The women with luminous wings came closer, and as a group, they dove to the ground. His stomach lurched, and Tori screamed as they descended, but he felt helpless. How could he risk an attack when he couldn’t save all his friends at once? The ground came at him quickly as he was unceremoniously dropped onto a sandy beach. Angst tried rolling over to his feet only to end up flat on his back, the sword making it too awkward to continue the motion.
Hector landed behind him, hardly making a sound as he hit the sand. Tarness crashed with a noisy thud while the others scrambled to stand. They were a motley crew of his friends and the remaining pirates.
“What happened?” Angst pushed himself up. “I wasn’t done! I wanted to fight that thing, to save her—”
“Stand down, Angst, this isn’t the time,” Hector warned.
“What are you talking about? Who pulled us from the battle? I want answers.” Angst’s gaze followed Hector’s pointing finger. “I want...oh...”
Angst watched in open-mouthed amazement at the dozen women landing in front of them. They glided like geese over a lake before landing. Brightly colored wings flapped gently as each one gained solid footing. Feathers of warm reds, bright golds, and fiery oranges shimmered brightly. They folded, tucking away behind them, and then disappeared entirely. He set Dulgirgraut between his shoulders and stared in awe.
Angst recognized the face of the tall, gorgeous brunette who’d flown him to safety. Her slitted eyes appeared wary, or angry. When she saw Angst gawking, she unsuccessfully masked a smile. The young woman was all legs, long and tanned, and her thighs were completely naked. She wore the shortest black shorts Angst had ever seen, with sides armored in silver scales. Her long legs were partly covered by shiny black boots that drew his eye almost as much as the shorts. The woman wore a contraption similar to Victoria’s chain bra, but hers was adorned with more metallic scale. Her stomach was firm, as if she’d just finished a round of a thousand sit-ups. Dark auburn hair teased her shoulders, framing a beautiful face with large, dark eyes, full lips, and a strong jaw.
Having completely forgotten that his friends were behind him, Angst drew in a breath of ‘finally,’ as if he’d waited for this moment his entire life, and prepared to speak when another young woman strode over to the tall one. She, too, was fit, though a head shorter than his savior. Her skin was very tan, almost olive in tone. Her brown hair was pulled to the sides in pigtails. She had a beautiful round face and light green eyes that shone with alertness. The shorter one’s armor was different yet. One leg was mostly protected by plate while the other was left bare. A plate armor corset, unfortunately covering her chest, stopped well above her midriff, which was a perfect sculpture of abdominal muscles and smooth tanned skin. More plate covered her shoulders and one arm all the way to her fingers, though the opposite arm was bare. The women were so attractive, Angst almost found them hard to look at. Almost.
“It’s good to be home, Faeoris,” the shorter one said.
The taller woman leaned over and kissed her full on her lips. It was not the friendly peck of a friend, but the passionate kiss of lovers. Angst’s sword dropped from his back, and after the kiss ended, he turned around to look at Tarness.
“I know.” Tarness shook his head in disbelief.
A silly grin crept across Angst’s mouth as he faced the women.
“Um, shouldn’t we warn him who they are?” Victoria said.
“Shh,” Hector whispered, moving his hands to shush her. “Don’t ruin it for me.”
Angst didn’t understand, and really didn’t care. He took a few steps forward and put his hands on his hips, sticking his chest out proudly.
“Hi, I’m Angst,” he said with less conviction than intended. He leaned over, fumbling awkwardly with the giant sword and returning it to his back.
“I’ve never understood, how does skimpy armor even work?” Dallow questioned.
Faeoris nodded, and the shorter woman walked to Angst, one foot in front of the other, her hips swaying like a pendulum. Angst started to speak again, but found the words weren’t leaving his mouth as all thought turned to fantasy. When she was a mere five feet away, her sultry smile became fierce. Before Angst could think, she leaped, spinning in the air, and the side of her foot met Angst’s temple squarely. Angst flipped over once to land in an unmoving sprawl.
