Heart Of Stone - Episode 55&56&57

 

HEART OF STONE

Heart Of Stone - Episode 55&56&57

 (..Sold•To•The•Pit•Of•Hell..)

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No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied, or reposted in any form, or by any means without a written permission from the author.

Copyright © 2025.

By: Naomi Cindy B.

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★

#UNEDITED,BEWARE OF TYPOS 

Shayla was caught unprepared at first, everything choked her in place, making the room feel too packed even when it's just only the two of them inside.

Her shaky rattled breaths, her wide eyes with undigested shock, and her pink lips which are slightly parted in surprise.

The fact that she's almost n+k€d right now didn't get to her. The fact that only her lace p+nty is covering her n@kedn€s$ is nothing.

She focused on the heat in the room, the glitter from the marks on their backs, the fastness of her own breaths, and finally...

The irresistible god in front of her.

She couldn't blink as their eyes hooked. Darkness mixed with light, but none was able to outdo each other.

Ryker waited, as it his lips isn't currently on fire.

As if her half-n@k£d body isn't already fingering his head.

As if her innocent k!tt€n eyes aren't already undoing him.

He waited for her move with a big chunk of ice on his chest, waiting to be broken.

Shayla's eyes went down his body again, and that was her or last straw. She let go and fell into his temptation.

She leaned in, her lips connecting to his chest to kiss deeply. 

Ryker held the back of her head, guiding her as she kissed up to his throat, going forward again, slowly and gently like herself.

Her height became insufficient, so she stood on top of his own feet, and that was when she was able to reach his face.

A kiss went to his chin first, and Ryker's lashes lowered. He peered at her through their thickness, and their eyes met and his arms went around her waist again.

"I missed you" she whispered.

Before he could answer to that, her lips were on his own.

She kissed more their normal gentle ones, and she used the tongue first which made Ryker smirk with pride, groaning into the kiss as she devoured him, all while still standing on his feet.

Even as she stood on top of his feet, she still tipped on her own toes, Ryker smiled into her mouth when she noticed that.

His eyes went tightly shut, he darted his tongue too, taking the pleasure of her kiss so serious.

His hands went to her chest, carrying her t1ts to cup in his palms. He gave them good squeezes, caressing her n+ppl€s.

"Hmm" came her first throaty m+an. He ate it up, gobbled and swallowed everything.

The m+ans kept coming, their kiss still not stopping, not ending.

It's gentler now, and sweeter. Her feet is back on the ground, and he's the one bending his figure to shorten his height for her.

Their marks stopped glittering already, but their auras has dominated the room completely.

The cold a hot merged, creating a warm mood that's pumping pheromones into their blood streams, heightening their desires.

Ryker's hands flew to her panty, he easily slipped it down.

Just like her skirt, it fell at her ankles. He carried her out of the two, taking her naked body to bed.

Their kiss paused.

Him on top, spreading her legs and going into the middle. He pulled her wrists together with one hand, then he pinned them above her head on the bed, his second hand disappearing between them to touch her madly wet folds.

Shayla's body arched off the bed, pressing the cl1t on his fingers, so he pinched, once.

"Ah.." she m+aned, eyes flattering up.

His fingers went back and forth on her pu+$y, rubbing slow circles and getting her prepared, occasionally inserting two fingers.

"Look at it" he ordered, trying to tilt her up, but she kept her body low.

"No" she shook her head slowly.

"Why?" He whispered, moving the fingers sharply, twice.

"Ahhh!... please. I really don't... Mmm!" She m+aned again, grabbing the sheets already.

"Look down at it, take a look at the wet beautiful mess you're making on my fingers. Look at my fingers inside your p+s$y, Firefly." He growled, tilting her head up.

Shayla kept her eyes on him, so he kissed her eyes, and she gulped nervously before staring down, seeing his two fingers stuck deep inside her weeping cl+t.

Her cheeks heated, and when she made to took away, Ryker held her face, making sure she's looking at it as he began moving the scissored fingers, f+kin her with them again.

"Ahh...Ry..." She gasped, brows curving and knees cramping.

"Ry!...oh yes! More!" She m+aned, her chin lowering as her mouth opened wider, letting out more entrapped moans.

