Legacy of the Wolf (The Original)

Legacy of the Wolf

A short story by K.C. Gibson

Chapter One

            Guard duty was always dull, even when it was conducted in a potential hot spot, such as the border between Errgaunt and Trey’Elden had recently become.  For the last few weeks the tribes of northerners that inhabited the wild lands north of the empire had been raiding small communities along the border.  Also, lone travelers or small caravans with few guards have been waylaid, robbed or worse.  It had become such an issue that the local lords had decided to cut off passage through the region to all but the best guarded caravans.  So the trade roads which lead through the barbarian empire were now closed, with small outposts manned by soldiers stationed at each one to ensure the safety of travelers.

            Corporals Minsk and Trollick were assigned to the small outpost guarding the road between Milligant and the Trey’Elden border.  Their guard shift, each one being four hours in length, had thus far been quite mundane and both men had to physically shake the other repeatedly to keep from falling asleep.  Minsk, a solidly built young man who had excelled at his swordsmanship training when he first joined the military and had ideas about becoming one of the elite Guardsmen of Errgaunt, glanced up at the sound of an approaching horse and reached over to slap Trollick on the shoulder.  The other man, taller and thinner than Minsk, with a scraggily beard, snorted and jerked awake quickly.

            The rider approaching was cloaked, the hood deep enough to hide the features from the guards, pulled together in the front to conceal clothing or weaponry, save for the longbow resting comfortably in a saddle boot on the left side of the steed.  This made Minsk slightly nervous and his hand rested reassuringly upon his sword as he stepped forward, raising his other hand to bring the rider to a halt.  “I’m afraid you can go no further, the road into Trey’Elden has been closed.”

            He was surprised to hear a sultry feminine voice issue from within the hood, slightly laced with an accent he couldn’t quite place.  “For what purpose?”  There was no insolence in the question, merely curiosity.

            Recovering quickly from his surprise, Minsk responded, “For your protection ma’am, and that of any other travelers wishing to pass.  The tribes to the north have been getting very territorial, attacking and robbing anyone who passes through the area without provocation.”

            The cloaked head turned slightly to the left and Minsk could tell the woman was regarding the soldiers’ camp which had been set up slightly off the beaten path.  Returning her attention to the corporal, she asked, “How is one to go about getting through your blockade, soldier?  Surely there must be circumstances in which you let people through?”

            “No single travelers or small, unguarded caravans miss.  If you need passage through Trey’Elden, I suggest you try and hitch a ride with one of the military’s sponsored caravans.  We’re providing guards to certain groups, helping them to traverse the tribal lands safely.”  Minsk narrowed his eyes, trying to glimpse her face through the shadows cast by her hood.  He had the impression, now that he had looked at her shrouded form more closely, that there was a rather shapely body beneath that green cloak. 

            “Where are these caravans leaving from?  Surely not as far as Milligant, that’s three weeks ride away!”  the woman inquired.

            It was Trollick who responded now, speaking for the first time.  “No ma’am.  About three miles back the road forked, one leading here the other going East.  If you take the east fork, you will come to the city of Hauteur.  There you will be able to speak to the officers in charge of the guard details, or one of the lords putting together the caravans.”

            “How far away is this city?” she inquired, sounding greatly put upon.

            “Two days journey, miss.”  Trollick responded.  They heard the woman sigh, then without another word she turned her horse around and headed back the way she had come.  “Damn,” Trollick said after a moment, “wish I could have seen what she looked like under that cloak!”

            “I was thinking the same thing.”  Minsk said with a small smirk.

            “Ah, but did you place her accent?”  Minsk frowned at him and Trollick smiled, “I thought not, you aren’t as well traveled as I am.  Human is not her native language my friend, that was a High Elf!” 

            Minsks’ eyes narrowed as he regarded the retreating form of the woman, wondering if his partner was right.  If so, he truly regretted not having seen her without the hood, for he had heard the high elven women were the most beautiful in all the world.

            “What kind of name for a city is Hauteur?”  Natashiana Grasamere grumbled to herself as she left the guards and their camp behind her.  She knew, in the human tongue, that Hauteur meant arrogance, and she supposed that for a human supremacist society like Errgaunt, the name was fitting enough.  But it was damned inconvenient for her to have to go two days out of her way just to get across the border.  Glancing back to ensure she was no longer in sight of the camp, she pushed back her hood and shrugged back the cloak, which was too heavy and stifling in the seasons heat. 

            Tasha, as she was more commonly known, was indeed a magnificent specimen of womanhood.  Though it was difficult to judge from her saddle, she stood easily six feet tall and had long, mahogany colored hair that tumbled down over her shoulders, falling to the middle of her back.  Typically she wore her hair tucked behind the delicate points of her ears, the mark of her elven heritage, but here in Errgaunt, where even High Elves were considered lower class citizens, she had taken to wearing her hair over her ears, the better to conceal her race.  Of course, there weren’t many human women that could claim her level of beauty, and anyone with a learned eye would place her bone structure and complexion as belonging west of the great ocean that bordered the kingdom.  Still, for a quick disguise, it worked well enough.

            Glancing back over her shoulder again, she frowned, wondering if one of the guards was following her.  She couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched, and it was making the hairs at the nape of her neck stand on end.  Her left hand dropped to the longbow hanging from her saddle, the woods smoothly polished finish reassuring beneath her fingers.  Her head snapped around as bushes to her left rustled violently, then there was the sound of cracking wood and she caught quick movement from the corner of her right eye.  Someone had pulled back a branch that would normally hang low over the road, and it had been released, snapping back into its normal position in a move that was designed to knock her from her horse.  Reacting out of instinct, Tasha leaned backward in her saddle, showing off surprising flexibility as her shoulders hit the horses rump and the branch shot through the air harmlessly above her.  As the horse continued forward, clearing the branch Tasha kicked her feet from her stirrups and rolled backward, simultaneously drawing forth her bow while slapping the horse on the rump and sending it bolting ahead out of harms way. 

            She landed lightly on her feet, already drawing forth an arrow and pivoting, looking for her first target.  It came in the form of a hobgoblin, leaping from a tree into her sights.  Barely taking time to aim, Tasha raised her bow and fired, taking the hobgoblin in the throat, flinging him backward and skewering him, leaving the body hanging from a tree trunk.  Drawing another arrow, Tasha twisted at the waist and fired from the hip, straight up into the groin of an orc that was dropping from a tree above her.  He shrieked, falling in a heap a few feet from the elf who danced away, raising another arrow to her bow.  Another orc burst from the trees to her immediate right, lunging for the elf and Tasha stabbed instinctively with her arrow, the sharp point sinking into the orcs eye, piercing his brain and killing him instantly.  Jerking the arrow free she knocked it to her bowstring and let it fly, hitting another raider, this time a goblin who was swinging upon a vine out of the trees to her left.  The arrow took him in the gut and knocked him backward twenty feet.

            Dropping her hand to her quiver once again, she was unable to draw forth another arrow as a hand clamped like a vice over her wrist.  Turning her head to the right she saw a third orc grinning lecherously at her, squeezing her wrist till it threatened to snap.  Wincing at the pain of his grasp, Tasha twisted, raising his arm so she spun beneath it, then she reached up and grabbed his wrist with her left hand, yanking the orcs arm down across her shoulder with all her strength, bending at the waist as she did so to fling the larger warrior to the ground.  He grunted as he hit, his mental fortitude too well developed to register any pain from his broken arm.  With a savage force she reserved for such occasions only, Tasha drove her knee down into the orcs throat, crushing his larynx and leaving him to suffocate, squirming on the ground as she rose to her full height once more.

            She had only just gotten to her feet, however, when she cried out, a hand closing in her hair and jerking her head backward, forcing her spine to arch as she was pulled off balance.  Another burly arm hooked behind Tasha’s elbows and locked them together behind her back, her bow forced from her fingers as she was no longer able to hold it.  A foot to the back of her knees buckled them, forcing her to kneel and her captor kept her bent backward so that her full breasts were thrust out, straining against the ties cinching her leather bodice together. 

            A deep, gravelly voice barked something behind her.  Tasha recognized the language as Orcish, but she didn’t speak it so she had no idea what he had said.  After a moment, however, a goblin stepped from the shrubbery to her right and made his way slowly through the carnage left in Tasha’s wake.  His eyes played over the bodies of the four dead raiders as he walked toward Tasha, still kneeling in front of her captor.  He was a diminutive figure, less than five feet tall, with an oversized head and large, cauliflower ears that jutted out from either side of his head.  As his beady black eyes played over her shapely form, liking how her back was arched, he smiled, revealing large square teeth, each of them rotting and full of cavities.  His oversized nose hung low over his flabby lips and seemed to trail an unending river of snot from both its nostrils.  He was bald, his skin a sickly green with dark black veins visible in its leathery surface.  He wore a dirty brown robe, cinched together by a rope about his waist. 

            Stopping right before Tasha, his bald pate barely reaching her chin even though she was kneeling before him, he chuckled, “This fox has sharp teeth, eh boys?”  Several males laughed meanly.  Tasha couldn’t see them as they stood behind her, but she guessed by their voices that there were about four of them.  Including this goblin, that made five, and they were likely all non-humans, which didn’t surprise her.  Gangs of escaped slaves were common in Errgaunt, though this was the first time she had run afoul of one.  He reached out with one overlarge, filthy hand, the hairy knuckles stroking the side of her face.  Tasha tried to turn away in revulsion, but the hand gripping her hair wouldn’t allow it.  “You took out four of my boys wench!”

            “I was more merciful than they would have been!”  she growled.

            The goblin laughed heartily at this, nodding his agreement.  “Indeed you were!”  Turning to the men arrayed behind the elf, he pointed at three of them, “You boys catch her horse and search her bags.  That animal will feed us for the next week.”  Then he returned his attention to Tasha, his eyes sliding down to the abundant cleavage visible over her low-cut neckline.  “This beauty will fetch a small fortune on the market, but I think we’ve earned the right to break her first!”  More laughter, then the three men he had indicated moved into her field of vision, heading off to recover her mount.  She saw two more orcs and another hobgoblin, which lead Tasha to wonder how such a diminutive little creep as this goblin had managed to form and lead such a group.  Stepping up to the shapely elf, the goblin addressed the man holding her, “Keep her still Jeg, I want a taste!”  A nauseated groan escaped her lips as an impossibly long, prehensile tongue slipped from between his blubbery lips, its sharp point sliding into her cleavage and beginning to worm its way down into her bodice.  The creature, which she suspected was an orc, that held her from behind chuckled and she felt him lean forward to watch as his bosses tongue disappeared beneath Tasha’s armor.  Trailing slime like a slug or snail might do, Tasha felt the tip of the goblins organ probing further and further downward, squirming across her flat stomach until it was probing at her navel.

            The goblin chuckled, the look of revulsion on her face evidently causing him even further stimulation as he reached out to caress and knead her savory bosoms through the hard leather of her armored top.  With an audible slurp the goblin pulled his tongue free and growled lustily as he stepped up, placing his hands to either side of her face and crushing his greasy, fat lips to hers.  Tasha gagged, nearly vomiting into his mouth as that same long, slimy tongue slipped into her mouth.  A flash of movement above the goblin caught her attention and her sea green eyes followed the progress of a man who had moved through the canopy of trees above them and was now dropping, catlike, onto the goblins back.  His feet descended upon the goblins hips while his hands caught the robed shoulders.  The goblin shrieked in terror as the stranger threw his weight backward, flipping through the air and using that momentum to fling the goblin back.  The diminutive form crashed against the trunk of a tree several yards away then slumped to the ground, unmoving. 

            A startled growl from the orc behind her and Tasha suddenly felt herself flung to the ground as the monster stepped over her, moving toward her unexpected savior, who crouched on all fours a few feet away.  Tasha lifted her head, peering through her thick hair where it had fallen across her face at the man who had fallen from the trees to help her.  He was elven, she could see the tips of his ears through the thick mane of black hair.  It was incredibly long, falling over his back like a fur coat where he crouched.  Elves couldn’t grow facial hair, so his features were plainly visible and slightly frightening to behold.  He looked to be a wild elf, his narrow eyes having a feral gleam to them, a grim slash of a mouth beneath a beaklike nose, all of it on a narrow face.  His slender frame was corded in hard, ropy muscles and he wore no clothing other than a loose fitting loin cloth.  He was frightening, of course, but Tasha was becoming aware of a powerful attraction, swooning slightly in the mans presence as he growled back at the orc and launched himself forward.  He hit the burly orc in the torso, hand and feet striking the muscular chest at the same time and he rebounded, knocking the orc backward to the ground.  Tasha scrambled back as the orc fell a few feet from her, shouting for help and the wild elf landed on him again, teeth flashing as he reached down and tore the orcs throat out.  Tasha’s stomach turned at the sight, blood spurting forth from the orcs throat as he died before her.

            The feral elf turned then, snarling a challenge at the three men who were now rushing back toward them, having gone to collect Tasha’s horse, which was forgotten on the road behind them.  The two orcs were in the lead as they rushed back to help their comrades and re-claim their conquest, but Tasha had not taken total leave of her senses and rolled to the side, scooping her bow up from where it had fallen.  Rising to one knee, she drew forth an arrow and knocked it to her bowstring, releasing it as the wild elf launched himself at the new challengers.  Her arrow streaked by next to the mystery mans head, catching one of the orcs in the head and killing him instantly as the wild elf tackled the second orc, bearing him to the ground.  The orc screamed as the elf sunk its teeth into him as well and the hobgoblin started to intervene, but Tasha’s next arrow pierced his heart and knocked him instantly to the ground.  As the elf stood up Tasha realized that it was over, almost as quickly as it had begun.

            The wild man turned, his gaze upon the archer, and Tasha had another arrow knocked, its point aimed at him.  He had helped her, true, but she didn’t know him and frankly his wild appearance and the bizarre effect he was having upon her worried the archer considerably.  “I thank you for your help sir,” she called to him, keeping her arrow pointed unerringly at his chest, “but I’m afraid considering the circumstances of our meeting I’d feel more comfortable if you came no closer.”

            His gaze was cool and calculating as it switched from her bow and arrow to her face and back again.  He said nothing, but his intense stare, which seemed to smolder at her from across the small clearing, spoke volumes to the high elf.  Even from this distance, more than fifty feet apart, she could feel a slight arousal just from his presence.  ‘What the hell is this?’ she asked herself.  Tasha gasped, surprised, as the wild man launched himself straight up into the air, ascending twenty to thirty feet to disappear into the treetops above.  Her sharp vision had trouble tracking his movement, her aim had no hope of following him, but she kept her arrow elevated, her eyes narrowed as she watched for him.

            Then she heard them, the sound of hooves approaching from the rear and she turned, lowering her bow as she saw a small patrol of soldiers from the camp she had briefly visited rushing toward her.  There were six men, all on horseback and each of them brandishing crossbows and spears as they charged toward the clearing through which the road she had been ambushed on cut.  The sextet reined to a halt amid snorting steeds and clouds of dust kicked up by their hooves.  The leader of the soldiers, a lieutenant judging by the insignia on his epaulets, addressed Tasha, “Milady, are you all right?  We heard the sounds of battle and came to investigate.”  His gaze traveled over the clearing, noting the dead raiders, seeing that several of them had been claimed by her bow, but Tasha could tell that his practiced eye had seen the wounds that had certainly not been created by her weapon.  “What in the name of all that’s holy happened here?”

            Tasha was led back to the small camp held by the soldiers where she was escorted to the tent of Captain Shane Redland, the commander of the small force stationed at the border camp.  Captain Redland was very polite and civil, though it was obvious to Tasha that he was only being so because his duty required it.  He seemed to her like a man torn between finding her uncommonly attractive and a member of a race that he felt he should feel no attraction to.  This was not the first time since coming to the human supremacist empire that she had encountered this attitude, but she was all too happy to put the captain and his men behind her for the second time when he had finally asked all the questions he could think of to ask for his report to his superiors.

           “I wonder if I could ask you a favor Lady Natashiana?” he inquired in his most polite, politically correct tone.  She raised a delicate eyebrow questioningly, “You are en-route to the city of Hauteur, are you not?”  When she had nodded confirmation of that, he asked, “I wonder if you might deliver this report to my superiors there?  I really haven’t the man power to spare anyone for the journey myself.”

            After a moments consideration, Tasha saw no harm in this request, so she agreed, thinking it might put her in the good graces of the very people whose help she needed to get across the border.  So it was, some six hours after being led back to the camp, Tasha was once more astride her horse and heading for the city of Hauteur.  As she rode past the site of the earlier battle she looked around for any sign, not only of the dead bodies, but of her mysterious benefactor as well, for she had learned from Redland that there was a local legend about a wild man that roamed the forests of the area.  Her report was the first eyewitness account of him that the military itself had collected, and the Captain thought that his superiors would be very interested in her tale.

            Hauteur was not a large city, in fact Tasha thought it barely large enough to qualify as a city at all.  It had a population of about five thousand, ninety percent of which was human, of course.  As she rode down one of the main streets of the city she saw that one of the main exports here seemed to be lumber, and she could see right away what was causing the distress between citizens of Errgaunt and the tribesmen of the northern kingdom, Trey’Elden.  Most of the logs she saw being taken into the large lumber mill she passed were Gray Oak, which she knew grew almost exclusively in Trey’Elden, so it was somewhat understandable how the barbarian clans might feel threatened by the Errgauntians stealing their resources.

            Reining her horse to a halt at the side of the road she stopped a passing laborer, who seemed disgruntled at being disturbed till he got a decent look at Tasha.  Seeing how pretty she was, the human worker, who looked as though he probably worked in the mill, was only too eager to help her.  “I wonder if you might tell me where I can find the local military headquarters?  I have a message for the leadership there.”  The millwright gave her directions to the headquarters building of the local militia and after thanking him, Tasha made for it, wanting to get the delivery over with so she could see to her own business.

            The militia headquarters was a large, four story building almost directly dead center of the city.  There was a hitching post in front of it and Tasha tied off her horse to it after dismounting.  As she stepped up onto the boardwalk that ran the length of the buildings front she heard a low, appreciative whistle from her left.  Glancing in that direction she frowned, noting a tall broad figure in a black cloak leaning against the wall to the side of the entrance.  His face was plainly visible, and Tasha was startled to see that, in spite of obviously being a half-orc, he was actually quite handsome.  His face was broad and his nose a little too flat, a broad squared off jaw and incisors that subtly overlapped his upper lip.  But he also had the finely sculptured features of her own race, chiseled cheekbones, a well-defined brow line and a complexion that marked his ancestry as being similar to her own.  It was the first time Tasha had ever encountered a member of a chaos race that was anything but frightening.  Of course, his garb marked him as a rogue, likely a thief or assassin, and that gave him an air of danger, but she found it wasn’t an altogether unpleasant sensation.

            Looking him squarely in the eye as she approached the door, she gave a polite nod and said, “Good day.”  The rogue pushed off the wall and turned, surprising the archer by opening the door for her and bowing slightly as he motioned her through.  “Thank you.”

            “Think nothing of it milady.”  He murmured, his voice deep and resonating, his speech pattern showing that he was educated and somewhat refined.  Tasha was surprised at herself for actually blushing slightly as she caught his dark gaze sweeping her lush profile as she passed.  Through the door she found herself in a lobby of sorts, a few soldiers in uniform lounging about as though waiting for something exciting to happen.  Apparently a sexy high elf walking into the room qualified as something exciting, because they all turned and stared as she walked in.  Feeling somewhat self-conscious at all the attention, Tasha moved across the room with all eyes following her, stopping at the large counter across from the entrance.  A human male with the rank of a sergeant upon his collar stood behind it, eyeing the elf as much as the other men as she approached.

            “Help you miss?”  he asked, at least trying to sound professional.

            “I’ve just come from the post at the border of Trey’Elden with a message from Captain Redland for his superiors.”  She informed the sergeant.

            He nodded his understanding, then turned a large leather bound ledger around to face her, “I’ll need you to sign in, ma’am, then I’ll have a man show you to the office of Major Starr, he’s Redland’s superior.” 

            Tasha bent over the counter, using the quill that rested in an ink bottle next to the book to sign her name to it, feeling the sergeants eyes hungrily gazing down at her neckline as she bent over in front of him.  ‘Men!’ she thought irritably as she stood up, seeing his gaze hastily redirected to her face as she did so. 

            “Klinger!” the sergeant called and Tasha turned slightly to see a middle aged, overweight corporal with thinning black hair standing up from where she had seen him slouching in a chair by the entrance, “Take Lady…” the sergeant bent over the ledger quickly to read her name, “…Grasamere to see Major Starr at once.”  Klinger grunted, then motioned for Tasha to follow him.  The elf noted the contemptuous look on the sergeants face in regards to the slovenly Corporal Klinger, but said nothing as she fell in behind the over weight soldier.  She followed him all the way to the fourth floor of the building, hearing the man grumbling about how unfair his life was the whole time.

            “This is Major Starr’s office here,” Klinger told her at last, stopping in front of one of the last doors on the fourth floor hallway, then added almost as an afterthought, “milady.”  He raised a beefy hand and knocked at the door, waiting till he heard a response from beyond before opening the door and poking his head.  “Lady Natashiana Grasamere to see you Major, she has a message from Captain Redland out on the border.”

            “Show her in corporal.”  Came a bass voice from within the office.  Klinger turned to Tasha and motioned her through the door without stepping aside.  Tasha had to turn sideways to squeeze past him, which was no doubt his intent but she turned her back on him instead of giving him the satisfaction of feeling her breasts brush against him.  Not to be dissuaded by this, however, Klinger made a point of reaching out with one hand and getting a handful of firm round ass as she passed.  Tasha yelped, turning to glare at the corporal but he was already turning away, grinning snidely as he headed off down the hall.  “I apologize for him ma’am, Klinger is not exactly the prime example of a good soldier.”

            Tasha closed the door behind her, then turned to regard the Major.  He was human, appeared to be in his sixties with a weathered but still quite handsome face.  He wore a thick handlebar mustache over his upper lip and his brown eyes regarded Tasha with a mixture of the appreciation of a man regarding a beautiful woman and regular curiosity.  “Major Starr, I have a report here from Captain Redland on the border to Trey’Elden.”  She produced the parchment the captain had entrusted to her and handed it to the Major.  Starr unrolled and read the report through slowly, digesting every word carefully. 

After he had read it, he looked up at Tasha with a quizzical expression.  “You saw this wildman with your own eyes, did you?”

Tasha nodded, “He rescued me from the raiders that had ambushed me.”  She informed him.

Starr nodded, glancing back down at the report, “Yes, Redland mentions in here that it was Grizzik’s crew… they won’t be missed, been causing trouble for us for a couple of years now.  But the fact that Wolf’s been seen again….”  He trailed off thoughtfully.

“Wolf?”  Tasha repeated.

The major nodded, meeting Tasha’s eyes.  “Legend has it that this wild elf lives in the forests of Errgaunt and Trey’Elden, among the animals that raised him.  Those few that have seen him claim there is an oddly canine look about him, so naturally the legend has it that he was raised by wolves.  It’s not much of a stretch to think how the locals have started calling him Wolf.”  After a moments pause, he added, “Doubly fitting is that the family that claims him as one of theirs is the noble family of Fenry, which means ‘the Wolves’ in their native tongue.”

“It is known what family he is from?”  Tasha asked, surprised.

Major Starr nodded.  “Indeed, at least it is suspected.  One of the Fenry family is actually here in Hauteur, been here for years, hoping for some sign of the wildman, wants to know if it really is his brother.  Claims he’d like to return his brother to the fold, if you will.”  Again a pause, then he looked to Tasha, “Perhaps you would go and speak to him?  He would dearly love to hear that there has been another confirmed sighting.  It’s been nearly fifteen years since anyone has seen Wolf for certain.”

Tasha sighed, considering the words.  “I really wasn’t planning on being here that long.  In fact, I was only coming to Hauteur in the hopes of traveling along with a caravan, or one of your patrols that is crossing the border through Trey’Elden.  I’m trying to reach Keyos, you see.”

Starr nodded his understanding.  “Well, there aren’t any such caravans or patrols leaving for a few days, so you would have time to visit Lord Fenry and give him the news that Wolf has been spotted.  It would do that family some good milady.”

            Tasha considered this for a few moments, then sighed, “Well, I suppose if I’m to be stuck here anyways, I might as well visit with this Lord Fenry and tell him what I know.”

            “I’m certain he would appreciate it milady.”  Starr smiled encouragingly.  “He’s purchased a home on the other side of town, anyone in the city could tell you how to get there.” 

            “Can you recommend a good place to stay in your city, Major?” she asked him.

            “Try the Gilded Arms, ma’am.  Nice place, but not too spendy.  All the doors lock, too, which is important for an attractive single woman, traveling alone.”  The Major gave her another encouraging smile, which on his face looked forced in the extreme.  Tasha made her goodbyes, saying that she would make a point of visiting Lord Fenry after she got some rest and cleaned up a bit.  Major Starr rose and went to open the door for her, shaking her hand before she left.  When he had closed the door behind the beautiful elf he turned to another door that was in the wall to the left of his desk.  “Karnal?  Did you hear that?”

            The door opened and the half-orc Tasha had seen in front of the building walked in, glancing from the Major to the door and back again.  He nodded, “I did, every word.  It seems Vestyn will have his hunting party after all.”

            “Inform him that I will be standing by to assist, if he needs military support.”  Major Starr instructed, and Karnal nodded, turning and exiting the office the same way he had come in.

Chapter Two

            Tasha had just stepped up onto the walkway in front of the Gilded Arms and was moving toward the door, when she heard a voice to the right call out, “You don’t want to stay there, lady.”  Tasha turned that way, seeing a young human leaning against one of the posts holding up the roof of the boardwalk.  He was tall and slender, his brown hair ragged and unkempt, his clothing hanging off his frame in tatters.  Obviously he was a homeless kid, looking to be about fifteen or sixteen.  His face, beneath the dirt, looked cute enough and Tasha figured if he was cleaned up and had a few years to mature he would be a handsome enough man.

            “I beg your pardon?” she asked, her full lips curving upward slightly.  Tasha, who had founded an orphanage back home in Hanover, had always had a soft spot for children in general, but especially kids like this, who really had no place to call their own.

            “The Gilded Arms is no place for you, miss.”  He pushed off the post where he had been leaning and moved the short distance toward her, his brown eyes displaying a surprising intelligence and she thought she saw some shrewdness in there as well as they openly perused her curves, “Place is too pricey, and the service is almost as bad as the food in their kitchen.”

            Fists on shapely hips, Tasha regarded the youth with a smirk, not missing the way his young eyes were roving over her, “I suppose you know of a better place for me to stay?”

            His smile was telling, and Tasha knew what was coming before he said it, “Well, my bed’s warm!”

            “I’m certain that it is, but I hope you’ll understand if I pass.”  She started to turn back toward the Gilded Arms and he laughed.

            “I was kidding lady.”  She paused by the door and turned back toward him, “I was actually going to suggest that you stay at Madame Mallory’s boarding house.”

            “Madame Mallory’s?  Sounds like a brothel.”  Tasha commented.

            He shook his head, chuckling slightly.  “Naw, she’s an old widow who’s husband left her this mansion across town.  He also left her a mountain of debt, so she rents the rooms in the mansion to help pay off her debtors.  The place is clean, affordable and Mallory is the best cook in town.”

            “I’m just supposed to take your word for that?”  Tasha asked.

            His face colored slightly and he shrugged, toeing the ground, “Mallory is good to me, and the other street kids.  I try to send business her way when I can, especially if they don’t look like they’ll cause her trouble.”

            Tasha had to admit that this Mallory woman sounded like her kind of people.  She frowned thoughtfully at the youth, then said, “What’s your name son?”

            Looking surprised, he met her gaze again and said, “Bandon.”

            “That’s it?  Just Bandon?”  she asked.

            He nodded, “Yes’m.”

            Regarding the lad thoughtfully for a moment, Tasha finally said, “I could use an assistant while I’m here in town Bandon, someone to act as a guide among other things.  I’d be willing to pay for this service, you think you could manage that?”

            His eyes widened in delight, if nothing else the thought of spending some extra time with this Goddess was motivation enough.  “Yes ma’am, I’m sure I could!”

            Smiling slightly, Tasha said, “Well, I won’t be seen in the company of a street rat, which means you’ll have to get yourself cleaned up.  I’ll pay for you to get some decent clothing too, that all right with you?”  He nodded eagerly, apparently unable to believe his good fortune.  “First off, you can guide me to Madame Mallory’s, then we’ll go shopping.  I need a dress for a meeting with a nobleman and we’ll get you some clean clothes at the same time.”  She reached out and ruffled his hair, “Maybe a hair cut too!”

            As it turned out, Madame Mallory’s was a pretty nice place and the woman seemed only too happy to put up Bandon as well when Tasha explained to the elderly human widow that the boy was now in her employ, all be it temporarily.  She arranged for baths for herself and Bandon, then took the teen out on a shopping trip, spoiling him somewhat with nicer clothing than he had worn in some time.  He argued about the haircut, and Tasha eventually relented, though she insisted that he at least brush it out.  When all was said and done, Bandon cut quite the impressive figure.  He looked a few years older, had sun bronzed skin and a physique that, Tasha couldn’t help but smile when she noticed, was turning many a female head as they walked side by side back toward the boarding house.

            Tasha herself, knowing from her own experience as a noble woman that she was going to need to look the part if she wanted a meeting with Lord Fenry, had purchased a very nice white gown, its bodice low cut in the front with off the shoulder straps and buttons down its back.  When they returned to the boarding house, Tasha had to ask Bandon to help her with the buttons, a task the young man was only too happy to assist her with, much to the shapely elf’s mortification.  When he had finally finished buttoning her into the dress, having taken his sweet time to do it, Tasha kicked him out, saying she had to do her hair and makeup.  The youth left, but not without dragging his feet a bit the entire way. 

            Natashiana sat in front of the vanity mirror her room had been given, wondering at what kind of a person this Lord Fenry was.  She had no real idea of who he was or what he stood for, so she didn’t really know what to expect when she arrived at his manor later that night.  How would she be received?  Should she go armed?  She smirked at this thought, picturing herself wearing this beautiful dress with her quiver on her hip and her bow on her back.  ‘No,’ she decided, ‘not armed.  But I should be cautious just the same.’  Deciding to do her hair in a style she had seen on some of the women here in Errgaunt that seemed popular, she piled it atop her head in an intricate manner, holding the whole ordeal in place with one long hair pin.  Then she applied what little makeup she had brought with her, for Tasha was not a vain woman and never wore much in the way of augmentation.  She had never felt she needed to.

            After splashing a little perfume on the base of her neck and dabbing it in her cleavage, Tasha examined her reflection in the mirror and decided she was fit to be presented to a noble lords house.  Leaving her room, she crossed the hall to the one Bandon had been given across from hers.  Knocking, she couldn’t hide the smile that his reaction to her appearance brought to her face.  The young man stood in the doorway to his room, his eyes popping from his skull and his jaw hanging open.  He took a few moments to openly and unashamedly ogle the elf, then he swallowed as though his throat were suddenly dry and said, “By the Gods woman!  Where in this town could you possibly want to go dressed like that?!”

            “So you approve then?” she asked, raising her arms to her sides and turning left and right for him.  The look of longing that came to his eyes brought a flush of color to Tasha’s cheeks, and she was surprised to find that she thought it was rather fun to torment the young man, whose hormones were obviously in overdrive.  Tasha suddenly felt a strong and very unexpected desire to kiss him, and this so shocked her that she actually took a step backward.  A concerned look flitted across Bandon’s face and she saw his expression slip as a brief look of concentration passed over his visage, then he was back to ogling her openly.  As quickly as it had swept over her, the desire to throw herself at the young man had passed.

            “I’m sure every man that sets eyes upon you will approve, lady!”  he said in answer to her question.

            Smiling slightly, Tasha said, “I need your services this evening as a guide.  I wish to procure an audience with Lord Fenry.”

            A dark cloud seemed to pass behind the young mans eyes at mention of the noble lord, though he tried to hide it quickly, the perceptive elf did not miss it.  “What business could you have with him?”  Bandon asked, unable to keep the contempt from his voice.

            “No love for the elven lord, I take it?”  she asked the lad.

            “Nor will you have if you bother to get to know him at all.”  Bandon could see that she wanted more information than this, so he sighed and said, “Lord Vestyn Fenry is, as you stated, an elven noble.  From the jungles of Krayt, far to the West, on the other side of the Steppes of Keyos.  He has a reputation there as a bit of a warmonger, a ruthless bastard with a penchant for violence.  His father, the head of the house, is also the Dean of School of Sorcery where it is said the Dark Arts can be learned for the right price.”

            “So basically you’re saying I should proceed with caution?” she inquired and the young man nodded.  Tashas’ full pink lips turned up at the corner and she placed a comforting hand upon his shoulder, “I always do, Bandon, but the fact is I need a meeting with Lord Fenry.  I have some information that he will want, and it is likely that he can help me in return.”  His expression was quizzical, so she elaborated, “I’m trying to get through the barbarian lands of Trey’Elden, and he may have the contacts that can make that happen.  I have some information about a lost relative of his and if he is of a mind, he might be willing to help me in return.”

            “You’re talking about Wolf, the elven Wildman that lives in the wilderness near here, aren’t you?”  Was it her imagination, or was that a gleam of excitement she saw cross the young mans face?

            “What do you know of him?”  she asked, curious.

            Bandon seemed to think he had said too much and was quick to clam up on the subject.  “Just the same legend everyone else talks about.”  As a way to avert the course of the conversation he said, “I know where Lord Fenry lives, if you’d like I can take you there.”

            Tasha knew he was changing the subject, and though she was curious what the young man knew, she didn’t push.  Instead she said, “Thank you Bandon, I’d like to go before it gets too much later.”  She made a mental note, however, to try and get him to talk to her later.

            Though he was a nobleman, the Manor belonging to Vestyn Fenry was quite small, befitting what an elven lord would be allowed to own in a human supremacist empire.  There were no guards in evidence either, and Tasha was quite certain the local military wouldn’t have allowed him to keep any kind of military force in his employ.  The house was three stories tall, sitting in the middle of what looked to be a half an acre of land.  The grounds and house looked to be well maintained, so evidently Fenry kept a staff on hand.  Night had fallen while she was preparing for this meeting, so there were lights burning in some of the windows.  As they approached the gate, Bandon fell back, looking concerned.

            “Aren’t you coming?”  Tasha asked him.

            Shaking his head, Bandon responded, “It’s better for you if I don’t.  Lord Fenry and I have… a history.”

            “What sort of history, Bandon?” she asked, her tone disapproving.

            Looking defensive, he rounded on the elf, “Until you came along, lady, I lived on the streets.  That meant I had to survive by whatever means I could manage, including theft.  I once targeted Lord Fenry for getting his pocket picked, but his pet half-orc caught me.  Thought I was dead for sure, Vestyn told him to punish me, but for some reason Karnal let me go.”

            “Karnal?” she repeated with a frown.

            “He’s Fenry’s number one man, big, burly sucker.  Half-orc, I suspect he’s a rogue of some kind, probably an assassin but I can’t prove that.  He’s on Vestyn’s payroll, which makes him not exactly trustworthy.”  Bandon was eyeing the house with trepidation.  “You need to be careful in there lady, there’s no doubt Karnal will be in the vicinity.”

            Tasha remembered the surprisingly handsome half-orc she had run into earlier that day, at the military headquarters building.  She wondered if he had been Karnal, but figured she would find out soon enough.  “I suppose I’ll find my own way back to the boarding house then, I’ll see you in the morning?”  He looked like he wanted to say something more, but instead he just nodded and moved off back down the street the way they had come.  She watched him go for a time, then turned to face the manor, which in her opinion didn’t really qualify as a manor.  Glancing both ways to ensure the coast was clear, she crossed the wide street and moved through the open gate onto the well maintained grounds of the house.  There were beautiful flowers and tropical plants of all kinds everywhere she looked, and she wondered if they hailed from Krayt, Lord Fenry’s way of keeping a little piece of home around him.  Lifting her skirt slightly, she mounted the stairs and then raised her hand to knock at the door, but it was pulled open before she had the chance to follow through.

            Standing before her, clad in a nice suit that was obviously tailored to his frail frame, was a human so old that his wrinkled skin seemed to hang from his skull and the rest of his skeleton, rather as though he had no musculature left to speak of.  “Can I help you, miss?”  he asked, his rheumy eyes traveling with obvious interest over the shapely elf.  Tasha had had her body perused by many a man in her life, but rarely had said perusal caused her skin to crawl as this mans did.

            “I… I would like to see…” she was flustered for a moment, for he had caught her off guard opening the door before she knocked, and the evil that radiated off him was palpable, “… I would like to see Lord Vestyn Fenry, please.”  She finally finished, having gotten control of herself.

            “Regarding?” he inquired, his tone flat, monotone. 

            Tasha was getting annoyed, but kept her temper.  “An encounter I had in the woods near the border to Trey’Elden a few days ago, on the way here.  I’m told he would be interesting in hearing about a sighting of the wildman called Wolf?”  The old man stared at her for several moments, saying nothing, his eyes continuing to sweep with glee over her shapely body.  “Perhaps I was wrong.”  She amended, starting to turn away.

            “You’re not.”  Said a voice that was not the old mans, but did cause her to turn back, for she had recognized it from earlier in the day.  The half-orc rogue she had met briefly was now standing behind the butler, having appeared, apparently, from nowhere.  “Lord Fenry is always interested in learning of potential sightings of his brother.”  Placing a hand upon the narrow shoulder of the ancient human, the half orc none too gently shoved him aside, “Move old man.”  Normally Tasha would have been angered at seeing the elderly treated so, but there was something about this old man that gave her the creeps.  The old butler shuffled out of the way, disappearing beyond the door, and the half-breed turned to usher her past him into the house.  “You’ll have to forgive Horace, he’s been with the Fenry family for years, but he is somewhat lacking in the social graces.”

