#skalono

[ascendency-and-fate]

[dragonfelling]

Its Friday but here's some writing from chapter 2 👀

ASCENDANCY - Ch: 2 Pov: Alma Hedera

Elpida looked like she was in a panicked rush as she hurried down the stairs. She hiked her skirt up with both hands, keeping herself from tripping on her dress and taking a tumble down the stone and wood stairwell. Seeing that wide eyed, excited yet concerned look and Elphida’s raised brows, Alma knew it best to part from her lady before addressing her sister. She did not want to stress Saria over servant matters if they were not urgent enough to report to the Crown. When it came to servant matters, Elph usually came with tales of stirring drama.

The Servant Master Yeardly’s cruelty, which young woman found themselves smiled at by the head-knight, or the gall of yet another aristocrat who thought the servants as unfeeling automatons.

Or… what the Crown was up to….

Alma turned from Saria after a polite chirp, “Excuse me for a moment…”

“Alma, Alma!” Elp partly whispered, partly yelled. Her shoulders rose and fell from the rush of scampering down the stairs.

“The guests I was serving, Lord and Lady Toivo of Anatoli-” she took another deep breath, letting go of Alma. She bounced on her heels and shook her hands to work out a nervous energy before she could continue.

“Settle down, Elly. Settle. Did they do something?” She held onto her sister's hand, taking it as gentle as one would lift a kitten. Alma waited anxiously for her sister to explain, a sore lump growing like a tumor in her neck.

“I went to check on them after some time -well first, they asked to be left alone for the afternoon.”

Alma leaned forward and frowned hard in anticipation.

“Spit it out, girl.”

Elp clenched her hand around Alma’s, glancing behind her shoulder as if to ensure nobody who wasn’t supposed to hear them was behind her. It wasn't that news would ever stay secret for long but she knew some things were important to keep under wraps. Elph was not stupid or naive, simply eager to share.

She whispered harshly, practically bursting at the seams to tell,

“I saw Crown Skalono in their bed.”

[dragonfelling]

Snippet Sunday #18

Beginning of some nsfw stuff with Skalono and Alexandria. Nothing explicitly nsfw happens in this snippet but it does lightly mention pregnancy, SA, coercion and similar topics. Also internalized misogyny. 👍

Alexandria bringing Skalono to her room with not so great intentions, but changing her mind and perspective on intimacy and sex.

-

When Alexandria invited Skalono Aeraki to her bed, she did not expect gentleness. 

She had not even expected him to fall into what she had planned to be a trap. 

Her husband, Azaiah, was a eunuch and Alex was pregnant.

She needed an out, something to place the blame on. She needed to deny this was Zachariah’s child and the arrival of Skalono was more than good timing. 

It was a saving grace. - and he was too easy to lure into her room. Stupid man, she thought. Of course he could be led with his dick.

Once she had Skalono under her thumb, she could do anything.

She could claim her love layed with the 19 year old prince and it was his! All the blame would be on him and he could deal with the infant… Or she could follow in the lie Azaiah had cooked up to “save face” for her mother, Queen Aideen. 

She could say that he had been forceful with his approach and she could not say no to the Aeraki heir apparent and this was just the child of unfortunate results. Sure, it would dent his reputation but it would mean nothing in the grand scheme of things for a Crown to have that accusation on him.

She could have-

She could've done a lot of things to yank back control of her life if she wasn't left so shocked. If the electrokinetic didn’t leave her room with the notion of what could be instead.

Skalonos' lips were so soft against her neck. One arm was looped around her waist and the other worked on unfolding the fabric of his waist sash. 

His arm was firm and strong against her. He held her protectively when she expected a harsh grab to her hip and an unceremonious push to the bed already.

He let the sash fall to the floor and began working on the clasps of his white and gold robes. He was partially thankful that Alexandria was not fully dressed at the moment. He hadn't had much practice in the art of undressing Midonian women yet. No corsets to struggle with or layers of frilly fabric- Alex was in her nightgown. Modest for an Anemoian, not so much to a Midonian with a stick up their ass.

