She wants to be as observant as Inaho is, really, but it’s difficult with his face in her cunt. She keeps looking down dragging her fingers through her dark hair, trying to force him deeper, but he continues at his own meticulous pace, nose nuzzling against soft, tickling curls as he buries his tongue in her snatch. “Inaho-san,” she whines, and rocks against his too-patient mouth, the movement grinding her round ass against Slaine. She’s been spread-eagled and wriggling in his lap since Inaho started eating her out, and his cock is rock-hard beneath his trousers. He pulls her closer, protectively her smooth back against his heaving chest. She likes the way his strong arms feel around her, and the way his fingers pinch greedily at her chest. If she could drive Inaho into senseless neediness the way she can stir up Slaine, she thinks, she would have been able to make him hurry, would have been able to come already…

Frustrated and denied, she digs her own fingers between her lips, spreading them wide  so that Inaho’s tongue will delve deeper. She tries to move her hand at the pace she wants, but Inaho ignores that, too, and their discordant rhythms disturb the steady pulses of pleasure that his tongue is sending through her. She finally submits to Inaho’s pace with a pout, and the hot ripples of pressure begin to build through her again. Her fingers clench in his hair as she comes, holding his hot tongue warm and motionless against her clit as the shuddering waves of her orgasm slam through her.

She settles back against Slaine a moment later, feeling slightly embarrassed by her own neediness at the end and freeing Inaho from her tangling fingers. He lifts his head, non-plussed, and rests his chin on her mons, looking up at her expectantly. His serious expression is absurdly at odds with the tousled mess she’s made of his hair and the slick, shiny fluids drenching his face.

*

“A fine start,” observes Saazbaum, “but you’ve left them rather uncomfortable, your highness.”

She doesn’t need him to point that out. Slaine’s cock is still pressed against her ass, and she doesn’t think that even restrained Inaho could eat her out without arousing himself. “They stayed where you instructed them,” she says carefully. She hopes Saazbaum’s next instruction will be for Slaine to take her, both because his hard cock so close to her cunt is already turning her on again and because Saazbaum usually doesn’t stay long after Slaine comes inside her.

“They did. I suggest that you reward them for their obedience, your highness.” He leans back, feigning contemplation. “Your hands and mouth would be appropriate, I think. Troyard, Kaizuka. On your feet.”

“Yes, my lord,” says Slaine instinctively, sliding out from under her.

Inaho remains nestled between her thighs a moment longer, inhaling the musky smell of her cunt before following Slaine to his feet. “Yes, my lord,” he echoes, tonelessly enough to escape censure.

She has a good idea of what Saazbaum expects. With her on the couch and them standing, their stiff dicks are just inches from her mouth. She slides her fingers down their stomachs and under their waistbands, tugging their trousers down before wrapping a hand around each cock. They’re hot and hard and slick with pre-cum, and she licks her lips at the thought of one of them losing control and shoving himself into her mouth. She gives them both a few quick strokes, dragging out a throaty groan from Slaine and a harsh intake of breath from Inaho. A little selfishly, she decides to pay Inaho back for his deliberate slowness. She turns her head and traces a wet, thin line up his dick with just the tip of her tongue, as slow as she can manage. His hips buck satisfyingly, and Slaine hisses jealously.

*

She lifts her mouth away from Inaho slowly, a glistening strand of saliva stretching from the head of his cock to her pink, parted lips. Then she turns back to Slaine’s familiar dick, taking as much of him in her mouth as she can and pumping the rest of him beneath her curling fingers. It only takes a few noisy sucks before he’s wild enough to start fucking deeper. But she doesn’t want to ignore Inaho completely; she pulls off Slaine’s cock with a wet pop and twists to lap at Inaho again until he’s thrusting into her hand and against the tip of her tongue.

“Sey… ah, princess,” he murmurs, throatily. She blinks up at him from beneath her lashes, wide-eyed, and gives him another long, slow lick. He sighs, apparently quietly resigning himself to her wordless reprimand.

Then he catches her completely off guard by leaning forward and kissing Slaine.

He must have caught Slaine off guard, too, because Slaine yelps, undignified, and pulls away. “You—!” She glances up to see Inaho not quite looking at Slaine. He seems to be staring past the other boy at –

At Saazbaum, of course. Inaho’s words come back to her in a rush – Does he always watch you instead of her?

