Wizard

The idyllic forest and river promise peace, prosperity, and relaxation. As long as they don't look beneath the water's surface...

This is a short chapter too, which I apologize for. Hindsight being what it is, I should have put the last two together. The road to hell is paved with good intentions though... Anyhow, no naughty times here, but it's all about story and plot building. More to come, I promise you that!

"Jennaca needs us," John said.

Artesia's head lifted from her stew as she looked for the young woman. She frowned and handed her bowl of stew over to Andrew, the cook's monkey. "Where is she?"

John handed his bowl over and pointed to the northeast, toward the road and the river. He started walking and said over his shoulder, "That way."

Artesia hurried to catch up. "How do you know that?"

"Remember Dilly?"

Artesia hissed. "I wondered how she knew to show up when she did. Magic?"

He nodded. "On our way to Jaspara's sanctum I called for her. She just called for me."

Artesia slowed and almost missed a step. She lengthened her stride and caught up to him quickly. "Does she know magic too?"

"No... it's a bond I have with her. All of my— all of the women I have relations with enjoy a type of bond with me. With Jennaca it's different. Stronger. We... we formed a contract between us."

"A contract? Like, you purchased her services?"

"In a sense," John said. "But it's a magical pact. Not dissimilar from what I have with my Mistress... or what Zynga has with me, I suppose."

Artesia grunted as she tried to absorb what he'd said.

Together they strode across the camp and caught the eye of Matthew, who was talking to Weston. Matthew nodded at them and walked at an angle to intersect them. Weston came with him, while Roxanne emerged from the tent she shared with her sister and Sadie. She saw them walking with a purpose and decided to join them. She still wore her metal scale armored skirt and her thigh high sandals but she'd added a short open-sided tunic that tied at her waist.

"You look like a man that's got somewhere he needs to be," Matthew noted when he and Weston joined up.

"I am," John said. "Jennaca and Helleen disappeared."

"They went to wash off," Roxanne said as she joined them. "I can't speak for your companion, but I know Helleen would prefer some privacy."

John continued to walk across the two track road and then up onto the small rise that separated the river from the road at that point.

"Milord," Matthew said. "Perhaps it would be best to let them—"

John gave a curt shake of his head. "No, it's not for the best."

Matthew and Roxanne shared a concerned look. Weston watched the two of them, uncertain what to do. Artesia quickened her pace and strode ahead of John. She reached the top of the rocky rise first and looked down to see the two women pulling their clothing back on.

John joined her a moment later. He looked down and saw Helleen buckling her sandals and Jennaca fumbling with the laces of her top. She looked up to him before he could call to her. A smile split her face and he saw her body relax.

"Are you all right?" John called down to her.

"I am— we are," Jennaca said. "You need to see this though."

Helleen let out a surprised curse and looked up and saw all five of them watching them. Her eyes narrowed. "How long have you been there?" she demanded.

"Not long enough for anyone to see what trouble you were up to," Roxanne told her sister.

Helleen frowned. "We found... something," she said. "Jennaca— saints, girl, tie that thing up before poor Weston makes a mess in his pants!"

Jennaca frowned and then gasped. "Oh, sorry, I saw John and forgot I was tying this up."

John chuckled and glanced at Weston. The young man was blushing and pretending that he hadn't been admiring her massive curves on display with her leather top untied.

"Here, let me," Helleen said and reached up to grab the laces. "You like it tight, right? Saints, girl, with boobs like yours I'm surprise you can breathe."

Jennaca's mouth fell open in shock as Helleen pulled and tugged on the loosened laces and then tied them off. She watched, stunned by her conflicting emotions as Helleen's hands and wristed brushed against her covered breasts.

"How's that?" Helleen asked.

Jennaca rolled her shoulders and took a deep breath. "That will do," she said even though she preferred them tighter.

Helleen stared at her cleavage a moment longer and then lifted her eyes back to Jennaca. The gladiatrix bit her lip and then let it slip from between her teeth into a smile. "I don't know if I'm envious or grateful to not be so well endowed."

Jennaca shrugged. "You should be neither. You are beautiful as you are. Why change that?"

"What's the problem?" John asked as he finished sliding and hopping down the steep hillside to stand on the bank of the stream near them.

"We'll continue this discussion later," Helleen said.

Jennaca flashed her a smile and turned to John. She look up into his eyes and visible relaxed. She let out a soft sigh and then shook her head and turned away. She took a few steps to bend down and picked something up. She returned to John and held it out to him. Her small hand was hidden beneath the human skull she held.

"A skull?" John asked.

"There's more," Jennaca said. She turned and pointed with her other hand. "There's a deep pool there we found. The riverbed is mostly rocky and stony here, but the current moves slow enough for some mud and silt to gather... and there are bones in them."

"Someone who drowned?" John wondered as he took the bleached white skull from her. It was picked clean, either by fish or decay, he wasn't sure.

"That's what we thought at first," Helleen agreed.

"At first?" John asked while studying the bone. The jaw bone was missing but the rest of the skull was whole except for a caved in hole in the back of it. His eyes narrowed as he studied the edges of the hole. He traced contours in the bone and asked, "There are gouges in the bone. Scratches... rocks, maybe?"

