* * *
Alec stilled. Oh, God. What the fuck had he done?
As Sirus removed his goggles and slid off the table, dread surged like icy sludge in Alec’s gut. Because, come on, how many ways could there be to investigate bowels? Probably not too many but, from what he knew of Sirus so far, Mina would undoubtedly be involved.
Alec shuddered, swallowing thickly. “Is this really necessary?”
“Yes, of course.” Sirus gathered a few tools. “I was tasked to find out everything. Not just some.”
Alec swiveled his wrists anxiously. “But there’s really not much to see. Just a tunnel. Very boring. You’d be bored.”
Sirus smirked as he spread Alec’s legs and stood between them. “I do not think that will be the case.”
Alec cursed, his heart back to hammering like mad. “How about a rain check?”
“I do not know what that is.”
He gripped Alec’s leg supports and bent their middle hinges, then guided Alec’s knees toward his chest. The position was strange. Like Alec was sitting in a chair, but a chair that was lying on its back. Curiously, in folding his body like that, it angled a section of the table up, too. The part that his ass had been resting upon. Apparently, the table was just a bunch of separate pieces that could angle in virtually any direction. Or be removed completely, like the portion Sirus had discarded when he wanted a little access to Alec’s spine.
Alec shifted anxiously, starting to sweat, his skin sticking to the table uncomfortably. God, if only he’d kept his mouth shut and just let the Kríe keep on poking.
Sirus locked the different sections into their new positions, then focused on one part in particular. The part that was acting like a seat against Alec’s ass, a barrier between his butt and the big Kríe’s eyes. Except, Alec wasn’t naïve. Sirus wouldn’t be thwarted. Would probably just take it off like the other one.
Sure enough, Sirus reached for it, curling his fingers around its sides. Alec braced and exhaled nervously. When the time came, he’d be ready. Ready to squeeze his cheeks tight. Like hell would he grant that Kríe entrance without a fight. He’d make Sirus work for it. Maybe he’d quit.
Thing was, Sirus didn’t take it off after all. Instead, he revealed something very disheartening. That the portion covering Alec’s ass wasn’t one piece, but two—and those two goddamn pieces could slide apart. Like motherfucking theater curtains, for shit’s fucking sake. And what’s worse, they took his sticky ass cheeks with them. Took them with and were now holding them spread. Very spread, goddamnit. Very fucking spread.
Alec glowered. So much for making Sirus work for his in. He’d just handed him his backdoor on a plate. Wholly unobstructed with a motherfucking welcome mat. Alec bristled as a flush of heat crawled up his face.
Screw it, he could still frickin’ clench.
Sirus locked those pieces in place like he had the others, then settled his hands on Alec’s knees. “There. I am ready to explore your bowels.”
Alec groaned.
Sirus chuffed and reached for Mina.
Alec stiffened like a rod.
Sirus noticed.
“Hmm...” He dropped his hand and eyed Alec thoughtfully. “Perhaps I should do one more thing.”
Heart racing, Alec watched as he strode out of sight, returning a moment later with something in hand. A thin scrap of fabric, maybe three feet long.
“For your nerves,” the Kríe murmured, tying the thing around Alec’s head.
He was blindfolding him?
“Wait—Why?” Alec stammered. “Why can’t I see?”
“It is better this way. Trust me, moyo. I am smart.”
Alec clenched his fists, but truth be told, no Mina looming above was definitely nice. Air whispered over his skin as the Kríe stepped away. The smell of candles and sweat met his nose. Alec’s sweat, of course, and—were those creature things chittering louder? The crackling fire suddenly sounded louder, too. His other senses, they were stepping up now that one had been stripped.
Sirus’ footsteps resounded, then he was back between Alec’s thighs. Two seconds later, he was lubing up his hole. Alec gritted his teeth and clenched his entrance tight. The Kríe added more. His claw grazed Alec’s star. Alec jerked. Fuck, so sensitive. He clenched even more.
Sirus chuckled. “That will not work.”
“We’ll see.”
“Tah. We will.”
The tiny tip of something touched the center of Alec’s ring. He twitched, but then quickly vised his door even tighter. Which wasn’t especially easy with his cheeks pried apart. But whatever. In this moment, he refused to yield. On the plus side, that thing felt like metal or something, so it couldn’t be one of Mina’s creepy tentacles.
Unfortunately, no matter how hard he squeezed, that thing was just too little— and far too lubed. With slow, steady pressure, it breached his tight ring, then glided smoothly past the rest of his sphincter. Alec growled in defeat, but in all freaking honesty, he barely even felt penetration. The thing was just that slender.
