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“Has Don Ragnar told any of you that he would not attend the audience today?”
Inefer lifted the golden crown off his head and looked among his guards. He could barely remember the last time that Ragnar had not stood fast by the side of his throne during audience hours, towering over all regular humans at his height of eight foot. In the light of the Great Hall’s torches Ragnar’s black scales, which covered his pale skin in uneven patches, glittered like obsidian and his red eyes, so often glowering, captured everyone’s gaze. Inefer always made fun of him for keeping his wings spread for no other purpose than to present their massive span, poised as if to fly, sometimes for hours on end, but he could not deny that it impressed unruly legates and querulous nobles to see his half-dragon knight ready to strike.
“No, Your Grace,” Cristiana said, tapping her spear on the ground and looking at Francesco by her side for confirmation. “Last I heard, he went to Forte di San Nerio.”
“Is that so?” Inefer asked thoughtfully.
The Forte di San Nerio was the remains of a small castle in the hilly forest bordering the city. Ragnar had asked to be granted the lands on which it stood and all that was on them for the great deeds he had done for the kingdom in the Five Years Wars, a reward Inefer had gladly given. According to Ragnar, the old ruins had served him as a hiding place when he’d lived as an orphan in the woods many years ago and he planned to have them rebuilt. As of yet, however, they were still nothing but tumbled stones overgrown with a tangle of yellow oleander bushes.
Usually, Inefer would have left Ragnar to whatever purpose had driven him there, but he had not seen him since yesterday morning and it had never happened since he could remember that Ragnar had left the court without telling him. In fact, Ragnar was usually with him whether Inefer was in the castle or not, always hovering nearby for his protection.
Something was amiss, Inefer feared, but if he was going to confront his most loyal knight on the matter, he did not wish to do it with a crowd in his back. After retiring to his chambers, he stripped his royal robes of coloured silk and picked out leather trousers and a plain, rough-spun shirt before draping a cloak over his shoulders and telling his castellan that he would be out for the day, but that Ragnar would be with him, so there was no reason to worry. Though Ragnar had always disapproved of Inefer’s tendency to wander without guard, Inefer had faith in his own skill to survive; certainly he wasn’t as good with a blade as Ragnar, but he could hold his own, and found that the talent of not getting into unneeded fights in the first place was his greatest advantage, anyway. Without the trappings of royalty, Inefer considered himself a rather plain man who did not draw attention, with a tranquil smile and thoughtful dark eyes that people told him would have fit a scholar better than a ruler. His dark skin was a little unusual in these parts, to be true, but there were enough merchants and mercenaries and craftsmen from the southern edges of the vast kingdom who had moved over the last hundred years, so it would hardly serve to identify him.
Allegra, his swift-footed palomino mare, carried him securely past the city walls. Overhead winked the sun in a perfect blue sky. It was a hot summer day and Ragnar and Inefer liked to enjoy these together. Inefer had spent his earliest childhood at the court of his uncle, a powerful vassal who lived in the desert where the great pyramids stood, gigantic graves for rulers of old. Having happily played in their shadows in such formative years, Inefer now liked searing temperatures which had the rest of his court hiding in shade. Ragnar, whose origins were a mystery even to him, as he’d grown up raising himself in the wild with nothing more but the memory of a name and a vague idea of a shadow leaving him in a glade, looked like a northern plant. He was much paler than most of Inefer’s court, with hair so blond it was almost white; but his dragon heritage kept his blood running hot and so he stood up to even the burning midday sun of high summer very well. They would sometimes ride out together on such days, just past noon when the world was at its quietest and even the insects and birds seemed to rest, and Inefer very much relished these rare chances to speak to him in total privacy, away from their many duties. He had been fonder of Ragnar than he should be for many years now.
The forest was sparse here in the foothills, slender trees with thick grey leaves reaching to the sky and thorny underbrush clinging to the ground. Inefer trusted Allegra to pick her way by the side of a brook that flowed out of the mountains. From a distance, he could already see the ruins of the Forte di San Nerio on its precipice. Even in its crumbled state, it overlooked the valley of the crown city like a watchful guard. Inefer suspected that this had been another reason his loyal protector had claimed the place for himself.
