THIRD PERSON POV

It was like getting water stuck in your ear after a shower; no matter how hard he tried to ignore it, Thaddeus simply couldn't shake the state of constant awareness that tingled just beneath the first layer of his skin.

The man's thoughts were occupied, every single one starting and ending with him. It left Thad wanting to punch something. But alas, he condemned the idea once he realized that his knuckles were much too precious a commodity to risk.

So – naturally – he was left with no choice but to clench his fists and brood.

Thad loathed that he felt this way, like some kind of deranged madman as his eye twitched incessantly and leg bounced at a much-too-rapid pace.

His entire afternoon had been nothing but torture. Earlier that day, he'd been left with no choice but to leave Aria in the care of his best friend, begrudgingly stomping his way back to the Construction Unit to finish out his stupid fucking shift.

Except, this time he did it with a cock so hard that it could easily be used to bulldoze straight through the sedimentary rock that surrounded them, adding yet another level to The Society compound's blueprint. There was no way that sustaining a raging erection for that long was healthy, but Thaddeus had much more pressing matters on his mind, leaving no extra space to give a single fuck.

That's how Thaddeus found himself hanging onto the living room couch for dear life, fists clenched tight enough to turn diamonds to dust as he wondered just how in the ever-loving fuck he was going to keep from acting on these totally ridiculous, completely unacceptable impulses.

The euphoria-inducing scent that was constantly wafting from the bedroom in tsunami-high waves was akin to a drug, and Thaddeus wanted nothing more than to inject it directly into his veins. It was so bad that the man had to talk himself down from charging straight in there like a bull every few seconds, eyes rolling into the back of his skull whenever a particularly intense flood of pheromones pulsed out from the crack underneath the bedroom door.

The fact that something weird was going on with them was an undeniable fact at this point. Thaddeus' only explanation was that there had to be some kind of biological connection between them that was doing some type of fucked up shit to his DNA – rewriting the source code and altering his existence beyond recognition.

It almost physically hurt to admit to himself that Mitty had been right. No matter how much he tried to stop it, Thaddeus couldn't help but increasingly think about – and apparently also talk about – Aria on a daily basis. Somehow, just like the little insect he was, Bug had wriggled his skinny ass right through the arrogant bars of Thad's brain and into every part of the man's life, images of the small man filling up more space in his psyche than should ever be legal.

Thaddeus wanted Aria.

In what exact ways he wanted him, Thad still refused to investigate. That was a little too much for his brain to handle, especially when it was currently being pelted with giant ripples of air-soluble cocaine.

"Aghh..." The man groaned, back arching as he squeezed his eyes shut at a particularly large swell of peaches. He didn't know how long he had been caught in this sea storm of sensation, but keeping himself glued to the couch whilst riding wave after wave was quickly beginning to take a toll.

Thad's brow was drenched through with sweat and his stomach churned with nauseousness as it threatened to upheave his half-eaten lunch from earlier today. But Thad could handle the urge to vomit his stomach inside out, that wasn't his primary problem. No, the main problem was his fucking dick.

The pulsating appendage pushed against the zipper of his jumpsuit with a bruising force, sticking up at an angle that looked as if the dull tip would puncture the fabric if it grew so much as a single millimeter larger.

"Fuck..." Thad cursed through clenched teeth, pupils dilating as yet another wave of Aria assaulted him. He really didn't know how much longer he was going to be able to last like this as he choked on it, strung out and shaking like an addict.

Thad was so sure that Aria was doing disgustingly depraved things on the other side of that wall. Yeah, there was absolutely zero doubt in his mind that Bug was on his hands and knees right now, waving that plump ass around in the air like a beacon as whimpers of icy-hot pleasure escaped him... As he dipped his lower back, making it easier to slide his long, dainty fingers deep into the depths of his–

"ATTENTION, INHABITANTS OF HOUSING POD NEGATIVE SIX-HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FOUR. YOU HAVE BEEN AUDITED BY THE ELDER COUNCIL. YOU WILL STAY CALM AND COOPERATE, OR FACE PUNISHMENT AS LAWS REGULATE."

Thaddeus was on his feet before he could even blink, moving into a standing position so fast that the world went black around the edges for a few seconds. Through the haze, he could still definitely make out four distinct figures; all of whom stood just inside the threshold of the Pod. All of whom were enforcers, complete with firearms at the ready.

Thad's eyes widened in equal parts shock and terror, and his feet stuck to the ground as his sense of fight or flight malfunctioned.

