Tabula Rasa: Adventures In A New World

Krvavy tilts her head, looking up to the cave ceiling high above this switchback path. She takes a deep breath and... “WE’RE HOME~!”

It only takes a second for the barbarian’s bellowing shout to get a response. “My dearest love!” Beryl’s head quickly pops through one of the windows all the way up there, joy and relief filling her voice. “We were startin’ ta worry about the two o’ ya!”

“Yeah... sorry about that!” Krvavy loudly replies, smiling rather sheepishly. “The loot kind of slowed us down!” And speaking of... “Is Inanna –!?”

“She’s in ‘er workshop!”

“Great, I’ll yell for her when we get closer!” Not that that will be entirely necessary. There is a good chance she can already hear all of this shouting.

“Do ya need ‘elp carryin’ tha’ stuff up ‘ere!?”

Rather than immediately respond, Krvavy instead turns her gaze over to Khalia. “You good?”

“Hahhh...!” The Were-Beast’s chest heaves with that heavily panted breath. But, despite her obvious exhaustion, she still nods her head.

“Right... Just a bit further, okay?” Krvavy reassures her precious puppy, before glancing back up at Beryl. “Inanna’s handcart should be enough on its own! We’ll be up there in just a couple more minutes!”

“Ah’ll be waitin’!”

“Whwwwhaahhh...” A long, tired whine passes through Khalia’s plump lips. “Nnnhhhhghh...” She drops to her knees just a few paces away from the fireplace.

Thea’s brow knits together, a little bit of worry filling her face as she watches that Were-Beast curl up on the floor. “What did you do to make the dog so exhausted...?”

“She insisted on carrying this.” Krvavy glances down at the handcart that she is pushing with just a bit of help from her Dwarf. Or, more specifically, she glances down at the large rectangular crate balanced atop that cart. “It is a lot heavier than all the stuff I had to deal with.”

“Aww... Ya poor puppy!” Beryl crouches down beside the exhausted Were-Beast, her nimble hands gently gliding through strands of black-brown hair and ruffling it all quite a bit. “My dearest love, ya –” The Elf abruptly cuts herself off. The warmth in her blue-green gaze fades as those bright eyes narrow into thin slits. A frown finds its way onto her face. “Ya ‘ave some new scars.” She coldly states, glaring daggers at the Drakling’s muscled midsection.

“Yeah... It was a tough fight.” Krvavy hesitantly responds, sliding the overstuffed backpack off her shoulders and gently placing it on the ground, being careful to not let the various weapons strapped to its sides scratch the floor.

“Mate... hhhhhn... Nearly... Die...”

The barbarian winces, doing a poor job at ignoring the numerous stern gazes directed her way. “You didn’t need to tell them that...”

“Ach, ya are too reckless...!” The tomboyish Elf storms over to her Draconic lover’s side. “Ah knew tha’ Ah should ‘ave gone along wit’ ya as well!”

“Do I look dead to you? I am completely fine!” Krvavy exasperatedly groans, standing still as Beryl’s hand delicately presses against her abs, softly touching the faint horizontal line that the knight’s icy sword left on her side.

The Wood Elf’s expression hardens as her fingers trail up to the branching scars covering Krvavy’s chest. “Ya may be fine this time, but wha’ about the next time?” Beryl’s shoulders slump as she suddenly lets out a long and weary sigh. “Ah can’t ‘elp but worry, my dearest love...”

“I... I know...” Krvavy responds with a sigh of her own, wrapping an arm around her sweet berry.

Beryl relaxes into that loose hug, pressing her face into the barbarian’s bare breasts. “Ya levelled up at least, aye...?” Her muffled voice gently rumbles through Krvavy’s chest.

“Of course.” The barbarian easily answers, her touch slowly trailing up this tomboy’s toned back. “That extra experience bonus from Libidinous Lifestyle really helped as well. Though, to be honest, even without it I probably still would have levelled up at least three times.”

“Wait.” The tanned Elf pulls her head back just enough to stare up past Krvavy’s pale tits. “Ya got more than three levels out o’ tha’ lightnin’ wizard?!”

“I mean, there were a couple knights there as well... But yeah.” As expected, the non-physical feeling of Inspect prods at her awareness the second she finishes speaking. With just a thought, she lets those attempts at scrying through.

“Five levels...” Beryl’s blue-green eyes dart back and forth across the barbarian’s stat sheet, her breathless muttering tinged with awe. “My dearest love...!”

The Drakling’s lips twist into a teasing smile. “Does this make up for my new scars~?”

“Ach, no! Not at all!” Beryl vehemently spits back, sounding genuinely angry even though her wry smile shows that she isn’t actually mad. Well, at least not for the most part. “Those permanent marks are ruinin’ yer perfection!”

“Well,” the Drakling playfully begins, “if you really don’t like them, then there is one way for me to get rid –”

“Krvavy.” The Wood Elf’s expression hardens in an instant. “Do not even joke o’ such a thing.”

“Right, sorry.” The barbarian quickly relents, having the decency to look more than a little sheepish. Dying and respawning just to get rid of a few blemishes is... well, it’s a bit extreme. Not that she was being serious. But still...