Her hand rested tentatively on his shoulder, knuckles tucked under his vibrantly red cape and her pinky against his neck. The young prince was not careful at all it seemed… he had no caution in how close her hands were to his neck. The thought didn't even seem to cross his mind. He didn't even twitch.

Alexandria was further surprised when Skalono took her other hand and placed it directly on his throat. She wrapped her fingers around him with a cautious slowness. She didn't squeeze, just held as Skalono guided her… even if the thought to grab and crush his windpipe gnawed at the back of her mind.

She stared up at him, confusion and frustration crossing her expression. What was he doing…? 

Skal shifted an inch back and let go of her, rolling his shoulders and letting his robes fall to his elbows where he let them rest so he could show off his body to her.  

Why was he doing this?!

Alex’ expression softened slightly upon seeing his body. He looked good. He looked really good with her hand around his neck like a collar. Like one of those strange colourful drakes he brought with him. 

Skalono was covered in wavy little hairs from his chest and down his pudgy stomach where it trailed below his pants.

He had a layer of fat on his chest and arms covering heavy muscles. Well fed and well worked. If he wasn't a prince, you could mistake this man as a wrestler.

His skin was littered in almost-healed cuts and a couple bruises on his arm. His right hand knuckles were bruised and his palms had callouses, rougher in certain spots. Scars ran over him but that wasn't unexpected. All the Aeraki trained in combat and swordsmanship. They trained in the arts as well; music and the blade. 

She had seen them all spar for Crown Dikaiosyn and Monarch Zachariah’s entertainment and knew how the boys fought.

She knew how Fluvius dove and weaved around, carrying his momentum to overcome his scrawniness. 

She had seen how Iasis went for skilled maneuvers to use his opponents movement against them like his father.

She had heard about the young Janu practicing in the art from the boy's idle chats but such unlady-like things were not something to show off like a trophy to Zachariah.

Skalono never swung without purpose and he didn't go out and start fights. He just ended them. 

She knew how Skalono threw his weight into every stroke and step. He was a brute. His attacks came with a heavy hand and he was easy to predict but when he hit, it ended in someone on the ground. He wasn't stupid though. He always had a method to his moves even if it was a simpler practice then his brothers.

So when she could not predict how Skalono would move here, it almost angered Alexandria. What in the world was he doing? This was against the very nature she came to expect.

Skalonos' smile didn't wane much but a quizzical look came to his eyes and he tilted his head. 

“What's wrong?” He asked, putting a hand back to her waist to hold her between his thumb and index. 

What the fuck did he mean by ‘whats wrong?’ What was he, some virgin?

Alex answered plainly and quickly, 

“Nothing.”

She couldn't look him in the eye. 

He shrugged and took a step forward to place his lips against her cheek, trailing his kisses downwards to peck at her neck again. She felt an involuntary shiver crawl up her stiff spine and she gripped onto him tighter. He seemed to like that, at least according to the intensity of how he kissed and mouthed her. She squished her neck down, expecting a bite.

Skal took another step forward towards her bed but did not push her down. 

Instead, he took a step to her side and sat himself down first.

She let go of him and folded her hands in front of her, wringing them. 

Alexandria’s mind was wracked with whats and ifs.

She stared at him with intense eyes and a deep set frown.

Skal scooted up and began to unclasp his boots to set to the side, then sat up to work on his white fabric pants. He was naked and bare to Alex while her dress had been left alone.

 He sat back and folded a leg up over the other to cover his pride. Another trait Alexandria couldn't help but register as terribly feminine.

“Lady Alexandria, please. If you don't want to do this, it's fine. You don't look especially comfortable.”

“I said I'm fine, Aeraki. I came onto you, did I not?”

Her frown twitched and she shifted on her feet at the uncomfortable silence between them.

She had to break the quiet quickly. She couldn’t dare leave the awkwardness unattended to.

“Can we do this, already?”

“I thought you said we’d have all night, how your husband slept in a different bed.”

“He does. Azaiah doesn't even sleep in the same hall.”

“Well, what's the rush then?”

Alex huffed and kept staring down at his body. He was cute. Sure… yeah, feminine in some features but he made up for it completely in his stature and skill.

His hair was long and thick and almost made her jealous. It was as he usually wore it, half of it was up in a high bun adorned with two golden pins while the rest laid against his shoulders and back like a mane. 

