Master of Fire Ch. 03

Ember woke up to find her wrists pinned above her head by another pair of iron shackles.

Just as before, she tried vainly to slip her wrists from their bindings. Ember slumped against the wall and let her arms hang limp.

Ember sighed and then spoke aloud: "What do you want from me, ghost?"

"You'll see," came Demetri's voice in her ear.

Ember started as Demetri faded through the wall from behind her to kneel before her.

"I think I already have, ghost," she muttered. "Every time you fade through me I get a glimpse of some fresh hell."

"Are you refusing to say my name, halfling?" Demetri asked teasingly.

Ember's eyes crackled.

"That's a shame," he smiled, "because I was looking forward to hearing you scream it."

"You expect me to call you by your name?" Ember said icily. "You're a monster."

"Then we can play Beauty and the Beast," Demetri said, flashing her a mocking grin.

"Well when you die, I can promise I won't save you with a confession of undying love," Ember retorted.

"Thank God I'm already dead then."

"Which means my mother didn't do that either."

Ember glared at the ghost, knowing full-well how hard her words must have stung him.

Demetri's smile vanished and his blue eyes narrowed. He cocked his head and reached out his hand, brushing it down Ember's face and then slowly wrapping his fingers around her throat.

Ember tried to squirm away from is touch, but he gripped her neck tightly.

"I loved her more than my life," Demetri said slowly. "I loved her more than my fucking life and she ripped my heart out and tore it to pieces."

Ember panted for air.

"You don't know how to pick your fights, halfling," the ghost said as he eyed his struggling prisoner.

"Neither... did... you!" Ember managed to gasp.

Demetri's fingers loosened, and then he ran his hand down to cup her breast and tease her hardening nipple. He felt his captive's chest rise and fall quickly.

"You're right," he murmured, his eyes still holding hers.

He leaned in close to Ember and smiled as she tried to shrink back into the wall. His hands dug into her flesh and she gasped in pain as he lowered his head to bite at her nipple.

"But you are a fine consolation prize, halfling," the ghost said, his words whispering over her breast. "There is nothing to stop me from taking you whenever I want. I can do whatever I want to you."

"Fuck you," she said hoarsely.

Demetri's eyes flashed angrily: "Is that a promise, little bloodsucker?"

The ghost stood up and his gaze hardened as Ember glared up at him.

"You look so much like your mother did," Demetri growled, "the night she fucking killed me!"

Demetri punctuated his cry by swinging a kick at the chained halfling.

"She broke my heart when she betrayed me for a vampire, and then, to add insult to injury, she had you," Demetri roared.

Ember choked as his booted foot met with her stomach once again.

Demetri bent down over Ember, grabbing her chin and wrenching her face towards his. Demetri blinked in surprise when Ember's eyes met his. They burned with anger, pain and determination, but there was something else buried beneath those feelings.

She still feels sorry for me. She pities me.

"Don't you dare pity me!" he said dangerously. "Don't you dare fucking pity me!"

The ghost straightened and swung another kick at the halfling. Ember cried out in pain and tears ran down her cheeks as Demetri kicked her, again, and again, and again.

"I will break you, halfling," Demetri roared. "I will break you!"

The ghost revelled in the sharp cries that the halfling emitted whenever his booted foot came into contact with her slim form.

Finally, he stopped. He stood panting, taking in the battered body of his captive. She looked defeated, crushed from the outside in. But, despite the tears spilling from her eyes, they still burned with deep emotions.

I was wrong. Those eyes are nothing like Serafina's. I can see into the depths of her soul through those fiery eyes. I can see the anger, the despair, the way she feels about what happened to me... those wild emotions that she has no control over.

He knelt down and ran a thumb over her lips. She had bitten them almost bloody.

God, she is so beautiful... so young and full of life. I want her to fight me. I want to chase her. I would chase her to the ends of the earth just to have the chance to take her at the world's end.

Demetri leaned down and his mouth engulfed hers in a torturous kiss. Ember winced as he bit at her lower lip and consumed her mouth in a feverish kiss.

Demetri broke the kiss and stared into her eyes without emotion. He was lost in thought, and she barely had the strength to keep her eyes open to hold his empty gaze. He watched as the fire that had flamed so brightly in her beautiful eyes faded to ash. The ghost straightened abruptly and wrapped his hands around the shackles that bound Ember to the wall. The irons opened at his touch and he pulled her to her feet by a fistful of hair.

