Kinky adventurers Ch. 02: Pt. 14

"Ladies and gentlemen," Reya said theatrically, "we have the captive Ilya." A round of polite golf claps ensued, except from Yuna whose arms were bound behind her back.

"I have just one simple question," Indigo said, her voice ever so reasonable, "which, for answering, you and your friend here will be allowed to go free."

"What makes you think I'm her friend, much less her associate?" Yuna bluffed, her white eyes and facial expression as neutral as she could make them. "This is a huge mistake. I've never seen this girl before in my life."

I: Alright, then! Make a deception check, Yuna. Oh, can you roll for her, Em?

E: Sure thing. [Rolls]. Hmm, 14?

Indigo looked at Ash long and hard, then shook her head. "My darling, I cannot easily be lied to. And even if you hadn't betrayed your familiarity with my plaything, she certainly did when you walked in." Indigo reached behind her and slapped Ilya's bare ass.

"Mmmrrng!" Ilya yelped.

Ash's face hardened. "You touch her again and I'll take your hands." Her voice was low and threatening, notwithstanding her bound wrists.

The Dragon Head's expression, too, hardened from sultry and relaxed to hard and vicious. "Oh, I do not think so. But I do think this girl's body is in grave danger of far worse if you do not give me what I seek." The mafia boss nodded to the man with the knife who began to drag the blade ever so gently up Ilya's bare stomach toward her breasts. Looking down at the blade, Ilya whimpered, though it as yet left no mark on her skin.

"You haven't even asked your question," Ashara said, her voice still low and deadly.

"I don't need to," Indigo replied casually. "I grow tired of this misdirection on your part. Tell me where it is or I'll have my man here cut beautiful patterns into your friend's body."

Ashara stared daggers at the sexy mafia boss.

"You showed up here without any visible weapons," Indigo added. "But don't think I'm naive. You do anything to me or anyone else in this room and the rest of us will cut her down in an instant." She indicated the crossbowmen in the corners and ran her hand over her sheathed dagger.

Ash remained silent.

"Shall we begin, then?" Indigo gestured to the knife-wielder, who placed the blade edge to Ilya's skin below her belly button as if to begin a cut to her crotch. Ilya whimpered softly. Ash opened her mouth to speak...

"Not so fast!"

Abruptly all eyes went to one of the large, open double windows. There, standing on the window ledge, one hand grasping a rope dangling from above, was Kit'seneth Lunasaria.

In her other hand was a slender porcelain box.

Ash and Ilya's eyes went wide. The crossbowmen instinctively pointed their weapons at the newcomer. Reacting quickly to a sudden change in the situation, Indigo drew her dagger, slid behind Ilya on the bed, and brought the blade to her slave girl's throat. His torture session interrupted, the knife man stumbled back in confusion.

"Drop the blade and release my friends," Kit barked. "Now!"

"Oh, I don't think you're in any position to be giving orders," Indigo breathed. "Though I'm glad you finally showed up. I was beginning to think you'd decided to save your sorry hide and fled town."

"A likely story," Kit retorted. "What's more likely is that your henchmen are incompetent toads." The crossbowmen both stole a quick, fearful glance at their leader before training their eyes on the intruder again. "But right now you have bigger fish to fry," and, balancing on the windowsill, Kit extended the arm holding the box out into the air. It was black with green and red designs curling across it like serpents. But dangling dozens of feet above the ground in Kit's hand it looked terribly fragile.

A wave of fear flickered across Indigo Weaver's face, which she quickly mastered. "If that object comes to harm," she threatened, "you and your friends will all die slow, painful deaths."

"Ah," said Kit, sounding gratified. "It seems I hold the real power, then. We're three nobodies and, terrible deaths or no, torturing us to death ultimately gives you nothing. Losing this, on the other hand, would be quite the blow. So let's be reasonable here. My friends and I ultimately care nothing for this stupid box. I'll leave it here with you, you release my friends, and we all walk away winners."

I: Damn, girl! Make a persuasion or intimidation check. Your choice.

Si: Holy shit! This is practically the roll of the campaign!

E: You're not helping, Silus! [Nervously rubs a 20-sided die in her hand]. What if I screw it up?

I: Sometimes you've just gotta take a chance and roll the dice. This is what D&D's all about!

E: Oh, goddess. Here goes nothing. [Rolls]. No! It's a 9.

"Hmm," Indigo purred, sinister venom dripping from her voice. "What a nice, win-win scenario. Everyone goes home happy."

Kit stared hard at her adversary, box still held out into the air.

"Except I don't believe in happy endings. I don't do compromise. I crush those who stand in my way!" Indigo roared. In a single fluid movement, she flipped the dagger in her hand so that not the blade but the point was against the bottom of Ilya's throat, just above the clavicle. "You have to the count of three to put that box down gently on the floor or you'll watch your precious friend's blood stain my crimson sheets a deeper red."

Indigo's face was contorted in fury now, all composure gone. Kit quailed; her bluff had been called. This unhinged crime lord was willing to risk everything to achieve supremacy—which, Kit acknowledged, was probably how she had gotten where she was. Either way, playing games with a power hungry lunatic was not worth the gamble. At the end of the day, Kit was not willing to risk her friends' lives.

She slowly brought the box to her chest and stepped into the room.

Ilya's heart sank. All this—her friends helpless, capitulating—because of her. In despair she reached out again to the source she had played in all her life like a child in a mountain brook. But it wasn't there. It simply wasn't there. She closed her eyes and sighed hopelessly, sagging against her bonds.

