1 comments/ 1486 views/ 2 favorites Hope's Ascension By: Guinahart This story is about Adri and Krellyn, whose first meeting appears in Hope's Awakening, and this takes place in their future. Please enjoy, and as always, comments and emails are welcome! -Guinevere A. Hart * * * * * When Adri had come in following her daily prayer ritual, their infant, Jubilee, was still asleep. He listened as his wife quietly removed her vestments. She slipped under the blanket with him and pressed her body against his. A gentle hand lightly fell on his shoulder. She pushed her full, firm breasts into his back and crossed a long, slender leg over his hip. He caressed her knee then reached back along her silky thigh. He sighed, tightening his grip on her leg as she nuzzled into his hair and softly kissed his neck and shoulders. He could feel her smile against his skin. Her thoughts touched his, warm with desire, she mentally sent, "She's still asleep." With one hand still gripping her leg, he grabbed her arm with the other. Then in a smooth roll, he turned on his back and pulled her on top of him. Her mouth instantly closed with his, their tongues joining in a familiar, yet still fiery dance. He opened his eyes and watched in the mirrored canopy over head as his ink black hands slipped down her pale back, then flicked the coverlet away. His hands returned at once to cup and squeeze the mounds of her fine white buttocks. Adri broke their kiss to sit up on her knees. She drew a low growl from him as she scratched his chest and belly with her nails. She knew precisely how deep he needed it, and the pleasure/pain electrified the entirety of his flesh. "Again." He snarled at her. With a throaty chuckle, she repositioned her hands and clawed him again. From behind, he pushed two fingers from each hand into her drenched pussy and she gasped. He admired the view as Adri arched her back, thrusting forward those big beautiful tits. She moved her hips and he wiggled his fingers as much as he could inside of her. As he massaged the walls of her channel, she used both hands to lightly stroke his shaft. Then she squeezed and pulled with just the right amount of pressure, working up a drop of pre-cum. She raised up slightly and pressed the head of his cock against her clit, smearing his cum into her sweet pink bits. Her blue eyes met his, and the lust he saw there burned his soul. With a firm grip on his member she rapidly rubbed her clit with the tip. He continued working his fingers at her entrance, watching her face as she used him to get herself off. Sadly, she kept her mouth closed around her mewling sounds, trying to be quiet. He watched her and listened, sensing every thrill and nuance of her body and soul. When he knew it was time, he moved his fingers away and she replaced them with his cock. He firmly held her hips, and she rode him hard and fast. As he started to swell and pulse, he dug his wet fingers into her ass cheeks. Her body shuddered over him and she clenched her teeth around the cries that threatened to escape. He wanted to slap her ass, to make her free those precious sounds, but the infant slept only lightly in the mornings. So, Krellyn let it go, just to revel in the throbbing and thrumming waves of pleasure he and Adri shared. As he gently wiped her clean with a damp cloth, Krellyn was warm, content, and he supposed he might even one day be able to admit to a certain degree of genuine happiness. Cleaning and caring for Adri in their afterglow had become a ritualistic part of their intimacy, a part he cherished nearly as much as the sex itself. She had only just curled around him, with her face pressed against his ribs, when their child made her first burbling sounds of the day. The cooing quickly became a whine that said it was time to be fed. Adri started up, but Krellyn gently pressed her back down, saying, "Let me." Krellyn lifted the fussing girl-child from the basinet. He held her up and away as he judged her size. She was at least twice as heavy as she was when she had been born four months ago. He drew her close to his face, and she stopped whining to beam a smile at him. He looked closer at her irises which had been gradually shifting from blue to purple. She had his violet black skin, and it seemed she would have his red eyes as well. At that moment she also had his nose in one tiny hand, while the other yanked on his hair. When Krellyn laughed, Jubilee laughed with him. After a quick change of the cloth around her bottom, he passed the baby to Adri. He stayed to watch his family and to listen to Adri's soft voice. She sang in the Sylvan tongue, a song about wild fey and their magical lands. He closed his eyes and touched her soul, allowing himself one more small moment in that brilliant white light. He