Chapter 93: Flirts and Rifles

The girls eventually got to Wendyl’s shop. Devices in the front window were whirring with magical life, runes and gems glowing as they skittered around. The cheery bell rang above them as Ann ducked into the lower than normal doorway.

“Oh! Welcome back, highness and crew!” Wendyl chirped, hopping up on her stool. The Inlon looked tired, like she’d been up all night. “I was wondering where you’d wandered off to. Making me hold on to these, I should charge you extra,” she giggled, patting the devices next to her. “What’ve you all been up to?”

“Got called out tae a Seed,” Kat explained, looking through the newer wares. “Bad situation. Guessin’ ye’ll be hearin’ all about it soon.”

“Oof, then I won’t press too hard. Worse than my night, that’s for sure,” the woman sighed.

“Oh?” Rosalyn asked.

“You wouldn’t believe it,” Wendyl said, a conspiratorial look on her face. “One sec.” She hopped off her stool and bustled over to the front of the store. Ann took the time to appreciate the woman again. Her small frame and punk aesthetic really did work for her. Using a stick, she flipped the sign on the front over to closed.

“Ok, sorry, just don’t want any random people walking into this story, and you already know about my side business. Anyway, last night was a party!”

Ann stopped and squinted. She’d been on the internet. She’d read all sorts of stuff and this brought her back to some of those orgy stories she’d liked in her teens. Was that a thing here?

“Oh nae,” Kat groaned.

“Oh yeah,” Wendyl laughed. “You wouldn’t believe how much fucking happened last night.”

Well, that confirmed Ann’s suspicion, though she supposed after the Orenous temple she shouldn’t be too surprised some rich people hosted things like this.

“I made a fucking killing, too. You wouldn’t believe how much some of those people paid for a wooden cock that vibrates. Ooh, then there was the couple who wanted the weird portal thing. I told them I’d need to get back to them on that after some heavy research, but the guys seemed pretty happy.”

Rosalyn looked like she had just been overloaded and was staring into the middle distance, not really registering anything that was going on around her. Kat sputtered and stared at Wendyl as she walked back over to her stool and hopped up.

“What, you think you all are the only freaks in this city?” Wendyl teased, wiggling her eyebrows pointedly at Kat. “Not the only rich ones, either. Though I gotta say, probably the hottest I’ve met so far.”

That got a blush from Kat, who tried to stammer back, but couldn’t find words.

“You do that often?” Ann asked, trying to break the awkward tension.

“Sure do, fluffy,” Wendyl said, grinning back. “I can do all the mundane enchanting work, but that stuff is way more interesting. Makes me more money, too. Gods, if my dad ever figured out I was doing this stuff.”

“Wait, so what else can you do?” Ann asked, now thoroughly interested in this woman.

“Bring your blushing Alfhindur into the back with me and I can show you,” Wendyl teased. “Though, to answer like you wanted, I can do all sorts of things. Can do basic armour enchantments, protection, stat boosts, that sort of thing. Then the spicier stuff. Want an enchantment that holds off an orgasm on a ring or strap? Can do that. Vibration is basic stuff. Um, automatic movement isn’t really in my wheelhouse yet, outside of basics like walking, but I’m working on it. Ooh, wait, you three are definitely a thing. And those collars and earrings. I have ideas. I have ideas that would cost you moneeey,” Wendyl teased. “But first, do you want to get your discount? I really need to get off.”

Ann looked over at Kat, deferring to her possessive girlfriend. Rosalyn was still a little dazed at the brazenness with which Wendyl was talking to them.

“Oh, you make the decisions? You are wearing the pants,” Wendyl said, leaning forward on the counter. The loose shirt she had on drooped to show her petite chest, with no bra or covering. “Come on, princess. Wanna take me for a spin? Promise you’ll love it. Thought you were more into women than this? Heard all the stories about you getting around when you were growing up. Steal a blushing maiden and leave her soaked and begging for more?”

“I… what?” Kat sputtered. “I never… did… well… shite it wasn’t that frequent!”

