To Kathaln and Back

by KAIV

The day of the funeral was bright and sunny. A light spring breeze blew through the cemetary, causing flower blossoms to float in the air and drift over the large gathering of people around the coffins of Solyma van Dolceis and Tancred Guiscard.

"...may their souls find their eternal reward in the next world," a priest of Aeleon finished.

The group began to slowly disperse as four gravediggers moved forward to lower the coffins into their graves. Duke Adelard Quiton stood a while longer by the polished wood coffin of Solyma. He sighed softly and placed a bouquet of flowes on the surface before turning to join the rest of the mourners. He looked around at the brown clad figures, Princess Taladron isn't here, he thought. He grunted. Ungrateful wench, he thought, Solyma gives her life for her and she doesn't even bother to show up for the funeral.

He sighed again. "Damn, fool woman," he said to no one. "Who was she trying to impress?" He shook his head. "I should have kept a closer eye on her, just can't trust a woman to be a mage."

Penelope sat in the College's library surrounded by piles of texts. She had spent the entire day here, searching the ancient tomes for a way to find Solyma. She sighed as she thought of the woman's bravery and wiped at her eyes with a handkerchief.

She had found nothing in all the books, no weave that would magically find Solyma wherever she might be, nothing that would allow her to communicate with the College, and nothing to bring her back. With the setting sun shining on her back, Penelope laid her head down on her arms and closed her eyes, not noticing the large sign declaring, "No sleeping allowed at any time." With a sigh she felt herself drift off...

Penelope gasped as she was thrown onto the bed. She quickly brushed her long blonde hair away from her eyes and looked up at her assailant. Her breath caught in her throat when she saw him. He was a human, broadly muscled and roguishly handsome. His dark hair was cut short and swept back from his face. Something from her late night fantasies, someone to take her away from the stuffiness of the elven court. Someone to take her away and... She shivered despite the warmth of the room.

"You picked the wrong time to fall asleep, my lady," he said with a grin, "you might have escaped if you had been awake to run."

Penelope looked around. The library was gone, in its place was small stone cave with a door set in the far wall, hung with expensive tapestries and furnished with the best hardwoods and rugs.

"Where-?" she asked.

"The lair of Vincens, master bandit of Culvan pass," he said with a bow. "I am honored by your presence, not many fine ladies such as yourself travel through this area of the country. But I always give them my full, hospitality."

"Culvan pass? But that's hundreds of miles from Corannon. How did I-." She stopped. Now she remembered, the coach carrying her to the estate of that horrible Lord Loradros had been attacked while she was sleeping, her guard knocked unconscious while trying to protect her. "I'll have you know that I'm the betrothed of Lord Loradros! He'll storm this place and kill every one of your bandits!"

Vincens laughed. "Lord Loradros, indeed. He is a lucky man to be your betrothed, although you may not be so lucky if the rumors of his tastes are true." He shook his head. "Although the 'good' lord will be deprived of your sweet company, for I doubt that your Lord would risk his hide trying to invade my domain, even for a treasure such as you."

Penelope jerked at the mention of Lord Loradros' tastes. She had heard the rumors herself, of his predilection for whips and the screams of his servants. No matter, she thought, better a civilized man than this crude thief. "What, what are you doing?" she gasped as Vincens sat on the bed next to her.

"Surely you've heard tales of what bandits do to their lovely captives?" he whispered into her ear, his hand sliding her dress up her leg.

Penelope jerked away from him, moving up to the head of the bed. "You monster!" she hissed, her eyes narrow. "You would do that to a defenseless lady? You would ravish me?"

"Oh yes," Vincens said, following her. "All that and more." He was grinning broadly now, his eyes slowly and deliberately raking over her body.

Penelope wished she had worn something heavier than the silk summer dress. Its fabric draped far too revealingly over her legs and body. She began to breathe heavily when Vincens touched her ankle and began to slide his rough hand up her leg. She watched, frozen, as he pushed her dress up to reveal her shapely calves.

"Oh, no," she whispered as both her knees were revealed to him. Her hands lay limp at her sides, seemingly helpless to do anything. Her eyes widened as he lifted her leg into a scandalous position and kissed the soft skin on the inside of her knee. Penelope's eyes closed in unconscious bliss at his touch while the fabric of her skirt fell down her thigh to reveal almost all of her leg. Only her pair of flimsy drawers kept him from seeing her most intimate parts.

Penelope moaned softly as he gently lowered her leg to the bed and pulled her closer to him. Her eyes flew open when he kissed her, his tongue sliding into her unresisting mouth. She pushed at him feebly, her hands pressing against the hard muscle of his chest. She gasped for breath when he broke the kiss and lifted her into his arms. She watched, heart hammering in her chest, as he drew back the covers and lowered her onto the bed.

"Please, no, oh gods, help me," she whispered as he kissed her again. Her hands found themselves buried in his hair despite her protests. She found herself reluctant to part lips as he set her down on the sheets.

Penelope looked up, her eyes wide, as he stood by the bed and drew a shining dagger from his belt. "What are you going to do with that?" she asked, her voice trembling. He remained silent as he placed the tip of the dagger on the bodice of her dress. With his other hand lifting the fabric, he deftly cut downward, slicing her dress in two. Penelope blushed and covered her bared breasts as Vincens tugged the remains of her garment from under her and dropped them to the floor.

"Perhaps now you will be less inclined to attempt escape," he said, beginning to pull his shirt off. "The men and women who serve me may be less gentle than I would be. I cannot guarantee their good behavior should they find a naked elf woman in their lair."

Penelope remained silent, entranced by the sight of his naked chest. She watched, mouth dry, the motion of his muscles as he removed the rest of his clothing. She gulped nervously at the sight of his cock, jutting stiff and long from him.

She moaned as he leaned over her and uncovered her breasts, pinning her wrists to the bed. A sharp gasp escaped her mouth as he bent to kiss her breast and then sucked her nipple into his warm mouth. Penelope tossed her head to the side and struggled against his unbreakable grip as he moved to her other breast and lavished the same exquisite attention on it.

"Stop," she moaned, panting loudly, as he tugged her drawers down her legs to gather around her ankles. He kissed her again, one hand cupping her breast and squeezing gently as he lay beside her on the bed. Penelope kicked her drawers free as he spread her legs apart and positioned himself above her. Her hands free, Penelope clutched at his shoulders, her eyes wide as he brushed against her inner thigh. She looked down her body to see him between her legs and whimpered.

Vincens smiled as her hands tightened against his shoulders and slowly pushed into her. Penelope's lips parted as her knuckles whitened. She made a high gasping sound as she was penetrated, her legs spreading wide. She bit her lower lip as he pushed deeper into her, seeming to fill her completely. Penelope moaned as he gave a last push and hilted himself inside her. "Ohh, you monster," she whimpered, "you beast-" her words broke away into a gasp as he moved back and then thrust into her again.

Vincens held himself there, savoring the feeling of the young elf's tightness. He kissed her again and her lips parted willingly for him. Rising from the kiss, he gently took her hands from his shoulders and held her slender wrists in one hand. He pinned them to the pillows above her head and ducked to kiss her again.

Drawing slowly out of her, he watched as her hands clutched wildly at the air and then clenched into fists as he pushed back into her. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut, as if to block out the pleasure she was trying desperately to deny. With a smile, he plunged back into her and delighted in the unmistakable gasp of pleasure that escaped her lips.

Penelope began to moan with each of his thrusts. She struggled against his grip on her wrists for a moment and let her arms go limp as he continued to pump into her. "Evos," she whispered, yes, in the tongue of the elves, praying that he could not understand her. "Evos! Evos, oh, ahhh, eevoss!" she cried as each thrust of his cock stoked a previously unknown fire within her body.

Her eyes flew open, staring blindly at the ceiling as she climaxed. Her legs shook and slid rapidly over the sheets as she let out a long wail of pleasure. This seemed to spur on Vincens, driving him faster and harder into her. He crushed his mouth to hers as he came with a loud yell into her. He continued to pump into her at a dizzying rate. Penelope panted for breath as she pushed her hips wantonly back at him, feeling a second climax rising within her. Her vision wavered as she screamed in ecstasy, the orgasm tearing her away from consciousness, leaving her floating in darkness.

Penelope woke with a start, her head resting on an opened tome and her sweaty palms squeaking across the polished surface of the table. She quickly sat up, looking around at her surroundings. No cave, no bed, no Vincens, only the quiet shelves of the library. She jerked at the sound of a delicate cough behind her. She turned to see the head librarian of the College library standing with hands on her hips and a stern look on her face.

"I don't know what you were doing, young lady," the librarian said, "but do it somewhere private. You were lucky no one else was here, I could hear you from the front desk."

Penelope blushed, a sickening feeling of embarrassment rising in her heart as she looked at the librarian. "I'm terribly sorry, Miss," she thought furiously, "DeWin. It won't happen again."

"Lady DeWin," snapped the librarian. "Make sure that it doesn't." She walked off, heels clicking on the floor and her normally pleasant face clouded with anger. Penelope swallowed nervously as she wiped the sweat from her face with her sleeve. I've never had a dream that real before, she thought as she hurriedly gathered up the books she planned to read over the weekend.

