13. Damon

13

DAMON

A s Damon makes ready for the feast his head aches. He dresses finely in an outfit Inez has selected. White breeches and a sleeveless white shift, with a jerkin over it of leather burnished with gold. White and gold are the colours of Surrus. The pale colours emphasise the tone of his skin. The garments are very fine, cut close to his body, and leaving his muscular arms bare the way he prefers.

When he sees himself in the polished glass in his bedchamber, he is surprised how noble he looks.

Inez knocks on the door and when he bids her come inside she takes a moment, admiring him. She is dressed in a gown of heavy gold silk, cut low at the front and back and with a skirt that drops to her ankles in strips of fabric that part around her bare legs as she moves. Her gold curls are piled on top of her head in a style Damon has not seen before. As she comes close, he touches it. "I've not seen you wear your hair this way before, wife."

Inez smiles. "It is the latest fashion. It took two handmaids half a day to get it exactly right. "

He runs his hands over the woven braids. She moves closer, stretching up on her toes to press a kiss to his lips.

Inez is beautiful and sweet, but when she kisses him, Damon thinks of the kiss he shared with Lyr in the grove, straddling Lyr, pinning him against the tree at his back, his lips on Lyr's lips. Fire in his belly. Want in his blood. In his cock. How good it was, how right it felt, and hates his betrayal. He knows Inez deserves a man more honourable than him. A man who is not planning to take Lyr to Vashti and make him a real pleasure slave.

These are not honourable actions, he knows. An honourable man, a faithful man would tell Selim he has discovered all that Lyr knows of Jareleezi and let that be an end to it.

But what then would become of his sweet Lyr? Lyr who makes him laugh and feel such a wild leap of joy in his heart whenever he sees his face. If he admitted Lyr had nothing more to tell him, he would have no reason to be allowed to keep him. Selim and the Rose Court would insist he hand him over for disposal. Unless they still believed he had information. Then it would be torture. What would they do when they saw those runes that cover his skin?

Damon escorts Inez downstairs and out onto the terrace, warm in the late summer evening. The terrace is thronged with people dressed in white and gold, already drinking and revelling. The tables are piled with more food than Damon has ever seen. He is a rich man. And here is his wealth on display.

The grove beyond is decorated too, with flower garlands and candles. Deeper into the grove, braziers are set, ready to be lit as the light fades. The arbours and arches are draped with white flowers.

One of the moments Damon has been dreading the most happens early on. His heralds announce, "Prince Atticul, Heir Second, General Paramount of the Imperial Army, Duke of Fanost, the Hope of Azuria."

Damon has no idea why Atticul had insisted on attending this event, but Damon had no right to refuse him. With a reluctant heart, Damon goes to greet his brother and his entourage.

"Brother Prince," Damon says with a deferent nod.

Atticul responds with, "Master Damon. At last, I get to see Sanglora. Your gardens are very fine."

"Thank you. To be Master of Sanglora is a great honour. Let me show them to you," Atticul nods his ascent and Damon leads him along the gravel path towards the rose garden.

"Being here with you makes me think of summers in the Rose Palace," says Atticul. "Taking our lessons in those fine gardens."

Damon nods. The Rose Palace had been a magical place to grow up. Endless days with Atticul and Lukas and sweet Ferra. Well-fed and warm and educated. Rafus had been more kind to him than he had any need to. "How is our father?" Damon says.

"He is happy, I believe. He seems settled," Atticul says.

Damon understands ‘settled' to mean that Rafus is not overtly courting any women who are not his wives.

"Does he still hope for a third wife?"

"Doroth Zain says no. He claims his second wife should never have been granted, because of his adultery. With your mother."

Damon nods. If Rafus had not been granted leave to marry his second wife he would have no legitimate heirs. "He has stated he would have let the Darek line die?"

"Zai's will," says Atticul, easily.

They loop around, past a bed of roses and walk back towards the house. All the Roses Die , Damon thinks. The light is fading fast. Servants are lighting more candles all over the terrace and the metal braziers leading into the grove will soon be bright with dancing flames.

"How is your Juran whore?"

Softly Damon says, "I believe you asked Emperor Selim to have him removed from my household."

"I only fear for your soul, brother."

Damon touches the hilt of the Amber Blade. His guts boil with rage at the idea Atticul would try to hurt Lyr. But he says nothing. Lyr is his. He will take him to Vashti. They walk in silence back to the terrace.

