Lilith decided to help him, convinced it was all for the best; mostly because he seemed a good guy - under the unpleasant circumstances he found himself in. He seemingly had no evil intentions toward her in spite of his earlier degrading behavior toward her; he was no killer or mutilator of women; and she still needed to get him back to health to be of any use in finding who was responsible for the still unaccounted for women taken from Val Royal.
Sanguinus was too heavy to move around, and the living conditions had rendered him physicaly weak do to illness - the corpses having provided his food for him brought him it raw, and festering with disease. She would need to take care of him. First he needed a bath, something else he needed her to do for him.
She got right to it. At least he wouldn't stink anymore.
She dressed in commoners garb. (He told her it was best if she be passive toward his 'men' at night. He had them under blood-enthrall, but the night brought out their true nature to all but him - or so he theorized.)
She walked passed the corpses guarding the keep as she carried a waterbasin out to the black, diseased corpse strewn waters just outside the walls. However, now that she was dressed in commoners clothing - tighter about her chest than was usual for such garb, forcing her to open it to her navel, exposing almost all of her considerable cleavage - they did react to her. At first they just turned and stared at her, the same vacuous look as before when she thought them dying, not dead. Soon, however, they stepped closer, and then began touching her. At first her hair, then her cheek, her neck... lower.
Lilith stayed still, kneeling by the waters edge, her hands holding the basin submerged.
The corpses continued their gentle exploration: touching and caressing every inch of exposed skin they could reach.
Lilith made no effort to stop them as they explored her soft, warm skin, the cold, clammy fingers and palms reaching deep into her ample cleavage; but went no further once the girl stiffened as one thumb grazed her right nipple. The hands retreated, yet the dead soldiers remained standing beside her.
She made to lift the basin.
The soldiers suddenly reached down, and took the heavy tub up for her, then waited.
She was awestruck: They understood, and respected nonverbal cues, even as they were seemingly indifferent of invading her space; they were enthralled with her as a common woman, but seemingly indifferent as a silk swaddled aparent upper-class courtesean; they helped her without being asked... like true gentlemen. Odd; Sanguinus may have had an idea worth her time after all.
She strode back into the keep, followed by the dead.
Sanguinus was grinning, his decaying skin running with puss from the sores as his skin was stretched taut.
the dead soldiers brought in the basin, the water within having been brought to a rolling boil in the main courtyard.
Lilith strode in behind.
The soldiers stared at her in mild concern.
Sanguinus glared at them, "Go." he commanded.
They still hesitated, looking to Lilith.
She smiled, "I'm ok," she said softly, "thank you."
Giving a wary glance at the Tevinter, they bowed to Lilith and departed.
The air grew still as Sanguinus stared at the door in disbelief; then smiled even wider. "You are a miracle worker. I dare say even the Herald of Andreste could never give a dead man back his humanity." He took her hand and spun her around, humming happily, "You could charm the Maker into reconsidering the blight if just to make you smile," he said with a sigh.
She laughed, "You believe in the Maker?"
He nodded, "Every time I see beauty."
She gasped, her mind reeled at his words, given what she thought she knew; it must have shown on her face.
"It was what brought me here - strangely enough - To escape THEM. This group of maniacs you want to get to know: Saris and company. They are so driven to prove that WE can become great without aid of old, self deluded 'elven' artifact dependant lunatics; or even slaves. They have been seeking a means to accsess the wisdom of the fathers and mothers of magic: the ones who first wielded it. They began kidnapping you young women, offering them as living sacrifices to the most powerful blood mage of myth... well, was myth 'The First'. The hope was he would find one of them - well, you: the concubine. I was disgusted. I lost my favorite pupil to their deluded madness. They used her because of her personal insecurities, her need to please, to have power over those more blessed with beauty... I hope she escapes someday - mostly from her own lack of self love. She was manipulated by my personal valet: a voyer who never failed to spy on women... or betray them."
As he talked, Lilith busied herself with batheing his feet. First she scrubbed them clean, found them surprisingly free of bruises... then placed them on her ample breasts, and cut back his nails and exfoliated his overgrown skin and calouses. This action caused him to stare in disbelief at her, even as he hummed happily again.
He frowned, "You don't need to do that," he said. "Least of all after I was such a pig."
