Zachary strode forward despite the unfamiliarity that swept over his mind and body. For a moment, he knew by instinct he's into the unknown, but he ignored it.
After a few strides, he stopped.
A delicate fabric has been muffling his footsteps, but he wasn't sure if it was real or imagined.
As he stood, a floral scent teased his nose instead of the pungent herbs, his sick off. This contorted his face into a wry smile. 'Has my senses finally gone awry?'
He took in a deep breath to center his focus, enabling him to hear the light breathing close to him.
'Or did someone perhaps broke into my room?'
Zachary stepped forward with caution, but when he did, his knee hit the edge of a queen-sized bed, and he fell forward with his momentum.
The dagger in his dominant hand grazed tender, snow white skin that has blended completely with pale white sheets. While his left hand groped a mountain of softness coupled with stable heartbeats.
Zachary's body hairs stood as he froze in place. 'I... What's happening?' he asked, certain there shouldn't be obstacles in his path. Especially, not a bed and a woman.
Before he could understand what's going on, Sonia's predatory eyes fluttered open, and she pinned him on the bed.
She crossed his sinful hands above his head and trapped his body between her legs.
With her slightest movements, chains rattled and echoed in the room. Then it stopped when she settled on his abdomen.
As Sonia tightened her grip on his wrist, Zachary groaned in pain.
He struggled to free himself, making Sonia's vertical pupils sharpen with delight. She wanted to see more of his pained expression. However, the potent smell of partly dried blood coming from his lip, hand, and knee distracted her.
Now, all she wants to do is devour him and savor his taste till she's satisfied.
Sonia stared at the tiny speck of blood on his lip and leaned in before shifting her gaze to his hyper sensitive neck.
Then, she brushed his pink locks aside.
"Um..." Zachary uttered as his head throbbed. He felt like he's supposed to be doing something important but... 'what was it?'
'Right, I was trying to get out of the door because...'
"Mm," a moan escaped his lips when Sonia's tongue slid to the base of his neck, bringing his attention to the present moment.
'H…how dare she? Did she just taste me?'
He felt her tongue on him again so he flung his head to the side. Because of this, Sonia ended up licking his Adam's apple instead.
"Damn," he said as his body tingled with delight.
Sonia tasted him more, leading him to the gates of ecstasy. Her body felt soft on him, and her warmth was addicting he wouldn't mind if she does more. However, when her teeth grazed his skin, he sensed danger and retaliated. He tried to free himself again, but with dawn still breaking, her extraordinary strength put his effort in vain. In the end, her hold on him only tightened.
Then, she bit him, making shivers run down his spine.
In an instant, relief flooded Zachary's body. Her teeth didn't sink into his flesh. She just bit hard and sucked on his neck like a lover inviting him to mate, but that wasn't it.
Dawn has broken, and the beam of yellow light pushed her in a transition phase. Leaving her in between two states, the one who knows she shouldn't harm him, and the one who desperately craves for his blood.
Trapped in the loop of pulling back and drawing near to bite him, Sonia drew another moan out of his lips. However, she remained unbothered in a state of non-awareness.
As the sunlight's radiance bathed Sonia, her ink-black hair turned to its natural white color and her red eyes became galactic purple. Her mind also began to clear, making her hold on him loosen.
Zachary took this opportunity to free his hands with full strength before gently pushing her away.
"That… too much," he said. His voice was husky. His breath heavy, and his heart drummed wildly as his temperature rose. 'I feel... What's this?' he asked, completely unfamiliar with arousal.
Meanwhile, Sonia has returned to her natural state. Her rounded pupils focused on the stranger in her bed. For an intruder, he looked divine, like an angel desecrated by the sinful things she did and nearly did to him.
The bruises on his wrists, and the hickeys on his neck painted guilt on her oval face. But she shook her head when she remembered he's the one who intruded and made her restraints useless.
"My lady, kindly get off of me," Zachary said when the dreadful feeling coming from her dissipated. 'She feels different. Is she perhaps a hybrid or did I meet her shadow first?'
Zachary waited for her to move, but she didn't.
