Her stomach growled and ached, she hadn't eaten anything since John died two days earlier. She hadn't slept much either, she only drank because Damian had forced her too. She couldn't stop touching her ankle, his last act in this world was to heal her, if only she could have done the same.
"Elise." Damian's voice, for some odd reason it was a comfort when she called him. "Elise you need to eat something, even if you don't want to or it makes you sick. Your body needs it." Silence. Second to eating it's the other thing she hadn't done, no words were worth saying.
The cart stopped, she felt the sudden jolt of the wagon halting. She heard his footsteps into the back of the cart, and then felt his hands upon her shoulders. They were firm, like metal bent and beaten into hands.
"Elise please say something." She didn't, not because she didn't want to but her lips wouldn't move. She wanted to cry, she wanted to scream. She wanted to smash the planet and tear it to ribbons, she wanted to smite the gods for their cruelty. Yet she laid still, silent and unmoving like the dead, like John.
Then something. A feeling, a sensation broke the bindings that held her. Her hand raised to her cheek, it stung, it hurt. He slapped her. "He slapped me."
Her head raised, her rosy cheek held by her hand. She felt something else, her body was being squeezed. It took her a moment before she realized it, but Damian was holding her, hugging her tightly.
She couldn't resist it, she couldn't hold it back anymore. The dam burst, and out flooded everything she'd held in. Tears fell from her eyes, her arms grasped him like a vice. The sorrow, the rage, the helplessness. It all poured from her being.
No words were said, none were needed. In that moment she felt that void lighten, no longer fathomless like before, just enough that she could manage. Neither of them bothered to count, minutes or hours could pass and they wouldn't care.
Elise took the time she needed, to hold someone and be held, to be given the sympathy she so desperately craved. She was the first to let go, taking that leap. They pulled away, her face a mess of tears and rosy skin.
With a hand upon her face he brushed them away, her tears swiped from beneath her eyes. It felt nice, it felt right. "Thank you." She sniffled, her hand grasped around his, the hand that held her.
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It was night now, and the lights of Grauer Stein were visible in the darkness beyond. Another twenty to thirty miles between them and the border, to Alenvail. Their camp was dark, no fire lit and well off the main road. Damian felt at ease knowing he got Elise to eat something, his mind could rest knowing she was taken care of.
Elise could see much better than he could in the twilight hours, she could see how tired he was, how heavy his eyes had become. She watched him for a few moments, he laid sitting up against the side of the cart, his hand resting on his blade beside him. She was only a few feet away, but the distance between them seemed so grand.
She didn't like it, she wouldn't let it stand. Elise dragged her bedroll to his, her body now pressed against him. Her head pushed to his chest, a warmth filled her, she never wanted to let this feeling go.
It only intensified, a euphoria flooded her body. His arms wrapped around her, his cheek now rested against her raven hair. She wanted more but couldn't say it, something about this just felt right.
Her hands, she couldn't stop them. One slid across his forearm and up to his bicep, a light squeeze to feel his toned arms that could sunder iron. The other hand, just the back of it, pressed against his core. His abs were solid, harder than diamond. Her finger traced each crease, over each bump of tight muscle. It was intoxicating, alluring, a drug that fed her every impulse.
"Damian." Her voice was soft and yearning. She was sweeter than sugar or honey, and she wanted him to taste. "Damian." She cried again, her hand descending downwards, about to cross a line she couldn't come back from. "Damian." She moaned, her eyes turned to him, ready to embrace the warmth of his lips. . .
Yet nothing. She waited and stared, yet he remained unmoving. His eyes closed, and he was at peace. He succumbed to slumber, resting like a babe. Her bounty now unclaimable, though she felt satisfied to gaze upon his sleeping face. It was enough, for now.
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It was dawn, and finally he felt restored. For the first time in days he was able to rest, perhaps his companion snuggled up against him had something to do with it, but he was unsure if he wanted to believe such a thing.