As they reach the main throng of people, Inez approaches them. She embraces Damon and turns to Atticul, "My brother in love. What an honour to welcome you here."

It is then that Damon sees Opeth for the first time. He is surprised. He had not expected Opeth to still be so favoured by Atticul that he would bring her as his consort to a Feast of Surrus. She is wearing a brief gown of gold, cut very high and very low. She moves close to Atticul and he winds an arm around her waist. Atticul smiles wolfishly at Inez. "Thank you, sweet sister of love. And may I present my concubine, Opeth. She is from the same harem in Pellex as your husband's new kitchen slave."

Inez says, calmly, "Indeed," as she leans to kiss Opeth on the cheek. "The custom at the Feast of Surrus is for all the servants and slaves to join the revels. You will see your old friend later."

"I hope so," says Opeth. "He is a dear thing. I have missed him."

Atticul laughs, it is hard to tell quite what has amused him. "Sweet Inez," he says. "How is my bastard brother treating you? "

"Master Damon Darekul is my heart," Inez says, taking Damon's arm.

"How delightful. May Surrus bless your womb tonight," Atticul says, before walking away into the crowds with Opeth on his arm.

Not long afterwards a gong sounds for the feast to begin. Bitter argent flows. Damon eats and drinks. When the feast is well underway, the servants and slaves are allowed to take their place at the tables. Damon watches Lyr walk in with a scullery maid whose name he does not know. They are laughing together, Lyr leaning in close to hear what the maid is saying. Perhaps she is who he plans to take to the grove. Damon's heart is sore to see it. He pours himself some more bitter argent, waving away the pearl tonic offered by Inez.

Inez turns to Opeth, sitting on her other side. She offers the tonic to Opeth, who takes the bottle and fills her own small tonic glass and Atticul's. He leans in close to whisper something in her ear.

Damon looks away from them and, of course, finds himself gazing back at Lyr, down on one of the lower tables, smiling happily as he eats honey and bread. Damon can see a smear of honey glittering on Lyr's lips in the candlelight. He thinks of kissing it away. His cock throbs to taste that honey.

The scullery maid is still chatting to Lyr. They are both drinking bitter argent. She passes him a piece of something. A little lump of brown. Damon isn't sure what it is. Lyr pops it in his mouth.

As he watches them, the minstrels begin singing an old folk song in Juran. Damon can pick out enough words of the lyrics to understand it is filthy. Something about a fae maiden who bewitched a demon and lay with him in the Amber Forest, in quite a lot of detail. Damon knows the word ‘tongue' in Juran. Many other people are laughing merrily at the song. Juran folk songs are popular, many of the crudest Juran words for cocks and cunts and fucking are well known. But in other places, Damon is not sure if the minstrels themselves know what they are singing.

The exact descriptions of the way the demon pressed his tongue into the fae maid's asshole, for example. Damon's cock swells a little to think of Lyr understanding every word. He thinks of himself as the demon in the song, pressing the fae maid's thighs apart, making her scream with his thick tongue; and of Lyr as the blushing fae maid who is not as innocent as she seems.

He hopes Lyr is thinking the same. But as he watches Lyr, he sees him lean close to the scullery maid, whispering in her ear and making her eyes stretch wide. Clearly, Lyr is giving her a translation of some of the more obscure lewd descriptions. Damon feels a pitch of jealousy.

Atticul says quite audibly, "Juran filth," and Opeth laughs. In Juran, she says, "Nothing that you haven't done with me a thousand times." And Atticul laughs back, perhaps his Juran is improving now he is regularly bedding a Juran whore.

When the minstrels end the song a performance troupe appears on the edge of the grove. Such dancers are traditional at the Feast of Surrus. The female dancers wear white dresses so thin Damon can easily see their breasts moving and the dark shapes of the hair that covers their sex. Male dancers in gold hip cloths, wearing white and gold antlers join them. Stags and does. They whirl as the males fight and the females run and hide, grabbed and pulled back by the victorious males. Each doe is pulled down on the ground by her stag and covered. As the performers begin to rut the music reaches a huge crescendo of heavy drumbeats and clashing sounds. Inez grabs Damon and kisses him. She tastes of honey. As her tongue slips into his mouth he thinks of Lyr's honeyed lips and groans.

