Chapter 136.
Jeff took a deep breath, enjoying the warmth of the bed as his brown eyes looked at the slanted skylight above, showing an early morning sun still struggling to push night back. The room had a wardrobe to the left and a door on the opposite end of the room. Plain oak took up both walls and floor. It was….decent, on its own terms. The woman at his right side currently staring at him under the grey blankets, however, made the room really light up in his estimation.
Pache's green eyes were fixed on the grey-haired man. Her small chin was unmoving beneath puckered, thick lips. The queen was a tanned woman with a crooked nose and wide ears sticking out of her black bowl cut. None would consider her a prize. Though beneath the grey blankets lay a visage of female goodness that was certainly to his taste.
"Good morning," He finally announced to Pache. "Sadly, it seems you beat me to the greeting."
The queen kept still for a moment before she pressed her lips into his.
'Now that's the way to start the day,' Jeff mused to himself.
Another second of sweetness played on his tongue before it ended with her retreat.
"I love you, Harold." She stated, green eyes filled with both the stated emotion and trepidation.
"And I you," Jeff answered back, giving her a kiss of his own.
Their relationship was built on a lot of lies, but not that portion. Never that one. As was the way with humans, his loins and heart wanted true love, and their wants overtook whatever other notions resided in his head.
He loved her, in the exact same way he had Annie. And this time, he would not let his heart's prize meet an ill fate, no matter what threat came at them. Such a sentiment clashed with the fact that his own actions were the greatest danger to said love.
Any guilt over that was assuaged by the fact Pache was clearly keeping a dangerous secret from him. A thinking man would demand to know what it was. Jeff was just hopeful that, whatever it was, it would be so horrific and terrible that it would blot out his own future betrayal when Eli finally revealed himself to the world.
"I did get that map marked for you," Pache offered, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Some vague memory of what she was talking about came to him. Days ago, he had asked about spots far out of the way of any traffic, places even smugglers wouldn't bother. Some scheme of the quad mage's handed down through his radio from the ever-watchful airship above.
"Thanks," Jeff said as he slid a hand down to her bottom. "I have friends who will be very happy to have their scouting cut down."
The fact that he had probably fouled up the plan Eli had for the information was a far-off thought. Instead, he focused on the woman currently pressing her bare self into him.
"And was there anything you wanted in exchange?" He asked, smile as sweet as he could make it.
Those green eyes rolled, both amused and irritated that he had guessed her intent. Pache then unleashed a long breath on his chest.
"I've noticed that the maids have been left unmolested." She mused, those green pools looking into his brown ones for confirmation.
"If such treatment has occurred, it wasn't my doing, I assure you," Jeff answered, his smile now only mostly genuine.
"In my talks with the captains, they told me you never stopped by the harbor for any taverns or brothels in the smaller ports."
Understanding of what she was aiming towards came to him. With it, a renewed smile.
"No, I'm afraid it's hard to get excited when I have this prospect waiting for me," Jeff emphasized the statement with a squeeze of her bottom.
Pache, far from upset at the groping, had her chin shake as tears began falling down her smooth cheekbones.
"Harrrollld."
The long, droning cry only emphasized the way she clung to him. An expected shoving of her lips into his followed, though only for a second. Pache pulled back slightly, resting her chin just below his collarbone. More tears fell down her face to patter on his skin. This emotional breakdown still wasn't enough to stop her next words.
"That means everything to me, Harold. My heart is possessive. Yes, the spreading of magical talent and all that but…. It was never going to get what it wanted. My position wouldn't let me take a peasant man, yet any man of magic would surely demand-"
Words finally failed. Her jaw worked soundlessly for a second before she got a determined look. Green eyes went hard as thick lips puckered. If Pache didn't immediately follow up by sliding her bare body on top of his, Jeff might have had the available brainpower to wonder what was coming.
"What can I give you?" The queen demanded.
His brown eyes slid down towards the womanly bits pressed into him.
"Not that!" Pache chuckled as she swatted his left side. That bit of merriment lasted for a second longer before she leaned closer to him with renewed determination. "You get that in abundance already. Something else, a form of payment beyond what you already have. And you're not leaving this bed until you tell me."
Jeff raised a right eyebrow with a mischievous grin. A tease formed on his tongue then died as his heart presented the desired prize. Drawing down his smile to merely friendly, he delivered the demand.
"I will be yours alone if you will be mine alone. No other man, husband or otherwise, gets to taste you."
Pache's thoughts passed over her face so clearly that Jeff felt himself peering into her very mind. An ecstatic smile with a yes coming up her throat. Then, worry. A pensive sucking in of her lips. The husband, Jeremy. A furrowing of eyebrows. The husband who never touched her. Damn him and the political consequences. Yes, and its attending wide smile returned in full force.
"Yes!" Pache finally squealed audibly.
Jeff couldn't follow the next second's events precisely, as the queen tore into him with both lips and hands, but he did know that the morning bath and change of clothes were finished around midday. As he walked out of the room in a white shirt, brown pants, and red coat, the sore body beneath it all certainly remembered much of what had transpired. At least the kiss Pache planted on his right cheek as she passed by didn't hurt. Taking in her retreating figure in a red dress that hugged her hips as she walked towards the intersection with a staircase to the left and her main office towards the right was likewise painless.