With pleasure tears welling in her eyes, fingers clutching the bedsheets, legs trembling, her body so stimulated and turned on.

Her head responded with hollowness, and she felt like she was going to lose her sanity as he plowed his fingers faster, harder, deep.

Her cl+t spread out, and her insides bubbled with something she couldn't explain, couldn't understand. Her cry was tiny...

"It's coming...the c+m!" 

Ryker removed his fingers before she could shatter.

His p+nts went down, freeing his c+ck which made Shayla gasp, but she couldn't even comment.

She couldn't do anything, she just anticipated badly for what it's going to do to her.

Her legs wrapped like a belt on his waist, and her arms on his neck as he lay flat in the middle of her legs again.

In one go, he sheathed himself deeply inside her, and Shayla gasped without closing her mouth back.

Her mouth couldn't close, and her eyes brimmed with tears. Not pleasure tears this time, they're tears of intense pain down there.

The tears rolled down her eyes in tiny flows, and her legs flattened around his waist.

For the first minute, Ryker didn't move. He stayed still, studying her expressions as their eyes stayed on each other.

"Painful?" He whispered, bringing his thumb to her face.

"Very much..." She sniffled, and he gave her a little smile.

"I f+ngered you first to reduce the pressure, but you're too tight, so it'd be naturally painful. It's your first" He replied, moving his lips to her face to kiss it round, licking some of the tears with his tongue and wiping some with his thumb.

"Whenever it gets too hard, just give me a pinch, I'll stop." He assured.

"Pinch? That'd ruin your perfect skin." She replied, and he leaned closer.

"Put yourself first, not me."

"I can't help it" she muttered, eyes softening.

Ryker took her two hands, webbing the four together then pinning them to the mattress again, on each side of them.

He started his thrusts, making sure he waited for her reaction after every thrust before going in again. He kept it that way for minutes, and she adjusted real quick.

"You can...go faster." She said, caressing the back of his neck.

He listened, upping his thrusts by one and two, diving in and out of her p+$sy freely.

Her walls embraced him each time, and her small moans turned loud when she slid inside properly, slamming his c+ck inside.

Deep.

Her p+$sy dripped, wetting his c+ck with squ+rts, but that was just the needed lubrication.

He went harder, but he didn't hurry. He kissed her lips, tasting her heat.

His mouth moved down, sucking her neck slow, leaving wet marks.

"Ryshenka..." She m+aned in a hush as his tongue tasted her hard n+ppl€s.

He entered deeper, f+kin her slow and hard at the same time.

When their lips met, she was already so gone.

Gone with his charms, his careful but sweet thrusts.

His manliness and godliness which interlinked and threw her over the edge. His grunts.

"Ow...f+k" he groaned into the kiss, their energies merging. It surged, and their marks glowed again, fast but bright.

With their mouths tangled, his tongue deep inside her throat, and his cock buried in her soaked, heat, he made her c+m again, wet and shaking before he shot out his own hot release.

"We're still going to do this again, right?" She asked under him, her body relaxing after the after-c+m pleasure soaked in.

"I haven't even f+ked you yet. This is only but a little preamble as your first time. Next time, you'll know what I'm talking about." He replied, holding her chin.

She chuckled, feeling slightly sore in her core. She feels tired too. Deeply.

"I can't wait for more" she bit her lips, kissing his dimples as her eyes began closing slowly.

"Go to sleep, your highness" he muffled, brushing her hair away from her face with his fingers.

She was smiling as she closed her eyes, and it didn't take long before she fell into a deep sleep.

Ryker stayed awake, covering them with the duvet together.

He didn't stop staring at her sleeping face. Not even for once.

He brought his fingers to her cheekbone, caressing softly and lulling her into a deeper sleep.

She shifted closer into his skin under the duvet, and he smiled again.

--

[Jojo's Chamber]

With her arms folded on her chest, Azura sat like a mama's girl, her neck nearly bursting with the way she kept huffing out, grunting and groaning for no reason at all.

Jojo sat on her bed in front of her, looking at her wordlessly, but her eyes says a lot which wasn't hard for Azura to interpret.

"Ok that's it, can you just talk to me? Stop this silent treatment. I brought you back to life with my blood!" She spoke up first.

