Iron Forged Brotherhood
Chapter 8 - Warming up
Dale, the morning after...
Slowly the room began to lit with the dim illumination of a cloudy morning. Kalvis blinked twice lazily, feeling the warmth of another body between his arms. A wide smile drew on his lips, half conscious as he was. He lowered his face to breathe on her hair, just to get a totally different scent from the one he was used to; this one smelled like jasmines. He opened his eyes abruptly when he realized he slept with Eva. He even lifted his blanket to confirm he was indeed naked under it. For a moment he felt bad, until he remembered everything that took place the night before. He was overall relaxed and well rested like he had not been since Fariwyn died.
"Good morning" he whispered gently with a deep voice.
Eva's eyes fluttered open, contemplating the man she had slept with. "Morning" she responded with equal gentleness, as she lifted herself up on his chest to plant a kiss under each of his eyes. "Well, my dear prince, as tempting as it is to stay on bed, I must get my daily chores started"
Eva started to regret having moved too fast, thinking maybe she would scare him off. Her comfort was that she did it with his best interest at heart, aside of the fact that she felt lonely too. So she got up from bed, wearing her robe in front of the mirror where she began to brush her hair. She didn't expect much out of him, knowing their sleeping together was probably an impulsive decision on his part. Her concerns eased when a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist from behind, his warm breath against her neck.
"I want to thank you for last night. How can I repay all your kindness?" Kalvis nibbled playfully on her earlobe, eager for more. Truth be told, he was procrastinating his return home to an empty bed full of tragic memories, from which he wanted to escape.
Eva smiled, feeling ticklish. Their image together on the mirror that faced them made her daydream for a moment of what it would be like to have a permanent companion, "Repay me?" she chuckled playfully, "For what? I did no kindness, I only satiated my own selfish desires" with a wicked grin, she turned her face close to his lips, "or have you mistaken me for a whore, good sir?" she teased before turning entirely to him.
"I don't think so. I know the difference better than anyone; son of one, remember?" His calloused hands slid down the small of her back, pulling her to him possessively, "Maybe I am just as selfish. But I insist in paying for the meals at least. I live relatively close, I could come here often if you'll have me."
She laughed, "Well if you eat here often you'll have to pay indeed, I don't run a charity business after all. Speaking of which, probably breakfast would be a good idea" she smiled knowingly before breaking from his tempting embrace, to get dressed on her hunter wears.
"Now that you mention it, my stomach is growling" Kalvis had a bit of trouble fitting into his trousers, until he calmed enough to succeed. For a shirt, he wore what was left of his tunic and gambeson, after having ripped them off him roughly last night. No buttons remained in either of his top pieces, so he kept them together with his belt as best as he could. His hair was a mess, but he did not care. "I guess I'm all set. After you!"
His overall appearance amused Eva, as it highly contrasted with the grieving man she saw when they first met. This Kalvis certainly looked like he partied all night. They made it downstairs to the kitchen, where she began to work her magic. Immediately the tavern filled with scents that teased all the senses and made stomachs growl louder. Kalvis observed her, marveled at how efficient she was in many things. Without realizing it, he was feeling attracted to her independence.
"Is there anything at all I can do to help? After all you did for me, I would not mind returning the favor" The corner of his lips curled with a mischief he could not hide. His eyes gazed at her, lost in thoughts on how it would be like to have a woman like her for maybe a wife.
"Sure, could you go out to the back? There is a shed with barrels in it. I need to restock the grog and mead for tonight. Could you bring them to the bar? That would be a great help."
"Barrels, right!" Just like in his old days as a blacksmith, he did some bruit force with his natural strength to bring those barrels into the tavern. First, he carried the grog one over his shoulder, bringing it to the kitchen and placing it over the tile. Then he brought the mead one. "Where do you want me to put this barrel?"
"By the bar, that will do. Come eat after you get that done." She placed two wooden bowls at the table.
"Aye!" After depositing the barrel where Eva told him, Kalvis joined her for breakfast, paying more attention to her blue eyes than his spoonful sips.
"So will you be going home today? Or will you be staying another night?" Eva secretly hoped that he would choose to stay.
His eyes saddened for a moment, "I would gladly stay, but I must go back before my relatives begin to miss me. I have a few responsibilities to keep up with, that I am sure have begun to pile up already. But if I get an easy break, I'll return tonight."
"That's a pity, but I know how it goes" Eva faked a smile, knowing she would be made to miss him for a few hours, until he returned to the tavern if he did.
"I could easily get used to this..." He said, lifting his spoon as he sipped from it. Each spoonful was blissfully delicious and it showed on his gestures.
