Finding Love

Why was Dela looking forward to Gorak's trainings??

Why did she want to spend time with a terrible villain like him?

Why was she attracted to him?

Had she gone mad?

Was this Stockholm syndrome?

_____

Get this, Gorak was still the demon that he was. It wasn't that he changed or became nicer. No.

His ways were still gruesome. Yet Dela found she just could not stop herself from loving him.

...

She had forcibly grown used to the screaming of the tortured, the blood and the gore she was forced to witness daily as part of Gorak's training in "Cruelty"; a subject she thought she majored in, until that horrid day she met Gorak.

Her men were made examples of. She had come against Gorak and his dark warriors with thousands in armies from her kingdom and her allies, of which he had captured over sixty percent.

But rather than kill her men enmasse, Gorak kept each and every one of the survivors alive, and took special care to torture every single one of them, until their bodies gave away, themselves. Either from rot, severence, excessive burn injuries, excessive pain, or from melting.

He kept them alive for as long as possible, but constantly in pain, and what's worse, he made her watch.

She was forced to watch her allies and kinsmen as their tongues were slit, some horizontally and others vertically; eyes were singed in flames, and as they were suffocated and resuscitated, only to be suffocated again, repeating the process infinitely.

Gorak's methods made her realise how grossly lacking in cruelty she actually was. He was indeed ruthless.

Yet, she was still falling for him!

Stockholm syndrome, you say? I think yes.

______

Initially, Dela had tried to escape again and again, but she was always caught and re-imprisoned, with one harsh punishment or the other.

Escaping proved to be futile, and each time she tried, she would end up recaptured, having to face Gorak's terrible wrath.

He was his angriest whenever she tried to leave. And it did not help her or her imprisoned people in any way because though he would not hurt her physically, he would take out his wrath on her people. And then, he would make her watch, no matter how terrible.

At this point, she had stopped trying to escape because she'd realised that hers was a hopeless situation.

There simply was no way out.

Gorak was conquering the entire world piece by piece. He had already conquered all the lands in the entire West World and his reign of terror and conquest was rapidly spreading unto other parts of the world.

No matter how far she could run on foot, she would ultimately be caught within his territory. She could never get away.

The entire planet was under fire. It would be foolery to keep trying to escape with nowhere safe to run to.

The only way she could get away would be if she were to leave the planet, and even at then, he would still find her.

It was better to accept her fate than to fight it. So that was what she did.

For three months, Dela suffered under Gorak's loving torture until bit by bit, she began to lose hope and give in to his dark tauntings.

And in adapting, she found love!

____

It was crazy to love Gorak. Crazy to fall for such a monstrous personality, yet for Dela, it was easy as pie.

Because of the curse of fate.

With the added fact of Gorak's pamperings, and Dela's questionable attraction to him (because he was her fated lover), they were ultimately to be entangled in the throes of love and heated passion.

It was unavoidable.

____

Naturally, it would take a second for fated lovers to mate once they met, but for Dela and Gorak, it took three long months. Due to their vast difference in perspectives.

Simply put, they were enemies.

The circumstances of their meeting was only permissive of hate, rather than love and so Dela reasonably fought long and hard against her feelings for Gorak.

But no matter what, they could not be stopped. And before long, she found herself falling for her captor, Gorak.

This time, when he kissed her, she couldn't hold her feelings in anymore. She kissed back...

_____

______

_______

How did this happen? I'll tell you.

It all started on a cold night, days before.

____

'So handsome.'

Strolling about the dreary grounds of the Fortress of Tortures, a conflicted Dela was taking small peeks at her tutor, Gorak whilst he was walking her back to her chambers after a training session.

She could see the fine details of his face, reeking of godly allure; the soft glow around him, and the impressive, yet intimidating bits of his heavenly body frame, slightly exposed to the cool winds of the night.

