Into the Dragon's Den (Axe Druid Book 2)

by Christopher Johns

  It was Giledt who helped me track down a bathhouse. “Yeah, it’s right down the street, outside, and to the left at the door. It’s the third building from the left with the steam above the door. Mention you’re staying with us, and they’ll treat you good.”

  He smiled at me as I nodded and wandered off outside and followed his directions. I saw the steam coming from a vent above the door pointing down in front of it, and I walked in through it. I felt grimy after that, like my pores were open to the grime and I wanted—needed—to bathe now.

  As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I could make out a desk with a small man behind it with a broad smile and an easy-going attitude and a single door off to our right. His features were tanned, a large nose, muscular build, and dark hair over his brown eyes. He wore a simple pair of brown shorts and a white shirt with a slit down the middle to show his toned core and chest. When he spoke, his voice sounded almost Italian to me.

  “Welcome to the Steam Palace where all of your problems can—hopefully—be solved with a good bath.” He pointed to himself and bowed slightly at the waist. “I am Remy. How can I assist you today, sir?”

  “Well, Giledt at the Marching Mercenaries sent me. He said you would be able to help me get exactly what you offer—a good bath.”

  Remy’s smile seemed to grow even wider. “And that you shall, sir. That you shall. Tell me,” he began to busy himself behind the counter, “what kind of scent would you prefer? Do you wish for restorative oils to be added? Do you need assistance bathing?”

  I blushed a little at the implication and smiled despite myself. I’m not a prude—I know that sex work is a thing and that there’s nothing wrong with someone doing what they want so long as they actually want to be doing that. I know that there is a huge rabbit hole that could be gone down here, but for tonight—I figured I could handle myself.

  “Thank you for the offer, but no.” I smiled back. “I think I can handle myself. I would like to try the oils though, and if I could have a lighter scent, not so heavy on the perfume?”

  “Ah!” Remy clapped and dropped to a knee behind the counter. He popped back up with a small basket that held two lidded containers, a towel, and some sandals. “Follow me then, good sir. I shall run you through our special treatment suite and then show you how to operate the equipment so that you have the best experience possible.”

  Gotta love the level of commitment to the guy’s job. As he walked ahead of me, he tossed open the door, then waited for me to pass through. Once I was inside, he locked the door and continued further along.

  “Why did you lock the door?” I wondered aloud.

  “Ah, to keep out unwanted guests, my good sir,” he replied with the smile he seemed to wear permanently. “The first section of the experience takes a guide to do and is a one-person use kind of thing. This keeps intruders out of that process.”

  I’d be lying if I said that my senses didn’t go into overdrive trying to figure out if this was an attack. All I could smell were oils, incenses, and lotions. I could also smell different body scents that in this area were strongest. I stopped scenting the air but turned my other senses out. I heard different voices, some having conversations, others singing, others doing… well, more aerobic things—let’s put it that way.

  Other than that, I heard nothing. I saw the grimy boot prints, mud and what not on the floor before me and gathered that others had come this way before. I could stow my paranoia for now and let Remy do his job.

  We entered a locker room area where Remy motioned to a curtained off area. “You can undress back there. There will be a towel waiting that you can use for modesty. Your valuables like rings and the like you can, of course, store in your inventory. If you would like any clothes laundered, we will do so for a modest fee. I will wait for you right here. Take your time.”

  I nodded and went behind the thick, white curtain and undressed. I put all my rings, my collar, and other items into my inventory. I pulled out several bundles of dirty clothes and put them in a basket on the floor. I found the extremely large towel that he had spoken about and wrapped it around my waist. I stepped out from behind the curtain. Remy stood with his back slightly turned but saw the motion and waved for me to follow him again.

  We went into another room through the doorway, and I was surprised to see what looked to be indoor plumbing. There were metallic pipes with nozzles and small crystal gauges.

