“Get yer smart arse back ‘ere right feckin now,” Kat dictated to the runner at the door.

“Got it, Highness,” the boy said, bowing. “I’ll be off.”

Kat shut and locked the door behind her, then went to help the others clean up the mess they’d made in Wendyl’s bedroom.

Ann groaned as she followed, having been told to take it easy after her experience. She felt fine for the most part. Waheela hadn’t been talking, and nothing about her had changed. She just knew that she could actually talk to the thing that was changing her. Honestly, that felt like one of the first significant steps she’d made in her quest, besides discovering she could siphon off bits of ick from the Cores.

“Nae, ye sit yer fluffy tail down an’ rest,” Kat demanded.

“Kat. I’m telling you. I feel fine,” Ann grumbled.

“Nae, not havin’ ye take chances. Ye’re too important tae risk yer health.”

“When Bren checks on me, will you get off my ass?”

“No promises.”

“Kat, come on. You’re doing the overprotective thing,” Rosalyn chided. “I do understand this time. Having a talk with a malevolent force within you is best treated with caution. Dunno how the heck you actually did that, ‘cause when Kat did, she needed Rowena and that was a sudden boon with Illdall showing up and all sorts of things and you still haven’t talked to any of those priests, have you? We should really swing by the temple some time. Maybe tomorrow? That could be fun. I don’t really have much planned, not besides studying with Zidane which has been going great by the way.”

“I told you,” Ann said after her brain caught up to Rosalyn’s mouth, “that I’d tell you what happened when Bren gets here. He’ll want to hear this, and I’d rather have him write it down so I don’t have to repeat it twenty times like I’ve had to do with my life story.”

“Valid point on the Illdall temple, though,” Kat nodded. “Need tae see what Rowena’s been sayin’ tae the priests o’er there.”

Wendyl returned with a bundle of fresh blankets and sheets. “Got the spares. I’ll say, ladies. This has been way more interesting than I thought today’d be. I’m still sloshing with cum, Wolf.” She laughed as she set down the blankets and ran a hand over her still somewhat round stomach. “Like drinkin’ from a waterfall of sticky deliciousness. So happy I signed that contract.”

“Just tae make this clear,” Kat said. “This isn’t part o’ the contract. Ye don’t ‘ave tae do any o’ this.”

“I signed the Godsdamned thing. I know what it said,” Wendyl said, waving dismissively at Kat. “Just got me in the door to this insanity. A girl with a dragon in her and then the wolf lady also has a wolf monster. You hiding any evil sheep in you, Horns?”

Rosalyn, apparently giving up on correcting Wendyl’s persistent nicknames, sighed. “Nope. Just me in my noggin. Well, and the voices.”

Wendyl’s eyes went wide.

“Joking. Joking,” Rosalyn laughed. “My brain moves fast enough it doesn’t need voices. It’s loud enough as it is.”

“Scared me for a sec,” Wendyl laughed nervously as she stretched out the sheet, Kat helping. “I’m not one to shy away from crazy, as I’d hope is very obvious by now, but you seemed like the sane one next to these two brutes.”

“Should see her taking apart a Warped. You’d rethink that sane thing,” Ann said, grabbing a rag and wiping at a white patch of spunk.

“That’s dissection, and it’s science,” Rosalyn protested. “I am very methodical with it.”

“I take it back, you’re all nuts, but you’ve got the hotness to back it up, so I’m not gonna complain,” Wendyl shrugged, plopping her pillows back onto the bed, then falling onto it. “You sure Bren’d freak out if I stayed naked? Feels nice.”

“He will. No doubt,” Kat nodded. “Get yer green arse clothed. Goes fer ye too, mutt.”

“One of these days I’m gonna have enough fur that I can say fuck clothes and not care,” Ann grumbled, pulling on her kilt then binding her breasts. “Imagine just me with an unreasonable amount of fluff covering anything that matters.”

“You’re dropping most of that when we have sex,” Rosalyn said, combing her hair with her fingers. “I love you, but I don’t love eating fur when I want to get a good mouthful of boob or your nethers.”

“Guess that’s fair,” Ann said. She took the rag and tossed it to the side. The room still reeked of sex, but the window Wendyl threw open would help with that. Lucia would need to stay downstairs, though.

