Nigel nodded. "Deal."
"Shall we go now?" asked Gragoth.
Did orcs have night vision like elves? Emma and he needed to see, anyway. "In the morning."
Gragoth nodded. "At dawn. Don't be late. We'll meet here."
"Here," Nigel agreed.
"Go fuck your women," Gragoth said. "I'll make it look like we had an argument."
"That's unnecessary," Nigel said. "But yes, I'm ready to retire for the night."
Gragoth nodded, ending the conversation. No pleasantries, apparently. Nigel stood, as did Emma and Khoraja.
"Your mother sucks donkey cock," Gragoth yelled at Nigel.
What the fuck? Nigel didn't know how to reply.
"Your mother and sisters pay to get fucked by goblins, because their dicks are bigger than yours," said Khoraja, and walked away.
"You know it's not true," Emma said. "His dick is really--"
"I don't want to hear it," said Nigel. "I'm going to bed. Anyone who wants to sleep with me is welcome to."
"Just sleep," said Khoraja.
"Just sleep?" asked Emma.
"One more night," Nigel told the innkeeper.
"Two copper," Myron said, and Nigel handed it over.
"We can sleep naked, pressing our bodies against you all night long, letting you get all hard and frustrated," said Khoraja.
"As long as you don't do it on the bar," said the Innkeeper.
Nigel walked upstairs.
"Why would we leave him frustrated?" asked Emma.
Nigel chuckled to himself. Khoraja seemed to enjoy him being aroused and not able to do anything about it, but from what Emma had told him, Emma literally got off on him coming. It didn't seem likely the mage could persuade Emma, and they were both following him upstairs. He walked into the room, and they followed him in.
"It's worth mentioning at this point that Garrett has threatened Nightwolf," Khoraja said.
Emma looked at her. "With what?"
"Apparently he''ll kill him if he's alone with you in bed. So, you need me to chaperone."
Emma grinned. "We can double team him."
"Oh no," said Khoraja. "Since I'm needed, my rules. Besides, Garrett is sleeping up here, and you two make a lot of noise. So, no sex tonight." She raised her voice for that last part.
Nigel wondered why she was shouting. He supposed it was for Garrett's benefit. He didn't like being a coward. He didn't fancy getting killed to fuck, either, but right now he hated being a coward more. "I'll risk Garrett," Nigel said.
"No, you won't," said Khoraja. "Because I care about you. Because Emma cares about you."
Emma sighed. "Yeah."
Nigel looked at her, as did Khoraja. He wondered how this bonding thing worked with Emma. She said she'd signed up for it, but maybe she was regretting it.
"I want to make him come," said Emma.
"Well, you can't. But you're perfectly welcome to talk about it as much as you like." Khoraja lifted her robe over her head, revealing her slender naked body. She stretched out with her clothes wrapped in her hands, her breasts pointed upward toward the corner of wall and ceiling. She looked delicious.
Emma looked between Nigel and Khoraja. "No, I won't tease him," she murmured. Then she raised her voice. "I'm too tired anyway," she yelled.
Khoraja got into bed. "Come on in when you're ready." She grinned at both of them.
Emma turned to Nigel. "I don't want to make you frustrated, but this bra is really uncomfortable to sleep in."
It wasn't like it concealed much, anyway. "Then take it off," Nigel said. He undressed. Khoraja looked entirely too smug as her gaze raked his body from head to toe and back again, lingering in the middle. He was half-erect and fighting not to get more so as Emma freed her breasts from their constraint.
"Just sleeping," he said. "No teasing. You need me alert tomorrow." He slid in next to Khoraja, giving Emma room on the other side.
Khoraja's grin disappeared. "Damn you."
Emma climbed in, still wearing her panties. "When he's right, he's right. And being my husband, he's mostly right."
"Mostly?" asked Khoraja.
"Mostly," said Emma.
In the small bed, it was impossible to pretend the two naked women weren't pressed up naked against him, but Nigel did his best to focus on his breath until he fell asleep.
