Surfacing Ch. 06

This was a twist on whatever Kurn had been thinking of Gavin's mixed heritage before; he had to take a moment to absorb it and the unexpected praise. Even Castis looked a bit intrigued, and I did not mention the tidbit that the Ma'ab blood in this particular union was female. I used the pause to my advantage.

"So consider a Musanlo monastery hosting a Ma'ab child with dark magic running in his veins. Why allow him to stay at all? Unless he was also one of theirs. So... a bit of both."

"Enough," Gavin hissed at me, tense and that inky darkness seeping into the whites of his eyes again. Only the second time I'd seen it. His dislike of being talked about was obvious.

"You must have needed to leave at some point, apprentice," Mathias pondered. "Did they ever know of your talent?"

"No," the necromancer said flatly with all brusqueness.

"Of course not. He just slinked away with his tail tucked like the mutt he is," Kurn sneered, taking another hunk of meat and chewing noisily, a bit of grease making his lips glisten in the firelight. "Bet those monks are all better off with him gone if this food was their normal fare." He plucked a half-chewed piece of gristle from between his teeth and flicked it away.

"That depends," Gavin said very low, "if they found themselves beside Musanlo beyond the Greylands. I poisoned them all and left at my leisure."

All four males halted in their chewing as they realized to a one that neither Gavin nor I had eaten any of their dinner tonight. Castis and Mathias looked a little green for a second as they wondered...

I burst out laughing.

"Silence, witch!" Kurn nearly shouted, gladly taking me as his distraction away from that unwelcome moment of fear.

"Your stomach went ice cold!" I howled. "Admit it!"

"Shut your cunt mouth!" He pitched his piece of meat at me and I barely dodged.

Chortling still and ignoring Kurn beyond the pitched steak, I looked at Gavin, who seemed just as irritated. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, apprentice. Poisoned them all, hm? Impressive. A mage of my own ilk. We should swap favorite poisons."

I winked at the Ma'ab for good measure; let them think again how often they wanted Gavin to prepare their meals now.

I wanted to ask more specifics of him, of course—if it were true, if it included his own priest father, if some particular event had sparked an action like that or if it had been methodically planned over a longer period of time—but in front of the others was not the time or place for a deeper exploration.

I already knew Gavin resisted talking about his past or his most private thoughts. He would talk of magic or ponder practical and theoretical things that were intellectually interesting, but there remained those personal barriers always.

He probably wouldn't have said this about the poisoning at all if he hadn't been provoked by us all, but it was a good thing in my opinion. We all just realized, even for a moment, that there was a line we could no doubt cross if we wanted, but Gavin wouldn't let it go if we did.

This was clearly not a threat worth fearing every second of the day, but...to each their own in embrace of the risk. I would back off now, I'd gotten something insightful, and I'd just shifted Gavin's status in the group whether he realized it or not. The fact that he did not display any but the most mundane talents did not help in gaining on his own, but now there was curiosity of what else he could do.

I certainly wanted to see it at some point before we needed it. All I knew for certain was that he could study auras quite well, see spirits, and sense undead. And even then, I was going on his word or circumstantial evidence.

None of the men got stomach cramps or lower intestinal woes from their meal, and because of that they were content to let Gavin be for the night. We drank as much water as we could hold, each of us often leaving the firelight to pass it out again soon after, before drinking more. When we left this waterfall, we would likely not find another source of this quality until we reached the second chain of mountains across the midway.

Better to be fully saturated tonight, even if it meant taking down my leathers twice as often to wet the stone. Rather to my surprise, Kurn didn't try to interrupt me, and I spent more time away than present so they could lie down to rest without the Hellhound barking further and keeping everyone awake. His voice drifted up the stone at one point when he didn't know I was there, and it was clear he thought I went away so often because I was afraid of him and could not face the threat of a fight for long after teasing him.

That thinking hadn't changed from the Tower...how could one not adapt their as they had time to watch the dynamics of a group such as this, or probe the opinions of others? How could a supposedly elite warrior remain so blind? How did he ever read and anticipate his opponents?

