“So that happened,” I hesitantly told Skull in an attempt to break the ice after our escapades. She had just woken up a few minutes ago and promptly took to enjoying the bath I had prepared for her.
“So it did,” she replied as she released a sigh of comfort as she sank lower into the steamy water. “I do hope and expect that it will happen more in the future, minus the grievous bodily harm,” she added after a short pause.
“I agree wholeheartedly. We may need to settle for moderate bodily harm next time, and it may not always be just the two of us.” I busied myself with cleaning her armor and trying to fix some of the dents, not staring at her but also not completely avoiding her gaze. This conversation could go poorly in a heartbeat and I didn’t want to pressure her. At least the armor fixed itself better than I could, at the detriment of it leeching my mana.
She smiled as she leaned back more into the tub, her arms resting on the sides. “You must mean Chooka will be joining us. I have heard that she has been asking about me for some time now. Am I wrong in believing that she wishes to add me into that famous black book of hers.”
“You already have a page,” I admitted as I glanced over at her. Her smile had all the features of smugness and mischief. I wondered if she merely preened at the implication of her desirability or if she would begin to toy with me. “Granted, it is not filled out, but you are in the top ten for the most desirable ones yet unconquered.”
“Well, she will have ample opportunity to write up a detailed dossier about me, for where you go, so too do I go.” She let out a small laugh at some amusement only she seemed to be aware of. “Plus, she is pretty hot, and quite talented from what I hear. I would be hard-pressed to find a better way to spend an evening than with the two of you.”
I paused my cleaning for a moment as her words sunk in. She had dropped a strong hint as to our long-term relationship, but I decided to put a pin in it for just a moment as we cleared up the current issue.
“Do you want me to tell her that her Winter’s Givings wishlist just got fulfilled or do you want to keep it a secret and surprise her?”
Skull’s countenance took on a pondering expression, and she thought about it for about half a minute before finally giving an answer.
“I see the merits to both. On one hand, foreknowledge would allow her to make preparations, but showing up unannounced would allow me to catch her off balance. I only get one attempt at the latter, so let us keep it a secret for now. We can conspire later as to exactly how this surprise should go.”
“A wise choice,” I replied as my head nodded in agreement.
I left her alone with her thoughts, her eyes unfocused and her mind clearly fantasizing about the possibilities of the future as a coyness vied for dominance with smugness for control of her smile.
I am not a laundress or [Laundress], but I feel as though I had done a passable job of cleaning her clothes and armor while working out the worst of the dents. Mother had made sure I knew how to take care of myself, so I was no stranger to tending my own clothes. I can’t say that I had much experience with tending to women’s clothes at that point in my life, for Chooka wore so little clothing and did her own laundry.
Apparently, Skull approved of my handiwork, for no sooner had I finished than she rose from the water and took the few steps needed to close the distance to me. With a little bit of magic and Skill from my Blessing, I conjured up a stream of warm air to quickly dry her off. Within half a minute, she was dried to satisfaction, and without missing a beat, accepted my help as she dressed and I helped her don her armor.
“You know, this is so much easier when you are conscious.”
“True,” she replied, “but I do wish you were taking my clothes off instead of helping me put them back on.”
“Down, girl!” I responded cheekily. She swatted at me playfully, which I easily avoided.
“You could at least maybe cop a feel,” she pouted.
“And then you would pounce on me and before you know it the war would be over by the time we get back.”
Her back stiffened at that, and she applied herself more seriously to the task at hand.
“Quit dawdling! The enemy may be forced to assault the walls now that their artillery is out of commission, and I don’t want to miss it!”
We quickly finished getting her armor situated on her person to her satisfaction, and without delay, I packed up all my things and collapsed our little private abode. Not that such summoned material would have lasted more than a few weeks at best before decaying as bits and pieces of it disappeared back to wherever it came from, but it was considered bad manners to let such things linger in the world beyond their intended use.
Judging by the sun, the day had progressed perhaps an hour or so past noon, and with the ample illumination it provided, I witnessed a change as I gazed into Skull’s eyes. They had previously been a sky blue, but now a golden glow could be seen in her irises, as if the normal black background had been filled in with gold. Perhaps dragon blood was potent stuff, or perhaps her patron deity had commissioned some change within her. Either way, her eyes were rather captivating, and I had to force myself to look away lest I spend the afternoon staring into her eyes. I had a sinking suspicion that such a change harbingered the bond that presumably existed between us as ordained by Gulthar.
We hustled back to Berkerin. I noticed that I had to slow my pace for her, not that she ran any slower than our run out here, but I had somehow improved such that I could run faster than before. I mentally cursed myself for not checking on any improvements to my Blessing while I had the time earlier. Admittedly, I had found ample distraction to draw my attention away from such necessities, but such carelessness is how one ended up dead. I would have to wait until I could find a quiet place in order to check it out, as doing so while running through potentially enemy-occupied territory did not strike me as a wise choice.