Skal eventually just shook his head and beckoned her closer. 

He placed a hand below her gown and traced his palms up her legs. His thumbs hooked between her thighs and brushed her underwear. 

His grin returned as he felt over the lace. He brought her closer, scooted forward again to slip off the bed onto his knees and dipped his head to dive under the dress. 

[dragonfelling]

Happy Storyteller Saturday! With that recent snippet you shared of Saria cheating on Skalano with Iasis... how does this come about? Does she just really like these brothers (finding them both hot for familial facial features), did she want to court Iasis initially then ended up with Sakalano for political reasons, did she trip and fall into the wrong brother's bed etc? How did this go down initially?

HAPPY STS!

Answered by @the-majestic-pterodactyl-senpai since Saria is actually his lady!

"So, Saria was originally courted by Skalono for political marriage reasons. She was Skal's last choice out of the 3 Cane sisters (Alexandria, Ailbe, and Saria), and so that kind of put things off to a bad start. Skal was still very kind to her and I believe he did come to love her as she loved him, but Skal was incredibly disloyal to Saria.

From the start, he was seeing Alexandria behind her back. He kept his affairs on the down low, but eventually word got out to Saria about his flings with different servants and aristocrats. It was probably his affair with Lilith that actually got him caught, lmao. I actually wouldn't doubt that Lilith was the one to tell Saria about it, she definitely seems like the type to do that.

She absolutely did, under the impression that she knew about his affairs. This affair however was something that Lilith had pressured and Sari actually ended up feeling bad for him when he told her that Lilith made him do it. (Really, he could've gotten out of there, but it would have angered the superior and caused issues for Anemoi.

Saria was incredibly hurt finding out Skal had been continuously disloyal to her throughout their marriage, and begged him to stop his affairs. He promised he would, and things were okay. But eventually, he began sneaking around again. Saria eventually catches him again, and the cycle repeats. A Gala rolls around 7 years after Saria found out about Skal's flings, and she tells him that she would like it if this night was just for them. She asked him to spend the night by her side, dance with her, hold her- And he promised he would do just that. If he could give her nothing else, he’d give her one night to pretend her husband wasn’t a cheating bastard. Skal quickly went back on his promise, though. He ended up spending the night drunk, across the room from Saria, holding another woman and working his charms on her. Right in front of Saria. This enraged her, and she was finally done. What she did next wasn’t right by any means, but at that moment it was the most rational thing she could come up with (the other option being to walk across the room and stick a broken glass in Skalono’s gut). She sought out Iasis (who was recently divorced and angry at the world), brought him upstairs, and the two spent the night together in the upstairs common room. From there, they saw each other as frequently as they could. Saria felt guilty, yes, and she knew that what she was doing to Skalono was just as bad as what he was doing to her, but for the time she pushed the guilt down and continued on with her own affair. Blah blah blah, Saria ends up getting caught with Iasis. Iasis and Skalono duel. Skalono loses epicly, and Iasis doesn’t wanna kill him in front of Saria even though it’s his right to do so, so he lets him live and just takes some of his hair as a prize. Saria stops seeing Iasis while Skal is recovering, taking care of him and staying by his side. She has hope that this might be a turning point for their relationship, but unfortunately Skal once again falls back on old habits the moment he’s feeling better. And so, she goes back to Iasis. 

One more key event in the downfall of Skal and Saria’s marriage is the birth of Amara. It’s when Saria finds out about Skal and Alexandria, and it’s the final nail in the coffin for her. She loves Amara with all her heart, having no problem raising her as her own daughter, but she has no more love left for Skalono at that point.

She falls in love with Iasis throughout this period, and the affair continues until Skal dies. After that, they still keep their relationship out of the public eye for a couple years but eventually come out and get married."

