Seed of the Void

Authors Notes:

Isaen and Eris have escaped the Voidhold, but are they out of the Elves' reach yet? In their adventure to the far-off world of Minhaven, they must first survive the dark voyage on the patchwork freighter called the Gorgon. How will they pass the time and build their partnership?

Thanks as always to my editor KenjiSato!

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Chapter 6: Flight of the Gorgon

Small nervous mutterings distracted Isaen, as they slowly treaded deeper into the long corridors of the Gorgon. Eris was nervously fidgeting with her lower lip and muttering under her breath, as they were closed into the ship to the sound of hellish scrapes of metal made by the wharf hands riveting its many hatches shut. It was dim within, most of the magical power focused on warming up the engines. Dozens of occupants sat amidst the cargo, making for themselves small nooks of their own space with blankets, boxes, and their own baggage.

"The Gorgon is not a luxury ship." The gnome who had greeted them at the hatch wrinkled his nose, as the smell of the passengers wafted around the large cargo hold, they traversed. "Hey! You! Do not move the crates like that! You will mess up my ledger!" The terse gnome yelled at a man and his family adjusting some of the stock to give themselves some privacy. Whether they would listen as the small, red-pointed hat-wearing gnome passed would be another story.

When the corridor opened up into the much larger cargo bay, Eris looked a bit less green. Isaen saw her eyeing different spots to hide and recluse amongst the freight. It was sort of cute how her eyes were always on the exit. She would learn quickly how to use that instinct if she proved herself loyal enough.

"But your chip gives you access to the front half of the ship, nearest to the officers' quarters, and access to amenities."

It was surprising Callista had set him up as much, but according to her crazed father, he was the prized steer.

"Your cabin will be right this way."

They passed into another long, dim corridor, the muttering of the passengers in the cargo hold, wailing of babes, and general clamor, as the engines hummed to life, fading behind them. Eris held her arms across her body, shivering as they slipped into yet another confined space, only one way in or out.

She did need to learn to relax. Her nervousness almost looked suspicious. Isaen pushed her gently in the small of her back and rubbed the back of her neck between his fingers.

"Easy," he whispered into her ear.

Her eyes had lost a fair bit of their steeliness, like a trapped alley cat, she looked cornered. And cats, when cornered, tend to scratch.

"Peena." The gnome reached high above its head, rapping his baton on a wooden lectern where a figure lay their head asleep.

"Huh? Uh? Are we, are we leaving?" A sleepy-eyed Feralin rose with a groggy slur. The Feralin, while humanoid, had larger, pointed ears covered in colorful fur that ran to their scalp. This particular one had reddish-brown fur from ear-tip to nape, and amidst their more pointed teeth, had a long, dog-like tongue.

Perturbed, the gnome didn't stop rapping the baton against the lectern, annoyed with his colleague's laziness.

"You lazy slog, better for the petty officer to find you asleep, but here I always do. If this were my ship, you'd be draining the bilge."

Ripping the baton from the small gnome's hand, Peena the Feralin snarled, tossing the wooden stick to the other side of the room.

"This ain't your ship or your block. Don't you have an inventory to keep somewhere?"

"Toadwallop, don't you know not to upset the quartermaster?" The gnome scattered to pick up his baton and marched back towards the corridor he came from, with a huff. "We'll see the next time you ask for spares what you get."

"Yeah, yeah, deprive those here in the fore of the ship, I dare you, you little pisswallow."

The gnome dashed away angrily, his shouting at the other passengers in the cargo hold echoing around, as Isaen and Eris stood silent in witness to the exchange.

"Sorry about him, sir, ma'am. Surely, he is not too pleasant a steward to welcome you aboard."

"Don't come from pleasant, so it's all right."

"Right..." He looked over the dark, dispositioned man and the suspiciously nervous-looking girl beside him.

"Well, right this way, your cabin is ahead." He inspected the wooden chip as the whole ship rocked side to side. "Mind your feet as we pull off, maybe a bit of a bump, the help here on the docks looked less than capable."

Exchanging a look, Isaen and Eris silently agreed.

The halls of the forward section of the Gorgon, while not a cargo hold, were done up as best as the crew of a dingy freighter could manage. Barrels and crates were kept in every nook and cranny they could, the trio having to squeeze between them as they proceeded through.