She looked down at the floor as Lady DeWin recorded which books she was checking out and handed them to her. She could feel the gaze of the librarian burning on her as she rushed out of the library and into the cool air of the gardens. Continuing to blush, Penelope hurried back to her room, unaware of the unseen eyes still following her.

*****

Solyma cursed and slashed down at the Corthronos attempting to scale the rocky pillar she and Tancred had climbed.

"Down! Get back you maggots!" she yelled, swiping again with Tancred's rapier. She caught the Corthronos across the eyes and shouted in triumph as it fell the twenty feet to the ground.

"The beasts have ceased their efforts to reach us," Tancred said from the other side of the pillar. He turned to Solyma, face filthy from a week without bathing. "Now what should we do?"

Solyma sat on the edge of the pillar and tore another strip from her tunic to clean the rapier. In the time they had been trapped on the Corthronos' world she had torn so many strips from the bottom of her tunic that it now barely covered her midriff. She sighed and stretched, causing her tunic to ride further up her smooth stomach. She looked around the pillar, assessing their position. Luckily, there was enough space for two people to lie down. Unfortunately, that was all there was on the pillar. Even the cracks in the rocks held no weeds or moss.

"I suppose we starve to death, or in your case starve to torpor," Solyma said, looking down at the milling Corthronos. None of them had spears or bows, otherwise she and Tancred would have been dead long ago.

Tancred sat by her. At least he didn't smell, she thought.

"I could change you," Tancred said, throwing a pebble at the Corthronos below. "You would not die and we could both remain here until another person arrives."

Solyma thought for a long while. "I suppose so. At least if nothing changes in the next day or so," she finally said. "Of course, the Corthronos will just climb up and tear our bodies apart."

Tancred grimaced. "Maybe. They might think we're dead and leave us alone."

Solyma shrugged. They had both seen more Corthronos behavior in the past week than they had ever wanted to. The Corthronos didn't seem likely to leave anything alone if there was a chance they could tear it apart. They had both seen carcasses of some of the native life torn apart by a Corthronos weeks after it had died.

"No, nevermind," Tancred said suddenly. "You wouldn't survive the sun. I'm old enough to cope with it but you'd be a youngster, it'd char you to ash."

Solyma nodded and combed her hair with her fingers, trying to work out some of the tangles that had filled it in the week in the desert.

They sat for a while, looking out at the seemingly endless desert of the Corthronos world. On the horizon the sun was setting behind the crooked towers of a vast city, long dead.

"I wonder who lived in those cities," Solyma said idly.

"A great race of people, strong and tall, builders of mighty cities and conquerors of all. But in the end they were toppled from their glorious pedestal by hubris," Tancred said after a minute or two.

"Did you think that up yourself?"

"I read it in a book somewhere. It was a poem, I think."

Solyma nodded. The Corthronos had settled in the for the night below them, surrounding the pillar four deep in every direction. There was no chance of escaping undetected during the night.

She looked up as the sun dipped below the horizon. Night fell quickly on this bleak world, in an instant the landscape went from a dim yellow to pitch darkness. No stars shone overhead, the only light was a swollen yellow moon that hung low in the horizon. She moved to the center of the pillar and lay down, staring up at the empty sky. After a short time, Tancred joined her.

"Solyma," he said, his hand resting on her thigh, "considering that we might both be dead in a matter of days, I believe we should use this time well."

Solyma looked up at him, a grin forming on her face. "What did you have in mind," she whispered huskily.

Tancred answered by leaning over and kissing her. His hand slid up her tunic to caress her breasts as she pulled him closer. He kissed down her neck and pushed her tunic up over her breasts as she buried her hands in his hair. Solyma moaned as Tancred began to suck on her breasts and began to pull open his breeches. She reached into them and pulled out his cock, already rock hard. Tancred groaned, his mouth full of her right breast as she stroked and squeezed him.

He sat up long enough to pull her breeches down to her ankles. He awkwardly moved over her and drove himself into her, trying to free his legs. Solyma's body jerked across the warm stone with each of Tancred's thrusts. Tancred kissed her again as she rolled over onto him, kicking her legs free and straddling him.

She began to ride his cock, moving herself up and down at a rapid pace. She leaned over, palms flat on his chest as she bucked her hips rapidly. Tancred groaned and reached up with one hand to hold a breast, his other sliding down her back to squeeze her bottom.

Solyma tossed her head, hair slapping Tancred's face, and arched her back as she increased her pace. She lay down on him, her hard nipples rubbing against his chest, her hips grinding against him. Tancred grunted as he neared orgasm, both hands roughly squeezing her buttocks and helping her pump up and down.

"Do it," she moaned into his ear, exposing her neck to him.

Tancred obliged, sinking his teeth into the curve of her neck. They both cried out as they orgasmed together, Solyma's hands scrabbling at the rock beneath them. Tancred sat up, his hands supporting Solyma as he thrust into her, his seed filling her. Her arms draped over his shoulders as he forced himself to pull his mouth away from her neck. Solyma let herself fall backward, her hands loosely grabbing at Tancred's arms and her back arched, breasts thrust forward. Tancred bent his head to suck gently at them, rubbing the side of his fangs against her sensitive nipples. Solyma tensed and came again, her cry ringing across the plain.

*****

"There!" Hector shouted to the assembled mages. "Did you get that?"

"I've got a general location on the Corthronos home world," said Bradley from his place at the center of the weave. He shook his head. "We'll need something else to get a fix on her."

The Chancellor swore and slammed his fist onto the table. "If only we could get a message to her," he said.

"Wait, I feel another one arriving," Hector said, his voice tight with concentration.

The mages gathered around the weave turned all their attention to Solyma's distant cry.

"Got it!" shouted Bradley. "Form the portal!"

Around him, the mages started to weave together the portal. Each mage focused on one area with Bradley taking the separate weaves and tying them together into the final form of the portal. "Here we go," he said, sweat beginning to bead on his forehead as he led the effort to push through the planes to the Corthronos home world.

*****

Tancred and Solyma lay naked side by side on the warm stone, idly gazing up at the starless sky. Tancred had one hand gently stroking Solyma's breast. He stopped as something shook the pillar. "They're shaking us?" he said.

"No," Solyma said, crouching, "everything's shaking."

There was a low humming that set their teeth on edge and a snap accompanied by a rush of wind. Beside the pillar, a small portal was forming. Light spilled out from it to wash across the surprised pair and the rock they knelt on.

"Come on!" Solyma yelled, yanking on her clothes as she moved across the pillar to stand by the forming portal. "As soon as it forms, we jump!"

"But we do not know where it goes!" Tancred yelled across the increasingly loud humming. Solyma looked back at him sharply.

"I see, I see, anywhere is better than here," he said with an apologetic grin.

In front of them the portal finished forming with a dull rumble. Through it they could see a tall, robed figure standing outside a circle of protection. Rapier in hand, Solyma jumped first, diving headfirst into the portal. Tancred leapt soon after, still pulling on his shirt, his dagger jammed in his belt.

*****

"Well? Where's the portal, Bradley?" the Chancellor said after the woven portal had suddenly fallen apart.

Bradley rose unsteadily from his cross legged position. "I think someone else was sending a portal at the same time. Our ending point replaced theirs, and their starting point replaced ours."

"So what happened to Solyma and Tancred?" asked Hector.

"They ended up with whomever or whatever was attempting to summon Corthronos."

"Bad for that person, I'd say," the Chancellor added. "Well, get to work on finding them again, with any luck they'll be in a closer plane."

*****

Solyma coughed as she raised her head from the cold tile floor. She groaned, every bone in her body seemed to hurt and a loud, dull thumping echoed through her head.

"What, where are we?" she managed to say.

"Silence!" a dry voice rasped from above her.

Solyma looked up. She saw a pair of withered legs rising above her. She followed them up and saw the tall form of some sort of undead humanoid standing above her. She groaned again and sat up.

"Who are you?" she asked. Beside her Tancred rolled onto his back and tried to sit up.

"I ask the questions, Corthronos! Take your true forms, I command it!" the dry corpse said.

Solyma shook her head and realized that the thumping was coming from a large iron bound door set in a wall to her right. She watched as it shook, its hinges rattling.

"Stand and protect me!" the corpse commanded.

The corpse pulled dried lips back from yellowed teeth in a smile as Tancred stood unsteadily. "Kill the intruders!" he said, pointing at the door.

Solyma slowly stood, watching as Tancred walked over to the door. She reached down to pick up the rapier from her feet.

"Open the door, Eikaegor! It'll go easier on you!" a deep voice yelled from outside the door. "If you summon the Corthronos, it'll be the end of us!"

"It's too late now, Leceres! I've summoned them already, soon you'll die!"

Tancred had reached the door. Stumbling slightly, he turned the massive bolt securing the door and flung himself to the side. There was a loud crash as the door was slammed open. In the doorway stood a group of heavily armed and armor clad figures.

"Kill them!" Eikaegor shouted, pointing at them. The figures paused for a second, waiting for Solyma or Tancred to attack them. When neither made any threatening move, they charged.

Solyma lost sight of the summoner as the armored figures came between it and her. She carefully backed away as loud shouts and hacking noises came from the center of the group. She moved quickly over to where Tancred was sitting by the door.

