Shadowborn

Chapter 105: Aftermath

Chapter 105: Aftermath

The city guard we walked through seemed torn on what to do. Some looked like they wanted to try and arrest me anyways while others shot me silent looks of support. Many were a mixture of confused and shocked. I had a feeling it had been a while since anyone had stood up so brazenly to the council and simply walked away.

But what surprised me was the flashes of fear I felt in more than a few of them. Eyes flinched away when I followed them. I wondered just how many of the men here knew who I truly was. From how afraid some of them were it was as if they expected me to fly into a murderous rage at the slightest provocation. All things considered, I wasn’t sure that was a bad thing. Not if they were working for the enemy.

I hadn’t been lying to the guard I’d let escape with his life at the very start of our assault. I’d never had any illusions as to who or what I was. And while there were many things I regretted in my life, the actions I’d taken during the war that had secured my reputation weren’t on that list. While I wanted nothing more than to resolve this without bloodshed, but when a system became too broken sometimes that was the only option.

I’d do everything in my power to resolve things without letting soldiers and guards like this—men so far below the ones actually making the decisions—suffer, but with how much suffering I’d seen just in the months since I’d arrived in this time I was more than willing to let my reputation do some of the work. My enemies needed to understand that while I preferred to handle things as the Zaren I’d become, the Zaren I’d been still remained if they left me no other option.

If the threat of violence helped keep me from having to commit actual violence, I’d take it.

The trip home was tense. I think all of us expected some kind of attack to the point where I was pretty certain both Jack and Allie were a little disappointed. I, myself, felt more than a little relieved. Even though it felt like violence had been instilled into my blood from the day I’d been born, I’d never once reveled in it. Not even when I felt it was warranted.

Any and all thoughts of violence, however, vanished the moment we walked through the front door of the manor. The energy in the air was infectious. The servants laughed and joked, and the second we walked in the door the warmth that filled the halls ramped up even more.

Later I’d ask how Stella’s homecoming had gone. I’d be told how she clung to Serena’s side until the moment they’d walked in the door and she’d been practically tackled by Rhallani. There had been tearful laughs and desperate hugs all around. It wasn’t until then that Stella finally started to relax and believe she was actually safe.

I’d also learn later that her and Rhallani, via Festus, had been talking near-constantly. And they hadn’t just been talking about runes and inventions, either. They’d become thick as thieves before they’d even stepped foot in a room together, so the second they were?

By the time I was—quite literally—dragged to the baths, they were still practically glued together. When they spotted me (and Rhallani gave her a bit of a shove) she bolted into my arms with all the energy I was used to see in her, flitting around her workshop like a hummingbird on stimulants.

She waited exactly the amount of time it took her to hug me as tight as she could before she started tugging at my clothes. I had little say in the matter as the others (because, of course, just about everyone who wasn’t already in them accompanied me to the baths) stripped me with an impressive efficiency.

Once the blood and sweat had been washed from all of my nooks and crannies by several sets of thorough hands belonging to some overly giggly girls, I got dragged into the largest of the baths. I had just enough time to feel my shadows being suppressed before a muscular body slid in behind me.

“Rhallani’s been stress installing since the moment we left,” Jack explained, her hands exploring my front as she settled in and pulled me into her. “This was her last set, but now that we’ve got all three geniuses under one roof...”

I leaned back into her with a chuckle as Stella took (was guided to) the spot of honor between my own legs. Everyone else filled in around me as we all relaxed into the baths. I gave her a slow massage while the others all talked with her about anything and everything. With how long she’d spent essentially on her own, the elation and the joy I felt bleeding through our Link started giving me a secondhand high.

But, of course, this was my harem we were talking about. Jack’s hands started going lower and lower until they were wrapped around my length. I couldn’t see Stella’s face, but it wasn’t long after that Rhallani pushed my hand down until it was between Stella’s legs.

