{"id":2793,"date":"2017-03-15T11:59:31","date_gmt":"2017-03-15T15:59:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/?p=2793"},"modified":"2017-03-15T11:59:31","modified_gmt":"2017-03-15T15:59:31","slug":"the-prnces-boy-chapter-28","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/?p=2793","title":{"rendered":"The Prince’s Boy: Chapter 28"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to The Prince’s Boy<\/em> by Cecilia Tan, a tale of a prince and his whipping boy ensnared in a plot of dark erotic magic. Warning: explores themes of dubious consent and situations of sexual jeopardy. NSFW.<\/p>\n

A new chapter appears every Wednesday. This week is Chapter Twenty-Eight: Jorin<\/b><\/p>\n

28: Jorin<\/span><\/h1>\n

\"jorin-theprincesboy\"<\/p>\n

In the morning a commander came, and he and two other officers supervised our march from the camp. They hadn\u2019t given us weapons yet, or orders, and I wondered how far we would be going. Not far on foot, it turned out, as they marched us down to the river and loaded us onto a barge. We were twenty four men in total, including the commander and his second, and two bowmen who took turns on top. From the way the other men eyed them I knew they were less there to protect us from the enemy than to shoot any of us that tried to flee.<\/p>\n

We were on the barge all day, traveling on the river, and when night fell, the commander gathered us together to speak of our \u201cmission\u201d and of the pardon we would each be given for our crimes if we did this service to the crown.<\/p>\n

If we survived, of course. He did not say that part, though I think every man there knew it well enough. I saw others casting their gazes about as if looking for escape, but there was none with the archers watching us from the barge roof. I overheard them talking about how most of the army was being mustered to the east, and lamenting that we were not joining them. In the morning we would draw near Tiger\u2019s Mouth, they told us, and we would be armed once we reached the encampment after sunrise.<\/p>\n

We bedded down on the deck of the barge, and I found the motion of the boat and the rushing sound of the water enough to lull me to sleep.<\/p>\n

I was wakened by the sound of a scream. I felt a jolt as if the barge had run around or struck something, and there were men running on the roof, shouting. In the darkness the lanterns cast very little light, but a sudden bright plume of fire lit the night just off to one side. I saw the silhouette of men being flung back from the blast in the split second before I closed my eyes and shielded my face. If I had been on my feet I would have been knocked down, surely.<\/p>\n

I did not wait to see if the next ball of fire would explode on the deck itself. In the dark and with the archers all too busy with the chaos, I slipped over the side and into the river.<\/p>\n

I had not expected the river to pull me away from the side so quickly but the barge was stuck where it was and once I was in the water, I was not. I paddled hard, trying to keep my head above the water, which was fortunately not very rough or that might have been the end of me. I kicked off the boots they had given me and then I could swim a little better, but it had never been a skill I\u2019d cultivated. The rough uniform I wore weighed me down, but I didn\u2019t dare stop paddling long enough to try to shrug free of it. Luckily, my struggling in the water took me toward the bank and I was able to get myself up onto a pebble-lined shore without further danger. I could still hear the shouts and saw another gout of flame go up into the sky.<\/p>\n

Was it the Night Riders? There were the rumors about them taming a dragon to do their bidding. Sergetten had said there was no such thing as dragons (at least, not any longer) and I believed him. If not for that fire I might have thought the commotion merely my fellow conscripts in revolt. But it seemed more likely that the transport was under attack.<\/p>\n

All the more reason for me to get away as quickly as possible. If only I could catch my breath. My limbs felt leaden after how hard my blood had pumped as I\u2019d swum. I forced myself to crawl out of the open and into the brush, so should the barge break loose and come downriver, no one would see me.<\/p>\n

I lay there under the broad leaves of some bush in full summer bloom, listening in the dark, the scent of the flowers overwhelming the wet odor of my uniform. I could hear nothing conclusive. I decided to wring out what I was wearing, to have some hope of it drying. I took it off, wringing out the shirt and pants and then hanging them in the branches of the bush.<\/p>\n

The scent from the blossoms I brushed as I moved was heady and sweet. Not falla but some flower I didn\u2019t know. I lay back down to rest and wait for my uniform to dry and for whatever might happen next. Surely if it was the Night Riders taking the barge, it would soon be moving again, toward Tiger\u2019s Mouth where their stronghold was? Or would they just destroy it where it was?<\/p>\n

These thoughts did not get far in my mind, as a great drowsiness seemed to come over me. Swimming for my life must have exhausted me more than I expected. I fell into a dream, then, and in the dream Kenet came crawling under the hanging boughs of the bush to join me. His hands examined my skin, tracing the marks the final beating and the ropes had left there. \u201cLeave it,\u201d I said. \u201cKenet, kiss me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He did, and his mouth was sweeter than the nectar of this flower. Some part of me knew, though, that it was a dream, that I was inventing this vision to comfort myself. When I opened my eyes, he would not be there, but for the moment, I could dream.<\/p>\n