  “This is our steam room,” Remy spoke as he began turning nozzles in a specific direction here and there. He pointed to a spot on the floor. “If you would stand right there. A small burst of steam will spill over you, opening your skin and getting that filth out of your body. After that, we will have a heated shower of water over here.” He indicated another spot off to his right. “Then we will proceed to the bathing area.”

  I stood on the first spot and nodded to him. The steam that came from the vent further opened the pores along my upper body, and I felt a little better. I stepped over to the shower area, took the towel away from my hips, and felt warm water cascade over my body, rinsing away some of the grime.

  “Here you are, good sir.” Remy’s voice brought me out of the bliss I had begun to feel. He handed me a brush with a dollop of some kind of liquid on the bristles. “Scrub the grime away. This is only the beginning of your time here. Enjoy.”

  I heard the door open and close, Remy walking back the way we had come in as I cleaned my chest first

  I cleaned the rest of myself as thoroughly as I could, dunked my head under the hot water and rinsed, then grabbed my towel. The rush of water over my head had been so ni–

  “Please, good sir, do not dry,” a feminine voice spoke behind me.

  I turned to see a tall, well-built woman with the same kind of outfit that Remy had worn on. She had thick, corded muscles along her shoulders, arms, and powerful looking legs. Her Orcish features were softer than some of the males that I had seen previously. Her fiery orange hair swept into her left eye in a limp mohawk, and she watched me with the other blue orb. The green in her skin seemed almost like sea foam, and she smiled the same as he had.

  “I am Vrawn.” She bowed slightly at the waist. “Master Remy had to go back to the desk to deal with another customer. He asked that I see to the rest of your stay with us. Come, I will show you to your suite for the length of your bathing experience.”

  She motioned for me to follow and I did so. She was easily a foot taller than I was, but she moved so gracefully. Like a dancer. It was beautiful to behold. She held the basket that Remy had been carrying in front of her with both hands crossed before it.

  She brought me into a hallway with doors on each side. The majority of the sounds I had heard previously were coming from here, but some of the more boisterous ones seemed to have subsided. I was taken past all the doors in the first hall, then into another adjoining hall at the end where we turned to our left and went into the third door.

  Inside, there was a table with fruits of all kinds, some I didn’t even recognize. Which, let's be honest, wasn’t hard in a new world. There was also a chair behind a copper-colored tub with piping hot water.

  “Please, good sir.” Vrawn gestured to the tub. “If you would. Once you are in, we will begin your treatment.”

  I shrugged, then completely dropped my towel and climbed into the tub. The water was just this side of too hot, which was the absolute best kind of water to me. I let my body sink until I dunked my head when a large shadow crossed over. I came up quickly, on the alert as water streamed down.

  Vrawn held her arms out and away from herself in a display of non-aggression while she spoke, “This happens often with you fighter types. Do not worry. I mean you no harm. This is a neutral place. We are here to serve. Relax, please.”

  Her face was serene, and she was surprisingly calming. I felt no malice, no ill intent. I decided to try and relax, but I used my earring to tell my friends where I was and what was going on.

  Wolf calls from Jaken and Bokaj gree
ted me, but I felt safer that they knew where I was. The others just gave half-hearted affirmatives.

  “Relax, good sir,” she murmured as she began to work my shoulders in her grasp, kneading and rolling the muscles until I let the tension flee from my body. After a few minutes of massaging, she began to pour a softly scented liquid into the water that began to cloy the air. It tickled my senses and helped me relax even more. The water began to drain away, leaving me nude but covered in the oil.

  “Uh, Vrawn?” I spoke, and her head appeared over my shoulder. “Is this normal?”

  “Yes, good sir. This is the oil that we massage into the skin. It sticks to you with heat, then when we massage it in, it grabs dirts and grime and pulls it from the skin. Then we apply the other liquid in the other container. This causes a reaction with the oil that will purify it from your body. After that, we give you a rinse, fill the tub with more water, and you can take your pick of scents to cover yourself with that will stay for longer than average.”

