by Xander Jade
The three new ladies all looked somewhat astonished and Lily and Celina seemed hesitant.
I decided to be friendly and smiled at them. “Ladies, it’s great to see you again.”
Lily responded with a smile of her own. “Dom, it’s always a pleasure to see you.”
Celina smirked. “It’s definitely a pleasure.” The three ladies beside her nodded in agreement.
“Dom, let me introduce you to the others. This is Tianna. Her daughter, Emoli, and Nikki is a friend of Emoli. Ladies, this is Dominic.”
We all nodded to each other and exchanged greetings. They continued to stare at me.
I chuckled and said, “You’re just in time. William and I brought back some kills and are about to start cooking.”
The blonde, Nikki, spoke out in a husky tone, “We know, handsome. We were watching. Never seen a male take care of himself before, at least not without his women watching over him.”
My left brow rose. “Well, from what I’ve seen around here, it’s not surprising. The ones I’ve seen are weaklings, lazy as well.”
The five ladies glanced at each other and started laughing. I didn’t think what I said was comical and waited for them to stop.
Celina spoke out before I could, “I told you, girls. He’s different.”
The older drow, Tianna, responded to the feline beastkin, “He is at that.”
She looked me up and down, making me feel like I was her next meal. Not letting that get to me, I just stood there and said, “Well, I need to check on my ward to make sure he’s not having issues with dinner. Feel free to look around ladies, have Lily and Celina show you. They know where everything is at.”
I went inside to see William at the stove. He looked up when I came in.
“We have visitors.”
He smiled. “I know, heard your conversation.”
Huh, he must have good hearing to do that from here.
“Well, we have five extra joining us.”
William grunted and I walked over to the stove. Not knowing when the women would come in, I cut up the rabbit and threw it in a pan then placed it on the grate to sear. William prepared the veggies as I was watching over the meat. He placed them into the pot with water and gave it to me. When the meat was seared, I put it on a plate and took the pot of vegetables to place on the stove. While it was cooking, I threw some flour in to thicken the broth then spices and cream for a little flavor. I also poured the juices still in the pan from the rabbit into the pot.
Letting it cook for a few minutes, I had William start back on his letters and words. He was getting a handle on some words. I watched over the meal and felt someone come up behind me. I looked over my shoulder to see Lily smiling at me.
“Hello, Dom. Celina is taking them on a tour.”
I nodded and kissed her on the cheek. She gasped but grinned. “How have you been?”
She lost the smile and looked down. I was confused by this.
“Are you okay?”
She sighed and said, “No, Dom. We’re not. Things haven’t worked out for us in Capena. They treat us like shit and take what taxes they want at any time. The others have fled to other towns in search of work. We will lose our home by the end of the month.”
I didn’t know what to say, that wasn’t right, but me saying so wouldn’t change anything.
Thinking it over, it was true I had plenty of room and would like to have adult conversation again…
After a moment, I grabbed Lily’s hand and spoke, “What do you need from me?”
She looked away and didn’t speak for a couple of moments. She finally whispered, “Can we stay here? We will work for our room and board.”
I hesitated. I looked over at William, he was following our conversation and immediately went back to his paper. “All of you?”
She shrugged, “Not sure, at least Tianna, Celina, and myself.”
“I have no problem with all of you staying. Are they hard workers? Because I won’t accept laziness.”
She had tears in her eyes and smiled. “Thank you. I didn’t know what we would have done if you said no.”
I put my arms around her, and she immediately melted into me. I kissed the top of her head and she shuddered. I let her go and she stepped back, tears streaming down her face.
“No tears, Lily.”
She nodded and sniffled while wiping them off. I went back to watching the meal. It was time to add the meat, so I scraped it into the pot and stirred it, then went to grab some water.
“What can I do to help?”
“We have lots of milk in the cold room, grab some and also some of the fresh fruit as well.”
She nodded and walked off. William came over and put his hand on my shoulder. “She’s yours from now on, probably Celina as well. They won’t ever leave until you tell them to.”
“Huh? What does that mean?”
He chuckled. “Loyalty. Your house just became theirs. They will help in any way they can in exchange for making their lives better.”
I nodded and sighed, knowing this was about to get complicated. Lily came back to the room with milk and fruit. She laid them on the counter and washed the berries, humming to herself. Guess she was feeling better. I heard footsteps hurriedly coming towards the house.
They came rushing in, chattering non-stop. Nikki put one of the cold boxes on the table, reverently. Maybe she thought it was fragile?
“Where did you get this?” the nephilim asked in her husky voice.
William was trying not to laugh but failing miserably. Lily didn’t know why they were making such a fuss and came over to see the cold box.
She inspected it, then gasped and went wide-eyed as she looked up at me.
“I found it,” I shrugged.
Tianna scoffed, “That’s bullshit! There wouldn’t be two of them.”
“What’s the big deal, ladies?” I already knew what it was, they had never seen anything like it before.
Celina cleared her throat before speaking. “Dom, nothing like this exists here. At least, none of us have ever seen or heard of them.”