By this point, I did not think it could be true, what the two Ma'ab had boasted before about targeted lands fearing the coming of the Hellhounds first.

The Sky was black though the firelight dimmed some of the brightness of the Stars for me until it was banked for the night. The wind came in gusts and the air was comfortably cool, with the stones radiating a bit of warmth from the day. Everyone knew their order of watch by now, and the routine fell into place when the efforts of the day caught up with everyone.

My reverie was a quiet one and I woke with the darkness nearly complete as the Moons were very late in rising. I'd long since observed that their arrival and disappearance in the Sky varied by the same small amount of time each night, just as they each had their individual track and did not follow each other in sync. There would be the occasional night where the Moons could not be seen as they shared the Sky with the Sun, and the nighttime would be Moonless and utterly black but for Starlight the entire time. If one Moon did start to track the Sky before the night was done, it could be in the dark time of its phase, when it reflected no Sunlight.

That would be a rare event, and one worth living to see.

I had no trouble navigating the path back to camp when it came my turn to relieve Gavin on watch, per usual. I kept practicing suppressing my aura to see how close I could get before he might see me.

The apprentice was a difficult one to approach at night if he was awake and explicitly focused on detecting life auras. I had gauged by now that I could get within twenty paces before he saw me, or at least detected a figure, even if he didn't know whether or not it was me. The identifying aura was the magical one, not the one that simply said I was living; he often made a judgment based solely on size.

A bit like Gavin, I could make out life forms in the dark, too; unlike Gavin, I could see identifying details by Starlight alone. This was, near as we could describe to each other in limited Common, an example of a very sensitive physical sense contrasted with a more nebulous "sixth" sense that the mind was simply trying to interpret as "visual," for lack of a better description in words.

Twenty paces was close enough to hit Gavin with a bolt if I wanted, but I could not tap him on the shoulder and whisper in his ear if he was watching the night. Not yet. It was a challenge I rather enjoyed.

Once again Gavin detected me by his "life sight" alone; he granted he did not hear me or smell me, and gave me grudging confirmation that I had hidden the unique aura that would have told him for certain who approached him.

"I'm fairly sure Castis couldn't sense you unless you wanted him to."

I was more than content with that evaluation. The apprentice did not take long to bed down again and try to return to sleep.

The constant slap of water against stone forced me to depend on my night vision far more than my hearing on my watch, which was unusual. It drowned out everything else, most of what I could smell was just damp, and without the ear-teasing nuances of the insects and tiny creatures, or the distant cry of some nocturnal pack, I became bored staring at the same rocky walls.

I reflected that I could use the time to wash my shirt—which needed it—and spot clean my leathers, and finally bathe my entire body. I'd be watching over the others anyway and wouldn't be able to hear anything better whether sitting here or calf-deep in the tiny pool. There was also a bit of vulnerability and a contest in it, trying to get the deed done with none of the Humans or dwarf the wiser, that perked me up and banished my equally dangerous, drowsy boredom.

From all signs, I could not look forward to another bath for a while yet anyway.

I stepped away from the group and toward a fold in the high stone that held an ideal place to stash my equipment; I would have to climb to reach it, and the others were either too bulky to squeeze into the same spot—that would be Kurn, Rithal, and Matias—or would have to display a bit of acrobatic skill I had not yet witnessed, which would be Castis and Gavin. Line of sight would also be an issue if one was detecting magic, as would remotely moving the stone I could use to seal the cache.

After reaching my desired hiding place and bracing myself, I first allowed my spiders out to crawl and into my hair, and considered what else on my tool belt might be good to keep on me, just in case. The spiders were lethal and I would not use my last antidote on any of these males should they be so stupid as to force me to use my creatures. But what of an alternative? Something less lethal, just a warning or a neutralizer? All it might take would be one good besting to make the Ma'ab behave and focus on the mission rather than me. It was a thought.

I was disinclined to use any powder; the wind in this canyon was unpredictable to me and I was as likely to have it blow back in my face. Likewise, blades and bolts...poison and infection...just a slower method of killing and a waste compared to the spiders that could revive their supply of venom.