'What the fuck?! Why would we get audited?!' The man deliberated, wracking his clouded brain for a reason. To his chagrin, the search came up disappointingly empty-handed.

Auditing was one of the only things in this world that harbored the ability to strike fear into Thaddeus' cold heart. There was never anything good that came of being audited, and his heart froze up at the sudden ambiguity of his future. The fact that he was hanging onto the very edge of sanity by nothing more than the skin of his fingertips only compounded that fact, the pulsating shaft between his legs an incorrigible reminder of his... extenuating circumstances.

And Aria...

... Fuck, Aria!

This was so not good. There was no way in hell that they should be leaving the confines of their Housing Pod in the condition that they were both in, especially considering the fact that the idea of another male touching Aria in any way, shape, or form made the blood in his veins reach a temperature hot enough to boil.

He narrowed his eyes at the intruders, pushing past the fear as the need to protect overpowered it all.

Aria was his, and he had Thad's mark on his neck now to prove it. So as far as he was concerned, these bitch ass enforcers could get fucked.

"Thaddeus Axton, member number 6081. Approach us slowly with your hands up in the air, or else we will immobilize you." One of the enforcers near the front of the group spoke, although his voice was a bit muffled by the gray helmets that enforcers always wore while on duty.

"How about you take that helmet off so we can have a proper talk, you puss– Okay, okay! I'm cooperating, damn!" Thad began a smart-aleck retort but wasn't allowed to finish as his hands were suddenly shoved behind his back and his face was slammed down onto the concrete floor. That was definitely going to bruise, and Thaddeus sucked his teeth at the thought. First the shrapnel accident, and now this? The man's facial symmetry simply couldn't catch a break.

Thad grunted, grinding his teeth together in annoyance as two enforcers hastily secured his wrists with an electro-tie, one that shocked the wearer if they demonstrated any sign of struggle.

"Find the other one," The leader of the group instructed the other two enforcers that still stood near the door, "From what I was told, he should be pretty easy to grab without using ties."

"Don't you fucking touch him!" Thad hollered, spit flying from his lips as he thrashed against the enforcer's hold. It didn't take much for the electro-ties to detect his antagonistic movement, a high-pitched whirring sound filling the air as they charged. And then, with a flash of blue light, they sent a blast of pure electricity through his system.

Thad's eyes bulged, lungs locked, and entire body tensed as if he were seizing, and the electro-ties sustained the charge for a duration of five seconds. It was five seconds of pure hell, and when they finally powered down, Thaddeus was left as nothing but a shell as he drooled on the floor, eyelids half-mast and vision blurry.

It was then that a disheveled Aria appeared from around the corner, hands held behind his back as the two enforcers hustled him into the living area. There was a nightgown thrown hastily over his small frame, as if it were shoved over his head without an inkling of care, and the tears that streamed down Aria's shocked face as he stared down at the ground with a wobbling jaw made Thad's chest ache.

The man could only release a choke as he spied the sweat that graced Aria's brow and the way his legs almost gave out with every step, informing Thad that the man was still far from recovered from their mysterious, shared ailment. And thatmeant... that those enforcers had more than likely witnessed Aria squirming around in bed, completely nude.

He was going to hurt them. Better yet, he would murder those fuckers for seeing Aria like that.

"Get moving. The Elders will not be kept waiting." The leader ordered, and he and his colleague yanked Thaddeus' limp body up from the place where it lay on the cold concrete. The curly-haired man's legs were still very much not his own, the electric current rendering the long stalks completely useless, but the enforcers weren't phased in the least. They simply heaved his pendulous body up into their arms and dragged him to the door as if they'd done it thousands of times before.

It had always been rumored that enforcers carried out audits after Free Period was over so that they could do so undetected by other Society members. And even though Thad couldn't hold his neck up right now and the tops of his shoes dragged uselessly against the floor as he was hurried down the corridor, the man could still tell by the multitude of terrified voices around them that they were certainly not the only ones being dragged out of their Housing Pods in the dead of night.

But despite the cries of confusion and terror that filled the air around them, penetrating like a bullet and piercing straight through Thaddeus' thick skull was the distinct sound of Aria's panic.

Aria had tried his best to be strong, to hold up a facade of being somewhat capable of emotional self-regulation as they led him down the hallway, shoving his back at times in an effort to compensate for his short legs. But his ability to act like everything was fine and dandy faltered the moment those Enforcers grabbed him out of the comforting circle of pillows and blankets he had so perfectly assembled on his bed and forced him into an itchy, much-too-hot nightgown.

