Chapter 4
Though the fighting had stopped for now, adrenaline was still pumping through Laina's veins. With the sudden attainment of safety, no matter how precarious, she had felt a familiar warmth inside, an urge that many warriors recognized. Life had a funny way of ensuring continuity after it was threatened. This phenomenon was no mystery to the warrior. She gave Jerlis a sidelong glance. Underneath the loincloth, he was still hard.
He was looking over the massive pile of loot, distracted. Somehow, Laina didn't think he'd mind if she interrupted him. She approached him, and he turned to look at her.
"Laina?" he asked, and she took his hand. "Wha—?"
"Shhh," she said, and kissed him, full and passionately on the lips. He stiffened at first, clearly confused, then apparently decided to give in, and returned her kiss with an ardency that surprised her. He wrapped his free arm around her, with his hand in the small of her back.
"I don't get it," he said when they stopped for air.
"I don't want my last memory of being touched to involve the demons," she whispered. In his strange green eyes she saw confusion give way to understanding, and even agreement.
She kissed him again, and he did not resist. Instead, it was like they melted into each other's arms. As lips and tongues met, their eyes closed in pleasure and they explored each other's body with their hands. She felt him fumble with the catch on her breastband, and suppressed a smile. The thin fabric finally tumbled to the ground at their feet, and he made a satisfied noise, sliding a hand up her front to caress one full, bare breast. She shivered as he rolled her nipple between his fingers.
Her hand snaked beneath his loincloth, finding the treasure beneath it. The other caressed his back as she held him close. She felt him shudder and twitch as she gripped his manhood with her hand. He slipped his hand down her underwear, and it was her turn to shudder and twitch as his questing fingers found her hot, wet folds. She moaned, and through half lidded eyes, saw his eyes open in surprise at finding her so ready, then narrow catlike, and glitter in pleasure.
They spoke no words; none were needed. Hands and bodies did the conversing, lips traced eloquent poetry devoid of words across canvases of neck and jaw line, shoulder and chest. The music of their own moans and rapid breathing surrounded them. Jerlis smelled of sweat and unwashed skin, and the unmistakable aroma of masculinity – it didn't bother Laina, not right now. She pressed against his exploring hand, felt a finger slip inside her and curl. The sensation made her gasp with pleasure.
The loincloth and her panties followed the bra to the ground, and then so did their bodies. They were both too excited to care about the stone floor. Lying beside each other, they twined their legs together as they kissed, holding each other close. Laina could feel her heart beating, could feel her blood pounding through her veins. The cold of the room went unnoticed to skin heated and flushed with passion. The burning heat inside her needed answering.
The next moment, Jerlis was underneath her and she was pressing the lips of her searing cunt against his equally hot shaft. His hands were on her thighs, worshipping her legs, pulling her down onto him. She curled her fingers on his chest, bared her teeth in a feral answer to the animal lust in his eyes, and drove herself down onto him. They both moaned as he slid into her. He bucked at the feel of her hot, slick folds.
He was just a little larger than the largest human man she had been with – not uncomfortable. Certainly not the study of pain and humiliation that demonic copulation had been. Indeed, this was intensely pleasurable. From the ardency of his physical and vocal response, Jerlis seemed to agree. He was muttering her name over and over as she rode him with frenzied enthusiasm. For all the long months of malnutrition and lack of exercise, he still gripped her hips with strength enough. She wondered if she should slow down, drag this out a little and savour it, but the burning urgency inside her was too much.
One hand found her breasts again, and the additional stimulation made her moan. She could feel a tide inside her; rising, rising. With ecstatic gasps she pushed herself up and down on him, taking in his full length. The wave was cresting. The gasps turned to cries of pleasure as she came.
"Oh Light!" Jerlis exclaimed, then she felt him come inside her, his own hot gush a counterpoint to her clenching pussy. His orgasm intensified her own, she continued to shudder and moan. Finally it subsided, and Laina lay across his chest gasping and panting for breath. She looked into his eyes, saw echoed back an understanding. They had to move quickly and did not have time for the luxury of afterglow. Carefully, she picked herself up, then offered her hand to him, hoisting him to his feet.
"We've got work to do, and I suspect we don't have a lot of time," Jerlis said, surveying the room. Laina donned her undergarments once more, and looked around.
By the light, there was a lot of stuff here!
"Let's get to it. See if you can find anything useful," Jerlis said, conjuring a bright light and letting it float in the air. Laina nodded.
Her armor was easy to find. It was sitting right on the top of the pile. She quickly separated her pieces from the pile and set them aside – she didn't want to wear them without any kind of padding. And while there were no doubt a large number of superior pieces among the discarded gear, she didn't want to take the chance on ill-fitting and unfamiliar armor, not this deep in enemy territory.