"Perhaps we should leave," he said quietly, wincing as Eikaegor's head was chopped off and flew across the room.

"Perhaps you should not," yelled one of the armored figures, Leceres, Solyma guessed. The figure advanced toward them, a massive double headed axe held in one hand. Solyma stood and brought her rapier up into a guard position, swearing quietly. "What are you doing here?" Leceres asked.

"We snuck through the portal that the summoner opened. We're not Corthronos," Solyma said, watching as a more lightly armored figure entered the room and began to dismantle the portal.

"I can see that," Leceres said. "What were you doing on the world of the Corthronos?"

"We got caught on the wrong side of the portal after they invaded our city. We've managed to survive for a week but we would've been dead within a few days."

Leceres lowered his axe and swung up the visor on his helmet. A face formed out of shadow made solid looked out at them with eyes of fire. "Welcome to Kathaln," it said.

*****

In her room, Penelope slept uneasily. She hovered between wakefulness and deep sleep, tossing and turning in her bed. Visions of Vincens and another man flew through her mind. She saw the second man again, an elf, a warrior. Who was he? she thought...

Penelope sat up in bed with a start. She wiped her the sweat from her face as she looked around the cave. She had been dreaming again, dreaming of attending the College at Corannon. Something which she wished she had done.

"Good, I see you are awake," Vincens said from his seat at a desk across the room. "I'm drafting your ransom note. How much money do you think Lord Loradros would be willing to pay for your safe return? I imagine at least a thousand marks, possibly two."

Penelope shot him a angry look and pulled the covers higher over her naked body.

"Two thousand it is then," Vincens said, turning back to the note. "Would you like something to eat? There's some very good fruit and a delicious quiche on that tray over there."

"Quiche?" Penelope asked.

"Yes, it's an egg dish with- oh, I see. You want to know how a quiche is made in a bandits camp. I suppose it's my fault, I employ the best scouts and trackers in the area and one must deal with certain, eccentricities, to get the best. Osgert is the best tracker in the kingdom, he's also the best cook. Something about the nose, I imagine. I personally can't stand quiche, but it'd break his heart to find that out." Vincens finished signing the ransom note and began to fold and seal it. "So, would you like some food?"

"I'm not hungry," Penelope said haughtily.

"Really? You had such an exhausting night," Vincens said with a lecherous grin. He stood and picked up the tray of food. "It really is delicious," he said, walking over to the bed.

Penelope's mouth began to water involuntarily at the smell of the food. It looked as delicious as it smelled. She shook her head, "No, I've no wish to eat your food." She was immediately contradicted by her stomach's loud growling.

Vincens laughed softly. "Very well, you protested, I insisted, then I begged, and finally threatened you with all sorts of horrific punishments should you not eat. Having proven your bravery and independence you finally deign to eat my humble food," he said, setting the tray on her lap. "Go on, eat now. I will not think less of you for it." Penelope glared at him. She started to reject the food once more but then she saw there was a dish of orange slices sitting on the tray. "Very well," she said. "I will eat, but only to keep up my strength for resisting you."

Vincens laughed loudly. "I bow to your willpower, my lady," he said, watching as she began to dig into the quiche.

Penelope ate quickly and neatly, finishing the slice of quiche and the accompanying bread and cheese in a few minutes. She gulped down a glass of spring water and reached for the oranges, her appetite somewhat sated. Vincens watched her closely as she picked up an orange slice and slowly bit into it, savoring the taste and the juices.

He watched as she carefully ate each slice, taking her time with each one, first delicately biting into the slice and then slowly chewing it before finally swallowing. She seemed unaware of the small trickle of juice flowing down her arm toward's the sheets. As she finished the last slice, Vincens lifted her arm and licked the sweet juice from the inside of her elbow.

Penelope gasped as Vincens began to lick and kiss up the inside of her forearm, finishing with a kiss on her palm. She watched, frozen, as he began to suck each of her fingers into his mouth. Her eyes closed and her mouth opened slightly as he ran his tongue over her slim fingers, sucking all traces of the juice from her. She couldn't help but moan as he slowly let her last finger slide from his mouth. Her eyes opened wide as she realized what she had let him do to her.

"You filthy, disgusting beast!" she yelled, raising her hand to slap him.

Vincens caught her wrist easily and forced it down to the bed. With his other hand, he lifted the tray and moved it to the bedside table. He seized her other wrist as she tried to free her hand from his grip.

"Let me go!" she yelled, eyes blazing as he took both her wrists in one hand.

"Or?" he said quietly. He smiled at her sudden silence and tugged down the sheet covering her with his free hand.

Penelope's eyes widened. "No," she whispered, her body still.

Vincens smiled and pulled the sheets fully from her body, leaving her naked on the bed. She struggled weakly as he turned her away from him and pushed her down on the bed. Penelope closed her eyes and lay still as he freed her wrists and stepped back. She could hear his clothes dropping to the floor of the room and moaned softly as he took her waist in both hands and placed her on her hands and knees.

She knelt there, staring at the headboard as he positioned himself behind her. Another moan escaped her mouth as his hands slid down her back to cup her ass. He squeezed each cheek and then slapped it sharply, causing her to cry out loudly. Penelope licked her lips and closed her eyes as she felt his cock rub against the inside of her thigh. She unconsciously spread her legs further apart for him as he slid his cock up her thigh.

Penelope moaned again as he buried one hand in her silky hair and grabbed her hip with the other. The seconds seemed to stretch into hours as she waited for him to- "Ahhhh!" she cried out as he plunged into her. She whimpered in pleasure as he drove deeper into her with each thrust, until his entire length was in her. She felt his hand tug on her hair as he pulled out and then drove himself back in. He began to fuck her in earnest, his hands tight on her waist as he pulled her back onto him, impaling her with long hard strokes. Penelope moaned and twisted her body with each jarring impact, hands twisting the sheets into knots. She yelped as he slapped her ass again, laughing when she turned her head to look back at him.

He leaned over her to kiss her, his hands moving up her body to cup and knead her breasts. His thrusts became shorter, moving a slight amount out and then pushing back in. Penelope cried out in pleasure as he gently stroked her nipples and then lightly squeezed them. Groaning in pleasure, she fell forward and buried her face in a pillow to muffle her cries.

Vincens leaned back, looking down at her slender body. He ran his fingers over the soft skin of her back to her delicate waist. He gripped her tightly there and began to vigorously fuck into her, grunting with each thrust as he felt himself near to coming.

Penelope was crying out almost continuously into the pillow. She turned her head to the side and screamed loudly as she felt herself come, her thighs trembling as she pushed helplessly back onto Vincens' driving cock. She heard herself whimpering softly as Vincens suddenly stopped his motions within her. Her eyes snapped open when she heard another voice in the room.

"Get off her now, I don't want your filthy blood on her when I cut your throat," a low voice said. Penelope craned her neck and saw the wiry figure of a male elf standing next to the bed, his dagger at Vincens' throat. She reddened in embarrassment when she couldn't stifle a moan as Vincens pulled out, still hard. "You stinking human bastard," the elf said, "I should cut you to pieces."

Penelope pulled the sheets over herself as soon as she could, face burning. She could make out the elf's face clearly now. It was her bodyguard, "Theleos," she whispered. "I'm sorry, Penelope, I'm so sorry," he said, his voice strained as he forced Vincens onto the floor and stood over him. "I should have been quicker." He pulled his long sword from its sheath as raised it to stab into Vincens.

"No!" Penelope yelled, stilling his motion. "Don't. If you kill him, his bandits won't rest until they kill us. I've seen them, they're fanatically loyal and they have the best trackers in the land."

"Then I'll kill every one of the scum!" Theleos snarled, the tip of his sword resting on Vincens' back.

"Please, Theleos!" Penelope begged, standing up with the bed sheets wrapped around her. "I don't want to see you hurt!"

Theleos lowered his head. "I failed you once, I won't do so again," he said. He lifted his head and reached down to pull up Vincens by his hair. "We'll take this one hostage, if they try anything it'll be his guts on the dirt."

Penelope nodded. "Thank you for rescuing me," she said softly, pulling some of Vincens' clothes from a chest and hurriedly putting them on.

Theleos shook his head violently. "We'll talk later. Let us depart this place." With his sword by Vincens' throat, he pushed the bandit through the door and into the cave beyond. A few bandits went about their business in the morning light shining from the cave's entrance. An alarm was raised as soon as they were spotted. Bandits rushed from every corner of the cave, each of them armed and ready.

"Order them back," Theleos said, pinking Vincens' throat.

Vincens did as he was told and the bandits drew back, anger apparent in their faces. As they reached the entrance, Penelope turned and rushed out, followed by Theleos and Vincens. The sun seemed to swallow her, shining so bright that she couldn't see. Penelope stopped and called out for Theleos, only to hear her own voice echoing back to her as the light dimmed and faded and... shone through her bedroom window. Penelope lay there, staring out the window, entranced by the flight of a seagull over city. She slowly sat up, looking around the room. It seemed different, strange to her, as if she had never slept in it before. She shook her head and began to disentangle herself from the sheets.

*****

Vorchrest, the capital of Kathaln, was a massive gathering of buildings located by the ocean. Populated by hundreds of thousands of demons and other races, Vorchrest was one of the largest cities on Kathaln. Currently it seemed that every one of them was in the market, all yelling at once.

