Her Warrior Ch. 02

Tattia had been looking forward to this day for quite some time now. The day her contract with the house would be up and she could leave if she so chose. Though it's not uncommon for a contract to be re-negotiated, Tattia herself had done so before, this time she wanted to step away from the house and spend some time out in the world.

Tattia had hoped someone else was here with her though. Vaneras, the red-haired warrior whom she had made a connection with during her stay in the house. The woman had promised to see her again after her contract was up. Tattia knew it was foolish to expect Vaneras to be waiting for her when she left but she was still a little disappointed when she stepped out of the front doors and she wasn't there.

Tattia sighed, she knew the life Vaneras led made her go from place to place very frequently. It was dangerous and... No, Tattia didn't want to entertain that thought. That her warrior had been struck down since their last meeting, even though it had been more than a few months since then. But Tattia shook that off and refocused her attention. She'd need somewhere to sleep tonight.

She had little in the way of possessions, a single set of clothes and a small pouch full of several platinum coins. Which, at a glance may not seem like much, but a single platinum was worth a small fortune in gold. It was her back pay during her stay in the house, so money was of no objection. But it also meant that she had to find somewhere to trade the coins in as few places actually accepted platinum. Which meant she'd have to visit the merchant guild.

Tattia figured she might as well get to it and be done with it as she began walking. Her most recent contract was for two years, she still remembered when she first entered the house, the city around it felt so different and yet in other places the same. She saw some vendors and shopkeepers around that she recognized from that time, and others she did not. It was always fascinating to her how things changed over time.

As a half-elf, she was longer lived than others, in fact she was already one hundred and twenty years old. It was why she didn't mind taking longer contracts when she had to. Humans for example, would put much value in the few years she'd have spent in the brothel. Though this was also part of why elves have become less and less interested in interacting with humans. A human lived their entire lives in the time it took for an elf to blink, or so the expression went. It was apparently more eloquent in elvish. But Tattia herself had never actually known elven culture much, outside of what she had heard from others.

She was born to a human mother, and didn't know much about her father. Her mother had said that he was a passerby, that the two had shared a single night together and he had left the next day. It was never intended as anything more serious than that, when Tattia was born her mother did try and track down her father but was unsuccessful. Tattia was not terribly bothered by this, she knew others, especially full human children would. But she had accepted this as the way things were and didn't dwell on it much. Would she have liked to know her father? To know the other half of her culture? Absolutely. But part of her also feared that she'd be rejected by both her father and that culture. Humans were not liked well by elves from what she had heard, she could only imagine how they'd react to a half breed like her. So she also reserved the peace of not knowing, at least for now. Maybe in another hundred years she'd consider seeking him out in earnest. But for now, there was business to do.

The merchant guild organized several banks across the kingdom; most major cities had one. It made it a lot easier to have to deal with large amounts of coin. Simply deposit it at one bank and you'd be given a voucher for your account's worth. You could then travel to any other city and withdraw that amount or a lesser amount if you didn't want to withdraw all of it at once. When Tattia had first entered her contract with the house the bank in the city had only just recently been built. But now it seemed like a mainstay that had always been here.

Tattia entered the building and stepped up to an open counter and was met with a stocky Dwarvish man with a well groomed beard. Tattia could smell the scented oils used to groom it. It distracted her momentarily but the man's voice broke her out of it as he greeted her.

Tattia opened an account and had her coins exchanged for gold and deposited. The Dwarvish man was surprised to see her depositing so much at once but seemed to choose not to ask. Tattia had kept a small amount from her deposit on herself, more than enough for a room at one of the expensive inns in town and a good meal, with some to spare.

She left the bank, happy that bit of business was done. She hadn't even considered how much time it took to set up. The sun was already starting to set beyond the mountains at the far west end of the country. The massive range of mountains could be seen from nearly anywhere within the land. They were noticeable for this as well as one mountain in particular being in the shape of a massive dragon.

