Quest's Reward

Deep down in the cavernous bowels of Bánánach Hole, the cacophonous clangour of a skirmish already in progress rang throughout the multitude of prehistoric burrows. From out of the shadows, a glint of silver arced horizontally through a legion of reanimated skeletal warriors, hewing through their ancient bones and decrepit armour like they were constructed from wet clay, while their own dull, rusted weaponry failed to even make so much as a scratch in the consecrated, pearl plate mail of their aggressor. Withstanding the brunt of this sub-par counterattack stood Sir Enno Brandrok, proud paladin from the esteemed Order of Kartoffel, brandishing a lustrous broadsword in his right hand and a polished shield in the other, wearing a hood on his head fashioned from the head of a fearsome brown bear he had personally slain and a black eyepatch over his eye.

Though his descriptor up to this point may conjure images of an imposing, grizzled veteran hardened and jaded by years of service in combat, Enno was - in reality - a halfling boy who just barely broke past three and a half feet in total stature! His height combined with the vibrant candyfloss-pink colour of his swooped hair, his soft, cute features and his optimistic disposition made him moreso resemble a toy soldier rather than a stalwart knight. Even the eyepatch was mainly a purely cosmetic choice (much to the reproval of his partner). Appearances aside, Enno's courage was second-to-none, and his swordsmanship went unparalleled compared with many of his peers, perhaps only being outperformed in this battle by his current adventuring companion.

Darting past where the core of the conflict was concentrated was Runa, a young woman of the Bronzeknuckle Clan: a dwarven dynasty famed for its long line of hand-to-hand martial artists whose fists were rumoured to be as solid as ingots of metal. She wove in and out of the miscellaneous undead with surprising agility for one of her bulky physique, delivering swift and precise punches and kicks to the exposed joints of each fleshless opponent she passed, shattering their bones to powder with but single strikes, gradually making her way towards the rearmost extremity of the chamber.

Runa measured slightly taller than that of the halfling at about four feet, and was built like a stout wall of muscle and sinew from decades of honing her body and skills since early childhood, a fact apparent even under her unpretentious wayfaring clothes, which were in stark contrast to Enno's ornamental armaments. Her grimacing face was rugged and blemished with several fading contusions gained from recent scuffles and a slight boxer's nose gained from a not-so-recent sparring match, though still possessed a set of handsome features framed by a sturdy jawline. Her hazel eyes were sharp and smouldered constantly with a fire of determination, a trait further reflected in the routine shaving of her head for reasons both spiritual and practical (giving enemies less opportunities to yank any part of her during a fight for one thing), never allowing her chestnut hair to grow any longer than a quarter inch if she could help it.

Steadily, Runa approached ever closer towards her intended target: a cornered kobold, outfitted in tattered black robe far too baggy for his small body, who had taken up the taboo art of necromancy and began terrorising a local village with his amateur resurrections. The reptilian wizard watched on in frozen panic with his back to the wall as nearly one hundred and fifty pounds of compact muscle was systematically snapping his minions like twigs before bounding directly towards the stunned villain with the spontaneity of a detonated cannonball faster than the mage could recite a spell to protect himself with. The dwarf stopped just shy of stepping on his toes, grabbed the frightened yapper by the collar of his cloak and collided her bulbous forehead with his snout, smashing the cartilage and instantly knocking the kobold unconscious, severing the mental link sustaining the skeletons' artificial spirits and causing them to crumble to the dust where they would resume their eternal rest. Such a limitation was usually the mark of an inadequate magician.

"Bronzeknuckle Family Technique: Pacifyin' Kiss o' th' Iron Cliff-face!" Runa stated the name of her attack aloud with unironic sobriety, even if the one on the receiving end of the technique was currently unable to hear it. Her proclamation was responded however by the fervent, clattering claps of the paladin's gauntleted hands as he stood amongst a pile of time-worn bones and equipment a few metres behind.

"Yeah! Alright, Runa! Woo! Cliff-face Kiss! You go!" Enno awkwardly - but eagerly - cheered alone in the ghostly silence which had abruptly supplanted the din of conflict. The martial artist felt more embarrassed than she would have been with a larger audience to astound her feats with, though simultaneously also felt relieved that no-one else could witness her companion congratulate her in such a puerile manner for subduing such an unworthy foe. Without a word, Runa picked up the limp, comatose soma of the miniature lizardman and slung him over her shoulder to haul back to the nearby hamlet for its residents to enact judgement for his crimes by means they saw fit.

