Legacies of Blood

“Me,” Elaina repeated flatly, stunned by the suggestion. Elsebeth showed no signs of it being a joke. She looked eager to hear what Elaina’s answer would be. “Why me?”

“Why not?” Elsebeth teased before shifting in her seat to give a more serious answer. “You’ve earned the respect of many of the Orbonne men in an ancient, macho, trial-by-combat sort of way. Or so my sources indicate.”

Elaina thought back to the conversation she’d overheard while showering and supposed it wasn’t that outrageous. She could envision the sort of code of conduct Steinbach would have imposed on his men and the idea that taking over someone’s command by winning a duel seemed to fit easily within it.

“Besides,” Elsebeth continued as she leaned toward Elaina, treating her to a tantalizing glimpse of her cleavage. “You wouldn’t have to keep your secret anymore.”

“M-my secret?” Elaina stammered, on the verge of breaking into a cold sweat.

“That you’re the daughter of an Earl,” Elsebeth clarified. “You could be open about it while serving here in my court. We could come up with a formal position for you, have you officially registered in Zelmesca.”

Elaina breathed a sigh of relief. She was far too on edge around the landgraf and wasn’t sure why. She’d spoken with her a few times and didn’t feel like she had ever been quite this nervous. Nor had her thoughts been quite so occupied by lewd fantasies of what she wanted to do with the woman. Mental images of her without her clothing washed over her. Full, succulent breasts with delightful pierced nipples bounced as the woman laid on her back across the table, sighing and moaning Elaina’s name as she begged for more.

“Elaina?” Elsebeth asked, cutting through her spontaneous fantasy and dragging her back to reality.

“Mm?” Elaina murmured, then cleared her throat. “Oh, yes. Sorry. It sounds...”

“Are you alright?” the landgraf pressed, leaning a little closer so that her perfume filled Elaina’s nostrils. “You seem a bit distracted, and your face is a tad flushed.”

Elsebeth brought her hand up to Elaina’s face, pressing the back to her forehead and running it down along her cheek. Her proposal was attractive as it was, but if this was the sort of attention she could expect from her the whole time, how could she say no? Somewhere in the back of her mind was Royce, trying to remind her of their plans to head south, where Elaina would formally train in sword magic with the mystics.

The doors to the room opened once again as Mrs. Sylqen led a couple more guests into the room. Elaina recognized the first one as Azade Dashiell, a paranoble and phyllomage with whom she had worked for several months prior. She had acted as a guard for her and a companion from the town of Hallowell. The two had also been the ones she’d had the threesome with that she’d told Royce about earlier. It seemed like a strange coincidence to her.

She was dressed very differently from the last time she had seen her, wearing a beautiful flowing gown of forest green with her long black hair in a neat braid. Her high heels clicked pleasantly on the stone floor, and the deep wine color of her eyes settling on Elaina caused her to feel a slight flutter in her chest. She hadn’t expected to see her again anytime soon, and now she was here.

Behind her was a woman that towered over her. She had short, emerald green hair parted to one side and piercing crimson eyes, the slits at the center of which betrayed her fiendish nature. She had several piercings on her face, offering a stark contrast to her warm, coppery skin. Her clothing was made entirely of plant matter, darkleaf if Elaina wasn’t mistaken, though it was so revealing that it was difficult for her to focus on it for long. There was a strange weight to the woman’s presence that held her fast in her seat, arresting her gaze so intensely that the furthest she could pry it from her large breasts was to her long, powerful legs.

“Lady Amberdeen,” Azade said warmly, prompting Elsebeth to get to her feet. They took each other’s hands in a delicate show of respect. “Thank you for seeing us on such short notice.”

“You’re quite welcome, Lady Dashiell,” Elsebeth replied as she motioned to the empty places set across the table from Elaina. “Please, have a seat. Make yourself at home.”

Azade stepped back and allowed the taller woman to pull a chair out for her before seating herself. “This is Myanna of the Verdant Lust. She’s the expert I mentioned in my letter.”

“The cuirizu,” Elsebeth clarified as she and the taller woman sat down. “You’re a former Abyssal?”

“That’s correct,” Myanna said with a brief nod, her eyes wandering over to Elaina, recognizing the look on her face as clearly as if it had been written on her forehead. Elaina’s blush deepened slightly as her thoughts wandered over the body of the cuirizu, unable to pry her gaze far from the incredible rack barely held in check by the corset of darkleaf.

Elaina recognized the name. She was the one that Captain Steinbach’s son had been looking for in Hallowell. He’d hoped to leverage Azade and Anisha against her to get what he wanted. They’d needed a guide into Willowridge, an expert to bypass the dangers it presented, not to mention someone with the means to access the vault. In a way, Myanna was where this had all started. Yet all she could do was let her mind run wild with lewd fantasies of what she and the fiend could do with one another. Cuirizu were a rare variety of plant demon, and they were known for their unquenchable lust. Elaina wanted to taste of that lust.