His trip took him left, down the wooden staircase. Midday sun brought midday heat, something water enchantments along the wooden walls were desperately fighting with spurts of mist. Walking down to a chorus of wood creaks, Jeff knew all too well their limits. As he came down to the bottom floor, two guards in steel by the main door came up behind him. A relatively recent addition to Jeff's person whenever he walked outside the main castle.
If that didn't signify his change in status, then the way the passing servants made sure to bow at his pass right into the stone yard did. Nothing had officially changed, on paper. Yet he had visited the abode of Rodring's famed widow and come out with praise from said woman. The faeries often pestered him for more ship work, something they had to compete for with nearly a fleet's worth of human ships. Having received a pseudo-blessing from the proper royal family in the form of signing away inheritance rights, he was now a permanent resident of Pache's bed after the visit to the legendary residence. Sex, as was so typical of the human condition, proved too intriguing for the gossip mongers to ignore, propelling him into the public consciousness in a way merely preventing famines and pioneering new trade routes couldn't.
Everyone now detected an air of vague and undefined importance about him. As was typical of things poorly defined, people took the safest interpretation, and he now enjoyed an almost kingly treatment among the people. Even the stable boys gave him a slight bow as he walked past the horses' abode on the left towards the massive iron doors directly ahead. New celebrity that now demanded accompanying guards when outside the castle, lest kidnappers be tempted to ask how much coin this fame would be worth.
Coming out onto a main road, Jeff took in the beating midday sun as it cooked the grey and red tiled roofs of the six-floor buildings arrayed around him. Each was packed tight, almost as tightly as the denizens moving between their streets. Their patchworks of rough masonry marked where magical stone work had been shored up with mundane hands in the buildings. As Jeff went down the left street towards the Fairy embassy, he felt himself slip into the traveller's mentality.
Traffic provided its typical coffin of flesh as he and his two companions walked over cobbled roads, then smooth sidewalks. His nose picked up the faint whiff of sewage past the usual cascade of body odor and sweat. Things that barely registered, both from experience and anticipation of what lay ahead. Soon, the trek took him to the leftward wall of pinks and teals going up three floors. That array of colors made the plain wooden door with iron bands in the middle all the more eye-catching.
Jeff gave the door two knocks. His hand was raised for a third when the doors slot pulled back. A face of steel plate could barely be seen through, though the teal eyes in the slit still displayed some happiness.
"Ah!" The fairy sang, the expanded jaw section of the metal helmet showing sharp teeth and some of his kinds moist, grey skin. "Harold."
The metal slot was unceremoniously closed before the door was yanked back.
"Lacel," Jeff offered as he walked onto a stone space barely bigger than a bedroom. He spared a look for the building ahead, with smooth grey walls and square windows on its two floors. A roof of wood shingles baked in the sun that would be blocked at any other position save its peak.
"How's it been?" The lightning mage asked as he turned to look down at the fairy guard on the left.
"Great!" Lacel exclaimed to him in the musical highs and tones typical of his kind. "With the ship getting through the poison clouds, we're getting some decent ales in. Nothing against your human drinks, but they don't play on the tongue as they should."
Jeff was about to ask what that meant when the fairy embassy's only other outer door directly ahead opened. Through it came Farave, the fairy ambassador with a leather hat, leather gloves, and leather boots. All a rustic brown. His fondness for the material marked him as an oddity among his people, though the slits for noses and grey robes were more typical. None of it hid the scales of pinks and teals dotted about his skin or wide face.
"Trying to un-native yourself?" Jeff asked as he gave the fairy a light bow.
Amusement, despite the difference in species, was clearly seen in the teal eyes.
"It's a slow process. We're going to have more of my kind coming through. People not used to the changes we've made in our time here. Showing up to meetings dressed in human garb would make a mockery of the proceedings, in most of their eyes."
Jeff raised an eyebrow.
"They're going to have to accept they aren't in fairy lands. Maybe some flexibility for human customs on their end will need to be emphasized."
Farave sucked in his lips, clearly offended for a second before he schooled his face into patience.
"Harold, these were all fairy lands at one point in history. History not far off by most accounts. If you were still an….unknown quantity, I would forgo this counsel. But you are quite explicitly in the Fjord clan's employ, or even a member, if the rumors around your nighttime residence are to be believed. Such words would create needless trouble for both yourself and the Fjord clan. Which is the last thing we need before any of our major merchants have been invested in the venture."
To Jeff's thinking, trouble born of truth was trouble worth its due. Being the son of the Coalition's president, however, imbued an appreciation for the conflict between material reality and political reality. The lightning mage gave him a slight bow.
"Perhaps you should wear a lighter, grey leather? Differences will have to be accepted at some point."
Thin lips puckered over the wide jaw as teal eyes bounced around in thought.
"Grey? No. But I could glaze them. That would probably intrigue more than offend."
Jeff silently applauded himself for not even so much as flinching.
"But that is my problem and one for later. Here is the first page of the shipment."
The fairy then reached into the robe's pocket and pulled out a paper. He handed the page over with a smile whose genuine nature Jeff tried his best to imitate. After a second, he took the offering and ran over the figures. Each line was one item or another, at the end of which lay its total number and the coin paid for the lot. At the bottom of the paper was the sum total of all the transactions, reaching into twenty gold, seven silver, and thirty copper. All coins very much not in hand.
