There was a brief pause as if the world stilled or held its breath while Tia's hand reached out and came in contact with Vellion's bare shoulder. For a long drawn out moment there was nothing, no response or reply.
Vellion had learned many skills during his life on the streets, but none had served him so well, put as much food in his stomach or prevented pain as frequently or as reliably as the skill of a well placed smile.
Spinning deftly on the spot he turned to face the unknown assailant. As his eyes drank in her features he relaxed, allowing that familiar reliable mask to slip into place. His lips curled with a devilish charm, his eyes glowing with roguish confidence, and he turned to stand boldly before them.
"
Greetings ladies, can I help you?" he asked nonchalantly as he ran a hand through his wet hair, pulling back dark, clumped strands. "
Are you... looking for something?"
Eyes bounced between them. "
Aurelian," he mumbled seemingly to himself with realisation, his smile seeming to grow.
"
Or are you just trying to escape the cold? Please, don't let me stop you." He stepped aside and gestured to the hot spring.
Nyla released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Her gaze flicked past him to the water—where the bloodstains had begun to fade, dissolving into the rippling surface. But at the water’s edge, droplets still stained the stone beneath their feet. Somehow, any inclination she might have had to step into the springs was swiftly evaporating.
She cast a glance at the Priestess, catching her expression for only a moment before returning her attention to the man. Slowly, she took him in, letting her gaze drift over the full-frontal display he had so graciously provided.
Lean, perhaps a little on the thin side, but undeniably strong. He was built with the kind of muscle that spoke of hard labor, yet his skin remained oddly pristine—far cleaner than any laborer or soldier she had ever known. With shaggy dark hair and deep-set brown eyes, he had a face that might have been pleasant, if not for the unease still humming in her chest. If not for the scent of decay still hanging in the air.
Something was
off, but she had no way to pinpoint it.
Her gaze lingered on his smile for a heartbeat, recognition striking. She knew that smile.
She’d met this type of man before—countless times, in countless taverns, pubs, and alleyways. She’d seen that smile in flickering candlelight over ale-soaked tables, lurking in the shadows of market streets, cast across faces both fair and forgettable. That was the smile of a man who wanted something. Dangerously charming. A snake in the grass.
It seemed the Priestess hadn’t lied. Aelios welcomed the damned here, too.
Her own lips curved into a soft, knowing smile. Slowly, she tore her gaze away from him, shifting her focus to the temple's authority—the petite blonde with concern etched into her face.
Tia blinked, suddenly nervous under the force of the man’s stare. Her hand, which she’d brought back in towards her chest when he’d turned, curled into a loose fist. Her fingers were lightly damp where she’d touched him.
She gave him a shy smile.
The man was… fine. Or at least he was trying very hard to
seem fine. Tia felt her face warming as he smiled at her, his attention somehow both commanding and disarming. Her eyes flicked over his body, appraising. Fit, skin clear and unmarked… pink droplets still trailing over his neck and torso. There was not a single wound to be seen.
Her eyebrows pulled together slightly as her smile faltered. She’d seen how the man had moved so carefully, and the blood was still bright and fresh in the snow, a clear trail that he’d painted. But there was no sign of injury when she looked at him, not even a bruise coloring his skin. Had it not been his blood? And his body was so…
bare for a swordsman. Maybe he was new to the sword? Or he’d always had easy access to a healer? Perhaps, Tia considered, he had healing magic himself. But healing one's own injuries was a difficult thing — Tia had the scar and ruined voice to prove it.
Fingers tightening in front of her chest, Tia remembered the feel of him. It was like his skin had laid too loosely over his muscles, the flesh soft and movable when she’d expected it to be firm. But it had only been a moment — had she imagined it? She looked up at this smiling stranger, not sure what to do with her confusion.
She glanced to the water, visible now that he’d stepped aside to offer them access. Then she looked back to the red on his body, in the snow, in the water. Shaking her head in reply to his offer, she tapped at the small emblem of the Aurelian church on her robe. Tia offered him a smile somewhere between strained customer service and concerned keeper, hoping she looked more confident than she felt.
Tia swallowed, trying to gather the threads of her weak voice. At least the warm, humid air of the springs was gentler on her throat.
“The… blood?”Before he replied to the one who he guessed was a priestess, his gaze held on the other and that knowing smile she wore. He responded in like with a smirk of his own.
‘Game on.’ His eyes teasingly playful and bordering on predatory, he took a deliberate step towards Tia while looking at Nyla.
He was silently taunting her, testing her, studying how she would react. How nervous was she? How protective was she? Vellion need not only read her expressions or movements, not while he gazed deeply into her eyes.
Her attention darted to the Priestess as she stepped back in response, though Nyla remained rooted in place. Her smile faltered for only a heartbeat before she lifted her blue eyes back to the stranger—only to find him already waiting, his eyes locked onto hers.
She held his stare without hesitation, slipping another soft smile back into place. Shying away from men like him had never served her well. They wanted a game. They wanted prey—some soft, submissive thing to make them feel like hunters.
But the bolder ones played differently. They craved the thrill of the chase, the challenge of tearing down something untamed. She wondered which type this one fell into.
