A Drow's Dilemma Ep. 28: Stress

Author's Note:

A Drow's Dilemma began as a one-on-one roleplaying project and has been converted into a chapter-by-chapter format for weekly posting with the permission and assistance from my partner. It will contain a considerable amount of sexual themes such as femdom, lesbian, straight, 'reverse' rape, BDSM, group sex, romance, and other themes. The main goal of the story, however, is to tell an epic tale of adventures, gods and goddesses, fae, and nymphomaniacs. This episode and every episode to come will be available for free on Literotica for the foreseeable future. All characters that engage in sexual or suggestive situations are mentally and sexually mature: the human equivalent of 18 for their race.

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Episode 28: Stress

When the morning light peered into the dead oni's tent in the center of the cleared goblin camp, Caleldir awoke. The bed was still amazing, and it was nice to wake up to only one companion in his bed. "Ah! Good morning, Ashyr!" he said cheerfully. As he slid out of the silken covers, his normal padded armor, although a bit more elegant than normal, appeared on him. It was time to get the humans moving.

"Good morning, Caleldir." Ashyr responded with happy sleepiness. Their feelings more or less aligned when it came to being happy not to have to share their bed with any other for once. She watched his form right up until he clothed himself. At that point, Ashyr got up herself and covered herself with her usual leather armor. She paused, looked at Caleldir's armor again, then allowed silver trimming to appear in strategic places around her armor, giving it a richer look. It was still far more practical than anything else.

"Good morning, sleepyheads!" Althaia, who had been listening for their movement and poked her head in when she heard it, greeted Ashyr and Caleldir cheerfully. "You seemed to have had a fun night last night. Do not think that I have forgotten the price of that ring..." she trailed off suggestively. Tone snapping back to leaderly, her eyes went to the still sleeping humans. "But that can wait. We need to get these people to safety before continuing our journey."

The older drow nodded at Althaia. "I did have fun. Call me selfish, but I like to have him to myself sometimes." She gave him a lopsided grin as her hand moved caressingly down his spine. That grin turned wicked when she looked back to Althaia. "Don't worry. I haven't forgotten. You might have extracted some 'payment' from Selene, though."

The drow in question popped her head over the rock she rested her back on. By her slightly less sleepy face, Ashyr assumed she'd been awake a little longer than either Ashyr or Caleldir. In fact, the younger drow looked rather interested. Then, of course, she hid that face. No need to telegraph to the rest of the world how horny she was. The older drow made her way around the rock, then lifted her cousin up to give her a brain-searing kiss. It didn't really help matters; in fact, Ashyr had done it to see the slight look of consternation and heightened arousal on the other drow's face. In that, she was rewarded.

Althaia shrugged. "Last night I had to keep watch. There was no time for dalliances with your cousin, as beautiful as she may be." The nymph, wearing lighter but still practical armor, saluted. "I go now to rally the humans for our journey. If we make good time, using carts to transport the slow, we can get them to the nearest town by nightfall. The local government can handle them from there." She marched off very gracefully, but with only the seductiveness inherent in her race and no more. If she had a smirk on her face, it was probably only imagination. Soon after Althaia left, the sounds of crisp orders and low conversation came from the camp, as the humans began to prepare for the day's travel.

Watching her leave, Caleldir turned back to the two drow. "I think that I prefer our nymph companion like this. She suddenly seems reliable and comforting, rather than... all rapey and stuff." He shook his head.

Then, he noticed the kiss between the drow cousins. He looked a mixture of awkward and aroused. "Err..." He said, stepping away. "Should I find somewhere else to be right now? I would hate to interrupt-" he gestured at the drow. "Whatever it is that the two of you are planning on doing."

"Nah." Ashyr said to Caleldir. The older drow turned away from her cousin. She could practically hear Selene's hungry look. An evil smirk pulled at the edges of Ashyr's mouth. "Let's get these people organized. I imagine this will cut into our travel time." Then Ashyr followed after Althaia with a subtle sway to her step.

Almost as soon as Ashyr came around the corner to view the hubbub of preparation there was a familiar small child in front of her. The little boy lifted his arms over his head with a beseeching look on his face. With the heaviest of put-upon sighs, the drow lifted him into her arms and balanced him on one hip. She then joined the nymph and easily took command of one of the many projects. Ashyr was much less polite and forgiving than her paladin companion, but she got the job done. For some reason, the humans seemed more forgiving of her abrasiveness with the child in her arms. Bard did his part by occupying the children who would only be underfoot.