It only went downhill from there. It wasn’t long before Stella’s hips were rising, being guided back until she was sinking down on my cock. She rode me, leaning back against my chest, while Jack’s hands explored both of us and her mouth trailed kisses along my shoulders and neck. Rhallani captured one of Stella’s nipples in her mouth while her hand vanished between the Elf’s legs.

Safina helped from where she sat on the wall of the bath behind us and Allie, Tiana, and Serena all helped Stella reach the first of what would be many screaming orgasms. All around the bath things weren’t much better. By the time I spilled myself deep inside her, she was a boneless slump in my arms. She slid to the side until she was at my side, sandwiched between me and Serena, while managing to pull Rhallani into her place on her way down.

And on and on it went until we were really testing the runes that kept the water clean. True to form, the others made sure Stella had as many turns with me as she wanted, which was many. She eagerly took a spin between each of the others, cumming on my cock until she went so boneless Safina had to carry her up to the pit while the rest of us finished.

Most of the group went with her since we’d all been woken halfway through the night to deal with Nairn’s move. I went with them once we’d all dried off and spend an hour with her curled up against my chest, but there was no rest for the wicked.

The first thing I did was track down Noelle. I wasn’t surprised to find her in the training hall with Zoey and Reese, relentlessly pushing to get the hang of fighting with the added encumbrance of her wings.

It already looked like she was making headway, but I could tell she didn’t have anywhere near the confidence she’d had before Ash’s magic had restored her. Her practice axe clashed with Zoey’s broadsword with enough force to rattle my teeth. I watched as her wings flared out. With a single beat she took to the air—albeit somewhat unsteadily—axe and all. Zoey managed to deflect her downward strike, but it was still an impressive move.

And Noelle wasn’t the only one who had grown. I still remembered when I’d first met Zoey back when she’d been masquerading as one of Lady Vivian’s bodyguards, back before I’d learned that the prim, airheaded noble was actually the foul mouthed hothead I now knew as Jack. She’d clung to form and practiced technique to the point where she was basically incapable of improvisation. I’d helped her break through that first barrier, and a talented swordswoman had emerged from the work she’d done since.

Reese watched with those hawk-like eyes of hers, stepping in and helping them both make adjustments where needed. She’d grown a lot as well, just in a different way than Zoey. Jack had found them both and taken them under her wing as students, but the two girls were near complete opposites.

Where Zoey had reached her level of mastery with endless practice, Reese was one of the most natural archers I’d ever met. Her awareness and ability to gage distance in the blink of an eye was unparalleled, and she’d weaponized that ability by training with a bow and arrow until there was no skin left on her fingers. But while she’d been beyond gifted, the ghosts of her past had left her practically unable to connect with anyone.

She’d grown past that in her time with us. It had started with Zoey, then Jack, then eventually she’d reached a point where she was participating in conversations. Making friends. Relying on others. I hadn’t helped her as directly as I had Zoey, but I was glad to see she her doing better. Jack was, too.

Reese saw me (or rather, knowing her, decided it was finally a decent time to acknowledge my arrival) and called for a break. Noelle’s lips tightened like she was displeased to take even a small rest from training, but that tension evaporated when she saw me.

She leaned her practice weapon on the rack and headed straight for me, throwing both her arms and her wings around me. “Sorry I didn’t come sooner,” I told her, stroking her hair. It was tied in a simple braid that went most of the way down her back, contrasting beautifully with the black of her wings and the dark, bluish gray of her skin.

“It is alright,” she said, nuzzling into my chest, “Stella needed you.”

“So did you.” I turned her face up towards me. “Are you angry with me?”

Her unwavering scarlet eyes locked onto mine. “I was, but... you were right. I knew as soon as I asked Zoey to help me. Our first bout proved I would have only gotten in the way. But...”

“But that doesn’t do anything to quiet that angry little voice in the back of your mind, does it?”

She shook her head and leaned her forehead against my chest again. “Emotions are complicated. And annoying.”

“But worth it, in the end. Even the shittier emotions are better than feeling nothing.” It was a lesson we’d both learned.