"Ah, here." The Feralin nudged open a wooden door with his foot, as he brought his guests to their cabin.

Inside, it was dark, but with a flick of flint, a set of lanterns was lit to give the space a rather homey feel. There was little in the way of true furniture. The tables were crates of more cargo, the bed was on planks atop another series of crates, and some shelves were made up of barrels stacked with metal sheets. The two chairs at the center of the room were the only true furniture. But it was, at least, private and secure.

"It's better than the cargo hold, or worse, the aft. Quiet here, too, hmmm." He scratched his furry ears while tossing Isaen the key to the room. "It's yours till we make Minhaven. Food is in the galley near the cargo bay, you get the privilege of five rations a day. I don't see anything about her..."

"She's a slave, I'll give her the scraps." Isaen didn't want their host to look too much into the girl.

"Ah... 'kay. Well, chow... got that... there is a bath further towards the bow. Just give me a heads up and I'll have it drawn for you."

A bath... after all that he had been through the past several days, from the pit to the streets. Eris looked like she could hardly believe one was so close, her eyes looking to Isaen, questioning whether he would even let her see it. Of course, he would... but that was his selfish wish.

"Enjoy, don't get in the crew's way. This, after all, is a freighter primarily. Everyone is just cargo; you just happen to be..." he waved his hands around the cabin "... more precious cargo."

With a deafening whine of seizing metal hinges, the door came to a close. Their ears popped in the newfound quiet with the change in air pressure, and Eris stumbled amidst the lurch of the ship. It was quiet up this way, aside from a faint ringing that tormented Isaen, most likely the magical field keeping all the air on the ship and not being sucked into the void that resonated at such a frequency. Standing awkwardly, Eris looked around like a scared rabbit, ready to scurry to a hole should she find one. But aside from a few barrels and crates she could hide behind, this was it. She was locked on this ship with him. No matter the deal they struck, she still looked leery of him, after all, he did just fuck her in the alleyway without so much as an invitation.

A young woman would naturally feel uneasy being alone in a dim room with a dark stranger. But they had a deal, she worked for him. Sliding off his pack, he dropped it behind a set of crates to at least partially conceal it. Then he found a stool at the table, all the while staring at his new partner as she held completely still.

"You gonna sit? Or something?" He crossed his arms across the table and leered at his little minion in her short green dress.

"Something..." She held her arms close to her chest.

"Make yourself at home."

Home was such a foreign concept to her. Eris never really had a home.

"Sure..." She similarly slipped off her bag and hid it behind a barrel. But instead of sitting down, she stood, guarded.

"You know... you did good back there." Isaen decided she needed some encouragement.

Her eyes shot back and forth, still looking for that hole to scurry in.

"I was wondering how committed you were, but you turned out to be made of solid stuff." He kicked back, picking his teeth, unsanctimoniously.

"I've done what I've had to, to survive." She felt the green velvet of her sleeves as if she were cold.

"And you still do now. Getting on a ship with a stranger, off into the void." He smiled, amused with her contradictions, and smiled more, knowing just how wrapped around his finger she had become.

The thought of it made her look even more nervous.

"What is it you are so afraid of? Sounds like you've been around the block to survive."

"But I've never been a slave..." She shuddered, looking at her master with big, welling eyes. "No matter the sacrifices I've made to survive, I've always been able to walk away from them." The four corners of the cabin felt smaller to her, as she perceived them as her cage.

"Oh... is that what this is about." Isaen leaned in intently. "You know I just had to say what I had to say to get 'em off our backs." He shrugged.

"But you said I work for you now... anything you want me to do."

"Yeah... work. I said there would be rewards. Hardly makes you a slave."

"Doesn't sound very free."

"You think anyone is free, girl?" The screech of his wooden stool on the metal deck echoed around the cabin as he stood and walked over to her. Several heads taller, he loomed over her small frame, taking her chin in his hand, which he gave willingly. "We are all slaves to this life... it's just about what you get out of it."

Her eyes followed his as he lectured; silently, she clenched her lips.

