A War Dawning Ch. 01

Her mind latched onto the phrase 'fuck animal' and she grunted in response, her eyes locked on his as her ears hungered for more words. As she continued to love him with her mouth, Neral let her hand follow Bryana's spine, detouring to follow a few of her more interesting markings before getting back on the path to those wet, fabric-covered panties and pulling the crotch aside to see that she was dripping wet, her pussy clenching every time he slid back into her mouth.

"Sweet, Bryana. Weak and empty and wet. All I have to do is shove my fingers into this nasty little cunt like this." Two fingers slid in with some roughness into a pussy that glistened in the light like Bryana's chin and the walls of Bryana's pink grabbed at her digits hungrily.

"Shove my fingers in and remind the dumb little mage that she has her man's cock in her mouth and all there is to do is remind her that she's tasting her man and doing nothing but giving him pleasure."

Her face contorted at the thought, not to mention the spiking sensations between her legs and her mind latched onto the feelings. Deres pulling his cock from her mouth and smearing it all over her face as she came madly while chasing it with her lips and tongue.

After kissing it reverently and breathlessly Bryana looked to Neral with the corner of her mouth turned upward, a blush finding her cheeks as a girlish giggle escaped her, as though she'd been caught doing something naughty. And, admittedly, the hint of emptiness behind her eyes where there was almost always wit and fire was irresistible, so Neral didn't try. She kissed Bryana hard and deep and Bryana responded by hooking her arm around Neral's neck to keep her close.

Neral could have stayed in that moment with the kisses and the shedding of what little fabric each still wore, but his touch on her back drew her to him. Gripped suddenly in his powerful arms, she allowed herself to be weak and let him direct her as his own desires demanded.

Those desires demanded that he push her to the bed, his tongue running along her skin and his lips paying tribute to every battle scar on her body between her belly button and her lips. Soldiers of Erette wore the proudly as badges of service and sacrifice and their lovers paid respect. It was seen as a particular victory to earn the affection of a warrior woman, not that Deres himself cared overmuch He would not have cared if she were a blacksmith or merchant. She was perfect to him.

But, he admitted that her skill did excite him when considering she could go from warrior and leader of men to lover. He kissed the small scars on either side of her neck and realized that perhaps he cared just a bit more than a little about the heat of bedding a woman with her particular skill set.

When he reached her lips he relished the feel of her body and the heat of her breath on his skin as well as her and Bryana's hands roaming over his body building his need. "Are you going to kiss me all night," she began before kissing him again, "or are you going to shove that thing where we both need it to be?"

"I believe I can accommodate you." He rose to his knees, using his hands at her knees to keep her splayed open. Bryana moaned again at the sight of it and let her tongue and lips have their way with both his cock and her mound. She kissed his chest, letting her fingers graze his nipples. "You like watching it go in and out," Bryana said happily.

That seemed like a nice idea just then, so Neral propped herself up on her elbows to watch it slide inside, feeling its girth spread her apart and the joyous sensations that went with it as it became part of her. She bit her lower lip and threw her head back for a moment as they took her before focusing her deep brown eyes on him once again. "He does. He likes watching himself fuck holes...like any other man I have ever been with. They like to see themselves inside her and enjoy the look and feel of having conquered her."

"You're watching, too," he breathed.

"That I like, watching my husband take me and take pleasure from me; that watching it makes me wetter and makes me want to cum like a whore by the end...mmmmm...changes nothing for what it means to you."

Bryana watched it, fascinated herself with the way it seemed to get wetter and wetter with each thrust. "I want a turn, she pouted. When do I get a turn with that nice cock?"

"See, Deres? You upset the empty little slut." A smirk fought for its place on her features, "Now I have to fix it."

"As though you...fucking hate that. As though you have never looked for time alone with the mage pussy."

Bryana twitched at the mention of 'fucking' and 'pussy.'

She liked the look of her pussy lips flaring each time he drove back in. "That's a different topic, dearest. It's not my fault that both of my loves crave me and that I crave them. I can blame you both quite correctly. She crooked her finger at the blonde. "Come here, pet, and I'll lick you until you get a turn at this lovely meat."

