Horseplay

Editor's Note: story contains gay male content.

*

The horsemen's tent was like nothing Ao had ever seen before. None of the books had mentioned the lapis lazuli and pearls scattered across the floor of grungy skins, or the heady smell of kush that seemed to cling to his clothes and heavy eyelids, or the greasy men lounging in precious belts and crude boots, laughing and drinking Yavana wine, ignoring the prince and imperial messenger standing in their midst.

"That's enough," said the leader, cutting Ao off in the middle of his imperial decree. Giheushyan, his report had said. "Tell your father—"

"His Imperial Majesty does not take orders," said Ao, raising his voice to be heard over the sudden chorus of hoots and jeers. "You will bow down before—hey!"

The decree was snatched out of his hands, the delicate silk passed between grubby fingers. Giheushyan said, flinty-eyed, "Tell your father that the price is not enough. For Almaliq alone, we were owed a hundred bolts of silk, two hundred vials of perfume, and fifty whores from Osrushana. Ushylu," he barked, and Ao jumped. "Speak up like a man or hold your tongue. Ichise, Punu, stop encouraging him."

Ushylu, who couldn't be older than Ao if the fuzz on his chin was any indication, stopped whispering but kept giggling. "Brother, maybe you should see the decree before you judge."

Giheushyan took the offered decree, scanning it quickly.

At the same time, Ichise circled Ao, far closer than any barbarian had a right to, his eyes glittering in the dim light, "Well, I suppose he's shapely."

"So are the whores of Osrushana," said Punu, at the same time Ao snapped, "Step away from this royal person's—"

His face was seized in a bruising grip, callused fingers digging into his cheeks forcing his mouth open, a thumb pressing down on his tongue. Ichise said, in the same conversational tone, "And I suppose his skin is soft."

"So are the whores of Osrushana," said Punu, swirling his porcelain wine bowl.

Ao froze as Ichise kept circling, until the mercenary was behind him, nose pressed to the curling hairs behind his ear. He tried not to gag on the taste of salt, iron and leather.

"And I suppose he could be willing enough," said Ichise, dangerously soft, before a blow to the backs of his knees knocked his feet out from underneath him. Ao went down in a tangle of limbs, coarse elk fur scraping his palms, a brooch of some sort digging into his shin, Ichise heavy weight keeping him on hands and knees.

"So would the—"

"Will you shut up about the whores of Osrushana?" said Giheushyan. He tossed away the decree, letting it bounce and roll a few handspans away from Ao. "I still see no reason why we should accept his offer."

"Brother," said Ushylu, pouting, "There's no reason why we can't do a little ground driving first, is there?" at the same time Ichise flipped up Ao's robes and yanked at his riding breeches.

Ao cried out, trying to push him away, but only succeeded in crashing face-first into the musty furs, as his linen pants were shoved to his knees, a hand between his shoulder blades keeping him down.

"Will you be good, little mare, or do you need to be bridled?" said a voice above him.

It was too much. Ao fought back with feet and fist, but they were too strong, mashing his face further into the ground, gagging him with the fur in his mouth. He cast his eyes about for something to focus on in his panic—offer up my royal son as an act of charity, to be used as the hill savages see fit—read the decree, before the rest was crushed under a muddy boot.

Someone spat behind him.

Giheushyan laughed, low and mocking. "Come now, we're among civilized folk. Surely we can spare a little oil."

Ao thought he had been chosen to ride the seven-day journey because he was the only one of his brothers to study the languages of the steppes. He thought he was being forgiven by his imperial father after all this time. He thought—

The disbelief was driven out of his mind when the first finger shoved roughly into his hole, followed quickly by a second. It was fast, perfunctory, and while Ao knew what was coming, his quivering hole couldn't keep out the invading fingers.

"By the moon, he's loud," snapped someone. Ao saw a quick glimpse of Punu's scowl before cold steel was shoved into his mouth, tied around the back of his head, stretching the corners of his mouth until it was a wonder they didn't split. The smell of sandalwood filled the air as more oil dribbled down his crack. Fingers returned, but simply petted around his hole, softening it up.

"Do you want first honors?" said Ichise.

Leather and wool rustled above him. "No," said Giheushyan, tracing a thumb along the stretched corner of Ao's mouth. He tried to swallow around the horse bit, choking on the taste of iron and terror. "I want his mouth, after you've backed him."

Something blunt and heavy hit the floor—a belt buckle. Something else just as blunt and heavy pressed against his rim, between fingers hooked to keep him open.

