Dredging up ancient memories like the day I was sent to this prison would normally destroy my mood for at least a week, but every touch of this morsel of a woman sends that bitter memory even farther from my mind. From the moment I was first allowed to see her, thighs spread across Erebus’ face, her scent filling the air, I’ve thought of nothing more than having her. But too many of our sentences to this prison were a result of being forced to go places and do things against our will. I can’t speak for the others, but I believe we all want this woman to want us, to come to us each under her own power.
Last night was only the first taste of what it would be like to belong to her, and to have her belong to us. Looking down into her eyes now while she begs to undress me is more perfect than I could have dreamed. Her eyes are dark, the charcoal-shaded smudges around them making the subtle glow of her irises even more prominent. Damp tendrils of her hair cling to the sides of her cheek and her throat, accenting her pale skin and the inked design on one side of her body, and her veins pulse beneath with the subtlest illumination.
She probably isn’t aware of the power lurking inside her, of the threads of both Chaos and Fate that bind her to this place, to us. Staring into her eyes makes my skin prickle with goosebumps, and my belly spasms against her touch, cock rousing before she’s even let it loose.
I lower my hands to my sides and stretch them out facing her. It’s shallow here, so the water barely clears the tops of my thighs. She has easy access, and I am utterly at her mercy.
“You may do as you wish.”
She swallows and licks her lips as she looks down where her hands fumble with the wet knot of the loincloth that hugs my hips. It’s securely bound, tied snugly enough to ensure it doesn’t come loose in the middle of a fight, so she struggles and curses.
“Sorry, I thought this would be easier.”
“Use your power,” I say. “Chaos is undoing. You could think my clothes off, if you focus.”
“I haven’t had a proper lesson yet. I’ve only used it with that stupid dildo so far. Vesh showed me how to hold onto it last night, but that wasn’t easy.”
I reach for the bottle hanging against her chest. “This is your creation, isn’t it?”
“Right, that too. Let me try.”
She closes her eyes and inhales a deep breath, her chest swelling as her lungs fill. The ink of her tattoo subtly begins to writhe over her skin. The deeper she focuses, the more definition the octopus acquires until one of its arms reaches out, tip probing like an extra finger between the layers of the knot beneath my navel. She’s focused despite not opening her eyes, so I don’t think she’s aware of the way her magic has manifested, but it takes only a slight tug of the magical tendril before the knot gives and her fingers do the rest. She opens her eyes just as the octopus fades back into her skin, then flashes me a triumphant smile.
“I knew you could do it,” I say.
“It was just a matter of wanting it enough, I guess.” She gives me a coy smile as she unwraps the cloth from around my hips and pushes it off into the water. My cock stiffens further, and her eyes widen as it grows to full hardness between us, the ache in my balls growing too.
Ever since last night, I’ve endured the growing intensity of my need for her. I’m not as impulsive as Pan to go off to an inconvenient corner of the prison and manage my own pleasure, plus I’d hoped that time alone with her would lead to this moment. But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little desperate for release right about now.
“Holy wow,” she mutters. “You’re … beautiful.” She’s staring at my cock, and for a moment I’m sure I see shock in her eyes, but she recovers quickly. When she sees my frown, she shakes her head. “I don’t know why I expected you to look human everywhere else because you aren’t, are you?”
“I was sired by a bull, but my mother was sired by a Titan. I can’t attribute the shape to either side, though. You can look, I don’t mind.”
Her cheeks flush when she drops her gaze to my throbbing cock again, her eyes wide with fascination. It should feel discomfiting to have a woman staring with such open wonder at such a private part of me, but it only arouses me further. I want to invite her to touch me, to run her hand over my length, to trace the groove that runs the underside, and the ridge along the top. My tapered shape will make it easier for her to take me a little at a time, allow me to fuck her even deeper once she’s ready.
She finally tears her eyes away and looks up at me. She rises to her feet on the ledge so our height difference lessens, then holds her arms out perpendicular to her sides. “Your turn.”
It takes only a tiny tug for me to divest her of the bed sheet. I take her in, nostrils flaring at the sight of her curves bared for me to see. Her tattoo clings to her protectively, and I reach out and gently stroke the head of the octopus on her ribcage, as if to assure the creature I mean her no harm. Nemea shudders, then relaxes. The tattoo relaxes too, though it remains aware, its eyes peering from her ribcage, watchful.
She dips and picks up the bottle of soap. “May I?” she asks, gesturing to me.
I regain my senses and clear my throat. “No. We came down here for your bath, not mine. I should finish what I started.” I look up to the ceiling, mentally envisioning what I need. As always, Tartarus responds. A narrow column of void glass descends from the ceiling high above, spreading out in a disc over our heads. A second later, tiny holes appear and heated water streams out over us both.
Nemea lets out a soft gasp and stares up. “Was that there before?”
