A Drow's Dilemma Ep. 26: The Road

The rest of the night saw the group covering a, frankly, insane amount of ground, especially given the increasingly rough terrain that they had to cross. But Althaia continued to be useful, manipulating the water, earth, and vegetation around them to make paths in the trackless hills. When the morning sun began to grow strong behind them, Althaia stopped. "We should rest here." She said softly. "We are entering the territory of the raiding tribes, and if we want to pick a fight with a raiding group tonight, we should be well rested."

"Good idea." Ashyr agreed. She squinted off into the horizon to see if she could spy the encampments that were out there. She couldn't see them, of course. It was too bright for all that. "Same plan as last night? Or will you be sleeping with us today?"

Althaia giggled at Ashyr peering off into the distance. "Silly Drow. I would not choose a campsite within sight of a tribal raiding party. That is just insane.

"I did not think you would. Just old ranger habits." Ashyr assured Althaia

"I will be making a nice little cave right over there." Althaia continued. "And I do intend on sleeping with you three tonight. I need to extract some of my payment, after all." With that, the nymph flowed on over to the side of a cliff and began scooping out sleeping quarters.

Selene approached Ashyr and pulled the rogue ring out of her pocket. Ashyr noticed, but, instead of trying to prevent her, she lifted her arm to allow her cousin better access. The mage narrowed her eyes at the trinket and began to examine it thoroughly with her magical sight. She needed to make sure that there wasn't any extra enchantment on it that Althaia hadn't mentioned -- whether on purpose or accidentally. Selene was drow. She couldn't just trust magical artifacts no matter who gave them away.

Caleldir gathered some brush with telekinesis. Ashyr wordlessly set to work assisting him. "Might as well make our morning meal while she does that." He muttered. He looked over at Selene, analyzing the ring. "Careful, that thing probably has some superfluous lust enchantments on it." He said wryly. He was wrong, of course, the ring did exactly what Althaia had said it did. The Nymph was lawfully aligned, after all. Caleldir could sense such things if he chose.

While food was cooking, Ashyr took the time to strip herself down. Selene seemed to have given the ring the okay, and she was eager to try it on. She did so, and immediately another set of dark leather armor appeared on her body almost identical to the set she usually wore. Then it was gone again. Ashyr barely stifled a girlish giggle of excitement. Her armor popped back on again, though there was a lack of covering on her midriff and an ample space of cleavage exposed. "This is so great." She enthused. "And so comfortable."

"Calm yourself, cousin." Selene said with affected annoyance. The younger cousin seemed quite amused, however.

"Make me." Ashyr responded in obvious challenge.

"I don't think I could ever make you be calm. Excite you, maybe..." Selene let that hang in the air, but turned back to the book she had in her hand with distracted amusement.

Caleldir began fussing with the seasonings. Fortunately, Althaia had picked up a good number of high-quality herbs and spices as she had skipped along, and he was able to season to his heart's content. So much so that he did not notice Ashyr's new garment's until she began to giggle. He looked up from the lemongrass roasted fish to see Ashyr in a low-cut midriff bearing leather suit. It was definitely sexy, as his first expression of approval betrayed. "Hmm." He said, his face slipping back to Selene-style mostly fake grouchiness. "I suppose that that ring suits you well."

"Of course it does!" Althaia flowed in. "Oh!" She gave a girlish little squeal that matched Ashyr's own. "You have such good taste, Ashyr! Just flattering enough to sexy without falling into the trap of looking trashy! I must have your help in designing my next ensemble! Such lines, such curves! Why, with a little ornamentation, we could make you the envy of female rogues and rangers across the world!"

Ashyr's eyebrows rose. She had a bit of a... lost look. All she did was leave off the armor in a couple (non-private) places that happened to be her favorite parts of a female body. There was no sort of calculated attention to style or the right amount of skin. That was more Selene's realm. Ashyr had spent far too long in her life being practical and away from eyes whose opinions she cared for. Thus, she didn't have the years of creativity under her belt as practice.

It was Selene's turn to let out one of her rare, non-wicked laughs. The lost look on her cousin's face was entertaining.

After her fangirling Althaia sat down and began to daintily consume the roasted fish. "The rings' spell matrices are really quite sophisticated." She began. "I have theorized that they work through a mixture of alteration and conjuration with bits of abjuration and illusion through in to approximate the effects of the clothing or armor that the wearer imagines..." The nymph continued chatting about the design of the artifacts, betraying a surprising amount of knowledge on the topic.

"Wait..." Caleldir said incredulously. "Althaia, could it be that you are actually... smart?"

Both drow looked up at Caleldir with narrowed eyes. It didn't occur to them that she wasn't. But then, they were used to the ruse of playing dumb for just long enough to catch someone off-guard by their intelligence. Althaia never really acted dumb. She was simply too damned horny all the time.