let it surround him, let it pierce him, until he felt his chest would burst, then he withdrew. His wife never missed a note, but she watched him with those radiant sapphire eyes. Finally, he tore himself away to his kitchen. It was a tidy place where benign things, like side pork and eggs, let him think clearly. He thought of his distant past, of the horrific tragedies that he just knew could never be set right. Then he had met her, and she made him believe that nothing was impossible. In her eyes and in that burning light of her spirit, he saw an end to a despair that he thought was eternal. He had been forming a plan of his own, and the more he thought on it, the clearer it became. He felt it was time to set things in motion. As he worked, he caught himself humming Adri's little song, and abruptly stopped. To the eggs he was scrambling, he grumbled, "I do not hum." As the smell of breakfast filled the house, Adri and Jubilee joined Krellyn in the kitchen. When they sat down to eat, Krellyn announced, "Today, you're to pack an overnight bag for yourself and Jubilee. We're going out of town." Adri grinned at his authoritative voice, but she would not argue. After her life of travel and adventure, she was starting to feel a little hemmed in. They had developed a comfortable life together, a life she dearly loved, but she could not deny that she longed for a brief change of scenery. "May I ask where we're going?" "To visit an old friend." Adri was truly surprised by that. She could not stop the words before they had escaped her mouth. "You have a friend?" Then, realizing what had passed her lips, she pressed her hand against her mouth. She watched as one fine white brow slowly climbed his dark forehead, the other eye narrowed sharply at her. Then the corner of his mouth twitched and Adri giggled. Krellyn said, "As a matter of fact, I have two friends." After a long, thoughtful stare at his plate, he lifted his head and looked in her eyes and his mouth twitched again. "Three, actually." Adri's heart swelled and her smile grew. She felt her cheeks growing red. The man who sat across the table from her knew her more intimately than any other person could. She could not understand why the thought that he considered her a friend would be the thing to make her blush. Perhaps it was because Adrielen could not even begin to count the number of people she considered her friends, but Krellyn could count his own friends on only one hand. Krellyn cleaned up the kitchen as Adri packed for their trip. He was just about through when she returned to him and asked, "Will I need this?" He turned and saw she was holding up the chain mail dress that she wore into combat. What amused him was the almost hopeful look in her eyes. It made him laugh. Adri smirked at him. "I'll just take that as a 'No', then." With breakfast and the packing out of the way, Krellyn went to work in his lab while Adri and Jubilee went visiting and making deliveries. He shook his head as he stared at his work space, wondering at how things change. He used to create poisons, now he made all manner of things that his customers needed. Of the things he thought he would never be, he had become a merchant. With a shrug and a derisive snort, he got to work. Krellyn's alchemical potions were quite popular among the adventuring Planes Walkers. He was happy with his precise formulas and instruments, but he despised dealing with people. On the other hand, Adrielen loved to talk to people. With her as his mouthpiece, Krellyn stayed busy and Adri stayed social. It was a perfect arrangement for both of them. When business was through, she came home in the late afternoon to find Krellyn had already put a light meal on the table. He told her to eat, that they would leave after supper. With a bag on her back, and their child slung across her front, Adri linked her hand with Krellyn's and the space around them shifted. They stood just inside a clearing within a thick, shadowy pine forest. Krellyn explained that there was a road not far from the clearing and that instantly popping up in a town full of ordinary mortals was not wise. Reaching the edge of the woods, they waited for an oxcart to pass them, so as not to startle the driver. Then Krellyn stepped out onto the road and led his family to a small quiet village. The village was populated primarily by elves, though there were a few humans and half-bloods among them. Adri noticed that Krellyn kept his hood up and his head lowered. Even so, there were a few people that crossed to the other side of the street, rather than pass them on the same path. Krellyn knew Adri's mind, could feel her rising ire and knew she wanted to say something. She heard his voice in her thoughts. "Unfortunately, my kin have developed a certain