Page 14 of Own to Obey

The ocean lay before her, stretching far into the distance, wide and expansive. It rippled and flicked, just like how she had seen it from afar when she was on the decks, but this time there was no oppressive heat or balcony obstructing the feel, sight or scent of it. It was the most beautiful thing she witnessed in a long time; something that could not be replicated, something that could not be forced or faked. Just like her gardens, it was real and honest and pure—an utter beauty. The waves rolled, dipped, peaked, and crashed. The breeze embraced her, chasing away the suffocating darkness. She took a breath and drew the salty, briny scent of the ocean deep into her lungs. It instantly calmed her further. She relaxed her body, her eyes lazy as she watched the ocean play. Above, the skies were a mixture of stone gray and smoky white, but it did not stop the birds from soaring high, circling in their eagerness to eat up as much of the skies as possible. She envied them for being so free.

She sighed, and as she did, she felt the shinno's arms tense underneath her. Stiffening, she remembered that he was still holding her. Glanced around, she couldn't tell where on the ship she was. It seemed as though he stood on the very edge of the deck, and with him holding her she couldn't see any part of the ship. It was as though they stood above the ocean, just the two of them watching over the mischievous waves.

Her eyes remained on the ocean as her mouth trembled. She hated him. She hated everything that he had made her do, everything he put her through. He wouldn't let her explain anything, he wouldn't speak to her in her own language, and he made her suffer just because she didn't understand. Regardless of what he wanted an Omega for, he was cruel. She suspected that putting her in that box was a warning. She had said she would do anything to ensure that she did not break, and yet that had almost broken her. Never had she been in such a tiny space before and she wasn't sure she could manage it again.

She thought of Kyus, back at home in her gardens with her betrothed. As long as she was able to live the life she was meant to, with the man she loved, any sacrifice Shaya gave was worth it. Shaya had long suspected that she was an accident for her parents. Kyus had never given her much details about who her mother or father were and why they were not with them. Based on what she said, it seemed as though her father had been an Alpha who had potentially forced their mother, but that was just Shaya guessing based on things Kyus said—she didn't know for sure, and she wasn't sure how she would ever find out. When she turned twelve and realized she was an Omega, she decided she didn't want to know. If Alphas were cruel and mean, she didn’t want to think that her mother had suffered, or that she hated her child because of the father. Kyus said that her mother was aware of them both, and that she wished she could be with them, but it was impossible. That always made Shaya sad and resentful of the way in which Omegas were treated, and the things they had to go through in order to protect themselves, but she never once felt as though she was at a disadvantage because she always had Kyus. Now she had nothing.

The shinno began to move slowly, and Kyus kept herself limp. She didn't care what he did to her. She would hate him forever for putting her in that box-room.

The jostling of her body caused intense pain to ricochet all over her, but she embraced it this time, as he slowly lowered them until he was sitting with her in his lap. It reminded her that her life was not her own; it was his to do with as he pleased. And every inch of pain was a reminder of that.

He settled her into his lap turning her toward him and away from the ocean. She was unwilling to look at his face. Knowing that he would be watching her with those strange eyes, she kept her head pressed to his chest, face to the side.

He began to stroke her leg, smoothing down the outside of her tunic and then slipping his hand underneath it to stroke her bare skin. The caress was so surprising that she sighed, relaxing into the feel of another’s touch.

His hand slipped underneath her leg, reaching there to caress the tender skin just under her ass, and then his whole hand slipped between her legs, stroking her inner thighs. Shaya sighed again, embracing the feeling of pleasure that rose from his hands on her. She couldn't think past it, although something sparked in the back of her mind that this might be a trap. But with the ocean breeze in her nose, and the smoky white and gray sky above her, all her worries were somehow suppressed. Nothing mattered as long as she could see the sky, and breathe in fresh air. Even the man she hated, the man who was now slipping his fingers into her underwear, would be tolerated if she could just have that, always.

As he found that spot between her legs that had given her so much pleasure before, she remembered that what had followed last time had not been pleasant. But she was unable to stiffen, or push away, or reject him. She just didn't have the energy or the will.

Threads of pleasure writhed all over her body as he stroked her, spiraling up her core and pushing away any last remnants of the unpleasantness that she just experienced. Her breathing deepened, but this time it was because something was coming, something she couldn't quite identify, but something she so dearly wanted.