And then, when he'd turned the corner and saw Thaddeus... cheek-down on the floor with the tips of his hair smoking a little bit like they'd been set alight, the dam held closed with popsicle sticks and prayers, broke.

Now, the small man was snotting up a storm, tears streaming down both cheeks as he rubbed his thighs together with a sob of frustration and pain. It wasn't long before they were pushed – or dragged, in Thaddeus' case — onto the airlift. The lead enforcer used a chip embedded into the wrist of their uniform to activate the one button that never worked for any other Society member, not unless they were somehow given specialty clearance.

"Level negative thirty is classified as a restricted access level. All matters that occur on this level are confidential, and may not be discussed with other Society members. If these rules are broken, the perpetrator will be punished as laws regulate. Have a wonderful visit, and remember, long live The Society of the People." An automated voice instructed through the speakers as it whisked them deep into the belly of the compound. The sound of it made Thad's skin itch, the intonations much too cheerful for the situation that the two currently found themselves in.

The airlift moved quickly and before long the group arrived at the very lowest floor of the compound. When the doors slid open in front of them, Aria's sharp intake of breath was not lost on Thad, whose own breath caught when he forced his heavy head to lift the few inches necessary so see in front of him

It was unlike anything the two had ever seen, opulence practically oozing out of the marble walls and dripping from the giant, golden chandelier that lit up the entire room. Multiple doors lined the walls – where they led to was anyone's guess – and, even more surprisingly, the floors were not even concrete here. Whatever mystery material it was glistened with flecks of gold, its glossy finish so shiny and clean that Aria and Thad spied their reflections in it like a mirror.

This room... was gorgeous.

But the two were only allowed the briefest of time to appreciate the grandiose luxury of the place, as before they could even realize who else was in the room along with them, the pair was shoved down to their knees. And then, a remarkably familiar voice rang out into the room.

"Member number 6081 and member number 8320..." The voice paused, and Thad recognized the distinct, electronic sound of someone tapping a tablet. "We welcome you to our honorable chambers."

It took a shit ton of strength and coordination, but Thad somehow gathered the necessary effort to raise his floppy neck and meet the steely eyes of the one and only Portia Laancaster – The Society's Head Elder.

A quick scan of the long, curved table that she sat in the center of made his gut wobble with concern. He had never seen all of the Elders gathered together like this, traditional white robes donning their shoulders, the symbol of The Society impeccably embroidered upon each lapel. They were perfectly groomed, not a single hair out of place as they stared down at Thaddeus and Aria with completely neutral expressions.

Well, all except for Portia, who had broken into a wide smile that showed far too many teeth.

... What the hell was all this about?

"Are you not honored to be here, with all of the attention of your Elders? This really is a privilege, you know." She continued, raising a sharp brow.

"Thank you, Elders!" Aria squeaked in reply past calcified vocal cords, the high-pitched sound not unlike a mouse caught in a trap. Elder Laancaster's eyebrow immediately lowered, and her smile widened to a particularly unsettling degree.

"Ah yes, number 8320. What a wonderful feat of engineering you are." She cooed, eyes flickering to Aria's and holding there. "Now, why don't you continue to be a good boy and tell The Elders how your mating with number 6081 here is progressing?"

Aria audibly gulped.

Oh no. Oh no.

Lying to Elder Edergan that one time had been hard enough. But... to lie to the entire Council of Elders?! Add on the fact that his overheated brain could focus on nothing other than getting something thick and wet and meaty to fill every single hole in his body and...

Yeah, Aria was one hundred percent sure that he was about to pass the heck out. He was going to splatter, right there on the floor in front of all of The Elders, and – if he got really lucky – give himself a major concussion.

But at the same time, that would be so embarrassing. He would never live it down. But would The Elders dismiss their case if he did that? Aria had not a single clue, having never been on the other side of trouble. But maybe he would find out really soon, seeing as to how his mouth ran dry and his vision was slowly forming black spots around the edges...

But then, a thigh pressed against his own, and the smaller man couldn't help but whimper in relief as the black spots immediately began to recede.

The touch was so small and insignificant, but it did a number on Aria's ability to clear his mind enough to form just a few rational thoughts. He couldn't hold back the whimper that overcame him though, the gentle touch soothing a fire inside that had raged without relief for hours and hours... A fire for which Aria was quickly beginning to realize Thaddeus held the key to soothing.