She slips her hand from Slaine’s cock to take his and in a silent plea for him to calm down. It doesn’t quite work; he’s shaking slightly and is tense all over, glaring at Inaho in open anger and embarrassment, and she worries that Slaine will pull away before Inaho can confirm his suspicions about Saazbaum. She takes hold of Slaine’s cock again, putting her mouth around it for good measure to keep him in place. Inaho presses forward again, his dick rubbing against her cheek as he presses her between himself and Slaine. With her mouth around Slaine’s cock, she can’t quite see what Inaho is doing, but from the intermittent deep breaths and the way Slaine stays furiously tense, she suspects Inaho has gone back to kissing Slaine.

*

Curiously, she pulls away from Slaine’s dick to peek tentatively at Saazbaum. Sure enough, his eyes are fixed on Inaho and Slaine above her. Instead of reclining languidly, he’s leaning ever so lightly forward, and his usual thin smirk has broadened. Inaho was right about Saazbaum. But Slaine is not particularly interesting to watch right now, standing there awkwardly while Inaho kisses him. She corrects this by ducking back and redoubling her efforts on Slaine’s dick, pulling out all the tricks that she’s learned he likes. She abandons Inaho for a moment and licks her way over Slaine’s balls while she slides her hands down his shaft, then switches and cups his balls while taking his cock so deep in her mouth that she gags on it, the back of her throat constricting around his dick. As expected, it’s enough to distract Slaine from his distaste for Inaho, and she hears Inaho cutting off Slaine’s moans with a stream of kisses. The sound of them, and the way their sweat-sheened bodies writhe as they sandwich her between them, leave her dripping wet on the cushions. She wants to pull herself upright and interpose herself between their kisses, to have her breasts pressed flat between their firm bodies and to have their cocks between her legs instead of in her face. But she understands what Inaho is trying to do – or, at least, she thinks she does, so she stays where she is, squirming in her own musky juices.

Gradually, Slaine’s body slumps submissively as Inaho presses closer against him, and the unhappy moans melt into the heavy breaths that indicate he’s about to come. His cock twitches between her lips and he spills down her throat; she drinks it all down with a thirsty moan to show her gratitude for his compliance. When Slaine slumps back on the couch, watching her with brows knit in obvious confusion, she turns back to Inaho.

*

She doesn’t bother with teasing licks now; she takes him deep in her mouth and runs slick fingers over his balls until he comes with a gasp and settles back on the couch beside her and Slaine, his lips stretched into a tiny, pleased smile. He was right, she thinks, suddenly giddy. He was right, and he would have a way to stop this. She has to bite her cheek to stop herself from smiling back at him.

Saazbaum, thankfully, misinterprets her look. “You continue to surprise me, your highness,” he smirks, back in his usual relaxed posture. “Troyard, don’t leave the princess dripping on my furniture.”

“Yes, my lord,” he says deferentially, but she thinks she hears a note of relief in his voice at the order – because it doesn’t involve Inaho, most likely. He gives himself a few quick strokes, coaxing himself to half-hardness while Saazbaum lists off the particulars.

“On your back, your highness. Troyard, she’s been craving your cock since I arrived; do make it worth her wait.” She tries to chase away her frustration with being talked about that way by considering Saazbaum’s words as Inaho would and – ah, this gives the count a direct view of Slaine, doesn’t it? The way his shoulders strain as he plunges into her, the shifting muscles of his angular ass… if Saazbaum wants to watch Slaine instead of her, the position makes perfect sense.

She doesn’t think Slaine comes to the same conclusion; his lips just thin hearing Saazbaum talk about her so bluntly, and he moves to comply without complaint, masturbating himself while she stretches out on the couch. She expects the shift to leave her in Inaho’s lap, but he’s slipped to the arm of the couch. She cranes her neck curiously and stretches her hands out to him, looking at him upside down as Slaine pushes gently into her. He’s calm, but his eyes are narrowed and focused. He’s planning something else, she realizes.

*

But Slaine chases the thought away by lifting her hips and hitting the cluster of nerves inside her, stealing her attention away from Inaho.