            Tasha crossed the threshold, passing very close to the half-orc, struck once more by just how handsome he was, in spite of the slightly monstrous features passed on by his Orcish ancestry.  “That’s fine, not everyone can be the ultimate host.”  She turned as the rogue, and now that she had gotten a closer look she was certain that was what he was, closed the door behind her.  “You must be Karnal?”

            He was smiling when he turned back to her, “Does my reputation precede me?”  He asked, and she laughed lightly.  “I am Karnal, yes.  I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that you know me, it’s not exactly a secret that I work for Vestyn.”  Then he surprised her, “And you, pretty lady, are the Lady Natashiana Grasamere from the town of Hanover in Aldonia.”

            Tasha’s brows shot up slightly at this, but her full lips quirked in a smile.  She found, in spite of the feeling of danger that emanated from this man, that she rather liked Karnal.  “And here I thought I would have you at a disadvantage!  You’ve obviously done your homework.”

            Karnal nodded, “I’m in charge of Lord Fenry’s personal security.  It’s my job to find out everything there is to know about the people around him.”  He paused, then informed her, “You signed the ledger at the headquarters building.  It wasn’t hard to find out about you, a woman of your beauty tends to stand out.  People remember you.”

            To her embarrassment Tasha actually colored slightly at the flattery.  She was used to men pursuing her, flattering her, but there was something different in the way Karnal said it.  “Thank you, I think.” She said softly.

            “It was definitely a compliment, but you know what you look like, and I’m certain you’re used to men telling you.  I see no reason to waste words on something we both know.”  Tasha was uncertain how to take this statement, but there was one thing she was very certain of, there was desire smoldering in his dark eyes and she wouldn’t have been surprised to learn it was reflected in her own.  Tasha wasn’t unaccustomed to showing her attraction to a man, but she certainly was unaccustomed to being attracted to a man that was a member of what was commonly referred to as the chaos races.  Admitting, even to herself, that she was attracted to Karnal was a little disturbing.  Not only was he a half-orc, he was also a hired killer, both classifications were not what she was normally drawn to, but there was something about him.  “Follow me gorgeous, I’ll introduce you to Lord Fenry.”

            Without another word he started down the hall, Tasha turning to follow, her eyes taking in the broad shoulders and muscular arms, amazed at the grace of his movements in spite of his bulk.  “Can I ask you a question, Karnal?” she asked as they walked.  “It’s rather personal.”  Without slowing he nodded over his shoulder.  “You’re obviously of Orcish decent, but I’m curious what your other half is?”

            Now he did stop, turning to face her, cocking his head slightly as he regarded her.  For a moment Tasha was afraid she had offended him, but finally he asked her, “What would you think it is?”

            Her eyes narrowed slightly, thoughtfully, sliding slowly over his muscular but obviously very graceful form.  She knew that the most common mix of blood to an orc was human, but she doubted that he had a human half.  The good looks, the uncommon grace of his movements, there was only one race she knew of that could have so compensated for the brutal ugliness of the orc, and that meant that she had something in common with the assassin.  “I’d guess High Elf.”

            His smile lit up his whole face, causing the orc features to vanish for a moment and Tasha’s heart to start racing unexpectedly.  It was obvious he was very happy with her answer, “You would guess right.  My mother is a High Elf, my father an orc.”  She wanted desperately to ask him how that coupling had taken place, but she didn’t want to intrude any further.  Instead she fell in behind him again as he turned and started once more down the hallway.  He stopped after another fifteen feet in front of large oak door, “This is the sitting room, he should be in here.”  Knocking, he heard a call from the other side and opened it, preceding the elf into the room.  “Vestyn, you have a visitor.”  As Tasha entered, she saw a tall, slender figure rising from an arm chair where he had evidently been reading.  “Vestyn Fenry, may I present the Lady Natashiana Grasamere.”

           Tasha found herself facing a tall, slightly built man with brown, receding hair that was worn close to his scalp.  His face was narrow, his eyes set too close together on either side of his large, beaklike nose.  Tasha remembered very clearly the nose that the man who had rescued her from the ambush had, and it was a strong resemblance to this mans.  His mouth was thin, a grim slash across his face, above a long, too pointed chin.  His ears were harshly pointed, the tips elongated so they protruded well above his head.  She was surprised by this, for it meant that he was part Chaos Elf, an offshoot of her own race that were considered somewhat taboo by her people.  Vestyn Fenry marked her first meeting with a Chaos Elf and from the stories she had heard about them, how they were selfish, power hungry people, she was suddenly nervous to be alone with him.  She remembered the story Bandon had told her earlier, about how he had a reputation for cruelty, now she thought she understood why.

            Obviously he had not been expecting company, for he was wearing night clothes, silk pajamas beneath a matching long robe that was open in front.  Tasha took in the sitting room at a glance, seeing comfortable furniture, a matching pair of arm chairs and a long sofa, all of which were arranged in a semi-circle facing a hearth in which a fire crackled softly.  Without missing a beat the nobleman moved forward and extended a hand to her.  Tasha allowed him to take hers, feeling long, slender but surprisingly strong fingers engulf her hand.  “Lady Natashiana,” he murmured, bending and pressing his dry, thin lips to the back of her hand, “this is indeed a pleasure.”  As he rose she could feel his eyes traveling over her body, pausing salaciously on the low-cut neckline of her white dress.  “To what do I owe it?”

            Tasha swallowed, her throat suddenly dry, aware of the soft closing of the sitting room door behind her as Karnal slipped out unnoticed.  “I was asked to come here by Major Starr, to inform you of an encounter I had near the Trey’Elden border.”

            He had not released her hand and as he spoke he led her by it further into the room, motioning for her to have a seat on the plush sofa.  She lowered herself into it, sinking into the thick cushions, “Indeed?”  He sat beside her, finally releasing her hand but keeping his resting dangerously close to her thigh.  Tasha’s heart was racing, and she felt suddenly very warm, she wondered whether she were starting to perspire.  “What sort of encounter?”   His eyes were wandering openly over her now, taking in the thin sheen of perspiration that seemed to glisten invitingly in the light cast from the fire.

            Tasha’s heart was pounding in her chest and she was finding it suddenly very hard to concentrate as she felt something akin to butterflies fluttering about in her stomach.  ‘What the hell is this?’ she wondered to herself, for never had she felt such a sudden and powerful arousal.  Somewhere in the back of her mind alarm bells were starting to sound.  “I’m told there was a good chance it was your brother, whom you are here searching for?”  She only just barely got the information out, her mind becoming muddled with other thoughts, far more enjoyable thoughts.  She suddenly wanted desperately to put some distance between them and started to lean forward, attempting to stand up.  He caught her hand again, preventing her doing this and Tasha gasped, for his touch was like lightning.  She felt her nipples harden and her juices were flowing freely now.  She wanted intercourse and she was dangerously close to not caring who it was with!  A small, distant part of her mind was aware of having felt something similar to this before, but she couldn’t grasp the thought, and if she had, she wouldn’t have been able to follow it.

            “His true name is Lobosos Fenry, and yes, I’m looking for him.”  His voice was low, enticing, he was leaning toward her now, his other hand caressing her thigh through her skirt.  “I would be most interested in hearing about your encounter with him, if I could focus on it.  Are you… having as much difficulty as I am concentrating?”

            Tasha was trying to lean away from him, but the farther back she went the more he leaned against her and the more of his body was pressed against hers.  His closeness was almost too much to bear, she momentarily lost the ability to form speech, and could only nod.  ‘So it’s happening to him too?  What in the Nine Hells is going on?’  Aloud she said, “Lord Fenry, we should really stop before we do something we’ll regret.”

            “I won’t regret it.” He breathed as he suddenly leaned in and nuzzled her hair, inhaling her fragrance and pressing his lips to the side of her throat.  “Gods you smell good.”  The tip of his tongue snaked out, trailing down the side of her neck till his mouth was massaging the hollow between her throat and her shoulder.  “You taste good too.”

            “Please… stop.” She said weakly, his hand setting every nerve in her thigh on fire as it suddenly slipped beneath her skirt and started to slowly slide up her satiny thigh toward her hip.  His other hand had released her wrist and was now on her bodice, massaging her breast through the white material then slipping inside the low cut top.  He moaned in delight at the firmness of her breast, kneading the fleshy globe and tweaking the inured nipple between his thumb and forefinger.  “Oh… Gods!” she cried, then his lips were on hers, his tongue probing deep into her mouth and Tasha lost all will to fight the desire within her.  She let him push her back, stretching out on the plush sofa, the noble chaos elf atop her, his hands seeming to be everywhere at once, exploring her luscious body eagerly.  Her legs went about his waist, the soles of her feet pressed to his buttocks, forcing his pelvis down to grind his crotch against hers.  The feel of his erect manhood pressing against her through his pants and her dress was driving her wild.  Vestyn pulled down the low-cut bodice, baring her breasts so that he could lower his head and chew or suck at her nipples, his hands questing beneath her skirts, his fingers curling over the waistband of her panties and starting to slide them down over her well rounded ass and hips.  Tasha, for her part, was working feverishly at the ties on the front of his pajama pants with one hand while the other stroked him skillfully through the thin material.

            He groaned something unintelligible, his mouth full of her breasts at the time, then he cried out as her fingers slipped into the pants, curling around his manhood and stroking him with abandon.  “In me,” she gasped, “I want you in me now!”  He could only nod, pushing her underpants down to her knees and the elf did her part to kick them the rest of the way off, then her legs were again around his waist, her hand guiding him to her most precious spot.  Vestyn threw his head back and howled as he slid into her, marveling at the tight warmth of her canal, Tasha gasping and arching her back at his initial entry.  They stayed that way for a moment, the chaos elf enthralled by the exquisite beauty of the woman beneath him, Tasha lost to the most intense arousal she had ever known.  Then the window to the room exploded inward as a body hurtled through it, causing Tasha to scream, more from surprise than fright, and Vestyn to swear as he rolled off her and the couch all together.

            The archer sat up, her skin flushed and covered in sweat, pulling her dresses bodice up to cover her nudity and rearranging her skirt for the same purpose, her gaze traveling toward the window where a man was picking himself up off the floor.  He was fairly tall, and slender, with skin darkened by the sun and brown eyes which seemed to sparkle mischievously and were, for the moment, riveted upon Tasha.  He wore black from head to toe, a bandana over the top of his head and the top half of his face, eye holes cut into it to give it the appearance of a mask.  A black leather vest, open in the front, to show a marvelous physique, rippling muscles on his chest, stomach and bare arms.  On his hands were soft leather gloves, the fingers having been cut off them and his legs were similarly clad in soft black leather, which was tucked into a pair of soft leather boots.  From a belt around his waist hung a coiled bullwhip and, she saw, a miniature crossbow.

            “Well, well, what have we here?” the man asked, his gaze still on the sexy elf sprawled on the sofa.  “I come in for a brief word with Lord Fenry and find that I’ve interrupted some night time festivities!”  He performed a deep, slightly mocking bow toward the nobleman, “My humblest apologies!”

            Recovering his voice at last, Vestyn growled, “Lurker.”  Then he raised his voice and shouted, “Karnal!  Get in here, we have an intruder!”  As he called for his bodyguard he climbed to his feet, glaring at the interloper angrily.  “You have no business here vigilante!”

            “Quite the contrary, I’ve heard a vicious rumor that your brother has been sighted again.  What’s it been, fifteen years almost?  I guess your last attempt to off him didn’t work after all, did it?”  The man called Lurker smirked at the noble, “I’ve come to tell you that if you make another attempt, I’ll do everything in my power to stop you.”  At that moment the door to the room burst open and the half-elf assassin hurtled in, a pair of matching knives in his hands.  Lurker turned to face the half-breed as he charged forward, growling fiercely.  He thrust with the right hand blade at the intruders stomach, Lurker spinning away to his right, causing Karnal to spin to the left, that knife slashing at neck level on Lurker.  The vigilante weaved backward, his back arching as he avoided the knife, then he kicked out with his left foot, catching the half-orc in the side and staggering him toward the window.  Stepping in, Lurker drove his other foot into the larger mans stomach, doubling him over and the rogue rolled across Karnal’s back, landing in front of the window as he uncoiled the whip from his belt.  Turning to toss a jaunty salute at Fenry, he leapt from the window, the whip extending to catch hold of a nearby tree branch and letting the rogue swing to the ground.  Without a pause, Karnal spun and launched himself out of the window, dropping to the ground far below without a pause and pursuing the other rogue into the night. 

            Vestyn Fenry raced to the window, watching his right hand man vanish into the darkness then turned, opening his mouth to speak to Tasha, but all that came out was a violent curse… the elf was gone.

            Tasha ran for two blocks without stopping, her heart still pounding, the street flashing by as she sprinted away from the confusion and danger of Fenry manor.   As she turned and ducked into a dark, narrow alley her hair finally came loose from the raised style in which she had placed it, tumbling down over her shoulders and back.  She was panting when she stopped, bracing herself against a rain barrel as the walls around her began to spin.  Still the unnaturally strong arousal was with her and she squeezed her eyes closed as it mounted, sucking in and chewing on her lower lip to try and fight it back.  After a few moments she realized there was no use and her knees buckled as she gave a long, drawn out moan, her whole body trembling from a the intense orgasm passing through her.  She didn’t know how long it took for the waves of intense, almost painful pleasure to pass through her, but when she came to she was lying on the ground in the alley, her breasts as shoulders heaving as she gasped for breath, her dress clinging to her curves due to her body being drenched in sweat.

            Slowly, the alley still spinning slightly around her, Tasha rolled over and pushed herself up to her hands and knees.  A voice from a little further down the alley asked, “Are you all right?”  She raised her face and saw the man she had heard referred to as Lurker crouched on top of a stack of crates, looking bemused and, she couldn’t help noticing, slightly turned on by the scene in front of him.

            “I honestly don’t know,” she responded, using the rain barrel to push herself to her feet, “I’ve actually never experienced anything quite like… that.”  Tasha was not inexperienced as a lover, but never after intercourse had she ever been so tired as she was right now.  All she really wanted was to return to her room at Madame Mallory’s and pass out.  But she needed answers first, “So who are you exactly?  What’s your connection to all this?”

            “The authorities here in Hauteur refer to me as Lurker, so that name will suffice for us as well.”  He responded to the first question.  “As to my connection to the Fenry family, well… that goes back quite a ways.  Let’s just say that I’ve made it my personal quest in life to make his a living hell whenever the opportunity presents itself.”

           Backing against a wall and leaning her head back with her eyes closed, trying to get the alley to stop spinning, Tasha asked, “Why?”

            The rogue leapt nimbly into the air, flipped twice and landed easily on the ground before her, making hardly a sound.  “My reasons are my own.”  Her green eyes popped open and she looked startled to see him standing so close to her.  With the memory of what happened with Vestyn Fenry so fresh in her mind, she moved sideways along the wall, putting some space between them.  He smiled slightly, raising his hands to shoulder height and stepping back to show he meant no harm.  “I understand you had an encounter with his brother, Lobosos Fenry, in the wilderness near Trey’Elden?”  She nodded, watching him warily.  “How much do you know of his tale?”

            “Nothing, I only just learned his real name from Vestyn.”  She responded.

            He nodded, “I thought as much.”  Backing against the wall across from her, he asked, “Would you like to hear the story?”  Again she nodded, and he took a moment to collect his thoughts.  “Almost two hundred years ago, Vestyn’s father was married to a Wild Elven woman who was one of the only surviving nobles that could directly trace her ancestry to the elves that branched off from the High Elves, a truly powerful family.  Lord Canis Fenry and his wife had a child, destined to be an heir to that powerful line, and named him Lobosos.  As was her calling in life, the woman, whose name was Trillana, was en-route to a meeting with the then emperor of the fledgling human empire, Errgaunt.”  As he said this, he gestured around them, “She was set upon by raiders in Trey’Elden and was killed, her infant child lost during the assault.  Ever since then, there have been sightings of a wild man, once a child, who lived and prospered amongst the animal life in Trey’Elden and the Western most border of Errgaunt.”

            “Back in Fenry Manor, you mentioned that Vestyn had once tried to kill his brother.  What’s that about?”  Tasha asked.

            He nodded, sighing, before he continued, “Vestyn was born some decades after Lobosos disappeared, to a chaos elf Canis had met in his travels.  He was still considered a noble, even though his wife had passed, so their offspring too is a noble.”

            “Vestyn.”  She said, unnecessarily.

            He nodded, “Exactly.  Vestyn is threatened by the idea of Lobosos, realizing that if he came back to the civilized world he would then be the eldest son of the Fenry line, and Vestyn’s standing in the family would be threatened.”

            “So the power hungry Vestyn is out to ensure that his brother remains lost, permanently.”  Tasha commented, sounding angered at the idea.  “And what about what happened back in that sitting room?  I can assure you that I feel nothing but loathing for Vestyn Fenry, but I’ve never wanted sex so badly in my life and I was past caring who it was with.”

            “Ah, that.”  He smiled slightly, “I’m not sure how he does it, but I can tell you that the women of this town have learned to stay clear of Vestyn.  He’s worked his way through all the attractive ones and now preys upon travelers like yourself.  He seems insatiable and has never been turned down.”

            “If you hadn’t shown up when you did, tonight would have been no different.”  She shuddered slightly at the thought.  “Thank you for that.”

            He nodded slightly, “You are most welcome, and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t part of my reason for intruding.  Also, I felt he could use a reminder that I haven’t left him alone yet.”

            She laughed, though it sounded strained, “I think he understands that.”  She shook her head, feeling even more tired as time went by.  “I had hoped he would be my ticket through Trey’Elden, but there’s no way in hell I’m going to go back there after this!”

            “There may be another way.” He said softly and she raised her brows curiously, “You are every bit the noble that he is, yes?” 

            Tasha nodded, “Where are you going with this?”

            “Well, you probably have the financial means to mount your own expedition across the barbarian lands.  Perhaps you could put such a group together and while traveling, you might be presented with an opportunity to help Lobosos against his brother.”  Lurker explained.

            Tasha frowned, “I’m not destitute, it’s true, but neither are my resources unlimited.  Still, you may have a point in that I’ll need to mount my own expedition to get across Trey’Elden.”  She thought about it a few moments, then added, “I wouldn’t mind the chance to cause some trouble for Vestyn, either.”  She nodded after a moment, “I’ll do it.”

            Lurker grinned.  “Excellent!”  He pushed off the wall and turned toward the darkness of the deeper alley, then paused and turned back to her.  “There is a lad in the city by the name of Bandon, he would be a great help to you in finding the people necessary to help with your journey.  He also has a connection to the Fenry family that he doesn’t like to talk about, but he could be of use to you.”

            “I know of him.”  Tasha assured the rogue.  “Can I ask you something before you vanish?”  She asked, and when he nodded she continued, “What do you know about Karnal?”  It pained her to think of the handsome half-elf working for the likes of Vestyn Fenry.

            Lurker’s eyes narrowed slightly and Tasha was reminded that he and Karnal had come to blows just a few minutes before.  “I know that he’s dangerous, and that he’s not as much Fenry’s man as Vestyn would like to think he is.”  He shrugged, “Other than that, he’s as much a mystery to me as I am to you!”  He smiled, saluted the shapely elf and disappeared into the night.

            Tasha, her mind now full of what she needed to do next, headed back for her room at the boarding house.  She would have to speak to Bandon in the morning, find out what he knew about the Fenry family and the man called Wolf, perhaps even ask him about Lurker.  Then they would have to set about getting a group together for the mission ahead.  She sighed as she let herself into her room and collapsed, still fully dressed, across her bed.  ‘This is going to be hell.’

Chapter Three

            The next morning dawned rather cold and gray, with clouds rolling in from the West, riding on a brisk wind.  Her room was chilled as Tasha awoke, still lying atop her bedding and realized that she was freezing.  Climbing to her feet she pulled the quilt from the mattress and wrapped it about her shoulders, then went to the door and opened it, stepping across the hall to knock on Bandon’s door.  He answered it quickly, so quickly that she thought he might have been waiting for her to knock. 

            “Would you see about acquiring some firewood and building a fire in my room?  We have some things to discuss and I’ll want to be warm while we’re doing it.”  She waited for him to nod, then she turned and retreated back into her own room, curling into a an armchair beneath the quilt and shivering while she waited for him to return.  It took less than twenty minutes before Bandon was knocking at her door and when she let him in he was carrying a large armload of firewood and was accompanied by another young man who he introduced as Mallory’s son-in-law, who was also carrying a load of wood.  Tasha thanked the newcomer, a plain looking individual with worn but serviceable clothes.  He smiled a lot and Tasha thought perhaps he had come only to get a look at her.     

            Once the man had left, Bandon chuckled, shaking his head, “That poor sap is clueless.”

            “Why do you say that?”  Tasha asked with a frown.

            “He volunteered to help me with the firewood, which Mallory keeps in a shed out back, only if he could get a look at you.  I think he was hoping you’d be swept off your feet or something…” he snickered, shaking his head again, “…by him!”

            “Didn’t you say he is Mallory’s son-in-law?”  Bandon nodded, still chuckling, “Which implies he is married to her daughter.”

            At this Bandon’s face fell slightly.  “He was, she died about fourteen years ago in a freak accident.  At least, that’s what people claimed happened.” 

            “What do you mean, that’s what they claimed?”  Tasha inquired, “You think it wasn’t an accident?”

            He snorted derisively, “I’m not the only one.  Mallory is convinced it wasn’t, so is Paul, who you just met.”  He straightened, having just gotten a fire going in the fireplace and turned to face her.  Seeing her interest, he decided to elaborate.  “You see, Paul works at the biggest mill in the city, and his late wife, Embeth, she used to bring him meals and eat there with him.  It was about the only way she got to see the poor guy.  Well, no one really knows how a bloke like Paul managed to corral Embeth, cause she was a real looker she was, but he considered himself one of the luckiest guys on Kyzanthia.  One day, she caught the eye of Vestyn Fenry,” he spoke the name as though it left a foul taste in his mouth, and given her experiences of the night before, she was beginning to understand why, “and he seduced her, though she was never certain how.  She tried to hide it from Paul, but he knew that something wasn’t right and eventually got the story from her.  He went ballistic, of course, marched over to Fenry manor and made all manner of threats to the elf.  Two days later, Embeth was dead, fallen into a wood chipper at the mill.”  Tasha gasped, her eyes widening in horror, a hand flying to her mouth.  “I think she was pushed, personally, though I can’t prove it.  Someone said they saw a dark figure slipping away from the mill right after it happened.”  Tasha thought briefly of Karnal, wondering if he was Fenry’s private enforcer.

            “This poor family,” Tasha said after a moment, “has been through a lot, haven’t they?”  He nodded, poking irritably at the fire.  “Bandon, you know I met with him last night.”  The youth looked over his shoulder at her and nodded, though without comment.  “I’ll tell you that he tried to make me into another notch on his bedpost.”  The teen snorted, shaking his head, “He only failed because someone intervened on my behalf.”  He glanced at her quizzically, “Have you heard of the man that calls himself Lurker?”

            The briefest of smiles flashed across Bandon’s face and then was gone, so quick that she wasn’t even certain she had seen it.  He nodded, “Everyone has heard of him, though very few have actually had the pleasure of meeting him.”

            “Have you?” she asked, “Because he mentioned you last night.”

            “He did?”  Bandon seemed both surprised and thrilled at this bit of news.

            She nodded, “Indeed he did.  He said you’d be the man to talk to about getting a group together that can help me get through Trey’Elden, and perhaps hinder Vestyn Fenry in his search for his brother as well.”

            “Had a bit of a conversation with the vigilante, did you?”  Bandon asked, eyeing her curiously.

            Tasha nodded, shrugging the blanket aside now that the room was warming.  “He found me after I had escaped Fenry Manor.  We spoke for a few minutes, in which time he told me the history of the Fenry family, including why he thinks Vestyn is really looking for Lobosos, his brother.  I agreed to do what I could to help Wolf while trying to make my way through Trey’Elden, which has always been my goal.”

            “Can I ask why you are so desperate to get to Keyos?”  Bandon asked, “You know it’ll be worse for you there than it is here?  Nothing but chaos races and worse over there.”

            Not wanting to delve too much into her own story, Tasha just said, “I’m looking for someone.”

            He nodded, content to leave that alone for the moment.  “So, you want to put together your own group to travel through Trey’Elden?  The guards at the border aren’t letting non-military through, unless they have the consent of the government.”

            “The only way the guards would even know that we had crossed the border is if we stay on the roads, which I don’t think we will do.”  Tasha said.

            He nodded, “That’ll mean a wilderness guide, someone who knows the woods on both sides of the border.”

            “You know such a person?”  Tasha asked.

            He nodded, “I think I may.”

            “Good, we’ll need to move fairly quickly as I have no doubt that Fenry is putting together a hunting party to go after Lobosos.  I’m assuming you’ll want to accompany me on this little adventure?”  He smiled, nodding.  “Good, it’ll likely mean not returning to Hauteur, continuing on with me to Keyos.”  She added this more as a warning than anything else, for she had no intention of returning here.

            “I can live with that, this city was starting to bore me anyways!”  Bandon commented, seeming excited now at the prospect of leaving.

            “Excellent.  In addition to a scout, we’ll need some additional muscle to help out should we run into any trouble out there.”  She said.

            Bandon nodded, “There are no shortage of mercenaries in Hauteur, all of them willing to work for the right coin.”

            “We need to be careful of that though, I’m by no means affluent.  We’ll need to be careful what we offer, and to whom.”  They stared at each thoughtfully for a moment and Tasha was struck by how captivating the young mans eyes were, then she said, “All right, you go and pack while I change.  Then we’ll go out and see who’s available for hire!”

            Freshly changed into a snug pair of thick cotton pants and a button up shirt beneath a wool coat bought at the last minute, Tasha met with Bandon, who had also changed into heavier clothing for in accord with the weather.  From the boarding house they set out into Hauteur, moving deeper into the city than Tasha had yet traveled.  She was surprised to see that it was indeed larger than she had first anticipated.

            “So who is this individual that you seem to think will be willing to scout for us?”  Tasha asked the lad as they walked side by side down the streets of the city, the youth seeming to swell at the jealous glances he was getting from the men they passed for being seen with this lovely elf.

            “Her name is Tallis Isberg, and all you’ll have to do to convince her to help is to tell her that we’re working against Vestyn Fenry.  She’ll jump at the chance.”  He said this with a bit of smug smile.

            Tasha liked the fact that it was another woman he was considering for the position, for she hadn’t relished the thought of being alone in the wilderness with a group of strange men and no one but Bandon to back her up.  “Let me guess, another of his past conquests?”

            He chuckled wryly, “Oh, yes, and she’s not shy about letting her dislike of the man be known.”  Once again Tasha was curious at her young companions history, for it was blatantly obvious that his own hatred of Vestyn Fenry ran quite deep.

            They had, for some minutes, been following a dark alley between two buildings and now they found themselves in a small courtyard of sorts, a square about fifty feet in each direction between roughly half a dozen buildings.  Bandon kept walking toward a hole in the ground at the center of the clearing, but Tasha paused, her gaze on the narrow stairway descending into that darkness.  “We’re going down there?”  Her eyes flicked to Bandon, showing her wariness, “Why?”

            Bandon had stopped at the top of the stairs and turned back to face her, now he spoke with a kind of venom in his voice, “You haven’t been in town long, so you haven’t yet had to endure the animosity the humans feel toward your kind… any non-humans in fact.  Most places won’t even serve you a drink, so those non-humans in Hauteur that are free must find their pleasure away from the eyes of the human citizens.”  He gestured toward the stairs, “Thus Undertown was created.”

            Slowly she started forward, her eyes still on the narrow stairs, which looked sturdy enough.  “Undertown?” she repeated.

            He nodded, “Actually the brain child of a group of goblins that got together and formed a kind of partnership.  They took a loan from a local lord, a vampire named Tolivar and began to dig a series of vast tunnels beneath the city.”  Tasha was surprised to hear him speak of a vampire lord in so casual a manner, but she knew that in many places around the world vampires and some other greater undead races were accepted as equals to the mortal denizens.  “They opened a few businesses of their own, catering to non-humans specifically and they were soon joined by others until there was a whole community all its own thriving beneath the streets of Hauteur.”  He turned and started to lead the way down the stairs, “Don’t stray too far though, you don’t want to get lost down here, a lot of unsavory types hide out in Undertown.”

            Tasha nodded mutely, falling in behind Bandon as he descended the stairs.  Her elven vision was quick to adjust to the limited lighting beneath the city, a dimly burning lantern hanging only every hundred yards or so once they had left the relative protection of the staircase.  She was a little surprised at the number of people moving about down here, almost none of them human, though she did see a few different types of elves and even a couple of dwarves.  She and Bandon, who was apparently well known in Undertown, drew a lot of curious stares as they moved through the tunnels of this mysterious place.  Tasha was nervous, trying to watch in every direction at once, seeing strange and often unfriendly faces at every turn.  It seemed to her that the greatest number of Undertown residents were goblin and orc, which fit since those races were the most commonly used as slave labor by the humans of the empire.

            After almost half a mile of steadily walking down a surprisingly busy street, Bandon stopped in front of a building with odd smells and lots of noise spilling from its doorway.  Tasha realized that this establishment was carved into solid rock and that the front wall was the only real construction, having been built up with a couple of now grimy and practically useless windows.  A small, sloppily painted sign over the wide door proclaimed that this was Stumpy’s place, where one could find cold drinks, hot meals and willing women.  She glanced at Bandon worriedly, but he showed no concern as he stepped through the door.  Steeling herself for what she was certain would prove to be a learning experience at the very least, Tasha followed him. 

            The interior of Stumpy’s, which was a mix of tavern, restaurant and gambling hall, was unbelievably crowded.  People couldn’t move three feet without bumping into someone else and Tasha was jostled to one side as soon as she stepped through the door by another patron on his way out.  The smells in the air were of sweat, alcohol, mixes of food most of it unpleasant and the unmistakable stench of decomposition, and worse someone was trying to cover it all up with a sickly sweet smelling incense.  To top all that off, it was stiflingly warm inside to the point where Tasha instantly felt clammy and started to perspire.  Stepping to one side of the doorway she raised her hands to tie her hair back into a ponytail with a leather tie she carried for such occasions, which she knew would help cool her off, but the motion caused her unbuttoned jacket to fall open, revealing her burgeoning breasts straining against the buttons of her blouse nearly to the point of popping them off! 

            From a table to her right a mans voice moaned with pleasure at the view and Tasha felt a large, clawed hand slide quickly up the back of her thigh then squeeze one of her taut buttocks, the claws digging in painfully.  She gasped, sidestepping out of reach and turned to growl a retort at the mans rudeness, but her words were caught in her throat.  She found herself facing a corpse, except he was leering lustfully at her, one side of his face mostly rotted away, especially at the cheek where there was a large hole, the other half seeming nearly normal and grinning lecherously.  He was tall and powerful looking, his bare arms covered in tattoos, scars and breaks in the skin where it had rotted away, revealing muscle, sinew and bone quite plainly beneath.  This, she knew, must be a greater zombie, one of the animated dead who had gained free will and intelligence due to a curse placed on them by the dark god Nocturne, enemy of Roma, the Goddess who Tasha’s father Ragnor worshipped.  She had heard from him of this unfortunate and largely evil race, but this was the first time she had ever been confronted with one.

            “Verrry nice!” he drawled at her, his voice sounding like the wheels of a wagon on a gravel road.  Not wanting to attract any more attention than she knew she already would in a place like this, Tasha chose to ignore him and his ill manners, turning instead to Bandon and motioning him forward.  As she moved through the room behind her young guide, she shrugged out of her jacket, deciding that it was just too damn hot in this room to wear it.  This of course caused a whole new chorus of hoots and catcalls as her perspiration had already caused the shirts material to cling to her curves.  Trying to show no reaction to the unwanted attention, Tasha simply followed Bandon across the room.

            “Where is she?” the elf asked him.

            Raising one hand he pointed toward a far corner and when Tasha first set eyes upon Tallis Isberg, she was surprised she hadn’t noticed her before.  Like Tasha herself, Tallis was attractive enough to stand out in this rough crowd, a half-elven woman with long, straight blonde hair and light blue eyes.  She had a smallish mouth, but the lips were plump and pouty, her ears delicately pointed marking her elven heritage and her nose straight and pert.  She sat with her back to a corner, her feet propped on the table crossed at the ankle so that Tasha could see she was lean but quite curvy, average in height with average sized breasts that were still firmly rounded.  As Bandon and Tasha approached her table Tallis ran her eyes curiously over the archer, a slight frown marring her delicate features.  Tasha had seen that look before, it was normally directed at her by women that were threatened by her looks, something she felt this woman had no reason to feel.  Tallis Isberg was stunningly beautiful.

            “Bandon,” the young looking half-breed greeted him as they came to a stop by her table, “I almost didn’t recognize you.”  She finally tore her eyes off of Tasha to direct her gaze at the teen, “You clean up rather nicely!”  Tasha saw the lad color slightly at the compliment and realized that he was quite as taken with Tallis as he was with her.  Returning her gaze to Tasha, she asked, “Is it your doing?  His new look?”  Tasha smiled and nodded.  Turning her attention back to Bandon, Isberg said, “Who’d have thought there was such a handsome devil under all that dirt and rags?”

            As if suddenly remembering why he was there and desperately wanting to change the subject, Bandon gestured at his companion.  “Tallis Isberg, this is Lady Natashiana Grasamere from Aldonia.”

            Tallis cocked an eyebrow as she regarded Tasha once more.  “All the way from High Elf territory, eh?  What brings you to the land of human racism?”

            “Passing through, actually, on my way to Keyos, but I’ve hit a little snag.”  She nodded toward the young man standing next to her as she continued, “One that young Bandon here tells me you can help with.”

            Gesturing for Tasha to sit in an empty chair across from her, Tallis spoke to the boy, “Bandon, why don’t you get us a couple of fey wines?  I suspect Natashiana here could use a drink.”

            “Call me Tasha.”  Was the archers quick response, though she nodded at Bandon, his okay to do as asked.  Once he’d moved off through the crowd she leaned over the table toward Tallis.  “I have reason to believe that Vestyn Fenry is about to form a hunting party to go after the man the locals hereabouts call Wolf.”

            Scowling, Tallis inquired, “Why do you say that?  And what’s it got to do with me?”

            Tasha told the younger woman about her initial attempt to cross into Trey’Elden, being turned back at the border and subsequently ambushed by Grizzik and his men.  Also how Wolf had intervened, saving her from being raped by the monsters and her eventual arrival in Hauteur and her ill-fated meeting with Vestyn Fenry.  She ended with, “So I’ve decided to try and… hinder Lord Fenry’s search for his brother as much as I can.  Bandon seemed to think you would want to be involved in this.”

            “He was right,” Tallis commented, her gaze flickered up and over Tasha’s shoulder and she murmured in the same breath, “watch your six.”

            Before Tasha could decipher what this meant, a heavy, clawed hand settled on her shoulder.  She turned and looked up into the frightening, half decomposed face of the man who had copped a feel on her earlier.  He was leering down at her, the bloodshot eye in ravaged half of his face seeming to gaze off to one side while his other eye blatantly stared down the front of her shirt.  “Dance with me elf.”  He grunted.

            “No, thank you.”  Tasha said, starting to turn back to Isberg, but she winced as his grip on her shoulder tightened, and she gasped as he jerked her to her feet with a strength common only to the undead. 

           “I wasn’t asking.”  He growled as he took one of her hands in his and wrapped the other arm about her waist, pulling her tightly against his muscular frame.  He grinned in delight, gazing down at where her bosom pressed against his broad chest.  Tasha knew there was no point in struggling against his hold, for he was obviously far more physically powerful than she, so she went along as he clumsily waltzed her around the floor, jostling people aside.  She could faintly hear music above the tumult caused by the crowd and realized that it was this tune he was attempting to dance to.  She tried to shift slightly in his grip and was rewarded by his clawed hand sliding down to her ass and pulling her even tighter against him.  The smell coming off him was repulsive, a mixture of rot, alcohol and bad hygiene and she tried to lean back away from him so it wasn’t so potent, but arching her back in that way only gave him a more enjoyable view so she stopped, concentrating instead on not getting her feet stepped on.  “What’s your name beautiful?”  he growled, his gaze like a physical touch, making her skin crawl, as it roamed her body.

            She saw no reason not to tell him, since he would likely find out anyway, “Tasha.” She said, offering him nothing more.

            “They call me Jackal.”  He said, squeezing one of her buttocks playfully and laughing when she winced at the feel of his jagged claws digging in.

            “Seems fitting,” she retorted, “most jackals are carrion eaters.”

            He laughed, throwing his head back and roaring at this, then he said, “By the gods I like you woman!”  He dipped her backward suddenly, his bizarrely arranged face looking demented in the faint light as he leered down at her and said, “The only difference is, I’m the carrion!”  Before he pulled her upright he lowered his repulsive face to the side of her head and sucked the tip of one of her ears into his mouth for a moment, then trailed his slimy tongue down the side of her face from earlobe to the tip of her chin, leaving a trail that reminded her of Grizziks tongue when it had plunged down her shirt.  “You taste damn good!” he chortled, standing her up and running his eyes over her, “I want more!” 

            Tasha had had about enough of Jackal, and decided it was time to assert herself.  He was far stronger than she, but Ayla, her warrior monk mother that had instructed her in the martial arts over the years, had always said that stronger didn’t necessarily matter.  If you could get leverage, you could get the upper hand.  She saw her moment when Jackal stepped back and raised her hand high, spinning her beneath it so that he could get an eye full of her ample curves.  As she spun beneath his raised arm Tasha twisted her hand from his grip and closed her fingers around his wrist.  Throwing what strength she had behind the momentum of the spin she stepped out and back, jerking his arm downward and to the rear.  Jackal cried out in surprise as he was lifted off his feet, flipping in a tight arc to land atop a nearby table, scattering tankards, glasses and a couple of empty bottles when he hit.  He lay there a moment, blinking in surprise up at the ceiling, then he opened his mouth and roared with laughter.  The men who had been seated at the table joined in and Jackal rolled off it back to his feet, his leathers dripping with spilled alcohol as he turned to face a suddenly wary Tasha, who had dropped into a fighting stance.