She grunted her agreement. “Will you help me?” she asked. “I want to be useful again as soon as possible.” Her hands tightened in my shirt. “Even if I know I don’t need to be.”

“Of course I will. And I’m sure the rest would be more than willing to help too, but I’ve got a condition.” Her wings ruffled and she looked up at me. “Your wings are new. Hurting yourself by pushing too hard is only going to set you back. Have you been training since we left?”

She bit her lip, but behind her Reese met my eyes and nodded once. I knew from her look that she’d at least made sure Noelle wasn’t doing too much, so I inclined my head in thanks. “I will... be careful. Even if I want nothing more than to push until I am ready.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” I cupped her cheek and she leaned into my touch. “Just remember something for me. Just because you know you’ve survived worse, doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to push yourself past your limits.”

She hummed low in her chest for a moment. “I understand. The others...”

“All piled up in the big bed. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind you joining them.”

“After a bath, probably,” she said with a sigh. “Will you be there?”

“Not for a while. You don’t sack a councilman’s house without having to do some cleanup, unfortunately.”

“Later, then?”

“Knowing the others? I’m sure they’ll want to give Stella the full welcome tonight.”

She smirked. “Good.”

I chuckled and ruffled her hair. She batted my hand away, her smirk widening. She'd been very protective of her new hair since she'd woken. Then she grabbed my face in both hands and pulled me down so she could softly press her lips to mine. “Go do Zaren things. I will rest. I promise.”

With one final kiss to the crown of her head and a quick squeeze, I stepped aside to let her pass. Reese, looking relieved, pushed herself off the wall and said something to Zoey before following. Zoey smirked, and I was pretty sure I saw her cheeks darken, as she went after Reese. I watched them all go and shook my head, smiling to myself.

With all the enjoyable stuff out of the way, it was time to track down Cynthia. I had a list of shit to do a few miles long at this point. Dealing with the aftermath of the raid for one. Tracking down a missing goddess for another.

If Allura had told me what my life would look like now I’d have never believed her. Now that I had everyone under the same roof and we’d made our first moves against our enemy, finding her was my new priority.

Whether it was her plan or her execution that left a bit to be desired, I couldn’t deny that I wouldn’t be here if not for her. Neither would any of the others. As much as it pained me to admit, she’d at least earned the benefit of the doubt. I’d hear out her explanation at the very least.

Ugh, Serena was getting to me.

But I had to find the damn goddess first. Figure out whether she was in hiding or captured. I knew what my money was on. Unfortunately, before I could even worry about that I had to make sure everything in the interim was taken care of. That meant a lot of tasks that were considerably less pleasant than group sex in the baths.

# # #

As exhausting as my next few hours were, they were well worth it. I got messages from Rolar telling me that Councilman Miles was doing everything he could to try and find a way to put me behind bars, but with Nairn’s imprisonment and my maneuver combined with Rolar as my inside man, his hands were pretty much tied.

Just in case, though, I spent several hours with Cynthia preparing for anything. Making sure that, should Miles find something that slipped through the cracks, we had redundancies in place. After that we went over the last of the Household Adventurers plan.

Everything was in place and the doors would open tomorrow. Official notices would be posted in the guildhalls and we’d see just how far the Guild would be willing to go to preserve the status quo. And, now that I’d successfully planted seeds that were already being sown throughout the city, we started planning our next project. One that was arguably more important than anything we’d done so far.

An alternative to the Pens.

So far it was a sort of gated community that met all the requirements of the Accords when it came to housing indebted demi-humans, whether they’d indebted themselves or they’d been indebted. Already buildings full of single room apartments were being prepared. They’d be cramped, but they’d be leagues better than the hellhole that the Pens consisted of now. Actual criminals convicted of real crimes would likely still go to the Pens, since they were always meant to be more of a prison than anything else, but those born into servitude or who voluntarily indebted themselves to provide for their families would at least have another option. After that we moved on to dealing with the Silver Swallow.