Tianna nodded. “Can you please be honest with us and let us know where you got these?”
I didn’t figure they would look in them when I left the boxes out. William just looked on, waiting for my answer.
“I made them.”
The ladies were shocked.
“Dom, you made them?” Lily was fascinated.
“Yeah, it’s just a small cold room. Again, not a big deal.”
Nikki scoffed and shook her head. “Dominic, this is a portable cold room. Nobody has one or can even make one. That skill has been lost, no one other than the dwarves has that knowledge anymore. Even then, in my thousand years of being alive, I’ve never seen this. And you stand there and act like this creation is of no consequence.”
Tianna spoke up after her, “She’s right. This device will change everything. How the hell did you make it?”
Celina and Lily were worried, they knew what my secret was. William stared at me, and I nodded at him. He immediately took the dagger out of the sheath and slammed it into the table.
The ladies went defensive immediately. The ground underneath the cabin started shaking. The nephilim sprouted black wings. Her hair changed from blonde to black and dark armor flowed over certain parts of her body, ending with a long bastard sword in her hands. It only took a few seconds and she was ready for battle. Damn, that was hot. I looked over at the drows, they were in a defensive stance. They had to be mages of some sort; the ground shaking wasn’t a coincidence.
The nephilim barked, “Why the hell did you do that, little one?!”
William cackled at the three in front of him. “You should’ve seen your faces.”
Celina went over and smacked the poor boy on the back of the head. “William, that was dumb. They could’ve killed you for that stunt.”
He shrugged. “It was Dom’s idea.”
They looked over and I chuckled. “Tak
e it easy. It’s not like he threw the dagger at anyone. Instead of looking at the boy or me, how about you check out where the dagger is.”
They turned toward the table and gasped. The magic dissipated immediately and Emoli pulled the dagger out of the table to look it over.
“No visible scratches, nicks, or breaks. The edges are still sharp and… yep, there are runes on it. It’s enchanted.”
She let Nikki look it over and then Tianna checked it out. They shook their heads. Nikki was the first to figure it out. “You’re an enchanter.”
The drows gasped again and looked at Celina and Lily for confirmation. They just smiled and nodded.
“Yeah. I’m a novice enchanter, but I can also do this…” I spoke in elven and then nephilim. That threw them again. Nikki was shocked. Tianna and Emoli blinked rapidly. No one spoke again for a minute or so. I heard the stew boiling so I went over and stirred it, almost done.
While I was doing that, Tianna spoke up to break the silence, “You’re a very special individual, Dominic.”
Nikki nodded. “Yes, he is. Which brings up questions in our minds. Where are your women? Why don’t you have any?”
I scoffed, “Look, Nikki, I don’t need anyone to coddle me nor watch my every move. Thanks for your concern, though.”
Well, that was a put on because I actually needed help with things.
She shook her head and was about to respond when Tianna beat her to it.
“She’s not trying to belittle you, Dominic. You have rare gifts and our world is a dangerous place. You may be able to take care of yourself, but for someone with your skills, it will bring trouble.”
“Yes, Mother. We’ll need to keep this a secret. If someone finds out that he can enchant, everyone will be after him to join their family or kingdom,” Emoli said.
Well, damn. I sighed and shook my head while I took the pot off of the stove. The ladies whispered to each other. I grabbed some bowls and made sure they were clean before setting them on the table. I picked up the cold box and placed it in the corner for now, then went back to grab a towel to put on the table for the pot to sit on. Grabbing some bread, I sliced it and placed it onto a plate of its own before taking it to the table. The ladies for some reason had gone outside to talk. I snorted and grabbed the pot to set it on the table before sitting down.
“William, can you go and let them know the food is ready?”
He snickered and put his papers away before doing what I asked. I waited for them to come back in. Everyone sat down except Lily and Celina. The duo grabbed the milk and fruit to bring over to the table, then grabbed some cups out of the cabinet. I gestured for them to go first. Eventually I got some stew and devoured it with bread. There were moans all around the table, it would seem they liked the food.
Nikki told me about herself, that she wasn’t confined to one element of magic; she could create spells from different spheres. I then asked what that meant. She advised that it was tiers of magic. The elements were air, earth, fire, and water. There was also mind, nature, and void spheres. Nikki stated we would go over all that later since I was unfamiliar with these concepts. She seemed a little suspicious and like she didn’t want to reveal too much.
Damn, should’ve studied that book on the shelf in the hallway. Oh well.
Emoli licked her lips and said, “Damn, the man can cook too. Has anyone caught your fancy, stud? Can I put in my application?”
The ladies looked at her a moment before giggling. William chuckled as well. I shrugged and smiled. “What are your qualifications?”
That made it worse because the women cackled then, at least for five minutes. I just ate my fruit and rolled my eyes, waiting for the laughter to end. Finally, it stopped, and they looked at me, noticing my demeanor, they cleared their throats and went back to eating. I got up to clean, but Emoli stopped me.