Runa and Enno had been familiar with each other for some weeks before setting out on this simple quest, the former on a self-imposed journey of personal betterment while the latter was undergoing a pilgrimage as a rite of passage in becoming a grandmaster in his order. Both had a strong sense of morality - though Enno's quixotic outlook would often clash with Runa's brutal pragmatism - and both had been drifting between various parties in the months they had been adventuring, helping the common folk wherever aid was sorely needed, before they eventually met and formed a fellowship following a successful stint of bodyguarding a child empress against would-be assassins.

Funds had been running low for the diminutive duo in recent days however due to a series of poorly planned splurges and one instance of campsite theft that had reduced them to surviving on their last few coppers by the time they passed through the farming community of Mihtleas, where they agreed with the village's mayor to undertake the task of looking into a series of local grave robbings with the hopes of receiving a slight recompense for their troubles. The detective work involved in discovering the culprit's hideout within a hillside cave on the outskirts of town took little more than twenty-four hours, and the effective immediate apprehension of said culprit took less than three. It was a job far below either of their levels of expertise, though with such a shortage of alternate options coming their way, they had little choice but to accept if they wanted to continue eating regularly for the foreseeable future.

The trek back to Mihtleas was uneventful, save for their captive rousing awake twice during the journey, which subsequently forced Runa to stun him once more with a couple well-placed elbow blows to the back of his cranium. Their return to the hamlet was met with great fanfare - at least as great of a fanfare that a village housing less than one hundred people could provide - the mayor standing forefront and centre of the small procession as the unmoving body of the necromancer was unceremoniously dumped at his feet by the dwarf.

"This is what's been the source of our troubles? One mischievous little ankle biter?" The elderly leader said in half-disbelief in regards to the captured kobold lain pathetically before him. "Why, we could have taken care of this one ourselves if we knew where to start looking!"

"Aye, well, ye didnae..." Runa passive-aggressively replied in her thick native accent, her scowl unchanging as she tried to keep the conversation as civil as possible in spite of her increasingly shortening temper over the whole tedious episode, all the while feeling her stomach rumbled behind her defined abdominal muscles from skipping breakfast that morning just to save her and Enno a couple extra pennies.

"Well...I suppose you did do what we asked of you. And quite efficiently too. It would look bad on my part not to uphold my end of the bargain." The mayor waved for a pair of young men behind himself to approach forth, carrying between them a wooden, cuboid trunk of adequate dimensions. "We don't have much to offer, but our most affluent citizens pulled together what they could spare and amassed what we believe to be a substantial reward for your efforts." The trunk was set down on the ground just in front of the dwarf and the halfling before the same young men picked the kobold up by his arms and presumably carried him away to the village militia's barracks, where he would be held in custody until a sentence could be decided. Runa gave a solemn bow along with a salute of her right fist pressed into her left palm, humbling herself as she made her gratitude known in traditional monk fashion. Without her knowledge, Enno mimicked the same gesture behind her without mocking intent in the same way a younger brother would innocently follow an elder sister's example.

"Seein' justice be done is reward in o' itsel', Laird Mayor...but we shall accept yer gracious gift, if such a thing means tha' much t' ye." Runa replied, attempting her best to play her desperation for funds as coolly as she could when, in actuality, she was anxious to return to their rented room at the local inn to tally up their payment. The elderly politician seemed convinced by her slight act judging from his wide smile, though the appraising of their rewards would have to be delayed when the elderly politician made his next proposal.

"You know, we were planning of throwing a celebratory feast at the town hall later today, with you two as our esteemed guests of honour of course, if you'd be so willing to attended."

"Gosh, we'd be delighted to!" Enno abruptly accepted the offer without even giving Runa the time to fully register the mayor's spoken words, let alone discuss the matter with the eager paladin, yet paradoxically refused to voice her objections as such an action would go against the code of etiquette her family prided themselves on.