I possessed a small blow tube and tiny needles I could dip in a sleep paste...but I risked pricking myself with them in haste if I planned to be naked with no gloves or belt. No. Too risky and too much preparation required. That was for hunting, not defense.

I considered a compressed paste formed into a shape like half of my pinky finger.. It would dissolve in any orifice and enter the blood quickly, similar to what I'd once used on Callitro when I'd bedded him. It would loosen the tongue and cause the target to lose focus as euphoria diffused through him; it was intended as an interrogation tool—if intent was not bleed them, then better to drug them. I would have to get close to my target to use it, but...overall it was my best option if I wanted something non-lethal to hand in addition to my arachnid pets.

I only had three of the elongated capsules in a tiny, waterproof pouch, and so transferred two into another and kept one in its place, tightly closed. I considered for a moment my smallest, thinnest blade, normally kept in my boot; perhaps I could bring it in its sheath? No...using that at all would have to be lethal or it was pointless. Someone could turn my own blade against me, but they could not turn my spiders in such a way. Deadly was deadly, and a blade would be higher risk and redundant.

So I had one lethal, and one non-lethal. I was ready for my bath.

I had fun bracing myself in this tiny crack as I removed my pack and each weapon and tool, placing them in their hiding spot. I placed my cloak and boots there as well, but after peeling the rest off, I kept my foot stockings, leathers, shirt, and the flexible torso armor bundled beneath an arm, my small bar of scentless soap in my hand. I retrieved my other two pair of stockings that needed washing and carried them with all the stealth of which I was capable to our water source.

I kept my attention on those sleeping a good thirty paces away as well as the general area around us as I washed my shirt first, rinsed and wrung it out, and spread it over a boulder for now. It would be a little damp come morning, but not too bad if I could hang it elsewhere for the wind to blow through it. My stockings followed in quick order, and then the spot cleaning of my leathers.

Overall my things seemed to be wearing well.

I finished my washing in peace and collected all things again to return to my cache, securing the leathers and soap and choosing a different, nearby crevasse to drape the shirt and black stockings over woody twigs sprouting well above the heads of any Human. It would take until well into daylight for the drying clothing to be obvious to a visual race like the Humans, and I would be dressed long before then. Being naked beneath the Sun was not my first choice of each day.

Now, I just had my own bath to tend to. I had plenty of time.

Both my chosen tools were vulnerable to water, so I had to tuck the pouch in a nearby dry spot on the opposite of the pool from where it was easiest to approach from the camp. I placed my spiders there as well to wait for my call, if needed. Almost immediately, one of them snatched hold of a small insect that had been using the dry pocket near the falls.

*Good, cherished ones. Feed yourselves.*

As I approached the rippling pool, unthreading my braid after looping the tie around my wrist, I admired the shimmer of Starlight that made the surface glitter like diamonds. The temperature as I stepped in was that wonderful, shocking chill to which I'd become accustomed in the mountains, and I drew in a quiet breath and smiled—the strongest expression of pleasure I could afford—as the chill crept up my calves.

Checking around me and seeing all was still, I squatted down to dip hip-deep and cup water to drink again and then to dampen my skin. I did not use my limited soap on my skin, which could be lightly scrubbed with any number of natural tools such as a handful of sand, but reserved that for my clothing. Eventually I moved closer to the falling water itself, scanning again for disturbances before placing myself directly beneath it.

The cool water beat on my scalp, ran over my ears and down my breasts, belly, and legs with great sluicing effect; it was invigorating and I wished I could laugh aloud. My nipples were hard and tight from the cold and tiny bumps had risen on my haunches. When I cupped them, I noticed how tender and sensitive they were; a symptom of my pregnancy. Next I rubbed the pads of my fingers through my snowy thatch and noticed the lips of my sex both tightened from the cold and tingled in response to the touch.

How long had it been since I'd pleasured myself...? Not since that odd, rushed moment in the mountains after I'd watched Kurn do the same. I indulged in a few caressing strokes between my legs, but soon arrived at the conclusion that it was probably too foolish right here and now. I certainly wished for more. It might be a long time before I found one I would risk fucking, possibly not until returning to the Underdark. Alas.