“Mm.” Inanna idly hums, standing patiently next to the crate. “You gained a lot of Divine Favour. Do you know what you want to spend it on?”

“Not really.” Krvavy simply shrugs her shoulders. “I’d like to upgrade Soulbound Weaponry, but it needs to be level ten for that...”

“Yer Wind, Fire, Beast, and Nature magic skills are all also close ta bein’ level ten.” Beryl points out, trying to move on and not focus on those new scars. Which is easier said than done. Her fingertips can’t quite pull away from those faint fractal lightning-like lines. “Do ya want ta try gettin’ some specific spells fer them, or just leave it up ta chance?”

Krvavy furrows her brow and thinks about that for a moment. “It wouldn’t hurt to try getting spells that I’ll actually use...”

“And it will likely be some time until you level up again, yes?” Inanna questions, tilting her head slightly.

“Yeah, probably.” The barbarian replies with a faint nod. “I want to spend some time around home after being away for so long. But maybe in a week or so we can go and kill some more of those slimes? That might be enough for me to get another level?”

“Eh...” Beryl grimaces slightly before burying her face back into Krvavy’s breasts, muffling her voice. “Those slimes are such a pain, my dearest love...”

“You don’t need to come along if you don’t want to. Though Khalia probably won’t want to be there either...”

“Ach, Ah can’t let ya go alone.” The Elf softly sighs, pulling back from her Draconic lover once more. “Besides, Ah ‘ave been messin’ around wit’ my magics, so it won’t be quite as... frustratin’ as last time. Not goin’ ta use tha’ stupid stick again...”

“Ugh! Enough already!” Exasperated impatience underlines those loudly shouted words, the hem of Thea’s sundress fluttering around her thighs as she (rather lightly) stomps a foot onto the ground. “Are we just going to leave this so-called loot sitting here, in the middle of our home, all day?!”

“This is literally some of the most loot-like loot I’ve ever brought home.” Krvavy dryly states, gently kicking the backpack resting near her feet.

“Ugh! Just get on with it already!”

“Okay, fine...” Krvavy shakes her head and squats down, getting straight to work unpacking that bag. “First we have these weapons. Three big and pretty fancy swords which are probably enchanted, so could you give them a look over later, Inanna?” That question gets a quick nod. “Good. Next we have a bunch of daggers. They’re not anything all that special, but they were light and I figured that it wouldn’t hurt to bring them back anyway. Then finally we have a couple crossbows with a lot of bolts. And, Thea, do they look familiar to you~?”

“Yes.” The silver-blonde brat icily states, more annoyed with the delay than anything. “They are almost exactly the same as the one you have stashed away in your horde. The one you took from the bandits who were holding me captive. So what? We already knew the Duke was behind my kidnapping.”

“We assumed,” Krvavy corrects the noble girl, “and it doesn’t hurt to have more evidence.”

“Evidence?” The silver-blonde brat skeptically raises an eyebrow. “What do we need evidence for? It is not like that really matters. You would kill him regardless of his guilt.” The girl plainly states, rolling her eyes. “Can you just open that crate already?”

“Now come on, we’re not done here yet.” The barbarian playfully chides the brat, ignoring the glare she gets in response. “Inside the backpack is... well, it’s mostly armour, to be honest. And it isn’t cheap scrap like last time either. We killed three knights, after all, though not all of that armour was... salvageable. Still, we now have some fancy plate and chainmail, which is also probably enchanted?”

“Mm. Looks to be.” Inanna comments, picking up a vambrace.

“We also got some disappointingly boring travelling food.” Krvavy continues, pulling a few pouches from the backpack. “And a little more money than what I spent in Raseyne. Little bit of a let down, but better than nothing, I guess.”

“I presume that this crate holds the most valuable loot?” The Dwarf tilts her head slightly.

“Yup.” Krvavy replies with a nod, turning towards the wooden box resting atop the handcart. Without wasting any more time, she immediately begins pulling at the various ropes wrapped around it, untying them one by one. Which isn’t the quickest process, but still. Once they are all undone, or at least visibly loose, Krvavy grabs onto the top of the crate and violently wrenches it open. “Tada!”

“Interesting.” The Dwarf steps forward, looking over the stacks of dark-grey ingots filling this crate to the brim. “Tenebrine steel.” She states, grabbing an ingot and lifting it into the air. “Mm. Fairly high grade as well.”

“What purpose would the Duke have to send such a small box of steel to the Dwarves?” Thea skeptically asks, sneering ever so slightly. “There is no way that this meager amount is enough to buy any sort of favour, especially not from the Dwarves of all people.”

“Mmm...” Inanna slowly places the ingot back down. “No, it is not.” She agrees, turning towards the brat. “It was almost certainly meant as tribute. A gift to reopen diplomatic communications.”

“Reopen~?” Beryl playfully questions, though it is obvious that she isn’t expecting an answer. “My dearest love, ya do ‘ave an ‘abit o’ unintentionally screwin’ over this Duke’s plans, don’t ya~? Ya stole away ‘is fiancée, makin’ ‘er your own, and even the Runesmith tha’ was supposed ta be ‘is~!”