"What do you want me to say, Zura? I warned you, didn't I? You depended on Zeke too much, you gave him your whole life and couldn't make a decision without him. You're nearly a liability, but look at him...he started doing things behind your back, even bringing his tasteless mother in as the new matriarch to ridicule our family. What do you want me to say to that?" Jojo spoke up too.

"I'm at fault, guilty and foolish, but all of that is in the past. You have to help me with whatever you can think of. No one is on my side in this palace except you and Lilith! Even my twins are growing apart, Jude and Pearl seemed to have formed alliance, and Pearl herself is in agreement with Zeke presently. I'm suffering, and it's not even funny anymore. I can't allow  him take away all my years of hard works. What if he brings in a new wife in the future?" Azura said fearfully, standing up.

"That can't happen."

"In the future?" Jojo scoffed, standing with her. "What's the assurance that he's not already frolicking with other women? Think about it, you said Esme knew about Shayla's kidnap by the Eclypseria prince before you."

"No," Azura shook her head. "That can't be the case. Esme Vega? Zeke wouldn't stoop that low!"

"Geez, what foolishness is this?. You still trust Zeke? At this point?" Jojo shook her head, clicking her tongue.

"Do whatever you want, you don't need my advice." She sighed, going back inside the inner chamber.

Azura stood there, biting her nails for a while before going after Jojo.

"Mother wait up! Mother!"

--

[Palace Attic, 10PM]

Xena arrived before Soren. She has been waiting for two minutes, and she just wandered around the closed off attic.

It's old and dusty with cobwebs everywhere since it's abandoned at the far back of the palace property, but thankfully, there's a dim light there, so she can see her surroundings.

There's barely anything to look at though, just chairs and tables, so she wiped one of them with her palm and sat, waiting for his arrival.

A spider fell out of a cobweb above her which she ignored it at first, but when it crawled to her feet, she picked it up.

"You have something to tell me?" She asked, staring at it on her palm.

She brought it under the dim light so they can see each other well, and as the spider whispered, her ears moved.

"The Grand Supreme and Director Esme?" She repeated, and the spider replied to that by raising one of it's numerous arms.

"god slayer?" Xena frowned, and the spider raised that arm again.

"What god slayer?" Soren's voice said behind suddenly. Xena turned, dropping the spider to see him standing there, holding his qin in an hand and his rabbit ice cage in the other hand with the usual stony expression.

"Nothing, the spider was telling me stories," Xena came closer. "When did you arrive?"

"That's not important" Soren replied, cleaning one of the dusty tables with a napkin. He set the ice cage on it, then he placed his qin carefully on a chair. It doesn't take a genius to know he cherishes those two a lot.

His qin and rabbit.

He went to the wall and hit a switch, turning on more lights.

"I didn't know there more lights" Xena said awkwardly, trying to spark a conversation again, but it failed just like the first one.

Soren didn't reply.

As he walked back to her, she gave up, deciding to stop her attempts.

He opened the cage and brought out the purple rabbit. It looks frozen as it has been inside the ice for long. Both eyes closed, legs and arms tangled.

Xena's decision to not try starting a conversation again was aborted immediately.

"It's so beautiful! Never seen a purple rabbit before, Is it a he or she?" She asked, and he gave her a look.

"He" he said curtly.

At least he answered that.

Xena got to work immediately. She placed her right hand on the rabbit, then she stretched her left hand to Soren who frowned.

"I'll have to hold your hand too" she clarified, but he kept up that lifeless stare. He's staring at her hand.

And that was when Xena realized her palm is dirty. She wiped the chair with it earlier, so there's dust on it.

"Oh... sorry. I'll just..."

She looked around for anything to wipe with, but she saw none, so she brought it to her gown, but before she could wipe it, Soren grabbed her hand, holding it despite the dirt.

Xena looked at him, surprisingly.

"Just carry on" he said.

"Sure" she smiled, returning her stare back to the rabbit. She closed her eyes, connecting her own soul too since she's the communicator anyways.

"Sensei? If your little soul is still anywhere around your frozen body, please move your arms, your master wants you back alive, and he misses you a lot." She said.

Soren's eyes stayed keen on the rabbit, wanting to catch the exact moment it'd wake up.

"Sensei? I can still sense it. Your soul is alive somewhere in that body...take your years in the ice cage as sleep, now you have to come back, to your owner." She continued.