Something we've talked about a few times is the fact that Skalono and Alexandria would have been way more compatible. Alex as Skalono's first pick- but she was married to Azaiah and even if she wasn't, she was in no circumstances to be taken as Skalono's wife. She would have been way more firm with him and kept him on a leash per say. Iasis and Saria are extremely compatible, with Iasis being loyal as a dog and Sari's personality complimenting Iasis' neurodivergent swag. Also note for those who read the Azaiah stuff: Alex is not Azaiahs sister by blood. She is the daughter of Aidana and a man called Stannes, and Azaiah is Sibora's and Zachariahs. Its still very taboo for them both and they both think its a horrid situation that only conveniences Zachariah

[dragonfelling]

Happy Storyteller Saturday! Tell me about a victory, either your characters or your own. I wanna hear about some triumphs

Happy STS!

My small victory this week is pumping out 6500 words on the Azaiah doc this month and over 35000 total on the Amara doc this year

As for characters....

Here is Azaiah's trophy, where he defeated a Nidus https://dragonfelling.tumblr.com/post/761725793859698688/snippet-sunday-azaiahs-trophy

and here is a short about a duel over a woman, where Someone has a Victory :)

Prince Iasis was all over Crown Skalono’s wife when Skalono unlocked the door and stepped into the upstairs common room. Her legs were locked around his hip and Iasis had his head buried in her neck. 

When the door swung open, Iasis sat up from her embrace and stared. His eyes went wide and his hands removed themselves from Saria's body. 

Skalono glared, breathing heavily. He looked so much like their father at that moment. The rage was palpable.

Skals stomach turned at the indignation one could only feel learning your brother had been doing your wife behind your back. 

He searched for what to say to them but only three words made it out in a choked, scathing growl.

“Get cleaned up.”

Iasis assisted Saria in getting redressed, his head hanging in shame. What had he done?... Did he feel guilty for the action, or… he thought about it while he buttoned up his vest. Or was it because he got caught.

He pushed his ruffled, sweaty hair back and mentally prepared himself to face his younger brother in the hall.

Iasis left first, glancing down at Skalono with an uncertain expression.

Skal grabbed Iasis by the arm. His grip was strong, the sinew of his hand was exaggerated by the painful grasp on his older brother. 

Iasis whispers. “Hey- That hurts.” He gives his arm a tug. Skalono grabbed up at the collar of his shirt and tugged him down a couple inches to stare him directly in the eyes. 

“Iasis, you… you fucker. You- I'm challenging you to a traditional Anemoian duel. Old rules.”

He was meeting Iasis on his own home grounds. Iasis blinked in confusion. This was a stupid decision from a stupidly angry man.

“Are you sure?”

“Dont fucking Are you sure, me. Tomorrow afternoon. Training yard. Saria is going to watch me tear you down.”

“That is a bad idea. Think about it before you hand out such a… a dumb challenge.”

“Do you think I'm not serious? Do you have any idea what you just did!?” He shakes his head and shoves Iasis when he lets him go. 

Iasis steps back and stands up straight.

“Skalono…”

“Get my name out of your mouth.”

When Saria steps out, Skalono turns away from her and storms downstairs. 

Saria puts an arm on Iasis’ back, frowning up at him. 

“He has no right to yell at you considering his own unfaithfulness.”

“It is less about you courting another man, and more about who it's with.”

“Did he say he challenged you?”

“Old Anemoian duel. Old rules. No powers and first blood is thrown out the window. it's very serious, It's a submission duel.”

“What's that mean?”

“One round, real wounds are free game. All that matters is that someone ends up on the ground at the mercy of the other. ”

“Then what!? That's really vague, Iasis.”

“Winner's choice to what happens.”

He grips the short sword at his waist, running his thumb along the guard.

-

Saria stood to the side lines along with the rest of the crowd. Doctor Seane, Xavier, Jan and Fluvius stood beside her, watching the two Aeraki men circle each other like territorial animals.

The focus in their eyes was intense. They guided their blades in two hands, the tip pointed towards the chest of the other.

She couldn't lie to herself, Saria's heart fluttered at their expressions. She had never seen either of them look so wild.

Maybe it was the fact they were fighting over her.

Iasis spoke in a low, warning tone. 

“This is your last chance to rescind your challenge.”

“I don't revoke it. Fight me, Iasis.”

Both Skalono and Iasis had their hair up fully, braided tight and tied high to keep their hair out of the way. They both wore minimal leather armor, the typical for this kind of fight.

