The Amazon's Pledge

3

I was alone in bed when I finally awakened, and my eyelids were so heavy I felt like I'd just been roused from a ten-year magical slumber. It certainly would have explained a lot about the past few days. Kaseya still made far more sense as a figment of my imagination than an actual woman in the real world.

I was a few seconds away from accepting my newest fantasy-makes-more-sense-than-reality hypothesis when I heard a squeak and a soft grunt from the other side of the room. I turned over—a longer, more laborious process than I wanted to admit—and spotted Kaseya hanging upside down from a wooden pole suspended over the bathing pool. Her legs were curled backwards over the beam to hold herself in place, and she leaned up and touched her knees with her elbows over and over again. I had seen plenty of soldier training regimens over the years, but nothing like this.

After completing a dozen repetitions, she took a ten second break before doing a dozen more. Just watching her was exhausting...or would have been, if not for the fact she was also stark naked.

I swung my own legs out of bed, keenly aware of the stiffness in my weary cock. I reflexively tried to cover myself, only to belatedly remember that Kaseya would already know exactly what I was feeling regardless. Hiding normal secrets from her was going to be difficult enough, but hiding my mood was already proving completely impossible.

"You slept soundly?" she asked, still facing the other direction.

"Uh...yeah," I managed. "What time is it?"

"Two hours after sunrise. A servant came by and offered us food, but I turned him away until you were ready."

Kaseya stretched up to her knees again, but this time she grabbed onto the beam with her hands and let her legs fall free until she was right-side up again. She paused for a moment, then gently dropped into the water and dunked her head beneath the surface. Her lustrous mane of red hair was still untied from last night.

"Where did you get that wooden beam, anyway?" I asked.

"I inquired with the servants downstairs," she said, grabbing a dry cloth and running it over her body. "They did not seem to understand my request at first, but they became far more amenable once I threatened violence."

"Wait, you did

what

?"

"Do not worry—they are unharmed," Kaseya soothed. She finished drying herself off, then slowly sauntered back towards me. Once she was standing in front of me, her eyes drifted down to my swollen cock. "I suspected that you might require additional relief in the morning."

I grunted. "Look, you really don't need to do anything. I'm a man—I get hard all the time for basically no reason. You can't be expected to—"

"You are my

Maskari

," she interrupted. "You should have stayed on the bed."

I frowned. "Why? What are you—

oof

!"

I let out a loud and thoroughly emasculating yelp when she slammed her palms into my chest and shoved me back onto the bed. I barely had time to lean up on my elbows before she swung her leg over my waist and straddled me.

"A frustrated sorcerer is a danger to himself and everyone around him," Kaseya said, gently easing my swollen cockhead into her waiting folds. "Your mind needs to be clear."

I yelped again when my cock slid into her, though this time it sounded a lot manlier. My hands clamped around her thighs as she began to rhythmically swirl her hips, and I could feel the walls of her quim milking me with every thrust. She leaned down over her, her long wet hair spilling across my face and chest, and offered me one of her perfect breasts.

A soft moan escaped her lips when I gently sucked her nipple into my mouth, and for the first time I wondered if she was finally doing something

she

wanted rather than something the magical collar was telling her I'd enjoy. With that thought in mind, I did my best to return a tiny fraction of the pleasure she had brought me. My tongue lashed across her breasts one after the other, and the sweet sound of her mewling whimpers was enough to bring me over the edge.

I spilled deep inside her, and for a moment I actually feared I might black out when she cried into my ear from her own climax. I was so drained that I slumped back on the pillows, half-dead and ready to sleep the afternoon away.

I shook my head and placed my hands back on her hips. "Gods, I don't even know what to say at this point."

"If you are satisfied, then I have fulfilled my duty," Kaseya said.

I shook my head as she leaned up. My shriveling cock remained inside her, and she made no move to slide off or dismount.

"Look, I understand this pledge is important to you, but it's not fair for everything to be about me all the time."

"Then you do

not

understand my pledge," Kaseya countered. "You are the

Maskari

. Your will and desires are absolute."

I sighed. "Can you at least tell me that you enjoyed yourself?"

