A lot of stuff....

He repeted your words in his head and each time they leaved him more confused than before. He remembered quite well the day he presented you to his brother, a woman from Medusa that had catched the eyes of the lord of the Salamanders.

He begged him to let you met him, to allow him to marry you, to convince you to accept his hand in marriage. Ferrus couldn't conpletely grasp the sudden attention towards you, yet he obliged, allowing him to met you, he talked to your father, he even reminded everyone of the great deal of the marriage. You were reluctant, he did not blamed you, but of course no one would be a better husband than his brother Vulkan.

And he had never saw Vulkan so happy in his life. Everytime the two met he couldn't stop him of brag about how happy hebwas to have you as his bride, how he wanted to make you happy, how his sons were so happy to have such a perfect mother for them. He also remember to ask if there has been problem, if she was adjusting, and he noticed the shadow casting against the brilliant smile of the Drake.

"She's still confused, of course. Away from her family and home... things will get in place in time, i swear."

And now...this.

A fugutive bride banging at his door, a broken hand, a look of pure terror and the hope he could undone the marriage. If he had only knew that things were going that bad...

He entered his room, he knww what it has to be done.

///

Your eyes blinked, weak from the slumber and the tiredness. For a split second you wondered if everything has been a dream: escaping from Vulkan home, stealing a small ship, reaching Medusa with the few knowledge you own...

"Ouch!"

Stinging pain, acute like a needle, slowly reaching your elbow by every nerv terminal in your arms. You looked down, your wrist bandaged in the best way you could do, a deep blue and purplish sign slowly emerging from the swelling. You couldn't move your hand, your fingers stuck in a hooking position. It was broken, you needed a medicae, ans it reminded you that it wasn't a dream.

You couls still remembered the face of pure terror when one of Vulkan's son tried to grab you and only that sickening crack reached you before the pain could. You didn't realized it was broken untill you knew you were far away from his clutches.

And even in pain, you couldn't stop smiling. You did it, you reached Medusa, you reached your home.

You had told everything to your lord Ferrus, to the hero that had always filled your head when you where small. He would had fixed everything, he knew what to do, of course he would help you!

The lock clicked, the door slightly lamented in the dark and your hero happeared through the door with his usual look: cold, unmoved.

"You're awake.. good." He looked at your still tired expression, observing how you back striaghten up. "I wish to talk about....what you told me. Please, follow me..."

You did not argued, you did not mentioned your wrist, your still sleeping bones or how mess you were in that moment. You trusted him, you trusted the lord that had protected your people for generations without a single thought, and so you moved close to him, following him in the corridors of his forge. You trusted the man that had believed in the better judgement of his brother, that may had missed the darkness and saw the light.

You had never saw the inside of the Gorgon's forge, it was a misterious place surrounded by stories and legend, the home of the ancient master of metal. It was an house nonetherless, old and full of memories, of treasures, and in certain ways it seemed like the corridors could go for miles in the mountains till meet the other side of the planet.

You didn't know where you were going, it wasn't even the same road you had made when you entered, but you still followed.

"Your words, yout thoughts about my brother." His voice sounded like a thunder above you, stronger than his footsteps. "Have you considered their meaning?"

"Meaning?"

"The weight they carry..."

"...I did my lord...I know that they may be troublesome...but they are true! I swear!"

"So you say my brother is...can you repeat them?"

"A sick one." You said without esitation." A psychotic that hide behind a smile. He locked me in his house! Isolated me from my family! He even forged a letter from me pretending that nothing wrong was going on!"

"These are...grave accusation."

"It is what it is, the true!"

He hummed, considering your words, taking them like they were. Was he thinking about what to do next? Keeping you hidden? Making sure your family find you?

...Confronting Vulkan?

The idea made you shiver, you had never thought about the idea of one primarch stepping up and helping you out, yet it seemed almost natural running to the one that you truly saw as a trusted one.