"Unlike a slave, you're gonna get some benefit out of this arrangement." A gold coin appeared between his fingers, which he twirled between them in a glimmering dance that stole the girl's eyes. "Like I told you, stick with me and I'll give you a good adventure... and reward." He strummed her small pink lips with the gold coin until she relaxed them enough that he inserted it between them, letting go and letting it hang there in her mouth.

"That's just part two of your starting bonus." He walked away, leaving her to ponder the gold coin she dropped into her hand. "Now, I bet you were interested in that bath as much as me." He stepped towards the door, preparing to peek out and find the Feralbin... Farealine... Feralin... whatever. "Let's go freshen up."

"Let's?" Eris was stuck on the plurality of it.

Having opened the door slightly, he shut it again. Crossing his arms and leaning against the bulkhead, he offered a slick smile. "Listen... you're fast and have great sleight of hand and you're a survivor, like me. But if I wanted a solid companion for my travels, I would have gotten some mercenary lingering in the streets. I picked you because you are cute."

He, of course, didn't mention that since she was a girl, it gave him good cover and access to more women to breed, but he would leave that detail out for now.

"And because you are cute... you are going to have some extra duties."

Eris' eyes dimmed, the girl looking a bit hollow.

Isaen sighed, approaching her and placing his hands on her shoulders. "I'll treat you good. And I won't let anyone else touch you." He lifted her chin to stare into her eyes. "I don't think that is a half-bad deal, eh?"

She looked to a far corner, as she thought about it.

"What was that back there then?" She thought about the wharf and how he nearly made her suck off several wharf hands.

"Just a test."

"No more tests then?" She looked at him with intent.

Isaen grinned, he liked this girl a lot. "No more tests." Though truthfully, he couldn't promise anything.

With a momentary agreement, they accepted their arrangement, each with their own concerns and hopes for the partnership.

---

"Estel-Loch, we are observing the departure of several voidcraft, each with its own orientation." The Fae-Ion, hand atop a glowing pinkish stone, uttered in a voice that echoed through the very void itself. Through magics, the stone would carry his words to sister stones nearby; harmonized together, they enabled the elves to communicate beyond the trappings of the air within their lungs.

His fingers felt the energy of the stone as he grasped it, several long breaths keeping his focus as he waited for a response; meanwhile, his eyes observed the rickety voidcraft of the lesser beings sliding through the black sea of the void away from the Tamberan Voidhold.

"We have yet to find the subjects of our charge, though they have left their stench upon the trail of our pursuit. Search the outgoing vessels, perhaps the vermin have grown complacent now that they make their flight." A voice, one only the Fae-Ion could hear in his thoughts, responded. It was that of Marthion, the Estel-Loch of the elven Inquisition.

"It will be as charged, Estel-Loch," he said aloud, prompting the attention of his cadre on the bridge. Looking to his Maethors, his curled lip issued orders. "Send forth barges, warn the outgoing vessels of our search. They shall comply or be subject to the judgment of the Ethereal Empire."

Slipping through the black of the void, a half-dozen ships, large and small, made their flight from the Tamberan Voidhold as they would on any normal day. Some, at the sight of the glistening white hull of the elvish Vintelor Blacktide, made haste. The Gorgon, being the largest among this group and furthest from the Tower, was hardly warm enough to make the final push through the vacuum in the direction of Minhaven when white daggers from the belly of the Blacktide emerged.

Swiftly, silently, these voidcraft fashioned by the most adept of the elvish voidsmiths cut through the stars to intercept their targets. Dodging around smaller asteroids amidst the field of debris the Tamberan Voidhold resided in, it would be no time before the first of their targets were in range. With stones similar to that within the grasp of the Fae-Ion, they ordered the craft to heave to and prepare to be bordered. Most complied, but those keen to make a swift jump out of range of the elvish pursuers met a fiery end at the hand of mana beams cutting through their hulls.

Searches were made, suspicious subjects consolidated to be brought for questioning on the Blacktide, and the final approach on the largest target, the Gorgon came to pass. Sleek daggers of white would latch onto its hull, warning the large freighter that the Ethereal Elvish Empire cared not how many mortal souls were aboard.

They only cared about compliance.

---

Before they even got near the bathroom they had begun to sweat. The boiling pipes of the ship were clearly the source of the warm water to allow them such a bath. Peena led them to another private room, inside a large metal basin connected to several iron pipes steamed at the center.