Althaia tried to pretend to be offended, but her amused giggle belied her. "Of course. Nymphs are highly intelligent by mortal standards, and I am a veritable paragon among my kind. I am S-M-R-T. Which spells SMART."

"You must think I'm pretty dumb, then." Ashyr responded with a dangerous look. It was an affectation, of course. She wasn't actually annoyed with him. She couldn't resist the temptation to tease him just to see what he would do about it. "All I think about is sex and fighting." Which was only mostly true.

Selene began to study her book much harder to keep herself from laughing again and giving away Ashyr's ruse. She also took a big bite of some of the fruit she had. The cousins knew each other for long enough to recognize when the other was joking. She was also pretty sure that Althaia was joking about spelling, too, so she didn't comment about it.

Still rater on the tired side, Caleldir did not react very much to Ashyr's feigned anger. "Nah." Caleldir waved her off. "I have never thought of you as a dunce, Ashyr. You may not be as bookish as your cousin, nor as manipulative, but you are far more cunning and perceptive than I. Nor have I thought of Althaia as being particularly dim, to be honest. I was just surprised that she had such a comprehensive knowledge of spellcraft for someone self-educated. But despite high levels of native intelligence, you two, Ashyr and Althaia, do both spend a lot of time acting rather foolish, would you not agree, Selene?" He turned towards the younger Drow for confirmation, but she was pretending not to hear the conversation.

After that, Caleldir began cleaning up the meal. He yawned. "Well, I am ready for bed. Talk about clothing as long as you wish. I will be trying to regain my energy for another day with you lovely, overly enthusiastic ladies." With that, he ducked into the cave.

Ashyr's mouth twisted to the side in slight disappointment when Caleldir's didn't take the bait. He must have been pretty tired. Or pretty clueless. Probably both, knowing Caleldir. "I'm very happy with the ring." Ashyr told Althaia when Caleldir had left. "But maybe I'll not start our 'payment' today. Perhaps tomorrow morning." She yawned as she said this. The ranger was quite tired, but mostly she wanted to spend time with Caleldir. "Maybe you want to help out with Althaia tonight, Selene?"

The woman in question frowned. That sounded a bit like an order. The sign Ashyr gave her confirmed that suspicion. Ashyr wanted Selene to stall the nymph for as long as she could. Lovely. Before she could refuse, Ashyr was gone.

---

The older drow entered the cave shortly after Caleldir had, and laid out on the bed. Her outfit changed to comfortable sleepwear that was perhaps only a little bit sexy. "Hey." She said softly. None of her actions were at all sexual. "Turns out I sometimes need a break from Althaia's enthusiasm as well..."

Caleldir was curled up in the middle of the bed, wearing his usual loose breeches, but sat up and smiled when Ashyr entered. "Yeah. I understand." He stretched a little. "She has become moderately more tolerable after she gained that rune, but she is still rather on the energetic side. Regardless, I think we are stuck with her right now." He lay back down. "I think that we all need a really good fight to get some of the tension out of our systems. After we sleep for a night, of course."

Ashyr curled up to Caleldir in a more friendly manner than sexual. Her hand lightly caressed his chest. "Yeah, I'm looking forward to it." She responded. "You know I don't... that I don't actually feel that I own you. Not any more than you have claim to me, anyway. It just sort of seems that way for Selene's benefit." She said in a sort of strangely hesitant, shy voice. This was new territory for her.

Caleldir relaxed noticeably. "Yeah, I do know that. It is just that this is very new territory for me as well. I have spent my life as a celibate monk, with only books for company for most of it, and the road and a surly half-orc for the rest. Then you came with your lust for life, your energy and zest, and just the endless excitement of being with you. I feel constantly overwhelmed, not sure whether to fight against the flow, simply ride it, or leap headlong into the flood and enjoy every moment. And just as I begin to head one direction, something causes me to rethink everything."

He smiled slightly, returning her tender touch by running his fingers through her hair. "We both come from completely alien backgrounds, with strongly contrasting moralities. For me, a narrow path of structured virtue, for you, the Underdark and all that implies." He gave her a light kiss. "So I am stubborn and sarcastic, temperamental and recalcitrant, and I hope that you will tolerate me all the same. Even if I do get some sort of strange thrill about playing the disobedient slave for your cousin."

"I'll do more than tolerate you." Ashyr told him with a soft smile that turned into a wider grin. "I'll love you." Her mouth twisted in slight disgust. "Lolth, but that sounds... sickly sweet. You, sir, have corrupted me, I think." She understood the irony in her words. "I guess that's fair, though. I've done the same thing to you." Ashyr kissed his shoulder.

"If the Selene and Althaia thing gets too much for you, just let me know. Even if you just need to give your dick a break, I'll do what I can to make it happen. Sex shouldn't become a chore." Ashyr told him.