Althaia gave Ashyr a naughty grin when the Drow appeared without the pale elf. "So..." she whispered once she got a moment where none of the humans would hear her. "I see that you left my cousin at the mercy of yours. How very kind of you." Strangely, her tone was not at all sarcastic, but congratulatory. Althaia had a rather alien way of viewing the world, after all...

"I guess I did, didn't I?" Ashyr said with a shrug. She had just managed to transfer the child to who she assumed was the mother. "Whoops." Ashyr then laughed. "Selene may or may not do something about it. Depends on how fast he can run - and how much time we have. You have a strange view on things like that for a surface dweller. My cousin is not a gentle person. I would have thought an upright person such as yourself would frown upon some of Selene's tastes. Course, you weren't there for... never mind." Why was she saying things that may antagonize the paladin? Because she was Ashyr. It had been too long since she antagonized someone. Mischief shone in her crimson eyes.

The paladin shrugged. "I follow three goddesses: one directly and two indirectly, due to one being the mistress of the other two. I serve Felesh, the Goddess of Hedonism and Cats (and the creator of the Catfolk), Merethllyr, Goddess of Festivals and Celebrations, and their superior, Aelsuna, the Goddess of Beauty and Nymphkind. They all are more... chaotic than lawful, but they still see fit to give me my powers as long as I continue to be beautiful and indulge in hedonism. So while I do not approve of your cousin's sadism, her outward beauty and her love for pleasure allow me to see her as a compatriot anyway. So I can freely associate with evil creatures without losing paladin abilities so long as those evil creatures are sufficiently pretty." Althaia shrugged. "After all, anyone or anything in which there is still beauty cannot be all evil." She paused for a moment. "Also, I am a fae and a nymph."

"Ah." Ashyr responded, sort of understanding what Althaia explained. The drow was no stranger to a deity that was difficult to understand. She was supposed to be a worshipper of Lolth - Aralolth, as Caleldir's father called her - after all. "That's why you're more tolerable than most paladins that forced me to kill them." Ashyr told her with a mischievous grin. "I guess... wouldn't that define you as more of a Cleric than a Paladin?" A brief distraction turned her attention to redirect someone who was going the wrong way. Bard leapt through the center of the fort, the happiest wolf in the world with a half-dozen children laughing happily after him. It was a surprisingly... pleasant moment if only the sun would stop getting so bright. It felt like a hint of what her future could be if she was successful in her quest.

"Well, I have never actually met any other Paladins." Althaia confessed. "So I cannot tell you much about them. But I am a Paladin, not a Cleric. Clerics cast a lot of spells, I only have a very few, except from my natural Nymphen abilities. Plus I can channel holy energy into my attacks to smite the wicked, which only Paladins can do, and see someone's moral state with a glance, also something only paladin's can do." Althaia watched Ashyr's glances towards the children with interest. It said a lot about the Drow's potential. "I do admit that I am a very non-standard Paladin, but your mate can verify as to my lawfulness. His type can detect order the same way that mine can detect morality."

"Sounds sort of like a Cleric attitude with Paladin capabilities, then. Guess it doesn't matter. You are what you are and labels don't really mean much. I mean, I'm a drow and here I am." Ashyr commented. She looked over to Althaia, feeling more watched than usual. As a drow, she was used to paying attention to that sort of thing. The nymph seemed to be interested in the drow's reaction to... what, the humans? The children? "What?" Ashyr asked with a slight suspicious narrowing of her eyes.

Althaia shrugged. "You may be what the Underdark needs." She said lightly. "And I aim to restore you to your rightful place. That is all. Now, let us try to get some of this goblin food fit for a human breakfast."

"I see. You may be right. This might be controversial, but I think I might set a precedent of being a little less unfair to family members. Even if they are male. What happened was proof of my family's folly." Ashyr responded in what might have been a surprising display of wisdom. The ranger was plenty wise when she wanted to be. "Not that I'm going to let my brothers off easily." She amended. Then she followed Althaia to see about the food. It was a good plan. Everyone must have been getting pretty hungry.