"Yes. Lick my pussy. Lick it and lick it and lick it. Bryana scampered up, turning herself to face Deres, placing both hands on his shoulders before pulling him into a kiss as Neral impaled Bryana on her tongue.

Giving and taking to one another, they merged together in flesh and sensation.

* * *

Neral straightened her uniform jacket in the full-length mirror before her as Bryana finished her understated makeup at the vanity table behind and to her left in final preparations to travel the outskirts of the city as a healer in her own right. "You had fun last night."

"What makes you think so," she asked casually, applying a bit of blush to her cheeks.

"Because I remember last night and there is also the hoarseness in your throat today."

I did enjoy the respite, yes." For Bryana, there were only a few images that stuck with her. For the most part though it was the memory of simple feeling that lingered, from the heat of sex to the warmth of love. It renewed her in a way that a simple good night's sleep did not.

"Back to your old self today?"

"The spell is well-practiced and does not linger, you know as much."

Neral tweaked the position of her belt buckle. "I do. I simply worry now and then, as is my nature."

Bryana gently dismissed it. "You have enough to concern yourself with, you need not worry about that."

Neral decided her ponytail was proper before leaning down to Bryana's reflection. "What number comes between six and eight?"

"Orange, of course," Bryana answered plainly.

Neral kissed her cheek. "There's my woman."

"Of course."

She left the bedroom with Bryana not too far behind, making her way to the living room to see Tessa, House Mistress for House Jaye already waiting for her, the general's travel cloak in hand while one of the male servants held her short sword in its scabbard. Neral liked knowing that that rock of certainty in her life was there. House Jovis had been in service of House Jaye for almost as long as either line could be traced and not a day went by that she was not glad of it as Tessa made her life possible in any number of ways. "You look well, Mistress."

"A lovely evening was had, Tessa, and that tends to brighten one's morning." She looked at the other's thick copper mane and resisted the temptation to run her fingers through it.

She gave a knowing glance. "I'm glad to hear that, Mistress."

Neral glanced to her left to see Deres straightening Khylen's dark black coat with the tiny gold buttons that she seemed to tend to favor because, as Neral suspected with some humility, it reminded her of Neral's military dress uniform.

She looked upon the little one with every ounce of love and pride she was capable of. Neral knew well her bias, but the child was the best of her and Deres. She had her mother's regal features already, chubby cheeks notwithstanding, as well as brown eyes that could seem to go black if her little temper flared, though she was not prone to it even at her age. While Neral's hair was dark brown Khylen's hair was as midnight black as her father's.

Named for Khylen Kestral, a soldier who, already a victim of magic and its corruption, sacrificed her life to bring Bryana back to the world after having been mortally wounded by the sorceress they had traveled across the world to put down, Neral hoped that Kestral would be proud of the young girl that carried her name.

Kestral's parents at least certainly were. The particular circumstances would be beyond their ability to cope and create a number of problems for her at home so Neral had told them truth enough: that their daughter had sacrificed herself for Bryana and that House Jaye would forever honor that. "Ready for school, I see."

"Yes, I am," she said very seriously before hugging her father tightly and reaching up to Neral, who promptly scooped her up to hug her tightly, kiss her cheek, and just look upon her. She understood now, as the last of her mother's daughters to have children, just what sway the little ones could hold. Even eldest sister Maia, a woman many of those that didn't know her could call cold, softened visibly when interacting with her own.

"Learn many interesting things today and share them with me later."

"Will you be home for supper?"

Neral did not hide her disappointment. "I have a late meeting with the queen, so I shall likely miss supper with you, but I should be home in time to read to you."

She searched her mother's eyes and Khylen found something in there to appease her. "Promise?"

Neral fought her own disappointment and she caught sympathy in the eyes of her loves. "I promise to make every effort."

Khylen stiffened for a moment. "Promise to wake me up and say goodnight when you do get home?"