Too much, too big, too fast—none of his words could make it past the bit in his mouth, Ichise's hands shoving his chest into the skins as his dick drilled into him from the other end. Ao felt like he was being turned inside out, Ichise's cock a brand burning him to the core. And still, it hurt less than his father's exile.

Ao gritted his teeth as Ichise finally bottomed out, the gold threads in his tunic scraping against the soft skin of Ao's backside. The furs were practically disintegrating in his white-knuckled fists.

Something wet on his face startled him.

Ao pried open his eyes, almost catching a tongue in the eye as Ushylu licked his other eyelid. Ushylu's trouser ties were undone, his eyes shining like jade as they flickered between Ao's eyes and his mouth, his hand flying over his own cock.

"Having fun?" said Giheushyan, as Ichise hitched Ao's hips higher as he started pulling out, his dick dragging dragging just right against Ao's prostate.

"He cries so prettily," sighed Ushylu, undoing his shirt to pluck at a nipple. The peach-flesh flush that started on his cheeks went all the way down to his freckled belly. Ichise pushed back in.

"You're so spoiled," said Giheushyan, with not a little fondness in his voice.

Punu added, "Only because you indulge him."

Fresh tears pooled at the corners of Ao's eyes as Ichise's pace picked up, slamming into him so hard his knees skidded on fur. Ao was dimly aware that he was no longer screaming, pushing back into that bright spark every time Ichise fucked into him just right. He didn't know if the hitched groans were only coming from Ichise.

Hands tugged at the collar of his robes.

Ao startled, falling to his elbows. Ichise's pace faltered, before a slap stung Ao's right buttock.

"Keep still," growled Ichise, fucking back into him. Two more blows landed in the same spot for good measure.

Ushylu looked only a little apologetic before he started tugging at Ao's clothes again. "Take this off," he said, "I want to see you."

Between the two of them, they managed to shrug off Ao's robes, and then his undershirt. And then Ushylu pushed at Ao's shoulders, making his bare back scrape against Ichise's tunic, rougher than anything that had ever touched Ao's skin. Ushylu said, "Come on, brother, let him ride in your lap."

Ichise huffed out a laugh. "Who died and made you boss?"

Ushylu pouted at Giheushyan, widening his eyes. Giheushyan, for his part, just rolled his own, and said, "I think the kid wants to take off his pants."

Ichise hauled them backwards without bothering to pull out, his dick grinding against that spot that made Ao melt against him. The rest of his clothes were pulled off without ceremony, and they worked together to rearrange his legs on either side of Ichise's, stretched so far his thighs shook.

He was completely naked, splayed to showcase his shame to the entire tent. The only other item of clothing pooled on the floor was Ichise's belt.

Ichise slapped his flank. "Come on. I'm not doing all the work."

Ao's planted his bare feet in the furs and lifted himself slowly, his hole clinging to Ichise's cock, pleasure shivering up the small of his back as he tried to hide his face against the horseman's shoulder.

Two rough hands slammed him back down, his sit bones slamming against the cradle of Ichise's hips, again, and then again, leaving him breathless, too fast for Ao to even moan. "Faster," growled Ichise.

There was nowhere to look, not at Giheushyan's frank gaze, not at Punu's look of boredom, not at Ushylu's pink tongue as it darted out to wet his lips as he panted, loud even despite the wet sounds of sex filling up the tent. Ao didn't know which burned more, his rarely-worked thighs or his humiliated cheeks.

There was no way to escape the pleasure either, Ichise angling his hips just right for each stroke to nudge against his prostate on the way in, and the way out. Ao's hands fisted in Ichise's trousers, desperately itching to fist his own dick.

As if reading his mind, Ushylu said, "Make him touch himself."

Ichise slapped Ao's right hand out of its death grip, wrapping both their hands around Ao's dick. It was so wet his palm just glided against it. Ao's pace faltered, earning him a bite to the junction between neck and shoulder, which only heightened the pleasure as Ichise tightened both their fingers.

His hips rocked clumsily between Ichise's cock and their hands, chasing after his pleasure, until Ichise growled and took over, fucking him like a stallion, jolting his dick into the tunnel of their joined hands. He needed—it was too—

"Oh, that's so pretty," said a voice above him, before the taste of come hit his halter-stretched mouth. Ao had the briefest glimpse of Ushylu's hand still wringing the last drops onto Ao's tongue, before—Ichise's rough palm twisted just under his head—

The world whited out in the hardest orgasm of his life.