It was during those thought that you realized that you had reached your destination, a giant door decorated by different scenes from Medusean clans stories, carving of monsters and beasts that has been fought on the planet in the legends, You could smell the fuel, the metal pof the weapon and the gunpowder, the motor oil of the vehicles and you could hear engines running.

A launching base? You had never thought Ferrus had builded one there, you had never saw ships or planes departing from there. SA private one?

"I do believe you, little one."

He opened the door. Many eyes against you, armors, black and green mixed together, cold grey eyes throwing daggers against you while firey ones looked full of pain. Especially the oens of the man that you were tryign to run away from.

"But I do believe my brother too."

If now thge eart could open its maw and engulf you, you would accept it like a gift. You wnated to breath but you coudln't, not properly, capable only to gain oxygen but not one exhale came from you.

You started to panic, everywhere those same eyes looked at you but the only one that really made you wanting to scream in agony where the one of Vulka, your captor, your husband.

He looked in pain, a fisical one, his hands clutched against his chest, his face covered in old dried tears and new ones emerging while observing your poor form, the dusty clothes, your tired and full of fear eyes, your trembling lips.

He opened his arms, passing through his sons that immediately started to talk to you, to make questions.

"Why did you leave mother?!"

"What happened?!"

"Are you injured?!"

STOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOP TALKING, STOP MOVING, STAY THERE, PLEASE STAY AWAY, DO NOT COME CLOSER DO NOT-

"My love?"

You looked back at him, at that damn monster wearing the mask of the perfect husband.

"Little flame...my diamond...I feared the worst!"

"n...N....No....Not... n-"

Two hands, cold as iron, stopped your trembling shoulders. The weight of the demi-god was on you, you could feel everything and it was too much to being nearable.

"You said he had took you against your will, but I did allowed the marriage, so did your father. Many wills were accepted."

Oh no please.

"You said he took your prisoner in his home. Do you have any idea how dangerous is his home planet? How many life Nocturne had took since humans settle on? He protected you, allow you to be shelter by its dangers."

Throne please, it was too much.

"And your family...your father wanted nothing more than power. To use you. I know men like him, I had deal with them since i had the chance, and Vulkan had decided to step in to avoid his...intention to ruin your union, to make sure that you woudl be free from malevolence,"

"And you had ran away." You could felt his anger, his hands crashing your muscles." You had portrayed him like a monster. Like someone that wanted to hurt you and take and take and take from you. Do you understand what you did?! The damage you had done?!"

Whisper of punishment, of a fitting end for someone that had casted such a disgrace to the clans, to Medusa. Something has to be made, someone had to be punished! Someone has-

"FERRUS STOP!"

Vulkan's hand were on his brother now, pushing him away from you, relesing you from his grip and anger. His arms took you in one of those embrace that shielded you from everything, secluded you, and now protected you from a man that digged an hole in your chest.

He hugged you close, fearing Ferrus's anger against you may do more damages than good.

"Please, she didn't knew better! She was scared! Do not be harsh on her! It has been me!"

You didn't realized of the tears untill they started to drench against his Boubou. His hand caressing your hair, trying to calm you down, acting like a shield against the burning anger of his brother.

Around you more voice echoed, voice of men that instead defended you and tried to find reason, men that were blinded like their father and decided that nothing was wrong even now.

"She's hurt!"

"No one have to be punished!"

"Mind your tongue, cousin."

Ferrus looked down, never he saw one of the Primarch kneel down and now his brother had little thought about the matter, so much he was focused in just have you in his arms.

"She had offended you brother. She had called you monster!"

"I forgive her. I'll forgive her everything! Look! Look at her poor hand! She need a medicae immediately!"

"She had stole one of your ship..."

"I don't want to hear any more word from you, Ferrus! From you or your sons! My wife is my own matter!"

