He’d been working as a translator, both of spoken and written word, for almost five years. Few in southeast Cardvale had a better understanding of the various dialects and tongues spoken across the Collected Provinces than he did. Hal’s education extended not only to the ancient elven language, but to the eccentric sign language of the ogres, as well. Being an ogre himself, Roth had taught him personally.
The air in the hallways of the estate smelled of the night’s feast, a mixture garlic roasted pork, seasoned vegetables, various pastries, and the distinct, slightly acidic smell of wine. The sounds of the victory party reached Hal from far outside the ballroom and stirred his anxiety. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy parties, but the burden of his father’s work in the public eye often fell onto his shoulders, as well as Lilith’s.
Dozens, if not hundreds of people were packed into the ballroom, pressed closely together across both the lower and upper levels. The estate’s servants had set up a small stage in the very back of the main floor for Karnas to deliver his speech from. Karnas was already busy talking with several of his fellow politicians, the chosen few who curried his favor.
Hal and his father had shared a fractious relationship ever since the passing of his and Lilith’s mother four years earlier. She’d been the center of their family, with an open, loving personality that had made her a master of orchestrating compromises. Hal still missed her deeply, though her death had been expected, as she’d been sick for several years before it came to pass.
He watched the conversing politicians for a second too long and Karnas’s eyes met his as his father scanned the room. Karnas was nearly as stubborn as he was, but Hal could see a hint of a plea in his father’s expression. Had their argument truly been so bad? Hal had raised his voice to Karnas, who’d shouted back at him, but what had they actually said to each other?
He said I wasn’t fit to be a warrior, in body or temperament. And I said that he’d always make a better politician than father.
It had been rumored that the Executive Voice might make an appearance to congratulate Voiceman Karnas, given how instrumental his support had been in Karnas’s reelection. Looking around, Hal doubted that it would be so, given that most everyone of interest had already arrived.
He never knew exactly what to do with himself at his father’s parties, and he was still glancing around awkwardly when an arm settled across his shoulders. Mauve favored Hal with a wide grin and passed him a mug full of ale.
“Take a swig,” said Mauve. “You look as though you could use it.”
Hal let out a single chuckle.
“I think I probably could,” said Hal. He put the mug to his lips, tasting a hint of blackberry in the strong brew.
“Lilith told me about the fight,” said Mauve.
Hal turned to look at him, frowning slightly as he did. Mauve was tall, with broad shoulders and strong muscles from his martial training. His skin was tanned, and his face was handsome. Since they’d both come of age, Hal had occasionally felt pangs of jealousy when comparing his more average physique to his friend’s, but the two were more than close enough to make jest of it.
What surprised him now was the expression on Mauve’s face. He looked guilty, as though he blamed himself for whatever had happened between Hal and his father. Seeing that made Hal feel like a petulant child, arguing and sulking in a manner that dragged his friends and family down with him.
“Don’t worry about that,” said Hal. “It’s not your fault. And honestly, it’s none of Lilith’s business.”
“She’s your sister,” said Mauve. “Everything related to you is her business. You are going to talk to him at some point, are you not?”
At some point…
Hal nodded, though he wasn’t sure whether he would do it that night. Presenting himself at the party seemed to be enough of a concession, from his point of view. He could put off mending bridges with his father until the morning, when they’d both had the time to cool down.
“I will,” said Hal. “Do you mind if I finish this?” He wiggled the mug back and forth, suddenly eager to be on his way toward drunkenness.
“Not at all,” said Mauve. “Of course, you’ll have to do me a favor in return.”
“I should have expected as much.” Hal grinned at him. “What is it?”
“It’s not even a hard favor, relax,” said Mauve. “And it’s as much on Roth’s behalf as mine. He took his hand drums out to put on a small show for the room, at your father’s request. He mentioned to me that his drumming would go over better if he had a few dancers to demonstrate the flows of Kye Lornis.”