"A good thing we do not have any money," Tancred grumbled, "otherwise we would have had it stolen by now."

Solyma looked over at him, whistling a tune which couldn't be heard over the noise of the market. They were walking side by side through the crowded square, crossing to the opposite side. Escorting them was Leceres and the armored figure who had dismantled Eikaegor's portal. Solyma thought his name was Rocest.

"How are you doing? Seventy years ago this sun would have turned you into a patch of charcoal," Solyma said in reply, having to lean over to him and shout to be heard over the din of the market.

Tancred winced. "It's giving me a terrible headache and I can't see ten feet. Otherwise, I am alright."

"Good," Solyma said, leaning closer and continuing in a lower yell, "try to act as human as possible. They've never liked undead in Kathaln. I don't think they'd destroy you, but it wouldn't be good for us."

Solyma looked back, feeling Leceres' gaze on her. She flashed a quick smile, trying to seem as harmless as possible. Not that it was hard, she thought as a twelve foot tall mantis brushed by her carrying a basket of vegetables.

They walked until they reached the edge of the market. The market was bounded on two sides by major thoroughfares filled with vehicle traffic. Solyma watched as Leceres walked over to a waiting wagon and gestured for them to climb aboard. She and Tancred did so as Leceres and Rocest climbed onto the drivers board. Settling on the wagon bed, they tried to relax as the wagon moved into traffic and started towards the massive bulk of the Citadel.

"Where are they taking us?" Tancred whispered.

"To the Citadel, it looks like," Solyma said, a faint smile on her lips as a creature vaguely resembling an elephant sized beetle stomped down the other side of the road.

"Why are you so calm? These are demons, you know what they do to humans." Tancred looked around nervously, blinking furiously and squinting as he tried to see what was going on around him.

Solyma waved her hand dismissively. "Stories. They're pretty much like humans, same feelings and thoughts. They just look different."

"How would you know?" Tancred said sulkily.

"I've been here before," Solyma said, stretching her legs out on the wagon bed and leaning back.

"When?"

"Before I met you."

"Solyma, tell me the truth, how old are you, really?" Tancred was hunched over, his arms over his head to shield it from the sun.

Solyma glanced over at him and shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure, I've lost count over the years. I think around three hundred and ten years. Give or take a decade."

Tancred raised his head, eyes wide in surprise. "How? I've seen life lengthening weaves used, but they all have drawbacks, none of which you seem to be worried about."

Solyma smiled enigmatically. "I've got to have some secrets, don't I, Tancred? Why are suddenly so interested in my life?"

Tancred buried his head under his arms again. "I don't know, you're the only person I know in this entire world. I just want to know that I can rely on you."

Solyma reached over and patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry about that. We're friends, aren't we? I've never betrayed a friend, have I?"

"There was Valkersan, you were sleeping with him."

"An exception. I never liked him anyways. You, you came after me when I jumped into the portal, not many people, dead or alive, would have done that for me. I owe you my life."

Tancred looked up again. "I don't know why I did it. The old me never would have done that."

"The old me never would have jumped in after Penelope. We all change. Look at Asgrim, look at Valkersan. They both changed from what they were." Solyma sat up and waved her hand at the buildings lining the road. "We're in Vorchrest! Think of all the sights you'll see that no one from back home will ever see!" She moved closer to Tancred. "Relax. If they wanted to hurt us they would have done it back at that summoner's lair. We could jump out now and run and I don't think they'd care one way or the other. Let's just head to the Citadel, maybe we'll get some new clothes and some food. No matter what, it's better than being stuck with a pack of raving Corthronos surrounding us." She smiled broadly. "After all, what could go wrong?"

*****

Lady DeWin looked up from her desk at the sound of quiet footsteps approaching. She saw a rather ordinary looking elf man standing in front of her. He was dressed like a low ranking civil servant, perhaps someone from the embassy checking in on Penelope.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Yes, I was wondering why you have 'No Sleeping' signs posted," he said.

Lady DeWin blinked in confusion, then answered, "Oh, those things. They've been here for years. The previous librarian left them with orders to strictly enforce the no sleeping policy. I've never found out why."

The elf nodded. "Has anything happened to sleepers?"

"Vivid dreams, but we're near a lot of magical activity and that can do that to people. I have a record of them," she said, turning to the shelves behind her desk. "I can show you them," she trailed off. The elf had disappeared.

*****

The Citadel was a fortress larger than many towns. Layers upon layers of defensive fortifications surrounded the central keep, a massive castle that would be impressive enough on its own, which stood on the flattened top of a rocky hill.

Near the very top of the keep was the throne room of the current ruler of Kathaln. He was a rather typical looking shadow demon, a body formed from shadow with flaming eyes. A splendid crown rested upon his head, worth at least a couple hundred thousand marks, Solyma thought.

She and Tancred knelt on one knee before the king, palms pressed together in front of their chests.

"Who are these humans?" the king asked.

"They came through a portal from the world of the Corthronos, my lord," Leceres said from behind them. "I believe them to be of no harm."

"How did you come to be in the world of the Corthronos?" the king asked.

"Our city was invaded, in the course of single handedly repelling that invasion we were caught on the other side of the portal allowing the Corthronos entry, my lord," Solyma said.

"What is your city?"

"Corannon, my lord."

"Corannon? Ah, yes. We are still on cordial relations with your kingdom, as citizens, you will be our guests until such time as you desire to leave." The king snapped his fingers. A well dressed demon resembling a human approached the throne. "Take these two to guest chambers and treat them accordingly."

The well dressed demon approached them with a bow.

"If you will follow, I will escort you to your quarters," he said.

As they followed, they noticed Leceres talking closely to the king along with Roces. As they left the throne room, Leceres gave Solyma a long hard look.

"What was that about?" Tancred asked as they walked down the hallway.

"I think I used to know him," Solyma said, pausing to finger a tapestry. Continuing down the hallway she said, "I might have met him when I was last here. I think he wasn't a shadow demon then."

"What do you mean, then?"

"Demons change as they grow. You noticed how many of them look very similar to humans?"

"Yes, I thought they were humans."

"No, they're nearly all demons. Demon itself is a general term, it's like 'people' or 'person'. We call elves, dwarves, and the undead people, but they're all different. It's the same with demons, except they can all interbreed."

"Do you know if their blood is palatable?"

Solyma shrugged.

"I'm not sure," she said. "Succubus blood is, although it seems to have strange effects on vampires."

"Succubuses?" Tancred grinned. "Do you think there are any around here? Maybe in the king's harem?"

"Don't be silly, the king doesn't have a harem. Succubi-"

They were interrupted by the well dressed demon.

"Your quarters are here," he said, pointing to two doors on opposite sides of the hall. Dinner will be brought to you when you wish it. If you need anything, use the speaking stone." He opened their doors and handed them their keys and then turned and left.

Their rooms were very nice, not as sumptuous as the room she had in the Palace, but very nice.

"I'm going to sleep until nightfall," Tancred said, pulling the drapes shut in his bedroom. "Would you care to join me?" he said with a amorous grin. Solyma smiled and shook her head.

"Sorry, I want to get some new clothes and check out the Citadel. We still have to get home, remember?"

Tancred shrugged. "If I get to meet some of those Succubi, I'll be happy here."

Solyma paced nervously across the carpet in her living room. She checked the clock above the fireplace constantly, wondering when he would show up. As night began to fall there was a knock at her door. She took a deep breath to calm herself and went to open the door.

Leceres stood on the other side, his armor replaced by more casual clothes. "May I come in?" he said.

Solyma nodded and stood aside, closing the door behind him.

"I never thought I'd see you again," Leceres said. "When you never returned, I thought you'd been killed."

"Thanks for your concern," Solyma said, sitting on the couch. "What do you want?"

"So cold, Solyma, if that's what you're calling yourself these days."

Solyma nodded.

"Your slate is clean, your punishment took care of that. Are you planning on staying in Vorchrest?"

Solyma looked up at him. "No, this isn't my home anymore. Besides, I like Alderest. It's a lot nicer than here."

"Alderest? Oh, yes, that's what the humans call their world." He shook his head. "It's no place for a demon."

"I'm more of a human than a demon now."

"You certainly have taken steps to project that image. That weave is a master work, Roces couldn't find out what was under it. If I didn't remember your face then we would have never known."

"That was the point of it."

Leceres sat down next to her. "Solyma, why don't you stay? At least for a while. Once you want to leave I'll have Roces weave you a portal straight back to Corannon. I've missed you," he said, "you always were my favorite niece."

Solyma shook her head. "I can't. I've still got enemies here. I'll head home and have them open a portal. It'll be safer."

Leceres sighed. "Very well, but if you need anything, don't hesitate tell me," he said, rising. He patted her gently on the head. "Welcome back."

Solyma tried to get to sleep. She had gotten a long sword and some new daggers from the Citadel's armory, which had helped her state of mind somewhat. But she was still nervous. Too many old enemies, she thought, rolling over onto her back.