"So, where's my portion of this?" Jeff asked with a politeness that only instruction in diplomacy from the earliest days could produce.
"Did Pache not tell you this morning? I figured you agreed since you came by." Farave asked, raising a hairless right eyebrow.
Any residual anger chilled. Whatever it was, the morning would have been more sour for the interruption.
"She did not. I suppose I will have to go back and inquire about this. Good day, Farave."
"Actually, there was another issue we've been wanting to bring up."
Jeff could tell what it was, but courtesy demanded the motions be gone through.
"If we had one more ship, we could start dredging operations and open up the channel. Our earth and water magic would see the total possible traffic more than triple. And without the ropes and waiting pools currently being used."
At least the offer had something new.
"No more talk of splitting the costs?" Jeff asked skeptically.
A smile exposed sharp teeth in as friendly a manner as possible.
"It appears the right people are finally being convinced of the project's potential. We will bear all the magical costs, we just need to keep the crews lungs from melting."
Jeff bobbed his head back and forth. Even knowing how shortsighted it was, he knew having some coin in hand would probably tip him into a yes. There wasn't, of course.
"Let me find out what Pache was supposed to tell me. I am still going to receive the agreed portions, correct?"
A vigorous head nod almost sent the leather cap ajar, exposing a piece of pinkish, leafy skin faeries had instead of hair.
"To the last copper. Eventually. Even if I have to personally argue in the queens court."
Taking a deep breath, Jeff closed his eyes for a second before opening them.
"There are people here who also need convincing. I will get a smaller river vessel for the humans finished, then I will do another of your ships."
Farave gave a slight bow.
"Generous, considering the circumstances."
A ball of worry dropped in Jeff's gut. Whatever happened, it had to be bad if the fairy was being so polite about being put near the back of the queue. The lightning mage could do nothing here, so he gave one last nod before turning around.
Impatience demanded he run back to Pache's office. As he stepped out of the small fairy embassy, he thought about what to do. Midday was typically the busiest time for Pache, though her stream of noble visitors was noticeably less as of late. Yet, there were still a number of them. That thought made him take a left towards the market. Practiced movements meant he barely paid attention to where he was going, even with the present company of guards. After getting a pork steak and a light beer, he came back to the castle, feeling a little better. The conspicuous lack of weight in his pocket still made itself known as he made his way up the steps and into the relatively cooler upper floor of Pache's abode, where he had spent his morning.
Once at the top of the staircase, he went straight ahead towards the door guarded by Quinton on the right and Shane on the left. Quinton sported a leather cap and black beard, neither of which blocked his bulbous nose. Shane's face was most noticeable for its large, bare chin and sharp nose. While his head of long brown hair was unimpeded by his metal cap, both brothers had green eyes and rather menacing swords and shields, despite both being at rest.
"Harold!" Quinton exclaimed at the lightning mage's approach. "It was a good lunch you missed."
"Eh, the market has a charm the barracks doesn't. The answers about some workings involving coin I need from Pache, however, are behind that door." Jeff rebutted with a shrug.
"Ah," Shane said, pulling his head back in surprise. "You heard already? I thought Pache didn't announce yet."
Jeff stopped dead as he came within arm's reach of the door.
"She was apparently supposed to tell me this morning."
"And you're fine with it? Her taking over the clan's finances and all it entails."
"Yeah," Jeff said hurriedly. "She's supposed to be handling the busywork with the shipping."
In the time it took him to open the door, Jeff realized the man implied something far more sinister than paperwork. Before he could even debate asking a follow-up question, Pache was already turning up her head from a paper at her dark wooden desk under a skylight window above. A color that contrasted with the crème-painted walls.
"Harold!" The queen emphasized the name by laying down the paper and bidding the older maid to the right to take a used plate and cup.
"Nice to see you again." Jeff offered as he walked past the bookshelves on both sides. "I wanted to talk about you taking over the finances."
The way color drained from her tanned face stopped Jeff dead a few feet from the desk.
"Who told you?" She whispered.
"Farave, when I went to collect the payment for the first shipment."
Pache's visibly relaxed for a moment before a smile crept over her face. The tension in the woman's body was gone, its sudden absence only adding to Jeff's suspicion. A change she didn't acknowledge as she leaned back into her chair.
"Right. I forgot to mention that this morning, what with your massive penis distracting me."
The older maid got some red in her cheeks as she looked at her younger charge with a look that said 'really?'. Jeff was totally disarmed as he puckered his lips and shook his head. Pache knew just the right kinds of vulgarity to penetrate his armor. Of course, he was cognizant enough to know this meant there was something else she was hiding. Attention, however, was now on a track totally different from the one that brought him here.
"Perhaps I should extract my payment in the old-fashioned way then. Put the massive thing to use." Jeff shot back with a coy smile.
"An excellent idea," Pache said, nodding with a lurid smile before turning to the old maid. "That will be all. There's going to be some old-fashioned whoring going on, so make sure we aren't disturbed."