It took about fifteen more minutes before Bren and Lucia arrived. Everyone was presentable, and they met in the front room of the workshop, the girls bringing down chairs from the living floor.

Once they’d all settled in, Bren fixed Ann with a look. It was equal parts accusatory and curious. “Please tell me that this was an accident.”

“I mean,” Ann scratched her ear. “Not really, no. Waheela was being talkative?”

“Excuse me, Waheela?”

“The Wolf, I’ll get there,” Ann said, signaling for him to hush.

She recounted the occurrence as Bren wrote furiously in his journal. Bren made notes on questions he had throughout, but let her finish before pestering her.

“I can’t believe you named it,” he groaned, closing the journal and pinching the bridge of his nose. “You named an eldritch being living in your soul.”

“Her, and I gave her a choice,” Ann said. “Listen, that was part of a test, as well. I was trying to see if it had the capacity to identify itself by a name and definition. She decided that the name fit best and that she preferred to be thought of as female. This all means she’s sapient, and fully self aware. She calls herself a force of whatever the fuck, but I think Waheela might be more than that. Can’t really put my finger on it, but talking to her is a step.”

Bren raised a hand.

“If you’re going to tell me to be careful, yeah. I know. I also know it was risky letting her feed off the excess soul power or whatever that was. Really need to talk about that with Orenous, too, because she’s omitted things. So, questions?”

All five of the others exploded, talking over each other, trying to get their questions out first.

“Alright, Wendyl first,” Ann decided.

“How big was she again?”

“Fucking huge. I don’t think I even saw her full body. Not even close. Bren?”

“Did she feel dangerous? Actively evil?”

“More hungry and pissed off. She wants to consume me to be free. With what she’s said, I think that makes sense. Lucia?”

“Like Kat?”

“Eh. Kinda. She was definitely more willing to talk to me. That alone gives her points. Anything I can talk to, we can at least figure something out with. Rosalyn?”

“Are you ok? It sounds absolutely terrifying.”

Ann cocked her head, thinking about it for a second, then nodded. “Yeah. I’m alright for now. It was scary for sure, but once I knew she was chained, a lot of that tension went away. I’m relatively safe as long as I keep my distance. Kat?”

“Was she hot?”

Ann stopped, staring at her girlfriend. Then laughed. She laughed and laughed. Wiping tears from her eyes, she looked back up at Kat who was grinning at her.

“I’ve got a more serious question, but I figured I’d ask. Fer tradition’s sake,” Kat chuckled.

“No. Waheela was a giant animal. Not hot at all,” Ann giggled. “What was the real question?”

“Ye think our shite knows about each other? Like, does she know about me dragon?”

“It didn’t come up, but she at least seems to know what I’ve seen and heard. If she could talk to the dragon, she didn’t give any hints. I’m kinda glad about that, because it means that whatever I’ve done to you doesn’t stay connected to me. Well, maybe that’s not a great thing. If it was connected, I could just die and free you.”

“Nope,” Rosalyn and Kat said in unison.

“You’re not dying,” Rosalyn insisted. “Not while we can help it.”

“Front of the line, then. Wendyl, you’re up again,” Ann declared.

“You hungry or thirsty?” The enchanter asked, messing with her mohawk and getting it back into place.

“Yeah. Really thirsty, and kinda hungry. You three really wrung me out,” Ann said with a grin.

Wendyl just winked back and disappeared back into the shop.

“Bren, shoot!”

“I can not do so. I do not have a gun.”

“Expression, man,” Ann groaned. “I thought that one would survive if guns did.”

“I suppose not. Regardless, what did you see regarding her restraints? Were they strong? Were there any signs of faltering?”

“Not that I could see,” Ann said, going back to the memory. “Solid purple glowing chains and shackles. Big old collar around her neck, too. I gotta ask if Orenous can make that read Waheela.”

“Make it read bitch,” Kat suggested.

“Called her an eight titted bitch who needs to calm all of them,” Ann chuckled.

“YOU DID NOT!”

“Did too. Anyway, more questions.”

“Do you think this is going to happen to me?”

The room turned to look at Rosalyn, fidgeting with her hands. Her hazel eyes looked around, then rested on Ann.

“I… don’t know,” Ann sighed. The energy in the room flatlined as they all considered the question. “Illdall said Kat’s was because of her being with me. You’re with me. I… I don’t… I think so.”