When I tried to open my eyes, however, I found I could not. They were bound with some kind of cloth, or so it felt like when I tried to blink. I took stock of my situation quickly. My hands were bound behind my back and I was seated on a chair. Or more likely a stool, since I could feel nothing behind me.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s awake,\u201d came a low voice to my left.<\/p>\n

\u201cAhhhh, good.\u201d The one on my right sounded like he was smiling. \u201cI was starting to worry he wouldn\u2019t, after all the tingle-tingle in his system.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oh. The bush I had been under. My knowledge of botany was quite limited, after all, but I knew of the numbing medicine one could make from the tinglebush\u2019s leaves and berries. Apparently the flowers, too, could have such an effect. I wondered if I had damaged my ability to feel, but I felt no tingling now. In fact, I could feel the air moving against my bare skin. I wondered if they had found my uniform when they\u2019d found me, or if my nakedness was evidence they had not.<\/p>\n

\u201cGresh, leave us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re going to question \u2019im, I should stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to question him. Not yet anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh. Right. Suit yourself.\u201d I heard the footsteps as the man with the lower voice turned and walked away. Were we in the open? Outdoors?<\/p>\n

I shivered suddenly as warm fingers ran across the back of my shoulders. I expected to feel the steel of a dagger next, but no, his fingers just made their way around to my throat, brushing up my chin and then over my lips. I pulled away at that, though the touch had not been painful.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho are you?\u201d I demanded. \u201cI\u2019ve done nothing to harm you.\u201d<\/p>\n

A soft huff of breath that might have been a laugh. \u201cIf you answer my questions, maybe I will answer yours,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought you said you weren\u2019t going to question me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I told Gresh to get us some privacy, and why, is not your concern. Or perhaps it is, but… well, that is for us to discuss a bit later, perhaps.\u201d His voice had a kind lilt, and it sounded somewhat familiar.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat are you talking about? Do I know you?\u201d<\/p>\n

His hand cupped my cheek, then my ear, and it didn\u2019t feel like an unfriendly touch. It felt warm and comforting, not at all like he was trying to threaten me. \u201cWell, why don\u2019t we start there? What is your name?\u201d<\/p>\n

For the life of me, I couldn\u2019t remember the name I\u2019d used at the camp. \u201cI\u2019m not a threat,\u201d I said, trying to buy time. \u201cThis isn\u2019t necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be the judge of how much secrecy is necessary,\u201d he said. \u201cYour name, please.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJorin,\u201d I said then, and my fake name came into my head the moment I said it. \u201cThough the army has me listed as Crieg.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, how interesting. And why is that? Surely there must be a fascinating story there?\u201d He moved away as he spoke and I heard him stoking up a fire. The cloth must have been thick on my eyes for me not to have seen the glow.<\/p>\n

\u201cI… the army… I was on a barge transporting conscripts to Tiger\u2019s Mouth.\u201d I realized I could not assume he knew anything about that. He might just be a traveling brigand who came across me asleep under the influence of tingle-tingle for all I knew. \u201cAbout two dozen including me. It didn\u2019t matter if they knew who I was since they were sending us to die, I\u2019m pretty sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh? And wouldn\u2019t you have wanted word to be carried to your family of your death?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was orphaned a long time ago,\u201d I said. For some reason admitting it now made my heart hurt in a way it had not in years. Perhaps because this time I was truly alone when I said it. I couldn\u2019t keep the sadness out of my voice.<\/p>\n

He was silent a long time then, and the only thing I could hear was the hiss of the fire, a small pop coming from it from time to time. In the silence my pain seemed to grow and I wondered if the sudden onset of maudlin grief was a common effect of tingle-tingle.<\/p>\n

I startled a bit as he spoke, now quite close though I hadn\u2019t heard him move. And I was even more surprised by his words. \u201cI think I know who you are.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m nobody,\u201d I insisted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen does it matter if you die?\u201d He spoke as if the question were an intellectual curiosity, running his fingers through my hair as he talked. \u201cSent on a suicide mission, then left to die on a sinking barge, and yet you are here, alive. What do you live for?\u201d<\/p>\n

Kenet, I thought. I live to see Kenet again.<\/p>\n

Then I wondered if he could read my mind, as his fingers brushed over my balls so much like Kenet\u2019s used to. \u201cThere\u2019s someone,\u201d he said. \u201cNot your mother, if you\u2019re an orphan. And you\u2019re too young for a wife…\u201d<\/p>\n

I growled as his hand slipped around my shaft then, and it must have been the aftereffect of the flowers and the dream I\u2019d had, but it felt so very much like Kenet\u2019s hand.<\/p>\n

