Eyes wide, she trembled in his arms, “He was my Poppa. Even with everything he did, I should have tried to save him.”
“No, Fluff,” Karen joined the conversation as she hugged Fluff from behind. “He deserved to be kicked, repeatedly, in the head. I wish I had known you before so I could have helped you then. I’m sad that I didn’t and couldn’t, but now I can support you, if you will let me.”
Sniffling, Fluff ducked her head to Alburet’s chest. “I don’t deserve it,” her words were a whisper as her trembling increased. “I’m not worth your attention, care or love.”
Alburet reached out with his Succubus Bloodline Ability, squashing the negative emotions ruthlessly and encouraging the bits of hope and love. “Fluff, do you trust us?”
She gave a jerky nod, “Yes.”
He took his hand from her ears, putting a finger under her chin to tilt her head back. When their eyes met, Alburet let all the love he felt for her be seen. When he was sure she had seen it, he moved his head forward. His lips gently brushed hers, not demanding, but hesitantly, as if afraid of breaking something fragile.
Her breathing stopped as his lips touched hers. After a second of feeling his gentleness, her heart pounded once, her fear falling away from her. She met his kiss, just as hesitantly and with just as much tenderness. Her arms wrapped around him after a moment, as the kiss lingered.
“Oh. I wanted to kiss her,” Karen murmured as she gently stroked Fluff’s belly.
The kiss broke a moment later, Fluff pulling back just enough to look into Alburet’s eyes. “You are very much worth our love, care and attention. If anything, I might not be worth yours—” Alburet told her, cutting the sentence off as he realized where the thought was going.
“Aye, of course she be worthy,” Stacia said as she came back into the tent with their food. “Fluff, Karen wants to show ya her love as well.”
Alburet loosened his grip, allowing Fluff to turn to Karen. He didn’t release her though, keeping his arms around her. As Fluff turned to Karen, her breathing was a little uneven from the emotions flooding through her. Both Alburet and Stacia were reinforcing the love she felt.
“You are truly a beautiful woman, Fluff, inside and out,” Karen told her before they kissed, a little more intensely than Fluff had with Alburet.
Alburet’s jaw sagged a little at the intensity of Karen and Fluff’s kiss. He hadn’t really realized just how far they’d gotten in their own relationship. Karen eventually broke the kiss, turning Fluff’s head just a bit which lined Fluff’s mouth up for Stacia to claim a kiss of her own. Alburet hadn’t seen Stacia come over, and he certainly wasn’t prepared for the passionate kiss the two women were sharing scant inches from him.
Gulping, Alburet eased himself away from Fluff as his body reacted to the scene before him. As he considered disengaging entirely, the kiss ended and Stacia’s eyes found his. “Husband, this be what our family be. Do nay pull away from her after showin’ her ya love. She understands tha’ the male body reacts for many reasons. She will nay hold it against ya, but she needs to know tha’ ya are nay ashamed of ya body next to hers.”
Nodding, he snuggled back into Fluff, letting his body meld to hers. “I’m sorry, Fluff. I’m just afraid of hurting you.”
“I know,” she told him, her breath a little ragged. “It feels good to be held by you and Karen. Thank you.”
“Now tha’ we all be awake, some of us more than others,” Stacia smirked at Alburet, “we should eat and get ready for the day, aye?”
Karen and Alburet snuggled with Fluff for another minute, reluctant to let her go. As they ate, Alburet dithered over whether to bring up something he’d noticed during Fluff’s memory last night. Finally, he spoke up, “Fluff, when you fight, do you feel different?”
Her breakfast sandwich halfway to her mouth, Fluff paused, her eyes staring off into the distance. “Yes. I feel a dark bubbling current of rage. I’d thought it was part of the class, but I can recall that same feeling now, when I shoved Poppa away.”
Karen chewed slowly for a moment, “Split?”
“Her soul has separated, and her anger resides in a reservoir waiting for her need,” Stacia added calmly. “Many of her class are the same as she. It be perfectly normal.”
“It isn’t normal for the world we came from,” Alburet told Stacia. He turned to Fluff again, “Have you felt that anger at any other point?”
“No,” Fluff seemed worried.
“It might have been a momentary thing, then,” Karen said, trying to reassure Fluff. “You control that anger, right?”
“Yes. I only feel it when I trigger Rage,” Fluff replied.
“Maybe that’s just the way the interface helps you understand how angry you should be then?” Alburet commented, seeing Karen’s idea.
“You think so?” Fluff asked, obviously wanting to grab onto that idea.
Stacia nibbled her food as she watched them, “There be nothin’ wrong with knowin’ the depth of anger in one’s soul. Master knows how deep tha’ pit goes.”
Food halfway to his mouth, Alburet paused, “Yes. Yes, I know the depth of that pit. That is something I can’t talk about though. Not yet.” His eyes flickered to Fluff, “I believe you are fine, Fluff. Stacia says there’s one more memory that will help clear up some of the issues. Maybe we should do that tonight, it could help your perspective more.”
