River's Run(60)

Torak and River stared in disbelief as Manota turned and carried a quiet Jo out of the training room. It was only the groan from one of the men as he struggled to his feet that drew Torak’s attention back to the matter at hand. The other man was still sitting on the mat looking only slightly better.



“What happened?” Torak demanded between clinched teeth.



He had a bad feeling about what he was about to learn. He held his hand up when River tried to explain, holding his hand out instead for the data screen attached to the man’s waist. The man silently handed it to Torak giving River an apologetic look.



Torak watched the replay for a while. River knew exactly when he got to the part that had caused both men to almost pass out. River and Star were practicing a move River’s dad had perfected with her mom. It was extremely dangerous. River’s dad would shoot arrows or throw knives at her mother. Her mother would either dodge them or, as in this case, catch them at the very last second. It took incredible discipline and concentration, not to mention someone you trusted. Everything was timed to perfection. River had heard Star’s gasp and knew it was the one she was supposed to catch before it pierced her. Just to be on the safe side, they had been using rubber arrows. While it wouldn’t have killed River if any had hit her they would have hurt like hell and left a bad bruise. River made sure after she had been hit a number of times when practicing the routine with her dad not to get hit.



Torak was extremely pale as he watched the vidcom of Star shooting the arrows at River and her dodging it until the last one. He turned almost white as the two men had when they had rushed to River. When she had turned it looked like the arrow was imbedded in her chest. When they saw her pull the arrow away grinning and spinning it between her fingers both of the men had almost passed out. Torak held his palm up silencing the man. He calmly handed the data screen back to the man before he turned towards River with no expression on his face.



“Torak.” River said reaching out to him.



“Not now. Not here.” Torak said in a voice devoid of all emotion. “Go to our living quarters.”



“I need to get…” River began.



Torak closed his eyes. “Go to our living quarters now, River.”



River looked at the strained expression on Torak’s face before nodding. She murmured a soft apology to the two guards for scaring them before hurrying out of the training room. She began running as soon as she was in the outside corridors. She made it back to their living quarters in record time slamming the outer door as she walked through it. Fear had turned to anger. What did she have to apologize for? What did any of them have to apologize for? They were only doing stuff they had been doing all their lives. It wasn’t like those were even real arrows. She wasn’t stupid! Her dad had told her to never use real ones because anyone could have a bad day. He had learned that the hard way when he had come close to killing her mother one time.



Pulling her clothes off, River headed for the bathroom. She was hot and sweaty from the workout and the run back to their living quarters. She took a moment to stretch while the water filled up the huge pool that worked as a tub. The water came from an underground stream heated by a thermal layer in the crust of the planet. The water would be filter than returned after her bath. She had fallen in love with it as she could practically swim in the huge pool while bathing. It also worked in the shower carved into the rock facing of the mountain the Houses of Kassis sat on. She would soak for a while to ease her muscles and her mind before confronting Torak. She wasn’t going to apologize, she just wasn’t! If she started apologizing now she would spend the rest of her life apologizing for everything she did.



Stepping into the warm water, River couldn’t keep the groan of pleasure from escaping her lips. Diving into the water she let it flow over her. She rolled over onto her back and closed her eyes floating and letting the warm water sooth her as it moved around her body caressing her in its gentle flow.





Torak paused in the doorway of the bathroom watching River as she floated in the water, her hands moving slowly back and forth while the water caressed her body. He had come close to joining the men on the mat when he watched the vidcom of the incident earlier. He had had flash backs of her with blood dripping from her chest, collapsing in a puddle of blood next to him while he screamed for help. Torak began pulling the ties holding his shirt, shrugging out of it, his boots and pants quickly followed. He stepped into the warm water swimming over to where River laying floating.



River started when she felt hands slide under her. Opening her eyes, she stared into Torak’s dark eyes drowning in the desperate desire she saw there. Lifting her arms she moved into his arms, letting her legs move around his waist. Without a word, Torak slid into River pulling her tightly against him as he moved in and out, thrusting with increasing force. River tightened her hold around Torak’s neck hanging on. Torak held River’s hips thrusting up pushing into her deeper and deeper with each thrust. River knew deep down something inside Torak had snapped. His fear had taken him beyond the point of rationale thought and he was acting on a primal urge to dominate her. To show her she belonged to him and he could not lose her, to anyone or anything. River felt her climax building as Torak pushed deeper hitting every nerve ending inside her as he moved to claim her. When it peaked River bucked trying to get away from the overwhelming feelings flooding through her body. Screaming, she fought as Torak grimly held her tightly against him, not letting her move away from the source of her pleasure/pain. River felt his body tense before he let his own release flow into her hotly.