"Of course I did. The collar ensures that I experience your pleasure as if it were my own."

I arched an eyebrow at her. "Wait, so if I finish...you feel it too?"

"I did not at first, but our bond is already strengthening," Kaseya said. "I suspect that I will soon share your arousal and desire mutual release."

"Wow," I breathed. "Whatever sorcerer invented these devices in your culture...I can't decide if he was a genius or a real creep."

She frowned. "I do not understand."

"Never mind," I muttered, leaning up and gently helping her off of me. I didn't think I'd had anything left to give her after spilling inside her four separate times last night, but then I saw how much of my seed was trickling down her legs.

We returned to the pool, and I heated the water with sorcery again before I finally dunked my own head. As the minutes ticked by, I became more and more aware of how much I needed to enjoy this luxury while it lasted. I didn't even have enough coin left for a second night, which meant I really needed to tell her the truth about why I had fled to Highwind...

"Your mood darkens," Kaseya commented.

I grunted.

If this bond really is strengthening, then there's no way you'll be able to hide much of anything from her for long.

You might as well just come clean now.

"Last night I told you that I decided to finally flee Vorsalos because I didn't have any powerful friends left to protect me," I said, bracing myself. "That's not the whole truth."

Kaseya nodded. "I know."

"You're probably wondering why I didn't tell you the rest."

"As the

Maskari

, you are under no obligation to tell me anything," she replied mildly.

I closed my eyes and pinched my nose. Every time I thought I'd shaken my guilt about treating her like a slave, she went and said something like that.

"For one, you should probably start calling me Jorem. For two, you deserve the truth," I said. "You are not my slave. I don't own you."

To my surprise, she didn't immediately correct me. She just stared at me quizzically while she brushed her hair.

"These women that are chasing me, the Senosi...I used to help them out from time to time," I said.

"I do not understand. You said they were trained to hunt and kill sorcerers."

"They are. But sometimes they needed help, and on occasion I was willing to provide it in exchange for coin." I bit my tongue, realizing just how awful this sounded when I actually spoke the words aloud. "Anyway the point is that I had a...well, I had a

relationship

with one of them. She paid me and helped protect me from others. In exchange, I would occasionally help her track down and capture particularly dangerous sorcerers—the ones who were legitimately a threat to everyone else."

"But then something changed," Kaseya reasoned.

"Yeah," I murmured. "When the Inquisitrix discovered that we were working together, my friend disappeared. I never saw her again after that, and I suddenly had half the city looking for me. I needed to get out of there."

Kaseya swam across the water and placed her hands on my shoulders. "You do not have to worry now. I will protect you."

"I know," I said, smiling. Her relentless attachment to this pledge of hers rotated between creepy and downright disturbing, but she had a genuine innocence about her that I couldn't help but admire. "But the Senosi aren't the only problem. Like I said, I also needed their coin. It's hard to sell your services as a sorcerer with the Inquisitrix breathing down your neck."

"Your culture values coin too highly."

"Yeah, well, one problem at a time," I muttered. "The point is that half the reason I came here is to try and find some work. After last night...well, let's just say we won't be staying in a nice room like this much longer."

Kaseya shrugged. "I do not mind sleeping beneath the stars. And I am more than capable of hunting enough game to provide for us."

"I'm sure you are," I said. "And you wouldn't even complain about it for a second, would you?"

"No. Why would I?"

"Let's just say that in my experience, gorgeous women aren't usually interested in hanging around with men who can't afford to put food on the table or a roof over their heads."

"Then you have met some very foolish gorgeous women," Kaseya said.

I grinned and ran my fingers through her hair. It seemed impossible, but I could feel my cock stirring beneath the waterline yet again. "Compared to you, every woman I've ever met seems foolish."

She smiled and leaned in close enough that her nipples touched my chest, and I felt her hand brush against my cock and guide it back to the smoldering entrance of her quim.

"Would you like to fornicate again before we leave?"

"Yes," I said, grabbing her by the waist. "Yes, I would."

***

Two hours and another mind-blowing-but-belatedly-guilt-inducing copulation later, Kaseya and I were out on the bustling streets of Highwind. No one tried to kill us when we left the inn, either, which I always considered a promising sign for the day ahead.