reputation. These people are only ignorant, not dangerous. At least not so long as you are able to hold a civil tongue." She took the warning seriously and kept quiet. They came to an inn and Krellyn said, "It would be best if you do the talking here. I want you to get us a room, then go to the bar and ask the barkeeper for Martain. The last time I saw him, he was talking about opening a shop for hunters." "Martain? That's your friend's name?" Adri passed the sleeping infant to Krellyn. "Yes. If he still lives here, I'd wager the man who sells his liquor will know something about him." With that, they went inside. The place was practically empty, with only three patrons at the bar. The proprietor stared long at Krellyn's cloaked and silent figure, then he whispered to Adri, "Are you all right, Miss?" Though Adri was already weary from the prejudice against her husband in that place, she smiled as cheerfully as she could. "Of course. My family and I are fine. We're just tired and need a place to rest." With that, she placed a few coins on the counter. Her offer was more generous than the little place deserved, but she had learned that the right coins could buy a certain degree of respect. Her gold vanished in a flash, and the man told her where to find their room. With Krellyn and Jubilee settling in for the night, Adri went to the bar. She ordered a drink and spoke with the bartender. "I'm looking for a man called Martain. Do you know him?" The rail-thin half-breed stared hard at Adri. He flicked greasy hair out of his eyes, and said, "Look, Miss Damsel, that Martain fella' don't help people no more. So, whatever you think your distress is, you better find some other sucker, or learn to rescue yourself." Adri was beginning to wonder if all the villagers were rude and ignorant. Perhaps there, it was the cultural norm. Though she was growing more irritated, she attempted a pleasant smile. It was a smile that never reached her eyes and must have revealed some of her internal anger, for the man took a step back. She simply slid another generous coin across the counter and said, "You look, Mister Piss Peddler, I am in no distress. And if I were, it would not be for long. I'm planning a hunting trip and I hear Martain's wares are the best. Now, can I find his shop here, or not?" Again, her coin disappeared. "Why didn't you say so? Shop's at the other end of town, just inside the woods. Path's marked. Can't miss it." Adri returned to the room and her ire instantly melted away. Jubilee was awake. She and Krellyn were making faces and nonsense noises at one another, and both were laughing. Seeing Adri, the baby girl threw up her arms, reaching for her mother. As Jubilee nursed, Adri told Krellyn what the bartender said. The following morning, they arrived at a small shop with a bow and a boar's head mounted above the door. As the sign suggested, it was a shop for huntsmen. The walls were adorned with bows, axes, and knives. There were horns and whistles for hunting with animals and all manner of general gear required for a successful hunt. Behind the counter, an elf with short-cropped dark blonde hair sat with his back to the door. He sat on a stool, bent over a worktable as he concentrated on fletching arrows. Though a small bell jingled when they went inside, the proprietor did not turn away from his work to look at his customers. He continued to watch his fletching and in a mild voice he said, "Help you folks with something?" Adri watched Krellyn pull back his hood and smirk as he said to the elf's back, "I'm looking for Martain." The elf paused, hands frozen over his work. His left ear twitched, as if pestered by an insect. In the same even tones he said, "Maybe I know that name. Maybe I don't. What do you want him for?" Krellyn said, "He was my friend. I like to think he might be, still." The elf sighed and turned to regard Krellyn with mild hazel eyes. A small smile played at the corners of his mouth. "Krellyn Darkraven. It's been... how many centuries? And why do I have the feeling that you being here now means my nice, quiet little life is about to get all kinds of screwed up?" Then he seemed to realize Adri was standing there. He asked, "You with him?" Adri smiled and nodded her head, then Krellyn introduced her. "This is Adri, my wife. And my daughter, Jubilee. Adri, this is Martain." Martain threw his head back and laughed. He stood up and came around the corner to clasp Krellyn's arm. Still chuckling he said, "Your 'wife'? Right. Why don't you yank on the other leg now?" As Adri lifted Jubilee from the sling, Martain gasped. First he said, "Krellyn, you're an asshole." Then to Adri, "Seriously, honey, how much did this crazy bastard pay you to dip your baby in ink?" Adri giggled, and because she