“Like that,” Hector said, laughing so hard he could barely hold up his hands. “We surrender.”
“Is he okay?” Tori asked.
“I hope so.” Hector lowered a hand to wipe tears from his eyes. “Because I never plan to let this one go.”
An ache in his cheek woke Angst. The entire side of his head fluctuated between numbness and throbbing. A quick glimpse of bright light made him squeeze his eyes shut again while testing his jaw. Sharp pains shot from the joint, but it reluctantly opened. He reached to rub it, making chains clank loudly behind him.
Angst was wide awake now and pulled at both hands to discover they were both restrained. Someone had used chains? He could will himself free in seconds. Angst wiggled and frowned. Was he on a mattress?
“You’re finally awake!” a young woman said excitedly. “Now we can get started!”
“Started?” Angst asked in surprise.
He turned his head to find the tall, gorgeous Berfemmian walking toward him seductively. She was thin, and young, and so lovely Angst was completely bewildered that she would bother to move seductively at all. She now wore a scale skirt that somehow covered even less than her shorts—completely exposing the sides of her long, long legs. She reached behind her neck and her loosely hanging chainmail top fell to the floor with a metallic clink. Her breasts were surprisingly large for her thin frame, smaller than Victoria’s, but still, there they were—firm and ready.
Angst’s first reaction was to smile, his second was to look down at his third reaction. A sheet puddled over his hips, hiding his nakedness. Couldn’t she have at least pulled it up over his belly? He sighed before returning to gawking at the young woman.
“Am I dead?” Angst asked.
“What?” she said, slowing her prowl. “Of course you’re not dead. Not yet. Why do you think you’re dead? Are you in pain?”
“This is just how I pictured it after I died,” he said, making her smirk. “Except there are three or four of you, and the sheet covers my belly.”
She frowned again. “If you’re not in pain, I expect you to perform. It looks like you’re ready.”
“If by perform, you mean sing, you really don’t want that,” he said. “I love to sing, but it makes people wince.”
She huffed in frustration. “Not sing, foolish human. We are going to mate!”
“Then I am dead!” He rolled his head back and laughed. “I’m sure that’s a valid excuse.”
She raised a long, long leg to straddle him and sat down. Angst thought about dead cats and how Tarness smelled after a fight and eating his wife’s roast duck. Nothing worked. She made a grinding motion while leaning forward, with her very full lips poised to kiss.
“Wait. Before we, um, mate...” Angst interrupted.
She sat up, her muscular legs squeezing too tight, and he swallowed a wince of pain.
“Why the chains?” he asked. “I can’t imagine you have a hard time finding a boyfriend.”
“What’s a boyfriend?” she asked.
“Well, it’s usually the first step—”
“You talk too much.” She sat up, her breasts bouncing hypnotically. Her frown was not seductive. “We’ve tried mating with other races. They typically don’t survive,” she said, as though this news was as normal as eating. “The chains keep you from pushing me away.”
At a loss for words, he stared at her in disbelief. As amazing as this could be, she was going to sex him to death.
“How could you possibly kill me with sex?” Angst asked.
“It’s not like I’m human,” she said.
She began to grind again. It was nice, really nice. This couldn
’t possibly kill him. Right? And anyway, wasn’t it his responsibility to make peaceful accord with another nation? Then he remembered Moyra’s teeth.
“Why are you doing this?” he asked. “Usually, for me, there are a lot of dinners and begging involved.”
“You have to give me your seed,” she said, her voice very determined. “It’s that time. I need to make babies.”
“What?” Angst exclaimed, partially sitting up until he pulled against the chains. “You’re just going to go ahead and have your way with me for the sake of making babies? Why me?”
“Well, you look...sturdy,” she said in a not-flattering tone. “And I chose you because you’re their leader.”
“Not the answer I was looking for,” Angst said. The chains around his hands and feet fell away like sand, and before she could respond, Angst rolled to one side, throwing her to the floor. “I’m not in the mood tonight, honey.”