The awakening was draining her soul, and the fact that her lifeline is not with her worsened it.

She got weaker and weaker, till blood dropped from her nose.

Soren noticed it and blinked.

"Hey, you're bleeding. I think you should stop."

"Sensei? You can hear me." Xena continued, ignoring him.

"Stop it!" Soren tried taking his hand from her, but she held tighter.

"Sensei!" She gasped, opening her eyes finally.

"I told you to f+kin stop!" Soren snapped when he saw the blood flooding down her nostrils already. It's entering her mouth.

"It's awake" she replied, facing him.

Soren frowned.

"It's awake" she pointed at the rabbit, and Soren's eyes went back to the table.

The little rabbit stood on its two legs, raising it's arms up and smiling with it's two front teeth out.

"Sensei?" Soren went closer immediately, eyes delightful as he smiled widely.

"You're really awake? You bad, bad boy. You kept me waiting!" He gushed, carrying it into his palms.

In shock, Xena watched him.

Soren actually smiles? 

All cos of his rabbit? Wow!

She was smiling too before she knew it, but she suddenly slumped back, the weakness getting a hold of her again.

Soren was fast enough to catch her by the arm. He brought her to sit on a chair, dropped Sensei and then squatted in front of her.

"Are you ok?" He asked, looking genuinely worried.

"Yeah. It just drained me a lot, so I need rest and air." She said.

He got tissues from his pocket and handed them to her. 

She wiped her bleeding nose and faced the ceiling to stop the blood flow.

Soren opened the attic windows, letting air inside, then he came back to her and asked again.

"What about now?"

"I feel better, thank you." She said.

"No, thank you instead. Thank you very much." He said. The rabbit jumped on his arms, squealing happily like it's really glad to be back alive.

"You mean that?" Xena smiled.

"You think I don't? Sensei was a big part of my childhood, so this means a lot, and I'm genuine with my thanks." He replied blankly.

Xena nodded, and the rabbit hopped into her arms suddenly, causing her to gasp. She quickly held it before it'd slip to the ground.

"I'm allowed to hold it?" She asked.

"He jumped on you by himself, so yes." Soren smiled one more time.

Xena rubbed her fingers on the rabbit fur, cuddling it on her laps.

"It says it missed you." She said suddenly, looking up at Soren.

"You can communicate with it?" Soren sat on another chair.

"I'm an animal communicator, so your rabbit isn't an exception, Soren." She replied, returning her eyes to the lovely animal.

Soren gave her face a stare, wondering if she realized that she just called him by his name.

Xena's face suddenly snapped up.

"I'm sorry! I meant... Grand Prince Soren." She corrected herself.

"It's nothing, you won't get killed." He said, and she chuckled.

"Seems your qin and rabbit are the only things that matter to you." She said, glancing at the instrument on the table.

Soren picked up the qin, tracing his fingers on the strings for a while.

"That might be right, but add Sadie to it. She might have anger issues, but she's still my sister, and I can't live without her." He replied.

"It's obvious," Xena shrugged. "You both can't live without each other, I'm jealous." 

"Are you deadass?" He squinted.

"Absolutely" she replied with a scowl which made him smile slightly again.

The skies rumbled outside, and at the same time, her phone buzzed in her gown pocket.

She handed Sensei to Soren and pulled out her phone. It's Old Chef messaging her, asking of her location.

"Father wants me back at the quarters, I have to go. Also, it seems like it's gonna rain." She stood.

"Thanks for not raping me like Sadie wanted last month, and thanks for wiping her and Mercury's memories." She bowed.

Then she stepped back and started going for the door.

"Xena?" Soren called, and she stopped, head turning back in shock.

"Huh?"

"Tommorow? 10pm again? Here?" He said like he's just learning to talk.

"I'll...think about it." She intentionally said before dashing out of the attic.

The moment she was out, the large rain started, and Soren stood from his chair, shutting the windows back.

He tried to teleport back to the main castle, though he's aware that he won't be able to do it without Sadie by his side, but he still tried.

And shockingly, he did it.

He teleported without Sadie, and he landed in front of their room at the main castle.

What was that? 

He has no teleporting power of his own without holding Sadie's hand.