Before either of them knew it, they were sat on a bench by a long table within a vast chamber and had just finished helping themselves to what had actually turned out to be a fairly hearty meal, especially for starved little folk such as themselves, though now both of them were subjected to the torture that was post-dinner purgatory, mandated to listen to half-remembered tales of the intoxicated mayor's youth while a mediocre band of minstrels plucked and thumped out-of-key and off-beat folk songs on untuned lutes and worn tambourines over the next microcosmic eternity. Not even the intervention of liquor could make the afternoon go by any faster, as neither Runa nor Enno partook in the regular consumption of alcohol either due to health or oaths. Enno even nodded off at one point from sheer boredom, prompting the dwarf to harshly nudge him awake so she would not be alone in her suffering in this prosaic recitation which he had agreed to on both their behalves without prior consent while neither of them possessed the degree of rude gall necessary to prematurely walk out on the dull discourse.

Eventually, Enno and Runa were freed from the mind-numbing reminiscences after a while which felt longer than the length of time it took for them to complete their spelunk through Bánánach Hole earlier that day. The sun had already set by the time they saw the outside sky once again and they agreed it be best for them to immediately head back to their lodgings to enumerate their earnings. Business was still business however, as the innkeeper was not quite so generous as the mayor to allow the saviours of the town to stay at his abode for free, even for just one extra night. The duo were forced to relinquish their last remaining bronze denominations, which were just barely enough to hire a single, shared room. The two hauled their chest up the stairs to a chamber situated on the far end of the first floor's corridor. Upon entering and locking the door behind them, the two knelt before the box and silently anticipated what prizes potentially awaited for them inside. Runa reached over and slid her stubby fingers underneath the lid of the trunk and pried it open, allowing the pair to behold the contents to be found within:

The interior of the box was lain with a small purse containing about fifty gold coins, a few grubby spell scrolls neither of them knew how to use, half a dozen eggs, a small collection of dog-eared penny dreadfuls, some second-hand farming tools, two bottles of whiskey, and a third, grimier bottle half-filled with a viscous liquid of a rich, glossy red colouration.

The dwarf was rather underwhelmed to say the very least over the assorted knick-knacks they had been awarded with for their noble efforts, though Enno's curiosity led him drawn to the bottle of crimson treacle, extending his arm over and pulling it out from the box by its long, narrow neck with a clatter before rotating the vessel in his hands, examining its contents through the foggy glass with wonderment visible in his uncovered eye. There was an adhesive label stuck upon the bottle's rotund base, though it was yellow and peeling with age, with the ink written upon long since faded beyond the point of legibility.

"Gee, Runa, what d'ya think this?" The halfling male asked.

"Looks like a potion tae me..." Runa replied. "No a scooby oan whit it does though, it's no like any potion ah've e'er seen afore..."

"Well, there is one way to find out what it does." Enno said, uncorking the bottle's stop and attempted to bring the spout to his lips with the intention of taking a sip.

"H-hang on!" Runa stammered in a panic, putting her hand between the bottleneck and the boy's mouth before he could take such a swig. "Are ye daft? What if ye end up gettin' poisoned or turned intae a flea or somefin'?"

"Huh, you're right..." Enno mulled over the potential risk he would be taking in doing such a thing, though only after his partner had brought it up. The knight then held the bottle out towards Runa. "Here, you take some then. I've always heard dwarves are a lot more tolerant to that kinda stuff."

"Eh, y'know whit? Ahm actually no too keen on th' idea o' knockin' back some dodgy goop found in a pure weird boattle." She said, standing to her feet as she began to unfasten her jerkin from her body while they still conversed in order to prepare herself for bed in advance. " If yer that dyin' tae know, ahm sure wan wee dram willnae dae ye in."

"Um, okay then..." Enno responded, unsure how to react to the back-handed remark, looking away from his companion and to the bottle once again for a single second before shrugging off his concerns with his shoulders and bringing the container back up to his maw, tipping it close to all the way back so the scarlet sludge could trickle its way down and touch upon his tongue, bringing the bottle back down in that selfsame instant. The substance had a strong medicinal flavour with the slightest hint of cherry, overall tasting quite unpleasant though was otherwise causing no discernable effects on the young knight, looking down on his own brief body a moment after ingesting to see it had gone unchanged. "...I don't feel any different. Do I look any different?" He ask the dwarf.