Inez pulls back and looks at Damon with lustful eyes and flushed cheeks. "Master Damon," she whispers, sliding a hand into his lap. Damon's cock is hard. He couldn't say what part of the evening is the cause. "Sweet husband, Master of my heart," Inez continues as she caresses him between his legs. "It seems the Feast of Surrus has aroused your ardour."

"Indeed," Damon says. "You taste of honey."

Inez laughs. She puts one fingertip into a dish of honey and uses the touch of it to glaze her sweetly rounded lips.

Damon leans in to kiss Inez again. As he does he notices Opeth is in Atticul's lap.

Damon lets Inez kiss him for longer this time, deeper. Honey fills his senses like a sweetened dream. He pulls back from Inez's honeyed lips eventually, and before he guards himself, he looks over at Lyr again. And as he does, the scullery maid leans in and kisses Lyr on the mouth.

Damon finds himself frozen. He shouldn't have looked and now it's too late, he can't look away. Lyr's eyes are closed in pleasure. Is he enjoying the kiss?

He cannot do this. Where is the will he was promised?

Inez stands, "Come my love. It is time for our blessing from Surrus."

He stands. He lets Inez take his hand. There are already some people coupling in the grove with the dancers. Damon says, "My love, let us go to your bedchamber."

Inez looks confused. "But husband. It is traditional to couple in the grove. We might anger Surrus if we leave."

Damon lowers his voice. "Your chamber," he says sternly. If his body is going to fail him, he cannot have it fail him in front of his entire household and a selection of Azurian nobility.

"Are you not sure what to do?" Atticul calls mockingly. Damon glances at him. He has his hand between Opeth's legs. "There are two holes on a woman."

Opeth grabs his chin and pulls him into a kiss.

Inez presses close, "Please my love. You are my husband. It is the Feast of Surrus. You must take me in the grove, before all."

Damon looks at Lyr again. What if Lyr and the maid couple? What if they couple right beside him in the grove?

As he's thinking, he notices Kres, standing to one side, watching Lyr too. His focus changes. An instinct prickles. Inez puts a hand on his arm and says something else, but he ignores her and keeps watching. He knows what is about to happen. A moment later, Kres storms over to Lyr and pulls the maid off him, the maid turns with an angry pink face and says something. Her words inaudible but her indignant tone clear. Lyr laughs and Kres hits him. A square punch to the jaw that sends Lyr sprawling backwards

Damon doesn't think, can't think. He bolts across the terrace.

Lyr is on the ground, arms covering his face. Kres stands over him, "Get up and fight me, whore," Kres bellows. "Stand and fight." Kres is deep in his cups. He spits on the floor roughly in Lyr's direction. "Come on you fucking Juran invert."

Lyr moves his arms. His face is bleeding. From the other side of the terrace, Inez shouts, " Damon! "

With some effort, Lyr sits up. His shirt is torn and open, exposing his thin chest. One of the runes is visible, a curving red shape. Damon reaches Kres and grabs his shoulder, whirling him around. "This is the Feast of Surrus," he shouts, voice sauced with anger.

Kres looks defiant. He squares his shoulders. "The maid is mine." Then he swallows as if realising who he speaks to. "Master."

"This woman?" Damon points at the maid who kissed Lyr.

Lyr gets to his feet beside her. "I am sorry, Master—," he begins, but the maid interrupts, "I am not his, " she says. "He is an old man."

At this, Kres pulls free from Damon and tries to hit Lyr again. Damon grabs Kres's wrist pulls him back and around and punches him in the face, hard. Something crunches under his knuckles and Kres falls as Damon lets him go, smashing onto the servants' table. Plates of food and drinks tumble everywhere, people stand up. There's so much mess and uproar. Everyone is looking.

Kres is lying in the splintered mess of the table. "You are dismissed from my household," Damon says, his voice low and angry.

Inez is at Damon's shoulder. "My love," she says softly. "You wanted to go to my chamber." Her hand is curling around Damon's wrist.

He looks at her. Her face is sweet, her eyes wide with concern. He nods and lets her lead him away. The whole grove stares in silence as Damon leaves.

In the wide cool space of Inez's bedchamber, Damon can hear the sounds of the revels, they seem to have restarted perfectly well in the wake of his outburst. Inez leads him to the bed and has him sit down. She stands before him in the long golden column of her gown and the tall golden tower of her piled hair. "Damon?" she says sweetly.

"I apologise, My Lady," Damon says. "I shamed myself and you."

