Tauli Ch. 02

"Fookin' gorgeous!" Tauli announced for the ninth time, crushing the red gemstone between her teeth with a deep moan. The exaggerated sound made Skip look away from her politely, as he failed to know what was right and proper in response.

She grinned, grabbing his arm and leaning up on her shrunken tippytoes to give a slobbery smooch to his cheek, "Ta, Skip. I been missin' dis shit. Ya wouldn't believe what dey try 'n charge me fa it."

She got a nose-full of his smell as she did it, and recoiled, burying a gag. When he had said he couldn't reveal what kind of exotic he was, she'd figured he was just being polite. He seemed like he was ashamed of not being a pure breed, which made a little sense.

There were three kingdoms competing for land and resources. Hers, and two others. A lot of people were caught in the crossfire, but well-spoken ones were a rarity. The only kinds of those were lords and their houses, coming down from the west and the mountains. Crossing the desert for a second chance at life. The Aspen king had decided to purge his upper echelons of impurities. Few of his refugees survived the brutal crossing, but she was fairly certain that Skip was one of them.

He gave her a polite smile, "So what do we do next, my enigmatic friend?"

"Friend 'n all." She smiled to herself, imagining her mother's horror at her playing at equals with a commoner. "I wassa thinkin' I needs ta tell ya beggar lord ta fuck off, in person. Clear things up afore dey go sideways on us, 'n shit."

"Oh."

She leaned into his shoulder, tipping her head sideways. "Eh, better ta get these t'ings done. Den we can play. Wanna go skinny dippin' off Goerdon's Cliffs? Dat sounds like a whole mess o' fun."

Skip nodded glumly, clearly distracted by the first task. Too distracted to think about her inflatable breasts in the sea. She wasn't sure why it was important he think about her that way. She still didn't want to bed him. Yet... It was. It was important to her that Skip see her as all woman.

She slipped her fingers through his and briefly squeezed, "So which do ya owe? Cowan or... Whatsdafucker... Tatch?"

"Newly arrived." He whispered, "A refugee."

She shrugged, "So are da ot'er two. All da fookin' assholes be foreign imports 'n shit. Buuut... Impirtant ta ma dat... Ya t'ink I'm cute. So would ya mind waitin' fa ma?"

Skip breathed a sigh of relief, "Sure... Um... Where?"

"'Board da Briney works fa ma." She said happily, leading him down towards the port. The ship in question was one that the survivors had arrived on, two years ago. They'd set up the reception for the rough bar in one of the bedrooms, and hadn't bothered to re-float it. The bottom deck was still flooded, but the squatting owner had turned that into a siren dive.

She made sure to go with him, let the staff know whose property Skip was. The halfelf girl on reception greeted them excitedly, "Tauli! Been a hot minute since I saw you last, doll. Couple kegs?"

"Noaw." She shook his head, and leaned her head into her boy, "Dis is Skip. I mades a friend! Just needin' a place ta stash him. Keep him outta da bottom deck, eh?"

The woman giggled, "Of course. He's a right cutie. Why don't you come with me, Skip? We've got some decent mead, and some rat skewers if you're feeling a little bit mad. Our food sucks."

Tauli kissed his cheek, lingering as she felt like her heart was breaking, "Donnae go 'n forget ma, Skip. I'll be back afore soon."

"I didn't tell you which -"

She shrugged, "Newly arrived? Ya's gotsa be talkin' 'bout Regius. Don't worry so much 'bout ma. Just watch out for Karliah, she's a devil in bed, 'n a witch ta gets ya there."

The elf's ears flushed in embarrassment, "Tauli! You can't call me a slut in front of everyone!"

"Did I?" She replied innocently, "I woulda thought it a compliment 'n shit. Nevermind. You two have fun, but not too much, gots it? He mine."

Karliah giggled again, "Gods you're cute when you have a crush, Tau."

She rolled her eyes, and the axomander left. She had little doubt the elf would succeed at screwing the man. There weren't a lot of people uninterested in the mythical grace of an elf in bed. Skip hadn't seem disinterested, either. Didn't help that Tauli was still sending mixed signals.

As she expected, when she exited the Briney, there were two thugs waiting for her. They were polite, and made no threats. Reluctantly showing her a modicum of respect as they invited her to speak to their boss about sorting out the disagreement.

She went willingly.

The human had set up in one of the tinker towns. A bunch of homebuilt shacks on the edge of town, mostly metal and sheets. The result of the end of the last war between the kingdoms. The military had gone from needing a hundred thousand artificers to less than twenty. Most of the people here resented her existence, even though few of them would recognise her.