As much as the existence of brothels rubbed me the wrong way, I knew simply closing it down would be a mistake. Not only were there a number of more promiscuous races that thrived doing sex work, but there were probably dozens of girls who worked at the Swallow now whose classes revolved around sex, maybe even with multiple partners. Getting rid of the Swallow would leave them out of work and very likely having no choice but to sell themselves on the streets.

I let out a breath. “Well, if you know you’re going to lose, there’s only one real option.”

And that is?

“Mitigate. Get as much out of the loss as you can. Prepare so that the loss doesn’t hit you as hard as it could. Look for the least shit option.”

The least shit option... What about trying not to lose in the first place?

“Of course I don’t plan on dying, but nobody ever really does. Not usually. But if there’s no way to avoid losing, then you prepare for what happens when you do.”

Prepare... prepare... hmmm...

The Link between us buzzed as her mind raced. I think... she said eventually, that I have an idea. A plan. Parts of one, at least.

My brows arched. “I’m listening.”

Uncertainty stretched between us. I can’t say.

“You can’t?”

No. At least, I don’t think so. If my plan is going to work, you can’t know about it. I think.

“That’s a lot of ‘I think’s’ you’ve got going on.”

I know, but it has to be this way. And I can’t do it alone.

“That presents a bit of an issue considering your current communication limitations,” I pointed out.

The pulse that went through the link felt like the mental equivalent of a raspberry. No kidding. That’s why I’ll need Noelle.

“And are you sure that’s a good idea? Didn’t she almost die the last time?”

I don’t need her to use my powers, she said hotly, I should be able to form a connection I can talk through so long as she’s holding my prison, sheathe and all.

With a nod, I pushed myself to my feet. Reluctance filtered through the Link that didn’t completely belong to either one of us as I slid the blade all the way into its scabbard and flipped closed the latch.

I sent it to my storage since it made pretty much everyone outside of my inner circle nervous to be around and climbed back into the manor. It didn’t take too long to find Noelle. Once again she was back to sparring with Zoey and Reese, getting the hang of her wings. Already she’d made impressive progress just since the last time I’d seen her in action.

The second she saw me she broke into a wide smile. Zoey followed her gaze and smirked, then held her hand out to take Noelle’s axe. Noelle handed it over then broke into a run. She leapt into the air and glided unsteadily at me with enough speed that even her light form nearly bowled me over.

“Whoa there!” I said with a chuckle as her arms and legs wrapped around me.

She buried her face in my neck as her wings jerked and flared out to try and balance us. “Everyone is here,” she said, her voice muffled. “Our family is finally whole.”

“About time, right?” I crushed her to my chest, which earned me a satisfied hum from deep in her throat. “I need your help, Noelle.”

She tensed in my arms, then pulled back enough to look at me with determination in her eyes. “Whatever you need.”

I set her on her feet, though I couldn’t help but notice the way she let her body drag against mine. Her already sensitive body had become even more so since she’d been healed, and she’d had much more energy. She hadn’t spent nearly as much time sleeping, and while she’d always loved to be cuddled tight, she’d been a bit more eager than usual when it came to intimacy. Whether Ash’s magic had done something to her libido or it was just a matter of confidence I had no idea, but Noelle was practically glowing these last few days.

Her crimson eyes went wide when I summoned the Jailer’s Blade. “Ash has something she needs you for.”

Noelle took it reverently, completely unbothered by its significant weight. Then her already wide eyes grew even wider and an awestruck smile spread across her face. She cradled the Blade to her chest. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Her eyes unfocused as if she were interacting with her System interface, then she nodded. “Ash needs the smart ones.”

“So not us, then?” I asked, grinning.

She grinned back. “No, not us.”

She carried the sword tightly to her chest with her arms while one of her wings wrapped around me and kept us pressed against one another. While I’d been dealing with the boring stuff, the others had gotten Stella all set up. Along with Elisa and Ryoko, she now had a workshop in a heavily reinforced building tucked against the side of the manor.