"Fight back," he purred in her ear. "Come on, halfling. Fight back."

Ember struggled to stand on her own, but her body was in agony and she could hardly meet Demetri's eyes.

As soon as she gained her footing, Demetri let go of her hair and shoved her across the room.

Ember cried out as she landed on the cobbled floor. Demetri's eyes flashed as she slowly propped herself up. His lips curved in a lusty smile as he strode towards her.

Ember tried to crawl away from the ghost, but Demetri was before her in an instant. He loomed over her, smugly shaking his head at the girl lying at his feet.

"Is that all you got?" Demetri asked darkly, using the toe of his boot to lift her chin up so that the halfling's teary eyes met his. "Huh? You going to give up?"

"Never," Ember breathed, angrily pushing his foot away.

"Then fight back," Demetri sneered, toeing her with his boot.

Ember gathered her strength, rage building inside her as the ghost patronised her.

"Where did that flame go?" Demetri taunted. "Did I stamp out the fire in you?"

Ember began to push herself up, using the wall as support. She drew herself up to her full height and spat in Demetri's face.

"No."

Demetri stood motionless for a moment, holding Ember's fiery gaze with his stormy eyes. Slowly, Demetri wiped his face and then he pulled his hand back sharply.

Ember didn't flinch.

"Not scared of me anymore, huh?" Demetri chuckled lightly: "We'll see how long that lasts."

Then the ghost backhanded Ember across the face so hard that her legs gave out beneath her and she crumpled to the ground. The halfling slumped on her hands and knees before him.

Demetri knelt behind her and grabbed her waist. She barely had the strength to resist, but she gathered all the energy she had left in an attempt to escape him once she heard him undoing his pants. She frantically clawed at the cobblestones in an effort to escape the huge dick that was now running over her ass.

Demetri laughed and he tightened his grip on her hips to hold her still.

"Have you ever had a man's dick in your ass, halfling?" He slapped her ass so hard his fingers left welts on her bare flesh. He let out a dark laugh as she cried out in pain.

"I'm gonna fill your ass with my cum," he said, and then he plunged his dick inside her.

Ember cried out with each thrust that the ghost made. Her body ached all over, and her ass felt like it was on fire.

Demetri did not last long: The sight of his prisoner, wearing nothing but his belt hanging around her hips and her thigh-high boots, with her face pressed into the ground as he pummelled her ass, was too much to bear.

"Oh, get ready for it, halfling," he growled. "I'm cumming. I'm filling your tight ass with my cum."

Ember's face contorted deliciously as she tried to fight back the tears that welled in her eyes when she felt his hot cum filling her ass.

Demetri panted and pulled out of the young girl. He stood up and did his pants back up before he grabbed one of her wrists and dragged her back to the shackles embedded into the wall so he could clamp her arms back inside them.

He lifted her face so that she was staring at him through teary eyes and whispered: "Just because you haven't given yourself to me, doesn't mean you aren't mine."

Ember was barely awake when Demetri faded from the room. Her body was in agony and wracked with constant shivers from the cold and damp, and she did not have the energy to stay conscious.

+++++++

When she first saw him, Ember thought she was dreaming. At first, he had seemed a slinking shadow and then suddenly a dark figure was striding from the darkness towards her.

"Let me go," she whispered hoarsely, closing her eyes as he knelt down before her.

Fingers reached out to cup her breasts and run down her thighs.

"What a beautiful little blood-biter," he hissed.

Wait.. That - that's not Demetri's voice...

Ember opened her eyes slowly in confusion. The darkling creature crouched before her was certainly not her captor: He was built like a human man, but his skin was covered in scaly ridges that crawled over his naked frame, his eyes were lid-less and pupil-less, from his rippling head rose two horns, two spiny wings protruded from his back and a spiked tail whipped agitatedly behind him.

"What are you doing here?" the creature hissed again, a forked tongue flicking against her cheek. "You don't belong here..."

Ember's brow furrowed and she turned groggily away from the creature.

"Speak to me, blood-biter," he whispered, his jagged tail wrapping around her neck.

Ember shook her head and the creature began to squeeze. Ember let out a rasping cry as the spikes dug into her neck.

Help me... oh God please help me...