Tauli was led into a particular shack with guards stationed outside. Inside, was a desk and a simple bedroll. Lying on the bed, uncovered but facing away from her, was a toxic. A slimegirl, rare and beautiful, but always so vulnerable. It hurt her to think the woman owed the beggar lord anything.

The man himself was seated behind the desk. He was wearing two leather belts around his chest, but nothing else apart from cheap pants. Proudly displaying the brand on his right pectoral that said that his house had been disbanded, and that he was no longer to be considered titled. Except you can't just order ten generations of loyalty to disappear. People didn't work that way.

She noted there was no chair for her, and concentrated, growing her tail into existence to lean onto it lazily. She popped her cheeks tiredly, "Ya wantin' ta holler ats ma?"

"Mmm. I am afraid you may have become involved in a situation requiring a delicate touch." The man said quietly in a highly educated accent, "It is in neither of our interests that the situation be allowed to... Grow beyond control. To put it briefly, miss, you have been seen with someone who owes me a blood debt."

Tauli spat a gob to the side, "Skip donnae owin' ya shit."

"Ashren de Skipper owes me a blood debt." Regius repeated, "This is a simple fact of being. He undertook certain actions, which have been the cause of such severe circumstances. Were it so easy for the debt to be discharged, I would have done so. He is of no import, however the pol-"

She cracked her knuckles, "Lemme be sayin' it agin. Skip don't be owin' ya shit. But ya by owin' ma. See dis mark on ma head? Ya fookin' asshole put it der. I ain't be forgivin' ya for it."

Regius frowned, looking displeased, "I am attempting to be most polite, miss -"

"If ya wanna give me da runs, den I'll go ahead 'n eatcha." Tauli interrupted him again, "Buts ya debt don' mean fuck ta ma. See, ma grandaddy was a dragon. Black salamander 'n all. I take after 'im a bit. So I don't be takin' it kindly when someone take what mine. 'N Skip is mine, now. Gots it?"

The man looked horrified, "Did you just threaten to... Eat me? Even most salamanders are more polite than that, miss!"

She blinked her violet eyes, "I ain't no fookin' salamander. I ain't nuttin' but Tauenlytara. So... Afore ya decide ta goes fookin' wit ma... Why don't ya askin' da last bastard who tried ta piss ma off how well it went for 'em?"

"The name is familiar to me. However, I do not believe in the natural order of authority. Power is earned with respect. Leadership is a privilege, not a birthright. The laws we establish for ourselves must be respected." He was unmoved.

She smiled brightly, fangs bursting loudly in front of her usual teeth, "Dat's cute 'n all. Really. 'N I wouldn't mind more votin' in ma kingdom. Less effort for ma ta make sure people ain't fookin' peoples da wrong way. But Skip is mine. Willin' ta pay ya for peace 'tween us. But fucks wit ma, 'n ya won' be fookin' ya toxic no more."

The girl on the bed cringed, and the lord openly glared at her, "This is not a negotiation, beast."

Before he could blink, Tauli had stepped onto his desk and shattered it into fragments. She held him aloft by his throat, looking up at him curiously, "I puts it 'nother way. It's harder fa ma not ta breaks ya into thousand pieces human, den it is ta fuck ya up. Skip is mine. Ya can gets somet'in' outta it, or ya can gets dead. Makin' ya choice, noaw."

"M'lady!" The naked toxic squealed, throwing herself at Tauli's feet and cowering. "Please. Forgive him, this once. He doesn't know our history. Please. I... I will take the punishment for him. No one will touch your property. Please, have mercy."

She looked down at the half-melted woman curiously. Most toxic were born from the lifeblood of something sacred. The sap of a divine tree. The blood of a god. This one, however, smelled like the sea. She had been created from the tears of... "Aetauin."

The woman nodded her head, "Yes, m'lady. I know I should have returned to the palace, after the war, but I was selfish. I know I am an unworthy sacrifice, but please let me die in his place."

"Noaw." Tauli lowered the human and released him, "Jus' so we're clear... Ya touch ma Skip... I ain't be forgivin' ya a second time. I'll be fillin' ya garters wit ya guts 'n shit."

The lord smelled defiant. The axomander crouched and patted the gelatinous woman's head affectionately, "Aetauin, I missed ya. Happy ta be knowin' ya nots dead 'n shit. If ya wanna grab a drink 'n catch up, I would love it. Ten years be ten years too long."