We skirted the enemy camp and made it back to our section of the wall, just above the Gate of Friendship, before sundown. The Boys were nowhere to be seen, but otherwise we were met not with eager smiles from our comrades, but rather with grumbling and muttering. Indeed, only Bellwright appeared happy to see us, and as we approached, I caught a glimpse of coin purses changing hands in the unopposed favor of the Bellwright.
“I am glad you are both back okay,” exclaimed Bellwright loudly for everyone to hear. “Just before sundown too. Why, who could have imagined that you would ever return at such an hour?” he continued with an inflection and a fair amount of smugness that belied his amazement.
“Took you two long enough,” commented Garro sourly.
“Yeah, were you two just smelling the roses on the way back or did you decide that knocking boots would be an ideal way to pass the time?” asked Rarro.
“No roses,” Skull commented casually as she shrugged in response. “Plenty of boot-knocking though.” She removed her helmet and casually dug into what food was available, apparently unconcerned with the privacy of the matter.
Bellwright’s smug smile quickly wilted as a scowl replaced it, and more money changed hands, this time in the favor of the elf twins.
“Oh, do tell!” chimed in the twins with enthusiasm.
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Curse the twins and their chaotic nature. To my amazement and horror, Skull did tell, in graphic detail, the extent of our boot-knocking. I felt my face going red with unbridled embarrassment as Skull gave a full account while I found a seat. She continued on, seemingly passionate about the subject, going into great detail of all the things she wished to do with me of a similar nature. About a minute into her monologue, I withdrew a few pillows from my pocket dimension and passed them around, the other men gratefully accepting them while placing them on their laps for a comfortable place to rest their hands. Skull had our rapt attention, and she grew more excited and animated the more she elaborated on the fine details on every act she wished to take part of. I caught a glimpse of Bellwright covertly taking notes while the twins gazed at Skull in fascination. After about five minutes, Skull mercifully came to a stop, her breathing quickened, her face flush, and her eyes focused only on her fantasies as her arms wrapped around her body in a hug.
Gullfore merely snorted and walked away, muttering something about “not enough teeth”. Bellwright simply commented that he suddenly and unrelatedly had a plethora of new things to research and excused himself for a moment. The twins, with ear to ear grins on their faces, wandered off to whisper conspiratorially to one another. I found some food to eat and very mechanically set about eating, unable to meet the eyes of anyone else as I struggled to maintain my composure.
After finishing my meal, I snapped Skull out of her fantasies and mustered the rest of the party.
“Bellwright, please brief me on what has happened since I have been gone.”
The gnome puffed up a bit at that, apparently pleased by the implication that he was at the very least the de facto second-in-command.
“Not much happened during the night if you exclude the constant artillery barrage both ways. At dawn, Skull, on the back of a dragon, came by and bombarded the enemy artillery, effectively destroying their full battery and detonating much of the ammunition, much to the consternation of the enemy forces. Then the dragon got kicked out of the sky and went sailing away to the horizon. The enemy spent the rest of the day putting out fires and recovering while our own forces launched a series of daring raids, of which we did not take part. Chooka came by to collect The Boys, for they were apparently needed on another section of the wall for their intimidation effect and to ‘dispose of’ enemy corpses that littered the field. That was about two hours ago, and then you returned. Then Skull recounted how much she would like to-”
“Thank you, Bellwright!” I cut him off sharply at that, the little bastard smiling as he finished his report. “Have new orders arrived for us?”
“Not at present,” he replied quickly with a look of concern on his face. “The rumors circulating suggest that the enemy will launch a full assault soon in an attempt to save face after the humiliation the dragon handed them earlier. It is not entirely unheard of for dragons to render service or boons in trying times, but I cannot say I have heard of any around these parts for some time. Speaking of, who exactly is the dragon?”
“A concerned party who wishes to remain anonymous,” I replied sternly, my steely demeanor harboring no invitation for further comments or inquiries.
Bellwright and company apparently took the hint, for no more questions were directed towards me on that topic. A few more details were discussed concerning our watch rotation and battle plans in the event of an assault, and by midnight Skull and I were alone on watch as the remainder of the party rested within the convenient abode provided by Gullfore. I idly created and placed magical traps and slid them across the ground, just beneath the surface, creating a veritable killing field should the enemy march upon us.
“I got a new Blessing,” Skull commented suddenly, the silence now pierced by her sudden spark of conversation.
“Oh really? Did your Blessing evolve?” Blessings evolving were rare amongst most people, but Adventurers were inclined to push themselves to their limits, so those that survived tended to achieve such things. I threw up a spell for privacy to help keep our conversation secret from any eavesdroppers.
“No,” she shook her head. She turned to me as I turned to her, and while the skull-like visage of her helmet masked her face, I could feel the smile that lay hidden beneath. “I am Dual-Blessed!” she exclaimed with a small squeal of excitement.