Hal raised an eyebrow. The Kye Lornis was an ancient ogre martial dance, taught to a tribe’s youths starting at age five. It had become something of a cultural relic over the past century, with ogres assimilating deeper into human society and letting go of many of their old traditions.
Roth had taught both Hal and Mauve many of the basic Kye Lornis flows and even a few more advanced ones. There was only so much they could learn, limited by their human physique. As a dance intended for ogre youths, many of the movements necessitated an ogre’s four arms and were near impossible for a human to do more than imitate.
“I don’t know, Mauve,” said Hal. “To be honest, I can’t say that I’m in much of a mood for dancing right now.”
“Halrin,” said Mauve. “Please. I’ve been dying for a chance to show Maddie what the flows are like when performed in front of a real crowd. And it’s not just for me, but Roth, too!”
Maddie was Mauve’s girlfriend, though the two spent about as much time fighting as they did in harmony. She was a sweet girl, slim waisted with a generous bust. Hal liked her well enough, as did everyone except his father, who still hoped for an eventual match between Mauve and Lilith.
“Can it wait until later?” asked Hal. “Once I’m loosened up a little?”
“Eleanor is here, too,” said Mauve. “I’ve seen how you get around her. And I’m sure you’ve noticed how she gets around you, too. She’s normally so talkative, but every time you join the conversation, all she can do is blush and stutter her words.”
Mauve clapped him on the shoulder and nodded toward a group of girls across the crowd. Hal spotted Maddie and her best friend Eleanor, both dressed in dresses of the current fashion - which some of the older generation found scandalous. The dresses barely made it down past the girls’ knees, and the tight stockings they wore underneath left so little to the imagination that Hal couldn’t help but stare.
“Fine,” said Hal. “When is Roth planning on starting?”
Mauve immediately turned his attention toward the ogre scholar, who was already sitting in the middle of a circle of four drums. Roth was the only ogre in residence in the Kentar estate, and his clothes had been specially made by the estate’s tailor to accommodate his four, long, spindly arms. His face was naturally smooth, and in place of eyebrows, thin ridges protruded from his head. A long pony tail of straight black hair fell across one of his shoulders.
Roth smiled at Hal and Mauve, and then began to drum a slow rhythm, drawing the attention of the entire room. Before Hal had time to reconsider, Mauve had already grabbed his arm and begun pulling him into the fray.
A circle of open space and polished wood floor lay just in front of where Roth was drumming. Hal suspected that either Mauve or Roth had spread word of the spontaneous performance long before he’d ever agreed to do it.
I can’t be mad at either of them. The people want a show, and who else will give it to them?
It was only then that Hal saw a flicker of nervousness on Mauve’s face. The feeling was infectious, and soon the two of them were shooting each other sidelong, anxious glances. Hal looked to the circle and then back at the waiting crowd.
He took off his belt, as did Mauve. Mauve’s belt looked heavier than Hal’s, given that it held both pistol and sword. An empty moment passed with neither of them hurrying to be the first one to showcase the dance, Roth’s drums echoing rhyth
mically throughout the ballroom.
“Alright,” said Hal. “It was your idea. You should start this off.”
Mauve let out a nervous chuckle.
“You’re the one who Roth claims has the real potential with the flows,” said Mauve. “Maybe you should…”
Roth’s drumming grew louder. Hal looked over and saw old ogre looking at him and Mauve impatiently. He took a deep breath and started to step forward.
“Fine, I’ll do it,” said Mauve. “You’re right. It was my idea.”
Hal breathed a sigh of relief as Mauve stepped out into the circle, the crowd breaking out into eager, expectant applause. Mauve bounced on the balls of his feet to the beat of the drums, raising his arms up and down, and then just as Roth shifted into a new rhythm, he lowered into the deep crouch of the introductory Kye Lornis flow.
Hal had always found the dance to be a thing of both beauty and power. He watched Mauve slowly swaying around the edge of the circle, stepping back and forth in time with the drums, his hands upraised, outstretched, and always moving.