The creature grinned and Ember felt blood dripping down her neck. The creature cackled and began to lap at her neck with his forked tongue.

Ember had no energy to scream, and she felt herself slipping from consciousness the longer the creature drank her blood.

Please... Please...

Ember had just slipped into unconsciousness as Demetri melted through her into the dungeon. His spirit was pure power and anger in that moment. He grabbed the creature as he faded through her, and fought the howling demon into a corner.

"You should not have brought her here!" the creature screeched.

Demetri roared angrily as he lunged at the beast and faded them both through the floor. They burst into the buffeting winds of the phantom realm and Demetri tore at his aggressor furiously.

The demon howled with each blow that Demetri struck and fought back with his lashing tail and clawing hands.

"He's going to find out, ghost!" the demon cackled as he dove at Demetri. "It's just a matter of time. And then he's going to take her all for himself!"

Demetri grabbed the demon's whipping tail and wrenched him downwards, grabbing and tearing at his wings.

Finally Demetri had him by the throat.

"You won't live to tell him," he whispered threateningly.

The demon's eyes were an unholy blaze of green as he laughed in the ghost's face: "He's gonna find your pretty little blood-biter!"

The ghost's lip curled in anger and he shoved an invisible hand inside the creature and ripped out it's heart. The demon howled in pain and fell down through the clouds until his shadowy form disappeared from sight.

The creature's heart turned to dust in Demetri's hand, and the ghost let the sooty remnants be blown through his fingers. Then, he turned and faded back into the castle. His eyes widened as they took in his bruised and bleeding captive. Her neck was laced with blood from wounds the creature had inflicted, and the injuries he had inflicted on her had barely healed. Though vampires' healing rates are almost a hundred times faster than that of a human, a lack of nutrition, hydration and sleep had taken their toll on the halfling.

Oh God. What was I thinking? She needs food, she needs water... She looks so weak.

Demetri fell to his knees before Ember and cupped her face tenderly in his hands, his eyes flickered with shame when she flinched at his touch.

"Y-you -" she whispered hoarsely.

Demetri shook his head and brushed her hair from her eyes.

"I am so sorry, little halfling," he said softly. He quickly dissolved the shackles on her wrists and shrugged his jacket off to wrap around her shoulders. He tore off his shirt and dabbed at the blood covering the halfling's neck.

Even though Ember could hardly see through the haze of tears filling her eyes, she suddenly noticed as Demetri pulled her gently into his arms that every inch of his defined torso was laced with scars.

The vampires... she thought groggily.

The ghost stood up and kissed the halfling, fading them away as she fell limp. Demetri hugged her close and sped up through the floors of the castle.

+++++++

Ember's vision was blurry when her eyelids finally fluttered open. It took her eyes and her mind a few moments to digest her surroundings. She gazed around dizzily and realised all at once that she was in a steaming pool of water, that she was lying in Demetri's lap, and that they were both naked.

The ghost had one arm wrapped around her for support, holding her in his lap so that he could wash away the stains of abuse that covered the halfling's body.

Groggily, she tried to push the ghost's hand away and roll out of his arms, but he held her still.

"Halfling, you're safe," he whispered. "The demon's gone. He won't hurt you again, I promise."

"Y-you al-" the halfling tried to speak, but her dry mouth could not form words.

"Oh, here, I have water for you," the ghost said gently, reaching behind him for a goblet of water. "Please, you must drink this."

The girl's lips parted slightly and he tipped the goblet slightly so that the cool water could trickle into her mouth. He watched as her lips slowly regained their colour, the ashen hues fading from her skin the more she drank. When the glass was empty, there would be another waiting for the ghost's outstretched hand. Eventually, however, he reached and found his hand wrapping around a warm earthen mug that smelled of fruits and herbs. He lowered it to her mouth and smiled slightly as the halfling shook her head and reached out to hold the mug herself. Her strength was returning with each sip, but her breathing was still haggard when Demetri took the empty cup from her hands.

The ghost continued to dab at the halfling as she lay in his lap, but, despite his gentle touch, Ember cried out in agony when he ran a hand over her ribs.

"I-I am so sorry," the ghost stammered as he cradled the writhing girl in his lap. "I am so, so sorry."

Eventually, the pain eased and Ember's moans turned to silent tears that glistened on her cheeks as she slipped back into unconsciousness.