There was that growl, that sound in the chest of Vulkan's that you heard again, that you had learned that could mean manmy thing. Never used against you, only around you, when someone spoke something against your attitude, when someone had pointed out how strange it was for you to be secluded in your chambers, of how curiously fast were the wedding....everytime against the world and never against you.

Ferrus sighed, deeply. He did not wanted to anger his borther, little did everyone know how dangerous was the most heart warmed of the Primarchs once he was angered.

"See? See little one?" he finally spoke again to you. "See how far your husband go for your own well being? Even after the bad mouthing...he is nothing but a proud and noble one. I made a good choice in giving you to him."

You didn't know what hurted you the most, the fact that the words of the man you once trusted the most were cold as ice or that the ones from the man you feared were the only ones that assured you the most. You didn't know, you could only sob harder.

"Why’re you crying? Aren’t you happy to be with me?” Vulkan sounded broken, yet he tried to hold a smile while wiping away your tears. "Does it hurt so much? Sar' Tath was so heartbroken for hurting you so much, he couldn't even look at me in the eyes!"

He tried to laugh, it was nervous, like if doing it would make everything less scary, less awfull. You just sobbed harder, tried to clean your face from the dirt that the tears had moved, you felt hard to breath.

"A-aren't...you mad...a-at me?"

A soft oh escaped form his lips. His forehead met yours in a gentle gesture, ignoring the dust, the durt and the tremors that you couldn't control.

“Throne, you have no idea how amazing you are, do you?” he sighed out, his thumbs caressing your cheeks, his breath so heavy against you.

He smelled like burnt wood, like leather and fire. It smelled like something you had always known and now felt so far away from you, like an home that has been lost.

"How can I be angry at you, my flame? You are everything I could die for..."

It felt awfull, like if his words were everythign you had always wanted to hear but now they scared you more than anything. You didn't wnated any of this, you never wnated to be in this position, you just wnated to make your homeworld, your lord, your father happy and proud! Never to be treasured by a dragon such as Vulkan! You never wnated this! You didn't!

You didn0't even knew why you looked back at Ferrus Manus, maybe to searching for evena slight of compassion?

Luther: in his jealousy, he think je needs to do everything that Lion do that would appeal to your eyes, but better. He want you to see him, see him like the man that is literally doing the impossible. His heart has been already broke with the loss of his first wife, please see the cracks and fix them, sweet angel.

Julius Kaesoron: he'll dedicate the most romantic songs he can find to you. He ll leave gifts, he'll do a proper way of courting because you deserve the best. He'll try to not be over bearing but will leave poetry for you ,ones that he knew you would love to read and that you know are meant for you. He'll have that look in his eyes, the one that tell you "can you see it? My feelings?"

Kyodomor Forrix: for some would be like if he's collecting the scraps, for others it would be like oretending he's better than their father. Either way an open courting will be seen as an offense to Perturabo's name and that would mean a bad ending to something he has set his mind on. He could directly ask his father permission, but the fear he may refuse linger like a blade. And he want your love, more than anything, not forced but real and tangible. Soft words, reassurances, everything rhat may look simple for others but are a great deal in the legion. Small sign of his affection ,like a trail that lead to his heart.

Qin Xa: like his brothers, he'll go to the tarhet without fear. Jaghatai has refused your love ,that means he has little to fear so he can openly court you. He will literally take you from the ground whole walking and take you on a horse ride, holding you close to his chest to keep you safe. He'll follow the traditions of his people, he'll to everythingnin the boom to win you over.

Gunnar Gunnhilt: he will openly and blatlanty said it. He won't hold back and proclaim in front of everyone, in front of you, that you'll be his and no one else, that the one that had refused you is an idiot and couldn't grasp the loss he had. He will "kidnap" you in front of everyone and laugh about if, gift you the sword he had made for you and hold it with you, cherish your heart beat against his chest. He's showing off and He's okay with it.