The thought occurred to me, what if I was still dreaming? \u201cThis isn\u2019t real,\u201d I said to the phantom who was now bringing me to full hardness. \u201cIt\u2019s a tingle-fever dream.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps it is,\u201d he admitted. \u201cPerhaps I am just a figment of your imagination, of pleasures you can only dream of.\u201d<\/p>\n

With that I felt the wetness of his tongue up and down my cock, and I groaned. \u201cKenet,\u201d I whispered as he took me full into his mouth.<\/p>\n

\u201cJorin,\u201d he whispered as he came up a few seconds later, nipping at my chest and then meeting my mouth with his.<\/p>\n

He pulled the blindfold away then, and for a moment my eyes were dazzled by the fairness of his hair. Kenet! But then as he slipped his hand over my mouth to keep me from crying out, I could see, no, it was not him, though this man bore a strong resemblance to him, at least in the firelight and with the flower poison still running through me. He was bare to the waist, but it was not Kenet.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I\u2019m not he,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I have no doubt you are Jorin, now.\u201d<\/p>\n

I nodded, not understanding any of this but trusting him without knowing why. I could see now, even in the firelight, that his skin was tanned by weather and wind and his hands were callused like Jaiks\u2019s. He let go my mouth and slid his hand over my hair. \u201cYou were right to keep your identity a secret, or to try to,\u201d he said, \u201cbut you talked while you dreamed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAh.\u201d My heart sank. What else had I given away about myself? Or about the prince? My cock throbbed where it stood between my legs and I still did not know what this man\u2019s intentions were.<\/p>\n

He studied my face, then my cock. \u201cThe others will have my milksacks if they think I let your hands loose. Tingle-tingle, well, it\u2019s not unheard of for a man to have a reaction like yours, but I can\u2019t very well let you take care of it yourself…\u201d<\/p>\n

I just looked at him. I would not beg.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey think I\u2019m going to do this anyway,\u201d he said with a shrug and a chuckle. \u201cAfter all, the Night Arts require certain perversions.\u201d He unbuckled his belt and set it aside, knife and all, and then doffed black boots and trousers.<\/p>\n

He straddled my lap, now as naked as I was, and wriggled until our two cocks were together. He stroked them in a single grip and I moaned.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re going to have a terrible headache tomorrow,\u201d he said, then spat into his palms and slicked us both up and down. \u201cNo way around it. But this, this I can take care of.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a moment he became Kenet again, but when my senses cleared, I asked, \u201cBut who are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can call me Kan,\u201d he said, as he sped up his stroke. \u201cThat is, if the others don\u2019t overrule me and decide to kill you anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe others?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou poor thing, this whole situation must be confusing. I\u2019m sorry, Jorin, you\u2019re probably going to pass out when you come. If you don\u2019t wake, it\u2019ll be because the others did away with you. If you do, it\u2019ll be because I convinced them that you can help us. Maybe even that you… want to join us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJoin you? But who are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHm, yes, that would be best. You\u2019ll probably have to convince the others that your desire to join us is quite sincere. That may take some doing on your part… are you loyal to Kenet, still?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat? Of course!\u201d I gasped as his hand twisted slickly around the head of my cock. \u201cI-If you are loyal to Kenet, too, I would gladly join you. But who are you?\u201d<\/p>\n

He chuckled. \u201cI assure you we mean the princeling no harm if he is as innocent as we deem. But haven\u2019t you figured it out by now? Or is your head still so muddled from the flower? I\u2019m the leader of the Night Riders.\u201d<\/p>\n

And with that revelation, both our cocks began to spurt and I cried out, overwhelmed by sensation and information at once. And as I would later learn, Kan was usually right when it came to predictions. I passed out immediately, before I could even frame another question for him in my mind, slumping into his arms like an unstrung puppet and wholly at his mercy.<\/p>\n

* * *<\/p>\n

Can’t wait a whole week for the next chapter? Skip ahead: download book one (chapters 1-56) for a mere 99 cents from Amazon<\/a> or from Circlet Press<\/a>!<\/i><\/p>\n

About the author:<\/strong> Cecilia Tan is the award-winning author of many erotic books and stories and the founder of Circlet Press.<\/p>\n

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Welcome to The Prince’s Boy by Cecilia Tan, a tale of a prince and his whipping boy ensnared in a plot of dark erotic magic. Warning: explores themes of dubious consent and situations of sexual jeopardy. NSFW. A new chapter appears every Wednesday. This week is Chapter Twenty-Eight: Jorin 28: Jorin In the morning a … Continue reading The Prince’s Boy: Chapter 28<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[628],"class_list":["post-2793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-serial-fiction","tag-tpb-serial"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2793"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2793\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/circlet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}