did, so did Jubilee. "Your concern is touching, Martain. But I promise, she was born this way." He pointed at Krellyn and said to Adri, "I know Krellyn would lie for a bad joke, but you don't look like the lying kind. You really married to him? And that's his child?" Adri only met Martian's eyes and smiled patiently. After a moment, Martain threw up his hands in exasperation. "Well, how did that happen? I mean, was there a ceremony? Like in a chapel, with priests, pretty speeches, and flowers... and... cake?" Krellyn scrunched up his face in disgust and made a hissing noise. This made Jubilee laugh, then she scrunched her own face and practiced the same noise. Though, lacking any teeth, her noise was a raspberry. The baby's playing made Adri laugh, then she put out her lower lip at Krellyn in a mock pout and said, "I do wish there had been cake. I like cake." Krellyn eyed Jubilee as she continued to experiment with the new raspberry noise. To Adri he said, "I'll make you a cake when we get home." More to himself than to anyone else, Martain muttered. "My gods. It's for real. Krellyn, the master of all things gloom, doom and despair, went and got himself a wife. What is this multiverse coming to?" Krellyn said, "Yes, Martain. Now, if you could somehow manage to get over it, I'd like you to come back to the house with us. There's something I want to talk to you about." "Right. I guess that's where you're going to tell me how you're going to screw up my life again?" Though Martain's words were hesitant, he put a closed sign in the shop window and locked the door. Krellyn's crooked smile quirked up again, and he said, "Of course!" As Krellyn cast his spell to travel, he frowned because they did not go anywhere. Krellyn said, "It appears that someone has dimension-locked this area." Adri turned to Martain who shook his head. "Don't look at me. The only thing I ever cast is a fishing line." At that point, shadows peeled themselves off the floor and the wall. Martain cursed and pulled an axe off the wall. Krellyn stepped between his family and the shadows while he withdrew a pair of liquid filled glass globes. Sensing her mother's alarm, Jubilee began to cry. With no blade, no armor, and her infant daughter in her arms, Adri immediately spoke a prayer of protection over herself and her child. The divine spell was intended for field medics so that they could tend to the wounded without coming under attack. So long as Adri was not hostile, she and Jubilee would be safe. The temperature in the room dropped instantly so they could see the puffs of vapor as they breathed. As the minor shadow demons moved in to attack, they extended long ethereal claws. One of them managed to grasp Martain's arm, the claws passing right through his flesh. He hissed sharply and looked to see a row of frost-bitten cuts in his skin. Krellyn made quick work of two shadows. He tossed the glass directly at them. When it shattered on the floor beneath them, the liquid splashed and shredded his foes. Adri smiled, as she realized the globes were filled with holy water. As if they were of one mind, the two men fought back to back, keeping the shadows from getting around them. Then she noticed that Martain's mundane axe was not working as effectively as it could. Adri blended a new chant with the one protecting her baby. The axe began to glow with holy light. "Bonus!" He shouted, then he swiftly tore into the shadows before him. Adri saw that the wound Martain had received was turning black. That blackness was quickly spreading. He unconsciously shook his hand, then just let it hang at his side. She needed to stop the unholy infection before it touched his heart. To heal him, she needed to put her hands on him. If she could just get a little closer. She started to move forward, then Krellyn snapped at her, "Get back!" She jumped back just in time as Krellyn blocked another vicious claw attack with his cloak. Then, her blood chilled when she found she had backed into a person. The evil that radiated from the person behind her made her stomach clench and she wanted to vomit. Jubilee's primal instincts took control and she instantly stopped screaming. Her little body went stiff in Adri's arms, and she stared up at her mother with wide terror in her violet eyes. Adri's heart was slamming in her chest, but she maintained her chant. Though the being had not grabbed her or hurt her, she was beginning to wonder if it was powerful enough to sense her through her spell. She felt ice cold breath on the crown of her head, as if the being behind her was sniffing her. When she felt something squirming through her hair, everything in her screamed at her to run. However, her boots felt as if they were frozen to the floor. Not wanting to drop her spell, Adri used