had noticed.
"The jar," said the mage sharply. "That fluid is too precious to waste on my armchair."
Ruby held the jar underneath her cunt and met the mage's eyes squarely. She breathed deeply, open and vulnerable, the orgasm welling up inside of her.
The mage's lips parted. She dropped her knitting.
"I'm coming," said Ruby, closing her eyes and letting her head fall back. She drew out the climax, teasing herself to a second and third peak, to give the mage as much fluid as possible.
The mage snatched up the jar before Ruby could drop it.
"Look," said the mage. "See what you've done."
Ruby looked. The fluid inside the jar had deepened to a rosy pink, the color of her labia.
The mage handed her a clean cloth. "Wipe yourself. I'll keep the rag, too. All arousal can make powerful magic, but the arousal of a recently bedded aspirant is the most powerful of all. You've truly done me a service today."
"I didn't realize that." Ruby cleaned herself, then returned the cloth to the mage. "Would you like me to lick your pussy before I go?"
"Not today. If I don't get to work quickly, the magic in this rag will spoil." The mage opened the thick, iron-bound door. "The jar I'll save for something important, but this?" She dangled the soiled rag. "I can have fun with it."
"I'm glad," said Ruby.
"You be careful," said the mage. "And may you win many beads."
Ruby waited for the massive door to shut before she turned and started back down the corridor. She'd return to the staircase and keep exploring. Maybe she could find something to eat. Amazing, that she could think about eating inside the Mage Hall. The doctor had been right. She didn't have to be scared.
It took her a while—too long—to realize that she should have arrived at the staircase, and hadn't. That no corridor, even in the Mage Hall, could go on and on forever, as this one seemed to be doing.
How long had she been walking for?
She thought about turning around and retracing her steps, but she'd lived in Morrow all her life. This was magic, and she'd stay trapped until the mage who'd caught her decided to let her go.
Ruby sat down on the bare flagstone floor to wait.
The corridor melted away and she found herself sitting in a spring meadow opposite a young man of surpassing beauty. He had broad shoulders and slim hips, the elegant musculature of a swimmer, and skin the color of dried blood.
"Do you know why the King sends you to the Mage Hall?" asked the young man.
"No," answered Ruby.
"Because he has no choice," he answered. "The mages have power, so they get what they want."
Ruby nodded. She believed him. The Third Trial was not like the others.
"The mages harvest you, like a farmer milks his cows."
"I am glad to be of use," said Ruby. "Why should I be proud?"
"You could be of use to me," said the young man. "I need you very badly."
"Take what you need," said Ruby. "Use me as you wish."
"I will," said the young man. He was calm, even cool. "Get on your hands and knees."
He mounted her when she obeyed, and his cock was…not right. It was hard as metal and rough as gravel. She'd have wondered if it was a cock at all, if it weren't for the perfect fit of his hips against her ass, the smooth skin of his chest on her back as he covered her. He had a man's shape, and a creature's cock.
"You're hurting me," said Ruby.
The young man snarled and pumped in and out of her, each thrust a wound. Blood trickled down her thighs to soak the spring grass.
"You'll kill me," said Ruby.
The young man smacked her cunt with his dried-blood hand. Magic flared and Ruby came instantly. The orgasm was so sudden and fierce it smothered the pain of the young man's penetration, even as he grabbed hold of her hips and slammed into her.
His cum burned like acid and mingled with her blood.
Ruby did not turn to look when he withdrew. She didn't want to see the weapon he had battered her with. She did not want it to
Learning to Kill: Stories