#
When dawn arrived Nigel felt moderately rested. He'd had some very vivid sexual thoughts during the night. By accident or design, Khoraja had rested her fingertips were on his inner thigh for an hour. But on the whole, he'd felt comfortable enough to sleep, even if his cock was fully erect when he finally nodded off.
He wondered if Gragoth had slept as easily. If he were the orc, he'd have been afraid of getting murdered in his sleep, given the attitude of the townspeople. The light streaming in the window meant it was morning. He pushed himself to a sitting position and patted Emma and Khoraja on their butts. "Time to get up, sleepyheads," he said. "We've got places to go, people to do in."
Emma blinked and wiped the sleep from her eyes, her stretch popping her magnificent tits from under the covers. Khoraja sat up, also giving him a lovely view of her torso, and reached for her dress. Nigel got out of bed, ignoring the returning swelling in his cock.
"Khory," said Emma. "He's all hard. Shouldn't we do something about that before we go adventuring?" She licked her lips.
"I don't know how I feel about being called that," Khoraja said. "We'll help by getting our clothes on. We said we'd meet Gragoth at dawn, and it's dawn." Khoraja smirked. "Nightwolf will have to suffer."
"I want to taste his cum first," Emma said. "You can go down and meet Gragoth."
"And you'll go down here?" asked Khoraja. "I don't think so. We have things to do."
Nigel got dressed. He'd like nothing better than to get relief from Emma's skillful mouth and tongue. The prospect of rushing into danger only made getting a blowjob before they went more attractive. But making Gragoth wait was putting the orc in danger, and that wasn't acceptable.
Khoraja was the speediest, in part because her clothing was the simplest to put on. Emma was taking her time.
"Go ahead and let him know we're coming," said Emma.
"I would, if I wasn't afraid you'd be coming for an hour," Khoraja said.
Nigel finished getting his clothes on, strapped on his sword, and headed out. The sooner he got away from the two women, the sooner his cock would stop pressing painfully against his kilt. At least the thick leather did more to hide his condition than cloth would have.
Gragoth was sitting at a table, alone, waiting. He hadn't been served breakfast, but that didn't mean he hadn't been there a while given Abby's disinterest in serving him. He looked up and raised a fist when they came down the stairs, as if pantomiming raising a mug of ale or mead.
Abby was behind the bar. Nigel gave her a come hither motion before sitting down, and she hurried over.
It's not just that she doesn't like him. She's afraid of him. "What's for breakfast, Abby?"
"Bacon and eggs and a dry bikkie," said Abby.
"Sounds delicious," Nigel said, handing over a silver. "Breakfast for four. Bring me back the change." He handed her another silver. "And this one is yours to keep, as promised."
"I'll have mead with that," Gragoth said.
Abby shot him a dark look and then addressed Nigel. "Yes, sir."
Nigel wasn't sure Abby would bring the orc what he asked for. "Mead for Gragoth, cider for the rest of us."
"Yes, sir," Abby repeated, and hurried off.
"Deciding what I drink now, are you?" said Khoraja, who had been right behind him.
After last night's teasing, his tolerance for Khoraja was worn thin. "And paying for your meal," he said. "If you want to change it, you can run after Abby yourself."
"I like the way you take charge of your harem, Nightwolf," Gragoth said. "You'd have made a good orc."
Harem? He supposed the word almost fit, but Khoraja wasn't havi
ng sex with him. Emma came down the stairs to join them.
"Oh, he took charge last night," Khoraja said. "It was amazing."
"Khory," said Emma as she sat down. "I'm starting to think of you as a sister."
"As sister-wives should," Gragoth said.
"Really?" Khoraja looked startled.
"Really," said Emma. "And just as I would my sister, I will slap you hard if you keep acting like a bitch."
Khoraja blinked.
"Okay, no one's slapping anyone," Nigel said. "And we've got a difficult task ahead, so you need to get along."
"I wasn't threatening to slap anyone," said Khoraja. "That was her."
"Yeah, but she pegged it on the bitch part," Nigel said. "Cut it out."
To his surprise, Khoraja leaned back and smiled. "You really are taking charge. Good."