She’s so focused on Slaine that she completely misses when Inaho rising to his feet behind her. But when Slaine pauses and turns his head, she follows his gaze to see… Inaho, bare feet quiet on the cool floor, crossing the room to Saazebaum. She props herself up on her elbows, alarmed, to watch Inaho sink to his knees at Saazbaum’s feet, naked and vulnerable… and to watch Saazbaum press the revolver against Inaho’s forehead, his finger on the trigger. She can only see Inaho’s face in profile, but he looks impossibly calm and serious, even with the gun to his face. The relaxed set of his shoulders makes it look like he thinks he’s in control of this situation, even with Saazbaum holding a gun to his head.

“Know your place, Terran,” Saazbaum says cooly, and Asseylum’s heart races as she tries to determine whether it’s safe to interject. Inaho thinks he knows what he’s doing, clearly, but she can’t leave him to stare down the barrel of a gun alone—

Inaho cranes his neck, so that the tip of the revolver brushes against his lips. “Yes, my lord.” He lets the barrel part his lips, and licks it, as light as she had been licking Inaho’s cock earlier. Saazbaum’s eyes narrow, but he makes no move to pull the trigger. He holds it there a minute more, while Inaho slides his mouth over the metal, his dark head bobbing.

Finally, Saazbaum shifts, spreading his legs so that Inaho is kneeling between his knees, and the move reveals a growing bulge in his well-tailored dress pants. “What is it that you want, Terran?”

“Warrant Officer Yuki Kaizuka for the Deucalion,” Inaho says quietly, looking up the barrel of the revlver at Saazbaum. “I want a letter from her.” He pauses and adds, as a clear afterthought. “My lord.”

*

Saazbaum smiles wryly. “Not the most appropriate answer, but an acceptable one.” He pulls an electronic key from his jacket and bends to tap it to Inaho’s wrist restraints, ripping them off in a swift gesture so forceful that it makes even Inaho wince slightly. But Inaho remains where he is even while he shakes his feeling back into his hands, and Saazbaum leans back, looking at Inaho with an interest she’s only seen – when he looks at Slaine, she realizes. He keeps the gun in his hand, but lowers it to the arm of the chair. “Very well, Terran. Begin.” His eyes flick to her and Slaine; they’re both staring wide-eyed and frozen at Inaho. “No one instructed you to stop, Troyard.”

“I – apologies, my lord,” Slaine says, flustered. He snaps his attention back to her, but his face is all frowning confusion. She can’t fault him for it in the slightest. He fucks her distractedly and, compared to the last few days, unsatisfyingly, while she twists her neck awkwardly to keep watching Inaho. He unzips Saazbaum’s uniform with his characteristic steadiness and lowers his head to Saazbaum’s half-heard cock. It takes her a few minutes to realize that Inaho is mimicking what she’s done to him and Slaine the last few nights – starting with light, long licks, then taking Saazbaum’s heavy cock in his mouth and cupping the balls in his fingers. Inaho can’t take as much as she can, and Saazbaum begins murmuring instructions too quiet for Asseylum to hear. Even as he directs Inaho, she sees his eyes flick occasionally to Slaine.

She’s so distracted that it takes longer than usual for Slaine to bring her to orgasm, and it’s a quick and disappointingly tidy one rather than the whole-body affair she’s come to expect. But her body’s convulsions are enough to coax Slaine into fucking her faster and harder, and he comes with a deep-throated groan a few minutes later.

*

“Slaine,” Inaho calls, before he’s even pulled out of her. “You should help here.”

Slaine’s mouth opens in a wordless mix of shock and indignant disgust, and she’s inclined to agree. She wraps an arm possessively, protectively around his arm as she props herself up to look at Inaho, confused. She’s not certain, at first, whether this is part of Inaho coming up with a plan, or whether Inaho has just been corrupted by the general depravity of their situation. But he has the same focused face she’s seen when he assigns mission tasks, and he still looks like he thinks he’s in control of things, even with his hands curved around Saazbaum’s dick. Saazbaum, for his part, is looking from Slaine to Inaho and back to Slaine again. Reluctantly, she releases her tight grasp on Slaine’s forearm. The small gesture elicits a deeper look of revulsion – and even worse, his shoulders slump and his mouth slips into a frown, and he looks at her as though she’s somehow betrayed him.