“Uh huh?” Wendyl replied. “So, the stories about that one ball, where you had that girl with her dress up over you?”

“We’re changing the subject!” Kat cried out. She looked at Ann, eyes pleading for her to change the subject.

“Looks like it’s a ‘not today’. Sorry Wendyl,” Ann giggled.

“Orenous damnit, I was fucking hoping you would say yes,” Wendyl groaned as she threw her head back in frustration. Her mohawk flopped side to side as she threw a little tantrum. “Fine. Fine. No joining, but maybe watching? Shit’ll do it for me just fine. Come ooon. You’re all so goddamn hot. I’ll throw in discounts for the next month! Shit, you come back enough and fuck me stupid I’ll keep your orders as priority. Fuck, maybe exclusivity is on the table?”

Ann watched as Wendyl all but begged Kat. Kat looked both incredibly nervous and aroused at the same time. It was a cute reaction, but Ann knew she was struggling to say no. She wasn’t quite ready. Ann stepped up.

“Hey, Wendyl, you’re cute, and I think Kat agrees on that, and it’s conflicting with some other promises she’s made. We’re going to have to say no,” the Inlon’s ears drooped dramatically. Gods, the girl could be adorable when she wanted to be, “for now.”

At that, Wendyl perked up. There was still a hint of frustration, but having the possibility of both being an exclusive enchanter for the princess and getting at Kat, Ann and Rosalyn clearly excited her.

“Fiiine, it’ll be thirty gold for the set of devices. I was gonna show you how to use them before we got down and dirty, but I guess we can skip the second part.”

Kat, still crimson, stepped up to the counter and gave Wendyl the gold. Ann caught how the Inlon’s fingers lingered a little longer than was necessary. She was really laying it on thick.

Just to check, Ann used Lover’s Intuition on Wendyl. She didn’t get as clear a message as she did when she used it on Kat and Rosalyn, but she did get the sense that both offers were genuine. The woman loved money, but she also knew what she was getting into trying to get in the princess’ pants.

Wendyl put the coins in a large pocket on the chest of her shirt and hopped down, dragging one of the spider-like devices with her.

“All right, gather round. Don’t be afraid to get too friendly,” the incorrigible enchanter called. “Specially you, sheepy. Anyway, how to work these. It’s simple. They store sound to power the enchantment, so they’ll charge unless you have them in a soundproof bag or something. Put it on a surface like so,” she raised it up to the wall, gem side up, so the legs were just touching the wall. “Then you push the gem in, and it starts up.”

Wendyl pushed hard with her thumb, and the gem snapped into place with a satisfying click. The legs extended and embedded into the wall. The little machine vibrated for a moment, then skittered off to the left and up. “It’s designed to find the best spot on a surface to sit.” They watched as it stopped, turned left and right, then lowered its body to the wall. A soft light emitted from its sides that spread across the surface. “And once it’s found the right spot to adequately cover the wall or whatever in soundproofing, it’ll do that. Now no sound’s going to escape through that wall. It’ll be absorbed by the field, channeled back into the gem, charging it, and creating more energy. I love these things.”

“So, how’s it work on, like, open ground, or something like a forest?” Rosalyn asked, moving over to inspect the little mechanical creature.

“Ah, right, you all get out and about. Stick ‘em up on a couple trees and they’ll link to make a field. It’ll be really visible if it’s dark, but you won’t be making noise,” Wendyl explained. “Flat ground, just put them in a square. You’ll have six, one for each wall of a room, so you can get creative.”

Rosalyn reached up and gave the gem a tug. It popped back out of its slot and the automaton fell into her hand, inert. “Easy to turn off, too,” she said, turning it over in her hand. “The little barbs are nice. Kinda like the Chittering Crawlers. Now that I say it? Actually? Nevermind, not nice. Hate it. You do this, Ann,” Rosalyn shuddered as she tossed the thing to Ann.

Ann caught it deftly and handed it back to Wendyl, who put it in the bag with the rest and handed that to Ann.

“Pleasure doing business with you. Now, unless you’ve changed your minds, I’ve got a date in the back, so if you’ll excuse me,” Wendyl said, shooing them out of the door.