Elise was holding onto him, firm enough he couldn't free himself without waking her. So he didn't free himself, he sat and waited. His arm still wrapped around her, his hand resting against her waist. With his other hand he cleared her loose strands of hair from her face, her pale skin now slightly tanned from their travels.
She was cute, he couldn't deny it or lie to himself. Her features were sharp, a small nose paired with an adorable look she had well sleeping. She snored, it was quiet but obvious to him. How he ended up travelling with her still plagued him, but regardless of the circumstances he felt. . . happy. "Strange."
She stirred, shifting in his grasp. Her eyes peeled open as a moan left her lips, her limbs stretched out as her head dug into his chest. It hurt, despite her beautiful face her head was surprisingly boney.
He shifted, and she raised her head. Still drowsy she mumbled something incoherent. Damian tried to decipher the sounds she made but to no avail, she tried to stand but caught herself, her consciousness now coming back to her.
"Good morning, it seems you slept well" He added, climbing to his feet, yawning as he stretched. "Yeah you as. . ." She yawned cutting herself off, she felt a bit light headed and needed to hold herself up. "Gods I'm awake, I swear."
Elise brushed her hair back, she'd lost sight of Damian. It took her a moment to find him, he'd gone around the other side of the wagon to get feed for Fred. The donkey was already awake, he'd been munching on the grass waiting for them. Elise made her way to him, Fred the donkey stuck his nose into her face, his slimy tongue slashed across her cheek.
She scoffed. "Fred you jerk." Fred found it humorous, laughing at her as he liked to do. She pet him anyway, scratching and stroking his head. It wasn't till Damian brought him a bucket of oats did he turn away, crunching away enjoying his breakfast.
"We should pack, we're nearly there." Elise nodded, and the two of them gathered their belongings. It didn't take them very long, less than twenty minutes to have everything secured and ready to go.
They started on the road, passing by them were many merchants and travelers coming from Alenvail. Grauer Stein got closer and closer, slowly but surely the castle town grew with each passing minute.
It was nearly fall now, the summer months nearly at an end. The life of day grew shorter and shorter, and after six to seven hours of travel there was only a few hours of light left, but by this time they managed to reach the border.
Grauer Stein rested upon the Redstall river that ran Northeast to Southwest, it marked part of the border between Alenvail and the Empire. Grauer Stein was built upon the section where the Darbrook river flowed into the Redstall, the Darbrook flowing north to south which travelled all the way to the Alenvail capital. Grauer Stein wasn't a massive fort, but it didn't need to be. Sieging it would prove incredibly difficult due to the bodies of water it was surrounded by, Damian knew this all too well, sieging many forts along the great Azure river to the east.
The border crossing was a bridge, Empire soldiers on one side and Alenvaillians on the other. "Elise." Damian called as the wagon approached the crossing, the soldiers already waiting for them. "Elise never mention the name I told you back in Erybridge, never call me the Red Wolf well we're in Alenvail." His voice, that tone. It made her spine shiver, like a whole different person was speaking to her.
"I understand." She practically whispered, though Damian was too focused on the soldiers to notice. "Halt!" One of the twelve sentries yelled, he pulled back on the reins, Fred stopped. "Hail traveler, what's your business leaving our great Empire." He tried not to laugh as he dismounted. "I'm in search of a woman, a Retaillian woman if you can believe it."
The soldier looked to Elise in the cart, her ears raised listening to them. "It seems you keep interesting company already, I believe you, you may go." The guard waved him through, Damian thought the guard would at least hassle him for money or more information.
They rolled by them, onto the massive wooden and stone bridge. As they passed Elise could hear them talk about her, whispers of the ever so rare High Elf, she found it humorous.
The bridge to Grauer Stein didn't stretch completely across, and was only finished with a large drawbridge to enter the fort town. Luckily it was currently down, though twenty soldiers stood watch at the gate well crossbowmen lingered on the ramparts.
