by Zack Finley
When I returned to the kitchen, Allo was strutting back and forth on the table in front of Argon. Her stubby tail was lashing to some beat only she could hear. Argon's lips were tight as she repressed her amusement.
I reached out tentatively with my mind to them both. I learned what had happened. Allo breached all of Argon's old barriers long ago, although Argon didn’t know it. Since I arrived with no mental barriers, Allo made herself at home in my mind the moment I showed up. When Argon and I melded, we pushed Allo’s world into chaos. Allo had still been working through what this meant when we excluded her completely with our new stronger barriers. She went nuts.
I honestly didn't know what to think of this development, but Argon pulled me with her to reach out mentally to Allo. The fla tasted of cinnamon and spice as Argon, and I gently stroked her. Allo stopped pacing and allowed Argon to pull her into her arms. I kept stroking, and Allo opened her being, reluctantly at first and then with more welcome.
I tasted her fierce protectiveness for my mate and her clear warning of vengeance should I ever betray Argon. The fla had a deep well of magic that felt completely different from the magics Argon and I shared. She also had new smaller wells of mind, force, and healing magic.
Allo found these new magics frightening. Argon soothed our friend and promised to help her understand her new powers. We concluded Allo must have been in our minds during the meld and caught some of our magical backlash, including gaining new magic. Argon had never heard of this happening before.
I wondered to Argon whether the strange magic Shala had seen in both of us came from Allo. Argon was intrigued by the possibility but decided we had more pressing issues before us.
Argon opened up a mental dialogue with Allo, using the fla's new mind magic. Allo erupted in a pent-up explosion of thoughts and observations. She was running around the room in excitement.
She was also adorable. Her affectionate nature was easy to respond to. Maybe a little mischievous at times but she loved Argon and surprisingly had grown fond of me.
In a three-way conversation, I offered to add emergency access for Allo to Argon's and my exclusive barrier and to let enough of our shared energy leak through to the threesome realm. This way Allo could monitor our well-being.
It took several minutes for Argon to modify our joint barrier to Allo's satisfaction. It was also clear unless there was significant danger involved we were not going to exclude Allo from our minds.
◆◆◆
Chapter 7
Renewed vows and loving exploration filled our night. Argon had not forgotten my embarrassing foray into voyeurism. She had me strip and lie down on our bed so she could study me. To help her with the examination she placed a paralysis spell to hold me in place. Unlike the spell Shala had employed, I could break this one easily. If I broke it, we both knew Argon would have won.
I found the setup to be erotic as hell, and Happy and the Boys lept out to wave in the air, not affected by the paralysis.
I learned ears are an extreme erogenous zone for Jaloans and I vowed to return the favor. For a time, Argon was satisfied with switching between my mouth and ears with her talented tongue and lips. I fully shared the effect of her efforts on my arousal and noticed she was panting, too.
So much for exploration, as she slipped out of her clothing and knelt beside me, trailing kisses from my lips to my chest. Her hand stroked the downy fur of my groin. Happy was dancing and the Boys felt like they were going to burst.
It was hard not to fight the restraints, I wanted to reach out and touch her breasts; pull her mouth hard against mine, but I played by the rules and let her drive the encounter.
As she sucked on my nipple, I tried to arch my back in response. I swore my chest had expanded. It felt both weird and wonderful. Maybe this was another Jaloan physical difference.
When she took my length into her mouth, I felt not only my response but also the echo of her pleasure, and it required every ounce of self-control I possessed not to come.
I sent a shaky mental picture of my head between her legs with a plaintive plea to reciprocate. I felt her surprise and interest sharpen at the idea. I got the impression this wasn't common Jaloan sexual play.
She released me from my paralysis, and I grabbed her in my arms and rolled her over, pinning her to the bed under my weight. My knee slid between her thighs, and I could feel the heat and moisture of her arousal.
I ravaged her mouth with mine, thrusting with my tongue while moving rhythmically against her. After giving her lovely breasts a quick suckle, I trailed kisses down her abdomen and along the inside of her thighs.
Her tiny slit was no longer bright red, but it was pulsing with moisture, and I wanted to taste her. As I slid my tongue into her, she bucked, sending a shower of raw sexual emotion through me as she began an endless orgasm.
Between her pleasure, sexual energy, scent, and taste, I could wait no more. I covered her and buried my length deeply within her. She bucked again, but I found my rhythm and with our souls entwined, we reached for completion together.
I kissed her possessively, plundering her mouth with my own. I withdrew reluctantly before framing her face in my hands. "I love you," I murmured mind-to-mind. Argon wrapped her arms and legs around me, pinning us at the hips, echoing my love.
I knew we had to leave to begin our adventure tomorrow, but the night was still young.
◆◆◆
Chapter 8
My mate and I resolved much yesterday. Part of me wanted to spend the next month in non-stop sexual play and exploration. That Argon shared this desire, made choosing to do the right thing even harder.
While there was definitely a sexual element to our relationship, it was so much more. We shared an overwhelming sense of duty, and neither of us would back down from defending the innocent. I realized since we had to go back on duty, being able to share that with my mate made it so much easier.