The maid rolled her brown eyes, yet she left as instructed all the same. As Pache rose from her chair, Jeff could only shake his head. It was stupid, trying to beat a queen of former pirates at such a game, but he had given it his best. At least the way his woman moved to the front of the desk with a coy lean, stretching bits of her red dress as she did so, was sufficiently distracting. As he approached, Jeff then thought that perhaps his jest could be made into a more serious offer. When he wrapped his arms around her, Pache opened her mouth for use in conversation.
"I talked with Farave a week ago about the shipment payments. He said that there has been a paperwork issue with taking out your share." Pache bit her thick pink lips for a second, seemingly worried before continuing. "The short of it is that everyone thought it could be taken out, like a tax, and the goods then sent on their way."
"That's not how it works." Jeff groaned despite the agreeable position he was currently in.
"It is not. Apparently, dividing shipment payments from agreements with non-faeries is more of a foreign expense rather than an internal tax. That means the coin has to come from the main treasury. Under this newly discovered arrangement, every shipment has to wait for your sum from the fairy capital. A detail that would have been worked out given more time. So, if you really ponder the conundrum, one could argue it was you working so quickly that is the true cause of this.
Something I hadn't considered at the time. Before I managed to get my hands all the way around his throat, Farave said not a copper coin will be given less than what was promised. But if the shipments were to be sent through in a timely fashion, their payments would have to be given in lump sums every other week. That does, of course, mean that the first payments will be delayed."
Jeff tried his best to keep the irritation inside. The way Pache leaned into him with a quick kiss said he failed. At the same time she was pulling back, a buzz suddenly ran along his forehead. The fact that she was using a spirit connection made Jeff brace as he would for a physical blow.
'One of our outer cities, Sparrows Rest, had its granary eaten up in a rat infestation. Looks to be a matter of neglect rather than sabotage, but the effects will be the same if word gets out. I am so sorry, but I will make it up to you. I promise on my life.'
Certain pieces came together for Jeff, yet the absence of others only made him curious. More curious than he thought himself capable of when Pache was pressed against him.
'This conversation happened a week ago? Why am I only being told about it now?'
Pache bit her lower lip as her green eyes struggled to meet his, all in a display that showed more hesitation than she had ever let him see before.
'I'm an idiot.' She announced in his head alongside a sigh of resignation. 'I've just been so busy. There's never a good time to tell someone you made a decision for them. One you had no right to make. I decided that I would tell you this morning. Then I actually woke up and….Well.'
She trailed off, any further words lost. Jeff decided to give her a kiss of his own. One more of comfort than lust, which was warmly received before he pulled back.
'Fine. What is this about you taking over the clan's finances?'
Pache sucked in her lips, green eyes going wide as her body stiffened so hard it would be noticeable even if most of it wasn't currently in his arms.
'What….Where did you hear that?' She asked, sounding rather shaken.
'The brothers told me. I said I was coming to discuss coin, and they assumed that's what I was talking about.'
A murderous green gaze slid to the door.
'Pache.' Jeff stated in a commanding tone through the spirit connection.
That drew the jade pools back to him, now with a softer look.
'I would have found out anyway. Do you think I haven't noticed that the number of nobles visiting you has lessened? A few questions in the right ears would have revealed the reason. You've foisted the treasury into your pocket, haven't you?'
Pache's bowl cut of black hair swayed with a slow nod.
'Right. And you're not currently hanging from the walls. Spirits, I've not seen so much as a frown or heard a raised voice about it. So everyone is completely fine with you essentially seizing all the tax. Do I have that right?'
Another faltering nod. This time, Jeff felt his pulse properly race as the long-denied question was finally forcing itself out.
'What's going on?'
The question hung in the air like a bird of prey, waiting for the right moment to pounce. For a second, Pache stared at him, bits of tears forming in her eyes. When the words finally came, they fought with a sob working its way up.
'I told you, there were certain things I couldn't share.'
'And I agreed,' Jeff shot back, coming an inch closer to her. 'When I thought it was some secret of state or prioritizing your station above being with me. That didn't include things that might get you hurt or worse. Is it dangerous?'
Her thick lips trembled.
'Beyond words. Yes,' she said in a shaky voice.
'To you or the Fjord clan?'
Her bowl of black hair swayed with her head shake.
'There is nothing I would not do for my clan. If it wasn't needed for them, I would not be taking the risk I am.'
Gears turned in Jeff's head as he processed the conversation up to that point, taking in all that was said and implied.
'Oh,' He said in the spirit connection as a revelation hit.
Black eyebrows furrowed at his word. Pache's green eyes demanded explanation even as they fought back tears.
'You're controlling the finances to take the arrow, is that it? If whatever this is goes bad, you'll be held responsible, and they'll all get off without so much as a spanking. That's what's going on, isn't it?'
The queen went still as a statue. Only after a few seconds did her chest deign to move with her breathing. Even then, no words came through the air or spirit connection. The lack of emotion in her frame was more than compensated for by the red coming up Jeff's neck as his mouth curled into a snarl.
'I'm right, then. Those fucking wretches are going to let you eat the sword.'
'Harold!' Pache shot back with more trepidation than anger. 'It's needed. For the millions of people relying on me and all the others leading them.'
Jeff looked into those jade pools, seeing the heart inside ready to break. Some damned day Eli was going to come out in proper force, and he needed as much leverage as he could get to ease the pain over the preceding deception. At no point had the quad mages' leash chafed as much as it did right now, even with his love in his arms. That left only one thing for him to do.