"There's plenty to go around if you want some more" She replied. They shared smiles, as they both were in good spirits. Just as Kalvis finished his last sip, he rose from his seat. Eva equally rose, abandoning her plate. "Allow me to accompany you to the door"
Once there, Kalvis took Eva in his arms, placing his hand under her chin to tilt her face up as he gazed into her blue eyes, "Allow me to take a memento with me, so I can have a reason to eagerly return" With no more words, his lips touched hers, parting them with his tongue in a deep kiss full of passion. He delayed the moment to compensate for his temporary absence, breaking from it regretfully after a long time. "Thank you for everything, Eva."
Kalvis turned, leaving her behind with a mischievous smile and an elusive gaze as she watched him depart. Having finally met someone so akin to her was wonderful. But what she liked most is that he said her name...
Upon returning home, Lady Dis nearly collapsed when she finally saw her nephew grace the stronghold with his presence. Her smile could not be wider, so she ran to him along the hallway, stopping at only inches of distance when she saw his disheveled appearance; his hair was a mess; his gambeson and tunic were ripped with all buttons missing; he had scratch marks that started where his neck joins with the shoulders, not hard to imagine they continued along his back, and he seemed terribly tired. At first glance, it seemed like he was attacked by an animal. But he was not distressed at all.
"By my beard, lad, what in Durin's name happened to you?" she demanded to know.
"I decided to live" he said with a wide smile.
At the foes lair...
The incessant sound of a drop splashing over rock could be heard on the background, far like an echo, but becoming more vivid along with Aeryn's consciousness. And that foul smell, it was nothing like she had perceived before. Her eyelids opened lazily to a pitch black view, until her pupils dilated enough to make out shapes that were blurry at first. There was no way to tell day from night inside of that dark cell that had no windows.
She tried to move, but her restrains would not let her. She could not feel her hands, they were numb from the position above the level of her head. An unbearable pain was pulsating on the back of her neck from having her head hanging down all night. That's when she realized she was not home, but chained to a wall inside of a cell with her limbs widely spread apart. She struggled against her restrains just to feel how the iron cuffs were hurting her wrists. Panic invaded the young princess of Gondor, not entirely clear on how she ended up there or why. Her last memories were of her and Carrick traveling to Rohan on a carriage.
"Carrick, where are you?! Carrick?! Can anyone hear me?! What is this place?! HELP!" Aeryn cried out loud to no avail.
Her voice was hoarse and her throat was bone dry. All she could hear was her own echoes. Aeryn lowered her face to sob her misfortune, when a raspy voice addressed her.
"No one will come to aid you, lass. Get used to it." Said a hunched dark silhouette with shiny eyes. The limbs seemed abnormally long for such a short creature. It certainly matched the description of goblins that she heard of so many times in her childhood, as part of her bedtime stories.
"Why am I here? I want to go home!" She whimpered with a splitting headache, caused by the stress of being trapped, as well as the excessive awareness of her surroundings that took over her empathetic powers.
"I am afraid that is not possible. Forget what you knew! This is your home now..." The goblin rubbed its hands together. "Your legs, you will not need them. Not the now. I have never tried half elf flesh before. Is it juicy? Is it tasty?" Its hands began to lift the fabric of her pants to expose the skin on her left leg.
Aeryn struggled against her restrains, screaming loudly, "Leave me alone, you putrid creature! My father will find me soon and he will make you respond for this!"
"He has to find you first, and it won't be any time soon..." It laughed maniacally.
"Rokush! That will be enough! The Master wants this one alive and unspoiled!" Said the booming voice of what seemed to be a large orc.
The goblin snarled loudly at him in open defiance just to find a quick death by his sword, who split the goblin open in the blink of an eye. Its guts were all over the place and its black blood sprayed Aeryn, making her nauseated with the horrid smell.
"These filthy maggots irritate me." He kicked the carcass to make sure it was dead. The goblin's intestines spilled all over the ground with the kick. Then the orc tilted Aeryn's face up to establish eye contact, "Soon you will meet the Master." His sharp teeth were yellowed with build up at the roots, giving him an awful stench for breath. His slimy black tongue licked his lips disgustingly.
Aeryn turned her face abruptly from his hand, shutting her eyes tight and away from his face. Her reaction amused him. As the orc turned to leave, Aeryn looked around her cell to realize there was more than one goblin corpse on the ground, all of them split open. Apparently the orc spent the night keeping them off her and that was the source of the foul stench that slapped her upon waking up. Her eyes widened with shock to the horrifying scenario she was now part of. She could not avoid thinking of how anguished her relatives would be with her absence, especially her parents and her beloved Eoden.
