by Logan Jacobs
To my surprise, Yvaine waited in the hallway for me, an embroidered satin robe cinched around her narrow waist. Her large gray eyes trailed down my chest to the towel at my hips, and her lips quirked up in a smirk when she met my gaze again.
“I hope I’m not disturbing you, dear,” she said.
“Never,” I replied with a smile, and I stepped back to let her come in and shut the door after her. “What’s up?”
“While we were researching today, I had the opportunity to read up a bit more on magic,” the marchioness replied as she sat primly on the edge of my bed. “It was very interesting. Despite my extensive education, magic was the one subject I had never learned much about. Of course, there was all that talk of blood magic a few weeks ago with darling Emeline, but my experience otherwise has been scant, to say the least.”
A knot twisted in my gut as it occurred to me, far too late, what the noblewoman was hinting at.
“I, uh, I never talked to you about... what I am,” I said awkwardly. Yvaine had always been so supportive, and I’d never felt like I was in danger around her. How many times had she seen me use my magic since we’d first rescued her from those dwarves in the Diru Wilds? I’d been careless. She’d never said anything about it before, if she thought something was strange, but I supposed she was here now.
“No,” she replied with a little smile. “And you’re really something special, aren’t you?”
“You’ve heard of manipulators...” I trailed off, unsure of what I should say.
“Rarely, and then, mostly in a historical context.” Yvaine swept back a lock of her dark hair. “I do know they’re all supposed to be dead or imprisoned, of course.”
“Right... And, uh, how do you feel... about that?”
“You’re so cute, you know.” Yvaine gave a little laugh and stood to put her hands on my shoulders. “My dear Gabriel, you’ve saved my life on numerous occasions, and the last thing I’d ever want is for my boyfriend to be arrested and taken to some dreadful dungeon to await execution.” Her eyes trailed down my chest again. “I’m not upset, Gabriel, I’m impressed. I have high expectations, and I always get the best, even when I don’t know it. Of all the chivalrous, handsome mages in the realm, I found you, the only living manipulator. You’re quite the catch.”
I knew how to respond to that, at least. I leaned in and pressed my lips to Yvaine’s.
The noblewoman’s hands moved from my shoulders down my bare chest, and the gentle scrape of her nails sent tingles of electricity through me. I wrapped my arms around her waist to pull her closer until she was pressed against me, and she moaned softly as I deepened our kiss and slipped my tongue into her mouth.
She moved one hand to my hip and loosened the fold of the towel so that it fell to the floor, and I slid out the knot of her robe and pushed it off her shoulders. The only light was from a single lantern on my desk, but every perfect curve of Yvaine’s body was visible as I broke away to drink in her beauty. Her skin seemed to glow with its own light, porcelain and smooth, and her dark hair fell like a silky curtain down her back. Her eyes were trained on me, dark and full of desire.
The noblewoman swayed toward the bed, leaned back on it, then beckoned me forward with a wave of her finger. I didn’t hesitate to oblige, and she lay back onto the mattress as I kissed her again.
As I tugged lightly at her bottom lip, I shifted my weight to one elbow and moved the other hand to fondle one of Yvaine’s breasts, and she traced her nails across the muscles of my shoulders and moaned before she moved one hand between us to grasp my cock and began to stroke it.
I leaned into her touch and lifted my face from hers as I gasped, and Yvaine’s mouth curved up in a cheeky smile before she rolled us over so that I was on my back, and she was straddling my thighs. She worked me with her hand for another moment, then shifted and sank down over my cock with a sigh of pleasure. She looked radiant above me, with the light behind her forming a halo around her body as she began to move her hips.
I slid my hands up her thighs to help guide her as I thrusted upward, and within moments we were in perfect sync with one another. Yvaine hummed, and her eyelids fluttered closed as we increased our tempo. I took her hands and laced her fingers through mine before I drew them up toward my head, and Yvaine’s hair tickled my chest as she leaned over me, and we kissed again.
Then the noblewoman jerked back suddenly and gasped as she came. I held her close and shifted us so that I was kneeling on the bed with her still wrapped around me, and I continued to thrust all throughout her orgasm.
