Khoraja dropped her voice. "I think it's your destiny to do all the quests," she said. "I think we should probably get cracking. And maybe get one more team member."
"I will not be a pawn, doing whatever they tell me to." Not when I can spend my time with girls like Emma, and as long as I have money to buy food with. Heck, Abby was flirting with me too.
"Well, you do what you think best. I don't know, maybe you're right. There's no manual for being an asc--" She looked up as the waitress arrived back with hot food. Having only one thing on the menu reduced the wait time. "--hole," Khoraja finished.
"Oh dear," said the waitress, and hurried away, after only a slight dip of her chest.
"What brought that on?" asked Nigel, biting a chunk off the bread. It was warm, fresh, and tasty.
"Hey, it was the only word I could think of to finish the sentence," Khoraja said.
That made sense, but she'd come up with it awfully fast. "So you're not pissed at me over Emma?" He wasn't sure whether that or the orcs was the safer topic.
"Of course not. Why, you think I've been panting after you? I made sure Emma knew you'd be available. Think of it as an experiment. I suppose humans get jealous sometimes. You live short little lives and can sometimes maintain a bond until death. But in Elvish society, we learn to share. No one wants to be married to someone for hundreds of years, and every time two elves try it, it doesn't end well. So no, even if I planned to sleep with you, I would still not care if you slept with the town whore."
"You don't like her, though." He didn't want to press, but if they ended up going adventuring together, he wanted to know what he was dealing with.
"We have a philosophical difference. I think love should be freely given. For her it's a commodity, to sell for a price," Khoraja shrugged. "Elves, humans. We rarely see eye to eye."
"She didn't charge me."
Khoraja chuckled. "Don't let it make you feel special. She will not be your woman, unless..."
"Unless what?"
Khoraja smiled knowingly. "Ah, you're interested. It's a remote possibility. I'll let you know."
"Let me know what?"
"If I let you know now, I can't let you know in the future, can I?"
"Anyway, you don't know that she charges anyone."
"Yes I do. We both heard her talk about 'fund raising.' The world around, there are only two kinds of love priestesses of Inanna: Those that are married to princes and kings, in hierogamy--a sacred marriage where the priestess represents the goddess, and the royalty represents the land, and therefore the god Tammuz; and those that take no consort but serve the goddess as sacred whores, filling the temple's coffers with the money they charge their lovers. The third type of priestess, who are way better adventurers, by the way, serve Inanna in her war aspect. So yes, I know that she charges."
Nigel sliced off a bit of ham, and then stabbed it with his knife to bring it to his mouth, since it was the only utensil available. Everything he could learn about the world from Khoraja was helpful.
"So are the gods of your world the same as ours?" asked Khoraja.
Nigel finished chewing before answering. "They were, once, I think. In some places, thousands of years ago. Inanna is not worshiped anymore. Nor Tammuz." How did those gods come to be worshiped on Aldrya? When he'd first encountered the names, he'd assumed that the game designers had stolen them from Earth's past. But it seemed impossible that Aldrya was created by anyone with current Earth technology, so who had created it?
"We elves do not worship Inanna either. But as long as there have been stories handed down, humans have worshiped the one they call the Queen of Heaven."
"Tell me about your people, Khoraja."
"Ah, we talk little about ourselves with humans."
"Tell me what everyone knows, at least."
Khoraja smiled. "That's fair enough. We live in forests, and most of us stay there our whole lives, defending the trees from those who would chop them down for wood. We learn more magic than humans do, and all of us learn how to fight somehow, because any of us might be called upon to defend the forest."
Nigel chewed his food, thinking there might be more, but that was all Khoraja said. He took a sip of "apple juice," and found it had a bite to it. It was cider. Maybe alcohol was the magic that kept things from making people sick. He'd have to build up his tolerance, and drink sparingly in the meantime or he'd be wobbling around drunk all day. "So why are you not in the forest?"