As she lay staring up at the ceiling she suddenly felt relaxed and calm. Why worry? she thought fuzzily, nothing wrong here. She smiled sleepily as a dark grey mist spread over the ceiling, faintly reflecting the moonlight shining through the windows. She watched as it slowly drifted down to hover above her, stirring slightly although there was no breeze.

Solyma moaned as she felt delicate fingers brush her neck and a smell of flowers filled the air. She turned on her side to see Penelope lying next to her, naked but for a pair of stockings. Penelope moved over to her and drew the covers from Solyma. Solyma watched as Penelope tugged off her nightgown and threw it to the floor. She gasped as Penelope slid between her spread legs and ducked her head to lick at her quim. Solyma groaned, her fingers tangling in Penelope's silky hair, and wrapped her thighs around the elf's head. Pure bliss filled her as Penelope continued to lick her and then wrapped her lips around Solyma's clit. Solyma cried out softly as Penelope thrust two fingers deep into her and began to fuck her with quick hard strokes.

A kiss on her cheek made Solyma turn her head, another elf woman knelt by her on the bed. Solyma turned her head to lick at the elf woman's perfectly shaped breasts. She screamed in pleasure as Penelope brought her to her first orgasm of the night and crawled up her body to kiss her. The two elves lay on either side of Solyma, their hands rubbing and stroking her quim, their fingers deftly plunging in and out of her. Solyma let out another cry she came again and watched as the two elves brought their fingers to their mouths and sucked Solyma's juices off them. Her head whirling, Solyma seemed surrounded by delectable elven flesh, her hands caressed soft skin and firm breasts while her lips kissed sweet mouths. Moaning, she watched as Penelope knelt between her legs again.

*****

"I'm hearing her again," Hector said to the skeleton crew of mages who were on recovery duty during the late night.

Bradley carefully tuned the weave of tracking floating to the side of the portal. "I'm not getting anything, are you sure?" he asked.

"Yes, she's having quite a night. I can't believe you can't track her."

"Something's blocking us from getting a specific location." He paused and watched as a section of the weave turned an interlocking pattern of red and gold. "I think she's in Kathaln. If that's true, she might be in the Citadel." He shook his head. "There's no way we'll be able to get a portal there, it's warded against any intrusions. We'll just have to wait until she leaves. But at least she's safe and she might be able to get a portal home."

*****

Tancred knocked on Solyma's door. When no one answered he listened carefully. His hearing immediately picked up the sound of Solyma groaning and crying out in pleasure from behind the door. After looking both ways down the hallway, Tancred concentrated for a moment and turned into a cloud of mist. Flowing silently through the keyhole, Tancred floated over to the open bedroom door and reformed. From where he stood by the door he could hear Solyma moaning loudly. His cock hardened and swelled as he listened to her. Listening more carefully he heard no other person, no breathing of a companion. Suddenly even more curious, he risked a quick glance around the doorjamb. He saw no one but Solyma, who was writhing on the bed, her nightgown riding up over her breasts and her legs lewdly spread.

Tancred crept over to the bedside and knelt by Solyma. He watched intently as she seemed to orgasm, every muscle in her body tensing. Grinning he began to undress. As he was removing his waistcoat he happened to look upward. Tancred gasped and jerked away from the undulating mass of grey mist.

"Solyma!" he yelled, frantically looking at her. "Solyma!"

"Ohhhh, Tancred," she said lazily, "why don't you join us? There's plenty of, ahhhhh," she screamed again, her hips bucking wildly, "oh, elf to go around."

Tancred gaped at her. Her eyes were wide and unfocused, as if they were seeing something else. Gritting his teeth, Tancred rushed back to the bed, his eyes fixed on the cloud, and dragged Solyma off the bed.

"Solyma!" he hissed as the mist began to descend and follow them. "Wake up!" he yelled and slapped her sharply across the face.

"Oh, Penelope, I didn't know you like the rough stuff," Solyma said, her voice sweet.

"Wake up!" Tancred yelled, slapping her twice more.

"Ouch, Penelope stop-" Another slap. "Dammit, that's enough-" One more. "Alright, you little minx, you want-" Solyma seemed to come to her senses. She looked up at Tancred and then down at her exposed body lying on the living room floor. "What the-?" she began to say and stopped at the sight of the mist.

A fanged head with horns protruding from its forehead formed out of the mist. It was followed by clawed hands and arms which seemed to rise from beneath the mist. The head snarled and snapped its jaws as a body formed from the mist, skin a dark grey-green, and a barbed tail whipping behind it. The creature stepped toward them, filling the bedroom door with its broad shoulders. Solyma couldn't help but notice the massive cock jutting from between its legs.

"What is it?" Tancred asked, slowly pulling a dagger from his belt.

"An incubus," Solyma said, pulling her nightgown down.

The incubus snarled and stomped towards them, its clawed feet slicing through the carpeting.

"How do we kill it?" Tancred asked.

Solyma thought furiously. "You'll need to drain it."

"Fine." Tancred sheathed his dagger and slowly moved towards the incubus in a crouch, his arms extended. The incubus slashed at him, slicing three neat incisions in his new waistcoat and shirt. Tancred snarled and lashed out with claws of his own, tearing a hunk of mist away from the creature which quickly rejoined, leaving no indication of damage.

"I'll distract it, you bite," Solyma said, moving into the incubus' line of sight. She whistled loudly as she let her nightgown drop to the floor and threw her head back. In the second that the incubus was distracted, Tancred leapt at it and sank his teeth into its neck. Mist began billowing from the wound only to be sucked down by Tancred before it could heal.

Solyma watched as the incubus grew smaller and smaller as its body disappeared into Tancred's mouth. The incubus let out a pitiful squeak as Tancred picked up the tiny creature and popped it into his mouth. He chewed, swallowed, and burped loudly. Suddenly he turned to Solyma and bared his fangs while hissing loudly, a strange look in his eyes.

"What are you doing?" Solyma asked, backing away nervously with Tancred following. "If this is a joke, you'd better stop it right now. I mean it!"

Tancred stopped and closed his mouth. "Fine. Spoilsport." He examined his shirt and waistcoat disdainfully. "I just got these and they're ruined." He sighed and looked over at the naked body of Solyma, still sweaty from her exertions with the incubus. "Hmm, I can think of something which will more than make up for the loss of these expensive items of clothing."

Solyma grunted and picked up her nightgown, draping it over herself. "Forget it, I'm too tired," she said, walking back to her bedroom. "But you can stand guard while I sleep," she said sweetly.

Tancred followed her and watched as she got into bed. "If you're tired, I can do all the work, all you'd have to do is lie there."

"No, forget it Tancred. Just stand guard in case one of those things comes back."

"Speaking of which, do incubuses normally attack guests here at the Citadel?"

"Incubi. No, it was sent by some old enemy."

"Who?"

"I don't know, they're so many here in Vorchrest. Probably a merchant group. They usually like to send monsters instead of assassins."

"So what do you plan to do about it?"

"Sleep tonight, tomorrow we'll head somewhere safe where we can get a portal made for us."

Tancred sighed and pulled up a chair next to the bed, his plans for the evening ruined.

Solyma and Tancred had set out on the road heading east towards the Jaegerspine Mountains early the next evening. Their rode at a moderate pace on their six-legged riding beasts, passing vast fields of crops which lined the road. They both rode with weapons at the ready, alert for any sign of attackers hiding in the fields.

"How long will it take to get to Merersburg?" Tancred asked as they crossed a large stone bridge.

"About a week if at this pace," Solyma answered, her eyes following the curve of the river as it flowed back to Vorchrest.

"That was where you grew up?"

Solyma nodded. "It's a nice place. You'd probably like it, high mountains, stormy, lots of old castles."

"The old me," Tancred said, shaking his head, "I'd rather live in a city now. No more stalking villages after dark for my meals."

"Your meals come to you now," Solyma said, remembering Cecilia Abrovagny.

Tancred smiled. "I do sometimes miss the old ways. There were some good times."

"There was that one woman who always went walking late at night, right next to your castle."

"Tatiana, yes." Tancred grinned, remembering her. "She was a strange one. She'd wait until she knew I saw her and then start to run, not too fast, but she always gave me a good race."

"What about that-" Solyma continued as they rode into the night.

*****

Penelope went through the week in a daze. Ethics of Magic was a blur and Basics of Weaving Magic barely registered. The whole week seemed like a dream, no, more of a nightmare. She kept feeling that someone was following her and ducking out of sight whenever she turned to look back. Still, the thought of the library seemed to comfort her. She felt herself looking towards it even when she couldn't see it. She felt as if there was a presence tugging at her mind. When classes ended for the week she rushed to it, avoiding the eyes of Lady DeWin as she sat in her usual seat at the back of the library. Something was calling to her, urging her to rest her head and close her weary eyes. She felt her head drooping to the desk top, her eyes seeing the familiar "No Sleeping" sign but her mind not comprehending the meaning of the words. She cushioned her head on her arms, her hair falling over her eyes as she felt herself drifting off to the smell of a campfire and the sound of rain falling, not seeing a plainly dressed male elf slipping into the stacks behind her...

Penelope huddled in Theleos' arms, the stew he had cooked pleasantly filling her stomach. She sighed and snuggled herself deeper into his embrace as she listened to the sound of a late spring storm outside the cave.