Sigismund: a true knight. He' s close, his hands holding yours without gear or shame, because what shame can be given if you are making him feel like a man again? He'll take something of yours to keep close to his heart and kiss it while he fight for your love, he'll holdnit during fights to remind himself there's someone he had ti come back to. He knee to no one but you, his light and hope for the future.

Jago Sevatar: he's like a shark, swimming close to you enpugh to being seen but never to be catched in the action. He's a predator, you are the prey and everyone have to understand that. If one of his brothers dare to lay a finger on you he doesn't esitate to cut off the arm that dared to do so. He'll shield you against them all, scream that whoever dare to touch you is already dead. He'll share with you his thoughts,his feelings, the most delicate oart of his soul.

Raldoron: as much as he wish to have you and end the suffering, he to wait. He know that nothing good can came with rushing, especially when your feelings are on the line. He'll wait, observing while the wound slowly heal, and he'll help you to recover. He'll be there, a nice word in time of needs, a suggestion, a shoulder during hard times. He 'll make you see, makebyou understand that your feelings are not lost, but treasured.

Gabriel Santar: he have a few memories about courting tradition in his clan and none of them ate fitting for you. He knows how to put a planet into compliance but courting? Not one bit. He'll ask outside, to his friend Julius, and a few of his ideas seems fine? Honestly, he look almost adorable with that pout on his face, he look like a boy that is gifting flowers to the little girl he like! What he can do is showing that no one bit of you is replacable, that you are in fact perfect.

Kharn: he's there. While everyone laugh at you and mock you, his fists are ready to strike the punishment they deserve. When around you the fog of the viplence get thicker, he's there ri guiding you out. He'll voice it, making sure everyone knows exactely why he's doing this and while suddenly he's attached to you. While duty may want him close to his primarch, his heart is dragged to you and who he is to fight it? He'll actively fight to gain your attention, to make a statement.

Severus Agemann: he'll follow the custom of Macrage, that means that you had not so much to say about it. Sure, being the bride of a Primarch was far more convenient, but yoir father ans grandfather are unaware of whatbyou felt before. Now they have Severus, the firat captain, ready to get you as his own, and that's perfect. He's...stiff...you 'll be his wofe even before realizing what his heart truly want to tell you, but as soon as you catch up it's easy to understand and catch rhe signals. Him trying to stay as long as he can at your side, gifting you thinv that are precious to him, trying his best to be romantical...is there ,you just need to see it.

Calas Typhon: he'll take advantage of the pain to insinuate the thought in your head. Was that really love? Or it was mere adulation? You know so little about this universe and hia lord, bur Typhon is there, little one! Wanting your love, your heart, your soul! He doesn't need courting ,he just need to push the right button and you'll be his, it's a matter of time. Maybe...maybe even some psychic push would help...

Ahzek Ahriman: you can feel him, close so close to you. You feel his whispers in your head, his heart burning in your chest, the weight of his emotion that is like a burden. And everytime you look around he's there, watching, waiting, with that look between hurt and hopefull. He's afraid of regection, that you may laugh at him, of his feelings, that qords and actions may never reach you before someone else could. That's why he's using his powers, because everything can be a lie but not his mind, not when it's open like a flower in front of you.

Ezekyle Abaddon: he's a warrior, he wouldn't know how to court even if he wanted. What he know is to take what he wants by force and he will do it with the one he love if necessary. He would go straight to Horus and proclaim his disgust, how pathetic is to keep on stirring something that is not meant to be from the beginning. He doesn't care how many lines he's stepping on, he will free you from that illusion you have for Horus and have you for himself. He'll even force a kiss on you while caged between a wall and his arms.

Kor Phaeron: courting? He doesn't need courting, he just need to see how foolish you were to even look at Lorgar like a possible lover! He's a manipulative bastard, he know what word to say, what kind tone he had to use, how to use it...He's a master of that! Making you see through his eyes, making you fall to his feet as he could to yours. That foolish little boy didn't even knew what to do with you, he have so many plans instead! Kor Phaeron want you and he'll have you. Even if he had to mark you as a traitor and have you in a cell for himself.