Once they had reached the old fortress, Inefer tied Allegra down out of the reach of the poisonous but beautiful yellow oleander in a shady spot of meadow within the broken castle walls. He’d been here before with Ragnar, but he’d never come alone, and the ruined building seemed a lot more foreboding without Ragnar’s childhood stories in his ear.
Carefully, Inefer picked his way over fallen stones in what had used to be the entranceway and stepped into the cavernous hall behind, the only room that still stood. It laid in shadow that was speared by shafts of light in which specs of dirt and pollen danced slowly. Wild grape vine had climbed inside through the holes in the ceiling and the walls.
There was a sudden loud rustle like the rush of wind in a tree and a shadow passed over him. Ragnar landed only a few feet away, drawing himself up to his whole imposing height, fangs bared, red eyes glowing. He must have been sitting up in the rotting rafters.
“You need to leave,” he rumbled.
“Ragnar...” Inefer paused, taking in the man before him. He was only wearing his breeches and his upper body, the parts of it that were skin, at least, were covered in sweat. There was a tension in his shoulders and in his face, creasing his forehead and setting his mouth to a grim line. Inefer’s surprise turned to concern in an instant. “Are you ill?”
“Of all people, you’re the last one who should be here,” Ragnar only said.
Carefully, Inefer took a few steps backwards. He had no intention of actually leaving, but he wanted to give him some room.
“Donna Cristina told me you might be here,” he said. “And you know I am much too stubborn to go before I know what is happening to you,” he added with a gentle smile. “At least I will not leave you alone unless I am sure you are alright. You are free to take your leave from court, but I have never known you to do so without telling me.”
Ragnar took a deep breath and turned around, walking further into the twilight of the hall. Usually, he moved much like any man, but he leaned too far forward now, as if he was fighting the temptation to go on all fours. His clawed hands curled and uncurled again and again.
“It’s my dragon blood,” he said, finally.
“What do you mean?
There were so few half-dragons in the world that Inefer’s knowledge of them was sadly limited. Even though some dragons could shift into forms that could more easily couple with humans, they were reclusive and rarely seen and so bred mostly among themselves. Inefer had always known the legends of their half-human offspring, but had never met one before Ragnar, then a reticent and frightened youth about Inefer’s own age, had been dragged to court by his Queen mother’s knights. In the many years that had passed since then, rare others of Ragnar’s kind had sometimes come by, drawn by tales of the dragon knight, but they had never remained for long.
Ragnar, in any case, looked miserable as he sat on the stone ground.
“I have been warned about this by other half-bloods, but I paid them no heed,” he said, his dark voice rough. There was a long pause before he muttered: “When we get older, our bodies will push us to procreate.”
Inefer thought about this for a moment, wondering why this would drive Ragnar to hide away in the wilds.
“You mean some inner imperative? Like a heat?”
“I suppose so,” Ragnar said with a frown.
“You could have told me. You needn’t feel shame because of something that is not your fault, you know that.”
“Inefer...”
Ragnar had long used his name without title in private, but it had never sounded quite so intimate just from tone, running through Inefer like the sound of a giant drum. He shifted slightly. Perhaps the image of his friend desperate to drag another to bed did something to add to the impression.
“Yes?” he asked, simply.
“Trust me when I say that I should be leagues from you. The presence of others is only bothersome, but you are a danger.” He snorted. “Had I not held on to decorum, I would have asked to mount you yesterday in front of all your courtiers and knights.”
Inefer swallowed, allowed himself a few moments to think and not go with the tempting suggestion of his libido that wanted to lean fully into Ragnar’s offer. Obviously the heat had loosened his knight’s tongue.
“Decorum can be helpful, but perhaps it is not needed between friends. I wish that you always tell me the truth. Just – maybe not in front of the whole court, should it be so explicit.”
Suddenly, Ragnar was on his feet and on him, his clawed hand grasping him by the throat. It was an uncomfortable hold, but not a hard one. Inefer stood calm before him, looking up.
“The truth is that I want to fuck you until you are pregnant with my eggs, king, and I have for a long while. I would have asked if I could claim you for myself a decade ago if you were a servant in your castle, but you are not,” Ragnar growled.
