Taen sat in the village tavern beside Saelin. The most unique aspect of it was that it existed at all. The floors were elevated wood that rested on deep buried stone, simple refined boards, not even stained against weather. But even this much was unlikely. Outside, deep trenches and embankments ensured that the heavy rains would keep the place relatively safe in the heavy rains that hit every year.
The furnishings were also of wood, and the walls were plain, simple rough cut stuff, it was nonetheless all relatively new or in excellent repair. The tavern had an actual bar behind which heavy barrels promised abundant alcohol.
As places went, it was well lit, with open windows that could be shut from the inside if weather required it, and unlit candles waited for use in various places.
However, for all that, in the big open area with its many tables and patrons, two other things stood out enough to be worth noticing. The first was a slate behind the bar with chalk to mark patron's drinks. The second was how many of the patrons were themselves 'slaves'.
"So is it really a good idea to be here? We're only a day or two from the city." Saelin asked from his corner seat.
"If we want to know what's going on in the city, yes it is." Taen relaxed and leaned his chair back, "I didn't expect to see a tavern in a village this size, or for it to let slaves drink here, or anything else… but that just means new sources of information. If the city isn't locked down by the wedding, Skorazen will let us know, and he'll just go with her to her new home. We'll follow along, and we can get another shot."
"She's taking the death of her slave in stride… considering what happened with the last one." Saelin muttered, his eyes darting toward the door as if he feared someone would burst in looking for him.
"I wouldn't know, I wasn't here last time," Taen lied and snatched up his flaggon to take a deep draught. He smacked his lips and wiped his mouth before finishing, "but given the myriad of deaths they've already found, and what you've mentioned about kidnapping her slave before, well, this one is just one more dead body. Even if she wants to, she can't justify borrowing a regiment without knowing what to look for. Believe me, we're safe."
"Maybe…" Saelin groused and looked down at the crude table, "with all the work going on around here… but still, even with my comrades, like Skorazen, at work… this is dangerous."
"If you don't like it, go work for one of the Great Smugglers, I'm sure they're hiring." Taen gestured to the door.
Saelin's slender face made a crude retching expression, "No thanks. That kind of work is beneath me. Besides, they don't have much of a future now I think."
"No?" Taen asked with sudden interest, sitting forward in his chair and reaching for his flaggon again.
"No. The same one who took down Bracer is now the largest legitimate slave trader in the area, between the centaurs on the steppes, Komestra, Pas'en, and the border, well there's just no good way north now. Do you really think a mercenary slave trader will tolerate competition?" Saelin asked with a skeptical look, his lip curling up as he leaned backward.
"True, but they're well connected, don't be surprised if they're happy to start running a game on her themselves. Even if she goes after them, she can't really think of starting a war against the whole of Mict'aratz. Even with some of the biggest on her side." Taen pointed out, but without conviction.
Saelin shrugged, "Even so, that's a lot of work to make a smuggler rich, and not much to gain that I can't get better on my own."
"So then quit complaining and quit worrying, Aiwenorian villages are busy places lately, you'll blend right in. Free or slave, it doesn't matter, strangers are the norm, not the exception." Taen shrugged and slid a note across the table. "This is from your boss. Follow the directions on it."
"Fine, fine." Saelin groaned and took the note and started to read over it while his companion got up and left.
Taen stepped outside and around the corner, then put on his mask. 'It may always be a good idea to check with them anonymously first… but damn if it isn't annoying to have the same conversation twice.' He sighed and counted the seconds that would lead to the minutes it would take to be forgotten again, and glanced around the village in idleness. One thing was for sure, the village was indeed booming, new houses for the families of slaves, a new counting house in the works, and even a local blacksmith just for the village. 'I'll grant the elf gash this, she's not without ambition.' He thought, and watched the crowds bustle, listening to the shouting noise of the many builders working on everything the village needed to thrive until he counted out as long as he needed.
Queen Vexia's expression was as sour as it had ever been. Her tail lashed behind her, and her arms were crossed in front of her chest. "I should have killed the bitch."
"Could you have?" A tentative voice asked.