Ann let her face split into a wide grin as soon as the door slammed behind her. “You almost folded!” she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Kat. “Aww, my royal slut thinking about fucking the enchanter?”

“Not a feckin’ slut!” Kat protested. She was desperately avoiding eye contact.

“Mmm?” Ann teased, leaning in and whispering into her ear. “Sure you didn’t want to watch? Watch like you did with me when we first met?” Ann shivered in glee as Kat let out a barely audible whine through clenched teeth. “Watching the girl just desperately getting herself off? This time you have something to play with besides yourself, too. Imagine Rosalyn all between your legs, me behind.”

“Enough!” Kat bellowed, throwing Ann off. It wasn’t a gentle motion and Ann flew a couple feet before landing on her paws and skipping back up.

“Fine, fine. Maybe next time, princess,” she giggled, bowing low.

“Not tae mention we never got Rosalyn’s opinion,” Kat deflected, still bright red.

“Oh, mine? If you two wanted, I was fine with it! I kind of figured we’d be getting into more and more things like this with Ann’s passive and that we’ve just kept it to us three has been really sweet and nice, but I kinda thought there’d be more eventually,” Rosalyn said, rambling. Ann knew better. She was nervous too, but more open to the idea. She wouldn’t push her nervous girl any further.

“Promise remains,” Ann reminded Kat. “And if we do ever have other lovers, I’m pretty happy with them just being friends. You two mean a lot more to me.”

“Aye,” Kat sighed. “Thanks fer deflectin’ ‘er, though.”

“Love you too, knifears,” Ann sighed, leaning up against her sturdy girlfriend, then nipped said ear playfully.

Lucia

Her Oathsworn, Bren, led them through the city with practised ease. He had grown up with the princess, so Lucia wasn’t quite sure why she was so surprised, but seeing him away from the rest of his party was a different experience. He let Annita and Katlyn, the most vocal of the group, speak most of the time. She had seen what he was like away from the group. Not the best circumstances, but he had been vocal and strong willed.

Lucia bumped into the man, knocking him off balance. She wasn’t the best at starting conversations, but could easily get attention. “You’re quiet.”

“Hm? Oh, yes. A bit of a habit when around Katlyn.” Bren laughed sheepishly, tousling his dirty blond hair. “She has such a force of personality, I find it easier to fade into the background.”

“Strange. Seem confident enough to me,” Lucia shrugged, then pulled back her long black hair. The stuff was getting in the way lately. Maybe she should get it cut. For now, she tied it back. “What keeps you with them?”

“Well, I have always been with Kat,” Bren said, taking his time to think. His words came slowly at times, but it was to place each one properly. “What we are doing is important, as well. If it were not for Ann, though, I might have parted ways with Katlyn at some point. Gone on to forge my own path. I fear that Lupine has stuck us together for the long run, now.”

“Don’t like it?” Lucia asked.

“No, no,” Bren clarified hurriedly. “It is a fascinating opportunity and a goal well worth seeing through to the end. An explanation and possible solution to the Warped is monumental. There were times I was looking at returning to Indelholm. My studies there were incomplete. Kat, as always, dragged me back into her adventures.”

Lucia was quiet for a moment. It sounded like the princess was dragging him around for selfish reasons, but the man also stated he was fine with it. She wasn’t sure what to make of it, so she decided to ask. “If it was me, would be frustrated with the princess.” Maybe ask was a bit generous.

“Hm? Oh, for pulling me from my studies to go on adventures? No, Kat has always been like that. Honestly, I have seen much more of this world than I would have had she not developed that habit. Otherwise, I would not have met you.”

“And I would be dead woman, yes,” Lucia chuckled. “Must thank her later, then.” A twinge surged through their Bond. “You feel nervous. Why?”

“Damn, that will still take some getting used to,” Bren said, the nerves she felt spiking again. “Nothing. I am just very used to Katlyn getting very friendly with any woman who comes her way.”