            “You’ve got spunk lady!” he crowed, stepping toward her eagerly, “You’re gonna be fun to break!”

            “I think not.”  Said a familiar voice and Tashas heart skipped a beat as Karnal appeared out of nowhere, seeming to materialize between her and Jackal.  The half-orc, half-elven rogue was again in his work clothes, as he had been the day she had first encountered him at the military headquarters, his head shrouded in a dark hood, a black cloak hanging off his broad shoulders.  She couldn’t remember ever being so happy to see someone in her life.  “I daresay the ladies dance card is full friend.”

            A dark scowl crossed Jackal’s features as he regarded the assassin that had intervened in his fun.  It seemed, however, that he had a healthy respect for Karnal’s abilities, for he backed away slowly, growling, “I’ll be seeing you again elf.”

            Karnal didn’t turn his back, watching the Greater Zombie till he had exited the tavern, then he turned to Tasha with a half smile, “You’re just making friends everywhere you go, aren’t you?”

            Returning the smile, she said gratefully, “Apparently more than I knew, thank you.”

            “Glad I was here.”  He said with a half bow, then started to turn away.

            “Why are you here?”  she asked him softly, wondering if he had been following her.  “Did your master have you follow me?”

            He turned back to her, a scowl darkening his handsome face.  “I serve no master,” he said to her, his tone making a chill run down her spine, “but if its Vestyn Fenry you speak of I am no longer in his employ.”

            “Why is that, if I might ask?”  she wondered aloud.

            Karnal turned to face her fully, his gaze softening considerably.  “After Lurker broke into the house last night and I chased him off, I had some time to process the scene I had burst in on.  I realized what he had been trying to do with you and I can’t tolerate that sort of behavior from anyone, especially an employer.”

            Tasha was a little taken aback, knowing that he was an assassin she hadn’t considered that he might have morals, that there might some things he wouldn’t do.  “What about murdering innocent women?  Shoving them into mill equipment?”

            He winced, “You speak of Embeth, the woman who died because her husband spoke out against Fenry.”  Tasha nodded, her arms crossed beneath her breasts, awaiting his answer.  “That was disgusting, and I had nothing to do with it.  It was before I came to be in his employ, in fact.  I’m aware of his activities with the women of this town and I never approved, he had one of my predecessors do that woman in.  When he tried to seduce you it was just the end of the line.  I walked out on him.”

            “So, you are no longer employed at all?”  Tasha asked, the kernel of an idea forming in her mind.

            “I am what we call a freelance operator, since I have no loyalties to a guild.”  Karnal replied.

            “Do you have any rules about working against former employers?”  Tasha asked him.

            A sly smile crossed his broad face, “No, I don’t.”  He paused a moment, then continued, “So you are planning on acting against Vestyn?”

            “Someone has to, and it seems there hasn’t been anyone else with the guts to do it.”  Tasha commented.

            He nodded, “That’s true, but there’s good reason for it.  He has the local military in his pocketbook.  Major Starr is his loyal stooge, so he’ll have a military escort when he goes out to look for his brother.”

            “That just means we’ll have to find Lobosos first, that’s all.  I’ve already hired a scout,” she glanced over to where she saw Tallis Isberg and Bandon chatting at her table, “at least I think I have.”  Karnal glanced over too, and nodded.

            “I’ve heard of her, she’s supposed to be pretty good.”  He fell in beside Tasha as she started back toward the corner.  Now that she was in the company of the assassin no one was bothering her any longer.  “Pretty too.”  He muttered, causing Tasha to cast him a glance out of the corner of her eye.  He was smirking slightly and she colored, realizing he had been trying to get such a reaction out of her.

            As they approached the table Bandon and Tallis looked up at them, the latter eyeing the half-breed assassin with great interest.  “So, Tallis,” Tasha began as she retook her chair across from the blonde half-elf, “I believe you were agreeing to help us before I was so rudely interrupted?”

            Tallis Isberg, her gaze still riveted upon Karnal, nodded.  “I was, and we’ll work out my wage later.  I’m not too concerned about that, it’s worth working for little pay for the chance to put it to Vestyn Fenry.  Who’s your friend?”

            Tasha turned to regard the assassin, “Karnal, this is Tallis Isberg, Tallis, Karnal.”  She introduced them and the half-orc stepped forward, extending his hand which she shook.  “Karnal has recently left Lord Fenry’s employ and has agreed to help us against him too.”

            A distrusting frown creased Bandon’s face as he looked up at the large rogue.  “Why would you do that?”  The youth asked.

            Karnal looked down at the boy, obvious dislike on his face.  “I have my reasons.”  Bandon glanced at Tasha, as if convinced that she was his primary reason for helping.  He didn’t like the way either of these attractive women was watching the assassin.

            Wanting to alleviate some of the tension suddenly present at the table, Tasha changed the subject.  “So, we have a scout and a rogue, but we still need some added muscle.  A couple of extra sword arms.”

            Karnal grunted, turning pointedly away from Bandon, “I can see to that if you like.  I have some contacts in the city.”

            “Excellent, I’ll trust to your judgment then, Karnal.”  Tasha told him.  “Just don’t offer them too much in the way of gold, my resources are fairly limited.”

            “Understood.”  He said with a nod, then offered a slight bow to Tallis and turned, fading into the crowd.

            “Strange,” murmured Tallis, watching the assassin move away, “I’ve never seen an attractive orc before!”

            Tasha smiled slightly, remembering when she had had the same thought.  “He has elf blood as well, that seems to compensate for his orc half.”  The scout nodded, her thoughts apparently still upon the handsome assassin.  Tasha couldn’t really blame her for she herself had harbored such thoughts.  In fact, the thought of Tallis making a move on the assassin made her a little jealous.  More to change the subject than anything else, Tasha said, “I’ll send you word when we’re ready to leave town, Tallis.  It will depend on how long it takes Karnal to recruit more help.”

            The undeniably sexy half-elf nodded, “I’ll not be hard to find.  Probably here, or somewhere nearby.”

            Placing her hand on the tabletop, Tasha pushed herself to her feet and turned to her young escort.  “Bandon, shall we go and find someplace a little quieter to eat?”  He nodded, seeming as eager as she to leave Stumpy’s.  It wasn’t until following Bandon out that she understood where the place had gotten its name.  The bartender was midget, a human of dwarf like proportions who arms and legs were, for lack of a better term, stump like.  She knew such defects happened, but they were exceedingly rare on Kyzanthia.  Back outside they paused on the walkway by the door and she asked her young friend, “Bandon, is there a decent restaurant in Undertown?  Since I’m not likely to get service above ground?”

            “I can think of one that might meet your standards, ma’am.” He said and turned to the right, leading her down the still dark but oddly crowded street.

            Tasha and Bandon moved side by side down the street, still attracting some interesting looks as they walked.  Tasha could read a myriad of question in the faces of those they passed, some wondering if she was his mother, others thinking they were maybe siblings and even some wondering if they were lovers.  It was comical to see the ones that didn’t recognize the lad right away, for he wasn’t often seen all cleaned up as he was now, so the double takes he was getting as they walked made it difficult for her not to laugh.

            “Lady Tasha, can I ask you something?” he said softly.

            “Of course.”

            “Why did you agree to bring Karnal along?  Aren’t you concerned he’s still working for Fenry?”  The boy asked.

            Tasha scowled, “It’s possible, I suppose.  But his skills will be needed, he could be very valuable to us.  Besides… I just don’t think he’s lying to me.” 

            He frowned, watching his feet as they walked.  “It just seems awfully damned convenient that we happen to be looking for help and he just quite working for the enemy, that’s all.”

            Tasha shrugged, but nodded.  “There is truth in what you say Bandon, but I really don’t think he’s working against us.  And we need him.”

            “You mean you need him.”  The youth grumbled.

            Tasha glanced askance at him, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

            Bandon sighed, “I saw the way you looked at him, and Tallis too.  I just worry that you might not be thinking clearly about the situation.”

            ‘He’s jealous!’ she realized with a start.  Of course she had known that Bandon had been harboring a childish crush toward her since they met, but this was the first time she had seen evidence that it might be something more.  “He’s a very handsome man, Bandon.  But I promise you, I won’t let that color my judgment.  If he shows any signs of being a spy I’ll deal with him.  I’ve got you to watch my back, right?”

            It seemed that her realizing she could rely upon him lifted the lads spirits somewhat, but he was still not completely satisfied, though he was no longer questioning Karnal joining them.  “Why let him see to the hiring of our extra help though?  Who’s to say that someone he hires wouldn’t be on Fenrys’ payroll?”

            “Who’s to say that someone I would hire wouldn’t be?  We would run that risk no matter who did the hiring, and Karnal knows this city and the people in it far better than I do.  I’m going to trust his judgment on that Bandon.  It’s my call to make.”  They walked along in silence for a few moments, then she said, “You really don’t trust Vestyn Fenry do you?”  He shook his head, but seemed unwilling to speak on the subject further.  Tasha decided then and there that it was time to find out what history there was between Bandon and Vestyn, she’d question him over lunch, while they were alone.

           Bandon wound up leading her to a small restaurant wedged in between an alchemy shop and a jewelry maker.  A small sign, with neatly painted lettering above the door dubbed the place Fanny’s.  “Fanny is the best cook in the city. She used to be a slave to one of the nobles up above but she escaped, hiding down here.  The locals of Undertown protect her from the guards, who never come down here anyways.  That’s why this place is so lawless, the city guards don’t care about it.”

            As they walked in Tasha glanced around, finding the interior to be comfortably decorated, a nice fire crackling in a central fireplace.  There weren’t many people in the room and Tasha wondered if they had missed the lunch rush or if they were early.  “Let’s take that table back in the corner.”  She told him, pointing to one that was isolated, blocked from view of the other occupied tables by either a wall or the fireplace.  She didn’t want their conversation to be overheard, and didn’t seem to care where they sat.  The lad plopped into a chair and glanced around, his eyes traveling slowly up the elf as she stood by the table and deliberately removed her jacket with a pronounced arch of her back, one again straining the buttons of her shirt.  Keeping her profile to him she bent and hung the jacket on the back of the chair, feeling his eyes sweeping her curvy profile.  She didn’t smile, but she was trying to get him worked up, hoping it would loosen his tongue.

            Sitting across from him she reached up and untied her hair, shaking her head briskly to send it cascading over her shoulders and down her back, his eyes once again watching her, trance like.  Shooting him a coy little smile she slowly and deliberately unbuttoned the top three buttons of her shirt, his mouth beginning to water as he watched more and more of her sun bronzed flesh appear between the folds of material.  He seemed unable to tear his eyes from her cleavage when she had stopped, but she pretended not to notice, asking, “It is awfully hot in here, isn’t it?”  He swallowed audibly, nodding his head and thinking it had just gotten ten degrees hotter.  Reaching for the menu she asked him, “See anything you like?”

            Smiling lasciviously he said, “Oh Hell yes!” 

            She glanced up from her menu at him, her full lips turning up at the corners.  “I’m not on the menu Bandon.  You may order whatever you like from it though.”  Then she returned her gaze to her own, feeling his eyes occasionally slipping up to ogle her from across the table.  Tasha felt slightly guilty using her body to entice him like this, but he had already shown a penchant for getting distracted around her, so this way she thought he might be easier to question.

            When the waiter arrived to take their orders Tasha was momentarily distracted by the fact that it was a gnome, and she grinned happily to see the little bearded fellow.  The race was well known around the world, but they were becoming a rare sight, even in her home of Aldonia.  Tasha ordered a roasted pheasant while Bandon asked for an elk steak then she ordered a bottle of wine and two glasses to go with it, thinking that a little alcohol in his system couldn’t hurt either.  Once the gnome had waddled off to place their order Tasha smiled dazzlingly at Bandon and leaned forward, placing her crossed arms on the table beneath her breasts which pushed them up beguilingly, the lacy trim of her brassiere becoming just visible in the gap at the top of her shirt.  “So Bandon,” she said in what she hoped was a pleasant, conversational tone, “have you lived in Hauteur in your whole life?”

            She hoped to lull him into a false sense of security by not questioning him about his ties to Vestyn Fenry too quickly.  She wanted to put him at ease that he would be able to enjoy the view she was providing without worrying about giving up too much.  He nodded, “All fifteen years of it.”

            “So do you have parents here somewhere?”  she asked.

            For a moment she was afraid she had already gone too far when his visage clouded over, but he answered her readily enough.  “My mother is dead and my father wants nothing to do with me.”

            She nodded, her heart truly going out to the boy.  “I’m sorry Bandon, I truly am.”  She paused as the gnome brought their wine and glasses, taking a few extra moments to pour them each some, then he moved off again.  “So were you living on the streets when we met then?”  She asked, taking a sip of the wine, which proved excellent. She wondered if it was gnomish made, she had always heard they made excellent wines.

            “Off and on, yeah.  Mallory will sometimes let me stay there if the weather is really bad.  Me and the city guard, we don’t get on so well most times and I don’t like to make trouble for her, so I don’t stay there often.”  He explained, taking a sip of his own wine and nodding approvingly.  She doubted he got much opportunity to drink alcohol being as young as he was and pretty much destitute.

            “You and Mallory are close then?”  she asked, watching his face carefully as she took another sip of the incredible wine.

            “Sort of, yeah.  I don’t get too close to people, it’s dangerous for them.”  He said.

            She nodded, “Because of Fenry?”

            “It seems like he’s always got it in for me.  The guard is in his pocket too, so when they see me on the streets they don’t hesitate to give me trouble.  Hasn’t been too bad the last couple of days though, since I met you.”  He smiled across the table at her, which she returned.  “I think he’s too busy dealing with the latest appearance of his brother.”

            Leaning farther across the table, the motion nearly pushing her boobs completely from her shirt, Tasha took one of his hands in hers and squeezed it.  “Bandon, I’m here to help, I wish you would confide in me what it is that Vestyn Fenry has done to you.  I may be able to help with that too!”

            With difficulty he tore his eyes from her cleavage and met her gaze, finding it as enthralling as her bosom at that moment.  “There’s nothing anyone can do to help with that.”

            “I’d like to try.”  She told him, squeezing his hand.

            His eyes narrowed slightly as he regarded her, wondering if there was some hidden motivation behind this apparent concern.  When he opened his mouth to speak she could hear great sadness in his voice.  “Fifteen years ago, when Vestyn Fenry first came to Hauteur, he was pretty lost and alone.  He was a nobleman, but he hadn’t been able to bring any of his servants with him from Krayt.  Nor any guards, or any support from home of any kind.  Mallory took pity on him and let him stay in her boarding house, which hadn’t been open long at that point.  Vestyn started to throw around his wealth, buying friends and influence, it was then as well that his reputation with women started to spread.  It seemed they found him irresistible, though he was far from an attractive man.  There was one woman in particular that he took a shine to, Mallory’s daughter, Embeth.”  Tasha nodded here, for she had heard this particular story before, or thought she had.  “Embeth was already married, of course, but things like that don’t matter to Vestyn Fenry.  He used his charm and his wealth and he seduced her, used her and discarded her as though she were nothing.”

          Tasha interceded here.  “We talked about this before, when he found out she was pregnant he had her killed.”

            “That’s almost right.”  Bandon said and she frowned.  “The part I didn’t tell you was that Vestyn didn’t find out she was pregnant till a year after she had had the baby.  Paul thought it was his and when he found out it was Fenry’s, that’s when he went ballistic and that is what led to her death.”

            Tasha gazed into his face for a moment, then realization struck like lightning and her mouth fell open.  “Embeth was your mother.”  He said nothing, gazing into her eyes fiercely, his own brimming with tears.  “Roma’s Justice,” she gasped, releasing his hand and sitting up straight, gazing at him with a horrified expression, “Vestyn Fenry is your father!”

            Bandon nodded mutely, took a few moments to get his emotions in check.  “Paul and Mallory have always been good to me in spite of all this, which is why I try and make as little trouble for them as possible.  Mallory, my grandmother, raised me for a few years after my mother was murdered, but I quickly learned that I wasn’t to be left alone.  Fenry was making her life Hell, so I ran away from home when I was six.  I stayed away for seven years, until about a year and half ago when I came back.  Vestyn wasn’t too happy to see me, I can tell you.  But I don’t care, I want him to pay for what he did to my mother!  That’s the only reason I came back here, to get revenge. Eventually he’ll slip up and I’ll get it, it’s just a matter of time.”

            Tasha shook her head, disbelief evident on her face.  Suddenly everything she had learned since arriving in this town made sense.  She was more determined than ever to ensure Vestyn Fenry was unsuccessful in finding his brother.  Someone had to stop this maniac, and it looked like that someone would be his own son, which Tasha intended to help with.  “Let’s eat, then we’ll get started on making that happen, all right?”

            He shook his head, pushing away from the table and standing up suddenly.  “I’m not that hungry anymore.  I’ll meet you at the boarding house, all right?”  She nodded, but he had already turned away and was racing toward the door.  She felt certain he had left because he didn’t want her to see him cry….

Chapter Four

            Tasha left Fanny’s less than an hour later with Bandon’s uncooked meal wrapped in wax paper, her intention to deliver it to him in his room.  She felt mildly guilty for having led the conversation as she had, but she was glad he had chosen to confide in her.  Now she knew what was riding on this for him and it was easier to feel obligated to see it through.  It took her a few minutes to realize she was lost, but when the realization struck that she had absolutely no idea where the stairs leading back above ground were she started to worry.  She was alone in a very strange place and could feel many pairs of eyes watching her intently, not all of them friendly.  She wished now she had brought her bow and quiver with her, but Bandon had recommended against it, thinking that it would just bring even more attention, especially from the city guard, if an elf was seen in the human dominant city, walking down the street well armed.  At the time she had agreed it was better to err on the side of caution, but now she was wondering if it had been the smart move.  Bandon had been with her then, acting as a guide through this subterranean city, but Tasha was not familiar with Undertown and realized she was hopelessly lost.

            She wandered aimlessly through the streets, not knowing where she was going or even what direction she was heading in.  She didn’t understand how races like dwarves and goblins could navigate underground so flawlessly, for every rock wall down here looked like every other one to her.  Finally, after she knew not how long, she stumbled upon a staircase that led up to the main city. She was fairly certain it wasn’t the same one she had come down with Bandon, but she also felt better about her chances of finding her way back to Mallory’s once she was above ground once more.

            As she came out of the dark tunnels the brilliant sunlight was blinding and she raised a hand, shielding her eyes.  The bright sphere was starting to descend toward the horizon, telling Tasha she had been wandering around Undertown for several hours.  Cursing softly, she turned on the landing at the top of the stairs, hoping to find a landmark she recognized.  She found far more than she had bargained for.

            “Such unladylike behavior ain’t fitting for you elf.”  The voice was familiar and as Tasha turned toward it a tingle of trepidation coursed down her spine.  She was standing in another courtyard situated between the rears of buildings, at an intersection of four alleyways, just like the one she had come to with Bandon before, but unlike that one, this one was occupied.  Jackal, the greater zombie she had had the misfortune of meeting in the tavern in Undertown was leaning against a filthy wall, his muscular arms crossed over his chest, his eyes sliding hungrily over the elf.  She shuddered in revulsion, for in the light of the full sun he was even more repulsive looking than he had been down below.  The decomposition in his face and body were far more apparently, standing out strikingly against his pale, dead looking skin.  The side of his face that was mostly rotted away seemed stuck in a hideous, eternal leer, the eye rolling freely in its socket, looking bloodshot and about to fall from his skull.  “Get lost down there did you?”  He was grinning darkly, the less grotesque side of his face looking supremely evil.  “Easy to do in Undertown without a guide.”

            “I managed.” She said, trying not to let the fear she was feeling show in her voice.  She met with only partial success.  She glanced down the stairs again, thinking it might be best to dash back down them and disappear back into the subterranean city, but she could hear booted feet ascending from below.  For a moment, she thought perhaps the new arrivals might be her means of escaping the alley, for she knew by the look on his face that Jackal had no intention of letting her go.

            Apparently he read her expression, however, because he shook his head, “Don’t bother, they’re with me.”  The two men she could now see coming up the stairs towards here were chuckling wickedly, their bloodshot eyes undressing the elf as they approached.  One was an orc, though only of average height.  He had long, greasy black hair and the same apelike snout normally associated with the race, his shoulders and arms were well muscled but he sported a large gut, which hung over his belt buckle, the result of too many ales.  His companion, standing as tall as the orc but looking even more alien, especially in the shadows of the confined staircase, was slender and wiry, covered in course gray fur.  He had a head that resembled a rat, complete with a long snout and whiskers protruding from just behind the nose, which was twitching madly, as though her were savoring her scent.  His eyes, which were clear and astonishingly intelligent, rested upon Tasha, who had heard of a race called Gnawers, a kind of humanoid rodent that was said to infest the sewers of large cities, but they weren’t possessed of this creatures stature. 

            ‘This must be a were-rodent.’  She reasoned then, recalling some of the lessons on the monsters of the world taught her by her father as a young woman.  Once thought a rarity and the unfortunate result of a curse, in the last hundred years it has been discovered the were-beasts in general are surprisingly common in the world, they can simply blend in quite well since they have a mortal guise they keep in addition to their animal one.  The curse of lycanthropy, while very real, was known to not be the only cause of such beings, they were a race unto themselves.

            Cautiously Tasha backed away from the stairs and the orc and the were-rat separated as they left the confined area, each one circling so that the orc stood to her left and the were-beast to her right.  “What do you want?”  Tasha asked, directing the question at Jackal, who seemed to be the leader of this group.  To herself she added, ‘As if I don’t know!’

            Pushing off the wall, Jackal started to slowly walk toward her, his one good eye seeming to take her measure as he approached, the movements of his mouth seeming to not fit the words he spoke due to the hole in the decomposed side, “What I want is to finish what we started down in Stumpy’s.”  His two cronies laughed and Tasha flinched as the orc flicked his tongue at her, the organ so long it snapped in the air inches from her face.  She was reminded of Grizzik, the goblin she had been saved from by Wolf, whose tongue had had a similar length.  She didn’t know that orcs shared that trait and found herself wondering, insanely considering the circumstances, if Karnal shared that with his fathers people.

            “What happened in that tavern was you getting too fresh and deciding to take liberties that weren’t yours!”  She barked, and tall three men laughed.

            Jackal spoke again, “You don’t seem to understand elf,” he paused for effect here, stopping less than an arms reach from her and leaning in so that his ravaged face was a foot from hers, “there’s nothing in this city I can’t claim!  I run the single most successful criminal syndicate in this entire region!  I practically own this town!”  The last sentence was almost shouted in her face and Tasha couldn’t help taking a half step back.  He truly was very frightening, and his breath was about the foulest thing Tasha had ever experienced, decay mingled with alcohol and vomit.  Tasha hadn’t seen the other two move, but suddenly they were at her sides, the were-rat snatching Bandons meal from her hands while the orc grabbed her forearms and twisted them painfully behind her back.  Tasha winced, trying to struggle but he was far too strong, gripping her wrists with one hand and holding them firm the orc grabbed a handful of her mahogany colored hair and jerked her head back violently, causing her to gasp and arch her back, her breasts thrusting toward the zombie before her.  “Hauteur, and everything in it, are mine for the taking.”  Jackal continued, his voice full of soft menace as he extended one hand and trailed a claw lazily along the collar of her button up shirt, the sharp nail severing the same three buttons she had only recently secured after Bandon left the restaurant.  All three men moaned as her cleavage and the lacy top of her bra were revealed to them.  “That includes you!”  This was followed by the sound of tearing fabric and the ricochet of her shirts buttons as they were torn free, scattering across the floor or bouncing off nearby walls.

            “Them’s the prettiest boobies I’ve ever seen Jackal!”  Said the were-rat, his voice a high-pitched, nasal whine.  Jackal extended both of his hands now, sliding them into the half-cups of the all too feminine undergarment that Tasha now regretted wearing. 

            The tips of his claws scraping along the undersides of her breasts sent chills through her and made her skin crawl with revulsion.  “They certainly are.”  He agreed with his rodent friend, kneading her firm globes eagerly.  Tasha was struck by a sudden, insane question, wondering exactly what race Jackal had been before he died and was subsequently cursed.  She didn’t think this was exactly the right time to ask him though.  She struggled against the orcs strong grip, but he only laughed, holding her fast, tightening his hold on both her wrists and her hair.  “Let’s take her inside boys, it’s too open out here and I want to take my time with this one!”

            His thugs laughed, the orc half dragging half carrying Tasha along in his wake as Jackal started toward a stout wooden door in the wall of one of the surrounding buildings.  The rodents’ whiny voice sounded again, “Hey boss, can we get a turn when you’re done with her?”

            Tasha’s blood ran cold as Jackal glanced over his shoulder at her and grinned, the undamaged side of his face all she could see, then nodded, “Sure boys, why not?”  Jackal pushed the door open ahead of him as he stalked through, but Tasha, now more determined to escape her fate than ever due to that last proclamation, suddenly shifted her weight backward, letting the orc support her entirely as she kicked up both of her long legs and planted the soles of her boots to either side of the door frame.  The orc grunted, taken by surprise then toppled over backward as Tasha shoved hard, the well-toned muscles of her legs flexing powerfully as she kicked against the wall with all her might.  She felt the orc toppling and his grip on her wrists slipped as he reached out with that hand to break his fall.  He didn’t relinquish her hair, however and Tasha felt a healthy chunk of it rip from her scalp as she landed atop the orc then rolled quickly away, uncaring that he still had a hold.

            The were-rat, who she now saw had been eating the meal she had purchased for her young friend, gave a squeak of horror and tossed the food aside as he leapt over the orc and made a grab for the elf.  Tasha, her adrenaline pumping and her heart racing, deftly parried his clawed hands aside, surprised at the speed with which he had reacted to her movement.  With a snarl of fury he spun, following the momentum of his own hands after she had parried them away and slashed at her chest with his claws.  Tasha yelped, hopping backward then kicked out in a snap kick that was aimed at his groin.  The rat twisted his hips at the last moment, so that the majority of her kicks force was absorbed on his upper thigh, but she still managed a glancing blow to his crotch and the were-beast wheezed a gasp of pain as he staggered to one side and slumped against the wall.  All this happened in the space of three heartbeats and Tasha didn’t waste the sudden opening, leaping the orc, who made a grab for her ankles but missed, and dashing for one of the alleys.  She heard Jackal give a shout behind her and the sound of running feet told her that he was giving chase.  She knew nothing about the greater zombies, so she had no idea if he would be faster than her, but Tasha, who had grown up in a town where all the streets ran along steep hills, had very powerful legs and was a good runner.

            She ducked down the first alley she came to and then poured on the speed, leaning forward as she tried to widen the gap between them.  At one point she thought she felt fingers trying to close in her trailing hair, but might have imagined it.  Barreling on, she didn’t look back, hearing him swearing and cussing at her as he continued to give chase.  She rounded a corner and deliberately toppled a stack of crates that were against a wall to her left, hoping they would slow him down.  Tasha came then to a two way fork, an alleyway cutting to the left and right, this one even narrower than the first and she skidded to a halt, glancing both directions.  Risking a peek over her shoulder she saw the zombie hurtle the crates like they weren’t even there and keep racing toward her.  Without worrying where it would lead, she turned left and darted into that alley, hearing his hoarse laughter behind her as he witnessed the move.  It wasn’t until she had rounded the next corner that she understood his laughter, skidding to a halt again as she came to a high brick wall that blocked the end of the alley.

            Hearing Jackal charging up behind her she spun,  her eyes widening in surprise as the undead monster turned his shoulder and rammed into her, putting his considerable supernatural strength behind the move.  Tashas breath was knocked from her lungs and she couldn’t even cry out as she was flung backward, hit the brick wall hard, the back of her head smacking against it in the process, then rebounded forward, staggering into the zombies’ waiting arms, which he wrapped about her middle, pinning her arms to her sides within them.

            Jackal lifted Tasha off the ground, chuckling, then turned and slammed her against a wall, the elf grunting slightly.  Her mind was fogged by pain caused when her head had struck the wall and she was only dimly aware of what was going on around her, desperately clinging to consciousness, which was threatening to leave her.  When he realized all of the fight had left the archer, Jackal released her, using his body to keep hers from slumping to the ground while he took her wrists with one hand and pinned them to the wall above her head.  That done, he stepped back a bit and looked her over eagerly, licking his lips in anticipation of what was coming.  “I am so gonna enjoy you woman, then I think I’ll see what you’ll fetch me on the market!  Perhaps Lord Fenry would like to purchase you for his own pleasures!”  Leaning down he buried his face in her breasts, his free hand circling behind her, questing for the clasp of her brassiere.  Before he had found it, however, there came the soft sound of a man clearing his throat from behind the zombie.  Startled, he wheeled around with a growl, releasing Tasha who slumped to the ground, lying on her side against the wall, her head throbbing and darkness closing in on her.  The last thing she saw before passing out was the greater zombies boots charging toward a pair of rope soled slippers….

            The first thing she was aware of was the sensation of a cool hand pressed to her throat, checking her pulse.  Then a damp cloth was put to her forehead and Tasha’s green eyes fluttered open and she moaned, the pounding in her head bringing back to her in a rush the memory of what had transpired.  She tried to sit up quickly but the dizzy spell that overcame her made her moan again and she slumped back down.  “Easy there,” said a soft male voice, “you took quite a blow to the head.”

            Tasha turned her head, gasping at the pain within it and squinting through the blurred vision at the man who was crouched beside her.  She could see that she was still lying in the alley and guessed she hadn’t been out for very long.  “Who are you?” she asked, her voice weak.

            “Brother Haskell, a monk from the church of Roma here in Hauteur.”  Was the response.  His words were an immense to comfort to Tasha, for Roma was the faith of her father and she had always been a follower herself.  She hadn’t even known there was such a temple here, or she would have gone to visit it.  “I happened to be in Undertown, purchasing ingredients for some healing poultices when I saw those two creatures coming up the stairs.  I was behind them, listening as they accosted you.  I couldn’t just stand by and let it happen, but didn’t catch up till the greater zombie had cornered you here.”

            “I appreciate the assist Brother,” Tasha said, wincing again as she started to push herself into a sitting position, “if you hadn’t happened along I would have had a gang rape and life of slavery in my not too distant future.”

            Haskell helped her move so she could put her back to the wall and when she was resting more comfortably in that position her head stopped spinning so violently.  It was then she got her first good look at Brother Haskell, who was rummaging now within a pouch hanging on his hip.  He was human, a painfully thin and balding man of middle age, his face showing the lines of his years around the eyes and mouth.  Next to Tasha, leaning against the wall, was his simple walking stick which Tasha knew, because of her mother who was, like him, a monk of Roma, could be a lethal weapon.  He wore the simple brown robes common to a monk, a simple rope about his waist for a belt.  Tasha had seen her mother similarly clad, though it was more common for Ayla to wear dresses and such in her status as a noble woman.

            Haskell produced from his hip pouch a small capsule about a half an inch wide which he extended to Tasha.  “Here, swallow this, it will help the pain.”  She hesitated a moment, but took the capsule and popped it in her mouth, marveling at the sensation of the outer shell dissolving against her tongue.  She could feel a few herbs and some kind of liquid pouring from within it as she swallowed and, miraculously, her head stopped throbbing and spinning.  “Wow, what was that?”

            “A mixture of natural herbs and some other ingredients not so easily found.  It was them I was in Undertown collecting when I happened on your attackers.  You are better now?”  he asked her with definite concern.

            “Yes, much, thank you.”  She extended a hand to the monk as he stood and he took it,  helping her to her feet.  She experienced a quick dizzy spell and leaned back against the wall till it passed, then she was fine.  When she again looked to Brother Haskell he hastily looked away, blushing in embarrassment at having been caught staring at her scantily clad chest, her torn shirt still hanging open.  Hastily, Tasha pulled the folds together and tied them just beneath her bosom, the bra still visible at her neckline, but it was the best she could do under the circumstances.  “I appreciate your help Brother Haskell, I truly do.  My father is a priest of Roma, it is enough to make one think that your arrival may have been divine intervention!”  He glanced back at her and seeing she was more covered than before, faced her fully. 

            “Perhaps so,” he said with a slight bow, “and now I must return to the temple.  It is a small one as there are not many people in a place like this who would pay homage to the Lady of Justice, but we do try and spread her word.  Perhaps you will stop by before you leave and pay your respects?”

            “It’s the very least I could do.”  She said with a beatific smile that melted the monk in its presence.  “I should perhaps be getting back to my room at the boarding house as well.”  They parted in the alley with Tasha promising to stop in at the temple the next day so that Haskell could be certain she was all right. 

As Tasha let the monk guide her from the back streets she wondered what had become of Jackal and when she asked him, Haskell responded, “No doubt he’s slunk off beneath some rock to lick his wounds.  He got a pretty severe beating when he refused to back down.”  Tasha smiled grimly at this, wishing she had been conscious to see it.  On the main street she thanked him again, kissing him lightly on the cheek which made him flush all the redder, then went her own way.

By the time Tasha had returned to Mallory’s she was bone weary and dragging her feet.  The events of the last several hours were starting to take their toll and she wanted to go collapse on her bed even though it was not yet time for dinner.  She nodded to Mallory as she passed the only woman in the hall, wondering at the piteous look on the old gals face.  She reached her door and turned to unlock and open it when she heard something and turned toward the door of Bandon’s room, frowning.  Hesitantly, she took a step toward it, then she heard again a soft moan from beyond that sounded as though he were in pain.  Alarmed, she stepped up and knocked at the door.  “Bandon?” she called.  After a few moments there was another apparent moan of pain and she knocked again, “Bandon!”

            When he still didn’t respond, she tried the doorknob and felt it turn easily so she pushed the door open.  The elf gasped, staggering as her pulse suddenly quickened and her vision swam, causing her to wonder if she was having a relapse of hitting her head earlier.  Bracing herself with a hand to the door jam she peered into the dimly lit room, squinting.  Bandon lay on his bed, naked and drenched in sweat, thrashing about as though he were in immense pain.  Tasha moved into the room, wanting to help him, but staggering slightly as her knees went a little weak.  They gave out and she collapsed onto them beside his bed, catching herself on his mattress and gasping, “Gods!” as she felt her fingers brush against his bare leg, his skin scalding to the touch.  Something else happened when she touched Bandon, something that she didn’t register right away due to her shock at his elevated temperature.  She was hit by a wave of such heightened arousal that Tasha she felt a shiver of pleasure pass through her from head to toe, lighting her every nerve ending on fire.  She was aware, peripherally, that she had experienced a less intense version of this on two previous occasions, the first being when she had met Wolf in the wilds and the second during her meeting with Vestyn Fenry.  She understood then, though too late to prevent it, that this had to be a trait common to the males of the Fenry family.  But her friend was obviously in pain and she didn’t know what was happening, so she pushed herself to her feet and staggered to the head of the bed, reaching out and touching his face, calling out to him sharply.  He didn’t respond and she felt her knees growing weak again so before they gave out she perched on the edge of the bed next to him, the sheets drenched with his sweat.  Gasping, almost panting with the effects of whatever it was that Bandon was doing, unaware or not, she reached out and slapped his face lightly, “Bandon!”

            His eyes popped open, red rimmed and wild looking and he looked around the room, seeming terrified.  He focused on her and Tasha felt a momentary thrill of terror as something feral came into his gaze, then she felt nothing but the unnatural, intense desire permeating her body as he sat up, grabbed Tasha and rolled her over him onto her back, coming to rest atop the shapely elf, his hands tearing frantically at her clothing.  Tasha, already weakened from what had transpired earlier, hadn’t the will to resist and felt herself carried away by the arousal, helping him to pull her clothing off, gasping and moaning with him as they began to explore each others bodies with their hands and mouths.  That was the extent of any foreplay, if it could be called that for no sooner had the last of her clothing been tossed across the room than she had her long legs wrapped about Bandon’s waist and the youth was entering her with a single, powerful thrust that caused the elf to arch her back, crying out and clawing at the bedding as that one initial penetration brought her first orgasm, the first of what would turn out to be many over the next several hours….

            Tasha awoke to the sound of crying, her beautiful eyes fluttering open and flashing around the unfamiliar surroundings for a moment, till her memory came rushing back.  Frowning, she sat up, clutching a sheet to her neck to cover her nudity.  Bandon sat in a chair across the room, his face buried in his hands, sobbing quietly.  She figured she knew why, and a part of her was tempted to prove him right, but she knew that what had transpired between them wasn’t entirely his fault. 

            “Bandon.” She said softly and he gasped, lifting his tear streaked face to look at her, horror struck.  He had, she realized with relief, at least had the presence of mind to pull on some pants, though that seemed to be all he was wearing.  She was struck by, and remembered well the few hours she had spent exploring it, how muscular his young body was.  He was also extremely limber and had more stamina than she would have given him credit for.

            “Lady Tasha I….”  He started, but she held up a hand, cutting him off.

            “Don’t.  You have nothing to apologize for, Bandon.”  She cocked her head slightly, her expression understanding.  “First off, I let myself into your room without permission, though I’ll grant you it was out of concern for your safety.  Second, you were obviously in no fit condition to be in control of your faculties and third… I didn’t exactly say no.”  Her words seemed to allay his fears somewhat, but her next ones brought an expression of utmost agony to his face, “Do you know why, exactly, I did not want to say no?”

            He sighed, gazing at the ceiling for a moment before he answered.  “I have a theory.” 

            “I’d love to hear it.”  She said, sliding from the mattress, still wrapped in his sheet and beginning to move about the room, gathering her clothing.

            “I think it may be a family trait, something common to the men of the Fenry line.”  He shrugged, “I don’t know why it was so strong last night,” Tasha glanced up sharply at that, unaware that a whole night had passed since their coupling, “but it isn’t the first time I’ve noticed something like it happening.  I’ve had to actually concentrate to keep it in check before, when it would rear up unexpectedly.  I can’t control it, not yet anyway, but I suspect my father has mastered it.  That has to be how he gets his women, and why they all hate him afterward, they know they didn’t want him but can’t understand why they couldn’t resist him.”  He watched her bend over, picking up her shredded shirt, “Did I do that?”