When he came to, Ichise was still fucking him, fur prickling against Ao's back, Ushylu rubbing the come into Ao's lips and cheeks. It was too much too soon, just on the good side of pain as Ichise's cock pummeled his sore hole, but he was too limp to do more than gasp, tonguing at the bit, trying to close his mouth enough to swallow.

"Brother," said Ushylu, "Won't you have a turn?"

Ichise growled as he came, grinding as deep as possible, making Ao shiver as come trickling out of his hole. Punu pushed in almost before he was even finished.

"I still say if we had gotten whores from Osrushana, we wouldn't have to share," he said, fucking in hard and fast, Ao's body warring with itself, trying to shy away from the punishing pace and rock up into it at the same time, "Tighten up, whore."

He slapped Ao across the face.

Ao clenched as best he could. His entire body hurt—his face, his mouth, his knees, his abused hole being tenderized anew, his twitching dick trying valiantly to rise.

Punu pulled Ao's knees up until they nearly touched his shoulders. "Hold them there," he said, before he yanked at his hips. Ao's hands flew to the backs of his knees as his ass was hauled into the air. He was bent in half, his only points of contact with the ground his shoulders and neck.

And then Punu fucked back into him.

If he thought he was being fucked hard before, it was nothing compared to now. He had no leverage to squirm away (to push into each thrust). Drool trickled down his chin, but not as much as his weeping dick as it slapped against his belly. The bit practically cracked his molars as he sobbed into it, the points of pain a relief from the assault, something he could cling to in the all-consuming pleasure.

He was going to come again, if only he could—

Punu pulled out, ignoring Ao's near-hysterical whines as he clung desperately to his tunic, before flipping Ao onto his stomach. Someone worked the bit out of his mouth, but before Ao could stretch out his sore jaw, a dick slid between his lips, tasting of come and sex.

Ushylu sighed above him, his shirt slipping off his thin frame. "Look at how sweet you can be for me."

Like this, Ao still had no leverage, Punu pressing his hips into the wet furs as he fucked him, slow and deep, Ushylu pulling him by the hair as he plundered his throat. Ao had almost been crown prince once, seated at the right hand of his father's saunderswood throne, lording over an endless throng of groveling eunuchs and servants. In the darkness of this tent at the edge of the world, he was even less than them, nothing more than a set of warm, wet holes to be ravaged for other men's pleasure.

There was no way he could hide how aroused he was.

Even if he could hide his face and restless hips, even if he could hide his shame in a robe, there was no way of stopping the sounds pouring out of his throat—sighs and hitched moans and, if his mouth weren't full, pleads to be allowed to come.

He was so close to the edge. The furs tickled his balls, the shaft of his dick, never with enough pressure to do anything frustrate him. There wasn't enough space for him to sneak a hand under his belly, not that he could loosen either of them anyway to prevent Punu from fucking him right into Ushylu's lap, choking him on the long, slim dick.

Giheushyan rumbled something, and the cock in his mouth withdrew.

"Ah, no," he cried out, "I need—"

"Shh, I know what you need," said Ushylu as Punu froze, his fingers gripping Ao's hips so hard they creaked, holding him in place.

Liquid heat flooded his hole, deeper than he'd ever felt it. There was so much come, leaking out as Punu pulled out. He tried to squirm, to no avail, as it ran down his balls, pooling there, taunting him for not coming—all the come still trapped inside with nowhere to go. Ao sobbed, "Please."

Punu patted him on the cheek. "Look at you. Who'd ever know you were a prince?"

"Punu, leave him alone." Giheushyan, across the tent, had finally loosened his belt, his cock jutting hard and proud from his trousers. He gestured to it, seated like a king on the only chair, spreading his legs wider in invitation.

Ao tried to stand, but a hand pressed between his shoulder blades. "Crawl," said Ichise.

Once, he would have had these barbarians beheaded for touching his royal person. Once, they would not have dared to raise their eyes above the level of his boots. But that was in a world far away and in the past, separate from the four corners of this red burlap tent.

Ao, second son of the Honored Imperial Consort, once sixth in line to the throne, crawled.

His palms felt gritty on the furs, his knees like jelly. The last of the ribbon holding his topknot up came undone, his hair slithering across his neck and shoulders making him shiver, as come kept leaking out of his wrecked hole, trickling down the backs of his thighs.

Giheushyan let him kneel between his spread knees, guiding Ao's mouth to his cock with a hand in his hair, pushing him—slowly, but not gently—all the way down, until Ao's nose pressed against the hair at the base of Giheushyan's cock.

Enveloped in wool and a curtain of his own hair, Ao could see nothing, smell nothing except for Giheushyan's musky, woodsy scent, taste nothing except for pure masculinity.