"I was sent to look for you. The elders of my grove did a divination, and it said an ascendant who would change the world would appear near a castle, near a village, near the city of Lionguard. I had been looking for a while when I stumbled across the goblins and passed the time by killing them. A band of goblins killed my sister, and while I didn't like her much, she was my sister. Thank you for the timely rescue."
"You're welcome," Nigel said.
"In any case, it is well known that the way one improves oneself is by using one’s abilities in stressful situations. So, the goblins, and that's also why I want to go on your quest to fight the orcs. But I have time. Whether we go today, or tomorrow, or the next day doesn't matter nor does it matter whether we go to fight orcs or find some other way to test ourselves. Time to reflect on the skills I have already attained and strengthened is welcome for now, if you wish to wait."
Another well-known thing, just like the ideal party size being four. But yeah, it matched with what he had seen, that one got skill-ups from combat.
"And if I wish to wait a month?" he asked.
"You are the one I'm here for." Khoraja said without hesitation. "We elves are patient. But if you are truly to change the world, it seems unlikely that it will happen through waiting."
"What in the world needs changing?" Nigel asked.
Khoraja laughed. "So many things. Pointless little wars between princes, all because the Emperor is only a figurehead. The way foresters cut down trees without regard to what lives there. The loss of magic with each generation."
"I need to learn more of this world so I can make more intelligent decisions," Nigel replied.
"What do you need to know?" asked Khoraja.
"I don't even know what I don't know, I'm afraid. And I feel like a rube asking everyone."
"Then I'll begin by explaining everything the way I would to a child, and when we come across something you don't know, we'll talk more about it. How's that?"
Nigel hated being condescended to, but he didn't have a better solution. "Fine. Begin."
After the noon meal Nigel's head was full, and they took a break. Nigel managed to keep his humility in the face of Khoraja's lectures. He knew she was trying her best to be helpful. She seemed like a good person, if sarcastic, and he needed her. But he wanted time to reflect and fresh air before another round of learning. He thought of himself as someone who looked before he leapt, but he yearned for action. He'd eaten more quickly than Khoraja, so while Khoraja still lingered over her meal of cheese and the inn's delicious bread, Nigel had excused himself with no particular destination in mind other than out.
"Hey, you," said a voice from the shadows. It was the armored man he'd seen when they'd returned from the goblin mine, leaning in much the same position he'd been at when they'd seen him the night before.
"Hmm?" asked Nigel, immediately wary.
"What's your name?"
"Nightwolf. Yours?"
"Garrett. Prince Garrett, of Angleford. Let's take a little walk so we can talk."
Nigel didn't trust the situation, and he wasn't really in the mood for a conversation, but he felt the smart thing to do was to at least listen. "We can talk here."
"Fine." Garrett moved left, further from the door. Nigel stepped away, too. The new spot was far enough from the door to avoid being overheard, but still in view of the village square.
"What's up?" Nigel asked.
"This is about Emma," Garrett said. "I don't want you getting any ideas. She's going to be mine."
"You
rs?" Nigel's first reaction was that it sounded like high school all over again. Your prom date? But perhaps in Aldrya owning someone was more literal. Was slavery commonplace? He'd have to ask Khoraja.
"Yeah. Mine. And she is what she is, so I'll try to forget that she was screwing you this morning, but don't let it happen again. Things could happen to you. You had a big shit-eating grin on your face this morning. Sometimes smiling is bad for you." Garrett drew a hand across your throat. "Can get you a second smile, if you know what I mean."
"What do you mean, is what she is?" Nigel asked, playing dumb. He wanted more information, and he sure as hell didn't want a fight. Garrett might just have good armor and a shiny sword, if he was a prince. He could also have all his skills at twenty, as far as Nigel knew.
"A whore. A slut. And my future wife. So far she's been playing hard to get, but ... she will be mine. And when she is, she'll tell me everything. So... no more. You had your once, and that's it."
"If you think so little of her, why do you want her?"
Garrett shrugged. "Having a priestess of Inanna is useful if you're a prince. A peasant like you wouldn't understand."