A guard called something out, Elise couldn't understand the words she was hearing. Damian however could, and he spoke Alenvainian flawlessly. "Good evening, we seek entry to Alenvail." The guards stepped forward and Damian once again dismounted, the soldiers taking notice of his weapons and armour. "What's your reason for coming, you're clearly not a merchant, and you travel with a High Elf." Damian chuckled, perhaps the wrong choice with the guard now annoyed. "She's a half Elf, I mistook her for a High Elf when I first saw her too. We're in search of a friend of mine, a Retaillian woman that travelled through here likely a week earlier." The guards looked to him, he couldn't quite understand the look they were giving him. "You, half Elf, what's your name?" Elise raised her head, not understanding what he was asking. The guard took notice and sighed. "Your name Elf?" He said again, this time in Low Faelic. She smiled and answered him. "My name is Elise."
Before anymore words left her mouth he moved on to Damian, the guard watching him closely wondering how well he could use his sword. "And you?" The guard switched back to his native tongue. "My name is Damian Vanderburg, and Alenvail is my home, I request entry despite my other reasoning."
The guard examined him, listened to the accent he used flawlessly, recognizing the regional accent not far from here. "You may enter." The guard announced, Damian nodded his head and climbed back onto the wagon. He rolled past them, moving slow enough not to seem in a rush to escape them.
They passed by the various defenses, the dozens of peep holes that archers would use to rain down death upon invaders. Another portcullis laid ahead of them, guarded by an additional six guards. Elise waved to them, Damian knew better.
They entered the town proper, a small but open town square before them. Damian pulled off to the side next to what looked like an inn, thankfully enough a stable rested beside it for Fred. "Damian." Elise said, tapping his shoulder. "When you were talking to that guard, you gave him a last name?" He smiled, a shit eating grin across his mug. "My Alenvainian accent is flawless apparently, so I lied about my name and said I was from here." Elise accepted that answer, though another question brewed as they dismounted the cart. "So where are you from then? I can't really tell from your accent." Damian stopped, his head turned back to look her in the eyes. He said nothing, he winked and grabbed his coin purse from his ruck. She scowled, following him as he headed towards the barn. "Fine I guess I'll just need to figure it out myself." Damian chuckled. "Others have tried and failed, you'll join them."
She sat on those words, trying to think of some scheme or master plan to uncover his secret. She developed a handful of ideas, each a bit more cunning than the last. In the meanwhile Damian had paid for Fred and the wagon to be stowed, and a room for them as well. If Elise had been paying attention she would have tried to convince the inn keep for a room with a single bed, but without speaking the language it'd prove rather difficult.
The whole event took them less than twenty minutes, their belongings were stored away in their room. Elise felt relief that she wouldn't need to march around with a heavy rucksack across her shoulders, and the cooler weather of the north meant she could wear her outfit without overheating.
"So you're looking for your friend right? Any idea where to start?" Elise asked as they stepped back onto the street, the sky now darkening as night approached. "Well I've already asked about her at the inn, but they didn't give me much information. But if I had to guess she'd likely have business with the fort commander, or at least someone near his station." Elise pulled on his cloak. "Who exactly is this friend? You've mentioned her in conversation but not much else." Damian took a moment to collect his thoughts.
"Minx is. . ." He stopped, shaking his head. "Sorry Sophie, that's her nickname. Minx is a. . . Strong personality, when you meet her you'll understand. We've been good friends for a handful of years, she was apart of my former mercenary band, and she's one hell of a support mage." Elise leaned forward, her chest nearly against his. "She's a mage, what kind of mage is she?" Excitement bristled in her voice, her ears were perked up waiting to receive an answer. "She's a sorceress, a talented one at that."
Elise dragged her thumb across her chin, her smiling mouth slightly ajar as she recalled her lessons. "So she casts similar to you, but can use non combat spells as well. You said she's a support mage, what do you mean by that exactly?" Elise was tempted to grab her notebook, but as Damian started to walk she resisted the urge. "She can cast quite a variety of support spells, for instance she may alter terrain to hinder enemies or give good footing to allies. Illusion spells to create duplicates of herself or others, or fake offensive spells to cause disarray of enemy lines. Lastly she does have offensive spells, but most of them are based in necromancy then evocation." Elise stopped, she yanked on his arm causing him to nearly stumble. "What kind of necromancy, can she raise the dead?"