Mauve dropped to one knee before rolling backward over one shoulder and up to his feet again. Immediately, he hopped forward onto his hands, holding the strength pose for only an instant before bouncing back to standing and twisting himself into another powerful roll.
The crowd went wild as Mauve’s freestyle flow continued. He had a powerful style that matched his build, and Hal noticed Maddie and more than a few other girls watching his movements excitedly from the edge of the crowd.
No more than thirty seconds had passed before Mauve spun back into place next to Hal, slapping him on the back and urging him out. Hal grinned, spinning into the circle as though pushed by the momentum of the contact.
While Mauve’s style was powerful and heavy, Hal excelled at the quicker, more acrobatic flows. He took his time with his standing introduction, stepping and spinning, and then leaping into the air. Landing with his hands down, he maneuvered across his shoulder, onto his back, and then onto his hands again before pushing up to his feet, all a continuation of the same fluid spin.
Technically, the Kye Lornis was a martial dance. Karnas had denied Hal dueling training and even the basic wrestling that most boys learned in their youth before they picked a weapon focus. But Hal’s father’s concerns about combat training hadn’t extended to the dance, and it was what Hal had put his full efforts into outside of his work as a scribe and translator.
He hopped up into a spin, leaning slightly on the diagonal toward his landing foot. As he touched down, his other leg spun upward, pulling him into a backflip that had taken him the better part of a year to perfect. Roth let out a high-pitched whoop from his drum perch. The crowd went wild.
Hal spun back toward Mauve, and for the remainder of their showcase, they danced across from one another, spinning into exaggerated kicks and occasionally clasping hands to twist each other into partner flows. The crowd clapped along with Roth’s drumming. Hal saw Eleanor watching him, her smile reaching to the edges of her face, one finger twisting her straight brown hair.
Hal and Mauve continued until they were sweaty and out of breath, and finally, Roth brought his rhythm to an end, letting them both off the hook. The two raised their hands into the air and gave a bow. The crowd cheered and applauded, and Hal felt his mood shift as he basked in the attention.
CHAPTER 3
When the dancing was over, and they’d caught their breath, Mauve winked at Hal and hurried off to his girlfriend’s side. He took her hand and led her off toward one of the hallways leading out of the ballroom. Mauve had already regaled Hal with a generous account of how he’d taken Maddie’s virginity, and Hal suspected his friend was hoping for another taste of paradise.
A fiddler had begun playing to fill the void left by Roth’s drumming, and a good portion of the crowd had coupled and begun dancing. Hal saw Eleanor eyeing him from the edge of the dance floor and decided to take a page out of Mauve’s book, taking her hand as he went by and pulling her along with him.
Hal watched as Eleanor’s face flickered with delight as they began to move together. She was better at dancing than he’d expected her to be, and made a show of pushing in close to him. A few times, her breasts even pressed against his shoulder, and she had a habit of lifting her skirts every turn and flashing her lower legs at him.
The song ended after a few minutes, and it was suddenly Eleanor’s turn to lead Hal off down a hallway. The two of them dipped into a darkened entranceway, the locked door underneath it leading off to the guest rooms. Hal had assumed that Eleanor was a virgin, and looked at her with surprise as she confidentially met his gaze and kissed him on the lips.
And I almost skipped out on this. I need to thank both Lilith and Mauve come morning.
Eleanor’s hands moved across his chest and stomach. Hal almost flinched back in shock as she groped at his crotch. She kissed him again, rubbing between his legs, pushing her tongue into his mouth, and making her intentions fully clear.
“You can lift my skirts up,” she whispered.
“I… Right now?” Hal gaped at her.
Eleanor smiled wickedly at him. She reached down and did it for him, pulling her skirts up to reveal her legs underneath. She was wearing socks that only went up just beyond her knees, and nothing else. Hal’s jaw dropped open when she took his hand and pulled it between her legs. His hand grazed across fine, soft pubic hair and nude skin.
“We can be quick,” whispered Eleanor. “Won’t you show me more of your dancing skills, Halrin?”