Artellus Numeon: poor Artellus, he just wanted for you to heal from his father regection! Give you time to regain some stability, to wait untill even the smile of the primarch didn't hurted you so much. Not for his father to try to SET YOU UP TOGETHER! Vulkan's words praised his captain, telling how magnificent he was, how devoted and how kind he was, telling you how lucky anyone would be to be their beloved. Sometime he even make sure the two of you are alone, sonyou can bond properly. Genuinely, Vulkan is doing the best he could, and Artellus is...slightly happy about it.

Kayvaan Shrike: you can feel his hands caressing your hips and arms. The feeling of someone close, his smell imoregnating your clothes... sometimes, when he feel bold enough, he'll get so close you can feel his lips, his cologne ,the pressure against your lips...he's there,un afraid of his actions, un touched but happy. He doesn't want you to believe to be his possession, but he would gladly be one for you .

Along woth your weapon, you had lost as well your cape and your helmet, far too much for your quick escape between the trees. You begged for the beast to gave up, to realasing how futile you were as a meal but it wasn't move by just hunger. Those creatures hated humans and their actions were unnatural in any possible way.

The roots became larger, thickers, now the few ray of light were able to pass throu only after another of the beast rampaging paws. You didn't had time to check, another mistake made by fear. The roots, contorted so deeply between eachother, created a deadend, a wall made of green and wood. When you realized it, you knew there was no way for you to find a way our, because the lion now was there, closer than ever. It rasped his paws around, trying ro get to you, to open his way to finally grab you and devour you.

You were stuck, stuck and dead, you told yourself while squishing yourself againt the roots, trying to get far away as possible from that monster. And everything you could think of now wasn't something nice.

You damned everything and everybody. You damned your ancenstor that had decided that this damn planet was such a good idea to live and the ones that decided to stay, your parents that had rised you to be a warrior to fight against these creatures knowing that this outcome was the most likely to happen, your friends that made you believed that you would come back home safe, your captain that made you advance despite the clues of the presence of this beast. You damned the pressure everyone gave you, the idea that being married ans having a peacefull life would had take you nowhere, that in simplicity there's no future!

And you damned yourself for not refusing everything and became a maid instead of...this.

It was awfull, youbhad nothing but regrets and the hope that that monster would kill you fastly and quickly. The paws were now close tknyou, you could feel the stench and the air cutting close to you and, stilll begging for an unpainfull death, you closed your eyes.

Earth was moved, roots were cutted and...the blow did not came. No, in an instant the quakes from the beast attacks ceased and, suddenly ,you realised that its verses were no longer a few inches from you but meters away.

You opened your eyes, the tunnels of roots wasn't blocked anymore by that beast but what was left of its roof. It...ot had gone away?

No, itvwas still near by, you could hear still its awfull sounds, the growling and the roaring, yet they sounds different. Like if it wasn't engaging a prey ,but defending .. itself?

Wait, nothing could strike down a Calibanite Lion, it was practically the most dangerous creature in the forest! What could possibly try to fight it?!...another Lion, perhaps?

Oh,fucking shit no! Saved from one and damned by another!

... It didn't sound like another Lion tho...

Whatever was struggling against the beast it sounded awfully familiar, enitting sounds like grunts and growl that were awfully human. And wirh those, roars, growl, spund of wood getting damaged by claws and something else. Like...rock?

No, impossible, there was no chance of-YOU DAMN FOOL! That was the right chance for your escape! Yes, you needed to take the diatractionbof the beast when you still could.

You needed to be carefull, now that it was still fighting against...something! You started to move, silently and fast, enough to remain unnotice. With enough luck you would had enough chances to find some members of you group that were still alive, maybe an horse or a weapon! Anything that would help you making it alive to the castle!