telepathy, sending her fear along her link to Krellyn and mentally calling his name. He finished off the shadow he was engaged with as he turned to look at Adri. Just as he and Martain were eliminating the last of the shadows, Krellyn felt Adri inside his head. As she called to him, the fear that accompanied that call was not at all like her. He turned to see that she had backed into a reptilian creature that had not appeared to be there before. It had a humanoid shaped body, but a snake-like face, with scales instead of skin and a long serpent's tail curled behind it. The creature looked confused, as if it could only partially sense Adrielen through her spell and was trying to figure out what she was. One of its hands had small snakes where fingers should have been, and it had the audacity to put that hand in his wife's hair. To Adri's mind, Krellyn said, "Move." Hope's Ascension Along their link she replied, "I can't." Within the folds of his cloak, Krellyn dipped a dagger into a paralytic. There was no doubt that he could hit the thing, but he did not want to risk nicking Adri. "Can you duck your head?" "Yes, I think so." As Adri bowed her head, Krellyn shouted out loud, "Martain!" He let his dagger fly, satisfied as it sunk into the large dark eye socket of the creature that threatened his family. In the same instant, Martain threw his axe. Just before the glow from Adri's blessed enchantment faded completely, the blade split the snake-man's skull. As it died, so did its holding spell over Adri. The tension faded, and Jubilee buried her face in her mother's breast and began to cry again. While Adri tended to Martain's arm, Krellyn dragged the snake-man's body outside. He looked through its pockets and found nothing. Then, on its neck, just below its left earhole, he found a small brand. It was the mark of the Prince of Winds. Through his divine essence, Krellyn sensed the being's spirit was still present, but fading. He left his own body, stepping into the astral to catch the thing about its scrawny neck. He pulled its startled face close to his and snarled. "Next time you see your master, you tell him I've been pushed too far." Krellyn's voice dropped even lower. "I'm coming for him." The creature had no time to respond, for Krellyn stepped out of the astral and back into his own flesh. He doused the snake-man's body in accelerant, and lit it up. As he stood over the flames he contemplated his own feelings. The memory of that thing touching Adri, his Adri, boiled the blood in his veins. He ground his teeth together until they hurt, not even realizing he was doing it. He reminded himself that his family was fine. The situation was still under control, but how had the assassin known where to find them? That new question reduced his boiling rage to a low and steady simmer. He felt Adri and Martain come up behind him. His old friend was dressed in his worn leathers, his longbow and a full quiver on his back. Martain gave a wry smile and said, "Well, that lovely visit confirms my theory that you've come to fuck up my life. You do know I'm retired, right? I don't do this shit anymore, Krellyn. Now that I've bestowed that useless nonsense on your deaf ears, I take it I'll be needing my gear?" Krellyn smiled back. Martain "retired" every few centuries or so. Then, whether it was his own sense of responsibility or just plain boredom, he would take up arms again. Krellyn was certain that this time it was his loyalty to their friendship and perhaps a bit of curiosity regarding Adrielen. He clapped his friend on the back and teleported them all back to their home in Union. Once they had settled around the table, they stared at one another for a long and awkward moment before Adri could no longer stand it. She started by asking Martain about his shop and his life in the little village. Every time she started questioning his and Martain's past, Krellyn consistently redirected the conversation. He was not yet ready to reveal a history that would undoubtedly upset her, besides, her tiny pout of frustration was cute. Giving up, Adri talked about Union and the life they had made there. She told of how she had met Krellyn, and how he had helped her save her family. In time, his wife seemed to realize that she had begun to babble. Winding down, she pulled away from the table and said, "You two probably want to catch up. I'll leave you to it." Krellyn watched as Adri tucked up her skirt and pulled off her boots. She was going into her garden where she could enjoy the feel of the soil under her bare feet. He admired the pale curves of her calves, slender ankles, and long toes. Feeling his eyes on her, she looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. She touched his spirit with that smile, and his own mouth