Jerlis was searching through the pile of cloth. "I don't see mine – there it is. Ugh, it's been almost destroyed," he said, lifting up a tattered red robe. Laina eyed it dubiously.
"Is there anything in there that's better than that?" she asked.
"Plenty," Jerlis said, "but—."
"—Take the best you can get. Ill-fitting cloth isn't as big a deal as ill-fitting plate, and you might be able to get more magical advantage out of it," she insisted.
"Point," he acknowledged, rummaging through the pile.
She'd found the weapon pile. At the sight, her lips curled in an avaricious grin, and a slight, delighted giggle escaped her lips. While she was rejecting the armor, there was no reason she should do so with the weapons. Again, her swords were on the top, she took them and put them aside. She also tried the weight and balance of several others; an impressive looking two-hander and a fine glaive made it to her 'keep' pile, as did an excellent bow. She was considering a vicious-looking double-bladed battle axe when she realized Jerlis was staring at her. She gave him a bloodthirsty smile.
"Can you carry all that?" he asked, incredulous.
"If my magic bags are here, certainly," she said cheerfully. "You can never have too many weapons!" Jerlis's answering look was clearly doubtful.
Having found her weapons and armor, she joined the elf at the pile of clothes. She didn't know what had happened to her clothes, and doubted they were still fit to use, but the idea of wearing armor without anything between metal and her skin was not appealing in the slightest. Quickly, she dug through the pile, settling rapidly on some breeches and a tunic that looked serviceable and close in fit. Jerlis was much more picky, he had several items that he was apparently deciding on. She turned to the bag pile and found a bounty of magic bags. She flung some at Jerlis, who caught them and looked at her in puzzlement.
"Choose later; wear one and stuff the rest in a bag," she said. He nodded, and shrugged into a gold-trimmed brown and black item with sinister-looking designs. The sight of her companion in a dress made her snicker. Jerlis glared.
"What's so funny?" he demanded.
"Nice dress," she smirked.
"Robe. It's a robe." He had the slightly tired and disgruntled tone of someone who had made this argument before. Laina shrugged, and turned back to the pile of loot. She had discovered a veritable treasure trove of enchanting supplies, and was rapidly stuffing dusts, shards, and crystals into one of her empty bags. Jerlis was checking out the potions, herbs and reagents.
"Pity," he said, "there's absolutely no teleport or portal stones here."
"That'd be too easy, I think," she said ruefully.
"By the Light, I've never seen such a variety of potions… I think I found something that may be useful in getting us out of here."
"Oh?" Laina looked up with interest. Jerlis was holding a bright red potion up.
"This is an Elixir of Dream Vision. It allows you to leave your body and explore, completely undetectable. I don't think even the d… dreadlord could detect me if I used this." He stumbled over the memory. Laina didn't blame him.
"How is that useful?"
"If we can remain undetected here while I take the potion, I can find us the best way out of here and maybe explore the surroundings."
She could see the benefit of that. She nodded.
"How are we going to remain undetected, though? They're bound to check this room out sooner or later."
"I think if we cover me with some cloth I'll be indistinguishable from the rest of the pile. However, I think you should stay awake to guard us – use this if the door appears. It's an invisibility potion," he held up another potion.
"How long does it last?" she asked.
"Not long, but perhaps long enough. You're the more capable fighter, at any rate, should it spot you."
Laina nodded. "Let's try it. You'd better put out that light, though."
Jerlis smiled. "Naturally."
Laina tried to stifle a yawn as she tried to stay alert. It wasn't easy in the darkness, not after the exertions of the previous hours. She was tired and sore. At least she wasn't comfortable enough to nod off, not in plate mail. Jerlis was still fast asleep, only the regular rise and fall of his chest indicating that he was alive at all. He'd been gone a while – how long, she didn't know. She was still clutching the invisibility potion, eyeing the place where the door would be with trepidation.
The door appeared, the demon in the entrance shadowy and back-lit in green. Hurriedly, Laina downed the potion, hoping it would last alright. She saw its glowing green eyes scan the room, passing by her. Her heart felt like it froze in her chest. After a few seconds of cursory examination, the door and the demon vanished once more. She breathed a small sigh of relief.
After an interminable time, Jerlis finally stirred.
"I was starting to get worried," Laina said. "A demon just came by and investigated here."
"I saw. I followed him a short distance – he checked some other rooms. I don't think he knew we were here. Sorry for the delay," Jerlis said.
"What did you find?"
"More than I expected. I found a map."
"A map?"
"Well, kind of. It was a tactical map, like they have of battlefields, showing the deployments of troops and the like. It showed the location of several portals such as the one that I, and I'm assuming you, came through. One of them seems to be abandoned – it's only got a light patrol. I suggest we attempt to reach it – I believe they will assume that we would go for the nearest portal, or the one that we may remember being taken through."