He stood, awkwardly wrapping himself in the sheets. He could feel cold air around his midriff and rear and knew he wasn’t doing it right. A flush warmed his cheeks...the ones on his face.
The young woman flipped back, landing on her feet, and crouched, looking ready to spring forward and return Angst to oblivion. She yelled a horrific war cry and shifted to snap a kick at his face. It remained in place, as did her other. She gawked at Angst’s glowing hands.
He raised an eyebrow and smirked.
She roared in frustration.
“A little upsetting, is it, not getting it when you really want it? Now you know what it’s like to be married,” he said dryly. “Pants?”
She ignored him, instead pulling at her reluctant feet.
“Tell me where my pants are or you have to see me naked,” he said.
“Under the bed,” she snapped.
Angst knelt and reached under the bed.
“Gross,” she complained. “You’re so hairy.”
“Hey, this wasn’t my idea.” He grunted as he dragged his pants and tunic from their hiding place. His cheeks were on fire, he was dying from embarrassment, and this was no longer remotely sexy.
He shimmied into his pants while trying to remain covered by the sheet. When he was mostly dressed, he looked back at Faeoris. She stared at the ground like a wild animal locked in a cage. Angst felt bad, but couldn’t risk freeing her. Something about her, a sadness almost hidden, made him wonder if there were more to this than sex and mating. Women never, ever came to him for sex. Heather, yes, but the rest of them, his friends, wanted something else. Advice mostly, sometimes a buddy to hang out with, but sex? No. He hated his life.
“Are my friends okay?” he asked.
“You were going to be first since you are the leader,” she said with a sigh. “The other men are...ready to go.”
Angst picked up her chain top from the floor and stared at it like it was a puzzle. She swiped for it but missed. Angst looked her over one more time and sighed. She really was perfect.
“You’re beautiful,” he said, reluctantly handing it back to her. “You’re Faeoris, right?”
“Yes,” she said, wiggling into her shimmery top. “How did you know?”
“Your friend,” he said. “The one who had her way with my jaw. She said your name.”
“She is my essent,” she said, looking down in frustration at her unmoving legs.
Her what? Maybe he’d misheard her. Rather than embarrassing himself by asking, he ignored it. “Thank you for saving us, Faeoris. I owe you.” He looked back at the bed. “Just not this.”
“Why?” she pleaded. “It’s time. We need the sex to make babies!”
“I’m married.” He sighed.
“What is this married?” she asked, crossing her arms.
“I can only have one mate,” he replied.
“That’s stupid,” she spat. “Why only one?”
“Good question,” he replied, but the joke was lost on her. “I need to see my friends. Where are they?”
“I won’t tell you!” She stared at the wall, refusing to make eye contact.
“Fine,” Angst said, frustrated. “I’ll go find them.”
“You won’t be able to stop all of us,” she warned.
“Actually, yes, I will,” Angst said calmly. “I could do this to them right now if needed.” He pointed at her stuck legs.
“You have that much power?” Faeoris asked in amazement. “You would have made good babies.”
“I hope so,” Angst said distantly.
She nodded, her lower lip very pouty and her eyes glossy. “Just go! Take your friends and leave us alone.”
Angst returned to the bed and sat. For some reason, he felt like he’d done something wrong. She seemed to be falling apart. Tears streamed from her face. Faeoris would wipe them away then cross her arms before having to wipe them away again. He sighed. Why did they always have to cry?
“If I let you go, do you promise not to kill me?” he asked. “Or hit me? Or kick me in the face?”
She nodded reluctantly. Angst waved a hand and the bonds that held her to the ground disappeared. She lifted both legs, rubbing each in turn.
“You let me free,” she said in surprise. “You trust me?”
“You tried to have sex with me. We aren’t exactly enemies.” Angst smiled. “And you saved my friends. I owe you this much.”
She approached carefully, and Angst’s heart raced. He hoped he wouldn’t have to defend himself against such a beautiful creature. She sat next to him and placed her hands in her lap.