Neral smiled. "That I promise you will be done."

Another hug and a kiss on the cheek seemed to seal the contract and Neral put her down to put on her cloak as Tessa filled her in on her schedule for the day. She had reached the point where she could file it all in her mind even as the other spoke without thinking much about it. She took the scabbard from Derik, "Thank you."

"Annesta says it's silly to do that."

Neral stopped buckling the sword to her body to focus. "Do you say thank you when her servants do something for you?"

"Yes. But she says it's silly. They're just servants and they don't need that."

"We say thank you to people that do us a service," Deres admonished her gently. Having been born and raised a good portion of his youth in the impoverished southern quarter, he was particularly sensitive to class and, in particular, the disdain that much of nobility had for those that they say as beneath them.

"Annesta says if you pay them and it's their place they were born in they don't need people to thank them."

"Payment or not, they don't need to do those things for us. They could leave and find other work, but they choose this work and that's worthy of respect," Deres said.

"Your father is right, Khylen," Neral told her as Derik held the sword while the general finished the buckling, "Thank you, Derik."

Derik kept his tone formal as, being a parent himself, he recognized a teaching moment "You are most welcome, Mistress."

"Tradition may suggest a path, but people still choose it in the end. They are not slaves to it or to us."

Khylen could feel the change of energy in the room and decided she didn't want to get into trouble. "I'm just saying what Annesta said to me."

"Be less concerned with how Annesta acts or how she says you should act and more with how your parents say you should," Bryana told her.

"Bryana is correct, too," Neral said, bending to put a kiss atop that head. "Say 'thank you' when someone does something for you. Always. All right?"

She looked up, seemingly in awe of her mother in a way that put a proud weight on the elder Jaye. "Yes, Mother." Before Neral could respond further, Khylen added "Yes, Father" and a "Yes, Mother Bryana" to the list.

Neral cleared her throat to stifle a laugh as she looked to Bryana with an 'I told you so' look as she often did when such things happened and Bryana smiled with her eyes as she also often did in response when she got the look.

"Learn many interesting things today, sweet."

* * *

General Jaye's day progressed well. There were several meetings with subordinates about both training regimens and border logistics. It was something of a chess game. One of those bordering Erette moved their own troops to test the defenses of their neighbors, saber rattle, or handle their own internal issues and then Erette and its neighbors responded in kind. In the end though, peace was maintained.

The afternoon was more pleasant for her simply because she could spend it watching the new recruits train. She liked to spot talent and test it at the same time. Some would wither at her presence, much less her gaze. Some steeled their resolve to excel in her presence. Some tried to show off. All their reactions, coupled with their skill, painted a picture for her.

It showed her the ones who were born with both talent and temperament. It showed her the ones who would likely fail because they lacked either or both in measure enough. Most importantly to her though, it showed her the ones who had the potential for greatness.

Some of the finest soldiers with which she had ever served had benefited from nurturing. Perhaps they'd needed help with the physical, or they simply needed time and urging to find their voices. She made mental notes over the course of the day and spoke with the instructors pointing out those that she felt might benefit from added attention and listening to the feelings of the instructors on the matter.

Through it all this day, behind her, as she had been for many days previously was her eldest niece Nelina. Eldest daughter of her eldest sister, not only had her House of birth led her to the service, she had been born with the calling of military service on her soul as Neral had.

She was solid in every way. Shorter than Neral by a good measure, her body was compact, her hair fine and a light shade of brown that she kept straight as it stopped just past her neck. Long bangs helped frame her face and her green eyes had the same intensity as her mother's. Neral saw much of Maia in her aside from that. She carried her power well, whether it was measured by her skill as a warrior or as a woman.

Nelina had only fairly recently in the grand scheme of things taken the position as personal aide and was still feeling her way through things. Her dealings with the aides of other senior officers had the definite air of its own version of Court with officers trying to maneuver their concerns and sometimes themselves into being noticed.

It was complex, but Nelina was a quick study and adept in her own way having observed her mother and grandmother manage the family at Court since she could walk. She walked next to, but ever so slightly behind Neral as they spoke.