She had heard a soft groan from outside the room, and her eyes flew open. Then suddenly the door to the suite slammed open again and there, standing in the doorway with a bloody dagger in his hand, was Sixto.

"Mmrrmm Hrrmmng!" Ilya cried out.

Then several things happened at once, or in quick succession.

I: Silus, make a perception check for Sixto. You're trying to ascertain a complex situation in an instant

Si: Oh, man. Here we go. [Rolls]. 19?

Reading a room in a hurry is essential to surviving in the underworld, and Sixto had been exceptional at it. In a flash, he saw Indigo, Ilya, and Ashara by the bed—dagger to Ilya's throat, Ash bound, and Kit by the window. Flicking his eyes over the room, he picked up the two crossbows, both still trained on Kit, and one gaunt fellow with a nasty knife looking confused and out of place.

I: What do you do, Silus? You just burst into the room, I'll give you the initiative at this moment.

Si: Well, the best way to kill a snake is to cut off its head. I throw my dagger at Indigo. And I'm throwing my father's dagger.

E: Wait, what?!

I: Duly noted. Add two to your other modifiers, then.

Y: Wait, it's a +2 dagger?! And you've kept it hidden this whole time?

Sixto had no time to deliberate. The situation looked grim for his friends and his moment of surprise was already fading away. Gripping the handle of his most trusted dagger, fresh blood still on its blade, he brought it up and hurled it at the most powerful woman in Tristanfell.

I: Make an attack roll, Silus.

E: Now this is the most important roll of the campaign.

Si: Don't you jinx me, Emma! [Speaking to the die as he rolls]: This one's for you, dad. NATURAL 20!!!!!

It was the most perfect throw of his life—and it needed to be; Indigo was still almost entirely shielded by Ilya's naked body. Time seemed to slow as Sixto's arm came forward and his wrist whipped down, releasing the only piece of his father he had left. It twirled gracefully through the air, lazy as a butterfly, and buried itself deep in its target's shoulder.

Indigo screamed in pain and time resumed its normal course.

At this point, chaos ensued. Ilya cried into her gag for someone to cut her free. Ashara leapt into the mind of one of her captors, bursting blood vessels and inflicting unbearable agony. As he clutched his head in pain, she shoved off from the ground hard into the other, knocking her to the floor. Kit charged one of the crossbowmen who, momentarily distracted by his boss' cry of pain, took a shoulder to the gut and, winded, dropped his weapon. Knowing she would soon recover, Sixto sprang at Indigo, drawing her away from Ilya as he brandished his old short sword.

Indeed, Indigo yanked the dagger in her shoulder free with her right and, wielding the dagger she had threatened Ilya with in her left, dropped to a crouch as Sixto closed.

The other crossbowman recovered and took the clearest shot he had. The bolt sank into Ashara's chest, staining her white dress crimson. Kit threw the other crossbowman over her shoulder. He landed on the tile with a heavy thud, looking dazed.

"Stop! Everyone freeze where you are!" The hapless torturer had recovered from his shock, by all accounts. His blade was pressed to Ilya's throat. "You, all of you, put down your weapons!" He looked from one of Ilya's companions to another. His deep-set eyes resembled pale light in a dark well.

Sixto made no move, never taking his eyes off his deadly opponent. Across the room and at the moment unarmed, Kit put her hands up. Staggering on one knee and blinking through pain, Ash couldn't focus enough to be sure to incapacitate the threat before he could hurt Ilya. She stayed down, breathing heavily.

"That's more like it," the man cried, a wild mania in his eyes and voice at the sudden, unexpected power to command obedience. "Now you, put your sword down," he cried shrilly at Sixto, "or I'll... Wait."

Sixto risked a brief glance over at Ilya and saw the man staring at her neck in surprise.

"Wasn't she wearing a circlet before?"

Before he could speak another word, his eyes rolled back in his head and he slumped to the floor. At the same moment, the upright crossbowman and Ashara's two thugs collapsed as well.

"What?!" Indigo hissed. Then, taking a good look at Ilya's bare neck, she swore. "Fuck me..." and crumpled to the floor.

Sixto straightened in relief. Kit lowered her hands in disbelief, eyes on Ilya. Ashara grunted in pain and smiled.

"What the hell?" Kit asked.

"About damn time," Six sighed. "You did good, kid. You did good."

Rising up from behind the bed, Andy's short hair and familiar face came into view. In her hands she held the silver circlet. It was open and unclasped.

Kit sighed and rushed to Ashara's side. Andy and Sixto made quick work of Ilya's bonds.

"Grab her something from Indigo's wardrobe," Sixto told Andy. "We need to get out of here now."

"What about them?" Kit asked as she wrenched the crossbow bolt from beneath Ash's left collar bone. Ash exhaled sharply but made no other sound. "What did you do to them, Ilya?"

Sixto pulled the cloth gag from Ilya's mouth and she gasped. "I didn't hurt them," she croaked, finally able to speak again. "I put them to sleep."

Kit stared at her in awe. "You're incredible, do you know that?" Ilya looked back with a broken, shy smile, the first in days.

Kit turned to look at Ash and then Sixto, holding his eyes meaningfully. "What do we do with them?"

Six looked back grimly. "Get out of here. I'll deal with them." At the worried look that crossed Kit's face, he added, "I'll be right behind you. I promise."

Cutting the ropes binding her wrists, Kit supported Ashara to the window she had entered. Andy followed with Ilya.

Sixto walked slowly to the prone Dragon Head and stooped to pick up his father's dagger. He gazed at it in silence for what seemed a long while. "Go," he repeated as his friends lingered, watching him. "I'll be right behind you, I promise."