  She pulled a chain, and two other women joined us in the room. One was human with a bald head, green eyes, soft—but pretty— features, and thin frame wearing what seemed to be the uniform of the day here. The other was an Elf with golden skin, long, flowing, blonde hair and regal features. Her eyes were red, like a ruby, and her physique was that of a runner’s—athletic and streamlined.

  “May I introduce Odessa and Elnaril to you, good sir.” Vrawn motioned first to the human, then to the Elf. “They will assist me in purifying your body unless you find them unsuitable?”

  “No, please.” I started to sit up, but Vrawn held me down gently. “They are fine. It’s just a massage and a bath.”

  That last bit was more for me than anyone else in the room. Again, I knew this was their job. I had no problem with that, but strangers touching me had always made me feel self-conscious. I had to work through this.

  They gathered around me. Vrawn worked my back and shoulders as the tallest, then Elnaril massaged my chest and stomach with Odessa working from my hips down.

  I, uh, I didn’t squeak when a certain hands-on Elf got a little too thorough. You’re hearing things.

  The rest of the bathing experience consisted of the rinse and the fragrance, a light, slightly citrus scent, being massaged into my skin once more.

  While the professionals were at work, I drifted into my thoughts.

  A lot had happened since we had fought that Incubus. A lot of information given. Balmur was alive and somehow being used to fight for servants? Maybe. We weren’t ready to get into the Hells yet, but we had a quest to get some good experience. We would try to get Bokaj his trainer so that we could have that avenue open to us, if we could. We had a heading. More than we’d had previously flailing in the dark, hoping for leads.

  With proper planning, hard work, and some serious teamwork, we could do this. Just had to hone the blades we had now how we could.

  I felt the hands kneading my neck drift to my skull and then to my ears, and my left leg thumped against the inside of the tub. My eyes burst open in worry that someone had noticed.

  The ladies seemed to be ignoring it, and that was so tip-worthy.

  All said and done, it was two hours of being pampered that I hadn’t known in either life. Not that I would have been truly comfortable at home with all this.

  After we were finished, I was patted dry and dressed in the clothes that Svartlan, Maebe’s personal tailor, had made for me.

  The clothes themselves were finely made. There was a metallic blue tunic with a deep V in the neckline that accentuated the stark contrast between my dark skin and electric blue eyes. The top hung to mid-quad on me, and I wore it over a pair of black leather breeches that felt so soft and made no noise. I tucked the breeches into my boots, then put the black leather belt in the pack around my hips loosely. It was more for fashion than for practical use, but it felt good to look good.

  We walked back out into another hallway outside a door hidden by a wall that gave the illusion of there being only one entrance to the room. At the end of the hall was a door that led into another illusionary wall behind Remy’s desk.

  “Ah!” He clapped his hands and spread them wide. “Good sir! How was your treatment? Did you find our services adequate?”

  “More than, Remy.” I smiled. The other girls had left us once their portion of the job had been concluded, though they had looked a little sad when they had been leaving. “How much do I owe you?”

  Vrawn stepped forward and spoke, “He partook in the bath, massage, purification, and a light citrus perfume oil. He was a perfect gentleman, refused our other services politely.”

  I looked at her in surprise, but Remy seemed more than satisfied.

  “Very well, for the whole process—excluding the courtesan services—it will be five gold,” Remy said with a small, sad smile.

  “And if I had partaken of the services?” I asked warily as I withdrew the necessary money from my inventory.

  “It would have been another five gold per courtesan,” Remy replied easily enough. “They, of course, would be reimbursed with the lion’s share of it.”

  “Meaning?” I quested.

  “Meaning, we would keep the majority,” Vrawn explained. When I looked at her curiously, she smiled, flashing dainty tusks. “It would be five gold total, a gold to the house for the first sale of the night, which would have been you for all of us. Then we keep what we make after that including the four gold you paid after. It is a lucrative system when our customers are interested.”

