Legacies of Blood

The room exploded into a cacophony of cross-talk as advisers to the landgraf struggled to be heard. Not a word of it registered with Elaina as she sank to her knees. She kept trying to go over the reality of what had been said in her mind. Why would Royce leave, and why would she do it without her? It didn’t make any sense to the swordmage who’d grown so fond of the vishanti.

She was vaguely aware of the landgraf’s voice above the others as she demanded order, but beyond that, Elaina was lost in her own head. Eventually, the noise subsided, and she felt a pressure on her shoulder. Elaina looked up into the face of Ryan Resius, whose face looked almost completely placid save for the conflict glistening in his eyes.

“Come to say you told me so?” Elaina grumbled, her voice cracking slightly.

“Nah, mate. Not this time, anyway,” Resius answered before sitting down beside her. He had repeatedly warned her not to get involved with Royce, but she had insisted he mind his own business and stay out of hers. Had he been right all along?

“Why would she leave without me?” Elaina asked quietly. The occultist merely shook his head and shrugged.

“If I could make sense of that woman, I wouldn’t have kept it to my bloody self,” he responded with a hint of humor in his voice. “All I know is, at the end of the day, Royce is looking out for Royce. I hope you’re smarter than me and don’t have to be taught the lesson more than once.”

“Woodlock,” Elsebeth said as she approached the two sitting on the floor. Elaina looked up to see that most of those in the room earlier were gone now. “Tell me you had nothing to do with this.”

“I had no idea,” Elaina responded, looking the landgraf in the eyes. Elsebeth nodded, accepting her answer readily.

“Resius,” she said, turning her attention to the occultist. “Can you track her?”

The occultist looked up at her and let out a long, exasperated sigh. “I’ll try, but I’ve got to be honest, it’s unlikely. I’ve tried tracking her down before and had no bloody luck. She’s too smart for it.”

“You’re saying she’s completely warded against divinations?” Elsebeth pressed.

“I’m saying I’ve never been able to pierce her warding,” Resius clarified. “That doesn’t mean she’s impenetrable, but it counts for something.”

“I believe I can be of assistance.” It was a familiar voice to Elaina, but one she hadn’t heard in a while. Blackbarn, the wizard, had recently taken command of the Orbonne Company and was working closely with the landgraf, but she hadn’t noticed him in the room earlier. Without his characteristic hat and scarf, Blackbarn had a way of looking unremarkable. She could have seen him on the street and walked right past him without knowing it. He had a commonly short hairstyle with a common brown color, peppered with a little bit of gray despite not being that old. The stubble on his face, peppered similarly with gray, was as present as ever while seeming never to grow beyond that state.

“Blackbarn,” Elaina greeted him with a smile. “I was wondering where you’d gone off to.”

“Here and there,” the wizard answered with a slight smile in return.

Elsebeth turned to face the wizard, taking a deep breath. “You think you can track her?”

“I can certainly try,” Blackbarn agreed. “With Resius’s help, of course. He is more familiar with her than I am.”

“And if you can’t?” Elaina wondered, chewing her lip. “What do we do?”

Blackbarn leaned on his large, gnarled staff thoughtfully. “Well, honestly, I doubt she’s truly left no trace of her passing. Even if I can’t divine her exact location, I should be able to provide us with an area to search. I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve that I’m sure she’s failed to account for.”

“This I’d love to see,” the occultist remarked wryly as he got to his feet.

“How long do you need?” Elsebeth asked, remaining focused on the objective.

Blackbarn scratched the stubble on his chin as he thought it over. “An hour.”

“Don’t let me keep you, then,” the landgraf replied. “Anything you need is at your disposal. Speak with Mr. Arkere for materials.”

“Yes, my lady,” Blackbarn answered respectfully as he came off his staff and led the way out of the room with the occultist in tow.

The landgraf motioned toward Kitch, who had been occupied escorting non-essential individuals from the room. The kyrsahn broke off from the other soldiers and approached with haste. “Madame?”

“Ready the horses,” Elsebeth said quietly. “I want you to take a squad and ride out the moment we know where she is.”

Elaina pushed herself to her feet and brushed herself off. “What about me?”

Kitch and Elsebeth looked at Elaina as if surprised that she was still standing there. Neither of them had an answer ready for her, and both looked to each other for a place to start. Elaina frowned. “You don’t want me involved?”

“I can’t ask it of you,” Elsebeth responded delicately. “Your relationship with her makes things difficult. She could seek to exploit that.”