She turned so that her back was to him and pushed her bare butt against his crotch. Hal reached around to her front, his hands palming her small breasts through her dress as he pressed his erection into her. He smiled to himself as he felt his heart pounding with excitement, both from his arousal and the risk of them getting caught.
After a quick glance down the hallway to make sure that nobody was heading their way, Hal lowered his trousers just far enough to free his cock. Eleanor was grinding into him, her body eager and ready to be taken. Seeing her like that was enough to shatter any illusions he’d had about the sweet, innocent looking girl.
Sweet and innocent is alright. But this… might be better.
Hal kissed her neck and leaned her forward against the closed door of the entranceway. It took him a couple of seconds to find the right angle, but he knew immediately once he had, the tight crush of her wet, hot lane welcoming his shaft inside.
They both let out matching sighs of pleasure as Hal slowly began to move, one hand massaging her butt under the skirt while the other took turns playing with her breasts over the outside of her dress. He thrust slowly, trying to keep Eleanor quiet as tiny squeals of pleasure escaped her lips.
He was paranoid about being caught, and at first, it distracted him. Eleanor reached her hand back and ran it through his hair, pulling his attention back to her young, nubile body. He pumped his cock deeper into her, feeling the momentum of his pleasure building, drawing him in.
Eleanor shifted, widening her stance and pushing her butt higher into the air. Hal took hold of her waist and let himself fall into a slow, deliberate rhythm, pulling her back into him as his hips pushed forward. He went back a little too far on one thrust and fumbled to get the tip of his shaft back inside her, to no avail.
“You’re so cute,” whispered Eleanor. “Here.”
She reached around and gave him a helping hand. Hal cupped one of her breasts and pushed as deep into her as he could go, savoring the sensation.
He was about to begin building his pace again when a noise came from down the hallway, back toward the party. His heart skipped a beat as he rushed to make himself decent. Eleanor fixed her skirts and let out a nervous laugh, which made Hal laugh, too.
The person who’d intruded on their encounter bumbled by them with drunken steps, taking zero notice of their ruffled hair and embarrassed expressions. Hal was about to suggest that they pick up from where they’d left off when a lou
d shout came from the ballroom, followed immediately by several more.
He frowned, slowly making his way down the hallway, half expecting the party attendees to have discovered their hijinks, somehow. Instead, he was greeted by the sight of at least half of the crowd pressed up against the ballroom’s windows, peering out into the night.
The floor suddenly shook, almost as though an earthquake had hit the estate. Earthquakes were uncommon in Cardvale, but not unheard of. Hal glanced toward Eleanor in time to see her making her way back toward her friends.
Whatever had caught the attention of the crowd had also pulled it away from Karnas, who’d been flanked by hangers-on for most of the party. It was the best chance Hal would have to speak with him alone that night, and he decided to take it. He hoped that Eleanor would still be in a flirtatious mood when he got back, but when he looked over at her, he found that she’d joined the rest of the crowd by the window.
“What is it?” asked a slightly overweight man.
“I have no idea…” said Mauve, who was near the center of the crowd. Hal spotted Lilith by his side, and she was looking his way. She smiled and gave a slight nod. Hal took a single step and then winced as the stone on his necklace suddenly burned hot against his chest.
He pulled it out and looked at it, impressed by how brightly it was suddenly glowing. He glanced up to see if anyone else had noticed it just as he heard the screams.
Flames erupted through the windows along the ballroom, the same windows that nearly every attendee of Karnas’s victory party was pushed tightly up against, vying for the best view outside. Hal could feel the heat from where he stood, and had a perfect view of the horror as it unfolded.
Lilith. Sweet, innocent Lilith. She’d been front and center. She hadn’t been given any time to react or to do anything other than be so tragically unlucky. The flames hit her in a direct burst, instantly turning clothing, skin, tissue, everything but a handful of bones into ash and dust. Hal felt a scream being torn from his chest. He had his pistol out, though he had no recollection of drawing it.
Reborn Raiders (The Weatherblight Saga Book 4) Page 34