“Oh no,” Rosalyn said in a small voice. She curled up into herself on the floor and started rocking. “I don’t want something scary in me. I don’t want voices and all that up here. It’s not me.”

Wendyl returned, read the room, and set the refreshments down quietly.

Kat and Ann dropped to the ground, wrapping Rosalyn between them.

“Hush, lamb,” Kat whispered. “We don’t even know if it will. It’s just Ann an’ I so far. If ye do, we can try tae figure out a way tae help.”

“I’ll bully whatever the hell wants to bully you back. Got it, lambchop?” Ann whispered, gently stroking one of Rosalyn’s horns.

“What if you can’t, though? I don’t know what I’ll do. I can barely talk to new people unless I kinda know what they like. Some awful monster in me? Nonono.”

“Shhh,” Ann comforted. “We’ll figure it out. We’ve got some priests to talk to later, and maybe they can help with a spell or something to let us visit.”

“It should be possible in theory,” Bren said with a pensive look.

“Your healer’s right,” Wendyl agreed. “You can do some tricky stuff with the right spells or enchantments. Shit, potions can get pretty freaky too, but alchemy’s outside my skills. Plants and liquids, and all sorts of other messy crap. If anyone can link your souls, it’ll be a priest.”

“Linking souls sounds dangerous in itself, though, right?” Ann asked.

“If the Warp is spreadin’ between our souls, aye, but if we figure out that Rosalyn’s changin’ already, it’s not like we’re gonna do more harm. Corruption progresses in weeks, an’ ye’re a beast at the end. If Rosalyn doesn’t ‘ave any o’ the mental markers fer the Warp, then odds are another o’ our Gods ‘as stepped in.”

“Yay, another voice,” Rosalyn whimpered.

“Hey, you like Orenous,” Ann said, rocking the Druid gently. “Illdall seems pretty nice, too.”

“But what if it’s Nylir? Or one of the others? There are so many Gods in the world, and we don’t even venerate all of them. What if it’s someone completely new? What if I offend them and they make it worse?”

“Rosalyn, hey, look at me,” Ann said, gently tugging on the woman’s horns until she turned. “Answer a few things for me. Do you want to leave me, to stop this from happening?”

“No!” Rosalyn cried out.

“I know,” Ann said with a smile. “Can you do anything about this right now?”

“No.”

“Will worrying about it do anything for it?”

“No.”

“Do you even know half of that will happen?”

“No,” Rosalyn shook her head with a sniffle.

“Then don’t let it hold on to you. There’s a quote from a book in my time. ‘Fear is the mind-killer’. We can’t let fear rule us and stop us from doing what we need to. Gotta choose our battles and learn to tell fear to go sit in the corner sometimes. Even when it throws a tantrum. Does that make sense?” Ann asked.

“Her time?” Wendyl asked Bren quietly.

“She will tell you,” Bren whispered back.

Wendyl shrugged and got back to munching on a sandwich.

“It makes sense,” Rosalyn nodded. It took a minute, but she composed herself, drying her eyes and blowing her nose. “I’m still scared.”

“Not a bad thing, love,” Kat purred. “I’m feckin’ scared.”

“Me too,” Ann agreed.

“Just gotta find a thing that’ll get ye through it. Mine is the two o’ ye.”

“Same here, and the whole Orenous quest stuff. Kinda have a job to do.”

“And I have a lot of Warped to inspect,” Rosalyn nodded. “Still need to figure out what makes them tick.”

“That’s the spirit,” Kat said, nuzzling the top of Rosalyn’s head with her forehead. “We’ve gotcha.”

“All of us do,” Bren agreed.

“Right,” Lucia grunted. “No Warp for me, though. Please.”

“I think ye’d have tae be feckin’ Ann, Lucia.”

Lucia shuddered. “No.”

“Aw, you don’t like me?” Ann teased. “Come on, Wendyl can attest how good I am.”

“Said no. Like you. Not like that. Not a man.”

“Not Bren?” Ann teased.

Lucia’s mouth opened then snapped shut as she turned, hiding her face.

The crimson red that covered Bren’s cheeks immediately after told Ann everything she needed to know.

“You two are adorable.”

“Not adorable!” Lucia protested.

“Look at me and say that with a straight face,” Ann cajoled. “Betcha can’t.”