“Assuming that she has reason to,” Elaina argued as politely as she could. “We don’t know enough to come to any conclusions. She might not even have the artifacts. She could be chasing the person who took them and hasn’t had a chance to send word.”

The two made no effort to conceal their skepticism. Elaina pressed her hands together, pleading. “I’m not saying she’s innocent. I’m just saying we don’t know that she’s guilty, and until we do, we shouldn’t go overboard.”

Elsebeth glanced at Kitch, who shook her head slightly. “I don’t think it is a good idea, Madame.”

The landgraf turned away and began to pace slightly, considering what Elaina had said. The swordmage stepped forward, offering another aspect to her argument. “We nearly jumped to conclusions earlier, but you showed restraint. Because of that, you may have avoided what could have been a costly mistake with Lady Dashiell.”

Elsebeth nodded slowly as her pacing slowed to a stop. She remained there in silent thought for a moment longer before turning to face Elaina. “I appreciate your point, and I know you want to help. But we can’t put you out there and risk her manipulating you somehow. However, I’ll order her to be brought in alive and unharmed.”

Though Elaina appreciated the concession from the landgraf, her anger, and frustration at being effectively benched nearly eclipsed it. Without another word, the redhead turned and stormed out of the great hall. She didn’t have a destination in mind; walking off her anger was the entire point. She found herself in the bailey, heading in the general direction of where Royce’s tent had been before veering off toward her solitary tent on the other side of the grounds.

The tent looked a little worse for wear, but it wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle if she had to. Stepping inside for the first time in a while, Elaina gathered what remained of her things and took a brief inventory of what hadn’t vanished with the vishanti witch. There wasn’t much. A bedroll, a spare pack, and some clothing she hadn’t seen necessary to clutter Royce’s tent with were pretty much all that remained. She sat heavily on the bedroll and resisted the urge to break into tears. Nothing was known yet, but she couldn’t help the sinking feeling she had as the pit in her stomach grew.

“Elaina?” Azade called gently from outside the tent flap. “Are you in there?”

The redhead wiped her eyes despite no tears being shed. “Yeah, come in.”

Azade pushed the flap to one side and picked her way in cautiously. There was no indication that the phyllomage was still angry with her. She sat on the ground across from Elaina and watched her quietly, waiting until she was ready to speak.

“I like your dress,” Elaina remarked when she finally broke the silence between them. “Did you make it?”

“I did.” Azade smiled, briefly looking down at the dress with a satisfied look. “I could make you one if you’d like.”

“I’d probably just fucking lose it,” the swordmage muttered bitterly. “Like everything else.”

Azade brushed a strand of raven-black hair from her face as she pursed her lips and looked away. “I take it things did not go well between you and your landgraf?”

“Which time?” Elaina scoffed. “Because last night was wonderful, but today is a fucking disaster. They’re making me sit out the search for Royce once they’ve divined her location.”

Elaina could tell Azade was feeling a little conflicted about the situation by her brow furrowing as she shifted her weight uncertainly. “What do you mean? How can they make you?”

“I asked,” the redhead explained. “They said no.”

“So?” Azade chuckled a little bit. “I think maybe you’re taking your duty to her a little too seriously. Are you even obligated to do what she says at this point?”

Taking a deep breath, Elaina considered what the phyllomage was saying. Their agreement had run its course. She’d fulfilled her end of the contract and was merely awaiting her payment, which had been absconded with. Nothing was binding the swordmage to the grounds of Willowridge or preventing her from giving chase. That was, of course, save for the fact she didn’t know where to begin her search.

“I guess not,” Elaina answered. “But I don’t have the resources to beat them to her either. Assuming, of course, that I even knew where to look.”

“Is there somewhere that meant something to the two of you?” Azade asked. “Maybe she would have gone there.”

“No,” Elaina muttered, shaking her head. “I met her here.”

“Ugh!” Azade groaned, throwing her hands up dramatically. “Really, Elaina!?”

“What?” The swordmage frowned sheepishly. “Don’t give me a hard time about it, alright?”

“Her and the landgraf?” The phyllomage continued. “Are you really that insatiable?”

Elaina pointed an accusing finger at Azade. “You’re one to talk! How many dicks are you taking in that demonic harem you and Anisha are so hush-hush about, huh? Hell, you two were quick to jump on me after just seeing the two of you naked!”

“Well,” Azade flicked her black hair over one shoulder. “That’s different.”

“How?” Elaina scoffed. “How is that any different?”

Azade scowled at the swordmage. “I thought what we had was special, that something had clicked. Like it was fate.”