Thad had done it on purpose, unable to resist providing Bug with any kind of comfort he could manage once that all-too-familiar, metallic stench broke through a thick cloud of peach. Aria just looked so, very small as he shook underneath The Elders' trenchant gaze, and it made Thaddeus want to jump up, flip the old bastards off, and run off with Aria like a human football. But seeing as to how they could just shock the hell out of him again if he even so much as blinked wrong, Thad was forced to settle for this small act of commiseration. The electro-tie couldn't stop him from cursing them out in his head, though.

"I– it is progressing well, Elder Laancaster." Aria dipped his head, half out of respect and half to hide his shame. "We thank you for your generosity in pairing us together. As always, your foresight knows no bounds." His voice was quiet and much too soft, but it would have to be enough.

Silence hung in the air like a noose, and Thad pressed his thigh closer when he felt Aria's tremors worsen.

Portia stared between the two, not letting a single inner thought slip past her impeccably placed smile. It felt like a century passed before she finally replied, fingernails tapping against the table in front of her as if they were having a simple, casual conversation between longtime friends.

"You..." She flicked out one of the fingers that tapped at the table, the sharp tip pointing at Aria's forehead like a laser. "... are a liar."

Aria's head snapped back up so fast that he sustained a wicked case of whiplash, eyes wide and pleading as he connected them with Elder Laancaster's. Her face was so different now, all signs of a smile wiped away so quickly that one would have missed the transition in the time it took to blink.

"I– I– I–" Bug stuttered like a scratched record, mouth opening and closing as tears rapidly filled up in the rims of his eyelids, and Thad's biceps shook as he resisted the urge to jump over that table and rip out her jugular with his bare teeth.

"We have no interest in hearing your excuses." Portia leaned back in her chair, arms crossing as she shifted her gaze between them smugly, "You see, our society runs on a very simple, but very important value." She tilted her head, twisting her stare into them like a drill, "... And when we notice that our members are straying from that ever-so-important path, we – your loving Elders – are burdened with the task of correcting the ailment; of squashing the virus before it spreads through our Society and ruins everything that we have ever worked for."

Aria's trembling was visible now, shoulders slumped and face hidden by the shade of his hair as tears plopped into the ground beneath him.

He was going to get a strike. Any minute now, and he was going to get a freaking strike. Just the thought of it was like a dagger to the small man's all-too-tender heart.

On the other end of the spectrum, Thad had tuned out Elder Laancaster long ago, unable to focus on anything outside of Aria's distraught form as he shook with terror.

"Obedience." Portia continued after a drawn-out pause, unphased by Aria's grandiose display of angst. "Obedience is the very heart of our beloved Society. It pumps throughout our every limb, creating a perfectly regulated circulatory system that never veers even a single step out of line. It is a tried and true structure, and without it, we would have perished as a species long ago." She leaned forward now, craning her neck over the table. "Now... you wouldn't want to be the one to throw a wrench into that perfect system, now would you, number 8320?"

Aria sniffled, hair shimmering under the brightness of the room's shine as he shook his head in response.

"You will use your words when you are addressing an Elder!" Portia suddenly exclaimed, fist slamming against the tabletop with enough weight to rattle the entire room. Or at least, it felt like it.

Aria flinched as if he'd been punched, body yanking backward so hard that he fell from his knees, toppling straight down onto his bottom. "I–I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me, I'm sorry!"

Portia cleared her throat, sitting up a little straighter in her chair as that toothy smile spread across her face once more.

"So you can learn. Good. Now, let's see if we can find a way to speed up the process." She turned her head, gesturing to the Elder that Aria and Thad had, unfortunately, had more than a favorable amount of interactions with. "Edergan?"

Edergan nodded, picking up his tablet and tapping a few things before reading out loud.

"For the infraction of deceitful behavior and intent, Society member number 8320, also known as Aria Toulsend, shall receive a strike on his permanent record."

The blood curdled in Thad's veins as Aria curled into himself on the ground, the shine of the floor reflecting his expression of shock. Thaddeus hated this. Thaddeus loathed this.

"... He shall also be sentenced to a fifteen-minute beating of mild severity."

Thaddeus blinked.

"ARE YOU FUCKING INSANE?!" He bellowed, spittle flying as he instantly shuffled over to kneel in front of Aria.

They wouldn't lay a single fuckin' pinkie on Bug. If they tried, they would have to go through him first.