Fluff looked to Stacia, who nodded. “If Stacia thinks it’s a good idea.”
“Aye, it will help quell some of ya turmoil from last night.”
“That is a good idea then,” Karen added as she placed a hand on Fluff’s knee. “We will be with you again, and everything will be okay.”
Fluff nodded, turning her attention to eating with the others following suit. They finished breakfast and got dressed in silence. Alburet Copied Stacia just before leaving the tent, then triggered the carving on the tent pole that returned it to stone, which he dropped into his bag. Looking around, he saw that the raid was almost ready to move out for the day.
He summoned Bob and Tiny in quick succession. “Guys, ready for another day of death defying adventure?”
“I live to protect the master,” Tiny replied in his new deeper rumble.
“I do so love burning things,” Bob added with a toothy grin. “If we keep at this I’ll get even more powerful.”
“True, but I think that Kitten is the next one up for that,” Alburet reminded the Imp.
“Ooh, I want to see that,” Bob chuckled as he bounced from foot to foot.
“Even married, you still want to ogle another man’s Succubus?” Alburet sighed.
“Window shopping is fine,” Bob huffed slightly. “My wives don’t mind if I look, as long as I don’t enter the store without them, as it were.”
Facepalming, Alburet shook his head, “Wow, really Bob? Way to take a metaphor and drag it into the gutter as far as possible.”
“It’s not like he’s going to change,” Gerald added as he came over to Alburet and his minions.
“See? Gerald gets it,” Bob cackled. “Well, actually, I doubt he has gotten it yet,” he waggled his eyebrows suggestively at Gerald.
“Bob, do nay taunt our tank,” Stacia mildly rebuffed the Imp as she joined the growing conversation.
“Aw, but it’s so fun and easy. Two of my favorite things,” Bob pouted before he shrugged. “Fine.”
“Can I just squish him once, Al, please?” Gerald asked, his face tight still at Bob’s words.
“I would prefer you didn’t, but if he deliberately pokes at your love life again, sure. Got that, Bob?” Alburet glared at the Imp.
Bob ducked his head, “Fine, fine, I get it.”
“Sorry, Gerald. He is what he is. He doesn’t change, as you noted,” Alburet apologized for the Imp.
Gerald snorted, “Yeah, but if he does that again, you just gave me carte blanche to reprimand him.”
“True enough,” Alburet agreed. Looking around he found Captain Roberto
heading towards them. “Captain, what is the plan today?”
“We haven’t seen any Infernals so far, so we expect those, large worms and Forgotten Undead. This is about as far as most groups get into the Dead Lands, though, so going forward we can only guess.”
“Are we setting up the same way we did yesterday?” Karen asked as she checked her blades.
“At the moment. Banthor sent five men out to crest the next dune, just to get a look. We’ll be heading out in about ten minutes.” Roberto told them as he glanced over at the Dwarf mercenary. “He’s been good to work with. I was worried initially, but he is solid, unlike most mercs I’ve known.”
“Glad to hear our two protecting groups can coexist,” Alburet chuckled. “I shudder to think of how this might have gone otherwise.”
Rolling his eyes, Roberto nodded, “Bad. Very bad, in fact. A giant cluster at the worst. It is so nice to know that my counterpart is competent.”
“Aye, tha’ be me feelin’ on it as well,” Banthor added as he joined the conversation. “Me men saw some Imps off in the distance, but they be off a ways yet. We be good to go for now, iffin ye be.”
“Well then, let’s get this show on the road,” Alburet told them.
The two Captains moved off to do their final checks before the raid broke camp. Stacia spoke softly to Alburet, intended for him alone, “Husband, ya did well with helpin’ me with Fluff’s emotions. Thank ya.”
Catching Stacia’s meaning, Alburet kissed her cheek. “She’s my friend as well, and a part of our growing family. I don’t like seeing her in distress.”
“Okay, on ten we are pulling the Campstones,” Roberto’s voice rang out, cutting off further conversation.
“Here we go,” Karen said, readying her blades as she faded from view.
Fluff flexed her claws, a little uncertain but seemingly okay at the moment. “I’m not going to trigger Rage, to see how different it feels today.”
“We’ll be ready to assist,” Alburet assured her.
The Campstones were pulled up, starting the timer until the mobs would appear. The sand erupted right on cue as ten Sand Worms erupted from the ground. Two groups of Alpha Company got swallowed, along with a group of crafters. The other seven ended up with Guards and Mercs.
Fifty people from the total raid were currently inside the beasts. The other hundred turned on the attackers. Banthor and Roberto were calling out targets on either side of the raid group, so everyone could focus fire on the targets they called out.
The first two worms went down, sending some people sprawling as they dove out of the way of the corpses. Two more worms were dispatched before two of the remaining six burrowed again. The two groups of Alpha Company had died inside the beasts, but the other four expelled their victims after taking enough internal damage to release them.