The redhead felt a strange tingle at the base of her skull that rose from the fog of desire consuming her, and she reached out to take hold of the knife next to her plate, sliding it closer to herself as she gripped down hard on the plate. Something was wrong, some sort of magic at work on her, and only the pain from the blade on her palm would offer her any clarity against it. “The Orbonne Company was looking for you.”

“So I’ve heard,” Myanna purred enticingly as a couple of servants filled her and Azade’s plates for them. “They were contracted to the Abyssals during the war but lacked access to the more sensitive areas of the grounds.”

“Like the vault,” Elaina remarked flatly.

“Indeed,” Myanna agreed before taking a sip of wine from a freshly filled goblet. “Olcaru was very selective about who had access to the vault.”

“That’s why we’re here, as a matter of fact,” Azade interjected, pushing some potatoes around her plate. Her captivating eyes shifted from Elaina to Elsebeth. “I was hoping to offer some assistance on the matter. Between the locks, traps, and the guardian, having someone with inside knowledge would save you a lot of time. Not to mention how much safer it would be for you.”

“That’s very generous of you,” Elsebeth responded, motioning with one hand between Azade and Elaina. “You two know each other?”

“We do.” Azade smiled warmly. “I hired her as a guard to escort our supply shipment earlier this year.”

Elaina’s mouth pressed into a thin line, mentally noting the raunchy sexual encounters Azade had left out of her explanation. She also noted how Myanna’s gaze remained fixed on her and the uncomfortable tightness in her trousers from an erection that demanded immediate attention. She gripped the knife blade tighter to stave off the lust-addled thoughts that threatened to overtake her.

“What would you be expecting in exchange for this assistance?” Elsebeth continued, satisfied with the answer regarding their prior relationship for the moment.

“Not much,” Azade said, trying some vegetables before moving on to the roast. “Perhaps a few items from the vault. Myanna tells me there are a few rare reagents and components kept in there. It also wouldn’t hurt to have a new friend when I try to recover my own patents of nobility.”

Elsebeth eased back into her chair and nodded, swirling the wine in her goblet. Elaina noted that her expression hadn’t shifted at all before she turned her attention back to Myanna and Azade. The strange tingle ran along the base of her skull again as she met Myanna’s gaze. “Why would you need to access the vault for reagents? You had a fully stocked alchemy lab where they would have been kept.”

The corner of the landgraf’s mouth twitched in response to the cuirizu’s quirked, pierced brow. “Miss Woodlock is intimately familiar with the schematics of the grounds. It’s partly through her expertise that we were able to get this far.”

“And your occultist, of course,” Myanna remarked casually as she cut the meat and forked a bite into her mouth. “I imagine he’s had a hand in your success as well.”

“You seem to be well informed on the details of my delve,” Elsebeth observed, the ghost of her smirk vanishing once more.

“Information is more valuable than gold in times like these,” Azade replied, the warm smile never leaving her face. She was doing well in balancing the conversation, but Elaina could tell there was more to the situation. She just wasn’t sure what it could be. “Which is precisely why what we’re offering is something of a bargain, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Perhaps,” the landgraf replied. Elaina could tell she suspected something as well, though it might have had something to do with how strangely she behaved rather than anything the other two had done. Myanna looked unbothered, the very picture of dominance and power in the room, even while the others talked around her. The inexplicable weight Elaina sensed radiating from her continued to press down upon her like a warm, thick blanket. The pain in her palm was fighting a losing battle against whatever it was. “But I am curious about the answer to Miss Woodlock’s question.”

“As First Alchemist with the Abyssals,” Myanna began, setting her silverware down. “I had a multitude of rare reagents and components available to me through our diverse membership. If I needed the spinal fluid of a demon, I could speak with one and work something out. But in today’s market, such things are more difficult to obtain, as are those acquired from the Abyssals' enemies.”

“Enemies?” Elsebeth inquired, her curiosity piqued. “You harvested components from your enemies.”

“We did,” Myanna confirmed, unconcerned with the gruesome nature of the statement. “Would have been a waste otherwise.”

“These were rare enough to keep in the vault?” Elaina asked skeptically, causing the warmth in Azade’s smile to grow cold and brittle.

“Some,” Myanna replied. “The vault has sections that magically preserve things indefinitely. There are also a number of primed mixtures awaiting final reagents.”

“Of course, if anything else were to catch our eye, we would be interested in keeping negotiations open for that as well,” Azade added diplomatically. She appeared to be running interference for Myanna, though Elaina couldn’t be sure why.