Damian wasn't sure how to respond, as she seemed a bit. . . too excited about necromancy. "Not quite, raising the undead is very frowned upon and hard to do. Her necromancy is more geared towards draining life and stamina from others, or causing necrosis of living flesh." Elise let him go, she wore the kind of face to show she was disgusted, but also a hint of intrigue and pleasure behind such an expression. "Now lets see if the fort commander is willing to speak with us, I doubt he will but there's always a chance."
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There was a chance, but fate was often cruel sometimes. They had been denied, after an hour of pleading with the keep guards to gain an audience with their commander. He tried convincing them, bribing them, everything short of threats of violence.
He left defeated, and angry. He'd been tracking Sophie for three months, following her trail through the province of Failendale to Alenvail. He wouldn't give up however, he'd try again in the morning. For now though, he wanted to wet his tongue, a nice crisp beer to wash away his frustrations.
"You'll find her." Elise's voice, it was somehow softer than usual, Damian noticed it. Perhaps she was taking pity on him, he couldn't really be sure right now. "Damian, you'll find her, ok." She grabbed his arm, pulling him down as her head rested on his shoulder. She let him go right after, she skipped playfully well her smile became contagious.
"I know I will, thank you Elise." His hand brushed across the top of her head, a quick stroke of her beautiful raven hair. She tried to be subtle, her head pushing into his hand. But her flushed cheeks and coy ears betrayed her, but Damian pretended not to notice.
They reached the only tavern this place had to offer, Damian didn't bother to read the sign and Elise couldn't. However the sound of music and the thump of Alenvainian feet made it obvious, the liveliness of an Alenvail tavern was famous after all.
When they entered, by the grace of either the gods or chance they found a booth unoccupied. Damian scooped it up passing by the dozens of dancing men and women, large tankards of beer were passed around well a band of bards sang the heartbeat of the excitement.
Damian had got drinks for the both of them, much like before Elise knocked it back as did Damian. She wiped her damp lips and spoke, almost screaming to him over the noise. "This stuff actually tastes good, what's it called?"
Damian raised his cup clinking it to hers. "Real beer." They laughed, then drank. Elise couldn't help but look at everyone dancing, moving feet, swinging hips and twirling women. It was hypnotizing, and some envy boiled up in her chest.
Elise could feel it, hearing the notes. The bards played faster and the people of Grauer Stein were quicker, the climax of the melody approaching like a tidal wave. It hit her, washed over her. As the final notes played out the people swooped low into a bow, facing their dance partners. Elise had hardly noticed that a maiden flew toward them, landing on top of Damian.
He had caught her, holding this golden hair girl in his arms. Her eyes were blue, and gorgeous like sapphires or clear ocean water. Her Dirndl, the traditional dancing garb for Alenvainian women, was white and black with a skirt as crimson as blood.
"Hello handsome man." Her voice of flowers was pleasant on the ears, crisp and vibrant like all her fellow countrymen. "Hi." Damian replied back to her, speaking in the language that Elise so desperately wanted to understand, especially right now.
"I've not seen this rugged face, or these arms as thick as tree trunks." She'd been drinking, that much was obvious. Nor did this woman seem to notice Elise sitting across from her, as her hands began to caress everywhere she wanted to touch. "Miss I don't mean to be rude, but I have company already."
The golden haired maiden looked across, the red faced half Elf about ready to jump across the table. "I'm sorry, I guess you're a married man." The woman giggled. "Not quite." The stranger put a hand over her mouth, her eyes dotted across to Elise. "So are you his lover then?"