curled in automatic response. She grabbed a blanket and took Jubilee outside. Martain remarked, "I still can't get my head around you being married. She's pretty, though." "Indeed." Krellyn excused himself and went into the kitchen. He took cheese, bread, and wine from the cupboard. He glanced out the window as Adri lay Jubilee on a blanket on the ground. She had already opened the garden gate. It was a signal to the neighborhood children that they were welcome to come in. They adored Adri, and it would only be a matter of seconds before she had a small audience of little ones who would come for her stories and songs. With his tray full of refreshments, and one more look at his family, Krellyn returned to the table. As Krellyn poured the wine, Martain said, "You're not the Krellyn I knew. You've gone from lone-wolf assassin to family-man merchant. Granted, I have no idea how long it's been since we've last seen one another." Krellyn only smirked at Martain's comment. He did not know how long it had been either, but he too recognized the changes in himself. He could almost say that he was happy, or as near to that as he was ever going to get. It was just as strange to him as it was to his friend. Martain took a sip of from his glass, then he asked, "So, are you going to tell me what's going on behind those creepy red eyes of yours? Because I couldn't even begin to guess." Krellyn laughed and nodded. "Hope is what's going on behind my 'creepy red eyes'." His ear flicked towards the back door, where he could already hear the laughter of children. He absently wondered what story she was telling them. Martain stared at Krellyn for a long while, but Krellyn just stared right back at him, giving time for the foreign concept to sink in. "Hope? You're serious, aren't you? That girl got you under some kind of spell?" Krellyn thought about that. In a way, she did enchant him, though it was unintentional. It certainly was not the sort of spell Martain was thinking of. Krellyn shook his head in the negative. Then he said, "I have come to believe that we may be able to set a few things right. I have a plan." "What things? What am I doing here, Krellyn?" "Follow me. I want to show you something." Krellyn led Martain to the kitchen window and indicated he should look. Adri sat on the ground with five neighbor children who had gathered in the garden to hear a story. A half-orc, a human, an elf, and two tieflings all sat together. One of the older ones, a tiefling girl about ten years old, was holding Jubilee on her lap and playing with the baby's hands. They laughed at whatever Adri was telling them, the sound carrying into the house. Adri gestured with her hands and Krellyn could tell by her expression that she was changing her voice to match the characters in her tale. That little back yard was filled with peace, joy, laughter, a positive energy so strong it could be touched. As Martain smiled at the view, Krellyn said, "This is what it was all supposed to be for. This is what you and Astiok were trying to do. I understand that, now." Martain continued to look out the window while he grasped Krellyn's shoulder. "I'm glad at least one of us got to experience this." Quietly, Krellyn said, "The Prince of Winds is after her, Martain." "So that's what all that demon nonsense was about back there. Who knew you were coming?" Krellyn frowned. "We talked to no one, but the inn keeper and bartender." Martain nodded his head as he thought about something. "There's been a lot of changes in that little town over the last year or so, including my bartender. A lot of folks moved on and a lot of new folks moved in. My guess is our old enemy figured you'd come to see me eventually. Though it seems to me like he's scraping the bottom of the barrel for help these days." He barked a laugh at that, then asked, "What do you need from me?" "The first thing I need is Astiok's sword. I want you and Adri to go and get it." After a long stunned silence, Martain said, "One: I'm not going back there. And two: I couldn't protect my own wife. What in the hells makes you think I can protect yours? What are you really after, you crazy bastard?" The corner of Krellyn's mouth crawled higher and he turned away from the window to regard Martain. "To start with, I plan to rid myself Elelmin's essence. To do that, I need all the parts, beginning with the sword. As for Adrielen, she is being groomed for Ascension. It could be, she ends up protecting you. We've always trusted each other, Martain. I am asking you to trust me, now. I need you to go back for the sword, and Adri is the best person to have at your side for that." "I don't know your woman very well, but I don't think she's going to like this. That sword's a Godslayer. How's she going to feel about