However, he brushed it off, deciding to not stress himself thinking yet.

He needs to spend as much time as possible with his rabbit and catch up with the times they missed.

Sensei was whimpering playfully in his palms as he opened the door and entered the room.

Confetti poured on him, and loud balloons popped at his face with smokes from a smoke machine.

"You're finally back!" Sadie's voice said, but he wasn't able to move.

He waited till the smokes dissipated before moving forward.

Sadie stood in the middle of their room, holding a new purple rabbit cage. Mercury stood beside her, holding a small black cake with...

SADIE AND SOREN'S RECONCILIATION written around it with icing 

But the moment they saw Soren holding Sensei, their happiness dropped with their arms.

"What's going on? Why is Sensei suddenly awake?" Sadie questioned.

"You forgot we're not supposed to be talking? Get off." Soren pushed past her, dropping Sensei on his bed.

As he walked past them, Mercury perceived a faint smell of onions from his body.

Onions? Only a chef would smell like that. And the only possible chef is...

Xena?

He was with Xena?

Xena communicates with animals too, so did she...wake his rabbit up?

The cake fell from Mercury to the ground when she realized that, but she said nothing.

"I got you a new rabbit and a cake to apologize! But you're here with your newly awakened rabbit, of course it'd be difficult for me!" Sadie shouted at Soren.

"Don't try to guilt-trip me again, and not everything is about you Sadie! You got the cake and new rabbit, but admit it, you were only going to dump them on me and expect me to follow your flow as usual, you wouldn't say sorry!" Soren snapped.

Sadie's red eyes refused to blink, and she chewed on her inner mouth.

"See? Bingo." Soren smirked, taking the rabbit and leaving the room again.

"Soren!!!" Sadie ran to the door too, flinging it open.

"I think he was with Xena" Mercury finally spoke up.

"What!" Sadie turned back.

"Yeah, I smelled onions from him faintly." Mercury swallowed.

--

[Lobby]

Just Zeke and Tara are here.

They returned from the dinner with Esme an hour ago, and they've been here, chatting.

"How sure are you that your plan for the Feast is really going to work?" Tara asked, dropping her water glass.

"Hundred percent, don't you trust me anymore? I know what I added to his pool at the groove so there's no way he's escaping that with his partner. I always win." Zeke shrugged.

"It better be, and about the wedding tomorrow?" Tara questioned further.

"It'd go as planned. Pearl might be my daughter, but she's cunning as hell. I need to give her what she wants in order to know what her identity is. I'll drag Old Chef to the wedding with her tomorrow." Zeke replied, looking around.

"Haven't seen your snake anywhere."

"I sent it to the tower" she replied.

"Are you serious? You damn know the bastard is going to kill it." Zeke leaned forward.

"You think I don't have a plan with it? Let him kill it" Tara smiled, sighing.

"I might not see him or his partner yet, but my actions speaks louder." 

"You won't see him unless he wants to see you by himself. He's a bastard, but his arrogance is peak." Zeke scoffed, picking the water to drink.

"Your wife and her mother?" Tara asked the third question.

"Should that even be a question?" Zeke grinned. "You know damn well what happens to useless papers, we burn them."

--

[City, Vipers Household]

The West Palace people are still here, looking for clues and leads since hours ago, but nothing is showing up.

Faye and Blaise joined them already, so the searchings are faster, but it's like pouring water in the ocean.

Useless.

Winona was already so tired as she sat in the middle of the archive, surrounded by papers and journals.

The archive is in the backroom of the household, and it's as old as the rest of the house.

The house would have been a normal house if not for the snake drawings and mouldings on the wall, so it's spooky,but there's no single living snake hanging around.

They went extinct since this household was shut down.

"Don't you think we're only just wasting our time?" Winona sighed. "It's been hours,  dawgs."

"Are you giving up already? I can't believe you. We should get answers and settle our midnight curse once and for all. Who knows when that crazy Rumi will decide to come back?"

"What entered you? You're actually enthusiastic about something? Whoa! The sun probably rose from the wrong sky today." Faye clapped.

"I hate you" Blaise rolled eyes.

"Mutual" she gave him a middle finger, and he scoffed.

"Why can't we find just one info about the snake woman? Did someone wipe off the information?" Kasia said suspiciously.

