The hegemity of the harem aside, Roksu actually did think about it. He thought about a lot of things. He couldn't help but question the world around him as though prodding it for the plot hole that would surely reveal itself.
He wasn't the sort to just accept things as they were and move on. He was the type to ruminate on it and then move on.
And in any normal circumstance, he would have pondered a few explanations for the existence of the male harem, come up with a few plausible explanations, and dug no further.
Most people probably would have also dismissed the smutty romance novels that lined the harem library. Romance didn't need to make sense or to have any groundings in reality so long as it could pluck the heartstrings of the reader.
But Roksu had noticed a curious trend in the novels. It would be simple enough to call it a peculiar kink that some previous individual who'd lived within these walls had left behind them. Roksu could have thought it was just that.
He was just also the sort of person who asked questions like 'why is there a small library here to begin with?'.
Why is there a male harem? Why is there a library? Why do so many of the novels have a curious trend of beastly men with a limited capacity for any sense at all? Men who all seemed to share a particular curse?
Roksu wasn't someone to jump to conclusions otherwise he would have already informed Cale of his suspicions. It had really only become confirmed for him when he saw the panicked and helpless look on Alberu Crossman's face.
He shared Cale's disapproval though. The man ought to have found the time to offer them a proper explanation before it was down to the wire like this. It was reckless and inconsiderate of him. It was possible that he believed he had more time but as an inconvenienced party in this matter, Roksu was somewhat unwilling to offer him that grace.
Roksu placed a hand on Cale's shoulder to quell his temper. "I can go first." He winced at the thought. He hated pain and he hated the idea of experiencing some of the more graphic novels he'd read firsthand but Cale didn't know what was coming. Rationally speaking, he was the only person here who could give informed consent. Besides, the palace doctors would be available if anything went wrong. He'd be fine.
Cale's fiery brown eyes met his with a fierce glare. "Like fucking hell you are." He batted Roksu's hand away.
To an outsider, it might actually look like they were fighting over Alberu's attention. It was a good thing that the only outsider was Alberu and he was quickly losing his ability to focus on anything at all, much less the bickering pair in front of him.
He already knew it was supposed to be like this, his thoughts and coherence sinking away into a void while all that remained was animalistic desire.
It didn't make it any easier to cope with.
He was a person who treasured his autonomy above most things and to have it stripped away in such a brutal way was torturous.
He'd already sensed that it was beginning before he'd even entered the room.
Smells were so much more vivid than vision. It was a strange time to realize that emotions had their own intrinsic scents. Fear, lust, protectiveness, apprehension, anger, intrigue... all the smells were overwhelming his ability to think, to breathe properly.
And inside of him there was an ever growing desire that threatened the very core of his being with how it struggled against him.
The choice that the tiger offered him was very simple, kill or fuck.
It wouldn't be sated unless it was fed at least one of those core desires and it wouldn't let him go.
The choice was an obvious one but it scared him all the same.
It wasn't so simple as pressing a button and all bloodlust faded away. No, he felt the desire to rip flesh from bone and to kill endlessly until not a single person walked this earth. The itch to see the life fade from his victims eyes as he personally tore out their heart and ate it.
It really was a horrific curse. He understood the necessity for certain precautions to be taken better than he'd ever really been able to grasp before.
Alberu had never been a terribly violent man. He sought out strength as a means to an end and that end was peace and prosperity. The violent desires inside of him were new and strange and terrifying. Every muscle in his body was ready to spring to life to make it a reality.
But just as strong as the bloodlust, there was a desire just as depraved. The fear and apprehension he could smell weren't repulsive to him, far from it, he was drawn towards it just as he was the lust.
He wanted pleasure, any which way he could achieve it and there were two willing bodies in front of him cluelessly accepting him. The things he wanted to do to them made the remainders of his sanity shudder.
He'd felt lust and desire before, he was a healthy male in his mid-twenties and despite his decision not to take on a queen, he was neither asexual nor aromantic. He'd wanted things before. Wanted to touch others, had his fantasies, and wanted it deeply.
And yet none of those memories held even a candle to the overwhelming flame of desires that burned inside of him and threatened to burn him up.
With what remained of his dwindling sanity, he thought that good people like them didn't deserve to be the target of such an insatiable lust. He could see, could smell, could hear that they were good.