The woman's bubbling eyes stared up at her, "You... Forgive me?"

"I ain't ever be mad at ya." Tauli sniffled, a single purple tear running down one of her cheeks. "You live how ya see best, Aetauin. Even if it be wit' dis shitheel. I ain't be one 'o judgin'."

She stood up, and flicked the saltwater sludge from her hand, before glaring at the beggar lord, "Don' be forgettin'. Ask around. Find da last one who went 'n be thievin' from ma."

"This changes nothing." He disagreed.

---

At the fringes of the empire, in the west of the northern continent, inside a rotting shack, sinking into the mud, was a scholar facing a daunting and impossible task. He'd struggled not to laugh when the empress showed him the original and had asked him if it was possible to build something like it, to protect the race and restore them from a handful of refugees.

Except, the neko hadn't been making humour.

Len-Kai stared tiredly at his sketches of the broken Crucible, wondering if his empress would kill him if he had made no progress, again, by the time of his next report. He didn't even have the beginning of understanding of how the object had linked orc to demon. Nor how it had been used to birth a race.

The most he'd managed, in studying those left behind, was that the first orcs had been born fully grown, with a developed and full mind. The Crucible had not created children, but warriors with a fully developed language and culture.

The empress had told him that a divine was linked to the device, the goddess of mischief. He hadn't been able to even confirm that, yet. Void, he hadn't been able to replicate a single rune found near the Crucible. None of the symbols made any sense, and none of them seemed magical. Yet, it was undeniable that they should be.

Len-Kai's tired forehead hit the desk as he nearly passed out. He groaned, staggering upright, and turned towards his bed. The hammock was swaying, and the poles had sunk another handspan into the accursed soil of the wastelands.

He dragged them up a little further, and tried to lodge some rocks around the poles, uselessly. Then he went to fall into the old but warm sheet. As he did, he heard a very liquid sound, and was left floundering in a thick liquid.

Just as he started to panic he was about to drown, he saw a dead bird float past his head. The sudden strangeness of it made him burst out laughing, bubbles floating up, before swarming and running into his mouth. Popping like firecrackers on his teeth.

There was a loud slurping noise, and he was sitting, shivering, on the edge of his hammock, as a woman made of a reddy-gold liquid stood in front of him. She smiled sheepishly, "Sorry. Fell asleep whilst you were working. Didn't want to interrupt."

"You're... Toxic?" He said in surprise and confusion.

She shrugged, and then her eyes lit up and she grabbed the bird from inside her and held it out, "Oops! Nevermind me, I forgot about this. Toofy sent it, but I'm faster than a bird so I caught it and took it with me when I used the gateways. They're really weird. Stretching out? I mean, I'm extremely flexible, but even I felt like I was about to snap when I was pulled that far apart. You would have thought a race advanced enough to come up with them would find a way to make them comfortable, unless they were only meant to be used in emergencies or something. It's very... You're staring. Oh. I'm rambling, aren't I? Um... I'm Sura. That's a... Well, I guess, was, a messenger bird. From Toofy."

He took the dripping bird and pulled a sodden scroll from around it's leg. The girl grabbed the bird and shoved it inside her mouth, where it immediately began to dissolve. Visibly.

Len-Kai shook his head and pried open the paper that felt like it had been soaked in honey, and read the four words the empress had left in it. He knew her handwriting, even before he saw the seal. `She's your problem, now.'

He sighed and tossed the message into a nearby fire, out of habit, and smiled slowly at her, "Sura, was it? What... Exactly... Did our empress tell you?"

"That you'd be happy to date me. Fuck me." The girl grinned broadly, "Sorry, I used to be part of a tree. A spirit, I think. Trees are very sensual creatures. There's no difference between screwing your neighbour and asking them about the rain. I think that most of you two legged things have problems talking about sex, but I love it. I haven't actually had any, since I kinda grew a body, but I love words and this world, and how pretty everything is! And with Toofy's memories of it all, I think I am going to seriously adore sex, but I want it to be as meaningful as it is, to her. So I wanted to choose a partner who actually wanted me, for me... And you're staring, again. Sorry. I like words."

The mage blinked a couple times, took a few deep breaths, and tried his hardest not to laugh in horror. Instead he spoke very slowly, "Our empress... Has a rather... Cruel, sort of humour."