He remembered Emma asking if he would "do it again." Now that prospect seemed suddenly dangerous. Had Garrett slept with her already? It sounded like he wanted her for what she was, rather than who. He didn't know how important the concept of sacred marriage was.
"I'll keep what you said in mind," he said carefully, deciding that maybe more time in the inn wasn't such a bad idea. He turned back toward the door.
Garrett clapped a hand on Nigel's shoulder and gave it a good hard squeeze. "See that you do."
The man was no weakling. One more reason to be cautious. But even if Garrett was a prince with maxed-out stats, Nigel didn't want to be told what to do. He shrugged off Garrett's hand and returned to the inn.
CHAPTER FIVE
Nigel was sweating. In twenty-first century Earth, people didn't make death threats that often. He'd had a couple of close calls since he got to Aldrya, but his adrenalin had been pumping and he'd been caught up in the moment. Yeah, he'd been scared, but there was something he could do. Garrett presented a foreboding menace with no obvious course of action.
If Emma could pick the lock, then presumably Garrett could or break the rusty thing. Being killed in battle, where he could fight back, was one thing. A few days ago, it would have been a horrifying concept, but he was almost getting used to the idea. Being slaughtered in one's sleep was another.
It relieved him to see Khoraja still there. She was still picking at her food. He sat down across from her.
"Khoraja?"
She finished chewing, taking her time, and then cocked an eyebrow at him. "Yes, Nightwolf?"
"How does one avoid being murdered in one's sleep here?"
"Avoid having enemies, I suppose. That's an oddly specific question. What brings that on?"
He told Khoraja about the conversation with Garrett.
"Ah," she said. "An interesting predicament. There are warding spells, but that's not my kind of magic. I can try casting a simple lock spell on the door, but I'm not good at it. Still, it might hold out some. But I don't think he would take the risk."
The risk didn't seem horribly high to Nigel. "What risk?"
Khoraja looked at him oddly, and then smiled. "I keep forgetting you're not used to magic. There would be an investigation, and they would use divination to determine who murdered you. Now, I'm not saying the guards would pursue him to the ends of the earth. Nor even that I would, although I'd give it a go. That's what party members are for. But it sounds like Garrett wants to stick around for Emma, so unless he plans on murdering you and kidnapping her, you're safe in your sleep. Just don't accept if he challenges you to a duel."
"He might be the type to try kidnapping her."
"Maybe. Only if he could get her someplace deserted. The cult of Inanna protects its own. Rape, kill, or kidnap one of their priestesses, and you've borrowed more trouble than I suspect Garrett wants to call down on himself. Unless he's crazy."
Which was possible.
"I'll sleep with you tonight," announced Khoraja.
That's a pleasant change of heart. Nigel grinned.
"I won't have sex with you," Khoraja said. "Just share a room and a bed. And no, not to protect you--not directly. But Emma probably won't come to you if I'm there. It will avoid complications."
"I should warn her about Garrett."
Khoraja nodded. "I'll do that. You going to the temple will confirm Garrett's worst suspicions. We need to find out more, like who Garrett's friends are. Being a prince in name only isn't enough. You can't marry a priestess unless you represent land, and land probably means retainers."
"Represents land?"
"Hierogamy symbolizes the marriage of heaven and earth. The priestess is the representative of the Queen of Heaven. The man she marries represents the land from which he comes." Khoraja looked at him thoughtfully. "You're not a prince or a king in Oakland, are you?"
Nigel shook his head. "We don't even have princes and kings. We're all equal, at least in theory. Some other countries have those things, although they are mostly just figureheads."
Khoraja smiled. "Figureheads make the best symbols. It's all about the symbolism, as I understand it. Emma would know more about it. I'll go ask her." She rose from the table. "I'll be back shortly."
Nigel sat alone for the next hour, trying to listen to other people's conversations. Abby the waitress, the innkeeper, the orc who was now munching away at a double portion of meat--they all had information that would be useful to him, no doubt. But he couldn't ask questions without revealing his ignorance, and making people curious why he knew so little.
When Khoraja returned, she sat down with a sigh.