The shinno's fingers stroked with a rhythm that was unrelenting, and she knew the slickness between her legs had come from her, aiding him in his quest, whatever that may be. As the feeling intensified, she felt his arm behind her back shift a little, and his other hand reaching around to grab her breast. She gasped as he pinched her nipples through the tunic, sending intense pleasure shooting all over her body, and causing her to clench. She arched her back as the intensity increased, gyrated her hips, needing more. The shinno stayed with her, never missing a stroke, never slowing down his rhythm as she climbed and climbed. A low rumble came from the chest next to her cheek, and the gritty intensity of it pushed her over the edge.

Suddenly she was soaring, free and wild and powerful. She pulled her knees up and widened her legs, rolling her hips at the intensity of the feeling, gasping at how good it felt and welcoming the magnificent pleasure. And as she slowly came down, panting, all energy left her body.

The shinno's fingers slowed as she jerked and spasmed, the lingering ecstasy still swimming through her. Her knees dropped and laziness came over her.

“Tes ni choya detta mthnoy, kysm eshar,” came the low rumble from the shinno.

She blinked up at him and his gaze was one she could not decipher, nor did she care to. She turned to look at the ocean, but a low growl came from his throat and he leaned her back into him.

She cried out as her shoulder squeezed against him, pain exploding through the whole joint and down her chest, chasing away the euphoria she had been enjoying.

The shinno froze, a frown entering his face. He gently prodded her shoulder, but she cried out again and hissed at him with annoyance. He ignored her, slowly looking over her whole body and then back to her shoulder.

Then he got up, holding her carefully, and turned away from the beautiful ocean. As he led her away, she wondered if it was the final time that she would ever see it.

***

By the time he arrived at her cabin, Shaya was once again drowsy. The shinno ensured he had not jolted her body as he walked, and so she could almost forget how much pain she was in. But as he placed her down on the bed, her limbs all cried out in protest and her shoulder practically screamed. He left the room and she gingerly lifted her arms, wriggled her toes and tried to roll her shoulders back to see where the pain was emanating from. The soreness in her legs was more like an ache now, as though she had been tending to her garden the day before. Her hands and arms were still extremely painful from hanging on the deck and the tea-making punishment, but her shoulder felt as though it could have been bruised deep within.

Before she could consider it further, the shinno returned with jars, bottles, and a number of different types of materials. He set them on the bed next to her and then lowered to kneel before her.

Shaya was taken aback that he was on his knees in front of her, and how close he leaned into her, but she didn’t have time to think about it for long. The shinno began to lift off her tunic.

Immediately, she thought to resist, but even if she tried, the pain in her body was too much, she couldn’t do it. And then she wondered why she was bothering. She had already known that he would do whatever he wanted to her, and she would have to take it. If he was going to try to use her while she was suffering, it was simply another thing that she had to try to survive. She kept herself limp, trying to send her mind somewhere else as he pulled off her tunic and underclothes, revealing her torso to him.

Surprisingly, he did not touch her breasts, but instead started examining her shoulder—the one that hurt. Using her elbow, he lifted her arm and rotated it as she cried out in pain.

Once he was satisfied with whatever he had seen, he grabbed some of the jars and bottles and opened them. The potent smell of the substances within the jars drew her attention. They seemed familiar, like the herbs and plants from her garden she had used to create potions, tinctures, and balms over the years. She had spent significant time mixing different types of natural substances she had found in the garden, from dews, fresh and dried herbs, fruit and leaves, to rainwater that had dripped through the leaves of certain plants. There were countless days experimenting, creating different creams and oils, some with Kyus’ guidance and experience, and some experimenting with what she had available to her. Kyus always joked she should be careful in case she mixed any of the potions into their food, but it wasn’t that different from creating a recipe, experimenting, tweaking, and then trying again. Along with Kyus’ ability to use magic, she had created some pretty powerful potions that Kyus had used on some of her missions.

Shaya peered into the jars that the shinno had opened, sniffing as she recognized rosemary, bitter bark oil, lemonseed root and—

She cried out as the shinno applied a cold substance into her shoulder, stiffening at the shock and pain of it. “That hurts,” she snapped at him, before she realized what she was saying and who she was saying it to.

The shinno studied her face and the corner of his mouth tilted up as he continued to apply pressure to rub in the cream.

She turned her head away and gritted her teeth as he continued. Obviously he was trying to treat her, and there was no way to do that without applying some pressure, but it hurt so much. She wondered if there was a break, and how she would know whether it was or simply badly bruised. She had been throwing the same shoulder at the walls in the box-room. It wasn’t unreasonable to think that she may have broken it.

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