            Tasha shook her head, but offered no details about how her wardrobe had suffered such damage.  “I may have a theory how your… power, for lack of a better word, was so potent last night.”  He looked at her expectantly, as though desperate for some reasoning.  “You were in quite an emotional state when we parted in the restaurant, and you’re at a particular age which, in humans, would be puberty.  I’m not sure how your elven ancestry would effect that, likely it would make it last much longer, but probably the combination of emotional distress and puberty caused you to go into some kind of… feverish trance.  It still doesn’t explain exactly what this ability is.  Obviously, it makes you and your father…” she trailed off a moment, remembering her first encounter with Lobosos Fenry, “…and your uncle too I suspect, irresistible to women.  I’d like the chance to research that, perhaps discover a way to resist it, but I haven’t really got the time.”

            “I was pretty feverish, that’s true.  So much so, in fact,” he added ruefully, “that I don’t even remember making love to you.  Just brief flashes that might have been a dream.  I don’t even know if I was any good.”

            Tasha smiled vaguely, her back to the lad as she moved back toward the bed.  “I’ll never tell.”  She said teasingly, then motioned for him to turn his back, which he did, though he watched her surreptitiously in the reflection from a picture frames glass as she dropped the sheet and pulled on her clothes.  “You can turn back around.” She told him, and he did, watching her finish tying together to front of her tattered shirt for a moment.  “The important thing,” she continued when she had finished dressing, “is that we no know about this problem and you can work on controlling it, right?”  The last word was said with a slight warning tone, as though she were telling him to work on his self control.  He nodded sheepishly, and she smiled at him, “Then we need never speak of this again.  Now, you should get some rest, we’ll be leaving as soon as I find Karnal and meet whoever he’s hired to help us.”  She turned and started walking toward the door, then stopped and leaned over toward him, placing a hand on his shoulder.  “I mean that, Bandon, we will never speak of this again, understood?”  He nodded, the blinked in surprise when her soft pink lips pressed to his cheek, then moved over to brush against his ear as she whispered, “And yes, you were very good.”  She walked from the room, not looking back to see his complexion turn as red as a rose.

            Before leaving, Tasha crossed the hall to her room for a change of clothes.  She was rummaging through the armoire in the room she had rented from Mallory when her attention was drawn to noises out on the street.  Tossing a clean blouse on the bed as she passed, Tasha moved to the window and looked out, frowning as she saw a group of men rushing past on the street, shouting something she couldn’t make out.  Opening the window, she leaned out to call a question to a passerby, but before she could she heard one of them yell something about a fire.  Glancing in the direction everyone was running, Tasha saw a red glow in the distance and the streets in that direction were becoming shrouded in smoke.  Another man was running toward the fire and Tasha called out to him, “Excuse me!  What’s on fire?” 

            The man skidded to a halt, turning to face the elf where she leaned from the window, looking a bit like a harlot in her torn and tied together shirt.  “The temple of Roma!”  He hollered, then turned and sprinted off down the street.

            “No!” Tasha was shocked, her first thought was of Brother Haskell, the monk that had rescued her from being gang raped by Jackal and his men.  Turning from the window she raced across the room, down the hall and out the front door.  Vaulting the front gate she turned and sprinted after the other people who were racing toward the temple.

            The temple was almost unrecognizable when Tasha arrived, the entire building which looked to have a about two stories was engulfed in brilliant, blinding flames, such intense waves of heat radiating off it that no one could get within a hundred feet of it.  There was a bucket brigade going, but the temple had been declared a lost cause so the water was being thrown on the surrounding buildings, to keep the flames from spreading through the city.  Tasha could only stand and stare in horror at the inferno, her green eyes spilling tears down her face, which was already stained with soot, her tears leaving streaks in the black.  Someone was running from the direction of the fire, a bucket in hand and she grabbed his arm, halting him. 

            “Was anyone in there?” she asked, her voice a hoarse gasp.

            The man she had stopped nodded, glancing over his shoulder sadly, “The priest who ran the place, his two monk assistants and three acolytes were all inside.  They’re all dead now, every one of ‘em!”  He pulled away from her, rushing off to join a bucket brigade.  Tasha, emotionally overwhelmed by all the events of the last twenty-four hours, slumped to her knees, tears streaming from her eyes as she saw one of the temples of her fathers faith going up in flames.  The sect of Roma was not a large one in any part of the world and they could ill afford to lose a temple.  And then there was the kind monk who had saved her earlier, Tasha was certain that it was that particular act that had brought this on.  There was no doubt in her mind that Jackal and his cronies were responsible for the blaze.

            Tasha stayed by the fire until it had burned out, which took many hours, helping where she could until, by dusk of that night, she returned to Mallory’s exhausted and covered in ash and soot.  The old woman doted upon Tasha when she came in, insisting that sit down and eat something before she went upstairs to clean up and rest.  The elf was grateful for the attention, for she certainly hadn’t the energy to do most of this herself.  Bandon joined her at the table and Tasha was surprised to see him covered in soot as well, for she hadn’t seen him at the fire at all.  He told her he had been a part of one of the bucket brigades, passing water down the line to drench the surrounding buildings.  When they had finished eating Tasha went upstairs to find that Paul, Mallory’s son-in-law, had filled the tub in her room with piping hot water.  Her clothing was still laid out on the bed from that morning, which seemed now like a lifetime ago but she gratefully stripped down and sunk into the tub, soaking away the aches and pains of having spent a full day fighting a fire that she felt was her fault.

            She spent a good hour in the tub, stepping out at last with her skin glowing from having been scrubbed from head to toe.  She took her time drying off with a fluffy towel left her by the man of the house and, rather than donning the clothing she had left on the bed, she went to the armoire and opened it, thinking to pull out a nightgown to sleep in.  As she pulled open the door to the tall closet however, she gave a shriek, hopping backward as a body fell from within.  Her eyes wide in with horror and shock she stared down at the bound and gagged form of Brother Haskell, the front of his robes soaked with blood from a slit throat.  A moment later someone was pounding on her door, calling to her.  She jerked a blanket from the bed and wrapped it around her nude form, then crossed to the door and opened it.  Bandon stood in the hall, looking concerned, Paul behind him with a frown.

            “I’m fine.” She assured the two men.  “But someone left me a message while I was out.”  Standing aside, she admitted the pair, who came in and immediately saw the dead monk on the ground in front of her wardrobe.

            Bandon crouched by the dead monk, examining him a little more closely, which Tasha hadn’t had time to do yet.  “There’s a note.”  He said, finding a small piece of rolled parchment tucked under the monks rope belt.  He plucked it out and handed it to Tasha, who had to tuck the blanket into itself so that it wouldn’t fall before she could use both hands to unroll and read the note.  It read:  Hey elf, sorry we missed you.  I had been prepared to barter for the monks’ life, but you weren’t here to save him.  Guess I’ll have to catch up to you later, Jackal.

            Scowling darkly, Tasha handed the note to Bandon, who read it through and met her gaze with a troubled look.  As if reading her mind, he said, “This mans death was no more your fault than that fire today way.  Jackal and his people are psychotics, Tasha, they do this kind of thing all the time because they know that no one will stand up to them.”

            Tasha sat on the foot of her bed, a thoughtful expression on her beatific face.  “We’re leaving town tomorrow Bandon.  My presence in this city is starting to get others in trouble, I can’t allow that.  We’ll find Karnal, meet the people he’s hired and round up Tallis, then we’re gone.”  She looked up, meeting the young mans gaze steadily, “Be ready, or be left behind.”

            He nodded, “I’ll be ready.”

Chapter Five

            The next morning Tasha and Bandon returned to Undertown, where it had been arranged for them to meet with Karnal, Tallis Isberg and whoever the assassin had managed to hire.  They met at Stumpy’s, the dwarf like proprietor having grudgingly opened for them, no doubt at the insistence of the half-orc assassin.  When Tasha and her young companion walked in the only other people in the room were the quartet they were there to meet, and Stumpy himself, busily wiping down his clean bar with a dirty rag and an even dirtier scowl. 

            As they crossed the room toward the four people, Tasha’s gaze swept the quartet, pausing appreciatively upon Karnal for a few moment before continuing to the two strangers she had yet to meet.  Neither of them was human, and Tasha was beginning to get used to just how many non-humans there were in this human supremacist empire but it was still surprising to find two more.  They were quite the odd couple pairing too, these two men, one a high elf and the other a rock dwarf.  Four pairs of eyes were on her and Bandon as they approached, and Tasha could easily see the admiration in the elf’s eyes and the hostility and mistrust in those of the dwarf.

            As she approached the table, Karnal came forward.  “I heard about the temple,” he said, meeting her eyes and seeing the hurt that passed through her vision there, “you were there, right?”

            She nodded.  “I had made the acquaintance of one of the monks, Brother Haskell.”  She shook her head sadly, “He’s dead, but he didn’t die in the fire.”  Karnal frowned, obviously wanting her to continue, but she could see the two men who were still strangers to her straining to listen in.  “I’ll tell you the story later, for now introduce me to our hired help.”

            Karnal nodded, evidently agreeing that that was wise, and turned to the two men.  “Lady Natashiana Grasamere,” he said, emphasizing her title as though it might inform the men to be on their best behavior, “may I introduce Brudan Bonecrusher and Calidor, mercenaries both but loyal to whomever hires them.”  Tasha shook hands with both men, sizing each one up as she did so.  Brudan was a typical Rock Dwarf in that he was short and stout with a long, bushy black beard and dark eyes that looked small within the folds of leather skin around them, one covered in a black patch.  He wore chain mail armor that was obviously well cared for and had a bastard sword and shield on his back.  Calidor, of course, was the dwarf’s polar opposite, tall and slender, moving with a grace that belied his high elven heritage.  He was a handsome enough man, but Tasha, who had grown up with a father that was considered more handsome than most, was immune to such things in her own people.  What always struck her was when non-elves achieved that level of grace and beauty.  Calidor, like most men, seemed to appreciate Tasha’s natural charms, but he wasn’t rude and leering about it like a lot of men.  She appreciated that and instinctively liked both of these men, even though the dwarf was already griping about being on the payroll of a damned pointy ear.

            “Gentlemen, I’m glad you’ve agreed to join us, we’re going to need all the help we can get.”  After speaking, she turned to Bandon and introduced him to both men, the mercenaries opinions on such a youthful individual joining the party unreadable to the elven archer.  “Now then, we haven’t a lot of time before we must leave, but I have some things to discuss with Karnal before we go.  Why don’t you four,” she motioned at Tallis, Brudan, Calidor and Bandon, “all have a drink on me while I speak to him.”  The four of them moved toward the bar, Bandon seeming to stay close to Tallis as they went while Tasha and Karnal moved into a corner and sat at a small table.  She then filled him in on everything that had happened since she’d last seen him, right here in this tavern, leaving out the part about her and Bandon.

            When she had finished informing him of how Brother Haskell had died, the half-orc assassin swore colorfully.  “That two-bit, slobbering son of an Orcish whore!”  Tasha smirked slightly at this, fairly certain that there was no orcish blood in Jackal and that the half-orc was taking some liberties claiming such.  Leaning a little toward her across the table, Karnal said, “As of this morning, Jackal is on Fenry’s payroll!  He hired the criminal to lead the search for his brother so that he wouldn’t have to go out and get his hands dirty himself!”

            Tasha’s eyes widened slightly at that.  “How many men does Jackal have under his command, exactly?”

            “I’m not sure, but I can almost guarantee you it will be more than we have here.”  Karnal said, gesturing at the bar where there quartet stood, chatting amongst themselves.  Tasha glanced in that direction, seeing Tallis standing at the bar, her back to a disgruntled Bandon, chatting up Calidor and looking as though she found him fascinating.  Brudan stood a little to the side from the others and Tasha wondered at him and the elf, for they seemed a strange pairing.

            “If Jackal has more people than we do, then it would seem prudent to get a move on, yes?”  Tasha inquired and the assassin nodded, falling in with her as she headed for the bar.  A quick drink with her people to seal the partnership, then they were off.

            Tasha’s party left Hauteur heading west, toward the border of Trey’Elden, none of them certain what lay ahead.  Tallis Isberg scouted a ways ahead of the rest of the group while Brudan seemed content to ride at the tail of the group.  Karnal had vanished shortly after they left, though Tasha was certain he was not far away, keeping to the shadows off to the sides of the road on which the traveled, adding his formidable skills to those of their hired ranger.  Tasha was impressed with the assassins ability at stealth, for she hadn’t seen a hint of him since leaving town.  This left her, Calidor and Bandon to ride together, the mercenary and Bandon a few short yards ahead of the archer, who kept scanning the woods around them alertly, even though she had two highly skilled scouts running ahead and to the side of the group.

            This was their daily marching order, with Tallis finding campsites every night for them.  They’d be off and moving again at first light every morning, each of them taking up the same positions they had held the previous day.  On the fourth day it started to become apparent to Tasha that she was going to need more of a plan for hunting Lobosos Fenry than she had formulated before leaving, which she admitted had been more of a hope that he would find them.

            Mid-way through the fourth day of traveling, Tasha trotted forward on her mare to speak to Tallis, who was moving them forward at a good pace.  “How far are we from the Trey’Elden border?” 

            The half-elf shrugged, “A few hours, I think.  We’ve made exceptionally good time since leaving Hauteur.”

            “Then we’re not far from the military outpost that guards the border here.  They turned me back when I tried to cross into barbarian held lands about a week ago.”  She frowned thoughtfully while the ranger nodded, waiting for her to continue.  “I don’t think there’s much chance that they’ll let us pass either, but I’m also certain if we are to find Wolf we’ll need to actually be in Trey’Elden.”

            “Shall we leave the road then?  Cross the border in the wilderness where they’re less likely to catch us?”  Tallis asked.

            “They’re no doubt patrolling the border off the main road too.”  Tasha warned.

            Isberg smirked, “Not to worry, I’m pretty sure we can avoid them.  Military patrols aren’t the quietest when they move through the woods and I’ve noticed that this group,” she glanced over her shoulder disdainfully then, “with the exception of the dwarf, move pretty quietly.”

            Tasha chuckled slightly, “Dwarves aren’t known for their stealth.”

            “There’s a trail not far ahead where we can get off the main road.  It’s not well marked and most folks don’t know about it.  Unless the army has hired some pretty accomplished rangers, we should be able to pass undetected.”  Tallis assured her.

            If there was a trail where Tallis veered off the road, Tasha couldn’t see it.  It seemed to her like they were moving through thick foliage and tightly packed trees, but she admitted that even though the path they appeared to follow seemed heavily overgrown, their horses seemed to navigate it easily enough.  This was a testament to how good Tallis Isberg was at trailblazing, for this rough path didn’t even seem to slow them down. 

            They had been on the trail for about three hours and the sun was beginning to set, Tallis having informed the group two hours before that they had crossed the border into Trey’Elden, when Karnal suddenly appeared at Tasha’s side, drawing a startled gasp from the elf as he lighted on the saddle behind her, having apparently dropped from the trees above her.

            “Don’t do that!” she whispered harshly over her shoulder.  His arms had slipped about her waist when he landed and despite the scorn in her voice, Tasha couldn’t stop herself leaning back against him slightly, too aware of how good his muscular arms felt around her. 

            His lips brushed against the delicate point of her ear as he leaned forward and whispered, “There is a military patrol camped up ahead.  I’ll inform Tallis, we’re going to want to proceed with caution.”  Focusing through the delightful shivers running through her, Tasha nodded and felt him slip from the back of her mount with some regret.  He raced ahead and Tallis, seeing him, leaned down in her saddle so he could speak to her softly.  She nodded and called the group to a halt, which was when Tasha glanced around and saw a knowing smile on Calidor’s face.  She wondered what he thought he knew, but realized when his gaze drifted to the assassin that he had seen the two of them together and must have deciphered the look on her face when he left.

            Dismounting, the six members of the group gathered in a circled, surrounded by their horses, which grazed peacefully around them.  “How big is this patrol?”  Tasha asked Karnal.

            “About a dozen men in camp, probably a few on guard duty around the perimeter.  I didn’t stick around long enough to count them.”  He said grimly.

            Looking at Tallis, Tasha asked, “Can we go around them?”

            The half-elf ranger shook her head in the negative, “Not without backtracking a few hours.”  She swore, “I’m surprised they even knew about this trail!  Most people don’t, save for some of the local tribes, and they’re really not that dangerous unless you wear the uniform of Errgaunt!”

            Karnal looked at their ranger and spoke, “There were two men with them, twin brothers I’m guessing.  Big as our horses and shaggy looking, one with black hair the other brown.  Probably natives of Trey’Elden, but obviously working for Errgaunt now.  Wore animal skins and such, I’d mark them as mountain men or rangers.”

            “Sounds like the Bear brothers.”  Tallis said, sounding like she had swallowed something sour.

            “The who?”  Tasha asked.

            “They are natives of the tribes,” Tallis confirmed with a nod toward Karnal, “though they’ve long since turned their backs on their own kind.  Not sure what their real names are, but they call themselves Grizzly and Kodiak, twin brothers with bad dispositions and even worse reputations.  They are among the best scouts in the region though.”

            “Well, I guess we make camp here then.”  Tasha commented, glancing around uncertainly.

            Tallis shook her head.  “No, not here.  Nearby though.  There’s a good spot where we could have a fire without fear of it being seen from their camp.”  With that, the ranger led the group a half an hour east to a small clearing with a large natural rock formation that blocked the clearing from view in the direction of the military encampment.  They built a fire near the base of those rocks, ensuring it was small enough not to give off a lot of smoke and then posted a rotating guard on top of the rocks just in case a guard from the patrol happened along.  With these arrangements set they settled in for a rather long night, knowing they weren’t going to get much sleep.

            Tasha awoke in the middle of the night, frowning as faint groans and grunts reached her ears.  Pushing her blankets aside she sat up, glancing around and saw, at the very edge of the light cast by the fire, a couple rutting beneath a heavy blanket.  Glancing around, she saw Brudan and Calidor lying within their bedrolls near the fire, the dwarf snoring fitfully and she thought she could make out the shadow of Karnal crouched atop the rocks.  That left Tallis and Bandon, which brought a frown to Tasha’s face for she had seen that Tallis hadn’t been very interested in the youth before this.  Troubled, but not willing to interrupt them she settled back, pulling her blanket back over her and after a while drifted back off to sleep.

            Once again she was awakened from a deep sleep, this time by the slightest of caresses to her cheek.  Her eyes popped open, her heart racing fearfully until she recognized the ferocious but still oddly handsome face of Karnal hovering over her.  The back of his hand was still resting against her face, though he had frozen when she woke.  His eyes traveled down to the hand she had slept with beneath the blanket and she only then realized the dagger clutched within it was pressed to his ribs. 

            Hastily, she pulled the dagger away and he smiled ruefully.  “Good reflexes you’ve got there.”  He whispered, “But I assure you my intentions were honorable.”

            Smiling playfully, Tasha quipped, “What fun is that?”  A girlish giggle escaped her lips when she saw his thick brow shoot up in surprise at that, then she grew serious.  “Why did you wake me?”

            “Listen.”  He said softly, cocking his head to one side.  Tasha pushed herself up on her elbows, listening as well.  After a few moments she heard a sharp though faint crack echo through the night. 

            Frowning, she turned to Karnal, who raised his eyes from her neckline, which was straining over her bosom beneath it.  She had slept in her leathers for safety’s sake, but had forgotten just how snug they were.  She smirked at having caught him, but he looked unashamed of it.  ‘So, we’re not pretending the attraction doesn’t exist anymore.’  She thought, pleased at the thought of being able to openly pursue the assassin, wondering what the outcome of such a thing might be.  Strictly speaking, he wasn’t her type, but she couldn’t deny that he excited her a great deal.  Aloud she asked, “What was that sound?”

            “I think I know.”  He whispered grimly, then he offered her a hand and a wan smile, “Care to take a moonlit stroll with me?”

            “How romantic.”  She said sarcastically, allowing him to help her up, strapping on her quiver and grabbing her bow as they left the campsite.

            Tasha followed Karnal, amazed at the bulky assassin’s ability to remain concealed in the shadows as he moved.  She learned a bit about stealth following him through the night, and they eventually found their way to the edge of the patrols encampment.  Tasha gasped, horrified at the sight that greeted them when they arrived.  There were several tents erected in a loose circle around a central campfire, and near the fire was a man, one of the largest humans Tasha had ever seen.  He stood, spread eagle, ropes running from his extended arms and legs to the branches of trees, each several yards from his position.  He was naked, his massive body looking very like a wall of solid muscle.  His back was to Tasha and Karnal, so she couldn’t see his face, but he had a full head of blonde hair that hung just to his shoulders.  His body glistened with sweat in the campfire and she could see very plainly the welts that crisscrossed his back, buttocks and thighs, blood trailing from each of them.  Several feet behind this man stood a soldier with the rank insignia on his shoulders that marked him as a sergeant, several other drunken men standing around him sniggering as the sergeant brandished a fiendish looking bullwhip.  Tasha could see the Bear Twins, recognizing them from Karnal’s earlier description, lounging by the fire, watching with only partial interest.

            Tasha winced sympathetically as the sergeants lash once again struck the barbarians bare flesh.  He had to be a tribal member, for Tasha could think of no other human that could get that big.  The large man uttered not a sound as the lash struck him, he didn’t move either and Tasha wondered if he had already lost consciousness, then saw his head move defiantly toward his torturer.  She could make out his profile then and saw that though he was battered a bloody of face as well he had strong bone structure and a pronounced jaw line.  She could well guess that he would be a handsome man when not all bruised.

            Leaning toward the assassin, Tasha whispered, “We have to help him.”

            Karnal nodded, his expression showing he was as disgusted by the scene as she was.  Keeping his voice pitched as low as hers, he said, “Wait for my signal, keep your bow handy.”  She nodded as he moved off, fading into the shadows, wondering what he planned.  Her fingers caressed the fletchings of her arrows as she waited, her green eyes sweeping the military camp.  She didn’t have to wait long, seeing the assassin break from the wood line on the far side of the camp, sprinting diagonally through it, flinging a pair of daggers as he went.  The soldiers shouted, catching only a glimpse of him as he sped through their midst, two of them falling away with daggers buried in their throats, blood spewing forth around the blades.  As the soldiers turned, bewildered, starting to move off in pursuit of the assassin, Tasha understood what he had intended and drew forth an arrow, putting it to string and letting fly.  Before it had found its target, the side of a soldiers head, she had sent another one racing after it.  Two more soldiers fell away, one with an arrow piercing from temple to temple while the other had an arrow head protruding from his chest, having entered him from behind and pierced his heart, bursting out the front in a shower of blood and gore. 

            The soldiers were shouting, spinning now in her direction, the Bear twins on their feet, one facing her direction the other looking to where Karnal had disappeared.  Tasha was reaching for a third arrow when Karnal burst back into the camp, sprinting straight across it, a dagger flashing across the camp and catching the whip wielder in the shoulder, spinning him to the ground while the assassin passed alongside the captive barbarian, another blade flashing and severing the ropes holding him on that side.  As he disappeared back into the shadowy wood line Karnal flung that second dagger, one of the Bear brothers howling in pain as it caught him in the side of the knee, putting him down hard.  The other brother, the one with brown hair, crouched at his brothers side, pressing a hand to the wound to staunch the blood while glaring after the assassin.

            Several of the soldiers were crouched by their sergeant who was howling in pain while others moved toward the barbarian, thinking to re-secure him.  Tasha put two of these men down with arrows to the throat, giving the barbarian time to get his bearings and start working on the knots of the ropes on his still tied side.  A third arrow was notched and ready as Tasha searched for the next most likely target, but the bushes to her immediate right suddenly erupted, a burly soldier lunging at her from their cover.  She cried out, rolling to her left and firing blindly up in his direction.  She heard the man grunt and she came to her feet nimbly, facing him as he stumbled, clutching a this side where her arrow protruded.  Dark blood was seeping through his fingers where he had his hand pressed around the shaft of her arrow, telling the elf she had hit an organ and he wasn’t long for this world, but for the moment he was still dangerous.

            “I’m gonna peel your skin woman!”  The man growled as he stumbled toward her, his free hand reaching toward her.

            Again the bushes to her left, her attackers right, erupted outward and Karnal appeared, sprinting back toward the camp.  With a quick flick of his wrist he ended the life of her assailant, his throwing blade cutting deep into the mans skull, right between his eyes.  Tasha didn’t even watch him fall, turning to follow the assassins progress as he continued into the camp, his hands flashing out to his left and right, sending knives flying and taking down two more soldiers, one of which was charging into camp from the perimeter.  Tasha thought he must have been on guard duty with the one that had snuck up on her, and she raised her bow, sending another arrow into a third perimeter guard that had burst into camp right in Karnal’s path.  The assassin didn’t hesitate, stepping over the fallen guard as he disappeared back into the foliage. 

            “Form up in the center, back to back!”  The sergeant was back on his feet again, his shoulder bleeding profusely where he had pulled the dagger out.  Tasha adjusted her aim and let fly another arrow, this one catching the sergeant in the gut and flinging him backward where he slammed into three more of his men and they all fell in a tangle of arms and legs.  Her gaze was drawn back in the other direction then as she heard a roar that sent a shiver down her spine and she saw that the blonde barbarian was free, ropes trailing from his left wrist and ankle where Karnal had cut them.  She marveled at his swiftness as he charged across the camp, his immense manhood flapping as he barreled into the soldiers that were trying to form up around their fallen sergeant.

            ‘He’s hung like an elephant!’  the thought had sprang to Tasha’s mind unbidden and she laughed oddly as she raised her bow and took down yet another soldier who had emerged from one of the tents.  She had seen the brief flash of an officers insignia on his collar before he went down and she realized she had just killed the leader of this patrol.  Facing the wrath of the newly freed barbarian and with their leader dead, the other soldiers panicked and broke ranks, fleeing into the dark woods.  The barbarian roared and made to follow them but stopped, turning slowly toward the sergeant who he had just realized was alive, clutching painfully at the arrow that was still protruding from his stomach.  The sergeant gazed fearfully up at the more than seven foot tall blonde man as he loomed over him, and Tasha watched as the large man raised one bare foot and brought it down, hard, on the arrow, driving it down through the sergeant and into the ground beneath.  The soldier howled, his back arching and blood spraying up from the wound, then he slumped, never to move again.

            The barbarian stood, glaring down at his tormentor, his broad shoulders heaving as he gasped for breath, his eyes wide and crazy looking.  Slowly, Tasha stepped from the woods and moved cautiously toward him.  Seeing the movement from the corner of his eye the barbarian turned toward her and growled, crouching, until he realized he face a woman with a bow and further understood she had been the one to help him.  As he visibly relaxed and straightened, Tasha saw his eyes light with interest as they crawled over her and she flushed with embarrassment as his manhood began to swell before her eyes.  He truly was one of the largest men she had ever seen, in more ways than one!  Averting her eyes from his nakedness, she turned and scanned the campsite for more threats.  Karnal had yet to reappear, and she knew this was because he was scouting for threats as well, leaving her to deal with their large new friend.

            “Would you mind covering yourself up?”  She asked the big man, still not facing him.

            “He doesn’t understand you woman.”  Said a gruff, gravelly voice.  Tasha spun toward the fire, surprised to see the Bear twins still there, the brown haired one glaring at her as he continued to staunch the flow of blood from his brothers leg.  “He only speaks northern human.”

            “Why are you still here?  You should have fled with the rest of the soldiers.”  Tasha inquired.

            “First off, we’re not soldiers, we’re scouts.  Secondly, my brother can’t move or he’ll bleed to death.  We leave together, or not at all.”  The mountain man said.

            “This is a military camp, their sure to have first aid kits here.  Find one, bandage your brother then leave.  I don’t want more trouble, but I will end you both if you make me.”  She said, brandishing her bow threateningly.

            “We got no beef with you or your dark friend, lady.”  The scout said, glancing at his brother.  “But if you wouldn’t mind finding me one of those kits, I would appreciate it.  I can’t exactly leave Grizzly like this.  If I don’t keep the pressure on, he’ll bleed out.”

            Tasha rolled her eyes, then nodded briefly and headed into the tent she had seen the officer coming out of, stepping over his dead body as she went.  She rifled the contents of the tent, finding a first aid kit and pulling a blanket from the cot as she went.  Leaving the tent, she tossed the first aid kit to the uninjured twin and the blanket to the barbarian, watching as he wrapped it around his waist and marveling that it only looked like a towel on him.  With the mans more disturbing nudity fully covered she turned her attention back to the twins.  “Wrap the tightly, then you can move him.”  She had her bow and arrow in hand still, but it wasn’t aimed at them as they had done nothing threatening at this point.  “Before you go, though, what was the mission this patrol was out here on?  Why were they torturing this man?”

            “We were out here looking for a tribe that is believed to be responsible for a lot of the raiding going on near the border.  This guy,” he motioned at the blonde, “happened to stumble on our camp and was taken prisoner.  The officer in charge,” he motioned then at the dead body in the tent, “thought he might be from the tribe in question so he ordered the sergeant to question him.”  The mountain man chuckled darkly, “The sergeant was a sadistic bastard, so he was looking forward to that part.”

            “Did you learn anything about him?”  Tasha turned then to regard the massive blonde barbarian.  He was a truly imposing figure of a man, and the way he was still looking at her made her slightly uncomfortable. 

            “Nothing, he has quite a high threshold for pain.  He never uttered a sound during torture.”  Was the reply.

            Frowning, Tasha turned back to the brothers, the brown haired one had just finished dressing his brothers wound and was helping him to stand now.  “Then how do you know he doesn’t speak anything but northern human?”  With a quick glance at the barbarian she noted the slight smirk that was on his face now. 

            “He’s a northern tribesman, they’re all uneducated louts, aren’t they?”  The tracker commented.

            Tasha turned a scornful look on him.  “Aren’t you both natives of the northern tribes?”

            “We left years ago and have been educated since.”  The wounded brother spoke for the first time, his gaze hateful as he looked at the barbarian.  “We have no more connection to the land of our birth.  That’s why we hire out to the military as scouts against them.”

            “I think it’s time for you both to leave.”  Tasha said, her voice hard with scorn and she raised her bow and followed them with it as they left, the black haired one limping beside his brother, his weight supported on a spear as he went.  They had just disappeared into the woods when Karnal stepped out, met her eyes and gestured that he was going to follow them, to make certain they didn’t double back and try something.  She nodded, waiting till he had left, then turned back to the barbarian.  “So,” she said as she lowered her bow and returned her arrow to its quiver, “who are you?”

            She stared boldly, daringly into his eyes for a few moments, then he grunted.  “I am Quinn, son of Kaern.”  His eyes swept boldly and just as challengingly over her, “Who are you?”

            “Lady Natashiana Grasamere, of the Aldonian city of Hanover.”  She said, her voice clear and concise.

            His brow furrowed, “Elven names are very long, aren’t they?”

            Her full pink lips quirked slightly, “Call me Tasha, then.”

            “Quinn.”  He grunted in return and she nodded.  “If you’ll excuse me a moment, I must retrieve my gear, which they stored in that tent.”  He pointed at a small tent to one side of the fire.  Tasha nodded, and as Quinn moved closer to the tent she turned away and started to search the rest of the camp.  She was just ensuring that all the bodies scattered throughout the small clearing were in fact dead when Quinn re-emerged, clad in a fur loin cloth and a leather bandolier that crossed his massive chest and sported a huge sword on its back.  His boots were fur lined as were the forearm guards he wore.  He was still adjusting the straps on these when he emerged from the tent and Tasha turned to face him, thinking briefly that he looked even more impressive in this guise than he had naked, which was saying something.  A flash of movement to the right drew her eye and she saw a soldier with a crossbow step from the woods there and raise the weapon, pointing it at Quinn.  Tasha understood that this was another perimeter guard that they had somehow missed and he was about to kill the barbarian.  Shouting a warning, the elf raised her bow and drew and arrow in one impossibly swift, incredibly smooth motion, launching the arrow across the clearing.  Quinn, responding to her warning, launched himself forward and the soldiers quarrel went high while Tasha’s arrow caught him high in the chest, just beneath his neck.  He was knocked backward into the trees, dead before he hit the ground.

            Quinn looked up from where he had landed, first looking at her then shifting his gaze to where the soldier had stood.  Slowly, he stood up to his full, almost eight foot height, then dropped suddenly to one knee before the elf, taking her aback slightly.  “You just saved my life, this mean I now owe you mine.”  Tasha opened her mouth as if to say something, but words escaped her.  “It is demanded by the gods of my people.  Honor dictates that I must now protect you with my own until the debt is repaid.”

            “That really isn’t necessary, Quinn.”  She said, stunned almost speechless by this sudden pronouncement.

            He smiled slightly, rising again to his full height.  “I appreciate that you are so generous, milady, but only my gods can release me from this debt.  Until the day I have been able to save your life, I am your protector.”

            She stared into his eyes for a moment, then shrugged.  “At the rate I’m going, that shouldn’t take too long.”

            Tasha and Quinn both turned then as the sound of feet stomping through the underbrush reached them.  Out of the wilderness stomped Brudan Bonecrusher, looking grumpy and irritable, which was pretty much normal for him.  “Someone better explain to me why there’s dead bodies here and none of them are by me own sword!”  He brandished the weapon in question angrily and Tasha could only smile.

            Brudan, who had awakened to find two of their number missing and one of them the current guard on duty had proceeded to wake the rest of the camp, then went in search of their missing members.  When he returned in the company of not only Tasha and Karnal but also the enormous barbarian it launched a series of questions that kept everyone awake till after sunrise with Tasha and Karnal explaining what had happened.  Calidor and Brudan were impressed that the assassin and the archer had taken on the whole encampment alone, but the dwarf continued to grumble about having been left out.

            “Good dwarf,” said Karnal with a mischievous grin, “I had to leave you out because the soldiers would most certainly have heard you coming, I daresay they would have smelled you as well!”  At this Calidor threw back his head and howled with laughter while the dwarf scowled darkly.  The others in the camp, Quinn included, joined in the laughter and finally, after a few moments, the dwarf shrugged and conceded the point.

            “So, the big fella is traveling with us then?”  Brudan asked, as though deflecting their mirth.

            Tasha glanced from the corner of her eye at Quinn, who hadn’t been shy about appreciating not only her body but that of Tallis Isberg as well since his arrival in the camp.  “I suppose he is, for a time.”

            “Well, he’s welcome, provided he can swing that monster blade that is!”  Brudan growled and Quinn frowned at him.

            “Would you care to test my prowess against your own blade, good dwarf?”  Quinn said, his voice a baritone rumble. 

            “Gentlemen, there will plenty of opportunity to test our blades on others without threatening each other!”  Tasha interjected and both the barbarian and the dwarf backed off, the latter doing so grudgingly.  “We should get underway, now the suns up.”  Tasha added, wanting to get the crew moving before more testosterone intervened.  Within an hour they had broken camp and were moving back through the ever denser wilderness of Trey’Elden.

Chapter Six

            Having Quinn join their group turned out to be a good thing as he knew a few trails and shortcuts that Tallis Isberg did not.  The two of them wound up working together, scouting the wilderness a good ways ahead of the others and Tasha couldn’t help but notice that the half-elven ranger didn’t seem to mind his company.  But this observation reminded Tasha of something she had seen the night before, having forgotten about it in the excitement of discovering the military encampments.  Bandon was riding toward the rear of the group, in front of Brudan but behind Calidor.  Tasha reined her horse back, letting the elven mercenary pass her and smirking at his frown.  She had noticed how the man always rode behind her, and she knew exactly why, he liked the view. 

            Reining in to ride next to the youth, Tasha glanced at him from the corner of his eye.  He had been gazing toward the front of the group, watching the distant forms of Tallis and Quinn, a concerned expression on his face.  “Worried she’d going to catch on to what you did?”  He cast her a startled look, and she nodded, “I woke up last night and saw you with her.  I chose not to intervene, though I really should have.”

            “I didn’t mean to.”  He looked sick, as though uncertain how to explain.  “I’d been having a pretty… uhm… erotic dream.”  He glanced at her guiltily and Tasha had the impression he had been dreaming about her.  “The dream must have caused my… inheritance to go off.”  Tasha nodded, understanding that he had meant the ability he inherited from his father.  “Tallis had set up her bedroll fairly close to where I was… and I guess she woke up and….”

            “She was asleep, so whatever chance she had of resisting you was limited already.  Then when she awoke all she could think about was….”  She trailed off, understanding that it was unnecessary to continue.

            Bandon did it anyway.  “Sex.”  He looked slightly dreamy, “She came to me in the middle of the night and I… well, I couldn’t resist.”

            “You should have tried.”  Tasha scolded gently.  “I understand you couldn’t control your dream, Bandon, or your body’s reaction to it.  But it’s still tantamount to rape.”  He looked at her, horrified and she held up a hand to calm him, “Obviously she’s chosen to forget about it, but I daresay that’s only because she doesn’t understand it.  If she knew why she had felt the way she did last night it might have gone very differently.”

            “I’ll try harder to resist those… urges.”  He promised.

            “That’s all I can ask.”  Tasha responded, then kicked her horse ahead and resumed her position in front of the still staring Calidor.

            Several hour later, up by the front of the party, Tallis suddenly stopped, reining her horse around in a circle and frowning at the surrounding wilderness.  Her eyes were narrowed suspiciously and after a few moments she turned to meet Tasha’s gaze.  The elf’s hand was already dropping instinctively to where her bow rested in its scabbard, the other members of the party similarly reaching for their weapons.  There was a flash of movement to the side and as Brudan and Calidor drew blades Tasha twisted in her saddle and barked at Bandon, “Make yourself scarce!”  Unquestioning, the boy dropped from his saddle and slipped off into the woods.