that?" "It doesn't matter. Adri will go where, when, and for what I ask." Martain said, "You're pushing her Ascension, aren't you?" Krellyn remained silent, allowing Martain to think what he wanted. Adrielen's Ascension was only a bonus. He wanted to be rid of Elelmin, but he also had plans to make the Prince of Winds pay. Now that he possessed the realms of Oceans and Weather, he actually trumped the Prince in his own dominion. With the Godslayer in his possession as well, he would slowly take his enemy down, a piece at a time. It would not be enough to simply slay the evil deity. Krellyn fully intended to make him suffer. Martain said, "Yeah. All right. I'll go. But you're an asshole, Krellyn." "See. Some things haven't changed as much as you thought." "How are you going to convince her?" "I know how to deal with Adri." On the outside, Adri was quiet, not wanting to disturb the baby or their guest. Telepathically, she screamed at him. "You expect me to leave Jubilee, and go to some gods-forsaken place to get you a sword! A stupid sword, Krellyn? Are you out of your fucking mind?" She put her hands on Krellyn's shoulders and shoved him. It made her even angrier that her reaction only seemed to amuse him. His own thoughts were always so infuriatingly calm. "It's only going to be for a day at the most. You need to get away for a while, anyway. You have to admit the day to day tedium is wearing on you." He took her wrists in his hands, but she was having none of it and twisted away from him. Her rage pushed her words into her voice, but she kept it to a low hiss. "My life is not tedious. It is not 'wearing' on me. You're just trying to spoon feed me shit so you can get what you want. You want a sword? I'll go into to town and buy you a damn sword, Krellyn." "Astiok's sword is unique, and that's the one that I need. This is important to me, Adri." She was pacing the room, but Krellyn dogged her every step, knowing that his physical nearness ignited her core even when she was angry. On that last sentence she turned to look at his face. The look in his eyes confirmed that it was important to him, but their child was only four months old. "Why do I need to be the one to go? You need the sword. You go get it!" "Because of Martain, Adri. He needs your influence. He needs your hope. I know you can see that in his eyes, hear it in his voice." It was true that Adri sensed Martain's pain and loss. Of course, she wanted to help him if she could, but she was a mother. She needed to stay with Jubilee. "And what if something happens? What if I'm gone longer than a day? Who's going to take care of Jubilee, then?" He cocked his head at her as if she were speaking gibberish. Then he said, "I will, of course." She was not sure why that made her as angry as it did, but she slapped his hand away as he reached for. His dark chuckle made her wet and furious at the same time. She tore open her bodice and lifted her ample breasts. She snarled at him, "Oh, really? Are you going to grow a pair of tits, then?" He just laughed at her, then shrugged and said, "Look. Leave some milk with me, and I'll hire a nurse maid. Then you won't have to worry about it." For the first time since she had known Krellyn, she truly wanted to hit him. Her open palm was up and headed for his face before she realized what she was doing. Krellyn caught her arm in mid swing. His iron fingers clamped around her wrist. He snatched up her other hand and spun her around to lock her wrists together behind her back. He shoved her, and the cold wall was a shock against her bared breasts. She gasped not only from that shock, but from the hot liquid that pooled between her folds. He crushed his body against hers. His breath was hot and fast in her hair. He growled, and she could not stop her own whimper of need. "I don't mind if you wish to strike me, Sweetling. But you will wait until our discussion is concluded." He pressed his erection into her back as he continued with a threat of pleasure, "Be prepared for the consequences." He kept her pinned to the wall and her hands locked, but he moved his head away from hers and took some of the pressure off her back. In her mind he said, "I am her father. You can trust her to me, Adrielen." With his words, she felt his love for her and for Jubilee. She knew that he would keep their baby safe. "Now, will you please do this thing for me?" Krellyn never said please. In that one word, what fight Adri had in her was undone. She would do anything for him, and they both knew it. Through her tears, she said, "Yes, Krellyn." Again, his cock was at her back. His face nuzzled through her hair and she felt the tip of his nose trace her ear lobe. He bit her ear, then whispered, "Do you still wish to strike me, Sweetling?" She could not