Theleos shifted uncomfortably. He felt torn between the desire to comfort his charge and the need for propriety. While he enjoyed the feeling of her leaning against him, wrapped in his arms, his position as Penelope's bodyguard made this entirely forbidden.

"Penelope-" he began, only to be interrupted by her.

"Theleos, just hold me. I want you too, especially after that bandit-" she trailed off and shivered.

Theleos held her tighter. The thought of that human touching Penelope made his blood boil. To find her like that, being mounted like a common whore, being forced to pretend that she enjoyed his touch, her moans and cries so convincing. Theleos frowned, wishing he had been able to kill the bandit. No elven lady should ever be forced into such an undignified position. He looked down at Penelope, watching her face as she rested. He jerked his eyes upward when they strayed to the open front of her shirt and the tops of her softly rising and falling breasts.

"Theleos?" Penelope said after a while.

"Yes?"

"What, what can I do to thank you?"

Theleos smiled. "Don't worry. I did my job in rescuing you." He frowned again as he thought of the way he was caught off guard when the bandits first attacked.

"But you didn't have to come by yourself, you could have gotten help from Lord Loradros' estate."

"No time, I was too late as it was. No telling what that human might have done to you if he had had more time."

Penelope sat up and knelt in front of him, leaning over to embrace him. She drew back and looked down at the cave floor, unaware of how her stolen shirt was falling open and exposing her breasts.

"That bandit, he was planning to do unspeakable things to me," she said after a while. "If you hadn't gotten there I might have had to-" she broke off, sighing. "But you did get there, and I must thank you in some way. Please," she said, leaning closer to him and looking into his eyes, "tell me what you want, anything at all, anything." Theleos looked back at her and gently touched her shoulder.

"My life for yours, my death before yours, I live to protect you," he said, repeating the creed of the Order. "I have all the thanks I need knowing I helped you escape a horrible fate."

Penelope nodded, her eyes filling with tears.

"You are so brave," she said, her voice faltering. Impulsively, she leaned forward and kissed him. What was meant to be a quick kiss of affection lengthened into a more passionate display. Even as Theleos pushed at her shoulders, Penelope kissed him harder, pressing herself against him. She pulled at his breeches, trying to tug them down as she straddled his legs.

Theleos struggled against her for a moment, but a rising tide of lust and desire swamped his mind. His hands stopped pushing at her shoulders and tugged her shirt down, exposing her breasts. He lifted her off of him and set her down on his bedroll. She stared up at him, pulling her breeches off and reaching out to him as he lowered himself onto her.

Penelope moaned into Theleos' mouth as he fell onto her, his cock hard and straining through his breeches. She tugged at them and managed to free his cock. She stroked it and heard him groan loudly. Panting with desire, she spread her thighs and guided him into her, crying out as he penetrated her.

She thrust her hips against him, driving him deep into her as she buried her hands in his hair. He raised himself on his hands and lowered his head to her breasts, sucking and licking them as he pumped into her. Penelope felt her head spinning as his cock filled her, she moaned loudly with each of his thrusts, matching them with her own. She gasped as she came, her thighs tight against Theleos' waist.

Penelope panted for breath as she pushed on Theleos' chest, slowing his thrusts. She grinned as she pulled away from him and pushed him onto his back. His hands went to her head as she bent over him and took his cock into her mouth. She licked delicately at the head of his cock and slid her lips down his shaft while gently sliding her hand over his slick cock. She began to bob her head up and down, stroking him furiously. As he began to come, Penelope clamped her lips around his cock and urged him on to completion with her tongue. She closed her eyes as his seed filled her mouth ran down her throat as she swallowed it. Letting his cock fall slowly from her mouth, she licked her lips slowly and lay down next to him. She rested her head on his chest and quietly lay there as she felt herself falling asleep...

Penelope woke on a cold floor, a faint taste of Theleos still in her mouth. She sat up slowly, trying to figure out where she was and why her clothes had changed. Instead of a stolen pair of breeches and a shirt, she was wearing a long dress which was currently hiked above her waist. She pulled her underwear up from where it was tangled around her ankle and stood up somewhat unsteadily, eyes glazed.

"Theleos?" she called out softly, looking around at her surroundings. Shelves lined with books filled the place with tables and desks scattered throughout. A library? she thought. "Where am I? Theleos!" she yelled louder.

"Don't worry, my lady," Theleos said, stepping out from behind a shelf, a grin on his face, "I'm here."

*****

"There it is," Solyma said, pointing to the village nestled in the mountain valley, illuminated by the full moon floating above the Jaegerspine's peaks.

They had been riding for a week now and were eager to spend some time away from the saddle. They kicked their mounts into a trot as they rode down the small but well maintained road to Merersburg.

"What's that?" Tancred asked, pointing to a large stone complex perched above the town on the mountain side.

"That's the nunnery," Solyma answered.

"Nuns?" Tancred asked, a smile on his face, "Lonely nuns aching for a man's company for a night of wanton lasciviousness?"

"No, the other kind of nuns, though they aren't really the same as nuns on Alderest."

"What do you mean?"

"It's more of a guildhall than a religious retreat, they just fulfill some of the functions that nuns would back home, providing medical care, charity, and so on."

"How do you know so much about them?"

"I spent a lot of time there when I was growing up. They taught me the secrets of weaving magic. We'll head there tomorrow, they'll be able to get us home."

"I'm getting a bit peckish, Solyma. I haven't had a good meal since we escaped. So-" He looked at her suggestively.

"Is that all I am to you? A walking piece of meat?"

"You're far more than just a piece of meat, Solyma. And you do much more than just walk."

Solyma scowled at him. "You can wait another day. We'll be home then and you can have all your ladies come by so you can drink your fill."

*****

"Theleos, where am I?" Penelope asked. Looking around at the shelves around her.

"You don't remember? We're at Lord Loradros' estate. This is his dungeon." The shelves flickered and melted, forming into a damp stone cell. A heavy wooden door with only a small barred window stood between Theleos and her.

"Lord Loradros? Then, I'm married? Why are you in the dungeon?"

Theleos nodded his head sadly. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more for you, I'm supposed to protect you, but I've failed miserably."

Penelope's mind suddenly filled with memories. How could she forget? she thought. Their wedding nigh, Lord Loradros had tried to, she shuddered at the thought of what that disgusting man wanted to do to her. She had locked herself in her bedroom, but not before he had torn her wedding dress to shreds. Theleos had stopped him from doing anything worse and as a result had been thrown in the dungeon.

"Theleos, no, you did your best! Don't blame yourself!" she cried.

"You should get out of here, before he finds you, there's no telling what he might do to you."

"But what about you?"

"When the time is right, you must come back here and find this-" Theleos held his hand palm up. A small chest of steel bound in lead floated above it. "It's buried beneath the floor, right where you stand. If you take it from this dungeon, I'll be free. Then we can be together."

Penelope smiled hopefully at Theleos and looked down. For some reason the floor beneath her was made of smooth, polished marble instead of damp rock. "Yes, yes, I'll do that," she said, looking back at him.

"Now go, DeWin, the head of the guards is coming. If she catches you, she'll take you back to Loradros! Go!"

Penelope gave him one last lingering look and ran down the hallway, hiding in an open cell as a woman dressed in heavy armor strode by her. Penelope waited until she was out of sight and then hurried from the dungeon and back to her bedroom, carefully avoiding all others.

*****

Bradley looked up from the tracking weave to the Chancellor. "Still nothing sir, and it's been a week. She might just be staying at the Citadel for a while."

"Is she in danger? You're the expert on extra-planar activities," the Chancellor said.

"I doubt it, the we're on good terms with Vorchrest right now. She's probably just enjoying her stay."

"Very well." The Chancellor looked around the laboratory that was housing the tracking weave and portal. "Have you seen the Lady Taladron? Her instructors say that she's been acting strangely. I thought she might be worried about Lecturer van Dolceis."

Bradley shook his head. "She hasn't been here in over a week."

"I'd better check in on her. She's the first elf to attend the College, if something happens-" The Chancellor shook his head meaningfully.

The Chancellor knocked on Penelope's door. There was a long silence and finally a whispered response, "Theleos? Is that you?"

"Ah, no. Lady Taladron, it's the Chancellor. I just wanted-" He was interrupted by a scream of rage.

"Get away from me! I'll never let you touch me again! If you try anything I'll kill myself, do you hear me!"

The Chancellor backed away, his normally composed face in shock. "Lady Taladron, I-"

"Get away! I have a dagger!"

The Chancellor looked around the hallway. Other students were poking their heads out of their rooms, some already talking among themselves. He looked back to the door, Penelope had sealed it with some elementary weaves. He considered breaking them but decided against that course of action, there would be too much time for her to carry out on her threat.

He rapped his staff on the floor and sent out a sent a summons to Bradley and Hector. Perhaps a more familiar voice would help, he thought.

Penelope paced back and forth in her bedroom, nervously chewing a lock of her hair. Lord Loradros had tried to get to her, she had to free Theleos and get away from here. She stopped and looked at the dagger she had been given as a present from the Captain of the Guard. It had a long, slender blade forged of the finest steel in Taladros. The Captain had told her that she'd probably only use it for opening letters and sharpening her quill pen. Quill pen? she thought, momentarily confused. Why would I need to sharpen a quill pen? To take notes? Penelope shook her head, wondering where such nonsensical thoughts had come from. The dagger looked like she could use it to lever up the stone covering the chest that Theleos wanted her to get.