"So it's not near?"
"No. It is several days away, through rough terrain at that. The map showed a path, but it was clearly not a commonly used one."
"First things first, how do we get out of here?"
Jerlis smiled grimly, "Luck, mostly. They've raised the alarm, by the way. The place is crawling with armed demons, all very agitated about something – they must have discovered your handiwork and our absence. I actually think it might be beneficial if we stayed here for a few hours. By then they should have certainly concluded that we have already left, and we might find the halls less guarded."
Laina considered that. "But what if another comes here to check again?"
Jerlis rose stiffly, stretching, and walked over to the shelf that contained the potions. His light winked back into existence as he searched. Then he returned to her with several more potions in hand, identical to the one she had taken before.
"I don't know who or what needed so many of these, but I'm certainly not complaining," he said, handing her a few. She considered them for a moment.
"Jerlis, I don't suppose you could keep a watch if I got some sleep? I'm exhausted," she said. He nodded.
"We'll cover you with cloth so you look less conspicuous," he said.
At that, Laina tried to make herself comfortable in the pile of discarded clothing. She'd slept in her plate before – it wasn't impossible, merely uncomfortable – she didn't want to take it off just in case she had to act immediately after waking. Her exhaustion won over the discomfort, and within minutes she was sleeping.
She awoke after sleeping for a few hours. She didn't feel great, but she felt rested enough. At her stirring, Jerlis conjured a light.
"Thanks," she said, blinking a little.
"While you were asleep, one demon came by. I turned invisible and he did not detect me. He didn't give the room more than a cursory inspection. That was several hours ago, my guess is they've concluded that we've left the fortress and are now focusing their search outside," Jerlis said.
"Do you know how to get out of here?" Laina got up, stretched a bit to dispel sleep, and yawned briefly.
"I think so. I found a few ways out, but it's going to be tense. Lets take the rest of the invisibility potions, and I'm going to grab some mana potions. You might want to take one last look around and see if there's anything that might come in handy."
They both followed his advice. As Laina searched, she realized that there was actually a lot of very valuable stuff in the room. However, her belt had a limited space for magic bags, and even magic bags had a limit to their capacity. She couldn't take all of the treasure with her, and no doubt the demons would notice it if she did, but she could certainly bring some of the smaller pieces. She found the pile of jewelry and trinkets and began rapidly stuffing it into her bags.
"It doesn't seem like there's a scrap of food here at all," Jerlis said. "They must eat any food they find in our belongings. Oh well, my bread has kept us going this far. But I sure would have liked some meat. Even that mystery meat seems appealing right now."
"No doubt," Laina said. Well, her bags were as full as she could get them. If they made it back alive, she and Jerlis would both be wealthy people. "Got everything you need?" She gave her bags one last arranging to ensure that her weapons would be the first thing at hand when she reached in, and walked over to her companion.
"Yes. Let's go," Jerlis replied. He fished around in one of his bags and pulled out the door opening device. Reaching a hand out to her, he extinguished the light and opened the door. She took the proffered hand, and let the elf lead her into the corridor. He had better eyesight in the dark than she, and hopefully knew the way. She was content to be led.
Together they made their way down the dark corridor, swiftly but cautiously. Laina moved as silently as she could in her armor; fortunately her gear was enchanted to emphasize strength and agility, so this wasn't as hard a feat as it could have been.
Several times, Jerlis stilled her and held her close, extending his magical invisibility over them both, while Laina froze and attempted utter silence, as demonic patrols walked by. Jerlis had to use a few precious mana potions from his limited supply. It was a tense journey through the dim halls, and she could only trust that he could lead them both out.
Finally, they reached the end of the treacherous maze of corridors – Jerlis had led them to one of several entrances to the dark stoned fortress – and the first real doors either of them had seen. He halted her.
"We have a problem," Jerlis said.
"What kind of problem?"
"On the other side of those doors there are likely to be demons. When I wandered this way in the dream vision, there were two guarding. I don't know how many there are now, but I'm certain that there are some. We can't sneak out – if we open the doors, the demons will know someone is here and search for us. I think we're going to have to fight our way out here."
"Shit," she hissed. "Two demons, huh? Let's hope they haven't stepped up the guard. I think I can take two, with you backing me up, but I don't know about more than that." From her bags, she drew her two swords, and did a quick check of her armor. "I'm ready," she said.
"I'm going to go invisible one more time. If I can get a few surprise hits off, we can use it to our advantage."
Laina nodded. Jerlis was far more vulnerable than she was.
Before her eyes, Jerlis vanished. The door opened up, and Laina charged out the open door for the freedom beyond. Sliding to a halt past the door, she whirled to face the guards, swords in hand.
