until I say."
With my back against the jagged, carved wall, I parted for Corym so he could gaze down at my glistening wetness.
His breath caught in his throat. "Marvelous."
Then I gripped his cock at the ridge, hand palming the large crown, and slammed my pussy over him—enveloping his dick with my heat.
Corym grunted in my ear, trying to gain control but losing it in a matter of seconds. I jerked him off at the base of his cock, even while he sank inch after delectable inch into me.
"Fuck the gods, Ravinica," he moaned. "It's even better than I imagined."
"Worth the wait?" I smiled, pinching my eyes when the size of him spread me wide.
"I'd wait a hundred more lifetimes in this cave if I was guaranteed this as the end result."
Corym clutched my wide hips, pulling me onto him. My back arched, hands grabbing for purchase behind me. I hissed, moaned, and he pumped his hips to feed himself deeper inside me.
The elf speared up into me, molding my cunt to his cock, making it his own. My eyes rolled as he bottomed out, balls pressed flush against the apex of my thighs.
With a gasp, I stared down between our bodies and put a hand to my belly. I swore I could feel him there, with his curved cock putting pressure deep, deep inside me, bloating my stomach.
When he started moving, I came undone—unraveling before the elf before I had a chance to say anything.
My moan echoed through the corridor of the cavern, my toes curled in my boots—the only thing I still had on—and my body trembled.
He was gentle with me, at first. Like a lover making sure I wouldn't break.
"Harder," I demanded. "Fuck me like you mean it, Corym. I don't want you forgetting this."
"Never," he groaned, and slammed his cock deep, bucking into me with force. "You're too tight to ever forget—too beautiful to ever lose, lunis'ai ."
He fucked me through my climax, pushing past any resistance and clamping of my muscles.
I cupped his smooth face, both cheeks, leaning forward out of my rigid straightness once I became accustomed to his rhythm and size. My right foot went back to perch against the wall and give me leverage, keeping my leg lifted and giving him space to maneuver inside me.
Our lips locked, faces slanting, and we kissed while he fucked me standing there in the dark cave with the sputtering torch at our feet and the bellowing waterfall in front of us.
It was something out of a movie for me, trapped in nature with this unearthly being, hidden behind prying eyes with the foamy water blocking us in.
I moaned in his mouth and he sucked it out of me, gobbling up my voice and tremble. His hips moved fast now, pistons plowing into me, an unstoppable force.
My body jiggled against his, and I had to hug the man to stay standing. I felt boneless after my first climax, and a second orgasm was right around the corner as he cored into me and fucked the thoughts out of my head.
All my worries washed away, cleansed by Corym E'tar and his delicious manhood and body. He never stopped touching me—never stopped raking my hair or massaging my face or kissing my lips.
I was everything to him. We became lost in each other.
I fought to stay standing, latching onto his front in a firm embrace. I slammed my ass down on his rigid cock, bouncing and driving the elf wild.
"Martyrs and mavens, you little fucking minx," he growled in my ear. "You're going to make me come inside you if you keep moving your body like that."
"Do it," I groaned. I didn't care. There were potions and things to take, if needed. I wanted Corym to breed me , just as badly as I wanted Grim, Magnus, and Sven to.
I wanted to give the elf a reason to stay on this plane.
"This pussy is going to keep you locked in Midgard forever," I snarled, saying whatever dirty thing I could think.
He chuckled, kissed the side of my neck, and nearly made me spurt when he gently touched the soft erogenous zone. "Your pussy isn't going to lock me to Midgard, lunis'ai . It's going to lock me to you ." He grunted, cursed in the shell of my ear, and pumped his hips harder.
My moans carried, reverberating.
I could only imagine what my iceshaper watchman outside was hearing, or what he was thinking.
I hadn't meant to cuck Arne Gornhodr. Honestly, I'd only wanted to see Corym again, alone. All this handsiness and neediness had transpired out of sheer necessity.
Now that Corym was coming inside me, blasting ropes of himself deep and drawing a guttural cry from my blissful mouth, my mind turned.
Perhaps I did mean to cuck Arne, subconsciously. Maybe it was the last stage of his atonement—his groveling.
As our bodies merged, sweaty and spent, and our arms wrapped around each other, we trembled with a final gasp.
Corym stepped back, out of me. I watched him drip down my thighs. Little twitches shook my body from orgasmic aftershocks, like an earthquake that wasn't quite finished giving its best.
"There's another with me, you know," I purred. A knowing smile had formed on my mouth, because I was still lost in the swamp of lust with this elven man so tall and strong in front of me.
"An iceshaper?" Corym asked, catching on.
I nodded. "Waiting outside."
"What do you plan to do with the deceiver, hmm?" He curled a hand around my chin, then tucked strands of silver-black hair behind my ears.
"I was hoping to make amends."
"In our current state?"
My smile became dark, expectant, and Corym matched it. I'd learned so much about the devilish elf over the past twenty minutes. "No time like the present, eh?"
Our words were a dance. A delicious push and pull meant to excite and fill the silence with possibilities.
"On your word, lunis'ai , I am yours to command. What do you wish from me?"
I hadn't thought of that yet. I figured I'd learn soon.
I tilted my head toward the front of the cave, twenty feet away, where the backside of the crystal-blue waterfall roared at us. "Arne," I called out loudly, demanding. "Come in here."