Penelope slid the dagger back in its carefully crafted sheath and stuck it in her belt. She turned to the window and looked out. It was only about twelve feet to the ground below. Working quickly, she slashed her sheets into strips and tied them together securely to form a long rope which she tied to her bed. Looking constantly back at the door, she lowered herself down the rope to the ground and quietly ran towards the library, no, she thought, the dungeon.

*****

The bulk of the nunnery loomed above Tancred and Solyma, looking as formidable as any castle. Tancred looked nervously around the bridge leading to the nunnery's massive wooden doors. If they were attacked here they would be trapped between sheer drops to either side and the doors of the nunnery.

Tancred jerked when Solyma pounded on the doors.

"Hello!" she yelled, "Nightwatch! It's Solyma! I've come home!"

"Solyma?" a young sounding voice called down. "Solyma Myiala?"

"Yes, Thesa, is that you? Can you open the doors? I need to speak with the Headmistress, it's urgent that I get her help."

A young woman, more of a girl really, stuck her head out of an upper window, her head framed by a luxuriant mass of blond hair. "It is you!" she cried in delight. "I'll be right down!"

A few seconds later a small doorway within the door opened, spilling bright light onto the bridge. The girl stood there, dressed in an extremely concealing robe. "Come in!" she said excitedly.

There was already a group gathering as Solyma and Tancred stepped through the doors. An older, taller woman with long straight black hair stepped forward. Even thought she was dressed in a heavy nightgown, she wore it with the confidence and authority of one long used to being in charge.

"Solyma," she said, a frown appearing on her face. "It's been a long time."

Tancred watched as Solyma bowed to the woman. "I need your help," she said.

"Of course, why else would you return here? Come, we'll talk in my study, your 'friend' must go to a guest room and stay there."

Solyma nodded to Tancred as the girl who had opened the door approached him. "I'll show you to your room," she said shyly.

Tancred looked at the girl more closely. She was quite pretty, as were most of the women gathered. Turning on the charm, he took her hand and brought it to his lips. "It would be my pleasure, my lady," he whispered.

He was surprised when she jerked back her hand, a mortified blush creeping across her face. Around him the other women muttered disapprovingly as Solyma covered her eyes, shaking her head slightly.

"Behave yourself," she hissed as she followed the Headmistress down the echoing hallway.

Tancred watched as the other women dispersed, leaving him alone with the girl. "My apologies, my lady," he said, "my manners seem to have fallen to a sad state." He bowed. "My name is Tancred Guiscard, may I have the honor of knowing yours?"

The girl relaxed a bit. "I'm Thesa," she said, her hands clasped behind her. "Um, I'll take you to your room now, if you like."

"Very much so," Tancred said, doing his best to detect the shape of her body under her robe as she led him out of the main hall.

"This is your room," she said, pointing into what looked like a monk's cell. An uncomfortable cot was wedged in one corner with a small writing desk and basin in the other. "Is there anything you need?" Thesa asked, hovering in the doorway as Tancred sat on the cot.

"Yes, actually," he said, standing. "The bed seems to be broken, could you sit on it and check?"

"Broken?" Thesa said as she moved to sit on the bed. "Oh, no," she said with a smile, "it's not broken, they all feel this way."

"Really?" Tancred said, smoothly shutting the door and sitting between Thesa and it.

"Yes," she said, a look of momentary nervousness passing over her face. "It's to help purify our souls."

"Ah, I see. I was just wondering, how did you know Solyma?"

"Oh, she was here when I first entered the nunnery."

"How interesting, that must make you at least seventy years old."

"More, I'm only a hundred and two."

Tancred raised an eyebrow. "Amazing, you look so much younger."

Thesa huffed in annoyance. "Everyone says that! They treat me like a child too! But just because I look fifty, they think they can treat me like one!"

"Are you an elf?" Tancred asked, trying to see beneath the thick curtain of her hair.

"Elf? You mean, from Alderest?" She smiled shyly. "No, I'm just a succubus."

Tancred grinned widely. "Are you really?"

"Oh, yes, we all are."

Tancred grinned even wider. "You mean everyone in the nunnery is a succubus?"

"Yes," Thesa said, nodding.

Tancred paused, his grin faltering. "Then Solyma is one?"

"Yes. Didn't you know that?"

"No, no I didn't. That would explain-"

"What?"

"I'm a vampire, whenever I drank Solyma's blood, something strange happened."

Thesa's eyes widened as she shrank against the far wall, staring at Tancred in horror. "You, you drank her blood?"

Tancred bowed his head. "Yes, I did. It is my curse to wander the world, drinking the blood of the living." He looked up sadly. "Solyma was kind enough to help me survive."

Thesa relaxed. "You poor man," she said. "What can we do to help? The nunnery has some very skilled healers, maybe-"

"No, no," Tancred said, "blood is the only thing that can help me." He stopped and clutched at his stomach. "Ahhg," he hissed doubling over. "The hunger, it comes over me."

Thesa knelt by him on the cot. "What can I do?" she asked, her voice panicky.

"Nothing, only blood can-" he grimaced and shuddered, seemingly in agony.

"Can you take mine?"

"No, I couldn't, you are to innocent to be defiled in such a-" he twisted again, falling onto the cot.

"Please!" Thesa cried out taking Tancred's head into her lap, "What will happen if you don't?"

Tancred looked up at her sadly. "Then I die horribly. Please, leave me. I don't want one such as you to see me die, it is horrible to see," he rasped.

Thesa was nearly in tears now. "Please, take mine! I can't let you die!"

Tancred hesitated. "Very well then, I will." He slowly sat up on the bed. "Close your eyes," he said.

Thesa nodded and closed her eyes, her face etched with worry. Tancred leaned closer to her, a wide smile on his face as he brushed her hair away from her neck. He frowned when he saw that her robe had a wide collar that covered her neck up to her chin. She gasped when his hands began to undo the buttons securing the front of her robe.

Tancred carefully undid the buttons and gently pulled her robe open and down her shoulders. He noticed that she was trembling when he pushed her robe to her waist. Underneath, she was wearing a thick cotton shift, easily modest enough to be worn by itself. Sighing, Tancred began to undo the ties holding it closed at the front.

"What are you doing?" Thesa whispered as she felt her shift slowly opening.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to dirty your clothes when I feed."

Thesa nodded again, biting her lower lip as she felt her shift fall to her waist. Tancred's eyes widened in amazement when he saw another, lighter shift beneath. "How many layers of clothing to you wear?" he asked.

"Three," Thesa answered, her voice shaking.

"Don't worry, it doesn't hurt at all," Tancred said, slipping the straps of the shift off her delicate and pale shoulders. He grinned at the sight of her breasts, fuller than they appeared through the layers of clothing. Her pink nipples hardened in the cool air of the room as Tancred brushed his lips against her neck.

He could see a blush spreading over her as he kissed her neck. Gently holding her in his arms, he opened his mouth and bit gently into her neck. His cock, already turgid, grew even larger as her blood slid down his throat. She whimpered in pleasure as he drank, her hands tangling in her clothes. She didn't resist as Tancred pulled her clothes down her legs and let them fall to the floor. She lay in his arms, eyes closed and mouth slightly open, as he lowered her to the cot.

Tancred's mouth left her neck as he stood and began to remove his clothes. Thesa looked up at him in surprise, her eyes still glazed with pleasure as he moved back to the bed, naked.

"What-?" she began, only to be silenced by his finger on her lips.

"Shh," he whispered as he lapped a few stray drops of blood from her shoulder. His hand slid down to rub her quim as he lay by her. He smiled at the gasp that escaped her lips when his fingers brushed against her. Thesa moaned as he gently slid a finger into her. He frowned when he met resistance. "Are you a virgin?" he whispered into her ear.

"Yes," she nodded. "Are you going to take me?"

"Yes, but not there," he said, rolling her onto her stomach. Tancred lifted her onto her hands and knees, his hands reaching under her to cup her breasts and rub her nipples. Thesa sighed in pleasure as he touched her, her hair pooling under her head.

She moaned again as Tancred slid one hand over her sex, gathering her dripping moisture. Her eyes flew open and she turned her head as Tancred began to slather the moisture over her anus. She watched, eyes slitted as he gathered more and slid a single finger into her there.

Tancred slowly worked his finger in and out of her, gently loosening and relaxing her. Thesa was beginning to pant as he worked a second finger into her. She groaned when he pushed a third finger into her, working them back and forth within her. Letting his fingers slide from her, Tancred gathered more of her juices and began to coat his cock with them. Thesa watched as his cock grew slick from them and whimpered softly as he placed it at her anus.

"Relax," he said, his hands gently spreading her buttocks. She began to moan as he pressed his cock against her and let out a loud cry when he first penetrated her. Tancred groaned at her tightness as he grabbed her waist and pulled her back onto him. She let out a strangled cry of pleasure as he worked into her, each thrust burying him deeper within her. Soon he was buried to the base of his cock. Grunting, he pulled himself almost free, then plunged back into her. She braced her hands on the wall as he bent over her and began to thrust at her, fucking her ass in earnest. Her back arched to meet his thrusts as he began to rub her clit.