"Teeth marks," Jennaca said. "There's more than one person down there."

John frowned. "Something is dumping bodies in the stream here?"

"They're coming from upstream," Jennaca said. "The current carries them down and they get stuck there. I bet if we search we could find more further down... or upstream"

John nodded. He handed the skull to Matthew and asked Jennaca, "Any idea what kind of animal is doing this?"

Jennaca frowned and shook her head. "Not anything I've ever seen. The teeth are sharp and meant to biting and tearing flesh."

"A tiger or another great cat like Sasha?" John asked.

Sasha let out a humble roar from the limb of a nearby tree. Matthew, Roxanne, and Weston all jumped and cried out.

Jennaca grinned. "Not a cat, big or small," she said. "Not a dog or wolf either. I've never seen it before."

John turned to Matthew. "What do you think? Ever heard of anything like this?"

Matthew pushed his lips together as he considered the evidence in his hand. He shook his head and looked at John. "I have not. The river leads to Rock Haven, a town still three days travel away at the base of the mountains. They're a trading post for the settlements further north. I'd heard tell of a mining town striking a gold vane and hoped we could learn more there. Miners hard at work and suddenly wealthy would be grateful for some entertainment."

"More grateful if you'd brought whores," John mused.

Matthew's eyes bulged and then he laughed hard enough to slap his knee. When he recovered to a chuckle he looked at John and nodded. "You've got a keen business sense, milord! Between that and the sense to surround yourself with such loyal talent I suspect you are not a man to be trifled with."

"There's always a bigger fish," John said.

Matthew's eyes dropped to the skull. He nodded. "Aye, that's true enough. We'll double our guard tonight, I think."

"A wise choice," John agreed.

"I think we're safe," Jennaca said. "Safe for now, at least. Those bones came from upstream."

"Three days travel?" Matthew asked. "That's a long ways for a river to carry something."

"Three days by wagon is not three days for rushing water," Jennaca pointed out. "Three days for us would take this river six to eight hours, unless there are lake or ponds ahead."

"That fast?" Weston asked.

"The water doesn't need to rest or relieve itself. It doesn't have horses to feed or muscles to stretch," John pointed out.

Weston tilted his head and nodded as John's words made sense.

I haven't heard of any ponds or lakes," Matthew said. He shrugged and added, "I've never been up this way though."

John turned back to the river. "How many bodies do you think are in there?"

Jennaca frowned. "I'm not sure. I felt around and found three skulls, but there might have been more buried in the muck. Other bones too, but it's hard to put them back together."

John nodded.

"I could go back in and start recovering them if you'd like?" she offered.

"No no, there's no need for that," John said. "You're both wet enough as it is."

Roxanne snorted under her breath beside him.

"Well, you could help with that," Jennaca pointed out.

John started. "Oh! You're right, I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking."

"Nonsense, we've got a fire back at the camp, you can warm up and dry off there," Matthew said.

"There, all better," John said after sending his magic to dry and clean the two women.

Helleen gasped and spun around, her hand reaching for the sword on her back. When she saw nothing she turned back to John. "What was that?" she demanded.

"A simple cantrip to dry and cleanse the both of you," John said.

"Cantrip? What's that?"

"John's a w—"

"I'm a wizard," John interrupted Jennaca. He smiled at her and she blushed. She'd been about to announce he was a warlock.

Weston's eyes widened and he took a step back.

Matthew studied John with fresh eyes and then looked to Jennaca. He nodded slowly. "That's why you came looking, isn't it? You knew something?"

John smiled. "Yes, Lady Jennaca let me know I needed to see something."

"You're a wiz... a witch too?" Helleen asked.

Jennaca giggled. "Nooo! I'm just me. John and I... well..."

"When either of us has great need of the other we can call on each other. It's a magical spell we established."

"Oh!" Helleen said. "That's... so you two..."

Jennaca blushed and looked away.

"We are companions and dear friends," John said. "Magic is like your sword and armor, a tool we use to make ourselves better able to help one another and ourselves."

"I see," Helleen said. She caught Jennaca looking at her shyly and smiled. "That's good. As fearsome as Lady Jennaca is, I'm glad she has someone to help her if she needed it."

"Always," John agreed.

"And I will always help my Lord John," Jennaca vowed. She blushed and looked away before she let out a huff. "Okay, I'm clean twice over now. Can we go back to camp? I'm hungry."

John chuckled. "A double watch and a meal sounds good to me," he agreed.

Artesia caught Matthew's attention and looked at the skull in his hand. "May I?"

He smiled and handed it to her, "I won't even make you say please."

She snorted and took the skull. She studied it as the others began to make their way back up the hillside. Weston and Matthew stayed together while the sisters walked close to talk in confidence. John and Jennaca followed last while. Jennaca kept glancing at John and then away from him, he cheeks coloring over and over again as she struggled with something she couldn't find the words, or the courage, for.

Artesia glared at the river and then upstream. Sasha jumped down from the tree and leaped across the river with ease. She turned and sniffed the water before taking a quick drink of it. She rumbled softly and looked up at Artesia.

Artesia nodded back to the great cat and turned to follow the others back to camp.