Oh? Lucia had thought the Lupine would be the one to make a pass. She focused on being calm, reassuring, trying to channel it through the Bond. “Ah, you worry about feeling that through this.” She raised her arm, showing the proof of the Debt. “Don’t. Will not happen.”

“Still, I know my might as well be sister. If she is interested, she will make a pass. Thankfully, I think Ann and Rosalyn have her more than busy.”

“They do get along quite well,” Lucia laughed. The tension in the bond lessened as they spoke. A good sign. “Am surprised they get anything done.”

“When productive goes to reproductive is when they start to fall apart,” Bren sighed.

Despite his words, Lucia didn’t feel any actual frustration from him. A complicated situation.

“So, Filla, your rifle? We need to get it fixed?” Bren asked, changing the subject.

“Yes. Barrel is warped. Fired too often for too long. And Filla is a she,” Lucia reminded Bren.

“Right, apologies. I know some about engineering, but not much about rifles. Is she special?”

“Very. Passed down in my family. Fillianor served my father and his father well. Hardwood stock, retrieved from a Seed. Barrel is enchanted steel.” As she spoke, she unslung the weapon from her shoulder, running her hand down its length as she spoke. This brought back memories of her father teaching her about the weapon when she was little. “Makes it tougher, but has limits. Need another enchantment. Noise. Katlyn and Annita have sensitive ears.”

“Yes, they do. Annita has an enchantment on her revolver for the same reason,” Bren agreed. “You have larger than normal ears. You do not share the same trait?”

“No,” Lucia said. She ran a finger over her own pointed ears. They were nowhere near as long as an Alfhindur’s, but still came to a point. Something closer to a half-breed’s. “Thrundol more likely to smell, but you knew that.”

“I did,” Bren admitted, “but I want to learn more about you.”

“Could just order,” Lucia shrugged. “Would tell everything.”

“You already know I will not,” Bren said icily. “Besides, it is more earnest and honest when one volunteers the information.”

“Why you haven’t asked about path?”

“Yes. I will not ask for details beyond what you have already volunteered,” Bren confirmed.

How frustratingly noble. Lucia sighed and pushed open the door to the smith. “I’m back.”

“Hm? Oh, Lucia!” the man behind the counter almost growled. He was a middle-aged Bultrong, well skilled in gunsmithing. Lucia was having a hard time with his name, though.

“Need her fixed,” Lucia said, laying Fillianore down on the counter.

The man picked up her rifle and inspected it. “Hmm, discoloration around the firing mechanism, some bending and distortion. What in Voltid’s name did you do to her?”

“Long hunt. Overexerted her,” Lucia said flatly.

“Obviously. I assume she kept you safe, then. That’s the point. Ah well, it’ll be twenty silver for repairs. I’ll have her as good as new in two days,” the man said. “Up front, if you don’t mind.”

“As always,” Lucia confirmed, handing him the money. “Need enchantment, too.”

“Not my wheelhouse,” the man replied flatly. “Go see Wendyl for that. She’s good with sound enchantments.”

Bren groaned, and Lucia felt, curiously, embarrassment through their Bond. “I will. Thank you, uh…” she trailed off.

“Still bad with names. Really need to work on that. Griff. Call me Griff, you big green lout. See you in a couple days.”

“Thank you, Griff,” Lucia said, nodding then retreating from the shop. She turned to Bren. “Embarrassed about Wendyl?”

“It is where the others are right now,” Bren said flatly. “Getting privacy devices so they can avoid scandals with their… antics.”

Lucia felt her cheeks heating up as she realised what he was talking about. Bren seemed to notice her feelings as well and looked up at her.

“You do not deal well with that topic, do you?” he asked.

“I… do not. It has not been a part of my life,” she confessed.

“Ann is going to have a lot of fun teasing you,” Bren sighed. “Just know she won’t push anything on you. Once I told her I was not interested, she left me alone.”

“Do not mind teasing, if nothing further happens,” Lucia shrugged. They headed off to the enchanter. “Just, yeah, not used to this.”

Bren put a comforting hand on her shoulder, and she felt herself calm. She would be all right.