It seemed luck was with them. There was only one demon, of the terrorfiend variety. The other guard must have been pulled to search for her and Jerlis. Laina smiled. The terrorfiend looked surprised for a moment at her sudden appearance, and then it charged her. Laina steadied herself, waiting for it. At the last moment she stepped aside, parrying the terrorfiend's heavy swing with one hand and delivering a slash of her own with the other. Her blow landed on its flank, slicing a shallow gash in its leather chest armor, but tearing through the area where the wing sail met its body.
The demon roared in rage and pain, and attempted to close on her once more. She ducked under its swing, but too late – claws grasped her cloak and pulled her upwards. The terrorfiend grinned at her and readied another swing with its massive sword – this one would not miss. Laina slashed at its chest, attempting to do as much damage as she could before it struck her.
Then it froze, ice rooting it to the spot. Jerlis had made his move. Sheathing her swords, she pried the frozen fingers away from her cloak and dropped to the ground, then renewed her attack on the demon. She knew it would be free from the ice in a matter of seconds, and those seconds allowed her but a brief window of opportunity. She pulled her glaive and lunged at the demon, attempting to slice under its armpit and slow the devastating swing of that sword. Metal met flesh and parted it; black demon blood splattered her armor. The frost started to flake away, and she rolled to the side and sprang to her feet.
It was moving again, but slower. Before it could recover its momentum, she charged it again, intending to use the reach of her glaive to reach its unarmored neck. She gritted her teeth and steeled herself… and then found herself running in the opposite direction, gibbering in terror as the demon lashed out with a psychic attack.
In a few seconds she recovered and turned to see the terrorfiend charging Jerlis. Blue light swirled around his hands, but before he could finish his cast, the demon reached him, and stomped. The light at her companion's hands dissipated and Jerlis reeled. Laina rushed towards the two combatants, angling her glaive for a piercing attack.
She struck right as the demon reached Jerlis. It grunted as the blade of her glaive penetrated its armor and slipped between its ribs, just as she had intended. She put her weight behind the thrust. She heard a meaty thwack and heard Jerlis hit the ground, and the demon turned abruptly, wrenching her hands from the handle of the glaive. She staggered back a few steps, drawing her two swords again.
The terrorfiend was moving slower now, and it had dropped its sword – her previous attack had rendered that arm useless. But it was still dangerous. She danced away from it, avoiding its slashing claw. Behind it, she saw Jerlis getting back to his feet, touching his shoulder with a wince. A part of her noted that he'd dislocated it. The rest of her focused on the demon. She could see the tip of her glaive protruding from its chest. Good, it was greatly weakened, and it wouldn't take much more to kill it.
She and the demon eyed each other for a moment, then she lunged first, swords bared. She was going to take a hit; there was no avoiding it; but if she was lucky, she'd kill the demon. With a snarled curse she leaped, swords crossed. She felt the demon claw at her armor, felt the sharp warm pain indicating it had gotten through, and ignored it, slashing open the demon's throat. It stumbled backwards, reeling. She dropped to the ground, panting, and backed away from it. She felt no real pain from the wound yet, that would come later.
A ball of fire arced up from Jerlis and landed square on the head of the demon, engulfing its head in flame. Laina couldn't help but wince at its howls of pain as it batted at the flames and clawed at its neck. A few seconds later, it sank to its knees, still howling, and fell forward. The impact pushed the glaive up, exposing steel threaded in black blood. The demon convulsed on the ground and was finally still. Laina walked up, freed her glaive, and tossed it aside.
"We need to get rid of the body," Jerlis said. He was still caressing his left shoulder. Under the smudges of dirt and blood, he was pale.
"We need to fix you shoulder first," Laina said. She pulled a piece of scrap cloth from her pack and handed it to the mage. "Bite this so you don't scream, and hold still."
Jerlis put the cloth in his mouth and steeled himself for the inevitable. Laina took hold of his arm and pulled. The mage made a muffled sound of pain through the cloth as his shoulder found its socket with a pop. He pulled the cloth out and spat, then rubbed his shoulder tenderly. "Thank you." Laina nodded in return, and used the cloth to clean her weapons, before tossing the blood-soaked rag on the body of the demon.
"Any other hurts?" she asked.
"I don't think so, but you're bleeding."
"Oh shit, right." She rummaged in her pack and found a spare bandage. She checked the wound and ensured it was superficial, and quickly applied the bandage. The soothing tingle of the magic felt good. "Anything else?"
"Just one thing." Red light flared around the mage's hands and then lashed out at the body, consuming it in flames. In moments nothing but ash remained, which drifted away in the hot wind. "Let's go. If we're lucky we can make it to the pass without further discovery."