“That’s amazing!” I responded earnestly as I clasped my hand on her shoulder in celebration. Such a feat is quite rare, and it usually involves some shenanigans related to the gods or other powerful entities. “I am sure you will be Diamond in no time with that. If you don’t mind me asking, what are your Blessings now?”
She leaned in towards me conspiratorially as she whispered her response. “I am a [Divine Champion] in service of my patron deity, Gulthar, and a [Dragon Knight] in service of you.”
“I can’t say I have ever heard of a [Dragon Knight] before. How does that work, and how can you serve two masters?” I leaned in towards her, throwing up a few more spells for our privacy. Details like this could not be allowed to leak out, even though the level of privacy such spells provided were now rather overt to any onlooker. Hopefully, no one would be dumb enough to try to barge into our conversation.
“You know how cryptic Blessings are in their description of things, and it isn’t like I can choose what it does.” I could almost see the frustrated scowl that must surely be on her face under her helmet as her voice hardened in vexation of that sad reality for everyone who isn’t me. “From what I understand, it seems that I can get some draconic traits from you and Skills themed around protecting you and riding you into battle, with a good number of Abilities to help ensure you are not grounded or otherwise incapacitated. I don’t have many Skills yet, but I will surely get many in the coming months if I stay by your side.”
She placed her hand on my shoulder, driving home the point that there would be no room for me to send her away or give her the slip, not that I intended to.
“To answer your second question, it is rather simple. I serve my deity in spiritual matters and try to see his tenants expressed in the world, insofar as I maintain the balance that he and the other gods strive for in such matters. In terms of worldly matters, I follow you and help support whatever goals you aim for. Gulthar seems to be rather pleased with you and expects that you have a bright future ahead of you, one of spreading fear and luring out brave souls to face you down in combat, so I think he is more than satisfied with this arrangement where my attention may be a bit divided.
“And how do you feel about these new developments?” I was not sure which one of us I was asking, but she did not hesitate to answer.
“It suits me just fine. I have been enjoying our time together, so spending more time together seems like a good idea.” She paused for a moment and then shrugged before continuing. “I am a simple woman. I like fighting, feasting, and fucking. Your cooking is pretty good, but I am most impressed with your prowess at the other two. I look forward to experiencing them with you in the near future.”
I preened at her praise, which concerned me only in that I don’t remember praise ever feeling so intoxicating before. Was this my draconic nature influencing my personality or did she have a Skill related to it? Either way, I knew I craved more, so I coaxed her to elaborate.
“The way you inspire fear in your enemies is enough to make a girl like me excited. They tremble beneath the shadow of your wings. I could feel it, taste it, the fear the enemy felt when we flew over them, and it was glorious. Then to find out on top of that that you know your way around satisfying a woman in bed, why, I think I came looking for copper and found gold. You are very attentive to what I desire and my emotions, and I can’t say most of my partners have been so considerate.” She pulled me in for a hug, apparently not bothered by how her armor dug into me in places. “I wouldn’t trade you for the world.”
I fiercely hugged her back, that last line of hers having a more profound effect than everything else she had said combined. It felt good to be validated by her praise, but to be desired and coveted… That provided a whole new level of satisfaction that fulfilled some need I didn’t really know I had. Chooka had struck it before, and I thought that to be enough, but to have another person fulfill it was rather addictive. I would have to reflect on this later and the accompanying notification from my Blessing, which I promptly ignored in favor of living in the moment. I didn’t tear up like I had with Chooka that one time, but it still hit me right in the feelings.
I pulled away from her as I grasped her on the sides of her face, well, her helmet, as I gave my response with as much seriousness and honesty as I could convey.
“And I am glad to have you by my side. I cannot guarantee you will always get as much of my attention as you may desire, but I promise to treasure you and do what I can to keep you happy as we venture through life together. I know not what fate nor the gods have in store for us, but with you by my side, I feel confident we can take on anything. Please try your best to get along with my companions; I really would like to avoid infighting.”
Skull nodded in agreement. “I will do my best, although I make no promises, I will suffer not a coward, and I understand that I stand second to Chooka in your life. I am sure she and I can work something out that amicable for all of us.”
I smiled in response, glad that she had picked up on what I had left unspoken in any explicit sense. As if to commemorate our new bond, a series of explosions illuminated the sky in the direction of the enemy camp. Panicked men and women ran hither and thither in the distance as they tried to make sense of the blatant attack. Apparently our saboteurs had not been idle in my absence, for which I would soon get a brief summary of their success in the message book. Until then, Skull and I simply sat back and enjoyed the fireworks together, each of us with an arm around the other and with her head leaning onto my shoulder. No doubt the screams of panic in the enemy ranks made the whole affair rather romantic for Skull, but I found the whole thing peaceful, glad that she and I had come to terms with our circumstances and each other.