She shot him a glare, and his red eyes went down to the dark stone table immediately, her tail lashed faster, then slowed down. "I don't know. And that is why I should have. Still, I got a two year free hand to strike her down before the laughable doesn't happen, and after that? After that failure, if I have to, I will mobilize most of the city-states to strike her and whatever fools she's gathered as allies, down."
"Are they fools, my lady?" A white haired old demon-elf asked tentatively. "I heard from beyond the door, she had a point. Her materials came from somewhere, should we not at least check her claims of a vast and angry empire capable of storming the great triumvirate? What if she's telling the truth?"
Vexia began drumming her fingers on her bicep, "And how do you propose we send someone there, it could easily take a year. We either have to send someone north as far as the sea, then take ship all the way around the empire to the nearest friendly port which… is I do not know how far… or we take the long route east and go all the way around the Tlachopan Empire by a southern path, then west, then…" She pondered it a moment, "Yes, there is a port somewhere there, and sail the coast until reaching somewhere that won't eat them on arrival!" She finished it with a high pitched voice and a glare around the table.
"Majesty…" the old man said with a gentle tone, "that is true, but isn't it worth finding out? Consider this, what if she is not the last?"
"What?!" Vexia snapped her head to the side and glared at him in particular, her tail lashed furiously back and forth against the stone legs of her chair until she forced it to wrap around one and squeeze it tight.
He was unperturbed, "What if she is not the last?" He asked the question again. "She referred to others who share our enemies, and she was vocal in declaring that the Tlalmok, and none of the Triumvirate, had a prayer. I remind you, majesty, she visited the Tlalmok Empire and saw their very capital and came back alive. If she is convinced that they are doomed, we must take that seriously."
Vexia's teeth clenched. It was his cue to continue, and he took that chance when it came, his hands stretched out over the table imploringly, his wizened fingers barely showed his great age, but his purple eyes were sharp when he met those of his Queen, and fearless to boot. "I am not saying we don't act against the interloper now, but if she 'is' just one of many, and we don't know about that in advance? What do you think they will do if we've essentially killed one of their own for nothing? Do we want to face ten thousand, a hundred thousand, like that? We need to know what is happening in the wider world, or it will come knocking on our gates when we least expect it."
Vexia's tail relaxed, she nodded reluctantly. "Very well, you've made your point, councilor, we will send two envoys."
"Actually, majesty, may I suggest a third option?" The old advisor kept his eyes lowered when he dared to contradict the Queen of Vexation, and she fixed him with a sterner glare.
"You want to risk three lives?" She asked, it was a very stern rebuke, and he accepted it like a mild slap to his face, wincing a bit at the question.
The old demon-elf stammered a bit and stroked his horns nervously, he could feel the patience seeping out of her, but he got it out as quickly as he could. "Not exactly… it… it is a risk. But if I may, what if we enchanted some items with flight magic, we can use some mana crystals to keep it going, a small sack of them, if they fly at night over Tlalmok territory and stay away from the cities, they can rest in the woods at daynight, replenish their mana, and make their way west much faster. They seldom issue travel visas to their people, so one of our people alone should be able to make it there safely. Once they reach the endless forest in Devorian territory, it's much, much safer. It could only be weeks, or months at most."
It had an immediate effect on the Queen, her body which had been tensing up again, relaxed as she recognized the relative safety of the course of action. "Yes… with some invisibility magic, night flying only, countryside only… if what we hear is true, making it to the Minotaur Kingdom is enough." Her sharp clawed fingers tapped impatiently, "It is worth the risk… but I don't like risking more than I need to of our own people. Hire some humans, maybe some of the escaped slaves. Promise them immediate liberation and a large reward for success, outfit them properly and send a group of five north and a group of five east, and we will send only one of our own through the safest path. If the former slaves fail, nothing of value is lost but a handful of supplies, if all three succeed, we will have all the knowledge we need for a decision."
There was a collective audible sigh of relief from around the table.
"Still, we are not wasting time, but now that I have a feel for what we are dealing with here… we need something special." The Queen stated and her claws dug into her bare arms, her silk shirt did not cover them, and so did nothing to hide the tiny drops of blood on her own flesh when her claws dug in too much.
"Majesty…?" The old minister asked as the unhappy, rather than vicious look formed on her face.