She shook her head, and smiled, "Don't be foolish. You were far more restrained than most men have been in your position; and you did it to protect yourself, and not harm me. Not to mention I kind of like the feel of warm, clean feet on my breasts - when I consent... can't say why; besides, to you, they're just two large, soft - oh, and 'succulent' - foot cusions"
He laughed and smiled sadly, "I am sorry for compeling you to obey before, and mistreating you. I've just been so paranoid, and alone. I've been expecting an asssassin from them, a male would be obvious; but a stunner like you? coming here? I just convinced myself you had to be an assassin. I just couldn't think what to do."
She smiled, "You are a decent sort Darius - when you're not controling my body, and talking about using me as live bait for the dead. By the way, how did you know I'd be fine if I was docile?"
He grinned, his toes playing with her right nipple through the wet tunic, making her blush and moan softly."I saw an Inquisition scout retrieving plague samples from bodies in the swamp a few years back. She was voluptuous, just not as much as you. She stripped off her tunic, waded in, and when they went over to her, they just looked her over, caressed her naked skin, and she let them. They must have found her no threat. They let her go without hurting her, or stopping her from completing her task. I thought you would fair as well... perhapse more." He resumed humming.
Lilith took up the tune, soon letting it enter her own mind, further relaxing her.
He pushed the tunic open with his right foot, baring her right teat.
She stared at his gripping toes as they trapped her erect nipple.
Embarassed, he blushed, and moved the toes further up her breast.
She glared playfully, "Tease," she whispered.
Sanguinus smiled pleasantly at her, his right foot pushing her tunic open further, massaging her ample breasts as she hummed happily.
...
It took upwards of half an hour to clean Sanguinus thighs thougroughly. As he had told her, there was no life in his loins. She felt both pity, and relief for this fact, but it helped her understand his seeming infatuation with her breasts... somethings femanine to give tactile pleasure to his skin. As this revelation dawned she realized just how much he had held back before, and just how degrading he could have been. She felt a wave of gratitude toward him.
In all honesty he had had the right to do what he did. She was there to steal his secrets, and leave him to be stripped of his valuibles by Sera, and his soul by the First... if that was what the vision he gave her ment - the mage above a defeated foe, sucking a blue energy wave from the vanquished. She found herself genuinely liking him; that, and the tune they hummed together was so catchy It kept her mind off the stench, and the work still needing to be done. She pulled him to standing over a grate in the floor, leading out to the swamp, and stripped off his filthy robes and small clothes. The smell almost blinded her.
She poured the still hot water over his filth covered body till the stench abated, and he could move more freely.
She surrendered to her more - suddenly greatly amplified - libidinous impulses. She removed her own clothing, smiling playfully, and used her breasts in aiding his cleaning, as she rubbed and pressed them against the expanse of his newly wet skin, and lathered his back with them.
He insisted that she need'nt do it, but that just made her do it more enthusiastically.
She began to enjoy the sensation as the soft, clean mass of his flesh made contact with her sensitive nipples, and even more as Sanguinus cried in gratitude.
She finished washing his back, and dried it off before letting him slump down into his couch. She surpised him by pressing her breasts against his exposed chest, and began washing him in the same fashion, her hands on his shoulders, her breasts across his ample expanse of his torso. It surpisingly aroused her to wetness.
He blushed as she smiled coltishly and brought her breasts to his neck.
She winked as he gapped at her in disbelief as she rubbed his face briskly between them.
He just shut his eyes and smiled, as she continued rubbing them over the top of his bald head.
She finished, and rinsed the suds from his head.
He just stared off into space as if dead, a huge grin on his face as she pulled fresh undergarments on him. After she was done dressing him, he finaly spoke, gasping out his breath,"Who wants to be the sodding Archon? If I died right now... yeah, I'd be the envy of the old gods."
She turned her back to him, and smiled happily as she dressed herself.
"In another locked off room in the rear of this keep," he sighed, "Almost a quarter my worldly wealth. Take it for yourself now, the rest when we reach Val Royal. What I have to say needs to be told to a representative of the Chantry... someone trusted by the Seekers."
"I need no money. I do however need you to get well first. I'm not going anywhere till I make sure you can make it. Besides, I kind of find you worth saving."
He smiled joyfully, "Thank you. I'll tell everything I know once you and I get there. You'll be safer that way too. There are potions, and poltices in that room. They may help... I don't know, I'm not a very gifted healer. My skills lay in manipulation, and distortion of reality. Perhapse you know one?"
Lilith smiled, "Yes, I don't know what kind of response this place will get from her. She may feel homesick. It may take too long to find her, and get her here. Perhapse I can find someone around nearby. Maybe one of the Inquisition camps."