They wanted to protect each other and the most painful realization of all was who they wanted to protect one another from.
Alberu well and truly felt like a monster.
The horrific desires of that monster made that a good feeling. Twisting him up inside until–
The sound of his heartbeat was strong, passionate, and scared. The fear wasn't as strong as it could be though, he wanted to see how scared it could be.
Surprised brown eyes looked up at him and in them he could see the reflection of a monster, his body shifting so painfully in places to accommodate the curse.
He snarled at his reflection, an instinctual part of him hating it but the man pinned beneath him had no way of knowing where that hatred was directed, flinching horribly.
Alberu growled deeply at the reaction. As much as he wanted to smell the fear rolling off of him in waves, he hated the sight just as much. The internal conflict only mounted his frustration and a part of him still just wanted to rip everything apart–
The man's arms stretched up, wrapping around his neck and pulling his hair fearlessly. Those same brown eyes that were alight with terror only moments ago met his with a strange ferocity. "Alright, Fucker." He hissed and Alberu was struck for a moment, even in his debilitated state, with how really beautiful this man was. "Let's see how fucking long you can last."
It was like a fearless puppy barking at a ferocious tiger.
It would be endearing if it wasn't so ill-advised.
What amazed Alberu about it was that he could still smell the fear, thick and anxious, but this man still didn't flinch away from and cower. It sated him and frustrated him in one.
He wanted him to cower and he hated the sight of it. It was a terrible contradiction.
The only emotion inside of him that wasn't in contradiction was how badly he wanted this man.
Without any hesitation, he dragged him up into a biting kiss.
Cale winced, the fangs of the beastly bastard had definitely drawn blood and Cale knew from experience that lip-cuts were obnoxious to heal.
It annoyed him enough that he bit back, causing Alberu to let out a startled whimper.
Cale grinned. Served him right.
He was scared out of his mind right now.
Alberu Crossman had been a normal person one moment and now he had changed into something not quite human. Cale couldn't see any logic or reason in his eyes and strangely... that's what calmed him down.
Cale's specialty was, after all, driving his partner into madness.
So what if this one had fangs and a tail? Details. So long as he had junk or at least a hole, Cale was confident they could figure something out. At least he still looked mostly human, even if Cale could swear he had fur in places.
His hands still trembled as he gripped Alberu's hair and his body was crushed against Alberu's in a powerful hold.
It was intense and terrifying and strangely exciting. Cale had rarely, if ever, balked from a challenge and he wasn't about to begin today.
And the kiss was obnoxiously inexperienced too. Cale pulled him closer and showed the damn idiot how to really kiss.
Apparently Alberu was a quick learner, or perhaps he was just as competitive as Cale, because the sloppy painful kiss quickly changed and Cale felt a bit weak.
He could feel the overwhelming desire in Alberu's every movement, claws tearing into his clothes as the kiss deepened with raw lust.
Cale liked that feeling. It was why he strove to drive his partners crazy.
The moments where he could just feel how deeply he was desired.
He had never felt an intensity like this before though.
It was scary.
Alberu's claws had done a good job of shredding his clothes in their purposeless desire to hold Cale ever closer and there were certainly places where he'd nicked skin instead. Cale let out a whimper as a claw cut through his skin again and he pulled Alberu's hair harshly in response. Alberu let out a low growl, pulling away from the kiss only to redirect his attention to Cale's throat.
In a heartstopping moment, with the beasts fangs against his throat and the eminent threat of possible death for misbehavior, Cale felt an overwhelming terror that made his entire body tremble.
"Fuck you." He sneered out, pulling at Alberu's hair again and wrapping his trembling legs around his waist.
Fear had never made him hesitate before.
The beast growled again, nipping at his throat and rutting blindly towards Cale. Cale let out a sneering scoff.
What an inexperienced bastard.
"If you want to intimidate me, maybe learn how to fuck properly first." He mocked, rolling his hips so that his ass pressed up against the clothed bulge in Alberu's pants.
...it felt big. Cale felt a momentary apprehension at that realization and Alberu growled again, biting his throat again as he rutted again, this time at least succeeding in grinding against Cale.
Beast? He was just a big stupid cat.
Cale moved his hand deftly downward, freeing Alberu's cock and catching Roksu's over the beast's shoulder.
