by D. R. Rosier
I’d done it over a hundred times. I’d also discovered over the last couple of hours that my intentions could speed up the process, if I wasn’t so anal about directing each and every change. The magic was smart enough to present its findings in a way that used my own knowledge of the human body, and was a great tool to learn the mysteries that had yet been out of humanity’s grasp on my old world.
That meant it was smart enough to interpret my intentions as well, and mark the changes based on my desire alone. I always double checked the reported changes that would be made in my mind’s eye before I implemented them with my will and a surge of magic, but it was still a lot faster that way than marking every change myself.
It also meant, that in a fight I would need a little over a second per enemy now, instead of two seconds. I could still be overwhelmed, but it would take four or maybe five charging men now, instead of three to do it. Or, someone that was a good shot with a bow.
I had both dark elves freed, healed, and awake in about ten seconds. I should have seen it coming, but I didn’t.
Both of them hissed in rage, and launched themselves at me.
I backpedaled desperately, deeper into the alley by the wall. One of them was slammed into the wall so hard I heard bones crack, the second one froze a moment later, like he was a fly stuck in amber.
Saria walked up to him and stared him in the face.
“Stand down, he’s the one that’s going to free the rest of your people.”
I started to choke, and was confused for a second, until I remembered what I’d seen when healing him, his magical talent gave him control over air.
Shit.
I shot out my magic and knocked his ass out, then did the same to his buddy while healing him. Saria had really done a number on him, he had three broken ribs, a broken arm, and a fractured leg.
“Saria, he was trying to suffocate me with his magic, I had to knock him out. What now, are they really that… mindless when they’re pissed off?”
Saria compressed her lips, “They are passionate and intelligent, but yes, they have been known to go berserk in battle from rage.”
Great, that was going to make it rather difficult to get them to help us, wasn’t it?
She bent down and blindfolded him, and then said, “Wake him, I’m holding him down with telekinesis, and he can’t suffocate someone he can’t see.”
I was rather dubious, but I did as she asked.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Saria demanded, “I am Saria, princess of Lelmalond. Who are you.”
He spat, “Krenum. Guardian of Karana. Let me go, and I will take down this city.”
Saria’s eyes went wide, “On your own?” she asked insultingly, “Karana is here?”
He growled, “Yes. The human mages have a new spell, froze our whole hunting party.”
Saria turned to me and explained her surprise, “Karana is like Irwin. A high advisor the dark elven royal family, and quite a powerful mage. She’s also the kind of person we’d been hoping to find,” she looked back down at Krenum, “Why was she in a hunting party?”
He growled, “She wasn’t, we were her escort while she harvested herbs for her magic. We warned her we were too close to the border, but she didn’t listen. Release me princess,” he spat the last word.
She replied, “I will release you, if you promise to be reasonable. The man you attacked is an enemy of the king, and the only other flesh sculptor in Desal, possibly in the world. If you kill him your mistress will never be free, nor will your people.”
He said coldly, “Fine, I will… restrain myself. You have my word.”
She released him, and said, “Take us to Karana, is she on the wall or here?”
He glared at me after tearing off the blindfold, but didn’t attack. Fortunately looks couldn’t kill here anymore than they could at home. At least, not without magic behind it.
He looked back at Saria, glare still intact, “She is here, in the female barracks.”
Saria’s face froze, “Female barracks?”
He nodded, “We have sixty-two men, and thirty-one women. Ninety-three total.”
Saria looked taken aback, it was getting easier for me to read her tiny strange reactions, and her eyes.
Krenum had no problem reading her either, and answered her unspoken question.
“The human king does not have a taste for dark elven females.”
I frowned, prejudice against skin color, or was there some other reason? Something told me it wasn’t skin color, since he could just change it to his tastes, this wasn’t prejudice like on my world.
“Why?”
Krenum looked at me like I was shit stuck on the bottom of his shoe, but he answered my question.
“Because he likes to degrade and humiliate, a dark elven woman wouldn’t give him the satisfaction, even if they’d rather die than lie with a human, they’d never show it. I imagine the first one he raped rocked his world and pretended to enjoy it without reservation. So he mars them as he does us.”
I frowned and tried to read between the lines. If they had the same aggressive predatory instincts as the light elves, but didn’t fight them as hard with reservations I could see where that would work. Still, it was almost unbelievable, but I knew I couldn’t judge dark elven females using human psychology. I also realized his answer could be a wild guess, maybe the king was a bigot, one more reason to dislike him.
He turned and picked up his unconscious friend.
“Leave two of your men here princess, it’s dark enough that those on the wall won’t be able to tell the difference, if they cover up their bright hair that is. All they’ll see is their heat signature. Karana will be alone, but your telekinesis won’t work on her like it worked on me. If we’re lucky, she’s napping.”
Saria nodded in agreement, and set two of her people to stand guard.
“We’ll have to replace them as soon as we can, before anyone passes by close enough to tell the difference.”
Eleven elves, two dark elves, one of them unconscious, and two humans moved toward the barracks. There was no way trickery would work, so Regina and I walked in behind the rest of them.