Getting a shove out the door from Shala was a definite motivator to get started on our quest. I didn't know what made the timing suddenly so critical, but I sensed a different quality to Shala’s concerns.
I learned from Argon that Shala spent a tremendous amount of her magical reserves to expand our magical limits. Argon was very worried about what this meant, especially coming on the heels of the high magical cost required to bring me to Jaloa. Argon suspected Shala wouldn't have spent so much of her magic on us if we didn't have a critical role to play in the near term. The prudent thing for Shala to do would be to let us develop our new magic more naturally.
We'd examined our magic power centers soon after waking up. Our magical containers were looking much fuller, but only my earth and fire had filled completely. Based on the fill rate, the rest of the containers should fill sometime today barring an unusually large magical expenditure.
I was feeling better about the amount of magic in my storage. While I only generated a small amount at a time, I seemed to be reasonably efficient with what I used. I would have to see how my magic levels responded during an extended series of combat actions before I could judge.
The rest of the morning involved showers and packing. Argon had packed two travel bags, which leaned against the wall, waiting. We still hadn't decided where we were going first.
"Do we have anything on the different cities Shala gave us?" I asked, finishing my chee. Allo kept bumping first against my legs then Argon's. She was not happy we might be leaving her behind overnight but had accepted the necessity.
"We can 'port into all of them over the next few days to check them out, or we can pick the most likely one and start our work there," Argon offered. "I have no personal knowledge about any of them, but I have heard good things about the king of Klee. If these cities are all physically similar, then politics may be the most important consideration."
I was in a hurry to get started, but I also knew the value of reconnaissance. "Why don't we start in Klee, and while there see if we can learn anything about the other locations. Dependi
ng on what we find, we will stay or move on," I offered, and Argon nodded in agreement.
"What do Jaloans use for money and how will we buy property?" I asked, annoyed I failed to ask this before.
"Money will not be enough to obtain a property the size we need. The crown in each kingdom controls all large properties and doles them out for favors or as rewards. That is why we need to find a compatible noble. We could take over some wilderness area without involving any of the local governments, but that won't match Shala's requirements. It will also make recruiting very difficult," Argon said as she opened the pouch tucked into her waist.
She placed a handful of coins on the table. While I recognized the gold coins, I wasn't sure about the other metals. A small black disk was the lowest denomination, and a large silvery one was the highest.
Argon reminded me until I became more versed in the currency, I could always consult with her mentally. “These coins are used across Jaloa to purchase common goods. There are rules about how much of each metal they contain. Each kingdom is authorized to issue them although their value fluctuates with the price of the materials they contain. Several black coins are typically sufficient to purchase food items, no matter what kingdom you are in.”
She placed small mini-bars of metal and a variety of gems on the table. Green gems were the highest value, followed by red, blue and then white. Gem value also depended on the size and quality. We needed certification from a mutually agreed upon appraiser for any purchase anchored by gems. The metal mini-bars were stamped and enclosed in a light force field. "As long as the field is untouched, these bars can be used to purchase large volumes of things or property. They are heavy and bulky, so they are seldom used for day-to-day transactions," she added, sweeping the coins, bars, and gems back into her pouch.
"Here is a money pouch I made up for you, in case we get separated," Argon said, handing it to me. I could feel the force magic enclosing it. "It is enchanted to return to the owner, to negate the weight of the contents and to resist all attempts to separate it from you. A thief will find it is hard to grab and if he is successful, it will weigh a ton and will resist all efforts to open it. It was expensive but good insurance," she noted. "I imprinted it on both of us, but it is now ensorcelled to return to you."
Our bags had emergency provisions, spare clothes, a combination sleeping bag and tent, spare crossbow bolts; foul weather gear, and a stack of books. They weighed only ounces due to the force magic spells.
I asked why we should pack the sleeping bags and books when we could just teleport back and forth to the apartment. Argon explained while she expected to do just that, being prepared for a rough overnight stay was just good planning.
A swift cuddle with Allo and we were on our way.
Argon teleported us to Klee. With no experience with second-hand teleports, I monitored the spell and was confident I could get us back and forth if necessary.
We landed in an empty temple courtyard. The temple belonged to Avia, a local deity. I caught a whiff of magic infused in the walls, floors, and ceiling. It was a subtle form of mind magic. Argon thought the ward would gently discourage those aligned with a conflicting god from staying. Avia must consider Shala, a compatible god.
The bustling streets of Klee gnawed at my mental barriers, and I realized I wasn't prepared to be around so many people. Argon came to my rescue tweaking my shields, to allow in some of the mental noise from a small radius around me while stopping anything farther away from intruding. She showed me how to increase the range or shut it down tight. I left the setting alone, fascinated by the insights I was learning from those around me. I dubbed it my mind-reading app.
Many people were open books, worrying about money, whether their mate was having an affair, distressed because they had forgotten to pick up a package…
It would have sounded the same in any town in America.
After a few blocks, I found it easier to identify the source of each thought stream. And then, I noticed several had no thought stream. "Mages?" I asked Argon.