She wet her lips and blinked at me through her dark lashes as she came down, and she was quick to match the pace of my thrusts again with well-timed rolls of her hips. I bent down to kiss her lips, then her jaw and throat, and she sighed and ran her fingers through my hair, but it wasn’t long before her breathing became rapid again, and she urged me on with half-spoken gasps as she approached her second climax.
“Oh, yes,” she breathed into my ear. “Yes, Gabriel.”
I nipped at her earlobe and moved my hands to her ass as I thrust harder, and her nails dug into my shoulders as she came again a moment later.
“Only the best for you, right?” I murmured to her as I laid her on her back and laced my fingers through hers.
She was too dazed to answer, but she bit her lip and smiled up at me as I rolled my hips again. I could feel my own orgasm building like sparks in my gut, and Yvaine’s little breathless moans of pleasure spurred me on to move even faster.
Yvaine cried out again, and as her inner walls clenched around me, I came as well and filled her trembling body with my seed.
The noblewoman hummed as I gently rolled off her and collapsed on my back on the mattress, but for a few moments, neither of us spoke as we tried to catch our breaths. At last, Yvaine turned on her side to look at me and traced circles over my chest with one long nail.
“You are something special,” she murmured, and she leaned forward to press a kiss to my mouth.
“And lucky,” I replied as I ran a hand through her hair.
“In what way?”
“Lucky to have found you, for one thing.”
“Charming as ever,” Yvaine said with a little smile. “Are you sure you want to leave again so soon? Let the others go, there’s plenty for you to do here.”
“If it can lead us to one of the Shodra, I should be there,” I told her seriously. I hadn’t missed the double entendre in her statement, though, and with a smile, I added, “I suppose I’ll just have to stay up all night to make sure everything’s taken care of before I leave.”
Yvaine giggled and captured my lips in another kiss.
We ended up falling asleep at some point in the night, because I awoke the next morning to the soft purple tones of dawn outside the window and Yvaine’s head on my chest. I tried to stay still so as not to wake her up, but she must have sensed the change in my breathing, because almost immediately, she turned and blinked at me with sleep in her gray eyes.
“Good morning,” I murmured as I stroked her bare shoulder.
“Mm.” She shifted so that her head rested on the pillow next to me and gazed at me for a moment. “It is. I would like to wake up like this more often.”
“Whenever you want,” I replied, and I leaned in to kiss her.
When we broke apart, Yvaine sat up and drew her hair over one shoulder to comb it with her fingers.
“I suppose I can’t distract you from packing now, can I?” she teased.
“I’m tempted, believe me,” I answered with a grin. “I promise, we’ll come back as soon as we’re able.”
“You had better,” Yvaine said. “I’d go with you, but I know we still need dedicated eyes on the lookout for more leads, and I thought I might visit some of my noble friends today to see if there’s anything they know that could prove to be useful. They all have all sorts of antiques and rare items, and people looking for more to add to their collections.”
“That’s a good
idea,” I said. I hadn’t thought about asking the nobles, but Yvaine made an excellent point. I doubted any of them had one of the Shodra among their possessions without knowing it, or without the Mage Academy knowing about it, but perhaps one of them would have heard something that could help us.
Reluctantly, I got up and dressed in fresh clothes, and only then remembered the dirty things that I’d left on the floor. They’d been more or less hidden by the darkness last night, but now it looked as if a raccoon had tried to give birth in a nest made of my old pants. I moved to shove everything into a pile as Yvaine wrapped her robe around herself again.
“Sorry, I would have cleaned up--” I started, but the marchioness waved away the rest of my apology.
“Think nothing of it,” she said with an indulgent smile. “I did arrive unannounced, and you had a long day of heroism and monster-slaying. You know, if you’d like, I could have my maids come in here, too, tidy up, change the linens, fluff the pillows.”
“You have a maid?” I frowned. “Wait, maids, as in plural? Here?”