“Bellah,” Sirus murmured, sliding it deeper. Good. “But now you must relax.”
Alec cleared his throat. “What is that thing? And how does it investigate?”
“Investigate? This tool?” The Kríe sounded amused. “Mah. This tool is purely a preliminary.”
Alec instantly clenched back up. And was that thing getting bigger? He shifted with a frown. “What the fuck does that mean?”
Yes. It was. It was definitely getting bigger, because his hole was definitely stretching to accommodate.
“It means this one’s job is to offer smooth entry.”
Alec froze at his words. A heartbeat later, that thing in his ass started opening. Opening, as in expanding, like a mother effing speculum. He winced, then cursed, then winced again as it steadily kept on doing its thing.
“Fuck, Kríe,” he ground out. “Smooth entry for what?”
“Hmm. I do not think you really want that answer.”
The tool stopped widening. Alec exhaled in relief. Any larger and his asshole would’ve been avidly protesting. But then warm breath puffed against his cheeks.
Alec stilled with a scowl. “Are you… looking up my ass?”
“I am,” Sirus answered. “Your rectum is lovely. And your jewel is coming along very nicely.”
Alec groaned and rolled his eyes, but then quickly frowned. Coming along? What did that mean? But before he could ask, a rustling sound above stole his focus. That was Sirus fooling with Mina, and the reason was obvious.
Shit. He knew it. This was so not fucking good.
Alec squirmed and shook his head—as much as his neck restraint would let him—but knew that any protests would be futile. The Kríe wouldn’t listen. He only took orders from the king. Was seeing out one of his orders right now.
“Ah. Here we are.” Sirus’ wide smile was palpable. “In you go, beautiful. Very good.”
Alec’s eyes shot wide. Sirus hadn’t been talking to him.
“Fuck,” he cursed urgently, clenching as tight as he could. Although, why he thought it’d do any good, he didn’t know. Sirus’ gadget was holding his backdoor wide open. But he was kind of freaking out, and panic made people stupid, and—
His whole body went rigid the instant he felt it. That foreign entity entering his body. Sliding all slippery past his defenseless sphincter with absolutely zero resistance. Made no difference that he was squeezing like a mad man on crack. It was like he wasn’t clenching at all.
“Shit... Oh, God.” He could feel the thing gliding… gliding along the prongs of that speculum. A thick, undulating muscle—not Kríe cock huge, but still—supple and slick, with countless nubs down its sides. Not big nubs, but large enough to wreak havoc on his prostate. He could literally track each one as it passed. Which swiftly derailed his panic, diverting his focus more to his G, and less to the thing sliding against it.
He twitched and jerked. Gasped and cursed. So damn sensitive there, but why? He didn’t understand. One thing he did know? That creepy thing working its way down his channel felt way too frickin’ good to be okay with. Not that he could do anything about it. As far as he could tell, those nubs ran the length of its body, meaning as long it kept on entering, it’d keep on teasing him. Which he supposed was a positive in a backward sort of way. It’d definitely keep him distracted. Thing was, he was pretty sure that that probe was a tentacle, and to enjoy a tentacle in his ass was just plain wrong.
Fuck. A tentacle. He couldn’t believe this. It was just too surreal. Like a dream.
Shifting his hips fruitlessly, he tried to dislodge it, but it was already way beyond that speculum. “Shit,” he groaned. “Kríe… It’s going so deep.”
“Tah,” Sirus murmured, palms splayed against Alec’s abdomen. “I can see it through my lenses. Can feel it moving.”
Alec cringed at his words, restlessly swiveling his wrists. Guess he didn’t plan on making it stop anytime soon. Farther and farther it pushed into his channel. Louder and louder his prostate sang. Those nubs. Fuck, those nubs. They were making him crazy, distracting him from what they were attached to.
Juicy, slick noises filled the silence, but for some reason, they didn’t gross him out. Maybe because they sounded like a lazy, lubed dick, all gliding slow and steady through a hole.
In… and back out again… In… and back out…
His brain visualized the image before he could stop it, but it wasn’t a chick’s sex in the mix.
Oh, God. He couldn’t analyze that shit right now.
Heart pounded riotously, he fought like hell to focus. For fucks sake, a creature was roaming his bowels. But for some insane reason he wasn’t panicking. Was he freaking? Hell, yes. This shit was out-and-out nuts. Thing was, he wasn’t scared. Just disconcerted. Probably because it didn’t even remotely hurt. According to his prostate, it felt exactly the opposite.