            They were barbarians that pounced on the party from the surrounding woods, brandishing clubs, great swords and axes.  Large, muscle bound brutes with sun bronzed skin, bushy beards and unclean hair.  The screamed war cries designed to frighten their targets and Tasha did in fact feel a chill run down her spine.  She was heartened, however, to hear a similar shout from Brudan as he launched himself off his horses back toward the nearest tribal warrior.  The stout, brave dwarf gave the others the courage they needed to meet the attack head on.

            Calidor, leading with his spear, also leapt from his horse, the point of the spear driving deep into the chest of one of the burly warriors, who grunted, his fist closing around the shaft of the weapon as he fell beneath the slender elf’s attack.  Calidor, using the momentum of the fall to his benefit dropped into a roll, yanking his spear free in the process and came up facing another barbarian who growled, crouching and regarding the elf warily.  With a cocky smile Calidor began to circle, seeing from the corner of his eyes his dwarf friend picking himself up off the body of the barbarian he had tackled.

            “Hey Brudan,” Calidor called, his voice pitched to reflect his cockiness, “if these guys were a few feet shorter, they could be your kin!”

            “Aye,” Brudan bellowed, advancing on another barbarian who growled animalistically and crouched, tossing his axe back and forth between his hands, “they have the build of dwarves!”

            “Actually,” Calidor said, rather predictably, “I was referring the stench!”

            Roaring indignantly Brudan charged into his opponent, raising his shield high to parry away the strike he knew was coming.  Feeling the impact of the warriors axe on his shield he simply angled the weapon up, deflecting the double bladed axe away and drove his sword home beneath it, disemboweling the barbarian who fell to the ground with a howl, blood spraying up to color Brudan’s armor scarlet.

            Up at the front of the party Tallis and Quinn stood back to back, the massive blonde warrior wielded his claymore while Isberg had a short bow in hand, an arrow notched and ready.  They faced off against a quartet of tribal warriors who circled them warily, looking for an opening, several of them eyeing the pretty blonde hungrily.  Tasha, seeing that the duo were outnumbered, drew an arrow from her quiver as she raised her bow, putting the arrows shaft to her bowstring she sighted down it at one of the four men circling her teammates, but a flash of movement to her right drew her eye, and her aim, in that direction and she gasped as she released the bowstring, catching the barbarian who had leapt at her from a low hanging branch in mid-flight and knocking him backward to the ground.  He was dead before he hit, she could tell, but her heart was racing, having been surprised that he got so close.  Another sound from the other direction had her twisting that way, drawing another arrow but she knew as soon as she saw him that she was too late, this warrior had gotten far too close to make her bow effective.  He was a very tall, impossibly muscular warrior with long, fiery red hair tied back in a ponytail.  Unlike the other men in his raiding party this one was fairly clean and his facial hair was neatly trimmed in a goatee and mustache.  His muscular body was marked with tribal tattoo’s, especially his face which looked frightening with eyes shrouded in black and streaks of red down the sides of his face.  In one hand he carried a bastard sword, in the other a battle axe and in his eyes she saw the hunger she commonly saw in men’s gazes when they looked on her.  His intentions were obvious and she had no time to switch weapons.

            “Hey, red!”  The barbarian warrior, who Tasha instinctively knew to be the leader of this party, scowled as he turned to face the voice.  Tasha’s gaze followed his and her heart leapt slightly to find Karnal standing off to one side, leaning against a tree and idly cleaning his claw like fingernails with one of his deadly daggers.  “The lady is with me.”

            The barbarian glanced at Tasha, his desire evident, then decided the challenge was worth the reward and snarled as he turned to face the half-orc assassin.  Crouching, the warrior charged with a growl, swinging his blades before him in a half circle, out to in, trying to catch the limber rogue within their razor sharp arc.  Karnal danced backward, spinning around behind the tree he had been leaning against, coming out around the other side as the barbarians blades impacted with the tree, sinking deep into its trunk.  The assassin darted forward, one of his two blades flashing low toward the barbarian’s kidney.  The red headed warrior was too wily for this, though and released his weapons, leaving them protruding from the trees trunks as he ducked away from the half-breeds strike.  Pushing his advantage Karnal slashed across with his other dagger, narrowly missing the larger mans throat as he weaved backward, kicking out with a booted foot and landing a glancing blow on Karnal’s hip, causing the assassin to grunt as he spun away. 

            Tasha drew back her arrow, sighting once more down the shaft at the red headed mans knee, thinking to take him down but not wanting to kill him.  But he and Karnal were engaged in such a violent dance that she couldn’t get a clear shot at him, so she turned instead back toward the front, scanning the fight as it continued to explode around her.  Brudan stood on top of a pile of four dead barbarian warriors, waving another forward gleefully while Calidor stood amid the dead bodies of three others.  As she watched, he jerked his spear free of another warrior, who fell dead, bringing the elf’s body count even with the dwarf’s. 

            In front of the elf and dwarf, Quinn and Tallis were holding their own against their enemies, but Tasha, from her perch atop her horse, could see that the fight was rapidly going badly, for there were many more warriors still streaming from the woods onto their trail, far too many for her small band to turn back.  She was about to sound a retreat to her friends when someone else’s voice roared out, “Enough!”  Tasha turned and gasped, seeing a battered and bloodied Karnal in the grip of an equally battered but slightly less bloodies red headed warrior, one of the assassin’s own blades held to the semi-conscious assassin’s throat.  His dark eyes turning on her, the barbarian growled, “Drop that bow bitch, or your boyfriend dies!”  Tasha didn’t bother to correct him or to argue, she simply dropped her bow and quiver, noting with relief that the fighting around her seemed to have stopped as the rest of the party also noticed Karnal’s plight.

            “Sorry elf.”  The assassin mumbled, the only sign that he was even coherent.

            Tasha smiled slightly at him, “You can’t win them all.”

            “You fought to defend your woman, I beat you, now she’s mine!”  the barbarian growled in his ear and Tasha felt a chill run through her.  Then he turned to the other barbarians on the trail and said, “Collect their weapons, tie their hands, their mounts will make for good eating tonight!”

            Brudan growled, raising his sword defiantly but Tasha raised a hand slightly to him, shaking her head.  The dwarf regarded her for a moment, obviously considering resisting them anyway, but he finally lowered his blade, eventually letting it drop to the ground.  Seeing the tough dwarf relent was the cue for the others and slowly, one by one, the rest of Tasha’s party relinquished their weapons as well.  As his men went about collecting their gear and tying their hands, Tasha turned to meet the smoldering eyes of the raiding parties leader, refusing to look away even though the unbridled lust in his gaze was making her stomach twist sickeningly.  She wondered as she was dragged from her saddle and forced to her knees as they tied her wrists behind her back what had become of Bandon. 

            An hour later Tasha and the rest of her group were marched into the barbarian’s encampment, the elf being shoved hard by the red-headed warrior who had seemed particularly eager to get her there.  Every time he would shove her forward, Quinn would growl menacingly which would earn him a savage shot to the kidney or a shallow stab with a spear point.  Even though he seemed unable to move for the beating he had received, the barbarian leader had opted to have Karnal’s feet tied as well so that he was being carried by two of the warriors, who struggled under the half-orcs weight after the first mile of their hike, which Tasha guessed to be nearly three miles in length.

            The camp was a series of tents of varying sizes, each constructed of treated animal skins stretched between wooden frames.  In the middle of the camp a fire roared, casting off welcome heat as the temperature was starting to drop rapidly as the sun waned in the sky.  Behind Tasha, where Tallis was being similarly shoved into the camp by another of the warriors who had evidently claimed her for himself, the half-elf whispered, “Snow storm coming in.”

            These words chilled Tasha more than the weather ever could, her every thought turned toward Bandon, alone out in the woods.  The barbarian leader had sent some men out to search for the boy, having seen him slip out just prior to their attack.  Part of Tasha hoped they would find him, if for no other reason than they would bring him to the camp and the heat of the fire.  Another part of her hoped he evaded them and found help, though she didn’t know how likely that was.

            Tasha gasped suddenly, jerked from her thoughts by a hand gripping her hair and yanking her head back.  She looked up at the barbarian leader, who looked oddly upside down from that angle, her back painfully arched, her arms secured behind her.  Turning to the other warriors, the leader barked something at them in their own language and Tasha saw from the corner of her eye Brudan, Calidor, Quinn and Karnal each led off in separate directions.  Apparently he was keeping everyone separated, and Tasha admitted this was a good idea as it would keep them from plotting together against their captors. 

            Once he had ensured that the others were safely under guard, the leader turned and regarded her, still bent painfully backward, her position forcing more cleavage over her corset style vests neckline and straining the ties securing its front.  He grinned at this view, running his eyes over her hungrily, then he stood her up and shoved her roughly toward one of the other tents, the largest in the camp, befitting the leaders status.  As she staggered forward she lost her balance and fell to one knee, nearly sprawling face down on the ground before correcting herself.  The warlord, as she was assuming he would be, came forward and grabbed her upper arm in a vice like grip, jerking her painfully to her feet.  Something beyond the fire caught her eye and she turned her head, focusing more directly upon it.  Her green eyes widened in stunned surprise and she shook her head, not wanting to believe what she was seeing.  Next to the warlords tent was a cage constructed of what looked like some kind of large animal bones and within the cage, looking dejected and defeated, was none other than Lobosos Fenry, the very wild elf they had come out here to find!

            As she was led forcibly to the warlords tent Tasha’s mind began to race, wondering how the elf commonly known as Wolf had come to be in their custody and whether or not the mans brother was aware of it!  A moment later she found herself in the large warriors tent, glancing around to see a bedroll of soft animal furs to one side, a small fire pit with a hole in the ceiling for the smoke to escape through and a war chest across the tent from his bed.  There were other things scattered about as well, extra weapons and the like, but nothing special.  Tasha’s vision suddenly began to swim and her heart was racing, causing her to stagger.  It took her a moment to recognize the sensation and when she did her stomach seemed to twist convulsively within her.  She wondered how long Wolf had been kept so near this tent and whether or not the Fenry family gift had been going that whole time.  She turned and when she saw the leering, knowing smile on the warlords face Tasha knew that he knew about the wild elf’s effect on women, which meant she was suddenly in a lot of trouble.

            He came at her in a rush, as if afraid she would try to run, and indeed if she hadn’t been so dizzy she might have.  Gasping at the suddenness of it, Tasha suddenly found herself on her back, the soft furs of the mans bedroll beneath her, the warlord kneeling at her side with a triumphant smile on his face, gazing down at his conquest.  Slowly his fingers started to pull at the laces holding together her leather corset and he leaned over, his lips less than an inch from hers as he grunted, “I will have you now.”  Tasha, rapidly becoming lost to the heightened, sensual stimulation brought on by all Fenry men but seemingly more potent from Wolf, could only nod helplessly, for she knew she hadn’t the will to refuse him….

            Tallis Isberg fought her captor like a lynx, her manicured nails scratching at his face like the claws of a cat.  The barbarian warrior who had claimed her as his own growled and slapped her hands aside, then grabbed her wrists in one hand and pinned them to the ground above her head.  Grunting in satisfaction once he had her thus subdued he lowered his face to the cleavage visible in the neckline of her shirt, which he had torn open in their initial struggles.  The warrior, whose name she didn’t know, had taken her to his tent on the opposite side of the camp from where Tasha had been taken.  She wasn’t subjected to the arousal derived from being in the vicinity of Wolf, so she was fighting him with everything she had, but it wasn’t enough.  Though his face was buried in her cleavage, his free hand was working at the fasteners on her pants, his fingers trying to slip into her waistline and down between her legs, which she was keeping tightly clamped together.  He chuckled, insinuating a knee between hers and using that to pry her thighs apart, his fingers brushing the soft patch of hair he found there.

            Tallis stiffened, arching her back, her light blue eyes widening in outrage, “You sick fuck!  I’ll kill you!”  The barbarian warrior growled, understanding her tone more than her language, burrowing his hand further into her pants while biting painfully onto one of her firmly rounded if average sized breasts.

            “Not if I get to him first.”  Said a low, soft hiss of a male voice, seeming right in the warriors ear.  Tallis gasped, a man had appeared as if out of nowhere above them, straddling them.  Even lying prone she could see he wasn’t tall, but the black leather vest he wore revealed a muscular yet slender build.  He wore black pants and knee high boots as well, with matching gloves on his hands and a bandana wrapped about the top of his head with holes cut in it for his eyes.  There was a long bladed knife in one hand that, as she watched, he bent and drove into the barbarian warriors ear.  The man had just enough time to grunt, his head jerking backward as his eyes widened in surprise.  His bearded mouth popped open as if to scream but all that came out was a flood of scarlet that splashed over Tallis’s bared cleavage and neck.  Her savior grabbed the warrior by his filthy brown hair and jerked him off the sexy half-elf who rolled away, retching onto the floor of the tent before turning her head to look up at the dashing swashbuckler.  He stood with one foot propped on a chest next to the warriors dead body, gazing down at her with concern evident on what looked to her like it would be a very handsome face.  “Are you all right?”

            “Better than I might have been if you hadn’t shown up.”  She responded gratefully, “You have my thanks.”  Then she frowned, “But who the Hell are you?”

            Straightening, he offered a deep, somewhat mocking bow.  “The so-called law-abiding citizens of the Empire of Errgaunt refer to me as Lurker, milady.”

            Her pretty eyes narrowed and she nodded, “Yes, I believe I’ve heard of you.  Something of a vigilante if I remember correctly.”

            “Vigilante to some,” he said lightly, “hero to others.”  As he ended he motioned to the body of the dead barbarian at his feet.

            Tallis glanced at her would-be rapists dead body and nodded, unable to deny his heroic actions, but wondering at his motivations.  “Forgive me if I don’t swoon at your very presence!”

He grinned, as if knowing her words to be hollow, and indeed she had to admit suddenly that she felt a powerful attraction to this young rogue.  “So now what?” She demanded, wanting to change the subject.

            “Now,” he said with a scowl as he glanced toward the entrance to the tent, “we rescue your comrades.”

            Clambering to her feet, Tallis did what she could to secure the remnants of her blouse, trying to cover her nudity, as she glanced around.  “No doubt that bastard of a bastard is already having his way with Tasha.”

            His mouth turned down at the corners in a frown, obviously this thought disturbed him and she wondered, seeing his expression, if he knew the elven archer.  “I’ll see to the Lady Grasamere, why don’t you find the others?”  he suggested.

            “I haven’t any weapons, they took my gear along with everyone else’s.”  Isberg informed him.

            Lurker scowled, nodding his understanding of that.  “Did you happen to see which of the tents they stored your parties gear in?”  He asked.

          Shaking her head, Tallis responded, “No, as soon as we arrived he dragged me in here and started to rape me.”  She gestured at the dead warrior.

            “Can you maybe use his weapons?”  Lurker asked, pointing to where the warriors sword belt lay.  He had dropped it beside the tents entrance as he dragged her inside.  Tallis stooped, immediately dismissing the broadsword, which was too unwieldy for her, but the large bladed hunting knife would work well.  In her smallish hand it was more like a short sword.  She nodded at the rogue, he smiled encouragingly then they slipped from the tent and went their separate ways, Lurker to rescue Tasha and Tallis to go after the others.

            Tasha was in a fit of arousal so intense she was soaked in her own sweat, her breath coming in shallow gasps.  The warlord, whom she despised with all her heart but wanted so desperately to feel within her, was kissing his way down her flat stomach, his well trimmed goatee tickling her sensitive flesh.  His fingers were working at her pants, unfastening them while his tongue slipped almost playfully into her navel.  She gasped, her hands still tied behind her making it painful to arch her back, but the sudden sensation brought on by the barbarian brought out a reflexive arch in her spine so that she winced in pain while her face writhed in ecstasy.

            While her back was arched off the ground he took advantage of the position to start sliding her tight pants down over her shapely hips, growling in delight at the sight of her soft womanhood, the hair matching the color of that on her head.  “Gods… no!”  she growled, some part of her psyche still recognizing that she was being raped while every nerve ending in her shapely body begged for release.

            It happened so suddenly that Tasha became confused at first, one moment burning with desire and the next second the mans lips, working their way down her pelvis were causing her such revulsion she nearly vomited on the spot.  She could still feel some residual arousal, but the primary effect had passed and she was able to push the rest aside with minimal difficulty, once she understood she was free of its hold.  Her hands were still tied behind her back and her pants were now around her knees, effectively binding them together, so the elf fought him the only way she had available, thrusting her hips straight up into the air and then to one side.  His head, hovering over that part of her anatomy, impacted her pelvis and he was knocked to the side with a grunt.   He rolled off her, coming to rest next to the elf and chuckling as he sat up, thinking that it had been another instinctive reaction of the elf to his ministrations but then he saw the look of utter loathing on her face and that her apparent arousal had passed.  Scowling, he climbed to his feet and grabbed for what minimal clothing he had been wearing, which he had taken off upon his attempted conquest of Tasha.  Gripping his bastard sword and battle axe in each hand he moved toward the tents flap, casting a suspicious eye on the elf as he exited.

            As soon as he’d gone Tasha rolled her body into a ball, pulling her knees to her chest and slipping her bound wrists beneath her feet.  Straightening up again she managed to wriggle her pants back up over her hips and secure them, then she rolled nimbly to her feet and secured the blouse and leather vest above those, which he hadn’t been able to remove with her wrists tied as they had been.  She could hear shouting outside and started toward the tent flap to see what was going on, but spun toward the rear of the tent when she heard the material ripping.  Frowning, she saw the pointed end of a dagger protruding through the animal skin making up that wall, sliding down to cut a long gash in the material.  A moment later Tasha’s eyes widened in surprise as the young rogue she remembered as Lurker stepped through the gap.  Giving her a cocky grin he bowed deeply.

            “Milady, I have come to rescue you from the clutches of the nefarious warlord!”  Tasha had to stifle a laugh, shaking her head at the audacity of the man. 

            “How did you come to be way out here?”  She asked him.

            “Same way you did.  Looking for Wolf,” he shrugged as he approached her, using his dagger to sever the leather band that secured her wrists, “found him too.  Released him from his cage before I came in here.”

            ‘That explains what happened a few minutes ago.’  Tasha realized, understanding that Wolf had escaped and that was why the arousal she had been feeling ended so quickly.  “So that’s what’s causing all the commotion outside?  The barbarians are trying to recapture him?”

            “Oh, I daresay that has more to do with the escape of your companions than it does with Wolf.”  Lurker commented with an offhand shrug.  “No doubt that dwarf was rather… irate at being a prisoner of these louts.”

            “I should be out there helping them then!”  Tasha exclaimed, moving now toward the tent flap.

            Lurker caught her elbow suddenly, turning her back toward him.  Smiling faintly, he asked, “What, not even so much as a thank you for the rescue?”  She opened her mouth as if to reply but only managed a slight whimper as he suddenly jerked her forward into his arms, embracing her tightly as he bent her backward and crushed his mouth to hers hungrily, his tongue plunging into her mouth and dueling with her own.  Tasha was caught completely off her guard, her instinctive reaction was to return the kiss, her eyes closing and her arms encircling his head.  She was still under the influence of Wolf’s odd arousal too, which hadn’t completely passed as yet, so her body’s natural reaction to the virile young rogue shouldn’t have come as a surprise.  One of her legs rose instinctively, hooking around his upper thigh and he dropped one hand to her leg, caressing her thigh and sliding it up to cradle and knead her firm buttock.  The kiss dragged on for far too long considering there was a battle raging outside, but for those few moments Tasha could think of nothing but the young rogue, nearly losing herself in their passionate embrace.

            With a deep growl that spoke to the difficulty with which he did it, Lurker straightened and stepped back from the elf, leaving her standing before him breathlessly.  Looking flushed and every bit as flustered as she, Lurker tossed her a quick salute and turned to disappear from the tent the way he had entered.  Tasha stood there a few moments longer, shocked immobile, then slowly raised a hand to her mouth, lightly running a finger over her plump lips.  She realized with a start that that kiss, while full of a fiery passion she had not often experienced, had felt very familiar.

            Tasha was snapped back to reality then as someone barged into the tent and she spun to face them, crouching into a fighting stance to defend herself.  It was Quinn, the massive blonde barbarian and he held her bow, quiver and sword which he presented to her as soon as he realized she was alone and apparently free.  She took them with a nod, strapping the belt with her sword and quiver around her hips before following him back out into the camp, longbow in hand.

            Stepping out into the open, Tasha glanced around, heartened to see her companions all alive and well and in apparently pitched battle with the barbarian camp.  Quinn was already charging across the camp with a battle cry that gave her chills, targeting a large warrior that was forcing Tallis into a tactical retreat.  Tasha scanned the rest of the area, thinking the ranger and barbarian could likely handle that problem on their own.  She was looking for the red headed warlord who had come so disturbingly close to having his way with her.  She spotted him in battle with Calidor, the elven mercenary seeming to be holding his own rather well against the warlord.  A short distance from them Brudan was alternately bashing a warrior in the face with his shield while swinging his axe at a second combatant, keeping both men busy at the same time.  The elven archer sighted two more barbarian warriors crossing the camp side by side, thinking to assist their leader in battle against Calidor.  Choosing them as her targets, Tasha drew forth two arrows from her quiver and raised one to her mouth, ripping a fletching from its shaft with her teeth before knocking them both to her bows string at once.  Drawing the string back to her cheek and sighting down the shafts she let the arrows fly, aiming them both at the back of one warrior, but the altered one angled unerringly toward the second warrior.  It struck its intended target in the kidney, dropping him with a howl of pain and the second warrior dropped as well, an arrow protruding from his lower back, both men sprouting blood like fountains from their wounds.

            A growl to her right sent the elf spinning in that direction to see another barbarian, this one a massive warrior with shaggy black hair and wild, red rimmed eyes lunging at her, thrusting a spear.  Tasha sacrificed her weapon to the parry, knocking the mans spear aside but breaking her beloved bow in the process.  Tossing it aside as he swept back in from the right, Tasha reached out with her right hand and caught the spears shaft, just behind the pointed tip, then kicked up with her right leg, scoring a glancing blow to the mans chin before hooking that shapely limb over the shaft of the spear and thrusting her toes toward the ground.  The barbarian stubbornly held on to his spear and so was forced to bend with the power of her muscular leg and the elf reversed her booted foots direction, brining it back up across his face.  He was knocked, spinning, to the ground, his spear now clutched in Tasha’s hands.  No expert with this weapon the elf simply ran him through with it and left the man there to bleed out, his own spear protruding from his chest like morbid flag pole.  With one last, devastated glance at her beloved bow Tasha drew forth her blade and leapt into the fray, the silver bladed sword flashing as she sliced a deep gouge into the back of the warlord, who had dodged backward to avoid a swipe from Calidor’s spear. 

            He howled, turning then so that they stood to either side of him rather than having the elf at his back.  He narrowed his eyes, watching the two elves for a sign of attack, but they were both far too savvy to give any sign.  Leastways, any sign that wasn’t deliberate which he learned to his detriment when Tasha feigned a lunge with her sword only fall back when he turned to defend and Calidor, easily seeing her tactic, jumped forward and plunged his spear into the warlords side.  He screamed, staggering away and drawing the attention of his tribesmen who were scattered about the camp, fighting the other party members.  Withdrawing his spear, Calidor spun it in the air and then drove the point back down again, aiming for the side of the mans head.

            “No!”  Tasha screamed, for she didn’t want the warlord killed.  Calidor altered his trajectory at the last moment and the spear ran cleanly through the side of the warlords knee, which buckled beneath him.  He shouted in pain and anger as he fell, slashing with his blades and Tasha who nimbly danced backward.  Seeing their leader fall was the catalyst to sending the other tribal warriors into a hectic retreat.  Leaving their leader behind they all turned and fled into the dense wilderness, not one of them looking back at their fallen and captured leader.

            “Why didn’t you let me kill him?”  Calidor asked her crossly.

            Tasha scowled down at the fallen warrior, who returned the glare in kind.  “Because dead he can’t answer any questions.  I want to know what these men were doing out here and how they came to capture the very man we’re out here searching for!”

            Calidor’s eyebrows shot up at that and he glanced around, as if looking for some sign of Wolf.  “They’ve got him here in the camp?”

            She shook her head.  “Correction, they had him here in the camp.  The same man that assisted in our escape helped him with his.”  Calidor frowned at her, for he obviously had no idea who she was talking about.  “A vigilante I met back in Hauteur, calls himself Lurker.”  She shook her head, “Somehow he managed to be out here just when we needed him.”

            “That’s convenient.”  Calidor remarked, a little snidely.

            Tasha nodded her agreement.  “Indeed it is, but we’ll deal with the mystery of Lurker another time.”  She felt she had solved that particular mystery, but she wasn’t going to go into it just then.  “Right now I want some answers.”  A stubborn scowl crossed the warlords face as she said this, but Tasha was cut off by a shout from Quinn, who had just come out of a tent he had been searching across the camp.

            “You need to see this.”  He told her, gesturing over his broad shoulder.

            Frowning, the elf crossed the camp to join the huge warrior, following him into the tent.  When she had straightened up after bending to enter the flap she gasped, her eyes widening in surprise.  The small tent was occupied by a beautiful young woman with long black hair and brown eyes, her skin bronzed by years of exposure to the elements.  She wore only a simply animal skin wrapped about her torso, held in place by a simply rope but her beauty was undeniable.  “Who is she?”  Tasha asked Quinn.

            “That answer I know without having to question her.”  Tasha glanced at him quizzically.  “She is Shayla, daughter of Rolfe and princess of the Thundering Hammers tribe.  Her father is the warlord of the tribe, and they are neighbors and allies of my own.  The man who led the raiders that kept this camp?”  Tasha nodded, eager to hear what he knew.  It hadn’t even occurred to her that Quinn might have had some insight into all this.  “He is Varlak, son of Karnash.”  Quinn was obviously struggling with the language barrier, but he pointed at Shayla, “Her father, and Varlak’s father are brothers.”

            “Which makes her and Varlak cousins.”  She shook her head.  “What the hell is going on here Quinn?” 

            “I can answer that.”  Shayla said suddenly from where she lay on the small tents narrow cot, propped up on one elbow, regarding the curiously.

            “You speak elven!”  Tasha exclaimed, surprised at the development.

            “I learned at my fathers insistence.”  She sat up then, her shapely legs trailing over the side of the cot to the ground beneath.  “Varlak kidnapped me so that his father, my uncle, could blackmail my father into turning over control of the tribe to him.”

            “Karnash wishes to rule the Thundering Hammers?”  Quinn asked.

            Shayla nodded, her intelligent brown eyes running appraisingly and appreciatively over the blonde warrior.  “You are Quinn, are you not?  Champion of the Lightning Blades tribe?”  He nodded, his expression showing his surprise that she knew of him.  Tasha thought she detected some pleasure in that look, as well.  “I’ve heard of you, my brother Devlin has crossed blades with you in the games.”

            “Devlin is a fine warrior.”  Quinn said diplomatically. 

            Getting back to the matter at hand, Tasha said, “So how long has Varlak been holding you here?  Will your father submit to your uncles wishes?”

            Shayla sighed, but nodded.  “Eventually he will, yes, but not before he tries to find me and rescue me.  Likely Devlin and our younger brother, Kelvan are out in the wilderness searching for me as we speak.”

            “But how long have they had you?  Surely your father won’t wait that long to give in?”  Tasha asked.

            “No, he won’t, and I’ve been here a week already.  I really must be returned home to prevent father turning the tribe over to that monster.”  Shayla said.

            Turning to Quinn, Tasha said, “Tell the others we leave within the hour.  Salvage what they can from the camp and make certain Varlak is securely tied, he goes with us.  We’ll turn him over to her father and let them deal with him.”

            “We head for the Thundering Hammers tribal lands then?”  Quinn asked.

            Tasha nodded.  “I can’t very well just let this go… it wouldn’t be right.  Besides, it’s possible if we return his daughter that Rolfe might just see fit to helping us deal with Fenry’s party and protect Lobosos!”  The massive barbarian nodded and ducked out the tent while Tasha and Shayla made ready to leave.

Chapter Seven

            Tasha and her party, joined by Shayla left the evil barbarian encampment heading north and west, toward where Quinn and Shayla said her tribe would be found.  Varlak, the young warlord, was draped over the back of one of his own horses, tied wrist and ankle.  They made decent time, covering several miles before it got too dark to continue and they settled in to make camp.  Due to the hostility of the environment, they set up guard shifts with Karnal taking the first one.  The assassin was still looking pretty beat up from his battle with Varlak, but he seemed none the worse for wear.  It was Quinn that woke Tasha for her guard shift, which would last two hours.  She sat by the small camp fire they had made, her hands wrapped around a mug of coffee for warmth as the temperatures in the area were becoming seasonably frigid. 

            As she heard a rustling of the brush to one side of the small camp she jumped to her feet, her hand dropping to the hilt of her sword, not for the first time wishing she had her bow back.  She relaxed, however, when she saw Lurker step from the darkness.  He gave her a cocky little grin and motioned with his head for her to follow him.  He disappeared back into the shadowy wilderness and Tasha hesitated a moment, glancing around at the rest of the group before following him.

            She moved into the dark woods for a short ways, stopping when she could no longer see the glow of the camp fire but still within ear shot of the camp.  She stopped there, crossing her arms beneath her breasts and hugging herself slightly for warmth.  “All right, I’m here, what do you want?”

            From above her came his soft voice, sounding somewhat playful.  “Only to express how happy I am that you made it out of that camp in one piece.” 

            She turned and looked up into the branches above her, scowling at the vigilante who was grinning down at her, no doubt enjoying the view provided him down the front of her top.  “I appreciate your help in that affair as well, though it would have been nice to see joining in the fight that followed.”

            He leapt lightly from his perch, flipping over head to land lithely on his feet.  When he turned to face her he was carrying a heavy, fleece lined jacket.  “You and your people didn’t need my help.”  He said, offering her the jacket.  Tasha accepted the kindness without a word, wondering how he could not be cold wearing nothing but that open front black leather vest on his upper half.  “And if you had, I would have been there.  I was watching, after all.”

            As she pulled on the heavy jacket and fastened it up the front, silently giving thanks for the warmth it provided, Tasha regarded the young vigilante silently.  She had an idea about him, but couldn’t be sure if she was right or not.  She decided to approach the subject now, “So… when will Bandon be returning to our ranks?”

            He met her gaze steadily, his eyes narrowing slightly.  Finally he chuckled a bit ruefully and reached up, pulling his mask from his face, revealing the boyish good looks of Bandon Fenry.  “How did you know it was me?”

            “Back in Varlak’s tent, when you kissed me.”  She smirked slightly, “You claim not to remember anything about that night we… well, the night I’d as soon forget.  But most women can remember what if feels like to kiss different men and you,” she poked him gently in the chest with a finger, “are a fantastic kisser.”  Though he colored slightly, a happy grin crossed his face.  Then she slapped him, hard, rocking him back on his heels and he looked at her with astonishment.  “However, if you ever attempt something like that again without my permission… I’ll personally castrate you, understood?”  He turned white as a sheet at those words and Tashas had to fight not to laugh.  “Now, when will Bandon be returning to us?”

            The young man shook his head.  “He won’t,” before she could argue, he went on, “for the time being at least.  I think it best that Bandon remain lost in the woods.  I’m more useful right now as Lurker.”

            Tasha considered denying this point, but when she thought of all he had accomplished on her behalf in his vigilante guise, she couldn’t deny he was right.  “How long have you been doing this vigilante thing?”  She asked instead.

            He shrugged, beginning to pace back and forth in front of her as he spoke.  “I told you my story, how I disappeared for a few years after my mother died.”  Tasha nodded.  “Well, I’m not the first person to wear the guise of the Lurker.  I met my predecessor while on my travels, he took me on as his apprentice and when he thought I was ready he passed on his gear and weaponry to me.”  He shrugged, “I came back to Hauteur to use the Lurker to work against my father.  That was… about three years ago now.”

            Tasha shook her head, amazed at the life so young a man had already led.  “Look, just be careful out here.  Stay close to us… but not too close.  It wouldn’t do for Karnal to find you creeping around outside our group.”

            “Don’t worry, he won’t.”  Lurker assured her, sounding very sure of himself.

            Tasha shook her head, finding his arrogance slightly infuriating.  “Don’t get cocky Bandon.  That will be your downfall.”

            “I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me.”  He said, stepping toward her and Tasha instinctively stepped back, shaking her head.  He grinned slightly, offered her a mocking bow, then leapt away into the trees.

            With a sigh, Tasha turned back toward the camp and moments later was moving toward the warmth of the campfire.  Crouching next to it and extending her hands toward the flames to warm them, she said softly, “Did you catch all that?”

            Lurker seemed to materialize from the darkness, crouching at her side.  “I did.”

            She nodded, keeping her voice pitched low so they didn’t wake the others.  “Keep an eye on him, will you?”

            “Why do you care so much about that boy?  He’s trouble, that one.”  Karnal said softly.

            Tasha sighed, staring into the flames.  “I care because no one else will.  Someone has to or Bandon may never be redeemed.  Besides, a lot of people call you trouble, too.”

            “So does that mean you care about me, too?”  He asked leadingly.

            Tasha smiled, but refused to rise to that bait.  “Just keep an eye on him, okay?  He’s cocky enough that he’ll get himself hurt… or worse… if he’s not careful.”

            Karnal nodded, then started to turn away.  He paused though, turning back, his expression showing that he wanted to say something else to her.  Tasha reached out and placed a hand gently on his forearm.  “Not now, Karnal.  This isn’t the time or place.”  His expression fell, but he nodded and started to turn away.  She didn’t release his arm though and he turned back to her, quizzical.  “That doesn’t mean the time and place won’t come… and I hope it’s soon.”  It was the first time she had admitted openly that she was starting to feel something for him and he grinned, then vanished into the night.

            The town of Mordant lay between the spot where Varlak was making his camp and the lands claimed by the Thundering Hammers tribe.  It was a small settlement, founded by a group of humans from Errgaunt.  A walled city, they were under constant stress of raids from the barbarian tribes and other monsters that plagued these lands.  As a result, when Tasha made the decision to go ahead and spend a night here to re-supply Shayla and Quinn opted to make a camp outside town, knowing they would not be welcomed within the walls.  Tasha agreed, feeling it was probably best if they kept Varlak in the camp with them as well, under their guard.

            The rest of the group entered Mordant around mid-day, Brudan going immediately for the nearest tavern, of which there were three in town.  Calidor and Tallis followed him and Tasha wondered at the half-elven ranger, for she had noticed the way the pretty blonde woman had been watching Calidor of late.  Before going in search of a room and a hot meal, Tasha turned to Karnal.  “It occurs to me that Jackal and his band may have preceded us here.  Would you nose around town?  See what you can find out?”

            He nodded, “Of course.”  Tasha thanked him, then reined her horse around and headed down the towns one main street, looking for an inn.  She found one called Ashkeep that looked promising, even sporting a young man who worked the front of the building and took her horse to the inns small stable.  Pushing through the door into the lobby of the three story building Tasha found it to be a place of medium quality, which for the wilderness setting the town found itself in was quite telling.  The clerk at the desk perked up when he saw the beautiful elf approaching and she offered him her best smile.

            “Good evening milady.”  He gushed, seeming all too eager to please the shapely archer.  “Are you looking for a room for the night?”

            “I am,” she acknowledged, “and I’m hoping you have one that might contain a private bath?”

            “I’m afraid we do not, ma’am, but for a little extra coin I can have a tub brought to your room.  The bellhop would be happy to fill it for you, I’m sure.”  The clerk said in what she was sure he thought was a gracious tone.  Tasha might have felt he was being gracious as well, if not for the way his gaze kept dropping to her neckline. 

            Ignoring the mans failed attempt at good grace, Tasha asked, “Could you recommend a restaurant nearby?  I’d like a meal before I settle in for the night.”

            He squinted thoughtfully up at the ceiling for a moment, then nodded, “Yes, I daresay the Goat and Bell about a block down the street would be the right choice.”  He smiled at her, as though he had just done her a great favor.  “They have a fine selection of wines and the food is more than palatable.”

            “Thank you very much.”  She told him, then added.  “I’ll take my room key now, and if you can have the tub waiting when I get back I’ll arrange with the bellhop then to have it filled.”  He handed her a key to a room on the second floor and waved jovially as she turned and headed back out of the lobby.

            Outside, Tasha realized she didn’t know which direction down the street this restaurant was located, but since she hadn’t seen it on her way to the inn she figured it had to be in the other direction.  She found the Goat and Bell with little difficulty and was surprised to find that the innkeeper had not lied to her.  The food was quite good and the wine selection was fantastic, so after a meal of bison steak and fey wine she made her way back to the inn.  En-route she glimpsed Calidor and Tallis Isberg engaged in a rather passionate embrace, not too far down an alley next to the tavern they had all gone into earlier.  Calidor, spotting the elf over Tallis’s shoulder offered her a small wave before returning his hand to the buttock of his new lover.  Tasha smiled to herself as she continued on down the street, making a brief pit stop in a general store to purchase some feminine supplies, including a new nightgown that she knew was a size or two too small but it was all they had. 

            Returning to the Ashkeep she climbed the stairs to her room without a word to the clerk, though he looked as though he desperately wanted her to stop at his desk again.  Finding her room on the second floor easily she was relieved to find a rather spacious bathtub inside, a brass and porcelain job perched on four stubby legs.  The room had its own wood stove as well, with a huge pot for heating water.  This meant Tasha could deal with filling the tub herself and opted to do so rather than rely on a bellhop to do it for her.  It took a while, but about an hour later a nude Tasha slipped with a sigh into the piping hot water, leaning her head back on the rim and allowing herself to soak away the aches and pains of the last weeks adventures.  Once the water started to lose some of its heat she finished up, soaping herself off and shampooing her hair before rising from the water and toweling off briskly.  Pulling on her new cotton nightgown she was not surprised that it clung to her womanly curves in some very strategic places, but knowing she could do nothing about it she sat on the rooms double bed and proceeded to brush out her long mahogany colored hair.  She brushed it till it was dry and had a healthy gleam to it, then she tucked her brush away and made ready to settle in for a nights sleep.