Nigel left that discussion while he was ahead. "Gragoth, I'm familiar with how the ladies fight. Khoraja throws mean area of effect fire spells. I get as many of the enemy on me as I can so she can do the damage, and Emma keeps me healed so I can take whatever they dish out. How do you see yourself fitting in?"
"'Area of effect?' You talk strange." Gragoth hefted the battle axe by his side. "Well, I get up close. And slay my enemies with this axe I found in the Burning Wastes. It's never failed me yet. I know how to use a bow if they run, but I'm not a coward to snipe from a distance, and I don't hide behind a shield. So I figure I'll be fighting right next to you, on your sword side when I can, and the witches can do whatever they need to do behind us."
"Sounds straightforward," Nigel said. And simplistic. He liked sniping from a distance and fighting sword and board made sense when Khoraja could cast fireballs while he protected her. But he didn't mistake the simpleness for stupidity. Gragoth had a style, but he'd thought about the fact that Nigel's sword side was more vulnerable than his shield side. Fighting that way they'd protect Emma and Khoraja better.
"Hopefully we can negotiate and there will be no need for bloodshed," said Emma.
"That worked so well last time," said Khoraja.
"Every situation is different," Emma retorted. "Orcs are smarter than goblins."
"That's for sure," Gragoth said. "Not a lot of humans know that. Nor elves." He added the last as if it was a politeness not to exclude Khoraja from the general discussion of non-Orcish ignorance.
Abby returned with food, and they all ate heartily.
The way to the hills the Broadnoses called home wasn't quite a forest, and it wasn't quite brush, but it certainly wasn't a path. The land was probably much the same as the land that was being farmed to the east of town, but presence of the Orcs to the northwest and the Burning Wastes to the southwest made it less inviting to clear. The difficulty of the terrain probably helped keep the peace between humans and orcs. They weaved through game trails in a single column until the land rose, with Nigel and Gragoth alternating who led. Gragoth was better at beating a path through the brush, but Nigel was picking up the skill.
The hills had less undergrowth and fewer trees. They didn't move much faster, however, because they were tired and more wary. Nigel thought about the original quest to go to the hills and kill orcs. As they wandered up and down through them, it appeared the challenge would have been in finding any orcs to kill.
The rolling hills made it hard to see far most of the time, and the sparse foliage provided little cover for either the group or an ambush. The easy path was to stay near the bottom, but to get a better view Nigel led the group up a hill that looked like it would have a good view of the surrounding countryside. The hill sloped to steeply to climb straight, but they would their way up series of switchbacks.
"It's too quiet," said Emma, breaking a long silence.
"Keep it that way," whispered Gragoth, annoyed.
Emma pursed her lips and was quiet, but she didn't look happy. She was used to a softer life. The travel was hardest on her, but it was getting on everyone's nerves.
After an hour, they reached the top of the hill. The view was disappointing. They had reached the peak, but much of the surrounding area was still in the shadow of other hills. To the west, on top of another tall hill, stood a few crude buildings, including one tall wooden structure that could only be a lookout tower.
"If we can see them, they can see us," Gragoth said.
"I thought we were supposed to be quiet," Emma whispered.
"From where we are now, we could see anyone or anything that could ambush us. We shouldn't stay. We know where to go, but they know we're here."
"I need to rest," said Emma.
Nigel was feeling tired himself, and Khoraja looked worse for wear. Only Gragoth seemed fresh. He looked annoyed, but then again, the tusks gave him a perpetual annoyed appearance. "We have to press on," the orc said. "Get to them fast, but don't travel too straight. Meet them on our terms, rather than theirs."
"Fine, but we need to rest, too," said Nigel. "We can go back down the hill by going north, getting us off the obvious path so we can take a breather."
"Humans are weak," Gragoth said.
Nigel shrugged. There was no point in debating with the orc. They moved down the hill as he suggested, and halfway down were out of sight of most vantage points including the lookout tower. They sat down to rest, eat a little hardtack, and drink water.
"You too, Gragoth," Nigel said. Emma needed more rest than anyone, so Nigel let Gragoth stand guard for a while, but once he felt somewhat refreshed, he stood up and focused on looking around and being wary.
"I don't need it."