Karana wasn’t asleep, and didn’t freeze very long as they all charged at her. She was dressed in a tight armored suit like all the other elves, that left nothing to the imagination. Her face was disfigured, and her head was bald. What confused me was her body was hot, and perfect. She was willowy like most elves, not quite as petite as Saria at five foot six, which made her C cups only slightly out of proportion to her willowy body.
I followed them in with Regina, but would be useless in hand to hand combat.
Karana cried out a word of magic, and a wave of force shot out around her, sending us all tumbling back. It fucking hurt, and I stayed on the ground and cradled Regina who looked more stunned than I felt.
I reached out with my magic, but it was a futile action, I wouldn’t be able to do anything until she was knocked out and had lost her shield magic.
Two elves hopped up almost immediately, grabbed a bed, and charged at the mage as they turned it on its side to obscure her vision, while Saria followed them, obscured from Karana’s view.
Karana barked the same word of magic, Saria went down fast, and slid to the ground feet first.
Saria slid under the bed as it and the two elven men went flying back. After it went over her she popped back onto her feet, and launched herself into the air. Her legs were bent, and her foot snapped out at the last second at karana’s throat. It was a good strategy, if Karana couldn’t talk she couldn’t cast.
Except Karana dodged out of the way, and slammed her elbow into Saria’s legs as she dodged the other way. She didn’t dodge the second strike though, and Saria’s forearm swung out and nailed the dark elven mage in the throat.
Saria continued to fly past, and landed a little ungracefully, but as she spun to her feet it was just in time to see four elves tackle Karana and take her down. Saria dance over and
kicked Karana in the head, behind the ear, knocking her out cold.
Is it wrong, that I was a little hard from watching her kick ass?
I sent my magic inside Karana, and took stock. The same enslaving stuff was there, and the big surprise was her body was completely unchanged, that willowy sexy body with perfectly rounded C cups was all hers. I fixed her face, ears, and hair, along with the rest of it that made her a slave, plus the swelling in her throat and head trauma, and healed her with my magic.
I did a little extra, to grow out long silver black flowing hair that was stunning in its color.
Karana’s face was naturally seductive, with pouty lips and long eyelashes, but otherwise the same type of thin face and severe beauty that Saria had. Her skin was ebony, and when she opened her eyes they were a dark red and somehow smoldering.
Karana smiled, and laughed, “Saria, what brings you by?”
She threw her legs up and sprung to her feet in a back flip, and took a few steps closer to Saria. She moved with a similar deadly predatory grace as the elves, but there was something far more sensuous and seductively flowing about it.
Her and Saria were so similar, but couldn’t have been more different. Where Saria was restrained, Karana was not, and her emotions were very much on display, though her body language was just as confusing as Saria’s, or would have been if I wasn’t mostly used to it. Still, it was a learned thing, not instinctive.
Saria said, “Karana. It’s good to see you, if not under these circumstances. I have a proposal for you, if you agree we can both be on our way home in a day or two, while at the same time setting up the king for a bad future.”
Karana smirked, “I’m listening, tell me what you have in mind.”
She paused, as she finally noticed me, and narrowed her eyes dangerously.
I waved.
Yup, waved like a doofus. She was intimidating, and sinfully sexy. I’d have thought I’d have been used to that combination with Saria around, but apparently not.
Saria said, “That’s James, a healer from another world, and the flesh sculptor that restored your free will and appearance. I have also given him my vow, my life before his, so leave him be. We need him.”
I appreciated the defense, but at the same time I was annoyed. Not her lover, or her friend apparently, I’m just a tool for her ends, despite saving her life twice and opening myself up to her.
I was an idiot.
Karana hummed under her breath and she looked me over, and smiled.
“Fair enough, but a life vow?”
Saria eyes looked defensive, “He saved my life the night I made it, and since has freed all of my people in the city, just as he promised. He is not a typical human.”
Karana’s eyes widened, and she walked toward me rather sensually, with a wicked smile on her face that promised delights and at the same time denied them.
I stood there nervously as she circled me and checked me over, like I was a side of beef at the market. I felt… hunted, and not in a good way. On the other hand, that half a chubby was bigger before she was done.
She was… not reserved at all, but I got the idea that was less about me than about her, she didn’t actually want to sleep with me, and would have laughed if I’d asked.
Saria sighed, which took me by surprise, it was a sign of impatience.
“Karana.”
Karana chuckled and winked at me before turning around and walking back to Saria. She had a heart shaped ass to die for.
Karana said, “Just checking Saria, you took me by surprise. I didn’t think you had it in you.”
Checking what?
Saria gave me a nervous look, and then turned back to Karana.
“Here’s the plan, and what I’m thinking we’ll get out of it, if you agree…”
Saria went over the plan to free them, and then the humans. She also talked about the longer term effects and benefits for them if they could turn Eastguard against the Desal throne.
Karana was hard to read, her every action dripped with sensuous seduction, but I was already figuring out that was just her way of letting her emotions out, and perhaps a bit of a show. The dark elves didn’t control their instincts by restraining them like the light elves, but it was still a form of control. Letting the emotions out constantly allowed her to spend them in a way she controlled.