"She has Kaiji on her side, she has Sado on her side, and she fought and won against a headman ranked smuggler and beastman arena champion. She's also surrounded by an army, and she has a bodyguard." The Queen began laying out her words as if preparing an argument, rather than simply giving an order.
"Majesty, you can't be serious about what you're about to say…" The old councilor responded with growing dread, his heart tightened in his aged chest and sweat began to form on his brow.
Vexia slammed her fist down on the stone table and glared about the room, daring them to disagree with anything she was saying, "If 'that' has a bodyguard, the bodyguard is probably worse than she is. So we need something truly unique to ensure victory. She is a death worshipper, a necromancer too, most likely. Or at least people will believe she is. Gather some of our specialists. We're sending them west, we need some corpses, some very, very strong corpses, if we're going to kill this bitch."
Tir wept and raged in her room in impotent frustration, freed from her duties for the day, she locked herself in her quarters and pounded on the bed, the pillow, the wall, the floor, and did her best to keep the noise to herself.
She thought she'd succeeded, until the knock came.
"Leave me alone!" She howled.
"Is that how you speak to your mistress?" Nua's voice passed through the wood, and Tir's face went white as a sheet before she could even scramble over to throw the door open.
Her mistress stepped into the dark room and looked around, the room was a wreck, and Tir immediately sank to her knees.
"F-Forgive me, I didn't know it was you…" Tir whimpered bitterly, and choked for words.
She felt the powerful cold metallic fingers of the punishing left hand close on her chin and did not resist, could not resist, when her eyes were forced to look up into the stern face of her sharp featured elven mistress.
"I've been getting word most of the day that you've been having something of a fit, slave, what is it?" Nua demanded, her icy blue eyes ripping into the puffy redness of the former contessa's teary eyes.
"I… you're marrying Rasgen… my Rasgy… I loved- love him? Loved him… I don't know… but he threw me away! He didn't want me anymore and he abandoned me and now he's… it hurts! I never did it…" Tir whimpered and vomited the frustrated words and a fresh sobbing fit hit her.
"Everyone got rid of me… and now the last link to that life… he's marrying you… I know… I know I have no right to feel this way mistress, but… it's like he's betraying me all over again…" Tir wept, but didn't dare try to wrench herself from the firm grip of the hand on her chin.
In fact all she could do was move with it, when her owner began to pull her to her feet, the already 'tall' woman seemed to tower over her even more, part of her expected she was being drawn up only to be hit, and part of her braced herself just for that end.
Instead, a silken voice washed over her, and the Lady Aiwenor drew Tir against her, holding her as one might an angry child. "Don't worry, Tir. I'll take care of you. I'll take care of you. Nobody will hurt you, nobody will ever be able to betray you… I promise. I'll do what Rasgen couldn't, and make your father pay. I'll make your siblings pay, your city will grovel at my feet, and when everyone in my way is dead or in chains, I will tell the survivors that the child they cast out into the cold has come to warm herself by the light of the burning ruins."
Tir whimpered into the supple, powerful chest of her mistress and felt the stroking of her back.
"Give up everything, let go of everything… give yourself over to me in every way, do everything I tell you, tell me everything I need to know… and as long as I live, you can be safe in the service of your mistress…"
Tir's heart burst at the promise and her sobbing intensified, "Yes… yes, m-my lady. Everything… th-then there is so-something I held back… s-something I kept from you… do… do I have to say…?"
Nua nodded and stroked the long golden hair. "Yes. You belong to me, you can't hide anything from me that I demand to know."
"B-But it is disgusting… you'll think I'm disgusting… I don't want…" Tir stopped talking when Nua pressed a finger from her right hand to the soft ruby lips.
"I won't judge you, Tir. It's my job to take care of you, to protect you, all of you. You're safe, completely totally safe… I promise…" Nua said to the still whimpering woman.
"W-When I was little," Tir began, unable to meet the eyes of her mistress, "A-Anton used to do something w-with me, l-lap time he called it. I'd s-sit in his lap and he'd p-play with me." She caught the confused air coming off her lady, and clarified.
