Chapter 2

Twenty Years Later

PRINCE EMERIEL.

“He’s so pretty,” a voice murmured.

“It’s the feminine prince,” another one said.

The third man had lust in his eyes. “No man should have hair that gorgeous.”

Prince Emeriel ignored them all as he moved from the palace grounds into the building, head held high.

Just because he was used to the unwanted attention didn’t mean it didn’t make his skin crawl.

He might have lived as a boy all his life, but it didn’t exactly keep him all that safe. Men of Navia would stick their phallus in anything with a hole, especially if it looked remotely feminine.

But Emeriel’s senses were always on high alert, which is why he was probably the only twenty-one-year-old virgin in Navia.

That, and his sister, Princess Aekeira, always did everything in her power to protect him, to make sure his secrets remained tightly hidden.

A carnage accident had taken their parents fifteen years ago, and King Orestus had adopted them. That tyrant made life a living hell for them.

Emeriel entered the hallway to Ackeira’s chambers when he heard it.

Whimpers.

Soft, pain-filled whimpers.

That sound was coming from…

Rage surged through Emeriel. Not this again!

Determined, he stormed down the hall and shoved the door open, unsheathing his sword.

“Get away from my sister right this instant, Lord Murphy, or I swear to the sky I will cut you down where you stand!” Emeriel snarled.

The minister of human affairs’ face twisted with irritation, and he stopped thrusting. “Go away, little prince. You’re ruining the fun.”

Emeriel hated the jab "little prince," but surely not as much as he hated being called a "slight prince." Over the years, Navians had given him a lot of names thanks to his small and feminine build.

“Get away from her right now!" Emeriel strode purposefully toward the bed, seizing hold of Lord Murphy and pushing him away from Aekeira.

With a satisfying thud, the old oaf tumbled to the floor. Aekeira rose from the bed, clutching her vulnerable body, her face red from crying, eyes tired and swollen.

Emeriel pulled his sister into his arms, hugging her tightly. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Keira.”

“It was not your fault.”

“Why the hell would you do that?" Lord Murphy rose angrily. "I won Princess Ackeira fair and square in the card game at the gathering last night. The king wagered with her and lost to me! I was supposed to have her for two hours at least!”

Emeriel’s eyes blazed as he whirled around, facing him. “If you lay your hands on her again, I swear to the sky I will cut off your male organ, Lord Murphy!”

“You will not dare!”

“I’ll gladly take whatever punishment the king gives,” he stated with conviction, “but you will be without your manhood. Choose wisely.”

Lord Murphy’s eyes widened, his hands flying protectively over his crotch, face reddening in anger.

“The king will hear of this!” The minister snarled, taking his clothes as he marched out of the room.

“Oh, Em, why did you do that?” Aekeira’s eyes filled with worry. “The king might punish you with the hot whip again.”

“I do not care. Let us go to my room.” Putting his sword away, Emeriel could not even look his sister in the eyes, dangerously close to tears himself. Helping Ackeira into her clothes, he led her out and down the hallway.

That age-old guilt crept down Emeriel’s spine. Aekeira always protected Emeriel, even when it made her the sole target. His sister never hated him, but Emeriel hated himself for it.

Aekeira was always bubbly and always happy, but in times like this, when her body was violated, she mostly looked tired, weary of the world.

Worried about the next aristocrat the king would hand her over to.

Much later, freshened up, Aekeira lay on the bed, closing her eyes.

“Em? My worst nightmare when I was younger was thinking I would be sold to an aristocrat in Cavar, but now, I almost wish that heartless king went ahead with it, instead of changing his mind,” Aekeira whispered.

“Please, don’t say that.” Emeriel held her hand. “That kingdom is a horror play. Anywhere is better than Cavar, sister. Well, except beyond the great mountain, of course.”

Just the thought made Emeriel shiver. The Urekai dwelled beyond those…

“Sometimes I wish I could leave this godforsaken kingdom.” A single tear slipped from Aekeira’s eyes.

“Me too, Keira. Me too.”

That night, after bathing, Emeriel stood before the mirror, staring at his reflection.

His long, silken black hair fell over his shoulders, cascading like a waterfall. With his hair down like this, he looked like what he truly was: a girl.

What would it feel like to live freely, like the person the mirror reflected? To not live in fear of the next man who might seek to take advantage of him, like they do his sister?