"That's right" Astor said from his side, holding up a journal book.

He's currently in the middle page of the book, and all three pages have been ripped away.

"Dang!" Winona stood, taking the journal book from him. "It's really ripped."

"Meaning someone is aware of this investigation and intentionally putting a jinx on it?" Blaise said.

They all exchanged glances, but Faye was smirking secretly behind Winona 

--

[Next Morning, Liza Kings Mansion]

When Liza woke up, Kade was still sitting on that same couch.

He's holding the jotter, slamming the pen on it while resting his other knuckles on his temple, staring at her.

His legs are still on the table.

"Why did I sleep on the couch? You couldn't wake me?" Liza yawned, getting up feeling empty and different.

"You passed out yesterday after you told me every fuckin secret in your head." Kade replied, dropping his legs from the table.

He stood.

"I... passed out? Told you secrets? Her frowm was deep.

Kade threw the jotter at her, and she caught, flipping restlessly through the pages. Her eyes widened.

"Shayla has a mark? I saw it and hid it and... I was planning to unleash the fire on the feast day, make her run wild and kill Ryker then ascend to the nine heavens with her for power injections? I plan to turn her from a demigoddess to a demon grandmistress and rule Luminaria together with her?" 

"Exactly, and now that I'm in on the plan, you better cooperate and let's talk about your plan B." Kade tilted his head, shrugging.

Liza gasped again.

--

[Black Swan Ballet School]

A Porsche screeched to a rough stop in the crosswalk, and Rumi's tall heels stepped out, her face as mischievous as ever as she stared at the school building, her legs standing in a catwalk pose even when she's not walking.

She wore exactly Xena's style—long boring gown and equally boring low heels. She even straightened her hair and didn't wear makeup.

"I missed, again." She snickered, realizing the school is dry.

It's weekend.

She got back in the car, grabbing the steering wheel hard with a smile.

"I'll have to visit the palace then" 

--

[East Palace, Heartless Tower]

In the middle balcony, Shayla sat with varieties of meals in front of her, plus fruits which she's spending her time to munch on for breakfast.

She's especially eating the strawberries more than any other fruit, and she decided to eat meat more than the other meals too.

She's smiling as she brought the meat crumbs to her mouth with fork, and the memories of last night didn't leave her memories for once.

She was replaying it as she ate, filling her buds and small mouth.

Her robe is black this morning, she purposely chose it cos she wants to match with him since most of his robes are of that color.

She licked the meat stew off her fingers, and Cheyenne came to join her shortly.

"Eat with me" she said immediately.

"No." Cheyenne replied.

"That was cold-hearted." Shayla replied, eating another meatball, and Cheyenne chuckled.

"I prefer pasta, and there's no pasta on the table. I'll cook some for I and Sage later." She said.

"Where's he? Ryshenka? He hasn't come out, yet?" Shayla looked around.

"Ryshenka? Mmm..." Cheyenne shifted closer.

"Did you just say a pet name in his family language style?"

"Yeah," Shayla nodded. "I didn't want to add chik or chko, so i opted for shenka, it's their prettiest suffix." 

"Do you know their family language is called Russian in the human world?" Cheyenne asked.

"Really? Why?" Shayla dropped her fork, concentrating.

"Cos his family ancestors were all humans. Back then, there was no rule that said Luminarians shouldn't marry humans. That rule started the moment the Millions took over the city." Cheyenne explained.

"Oh...so I'm guessing his business is in the human world?" Shayla asked.

"You're smart" Cheyenne smiled.

"You see... I know all these riches didn't come from nothing." Shayla replied, and Cheyenne nodded.

"Of course..."

"I want more candles for control practice, and flowers in the orchard. I want to grow them." Shayla spoke up.

"I'll get them from you florist, you have any specifics?" Cheyenne stood.

"Anyone" Shayla nodded.

Cheyenne left the balcony, and Shayla looked around again, but he's nowhere.

"Should I go into his Phoria?" She muttered.

Meanwhile, Ryker stood on the roof on the knights quarters with Sage behind him, and from there, he stared down at the practice field through his lashes.

"You don't want to go see Tara yet?" Sage asked.