'What can I do to help?' Jeff asked, pulling Pache fully into him.
'No!' Pache shot back, shaking her head as she did so. 'You cannot be involved. Knowing this much has already put you in more danger than you could possibly imagine.'
The lightning mage took a deep breath, preparing the needed verbal lances, despite the lack of sound in the office.
'That isn't saying there isn't anything I could do.' He put in with a sweet smile. 'Pache, you just said there wasn't anything you wouldn't do for the good of your people. That would include using me to see whatever this is to its end. Would it not?'
Her chin shook as color drained from her face. Yet, Jeff could see the offer being seriously considered. A second of silence passed before the tears in her face finally broke free to fall over her smooth cheeks.
Womanly arms gripped with meager strength, though it was her head falling into his chest that hit the hardest. Tears soaked his right pec, seeping past the white shirt where the red coat didn't protect. No sobbing accompanied the movements, a bit of control that saw her through the outpouring. Pache settled after a few seconds, pulling back with red eyes and a sniff of her crooked nose. Both of which were up close as she rested her head on his right collarbone.
'Yes, it would.' She finally said in the spirit connection. 'I will tell you all about it one day. Harold, you will hate me when I do.'
'That depends. Does it involve other men having you?' Jeff asked a bit more seriously than intended.
Pache somehow found the strength to work through the tears and punch his chest.
'No!' She scoffed, trying to sound offended. 'It doesn't involve that kind of service.'
'So what service does it involve?' Jeff mused, leaning slightly forward with an impudent grin.
'Maintenance. The men are pretty worried about the ship's enchantments. Understandable, considering they can't even see the mana. Doubly so when the enchantments being destroyed could lead to them all suffocating to death in the poison clouds. I've had some requests to see if the bits you added could be made more sturdy."
Jeff bobbed his head back and forth for a second. Not unreasonable. Not a deadly secret, either.
'And?' He pressed, voice laden with expectation.
'You will have to stay there a few weeks or more. Helping out with various ships, getting their enchantments molded in. And working with….'
Her voice failed for a second as she stared blankly at him.
'Frojan. Aside from them, it will be a lot of the same work you did with the faeries.'
'Is that all?'
A small smile came over her face, trying to force a facade of happiness.
'All that I can say. There will be times when I will have to come by to see to some business with the captains or the frojan. I can't say for how long. Of course, this is more involved in operations than what you signed up for.'
Jeff shrugged.
'I naturally assumed I would be responsible for keeping the things running. There's not really much of a point to making the ships run in the poison clouds for a month, then let a falling axe or branch render them useless.'
Pache nodded, pulling slightly away from him. When there were a few inches between them, she moved her hands up to rub her tearful eyes.
'This had been such a mess. All our hopes riding on this new trade route, and Farave and I have been doing patchwork on things that should have been worked out from the beginning. Thank the spirits we have such an agreeable partner.'
More cute prodding danced on his tongue. It was held back as Jeff forced through more productive conversation.
'Speaking of our third partner, he wanted me to do another of his people's ships so they can start dredging to open up the channel. At their expense.'
Pache loosed a sigh of relief.
'Finally! I was wondering how long they were going to let coppers get in the way of gold. Did they say how wide or deep? Enough for some ocean vessels to get through?'
Jeff shrugged, a motion that turned into an impromptu stretch.
'No idea. I just know it's going to be another task on the list. I already got two of our big river boats finished, and that was a pain with that damned spirit connection from the monster covering my entire body. Spirits, I hope I don't have to start doing those floating mansions.'
A coy smile stole over Pache's face, her green eyes finally showing some merriment.
'If we needed you to, what compensation would you require?'
The sticking out of her chest as she rested her hands on her hips made the offer clear. Jeff gave her a raised eyebrow.
'Depends, will that payment need to be brought out of the fairy treasury as well?'
'HA!' Pache scoffed, swatting her lover's stomach. 'Bastard! But a fair question, after recent events.'
Her smile lingered for a bit before her demeanor got a bit more serious.
'Since you're going out again, there is another issue we'll need to address. For this upcoming expedition, however, you'll be getting an escort ship.'
Jeff straightened in place, raising grey eyebrows.
'The Mist curs have probably gotten a sniff of something by now. We're working in the poison cloud region, which means they can't press but a few key points. That gives us the advantage, but advantage is not invulnerability. In case one of them should slip through, some backup defense is needed, though it won't be as much protection as the toad could provide. Staying in the Thousand Screams Toads territory is probably for the best as the pirates are too superstitious to go inside.'
'And how would the Fjord clan handle itself with you gone?'
Pache's green eyes showed amusement, even as her lips puckered and she dipped her head forward.
'This is about keeping your throat free of holes. Certainly not a subject you should be thinking about with your loins.'
Jeff locked his gaze directly into those green pools.
'I've done nothing but since the day we met. Why would I stop now?'
Her eyes closed as she shook her head, actions which did nothing to stop the chuckle coming up her throat.
'I suppose there's more than enough reason for me to personally inspect the goings on of our single most important project.'
'A lot of inspecting, hopefully.' Jeff agreed with a sage nod.
Pache gave him a coy smile as she walked up and wrapped her arms around his neck, taking in his eyes with a loving gaze and smile.