All my favorite brains were inside, hunched over something I didn’t even want to ask about. Their heads snapped up when I walked in like I’d caught them doing something wrong, but I promptly forgot about whatever it was Rhallani was hurriedly hiding from sight when Stella launched herself at me with a squeal of pure happiness.

“Zaren, this is amazing!” she cried, latching to my front not unlike Noelle had a few minutes ago. “The workshop, the materials! I mean, I get windows! I can really do whatever I want?”

“Within reason,” I said, tucking some stray hair behind one of her long, pointed ears. “We don’t have unlimited resources, but for the most part you’re more than welcome to let that crazy little mind of your run free.”

With another squeal, she jumped up so she could throw her arms around my neck and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “I love you,” she whispered.

Warmth bloomed in my chest. “Love you, too.”

Rhallani and Ryoko both joined us, though I didn’t miss Rhallani stashing a roll of papers in a drawer on her way. After pulling me down for a kiss on the cheek, Rhallani hopped up on one of the workbenches and crossed her legs while Ryoko tucked herself into my other side.

“Done brooding up on the roof?” Rhallani asked

“For now, though I’ve got more brooding scheduled around midnight,” I said with a shrug.

Ryoko looked up at me with wide eyes. “You’re worried about something,” she noted.

“I’m worried about a lot of things,” I admitted.

She pursed her lips, her bushy tail flicking behind her in agitation. “More than usual.”

Yeah, well, learning about your impending death had that effect on people. “That’s why we’re here.”

Noelle stepped forward with the Blade. “Ash has an idea, but she needs help fleshing it out and Zaren can’t be a part of it.”

That made Rhallani lean forward. “Why not?”

Noelle’s head tilted to the side. “For the plan to work, he can’t know its details, apparently.”

Stella looked up at me, already worrying the ring in her lip. I captured her chin between my thumb and forefinger and tilted her head back far enough to capture her lower lip with my teeth and she groaned into my mouth. Then I placed a kiss on Ryoko’s head and she leaned into me, her tail wrapped around my leg.

“Ash needs some help, and I figured who better than the three greatest minds we’ve got.” Then I glanced at where Elisa was watching from afar. “Four, if you’d be willing.”

Her back straightened. “Me? O-okay. I’ll help however I can.”

I gave Ryoko and Stella a squeeze, pressed a kiss to Noelle’s temple, then tried to give a peck on the lips to Rhallani that turned into something much deeper when she threw her arms around my neck and pulled me flush with her. “Should we be worried?” she asked, her lips still close enough to be touching mine.

“Probably. Ash will explain, I’m sure.” I kissed her again. “But I trust you five to figure things out. She needs some friends to lean on right now, and I think it’ll do her good to talk with someone that isn’t me for a bit. Even if it is through Noelle.”

“We’ll take care of her,” Rhallani said, patting my chest.

I gave Ryoko a rub between the ears and she batted my hand away with a small smile, then I gave Noelle one last caress across the ridge of her wing and Stella a pop on the ass, earning me heated glares from them both.

“I’ll leave the rest to you all, then.”

I felt their eyes on my back as I left, but I kept up my unworried demeanor until the workshop door was closed behind me. I’d never really been afraid to die. Not since I was a kid, at least. Even when I was under Karn’s control, the thought of leaving the others unprotected scared me far more than my own mortality did.

For the first time, I had a life worth living. A reason for being that wasn’t just my above average ability to neutralize threats others thought un-neutralize-able. I had people who would miss me if I died. Mourn me. A family that I wanted a life with more than I’ve ever wanted anything. The idea of dying now... it scared me. And I wasn’t someone who was used to being scared.

But I knew better than anyone that letting that fear control me was a one way ticket to making stupid mistakes. Mistakes that wouldn’t just cost me. As badly as I wanted to freak out about Ash’s premonition, I had to keep a level head. I’d meant what I said to her on that rooftop. If our enemy was going to try to take me out of play, by killing me or otherwise, then I needed to prepare. To put things in motion.

And that meant having a conversation that was undoubtedly going to get me yelled at.