The legend said that this was the petrified body of an Old God, Drakkahn. The old destroyer god was supposedly the first dragon whose children were spawned from his flesh so many years ago when the regime of the old gods ended and the new gods took power. As old as Tattia was, she had been hearing these stories since she was small so they were even older than her. She still didn't know if there was any truth to them or not. Supposedly the land around the mountains were cursed by the old god's blood and attracted dangerous monsters. Or perhaps the monsters spawned there... the stories changed every so often. But regardless, no one who's ever been there has come back.

As Tattia walked, intending to find a high end inn to stay in for the night, she happened to pass a smaller tavern and inn, much cheaper and rougher considering the noise coming from inside. It was the kind of place adventurers went for a cheap room and meal for the night, as well as to drink to celebrate their recent victories, or mourn losses. Tattia would have paid it no mind but she couldn't help to think if Vaneras had come to a place like this.

Not that anyone inside would likely know her, she only came by every few months, not enough to make an impression on anyone right?

The inside of the tavern was full of men and women eating, drinking and talking amongst themselves. A bard played at one end of the tavern, singing a rowdy drinking song as he played his lute. Nobody paid Tattia much mind as she entered and made her way to the bar. She sat in one of the open spots as the barkeep approached her.

He was a large man with a round stomach and had a thick black mustache that framed his jaw. "What'll it be?" he asked her, while he did raise an eyebrow at her presence, Tattia didn't exactly look like the rest of the adventurers in the place tonight. "We have roast boar tonight if that's to your fancy."

Tattia placed a few coins on the counter. "Um... Yes, that will do," she said, "I'll take an ale with that as well... and while I have your ear I was wondering if you've seen someone specific here lately."

"Can't make no promises," The man told her. "Lots of folks come and go, and some don't come back if you catch my drift. Can't be asked to remember all of them."

"I know my chances may not be high but her name's Vaneras," Tattia told him.

"What's she look like?" The man asked.

"Uh...well she's tall, wears armor and carries a large sword," Tattia explained.

"You'll probably have to be more specific than that," The man told her.

"She has red hair, like a crimson red and wears an eyepatch," Tattia went on.

That sparked some recognition in the man, "oh... Her," he said. "The one who parties with the Reaper."

"A Reaper?" Tattia asked. She had heard of them but had never seen them. Cloaked figures that work as clerics of the god of death. Most were afraid of them. She also didn't know Vaneras kept a party, Tattia had assumed she traveled alone.

"Always kills business when she comes in here with him," the barkeeper complained. "But they haven't been around here in more than a few months. If they've been in town at all since then, they haven't been here."

"I see," Tattia said, placing an extra coin on the counter, an extra tip for his information. "Thank you anyway."

Tattia couldn't help but feel silly about this whole thing. Of course he wouldn't know much, as he had said, people come and go here every day. But Tattia sighed as she picked up the mug the bartender placed in front of her, drinking from it and letting the ale take some of her woes away.

"Lookin' for somebody?" A woman said as she slid into the seat beside Tattia. Judging from her appearance, she was a witch. Her torso was only covered by a leather corset that tightly hugged her figure, it also accentuated her cleavage that Tattia tried not to stare at. She also wore leather pants with a belt full of pouches and a cape around her shoulders She also had elbow length leather gloves and a very witch-like hat adorned her head, covering most of her short, rust-colored hair. She also wore a pair of spectacles with large round lenses and carried a staff in one hand. It was made of wood and was about as tall as she was, ending in a ring with magic symbols carved into it.

"It sounds like you're very good at eavesdropping," Tattia said, trying not to pay her mind. She was smart enough to not get involved with any old riff raff that approached her. Most rarely had her best interests in mind. She instead turned her attention to the plate of meat the barkeeper had placed on the counter as they spoke.

"Maybe I am," the witch said. She had a noticeable accent, definitely not from around here. "Vaneras, tall, big woman. Armor, red hair, eyepatch. Hangs out with the spooky bloke with the scythe."

Tattia barely acknowledged the woman with a grumble, so far it just sounded like she was trying to get something out of her, likely money.

But then the witch leaned in close so that only Tattia could hear her next words, "huge cock."

Tattia nearly choked on the food in her mouth and had to take a drink to clear it.