A hand slid up the back of his thigh, following the trail of come. Ao would have jerked forward if it weren't for Giheushyan's hand in his hair still keeping him in his place.

"Look at how loose you are," said Ushylu, plunging two—three? fingers into him with barely any resistance.

Ao could do nothing except mouth at Giheushyan's cock. Ushylu's hand returned to his thigh, scooping up the come and pushing it back into his hole. Already on the edge, Ao could feel his orgasm building, as slow and inevitable as a tsunami. Giheushyan said, "How long are you going to tease him?"

"Tease?" said Ushylu, his fingers playing at Ao's rim, the tips barely flirting inside, "I'm just preparing him."

Giheushyan scoffed, the hard muscles of his stomach pressing against Ao's face. Precum flooded his mouth as Ao tried to choke himself on the thick, heavy dick, desperate for anyone to fuck him. "You think you need that much preparation? You're not that big."

Ushylu huffed, brattily, ""Well, fine." Ao's hole fluttered, clenching on thin air, his stomach jumping in anticipation. The slightest breeze was going to set him off. Ushylu wiped his wet fingers on Ao's back, wrapping his hands around his hips, his dick dipping into Ao's hole.

Ao came before he even bottomed out.

It was pure bliss, until it wasn't. Ao screamed as Ushylu kept rabbiting into him even after the aftershocks had died down until he choked, throat spasming around Giheushyan's cock as Ushylu's battered his oversensitive walls. He clawed at Giheushyan's trousers, trying to pull away to plead, "Please, please, I can't—"

"Where do you want me to come?" said Giheushyan, ignoring him, "Your face or your mouth?"

"His mouth," gasped Ushylu, his rhythm already faltering, "He wants to taste it."

Giheushyan traced his cock around Ao's mouth. Ao's saliva glands ached as his lips were painted with precum, his mouth flooding with anticipation, but Giheushyan angled it away from his chasing tongue. "Well?"

An iron grip closed around his throat, pulling him back so far his hands left the ground, uncaring of his scrabbling fingers as he clawed at it. "You will answer my lord," breathed Ushylu into Ao's ear, as his fingers tightened fractionally.

"Ushylu," said Giheushyan, but he sounded too pleased to be admonishing.

Unable to make a sound, Ao could only open his mouth as wide as he could, sticking out his tongue to cover his teeth, trying to beg with his entire body as darkness crept at the corners of his vision. Ushylu rewarded him by grinding his cock in tight circles, pulling out just enough to tease at his prostate before plunging in so deep he could practically taste it in his throat, until Ao was whimpering and writhing, sucking desperately at Giheushyan's cock when he finally fed it to him—but just the tip, just enough for Ao to lap at the slit, desperate for any taste of his precum, seal his lips under the bulbous head and suck. It twitched, flexed, the thick vein on the underside throbbing with blood—

Giheushyan yanked Ao's head so far forward his balls slapped against Ao's chin as Ushylu pulled out to pump long ropes of come up his back.

He could feel the cock pulsating on his tongue, pumping out the come he could feel sliding down the divot of his spine and the back of his throat, too deep to taste. He wanted to whimper, to cry, to pull back so he could taste the cum he'd worked so hard for, but Giheushyan's hand gripped the back of his head, tangled in his hair.

His own cock was painfully hard, he suddenly realized.

He didn't know when it had happened or how he could have gotten it up a third time, but when he tried to reach for his dick, strong hands pulled his hands away, trapping them against the small of his back. He sucked at his lower lip as he watched Giheushyan gingerly tucking his dick back in his trousers, fighting against the leather straps binding his wrists. He wanted it back in his mouth.

The horse bit slid between his teeth instead.

"So?" said Ushylu, hopefully.

"So, what?" said Giheushyan.

Ichise grabbed Ao by the hair and shook him. "Quiet. Brother, don't play coy."

"I'd say we'd broken the mare in," added Punu, as the halter was buckled into place behind Ao's ears. He practically wailed at the injustice of it.

Giheushyan snorted and nudged Ao's sore balls with a boot, making him hump the air desperately, twisting in Ichise's grip. Someone laughed. "Yes, yes, all right. Stop looking so pleased, Ushylu, and take your pony out to play."

Ushylu snapped onto Ao's halter—motherfucker, he tried to bite out—red and white reins all jingling with bells. He tugged, and Ao's entire upper body jerked forward. "Aww, don't be like that," he said, grinning at Ao's indignity, "There's an entire troop waiting to play with you."