            She had just slipped between the cool, clean sheets of the bed when there was a light tap at the door to her room.  Leaning back on her pillows she sighed, closing her eyes and saying a silent prayer to Roma, asking for the strength to not lose her temper.  Climbing again from the bed she moved barefooted across the room and pressed her delicately pointed ear to the door.  “Who’s there?” she whispered loudly.

            “Karnal.”  Came the returned whisper, and Tasha frowned for there was something in his voice she didn’t normally hear.  “Tasha, I’m hurt.”

            That was it, that was what she’d heard in his voice, pain.  Frowning, more worried about him than she would have thought possible, she pulled the door open a few inches and peeked out into the hall.  The half-orc assassin leaned against the door jam, clutching his side beneath his black cloak, the deep hood pulled up to conceal his head.  Gasping, Tasha saw the blood seeping through his fingers where they were clutched to his side and she jerked the door open.  The rogue staggered inside, grimacing as she took his arm and led him to the bed.  Turning him around she sat him down on the foot of the bed and knelt in front of him.  Pushing back his cloak and pulling his hand away she examined the wound inside. 

            “By the Gods Karnal, have you been stabbed?”  she asked him.

            “Apparently the local guild doesn’t take too kindly to an outsider operating in their town.”  He explained, wincing as she probed at the wound with her dexterous fingers.  In spite of the pain he was in, Karnal couldn’t help appreciating the way she filled out her snug nightgown, especially the low cut neckline, and the way the thin material outlined her large nipples.  He realized with a start that she wore nothing beneath the gown and he was embarrassed to feel his manhood beginning to swell at the thought.

            “You were only asking questions, it’s not like you were practicing your trade!” she exclaimed, looking up into his face.  She saw his eyes hastily rise to meet hers and she smirked, all too aware of where his attention had been before.

            He shrugged his broad shoulders, “It doesn’t matter.  Information brokering is still a job usually handled by a rogues guild.  Me asking around about Jackal was still cutting into their revenue.”  He sighed, then cursed as the movement caused a sharp pain to knife through him.  “I should have known better, to be honest.”

            Tasha rose then, moving across the room to grab the towel she had used to dry off after her bath.  As she started to tear it into strips to use for bandages she told him, “You need to strip, waist up so I can dress that wound.”

            The half-elf smiled slightly, but didn’t argue as he shrugged off his cloak and began to unbuckle the many straps holding his leather armor together.  When Tasha turned back around, her arms now full of strips of towel to bind his wound it was her turn to gasp, her eyes widening at the sight of the assassins well muscled chest, abdomen and shoulders, his arms rippling with muscle as her gaze trailed slowly over him.  She met his gaze after a moment and saw desire smoldering there, certain it was a reflection of her own.

            “You, Karnal, are an impressive specimen of manhood!” she told him unashamedly, seeing no reason not to voice her opinion. 

            “You’re not so bad yourself elf.”  He returned, his voice husky with want.

            Again she knelt before him, her hands working quickly and surely to bind his wound.  Running her orphanage back home in Hanover Tasha had long since learned how to administer first aid to such things.  It seemed the orphans in her charge were always getting wounded in some way or another, at varying levels of hurt.  She bound his wound tightly, well aware of the heat radiating off him, his gaze sliding over her curves like a physical touch, making her pulse quicken.  Finishing up, she stood, saying, “There, that should hold till you can get some real healing.”

            “You have a healers touch, Tasha.” He said gratefully.  She had a few extra bandages left over and she turned away, thinking to place them on the table.  Karnal wasn’t about to let her go, however, his hand flashing out like lightning and catching hers.  She turned back, her eyes meeting his and the intention in them was all too clear to her.  “I think we’ve found the time and place.”

            Tasha didn’t argue, nor did she resist as he pulled her toward him, climbing onto the bed and straddling his lap, facing the assassin.  Her heart was beating loudly in her chest, for she knew she wanted this man badly, but was afraid of what giving herself to him now would mean.  He was a hired killer, after all, and she was still uncertain if he was the sort of man she wanted to be involved with.  But she knew, too, that there was no turning back now, as her full pink lips sought and found his.  The half breed groaned, his tongue sliding between her lips and delving deeply into her mouth, Tasha moaning herself at the feel of his hard, muscled body against hers.  She melted into him, her hands caressing the sides of his head and running through his black hair as Karnals fingers trailed lightly down her sides, tickling her, making her shiver in anticipation.  She jumped slightly when she felt the claws on the ends of those fingers scraping lightly across the skin of her thighs through the fabric of the nightgown.  He lowered his hands to the hem of the gown and then slid them back up her thighs, her flesh warm and smooth beneath his palms as they slid beneath her garment.

            Tasha’s passion was mounting by the moment, in spite of the odd sensation caused by his oversized incisor teeth pressing against her lips, bruising them slightly.  He broke the kiss first, unable to wait any longer to taste other parts of her anatomy and Tasha sighed, leaning back, her spine arching as his mouth traveled downward, tracing the smooth column of her throat and finally burying his face in her cleavage.  She continued to run her fingers through his hair, pressing his head more firmly against her, feeling his hands sliding up her flat stomach now, the claws scraping lightly over her flesh and making her shiver again.  Her juices were flowing freely now, her heart pounding in her ears, her breathing becoming rapid as her skin flushed scarlet.  As his hands continued to climb, exploring her curvaceous body he carried her nightgown along with it.  When he stopped at her magnificent breasts, grunting in satisfaction at their firmness and size she gasped and lifted the nightgown hastily the rest of the way up, pulling it off over her head and tossing it across the room, leaving her naked in his lap.

            Tasha swallowed, stifling a loud moan as the claws of his thumbs found her sensitive nipples, scraping across them while he pressed her fleshy globes together to either side of his face.  “You’re wearing too many clothes!”  She gasped into his ear, which she was surprised to find was nearly as pointed as hers.  Growling in response he twisted at the waist, rolling her onto her back as he stood up.  Tasha lay there on the bed, gazing up at him through a fog of passion, watching as he stripped out of the rest of his dark armor.  When he rejoined her on the bed, climbing atop the elf, she wrapped her shapely legs about him, using their powerful muscles to pull him to her.  Her hand slid between them, her nimble fingers encircling his shaft, feeling the girth of him and finding herself both impressed and slightly worried at his size.  “Gods!” she gasped, stroking him, feeling the man quiver with anticipation above her.

            Grinning, Karnal hooked his elbows under her knees then hoisted them up over his broad shoulders, taking control of their coupling.  Tasha let him, her lips parting in ecstasy, her eyes closing and her long nails clawing at the bedding as he started to slowly push his immense rod into her.  She gasped, squirming in delight and squeezing the sheets in her hands as the assassin slowly, one inch at a time, entered her to the hilt.  They stood that way for a time, each savoring the feel of the other, then he started to thrust, slowly but deeply, rocking her body and the bed beneath her, the headboard bumping against the wall as he started to work over her expertly.  Her moans and his groans mingled and became one as their bodies did the same, moving together, matching each others rhythm expertly.  His stamina was great, but his recent injury weakened him and Tasha, weary from the recent days adventures wasn’t her normal self either.  Far too soon to suit either of them they felt the end nearing and when their orgasms hit it was almost in unison, the half-orc throwing his head back and growling as Tasha thrashed beneath him, whimpering, her own orgasm sweeping through her.  When it had passed Karnal collapsed atop her, waiting a few moments before withdrawing from the elf and rolling off to lie at her side.  Tasha sighed, rolling over and snuggling up to him, one long leg draped over his middle as she contentedly ran her fingers through his sparse chest hair.

            “Again later?” she asked sleepily.

            He nodded, wrapping an arm about her and pulling her lush body tighter against him while reaching down with his other hand and pulling the blankets up over them both.  Tasha was already sleeping soundly and he smiled, content for the first time he could remember in many years.

            Many more times throughout the course of that night Tasha and Karnal enjoyed the pleasures of each others bodies, sleeping in between and coming up with all sorts of inventive ways to wake each other up.  When at last the sun was high in the sky they decided perhaps they should face the day and climbed reluctantly from the bed.

            As they dressed a silence settled between them, each certain they knew what the other was thinking but neither quite knowing how to bring it up.  Finally, mercifully, it was Karnal who said, “Would you like to keep this… new aspect of our relationship to ourselves for the time being?  No sense in letting the others know that we’ve… progressed.”

            His voice was light, as though making small talk about the weather, and Tasha appreciated very much the effort he put into that.  Trying to sound equally casual, she said, “Perhaps that would be best.”  She glanced up at him as she laced one of her knee high boots, which was perched on a chair.  “But you understand it isn’t because I’m ashamed?  It would not shame me in any way for people to know that you and I are together.”

            His intense gaze drilled into her for a moment, “Even though I’m a monster?  A half-orc and an assassin to boot?” 

            Letting her foot fall to the floor she used that motion as her first step in his direction.  Moving right up to the rogue she placed her hands on his broad, leather clad chest and let them slide up till her arms encircled his neck.  She pulled his face to hers and kissed him deeply and passionately, the assassin responding with gusto, his arms slipping about her waspish waist and pulling her tightly against him.  They stayed locked in that embrace for a time before she finally broke the kiss, pulling her head back to look him in the eye.  “First off, you’re no more a monster than I am.  You’re a good man, who happens to have an orc for a parent.  We can’t control who our parents are.  As to your career choice…” she shrugged, “…I admit I’d rather you were something else, but who am I to judge?  Perhaps you had no choice.  I really know nothing about your past.”

            “You have but to ask.”  He assured her.

            Tasha smiled, “Perhaps I will when I have more time to hear the tale.”  She pulled away from him then and he reluctantly released her.  “Suffice to say, Karnal, that I wouldn’t have willingly taken a man to my bed if I had any doubts about his character.  I just think it’s better for the business end of our relationship to stay separate from the personal.  Does that make sense?”

            He smiled slightly and nodded. “It does.”  After a moment he asked, “Shall we find the others and get breakfast?”

            “Is it all right if I meet you somewhere?  I need to find a shop where I can buy a new bow, or the supplies necessary to make my own.”  She shook her head as she checked on the supply of coins she had in her pouch.  “I’m getting dangerously low on funding right now too, considering I still have to pay the rest of the group.”

            “I can help with that, if you like.”  He offered.

            Tasha smiled as she counted what was lying in her pouch.  “Thank you, but no.  I can still afford it, I just need to be careful how much I spend on a new bow.  I wielded the old one for so long it was like an extension of myself.  It will be difficult to get used to a new weapon.”

            “It always is.”  He allowed, then started toward the door.  “I’ll find the others and see if they weathered the night okay.  I’ll also head out and check on the princess and our barbarian comrade, I rather think they had a night comparable to our own.”

            Tasha laughed, “You picked up on that too, did you?”

            Karnal grunted, “The way she was looking at him it’s a wonder what little clothing he wears didn’t catch fire.”  Tasha laughed, the sound still ringing pleasantly in his ears as he left the inn.

            Though it hadn’t been planned, Tasha realized that when she left a few minutes after he did it was probably a good thing for they hadn’t wanted anyone to know of their new relationship just yet.  Taking a deep breath of the late morning air she glanced up and down the street, seeing several men hastily glance away from the sensual display she had just given them.  Smirking and feeling oddly full of herself this morning, she turned left and headed off down the street with just a tad more sway to her rear end than was normally visible.  A block later she found the local guard post, a man in battered chain mail standing outside the door of the sprawling one story structure, idly sharpening a knife.  He was bald though his face hadn’t seen a razor in several days and he carried a well worn broadsword on his hip.  Tasha guessed he likely knew how to use it and marked the man as a mercenary.  She realized that most of the paid defenders of this town were likely sellswords since Errgaunt wouldn’t have wanted to send a fully trained garrison to this small community.  Such a thing wouldn’t have been cost efficient, so whatever officer was here running the towns security had to hire what help he could with the funding the human empire allowed him to have.

            “Excuse me soldier.”  She said brightly, offering the man a dazzling smile. 

            He turned his face to her and Tasha saw a painful looking red scar running from the upper right side of his forehead diagonally down his face, over the eye and stopping at the side of his nose.  The eye was gone, but he had apparently not opted for an eye patch, no doubt thinking, correctly, that the sight of his ravaged face was more striking.  His one good eye, a startlingly bright shade of green, looked the elf over with obvious interest.  “Help you lady?”

            “I ran into some trouble yesterday outside of the city and lost my longbow to the fight.”  She gestured at her quiver, making the fact she held no bow that much more evident.  “I was wondering if you knew of a place in town where I might replace it.  I can think of no one more knowledgeable about local weapon smiths than the men who rely on their goods daily.”

            Spinning the knife he’d been sharpening in his hand, the merc slid it neatly back into his sheath which was worn high on his opposite hip.  Turning to face her more fully and straightening to his full height, which was a few inches taller than she, he regarded her with more interest.  “You an adventurer of some kind then?”

            Shaking her head and smiling disarmingly she said, “I’m just an archer in need of a new bow.”

            He scowled, the expression making his already grim face that much darker.  Tasha, never one to be spooked just by a persons physical appearance, shuddered inwardly at the sight. “Huh,” he grunted, still running that striking green eye over her well-endowed form appraisingly, “if it’s a bow you want, you’d do well to check out Lesters.”

            “Lesters?” she repeated.

            He nodded.  “Only one in town with any kind of archery supply.  Has a decent stock of elven made bows in the back room.  Only lets select clientele view those, but you might be able to convince him.”  He chuckled, looking her over yet again, “Yeah, you’d be able to convince ol’ Lester of just about anything!”

            Struggling now to keep her temper in check, Tasha asked, “Where might I find Lesters shop?”

            “You ain’t from Mordant, so it’d be easier to show you than to tell you.”  Motioning with his head for her to follow him, the mercenary started off down the street.  Trepidation creeping into her thoughts, Tasha fell in behind him, alert to any sudden movements on the warriors part.  “What kind of trouble was it?” he asked over his shoulder.

            “Pardon?” she called, quickening her step to draw a little closer to him.

           “You said you ran into trouble and that’s how your old bow got busted.  What kind of trouble?”  he inquired.

            “Oh.”  She shrugged, debating if she should tell him the truth or not.  “Barbarian raiders.  My friends and I fought them off.”  She saw him nod, though he said nothing else. 

            After a couple of blocks the sellsword turned and started down a narrow alley and Tasha stopped dead in her tracks.  After a few feet he seemed to realize she wasn’t behind him and stopped, turning to regard her.  He saw the accusatory look in her eyes and chuckled, “I ain’t out to rape you or mug you elf.  This is just the way to Lesters shop.  The entrance is in this alley!”

            “He’s not on the main road?”  she asked, still wary but slowly moving into the alley, keeping a good distance between them.

            He turned away, leading her deeper down the dark street, shaking his head in response to her question.  “Rents too high on the main street so some of our merchants have had to open shops on the back roads.  Shame too, some of these folks are quality people, with high end goods to sell.  All the people on the main roads have contacts back in Errgaunt, or came to town with enough money to buy their spot.”  He fell quiet then, leading down a long and very windy alley, Tasha growing increasingly wary as they moved farther and farther from the main street.  Finally he stopped and motioned at an open door through which she could hear mens voices.  Above the door was a simple, hand painted sign that read: Lesters’ discount weapons and gear. 

            Moving forward so she could look through the door Tasha was surprised to find a cramped shop with a surprising number of patrons jostling about within.  Feeling suddenly bad about distrusting the soldier she turned to him and said, “My apologies for not trusting you, sir.”

            He shrugged, offering her a smile that did nothing to soften his harsh features.  “You can’t be too careful these days.  Besides, I know what this does to my looks.”  He motioned at the scar.  “Would you like me to hang around, make sure you find your way back to the main road?” 

           Not looking forward to trying to navigate the back streets on her own, she smiled and nodded.  “I’d like that, thanks.”

            Taking a position leaning against the wall opposite the open door, the mercenary continued to sharpen his knife as though he had never stopped.  Tasha started to step through the door of the shop, but she turned and asked him instead, “What’s your name sir?”

            With a half smile he replied, “Everett Drake ma’am, but most folks call me Maverick.”

            Cocking one delicately arched eyebrow, certain there was a good reason for such a nickname, the elf asked, “Why do they call you that?”

            “Due to the fact I tend to travel opposite to the rest of the pack miss.”  With that rather enigmatic answer he went back to sharpening his knife and Tasha turned toward the weapons shop, a perplexed look on her beautiful face.

            Lesters discount weapons and gear was so crowded that when Tasha stepped through the door she had to sidle to one side or bump into another customer standing right in front of the entrance.  She could see it wasn’t his fault though, for there was really no where else to stand.  Realizing it may be awhile before she got service herself, Tasha leaned herself against a wall with her arms crossed beneath her burgeoning bosom and listened to the talk in the room.  It seemed that one man, likely Lester himself, was doing most of the talking.

            “I tell ya I’ve had this thing in my shop for nigh onto ten years and ain’t nobody been able to draw it back yet!”  the voice was saying.  “I’m plum tired of having it around collecting dust so I decided on this here contest.  The one what can draw the string back far enough to fire an arrow can keep the damn thing!  Free and clear!”

            Realizing they were discussing a bow, Tasha’s interest was piqued and she straightened up, starting to move around the edge of the cramped shop, trying to make her way toward the front where she might see the weapon in question.  A man somewhere in the crowd called out, “That’s elven craftsmanship!  Finest looking bow I ever saw!”           

            Lester had a ready answer for that, however.  “I ain’t denying it’s nice to look at, but what good is a nice looking weapon if it don’t function?  Ten years I tell ya, ten years and nobody’s been able to draw the string back far enough to fire an arrow from it!  I’m fed up with the damn thing.”

            Tasha continued to work around the edge of the room, jostling some people out of the way with mumbled apologies.  “I’ll draw that fucking string back Lester!  Then I’ll turn around and make a tidy profit off the bow!  The metal itself is worth a fortune!”  Another man called out.

            “Come ahead and try it then Stanley!”  Lester called.  This was immediately followed by a shuffling of the crowd, one large man inadvertently stepping backward and pinning Tasha to a wall.  Feeling her behind him he hastily stepped forward, glancing over his shoulder to apologize.  When he saw her and realized it was a sexy elf he had bumped into his eyes widened and his mouth dropped open.  Tasha thought he looked like a farmer, clad as he was in dirty coveralls and muddy boots.  He was a large man, all muscle and dirt, the sort of man that wasn’t afraid of physical labor.  He had a full of head of shaggy hair and dull brown eyes that reflected little if any intelligence at her.  Still, she saw something in those eyes that she had seen often enough to know he could be of some use to her… lust.

            Smiling coyly at the man, she shrugged, being sure to augment the motion slightly for his benefit, giving the impression her breasts were about to pop from her bodice at any moment.  “I’m sorry, I’m trying to get to the front but there are just too many people!”  She giggled girlishly, “I can’t see a thing!”

            Within moments the powerfully built laborer and shouldered and elbowed his way through the crowd, clearing a path for the elf.  When at last she stood at the front of the crowd, amid glares and mumbled swearing, she smiled up at him and said sweetly, “Thanks so much!”  He nodded, then settled in behind her and glowered around at the other men, as if daring them to do anything about it.  Turning her attention to the front of the shop Tasha had to stifle a gasp, for the bow in the hands of the one that must have been Stanley was easily recognizable to the elf.  She hadn’t set eyes upon it in more than a decade, but the craftsmanship and the materials, gold, platinum and silver woven together around a core of ash and studded with precious gems was enough to send her mind reeling back ten years to the fateful day when a band of marauding monsters raided her precious Hanover.  That had been the last day she had seen her husband, Calistone and his greatest creation, Calistone’s Pride, the very bow before her now, intended to be given to Tasha as a gift on their anniversary.  She knew, too, why no one was able to draw the string back for the bow was soul bonded, meaning only Tasha or one of her direct bloodline would be able to use it.

            Lester, a short, pudgy human with a receding hair line and a prominent gut that poked out the bottom of his too small shirt stood by and watched with no little mirth as Stanley, a strapping young man of perhaps thirty years had trouble even hefting the bow.  As he tried to pull the string back the crowd around Tasha laughed, for the veins in his arms and neck were standing out prominently as he hauled back on the immobile bowstring.  After several minutes of effort, the young man finally relented with a gasp, shaking his head and wiping sweat from his brow.  Lester motioned to the crowd then, seeming desperate, “You see?  No one can draw this string!”

            Tasha’s hand had instinctively moved to her quiver, her fingers absently trailing along the fletchings of a particular arrow, one she had brought with her from home without knowing exactly why, until now.  “Can I try?” she asked softly, but her voice seemed to carry throughout the room. 

            The eyes of every man in the room seemed to settle on the shapely elf, making her slightly nervous under all the suddenly lusty stares.  It was as though they hadn’t realized a woman was among them until she spoke, and now that they saw her she was more interesting to them than the mysterious longbow of Lesters.  “Ma’am,” Lester began in a condescending voice, “if these men, many of them twice your size, can’t hope to draw back this string, what makes you think…?” 

            The proprietor of the shop was cut off by a mans voice and Tasha turned to see Maverick, having somehow made his way to the front of the crowd unnoticed, regarding the fat man.  “Let her try, Lester.  What do you have to lose except a bow that you claim is useless to you?”

            Lester regarded Maverick with something akin to fear, then he looked at the bow in question and finally he regarded Tasha, taking in her slight frame and apparent lack of physical strength.  Finally he shrugged, “The man makes a valid point.”  Tasha glanced over at the mercenary, hoping that the glance conveyed her thanks.  She thought that it must have for he gave her a slight nod as she stepped forward.  Stanley, grunting with the effort of raising the bow, handed it to her.  When Tasha took the weapon in hand and lifted it easily from his grasp a collective gasp went through the room.  She noticed Lester’s bushy eyebrows shoot upward and he stepped back as she raised the bow high overhead, gripping it at the center in her left hand, cradling the string loosely in her right.  As she brought the bow down she kept her left arm straight, bending her right so that her fingers were near her cheek and again the crowd gasped, stunned, as the bow bent to her grasp as though it were the easiest thing in the world.

            “How in the…?”  Lester started, scowling angrily.

            Again Maverick spoke up as Tasha took a cautious step away from the shop owner.  “It don’t matter how, Lester.  She met your challenge, she drew the bowstring and now the weapon is hers.  Or would you care to push the matter?”  The mercenary’s hand hovered near the hilt of his sword and Tasha was astonished to see the crowd of men gathered around him suddenly take a collective step backward.  Lester paled under the mercenary’s menacing, single eyed glare, shaking his head hastily.

            “No, it’s hers, just like I said.”  He motioned Tashas away, as though afraid of her.  “Good riddance to it, I say.”

            Without a sideways or backward glance Tasha started for the door and the crowd of men parted before her.  She could hear Everett Drake, the man called Maverick, fall into step behind her.  When the got out into the alley she stopped and started to turn but he took her arm and started to lead her away down the alley.  “Not yet.”  He growled into her ear and she let him guide her off, noticing as they went that they weren’t going the way they had come in.

            After several confusing twists and turns he spun and shoved Tasha hard into a shadowed doorway, stepping in with her and covering her body with his own.  For the briefest of moments her fears of earlier came rushing back, but her keen elven vision could see his face plainly in the dim light and she saw that he was looking, not at her, but over his shoulder.  Following his gaze, she saw three men go walking quietly past in the alley, apparently not seeing them.  She opened her mouth to speak but he placed a gloved finger over her lips, shaking his head slightly to silence her.  After several moments he turned and peered into the alley, both directions, before he seemed to relax.

            “What in the Hell is going on?”  she demanded.

            “Lester has been using that ploy to draw business into his shop for ten years.  The fact that you just stole his gimmick right out from under him ain’t sitting too well with the old fart.”  He chuckled.  “Sent his goons after us.”

            “You mean those men that were following us…?”  She trailed off.

            He nodded, “They work for Lester, yeah.”  He turned to her again, shaking his head in admiration.  “I don’t know and I don’t care how you managed to draw that bow back, but you made an enemy today.  I’d suggest you get out of Mordant while the getting is good!”

            Tasha nodded, “I had no intention of staying past today at any rate!”  Then something occurred to her.  “What about you?  Surely he will be just as angry with you!”

            “I can take care of myself.”  He said off handedly, but then after a pause, “But yeah, things are gonna be hot around here for me for a while.”

            “Maybe you should just leave.”  Tasha said leadingly.

            He glanced at her again, his eye narrowing shrewdly.  “You offering me something lady?”

            “Maybe, but only if you call me Tasha, and are willing to accept payment for your services from me.”  She told him.  Despite his fierce appearance and obviously rough manners she found she rather liked Maverick.

            He spent a goodly amount of time perusing her feminine charms, then grinned, “You do brighten up the scenery, I’ll give you that.”

            “I am not a fringe benefit of working for me.”  She said warningly.

            He grinned. “Can’t stop me from looking… or trying.” 

            She sighed and rolled her eyes, but couldn’t deny he was right.  “That’s true, so long as you don’t take it too far.”

            “All right, I’ll travel with you and your friends for a spell.  Might be fun.”  He said.

            “You don’t even know what I’m paying.”  She said pointedly.

            He laughed, “Don’t matter.  It’ll tide me over till the next opportunity presents itself.”  With that he led her from the back alleys and they went in search of the rest of her party.

Chapter Eight

            Leaving Mordant, Tasha and her companions headed deeper into Trey’Elden, toward the area both Quinn and Tallis said were held by Shayla’s people.  Tasha could tell within a few minutes of seeing them that she had been right not only about Tallis and Calidor, but also about Quinn and the barbarian princess.  She hoped that a budding relationship with the young woman would be cause for Quinn to forget his oath to her and stay with the Thundering Hammers tribe, but somehow she doubted that would be the case.

            Their first night after leaving the small wilderness community Tasha sat huddled near the campfire, warming her hands by the flames, trying to ward off the increasingly chill temperatures.  Karnal came and crouched by her side, extending his hands to the flames as well, but he leaned toward her and asked under his breath, “Who’s the new guy?”

            Tasha realized with a start that he hadn’t been introduced to Maverick yet, since it was the assassins habit to stay to the shadows and travel apart from the group, scouting for ambushes and such off to the sides.  Leaning towards her lover she responded in an equally hush voice, “He calls himself Maverick.  I believe he’s a mercenary who had been working as a city guard back in Mordant.”

            Karnal’s eyes narrowed slightly in recognition of the mans name.  “If that is indeed Maverick, and he fits the description, then he’s no mercenary Tasha.”

            She frowned, glancing sideways at the half-elf.  “He’s not?”  She asked this in a tone that made it clear she hoped she hadn’t caused more trouble for her group.

            Karnal shook his head and when next he spoke he spat the words, as though they left a foul taste in his mouth.  “He’s a warden.”  She scowled, showing she was unfamiliar with the term.  “A warden is a kind of traveling lawman, but he answers to no court or lord.  Something a vigilante, but they have a guild that backs them up on nearly everything they do.  Glorified Bounty Hunters, really.”  Tasha truly was troubled now, wondering if there was going to be trouble between the assassin and Maverick.  “They travel the world, bringing what they see as justice to those they feel are deserving of it.  In most cases, they are judge, jury and executioner, though I have heard of cases where they request judgment be placed by a higher ranking member of their guild.”

            “It sounds like these… wardens are dangerous people.”  Tasha commented.

            He nodded.  “Indeed they are.  Highly trained, some are warriors, some mages, some psychics.  You’ll never encounter a warden who is a member of the… shadowier occupations however.”  He snorted derisively, “They would rather jail us than employ us, though many of them are possessed of skills that could rival my own.”

            “What have you heard of Maverick?  Is he going to be a problem?”  Tasha asked.

            Karnal sighed, and she could tell that he wanted to say yes, but it was a mark in his favor, in her opinion, that he chose instead to be honest in his assessment.  “From what I’ve heard, he’s a loner.  Doesn’t tend to like to work with people, so I’m a little surprised that he agreed to come with us.”  Tasha, remembering the way the warden had eyed her, wasn’t so surprised, but she chose not to say so to the undoubtedly jealousy prone assassin.  “He’s strictly warrior class for all I’ve heard, but tales of his exploits go back some thirty years.”

            That surprised the elf and it showed on her face.  “Really?  He must have elven blood then, for I pegged him for about thirty years old!”  ‘Or am I just that bad of a judge of human age?’  she wondered, but dismissed that.  She had known many humans in her life and was pretty good at judging such things.

            Karnal shrugged.  “I can’t speak to that, but I do know that he has a reputation for brutality against those he deems unjust.  I’ve also heard he’s a womanizing drunk, so it might be smart to keep an eye on him around Tallis, Shayla… and yourself of course.”

            She hadn’t missed the slightly protective tone in his voice on that last comment and she couldn’t stop herself smirking slightly.  “Of course.”  Then another disturbing thought occurred to her and she frowned.  “Is he going to be a problem for you?  It never occurred to me before now that you might have a price on your head.”

            He sighed, “I do, though it’s not very large and I’m not yet widely known.  I suppose it depends on whether or not he’s heard of me and is tempted by the paltry sum being offered for my half-breed scalp.”  Placing a hand on her shoulder he leaned in and whispered into her ear, “Just the same, I think I’ll patrol the perimeter tonight and stay out of his sights.”  Tasha nodded and smiled quickly as he leaned in and kissed her cheek, then he was gone, fading back into the night. 

            Tasha gazed across the camp at Maverick, whom she now had a slightly better understanding of.  He was seated on the stump of a long since fallen tree, idly sharpening the blade of his broadsword.  It dawned on Tasha that she had never seen the man in moments of rest when he wasn’t sharpening a blade.  Her blue eyes played curiously over his lean form, noting the worn chainmail, the vivid red scar and the highly polished, lethal looking blade that was so well cared for it seemed oddly out of place on the man.  Her gaze traveled then to the right, to where their mounts were tethered, idly grazing on the soft grass beneath their hooves.  Mavericks horse was there and Tasha remembered her first impression of the beast.  It looked to be as battle scarred and tough as the man who rode it.  A large black beast that wore, like its master, a suit of tarnished and well worn chainmail barding.  Like Everett Drake, the horse too was sporting some wicked scars, the sign of many battles, but it seemed quite healthy and energetic.  Her gaze drifted back to the left and she was surprised and slightly embarrassed to find Maverick, still idly sharpening his blade, but now his one good eye was fastened upon her and his rugged, scarred face was locked in a smirk.  Hastily she glanced down into the fire and made a show of poking at it was a long stick. 

            From the corner of her eye she saw the warden rise and slide his broadsword into his scabbard, then start across the camp toward her.  She briefly entertained the thought of getting up and fleeing into the woods, but dismissed it out of hand and glanced up at him only when he stopped at her side.  He motioned at the spot next to her on the fallen log she was perched upon, the same spot the assassin had vacated moments before.

            “May I?” he asked.  She shrugged and nodded, not at all certain just then that she wanted him to sit next to her.  He groaned as he sat, making a show of leaning forward and extending his hands toward the fire, like hers.  She saw then that he had removed his gloves and the back of his left hand bore a faint but deep scar.  She wondered if he was covered in them and whether there were interesting stories behind them.  “Who was your friend?”  he asked in an off handed kind of way.

            “Pardon?” she said, arching one delicate brow, not turning her head to face him.

            He smiled knowingly, “The darkly clad one that’s been shadowing our movements since we left Mordant.” 

            “His name is Karnal, and yes, he’s a friend.”  She replied, trying to sound unconcerned but not totally succeeding.

            “Just a friend?” he asked, glancing curiously at her profile, for she had still not turned her face to him.

            At that, however, she did and her voice was sharp as she demanded, “What business is it of yours how good of friends we are?”

            “I could make it very much my business, elf.  Especially considering that I believe I have a flier over there in my saddlebags bearing a reward and description that would probably fit your friend to a tee.”  His green eye was flashing dangerously and his tone was triumphant.

            Her eyes narrowed as she regarded this man, wondering if she had horribly underestimated him back in Mordant.  “Was that a threat?”

            “Not against you.” He said.

            Her tone dripped venom as she replied, “A threat against my friends is a threat against me, Maverick.”

            With a slight chuckle he leaned toward her and said, “Then I suggest you think long and hard about how important that particular friend is to you, and what you’d be willing to do to keep his thick neck out of a noose!”  With that he stood and moved back across the camp to his stump, leaving Tasha by the fire, glaring after him.  She had never regretted a decision more than she regretted asking Maverick to join her group.

            The next day dawned colder than any previous that Tasha had yet experienced in this Gods forsaken land.  As they broke camp and prepared to head out on the trail once more it started to snow, a light storm that grew heavier as the day progressed.  By mid-day it had become difficult and even dangerous to travel by horseback as the animals were starting to slip on icy rocks, which were becoming more prevalent as they headed into the foothills of the Trey’Elden mountain range.  Tallis suggested that they dismount and lead the horses on foot from then on, and Tasha concurred. 

            Her mind was still working over the conversation she had had with Maverick the night before, and she was concerned about Karnal.  What would she do to keep him safe?  How much did she care about the half-breed assassin?  She wasn’t in love with him, she knew that.  It was more like being in lust, something she hadn’t been comfortable admitting she was capable of giving into.  She felt she knew what Maverick had been alluding to the night before regarding the assassin, meaning that he eventually intended to try and collect on the bounty offered for Karnal, unless she agreed to… negotiate on the assassin’s behalf.  Was she willing to do that?  Would she give herself to a man like Maverick in exchange for ensuring that Karnal retained his freedom?  What would Karnal’s reaction to something like that be?  She decided then and there not to tell him about the conversation, for she didn’t want to ponder the outcome of a fight between the two men.  She decided it was doing her no good pondering this now and she would simply have to make a decision when… and if… it ever came to that, which she hoped it didn’t.

            Tasha was jerked from her thoughts by the sudden halt of their procession through the deepening snow.  She looked to the front of the group where Tallis had stopped, raising a hand to halt those behind her.  The blonde woman was crouched down, examining something in the snow and Tasha, curious, moved ahead to see what she had found.  “What is it?” she asked softly, crouching beside Isberg.

            Tallis pointed a patch of snow in front of her, her blue eyes narrowed suspiciously.  She was looking to the left and right, scanning the surface of the snow as if expecting it to attack her at any moment.  “See this spot here?”  Tallis asked, “How much more even it is than the snow around it?”  Tasha nodded, noting a long, narrow stretch of snow covered ground that looked oddly flattened.  “It looks as though someone, or something, passed here and took pains to cover their tracks.  That’s the why the snow there is so much smoother than everywhere around it.”

            “A hunting party perhaps?  From Shayla’s tribe?”  Tasha inquired.

            Tallis shook her head.  “They would have no reason to want to cover their tracks.  No reason to believe they were being followed.”  She frowned down at the snow, “Whoever did this didn’t want their trail to be seen, or followed.”

            “There’s no way to tell which way they went though, so they did a decent job of it.”  Tasha commented.

            “That’s not entirely true.”  The ranger told her with a smug smile.  Pointing to the left, she said, “You can see the fresh snow piled up higher on that part of the trail than it is in the other direction, meaning that the trail to the right is more recently swept.  Whoever it was, they crossed our paths about an hour ago and were moving West.”

            Impressed with the womans skills, Tasha shook her head and patted the blonde on the shoulder.  “We should probably check it out.  I don’t like the thought of leaving some unknown threat behind us unchecked.”

            “Agreed.”  Said the ranger.  Tasha called a quick meeting with the rest of the party and they all agreed as well that it was wisest to investigate the partially hidden trail, just in case whoever had left it was unfriendly.  With Tallis once more in the lead the group set again less than ten minutes later, moving slowly and as silently as possible through the mountainous, snowy terrain.  An hour later Tallis once more called a halt, drawing everyone’s attention to a slender column of smoke rising into the air a half mile ahead of them.

            “A camp of some sort then.”  Tasha surmised and everyone agreed.  “We have to check it out.”  No one argued that, but Quinn brought up a good point.

            “What about him?”  He gestured at Varlak, their barbarian prisoner and Tasha frowned.  It was true they couldn’t take the man with them, it was too much of a risk that he might alert whoever was in the camp.  Until they knew who, or what they were dealing with Tasha agreed it was best to leave the prisoner behind.

            “Someone will have to stay with him, we can’t leave him unguarded.”  Tasha reminded them all.

            “I’ll do it.”  Shayla offered, brandishing a sword she had been given by Quinn which he had salvaged from Varlak’s camp for her before they left.  Tasha had no doubt the barbarian princess was well versed in its use. 

            Nodding, Tasha agreed, thinking it probably wisest if the young woman stayed out of harms way anyhow.  “Very good.  All right, the rest of us will proceed, cautiously, toward the camp in the distance.”

            As they crept toward the distant smoke, Tasha’s party was joined by Karnal, who seemed to materialize, as was his habit, out of thin air.  He appeared beside Tallis, who nearly shrieked in fright at his sudden arrival but the assassin held a hand to her mouth and grinned at her.  The half-elf glared at him then they continued forward.  Cresting a rise on the outskirts of the small valley in which the camp was nestled, Tasha and her companions, all lying on their bellies to minimize their profile against the skyline, peered down into an encampment that looked to be able to contain a dozen people.  There were only three apparent, all of them gathered closely around the fire from which the smoke they had seen was rising, hands extended hungrily toward the heat of the flames. 

            The quartet made for a strange group, none were human and even at the distance they were observing from, Tasha’s keen elven vision could easily make out the attributes of a hobgoblin, two orcs and, most distressingly, a minotaur.  “The big one’s mine!”  Brudan growled, tightening his hold on his shield, which had been riding on his arm since sighting the smoke. 

            Calidor, ever the wisecracker, leaned toward his stout friend and asked softly, “Which one is the big one?”  Tallis snorted with silent laughter and even Maverick, crouched on the far side of the elven mercenary, cracked a slight smile at the banter.

            Bringing them back on course, Tasha asked, “Where are the others?  This camp is too big for those to be the only four in attendance.”

            “Perhaps their out on a raiding party or something.”  Calidor suggested, and Tasha acknowledged that that was a possibility.  Just because these didn’t seem to be tribal warriors didn’t mean they weren’t raiders of some sort.

            “I say we go ask them.”  Karnal intoned, then proceeded to slither over the rise and low crawl down toward the camp.