“Yes, of course,” Yvaine replied. She seemed surprised that I’d even asked. “They can use a specific soap in the laundry that will make your sheets smell like lavender. It’s heavenly. You will love it.”
“That sounds nice,” I said, still distracted by the idea of Yvaine’s maids. “How often do they come? I’ve never seen them.”
“Well, no, certainly not,” Yvaine said pointedly. “They say a good maid is like a faerie, don’t they? One only sees the effects of their work.”
“I’ve never heard that expression.”
Yvaine clicked her tongue. “Oh, my dear, you deserve some pampering. You go on and deal with those ruffians for that poor widow, and when you return, it will be to a finer state of living, you’ll see.”
“Thanks,” I chuckled. After Yvaine left to get dressed, I packed some fresh clothes and took the pendant out of my strongbox and slipped the chain around my neck. The gemstone settled comfortably above my sternum, and I admired it for a moment as I turned it to catch the light.
No, I reminded myself, it isn’t mine, even if it felt like it ought to be, in some inexplicable way.
I tucked the pendant beneath my shirt collar and headed downstairs, where Lavinia, Maruk, and Dehn were seated at breakfast. The ladona ranger and warrior halfling talked animatedly about the best ways to cut up a bat-monster’s corpse while the orc nodded off before a bowl of porridge.
“Don’t you dare,” I warned as I noticed a little black puca nose poke up over the edge of the table at Maruk’s elbow. I clicked my tongue as I walked into the kitchen and Merlin followed at my heels.
“Here, you can have this if you’re hungry,” I told him as I handed over a green apple. He sniffed it warily for a moment, then snatched it up eagerly in his tiny paws and darted beneath the dining room table to eat it in peace.
I took some fresh bread and another apple for myself, then joined the others at the table.
“You’d be hacking right through the bone,” Lavinia argued as I sat down. “You need to cut it at the joints. That’s faster.”
“Who gives a shit what’s faster?” Dehn grumbled.
“Uh, everyone?” Lavinia supplied. “If the idea is to cut them up before they can resurrect themselves, speed is a relevant factor, and it’ll be easier on your weapons.”
“My weapons don’t need easy,” the halfling boasted. “And neither do I!”
“That’s why you need a new blade every week,” Lavinia muttered into her coffee cup.
At that moment, there was a yelp followed by a stuttering noise from above as Emeline tripped on her way down the stairs.
“All right there, kitten?” Lavinia called up.
“Caught myself!” Emeline replied proudly, and she emerged a moment later with her pack slung over one shoulder. Her face fell when she saw us all gathered around the table. “Aw, am I the last one? I tried to get up early.”
“We’re not in a rush,” I assured her.
“And Maruk doesn’t count,” Lavinia added as she poked the orc’s arm with her coffee spoon. He gave a surprised snort, and his eyes shot open.
“What’s going on?” He was halfway to his feet before he seemed to register where he was again and frowned at the ranger. “Why’d you have to go and do that?”
“You were about to fall into your breakfast,” Lavinia replied with mock innocence. “I didn’t want you to get all porridge-y.”
“How kind,” Maruk drawled, and he plucked the spoon of out Lavinia’s hand to finish his food.
“Aren’t you going to eat anything, Lavinia?” Emeline asked as she came back from the kitchen with a pastry and some milk. “It might make you feel better.”
“No,” she snorted. “I’m--”
“Is something wrong?” I asked the ranger with a frown. “Are you sick?”
“I’m fine.” Lavinia waved away our comments. “I was nauseous earlier, but it passed. It was nothing, really.”
“Nauseated,” Maruk corrected. “You were nauseated earlier.”
Lavinia groaned and rolled her eyes at him.
“You don’t need to come with us today if you’re not feeling well,” I pressed. I knew Lavinia would try to downplay whatever was wrong, especially if it meant missing out on a fight.
“I’m fine!” the ladona woman insisted. “Never been better! Really. Would you lay off, you’re starting to sound like Aerin.”
“You don’t look poorly,” Maruk noted. The orc frowned. “Actually, you almost look nice.” He reached across the table to poke Lavinia’s cheek. “Your complexion is so fresh, you’re practically glowing. What did you do, actually wash your face for once?”
