Chapter 44: Strategy Before Destiny
The East Courtyard hummed with latent energy, the air thick with the scent of ozone and crushed petals. Vera spotted Ragnak first—his silhouette sharp against the shifting silver of the dome, his gloved hands clasped behind his back like a surgeon awaiting his next incision.
She crossed the distance between them in quick, light steps, her boots scuffing against the basalt. "There you are," she purred, her fingers curling into the front of his coat before he could react. She yanked him down to her level, her mouth crashing against his with bruising force.
Ragnak didn’t flinch. Didn’t resist. But he didn’t kiss her back either—just let her take what she wanted, his lips cool and unyielding under hers.
Vera pulled back just enough to speak, her breath hot against his mouth. "I've missed you! Did you miss me? Did you miss your little bitch?" She giggled, high and bright, nails digging into his shoulders through the fabric.
Camila froze halfway across the courtyard, the Archive’s static still buzzing under her skin. She hadn’t expected this—hadn’t expected Vera’s fingers tangled in Ragnak’s hair, the way his mercury eyes flicked past her shoulder to where Camila stood, caught between curiosity and something darker.
Vera followed his gaze, her grin widening. "Oh, don’t just *stand* there." She reached out, grabbing Camila’s wrist, pulling her closer. Camila’s pulse jumped under Vera’s fingers, her skin still hypersensitive from the Archive’s invasive touch.
Ragnak’s voice was surgical steel. "You told me that if I choose you, you’ll also be my little bitch, Camila."
Vera bounced on her toes, pressing her chest against Ragnak’s arm. "Yesss! More bitches for daddy!"
Camila exhaled. The courtyard pulsed around them, the glyphs underfoot glowing faintly, as if feeding off the tension. She met Ragnak’s gaze—cold, assessing, waiting.
A muscle in her jaw twitched. Then, slowly, she nodded. "Yes. That’s what I said."
Vera’s laugh was pure delight. "Fuck *yes*." She dragged Camila forward until they were both flush against Ragnak, her free hand sliding down to palm the hard line of his cock through his trousers. "Look at him. Like a fucking statue. Bet he doesn’t even *breathe* when he comes."
Camila’s stomach tightened. Ragnak’s expression didn’t change, but she felt the shift in his body—the minute tensing of his thighs, the way his gloved fingers twitched at his sides.
Vera leaned in, her lips brushing Camila’s ear. "Wanna see what happens when we break him?"
Before Camila could answer, Vera dropped to her knees, her fingers making quick work of Ragnak’s belt. The leather hissed as she yanked it free, her movements sharp, practiced.
Ragnak didn’t stop her.
Camila watched, her throat dry, as Vera pulled his cock free—thick, already half-hard, the head flushed dark. Vera didn’t hesitate. She licked a hot stripe from base to tip, her tongue swirling around the slit before taking him deep into her mouth.
Ragnak’s breath hitched. Just once.
Vera moaned around him, her nails digging into his hips as she sucked him deeper, her other hand working the base in tight strokes. Spit slicked her chin, dripping onto the black stone beneath them.
Camila’s pulse hammered in her ears. She should look away. She didn’t.
Ragnak’s gloved hand tangled in Vera’s hair, not guiding—just holding, like he was keeping her exactly where he wanted her. His other hand reached for Camila, his fingers brushing her jaw, tilting her face up to his.
"Your turn," he said, his voice low.
Vera pulled off with a wet pop, grinning up at them both. "Yeah, *your* turn." She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, then grabbed Camila’s hips, shoving her forward until her knees hit the stone. "Suck him with me."
Camila’s mouth watered. The scent of Vera’s arousal mixed with the salt-tang of precome, heady and thick in the air. She leaned in, her tongue flicking against the underside of Ragnak’s cock, tasting him—bitter, warm.
Vera’s fingers slid into her hair, guiding her. "Like this." She took the tip back into her mouth, her lips stretched tight, and Camila followed, licking down the shaft before swallowing him as deep as she could.
Ragnak’s grip tightened in her hair. Not painful. Not *yet*.
Vera moaned around him, her free hand slipping between Camila’s thighs, fingers pressing against the damp fabric of her pants. "Fuck, you’re *soaked*," she murmured, her breath hot against Camila’s neck.
Camila whimpered around Ragnak’s cock, her hips rocking into Vera’s touch.
Ragnak’s voice cut through the haze. "Enough."
He dragged them both up by their hair, his grip just shy of brutal. Vera gasped, her lips swollen, her pupils blown wide. Camila’s breath came in ragged bursts, her body thrumming with need.
Ragnak shoved Vera against the nearest pillar, his hand fisting in the front of her shirt. "Turn around."
Vera obeyed with a shiver, bracing her hands against the stone. Ragnak yanked her pants down in one sharp motion, exposing her bare ass.