"Ye still look like an armoured dolly tae me." Runa responded, her jerkin now wide open, revealing the simple cotton vest she wore beneath. Her torso was far more discernable without the extra layer of clothing to conceal it, exhibiting her toned body built like a barrel with a pair of modest medium-sized mammaries augmented by the pectoral muscles formed underneath each, resulting in her sporting quite the generous amount of cleavage which Enno would find his blue eye drawn towards as the unaware dwarf leaned over and procured the bottle from his hands, her own interest now getting the better of her common sense as she took a quick swig of the unknown concoction herself, smacking her lips together afterwards before sticking out her tongue in disgust. "Eugh! Noo that's right boggin'! Are ye positive we didnae end up wi' some auld granny's botched homemade swedgers by accident?"

"Maybe all the ingredients have broken down over time?" Enno suggested. "It does look like it's been sitting in that box for a looong time."

"Whitever...ah don' even hae the energy tae be mad anymoir. Let's jus' get some kip awready." Runa sighed, turning away from the halfling once more as she shed the rest of her clothing from her figure sans the aforementioned vest and a pair of practical, unattractive briefs that hugged tightly around her broad hips and firm buttocks. "We'll see if there's any fowk who need some odd jobs done th' morrah.'" She added, unable to care less about undressing to her underwear before a male and was only looking away for the young paladin's sake as he had begun the laborious process of unfastening each facet of his heavy mail from his slightly shorter figure, as well as the garments he wore underneath. From his travelling bag, he then produced and threw on a matching set of light blue pyjamas consisting of a long-sleeved shirt and trousers, buttoning the top all the way to his neck while taking a few coy glances over his shoulder view the patiently waiting and blindsided dwarf to admire her tempered back muscles and biceps.

Once Enno had changed and neatly collected his armour and garb into a corner of the room, the two climbed into their separate beds only to be greeted by stiff mattresses against their backsides and coarse sheets itching their skin, causing them to mutually ponder if perhaps they would have been better off setting up camp outside for free. With a heartfelt 'goodnight!', Enno leaned over and blew out the candles keeping the room illuminated on the small dresser table placed between their bunks. The two then fell into a silence as they focused on attaining a decent night's rest for what was expected to be another arduous day of fetch quests and rat extermination once they woke.

Runa rested on her flank, facing towards the wall. She put herself into a meditative state and remained that way for about half an hour but still found herself unable to slip into a full-on slumber. Usually she could put herself to sleep with relative ease but such a talent was proving uncooperative for whatever reason this night. Could it have been unconscious anxiety over their monetary woes at play? Or perhaps something more simple and concrete like the uncomfortable combination of the mattress and sheets irritating her body? No, it was something far more base than either of those two conjectures combined. To put things bluntly, Runa was feeling horny...

This was not just any mild, run-of-the-mill arousal brought about by idle thoughts either. The dwarf's entire body had broken out into a fierce perspiration as every last fibre of her figure felt supercharged with heat, especially around the areas comprising her chest and groin, also suddenly finding herself short of breath which carnal instinct dictated there was but a single solitary solution to rectifying. But she could not possibly even consider resorting to pleasuring herself while sharing a room with another...could she? After much introspective debate, the dwarf eventually concluded that if she could keep her motions discreet enough, then perhaps Enno would be none the wiser to her emergency masturbation. With any luck, he'd already be asleep to even be cognizant of the dirty deed which had to be committed anyway.

Just as Runa had begun to slip one hand beneath the covers and into her underpants, her ears picked up a creaking sort of sound sourcing from the other side of the chamber. Distracted momentarily from her own anguish, she rolled her cylindrical physique over to look through the shadows to where her halfling companion lay and saw that his bed-frame was shaking ever so minutely, yet very rapidly, while he himself was concealed beneath the quilt in a featureless lump. Confused and concerned, Runa immediately dropped what she was about to do and threw the covers from her person as she hopped onto the cold, wooden floorboards below, carefully inching herself across the room towards the other bed where queer groans and grunts coming from underneath the paladin's sheet could be heard. With her hesitant hands hovering over the duvet, she grabbed fistfuls of the fabric and flung them clean from the frame, only for the hardened martial artist to find herself shocked to the marrow at what she saw next.