--

Selene glared after her cousin when she left to assist Althaia. "Well at least she's in a good mood." The younger drow grumbled. "All I got to do all night was read Althaia's books. Did give me a couple... ideas, though..." That look of hunger she had for her cousin was now directed at Caleldir. Her clothing subtly changed. The robe she wore got just a bit tighter, the hem slightly shorter. "I'm sure they don't need you to help them get the humans organized."

"Oh? Books?" Caleldir asked with interest. "She does have some pretty good ones on spellcraft. I think the most useful for you today would be that one on how to magically protect from sunlight. I believe that you might find the chapter on Sun Sensitivity particularly..." It was then that he noticed Selene's predatory look and the way that her robes suddenly began to hug her flawless figure. Caleldir swallowed, and took a step back away from Selene. She looked really good in that robe...

He shook away that thought. "Well, err, very technically I doubt that they need me, Althaia can handle things on her own I know, but I should still probably help..." He looked uneasily towards where Ashyr and Althaia had just turned the corner, looking as if he was going to bolt, but feeling slightly conflicted about it.

"You sure?" Selene asked. Her voice had a bit of a taunting, musical quality. "Because I know of something I'd be much more interested in." Behind him, a rope from a tent animated like a sewn-together snake. It coiled up around one of Caleldir's ankles. It did not bind him, but it seemed perfectly able to do so if Selene desired it. There was unmistakable fire in her eyes. "You see, Ashyr and Althaia have been ignoring my needs. They're too busy being leaders. Think I might take it out on you. All that pain and death last night really put me in the mood." She walked forward towards him, a stalking, threatening step.

Caleldir had not noticed the rope curling out from the tent around his leg. "You are aroused by death and pain?" He shuddered. "How very... Drow. Then again, I cannot judge too harshly, seeing as I was put in the mood after the fight as well. Still, I would prefer not to be your outlet for your lusts or sadism." This was actually true: without Ashyr around to restrain her cousin Caleldir was pretty leery of the cruel woman.

"You can be my outlet for just lust then." Selene continued to stalk forward towards him. "Ashyr tells me I'm not allowed to hurt you for no reason. Can't imagine why; it's hard to do permanent damage to you."

"That is good to hear." Caleldir said with relief. "Thank God for Ashyr to reign you in."

"When she gets bored of you, I'll definitely have to keep you around for myself. You make the perfect whipping boy." She reached up to run a caressing finger down the side of his face. Another rope just in her range of sight moved to slither up his other leg.

He cocked his head. "Now, see, I do not think that you have thought this through. I cannot be permanently held against my will anywhere. If nothing else, I can starve myself to death, then my ghost can escape. And possibly utterly destroy you in the process. Ghost me is a bit of a jerk, after all." Occupied as he was in over-analyzing Selene's intentions, he did not notice the other rope until too late.

"I'm sure I can find a way to bind you. Or at least force you to stay alive." Selene assured him, stepping even nearer.

'Too late' came when Selene drew too close for his comfort. "But we can discuss your plans for me another time. I really should get going." He turned to run away, and promptly tripped.

A deep, dark chuckle escaped her lips. "You'll find I'm a very resourceful person. Especially after reading some of the books Althaia let me borrow."

"Well, if nothing else, I do not think that my Father would let you have me for long." Caleldir said, his voice cracking a little. Tripping over those ropes had been embarrassing. "And you know that you have no hope of fighting him."

Selene gave him a flat look. "Is that your grand defense? Hide behind daddy dearest?" She taunted. "If your father really wanted you to succeed, he'd leave you be and let you figure it out for yourself instead of interceding." It was a very drowlike mindset. She crouched beside him, exposing the fact that she didn't wear anything beneath her robes. The ropes around his legs tightened and anchored themselves in the dirt. "You know, it's been a few days since you were inside me. I think I may have to fix that problem."

Caleldir thought that he could just about see her private parts, but he angled away from where he could view her nethers. His manhood still sprang to life in response to her arousal, though. He tried to tug at his bonds, but somehow only wound up more entangled. "I feel as if I should be able to escape this..." he said wryly. Somehow, though he was not able to summon up the proper willpower to plow through it. "No offense to your insides, but I would rather not be in them right now. If for no other reason than that one of our recently rescued humans could walk in on us at any moment."