Inez tips her head onto one side. "No. It is not unusual for males to fight over females at the Feast of Surrus," she says.

"You think that is what happened?"

Her short pause makes Damon's heart ache. "I think that is what people saw. You are Damon Darekul. You are the Master of Sanglora. The One Man Army."

Damon looks down at the floor. The wooden boards are covered by a thin rug of blue cloth. It's old. It was once beside his bed in the Rose Palace. He wonders how that rug came to be here. To this bedchamber in Sanglora. He is glad it is here. It's comforting. It makes him think of Lukas.

Where is Lukas now? Still in the Mortingale Mountains, if Vindar's spies are correct.

Inez's sandalled feet are on the rug. As Damon stares at them, her gown drops in a puddle of gold silk around her ankles.

He looks up. Inez. His beautiful wife. She is naked before him with her high tits and small waist and hips a cradle for his children.

He should never have been married to a woman like her. He never chose her but she didn't choose him – or so he's always assumed. "Inez," Damon says, placing a hand on her bare waist, "were you asked if you wished to be my bride?"

"You do not know?" she smiles. "I was the one who asked for you. I was meant for your brother Atticul. Selim promised my father ten years ago that I would be Empress of Azuria. "

"Atticul rejected you?" This surprises Damon. He has often thought Atticul was jealous of Inez. That he thought her too fine for Damon the Bastard.

Inez trails a hand across Damon's cheek. She slides naked onto his lap. "My love, I rejected him. My father was shocked by my boldness, but my mother persuaded him of your potential as a husband. He agreed."

"Why did you do such a thing? You should have been a Princess. An Empress."

"I would have been the wife of a cruel man and a fool." Inez kisses Damon's chin. "Instead I am the wife of Azuria's greatest hero." She kisses him again, on the lips this time. "And perhaps I will still be Empress."

"A lot of people," Damon says, stroking her chin, "seem to think I will be Emperor."

Inez smiles. "Your brother Atticul is unmarried. Your brother Endrew is a young man fighting a bitter war. Everyone says they are losing badly in Ik-Sundal without The One Man Army. Is it really so unlikely that people will look to you one day?" She pulls out of his grip and slips off his lap to sit down on the bed behind him. She slides backwards, reaching for Damon and urging him onto the bed on top of her.

Damon lets her guide him. He holds his body weight on his arms and kisses her again. "A bastard could not rise so high."

"I don't agree," Inez whispers, then she looks at him and reaches for something on the table beside the bed. A small bottle made of gold and spun glass. The liquid inside it is deep brown, almost black.

Damon takes the bottle from Inez. "What is this?"

"It worked before," Inez says.

"A love draught?"

Inez nods. "Such draughts are permitted for the Feast of Surrus. I had it sent from the Rose Palace. Mixed by The Moon Truth herself."

Damon shudders with a prickling of shame. He needs this to cover his wife and she knows it. Feast of Surrus or not, his own weak will and traitorous heart could never be enough. She took care of it where he did not. Too much the coward to secure a love draught for himself. He unstoppers the bottle. The tonic is thin with a familiar bitter taste, but he can feel its effects taking him fast. He feels hot all over. Lightheaded as his blood moves. His cock prickles.

Inez lifts her face close to kiss him. Before their lips meet, she whispers, "Close your eyes, my love. Forget me. Think of your pleasure slave."

"Wife?"

"Pretend I am him, it will go easier," Inez says simply.

And Damon does. He thinks himself that demon and Lyr, the blushing fae maid.

Later, Damon lies alone on Inez's bed as she returns to the feast.

When he hears raucous cheering, he knows she has announced that Zai has blessed them. He looks up at the carved wooden canopy of Inez's bed and lies where he is a little longer, wondering if he can bear to return to the revelling.

Is Lyr already coupling in the grove with his maidservant lover? If so, Damon thinks he ought to stay away.

But he cannot. He wants to see what else the night will bring him. He has done his duty, perhaps he will find his own blessing from Surrus .

As he gets up and pulls on his breeches, he sees Inez has a small shrine to Surrus set out on a table in the corner. A small gold idol with white flower petals around it. A gesture meaning to bless their union tonight. Damon stops to kneel before it and asks Surrus to put a child in his wife's belly and save him from sin.

When he stands, he feels like his blood is burning with desire. Surrus has not given him what he asked for, far from it.

He wants Lyr. Now, tonight. No matter the consequences.