            “Okay, I wasn’t sure at first,” Brudan piped up all of a sudden, motioning after the assassin, “but him... I like.”

            “Tallis,” Tasha called softly to the ranger, who turned to face her, “you cover with your bow from this ridge, I’m going to circle around to the other side.  We’ll set up a crossfire and the others can go in at their leisure.”  The blonde woman nodded, bringing forth her bow from her back and checking its string as Tasha turned and started to slither around the rim of the valley, keeping one wary eye directed at the camp.  Something about the situation wasn’t sitting right with her, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

            Thankfully, Karnal and the others waited till Tasha was in position before they launched their attack.  The hobgoblin saw them first, charging in from the edge of the clearing opposite Tasha’s perch.  He gave a warning cry to the others and jumped to his feet, drawing forth a scimitar but was dropped in his tracks by a well placed arrow from Tallis.  The minotaur roared a challenge and rushed forward, great bull head lowered to ram into the attackers with his horns, the two orcs less than three steps behind him.  Brudan, true to his word, screamed a war cry as he launched himself at the minotaur, leading with his shield which connected with the monsters head, between the horns.  The giant beast mans forward momentum, not to mention his hard head, caused him to gain the upper hand in the collision, the dwarf getting lifted off his feet with a surprised shout and rolling over the minotaurs head then down his back.  He landed on his butt in the snow, blinking in momentary confusion, then he roared and leapt up, turning to chase after the monstrous warrior.

            Tasha watched as Calidor intercepted the minotaur and Brudan closed in the from the rear, the two friends working in tandem to wreak havoc on the monster.  The two orcs had their hands full, having come across Maverick and Quinn and Tasha could just make out Karnal, flitting from shadow to shadow, checking the tents for signs of life.  ‘Something isn’t right.’ She thought again, still unable to place the feeling, but knowing that this was going to easily.  She saw her lover moving toward the largest of the tents when her eyes widened, seeing from her perch what none of her friends in the valley could see.  Nearly two dozen bodies rising from beneath the snow around the camp, where they had been concealed, waiting to ambush her party.  Tasha understood then that they must have been spotted somehow, that this camp had been setup to lure them in so that they could be trapped within this deadly circle.  She saw orcs, goblins, hobgoblins, trolls and all manner of other beings standing up and shaking the snow from their leathers, furs and armor.  One man, wielding an intricately carved staff led the raiders well planned ambush with a bolt of lightning that streaked across the ground and slammed into Quinn, the barbarian warrior bellowing in rage and surprise mingled with pain as he fell to one knee, the orc he had been crushing in a bear hug stumbling free of the mans crushing embrace.

            Cursing, Tasha’s hand flew to her quiver, her fingers finding that special arrow she had been reminded of possessing just days before.  She drew it forward, barely registering the beautiful craftsmanship as she placed it on her magnificent new bows string and drew it back.  The ruby mounted on the shaft, just behind the arrowhead caught the sun, gleaming crimson for a brief moment before she released it.  No sooner had the arrow launched from her bow than it burst into flame, becoming a mighty fireball that rocketed into the camp.  A troll, charging into the fray with a mindless howl, took the full force of the explosive blaze as it struck him in the chest, the eruption igniting the leathers he wore to protect against the cold.  The blast wave of the explosive fireball flung the forward rushing troll backward, landing him in a heap that the raiders behind him had to jump over.  The superheated troll body started to instantly melt the snow around it, the creature steaming as he shook his head and started to sit up.           

            Tasha couldn’t believe the monster had survived the direct blast, though she really had no idea how powerful the fireball arrow was, having never had opportunity to use it before then.  Calistone had told her many years before that only that particular bow could fire the enchanted arrows he was crafting for it.  There were supposed to be arrows following that one, but Calistone, and the bow, had been taken from her before they could be crafted.  She saw the troll raise it’s great, horned head and glare up at the ridge where she lay prone, even then drawing forth another arrow.  She could see more arrows descending into the camp from Isberg’s position on the other side of the valley and she was determined to add her own deadly aim to the volley, knowing that the two archers may well be the only chance their friends had of surviving.

            The ground a few feet to Tasha’s left exploded upward and snow rained down over the prone elf as she rolled onto her side, leveling her bow and newly drawn arrow at the figure that was lunging upright from beneath the snowpack.  Her view was still blocked by the falling snow and the sun was in her eyes, partially concealing the mans features from her view.  She released her bowstring, not even certain which arrow she had chosen in her panic to defend herself.  She heard the arrow thud into him and his deep voice grunting as he staggered back from the impact.  Her attacker had been partially blocking the sun from her eyes but when he staggered the full force of the suns beams assaulted her vision and she winced, raising a hand to block the rays.  She heard a quick step started to roll away but felt a sharp pain in her wrist as a booted foot kicked it, sending her bow spinning off through the air. 

            Undeterred Tasha continued to roll away as her attacker came on fast, growling in pain as he jerked her arrow from his muscled shoulder.  She could feel his boots impacting the snow inches from her body as she rolled, desperately trying to put some distance between them.  Angered that she continued to elude him the raider leapt, launching himself at her.  Tasha quickly reversed her direction, rolling back the other way as he sailed over her, landing in a less than graceful heap in the exact spot she might have been lying had she not made the sudden reversal.  Pulling her knees to her chest and rolling her weight back onto her shoulders Tasha sprang nimbly to her feet and turned to face her attacker, instinctively drawing forth her sword while glancing about to try and see where her bow had landed.  She caught the glint of the sun off the gold of the weapon a few yards away but before she could move to grab it she saw her attacker picking himself up out of the snow, chuckling as he brushed the white powder from his shoulders.  Tasha froze, feeling as though her blood were suddenly running as cold as the snow at her feet. 

            “Jackal.” She gasped, her seafoam green eyes widening in horror at sight of the monstrous thug she had narrowly escaped being raped by in Hauteur.

            “Well, well.”  He said, running his dark, piercing eyes over her appreciatively, apparently unconcerned about the blood that was seeping from the hole in his shoulder.  Tasha noticed that it was black and thick, almost tar like.  “I hoped I’d get another chance at you elf.”  The greater zombie, looking if possible even more repulsive in the mid-day light with his partially decomposed face and body, leered at her.  “It looks as though the fates have agreed to grant my wish!”

            “Never!” she cried and lunged at him, her silver blade flashing at his face.  Jackal merely leaned backward, the point of her sword missing his head by scant inches, then he stepped forward swiftly and used that undead strength to ram his shoulder into her side.  Tasha felt all the air rush from her lungs as that shoulder impacted her ribcage and she staggered back, suddenly lacking the strength to strike back.  One fist slammed down on her hand, knocking her sword into the snow covered ground before he stepped forward and drove his inside foot back into the backs of her knees.  Tasha fell to all fours, gasping and feeling the pain in her chest as she gasped for breath, her legs throbbing.  Jackal stepped up beside her and she felt his claws scrape the back of her head as he grabbed her by the hair and jerked her to her knees, bending her back so that he could glare down into her face.

            “You’re mine now woman!”  He roared, then bent and crushed his lips to hers, his revolting, slime coated tongue plunging into her mouth and halfway down her throat, so that if she had had any food in her stomach she would have regurgitated it into his mouth.  When he pulled away a long stream of saliva trailed from his mouth to hers.  She cried out, trying to struggle as he moved forward, dragging her forward by her hair and then forcing her to look down into the camp.  “Your friends are as good as dead!  They just haven’t accepted the inevitable yet.”  He dropped to one by her side and growled into her ear, “We caught Lurker two days ago,” she gasped, her eyes widening in horror at those words, praying they weren’t true, “imagine our surprise to find out he was really that little bastard, Bandon Fenry.”  Tasha started to cry then, knowing that there was only one way he could know the vigilante’s real identity.  “Lord Fenry is already on his way here to deal with his little brother, and we’re fairly confident we’ll have his older brother soon, too!”

            Snarling, he used his handful of her hair to fling her onto her back in the snow, standing over her and glaring maniacally down.  “So you see, everything is coming together perfectly!  Lord Fenry will soon be the only surviving male of the family line, your meddlesome friends will be dead and you…” he chuckled as he started to unbuckle his belt, dropping to his knees and straddling hers, “… well, you’ve already been promised to me as a reward for a job well done!”  His manhood sprang into view then, already hard as steel and though she didn’t want to see it, Tasha couldn’t help but look.  Like the rest of him it was partially decayed and she could see the veins and cartilage running its length through the patches of decomposed skin.  He was well endowed, as she would have expected a man of his size to be, but seeing that unholy appendage and faced with the prospect of rape by the creature who bore it set something off within the elf.  A primal need to not succumb, to not give up fighting until she was dead.  If that was to be the fate of her comrades, than it would be hers as well, she decided.

            Tasha knew, though, that she was no match for this monster one to one.  She would have to outsmart him if she was to stand a chance of surviving to help her friends, if there was any help left for them.  With that thought in mind, she did something that would normally run against her grain and she pretended to faint at the sight of his nude manhood.  Her head rolling to her right and her eyelids fluttering closed.  She felt him pause atop her, then he chuckled, no doubt thinking her a typical female for reacting so.

            “Makes no difference,” he said as he leaned forward, placing one hand to the left of her head to support himself, “conscious or not, I’m going to enjoy your charms immensely!”  Tasha heard the distinct sound of metal clearing leather and knew he had drawn a blade of some kind.  A shiver ran down her spine and she did well not to react physically as she felt the flat of a long, slender blade pressed to the side of her face.  Down it went over her cheek, down the side of her neck and over then into her cleavage and all the while Tasha held perfectly still, though her flesh crawled.  The leather ties which held her bodice cinched closed down the front parted as though made of cotton before the sharpness of that blade and Tasha felt the biting cold of the falling snow upon her bare chest.  Jackal moaned, pricking one of her large nipples with the point of the dagger and intoning, “Absolutely perfect!”

            Tasha nearly flinched when she heard the sound of his blade being rammed into the icy ground before her face.  She felt his hands on her bared breasts, kneading them painfully as his face became buried in the side of her neck, that slimy tongue laving disgustingly at the shallow where neck met shoulder.  Slowly, less than an inch at a time she started to move her hand up toward the dagger, freezing whenever he moaned or groaned, which he was doing a lot of.  Her sensitive elven hearing could easily make out the sounds of the pitched battle still progressing in the camp below.  Her stomach lurched then as she suddenly felt his hips shift forward, his manhood sliding up her flat stomach till the length of it rested between her breasts, which he squeezed together to either side, starting to thrust with a growl of pleasure.

            Thinking her passed out cold, Jackal gave no regard to the fact that his new position had freed up her legs and Tasha chose to take full advantage of the fact.  Up came her long, well muscled legs, her limber form practically bending in half as she wrapped them about his middle.  Jackal gave a surprised grunt as he was jerked suddenly and powerfully backward, slammed to the snowpack as Tasha, her thighs locked around his waist, let his momentum carry her upright, his dagger now clutched in her hand.  Following through on her forward momentum, the elf put that force behind the dagger as she plunged it down toward the stunned zombies head.  Jackal, far too combat savvy to bested so easily, shifted his head to the side but she still managed to cut his ear from his ugly had.  He howled, one powerful arm coming across to backhand the elf, sending her spinning to the side where she crashed against a rock and slumped to the ground, dazed.

            Growling menacingly Jackal pushed himself to a sitting position, one hand pressed to the side of his head, trying to staunch the flow of black, tar like blood flowing from the severed ear.  His malevolent, undead eye settled upon Tasha, his unharmed orb casting about for the dagger she had used, wondering if she had dropped it.  He soon saw, though, as she pushed herself up to her hands and knees, the blade still clutched tightly in her hand.  He lunged, grabbing for the dagger and Tasha, moving on sheer instinct dived away.  She screamed then, the snowy ground beneath her giving way when she landed.  The dagger went flying and she scrabbled for a handhold, realizing belatedly that she had fallen into a crevasse.  The ice and snow were too slick to get a hold and she felt herself slipping into the abyss.  She saw Jackal dive, sliding across the snow, trying to catch her before she dropped and part of her hoped he did, even though she knew what that would mean for her.  His hands closed a second too late as her weight carried her down, her scream echoing up the ravine as the elven archer plummeted into the darkness.

            It felt as though she fell for hours, her hair whipping about her face.  Once she hit the side of the chasm and rebounded off of it, the blow knocking her senseless, the elf barely holding to consciousness until she suddenly hit what felt like a solid wall of ice, the impacting knocking the air from her lungs before the ice seemed to give way and she sank deep into arctic waters.  The cold was an incredible shock and though she couldn’t have drawn breath if she’d wanted to she was suddenly wide awake.  Some part of her mind registered that she had fallen into a subterranean river and she could feel the current sweeping her along, bouncing her off the walls of the crevasse.  At one point the river grew just shallow enough for the elf to bounce off its bottom and she was launched to the surface where she gasped for breath.  Battered and beaten, bleeding profusely from several wounds but all of it unnoticed from being so numb due to the cold, Tasha was swept along.

            Gradually, inevitably, she felt herself succumbing to the elements, the cold water sapping both her strength and her consciousness.  Her eyelids were getting heavy and she could feel herself slipping lower into the water.  Faintly she was aware of a distant splash, then strong arms closing about her waist and she was being pulled toward the edge.  She turned her head, gazing blearily into the face of her savior, but her vision was too fogged to make out more than just long black hair and light skin.  As they reached the shore she finally, blessedly, lost consciousness.

            Her next conscious thought was that it was very cold wherever she was.  Her eyes fluttered open and she looked around, the world about her spinning the moment she turned her head.  Groaning, she raised a hand to her forehead and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to fight back the urge to vomit.  As she lay there, attempting to get hold of herself, her memory came back in a rush.  She remembered the fight with Jackal on the edge of the valley and her narrow escape, the plunge into the icy river at the bottom of the crevasse.  Everything after that was a blur, though she had a faint recollection of being pulled from the river and new that she had drifted in and out of consciousness several times since then.  Her only memories of those times was being alternately hot and cold and occasionally seeing a form hovering above her, intense dark eyes penetrating the fog of her mind, gazing down at her with curiosity and concern.  A part of her brain acknowledged that she should recognize those eyes, but she was still too groggy to place them.  The next thing she was aware of was that she was quite naked, though she seemed to be lying under some heavy furs.  Gasping in surprise at this discovery her eyes flashed open again and she burrowed down beneath the covers, registering that they were bear skins but conscious of nothing else except her nudity.

            Wondering now where she was she glanced around, happy that her vision stayed normal and the pounding in her head seemed to be lessening.  At first she thought she was in a cave in some mountain, but then she saw how smooth the walls were and reaching out tentatively to a wall from beneath the skins she felt the chill of ice against her fingers.  ‘I’m inside a glacier!’ she realized with a start.  She had heard that such things existed in Trey’Elden, but had never seen one for herself.  She wondered if this cave was naturally occurring or if its occupant had made it.  Thinking of the caves occupant had her looking around again for some sign of the person, who must have pulled her from the river.  There was a bed, composed of similar skins to hers, located across the small cave from her.  A stream of clear, unfrozen water ran from the face of one wall, through the cave and out the entrance.  Seeing it, Tasha realized how thirsty she was and wondered how long she had been unconscious.

            Deciding to risk the frigid temperature for a few moments she scrambled from beneath the bear skins, gasping in shock as the cold touched her bare skin, causing her nipples to turn instantly to pebbles and her hands and knees to go numb where the pressed against the icy floor.  Scrambling quickly to the narrow stream she used her hands as a cup and drank as much as she could of the water, which was so cold it numbed her lips and throat, then she turned and scrambled back beneath the furs.  A grunt from the direction of the entrance drew her glance and she gasped again, for there in the mouth of the cave, crouched and resembling one of the wild animals found in the surrounding wilds, was Lobosos Fenry, the elf they called Wolf.  His hair was long and stringy, his skin comparably pale, though Tasha could see that he was filthy.  She couldn’t imagine he bathed much, especially in these arctic temperatures.  The eyes staring at her through the curtain of bangs were the ones she remembered from her brief moments of lucidity and the sudden, rapid elevation of her body temperature as he entered the room explained to her the memory of feeling alternately cold and warm.  He was a Fenry, so of course he had that same… whatever it was that the Fenry men exuded.  The warmth she remembered feeling during those times was no doubt the result of being in his presence when she came to.  He approached her, crouching on his haunches next to her and Tasha’s vision began to swim, though this time it had nothing to do with an injury. 

            She swallowed and opened her mouth to speak to him, but no sound came out.  She could only stare, her mouth open, at the Wildman as reached out a hand and slowly, very slowly ran the tip of a finger along the elf’s plump lower lip.  His touch sent a jolt through the elf, not unlike an electric charge and she gasped, instinctively thrusting herself away from him, her bare back touching the ice wall, which made her gasp again, but the extreme cold helped to push aside the as yet unexplainable effect of this man.  Her mind cleared for a moment and she gasped out, “No!”  His eyes narrowed and he backed away a few steps, staring suspiciously at her.

            Tasha reveled at the added distance, knowing it wasn’t much of a reprieve but was likely all she’s get.  Even from across the cave his presence was potent, far more powerful than the similar effect put off by either of his brothers.  He seemed unable to control it, which made him that much more dangerous to Tasha.  She didn’t know how long she’d be able to hold out.  She was breathing hard, his eyes drawn inexorably to her heaving bosom as she scrambled to pull one of the bear skins back around her.  All the whiles he held his gaze, trying to impart that he could trust her, though she thought at some level he already knew that.  He had pulled her from the river after all.

            Tasha was struck, now that she had her first real opportunity to examine the man, by just how unattractive he was.  In her experience, most elves had a certain sex appeal about them, but this man was filthy, covered in the scars of a life spent living as an animal and stunk of feces and rotted, raw meat.  He had a fur draped over his shoulders for warmth, though it didn’t look to offer much in the way of protection and though Tasha was no ranger, she would have pegged it as belonging to some kind of wildcat.  She as certain this strange man had himself killed the animals whose skins were now offering them both protection from the elements, but she saw no evidence of weapons and wondered how he had done it.

            “Can… can you understand me?” she asked him in her native tongue.  Wolf cocked his head, gazing at her with an almost childlike fascination.  She tried again in human, but his only response was to grunt and start jumping around the cave excitedly.  Extricating one arm from beneath her bear fur she placed it against her chest and said, “Tasha.”

            Wolf’s eyes narrowed and after a few moments hesitation he tried, “Tash.”

            She smiled, “Close enough.”  Her smile set him off again, bouncing around the cave and this time when he came to rest he was standing next to her bed of furs once more.  Tasha moaned, feeling that familiar, almost erotic rise within her and closed her eyes tight, trying to force it back.  With her eyes closed she couldn’t see his hand extending toward her and she gasped again as the tips of his fingers caressed her cheek.

            “Tash.” He grunted, and that was all she could remember until several hours later when she awoke again, feeling a different kind of sore and lying beneath the furs that still smelled of their coupling.  Tasha groaned as he pushed herself to a sitting position, clutching a bear skin to her nudity as she looked around for some sign of him.  Away from the influence of… whatever it was about him that so aroused her Tasha was able to recall some of the events of the last several hours.  It had been, she surmised, very much like what mating with a wild animal would have felt like.  She distinctly remembered spending a great deal of time on her hands and knees as Fenry mounted her from behind.  She remembered a great many other things as well, but the most troubling aspect of it all was how much she had enjoyed it at the time.  She didn’t know where he had gone, but she understood that she couldn’t afford to be there when he got back.

            Glancing around, Tasha found her clothing, dry though extremely cold, and she pulled it on hastily, wrapping herself once more in bear skins after she had dressed.  Warming quickly now she continued to look around for more supplies, anything that might help her to survive in the frozen wasteland that was this part of Trey’Elden.  She didn’t know how long she had before Wolf might return, but she took the time to eat some fish she found near the caves entrance, having the distinct impression he had left it for her.  Wishing she had her bow and quiver, or even her sword, all of which had been lost she knew not when or where, she pulled the bear skin around her as tightly as she could and headed out into the snowy wilderness, uncertain even of where she was and less certain of where she was going.

Chapter Nine

            Tasha was lucky when she set out from Wolf’s cave, the skies were clear and there didn’t appear to be a chance of another snowstorm settling in.  She knew if she had been caught out there in a blizzard she was finished.  Her survival skills in the wilds were limited, which was why she hired people like Tallis.  Tasha truly had no idea where she was, where she was going or how long she could last in the harsh climate.  For several hours she hiked in what she hoped was a straight line across the surface of the glacier, occasionally glancing over her shoulder so she could see whether her footprints in the snow looked like they were curving or not.  Judging by the movement of the sun overhead she figured it took about four hours but she finally reached the edge of the icy drift and started to scramble up a shallow slope toward a line of trees in the distance.

            With the trees for cover the biting cold was somewhat lessened and the snow wasn’t so deep, so the archer made better time.  Trudging through the drifts, which were still up to her knees in some places, she tried to keep the sun on her left shoulder to ensure she was traveling in something other than a circle.  Toward dusk Tasha came to a trail, looking like little more than a path used by animals to traverse this part of the forest.  She smiled though, seeing a small rock formation on the ground before her, shaped like an arrow and pointing left.  She glanced around, wondering where Wolf was but thankful he was keeping his distance.  He seemed to understand that the effect he had on her was unwelcome and knew she couldn’t afford that distraction right now.  It was comforting, however, knowing that he was out there watching over her.  Feeling a little better about her situation, Tasha turned left and followed the trail till nightfall, when she was unsurprised to find a perfect location for a small campsite.  There was a large rock to the left of the clearing that acted as a decent wind break and she found a pair of dead rabbits waiting for her at the center of the clearing.  They had already been skinned and prepared, all she had to do was find a way to cook them. 

            “I don’t suppose you have flint and steel?” she called into the forest, knowing that he would hear but not understand.  She knew, too, that he had no use for fire and thus probably not the knowledge to make it.  The fish in the cave she had had to eat raw, but she was determined that would not be the case with the rabbit.  She sacrificed some time to foraging for firewood and using a trick she had seen Tallis use once or twice, she managed to start a small fire by rubbing two sticks together.  It took forever, but the result was worth it in her opinion.  Cooked rabbit was far tastier than the alternative. 

            Well fed for the first time in she didn’t know how long, Tasha cast about for a place to sleep and again wasn’t surprised to find a pile of animal furs tucked in some shrubs to one side of the boulder.  Laying them out at its base she rolled herself up within them and trusted that Wolf would be keeping watch as she let herself drift off to sleep.  She was awakened in the night when her until then unseen guide came to her, and by the time the elf had woke sufficiently to be aware of what was happening she was already far too lost to the heightened Fenry arousal to resist him.  The result was that she overslept the following morning and awoke, stiff and sore to the uncomfortable thought that Lobosos Fenry was insatiable and possessed of incredible stamina!  She wondered if she was in for more of the same if this foray through the wilderness lasted much longer, and that thought too was disturbing.

            Throughout the course of that day Tasha followed several different trails, taking each one as it was marked for her by an arrow, either made from rocks or a series of small sticks and twigs.  She was beginning to fear another night alone in the wilds with the amorous feral elf as the sun started to set when her nose detected the unmistakable scent of wood smoke.  Picking up her pace she soon saw lights from fires through the trees and her keen hearing picked out voices raised in song.  Stopping at the edge of the clearing she came to Tasha examined the village Wolf had led her to.  She recognized that this was a barbarian village, the Trey’Elden natives seeming to be in the throes of some sort of celebration, but she couldn’t determine if these men and women were friendly or not.  However, she trusted in Wolf’s judgment here and, taking a moment to settle her thoughts, she strode from the tree line toward the barbarian village.

            They saw her far quicker than she would have thought, so apparently even though they were in celebration they still had lookouts posted.  Several men, each of them well over six feet tall and looking to have more muscle than clothing appeared out of the darkness, brandishing spears at the elf.  Tasha froze in her tracks, raising her hands to shoulder height and extending her elbows out to her sides to lift the furs she wore away from her body, showing them she was unarmed.  “I mean no harm, I am merely lost in the forest and seeking help.”  She spoke in the human tongue, knowing that the barbarians spoke a variant of it and were supposed to be able to understand it.  “Please, I simply want shelter from the weather for a time and help getting back to my friends.”

            “Stand down.”  Rumbled a deep, baritone voice from the edge of the village.  Instantly the tribal warriors lowered their weapons and stepped aside, though Tasha noticed that they kept them at the ready.  Her gaze drifted over to the speaker, a giant of a man with a ruddy complexion, wearing a bear skin over his shoulders.  He had shorter hair than was customary for these people and it had a lot of natural curl, as did the full beard that covered the lower half of his face.  The dark brown eyes that stared at her with interest from beneath a pronounced brow were not friendly, but neither were they hostile, more curious.  From a broad leather belt around his waist hung a claymore sword and on the opposite hip a huge mace.  It wasn’t until he stood among the men that had confronted her that she realized how much bigger he was than the others.  He was at least seven feet tall with shoulders as broad as some dwarves were tall, all muscle but moving with a surprising grace.  This, she decided, was a true warrior, and there was something virile and exciting about him that Tasha couldn’t deny left her a little weak in the knees.  “I am Kellinor, son of Rourke and champion of the Thundering Hammers tribe, who are you?”

            Tasha blinked, surprised to recognize the tribal name.  “I am Natashiana Grasamere, an elven archer who has been lost in your woods for… well, I don’t really know how long.  I’ve been helped in finding your village by an elf who lives as an animal in these forests.”

            Kellinor nodded, regarding her now with a different kind of interest, as though something she had said sounded familiar to him.  “We are aware of the one they call Wolf.  We live in harmony with him.”

            Tasha risked lowering her hands then and was heartened when she wasn’t threatened for the motion.  “Did you say Thundering Hammers tribe?”  She nodded toward the village behind him, “Is that what this is?”

            He nodded his shaggy head, “It is.”

          Tasha swallowed, suddenly excited.  Had Wolf known she would need the help of these people in particular?  “Listen, I have met your princess, Shayla.  I saw her… well, I’m not certain how many days its been since I was separated from my friends, but we rescued her from a man named Varlak!” 

            Kellinor’s eyes narrowed, but before she could go on he raised a beefy hand to stop her.  “Come with me, Natashiana of the elvenkind.”  That marked the first time she had heard her race referred to in that manner, but she found it far from insulting.  In fact, it was spoken with reverence, as though the tribal Trey’Eldeners held her people in high esteem.  He turned away, his broad back receding quickly as his impossibly long legs carried him back toward the village.  Tasha had to hurry to keep up, finally falling into step beside him though she nearly had to job to keep up.  “We go to see Rolfe, warlord of our tribe.  He will want to meet you, I am certain.”  Tasha nodded, not questioning this.  She had assumed the warlord would want to meet her if she claimed to have news of his missing daughter.

           Kellinor led her quickly through the village, past several roaring bonfires where scantily clad natives cavorted.  Tasha saw men and women dancing, eating and loving everywhere she looked, literally having to look away whenever her gaze fell on a couple tangled in each others arms.  Apparently these people were not shy about such things.  “It seems I have interrupted a great celebration.”  She said, thinking it odd that they should be celebrating when their princess was missing.  Kellinor only nodded, not elaborating further. 

            They came, after some fifteen minutes of marching through the village, to a massive hut constructed, as many of the buildings she had seen in the village were, of sturdy wooden poles and fronds from some unknown tree.  It seemed to all be sealed together with mud and though she had seen finer construction, she couldn’t deny the building looked stout enough.  Kellinor moved through a doorway blocked by a hanging animal skin, holding this drape aside for Tasha as she entered behind him.  She found herself in a huge lodge, facing an elderly but still powerful looking barbarian who had to have seen his seventieth year already.  He sat upon a huge throne like chair of the same construction as the building, flanked by two muscular and very handsome young men who had to be his sons, the resemblance was so striking.  Bowing before the elder warlord, Kellinor announced, “Natashiana of the elvenkind.” 

            Tasha could feel the eyes of both young princes sliding over her hungrily, but those of the warlord, whom she assumed to be Rolfe, Shayla’s father, were merely curious.  “Why have you come before me Natashiana of the elvenkind?”  he asked.  His voice was still strong, though it cracked with age and he looked to be quite exhausted, but he gripped a sword hilt powerfully in one hand, its point against the ground next to his chair.

            Glancing nervously toward Kellinor, Tasha cleared her throat before beginning, “My lord Rolfe, I come to inform you that I have news of your daughter, Shayla.”

            His bushy eyebrows went up at this and the princes exchanged a glance.  “Indeed?  What news is this?”

            “My comrades and I rescued her from a young barbarian warrior named Varlak, who was holding her against her will.  I became separated from my party when we entered combat with enemies who have been in this forest on the same mission as we were.”  She saw the princes exchange glances again, smirking slightly, and got the distinct impression that she was missing something.  Her unspoken was question was answered before she had a chance to voice it when another drape in a wall to the warlords side was pulled open and the princess herself walked out, glancing first at her father then moving her gaze to their elven visitor.

            The two women stared at each other for several moments, each shocked to see the other there, then they started to speak at once, asking how they came to be there, what had become of them, neither voice discernible over the other.  Rolfe, looking bemused, held up a large hand and both women fell silent, Tasha recognizing that this was a man accustomed to getting his way.  “Am I correct, my daughter, in assuming that this elf is the woman you spoke of?  The one that disappeared before we arrived to rescue your rescuers?”

            Shayla nodded but Tasha frowned, “Rescue her rescuers?”  She glanced from father to daughter, both of them smiling.  Slowly understanding dawned upon the elf.  “You mean…?”         

            Shayla nodded and laughed, “Yes!  My brother Devlin,” she motioned at the larger and older of the two princes, “arrived with a whole hunting party, attracted by the sounds of battle.  They encountered me first and when I explained to them what was happening they went to help the others in the fight!”

            “So… they’re alive?  All of them?”  Tasha asked, hardly able to believe her good fortune.

            “They are.”  Rolfe assured her with a smile.  “Though the dwarf, Brudan I believe he calls himself, is threatening to drink through our entire seasons store of ale before this celebration is through!”

            Tasha could hardly believe it.  “What about Jackal’s men?  The ones that laid in wait for us?”  Tasha asked.

            Devlin responded to this, his voice sounding as though the words left a sour taste in his mouth.  “Dead, all of them.”

            “What about their leader?  Jackal?”  Tasha asked hopefully, wanting desperately for the greater zombie to have fallen in the battle as well.

            Devlin frowned, cocking his head quizzically.  “Who is this Jackal?”

            “He was their leader, a half breed, crossing an orc and a hobgoblin, though he would have looked to you like the walking dead.  We call him a greater zombie where I come from.”  Tasha described.

            Devlin shook his head.  “No such person was encountered in the battle.”

            Tasha sighed, “That’s probably because he was chasing me through the forest.  I imagine he got back to find his people slaughtered!”

            Rolfe spoke again.  “Then for certain he is no longer a threat, for one man alone, even an undead, cannot hope to stand long against the elements or my warriors!”

            Tasha nodded, understanding she would have to content herself with the knowledge that Jackal escaped.  She had a suspicion, sometime down the road, she would encounter him again.  Turning to Shayla she said, “I’d like to see the others.”  Shayla looked to her father for permission and he smiled and nodded, waving them away. 

The two women left the lodge together, but not before Tasha’s keen elven ears heard Prince Devlin say, “The Gods above have blessed that woman!  I’ve never seen such a beauty!”

The rest of that night was a rather joyous affair, with Tasha being reunited with the friends she had thought dead and who had similarly thought of her.  She was also reunited with her weaponry, told that the search party Rolfe had sent out found it beside a frozen river, the only sign of what might have happened to her.  Tasha found it interesting that the only arrow remaining in her quiver was the ruby arrow designed especially for the bow.  She marveled at the magic, wondering how Calistone had done it.

Her reunion with Karnal was especially energetic, the half-elf having been convinced he would never see her again.  They made love for many hours, till the sun was rising into the sky and by the time they had gotten caught up on lost time Tasha had an idea.  She asked one of the tribesmen where she might find Kellinor and was taken to the champions lodge.  Once there she asked the massive warrior for an audience with Rolfe which was quickly granted.  Tasha was pleased that the princes weren’t in attendance for the meeting, for she hadn’t particularly cared for the way Prince Devlin had stared at her on their previous meeting.

“What is it you want of me, Natashiana of the elvenkind?”  Rolfe asked her pleasantly as she was brought before the warlord by Kellinor.

“Last night,” Tasha began, “when I first met Kellinor, he told me that your people have lived in harmony with the savage called Wolf.”  Rolfe nodded at his, exchanging a glance with his champion.  “It is my belief that he is in danger, Lord Rolfe.  I would ask your assistance in helping him.”       

Rolfe scowled, “Why do you believe this?” 

Tasha launched into her story then, telling the men of everything that had happened since her arrival at the border of Trey’Elden.  She finished by saying, “The people you rescued my friends from were in the employ of Wolf’s brother.  They were out here hunting him, I believe to kill him so that he would pose no threat to Vestyns’ bid for his fathers title.”

Rolfe exchanged a troubled glance with Kellinor.  “I see.  It is true that Wolf has been a friend to our people, helping us in times of need in ways similar to how he helped you.  Perhaps we do owe it to him to aide him, and I certainly owe you for rescuing my daughter from my brother and his son.”

It occurred to Tasha then that she hadn’t asked what had become of Varlak, or his father, Karnash.  She had been too distracted with her own plans or problems, but she made a mental note to ask Shayla about it later.  “Whatever debt you owed me, Lord Rolfe, was paid when you rescued my friends from certain death at the hands of Fenry’s people.”

“Then this would be a… favor?”  he asked her.  “What could I expect in return?”

“What would you ask of me?”  Tasha asked warily.

Rolfe regarded her for a moment, then smiled, “You are an archer, yes?  A craftsman of such things as well?”  Tasha nodded, not certain where he was going.  “If we help you, you must do the same for us.  Teach my craftsmen how to make bows and arrows, and teach certain of my warriors how to shoot them.  Agree to this, and we will help you with your problem.”

Tasha’s smile was genuine and she found she truly liked this old barbarian.  “Deal.”  She said and they shook on it, then she started to lay out her plan for Vestyn Fenry’s downfall.

Tasha had remembered something Jackal said to her when they had been up on the ridge overlooking his campsite, fighting.  He had told her that Lord Fenry was on his way there to collect his brothers, which meant it was likely not going to be much longer till he arrived, if he wasn’t in the area already.  The elf wouldn’t have been surprised if Jackal, having escaped the fate of his men, went in search of his employer to tell him what had happened.  She hoped that wasn’t the case, for it would mean that Vestyn Fenry was on the watch for them.  But Rolfe had agreed, was in fact eager, to lay an ambush for the nobleman.  All Tasha had to do was find out where he was going to be and when.  Or perhaps arrange for him to be in a certain place at a certain time.

Her friends were in support of the plan, up until she told them what was required of her.  Karnal in particular was quite vocal about his misgivings regarding the part she had set for herself to play.  “It’s too dangerous Tasha!  Jackal and Vestyn both have expressed a… less than healthy interest in you.  Using yourself as bait to draw them out so that we and our new friends here can lay waste to them…!”  He trailed off, shaking his head.

“Do you think they would be keen enough to capture any of you that I won’t have to go?”  Tasha asked him.  “Think about it Karnal, there is no one else that they will go out of their way to capture.  Not only have I embarrassed them both on more than one occasion, but they will both think it likely that I know where to find Wolf!”

“How do you intend to keep ahead of them while you lead them to the ambush site?  Tasha, Jackal is a fully trained ranger and he knows this wilderness a damn site better than you do!”  Karnal shook his head, “It’s just not a good idea!”

“I have to agree with the assassin on that point.”  Calidor chimed in for the first time.  “You’re a very skilled archer, and you won’t be unarmed since we recovered your weaponry, but these men are lethal and they will be in their element.”

            Tasha shook her head.  “That’s where you’re wrong!  Jackal will be in his element, but not Vestyn Fenry.  He’s a noble lord, and a mage from what I’ve been able to gather, but he’s no woodsman.  I’ll deal with Jackal before I make my run for the ambush site, take him out of the equation all together.  For that matter, we don’t even know for certain that he is with Fenry!  None of us knows what became of him after I met him up on that ridge.”  She could see Karnal still looking rebellious and she spoke up quickly, cutting him off.  “I’ve made up my mind.  Bandon and I,” she nodded to where the youth sat next to Tallis, having been rescued with the others but somehow managing still to conceal from them his alternate ego as Lurker, “will go in search of Lord Fenry.  He shouldn’t be too hard to find he won’t want to rough it in the wilds and Rolfe tells me there aren’t many town around the area.  Rolfe has told me of an area that he says will be perfect for such an ambush, and you will all go with his people to set it up.”  She met the assassin’s gaze levelly, “All of you.”  He nodded his acceptance, though by his expression it was obvious he wasn’t happy.  “Bandon and I are two of the people he most wants to capture right now, so there’s no doubt in my mind he’ll give chase.  I’ll lead him right to all of you and the rest should be simple.”

            A few moments later the others were filing out of the small tent Rolfe had given Tasha to use for the duration of her stay.  Karnal stopped at her side and muttered, “I still don’t like this.”

            She placed a reassuring hand on his forearm and said, “I know, but Wolf saved my life out there and I can’t just leave knowing that his older brother is trying to kill him.  This plan will work, you’ll just have to trust me.”  She kissed him on the cheek and he left.  When Tasha turned from the flap that served as the entrance to the tent she saw that Bandon had not left.  Eyeing him, she asked, “Something on your mind?”

            He snickered.  “Always.”  After a moments pause, he said, “You know, you really don’t have to go.  I’m bait enough for Vestyn to come after.”

            Tasha shook her head, “He wants you dead as much as Wolf, true, but he has no reason to believe you have any idea where to find the elder Fenry brother.  I, on the other hand, can make it quite well known that I have met him and think I know where to find him.  It will be believable, because it is true.”  She sighed, “No Bandon, I have to go along too.”

