Back in the bedroom... no, battlefield...
The silken canopy over the bed was torn halfway down, swaying with the echoes of impact. Pillows were shredded like clouds caught in a storm. Cracks appeared across the walls, which was the evidence of the so-called affection being exchanged between two Divines who did not know the meaning of restraint.
At the moment, said girlfriend had him thoroughly pinned.
Vastarael was flat on his back, his lips parted from the assault she called a kiss, one wrist slammed into the bedpost, the other gripped above his head like she was asserting territorial dominance.
"I—Nari wait..."
He gasped between breaths, his voice strained somewhere between laughing and panting.
"We are literally shattering the foundations of the mansion."
"Good. Means they built it weak. We'll fix it later."
He tried to move his hand but didn't budge. He even tried subtly summoning Divine Energy. Still nothing.
"You're actually stronger than me right now. You know that, right?"
"Oh, Darling. I'm always stronger than you. You're just usually too distracted to notice."
"I noticed around the time you assaulted me into the rooftop with a kiss."
She snorted and leaned back slightly, letting him breathe.
"I missed you."
"Clearly."
Finally, Vastarael raised a hand and traced several glowing runes in the air, snapping his fingers with a flick of sapphire light. Instantly, the room sealed in absolute silence thanks to Soundproof Runes. Then with another gesture, sapphire crystal bloomed from the ground, coating every inch of the floor, walls, and furniture… except the bed, which stayed plush, warm, and deceptively soft.
"There. Now we won't destroy the rest of the house. Hopefully."
"I already knew you'd do that. You're predictable."
"And you're terrifying."
"I'm in love."
As he chuckled, Narisva's hand slid down, a single fingertip tapping the edge of his shirt. Spatial Energy rippled outward, disintegrating the fabric into fine mist. Just like that, he was shirtless beneath her, glowing slightly under the three-moon light spilling in from the windows.
Narisva froze for a full minute.
A low, inaudible sound escaped her as she stared like she had just discovered a treasure vault. She was visibly trying to keep a straight face and failing miserably. Her eyes traced every line on his torso like she was memorizing scripture.
"You're drooling."
"I'm not."
"You're absolutely drooling. Right there. That's a drip. Oh..."
"You look better than I remember. When did you get even hotter, you damn divine slab of a boyfriend?"
Vastarael laughed so hard he had to tilt his head back.
"Okay, okay, I take back everything. I am hot. I get it now."
She leaned forward, her elbows resting beside his head.
"You always were. You just underestimate your looks like a modest little angel. It's honestly cute."
"Stop looking at me like that," he grinned, but his cheeks were clearly turning red. "You're making me shy."
"Oh no. Don't tell me my mighty Veneri is shy now."
She said in mock horror, her tone as sarcastic as it was teasing. He gasped dramatically and clutched his hands over his chest.
"I've been stripped naked by a hot Celestial. Is this how I die?"
"Wouldn't be the worst way to go."
Then, with a slow motion that caused even Vastarael to blink, she tugged her blouse over her head, revealing skin that shimmered faintly with spatial particles. The stars of her bloodline twinkled just beneath the surface of her collarbones. It looked like constellations etched into flesh.
Now he was frozen.
"Ahem. I see the universe is in balance again."
"Don't tell me you're the one staring now."
He cleared his throat, clearly trying to compose himself.
"I'm just... appreciating divine beauty. Respectfully."
"Respectfully?"
"I mean... mostly respectfully."
She smirked and leaned in, her hair cascading over him.
"Then stop pretending you're not in awe, Darling. We're alone. And we both know what happens when a Celestial and an Aeterium are left alone under moonlight."
Vastarael raised a hand in defeat.
"Oh, may the stars save me."
"You already saved one."
She climbed further on the bed slowly and it groaned under her weight. Her skin shimmered faintly. It was a natural radiance that pulsed like stardust beneath her surface. She reached out, one hand brushing against his chest with enough power behind the touch that Vastarael swore space glitch apart from her fingertips.
He wasn't just beneath her physically. In that moment, he was utterly and wholly outmatched. For all his titles, all his Divinities and all the weight the Richinaria name carried, he was nothing more than a man before a goddess who knew exactly what she wanted and exactly how to get it.
And what she wanted was him. She whispered to him as she got closer, her eyes half lidded and glowing with stars.
"Don't hold back your strength on me, Dynasty Monarch. I know you hold back with the others. I can handle all of it. But that doesn't mean you'll be in control."
Their bodies collided. His hands roamed instinctively but every time he tried to take control, she wrested it back with strength that felt lovingly oppressive. She wasn't cruel but she was relentless. Her kisses were devouring.
The walls cracked once, then again, and then again due to with the aftershocks of their movements. She pinned him down, locked him in place with legs and arms that bore the training of one renowned as the strongest Divine. Vastarael was strong and unreasonably so but she had him locked like a creature of myth, and no amount of twisting could set him free.
He didn't want to be free anyway. Who would want to be free from someone as beautiful and seductive as Narisva Starisnova?
Their breathing synced eventually, but it took time. The initial moments were nothing but clashing desire and overwhelming pressure but gradually it became something else. Her lips traced the contours of his chest like they were charting maps. And he let her.
And thanks to his Sapphire Bond now infused with the Divinity of Love, he intensified the moment they shared. In fact, this was the only thing keeping Narisva in control. Otherwise, she would have shattered his bones just from her ravage desire.
Every touch was memory. Every movement was her apology for the five days of distance. Every grip, every bite, every whispered moan was her declaration that she had missed him more than the stars had missed the night sky.
Time didn't pass normally in that room. Their Divinities clashed, literally warping space and time itself just from that movement.
The sapphire glow dimmed with every surge of energy released. The runes flickered but held strong. The bed creaked under their rhythm, and then it didn't because neither of them noticed sound anymore. There was only warmth. There was only the overwhelming intimacy of being known.
Every part of Vastarael's soul was bared to her and every fracture in Narisva's heart was soothed by him. She buried herself in him like he was the only sanctuary in all of Spheraphase, and perhaps, in that moment, he was.
Hours passed like minutes. The moons outside drifted, shadows stretched long and the cracked moon above cast silhouettes through the fractured walls. But they didn't care. The world could have ended outside that room and they wouldn't have noticed.
Little did they know that this little action of theirs would benefit them in the near future...