Emeriel fantasized about marrying the man of his dreams: a protector, someone powerful enough to keep him safe, shield him from predators, and sweep him off his feet with immense strength and love.

All delusion, but a sweet one, nonetheless.

Reality was far too ugly.

Shaking it off, he crawled into bed and closed his eyes, letting sleep take him.

The dream began as it always did.

The man filled the doorway, hidden in the shadows. He was big, larger and more masculine than any man Emeriel had ever seen.

Tall like a giant, he made Emeriel feel small, like a cornered prey.

“Who are you?” Emeriel’s drowsy voice came out shaky, filled with fear. “What do you want from me?”

“You are mine,” he said, voice deep as rolling thunder. “Meant to be on your knees for me. On your back. To be fucked so hard your legs quake. Drill into you until your holes are open, gaping for me. You were meant to beg for my dick all the time. Only mine.”

Emeriel’s face burned with shock. So scandalized, he scrambled upright. “Y–you shouldn’t say such improper things to me! It’s wrong!”

But the mysterious man stepped into Emeriel’s bedroom, emerging from the shadows. As he did, his body shifted into a beast.

The most terrifying Emeriel had ever seen.

A Urekai.

“Oh gods, oh gods,” Emeriel’s breath hitched in terror, panic setting in. Of all the shapeshifters in the world, why a Urekai?

He advanced with purpose. Its glowing yellow eyes bore into Emeriel, filled with hunger.

Shaking his head fiercely, Emeriel scrambled backward. “No, no, no! Leave me alone!” he shouted, “Guards! Someone, help!”

But no one came.

The beast leapt onto the bed, got on top of Emeriel, trapping him under. Claws tore through his clothing, Emeriel’s vulnerable female body was exposed to its yellow eyes.

His powerful thighs forced Emeriel’s apart, and a huge monster dick nudged his untouched feminine core and pushed in…!

Emeriel jolted awake with a scream. Body shaking and drenched in sweat, he glanced around the dark, empty room.

“It was just a dream,” he whispered, trembling. “Thank the gods. Just a dream.”

The same dream again. He’d had this dream for months now.

He swallowed hard, running a shaky hand through his hair. “Why do I keep having such a scary nightmare?”

It terrified Emeriel a lot.

A Urekai?

No one in this world prayed to meet a Urekai in their lifetime, certainly not Emeriel.

Yet, even with all the terror inside, the hotness of the dream lingered…

What does this mean?

Chapter 3

PRINCE EMERIEL

Stepping outside the next morning, two warriors stopped before Emeriel. “The king summons you, my prince,” one of them said. “Your presence is needed in the courtroom.”

Shit. That foolish minister wasted no time ratting on him.

Emeriel led the way to court. It’s just whipping, he will be fine.

But as he walked down the hall towards the door, it was eerily quiet.

Something was wrong.

The court was always noisy from the outside. Mutterings, murmurs, arguments were always expected.

His worry deepened when the door opened, and all eyes didn’t turn to gaze at him condescendingly. Instead, everyone’s eyes were fixed at the center of the king’s court.

Emeriel’s eyes followed theirs.

Two men dressed in all-white apparel robes, with long, straight, waist-length black hair stood, appearing harmless.

But a longer glance had Emeriel noticing muscles barely concealed under their robes, their slightly tipped ears, and their incredibly, unnaturally handsome faces that were completely unreadable.

He froze.

Urekai.

These ones looked expensive and aristocratic.

Emeriel’s throat went dry. No one prays to meet a Urekai face-to-face.

“What do you say, King Orestus!” the Urekai with the long scar running from his cheek spoke. He looked the most intimidating.

“No, this cannot happen,” King Orestus protested, looking terrified and doing a poor job of hiding it.

The frown on Scarred Urekai’s face deepened. Clearly, this was a being that did not take no for an answer.

“You are mistaken if you think we are giving you a choice, human king,” he said, taking a threatening step forward.

The ministers of the court gasped, shrinking back into their seats.

“Easy, Lord Vladya,” the other Urekai spoke, his voice gentler, imploring rather than commanding.

The scarred Urekai, Lord Vladya, gave the king a hard look that would make any man tremble. “It is the least you can do, human king. Give us the princess, and we will leave quietly.”