Ember woke again only a few minutes later, but in her mind and to the ghost, her faint had lasted a lifetime.

"Oh, thank God, you're awake," the ghost whispered gently, running his fingers over her face.

Ember pushed his hand away purposefully this time and she tried to stand, but her body was still too weak. Demetri looped his arm around her waist and pulled the her back towards him, holding her still in his arms.

"You are still too weak, you must stay still," he said, burying his face in her dripping hair. "God, I thought I'd lost you, but you're safe now."

"Safe?" Ember whispered hoarsely. "Y-you almost killed me! You kidnapped me! You raped me! You-you..."

Demetri silenced his prisoner with a brief, but powerful, kiss.

"I'm sorry," he breathed. His lips brushed against hers as he spoke: "I just can't control myself around you."

Ember shook her head weakly, lying limply in his arms. She was painfully aware that his cock was resting against her beneath the water.

"Let me go," she said, her voice strengthening quickly.

Demetri did not answer her, instead reaching one arm over his shoulder to produce a bunch of chocolate-covered grapes.

"The chocolate will give you some energy," he said.

Ember reached for the grapes gratefully.

I don't know why he is doing this. But, still, I am just so hungry...

But Demetri pulled the grapes away from Ember's outstretched hands.

"No, no," he said, "just bite them off the stem."

"I don't want to play games," the halfling said listlessly.

Demetri kissed her lightly on the corner of her mouth and spoke low: "But you are such a dangerous little plaything... Indulge me."

Ember frowned, but she was starving, so she opened her mouth and bit one of the grapes off the bunch.

Demetri's dick throbbed a little as the halfling ate from the bunch dangling from his fingers. Her beautiful lips were smeared with chocolate by the time she was through.

He smiled at her as she swallowed the last grape, marvelling that colour was already returning to her wan cheeks.

"There's that glow," he sighed. "I was waiting to see the fire return to your skin."

Gently, he pulled the hair from her neck and smiled when he saw that the wounds had closed.

"I think it was that tea, honestly, but a little food has done you a world of good," he said.

He touched her lightly on her ribs again, asking her if they hurt each time and apologising each time she winced. Finally, his hand returned to her face and he took in her beauty, as if for the first time.

"God, you're eyes are beautiful," he breathed.

Ember lowered her eyes, and Demetri seized on his opportunity to kiss her once again. Her lips were sweeter than ever because they were tinged with chocolate, and he licked them clean as he withdrew from the kiss.

"You taste so fucking sweet," he whispered against her neck.

Ember started to lift herself out of the ghost's arms. But he was having none of it.

"No, no, no," he said between nibbling kisses on her neck. "I almost lost you. That demon almost killed you."

"I almost wish you had let him," she murmured bitterly.

"I won't let anyone will take you from me, halfling."

"Oh right, killing me is your job," Ember retorted, her voice breaking slightly as she spoke.

Demetri drew away from her and held her eyes. His voice was soft as he admitted, "Halfling, I couldn't bear it if something were to happen to you."

"That's fucking bullshit," she sobbed angrily. "You almost killed me a few hours ago."

"A few hours ago, I had not thought anything could take you from me. You were mine and mine alone. Mine to do with as I pleased," the ghost said with quiet intensity. "I wanted to take out my rage on you, I wanted to take out my frustration on you. I hated your pity."

Demetri paused and brushed a strand of hair from Ember's face.

"Then I realised that what I saw in your eyes wasn't pity. It was sympathy," the ghost's tone was almost entreating as his eyes searched hers. "You understand my pain, don't you?"

Ember wiped the tears from her blazing eyes, refusing to answer.

He's been through so much fucking pain. I have never loved anyone that much... And she said she didn't love him. She said she didn't love him...

"You are a hopeless romantic, aren't you?" Demetri smiled softly. "Even after all the things I did to you, you still sympathise with me. You have such a beautiful soul. As beautiful as your body."

Demetri ran his hand down her leg.

"You are so gorgeous, even when you cry, you are the most stunning creature I have ever seen."

Ember stared nervously into his eyes, breathless and speechless. She could feel the ghost's cock hardening.

"Don't you dare," she whispered, her eyes filling with hurt anger. "Don't..."

"Don't what?"

"Don't rape me."

"You aren't really in a position to stop me, are you?"

The halfling tried to push herself away from the ghost, but his grip around her waist was firm.