Weird. This was all just so fucking bizarre.
Alec moaned, feeling the probe slow to take a tight turn, then make its way across the top of his gut. All while, in his rectum below, it simultaneously kept tagging his G. Mercilessly. Oh, God. Too intense.
“Shit—” he panted. “Fuck—”
“You like this,” the Kríe noted.
Alec shook his head, even as his hips fought to thrust.
Sirus chuckled. “You lie. But why not admit it? I administer Mina’s pleasures to patrons nearly every day. They come to me eagerly. No need for restraints. Although, I insist on them anyway because I love them. In truth, Mina is just one of countless pleasures I provide. And many of those are far more outlandish.”
“More? Than this?” Alec groaned, his G blissing. “I find that very—ungh—hard to believe.”
“It is true,” the Kríe murmured. His attention sounded split, no doubt half of his focus locked on that probe. “Did you see those little critters in that cage by the fire?”
“Yeah—” Alec’s breath hitched. He swallowed and licked his lips.
“Those are called tibbi and many males request them.”
“Request them?”
“Indeed. It is really quite delicious. My customers lie down much like you are now, and then I funnel a sticky syrup in their channels. A few moments later, I open them wide, just as I have done with you here. As soon as the tibbi smell that scrumptious sweet nectar, they scurry right on in with much excitement.”
Alec gaped, forgetting instantly about the probe shoving deeper. Sirus’ words were just too jarring. He had to be hearing wrong.
Sirus snickered. “They are lively feasters, which of course, is the draw. The nectar is like a stimulant to their systems. But when the pickings grow thin, they turn rather feisty. Like little addicts who do not want to share.”
Holy shit.
Alec shook his head, panting. “No way. You have got to be kidding.”
Sirus loosed a husky laugh and just kept on going. “The males, how they writhe when the tibbi start to grapple—which is where restraints are nice and come in handy. Not that the tibbi could ever hurt them. I remove their claws, and their teeth are not sharp. But they do get aggressive for such little creatures, and wrench very big noises from my clients. Ah. The mess. The males come so hard. Shoot their seed absolutely everywhere.”
An unbidden visual of it assailed Alec’s brain. “Oh. My. God.”
Sirus chuckled some more, hands still roaming Alec’s abs. “It is quite a scene. But the funniest part? All those raucous squeaks echoing inside their ass.”
Alec grimaced and shook his head, trying to shake the image, which inadvertently shifted his focus back to that tentacle. It was still fucking entering him. Still tormenting his G. To the point that it felt like he was going to come.
His toes curled as he rode out another little quake, his ass clenching as he grit his teeth and moaned. It ebbed a second later, and that’s when it registered. How his entire freaking gut was straight-up moving. Mina’s probe was probably nearing his small intestines. At which point things were going to get really fucking snug. Not that things weren’t crammed enough already.
“How much longer?” he strained out. His prostate was pulsing. “How much farther you gonna make that thing go?”
Sirus gently kneaded his belly. “Till it reaches the end.”
“What?” Alec balked. His labored breaths quickened. “That’s impossible. It’s too far. Like twenty feet.”
“I do not know feet.”
Alec shuddered, pelvis twitching. “That’s like—ungh—the length of three of you.”
Sirus paused. So did the tentacle. “Three of me? That is long.”
“Right,” Alec ground out. “Too long.”
The big Kríe quieted, as if internally deliberating, but ultimately came to the same conclusion. “All right then.” He lifted his hands. “I have explored the best I can.”
Carefully, he slid out the tool in Alec ass, then promptly began removing his pet. Although, how he pulled the thing out with that tentacle still inside, Alec honestly had no freaking clue. Must be another of his ‘brilliant me’ inventions.
He exhaled in relief as the thing withdrew, but then shuddered with an embarrassingly-loud groan. Couldn’t help it, though, because now those nubs were tagging him from the opposite direction. Like his prostate had swollen and, as they headed back out, were hitting its mound’s other side. Forbidden, taboo pleasure coursed through his channel, making every inch of him quiver.
“Shit,” he rasped raggedly. His muscles tensed. Swear to God, if that creepy-ass tentacle made him come, he was going to be scarred for frickin’ life.
Fortunately, Sirus extracted the fucker pretty quickly, but for some reason left its tail end in Alec’s rectum.