Iasis’ clothes always fit formly, but Skalono looked completely different without his loose comfortable robes. It was easy to see the size difference between them now. 

Iasis was tall and lean. There wasn't much fat on his bones but rolled up sleeves showed off firm, muscled arms.

Skalono had weight to throw. He was some inches shorter but he wouldn't be easy to bring to the ground. 

The crowd held their breath as the two approached one another closer and changed their grip on the blades to hold them in their right hands.

A challenge was a challenge: there wasn't a thing to be done considering who issued it.

If Skalono died here, then the throne would be Iasis’. Everyone knew that the man was pining for the crown too. 

Jan did not want it, and Fluvius was not eligible.

Everyone also knew that the king realistically had little chance. 

This was proven correct soon enough. 

Skalono stepped forward first, thrusting his blade towards Iasis. Iasis retaliated with a swift swing down onto Skalonos blade.

It was rebuked. Iasis turned his blade and parted the metal. He went for Skalonos arm. Skalono stepped back and guarded again. 

Both men took some distance between each other, their pacing around one another continuing. 

Skalono stepped forward again, faking Iasis out. A flinch to guard opened Iasis up for Skalono to step forward again and slash towards Iasis’ face. Iasis stepped back, growing close to the wall.

Skalono did not let up, and went for him again with two hands on the handle. Iasis stepped forward to take this attack head on. He let Skalonos sword run down his own and locked the blade at the guards. The Crown was strong and tried to force Iasis down. Iasis couldn't support the force brought on the guard with one hand so he lifted his free hand up to support the side of his blade in his palm, before tilting his body and in a mere moment kicking Skalonos leg to get the Crown away from him. 

They gave each other space again. Iasis began to take careful steps to get more room behind him. 

They breathed heavily through their noses, sweat beading on the back of their necks and foreheads. 

Wavy strands of hair loosened from their buns and braids and stuck to their skin. 

Skalono took the first leap again. Iasis’ reaction was poor this time, and he just barely missed a much more serious injury to his cheek. Iasis took a long few strides backwards and away from Skalono. He held his cheek, bringing his hand off to look at the blood. It would surely scar.

He looked at it, before wiping it dry on his tucked waist sash and taking a stable stance once more. It was embarrassing to him that he could let that happen. It wouldn't happen again. 

Skalonos' fourth assault ended in his own mistake. A sloppy chop, and Iasis cut through the meat of his dominant arm.

Blood ran down, trickling into his grip and into the dry dirt below. 

Skal felt dizzy looking at his own blood. In his hesitation, Iasis, two handed, hit his blade with full force. The handle slipped from Skalonos blood soaked, and weakened grip. 

Iasis stepped forward again to get the blade under his boot. He kicked it so it was behind him. Skal was now weaponless. 

Iasis moved his blade to one hand, then reached forward to grab Skalono. He raised his blade and the king cowarded. 

Iasis shoved him to the ground. 

He gave him a rough kick, then dropped down onto his chest. He grabbed Skalono by the hair and pinned him. His braids came loose and piled onto the ground. Iasis kept his blade ready to strike him dead.

Skalono screamed in protest, rasing his hands what little he could while Prince Iasis has his biceps under his knees. 

“NO- No no-”

Everyone panicked, but nobody moved. 

Iasis could do it. He could take the throne now. Why shouldn't he?...

He waited all this time. He trained his whole childhood. He deserved that crown circlet. He shed the blood , sweat and tears to prove it.

His gaze wandered to Saria, who looked horrified. 

Iasis brought the sword down at Skalonos head…

The crowd gasped and moved closer to see what happened.

At, but not upon. 

He moved his grip on his hair to one of Skalonos braids, and sliced it free from his head. 

He got up slowly, and held the braid out for the crowd to see. 

Iasis was the victor. Skalonos' pride was his winnings.

Skalono stayed on the ground, pawing at the rough place that Iasis cut. He let out an audible cry, turning onto his side to sit up.

Saria came to Skalonos side to comfort him, shushing him and telling him he will be fine. 

She glanced up to Iasis, and gave him a thankful smile. He didn't kill her husband despite every reason he had to do it. He was a merciful man.