"She has to keep thinking I'm busy displaying my act of arrogance, so not yet, and I need Zeke to keep thinking I'm not serious about the feast too, that's why no one can find out that Shayla got her fire yet. I chose to lay low till next week" Ryker replied.

"I understand." Sage nodded.

"The preparations are ongoing, we leave for the human world at 12." Cheyenne said, coming up to meet them.

"Russia headquarters this time?" Sage asked.

"It's obvious" Ryker faced them.

"And Tiny is coming with us?" Cheyenne asked.

"She's Shayla." Ryker glared.

"I mean...is Shayla coming with us?" Cheyenne corrected.

"Can't possibly leave my clumsy partner here and travel such long distance." Ryker replied, getting more serious.

"We're visiting Liza before departing though." He announced, leaving the knights on the roof.

He vanished.

--

[Mount Zhitomir]

Pearl chose this place as her wedding spot cos in the memories she saw, this mountain was once the mansion of the great millennial ice god where she lived with him and her maid plus their gardeners.

There's no better place.

The only audiences are Jude, Zeke, and Old Chef who was dragged here.

Since it's a wedding without the groom, everything went by very fast.

The red documents was lay on a flat stone, and Pearl bit herself on the thumb.

She dropped some blood on her wedding dress before bringing her bloody thumb print to the document.

Old Chef was dragged forward too.

It was Jude and Zeke who dragged him to the documents, both very curious about where this is heading.

"Your wife didn't give birth to Ryker just because you f+ked her, she gave birth to him cos she was destined to birth the ice god of this century, but still... you're the father, and he carries a slight drop of your blood, so do the honours and bless this conjugation." Pearl smiled at him.

Old Chef swallowed, shaking.

Pearl bit his thumb by herself, and the men forcefully brought his thumb down to the document, laying his thumb print on top of Pearl's.

--

[Heartless Tower, Middle Balcony]

Shayla has dropped her fork by now, she washed her fingers too.

Now he's taking this absence too far. 

He can't do that to her last night and just disappear today.

She's going to get into his Phoria even if it means getting him pissed.

He said it wasn't a one time thingy, so he has to stay with her whenever.

She stood, but she couldn't even move when he appeared as if he's reading her mind.

He walked into the balcony, his black robe matching hers and his face as gorgeous as she could remember.

As gorgeous as it was when he was on top of her naked body last night.

She bit her lip inwardly, sitting back on the chair.

He sat on the table in front of her.

"Mad at me?" He said.

"Who am I to be mad?" She replied, stabbing the remaining meat on the plate with a fork.

"Your face says otherwise" he replied, holding her chin up delicately.

"I have just been expecting you for a long, and now you appear as if my waiting was nothing. It's so easy for you to do. I know I'm just a partner and you can—"

"Stop using JUST a partner around me, from now on." He cut her off, and she looked into his eyes.

"I'm sorry." She muttered.

"And stop saying sorry at the slightest." He said, frowning when his mind went to her sufferings in the memories he visited and how she was saying she's dirty for being born.

"Will you eat with me?" She asked, opening an untouched dish of pork chilli and tenderloins.

She quickly grabbed his hand, bringing it to her face.

"You will, right?" She blinked.

"I can't eat what's not cooked by you." He flatly replied. She stood instantly.

"Then I'll make the fruits salad again, and add many strawberries." She said.

Ryker smiled with his face down, and she blinked, realizing how much she missed that within the space of last night and today.

"Finally, that smile..." She touched his face, running her fingers through it.

He suddenly brought his face closer, rubbing his nose on hers fondly.

She closed her eyes, throwing her arms around him, but that didn't last.

Ryker's eyes suddenly went up, and his cold body temperature went up too, suddenly.

"Ry?" Shayla's voice sounded like a background noise in his head as a strange memory joined his memories.

Centuries ago, in a mansion at mount Zhitomir, he could see himself sleeping on the same bed with PEARL.

He saw Jude and SHAYLA as his rose garden gardeners, and he saw himself slapping Shayla twice cos she mistakingly uprooted one of his favorite roses in the garden.

He spranged up from the table, his eyes darkening much.

Shayla held his two arms, eyes searching his own as worry overshadowed her sight.

She held his face.

"Ry, what's wrong?"

But he couldn't answer. 

He just stared, and the darkness in his eyes worsened.

TBC.

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