"Not necessarily, some may just have mind shield talismans protecting them," she replied. "Though, several are mages." She tagged the nearby mages to show me.
I studied them covertly. At first, they appeared no different from the other Jaloans on the street. Something gave them away, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
I was not just looking at the mages. Jaloans came in a lot more variety of sizes, shapes, colors, and styles than I realized. They dressed in everything from armor to clothing that resembled filmy nightwear. Vibrant colors were very popular and vied with black for the most popular choices. Skin colors varied from dark purple to blond mahogany. While mages also came in a variety of skin and fur colors, the ones we spotted dressed more conservatively than the rest of the crowds around us.
No one on the street acted interested in us. I expanded my monitoring zone slightly to confirm and found I could now handle the increased mental load. I touched Argon and noted she was still monitoring a broader area and expanded my zone to match.
We ducked into an inn and arranged for a private room. I sifted through the inn's staff, locating a few larcenous types but no one was interested in two unattached mages. The other patrons remained focused on their own affairs, and we slipped into our room unobserved.
The room had a bare wooden floor with a threadbare area rug that was probably as old as I was. A thin blanket covered the single bed. The rest of the furniture included a small scuffed wooden table and two mismatched wooden chairs. Near the door, there was a washstand. It had a water pitcher on the top shelf of a cabinet with what I assumed was a chamber pot tucked on a shelf underneath.
Cleanliness was not a priority at this inn. Argon started an unusual series of wards that herded the bed bugs and other crawlies into a small area and vacuumed them away using air magic. "I'll set a ward to keep any more from creeping into our room," Argon offered. "We can set the other wards within that boundary."
"I don't want just to keep visitors out," I said. "If they get in, I want to capture and question them. While I want us protected, I also want to know if someone is interested in us."
I set the room wards with Argon looking on. Our strong room ward protected against all forms of magic as well as physical hazards such as fires, knives and other projectiles. Our ward left the door vulnerable as bait for the trapping spell. Setting up the trap spell required a unique twist. Argon used her mace to reinforce the wall.
She explained the walls couldn’t hold enough magic to power the trap unless we remained near the room. The mace could hold a stronger magic charge than the room walls. Argon keyed the trap to our identities, pushing anyone else into the wall and knocking them unconscious.
“Even with the mace booster, I’m not sure how long the trap will hold someone as I’ve never tried this before,” said Argon, finishing the spell. “If no one springs it, the trap will be viable for many days. If we top off the spells whenever we are near, it should do just fine.”
"Remind me again, why we shouldn't teleport back to spend the night in our own bed?" I asked, looking around at the depressing room.
"We are only staying long enough right now to set the trap and ensure our stuff is safe," Argon said before taking pity on me and adding. "We aren't spending the night."
"Have you thought of a specific strategy for getting started," I asked, feeling strangely reticent after my eagerness to get moving. What I knew about this world would barely fill a thimble. In my world, we would visit a real estate office to locate an available property. Jaloa didn't have real estate agents.
"Let's start with the mage guild," Argon said. "We are obviously mages, and that provides us with immediate local status. I suspect they will be quite interested in recruiting us, so they should be cooperative. They may even provide leads on available properties or contacts."
The mage guild was a better option than stopping someone randomly on the street or going directly to the king's residence. We suspected th
e king had plenty of petty bureaucrats whose main job was to keep people from bothering him.
We needed intel in a strange city, and we had a deadline.
The guild was only a few blocks from the inn. My mind-reading app caught a few twinges of interest about us in the inn's great room, but nothing rose to problem status.
The Klee Mage Guild perched on a slight hill away from the harbor. Its main gate broke up a 10-feet-high wall around the enclosure. An unusual spell obscured everything within the wall. Not quite mind magic, but it did have significant air and water components.
Through our link, I asked Argon to use her stronger air and water skills to analyze the spell. Something like that might come in handy later.
The guild administration offices were on the first floor, and we headed there.
"We are new in town and are looking for a place to set up our household," Argon informed the clerk. "Do you have any suggestions about who to contact?"
The clerk was eager to help, wanting to set us up with membership in the guild as a first step.
"We came to Klee first because of its positive reputation for fair dealing," Argon said. "But we are reluctant to make any long-term commitments until we confirm there is a suitable property in the region. If there are officers in the guild who can provide some insight into local conditions, we will welcome an introduction." The clerk gave off no mental energy, likely aided by his personal shield and the strong magical talisman around his neck.
The clerk might be unreadable without mental probing, but he was also eager to help. He asked us to wait for a moment while he consulted with the lead mage.
Minutes later, he returned with a member of the guild's executive committee.
"I am Alanna," the guild member said nodding to us. Argon handled the introductions, and I could sense a frisson of excitement through our link. Alanna was tall and very thin. Her skin tone was tawny brown. Her beady eyes belied any welcome. Her lips were thin and painted purple. Her grey head fur was curled in what Argon assured me was the latest fashion. Alanna wore a silky grey gown with subtle purple highlights. Shiny purple paint on her extended fingernails and toenails matched her lip gloss and her gown's highlights.