"You will brief the queen on the troop movements of the Draleth and offer your appraisal and recommendation."

"Sir?"

"You heard quite correctly."

Nelina remained remarkably composed as she looked around the general's large, yet spartan offices in the hopes that she might find something to rescue her. "I'm not certain I am qualified to do so." Her words belied her trepidation. Inside, she was certain that she was not.

"Nonsense," Neral answered. "You have been with me through all of the briefings up to this point and we've discussed the reports at length. You are more than sufficiently versed to give the report to the queen."

She quelled the rush of panic quickly enough to keep most of the display of it from her face. "The report perhaps, but an appraisal and recommendation? I think not."

Neral tried to be both firm and gently reassuring. "You have a command of the facts and your mind is keen. I realize that you may be uncertain of things, but while I admit I do this to test you, it is not with the intent to embarrass you, nor with the expectation you will fail."

She stiffened slightly at the words of confidence. "I will give my absolute best effort."

"That is all I demand." Her posture relaxed slightly as happier thoughts intruded. "Bear in mind that she will test you. She feigns ignorance in military matters and, while she may not know the intricacies of a cavalry charge, as a woman of High Court born to be Queen, her strategic mind is shrewd. She will test you and herself at the same time."

"Yes, sir." She said the words with far more confidence than she felt.

Neral read the stress and put her arm around her niece in a show of sympathy. "You are, in more ways than you realize, your mother's daughter. You will do well. Take the energy of your fear and refocus it into something far more useful."

She took a cleansing breath and attempted to follow the order. After the second one, she actually began to feel better. Seeing the general take pride in her response helped a bit more still.

"Come. Let's get you before the queen."

***

A caste system exists in every society, whether it's acknowledged or not. Whatever form it took, from a more rigid system such as existed in Erette, to a simple acknowledgment that there are haves and have-nots, and that those two groups lead vastly different lives. No matter what form it took there are certain universal elements, namely, in this case, that those that had generally ignored those that didn't. From ditch diggers, to tailors, to maids, those that made life run smoothly for those that had were largely ignored by them.

That offered advantages for people like Wyrnn to exploit, as she had many times before and would do so again. Anything that got her closer to her target was fair game. She had to admit that it all thrilled her. The hunt made her heart pound. Figuring out how to best approach her targets was in exercise in mental dexterity.

She had to learn who they were and how they lived and breathed to know the best time and place to strike. She played out every scenario she could think of in her mind and tried to come up with plans to counter them all.

But sometimes what she couldn't anticipate came to pass and that was its own rush. She had to think fast and move almost as quickly to deal with the unexpected and that thrilled her almost as much as making the kill. In this case though, rarely was a target so high profile, so making the kill would be glorious indeed.

But kills at this level usually took time and not even so much from finding the way in, but from becoming part of the background long enough to become a forgotten piece of it. It took some months to do in the case of drawing herself close to Queen Evaline by finding a place amongst her score of lesser servants. It had taken months and a web of connections to settle her background sufficiently to gain a place where she might get close.

It was also helpful to Wrynn, in her line of work, to find things to dislike, if not hate about her victims. It made killing them easier. Killing royalty was usually quite simple as most lived safely ensconced in a bubble of their own ego and divinity. They were usually arrogant and condescending toward anyone not at their level, which meant, at least within their own kingdom, everyone else.

Evaline had some of that, of course. She was queen, you were not, and while she did not spend her time entwining her life with the lesser around her, nor were they the dirt under her shoes. Even so, any of that arrogance was enough. Wrynn chose her own path, as she felt everyone should. The Goddess, if She'd ever existed, came and went. She cared nothing for her creations and certainly did not personally select some to rule over others.

That someone felt they were innately better than another was someone that, to Wrynn, required correction. She looked around Evaline's private quarters, seeing examples of that divinity all over, from the murals covering the ceilings, to paintings of each ruler in her line before her, to some of the finest furnishings to be found anywhere.