“There are worse things in the world for a king to have than heirs. In fact, my advisors tell me I have been negligent in that area.” His hand wrapped gently around Ragnar’s wrist. “And no matter how much you rage, you cannot convince me to be scared of you, Ragnar. I have known you for too long.”
“You really have no concept of keeping yourself safe. You should never have even come here by yourself,” Ragnar groused.
“I think I know which risks I can take. But in any case, should I be negligent, I have you.”
Ragnar huffed and, with a shake of his head, released him.
“Incorrigible,” he said. “So what are you telling me, king? Suddenly you want me?”
“There is nothing sudden about it.” His hand was still on Ragnar’s wrist. “In the past, I was too timid to hazard losing an old friendship that means very much to me – and that was indeed a risk I was not willing to take. Now it seems perhaps there is reason to believe I could have something else, though.”
Ragnar kissed him. It was a rough collision of their mouths and his sharp fangs promised pain if Inefer was not careful, yet the moment seemed sweet to him. He reached up to hold Ragnar’s face and felt arms wrap around his middle.
“I warn you,” Ragnar said quietly. “I may have some measure of control now, but I can’t tell you for how long. I may not be able to stop once we started. You need to leave now if you want to.”
“I have heard you, and I thank you for your concern,” Inefer said slowly. “Now let go off your worries. You have fought yourself for long enough.”
Ragnar’s arms tightened around him and then suddenly they were in the air. Inefer held on lightly, sure that he would not be dropped.
There was a balcony over the entrance of the hall which he had not noticed before and that was where Ragnar set him down. The stairs that might once have led to it had long crumbled. The only way to escape without a pair of wings was to plummet many feet to the ground. Looking around, Inefer saw that Ragnar had assembled some blankets and food here and realised with a smile that he had been carried into a sort of nest. The fact that he was unable to leave without Ragnar’s help was only exciting.
Ragnar’s grip on his hips had not lessened and he used it to push Inefer down face-first on one of the blankets.
“Prepare yourself,” he muttered, lifting one hand to show him his claws. “You wouldn’t want me to.”
Inefer gave a quiet chuckle as he spit on his hand. Ragnar tore his trousers down and allowed him to reach back. The weight of Ragnar’s body against his own, radiating heat, made Inefer quite grateful for the removal of his clothes, as his manhood was growing hard. He pushed slowly against his own hole while Ragner still had him pinned with one hand in his back, and the hot breath on his neck, the claws holding him like a promise made it so easy to relax, filling Inefer with a lustful greed. Just when he had slid the second finger in, he felt something thick push against the inside of his thigh. It had a rough texture and spread warm liquid onto his skin. Well – the rest of Ragnar was not wholly human, he supposed...
“I have never seen you fully undressed,” he said breathlessly as he took his own fingers in to the knuckle.
Ragnar hauled him up by his shoulder so that he could look between his legs, where Ragnar’s cock had settled. It had the vague shape of a human cock, though it was of the same coal colour as his scales, bigger on a whole and thicker at the base. The strangest feature, however, were the ridges and sluggish, clear fluid that poured from between them. Inefer licked his lips.
“Scared yet, brave king?” Ragnar asked darkly.
Inefer slid his legs shut so that he trapped Ragnar’s dick between them, tensing his thighs. Ragnar groaned, a sound that ended in a snarl that did not sound quite human. He pressed his face against the side of Inefer’s head and nipped at his ear with his fangs.
“Tell me you’re finished.”
“Do your worst.”
Inefer had barely time to remove his fingers before he was grabbed again and thrown on his back. Ragnar spread his legs and pressed his knees up to his shoulders, dragging his wet cock over Inefer’s entrance. As he pressed into him, the size seemed overwhelming and the way Inefer felt himself growing slick inside was an entirely new experience that teetered on the edge of uncomfortable. Then Ragnar moved and Inefer realised all at once how the liquid had prepared the way for Ragnar’s cock, smoothed out the ride for its layered surface without erasing the pleasure it brought. Moaning, he grasped at Ragner’s shoulders, pulling him closer.
