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“ W ell?” Moargan pressed.

Cyprian kept his lips firmly glued together. His heart was racing. He was fully aware that Moargan could hear it, and would probably revel in that fear, but dammit…he was terrified.

Blinking, he stared off, willing himself far away from this shit.

Someone whistled a tune, the sharp sound rattling his nerves. Pressure was building inside the room, and Theo was snarling in an attempt to mask his fear.

Cyprian wanted to know what was going to happen now. He wanted to know if anyone had already checked the information on his chip. They were mostly lists of addresses he had bought from the Helion source he’d found on the deep space. Even if they didn’t care for the list, they would arrest him for purchasing illegal documents. Then they would ask him who Cyprian Creighton was. And then…he would be fucked.

They’d send him home to his death and his biological parents wouldn’t even know that he'd gotten so close to them. And he wouldn’t know if they’d miss him. If they’d ever thought of him, hoped for his happiness.

The thought made his eyes burn.

“Since you’re so eager to talk, let’s play a little game,” Moargan mused. “To get us all in the mood.”

A complaint rumbled through Cyprian’s chest, only to get stuck in his throat.

Moargan clapped his hands, breaking the silence. “Theo.”

The blond guy startled and bared his teeth. That…he had courage, that was for sure. Cyprian hadn’t dared stand up like that against the Imperial, too scared to be unmasked.

“Did you check the contents of the chip before putting it on deep space?”

“That’s none of your fucking business,” Theo snarled.

Moargan let out a long sigh. “I’m already tired of listening to his voice. Since he’s not going to use it in an effective way, might as well get rid of that tongue now. Vandor.”

The junior general nodded and slid the knife toward Theo’s mouth.

“No! I…fuck, please,” Theo choked. He shook his head violently. “I didn’t check the chip. It’s secured, and I wasn’t able to decode it and then I received your offer to sell and I couldn’t resist it. So much coin, and I have a sick mother and…”

“Save me your excuses.” Moargan held up a hand and Vandor lowered the knife, sliding it once more against Theo’s neck. “So you didn’t see what was on that chip?”

Theo shook his head.

“You know what I think?” Moargan’s voice was smooth as velvet, the words sharp as a knife. He turned to Cyprian. “I think he’s lying. And liars get punished.”

“P-punished?” Cyprian stammered, heart thumping in his throat. “I don’t think he’s lying,”

“Hmm. I think he is.” Moargan’s lips curled up. “You see, Helion is praised because of its rules and regulations. Rules you have difficulty obeying, little aeon . But the truth is, I can cut anyone into pieces, and no one will stop me. Now, for Theo, he stole from me. From you . And what do we cut first when people steal?”

“Please, no…” Theo whimpered.

“That’s right. We cut off those stealing hands.”

Cyprian watched as the Imperial licked his teeth. “Then the arms. The legs. I could even give poor Theo away to the boys here. He’d make the perfect fucktoy.”

“No!” Theo wailed.

Cyprian put his hand on Moargan’s. The gesture had them both staring down at their fingers as they reached out, intertwining like growing branches.

“Unless you want to save him, little aeon ?”

Cyprian felt himself nodding before he realized it. The corner of Moargan’s lips ticked up.

“You can save him a limb for each truth you give me. Do you think you can do that?”

Cyprian inhaled shakily. Of course, it had been a trap. “I don’t want him to die because of me.”

Moargan’s fingers brushed over Cyprian’s palm and he shivered from the touch. The connection felt electric, and part of him wanted to lean into that touch, wanting to absorb its warmth.

“Exactly.” Pulling up Cyprian’s hand, the Imperial pressed a kiss to the inside of his wrist. Cyprian shivered. “This one is for a hand. We’re going to start easy. Why did you come to Helion? And please, little aeon , don’t give me your academy bullshit.”

Cyprian squeezed his eyes shut. He was defeated. Here he sat, naked, in the imperial’s bed. He should just let Theo take the fall. Why would he care? When you were poor, that’s how you lived life. Back home, he and his foster brothers and sisters had done so many questionable things just to survive. No one protected them, their foster parents the least of all.

He took in a shaky breath.

Theo glanced at him, an unreadable expression in those hard eyes.

“Well?” Moargan prompted. Vandor roughly pulled up the guy’s hand, holding it in the air as he traced it with his knife.