"What's wrong?"
Khoraja rolled her eyes. "Emma thinks I'm just jealous. But she was already avoiding Garrett, so don't worry about that. Garrett, apparently, is the crown prince of Angleford, wherever that is, and is here specifically to find a priestess to marry. Apparently if Emma so much as has sex with him, she'll bond with him, so she has no intention of doing so."
Nigel had no illusions about Emma's promiscuity, but somehow her sleeping with Garrett still touched a nerve. He breathed a sigh of relief at Khoraja's revelation. "Bonded?"
"Married. With a touch of divine magic to enhance the attraction. It would be very difficult for Emma to go against Garrett's wishes if she bonded to him. She's feeling a little unwell, and healing hasn't cleared that up, so she intends to stay in the temple tonight and not entertain ... visitors."
Nigel smiled. "Good."
"Nightwolf... she is what she is. You cannot claim her for your own."
"I understand that." He did. His own emotions were confused. Emma was damn sexy, and sweet. But Khoraja had a sharp mind and her slender body was attractive in its own way. He was looking forward to sleeping with the elf even if sleep meant sleep. The inn beds were barely larger than a twin bed on Earth and having her warm body next to his would be both pleasant and frustrating.
"Good. In the meantime, it seems our fates are intertwined for some time to come." Khoraja turned to face him and lowered her voice. She had been talking casually before, but now she fixed him with a serious gaze. "If you become destructive or evil, then you should worry about being murdered in your sleep. By me. Otherwise, I promise you, you will have no more loyal friend."
Nigel nodded. He believed both the threat and the promise. "I need to keep learning."
"Yes, you do. And since we are getting a room together, we might as well take advantage of the privacy a room affords us. Wait here." Khoraja got up and spoke to the innkeeper. Nigel couldn't hear what they were saying, but the innkeeper looked over at Nigel, and then back at Khoraja, and nodded. Some money exchanged hands.
Garrett walked in and headed straight toward Myron the innkeeper. Khoraja looked over at Nigel with raised eyebrows as if asking if Garrett was the guy. Nigel nodded, hop
ing he was answering the right question.
Khoraja grinned and then raised her voice. "My husband and I will retire early," she said. "Is the room ready?"
Myron looked puzzled for a moment, as if Khoraja had thrown him a curveball. "Oh! It will be. Abby!"
Khoraja smiled. "Good," she said. "I can't wait, if you know what I mean." She licked her lips, sauntered back to Nigel, sat down, and stroked his forearm, looking deeply into his eyes.
"That is Garrett, right?" she asked.
"Oh, yeah."
"Good, because I would hate for this performance to be wasted."
"Oh, trust me," said Nigel. "It's not wasted." He'd always been a one woman man on Earth, but here he couldn't decide. Nor did he see any reason to. It didn't seem like his path here involved settling down with a wife and kids.
Khoraja blushed. "Let's take our time, please," she said. She chewed on her lip, and this time, Nigel was sure she wasn't acting. She wanted him--at least some of her did. She just wanted to go slow. He could live with that. As she'd said, it appeared their lives were intertwined. He wanted to see where that went.
"Do you mind more performing?" he asked. "For Garrett's sake, of course?"
Khoraja hesitated. "For Garrett's sake. Him showing up to see us kiss was a stroke of luck."
Nigel leaned forward to kiss her. As she kissed back, nibbling on his lips with hers, he agreed about the stroke of luck.
Once Khoraja and he entered the room, however, she was all business, telling him the things she thought he should know, from the differences and capabilities of various schools of magic, to the Gods humans worshipped, to what not to say to an Orc. "Greenskin," was, apparently, not a sign of respect and an honoring of orcish heritage.
They arrived at dinner late in the evening, and the only customers left were adventurers. Most of them were drinking rather than eating, and neither Garrett nor Emma were anywhere to be seen.
"We still need to figure out our plan for tomorrow," Khoraja said. "Get Emma, and another adventurer, and kill orcs? Explore? Keep talking?"
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