“Yes, I do believe that it is safe to assume that Volhynia, or some other city which this Duke controls, was my original destination.” Inanna nods her head, her face remaining as neutral as ever. “My people do not trust easily. Had a different ruler made the original deal, then the Duke of Volhynia would have no chance in making one of his own: it would be assumed that he was behind the attack in the first place, all to deprive a rival of what he is now seeking.”

“And wha’ o’ the grudges~?” The Wood Elf asks, her lips curling into a slightly mischievous smile. “Dwarves are needlessly vengeful, are ya not~? Wouldn’t every Dwarven death up here on ‘the surface’ be blamed on Humanity as a whole, regardless o’ who is actually guilty~?”

“In part, yes.” Inanna nods her head again. “The lives lost would add to the collective guilt of Humanity, but a greater blame would be put on the ruler whose land it happened in, and greater still on those actually responsible.”

“Ugh...” The silver-blonde brat exasperatedly groans, rubbing at her temples as if nursing a headache. “We do not need an explanation on Dwarven diplomacy! Just tell us how valuable this metal is already!”

The Dwarf meets the noble girl’s gaze, her copper-orange eyes piercing into the brat. “Most types of steel do not accept mana particularly well. To put it simply, this makes anything made out of steel more difficult to enchant.” She begins to explain. “That is not the case for Tenebrine steel, as it is one of the few types to easily accept mana. Additionally, it also has obfuscating properties which, among other things, make any enchantments woven into it more difficult to dispel.”

The corner of Thea’s eye twitches.

“This metal is much more valuable to us, if simply due to our general lack of resources, than it is to my people.” Inanna finally answers the brat’s question. Kind of. “The special properties of Tenebrine steel are less relevant to the Dwarven way of –”

“Okay, okay! We get it!” Thea loudly whines, burying her face in her hands.

“Why are ya so eager ta get this over wit’?” Beryl asks the brat, her lips slowly curling into a teasing smile. “Did ya, perhaps, miss our dearest love~? Do ya want ta spend some time wit’ ‘er~? Maybe cuddle a bit~?”

“Ugh, no!” The silver-blonde noble girl groans again, her cheeks flushing a little. “Do you not remember the ‘important thing’ that she promised we would talk about as soon as she came back? She is back now, and I want to know what that ‘thing’ is!”

Krvavy grimaces as Thea brings that up. A part of her had been hoping that her girls would have miraculously forgotten about that... She is really regretting having even mentioned it in the first place... But Krvavy also knows that she can’t just avoid this discussion forever, no matter how much she is dreading it. Her girls deserve to know...

“Are ya okay, my dearest love?” Beryl gently asks, looking slightly concerned as she sees the Drakling’s darkening expression.

“Yeah, its just... that ‘important thing’ is kind of a heavy topic.”

“It isn’t about our relationship, is it?” Inanna asks, a bit of curiosity and worry in her normally neutral voice.

“No! No, it isn’t!” Krvavy hastily responds. “It’s just... a bit of an existential crisis, I suppose.”

“Would ya like ta get more comfortable first?” The Wood Elf softly asks, lovingly clasping Krvavy’s hand with her own. “Ya did just get back ‘ome, and even if ya aren’t as tired as Khalia Ah’m sure ya could still use a bit o’ a rest.”

“Hmph,” Thea huffs, giving her soft-blue eyes a good roll.

“Ach, come on girl...” The tanned Wood Elf gently shakes her head. “No need ta be so impatient. We aren’t short on time.”

“Hmph!” The silver-blonde brat crosses her arms over her chest, clearly trying to appear stern... but it just looks like she is pouting. As usual. “Stop giving the degenerate Dragon excuses to procrastinate! It is obvious that she just wants to keep putting off whatever it is that she needs to talk about!”

“Thea is right.” Krvavy quickly placates her Elf, putting on a hollow smile as the dread begins to well up inside of her. “I... would rather just get this over with quickly.”

“Ya sure?”

The barbarian nods her head, trying to put on an air of confidence. “Where’s Adeli–?”

“Over there.” Beryl swiftly answers, pointing across the room to where Adeline is awkwardly standing. The bunny-mouse girl shrinks slightly under the sudden attention, her face flushing a bit before being hidden completely behind her big floppy ears.

“Okay, uh, guess we can talk down in the hot springs?” The barbarian weakly shrugs her shoulders. No point in kicking the poor girl out just so that they can have this chat.

“Of course...” Thea rolls her eyes as she quietly mutters. “We always have our talks down there...”

Rather than deign that with a response, Krvavy simply steps over towards Khalia and scoops the tired Orc up into her arms. Her precious puppy almost certainly won’t be participating much, if at all, but she still deserves to be present for this...

“Rrmgh...” Khalia weakly grumbles as her nap is disturbed, but her mild annoyance is quickly replaced with tired joy as she cuddles up into her Mate’s arms.

A heavy sigh slowly passes through Krvavy’s lips as she reluctantly heads towards the hot spring.