“Much of what’s contained in that vault is spoken for Lady Dashiell,” the landgraf argued politely. “I have men to pay and repairs to finance.”

“Of course,” Azade acknowledged with a respectful nod. “Well, our initial offer stands. We’d like to be of assistance in the hope that someone of your knowledge might help establish my claims in the future.”

“Very reasonable.” The landgraf set her goblet on the table. “It sounds like we might be able to work something out. I’ll have a contract drawn up to make it official and send it up to your room for review.”

The warmth returned to Azade’s smile, finding the terms to her liking. Elaina’s hand quivered around the knife as blood began to ooze out onto the table, just out of sight of the others. The landgraf motioned to the nearest servant to start clearing the table now that everyone seemed to have had their fill. “If you’ll excuse me, I have a few final things to go over with Miss Woodlock if we’re to have everything ready to hit the vault by week’s end.”

Elaina caught herself before looking at Elsebeth in surprise. The operation for the vault was set for the following morning. It was part of why she had been moving with such haste all day. She hadn’t wanted to miss her chance to return to the action.

“Of course, your ladyship,” Azade said, getting to her feet as the landgraf did and offered her a deep curtsy. Myanna rose alongside her, offering a bow with a slight bend at the waist. It was a formality she was only barely willing to entertain, judging by the look on her face.

Elaina was the last to get to her feet, concealing the knife and her hand along the side, facing away from the pair. The landgraf motioned for Elaina to follow her and excused herself through one of the secondary doors at the rear of the room. The redhead nodded awkwardly to Myanna and Azade and walked quickly to catch up.

“You lied to them,” Elaina muttered after they stepped into the corridor, allowing her grip on the knife to slacken.

“Only after they lied to me,” Elsebeth countered, walking briskly toward the stairwell at the end of the hall. “There’s something in the vault they want, and it’s not rare ingredients for potions.”

“Yeah,” Elaina sighed. “I got that impression as well.”

“Did you?” Elsebeth stopped suddenly, turning to face Elaina before she snatched the table knife from her hand to hold it up between them. “You seemed quite distracted by this. Would you care to explain?”

Elaina anxiously chewed her lip, struggling to distract herself from the impressive form the woman cut while asserting her authority. The slight draft in the corridor had even caused her nipples to harden and strain against the fabric of her gown. “I’m sorry,” she murmured as the mental fog of lust descended upon her like a heavy curtain once again.

“I don’t want an apology,” Elsebeth replied crisply. “I want an explanation.”

“So do I,” Elaina said dreamily, taking a step closer to the landgraf. “Why did you invite me to dinner? Was it strictly business, or did you want to spend time with me?”

The landgraf’s posture grew stiffer as her back straightened, a slight hint of color entering her cheeks. “I’m afraid I don’t take your meaning.”

“I think you do,” Elaina countered, placing her good hand on the side of the woman’s face as she fixed her gaze with her own. “You don’t need to deny it.”

Elsebeth’s eyes darted to the hand on the side of her face, her breath hitching in surprise. “Elaina...”

The swordmage could only watch as she felt pulled inexorably toward the delicate strawberry-pink lips of the landgraf. They were every bit as soft and warm as she remembered them being in the dreamscape. What little control Elaina had left over her own body fled as Elsebeth offered her a moan in reply to her brazen act of intimacy. Her head canted to one side, their lips parting in unison as their tongues began a tentatively sultry dance. She could taste the remnants of the wine on the landgraf’s mouth as she pressed her firmly against the wall just inside the stairwell.

“What are you doing?” Elsebeth gasped against Elaina’s face, breaking the sloppy kiss between them just long enough to speak the words. There was no other resistance from her, no sign that she wasn’t prepared to indulge in the redhead now that the dam had begun to crack.

Elaina took a deep breath of the woman in a desperate bid toward complete immersion in her. Her natural smell mingled delightfully with whatever her perfume was, spiced slightly by the fleeting presence of wine on her breath. “I can’t help it. I can’t hold it back any longer, my lady. I need you.”

The landgraf thrust her chest out, sinking back against the stone as she turned her head to one side, offering Elaina the flawless expanse of her elegant neck. “Elaina---!”

The crush of their breasts together in such a confined space sent a thrill of excitement down Elaina’s spine, even with their clothes still on. Despite the landgraf’s initial protests, her hands were just as quick to rampant exploration as Elaina’s were. Soon, they were familiarizing themselves with one another’s subtle curves, finding small points of entry to bare skin wherever they could get it. The heat between them threatened to burn them up if they couldn’t find a means to lose a few layers of clothing.

