Heart of Gladiator

Sparks of a Flame

"Together we could be invincible," her lips muttered against his cheek, her breath moistening the soft skin below his ear as her long slender fingers dangerously coiled round his wrist. "You can have her, Aurelius," she promised him, "but only if you consume her completely till she is ruined."

Her knee gently parted his legs as she pressed against his robust chest, encouraging him to feel the sweet sensation of her body rubbing against his. He tried to push her away from him, to end this mad seduction of hers, but she only got closer and bolder. Briskly, beyond his wildest expectations, she took control of his mouth with her own craving and sinful lips and tongue, pulling him further and deeper into this outrageous crime before she whispered into his opened lips, "I know you yearn for her, Aurelius, so let her feed your lust. Consume her whole body and soul. You must destroy her, Aurelius. You must destroy my sister. You must destroy Gwenor."

Raya's devilish eyes looked straight into his soul, mocking him, and she laughed, laughed so hard, Aurelius could never forget that face and voice. Before he knew it, Ruther appeared from behind and then Maroon, laughing along with Raya. "We'll kill you both," Ruther repeated time after time, and then Maroon, "I swear we will..."

Aurelius woke up, his eyes fiercely staring into the darkness that enveloped him. His breathing was extremely high-strung. His chest simply kept rising and falling rapidly as his lungs would inflate and contract constantly. He was sweating all over. The pain in his hip was still sore and the memory of those lips on his mouth almost tasted like poison. God, he never felt worse.

Just at that moment he heard his front door swing upon, banging against the wall and letting into the house the howling wind and ferocious storm that raged the land outside. Probably the storm was already at its peak. And then he heard someone's footsteps.

Immediately, as fast as he could, he retrieved his knife from beneath his pillow and with all his might got up onto his feet and moved to the door of his room, doing his hardest not to make a sound even though he was cringing out of pain every time he made a move.

The person got closer to his bedroom with every step, and he held on tighter to his knife. But as soon as he heard Gwenor call out his name, his grip upon the knife weakened and he set it aside.

"Gwenor," he immediately called out in reply, coming out of his hiding place and searching for her in the darkness, until he saw her silhouette on the walls of the corridor.

"Aurelius!" she called out once he was found in the dark, and quickly ran into his arms.

He looked down at her, seeing her blonde hair glow and blue eyes sparkle in the dark room. He could feel his heart race faster than it ever did before with her being so close to him. "What are you doing here?" he asked her, scanning the area outside the house to see if anyone was standing in wait for her.

"I rode out here alone," she told him, gently drawing his face away from the window to look at her.

"It's been days, Aurelius. I needed to come see you."

"Oh Gwenor, I needed to see you too." He pulled her tighter into his arms, taking in the scent of her hair and skin to commit it to memory. "But you can't stay here," he warned her, unwillingly letting go of her slowly. "They'll come look for you soon."

"Even if they do," she said, seeming disappointed by his withdrawal, "would it matter to you?"

"Gwenor," he said, looking down at her earnestly, "you know I worry for you."

"No I don't think it is that, Aurelius!" she protested hotly and moved away from him at once, putting up a wall between them two. "It's just that I'm a fool, right from the start, having let myself fall in love with you."