As those four burrowed, the other two came back up. The raid turned their attention on those two a moment before the other four also reemerged from the sand. Alburet followed Gerald and Tiny to the closest target, with Karen, Stacia, Fluff, Marysue and Bob right behind him. The group attacked the worm with everything they had, Fluff even triggering her Rage.
Alburet came to realize one very important fact as he laid into the worm with abandon. A melee attacker would never be able to be a raid leader, who called out tactics and directed others as needed. His vision was full of the rough skin of the worm and he didn’t have any overview of the situation. He backed up, and kept backing up until he could look around and see more of the battlefield.
He became aware that Roberto and Banthor were also standing back, to direct their men as needed. He silently called Fire Blasts to his hand, lobbing them at the nearest target as he took in the situation. The two worms the raid had jumped on fell over and Roberto called out the next two targets.
Alburet nodded to himself as he began to understand what might be needed for the attack on the Keep. He wouldn’t be able to be in the thick of things, he would need to stand back to direct his guild. Luckily for him, his ability to cast spells without words would allow him some leeway, as he would still be able to add in his damage while also directing people.
The last two worms emerged for the third and final time, falling to the focused damage the entire raid was able to bring to bear. He rejoined his group as the last worm fell to the sands. “The Keep is going to be interesting,” he started before he filled them in on his observations.
“It makes sense,” Gerald mused. “There aren’t any add-ons to help with this game. Nothing to count down for us, or point out the correct way to run. It’s all firmly on our shoulders. That makes the more simplistic design of some of the bosses more understandable.”
“Right?” Karen agreed. “Even the fights we’ve done before, Bob or Marysue had to call out to tell us when an effect was about to go off.”
“Yeah. I’ll be filling that role when we get to the Keep,” Alburet added.
“If you can direct us correctly, it should help mitigate quite a few problems,” Gerald replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Hey, at least you can still add in some damage, with that ability to cast spells without words.”
“That was my thought,” Alburet nodded. “Ah, looks like the dead have all been raised. We only lost the two guild groups. Luckily neither one had any of our natives.”
“Aye, I had been worried for Deirdre for a moment,” Stacia added. “But she was nay swallowed.”
“Did the jewelry you got this time include an agility item and two strength pieces?” Gerald asked Alburet as they formed up to begin the day’s march.
Digging into his bag for a moment Alburet handed all the loot to Gerald. “Looks like. Here ya go.”
“Be right back,” Gerald said, hurrying away with the loot.
“Think that concludes the first round of items?” Fluff asked.
“It does,” Marysue replied. “That means we’re starting from the top again.”
Everyone was pleased at the prospect. Stacia spoke up after a long moment, “Fluff, did ya Rage seem okay?”
Chewing her bottom lip for a second, Fluff nodded. “It felt normal, just like it always does. I wasn’t compelled to rage for the first worm. I was a little worried about that. Now that I can remember it, though, it’s the same way I felt that day,” she trailed off pensively.
Karen hugged her from the side, “So, not a split personality. Even if you were though, I’d still love you just as much.”
“Thanks, Karen,” Fluff kissed her cheek, not blushing at all.
Stacia and Alburet shared a knowing smile as they watched their friends. “You just kissed Karen…” Marysue stumbled over the words, her shock evident.
Fluff blushed slightly at Marysue’s comment. Karen jumped to her defense, “Why not? She does care for me, after all. Just as I care for her.”
“It’s just… Fluff, you’re normally so shy,” Marysue replied. “I mean, you’ve been blushing less and coming out of your shell more, but I didn’t expect kisses.”
“Stacia has helped me a lot,” Fluff told Marysue. “I think I can be okay with the idea of others knowing that I care for her.”
“Wow,” Marysue looked at Stacia with newfound respect. “You can help, like that?”
“Aye, any Succubus can,” Stacia told her quietly, so as to not let others hear the reply.
“Huh, interesting. I wonder if this is one of the things dad was so intrigued by?” Marysue mumbled. She looked up, spotting Gerald approaching. “Can we talk about it more later? I really would like to know more about what you can do.”
“Aye, tonight be fine. Would ya like to join us for dinner in our tent?”
“Sure,” Marysue said just as Gerald got back to them. “Gerald, we’ll have dinner with them in their tent tonight.”
Puzzled, Gerald nodded, “Okay. Anything I should know about?”
“We be talkin’ about it tonight, away from other ears,” Stacia’s head tilted slightly to the surrounding people.
“Okay…” Gerald seemed intrigued and even more puzzled. “I’ll make sure we’re there, then.”
Chapter Twenty
When the raid came to a halt that evening, the seemingly customary level gain were only a minor topic of conversation. As Campstones were set and tents erected people kept looking to the hills that were visible on the eastern horizon.
Ioaniss looked at the horizon, his excitement palpable. “That should be where Gwain’s Keep is. The texts say it sat inside a bowllike valley, surrounded by hills on all sides. The Keep itself rested on a central mesa, and at the base sat the small town that grew up around the keep.”
Playing For Keeps (Alpha World Book 4) Page 20
