Frost Bitten (BxB)

Chapter Twenty-Five

(Asurah's POV)

I didn't understand. After everything that happened yesterday, with Vextian buying me those gifts from, and I quote, "the kindness of his heart", why the hell would bring me back to the colosseum to watch more innocent people die by the claws of some monstrous beast? I hadn't acted difficult to Vextian yesterday and I pretty much bit my tongue the entire time because I didn't want to anger him. Was he angry at me because I told him he couldn't buy my love? Was he just reminding me of what my fate could be if I stepped out of line?

So why did he bring me here?

I tore my attention away from the poor blonde Tronian woman whose head was nearly ripped off from the massive beast she was currently fighting, and turned my attention to the man in question. I despised how calm and collected he appeared as he leisurely sipped at some dark colored wine, occasionally popping a few Tronian fruits into his mouth. Did this kind of violence really not deter him in the least? I mean, these people didn't deserve to be treated as nothing more than a show, even if they were criminals. The fact that he could just sit here so relaxed while such a thing was happening sickened me...but unfortunately I had no power to stop this. This wasn't my planet. These rules and beliefs were not my own. I had no power in any of this, and I hated feeling so helpless.

"Is there something you need, Asurah?" Vextian's voice pulled me out back to reality, and my cheeks burned at the thought that he had caught me staring at him.

I quickly tore my gaze away from him and pulled my hair over my shoulder, hoping that, that would hide my redden cheeks from his burning gaze. "Sorry. I'm just...hungry." Wow, what a great response, Asurah, I scolded myself, biting my bottom lip in annoyance. I could have asked why he had brought me here after I...well...mostly behaved yesterday, but of course my brain didn't like to think in the moment. Besides...now that I'm actually thinking about it, I'm pretty sure I already knew what he would have said had I asked. So why even bother?

I risked a glance towards him just as a dark brow raised, those black eyes practically glued to me as the Tronain king took a small sip of his wine, pulling the plate of Tronian fruits nearer to me. "Why didn't you express this earlier? I'm more than happy to share my food with you, dearest Asurah."

The look he gave me was so sincere and honest, I almost believed him...yet he brought me here to remind me of the horrors that awaited me if I stepped out of line. Gods, he was bound to give me whiplash with how often his moods shifted. Like it truly seemed as if he were two different people at times, and it made me wonder which person he really was.

Was he the nice and sincere man who had trouble reigning his temper in? Or was he a cruel, vicious bastard who was trying to coax me into falling in love with him?

Honestly, I was leaning more towards the latter, considering he murdered my husband. And sure, he claimed it was self-defense, but I was sure he still would have...killed Joseph regardless.

Gods he excelled at manipulation. There were times I almost believed him when he was being kind to me, but I was smarter than he thought I was. I wasn't going to allowed honeyed words and sweetened actions sneak past my defenses and make me feel anything other than hate for the bastard. I told myself multiple times recently that I would rather die than let such an absurd thing happen, and I truly meant it.

And now that I was on a roll with this whole deep thought thing, why was Vextian so adamant about winning my heart? Why the hell was I so special? Sure, their gods or whatever say that once they were betrothed, or whatever, the two must marry, blah, blah, blah. But I didn't worship his gods. Hell, I wasn't even from this planet, so their religious laws didn't apply to me. Not to mention, I had a sneaking suspicion that Vextian wasn't all that religious. At least, it was a hunch of mine.

So was it because of my looks? I mean, I was pretty average in my mind...but was that the reason Vextian was so obsessed with me? It couldn't be because I had an awesome personality, or whatever, because we never hung out or even had a decent conversation before. Hell, before this, I had only me the guy once when he asked for my hand in marriage over three centuries ago.

Was it about the money then? Glacida was one of the richest planets in the galaxy, being worth more than a hundred trillion creds. Could that be why he wanted me so bad? One could accomplish a lot with that kind of money. Then again, if it were money he was after...why hadn't he ever...I don't know...attacked my planet before this? Or hell, waged war against Glacida?

I sighed and popped a couple of berries into my mouth, surprised by the bitter, almost acidic taste to them. Surprisingly not too bad.

Anyway, back to my train of thought.

Surely the Tronian army was just as formidable as Glacida's, especially with the technology at their disposal. So...it couldn't be about the money. So what was it? Why the hell was he so desperate to bond with me?

I jolted out of my head when the crowd suddenly roared, my ears ringing as I glanced down at the pit, my breakfast nearly coming up at the bloody carnage down below. The woman that had been fighting was now nothing more than a feast for the massive creature she had been put up against, it's large jaws extending as it dragged the woman's limp body into its mouth. I jumped when I heard a loud crunch and threw a hand over my mouth. Though, that didn't stop my breakfast from spilling past my lips to the floor below, which caused Vextian to immediately frown and place his hand on my shoulder.

"Shh, let it out Asurah. You're alright." He muttered while rubbing at my back, my throat now sore as my eyes burned with unshed tears. "Here, let us leave this place. Armund, bring him a cold glass of water, if you will." He moved closer to me, his warmth against my back. However, I was too sick to care at the moment, that sickening crunch of that poor woman flashing through my mind over, and over.

His fingers grazed through my hair and before I knew it, he was pulling me up with him, his arm around my shoulders as he led me away from the colosseum, the crowds now dispersing now that their...their show was over. He led me outside and finally pulled his arms from me, face full of concern as he brushed a few strands of my hair behind my shoulder.

"It will get easier with time, Asurah, I promise you that. You won't always feel this way."

I glared at him, wrapping my arms around myself as I shook my head incredulously. "How can you say that?! She was a living person! A-and you just...you put her in that pit against a monster no one in the universe can take on bare handed. I-I don't understand why you could be so cruel! D-Did you even know her name? Or do you not even care?!"

Vextian was silent for a moment, eyes averted to the side as he pursed his full lips, looking to be deep in thought. "Amara Talahasi," he spoke after a moment, causing me to frown when his gaze flickered over to me. "Amara Talahasi was a woman who cruelly butchered ten pregnant Tronian women before cutting out their babies and eating them. All while being under the guise of an innocent merchant selling baby clothes. So tell me, Asurah...would you want something so evil roaming your precious streets? Around your innocent people?" He frowned, something in his eyes darkening as he took one step towards me, causing me to gulp. "I thought not. I'm not so cruel as to put those with petty crimes in the colosseum, Asurah. No...I put the most evil, and downright cruelest of individuals in there. I put villains in a position of fear, so that they may know what their victims had to experience before they slaughtered them."

He gently cupped my cheek, his thumb brushing against my bottom lip before his gaze softened. "So yes, Asurah, it will get easier once you understand what monsters are thrown into the pit."

A/N: Ooooo and now we get some insight on what really goes on in Vextian's mind. Huhuhhuhuuhhuhu

Also, I'm not sure what's going on with Wattpad, but for some reason this site likes to publish the chapter after the one I'm trying to publish. Like for instance, I published chapter Twenty-Three, yet for some reason, I go to publish chapter Twenty-Four, only to find that it had already been published, and that chapter Twenty-Three was still a draft. I'm not sure why this happens, as it happens every other time I update, it seems, but do keep in mind I'm not updating chapters out of order. Something in this site is just screwing up and updating later chapters than I want it to.

Anywho, Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Next update will be on Monday