It was while walking towards the exit that you noticed that how quiet the forest had became... You could hear the nature, that calming one that fooled many humans before, but not any sound of the fight.

Did...someone of the two won?

You were out of the roots and even then the few ray of sun couldn't fully enter the arboreal walls. You looked around, searching for that beast and whatever had decided to confront it, but what yoi found was only the remain of the fight betweenthe two. Cuts from the lion claws deep damaging trees, the ground covered in prints and loose clods of earth, Stones now reduced to dust.

But no one in sight...GOOD!

You decided to not think about it too much, the only thing that mattered was escape from that damn forest as fast as you could!

Tou sprinted out from your hising spot, ignoring everything, even the looming shadow behind you. You realized that something wasbstill quite there when a furry carcass almost splatted you down, contenting itself to make you fall backwards.

You screamed when the contorted head of what once was one of the most deadly vreature of Caliban stared at you with empty dead eyes, its jaw open loose like if they were broken in the fight.

It...was dead... something killed it...breaking his neck and jaw...it was...

STOMP...STOMP...STOMP...

Oh...fuck...it was there....it was there! Just behind you! It was massive and it was moving towards you! And...and...

They were footsteps?

You felt then the hair escaping from your throat, the cotton of your shirt pulling hard against your neck, as you felt your body leaving the ground and slowly getting rised up in the hair. Hangling there, like a little cat holded by its neck, you finally met the creature that had fought the Calibanite Lion and won.

Long unkempt hair, dirty and covered in leaves and drippling of blood, a massive body covered in pelts, what was left of hold cloaks lost in the jungle and makeshift belts made of vines.

He was tall, awfully tall. He could easily over pass every man you had ever met and now you were swinging like a ripe fruit in front of him.

A man... he was a man...at least that what you thought he was, because his stance was everything but normal!

And...his eyes. Green like the leaves of this forest, deep, savages, they were drilling hole in your face and you couldn't help yourself but stare back in the same disbelieve. He moved you, up and down and from left to right, then suddenly closing the distance between your head and hia face, his nose now digging in your hair.

He was sniffing you...he was studying you?!

"Stop...hey- don't...no, no I-"

He kept on examing you, tossing you here and there, moving your clothes, sniffing, pinching, checking this...soft and smaller version of his reflexion that emitted those pinched and annoying screams.

"I said CUT IT OUT!"

Maybe he was far too sure that a little thing like could never harm him, because when the punch strike his nose his first reaction was narrowing his eyes in disbelief and surprise. The grip against your shirt loosen up and you met the earth in a not so elegant way, making you emitt another sound but this time of pain and discomfort.

His bears was just like his hair, uncleaned and peobably infested by some kind of parasite, yet you were able to perceive a int of color in them, an honey gold tone that was absolutely off key with his entire savage look. He moved his nose like if your punch had been a mosquito bite, looking down on you and creating those same sounds from before, like gruttural verses from his belly.

"This is a nightmare..." you sighed, exhausted and done with this entire ordeal. "Fiest the beast and now....this.....rhis man."

Man was an exageration of course, it was mostly like looking towards a full grown monkey. You atartsd to roll over to finally get up and getcaway as far as you could from there when suddenly , once again ,the ground ecsaped from your fingertips and yourself up in the hair. When he positioned you on his shoulders instead of just panicking you started to punch and kick his back and abdomen with any strenght you had left in your body.

"HEYHEYHEY NO NO DOWN! ARE YOU DEAF?! PUT ME DOWN YOU OVERGROWN PIECE OF-"

He wasn't deaf and he didn't know what it meant but clearly he preferred when you were far more silent and less feisty, he thought to himself while stopping your legs with his free arm. Seriously, you were bagging the others to come and eat you alive...

This wasn't the first time he saw someone like him, yet it was the one for him to find one that still breathed and was almost untouched. He had never been punched before, you were a strange agglomeration of fear and survival insticts, and....well you were somehow pleasant looking.