In other words, despite what I was seeing, and was very much enjoying looking at, I didn’t think dark elves were any more promiscuous than light elves when it came to actually having sex. Or, to put it crudely, they were all cock teases, but that only applied to the human male point of view.
Underneath the smiles and playful predatory movements, she was calculating, and extremely intelligent. I could see it in her eyes.
Saria wrapped up the plan, and waited for Karana’s response.
Karana looked at me and smiled, I felt like I was being toyed with, and couldn’t imagine her reasons for doing so.
“No Saria, that simply won’t work.”
Saria asked, “Why not?”
Karana shrugged, “The human slaves are weak. Your people and mine are the ones with true power here, and as slaves we were the true defense of the city. I know that because we fended off two attacks already, from our own peoples. Think about it, the humans with the combat oriented gifts are pampered, and given places of authority under the king. All the human slaves here, or at least, a great majority of them, have weak gifts, and were abused. They foolishly struck back at their masters, and were made slaves. There are a few exceptions, men of conscious like your James, but not nearly enough.”
Karana tapped her lip, “Saria, they wouldn’t last two weeks. Assuming the king even needed to send a force to put them down, there are more gifted human thugs out among the so called free humans of the city. They are here to get out from underfoot of the nobles to satisfy their darker natures and not get caught. I doubt if we freed the human slaves, they could even successfully fight the free humans. There are about the same amount of them but…”
Saria gave me concerned look, and I wondered if she worried about my fate after she left.
“Isn’t it worth doing though, I’ve given my word. If I have to, my people will do it on our own.”
Karana shook her head, “Of course it is, I’d do it just for the opportunity to kill the baron and his men, and freeing the slaves is at least as good as telling the king to fuck off to his face, which is a nice bonus. But that won’t really help our forest, will it? It also won’t keep your James safe.”
That was twice she’d called me Saria’s, which I didn’t get at all. Saria had rejected me, hadn’t she? Maybe she did care, and Karana had picked up on it, but at the end of the day it didn’t make a difference if she went home and left me behind.
Saria asked coolly, “What are you suggesting?”
Karana smiled, the first smile I saw one her that wasn’t even partially seductive, it was chillingly violent.
“Why, I think we should stick around a while. It could be fun.”
I exchanged a glance with Regina, who squeezed my hand and bit her lip nervously. I also felt a little helpless, this wouldn’t be the safe haven for both of us that I’d hoped for.
Saria raised an eyebrow in question.
Karana shrugged, “Not forever of course, but long enough to kill the first army or two he sends down here to recover the city. When he sends something we can’t handle, we’ll leave and go home. Let’s call it fun and revenge, before we cut our losses. If we get enough of them, maybe they’ll avoid our forest for a generation as they breed up more soldiers.”
Right, and I’ll be fucked again. The first thing they’d do when they took the place back over would be to put me to death. Maybe I should have gone west instead, I suppose I could try when the time came, but I’d have to cross a thousand miles, the whole kingdom of Desal, to reach Gritor.
Saria said, “I’ll consider it, but at the least I must send my sister home with a proper escort.”
&
nbsp; Karana nodded in understanding, “Let’s get started. Krenum, send me two off the wall.”
Krenum said, “We have light elves guarding the entrance.”
Karana tilted her head, “Good point, I’ll come with you, and put an illusion over them. Any other holes you want to poke?”
Krenum shook his head, and headed for the entrance, Karana followed with her hips swaying in a mesmerizing fashion.
I could see the guilt and heat in Saria’s eyes as she looked over at me, but she didn’t say anything. What was there to say? Regina and I would figure it out, if things unfolded as Karana believed they would, we’d move on if we had to. Maybe it would work out though, either way I wouldn’t just give up.
Chapter Twenty-Five
It was almost two hours before dawn by the time we returned to the light elf side of the city, with Krenum and Karana. It’d taken four hours to free all the dark elves, and I’d verified my earlier thoughts with the other dark elven women. They were all seductresses, but unavailable at the same time.
Karana stepped up beside me on my right, and I was holding Regina’s hand on my left.
The gorgeous dark elf said, “Saria tells me that you two want to be bonded? I’d be happy to help you out, once the city is secured. I understand Desirae is not… available to do so?”
I said, “Thank you, we’d be honored.”
Karana winked salaciously, “Yes, you would be,” and then smirked.
Regina giggled, and said, “Thank you Karana.”
I laughed, “I bet most human males find you disconcerting.”
She pouted, “What makes you think I flirt with all human males like this?”
“Not just the flirting, the whole package.”
She smiled at me blindingly.
I asked, “But you don’t? Flirt I mean.”
Karana shook her head, “Nope, not with words, and not intentionally,” she said, and bit her bottom lip.
I could see amusement dancing in her eyes, but no true attraction or heat between us. Well, I found her attractive at least, very attractive, but I honestly had no idea what was going on in her head. If the chemistry did go both ways, her natural seductive gracefulness was hiding it.