Elise couldn't understand her, she wanted too, she wanted to know what this strumpet was saying. "She doesn't speak the language, and no she's not anything of the sort." Damian answered on her behalf, Elise now more desperate than ever to understand what was going on. The woman turned back to him, her hand now pressed against his cheek well the other caressed down his side.
"So she wouldn't mind then, if I borrowed you for the night." Her words were whispered into his ear, her lips approached his neck and grazed him. Elise was about to erupt, her hands curled into fists.
Damian however started to smile, and stood. Holding the girl in his arms, as she wrapped her arms around his neck, well her head pressed against his chest. Elise followed them as he carried her outside, multiple patrons cheered upon such a sight.
They now stood out in the cool night, the cerulean eyed maiden in his arms, lusting after him. It was sudden, a thud echoed as the woman impacted the ground as Damian dropped her. Elise wasn't sure if her eyes were deceiving her, a shimmer of colour, a mirage fading in front of her very eyes.
The woman now on the ground was different, raven black hair like Elise, but short in a bob cut. Her eyes were brown like the bark of an oak tree, her skin as pale as snow. On her neck a black embroidered choker, thin metal chains woven into it. She was adorned in a long black sleeve shirt that exposed not only her shoulders, but perhaps too much of her breasts, which was exaggerated by the pushup bra she wore. Dark brown trousers covered her legs with heeled boots, a belt and thigh harness held a dagger and rapier. A cloak that was darker than night was large enough to wrap herself in, a fluffed edge to it with raven feathers adding to her gothic style. Lastly, her makeup was hard to ignore, dark eye liner with crimson red lipstick that begged for attention.
The woman didn't speak, not right away. All she did at first was laugh, hysterically. The kind of laugh one would do after a grand prank, or to mock another. It continued on till Damian's foot pressed against her stomach, which only made her laugh more.
"I yield I yield!" She spoke in low Faelic, but with an accent Elise hadn't heard before. She spoke like cotton or yarn was stuck in her throat, like each word was vetted before going through her teeth. It was a very pleasant voice, and she spoke like an upper class lady. "Oh Damian, my grizzled warrior, why do you abuse me so? Dropping me, letting me fall to the dirt like an angel falling from the heavens! Oh please mighty warrior, will you extend your hand to me, raise me up and into your warm embrace!"
Her arms moved and jolted like a viper, her hands clasped together were held to her chest. She moved her hips and bit her lip, a venomous trap that most men would fall into. "After all this time, you greet me with a prank, how cute."
Damian was smiling, though his tone would make one suggest otherwise. The woman extended her hand out gingerly, like a lady would for a nobleman to kiss. Damian rolled his eyes and took her hand helping her rise to her feet, she curtsied, and her eyes narrowed onto Elise. "I'm Sophie Alaire, and it is my utmost pleasure to be meeting something as sweet as you."
Sophie licked her lips, practically devouring the half Elf with her eyes. "Minx this is Elise, we've been travelling together recently." Sophie approached her in a strut, grabbing her by the waist and brushing some stray hair away from her eyes. "You are just delicious aren't you, Wolf where'd you pick her up?"
Damian pulled Sophie back to her disappointment. "It's a bit of a story which I'll tell you later, but in Erybridge. I've been on your trail for awhile now and I met her there." Sophie leaned back into him, her lips only a few inches from his. Damian sighed, pushing her aside by the face. Sophie giggled and looked back towards Elise. "Don't get too envious uh. . . Elise was it? Yes that was it."
Elise looked down, her cheeks fully flushed. Sophie took great amusement in her suffering. "Oh Damian this one is so easy to play with, honestly for a moment I thought it was Lenore by your side when I saw you." His demeanor changed, it was instant, Sophie felt it rock her. "Sorry I shouldn't have. I take it you have a room at the inn, perhaps we should go there to speak. Despite my performance it has been some time, and I have missed you my friend."
It was quiet now, even the noise of the tavern was drowned out. The two looked at each other, Elise but a simple spectator. Their eyes locked, and they approached. Their arms wrapped tightly around one another, their embrace felt long overdue.