And she feels like she has, as she places a hand on his chest and pushes him lightly in Inaho’s direction. She’s encouraging him to give himself to a man who’s almost broken them, and he has always taken her slightest encouragement as a command. Logically, she knows that following Inaho’s lead could save all their lives, but logic does nothing to assuage the deep sense of loss that washes over her as Slaine’s lips form a soundless – yes, princess.

When he turns his face away from her, she hopes they’ll all live long enough for him to forgive her.

She lies there for a moment, feeling miserable, but forces herself to sit and witness what she’s just consigned Slaine to. Inaho takes his wrist and tugs Slaine to the floor beside them, so that their naked bodies are pressed together between Saazbaum’s high boots. Inaho slides his fingers into Slaine’s fair hair and pushes Slaine’s face to Saazbaum’s thick cock.

*

Slaine winces for a moment, frowning in disgust, then reluctantly flicks out his tongue for an unhappy lick. Saazbaum’s attention, she notices, stays fixed completely on Slaine. She thinks Inaho must have taken a moment to gauge Saazbaum’s reaction, too, because he stays still a moment before joining Slaine on Saazbaum’s cock. They’re a striking contrast: Slaine’s eyes wide with shame and revulsion as he takes the head of Saazbaum’s dick, Inaho blank-faced as he mouths at the balls and curls wraps his fingers around the base. Saazbaum must be pleased with the pair of them, because his orders are quick and infrequent – commanding Slaine to swallow deeper here, directing Inaho to move more quickly there. But, miserable as she is, it seems to take forever before Saazbaum finally comes. Slaine tries to pull away, but Saazbaum holds him in place by his hair while Slaine gags on his cum.

When Saazbaum finally releases him, Slaine actually scrambles backward in a heap, coughing onto the floor as cum drips down his chin. Saazbaum laughs openly at him as he pulls a handkerchief to clean himself and stands. “You could learn manners from your Terran friend,” he drawls, zipping himself back up into the clean, crisp image of an Orbital Knight. Slaine shoots a hateful glance at Inaho, who accepts it stoically. Saazbaum puts the heel of his boot beneath Slaine’s chin. “A count is addressing you, Troyard.”

Slaine’s eyes fall to the floor. “Of course, my lord.” She’s fairly certain that only years of practicing that deferential tone has let him grit it out now. He stays hunched on the floor until the door slides shut behind Saazbaum, then wheels on Inaho. “What was that, orange?” he spits, rubbing furiously at his chin.

Inaho frowns slightly, but doesn’t recoil. “Testing,” he says, as though it should be obvious.

*

Slaine spreads his arms in sweeping disbelief. “Testing what?”

Inaho points at him. “How much ‘Doctor Troyard’ means to him.”

This is startling enough to convert most of Slaine’s anger into shock. “My father?” he asks, blankly.

He nods. “He was on the moon eight years after Heaven’s Fall, yes?” Slaine nods uncomfortably. “He was studying the ruins of the Gate.”

“He might have been…” Slaine looks to her for support, but this is as new to her as it is to him. “Where did you hear that?”

“Lieutenant Marito found the records of his research. But those records don’t make sense, because Doctor Troyard shouldn’t have reached the Gate ruins. At that time, people from Earth couldn’t go to the moon, not with the castles in the way.”

“I thought the United Forces arranged it,” Slaine frowns, “as a diplomatic mission.”

“That’s a lie,” Inaho says firmly. “There’s no request like that in any UF databank. Colonel Magbaredge thought Doctor Troyard must have been close to an Orbital Knight.” And he points, calmly, at the door.

“My father? With an Orbital Knight—?” The meaning of Inaho’s pointed finger hits him a moment later. “With Saazbaum?” he yelps. “And by close, you think—”

“It was only a hypothesis,” Inaho continues, unruffled, and counts off factors on his fingers. “Doctor Troyard. An unknown Orbital Knight. That man’s knowledge of Doctor Troyard’s research. The way he watches you. It fit. I just needed to be sure he really was fixated on you.”

Slaine sits back on his haunches, shell-shocked. She only remembers a little bit about Doctor Troyard, but it’s a surprise to her, too. She knew he was interested in Aldnoah, but she would never have imagined him having… anything at all to do with Saazbaum. “Inaho-san,” she says quietly, filling in for Slaine’s stunned silence, “how does that help us?”

He takes a deep breath, and begins to explain.