Gorak was way too handsome. Too composed. Too kingly. Too perfect. Just one look would send any human drooling irrespective of their sexuality. But of course, he was a god.

Dela felt she had to do everything in her power to stop herself from falling for Gorak. She was already overly attracted to him, and right now, her rogue thoughts were not helping at all.

She mentally kept her guard up whenever she was around him, but still...

*D*mn!*

However she observed something else. Tonight, Gorak seemed too quiet.

'He must be in his thoughts', she reasoned.

Indeed, he was in his thoughts, wondering about how he could get Dela to realise that they were fated for each other. It had been a year already, and she still had no idea.

Yes, she seemed to hate him much less, and for a moment there, she seemed to stare a bit too long... But still, they had made too little progress in all this time.

...

'Doesn't she feel it?', he wonders.

'She must. There is no way she doesn't feel something. A fated lover always feels the pull. It is only natural. She must feel it.

So why?...'

Gorak questions within himself, wrapped up within his thoughts.

Was it because she was a human?

Mortals in general were rather unknowing of how to accurately predict their senses. And humans were the very worst at this. Perhaps, they live for too short a time to adequately develop their instinctive sensitivity.

In any case, he had to work harder to make her realise that they are meant for each other.

___

The atmosphere is overly quiet as they each wonder how to break the silence.

"Are you cold?", he asks out of the blue.

"Cold?"

Yes, it was quite chilly at night around the castle grounds due to the wide gash in the sky, and the chaotic dark clouds above the Fortress.

"I-I guess...", before Dela can finish her sentence, Gorak covers her in his heavy beast-fur coat. Made of the fur of a white celestial griffin he had recently slain.

The glowing fur coat covers Dela entirely, the excess rolling to the floor.

Once he has covered Dela in his coat, he reverts to his princely gait, like a total gentleman, as if he did nothing.

"Thank you.", Dela shyly thanks Gorak, blushing as she instantly feels warm. She is not sure if the warmth is from the coat, or from her emotions.

"Your clothing is not very protective. You can keep it, if you like."

Gorak generously offers.

She could? She really wanted to. The coat is made of the most beautiful, and the softest fur, and it has Gorak's heavenly scent!

She would have no problems laying in it all day. But...

'Let's not be greedy now.' Dela advices herself.

"Oh, I couldn't. It looks great on you.", she says, complimenting Gorak.

"You like my look?", asks Gorak, teasingly. He was completely taking Dela out of context. On purpose.

"...I-I..." Dela hesitates, speechless. How was she supposed to answer that?

It was unexpected, probing, teasing questions like this that made her nervous and jumpy whenever she was around Gorak.

She had to always make conscious effort not to swoon by his unearthly handsomeness, his aphrodisiac scent, and his unexpected words and actions.

These were direct attacks, okay?

"I-I do, but...", Thankfully, they had arrived at the door to her chambers. She had almost successfully survived this stroll.

"You do?", Gorak says, suddenly taking Dela by the hand to gently pull her into his grasp, his other hand holding her by the waist against him.

"I like your look too. You're beautiful."

He says, looking into her eyes.

Gorak was right. Three months of careful, godly treatment had left Dela looking like an ethereal beauty herself.

Her skin glowed under the warm lightning of the golden halls, and her features were beyond enchanting.

Fiery red curls descending gracefully all around a perfect face. Striking emerald green eyes. Clothes befitting of a goddess. She is a rapturous beauty.

Gorak, her victim meant every word. She was indeed beautiful. The most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

He thought that from the moment he first laid eyes on her, yet her beauty increased every day, beating his expectations.

The bewitching beauty, Dela stares back at Gorak, completely drawn into his captivating presence and unwilling to pull away from his grip immediately.

Rather, staring deep into Gorak's eyes, she slowly and unconsciously starts leaning into him. Her hands, placed between them to ward him off instead start moving up his chest slowly as her face comes closer to his.

Gorak too, unconsciously leans in towards Dela, going in for a kiss...