Camila’s mouth went dry.
Ragnak didn’t look at her as he unbuckled his belt fully, the leather slithering to the ground. "You watch," he told Camila. "Then it’s your turn."
Vera grinned over her shoulder, her teeth sharp. "*Fuck* yes."
Ragnak didn’t prep her. Just lined himself up and shoved in, hilting himself in one brutal thrust. Vera’s back arched, her scream echoing off the courtyard walls.
Camila’s nails dug into her palms.
Ragnak fucked her like it was a surgical procedure—precise, relentless, each snap of his hips driving Vera higher up the pillar. Vera’s thighs shook, her fingers scrambling for purchase on the smooth stone.
"*Fuck*—*fuck*—" she chanted, her voice breaking.
Ragnak’s hand clamped over her mouth, silencing her. His other hand reached back, grabbing Camila’s wrist, pulling her closer. "Touch her," he ordered.
Camila’s fingers trembled as she reached between Vera’s legs, finding her clit swollen and wet. She rubbed tight circles, her own body aching in sympathy as Vera clenched around Ragnak’s cock.
Vera came with a muffled scream, her body locking up, her nails scoring grooves into the stone.
Ragnak didn’t stop. Didn’t slow. He fucked her through it, his gaze locked on Camila. "Your turn now."
Vera slumped against the pillar, gasping, as Ragnak pulled out, his cock glistening. He turned to Camila, his gloved hand wrapping around her throat, not squeezing—just holding.
"On your knees."
Camila dropped.
The courtyard hummed around them, the glyphs pulsing gold, the air thick with sweat and sex.
Somewhere above, the dome watched.
And the hunt continued.
=====
The Helix Balcony stretched over Elarion like a curved blade, its railing woven from living vines that pulsed with bioluminescent sap. Arkan stood motionless at its edge, his coat stirring in the unnatural wind that carried whispers from the city below. The silver light caught the threads of mercury in his eyes as he studied the four figures arrayed before him - Gideon's squared shoulders, Vera's sharp grin, Ruben's restless fingers tapping against his thigh, Camila's quiet inhale as she avoided looking at Ragnak's freshly buckled belt.
"Discipline." Arkan's voice made the word sound like a verdict. Gideon stiffened further, the tattoos along his knuckles stretching as he clenched his fists. "Persuasion." Vera licked her lips, still swollen from the courtyard, and winked at nothing. "Determination." Ruben exhaled through his nose, his knee bouncing - the man who'd walked away from three broken vertebrae in Barcelona because the doctors told him he wouldn't. "Empathy." Camila's fingers twitched toward the rope burns on her wrists before she caught herself.
Ragnak stood apart from them, his gloves pristine again, as if the last hour hadn't happened. His gaze tracked the way Vera's thigh pressed against Camila's, how Ruben's pulse jumped when Gideon shifted closer. Calculating. Always calculating.
The air above the balcony shimmered, then split open like a wound. A three-dimensional map of Earth materialized, continents outlined in veins of gold, oceans swirling with liquid shadow. Arkan reached into the projection without hesitation, his fingers closing around Cape Town's glowing coordinates. The city lit up blood-red.
"Volatile candidate." Ragnak didn't ask. Never asked. "The Brazilian from the preliminary trials?"
Arkan's smile was thin as a scalpel. "The one who broke three extraction teams." The map dissolved into strands of light that wrapped around Ragnak's wrist like a tether. "Bring her intact this time."
Vera snorted, rubbing at the bite mark on her collarbone. "Intact's overrated."
Camila flinched when Ragnak turned to leave, the movement slight but not slight enough - Vera caught it, her grin turning wicked. She shoved Camila forward with a hand between her shoulder blades. "Say goodbye properly, *anjinho*."
Ragnak paused. Waiting. Always waiting for compliance.
Vera didn't wait. She grabbed Ragnak's face and kissed him hard enough to bruise, her teeth catching his lower lip on purpose. When she pulled back, her thumb swiped across his mouth, smearing a faint line of blood. "Don't take too long, *médico*."
Camila's pulse hammered in her throat. The memory of Ragnak's cock heavy on her tongue mixed with the Archive's invasive touch still buzzing under her skin. When Vera nudged her again, she stepped forward, her hands shaking as she reached up. Ragnak didn't bend, didn't move - she had to rise onto her toes, her lips brushing his with none of Vera's violence. Just pressure. Just heat. Just the barest hint of teeth before she pulled away.
Ruben whistled low. Gideon looked like he wanted to break someone's neck. Vera laughed, loud and bright as shattered glass.
Ragnak touched two fingers to his mouth where Camila's kiss lingered, then turned without a word. The balcony doors sealed behind him with a sound like a scalpel being slid back into its sheath.
The hunt continued.