Thesa moaned, her body on fire as Tancred began to pound into her. She cried out deliriously as a surging current pleasure roared through her body, sending her back onto his impaling cock. Her fingers scrabbled at the rough stone of the wall as she was taken up the ass, her head tossing and her eyes wide with pleasure. She screamed in pleasure as Tancred pulled her upright and sat her on his cock, her back pressed against his chest. One of his hands stroked her clit while the other caressed her breasts, squeezing them and kneading them in time to his upward thrusts. Thesa reached back and grabbed at his body as he pumped into her more rapidly, almost bouncing her up and down his cock. She screamed as she felt every muscle in her body stiffen and then relax as she fell forward onto the cot, panting desperately for breath, her hands tangling in the sheets. Tancred leaned forward over her, his hands caressing her back as he gave a final thrust and emptied his seed deep into her.

Solyma walked down the familiar corridors of the nunnery towards the room where Tancred was supposed to be saying. She winced as she walked, rubbing her still sore bottom. The Headmistress could be a savage negotiator and had gotten everything she had wanted from Solyma before agreeing to open a portal back to Alderest Solyma pulled open the door to Tancred's room and immediately smelled sex. She looked hard at the pleasantly grinning Tancred and Thesa, both fully clothed.

"It's time to go," she said, frowning.

Tancred stretched as got up, licking a last bit of blood from his lips. He kissed Thesa on the cheek as he walked out of the room, a satisfied look on his face. Solyma watched as Thesa blushed and slowly stood, her body unsteady. She would have fallen as she walked out the door but Solyma managed to catch her.

"Your buttons are off," she said, pointing to Thesa's robe where there was an empty buttonhole at the top of her robe and an extra button on the bottom.

*****

Penelope crept through the dungeon, listening for any sign of DeWin. There was no trace of her as she reached Theleos' cell.

"Penelope!" he said, "Did you bring something to raise the stone?"

"Yes," she said, raising her dagger.

"Good! Now hurry, Lord Loradros is after you!"

Penelope gulped, her face paling as she knelt on the floor and jammed her dagger into the seam surrounding the marble tile. She huffed as she forced the dagger deeper into the crack, slowly wedging the stone up.

"Where could she have gone?" the Chancellor asked, looking at the sheet rope dangling out the window.

Bradley and Hector were looking around the room for any sign of what her intentions were. They looked up, startled when a voice spoke to them from the hallway.

"I believe I may know," a man's voice said. He stepped into the room, revealing himself to be an elf, dressed as a civil servant. He bowed slightly and said, "I am Laros Tholdros of the Order, assigned protector of Penelope Taladron."

"Well dammit man, where is she and why aren't you protecting her?" the Chancellor burst out.

"She is at the library. Something or someone has ensorcelled her and is influencing her and my skills are too limited to determine how to end their magic."

The Chancellor motioned to Bradley and Hector. "Come on then, we'll go get her and find out what's causing her behavior."

The four of them began to walk quickly towards the library. "Do you have any idea what may be the cause of her strange behavior?" the Chancellor asked Laros.

"I've been following her in secret since she nearly was killed by the Corthronos. It all started when she fell asleep in the library," Laros answered.

"I've always wondered why those signs were up there," Bradley said. "But nothing happened to me when I fell asleep and I knew plenty of others who'd fall asleep studying as well."

"It could be because she's an elf and more sensitive to magic," the Chancellor said as they brushed past a group of chatting students. "Go study!" he yelled at them as they passed. "It could also be because someone is specifically targeting her."

"Perhaps Lady DeWin might know something?"

"We'll ask her," the Chancellor said as they left the main College building and walked across the gardens towards the library.

Penelope grunted as she slid the heavy tile off the hole. She reached down and picked up the small chest. "Is this it?" she asked Theleos, now standing outside his cell.

"Yes, open it," he said.

Penelope nodded and opened the chest, coughing as a grey mist exploded from within it. "What was that?" she asked.

"Nothing," answered Theleos, a gleam in his eyes. "Now, just take that chest out of the dungeon and we'll be free."

"But you're out of your cell, why do we-?" Penelope gasped as Theleos slapped her.

"No questions!" he snapped. "Just do what I say!" His face softened. "It' s very important that you do this," he said more reasonably.

Penelope hesitated, for a moment after he had slapped her she had seen the dungeon change to a library.

"Penelope," Theleos said sweetly, "we can be together then, and Lord Loradros will never be able to touch you again. Now, just carry that chest out of the dungeon while I deal with DeWin."

Penelope nodded and stood up holding the chest as Theleos slipped away, some trick of the light making him appear made out of a grey mist.

The first thing they noticed as they entered the library was Lady DeWin. She was bent over her desk moaning happily as a form made of grey mist stood taking her from behind.

"What in Aeleon's name is going on here?" the Chancellor roared. "A damned incubus in my library!" He pointed his staff at the mist and was about to let loose a stream of magic on it when it looked up and sped away.

The Chancellor stomped over to the panting librarian who was just getting her bearings straight.

"What happened?" she said, pushing down her dress.

"A damned incubus," the Chancellor said. He turned to Laros. "That must be what was influencing Penelope. I just wonder why it hasn't tried anything before." He stopped when Laros tensed and pulled a long dagger from his sleeve. The Chancellor turned and saw Penelope, walking like a zombie, an old chest held heavily in her hands. "That's an old prison container," he said, "they made them to trap certain creatures."

"Like incubi?" Bradley said, raising his hands to summon a weave.

"Yes, like incubi."

They watched as the grey mist swirled and gathered behind Penelope. The Chancellor and Bradley had to hold Laros back when the incubus took its natural form.

"Don't be fool," the Chancellor hissed, "you can't hurt it with that dagger."

Penelope paused when she saw them. "Theleos, it's Lord Loradros and DeWin," she said quietly, the fear in her eyes readily apparent.

"Don't worry, Penelope," the incubus said, its claws hovering at her throat, "they won't do anything to us, I'm here for you." The incubus followed her closely as she walked towards them. "Try anything and the girl's blood is all over the floor," it growled.

They backed away as Penelope walk towards them. "Don't be a fool, incubus," the Chancellor said as they left the library, "hurt her and we make sure you spend the rest of time in one of those prisons. Let her go and you can fly out of here."

The incubus laughed. "I'm taking this one with me. She's been a fine source of nourishment, I've taken her so many times in her dreams and I'll take her when she's awake tonight."

They had left the library and now stood in the gardens, the moon shining down on them. "Drop the chest now, Penelope, I'm free," the incubus said. He smiled, wrapping his arms around the dazed elf's waist and reaching up to squeeze a breast. "Now we'll be leaving-" He turned in surprise at the hum and snap of a portal opening. Laros took the opportunity to dash forward and tug Penelope from the incubus' arms. The incubus snarled and stepped forward with its claws raised but was stopped by a binding weave flung by Bradley and the Chancellor. It twisted within its prison as Laros tossed his dagger to Hector. Hector caught the dagger deftly and spun to plunge it into the incubus' chest. He dragged the blade down, cutting the incubus open and letting a great plume of mist spurt from its chest.

"What?" the incubus snarled, "How did you-?" it was cut off as Hector neatly sliced through its throat and it exploded into a rapidly fading cloud of mist.

"How did you do that?" Bradley asked.

"He's a magical construct," the Chancellor answered, "he can affect other magical beings where physically we couldn't. Now be on your guard for whatever comes out of that portal."

Bradley and the Chancellor stood just off to the side of the portal as guards ran towards them from the building. Out of the corner of his eye, Bradley could see Laros lifting the unconscious Penelope in his arms and carrying her towards the infirmary. His attention was drawn back to the portal as it finished forming. He could see a brightly lit chamber and two figures stepping through.

"A welcoming party? For us?" Solyma asked, smirking at the assembled mages and guards. Behind her Tancred let his rapier fall back into its sheath.

"Welcome back, Lecturer van Dolceis," the Chancellor said, letting the fireball he had woven dissipate into the cool night air.

Penelope sat propped up in the infirmary bed, a cup of water held in her hand.

"I'm terribly sorry for any trouble I caused," she said to the Chancellor.

"Bah, don't worry about it. This type of situation happens all the time, keeps us on our toes," the Chancellor answered.

"Why did the incubus choose me?"

"As near as I can figure it, from what Lady DeWin and what I know of incubi, it was because you're an elf, so you're magically sensitive. I think that that was enough to let the incubus contact you in your dreams and start to influence you. At least now we can take down those 'No Sleeping' signs in the library. Turns out that the incubus had been there for close to two centuries. We had forgotten all about him."

"But why didn't he just leave the library?"

"He was bound to the chest. The library was the limit of his ability to roam because of its wards. Once you opened the chest and brought it outside he would have been free. You'll learn more about binding something to an object if you take Summoning 23C." The Chancellor looked up and saw that Solyma and Tancred had returned from being checked out by the medical staff. "I'm sure you have a lot of catching up to do, so I'll leave you three be." The Chancellor nodded goodbye and walked out of the infirmary. Behind him he could hear Penelope's excited greeting and Solyma's equally enthusiastic response.