"I take that as a yes," The witch chuckled. "Name's Natasha, but friends can call me Nat."

"I suppose I should ask what you want from me for this information, Natasha," Tatia told her.

"Hmmm, nothing much. You treat me to dinner and a room for the night and I'll tell you anything you want to know," She smiled mischievously. It was clear she was plotting something behind those round spectacles.

Tattia sighed, "Fine."

"Oi, Johnny! One more round! Elf girl is paying my tab!" Natasha called the barman.

Tattai sighed once more, this was clearly going to be a long night. But she placed more coins on the table.

"Now, talk," Tattia said to her when another plate and mug was placed on the bar.

"In such a hurry," Natasha said as she took a drink and cut into the slab of roast pork.

"Forgive me but I'm not exactly paying for your company," Tattia said.

"Mmm, not yet anyway," Natasha chuckled. "But fine. Few years back she first rolled into town with a problem. You can probably imagine what kind. She asked me if I could remove curses. I told her it depended on what kind of curse. She was kinda vague and I needed her to be more direct. Well, she and I got a room and, well, she showed me exactly what she was working with."

"Wait, so her body is like that because of a curse?" Tattia asked.

"So she told me, said it came from a dragon," Natasha explained.

"And I thought there weren't any dragons left either," Tattia responded.

"Evidently not, at least one of them is still kicking around out there based on what she told me," Natasha told her. "But I took a look at her large problem. But it was more intricate than anything I had seen before. Truth be told I suspect she'd be hard pressed to find anyone to undo a curse like that, outside of the original caster themselves. I did however offer to alleviate her issues temporarily... we shagged, more accurately to say."

Tattia couldn't help but feel a small pang of jealousy, but it wasn't as if she and Vaneras had made any kind of real commitment. Considering Vaneras' appetite, it was unlikely she wasn't sleeping with others when she was away. Not to mention if this happened a few years ago, it would have been before they even met.

"What happened after that," Tattia moved on.

"Not much, afraid to say," Natasha answered. "She left before I woke up the next morning. Since then she's come and gone from this town a number of times. I'd shack up with her whenever I could, she's a good rough lay and I can't resist that. But after a while she started spending her nights in the brothel. Guess she found a favorite whore to stick it to."

Natasha took another drink before turning back to Tattia. "So what's it to you anyway?"

"I'm the 'favorite whore,'" Tattia said.

"Oh.. uh," Natasha said awkwardly.

"It's fine," Tattia said, "I've heard it all before. No, Vaneras and I... Well, we developed a connection. It's silly, I know. A prostitute developing feelings for her client. It's like the story from a bad romance novel. We agreed to meet after my contract ended. That day was today, and she wasn't there. Though I can't say I blame her. I didn't exactly tell her when that day was. I expected to see her again before that. And since she doesn't keep permanent residence, it would be impossible to try to contact her."

"Ahh, so looking for your lost lover," Natasha said, "I can get behind that. Could be fun."

"You speak as if you're coming along," Tattia stated. "Besides, I never said I was going after her. That would be foolish, there's no guarantee I'd ever find her.

"Maybe," Natasha said. "But those pointed ears of yours tell me you've got time to spare. Besides, what else do you have to do? Did you have any plans beyond today?"

"Not really," Tattia admitted. "I was just going to kind of figure it out and see where I ended up."

"Yeah, you elves tend to do that. Time doesn't mean as much to you when you've got hundreds of years worth of it," Natasha said.

"Well... I'm only half," Tattia said, a little embarrassed she managed to kind of nail it.

"And you'll still outlive everyone else in this room, assuming nothing comes along and takes you out the hard way," Natasha told her.

"That aside, assuming I were going to go searching for her, which I have not decided on yet, why should I bring you? What do you seek to gain?" Tattia asked her.

"Well, you'll need backup. No offense but you don't look like the type that can really defend themselves," Natasha said to her. "I get a steady gig, I can imagine you've acquired quite the coin purse during your contract."

Tattia couldn't help but agree with her, she wasn't a fighter to any real regard, nor did she know any magic. She would likely have to hire a guard or join a larger caravan. But first she'd have to find out where Vaneras might have gone before she could even figure out how she was going to get there.