  “So, to make sure I understand,” I swept my hand to Remy first, “out of the fifteen gold total for their services, you—the house—would get three,” he nodded and smiled, “and the girls would keep four. Then any other sales they made tonight would be theirs to keep?”

  “That is correct.” Remy nodded with his easy grin.

  I pulled three more gold out for Remy, then looked to Vrawn. “Here, if you will give my regards to Odessa and Elnaril.” I handed her twelve more gold.

  The large Orc woman smiled genuinely and pulled me into an embrace I thought would crush me. “Thank you, kind sir.”

  She leaned back far enough to meet my surprised gaze, then planted a surprisingly soft kiss on my cheek before the titan of a woman walked away.

  Remy laughed deeply, and I turned toward him. He waved at my face. “She does not do that. Most men do not wish to be with her because she is so…” He seemed to be searching for the word, so I suggested intimidating. “Yes! They are intimidated by her immense size and musculature. I believe you are the first to pay her for being who she is and not who she has to pretend to be.”

  “Huh,” I said with genuine surprise. She had seemed so nice. “Well, I’m on my way out of town tomorrow possibly. So, forgive my needing to be away, but I have a crucial appointment tonight.”

  “Very well, good sir.” Remy smiled again and bowed. “Never forget that you are always a welcome guest in the Steam Palace. Good day!”

  I went back to the inn and met up with Muu. He was wearing a black doublet with brown breeches and a white undershirt. His boots, the brown ones he had been wearing this whole time, had been cleaned and treated.

  “Looking good, man!” I greeted him. “Nice duds.”

  “Same to you, buddy.” He started looking me over. “Where did you get those?”

  “Same guy who made my armor,” I explained. “Remember us explaining what happened while we were in the Fae Realm? Svartlan, the Orc? Yeah, he made these. This is my first time wearing them. Gotta say—I’m digging the look.”

  “Me too, brohaim,” Bokaj agreed from my left at the stairs.

  He walked toward us in a deep purple tunic that was cut diagonally at the bottom, belted to his waist with a thick, gray leather belt with soft fur on it. He wore black breeches with gray boots that matched the belt.

  “Damn.” I had to whistle at him. We all laughed. “We ready to split? Weapons in inventories just in case?”

 
; They nodded, and we set off. Bokaj had gotten the skinny on where we needed to go to get to the Blooming Ruby. We followed Bokaj to a building that looked like a straight-up castle. The outside had a moat around it that was six feet wide, and I didn’t know how deep; the outer wall had a large rose painted on it with a deep-crimson ruby at the center.

  It seemed a little gaudy, but hey—you know how rich people do.

  There were two “guards” standing watch at the gate that we spoke with on the way in. They looked booted, had next to no bearing, and the true guards were on top of the wall to the building with heavy crossbows not fucking around. Soon as we stepped on the wood, there was a bolt trained on my chest, and I saw the other guard eye us steadily.

  We must have looked good enough because they didn’t stop us. We walked across the sturdy planks of wood toward the door. There was another faux guard, this one a human woman who took us to a table at the front of the house.

  A human server came and took our orders for food and drinks while soft music played. I was plenty sure I wouldn’t be touching the fish because fuck fish. The steak that we all ordered sounded to die for. Our food came and went, the potatoes with the steak had been drizzled with a sauce that was so good, I’d had to use the bread to sop it up and savor it more.

  The flavor had reminded me of caramelized onion with some honey drizzled over it, garlic, and some thyme, but there was a taste I couldn’t identify it at all that lent it a sweet, smokey tang.

  The people watching us nearby could see this was something the lower classes would do, and I heard one call me, “a savage”, but the wait staff left us alone.

  After the meal had been served, the show began. The lights in the place, a crystal chandelier that gave a soft, white light dimmed lower, and a darkness overtook the crowd. A shimmering light flared in a balcony above us and reflected on to the stage to the right side of the building in front of us where a woman in a black dress that flared a bit past her legs stood with her back turned to us.