“I-I…” Cyprian bit his lower lip, and the prince let out an impatient growl. “I came here to find my family. My real family, I mean. I was disposed of when I was a baby and sent to Tulniri. I was raised in a foster home.” Cyprian looked down, trying to keep his pride when he felt his defenses crumbling.

Weak. The exact emotion he had run from.

He had wanted to be someone better, someone more.

Yet here we meet again.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Theo snarled. “That’s all? This is why I’m risking my life? Because of some kid trying to figure out where he’s from?”

“Watch your mouth,” Vandor sneered, but the guy shook the words off with a careless grumble.

Cyprian looked up when Moargan got up from the bed, butt naked, and headed for the adjacent room.

The outrageous dressing room .

Cyprian’s gut churned.

He came back in a pair of satin sleeping pants, carrying a long bronze tool, and stalked toward Theo. “Aviel, will you do me the honour?”

“Of course, Imperial Moargan,” Aviel mocked, then he sent Cyprian a wink. He took the tool from Moargan and left the room. They all waited in silence. When he came back, the tip had caught fire and colored red with a hissing sound.

Moargan took the smoldering weapon. He represented good light, the way he moved, satin and flaming bronze, the defined muscles of his shoulders and pecs. “You walk inside my apartment and steal items from someone who belongs to me .” Moargan stopped right in front of Theo. An ominous chill settled around them. Theo cowered back, his earlier outburst buried under the ground. “Pull his shirt up.”

Yure and Vandor got to it immediately, ignoring how Theo thrashed and begged to be forgiven.

“Oh, now you want mercy?” Moargan laughed when the other man stood trembling in front of him; clothes torn open, exposing a panting, naked chest. “You should know how hard I get from hurting you. How I need to torture and destroy. It’s in my blood. Yet you come here, arrested for stealing my stuff and offending my possession?”

Cyprian watched as Moargan leaned forward, inhaling Theo’s shivering skin with a satisfying hum. That shouldn’t excite him. It was sickening, knowing what was to come, yet there was something so sensual about the way Moargan operated. With lazy, confident swagger he circled Theo, sniffing his body, mumbling in approval. “Yes. You will do just perfectly.”

“Please,” Theo begged. “I don’t want to die.”

“Oh, you’re not going to die. Not yet, at least. What happens to you, is no longer up to me. Aviel. Tell my brother that I found his offering for the Aureate.”

“No!” Theo cried. “Good light, don’t do this to me. This wasn’t my idea.”

He should intervene, Cyprian thought. He should beg Moargan to let the other man go. Pulling his legs up, he held them with his arms, hugging himself tight under the silken sheets.

“Your name,” Moargan turned over his shoulder. “What’s your name?”

Cyprian stared at him. His lips parted, but he stayed frozen. He’d expected Moargan to snarl impatiently, anything. Instead, the Imperial was waiting, the burning iron in his hand, his purple eyes fixed on his.

“C-Cyprian,” he finally blurted. “Creighton. My name is Cyprian Creighton. ”

“Hmm,” Moargan rumbled. “Cyprian.” He tasted his name on his tongue. “I like it.” He tipped his chin to the data chip. “And why all the mystery, little aeon ? Why is it such a secret that you’ve come here, to Helion?”

Cyprian shivered. There was no way out of this mess. ”Because I left Tulniri illegally. I fled after I refused to join Club Essential. M-my foster parents were members, but I didn’t want in. I wanted to know who my biological parents are.”

Moargan looked thoughtful, then gave Theo a playful wink. “Here’s the thing. He might be sharing my bed, but this guy hasn’t told me a single word of truth since he came into my life. Thanks to you, I managed to get his reason for coming here, and his name. That’s a pretty good result. You know what that means?”

Theo shook his head, face pale from fear.

“That whatever’s on that chip is really, fucking important to him. It also means that I could let you go.”

“Please,” Theo pleaded.

“But you see, here’s the deal. Before Cyprian gave me his beautiful name, I already promised you to my brother. And I love my family dearly.”

“We can…we can find him someone else?” Theo screeched.

Moargan shook his head. “Nah, I don’t think we can. What’s done, is done. Wouldn’t you agree?”

Without any warning, he dipped the branding iron against Theo’s naked chest, making the other guy cry out in pain. He circled it around, creating a smell of burning flesh as he drew an initial.

Theo’s shouts were heart-wrenching, and Cyprian clenched his teeth, squinting his eyes as he forced himself to look. This was his fault. Good light, the pain must be excruciating. When Moargan finally pulled it away, the other man collapsed in Yure and Vandor’s grip; his head lolled forward. He had pissed himself.