"So many people," Kaseya murmured next to me. "Even more than Vorsalos."

"Almost twice as many, as hard as that is to believe," I said. "Highwind is pretty much the only mainland gateway to the Shattered Coast."

"Nol Krovos feels empty compared to this."

I turned and studied her profile. I had only known her for a day and a half, but I already considered her one of the most unflappable people I'd ever met. The crowd was clearly making her anxious, however, so I gently took her arm and nudged her off the main street. We gradually maneuvered our way back to the edge of the district where we had been ambushed last night, and just like I expected there were plenty of guardsmen stationed around the area.

"All right, I'm going to have a chat with one of these guys and see if I can learn anything," I said, leading Kaseya into a nearby alleyway. "You should stay here. You're a lot more...

memorable

. I don't want one of the locals to point us out to the guards."

She eyed me warily. "I will do as you wish, of course, but I cannot defend you unless you are nearby."

"I'll be fine," I assured her. "What's the range on this collar of yours, anyway? Will you still be able to sense my mood?"

"The bond endures across great distances."

"I figured as much. If things go badly, you'll still know when I'm in trouble."

Kaseya nodded. "Yes."

"Then just hold tight. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Taking a deep breath, I slipped back around the corner and approached the nearest guard. The scene of the battle had long since been cleared, naturally, but with luck one of these grunts would still have something useful to tell me about the identity of our attackers.

"Lots of folks seem to be steering clear of this place today," I commented from just behind the guard's shoulder. "Something happen last night?"

The man turned and scowled at me with his ugly, pock-marked face. "Mind your business. Move along."

I grunted and crossed my arms. "Sorry to bother you. I just wondered what was going on. I own a shop near the canal and I was hoping to—"

"I said mind your business," he growled. "If you don't live here, then get the hell out."

I bit down on my lip and glanced around to see if anyone else nearby was paying attention to us. Fortunately the guards were fairly spread out, and the bustle of the nearby streets drowned out casual conversation quite easily.

All of which meant I had another option to get the answers I wanted.

"I just need to you ask you a few questions, friend," I said, reaching out to the Aether and using its power to plumb the guard's mind. "I promise it won't take long."

The guard pivoted all the way around, still scowling, until my eyes met his and my magic took hold. I hadn't figured out how to manipulate the minds of more than one person at a time yet, unfortunately, but I had learned how to control one reasonably well. Manipulating idiots was an essential skill for anyone who wanted to survive on the fringes of society.

"Sure, no problem," he said, smiling helpfully. Somehow it made him look even uglier. "What can I do for you, friend?"

"I heard there was a fight here last night," I said, gesturing back to the street. "Do you know who was responsible?"

The man sighed and shrugged. "Just the usual. These guild wars are getting worse and worse every week."

I cocked an eyebrow. "'Guild wars?'"

"That's what the boss is calling it. Ever since the Black Mistress took the reins of the Undercity, the old guilds have been struggling to unseat her. I think they were trying to waylay one of her shipments last night, but a couple of travelers stumbled into it by accident and fucked the whole thing up. Kind of funny, actually."

I nodded idly as I tried to pull the pieces together. They weren't fitting particularly well just yet. "I heard there was a woman alongside these thugs. Lots of leather, a red scarf...do you know anything about her?"

The guard snickered. "You sure you aren't thinking about the brothel? Sounds like costume night."

I smiled back. "Maybe the one who mentioned her to me was just hallucinating."

"Probably, though the thugs here were working for someone, a foreigner I'd bet. The captain thinks that some of the other city-states are trying to take advantage of the chaos."

"I wouldn't put it past them," I murmured, my mind still racing through the possibilities. "What about this 'Black Mistress?' Anything you can tell me about her?"

"Not really," the guard said. "No one knows her name or background, but she practically transformed the Undercity overnight. She's obsessed with magic—she's been recruiting Academy drop-outs and Mage Guild exiles for months."

I felt both my eyebrows perk up. "Is that so?"

"She and her cronies have been selling their illegally enchanted goods all over the city. The Archmage is livid, of course."