Elaina backed down a little, taking a deep breath to steady herself. “It was special. It was the first time I felt not just accepted but truly wanted by someone who didn’t need some sort of disclaimer or preamble before my pants came off. It felt good to be part of that, even if it was just for a little while. But we went our separate ways, and I didn’t expect I would be seeing you anytime soon. I originally planned to go south until my sister reached out about Willowridge.”

Azade stared at the swordmage for a while before heaving a sigh of surrender. “I don’t want to fight with you. I was hurt at first, but I don’t think it had all that much to do with who you’re sharing your bed with. I shouldn’t be so judgmental. I guess it just caught me off-guard.”

The swordmage regarded Azade quietly as she spoke, taking in the details of her face, how she had done her hair, and the swell of her pale, ample breasts barely contained by the magically crafted dress of plant life she’d made herself. She wondered briefly if it wasn’t too late to go back with her and put all of the business with Willowridge behind her. It was a fleeting thought but a sweet one all the same.

“I’m sorry,” Elaina said quietly. “I didn’t mean to snap at you. There’s just a lot going through my head right now.”

The phyllomage nodded and extended a hand to place on Elaina’s. She took it gratefully and offered her a gentle squeeze. “How did you find me, anyway?”

“I asked around,” Azade answered. “You’ve got quite the reputation around here, I’ve discovered.”

Elaina shuddered at the thought of what they might be saying about her in a few days’ time. There was no way that everyone was going to believe she hadn’t been involved in whatever Royce had gotten herself into. They hadn’t flaunted their relationship, but they hadn’t taken any steps to keep it secret either. There had been no need.

“We’ll see how long that lasts,” Elaina grumbled doubtfully.

Azade squeezed her hand and pulled gently. “Look, what if you found out where they’re going to look, and I could get you passage to wherever that is in an instant?”

The redhead quirked a curious brow at the suggestion. “How would you do that?”

“Myanna can forestwalk you there,” Azade suggested. “If she’s anywhere in the area, Myanna will be able to get you there without a problem. She spent years down here and knows her way around.”

“Assuming she isn’t already in Tenebre Dontae by now,” Elaina mused. But she remembered Royce talking about being unable to make the trip directly back home with realmshifting. “Would she do that for me?”

Azade leaned forward slowly, her heavy breasts nearly falling out of her dress as she ran a finger along the inside of Elaina’s thigh. “She will if I ask her. I can be quite persuasive.”

“O-oh!” Elaina stammered, suddenly surprised by the affectionate touch of the phyllomage. The riding pants she’d borrowed from Elsebeth suddenly felt like they’d grown a little tighter.

Azade’s eyes drifted down to between Elaina’s legs, making note of the bulge that had formed in her trousers before offering Elaina a knowing look. “Well, that didn’t take much, did it?”

“Don’t tease me,” Elaina laughed bashfully, knowing that what she said was true. It often didn’t take much to get Elaina going, but Azade’s direct approach was especially effective. She could practically hear her heart pumping in her ears, so there was no way that Azade couldn’t see it ready to leap out of her chest.

A faint smile pulled at the corner of Azade’s red lips. “Doesn’t have to be a tease. I could ride you right here if you’re up for it. Wouldn’t want to send you off on your journey so overly encumbered, after all.”

“I don’t know,” Elaina protested weakly, but the fog of lust was already beginning to snake its way out of the recesses of her mind to assert itself. She supposed there was no harm in it, especially because Blackbarn said it would take an hour for his divination to yield results.

“I think you do,” Azade countered, rising onto her knees as the dress magically pulled apart to either side to expose her breasts. The woman’s hand ventured down between Elaina’s legs, finding its way past her waistband and into her pants. There, she grabbed hold of her shaft and began to stroke it. “A little relief before getting on the road?”

Elaina’s eyes fluttered slightly as she tried to remember what she’d been doing a moment before. An echo of something Elsebeth had said found its way through the fog as it drifted to the surface. She’d been concerned about Royce’s ability to influence her. Was this what she had been talking about? How easy would it be for someone to put their thumb on Elaina’s scales of judgment if she couldn’t think clearly?

If Elaina were to unburden herself of such arousal and desire, would it be effective when she finally confronted Royce? There was no way for Elaina to know if it would work, especially considering how insatiable she often was, just as Azade had said.

The redhead opened her mouth, dutifully receiving the ample pale flesh of the woman as she climbed into her lap and set her demanding cock free. Azade’s scent flooded her senses, making her feel oddly safe and relaxed with the memories it evoked. Her tongue danced across the woman’s nipple, earning her a sigh of approval as the dress moved aside, and she lined herself up with the redhead’s cock.