The water seemed to brighten as I was in it, and I realized that the larger Moon had probably risen while I was still tending and hiding my clothing and tools. With the waterfall facing West, it had taken time for the Moon to climb high enough to offer any appreciable light in this spot. I could not see the round celestial body itself as it was hidden behind the rocky walls, but the change in light was obvious to me.

So, too, was a dark hulk that had just begun to sneak toward me from the camp, hunched over and moving on relatively light foot. Only the fact that water still beat on my head kept me from hearing him.

I felt a flash of irritation that my enjoyable, sensual solitude was to be interrupted, but was satisfied that he approached from the direction I'd anticipated, and my spiders and pouch would be easier to reach when needed with the pool would be between us.

His height alone left no doubt who it was, but I could also see the clothing and tools—shirt, trousers, boots, blade in the boot. No armor. The face came into clear focus a moment later. The breeze changed and I caught the scent—he needed a bath as well.

"I see you, Hellhound," I said, stepping out of the direct falls. I wrung out my hair in one stroke and started a quick, tight braid with my arms raised and hands behind my head. I did not need hair in my face if I needed to move quickly.

Kurn had straightened up hearing my voice, his body language giving away some of his own irritation at being made so quickly. However, he did not speak, which surprised me only until I realized that he was staring hard at my chest, trailing down to my thighs, then back up again as his neck craned, as if trying to make out more detail than he could see. Even if his eyes didn't work now as if it were daytime, his night vision under the Moon was good enough to be able to tell I was nude. I supposed my white hair was most obvious to him. Above and below.

"Is this an invitation, whore?" he growled.

I finished tying off my braid and it slapped wetly against my back. "Is what an invitation, Ma'ab?"

"Posing like that, so proudly." He sneered. "Not a measure of shame or modesty."

I sort of wanted to know where this odd little deduction came from, that he'd ignore the fact that it was my watch not his, that he had approached me, and that I was merely tying back my hair anticipating a confrontation. Were our positions reversed, I'd have evaluated the situation much differently. I could tease him, of course, encourage the delusion since that was what he would believe anyway, but...

"Posing at night seems ill-planned for Human eyes."

"This is the first you've splashed around where all could see."

"There is only one pool this time. And I would not do this in the day."

He snorted. "Of course not. Then you'd just be asking for it."

"Asking for what?"

"To be mounted by us all. You'd want it, or you would not parade so."

Ridiculous! I wanted to laugh, but then...well, yes, I could think the same if someone like Auslan displayed himself nude in front of a group of females. Yet I would like to think that I could take the scenario into account.

Walking out of nowhere into a garden party, smiling and touching himself with an erection, making brief moments of eye contact to show his submission and desire? Oh, absolutely; he was lonely.

But if I walked into his private bath while he happened to be focused on scrubbing his toes, and then I accused him of being a naked tease? ...well, only if I was playing.

The point was I knew perfectly well when I was the aggressor, and the rest of it was part of the foreplay, part of the game. I knew that I would not sound so accusatory or look so angry as Kurn did right now.

What did he have to be angry about?

"And now?" I asked curiously.

"You do not cover yourself before me as we talk."

"You might notice the lack of clean, dry clothing, Hellhound."

"Not even cover with your hands."

I arched a brow. "What benefit would that be?"

He looked triumphant. "None since you are inviting me to look anyway, whore."

This debate made little sense to me and I rolled my eyes with exaggeration—which seemed to bother him as his momentary smile vanished to a scowl again—and I stood there looking back at him. The waterfall was the only noise for several long moments as Kurn met the challenge.

"You are all air, Kurn," I said after a while. "You place blame on me for your own want, which is self-deceit. Even now you still stand at the edge of the pool, fully clothed, and do nothing."

I distinctly heard his teeth grind. "So... you want me to hurt you, do you, ku's?"

I smiled. "Words and air, reshalitha."

The Hellhound crossed his arms to pull up and remove his shirt in one smooth motion over his head. I watched for this and it was enough time to step out of the pool on the other side and palm my pouch as my babies tickled the bare skin of my shoulder and neck before hiding in my hair.