The sound of footsteps in the corridor caused the landgraf to freeze suddenly before pulling Elaina further into the shadows of the stairwell. Elaina, unable to stop, continued to kiss up and down the woman’s neck, venturing down to her clavicle and the wondrous valley of pillowy cleavage that lay beyond.

“Sh, sh!” Elsebeth hissed quietly, placing a hand over the redhead’s mouth to keep her from giving their position away with the wet smacking of kisses to whoever was in the corridor. Elaina, so drunk on the desire for the woman, was just as unable to overcome her as she was to restrain herself.

The footsteps came and went without incident, likely those of a servant going about their daily routine. When the sound of a door closing offered a definitive end to the risk of being discovered, Elsebeth removed her hand from Elaina’s mouth. “What is wrong with you? We could have been seen!”

“I don’t care,” Elaina said drunkenly, pawing at the hem of Elsebeth’s gown as she tried to fish out one of her breasts. “I want you to fuck me.”

Elsebeth’s eyes widened at the proclamation, and somehow, even in her state, Elaina knew that she wanted the same thing, but she hesitated. “No, no. This isn’t right. Something’s wrong.”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Elaina protested, moving further with her exploration until Elsebeth whirled her around so that she was the one up against the wall.

“As much as I would like to think that and put my new toy to work on you,” Elsebeth whispered against her lips. “Something is very wrong.”

The landgraf pinned Elaina’s hands to the stone behind her as she tried to resume her groping and pawing. She took a moment to search Elaina’s eyes before the cut in the redhead’s palm caught her attention. Without another moment of hesitation, she jammed her thumb into the wound as firmly as she could manage.

The pain was like a streak of lightning across a starless sky as Elaina suddenly became aware of what was happening, the mists of her desire fading in the sudden heat of her embarrassment. Seeing the light of realization in her eyes, the landgraf eased the pressure from her thumb and released her, taking a half-step back to look her over. “Are you alright?”

“I...I’m sorry,” Elaina stammered as a knot formed in her stomach. “I tried to stop, but it was like I was watching my body act on its own.”

Elsebeth eyed the swordmage critically, seemingly less concerned about the encounter than she was about the sudden shift in Elaina. “Has this happened to you before?”

Considering her response carefully before speaking, Elaina shrugged. “I’ve gotten carried away before. Lost in the moment, but never like that before. Never unprompted.”

“Never,” Elsebeth repeated. Elaina shook her head, but the answer didn’t seem to satisfy the woman. She looked back toward the corridor nervously and let out a sigh. “It started getting worse at dinner?”

Elaina nodded, averting her gaze for a moment. “Just before, actually. But it got much worse when Myanna entered the room.”

“My apologies,” Elsebeth said, taking hold of Elaina’s good hand and squeezing it. “This was an oversight on my part. Cuirizu are known to have auras of allure that can entice mortals with just a glance. Usually, in polite company, they restrict the potency of them to avoid accusations of manipulation. I personally have training in resisting mental influence. You must be more sensitive to such things.”

“You don’t need to apologize,” Elaina assured her. “You couldn’t have known.”

Elsebeth placed her hand under Elaina’s chin, slowly lifting her head with one finger until their eyes met. “I feel responsible, all the same. For what it’s worth, I won’t think any less of you for this. I admit, I was a little caught up in things as well, and I’ve far less of an excuse. I was caught off guard and not... averse to your attentions.”

“Well, if that’s the case, perhaps we find somewhere more private?” Elaina blushed a little, gesturing vaguely to the stairs. “Then we could pick up where we left off?”

As she shook her head, a glimmer of regret flashed in Elsebeth’s eyes. “I’m afraid not. Taking you to bed while you’re still technically under my employ would be terribly unethical.”

“And after?” Elaina pressed a little, hopefully.

A look of satisfaction settled on the landgraf’s face as a faint smile graced her lips. “Well, then we would be peers, wouldn’t we?”

“That we would,” Elaina agreed happily, forgetting her previous lapse in self-control for a moment.

“Until then,” Elsebeth continued, leaning forward and planting a sweet, gentle kiss on Elaina’s lips. “I’ll have to make do with satisfying myself in solitude.”

Elaina’s brows shot up as she realized what the landgraf was saying. “You’re going to---?”

“Mhm,” Elsebeth intoned enticingly. “As I expect you might? Just don’t be up too late; we have a job to do in the morning.”

“Y-yes, my lady,” Elaina laughed nervously, bowing her head respectfully before the landgraf excused herself and ascended the stairs. She resisted the perverted impulse to look up for the chance at a fleeting glance up her dress. She pressed her thumb into the cut on her hand to keep her mind clear and stepped out into the corridor.

Tomorrow was going to be a big day.