'Yes. In fact, we should do some before you leave. Really get down those fine details. There is one little thing that will need to be addressed, however. During the course of the ship's traveling through the toads' territory, they will have a frojan come on board to inspect the goods. These inspections have to happen. I just wanted you to know in case the captain has to take one on all of a sudden and you're in the middle of your business.'
'These inspections are part of what's letting us use their territory, right?'
'They're important. That's as much as I can say.'
Seeing that she wasn't going to give up a word more on the subject, Jeff kissed her for a second. His world consisted of sweet taste, supple flesh in his hands, and the flowery perfume of his beloved. Then, he pulled his body back to reenter the real world.
'Tonight, then?' He asked, right eyebrow raised alongside a cocky grin.
'Tonight.' Pache agreed, sliding her hands down to her now vacant hips.
Last smiles were exchanged before Jeff turned out of the room. Opening then closing the door behind him, he gave nods to the two brothers, hoping the future verbal beating he had condemned them to wouldn't be overly harsh. Taking a left, he went through the bedroom door to a chorus of creaking wood. Once inside, he closed the door behind him, taking in the bed directly ahead.
The grey blankets, white sheets, and pillows were all made right and flat enough to hold the map Pache had mentioned in the morning. Which meant the room would be left undisturbed for at least an hour or more. Pache had just been accosted by him, no doubt leaving several items backed up and in need of addressing. If he was going to use the radio, now was the time.
Moving to the left side of the bed, he opened the wooden chest marked as belonging to him. Retrieving its key from his pocket, he worked its lock and then lifted the lid. Inside were mana crystals and strips of blue jerky. All ignored as he worked the false left side panel open, slid a finger past the blade, and pressed the button hidden up top. Water sloshed as Jeff prepared a wind spell, hiding the sounds of the radio chest coming to life.
Jeff had a moment of trepidation as he prepared the needed words and leaned into the metal mesh on the left side of the chest. When the usual static came through, a sigh of relief escaped his lips. Dark memories still in the past, he cleared his throat.
"Jeff, calling in. Finished."
"Ocean Strider, responding. Finished." The rough kelton voice said through the steel strands near his ear.
"I have the map. However, Pache got wind of what I was asking about. If Eli wanted to use it to escape or set up another base, tell him she is aware of said locations. Finished."
"Did you ask her or those close to her? How did she find out? Finished." The rough voice asked.
A faint stab of irritation came and went as Jeff rolled his brown eyes.
"That visit to Nestel's home garnered me a lot of attention. Which got my question back to her."
The fact that it was him openly bedding Pache that drew the most eyes was kept off his tongue.
"I can't ask around without consequence anymore. But that's not the most important reason for me calling. I've got another trip to that big toad's territory and will be leaving early in the morning tomorrow. Finished."
"We'll keep an eye out. Finished."
"Goodbye. Finished."
"Same. Finished."
Putting the chest back into its proper state took a few seconds, waiting until dinner took a few hours of ambling about the bed. With so much free time, Jeff indulged in his least favorite yet most numerous activity. In his mind, he was on a cliff overlooking a battlefield. On it, Kelton men with crafts that never failed fought with humans. The battle was interrupted at certain spots with tornadoes and house-sized balls of fire only an ultimate mage or the familiar thereof could summon. For all that provocative imagery, it was the orc Gula at Eli's side that drew most disbelief.
To his left was Pache, waiting for an explanation.
For the next few hours, he tried to pull the needed words out of his throat. The attempt ended in the same failure it always did. Jeff wondered if he simply lacked the needed skill, yet some notion in the back of his mind said no amount of ability would help him in the same way no amount of skill could take wetness from water or heat from flame.
As the sun in the window above faded and orange smeared across sky, the real version of his beloved came in as he sat on the end of the bed. She had two mugs of foamy beer, contrasting with the fine red dress still clinging to her frame. Jeff took his portion, swigging down the drink with a hearty chug before Pache took it back.
"I really need to get a nightstand." Pache mused as she placed the drinks on the floor to the right. "Or a table. I never did anything in here that needed them before you showed up."
Jeff smiled in amusement. Something that grew more serious as the queen started working the straps along her back.
"Come to think of it," She wondered in an idle tone and mischievous grin. "The bed's never been tested for activity either. Might need to replace it with something….sturdier."
"Don't speak ill of it!" Jeff scoffed, swatting her belly as he put on an offended scowl. "This soldier has held true and firm through our roughest storms."
Pache nodded as she lowered into his lap, mounting him even as her hands continued working her dress.
"We'll see. It's handled everything so far. But a send-off for you, after you volunteered to help me in my time of direst need, is far beyond anything it's dealt with."
Jeff seized her hips, pulling her closer.
"Then, let's start its examination." He declared.
The trial came hard and fast after that, with the only respite being a dinner of fish stew. As the testing resumed after a drink of the now lukewarm beer, he pondered over how little the day had produced. No coin made or crafts enchanted. Knowing how incredibly productive he was going to be on the sea, in that all-encompassing spirit connection under a full sun, Jeff allowed himself no guilt as he fell asleep with a sweaty, spent Pache coiled up beside him.
"Harold!" His beloved yelled.