            “Well, finding him will be easier than you think.”  He informed her.  Her quizzical look prompted him to continue.  “While slinking around the countryside here as Lurker, I searched most of the local towns for some sign of Vestyn or Jackal and his cronies.  One local town, a place called Landslide, has the dubious distinction of being where one of Vestyn’s many properties is located.  He has a home there, I was searching it when Jackal and his people found me and overpowered me.”

            “Landslide, huh?”  Tasha asked.

            He nodded.  “It’s aptly named.  Perched on the edge of a cliff so that every few years the town loses one of its buildings to a rock slide or avalanche.  Big brothers’ place is toward the center of town, so it won’t be in any danger of dropping off the edge for several centuries yet.”

            “How far is it?”  Tasha asked.

            “About a day from here.”  He told her.

            Tasha and Bandon left the Thunder Hammers settlement that same day, each astride a borrowed horse.  Karnal had tried one last time to get her to take him along, but it was her argument that his skill in setting traps would be a great asset to the others that finally got him to back down.  Though she had hoped they wouldn’t find it necessary, Tasha and Bandon wound up making camp that night, with the young mans assurance that they would likely reach the town of Landslide late the next morning.  She couldn’t argue when he told her that traveling through the region at night was far too dangerous, what with the crevasses and all.  Her own recent experience with such things caused her to agree with his opinion and they made camp in a small snow covered clearing next to a stream that seemed to run from the mountains to the west.

            They lit a fire and Tasha managed to shoot a few scrawny rabbits to cook over it.  They ate side by side, near the flames which gave off some welcome warmth in the deepening cold of coming nightfall.  They took turns at the watch throughout the night, sleeping in two hour shifts until the suns rays in the early morning signaled them it was time to move out.  As Bandon had said, they arrived in Landslide late that morning.

            Perched on the edge of wide crevasse, the town had a sign on the edge that claimed it’s population to have once been five thousand, though that number had long since been crossed off, replaced a hundred times or more by other counts as the population dwindled from deaths within the town.  Bandon figured it was also due to the buildings being lost over the edge of the crevasse, though Tasha couldn’t see how something like that would happen so fast as to prevent people being able to get clear in time.  They tied their horses off in front of building, the sign in front of it claiming it was called the “Next to Drop Inn”.  Smirking slightly at the owners dark sense of humor, Tasha and Bandon walked into the spacious lobby.  It was warm in here and glancing around, Tasha could see a total of three fireplaces scattered along the walls of the room, casting heat into its center.  Instantly sweating, she shrugged out of the fur skin coat she had been given by the barbarians of the tribe, noting as she did so the way the young man at the counter was eyeing her.  Having expected such a reaction, and for the first time in recent memory wanting to be remembered in the town, Tasha made a show of stretching luxuriously, handing the fur coat to Bandon as she did so, as though having just ended an arduous journey.  Her tight pants and shirt, both borrowed from Tallis who was a great deal smaller than Tasha, threatened to burst at the seams as she stretched.

            Bandon was trying desperately to look anywhere but at her, the sensuous motions of the elf setting off his family gift so that by the time Tasha stood up she was flushed, her nipples were hard and plainly visible through the shirt and she was more aroused than she would have thought possible given all the sex she had had recently.  She noted for later reference that being physically active while in the presence of a Fenry male seemed to augment and speed up the process.  However, it turned out to be a good thing as they approached the desk, Tasha smiling disarmingly at the innkeeper.  “Hi there.” She said, her voice a throaty purr.

            He swallowed audibly, his eyes drawn almost like a magnet to where her shirt was stretched tight over her heaving bosom, the nipples so obviously outlined beneath them.  “Uhm… he-hello.”

            “We need rooms, two of them please.”  She said, holding up two fingers and wagging them at him.  Without turning away from the vision standing before him, the clerk reached back and pulled two keys from a rack.  Tasha could see that the rooms were no where near each other and though she was concerned at not being closer to Bandon, for their mutual protection, neither did she want to break the spell he was under.  For the first time in her life, Natashiana Grasamere wanted news of her presence in this town to spread quickly.  “Thank you so much.”  She said, taking the keys from him and passing one to Bandon.  They turned away, moving toward the stairs, Tasha casting a flirty look at the young clerk over her shoulder as she moved away.

            Bandon’s room was on the second floor, Tasha’s on the third, so she stopped with him at the door to his.  “You’ve ruined that poor guy for other women, you know that right?”  He asked her as he unlocked his door.

            She smiled slightly.  “Normally, I disapprove of such behavior, but I think it was necessary to leave the proper impression in his mind.  I want word to reach Vestyn, if he’s here, that I’m in town.”

            Bandon stepped into his room and turned to face her.  “If he is, I’ll know it soon enough.  I think Lurker needs to go have a look around.”

            Tasha nodded, thinking that might be a good idea.  “Just be careful.  Remember what happened the last time you poked around his place in this town.”  He nodded, then closed the door as she moved off down the hall.  Tasha found her room and let herself in, glancing around.  There was a double bed, a small dresser, an armoire and a large bowl of water atop the dresser.  A small round table and two chairs sat in one corner, beneath the rooms only window.  It wasn’t much, but the door locked, so it would do.  Securing the door, Tasha went and stretched out on the bed.  She decided to rest, since she doubted she’d get much in the days to come.

            She was awakened several hours later by a loud rapping on her door.  Her eyes snapping open, the first thing Tasha did was to glance over at the window.  The sun was gone, which meant she had slept for at least six hours, more than she had intended.  Another knock and she rolled off the bed, still fully dressed and moved toward the door. Pressing her ear to it, she called, “Who’s there?”

            There was a loud thump and Tasha cried out as the door was kicked open, knocking her backward to sprawl across the thinly carpeted floor of her room.  Looking up she saw Vestyn Fenry and three men in soldier’s armor stride in.  The nobleman, clad in a mages robe beneath a long bear skin coat, glowered down at her as two of the three men flanked her on either side and the third moved toward the bed.  Tasha followed him from the corner of her eye and saw him retrieve her weapons from where they had lain beside her on the bed.  “Hello elf.”  Vestyn said, his eyes trailing lazily over her.  “I figured if my upstart baby brother was here his babysitter couldn’t be too far away.  Then one of my men heard the day clerk here talking about the sexiest elf he had ever seen taking a room in the inn and they knew it had to be you.  So… here we are!”

            So Lurker had been caught prowling Fenry’s home… again.  Tasha was beginning to wonder at the young vigilante’s level of skill.  Still, Fenry had found her, just as she’d always intended, though perhaps not on the terms she had hoped for.  “What do you want Fenry?”

            “Well, I’ve already got one of my brothers, and you.  The only thing left is Lobosos, so… do you know where he is?”  Vestyn asked.

            “No.”  She answered abruptly, too abruptly.  Fenry’s eyes flicked up to the man on her left and Tasha cried out, rolling into a ball on her side as the soldier kicked her savagely in the side, his armored toe digging in to her kidney. 

            “Again… do you know where Lobosos hides out?  I know he’s somewhere in the surrounding wilderness, Jackal claimed to have nearly found him before he mysteriously disappeared.”  He grunted, “I suspect you had something to do with that, too.”

            Gasping for breath, Tasha demanded, “If I did know where to find your brother, why would I tell you?  I’m as good as dead if I do.”

            “Dead?”  Vestyn laughed, crouching down to look into her face, “I have far more enjoyable things in mind for you than merely killing you.  I fully intend to pick up where we left off before we were so rudely interrupted by my brother back in Hauteur.  I suspect it will take several days to get to Wolf, I intend to use every bit of that time to commit your every delicious curve to memory!”  Tasha’s stomach heaved, though she had expected something like this all along.  She had known all too well what her fate would be if Vestyn or Jackal had gotten hold of her again.  “But I tell you what, give me my brothers location and I just might spare Bandon’s life!”

            Tasha gazed up into his face, her mind churning with possibilities.  She hadn’t wanted to give in too fast for fear of raising his suspicions, but if he had researched her at all then he knew threatening the life of a child was going to get a response from her.  She could guide them to the ambush site just as well as their captive as she could as their prey.  Perhaps better, though she knew it would require sharing this loathsome individuals bed.  But at least he was a Fenry, so on some base level she was going to enjoy it.  Finally, she said, “I can’t give you directions, but I can lead you there.”  She hoped she sounded defeated, and the smile that spread across his thin, pale face told her she had.

            Straightening, Fenry barked orders at his men.  “Stand her up, bind her wrists and bring her with us.  Keep her gear as well, it may be handy along the way.  We leave in the morning, sergeant, see to the journey.  Make certain we have enough supplies and men to protect us.”  The man tying her hands behind her nodded and when he had finished Vestyn came forward and took her arm himself, jerking her towards the door.  “You and I will spend this night getting to know one another better.”  He whispered in her ear as they left, the sound of his mens armored footfalls behind them as they moved out of the room and down the hall.  Tasha’s stomach churned, but she reminded herself that in the end, Vestyn Fenry would pay dearly for all that he had done or was yet to do….

Chapter Ten

            After three days with Vestyn Fenry, enduring his every salacious desire, Tasha decided to swear off men for a few years.  The man was not only insatiable, he was incredibly kinky and because of that mysterious ability possessed by all men of the Fenry line, Tasha rather enjoyed the experimentation he conducted with her… while it was happening at least.  After the fact she would vomit repeatedly out the back of the covered wagon she had been sharing with him since leaving Landslide.  That first night had probably been the worst, for he had been at his most eager to break her in.  It wasn’t until he learned that she would not be broken that things settled down and she merely had to endure his bizarre sexual appetite.

            They had left Landslide with a compliment of six men, all of them loyal to Vestyn Fenry so long as he continued to pay them.  They were well trained and heavily armed and armored, but Tasha held no doubts that there weren’t nearly enough of them to mount a defense against what awaited at the ambush site.  It disturbed her slightly that she hadn’t seen Bandon since their departure from the small town, but she believed she had heard him a time or two, crying out in the night as his brother tortured him.  It was Vestyn’s promise that Bandon would not be killed that was keeping Tasha in line, but he had never promised not to take out his frustrations on the boy.  Tasha’s heart ached for her young friend, knowing there was nothing she could do to help him but wishing it were not so. 

            It was late on the night of the fourth day when something happened that Tasha had not prepared for.  She awoke with a start after having spent several exhaustive hours with Vestyn, having thought she heard something land on the hard roof of the wagon.  Turning her head slightly she looked at the sleeping lords profile, trying to determine if he were still asleep or faking it.  After the workout he had had, she found it difficult to think he was faking it, but she had awakened easily enough and so had to acknowledge that he might have too.  She didn’t think Vestyn’s instincts were so finely tuned, since he was not strictly an adventurer.  He was, she had discovered to her chagrin, a rather powerful mage.  She had been the brunt of some of his more imaginative spell creations since her stay with him, serving still more to ensure in her mind that he deserved to die.

            Quietly and very naked, she slipped from between Vestyn’s sheets, the homely lord grumbling softly as she did so.  Glancing at him as she moved, she crossed the small wagon to the gates that closed at its rear.  One opened upward the other down, and Tasha lifted the top gate, gazing out into the dark campsite.  She could see the bedrolls of the six guards, one of which was empty, that soldier being on guard duty.  Her eyes narrowing she scanned the quiet wilderness, her elven nightvision seeing the area as though it were daylight.  She barely refrained from screaming, though she did gasp aloud, when a face descended into her field of vision from above the wagon.  Glancing over her shoulder she saw the mage roll over in his sleep, then she turned a concerned expression on Wolf.

            “You can’t be here!” she hissed, seeing his smiling face and knowing that he was just happy to see her and didn’t understand the danger he was in.  “They’ll kill you if you’re seen!”  Tasha could feel that familiar passion building within her and struggled mightily to keep it buried.  She knew she couldn’t forever, but she was determined to impress upon him how dangerous it was.  Pointing at the fire she said, “Danger!”  He turned his head, his gaze sweeping over the sleeping guards.  Turning, she saw one of his hands protrude from above the wagon and point toward the tree line.  She turned to look in that direction and saw one of the guards slumped unconscious against the trunk of a tree.  Obviously Wolf had silenced him before approaching her.  That same hand now reached for Tasha, his expression asking her to come with him.  She drew back into the wagon, shaking her head.  “I can’t…” she said, seeing the wounded expression on his face and wishing she could make him understand, “…it’s not just me I’m concerned for.  There is another being held here… your brother Wolf!  If I leave they’ll hurt him!”  The feral elf’s blank stare was all the evidence she needed of his lack of understanding.

            Frowning, she tried to think of some way to get her point across.  From the corner of her eye she saw him move and she glanced up, seeing that her wild friend was swinging from the top of the wagon, thinking to enter and join her.  She started to shake her head but his sudden movement and caused the wagon to lurch violently.  She glanced over her shoulder and saw Vestyn’s eyes open.  Her heart started pounding in her chest as the lord sat up, glancing around for her, then his eyes settled upon them both crouched near the rear of the wagon.  As recognition dawned his eyes widened, then he scowled and instantly started to speak the words to a spell.

            “No!”  Tasha cried, standing between the brothers.  Wolf however, sensing the threat, shoved her aside with a snarl, thinking to protect the woman he looked on as his mate, so Tasha was staggering off balance when Vestyn Fenry’s spell was launched.  A brilliant light was launched from his hand, shooting across the short distance and blinding her as it struck Lobosos in the chest.  He howled as he was flung back, his body engulfed in the brilliant light.  Still unable to see, Tasha heard the mage dash past toward the exit, going after his brother.  She tried to strike out at him but missed, unable to see her target.  She heard Wolf growl and there was a scuffle, a sound like crackling energy and more bright flashes only visible to Tasha as fluctuations of light while her vision was still adjusting.  She heard the sounds of the guards boots as they rushed to join the fray and she crawled, still naked, on her hands and knees toward the back of the wagon. 

            Her vision was starting to clear as she leaned against the lower tailgate, the fight on the ground outside coming into focus.  Wolf, not used to fighting a magic user, was down and stunned, but still moving, trying to crawl backward toward the forest.  Vestyn was standing by the wagons rear, arms raised and voice lifted as he chanted another spell.  The five guards were moving to circle Wolf.  In desperation, knowing if she didn’t do something her friend was going to die, Tasha reached out and grabbed Vestyn by the only thing she could grip, since he was as naked as she, and that was his hair.  He grunted in surprise as she jerked him backward, thwarting his spell casting by averting his attention.  His quintet of guards, distracted by this unexpected attack, turned to see if they could help their boss.

            “Wolf!” she cried desperately, knowing he couldn’t understand her words but hoping her tone at least would get the message across, “Run!”

            She saw the guards turn back toward the feral elf just before Vestyn snarled and backhanded her across the face.  Releasing him, Tasha slumped back into the wagon, her head throbbing.  Stubbornly she forced herself to sit up and was just in time to see Wolf leap to the trunk of a tree then up into the foliage, making good his escape.

            “Get after him!”  Vestyn shrieked at his men, gesticulating wildly toward the trees.  “He’s the whole reason we’re out here!”  As the soldiers raced off into the woods after Wolf Vestyn wheeled and glowered at Tasha.  She stayed where she was, ready to fend off an attack should he decide to strike her again.  They locked gazes for a moment, then the mage swore and strode over to the unconscious guard, kicking the man roughly.  The guard woke up swearing, looking around.  Seeing the naked nobleman standing over him, looking irate, brought the young man quickly to his senses.  Before he could say anything, however, Vestyn growled.  “I’m going with the others, you stay and guard the bitch and that brat!”  He gestured at his own wagon where Tasha was held and another across the camp, where she had always assumed they were holding Bandon.  The guard nodded, studiously averting his gaze from the older mans nudity.  Fenry stalked back to his wagon, climbing in, shoving her aside in the process.  She watched mutely as he stepped into his boots and pulled on his mage robes, opting for no other clothing before he turned and threw something at her.  “You have ten seconds to put that on!”  She held it up, discovering it a shift he’d likely taken from her own bags.  She slipped it quickly on over her head, very aware it only fell to mid-thigh, then he came forward and spun her around, forcing her face down in the wagon while he tied her wrists behind her.  That done, he dragged her to her knees by her hair and shoved her out of the wagon, where she fell solidly to the ground, the wind knocked out of her.

            Jumping down, Vestyn growled at the guard, “Don’t let her go back in the wagon alone.  Her weapons and gear are in there.  Keep her out of it all together, do you understand?” 

            “Yes sir!”  The guard, now eager to please his employer after being so easily subdued once already that night, was a little too boisterous in his response.  Shaking his head irritably, Vestyn Fenry stalked off into the woods after the other five guards.

            An hour had passed since the other men left the camp and her guard was less than alert, lounging casually against the trunk of a tree.  Tasha had long since maneuvered around so that she was now sitting with her back to one of the wagons wheels, her legs pulled up to her chest in a vain attempt to ward off some of the nights chill.  The slight garment she wore did nothing to conceal her curves, the hem bunched around her hips because of her bent knees.  She noticed the guard, a human in his late teens or early twenties, casting furtive looks over at her, his eyes sweeping the smooth, shapely lines of her legs.  She had been aware for the last couple of days that the guards were more than a little miffed that their boss wasn’t sharing her.  This particular guard was the youngest and least experienced of the group, a fact she suddenly realized she could use to her advantage.

            Turning her gaze upon him, she called softly, “What’s your name soldier?”

            Blinking, surprised to be addressed by the prisoner who hadn’t spoken to any of the guards yet, he met her blue green gaze nervously.  “Brant.”

            She smiled gently at him, “Well, Brant, I’m awfully thirsty.  I’m sure you can imagine that your boss hasn’t been treating me so well.”  He scowled and she motioned with her chin toward a wooden table the guards had set up to one side of the camp.  On it rested a bottle and several wooden cups.  “I surely would appreciate some of that wine.”

            Brant pushed off the tree, standing up straight and eyeing her uncertainly.  “I don’t know if I should.”

            She shrugged.  “It’s up to you, of course, but no one will know.  I’d take it as a kindness, something I haven’t seen much of since being forced into the company of you men.”

            The young soldier glanced toward the table, then back to her.  Finally, as if thinking there was really no harm in it, he crossed the camp to the table.  Lifting the bottle by the neck he turned and approached the scantily clad elf.  Bending down, he helped her to stand up then thrust the bottle toward her, as though expecting her to take it. 

            Tasha smiled patiently at him, seeing that it was making the young man highly uncomfortable to be so close to her.  “Brant, unless you intend to untie my hands, you’ll have to help me some.”

            The youthful soldier looked embarrassed, then raised the bottle to his mouth and used his teeth to pull the cork, then he raised it to her mouth.  Tasha let him put the bottle to her lips and when he tipped it up she drank a few swallows, then deliberately pulled her lower lip back, letting some of the weak wine dribble down her chin where it splashed into her cleavage, as she had intended it to do.

            “Oops.”  She mumbled, glancing down at her glistening cleavage.  “That was clumsy of us!”  She smiled at him a little, then said, “You might want to clean that up, if your boss notices the stain he’ll know you’ve given me wine.”  Brant turned three shades of white at those words and cast about frantically for something to use to clean up the spill.  There was nothing, however, since napkins weren’t something the soldiers had really thought of including in their camping supplies.  Tasha sighed, drawing his attention back to her, then she arched her back, thrusting her magnificent breasts at him and said softly, “Use your imagination soldier.”  Brants gaze slid from her face to her remarkable breasts, the material of the sheer slip stretched taut over them.  Swallowing audibly, his throat suddenly very dry, he looked back up into her eyes uncertainly.  Tasha smiled, nodding that she understood, and the soldier stepped forward, lowering his face to her cleavage.  As soon as his lips touched her soft, warm flesh he moaned and his hands settled on her waist, pulling her suddenly against him so that she had to bend further backward to allow him access.  She could feel his tongue in her cleavage, searching about for every drop of the berry flavored and colored wine and after a few moments of this she let out a soft moan.  Brant raised his face, gazing into her eyes and seeing a smoldering passion there.  “Oh, my,” she purred, “you have a very talented tongue!”

            His eyes widened in surprise at her brazenness, “I…I… I do?”

            She nodded, licking her lips slightly.  “I can’t help but wonder what other talents it might have!”

            Again the young soldier swallowed noisily, suddenly very nervous at the woman’s apparent mood swing.  He wasn’t sure how to react or what to say, all he knew was that he had never encountered a more desirable creature than the woman he currently held in his arms.  “I… uhm… I don’t know.” He glanced over his shoulder, in the direction the other men had gone.

          “Brant, they’ll be chasing Wolf for a long time yet.  That feral elf knows this forest like no one else, trust me.”  She shrugged, pressing herself against him invitingly, “Besides, it’s not exactly fair that Lord Fenry has been keeping me all to himself is it?  He’s not the most attractive man in the world, is it any wonder after four nights with him I’d want a handsome young soldier to take my mind off it?”

            His response was immediate and took her a little by surprise, his lips crushing against hers, his arms sliding about her waist and pulling her tight against him, his body slamming hers back against the wagon, pinning her to it.  Tasha recovered her surprised quickly, returning his kiss as best she could with her hands tied behind her.  Brant’s hands were everywhere, he seemed incapable of deciding where to put them, until they found her breasts, squeezing them through the thin material of her slip.  Tasha allowed herself a moan, pressing forward, trying to urge him on.  She wanted him as excited and distracted as she could get him, and evidently he was well on his way, judging by the erection threatening to burst from his pants.  She could feel it rubbing against her belly, his hoarse groan further evidence of his ardor.

            As he broke the kiss, his lips making their way slowly back down to her breasts, Tasha let her head sag back against the wagon and gasped, “Brant!  I need my hands!  I can’t do this properly without my hands!”  His only response was a brief, negative growl as she felt one of his hands tugging her bodice down, baring her breasts to his hungry mouth.  She gasped, her eyes popping open wide when she suddenly felt his fingers wiggling between her thighs, one of them sliding into her without warning.  “Gods!”  He chuckled at this, lifting his face to grin at her.

            “You like that?”  he asked her, sliding another finger into her and wiggling them back and forth.  She arched her back, gasping again, nodding her head.

            Then and idea struck her and she looked him straight in the face with as much passion as she could manage.  “You know what I’d like more?”  He shook his head, his eyes alight with excitement.  “Like I said, you have a talented tongue.  More so than your fingers, I’d bet!”  Brants eyes widened at the thought, then a slow smile spread across his young face.  He really was rather handsome and part of Tasha regretted what was coming next, but it was necessary.  She grunted when he flung her to the ground, then lowered himself atop her, kissing his way slowly down her front.  Tasha squirmed on the ground, giving the impression she was greatly enjoying herself, parting her legs for the young man as his mouth worked its way over her flat stomach and down her pelvis.  Brant flattened himself face down on the ground, slipping his arms beneath her knees and around her thighs while his mouth moved hungrily for her womanhood.  That was when Tasha struck, clamping her thighs tightly to either side of his head and, before he could muster a counter-attack, twisting her hips violently to the right, snapping his neck cleanly. 

            Brant’s dead body slumped, his mouth still connected to her mound and Tasha pushed herself backward as quickly as she could, the movement made awkward because of her tied hands.  Clear of the dead body, she let her head fall back to the ground, her breasts heaving as she panted, willing her pulse to slow and her temperature to lower.  She had gotten so into her role of seduction she had been getting truly aroused and needed a few minutes to calm herself and get her thoughts about her.  Once she had her wits about her again she rolled her way to his side, putting her back to the dead mans body and sliding his military issue knife from his belt sheath.  Reversing the blade she deftly sliced her bonds and freed her hands, then sprang to her feet, rubbing her wrists to restore circulation.  Hissing at the burn as the blood started to flow back through them, Tasha turned to Vestyn’s wagon, remembering what he had told Brant about her gear being in there.  Had she known that before she might have made an attempt to retrieve it before now!

           A quick search of the wagon found her borrowed clothing and, more importantly, her bow, quiver and sword.  All of this she donned, using a length of leather strip she found to tie her hair back into a loose ponytail.  Then she hopped from the wagon and turned toward the other, where she believed Bandon to be held.  Her keen hearing detected the approach of the soldiers, the clanking of their armor carrying easily in the still night.  She could just make out their angry voices as well.  Reluctantly, with an apologetic glance toward her young friends prison, Tasha turned and fled into the night.  Minutes later she thought she heard the enraged scream of Vestyn Fenry as he discovered the body of the young soldier he had left to guard her.

            Tasha couldn’t remember the last time she had run so far so fast, nor did she really understand just how far she had gone.  She did, however, know that Fenry and his men were right behind her and if she slowed down, or worse, stopped for a breather, she’d wind up right back in their clutches.  In a way she was glad they were chasing her, because that meant they weren’t taking her escape out on Bandon, but on the other hand it would be nice to catch a breather, even if only for a moment or two.

            Still not knowing how long she had been running but knowing from the burning in her lungs that it had to have been hours, Tasha ducked and weaved through the dense foliage, her magical bow clutched loosely in her hand as she ran.  She was thankful for the foresight of having tied back her hair, for if it had been flying freely right now it would have been stuck in branches and vines as she ran past.

            Tasha jumped a fallen log, barely even registering its presence as she passed and ducked between two closely grown trees when she burst into a small clearing.  She nearly cried out when arms encircled her from behind, and would have done so if a gloved hand hadn’t settled firmly over her mouth.  She fought and struggled madly, seeing two forms approaching quickly from the front but not recognizing them.  Someone was whispering urgently into her ear, the voice familiar but so surprised was the elf that for a time she refused to recognize it.  Then the words got through to her.

            “Tasha!  It’s me, Karnal!”  Instantly she stopped struggling, her wide eyes flipping to the other two men, who turned out to be Calidor and Brudan, both of them clutching their weapons and regarding her with frowns.  When Tasha realized she had recognized him at last he released her and she spun, throwing her arms around him in relief.  He embraced her in return, speaking once more softly into her ear.  “When you didn’t show up for a whole day after we thought you should have Rolfe sent the three of us to look for you.”

            Tasha leaned back, meeting the assassins dark gaze.  “There’s only the three of you?”

            Karnal nodded, then motioned over his shoulder with his head.  “How many are chasing you?”

            “Six, five soldiers and a mage.”  She shook her head, glancing around at the clearing. She had thought for a moment she had stumbled on the ambush site, but apparently not.  “The mage is Vestyn Fenry himself!”

            “It’s too far to the ambush site to lead them there.”  Calidor remarked.

            Tasha nodded, stepping back from her half-orc lover and looking around at the clearing.  “Then we’ll have to set up our own, right here.”

            “Four against six, and one of them a mage!”  Brudan slammed his sword off his shield, grinning broadly, “I like them odds!”

            Tasha smiled fleetingly, her quick mind coming up with a plan on the fly.  Turning to Karnal she said, “Fenry is a powerful magic user, I’m certain of that just due to what I’ve seen in the last few days.  Taking him down will be difficult, and likely impossible for the four of us without the element of surprise.  That’s where you come in.”  She motioned at the thick canopy of branches above them.  “You take to the trees and wait for my signal to attack Fenry.  I want to know what sort of defenses he’ll bring to play before we show our wildcard.”  Karnal nodded, understanding that she meant for him to be that wildcard.  “You two,” she said, turning to the odd-couple of elf and dwarf mercenaries, “will run defense for me.  A wall of sorts to slow down the soldiers while I try and even the odds from a distance.”  She gestured with her bow, showing them what she intended and they both nodded, exchanging grins.  The sound of the approaching men could be heard clearly now and she motioned for all of them to take their positions.  “Quickly!  While there’s still time!”

            Karnal leapt straight up into the trees, disappearing into the dark shadows there and Tasha jogged across the clearing, taking up a position some fifty feet behind Calidor and Brudan, who stood shoulder to shoulder, weapons at the ready.  Tasha drew forth a number of arrows, the first being the ruby mounted one, which she drove into the ground at her feet, the shaft pointed up.  Then there were five more, standard arrows, one for each soldier should she have an opportunity to fire at them all.

            Fenry’s soldiers broke through the tree line first, and it was a testament to their training that seeing elf and dwarf waiting for them didn’t even slow them down.  They also saw their quarry positioned behind the mercenaries, which drove them on with that much more ferocity.  Growling, Brudan launched himself forward first, leading with his shield which caught one of the soldiers in the chest, staggering him backward.  The dwarf swung his sword then, his wrist bending at the side of the shield so the blade swung around it, cutting deeply into the soldiers arm.  He howled, falling back and knocking the dwarf’s shield away with his own, looking more wary now as he faced off against the patch wearing warrior.  Calidor, too, met a soldier head on, leading with his spear which was easily deflected away by the soldiers shield.  The elf, far too savvy a warrior to let that slow him down, used the momentum of the blocked thrust to spin, putting that much more force behind the blow as he slashed with his spear at the mans face.  This soldier ducked, narrowly avoiding having his face ripped from his skull and fell back, squaring off against the elf.

            This left three more soldiers, and Tasha saw them coming, swerving around the combatants as they made for her.  Plucking one of her arrows from the ground in front of her she quickly drew it and her bowstring to her cheek and fired.  Before that arrow had struck she shifted her aim to the other side, firing another arrow before the first had hit.  These soldiers were heavily armored and the arrows struck in the only exposed flesh available to her aim, their faces.  The longbow arrows hit with such force as to knock both men over backward, flipping one completely over to land face down in the clearings knee high grass.  The third soldier, seeing his two comrades go down so quickly was more prepared for her attack, diving forward and rolling under the arrow she fired at him.  He came up with a snarl, slashing at her with his blade and forcing Tasha to fall back, leaving her other three arrows in the ground where she had stuck them.  Behind him she could see Vestyn Fenry stepping from the wood line, his wolfish features set in a scowl as his eyes swept the scene of the combat.  Tasha heard his voice though couldn’t make out the words, saw his mouth working and his hands gesturing, knowing he was working out a spell. 

            Still retreating from the soldier that was advancing on her, his sword slashing back and forth or thrusting at her, Tasha dodged, ducked and weaved, all the while reaching to her quiver and drawing forth an arrow.  Waiting till after the guard had slashed across her middle, forcing the archer to lean backward, she suddenly leaned in, stabbing with the arrow and forcing the man to twist aside wildly.  In that same movement Tasha brought the arrow back and knocked to her bowstring, drawing that to her ear and sighting down the shaft.  When the soldier had twisted away he had opened her field of vision, clearing her shot at Vestyn.  She let the arrow fly just as he finished his spell and she saw a brief flash of energy, looking like a cylinder surrounding the mage, stopping her arrow in mid-flight just before it struck him.  He smirked at her, the arrow frozen in mid-air before him, and he launched into another spell.

            The maneuver had cost Tasha, however, opening her to an attack from the soldier in front of her, and he pressed his advantage, his shield coming around and pounding into her from the side.  Tasha staggered, the bow falling from her fingers as she reached out to catch herself against a tree trunk.  The soldier came on again, thrusting with his blade and she spun away, narrowly avoiding being skewered as his blades tip sunk deep into the tree.  Lashing out with a perfectly executed side-thrust kick, Tasha’s booted foot impacted the side of the blade and the astonished soldiers eyes widened as his swords tip sheered off, the blade knocked from his hand.  Recovering quickly, the man spun, aiming his shield at her in a wicked backhanded blow.  Tasha did exactly the opposite of what he would have expected, stepping into the blow and catching his upper arm behind the shield.  He grunted as she leaned back, altering his trajectory and using his momentum against him, sending him crashing face first into the tree trunk.  He staggered away, his nose gushing blood, covering his face with his hands. 

            Unconcerned with him for the moment Tasha turned her attention back to Vestyn Fenry.  Peripherally she saw Karnal crouched in the branches above him, watching her, and Tasha dove, somersaulting toward her bow and coming with the weapon in hand, within reach of her planted arrows.  The mage finished his second spell and Tasha’s mouth opened to cry a warning, but too late and the bolt of lightning caught Calidor solidly, flinging the elf away to crash into a tree.  He slumped to the ground, his body twitching, his armor crackling with electricity.  Fenry laughed, instantly launching into another spell and Tasha fired another arrow at him. Again the cylinder of energy flashed around him and the arrow froze in mid-air, less than a foot from hitting the mage.  But this time Tasha, and she could see Karnal as well, saw that the wall of energy only circled him, it did not cover him from the top.  Turning her attention to the soldier that closing on Calidor Tasha plucked her ruby arrow and knocked it to her bowstring, aiming it at the unsuspecting guard.  She had intended to use this arrow to finish off Vestyn Fenry, but knew it would be more valuable here.  The fireball rushed across the short distance with a roar of flames and Tasha turned her attention quickly back to Fenry, not bothering to watch the impact.  As she drew forth another arrow the fireball exploded, sending the soldier flying, the blast staggering both Brudan and the soldier he was fighting. 

            The blast also served to distract Vestyn, interrupting his spell. He cursed and began to cast again, Tasha taking aim down the shaft of another arrow at the mage.  As she released the arrow she called out, “Karnal… NOW!”  The assassin dropped from his branches behind the mage, within the circumference of his shield.  Wheeling about, Vestyn Fenry’s eyes widened as he recognized Karnal, his concentration slipping and his magical shield dropping.  As the magical energy dissipated Karnal’s dagger found its way into the nobleman’s chest while Tasha’s three arrows, the first two that had been halted by his shield and the third one she had just fired, all thudded into the mans back, making him look like an elven pincushion.  Karnal retracted his blade, grimacing as the elf’s eyes rolled back in his head.  It seemed to Tasha, watching from across the clearing, that Vestyn Fenry moved in slow motion as he toppled to the ground, dead.

            A moment later Tasha glanced around and saw the soldier Brudan had been fighting lying in a pool of expanding blood, the dwarf himself crossing the clearing to assist his friend Calidor to stand, the elf only just starting to shake off the effects of the mages lightning bolt.  Heartened to see her friends alive and well, Tasha started across the clearing to Karnal. 

            He smiled at her as she approached, “We have to return to Fenry’s camp, they have Bandon prisoner there.”  The assassin nodded and all three men accompanied her back to the camp to free her young friend….

            It was three nights later and Tasha sat at a bonfire in the center of the Thundering Hammers tribal encampment.  All around her the tribe and her friends celebrated, Wolf was safe, Vestyn Fenry was dead and all was once again right with their world.  She sat quietly, listening to the sounds of merry making, smiling to herself.  A shadowy form came and sat next to her on the log where she was perched, Karnal leaning over and kissing her cheek softly.

            “So… now what?” he asked, his tone stating that he was afraid of the answer.

            “Now,” she responded with a sigh, “I fulfill my vow to Lord Rolfe and teach his people to craft and use bows and arrows.”

            He rolled his eyes and she smiled, “I meant after that!”

            Of course Tasha had known what he meant, but he was fun to tease.  “After that I continue on my mission to find Calistone.  It’s west for me, into Keyos.”

            He nodded, then was silent for a few moments.  “I’d like to go with you….”

            She smiled again, finishing his statement for him, “…but you can’t.”

            Looking at her he said, “Would you like to know why?  You’ve never asked me about myself you know.”

            Tasha shrugged.  “It wasn’t my place to pry.”

            “The kingdom of Keyos has a capitol city of the same name.  It is ruled by an orc king named Jar’Dal Ras.  Jar’Dal Ras used to be a slave in Errgaunt but led an uprising of sub-human slaves that turned on their human masters and killed them all.  In escaping the human kingdom his band encountered an elven noble woman and her personal guard.  The guard were killed quickly and easily, but Jar’Dal Ras liked the look of the elven noble.  He took her for his own, a prize, a… plaything.”  Karnal paused here, obviously trying to get his temper in check.  “Weeks later she wound up with child, his child.  He thought this a beautiful irony so he let her live, released her even.”  Karnal shook his head. “She tried to go back to her people in Aldonia but they would only take her back if she gave up the half-breed baby in her womb.”  Tasha nodded, understanding this.  It saddened her to admit it, but it was common for members of her race to put a lot of stock in pure blood lines.  She was proud to say that her family were not among them.  “Rather than give up the child that she loved, no matter how she felt about the baby’s father, she returned to Errgaunt and used what little fortune she had been able to salvage before her family exiled her to start a business.”

            “The elf was your mother.”  Tasha said, finding it obvious but knowing it needed to be said.

            Karnal nodded, “And Jar’Dal Ras, orc king of Keyos, is my father.”  He shrugged, “I’m not ready to face him yet, and my mother still resides in Errgaunt.  She needs me there as protection against those who would use her and her girls.”

            “Her girls?”  Tasha questioned.

            Karnal sighed.  “My mothers business was originally an inn, but it quickly became a home for battered and mistreated women.  These women banded together, making their livings in the only ways they knew.  These days, mothers place is a brothel and all the women are equal partners to her. I grew up among them, learned from them.”  Tasha nodded, suddenly understanding how he had become such a skilled lover.  “I even learned a trade.”  He laughed when she looked at him askance.  “No, not assassin.  I learned the skill of tailoring so that I might fix their dresses and other garments.  I’m actually a celebrated dress maker, though no one knows it is actually me making the dresses.  I give them to a third party to sell.”

            Tasha laughed, shaking her head.  “The half-orc assassin dress-maker!  Now I’ve heard everything!”  He joined her in the laughter, then they fell silent for a time.

            “How long will you stay here?  Teaching the Thundering Hammers?” he asked her.

            “A few weeks.”  She said.

            He looked at her, “I can stay a few days, but no more than that.”  She nodded, understanding that he had other responsibilities.  She would be sorry to see him go, but she had held no delusions about their relationship.  She was not in love with the assassin, though she greatly enjoyed their time together, and would continue to do so till he left.

            Aloud she said with a smile, “Then I suggest we make the best of the time we have.”  She rose then, stretching luxuriously, noting the why his eyes drank in the movement, his gaze fired with lust.  She held out her hand to him and he smiled, taking it as he stood.  They started toward her tent and as they went he said, “What of the others?  Will any of them go with you?”

            Tasha shrugged.  “If they’d like to, they’re welcome.  But I don’t expect it.”  She leaned into the assassin, pressing her body against him as he draped an arm over her shoulders.  “I’ll just take it one day at a time.”

The End

For Now….