The younger drow frowned. They were pretty much out in the open. He was right; that wouldn't be so much fun. Selene wasn't the exhibitionist her cousin was. She had a little dignity to maintain in front of the human scum - for that was what they were. She had an even lower opinion of them than she did for Caleldir. At least he had the good sense to both be absolutely beautiful and part proto-elf demigod. Too bad she had no way of dragging him into one of the tents or ramshackle buildings.

"Fine." She said, and got to her feet. The ropes loosened their grip on him. "Watch yourself if you ever find yourself alone in a dark corner." Selene bared her teeth at him, then disappeared back into her corner. She was about to pack up her things, but that ache in her loins was quite insistent. Instead, she kept to the shadows and began stalking him like some sort of wild cat. Selene intended to keep her word about him having to watch himself. Ashyr was a bit better at this, but Selene could manage better than the average surface dweller.

When the rope loosened, Caleldir stood up in relief, and definitely not any disappointment. Definitely. Hah! He had escaped the sadistic Drow again! He was victorious! Or something like that. Although, the way that she stalked behind him put him ill at ease, even as he found it arousing to see how much she desired him disturbing to see how much she wanted to abuse him. Keen on not being found in such a dark corner, out of bloody-minded desire to thwart Selene, Caleldir hurried after Ashyr and Althaia.

He found them around the fire, eating a breakfast of roasted partridge. Althaia was making faces at eating a bird, but had apparently decided to branch out from fish and vegetables all the time. "I see that you two wasted your chance to have some fun." She said with a pout. "And after I made so sure that no one would disturb you."

"Oh Lolth damn it." Ashyr heard Selene say from the shadows. The older drow let out a hearty chuckle.

Caleldir frowned. "It is not very paladin-like to try to get family members raped by sadistic Drow." his eyes flashed. She was still lawfully aligned. He shook his head. "How do you even manage to keep your abilities?"

The nymph leaned back. "I already explained this to Ashyr. Short version: among others, I follow Felesh."

"What? WHY DOES FELESH HAVE A PALADIN?" Caleldir said incredulously. "I suppose that explains a lot though." He took a helping of the food, checking behind him to see what Selene was doing.

"I have a feeling that next time you won't be so lucky, love." Ashyr told Caleldir. Her usual mischievous smile crossed her face, and remained there while she ate the rest of her food.

"Yeah, I should have figured that you would be involved too." Caleldir sighed. "What is it with you people and trying to get me in bed with everyone?" Despite his annoyed tone, Caleldir found he could not be actually mad at any of them. That probably meant things about himself he would rather not have known. Eh, the game of dodging Selene's advances was fun, he had to admit, even if the ending was inevitable. Especially with these two involved.

"Not everyone. Just the three of us." Ashyr said with a sweet smile. If anyone else tried to take advantage of him like that, she'd probably give them a taste of their own medicine no matter how he felt about the whole thing. After all, that was how she'd deal with anyone who tried anything unwanted with herself.

Selene came out from the shadows shortly after this, acting like nothing at all strange was happening. She had smelled the food and decided that there was at least one hunger than she could sate. Couldn't easily plot Caleldir's demise on an empty stomach. So she sat down beside Ashyr and ate the food that was handed to her (after, of course, checking for poison: she wasn't sure who prepared it.)

A trend seemed to be happening. Whenever Ashyr stayed in one place for too long, the little boy from the night before would find her and demand to be held by her. He did so then, and Ashyr picked him up and put him on her lap. "I think someone is infatuated with me." Ashyr commented as she poked the kid on the nose.

Caleldir smiled broadly, in stark contrast to Selene's frown. "He does not know enough about Drow to be scared of you." Caleldir observed. "And you did help save him from a life of slavery, although he might not understand that, he at least instinctively is grateful to you. Plus he is not the only one infatuated with you around here..." Caleldir punctuated this with a suggestive expression. He hoped that Selene would be at least a little repulsed by the sappiness of it all.

Ashyr deposited the boy back with his mother, who apologized profusely for her son's consistent bothering. The older drow surprised herself by telling the woman that she didn't mind, and she didn't even lie when she said the words. Ashyr blamed Caleldir. He was turning her heart all... gooshy. It was disgusting. She turned back to the rest of the party with a rueful smile.