She just stared at him and took in all the sensory details around her. His pale white skin, herbal smell, discolored eyes, and his miniscule strength which pose no threat to her.
Upon a quick scan, her room seems to be untouched. Nothing's broken or forcefully pried open for entry.
Satisfied with the information she processed and understood, Sonia confiscated the dagger beside Zachary and slid off to his left to avoid tangling her chains.
"How did you enter my room?" she asked. Her voice was breathy and low, but it exuded power and authority.
"What is your aim?" she added. Her eyes focused on his slender arms trembling vigorously as he used them to support himself.
"This is your room?" Zachary's brows knitted as he made sense of the unfamiliarity he previously ignored. 'Indeed, the room smells different from what I'm used to. A fabric also muffled my footsteps earlier. Moreover, the location of her bed was supposed to be a space I could freely cross.'
'I see. Did I perhaps trigger a teleportation matrix and ended up in another household? That's possible since it happened to me before. Besides, accidentally triggering a teleportation matrix installed on an object or place is common for households that have existed since the founding of the empire…'
'So maybe I really am in her room. If that's the case, I have to return immediately because...'
'Because... um,' he thought as his brows furrowed.
'Why can't I remember?'
'Why was I trying to get out of the door?'
"Who are you?" Sonia shifted her gaze to his black robe embellished with golden threads. The design was unique from modern ones, but what intrigued her was the translucent fabric surrounding his clothing. It was akin to water, and it looked alive.
"Who are you?" she asked again, but he remained silent.
'Why can't I recall no matter how much I try?'
'Was a portion of my memory perhaps taken in exchange for being transported here?'
"Are you going to keep these lips sealed?" Sonia pointed the dagger to his lower lip. "Must I part them for you so you can speak?"
"My lady..."
He estimated the position of her hand through the tip of the dagger and grabbed her wrist carefully before trapping it against the bed. "I'll talk so you don't have to threaten me."
"Then speak." She pulled her hands away from him and threw the dagger at the farthest corner of the room.
"I'm Marquis Zachary Edmund Nhylle, the guardian of Xhaque," he said with honesty, thinking it would be best to tell her the truth and ask for a carriage so he could go back home. That way he could figure out what he forgot.
"You're a marquis?" she asked. Her eyes wide as she stared at his earring made of a mineral she could not recognize. "In what country?"
"Shezernien, in the east of Pha'ar."
"Pha'ar is a continent?"
"Yes, my lady." Zach's brows knitted as wondered if she's a lady who knows nothing about the world. "Have you never heard of it?"
"I haven't," Sonia said as she looked at the gadget on top the bedside table. "Have you ever heard of cell phones?"
"No, my lady, is that your family name? Should I call you lady Selphones?"
"What? No," she said, enlightened by what's going on. She knew well, no one can get in or out of her room during full moons, so unless he teleported or used other unthinkable means, it's impossible for him to be here.
"Then, is it perhaps the place where you live?"
"It's an object."
Feeling a sense of dread and discomfort, Sonia furthered her distance from him. "Can you tell me how you came here?"
Clack
Clink.
Her chains unlocked after absorbing enough sunlight. This attracted their attention, but they chose to ignore it.
"I accidentally activated a teleportation matrix," he said. His mind filled with the image of the plaque his father gave when he succeeded the marquisate.
"A teleportation matrix?" Sonia's pupils dilated with interest and curiosity. "Those things really exist?"
Zachary's brows furrowed. "You must be kidding, my lady. It's impossible for you not to know."
"Does that mean you also have no access to a teleportation matrix?" he asked when she remained silent.
"No one in this residence does, maybe not even in this whole country." She looked at his baffled face and wondered how to explain the situation to him so he wouldn't feel resistant to reality.
"Then can you lend me a carriage? Once I arrive home, I'll compensate you properly for my intrusion."
She closed her eyes for a moment before parting her lips. "I have ships, cars, and planes, but not a single carriage."
Sonia watched carefully as his perfectly shaped brows furrowed once more. "Pardon me for suddenly asking, but how much can you see?"
"Nothing, my lady, not even a speck of light. Does my eyes bother you?" he asked before unconsciously turning away.