Oblivion pulled back to reveal a world of wood. Jeff rubbed his eyes, realizing he was looking at the ceiling. The source of the voice was placed somewhere at the foot of the bed. He turned down to see Pache slipping on a blue dress, clothing that tragically was already over her top.
"The ship captain wants to leave the second the morning feeding frenzy is finished. We're late!" The queen growled as she worked her dress's back strings.
"At least the bed survived." Jeff offered as he stretched.
Pache fixed him with an amused stare and puckered lip. As he got up and went to wrap his arms around her, she pointed to the wardrobe. Both of his heads were still firmly in last night's labor, but productivity was making its demands known. When he was dressed in a grey shirt and brown pants, Pache finally allowed him the use of her lips, though only for a sweet second before she rushed both of them out the door.
Four men wearing white shirts and black pants were waiting outside, two of which moved past them. They were experienced enough that they didn't handle the wooden chest beside the bed with undue roughness. The other chest, a darker specimen fit with crude iron bands, was lifted by the other men with less care. A cache of clothes picked out by his woman, no doubt.
The group made their way downstairs, delayed twice by one messenger or another. Pache was on his right, growing irate as they made their third stop for a small group of captains coming in for the usual paperwork. A massaging hand from Jeff made her send a severe glare his way. Not severe enough that she pulled out of his grip, even when they resumed walking. When they got to the bottom of the wooden stairs, a right turn at the bottom brought them out to the stone yard and under a clear blue sky.
This time, the stable to the left held a carriage. It was a simple wooden box with little finery. Pache still apparently found it good enough for her use, as evidenced by how she directed the group to it as the brothers Shane and Quinton were working its two horses, the latter of which held the door open from the driver's seat. Jeff escorted Pache in with as much grace as her sprinting would allow.
The bare inside matched the unremarkable outside, complete with smooth, dark benches on both sides fit with the barest amount of red cushioning needed to keep the inhabitants from shattering their spines at the slightest upheaval. It was only when he took up the left seat, and Pache fixed herself firmly in his lap, that he felt the rustic appeal of the carriage start to show itself.
"While we're alive!" She yelled through the window as Quinton shut the door.
As the carriage shifted from the horses backing it out of the stable. Instead of relaxing into his arms, Pache started working the bits of red curtain hanging over the right window. When she got that one down and started leaning back to bring down the left one, Jeff felt compelled to ask what he felt was an obvious question.
"Why loose the curtains? Will it not get hot enough in here for you?" He asked, squeezing her backside as the woman finally worked the last curtain free.
"It wouldn't do for certain sights to be shared." She said, turning back to him with a smile on her thick, pink lips.
A stab of pain went clear through his heart. It appeared clear enough on his face that Pache furrowed black eyebrows. The carriage started moving forward, covering her right ear that stuck out of her bowl cut in those black strands for a second.
"I would have thought we're a bit past that." He said, trying to keep the hurt down. It didn't help that, as he was moving his right arm to lift the right curtain, Pache stopped him with both her hands
"Harold," She stated slowly, in a low tone. "As far as the rest of the world is concerned, we're working on a trade route and trying for a healing mage child from our elements. As free as we are in the castle, we have to be a lot more….Restrained out in the city."
His lips curled into a scowl. The lightning mage had traveled so far and assumed an entirely different existence, yet the same problems haunted him, like a beast stalking him at every step. Pache sucked in pink lips as her green eyes looked him up and down. After a second of consideration, she leaned forward and whispered into his ears.
"I'll tell you about all of this one day. If you, by some unfathomable means, still love me, we will go out into a tavern and put on a show. Kisses, hugs, and licks. No one will think we're just together for the cold calculus of magical breeding."
Again, the collar of future betrayal chafed. At the same time, he knew he couldn't accept every slight based on future revelation.
"Pache, I know you want to protect me. But whatever is going on, any judge is going to assume I knew. It started just as I came into your life. The maids and guards are well aware of our relationship. Like it or not, I'm already involved."
Pache furrowed her black eyebrows as her lips contorted into a frown.
"Right now, you're at the perfect level of ignorant." She said, not sounding like she was trying to offend. "Getting more involved in the daily operations might tip the scale, but nothing you're doing or will do is going to see you thrown off a cliff. If you're having second thoughts, it's not too late to stick to enchanting the ships and waiting for them to show up back here."
Taking in her green eyes, Jeff saw unwavering determination behind them. Realizing he wasn't going to pry loose the needed information, he let his head fall back to lean against the wall.
"Fine. I'll keep my eyes dimly open and mouth shut."
Pache held his gaze for a second before settling back onto his chest. They sat there, taking in the sounds of surrounding traffic and the shouts of those tasked with directing the city's travellers. All the while taking in the errant whiffs of sewage that slipped through the curtains.
After a half hour or a few minutes, the waft of salty ocean filled Jeff's nose alongside the human waste. It took only a minute before the carriage finally came to a stop, which Pache took as a signal to move to sit on Jeff's left. Outside the door, the sound of boots hitting stone could be heard before the door was pulled open. The queen was allowed first exit, followed by the lightning mage onto rough, grey stone.
Past the stone lay a wooden pier directly ahead, stretching out into an endless sea of churning waves. The long ship on the right, however, proved the most eye-catching. It was a longer specimen, looking to have only two floors below the upper deck and made of a crème colored wood. A mix of riverboat and ocean vessel. The long plank leading up to its deck from the pier and waiting sailors at the top told of anticipation.
