Page 30 of Between Soul and Vessel
“And it better stay that way, for her sake, as well as your own,” he warned just before we walked through the red, silk drapery that hung from the arched entrance.
Raucous female laughter and sensual music greeted us as we stepped inside the dim, candlelit room. Incenseburned, filling the air with the scent of jasmine. It was the empress’s favorite scent, one I could trace back as far as my memory could reach, back to when I was a young immortal. She always had it burning during events like these or in her private chambers, saying it evoked feelings of passion and joy.
But to me?
It reminded me of repression. Of late nights and unwanted touches.
Ihatedthe scent of jasmine.
In the middle of the atrium was a circular pool of water, an opening in the ceiling directly above it, the same size and shape as the pool below. When rain poured from the heavens, it would fill the basin. Females, most of whom were scantily dressed, stood around the room, goblets in hand.
At the far end, there was a stage that reached the height of my waist. A canopy bed, large enough to fit four of me—and I was no small male—was placed on top of it. The drapes were pulled to the sides, revealing the immortal resting on it—
The empress.
Small, delicate chains draped from her neck toward her breasts, pooling at her sex. The dress, if it could even be called that, was a masterpiece, designed to keep one’s gaze roving all over her, taking in all of her body. Judging by the way the small crowd snuck little looks at her, it was working.
The empress cooled herself with a handheld fan. Whenher eyes met mine, a smile curved her painted lips. She snapped the fan closed, directed it toward me, and said proudly, “Everyone, feast your eyes uponmyundefeated champion, Shadow the Soul Slayer.”
Heads swiveled my way, followed by swift clapping. Some women cupped their hands over their mouths, whispering to those standing beside them. Despite their lowered voices, it was easy to hear what they were saying—
“I heard he’s crushed one thousand souls.”
“Surely, it must be more than that.”
“Who cares how many. Look atallthose rippling muscles.”
Aryx chuckled, having heard that one too.
I remained stoic, letting them gaze upon my flesh, slick with oil—as per the empress’s request. She liked her possessions to be glistening and shiny, just like the sparkling diamonds hanging from her antlers. A tool to impress. That was all we were.
Unlike the females and the clothes they had painstakingly picked out for tonight’s festivities, I had not been afforded the choice.
In public, my muscles were always to be on display, and so my attire was rather simple. A pair of sandals, a bit of canvas loincloth—held in place by my belt—and my mask. The belt was crafted from a wide band of metal-reinforced leather. Engraved into the front was a meticulous piece of artwork showing me surrounded by three opponents in the arena. That was the battle where I had won my title as champion, dethroning the one before me. It was a gift fromthe empress, one I forced myself to wear for her.
After the empress introduced Aryx—followed by another round of applause—she commanded us to walk into the pool. As we moved toward it, hands reached for us, but their fingers never made contact.
“Remember, my dears, you may look tonight, but no one is to touch,unlessyou are given my blessing,” the empress reminded them, her tone sharper than a shard of glass.
Cool water sloshed over my feet, drifting up to my ankles as I walked into the basin, taking my position on one side while Aryx moved to the other. Two masked men came forward. One handed Aryx twin blades while the other gave me a sword and a round shield.
The crowd let out an excited gasp as I swung the weapon, feeling its weight, testing its balance.
Something was off about it.
I peered down the length of the blade, spotting the issue a third of the way down. It had been overworked in that spot, causing the metal to be thinner there. Because of that flaw, it was not a well-balanced weapon, something I would have to compensate for.
“Tonight, I give you a private battle between two of my soul crushers from my harem so that you may see with your own eyes the brutality of the male gender and what I faced when I raised arms against them and the emperor.” She paused for emphasis, surveying the room, ensuring every ear was leant to her. “The loser of tonight’s battle will be gifted to one of you for the night—” Shegestured to the audience. “To touch,to ride, whatever you wish. All because I am a gracious empress.”
Giddy with excitement, the females cheered. This was one of the main reasons they had come—to see what it would be like to lie with one of us, to experience the touch of a man and find out what we hid beneath our loincloth, something that seemed to be of great curiosity to them.
When it came to these private events, council members and priestesses were allowed to attend whenever they liked, but for the general public, those who were invited would only be invited once. To the females, it was like winning the lottery. The event of a lifetime. But to me, I saw it for what it was. It was a means of manipulation, a way for the empress to control the masses. She always invited younger females, using this event to indoctrinate them. To show them how horrible us males were and why we had to be kept on a tight leash.
She used hercontrol over usas a means of keeping hercontrol over them, and it had worked for centuries.
But the excited ladies didn’t know that they would never be given the chance to lie with me because the empress would never allow it.
The horrors beneath my mask were proof of that.
