The Darkest Sword

be quiet and learn the lesson.”
Ashiyn stilled and Soryn tried again. Soryn kissed him slowly but didn’t try anything else. After a while Ashiyn pulled away, skeptical, eyes still narrowed as he eyed Soryn. He wasn’t sure how to feel about Soryn kissing him. Or rather, the fact that he enjoyed it. “I know how to kiss, Soryn. Isn’t that part of something else?”
Soryn smirked and sat back, looking quite pleased with himself. “It can be. Maybe you should just try starting slow sometimes. Don’t jump right into bed, warm them up first. It was fun wasn’t it?”
Ashiyn gave him an irritated look and got up to retrieve Illusion. “We need to go back now before we’re missed.”
“As you say,” Soryn replied and followed, but he couldn’t stop grinning.
Ashiyn returned Soryn safely to Rurik’s tower with no one the wiser, returned Illusion to the stable, and was quite pleased with himself. Their excursion had ended in plenty of time. His Master would never know he was gone. Or so he thought, until he neared his chambers. His main servant, a frail old lizardkin, trembled in the hall outside his chambers, head bowed in shame. Ashiyn immediately knew something terrible had happened, and he glanced toward Annalysa’s cell. The door was ajar, and his magic told him that his Master lurked inside the room.
Ashiyn closed his eyes. Nothing good would come of this. He took a deep breath and glared at his servant. “Did he say anything to you?”
The servant groveled low to the ground. “Sorry, Master. So sorry. He asked about Master and the woman. Asked what you were doing. Tortured. We had to tell.”
Ashiyn steeled himself. So Rhadamanthus would know he hadn’t been using Annalysa for the stated purpose for which she had been spared. Well, there was no delaying the inevitable. Either she was dead already, or Rhadamanthus would try to force him to do something terrible to her himself. He was betting on the latter. Rhadamanthus took joy in forcing Ashiyn to do horrible things while he watched.
Ashiyn had already made up his mind he was going to die again today by the time he shoved open the door. Rhadamanthus sat inside with a terrified Annalysa curled in the corner. Her clothing was in shreds and she cowered, desperately trying to cover herself. Ashiyn turned his cold gaze to Rhadamanthus instead. “Master, I thought you didn’t wish to waste your time on my slave?”
“I was just warming her up for you, boy. I heard she was still being difficult. It’s well past time you taught her how to serve you. Now,” Rhadamanthus said, his black eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Unless you would rather watch while I teach her. I doubt she will survive if I do it. Human women are so frail.”
Ashiyn clenched his fist as he met Annalysa’s eyes. Tears streaked her face already, but he didn’t think Rhadamanthus had touched her beyond tearing up her clothing and terrorizing her a little. How could he stop Rhadamanthus from harming her though without obeying?
“Choose, boy. We have other business today,” Rhadamanthus growled, impatient. “Either take her, or I will.”
Ashiyn held Annalysa’s gaze for a moment longer, then he let his cold gaze drift back to Rhadamanthus. “I will not. And neither will you. She is mine.” He slipped the blade off his back and stepped between her and Rhadamanthus, blade drawn but tip pointed at the floor, a threat. “Perhaps our time is better spent on that other business you mentioned, Master?”
Rhadamanthus let out a long, draw-out sigh as he rose. “When will you learn not to defy me, boy? Why must you insist on these tiresome lessons?”
Ashiyn braced himself and glared. “Perhaps you haven’t taught me well enough yet, Master.”
“Is it worth dying for this worthless slave?” Rhadamanthus asked, scowling. “Make no mistake, if you do not take her, you will die.”
Ashiyn rolled his shoulders then swung his blade. “Perhaps I thirst more for battle today, Master. Come, teach me.”
“Fool of a boy,” Rhadamanthus growled then used his magic to yank Ashiyn’s blade from his hands and throw Ashiyn hard against the wall. Ashiyn had the brief thought during the horrible death that perhaps he’d pushed his Master just a little too far that time. He had expected a beating. Being shredded to death by His Master’s talons because Rhadamanthus wanted to teach the woman a lesson wasn’t exactly what Ashiyn had counted on. He barely heard Annalysa’s horrified screams over the pain. At least this death was swift.

CHAPTER TWELVE
Ashiyn scowled as he walked alongside Rhadamanthus. He couldn’t even remember what Rhadamanthus had done to kill him, but from the gnawing pain in his organs as they healed he probably didn’t want to know. He had awakened in a tent to oversee the army as was planned for the day. Rhadamanthus had scolded him as if he had merely overslept. Annalysa had not been mentioned, so Ashiyn thought perhaps Rhadamanthus had been sated with his death. He was certain Rhadamanthus would have bragged if he had raped and killed Annalysa. Ashiyn had only bought them time, though. Rhadamanthus would try again if he could not convince that woman to serve the purpose he had saved her for. At least the purpose he given Rhadamanthus.
Ashiyn got jarred from his thoughts by a loud screech. Dark creatures swarmed the skies on leathery wings. They were coming up from the roiling ocean past the nearby cliffs, and they were hungry. Flesh-eating, flying fish. Wonderful. Ashiyn raised a brow when several descended on one of the guards and stripped him to bare skeletal bones within seconds. He drew his sword, a little nervous. Coming back from that sort of death would take more time and be more painful than he cared to experience. “What are those? Why are they here?”
Rhadamanthus growled. He stepped up to the edge of the