Whatever the game, she could play it. She could pretend, if that’s what he wanted. But she had rarely been the prey—unless it suited her.
The snake had yet to realize it was toying with a cat.
Still holding his dark-eyed gaze, she studied him, weighing her options. Could she use this? Could she become what he wanted her to be, just for a moment? Bare as he was, he didn’t seem to have much to offer—aside from a bit of entertainment.
"
Oh, the blood. Is that why you are here?"
He looked to his discarded shirt before turning his attention back to Tia as he scratched absently at an itch on his chest. "
You Aurelian priestesses are even kinder and more beautiful than I was told, but no. I assure you I am fine. Just a hunter, you see."
He opened his hands outward in a defenceless gesture.
"
Things... got a little messy. One second everything is under control and then..." His eyes shifted back to Nyla. "
And then... they are very bloody." His smoothly spoken sentence was punctuated with a sweet smile of perfect innocence.
Nyla arched a brow as his gaze met hers again. Bold, then. This one had nerve.
"
But thank you both so much for coming to check up on me. Please, won't you stay for a bath?"
Nyla's gaze flicked briefly to the sword leaning against the rocks beside her.
"And here I was, thinking that Lunarians were known for their quick, clean hunting skills," She tilted her head slightly as she met his gaze, her smile growing into a teasing smirk.
"Silly me." Matching her gaze Vellion eagerly replied, "
Despite skill or experience there will always be prey that makes things…. A little more interesting.”
Taking a few more steps forward, Nyla closed the short distance between them with a slow, deliberate pace—casual, confident, unbothered. Tia’s eyes flicked up to her, relieved that at least she wasn’t alone. She met her eyes, trying to show her silent gratitude. This man was… overwhelming.
"The Priestess was simply giving me a tour of the premises," she lied, her voice smooth as she positioned herself beside the Priestess. She would not be taking a dip in blood-stained waters today.
Her hand shifted, and she extended the towel to Vellion, maintaining steady eye contact as she did.
“You look a little cold.”Vellion’s eyebrow was raised in questioning disbelief as he took the offered towel, but he didn't push the matter, sending a silent message that he didn't buy her excuse but he would play along. "
Thank you”
Tia was quickly realizing that she had no place in whatever was happening right now. Standing between the two strangers,
something clearly passing between them, she felt like she’d somehow been dropped in one of the springs and she couldn’t quite reach the bottom.
She very much wanted to leave. But she also didn’t want them to have sex in the hot spring if left unattended — she already wasn’t looking forward to cleaning up the blood once this man left.
Though, something told her that the woman beside her wouldn’t be interested in a fling, with how squarely she’d planted herself beside Tia like a sentinel. Her voice was smooth and charming as she flirted with him, but the Priestess hadn’t missed that she’d lied about visiting the springs for a bath, either. Maybe it was time for them both to leave.
Giving a strained smile up towards the man, Tia… tried her best.
“Pardon us,” she rasped.
She bowed slightly —
Do not look down. — and tried to back away again. A soft hand raised to lightly touch the woman’s elbow, a silent message.
The sudden raspy comment reminded Vellion that there was a third person here. "
Is there something wrong with your voice? he asked bluntly, a curious expression on his face, dark eyes flicking between the two women. Tia faltered. Nyla’s gaze narrowed as her lips parted, ready to deliver a sharp retort.
"
Well, I don't want to keep you from your tour,” he added, noticing Tia’s subtle retreat. "
But…."
I don't suppose it's an open tour? I am new here and know very little of Aurelian culture.”
Tia’s eyes widened as she tried to think of a polite excuse, when —
"Allow me to give you your first lesson in Aurelian culture,” Nyla began, her expression smoothing into helpful sincerity as she held the venom back from her tone.
“Men such as yourself are not permitted to speak to a High Priestess. Nor even look them in the eye.” Tia’s gaze snapped to her.
Nyla let the words settle, watching his face for a flicker of doubt before continuing.
“And certainly not address them so boldly.” A sliver of fire slipped through, her eyes narrowing just slightly. Beneath Tia’s embarrassment, there was something warm and grateful blooming in her chest. She cast her eyes down to look at the flat stones surrounding the springs, her cheeks heating.
With a soft, exaggerated sigh, Nyla offered him a faux sympathetic smile.
“It’s a shame, really. You’ve already violated at least three sacred customs.” She clicked her tongue, shaking her head as her gaze swept over him with mock disappointment.
“I’m afraid, tradition dictates that if a man disrespects a High Priestess, he must immediately drop to his hands and knees to beg her forgiveness.”Whatever warmth Tia had fostered suddenly froze.
Nyla’s gaze briefly flicked to the Priestess, seeing panicked eyes and pink cheeks, before returning to him, a brow arched in an expectant challenge, her head tilted—waiting.