keep the tremor from her voice as she answered, "No." He released her completely and sighed. "Pity." He stepped away from her, kicked off his boots, and started to remove his shirt. Adri turned and leaned back against the wall. She was still angry, but she had to admit to a certain excitement at the prospect of a quest. It may be that Krellyn sensed the desire in her before she even recognized it herself. Of course, Jubilee would be fine; and it would be good for both father and daughter to spend a day together. Absently, as she was talking herself into being happy with the situation, she started to close up her bodice. "Leave it!" He snapped at her as he slapped her hands away from the lacing. Krellyn grabbed her wrists again, only to pin them hard to either side of her head. His mouth was on hers, a long black tongue roughly shoving past her lips. He pressed his chest against her breasts and ground his cock on her mound. Though he pressed so hard it hurt, though she could feel the bones of her wrists move within his crushing grip, his ferocity only made her hot between her thighs. Moisture gathered with the tightly coiled tension, and Adri forgot about anger and confusion, as everything in her existence narrowed down to her body and his. She cried out as he roughly took her away from the wall and pulled her across the room. With a violent sweep of his arm, Krellyn cleared the top of the writing desk then bent her over it. The duchess in her suggested she should be appalled at such handling, but that small voice was drown out by a beastly lust that demanded to be ravaged. He pushed her into the polished hardwood table with one hand and yanked up her skirts with the other. He issued a snarling growl as he ripped the thin strip of cloth from between her legs. The wild sound sent an electrified tremor down her spine and a flood from her pussy. As Krellyn freed his cock, Adri's feet spread apart of their own volition. He administered a stinging slap to her buttocks, then her hips thrust back to meet the battering ram at her wet and wanting entrance. He took long strokes, letting her feel every inch of his steel shaft. Each time, he pulled almost all of the way out then slowly filled her again with the entirety of his length. He kept one firm hand on her hip to steady her. With the other, he alternated between caressing her ass and slapping it. She closed her eyes and focused on the feel of him inside of her. Her hands tightly gripped the table edge. She gasped and moaned with his every move. Then the hand that had been petting her ass split her cheeks apart and she heard him spit. His saliva spattered between her cheeks and he spread it around with his fingers. His hips continued the long thrusting motions without falter as he circled and massaged her rear hole with a skilled finger. He increased the pace of his hips and inserted first one, then two fingers. When she could tolerate it, he spit again and stretched her with a third finger. The pressure of being completely filled, the friction of Krellyn's steadily increasing thrusts, and the animal grunts that came from the depths of his throat drove Adri's mind from her. She did not realize her own screams of pleasured pain as her dark-elf fucked both her pussy and her ass. She forgot about the hardwood beneath her. She did not even notice when her head hit the wall behind the table, while his slow thrusting became a rapid pounding. She was only aware of the building climax at her core and of Krellyn. His breathing became ragged, grunts turning to loud growls as his cock started to throb. When he slid his free hand around to rub her clit, her orgasm ignited every nerve. While Krellyn's seed pumped into her womb, her own cum gushed and ran down their thighs. With great care, he withdrew from her trembling body, then silently stepped out of the room. Her legs refused to hold her, so Adri lowered herself to the floor where she lay on her side, trying to catch her breath. As she started to calm down, a dull ache began to settle in her nether regions. She watched him as he came back into their room with a bowl of warm water and a cloth. Without a word, he knelt beside her and peeled away her sweat-damp clothes. Then he carried her to the bed where he tended to her. In the aftermath of the rough fucking he had given her, his tenderness in cleaning her was a way he expressed his love for her. He rubbed healing oils into her bruised flesh, and the ache ebbed away. When he finished, he looked into her eyes and finger-combed her hair out of her face before gently kissing her lips. Then he lay down next to her and pulled the sheet over up over them. She said, "I love you, Krellyn." "Be quiet." He patted his chest, and she put her head there. "Go to sleep." "Yes, Krellyn."