"Is that so? I mean, she is very vindictive. Ew. I hate that word. It feels gross on my tongue. Petty? Yeah, I like that one. Toofy's petty. She likes hurting people who cross her. Especially the ones who cross her daughters. She'll go to the ends of the earth for them. Don't fuck with Toofy might be a human idiom, now, but don't fuck with Ink or Artema unless you really want to get fucked over. I don't know what's humorous about the pettiness, though. Ew. Why is petty a good word, but pettiness, isn't? Weird."

Len-Kai rubbed his eyes tiredly, "I'm gay."

The slimegirl blobbed, her entire bottom half turning into liquid that got sucked into the mud. Her bottom lip trembled as she stared at him wide-eyed, "But... What? But... I chose to be female! Toofy said that it was cute! That... That was my choice! I don't want to be male! Why would she send me to you and tell me that you could fuck me if you don't even want to fuck me! Oh, that fucking bitch! Oh, she's so fucking mean. She just wanted to get me out of her hair, didn't she? Oh, she's so going to get it when I track her down! Bitch has no idea what's coming!"

"Two things. First, predicting our empress is pointless. She has already predicted everything that you might do in response, and decided how things are going to be." Len-Kai said carefully, "Secondly... Apart from the empress and yourself, no one knows about me. Nor can they know. I will very likely be killed if others were to find out. It isn't illegal or anything... But the average person does find it to be detestable."

"All trees are gay." The girl pouted, sticking out her bottom lip, "Or rather, we're male or female in different parts. Both at once, mostly. And we can change, when we need to. I... Oh. You're asking me to pretend not to know, aren't you? Deceiving others. That word is as hideous as the act. I... I don't know if I actually know how to lie. Or if it would ever be believable."

He nodded, "That's why she sent you, here. I'm guessing. To pretend to be my partner. A living lie. To prepare you for the world."

"Fuck her." The toxic snarled, drawing herself up tightly into a only very slightly melting form of a woman with a huge bust, "I am a woman, and I am godsdamned proud of it! I choose my own mate, thank you very much! I am going to slap the fuck out of Toofy when I find her."

Len-Kai frowned, "You beat a messenger bird, here. So you are extraordinarily fast, aren't you? How long did it take you to get here from the capital?"

"Eugh. Numbers." She rolled her eyes, "Haven't figured those things out, sorry. It's like, what does a weird symbol got to do with a group of something? It's just a grouping! There's big ones and small ones. Why do all of you things have to make everything so stupidly complex!? Something either is, or it isn't. There isn't a deep meaning, just the freaking network that binds everything together! Roots don't know how many trees are in the forest, but they still carry all the messages!"

"Roots don't know..." He said in surprise, and then dashed over to his desk, spreading out the designs, and laughed loudly, "The roots don't know! Of course, they don't! The roots don't know!"

The girl moved in behind him putting an arm around his waist, and leaning her head against his shoulder as she looked down at the paper, "Well, that got you all excited. What don't the roots know?"

"Everything! That's the point! The magic doesn't come from this side of the divine gate. The runes are pointless to try and understand, because these are not the runes!" Len-Kai said excitedly, "We're looking at the receiving side. The impression the rune left behind, from another plane of existence. They existed only in the palace of the Golden Kitsune. The writing... The runes are... What the fuck?"

The girl frowned, "Eh... I saw that realisation. Sorry. Touching people lets me understand them. Makes it easier, what with being new at the talking thing. But you think these runes, linked to a kitsune, are... Nekan, in origin?"

"Here, and here." He pointed out a commonality in all of the runes, "See the marking? Like a sharp scratch, drawn downwards? That's nekan. Here, and there. If you reverse it, and flip it inside out, looking at where it isn't marked, that's the nekan symbol for family."

"Clan." She said quietly, "The word is for clan. Reading the impressions, starting with this symbol... It says... By the blood of the Falling Sands, shining from inside the Silverback, this promise to the Dark Gods is sworn... We swear to destroy humanity, and swear to destroy their false gods, may the Golden Kitsune ever punish us, if we fail in our duty. Or something like that."

Len-Kai swallowed nervously, "Nekos didn't even exist... When the Crucible was made. How is this possible? Also, how the void did you read that, so easily?"

"Backwards, sidewards, inside out. All the same thing to me." She shrugged and smiled at him. Then she looked back down at the writing. "Oh. That's why she sent me here. To help you with this. And to protect me."

He looked at her curiously, "Protect you?"

"She ran out of time." The toxic whispered, "I... I think I get it. I hope I'm wrong. Just... Remembering some of Toofy's memories. Things that she thought were about to happen. I hope I'm wrong, so I'm not going to say them. We'll get a bird in another day, though. Because I'm not. Because she knew it."