The fat cock pushing mercilessly inside him had him shivering head to toe, but it was the sight of Ragnar that completely took him in. His wings were spread, not as if to take off, but slanted downwards, shielding them, cutting them off from the world. His eyes were like the blinding flames of a forge, his fanged grin feral. Without a doubt he was the most handsome man in the world, even in a moment such as this, when he barely looked like a man anymore.
“You like my cock?” Ragnar asked, as he shoved it deeper into him, making Inefer hiss with the pleasure of taking it all.
“Can you really not tell?” Inefer teased breathlessly.
Ragnar laughed.
“Apparently I haven’t fucked the insolence out of you yet.”
“Ah, you would be bored if you did.”
Inefer drew him in for a kiss as Ragnar thrust into him, bucking into every movement. After so many years of tender but restrained hopes, all he wanted was to feel Ragnar deep inside.
He grabbed his own cock to stroke himself in time with Ragnar hammering into him while his clawed hands held Inefer down by the shoulders, his thrusts folding his body in half.
“I don’t think I can last long like this,” Inefer rasped, cupping Ragnar’s face.
Ragnar kissed his palm.
“Come if you want. We have only just begun.”
Inefer did, only realising then he’d waited for his command.
-
It was fascinating to watch Ragnar lose himself to the heat. He started out much like Inefer had imagined him when he had indulged in such fantasies over the years, how he likely was without nature pulling the strings: playfully boastful, self-confident, bewitching in his skill. His words, however, grew rougher after the second or third time that he had spent himself in Inefer, taking on a harder edge. As he held Inefer’s hips in place, he leaned over his back to whisper in his ear about the eggs Inefer would carry for him, how he would keep him speared on his cock until he could be sure Inefer was pregnant. This, Inefer imagined, was Ragnar’s control finally slipping as it truly sank in that Inefer did not want him to stop. It was a new side to a man he had known for twenty years and Inefer came hard as he listened to what Ragnar told him.
The boiling point that Ragnar reached last was a blur for both of them, Inefer could only guess, as he himself had been brought past the limit of endurance and Ragnar was finally beyond speaking, in movement and wordlessness almost animalistic. He nuzzled him and held him down and fucked him until Inefer could not get hard anymore, but still enjoyed himself as Ragnar’s plaything, scandalously excited to be moved about and used and clasped tightly in his arms, as Inefer’s limbs were shaking, the inside of his thighs soaking wet. But eventually there was a last effort of his own lust, still desperately drawn to Ragnar’s raw power. He came once more and slipped away into the soft embrace of unconsciousness while Ragnar was still in him.
-
Inefer woke to darkness but for Ragnar’s burning eyes watching him. He sat up a little and then fell back, breathing out hard. His body ached as if he had spent a day on the battlefield in heavy armour. Under him was Ragnar’s arm. He flexed it and rolled Inefer’s head onto his chest. For a moment, Inefer let his eyes drift shut again, fingers gliding over Ragnar’s stomach, taking in the patches of scale and skin. The night air was warm and Ragnar’s body even hotter, leaving Inefer perfectly comfortable without clothes.
“How are you, my king?” Ragnar asked.
“Exhausted. It seems I need to take my practice in the training yard more seriously if I wish to tame dragons.” He lifted his head. “You seem calmer.”
“I think the heat was quenched by taking it out on someone.”
“Well, it must have served its purpose. If you did not get your children on me like this, I doubt you ever could.” Inefer smiled. “You must have taken me a dozen times.”
Ragnar chuckled, which Inefer felt as a gentle vibration against his cheek. “You seemed to enjoy yourself. I hope I read you right.”
“Very much so.”
They laid in the dark for another quiet moment. Inefer knew that they would have to return to the castle for the night or risk a panic about the missing king, but he wanted to stay here for a little while longer in this nest Ragnar had built for himself that only Inefer had been allowed to enter.
“You were wrong, though. You won’t get heirs out of this. Just bastards,” Ragnar said, eventually.
With all that had happened, Inefer needed a moment to remember his own remark at the start of the evening.
“That’s true. But should you agree to it, the status of unborn children with parents not otherwise bound can easily be changed.”
For his part, he would not mind at all to make official the quick declarations they had exchanged.
Ragnar’s grip on his shoulder tightened and Inefer smiled brightly, as he already knew the answer by that gesture.
“I would like nothing more,” Ragnar said.