Page 30 of Meteor Storm

“You didn’t,” I said. “I’ve been thrown around worse.”

He cocked his head and I knew the moment he was referencing.

“Right.” I shifted my weight, feeling awkward and anxious. “You’re a little bigger than me. But I’ll be honest. I would have rather felt everything than nothing. I almost didn’t feel anything that first day in the cell, not that it makes what that asshole wanted you to do any better.”

His brows pulled together. “What does this mean?”

“I have something in my spine. It malfunctioned when this thing shocked me,” I gestured to the collar. “Which is why it can’t happen again. I don’t know what it will do. So, whatever they make us do, we’ll do it, right?”

I hated asking such a thing. I didn’t want my implant shorting, but Sunhai’s words stayed with me. Thilar was going to protect me for some strange reason and to protect us both, we needed to put on a show. My cooperation was as much for me as it was for him, I supposed, not that he looked like someone who needed protection.

“What is in your spine?”

“Something that keeps me from feeling pain that’s always there or...” He just kept looking at me like he was waiting for more of an explanation. “Or never feeling anything again.”

He sighed. “These games will hurt you. Pek-Tol has many plans.”

“I can take a few cuts and bruises.”

He went silent, his eyes focused on me like he was working out an equation.

“So, we comply. Like yesterday. You are in agreement?”

My cheeks grew hot over the memory, and I scrubbed my hands over my face to distract myself from the embarrassment. The soreness between my legs still hadn’t completely subsided.

“I didn’t want my implant malfunctioning,” I explained, leaving out the part about me not wanting to see Thilar shocked to unconsciousness again. “If it breaks, I’m screwed. I would have done anything to prevent that shit face bastard from giving me another zap.”

“And your body. It’s in good condition now?”

“Sure,” I shrugged.

I wanted the conversation to be over.

I didn’t want to explain what I really felt in the arena. That the cuts and bruises were nothing. That he made me climax like a deprived housewife. I had to divert his attention from me and direct it somewhere else.

“Sunhai explained something about tea,” I blurted out. “Said that’s why you were a little unhinged.”

He let out a hard breath and stood to his full height, a whole head taller than me.

“They gave me rutia.” he gestured at his head. “Makes it blurry up here.”

“Is that all?”

He hesitated, his eyes wandering as if searching for the right words again. “It does other things.”

I knew what he was trying to say. Maybe I just wanted it confirmed so I knew he wasn’t the beast that place was making him out to be. Or maybe I was just being naïve.

“Right. So, LT on steroids,” I said under my breath.

He looked at me like he was trying to translate the words.

I sighed. “It’s something men used to take on Earth to make their dick hard. It gets you really worked up, but I’m guessing that rutia stuff is worse.” I lowered my voice, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. “You looked like you were in pain.”

“I can handle pain. What rutia does to the mind… it was difficult to work past. Not something monrians have built a tolerance for. Never thought I would need to. But Pek-Tol had to double the dose in the last game. My body is already finding ways to process it.”

“That’s a nifty trick. But why’d they give it to you?”

“For better entertainment. I am… stubborn. Was going to avoid you because of it, but nozun chased. So, I chased.”