"Bug is fucking tiny! He wouldn't survive a beating, you can't do that!" He paused, a frustrated sound ripping from his throat. His brain pulsed before finally settling on a solution... The only solution.

"... You know what, fuck it! Give me his strike, give me his punishment! Come on, I know you want to! I give you all enough problems anyway, I'm sure you're just dying to hurt me. And I obviously need it a lot more than he does. Come on, teach me some obedience!" He smirked crookedly to finish off his statement, hoping that they wouldn't notice the tremble in the corner of his lips.

All they had to do was take the bait. It had to work. Because if they didn't – if they followed through on their plan of beating Aria – Thaddeus was going to find a way to make that gaudy ass chandelier fall and kill every last one of 'em.

"Thad, you can't–!"

"Shut up." Thaddeus snapped back at Aria, although his gaze remained locked on the wrinkly bitch in the middle of the table. As far as he was concerned, the old hag could suck his entire dick and choke on it, hundreds of years of Society history be damned.

Said wrinkly bitch stood and Thad's neck turned to follow her movements as she approached him, robes rippling like a flag behind her. She took her sweet ass time, but it wasn't long before she stood in front of Thaddeus and bent over. That unnerving smile was back with a particular vengeance as she seized his chin in an uncompromising grip, tilting his face here and there.

Thad had to grit his teeth together to curb the inclination to bite her knobby fingers off.

"How interesting. You never fail to amaze us, number 6081." She started, "But the fact that you thought that we would actually cause harm to our most precious asset is a true testament to your... insight." Laancaster tutted through a brief chuckle, "I did not anticipate that dialing down the intelligence code in your genetic configuration would cause this much of a deficit. A pity for you, really, but I suppose it cannot be helped." Portia shrugged with a sigh, releasing Thad's jaw before brushing her hands together as if to get rid of the germs.

"Since we apparently have to spell it all out for you... Young man, Aria here is the closest thing to genetic perfection our great Society has ever seen. He could do no wrong even if he desired to." She glanced to the side, where Aria still lay curled up, before shifting back to Thaddeus. "You are the one that has been tormenting our asset. You are the one who has forced him to lie on your behalf. You are the one who is to be punished tonight. It was written in stone from the very moment that we were informed of your transgressions, we just needed a little... confirmation, first." She flashed Thaddeus a pointed look as the man stared, slacked-jawed, back up at her.

Informed?! Who would... Just as soon as the thought began, it hit him;

'So I swear to fuck Thad, if I hear about you treating him like shit again, I'm going to be forced to escalate this. Don't make me be that guy.'

Thaddeus' entire facade cracked apart at the seams.

Mitty. His best friend did this. Betrayal hurled through him at a speed faster than light, making Thad fall back to sit on his heels to gain some stability.

Elder Laancaster simply turned around to walk back to her seat, robes trailing behind her like an omen.

"Remember, The Elders are always many, many miles ahead of you. We cannot be outwitted. We cannot be outplayed. Especially not by the likes of you." She nudged her chin toward the line of enforcers that flanked the sides of the room just as she finally settled back down into her seat. "Take him."

A sea of black peeled off of the walls and closed in on Thaddeus, leaving no gaps in their careful configuration for escape. Even if he could escape though, he wouldn't. He couldn't let them get close enough to hurt... Aria?

Thin arms wrapped around his midsection and dug into the back of his jumpsuit, a wet face burying deep into his sternum as Aria held on for dear life.

The small man wailed with a desperate sense of abandon, the shrill sound bouncing off of every shiny wall that surrounded them. If only those walls could talk, they would tell tales of the countless pleas of mercy they had become acquainted with throughout their time.

"No, please! Don't take him! Don't leave me, Thad! Please!" Aria screamed so loud that his throat sounded like it was ripping clean open.

... And that was how Thaddeus's heart broke for the very first time.

He could almost hear the pieces fall out of his chest and clatter against the mirrored floor, echoing forever and ever in his ears, blurring out the static. Aria was clinging to him, gripping so tight that his fingernails punctured into the flesh of his own palms as he cried out, begging for Thad like he was the only thing left in this entire world...

It was something the man would never forget – a sight that would haunt his dreams and paint his waking hours for years to come.

The broad man hesitated to act on his true desires, but the enforcers were moving in closer by the second. He had to do this before they got here and tore them away from one another. So, he swallowed his inflated ball of pride and just did it.