"Of course."

"A lot of folks think she's running some kind of slavery ring, too, but who knows?"

I pursed my lips. The longer I maintained the charm spell, the more likely someone would notice—and the more potential damage I could cause to the victim's mind. I didn't have much more time. "Do you have any idea how to get in contact with the Black Mistress?"

"No one does, as far as I can tell," the guard. "The Undercity is a damn maze these days. Her people have thrown up illusions everywhere. The Knights of the Silver Fist sent a patrol down there last week, and even they couldn't purge the spells fast enough to figure out where they were going. It's going to take a lot more coin and effort than the Council is willing to invest right now."

"I see," I said. "Well, thanks for help. I'm sure I'll be seeing you around."

"No problem." The man smiled again and clapped me on the arm. "We should get drinks sometime!"

I grinned back. "I'd like that."

I rendezvoused with Kaseya a few minutes later, and I led her further down the street on the off chance the guard actually remembered our meeting and tried to do something about it. A true enchanter could probably prevent that particular side effect, but sorcery was inherently unpredictable.

"You seem...conflicted," she said once we reached a reasonably private corner a few blocks away. "What did you learn?"

"Apparently the reason that Senosi Huntress didn't engage is because she wasn't actually there for us," I said. "She hired those thugs to ambush a shipment of illegal enchanted goods."

Kaseya's face didn't light up with surprise like I expected. She looked more relieved than anything, which I found odd...

"A strange but fortuitous coincidence, then," she said.

"In a way," I said. "From the sound of it, there's an ongoing power struggle between several different factions of the underworld right now. The strongest one is led by a woman they call the 'Black Mistress,' whose major crime seems to be harboring uncertified spellcasters and circulating illegal magical items."

"She sounds like a potential ally," Kaseya said.

"Maybe," I said, furtively glancing about in search of eavesdroppers. "I don't know for certain, but I bet that Huntress was sent here by the Inquisitrix to try and help overthrow the Black Mistress. Not because she cares about Highwind, of course—she just knows that destabilizing the city is in Vorsalos's best interests."

Kaseya nodded absently. I still thought her reaction was a little strange, and I made mental note to ask her about it later.

"The important thing is that apparently this Huntress isn't after us," I went on. "We may have smacked down her thugs, but it sounds like she has more important things on her plate right now. All in all, I'd say we're reasonably safe for the moment."

"What about this Black Mistress? Do you wish to try and contact her?"

"I don't know how—yet." I paused and considered our options. "Well, we still need coin regardless, and I suspect our best bet is probably some good, old-fashioned mercenary work. Assuming you're up for it."

"You know I am,

Maskari

," Kaseya said.

I sighed. "We talked about this. You can just call me Jorem."

"As you wish," she said, smiling faintly. "Jorem."

"Better," I said, grinning. "Before I left, a friend of mine recommended I check the official bounty boards maintained by the Highwind Guard. Most of the guilds won't bother will small-time contracts, but it's a decent way to make connections and prove your worth."

"To whom?" Kaseya asked.

It was a good question, probably even better than she realized. I had fled Vorsalos out of desperation, not because I'd concocted a grand scheme to acquire riches. I would have loved to study magic here, but from what I'd heard the Highwind Academy didn't accept sorcerers. Apparently their current Headmistress—a haughty high elf, if my information was correct—was also a tremendous bitch.

I couldn't hire myself out as a mercenary spellcaster for the same reason: every reputable business and guild in town required an Academy certificate up front. The only ones left were the "disreputable" businesses and guilds, which, to be fair, were the people I had the most experience dealing with anyway.

"I'm sure there are plenty of folks in this city willing to pay good coin for a competent sorcerer," I said. "Especially one with an even more competent bodyguard."

I asked for directions from the nearest shopkeeper, and they directed me to the board near the district's exit. The postings were even more numerous than I had expected. Some paid almost nothing, and plenty of others struck me as downright fraudulent. But perhaps that was just my Vorsalosian cynicism talking.

"If you cannot choose, perhaps you should consult the Aether for guidance," Kaseya suggested.

I turned and frowned. "How so?"