Yure pulled him up by his hair to expose his chest.

“Very nice indeed,” Moargan hummed. On his chest, Theo wore the burned letter H. “Now you are my brother’s, and it will be up to him to decide your fate.” Moargan pointed his chin toward the door. “Clean this up, then leave us.”

Cyprian watched as Yure and Vandor dragged the unconscious guy out of the room while Aviel mopped the floor, a secretive smile curved on his lips. Once the door fell shut, Cyprian inhaled a large breath of air, relaxing his shoulders. “That was…”

“Hot?”

Cyprian watched Moargan crawl back onto the bed, eyes dancing with mischief. The burning iron had disappeared with Aviel. “Cruel,” he corrected. “Unnecessary.”

Moargan shrugged. “I disagree.” He tore away the sheets, exposing Cyprian’s trembling frame, and opened his legs. A sly smile curled on his lips. “And it got you hard, lover.”

Cyprian flushed. “I didn’t realize.”

Moargan chuckled softly. “Little liar.”

“I didn’t want it to happen.” Yet he sucked in a breath when Moargan’s fingertips brushed over the inside of his thigh and groped his balls. His cock thickened further and he swallowed at the sensation of arousal fluttering inside the pit of his stomach.

“So, I’ve got a refugee in my bed,” Moargan hummed. “You know why you drew my attention back on the spaceship?” He leaned forward and brushed his mouth over Cyprian’s cheek, making the skin flush. “It was your fear,” he mused. “Fear is my drug of choice. It’s a family trait. The way a heartbeat speeds up? It’s exhilarating.” He suckled on Cyprian’s earlobe, making him whimper. “You looked so flustered when you stepped back. So innocent.” Their eyes met. “Are you, Cyprian?”

“W-what?” Cyprian panted, mind spinning. Moargan’s hand kept on massaging his balls and it made his dick wet with precum. They had come barely half an hour ago, yet here he was. Silently begging for more.

Moargan licked his lips, grinning when he caught Cyprian staring. “Innocent. You have touched yourself before, right?”

“Of course I have.” Yet Cyprian felt his cheeks burn.

Moargan nodded, keeping him on edge with his playful massage. “But you’ve never let anyone else fuck you. So, you’re still a virgin.”

“Back home, no one wanted me,” Cyprian whispered. “Everyone thought I was weird, with m-my eyes and all. I looked out for my younger brothers and sisters. My foster parents hated us, so we mostly stayed together. I was told that they’d only accepted us because of the money. The Essentials have a way to bribe our people…I mean—” Cyprian felt like a bucket of ice had tipped over his head. “They are good leaders!”

“Thump. Thump.” Moargan’s hand slid up to his wet slit, and he looked down and dropped spit on his erection. Good light. Cyprian’s cock twitched, and he had to stifle a moan. “You hated your Essentials, and you hated your foster parents. Don’t tell me any lies, aeon . I can feel your truth.” He stroked his dick from tip to root, sliding back up and repeating the action. Cyprian panted, mind going blank again.

“Yellow eyes,” Moargan hummed, his gaze still on Cyprian’s cock. “I want to know why that made you think you were from Helion. I want to know everything about you, beautiful. Want to know what’s on that chip. But first, I want to show you who you belong to, and how things are going to be from now on.” He released Cyprian’s cock, and Cyprian didn’t manage to swallow the whine that escaped his throat. Moargan smiled and gave him a pat on his nose. “Go and find my handcuffs. They’re in the dressing room.”

Cyprian opened his mouth, but no words came out.

“Be quick now.” Cyprian watched as Moargan padded toward the window, lighting a cigarette. He stared at his multi-slate, then inhaled deeply, before red smoke whirled out his mouth. “You back yet?” He looked up, his purple gaze hardening when he found Cyprian still on the bed.

Cyprian scrambled off and headed toward the dressing room. He wasn’t sure what to do. He should try and make a run for it. Then he looked down at his hard dick and groaned. Who was he kidding? His body was like a slave to the Imperial, craving for each crumb of attention it could get.

Pitiful.

Cyprian eyed the set of drawers, then opened the top one.

“Come on,” Moargan drawled from the adjacent room. “Don’t play games now.”

“I’m not,” Cyprian muttered in reply. He yanked the handcuffs out and closed the drawer with a loud bang. “ You ’re the one playing me .”