"So where did she go?" Tattia asked.

"She follows the work, like most mercenaries," Natasha said. "In the warmer months the frontlines get more active. But that's also dangerous work so only the toughest or the most foolhardy go that far west. But she's come back from it before. I think she said something about trying to reach the mountain."

"Why would she want to do something so dangerous?" Tattia asked.

Natasha shrugged. "Dunno, she didn't really say. Said it was personal business. Maybe she thinks there's some treasure there or something that might help with her curse. There have been so many stories surrounding that place, it's hard to tell what's true or not."

"That's true," Tattia sighed, she was starting to sulk. She knew it was a silly thing to worry about. She shouldn't be paying it much thought. She should just move on with her life.

"So, where are we staying?" Natasha interrupted her train of thought.

"Hmm?" Tattia responded, snapping out of it. "Oh, yeah. I promised to pay for your room tonight."

"I wouldn't say no to sharing a room, if that helps," Natasha said with a flirtatious tone. Tattia wasn't sure how serious she was.

"We'll see, I was planning on one of the nicer places but those are all the way across town."

"Not that I'd turn down a fancy schmancy place," Natasha said, "but there's a decent place across the road."

By now, Tattia just wanted a bath and a bed, she'd settle for decent. "Fine," she said. "So long as I can get a bath there."

"So long as you don't mind it in a washtub."

Tattia sighed, "Fine, it'll do."

"Perfect," Natasha said, "Though we should head over before rooms are booked up. The place across from the bar is the popular one."

The two stood up from their place at the bar, Tattia left a few more coins for the barman and followed Natasha across the street. By now the sun had set and the night sky had filled with stars above them. It was quite nice to see the night sky from somewhere other than a window for once, but Tattia couldn't dawdle.

Natasha led her into the inn, already arranging for the room. But of course the only rooms left were ones with single beds. It would have to do as by now Tattia didn't want to try to find another place. So she paid for the room and asked for water for a bath to be brought up.

She was handed the key for their room and she and Natasha stepped up the stairs and to their room down the hall.

Tattia looked around the room once they got inside. It was decently sized. One large bed against the wall to the right. And to the left was a door that Tattia wasn't sure where it went. The far wall had a window that looked down onto the street below. Tattia stepped over to the bed and sat on the edge. It wasn't too bad. It would be more than enough for just one night. Plus it was definitely big enough for the both of them.

Natasha had already gone around the room, lighting the lamps mounted on the wall, likely with magic.

Before Tattia could ask her, there was a knock at the door.

"I got it," Natasha said as she answered the door.

On the other side was a man carrying a washtub full of water. He kinda looked like the woman from downstairs, perhaps her brother? Tattia was distracted thinking about that as Natasha opened the other door for him. Apparently there was a smaller room on the other side.

But once the tub was dropped off, the man left and Natasha poked her head back into the room. "I'm gonna go first, yeah?" She asked. "Don't worry I'll re-heat the water for you." Though she retreated back into the room before Tattia could actually respond.

Tattia laid back on the bed, stretching out over the covers. This was actually a lot nicer than the one back at the house. From the other room she could hear Natasha washing up in the tub, humming to herself.

In the meantime, Tattia was so comfortable she couldn't help but nod off where she lay.

She probably wasn't out for long, because she woke to Natasha nudging her. "Hey, your turn, princess."

Tattia sat up and yawned, "Guess I was more tired than I thought," She said, it was only then she noticed that Natasha was naked, save for a towel draped around her neck.

"Where are your clothes?" Tattia asked suddenly.

"I'm still wet, I'm not about to put them back on," Natasha said, "It's not like it's anything you haven't seen before. Don't tell me you of all people are gonna be bashful over seeing a little bit of titty." She chuckled at her own teasing.

"No, just wasn't expecting it," Tattia said with a slight huff. She got up and stepped into the other room, closing the door behind her. She didn't know why Natasha got under her skin so much. Perhaps Tattia's social skills had started to wane since her time in the house. She could charm a customer but interacting with people outside of that was different. But for now, she just wanted a bath.