“Nope. It appeared at my command. I told you, Tartarus anticipates our needs.”
She sighs and tilts her face up to the shower, her body relaxing even more. With a small mental nudge from me, the water ebbs. I pour some soap into my palm, lathering it between my hands.
“Hey,” Nemea says, frowning up at the ceiling when the shower fades to nothing.
“It’ll return when it’s time to rinse,” I tell her. I rest my soapy hands atop her shoulders first, then slide them down over her arms and back up to spread the suds. She stares wide-eyed at me, her wonder from the first time we came face to face returning. Her gaze slides over my horns and down my face. I feared she’d be frightened of me when I walked into her room this morning, so I made every effort to avoid seeming too intimidating. It seems I shouldn’t have worried after all.
She lets out a sigh when I dig my fingertips into her muscles, massaging her shoulders, then her biceps. I work the lather into each of her hands with as much diligence as I washed her feet. Her breasts and the rest of her torso beckon, still soap-free and glistening with water. My mouth waters as I imagine the taste and texture of her on my tongue. Erebus refused to share a single detail of his experience last night—having his tongue inside her, then having her mouth wrapped around his cock. All he would say was that she didn’t disappoint.
She grows more pliant when I slide my hands down her sides and step closer, peering down at her. She cranes her head back, lips parting, and the column of her throat ripples with a swallow.
“I’d like to wash your intimate parts now,” I say, my voice a deeper growl than I intend. A shiver cascades through her beneath my hands where they rest on her hips.
“I’d like that,” she breathes with a nod.
Bending, I reach for the soap again, along with a soft cloth which I dip into the water. While I do, the shower comes to life, rinsing away the soap and wetting her skin. I drape the cloth over my shoulder for now and lather up a second time, then cup both her full, beautiful breasts in my hands. I leave the shower on, enjoying the way her skin grows slick under my touch.
She lets her head fall back and sighs when I rub the soap in, massaging gently with my palms. Then I cup both breasts again and swipe my thumbs over her hard nipples. She lets out a moan that echoes through the cavern.
Deep below, I sense a shift. Typhon is rousing, but Nemea doesn’t seem aware of the change. I send him a mental warning to take his time. She hasn’t run screaming from any of us yet, and Erebus even showed her his true form, but Typhon is not like the rest of us.
I lift her breasts and rub her nipples again, enjoying the way her body quivers. She opens her eyes, looking up at me from beneath half-lowered lids. Her dark lashes are wet and her irises glow even brighter now.
“Do you feel the power inside you, Nemea? Because I can see it coming to the surface. It’s beautiful.”
She looks drunk from my touch, which makes me want her even more, but then she opens her eyes a little wider, her brows drawing together. “What do you mean?”
“It’s in your blood.” I lift one of her hands and turn her palm up, then trace the line of a vein in her forearm from wrist to elbow that pulses with the subtlest glow beneath her skin.
She stares down at her arm in disbelief, then smiles up at me. “Why is it happening now? Is it you? Are you doing it?”
“Not directly. You’ve used your power before, though. What do you remember about the times it manifested?”
I crouch and begin soaping her legs from the knees up, waiting for her to answer.
“There was literally nothing before the ritual.” She looks down at me and adds, “The one that summoned Pan to me. Then …” Her eyes widen. “Oh, fuck. That was me. I’m the reason the cabin was destroyed.”
“Were you angry when it happened?”
“No.” She shakes her head, her mouth dropping open. “I was being fucked. I was having the best sex of my life up to that point.”
She frowns again, thinking. I dip the cloth in the water and gently scrub her upper thighs with it, then move up over her hips and across her pelvis, letting soapy water cascade over her mound. She’s lost in thought, so I limit my touch to less sensitive areas, despite how I ache to show her how good the sex can be if she’s riding my cock.
“Were there other times it came out?” I prompt.
Nemea swallows and nods. “When I was upset. Windows would break. The electricity would go out. And I might have caused potatoes to sprout. Could that have been me?”
“Chaos magic is all things,” I tell her. “Creation and destruction.”
“But it was a surge in emotion that brought it to the surface. And last night, Vesh made me hold it in. I want to try that again—to store it up. I can feel it in me now, but I also feel like I have room for more. Can you help me try again?”
“It would be my honor. What would you like me to do?”
A wicked smile spreads across her face. “Keep doing what you’re doing, and don’t hold back.”
I let out a pleased chuckle. “It would be my pleasure. But I should warn you, we may have an audience soon.”
Her eyes widen and she whispers, “Is he awake?”
I nod. “He’s curious, but doesn’t want to frighten you.”
“Tell him he’s welcome to join us.”
“To watch, you mean?” I ask, sure she doesn’t mean what I think.
She shrugs, and her veins pulse brighter. “Let’s see what happens.”