“We are ready to pay for her,” the other Urekai added, reaching into his robe and withdrawing a large bag of coins.

Fear receded. The king’s ears perked up with interest. “Money?”

“Not just money, there are gold coins too,” the non-scarred Urekai said.

Everyone gasped, including Emeriel. Gold coins were rare and highly valuable.

The Urekai continued, “All you have to do is hand the princess over, and this bag is yours.”

Wait…

Princess?

They couldn’t possibly mean…

The grand entrance opened again as two guards led Aekeira into the court.

No, no, no, not my sister.

Emeriel moved forward, but the guards who had escorted him stopped his movement. He bit his lip hard, trying not to draw attention to himself, but it was incredibly difficult.

Surely, this couldn’t be what he thought it was. It had to be a dream.

There was no way the Urekai were here to buy his sister as a slave…!

The two guards leading Ackeira to the center of the court stopped a few feet from the Urekais.

The terror on Aekeira’s face mirrored Emeriel’s feelings.

“So, let me get this straight,” King Orestus began, “All I need to do is sell her to you, and all this money is mine? There are no other conditions? Nothing else?”

“Yes,” the non-scarred Urekai responded.

Lord Vladya moved forward, closing the distance between him and Aekeira, who was visibly shaking now.

Cupping Ackeira’s cheek, tilting her head to the side to get a better look, he appeared utterly disgusted. “She’ll do.”

King Orestus picked up his gavel and struck it hard on his desk. “Sold! From this moment on, Princess Ackeira belongs to the Urekais.”

“WHAT?” The shout escaped Emeriel’s lips before he could stop it.

He ran toward the center of the courtroom and fell to his knees. “Please don’t sell my sister to them. Not to the Urekais! Please, Your Majesty.”

The king gave him a bored look. “It’s out of my hands now, Emeriel.”

It’s out of his…

Emeriel couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You can’t let this happen, she’s your niece too! How could you do this!?”

He wasn’t proud his voice turned the high-pitch of a girl’s, as he practically screamed, but he didn’t care. "You know a fate worse than death awaits her beyond the great mountain! How could you agree to sell her to them?”

“As if he has a choice,” Lord Vladya scoffed, his deep baritone filled with cynicism.

Emeriel whirled around to face them, anger blanketing his features. But as he stared into those intimidating gray eyes, he couldn’t bring himself to give in to his rage.

He had read in one of the books that an Urekai had the power to take a life without physical contact. It might just be a rumor, but with his sister’s life on the line, he had no intention of testing that theory.

“I will go too. Where Aekeira goes, I go,” Emeriel said, lifting his chin defiantly.

Ackeira snapped her head toward Emeriel, her eyes widened in terror. “No! What are you doing, Em?”

“I’m going with you," Emeriel stated firmly.

Lord Vladya arched a perfectly shaped brow. “No. We have no need for you; we only need your sister.”

Emeriel stood. “I don’t care. Take me too. If you leave me here, I will always try to come to her. I will cross the great mountains if I have to!”

Lord Vladya laughed. There was no humor in the cold sound. “Without the rite of passage, the great mountain will swallow you whole. You’ll never make it to the other side.”

“I’ll take my chances,” Emeriel vowed.

“No! My brother is not coming,” Aekeira interjected, before turning pleading eyes to Emeriel. “Don’t do this, Em. I’m already doomed. I don’t want you to face the same fate!”

“If you come with us, you will be taken as our slave,” Lord Vladya stated, pinning Emeriel with a stare. “Urekai do not care if you’re male or female; you will serve in any way your master wants you, whether it’s in the mines or the cellar, on your back, bent over, or on your knees. If you agree to be our slave too, your freewill ends today.”

A shiver ran through Emeriel’s spine.

“Do you know what it means to be an Urekai’s slave, little human? You’re a pretty boy; you will not lack masters to service.”

Fear seeped through his core. If everything he had heard growing up and read in books were true, being an Urekai’s slave was worse than being a human’s slave.

And my dreams…

I should be running in a different direction!

But he steeled his spine. “Where my sister goes, I go."

“We did not agree to get two slaves,” the second Urekai said.

“That is settled then,” Lord Vladya continued as if he never spoke.

Reaching into his robe, the scarred Urekai pulled out another bag of coins, throwing both on the floor towards the king. “We will take both.”

“Sold!” King Orestus banged his gavel again.