“You cooked our meal, so we’ll clean up.”
They all agreed and started the work. I waited and drank some milk. It didn’t take them long since they worked together. They came back over and sat down when they were done.
Tianna spoke up after a few moments of silence, “Umm… can we talk about some things?”
“What do you want to know?”
“Well, first off, Lily told you of our situation. She relayed your conversation, and we just want to verify it.”
“I have no problem helping you ladies out. How many of you want to stay?”
Three responded immediately, Emoli and Nikki hesitated.
“I have a job and home in Strongfair. Emoli can live with me if she wants,” Nikki said.
I nodded and looked over at Emoli. She returned my gaze for a few moments before looking down.
“I don’t know what to do. I’ll probably go live with Nikki, but… if it doesn’t work out, can I come back here?”
I shrugged and replied, “You can come when you want, stay a few days or weeks. Just know that we will all chip in to keep this place running.”
She smiled and nodded.
Tianna asked, “Dominic, why do you have that many chickens and dairy cows?”
I chuckled. “Got a good deal on them and helped the families out at the same time. I want to make my farm self-sufficient. Eggs are a given, milk will help provide other supplies like butter, cream, and cheese. I won’t have to get those items from the store every few days.”
Plus, I knew that people would join me here eventually, but didn’t relay that information.
She nodded at my answer and then shook her head. “It’s just mind blowing that you have this setup here. To top that off, you’re an enchanter. Just crazy.”
Nikki smiled. “I saw your forge out there. Are you into metallurgy?”
“Not yet, read some books about it. It came with the land when I acquired it.”
The nephilim grunted. “The reason I asked is because I’m an apprentice.”
“Wow, that’s cool. When everything settles down, then I’ll try and make some daggers to sell.”
“Enchanted?”
I didn’t answer for a few moments, but nodded.
Nikki sighed. “I can only imagine what will happen when they circulate in our society. Things are going to change ladies and fast if our host keeps creating enchanted objects.”
“It certainly will. What are you going to use those portable cold boxes for?” Emoli asked.
“I’m thinking about opening up a booth in town to sell what I can. With all the surplus of milk, eggs, and vegetables, it would bring in coin.”
Tianna said, “It will keep the products cold, good idea. Will you let us join you on that?”
Lily and Celina nodded with the drow.
“Sure, I have no problem with it. You ladies can come and go as you please. Just because you’re staying here doesn’t mean that you can’t leave.”
They nodded and Lily asked, “What about the cold box? Are you going to sell them as well?”
The others looked intrigued at that, but I just shrugged and said, “I’m not sure. It may cause trouble for us. At least not at first, when we get settled and start bringing in coin, then we will vote on it.”
Nikki responded with a nod, “I think that would be best.”
Celina spoke up, “Dom, you’ll need to have escorts when you leave at any time. That way no one will be suspicious.”
She looked at me intently. She was concerned now that I had already been kidnapped.
Tianna said, “She’s right. Also, if you are going to have a booth then a woman will be in charge and start asking questions if you don’t have any ladies with you.”
Sighing, I said, “Okay, I’ll get some escorts. Any of you know anyone that would be inclined to help?”
I tried to keep a straight face when everyone at the table gasped and started yapping like Chihuahuas from back home. They argued that they were already there so why would I need to bring in anyone else right now? Celina and Lily were particularly put out by my question. I chuckled and told them that I h
ad been joking.
“Okay, ladies. I’ve got chores and work to do tomorrow. There are three bedrooms, talk amongst yourselves over sleeping arrangements. I need to check on the horses. William, let’s go.”
He nodded and we walked to the barn. When we were inside the boy gave me his opinion, “Dom, I know that we haven’t known each other for very long, but I agree with those women. The things you can do are special, even though you can take care of yourself, that doesn’t mean you have to. Especially since you were kidnapped.”
I grunted and said to the teenager, “For one so young, you sure can come up with mature opinions.”
He chuckled and we made sure the animals didn’t need anything. The boy was going to stay in the barn tonight, giving his bed up. I nodded and told him it was a gentlemanly thing to do. I walked back to the cabin and saw Lily by herself in the kitchen.
She noticed me and came over. “Dominic, the others have gone to their rooms. If you let me, I’ll accompany you to bed.”
She definitely had lust in her eyes. I responded carefully, “Lily, is this what you want? I don’t want you to think that it’s a requirement for living here.”
“We know that it isn’t a requirement. The answer is yes, I want to warm your bed. We don’t have to do anything if you are uncomfortable…” After finishing her statement, she bit her lower lip.
“Alright, let’s go to bed.”
We went in and the door wasn’t even closed all the way before she stripped out of her clothes, leaving the pile off to the side. She didn’t take off her panties until I was looking at her, they were a string thong type. Huh, that was interesting, didn’t think this world would have anything like that but was glad to see it. The woman was drop dead sexy. Just thinking about holding onto her horns while I face fucked her was getting me aroused. She climbed up on the bed, crawling on all fours. She showed me her goods while looking over her shoulder at me.