Sinking onto it, they both let out a little groan of pleasure for one another. Azade’s finger went up to her lip, urging Elaina to remain silent before immediately rocking forward, devouring the swordmage’s she-cock with the sultry heat of her sex.

“Oh, gods,” Azade whispered. “Feels just as good as I remember.”

Elaina moved from one heaping mound of soft flesh to the other, remembering how sensitive Azade’s breasts were the last time they’d had sex. Nothing had changed, judging by the sharp gasp of approval. Emboldened, Elaina sucked harder, coaxing harding rocking motions from Azade’s hips in the process. Though the two were relatively quiet, the growing rhythm and power of their rutting threatened to break the silence at any moment.

“That’s it!” Azade encouraged in a strained whisper as she ran her fingers through Elaina’s hair, her breasts heaving with excitement as Elaina lavished them with her tongue. The rocking became increasingly desperate as the phyllomage edged ever closer to the inevitable climax. “D-don’t stop!”

Drunk on the lust Azade had brought out in her, Elaina felt her eyes nearly rolling into the back of her head as the naked aggression of their carnal desires reached a fever pitch. Pressing both of the phyllomage’s delicious mounds of flesh together, Elaina sucked both nipples into her mouth at once and pulled back with her head, adding to the strain and pressure. Overcome by the sudden shift in Elaina’s overall tone, Azade’s back arched wildly, offering her sensitive tits up to her even as her slick insides clamped down on the impaling cock with tense, orgasmic spasms.

Azade brought a hand up to bite down on her knuckle, preventing her from growing too loud as she writhed and contorted on Elaina’s rigid cock. The redhead released the woman’s nipples with a little popping noise. Then, like a predator sensing weakness in her prey, Elaina threw Azade backward onto the bedroll, where she split her legs open and continued to ravage her hungry cunt.

“Shh, shh,” Azade shuddered, aware of the wet slapping sound that was bound to escape the confines of the tent. Elaina continued unabated, pinning her down against the bedroll even as she drove herself ever deeper into the tight, eagerly awaiting depths of Azade’s insides. The wet sound of their flesh slapping together only grew, and again, Azade’s body began to arch with the threat of another oncoming orgasm.

Elaina had almost forgotten how sensitive the woman’s body was as the phyllomage’s expression pleaded with the redhead not to stop. “C-cum inside me,” Azade managed to whisper a split second before the swordmage seemingly complied.

The redhead’s bucking grew briefly more feverish as her orgasm hit her with the force of a burst dam, causing her whole body to go taut. Her mouth fell open in a silent cry of ecstasy, the flesh buried inside of Azade flexing and pulsing as she relieved herself of all the seed her body could muster.

Azade’s legs opened a little more to welcome Elaina’s cum as her insides flexed and squeezed. “That’s it, baby. Fill me up.”

Before the lust-drunk fog within Elaina could clear, Azade pulled her down into a hungry, wet kiss, staying the retreat of the mists any further. “Don’t go,” she pleaded quietly against her lips. “Not yet.”

Azade’s legs closed around the swordmage to ensure she didn’t pull away from her, treating her neck to a succession of short, gentle kisses. Elaina returned the gesture with a series of her own, still buried to the hilt in the woman and nearly fully erect. She knew if she didn’t withdraw soon, she would find herself spiraling into round after round of lustful splendor with her.

“Next time,” Azade whispered with a little smile against her lips. “I think we’ll have to make an evening of it.”

Slowly, Azade’s legs parted, allowing Elaina to pry herself off of the phyllomage before either one of them coaxed the other into going again. Azade’s dress closed up around her like a flower blooming in reverse, concealing any and all evidence that anything had happened between them within seconds. Elaina, though less fortunate, was able to compose herself enough to look presentable.

“I’ll go speak with Myanna,” Azade said, dusting herself and fixing her hair as she stood. “Come see us in our guest quarters when you have the location.”

“Alright,” Elaina answered, still wildly fidgeting with her hair so it didn’t look like she’d just emerged from a roll in the hay. Azade smiled gently, taking Elaina’s hands and brushing them aside so that she could help adjust the locks of ginger hair.

“There.” Azade smiled warmly and offered a nod of approval. Her gaze lingered for longer than intended, regarding Elaina with a fondness she couldn’t speak to at that moment. “You’re all set.”

“Thank you,” Elaina responded sheepishly, resisting the urge to self-consciously fidget with her hair some more. “See you soon?”

“See you soon,” Azade confirmed before turning and disappearing through the tent’s flap.