“No. Refuse to play game.”

“Coward,” Ann said in a singsong voice. When Lucia didn’t rise to the bait, she looked at Bren and gave him a wink. “Take it at your own pace, but this Champion of Love finds this incredibly cute.”

“I would never. Not with the Life Debt in place,” Bren said tersely, trying to master his emotions. New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on novel{f}ire.net

“So you’re saying that after…?”

“I will consider when that time comes,” Bren nodded, finally banishing the blush from his cheeks. “I, um. Gods, I would not be opposed.”

Lucia squeaked.

Everyone in the room turned to stare at her back.

“Was rat. Don’t like,” Lucia explained weakly. “Shut up.”

“My shop doesn’t have rat problems,” Wendyl said, walking up. “Where was the bastard?”

“Uh… there,” Lucia pointed at a spot on the floor, completely out in the open, and with no hole the rat could have escaped into. “Was there. Then gone.”

“Well, where in the Hells did it go? Come on tusks! We’ve got a beast to exterminate!” Wendyl cackled as she urged Lucia into the game.

The other four watched Lucia help Wendyl set up enchanted traps around the room, explaining what she saw over and over to the Inlon, who kept pressing her for more information.

“She knows there was no rat, right?” Bren asked.

“Aye. Wendyl’s as much chaos as Rosalyn can be,” Kat laughed, watching the scene.

“I am not chaos. I take initiative. Some of the time.”

“Ye goadin’ us intae lewd activities isn’t chaos?”

“Nope. Just helping us all relax and let out our inner desires. It’s healthy and we should all take the opportunities when we can. Who knows when we’re gonna die with our lives. Right, Bren?”

Bren sputtered as Rosalyn deftly put him in the spotlight. “I… um… yeah, that’s correct. No telling at all.”

“Reminds me of a saying. Carpe diem. It’s Latin, super dead language, for ‘seize the day’. We usually took it to mean that we should live life to its fullest every day. Good words for a mercenary, I’d think.” Ann winked at the helpless healer. The only one not teasing him or Lucia was Kat, and Ann figured that was mostly because it felt weird for her. “Also, she’s your age, right? Not some old bag like Kat or I.”

“Hag!” Lucia shouted across the shop.

“Yeah, yeah, you whippersnapper!” Ann retorted. “Get off my lawn!”

“But you do not have a lawn?” Bren asked, confused.

“Another quote from a movie about an old guy who was really racist and didn’t like kids on his lawn. Ugh, I try not to reference all this shit ‘cause it’s confusing, but I guess I’m in that kind of mood,” Ann laughed.

“Wish I could see some o’ these movies ye talk about,” Kat sighed. “Sounds like they were real important tae ye.”

“They were entertaining, yeah. Kinda like I imagine plays are for you all. Damnit, now I want to show you all The Princess Bride. Best movie in the whole world. I can quote most of it. No, actually, I might be able to do all of it. If we have to travel and camp, remind me and I’ll do it before we get to bed. That needs to stick around.”

“What kind of story was it?” Bren asked, already marking a section to remind Ann.

“Kinda everything. It’s action, adventure,” Kat perked up, “romance,” that got Rosalyn’s attention, “revenge and determination. A story about a guy who’ll stop at nothing to win back his love. It’s so fucking good! Ugh, anyway. You find the rat yet?”

“Not yet, but we’ll get the little freak!” Wendyl cackled.

“Think is enough,” Lucia decided. “Too much. Suspicious to rat. Need to wait now.”

“Hey, apparently you’re the expert on traps. I hope it’s enough for how big you said it was,” Wendyl said with a completely straight face.

“Will be,” Lucia nodded confidently. Ann noticed she licked her lips as she spoke the lie. A tell! She tucked that away in her mind.

“So, what now? Think we can track down an Illdall priest to talk about whatever the hell Rowena’s told them?”

“I shudder to imagine,” Bren said. “She did not seem herself last we met.”

“Oh she’s probably worse,” Kat laughed. “Ann got her claws deep in that one.”

“Don’t remind me. So, Illdall temple?”

Everyone agreed. They thanked Wendyl for her hospitality, taking the offered food and drink, before parting ways with the enchanter.

Thirty minutes later, the white marble pillars of the Illdall temple, girded with iron and steel, stood before them.

“Let’s get this feckin’ over with.”