"Yeah, but you can use it. Eat something. Drink. Don't be stubborn just to prove a point."
Gragoth gave Nigel the side-eye, but he ate and drank.
The whole stop took fifteen minutes, and then they continued down the hill. It looked like they could approach the orcs by going close between several hills, using the rolling terrain for cover until they could climb, so they set out that way. Nigel didn't know how many Broadnoses were left that could fight, but he hoped that the force at the village represented most of them. Even if ambushed, he thought his group could hold off the orcs who had fled. He was looking forward to the prospect. Anything was better than the anticipation. Emma was right. It was too quiet.
They weaved their way through, hugging whatever hill was blocking the line of sight from the tower even when it meant climbing up part way and then traveling along the slope. It was easier walking in the little valleys, and he noticed that Emma's spirits lifted a little every time they didn't have to travel through rough terrain. He wished it made sense to chatter, but he knew that voices would carry. He was surprised they hadn't run into a sentry yet. Even the goblins set sentries. He'd expected one almost as soon as they'd entered the hills the Broadnoses had staked out as their domain.
Maybe they're too depleted to set sentries.
As he had that thought, an arrow whizzed past his ear.
In the direction the arrow came from a dozen orcs lined a crest. Khoraja could fireball some, but the archers would be hell on her. They'd need to charge to provide a distraction. Nigel opened his mouth to give the order. Khoraja was already casting a spell.
An arrow thunked into his shield from the other direction. Another eight orcs stood on the ridge of the other hill. They couldn't charge both groups.
"Surrender now!" yelled one orc.
"Stop the spell," Gragoth said.
Khoraja bit the last syllable off. An arrow hit her shoulder, and another landed in the ground next to her. Gragoth had cost them time. Charging didn't give them much chance, but with a fireball to start the fight, it would have given them the best chance they had.
"We’d lose if we fight. I'm sure they'd just kill you all if I wasn't along, but orcs don't like to kill orcs unless the tribes are at war. It starts trouble," Gragoth said.
"Fuck," said Khoraja, grimacing.
"I need to heal her," Emma said.
"Don't use magic," said Nigel. "They'll shoot you." His mind was racing. T
he situation seemed hopeless. He pushed aside the little voice that said he was responsible for leading them all into a trap. Blame didn't help. He needed a plan.
"Fellow orcs," yelled Gragoth. "I am here to challenge for chief of the tribe."
"Good!" yelled out an orc.
"How are you doing, Khoraja?" asked Nigel. Emma was bandaging her.
"I can fight if we need to fight. I wish I got that fireball off."
Nigel shrugged. "We might all be dead if you had. But it was a good idea."
"Drop your weapons, humans!" yelled the orc who seemed to be in charge.
"Toss your sword away, Nightwolf," Gragoth said. "Your daggers too, witches. Otherwise they'll slaughter us."
"How about you?"
"An orc doesn't take away another orc's weapon unless they are going to kill them, and they want me to fight for them."
Nigel didn't like it, but he dropped his sword to the ground. Emma and Khoraja unbuckled their daggers and set them down. As if that were a signal, the orcs came streaming down from their ambuscade to surround them.
As Gragoth predicted, the orcs didn't seem to care that he had his axe. One orc brought rope and tied their hands behind their back, except for Gragoth. The rope felt like sisal -- it was strong enough to hold them, but it had itchy fibers that felt sharp against his wrists, and the knots they tied were the kind that tightened if he tried to struggle. If he broke free now, he'd just get clubbed down if not killed by the orcs, so he tried to relax in the bondage. There was no sense rubbing his wrists raw, if he got a better opportunity later. He wanted to see how the girls were doing, but the Broadnoses kept him in front.
"Our chief is a bull man named Mocono," said the orc leader, talking to Gragoth and ignoring the others.
"Mocono? I thought the chief was Deluca," Nigel said. Was all this for nothing?
"Deluca left after the fight. Left Mocono behind."
"Shameful," Gragoth said.
"He's big and strong. There'd be no shame in that. But he took orders from the human, and now he takes orders from the little gnome warlock."
Ascendant of Aldrya Page 11