Flushed and breathless, Alec frowned and moved his hips—then clenched without thinking and nearly gagged. With the speculum gone, his sphincter and all its nerve endings were forced to hug that probe nice and snug. And sure enough, the thing felt exactly like a tentacle. Of an octopus or a squid or some shit.
Do not freak out. Do not freak out.
He quickly cleared his throat. “Is there a reason that’s still in my ass?”
“Tah. Because it needs to be.”
“What? Are you shitting me? What the fuck, Kríe? Come on.”
“Be quiet. I am going down the list in my head. Skeletal, muscular, circulatory…” he droned on, “…digestion, central nervous system… Tah. I was right. We are down to the last.”
“Great,” Alec muttered. “And which is that?”
“Your reproductive functions. So, let us begin, starting with a species compatibility test.”
Alec stiffened. Compatibility test? What in the fuck was that?
Without delay, the tail of that tentacle started swelling, growing thicker. Alec shifted against the intrusion, instinctively clenching. Not that it did any good. Thankfully, it just felt awkward, but didn’t hurt—in certain places it even felt kind of good. Specifically, where it pressed against his sensitized prostate, which, now that he thought about it, felt suspiciously full. Like when that senna’sohnsay had been kicking his ass.
Heady pressure filled his channel, spanning into his gut and his junk. A soft moan breached his lips. Behind his blindfold, his eyes rolled closed—until finally, it started stretching him to his max. A dull burn emerged.
He groaned.
“This pains you?”
“It’s getting there.”
“So just discomfort. An entirely normal sensation during mating.”
During mating? So that’s what this shit was all about? To find out which species’ dicks he could handle?
The tail kept swelling. Alec growled and rocked his hips, his backdoor trying feverishly to adjust. Where was that damn tachi venom when he needed it? A sharp sting flared to life. He tensed with a hiss, the pain overriding his happy prostate. Grimacing, he clenched his jaw and balled his hands, his backdoor suddenly protesting something fierce.
“Stop,” he strained out. “Make it stop. That hurts.”
“Hmm. Indeed.” All stretching ceased. “The king… He will be disappointed.”
Alec scowled, not wanting to think about him, wanting instead to be infuriated by that remark. But shit, the way Sirus had associated it specifically to Zercy made a part of Alec suddenly disappointed, too. But why? What the hell? He must be losing his mind. For fuck’s sake, he was strapped to a freaking exam table with a big ballooned tentacle up his ass. Given those circumstances—on top of everything else—he should not be bummed that the two of them couldn’t fuck.
Although, technically, he supposed they could if they used the venom. Seriously, considering how worldly Sirus was, how could he not know about tachi?
As the tail shrank back down, he forced the thought away. He needed his brain as blank as humanly possible. It wasn’t like he could escape this shit if he kept on pondering the craziness. Might as well just stop thinking altogether. Besides, Sirus had to be almost done anyway. God knew, he’d already prodded every inch of flesh, and probed damn near every freaking hole.
More scratching noises sounded; Sirus adding to his notes. “Ah. Nearly finished. Just one thing left to do.”
Alec tried not to tense. Had the worst been saved for last? Surely all the tough stuff had been done. Warily, he shifted as Sirus finally removed the tentacle and returned his legs to their original position.
“This one gonna hurt, too?”
“That is up to you.”
He didn’t like that answer. Sounded way too much like probably.
Without warning, Sirus gathered Alec’s junk in his hands, and began firmly stroking his cock.
Alec sucked in a breath. The Kríe wasn’t just measuring. Definitely had an endgame in mind.
“Hey—What are you doing? Let go of my dick.”
“When I am done.”
“How ‘bout now.”
Sirus grunted and kept on pumping. “This last task requires you to be hard.”
“What task, getting me off?” Alec irritably jerked his hips. “Forget it. You’re not making me fucking come.”
Sirus didn’t reply, just continued to stroke, as if uninterested in debating the inevitable. Long moments later, though, when Alec still hadn’t hardened, he loosed a low growl of frustration.
“Obstinate creature,” he grumbled, relinquishing Alec’s dick.
Alec blinked behind his blindfold. Just like that, he’d quit?
A rustling sound above made him instantly frown. Definitely not the sound of Sirus quitting. More like the sound of him rummaging for more options. Alec balled his hands, determined to stand his ground. But right as Sirus paused with a pleased little rumble, Alec detected the arrival of a new presence.
“My lord,” Sirus blurted. He sounded surprised.
Alec froze.
Oh, no.
The king was there?