"Quinton and Shane have heard of a new hold set up inside the toads' territory." Pache expounded as she stood to the left, keeping a rather stoic air about her. "I will be explaining your new circumstance to the captain. Shouldn't be too much of a headache for him, but keeping you in and around the main trade lane is going to require a few adjustments."
Movers were already carrying his luggage past the couple, all while under the watchful gaze of a dozen guards. The way Pache turned around and followed behind almost made Jeff stop to stare at her backside. Good sense stopped the visual detour and got him moving. Coming up to the plank, the men bearing the luggage stood off to the side, allowing Pache and Jeff the first steps up.
Once on board, routine began to take over Jeff's mind. The captain's quarters were at the back of the ship, and the stairs to the lower decks were in the front. Rough, tanned men in clothes just below decent surrounded them with skittish looks. What with them being almighty mages and all. The captain's office was an indistinct blur of wood and red carpet, with its occupant, a man of thirty-some years and leathery skin, spouting off the same concerns the past four or five captains did.
The lightning mage did his best not to make it obvious that his answers were copies given out to others. A task that would be easier if there were a single question he hadn't answered before. Well-worn conversation was eventually finished, leaving the couple back on deck under a midday sun. Pache moved in front of him towards the plank exit, then turned around to face him.
"I will be visiting to check on the state of things in several days time, though I cannot guarantee when. How long will it take to get this ship sailing through the poison clouds?"
Jeff could only helplessly shrug.
"Like I told Nestel, it depends on the number of repairs and their precision, as well as the wood warping from use. I'll know how long it takes when I've finished it."
Pache gave him a slight bow before turning around. There was a hint of regret in her face, but she maintained decorum by continuing her walk towards the plank. Once that bowl of black hair disappeared beneath the railing of the ship, the faces of Shane and Quinton came up, sights decidedly less to his taste. Behind them came four other men, all wearing the same leather armor with steel chest plates.
"Looks like we're ready to go." Quinton mused, looking out over the ocean towards the sun threatening to reach its full height. Jeff nodded towards the six men now standing in front of him, though it was a young lad coming from behind the left of the men who ended up taking the attention.
"If you would follow me, good sirs." The boy said, waving an arm towards the stairs at the opposite end of the ship.
The movers brought their luggage up the plank just as they made for the waiting double doors. Jeff barely registered any of it, save a few attempts to glimpse the carriage taking away what was his. When it was clear he wouldn't get such an opportunity, he faced forward and went towards the stairs with the rest of the group who were now jostling about his sides.
"Sorry for the lacking accommodations." The lad said as he showed the hammocks.
"And these enchantments, they won't affect the regular sailing?" The leathery captain asked at dinner, clearly trying not to prick his guest over their meal in his cabin.
"Why's he running his hands all about the wood?" A sailor whispered to his companion, not nearly low enough to escape Jeff's ears as he worked a few of the basic enchantment shapes and lines along the hull.
The lightning mage had worked such trips several times now. And this one didn't even have the interesting parts of living among faeries, though the sloop accompanying them was of some little note. Considering how much of his coming weeks and months were going to be spent on more of these same trips, the lightning mage could only drift through all the practiced motions and the ever-present taste of salty sea in the air.
Time lost all meaning as he threw himself into his work, laying down circles, triangles, and squares only he could see. With experience came efficiency. In the middle of the fourth day of sailing, he was already working a pitch-laden torch to find holes in the unseen layers of magically manipulated air. A task made easier by the clear blue morning sky above.
As he sent black tendrils slithering across invisible walls on the port side of the ship, the first real interruption to routine came.
"Oi!" A sailor yelled from somewhere behind.
Not used to the crew's silent wonder being interrupted, Jeff turned around. Even with the crowd obscuring the bottom portions, his brown eyes couldn't miss the series of jutting peaks of sharp stone. From his view, there was nothing that merited the attention currently being given to the islands. Plunging his torch into a bucket of water with a crack and sizzle, Jeff left his workings to walk over to the opposite railing as four guards accompanied him on the journey.
The spots of stone sticking out of the waves presented themselves as tall towers. Specimens here and there had pieces falling down to plunge the depths below with great crashes and thundering booms. According to Jeff's studies, these stone daggers becoming islands was down to chance. Most would see whatever magic was behind them fail, leaving the wind and waves to grind them down to sand for the ocean floor. Out of the dozens moving past the starboard of the ship, one might hold out long enough to stand against the elements and form a proper landmass.
"Here we go." A sailor muttered off to the left.
Jeff tensed, having guessed what the man was referring to. Seconds passed before the wave of tension rolled through the crowd. Head jerks and shaking shoulders showed the approaching line, leaving Jeff nothing to do but grit his teeth. No matter how many times it happened, the electric buzz from the Thousand Screams Toad's spirit connection creeping into every pore and crevice was as unnerving as it was at the first encounter.
Unlike times past, the men didn't disperse after the first steps into the monster's domain. Instead, their eyes eagerly peered over the horizon past the dozens of stone towers standing over the ocean. Curious as to what they were waiting for, Jeff leaned on the railing, his work left to wait.