Caleldir chuckled at Ashyr's words. "Yeah, I suppose that we have both moderated our positions a bit. But, to be entirely honest, it is not that my dick needs a break, or that sex is a chore (I am part nymph, after all...) but that I am starting to like all the sex, and that distresses my inner monk to no end. Also, that I need to keep up appearances for those two. After all, if Selene thought I wanted it, it would ruin her fun, and if Althaia thought I wanted it, she would never leave me alone ever."

"That's likely true." Ashyr agreed.

---

Just after Ashyr left, Althaia looked towards Selene, licking her lips. Then, abruptly, her manner changed from sexual predator to one that was almost normal. "Eh, I have had enough fun for the day." She yawned. "I feel in the mood to give a nice massage. How about it, Selene? Soothe some muscles?" Her garment shifted to a simple, monastic robe, and her eyes turned silver. She looked almost... worried. She moved behind Selene and began giving her back a tender massage. As the drow let out a long, satisfied-sounding smile, Althaia concluded that the attention was welcome

"It seems that I am just not fitting in with your little group." She said sadly. "It is my fault, really, I have never before dealt with anyone but nymphs, satyrs, dryads, and various pixies and nixies. I just do not know how to act around those from the wider world." She looked at Selene thoughtfully. The cranky Drow was almost certainly the least qualified person in their group to ask for advice, but Althaia did so anyway. After all, she was the only one there. "So... tell me truthfully, Selene. Would you three be better off without me?"

Selene tilted her head to the side. She chose the right person if she wanted unsweetened opinion. "You're too bouncy. Too happy all the time. Drow don't act like that. I would have ditched you as soon as you led us out of danger. But I have to admit, you have been more useful than not. I would no longer recommend we ditch you. Gag you, maybe." A wicked grin spread across her face. She wasn't joking, though it could be interpreted as such. "Keep coming up with books and rings and I might actually not hate you eventually." This was a joke. It was said in the same, flat tone as the rest of her words.

Althaia nodded, wrapping her arms around Selene's waist and resting her shin on the woman's shoulder. "Thank you. I knew that I could count on you for honesty. Even if I do pick up a slight aura on you when I look for evil, I can tell that there is still some good in you." It was hard from her tone to tell exactly what Althaia was implying about Selene's moral state, except that the grouchy Drow was clearly less than altruistic, but certainly not a sociopath.

Selene scoffed. "Pure, unadulterated evil, darling. Doesn't mean I'm stupid, though. There's a reason why people cooperate with each other, and it's not always out of the goodness of their hearts. Don't worry, though. No nefarious deeds in your precious homeland."

Althaia expected this answer. Instead of responding to it, she finished her thoughts. "Also, I am out of rings, but I have a few other books on spellcraft and magic theory for you to peruse once you are done with that one. I think that I have an interesting work on the arcane manipulation of the natural world that may catch your interest if you would like to try some variations on my vine tricks." The nymph stepped back and stood up, stretching and yawning. She looked back east, at the sunrise. "Tonight, we play the role of heroes. Or looters, of you would rather do so. Let us get some sleep."

Selene nodded in agreement then stood and made her way into the cave. Ashyr and Caleldir were cuddling. Again. Selene hoped the her older cousin would get over the novelty of Caleldir soon. They were going to make her vomit one day from sheer... affection. Caleldir just gave the grouchy Drow an awkward smile.

Althaia followed Selene in. "I hope that we are all ready for a fearsome battle tomorrow!" She said excitedly. "I know of at least three tribes that the world would be a better place without." Her clothes disappeared, and she snuggled down next to Caleldir. "Breeches do not suit you, cousin." She said sweetly, sliding her hand to the rune on his chest, which had the predictable effect (which audibly amused the drow.) But she did not go any farther than that, merely closing her eyes and appearing to fall asleep. Strangely, it was almost comforting.

Ashyr would have been content to lie there for quite a bit longer and just talk to Caleldir, but the others were already inside the cave. Selene had not managed to keep Althaia at bay long. In fact, it didn't look like they had sex at all. To be fair, Ashyr had told her younger cousin to keep the nymph occupied. She didn't specify for how long and what they should do. She'd only implied it. That was what she got for not being specific with a drow. Ashyr really should have known better.

Selene stripped down to her usual sleep time nakedness and curled up in her spot against Ashyr's back. Ashyr paused for a moment, then joined the rest of the party in their nakedness. There was no reason not to.

"Goodnight, love." Ashyr said to Caleldir. He responded in kind, then the drow cousins drifted off to sleep. Both drow dreamed of warm pools and beautiful nymphs and drifting songs of comfort and safety. Despite it essentially being a place of imprisonment, neither of them looked back on that nook with negative feelings. They could have stayed there forever and lived in safety and way too much sex if only they didn't have more important ambitions.