In an absence of the ability to wrap his restrained arms around the smaller man, Thaddeus leaned down instead, brushing his lips against the bite that sat just lateral to Aria's nape. The mind-numbing shockwave of emotions that assaulted Thaddeus as he did this was extremely disorienting at first, but when Aria released a soft purr into his chest, rubbing his face into the scratchy fabric of Thad's jumpsuit, all else was forgotten.

"Listen to me carefully, Bug. Call Andrea. Call her over and have her stay with you in our Pod while I'm gone."

"B-but–!"

"I'll be back for you as soon as I can. Don't worry about me."

"But... they will hurt you! You have to promise me you'll be okay!"

"I'm offended that you think so little of me, shrimp. I can hold my own, you should know that by now." He whispered, trying to add a hint of humor. The man was suddenly grateful that his wrists were out of sight, held tight inside the claustrophobic confines of the electro-ties as they shook. "I promise I'll be back for you."

He modified the promise at the last second because realistically, he didn't know what condition he was going to be in when they finally dumped him back into The Society. And no matter how many times he had lied in the past, something didn't allow him to do it this time. Not to Aria.

The enforcers were on top of him now, but still he fought to stay close to Aria. Even when they seized his arms in a tight grip, he didn't let go.

"Do not resist!" One enforcer demanded, but Thad simply cursed their mothers and pressed himself closer, burying his face into Bug's slender neck because that was all he could think to do.

Aria released a blood-curdling scream when the enforcers finally began to succeed in wrestling Thaddeus away, this one louder than all the others before it. He clung with all his might, slender fingers holding fast to Thad's calf when that was all that he could reach, and a nail broke clean off of his nail bed amid the fight. When the enforcers noticed that the small man was far from letting go despite their best efforts, one raised a boot, using the heavy sole to kick the smaller man's arms out of their way like he was nothing more than well... a bug.

Thaddeus roared, thrashing wildly and kicking at the legs of any enforcer within his range as a red haze filtered into his peripheral vision. But – to his utter dismay – he was only able to clip a single shin before a charging sound filled the air. And then, his body seized up tight, eyes bulged, and he slumped over into the arms of the enforcers, large body rendered as pliant and malleable as a newborn baby's from the electric current.

"Please!" Aria reprised, scurrying back around to face The Elders before folding in half at the waist and pressing his forehead deep into the floor. Maybe if he showed how much respect he had for them, maybe if he bowed at their feet as he cried his heart out, they would listen. "Please don't hurt him!"

His palms dug into the floor, blood dripping from his newly ripped-out fingernail bed and staining the pristine flooring beneath him. It had made a little, red puddle by the time Portia finally spoke.

"That man has broken the law. Our Society does not make exceptions for anyone, nor do we waste time or emotion on those who commit undesirable acts. So, dry your tears and stand up, number 8320. Now." She replied nonchalantly, fingertips tapping the table once more as her eyes flickered over to where Thaddeus was being tossed into one of the multiple rooms that lined the walls.

Aria's hair dragged across the floor and through his little puddle of blood as he slowly pushed up to his hands, trying to buy extra time. His insides were a lost cause, the painful chaos that raged there not to be forgotten anytime soon, but he had to at least get his outer display of emotion under control. He would have to fake it until he could sob himself dry underneath the protective cover of his blankets. Especially after Elder Laancaster's speech about the importance of obedience.

It took another twenty or so seconds for Aria to finally pull himself up to standing. His legs still shook like a baby deer, but he did it. Unfortunately that was only half of the battle, and he clutched his hands against his chest tight, using them as an anchor to keep from tumbling right back over.

"Now, Aria. All of us Elders know that you are such a good boy. We have invested a countless number of credits into this experiment, and you have made us very proud thus far." She smiled that horribly unsettling, too-wide smile again, but Aria didn't witness the shift in her body language. No, his eyes were preoccupied with counting every single gold fleck on the floor beneath him; anything to distract him from bursting into tears again, or succumbing to the part of his soul that still begged for someone to mount him. So far, he had counted twenty-seven.

"... But if you do not mate with Thaddeus, all of our credits, all of the time and effort that our scientists have spent on you will all amount to nothing. Do you understand me?" As Portia finished, her tapping fingers froze just above the tabletop.

A chill slithered down the length of Aria's spine at the thick silence that filled the room.

"Yes, Elders. I understand."

"Good. I always knew that I could count on you." Portia's lip twitched. "You have four weeks."

_

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