Predictably, Roksu had remained calm. And had very calmly found the heaviest vase in the room that he was ready to commit treason with, should Cale give the word.
Cale chuckled and shook his head. Roksu didn't look surprised by the answer but he still made a gesture asking if they should switch.
Cale smirked and shook his head, one hand still firmly gripping Alberu's hair while the other positioned the length of his throbbing cock. It was definitely bigger than he was used to and he anticipated quite a stretch.
The thought alone was exciting.
"Hey, fucker." Cale pulled Alberu away from his throat by the hair and glared into his insane blue eyes. "Fuck me."
Apparently there was enough inside of Alberu to understand the command because his hips jerked forward with merciless force.
Cale let out a sharp gasp, unable to regain his bearings before Alberu began to thrust into him over and over relentlessly. The beast let out a low pleasured groan of satisfaction, biting and sucking his neck again just to taste his pulse.
Cale was ready for a lot of things.
He wasn't ready for the way Alberu quite literally got bigger inside of him, his moans morphing into delirious whimpers as Alberu held him close and fucked him senseless.
He couldn't feel or think of anything but every earth shattering thrust as Alberu found his pace.
And what a pace it was.
Cale bit Alberu's shoulder, clawing into his back as he tried to regain any coherent thought at all.
Alberu growled against his neck, licking a place he'd broken skin as though apologizing for doing it.
Really. A big dumb cat.
Cale could laugh if his entire body wasn't on fire. He moaned low in his throat and felt the sweet release of an orgasm, his entire body slumping against Alberu's as he tried to catch his breath.
He came faster than normal but he wasn't prepared for any of this and Alberu's size and powerful thrusts meant that his spot was constantly being stimulated.
It probably would have been one of the best fucks of his life, by the standards of pure animalistic pleasure, the trouble was that Alberu's movements weren't even slowing down.
He whimpered weakly, overstimulated beyond pleasure and reaching a state closer to pain. He squirmed in Alberu's grip but that only caused him to hold him tighter, fucking him with even more vigor.
Cale gasped, clawing blindly at Alberu's back and tears pricking his eyes.
Fuck–he'd never been so beyond being able to cope and fuck–he loved it. The overstimulated agony of Alberu's relentless thrusts and his own miserable moans intermixed with Alberu's lusty ones.
He didn't know how to cope.
A gentle hand touched his hair and he heard Roksu's voice gently by his ear. "...if I'm right, he won't be able to stop until he comes." Cale felt some relief at Roksu's voice. The advice itself was pretty useless but it was comforting to have him nearby. He let out another helpless moan as Roksu continued. "I'll take him next so you can have a break. This is going to be an all-nighter."
Cale wanted to argue with him that he wasn't so weak as to give up after only one round and he was certainly better equipped than Roksu to handle this but Alberu's growl rumbled from his throat as the beastly man began to thrust into him with impatient desire to find release.
Cale wondered if it was even possible to cum again so soon. His mind went blank with pleasure and could only uselessly moan as Alberu rammed into him with breaking force.
Cale was an average sized man. He wasn't particularly muscular but he wasn't used to being treated like a weightless rag-doll. If he had any sense left, he'd wonder about the physical strength needed to do that.
Instead he mewled helplessly, clinging to Alberu as the monstrous man finally found release. Cale felt the heat fill him and could practically sob in relief over it. He loved it and hated it and his body tingled with the after effects of it all.
He'd never truly feared for his life during sex. Never thought he'd die from overwhelming pleasure alone.
Alberu licked his neck apologetically but a deep growl rumbled up from deep within and Cale felt with growing horror that his flaccid cock was beginning to harden again.
Luckily, Roksu was able to gently wrench him away from Alberu, much to the snapping displeasure of the monster who only felt the pleasurable warmth be taken from him.
He didn't want to let go of Cale. Didn't want to give up that passionate and insane man who just wouldn't stop challenging him–
"Alright, your highness." Roksu's voice drew his attention and he was met with the sight of a stoic expression that hid all the nerves he could smell. "Don't claw me."
Really. They were both so impressively fearlesss, all things considered. Alberu let out a disgruntled growl that would have caused most people to cower.
Roksu didn't even flinch although his scent told the truth. He was scared and nervous but determined.
Following instincts alone, he moved to pounce.