An amused nonchalant chuckle escape Vellion's lips. "
Well, lucky for me we ain't in Aurelia then isn't it?” he swiftly responded without falter, waving off the insinuation without a thought or care. "
Think that's why I never really got right into all the religious stuff. Too stuffy, too controlling, too pretentious. But, one has to admire your conviction. I mean, there isn't even a sun in the great sky but still you lot go on. Dedicating your entire existence to something that isn't there. No wonder you occasionally want to see a naked man kneel before you and feel a sense of superiority over them. Don't worry, I get it. But let's not do it under the pretense of religion.” He teased, his eyes and voice adopting a more sultry nature as he played with obvious innuendoes.
Furthermore, he spoke directly to the priestess and made an obvious and deliberate display of staring into her eyes, but his message, defiance, taunts and deep satisfied smirk were all specifically for Nyla. In turn, the raven haired woman's gaze sharpened as she resisted the urge to step between him and the Priestess, to sever the line of his visual assault.
"
I mean, I'm not saying no, or entirely opposed to the idea. I just usually prefer to be the one standing though.” He brazenly looked Tia up and down in contemplation. His thoughts started to stir in more than just his eyes. Nyla’s lips pressed together, an odd mix of irritation and amusement warring beneath the surface. Despite herself, she found something undeniably entertaining about him—the way he refused to back down.
Tia’s skin was on fire. She found herself trapped between the two strangers and their sharp, teasing words meant to put each other down but only embarrassing
her. Somehow Tia had become both the excuse and means with which they traded barbs. While their challenging gazes and pointed smiles were meant for each other, Tia was the one covered in cuts.
Eyes darting as she tried to avoid both of their gazes, Tia made the mistake of looking
down. Face red, her eyes shot back up to meet the man’s, catching the way he eyed her hungrily. His gaze left a grotesque trail where it landed on her skin, heavy and tacky and too hot. She was suddenly desperate to run back into the temple and wipe the feel of him away.
Tia was supposed to be in charge, she knew. She was the High Priestess of Aelios in Dawnhaven. She was expected to heal and guide, and represent the authority and reliability of the Church, but…
She just felt so
small. The hurt that thrummed through her at being
used for their game felt childish and petty, but that didn’t make it burn any softer.
The man was uninjured. He was bathing. Tia had no reason to take up any more of his time. She could let him commune with Aelios in his way, even if he didn’t see it like that, and even if spoke of Her with derision. He’d still come seeking the warmth of the Sun Temple, just as the woman had. Even if they’d both only used it to humiliate her.
It was time to leave.
“Please —” It was a tiny sound, cut off by her own ruined throat. Fighting to hold back a cough, Tia clamped her mouth shut. Her shame only deepened. She tried to take in a breath. Nyla’s eyes flicked to the Priestess, the amusement draining out of her just as quickly as it had appeared. When Tia forced herself to look back up to the man’s eyes, she couldn’t bring herself to smile. Or soften. Or offer any patience or grace that was expected of her as a servant of Aelios welcoming a stranger to Her waters, no matter how vulgar his behavior. Instead, she only offered him a small bow.
Tia turned away from him, hating the feel of his eyes on her back but forcing herself to keep her head high anyway. She couldn’t look at the woman. As uncomfortable as the man made her, somehow the woman’s treatment, after their small moments of connection, hurt worse.
Despite Vellion being unable to hold the timid priestesses gaze, he didn't need to use his powers to see the discomfort and pain his little game had caused.
Now all Tia could do was to try and leave with a little dignity.
She took a step and tripped on her robe.
Nyla tensed, instinct driving her forward as she took a step, fingers twitching as if she could be swift enough to catch the Priestess. But luckily the blonde steadied herself, and Nyla let out a breath.
Watching the Priestess retreat up the stone steps, Nyla’s shoulders sagged, shame settling over her. She had been so caught up in the game that her plan had backfired spectacularly, drawing even more unwanted attention onto the Priestess. She hadn’t anticipated just how brazen the man could be and misjudged how a Lunarian might play. Perhaps she needed to adjust her approach for the northerners.
Her stomach twisted at the thought of what consequences might await her for inadvertently adding herself to the list of those who had disrespected the Priestess.
Slowly, Nyla turned her gaze back to the man, her grip tightening on the basket. Gone was the teasing glint in her eyes, replaced by something cold and edged like a finely honed blade. A silent accusation lingered in her stare—
Look what you did.But she didn’t call out to the Priestess. It was better if she left, better if she didn’t have to endure another moment under this man’s leering gaze. Instead, Nyla would stay. If this stranger wanted something to toy with, he could keep trying his luck with her.
“You’re an ass.” she muttered, her tone teasing, but with just enough bite to carry a hint of seriousness.
Well aware of his size and the weapon he carried, she had no real desire to provoke him. She wasn’t foolish enough to push too far while she was alone with him, but he didn’t seem to take offense at her verbal jabs. If anything, he seemed to enjoy it. That was something she could work with.
Besides, if things did escalate, well… she had a few new tricks up her sleeve. She wasn’t entirely powerless.
So she slipped back into the game. Her grip on the basket loosened slightly, the tension easing just enough for her lips to quirk.
“Should I just call you Ass? Or do you have a name?”
Qia
BlackRoseSiren
SkeankySnack
The Muse
enmuni
Dezuel
Pen Name
PrinceAlexus
Snowdrops
StarBoi