“So, what was this about, Faeoris?” he asked calmly. “I can’t imagine you have a thing for short, old, chubby men.”
“No,” she said quickly and then her voice became apologetic. “I’m sorry, it’s not that—”
“It’s okay, I’m used to it.” He laughed. “Go on.”
“We fly to Vex’steppe every winter to mate with the tribes,” she said. “We stay there for the winter. When the babies are born, we leave the boys for them to raise and bring the girls back home. For the first time, they turned us away!”
How could they make babies in that short a time? It probably wasn’t the moment to ask, so he would have to assume it was because, as she’d said, they weren’t human.
“I’m sorry, Faeoris,” he said. “But you can’t kill me or my friends to make babies.”
“What do you expect us to do? This is ripping me apart! We need to mate or my people will die. We need to reproduce!”
“Why not fly back and have it out with them?”
“The wings only work for the one trip.”
“How do you know?”
“Because that’s how it’s always been.”
He gently took her hand. “Dallow could explain this better, but your wings have to come from a spell. They have to be some sort of magic,” Angst said. “Magic comes when you need it. It always has for me. You just need to figure out how.”
Faeoris was overtaken by wracking sobs, and Angst pulled her in for a hug. She seemed reluctant at first, as though she’d never been held, but finally gave in. His shirt become wet with tears as he patted her fine brown hair. Angst fought back a bitter chuckle. He apparently had a knack for kicking women out of his bed and making them cry. It had been different with Nicadilia, who was fake and distasteful. This time, he felt genuinely upset on Faeoris’s behalf.
“My mother...died...before...leaving...and...I tried...” Sobs punctuated her words, and she couldn’t catch her breath. “I failed at leading my people.”
Angst pulled Faeoris down to lie next to him. She followed, her head still on his chest, and her feet dangling over the end of the bed. When her breathing slowed, he finally asked, “Tell me about your people, Faeoris. Tell me what happened. Tell me about your mom.”
“My mother was incredible,” she whispered. “And I miss her so very much.”
37
Jadenville
“Do you want to tell me what that was about?” Rook whispered sharply.
Rook and
Jaden sat at a stone table across from Janda and her sister, Nikkola. At first glance, he would never have guessed they were related. Janda had a mass of fiery red curls, while Nikkola’s shoulder-length hair was blacker than black. Nikkola was much curvier than Janda, carrying extra weight in her breasts and hips that seemed to encourage a little flaunting and sass. She was as quick to tease as Janda was to attack. It wasn’t until that teasing and interaction started that he could tell they were obviously siblings. It was that look of history and family that passed between them in a glance, the look they shared right now.
“She’s always been good with animals,” Nikkola said with some apology in her tone. “Did we bring back any ale?”
Even before Rook could turn his head, four frothy mugs landed on their table. They all sighed deeply, toasted Graloon, and took long draws. Their favorite barkeep and savior had wisely suggested making their headquarters the new, temporary location of the Wizard’s Revenge. It hadn’t taken much encouragement for Jaden to deliver.
“You made a bar already?” Nikkola asked.
“How could I argue when he asked?” Jaden lifted his mug to the barkeep, who smiled and nodded before getting busy organizing. “I know how important bars can be in a social environment and—”
“Thanks.” Rook cut him off. “You did good.”
Jaden seemed focused on his drink, frowning at being interrupted.
“You were saying about Kala?” Rook encouraged the sisters to continue.
“My niece is good with animals,” Janda said. “Actually, she’s already adept at wielding magic.”
“Great,” Rook said, throwing up his free hand. “Now we have children who can wield. I thought you had to be older, or something.”
“What would you know about it?” Nikkola snapped. “Magic has to be hidden, especially the children who can wield. Which is hard because they need so much attention so they don’t destroy anything.”
“I’m sorry, you’re right. I don’t know,” Rook said, trying to hide the worry in his voice. “So, this is common, with kids?”
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