The Feralin's eyes looked at the man and girl, his shiftiness judging the pair as he slipped out behind them.

"Enjoy." The sentiment was less than enthusiastic, as the hatch came to a close.

Isaen wondered about that one, debating whether he should keep his bag on him or if that furry-eared character was going to rifle through their things as he was distracted here. For that matter, he didn't want to take too much time here. Shedding his outer layer, he felt the steam across his dirty skin for the first time in ages. So much pain and strife since the last time he had such a bath. The cost alone for such a thing was prohibitive, but even since he had a river to bathe in, it had been a while.

He had no shame in getting nude in front of Eris, the girl looking shyly away as his man-meat hung low. She was well acquainted with the feeling of that part of Isaen, but had not looked at it much since she was cleaning it with her mouth.

"Don't take your time, I don't trust that Feralin." Dipping one leg at a time in the basin, he slipped into the water with a deep exhale.

Eris stood, still clothed, near the door.

"Tsk, common, didn't we just talk about this? You've been on the streets how long?"

"A while."

It was so evident she wanted in, but sharing it with a man-sword was her only reservation.

"You've had to do some things to survive, now you have to do some things for a little bit of pleasure." He looked her up and down. "Tell you what. I won't touch you, just get in." He raised his hands as proof of his innocence.

Eris looked unsure whether she could trust him to keep his hands off. Especially since he called the shots.

Her brows furrowed as she glared at him, communicating her mistrust.

"Ok, I'll put it this way, I won't touch you during THIS bath." He nodded his head matter-of-factly.

Despite its implications, it sounded like a much more honest statement. "Fine..." she sighed, kicking off her boots.

Isaen, of course, didn't say he wouldn't look at her. Each bit of clothing she slipped off was a stirring sight. Her stockings, panties, cape, and then dress, all fell to the iron deck before the bright skin of the girl was revealed. She was just as sweaty as he was. Her petite body was weary from its endeavors throughout her difficult existence. Surely, they would both sleep well that night. But for the moment, Isaen was wondering how he would get to sleep close to such a handsome yet feral thing. As she neared the tub, his leering became more evident, but Eris endured it, struggling to lift her short leg into the basin, and giving him a good view of her hairy slit between her legs.

"Here." He held a hand for her, to help her in.

She gritted her teeth knowing what he was looking at, but accepted the help anyway.

"We'll have to take care of that later."

"Care of what?" she snapped.

"Oh, don't worry about it." He sat back, keeping his arms on the side of the basin, holding on to it as if to prevent them from having a mind of their own and groping her.

As the water quieted, the newly minted companions settled into the heavenly warm liquid, washing away the grime of the world around them. There were no words shared for the longest time, both simply shifted their eyes around, stealing glances at each other that they didn't dare admit with a linger to be caught.

Silently, Eris contemplated her situation. While immeasurably better than her life scraping off a living in the streets of the Tamberan Voidhold, she then had to wrestle with the unknown factor of her new benefactor. It was evident, in part, what he wanted from her. She had hoped to avoid such an existence, but she knew that with each passing day in the Voidhold, it was becoming more and more likely she would turn up dead.

The stiff confliction on her face was telling to Isaen. It was something they both had in common, a rough past. He could sympathize with that, and knew she understood that only through making deals with the devil could they survive. She made her deal with him, and he had made his own deal with Cicero and Callista. She was right, in part, when she equated her situation to a slave-- both of them were slaves-- it was just a matter of how much value they could derive from it.

As the steam washed away the pain and muck that had been caked on them, their bodies melted into the warm waters of the basin. It wasn't entirely large enough that they had no contact. Isaen could feel her bony hips between his legs, an electrifying feeling he wasn't shy about. Eris seemed to ignore it, holding herself at neck level in the water, looking at a far corner of the room. Washed, with her hair wet and less knotted, he was starting to see she was a rather beautiful lass. Her large eyes, flowing wet hair, and alabaster skin were contrary to her sharp, witty, and jaded personality. Seeing her this way, he realized just why she kept herself in such a ragtag condition in the streets-- being pretty and alone was a death sentence in the Void.