“I was thinking there was something different about you,” Emeline chimed in. “Your hair looks so shiny.”
“The next person who says anything about how I look is going to get a knuckle sandwich,” she growled as she threw withering glares at the both of them.
“Yeah?” Dehn, predictably, jumped at the challenge. “Well, I’m always looking for a fist fight, so I think your shoulder muscles are almost as impressive as Setana’s.”
“What the fuck does that even mean?” Lavinia sneered.
“You don’t know who Setana is?” the halfling asked incredulously.
I exchanged a look with Maruk, and we both chuckled as Dehn launched into a rant about the heroics of a legendary warrior woman who was his personal idol and tried in vain to goad Lavinia into fighting him.
Aerin, Lena, and Yvaine came down to see us off just as we were about to leave, and Lena gave each of us a few vials of her healing potion for the road.
“Don’t get into too much trouble,” Aerin warned as she wrapped me in a tight embrace. “I won’t be there to patch you up if you get injured.”
“We’ll be careful,” I promised. “It’s just a few bandits, nothing we can’t handle.”
“Murderous bandits!” the healer insisted. “Maybe I should go with you....”
“We can manage, Aerin,” Lavinia said. “We’ll just point Dehn at them and let him loose.”
“They’ll never know what hit ‘em!” The halfling struck a pose and waggled his bushy eyebrows.
“We need you and Lena and Yvaine here looking into where we can find the rest of the Shodra,” I said gently. “Besides, someone has to keep an eye on Merlin. He ate too many zombie bat-people and got sick. We’ll be safe, don’t worry.”
“I guess you’re right,” Aerin sighed, but at last, she released me and stepped back. “Alright, go kill some bandits.”
“Hells yeah!” Dehn cheered, and he was out the door and halfway down the street before any of the rest of us had started to move.
“See you all in a few days,” I said, and Emeline, Maruk, Lavinia, and I filed out the door after the halfling.
Chapter 10
“What did you say this place was called again?” I asked as our group looked out at the ramshackle assembly of structure
s in the valley below us. The place had a strange sort of resemblance to Ovrista, except on a much smaller scale. There was an old stone wall around the perimeter, and inside was a mishmash of buildings that all looked as though they’d each been put up by different architects with different ideas about city planning. Drunk architects.
“Farfury Garrison,” Emeline replied. “It used to be an old military outpost during the civil wars, but now it’s... um...”
“A hive of villainy?” Maruk supplied. “A haven for outlaws, murderers, and thieves? A stopping place for the worst of society--”
“We get it,” Lavinia interrupted. “You didn’t have to come, you know.”
“I want to help,” the orc insisted. “But I don’t like places like this, they remind me of my childhood.”
“We won’t be staying long,” I assured him. “How are we supposed to know which ones are our murderers?”
“Professor Hayle gave us a description of them,” Emeline answered. She took out a piece of paper from her pack and unfolded it. “We’re looking for three men, they work together. The first is called Janner, he’s tall, has a gray beard, and an eyepatch over his left eye.”
“He sounds like my uncle,” Maruk said moodily. “Of course, his name was Orlag the Ship-Render, Scourge of Men, and Destroyer of the Great Fort of Relsnarrow. He used to tell me stories before bed, but they were all about sacking towns and setting things on fire.”
“Woah,” Dehn breathed. The halfling stared at Maruk with wide eyes, clearly impressed despite himself. “He sounds badass.”
“Can we focus?” Lavinia asked. “Who are the other guys, Emeline?”
“Uh, let’s see, there’s also a man named Molyns, who we’ll be able to recognize by a tattoo on his shoulder of a boar, and Barre, who has black hair and always wears a necklace made out of, uh, eww, teeth.”
“What kind of teeth?” Dehn asked.
“Is that relevant?” Maruk complained.
“It doesn’t say,” Emeline answered. “But Professor Hayle did warn us about this place. She said she had hired another guild to come here before. Everyone here is really strict about fighting.”