"With my body, I mean, he'd touch, and 'tickle' me in places. I th-thought it meant he loved me, that's what he said… it was the only time he was nice, and my siblings, I liked that they were jealous that I got his attention… It was the only time anyone was nice, but afterward, he always made me get a bath. And I j-just felt disgusting, dirty… dirty, and I hated how the servants talked about me."
Nua stiffened, and Tir tried to pull herself back, "See! I'm disgusting…!" She almost yowled, only for the lady of the house to pull her tighter.
"No!" Nua snarled and tightened her embrace. "You're not. He was. He was wrong, I was just surprised… I didn't know… I… just wasn't expecting that."
"But I made him… he said, and I thought… well… I just wanted… well, it was the only love I got in that house… so I thought… I thought… it was the only way disgusting girls got to be loved…" Tir whimpered and choked out every word as the cooing whispers of the statuesque elf soothed her.
"No… he was wrong, he was wrong and I'm sorry…" Nua said in hushed, gentle tones. "You were just a child… how could you have known more than what you were taught, and that was all he taught you. How can you be to blame for the actions of someone grown up? We're all responsible for our own actions, including him, especially towards his own little girl… it's OK… I won't judge you, I'll judge him."
It was enough to set her on another crying jag that lasted several minutes until Tir could finally go on. "Af-After I couldn't take the gossip anymore, I started sneaking out after 'lap-time' so nobody would know the filthy one was filthy. There was a place I liked to go, an aqueduct leading up into the mountains. It was always guarded so nobody could use it to get into the city, but there's a blind spot. I used to bathe in the water there, scrubbing my body where nobody could see me. It takes a bit of climbing, but the guard house there is big, it's meant to stop a big attack on that point. If you knocked the aqueduct down there, you could block the guards in… I-I guess. It's really old, and this would probably only buy you a few minutes, but…"
Tir tightened her embrace around her owner, fearing that having said something potentially useful, she would not be cast off. 'Please don't tell me I'm sick, don't tell me I'm dirty or disgusting… don't get rid of me too!' Tir screamed inside her head, her desperate fingers curled into the powerful back of the towering elven woman. 'Please… please… please…' She thought over and over again.
"That is… very helpful. It may be enough, when the time comes, to easily make your revenge a reality. You're a good girl, Tir. You're not bad, you're not disgusting… you were just a little one." Nua said patiently and stroked the top of her head affectionately.
"You're safe now. I'll protect you, and I will make them pay." Nua promised, and Tir slipped down to her knees, and hugged her owner's legs.
"I-I told one other this… a-a long time ago. Th-the first boy I gave myself to. He called me disgusting… w-wouldn't touch me after. I'm sorry I held a secret from you, mistress. I just… I couldn't hear it twice, even Rasgy didn't know… I-I think Albaer did, I think that's why he got me sent to school here in Pas'en. B-But now… now you and I and Anton are the only ones w-who know. Please don't tell anyone… please… I beg you mistress…"
Nua continued to gently caress the woman's hair, 'By the bones of my god I am as wretched as they come…' She kept her sigh back for fear of how Tir might take it, and said as comfortingly as she could, "Nobody will know, and one day soon, Anton will be dead, and only you and I will know, and I'm not talking."
She lowered her right hand, and Tir pressed her lips to the palm in deep supplication. "I am yours…" Tir said devotedly, "To my last breath… my avenger… please though, let me ask one more thing… d-don't make me attend the ceremony, or your night together… don't make me see him and… and you that way."
"I will have Kaiji and Priceless attend me, you can remain here." Nua promised, "Now… why don't you lie down and rest… this is difficult, knowing what lies around the corner, and if you want to serve me well, you need to be at your best, and you want to serve me well, don't you?" Nua asked rhetorically, but Tir answered.
"Yes, my mistress… with everything that I am…"
"Then rest." Nua commanded, and stepping back, the embrace broke, and Tir nodded in submission, waiting to rise to her feet until her owner left her alone.
When the door closed behind Nua, she rubbed her temple and let out the discontented sigh, 'I don't know what is worse… what he did to his daughter, or how I used that to bind her loyalty? Granted, I didn't know, but still.' Nua was still turning that over in her head well into the evening, before finally concluding that, '...as long as she is loyal, she is safe, and if this is what it takes to keep her safe, it's OK.'
After that, she slept quite soundly.